7 lesser-known apostles and where Catholics can encounter them today
Not many details are known about some of Jesus’ closest followers — here are some of their names and where their relics and tombs can be found today. When Christians think of Jesus’ Twelve Apostles, they might immediately think of Peter, John, and Matthew. But what about some of the lesser-known followers he chose? While […]
Pope Leo XIV to Arab-region churches: ‘Do not be afraid of your smallness’
The pope met with members of the Council of Latin Bishops of the Arab Regions on Thursday in Rome, offering a message of hope and encouragement in the midst of crisis and uncertainty. Pope Leo XIV offered a clear measure for the mission of the Church in the Middle East, a region marked by conflict, […]
Pope Leo XIV points to St. John Henry Newman as a model for education today
The pontiff urged Oxford scholars to seek truth courageously and promote an education rooted in human dignity, justice and the common good. Pope Leo XIV received a delegation from the University of Oxford’s Oriel College at the Vatican on Sept. 4, highlighting St. John Henry Newman’s vision of education as a response to contemporary challenges. […]
Pope Leo XIV to seminarians: ‘As I look at each of you, I see the marvelousness of God’
The pope told the seminarians that the call of God is gratuitous and not based on any merit of theirs, adding that their presence is a sign of hope for the Church in that God continues to call. On Sept. 3, Pope Leo XIV received at the Vatican’s Apostolic Palace a group of seminarians from […]
“Humanism” is a Complex Term
Today, the term “Humanism” can evoke a distinctly secular worldview, one that places human reason and autonomy at the center and, in some forms, explicitly rejects religious belief. But that modern understanding can obscure the very different historical world in which Renaissance Humanism first flourished. Rather than emerging in opposition to Christianity, Humanism developed gradually […]
New Horizons of Humanism
The Renaissance placed a new emphasis on the extraordinary capacities of the human person: reason, creativity, craftsmanship, discovery and the ability to transform the world through art and knowledge. But that achievement also contained a tension that would become increasingly important over the following centuries. What happens when humanity moves from occupying an important place […]
Pope Leo Stands Above the ‘Liturgy Wars’
COMMENTARY: There is a calmness in the Holy Father’s remarks that sends a message to combatants to back away from the liturgical cliff and start thinking more unitively. At his general audience Aug. 26, Pope Leo XIV reflected upon Sacrosanctum Concilium, the Second Vatican Council’s document on liturgy, offering his most detailed catechesis yet on the liturgical reforms […]
Abuse prevention, liturgy central to Vatican courses for new bishops
The program has been a fixture of the Church calendar since 2000, when it was launched by St. John Paul II. The Vatican is hosting its annual formation course for newly appointed bishops from Sept. 2-10, bringing together 147 prelates from five continents to strengthen ecclesial communion and provide practical tools for the exercise of […]
True ecological conversion passes through the Eucharist
An International Theological Commission document sets out a Christian vision of humanity’s relationship with creation. VATICAN CITY — “Ecology is the result of how the equation of the interaction between cosmology and anthropology is resolved. Therefore, an ecological approach that seeks to get to the root of the issues cannot avoid addressing both of these […]
Who Will Be Offered the First Red Hats of Leo XIV’s Pontificate?
ANALYSIS: The first American Pope has yet to appoint his inaugural batch of cardinals. So far, Leo XIV’s government has been characterized by extraordinary prudence and a certain continuity with his predecessors. He has made only a few relatively minor adjustments to the curia, without touching Francis’ broad reform framework. He has also retained the […]