News of vatican

US official urges Vatican, Pope to condemn human rights abuses in China

Today 10:08 US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo urges Vatican to denounce violations of religious freedom in China, saying the Catholic Church should be at the forefront in the fight to insist on basic human rights there.

CATHOLIC CHURCH

Pope seeks to 'liberate' Virgin Mary from the Mafia

18-09-2020 14:15 Pope Francis gives blessing to new Vatican think tank that seeks to prevent the Mafia and organised crime groups from exploiting the image of the Virgin Mary for their own illicit ends.

CATHOLIC CHURCH

Pleasures of food and sex 'simply divine,' says Pope Francis

09-09-2020 16:50 The pleasures of a well-cooked meal or loving sexual intercourse are "divine" and have unjustly fallen victim to "overzealousness" on the part of the Church in the past, says pontiff.

The Pope & the Pandemic

What happens when pandemic locks down a globe-trotting pope?

30-08-2020 08:37 During the virus crisis, Francis has become a 21st century “prisoner of the Vatican," as one of his predecessors was once known, robbed of the crowds, foreign travel and visits to the peripheries that so defined and popularised his papacy.

CATHOLIC CHURCH

Pope Francis names six women to Vatican economic council

07-08-2020 14:32 Women will serve as lay experts on the 15-member body, which also includes eight cardinals and another male lay expert, the Vatican said in a statement.

CHURCH SEX ABUSE SCANDALS

Argentine bishop resumes work in Holy See as Vatican abuse probe wraps

15-06-2020 15:28 Vatican spokesman confirms Archbishop Gustavo Zanchetta has resumed work in Holy See, but claims it in no way interferes with investigations probing alleged sexual abuse.

EASTER WEEKEND

Pope Francis guides locked-down world through virtual Easter

10-04-2020 09:51 Church doors will be shut and the Vatican sealed off when Pope Francis leads 1.3 billion Catholics in Easter Sunday celebrations held under a worldwide coronavirus lockdown.

lone sermon

Pope faces coronavirus 'tempest' alone in St Peter's Square

27-03-2020 19:17 Pope Francis stood alone in vast Saint Peter's Square Friday to bless Catholics around the world suffering under the coronavirus pandemic, urging people to ease their fears through faith.

Coronavirus outbreak

Vatican suspends investigative mission to Mexico over coronavirus

06-03-2020 17:08 The Vatican suspends a mission to Mexico to investigate clerical abuse due to the inability to travel in the face of coronavirus.

Church Abuse

Vatican sends top two sex crimes investigators to Mexico

03-03-2020 10:42 Mexico, the second-largest Catholic country after Brazil, will be aided by the same investigators who shed light on Chile's extensive church abuse in 2018.

ARGENTINE PONTIFF

Pope cancels visit with Rome priests for 'slight illness'

27-02-2020 12:58 The Vatican said the 83-year-old pontiff had a "slight indisposition" and "preferred to stay" near the hotel where he lives.

Church Abuse

Deaf Argentine abuse survivors target pope with defiant message

19-02-2020 15:33 The victims of the Próvolo Institute are seeking a private meeting with Pope Francis in an effort to bring the perpetrators to justice.

CATHOLIC CHURCH

Ex-Brazil president Lula meets Pope Francis at the Vatican

13-02-2020 17:04 Meeting comes one day after Argentine pontiff released his major document on the Amazon, in which he denounced the destruction of the rain forest and the exploitation of indigenous peoples.

CHURCH ABUSE SCANDALS

Deaf Próvolo child abuse victims accuse Pope Francis of inaction

13-02-2020 14:49 The victims, represented by the global organisation Ending Clergy Abuse, have requested a public audience with the Argentine pontiff.

Dueling Popes

Seven years after stepping down, Benedict fuels 'two popes' headache

11-02-2020 13:10 The "emeritus" Pope Benedict XVI, who is a co-author on an upcoming book that decries the topic of married priests, has created tension in the unprecedented situation at the Vatican.

ETHICAL ECONOMICS

Pope Francis warns of 'unbearable sacrifices' caused by debt

05-02-2020 16:17 The Catholic leader spoke before IMF leaders and Economy Minister Martin Guzmán, expressing concern about the social costs of massive debt. In addition, he warned of the consequences of the separation of the financial and real economies.

Catholic Church Abuse

Pope defrocks fellow Argentine priest Roberto Yannuzzi

05-02-2020 15:27 Yannuzzi stands accused of abusing his power by having sex with adults under his authority.

