VATICAN CITY -- Pope Francis announced he will create 13 new cardinals Nov. 28, including Archbishop Wilton D. Gregory of Washington.

VATICAN CITY -- While there is no doubt that Pope Francis said civil laws should protect the rights of gay couples, some mystery shrouds the context in which he said it and the way it is used in a new film.

VATICAN CITY -- Pope Francis often has expressed openness to the idea of laws recognizing civil unions, including for gay couples, to protect their rights.

VATICAN CITY - Repeating a call first made by St. Paul VI, Pope Francis urged a global move to divert money from national military spending and use it to "definitely defeat hunger."

VATICAN CITY - The collection taken up in parishes around the globe on World Mission Sunday is "as unique as it is rare" because offerings are made by Catholics in the richest and poorest nations, a Vatican official said.

VATICAN CITY - As the world's attention is focused on the COVID-19 pandemic and its dire economic consequences, the Vatican urged nations not to forget the people of Syria, who are still living in a situation of violence and extreme need.

VATICAN CITY - Dressed in a black polo shirt with a sweater draped around his shoulders, Father Gabriele Martinelli, 28, heard a Vatican criminal court accuse him of repeatedly sexually abusing a younger student at a minor seminary inside the Vatican.

VATICAN CITY - The predominant global economic system is "unsustainable," particularly in its impact on the environment, Pope Francis said.

VATICAN CITY - Two priests connected to a minor seminary located at the Vatican will appear before a Vatican criminal court Oct. 14 on charges related to the alleged sexual abuse of students at the seminary.