Pope Francis

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Why It's Weird That the Pope's Acting Like a Christian

Kirsten Powers thinks other Christian leaders could learn a thing or two

(Newser) - Pope Francis' unorthodox actions— washing the feet of women and Muslims, extending an olive branch to atheists , and so on—have drawn worldwide attention, with some wondering if he's the most liberal pope ever. Kirsten Powers at USA Today sees it a different way: "Yep, Pope Francis is...

Pope Has Changed the Tone—if Not the Teaching

John Corvino: Pope Francis brings 'love' back to 'love the sinner'

(Newser) - Pope Francis once again made headlines this week when he asked, "Who am I to judge a gay person?" That's not because the Roman Catholic Church is changing its official stance on homosexuality, writes philosophy professor John Corvino in the New York Times , but it is changing its...

Pope Francis: Who Am I to Judge Gays?

Makes big statement on flight back from Latin America

(Newser) - Pope Francis continues to make news by making waves: for assuring the world that atheists can be good people , for blessing leather-clad Harley riders , and, now, for softening the church's position on gay priests. With the ink barely dry on yet another big news moment (he racked up the...

3 Million Crowd Copacabana to Hear Pope

It's the second-most attended papal address ever

(Newser) - Take note, Mick Jagger: For the final Mass of his historic return to Latin America , Pope Francis basically sold out not a stadium, but an entire 2.5 mile beach. As the AP reports, Francis this morning headed to Rio's Copacobana Beach, where some 3 million cheering faithful crammed...

Pope Scolds Bishops: Go Outside Your Churches

You've got to get out and meet the needy, he says in Brazil

(Newser) - Pope Francis delivered a simple simple message to Latin American bishops in Brazil today—if you're going to help the needy and keep people from straying from the church, you've got to get outside and actually meet them:
  • "We cannot keep ourselves shut up in parishes, in
...

Busy Pope Running Staff Ragged

Francis hits beach, then visits Rio slum on foot

(Newser) - Pope Francis may be 76, but that's not slowing him down: He's maintaining a schedule so busy —and getting busier—that aides are struggling to keep up, the AP reports. Yesterday, for instance, he had a full day planned in Brazil, then added two extra events, including...

Pope in Rio: Throngs, a Bomb, Protests

His Fiat made a wrong turn, but it's been mostly smooth sailing

(Newser) - Pope Francis is back on his home continent for the first time this week, and what a reception he got. He landed in Brazil's Rio de Janeiro yesterday for a week of World Youth Day festivities to boisterous crowds, and a somewhat confused driver. The AP reports that the...

Pope's Brazil Mass: Sorry, No Masks

Authorities fear protest reprise

(Newser) - A month after Brazil saw widespread unrest , Pope Francis is headed to Rio de Janeiro for World Youth Day (which is actually a week long). With more than a million attendees expected, authorities aren't taking any chances. Demonstrators wore Guy Fawkes masks during June's protests; at a Mass...

Follow Pope on Twitter, Get Time Off Purgatory Stay

Vatican offers 'indulgences' for social media use during Catholic World Youth Day

(Newser) - If you're a Catholic due to spend some time in purgatory before heading on up to heaven, we have good news for you: You can shorten the length of time you have to spend there just by following Pope Francis on Twitter , the Guardian reports. A papal court has...

John Paul II Cleared for Sainthood: Vatican

Ceremony should occur this year

(Newser) - Tuesday brought the news that Pope John Paul II awaited just the final sign-off from Pope Francis before being made a saint. Three days later, that approval has come. Reuters reports that the Vatican today announced that Francis has approved the second of the two miracles needed on the road...

Hot Twitter Account Is ... in Latin

Pope's Latin Twitter account is surprisingly popular

(Newser) - Latin may be a dead language, but it's very much alive on Twitter, thanks to an unexpectedly social-media-savvy old man: the pope. Pope Francis' Latin language Twitter account began under the auspices of Pope Benedict in January (it is the official language of the Holy See, after all), and...

Pope Blesses ... Harley Davidsons?

Thousands of bikers jam St. Peter's Square for Mass

(Newser) - It was a rougher-than-usual crowd in St. Peter's Square today, with the dull roar of Harley Davidsons drowning out the "Our Father" and Pope Francis himself doling out blessings to the thousands of bikers crowding into what the AP terms "a giant Harley parking lot." The...

Francis: 'It's True,' Vatican Has Gay Lobby

Stunning admission in reported comments to private audience

(Newser) - Pope Francis has stunned Vatican-watchers by acknowledging that a "gay lobby" exists high up in the church hierarchy. "It is true, it is there ... We need to see what we can do," the pontiff told a key Latin American church group on June 6, according to a...

Pope: I Stay in Hotel for My 'Psychiatric' Health

Francis gets frank in talk with students

(Newser) - Pope Francis has revealed that he never wanted to be pope and that he's living in the Vatican hotel for his "psychiatric" health. Francis got very personal today as he met with thousands of children from Jesuit schools across Italy and Albania. Answering their questions one by one,...

Pope Thinks You're Stealing, Basically

'Throwing away food is stealing from... those who are poor and hungry'

(Newser) - If you've ever thrown out good food, Pope Francis says you're a thief. "Throwing away food is like stealing from the table of those who are poor and hungry," he said during an audience at the Vatican this week, in which he blamed a "culture...

Vatican: Oops, Atheists Still Hell-Bound

Looking a little toasty for Protestants, too

(Newser) - Pope Francis' admission that atheists are capable of doing good has been followed by a Vatican statement clarifying that the church still believes atheists are going to hell. In a corrective statement that suggests people misunderstood the pontiff's remarks, a Vatican spokesman stresses that the church believes all salvation...

The Good News: Pope Francis Is Cool With Atheists

The godless may not care, but Mary Elizabeth Williams applauds His Holiness' tolerance

(Newser) - Pope Francis had a refreshing message when asked about atheists yesterday on Vatican radio, assuring his flock that yes, the godless could be good people, too. "'But father, he is not Catholic! He cannot do good,'" Francis imagined a follower protesting. "Yes, he can. He...

Vatican Denies Pope Performed Exorcism
 Vatican: This Is Not an Exorcism
May 22, 2013 5:20 AM CDT

Vatican: This Is Not an Exorcism

Exorcists insist pontiff cast out man's demons

(Newser) - Pope Francis was merely praying in a video that some claim shows him performing an exorcism on a Mexican pilgrim, the Vatican says. In the video—broadcast on a TV station owned by the Italian Bishops' Conference—the man convulses and then goes limp after the stern-faced pontiff places his...

A Look at Pope Francis' 1st Round of Saints

They include hundreds who refused to convert to Islam

(Newser) - Pope Francis has made hundreds of new saints at his first canonization ceremony in St. Peter's Square. Here is a look at the people receiving the Church's highest honor:
  • Antonio Pezzulla and 812 fellow martyrs: In 1480, some 20,000 Turkish troops overran Italy's citadel of Otranto,
...

Pope to Nuns: Don't Be 'Old Maids'

Francis warns against dangers of careerism at Superiors General meeting

(Newser) - Pope Francis has told nuns from around the world that they must be spiritual mothers and not "old maids." Francis also warned the sisters against using their vocations for personal ambition, saying priests and sisters who do so "do more harm to the church." Francis has...

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