Carol Glatz

The message was read aloud by Archbishop Ettore Balestrero, the Vatican representative to U.N. agencies in Geneva, at the AI for Good Summit 2025 being held July 8-11 in Geneva.

Pope Leo XIV's appointment of the new president of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors shows that safeguarding remains a top priority, its former president said.

Following Pope Francis' teachings on integral ecology must be accepted as "the right path to follow," the pope said in his message for the 2025 World Day of Prayer for Creation.

"The history of Peter and Paul shows us that the communion to which the Lord calls us is a unison of voices and personalities that does not eliminate anyone's freedom," Leo said.

Pope Leo XIV called on everyone to root out false narratives being used to fuel today's wars, conflict and violence.

Renewing an appeal for peace, Leo underlined the importance of trying "at all costs to avoid the use of weapons and seek dialogue through diplomatic means" during a brief interview with the Italian state television station, RAI Uno.

Matteo Bruni, director of the Vatican press office, confirmed Leo would be staying in the Villa Barberini, the former summer residence of the Vatican secretaries of state; Francis turned the former papal palace on the town's main square into a museum, which opened in 2016.

St. Peter's Basilica and some of its surrounding buildings are working to reduce their environmental impact by becoming more energy efficient and promoting sustainability, based on findings by a scientific committee.

During the Holy Year, the Vatican is calling for those involved in tourism to make Christian hope concrete by investing in just and sustainable practices.

Dated May 24, the solemnity of Pentecost in 2015, the document, "Laudato Si', on Care for Our Common Home," presented the core of his teachings on integral ecology, its principles and practical applications.

The papal prayer service at Rome's Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls was dedicated to St. Paul, entrusting "the beginning of this new pontificate to the intercession of the apostle," Pope Leo XIV said.

At Mass before the conclave that will elect the next pope, the dean of the College of Cardinals urged his brothers to choose the shepherd the church and all of humanity need "at this difficult and complex and tormented" turning point in history.

The over-80 cardinals can be part of the preconclave meetings called general congregations. Those are daily meetings in which the College of Cardinals has been preparing for the conclave, discussing the needs of the church and handling business that must be attended to between popes.

The cardinals were invited to visit the pope's tomb and pray vespers, which was presided over by Cardinal Rolandas Makrickas, coadjutor archpriest of the basilica.

With the death of Pope Francis, the canonization of Blessed Carlo Acutis, which was scheduled for April 27, has been postponed.

The Gospel contains a great message of hope, "because it tells us that wherever we are lost and however we are lost, God always comes looking for us!" said the text for Pope Francis' weekly general audience.

Using forced deportations and detainment to deal with migration is "a scandal," said Jesuit Fr. Arturo Sosa, superior general of the Jesuits. The 76-year-old Venezuelan superior general held a news conference in Rome to discuss the state of the world, the church and the Jesuits and to take questions from reporters.

As Pope Francis continues his recovery at the Vatican, he is very slowly beginning to get back to his old routine of meeting with top Vatican officials, the Vatican press office said.

"Seeds of Peace and Hope" is the theme for the World Day of Prayer for Creation, which will be celebrated Sept. 1.