Modern popes of the last two centuries — from Pius IX to Francis — have sought the protection and intercession of St. Joseph in times of personal and societal need, elevating his status as a patron for all Catholics.

Here’s how some of the popes of the past have contributed to the Church’s devotion to the holy patriarch.

Pius IX

Early in his pontificate, Pope Pius IX saw the growing devotion to St. Joseph among Catholic faithful across Europe and abroad, according to theologian and Church historian Veronika Seifert.

“[He] ​​welcomed the growing spirituality towards St. Joseph and promoted these seeds,” she told EWTN News. “There were many religious congregations and dioceses that chose him as their protector and many confraternities formed with a strong devotion to him.”

This impetus from Catholic communities led Pius IX to approve the 1870 decree Quemadmodum Deus, which declared St. Joseph as universal patron of the Church, toward the end of the First Vatican Council.

Leo XIII

Quamquam Pluries, the first encyclical dedicated to St. Joseph, was published by Pope Leo XIII in 1889, nearly two decades after Pius IX declared the earthly father of Jesus the patron of the universal Church.

“Practically every pope has added a small piece to what was missing” in Pius’ 1870 decree, Seifert said.

Known for his devotion to the Virgin Mary, Leo XIII’s personal devotion to St. Joseph was subsequently connected to the Mother of God. Though his encyclical, he encouraged Catholics to jointly seek the aid of the two holy spouses.

“Joseph shines among all mankind by the most august dignity, since by divine will, he was the guardian of the Son of God and reputed as his father among men,” he wrote.

Pius X

Pope Pius X, who governed the Church for 11 years in the wake of the first world war, wrote a number of prayers dedicated to the holy patriarch and approved the Litany of St. Joseph in 1909.

Seeing in him a virtuous model for families and workers, he encouraged Catholics to imitate Joseph’s example as head of the Holy Family and as a laborer in his workshop in Nazareth.

Pius XII

Devotion to St. Joseph the Worker was further elevated when Pope Pius XII instituted a liturgical feast day in his honor in 1955.

“Pius XII instituted the feast day that Pius XI intended to [be celebrated] on the third Sunday after Easter. Pius XII moved it to May 1 — a date we now all know,” Seifert said.

Wanting to counter the influence of communism on the Church and its faithful, Pius XII wanted to emphasize a Christian vision of work that saw labor as a means of participating in the creative power of God.

May 1 is “Labor Day” or “International Workers Day” in over 80 countries, including most of Europe.

John XXIII

Describing Pope John XXIII as a “great devotee” of St. Joseph, Seifert said he was the first pope to decree his inclusion in the Mass.

“He inserted the name of St. Joseph into the [Roman] Canon, precisely in the First Eucharistic Prayer, placing it immediately after the Virgin Mary,” she said.

Announced just one month into the opening of the Second Vatican Council on Nov. 13, 1962, the liturgical change was the first to the Roman Canon since the seventh century, The New York Times reported.

John Paul II

Pope John Paul II wrote about the life and mission of St. Joseph when he published his apostolic exhortation Redemptoris Custos in 1989 to mark the centenary of Pope Leo XIII’s encyclical Quamquam Pluries.

“May St. Joseph become for all of us an exceptional teacher in the service of Christ’s saving mission, a mission which is the responsibility of each and every member of the Church: husbands and wives, parents, those who live by the work of their hands or by any other kind of work, those called to the contemplative life and those called to the apostolate,” he wrote.

Seifert said the joyful and sorrowful experiences of the Holy Family are not distant to the human realities of the present day.

“By meditating on the feelings of St. Joseph, we can learn a lot and perhaps even put something right in our own lives,” the theologian and Church historian said.

Francis

Having inaugurated his pontificate on the March 19 feast day of St. Joseph in 2013, Pope Francis popularized devotion to the “Sleeping St. Joseph” following his 2015 apostolic journey to the Philippines.

During the papal journey, Francis revealed his love for the foster father of Jesus, saying: “Even when he is asleep, he is taking care of the Church! … So when I have a problem, a difficulty, I write a little note and I put it underneath St. Joseph, so that he can dream about it!”

Pope Francis also proclaimed the Church’s first-ever Year of St. Joseph through his 2020 apostolic letter Patris Corde (“With a Father’s Heart”) to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the holy patriarch being named patron of the universal Church by Pope Pius IX.

Watch “Devotion to St. Joseph throughout the Centuries” on Vaticano here.

The Holy See has reaffirmed its position against surrogacy in a statement to the United Nations, urging the complete eradication of the practice and calling for the protection of women and children from exploitation.

Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, apostolic nuncio and permanent observer of the Holy See to the U.N., highlighted the urgency and sensitivity of the issue, lamenting that “technology and practice have run laps around the law and ethics.”

Although he acknowledged that many view surrogacy “as a compassionate solution for those wishing to be parents,” he urged the adoption of measures that respect the dignity and rights of women and children.

Women choose it due to financial need

Caccia lamented that because of financial need, many women agree to carry a child in their womb and subsequently hand the child over to others for money. This situation could be remedied through the development of “social protection, education, and economic opportunities,” he said.

The statement asked whether the surrogacy industry could survive if poverty were eradicated. It warned that the demand for this practice “already exceeds the supply” and that many women who do not wish to participate may find themselves pressured or even coerced into doing so by family members.

The text also addressed the rights of children, who are reduced to an item to be ordered “within an industrial and dehumanized logic.” The statement from the Holy See also denounced the commodification of babies and the fact that many are considered “a defective product” when they have a disability.

This attitude “runs contrary to a just society in which children can grow and flourish. Children, in fact, possess rights and interests that must be respected, beginning with “a moral right to be created in an act of love,” as well as the right “to know their parents and to be cared for by them,” according to the statement.

Although the Holy See acknowledged the “very real and understandable desire to have children,” it maintained that these issues cannot simply be resolved through the regulation of surrogacy.

The Permanent Mission of the Holy See to the U.N. commended the decision of the Hague Conference on Private International Law not to proceed with the drafting of a convention on legal parentage in cases of surrogacy.

Caccia also recalled the words of Pope Leo XIV, who affirmed that, by transforming gestation into a negotiable service, one “violates the dignity both of the child, who is reduced to a ‘product,’ and of the mother, exploiting her body and the generative process, and distorting the original relational calling of the family.”

The Holy See urged that new steps be taken “toward ending this practice in all its forms and at all levels,” with the aim of protecting women and children “from exploitation and violence.”

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

VATICAN CITY — Pope Leo XIV on Wednesday called for a rediscovery of the role of the laity in the Church.

“Let us rekindle in ourselves the awareness of and gratitude for having received the gift of being part of God’s people and also the responsibility that this entails,” Leo urged during the general audience in St. Peter’s Square on March 18.

In his catechesis, focused on chapter 2 of the constitution Lumen Gentium, one of the fundamental documents of the Second Vatican Council, the pontiff explained that the Church, as “the communion of the faithful — which naturally includes the pastors — cannot err in matters of faith.”

