Pope Francis was scheduled to help the Pontifical Mission Societies of the United States broaden its reach around the world by unlocking a smartphone app.
During an audience with national directors of pontifical mission societies from around the world, the pope was set to launch the organization's new Missio app from the Vatican on Friday, sending news and content in eight languages.
The head of the Vatican office promoting new evangelization said while he does not like the terms "Francis effect" or "Francis bump," it is true that "Pope Francis has touched the hearts and minds of many people."
Archbishop Rino Fisichella, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting New Evangelization, said he does not care for the term "Francis effect," since Pope Francis has not changed church teaching.
The Vatican says Cardinal Keith O'Brien, who resigned after admitting to sexual misconduct, will leave Scotland "for several months for the purpose of spiritual renewal."
The head of the Vatican bank on Monday announced the bank will have its own website by the end of the year and will publish an annual report.
An estimated 30,000 demonstrators marched two miles, carrying signs and following a large wooden cross decorated with replicas of unborn children.
Gains in Asia and Africa are making up for losses in Europe among the world's 1.2 billion Catholics, signaling a shift of the church's center of gravity toward the Global South.
When Michael Odermatt was a small child, his godfather gave him a stamp depicting the Swiss Guard, an image that fascinated him.
In a bid to improve its checkered record on financial transparency, the Vatican on Tuesday signed a cooperation agreement with the U.S. agency that fights against financial crimes.
The Vatican's Institute for the Works of Religion, known as the Vatican bank, has a long history of secrecy and scandals, and it has reportedly been involved in several shady operations during the course of its history. In recent years, top bank officials have been put under investigation by Italian magistrates for alleged money laundering.
Q and A: Cardinal João Braz de Aviz said NCR's report of his talk Sunday gave one inaccurate translation but otherwise was accurate.
Patience in the midst of trials and patiently putting up with other people are marks of Christian maturity, Pope Francis told ushers and other staff members of the office that cleans and repairs St. Peter's Basilica and watches over the millions of people who visit it each year.
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