Church of the Madalene

A group of African nuns, Disciples of the Sacred Heart, line up for the procession that will follow Pope Francis’ funeral on Saturday, April 26, 2025. / Credit: Ursula Murua/EWTN News

Vatican City, Apr 26, 2025 / 00:18 am (CNA).

Pope Francis passed away at 7:35 a.m. local time on Easter Monday, April 21, at his residence in the Vatican’s Casa Santa Marta, as confirmed by the Holy See Press Office. The 88-year-old pontiff led the Catholic Church for a little more than 12 years.

Follow here for live updates of the latest news and information on the papal transition:

Cardinal Christophe Pierre speaks to EWTN News President and COO Montse Alvarado in Rome on Friday, April 25, 2025. / Credit: EWTN News

CNA Staff, Apr 25, 2025 / 19:36 pm (CNA).

Pope Francis asked us “to be a Church which announces the good news of Christ,” Cardinal Christophe Pierre said on Friday, one of the many fruits of the Holy Spirit’s having selected the late Argentine prelate to be the supreme pontiff.

Pierre, who has served as apostolic nuncio in various countries over several decades and who has served as nuncio to the United States under Francis, told EWTN News President and COO Montse Alvarado that as he sees it, Francis’ election in 2013 was the fruit of a process that arose out of the 2007 Aparecida conference of Latin American and Caribbean bishops in Brazil. 

Then-Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio headed up the committee that produced the conference’s final document. The bishops at that conference were “inspired [and] helped” by the future pope, Pierre said. 

“Then, six years later, Pope Francis was elected pope,” Pierre said, describing the selection as providential. “The Holy Spirit chose him so that he could be an instrument of Christ in today’s world,” the cardinal said. 

He further pointed to Francis’ regular contention — articulated first in his apostolic exhortation Evangelii Gaudium — that “realities are more important than ideas.”

“Today in the world, we are all tempted to transform reality into ideas,” Pierre told Alvarado. “And when you transform reality, it’s in abstractions. And ideas become ideology, and they become instruments of power, of war, of dispute between ourselves. And it is impossible to achieve peace as Christ asks us to do.”

“Even in the Church, at times we are tempted to defend our ideas,” the cardinal said. “But what Christ wants us to be is simply like him, and like Pope Francis has been.”

Asked about what the Catholic Church needs in the wake of Francis’ death, Pierre said it “needs first and foremost to be close to the people, to be attentive to the real needs of the people, especially the poor.”

He further urged Catholics to “remember that Jesus met you and changed your life.” He encouraged the faithful to “be a witness of Jesus for the world today.”

“I met Jesus, and this has transformed my life,” the prelate said. “And because Jesus transformed my life, I cannot do anything else but to announce his presence through my witness of life, but also through the way I live [and the way] I see the world.”

The archbishop of New York, Cardinal Timothy Dolan, speaks to EWTN News on Friday, April 25, 2025, in Rome. / Crdit: EWTN News/Screenshot

CNA Staff, Apr 25, 2025 / 19:16 pm (CNA).

The late Pope Francis was “a man of the heart” who preached tenderness and mercy to the global Church, New York archbishop Cardinal Timothy Dolan said on Friday. 

Dolan spoke to EWTN News President and COO Montse Alvarado at the Papal Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls on Friday. The cardinal is one of 10 from the United States who will vote in the upcoming conclave to elect the next pope. 

Reflecting on the three most recent popes — St. John Paul II, Benedict XVI, and Francis — the cardinal archbishop said John Paul II “reinvigorated the soul of the world” that was weary from “lies” and “atrocities.” Benedict XVI, meanwhile, was known for uniting “the mind, faith, and reason.”

“And Pope Francis, I thought, spoke very much about the heart,” Dolan said. 

“I remember his first time at the window after his election, I guess we were all thinking there would be some theologically erudite talk,” Dolan said. “And [instead] he spoke about tenderness, tenderness.” 

“We have a God who’s tender with us, and we have a God who wants us to be tender with one another,” Dolan continued.

The prelate said it was “magnificent” that Francis’ final encyclical, Dilexit Nos, was a call for Catholics worldwide to rediscover the love and compassion found in the heart of Jesus Christ. 

“Remember when he was in the hospital for so long,” Dolan said of Francis’ hospitalization earlier this year prior to his death. “When we got the medical bulletins [the] doctors would say, ‘Ah, but his heart is strong.’ And I said, ‘You bet it is.’ He was a man of the heart.”

