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Pope Francis is seen in a window greeting a few nuns standing in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican March 22, 2020, after reciting his weekly Angelus prayer from the library of the Apostolic Palace. (CNS photo/Alberto Lingria, Reuters)
FaithVatican Dispatch
Gerard O’Connell
“In these days of trial, as humanity trembles at the threat of the [coronavirus] pandemic, I would propose that all Christians join their voices together to heaven,” Pope Francis said.
Pope Francis delivers the homily as he celebrates morning Mass March 20, 2020, in the chapel of his Vatican residence, the Domus Sanctae Marthae. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)
FaithVatican Dispatch
Gerard O’Connell
The decree states that the faithful can gain this plenary indulgence in a variety of ways while the pandemic lasts, such as by praying before the Blessed Sacrament, making Eucharistic Adoration or reading the Sacred Scriptures for a half an hour or more.
Medical workers at Gemelli Hospital in Rome wear protective suits as they attend an elderly coronavirus patient on March 16, 2020. (CNS photo/Policlinico Gemelli, handout via Reuters)
FaithVatican Dispatch
Gerard O’Connell
Pope Francis said, “The prayer of the rosary is the prayer of the humble and of the saints who, through its mysteries, contemplate with Mary the life of Jesus, the merciful face of the Father.”
Pope Francis speaks during his general audience as it is livestreamed from the library of the Apostolic Palace at the Vatican March 18, 2020. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)
FaithVatican Dispatch
Gerard O’Connell
Francis counseled: “Don’t waste these difficult days,” instead “rediscover” the importance of “small, concrete gestures expressing closeness and concreteness toward the people closest to us, a caress for our grandparents, a kiss for our children, for the people we love.”
Pope Francis walks the nearly deserted streets of Rome in late afternoon on March 15. (Copyright: Vatican Media)
FaithVatican Dispatch
Gerard O’Connell
Pope Francis traveled the nearly deserted streets of Rome this afternoon to pray at the Basilica of Saint Mary Major and the church of St. Marcello, home to a venerated crucifix from the 16th-century plague.
A mural depicts a nurse embracing the shape of Italy posted on the hospital of Pope John XXIII in solidarity with the health workers in Bergamo on March 13, 2020. (CNS photo/Sergio Agazzi, IPA/ABACAPRESS.COM via Reuters) 
FaithVatican Dispatch
Gerard O’Connell
In a video address, Pope Francis thanked caregivers and assured his audience that ‘spiritual communion‘ remains strong even during the isolation of the coronavirus epidemic. Gerard O’Connell reports from the Vatican.