In a historic moment for the Catholic Church, Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost was elected as the 267th Pope, taking the name Leo XIV, and becoming the first American-born pope in the Church’s 2,000-year history on May 8.
“Pope Francis has inspired a Church that is welcoming with a human heart, showing the merciful face of God,” says Archbishop Simon Poh of Kuching, Malaysia.
On April 21, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Vietnam held a memorial service and Mass for the soul of Pope Francis in the Archdiocese of Hue, Vietnam.
With profound sorrow and reverence, the Apostolic Vicariate of Phnom Penh announces the passing of Pope Francis, the Sovereign Pontiff of the Universal Church, on Easter Monday, April 21, 2025.
“We have learned much from Pope Francis' stance to listen and walk rather than command based on authority,” Cardinal Tarcisio Isao Kikuchi, the president of the Japan Council of Catholic Bishops and Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Tokyo.
With Pope Francis' passing on April 21, 2025, all cardinals are summoned to Rome, and the Catholic Church, one of the oldest and largest religious institutions with up to 1.39 billion members, prepares for a conclave to elect his successor.
The All India Catholic Union (AICU), the largest association of India’s Catholic laypeople, joins the universal church in mourning Pope Francis, who died in the Vatican on April 21.
Following the passing of Pope Francis on Easter Monday, Cardinal Isao Kikuchi, SVD, Archbishop of Tokyo, shared a heartfelt tribute recalling the Holy Father’s impact on the global Church and his personal encounters with the pope.
The Archdiocese of Singapore will hold a memorial Mass for the repose of the soul of Pope Francis on Tuesday, April 22, 2025, at 1:15 PM at the Cathedral of the Good Shepherd.
With deep sorrow, the Archdiocese of Madurai in Tamil Nadu announces the passing of His Holiness Pope Francis, the Supreme Pontiff of the Universal Church, on April 21.
The canonization of Blessed Carlo Acutis, who is set to become the first millennial saint, has been deferred following the death of Pope Francis on April 21, the Vatican said.
Pope Francis, the 266th pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church and the first from Latin America, passed away on Monday, April 21, 2025, at 7:35 a.m. in his residence at Casa Santa Marta in Vatican City.
In his powerful Easter Vigil homily, Cardinal Charles Maung Bo, Archbishop of Yangon and President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Myanmar, invited the faithful to rejoice and find hope in the Resurrection, even amid the nation’s deep suffering.
The 81-year-old Catholic priest from Australia died on Sunday night (April 20, 2025) in the Philippines, according to Columbans Missionaries Philippines.
