Pope Francis leaves behind a legacy peppered with moments of challenging Catholic Church traditions, Harvards sues the Trump administration over first amendment rights and whooping cough is on the rise in the United States.
Here’s what to know today.
As the leader of the world’s one billion Roman Catholics, Pope Francis leaves behind a legacy as a reformer who pushed the boundaries of the Catholic Church.
Born of Italian immigrant parents in 1936, Jorge Mario Bergoglio was the first pope from South America and was ordained at age 32. Francis was elevated to Cardinal by John Paul II in 2011. When he took the reins in 2013, the church was tainted by financial scandal and the first papal resignation in 600 years.
Many of his most radical changes to Vatican policy were in recent years, namely when he allowed priests to bless same-sex couples in 2023.
“If a person is gay and seeks God and has goodwill, who am I to judge him?” he told reporters in 2013. He continued to oppose gay marriage, but the decision pointed to a longstanding shift in attitude that would cement his legacy as one of the most progressive popes in history.
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Francis firmly spoke out against the sexual abuse of children by Catholic Church clergy and issued the most extensive revision to its law in 40 years. He criticized the border wall during President Donald Trump’s first term, referring to the plan as a “razor wire,” and sought out...
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