Catholic Church

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Beleaguered Venezuela Celebrates Its First Saints

Revered 'doctor of the poor' and founder of religious order are canonized by Pope Leo

(Newser) - Pope Leo XIV canonized Venezuela's beloved "doctor of the poor" Sunday before 70,000 people at the Vatican, offering the South American nation its first saint and a reason to celebrate during its yearslong economic crisis and new tensions with the US . José Gregorio Hernández, revered by...

Vatican Is Putting Famous Artist on Trial

Ex-Jesuit Marko Rupnik is accused of abusing more than two dozen women

(Newser) - The Vatican took the unusual step on Monday of announcing that it had named judges to decide the fate of a famous ex-Jesuit artist, whose mosaics decorate basilicas around the world and who was accused by more than two dozen women of sexual, spiritual, and psychological abuse. The case of...

Catholic Church Has Its First Millennial Saint

Pope Leo presides over canonization of Carlo Acutis

(Newser) - Carlo Acutis—a tech-savvy teen who used the internet to spread faith—has become the Catholic Church's first millennial saint . Pope Leo XIV on Sunday presided over the canonization of Carlo Acutis, reports the Guardian . Acutis, who died in 2006 at age 15 from leukemia, gained recognition for...

Church's Next Generation Holds Slumber Party, Greets Pope

Hundreds of thousands of young Catholics swamp Rome for celebration

(Newser) - Hundreds of thousands of young Catholics poured into a vast field on Rome's outskirts on Saturday for the weekend highlight of the Vatican's 2025 Holy Year: an evening vigil, outdoor slumber party, and morning Mass celebrated by Pope Leo XIV that marks his first big encounter with the...

Excavation in Ireland May Reveal a Dark Secret

Hundreds of children believed to have died at home for unwed mothers run by Catholic nuns

(Newser) - Excavators began digging Monday at a nondescript site in western Ireland, and they're expected to unearth an unmarked mass grave that speaks to a dark chapter in the nation's history. The site in Tuam, County Galway, is believed to hold the remains of hundreds of infants and...

California Bishop Suspends Mass Obligation Over ICE Fears

Catholics are generally obligated by their faith to attend Mass on Sundays

(Newser) - San Bernardino Bishop Alberto Rojas, who leads more than 1.5 million Catholics in Southern California, has formally excused parishioners from their weekly obligation to attend Mass following immigration detentions on two parish properties in the diocese, the AP reports. The dispensation is a move usually reserved for extenuating circumstances,...

Pope Leo Reaffirms That Priests Must Stay 'Chaste'

Pontiff also calls on bishops to take 'firm and decisive' action when dealing with sex abusers

(Newser) - Pope Leo XIV affirmed Wednesday that priests should stay celibate and insisted that bishops take "firm and decisive" action to deal with sex abusers, as he gave marching orders Wednesday to the world's Catholic hierarchs. Leo offered his message during a meeting in St. Peter's Basilica with...

Poll Measures Americans' Views as Pope's Reign Begins

Many reserve judgment, but Leo's favorability ratings in US are high

(Newser) - Just over a month after Leo XIV became the first US-born pope in the history of the Roman Catholic Church, a new poll shows that American Catholics are feeling excited about their new religious leader. About two-thirds of respondents have a "very" or "somewhat" favorable view of Pope...

In Two Months, Church Gets Its First Millennial Saint

Pope Leo sets aside Sept. 7 for the late Carlo Acutis of Italy

(Newser) - The Catholic Church will get its first millennial saint in September. Pope Leo XIV has set Sept. 7 as the date to canonize Carlo Acutis, an Italian teen who died in 2006 at age 15 from leukemia. He has since become enormously popular, especially among young Catholics who have been...

SCOTUS Rules Catholic Charity Should Be Tax Exempt

Ruling may impact tax status of religiously affiliated nonprofits nationwide

(Newser) - In a third unanimous decision of the day, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of granting a tax exemption to a Wisconsin Catholic charity that could reshape how religiously-affiliated nonprofits nationwide are treated under the law, per the AP . The ruling addresses whether charitable work rooted in faith deserves...

