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In a statement released by the Vatican on Tuesday evening at 9:53 pm, doctors said that the nodule removed from Leo’s lung was adenocarcinoma and that a lobe of his lung was removed. However, as the Pope himself indicated when he announced the surgery on Sunday, the nodule was small and “well-localized.” “The lower lobe of the right lung was removed using a video-assisted technique,” the doctors said. “The intra-operative histological examination confirmed the diagnosis of a pulmonary adenocarcinoma, as suspected by the pre-operative tests,” the doctors stated, adding that the surgery lasted about 90 minutes, and the Holy Father was in the operating room for about three hours. “The procedure was successful and there were no complications,” they added, reiterating what had initially been announced some two hours earlier. After the surgery the Pope awoke normally and, following a brief observation period, returned to his room on the 10th floor. Following the operation, Pope Read More…

Vatican: Nodule was cancerous, surgery a success

The surgery Pope Leo XIV underwent to remove a pulmonary nodule “was completed successfully, within the expected timeframe and as planned, and the Holy Father has returned to his room,” the Holy See Press Office reported on the evening of October 13, 2026. “Further information will follow,” the statement concludes.

Leo XIV’s lung surgery went well

One of the central messages that Our Lady of Fatima gave to Lucia, Francisco and Jacinta in 1917 was to pray the Rosary. For this reason, whenever Our Lady of Fatima is mentioned, the Rosary is quick to follow. But why is the Rosary connected to Our Lady of Fatima? What did she say about it? Here is what Our Lady spoke to the three shepherd children and why the Rosary is a vital part of her message. In her second apparition on June 13, 1917, Our Lady specifically mentioned the Rosary: I want you to come on the thirteenth day of next month and to pray the Rosary every day and I want you to learn to read. A month later, in the third apparition on July 13, she again mentioned the Rosary, but this time with a specific intention: I want you to come on the thirteenth day of next month and to Read More…

What did Our Lady of Fatima say about the Rosary?

Pope Leo XIV has appointed Sister Mary Teresa Barron as the new adjunct secretary of the Dicastery for Evangelization. The Holy See Press Office announced the appointment on October 8, 2026. The Irish religious sister is the first woman to become president of the Pontifical Mission Societies (PMS), the Holy See’s global evangelization network. More than two centuries after Blessed Pauline Jaricot founded the first of the four Pontifical Mission Societies in Lyon, France, a woman has been appointed to lead the organization for the first time. Sister Barron has served as superior general of the Missionary Sisters of Our Lady of the Apostles (OLA), a congregation also founded in Lyon, since 2018. The press bulletin specifies that Leo XIV has appointed her “adjunct secretary of the Dicastery for Evangelization in the Section for First Evangelization and the New Particular Churches, with the office of president of the Pontifical Mission Societies.” Born in Donegal, Ireland, Read More…

Pope names Irish sister to lead Pontifical Mission Societies

Brian Doyle — author, poet, storyteller, husband, and father — wrote, “I believe with all my hoary heart that stories save lives, and the telling and hearing of them is a holy thing, powerful far beyond our ken.” (“The Stories That Save Us,” Notre Dame Magazine). Brian’s wife, Mary Miller Doyle, collected 365 essays, poems, and cartoon sketches in Wonder Is a Lovely Place to Be — to remember him, yes, but most importantly, to shed some light in a world where war, division, inequality, and the dangers of AI saturate the headlines. Through his reflections on everyday life, Brian reminds us of the beauty, humor, and humanity that can so easily get lost amid the noise of the world. Reading Brian’s reflections on everything from a snowy day on a city bus in Chicago to the challenges of potty-training twin boys evokes a range of emotions — joy, sadness, awe, and wonder, to name Read More…