Leo maintained that the Church possesses a particular capacity to safeguard revealed truth, since it is grounded in “the supernatural sense of faith of the entire people of God, which is manifested in the consensus” of all the members of the Church.

From this unity, which the Church’s magisterium safeguards, Leo XIV said: “It follows that each baptized person is an active agent of evangelization, called to bear consistent witness to Christ in accordance with the prophetic gift which the Lord bestows upon his whole Church.”

Baptized are ‘obliged to spread and defend the faith’

The pontiff recalled that, according to the teaching of Vatican II, the people of God participate in Christ’s mission as priest, prophet, and king. “This common priesthood of the faithful,” the pope explained, arises from baptism and is strengthened through confirmation.

Through these sacraments, Christians “are more strictly obliged to spread and defend the faith, both by word and by deed, as true witnesses of Christ,” he said, quoting from Lumen Gentium.

Leo also quoted Pope Francis, to recall that all members of the Church share the same fundamental dignity and “everyone forms the faithful holy people of God.”

The ‘sense of the faith’

One of the central points of Leo’s catechesis was the explanation of the so-called “sensus fidei,” that is, the “sense of the faith” and “consensus of the faithful.”

The pope noted that the council fathers who participated in the Second Vatican Council taught “that the holy people of God also participate in the prophetic mission of Christ.”

The doctrinal commission of the council clarified that this “sensus fidei” is “a faculty of the whole Church, by which she, in her faith, recognizes the revelation handed down, distinguishing between true and false in matters of faith, and at the same time penetrates it more deeply and applies it more fully in life.”

“The sense of faith therefore belongs to individual believers not in their own right but as members of the people of God as a whole,” he explained.

A living Church guided by the Spirit

The pontiff also emphasized that the Holy Spirit distributes gifts and charisms among all the faithful, contributing to the constant renewal of the Church.

The Holy Spirit “distributes special graces among the faithful of every rank. By these gifts he makes them fit and ready to undertake the various tasks and offices which contribute toward the renewal and building up of the Church,” Leo said, quoting from Lumen Gentium and pointing to the charismatic vitality of consecrated life in particular.

He also highlighted the different forms of ecclesial associations as another “shining example of the variety and fruitfulness of spiritual fruits for the edification of the people of God.”

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

The Vatican Court of Appeal has ordered a partial retrial in the high-profile London property finance case, ruling that key parts of the original proceedings were invalid due to procedural issues.

The case stems from the Vatican Secretariat of State’s investment of approximately 350 million pounds in a luxury property in London’s Chelsea neighborhood on Sloane Avenue, an operation that generated estimated losses of up to 139 million euros for the Holy See.

In a March 17 decision, judges found a “relative nullity” in the trial involving the Secretariat of State’s investment in the London building, widely known as the “trial of the century.” The ruling does not overturn the original trial or its verdicts but requires that portions of the case be reheard.

The original trial concluded in December 2023 after 86 hearings. The Vatican tribunal sentenced Cardinal Angelo Becciu to five years and six months in prison, along with a lifetime ban from public office, marking the first time a cardinal had ever been convicted by a Holy See court. Nine of the 10 defendants were found guilty of various charges, including embezzlement, fraud, money laundering, and abuse of power.

The court determined that four decrees issued by Pope Francis during the investigation — which altered procedural rules and were not publicly promulgated — undermined the legitimacy of some investigative acts.

As a result, prosecutors must refile the full body of evidence by April 30, with a new timetable for proceedings to follow.

The original trial ended with prison sentences totaling more than 37 years and roughly 200 million euros (about $231 million) in damages ordered.

Defense attorneys had long argued that the case was compromised by incomplete evidence filings and procedural irregularities. The appeals court upheld many of those objections while maintaining that the first-instance judgment still carries legal effect.

The case centers on the Secretariat of State’s controversial London property investment along with related financial dealings involving Becciu and other defendants.

The ruling marks a major development in the Vatican’s most complex financial prosecution in recent history and raises fresh uncertainty about the durability of the original convictions.

Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, the recently appointed apostolic nuncio to the United States, takes up his new role at a time of heightened tension between the Vatican and the White House over issues including immigration to the U.S. and war in the Middle East.

Former collaborators say Caccia’s personal qualities and wide diplomatic experience — including in Lebanon and the Philippines — make him well suited for this crucial assignment.

The 68-year-old diplomat recently served as the permanent observer of the Holy See Mission to the United Nations in New York after Pope Francis appointed him there in 2019. His new job is important as a liaison between the Vatican and the U.S., where recent federal policies have faced growing resistance from Church leaders.

Pope Leo’s new man on a high-stakes mission

A veteran diplomat, Caccia will serve as Pope Leo XIV’s chief representative to the Trump administration. Like his predecessor, Cardinal Christophe Pierre, he assumes office amid ongoing tension between the administration and the Church, especially on immigration enforcement and foreign policy.

In a public statement in November 2025, U.S. bishops strongly opposed the administration’s treatment of migrants during mass deportations. Pope Leo expressed support for the statement and denounced the treatment of migrants as “extremely disrespectful, and with instances of violence.”

The U.S. bishops have also voiced concern over recent foreign policy moves, including interventions in the Middle East. In January of this year, three U.S. cardinals — Blase Cupich, Joseph Tobin, and Robert McElroy — jointly condemned the administration’s foreign policy in a public statement. In recent addresses, Pope Leo has also called for a ceasefire in the Middle East, deploring on March 15 a “widespread climate of hatred and fear.”

Monsignor Roger Landry, who served at the Holy See Mission from 2015 to 2022 and now heads the Pontifical Mission Societies, expressed confidence in the nuncio’s ability to communicate the Holy See’s concerns effectively to the U.S. government while supporting the bishops.

“He will represent Pope Leo very well to the U.S. government and the U.S. Church, be a great listener and effective relayer of what’s happening in the United States to Pope Leo, and be a steady source of counsel and support to U.S. bishops,” he told EWTN News.

Dálida Morales, who interned at the mission and now works at the Ministry of Industry and Commerce in the Dominican Republic, conveyed hope for the archbishop’s potential to build international dialogue.

“He is genuinely a bridge-builder for peace. At a time when dialogue, moral clarity, and principled leadership are urgently needed in the United States, his appointment there is both timely and hopeful,” she said.

A diplomat forged in complex geopolitics

Having worked in the diplomatic service of the Holy See since 1991, Caccia previously served in challenging posts before his appointment to the U.N. He served as apostolic nuncio to Lebanon and the Philippines, two countries with sensitive political climates.

His service in Lebanon occurred during the outbreak of the Syrian Civil War in 2011. There, he helped coordinate the Church’s humanitarian response to support over 1.5 million Syrian refugees in Lebanon. His service also included helping maintain peace in a country constitutionally divided among Maronite Christians, Muslims, and Druze.

He served in the Philippines at the height of President Rodrigo Duterte’s highly aggressive and controversial anti-narcotics campaign, which resulted in thousands of extrajudicial killings. As the nuncio, he helped to support the bishops, who were vocal critics against the government, while maintaining the country’s diplomatic relations with the Holy See.

