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Pope Francis

Pope Francis takes selfies with volunteers after closing Mass for WYD2023 in Lisbon, Aug 6, 2023. | Photo credit: Vatican Media

After Closing Mass, Pope Ends World Youth Day Trip by Meeting Volunteers to Say Thanks

Aug 7, 2023

Pope Francis wrapped up his World Youth Day visit with one word, rendered in Portuguese as “obrigado,” thank you — literally, “I am obliged.”

Pope Francis waves at the crowd of 1.5 million people who attended the closing Mass of World Youth Day 2023 in Lisbon, Portugal on Aug. 6, 2023. | Vatican Media.

"Be not afraid," Pope Francis Tells Young People at End of World Youth Day

Aug 6, 2023

“Be not afraid,” Pope Francis told young Catholics Sunday at the closing Mass of World Youth Day 2023 in Lisbon, Portugal, echoing the well-known call of his predecessor and the founder of the international youth gathering, St. Pope John Paul II.

Pope Francis waves to World Youth Day pilgrims in Lisbon, Portugal, at the start of a vigil service on Aug. 5, 2023. | Vatican Media

At World Youth Day Vigil, Pope Francis Urges Catholics to be "roots of joy"

Aug 5, 2023

Pope Francis on Saturday urged attendees at World Youth Day to make themselves “roots of joy” in the lives of others, calling on the huge young crowd to draw on the “love of Jesus” to “walk in hope” as they journey through life. 

Pope Francis prays the rosary in Fatima, Portugal with young people with disabilities on Aug. 5, 2023. | Daniel Ibanez/CNA

Pope Francis Prays the Rosary in Fátima with Young People with Disabilities

Aug 5, 2023

Pope Francis visited Fátima, Portugal, on Saturday morning, where he prayed the rosary with young people with disabilities.

Pope Francis speaks to young people during the World Youth Day welcoming ceremony in Lisbon, Portugal, Aug. 3, 2023. Credit: Daniel Ibañez/CNA

“Honored”: Kenyan Nun after Faith Influencers Handed Olive Tree From Pope Francis

Aug 4, 2023

Sr. Leunida Katunge is all smiles as she poses with a young potted plant. It is an olive plant that she, alongside other officials, received from Pope Francis on behalf of the Catholic Faith Influencers who are meeting on the sidelines of the 2023 World Youth Day (WYD) celebrations in Lisbon, Portugal.

Pope Francis meets with charity workers at the Centro Paroquial de Serafina in Lisbon on Aug. 4, 2023. | Daniel Ibanez/CNA

Pope Francis: Without Concrete Love, Our Lives Have "no weight"

Aug 4, 2023

At a gathering with Portuguese charity workers Friday morning, Pope Francis went off script to insist that Christian love must be tangibly lived out in the world and not remain a figment of people’s fantasies.

Young people participate in Stations of the Cross at World Youth Day in Eduardo VII Park in Lisbon, Portugal, Aug. 4, 2023. | Credit: Vatican Media

Pope Francis at WYD Stations of the Cross: "Jesus wipes away our hidden tears"

Aug 4, 2023

Pope Francis told the estimated 800,000 young people praying the Stations of the Cross together at World Youth Day in Portugal on Friday evening that Jesus can open the windows of the soul and wipe away all “hidden tears.”

Pope Francis hears the confession of a young pilgrim at World Youth Day in Lisbon, Portugal, Aug. 4, 2023. | Credit: Vatican Media

Pope Francis Hears Young People’s Confessions in Lisbon

Aug 4, 2023

As part of the Word Youth Day celebrations this week in Lisbon, Portugal, Pope Francis this morning heard the confessions of three young people in the Jardim Vasco da Gama, renamed Reconciliation Park or “Forgiveness Park” for World Youth Day.

Prior to a private meeting with survivors later in the day, Pope Francis addressed the clergy sex abuse scandal in his address during a vespers service in Lisbon, Portugal, on Aug. 2, 2023. | Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

Pope Meets with Clerical Abuse Survivors, Urges Church to Hear Victims’ "anguished cry"

Aug 3, 2023

Pope Francis met with 13 survivors of clerical sex abuse on his first day in Portugal and urged the Church to listen to “the anguished cry of the victims.”

