Pope Francis

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2020-01/pope-francis-angelus-start-journey-of-faith-anew.html

Pope at Angelus: 'never cease to be surprised by God's love for us'
19 January 2020, 12:20

On this second Sunday of Ordinary Time, Pope Francis addressed the pilgrims gathered in St. Peter’s Square for the Angelus Prayer telling them to start anew their journey of faith.
By Linda Bordoni

Explaining that the liturgy of the day is linked to the Epiphany and to the Feast of the Baptism of Jesus, celebrated last Sunday, Pope Francis said today’s  Gospel continues  to speak to us of the manifestation of Jesus, and invites us to never cease to be surprised by God’s love for us.

He reflected on the reading that tells of how John the Baptist, after having witnessed the Spirit coming down from heaven and consecrating Jesus “by remaining upon him”, cannot hold back the urgent desire to bear witness to Christ.

John, the Pope said, saw something shocking: He saw the beloved Son of God in solidarity with sinners.

And the Holy Spirit, he continued, made him understand this “unheard-of novelty”, which is a real revolution.

In fact, the Pope noted, in many religions it is man who offers and sacrifices something to God. In this case, “it is God who offers his Son for the salvation of humanity.”

He said John’s astonishment is expressed through the meaningful words we repeat during Mass: “Behold the Lamb of God, the one who takes away the sin of the world!”
 
https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2020-01/pope-appeals-for-a-peaceful-solution-to-the-ongoing-crisis.html
Pope appeals for a peaceful solution to the crisis in Libya
19 January 2020, 15:36

https://zenit.org/articles/angelus-address-on-the-second-sunday-in-ordinary-time-in-continuity-with-jesus-manifestation-at-epiphany-and-in-the-baptism-at-the-jordan/
Angelus Address: On the Second Sunday in Ordinary Time, in Continuity with Jesus’ Manifestation at Epiphany and in the Baptism at the Jordan
January 19, 2020 13:59  Deborah Castellano Lubov

Video, with English commentary, at the link below--
Pope Francis Angelus of 19 January 2020
https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope-francis/angelus/2020-01/pope-francis-angelus-of-19-january-2020.html
or
Pope Francis - Angelus prayer 2020-01-19
https://www.youtube.com/user/

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/church/news/2020-01/week-prayer-christian-unity-archbishop-ernest-anglican-center.html

Care for migrants at heart of 2020 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity
17 January 2020, 11:24

The annual Week of Prayer for Christian Unity takes place from 18 to 25 January. It sees representatives of all Christian denominations gather in the Vatican to pray and reflect on the theme chosen for 2020.
By Linda Bordoni

Leaders of Christian communities throughout the world gather each year in the Vatican for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.  Pope Francis traditionally concludes the initiative presiding over Vespers at the Basilica of Saint Paul outside the Walls.

The theme for 2020, chosen and prepared by a group of representatives from the Christian Churches in Malta, is from the Acts of the Apostles: “They Showed Us Unusual Kindness”.

The working texts were finalized during a meeting of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, the International Committee of the Faith and the Order Commission of the World Council of Churches.
 

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope-francis/mass-casa-santa-marta/2020-01/pope-at-mass-freedom-through-trust-in-god.html

Pope at Mass: Trust in God makes us free
20 January 2020, 12:36

Trusting in the Word of God allows us to overcome idolatry, pride, and excessive self-confidence. In his homily on Monday during Mass at the Casa Santa Marta, Pope Francis said that being a “good Christian” means listening to what the Lord says about justice, charity, forgiveness, and mercy.
By Vatican News

In his homily at the daily Mass at the Casa Santa Marta, Pope Francis spoke about “docility” to the Word of God, which “is always new”. Reflecting on the first Reading, the Pope focused on God’s rejection of Saul as king, a “prophecy” that was confided to Samuel.

