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‘Welcome!’ Pope Leo arrives in Castel Gandolfo

Pope Francis arrives at Castel Gandolfo, where he will spend a period of rest, at around 5 p.m. A large group of faithful, including a group of nuns, waited hours for his arrival.

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Israel to send delegation to Qatar for Gaza ceasefire talks

Israel will send a delegation to Qatar for proximity talks with Hamas on the latest proposal for a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal.

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Concerns mount over the use of chemical weapons in Ukraine

Western intelligence raises grave concerns over Moscow's military conduct, calling for restraint and investigation.

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Colombia: Suspect held in attack on presidential candidate

Authorities in Colombia confirm that they have arrested a person they claim is the main conspirator in the assassination attempt on a Presidential Candidate, who remains in critical condition in hospital after being shot twice in the head at a political rally.

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St. Maria Goretti: Saint of the Day for Sunday, July 06, 2025

Born on October 16 1890 in Corinaldo, in the Ancona Province in Italy, her farmworker father moved his family to Ferrier di Conca, near Anzio. When he died of malaria, Maria's mother had to struggle to feed her children. Maria's mother, brothers, and sisters worked in the fields while she cooked, sewed, kept the house clean, and watched her youngest sister Teresa. Though the family's circumstances were extremely difficult, they were very close and loved God. On July 5, 1902, Maria was sitting ...

Pope Leo: We are praying for victims of Texas floods

Following the Angelus on Sunday, Pope Leo expresses “sincere condolences” to all those who lost loved ones in devastating flash floods in Texas.

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Pope Leo receives two electric vehicles for his future Apostolic Journeys

Pope Leo XIV receives two custom-built electric vehicles designed for easy air transport and sustainable mobility for his Apostolic Journeys

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Pope at Angelus: Be a labourer in the field of mission

During his Sunday Angelus, Pope Leo reflects on the universal call to mission, urging Christians to move beyond occasional faith and become committed witnesses in daily life.

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Pope thanks L'Osservatore di Strada: You make the voices of the voiceless heard

On the third anniversary of L’Osservatore Romano’s monthly magazine “L'Osservatore di Strada”, Leo XIV sends a message of gratitude for the work done by the publication, where “the least among us become protagonists”.

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The Chosen's 'endgame' is to point people to Jesus, series' creator says

    
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Just as "The Chosen" wrapped up the release of Season 5 in the U.S., the hit series about Jesus and those who knew him was set to stream internationally in select countries, including Italy, starting in July.

The Vatican hosted a news conference and a premiere of one of the new season's episodes in its film theater June 23 before select cast and crew members hit the red carpet at a Rome theater for a special screening of the episode, "The Last Supper," with members of the public, including numerous seminarians, priests and nuns living in the Italian capital.

The goal of the series is "for people to get a deeper connection to Christ and to have a more intimate relationship with him," Jonathan Roumie, who portrays Christ in the series, told Catholic News Service at the red-carpet event.

"I think that is the goal for all of us, for people to go directly to the source and to understand what it is that Jesus actually said, what he meant, what his example was, and how we can incorporate that into our own lives and be better people to each other and better servants of the Lord," said Roumie.

Members of the cast and crew of the series, "The Chosen," attend a special screening of an episode from Season 5 at the Vatican's film theater.
Members of the cast and crew of the series, "The Chosen," attend a special screening of an episode from Season 5 at the Vatican's film theater June 23, 2025. While Season 5 already streamed in the U.S., it was being released in select countries worldwide in July. (CNS photo/courtesy TheChosen.tv)

Elizabeth Tabish, who portrays Mary Magdalene in the series, told CNS that the historical drama resonates with its audience because "we start this entire series with all of these saints before they're saints. And they're really messy. They have their own vices and challenges."

"When we meet Mary Magdalene, she is struggling with demon possession and oppression and PTSD from an assault and suicidal thoughts and an addiction. This is meeting someone in their own personal hell," she said, but "it's been so beautiful to witness her story of redemption."

