Junno Arocho Esteves

In his Feb. 19 address to participants of the religious congregation's General Chapter, the pope said that authority in religious life should serve as a means of "animating common life" centered on Christ, while "avoiding any form of control that does not respect the dignity and freedom of persons."

Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin patriarch of Jerusalem, strongly criticized the U.S.-led Board of Peace, an international body chaired by President Donald Trump to oversee the governance and reconstruction of Gaza.

Cuban bishops published a message Jan. 31 warning that the "elimination of all possibility of oil entering the country raises alarm bells, especially for the most vulnerable."

Pope Leo XIV, the head of the world's smallest state, may make a brief visit to Monaco, the world's second-smallest state, this year, the Vatican confirmed.

Media entrepreneur and pro-democracy advocate Jimmy Lai, whose arrest nearly six years ago prompted outrage around the world, was sentenced to 20 years in prison.

While Church leaders in Spain hailed the process as a victory for migrants, in Italy the head of the Italian bishops' conference warned of widespread indifference toward migrants dying at sea.

Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, concluded a two-day visit in Denmark with a meeting with the country's king and foreign minister as tensions between Europe and the United States still loom.

The Holy See, "obviously, finds itself in a different situation than other countries, so there will be a different consideration," Cardinal Pietro Parolin said.

Pope Leo XIV expressed his condolences to the families of victims of a devastating accident in which two high-speed trains collided in southern Spain's Andalucia region.

As anti-government protests in Iran continue despite an internet blackout and the use of lethal force against demonstrators, Pope Leo XIV expressed his concern over the escalating situation.

Each year, the annual Marian procession of the "Divina Pastora" ("Divine Shepherdess") draws millions of pilgrims and devotees in Venezuela. The Jan. 14 procession, however, was of particular significance following the United States' capture of President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores Jan. 3.

According to the decree, Leo has established that from Jan. 10, following the closing of the church's Jubilee Year, until Jan. 10, 2027, a special Year of St. Francis may be proclaimed, in which every Christian, "following the example of the Saint of Assisi, may himself become a model of holiness of life and a constant witness of peace."

Victims of abuse are cautiously optimistic regarding an agreement between the Catholic Church and the Spanish government that would seek to provide reparations to victims of clergy sexual abuse.

While providing no specifics, the Vatican said the consistory is taking place "within the context of the life and mission of the church, and intends to strengthen the communion between the Bishop of Rome and the cardinals, who are called to collaborate in a particular way in solicitude for the good of the universal church."

"We want to replant hope within the Christian community over here in the Holy Land," said Anton Asfar, secretary-general of Caritas Jerusalem.

Pope Leo XIV said he is "deeply saddened" by the attack on Australian Jews at a celebration of the first day of Hanukkah. Sydney's archbishop and U.S. prelates also condemned the "horrific" shooting and offered prayers.

"From when he was a child until he became a priest and then left for Peru, he has always been somewhat the same person," said Vatican News journalist Salvatore Cernuzio.

The 63-year-old Austrian priest, who has served as apostolic administrator for the Archdiocese of Vienna since January, will succeed Cardinal Christoph Schönborn, who has led the archdiocese since 1995.

A 17th-century monastery in northern Italy where recently canonized St. Carlo Acutis received his first Communion was in ruins after a massive fire ravaged the historic building.

 Construction of the basilica began in 1882, and is considered a masterpiece of Antoni Gaudí, a Catholic whose cause for sainthood is underway.