Alvarez was born in either Lisbon, Portugal, or Cordova, Spain. He entered the Dominican convent at Cordova in 1368. He became known for his preaching prowess in Spain and Italy, was confessor and adviser of Queen Catherine, John of Gaunt's daughter, and tutor of King John II in his youth. He reformed the court, and then left the court to found a monastery near Cordova. There the Escalaceli (ladder of heaven) that he built became a center of religious devotion. He successfully led the ...

The Prefecture of the Papal Household announces Pope Leo’s pastoral day visits in Italy this year, including Pompeii, Naples, Acerra, Pavia, Assisi, Rimini, and Lampedusa.

Read all

 

Pope Leo XIV invites priests of Diocese of Rome to rekindle their gift of the faith, proclaim the Gospel, be close to families and young people, and support one another in priestly fraternity, especially young priests who may feel overwhelmed.

Read all

 

Amaya Valcárcel, International Advocacy Advisor at Jesuit Refugee Service, speaks to Vatican News about the Spanish government’s recent decision to grant legal residency to hundreds of thousands of undocumented immigrants.

Read all

 

Meeting with the General Chapter of the Legionaries of Christ, Pope Leo XIV says the role of authority in religious life is to focus the community on Christ, not as a means to dominate members.

Read all

 

Our Editorial Director reflects on Pope Leo XIV’s homily at Mass on Ash Wednesday and our personal and collective responsibility in a world “that is in flames.”

Read all

 

Recently, the Holy Father met with Noel Díaz, founder of El Sembrador Nueva Evangelización (ESNE). Based in California, this Catholic ministry runs a television network that broadcasts throughout Latin America and Spain, as well as a large network of radio stations across the United States and Mexico.

Read all

 

Cardinal Blase Cupich, Archbishop of Chicago, presides over an outdoor Ash Wednesday Mass and procession, recalling immigrants in particular and saying the sign of the cross marked by the ashes they receive is "a seal that says you belong to Jesus Christ" and "a reminder that you are citizens of a homeland that has no borders."

Read all

 

As Lent begins, Pope Leo says that ashes remind us of “the weight of a world that is ablaze, of entire cities destroyed by war.”

Read all

 

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- During Lent, people of faith come together to recognize their sins, which are not external evils to be solved by pointing fingers, but are evils residing inside one's heart requiring conversion, Pope Leo XIV said.

"We need to respond by courageously accepting responsibility" for one's own sins, he said in his homily during Mass on Ash Wednesday, Feb. 18.

This approach is countercultural, he said, and yet "it constitutes an authentic, honest and attractive option, especially in our times, when it is so easy to feel powerless in the face of a world that is in flames."

He said sacred Scripture teaches that opposing idolatry with "worship of the living God means daring to be free, and rediscovering freedom through an exodus, a journey, where we are no longer paralyzed, rigid or complacent in our positions, but gathered together to move and change."

The pope marked the beginning of Lent with the traditional Lenten procession on Rome's Aventine Hill.

The liturgy began with a brief prayer at the Church of St. Anselm, which is part of a Benedictine monastery. Chanting the litany of saints, cardinals, joined by Benedictine and Dominican religious, then processed to the Basilica of Santa Sabina -- considered the mother church of the Dominican order -- for Mass.

In his homily, Pope Leo said many young people are open to what Ash Wednesday offers: the possibility of repentance.

The pope asked Catholics to "embrace the missionary significance of Lent" by introducing this season "to the many restless people of goodwill who are seeking authentic ways to renew their lives, within the context of the Kingdom of God and his justice."

Lent is about conversion -- a change of direction -- that makes "our proclamation more credible," he said.

It marked the first time since 2020 that a pope has walked the procession, which had been interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but then Pope Francis' bad knee and ill health prevented him from walking the short journey in subsequent years. Pope Francis marked his last Ash Wednesday March 5, 2025, from Rome's Gemelli hospital.

Pope Leo's complete homily can be found in English and in Spanish.