Pope Francis on June 1 named three cardinals from Asia as members of the Vatican’s Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments.
When hosting several new ambassadors from Asian countries at the Vatican, Pope Francis underlined the necessity of fostering brotherhood and settling disagreements amicably.
The Holy See Press office stated the possible opening of a permanent pontifical office in Hanoi, in the “near future” after the meeting between the Vatican and Vietnam.
At the special invitation of Pope Francis, Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith, Archbishop of Colombo, and a group of 56 others, including the bishops of Sri Lanka, left for the Vatican, April 22.
Pope Francis will be unable to preside over Ash Wednesday services on March 2 because of acute knee pain, according to media reports.
The pope’s doctor had “prescribed a period of greater rest for the leg” because of “acute gonalgia,” or knee pain, the Vatican explained in a note.
On February 24, President Vladimir Putin of Russia ordered a “special military operation” in Ukraine. Ukraine said it faced a “full-scale attack from multiple directions.”
Hours after the Russian offensive began, the Ukrainian Catholic Bishops’ Conference sent a message to the faithful, inviting them to pray for “the leaders of our state, for our army” and also “for those who started the war and were blinded by aggression.”
The bishops urged the faithful not to give in to “hatred and rage.”
Pope Francis on Friday exhorted Christians to keep clear of a fake, commercial Christmas, polluted by consumerism and indifference. He made the remark to a group of 3 delegations who donated two Nativity Scenes and a Christmas tree to the Vatican this year.
The Vatican has released on Tuesday, June 1, major revisions to the Catholic Church’s Code of Canon Law, including sanctions related to clergy sex abuse cases.
