Pope Francis

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http://www.suntimes.com/news/22690641-418/cardinal-francis-george-responds-to-pope-francis-beautiful-reflection.html

Cardinal Francis George responds to Pope Francis’ ‘beautiful reflection’  
September 20, 2013 8:30PM
Updated: September 20, 2013 10:38PM
 
Cardinal Francis George on Friday released a statement in response to Pope Francis’ candid interview published Thursday — applauding the pope’s call for humility and forgiveness but failing to respond to his more pointed remarks calling for the church to lessen its focus on homosexuality, abortion and contraception.

“In his beautiful reflection published in English in America magazine, Pope Francis begins by identifying himself as a sinner, and so are we all. The first thing a sinner striving for conversion needs to hear is that God loves him or her. Mercy is love eager to forgive,” Cardinal George said in the statement.

“That has become the leitmotif of Pope Francis’ teaching, and it puts into perspective the demands of discipleship expressed and clarified in the Church’s established doctrinal and moral teaching. For who the Pope is, we should all be grateful. From how he teaches the truths of the Catholic faith, we can all profit,” George said.
 

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http://communities.washingtontimes.com/neighborhood/common-sense/2013/sep/20/did-pope-francis-really-say/

Did Pope Francis really say that?
Friday, September 20, 2013

WASHINGTON, September 20, 2013 — The liberal media, pro-abortion and pro-gay activists are once again off to the races, putting words — or at least meanings — into Pope Francis’ mouth that he never uttered.

It doesn’t matter whether they know that their interpretations of what the pope said are false. Millions of Americans not listening too closely or reading past the first paragraphs of a story will get the impression that the pope is telling the world’s 1.1 billion Catholics to “get over” abortion and same-sex marriage and stop obsessing about it.
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2013/09/21/pope_francis_at_mass:_the_merciful_gaze_of_jesus/en1-730529

2013-09-21 12:51:11
Pope Francis at Mass: the merciful gaze of Jesus

(Vatican Radio) Allowing ourselves to be looked upon by Jesus, whose gaze changes our lives: this was the focus of Pope Francis’ remarks after the readings at Mass on Saturday morning, the Feast of St Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist, whose conversion story is told in the Gospel passage of the day.

Jesus looks Matthew – a tax collector, a public sinner whose whole life was money, which he idolized – right in the eye. Then, said Pope Fraancis, “[Matthew feels] in his heart the gaze of the Lord who looked upon him.”:

“That gaze overtook him completely, it changed his life. We say he was converted. He Changed his life. ‘As soon as he felt that gaze in his heart, he got up and followed him.’ This is true: Jesus’ gaze always lifts us up. It is a look that always lifts us up, and never leaves you in your place, never lets us down, never humiliates. It invites you to get up - a look that brings you to grow, to move forward, that encourages you, because [the One who looks upon you] loves you. The gaze makes you feel that He loves you. This gives the courage to follow Him: ‘And he got up and followed him.’”
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2013/09/21/pope_francis:_social_communications_is_for_bringing_others_to_christ/en1-730505

2013-09-21 12:46:34
Pope Francis: Social communications is for bringing others to Christ

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Saturday addressed the participants in the Plenary Assembly of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications.

Pope Francis said the goal of the Church for its communications efforts is “to understand how to enter into dialogue with the men and women of today in order to appreciate their desires, their doubts and their hopes.”

The Holy Father said we must examine if the communications of the Church are helping others to meet Christ.

“The challenge is to rediscover, through the means of social communication as well as by personal contact, the beauty that is at the heart of our existence and our journey, the beauty of faith and of the encounter with Christ,” he said.

Below is the full text of Pope Francis' remarks
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2013/09/21/pope_francis_announces_changes_in_roman_curia_positions/en1-730511

2013-09-21 12:27:46
Pope Francis announces changes in Roman Curia positions

(Vatican Radio) The Holy Father has implemented the following changes in the organisation of the Roman Curia.

- He has accepted the resignation from the role of Major Penitentiary of Cardinal Manuel Monteiro de Castro, who has reached the age of retirement. He has confirmed as successor in the same role Cardinal Mauro Piacenza, who until now was Prefect for the Congregation of the Clergy.

