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  • Pope Leo XIV Inaugurates the Borgo Laudato Si’

    On Friday, September 5, Pope Leo XIV inaugurated the Borgo Laudato Si’ in Castel Gandolfo. Present at the inauguration were Sister Raffaella Petrini, President of the Governorate, along with the two Secretaries General, Archbishop Emilio Nappa and Atty. Giuseppe Puglisi-Alibrandi.


    In a chirograph dated February 2, 2023, Pope Francis outlined the reasons that inspired the establishment of the Borgo Laudato Si’. In particular, he wrote that it was his intention to create “a tangible model of thought, structure and action,” to be called Borgo Laudato Si’. “A forum for dialogue and an example of change, this initiative will be located within the endowments, appurtenances and dependencies of the Pontifical Villas of Castel Gandolfo (cf. Lateran Treaty, Annex II, 5), without in any way altering or modifying the overall nature of this property of the Holy See, as established by Article 14 of the Lateran Treaty (Annex II, 4) and defined by customs and various provisions of my Venerable Predecessors.”

    The Pontiff went on to explain that “in order to animate the life and works of the Borgo Laudato Si’,” he was establishing the Centro di Alta Formazione Laudato Si’ (Laudato Si’ Center for Advanced Training) as “a scientific, educational and social organization, working for integral formation, with its registered office in Vatican City State and its main operational headquarters in the Pontifical Villas of Castel Gandolfo.”

    He further decreed that the Centro di Alta Formazione Laudato Si’, under the jurisdiction of the Governorate of Vatican City State, would be governed by its “own Statutes,” which he simultaneously approved.

  • Pope Leo XIV Meets Students of the Astrophysics Summer School at the Vatican Observatory in Castel Gandolfo

    For the Building of a More Peaceful and Just World

    "The more joy you share, the more joy you create, and in this way, through your pursuit of knowledge, each of you can contribute to building a more peaceful and just world."

  • Pope Leo XIV Receives Two Electric Vehicles from Exelentia for Apostolic Travels Around the World

    The idea to create two compact electric vehicles, designed to be easily transported by air on long-haul flights and to meet the highest safety standards, was born from a valuable and close collaboration with the Gendarmerie Corps of the Vatican City State, which oversaw and supported each phase of the project.

  • Pope Leo XIV Visits the Poor Clares Community of the Monastery in Albano

    A Valuable Witness

    On the morning of Tuesday, July 15, Pope Leo XIV visited the Monastery of the Immaculate Conception of the Poor Clares in the little town of Albano, located within the territory of the Papal Villas.

  • Pope Leo XIV’s Day Among the Poor of Albano

    Hospitality, Compassion, Prayer

    In the heart of Albano, within the historic and faith-filled walls of the Sanctuary of Santa Maria della Rotonda, a day rich in spirituality, sharing, and closeness to the most vulnerable unfolded. On Sunday morning, August 17, Pope Leo XIV celebrated the Eucharist together with people assisted by the local Caritas and its volunteers, transforming the city’s historic center into a lively place of encounter and fraternity.

  • Pope meets with participants in a conference promoted by the Vatican Observatory

    Faith and science united in charity

    “Faith and science can be united in charity, provided that science is put at the service of the men and woman of our time and not misused to harm or even destroy them. I encourage you, then, to press forward to the outer limits of human knowledge. For there, we can come to experience the God of love, who fulfils the deepest yearnings of the human heart”, Pope Francis said on Thursday morning, 20 June, to participants in the second international conference dedicated to Msgr. Georges Lemaître (1894-1966), the Belgian physicist who developed what is today known as the Big Bang theory.

  • Pope presides at Holy Mass for the feast of the Gendarmerie Corps

    Like angels who protect and serve

    “Following the example of Saint Michael Archangel, be like the angels, who protect and serve”, Pope Francis said to Gendarmes on Saturday afternoon, 5 October, during Holy Mass at the Altar of the Chair in Saint Peter’s Basilica, on the occasion of the Feast of Saint Michael Archangel, Patron Saint of the Gendarmerie Corps. The celebration had to be postponed from 29 September, due to the Pope’s Apostolic Journey in Luxembourg and Belgium.

  • Postal Cancellation Habemus Papam

    For the election of the Successor of Peter, the Habemus Papam postal cancellation will be available for postage use.

    The Postal and Philately Service of the department of Telecommunications and Information Systems of the Governorate announces that it will be possible, immediately after the papal election, to obtain the cancellation postmark at the Vatican Post Office in St. Peter's Square.

  • Postmark for the Opening of the Conclave

    The Postal and Philately Service of the department of Telecommunications and Information Systems of the Governorate communicates that the postmark or cancelation for the Opening of the Conclave is available for postage use as of Wednesday, 7 May at 4:30 p.m.

    The cancelation is available at the Post Office in St. Peter's Square.

  • Presentation of a Book by Br. Consolmagno, Director of the Vatican Observatory, Apostolic Nunciature, USA

    A Guide to the Stars

    A Jesuit's Guide to the Stars - Exploring Wonder, Beauty, and Science, a new book by Jesuit Brother Guy Consolmagno, Director of the Vatican Observatory and of the Vatican Observatory Foundation, was presented on Monday evening, 3 February, in the Apostolic Nunciature in Washington D.C.