Catch the joy as it flies

The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, but he is assisted in caring for his diocese by a vicar who oversees the day to day administration. Pope Leo’s vicar for Rome is Cardinal Baldassare Reina, and this cardinal will lead a Rosary at the Gemelli Hospital this evening Rome time at 6 pm (noon in New York). The Gemelli Hospital — known affectionately as the Pope’s hospital, since both John Paul II and Francis had lengthy and multiple stays there — has received Pope Leo today. The exact time of his surgery to remove a nodule in his lung has not been announced, but it is scheduled for this afternoon. At approximately 1 p.m., Pope Leo XIV left the Vatican in a motorcade for the Gemelli Hospital in Rome for a scheduled hospitalization, the Holy See Press Office confirmed. The Pope is to undergo surgery this afternoon for a pulmonary nodule detected at an early Read More…

TODAY: Join in Rosary from hospital where Leo is admitted (link)

“We were all struck by the calm with which the Pope announced this intervention,” Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin told the press on October 12, 2026, a few hours before Leo XIV was to be admitted to hospital for surgery to remove a lung nodule. The cardinal was speaking on the sidelines of an event organized at the Gregorian University in Rome. Speaking to journalists, the right-hand man of the 71-year-old Pontiff reported that he had spoken with Leo XIV, who had “great composure,” on Monday evening. He further praised the “great example” set by the Pontiff. Since this unexpected announcement after praying the midday Sunday Angelus, many in Rome have noted the Pope’s composure and praised the openness with which he announced the situation to the whole world. “I certainly wasn’t expecting anything like this. […] Nobody was expecting it,” the Italian cardinal admitted. He said he feels a certain degree of “concern” Read More…

Cardinal Parolin says pre-surgery Leo is calm, composed

While the Vatican secretary of state and the leader of the US bishops have already spoken out against plans for a live-streamed execution in the United States, now the military archbishop of the nation has taken a further step, saying that as the bishop who oversees the military, and thus those who will participate in the firing squad, he obliges Catholics to request to be excused. Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio, J.C.D., issued his statement October 12, on the proposal to livestream the execution of Nidal Malik Hasan by firing squad. The execution is planned to take place on the Texas military base where the crime occurred. Hasan was a major in the military and a psychiatrist, and he went on a shooting spree at the military base, killing 13 people and injuring 32 others, on November 5, 2009. Archbishop Broglio referred to Hasan as a “terrorist” and recalled that he himself presided at the funeral of the only civilian who died Read More…

Catholics can’t participate in execution, says military archbishop

Thanks to Amazon.com’s helpful-if-slightly-terrifying record-keeping, I can tell you that it was in 2003 that I learned a new, and highly instructive, efficacious way to pray for the sick. That was the year I purchased Volume 2 of the Letters from Carmel from the (then) beata, (now the newest saint from coming to us out of Carmel) Elizabeth of the Trinity. It was one of those books I couldn’t put down and when I finished it I felt like I’d had a personal, one-on-one tutorial on the subject of love: How to give it unstintingly, how to get more of it (see giving, unstintingly), because the more love you give, the more you get. Like an oil jar that never empties. The tutorial included a lesson in prayer that I took deeply to heart as well, for as I read it became apparent that whenever Elizabeth was asked for prayers, she would immediately reach into Read More…

St. Elizabeth of the Trinity taught me how to pray for others in 7 words

Pope Leo XIV received the Synod of Bishops of the Greek-Melkite Church of Antioch on October 10, offering words of solidarity with a community that has lived for decades under the weight of war, religious extremism, forced migration, and economic collapse. “I am with you,” he told the bishops — and through them, the priests, religious, seminarians, and faithful scattered across the Middle East and throughout a vast diaspora. The address was an act of ecclesial solidarity with one of the oldest Christian communities in the world, whose roots reach back to the city where, as Leo recalled, the followers of Jesus were first called “Christians.” The most concrete announcement in the speech concerned the material conditions that make Christian life in the region possible at all. Emigration — driven by insecurity, poverty, and the absence of opportunity — has steadily hollowed out Christian communities across Syria, Lebanon, the broader Holy Land, and Iraq for Read More…

