The Vatican said Saturday its envoy to Nicaragua had been ordered to leave by President Daniel Ortega's government, expressing "surprise and regret" at what it called an "unjustified" move. Waldemar Stanislaw Sommertag abruptly left the country on Sunday, a diplomatic source in Managua told AFP earlier this week. The head of Nicaragua's bishops conference, Carlos…

An influential cardinal opened a Vatican symposium on the priesthood Thursday apologising for "unworthy ministers" and the cover-up of child sexual abuse by Catholic clergy, before an audience that included Pope Francis.

The death of 5-year-old Rayan Awram in spite of a massive effort to rescue him from a deep well sparked an outpouring of sympathy on Sunday, from his village in northern Morocco to the Vatican, from King Mohammed to international football clubs.

Former pope Benedict XVI knowingly failed to take action to stop four priests accused of child sex abuse in Munich, according to the findings of a damning independent report presented on Thursday. The ex-pontiff -- who was the archbishop of Munich and Freising from 1977 to 1982 -- has "strictly" denied any responsibility, said lawyer…

The Vatican stands to lose 100 million pounds in charity donations with the sale of a London luxury building at the centre of a financial scandal, a report said Monday.

The Vatican said Friday it will send its secretary of state to the upcoming UN climate summit in Glasgow, casting doubts on whether Pope Francis himself will attend.

Pope Francis will spend a few more days in hospital following his colon surgery, the Vatican said Monday, adding that the football-mad pontiff was cheered by Italy's victory in Euro 2020.

An influential Cardinal and nine others will be tried within the Vatican's legal system over alleged financial wrongdoing, the Holy See announced Saturday.

The Vatican has made an "unprecedented" formal diplomatic objection to a draft Italian law against homophobia, a news report said Tuesday.

The Vatican's judicial system is still ill-equipped to deal with financial crimes despite progress in many areas, the Council of Europe said in a new report Wednesday. The council's anti-money laundering committee Moneyval recommended Pope Francis' judicial authorities recruit more prosecutors with a practical experience in complex financial crime and strengthen the financial investigation unit.…

Catholic churches around Germany were offering blessings for gay couples on Monday in a protest against the Vatican's refusal to approve same-sex partnerships.

An Italian judge murdered by the mafia in Sicily took a step towards sainthood Sunday, almost three decades after being declared a martyr by pope John Paul II.