Vatican

From the Vatican, to the village church, to mosques and temples, shuttered places of worship are streaming religious services for a global audience during the pandemic

Pope Francis has left the Vatican to make a surprise visit to two churches

Pope Francis live-streamed his private daily mass on Thursday and asked everyone to pray for those affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

 The Vatican closes St. Peter’s Square and Basilica to tourists due to the new coronavirus.

Pope Francis has stopped short of allowing the ordination of married men as priests in the Amazon, where there are severe shortages of clergy, calling instead for ordained ministers to come to the region and work alongside lay preachers.

The Palazzo Migliori, named after the family who donated it to the Roman Catholic Church, had served as the headquarters for an order of religious women, who vacated it last year. But the Calasanziane order that occupied the building for 70 years and used it to help and care for young single mothers has since relocated to another location. One…

The administrator of the elite Catholic school in Cancun, Mexico, used to take the girls out of class and send them to the chapel, where the priest from the Legion of Christ religious order would sexually abuse them.

The Vatican cardinal who co-authored a bombshell book with Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI reaffirming priestly celibacy on Tuesday strongly denied he manipulated the retired pope into publishing.

The Vatican office responsible for processing clergy sex abuse complaints has seen a record 1,000 cases reported from around the world this year, including from countries it had not heard from before — suggesting that the worst may be yet to come in a crisis that has plagued the Roman Catholic Church....

Nearly two decades after the Vatican assumed responsibility for...

Pope Francis abolished the use of the Vatican’s highest level of secrecy in clergy sexual abuse cases Tuesday, responding to mounting criticism that the rule of “pontifical secrecy” has been used to protect pedophiles, silence victims and prevent police from investigating crimes.

The bishop of the Roman Catholic diocese of Buffalo has resigned following widespread criticism over how he handled allegations of clergy sexual misconduct. Pope Francis has accepted Bishop Richard Malone’s resignation and named the bishop of Albany, New York, to run the Buffalo diocese temporarily until a permanent replacement is found.

The mystery of the 1983 disappearance of the 15-year-old daughter of a Vatican employee took yet another twist Saturday following excavations this week at a Vatican City cemetery: The Vatican said it had discovered two sets of bones under a stone manhole that will be formally opened next week. The Vatican on Thursday had pried open the tombs of two...

Pope Francis said Saturday that abortion can never be condoned, even when the fetus is gravely sick or likely to die, and urged doctors and priests to support families to carry such pregnancies to term. Speaking to a Vatican-sponsored anti-abortion conference, Francis said the opposition to abortion isn’t a religious issue but a human one. “Is it licit to throw...

Declaring that the church “isn’t afraid of history,” Pope Francis said Monday he has decided to open up the Vatican archives on World War II-era Pope Pius XII, who has been criticized by Jews of staying silent on the Holocaust and not doing enough to save lives. Describing that criticism as fruit of “some prejudice or exaggeration,” Francis told officials...

Catholic religious orders from around the world apologized Tuesday for having failed to respond when their priests raped children, acknowledging that their family-like communities blinded them to sexual abuse and led to misplaced loyalties, denial and cover-ups. The two umbrella organizations representing the world’s religious orders issued a joint statement ahead of Pope Francis’ sex abuse prevention summit, which opens...

Behind the faces of San Diegans you see on your way to work, in the grocery store or at the beach are inspiring stories of faith, determination, selflessness and hope. NBC 7’s Monica Dean has been highlighting stories just like these all year for her Inspiring San Diego series. Here are some of her favorites.

2018 saw a lot of inspiring stories. NBC 7’s Monica Dean wraps up the year with a look back at Inspiring San Diego.

Chamber Bravura has performed at the Vatican and Carnage Hall multiple times. They’ve won competitions and have been featured performers around the globe. Even more inspiring, though, is how the love for music has kept the group together.

Katherine Girvin is going above and beyond to volunteer her time directing an a capella children’s choir that is gaining international attention. NBC 7’s anchor Monica Dean on how Girvin is Inspiring San Diego.