Bulletins, Newsletters, and Flocknotes

The following is the telegram of condolence sent by the Holy Father Leo XIV to Archbishop Joseph Nguyên Nãng of Ho Chi Minh City, on the death on Sunday 22 March 2026 of His Eminence Cardinal Jean-Baptiste Pham Minh Mân, archbishop emeritus of Thàn-Phô Hô Chí Minh, Hôchiminh Ville, Viêt Nam:

 

Telegram of the Holy Father

THE MOST REVEREND JOSEPH NGUYÊN NÃNG

ARCHBISHOP OF HO CHI MINH CITY

HAVING LEARNED WITH SADNESS OF THE DEATH OF CARDINAL JOHN BAPTIST PHAM MINH MÂN, ARCHBISHOP EMERITUS OF HO CHI MINH CITY, PLEASE ACCEPT MY HEARTFELT CONDOLENCES WHICH I EXTEND ALSO TO THE CLERGY, RELIGIOUS AND LAY FAITHFUL OF THE ARCHDIOCESE. JOINING YOU IN COMMENDING HIS NOBLE SOUL TO THE INFINITE MERCIES OF GOD OUR HEAVENLY FATHER, I RECALL WITH IMMENSE GRATITUDE THE LATE CARDINAL’S MANY YEARS OF DEDICATED PRIESTLY AND EPISCOPAL MINISTRY TO THE LOCAL CHURCHES OF MY THO AND HO CHI MINH CITY, AS WELL AS HIS CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE WIDER CHURCH IN VIETNAM AND TO THE APOSTOLIC SEE. HIS MINISTRY WAS MARKED BY A PROFOUND COMMITMENT TO PASTORAL CARE AND SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY, THE STEADFAST PROMOTION OF DIALOGUE AND ECCLESIAL UNITY, AND THE WITNESS OF A LIFE LIVED IN EVANGELICAL SIMPLICITY AND HUMILITY. TO ALL WHO MOURN CARDINAL PHAM MINH MÂN’S PASSING IN THE SURE HOPE OF THE RESURRECTION, I CORDIALLY IMPART MY APOSTOLIC BLESSING AS A PLEDGE OF CONSOLATION AND PEACE IN THE LORD.

LEO PP. XIV

The following is the text of the Message sent by the Holy Father Leo XIV on the occasion of the Installation of the Archbishop of Canterbury, which took place on 25 March 2026 in Canterbury Cathedral:

 

Message

To The Most Reverend and Right Honourable

Dame Sarah Mullally

Archbishop of Canterbury

“Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us, from God the Father and from

Jesus Christ, the Father’s Son, in truth and love.” (2 Jn 1:3)

With this assurance of God’s abiding presence, I send prayerful greetings to Your Grace on the occasion of your Installation as Archbishop of Canterbury.

I know that the office for which you have been chosen is a weighty one, with responsibilities not only in the Diocese of Canterbury, but throughout the Church of England as well as the Anglican Communion as a whole. Moreover, you are commencing these duties at a challenging moment in the history of the Anglican family. In asking the Lord to strengthen you with the gift of wisdom, I pray that you may be guided by the Holy Spirit in serving your communities, and draw inspiration from the example of Mary, the Mother of God.

Sixty years ago, during their historic encounter in Rome, our predecessors of happy memory, Saint Paul VI and Archbishop Michael Ramsey, committed Catholics and Anglicans to “a new stage in the development of fraternal relations, based upon Christian charity” ( Joint Declaration , 24 March 1966). That fresh chapter of respectful openness has borne much fruit over the past six decades and continues to this day.

On that same occasion, Pope Paul and Archbishop Ramsey also agreed to initiate a theological dialogue. Indeed, the Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC) has contributed enormously to a growth in mutual understanding since its creation. The rewards of this valuable work have set us free to witness together more effectively (cf. International Anglican-Roman Catholic Commission for Unity and Mission, Growing Together in Unity and Mission , 93). This is especially vital given the manifold challenges facing our human family today. I am grateful, therefore, that this important dialogue continues.