During his time at the U.N., he promoted the Vatican’s diplomatic stance. Father Mark Knestout, who served with Caccia as a former attaché for the Holy See Mission, noted the importance of his diplomatic experience in his new role.

“He was in Lebanon for eight years, which is a complex situation because you have multiple denominations of Catholics there, alongside the situation with Muslims,” he told EWTN News. “So I see him being personable and striving to get to know everyone in the United States as best he can.”

An inclusive leader and sports lover

Former staff of Caccia also shared with EWTN News some personal anecdotes from their time serving with him in New York. Vitória Volpato, a former intern at the mission who serves at the Prefecture of São Paulo in Brazil, noted with gratitude the archbishop’s insights on leadership.

“He said something that stayed with me: ‘I do not choose the people I work with, but I work with the people I have.’ That made me reflect on what a good leader must be, something the archbishop clearly is,” she said.

Ashley Campbell, who interned at the mission and now works at the Religious Freedom Institute, reflected on his love of sports. “I remember once walking with him back to the Holy See Mission building from the U.N., and we talked about how we both grew up playing sports and how amazing it would be if Vatican City could send athletes to the Olympics.”

Fidelity to the Holy Father

One trait consistently praised by those who have worked with the archbishop is his fidelity to the Holy Father. Knestout described the archbishop as a “true Churchman who wants to represent the desires and the intentions of the Holy Father.”

Morales added: “Every Wednesday, he would ask us about the Holy Father’s general audience. In this way, he reminded us that one of the most meaningful ways to remain united to the Church is by listening to the voice of the pope. It is a habit I continue to keep today thanks to him.”

During a meeting with Italian journalists Monday at the Vatican, Pope Leo XIV warned that news reporting “must guard against the risk of becoming propaganda.”

When reporting on today’s “dramatic circumstances of war,” the Holy Father urged news professionals to verify the news “so as not to become a mouthpiece for those in power,” a task that is “even more urgent and delicate — I would say essential.”

He also emphasized that journalists must report on the suffering that war inflicts upon the population as well as reveal its human face and relate it “through the eyes of the victims, so as not to transform it into a video game.”

“It is not easy in the few minutes of a news program and its in-depth segments. But this is the challenge,” he told members of the Italian broadcaster RAI and the editorial team of its TG2 news program on March 16, on the occasion of the outlet’s 50th anniversary.

No technological innovation can replace creativity, critical discernment, and freedom of thought.

Pope Leo XIV

In his address, the pope also reflected on the challenges that television journalism has faced, such as the transition from analog to digital systems. In this context, he noted that “no technological innovation can replace creativity, critical discernment, and freedom of thought.”

The Holy Father addressed the “challenge of our time” — artificial intelligence — and underscored the need “to regulate communication according to the human paradigm and not the technological one,” something that, in his view, means “knowing how to distinguish between means and ends.”

He also highlighted laicity and pluralism as the traits that have characterized the Italian network. Specifically, he referred to laicity as “a rejection of ideological preconceptions and as an open-minded view of reality.”

“We all know how difficult it is to allow ourselves to be surprised by facts, by encounters, by the gazes and voices of others; how strong the temptation is to seek out, see, and listen only to what confirms our own opinions. But there can be no good communication, nor true freedom and healthy pluralism, without this openness,” he emphasized.

Finally, he invited journalists to promote diversity — animated by a spirit of friendship — “in an age dominated by polarization, ideological closed-mindedness, and slogans that prevent us from seeing and understanding the complexity of reality.”

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

VATICAN CITY — Pope Leo XIV on Monday urged the Church to listen to victims of sexual abuse, and called for the recognition of the pain caused and for the creation of “a culture of care.”

“It is about helping to form, throughout the Church, a culture of care, in which the protection of minors and persons in vulnerable situations is not seen as an obligation imposed from outside but as a natural expression of faith,” the pope said in an audience with the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors (PCPM) on March 16.

He added that it calls “for a process of conversion where the sufferings of others are heard and move us to take action.”

Leo noted that the experiences of victims and survivors are “essential reference points,” adding that “while they are certainly painful and difficult to hear, these experiences powerfully bring the truth to light and teach us humility.”

He also warned bishops and the superiors of religious orders and communities that they “have a responsibility of their own that cannot be delegated” to “listening to victims and accompanying them” in every ecclesial institution and community.

He further stated that “it is precisely through the recognition of the pain that has occurred that a credible path for hope and renewal is opened.”

Prevention is not only a set of rules

The Holy Father explained that “prevention is never just a set of protocols or procedures.”

He also insisted that “the protection of minors and persons in vulnerable situations is not an isolated area of ecclesial life but a dimension that permeates pastoral care, formation, governance, and discipline.”

The pope also thanked the commission for its work in abuse prevention, describing it as “a demanding service, sometimes silent, often burdensome,” and asked its members to intensify “even greater cooperation” with other dicasteries and protection institutions.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

Pope Leo XIV on Monday met in a private audience with Gareth Gore, a British journalist whose work has criticized Opus Dei as abusive.

Gore said he spoke to the pope for more than 40 minutes and presented him with testimonies from alleged victims of the organization.

Gore is the author of the 2024 book “Opus,” which accuses Opus Dei of financial misdeeds and spiritual and physical abuse against its members.

Writing on his Substack after the March 16 meeting, the journalist said Pope Leo praised his book as a “rigorous piece of work.”

Gore also said he previously thought the Vatican did not want to seriously address accusations of abuse within Opus Dei but that his meeting with Leo “forces me to reassess those conclusions.”

The Vatican did not respond to a request for comment on the meeting.

A spokesman for Opus Dei said the group had no comment on the meeting or Gore’s statement and pointed to prior statements from Opus Dei about Gore’s book.

Opus Dei has previously denounced Gore’s book as “littered with twisted facts, errors, conspiracy theories, and even outright lies.”

The pope received Opus Dei’s prelate, Monsignor Fernando Ocáriz, in audience at the Vatican last month.

The Feb. 16 meeting came as the personal prelature’s proposed statutes — submitted to the Holy See on June 11, 2025 — remain under review.

Opus Dei’s draft is being examined by the Dicastery for the Clergy following the reforms to the governance of personal prelatures introduced under Pope Francis.

In Church structure, Opus Dei is a “personal prelature,” which, according to canon law, “consists of presbyters and deacons of the secular clergy” joined together to “accomplish particular pastoral or missionary works.”

The organization was founded by Spanish priest Father Josemaría Escrivá in 1928. Escrivá was canonized a saint in 2002.

Pope Leo XIV said Sunday that God cannot be used to justify violence or war, warning that “God cannot be enlisted by darkness.”

The pope made the remarks March 15 during a pastoral visit to the Parish of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Ponte Mammolo, a neighborhood on the outskirts of Rome, where he celebrated Mass on the Fourth Sunday of Lent, known as Laetare Sunday.

Before the Mass, Leo XIV met with various parish groups, including children, young people, families, the sick, the elderly, and the poor assisted by volunteers from Caritas, the Catholic Church’s charitable aid network, and the Community of Sant’Egidio, a Rome-based Catholic lay community known for its service to the poor and peacemaking efforts.