Vatican scholarships to keep Christians in the Middle East

Leo XIV is carrying on with his duties as usual at the Vatican this Monday morning, October 12, 2026, the Holy See Press Office reported. It also stated that the pulmonary nodule was detected during “routine check-ups.” The date of the Holy Father’s admission to hospital for surgery is not yet confirmed. On Sunday, the Pope’s announcement took the faithful and the Roman Curia by surprise. After praying the midday Angelus, he said: Dear friends, during some recent medical examinations, the doctors found a small, localized nodule in my lung. It was detected at a very early stage and is well-localized. The doctors believe that it is best to intervene, so, following their advice, I have decided to undergo surgery to remove it. The operation is already scheduled to take place in the coming days. I thank you for your spiritual closeness and entrust myself to your prayers. While the date of the operation has Read More…

Leo keeping regular schedule in lead-up to surgery

Pope Pius XI instituted World Mission Sunday 100 years ago, but Pope Leo XIV – a missionary for many years himself – is the first pontiff to release a video specifically to celebrate this day. With this year’s theme “One in Christ, united in mission,” the Holy Father calls for a “deeper understanding of the greatness of the missionary task, fervent prayer for the work of evangelization [and] encouragement for the missionary vocation and support for the Pontifical Mission Societies.”  On October 18, Michael Mitchell from the Pontifical Mission Societies explains, the universal Church will once again unite to pray for missions around the world. On World Mission Sunday, there is also an opportunity to give to a second collection that provides for missionary needs – from helping missionary dioceses operate, to building churches, seminaries, convents and pastoral centers. The Pontifical Mission Societies reports that over 900 infrastructure-related projects are funded on average each year Read More…

Pope Leo and Blessed Fulton on 100th year of World Mission Sunday

What places tell the story of Carlo Acutis‘ life? What walls, streets, and churches witnessed the childhood of this boy who was canonized in 2025? We often imagine saints against distant, hazy backdrops, as though their stories belonged to another world and another era. With Carlo Acutis, it’s quite the opposite. Carlo died in 2006 at age 15. He’s the saint of the generation of screens, sneakers, and soccer. The places where he lived still exist, and you can visit them. From London to Milan and on to Assisi, Carlo Acutis led an ordinary life filled with family, school, and friends. However, his daily routine was punctuated by an appointment that nothing could replace: Mass, which he attended every day. Fascinated by computers, he taught himself to program and devoted his free time to documenting Eucharistic miracles around the world. He created a virtual exhibition about them that has since toured parishes globally. Those who Read More…

A virtual tour of 12 key places in Carlo Acutis’ life

When Pope Leo XIV announced that he would need surgery to remove a nodule from his lung, he shared some reassuring news: It had been detected at a very early stage and was well localized. Nevertheless, the prospect of an operation is never something to take lightly, and the Holy Father ended his announcement by entrusting himself to our prayers. For Catholics around the world, there is something personal about hearing that the pope is unwell. We are accustomed to seeing him praying for others, offering encouragement, and accompanying people through their difficulties. Now, as he prepares for surgery, we have an opportunity to offer him some of that same care. And while most of us cannot do anything practical to help, we can certainly pray. Sometimes, though, finding the right words isn’t easy, particularly when we’re worried about someone’s health. Thankfully, Scripture offers us words of comfort, trust and hope that we can turn Read More…

6 Bible verses to pray for Pope Leo as he faces surgery

In recent years, St. Carlo Acutis has become one of the most popular saints in the Catholic Church. He was a 15-year-old Italian teenager who spent his short life on earth promoting Eucharistic miracles. His popularity is in large part to the “ordinary” life that he led — a teenager in the digital age, surfing the internet and playing video games with his friends. For the most part he did not expect to die young, as he was diagnosed with leukemia only shortly before he died. Leading up to 2006, Carlo was preparing the first exhibition of his Eucharistic miracles display. This required a great deal of research, as he wanted to provide information on each confirmed Eucharistic miracle in the world. He was able to create a website, which still exists today; this was the first place where he catalogued all of the Eucharistic miracles he could find. Yet, he still wanted something physical, Read More…

