vatican

The Vatican is training more priests in the process of performing exorcisms, as demand for the ancient rite is on the rise, Columbus, Ohio’s WBNS-TV reports. Father Vincent Lambert from Brookville, Indiana, seems to have unwittingly become the face of exorcism in his part of the Midwest. He spent three months in Rome, training in […]

The Catholic Church has a secret document that lays out instructions for priests who father children in spite of their vows of celibacy, CBS News is reporting. The document specifically states that such a priest must first consider the needs of the child over his devotion to the Church. For 900 years, the Church has […]

The research team from the Turin Shroud Center of Colorado (TSC) in Colorado Springs, recreated a crucifixion using the Shroud of Turin as a guide to scientifically prove its authenticity, Science Magazine reported. The Shroud of Turin is a long piece of cloth with the image of Jesus imprinted on it. It was first discovered […]

Donald Trump made an appeal to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi’s devout Catholic faith to try and convince Democrats to approve his proposal for $5.6 billion to fund the building of a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border, according to a New York Times report. Trump, who has refused to reopen the government as the […]

North Korea’s Kim Jong-un has invited Pope Francis to visit his country, according to the South Korean presidential office. As reported by BBC News, Kim’s invitation to Pope Francis to visit Pyongyang will be officially delivered by South Korea’s President Moon Jae-in, who will be in the Vatican next week. Moon will embark on a […]

Pope Francis has called for a meeting of bishops around the world in wake of new allegations in the long-running Catholic clerical sexual abuse crisis and cover-up charges facing church leaders, The New York Times reported Wednesday. The global religious conference, scheduled to run from Feb. 21 to Feb. 24 in Vatican City, is being […]

Pope Francis has been surrounded by controversy lately. Recently, Inquisitr reported that he was accused by former Vatican official Carlo Maria Viganò of hiding evidence of sexual abuse and misconduct. Now, according to The Guardian, the Vatican has removed a comment by the pope from their website. The comment recommended that parents seek psychiatric help […]

According to CBS News, former Vatican ambassador Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano released a statement on Sunday, claiming that Pope Francis was aware of numerous abuse allegations as far back as 2013 and specifically chose not to seek any further action. In addition, Vigano is subsequently calling for the Pope’s immediate resignation. In his statement, Vigano […]

According to CNN, the Vatican finally broke its silence on the Pennsylvania grand jury report on Thursday, which accuses more than 300 Catholic priests of child sexual abuse, dating all the way back to 1947. In response to the detailed report indicating decades of abuse and cover-ups by priests and bishops in the Catholic church, […]

Carlo Alberto Capella, a Catholic priest and former Vatican diplomat to the United States, was sentenced to five years in jail for possessing child pornography in a Vatican court today, Reuters news agency reports. In his own words, Capella had developed a “morbid” desire while acting as a diplomat in Vatican’s Washington embassy. The priest […]

Retired Cardinal Theodore McCarrick led the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C., from 2001 to 2006. Today he revealed that he has been instructed not to publicly exercise his priestly ministry or activity until a final decision is made related to charges of sex abuse that have been brought against him. The instruction was given to him […]

In his annual speech to diplomats commonly known as the Pope’s “State of the World” address, Pope Francis highlighted serious issues concerning climate change, Jerusalem’s status quo, child labor, and the heating tension in the Korean peninsula. The Pope calls on diplomats to support all dialogues “to overcome current disputes and find new ways to […]

Pope Francis has once again proven that he is the “People’s Pope” after telling mothers of newly baptized children to breastfeed their babies at the Sistine Chapel if the need arises. The 266th Pope of the Catholic Church has made yet another statement that differentiates him from his predecessors as he urged mothers of 34 […]

Pope John Paul II spoke of a vision he received about the future of Europe that a Vatican confidant has now revealed in a lecture celebrating the Pope’s memory. Monsignor Mauro Longhi, who often accompanied Pope John Paul II on hiking trips when he was a student, suggested that the pontiff revealed this prophecy to […]

This week a Vatican-sanctioned journal published a controversial article that rebukes American Catholics for entering into an allegiance of “hate” with fundamentalist Evangelicals. The paper, authored by close allies of Pope Francis, describes Evangelicals – including multiple members of Trump’s cabinet – as “new crusaders” whose holy grail, so to speak, would be to “submit […]

Gluten-free communion has been disapproved by the Vatican as the Catholic Church deemed ingredients other than wheat to be invalid according to strict guidelines for the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist. On July 8, the Vatican Radio announced the Church’s decision on gluten-free bread used for communion, the Tech Times reported on Wednesday. Citing a […]

It’s been a rough few days for the Catholic Church. First, Australian Cardinal George Pell — the third-ranking official in the Holy See — was charged with sexual abuse after the police received several complaints from alleged victims. Pope Francis made a statement by refusing to have the Vatican pay for Cardinal Pell’s attorney fees, […]

