Catholics cannot confine their faith to the liturgy but must fully engage and dialogue with the culture that surrounds them, said the cardinal responsible for the church’s engagement with the world of culture.

After suffering from bronchitis for more than a week and having obvious difficulty breathing, the 88-year-old Pope Francis was admitted to Rome’s Gemelli hospital Feb. 14.

The same week U.S. President Donald Trump reiterated his idea of emptying Gaza of more than 2 million Palestinians so it could become a “Riviera of the Middle East,” a top Vatican official said there must be no deportations.

Individuals and corporations have a moral obligation to pay their fair share of taxes, and wealthy nations have an obligation to use that money to help their poorer citizens and provide aid to developing nations, the Vatican secretary of state said.

The president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops Feb. 11 thanked Pope Francis for his support for the U.S. bishops’ work with migrants and refugees amid the current “struggle” on immigration policies in the U.S.

The Vatican released a partial schedule of Pope Francis’ liturgical celebrations in March and early April, including a group Lenten retreat for the pope and top members of the Curia for the first time in five years.

Reflecting on the many countries at war, such as Ukraine, Palestine, Israel, Myanmar, North Kivu in Congo and South Sudan, the pope said, “Let’s pray for peace, let’s do our all for peace. Don’t forget that war is always a defeat.”

Nicaragua’s government issued a statement attacking the Vatican as “depraved” following interviews in which exiled Bishop Rolando Álvarez of Matagalpa reaffirmed the pope’s desire for him to continue leading a pair of Nicaraguan dioceses from afar.

Ways must be found to ensure artificial intelligence benefits everyone and protects the environment, given the high amounts of energy consumed by data centers, Pope Francis told leaders at a global meeting on AI.

Pope Francis has added the feast day of St. Teresa of Kolkata, a “beacon of hope” and an example of loving service to the poorest of the poor, to the General Roman Calendar so that her “Optional Memorial shall be celebrated by all on 5 September every year.”