Pope Leo XIV greets Buddhist monks in a meeting with representatives of other Christian churches, ecclessial communities, and other religions on May 19, 2025, at the Vatican. / Credit: Vatican Media

Rome Newsroom, May 27, 2025 / 15:36 pm (CNA).

The Vatican commenced its eighth Buddhist-Christian Colloquium on Tuesday in Cambodia, bringing together representatives of both religions to discuss the promotion of peace in Asia.

Prefect for the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue Cardinal George Koovakad delivered a short speech on the first day of the May 27–29 conference on “Buddhists and Christians Working Together for Peace through Reconciliation and Resilience,” highlighting the significance of the two religions’ common commitment to peace, Vatican News reported.

“Together, as Buddhists and Christians, let us explore how reconciliation and resilience can help shape peaceful and compassionate societies,” Koovakad said on Tuesday.

Approximately 150 people from Cambodia and abroad are participating in the three-day meeting organized by the Vatican’s Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue, the Apostolic Vicariate of Phnom Penh, Saint Paul Institute, Preah Sihanouk Raja Buddhist University, and the MAGGA Jesuit Research Center.

Among the Catholic conference participants are bishops and priests from 16 Asian nations, including Mongolia, Vietnam, Myanmar, South Korea, Taiwan, and Sri Lanka.

Throughout the three-day conference, Christians and Buddhists have the opportunity to reflect on the stories of peace, reconciliation, and resilience found in the Bible’s Old and New Testaments and in Buddhist writings, including the Pāḷi Tipiṭaka and the Mahayana Sutras.

A statement released by the dicastery earlier this week said this year’s meeting is a “timely reminder of the power of religion” in fostering healing and hope in a world ravaged by conflict and violence.

According to the dicastery’s statement, Cambodia was chosen to host the international interreligious gathering to honor the legacy of the late Maha Ghosananda, a Buddhist monk who spiritually ministered to refugees during the country’s 1975–1979 Khmer Rouge communist regime led by Pol Pot.

Since 1995, the Vatican has held a series of Buddhist-Christian meetings in different countries to advance mutual understanding and collaboration between the Church and non-Christian religions in the spirit of Pope Paul VI’s Second Vatican Council declaration Nostra Aetate released in 1965.

The last Buddhist-Christian Colloquium in 2023 was held in Bangkok and focused on the theme of “healing a wounded humanity and the earth.”

Catholic Relief Services distributed humanitarian aid to Gaza earlier in the spring and has asked Israel to allow it to resume its work. / Credit: Photo courtesy of Catholic Relief Services

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, May 27, 2025 / 15:06 pm (CNA).

Catholic Relief Services (CRS) is calling on Israel to resume allowing its humanitarian aid teams access to the Palestinian Gaza Strip to deliver food and other supplies to civilians as a partial blockade continues.

Israel imposed a full blockade on humanitarian assistance into Gaza in early March just before it launched new military offenses on the territory. Starting this month, Israel began allowing limited amounts of aid into Gaza, but CRS and other humanitarian organizations — as well as the United Nations — have said the limited aid is insufficient.

“CRS’ priority is the well-being of innocent civilians in Gaza, especially the vulnerable who continue to suffer most,” the organization said in a May 26 statement.

“Our teams on the ground are ready to deliver humanitarian assistance through appropriate modalities to civilians in need throughout the Gaza Strip,” the statement added. “We advocate for unimpeded humanitarian access and the entry of humanitarian supplies at scale. CRS is committed to our operational independence, to neutrality and impartiality, and to the safety and dignity of those we serve.”

The statement referenced Pope Leo XIV’s call for people to use dialogue to solve problems and advance the common good. In his first general audience, Leo also called the war “increasingly worrying and painful” and urged “the entry of decent humanitarian aid” and an end to hostilities, saying the “heartbreaking price is paid by children, the elderly, and the sick.”

CRS’ statement added that the group is “ready to discuss appropriate additional measures to ensure aid accountability” but warned “the innocent people in Gaza cannot wait” and “food and other supplies must be allowed in immediately through existing mechanisms.”