Today is the 20th anniversary of St. Carlo Acutis’ death

Before Pope Leo XIV published his first encyclical on May 25, 2026 — choosing the 135th anniversary of Leo XIII’s Rerum novarum as the date — a delegation of representatives from Meta, Google, and Amazon had already paid him a visit. A longer conversation followed at the French embassy to the Holy See. Anthropic co-founder Christopher Olah was scheduled to appear alongside Leo at the encyclical’s presentation. Anthropic had already been hosting briefings for faith leaders at its San Francisco offices, explaining how its models are built and why Catholic theological anthropology might inform the conversation. The maneuvering speaks for itself. Silicon Valley does not normally lobby the papacy. That it is doing so now tells you something about what the Vatican is perceived to represent: a moral authority with 1.4 billion followers, a long philosophical tradition, and no corporate stake in the outcome. For the tech industry, getting the Pope on board — or Read More…

The Vatican’s long, ongoing conversation with Silicon Valley

Following the bishops of Honduras the previous week and ahead of those of Panama the week after, the bishops of Nicaragua will make their ad limina visit beginning October 12, with an audience scheduled with Pope Leo XIV likely on Friday morning. Behind this institutional appointment lies a central question: How do you keep a Church alive when political power seeks to control its public expression? To understand this crisis, one must go back to the Sandinista revolution of 1979. Having overthrown the Somoza dictatorship, Daniel Ortega’s government maintained a conflictual relationship with part of the Catholic hierarchy. In the context of the Cold War, the government aligned itself with the Eastern Bloc, in the manner of Fidel Castro’s regime in Cuba. The local Church split between those defending its institutional autonomy and Christians committed to the revolutionary project. John Paul II’s visit on March 4, 1983, stands as the strangest and most difficult episode Read More…

Bishops of suffering Nicaragua will visit Rome this week

Looked at one way, Jesus was radical and demanding — commanding people to change themselves and spelling out the dire consequences for those who don’t. He didn’t mince words or pull his punches, but we don’t think of him as a severe and strict taskmaster, because he knew the art of persuasion. In many ways Jesus was the antithesis of modern marketing. The 1980s book Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind is taught in business schools to this day. Its authors wrote, “Advertising is not a debate. It’s a seduction,” and said, “The basic approach of positioning is not to create something new and different, but to manipulate what’s already up there in the mind, to retie the connections that already exist.” It brought about a generation of marketers who share the feel of a product instead of its substance. At first, Jesus’ approach seems to be the very opposite of theirs. He came on the Read More…

Jesus the Great Persuader knew marketing

Pope Leo offered encouragement not to become discouraged, reflecting on the Gospel of this Sunday’s Mass. Before leading the midday Angelus this October 11, the Holy Father noted how we “are clothed like a bride in the white garment of Baptism,” and the wedding feast spoken about by Jesus “is ours.” Here is the full text of his brief reflection: ~ In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus speaks of the wedding feast prepared by a king for his son (cf. Mt 22:1–14). A son’s wedding is a special occasion for any family, and this happy father wants to share his joy with everyone.  He prepares a banquet and invites many people.  Saint Thomas Aquinas says that goodness, by its very nature, tends to spread: “Bonum dicitur diffusivum sui” (Summa Theologiae, I, q. 5, a. 4, ad 2). The image in the narrative expresses this idea in the context of our lived experience.  When something good happens, it kindles Read More…