First Lady Melania Trump and President Donald Trump met with Pope Francis at the Vatican’s Apostolic Palace on Wednesday. The Trumps were accompanied by First Daughter Ivanka Trump and her husband, Jared Kushner. For their first official visit to the Vatican, Melania and Ivanka wore coordinating black outfits that were quickly ridiculed on social media. […]

First Lady Melania Trump has revealed that she is a practicing Catholic. Melania revealed her Catholic faith after a private audience with Pope Francis at the Vatican on Wednesday. When she moves into the White House with her son Barron this summer, Melania, according to reports, will be the first Catholic to officially live in […]

First Lady Melania Trump chose to stick to Vatican tradition by wearing a black dress and a traditional black lace mantilla or veil when she met with Pope Francis at the Vatican on Wednesday. Melania met with Pope Francis after arriving in Italy on Tuesday with her husband, President Donald Trump. Melania wore a black […]

For today’s Easter Sunday mass at the Vatican, Pope Francis broke with tradition and gave an improvised homily, in which he insisted that Jesus Christ’s resurrection “is not a fantasy” and acknowledged that in the midst of so much evil and suffering in the world, many tend to wonder where God is. According to Crux, […]

This year’s SXSW (South by Southwest) Conference and Festivals will have an interesting pool of attendees as the Vatican and other AI experts are expected to join in. SXSW has always been popular for its star-studded stages. Since this is an event where the film, music, and tech industries collide, it is normal to see […]

Pope Francis has come under heavy criticism from sex abuse survivors and church officials, including some of his senior advisers who revealed that he quietly reduced penalties for some pedophile priests reportedly as part of his application of his vision of a “merciful church.” But the decision backlashed against him recently when one of the […]

Pope Francis, the head of the Roman Catholic Church with more than 1.2 billion members worldwide, has caused a stir by saying that “many” of his church members lead a “hypocritical double-life.” The Roman Catholic pontiff warned people who claim to be Christians but live a hypocritical double lives that it would be better if […]

Fast food chain giant McDonald’s is opening right next to the Vatican and not a lot of people are happy with this change. The announcement for a McDonald’s was revealed in October last year, and the lease was approved by the Vatican agency, Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See (APAS). When it was […]

On Dec. 24, 2016, Pope Francis spoke live from the Vatican, where he held Midnight Mass. The service lasted nearly two hours, and you can see photos and the full video below. The Midnight Mass was translated into English during the live service as well as online. You may read the full transcript in English […]

The Vatican has made a few changes to the guidelines pertaining to cremation. While the Church still considers burning the remains of the loved ones to be a “brutal destruction” of the body, it has added several more caveats to the procedure. Timed to coincide with Halloween and “All Souls Day,” which falls on November […]

Pope Francis spoke with reporters on the papal plane on a return flight back from Armenia, where he said that the Roman Catholic Church and Christians should seek forgiveness from homosexuals for the way they’ve been treated. According to a Reuters report, Pope Francis said that homosexuals “should not be discriminated against. They should be […]

Pope Francis has rejected a donation of over a million dollars, in part because the numbers 666 — which the Bible calls “the number of the Beast” — appear in the sum, the Guardian is reporting. To be fair, there were other reasons for the Pope’s rejection of the donation, and the “666” part, as […]

On Saturday, Pope Francis issued a decree strengthening laws that will allow for the removal of bishops that are found to be covering up sex abuse cases involving children or vulnerable adults within the church. Under pressure from families of victims lobbying for Pope Francis to protect the victims and punish the abusers, and facing […]

A president of a well-known and prestigious Catholic high school in Long Island, New York, has been suspended from practicing as a priest since an investigation has found that allegations of sexual abuse brought against him are, in fact, “credible.” Fmr. Pres. of Chaminade H.S. Father James Williams suspended after “credible” allegations he sexually abused […]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LCM7s6-rXk Bernie Sanders got a movie star welcome upon his arrival at the Vatican. As he walked past the walls, Sanders was greeted with a swarm of reporters, and a crowd of enthusiastic onlookers began to chant, “Bernie! Bernie! Bernie!” Sanders took the time to greet people, some of whom were expats living in Europe. […]

Bernie Sanders is headed to Vatican City as soon as he finishes debating Hillary Clinton on April 14. Just days prior to his trip, Sanders opened up about Pope Francis and praised the Catholic leader for the stance he has taken to fight poverty throughout the world. Sanders will leave just days before the prized […]

On Friday morning, Bernie Sanders appeared on MSNBC’s Morning Joe program and announced he’d been invited to the Vatican to meet with a group of papal scholars. The event is a meeting of the “Centesimus Annus: 25 Years Later,” which addresses humanitarian topics. Sanders will take a break from campaigning to visit the Vatican a […]

