Pope Francis says he will make “a penitential pilgrimage” to Canada July 24 to embrace and contribute to healing and reconciliation with its Indigenous peoples

Were a papal document forthcoming it could lead to a new and definitive papal teaching document on issues as polarizing as contraception, assisted procreation and palliative care.

The pope joined the Sri Lanakan Catholic bishops in an “appeal for peace” and to the country’s political leaders “not to ignore the cry of the poor and the needs of the people.”

In a new interview, Pope Francis more openly criticized Russia’s aggression in Ukraine and clarified his position that NATO is partially to blame for the outbreak of war.

“I truly feel great sorrow at having to postpone this visit, which means so much to me," the pope said at his general audience on June 12.

Pope Francis has postponed “with regret” his visit to the Democratic Republic of the Congo and to South Sudan on the advice of his doctors so as “not to jeopardize the result of the therapy that he is undergoing.”