Pope Francis is scheduled to make his first Apostolic Visit to Africa this month. His itinerary includes a stop in the Central African Republic where he will visit the capital, Bangui. For the first time the pope and Vatican officials have acknowledged that the visit to the war torn nation is less than certain. Tumultuous ...read more

From October 4 – October 25, 2015, Pope Francis led the Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops on the Vocation and Mission of the Family in the Church and the Contemporary World. During the last week of the Synod of Bishops, Lino Rulli broadcasted his Catholic Guy radio show from Rome featuring special guest ...read more

Join us in prayer for the intentions entrusted to us by Pope Francis. For November 2015, we join the Holy Father in praying for: Dialogue – That we may be open to personal encounter and dialogue with all, even those whose convictions differ from our own. Pastors – That pastors of the Church, with profound love for their flocks, may accompany ...read more

Though the Synod on the Family is over, the analysis and even the “spin-od” continues in the media. Meanwhile, life moves on at the Vatican. As a result there were a few stories that got less than their fair share of coverage this week because writers were still focused on who said what about the ...read more

Pope Francis delivered the homily at Mass being offered on Sunday morning, the 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time, to mark the close of the XIV Ordinary Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, who have been gathered in Rome for the past three weeks to reflect on and discuss the vocation and mission of the family ...read more

The three week Synod on the family is finally over, but the homestretch did not come without some drama: an Italian newspaper, Quotiando Nazione, reported that Pope Francis has a small, benign brain tumour. Cue the denials and conspiracy theories. Pope Francis provided his own plot twist, taking the floor on Thursday afternoon to announce ...read more

Homily of His Holiness Pope Francis Mass of the Twenty-Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time Canonization of Four Saints Sunday October 18, 2015 On Sunday, October 18, 2015, Pope Francis celebrated the Canonization Mass of four Saints: Saint Vincent Grossi, Saint Mary of the Immaculate Conception and Saints Louis Martin and Marie-Azélie Guérin. Read the full text of his ...read more

Pope Francis’ Address at Commemorative Ceremony for the 50th Anniversary of the Synod of Bishops – FINAL TEXT October 17, 2015 Paul VI Audience Hall – Vatican City Your Beatitudes, Your Eminences, Your Excellencies, Brothers and Sisters, As the Ordinary General Assembly is in full session, this commemoration of the fiftieth anniversary of the institution of ...read more

The Synod of Bishops on the Family started this week. For a run down of what has been discussed so far, watch this week’s edition of Vatican Connections, or Salt and Light’s special synod coverage, Inside the Synod. There were a few non-synod items of interest over the past week. The pope’s message for World ...read more

Pope Francis addressed the General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops on Monday morning – the morning of their first full day of sessions. Below, please find Vatican Radio’s full English translation of the Holy Father’s remarks. Dear Beatitudes, Eminences, Excellencies, brothers and sisters, The Church today takes up once again the dialogue begun with ...read more