The stages of corruption

Pope Francis said that the essence of Saul’s sin was his “lack of docility” to the Word of God, imagining that his own “interpretation” of God’s command was “more correct”. The Lord had commanded the Israelites not to take anything from the people they had conquered, but they disobeyed. Pope Francis explained:

When Samuel goes to reject [Saul] on behalf of God, [Saul] tried to explain: “But look, there were cattle, there were so many good, fat animals, and with these I offered a sacrifice to the Lord”. He had not put anything in his own pocket, although others had. On the contrary, with this attitude of interpreting the Word of God as it seemed right to him, he allowed the others to put something of the plunder in their own pockets. The stages of corruption: it begins with a little disobedience, a lack of docility, and it keeps going further, further, further.
 

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2020-01/pope-simon-wiesenthal-centre-audience.html

Pope to Simon Wiesenthal Centre: If we lose our memory, we destroy our future
20 January 2020, 12:14

Pope Francis receives a delegation from the Simon Wiesenthal Centre, recalling his visit to the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp, and condemning antisemitism in every form.
By Vatican News

The Simon Wiesenthal Centre is a global human rights organization that, according to its mission statement, researches “the Holocaust and hate in a historic and contemporary context”.

Respecting human dignity

The Pope welcomed a delegation from the Centre to the Vatican on Monday and noted how it actively “seeks to combat all forms of antisemitism, racism and hatred towards minorities”.

The Simon Wiesenthal Centre has maintained contacts with the Holy See for decades, said the Pope, “in a shared desire to make the world a better place in respect for human dignity.  This dignity is due to every person in equal measure, regardless of his or her ethnic origin, religion or social status”, he added. The Pope said: “It is essential to teach tolerance, mutual understanding and freedom of religion, and the promotion of peace within society”.
 

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https://cruxnow.com/vatican/2020/01/pope-urges-bishops-to-teach-discernment-including-on-political-issues/

Pope urges bishops to teach discernment, including on political issues
Catholic News Service  Jan 20, 2020

ROME - Sometimes the political choices people face can seem like a choice between supporting a “snake” or supporting a “dragon,” but Pope Francis told a group of U.S. bishops their job is to step back from partisan politics and help their faithful discern based on values, said Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo of Galveston-Houston.

Meeting the bishops of Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas Jan. 20, Francis mentioned how, in an election, “you sometimes seem to be caught, you know, are you going to vote in one sense for a snake or you going to vote for a dragon?” DiNardo said.

The pope’s advice to the bishops was “teach your people discernment by you stepping back from the sheer politics of it” and focus on the values at stake, DiNardo told Catholic News Service. “If you try to step back and say, ‘but here are the major moral issues that we face,’ that’s what is most important.”

The region’s 26 bishops, including auxiliaries and retired bishops, spent about two-and-a-half hours talking with Francis in English and Spanish. The pope responded in Italian so his aide could translate the responses into English.

The topics were wide-ranging and included the clerical sexual abuse crisis, migration, the challenges of a media-permeated culture and forming Christian consciences, especially in a time of deep political divisions.
 

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope-francis/mass-casa-santa-marta/2020-01/pope-mass-casa-santa-marta-gods-gifts-are-free.html

Pope at Mass: ‘You can’t buy the Lord’s gifts’
21 January 2020, 14:53

Pope Francis celebrates morning Mass at the Casa Santa Marta reminding believers that the Lord’s gifts are free and it is not Christian to seek favours in order to grow in ecclesiastical careers.
By Linda Bordoni

To be a Christian, a priest or a bishop is a free gift from the Lord, Pope Francis said during his homily, and holiness consists in “guarding” this gift which we received gratuitously, and not thanks to our own merits.

The Pope was reflecting on the Responsorial Psalm and from the First Reading of today’s liturgy.

He explained that the Psalm recalls the election of David as king of Israel, after the Lord had rejected Saul for not obeying.

In the Reading, the Lord sends Samuel to anoint as king one of the sons of Jesse of  Bethlehem. The anointment, he said, indicates God's choice, and today it is used today to consecrate priests and bishops.
 

