Praedicate Evangelium, meaning Preach the Gospel, has recently been promulgated by Pope Francis, Saturday 19 March. Merging some congregations and pontifical councils and raising the status of others – particularly the charitable office of the papal almoner – Pope Francis said he hoped the constitution would ensure that the offices of the Vatican fulfill their mission in helping promote the church as a community of missionary disciples, sharing the Gospel and caring for all those in need.

Praying before a statue of Mary that was loaned by the Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima at San Vittoriano on the outskirts of Rome, Pope Francis pleaded with Mary to “accept this act that we carry out with confidence and love. Grant that war may end, and peace spread throughout the world.”

In the text of the Holy Father’s prayer sent to chanceries around the globe so that bishops can join Pope Francis on Friday March 25, a key passage for many observers reads: “Mother of God and our mother, to your Immaculate Heart we solemnly entrust and consecrate ourselves, the church and all humanity, especially Russia and Ukraine.”

Pope Francis has confirmed he will consecrate Russia and Ukraine to the Immaculate Heart of Mary during a penitential prayer service in St Peter’s Basilica on 25 March, the Vatican said. By Catholic News Service.

True happiness and true freedom, he said, “are not found in possessing, but in sharing; not in taking advantage of others, but in loving them; not in the obsession of power, but in the joy of service,” said Pope Francis on 6 March, during his Sunday Angelus address. By Junno Arocho Esteves.

As Bishop Shane Mackinlay explains in the video above, when Pope Francis decided to hold what is now known as the Synod on Synodality, the Church in Australia found itself with some groundwork having already been laid in preparing for the Plenary Council.

In his 2022 Lenten Message, Pope Francis has said Christians are called to sow goodness their entire lives, but even more so during Lent.

Christians must resist “concupiscence,” the tendency to sin, which is a weakness that leads to “selfishness and all evil and finds in the course of history, a variety of ways to lure men and women into sin,” he wrote.

Pope Francis greets asylum-seekers transferred from Cyprus to Italy with his help, during a meeting at the Vatican on 17 December 2021. The migrants are being assisted by the Vatican and the Community of Sant'Egidio. Photo: CNS/Vatican Media. By Junno Arocho Esteves, Catholic News Service Pope Francis' message for the World Day of Migrants and Refugees 2022 will reflect on the importanc...

With the words “pilgrims” and “hope” representing key themes of Pope Francis’ pontificate, he has last month approved “Pilgrims of Hope” as the motto for the Holy Year 2025.
The motto aims to give a concise sense of the full meaning of the jubilee journey.

The Catholic Church worldwide is showing good progress and “much joy” after the opening of the synodal process, but there also have been some “uncertainties” and challenges, said the ordinary council of the Synod of Bishops. By Carol Glatz Catholic News Service.