by Andrea Gagliarducci Vatican City, Mar 12, 2021 / 06:01 pm MT (CNA).- A new letter from the Vatican Secretariat of State has banned the private celebration of Masses at side altars in St. Peter’s Basilica, effective March 22. The regulation might seem tailored to meet COVID restrictions, as Italy

by Andrea Gagliarducci Vatican City, Feb 25, 2021 / 06:37 pm MT (CNA).- When Cardinal Gabriel Zubeir Wako turns 80 on Feb. 27, the cardinals eligible to vote in a conclave will drop to 127, seven more than the limit of 120 set by Paul VI and confirmed by John

by Andrea Gagliarducci Vatican City, Jan 25, 2021 / 07:56 pm MT (CNA).- Increasing rumors from multiple Vatican sources say the Vatican communications department might experience a shakeup shortly, and that Pope Francis might try a new redesign of the dicastery that handles Vatican media. On Jan. 16, Paolo Ruffini,

by Andrea Gagliarducci Vatican City, Jan 23, 2021 / 03:01 pm MT (CNA).- Earlier this month the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples sent a letter to the bishops of some 1,100 Catholic territories and announced the gradual reduction of the financial support they regularly receive from the Vatican. Since

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

by Andrea Gagliarducci Vatican City, Jan 7, 2021 / 04:00 pm MT (CNA).- A new book provides further information from the archives of Venerable Pius XII, including the Vatican’s attempts to oppose the actions of Nazi Germany through diplomacy during World War II. “One day the documents of the Holy