Josephine McKenna
Josephine McKenna has more than 30 years' experience in print, broadcast and interactive media. Based in Rome since 2007, she covered the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI and election of Pope Francis and canonizations of their predecessors. Now she covers all things Vatican for RNS.
All Stories by Josephine McKenna
Pope Francis: ‘Inside every Christian is a Jew’
By Josephine McKenna — June 13, 2014
VATICAN CITY (RNS) "Every day, I pray with the Psalms of David," Pope Francis said. "My prayer is Jewish, then I have the Eucharist, which is Christian."
Italy’s Catholic bishops denounce court ruling that OK’d sperm donors
By Josephine McKenna — June 11, 2014
ROME (RNS) "None of us are the masters of anyone else, not even parents with respect to their own children," said the secretary-general of the Italian bishops’ conference, Monsignor Nunzio Galantino.
Vatican: ‘Nothing to worry about’ as tired Pope Francis cancels meetings
By Josephine McKenna — June 10, 2014
VATICAN CITY (RNS) “There is nothing to worry about,” the Vatican's chief spokesman said. “His life has been very intense in the past few weeks. It is totally normal for the pope to rest.”
Pope Francis calls for ‘courage’ toward peace between Israel, Palestine
By Josephine McKenna — June 9, 2014
VATICAN CITY (RNS) “Peacemaking calls for courage, much more so than warfare," Pope Francis told the Israeli and Palestinian presidents. "It calls for the courage to say yes to encounter and no to conflict, yes to dialogue and no to violence."
Pope Francis and Patriarch Bartholomew: A budding bromance?
By Josephine McKenna — June 6, 2014
VATICAN CITY (RNS) The 74-year-old patriarch from Turkey and the 77-year-old Argentinian pontiff come from opposite sides of the globe, but the two have established a strong personal connection
Pope Francis ends Italian control over Vatican’s financial watchdog
By Josephine McKenna — June 5, 2014
VATICAN CITY (RNS) The Vatican said the pope named four experts from Switzerland, Singapore, the United States and Italy to replace the all-Italian board of the Vatican's Financial Information Authority.
Pope Francis ‘deeply moved’ by letters from young U.S. prisoners
By Josephine McKenna — June 3, 2014
VATICAN CITY (RNS) “Their stories ... moved me deeply," Pope Francis said after 500 inmates facing life in prison without parole sent letters to the Vatican.
Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew may join Vatican prayer summit
By Josephine McKenna — June 3, 2014
VATICAN CITY (RNS) A formal announcement may be made Wednesday (June 4).
Vatican: Too early to confirm 2025 Orthodox-Catholic summit
By Josephine McKenna — June 2, 2014
VATICAN CITY (RNS) Despite cordial meetings between Pope Francis and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople during the pontiff’s visit to Jerusalem, the Vatican has rejected media reports that a 2025 event had been confirmed.
Pope Francis tells couples not to substitute dogs and cats for children
By Josephine McKenna — June 2, 2014
VATICAN CITY (RNS) Pope Francis strongly criticized those couples who choose not to have children, saying they had been influenced by a culture of “well-being” that says life is better without kids.
Italy’s Catholic bishops try to put brakes on speedy divorce law
By Josephine McKenna — May 30, 2014
ROME (RNS) “I do not believe you can call this an achievement, much less define it as historic,” said Monsignor Nunzio Galantino. “Speedy divorce will not help anyone.”
Who are the three bishops under Vatican review for sex abuse?
By Josephine McKenna — May 27, 2014
(RNS) “Sexual abuse is such an ugly crime ... because a priest who does this betrays the body of the Lord," the pope said emphatically. “This is very serious. It is like a satanic Mass.”
No date set for historic Vatican meeting of Israeli, Palestinian presidents
By Josephine McKenna — May 26, 2014
ROME (RNS) While some media reports have the leaders meeting as early as June 6, the Vatican’s chief spokesman said Monday (May 26) that a “precise date” had not been set.
UN criticizes Vatican on sexual abuse but stops short of calling it torture
By Josephine McKenna — May 23, 2014
ROME (RNS) The panel’s criticism was far more muted than a scathing February report from the U.N. Committee on the Rights of the Child that asserted that the Vatican had fostered “impunity” for abusers.
Former Vatican No. 2 Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone denies financial wrongdoing
By Josephine McKenna — May 21, 2014
VATICAN CITY (RNS) The Vatican's chief spokesman says there's no criminal investigation targeting former Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone, but that doesn't mean an oversight panel isn't conducting its own examination.