We are among the main characters: Pope’s reflection

There’s a statue I was shown in art class many years ago back when I was an aspiring art student, The Ecstasy of Saint Teresa. It has made a permanent impression on me because of how emotionally charged it is and I still think about it. Created by Bernini in the 17th century, the sculpture depicts a mystical vision St. Teresa experienced, often referred to as her Transverberation (meaning “piercing through”). She later described the vision, writing in her autobiography that an angel pierced her heart repeatedly with a fire-tipped spear. The piercing allowed her to share the pain of Christ’s pierced heart and it left her “all on fire with a great love of God.” Years after her death, her incorrupt heart was exhumed and it still had the small wound caused by the spear. The vision, it turns out, was very real. Bernini’s statue, once you see it, is hard to forget because Read More…

What the famous sculpture of Saint Teresa teaches about desire

Pope Leo has again made an appeal for the suffering people in Ukraine, as well as those who are being affected by the war there due to problems with exports. After praying the midday Angelus on this October 11, he said: The war in tormented Ukraine continues to cause suffering far beyond its borders, especially in the poorest countries, where so many people depend on grain imports. I make a heartfelt appeal to the parties to the conflict to allow for the safe transport of grain through the Black Sea. The daily bread of millions of people cannot be held hostage by the war. Ukraine and Russia are normally key exporters of grains, but according to estimates, in July to September 2026, exports from the Black Sea region were 6.5 million tons lower than in the same period last year. This has ramifications both for the countries that rely on grain from the region, and Read More…

Daily bread cannot be held hostage by war: Pope

Pope Leo announced to the faithful today that doctors have found a “small, localized nodule in my lung” and that he will have surgery to remove it in “the coming days.” He said he entrusts himself to our prayers. After praying the midday Angelus, Pope Leo said this: Dear friends, during some recent medical examinations, the doctors found a small, localized nodule in my lung. It was detected at a very early stage and is well-localized. The doctors believe that it is best to intervene, so, following their advice, I have decided to undergo surgery to remove it. The operation is already scheduled to take place in the coming days. I thank you for your spiritual closeness and entrust myself to your prayers. Pope Leo is 71 years old. [Update]: In a statement released later, the director of the Holy See Press Office, Matteo Bruni, specified that the surgery would take place “in the first Read More…

Pope Leo XIV to have lump removed from lung

“You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it rests in You.” [Saint Augustine of Hippo] The 2026 World Cup Soccer gave us great back stories about the Catholic faith of several players. American goalie Matt Freese is a fan of Father Mike Schmitz’s Bible in a Year plan, saying he first met star teammate, Christian Pulisic, at a Bible study. I like what he had to say: “There’s just this kind of automatic connection that you make when you talk about deep subjects like faith and the Bible on a weekly basis with a teammate.”  Matt might not have been thinking of Saint Augustine, but his “team connection” reflects well Augustine’s sense of Scripture bringing people together in “one mind and one heart on the way to God.” [Acts 4:32] For an Augustinian, discipleship is not a Jesus and me experience alone; it’s a community growing together through Read More…

An Augustinian-inspired Bible Study plan

Pope Leo XIV celebrated Mass on October 8 at St. Peter’s Basilica for the inauguration of the academic year of the Pontifical Universities of Rome, delivering a homily that ranged from St. Paul’s letter to the Galatians to artificial intelligence, from the fragmentation of knowledge to the importance of friendship, from Nehemiah’s construction site to the world seated in a Roman classroom. It is, one would dare saying, one of the most theologically substantive addresses of his pontificate.  The homily opened with Paul’s worried letter to the Galatians — a community that had been unsettled by “false teachers who exploit the religious sentiments of many believers for their own interests, often pushing them to radicalize certain aspects of the teaching they have received at the expense of the whole.” Leo easily drew the parallel to the present. “There is no shortage of false teachers” in every age, he said — and the antidote is the Read More…

Leo XIV to theology students: “Return to the heart”

One of the most talked about issues in today’s society is “world peace.” There seems to be war and conflict everywhere, especially if you turn on the TV or go on social media. Violence is everywhere and there seems little that individual families could do to turn the tide. While that might seem to be the case, the reality is that world peace can only be established when there is peace in each family. St. John XXIII reiterated this simple fact in his encyclical, Ad Petri Cathedram: We have called nations, their rulers, and all classes of society to harmonious unity. Now we sincerely urge families to achieve and strengthen this unity within themselves. For unless peace, unity, and concord are present in domestic society, how can they exist in civil society? The reality is that wherever there is war or violence, there is an individual who is part of a family. That individual was Read More…

