Georgia Bulletin

Vatican City

• Pope tells new bishops to be simple, close to people

  

  Published September 26, 2013

  VATICAN CITY (CNS)—Don’t be on the road all the time, aloof or deaf to people’s needs; be simple, loving and always close by, just like a spouse would be for his wife, Pope Francis told new bishops. Bishops are pastors, not princes, so always return people’s calls, listen to parishioners, recognize one’s limitations and sharpen […] Full Story

• Pope condemns abortion as product of ‘throwaway culture’

  

  By FRANCIS X. ROCCA, Catholic News Service
  Published September 20, 2013

  VATICAN CITY (CNS)—In his strongest public words to date on the subject of abortion, Pope Francis affirmed the sacredness of unborn human life and linked its defense to the pursuit of social justice. “In all its phases and at every age, human life is always sacred and always of quality. And not as a matter […] Full Story

• Praying for peace in Syria, pope calls selfishness the cause of war

  

  By FRANCIS X. ROCCA, Catholic News Service
  Published September 12, 2013

  VATICAN CITY (CNS)—Leading a crowd in prayer for peace in Syria, Pope Francis said that war is ultimately caused by selfishness, which can be overcome only though expressions of fraternity and never with violence. “Leave behind the self-interest that hardens your heart, overcome the indifference that makes your heart insensitive towards others, conquer your deadly […] Full Story

• Pope denounces ‘multiplication of massacres,’ atrocities in Syria

  

  By CINDY WOODEN, Catholic News Service
  Published August 29, 2013

  VATICAN CITY (CNS)—Pope Francis called again for an end to the fighting in Syria, denouncing the “multiplication of massacres and atrocious acts,” including the suspected chemical weapons attack that left hundreds dead. As U.N. weapons inspectors received permission from the Syrian government Aug. 25 to visit the site of the alleged attack, Pope Francis said […] Full Story

• Soccer-fan pope asks star players to be good men

  

  Published August 29, 2013

  VATICAN CITY (CNS)—With big smiles all around, the lifelong soccer fan Pope Francis met the star players and coaches of the Argentine and Italian national soccer teams hoping to compete for the World Cup in 2014. The teams were led to the Clementine Hall Aug. 13 by Argentine captain Lionel Messi, a forward currently playing […] Full Story

• Vatican ambassador: World must help end Syria’s ‘serious crisis’

  By CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE
  Published August 21, 2013

  VATICAN CITY (CNS)—The Vatican ambassador to Syria said the international community must help find a political solution to the “serious crisis” continuing in the country. Speaking to Vatican Radio Aug. 21 after reports of chemical attacks outside Damascus, Archbishop Mario Zenari described the images circulating on the Internet and television “truly shocking.” The images, which […] Full Story

• Pope urges mutual Muslim-Catholic respect

  Published August 15, 2013

  VATICAN CITY (CNS)—As a sign of his “esteem and friendship,” Pope Francis said he personally wanted to write this year’s Vatican message to Muslims as they celebrated the end of their month-long Ramadan fast. The pope’s message, released by the Vatican Aug. 2, focused on the need for Catholics and Muslims to promote respect for […] Full Story

• During flight, pope talks about importance of giving young people jobs

  

  By CINDY WOODEN, Catholic News Service
  Published July 22, 2013

  ABOARD THE PAPAL FLIGHT TO BRAZIL (CNS)—With economic hard times as an excuse not to hire young people, the world risks tossing them aside and endangers its own future, Pope Francis said. Speaking to reporters aboard the papal flight to Rio de Janeiro July 22, the pope declined to answer their questions, but instead made […] Full Story

• Pope calls for repentance over migrants’ treatment

  

  Published July 18, 2013

  VATICAN CITY (CNS)—Before saying a word, Pope Francis made the sign of the cross and tossed a wreath of white and yellow flowers into the Mediterranean Sea in memory of the estimated 20,000 African immigrants who have died in the past 25 years trying to reach a new life in Europe. In his homily at […] Full Story

• Seven encyclicals that shook the church

  By FRANCIS X. ROCCA, Catholic News Service
  Published July 18, 2013

  VATICAN CITY (CNS)—Pope Francis’ first encyclical, “Lumen Fidei” (“The Light of Faith”), released July 5, is the latest installment in a centuries’ old papal tradition. An encyclical is considered the most authoritative form of papal writing, and though many examples are now remembered only by scholars, the messages of others have continued to resonate within […] Full Story

