The Vatican houses the central government of the Catholic Church and is also an independent city-state. The pope is both the head of the Catholic Church and head of state. In order to govern both, he has the Roman Curia, meaning “court.” In modern terms, the Curia is the papal bureaucracy. It is an extension of the pope’s authority.

Doctrine chief Cardinal Victor Manuel Fernández discussed the viability of gender dysphoria, while still condemning gender affirming care, in a speech at a theological conference in Cologne in February,

The author, who remained bedridden for more than 30 years following an incident, claimed to have received visions and revelations from Jesus and the Virgin Mary.

Francis has weighed in publicly before on ethics for end-of-life medical situations, but it is unknown whether he has made known his own wishes should he face such a crossroads.

Since Vatican II ended in 1965, the Catholic Church has seen a massive decline in the United States. Why are people leaving?

The church opposes “the ideology that usually accompanies so many sex-change decisions,” which Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández said is an ideology that claims “omnipotence” and refuses to recognize the reality of one’s body as a gift.