Christopher White

One year after relieving Archbishop Georg Gänswein, the longtime personal secretary to Pope Benedict XVI, of his Vatican duties and sending him home to Germany without an assignment, Pope Francis on June 24 named the controversial prelate as the Vatican's ambassador to Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia.

The disgraced former papal nuncio to the United States, Italian Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò, alleges that he has been charged with schism by the Vatican's doctrinal office, charges he describes as an "honor."

Weeks after twice repeating a homophobic slur, Pope Francis unintentionally became the star of Rome's 2024 Pride parade. 

Pope Francis met with President Joe Biden June 14 in a private meeting that took place during the G7 summit of world leaders, just five months before U.S. voters will head to the polls for a presidential election.

Artificial intelligence (or "AI"), said the pope to the "Group of Seven" leaders, is both "an exciting and fearsome tool" where the "benefits or harm it will bring will depend on its use."

Nearly three years after their first meeting, President Joe Biden and Pope Francis will likely discuss peace, with the two men representing different visions of what that requires in the present moment.

Canadian Cardinal Marc Ouellet turns 80 on June 8. His birthday brings with it the conclusion of an incongruous era at the Vatican, where he walked a fine line representing both past and present papal regimes.

Ahead of the Vatican's 2025 Jubilee Year, Pope Francis pressed world financial ministers on June 5 to support an international mechanism to alleviate foreign debt, which is now estimated at some $313 trillion globally.

Ahead of his ambitious trip to the Asia-Pacific and Oceania in September, Pope Francis will participate in an online dialogue with students from the region.

Australia's bishops have approved a liturgy incorporating elements of Aboriginal language and culture. The decades-old Mass of the Land of the Holy Spirit will now be submitted to the Vatican for official recognition. 

Pope Francis expressed firm opposition to the idea of ordaining Catholic women as deacons in a new U.S. television interview, raising doubts that the ongoing three-year synodal process could move forward on the issue.

In a new crackdown aimed to prevent scams, hoaxes and heresies, the Vatican has updated its guidelines for reviewing apparitions, visions and alleged revelations, and reaffirmed that only a pope could formally deem something to be "supernatural."

Pope Francis is planning to visit Belgium this September. The reason for the trip isn't exactly clear, even if it's welcome.

Listen: In this episode of The Vatican Briefing, Australia's ambassador to the Vatican, Chiara Porro, says the global Catholic Church is making progress in hearing women's viewpoints.

 Ahead of meeting Pope Francis at the Vatican this weekend, New York's Mayor Eric Adams told NCR the pontiff is akin to a global "influencer." Said Hizzoner: "I think he's the right leader for the time we're in right now." 

Noted Czech theologian Fr. Tomas Halik helped lead a Vatican gathering for some 200 parish priests about the ongoing synod process. He told NCR he was encouraged by the open and frank discussions that took place.

 Pope Francis has now established 10 working groups to study some of the most controversial issues that have emerged in the Synod of Bishops. Theologians say it is difficult to assess what their impact might be.

Pope Francis has written to a group of parents of LGBTQ persons, responding to their criticism of a Vatican document that condemned gender theory and gender-affirming surgeries. He told them he received their critique with an "open heart."

Two new major studies on clergy sexual abuse reveal the Catholic Church's efforts toward safeguarding and child protection are being met with mixed results.

Listen: In this episode of The Vatican Briefing, a leading Catholic bishop on the U.S.-Mexico border expresses "grave concern" that the 2024 presidential race could lead to further demonization of migrants seeking to enter the country.