by Andrea Gagliarducci Vatican City, Jan 14, 2021 / 05:45 pm MT (CNA).- Pope Francis might soon choose a new Archpriest of St. Peter’s Basilica, to replace Cardinal Angelo Comastri, who turned 77 in September. His replacement, according to Vatican observers, may bring a broader generational change that could involve …

CNA Staff, Jan 13, 2021 / 08:35 am MT (CNA).- The Catholic archbishop of Glasgow, Scotland, died suddenly on Wednesday two days after his 70th birthday. The Archdiocese of Glasgow announced that Archbishop Philip Tartaglia died at his home on Jan. 13, the feast of St. Mungo, patron saint of …

CNA Staff, Jan 14, 2021 / 06:00 am MT (CNA).- A cardinal has called on Iraqi Catholics to pray at Sunday Masses that Pope Francis will be able to visit their country in March. Cardinal Louis Raphael Sako, head of the Chaldean Catholic Church, issued the prayer on Jan. 14 …

by Mary Farrow Denver Newsroom, Jan 13, 2021 / 09:01 pm MT (CNA).- Three North Dakota state legislators introduced a bill this week that would oblige Catholic priests to violate the seal of confession in cases of confirmed or suspected child abuse, on penalty of imprisonment or heavy fines. The …

by Matt Hadro Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jan 13, 2021 / 12:13 am MT (CNA).- China remains a primary human rights concern in 2021, a federal religious freedom commissioner told CNA this week. “China remains of utmost concern to USCIRF,” said Nadine Maenza, commissioner at the U.S. Commissioner on International Religious …

Vatican City, Jan 11, 2021 / 11:45 am MT (CNA).- On Jan. 11, Pope Francis published an apostolic letter issued motu proprio (which means “on his own impulse” in Latin), modifying canon law regarding women’s access to the ministries of lector and acolyte. He also released a letter to Vatican …

by Matt Hadro Washington D.C., Jan 11, 2021 / 03:34 pm MT (CNA).- In a joint statement Jan. 11, the U.S. bishops’ domestic justice chair Archbishop Paul Coakley of Oklahoma City, joined by pro-life chair Archbishop Joseph Naumann, called for a stop to planned federal executions on Tuesday, Thursday, and …

Vatican City, Jan 12, 2021 / 03:30 am MT (CNA).- Pope emeritus Benedict XVI will receive the coronavirus vaccine as soon as it is available, his personal secretary said Tuesday. Archbishop Georg Gänswein told CNA Deutsch, CNA’s German-language news partner, Jan. 12 that the 93-year-old former pope would be vaccinated …

CNA Staff, Jan 11, 2021 / 07:30 am MT (CNA).- On Sunday, Jan. 10, the internet was abuzz with false reports of an overnight blackout at the Vatican, accompanied by a series of claims concerning Pope Francis, the Italian police, and the FBI. The claims were widely shared by conspiracy …

by Courtney Mares Vatican City, Jan 11, 2021 / 04:05 am MT (CNA).- Pope Francis issued a motu proprio Monday changing canon law to allow women to serve as lectors and acolytes. In the motu proprio “Spiritus Domini,” issued on Jan. 11, the pope changed canon 230 § 1 of …