Carol Glatz

Catholics and Orthodox Christians must increasingly work together where they can, Pope Francis told Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople.

Pope Francis invited Italy's bishops to live the "beatitudes of a bishop," an adaptation of the traditional Eight Beatitudes to provide guiding principles for being a "good shepherd" of a diocese.

Pope Francis told young people that, with Jesus, people can find the courage to swim against the current, to be free and authentic, and to stand up for their dreams and ideals of truth, love, justice and peace.

 Extreme poverty, the lack of employment that can support a family and desperation are the major drivers of exploitative child labor, Pope Francis said.

During this time marked by global crisis, St. Joseph can offer people support, consolation and guidance, Pope Francis said.

People need to be passionate about serving others and caring for those who suffer, Pope Francis said

Every form of abuse — sexual, psychological or an abuse of power — is part of "the culture of death" that needs to be eradicated through the conversion, education and the active participation of everyone, Pope Francis said.

People experiencing depression often need someone to talk to, and they can benefit from psychological counseling and reading what Jesus has to say, Pope Francis said.

To believe in Jesus means to follow him and avoid going "the opposite way," following one's own interests and inflating one's own ego, Pope Francis said

The tombstones of soldiers killed in war cry out to people today to end all wars and to stop the production of weapons, Pope Francis said.

 An adult survivor of abuse by a priest appealed to the world's seminarians to become good priests and to make sure the "bitter truth" always prevails, not silence about scandals and their cover-up.

Evacuated in August as the Taliban regained control of Afghanistan, the head of the now-interrupted Catholic mission said this is a time of "advent," waiting for God to reveal how the church can be present in the country again.

Pope Francis has signed a decree recognizing a miracle attributed to the intercession of Pope John Paul I, clearing the way for his beatification.

People should ask themselves whether their faith has become a "commercial relationship" with God or if it is a relationship built on freedom, love and generosity, Pope Francis said.

Academic institutions must promote interdisciplinary studies that contribute to safeguarding creation, pope says.

The increasing and extreme economic inequality in the world is rooted in an ideology of individualism in which investments and prosperity are aimed only at driving profit not helping the common good, said Archbishop Paul R. Gallagher.

Countries hosting millions of refugees are not receiving adequate support, and the situation is made worse when other nations forge agreements that trap migrants and refugees, often indefinitely, "at strategic points along their journey," said a top Vatican official.

The pope's message Sept. 29 came during a "Youth4Climate" gathering, which included Greta Thunberg, in Milan Sept. 28-30, ahead of the U.N. COP26 climate summit in November.

 Death row inmates in Florida's prisons refer to their 6-foot-by-9-foot cell as their "house," with some having lived in their "house" for 40 years -- longer than one Catholic lay chaplain said he has lived in his family home in Tallahassee.

To listen to the Holy Spirit, members of the church must listen to each other and especially to those who are marginalized, Pope Francis said, explaining how dioceses are to help the church prepare for the Synod of Bishops.