In his homily, the pope reflected on the suffering caused by armed conflicts around the world.

“Many of our brothers and sisters today suffer because of violent conflicts, caused by the absurd claim that problems and differences can be resolved with war,” he said. “Instead, we must tirelessly pursue dialogue for peace.”

“Some even claim to involve the name of God in these choices of death,” the pope continued. “But God cannot be enlisted by darkness. Rather, he always comes to give light, hope, and peace to humanity — and it is peace that those who invoke him must seek.”

Reflecting on the Gospel story of the man born blind, Leo XIV said the passage teaches believers to see others with the eyes of God.

To see in this way, he said, means overcoming prejudice — especially the tendency to look at someone who suffers “only as an outcast to be despised or a problem to be avoided,” retreating into “the fortified tower of selfish individualism.”

Jesus, by contrast, looks at the blind man with love, “not as an inferior being or a nuisance, but as a person who is dear and in need of help,” the pope said.

By healing him, Jesus reveals his divine power and restores the man’s dignity as a creature made in the image and likeness of God. Having regained his sight, the man becomes “a witness to the light,” the pope said.

Leo XIV also warned of another form of blindness — the refusal to recognize God’s presence.

Those who accused Jesus and the healed man, he said, showed a deeper blindness: failing to see “right before them the face of God,” preferring instead the sterile security of rigid legalism.

“Jesus does not stop before such obstinacy,” the pope said, showing that “there is no Sabbath that can hinder an act of love.”

The pope also urged Christians to examine their own lives.

“We too can be blind when we fail to notice others and their problems,” he said. The first Christian community, he added, understood the call to live differently — sharing their goods, persevering in prayer, and living in communion and peace despite trials.

Addressing the parish community directly, Leo XIV praised its outreach to the poor and marginalized, including its attention to inmates at the nearby Rebibbia prison and its efforts to assist migrants with learning the language, finding housing, and securing stable employment.

He also commended the parish’s charitable initiatives, including family homes that welcome women and mothers in difficulty.

The pope concluded by encouraging the faithful to continue nurturing the “gift of light” entrusted to them through prayer, the sacraments, and charity.

“Let it grow within you and among you in all its gentleness,” he said, “and spread it throughout the world.”

Earlier, greeting children and young people, the pope also addressed parishioners who could not enter the church because of limited space, telling them that a vibrant parish community can be a sign of hope even in places marked by hardship.

“We who believe in Jesus Christ and live as brothers and sisters united can be a sign of hope in a world where these signs are often lacking,” he said. “In Jesus Christ there is salvation, and we want to live, receive, and share this great love that the Lord offers us.”

This article was originally published by ACI Stampa, EWTN News’ Italian-language news partner, and has been adapted by EWTN News.

Pope Leo XIV on Sunday urged those responsible for the escalating war in the Middle East to declare a ceasefire and open paths of dialogue, warning that violence can never lead to justice or peace.

“In the name of the Christians of the Middle East and of all women and men of goodwill, I address those responsible for this conflict: Let the fire cease and let paths of dialogue be reopened,” the pope said after praying the Angelus with pilgrims gathered in St. Peter’s Square.

The appeal came amid continuing regional tensions and exchanges of attacks in the Middle East. Earlier Sunday, U.S. President Donald Trump said in a telephone interview with NBC that Iran is seeking a ceasefire agreement to end U.S. and Israeli bombing, though he said he is not prepared to accept the proposal for now because the “terms are not good enough yet.”

Israel also struck targets in Lebanon, where at least 14 people were reported killed, including four minors. Pope Leo described the situation in the country as “a cause for great concern.”

“I hope that paths of dialogue will open that can help the authorities of the country implement lasting solutions to the serious crisis underway, for the common good of all Lebanese,” he said.

The pope noted that for the past two weeks the peoples of the Middle East have been suffering “the atrocious violence of war.”

“Thousands of innocent people have been killed and many others have been forced to abandon their homes,” he said, expressing his prayerful closeness to those who have lost loved ones in attacks on schools, hospitals, and residential areas.

“Violence will never lead to the justice, stability, or peace that peoples hope for,” he added.

‘Faith is not a renunciation of reason’

Earlier during the Angelus reflection, Pope Leo emphasized that Christian faith does not require abandoning reason but instead allows believers to see reality more clearly.

Reflecting on the Gospel account of the healing of the man born blind (John 9:1–41), the pope said the episode reveals the deeper meaning of salvation.

“While humanity walked in darkness, God sent his Son as the light of the world to open the eyes of the blind and illuminate our lives,” he said.

The pope stressed that faith “is not a blind act,” nor “a renunciation of reason,” nor a conviction that turns believers away from the world.

Rather, he explained, “faith helps us to look from the point of view of Jesus, with his eyes.”

“It is a participation in his way of seeing,” he said, quoting Lumen Fidei, the first encyclical of Pope Francis.

For this reason, Christians are called to open their eyes to the suffering of others and to the wounds of the world.

The Gospel, the pope said, contradicts the idea — widespread for centuries and still present today — that faith is a “leap into darkness.”

“On the contrary, the Gospel tells us that in contact with Christ the eyes are opened,” he said.

Pope Leo added that the Gospel invites believers to view the world with Christ’s eyes and not remain indifferent to human suffering.

“Today, in particular, faced with the many questions of the human heart and the dramatic situations of injustice, violence, and suffering that mark our time, there is a need for an awake, attentive, and prophetic faith,” he said.

Such faith, he explained, “opens our eyes to the darkness of the world and brings there the light of the Gospel through a commitment to peace, justice, and solidarity.”

The pope concluded by encouraging Christians to live a “Christianity with open eyes,” with simplicity and courage.

“Brothers and sisters, we too, healed by the love of Christ, are called to live a Christianity with open eyes,” he said.

This story was first published in two parts by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

Preacher of the Papal Household Father Roberto Pasolini continued on March 13 with the second Lenten homily, inspired by the conversion of St. Francis of Assisi and titled “If Anyone Is in Christ, He Is a New Creation: Conversion to the Gospel According to St. Francis.”

Before Pope Leo XIV and members of the Roman Curia gathered in the Paul VI Audience Hall, the Capuchin friar meditated on fraternity, referring to it as both a gift and a “serious and urgent” responsibility — especially in a society marked by division.

In his sermon reported by Vatican News, Pasolini explained that conversion is truly realized within fraternity, describing it as “the most eloquent sign of what the Gospel can accomplish in our lives.”

He also exhorted his listeners to “go beyond” and to view our brothers and sisters not merely as a source of support or sustenance but as someone entrusted to us “so that our lives may change.”

In this context, Pasolini emphasized that brothers and sisters in Christ, therefore, do not merely serve to confirm “what we are” but rather call us to a true transformation: “They become the concrete space in which God works on our humanity, loosening our rigidities and teaching us to live with a truer heart, one more capable of love.”

In light of the biblical account of Cain and Abel, the preacher to the papal household noted that a rift between brothers stems “from a problem of perspective” and urged the pope and the Roman Curia to ask themselves “who is Cain within us” and how much space resentment occupies.

