Australian volunteers working in East Timor say excitement is growing ahead of Pope Francis’ visit there in September, when more than half of the mostly Catholic population is expected to converge on the capital Dili.

As immigration becomes an increasingly hot-button political issue in the United States and Europe, Pope Francis again underscored the moral weight of how migrants are treated, hammering home a message of acceptance that has been a pillar of his pontificate for more than a decade.

A few hours after he railed against unjust immigration policies at his general audience, Pope Francis and community organizers associated with the West/Southwest Industrial Areas Foundation returned to the theme of welcoming and integrating migrants.

A study published in July revealed that a new analysis of the Shroud of Turin, including the composition and a microscopic analysis of bloodstains, shows that the marks are consistent with the tortures endured by Christ as described in the Gospels.

Pope Francis asked Catholic bishops in the Middle East to always be “signs of hope, a presence that nurtures words and gestures of peace, brotherhood and respect.”

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Working to turn migrants away from the prospect of peace and security in a new country is “a grave sin,” Pope Francis said. “It needs to be said clearly: There are those who systematically work by all means to drive away migrants, and this, when done knowingly and deliberately, is a […]

Pope Francis marked the feast of St. Monica by leaving the Vatican unannounced to pray at her tomb in the Rome basilica named after her son, St. Augustine.

As the Catholic Church and Christians at large experience intense persecution in Nicaragua, Pope Francis expressed encouragement and support to the people living under the country’s authoritarian regime.

The best way to ensure evangelization is about Jesus and not about oneself is to spend time in prayer and especially in Eucharistic adoration, Pope Francis told members of the Oblates of St. Joseph.

Pope Francis asked Catholic legislators to be examples and witnesses of hope to young people who are bombarded with “messages of pessimism and cynicism.”