High-ranking Vatican officials have gathered in Rome for a summit on the sexual abuse crisis which the Roman Catholic Church has been grappling with.

Bishops from around the world are gathering at the Vatican this week for a summit on tackling a wave of child sex abuse scandals that have rocked the Church.

During the Christmas Eve Mass, Pope Francis has denounced the yawning gap between the rich and the poor, calling on people in the developed world to seek a less materialistic life and help the poor.

Pope Francis tells Palestinian President Abbas that he is concerned about the status of Jerusalem al-Quds, a year after the US recognized the occupied Palestinian city as Israel's "capital."

A senior Iranian official says the renewal of US sanctions against Tehran has “endangered” the 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and world countries.

The Vatican says Pope Francis has defrocked two Chilean bishops over child sex abuse.

The Vatican says Pope Francis has removed Father Fernando Karadima.

Iraqi Ambassador to the Vatican Omar al-Barzanji has officially stood for the presidential nomination.

A leaked study finds that Catholic priests in Germany sexually abused thousands of children over nearly seven decades.

Chile's Santiago Archbishop has apologized for the tension affecting the country's Roman Catholic Church.