At the same time, we also know that the ecumenical journey has not always been smooth. Despite much progress, our immediate predecessors, Pope Francis and Archbishop Justin Welby, acknowledged frankly that “new circumstances have presented new disagreements among us.” Nevertheless, we have continued to walk together, because differences “cannot prevent us from recognizing one another as brothers and sisters in Christ by reason of our common baptism” ( Joint Declaration , 5 October 2016). For my part, I firmly believe that we need to continue to dialogue in truth and love, for it is only in truth and love that we come to know together the grace, mercy and peace of God (cf. 2 Jn 1:3), and thus can offer these precious gifts to the world.

What is more, the unity which Christians seek is never an end in itself, but is directed towards the proclamation of Christ, in order that, as the Lord Jesus himself prayed, “the world may believe” ( Jn 17:21). In addressing the Primates of the Anglican Communion in 2024, Pope Francis declared that “it would be a scandal if, due to our divisions, we did not fulfil our common vocation to make Christ known” ( Address to Primates of the Anglican Communion, 2 May 2024). Dear sister, I willingly make these words my own, for it is through the witness of a reconciled, fraternal and united Christian community that the proclamation of the Gospel will resound most clearly (cf. Message for the 2026 World Mission Day , 2).

With these fraternal sentiments, I invoke upon you the blessings of Almighty God as you take up your high responsibilities. May the Holy Spirit come down upon you and make you fruitful in the Lord’s service.

From the Vatican, 20 March 2026

Memorial of Saint Cuthbert, Bishop

LEO PP. XIV

Statistics of the Catholic Church in the Principality of Monaco as of 31 December 2024 (from the Central Office of Church Statistics)

The following are some statistical data regarding the situation of the Catholic Church in the Principality of Monaco as of 31 December 2024:

 

Table 1 – Population and ecclesiastical structure

Area (km²)

2.02

 

 

 

Population

(in thousands)

38.4

 

 

 

Density (inhabitants/Km2)

19.010

 

 

 

Catholics (in thousands)

31.5

 

 

 

Catholics per 100 inhabitants

82,0

 

 

 

Ecclesiastical circumscriptions

1

 

 

 

Parrocchie

6

 

 

 

Other pastoral centres

3

 

 

 

Catholics per pastoral centre

3.500

 

 

 

 

Table 2 – People engaged in activities of the apostolate

Bishops¹

1

 

 

 

Diocesan priests

19

 

 

 

Religious priests

8

 

 

 

Total priests

27

 

 

 

Permanent deacons

3

 

 

 

Men religious other than priests

-

 

 

 

Professed women religious

11

 

 

 

Members of secular institutes

-

 

 

 

Lay missionaries

-

 

 

 

Catechists

45

 

 

 

__________________

¹ Situation as of 3.3.2026

 

Table 3 – Indicators of pastoral workload

Catholics per priest

1.167

 

 

 

Catholics per pastoral worker

362

 

 

 

Priests per pastoral centre

3

 

 

 

Priests per 100 people engaged in activities of the apostolate

32,2

 

 

 

 

Table 4 – Priestly vocations

Minor seminarians

-

 

 

 

Major seminarians

2

 

 

 

Major seminarians per 100,000 inhabitants

5,21

 

 

 

Major seminarians per 100,000 Catholics

6,35

 

 

 

Major seminarians per 100 priests

7,41

 

 

 

 

Table 5 - Educational centres owned / managed by ecclesiastics or religious

Schools:

 

 

 

 

- Pre-school and primary

4

 

 

 

- Middle and secondary

1

 

 

 

- Higher education and university

-

 

 

 

Students in:

 

 

 

 

- Pre-school and primary schools

597

 

 

 

- Middle and secondary

747

 

 

 

- Institutes of Higher Education and Universities

-

 

 

 

 

Table 6 - Charitable and social centres owned / managed by ecclesiastics or religious

Hospitals

3

 

 

 

Clinics

-

 

 

 

Leper colonies

-

 

 

 

Homes for the elderly and disabled

5

 

 

 

Orphanages and nurseries

16

 

 

 

Family consultation centres

-

 

 

 

Special social education or rehabilitation centres

1

 

 

 

Other institutions

-

 

 

 

This morning’s General Audience took place at 10.00 in Saint Peter’s Square, where the Holy Father Leo XIV met with groups of pilgrims and faithful from Italy and all over the world.