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2020-01/pope-francis-world-economic-forum-davos-development-human-person.html

Pope to World Economic Forum: human person the centre of integral development
21 January 2020, 14:57

As the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum got under way in Davos, Switzerland, Pope Francis urged the world’s public and private sector leaders of their responsibility for the integral development of all by placing the human person at the very centre of public policy.
By Robin Gomes

The message of Pope Francis was read on Tuesday at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum by Cardinal Peter Turkson, Prefect of the Vatican Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development.

The January 21 to 24 meeting on the theme, “Stakeholders for a Cohesive and Sustainable World”,  is marking the WEF’s 50th anniversary.

Founded in 1971, the international organization for public-private cooperation brings together the foremost political, business, cultural and other leaders of society to shape global, regional and industry agendas.
 
https://zenit.org/articles/pope-sends-prayerful-good-wishes-gods-blessings-to-davos-world-economic-forum/
Pope Sends Prayerful Good Wishes & God’s Blessings to Davos World Economic Forum
January 21, 2020 12:42  Deborah Castellano Lubov

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2020-01/pope-francis-bari-bishops-mediterranean-meeting.html

Pope to travel to Bari to meet Mediterranean bishops
21 January 2020, 15:33

Pope Francis is to travel to the southern Italian city of Bari in February where he will address a meeting of bishops from countries bordering the Mediterranean and celebrate Holy Mass.
By Linda Bordoni

A communiqué released by the Holy See Press Office on Tuesday published the programme for the papal visit which will take place in the morning of  Sunday 23 February.

The meeting Pope Francis is scheduled to address is organized and promoted by the Italian Bishops’ Conference and is entitled “Mediterranean, peace frontier”.

It takes place from 19 to 23 February and is expected to bring together more than 50 bishops from 19 Mediterranean nations in Europe, North Africa and the Middle East.

Migration is one of the issues at the heart of the conference, and bishops said the evangelization of young people, unemployment, cultural exchanges and peacemaking are also to be discussed.

During his time in Bari, Pope Francis will address the conference and greet participants. He will visit Bari’s Basilica of St. Nicholas where he will venerate the relics of the Saint, and engage with its community of Dominican Fathers.

Before departing he will celebrate an open air Holy Mass in the city center.

He is expected to be back in the Vatican before 2pm Rome time.
 

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Update:  the Benedict XVI-Cardinal Sarah book, From the Depths of Our Hearts: Priesthood, Celibacy and the Crisis of the Catholic Church

 
https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/pope-francis-favored-interviewer-casts-cdl-sarah-as-leading-opposition-campaign
Pope Francis’ favored interviewer casts Cdl Sarah as leading ‘opposition’ campaign
Tue Jan 21, 2020 - 3:49 pm EST
By Diane Montagna

ROME, January 21, 2020 (LifeSiteNews) — Eugenio Scalfari’s latest “interview” with Pope Francis, which came out at the height of the recent Benedict XVI-Cardinal Sarah book controversy, was a “loose reconstruction” of the Italian journalist’s recollection of the meeting, the Vatican has said.

In the January 16 “interview,” published in the left-leaning Italian daily La Repubblica, 95-year-old Scalfari, who is regarded as Francis’s preferred interviewer, portrayed “From the Depths of Our Hearts” as an opposition campaign launched by Cardinal Robert Sarah against the current pontificate. He also claimed that, for Francis, once Benedict had shown solidarity with him by reportedly denying co-authorship of the book, “the issue with Ratzinger was closed.”

The “interview”

La Repubblica featured its co-founder’s latest “interview” with the pontiff on page 2, with the headline: “Pope Francis: Case Closed with Ratzinger. Scalfari in conversation with Bergoglio after the controversy on priestly celibacy.”

Scalfari begins the piece by noting that “a few days before” Thursday, January 16, he set up his meeting with Francis by phone and agree to meet him at his Santa Marta residence in the Vatican. Scalfari also reminds his readers from the outset of his “very intense relationship” with the pontiff.
 
