A statement from Archbishop Mark O'Toole, of the Archdiocese of Cardiff-Menevia, on Pope Leo's appointment of Bishop Nicholas Hudson as the new Bishop of Plymouth. @dioceseofplymouth.bsky.social @austeni.bsky.social

"What happened at the 2025 conclave, and what can it tell us about the path the Catholic Church is now on?" @austeni.bsky.social reviews two 'insta-books' offering two very different views of the new pope: www.commonwealmagazine.org/brunson-chri...

Asked what US can do to prepare for Leo’s pontificate, Tobin cites Bergoglio’s talk before becoming Pope about “letting Jesus go out and not to keep him locked in a self-referential church…Pope Leo sees the world differently than most people in the US” because he knows what it means to ‘go out.’”

Good morning from the terrace of the Maria Bambina overlooking the square. I’ll be live on ⁦‪BBC News channel after Mass begins at 10am (UK 9am) to discuss with ⁦‪Maryam Mashiri‬⁩ what to expect as #conclave2025 kicks off here in Rome.

The battle for the Catholic Church’s future will not be over doctrine-The future of the Church lies now, as in the early centuries, in its witness from below, in its capacity… www.ft.com/content/57dc... @austeni.bsky.social @financialtimes.com

Super article by @austeni.bsky.social on whether the conclave will look towards a path of authority or humility (potestas aut humilitas) next week.

The simple letter summoning cardinals to Rome to meet each day in the “general congregations” beginning this morning. Over-80s free to attend or not. In the absence of a pope, this is the temporary governing authority of the worldwide Church.

Para celebrar a edição portuguesa do meu *Em Primeiro Lugar Pertencer a Deus* darei uma palestra no dia 10 de abril em Lisboa sobre O LEGADO DO PAPA FRANCISCO E O FUTURO DA IGREJA. Vemo-nos lá! Detalhes e para reservar seu lugar: pontosj.pt/participar/a...

#Ukraine President Zelenskyy Sends Vatican List of POWs in Russia and Speaks by Phone with Cardinal Parolin Wishing #Pope Francis Recovery www.catholicnewsworld.com/2025/03/ukra...

Beautiful reflection on today’s readings by Dom Henry Wansbrough OSB via Universalis app.

Big English Benedictine news announced by Abbot of Belmont Abbey in Herefordshire: the monastic community of St Gregory’s (formerly Downside Abbey) is moving to Belmont. Abbot Brendan Thomas says: “Whilst formally we will remain separate communities, in practice we will live a common life together.”

Delighted to present a new film, "Faith, Ecology and Hope", conceived in response to the murder of Fr. Marcelo Pérez, a Tzotzil indigenous Catholic priest from Mexico (we had been collaborating with him at the time of his killing in in Oct 2024): www.youtube.com/watch?v=W0NG...

Pope update: “condition continues to improve ”: needs less oxygen, suggesting that lung function improving. Condition has moved from "critical" to "complex", but "further days of clinical stability are needed to resolve the prognosis.” Went into the chapel today, and worked.

Medical expert on Pope’s current state: risk of sepsis remains, but “definitely potential” for recovery. Many clinical indications that his condition “might be reversible.” www.ncronline.org/vatican/vati...

This morning, Pope’s people say he rested well “the whole night” which, together with last night’s medical update showing improvement, is further cause for hope that they’re getting on top of the infection. 🕯️

Some good news: a “slight improvement” in the Pope’s critical state. No more asthmatic episodes; renal issue not an issue; oxygen continues to be given through nasal cannula but with “slightly reduced flow”. Too soon to draw conclusions on prognosis. But 👍🏽 has “resumed work”.

Francis’s people say the night passed well, he slept and is now resting. It feels knife-edge today. Experts say he shows first signs of sepsis, but there are positives, and he can still pull through. Prognosis remains uncertain, the situation critical. We keep our candles lit.🕯️🕯️🕯️

Pope health latest: blood tests show slight reduction of inflammation, otherwise condition unchanged. He read newspapers, worked with close collaborators, received Eucharist before lunch. Afternoon: Italian premier Giorgia Meloni popped in for 20 minutes of private conversation.

Many people don't know that Pope Pius XII's final act as pope was to order the US bishops to publish a statement against racism that they had been dithering over for months www.cambridge.org/core/service...

