Catholic News Service

The respect religions have for the dignity and value of human life should help them convince their followers that "war must be rejected and peace cherished," leaders of the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue said in a message to Muslims around the world.

Pope Francis has decided that some controversial issues raised at the first assembly of the Synod of Bishops on synodality will be examined by study groups that will work beyond the synod's final assembly in October. 

The United States established formal diplomatic relations with the Holy See 40 years ago, and the current ambassador in Rome says its mission has been a wonderful success.

"We've tried to hew very closely to the mission that we've been given, and we have a great relationship with the Vatican," said Joe Donnelly, U.S. ambassador to the Holy See.

The world's cultures, traditions, spiritualities and languages must be acknowledged, respected and protected, especially those of Indigenous peoples, Pope Francis said.

The saints are not unreachable "exceptions of humanity" but ordinary people who worked diligently to grow in virtue, Pope Francis said.

The work of protecting minors and other vulnerable people in the Catholic Church involves holding those in positions of power accountable for the abuse they commit, Pope Francis said.

The Vatican City appeals court upheld the conviction of two Italian climate activists who glued their hands to an ancient sculpture in the Vatican Museums. 

The pope's commission for advancing the Catholic Church's efforts to prevent the abuse of vulnerable persons is due to submit its first annual report on the state of safeguarding in the church.

In a statement dated March 8 and sent to reporters March 11, the commission said it had approved the submission of its "pilot annual report" on safeguarding policies and procedures to Pope Francis, who had requested a report from the group in April 2022.

The Catholic Church should not be discouraged by the challenge of confronting sex abuse, Pope Francis said, rather it must take concrete steps in developing policies to preserve the dignity of its members.

Pope Francis will continue his custom of celebrating Holy Thursday Mass in a prison during Holy Week 2024, the Vatican said.

Pope Francis repeated his call for an immediate cease-fire in Gaza and said the international community has a "moral duty" to pursue disarmament worldwide.

The gifts of men and women are "fruitful" together, and to erase the difference between men and women "is to erase humanity," Pope Francis said.

Western theology risks becoming an abstract and rationalized conversation among academics rather than a tool for nourishing the faith of God's people, the papal preacher said.

Pope Francis paid a brief visit to Rome's Gemelli Isola Hospital Feb. 28 for "diagnostic tests," the Vatican press office said, without providing specifics.

Saying Pope Francis was continuing to experience "mild flu-like symptoms," the Vatican announced he had canceled his appointments again Feb. 26.

The second assembly of the Synod of Bishops on synodality will meet Oct. 2-27 and will be preceded by several formal studies coordinated by the synod general secretariat working with various offices of the Roman Curia.

Pope Francis has chosen a line from Psalm 71 — "Do not cast me off in my old age" — as the theme for the 2024 celebration of the World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly, which will be celebrated July 28.

In an age when even one's most intimate thoughts and feelings can become fodder for social media, Lent is a time to cast aside appearances and to find God at work in the depths of the heart, Pope Francis said.

The vice of "acedia," often translated as "sloth," can cause laziness, but it is much more than that; it is a lack of caring for anything and being bored with everything, even one's relationship with God, Pope Francis said.

Pope Francis will go to Venice in April to visit a women's prison where the Holy See has set up its pavilion for the Venice Biennale, a major international contemporary art exhibition.