He also recalled that, for St. Francis, fraternity is an opportunity “to learn the merciful logic of the Gospel toward a neighbor who makes mistakes.”

“When relationships crack and communion is wounded,” Pasolini noted, “the Gospel does not first suggest defending one’s own rights. Instead, it urges seeking the greatest and always possible good: the good that allows us to recognize in the other no longer an adversary or a debtor but a brother loved by the Lord,” he affirmed.

Pasolini thus invited his audience to focus on the conversion that arises “precisely from what others do to us, even when they hurt us or put us to the test,” and, for this reason, “we must never lose sight of the horizon” or the perspective of eternal life.

“Faith does not separate but reminds us that no one can be excluded from our hearts,” he remarked.

By way of conclusion, Pasolini noted that, amid the divisions, wars, and conflicts of the present day, Christians “cannot limit ourselves to speaking of fraternity as an ideal to be achieved.”

“We are called to receive it as a gift, and, at the same time,” he urged, “to take it on as a very serious and urgent responsibility.”

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

Pope Leo XIV on March 14 took possession of the traditional papal apartment within the Apostolic Palace, moving into the quarters traditionally reserved for his predecessors.

The move was announced on March 14 by the Holy See Press Office, more than ten months after Leoʼs election.

The Holy Father had been staying at an apartment at the Palace of the Holy Office but will now reside in what has long served as the home of the reigning pontiff. The custom was discontinued in March of 2013 by Pope Francis, who chose to reside at Casa Santa Marta from the beginning of his pontificate.

Pope Leo XIV has also reinstated the papal tradition of staying at the summer residence of Castel Gandolfo. In the summer of 2025 the pope stayed at Villa Barberini; subsequently, he decided to travel to Castel Gandolfo almost every week, staying from Monday evening until Tuesday evening.

The papal apartment has undergone a lengthy and meticulous restoration, having remained unoccupied since the conclusion of Pope Benedict XVI’s pontificate on February 28, 2013.

The previous renovation dated back to the spring of 2005, following the death of Pope John Paul II and prior to Benedict XVI taking up residence in the quarters.

In addition to the bedrooms, the apartment comprises a private study for the pope — from the window of which he appears every Sunday to recite the Angelus — as well as a dining room and a private chapel, where pontiffs have traditionally celebrated Mass at the start of each day.

Residing alongside Pope Leo XIV in the papal apartment within the Apostolic Palace will likely be his two secretaries, the Peruvian Monsignor Edgard Iván Rimaycuna Inga and the Italian Father Marco Billeri.

This story was first published by ACI Stampa, the Italian-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

In a message conveyed through Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Pope Leo XIV on Friday said that mathematicians can become “signs of hope for the world,” particularly in a context marked by rapid technological advancements and challenges facing humanity.

The pope’s message was addressed to the Turkish mathematician and university professor Betül Tanbay, chair of the International Day of Mathematics, which was observed March 13.

Tanbay had informed the pontiff of a webinar dedicated to the theme “Mathematics and Hope.” In response, the pope sent a letter extending his cordial greetings and best wishes to all participants in the initiative.

In the text, Leo XIV invited reflection on the role that mathematics can play in the face of “the multiple challenges confronting the human family,” citing rapid technological development, with all its potential “for both good and evil.”

The pontiff encouraged participants to consider how mathematicians can offer a positive witness to society. “A particularly fruitful area of ​​research is the use of algorithms, especially in the field of artificial intelligence,” he noted.

However, the pope emphasized that work in these fields demands something more than technical competence. As he pointed out, this task requires “not only intellectual effort and ingenuity but also the integral growth of the whole person,” capable of taking into account the moral dimension of emerging technologies.

Recalling his own experience as a mathematics and physics teacher, Leo XIV quoted words he addressed to students during the Jubilee of the World of Education, held on Oct. 30, 2025: “Possessing vast knowledge is not enough if we don’t know who we are or what the meaning of life is.”

Along these lines, the pontiff expressed his hope that participants would be attentive “to the profound spiritual needs of the human heart” and seek ways to humanize the digital realm so that it may become an opportunity for fraternity and creativity.

Likewise, he encouraged mathematicians to be “prophets of hope, truth, and goodness in the world.”

The message concluded with a prayer from the pope for all participants in the International Day of Mathematics, upon whom he invoked “abundant divine blessings of wisdom, joy, and peace.”

Pope Leo XIV’s mathematical background

Robert Francis Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV, graduated in 1977 from Villanova University in Pennsylvania, earning a bachelor of arts degree in mathematics alongside studies in philosophy. This preceded the beginning of his theological studies upon his formal entry into the Augustinian novitiate that same year.

During his time at the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago, Prevost combined his religious formation with teaching: He taught mathematics part time at Mendel Catholic High School in Chicago and worked occasionally as a substitute physics teacher at St. Rita of Cascia High School.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

On Friday, March 13, Pope Leo XIV issued a direct appeal to Christians who bear responsibility in armed conflicts, urging them to undertake a serious examination of conscience.

“Do those Christians who bear grave responsibility in armed conflicts have the humility and courage to make a serious examination of conscience and to go to confession?” the pontiff asked before priests dedicated to the ministry of confession.

The Holy Father’s statement was made within an international context heightened by the conflict between the United States and Israel with Iran.

The audience took place at the Vatican during a meeting with priests participating in the annual course dedicated to the formation of confessors, organized by the Apostolic Penitentiary. Each year, these courses bring together priests from various parts of the world to deepen their understanding of the pastoral practice of the sacrament of penance.

In his address, the pope underscored the importance of the sacrament of reconciliation, attributing to it the mission of restoring a person’s “inner unity.”

That reconciliation produces, he added, “the inner unity of the individual and unity with the Church,” and for this reason “it also promotes peace and unity within the human family.”

In his address, Leo XIV recalled that the ministry of confession demands closeness, listening, and the capacity to spiritually accompany the faithful — especially in a context marked by tensions and conflicts.

In a world that, as he put it, is experiencing a time of “fragmentation,” the pope emphasized that reconciliation fosters a person’s inner unity — a quest particularly prevalent among young people. The disappointments caused by “unbridled consumerism” or by “a freedom detached from the truth,” he noted, can become “opportunities for evangelization.”

Furthermore, he explained that reconciliation with God also has an ecclesial dimension. “In the celebration of the sacrament of confession, whilst penitents are reconciled with God and with the Church, the Church herself is edified and enriched by the renewed holiness of her repentant and forgiven children,” he remarked.

Many Christians don’t make use of the sacrament of reconciliation

Leo XIV lamented that numerous baptized individuals do not frequently turn to the sacrament of reconciliation, warning that the Church’s “infinite treasure of mercy” runs the risk of not being taken advantage of.

During his meeting with priests and candidates for the priesthood participating in the annual course for confessors organized by the Apostolic Penitentiary at the Vatican, the pontiff emphasized that, although the sacrament can be received repeatedly, this does not always translate into actual practice among the faithful.

“It is as though the infinite treasure of the Church’s mercy remained “unused,” he said, due to a widespread distraction among Christians.

