Vatican City
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Canadian asks synod to speak on women: against violence, for new church roles
By CAROL GLATZ, Catholic News Service
Published October 15, 2015VATICAN CITY (CNS)—Canadian Archbishop Paul-Andre Durocher of Gatineau, Quebec, said the synod should reflect on the possibility of allowing for female deacons as it seeks ways to open up more opportunities for women in church life. Where possible, qualified women should be given higher positions and decision-making authority within church structures and new opportunities in […]
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U.S. archbishop: Joyful families are best people to evangelize other families
By CINDY WOODEN, Catholic News Service
Published October 15, 2015VATICAN CITY (CNS)—The Synod of Bishops on the family must find ways to give Catholic families a leading role in evangelizing and supporting other families, the president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops told the synod. “Families who by the grace of God model tenderness, forgiveness and the joy of family life make marriage […]
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Connect homilies to real life, synod observer says
By CAROL GLATZ, Catholic News Service
Published October 15, 2015VATICAN CITY (CNS)—Families need to hear homilies that connect the Gospel to the troubles and joys they experience, said a synod participant. Maria Gomes, the Family and Life director at St. Mary’s Church in Dubai, and an observer at the Synod of Bishops on the family, said the typical scenario is “the priest just talks […]
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The famous popemobile: Pontiffs have hit the streets in style
By CAROL GLATZ, Catholic News Service
Published September 22, 2015VATICAN CITY (CNS)—There’s perhaps no other signature vehicle in the world more well-known than the popemobile. Tall and boxy or sleek and chic, it’s the one white ride that always catches people’s eye, mostly because of the special passenger waving inside. The popemobile is a specially modified vehicle that gives the pope enough elevation and […]
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Pope calls on Europe’s parishes, religious houses to take in refugees
By CAROL GLATZ, Catholic News Service
Published September 18, 2015VATICAN CITY (CNS)—Given the ongoing crisis of people fleeing from war and poverty, Pope Francis asked every parish and religious community in Europe to take in a family of refugees as a concrete sign of hope and God’s mercy. “The Gospel calls us, asks us to be near the least and the abandoned. To give […]
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Pope: Why do youth turn back on Jesus? Is church hiding him?
By CAROL GLATZ, Catholic News Service
Published September 17, 2015VATICAN CITY (CNS)—Why do so many young people leave the church after confirmation, Pope Francis asked bishops from Portugal. “There is no doubt that Jesus exists; but where are we hiding him?” the pope said. What is required is “a personal and pastoral conversion of pastors and faithful so that everyone can say truthfully and […]
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After study by special Vatican commission, Pope Francis simplifies annulment process for some cases
By CINDY WOODEN, Catholic News Service
Published September 8, 2015VATICAN CITY (CNS)—While a juridical process is necessary for making accurate judgments, the Catholic Church’s marriage annulment process must be quicker, cheaper and much more of a pastoral ministry, Pope Francis said. Rewriting a section of the Latin-rite Code of Canon Law and of the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches, Pope Francis said […]
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For Year of Mercy, pope extends possibilities for absolution
By CINDY WOODEN, Catholic News Service
Published September 4, 2015VATICAN CITY (CNS)—In an extraordinary gesture for the Year of Mercy, Pope Francis has extended to priests worldwide the authority to absolve women for the sin of abortion and has decreed the full validity during the year of the sacrament of confession celebrated by priests of the traditionalist Society of St. Pius X. “This jubilee […]
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Pope: Balanced life includes time for family, work, prayer
By CINDY WOODEN, Catholic News Service
Published September 4, 2015VATICAN CITY (CNS)—Work is an important expression of human dignity and of caring for one’s family, but today there is a “dangerous tendency” to consider a worker’s family obligations as an obstacle to productivity and profit, Pope Francis said. “But let’s ask ourselves: What productivity? And for whom?” he said Aug. 19 at his weekly […]
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Brand new ballgame: 72 men, including Atlantan, start lives as seminarians in Rome
By ROBERT DUNCAN, Catholic News Service
Published September 4, 2015VATICAN CITY (CNS)—As ZZ Top’s “Sharp Dressed Man” bellowed across an immaculately groomed sports field not far from St. Peter’s Basilica, a new class of U.S. seminarians faced off against their peers in a fraternal game of softball. The onlooking fans, who included Vatican officials and seminary staff, said they perceive God’s providence in the […]
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Ideals worth sacrificing for: Pope to challenge U.S. Congress, U.N.
