Christopher White

As participants entered the Vatican Aug. 29 for a closed-door meeting on the church's governance, women's ordination advocates gathered outside to protest — only to then be removed from the premises and later detained by authorities.

Cardinal Robert McElroy used his first homily after receiving a red hat from Pope Francis to emphasize that humility is one of the chief challenges and callings of the Christian life.

Francis has elevated 20 prelates — including San Diego's Bishop Robert McElroy — to the rank of cardinal, asking them to use an "unassuming power" and preach the Gospel with an openness to all people "without exception."

Luxembourg Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich favors a church "where everybody can feel at home." He added: "If we close the door on people, we push some people into despair and that is something we do not want."

Contrary to recent remarks by some U.S. Catholic leaders, Cardinal-designate Robert McElroy of San Diego believes Pope Francis has a "deep" understanding of the church in the United States. 

The president of the Southern Africa Catholic Bishops' Conference said that bishops throughout the continent are engaged in a respectful dialogue on ordaining ordaining "proven married men" to the priesthood.

The common sentiment expressed during the July 18-23 gathering of the Pan-African Catholic Congress on Theology, Society and Pastoral Life is that the ones who were once evangelized must now become the evangelizers.

Ukraine's Vatican ambassador, who met with Pope Francis Aug. 5, hinted on social media that the pope intends to visit Ukraine prior to his Sept. 13-15 trip to Kazakhstan.

Pope Francis will travel to Kazakhstan from September 13-15 to participate in the Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions, the Vatican confirmed on August 1.

Timothy Schmalz says his new sculpture, Mary, Untier of Knots, parallels the pope's actions during his visit to Canada: "looking directly at the church's historical problems" and trying to right them.

Pope Francis on July 29 said that the Catholic Church’s treatment of Indigenous peoples in Canada amounted to a cultural “genocide.”

While visiting a remote community in the Arctic, the pope addressed environmental concerns. "This land, like every individual and every people, is also fragile, and needs to be cared for," Francis said.

For the first time during his tour of Canada, Pope Francis on July 28 apologized for the "evil" of clergy sex abuse, vowing that Catholic Church leaders must pledge to "never again" allow such atrocities to occur.

Pope Francis on July 27 again apologized for abuse Canadian Indigenous children suffered at Catholic-run residential schools, but warned that "ideological colonialization" could further undermine Indigenous cultures.

Pope Francis on July 26 appealed to Canadian Catholics to safeguard the memory of grandparents and the elderly as a necessary means of preventing the mistakes of the past and for building a better future.

Just hours after Pope Francis begged pardon for the Catholic Church's shameful treatment of Indigenous peoples in Canada's abusive residential school system, the pope directed his attention specifically to Catholic worshippers, saying that all churches should be respectful of different cultures and "open and inclusive." 

Pope Francis on July 25 said he was "deeply sorry" for the Catholic Church's "catastrophic" involvement in the "cultural destruction" of Canada's Indigenous peoples through its participation in running the country's residential schools.

Francis' 37th international trip as pope, planned for July 24-30, is a high-stakes journey where he is expected to apologize to Canada's Indigenous peoples for abuses at Catholic-run residential schools.

Pope Francis on July 19 encouraged African theologians gathered in Nairobi, Kenya, to bring "good news of mercy for the poor and nourish people and communities in their struggle for life, peace and hope."

Pope Francis on July 13 appointed three women to the Vatican's Dicastery for Bishops, fulfilling an earlier pledge that for the first time in the office's history, women would be granted a voice in the department tasked with advising the pontiff on which priests to appoint as bishops.