The final call lasted 30 seconds. Just enough time to say hello and ask if everyone was okay. But for Gaza’s tiny Christian population, the phone call from Pope Francis was a ray of hope that shone through the horrors of war.

Members of Gaza's tiny Christian community said they were "heartbroken" on Monday at the death of Pope Francis, who campaigned for peace for the devastated enclave and spoke to them on the phone every evening throughout the war.

Pope Francis called to check in on a Christian congregation in Gaza sheltering at their church almost every night since the Gaza war began. "Today we feel like we are orphans," a spokesperson says.

Secularism and the rise of evangelical congregations threaten the Catholic Church’s dominance in the region.

Pope Francis met with JD Vance shortly before he died, but the pontiff and Vance's boss did not see eye to eye.

April 21, 2025