A view of the Vatican Apostolic Library in 2021. / Credit: Franco Origlia/Getty Images

Vatican City, Jun 2, 2025 / 12:17 pm (CNA).

The Vatican Library is the custodian of a major part of humanity’s literary heritage. That includes more than 80,000 ancient manuscripts and 2 million printed books (8,600 of which are “incunabula,” that is, printed before 1501); a graphic collection (drawings, maps, engravings, photographs); 150,000 documents; a large collection of coins and medals (300,000 pieces); and a collection of archives (100,000). 

The library is currently in the process of digitizing and publishing online all the manuscripts it houses, a project that first started in 2012. When necessary, manuscripts receive conservation treatments or are restored before digitization. So far, some 30,000 manuscripts have been digitized and published online. This work is made possible due to the support of many benefactors, including the Sanctuary of Culture Foundation, which generously supports the digitization and restoration of manuscripts as well as other projects. 

Recently, a new collaboration was launched between the Vatican Library and the Colnaghi Foundation, a prestigious art gallery founded in 1760. The two institutions are working together specifically on the library’s archives section.

The five-year agreement provides for the restoration and reorganization of the archives’ storage facilities, which will improve the future preservation of documents spanning the 10th to the 20th century. The archival collections include documents of exceptional historical value.

The project, which involves a complete reorganization of the department, including new shelving systems and renovations, will be led by the renowned British architectural firm David Chipperfield Architects.

The Colnaghi Foundation has promoted the creation of an association, the Patrons of the Vatican Library, to assist in the project and to study and carry out other projects related to the conservation treatments of many of the archival manuscripts.

The association has provided a new system for scanning the surface of documents, called Selene, developed by the Factum Foundation. Among other benefits, this device makes it possible to bring to light parts of objects that are hidden from view.

To celebrate this collaboration between the art world, represented by the Colnaghi Foundation and the Vatican Library, the “Codex” exhibition opened on May 26.

The exhibit features 14 works from private collections that are not normally exhibited. The library has also selected 15 documents from its collections (manuscripts and archival documents) related to the people portrayed in the exhibited works, the curators of those works, or the artists who created them.

On June 3, the works will return to private collections, and the Vatican manuscripts will be returned to their original collections.

The works on display offer a visual and historical journey through sacred art and portraits from the Renaissance and Baroque periods, highlighting pieces by some of history’s greatest masters.

The exhibition opens with “Saint Peter Penitent” by Flemish artist Anthony van Dyck, which depicts the weeping apostle with a deeply human expression of repentance and features baroque chiaroscuro (strong light and dark contrasts).

The exhibition continues with “The Triumph of Flora,” a mythological allegory by Mario Nuzzi, exuberant in color and symbolism, which celebrates the fertility of nature with a festive and decorative spirit that contrasts with the gravity of other pieces.

Another work on display is Michelangelo Buonarroti’s preparatory sketch for “The Adoration of the Brazen Serpent,” a powerful scene from the Old Testament. The drawing demonstrates the artist’s anatomical and expressive intensity, which manages to condense drama and redemption into a single figure.

The exhibition also includes works by other influential artists of the 16th and 17th centuries, such as Titian’s “Portrait of Pope Paul III,” painted during his trip to Rome between October 1545 and May 1546. This painting, in which the pope appears with a shrewd expression and the traditional camauro (red cap with white trim), a symbol of his authority, belongs to a private collection and is kept in Lisbon, Portugal.

Another portrait is that of “Clement VII,” painted by Sebastiano del Piombo. A highlight by the artist Tintoretto is his “Portrait of Cardinal Marcantonio da Mula,” which demonstrates the painter’s skill in combining the cardinal’s dignified appearance with dynamism.

Also featured in the exhibition is Guido Reni’s portrait of Camillo Borghese (later Paul V), painted during the first decade of the 17th century.

Among library documents featured in the exhibition, which aim to suggest a real dialogue with the works of art, are the 1628 invoice sent to the bishop of Gubbio for three Caravaggio paintings, including “The Card Cheats”; some notes and autograph drawings by Michelangelo Buonarroti; as well as a 1657 letter by Cardinal da Mula to Cardinal Guglielmo Sirleto.

Also among the documents in the exhibition is a 1526 contract signed with Sebastiano del Piombo for a panel of the “Nativity of the Virgin” in the Church of Santa Maria del Popolo.

