December 5, 2015 Vatican presses forward with crackdown on US nuns' group over 'radical' positions The Vatican official overseeing the crackdown on the largest umbrella group for U.S. nuns is pressing forward with the overhaul under Pope Francis.
December 5, 2015 Pope Francis canonizes Sri Lanka's first saint in mass before hundreds of thousands Pope Francis pressed his call for Sri Lankan reconciliation Wednesday by canonizing the country's first saint as a model for national unity and visiting the war-ravaged north to pray at a shrine revered by both Sinhalese and Tamil faithful.
December 5, 2015 Pope Francis considering adding Cuba stop to September US trip Pope Francis is considering adding a stop in Cuba to his U.S. trip in September but no decision has been made, the Vatican said Friday.
December 4, 2015 Popes John Paul II, John XXIII to be declared saints in April Popes John Paul II and John XXIII will be declared saints on April 27, 2014.
December 4, 2015 Vatican official condemns Brittany Maynard's assisted suicide The Vatican's top bioethics official on Tuesday called "reprehensible" the suicide of an American woman suffering terminal brain cancer who stated she wanted to die with dignity.
December 4, 2015 Gun used against Pope John Paul II to be exhibited The gun used by a would-be assassin to shoot Pope John Paul II will be on display at a museum dedicated to the pontiff as a sign of God's protection of him, according to priests in charge of the museum.
December 3, 2015 Rome, Argentina refuse burial of Nazi war criminal Erich Priebke The Argentine government is refusing to allow convicted Nazi war criminal Erich Priebke to be buried on its soil, and Italian authorities say he will not have a church funeral or burial in Rome either. Â Â
December 3, 2015 Pope defrocks 400 priests in 2 years A document obtained by The Associated Press shows Pope Benedict XVI defrocked nearly 400 priests over just two years for molesting children.
December 3, 2015 Pope to visit Israel in 2014, Vatican says Pope Francis plans to visit Israel as soon as next year, the Vatican said, in what could be a landmark visit for a pontiff who has already won plaudits from the Jewish community for his strong condemnation of anti-Semitism.
December 3, 2015 Pope Francis outlines hopes for church reform as meetings with cardinals begin Eight cardinals appointed by Pope Francis are meeting at the Vatican to revise the church’s constitution, with the pope saying that he wants a missionary church with a modern spirit that gives hope to the poor, young and elderly.