Cindy Wooden, Catholic News Service
On All Souls, pope prays at graves of children, miscarried infants
Pope Francis prayed at the graves of children and of miscarried babies on the feast of All Souls before concelebrating Mass with several hundred mourners.
Remembering the cardinals and bishops who died in the past year, Pope Francis prayed that after their loving service to the Catholic Church "they may exult in eternal communion with the saints."
After members of the Synod of Bishops approved their final document, Pope Francis announced that he would not write the customary post-synodal apostolic exhortation but would offer the final document to the entire church to implement.
Vatican and China renew and extend agreement on naming bishops
The Vatican and the Chinese government are renewing their agreement on the appointment of bishops and extending it from a two-year to a four-year term, both sides announced.
Pope Francis decided the question of ordaining women deacons was not to be discussed at the 2024 Synod of Bishops, and he directed a synod-related study group on women's ministries not to explore the matter, according to the Vatican's doctrinal chief.
Pope Francis met a former prime minister of Israel and a former Palestinian foreign minister who believe they have a workable peace plan for the Holy Land.
Synod begins looking at institutional changes to promote synodality
If members of the Synod of Bishops are serious about sharing their experience of "synodality" with all members of the Catholic Church, then they must identify concrete ways to do so, Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich told members.
Popes have made a habit of exceeding the statutory limit on the number of cardinals under the age of 80, but Pope Francis is planning to set a record.
"Rushing" to open the diaconate to women in the Catholic Church would short-circuit a necessary reflection on the relationship between ordained ministry and charismatic leadership, particularly as it impacts the participation of women in the church, said the head of the Vatican's doctrinal office.
The Catholic Church cannot be credible in its mission of proclaiming Christ unless it acknowledges its mistakes and bends down "to heal the wounds we have caused by our sins," Pope Francis said.