At the end of the courtesy Visit to His Holiness Pope Tawadros II, in the Coptic Orthodox Patriarchate of Cairo, Pope Francis Francesco and Pope Tawadros II signed the following Joint Declaration: Common Declaration of His Holiness Francis and His Holiness Tawadros II We, Francis, Bishop of Rome and Pope of the Catholic Church, and ...read more

On Friday, April 28, 2017 Pope Francis paid a courtesy visit to Pope Tawadros II, Patriarch of the Coptic-Orthodox Church of Alexandria. Below, find the full text of his prepared remarks: The Lord is risen, he is truly risen! [Al Massih kam, bilhakika kam!] Your Holiness, Dear Brother, Only a short time has passed since ...read more

Pope Francis this afternoon met with Egyptian Political and Civil authorities during his Apostolic Visit to Egypt. Below, find the full text of his prepared address: Mr President, Honourable Members of Government and Parliament, Distinguished Ambassadors and Members of the Diplomatic Corps, Ladies and Gentlemen, As-salamu alaykum! Peace be with you! I thank you, Mr ...read more

At 3:40 pm this afternoon, Pope Francis went paid a courtesy visit to the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, the highest theological and religious institution of Sunni Islam in the world and the oldest Islamic University. Upon his arrival, the Pope was received at the entrance by the Vicar of the Grand Imam who accompanied him ...read more

The Pope’s agenda this week includes his apostolic and symbolic visit to Egypt. Greg Burke, Director of the Holy See Press Office, affirmed the Pope Francis’ will to send out a positive message. “He is serene, and not naive, because he knows the situation in Egypt,” Burke told Vatican Radio. “He knows what happened to the Copts ...read more

Sebastian Gomes shares two reasons why you should follow Pope Francis’ trip to Egypt very closely. Learn more about #PopeInEgypt! Pope Francis to Visit Egypt Also, Carl Hétu, Director of the Catholic Near East Welfare Association in Canada, sat down with Sebastian last week to discuss the current political and social landscape while looking ahead to Francis’ ...read more

Let’s start in Rome today where on Divine Mercy Sunday, the Pope reiterated the importance of the experience of mercy, as the “concrete” form in which we give visibility to the resurrection of Jesus. The pontiff noted that St. John Paul II established a special celebration of the Divine Mercy to remember the time when Jesus appeared ...read more

During the Easter Sunday Mass in St. Peter’s Square, the Holy Father gave an unscripted homily. The Pope’s Easter message “Urbi et Orbi” is given to the world at the end of mass, from the central loggia of the Vatican Basilica. Here is the English language translation of the “Urbi et Orbi” message: Dear Brothers ...read more

At 8:30 pm on Holy Saturday evening, Pope Francis presided in the Vatican Basilica at the Solemn Easter Vigil in this holy night. The ritual began in the atrium of St. Peter’s Basilica with the blessing of fire and preparation of the paschal candle. The procession to the main altar with the lighted Paschal candle and ...read more

Good Friday – Passion of the Lord Way of the Cross, Led by His Holiness Pope Francis Meditations by Anne-Marie Pelletier Introduction The hour has now come. Jesus’ journey along the dusty roads of Galilee and Judea, an endless encounter with afflicted bodies and hearts, a journey driven by his urgent need to proclaim the ...read more