The timing

The timing of the latest Scalfari “interview” is significant. Reviewing the rollout of Cardinal Sarah’s new book with Benedict XVI:

On Sunday evening, January 12, the French daily Le Figaro announced the forthcoming book, titled: “From the Depths of Our Hearts.” The announcement was met with a storm of criticism, questioning Benedict’s right to express his views and accusing Cardinal Sarah of manipulating the pope emeritus.

On Monday, January 13, editorial director of Vatican News, Andrea Tornielli, penned a neutral piece saying the book — including introduction and conclusion — “bears the signatures” of Cardinal Sarah and Benedict XVI. He noted that the book was written “in filial obedience to Pope Francis” and “in a spirit of love for the unity of the Church.”
 
Two reliable sources told the National Catholic Register that Tornielli phoned Benedict’s private secretary, Archbishop Georg Gänswein, on Jan 13 and 14 to discuss the book.

On Tuesday morning, January 14, amid continued criticism, Cardinal Sarah issued an official statement saying that Benedict had seen the manuscript, introduction, conclusion and cover of the co-authored book. He also published several letters from the pope emeritus showing Benedict’s involvement in the project. “The polemic that has sought to smear me … by insinuating that Benedict XVI was not informed of the publication of the book ‘From the Depths of Our Hearts’ is deeply abject,” Cardinal Sarah wrote. He added: “I sincerely forgive all those who slander me or who want to oppose me to Pope Francis. My attachment to Benedict XVI remains intact and my filial obeisance to Pope Francis remains absolute.”

On Tuesday afternoon, January 14, Archbishop Gänswein told ANSA news agency: “I can confirm that this morning I acted on instructions from the Pope Emeritus and I asked Cardinal Robert Sarah to contact the book’s publishers and request them to remove Benedict XVI’s name as co-author of the book and remove his signature from the introduction and the conclusions too.” He said that Benedict had contributed a text to the volume asserted that the pope emeritus “did not approve a project for a co-authored book and he had not seen or authorized the cover.”
Shortly thereafter, Cardinal Sarah tweeted: “Considering the polemics caused by the publication of the book From the Depths of Our Hearts, it was decided that the book’s author for future publications will be: ‘Cardinal Sarah, with the contribution of Benedict XVI.’ However, the full text remains absolutely unchanged. +RS.”

Later the same day, the Cardinal again tweeted his official statement, saying: “I confirm that I was able to speak this morning with Archbishop Georg Gänswein. This communiqué remains my one and only version of the course of events. I also had a conversation with the management of Fayard [the French publisher] to implement the specific requests of Mgr Gänswein. +RS” 
Later on January 14, Ignatius Press, the English-language publisher of the new book, issued a statement saying they would stand by the co-authorship.

On January 16, Eugenio Scalfari meets with Pope Francis, asking him about the controversy surrounding the new book. “After Benedict’s show of solidarity with Pope Francis, the issue with Ratzinger was closed,” Scalfari reports.
 

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2020-01/pope-francis-general-audience-catechesis-christian-unity-migrant.html

Pope at Audience: Give migrants the same hospitality St Paul received
22 January 2020, 14:33

Dedicating his Catechesis to “hospitality” - the theme of this year’s Week of Prayer for Christian Unity - Pope Francis urges the faithful to be like the people of Malta, who welcomed and accepted St Paul and his companions in their moment of difficulty, as they were shipwrecked on the island.
By Francesca Merlo

Pope Francis urged men and women of goodwill to promote and practice a culture of welcome, especially towards vulnerable migrants in search of a better life. He decried recent government policies that have seen migrant ships in the Mediterranean be denied access to a safe port.

Speaking during his General Audience on Wednesday, the Pope referred to the passage in the Acts of the Apostles in which St Paul is shipwrecked on the island of Malta. The Pope compared St Paul and his companions to the migrants of today. The hospitality they received from the people of Malta, said the Pope, reflects the love of God.

