Religion and Faith

Robert Prevost, first pope from U.S. in history of the Catholic Church, takes the name Leo XIV
Cardinal Robert Prevost, a missionary who spent his career ministering in Peru and leads the Vatican’s powerful office of bishops, has been elected the first American pope in the 2,000-year history of the Catholic Church. Prevost, 69, took the name Leo XIV. 
No pope chosen as black smoke billows from Sistine Chapel
Black smoke has again poured out of the Sistine Chapel chimney, indicating no pope was elected on the second or third ballots of the conclave to choose a new leader of the Catholic Church. The smoke appeared just before noon in the Vatican after morning voting sessions to elect a successor to Pope Francis.
The conclave to choose a new pope is about to begin
As more than a billion Catholics around the world await the election of a new pope, all eyes are on the Sistine Chapel, where 133 cardinals will begin the secretive process known as a conclave.
The next pope will inherit Pope Francis’ mixed legacy with Indigenous people
Whoever succeeds Pope Francis will inherit his momentous and controversial legacy of relations with Indigenous people throughout the Americas. Francis, who died April 21, apologized for the “catastrophic” legacy of residential schools in Canada.
How to watch Pope Francis’s funeral, and what to expect
Pope Francis’s funeral begins in Vatican City at 4 a.m. ET on Saturday and will end with his burial in Rome. Here’s what to know about the day's events — and how Francis is breaking with tradition.
Pope Francis’ doctor says pontiff died ‘without suffering, at home’
Pope Francis’ doctor has recounted the pope’s last moments in Italian newspaper interviews. Dr. Sergio Alfieri said the pope “died without suffering, at home.” The doctor found the pontiff with his eyes open and breathing normally, but unresponsive when he was called to the Vatican early Monday morning. 
Trump and Zelenskyy among dignitaries converging on Rome for funeral of Pope Francis
Heads of state and royalty will begin converging on Rome for Pope Francis’ funeral in the Vatican’s St. Peter’s Square, but the group of poor people who will meet his casket in a small crosstown basilica are more in keeping with Francis’ humble persona and disdain for pomp.