Posted on 01/9/2026 13:17 PM (CNA Daily News - Vatican)
Pope Leo XIV addresses ambassadors and other diplomatic representatives to the Holy See in the Apostolic Palace on Jan. 9, 2026. | Credit: Vatican Media
Jan 9, 2026 / 10:17 am (CNA).
Pope Leo XIV condemned the weakening of international multilateralism and the increased use of force in a speech to diplomats at the Vatican on Friday.
He also said states should respect fundamental human rights, such as religious freedom and freedom of speech, and comply with international humanitarian law in the lengthiest speech to date of his pontificate.
“A diplomacy that promotes dialogue and seeks consensus among all parties is being replaced by a diplomacy based on force, by either individuals or groups of allies. War is back in vogue and a zeal for war is spreading,” he told ambassadors and other diplomatic representatives to the Holy See in the Apostolic Palace on Jan. 9. Currently, 184 states have diplomatic relations with the Holy See.
“Peace is no longer sought as a gift and a desirable good in itself,” the pontiff continued. “Instead, peace is sought through weapons as a condition for asserting one’s own dominion. This gravely threatens the rule of law, which is the foundation of all peaceful civil coexistence.”
The Holy Father called for concern for the common good of peoples to take precedence over “the defense of partisan interests” amid escalating tensions, pointing in particular to Venezuela, for which he reiterated an appeal “to respect the will of the Venezuelan people, and to safeguard the human and civil rights of all.”
Leo framed his speech, part of the annual new year greeting to the diplomatic corps, within St. Augustine of Hippo’s work of Christian philosophy “De Civitate Dei” (“City of God”).
“The ‘City of God’ does not propose a political program. Instead, it offers valuable reflections on fundamental issues concerning social and political life, such as the search for a more just and peaceful coexistence among peoples. Augustine also warns of the grave dangers to political life arising from false representations of history, excessive nationalism and the distortion of the ideal of the political leader,” the pope said.
He called “City of God,” written in the fifth century, highly relevant to the present time, marked by widespread migration and the “profound readjustment of geopolitical balances and cultural paradigms.”
Leo lamented what he called a “short circuit” of human rights around the world today, especially the right to life.
“We firmly reiterate that the protection of the right to life constitutes the indispensable foundation of every other human right. A society is healthy and truly progresses only when it safeguards the sanctity of human life and works actively to promote it,” he said.
He also called out the restriction of the right to freedom of expression, freedom of conscience, religious freedom, and the right to life in favor of other “so-called new rights,” so that “the very framework of human rights is losing its vitality and creating space for force and oppression.”
“This occurs when each right becomes self-referential, and especially when it becomes disconnected from reality, nature, and truth,” he added.
Pope Leo said Christian persecution is one of the most widespread human rights crises today, with over 380 million believers around the world suffering high or extreme levels of discrimination, violence, and oppression.
He recalled the victims of religiously motivated violence in Bangladesh, in the Sahel region, in Nigeria, and those killed or injured in the terrorist attack on the parish of St. Elias in Damascus in June.
The pontiff also decried “a subtle form of religious discrimination against Christians” taking place even in Christian-majority countries in Europe and the Americas.
“There, they are sometimes restricted in their ability to proclaim the truths of the Gospel for political or ideological reasons, especially when they defend the dignity of the weakest, the unborn, refugees and migrants, or promote the family,” he said.
Leo also called for respect for the freedom of other religious communities and the rejection of all forms of antisemitism.
The Holy Father also spoke about debates over the meaning of words and how they are tied to attacks on freedom of expression.
“Rediscovering the meaning of words is perhaps one of the primary challenges of our time. When words lose their connection to reality, and reality itself becomes debatable and ultimately incommunicable,” he said.
“We should also note the paradox that this weakening of language is often invoked in the name of freedom of expression itself. However, on closer inspection, the opposite is true, for freedom of speech and expression is guaranteed precisely by the certainty of language and the fact that every term is anchored in the truth,” he noted.
He called it painful to see the space for genuine freedom of expression rapidly shrink, especially in the West.
“At the same time, a new Orwellian-style language is developing which, in an attempt to be increasingly inclusive, ends up excluding those who do not conform to the ideologies that are fueling it,” he said.
A consequence of this, Leo said, is that the freedom of conscience, another fundamental human right, is increasingly questioned by states.
The freedom of conscience, which “establishes a balance between the collective interest and individual dignity,” protects individuals “to refuse legal or professional obligations that conflict with moral, ethical, or religious principles deeply rooted in their personal lives,” such as military service, abortion, or euthanasia.
“Conscientious objection is not rebellion but an act of fidelity to oneself,” he underlined.
Pope Leo urged states to protect the institution of the family as “the vocation to love and to life” manifested in the “exclusive and indissoluble union between a woman and a man” and implying a “fundamental ethical imperative for enabling families to welcome and fully care for unborn life.”
