In Rome, Michael Sean Winters spoke with visiting cardinals and curial officials. All agreed that speculation that Francis' tenure is coming to its end is misplaced. But there was a sense that the papacy has entered a new phase.
Appointed to lead the Congregation for Bishops by Pope Benedict XVI, Cardinal Marc Ouellet has stayed on under Pope Francis — but he acknowledges some of what's expected of him and other bishops has changed.
Pope Francis named Archbishop Giacomo Morandi, secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, to head an Italian diocese, a move that could signal an overhaul of one of the Vatican's most important offices.
Michael Sean Winters: Will the divergence between Pope Francis and the U.S. hierarchy grow in 2022? Or will the U.S. bishops at long last demonstrate an interest in following the lead of the Holy Father?
Spanish Cardinal Eduardo Martínez Somalo, the former "camerlengo" or chamberlain of the Holy Roman Church and former prefect of the Vatican congregation for religious, died Aug. 10 at his Vatican apartment. He was 94.
Distinctly Catholic: Pope Francis' determination to reform the Curia is showing signs of success. And every cardinal has gotten the message: Being a cardinal will not protect you from the consequences of your own actions.
Distinctly Catholic: For the retired pope's 94th birthday, a consideration of two aspects of his long life: his career as a theologian and why being a great theologian is no guarantee one will be a great pope.
Pope Francis accepted the resignation of Cardinal Robert Sarah as the head of the Vatican's worship congregation Feb. 20, in an unexpected announcement ending the tenure of one of the Vatican officials most often seen as an opponent of the pontiff's vision for the global church.
In the wake of the economic fallout due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Vatican Secretariat for the Economy said it expects a multimillion-dollar deficit in its budget for 2021.