Left: Ismael with his friend Dalia, who traveled from Barcelona, Spain. Right: Nadia Trujillo, Ana Asensio, and their friend who joined them from Portugal. / Credit: Ursula Murua/EWTN News

CNA Staff, Apr 25, 2025 / 18:56 pm (CNA).

At 9:45 p.m. Rome time, 12 hours before Pope Francis’ funeral is set to take place, the first of thousands of pilgrims were already lining up along the streets to catch a glimpse of the late pontiff as his body passes by on the way to the Basilica of St. Mary Major — his final burial place. 

Pope Francis’ funeral will take place on April 26 at 10 a.m. Rome time. Following the funeral, his coffin will be taken in a procession to the Basilica of St. Mary Major, where it will be interred. The procession route is set to take approximately half an hour and will pass several historic, Roman landmarks including the Colosseum. 

Sitting on the sidewalk near St. Peter’s Basilica, Ismael is one pilgrim who intends to “camp out” during the night to be present at this historic moment. Ismael, who preferred not to give his last name, came back to the Catholic Church five years ago — thanks to Pope Francis — after leaving for 20 years.

He credited his return to the Church to the pope’s “message of openness and his welcoming of all people,” he told CNA.

“Since I’m so grateful for my return home, that is why I came to say goodbye,” Ismael, who traveled from Barcelona, Spain, said while showing his backpack that had a picture of the pope and the words: “In the Church we all fit, everyone, everyone” and also: “I came back to the Church thanks to you.”

Among the first in line were also pilgrims from Portugal and El Salvador who live in Milan, Italy. Nadia Trujillo wanted to accompany her friend Ana Asensio on a pilgrimage to Rome to pass through the Holy Door of the jubilee and was surprised by the death of the pope.

“We did not expect the death of the pope to happen, and even less so at the moment when Jesus overcomes death. It gives a life lesson because we are all prone to die, but we must keep in mind who died first and gave us the opportunity to be reborn, which is Jesus Christ,” she said.

Trujillo also thanked the Catholic Church for “the spiritual guidance” she has received from its teachings, because without them, she said, “I would not have grown with guidelines that have stopped me from being more of a sinner than I already am — because we’re all sinners.”

Asensio, who made her first Communion last year, said she has gratitude in her heart for the Holy Father.

“I came because I felt it was a personal commitment because I left the Church, but with what the pope has done, I really came back to the Church and last year I made my first Communion and confirmation,” she shared.

A group of African nuns, Disciples of the Sacred Heart, were also among the first in line Friday night.

Despite the tiredness of the pilgrims, the atmosphere around the basilica is lively and pious, with many faithful continuing to arrive ready to stay up all night to attend the pope’s funeral.

Some pray, others sing songs and share words of hope as they wait for the ceremony to begin in the morning. For them, participating in this historic moment is a gesture of love, a way to pay their last respects to the spiritual father who inspired so many.

The casket of Pope Francis rests sealed in St. Peter's Basilica prior to the Holy Father's funeral, Friday, April 25, 2025, / Credit: Vatican Media

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Apr 25, 2025 / 18:36 pm (CNA).

The funeral for Pope Francis, pontiff from March 13, 2013, until his death on April 21, will be held on Saturday morning in St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City.

Saturday’s funeral will kick off the traditional “Novendiales,” nine consecutive days of mourning for the suffrage of the late pope. He will be buried at the Basilica of St. Mary Major.

When and where is the funeral and how can I watch it?

The funeral will begin at 10 a.m. Rome time on Saturday, April 26, which is 4 a.m. Eastern Time, 3 a.m. Central Time, 2 a.m. Mountain Time, and 1 a.m. Pacific Time.

The Vatican has not announced how long the funeral will be, but Pope Benedict XVI’s funeral lasted about one and a half hours and St. John Paul II’s funeral was about three hours long.

Pope Francis’ funeral can be watched on the Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN) and will be streamed live on EWTN’s YouTube channel.

The funeral will be held on the parvis of St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City, which is outdoors in front of the basilica.

Who is presiding over the liturgy?

The primary celebrant of Pope Francis’ funeral will be Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, the dean of the College of Cardinals, according to a statement from the Holy See.

Re, a native of Italy, was made a cardinal by Pope John Paul II in 2001. He is 91 years old. He presided over the 2013 papal conclave that elected then-Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio to the papacy.

The full list of concelebrants is unknown but will include patriarchs, cardinals, archbishops, bishops, and priests from around the world.

Most of the Mass will be said in Latin, but it will also include other languages, such as Italian, English, Polish, and Arabic.

Who will be attending?

The funeral is open to the general public and approximately 200,000 people are expected to attend the service. There will be a heavy security and police presence.