The sharing of cultural heritage embodied by the Codex initiative represents, for the library, an essential tool for building bridges between cultures. The exhibition is considered a beautiful and concrete example of this, and an important demonstration of the collaboration between different institutions working together to achieve positive results in the conservation of cultural heritage.

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

Pope Leo XIV speaks in front of the famous icon at the Shrine of the Mother of Good Counsel in Genazzano, Italy, on Saturday, May 10, 2025. / Credit: Vatican Media

CNA Newsroom, Jun 1, 2025 / 19:56 pm (CNA).

Pope Leo XIV urged French Catholics to embark on a profound spiritual renewal by following the example of three beloved saints as France commemorated the centenary of their canonization.

In his first message to the French bishops’ conference, released by the Holy See Press Office on Saturday, the Holy Father highlighted St. John Eudes, St. John Mary Vianney, and St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus as powerful models for contemporary evangelization.

The pope emphasized their shared spiritual trait: “They loved Jesus unreservedly in a simple, strong, and authentic way” and experienced his goodness in daily closeness.

The pontiff presented these saints as Catholics whose lives demonstrate the transformative power of Christ’s tender love.

Leo noted St. John Eudes as the first to celebrate liturgical worship of the Hearts of Jesus and Mary, St. John Mary Vianney as the priest who declared “The priesthood is the love of the heart of Jesus,” and St. Thérèse as the great doctor of “scientia amoris” who “breathed” Jesus’ name with spontaneity and freshness.

Pope Leo framed this anniversary not as mere nostalgia but as an opportunity for missionary momentum. He expressed hope that God can “renew the marvels he has accomplished in the past” through these saints’ intercession.

The pope specifically addressed the shortage of priestly vocations, asking whether these saints might inspire young people to embrace the priesthood’s “beauty, greatness, and fruitfulness.”

The message concluded with papal gratitude for French priests’ “courageous and persevering commitment” amid contemporary challenges, including “indifference, materialism, and individualism.”

Pope Leo invoked the saints’ intercession for France and placed the nation under the maternal protection of Our Lady of the Assumption.

Pope Leo XIV smiles at the crowds at St. Peter’s Square on Sunday, June 1, 2025, gathered for the Jubilee of Families, Children, Grandparents, and the Elderly. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

CNA Newsroom, Jun 1, 2025 / 07:31 am (CNA).

Pope Leo XIV declared marriage is “not an ideal but the measure of true love between a man and a woman” and families are “the cradle of the future of humanity” as he celebrated Mass for thousands of pilgrims gathered in St. Peter’s Square for the Jubilee of Families, Children, Grandparents, and the Elderly on Sunday.

Speaking to families from nearly 120 countries on a sunny morning in Rome, the pontiff emphasized the fundamental role of family relationships in God’s plan for salvation, drawing from the Gospel reading of Jesus’ prayer at the Last Supper.

“Dear friends, we received life before we ever desired it,” Pope Leo XIV said in his homily on June 1. “As soon as we were born, we needed others in order to live; left to ourselves, we would not have survived. Someone else saved us by caring for us in body and spirit. All of us are alive today thanks to a relationship, a free and freeing relationship of human kindness and mutual care.”

The Holy Father made an extended tour of the square in the popemobile before Mass, blessing children and greeting the crowds of families who had traveled to Rome for this major event of the 2025 Jubilee Year of Hope.

Marriage as measure of true love

In his homily, Pope Leo XIV emphasized that marriage represents “not an ideal but the measure of true love between a man and a woman: a love that is total, faithful, and fruitful.” He cited Pope Paul VI’s 1968 encyclical Humanae Vitae, noting that conjugal love “makes you one flesh and enables you, in the image of God, to bestow the gift of life.”

The pope highlighted several married couples as exemplars for today’s world, including Sts. Louis and Zélie Martin, parents of St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus. He also remembered the Polish Ulma family, “parents and children, united in love and martyrdom” during World War II.

“By pointing to them as exemplary witnesses of married life, the Church tells us that today’s world needs the marriage covenant in order to know and accept God’s love and to defeat, thanks to its unifying and reconciling power, the forces that break down relationships and societies,” the pontiff said.

