Pope Leo XIV issued decrees advancing the sainthood causes of five candidates, including a Dutch nun who served in St. Louis in the early 20th century.
Vatican
Priests are called each day to leave the doors of the Church open to a “suffering humanity” in need and not “be an obstacle to those who wish to enter,” Pope Leo XIV told 10 deacons just before ordaining them to the priesthood.
From conflict zones to ancient Christian sites, Pope Leo XIV brings message of peace, hope to Africa
Pope Leo XIV concluded his first trip to Africa April 23, capping a four-country visit marked by urgent calls for peace, direct engagement with conflict zones, and a backdrop of international political tension.
On his last day in Equatorial Guinea, Pope Leo XIV reminded Catholics in the country to seek strength, justice, and hope from the Gospel and the sacraments.
Pope Leo XIV arrived April 21 in Equatorial Guinea, the fourth and final country of his 11-day apostolic journey in Africa, where the pope met the country’s longtime ruler and urged the country’s civil authorities to choose justice over power, quoting St. Augustine’s “City of God.”
Flying over the west coast of central Africa on April 21, Pope Leo XIV paused to honor his predecessor on the first anniversary of Pope Francis’ death, remembering the Argentine pope’s witness to mercy and closeness to the poor.
ope Leo XIV traveled to the heart of Angola’s diamond country April 20, urging the tens of thousands gathered at the papal Mass in the country’s northeast to trust that “Christ hears the cry of the people” in the face of evil.
Pope Leo XIV celebrated Mass for more than 120,000 people in Cameroon’s largest city on April 17, urging “beloved children of the African continent” to share God’s love by feeding the hungry and offering the spiritual nourishment of “the bread of life.”
A religious sister in Cameroon who was kidnapped just a few months ago by separatists and held hostage for three days in the bush was among those who shared her testimony with Pope Leo XIV April 16 in an emotional peace meeting in Cameroon’s northwest city of Bamenda, a region marred by years of separatist violence.
Pope Leo XIV spoke to journalists aboard the papal plane on April 15 on the five-hour flight from Algeria to Cameroon, underlining St. Augustine’s enduring importance today, saying that the saint’s invitation “to search for God and to search for truth is something that is very much needed today.”