As he explained, it is not uncommon for many of the faithful to “remain in a state of sin for a long time rather than approaching the confessional with simplicity of faith and heart to receive the gift of the risen Lord.”

The pope recalled that the practice of confession has a long normative tradition within the Church. Thus, he cited the Fourth Lateran Council, which established in 1215 the obligation to go to confession at least once a year — a norm also upheld by the Catechism of the Catholic Church after the Second Vatican Council: “After having attained the age of discretion, each of the faithful is bound by an obligation faithfully to confess serious sins at least once a year” (Code of Canon Law, 989).”

During his address, Leo XIV also recalled a teaching of St. Augustine of Hippo: “He who confesses his sins, and accuses them, does now work with God. God accuses your sins: and if you also accuse, you are united to God.”

The sacrament of reconciliation: ‘A workshop of unity’

Building upon this idea, the pontiff explained that the sacrament of reconciliation can be understood as a true “workshop of unity.”

“It restores unity with God through the forgiveness of sins and the infusion of sanctifying grace,” he affirmed.

The Holy Father devoted part of his address to explaining how sin operates — specifically, that it “does not break unity, understood as the creature’s ontological dependence on the Creator.”

“Even the sinner remains totally dependent on God the Creator, and this dependence, when recognized, can open the way to conversion,” the pontiff explained in this regard.

Sin: Turning one’s back on God

Pope Leo explained that sin effectively breaks “spiritual unity with God,” for it is akin to “turning one’s back” on him.

“This dramatic possibility is as real as the gift of freedom that God himself has bestowed upon human beings. To deny the possibility that sin truly breaks unity with God is, in reality, a failure to recognize the dignity of man, who is — and remains — free and therefore responsible for his own actions,” he pointed out.

Addressing the young priests and candidates for the priesthood in attendance, Leo XIV emphasized the importance of the ministry of confession. “Always be keenly aware of the most exalted task that Christ himself, through the Church, entrusts to you: to restore people’s unity with God through the celebration of the sacrament of reconciliation.”

The pope emphasized that many priests have attained holiness precisely through this ministry, recalling examples such as Sts. John Mary Vianney, Leopold Mandić, Pio of Pietrelcina, and Blessed Michał Sopoćko.

Finally, Leo XIV noted that reconciliation is also a path toward peace. “Only a reconciled person is capable of living in an unarmed and disarming way! Those who lay down the weapons of pride and allow themselves to be continually renewed by God’s forgiveness become agents of reconciliation in everyday life. In him or her are fulfilled the words attributed to St. Francis of Assisi: ‘Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.’”

Before concluding, the pope exhorted the priests to regularly approach the sacrament themselves: “Never neglect to approach the sacrament of reconciliation yourselves, with faithful constancy, so that you may always be the first to benefit from divine mercy.”

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

Former Vatican auditor general Libero Milone revealed details about the work he oversaw with the Vatican finances with the late Cardinal George Pell, including financial irregularities and unaccounted-for sums of money.

“We need to be sure, and I say this as a Catholic and as an accountant, that we are informed correctly about the state of the Vatican finances,” Milone said. “Because if the Vatican finances are sound, it means that our Church will continue. If the Vatican finances are not sound, it’s going to have problems.”

Milone sat down with EWTN News correspondent Colm Flynn for an exclusive interview about his case against the Vatican alleging unfair dismissal, loss of earnings, and reputational damage. The case has been dismissed, and he is filing his final appeal.

For decades, the Vatican has struggled with transparency and accountability in its finances. To address this, Pope Francis appointed Pell to head the Secretariat for the Economy and named Milone as the Vatican’s first auditor general.

Before coming to the Vatican, Milone was a top financial auditor who spent more than 30 years at Deloitte in Italy and in the U.S. as well as a number of other firms.

His job at the Vatican was to examine the Church’s balance sheets and bring order to its financial operations. But after two years Milone suddenly resigned, which he has said he was forced to do after uncovering financial irregularities.

Milone took legal action alleging that Cardinal Angelo Becciu pressured him to quit after he began finding evidence of fraud. The Vatican dismissed his complaint, arguing that even if Becciu did force his resignation, he acted in a personal capacity, not as an official of the Secretariat of State.

The Vatican has said that Milone “failed in the agreement to keep confidential the reasons for his resignation from office.”

“When they delivered the decree of the crimes that I committed, the document said that they had a document …. which proved they had carried out seven months of investigation on me and included all the details of whatever crimes I’d committed,” Milone said.

“This happened in June of 2017. Eight years and some months have gone by, and we have asked for this document many, many times and we’ve never been given it. So I don’t have any element to know what exactly I’m accused of,” he said.

“My impression is, I’ve never seen it because maybe it doesn’t include anything, because had it included something real, I would have been confronted with it,” he said.

Milone appealed, but the decision was upheld. He has launched a final appeal.

The Vatican did not comment upon EWTN News’ request, which Milone says is because “they’re very embarrassed.”

“They’re very embarrassed what two individuals did within the Vatican from an institutional standpoint, and they don’t have the answer,” he said. “So they try to shy away from the issue without commenting on it, which is what happened in the legal case.”

Financial irregularities

Since his dismissal, Milone has spoken with a number of journalists about the matter and irregulatires he uncovered. He spoke with one who was investigating an issue regarding payment systems for the Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See (APSA).

APSA “is the major dicastery of the Vatican, responsible for the management of its assets,” Milone said. “It’s like a treasury, and it’s also sort of a banking institution, although it’s not a direct bank because it operates through banks in other countries to operate its financial activities.”

“When this journalist did his investigation and came up with an analysis ... he contacted me and he said he had found out that the payment system in APSA was possibly able to make payments by losing track of the receiver,” Milone said.

The issue was that someone could make a money transfer and then change the direction where the money was going after it had left the account, and it wouldn’t show up on the initial records.

The journalist asked if it was true. “So I told the journalist, ‘What you found out is correct, full stop.’ So I only mentioned it once, saying there was a problem with the swift payment issues. And I confirmed the investigation. How could I not confirm? I couldn’t lie.”

“In my two years in the Vatican, I reported 15 issues to the money laundering authority AIF, and to the promoter [of] justice to investigate. Because my statute said if there are issues which are in conflict of the law, you have to report to these authorities,” he said.

“AIF, 14 times, replied to me that we had misunderstood and one time they didn’t reply. And the promoter of justice never replied to any of them. So what’s the point in highlighting issues which need to be investigated if nobody looks into them?”

Milone has also spoken out about “an odd transfer” of 2.5 million euros sent to a hospital to build a ward. The money was sent, but there is no ward.

“We examined all the documentation, all the transactions, and we found that 2.5 million had been paid over to … the hospital over a period of time in equal transactions, 10 transactions of 250,000, I think. And it had gone into the bank account. The ward had not been built. But the money also left the bank account” of the hospital.

“And that was reported to the promoter of justice in the Vatican,” he said. “I just did my job. My job was to review, report, and then get on with the next thing. My job was not of a judicial nature.”

