By Matthew Trojacek with CNA Reports – Grzegorz Galazka and CNA photos

October

Friday 3

Cardinal Koch Congratulates Archbishop-Designate of Canterbury Sarah Mullally

On October 3, King Charles III approved the nomination of Sarah Mullally, Bishop of London, as the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury. She will be the first woman to hold the office, with her installation scheduled for March 2026 at Canterbury Cathedral.

In a letter addressed to Bishop Mullally, Cardinal Kurt Koch, President of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, offered his congratulations and expressed the Catholic Church’s support for her new ministry. He wrote:

“Having learned of your nomination… I write to congratulate you on your appointment and to express the good wishes of the Catholic Church to you as you prepare to undertake this important service in your Church. I pray that the Lord will bless you with the gifts you need for the very demanding ministry to which you have now been called, equipping you to be an instrument of communion and unity for the faithful among whom you will serve.” (VaticanNews)

Monday 13

Five Judges Appointed to DDF Tribunal for Rupnik Case

The Vatican has announced the appointment of five judges to oversee the canonical trial of former Jesuit priest and renowned artist, Father Marko Ivan Rupnik, who has been accused by several adult consecrated women of psychological and sexual abuse.

In a statement released on October 13, the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith said the judges were appointed on October 9. The tribunal will be responsible for examining the serious allegations against Rupnik, who was dismissed from the Society of Jesus in June 2023 following multiple accusations.

According to the statement, the judicial panel is made up of women and clerics who are not members of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, nor do they hold any office within the Roman Curia. (VaticanNews)

Wednesday 15

Pope Leo’s Pre-Papacy Writings to be Published in a New Book

A book containing the writings of Pope Leo XIV’s time as the prior general of the Augustinian Order will be published in spring 2026, the Order of Saint Augustine and the Vatican Publishing House announced on October 15. The announcement was made at the Frankfurt Book Fair.

“This text will allow readers to discover the writings from the period when the Pope was an Augustinian religious and the superior of his Order,” said Lorenzo Fazzini, editorial director of the Vatican Publishing House. “It is a volume eagerly awaited by readers across the world.”

The book, titled Free under Grace: Writings and Meditations 2001-2013, is a collection of Pope Leo XIV’s writings during those years. In 2001, Pope Leo XIV — then known as Father Robert Prevost, O.S.A. — was elected to the first of his two consecutive six-year terms leading the Order of Saint Augustine. (Aleteia)

Friday 17

Digital Rerum Novarum: AI at the Service of Justice and Peace

Under the theme “Digital Rerum Novarum: Artificial Intelligence for Peace, Social Justice, and Integral Human Development,” the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences gathered 50 global experts from diverse disciplines at the Casina Pio IV in the Vatican on October 16–17. The goal was to foster dialogue and share experiences that could help promote a responsible, ethical, and human-centered use of artificial intelligence — one of the most transformative technologies of our era.

Participants highlighted the need to align the various AI regulation initiatives under a shared global framework — one that is binding, includes mechanisms for enforcement, and is supported by institutions suited to the digital age. (VaticanNews)

Thursday 23

King’s Visit “Confirms Closeness between Catholic and Anglican Churches”

King Charles III and Queen Camilla of the United Kingdom arrived at the San Damaso courtyard for the private audience with Pope Leo XIV in Vatican City, October 23, 2025.(Photo – Grzegorz Galazka

On October 23, Pope Leo XIV participated in various events with King Charles III and Queen Camilla, including an ecumenical prayer in the Sistine Chapel, marking a historic moment in Anglican-Catholic relations.

The day included a private meeting between the two leaders in the Apostolic Palace and an ecumenical service in the Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls, where King Charles was conferred with the title of Royal Confrater of Saint Paul.

