Lost at St O

Pope Leo XIV visits the tomb of St. Francis in Assisi, Italy, on Nov. 20, 2025. / Credit: Vatican Media

Vatican City, Nov 20, 2025 / 16:00 pm (CNA).

Pope Leo XIV traveled to Assisi on Thursday to meet with Italian bishops and pay homage to St. Francis in a visit marked by silence and prayer, part of the celebrations for the eighth centenary of the death of the “saint of the poor.”

According to Vatican News, the pontiff traveled from the Vatican by helicopter and arrived in the Italian city shortly after 8 a.m. local time. He landed at the Bastia Umbra stadium and from there traveled by car to the heart of Assisi, where St. Francis was born in 1182.

Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio adopted his name upon becoming pope, while it was St. John Paul II who named St. Francis of Assisi the patron saint of ecology in 1979. 

Despite the rain and cold, a number of people waited for the Holy Father and greeted him with applause and cheers of “Long live the pope!”

His first stop was the Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi, the burial place of the founder of the Franciscan order. Leo XIV was received by the president of the Italian Bishops’ Conference (CEI by its Italian acronym), Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, and the custodian of the Sacro Convento (Franciscan friary) Friar Marco Moroni, who accompanied him to the crypt where the relics of St. Francis are kept.

Once in front of the tomb of the “Poverello” (“Little Poor Man”), the Holy Father paused for a few minutes in prayer. There he spoke his first public words of the day: “It is a blessing to be able to come to this sacred place today. We are approaching the 800th anniversary of the death of St. Francis; this occasion allows us to prepare to celebrate this great saint, humble and poor, while the world seeks signs of hope,” he said.

He also recalled the enduring legacy of St. Francis: “His witness continues to speak to us today, inviting us to keep hope alive and to look to the future with confidence.”

Afterward, Pope Leo XIV traveled to the Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli (Our Lady of the Angels) where he met with the bishops of the CEI, who are holding their 81st general assembly.

According to the Vatican Press Office, at the conclusion of the meeting with the bishops of the CEI, Pope Leo XIV traveled to the city of Montefalco, where he celebrated Mass in the monastery of the Augustinian nuns, which was erected in the 13th century.

It is one of the oldest and most significant spiritual centers in the Umbria region. It is linked to the figure of St. Clare of Montefalco (1268–1308), also known as St. Clare of the Cross, an Augustinian mystic whose contemplative life left a profound mark on the spiritual tradition of the Church. The pontiff had lunch there before returning to the Vatican by helicopter.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

The priests’ release was credited in part to Cardinal Claudio Gugerotti, prefect of the Dicastery for the Eastern Churches, pictured here celebrating the seventh Novendiales Mass for Pope Francis on May 2, 2025. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

CNA Staff, Nov 20, 2025 / 12:12 pm (CNA).

Two Catholic priests in Belarus will be released from prison in an act of “goodwill” after national leaders engaged in talks with the Vatican.

The state media organ BelTA reported on Nov. 20 that Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko “pardoned two Catholic priests convicted of serious crimes against the state.”

The pardons of Father Henrykh Akalatovich and Father Andzej Yukhnevich came after “intensification of contacts with the Vatican, as well as the principles of goodwill, mercy, and the jubilee year proclaimed by the Roman Catholic Church,” the government media organization said. 

A separate press release from the Conference of Catholic Bishops of Belarus expressed “gratitude to all those who contributed to the release of imprisoned priests.”

The bishops thanked both Vatican officials and Belarusian Church leaders for helping maintain “a positive dynamic of bilateral relations based on traditional values, brotherhood, tolerance, and respect for believers.”

Akalatovich had been sentenced on Dec. 30, 2024, to 11 years in prison for “high treason,” a charge that Lukashenko’s regime applies to political prisoners. The priest had reportedly already suffered a heart attack and undergone surgery for cancer before his arrest in November 2023.

Reuters, meanwhile, reported that Yukhnevich had been sentenced to 13 years in prison earlier this year on charges of abusing minors. The priest denied those allegations. 

The human rights group Viasna reported on Nov. 20 that the release came in part “thanks to the visit of Cardinal Claudio Gugerotti,” who serves as prefect of the Dicastery for the Eastern Churches.

Akalatovich previously said his conviction of “spying on behalf of Poland at the Vatican” was a “gross provocation.” 

There was “not a word of truth in the case against him, not a single fact that implicates him in espionage, while the entire accusation is based on lies, threats, and blackmail,” the priest said, according to Viasna. 

During the prosecution of his own case, meanwhile, Yukhnevich “denied all charges and tried to prove his innocence,” Viasna said. The human rights group claimed that the alleged victims who testified against him “may have given their testimony under pressure,” though it did not offer any further information. 

In a 2023 report, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom said religious freedom conditions in Belarus “continued to trend negatively” as the government “persisted in exerting control over all aspects of society.”

The report highlighted the September 2022 closure of the Church of Sts. Simon and Helena in Minsk, which it described as ”a symbol of political opposition to the Lukashenko regime” during protests in 2020.

Hungary’s ambassador to the Holy See Eduard Habsburg speaks to EWTN News in 2023. / Credit: Daniel Ibañez/CNA

Vatican City, Nov 19, 2025 / 15:53 pm (CNA).

Archduke of Austria Eduard Habsburg has served as Hungary’s ambassador to the Holy See since 2015 and described his post at the Vatican as “the greatest 10 years of my life.”

First presenting his credentials to Pope Francis on Dec. 8, 2015, Habsburg told EWTN News reporter Colm Flynn that after a decade on the job, he has “seen it all” and now wants to dedicate more time to his family, particularly his parents.

“I felt that 10 years is a good term. It’s far longer than ambassadors usually have here,” he said in the exclusive interview.

