News & Commentary

Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, who has chosen the papal name Leo XIV, appears on the central balcony of St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican May 8, 2025, following his election during the conclave.

World leaders warmly welcome Pope Leo XIV as messenger of peace

World leaders warmly congratulated Pope Leo XIV on his election and exhorted him to work toward peace in an increasingly conflictive word.
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Syriac Catholic patriarch says situation in Syria ‘humanly unbearable’

The Syriac Catholic patriarch said the situation in Syria "continues to be humanly unbearable and devastating" and risks emptying the war-torn country of its Christian community for good.
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US bishop echoes cardinal’s call for prayers for Chinese people

The chairman of the US bishops' Committee on International Justice and Peace invited Catholics in the United States to offer prayers for the people of China and the well-being of the Catholic Church in that country May 23-30.
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Franciscan leaders urge ‘boldness’ by U.S. to end violence in Holy Land

The Franciscan order's six U.S. provincials told President Joe Biden in a joint letter May 19 that "now is the time for boldness to end the immediate violence" in the Holy Land.
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Archbishop Cordileone responds to Pelosi remarks on Cardinal Ladaria letter

San Francisco's archbishop said May 17 that the "positive reaction" House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has expressed about a Vatican official's letter to the U.S. bishops about Catholic politicians who support abortion receiving Communion "raises hope that progress can be made ...
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Pope appeals for peace in Holy Land, says death of children ‘unacceptable’

The injury and death of so many innocent people, especially children, caused by escalating violence between Israel and the Gaza Strip is “terrible and unacceptable,” putting the area at risk of sinking into “a spiral of death and destruction,” Pope ...
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High court to hear major abortion case from Mississippi in its next term

The U.S. Supreme Court said in a May 17 order that it will hear oral arguments during its next term on a 2018 Mississippi abortion law banning most abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy.
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