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Holy See

The latest news, analysis and opinion on Holy See. In-depth analysis, industry insights and expert opinion.

Capital

Vatican City

Head of State

Pope Francis

Head of Government

President of the Governorate Fernando Vérgez Alzaga

A displaced Lebanese family sit in the back of a truck, their current home, in the southern city of Sidon on Sunday. Photo: AFP

US, Israel war on Iran

Over 800,000 Lebanese – 1 in 7 people – displaced by war in 10 days

It is little more than a year since the last conflict uprooted over a million Lebanese from their homes, although that process took months.

15 Mar 2026 - 10:05PMvideocam

Pope Leo XIV

Pope Leo laments world ‘in flames’ at Ash Wednesday service

19 Feb 2026 - 3:06AM

Britain

‘Big statement’: Sarah Mullally confirmed as first female Archbishop of Canterbury

28 Jan 2026 - 8:42PM

King Charles III

Britain’s King Charles calls for ‘reconciliation’ in Christmas speech

UK monarch praises the courage of those who risked their lives for others during his fourth Christmas broadcast as king.

26 Dec 2025 - 8:37AM

Britain’s King Charles during the recording of his Christmas message. Photo: PA via AP

Pope Leo XIV

Pope calls for end to all wars in first Christmas as pontiff

‘May the clamour of weapons cease … and may the parties involved find the courage to engage in sincere, direct and respectful dialogue’.

25 Dec 2025 - 7:54PMvideocam

Middle East

Pope Leo urges Lebanon’s leaders to unite for peace

The first US pope arrived in Beirut from Istanbul, where sought to give Lebanon’s long-suffering people a message of hope.

1 Dec 2025 - 1:09AM

Turkey

Pope warns ‘piecemeal’ third world war ‘threatening’ humanity

In Ankara, Pope Leo urged for global peace amid rising conflicts and geopolitical tensions during his first trip outside Italy.

27 Nov 2025 - 10:25PM

Pope Leo speaks at the National Library of the Presidential Palace, during his first apostolic journey, in Ankara, Turkey on Thursday. Photo: Reuters

Catholic Church

Vatican returns 62 artefacts connected to indigenous peoples from Canada

The move is part of the Catholic Church’s reckoning with its role in helping suppress indigenous culture in the Americas.

15 Nov 2025 - 8:11PM

Italy

King Charles, Pope Leo pray together in 500-year first

It is the first joint worship including an English monarch and a Catholic pontiff since King Henry VIII broke away from Rome in 1534.

23 Oct 2025 - 7:30PM

Pope Leo XIV

Nuns, teen influencer and ex-Satanic priest among 7 new saints

Pope Leo XIV created the new saints, including the first from Papua New Guinea and an archbishop killed in the Armenian genocide.

19 Oct 2025 - 9:57PM

Pope Leo XIV attends a Mass on the day of the canonisation of seven new saints, in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican, on Sunday. Photo: Reuters

Italy

Pope Leo visits ship sailing the Mediterranean on peace mission

Young people of different faiths have been sailing the Mediterranean on the Bel Espoir schooner vessel to promote peace and dialogue.

18 Oct 2025 - 6:11PM

Pope Leo (centre) poses for a group photo during his visit to the Peace training ship “Med 25 – Bel Espoir”, in the port of Ostia near Rome, Italy, on Friday. Photo: EPA/Vatican Media

King Charles III

King Charles to be first UK monarch to pray with pope in centuries

The occasion at the Sistine Chapel would mark a historic step towards unity between the Catholic Church and the Church of England.

18 Oct 2025 - 1:59AM

Venezuela

Trump calls off talks with Venezuela as US considers cartel targets on land

Relations between Venezuela and the United States have further deteriorated in recent weeks amid US accusations of drug trafficking.

8 Oct 2025 - 2:28PM

Britain

Church of England names first female Archbishop of Canterbury

Sarah Mullally, 63, is the Bishop of London and will face serious challenges including the treatment of women and LGBTQ people.

3 Oct 2025 - 6:24PM

The Bishop of London, Sarah Mullally attends a Service of Prayer and Reflection for Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II in London on September 9, 2022, a day after her death at the age of 96. Photo: AFP

Pope Leo XIV

Pope Leo declares teen computer whiz the first millennial saint

Carlo Acutis, who died at 15 in 2006, was known for using technology to spread his faith.

8 Sep 2025 - 10:53AM

A person holds a picture depicting Carlo Acutis, the first millennial to be made a Catholic saint. Photo: Reuters

Religion

LGBTQ Catholics celebrate acceptance in Holy Year pilgrimage to Rome

LGBTQ groups attribute the change to Pope Francis, who had insisted the Catholic Church was open to everyone.