Today, the sea on which Paul and his companions were shipwrecked is, once again, a dangerous place for the lives of other sailors. All over the world migrant men and women face risky voyages to escape violence, to escape war, to escape poverty.
 
https://zenit.org/articles/general-audience-on-week-of-prayer-for-christian-unity-they-showed-us-unusual-kindness-acts-28-2/
GENERAL AUDIENCE: On Week of Prayer for Christian Unity -‘They Showed Us Unusual Kindness’ (Acts 28: 2)
January 22, 2020 13:20  Deborah Castellano Lubov

Video at the link below--
Pope Francis - General Audience 2020-01-22
https://www.youtube.com/user/vatican

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/vatican-city/news/2020-01/pope-francis-appoints-new-archbishop-archdiocese-philadelphia.html

Pope Francis appoints new Archbishop of Philadelphia
23 January 2020, 12:00

Bishop Nelson Perez has been named the new Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia (USA).

Pope Francis has named Bishop Nelson Perez, currently the Bishop of Cleveland (USA), as Metropolitan Archbishop of Philadelphia. He succeeds Archbishop Charles Chaput, whose resignation was accepted by the Holy Father.
 
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/aiming-for-pastoral-presence-in-philadelphia-perez-says-he-learned-from-chaput-48482
Aiming for pastoral presence in Philadelphia, Perez says he learned from Chaput

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/vatican-city/news/2020-01/conference-at-vatican-focuses-on-pastoral-care-of-the-elderly.html

Conference at Vatican focuses on pastoral care of the elderly
23 January 2020, 11:12

The Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life is hosting an International Conference on the pastoral care of the elderly, set to take place in Rome from 29-31 January.
By Christopher Wells

Responding to Pope Francis’ call for the elderly to become “protagonists”, the Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life has organized an International Conference on the pastoral care of the elderly, entitled “The Richness of Many Years of Life”. The meeting will focus on how to deal with the culture of “discarding” the elderly, as well as their role in the family, and their particular vocation in the Church.

In an interview with Vatican News ahead of the Conference, the Prefect of the Dicastery, Cardinal Kevin Farrell, said that our contemporary “throwaway” culture tends to set people aside; and he acknowledged that even in the Church, the elderly are sometimes forgotten. “Anybody that’s worked in a parish, especially in developed countries, knows that the elderly live a very lonely existence”, he said. “They need to become protagonists, because of the great experience that they have for the many years of life”.
 

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/vatican-city/news/2020-01/suspension-egmont-aif-vatican-financial-information-lifted.html

Egmont Group lifts suspension of the Vatican Financial Information Authority
23 January 2020, 12:22

The President of the Vatican’s Financial Information Authority, Carmelo Barbagallo, announces the lifting of the suspension placed on it by the Egmont Group, and says it can now resume its collaboration with its peers in other countries.

In a statement released on Thursday, the President of the Vatican's Financial Information Authority announced that a previous suspension of its participation in the Egmont Group, had been lifted:

“I am pleased," President Barbagallo said in his statement, "to announce that, last night, the President of the Egmont Group, Mr Mariano Federici, decided to revoke the decision taken on 13 November 2019 to suspend the Financial Information Authority (AIF) from the international information circuit, Egmont Secure Web."

Barbagallo called this news "a very important step" and expresses "the confirmed trust of the Egmont Group in the financial information system of the Vatican.”
 

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope-francis/mass-casa-santa-marta/2020-01/pope-francis-mass-casa-santa-marta-jealousy-leads-to-war.html

Pope at Mass: Jealousy leads to war
24 January 2020, 14:01

During his daily Mass at the Casa Santa Marta, Pope Francis warns us of the “worm of jealousy” that leads to misjudgement and competition.
By Francesca Merlo

We must be careful of the jealousy and envy that lead us to “misjudge” others. Pope Francis began his homily at Mass in the Casa Santa Marta by explaining that these two words are the “seed of war”. His message comes from the Gospel reading, which describes how King Saul’s jealousy of David fades.

Jealousy and envy, he said, lead to an internal conversation with oneself that kills others. In reality, said the Pope, if we think about it, “there is no consistency” to them.
 

