The Jubilee, also known as the Holy Year, has begun with visitors flocking to Rome, the Vatican City and across Italy.Pope Francis kicked off the event while opening the Holy Door of St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican on Tuesday.

Pope Francis opens the Holy Year 2025, continues calls for peace, and addresses global challenges, emphasizing love, hope, and dialogue amid crises

Pope Francis, the leader of the Roman Catholic Church, delivered the "Urbi et Orbi" Christmas message and blessing from the Vatican at noon local time.

Archbishop Shevchuk has long advocated for a papal visit to Ukraine. Media reports about Pope Francis potentially visiting Ukraine have raised hopes the Holy Father could accept an invitation to visit the war-torn country in 2025.

Pope Francis called for peace around the world and for global conflicts to end in his annual “Urbi et Orbi” Christmas message to the faithful.

In his Angelus address on Dec. 26, Pope Francis reflected on Stephen’s last words as he was being stoned to death: “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.”

Marking the Holy Year of the Catholic Church, Pope Francis opened a Holy Door at a prison in Rome on Thursday, offering a message of hope and forgiveness to inmates. "Do not lose hope, that is the message I want to give you,

Pope Francis in his Christmas message called for talks between Ukraine and Russia to end the war that followed Moscow's full-scale invasion two years ago.

The 88-year-old Pope Francis opened the Holy Door of St. Peter’s Basilica before Mass on Christmas Eve, officially launching the Jubilee Year 2025.

(Abdel Kareem Hana | AP) Palestinian women and girls struggle to reach for food at a distribution center in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip, in December 2024. The Israel-Hamas war — including the international fallout — was named the top religion story of 2024.

Pope Francis has urged people not to be drawn towards “pessimism and resignation” despite wars and social injustices throughout the world, but to retain a “gentle gaze of hope”. The head of the Catholic church gave the Thought for the Day on BBC's Radio 4 on Saturday,