Pope Francis confirmed the return of commissions by establishing on August 2 a commission to study the issue of women in the diaconate. The composition of the commission, however, leads one to think that its task is completely different from that of the commissions Pope Francis established at the beginning of his [...]

Nowa Huta means “new foundry.” It’s a block of Krakow built around a foundry under the Soviet regime. It was built without God. There was no space nor any possibility to build a church in Nowa Huta. That is, until Karol Wojtyla, then Archbishop of Krakow, involved the people there, brought pressure upon [...]

In choosing Greg Burke and Paloma Garcia Ovejero, respectively, as Director and Deputy Director of the Holy See Press Office, Pope Francis confirmed his preference for a less clericalized Church. For the first time, two laypeople are at the helm of the Holy See Press Office, even though – it must be said [...]

Pope Francis’s challenge for this second phase of his pontificate deals with two issues: the first, dialogue with other religions, based on the need for religious leaders to make a greater impact in the public arena; secondly, the effort to consolidate his administration so that it is less personalist and more equipped with a [...]

It is not official yet, but Pope Francis and the Primate of the Anglican Communion, Archbishop Justin Welby, will celebrate First Vespers on October 5 in Rome, in the Basilica of San Gregorio al Celio. The announcement was made by one of the Camaldolese monks of the monastery associated with the basilica during [...]

With a short, off-the-cuff speech during celebrations for the 65th anniversary of his priesthood, Benedict XVI clarified that Pope Francis alone is Pope. However, the turmoil generated by the notion of an “enlarged papacy” comprised of “an active member and a contemplative member” reveals a certain nervousness around the question, as though [...]

There is an anecdote that relates better than any other how Pope Francis tackles issues. Archbishop Khajag Barsamian, Primate of the Armenian Church in America, reported it. in a conversation with the author of this commentary. “Last year, before the Armenian-Rite Mass in St. Peter’s to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Armenian genocide, [...]

Its name is “Iuvenescit Ecclesiae” (The Church rejuvenates) and it is a small – but long time in the making – document of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. It was presented June 13, and aims at reiterating the importance of ecclesiastical movements within the Church, while asking them to be [...]

What is Pope Francis’ modus operandi for governing the Catholic Church? After three years of this pontificate, after the 15th meeting of the Council of the Cardinals, the question must be posed. The Council is not called upon to make decision, but simply to advise the Pope, while all decisions are left to the [...]

Pope Francis’ decision to extend by an additional day his visit to Sweden in order to celebrate a Mass with the Swedish Catholic community explains a lot about how decision making in the Domus Sanctae Marthae takes place. And it also shows that there are collaborators around Pope Francis able to intercept certain kinds [...]