6 Sep 2025 - 10:08PM

The Philippines

Binondo: inside the 400-year-old heart of Filipino-Chinese heritage

For centuries, Manila’s Binondo district has been the centre of a Tsinoy culture that helped build the Philippines into what it is today.

6 Sep 2025 - 12:00PM

China-Vatican relations

Editorial | Cardinal’s meeting with Pope a good sign for Sino-Vatican relations

Hong Kong’s Catholic church has traditionally played a role in bridging the Vatican and the mainland, and it should continue to contribute in this way.

6 Sep 2025 - 7:15AM

Cardinal Stephen Chow of Hong Kong (right) speaks with Pope Leo XIV on September 2 at the Apostolic Palace in the Vatican. Both held an in-depth exchange on the situation of the Church in China. Photo: Handout

Hong Kong politics

Pope Leo XIV pledges commitment to Beijing-Vatican ties: Hong Kong cardinal

Cardinal Stephen Chow reveals details after meeting the new pope for ‘an in-depth exchange on the situation of the church in China’.

4 Sep 2025 - 9:21PM

Ukraine war

Trump tells Zelensky Crimea, Nato off the table if he wants to end war

The Ukrainian president is returning to Washington for the first time since a spectacularly tense exchange with Trump in February.

18 Aug 2025 - 11:07AMvideocam

Pope Leo XIV

Pope Leo preaches friendship to nearly 1 million at Holy Year youth festival

32 million young Catholics from around the world are expected to take part in the pilgrimage to Italy’s capital for the jubilee celebration.

3 Aug 2025 - 4:29PM

Pope Leo XIV

Pope visits observatory, calls Buzz Aldrin to mark 1969 US moon landing

The American pontiff spoke with the famed Apollo 11 astronaut, reflecting on human ingenuity and the ‘mystery and greatness of Creation’.

21 Jul 2025 - 3:18PM

The pope looks through a large telescope at the Vatican astronomical observatory, one of the oldest astronomical research institutions in the world. Photo: IPA via ZUMA Press/dpa

European Union

Pope Leo signals continuity on fighting child abuse with Vatican appointee

France’s Bishop Thibault Verny, 59, will head the Vatican’s child protection advisory commission, replacing American Cardinal Sean O’Malley.

5 Jul 2025 - 9:59PM

Africa

Vatican beatifies Congo customs worker for resisting corruption

Floribèrt Bwana Chui Bin Kositi was kidnapped and killed in 2007 after he refused to allow rancid rice across the Rwanda-DR Congo border.

15 Jun 2025 - 5:32PM

China-Vatican relations

Beijing hoping for closer ties with Vatican as pope names first Chinese bishop

The announcement signals that a controversial deal which gives both sides a say on episcopal appointments will continue.

12 Jun 2025 - 9:37PM

Joseph Lin Yuntuan has been appointed as an auxiliary bishop in Fuzhou. Photo: chinacatholic.cn

Ukraine war

Putin and Pope Leo discuss Ukraine war, as pontiff presses for peace

The Russian leader, however, claimed Kyiv was ‘betting on an escalation of the conflict and carrying out of acts of sabotage’ in his country.

5 Jun 2025 - 8:13AM

Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting at the Novo-Ogaryovo state residence outside Moscow on Wednesday. Photo: Sputnik via Reuters

Ukraine war

US and Russia row as Moscow masses 50,000 troops near Ukrainian region

Ukraine-Russian war intensifying as Trump warns Putin he is ‘playing with fire’.

28 May 2025 - 7:58PM

China-Vatican relations

Pope Leo prays for Chinese Catholics to be in communion with Rome

Pope prayed that Catholics in China ‘obtain the grace to be strong and joyful witnesses of the Gospel, even in the midst of trials’.

26 May 2025 - 9:24AMvideocam

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Holy See

Over 800,000 Lebanese – 1 in 7 people – displaced by war in 10 days

It is little more than a year since the last conflict uprooted over a million Lebanese from their homes, although that process took months.

Pope Leo laments world ‘in flames’ at Ash Wednesday service

‘Big statement’: Sarah Mullally confirmed as first female Archbishop of Canterbury

Britain’s King Charles calls for ‘reconciliation’ in Christmas speech

UK monarch praises the courage of those who risked their lives for others during his fourth Christmas broadcast as king.