“CRS calls urgently for an end to the war, the return of the hostages, and full facilitation of accountable humanitarian response throughout the Gaza Strip,” the statement continued.

Cindy McCain, the executive director of the U.N. World Food Programme, told CBS’ “Face the Nation” on Sunday that the people of Gaza “are extremely food insecure and could be on the verge of famine” if even the partial blockade continues.

According to McCain, the U.N. was getting about 600 humanitarian aid trucks into Gaza every day during the temporary ceasefire, which was halted in March. With Israel permitting limited humanitarian aid to enter this month, she said the U.N. has only been able to get about 100 aid trucks into the territory daily.

“We need to get in, and we need to get in at scale, not just a few dribbles of the trucks right now; as I said, it’s a drop in the bucket,” McCain said.

Concerns about the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation

As part of its effort to scale back the full blockade on humanitarian aid, Israel is now allowing an American- and Israeli-backed organization, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), to deliver limited aid to Gaza. However, the U.N., CRS, and other humanitarian groups are not currently working with GHF and have expressed concerns about its operations.

“In the spirit of dialogue, we have sought to learn more about proposed approaches connected to [GHF],” the CRS statement read. “We have had many fundamental and practical questions about their proposal which remain unaddressed. We have not agreed to work or collaborate with GHF.”

GHF announced that it began delivering aid to Gaza this week, but it is unclear how much aid the group has provided. According to the BBC, the group operates at four distribution sites that are secured by American contractors and Israeli military personnel to ensure aid does not get into the hands of Hamas, which Israel and the United States classify as a terrorist organization.

Earlier this month, Dorothy Shea — the acting U.S. ambassador to the U.N. — said the GHF was established “to provide a secure mechanism capable of delivering aid directly to those in need without Hamas stealing, looting, or leveraging this assistance for its own ends.”

“Safeguards are in place to ensure Palestinian civilians in Gaza will have access to aid, preventing diversion by Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and criminal organizations — and ensuring Israel can remain secure,” Shea said.

However, Tom Fletcher — the U.N. undersecretary-general for humanitarian affairs and emergency relief coordinator — said at a U.N. security council briefing earlier this month that the Israeli plan excludes people, forces displacement, and exposes thousands to harm.

“It restricts aid to only one part of Gaza while leaving other dire needs unmet,” Fletcher said. “It makes aid conditional on political and military aims. It makes starvation a bargaining chip. It is a cynical sideshow. A deliberate distraction. A fig leaf for further violence and displacement.”

Jake Wood resigned from his position as executive director of GHF over the weekend amid concerns, saying: “It is not possible to implement this plan while also strictly adhering to the humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality, and independence, which I will not abandon.”

Palestinian health officials reported this week that more than 54,000 people have died in Gaza since the start of the war in late 2023.

Catholic Relief Services distributed humanitarian aid to Gaza earlier in the spring and has asked Israel to allow it to resume its work. / Credit: Photo courtesy of Catholic Relief Services

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, May 27, 2025 / 15:06 pm (CNA).

Catholic Relief Services (CRS) is calling on Israel to resume allowing its humanitarian aid teams access to the Palestinian Gaza Strip to deliver food and other supplies to civilians as a partial blockade continues.

Israel imposed a full blockade on humanitarian assistance into Gaza in early March just before it launched new military offenses on the territory. Starting this month, Israel began allowing limited amounts of aid into Gaza, but CRS and other humanitarian organizations — as well as the United Nations — have said the limited aid is insufficient.

“CRS’ priority is the well-being of innocent civilians in Gaza, especially the vulnerable who continue to suffer most,” the organization said in a May 26 statement.

“Our teams on the ground are ready to deliver humanitarian assistance through appropriate modalities to civilians in need throughout the Gaza Strip,” the statement added. “We advocate for unimpeded humanitarian access and the entry of humanitarian supplies at scale. CRS is committed to our operational independence, to neutrality and impartiality, and to the safety and dignity of those we serve.”

