VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - The Vatican condemned gender theory on Monday as part of a “confused concept of freedom”, saying in a new document that the idea of gender being determined by personal feeling rather than biology was an attempt to “annihilate nature”.

LGBT rights advocates denounced the 30-page document, called “Male and Female He Created Them”, as harmful and confusing, saying it would encourage hatred and bigotry.

ROME — The Vatican on Monday released its first extensive official document on gender theory, rejecting the notion that individuals can choose their own gender identity.

The document, issued by the Vatican department overseeing Catholic education, argued that increasing acceptance of fluid definitions of gender by schools and legal systems posed a threat to traditional families and ignored the natural differences between men and women.

Pope Francis has defrocked former U.S. Cardinal Theodore McCarrick after Vatican officials found him guilty of soliciting for sex while hearing confession and sexual crimes against minors and adults, the Holy See said Saturday.

For a showman president who has come to relish the made-for-TV aspects of his job, perhaps it is no surprise that Donald Trump's first foreign outing will not be to Canada.

Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders will visit the Vatican next week to discuss themes of economic and social justice that are the centerpiece of his campaign.

The Vermont senator said Friday that he would participate in an April 15 conference on social, economic and environmental issues at a Vatican academic organization, stepping off the campaign trail during the crucial last day

The Vatican officially recognized the state of Palestine in a new treaty finalized Wednesday, immediately sparking Israeli ire and accusations that the move hurt peace prospects.
The treaty, which concerns the activities of the Catholic Church in Palestinian territory, makes clear that the Holy See has switched its diplomatic recognition from the Palestine Liberation Organization to the state of Palestine.

The Vatican has officially recognized the state of Palestine in a new treaty. The treaty, which was finalized Wednesday but still has to be signed, makes clear that the Holy See has switched its diplomatic relations.

Italian police are making arrests of suspected members of an Islamic terror ring Friday which allegedly helped execute attacks in Pakistan including the market bombing that left more than 100 people dead.

It's an abrupt conclusion to a five-year doctrinal overhaul that began in 2012 of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, the main umbrella group for nuns in the U.S.

On Monday, Pope Francis delivered the annual Christmas greeting to the cardinals, bishops and priests of the Vatican that was anything but cheery. In fact, the leader of the Catholic institution used the opportunity to shame his clergy for many members’ desire for power at the expense of living a religious life — what he called, “spiritual Alzheimer’s.”