Pope Francis

[grace-land]

http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-gods-pardon-is-not-a-sentence-from-a-law-cour

Pope: God’s pardon is not a sentence from a law court
2015-10-30 Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio)  Pope Francis says a good priest knows how to empathize and get involved in the life of his flock. He said God pardons us like a father and not like an official in a law court. The Pope’s words came during his homily at Mass on Friday (30th October) at the Santa Marta residence that was given in Spanish.

The focus of Pope Francis’s homily was God’s compassion for each one of us and for the whole of humanity and how He sent His Son to “heal, regenerate and renew” the human race.

“It’s interesting that in the parable that we all know of the Prodigal Son, it’s said that when the father - who's the figure of a forgiving God – sees his son arriving he feels compassion. God’s compassion isn’t about feeling pity: it’s nothing at all to do with that."

“I can feel pity,” he explained, “for a dog that is dying,” but God’s compassion is different, it means “empathizing with another person’s problem, empathizing with that person’s situation.”
 

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http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-francis-martyrdom-is-a-grace-from-god

Pope Francis: Martyrdom is a grace from God
2015-10-30 Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis greeted pilgrims from El Salvador who came to the Vatican on Friday to thank the Holy Father for beatifying Archbishop Oscar Romero in May of this year.

500 people including Bishops, priests, religious, lay people and seminarians from El Salvador came to the Vatican on Friday to say quite simply “Thank You” to Pope Francis for beatifying Archbishop Oscar Romero in May 2015. The Archbishop was shot dead as he celebrated Mass in a hospital chapel on 24 March 1980.  Speaking to the pilgrims gathered, Pope Francis said Oscar Romero’s life was taken violently, while he was celebrating the Eucharist, a supreme sacrifice of love, sealing with his blood the announcement of the Gospel.
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2015/10/30/pope_francis_to_latin_american_bishops_love_your_people/1183321

Pope Francis to Latin American Bishops: Love your people
30/10/2015 16:43

(VIS) To commemorate 60 years of the Latin American Episcopal Council (CELAM), the Pope has written a message to the president Cardinal Ruben Salazar Gomez in which he expresses his gratitude for all the good the Lord has gradually sown there, and that has borne fruit through the service of God's Church in Latin America.

“I hope that CELAM, making pastoral and missionary conversion its priority, may increasingly participate in, support and give momentum to this evangelising movement towards all environments and all frontiers. It is important that our communities are a 'home and school of communion', which attract by a surprising fraternity based on the recognition of the common father, and help always to keep alive in the Church in Latin America the passion for our peoples, the bearing of our sufferings and the capacity for Christian discernment of the vicissitudes of their recent history, to open up paths of greater equality, peace and justice.”
 

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You can listen to the song at the link.

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/hear-pope-francis-somber-new-song-por-que-sufren-los-ninos-20151030

Hear Pope Francis' Somber New Song 'Por Que Sufren los Ninos?'
October 30, 2015

Pope Francis doesn't release his prog rock-infused Wake Up! – a collection of his most enduring speeches paired with contemporary music – until November 27th. But on Friday, the Pontiff shared a second track from the album: the somber, choir-backed "¿Por Qué Sufren los Niños?" The track's title translates to "Why do children suffer?," and on the piece, Pope Francis delivers a heartbreaking speech in Spanish about impoverished children to the Sports Field of St. Thomas University in Manila, Philippines.

"Why do children suffer? Only when our hearts can ask this question and weep, can we begin to understand. There is a worldly compassion which is completely useless," the Pope says on the track. "Can I weep when I see a child who is hungry, on drugs and on the street, homeless, abandoned, mistreated or exploited as a slave by society? Or is my weeping the self-centered whining of those who weep because they want to have something else?"
 

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http://www.news.va/en/news/programme-of-pope-francis-visit-to-prato-and-flore

Programme of Pope Francis' visit to Prato and Florence

Vatican City, 29 October 2015 (VIS) – The Holy See Press Office today made public the programme of the Holy Father's visit to Prato and Florence, Italy on 10 November for the Fifth National Congress of the Italian Church.

