|
Top headlines
Lead story
American Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV, will mark one year of his papacy tomorrow, May 8. Peace and human dignity have been central themes of the first American pope’s pontificate, whose outlook has been shaped by decades of pastoral experience in Peru.
Holy Cross scholar Mathew Schmalz notes Leo’s vocal opposition to the war in the Middle East as one of the most significant aspects of his first year as pope. That stance has drawn him into an unprecedented conflict with U.S. President Donald Trump, who has criticized him as “terrible for foreign policy.”
At the same time, Leo has focused sustained attention on migrants and the poor. Drawing on the language of his predecessor Pope Francis, he describes the church’s mission to “welcome, protect, promote and integrate.”
Schmalz explains how Leo’s teachings are shaping the discussion on global events. As he writes, for Leo, peace and human dignity depend not only on war or economic systems, but on the understanding that they are “shaped by the way people lead their everyday lives along with increasingly powerful technology.”
[ Miss us on Sundays? Get a selection of our best and most popular stories (or try our other weekly emails). ]
|
Pope Leo XIV arrives for his weekly general audience in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican on April 29, 2026.
AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino
Mathew Schmalz, College of the Holy Cross
Pope Leo is following the teachings of Francis on human dignity and applying them to ongoing international crises, argues a scholar of global Catholicism.
|
Health + Medicine
|
-
Flynn McGuire, University of Utah
The internet is awash with claims about injectable peptides for fitness, but there’s almost no human research showing they work or are truly safe.
-
Laura Baehr, Drexel University
Only 1 in 4 Americans are meeting the recommended guidelines for exercise. Here are some research-backed ways to keep moving, even when it’s hard.
|
|
Politics + Society
|
-
Kimberly Nath, San Juan College
Matthias Aspden was a wealthy Philadelphia businessman who remained faithful to Britain. As a result, he lost his home, property and sense of belonging, and died in exile.
|
|
Environment + Energy
|
-
Annie Persons, University of Virginia
Ads from the 19th and 20th centuries shows how the industry has long tried to promote coal as clean and even healthy, despite evidence to the contrary.
-
Matthew Robertson, Memorial University of Newfoundland
Combining more than 15,000 reports from 36 states, researchers estimate that recreational fishing puts $3 billion worth of food on Americans’ tables each year.
|
|
Science + Technology
|
-
Yu-Ru Lin, University of Pittsburgh
Repeating harmful ideas online, or regularly making fresh accusations, keeps hate groups alive.
|
|
Arts + Culture
|
-
Margena A. Christian, University of Illinois Chicago
Few people probably know the female songwriters featured in this article, yet Motown relied heavily upon their contributions to cement its place in music history.
| |
