NICOLE WINFIELD

Rome, Italy

Nicole Winfield is an Associated Press Writer.

Latest Articles

Pope Leo XIV at the Sistine Chapel, May 9, 2025. — Vatican Media via AP

New Pope, Laying out His Vision of the Papacy, Points to AI as a Primary Challenge for Humanity

Leo XIV repeatedly cites Francis’ mission statement, making clear a commitment to a more inclusive Church that is attentive to the faithful and looks out for the ‘least and rejected.’

By NICOLE WINFIELD

|May 10, 2025|

Foreign

Pope Leo XIV appears at the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica, May 8, 2025. — AP/Andrew Medichini

‘You Have Called Me To Carry the Cross,’ New Pope, Leo XIV, Tells Cardinals in English in First Mass as Pontiff

On Sunday, he will deliver his first noon blessing from the loggia of St. Peter’s and, on Monday, he is to attend an audience with the press.

By NICOLE WINFIELD

|May 9, 2025|

Foreign

Italian journalist Cecilia Sala, who was detained as she was reporting in Iran. — Chora Media via AP

Italian Journalist Cecilia Sala Will Return Home Following Release From Detention in Iran

Word of Sala’s release is met with cheers in Italy, where her plight had dominated headlines, as lawmakers hail the successful negotiations to bring her home.

By NICOLE WINFIELD

|Jan 8, 2025|

Foreign

Pope Francis delivers his speech during the Angelus noon prayer from the window of his studio overlooking St.Peter's Square at the Vatican. — AP/Alessandra Tarantino

Vatican To Tighten Standards for Confirming Visions of Mary and Other Supernatural Phenomena, Adapting to Internet Age

Nowadays, word about apparitions or weeping Madonnas travels quickly and can actually harm the faithful if hoaxers are trying to make money off people’s beliefs or manipulate them, the Catholic church says.

By NICOLE WINFIELD

|May 18, 2024|

Foreign

Cardinal Victor Manuel Fernandez presents the declaration 'Dignitas Infinita,' or 'Infinite Dignity' at the Vatican, April 8, 2024. — AP/Gregorio Borgia

Catholic Church Condemns Sex Change Surgery, Surrogacy and ‘Gender Ideologies’ as Affronts to Human Dignity

Vatican message seen as nod to conservatives following the approval of blessings for same-sex couples, sparking criticism from conservative bishops around the world

By NICOLE WINFIELD

|Apr 8, 2024|

Foreign

Pope Francis waves faithful after celebrating Easter mass in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, March 31, 2024. — AP/Alessandra Tarantino

Ailing Pope Rallies To Preside Over a Blustery Easter Sunday Mass at St. Peter’s Square

Pope Francis wasn’t the only leader whose mere presence at Easter offered a reassuring sign of stability and normalcy.

By NICOLE WINFIELD

|Mar 31, 2024|

Foreign

Pope Francis at the Vatican, October 18, 2023. — AP/Alessandra Tarantino, file

Pope, in Radical Policy Shift for Catholic Church, Approves Blessings for Same-Sex Couples

The pontiff stresses that such blessings should not be conferred at the same time as a civil union, using set rituals, or even with the clothing and gestures that belong in a wedding.

By NICOLE WINFIELD

|Dec 18, 2023|

Foreign

Pope Pius XII Had Detailed Information on Nazi Crimes, According to Newly Disclosed Correspondence

Historians are divided about Pope Pius’ record, with supporters insisting he used quiet diplomacy to save Jewish lives while critics say he was silent as the Holocaust raged.

By NICOLE WINFIELD

|Sep 16, 2023|

Foreign

Pope Francis is welcomed by Choijiljav Dambajav, abbot of the Buddhists' Zuun Khuree Dashichoiling Monastery in Ulaanbaatar and Gabju Demberel Choijamts, abbot of the Buddhists' Gandantegchinlen Monastery at Ulaanbaatar as he arrives at a meeting with religious leaders at the Hun Theatre at the Sky Resort compound some 15 kilometers south of the Mongolian capital Ulaanbaatar, September. 3, 2023. Pope Francis has praised Mongolia's tradition of religious freedom dating to the times of founder Genghis Khan during the first-ever papal visit to the Asian nation. — AP Photo/Andrew Medichini

Pope Meets With Shamans in Mongolia as Communists Crackdown on Religious Minorities in China

In Mongolia, Francis keeps eyes on two modern Caesars — Xi and Putin.

By NICOLE WINFIELD

|Sep 3, 2023|

Foreign

Pope Francis at St. Peter's Basilica, at the Vatican, January 6, 2023. — AP/Andrew Medichini, file

Pope Francis Hospitalized for Intestinal Surgery

The Catholic leader will be put under general anesthesia for the procedure Wednesday afternoon and be hospitalized at Rome’s Gemelli hospital for several days.

By NICOLE WINFIELD

|Jun 7, 2023|

Foreign

Pope Francis by the coffin of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI at St. Peter's Square during a funeral mass at the Vatican, January 5, 2023. — AP/Andrew Medichini

Benedict XVI Mourned at Funeral Presided Over by Pope

Heads of state and royalty, clergy from around the world and thousands of regular people flocked to the ceremony, despite Benedict’s request for simplicity and official efforts to keep the first funeral for a pope emeritus in modern times low-key.

By NICOLE WINFIELD

|Jan 5, 2023|

Foreign

Pope Benedict XVI at his summer residence of Castel Gandolfo, the scenic town where he made his last public blessing as pope, February 28, 2013. — AP/Luca Bruno, file

At Benedict’s Summer Home, a Town Mourns

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI is particularly beloved in Castel Gandolfo, where he joined a centuries-long list of pontiffs who summered at the papal villa overlooking Lake Alban in the hills south of Rome.

By NICOLE WINFIELD

|Jan 4, 2023|

Culture