World

Pope Leo XIV spoke briefly to reporters this evening as he left Castel Gandolfo to return to Rome, and responded to the latest critical remarks made about him by US President Donald Trump. "The mission of the Church is to proclaim the Gospel, to preach peace," he said. "If someone wants to criticise me for proclaiming the Gospel, let him do so truthfully." Speaking outside Villa Barberini, his re... Read More

Today marks the eve of the feast of Saint George, a moment that carries a special rhythm here in Bethlehem. Every year on May 6, something beautiful unfolds, something that feels both ancient and deeply alive. In our region, the feast is not only a Christian celebration, it is a shared cultural and spiritual gathering. People come from across the area, Muslims and Christians alike, drawn to the Mo... Read More

Pope Leo XIV is due to meet US Secretary of State Marco Rubio at 11.15am on Thursday 7 May at the Vatican's Apostolic Palace. They met once before, following the Mass marking the official beginning of the Pope's pontificate a year ago. US Vice President JD Vance also met the Pope that day. Earlier in the day at 9am the Pope will meet the Prime Minister of Poland, Donald Tusk. Born in Miami, Flor... Read More

A senior Church leader has demanded that the murders and mayhem end in northern Mozambique, after a historic church was reduced to rubble during a jihadist attack. Archbishop Inácio Saure of Nampula, president of the Bishops' Conference of Mozambique, made the plea for peace following the assault on St Louis de Montfort Church in Minhoene village, near Meza, Cabo Delgado Province. He said: "Let ... Read More

The Cambodian Catholic community celebrated the consecration of a new church in the Apostolic Vicariate of Phnom Penh: the Church of St Joseph the Worker, consecrated and opened for worship on 2 May during a solemn Mass presided over by Bishop Olivier Schmitthaeusler, Apostolic Vicar of Phnom Penh, with the participation of numerous priests, religious, and faithful. With these words, the Vicar ex... Read More

Usama Nicola writes from Bethlehem: For nearly an hour, the sky over Bethlehem has been filled with the sound of fighter jets and tankers. It's a sound you don't get used to, no matter how many times it happens. It enters your body, not just your ears. It carries tension, questions, and a quiet fear of what might come next. In moments like this, you realize how fragile "normal life" really is. Ke... Read More

A silent massacre of humanitarian workers is taking place around the world. Once considered the pride of international agencies, in a system that saw aid workers as the spearhead of collaboration between nations to combat hunger, drought, and war, today they are forced to pay a very high price in human lives. In 2025, at least 326 humanitarian workers were killed in 21 countries, bringing the numb... Read More

Cardinal Luis Tagle, Pro-Prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization, has appointed Father Sean O'Leary, CSSp, Director of the Pontifical Mission Societies (PMS) in Taiwan for a five-year term (2026-2031). The new Director of the PMS was born in Ireland in 1967 and belongs to the Congregation of the Holy Spirit, (Spiritans) and was ordained on June 8, 1997. In December 1997, he arrived in Taiwan, ... Read More

A series of events marking the 800th anniversary of the death of St Francis of Assisi will be held in the Kingdom of Bahrain during the 'Year of Isa Al Kabir,' declared by King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa in honour of Sheikh Isa bin Ali Al Khalifa (known as Isa Al Kabir), regarded as the founder of the modern Bahraini state and a key figure in its institutional renewal. The announcement was made in ... Read More

Toine van Teeffelen writes from Bethlehem: On Sunday, Mary and I attend a memorial service, thirty days after the death of a family member. The setting is unusual: the lesser-known Armenian section of the Church of the Nativity. In a side space, wedged between the Greek Orthodox and Roman Catholic sections, stand two Armenian altars. One commemorates the moment when Mary dismounted from the donkey... Read More

The Vatican Observatory announced that four asteroids have been named after important figures in its history - including Pope Leo XIII, who re-founded the organisation in 1891 - in a press release published on Wednesday, April 29. All four asteroids were discovered by Lithuanian astronomer Kazimieras Černis and Vatican Observatory astronomer Father Richard P Boyle, using the Observatory's Vatican... Read More

A 48-year-old French nun working at the French School of Biblical and Archaeological Research in Jerusalem, is recovering from her injuries after she was attacked by a man on Tuesday, near the area of King David's Tomb on Mount Zion. A video shows the man running up behind her, pushing her to the ground, walking away, then returning to kick her before a passerby intervenes. A photo released by Is... Read More

Following a request from His Beatitude Patriarch Polis III Nona, Pope Leo XIV has agreed to grant ecclesiastical communion, "an expression and bond of full communion with the Apostolic See, in common service to unity in the Church and the building up of the Body of Christ." "It is with a heart full of joy that I grant you Ecclesiastical Communion," Pope Leo wrote in a letter addressed to the Patri... Read More

In a new pastoral letter, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem reflects on the war in the Holy Land, saying that the conflict has "brought one era to a close and opened another, doing so in the worst possible way." How should Christians live in the midst of the conflict currently afflicting the Holy Land? That is the question at the heart of the pastoral letter from the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem,... Read More