Cindy Wooden

Pope Francis, who will celebrate his 88th birthday in December, has approved simplified liturgical rites for the death of a pontiff.

As the 1,000th day since Russia launched its large-scale invasion of Ukraine approached, the Vatican secretary of state said he hoped the milestone would "awaken a sense of responsibility in everyone, especially those who can stop the ongoing carnage."

Pope Francis has appointed a priest of the Archdiocese of Chicago to serve as administrative management director of the Laudato Si' Center for Higher Education, which is based at the papal villa and farms at Castel Gandolfo.

The Vatican, dioceses around the world and religious congregations have a patrimony of an estimated $1.75 trillion to invest but there are only a handful of investment funds that meet the multiple criteria of being consistent with the teaching of the Catholic Church, said Jean-Baptiste de Franssu, president of the Institute for the Works of Religion, commonly known as the Vatican bank.

Asked about Trump's victory Nov. 5 and looking toward his second term as president, Vatican secretary of state Cardinal Pietro Parolin said, "I think he has to work above all to be president of the whole country and therefore overcome the polarization that has occurred and is very evident."

The pope traveled Nov. 2 to Rome's Laurentino cemetery, which has a special section for children who have died and, nearby, a section called the "Garden of the Angels" where parents who have experienced a miscarriage can opt to have their children buried rather than having a hospital dispose of the remains.

Archbishop Paul D. Etienne of Seattle, a papally-appointed member of the Synod of Bishops, said that as the second synod assembly nears its conclusion Oct. 27, people might not see what they hoped for in the synod's final document, but the gathering heard them and took their input seriously.

Italian Cardinal Matteo Zuppi of Bologna, Pope Francis' envoy for peace in Ukraine, returned to Moscow in mid-October for meetings with Russian government officials and leaders of the Russian Orthodox Church.

"Those who are running for public office probably will not satisfy each and every issue that lies before you," so Catholics must decide which issues are most important to them and then "rank them, learn about them, pray about them, make a conscientious decision," Cardinal Wilton Gregory of Washington said.

Pope Francis called again for "an immediate cease-fire on all fronts" in the Middle East, urging leaders to "pursue the paths of diplomacy and dialogue to achieve peace." The pope made the appeal Oct. 13 after leading the recitation of the Angelus prayer with visitors in St. Peter's Square.

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. In an unusual penitential liturgy Oct. 1, the pope had seven cardinals read requests for forgiveness that he said he wrote himself "because it was necessary to call our main sins by name."

Pope Francis, who has called for the liberation of Aung San Suu Kyi, the former leader of Myanmar and Nobel Peace Prize winner, told Jesuits in Asia that he even had offered to give her refuge at the Vatican.

Speaking with representatives of movements and organizations from Europe, North and South America, Africa and Asia, Francis told the group that he has been criticized for never speaking up for the middle class, "and I apologize for that," he said. But at the same time, "it was Jesus who put the poor at the center."

With the approval of Pope Francis, the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith recognized "the abundant and widespread fruits, which are so beautiful and positive," associated with devotion to Mary, Queen of Peace, and with pilgrimages to Medjugorje.

The 87-year-old Pope Francis publicly thanked God for allowing him "to do as an old pope what I would have liked to do as a young Jesuit," and that is to travel to Asia to preach the Gospel. As is customary, the pope used his first general audience after his Sept. 2-13 trip to Asia and the Pacific to tell people about what he did, what he saw and what struck him most from his travels.

Speaking at the Vatican Aug. 25, Francis said, "Please let no Christian church be abolished directly or indirectly: the churches are not to be touched."

Mary is not a "motionless wax statue," but a disciple who wants to share the good news of Jesus with everyone and reaches out to help and comfort them, Pope Francis said. Reciting the Angelus prayer with visitors in St. Peter's Square Aug. 15, the feast of the Assumption, the pope entrusted to Mary's care the people around the world experiencing war.

As the world braced for Iran to retaliate for the assassination of a Hamas leader who was staying in the Iranian capital, the Vatican secretary of state pleaded with Iran's new president not to escalate the Middle East conflict. Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, spoke by telephone with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian early Aug. 12, according to Matteo Bruni, director of the Vatican press office.

God will not judge people by how many university degrees they earned, but by how well they cared for the poor, Pope Francis told a group of priests and religious women.

Pope Francis has chosen "Forgive us our trespasses: grant us your peace" as the theme for the celebration Jan. 1, 2025, said an announcement Aug. 8 from the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development. The Holy Year, which the pope will open Dec. 24, is "a time for conversion that calls us not to condemn, but instead to bring about reconciliation and peace," the dicastery said.