In his address in Italian, the Pope continued his cycle of catechesis on “The Documents of the Second Vatican Council”, focusing on the theme: Dogmatic Constitution Lumen gentium . On the foundation of the Apostles. The Church in her hierarchical dimension (Reading: Eph 2:19-20).

After summarizing his catechesis in various languages, the Holy Father addressed special greetings to the faithful present.

The General Audience concluded with the recitation of the Pater Noster and the Apostolic Blessing.

 

Catechesis. The Documents of the Second Vatican Council. II. Dogmatic Constitution Lumen gentium.  5. On the foundation of the Apostles. The Church in her hierarchical dimension"

Dear brothers and sisters, good morning and welcome!

We will continue our catecheses on the  Documents of the Second Vatican Council , commenting on the Dogmatic Constitution  Lumen gentium  on the Church ( LG ). After presenting her as the People of God, today we will consider her hierarchical form.

The Catholic Church is founded on the Apostles, whom Christ appointed as the living pillars of His mystical Body, and possesses a hierarchical structure that works in the service of the unity, mission and sanctification of all her members. This sacred Order is permanently founded on the Apostles (cf.  Eph  2:20;  Rev  21:14), as authoritative witnesses to the resurrection of Jesus (cf.  Acts  1:22; 1 Cor 15:7) and sent by the Lord Himself on mission into the world (cf.  Mk  16:15;  Mt  28:19). Since the Apostles are called to faithfully preserve the Master’s salvific teaching (cf.  2 Tim  1:13–14), they hand on their ministry to men who, until Christ’s return, continue to sanctify, guide and instruct the Church “through their successors in pastoral office” ( Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 857 ).

This apostolic succession, founded on the Gospel and in the Tradition, is explored further in Chapter III of  Lumen gentium , entitled “ On the hierarchical structure of the Church and in particular on the Episcopate ”. The Council teaches that the hierarchical structure is not a human construct, functional to the internal organization of the Church as a social body (cf.  LG , 8), but a divine institution whose purpose is to perpetuate the mission given by Christ to the Apostles until the end of time.

The fact that this theme is addressed in Chapter III, after the first two chapters have considered the very essence of the Church (cf.  Acta Synodalia  III/1, 209–210), does not imply that the hierarchical constitution is a subsequent element with respect to the People of God: as the Decree  Ad gentes  notes, “the Apostles were the first budding-forth of the New Israel, and at the same time the beginning of the sacred hierarchy” (no. 5), inasmuch as they were the community of those redeemed by Christ’s Paschal Mystery, established as a means of salvation for the world.

To understand the Council’s intention, it is advisable to read carefully the title of Chapter III of  Lumen gentium , which explains the fundamental structure of the Church, received from God the Father through the Son and brought to fulfilment by the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. The Council Fathers did not want to present the institutional elements of the Church, as the noun “constitution” might imply if understood in the modern sense. The Document concentrates instead on the “ministerial or hierarchical priesthood”, which differs “in essence and not only in degree” from the common priesthood of the faithful, recalling that the latter are “nonetheless interrelated: each of them in its own special way is a participation in the one priesthood of Christ” ( LG , 10). The Council thus addresses the ministry conferred upon men endowed with  sacra potestas , sacred power (cf.  LG , 18) for service in the Church: it focuses in particular on the episcopate ( LG , 18–27), then on the priesthood ( LG , 28) and the diaconate ( LG , 29) as degrees of the one sacrament of Holy Orders.