Noting the increasing priority of raising birth rates, he emphasized life as a gift to be cherished and said “we categorically reject any practice that denies or exploits the origin of life and its development,” including abortion and surrogacy.
He added that the Holy See is also concerned about projects aimed at financing cross-border mobility to increase access to abortion and “considers it deplorable that public resources are allocated to suppress life rather than being invested to support mothers and families.”
For the sick and elderly, “civil society and states also have a responsibility to respond concretely to situations of vulnerability, offering solutions to human suffering, such as palliative care, and promoting policies of authentic solidarity rather than encouraging deceptive forms of compassion such as euthanasia,” he said.
The pontiff underlined the inalienable dignity of every person and that migrants, as people, have “inalienable rights that must be respected in every situation.”
“I renew the Holy See’s hope that the actions taken by states against criminality and human trafficking will not become a pretext for undermining the dignity of migrants and refugees,” he said.
Leo recalled that in Augustine’s “City of God,” the saint interprets events and history according to a model of two cities. The city of God is characterized by God’s unconditional love and love for one’s neighbor, especially the poor, while the earthly city “is centered on pride and self-love (‘amor sui’), on the thirst for worldly power and glory that leads to destruction.”
“While St. Augustine highlights the coexistence of the heavenly and earthly cities until the end of time, our era seems somewhat inclined to deny the city of God its ‘right of citizenship,’” the pope noted.
“Yet, as Augustine notes, ‘Great is the folly of pride in those individuals who think that the supreme good can be found in this life and that they can become happy by their own resources,’” Leo said. “Pride obscures both reality itself and our empathy towards others. It is no coincidence that pride is always at the root of every conflict.”
Posted on 01/9/2026 07:30 AM (USCCB News Releases)
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Leo XIV and members of his College of Cardinals have begun what is a kind of synodal journey together to grow in communion and discern together "what the Lord is asking of us for the good of his people."
After convening the international group of cardinals in Rome for an extraordinary consistory Jan. 7-8, the pope decided to make the gathering an annual event, however, with an additional meeting later this year.
It marked an approach that vastly expanded on what Pope Francis established after his election in 2013. Wishing for a more decentralized and listening Church, the late pope created a nine-member Council of Cardinals to help and advise him on several critical matters facing the Church, particularly the reform of the Roman Curia, by meeting at least quarterly in Rome.
Pope Leo decided he would be inviting all the world's cardinals to Rome every year for a few days, Matteo Bruni, director of the Vatican press office, told reporters at a news conference after the consistory ended Jan. 8.
College members will meet with the pope again for at least three days sometime in June, possibly around the feast of Sts. Peter and Paul, June 29, and then the gathering will be held over three to four days once a year in the following years.
The College of Cardinals is made up of 245 cardinals from all over the world. About 170 of them -- about 69% -- made it to Rome after the pope's invitation Dec. 12 that they come together again for the first time since the conclave that elected him May 8.
Cardinal Timothy Radcliffe, a Dominican theologian, offered a reflection Jan. 7 to help the cardinals understand their role not just as advisers to the pope, but as much-needed companions along life's way.
He recalled St. Mark's account of Jesus making his disciples go out ahead of him by boat, which encountered a "great storm."
Jesus does not want Peter or any of the disciples to go into the storm alone, he said. "This is our first obedience, to be in the barque of Peter, with his successor, as he faces the storms of our times."
Some of the storms shaking the Church, he said, include "sexual abuse and ideological division. The Lord commands us to sail out into these storms and face them truthfully, not timidly waiting on the beach. If we do so in this consistory, we shall see him coming to us. If we hide on the beach, we shall not encounter him."
However, Cardinal Radcliffe said, "If the boat of Peter is filled with disciples who quarrel, we shall be of no use to the Holy Father. If we are at peace with each other in love, even when we disagree, God will indeed be present even when he seems to be absent."
Pope Leo emphasized the essential element of love in his opening remarks to the cardinals in the Vatican's Synod Hall Jan. 7.
"To the extent that we love one another as Christ has loved us, we belong to him, we are his community, and he can continue to draw others to himself through us. In fact, only love is credible; only love is trustworthy," he said.
"Therefore, in order to be a truly missionary Church, one that is capable of witnessing to the attractive power of Christ's love, we must first of all put into practice his commandment … 'Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another,'" the pope said. Jesus underlined that it will be by a Christian's love that the world will know "that you are my disciples."
The "collegial journey" that they have begun with their first consistory, he said, would be an opportunity to reflect together on two themes of their choice out of the following four themes: the mission of the Church in today's world, especially as presented in Pope Francis' "Evangelii Gaudium"; the synod and synodality as an instrument and a style of cooperation; the service of the Holy See, especially to the local Churches; and the liturgy, the source and summit of the Christian life. The cardinals voted with "a large majority" to discuss the first two themes -- mission and synodality, Bruni told reporters.