“One of the most significant things is that an English King has not prayed in the same place as a Pope since before the Reformation, since long before the separation of the Church of England from the Church of Rome,” said Father Martin Browne, an Irish Benedictine monk and official of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity.  (VaticanNews)

November

Saturday 15

Pope Leo XIV Donates 62 Objects from the Vatican Museums to Canada

On the morning of November 15, Pope Leo XIV received Monsignor Pierre Goudreault, Bishop of Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pocatière and President of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops, in audience at the Apostolic Palace. He was accompanied by Bishop Richard Smith, Archbishop of Vancouver, and Father Jean Vézina, Secretary General of the same Conference. During the audience, the Pope donated sixty-two objects from the ethnological collections of the Vatican Museums to the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops.

The sixty-two artefacts, coming from different communities, are part of the patrimony received on the occasion of the Vatican Missionary Exhibition of 1925, encouraged by Pope Pius XI  during the Holy Year, to bear witness to the faith and cultural richness of peoples. Sent to Rome by Catholic missionaries between 1923 and 1925, these artifacts were subsequently combined with those of the Lateran Ethnologic Missionary Museum, which then became the “Anima Mundi” Ethnological  Museum of the Vatican Museums. (Zenit)

Friday 21

Pope to Youth on Video Call: “Don’t Let AI Do Your Homework!’

Pope Leo XIV warned against over-reliance on artificial intelligence apps and programs in an hour-long “digital visit” with the attendees at the National Catholic Youth Conference on November 21.

The Pope addressed the crowd of about 16,000 young people by video conference from the Vatican. Five young people from across the United States were selected to ask Pope Leo questions in a conversation that was moderated by Catholic speaker and author Katie Prejean McGrady.

Archbishop Nelson Perez said at the end that he hoped the Holy Father would visit the USA in person. Leo responded with a smile. (Aleteia)

Tuesday 25

Doctrine of the Faith: Monogamy is not a Limitation but a Promise of the Infinite

Marriage is defined as “an indissoluble unity” by the doctrinal Note of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF), calling it an “exclusive union and mutual belonging.” The document — approved by Pope Leo XIV on November 21, the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and presented to the press November 25 — bears the title Una caro (one flesh), In Praise of Monogamy.

It explains that only two people can give themselves fully and completely to one another; otherwise, the gift becomes partial and fails to respect the other’s dignity.

The text is driven by three main concerns. First, the current “global context of expanding technological power, leading human beings to see themselves as “creatures without limits” and thus distant from the value of exclusive love.

Another is polygamy, noting that “in-depth studies of African cultures” contradict the common assumption that monogamous marriage is exceptional there. Finally, it notes the rise in the West of “polyamory” — public forms of non-monogamous unions.

The DDF seeks to emphasize the beauty of conjugal unity which, “with the help of grace,” mirrors “the union between Christ and his beloved bride, the Church.” (VaticanNews)

Wednesday 26

Holy See Closes 2024 with a Surplus of 1.6 Million Euro

The Secretariat for the Economy has published the Holy See’s 2024 Consolidated Financial Statements, which show a surplus of 1.6 million euro.

The result represents a significant recovery compared to the deficit of 51.2 million euro recorded the previous year.

The report, published on November 26, highlights a clear improvement and, while prudently aware that full financial sustainability is a long-term goal, a clearly positive direction can be observed. (VaticanNews)

December

Friday 5

Pope Asks Artists to See Jesus in Concert Attendees

Canadian singer Michael Buble performs during the 6th Concert with the Poor for Christmas in Paul VI Hall in the presence of Pope Leo XI, at Vatican City on December 5, 2025. (Photos – Grzegorz Galazka)

Pope Leo XIV asked Canadian singer Michael Bublé and other artists to do their very best when performing a Christmas concert for the poor.

The annual concert at the Vatican “is not merely a performance by talented artists or simply a musical event, beautiful as it may be, nor even a moment of solidarity to ease our conscience in the face of society’s injustices,” the Pope told Bublé and the other artists December 5.

Asked about his faith later, Bublé, a Catholic, told reporters, “I have a wonderful personal relationship with God. And it doesn’t just affect my music. It affects everything, everything I do, every decision I make.”(USCCB)