Pope Francis makes his way past crowds of thousands on his way to the World Youth Day welcoming ceremony in Lisbon, Portugal, Aug. 3, 2023. | Credit: Pablo Pilco/EWTN News

Pope Francis’ First World Youth Day Speech: "God’s heart beats uniquely for you"

Aug 3, 2023

At Pope Francis’ first official World Youth Day event in Portugal, he told the 500,000 young people in the crowd that their presence was no accident and that God has called each one by name.

Pope Francis and José María Del Corral, president of the Scholas Occurrentes youth movement, smile during a meeting with the group's volunteers in Cascais, Portugal, on Aug. 3, 2023. | Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

"Attend to the planet and poor," Pope Francis Urges College Students

Aug 3, 2023

In his first encounters with young people ahead of his arrival at World Youth Day later in the day, Pope Francis on Thursday urged his audiences to use their knowledge and skills to care for the planet and the poor.  

Pope Francis gives the homily at vespers at the Jerónimos Monastery in Lisbon, Portugal, Aug. 2, 2023. | Credit: Vatican Media

Pope Francis makes Urgent Call to Recover Eucharistic Adoration in the Church

Aug 2, 2023

From Lisbon, Portugal, Pope Francis on Wednesday reflected on the urgency of taking up again “the prayer of adoration” before the tabernacle to recover “the taste and passion for evangelization” in a message addressed to bishops, priests, deacons, consecrated women religious, and seminarians.

Pope Francis meets with Portugal President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa at the Belém Cultural Center in Lisbon upon his arrival for World Youth Day on Aug. 2, 2023. | Credit: Daniel Ibañez/CNA

World Youth Day 2023: Pope Francis Arrives in Lisbon, "a city of encounter"

Aug 2, 2023

Arriving in Lisbon for World Youth Day, Pope Francis on Wednesday called on Portugal’s leaders to promote peace, families, and environmental stewardship, policies he said would help light “lamps of hope” across Europe.

Bishop Dominique Bulamatari. Credit: Diocèse de Budjala

Pope Francis Accepts Resignation of 68-Year-Old Bishop in DR Congo

Aug 1, 2023

Pope Francis has accepted the resignation of Bishop Dominique Bulamatari who has been at the helm of Molegbe Diocese in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

Pope Francis addresses the crowd in St. Peter’s Square in his Sunday Angelus on July 16, 2023. | Credit: Vatican Media

This is Pope Francis’ Prayer Intention for August 2023

Aug 1, 2023

Pope Francis’ prayer intention for the month of August is for World Youth Day (WYD).

Outdoor Mass with the WYD Lisbon 2023 volunteers as they prepare for World Youth Day to begin Aug 2. | Photo courtesy of Patricia Neves

8 Unique Things to Know about World Youth Day 2023 in Lisbon

Jul 30, 2023

After four years of waiting — one year longer than expected due to the pandemic — and fears that the pope’s health issues would force another postponement, World Youth Day (WYD) 2023 in Lisbon, Portugal, will finally take place in a few days, from Aug. 1–6, and it promises to be unique in many ways.

Pope Francis offers Mass in Bari, Italy on Feb. 23, 2020. | Daniel Ibanez/CNA.

Vatican Announces Schedule of Pope Francis' Trip to France in September

Jul 29, 2023

Less than three weeks after he returns from Mongolia in early September, Pope Francis will travel internationally again with a day trip to Marseille, France, Sept. 22–23. It will be his third trip over a six-week period, as he will be in Lisbon, Portugal, Aug. 2–6 for World Youth Day.

Pope Francis and Vietnam President Vo Van Thuong at the Vatican Apostolic Palace, 27 July 2023 | Vatican Media / ACI Group

Holy See and Vietnam Progress Towards Diplomatic Relations

Jul 28, 2023

In a significant move towards establishing full diplomatic relations, the Holy See and Vietnam have agreed to work towards the establishment of a Resident Papal Representative in Hanoi.

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Rome Announces Major Construction Project in Preparation for 2025 Jubilee Year

Jul 28, 2023

In anticipation of the Catholic Church’s 2025 Jubilee Year, the city of Rome presented a major infrastructure project Friday that will create a pedestrian pathway from St. Peter’s Square to Castel Sant’Angelo.

The official logo of World Youth Day Lisbon. Photo courtesy Beatriz Roque Antunez.

Here Are Answers to Your Questions about World Youth Day 2023

Jul 28, 2023

As World Youth Day (WYD) approaches and pilgrims from all over the world pack their bags and prepare to embark on their journey, we compiled a list of answers to all your questions about WYD.