Pope calls for end to all wars in first Christmas as pontiff

‘May the clamour of weapons cease … and may the parties involved find the courage to engage in sincere, direct and respectful dialogue’.

Pope Leo urges Lebanon’s leaders to unite for peace

The first US pope arrived in Beirut from Istanbul, where sought to give Lebanon’s long-suffering people a message of hope.

Pope warns ‘piecemeal’ third world war ‘threatening’ humanity

In Ankara, Pope Leo urged for global peace amid rising conflicts and geopolitical tensions during his first trip outside Italy.

Vatican returns 62 artefacts connected to indigenous peoples from Canada

The move is part of the Catholic Church’s reckoning with its role in helping suppress indigenous culture in the Americas.

King Charles, Pope Leo pray together in 500-year first

It is the first joint worship including an English monarch and a Catholic pontiff since King Henry VIII broke away from Rome in 1534.

Nuns, teen influencer and ex-Satanic priest among 7 new saints

Pope Leo XIV created the new saints, including the first from Papua New Guinea and an archbishop killed in the Armenian genocide.

Pope Leo visits ship sailing the Mediterranean on peace mission

Young people of different faiths have been sailing the Mediterranean on the Bel Espoir schooner vessel to promote peace and dialogue.

King Charles to be first UK monarch to pray with pope in centuries

The occasion at the Sistine Chapel would mark a historic step towards unity between the Catholic Church and the Church of England.

Trump calls off talks with Venezuela as US considers cartel targets on land

Relations between Venezuela and the United States have further deteriorated in recent weeks amid US accusations of drug trafficking.

Church of England names first female Archbishop of Canterbury

Sarah Mullally, 63, is the Bishop of London and will face serious challenges including the treatment of women and LGBTQ people.

Pope Leo declares teen computer whiz the first millennial saint

Carlo Acutis, who died at 15 in 2006, was known for using technology to spread his faith.

LGBTQ Catholics celebrate acceptance in Holy Year pilgrimage to Rome

LGBTQ groups attribute the change to Pope Francis, who had insisted the Catholic Church was open to everyone.

Binondo: inside the 400-year-old heart of Filipino-Chinese heritage

For centuries, Manila’s Binondo district has been the centre of a Tsinoy culture that helped build the Philippines into what it is today.

.css-1m2rp1p{color:#34b8b5;}Editorial | Cardinal’s meeting with Pope a good sign for Sino-Vatican relations

Hong Kong’s Catholic church has traditionally played a role in bridging the Vatican and the mainland, and it should continue to contribute in this way.

Pope Leo XIV pledges commitment to Beijing-Vatican ties: Hong Kong cardinal

Cardinal Stephen Chow reveals details after meeting the new pope for ‘an in-depth exchange on the situation of the church in China’.

Trump tells Zelensky Crimea, Nato off the table if he wants to end war

The Ukrainian president is returning to Washington for the first time since a spectacularly tense exchange with Trump in February.

Pope Leo preaches friendship to nearly 1 million at Holy Year youth festival

32 million young Catholics from around the world are expected to take part in the pilgrimage to Italy’s capital for the jubilee celebration.

Pope visits observatory, calls Buzz Aldrin to mark 1969 US moon landing

The American pontiff spoke with the famed Apollo 11 astronaut, reflecting on human ingenuity and the ‘mystery and greatness of Creation’.

Pope Leo signals continuity on fighting child abuse with Vatican appointee

France’s Bishop Thibault Verny, 59, will head the Vatican’s child protection advisory commission, replacing American Cardinal Sean O’Malley.

Vatican beatifies Congo customs worker for resisting corruption

Floribèrt Bwana Chui Bin Kositi was kidnapped and killed in 2007 after he refused to allow rancid rice across the Rwanda-DR Congo border.

Beijing hoping for closer ties with Vatican as pope names first Chinese bishop

The announcement signals that a controversial deal which gives both sides a say on episcopal appointments will continue.

Putin and Pope Leo discuss Ukraine war, as pontiff presses for peace

The Russian leader, however, claimed Kyiv was ‘betting on an escalation of the conflict and carrying out of acts of sabotage’ in his country.

US and Russia row as Moscow masses 50,000 troops near Ukrainian region

Ukraine-Russian war intensifying as Trump warns Putin he is ‘playing with fire’.

Pope Leo prays for Chinese Catholics to be in communion with Rome

Pope prayed that Catholics in China ‘obtain the grace to be strong and joyful witnesses of the Gospel, even in the midst of trials’.

Editorial | Cardinal’s meeting with Pope a good sign for Sino-Vatican relations