Read & Reflect
Articles, reflections, news, and homilies — thoughtful Catholic content for the faithful, published regularly.
Vatican News
Vatican News
Echoing Pope Leo XIV, experts sign Rome declaration on limits for AI and nuclear arms
Inspired by Pope Leo XIV’s encyclical Magnifica Humanitas, more than 200 leading academics, innovators, and Nobel laureates signed a declaration in Rome on July 16 calling for responsible AI development and the complete elimination of nuclear weapons.“We must disarm the next arms race, both AI and n...
Vatican News
Pope Leo XIV to attend summer concert at Castel Gandolfo
Pope Leo XIV, who has restored the papal tradition of spending part of the summer at Castel Gandolfo, is set to attend a classical concert there on July 18.The “Concert in Honor of the Holy Father Leo XIV” will take place in the courtyard of the Apostolic Palace of Castel Gandolfo, where he is stayi...
Vatican News
Cardinals confront a ‘wounded world’ at opening of synodal consistory
Confronting a world marked by deepening division, widespread suffering and a crisis of meaning were the main topics for discussion during the opening session of the extraordinary consistory of cardinals on June 26 in the Vatican’s Paul VI Hall.The 178 cardinals attending the two-day consistory, run...
Vatican News
Leo XIV encourages representatives of North American Jesuit colleges as they confront challenges
In an audience with representatives of Jesuit colleges and universities in North America, Pope Leo XIV proposed four ways to address current challenges.In his address on June 25, the Holy Father referenced several of the major challenges facing humanity, which he said is undergoing an “epochal chang...
Vatican News
Cardinal Müller calls SSPX consecrations schismatic, defends the Latin Mass
Cardinal Gerhard Müller has called the Society of St. Pius X’s planned consecration of four bishops without papal mandate a schismatic act, while stressing that the dispute turns on authority, not the Traditional Latin Mass, which he affirmed remains valid.In an interview with “EWTN News In Depth,”...
Vatican News
Pope Leo XIV closes consistory with appeal to help world find God’s paths to peace
Pope Leo XIV on June 27 thanked the College of Cardinals for their work during their two-day extraordinary consistory, highlighting their reflections on war, poverty, and social fragmentation as well as deeper wounds such as loneliness and loss of meaning.The pope said in his closing address that he...
Vatican News
Leo XIV to bestow pallium on these 4 U.S. archbishops in 'extra special' moment with American pope
VATICAN CITY—Pope Leo XIV on June 29 will bless and bestow the “pallium” — a white woolen vestment symbolizing pastoral authority and unity with the pope — on 35 new metropolitan archbishops, including four from the United States.Leo will impose the pallia at a Mass for the solemnity of Sts. Peter a...
Vatican News
Pope Leo XIV prays for Venezuela quake victims at Angelus
VATICAN CITY — Pope Leo XIV on Sunday expressed his closeness to the people of Venezuela after recent earthquakes, offering prayers for the victims and encouragement to rescue workers.“I wish to express my solidarity with our Venezuelan brothers and sisters affected by the recent earthquakes, which...
Vatican News
Pope Leo XIV dismisses schismatic Spanish priest
Pope Leo XIV has decreed the dismissal from the clerical state of Francisco José Vegara Cerezo, who served as a priest of the Spanish Diocese of Orihuela-Alicante, following a canonical process that was initiated due to his repeated public rejection of the authority of Pope Francis and, subsequently...
Vatican News
Pope Leo XIV: Peter and Paul show the path to Christian unity
Pope Leo XIV has called on Christians to emulate the example of Sts. Peter and Paul in working toward the unity of the Church and of all Christians.The pontiff’s words were delivered during a Mass on June 29 at St. Peter’s Basilica for the solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul, the patron saints of Rome....
Vatican News
‘A bit surreal’: American pilgrims join new archbishops in Rome for pallium Mass
During the Mass on June 29 at St. Peter’s Basilica for the solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul, Pope Leo XIV conferred the pallium on the 35 metropolitan archbishops who had been appointed the previous year.Of these archbishops, four hail from the United States: Archbishops Ronald Hicks of New York, Ja...
Vatican News
Pope Leo XIV pleads with SSPX to halt episcopal consecrations
Pope Leo XIV has issued a letter to the traditionalist Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) asking it not to proceed with its planned July 1 consecrations without papal approval. But the society replied with its own letter the same day, making it clear that its plans had not changed.In a letter published Ju...