Varden: Not Every Fall Ends in Joy
Bishop Erik Varden warned Pope Leo XIV and the Roman Curia that corruption within the Church has caused profound harm. Falls can humble people when they are “puffed up,” showing God’s power to save, and can become “milestones on a personal journey of salvation, to be recalled gratefully,” Bishop Erik Varden said during this week’s […]
Pope Leo XIV replies to atheist who ‘loves God’
An atheist expresses his quandary that although he does not believe in God yet somehow he loves him. Pope Leo responds with thoughtful, insightful counsel. Pope Leo XIV responded to an atheist who paradoxically described himself as someone who “loves God,” explaining to him that “the real problem of faith” isn’t believing or not believing […]
The Polyglot Popes: How Language Builds Bridges
The Vatican website offers content in more than 60 languages today, reflecting a commitment to reach people by speaking to them in their mother tongues. Until about six decades ago, the Catholic Church relied heavily on Latin in its official and liturgical communication. But as a universal Church embracing many peoples, it recognized the importance […]
SSPX’s Rupture With Tradition and Rome
COMMENTARY: The Society of St. Pius X’s latest rejection of Vatican overtures must be called out for what it is: a not-so-latent de facto sedevacantism. The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, led by Cardinal Victor Fernández, recently hosted the superior general of the Priestly Society of St. Pius X (SSPX), Father Davide Pagliarani, […]
The Casaroli Myth and the Truth About Ostpolitik
COMMENTARY: The Italian cardinal’s Ostpolitik diplomacy is considered a key to the collapse of European communism. It was nothing of the sort. Cardinal Agostino Casaroli, Vatican secretary of state from 1979 to 1990 — and before that, the architect and chief diplomatic agent of the Ostpolitik of Pope Paul VI — initially played hard-to-get when […]
7 Things to Know About Bishop Erik Varden
The Norwegian Trappist monk chosen to preach the Vatican’s Lenten retreat once called himself an atheist — and today is one of Europe’s most respected Catholic thinkers. Pope Leo XIV, not even a year into his pontificate, still has much to show the world about his own spiritual practices — up until now, there hasn’t […]
Leo XIV signals new tone in Diocese of Rome
ANALYSIS: Four new auxiliary bishops are expected to be appointed to the Diocese of Rome, following an upcoming meeting between the Pope and the diocesan prelates. Editor’s Note: The Vatican confirmed on Feb. 25, after the story was published, that the individuals named by Andrea Gagliarducci were appointed as auxiliaries. A set of rumored bishop […]
Pope Leo: Nationalism tramples the weak, peace starts within
The pontiff warns that peace is “both a gift and a commitment” and urges prayer, reconciliation, and diplomacy amid a world wounded by conflicts. Pope Leo XIV warns in a new essay that “bitter nationalism tramples on the rights of the weakest” and says peace is first “defeated in the human heart” when people give […]
Pope Leo XIV’s First African Apostolic Journey
As Pope Leo XIV prepares for his first apostolic journey to Africa, the Apostolic Nuncio to Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea describes a Church that is youthful, vibrant, and deeply engaged in the life of society, even amid significant challenges. In an interview ahead of the papal trip, the Nuncio reflected on the vitality of the […]
Varden: Christian freedom and truth in Vatican retreat
In the fourth and fifth meditations offered to Pope Leo XIV and the Roman Curia, Bishop Erik Varden reflected on how the modern debate over “freedom” challenges Christians. In a world where “the notion of ‘freedom’ has become contentious in public discourse,” Christians must be clear about what freedom means in the light of faith, […]
