Junno Arocho Esteves

The U.S. government’s foreign aid agency awarded thousands of dollars in assistance to two Rome-based Catholic organizations assisting the poor in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic in Italy.

Government leaders and authorities must not exploit the COVID-19 pandemic to discredit political rivals but instead set aside differences to find “viable solutions for our people,” Pope Francis said.

Europeans must not see their rich history simply as a fond memory of a time long gone, but they must look to it as a guide to overcoming divisions and challenges aggravated by the COVID-19 pandemic, Pope Francis said.