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Pope Benedict XVI

Pope issues first appeal for Chinese Catholics
Pope Francis has issued his first appeal directed at Catholics in China, long the source of concern for his predecessor Benedict XVI. Francis urged ...
Pope leads pep rally at Vatican, meets with Merkel
Pope Francis lamented that investment losses by banks trigger more alarm in the economic crisis than the struggle of people to feed their families, ...
Pope blasts "cult of money" that tyrannizes poor
Pope Francis has denounced the global financial system, blasting the "cult of money" that he says is tyrannizing the poor and turning humans into ...
Pope frees doves from cage in St. Peter's Square
Two doves celebrated their freedom with a soaring flight over St. Peter's Square on Wednesday, all thanks to Pope Francis. As Francis toured the ...
Africa, Asia see boom in priests as Europe withers
The number of Catholic priests in Africa and Asia has shot up over the past decade while decreasing in Europe, mirroring trends in the numbers of ...
Pope Francis gives church hundreds of new saints
Pope Francis on Sunday gave the Catholic Church new saints, including hundreds of 15th-century martyrs who were beheaded for refusing to convert to ...
2 popes praying: Egyptian Copt and Pope Francis
Two popes prayed together Friday at the Vatican, one Catholic and one Orthodox, in a sign of improving ties following the election of new leaders for ...
Puerto Rico Catholics support archbishop
Roman Catholics in Puerto Rico rallied Wednesday around an archbishop who is apparently under pressure from the Vatican to resign for allegedly ...
Vatican, US Treasury agree to share financial data
The Vatican signed an agreement with the U.S. Treasury Department on Tuesday to exchange financial information as part of its efforts to comply with ...
Benedict XVI returns to Vatican for first time
Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI came home to the Vatican on Thursday for the first time since he resigned Feb. 28, beginning an unprecedented era for the ...
Benedict XVI returns to Vatican Thursday
Retired Pope Benedict XVI is coming home. The Vatican says the 86-year-old emeritus pontiff will move into his new retirement home in the Vatican ...
Leftist priests: Francis can fix church 'in ruins'
A new pope from Latin America known for ministering to the poor in his country's slums is raising the hopes of advocates of liberation theology, whose ...
Vatican official: Romero saint effort 'unblocked'
The Vatican official spearheading the case to make slain Archbishop Oscar Romero of El Salvador a saint said Tuesday the process is moving forward ...
Ex-bishop's widow wants optional priestly celibacy
She uses a wheelchair and carries the weight of her 87 years, but Clelia Luro feels powerful enough to make the Roman Catholic Church pay attention ...
Pope Francis supports crackdown on US nuns
The Vatican said Monday that Pope Francis supports the Holy See's crackdown on the largest umbrella group of U.S. nuns, dimming hopes that a Jesuit ...
Pope taps cardinals to advise on governing, reform
Pope Francis named eight cardinals from around the globe Saturday to advise him on running the Catholic Church and reforming the Vatican bureaucracy, ...
France's top rabbi takes leave amid scandal
France's top rabbi announced Thursday he is taking leave from his post, hoping to end a scandal that has unsettled the Jewish community after he ...
Francis honors John Paul II before installation
Pope Francis was formally installed as bishop of Rome on Sunday in a ceremony characterized by more simplicity than the usual ritual and pomp enjoyed ...
Pope Francis makes first Curia appointment
Pope Francis on Saturday named a Spanish Franciscan to be the No. 2 at the Vatican's office for religious orders, his first appointment to the Vatican ...
Pope seeks decisive action against sex abuse
Pope Francis directed the Vatican on Friday to act decisively on clergy sex abuse cases and punish pedophile priests, saying the Catholic Church's ...
Police: Italian priest stole $5.1M from hospital
Italian police on Thursday arrested a priest accused of pocketing 4 million euros ($5.1 million) from a Catholic hospital he ran and helping run up ...
Francis marks anniversary of John Paul II death
Pope Francis prayed Tuesday before the tomb of Pope John Paul II on the eighth anniversary of the beloved pontiff's death in what the Vatican said was ...
Pope Francis still has most of his right lung
Does the pope have only one lung? Despite erroneous reports that Pope Francis has lived most of his life with just one lung, the surgery actually only ...
Pope visits St. Peter's tomb under Vatican
Pope Francis on Monday took an emotional, close-up look at the tomb of Peter, the church's first pontiff, buried beneath St. Peter's Basilica, the ...
Pope makes Easter pleas for world peace
Pope Francis marked Christianity's most joyous day with a passionate plea for world peace, celebrating his first Easter Sunday as pontiff in the ...