Practical counsel for families

Pope Leo XIV offered specific guidance to different generations present at the celebration. To parents, he recommended being “examples of integrity to your children, acting as you want them to act, educating them in freedom through obedience, always seeing the good in them and finding ways to nurture it.”

Children received counsel to “show gratitude to your parents,” with the pope noting that saying “thank you” each day “is the first way to honor your father and your mother.”

To grandparents and elderly people, he recommended watching “over your loved ones with wisdom and compassion, and with the humility and patience that come with age.”

The Holy Father emphasized the family’s role in transmitting faith, declaring that “in the family, faith is handed on together with life, generation after generation. It is shared like food at the family table and like the love in our hearts.”

Prayer for peace amid global conflicts

Following the Mass, Pope Leo XIV led the Regina Coeli prayer, using the occasion to remember families suffering from war.

“May the Virgin Mary bless families and sustain them in their difficulties. I think especially of those who suffer because of war in the Middle East, in Ukraine, and in other parts of the world,” he said.

The pontiff also commemorated the beatification of Blessed Cristofora Klomfass and 14 companion religious sisters of the Congregation of St. Catherine Virgin and Martyr, who were killed by Soviet soldiers in 1945 in territories of present-day Poland.

“Despite the climate of hatred and terror against the Catholic faith, they continued to serve the sick and orphans,” he noted.

During his remarks, Pope Leo XIV expressed particular joy at welcoming so many children to today’s celebration, calling them sources of renewed hope. He praised grandparents and elderly people as “genuine models of faith and inspiration for young generations.”

This story was last updated Sunday, June 1, 2025, with corrected details and link for Sts. Louis and Zélie Martin.

Pope Leo XIV celebrates the Mass for Jubilee of Families, Children, Grandparents, and the Elderly at St. Peter’s Square on Sunday, June 1, 2025. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

CNA Newsroom, Jun 1, 2025 / 07:18 am (CNA).

Pope Leo XIV gave the following homily on Sunday, June 1, for the Jubilee of Families, Children, Grandparents, and the Elderly on St. Peter's Square at the Vatican.

The Gospel we have just heard shows us Jesus, at the Last Supper, praying on our behalf (cf. Jn 17:20). The Word of God, made man, as he nears the end of his earthly life, thinks of us, his brothers and sisters, and becomes a blessing, a prayer of petition and praise to the Father, in the power of the Holy Spirit. As we ourselves, full of wonder and trust, enter into Jesus’ prayer, we become, thanks to his love, part of a great plan that concerns all of humanity.

Christ prays that we may “all be one” (v. 21). This is the greatest good that we can desire, for this universal union brings about among his creatures the eternal communion of love that is God himself: the Father who gives life, the Son who receives it, and the Spirit who shares it.

The Lord does not want us, in this unity, to be a nameless and faceless crowd. He wants us to be one: “As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us” (v. 21). The unity for which Jesus prays is thus a communion grounded in the same love with which God loves, which brings life and salvation into the world. As such, it is firstly a gift that Jesus comes to bring. From his human heart, the Son of God prays to the Father in these words: “I in them and you in me, that they may become completely one, so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me” (v. 23).

Let us listen with amazement to these words. Jesus is telling us that God loves us as he loves himself. The Father does not love us any less than he loves his only-begotten Son. In other words, with an infinite love. God does not love less, because he loves first, from the very beginning! Christ himself bears witness to this when he says to the Father: “You loved me before the foundation of the world” (v. 24). And so it is: In his mercy, God has always desired to draw all people to himself. It is his life, bestowed upon us in Christ, that makes us one, uniting us with one another.

Listening to this Gospel today, during the Jubilee of Families, Children, Grandparents, and the Elderly, fills us with joy.

Dear friends, we received life before we ever desired it. As Pope Francis said: “All of us are sons and daughters, but none of us chose to be born” (Angelus, Jan. 1, 2025). Not only that. As soon as we were born, we needed others in order to live; left to ourselves, we would not have survived. Someone else saved us by caring for us in body and spirit. All of us are alive today thanks to a relationship, a free and freeing relationship of human kindness and mutual care.

That human kindness is sometimes betrayed. As for example, whenever freedom is invoked not to give life but to take it away; not to help but to hurt. Yet even in the face of the evil that opposes and takes life, Jesus continues to pray to the Father for us. His prayer acts as a balm for our wounds; it speaks to us of forgiveness and reconciliation. That prayer makes fully meaningful our experience of love for one another as parents, grandparents, sons, and daughters. That is what we want to proclaim to the world: We are here in order to be “one” as the Lord wants us to be “one,” in our families and in those places where we live, work, and study. Different, yet one; many, yet one; always, in every situation and at every stage of life.

