News - Habemus Papam! RSS Feed

By RICK SNIZEK, Executive Editor - VATICAN CITY —Three days after stepping out as the newly elected successor to Pope Francis, Pope Leo XIV again emerged from behind the red curtains to thunderous applause onto the central loggia of St. Peter’s Basilica to offer his first Regina Caeli address as pontiff. (Photo: Rick Snizek)

By RICK SNIZEK, Executive Editor - VATICAN CITY — In an audience on Monday, May 12, with media professionals gathered in Rome to cover the papal conclave, Pope Leo XIV thanked journalists for their tireless efforts, especially over the past few weeks, saying this is “truly a time of grace for the Church.” (Photo: Rick Snizek)

By RICK SNIZEK, Executive Editor - VATICAN CITY — The appearance of white smoke at 6:08 p.m. Thursday from the makeshift chimney atop the Sistine Chapel, followed by the tolling of church bells — signaling that a successor to Pope Francis had been chosen — first drew audible gasps, then loud and enthusiastic cheers from the tens of thousands gathered in St. Peter’s Square to witness a historic moment for the worldwide Catholic Church. (Graphic: Laura Kilgus; Photo: Vatican Media, CNS)

Join us in prayer as we give thanks to God for the election of His Holiness, Pope Leo XIV at Holy Mass in the Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul in Providence at Noon on Monday, May 12. Monsignor Anthony Mancini, Rector of the Cathedral, will be the principal celebrant. (Photo: Rick Snizek)

For some time now, Catholic Rhode Islanders have had the unique and unenviable experience of not only waiting for a new bishop, but also a new pope. Happily, the time of waiting has come to a close....

Gaudium magnum. Great joy. With those words of an age-old formula, a cardinal deacon of the Roman Catholic Church made an historic announcement: Habemus papam – we have a pope!

By Cindy Wooden, Catholic News Service - VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Cardinal Robert F. Prevost, the Chicago-born prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops under Pope Francis, was elected the 267th pope May 8 and took the name Pope Leo XIV.

by Justin McLellan, OSV News - VATICAN CITY (CNS) — As expected, the 133 cardinals who entered the Sistine Chapel May 7 failed to elect the next pope on their first ballot.

By Junno Arocho Esteves, Catholic News Service - VATICAN CITY -- In Rome, the conclave is the talk of the town: from speculation over a morning espresso about who will be the next pope to taxi drivers complaining about how roadblocks have made their work even more difficult.

By Carol Glatz, Catholic News Service - VATICAN CITY -- The Mass in St. Peter's Basilica May 7 was the last public event before 133 cardinals from 71 countries were to enter the Sistine Chapel to elect the 267th pope and Pope Francis' successor. Only cardinals under the age of 80 were eligible to enter the conclave.

By Jennifer Barton, Rhode Island Catholic Correspondent - Pope Francis rose to the papacy 18 days before Easter, in 2013. He passed from this life one day after Easter twelve years later. (PHOTO COURTESY OF FATHER NATHAN J. RICCI)

OSV NEWS — The conclave is set to begin May 7, but the public only knows its end by iconic white smoke billowing out of the Sistine Chapel’s chimney. Black smoke means the cardinals have not yet reached the two-thirds majority vote necessary to elect a new pope...

By RICK SNIZEK, Executive Editor - PROVIDENCE — The day before a quarter million people gathered inside the confines of St. Peter’s Square for the funeral of Pope Francis, the Diocese of Providence celebrated a Mass for the repose of the soul of the pontiff at the Cathedral of SS. Peter and Paul. (PHOTO: RICK SNIZEK)

By Rick Snizek, Executive Editor - I had the honor of covering Pope Francis on two occasions, the first in September 2015 during his first visit to the United States as pontiff, and the second three years later at the Vatican. I saw a kind and gentle pope through my lens in Washington, D.C.,... (PHOTO BY RICK SNIZEK)

By Jennifer Barton, Rhode Island Catholic Correspondent - ROME — Among the flock of 250,000 mourners at Pope Francis’ funeral Mass in St. Peter’s Square, four priests from the Diocese of Providence managed to remain together to offer prayers for the repose of the pope’s soul. Fathers Marcel Taillon, Christopher Murphy, Joseph Brodeur and Mark Gadoury joined hundreds of fellow priests in concelebrating the Mass of Christian Burial on Saturday, April 25. They reflected on the extraordinary and solemn occasion to the Rhode Island Catholic. (PHOTO COURTESY OF FATHER MARCEL TAILLON)

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By RICK SNIZEK, Executive Editor - PROVIDENCE — The Most Reverend Bruce A. Lewandowski, C.Ss.R., Bishop-Designate of Providence, spoke glowingly of Pope Francis on the day of his appointment, April 8, which when paired with the simultaneous naming of Bishop W. Shawn McKnight as archbishop of Kansas City, Kansas, represents Pope Francis’ last American appointment.

Diocese of Providence to celebrate Holy Mass to Pray for Pope Francis this Friday, April 25, 2025 at Noon in the Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul, Providence. All are welcome!

By RICK SNIZEK, Executive Editor - PROVIDENCE — While most along the U.S. East Coast were still asleep at about 1:35 a.m. on Easter Monday, Pope Francis breathed his last, and the tectonic loss for the universal Catholic Church began to sweep around the globe. (PHOTO: RICK SNIZEK)

Statement from Most Reverend Bruce A. Lewandowski, C.Ss.R., Bishop-Designate of Providence, on the passing of the Holy Father, Pope Francis: “With his warm smile and familiar pastoral style, Pope Francis made us all feel part of a world-wide parish..."