Following a synodal structure, the cardinals were broken into 21 groups, but nine of those groups, made up of cardinals under 80 years old, who were not resident in Rome, were asked to submit reports based on their small group discussions, which followed the Synod on Synodality's "conversation in the Spirit" method.
"I am here to listen," Pope Leo told the cardinals before they began their two days of reflection and dialogue.
"We must not arrive at a text, but continue a conversation that will help me in serving the mission of the entire Church," he said. Specifically, he wanted the groups to look at the next one or two years and consider what "priorities could guide the action of the Holy Father and of the Curia regarding each theme?"
The pope further encouraged the cardinals the next day in his homily during an early morning Mass in St. Peter's Basilica.
Their task, he said, was to discern what "the Lord is asking of us for the good of his people," not "to promote personal or group 'agendas.'"
Through prayer, silence, listening and sharing, he said, "we become a voice for all those whom the Lord has entrusted to our pastoral care in many different parts of the world."
Speaking to reporters at a news conference after the consistory, Cardinal Luis José Rueda Aparicio, archbishop of Bogotá, Colombia, said the experience "strengthened us" individually and as a group as they got to know each other better.
The pope underlined how important hope was in the life and mission of the church, he said. When Christ is at the center of one's life, proclaiming his word "fills us and the world with hope."
Cardinal Stephen Brislin, archbishop of Johannesburg, South Africa, told reporters the vast differences between cardinals -- with their different perspectives and needs -- proved to be "very enriching" and interesting, and not a source of contention.
Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David, bishop of Kalookan, Philippines, told reporters the synodal format and style of the consistory "was familiar" to those who had taken part in the synodal assemblies in Rome in 2023 and 2024.
When asked if it seemed the pope was going to use their sessions to inform or contribute to any kind of papal document, Cardinal David said, "I don't know," but the pope was "taking notes very seriously so he must be up to something."
Cardinal Brislin said there is no indication that a document was the aim of the gathering, and it was more a concrete response to the cardinals' request that they meet.
Cardinal Aparicio said by listening to all the world's cardinals, the pope "listens to the different parts of the world."
Pope Leo XIV told an extraordinary gathering of the College of Cardinals that he wanted to listen to their concerns and suggestions for the church during the meeting at the Vatican Jan. 7-8, 2026. (CNS video/Robert Duncan)
Posted on 01/9/2026 07:30 AM (USCCB News Releases)
VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Pope Leo XIV warned diplomats of rising global volatility, fractured communication and a growing disregard for human life in his annual speech to representatives to the Holy See.
Speaking to representatives of the 184 countries that have full diplomatic relations with the Vatican, the pope expressed concern over a "weak" global approach and action among countries on certain issues, saying that "war is back in vogue and a zeal for war is spreading."
Peace is being sought through weapons, threatening the rule of law and therefore the foundation of all peaceful civil coexistence, he said in the Jan. 9 speech at the Hall of Benedictions at the Vatican.
He expressed concern about religious freedom being curtailed around the world. Aid to the Church in Need, an international Catholic aid organization, released its "Religious Freedom in the World Report" last year, concluding that 64.7% of the world's population lives in countries with "serious or very serious violations of religious freedom."
He cited deadly attacks on Christian communities in Africa and the Middle East, while also warning of less visible discrimination in Europe and the Americas.
He briefly spoke about the importance of treating migrants with human dignity, an issue he has been vocal about for months, before focusing his final thoughts on the value of family and the unborn.
The pope said the Church strongly rejects "any practice that denies or exploits the origin of life and its development."
The pope reiterated the Church's stance on abortion, including a deep concern about projects aimed at financing cross-border mobility for the purpose of accessing the so-called "right to safe abortion."
"It also considers it deplorable that public resources are allocated to suppress life, rather than being invested to support mothers and families," he said.
He also spoke out against surrogacy.
"By transforming gestation into a negotiable service, this violates the dignity both of the child, who is reduced to a 'product,' and of the mother, exploiting her body and the generative process, and distorting the original relational calling of the family," he said.
In this speech and throughout the year, the pope has spoken out on ongoing international strife, including the war in Ukraine, the Israel-Gaza conflict and the U.S. military operation to capture Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.
When looking at today's conflicts, he said, "we cannot ignore that the destruction of hospitals, energy infrastructure, homes and places essential to daily life constitutes a serious violation of international humanitarian law."
He pointed to the United Nations as a counterbalance to this trend, saying that it is the center of international cooperation that defends humanitarian rights and mediates conflict.
But, he said, one of the greatest current challenges to dialogue as a way to address conflicts is the loss of a shared understanding of language.
"Today, the meaning of words is ever more fluid and the concepts they represent are increasingly ambiguous," he said. "Language is no longer the preferred means by which human beings come to know and encounter one another."