Dear friends, if we love one another in this way, grounded in Christ, who is “the Alpha and the Omega,” “the beginning and the end” (cf. Rev 22:13), we will be a sign of peace for everyone, in society and the world. Let us not forget: Families are the cradle of the future of humanity.

In recent decades, we have received a sign that fills us with joy but also makes us think. It is the fact that several spouses have been beatified and canonized, not separately, but as married couples. I think of Louis and Zélie Martin, the parents of St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus; and of Blessed Luigi and Maria Beltrame Quattrocchi, who raised a family in Rome in the last century. And let us not forget the Ulma family from Poland: parents and children, united in love and martyrdom. I said that this is a sign that makes us think. By pointing to them as exemplary witnesses of married life, the Church tells us that today’s world needs the marriage covenant in order to know and accept God’s love and to defeat, thanks to its unifying and reconciling power, the forces that break down relationships and societies.

For this reason, with a heart filled with gratitude and hope, I would remind all married couples that marriage is not an ideal but the measure of true love between a man and a woman: a love that is total, faithful, and fruitful (cf. St. Paul VI, Humanae Vitae, 9). This love makes you one flesh and enables you, in the image of God, to bestow the gift of life.

I encourage you, then, to be examples of integrity to your children, acting as you want them to act, educating them in freedom through obedience, always seeing the good in them and finding ways to nurture it. And you, dear children, show gratitude to your parents. To say “thank you” each day for the gift of life and for all that comes with it is the first way to honor your father and your mother (cf. Ex 20:12). Finally, dear grandparents and elderly people, I recommend that you watch over your loved ones with wisdom and compassion, and with the humility and patience that come with age.

In the family, faith is handed on together with life, generation after generation. It is shared like food at the family table and like the love in our hearts. In this way, families become privileged places in which to encounter Jesus, who loves us and desires our good, always.

Let me add one last thing. The prayer of the Son of God, which gives us hope on our journey, also reminds us that one day we will all be “uno unum” (cf. St. Augustine, “Sermo Super Ps. 127”): one in the one Savior, embraced by the eternal love of God. Not only us, but also our fathers, mothers, grandmothers, grandfathers, brothers, sisters, and children who have already gone before us into the light of his eternal Pasch, and whose presence we feel here, together with us, in this moment of celebration.

Pope Leo XIV greets the faithful in St. Peter's Basilica, May 31, 2025. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

CNA Newsroom, May 31, 2025 / 17:58 pm (CNA).

Pope Leo XIV has praised an international bioethics summit in Rome for advancing an “authentically human” approach to science, urging researchers to pursue truth grounded in the dignity of the human person.

In a message delivered by Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the pope expressed his “vivid appreciation” for the third International Bioethics Conference, held May 30–31 at the Patristicum.

The event was organized under the theme “The Splendor of Truth in Science and Bioethics.”

The pope described the initiative as “a valuable opportunity to reflect on the ethical implications of scientific progress” and encouraged “interdisciplinary dialogue grounded in the dignity of the human person,” according to the Vatican message. He expressed his hope that such efforts would “foster approaches to science that are increasingly authentically human and respectful of the integrity of the person.”

Held under the patronage of the Pontifical Academy for Life and the Dicastery for Culture and Education, the conference brought together nearly 400 participants — including researchers, physicians, philosophers, and legal scholars — from universities across Latin America, Europe, and Africa.

‘Science must serve the truth,’ cardinal says

Cardinal Willem Jacobus Eijk of the Netherlands opened the conference with a keynote address outlining three foundational principles for bioethics and scientific research in service of truth.

The archbishop of Utrecht, who is also a medical doctor, on Friday said the Pontifical Academy for Life should give more attention to the bioethical issues linked to “transgender” treatments and the push for “gender theory.”

Eijk emphasized that human reason must recognize its ability to know metaphysical truth, that human beings possess only relative autonomy, and that human life is an intrinsic value.

The cardinal warned: “Without metaphysics and a proper anthropology, science becomes dangerous because it loses its moral compass.”