The statement referenced Pope Leo XIV’s call for people to use dialogue to solve problems and advance the common good. In his first general audience, Leo also called the war “increasingly worrying and painful” and urged “the entry of decent humanitarian aid” and an end to hostilities, saying the “heartbreaking price is paid by children, the elderly, and the sick.”

CRS’ statement added that the group is “ready to discuss appropriate additional measures to ensure aid accountability” but warned “the innocent people in Gaza cannot wait” and “food and other supplies must be allowed in immediately through existing mechanisms.”

“CRS calls urgently for an end to the war, the return of the hostages, and full facilitation of accountable humanitarian response throughout the Gaza Strip,” the statement continued.

Cindy McCain, the executive director of the U.N. World Food Programme, told CBS’ “Face the Nation” on Sunday that the people of Gaza “are extremely food insecure and could be on the verge of famine” if even the partial blockade continues.

According to McCain, the U.N. was getting about 600 humanitarian aid trucks into Gaza every day during the temporary ceasefire, which was halted in March. With Israel permitting limited humanitarian aid to enter this month, she said the U.N. has only been able to get about 100 aid trucks into the territory daily.

“We need to get in, and we need to get in at scale, not just a few dribbles of the trucks right now; as I said, it’s a drop in the bucket,” McCain said.

Concerns about the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation

As part of its effort to scale back the full blockade on humanitarian aid, Israel is now allowing an American- and Israeli-backed organization, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), to deliver limited aid to Gaza. However, the U.N., CRS, and other humanitarian groups are not currently working with GHF and have expressed concerns about its operations.

“In the spirit of dialogue, we have sought to learn more about proposed approaches connected to [GHF],” the CRS statement read. “We have had many fundamental and practical questions about their proposal which remain unaddressed. We have not agreed to work or collaborate with GHF.”

GHF announced that it began delivering aid to Gaza this week, but it is unclear how much aid the group has provided. According to the BBC, the group operates at four distribution sites that are secured by American contractors and Israeli military personnel to ensure aid does not get into the hands of Hamas, which Israel and the United States classify as a terrorist organization.

Earlier this month, Dorothy Shea — the acting U.S. ambassador to the U.N. — said the GHF was established “to provide a secure mechanism capable of delivering aid directly to those in need without Hamas stealing, looting, or leveraging this assistance for its own ends.”

“Safeguards are in place to ensure Palestinian civilians in Gaza will have access to aid, preventing diversion by Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and criminal organizations — and ensuring Israel can remain secure,” Shea said.

However, Tom Fletcher — the U.N. undersecretary-general for humanitarian affairs and emergency relief coordinator — said at a U.N. security council briefing earlier this month that the Israeli plan excludes people, forces displacement, and exposes thousands to harm.

“It restricts aid to only one part of Gaza while leaving other dire needs unmet,” Fletcher said. “It makes aid conditional on political and military aims. It makes starvation a bargaining chip. It is a cynical sideshow. A deliberate distraction. A fig leaf for further violence and displacement.”

Jake Wood resigned from his position as executive director of GHF over the weekend amid concerns, saying: “It is not possible to implement this plan while also strictly adhering to the humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality, and independence, which I will not abandon.”

Palestinian health officials reported this week that more than 54,000 people have died in Gaza since the start of the war in late 2023.

The Servant of God Matthew Makil (center) appears in this 1896 photo flanked by apostolic vicars Aloysius Pazheparambil (left) and John Menachery (right). / Credit: kirchlicher Fotograf, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

ACI Prensa Staff, May 27, 2025 / 14:36 pm (CNA).

Pope Leo XIV authorized the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints to promulgate the decrees recognizing three new venerables, including two missionaries and an Indian bishop.

In his first audience since beginning his pontificate with the prefect of the Vatican dicastery, Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, the Holy Father approved the “offering of life” of the Servant of God Alejandro Labaca Ugarte of the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin.

Alejandro Labaca, a bishop martyred in the Ecuadorian jungle

Labaca was born on April 19, 1920, in Beizama, Spain. After being expelled from communist China, this Capuchin missionary arrived in Ecuador, where he served as titular bishop of Pomaria and apostolic vicar of Aguarico.