• Steps to sainthood

  Published July 18, 2013

  Procedures established by the popes.  In modern times, Pope John Paul II established procedures that guide inquiries leading to declaring a person blessed or a saint. He gave the Vatican Congregation for the Causes of Saints the faculty to establish norms for inquiries about the life, virtues and reputation of holiness and of intercessory power […] Full Story

• Seminarians see Rome

  Published July 18, 2013

  Father Tim Hepburn, vocations director for the Archdiocese of Atlanta, recently traveled to Rome along with seven seminarians for the Year of Faith pilgrimage. Father Tim went with Jorge Carranza, Gerardo Ceballos, Avery Daniel, Jack Knight, Brian Lee, Brian McNavish, and Juan Carlos Pacheco. They joined a global community of seminarians who all gathered in Rome […] Full Story

• Adding St. Joseph’s name to Mass texts, popes share their devotion

  By CINDY WOODEN, Catholic News Service
  Published July 15, 2013

  VATICAN CITY (CNS)—Pope Francis and retired Pope Benedict XVI have a special devotion to St. Joseph and have assured that devotion regularly will be shared at Mass by Catholics around the world. The Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments said Pope Francis confirmed a decision originally made by Pope Benedict to include St. Joseph […] Full Story

• In first encyclical, pope celebrates faith as the light of human life

  

  By FRANCIS X. ROCCA, Catholic News Service
  Published July 5, 2013

  VATICAN CITY (CNS)—Pope Francis’ first encyclical, “Lumen Fidei” (“The Light of Faith”), is a celebration of Christian faith as the guiding light of a “successful and fruitful life,” inspiring social action as well as devotion to God, and illuminating “every aspect of human existence,” including philosophy and the natural sciences. The document, released July 5, […] Full Story

• Pope clears the way for the canonizations of John Paul II, John XXIII

  

  By CINDY WOODEN, Catholic News Service
  Published July 5, 2013

  VATICAN CITY (CNS)—Pope Francis signed a decree clearing the way for the canonization of Blessed John Paul II and has decided also to ask the world’s cardinals to vote on the canonization of Blessed John XXIII, even in the absence of a miracle. After Pope Francis met July 5 with Cardinal Angelo Amato, prefect of […] Full Story

• Encyclical illustrates continuity of two papacies, officials say

  By CINDY WOODEN, Catholic News Service
  Published July 5, 2013

  VATICAN CITY (CNS)—Presenting Pope Francis’ new encyclical and acknowledging how much of it was prepared by retired Pope Benedict XVI, top Vatican officials hailed it as a unique expression of the development of papal teaching and unity in faith. “It is a fortunate coincidence that this text was written, so to speak, by the hands […] Full Story

• Director, deputy director of Vatican bank resign

  By CINDY WOODEN, CNS
  Published July 4, 2013

  VATICAN CITY (CNS)—The director and the deputy director of the Vatican bank, which is being investigated by a special papal commission, resigned July 1. A statement from the Vatican press office said Director Paolo Cipriani and Massimo Tulli, deputy director, offered their resignations “in the best interest of the institute and the Holy See.” The […] Full Story

• Church light diminishes so Christ’s light increases

  Published July 4, 2013

  VATICAN CITY (CNS)—On the Feast of the Birth of St. John the Baptist, Pope Francis called for the church to model itself after the prophet and courageously proclaim and serve Jesus even until martyrdom. “Why is St. John a saint and not a sinner?” the pope asked. “Because he never, ever understood the truth as […] Full Story

• What The Pope’s Leaked Comments Really Tell Us

  Published June 20, 2013

  VATICAN CITY (CNS)—A report that Pope Francis privately acknowledged the existence of a “gay lobby” inside the Vatican offers a sensational example of his unvarnished speaking style and a reminder of the challenge that style poses for the papacy in the age of digital communications and vanishing privacy. On the other hand, an acknowledgment that […] Full Story

• Pope Focuses On Need For Peace, Gift Of Eucharist

  By CINDY WOODEN, CNS
  Published June 6, 2013

  V ATICAN CITY (CNS)—The horror of war, the valor of peacemaking and the gift of the Eucharist were on Pope Francis’ mind June 2, the day Italy celebrates its establishment as a republic and the day most dioceses around the world celebrated the feast of the Body and Blood of Christ. Pope Francis began the […]