Next steps with Pope Leo

In an interview with Crux, Pope Leo XIV has said the claims of a financial crisis at the Vatican have been exaggerated, noting that the Holy See actually recorded a surplus of 60 million euros in 2024.

He even said he wasn’t “losing any sleep” over the issue of finances at the Vatican. In response, Milone said: “I was very worried that the pope would not be properly informed of the situation in the Vatican because there were too many, let me use the word, skeletons in cupboards that needed to be preserved. And therefore it would be very difficult to understand the issues at hand.”

“The financial situation may be better than he expected,” Milone said. “I don’t know what’s happened between 2017, when I left, and today, except from reading in the newspapers. But I also know as an experienced accountant that some of the issues there would have been very difficult to remove in a very short period of time.”

“Now, the fact that the consolidated financial statements are not being disclosed, to me, is an indication that there is a problem,” he said.

Milone said he would like to meet with Pope Leo “to give him my understanding of some of the challenges that the Vatican faces in moving forward and becoming sound from an economical standpoint.”

As Milone’s case moves forward, if the next appeal is rejected “that would be technically the end of the line in the Vatican,” he said.

“I’m an optimistic person. I believe that in any case, if there’s a justice system, the justice system has to be properly followed by. And I believe that at the end of the day, if there is truth in the documents and the documents are read properly and understood properly, I will be on the right side of the decision,” Milone said.

In Castel Gandolfo, Italy, this week, academics and representatives gathered to launch the Global Alliance, a new initiative by the University of Notre Dame and the Laudato Si’ Centre of Higher Education dedicated to promoting integral ecology through fostering environmental collaboration.

As reported by the official Vatican News outlet, the initiative, which took place March 9–10 at the Borgo Laudato Si’, part of the Pontifical Villa Gardens at Castel Gandolfo established by Pope Leo XIV last year, featured discussions on integral ecology, climate change, and ecological leadership.

Cardinal Fabio Baggio, general director of the Laudato Si’ Center and undersecretary of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, spoke of the Global Alliance as a fruit of more universities expressing interest in studying the teachings of Laudato Si’.

“We started by looking around the world at all the universities that have begun deepening their studies on Laudato Si’ — we found more than 400,” Baggio said. “One of the outputs we envisioned from the very beginning was the creation of a Global Alliance. The people here are going to commit to producing more research and disseminating awareness about ecological conversion.”

The Borgo Laudato Si’ complex features a circular greenhouse, centuries-old trees, and agricultural land; it is dedicated to Pope Francis’ teachings on caring for creation in his encyclical Laudato Si’.

Sister Alessandra Smerilli, the secretary of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, spoke of event as a source of excitement and a gathering of “people from different corners of the world, different universities, but with one aim, which is that we want to share ideas and good practices to live according to Laudato Si’ principles.”

Pope Leo XIV has appointed Spanish Augustinian Archbishop Luis Marín de San Martín as papal almoner and prefect of the Dicastery for the Service of Charity.

Cardinal Konrad Krajewski, who has led the office since 2022, will return to his native Poland as the new metropolitan archbishop of Łódź.

Marín de San Martín, titular bishop of Suliana, became a more prominent figure in the Vatican during the Synod on Synodality, when Pope Francis named him undersecretary of the Synod of Bishops in 2021.

He and Leo XIV, both Augustinians, have known each other for years. In 2008, when the current pontiff was serving as prior general of the Augustinian order, he asked Marín de San Martín to take charge of the order’s archive in Rome, where he has now served for 18 years.

Born in Madrid in 1961, Marín de San Martín holds degrees in spiritual theology from the Pontifical Comillas University in Madrid and in dogmatic theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. He also earned a doctorate in theology from Comillas with a dissertation on the ecclesiology of St. John XXIII and holds a diploma in archival studies.

He served as provincial councilor of the Augustinian Province of Spain from 1999 to 2002 and was pastor of the parish of Santa Ana y la Esperanza in Madrid. Until 2008, he was prior of the Monastery of Santa María de la Vid in Burgos. He has also taught at the San Agustín Theological Center in El Escorial and at the Augustinian Theological Study Center in Valladolid.

With extensive experience in lay pastoral ministry, he has served since 2008 as general archivist of the Order of St. Augustine and since 2013 as assistant general to the prior general of the order, as well as president of the Augustinian Spirituality Institute.

The Apostolic Almonry, formally renamed the Dicastery for the Service of Charity under Pope Francis’ 2022 reform of the Roman Curia, is the Vatican office responsible for carrying out charitable works for the poor in the name of the Holy Father, especially in Rome and in conflict zones.

The papal almoner is also delegated by the pope to grant apostolic blessings through parchment certificates. The office carries the dignity of archbishop and membership in the pontifical family, allowing participation in papal liturgies and official audiences.

Krajewski, born in Łódź in 1963, entered the diocesan seminary there in 1982 and earned a theology degree from the John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin before being ordained a priest on June 11, 1988.

He later earned a licentiate in liturgy from the Pontifical Liturgical Institute of Sant’Anselmo in Rome and a doctorate in theology with a specialization in liturgy from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas, also in Rome. He also worked with the Office for the Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff.

Over the years, he served as master of ceremonies to the metropolitan archbishop of Łódź, taught at the diocesan seminary and at Franciscan and Salesian seminaries in the archdiocese, and was a professor at the Warsaw academy.

He also served as pontifical master of ceremonies in the Office for the Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff. In 2013, he was named papal almoner and titular archbishop, receiving episcopal ordination on Sept. 17 of that year.

Pope Francis made him a cardinal in the June 28, 2018, consistory, assigning him the deaconry of Santa Maria Immacolata all’Esquilino. Since 2022, he has served as prefect of the Dicastery for the Service of Charity.

This story was first published by EWTN’s Spanish-language news partner, ACI Prensa. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News.

The Pontifical Academy for Life launched the initiative Scientists for Peace, an appeal to scientists, researchers, and academics worldwide to promote the concrete pursuit of peace through scientific research and international cooperation.

The project, promoted under the auspices of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, was announced amid global tensions and armed conflicts that, according to the organizers, threaten not only the affected populations but also freedom and cooperation in scientific research.

Promotion and defense of human life

In a press release, the Vatican body recalled that its mission is to study, from an interdisciplinary perspective, issues related to the promotion and defense of human life. Within this framework, it poses a central question: “Can scientific research, in its methods and objects of study, contribute to the pursuit of peace?”

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According to the document, science — guided by the pursuit of truth and based on rigorous methodologies — develops through the exchange of knowledge and a constant willingness to engage in critical debate.

Although competition and debate are part of academic life, the manifesto’s proponents emphasize that these can be addressed through transparent communication and an effort to overcome individual interests in favor of the common good and the advancement of knowledge beyond national borders.

In this context, the initiative invites the international scientific community to actively advocate for peace and to work toward reconciliation and conflict resolution through the daily practice of research.

The appeal is also inspired by the words of Pope Leo XIV in his message for the 59th World Day of Peace in 2026, where he states: “Peace exists; it wants to dwell within us. It has the gentle power to enlighten and expand our understanding; it resists and overcomes violence.”