The Pope will depart at 7 a.m. from the Vatican heliport and will arrive an hour later at the municipal sports camp in Prato. From there he will transfer to the cathedral and will address workers from the square. At 9 a.m. he will travel by helicopter from Prato to Florence where, after arrival at the Luigi Ridolfi stadium, he will visit the baptistery and will meet with the representatives of the National Congress of the Italian Church in Piazza Santa Maria del Fiore. 

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http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-francis-prayer-intentions-for-november-3

Pope Francis' prayer intentions for November

Vatican City, 30 October 2015 (VIS) – The Holy Father's universal prayer intention for November is: “That we may be open to personal encounter and dialogue with all, even those whose convictions differ from our own”.

His intention for evangelisation is: “That pastors of the Church, 

[grace-land]

http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-companies-and-executive-offices-can-become-pl

Pope: Companies and executive offices can become places of holiness
2015-10-31 Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis addressed 7000 Italian Christian Business Executives in the Paul VI hall on Saturday, telling them that companies can become places of holiness.

The Christian Union of Italian Business Executives brings together Catholic entrepreneurs who set themselves the goal of being the architects for the development of the common good.

Meeting the executives in the Vatican on Saturday, Pope Francis told them that their emphasis on Christian formation and training, mainly through the deepening of the social teaching of the Church, was a noble work. He also spoke about the importance of having the right balance between work and family life.
 

[grace-land]

Won top prize!  Cute red shoes, too. 

https://www.enca.com/life/entertainment/what-wear-halloween-2015
What to wear on Halloween 2015
Saturday 31 October 2015 - 12:02pm

US President Barack Obama receives a child dressed as the Pope Francis on the South Lawn of the White House during a Halloween trick-or-treating celebration in Washington. Photo: REUTERS/Carlos Barria

[grace-land]

http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-francis-there-are-many-saints-to-be-found-in

Pope Francis: there are many saints to be found in everyday life
2015-11-01 Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis today celebrated All Saints Day telling the faithful that there are many saints to be found in ordinary life and that they are examples to be followed.

Speaking to the crowds gathered in St. Peter’s Square for the recitation of the Angelus, the Pope said saints are people who belong entirely to God, they carry the seal of God in their lives and on their persons.

Pointing out that we are all children of God and that we received the seal of our heavenly father with the sacrament of Baptism, Pope Francis said that saints are those who have lived their lives in the grace of Baptism, keeping that seal intact, behaving like children of God, trying to imitate Jesus.

“Saints – Pope Francis continued - are examples to imitate”. And noting that saints are not only those who have been canonized, but can anyone from next door neighbors, to members of our own families or others we have met as we live our ordinary lives, the Pope said we must be grateful to them and to God for having given them to us as examples of how to live and die in fidelity to God and to the Gospel.
 

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http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-francis-appeals-for-an-end-to-violence-in-car

Pope Francis appeals for an end to violence in Central African Republic
2015-11-01 Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis has appealed to warring parties in Central African Republic to put an end to the cycle of violence afflicting the nation.

Speaking on Sunday during the Angelus Prayer, the Pope expressed “strong worry” for the “painful episodes of the past days that have worsened the situation in Central African Republic”.

Appealing to the parties involved to take action to end the violence, he said he is spiritually close especially to the Comboni missionary fathers at the Parish of Our Lady of Fatima in Bangui who are assisting many displaced people.

Pope Francis also expressed his solidarity to the Catholic Church, to other religious denominations and to the entire Central African Republic as they make every possible effort to overcome divisions and undertake a journey of peace.
 
Pope Francis concluded his appeal telling those present that he hopes to travel to the Central African Republic at the end of the month and that he desires to open the Holy Door in Bangui Cathedral during his apostolic journey there. 

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http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-francis-celebrates-mass-for-all-saints-at-ver

Pope Francis celebrates Mass for All Saints at Verano cemetery
2015-11-01 Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Sunday travelled across Rome to the city’s Verano cemetery to celebrate Mass for All Saints Day. In his homily the Pope reflected on the words of the Beatitudes spoken by Jesus as he taught the crowds gathered on the hillside around the Lake of Galilee.

