Cindy Wooden

Pope Leo XIV’s first World Peace Day message will expand on the prayer he expressed the night of his election when addressing the crowds gathered in St. Peter’s Square.

Marking Ukraine's Independence Day, Pope Leo XIV pledged his prayers for the Ukrainian people in a message to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and encouraged Catholics to respond to Ukrainian religious leaders' request for prayers for peace Aug. 24.

A plan for Pope Leo XIV to visit Lebanon as well as Turkey in late November and early December is being studied, a Vatican official said.

Pope Leo XIV asked Catholics to observe this Friday, Aug. 22, as a day of prayer and fasting for peace and justice, particularly in Ukraine and in the Holy Land.

Spending the day with the poor, Pope Leo XIV prayed that Catholics would make sure their parishes are welcoming of all people and would be "on fire" with God's love.

Aug. 16 marks the 100th day since Pope Leo XIV stepped out onto the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica May 8 as the new Pope.

As the Israeli-Hamas conflict continues, three more children arrived in Italy on a military transport plane late Aug. 13 for treatment at the Vatican-owned Bambino Gesù pediatric hospital.

As U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin prepared to meet in Alaska Aug. 15, Pope Leo XIV prayed that world leaders would recognize the impact their actions have on the local population.

Pope Leo XIV, like Pope Francis before him, consistently has called on Hamas to release the hostages it kidnapped in Israel almost two years ago and has pleaded with Israel to allow the delivery of more humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza.

The scars still borne by survivors of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and still visible on the cities' streets and buildings are a plea to pursue peace and disarmament, Pope Leo XIV said.