Pope Francis expressed his condolences and prayers after two bombings in Kerman, Iran, claimed the lives of 84 people and wounded scores more at a memorial for an assassinated Iranian military officer.

Dioceses across the U.S. are asked to hold additional listening sessions in the next few months, following a request from the Vatican’s Secretariat for the Synod of Bishops which is preparing for the second session of the global Synod on Synodality in October.

A person does not have to travel far from home to find people living on the margins of society and in need hearing the message of the Gospel, Pope Francis said.

While bishops may take a cautious approach to the Vatican’s guidance on blessing same-sex or other unmarried couples, they should not deny their priests the possibility of discerning and imparting blessings on people who ask for them, the Vatican doctrinal office said.

With more than 22,100 deaths and 57,000 injured as reported by Jan. 2 by Gaza’s Ministry of Health, the question is being asked: Can Israel’s conflict conduct be considered a “just war” under the Catholic understanding of the concept?

Help “de-weaponize” the way language is used in the media by being respectful to others and fostering greater understanding and peace between people, Pope Francis told a group of Catholics journalists from Germany.

The Biden administration cannot use a 1986 emergency health care law to require hospitals in Texas to perform emergency abortions, a federal appeals court in New Orleans ruled Jan. 2.

Shia LaBeouf, a Hollywood veteran and star of director Abel Ferrara’s film “Padre Pio,” received the sacrament of confirmation, completing his initiation into the Catholic faith, during the New Year holiday weekend, according to announcements posted Jan. 2 to Facebook and Instagram by the Capuchin Franciscans’ Western American Province.

Archbishop Dermot Farrell of Dublin has expressed concern over the “significant numbers” of people in Ireland “seeking to foment disinformation, suspicion and hatred” towards refugees and migrants.

War is madness, Pope Francis said, calling for prayers for all people in the world affected by today’s conflicts.