POPE & THE PRESIDENT

President Fernández meets with Pope Francis at the Vatican

31-01-2020 10:08 President and pontiff speak for about 45 minutes in Francis' private library, as Frente de Todos leader's first stop on European tour.

Diplomacy

María Fernanda Silva to be Argentina's new ambassador to Vatican

30-01-2020 14:41 Catholic and the first Afro-descendant woman of the Argentine foreign service, according to local reports, Silva will be the first woman to occupy the role.

Alberto and the Pope

Alberto Fernández lands in Rome as Euro tour begins

30-01-2020 13:56 Peronist leader begins his trek across Europe, where he is expected to lobby various heads of states to support his debt renegotiation plan – and meet a fellow Argentine at the Holy See.

Alberto's European tour

Fernández to chase IMF votes on upcoming Europe trip

27-01-2020 13:38 President will make stops in Italy, Germany, Spain, and France, with bilateral meetings with the heads of states of each country scheduled.

CATHOLIC CHURCH

Pope's new aide is Uruguayan priest who worked with street kids

27-01-2020 11:50 Argentine pontiff has known the Reverend Gonzalo Aemilius since 2006 when Francis was then archbishop of Buenos Aires.

DIPLOMACY

Casa Rosada puts brakes on Vatican ambassador nomination

16-01-2020 21:05 Career diplomat Luis Bellando’s nomination – which had already been submitted – withdrawn. Initial reports suggest Holy See rejected on grounds envoy was divorced, but deeper dive reveals a more complex panorama.

Vatican controversy

Retired Pope Benedict distances himself from book on priest celibacy

14-01-2020 16:38 Pope Benedict XVI's co-authorship of new book defending priestly celibacy, despite failed attempt to remove name from cover, creates tension in the Vatican.

THE PRESIDENT & THE PONTIFF

Fernández to meet Pope Francis at Vatican on January 31

14-01-2020 16:33 The meeting – the first between the two since Fernández assumed the presidency – will take place on Friday, January 31 at 11am local time (around 7am in Argentina).

First Lady

First lady Fabiola Yáñez visits Pope Francis at the Vatican

13-12-2019 19:10 As her first diplomatic engagement abroad, the first lady travels to Rome to meet with Pope Francis at the seat of the Catholic Church.

Abortion debate

Ex-ambassador to the Vatican: 'Abortion will be legal in Argentina'

27-11-2019 08:00 Mercosur Parliament lawmaker Eduardo Valdés says he finds the debate over the legalisation of abortion to be “archaic” and predicts it will be legalised in the coming years.

Pope Francis

Pope Francis: It's looking 'difficult' to travel to Argentina in 2020

13-11-2019 14:24 "I have other trips planned," says pontiff. Since assuming the papacy in 2013, Argentine has yet to visit his homeland.

VATICAN CEREMONY

Argentine, British bishops exchange statuettes of Our Lady of Luján at Vatican

30-10-2019 13:23 Pope Francis appeared to wipe away tears on Wednesday, during an emotional ceremony that saw Argentina and Britain make powerful gesture of reconciliation, 37 years on from the war between the two nations.

CATHOLIC CHURCH

Pope Francis' bodyguard resigns over leak scandal

14-10-2019 11:50 Argentine pontiff said to be furious over publication of internal police notice which featured the photographs of five Vatican employees – including two senior figures – targeted in a probe reportedly into a real estate deal.

CATHOLIC CHURCH

Pope describes attacks by US Catholic critics as 'an honour'

04-09-2019 15:57 The ultra-conservative wing of the church in the United States frequently takes aim at Francis, saying he is not outspoken enough on abortion, too compassionate towards homosexuals and divorcees, and too accommodating towards Muslims.

CHURCH ABUSE SCANDAL

Victims speak out as Próvolo Institute abuse trial begins in Mendoza

10-08-2019 12:17 Some 20 ex-students say they were sexually abused, including cases of rape, by two priests between 2004 and 2016. On Monday, two Catholic priests stood in the dock in Mendoza, charged with 28 alleged crimes, including rape and sexual abuse.

Vatican Mystery

Missing teen mystery deepens as Vatican dig reveals empty graves

11-07-2019 17:20 The body of Emanuela Orlandi, an Italian teenager who disappeared 36 years ago, was expected to be in the grave. The tombs did not even hold the skeletons of the two princesses supposed to be buried there.

SEX ABUSE SCANDAL

Pope: Argentine bishop accused of abuse is now facing Vatican trial

28-05-2019 17:27 Pontiff says he received the results of a preliminary investigation into Bishop Gustavo Zanchetta two weeks ago and ordered the case be handed over for trial by a Church tribunal.