- In the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, he has confirmed as Prefect Archbishop Gerhard Ludwig Müller, and as Secretary Archbishop Luis Francisco Ladaria Ferrer. He has appointed as Adjunct Secretary Archbishop Joseph Augustine Di Noia, who until now was Vice President of the Pontifical Council “Ecclesia Dei”. He has furthermore confirmed the Members and Consultants, and has appointed as Consultant Bishop Giuseppe Sciacca, Adjunct Secretary of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura.

- In the Congregation for the Evangelisation of the People, he has confirmed as Prefect Cardinal Fernando Filoni, as Secretary Archbishop Savio Hon Tai-Fai, and as Adjunct Secretary Archbishop Protase Rugambwa. He has furthermore confirmed the Members and Consultants.

- In the Congregation for the Clergy, he has appointed as Prefect Archbishop Beniamino Stella, who until now was President of the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy. He has confirmed as Secretary Archbishop Celso Morga Iruzubieta. He has appointed as Secretary for the Seminaries Jorge Carlos Patrón Wong, who until now was Bishop of Paplanta, elevating him at the same time to the dignity of Archbishop.

- In the Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See, he has appointed as Delegate of the Ordinary Section Msgr. Mauro Rivella, of the Clergy of the Archdiocese of Turin.

His Holiness has also appointed as Legate in Germany His Excellency Archbishop Nikola Eterović, was until now was General Secretary of the Synod of Bishops. He has appointed as successor in the same role His Excellency Archbishop Lorenzo Baldisseri, who until now was Secretary of the Congregation for Bishops
 

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An article in the secular media about the changes in the Roman Curia...

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/09/21/pope-francis-clergy/2846847/

Pope keeps archbishop who handles nun crackdown, sex abuse
AP 1:16 p.m. EDT September 21, 2013

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis, on Saturday, effectively demoted a highly conservative Italian cardinal who led the Vatican's department on clergy, while keeping in place a German prelate who wages the Catholic church's crackdown on liberal U.S. nuns and helps craft its sex-abuse response.

After six months on the job to study the workings of the Vatican's curia, or bureaucracy, Francis has now put his imprint on several key positions, which help administer the Roman Catholic church's worldwide flock. His management picks will likely both please and disappoint both conservatives and liberals alike, perhaps in line with his fledgling papacy, which has often defied labels in either camp.

Francis removed Cardinal Mauro Piacenza, with a reputation for being highly traditional on matters of liturgy and the question of priestly celibacy, from the important post of prefect of the Congregation for clergy. Piacenza had only held that post since 2010, when he was appointed by Francis' predecessor, Benedict XVI, whose retro tastes in papal vestments and preference for traditional ceremonies found a supporter in the Italian prelate.
 

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Two-page article

http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/on-faith/a-challenge-for-american-bishops-after-pope-francis-derides-church-emphasis-on-sexual-morality/2013/09/21/af5d570a-22df-11e3-ad1a-1a919f2ed890_story.html

A challenge for American bishops after Pope Francis derides church emphasis on sexual morality
(September 21, 2013)

NEW YORK — In recent years, many American bishops have drawn a harder line with parishioners on what could be considered truly Roman Catholic, adopting a more aggressive style of correction and telling abortion rights supporters to stay away from the sacrament of Communion.

Liberal-minded Catholics derided the approach as tone-deaf. Church leaders said they had no choice given what was happening around them: growing secularism, increasing acceptance of gay marriage, and a broader culture they considered more and more hostile to Christianity. They felt they were following the lead of the pontiffs who elevated them.
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2013/09/22/pope_francis_visits_our_lady_of_bonaria_/en1-730786

2013-09-22 16:02:58
Pope Francis visits Our Lady of Bonaria



(Vatican Radio) The Pope on Sunday celebrated Holy Mass at the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Bonaria, in Cagliari on the island of Sardinia.

The pastoral voyage has a special significance for Pope Francis, whose hometown of Buenos Aires in Argentina takes its from Our Lady of Bonaria.

Listen to Christopher Wells' report... RealAudioMP3

In his homily, Pope Francis said he had come to Cagliari to “to share with you the joys and hopes, efforts and commitments, ideals and aspirations of your island, and to confirm you in the Faith.” He spoke in particular about economic difficulties, especially the high level of unemployment and job insecurity.

“The loyal cooperation of everyone is necessary, with the commitment of leaders of institutions — even within the Church — to ensure the fundamental rights of persons and families, and to grow more fraternal and united. To ensure the right to work, to bring home bread, bread earned by work!”
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2013/09/22/pope_francis_prays_for_victims_of_peshawar_attack/en1-730848

2013-09-22 20:33:54
Pope Francis prays for victims of Peshawar attack

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Sunday condemned a blast at a church in Pakistan that killed at least 78 people as an act of "hatred and war".

