On the Feast of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple, the Church also marked the World Day of Consecrated Life with Mass in Saint Peter’s basilica. In his homily, Pope Francis encouraged those present to rekindle “what originally set their hearts afire” to answer God’s call, which he came back to when meeting with a ...read more

I think everyone who’s been through the tortuous process of starting and/or running a prayer group can attest that it’s not easy to persuade people to attend. Maybe some of you have stories about this that you can share with us. I’ve also been part of fledgling prayer groups that last for a couple months ...read more

Pope Francis presided at Holy Mass with the members of Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, on the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, the XXI World Day for Consecrated Life. Find the full text of his prepared homily below: When the parents of Jesus brought the Child in fulfilment of ...read more

Join us in prayer for the intentions entrusted to us by Pope Francis. For February 2017, we join the Holy Father in praying for: Comfort for the Afflicted – That all those who are afflicted, especially the poor, refugees, and marginalized, may find welcome and comfort in our communities. Daily Offering Prayer God, our Father, I offer ...read more

The following is the message of condolences for the victims of the terrorist attack that took place late yesterday evening in a mosque in Québec in Canada, sent by Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin on behalf of the Holy Father Francis to Cardinal Gérald Cyprien Lacroix, archbishop of Québec. ...read more

The Spanish daily newspaper El País published last Sunday a long interview with Pope Francis, who spoke to the journalist Pablo Ordaz on January 20th. For more than one hour, inside a normal room in Casa Santa Marta, the pontiff explained that “in the Church there are saints and sinners, decent men and corrupt men” ...read more

On Wednesday, January 25, 2017, Pope Francis presided over the celebration of Vespers for the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul at the conclusion of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. Please find the full text of his prepared homily below: Encountering Jesus on the road to Damascus radically transformed the life of ...read more

The theme for the Church’s 2017 World Day for Social Communications is: “Fear not, for I am with you” (Is 43.5). Communicating hope and trust in our time. The message is released on January 24 each year, feast of St. Francis de Sales, patron saint of journalists and communicators. The day is usually commemorated on ...read more

This week on Vatican Connections, the Church marks the Week of prayer for Christian Unity. In Rome, the Holy Father kicks it off with an ecumenical delegation from Finland and Cardinal Kurt Koch, President of the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity, shares with Vatican Radio what ecumenism looked like last year. The ...read more

This week Vatican Connections takes a look at Vatican diplomacy once again after Pope Francis delivered a traditional New Year’s address to ambassadors accredited to the Holy See. The Church gears up for the World Day of Migrants and Refugees. The Papal charities open their doors to the homeless as temperatures dropped in Rome and ...read more