Numerous world leaders have announced they will attend Francis’ funeral, including United States President Donald Trump, First Lady Melania Trump, United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, French President Emmanuel Macron, and Polish President Andrzej Duda.

What will the readings be? 

The Gospel reading for the pontiff’s Mass will be from the 21st chapter of John, when Jesus Christ asked Simon Peter — the first pope — whether he loved him three times and entrusted the faithful to his leadership:

“‘Simon, Son of John, do you love me more than these?’ He said to him, ‘Yes Lord; you know that I love you.’ He said to him, ‘Feed my lambs.’ He said to him a second time, ‘Simon, Son of John, do you love me?’ He said to him, ‘Yes Lord; you know that I love you.’ He said to him, ‘Tend my sheep.’

“He said to him a third time, ‘Simon, son of John, do you love me?’ … He said to him, ‘Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Feed my sheep. Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were young, you used to dress yourself and walk wherever you wanted, but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will dress you and carry you where you do not want to go.’ (This he said to show by what kind of death he was to glorify God.)

“And after saying this, he said to him, ‘Follow me.’”

The first reading will be from Chapter 10 in the Acts of the Apostles, in which Peter said: “He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one appointed by God to be judge of the living and the dead. To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”

The second reading will be from St. Paul’s Letter to Philippians, in which the apostle said “our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.”

‘In Paradisum’ antiphon

After the Mass, the antiphon “In Paradisum” will be sung, which prays for the angels to guide the pope into heaven.

“May angels lead you into paradise; upon your arrival, may the martyrs receive you and lead you to the holy city of Jerusalem. May the ranks of angels receive you, and with Lazarus, the poor man, may you have eternal rest.”

Sealing of the coffin

On the eve of the funeral, on Friday at 8 p.m. local time, Cardinal Kevin Farrell presided over the sealing of the coffin. The sealing of the coffin marked the end of the time in which the public could view the mortal remains of the Holy Father. 

The pope is in a simple wooden coffin lined with zinc, and his face was covered in a silk veil, in accordance with the new papal funeral rite approved by him during his papacy. The previous standards called for three coffins: one of cypress, one of lead, and one of oak.

9 days of mourning and burial

The pope’s funeral marks the first day of the nine days of mourning, known as the “Novendiales.”

Over this period, a requiem Mass will be celebrated in St. Peter’s Basilica each night. A different cardinal will preside over each Mass. Those cardinals were chosen by Francis before his death or serve in key Vatican offices.

Each Mass will be focused on a specific subset of the faithful. The Holy See has confirmed that the Sunday Mass will be focused on the Jubilee of Teenagers, which will be celebrated by Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin.

Francis will be buried at the Basilica of St. Mary Major, which is a break from the recent papal tradition of being buried in the Vatican grottoes. The burial location is in accordance with the wishes the Holy Father publicized prior to his death. 

null / Credit: sergign/Shutterstock

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Apr 25, 2025 / 18:16 pm (CNA).

A Maryland district court judge this week ordered Catholic Relief Services (CRS) to pay a former employee $60,000 for its refusal to provide spousal health care benefits to the man’s civilly married “husband.”

The union is recognized under Maryland state law and federal law but is not recognized by the Catholic Church. The Church teaches that marriage is exclusively between a man and a woman and does not recognize homosexual civil “marriages” between two men or between two women.

In an April 21 ruling, U.S. District Judge Julie Rubin ruled that CRS violated state and federal laws that prohibit discrimination based on a person’s sex and his or her sexual orientation. The judge rejected CRS’ argument that the organization was covered under state and federal religious exemptions to the discrimination laws.

Rubin also rejected CRS’ argument that enforcing the antidiscrimination laws against the religious charity in this instance would violate the First Amendment’s protection of the free exercise of religion.

The dispute came down to the court’s interpretation of the “ministerial exception,” which is a legal doctrine in the United States that exempts religious entities from some antidiscrimination laws. 

It allows exemptions when an employee works in a position that furthers the religious mission of the entity in cases when the antidiscrimination provision would hamper its religious mission.

According to the ruling, the former employee, who is named “John Doe” in the lawsuit, worked as a program data adviser; a data quality and analytics adviser; a global monitoring, evaluation, accountability, and learning adviser; a program manager; and a gateway manager.

The judge ruled that these positions were not integral to advancing the religious mission of CRS and therefore did not qualify for a religious exemption under federal law or the Maryland Fair Employment Practices Act.

“Doe did not directly further a CRS core mission in any of his five positions held during his employment by CRS,” the ruling states.

