Associated Press

"The pope absolutely has an open invite to come back," the team's chief executive and marketing officer said, "to come sit in Section 140, to throw out a first pitch. Heck, maybe we'll let him get an at bat."

Pope Leo XIV called Wednesday for humanitarian aid to reach the Gaza Strip and for an end to the "heartbreaking" toll on its people, as he presided over his first general audience in St. Peter's Square.

"That's what we wanted to do through many of the exhibits, to show the feasibility of the ark," says Ken Ham, the organizer behind the Ark Encounter theme park and related attractions.

U.S. Vice President JD Vance extended an invitation to Pope Leo XIV to visit the United States during a meeting at the Vatican on Monday ahead of a flurry of U.S.-led diplomatic efforts to make progress on a ceasefire in Russia's war in Ukraine.

The top-ranked tennis player visited the new pope on Wednesday, gave him a tennis racket and offered to play, during an off day for Sinner at the Italian Open.

The women who have worked closely with Pope Leo XIV in recent years have praised his leadership style, ability to listen and respect for their opinions. In interviews with The Associated Press, they say they expect that as pope, Leo will continue to promote women in church governance positions, albeit with limits.

Clergymen and faithful in the Amazon region see Chicago-born Pope Leo XIV, who spent about two decades in Peru's countryside, as a pontiff who will protect the region and fight against climate change.

When white smoke poured out of the Sistine Chapel revealing that a new pope had been chosen, John Prevost turned on his television in Illinois, called his niece and they watched in awe as his brother's name was announced.

After white smoke billowed Thursday from the Sistine Chapel, signaling that a pope had been chosen, students in every classroom at The Frances Xavier Warde School in Chicago had their eyes glued to TV screens.

At a recent service in the remote southern Mexican community of Simojovel, Catholic and Mayan symbolism mingled at the altar as the deacon — his wife beside him — read the gospel in his native Tsotsil and recalled Pope Francis' teachings: work together for human rights, justice and Mother Earth.

If the next pope is from sub-Saharan Africa, he would be the first in Catholic Church history. Catholic Africans think it is a long shot, though some are cautiously optimistic that Pope Francis' successor could be a Black cardinal from their continent.

Martin Scorsese is producing a documentary made with Pope Francis that will chronicle the late pontiff's work with cinema in the global educational movement he founded before his death.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, right, and U.S. President Donald Trump, talk before the funeral of Pope Francis in Vatican April 26.(AP/Ukrainian Presidential Press Office)

Some of the fundamental differences between the U.S. president and the late pope — not only their divergent styles but their positions on migration, the environment and poverty — will come into sharper focus as President Donald Trump travels to Rome for Pope Francis' funeral.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is usually quick to issue statements on the passing of major international figures. It took him four days to issue a terse, 28-word statement on the official Prime Minister account.

Dr. Sergio Alfieri coordinated Francis' five-week hospital treatment for double pneumonia and continued to oversee the pope's treatment after the pontiff returned to the Vatican on March 23 for two months of rest to allow a full recovery.

This recipe from Milk Street Bakes mostly sticks to tradition but amps up the flavor with tangy buttermilk instead of regular milk, along with orange zest and a little Lyle's Golden Syrup for its bittersweet caramel notes. 

For generations, people of the Upper Rio Grande Valley and beyond have walked to reach El Santuario de Chimayó to commemorate Good Friday.

More than 9,000 Catholic employers do not need to abide by federal regulations requiring accommodations for workers who seek abortions and fertility treatments, according to a ruling issued this week by a federal judge in North Dakota.

More than 200 religious figures from Nicaragua are in exile, making it difficult to hold Mass or hear confessions in the country, especially in small villages.