By CINDY WOODEN, Catholic News Service
Published August 20, 2015VATICAN CITY (CNS)—Along with having a winning smile and a warm embrace, Pope Francis is known for challenging people. He does it regularly at morning Mass—particularly calling out hypocrisy and gossip—and does not spare even his closest aides in the Roman Curia, so it is unlikely his speeches to the U.S. Congress and the U.N. […]
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Pope: God made celebrations; ‘A loving gaze at work well done’
By CINDY WOODEN, Catholic News Service
Published August 20, 2015VATICAN CITY (CNS)—Families need moments of rest and celebration, time for standing back and recognizing the gifts of God and how well they have developed, Pope Francis said. Celebrations are times “to enjoy that which cannot be produced or consumed, that cannot be bought or sold,” the pope said Aug. 12 at his weekly general […]
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Lessons from South America: How to greet and understand Pope Francis
By CINDY WOODEN, Catholic News Service
Published August 20, 2015VATICAN CITY (CNS)—People make special preparations for welcoming a special guest, and watching what worked and did not work in Ecuador, Bolivia and Paraguay may help people preparing for Pope Francis’ visit to the United States in September. Some of the plans, however, will require common-sense adjustments, especially because the U.S. Secret Service is likely […]
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Sept. 1 is World Day of Prayer for Care of Creation
By CINDY WOODEN, Catholic News Service
Published August 20, 2015VATICAN CITY (CNS)—Like their Orthodox brothers and sisters, Catholics formally will mark Sept. 1 as the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation, Pope Francis has decided. The day of prayer, the pope said, will give individuals and communities an opportunity to implore God’s help in protecting creation and an opportunity to ask […]
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World’s mayors head to Vatican, vow to tackle climate change, poverty
By CAROL GLATZ, Catholic News Service
Published August 7, 2015VATICAN CITY (CNS)—After decades of world leaders trying to set global goals to address climate change and extreme poverty, city mayors gathered at the Vatican to pledge they will take real action and lead the fight on their streets. Pope Francis told the mayors that they were important because they were at the “grass roots” […]
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Pope’s visits to Cuba, U.S. to highlight families, charity, tolerance
By CINDY WOODEN, Catholic News Service
Published July 23, 2015VATICAN CITY (CNS)—In word and deed, Pope Francis will take his vision of a Catholic’s approach to family life, parish life, charity, economics, immigration and good governance to Cuba and the United States during a Sept. 19-27 visit. Visiting both Cuba and the United States on the same trip not only acknowledges his role in […]
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Pope tells parents to be mindful of their children’s suffering
By LAURA IERACI, Catholic News Service
Published July 9, 2015VATICAN CITY (CNS)—The deep hurts that spouses inflict on each other cause great suffering to their children and, in some cases, lead to a separation that is “morally necessary” to protect spouses and children from more serious forms of violence, Pope Francis said during his general audience in St. Peter’s Square June 24. Continuing a […]
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What to do? The pope’s practical tips for helping the environment
By CAROL GLATZ, Catholic News Service
Published June 25, 2015VATICAN CITY (CNS)—Pope Francis’ encyclical “Laudato Si’, on Care for Our Common Home” is a call for global action as well as an appeal for deep inner conversion. He points to numerous ways world organizations, nations and communities must move forward and the way individuals—believers and people of good will—should see, think, feel and act. […]
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All creation sings God’s praise, but people are silencing it, pope says
By CINDY WOODEN, Catholic News Service
Published June 25, 2015VATICAN CITY (CNS)—The earth, which was created to support life and give praise to God, is crying out with pain because human activity is destroying it, Pope Francis says in his long-awaited encyclical, “Laudato Si’, on Care for Our Common Home.” All who believe in God and all people of good will have an obligation […]
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Pope: Christian hope, love are answer to ‘darkness of death’
By CAROL GLATZ, Catholic News Service
Published June 25, 2015VATICAN CITY (CNS)—Christian hope and faith in the afterlife mean the sting of losing a loved one does not have to leave behind a poisonous venom in our lives, Pope Francis said. “Our loved ones have not disappeared into dark nothingness: Hope assures us that that they are in God’s good and strong hands. Love […]