He said that the "contortions of semantic ambiguity" are becoming "more and more a weapon with which to deceive or to strike and offend opponents." He suggested clearer, more direct language be used throughout the home, politics and the media to address these misunderstandings and to avoid conflict on a greater scale.
He went on to say that efforts to loosen or blur the meaning of words are often defended as protecting free expression, but in fact undermine it.
"It is painful to see how, especially in the West, the space for genuine freedom of expression is rapidly shrinking," he said. "At the same time, a new Orwellian-style language is developing which, in an attempt to be increasingly inclusive, ends up excluding those who do not conform to the ideologies that are fueling it."
When moral or linguistic boundaries are weakened, he said, it doesn't stop at speech, but rather it spills over into limits on basic human rights and an individual's ability to act according to their moral and religious beliefs.
"This may be the refusal of military service in the name of non-violence or the refusal on the part of doctors and health care professionals to engage in practices such as abortion or euthanasia," he said.
The pope said if a society forces moral uniformity, it risks sliding toward authoritarianism.
Pope Leo closed by saying that despite conflict found around the world, there is no shortage of signs for courage and pointed to St. Francis of Assisi.
"His life shines brightly, for it was inspired by the courage to live in truth," he said, "and the knowledge that a peaceful world is built starting with humble hearts turned toward the heavenly city."
Speaking to diplomats accredited to the Holy See Jan. 9, 2026, Pope Leo XIV said that language has become increasingly ambiguous and weaponized, undermining clear realities, authentic dialogue, and diplomacy’s role in preventing conflict. (CNS video...
Posted on 01/8/2026 22:18 PM (CNA Daily News - Vatican)
Cardinals meet with Pope Leo XIV in the third session of the consistory on Jan. 8, 2025, at the Vatican. | Credit: Vatican Media
Jan 8, 2026 / 19:18 pm (CNA).
Pope Leo XIV will be hosting a second consistory of cardinals at the end of June and wants to hold such meetings annually.
The Vatican made the announcement Thursday evening at the conclusion of the Holy Father’s first extraordinary consistory of cardinals that lasted two days. The next such meeting is expected to be held on June 27–28, the vigil of Sts. Peter and Paul.
Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said the pope would like to hold annual meetings lasting three to four days, allowing more time for discussion on various topics of importance and for free interventions by the members of the Sacred College of Cardinals.
Cardinal Stephen Brislin of Johannesburg, South Africa, told reporters at a closing Vatican briefing that he and the other cardinals found this consistory a “very enriching and very deepening experience.” He said they also appreciated that it also gave the opportunity for the cardinals to “get to know each other and to listen to each other.” The fact that the pope wishes to hold more meetings, he added, shows that the pope, too, “found it very important” and helpful.
The cardinal said some doubts were expressed when they were told they would be split into small groups, and “certainly a concern” was that there would be insufficient opportunity for them “to express themselves and to listen to others.” Still, he said he thought the way the groups were constructed, having been split into two blocks, was “very helpful” and “gave the opportunity for every cardinal to speak,” even if it wasn’t heard by the whole assembly.
The liturgy was briefly mentioned, Cardinal Wilfrid Napier, archbishop emeritus of Durban, South Africa, told the National Catholic Register, CNA’s sister news partner. But he said the Traditional Latin Mass and “particulars like that” were not discussed. “I think the whole thing was how do we get the whole Church onto the same level at evangelizing, I think that was the main point,” he said.” Hope was expressed by various cardinals that other topics not discussed would be covered at forthcoming consistories.
Little information emerged both during and after the consistory as cardinals told reporters that Pope Leo had instructed them to keep the proceedings confidential. Nevertheless, Brislin, who was joined by Filippino Cardinal Pablo David and Colombian Cardinal Luis José Rueda Aparicio at Thursday’s press briefing, spoke relatively freely.
Posted on 01/8/2026 20:40 PM (CNA Daily News - Vatican)
Official image of the “Pray with the Pope” campaign for January 2026. | Credit: World Prayer Network
Jan 8, 2026 / 17:40 pm (CNA).
The Vatican’s Dicastery for Communication has launched a new prayer campaign in which Pope Leo XIV invites Catholics to pray with him for the great challenges facing the world.
The “Pray with the Pope” initiative is part of the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network, which, during the pontificate of Pope Francis, launched the project known as “The Pope’s Video,” through which the faithful were invited each month to unite in prayer for a specific intention.
Continuing this mission, the new campaign not only invites people to pray but also offers a specific prayer from Leo XIV, who will present his monthly intention from a renewed perspective, encouraging an intimate and serene experience with Christ.
According to Jesuit Father Cristobal Fones, international director of the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network, who presented the initiative Jan. 7 in Rome alongside Paolo Ruffini, prefect of the Dicastery for Communication, the initiative proposes “a shared inner experience that aspires to transform life from within.”
The focus of this new phase, as the Jesuit priest explained, “will be more centered on supporting a spiritual experience, which often becomes difficult amidst our busy and noise-filled daily lives.”