Labaca dedicated himself to evangelizing in the Amazon rainforest of Ecuador until he gave his life on July 21, 1987, in the Tigüino region of the country after being struck by spears from the Tagaeri, a tribe threatened by oil exploitation in the area, which the prelate opposed.

Inés Arango, a missionary dedicated to the Huaorani people

Dying in the same incident with Labaca, Inés Arango Velásquez, a missionary of the Capuchin Tertiaries of the Holy Family, was declared venerable by Leo XIV on May 22.

This religious sister, born in Medellín, Colombia, on April 6, 1937, had been in Aguarico for 10 years, dedicated to the apostolate among the Huaorani Indigenous people.

On July 11, 2017, the Vatican published Pope Francis’ motu proprio Maiorem Hac Dilectionem in which he established that “offering one’s life” knowing that death will surely follow is a new path to beatification for a member of the faithful.

The offering of one’s life is one of the paths to beatification along with heroic virtue and martyrdom.

Matthew Makil, Indian bishop

Leo XIV also approved the heroic virtues of the Servant of God Matthew Makil, founder of the Congregation of the Sisters of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

He was born on March 27, 1851, in Manjoor, India, and died on Jan. 26, 1914, in Kottayam, also in India. He was also titular bishop of Tralles and the first apostolic vicar of Kottayam.

After being declared venerable, a miracle performed through his intercession must be approved for beatification, the first step toward possible canonization.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

The Servant of God Matthew Makil (center) appears in this 1896 photo flanked by apostolic vicars Aloysius Pazheparambil (left) and John Menachery (right). / Credit: kirchlicher Fotograf, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

ACI Prensa Staff, May 27, 2025 / 14:36 pm (CNA).

Pope Leo XIV authorized the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints to promulgate the decrees recognizing three new venerables, including two missionaries and an Indian bishop.

In his first audience since beginning his pontificate with the prefect of the Vatican dicastery, Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, the Holy Father approved the “offering of life” of the Servant of God Alejandro Labaca Ugarte of the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin.

Alejandro Labaca, a bishop martyred in the Ecuadorian jungle

Labaca was born on April 19, 1920, in Beizama, Spain. After being expelled from communist China, this Capuchin missionary arrived in Ecuador, where he served as titular bishop of Pomaria and apostolic vicar of Aguarico.

Labaca dedicated himself to evangelizing in the Amazon rainforest of Ecuador until he gave his life on July 21, 1987, in the Tigüino region of the country after being struck by spears from the Tagaeri, a tribe threatened by oil exploitation in the area, which the prelate opposed.

Inés Arango, a missionary dedicated to the Huaorani people

Dying in the same incident with Labaca, Inés Arango Velásquez, a missionary of the Capuchin Tertiaries of the Holy Family, was declared venerable by Leo XIV on May 22.

This religious sister, born in Medellín, Colombia, on April 6, 1937, had been in Aguarico for 10 years, dedicated to the apostolate among the Huaorani Indigenous people.

On July 11, 2017, the Vatican published Pope Francis’ motu proprio Maiorem Hac Dilectionem in which he established that “offering one’s life” knowing that death will surely follow is a new path to beatification for a member of the faithful.

The offering of one’s life is one of the paths to beatification along with heroic virtue and martyrdom.

Matthew Makil, Indian bishop

Leo XIV also approved the heroic virtues of the Servant of God Matthew Makil, founder of the Congregation of the Sisters of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

He was born on March 27, 1851, in Manjoor, India, and died on Jan. 26, 1914, in Kottayam, also in India. He was also titular bishop of Tralles and the first apostolic vicar of Kottayam.

After being declared venerable, a miracle performed through his intercession must be approved for beatification, the first step toward possible canonization.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

The bishops of Ghana are shown with Ghana President John Dramani Mahama at the Jubilee House in Accra on May 23, 2025. / Credit: President of the Republic of Ghana

ACI Africa, May 27, 2025 / 13:59 pm (CNA).

