Job creation must become a key component of any United Nations plan to lift people out of poverty around the world, the Vatican’s observer to the United Nations told the International Labor Conference.

Pope Francis told members of the ordinary council of the Synod of Bishops that he was preparing to publish an encyclical on faith written “with four hands” — his own and those of Pope Benedict XVI.

A meeting with Pope Francis designed as reflection on the last Synod of Bishops turned into a group reflection on strengthening the synod itself and the way the world’s bishops assist the pope.

Although the Second Vatican Council called on the Catholic Church to mirror the life of the Trinity, the church is still far from being converted to that vision, a leading Australian theologian said June 8.

The Catholic Church, through its pastoral work and the promotion of justice, can help bring stability and peace in violence-torn Congo, said a cardinal who once helped guide the country from dictatorship to democracy.

An Argentine rabbi who is a close friend of Pope Francis said he thinks the pope is “wonderful” as leader of the universal church and is also “a spiritual success.”

The Zambian bishops’ conference added its voice to a growing civil movement in calling for a new constitution to promote development as a step toward improved social services and bettering the lives of the country’s impoverished residents.

Many of the hundreds of millions of child laborers around the world work under conditions of “real slavery,” Pope Francis said.

Christians have “far to go” if they seek to be known primarily for their love of God and neighbor, Pope Francis said.

Look for strong turnout, robust media interest and unscripted moments when Jorge Mario Bergoglio makes his first trip abroad as Pope Francis when he arrives in Brazil in late July, according to a Brazilian writer and academic.