“Because the court concludes that none of Doe’s five full-time positions with CRS directly furthered a CRS mission and that each of his positions was one or more steps removed from taking the actions that affect CRS goals, the court … concludes that CRS has not met its burden to show that [the state’s] religious entity exemption applies here,” the ruling adds. 

A spokesperson for CRS told CNA on Friday that the organization did not have a comment at the time and is currently “reviewing the judge’s ruling.”

The former employee issued a statement through his lawyers at Gilbert Employment Law in which he said he was “very happy with Judge Rubin’s ruling.” 

“[I] am honored to be part of such a precedent-setting case that has helped clarify, for employers and employees alike, the legal protections Maryland law provides, especially for LGBTQ+ workers,” the plaintiff said.

Ryan Tucker, who serves as senior counsel at the legal group Alliance Defending Freedom, expressed concern about the judge’s ruling in a statement to CNA. 

“Now and always, every religious organization has the right to hire people who share its faith,” he said. “The government should never penalize a religious nonprofit just because it’s religious. This ruling, however, is deeply concerning due to the implications it may have for the First Amendment rights of religious organizations and employers.”

CRS primarily provides humanitarian aid around the world. According to its mission statement, the organization is “motivated by the Gospel of Jesus Christ to cherish, preserve, and uphold the sacredness and dignity of all human life, foster charity and justice, and embody Catholic social and moral teaching.”

Thousands of Catholics said their last goodbyes and paid their respects to Pope Francis on Wednesday, April 23, 2025, as the late pope lay in state in St. Peter’s Basilica. / Credit: Daniel Ibañez/CNA

Vatican City, Apr 25, 2025 / 17:56 pm (CNA).

Among the more than 250,000 people who made their way to the Vatican this week were the nocturnal pilgrims wanting to catch a final glimpse of Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Basilica before his Saturday funeral.   

To host the streams of pilgrims in mourning to St. Peter’s Basilica, the Vatican extended opening hours — with the support of thousands of jubilee and Civil Protection volunteers — to allow visitors to pay their last respects to the late pontiff past midnight. 

Throughout the week several mourners gathered at various entry points surrounding the Vatican after sundown during the week to pay their final respects to the late leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics.

“When it became known that it would be possible to pray before the pope in St. Peter’s on Wednesday, I immediately thought of going that same day in the evening, after work, because I assumed that as the days went by, more and more people would arrive,” Isabel Troconis told CNA on Friday.

After passing through the Vatican’s security checkpoints and a two-hour wait within St. Peter’s Square, Troconis said she was moved to see so many people come to see the Holy Father on the first day and evening of his public viewing.

“What impressed me most was the variety of people gathered there: families, workers, and tourists from Italy and all over the world; business people and immigrant workers; ordinary and extravagant people; even non-Christian religious figures like a group of Buddhist monks who were walking in silence and very recollected,” she shared. 

Reflecting on the legacy of Pope Francis and the diversity of people who have come to see him “has reminded us that God’s love is not only universal but also concrete and personal: that he is always concerned about each person, especially those most in need,” Troconis said. 

For Laura Pérez, St. Peter’s Basilica is “more beautiful” at night and the evening darkness creates a more conducive atmosphere for prayer and contemplation, she said.

Coming to St. Peter’s Basilica after work on Thursday was the only time she and her group of friends could pass through the jubilee Holy Door and say goodbye to the “joyful and humble” pope who “lived the Gospel” and inspired others to do the same. 

“At some point we started reading the reflection that Pope Francis made for the World Youth Day in Lisbon, like ‘Mary arose and went with haste (Lk 1:39),’” she told CNA on Friday.   

“We were meditating on his words because it was a way of honoring him,” she said. “For young people, he left a lot of messages that are very encouraging, that are very comforting, and that speak to us.”

“It spoke a lot to me to be there [at St. Peter’s Basilica] at night,” she added.

Italian President Sergio Mattarella and his daughter pay their respects to Pope Francis at an early viewing on April 22, 2025, before the late pope is transferred to St. Peter’s Basilica to lie in state. / Credit: Vatican Media

ACI Prensa Staff, Apr 25, 2025 / 17:36 pm (CNA).