Members of the Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference (GCBC) have called on the government there to implement stringent measures against the ongoing illegal mining that is leading to loss of land in the West African nation.

In a May 23 meeting with Ghana’s President John Dramani Mahama at Jubilee House in the country’s capital city, Accra, the president of the GCBC, Bishop Matthew Kwasi Gyamfi, expressed concern that what began as a subsistence activity has turned into a national threat, noting that over 4,000 hectares of forest land have been lost and rivers like the Pra, Offin, and Ankobra have become symbols of environmental degradation due to illegal mining.

“We must act not only with force but with foresight. Enforcement must be balanced by credible and sustainable alternatives for those driven by desperation,” he said during the meeting. 

Kwasi, who leads the Diocese of Sunyani in Ghana, described the act of illegal mining as doing grave ecological damage, noting its dangers to both the environment and the moral values of the community. He presented recommendations from the Ghanaian bishops to the government aimed at curbing it.

The recommendations urge the government to audit and repeal the laws that allow illegal mining and to freeze licenses of new artisans and small-scale miners until a review of environmental and social impacts is fully completed.

They also call on the Ghanaian government to declare a limited state of emergency in most affected areas to suspend mining activities, deploy military engineers for land restoration, and restore local governance with decentralized oversight.

Kwasi outlined more of the recommendations from the bishops, encouraging the government to collaborate with the Church and the district-level mining task force to do eco-mining audits, monitoring, and reporting of those who commit breaches.

He urged the government to enforce mandatory reclamation bonds and establish an independent environmental restoration fund co-governed by state, church, and traditional authorities. He also emphasized the need for the government to use part of the mineral development fund to empower communities affected by illegal mining through vocational training programs.

Kwasi, on behalf of the bishops, also spoke about digital mineral traceability, urging the government to implement a national block-chain-based system for tracking all minerals from the sources of exports to prevent smuggling and ensure proper accountability.

Bishops also call for electoral reform

In the meeting with Mahama in attendance alongside other government officials and the bishops, Kwasi raised concerns regarding electoral violence, national unity, and declining public trust in the country.

He highlighted the decrease in electoral participation, which fell from 85% in 2016 to 60.9% in 2024, which he said indicates a growing sense of disengagement among the electorate, especially the youth.

“The reduced turnout reflects broader concerns about the efficacy of democratic processes in addressing pressing national issues,” he said, noting that many young Ghanaians remain dissatisfied with politics as a “vehicle for real change.”

“The perception that politics is transactional and exclusive must be confronted. We must make democracy work, not just periodically at the polls, but persistently through policy, equity, and inclusion,” Kwasi said.

Pointing out some of the national unity challenges that Ghana is facing — including intensified political polarization and deepening mistrust between ethnic, regional, and partisan lines — Kwasi said that land disputes, chieftaincy conflicts, and vigilantism persist in flashpoint areas.

He went on to condemn the persistent violence that has marked the electoral process in previous elections from 1992 to 2024, despite the peaceful transition of power from one government to another.

According to the Centre for Democratic Development in Ghana, there were 76 recorded incidents leading up to the 2024 general election, including 24 cases of destruction, vandalism, and invasion of public facilities as well as several injuries and six fatalities.

Kwasi recommended that the Ghanaian government work on economic equality and electoral integrity to prevent future incidences of electoral violence in the country. He called on the Ghanaian government to collaborate with the Church in ensuring civic education and engagement.

“By reinforcing the values of participatory governance and accountability, we can work towards revitalizing public trust and ensuring that democracy serves the prosperity of all Ghanaians,” he said, adding: “Let us build a politics that serves not itself but the people, a politics that is not about the survival of the fittest but about the flourishing of the weakest; a politics where governance is not performance but a moral vocation.”

This story was first published by ACI Africa, CNA's news partner in Africa, and has been adapted by CNA.

Archbishop Gabriele Caccia in an address on May 22, 2025, told the U.N. Security Council that civilians are not “expendable.” / Credit: Kevin Jones/CNA

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, May 27, 2025 / 13:29 pm (CNA).

