Lisbon funicular crash kills at least 15, injures 18
A popular funicular railway car in Lisbon, the Gloria, derailed and crashed on Wednesday, killing at least 15 people and injuring 18 others....
Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, a Chicago-born missionary and Vatican official, has been elected pope, bringing decades of pastoral, academic, and global Church leadership to the papacy.
The first Augustinian Pope, Robert Prevost - now Leo XIV - is the second Roman Pontiff from the Americas after Pope Francis. However, unlike Jorge Mario Bergoglio, the 69-year-old Robert Francis Prevost is from the northern part of the American continent, though he spent many years as a missionary in Peru before being elected head of the Augustinians for two consecutive terms.
The new Bishop of Rome was born on September 14, 1955, in Chicago, Illinois, to Louis Marius Prevost, of French and Italian descent, and Mildred Martínez, of Spanish descent. He has two brothers, Louis Martín and John Joseph.
He spent his childhood and adolescence with his family and studied first at the Minor Seminary of the Augustinian Fathers and then at Villanova University in Pennsylvania, where in 1977 he earned a Degree in Mathematics and also studied Philosophy.
On September 1 of the same year, he entered the novitiate of the Order of Saint Augustine (O.S.A.) in Saint Louis, in the Province of Our Lady of Good Counsel of Chicago, and made his first profession on September 2, 1978. On August 29, 1981, he made his solemn vows.
He received his theological education at the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago. At the age of 27, he was sent by his superiors to Rome to study Canon Law at the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas (Angelicum).
In Rome, he was ordained a priest on June 19, 1982, at the Augustinian College of Saint Monica by Monsignor Jean Jadot, then Pro-President of the Pontifical Council for Non-Christians, now the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue.
Prevost obtained his licentiate in 1984; and the following year, while preparing his doctoral thesis, was sent to the Augustinian mission in Chulucanas, Piura, Peru (1985–1986). In 1987, he defended his doctoral thesis on "The Role of the Local Prior in the Order of Saint Augustine" and was appointed vocation director and missions director of the Augustinian Province of “Mother of Good Counsel” in Olympia Fields, Illinois (USA).
A fluent Spanish speaker, he spent over a decade in Peru as a missionary, educator, and judicial vicar, becoming a beloved figure in Trujillo and Chiclayo. His leadership extended beyond Peru—he was twice elected Prior General of the Augustinians, serving from 2001 to 2013.
Appointed bishop of Chiclayo by Pope Francis in 2014, he later held roles in the Peruvian Episcopal Conference and Vatican congregations. In 2023, he became Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops, overseeing appointments of bishops worldwide.
Pope Robert I is known for his pastoral warmth, deep academic background, and dedication to the global South. His election signals a continuity with Pope Francis’s vision of a missionary and merciful Church.
Crowds in St. Peter’s Square erupted with joy as he stepped onto the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica and gave his first blessing as pope.
AnewZ has learned that India has once again blocked Azerbaijan’s application for full membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, while Pakistan’s recent decision to consider diplomatic relations with Armenia has been coordinated with Baku as part of Azerbaijan’s peace agenda.
A powerful eruption at Japan’s Shinmoedake volcano sent an ash plume more than 3,000 metres high on Sunday morning, prompting safety warnings from authorities.
The UK is gearing up for Exercise Pegasus 2025, its largest pandemic readiness test since COVID-19. Running from September to November, this full-scale simulation will challenge the country's response to a fast-moving respiratory outbreak.
A Polish Air Force pilot was killed on Thursday when an F-16 fighter jet crashed during a training flight ahead of the 2025 Radom International Air Show.
Hamas on Wednesday said it is ready for a comprehensive Gaza deal involving the release of all Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.
A popular funicular railway car in Lisbon, the Gloria, derailed and crashed on Wednesday, killing at least 15 people and injuring 18 others.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he intends to hold fresh talks on the conflict in Ukraine in the coming days, after his August summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska failed to produce progress.
More than 1,400 people have been killed after a magnitude 6 earthquake struck Afghanistan’s eastern Kunar province, with survivors burying relatives in makeshift graves as aid workers struggle to reach remote mountain villages.
The Indian monsoon is more than rainfall, it is the pulse of the nation’s economy and culture. From shaping agriculture and rural demand to driving energy costs and policy decisions, its rhythm determines India’s prosperity or distress each year.
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