The following leaders from around the world are among the dignitaries who have announced they will attend Pope Francis’ funeral on Saturday, April 26, at the Vatican:

Javier Milei, president of Argentina, homeland of Pope Francis

Donald Trump, president of the United States, and his wife and first lady, Melania Trump

Former U.S. president Joe Biden and his wife, former first lady Jill Biden

Bajram Begaj, president of Albania

Joâo Manuel Gonçalves, president of Angola

Vahagn Khachaturyan, president of Armenia

Sam Mostyn, governor general of Australia

Christian Stocker, chancellor of Austria

Muhammad Yunus, chief adviser of Bangladesh

Bart De Wever, prime minister of Belgium

Froyla Tzalam, governor general of Belize

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, president of Brazil

Zeljka Cvijanović, chairman of the presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina

Mary Simon, governor general of Canada

Jose Maria Neves, president of Cape Verde

Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, prime minister of Qatar

Faustin-Archange Touadera, president of the Central African Republic

Manuel José Ossandon, senator of Chile

Chin-Jen Chen, former vice president of China

Zoran Milanovic, president of Croatia

Salvador Valdés Mesa, vice president of Cuba

Nikos Christodoulides, president of Cyprus

Petr Fiala, prime minister of the Czech Republic

Felix Tshisekedi, president of the Democratic Republic of Congo

Luis Abinader, president of the Dominican Republic

Jose Ramos-Horta, president of East Timor

Daniel Noboa, president of Ecuador

Félix Ulloa Garay, vice president of El Salvador

Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue, vice president of Equatorial Guinea

Alar Karis, president of Estonia

Alexander Stubb, president of Finland

Emmanuel Macron, president of France

Brice Nguema, president of Gabon

Mikheil Kavelashvili, president of Georgia

Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Olaf Scholz, president and chancellor of Germany

Kyriakos Mitsotakis, prime minister of Greece

Xiomara Castro, president of Honduras.

Tamas Sulyok and Viktor Orbán, president and prime minister of Hungary

Halla Tómasdóttir, president of Iceland

Droupadi Murmu, president of India

Nechirvan Barzani, president of Kurdistan Region in Iraq

Micheal D. Higgins and Micheal Martin, president and prime minister of Ireland

Sergio Mattarella and Giorgia Meloni, president and prime minister of Italy

Yaron Sideman, ambassador of Israel

William Samoei Ruto, president of Kenya

Edgars Rinkevics, president of Latvia

Joseph Khalil Aoun, president of Lebanon

Gitanas Nauseda, president of Lithuania

Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova, president of Macedonia

Andry Rajoelina, president of Madagascar

Myriam Spiteri Debono, president of Malta

Rosa Icela Rodríguez, secretary of the interior of Mexico

Maia Sandu, president of Moldova

Jakov Milatović, president of Montenegro

Aziz Akhannouch, prime minister of Morocco

Daniel Chapo, president of Mozambique

Dick Schoof, prime minister of the Netherlands

Christopher Luxon, prime minister of New Zealand.

Mohamed Mustafa, prime minister of Palestine

Raúl Latorre, president of the chamber of deputies of Paraguay

Ferdinand Marcos Jr., president of the Philippines

Andrzej Duda, president of Poland

Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa and Luis Montenegro, president and prime minister of Portugal

Ilie Bolojan, interim president of Romania

Denise Bronzetti, captain regent of San Marino

Duro Macut, prime Minister of Serbia

Wavel Ramkalawan, president of Seychelles

Julius Maada Bio, president of Sierra Leone

Peter Pellegrini, president of Slovakia

Natasa Pirc Musar and Robert Golob, president and prime minister of Slovenia

Ulf Kristersson, prime minister of Sweden

Karin Keller-Sutter, president of Switzerland

Philip Isdor Mpango, vice president of Tanzania

Faure Gnassingbé, president of Togo

Numan Kurtulmus, speaker of the national assembly of Turkey

Volodymyr Zelenskyy, president of Ukraine

Keir Starmer, prime minister of the United Kingdom

Antonio Guterres, secretary-general of the United Nations

Constantino Chiwenga, vice president of Zimbabwe

Foreign ministers 

The foreign ministers from Algeria, Burkina Faso, Japan, Mali, Mongolia, Namibia, Norway, Peru, South Sudan, Tunisia, Sri Lanka, Uruguay, Venezuela, and Zambia will attend.

Monarchs 

Royals include: 

King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of Belgium

Queen Mary of Denmark

Prince William of Wales will attend in place of his father, King Charles III of England

King Abdullah II of Jordan

King Letsie III of Lesotho

Prince Alois and Princess Sophie of Liechtenstein

Grand Duke Henri and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg

Prince Albert and Princess Charlene of Monaco

Crown Prince Haakon and Crown Princess Mette-Marit will attend on behalf of King Harald V and Queen Sonja of Norway

King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia of Spain

King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Swede

Leaders of international institutions

Bjorn Berge, secretary-general of the Council of Europe

Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission

Roberta Metsola, president of the European Parliament

Antonio Costa, president of the council of the European Union

Kaja Callas, high representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs

Álvaro Lario, president of the International Fund for Agricultural Development

Pia Kauma, president of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the United Nations

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

Father Brian Thomas Beckett Mullady, OP, speaks to Father Mitch Pacwa on “EWTN Live,” Wednesday, July 31, 2019. / Credit: EWTN

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Apr 25, 2025 / 17:16 pm (CNA).

