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The Teutonic cemetery at the Vatican is seen in this 2015 file photo. The decision to open two tombs in the cemetery was made in response to the request of Emanuela Orlandi's family and their questioning "the possible concealment of her cadaver in the small cemetery located within Vatican City State." She disappeared in 1983.

Vatican to open tombs looking for young woman missing since 1983

VATICAN CITY -- The Vatican City State tribunal has ordered the opening of two tombs in a small Vatican cemetery at the request of the family of Emanuela Orlandi, a young woman who disappeared in 1983.

Blessed John Henry Newman is seen in a portrait provided by the Catholic Church in England and Wales.

Blessed John Henry Newman canonization set for Rome Oct. 13

VATICAN CITY -- Pope Francis will declare Blessed John Henry Newman, the 19th-century British cardinal, a saint Oct. 13.

Nine shards of bone believed to belong to St. Peter lie inside a reliquary June 30, 2019, as it is venerated by Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople. Pope Francis gave the reliquary to the patriarch.

Pope Francis gives relics of St. Peter to Orthodox patriarch

VATICAN CITY -- In what Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople described as a "brave and bold" gesture, Pope Francis gave the patriarch a famous reliquary containing bone fragments believed to belong to St. Peter.

U.S. President Donald Trump meets with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un June 30, 2019, in Panmunjom, South Korea, at the demilitarized zone separating the two Koreas. After praying the Angelus with pilgrims gathered in St. Peter's Square June 30, the Pope Francis called the historic meeting a "good example of a culture of encounter."

Pope Francis applauds Trump, Kim meeting in North Korea

ROME -- After U.S. President Donald Trump became the first sitting president to set foot in North Korea, Pope Francis called his meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un a positive step toward world peace.

Pope Francis.

Secrecy of confession must never be violated, Vatican says

VATICAN CITY -- In the light of "a worrying negative prejudice" against the Catholic Church, Pope Francis ordered the publication of a document affirming the absolute secrecy of everything said in confession and calling on priests to defend it at all costs, even at the cost of their lives.

Pope Francis walks with Orthodox Archbishop Job of Telmessos as they leave Mass marking the feast of Sts. Peter and Paul in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican June 29, 2019. Archbishop Job was representing the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople.

Pope Francis: Goal of ecumenism is unity, not leveling differences

VATICAN CITY -- At the end of Mass on the feast of Sts. Peter and Paul, Pope Francis and Orthodox Archbishop Job of Telmessos walked down the stairs under the main altar in St. Peter's Basilica and prayed together at the apostle's tomb.

Retired Pope Benedict XVI attends a consistory for the creation of new cardinals in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican in this Feb. 22, 2014, file photo.

Retired Pope Benedict: Unity in church prevails over division

VATICAN CITY -- "The unity of the church is always at risk" and has been throughout its history, but "its unity always has been stronger than its internal struggles and wars," said retired Pope Benedict XVI.

A priest celebrates Mass in a makeshift chapel in a village near Beijing in 2012. The Vatican has told bishops and priests in China that they must follow their own consciences in deciding whether to register with the government, and it urged Catholics in the country not to judge them for the choices they make.

Vatican tells clergy in China to follow their conscience

VATICAN CITY -- The Vatican has told bishops and priests in China that they must follow their own consciences in deciding whether to register with the government, and it urged Catholics in the country not to judge them for the choices they make.

Retired Archbishop Sylvain Lavoie sought Rome’s permission to ordain married, Indigenous clergy in 2011, but got nowhere with the proposal.

Married priest debate set to rise again

When bishops start talking this fall about ordaining married men to serve as priests in their own, remote, Indigenous communities in the Amazon, bishops in northern Canada will be listening closely.

Seafarers and other worshippers from Carna, Ireland, are seen in 2016 during the annual pilgrimage to MacDara's Island to celebrate Mass in honor of St. MacDara, patron saint of fishermen. Pope Francis has granted Apostleship of the Sea chaplains broader permission for granting absolution to those working far from home.

Pope Francis gives seafarer chaplains special powers

VATICAN CITY -- Pope Francis gave priests who minister to seafarers special permission to grant absolution for sins that usually would require the intervention of a bishop or the Vatican itself.

Pope Francis.

Pope Francis: Must overcome indifference, apathy to fight hunger

VATICAN CITY -- If the world is to succeed in eradicating the scourge of hunger, it must first fight against the indifference, apathy and broken promises that allow the crisis to continue, Pope Francis said.

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