Vatican

Argentine Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 76, the leader of a large urban archdiocese in Latin America, was elected the 266th pope and took the name Francis.

He is the first pope in history to come from the Western Hemisphere and the first non-European to be elected in almost 1,300 years.

The Jesuit was also the first member of his order to be elected pope, and the first member of any religious order to be elected in nearly two centuries. Read more »

Science and the Catholic Church share a long and sometimes tumultuous history.

As the church leaders gather for the start of conclave Tuesday (Mar. 12), their choice of a new holy leader will affect Catholic views on science in the coming decades, say scientists.

The Catholic Church has come a long way from its inauspicious treatment of Galileo Galilei in the 17th century. Read more »

The Vatican Apostolic Library, one of the oldest libraries in the world containing more than 80,000 codices and 1.1 million printed books, is to see the majority of its work digitized thanks to 2.8 petabytes of storage being provided by EMC.

The library, established in 1448 and located in Vatican City, will see its entire catalogue of manuscripts and incunabula (a book or text written before 1501) preserved in an ISO-certifiable digital format. Read more »

When Pope Benedict XVI officially stepped down from office Feb. 28, his wardrobe changed -- right down to the ring on his finger.

He simply stopped wearing the familiar red shoes and the traditional white cassock with a white cape on his shoulder.

He also stopped wearing the fisherman's ring, one of the main symbols of the papal office, and went back to wearing an episcopal ring he wore as a cardinal. Read more »

Making bespoke clothes is tricky when you don't know who will wear them.

But Gammarelli, the Roman tailor that has dressed every pope since 1922, gets around that by catering for every eventuality.

Unveiled in its window on Monday were three ivory cassocks in small, medium and large – a choice which it hopes will keep it covered no matter who emerges from the Sistine Chapel as the next leader of the Roman Catholic church. Read more »

A student of the history of the Roman Curia, in particular the office called the Apostolic Camera, will find that, as early as the 11th century, the term "camera thesauraria" (treasure chamber) appeared, describing an office set up to administer the finances of the Roman Curia and the temporal goods of the Holy See.

Today it performs the latter task only in the period of "sede vacante" or vacant see. Read more »

As the Catholic Church's cardinals gather in Rome to set a date for the selection of a new pope, there is no clear front-runner for the job.

But one thing is for sure: The next pontiff will have a grueling schedule.

The recently retired Pope Benedict XVI and his predecessor, John Paul II, both worked days that could stretch from 5 a.m. until 11 p.m. or even midnight, said Don Briel, the director of the Center for Catholic Studies at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota. Read more »

With the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI on Thursday evening, the Swiss Guards have left their posts and sealed the gates of the former Pope’s temporary residence of Castel Gandolfo.

A crowd of Catholic faithful gathered Feb. 28 outside the papal vacation spot. At 8 p.m. Roman time, a loud bell rang eight times. The crowd shouted “Viva il Papa!” or “Long live the Pope!” Read more »

Venerable Brothers in the Episcopate and in the Priesthood! Distinguished Authorities! Dear brothers and sisters!

Thank you for coming in such large numbers to this last General Audience of my pontificate.

Like the Apostle Paul in the biblical text that we have heard, I feel in my heart the paramount duty to thank God, who guides the Church and makes her grow: who sows His Word and thus nourishes the faith in His people. Read more »

The two thirds majority rule for the election of a new pope was set in 1179 (Alexander III’s Licet de vitanda constitution) and did away with a number of setbacks.

But it also had some side effects such as lengthy holiday periods and a great deal of intervention from imperial powers, which in some cases ended up making cardinals hostages of their own plans. Read more »