“The pope is very aware of this and wants to help us, inviting us to pray together for others,” he added. The “update” of the initiative, according to Fones, stems “from the profound need we have to slow down in order to achieve greater depth in our decisions and relationships.”
With a simple and accessible format, “Pray with the Pope” aims to allow anyone, wherever they are, to join in the Holy Father’s prayer intention, which this year 2026 begins with the invitation to “learn to pray with the most definitive Word, which is not our own, so full of empty promises, but Jesus Christ.”
In this month’s video, Pope Leo XIV is seen silently reading a passage from the Bible in the presence of the Lord, and then he recites a short prayer:
“Lord Jesus, living word of the Father, in you we find the light that guides our steps.
“We know that the human heart lives restless, hungry for meaning, and only your Gospel can give it peace and fullness.
“Teach us to listen to you each day in the Scriptures, to let ourselves be challenged by your voice, and to discern our decisions from the closeness to your heart.
“May your word be nourishment in weariness, hope in darkness, and strength in our communities.
“Lord, may your word never be absent from our lips or from our hearts — the word that makes us sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, disciples and missionaries of your kingdom.
“Make us a Church that prays with the word, that builds upon it and shares it with joy, so that in every person the hope of a new world may be born again.
“May our faith grow in the encounter with you through your word, moving us from the heart to reach out to others, to serve the most vulnerable, to forgive, build bridges, and proclaim life. Amen.”
For Fones, this January’s intention will be the basis for the rest of the year’s intentions, which will include children with incurable diseases, the end of war, priests in crisis, respect for human life, and families experiencing the absence of a mother or father, among others.
The priest explained that the initiative also seeks to “highlight important and crucial issues for everyone, opening our hearts to urgent realities and transforming our environment to counteract the globalization of indifference.”
The campaign can be followed on the pope’s prayer website in several languages, and will also be available in audio format through Vatican Radio and partner platforms such as Pray as You Go, RezandoVoy, and Hallow. The Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network is currently present in more than 90 countries and reaches over 22 million people.
This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.
Posted on 01/8/2026 20:04 PM (CNA Daily News - Vatican)
Pope Leo XIV arrives at St. Peter’s Basilica for a Mass with cardinals on Jan. 8, 2026. | Credit: Vatican Media
Jan 8, 2026 / 17:04 pm (CNA).
Pope Leo XIV on Thursday called on cardinals to experience the extraordinary consistory as a time of spiritual discernment in unity and warned against the temptation to put personal interests ahead of the common good.
“We gather not to promote personal or group ‘agendas’ but to entrust our plans and inspirations to a discernment that transcends us — ‘as the heavens are higher than the earth’ — and which comes only from the Lord,” he said in his homily for the Mass he celebrated Jan. 8 in St. Peter’s Basilica with the cardinals present in Rome for this important two-day ecclesial meeting convened to help him make decisions about the future of the Catholic Church.
Leo XIV urged the cardinals to experience the Eucharist as the place where this discernment is purified and transformed, asking them to place all their “hopes and ideas upon the altar.”
“Only in this way will we truly know how to listen to his voice and to welcome it through the gift that we are to one another — which is the very reason we have gathered,” he added.
The pope linked this vision to the spirituality of communion, recalling that Christian love is “Trinitarian” and “relational,” and quoted St. John Paul II, who defined it as “the heart’s contemplation of the mystery of the Trinity dwelling in us.”
This extraordinary consistory — different from the ordinary ones, which are more limited and frequent — was planned to take place immediately after the Jubilee of Hope to “offer support and advice to the Holy Father in the exercise of his high and arduous responsibility of governing the Church,” according to a statement from the Holy See.
St. John Paul II convened six extraordinary consistories during his 26-year pontificate, while Pope Benedict XVI chose to hold consultative meetings with the cardinals on the eve of the ordinary consistories. In total, he held three such meetings during his pontificate.
During the 12 years of his pontificate, Pope Francis held only one extraordinary consistory, on Feb. 20, 2014, which focused primarily on the family and marriage, ahead of the Synod on the Family held that same year.
Unlike his predecessor, who preferred to consult with a smaller council, Leo XIV convened the entire College of Cardinals to assist him in governing the universal Church.
The cardinals are expected to offer the new pontiff their views on two specific topics: the Synod and synodality, and the mission of evangelization and the missionary character of the Church in light of Pope Francis’ apostolic exhortation Evangelii Gaudium. Initially, the meeting topics also included discussions on the liturgy and the apostolic constitution Praedicate Evangelium, but lack of time has limited the issues that will be addressed.
The pontiff reflected on the very meaning of the consistory, recalling that the word “consistorium” in Latin refers to the idea of “pausing.”
“Indeed, all of us have ‘paused’ in order to be here. We have set aside our activities for a time, and even canceled important commitments, so as to discern together what the Lord is asking of us for the good of his people,” he emphasized.
