Pope Benedict XVI and the Orthodox ecumenical patriarch Bartholemew are seeking to put differences aside in order to encourage a growing global vision of Christian unity in a divided world, using St Paul as an exemplar.

Civil libertarians are infuriated at special regulations coming into force for the upcoming Catholic World Youth Day event in Sydney, Australia, where Pope Benedict XVI will be the guest of honour.

Pope Benedict XVI has chosen "Combating poverty. Building peace" as the key theme for his Message for the 42nd World Day of Peace, due to be celebrated on 1 January 2009, the Vatican announced in a communique issued today.

After a visit to Russia, the Vatican's top official for Christian unity has said a meeting between Pope Benedict XVI and Patriarch Alexei II of the Russian Orthodox Church is "possible". Such an encounter would be a first.

Autism campaigners around the world are urging Pope Benedict XVI to act on autism in the wake of the banning of a 13 year old boy with severe autism from the Roman Catholic Church of St.Joseph, in Bertha, Minnesota in the United States.

New technology has always played a part in religious polemics and in the sense of identity generated through the heated exchange of opinion, says Adam Darlage. Consider Luther and the Catholics, and also what we see happening in cyberspace today.

Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams has described his private meeting with Pope Benedict XVI in the Vatican earlier this week as "friendly and informal". They talked for an hour, especially about Christian-Muslim relations.

In New York at 9.30 am local time on Sunday 20 April 2008, the Pope visited Ground Zero, the name now used to refer to the site once occupied by the twin towers of the World Trade Centre. He prayed for peace and an end to hatred.

In advance of Pope Benedict XVI’s visit to the US, three prominent gay Catholics have urged the pontiff to enter into a dialogue with lesbian and gay Catholics. They addressed the pontiff through open statements about their lives, loves, and hopes for the church at a press conference at the end of last week.

President George Bush and his wife Laura Bush will greet Pope Benedict XVI, April 15, when he arrives at Andrews Air Force Base for a six-day visit to the United States that will take him to Washington and New York City.