“I think I’ve seen everything you can see here, including a conclave, visits by my prime minister, exciting moments,” he added. “In a way, I’m going to miss it but also family is important.” 

Though his term at the Vatican is drawing to a close, the outgoing ambassador said he will likely continue to represent Hungary at future international events organized by the Church and pro-family groups.  

“I’ll keep a foot in that world, so to speak, so I’m not going to totally give it up,” he said.

Reflecting on his initial surprise at being asked to be Hungary’s ambassador to the Holy See, Habsburg, who belongs to the prominent 850-year-old European Catholic dynasty, said he “hit the floor running” when he arrived in Rome for his first post.

On Pope Francis and his love for Hungary

Describing his relationship with Pope Francis as “incredibly positive,” the outgoing ambassador said the Argentine pontiff had a warm affection for the Central European nation and its people.

“I saw it every time he met a Hungarian,” he said. “He would use Hungarian expressions. He would smile. He would be happy. He would take his time with them.”

Though Pope Francis had not visited Hungary until 2021 for the 52nd International Eucharistic Conference, he told Habsburg that he “learned everything” about Hungary through three religious sisters who fled their country in 1956, during the Soviet occupation, to a monastery in Buenos Aires, Argentina.   

“They have shaped Pope Francis’ outlook on Hungary and that made my work very easy,” he quipped. “He was incredibly generous.”

Pope Francis visited Hungary a second time in 2023 for his apostolic journey to the country’s capital of Budapest from April 28–30.   

On Pope Benedict XVI and his humor

During the 1990s, Pope Benedict XVI, then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, read Habsburg’s doctoral thesis on the topic of Thomas Aquinas and Vatican II and told him “he liked it” and that he wanted him to either make a documentary or a thriller about Thomism.

After first meeting with Pope Francis, the ambassador said he later met with Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI in the Vatican Gardens.  

“He looked at me and said, ‘So you’re ambassador now?’” Habsburg recalled. “And then he said, ‘You know you still owe me a documentary or a thriller about Thomism.” 

“That was the first thing he said. I was so blown away,” he said. “I still haven’t written it.”

“That’s the one thing many people don’t realize about Pope Benedict XVI was the sense of humor that he had that we never got to see publicly,” he said.  

Habsburg earned a doctorate in philosophy from the University of Eichstätt-Ingolstadt in 1999. 

On Pope Leo XIV 

The archduke and ambassador told EWTN News he has briefly met Pope Leo XIV four times this year since his papal election in May.  

“I’m very impressed by him. I feel [he is] a very balanced and just man who is trying to do good,” he said of the first U.S.-born pope. 

Noting Pope Leo’s fluency in many languages, including English, Italian, Spanish, and Latin, Habsburg commented that he believes the universal Church’s new leader “has several cultures in his heart and in his mind.”

“And yes, we will see the things that he’ll do. We pray for him every day,” he said.

Pope Leo XIV. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/EWTN News

ACI Prensa Staff, Nov 19, 2025 / 15:23 pm (CNA).

In reply to journalists’ questions last night as he left Castel Gandolfo, which he now regularly visits, Pope Leo XIV described what his typical Tuesday day off is like.

The pontiff shared that he does “a little reading, a little work. Every day there is correspondence, phone calls; there are some matters that are perhaps more important, more recent. A little tennis, a little swimming.”

A passionate tennis fan since childhood, the Holy Father in May received at the Vatican Italian tennis player Jannik Sinner, currently ranked second in the world (behind Carlos Alcaraz) and at that time was ranked first.

When asked why he needs these moments of rest, Leo XIV emphasized on Nov. 19 that “to take good care of yourself, human beings… everyone, should do some activity for the body, the soul, all together.”

“I think it does me a lot of good. So it’s a time, a break during the week that helps a lot,” he said.

The Holy Father also addressed other topics with the journalists, such as the situation in Ukraine; his possible travel destinations, which include Peru, Portugal, and Mexico; the situation of migrants in the United States and the American bishops’ call to respect them; the massacres of Christians and Muslims in Nigeria; and the abuse allegations against a Spanish bishop, who insists on his innocence.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

Father Anthony Onyemuche Ekpo. / Credit: Vatican Media

Vatican City, Nov 19, 2025 / 14:53 pm (CNA).

Pope Leo XIV on Wednesday appointed Nigerian priest Father Anthony Onyemuche Ekpo as assessor for general affairs of the Vatican Secretariat of State.

Ekpo, 44, succeeds Father Roberto Campisi, who was appointed permanent observer of the Holy See to UNESCO in September. In his new role, he will be responsible for overseeing the activities of Catholic international organizations connected to the Vatican.

The Nigeria-born priest first began his service with the Holy See in 2016. He worked with the Vatican’s Section for General Affairs for six years between 2016 and 2023.

In 2023, Pope Francis appointed him undersecretary of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development to assist the work of its prefect Cardinal Michael Czerny. 

Epko thanked his colleagues at the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development “for their friendship and shared work over these years” and prayed for ​​the grace to carry out his new role with the Secretariat of State with “joy, passion, and dedication,” Vatican News reported on Wednesday.

“My desire is to be able to collaborate with the superiors and employees of the dicastery, to advance the vision of the dicastery and the mission of the Church,” Ekpo told Vatican News.

Ordained a priest for the Diocese of Umuahia, Nigeria, in 2011, Epko continued his theological training abroad. 

In 2013, he obtained a doctorate in systematic theology from the Australian Catholic University as well as a doctorate in canon law from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome in 2021.

He is fluent in English, Italian, French, and the Nigerian language Igbo.

Earlier this month, Pope Leo appointed Nigerian priest Father Edward Daniang Daleng as vice regent of the Papal Household, the second-highest position in the Vatican office that organizes audiences with the pope.