In his homily, the Holy Father reminded those present that this gathering is not about a “mere group of experts” but “a community of faith. Only when the gifts that each person brings are offered to the Lord and returned by him, will they bear the greatest fruit according to his providence.”
The pontiff also recalled the words of St. Leo the Great to emphasize the communal dimension of ecclesial service: “In this way,” he said, “‘the hungry are fed, the naked clothed, the sick visited, and no one seeks his or her own interests, but those of others.’”
Referring to the challenges of today’s world, marked by profound inequalities and a widespread “hunger for goodness and peace,” the pope acknowledged the feeling of inadequacy in the face of the mission but encouraged them to face it together, trusting in providence.
“We will be able to help one another — and in particular, to help the pope — to find the “five loaves and two fish” that providence “never fails to provide,” he affirmed.
Leo XIV concluded his homily by offering the cardinals his “heartfelt thanks” for their service and reminding them that, even if they don’t always manage to find solutions to the problems they face.
“We may not always be able to find immediate solutions to the problems we face. Yet in every place and circumstance, we will be able to help one another — and in particular, to help the pope,” he said, calling for collaboration.
“Beloved brothers,” the pope noted, “what you offer to the Church through your service, at every level, is something profound and very personal, unique to each of you and precious to all.”
According to what the director of the Holy See Press Office, Matteo Bruni, reported Jan. 7, of the 245 cardinals who currently make up the College of Cardinals, 170 are in Rome participating in the closed-door meetings that concluded Thursday.
This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.
Posted on 01/8/2026 17:17 PM (CNA Daily News - Vatican)
Pope Leo XIV celebrates Mass for the Jubilee of Prisoners in St. Peter’s Basilica on Dec. 14, 2025. | Credit: Vatican Media
Jan 8, 2026 / 14:17 pm (CNA).
Pope Leo XIV’s prayer intention for the month of January is for the faithful to pray with the word of God.
In a video released Jan. 7 on X, the Holy Father said that he is praying “that we may learn, practice, and love praying with the word of God.”
“The gift of Scripture is God’s love letter to humankind,” he said. “Let’s pray that we all draw from this gift and get to know Our Lord.”
The Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network and the Dicastery for Communication announced Jan. 7 the “Pray with the Pope” project. According to a press release, this is a new initiative in which the pope will share his monthly prayer intentions through both video and audio, “inviting the universal Church and all people of goodwill to unite spiritually, using the same prayer that will now be led by the pope himself.”
“This initiative aims to increase the visibility of the pope’s prayer intentions, using a language suitable for prayer, in new formats, so as to better reach the faithful throughout the world, especially in today’s world of digital communication,” the press release stated.
In the full video shared on the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network website, Pope Leo recites an original prayer written specifically for this month’s prayer intention.
Here is the pope’s full prayer:
Lord Jesus, living Word of the Father,
in you we find the light that guides our steps.
We know that the human heart lives restless, hungry for meaning,
and only your Gospel can give it peace and fullness.
Teach us to listen to you each day in the Scriptures,
to let ourselves be challenged by your voice,
and to discern our decisions
from the closeness to your heart.
May your word be nourishment in weariness,
hope in darkness,
and strength in our communities.
Lord, may your word never be absent from our lips or from our hearts —
the word that makes us sons and daughters, brothers and sisters,
disciples and missionaries of your kingdom.
Make us a Church that prays with the word,
that is built upon it and shares it with joy,
so that in every person the hope of a new world may be born again.
May our faith grow in the encounter with you through your word,
moving us from the heart
to reach out to others,
to serve the most vulnerable,
to forgive, build bridges, and proclaim life.
Amen.
“Pray with the Pope” is accessible on the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network website and its digital platforms.
Posted on 01/8/2026 13:52 PM (CNA Daily News - Vatican)
Pope Leo XIV addresses cardinals during the extraordinary consistory on Jan. 7, 2026, in Vatican City. | Credit: Vatican Media
Jan 8, 2026 / 10:52 am (CNA).
ROME — Some cardinals and faithful who have a devotion to the traditional Roman rite have expressed concern that the liturgy appears to be sidelined in the extraordinary consistory currently underway at the Vatican after the cardinals voted to give priority to other issues on the agenda.
In his opening address to the consistory yesterday, Pope Leo XIV reaffirmed to the cardinal participants that they will have the opportunity to “engage in a communal reflection” on four themes already preannounced to be on the meeting’s agenda.
Those topics, he said, were Pope Francis’ 2013 apostolic exhortation Evangelii Gaudium, “that is, the mission of the Church in today’s world”; Praedicate Evangelium, the late pope’s apostolic constitution reforming the Roman Curia; the Synod and synodality “as both an instrument and a style of cooperation”; and the liturgy, “the source and summit of the Christian life.”
But Leo added that “due to time constraints, and in order to encourage a genuinely in-depth analysis, only two of them will be discussed specifically.”