Pope Francis said we may ask ourselves how can the poor in spirit, or those who mourn be blessed or happy? Because those whose hearts are free of worldly cares and those who have experienced the sadness and pain of others, the Pope said, are those who will be welcomed into the Kingdom of Heaven and will feel God’s tenderness and consolation in their own lives.

Reflecting on the words, ‘Blessed are the meek’, Pope Francis said how often we act in exactly the opposite way, fretting, complaining and raising our voices, instead of following God’s path of patience and humility. Like parents who show endless patience towards their children, he said, Jesus also followed the path of meekness, suffering exile and persecution, false accusations and even death on the Cross for our sake.

The Pope spoke of the words ‘Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness’ saying they will be filled with God’s justice. ‘Blessed are the merciful’, he continued, reminds us that we are all sinners and every one of us needs to be forgiven, just as we must show mercy and forgiveness to others.

Finally the Pope reflected on Jesus’ words ‘Blessed are the peacemakers’, saying those who patiently work to build peace and reconciliation are those who find true happiness, unlike those who cheat, or gossip, or take advantage of others.
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkqJ7jh8_ZA
Holy Mass for the Solemnity of All Saints - 2015.01.11 

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http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-francis-sends-condolences-to-the-russian-peop

Pope Francis sends condolences to the Russian people
2015-11-01 Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis has sent a telegramme of condolences to the Russian President and to the  people following the crash of Russian Airbus A321 in Egypt in which 224 people were killed.
 
His Excellency Vladimir Putin
 President of the Russian Federation

Having learned with sadness of the tragic crash of the Russian airline in the Sinai Peninsula, His Holiness Pope Francis conveys his condolences to you and the Russian people.  He offers the assurance of his prayers for all who have died and for those who mourn their loss.  Upon the nation and all involved in the recovery efforts His Holiness invokes the strength and peace of Almighty God.   
 Cardinal Pietro Parolin
 Secretary of State

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http://www.catholicherald.co.uk/news/2015/11/02/italian-newspaper-pope-says-all-divorced-who-ask-will-be-admitted-to-communion/

Vatican denies Pope told Italian journalist that ‘all divorced’ will be admitted to Communion
posted Monday, 2 Nov 2015

Article quoting Pope Francis by Eugenio Scalfari is 'in no way reliable', says Vatican spokesman

The Vatican has said that an interview which quotes the Pope as saying that “all divorced who ask will be admitted” to Communion is “in no way reliable” and “cannot be considered as the Pope’s thinking”.

In an article in La Repubblica, Eugenio Scalfari said the Pope made the comment during a phone interview.

According to a translation by traditionalist blog Rorate Caeli, Pope Francis said: “The diverse opinion of the bishops is part of this modernity of the Church and of the diverse societies in which she operated, but the goal is the same, and for that which regards the admission of the divorced to the Sacraments, [it] confirms that this principle has been accepted by the synod.

He added: “This is bottom line result, the de facto appraisals are entrusted to the confessors, but at the end of faster or slower paths, all the divorced who ask will be admitted.”

However, Vatican spokesman Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi told the National Catholic Register : “As has already occurred in the past, Scalfari refers in quotes what the Pope supposedly told him, but many times it does not correspond to reality, since he does not record nor transcribe the exact words of the Pope, as he himself has said many times.

“So it is clear that what is being reported by him in the latest article about the divorced and remarried is in no way a reliable and cannot be considered as the Pope’s thinking.”
 

The Rorate Caeli article--
http://rorate-caeli.blogspot.com/2015/11/bombshell-pope-to-his-favorite.html
Bombshell: Pope to His Favorite Journalist: "All the Divorced who ask will be admitted [to Communion]"
Posted by New Catholic   at 11/01/2015 11:17:00 PM

Yes, he said it over the phone to his favorite journalist, Italian editor Eugenio Scalfari of La Repubblica (the Pope's favorite newspaper), in a conversation on October 28, revealed by the latter in an editorial published this Sunday.
 