EWTN television and radio show host, author, and devoted teacher Father Brian Thomas Becket Mullady, OP, passed away on the evening of Tuesday, April 22, following health complications. He was 78.

Mullady will be remembered for his strong media presence teaching the Catholic faith in an understandable and relatable manner. Throughout his career he hosted seven television series on EWTN and published seven books with EWTN Publishing. 

The priest hosted several programs centered on Christ and the Church, including “God’s Blueprint for a Happy Life” with Deacon Harold Burke-Sivers. The show was created to “provide a step-by-step guide for getting the most out of the Ten Commandments and to show how faithfully following them leads to a rich and rewarding life in Christ.”

Mullady’s many articles and books explored a wide range of topics and theological questions, from “Grace Explained: How to Receive — and Retain — God’s Most Potent Gift” to “St. Thomas Aquinas Rescues Modern Psychology.”

The priest also personally connected with everyday people to spread the Catholic mission on his popular EWTN radio show “Open Line Thursday with Fr. Brian Mullady.” During the program, people called in to ask Mullady faith-related questions and he would answer and discuss the topics in real time.

Prior to his media work, Mullady was committed to several other jobs including working as a parish priest, high school teacher, retreat master, mission preacher, and professor at colleges and seminaries. He entered the Dominican order in 1966 and was ordained in 1972.

“Father Mullady was one of my favorite hosts when I used to watch EWTN before coming to work here, and I was very proud of the fact that I brought him back to do additional TV and radio programs for us,” EWTN President and COO Doug Keck wrote on social media.

“He had a marvelous gift of conveying the faith in an interesting and understandable way and had a great sense of humor. He will be greatly missed,” Keck said.

EWTN Chaplain Father John Paul Mary, MFVA, reflected on a retreat Mullady held that he attended prior to becoming a priest. He said he remembers and appreciates how Mullady discussed the topic of grace.

He said Mullady “really wanted to know what grace does when we cooperate with God’s grace. That grace can transform us. It transforms in nature when we live the virtues.”

“For me, as a priest and as a friar,” Father John Paul said, Mullady “influenced the way that I think about God’s grace, how I experience it, and how I want to live according to the grace of God.”

“Throughout nearly my entire 20 years at the Register, it was a blessing and privilege to know Father Mullady, who I consider one of the foremost authorities on the documents of the Second Vatican Council and their implementation,” Tom Wehner, the print editor for CNA’s sister news partner, the National Catholic Register, told CNA.

Wehner described Mullady as “a straight shooter” and said he “didn’t sugarcoat his remarks about the hits and misses on the implementation of the council.”

“And those who were the recipients of his wisdom during the many Lenten missions and retreats he gave received an immeasurable gift.”

“On a personal note,” Wehner added, “when we would share a meal during his semesters at nearby Holy Apostles College and Seminary, our long conversations were just as formative as they were a dialogue between friends.”

Pope Francis arrives in Uganda. / Martha Calderon / CNA.

ACI Africa, Apr 25, 2025 / 16:56 pm (CNA).

Pope Francis’ more than 12-year pontificate — characterized by an emphasis on mercy and compassion, the need to care for creation, and attention to the marginalized and “peripheries” of the Church and society — deeply resonated with the people of God in Africa, according to ACI Africa, CNA’s news partner in Africa, with one exception related to the release of a controversial Vatican document.

In his 47 apostolic journeys outside Italy, Pope Francis, who passed away on Easter Monday, April 21, at the age of 88, visited 68 countries — 10 of them in Africa. 

He began with Kenya in November 2015 in what was a three-nation pastoral trip that saw him also visit Uganda and the Central African Republic and concluded with South Sudan in February 2023, after visiting the Democratic Republic of Congo. 

The late pontiff also visited Egypt in April 2017 and Morrocco in March 2019. In September 2019, he embarked on a three-African-nation trip to Mozambique, Madagascar, and Mauritius.

In these pastoral trips and throughout his pontificate, Pope Francis demonstrated a deep knowledge and great love for Africa, particularly expressed in his frustration over foreign exploitation of Africa’s resources and the need for peace across the continent. He sought to validate Africans’ dreams and to align with some of the traditional values of the continent.

