Pope Francis

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Vatican: It's OK to Get Vaccine That Used Abortion Cell Lines

It rolled out the guidance on Monday

(Newser) - The Vatican on Monday declared that it is “morally acceptable” for Roman Catholics to receive COVID-19 vaccines based on research that used fetal tissue from abortions. The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the Vatican's watchdog office for doctrinal orthodoxy, said it had received several requests for...

After Scandals, Pope Revamps Vatican's Finance Intel Unit

It's part of pontiff's efforts to prevent and counter 'money laundering and the financing of terrorism'

(Newser) - Pope Francis has revamped the Holy See's financial intelligence and anti-money-laundering unit following financial scandals, including an ongoing in-house corruption probe, Vatican officials said Saturday. The changes involve the governance and organization of the unit, which has been renamed the Supervisory and Financial Information Authority, or ASIF, the Vatican...

Pope Speaks on COVID, and What 'Changed the Way I Saw Life'

In 'NYT' op-ed, pontiff writes that personal freedoms shouldn't displace the common good

(Newser) - When Pope Francis was 21, he became very sick with a flu that had him gasping for breath and totally dependent on his caretakers. He eventually recovered, but that illness "changed the way I saw life," and it now serves as an important reminder to him that only...

Pope Praises NBA Players for Demanding Racial Justice

5 players met Pope Francis at the Vatican

(Newser) - Pope Francis met with NBA players at the Vatican on Monday, lauding them as “champions" and saying he supported their work on social justice. The five players—Marco Belinelli, Sterling Brown, Jonathan Isaac, Kyle Korver, and Anthony Tolliver—were joined in the delegation by three NBA players' union executives....

Wasn't Me, Says the Pope After 'Like' of Risque Photo

The Holy See wants some answers from Instagram

(Newser) - Of all the "likes" on a racy photo posted by Brazilian model Natalia Garibotto, one stood out. It came from Franciscus, which just happens to be the Instagram account of none other than Pope Francis, reports the Catholic News Agency . The "like" disappeared when CNA asked the Vatican...

Vatican Report: John Paul II to Blame for McCarrick's Rise

Probe into disgraced cardinal lets Pope Francis off the hook, blames other bishops, cardinals, popes

(Newser) - A Vatican probe into ex-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick has found that a series of bishops, cardinals, and even popes downplayed or dismissed reports he slept with seminarians, and determined that Pope Francis merely continued his predecessors' naive handling of the predator until a former altar boy alleged abuse. The Vatican took...

That's Not Quite What the Pope Meant: Vatican

Two answers on same-sex civil unions confusingly became one, letter tells bishops

(Newser) - Pope Francis' comments endorsing civil unions for same-sex couples really didn't, the Vatican says. A letter has been sent out saying that the film Francesco took the pope's answers in a 2019 interview out of context, putting two answers to different questions together to leave the impression that...

Pope Assigns Blame to 'This Lady Called COVID'

He says it while apologizing for not going into the crowd to greet people

(Newser) - Pope Francis has blamed "this lady called COVID" for forcing him to keep his distance again from the faithful during his general audience. Francis again eschewed a protective mask Wednesday, and while the prelates wore masks throughout the hourlong audience, they took them off when they lined up to...

Pope Francis Announces a Surprise First

Names DC Archbishop Wilton Gregory a new cardinal, the first Black American in a red hat

(Newser) - Pope Francis on Sunday named 13 new cardinals, including Washington, DC, Archbishop Wilton Gregory, who would become the first Black US prelate to earn the coveted red hat. In a surprise announcement from his studio window, Francis said the churchmen would be elevated to a cardinal’s rank in a...

New Twist in Story of Pope's Remarks on Same-Sex Unions

Vatican removed quote from 2019 interview footage, sources say

(Newser) - Somebody at the Vatican apparently didn't want the world to hear Pope Francis' thoughts on same-sex civil unions . It emerged Thursday that the pontiff's statement of support for civil unions, which kicked off a major controversy when new documentary Francesco premiered Wednesday, was made during a 2019 interview...

