Vatican

Jesus gets a makeover as Sistine Chapel artwork undergoes restoration

The Vatican announced that Michelangelo’s Last Judgment will undergo its first restoration in 30 years, while the Sistine Chapel remains open to visitors.

|ByREUTERS
Pope Leo XIV holds a baptism for Vatican City employees in the Sistine Chapel, January 11, 2026; illustrative.
Pope Leo XIV celebrates Christmas Holy Mass in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, December 25, 2025.

Pope Leo decries use of military force in fiery 'state of the world' speech

Leo, the first US pope, said the weakness of international organizations in the face of global conflicts was "a particular cause for concern."

|ByREUTERS
Pope Leo XIV addresses the crowd during a meeting with bishpops, priests consacrated persons and personal workers at the shrine of Our Lady of Lebanon in Harissa, northeast of the capital Beirut, on December 1, 2025.

'A just and lasting peace': Pope Leo calls for dialogue after meeting Ukraine's Zelensky

The pope's comments echo Zelensky's frequent demands for a "just" peace as the Ukrainian leader tries to ensure that any agreement to end Russia's war in Ukraine is balanced.

|ByREUTERS
Pope Leo XIV holds a Jubilee audience on the occasion of the Jubilee of Sport, at St. Peter's Basilica, at the Vatican June 14, 2025.

Pope Leo scraps Francis’s Vatican fundraising panel amid budget shift

Pope Leo has dissolved the Vatican's fundraising panel, created in Francis’s final months, and ordered a review of future efforts.

|ByREUTERS

Pope appalled, purification completed after man pees on St. Peter's Basilica's high altar

The unidentified man was arrested by two officials and was filmed exposing his behind while bending to pull up his trousers.

OCTOBER 22, 2025ByJERUSALEM POST STAFF
A view of the statue of Saint Peter and St. Peter's Basilica on the day of a weekly general audience, at the Vatican, September 24, 2025.

For the first time in 800 years, Saint Francis of Assisi’s remains to be presented

Free veneration slots require online reservation, as organizers prepare for a record influx of pilgrims.

OCTOBER 13, 2025ByJERUSALEM POST STAFF
The Basilica of St. Francis in Assisi, Umbria, Italy.

Pope Leo to visit Turkey, Lebanon in November in first trip abroad

Leo had been expected for months to travel to Turkey for his first trip abroad, but the additional visit to Lebanon only emerged in discussions in recent weeks.

OCTOBER 7, 2025ByREUTERS
Pope Leo XIV holds a general audience in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, September 17, 2025.

Top Vatican cardinal says Israel carrying out massacre in Gaza

Cardinal Pietro Parolin also called the October 7 attacks "inhuman and indefensible" and urged Hamas to free remaining hostages.

OCTOBER 6, 2025ByREUTERS
The Vatican's Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin looks on at the end of the Rosary for Pope Francis at the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major (Santa Maria Maggiore), following the death of the pontiff, in Rome, Italy, April 22, 2025.

Pope decries 'unacceptable' plight of Palestinians in Gaza, urges truce

"I express my deep closeness to the Palestinian people in Gaza," Pope Leo said.

SEPTEMBER 17, 2025ByREUTERS
Pope Leo XIV holds a general audience in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, September 17, 2025.

Pope Leo's meeting with Herzog reveals Vatican's new diplomatic style

Leo, who became the first US pontiff when he was elected in May, takes an approach that is more muted than his predecessor Pope Francis.

SEPTEMBER 8, 2025ByREUTERS
Pope Leo XIV looks on, on the day of the weekly general audience in the Paul VI Hall at the Vatican August 27, 2025

Italian teen made first millennial Catholic saint at youthful Vatican event

Carlo Acutis, a British-born Italian boy who died aged 15, learned computer code to build websites to spread his faith.

SEPTEMBER 7, 2025ByREUTERS
Pope Leo XIV leads a Holy Mass for the canonisation of Carlo Acutis, a British-born Italian boy who will become the first millennial to be made a Catholic saint, and Pier Giorgio Frassati, in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, September 7, 2025.

Italian teen to become first millennial Catholic saint on Sunday

Carlo Acutis, who died aged 15, learned computer code to build websites to spread his faith. His story has drawn wide attention from Catholic youth.

SEPTEMBER 4, 2025ByREUTERS
People walk past a tapestry hanging from the facade of St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican depicting an image of Carlo Acutis, a British-born Italian boy who will become the first millennial to be made a Catholic saint in a ceremony led by Pope Leo, as seen from Rome, Italy, September 4, 2025.

President Herzog presses Pope Leo XIV to help free Hamas hostages

“Tomorrow marks the 700th day since our brothers and sisters were kidnapped, 48 of whom are still in Gaza,” Herzog told the pontiff. “We must do everything to return them as quickly as possible.”

SEPTEMBER 4, 2025ByPESACH BENSON/TPS
President Isaac Herzog meets with Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican, September 4, 2025.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog to Meet Pope Leo XIV

President Isaac Herzog will visit the Vatican on Thursday to meet Pope Leo XIV and Cardinal Pietro Parolin, focusing on hostages, antisemitism, and protecting Christians in the Middle East.

SEPTEMBER 2, 2025ByTPS, REUTERS
Pope Leo XIV addresses the crowd for the Angelus prayer in Piazza della Liberta (Liberty Square) in front of Palazzo Apostolico (Apostolic Palace) in the summer papal estate in Castel Gandolfo, near Rome, Italy, July 13, 2025.