The best theological study and research are inspired by prayer that is attuned to the realities around the theologian, so in Sicily theology should address issues related to the Mafia and about migrants drowning in the Mediterranean Sea, Pope Francis said.

An Italian publisher announced the global release in January of “Hope,” a book it described as Pope Francis’ autobiography, which the pope apparently planned to have released only after his death.

Pope Francis called on divided Christians to overcome their doctrinal differences and walk together in love, expressing hope especially for greater unity between the Orthodox and Catholic Churches.

Cardinal Wilton Gregory of Washington said he hopes U.S. voters who are as concerned as he is about the “anger and vitriol” of the current election cycle will take time away from the media to think and pray about the values important to them as Catholics.

The celebration of World Mission Sunday is a popular day for a pope to canonize new saints — not only those who ministered or gave up their lives in lands traditionally known as mission territories, but women and men from every walk of life and from around the world.

If members of the Synod of Bishops are serious about sharing their experience of “synodality” with all members of the Catholic Church, then they must identify concrete ways to do so, Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich told members.

Pope Francis met with a group of transgender and intersex Catholics, along with LGBTQ+ allies and a medical doctor specializing in transgender healthcare, during a nearly 90-minute audience at his residence, the Domus Sanctae Marthae.

Recent synods convened at the Vatican as well as the worldwide synod on synodality have “shown us the value of listening as a common thread in any process of humanization,” said Sister Liliana Franco Echeverri, a member of the Company of Mary and president of the Latin American and Caribbean Confederation of Religious.

Pope Francis called again for “an immediate cease-fire on all fronts” in the Middle East, urging leaders to “pursue the paths of diplomacy and dialogue to achieve peace.”

Pope Francis will create his 21 new cardinals Dec. 7, not Dec. 8 as he originally announced, according to the official in charge of papal liturgical ceremonies.