Archbishop Gabriele Caccia addressed the United Nations Security Council last week, underscoring the Holy See’s concern for the rising number of civilians impacted by armed conflicts across the globe.

“It is fundamental that, even in the midst of conflict, the protection of the human person and its inherent God-given dignity remain at the center of all collective efforts, also in order to avoid the scourge of war,” said Caccia, who serves as permanent observer of the Holy See to the U.N., in his May 22 address.

“The human person must never be treated as expendable or reduced to mere collateral damage,” the Italian archbishop continued, citing the “deliberate targeting” of civilians and civilian structures as a matter of “great concern.”

“While these violations are an immense human tragedy, they also represent a grave affront to the foundations of international security,” Caccia emphasized in his statement.

The Holy See became a non-member-state permanent observer to the United Nations in 1964. Its mission there is key to the Holy See’s diplomatic work, communicating the Catholic Church’s centuries of experience to assist the U.N. in realizing peace, justice, human dignity, and humanitarian cooperation and assistance.

In his capacity as head of the mission, Caccia urged the U.N. Security Council to continue its work to “put an end to the use of indiscriminate weapons, landmines, and cluster munitions, and to stop the deployment of explosive weapons in populated areas.” 

He also highlighted the importance of ending mass arms production and stockpiling as a concrete step toward protecting civilian lives. 

Finally, Caccia warned the council against emerging military technologies such as lethal autonomous weapons systems (LAWS) and encouraged a legally-binding proposal to prohibit them by 2026. 

“Ensuring that decisions over life and death remain under meaningful human control is not only a matter of legal accountability but also a moral responsibility,” Caccia said. 

Caccia has served as permanent observer of the Holy See to the United Nations in New York since his appointment by Pope Francis in November 2019. Prior to this, Caccia spent nearly 30 years in the Vatican’s diplomatic service working in nunciatures in Tanzania, Lebanon, the Philippines, and the Vatican’s Secretariat of State in Rome.

He studied at the Vatican’s Diplomatic School, the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy in Rome, where he earned a doctorate in sacred theology, and at the Pontifical Gregorian University for a licentiate in canon law. Prior to this, he served for three years as a parish priest in his home diocese, the Archdiocese of Milan.

Pope Benedict XVI ordained Caccia a bishop in 2009 and named him apostolic nuncio in Lebanon. His episcopal motto is “We have believed in the love God has for us” (1 Jn 4:16).

Archbishop Gabriele Caccia in an address on May 22, 2025, told the U.N. Security Council that civilians are not “expendable.” / Credit: Kevin Jones/CNA

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, May 27, 2025 / 13:29 pm (CNA).

Archbishop Gabriele Caccia addressed the United Nations Security Council last week, underscoring the Holy See’s concern for the rising number of civilians impacted by armed conflicts across the globe.

“It is fundamental that, even in the midst of conflict, the protection of the human person and its inherent God-given dignity remain at the center of all collective efforts, also in order to avoid the scourge of war,” said Caccia, who serves as permanent observer of the Holy See to the U.N., in his May 22 address.

“The human person must never be treated as expendable or reduced to mere collateral damage,” the Italian archbishop continued, citing the “deliberate targeting” of civilians and civilian structures as a matter of “great concern.”

“While these violations are an immense human tragedy, they also represent a grave affront to the foundations of international security,” Caccia emphasized in his statement.

The Holy See became a non-member-state permanent observer to the United Nations in 1964. Its mission there is key to the Holy See’s diplomatic work, communicating the Catholic Church’s centuries of experience to assist the U.N. in realizing peace, justice, human dignity, and humanitarian cooperation and assistance.

In his capacity as head of the mission, Caccia urged the U.N. Security Council to continue its work to “put an end to the use of indiscriminate weapons, landmines, and cluster munitions, and to stop the deployment of explosive weapons in populated areas.” 

He also highlighted the importance of ending mass arms production and stockpiling as a concrete step toward protecting civilian lives. 

Finally, Caccia warned the council against emerging military technologies such as lethal autonomous weapons systems (LAWS) and encouraged a legally-binding proposal to prohibit them by 2026. 

