In a combination photo Pope Leo XIV is pictured speaking in northern Italy, June 20, 2026, and Fr. Davide Pagliarani, superior general of the traditionalist Society of St. Pius X, is pictured in 2018 in Econe, Switzerland. (OSV News/Vatican Media/Mario Tomassetti and CPP/KNA/Jean-Matthieu Gautier)
Vatican News

Pope Leo warns traditionalist Catholic group on eve of schism: 'Please turn back!'

Vatican

"With a sorrowful yet hopeful heart, I feel it is my duty, through the authority received from Christ, to ask you to desist from your intended act," the pope wrote.

The Latest

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Kimberley Heatherington, OSV News

Pope Leo names Salesian sister as prefect of Vatican’s human development dicastery

Courtney Mares, OSV News

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An engraving titled, "Barbarity committed on a free African, who was found on the ensuing morning, by the side of the road, dead!" published in 1822 (Library of Congress/Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C.)

In Focus

Pope Leo has initiated the conversation Black Catholics have been waiting for

Magnifica Humanitas is the most significant map for healing that the papacy has ever placed in the hands of the Black Catholic community, writes Jesuit Fr. Patrick Saint-Jean.

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Most Read Stories

Pope Leo XIV smiles as he greets visitors during his weekly general audience in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican June 17, 2026. A day earlier, Leo spoke with journalists about the Society of St. Pius X. (CNS/Vatican Media)

#1
Pope says church 'must move forward' if SSPX proceeds with illicit ordinations

Pope Leo XIV said that although he is considering a final appeal to the traditionalist Society of St. Pius X, the choice to splinter from the Catholic Church falls on them.

ByJunno Arocho Esteves, OSV News

#2
SSPX doubles down on defiance of Vatican II in open letter

The traditionalist Society of St. Pius X issued an open letter to Pope Leo XIV and the College of Cardinals asserting its adherence to Catholic tradition while proceeding with plans to consecrate four new bishops without a papal mandate.

ByJunno Arocho Esteves, OSV News
Pope Leo XIV talks to journalists as he leaves his residence in Castel Gandolfo, on the outskirts of Rome, to return to the Vatican June 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

#3
These traditionalist Catholics are defying Pope Leo XIV, and embracing their outsider status

The Society of St. Pius X, which celebrates the traditional Latin Mass and rejects the modernizing reforms of the Catholic Church, is planning a highly organized, four-day, livestreamed extravaganza for the consecrations at its Swiss seminary.

ByNicole Winfield, Associated Press

#4
Sitting by Dorothy Day's grave, her granddaughter reflects on faith, family and war

#5
Pope Leo has initiated the conversation Black Catholics have been waiting for

#6
Stonewall Pride Mass draws Catholics for message of faith, inclusion, hope

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'Neighboring the Dear Neighbor' workshop equips Catholics to support migrants

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Archbishop Vincenzo Paglia, then president of the Pontifical Academy for Life, speaks to reporters at the academy's office at the Vatican May 14, 2024. He served as president of the Pontifical Academy for Life and grand chancellor of the Pontifical John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and the Family from 2016 to 2025. (CNS/Courtesy of the Pontifical Academy for Life)

Fighting over the foundations of moral theology

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"I wish everyone, including me, get better at putting others Christians' arguments in the best light, not the worst," writes NCR's Michael Sean Winters. 

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An African theologian considers what Africa can contribute to pope's consistory

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Person bowls.

We need to get offline and get in person this summer

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"All the texts, calls or Zoom meetings in the world do not add up to or compare with a few hours sitting in the backyard, talking with your family members," writes Daniel P. Horan.

Vatican

Pope Leo XIV addresses cardinals gathered for the opening working session of his second consistory in the Paul VI Audience Hall at the Vatican June 26, 2026. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)

Pope Leo names Salesian sister as prefect of Vatican’s human development dicastery

Pope Leo XIV has named Sr. Alessandra Smerilli prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, the Vatican announced June 30, making her the latest woman elevated to lead a major Vatican office under the new pontificate.

In a combination photo Pope Leo XIV is pictured speaking in northern Italy, June 20, 2026, and Fr. Davide Pagliarani, superior general of the traditionalist Society of St. Pius X, is pictured in 2018 in Econe, Switzerland. (OSV News/Vatican Media/Mario Tomassetti and CPP/KNA/Jean-Matthieu Gautier)
Vatican News

Pope Leo warns traditionalist Catholic group on eve of schism: 'Please turn back!'

"With a sorrowful yet hopeful heart, I feel it is my duty, through the authority received from Christ, to ask you to desist from your intended act," the pope wrote.