Pope Francis washed and kissed the feet of 12 immigrants during the Holy Thursday celebrations, hoping the gesture will heal the world of bad blood. Instead of St. Peter’s Basilica, the pope preferred a refugee shelter outside Rome in Castelnuovo di Porto to celebrate the symbolic foot-washing ceremony ahead of Easter. The solemn event stood […]

Pope Francis took the stage today in a landmark visit to a Rome synagogue in a show of interfaith solidarity, according to a report from the Vancouver Sun. While there, referencing recent religiously-motivated attacks and hate crimes around the world, the Pope spoke out against all violence inspired by religion, condemning it all equally. He […]

Possible mild spoilers ahead for Star Wars: The Force Awakens… though, it now seems that the majority of the planet has seen the film. At any rate… In an interesting twist, the Vatican has slammed Star Wars: The Force Awakens for not being dark enough. It might surprise a lot of people to find out […]

The Vatican has declared that Catholics should not attempt to convert Jews and should instead work alongside them to try and fight anti-Semitism. A new document that has been created by the Vatican’s Commission for Religious Relations with Jews has underlined more recent teachings from the church that Catholics and Jews were inextricably linked since […]

The Vatican is strongly denying a report in an Italian newspaper that Pope Francis has a small, curable brain tumor, the Philadelphia Inquirer is reporting. This week, Italian tabloid Quatidiano Nazionale (The Daily National) published the attention-grabbing headline “Pope Francis Is Sick,” citing unnamed sources that claimed the Pontiff had been diagnosed with a curable […]

Pope Francis made history Wednesday when he canonized Junipero Serra, the newest Catholic saint, during Mass at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington. Canonization of the 18th century Franciscan friar, credited with spreading Christianity in California and founding the historic chain of missions still standing today, is intended to […]

Pope Francis, head of the Catholic Church, has reportedly declined an invitation to dine with U.S. lawmakers in Washington D.C. and chosen instead to dine — after his speech to Congress tomorrow — with about 300 of the capital city’s homeless. According to the International Business Times, the pontiff was expected to have lunch with […]

Pope Francis departed from Rome Saturday on the way to Cuba, where he is stopping briefly before traveling to the United States for the first time since he was declared pope in March of 2013, reported CNN. “In both countries, Francis will attempt to stay above the partisan fray, according to Catholic officials. But they […]

Pope Francis visits Cuba and celebrates mass at Havana’s Revolution Plaza attracting hundreds of thousands of people, both Catholics and non-Catholics, on Sunday. The Holy Father’s controversial trip to Cuba, comes ahead of a much-anticipated and equally controversial trip to the United States. The Vatican played a central role in negotiations that ended the decades […]

The term “Sexual Rights” has been officially adopted by the United States Government to categorize a number of issues, both domestic and abroad. Sexual Rights will now be the umbrella term under which human rights and global development are concerned, it was announced last week at the United Nations. This official change has occurred because […]

The Vatican has declared that transgender people will not be recognized as godparents by the Catholic Church. The church claims that the decision is not based on discrimination, but on the fact that transgender people cannot fulfill all the duties that a godparent is required to conduct. The stance on transgenders as godparents was raised […]

Pope Francis has made a controversial decision regarding his visit to Bolivia on July 8 by stating that he plans to sample leaves from the Coca plant, the raw ingredient in cocaine. Although he will not be sampling the illicit drug, the leaves of the Coca plant are known to be mild stimulants. Metro U.K. […]

Archbishop John Nienstedt, the archbishop of St. Paul and Minneapolis, and Auxiliary Bishop Lee Piché resigned on Monday in the aftermath of a sexual scandal cover up. The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis was charged for ignoring and mishandling serious complaints about children being sexually abused by a local priest. According to […]

The Vatican announced Wednesday that it is set to sign its first accord with Palestine, sparking the ire of Israeli authorities and prompting allegations that such a move will be damaging to the fragile Middle East peace process. According to NPR, the new treaty will switch the Vatican’s diplomatic relations from the Palestine Liberation Organization […]

Italian police arrested nine members of an al-Qaeda group that planned to attack the Vatican with suicide bombers when it raided seven different provinces this week. The arrests of the group planning to attack the Vatican follow almost a decade of investigation into the Italian terror group whose goal was to help the Taliban overthrow […]

Pope Francis accepted the resignation Tuesday of Robert Finn, a Roman Catholic bishop who in 2012 pleaded guilty to covering up the activities of a pedophile priest in his diocese, MSN is reporting. Until his resignation, Robert Finn was the Bishop of the Diocese of Kansas City – Saint Joseph, in northwestern Missouri. In 2012, […]