An Italian Catholic priest has been excommunicated for having publicly committed “an act of a schismatic nature” while celebrating Mass at his parish near Livorno.

Song and music are gifts capable of touching the hearts of young people, drawing them out of spirals of anxiety and bringing them closer to God, Pope Francis said.

Different ways of living out the Catholic faith, including different liturgical rites, should not be seen as threats to the unity of the Catholic Church but embraced as expressions of the body of Christ, Pope Francis said.

Pope Francis prayed for all those affected by a devastating earthquake in Japan, offering encouragement to emergency crews who were assisting victims and searching for survivors under the rubble.

The world and the Catholic Church must respect and defend women and foster a motherly care for others to end dehumanizing cycles of violence, Pope Francis said.

Pope Francis encouraged Christians to look to the example of Mary who, after giving birth to Jesus, had a mother’s gratitude in her heart for bearing the child of God.

As the new year begins, Pope Francis will be the oldest reigning pope since the early 1900s and the third oldest in history.

The Vatican publishing house announced it will release a book of some 130 homilies given by the late Pope Benedict XVI at private Sunday Masses — 30 given while he was pope and more than 100 given to members of his household once he retired.

On Dec. 31, 2022, the Catholic world stopped as Pope Benedict XVI passed away on the last day of the year, leaving behind an enormous theological legacy.

For at least the fourth time since Russia began its large-scale attack on Ukraine in February 2022, Pope Francis and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke by telephone Dec. 28.