Top Concern on Pope Leo's Mind: Artificial Intelligence

New pontiff laid out his vision for the Catholic Church on Saturday, citing the late Francis

(Newser) - Pope Leo XIV laid out the vision of his papacy on Saturday, identifying artificial intelligence as one of the most critical matters facing humanity and vowing to continue some of the core priorities of the late Pope Francis. In his first formal audience, Leo repeatedly cited the Argentine pope's...

The Catholic Church Has a New Pope
The Catholic Church
Has a New Pope
May 8, 2025 11:18 AM CDT

The Catholic Church Has a New Pope

No name announced yet, but white smoke signals a successor to Francis

(Newser) - White smoke is pouring out of the Sistine Chapel chimney, signaling that a pope has been elected to lead the Catholic Church, per the AP . That means the winner secured at least 89 votes of the 133 cardinals participating in the conclave to elect a successor to Pope Francis. The...

More Black Smoke: No Pope After 2 Votes

Cardinals will try again in a few hours

(Newser) - Black smoke poured from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel on Thursday, meaning cardinals failed to pick a pope in their second round of voting, reports NBC News . They will try again at 11:30am Eastern.
  • No surprise: Modern popes are rarely selected in the first or second round, notes
...

One Cardinal's Essential Conclave Item: a Book

Cardinal Timothy Dolan explains there is a lot of quiet downtime

(Newser) - It could be hours—or days—before a group of 133 cardinals manages to select a pope, reports Fox News . Cardinal Timothy Dolan will be one of them, and has some straightforward advice for cardinals who haven't experienced a papal conclave before: pack a book. Dolan, speaking Tuesday,...

After the Conclave, Watch for the New Pope's Name

It could send a signal about his intentions toward the papacy

(Newser) - Some 135 cardinals will enter the Sistine Chapel on Wednesday to presumably elevate one of their own to the papacy. When the white smoke blows, signaling the election of a new pope, the world will watch not only the man who emerges in his new white cassock, but also the...

In Rome, Nuns Are Gathering, Too
In Rome, Nuns
Are Gathering, Too
May 5, 2025 8:04 AM CDT

In Rome, Nuns Are Gathering, Too

Meeting of 'superiors' coincides with death of Francis

(Newser) - As cardinals prepare to gather in the Sistine Chapel to select the next pope, another assembly is underway just miles away: Nearly 900 leaders of female Catholic religious orders are meeting in Rome. These superiors—representing over 450,000 nuns globally—opened their plenary assembly Monday with a call...

The Conclave Is Set
The Conclave Is Set
Apr 28, 2025 8:09 AM CDT

The Conclave Is Set

Cardinals will sequester themselves on May 7 to pick a successor to Pope Francis

(Newser) - The start date is set to pick a new pope. How long it will take remains anyone's guess. Catholic cardinals said Monday that their conclave to select Pope Francis' successor will begin on May 7, reports the AP . The cardinals delayed the secret voting for two days to...

The Acting Pope Is an Irish-Born US Citizen

Cardinal Kevin Farrell is the acting head of the Vatican until a new pope is elected

(Newser) - Following Pope Francis' death Monday at age 88, the Vatican will have an acting head until a new pontiff is chosen during the conclave process. That acting head, or camerlengo, is Cardinal Kevin Farrell, who was born in Dublin, Ireland, and ultimately became a naturalized US citizen, NPR reports. Francis...

The Beloved Pope Francis Did Have 'Many Critics'

The progressive pontiff sometimes butted heads with conservative clergy

(Newser) - Pope Francis was being remembered as a beloved leader of the Catholic Church following his death Monday at age 88, but the pontiff was not without his critics over the years since he was elected pope in 2013. A look at some of them:
  • Conservative US Catholics: As the New
...

Every Night, Pope Called a Small Church in Gaza

Francis asked Palestinian Catholics 'to be strong'

(Newser) - Hours after the Israel-Hamas war began in October 2023, the only Catholic church in Gaza received a call from Rome. It was the first of what became nightly discussions between the parishioners of Holy Family Church and Pope Francis, Reuters reports. The pope "always healed our wounds and asked...

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