ByJustin McLellan
Prelates process after Pope Leo XIV celebrated Mass with the blessing and imposition of the pallium on new metropolitan archbishops on the feast of Sts. Peter and Paul in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican June 29, 2026. (OSV News/Vatican Media/Simone Risoluti)

New archbishops say Pope Leo offers unifying message to US society, church

Before placing the white woolen bands symbolizing authority around the shoulders of 35 new metropolitan archbishops, Pope Leo XIV urged the church's pastors to become "builders of unity" within the church.

ByJustin McLellan

Pope Leo XIV calls for solidarity, prayers after deadly Venezuela quakes

Pope Leo XIV offered prayers for the victims of devastating twin earthquakes that struck Venezuela as the death toll continues to climb and rescuers race to save people trapped under collapsed buildings.

ByJunno Arocho Esteves, OSV News

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Pope Leo asks cardinals for continued collaboration in governing church, advancing peace

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Cardinals weigh replacing 'just war' language with 'proportional defense'

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Pope Leo XIV receives World Series baseball from former White Sox catcher A.J. Pierzynski

EarthBeat

Pope Leo XIV calls for solidarity, prayers after deadly Venezuela quakes

Pope Leo XIV offered prayers for the victims of devastating twin earthquakes that struck Venezuela as the death toll continues to climb and rescuers race to save people trapped under collapsed buildings.

Mount Cristo Rey protest

Bishops plan Mass on pilgrimage mountain Trump administration seeks to seize

As the Trump administration moves to seize a diocesan pilgrimage site for the border wall, bishops from New Mexico and Texas are calling on the faithful to join them for Mass on the mountain.

ByGina Christian, OSV News
A worker carries a solar panel atop the roof of Mother of Good Counsel Catholic Church, in Hazard, Kentucky. The mission parish completed the solar installation in May. (Lexington Diocese/Joshua Van Cleef)

Catholic dioceses race for solar credits ahead of GOP tax law's early phaseout

Dozens of Catholic institutions across the U.S. are sprinting to develop solar projects to the point that they meet federal tax credit requirements before they go away under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

ByBrian Roewe

Archbishop calls for prayer, solidarity after twin earthquakes devastate Venezuela

The archbishop of Caracas called for prayers and solidarity after back-to-back earthquakes struck Venezuela, killing over 150 people and injuring hundreds more.

ByJunno Arocho Esteves, OSV News

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Culture

A portion of "St. Teresa of Avila" (1660s) by Juan Antonio De Frias y Escalante (Artvee)
Book Reviews

'What Grows in Weary Lands' is a satisfactory, if incomplete, look at monastic thought

Anglican priest Tish Harrison Warren's new book attempts to translate monkish habits for Christians navigating spiritual desolation in today's comfort-seeking, digitally distracted age. 

Freedom Under Grace book cover

The homilies and addresses of Pope Leo XIV are now coming to English readers

 A collection of early public writings by the future Pope Leo XIV will be published this fall for the first time in English.

ByHillel Italie, Associated Press
Iran's Alireza Jahanbakhsh (7) participates in a training session ahead of his team's World Cup Group G soccer match against Belgium Tuesday, June 16, 2026, in Tijuana, Mexico. (AP photo/Gregory Bull)

World Cup: Superstars are fun to watch, but underdogs make the sport great

The world's most-watched sporting event is famous for athletes like Lionel Messi and Lamine Yamal, but the grit of lesser-known players representing small but scrappy countries is where the real inspiration lies.

ByMichael O'Connell
From left: Sr. Helen Prejean, Dead Man Walking author; Catherine Anyango Grünewald, illustrator for the new graphic edition; actress Susan Sarandon, who portrayed Prejean in the 1996 film; and Rose Vines, who adapted the text for the graphic novel, pose Nov. 6, 2025, at the book launch in Manhattan. (Fordham University/Leo Sorel)
Book Reviews

Graphic novel of 'Dead Man Walking' retains memoir's moral core

The new graphic novel based on Sr. Helen Prejean's bestselling memoir about ministering on Louisiana's death row will attract new readers and satisfy longtime fans of the original book.

ByChris Herlinger

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ICE releases Texas nun after detaining her on the way to Sunday Mass

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials detained Sr. Letty Ugboaja on her way to Mass June 28, releasing her hours later, after intervention from congressional representatives.

Salesian Sr. Kaitlin Trokan throws out the first pitch at the Milwaukee Brewers game June 14, 2026. (Courtesy of Milwaukee Brewers)

Monday Starter: Salesian nun throws first pitch ahead of a Brewers win

Plus, the Dominican Sisters of Springfield, Illinois, sell their Jubilee Farm after 27 years of stewardship.

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Formation lessons continue unfolding in sisters' lives

"God meets us in different ways at different times and what once seemed ordinary can become extraordinary when embraced with sincerity," writes one sister.

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