The Catholic Sun

Starting a family and having children has become a kind of herculean task when instead it should be valued and supported by everyone, Pope Francis said at a meeting in Rome on Italy's severe decline in population growth.

The Catholic Church's charitable mission must share the Gospel message of unity, justice and peace or risk becoming "merely a semblance of goodness," Pope Francis said.

Pope Francis has continued his predecessors' serious commitment to ecumenical dialogue, but he also makes ecumenical gestures that underline that seriousness.

Eliminating the root causes of forced migration means ensuring everyone has an equal share in the common good, their fundamental rights are respected and their lives can flourish through integral human development, Pope Francis said.

Two popes sat side by side before a crowd of rain-soaked pilgrims in St. Peter's Square May 10.

Punishing and condemning those guilty of abuse is an act of charity, Pope Francis said.

With a new house of formation opening in August, the Diocese of Phoenix is expanding its seminary, allowing men preparing for the priesthood in the diocese to stay within its boundaries for another year. Bishop John P. Dolan hopes the diocese will be able to offer a complete seminary formation program locally in the near future.

Questioned by the confreres of a Hungarian Jesuit kidnapped with another priest and imprisoned during Argentina's murderous military dictatorship, Pope Francis said, "I did what I felt I had to do to defend them. It was a very painful affair."

The Vatican office in charge of coordinating plans for the Holy Year 2025 announced they are launching a new website and releasing an app to help people register and to guide them along their pilgrimage in Rome.

The new projects and developments at the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors represent "a major shift toward a more impact-focused direction," said its president, Cardinal Seán P. O'Malley of Boston.