In unprepared remarks at the end of a one-day trip to the city of Cagliari on the Italian island of Sardinia, the Pope said :"Today, in Pakistan, because of a wrong choice, a decisionof hatred, of war, there was an attack in which over 70 people died. This choice cannot stand. It serves nothing. Only the path of peace can build a better world."
 

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http://blogs.reuters.com/faithworld/2013/09/22/pope-attacks-global-economics-for-worshipping-god-of-money-slams-throwaway-culture/

Pope attacks global economics for worshipping ‘god of money,’ slams “throwaway culture”
September 22, 2013

Pope Francis made one of his strongest attacks on the global economic system on Sunday, saying it could no longer be based on a “god called money” and urged the unemployed to fight for work.

Francis, at the start of a day-long trip to the Sardinian capital, Cagliari, put aside his prepared text at a meeting with unemployed workers, including miners in hard hats who told him of their situation, and improvised for nearly 20 minutes.

“I find suffering here … It weakens you and robs you of hope,” he said. “Excuse me if I use strong words, but where there is no work there is no dignity.”

He discarded his prepared speech after listening to Francesco Mattana, a 45-year-old married father of three who lost his job with an alternative energy company four years ago.

Mattana, his voice trembling, told the pope that unemployment “oppresses you and wears you out to the depths of your soul”.

The crowd of about 20,000 people in a square near the city port chanted what Francis called a prayer for “work, work, work”. They cheered each time he spoke of the rights of workers and the personal devastation caused by joblessness.
 

 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2013/09/24/pope:_the_lord_is_our_companion_in_good_and_bad_times,_forgiving/en1-731298

2013-09-24 12:42:44
Pope: the Lord is our companion in good and bad times, forgiving

(Vatican Radio) Jesus is always by our side, accompanying us in the good and the bad times. That’s what Pope Francis told those gathered in the Vatican guest house, Santa Marta Tuesday for a private early morning liturgy.
Tracey McClure reports. RealAudioMP3

In his homily, Pope Francis drew from this morning’s reading from the passage in Psalms: “We will go with joy to the House of the Lord,” saying the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist is not a “magic rite” but an encounter with Jesus, our companion in life.

Throughout the history of the People of God, the Pope said, there have been “beautiful moments which bring joy” but also ugly moments “of pain, martyrdom and sin.”

“God, who has no History because He is eternal,” the Pope said, “desired to make History by walking alongside His people.” But even more than that, Pope Francis said “He decided to become one of us, and as one of us, to walk with us through Jesus.”

This shows us God’s greatness, he noted, but at the same time, it also illustrates His humility. And when his People strayed from Him “in sin and idolatry,” the Pope continued, “He was there” waiting. And Jesus shows the same humility: “he walks with the People of God, walks with the sinners; walks also with the arrogant.” The Lord, said Pope Francis, did much to “help these arrogant hearts of the Pharisees.”
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2013/09/24/pope_reconfirms_heads_of_two_pontifical_councils/en1-731220

2013-09-24 12:04:59
Pope reconfirms heads of two Pontifical Councils

(Vatican Radio) The Vatican has issued the following announcement regarding the Roman Curia:

Pope Francis has reconfirmed Cardinal Stanislaw Rylko as President of the Pontifical Council for the Laity and Msgr. Josef Clemens, Titular Bishop of Segerme, as the Secretary of the aforementioned Council for the remaining period of their respective five year appointments
 
At the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, Pope Francis has reconfirmed Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson as President and Msgr. Mario Toso, Titular Bishop of Bisarcio, Secretary until the completion of their current five year terms. He has also confirmed the Council’s Members and Consultors for the same period.

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http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/new-vatican-appointments-dominated-by-diplomats-say-observers/

Recent Vatican appointments dominated by diplomats, say observers

Vatican City, Sep 24, 2013 / 11:50 am (CNA/EWTN News).- According to Vatican observers, a Pope Francis “revolution” in the Roman Curia began Sept. 21, when a series of appointments and confirmations at the curia's top ranks changed the face of the Pope’s collaboration team.