The cardinals were then asked to make clear which two of the four they would want to be specifically debated and, according to Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni, “a large majority” decided the topics would be “evangelization and the Church’s missionary activity drawn from rereading Evangelii Gaudium,” and “the Synod and synodality.”
Bruni told reporters at a press briefing Wednesday evening that the 170 cardinals taking part were divided into 20 groups, which were then divided into two blocks. Eleven groups consisted of cardinals in Rome including curial cardinals and those who have concluded their service and are no longer electors. The remaining nine groups were cardinal electors of local Churches (archbishops and bishops of dioceses), cardinal electors who are nuncios and cardinal electors who have concluded their service but remain electors due to being under the age of 80.
Bruni said that “for reasons of time,” the cardinal secretaries of the second block had the job of reporting back the decision of the cardinals. “They had three minutes to explain the work done within the groups and the reasons that led to the choice of the two themes.”
The Holy Father had made clear in his opening address that it was his preference to hear back from the second block as he does not usually receive advice from those cardinals. “It is naturally easier for me to seek counsel from those who work in the Curia and live in Rome,” he said.
But the decision not to make the liturgy a key theme was disappointing to some cardinals and traditional faithful.
The liturgy has long been a particularly sensitive issue, and especially to traditional-minded Catholics following recent sweeping restrictions on the older form of the Latin rite during Pope Francis’ pontificate. These faithful experienced the restrictions not as a mere disciplinary change but as a judgment on their fidelity, spirituality, and ecclesial belonging, which many have described as deeply wounding and divisive.
The popular Italian traditional website “Messa in Latino“ wrote Jan. 7 that it had contacted some anonymous but important cardinals who all said they were “discouraged and disappointed” about the relegation of the liturgy as a discussion topic.
In comments to the National Catholic Register, CNA’s sister news partner, on Jan. 8, the website’s editor Luigi Casalini asked: “To whom did the pope delegate this choice, and according to what criteria were these cardinals of the nine local Churches selected in order to remove — in effect — two topics?” He also wondered “why cardinals sensitive to the issue” appear to have “made no attempt to lobby” for the liturgy to be included as a core topic of discussion, “even before the consistory.”
The consistory, he added, “appears to be in perfect continuity with the synods and the thought of Francis” — a reference to how recent synods were silent on the traditional liturgy.
Speaking to journalists Wednesday, Bruni tried to offer some reassurance. “The other two themes will still be addressed in some way, because mission does not exclude the liturgy,” he said. “On the contrary, in many ways it does not mean exclusion. It means that they will still be addressed within the others or in some other way.”
He added: “As the pope said and as he noted in both his opening and closing speeches [on Wednesday], the themes cannot be separated from each other, because in mission and evangelization there is liturgy.”
Casalini said he was looking ahead to the two free discussions today to see “whether the topic of the liturgy will be taken up again.”
This story was first published by the National Catholic Register, CNA's sister news partner, and has been adapted by CNA.
Posted on 01/8/2026 07:30 AM (USCCB News Releases)
WASHINGTON - On the weekend of January 24-25 many Catholic dioceses in the United States will take the annual Collection for the Church in Latin America, which supports ministries among the poor in Mexico, Central and South America and the Caribbean.
“This annual collection exemplifies the spiritual journey of Pope Leo XIV, who was born in Chicago but spent most of his ministry serving the poor in Peru,” said Bishop Edgar M. da Cunha, SDV, of the Diocese of Fall River, and chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Subcommittee on the Church in Latin America, which oversees this annual collection and the grants it funds.
During the decade that then-Bishop Robert Prevost was Bishop of Chiclayo, his diocese received several grants from the Collection for the Church in Latin America. With this support, the diocese improved youth ministry in impoverished parishes, promoted care for the environment and educated thousands of parents, teachers and catechists in the prevention of child abuse.
“The Second Vatican Council, which ended a dozen years before Robert Prevost entered the Augustinian order, encouraged Catholics to reach out in love across all national borders, especially those between the wealthy global north and the developing global south,” said Bishop da Cunha, a Brazilian whose diocese includes Portuguese and Spanish-speaking Catholics. “Pope Leo XIV’s faith journey embodies the spirit of why the bishops of the United States created the Church in Latin America program six decades ago to make an impact in Latin America.”
The online giving platform iGiveCatholic also accepts funds to support this work.
In 2024, gifts to the Collection for the Church in Latin America provided more than $8 million for 344 projects. Some sample projects are:
“All of these projects represent the types of initiatives that inspired Father Prevost to go to Peru as a missionary,” Bishop da Cunha said. “In supporting the Collection for the Church in Latin America, we are able to honor Pope Leo XIV and, above all, serve the Lord who calls us to love our neighbors.”
More information is at www.usccb.org/latin-america.