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http://www.news.va/en/news/lombardi-statement-on-arrest-of-former-cosea-membe

Lombardi: statement on arrest of former COSEA members
2015-11-02 Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio) Vatican City authorities detained and arrested two people over the weekend, in connection with the unauthorized sharing of confidential documents. The two persons were the cleric, Msgr. Lucio Angel Vallejo Balda, and Dr. Francesca Chaouqui, who in the past were respectively secretary and member of the COSEA (Commission for Reference on the Organization of the Economic-Administrative Structure of the Holy See), established by the Pope in July 2013 and subsequently dissolved after the completion of its mandate. At the time the statement was issued, Dr. Chaouqui had been released from custody.

Below, please find Vatican Radio's English translation of the communiqué from the Press Office of the Holy See regarding the developments
*********************************
As part of criminal investigations carried out by the Vatican Gendarmerie, which have been underway for several months, regarding the unauthorized removal and sharing of confidential documents, two people were summoned for questioning this past Saturday and Sunday [Oct. 31 and Nov. 1] on the basis of the evidence gathered and the indications thereof.

The two persons were the cleric, Msgr. Lucio Angel Vallejo Balda, and Dr. Francesca Chaouqui, who in the past were respectively secretary and member of the COSEA (Commission for Reference on the Organization of the Economic-Administrative Structure of the Holy See), established by the Pope in July 2013 and subsequently dissolved after the completion of its mandate.
 
As for the books announced for the next few days it should be said clearly once again on this occasion as in the past, that they are the result of a serious betrayal of the trust placed in certain individuals by the Pope, and, as far as the authors are concerned, of an operation to draw advantage from a gravely unlawful act, i.e. the delivery of confidential documents, an operation, the legal and possibly penal implications of which are currently the object of study in view of possible further measures by the Prosecutor’s Office, which will resort, if necessary, to international cooperation.

Publications of this kind do not contribute in any way to the establishment of clarity and truth, but rather to the creation of confusion and partial and tendentious interpretations. We must absolutely avoid the mistake of thinking that this is a way to help the mission of the Pope.

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http://www.cbsnews.com/news/vatican-braces-for-scandalous-new-revelations-of-mismanagement-by-journalist-gianluigi-nuzzi/

October 29, 2015, 2:28 PM
Vatican braces for new allegations of mismanagement

VATICAN CITY -- The Vatican is bracing for more allegations of financial wrongdoing and mismanagement with the publication next week of two books that underscore the challenges Pope Francis is facing to reform the Holy See.

Italian journalist Gianluigi Nuzzi's "Merchants in the Temple" follows his blockbuster 2012 book, "His Holiness," based on confidential papal correspondence detailing corruption and political intrigue in the Vatican. The so-called Vatileaks scandal that ensued resulted in the conviction of Pope Benedict XVI's butler for leaking the documents, and some say, to Benedict's historic resignation.

Italian journalist Emiliano Fittipaldi is releasing "Avarice: Documents Revealing Wealth, Scandals and Secrets of Francis' Church." Fittipaldi writes for L'Espresso newsweekly, which has published some of the most damaging leaks of Francis' papacy, including most recently the letter by 13 cardinals warning Francis about his family synod.

The publication of the books, both on Nov. 5, will no doubt set off a new flurry of speculation about the depth of opposition to Francis' reform agenda, given both are purportedly based on leaked documents and internal information to which only Vatican officials would have had access.
 

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http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-francis-all-souls-prayers-for-departed-predec

Pope Francis: All Souls' prayers for departed predecessors
2015-11-03 Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis visited the crypt beneath St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican on Monday evening, for a time of private prayer for the repose of the souls of his predecessors in the office of bishop of Rome, who have departed this life.

It is a tradition for Popes to pray for their departed predecessors in this way on the Solemnity of All Souls – the day on which the whole Church prays for the dead, recommending friends, enemies, loved-ones, relatives and strangers alike to the mercy of God.

The month of November begins with the Solemnities of All Saints and All Souls, in which Christians give glory to God for the witness of the countless people who lived their lives of holiness in secret, and then express their solicitude for all those, who have gone before us out of time and into eternity.
 

[grace-land]

http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-celebrates-mass-for-deceased-bishops-and-card

Pope celebrates Mass for deceased bishops and cardinals
2015-11-03 Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Tuesday celebrated Mass in St Peter’s Basilica for all the cardinals and bishops who have died over the past year. Recalling with gratitude the vocation of those Church leaders, the Pope noted that the principle task of all ordained ministers is that of service to others.