Pope Francis on Saturday confirmed the heads of the Congregations for the Doctrine of the Faith and for the Evangelization of Peoples. In addition, he appointed Cardinal Mauro Piacenza, until now prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy, as head of the Apostolic Penitentiary; Archbishop Beniamino Stella as prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy; and Archbishop Lorenzo Baldisseri secretary general of the Synod of Bishops.

These last appointments can be seen as a clear signal that the influence of diplomats in the Vatican is strong again, Gianfranco Svidercoschi, former vice-director of the Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano, told CNA.
 

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http://www.foxnews.com/world/2013/09/24/benedict-francis-reach-out-to-atheists-in-apparent-papal-campaign-to-engage-non/

Benedict, Francis reach out to atheists in apparent papal campaign to engage non-believers
Published September 24, 2013

VATICAN CITY –  Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI has emerged from his self-imposed silence inside the Vatican walls to publish a lengthy letter to one of Italy's most well-known atheists. In it, he denies having covered up for sexually abusive priests and discusses everything from evolution to the figure of Jesus Christ.

Excerpts of the letter were published Tuesday by La Repubblica, the same newspaper which just two weeks ago published a similar letter from Pope Francis to its own atheist publisher.

The letters indicate that the two men in white — who live across the Vatican gardens from one another — are pursuing an active campaign to engage non-believers. It's a melding of papacies past and present that has no precedent and signals that the popes — while very different in style, personality and priorities — are of the same mind on many issues and might even be collaborating on them.
 

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Good article IMO

http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/pope-francis-catholics/2013/09/24/id/527437

Catholic Apprehension Abounds Over Pope Interview
Tuesday, 24 Sep 2013 02:51 PM

Prominent Catholics around the world have mostly lauded Pope Francis’ landmark interview with the Jesuit publication La Civilta Cattolica, but some remain perplexed, deeply apprehensive and quietly upset by his remarks.

Catholic commentators have generally argued that much of the mainstream media has misinterpreted the 12,000-word interview by viewing it as a radical departure from previous pontiffs, one more ‘in tune’ with secular mores.
 
Others speaking on background fear that if the pontificate continues for long, the Church will suffer greatly with a further decline in vocations to the priesthood, both in quality and number.

Whether that happens or not, this interview has exposed some significant fault-lines in the Church — ones that Pope Francis will have to work hard at to heal.

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http://www.catholicworldreport.com/Blog/2593/were_bishops__and_the_vatican__blindsided_by_the_popes_interview.aspx#.UkJTvb4o7IV

Were bishops – and the Vatican – blindsided by the pope’s interview?
September 23, 2013 09:07 EST

As the dust slowly begins to settle from last week’s papal interview earthquake, complaints have begun to surface from bishops and other Church officials about what they perceive as a lack of communication regarding the interview’s release. Many Vatican communication officials knew nothing about the interview until they had to field media inquiries from reporters after its publication, according to John Allen:

In an especially juicy irony, the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Social Communications – arguably, its primary think tank for communications strategy – was conducting its plenary assembly last Thursday, the day the interview appeared, and virtually no one taking part had any idea it was coming. …

In the middle of a working session, participants in the plenary assembly suddenly found themselves distracted by vibrations and alerts on their iPhones and BlackBerrys as news of the interview broke. …

Most senior Vatican officials, including some of its top communications personnel, also did not have advance notice. That’s especially striking given that CiviltÀ Cattolica enjoys semi-official status and is typically read by the Vatican’s Secretariat of State prior to publication.

In this case, however, editors reportedly decided that since they had direct papal approval of the text, there was no need to pass the interview through the normal channels.

Speaking on background, some bishops who happened to be in Rome last week expressed irritation that a handful of secular media outlets apparently had advance copies of the interview, but not them.

One prelate told NCR that he began getting phone calls from reporters seeking comment on Thursday, before he even knew that an interview existed, and felt ambushed.
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2013/09/25/pope_francis:_church_must_model_gods_plan_for_unity/en1-731568

2013-09-25 11:41:55
Pope Francis: Church must model God's plan for unity

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis said today that Christians must bear witness to the God-given unity of the Church, because the world needs a model of God’s plan for peace and reconciliation for the whole human family. The Pope was speaking to pilgrims and visitors this morning at his weekly general audience.

Listen to Giulia Cirillo's report: RealAudioMP3

When we affirm our faith, Pope Francis said, we affirm that the Church has one faith, one sacramental life, a single apostolic succession, a common hope. The definition is clear, he said, but we must ask ourselves whether we really live by this creed.