Pope health update shows he now has pneumonia requiring “further drug therapy”. The polymicrobial infection on top of bronchiectasis and asthmatic bronchitis “makes therapeutic treatment more complex”. But he is in good spirits. We pray for him and his medics. 🙏 🕯️

The news from Rome remains worrying, if not (yet) alarming. We pray for Pope Francis, for the treatment to be effective, for the team dedicated to him. We pray for his serenity and comfort, that he experience God’s tender touch. 🙏🏽

It is *very* unusual for a pope to do this. Magisterial in tone and form (numbered paragraphs, quoting papal teachings) and targeted (referring to Trump policies and Vance’s justifications), this letter means to leave *no doubt* about where the Catholic Church stands. www.vatican.va/content/fran...

“Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.” St Paul to the Hebrews.

Donkey dentist day.

I asked ChatGBT how to become synodal and got a good summary back.

DDF prefect Card. Fernández tells Alfa y Omega (Spain) that #Rupnik probe has concluded first, evidence-gathering stage. Now they are creating an ‘independent tribunal’ to prosecute judicial case. Search is on for right people to staff it.

It is fruitful to read today’s Gospel in the light of the Pope’s communications day message yesterday. The signs of the Gospel proclaimed and the signs of a communication that proclaims it …

Pope to communicators: 1. Promote a communication that can heal the wounds of our humanity. 2. Make room for heartfelt trust. Be witnesses and promoters of a non-aggressive communication. 3. Tell stories steeped in hope … and strive to write together the history of our future.

"Christians are not primarily people who ‘talk about’ God, but who resonate with the beauty of his love … Theirs is a lived love that raises a question that calls for an answer: Why do you live like this? Why are you like this?” www.vatican.va/content/fran...

As tech titans line up with Trump, Pope warns of technocratic paradigm, in which “human dignity and fraternity are frequently subordinated in the pursuit of efficiency, as though reality, goodness, and truth inherently emanate from technological and economic power.” press.vatican.va/content/sala...

Some people continue to think of a papal biographer as a kind of courtly position that comes with privileges and rights, so that if I offer a critique of the Pope’s ‘autobiography’ it must be because of some kind of pique, or sense of slight.

Our animals have different ways of coping with cold weather.

Wonderful news. Cardinal McElroy has a brilliant mind, a pastor’s heart, and a prophetic gut. A perfect appointment in the Trump era: the Gospel sine glossa to counteract the perversion of Christian nationalism. www.ncronline.org/vatican/vati...

“the greatest danger in mission is that, amid all the things we say and do, we fail to bring about a joyful encounter with the love of Christ who embraces us and saves us.” Pope Francis, *Dilexit Nos* #208

Pope St Leo the Great is particularly great this morning, on the peace of the Nativity that is the “nurse of love and mother of unity”:

Terrific new documentary on life and thinking of René Girard, the most consequential thinker of our time. Great intro to his key insights. “Things Hidden: The Life and Legacy of René Girard” youtu.be/L-vB1HaBsog?si…

“The Jubilee has now opened so that all people may receive hope, the hope of the Gospel, the hope of love and hope of forgiveness.”

For unto us this day …

#Pope Francis Receives a Happy Birthday Cake and Song from Sick Children at the Vatican! VIDEO www.catholicnewsworld.com/2024/12/pope...

“Why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?”

About as bold and clear proclamation as you’ll ever find, and soaring language too. From the Second Vatican Council’s Dei Verbum:

#PopeFrancis says "Faith cannot remain a private affair. We have to be careful about this, I would say privatization of faith is a heretical development." in Corsica - FULL TEXT + Video www.catholicnewsworld.com/2024/12/pope...

Tomáš Halík opening Cambridge conference on his thought praises Francis’s call for contemplative approach to major issues. Jokes: “Some questions are so good it’s a shame to spoil them with an answer”.

Pope Francis to Theologians: “An all-male theology is an incomplete theology.,,, Ideology is a simplification that kills: it kills reality, it kills thought, it kills community. Ideologies flatten reality to a single, shallow idea, in order to manipulate.” press.vatican.va/content/sala...

Cardinal Radcliffe, easily spotted greeting fellow cardinals because of Dominican habit.

Cardinal Radcliffe …

A long read but fascinating and well-researched insights into saint-making processes.