Scholars highlight the role of philosophy in science

Spanish philosopher Juan Arana, a member of the Royal Academy of Moral and Political Sciences, argued that modern science too often neglects the pursuit of deeper philosophical truths. While acknowledging the empirical advances of science, he emphasized that “great truths of philosophy and the small truths of science” are still connected “by threads that, though subtle, are effective.”

Bernard Schumacher of the University of Fribourg criticized the modern scientific method for reducing reality to the mathematical and quantifiable, while French philosopher Thibaud Collin challenged assumptions within natural law theory.

Two roundtables tackled practical bioethical challenges in genetics and conscience rights. Geneticist Teresa Perucho, surgeon Emmanuel Sapin, and neonatologist Robin Pierucci discussed the moral foundations of genetic counseling and the need to support parents with compassion and clarity when faced with difficult prenatal diagnoses.

Upholding a Catholic vision of science

The conference was organized by the International Chair of Bioethics Jérôme Lejeune and supported by more than 40 academic institutions worldwide. Since its founding in 2023, the event has become a leading forum for Catholic engagement with contemporary bioethical issues.

Jean-Marie Le Méné, president of the Jérôme Lejeune Foundation, closed the gathering by recalling the late French geneticist’s legacy: “The scientist is one who admits without shame that what he knows is microscopic compared to all that he does not know — and is fascinated by the adventure of intelligence on the path toward the intelligible.”

Jérôme Lejeune, a devout Catholic and pioneer in genetics, discovered the chromosomal cause of Down syndrome and became a passionate defender of the unborn, laying the foundation for much of the Church’s engagement in bioethics today.

Pope Leo XIV concluded his message with a call for scientists to “contribute to the search for truth, so that science may remain at the service of humanity, never becoming its master.”

In the morning, the Holy Blood is venerated in St. Salvator Cathedral during a Eucharistic celebration, with archbishop of Tehran Cardinal Dominique Mathieu concelebrating. Then during the procession, he carries the reliquary for part of the route on May 29, 2025. / Credit: Thomas P. Reiter

Bruges, Belgium, May 31, 2025 / 11:00 am (CNA).

The Medieval city of Bruges, Belgium, marked a centuries-old tradition with veneration of the UNESCO-honored Holy Blood Procession on the feast of the Ascension.

Pope Leo XIV delivers his homily during the ordination of 11 new priests for the Diocese of Rome at St. Peter’s Basilica on May 31, 2025. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

CNA Newsroom, May 31, 2025 / 09:30 am (CNA).

Pope Leo XIV ordained 11 new priests for the Diocese of Rome on Saturday during a Mass at St. Peter’s Basilica, urging them to live lives that are “transparent, visible, credible” in service to God’s people.

The ordination Mass brought together seminarians from both the Pontifical Roman Major Seminary and the Redemptoris Mater Seminary.

The pope described it as a moment of “great joy for the Church” and a sign that “God has not grown tired of gathering his children.”

Pope Leo XIV: Priests must be credible witnesses

In his homily, Pope Leo reflected on St. Paul’s words to the community in Ephesus: “You know how I lived the whole time I was with you,” pointing to the necessity of credibility in priestly life.

“We live among the people of God so that we may stand before them with a credible witness,” the pope said. “Together, we rebuild the credibility of a wounded Church, sent to a wounded humanity, within a wounded creation.”

The pope cautioned the ordinands against clerical self-isolation or entitlement.

“Pope Francis has warned us many times about this, because self-referentiality extinguishes the fire of mission.”

Leo emphasized that the priesthood is not about authority but stewardship: “Not masters, but guardians,” he said. “The mission belongs to Jesus. He is risen, and he goes before us. None of us is called to replace him.”

The pope concluded his homily by reflecting on the Church’s mission of reconciliation in a broken world. “Together, then, we will rebuild the credibility of a wounded Church, sent to a wounded humanity, within a wounded creation,” he said.

“It does not matter to be perfect, but it is necessary to be credible.” Drawing on the image of the risen Christ showing his wounds, Pope Leo XIV emphasized that even signs of rejection become sources of forgiveness and hope, making priests “ministers of hope” who view everything “under the sign of reconciliation.”

In his final words, the pontiff spoke of priestly service as participation in Christ’s love for the world. “The love of Christ indeed possesses us,” he said, describing this as “a possession that liberates and enables us not to possess anyone.”