By the adjective “hierarchical”, therefore, the Council intends to indicate the sacred origin of the apostolic ministry in the action of Jesus, the Good Shepherd, as well as its internal relationships. The Bishops, first and foremost, and through them the priests and deacons, have received tasks (in Latin  munera ), which lead them to the service of “all those who belong to the People of God”, so that, “working toward a common goal freely and in an orderly way, [they] may arrive at salvation” ( LG , 18).

Lumen gentium  repeatedly and effectively recalls the collegial and communal nature of this apostolic mission, reaffirming that the “duty which the Lord committed to the shepherds of His people is a true service, which in sacred literature is significantly called ‘diakonia’ or ministry” ( LG , 24). We can therefore understand why  Saint Paul VI  presented the hierarchy as a reality “born of the charity of Christ, to fulfil, spread and ensure the intact and fruitful transmission of the wealth of faith, examples, precepts and charisms bequeathed by Christ to His Church” ( Address , 14 September 1964, in  Acta   Synodalia  III/1, 147).

Dear sisters, dear brothers, let us pray to the Lord that He may send to His Church ministers who are ardent with evangelical charity, dedicated to the good of all the baptized, and courageous missionaries in every part of the world.

__________________

Greeting in English

I extend a warm welcome to all the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, especially those coming from England, Ireland, Tanzania, Israel, Saudi Arabia and the United States of America. I greet in particular the students of the University of Dallas Rome Program. As we continue our Lenten journey, let us ask the Lord to grant us the grace to imitate Our Blessed Mother in her total “yes” to the Lord, and so open our hearts to his will for our lives. Upon all of you and your families, I invoke the joy and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ. God bless you all!

__________________

Summary of the Holy Father's words

Dear brothers and sisters,

In our ongoing catechesis on the  Second Vatican Council , today we reflect on the teachings of the Dogmatic Constitution  Lumen gentium  concerning the hierarchical structure of the Church. In this regard, it is helpful to bear in mind that the Church is not something we invented, but is a divine institution established by Jesus himself. Christ appointed the apostles, placing Peter at their head, and sent them out to continue his salvific mission until his return in glory. To perpetuate this same mission, ministers were invested with sacred power to be the successors of the Apostles as Bishops, in whose ministry priests and deacons likewise participate through the Sacrament of Holy Orders. Sharing in the ministry of Jesus, the Good Shepherd, they are consecrated to serve the faithful, build up the Church and ensure the fruitful transmission of the faith. Let us therefore ask the Lord to continue to bless his Church with shepherds after his own heart.

The following is the Message sent by the Holy Father Leo XIV on the occasion of the 63 rd World Day of Prayer for Vocations:

 

Message of the Holy Father

The Interior Discovery of God’s Gift

Dear brothers and sisters, dear young people!

Guided and protected by the Risen Jesus, we celebrate on the fourth Sunday of Easter — also called “Good Shepherd Sunday” — the 63rd World Day of Prayer for Vocations. It is an occasion of grace in which we share some reflections on the interior dimension of vocation, understood as the discovery of God’s free gift that blossoms in the depths of our hearts. Let us explore together the truly beautiful path of life along which the Shepherd guides us.

The way of beauty

In the Gospel of John, Jesus describes himself as the “good shepherd” (ὁ ποιμὴν ὁ καλός) (Jn 10:11). This expression refers to a shepherd who is perfect, authentic and exemplary, inasmuch as he is ready to give his life for his sheep, thus revealing God’s love. He is the Shepherd who draws us to himself, whose gaze reveals that life is truly beautiful when one follows him. Neither the eyes of the body nor aesthetic sensibilities alone are sufficient to recognize this beauty; rather, contemplation and interiority are required. Only the one who pauses, listens, prays and welcomes the Shepherd’s gaze can say with confidence: “I trust him; life with him can truly be beautiful. I want to walk this path of beauty.” What is most extraordinary is that, in becoming his disciple, one truly becomes “beautiful”; his beauty transforms us. As the theologian Pavel Florenskij wrote, asceticism does not produce a merely “good” person, but a “beautiful” one.[1] Indeed, more than goodness, the distinctive trait of the saint is the luminous spiritual beauty that radiates from his or her life in Christ. In this way, the Christian vocation reveals itself in all its depth as a participation in the life of Jesus, by sharing in his mission and reflecting his beauty.