A great love for Africa

Multiple times and on various occasions, Pope Francis made it clear that he had Africa’s best interests at heart. 

When, due to health reasons in July 2022, he had to postpone his pastoral trip that had been scheduled to the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan, he made clear his love for the people of God in the two African countries, where protracted violent conflicts have occasioned much suffering. 

“Dear Congolese and South Sudanese friends, at this time words are insufficient to convey to you my closeness and the affection that I feel for you. I want to tell you this: Do not let yourselves be robbed of hope! Think, you who are so dear to me, of how much more you are precious and beloved in the eyes of God, who never disappoints those who put their hope in him!” the pope said on July 2, 2022, the day he was to start what would be his last African pastoral visit.

Much earlier, in what was described as a “dramatic gesture” of love for the people of God in South Sudan, on April 11, 2019, Pope Francis knelt and kissed the feet of South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir and opposition leader Dr. Riek Machar, among others. This was after a spiritual retreat that brought together the South Sudanese president, the opposition leader, and the widow of South Sudanese leader John Garang, Rebecca Nyandeng De Mabior, among other political and religious leaders from South Sudan. 

Pope Francis’ dramatic gesture would inspire peace campaigns in the world’s youngest nation. For instance, in April 2022, a campaign dubbed “Remember Pope Francis’ Kiss for Peace” was launched and continued to challenge political leaders in South Sudan to foster “peace and stability.”

Pope Francis’ desire to connect with the people of God in Africa in his pastoral visits demonstrated his great love for Africa. He planned to and encountered some of the poorest of the poor during his visits. 

In Kenya, Pope Francis visited the Nairobi slum community of Kangemi. In his speech there, he thanked the slum dwellers “for welcoming me to your neighborhood,” adding: “I feel very much at home sharing these moments with brothers and sisters who, and I am not ashamed to say this, have a special place in my life and my decisions. I am here because I want you to know that your joys and hopes, your troubles and your sorrows, are not indifferent to me. I realize the difficulties which you experience daily! How can I not denounce the injustices which you suffer?”

Similarly, in South Sudan, Pope Francis had an encounter with some 2,500 people living in refugee camps after being forced to leave their homes because of violent conflicts or flooding. In a show of love, he told them: “You are the seed of a new South Sudan, a seed for the fertile and lush growth of this country.”

He continued, encouraging hope among the refugees and the internally displaced: “You, from all your different ethnic groups, you who have suffered and are still suffering, you who do not want to respond to evil with more evil. You, who choose fraternity and forgiveness, are even now cultivating a better tomorrow ... Be seeds of hope, which make it possible for us already to glimpse the tree that one day, hopefully in the near future, will bear fruit.” 

Pope Francis demonstrated an understanding of Africa by delivering messages that people on the continent resonated with. For instance, his May 2015 encyclical letter on care for our common home, Laudato Si’, inspired multiple initiatives on the continent, which various entities spearheaded, including the Laudato Si’ Movement-Africa. His decision to establish the World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly in January 2021 was lauded in Africa. 

Many Africans, including theologians, have lauded Pope Francis for the multiyear Synod on Synodality. This initiative “became a very exciting moment for the whole Church,” Father Ambrose John Bwangatto recalled in a get-well-soon message to Pope Francis through ACI Africa. 

Alluding to the Synod on Synodality initiative, the director of programs at the Pan-African Catholic Theology and Pastoral Network (PACTPAN), Sister Jane Joan Kimathi, shared: “Pope Francis is a prophetic voice in a wounded world, a shepherd who embodies compassion, justice, and inclusivity. His leadership reflects the African spirit of ‘Ubuntu’ (I am because we are), emphasizing community over exclusion, mercy over judgment, and solidarity with the marginalized.” 

Pope Francis, the Kenyan Sister further said, “is a bridge-builder, much like the African elders who mediate conflicts, seeking not division but reconciliation. His call for a synodal Church, one that walks together, resonates deeply with African traditions of communal decision-making, where wisdom is not imposed from above but discerned in dialogue.”

Sharp words of caution on exploiting Africa

Pope Francis’ great love for Africa was also demonstrated by his caution against exploitation of the continent’s people and resources. The pope demonstrated a great understanding of this problem and tried to show Africans they can unchain themselves from abuse. 

In his speech in DRC on Jan. 31, 2023, Pope Francis spoke plainly to the international community: “This country and this continent deserve to be respected and listened to; they deserve to find space and receive attention,” he said, and amid cheers added: “Hands off the Democratic Republic of the Congo! Hands off Africa! Stop choking Africa: Africa is not a mine to be stripped or a terrain to be plundered.” 

