Catholic Church

Pope Francis on the first papal visit ever to the French island of Corsica on Sunday called for a dynamic form of laicism, promoting the kind of popular piety that distinguishes the Mediterranean island from secular France as a bridge between religious and civic society. The one-day visit to Corsica’s capital Ajaccio, birthplace of Napoleon, on Sunday is one of...

Researchers and religious leaders have released findings from an intriguing two-month experiment through art in a Catholic chapel in Switzerland. An avatar of “Jesus” on a computer screen — tucked into a confessional — took questions by visitors on faith, morality and modern-day woes, and offered responses based on Scripture.

Pope Francis will make late teen Carlo Acutis the Catholic Church’s first millennial and digital saint next year.

Pope Francis has doubled down on his traditional views on abortion and women during his in-flight press conference coming home from Belgium. He has praised Belgium’s late King Baudouin as a “saint” for having abdicated for a day in 1990 rather than sign legislation legalizing abortion. Francis said: “You need a politician who wears pants to do this.” Francis drew...

When Pope Francis arrives Wednesday in Asia’s financial powerhouse Singapore for the last leg of a four-nation tour, he is expected to bring his message of unity and hope to one of the world’s richest nations.

Pope Francis has arrived in the remote jungles of Papua New Guinea. He landed in Vanimo, on the northwest coast of the country, with a ton of humanitarian aid to deliver to the missionaries and faithful who live there.

Pope Francis has apologized after he was quoted using a vulgar term about gay men to reaffirm the Catholic Church’s ban on gay priests.

The Vatican has declared that gender-affirming surgeries and surrogacy are grave violations of human dignity.

Pope Francis has rallied from respiratory problems to lead some 60,000 people in Easter celebrations and make a strong appeal for a cease-fire in Gaza and a prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine. Francis presided over Easter Sunday Mass in a flower-decked St. Peter’s Square. He then delivered a heartfelt prayer for peace in his annual roundup of global crises,...

NBC Bay Area investigates into a new wave of lawsuits accusing Catholic clergy of sexually abusing children.

NBC Bay Area investigates into a new wave of lawsuits accusing Catholic clergy of sexually abusing children.

Pope Francis delivered his annual Christmas Day speech from the loggia of St. Peter’s Basilica to the throngs of people in the piazza below.

The Vatican announced Monday a change in policy, now formally allowing Roman Catholic priests to bless same-sex couples. Raj Mathai speaks with Mike Daly and Jim Laufenberg, a married couple who are members of the San Francisco Most Holy Redeemer church, about their reactions to the news.

Pope Francis is now formally allowing Roman Catholic priests to bless same-sex couples — something described as a major shift in the church’s approach to the LGBTQ community. Marianne Favro reports.

The Vatican said Monday that Pope Francis had approved Catholic priests to bestow blessings to people in same-sex relationships.

Many people around the world celebrate the Day of the Virgin of Guadalupe every year on Dec. 12. Believers travel from different countries to honor her and ask for a miracle, but very few know the meaning of the name Guadalupe. 

Authorities in Mexico say the roof of a church has collapsed in northern Mexico during a Mass, killing at least nine people and injuring about 50.

Because of a procedural change in how the U.S. government processes some green cards, faith communities across the country may lose thousands of leaders and workers.

A Louisiana grand jury has charged a now-91-year-old disgraced priest with sexually assaulting a teenage boy in 1975.

A lay Catholic commune with roots in the Bay Area hippie movement is now the target of multiple child sexual abuse lawsuits. Raj Mathai speaks with Investigative reporter Candice Nguyen on this.