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2020-01/pope-francis-message-world-day-communications-2020.html

Pope: no to false, destructive stories, tell the good that unites
24 January 2020, 13:01

The message of Pope Francis for the 54th World Communications Day has as its theme, “That you may tell your children and grandchildren (Ex 10:2), Life becomes history”. Highlighting the value of storytelling, the Pope underscores how urgent it is also for the Catholic world to overcome the temptation of destructive stories. The annual day, which is marked on the Sunday before Pentecost, falls on May 24, this year.
By Alessandro Gisotti

Stories “can help us understand and communicate who we are” because we “human beings are storytellers” who need to be “‘clothed’ with stories to protect our lives”. Pope Francis emphasizes this in his message for World Communications Day 2020, published on Friday, the memorial of St. Francis de Sales, Patron Saint of journalists. The message, however, embraces a much broader horizon than the profession of journalism, which the Pope has got us accustomed to since his first message for World Communications Day (2014) when he established an ideal link between the evangelical figure of the Good Samaritan and the mission carried out today by “good communicators”. At a time marked by the deceptive and divisive use of the word, an “illness” from which the Catholic world is unfortunately not immune, the Pope reminds us that communication is authentic if it builds and does not destroy. It should be “humble” in the “search for truth”, as he stressed to the journalists of the Foreign Press Association last May. And in the face of the spread of “false and evil” stories – including the sophisticated aberration of deepfake - the Pope encourages that narration speak “of ourselves and of the beauty all around us” and help us “rediscover the roots and the strength to go ahead together”. We need, he exhorts, “to make our own the truth contained in good stories”.
 

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2020-01/pope-francis-meets-united-states-vice-president.html

Pope Francis meets with US Vice President Mike Pence
24 January 2020, 18:26

Pope Francis meets with US Vice President, Michael Richard Pence, in Audience in the Vatican.

Pope Francis on Friday met with Mike Pence, Vice President of the United States, in the Vatican. During their meeting, the Pope handed Vice President Pence a copy of his World Peace Day Message.

In his Message, Pope Francis invites us to help build peace, promoting a more just, supportive and fraternal world, because even today the scars of war "affect especially the poor and the vulnerable".
 
https://zenit.org/articles/pope-francis-receives-us-vice-president-mike-pence/
Pope Francis Receives US Vice President Mike Pence
January 24, 2020 12:10  Deborah Castellano Lubov

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/vp-pence-and-pope-francis-discuss-us-pro-life-movement-during-vatican-meeting-22928
VP Pence and Pope Francis discuss US pro-life movement during Vatican meeting

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https://cruxnow.com/church-in-the-usa/2020/01/pope-francis-has-our-backs-on-pro-life-cause-says-archbishop/

Pope Francis ‘has our backs’ on pro-life cause, says archbishop
Mark Pattison  Jan 24, 2020
CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Pope Francis “has our backs” in the pro-life cause, Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann of Kansas City, Kansas, said to applause in his Jan. 23 homily at the opening Mass of the National Vigil for Life.

During an “ad limina” meeting with bishops from Kansas, Missouri, Iowa and Nebraska the week before, Naumann said Pope Francis had told them, “If we do not defend life, no other rights matter.”

“The Holy Father said that abortion is first a human rights issue,” added Naumann in his homily, delivered at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington.
 
https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/hundreds-of-thousands-to-protest-abortion-hear-trump-speak-at-march-for-life-today
Hundreds of thousands protest abortion, hear Trump speak at March for Life
Donald Trump is the first U.S. president to attend the March for Life in person.
Fri Jan 24, 2020 - 6:23 am EST

https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/full-text-trumps-2020-march-for-life-speech
FULL TEXT: President Trump’s historic 2020 March for Life speech
Fri Jan 24, 2020 - 1:35 pm EST

Video at the link
https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/watch-2020-march-for-life-trumps-speech-live-right-here
Watch President Trump’s full speech at 2020 March for Life
Fri Jan 24, 2020 - 8:06 am EST

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2020-01/pope-francis-audience-iraq-president-salih-vatican-parolin.html

Pope meets Iraqi president
25 January 2020, 13:33

Pope Francis met President Barham Salih of Iraq in the Vatican, Saturday morning, the Holy See Press Office said in a statement. Later, the president also held a meeting with Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, accompanied by Secretary for Relations with States, Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher.