###
Posted on 01/7/2026 22:12 PM (CNA Daily News - Vatican)
The extraordinary consistory of cardinals is taking place from Jan 7-8, 2026. Credit: Vatican Media
Jan 7, 2026 / 19:12 pm (CNA).
In his opening address at the extraordinary consistory convened for Jan. 7–8, Pope Leo XIV assured the cardinals from around the world gathered at the Vatican that “I am here to listen.”
The Holy Father reminded the cardinals, assembled in the Synod Hall, that “as we learned during the two assemblies of the Synod of Bishops in 2023 and 2024,” within the framework of the so-called Synod on Synodality, “the synodal dynamic implies a listening par excellence.”
“Every moment of this kind is an opportunity to deepen our shared appreciation for synodality,” Pope Leo said, recalling that in the speech Pope Francis delivered on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the institution of the Synod of Bishops in 2015, the late pontiff said that it is “precisely this path of synodality which God expects of the Church of the third millennium.”
“We must not arrive at a text,” the pope clarified regarding the task of the consistory, “but continue a conversation that will help me in serving the mission of the entire Church.”
In his address, the Holy Father outlined the four themes that will be discussed during the extraordinary consistory. Two of them are named after papal documents of his predecessor, Francis: the apostolic exhortation Evangelii Gaudium and the apostolic constitution Praedicate Evangelium.
Evangelii Gaudium, he noted, has to do with “the mission of the Church in today’s world,” while Praedicate Evangelium refers to “the service of the Holy See, especially to the particular Churches.”
The third and fourth topics will be “synod and synodality,” as “both an instrument and a style of collaboration,” and “the liturgy, the source and summit of Christian life.”
However, he clarified, “due to time constraints and in order to encourage a genuinely in-depth analysis, only two of them will be discussed specifically.”
“While each of the 21 groups will contribute to the choice that we will make, the groups that will be reporting will be those nine coming from the local Churches, since it is naturally easier for me to seek counsel from those who work in the Curia and live in Rome,” he added.
On Jan. 8, he said, the two chosen themes will be addressed with the following question as a guide: “Looking at the path of the next one or two years, what considerations and priorities could guide the action of the Holy Father and of the Curia regarding each theme?”
As the consistory proceeds, the pope called on the cardinals to be “attentive to the heart, mind, and spirit of each; listening to one another; expressing only the main point and in a succinct manner, so that all can speak.”
“The ancient Romans in their wisdom used to say: ‘Non multa sed multum!’ [Not many things, but much],” Leo pointed out, a phrase understood as prioritizing quality over quantity.
“And in the future, this way of listening to one another, seeking the guidance of the Holy Spirit and walking together, will continue to be of great help for the Petrine ministry entrusted to me,” he affirmed.
“Even the way in which we learn to work together, with fraternity and sincere friendship, can give rise to something new, something that brings both the present and the future into focus,” Leo declared.
From the beginning of his address, the pope made clear the perspective of the Second Vatican Council for this consistory, quoting the first paragraph of the dogmatic constitution Lumen Gentium, which emphasizes that “Christ is the light of the nations” and that it is the Church’s duty to ensure that “all men, joined more closely today by various social, technical, and cultural ties, might also attain fuller unity in Christ.”
“We can understand the overall pontificates of St. Paul VI and St. John Paul II within this conciliar perspective, which sees the mystery of the Church as entirely held within the mystery of Christ and thus understands the evangelizing mission as a radiation of the inexhaustible energy released by the central event of salvation history,” Leo XIV said.
He then noted that both Benedict XVI and Francis “summarized this vision in one word: attraction.”
“Pope Benedict did this in the inaugural homily of the Aparecida Conference in 2007 when he said: ‘The Church does not engage in proselytism. Instead, she grows by ‘attraction’: Just as Christ ‘draws all to himself’ by the power of his love, culminating in the sacrifice of the cross, so the Church fulfills her mission to the extent that, in union with Christ, she accomplishes every one of her works in spiritual and practical imitation of the love of her Lord,’” Leo recalled.
“Pope Francis was in perfect agreement with this and repeated it several times in different contexts,” he added.
Pope Leo XIV also emphasized in his speech that “unity attracts, division scatters. It seems to me that physics also confirms this, both on the microscopic and macroscopic levels.”
“Therefore, in order to be a truly missionary Church, one that is capable of witnessing to the attractive power of Christ’s love, we must first of all put into practice his commandment, the only one he gave us after washing his disciples’ feet: ‘Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.’”
“And he adds: ‘By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another,’” the pope emphasized.
The Holy Father went on to indicate that in the consistory, “we are a very diverse group, enriched by a wide range of backgrounds, cultures, ecclesial and social traditions, formative and academic paths, pastoral experiences, not to mention personal characteristics and traits.”
“We are called first to get to know one another and to dialogue, so that we may work together in serving the Church. I hope that we can grow in communion and thus offer a model of collegiality,” he said.
This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.