Read the latest news from regional and global sources, presenting different voices and perspectives.

When Mozart proved himself a child prodigy at the Vatican
In 1770, young Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, aged 14, transcribed from memory Allegri's “Miserere,” a sacred work then jealously guarded by the Sistine Chapel choir. In 18th-century Rome, there was a liturgy that drew royalty to the Vatican: Holy Week....

Scanning the heavens at the Vatican Observatory
Perched in the hills outside Rome sits the Palace of Castel Gandolfo, the centuries-old lakeside summer home for popes, which is also home to the Vatican Observatory, established in 1891 to help bridge the chasm between religion and science....

Science and the stars a call to the spiritual, says Vatican astrophysicist
PHOENIX | The Vatican Observatory attests that "science is not against God" -- and the nexus of science and spirituality invites humankind to contemplate the Lord's wondrous works, said a Jesuit astrophysicist. Father Pavel Gabor, vice director of...

The Pope has ‘isolated’ breathing crisis in hospital, Vatican says
Your support helps us to tell the story From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our...

Business Leaders Called To Align Tech Decisions With Corporate Values
Signs point to an emerging, if informal, social contact on AI deployment.AFP via Getty Images With the rapid rollout of AI, corporate leaders are increasingly being called to consider the proper alignment between technology strategies and...

'When I entered the novitiate': Sisters reflect on early years of formation
The novitiate is the most intense time of formation in the life of a sister — a time of deep discernment, prayer, growth and transformation. It is also a place where one's personal faith and vocation are tested, lifelong bonds form, and the...

Vatican scientists warn of global assault on scientific truth
These challenges cannot be solved by scientists alone: “A global coalition of stakeholders is needed … to defend the right to seek and speak scientific truth.” In a recently published statement, the Pontifical Academy of Sciences (PAS) has sounded...

How One American Parish Put the Catechism Online — and Caught the Vatican’s Eye
Recently, the Vatican rolled out a major website redesign for the first time since its launch in the mid-1990s. One thing that caught my eye was that the link to the Catechism of the Catholic Church was moved to the site’s front page. I grinned...

Vatican Backs Report Calling for Financial Reforms to Alleviate Global Debt Crisis
The Vatican has endorsed a report calling for reforms to alleviate the global debt crisis affecting billions of people in developing countries. The document, titled “The Jubilee Report: A Blueprint for Tackling the Debt and Development Crises and...

Today-History-Jun30
Today in History for June 30: In 1859, French acrobat Blondin crossed the Niagara gorge on a tightrope. Before reaching the Canadian side, he stopped to drink champagne and perform other feats. A crowd of 25,000 watched. Today in History for June...

Vatican-China Agreement Enters New Phase With Pope Leo XIV at the Helm
Rumor has it that a delegation from China is expected to visit the Vatican at the end of June for the regular bilateral meeting to discuss Sino-Vatican relations and the progress of the agreement on the appointment of bishops. The news is not...

Vatican report urges overhaul of Africa's debt architecture
A new Vatican-backed report, unveiled in Rome, calls to overhaul the global financial architecture and fix a debt system that it says is punishing Africa and other developing regions. The Jubilee Report challenges the logic of inequity, arguing...

Vatican secretary for protection of minors: ‘Harming a victim is harming the image of God’
ACI Prensa Staff, Jun 23, 2025 / 06:00 am Auxiliary Bishop Luis Manuel Alí Herrera, secretary of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors (PCTM, by its Italian acronym), contends that instead of a single reparative action, victims of...

‘It’s a lot’: As investigations linger, ODMHSAS declines to release reports approved by board
Despite months of public drama about fiscal chaos at the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services, the agency is declining to release four new reports about internal audits and inspections approved by its governing board...

Former Vatican scientist honored on U.S. quarter
Dr. Vera Rubin, a former instructor at the Vatican Observatory Summer School and member of the Pontifical Academy of Science, was honored as part of the "American Women Quarters Program." Dr. Vera Rubin, who had a longstanding relationship with...

In the face of anti-science politics, silence is not without cost
You have full access to this article via your institution. The Pontifical Academy of Sciences has expressed concern about the impact of political interference on science around the world.Credit: Piotr Bednarczyk/ShutterstockThe administration of...

Vatican addresses global debt crisis; Ghana and other countries to benefit
The Vatican has established a new global commission of economic experts to address the escalating sovereign debt crisis impacting Ghana and several other countries across the Global South. Announced this week, the high-level Commission of Experts...

A Peruvian designer: in charge of revitalizing the Vatican’s digital heart
(ZENIT News / Rome, 06.23.2025).- When white smoke billowed from the Sistine Chapel chimney on May 8, 2025, announcing the election of Pope Leo XIV, another was about to be announced unveiled to the world: a complete redesign of vatican.va, the...

Vatican sets up global commission to tackle sovereign debt crisis
…Ghana, others in the Global South to benefit By Kizito CUDJOE The Vatican has announced the launch of a high-level Commission of Experts to address the mounting sovereign debt crisis affecting Ghana and numerous other countries across the...

Report commissioned by the Vatican calls for action to tackle international debt
GOVERNMENTS and international institutions could prevent multiple future crises by restructuring or forgiving the debts of developing countries, according to a report commissioned by the late Pope Francis for the Roman Catholic Church’s current...