Catholic News
- Pope proclaims Year of Saint Francis, with special plenary indulgences (CWN)
Pope Leo XIV has proclaimed a Year of Saint Francis to mark the 800th anniversary of the death of the beloved saint. - Cardinal Parolin concludes Kuwait trip with elevation of nation's first church to basilica status (CWN)
Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Secretary of State of His Holiness, concluded his trip to Kuwait with a Mass marking the elevation of the nation’s first church to the status of a minor basilica. - Vatican official explains the 'detachment from all sin' required for plenary indulgences (Vatican News)
Commenting on the newly declared Year of Saint Francis and the plenary indulgences associated with it, the second-ranking official of the Apostolic Penitentiary explained the detachment from all sin that is among the conditions necessary for a plenary indulgence. “The detachment from sin that is required is not an emotional sense of purity, but an act of the will that says, ‘Lord, I want no sin at all, not even the smallest,’” Bishop Krzysztof Nykiel said in an interview with Vatican News. He explained: It is not a state of sinlessness. A person may have weaknesses, recurring venial sins, and may even experience painful falls. What matters is the intention and the orientation of the heart: the sincere decision to break with sin here and now. If someone says to God: “I do not want sin, I hate it, even though I know I am weak,” then there is no attachment to sin in that person. Bishop Nykiel also discussed the relationship between the 2025 jubilee year and the 2026 Year of Saint Francis, as well as the saint’s importance for our time. - Holy door of St. Peter's Basilica sealed in solemn rite (CWN)
The holy door of St. Peter’s Basilica was sealed on January 16, ten days after Pope Leo XIV concluded the 2025 jubilee year. - Leading Slovenian bishops tell Pope of desire to build a more missionary, unified Church (CWN)
Pope Leo XIV received the officers of the Slovenian Bishops’ Conference, who invited the Pontiff to Slovenia and spoke with him about their commitment to unity and their desire to become a more missionary Church. - Vatican spokesman highlights Jordan's holy sites (Vatican News)
Andrea Tornielli, editorial director of the Dicastery for Communication, has published an editorial, “Holy Land: A fifth Gospel that begins in Jordan.” “When we think or speak about the Holy Land, we naturally refer to the historical places of Jesus’ life in Palestine and Israel: Bethlehem, Nazareth, Capernaum, Jerusalem,” Tornielli wrote in the editorial, published yesterday. “But there is another country where Christian memories are scattered and which is worth making a destination for pilgrimages: Jordan.” Tornielli discussed Aqaba, Petra, Mount Nebo, Machaerus, and Al-Maghtas, the site of Jesus’ baptism. - Vatican newspaper enters discussion of ordo amoris (CWN)
The Vatican newspaper has published a contribution to the discussion of the meaning of ordo amoris [order of love], nearly a year after US Vice President JD Vance spoke about the concept and Pope Francis wrote about it in a letter to the bishops of the United States. - Vatican official hails documentary on jubilee (Vatican News (Italian))
The Filmoteca Vaticana (Vatican Film Library) hosted a screening of a preview of Oculus Spei (Eye of Hope, trailer), a short documentary film on the 2025 jubilee year that arose from a multimedia work of the same name. “The artist Annalaura di Luggo felt the urgency to open other symbolic gateways, giving life to Oculus Spei, an installation composed of virtual portals, capable of conveying the emotion of the opening to an even wider audience, overcoming physical, cultural, and sensory boundaries,” Msgr. Lucio Adrián Ruiz, secretary of the Dicastery for Communication, said at the January 14 screening. - Rising sea levels, climate change threaten Guinea-Bissau, L'Osservatore Romano warns (CWN)
The Vatican newspaper warned that the West African nation of Guinea-Bissau (map) is “threatened by rising sea levels and climate change.” - Angelo Gugel, private attendant to three Popes, dies at 90 (Vatican News)
Angelo Gugel, a layman who served as papal chamber assistant to Blessed John Paul I, St. John Paul II, and Pope Benedict XVI, has died at the age of 90. “Always impeccably dressed, with a sober elegance that never sought attention, Angelo Gugel preserved the discretion required by his delicate role even after retirement,” Vatican News, the news agency of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Communication, reported. Gugel assisted St. John Paul with Italian pronunciation prior to his October 1978 inaugural homily and was at the Pontiff’s side during the 1981 assassination attempt. - Vatican to present details of upcoming World Day of the Sick (CWN)
The Holy See Press Office announced that Cardinal Michael Czerny, SJ, will brief the media on January 20 about the 34th World Day of the Sick. - Kuwait affirms commitment to peaceful coexistence among religions (Vatican Press Office)
The Holy See and State of Kuwait issued a joint statement yesterday during the visit of Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Secretary of State of His Holiness, to the Arab nation, whose official religion is Islam. “The State of Kuwait reaffirms its steadfast principles of mutual respect and peaceful coexistence among religions, which are values that are enshrined in its ideals from its inception and were later codified in its Constitution,” according to the statement, which concluded: His Eminence’s visit aims to strengthen the bonds of friendship and cooperation that the Holy See and the State of Kuwait have maintained since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1968, when Kuwait became the first country of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf to establish such relations with the Holy See. The visit also intends to bear witness to the longstanding tradition of religious coexistence that has consistently characterized the State of Kuwait within the Arabian Gulf. - Christ is close to you, Pope says to families of Swiss fire victims (Holy See Press Office (Italian))