Practical ways that families can contribute to peace in the world

When addressing the Augustinian Province of St. Thomas of Villanova, Pope Leo XIV remarked, “You will be happy to know that the parish church in this town outside of Rome is named after St. Thomas of Villanova, known as Father of the Poor, a wonderfully gifted Augustinian friar and bishop who devoted his life in service to the poor.” Pope Leo XIV knows St. Thomas of Villanova quite well, as not only is he part of the same religious order, but also because he attended Villanova University (named after the saint) and has a relic of St. Thomas in his pectoral cross. While St. Thomas’ name is well known for these various connections, not everyone knows who he is, or why he has such a reputation for being an advocate of the poor. Born in the 15th century, St. Thomas grew up in a remarkable family where both of his parents were accustomed to giving Read More…

Why St. Thomas of Villanova was called the “Father of the Poor”

Speaking to journalists on the sidelines of an event in Rome dedicated to the Doctor of the Church and saint celebrated today, John Henry Newman, Cardinal Pietro Parolin indicated that the Holy See would make a statement about the US government’s announcement that an execution later this year will be live-streamed. The Pope’s Secretary of State called the plan “incomprehensible” and said that it is “certainly unacceptable to turn death into a spectacle.” An announcement from what is now known as the US Department of War was made October 8. It said that the execution by firing squad of the man convicted of killing 13 people and injuring 32 at Fort Hood, Texas, in 2009, would be live-streamed. The execution of Major Nidal Malik Hasan by firing squad is currently set for December 3. Cardinal Parolin noted that the president of the US conference of bishops has already spoken out about the decision and said Read More…

Pope’s No. 2 on US public execution plan: “incomprehensible”

The leader of the US bishops’ conference has responded with “shock and great sorrow” to an announcement that the US government plans to livestream an execution that is scheduled for December. An announcement from what is now known as the U.S. Department of War was made October 8. It said that the execution by firing squad of the man convicted of killing 13 people and injuring 32 at Fort Hood, Texas in 2009, would be live-streamed. The execution of Major Nidal Malik Hasan by firing squad set is currently set for December 3. Archbishop Paul S. Coakley, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, issued the following statement sharply condemning the decision of the U.S. government: It is with shock and great sorrow that I have learned of the Department of War’s decision to publicly livestream the execution of Nidal Hassan. Our God is the God of life. In no way can Hassan’s actions Read More…

Bishop responds to US plan for public execution

Today is the feast day of St. John Henry Newman, the first time we celebrate it since he was named a Doctor of the Church. His feast day is, uniquely, not the date of his death but instead, the date he was received into the Catholic Church. John Henry Newman was born in London in 1801 and died in Birmingham in 1890.  Learn more about him and about the Doctors of the Church by reading one of the articles below:

TODAY: Cardinal Newman’s 1st feast since becoming Doctor of the Church

Filipino Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle was elected the Dean of the College of Cardinals, succeeding the 92-year-old Italian, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re. The primary duty of a Dean of the College is convening and, presuming he is under age 80, presiding over a Conclave. Cardinal Re’s service at the funeral of Pope Francis and the election of Pope Leo made him a well-known figure in the Church. The position of Dean was previously a charge for life. However, with a change in 2019, Pope Francis gave it a five-year term limit, with the possibility of one re-election. The Dean is elected by those cardinals who have the title of cardinal-bishop. A Dean does not have hierarchical governing authority over his fellow cardinals, but simply coordinates their activities. Cardinal Re, still active despite his age, has served under four pontiffs, with a long history in the Church. Notably, he was Prefect of the Congregation for Bishops Read More…

Cardinal Tagle chosen as new Dean of College of Cardinals