Cardinal

Pope Francis announced on May 20 that he will hold a meeting of the Church's top council to appoint 14 new cardinals next month, including from Iraq, Pakistan, Madagascar and Japan.

Pope Francis retired to spiritual seclusion outside the Vatican. 

He will take part in the so-called "Spiritual Exercises" with Cardinals and other high-ranking members of the Roman Curia - the administrative apparatus of the Holy See.

The Vatican treasurer and Australia’s most senior Catholic figure Cardinal George Pell has been charged with sex offences in Australia.
The charges relate to alleged “historical” incidents, police in the state of Victoria said.
The allegations were made by more than one person, said Police Deputy Commissioner Shane Patton.

Weeks ahead of the eagerly-expected arrival of Pope Francis in Sarajevo, Bosnia's Roman Catholic Primate, Cardinal Archbishop Vinko Puljic, has revealed the first official organizational details.

During his visit to the Bosnian capital on June 6, Pope Francis is scheduled to hold an open air mass and meet political leaders.

Pope Francis on Jan. 4 named 20 new cardinals, a majority of them from Africa, Asia and Latin America, increasingly key areas as the Roman Catholic Church's support shifts from its traditional European stronghold.
      

The Vatican's top administrators would have been expecting an exchange of pleasantries at their annual Christmas meeting with Pope Francis on Dec. 22.
   

The liturgical feasts of Saints Pope John XXIII and Pope John Paul II are to be observed on October 11 and October 22, respectively.

L'Osservatore Romano, the daily newspaper of Vatican City State, has published the decree signed by Cardinal Cardinal Antonio Canizares Llovera which makes the feast days official.

Pope Francis on Sunday proclaimed as saints Pope John Paul II and Pope John XXIII in an unprecedented ceremony in St. Peter's Square, Vatican City.

A Mass co-celebrated by Pope Francis and his predecessor Benedict was watched by roughly one million pilgrims at the Vatican, while millions more watched on television around the world.