The initiative is open to scientists from all disciplines, nationalities, and cultural backgrounds, regardless of their political or religious beliefs.

Researchers with a significant international presence

So far, 80 scientists have already signed it. Among them are several researchers with a significant international presence in academic and media debate.

One signatory is ecologist David Tilman, considered one of the most influential researchers in the fields of biodiversity, climate change, and sustainable agriculture; another is developmental psychologist Michael Lamb, a professor at the University of Cambridge recognized for his studies on child development and family law.

In the field of education, prominent figures include character development expert Thomas Lickona, professor emeritus at the State University of New York at Cortland, and cultural psychologist Barbara Rogoff, a researcher at the University of California Santa Cruz, known for her work on sociocultural learning.

In the field of bioethics, the Dutch expert Henk ten Have, professor at Duquesne University and former head of scientific ethics at UNESCO, signed on, along with philosopher of law Laura Palazzani, professor at LUMSA University, and Spanish jurist Federico de Montalvo Jääskeläinen, professor at the Comillas Pontifical University and former president of the Bioethics Committee of Spain.

The list also includes social theologian Emilce Cuda, responsible for the Pontifical Commission for Latin America; Italian pediatrician Alberto Villani of the Bambino Gesù Pediatric Hospital in Rome, known for his media presence during the pandemic; neonatologist Daniele De Luca, professor at Paris-Saclay University; and agricultural researcher Felix Prinz zu Löwenstein of the FiBL Research Institute for Organic Agriculture, a leading figure in the European debate on organic farming and food sustainability.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

The final report of the Synod on Synodality’s study group “Women’s Participation in the Life and Leadership of the Church” raises the possibility of “reformulating” certain competencies and functions of priests, deacons, and bishops to give women greater responsibility in the Church, while noting that the issue of the female diaconate “is not ripe.”

“It is necessary to reflect in particular on the reformulation of the areas of competence of ordained ministry,” states the final report of the group that studied women’s participation in the life and governance of the Church, published by the Vatican on Tuesday in Italian and English.

This is one of the 10 groups established by Pope Francis in 2024 after the first session of the Synod on Synodality.

The work and report of this group were coordinated by the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith. In the document, this team expresses openness to “the possibility of new ministries — including those of community leadership — for lay men and women, and for men and women religious.”

The 86-page report, whose publication was authorized by Pope Leo XIV, notes an “unease” regarding forms of “machismo” and “clericalism” within the Church and therefore proposes a redefinition of governing power that provides new leadership positions for women.

In this regard, it emphasizes that “redefining these areas of competence could pave the way for the recognition of new spaces of responsibility for women in the Church.”

Regarding the female diaconate, the report states that the issue “is not yet ripe” and refers to the work carried out by previous commissions — the second of which issued an opinion against it — without reaching a definitive judgment.

The proposals now circulated are also not definitive. They have been submitted to the pope for his consideration.

More than a hierarchical ‘concession’

The text argues that it is necessary to “overcome the conception of women’s active participation in the life and governance of the Church as a ‘concession’ from hierarchical authority.”

According to the document, women’s involvement should not be understood as a mere functional substitution but as a reality linked to baptismal dignity, since women are “holders of a right in this regard, inasmuch as they are baptized and bearers of charisms.”

The document also states that “there is no reason or impediment preventing women from exercising leadership roles in the Church” and emphasizes that “the mere fact of being a woman does not, in itself, prevent women from assuming leadership roles in the Church.”

From an ecclesiological perspective, the study group participants consider it necessary “to overcome the artificial separation between genders and roles, considering the shared dignity of all creatures created in the image and likeness of God.”

In this vein, the group emphasizes that priority must be given “to the order of being with respect to that of doing,” recalling that participation in the mission of the Church is based, above all, on baptism and the gifts of the Holy Spirit present in the people of God.

The report notes that the discernment of these charisms belongs to the bishop, who can recognize them through a mandate, delegating [a function], or the institution of a specific ministry. However, it cautions that this process “is not a solitary decision” but must also involve the ecclesial community.

Role of the laity in the exercise of the bishop’s ministry

From a theological and canonical perspective, the document clarifies that the lay faithful do not participate in holy orders, although they can collaborate in the exercise of the bishop’s ministry.

In this context, the authors emphasize that both Pope Francis and Leo XIV put this guideline into practice by appointing women to positions of authority in the Roman Curia, which constitutes “a model for reflection.”

“The recent appointments of women to positions of responsibility in some dicasteries constitute a prophetic sign of both symbolic and practical significance. They represent a first step towards opening new spaces for participation, recognizing that the capacity for governance and discernment is not the exclusive prerogative of the male gender,” the study group emphasizes.

Warning about clericalism

The document warns, however, that attitudes marked by “clericalism” still persist. In this regard, it points out that “women, even in positions of responsibility, sometimes have difficulty participating and being heard on equal terms with their male colleagues, especially in interactions with ordained ministers.”

At the same time, it notes that the authority proper to the clergy derives mainly from their relationship with the Eucharist and from their mission to safeguard the unity of the community, although this “does not exclude that a power to guide communities may be conferred, at least in some cases, also on lay faithful.”

The report adds that the pope’s primatial authority can also be delegated to baptized individuals who have not received holy orders, as established by the apostolic constitution Praedicate Evangelium. Therefore, the document concludes that “there appear to be no obstacles to extending this approach to the local level in dioceses as well.”

Women’s participation is ‘a true sign of the times’

However, the report also observes signs of change. Many women perceive increasing recognition from male leaders who have understood that their participation “is not a concession or an adaptation to passing cultural trends but a true sign of the times.”

This new awareness, the document adds, could become “a prerequisite for lasting structural transformation.”

The synod’s secretary-general, Cardinal Mario Grech, stated in the report’s summary that “courage, accompaniment, and patience will be necessary to introduce gradual changes” in order to preserve ecclesial communion and build communities that fully value the gifts and charisms of men and women.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

Archbishop of Tehran-Isfahan Cardinal Dominique Mathieu met with the pope March 11 after witnessing the first days of military clashes in the Iranian capital.

Mathieu had been leading the Roman Catholic Church in Iran, which has about 2,000 members, despite the ongoing anti-government protests, U.S. and Israeli threats against the regime, and his own recovery from serious health issues.

Archbishop of Tehran-Isfahan Cardinal Dominique Mathieu meets with Pope Leo XIV March 11, 2026, after witnessing the first days of military clashes in the Iranian capital. | Credit: Vatican Media

Italy closed its embassy in Tehran, and the cardinal’s residence is on the grounds, so the archbishop had to leave with the diplomatic representation. He then took a flight from Azerbaijan to Rome, arriving last weekend.

Mathieu’s whereabouts had been unknown after President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered joint strikes on Iran on Feb. 28 that killed Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. In response, Iran launched strikes on U.S. bases and forces, Israel, and the Gulf states.

The 62-year-old Belgian cardinal, a member of the Order of Friars Minor Conventuals, became archbishop of Iran in 2021 and was named a cardinal by Pope Francis in 2024.