Pope Francis said just as Jesus knelt to wash the feet of his closest disciples, so he calls all his ministers today to renew their commitment to service in his Church. Just as Jesus came to serve and not to be served, the Pope insisted, so his ministers are called in turn to be pastors, ready to give their lives for their flock. In the eyes of this world, he said, those who serve are seen as losers: but in reality it is those who give their lives and lose themselves in the love of Christ who will overcome death and give life to the world.
 

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http://www.catholicherald.co.uk/news/2015/11/03/new-vatican-book-five-key-claims/

New Vatican book: Five key claims
posted Tuesday, 3 Nov 2015

Merchants in the Temple by Italian journalist Gianluigi Nuzzi features claims over canonisation Causes, property valuations and a break-in

An advance copy of Merchants in the Temple by Italian journalist Gianluigi Nuzzi, detailing claims of mismanagement and internal resistance that has been thwarting Pope Francis’s financial reform efforts, has been obtained by the Associated Press.

Here are five key claims made by Nuzzi in his book, which is due to be published on Thursday:

1. Citing emails, minutes of meetings, recorded private conversations and memos, the book paints a picture of a Vatican bureaucracy entrenched in a culture of mismanagement, waste and secrecy.

2. Nuzzi cites a report by the commission set up by Pope Francis to look into the Vatican’s financial affairs that found the value of Vatican real estate was some 2.7 billion euros, seven times higher than the amount entered onto the balance sheets. Rents were sometimes 30 to 100 per cent below market value, the commission found, including some apartments that were given free to cardinals and bureaucrats as part of their overall compensation or retirement packages. The book says that if market rates were applied, homes given to employees would generate income of 19.4 million euros rather than the 6.2 million euros currently recorded, while other “institutional” buildings which today generate no income would generate income of 30.4 million euros.
 

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http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/vatileaks-chapter-two

Vatileaks, Chapter Two
Francesca Chaouqui and Opus Dei Msgr. Lucio Vallejo Balda were appointed by the Pope in 2013 to an economic advisory board.
by EDWARD PENTIN 11/03/2015

Editor's Note: This article was updated after its initial publication.

VATICAN CITY — A Spanish monsignor and an Italian public-relations consultant who served on a financial reform commission set up by Pope Francis were arrested Oct. 31, suspected of leaking confidential information and documents.

A Vatican statement issued Nov. 2 said that Vatican prosecutors upheld the arrests of Francesca Chaouqui, 33, and Msgr. Lucio Angel Vallejo Balda, 54.

The two had been arrested under a July 2013 Vatican law that prohibits the disclosure of information and confidential documents. Chaouqui was freed a day later because of her cooperation with the investigation, a Vatican spokesman said. As the Register went to press, Msgr. Vallejo was still being held in custody. If found guilty, he could be jailed for four to six years.
 

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http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/11/03/us-vatican-finances-apsa-idUSKCN0SS1RP20151103#YsbTZKAiQpSIpOJY.97

Tue Nov 3, 2015 3:47pm EST
Exclusive: Vatican inspectors suspect key office was used for money laundering

Vatican financial investigators suspect a department of the Holy See which oversees real estate and investments was used in the past for possible money laundering, insider trading and market manipulation, according to a report seen by Reuters.

The information in the confidential document, which covers the period from 2000 to 2011, has been passed on to Italian and Swiss investigators for their checks because some activity tied to the accounts allegedly took place in these countries, a senior Vatican source said.

While most of the media focus of the Vatican's murky finances has for decades centred on its official bank, the Institute for Works of Religion (IOR), a department called the Administration of the Patrimony of the Holy See (APSA), acted as its own financial powerhouse.

APSA, a sort of general accounting office, manages the Vatican's real estate holdings in Rome and elsewhere in Italy, pays salaries of Vatican employees, and acts as a purchasing office and human resources department.

One of its two divisions also manages the Vatican's financial and stock portfolio. The 33-page report suspects this division was used by an outsider for non-Vatican business, with possible complicity of APSA staff, in violation of its own regulations.