King Charles III and Queen Camilla have visited the Vatican to pray with Pope Leo XIV. This historic meeting aims to strengthen ties between the Church of England and the Catholic Church. The event on Thursday marked the first time since the Reformation that the heads of these two churches have prayed together. The visit comes amid renewed scrutiny of the British royal family over Prince Andrew's ties with Jeffrey Epstein. Charles' and Camilla's visit had been planned for earlier in the year but was rescheduled after Pope Francis's illness and death. The meeting included discussions on ecological sustainability, a priority for both Charles and the Vatican.

The Vatican is expected to soon announce that it will return a few dozen artifacts sought by Indigenous communities in Canada. It's part of its reckoning with the Catholic Church's troubled role in helping suppress Indigenous culture in the Americas. The items, including an Inuit kayak, are part of the Vatican Museum's ethnographic collection, known as the Anima Mundi museum. The collection has been a source of controversy for the Vatican amid the broader museum debate over the restitution of cultural artifacts taken from Indigenous peoples during colonial periods. Officials say negotiations are proceeding positively and that an announcement could come from the Vatican in a few weeks.

Pope Leo XIV has met with an organization of clergy abuse survivors and advocates for the first time. Participants on Monday said he agreed to maintain a permanent dialogue with them. The Ending Clergy Abuse group is pushing for a zero-tolerance policy for abuse in the Catholic Church. The policy would require the permanent removal of any priest who abuses a child. A co-founder of the group said Leo acknowledged resistance to a universal law but expressed willingness to work with them. Previous popes had met with individual victims but kept activist organizations at a distance.

The Vatican's child protection board says the Catholic Church has a moral duty to help victims of clergy sexual abuse heal. Financial reparations and sanctions for abusers and their enablers are seen as essential. The Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors focused on reparations in its second annual report. It highlights the need for monetary settlements to provide victims with therapy and assistance. The report also calls for accountability, transparency, and effective prevention strategies. It emphasizes that the church must listen to victims, apologize, and implement concrete measures to prevent future abuse.

Pope Leo XIV has urged labor union leaders from Chicago to advocate for immigrants and welcome minorities into their ranks. Leo weighed in as the Trump administration crackdown on immigrants intensifies in the pontiff's hometown. The audience on Thursday was scheduled before the deployment of National Guard troops to protect federal property in the Chicago area. The sites include a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement building that has been the site of occasional clashes between protesters and federal agents. Chicago Cardinal Blase Cupich accompanied the labor leaders. Cupich said that Leo was well aware of the situation on the ground and has made clear that migrants and the poor must be treated in ways that respect their human dignity.

Pope Leo XIV has intervened for the first time in an abortion dispute roiling the U.S. Catholic Church.Leo was asked late Tuesday about plans by Chicago Cardinal Blase Cupich to give a lifetime achievement award to Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin for his work helping immigrants. The plans drew objection from some conservative U.S. bishops given the powerful Democratic senator's support for abortion rights.Leo called first of all for respect for both sides, but he also pointed out the seeming contradiction in such debates over what it means to be "pro-life." He said: "Someone who says 'I'm against abortion but says I am in favor of the death penalty' is not really pro-life."

Pope Leo XIV has spoken publicly about his childhood in Chicago for the first time as pontiff. Leo recalled Thursday that from the age of six he used to get up early to serve as an altar boy at the 6:30 a.m. Mass before going to school. Leo shared the memories during an unscripted visit with the children of Vatican employees who are attending the Holy See's summer camp. The visit, which was not announced in advance, took place in the Vatican's main audience hall, which was decked out with huge inflatable bouncy castles.

Pope Leo XIV has affirmed that priests must be celibate. And he has insisted that bishops take "firm and decisive" action to deal with sex abusers. Leo met Wednesday in St. Peter's Basilica with about 400 bishops and cardinals from 38 countries attending this week's special Holy Year celebrations for clergy. He gave them marching orders on what bishops must do to lead their flocks. It's an issue the former Cardinal Robert Prevost would have long pondered given his role as the prefect of the Vatican Dicastery for Bishops. In that job from 2023 until his election in May, Prevost vetted bishop nominations for Pope Francis, identifying the type of leader who would further Francis' view of a church where all are welcome and dialogue is the decisive form of governance.