  • Presentation of a commemorative stamp for the 160th anniversary of the Foundation of the Italian Red Cross

    Everywhere for everyone

    Solidarity, fraternal help, assistance without distinction are the values that the Vatican Post Office wished to celebrate with the joint issue of the commemorative stamp for the 160th anniversary of the foundation of the Italian Red Cross, with the postal administrations of Italy, San Marino and the Sovereign Military Order of Malta. The stamp depicts Italian Red Cross volunteers involved in  rescue operations at the site of the collapse of the Polcevera Viaduct, known as the Morandi Bridge, in Genoa on 14 August 2018. The stamp was unveiled by the engineer, Antonino Intersimone, Director of the Directorate of Telecommunications and Information Systems of the Governorate.

  • Presentation of a commemorative stamp to mark the 200th anniversary of the Pontifical Institute of Saint Apollinaire

    A formative community that transmits the value of faith

    A commemorative stamp, issued by the Post and Philately Service of the Governorate of Vatican City State, for the bicentenary of Rome’s Pontifical Institute of Saint Apollinaire was unveiled during a presentation held on Monday afternoon, 4 November. Fr. Luigi Fioriti, Professor of Italian and Latin, outlined the details of the stamp to an audience that included the Institute’s Board of Directors, numerous professors, students, staff members, parents and alumni, at the Institute’s headquarters on Viale Vaticano.

  • Presentation of a stamp to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Venice Foundation for Research on Peace

    A seed of hope

    The world is in need of peace, especially today, when conflicts are widespread in many areas, and are continuously being exacerbated, despite international efforts. In order to contribute to peace building and to underscore that peace is a fundamental universal value, Vatican City State and Italy, through the Ministry of Enterprises and Made In Italy, have issued a joint stamp, which was officially presented on Thursday morning, 14 November, at the headquarters of the Foreign Press Association in Rome.

  • Presentato il francobollo commemorativo per i 160 anni dalla fondazione della Croce Rossa Italiana

    Ovunque per chiunque.

    Solidarietà, aiuto fraterno, assistenza senza distinzioni. Sono questi i valori che le Poste Vaticane hanno voluto celebrare con l'emissione congiunta del francobollo commemorativo per i 160 anni dalla fondazione della Croce Rossa Italiana. Lo hanno fatto con le amministrazioni postali di Italia, San Marino e Sovrano Militare Ordine di Malta.

  • Preservation works carried out with the contribution of the Northwest Chapter of the Patrons of the Arts in the Vatican Museums

    A day dedicated to studying the bronze statue of Hercules Mastai at the Vatican Museums

    Hercules Mastai, the colossal bronze statue named after Pius IX, who included it among the collections of the Vatican Museums, has undergone a complex intervention to preserve it. The restoration project was possible thanks to the contribution of Rick and Lisa Altig of the Northwest Chapter of the Patrons of the Arts in the Vatican Museums. On Tuesday, 3 December, the Directorate of Museums and Cultural Heritage held a workshop dedicated to furthering knowledge on “Hercules Mastai – From its Finding to its Restoration”, and to providing details of its restoration.

  • Press Communiqué of the Governorate of Vatican City State – Christmas 2024, Vatican City, 24 September 2024

    This year, the Nativity Scene that is set up in Saint Peter’s Square each year for the Christmas season, will be donated by Grado, a lagoon rich with history and tradition located in the Province of Gorizia. The Christmas tree, a majestic red fir tree standing more than 29 metres tall, will be donated by Ledro in the Province of Trento, and raised beside the Nativity Scene.

  • Press Communiqué of the Governorate of Vatican City State – Christmas 2025

    From Val d’Ultimo, in the province of Bolzano, comes the majestic Norway spruce, 25 meters tall and weighing 8,000 kilograms, which will be set up in St. Peter’s Square for Christmas 2025. It was felled at five o’clock on, 24 November, and has been sent to Rome.

  • Press release of the governorate of the Vatican City State - Christmas 2025

    For Christmas 2025 the Nativity scene for St. Peter’s Square, the one for the Paul VI Hall, and the monumental evergreen tree will come from the towns of Lagundo and Ultimo, from the Diocese of Nocera Inferiore-Sarno and from the nation of Costa Rica.

  • Press Release of the Governorate of the Vatican City State Flowers for Holy Week 2025 in the Vatican

    During the celebrations of Holy Week in the Vatican thousands of multicolored flowers and plants, originating in Italy and Holland, adorned St. Peter's Basilica and St. Peter’s Square. In collaboration with the generous benefactors who donated the beautiful plants and flowers to the Pope, in honor of this most significant liturgical season, the gardeners and workers of the Garden and Environment Service of the Directorate of Infrastructure and Services of the Governorate once again presented spectacular arrangements and care of detail for the faithful and multitude of pilgrims that had arrived in Rome for Holy Week. 

  • Press release Postage Stamps Sede Vacante MMXXV

    The Vatican City State announces that the commemorative stamps of the Sede Vacante MMXXV(2025) for postage use are on sale at the Vatican Post Offices, including the general public accessible sales points located in St. Peter's Square.
    The philatelic series of the Sede Vacante MMXXV will also be available soon with a print run in line with market demand through the e-shop sales channels of the Commercializzazione Filatelica e Numismatica office, which will be reactivated this summer.
    The stamps are divided into four postal values (€ 1.25 - € 1.30 - € 2.45 - € 3.20) and will be sold at their relative face value.

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