What Pope Francis thinks, or how he reasons, can be understood above all when the Pope speaks off the cuff, raising his eyes from the paper. Sometimes he inserts phrases into a prepared text; other times, he breaks himself completely loose and delivers real, impromptu speeches. On January 29, at the end of his [...]

It now seems inevitable that 2021 will be a year of significant changes for Pope Francis. The Curia’s reform should be finalized, Vatican finances will once again be under scrutiny by the Council of Europe’s MONEYVAL committee, and Pope Francis will be called to conduct a robust reshuffle of Vatican dicastery heads, as [...]

An Associated Press article published last week shed light on the weakness of the Vatican judicial system. This weakness dramatically emerged during the investigation on the purchase of luxury real estate in London by the Vatican Secretariat of State.

The investigation was a summary proceeding authorized directly by the Pope. Pope Francis skipped [...]

Pope Francis ended the year without celebrating Mass due to sciatica pain. And he started it without celebrating the Baptism in the Sistine chapel, as it is tradition, this time for the anti-COVID restrictions. 2021 was born, therefore, marked by coronavirus restrictions, and the Pope’s appeals to get out of the crisis together, and [...]

Pope Francis concluded the year by proclaiming a Special Year for the Family in 2021, dedicated to Amoris Laetitia. This special year, he explained, falls five years after the publication of the post-synodal exhortation that has generated so much controversy. It intends precisely to study it, reflect on it, and highlight the challenges of [...]

What if the Christmas address to the Roman Curia was Pope Francis’s last? A few days after the delivery of that speech, rumors spread that Pope Francis could renounce his pontificate, as Benedict XVI had already done, between Christmas and New Year. The rumors were credited by an alleged comment by Austen [...]

On December 17, Pope Francis turned 84 and celebrated his 8th birthday since becoming Pope. 2020 was a challenging year, marked by the pandemic. There were no international trips, nor massive events. Yet, many things were accomplished. Soon, the Curia reform plans will be completed. However, the Curia reform is already underway since [...]

It has not yet been officially announced, but on December 21, Pope Francis should meet with the Roman Curia employees for Christmas greetings, Covid restrictions permitting. It is awaited with expectation, because it is through this speech that Pope Francis could definitively mark the new phase of his pontificate.

What would this new phase [...]

Pope Francis’ pontificate is now turning toward a new phase. The Nov. 28 consistory was both a watershed and a new impetus. For Pope Francis, this impetus should lead to the final stage of his project for the renewal of the Church.

Even people who know Pope Francis well cannot describe his renewal [...]

The death of Paolo Gabriele could have closed a chapter of the Vatican world. It was not so. Instead, he has opened another, and this one too has more questions than answers.

For those who do not remember, Paolo Gabriele was Benedict XVI’s butler who then betrayed the Pope’s trust and handed over [...]