Vatican

A number of Catholic organizations are speaking out in defense of Pope Leo XIV, as President Donald Trump doubled down on his harsh criticism of Pope Leo XIV — with Vice President JD Vance, a Catholic convert, also claiming the pope should “be careful when he talks about matters of theology” in criticizing the U.S. and Israel’s war on Iran.

Separatist factions operating in Cameroon’s Anglophone regions announced a temporary cessation of hostilities ahead of Pope Leo XIV’s stop in Cameroon on the second leg of his papal visit to the African continent.

Pope Leo XIV spoke to journalists aboard the papal plane on April 15 on the five-hour flight from Algeria to Cameroon, underlining St. Augustine’s enduring importance today, saying that the saint’s invitation “to search for God and to search for truth is something that is very much needed today.”

Iraqi Archbishop Amel Shamon Nona, who until now led the Chaldean Eparchy of St. Thomas the Apostle of Australia and New Zealand, was elected patriarch of the Chaldean Catholic Church, succeeding Cardinal Louis Sako.

Catholic bishops and lay leaders across the political spectrum are expressing their shock and disapproval following President Donald Trump’s online screed against Pope Leo XIV.

Pope Leo XIV honored the memory of Algeria’s Christian martyrs Monday evening, telling the country’s tiny Catholic community that the blood of those who died for their faith remains “a living seed that never ceases to bear fruit.”