A Film That Premiered Today Holds Big Statement From Pope

In it, Francis endorses same-sex civil unions for the first time as pope

(Newser) - Pope Francis endorsed same-sex civil unions for the first time as pope while being interviewed for the feature-length documentary Francesco, which had its premiere at the Rome Film Festival on Wednesday. The papal thumbs-up came midway through the film that delves into issues Francis cares about most, including the environment,...

Trump Not the Only World Leader Not Wearing a Mask

Pope Francis seen kissing priests at Vatican event without mask on

(Newser) - Pope Francis is back giving out kisses without a mask as coronavirus cases rise across Italy. The 83-year-old—who lost part of a lung during a childhood illness—was seen kissing the hands of newly-ordained priests during a general audience in Vatican City on Wednesday, reports the Daily Beast . He...

Pope Lays Out His Vision for Post-COVID World

He released a new encyclical, Fratelli Tutti (Brothers All)

(Newser) - Pope Francis says the coronavirus pandemic has proven that the “magic theories” of market capitalism have failed and that the world needs a new type of politics that promotes dialogue and solidarity and rejects war at all costs. Francis on Sunday laid out his vision for a post-COVID world...

Vatican Tells Pompeo He Can't Meet Pope

He met some of the pontiff's critics instead

(Newser) - Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was denied an audience with Pope Francis during his visit to the Vatican this week—but he was welcomed by the pontiff's critics. Vatican officials said it is normal for the pope not to meet political figures during election periods, though they also expressed...

Cardinal Abruptly Steps Down: 'Why Are You Doing This to Me?'

Giovanni Angelo Becciu says Pope Francis forced him to step down amid financial scandal allegations

(Newser) - An abrupt resignation shook Rome Thursday, with a high-ranking Vatican official who was involved in a controversial luxury real estate deal stepping down. "The Holy Father accepted the resignation from the office of Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints and from the rights connected to the...

Hear the Calls for Change, Pope Urges
Hear the
Calls for
Change,
Pope Urges

Hear the Calls for Change, Pope Urges

Francis has sent the Vatican's foreign minister to Belarus

(Newser) - Pope Francis urged political leaders to listen to protesters and heed their calls for political and social change, an apparent reference to protests in Belarus against the country's authoritarian president. Francis didn't mention Belarus or any country in his appeal Sunday during his noontime prayer, but his comments...

Pope: Gossip Is 'Plague Worse Than COVID'

'The greatest talker is the devil'

(Newser) - There are going on 900,000 dead from the coronavirus around the globe, but Pope Francis said Sunday that gossiping is a “plague worse than COVID” that is seeking to divide the Catholic Church, reports the AP . Francis strayed from his prepared text to double down on his frequent...

Pope on George Floyd: Abortion Isn't the Only 'Life' Issue

Francis implores Catholics—US Catholics especially—to pay attention to racism

(Newser) - Cardinals black and white have spoken out about George Floyd's death, and the Vatican’s communications juggernaut has shifted into overdrive to draw attention to the cause he now represents, per the AP . Last week, Pope Francis denounced the "sin of racism" and twice identified Floyd as the...

Faithful Return to St. Peter's Square

Faithful return for the first time since March

(Newser) - Well-spaced faithful have gathered in St. Peter’s Square for the first time in months for the traditional Sunday papal blessing, reports the AP . They cast their gaze at the window where the pope normally addresses the faithful. Pope Francis has been delivering the blessing from inside the Apostolic library...

Vatican Has Pope's Joke Cut From Documentary

It was a good-humored moment involving scotch whisky

(Newser) - Scotch whisky is "the real holy water," Pope Francis joked when a group of student priests from Scotland presented him with a bottle—but Vatican censors didn't laugh when they saw the footage. The moment when the seminarians presented Francis with a bottle of Oban 14 malt...

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