Pope Francis has said he wants to give women greater leadership roles in the Roman Catholic Church. If he really wants to make good on that vow, writes Rich Barlow, he should reconsider Catholicism’s insistence on an all-male priesthood.

Pope Francis said the people who have been trapped in a parish in Gaza had a decent meal for the first time in a long time, after a ceasefire was established between Israel and Hamas.

Pope Francis expressed the hope that the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas that came into effect on Sunday, Jan. 19, “would be respected immediately by all the parties [involved]” and would lead to “the release of all the hostages” and the rapid provision of urgently needed humanitarian aid to the population of Gaza.

He thanked both Trump and Biden, as well as Qatar and Egypt. The Pope's first words of gratitude were directed towards the key mediators who, in recent weeks, have worked tirelessly to broker

Pope Francis thanked the negotiators of the peace deal between Israel and Hamas in an interview on Sunday, saying, “Peace takes courage.”

Pope Francis called for the respect of the ceasefire declared in the Gaza Strip and for the rapid delivery of humanitarian aid to the population.

Rome's chief Jewish rabbi on Thursday sharply criticised Pope Francis over the pontiff's recent ramping up of criticism against Israel's military campaign in Gaza, in an unusually forceful speech during an annual Catholic-Jewish dialogue event.

JERUSALEM — Pope Francis and Catholic leaders in the Holy Land are praying that the Israel-Hamas ceasefire that began Sunday local time will bring a brighter future for the people of Gaza and the Middle East as a whole.

VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis on Thursday stepped up his recent criticism of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, calling the humanitarian situation in the Palestinian enclave “very serious and ...

C onflicting SIGNALS are reaching the new American administration from Rome. And some carry a whiff of incense. While Italy’s prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, was preparing to fly to Washington to schmooze President Donald Trump and his chums, a leader on the other side of the Tiber was communicating stark disapproval of their plans.

On the day a ceasefire deal between Hamas militants and Israel went into effect, Pope Francis said he hoped all Israeli and Palestinian political leaders would support dialogue, reconciliation, peace and the existence of two states.