This interior experience of life, faith and meaning was also that of Saint Augustine, who, in the third book of the Confessions, while acknowledging the sins and errors of his youth, recognizes God as “more inward than my most inward part.”[2] More than self-knowledge, Augustine discovers the beauty of the divine light that guides him in the darkness. Perceiving God’s presence in the innermost recesses of his soul, he came to understand the importance of caring for the interior life as a place of encounter with Christ, which is the way to experience the beauty and goodness of God in our own lives.

Such a relationship is based on prayer and silence, and when cultivated opens us to receive and actively respond to the gift of vocation. It is never an imposition or a one-size-fits-all model to which one merely conforms; instead, it is an adventure of love and happiness. Thus, on the basis of caring for the interior life, we must urgently recommence our vocational ministry and renew our commitment to evangelization.

In light of this, I invite everyone –– in families, parishes and religious communities, as well as bishops, priests, deacons, catechists, educators and all the faithful –– to commit themselves more fully to creating conditions that allow this gift to be embraced, nourished, protected and accompanied, so that it may bear abundant fruit. Only when our surroundings are illumined by living faith, sustained by constant prayer and enriched by fraternal accompaniment can God’s call blossom and mature, becoming a path of happiness and salvation for individuals and for the world. By embarking on the path that Jesus, the Good Shepherd, shows us, we come to know more deeply both ourselves and the God who calls us.

Mutual awareness

“The Lord of life knows us and enlightens our hearts with his loving gaze.”[3] Indeed, every vocation begins with the awareness and experience of a God who is love (cf. 1 Jn 4:16). He knows us profoundly; he has counted the hairs of our head (cf. Mt 10:30) and has envisaged for each person a unique path of holiness and service. Yet this awareness must always be reciprocal. We are invited to know God through prayer, listening to the Word, the Sacraments, the life of the Church and works of charity for our brothers and sisters. Like the young Samuel, who unexpectedly heard the voice of the Lord during the night and learned to recognize it with the help of Eli (cf. 1 Sam 3:1–10), we too must create a space for interior silence in order to hear what the Lord desires for our happiness. This is not a matter of lofty ideas or scholarly learning, but of a personal encounter that transforms one’s life.[4] God dwells in our hearts. A vocation entails an intimate dialogue with the One who calls and invites us to respond, despite the deafening noise of the world, with true joy and generosity.

Noli foras ire, in te ipsum redi, in interiore homine habitat veritas –– “Do not go outside yourself. Return within yourself. Truth dwells in the inner person.”[5] Once again, Saint Augustine reminds us how important it is to learn to pause and to create space for interior silence, so that we may hear the voice of Jesus Christ.

Dear young people, listen to this voice! Listen to the voice of the Lord who invites you to a full and fruitful life, calling you to put your talents to use (cf. Mt 25:14-30) and to unite your limitations and weaknesses with the glorious cross of Christ. Make time, then, for Eucharistic adoration; meditate faithfully on the word of God, so that you may put it into practice each day; and participate actively and fully in the sacramental and ecclesial life of the Church. In this way, you will come to know the Lord. Through the intimacy of his friendship, you will discover how to give of yourselves, whether through marriage, the priesthood, the permanent diaconate, or consecrated life. Every vocation is an immeasurable gift for the Church and for those who receive it with joy. To know the Lord means above all learning to entrust oneself to him and to his providence, which is abundant in every vocation.