“During the cordial talks,” the Vatican Press Office said, “the good bilateral relations were evoked, and the parties focused on the challenges the country currently faces and on the importance of promoting stability and the reconstruction process, encouraging the path of dialogue and the search for suitable solutions in favour of citizens and with respect for national sovereignty.”

They also talked about “the importance of preserving the historical presence of Christians in the country, of which they are an integral part, and the significant contribution they bring to the reconstruction of the social fabric, highlighting the need to guarantee their security and a place in the future of Iraq”.
 

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/vatican-city/news/2020-01/pope-francis-approves-new-dean-and-vice-dean-college-of-cardinal.html

Pope approves election of Dean and Vice-Dean of College of Cardinals
25 January 2020, 14:53

Pope Francis approves the election of Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re as the new dean of the College of Cardinals and of Cardinal Leonardo Sandri as Vice-Dean.
By Vatican News

The Holy See Press Office Bulletin announced on Saturday that the Holy Father has approved the election of the Dean and Vice-Dean and Deputy Dean of the Cardinal of Cardinals.

The statement reported that "On 18 January 2020 the Holy Father approved the election – by the cardinals of the Order of Bishops – of the dean of the College of Cardinals". For the next five years, His Eminence Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re will fulfill this important role.  In addition to holding  the Title of the Suburbicarian Church of Sabina-Poggio Mirteto, he "will also assume the Title of the Suburbicarian Church of Ostia", the statement said.
 
Role of the Cardinal Dean

Called the "First among equals", the Cardinal Dean presides over the College of Cardinals. In the event of the death or resignation of a pope, he plays a key role in governing the Vatican while the See remains vacant. He calls his fellow cardinals to Rome and presides over the daily General Congregations held prior to a conclave. If he is under the age of 80, he also presides over the conclave itself.

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2020-01/pope-week-prayer-christian-unity-vespers-homily.html

Pope Francis: ‘May Week of Prayer teach us to be more hospitable'
25 January 2020, 18:18

Pope Francis leads an ecumenical prayer service for the close of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity calling for a more hospitable culture, amongst ourselves as Christians and among our brothers and sisters of different confessions.
By Linda Bordoni

“Hospitality belongs to the tradition of Christian communities and families,” Pope Francis said during his homily at an ecumenical prayer service that concludes the annual Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.

Openness and care for the other, in particular for migrants, was the theme at the heart of the Week of Prayer that saw the participation of Christian leaders of all denominations gathered in Rome from 18 to 25 January.

The Vatican's Sistine Chapel Choir and a Choir of Benedictine Monks sang at the service at Rome's Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls which traditionally takes place on the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul.

The theme for the 2020 Week of Prayer was chosen by a group of representatives from the Christian Churches in Malta from the Acts of the Apostles: “They Showed Us Unusual Kindness”.

Pope Francis began his homily reflecting on that reading and recalling that three different groups were on board the ship that brought Saint Paul to Rome as a prisoner: a group of soldiers, a group of sailors, and a group of prisoners – the weakest and most vulnerable.

He said that when the ship ran aground off the coast of Malta, the soldiers planned to kill the prisoners to ensure that no one would escape, but they were stopped by a centurion who wanted to save Paul.
 
https://zenit.org/articles/pope-francis-closes-week-of-prayer-for-christian-unity-with-ecumenical-service/
Pope Francis Closes Week of Prayer for Christian Unity With Ecumenical Service
January 25, 2020 21:58  Jim Fair

Video at the link below--
Pope Francis-Celebration of Second Vespers 2020-01-25
https://www.youtube.com/user/vatican