Mary Magdalene's faith journey is depicted as a "continued story of constant redemption and of constant growth, where she is learning to stop thinking about her past and really let go of her past and her shame and her anxieties," to focus on Jesus and "to see how that transforms her," Tabish said.

In Season 5, her character is "so focused on trying to help Jesus and protect him, and it's just such a beautiful place to see her in," she said. "She becomes quite gutsy and outspoken and determined, and I love that, to see a female character go from a real victim to someone so empowered."

Actor Jonathan Roumie, who portrays Jesus in the series "The Chosen," is pictured at a red-carpet screening at a Rome movie theater.
Actor Jonathan Roumie, who portrays Jesus in the series "The Chosen," is pictured at a red-carpet screening at a Rome movie theater June 23, 2025. While Season 5 already streamed in the U.S., it was being released in select countries worldwide in July. (CNS photo/courtesy TheChosen.tv)

"The Chosen" debuted at the end of 2017 as an online series, which has since expanded to theatrical releases, grossing nearly $140 million globally at the box office.

With more than 900 million episode views and a global audience exceeding 280 million, the series' creator and director, Dallas Jenkins, said its "secret sauce" is portraying Jesus and those who knew him in a way that is less formal or stiff.

When meeting fans, he said at the news conference, they typically say that what they love about the series is "it just feels so real. It feels so human."

"Those human moments do not detract from the divinity (of Christ) and do not detract from the spirituality" of the events and teachings they depict, he said.

"In many ways, they make them even more beautiful that the God of the universe came to Earth, Emmanuel, God with us, and laughed with his friends at a wedding," he said. Seeing the young mother, Mary, wash her child's hair or tend to him are "the moments that people have responded to so significantly."

Dallas Jenkins, creator and director of "The Chosen," speaks at a news conference at the Vatican June 23, 2025.
Dallas Jenkins, creator and director of "The Chosen," speaks at a news conference at the Vatican June 23, 2025. To the left of Jenkins is Dominican Father Patrick Briscoe, editor of Our Sunday Visitor, who moderated the press conference. Actor Jonathan Roumie, who portrays Jesus, sits to the right. While Season 5 already streamed in the U.S., it was being released in select countries worldwide in July. (CNS photo/courtesy TheChosen.tv)

Many of the theological disagreements about Mary and Jesus, said Jenkins, who is an evangelical Christian, "took place after he was here. They take place after the Gospels."

"I think that by focusing on the humanity of these people while not ignoring the divinity and not ignoring the supernatural, but focusing on the humanity -- that has seemed to be what has connected people of multiple faiths, that we can all appreciate that and identify with it and then be drawn closer to Jesus because of that," he said.

Dominican Father Patrick Briscoe, editor of Our Sunday Visitor, who moderated the press conference, told CNS the series is a "great gift" for Catholics because it offers an opportunity for engagement and genuine conversation.

"As a priest in ministry, what's been so beautiful is that people have come to me with questions, very specific questions about Scripture that maybe they would have never had before because they've realized that a decision was made in the way that a scene was portrayed in the show and they wanted clarity about it," he said.

"It's actually raised important questions about how to interpret the Scriptures, about the meaning of particular biblical scenes, and those conversations wouldn't have happened otherwise. So I found it a great source of engagement and light," he said.

According to the series' producers, about 30% of viewers belong to no faith tradition at all.

Jenkins said the "endgame" of the show is not popularity or profit, but "to remind people that these events were real" and that biblical figures are more than literary characters or subjects depicted in art.

"The show is to point you towards the real person of Jesus and to point people towards people like yourself. To get disciples and to worship and to pray," he said.

Rome’s red carpet welcome for "The Chosen"

Rome’s red carpet welcome for "The Chosen"

Catholic News Service interviewed several cast members and the series' creator while they were in Rome June 23.