Trust

Knowledge leads to confidence, a mindset that arises from faith and is essential both for welcoming one’s vocation and for persevering in it. Indeed, life reveals itself as a continual act of trusting in the Lord and abandoning ourselves to him, even when his plans unsettle our own.

Let us consider Saint Joseph, who, despite the mysterious and unexpected pregnancy of the Virgin, trusted the divine message revealed in a dream and welcomed Mary and her child with an obedient heart (cf. Mt 1:18-25; 2:13-15). Joseph of Nazareth is an example of complete trust in God’s designs. He trusted even when everything around him seemed shrouded in darkness and uncertainty, when events appeared to diverge from his own plans. He trusted and abandoned himself to God, certain about the goodness and fidelity of the Lord. “In every situation, Joseph declared his own ‘fiat’, like those of Mary at the Annunciation and Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane.”[6]

As the Jubilee of Hope reminded us, it is necessary to cultivate firm and steadfast trust in God’s promises, without ever yielding to despair. We must overcome fears and doubts, confident that the Lord of history — both of the world and of our own personal story — is risen. He does not abandon us in our darkest hours, but comes to dispel every shadow with his light. Through the light and strength of his Spirit, even amid trials and crises, we can see our vocation grow and mature, reflecting ever more fully the beauty of the One who has called us — a beauty shaped by fidelity and trust, despite our wounds and failures.

Maturation

Indeed, a vocation is not a fixed point, but a dynamic process of maturation sustained by intimacy with our Lord. To grow in one’s vocation means being with Jesus, allowing the Holy Spirit to act in our hearts and in the circumstances of life, and reinterpreting everything in light of this gift.

Like the vine and the branches (cf. Jn 15:1-8), our whole lives must be rooted in a strong and vital bond with the Lord, so that we may more wholeheartedly respond to his call through our trials and necessary “pruning.” The “places” where God’s will is most manifest, and where we experience his infinite love, are often the authentic, fraternal bonds we establish throughout our lives. How precious it is to have a true spiritual guide to accompany us in the discovery and growth of our vocation! How important it is to discern and test the promptings of the Holy Spirit, so that a vocation can be brought to fruition in all its beauty!

A vocation, therefore, is not an immediate possession — something “given” once and for all. Instead, it is a path that unfolds much like life itself. The gift we have received must not only be protected but also nourished by a daily relationship with God in order to grow and bear fruit. “This is helpful, since it situates our whole life in relation to the God who loves us. It makes us realize that nothing is the result of pure chance but that everything in our lives can become a way of responding to the Lord, who has a wonderful plan for us.”[7]

Dear brothers and sisters, dear young people, I encourage you to cultivate your personal relationship with God through daily prayer and meditation on the Word. Pause, listen and entrust yourselves. In this way, the gift of your vocation will mature, bringing you happiness and yielding abundant fruit for the Church and the world.

May the Virgin Mary, model of the interior acceptance of divine gifts and expert in prayerful listening, always accompany you on this journey!

From the Vatican, 16 March 2026

LEO PP. XIV

___________________

[1] “Asceticism produces not a ‘good’ or ‘kind’ man but a beautiful one, and the distinguishing feature of the saintly ascetics is not their ‘kindness,’ which even people of the flesh, and very sinful ones, can possess, but spiritual beauty, the blinding beauty of a radiant, light-bearing person, a beauty wholly inaccessible to the man of flesh” (P. Florenskij, The Pillar and Ground of the Truth, Princeton 1997, 72).

[2] Saint Augustine, Confessions, III, 6, 11: CSEL 33, 53.

[3] Apostolic Letter A Fidelity that Generates the Future (8 December 2025), 5.

[4] cf. Benedict XVI, Encyclical Letter Deus Caritas Est (25 December 2005), 1.

[5] Saint Augustine, On True Religion, XXXIX, 72: CCSL 32, 234.

[6] Francis, Apostolic Letter Patris Corde (8 December 2020), 3.

[7] Francis, Post-synodal Apostolic Exhortation Christus Vivit (25 March 2019), 248.