“Ensuring that decisions over life and death remain under meaningful human control is not only a matter of legal accountability but also a moral responsibility,” Caccia said. 

Caccia has served as permanent observer of the Holy See to the United Nations in New York since his appointment by Pope Francis in November 2019. Prior to this, Caccia spent nearly 30 years in the Vatican’s diplomatic service working in nunciatures in Tanzania, Lebanon, the Philippines, and the Vatican’s Secretariat of State in Rome.

He studied at the Vatican’s Diplomatic School, the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy in Rome, where he earned a doctorate in sacred theology, and at the Pontifical Gregorian University for a licentiate in canon law. Prior to this, he served for three years as a parish priest in his home diocese, the Archdiocese of Milan.

Pope Benedict XVI ordained Caccia a bishop in 2009 and named him apostolic nuncio in Lebanon. His episcopal motto is “We have believed in the love God has for us” (1 Jn 4:16).

null / Credit: Andy - Rock News/Shutterstock

Vatican City, May 27, 2025 / 12:48 pm (CNA).

The official website of the Vatican for the first time has been refreshed since it was created in the 1990s, prominently featuring multimedia content and online links to other Vatican offices and ministries.

A banner image of a waving Pope Leo XIV against a simple light blue background can now be found spread across the top half of the revamped Holy See website’s homepage published earlier this week. 

Replacing the outdated dropdown mega menus found in the older version of the Holy See’s homepage is a large, clickable “Magisterium” button — which also features a small icon of the pontiff’s new coat of arms — to help online visitors find the pope’s prepared homilies and speeches and additional information about the Vatican.

Acquiring tickets for papal audiences and liturgical celebrations has also been made easier through the updated website. Earlier this year, the Prefecture of the Papal Household — which is one of four Vatican offices featured on vatican.va — launched its new website with digital registration forms for individuals and pilgrim groups wanting to see the pope. 

The other three Vatican ministries featured on the updated website are the Church’s charitable organization Peter’s Pence, the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network, and the yearlong 2025 Jubilee Year of Hope.  

Daily news and calendar events related to Pope Leo XIV and the Vatican can also be viewed on the updated homepage in nine languages: Arabic, English, Chinese, French, German, Italian, Latin, Portuguese, and Spanish. 

Additional information and Church documents that can be accessed from the new homepage include the Bible, the Catechism of the Catholic Church, codes of canon law, ecumenical councils, Catholic social teaching, and reports on the Church’s response to the abuse of minors.

null / Credit: Andy - Rock News/Shutterstock

Vatican City, May 27, 2025 / 12:48 pm (CNA).

The official website of the Vatican for the first time has been refreshed since it was created in the 1990s, prominently featuring multimedia content and online links to other Vatican offices and ministries.

A banner image of a waving Pope Leo XIV against a simple light blue background can now be found spread across the top half of the revamped Holy See website’s homepage published earlier this week. 

Replacing the outdated dropdown mega menus found in the older version of the Holy See’s homepage is a large, clickable “Magisterium” button — which also features a small icon of the pontiff’s new coat of arms — to help online visitors find the pope’s prepared homilies and speeches and additional information about the Vatican.

Acquiring tickets for papal audiences and liturgical celebrations has also been made easier through the updated website. Earlier this year, the Prefecture of the Papal Household — which is one of four Vatican offices featured on vatican.va — launched its new website with digital registration forms for individuals and pilgrim groups wanting to see the pope. 

The other three Vatican ministries featured on the updated website are the Church’s charitable organization Peter’s Pence, the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network, and the yearlong 2025 Jubilee Year of Hope.  

Daily news and calendar events related to Pope Leo XIV and the Vatican can also be viewed on the updated homepage in nine languages: Arabic, English, Chinese, French, German, Italian, Latin, Portuguese, and Spanish. 

Additional information and Church documents that can be accessed from the new homepage include the Bible, the Catechism of the Catholic Church, codes of canon law, ecumenical councils, Catholic social teaching, and reports on the Church’s response to the abuse of minors.