Am I one of those who “privatise” the Church for their own group, for their own country, for their own friends? – the Pope asked. When I hear about my brothers and sisters of faith who suffer, who are persecuted, does this really touch my heart? It is important, the Pope said, to feel that we are part of the Church, part of the one family of God.
 

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Regarding the publication of the interview with Pope Francis in the America Magazine--a correction

http://ncronline.org/news/vatican/america-apologizes-omission-francis-interview

'America' apologizes for omission in Francis interview
Sep. 25, 2013

In its historic 12,000-word interview with Pope Francis released last week, America magazine "inadvertently" omitted a sentence from the pope's comments about the role of women in the church, the magazine's editor-in-chief said.
 
When Jesuit Fr. Antonio Spadaro asked Francis, "What should be the role of women in the church?", Francis replied, "'It is necessary to broaden the opportunities for a stronger presence of women in the church." This sentence was left out of the English translation of the interview America published. The sentence appears in the original Italian article and in the French, German and Spanish translations.

The missing sentence was discovered by NCR columnist Phyllis Zagano, an expert on deacons and women's issues in the church. Zagano writes about the omission in her column, "What the pope really said," published Wednesday on NCRonline.org.

In a statement sent to NCR on Tuesday, America Editor-in-Chief Jesuit Fr. Matt Malone said, "Due to production error, one sentence in America's interview with Pope Francis was inadvertently deleted. ... America apologizes for this error, which was entirely inadvertent."

"The text will be corrected immediately in our online version of the article and a correction will be printed in the next issue of America," Malone told NCR.
 
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http://ncronline.org/blogs/just-catholic/what-pope-really-said
What the pope really said
by Phyllis Zagano    |  Sep. 25, 2013

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http://www.americamagazine.org/pope-interview

A Big Heart Open to God
September 30, 2013
Antonio Spadaro, S.J.
The exclusive interview with Pope Francis

 
This is the text of the interview as compiled by Antonio Spadaro, S.J. For reasons of space, the print edition of America contains a slightly edited version of the interview.
 
Women in the Life of the Church

And what about the role of women in the church? The pope has made ​​reference to this issue on several occasions. He took up the matter during the return trip from Rio de Janeiro, claiming that the church still lacks a profound theology of women. I ask: “What should be the role of women in the church? How do we make their role more visible today?”

*He answers: “It is necessary to broaden the opportunities for a stronger presence of women in the church. I am wary of a solution that can be reduced to a kind of ‘female machismo,’ because a woman has a different make-up than a man. But what I hear about the role of women is often inspired by an ideology of machismo. Women are asking deep questions that must be addressed. The church cannot be herself without the woman and her role. The woman is essential for the church. Mary, a woman, is more important than the bishops. I say this because we must not confuse the function with the dignity. We must therefore investigate further the role of women in the church. We have to work harder to develop a profound theology of the woman. Only by making this step will it be possible to better reflect on their function within the church. The feminine genius is needed wherever we make important decisions. The challenge today is this: to think about the specific place of women also in those places where the authority of the church is exercised for various areas of the church.”
 

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http://www.catholicworldreport.com/Blog/2599/catholic_leaders_close_to_francis_respond_to_papal_interview.aspx#.UkOtxr4o7IV

Catholic leaders close to Francis respond to papal interview
Comments by Fr. Frank Pavone, Abp. Gerhard Ludwig Müller, and Abp. Charles J. Chaput
September 25, 2013 06:45 EST

Last week a satirical website posted a photo of Pope Francis on the plane speaking to reporters, and “quoted” the Holy Father as saying: “Since my friends in the media twist everything I say, I decided to give a 12,000-word interview....”

And lo and behold, by artfully recombining sound-bites, major newspapers and cable networks made it sound like the Holy Father, in his recent interview with Antonio Spadaro, S.J., was calling for an end to the Church’s “obsession” about abortion, etc., downplaying dogma and recommending a new approach to the world of the twenty-first century.

The simplest way to deal with the misleading impressions gleefully created by the mainstream media is to quote Catholic leaders who have spoken personally with the Pope since he gave the interview in August.

Sanctity of Life

Fr. Frank Pavone was dining with the Holy Father in his residence a few days ago when he first received text messages from alarmed Catholics asking, “Is the Pope saying we should talk less about abortion?” Fr. Pavone headlined his response, posted at the Priests For Life website, “No, the Pope is not diluting the anti-abortion focus of the Church.”