Pope Leo XIV received families of victims of the Crans-Montana bar fire in Switzerland, which took place on January 1 and left 40 dead and 116 injured. Yesterday’s papal audience took place at the family members’ request. “These are moments of great pain and suffering,” Pope Leo said. “Where can you find consolation worthy of what you are experiencing, comfort that is not made up of empty and superficial words, but that touches you deeply and rekindles hope?” The Pope continued: Perhaps there is only one word that is adequate: that of the Son of God on the cross—to whom you are so close today—who, from the depths of his abandonment and pain, cried out to the Father: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Mt 27:46). The Father’s answer to the Son’s plea is delayed for three days, in silence. But then, what an answer! Jesus rises gloriously, “Be assured of His closeness and tenderness: He is not far from what you are experiencing; on the contrary, He shares it and carries it with you,” the Pope continued. “Our Lady of Sorrows is close to you in these days, and it is to her that I entrust you. Turn to her without reservation with your tears and seek in her the maternal comfort that perhaps only Mary can give and certainly will give you.” - Pope Leo calls for a free press marked by fairness, search for truth (CWN)
In a letter to the director of La Repubblica for the Italian newspaper’s 50th anniversary, Pope Leo XIV paid tribute to freedom of the press and said that the press should be “animated by the search for truth.” - Welsh bishops urge lawmakers to reject assisted suicide (CBCEW)
The bishops of Wales called upon Welsh lawmakers to vote against assisted suicide when the matter comes before the Senedd, or Welsh parliament, on January 27. “If enacted, this Bill would introduce assisted suicide into law and represent a profound change in how society responds to those who are terminally ill,” Archbishop Mark O’Toole and Bishop Peter Brignall wrote in their statement, issued January 15. “In our view, it would place many vulnerable people at greater risk,” they continued. “International experience shows that where assisted suicide is legalized, eligibility criteria tend to expand over time, the number of deaths increases, and subtle but real pressure is placed on people who are elderly, disabled, or who fear becoming a burden on others.” - Be humble prophets of peace and unity, Cardinal Parolin tells Kuwait's priests, religious (Vatican News)
Addressing priests and religious during his visit to Kuwait, the Secretary of State of His Holiness said that “the Lord does not look for perfect priests, but for humble hearts.” In an address yesterday in Holy Family Co-Cathedral, Cardinal Pietro Parolin encouraged priests in the officially Muslim nation to be “priests of love, not of perfection; priests who are joyful because we know we are chosen and loved by the Lord.” Cardinal Parolin encouraged priests and religious to be “prophets of peace and unity,” adding, “You have the mission of making visible true fraternity and unity in Christ.” The Holy See and Kuwait also issued a joint statement yesterday in which Kuwait affirmed its commitment to peaceful coexistence among religions. - Leading European prelate issues 'strong common appeal' to pray for peace (CCEE)
The Lithuanian prelate who leads the Council of the Bishops’ Conferences of Europe (CCEE) issued a “strong common appeal” to pray for peace during the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. Amid “serious ongoing threats against peace, shaped by persistent armed conflicts and geopolitical tensions in many regions of the world,” Archbishop Gintaras Grušas of Vilnius made “a strong common appeal to pray for peace, in whatsoever liturgical form you see fit, especially during the upcoming Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, so that this unity may be achieved not only among Christians but also among all the parties in conflict with each other.” Archbishop Grušas made his appeal in a January 12 letter to presidents of the various European bishops’ conferences. - Pontiff, UN agency president discuss assistance to poor farmers (@IFADPresident)
Following a papal audience yesterday, the president of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) said that he and Pope Leo XIV discussed “our shared conviction that dignity, hope and economic opportunities for the most vulnerable communities is more important than ever.” “2026 is a very important year for dialogue, and multilateralism,” said Álvaro Lario, who leads the UN agency that assists poor rural farmers. “Leaders, such as Pope Leo XIV, give us hope that addressing the economic roots of instability and forced migration is the way forward to support livelihoods despite an ever increasing number of fragile and conflict-affected contexts in the world.” Lario subsequently discussed IFAD’s work in an interview with Vatican News. - DR Congo refugees suffer in a 'hell of the forgotten,' Vatican newspaper emphasizes (CWN)
In the most prominent front-page article in its January 15 edition, L’Osservatore Romano reported on the dire situation of Congolese refugees who have fled the brutal advance of the rebel March 23 Movement. - Bishop deplores proposed Virginia amendment enshrining abortion to moment of birth (Diocese of Arlington)
In a message for the upcoming Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children, the bishop of Arlington, Virginia, warned of the “looming threat of an extreme abortion amendment to our state constitution.” Bishop Michael Burbidge said yesterday that “we face serious legislative proposals that threaten the dignity of human life at its most vulnerable stages. Among these is the resolution to amend the state constitution in a way that will enshrine abortion up to the very moment of birth, along with the potential removal of parental involvement in minors’ decisions regarding abortion and gender-rejecting medical interventions.” “These threats to the Commonwealth of Virginia are serious and would represent a serious moral and social regression,” he continued. “These threats would contribute to a cultural mentality that views human life as disposable when others are dependent, experiencing treatable forms of suffering, or are simply seen as inconvenient.” - More...