He continued: “May Africa be the protagonist of its own destiny! May the world acknowledge the catastrophic things that were done over the centuries to the detriment of the local peoples, and not forget this country and this continent.”

Encouraging African youth

Earlier, speaking during a virtual dialogue with Catholic youth from universities in Africa that the Pan-African Catholic Theology and Pastoral Network (PACTPAN) organized on the solemnity of All Saints’ Day 2022, Pope Francis cautioned Africa’s youths against enslavement. 

“Please continue working, striving for your future; don’t allow yourselves to be enslaved; be cautious and make sure you stay alive,” Pope Francis said on Nov. 1, 2022. He encouraged African youth to believe in themselves. 

Reaction to Fiducia Supplicans 

Pope Francis allowed the African Church a certain degree of autonomy, and it was in that context that misgivings about a controversial Vatican document, Fiducia Supplicans (FS), were expressed. Africa’s Catholic bishops’ decision not to implement FS was a low moment in the pope’s relationship with Africa.

Fiducia Supplicans permits members of the clergy to bless same-sex couples and couples in other “irregular situations.” For weeks, reactions poured in from Catholic leaders in Africa about the document that the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) released in December 2023. 

Bishop Martin Mtumbuka of Malawi’s Karonga Diocese called upon the people in his diocese to “forget and ignore this controversial and apparently blasphemous declaration in its entirety.” 

In Kenya, Bishop Paul Kariuki Njiru of Wote Diocese said that FS “should be rejected in totality.” In a letter he issued on Dec. 27, 2023, he faulted the DDF prefect, Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, for not consulting “widely” before releasing the document. Fernández, he said, “should have widely done enough consultation before releasing such a controversial declaration. His idea and thought that cardinals and bishops cannot prohibit what Pope Francis has permitted with Fiducia Supplicans is mistaken.”

The leadership of the Symposium of Episcopal Conference of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM) was strategic in handling the reactions to FS. Just two days after its release, SECAM president Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo reached out to colleagues across the continent through the presidents of the Catholic bishops’ conferences to provide “unequivocal clarity” on the issue and mend the deep division FS had caused. 

While gathering feedback from the dozens of bishops’ conferences across Africa, Ambongo also engaged the Vatican. In an audio recording, he recalled his decision to travel to Rome that was preceded by a seven-page letter to Pope Francis. In the recording, he recounted the process that resulted in the statement in which he declared that FS would not be implemented in Africa. 

“With the prefect [Fernández], myself in front of the computer, a secretary writing, we prepared a document … in dialogue and agreement with Pope Francis, so that at every moment we called him to ask him questions, to see if he agreed with that formulation.”

Ambongo said he signed the document as president of SECAM on behalf of the entire Church in Africa and that Fernández signed it. The document was not made public but kept in the archives. It is titled: “No to the Blessing of Homosexual Couples in the Catholic Churches.”

Although the text appears to have been signed in Accra, Ghana, the headquarters of SECAM, in reality, “I signed it in Rome,” Ambongo said. “The episcopal conferences of all Africa, which have strongly reaffirmed their communion with Pope Francis, believe that the extra-liturgical blessings proposed in the declaration Fiducia Supplicans cannot be carried out in Africa without exposing themselves to scandals.”

“This is to express our position today in Africa and we do it in a spirit of communion, of synodality with Pope Francis, and with the prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith: In Africa there is no place to bless homosexual couples. Not at all,” he stressed.

The SECAM statement cited a previous DDF Declaration on homosexuality, the Catechism of the Catholic Church, the sacred Scriptures, and the language used in FS as additional reasons for rejecting the DDF declaration on the continent. 

Were the misgivings resolved? 

On Jan. 13, 2024, Pope Francis was quoted as explaining that FS was not to be implemented in Africa “because the culture does not accept it.” Much more seems to have been omitted in Pope Francis’ explanation in his closed-door meeting with 800 priests from the Diocese of Rome in the Archbasilica of St. John Lateran as Italian media outlets, including the Italian news channel, Sky TG24, reported. The “consolidated summary” of the responses of the Conferences of Catholic Bishops in Africa, which Ambongo had issued on Jan. 11, 2024, went beyond cultures in Africa.

The SECAM statement aimed to put an end to the misgivings in the relationship between Pope Francis and the African Church. Rather than impart blessings upon same-sex couples and couples in other “irregular situations” as FS proposed, the African bishops underscored the need “for the conversion of all.” 

On his part, Pope Francis allowed the Church in Africa to contextualize the document he endorsed.

This article was originally published by ACI Africa, CNA's African news partner, and has been adapted for CNA.