When Pope Francis first appeared to the world on the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica, he humbly requested that the faithful “pray for me.” Those simple words became the punctuation marks of his pontificate, as he ended practically all his speeches, greetings, weekly benedictions and casual conversations with the appeal. …
Since being hospitalized with acute pneumonia for two weeks, Pope Francis has signed off on the appointment of 20 bishops, accepted the resignations of at least four and approved moving five people along the road to sainthood, according to the daily bulletin on the Vatican website. Some of the events …
In the days after the Vatican announced on Feb. 6 that Pope Francis had bronchitis and would be restricting his activities to his residence, he proceeded to hold multiple private audiences a day with groups of nuns, pilgrims and leaders of foundations. On Feb. 9, he presided over an outdoor …
The Archdiocese of New Orleans was facing a crisis. A sex-abuse scandal was bursting into public view, sending shock waves through the heavily Catholic city. Leaders of one of New Orleans’s other major institutions, the N.F.L.’s New Orleans Saints, were concerned. Gayle Benson, the team’s owner, is a devout Catholic, …
It’s a common complaint that Rome’s churches are overwhelming: There are too many, they look too much alike, their gilt and marble often speak more to the eye than the soul. During the Jubilee year of 2025, when some 30 million Catholic pilgrims are expected to flock to the Eternal …