Leo thanked the newly ordained for dedicating their lives to serve “a wholly priestly people” and invoked the intercession of Mary, whom he called “Our Lady of Trust and Mother of Hope,” asking her to pray for the Church’s mission to “unite heaven and earth.”

Just a mention of Lough Derg summons tales of sleep deprivation, discomfort, and hunger, but it’s a deeply spiritual place of renewal and hope, from which faithful pilgrims often emerge reborn through the rituals of self-purification. / Credit: Lough Derg

Dublin, Ireland, May 31, 2025 / 09:00 am (CNA).

Lough Derg is renowned among the faithful for its physically grueling but spiritually uplifting three-day pilgrimage. 

The dome of the Cathedral of St. Bavo in Haarlem, the Netherlands. / Credit: Frank de ruyter via Wikimedia (CC BY-SA 3.0 NL)

Vatican City, May 31, 2025 / 08:00 am (CNA).

The Church in the Netherlands is gaining momentum thanks to the “creative minority” of young people rediscovering the Catholic faith, Cardinal Willem Eijk said.

Though Eijk considers the approximately 3.4 million Catholics as a religious minority in the European country with a total population of 17.9 million people, the Dutch cardinal said he has great hope in the younger generations.

“There are young people who belong to families alienated from the Church for generations and they rediscover Christ in his Church and embrace the doctrine of the Church,” he said in an interview with EWTN Vatican News Director Andreas Thonhauser.

“Every year we see a growing number of young people asking for admission to the Church,” he said. “They discover the truth concerning Christ and the Gospel through the internet, TikTok, and social media.”

Describing his surprise at the impact new technologies have had in attracting attention to the Catholic faith, Eijk said what particularly struck him was how well informed these young people were on Church doctrine prior to asking for the sacraments.

“The only thing, of course, is that you have to introduce them into the community of faith,” he said. “But nevertheless they know much of their faith and these young people are inclined to accept and embrace the whole doctrine of the Catholic Church.”

Noting the declining number of Catholic parents baptizing their children in the Netherlands, Eijk said the Church is “much smaller,” particularly in light of the country’s growing population, but the prelate said he is not overly concerned because of the great faith he witnesses among new Catholics.

“It will be a ‘creative minority’ as Benedict XIV used to say,” he added. “Of course, this is a beautiful expression from Alfred Toynbee, the famous English philosopher of history.”

Toynbee concluded in his “Study of History,” which analyzed 20 world civilizations, that the rise of cultures is a result of smaller groups of people who responded to the challenges of their times.

“I think by forming a group, a small group, of strong believers in Christ, followers and Christ, we will be able to Christianize culture once again,” Eijk told EWTN News.

“We now live in a culture of expressive individualism,” he continued. “Every individual is in his own boat, determines his own philosophy of life, religion, and set of ethical values, but this culture won’t last forever.” 

To foster the faith of the people who belong to the Diocese of Utrecht, Eijk said a variety of formation programs are available to Catholics and particularly for couples preparing for the sacrament of marriage.

“We explain theology of the body, we teach couples also to pray because they don’t know how to pray and it’s really important,” he said. “We also talk about the doctrine of the Church concerning contraception, natural family planning.”

After introducing the courses for couples a few years ago, the cardinal archbishop said several participants shared positive feedback. 

“Mostly they say, ‘Oh, isn’t that beautiful! We had never heard this before,’ and that makes it clear to me that we have to transmit the truth with courage and without ambiguity,” he said.

While Eijk said the new young people coming to Church are not big in numbers, “they’re strong believers” who are the future.

“We see that there is more openness than there was, let’s say, when I started as a parish priest, an assistant parish priest 40 years ago,” he shared. 

“I always saw decline in the Church and now in the last years of my career I see a certain modest revitalization of the Church; modest, but certain,” he said.

This article was updated on Sunday, June 1, to correct a transcription error in Cardinal Eijk's quote, which now accurately reads "set of ethical values" rather than the previously published "ethical failures."

An attendee prays the rosary during a demonstration called by the association “La Marche pour la vie” against abortion and euthanasia in Versailles, southwest of Paris, on March 4, 2024. / Credit: GEOFFROY VAN DER HASSELT/AFP via Getty Images

Paris, France, May 31, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).

The amended version of the law was passed on May 27 with 305 votes in favor and 199 against.