Read the latest news from regional and global sources, presenting different voices and perspectives.

Pope Leo has much to ponder during his vacation in Castel Gandolfo
After Pope Leo XIV arrives in Castel Gandolfo for his summer break, it is unlikely to prove a real vacation for the new pontiff. When Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost was elected on 8 May 2025, it was the post-Easter period in Rome. This is the...

Pope resumes tradition of taking summer vacation — but he’s got plenty of homework
VATICAN CITY (AP) -- In his very first sermon as pontiff, Pope Leo XIV told the cardinals who elected him that anyone who exercises authority in the Catholic Church must "make oneself small," so that only Christ remains. In word and deed since,...

World News | Pope Aims to Restore 'body and Spirit' During Vacation That Brings Pontiff Back to Castel Gandolfo
Rome, Jul 6 (AP) Pope Leo XIV on Sunday heads to the papal summer residence for a six-week vacation, giving the hilltop town of Castel Gandolfo back its most illustrious resident after Pope Francis stayed away during his 12-year pontificate. Leo...

Pope aims to restore 'body and spirit' during vacation that brings a pontiff back to Castel Gandolfo
The 69-year-old Chicago native is resuming the papal tradition of leaving the Vatican for the hot summer months in favor of the relatively cooler climes of the Alban Hills, south of Rome. The area has been a favorite getaway for Roman rulers since...

Pope Leo Resumes Summer Retreat Tradition, Heads To Castel Gandolfo For First Vacation
Last Updated:July 06, 2025, 16:11 IST The hilltop town, located just south of Rome on Lake Albano, had not hosted a pope in residence since Pope Francis chose to remain in the Vatican during summers Pope Leo XIV and his brother John Prevost played...

Pope Leo brings back summer vacation tradition with return to Castel Gandolfo
Resuming the tradition of taking a summer vacation, Pope Leo XIV will spend his holiday in the relatively cooler climes of Castel Gandolfo, the historic papal retreat perched above Lake Albano, about an hour south of Rome.Elected in May following...

Putin, Who Can Now Be Arrested In 125 Nations, Curtails Global Travel
Prosecutors at the International Criminal Court, in The Hague, Netherlands, have issued an arrest ... More warrant for Vladimir Putin for war crimes committed during his invasion of democratic Ukraine. (Photo by Alex Gottschalk/DeFodi Images via...

Travelogue: A short two months in Greece, part 4
This is the fourth installment of Edmonds resident Nathaniel Brown’s recent travels to Greece. You can read part 1 here, part 2 here and part 3 here. Athens I’ve written about Athens before – teeming, dirty and sparkling, exhilarating, old, often...

In Defense of the Tourist Trap: Why Following the Crowd Might Be the Smartest Way To Travel
This is part of Reason's 2025 summer travel issue. Click here to read the rest of the issue. If you ever go to New Orleans, one of your first stops should be the very unhidden gem of Café Du Monde's French Market location. There you can buy some...

Pope Leo XIV resumes tradition of taking summer vacation with 6 weeks off
VATICAN CITY (AP) — In his very first sermon as pontiff, Pope Leo XIV told the cardinals who elected him that anyone who exercises authority in the Catholic Church must “make oneself small,” so that only Christ remains. In word and deed since, Leo...

Pope Leo XIV moves to the ‘second Vatican City,’ Castel Gandolfo
Vatican City, Jul 5, 2025 / 08:30 am Two months into his pontificate, Pope Leo XIV will leave Rome to spend two weeks on a pontifical estate in the lakeside town of Castel Gandolfo, 18 miles south of the city, and sometimes known as the “second...
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Pope Leo XIV signals zero tolerance for abuse in latest Vatican appointment
On Saturday, Pope Leo XIV appointed France’s Bishop Thibault Verny to lead the Vatican’s child protection advisory group, signalling his determination to maintain the fight against clerical sexual abuse. Verny, 59, replaces Cardinal Sean O’Malley,...

Pope Leo XIV resumes the tradition of taking a summer vacation. But he’s got plenty of homework
VATICAN CITY (AP) — In his very first sermon as pontiff, Pope Leo XIV told the cardinals who elected him that anyone who exercises authority in the Catholic Church must “make oneself small,” so that only Christ remains. In word and deed since, Leo...

Pope Leo XIV resumes the tradition of taking a summer vacation. But he's got plenty of...
Leo will disappear further this weekend when he begins a six-week vacation in his first break since his historic election May 8. Leo is resuming the papal tradition of escaping the Roman heat for the relatively cooler climes of Castel Gandolfo,...

Pope Leo XIV resumes the tradition of taking a summer vacation. But he's got plenty of homework
People who know and work with Leo expect he will use these weeks away from the public eye and the daily grind of Vatican audiences to get his head around the most pressing problems facing the church. He's a methodical, hard-working and...

Paddy Agnew: Sweltering heat and 15,000 tourists, but the restored Hall of Constantine is a must-see for visitors to the Vatican
But when the news conference is taking place in the Vatican museum, at the time being assailed by approximately 15,000 tourists, then things can get very hot and sticky in a “use your elbows to get through” sort of way.

Pope Leo XIV resumes tradition of taking summer vacation; but he's got plenty of homework
In his very first sermon as pontiff, Pope Leo XIV told the cardinals who elected him that anyone who exercises authority in the Catholic Church must “make oneself small,” so that only Christ remains. In word and deed since, Pope Leo has seemed...

Will Leo weigh in on France's criminal chancellor?
A French archbishop is standing by his decision to appoint as chancellor a priest who was convicted of raping a 16-year-old boy, and who spent four years in prison for the offense. Archbishop Guy de Kerimel. Credit: Paralacre/wikimedia. CC1.0...

Pax, French clericalism, and American iconography
Happy Friday friends, And a happy feast of St. Benedict to you all. I am back after having taken last week off, though unfortunately this season’s edition of covid meant we had to turn around and come home after only a day away. I‘d been looking...

‘Hug therapy’: How Pope Leo XIV is trying to unify the Vatican
VATICAN CITY — Pope Leo XIV heads off on a holiday on Sunday, having spent his first two months as the Catholic Church’s leader rebuilding unity and bolstering tradition after his predecessor’s unorthodox papacy. “Prudent,” “methodical” and...