Pope Francis

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/02/06/popes_harley-davidson_sold_for_charity/en1-770987

2014-02-06 19:02:47
Pope's Harley-Davidson sold for charity



(Vatican Radio) A Harley-Davidson owned by Pope Francis has been sold for 210,000 euros.

The motorbike was auctioned in Paris to raise money for a charity for the homeless in Rome.

It was sold to an anonymous phone bidder.

The Dyna Super Glide was signed, but never ridden, by the Pope. It was given to him in June, to mark Harley-Davidson's 110th anniversary.
 
A leather jacket which accompanied the motorbike also sold for 50,000 euros.

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/02/07/pope_mass:_proclaim_the_gospel_with_humility/en1-771088

2014-02-07 11:53:36
Pope Mass: Proclaim the Gospel with humility

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis during his Homily at Mass on Friday at the Casa Santa Martha said that as Christians we are called to proclaim the Gospel with humility.
Lydia O’Kane reports RealAudioMP3

Taking his cue from Friday’s Gospel which recounts the tragic death of John the Baptist, the Pope said John was the man God had sent to prepare the way for his son. He, Pope Francis continued, was a man in the court of Herod, filled with corruption and vices who urged everyone to convert.

The Holy Father recalled how this great Saint firstly, proclaimed Jesus Christ. John had the chance to say he was the Messiah, added the Pope, but he did not. Secondly, said Pope Francis John the Baptist was “a man of Truth”. The third thing John did, underlined the Holy Father was to imitate Jesus in his humility, in his suffering and humiliation.

The Pope also stressed that like other religious figures such as Blessed Teresa of Calcutta, John the Baptist had dark moments, moments of anguish and doubt sending his disciples to ask Jesus : ' But tell me, is it you, or am I wrong and there is another?
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/02/07/fr_lombardi_sj:_note_on_childrens_rights_committee_findings_/en1-771101

2014-02-07 12:18:04
Fr Lombardi SJ: Note on children's rights Committee findings

(Vatican Radio) The Director of the Press Office of the Holy See, Fr. Federico Lombardi, SJ, has issued a Note to Vatican Radio (of which he is Director-General) regarding the United Nations, the Holy See, and the Committee on the Rights of the Child, in the wake of the Committee’s Concluding Observations on the reviewed Reports of the Holy See (and five member states that are also parties to the convention).

Fr. Lombardi SJ writes, “It is impossible not to see that the final recommendations of the Committee appear to present – according to the judgment of those, who followed closely the process that preceded them – serious limits,” noting in particular the Observations’ conspicuous lack of understanding of the specific nature of the Holy See – a lack he describes as, “particularly grave.” Listen: RealAudioMP3

The most serious issue with the Observations is found in the Committee's apparent overstepping of its own purview. "The observations of the Committee," writes Fr. Lombardi, "seem to go beyond its competencies, and to interfere in the very doctrinal and moral positions of the Catholic Church," specifically regarding abortion, contraception, family education and other related areas.

Fr. Lombardi SJ stresses that, while the Holy See has been subjected to “unjustly harmful” media attention, it is also true and at least equally important to recognize that the Committee itself has received “serious and well-founded” criticism. He goes on to underline that, while the United Nations organization as such is not responsible for the shortcomings of the Committee, public opinion has assigned the organization the brunt of negative fallout from the Committee’s conduct.

The three-page Note also reviews in detail the Holy See’s history of support for the work of the United Nations, as well as the history of the Holy See’s adherence to and participation in the Convention on the Right s of the Child (the Holy See was one of the earliest adherents to the Convention).

“The adherence of the Holy See to the Convention,” writes Fr. Lombardi SJ, “is motivated by a long-standing commitment of the Universal Church and of the Holy See in favor of the good of children.” He goes on to write, “It is for this reason, [that] the Holy See shall continue to dedicate itself to the effective implementation of the Convention, and to the maintenance of an open, constructive and sincere dialogue,” with the organs of the Convention.

Vatican Radio's translation of the full text is available below.
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/02/08/pope_announces_possible_trip_to_sri_lanka/en1-771468

2014-02-08 14:32:16
Pope announces possible trip to Sri Lanka

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Saturday met with a group of Sri Lankan immigrants living in Italy. The group had come to Rome on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the consecration of the Church in Sri Lanka to the Blessed Virgin Mary.

The group was led by the Archbishop of Colombo, Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith. In his address to the pilgrims, Pope Francis greeted Cardinal Ranjith, and thanked him for an invitation to visit Sri Lanka. “I welcome this invitation,” the Pope said, “and I think the Lord will grant us the grace.”

The Holy Father recalled the circumstances that led to the consecration of Sri Lanka to the Blessed Virgin Mary.

In the midst of the dangers of the Second World War, the Archbishop of Colombo, Jean-Marie Masson, vowed to build a shrine to the Madonna if the island-nation were preserved from foreign invasion. After the war, in fulfilment of the vow, the Church in Sri Lanka built the Shrine of Our Lady of Lanka at Tewatte (outside the capital Colombo).

“Our Lady is always close to us,” the Pope said, “she looks upon each one of us with maternal love and accompanies us always on our journey. Do not hesitate to turn to her for every need, especially when the burden of life with all its problems makes itself felt.”
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/02/09/angelus:_christians_are_burning_lamps,_bearing_the_light_of_jesus/en1-771671

2014-02-09 12:42:48
Angelus: Christians are burning lamps, bearing the light of Jesus

(Vatican Radio) In his Angelus on Sunday, Pope Francis spoke about the words of Jesus from the Gospel of the day: “You are the salt of the earth... you are the light of the world.”

These words “amaze us,” the Pope said, when we consider who they were addressed to. “They were fishers, simple people... But Jesus saw them with the eyes of God.” The Holy Father said these words are a consequence of the Beatitudes, which they immediately follow. If we are poor in spirit, meek, pure of heart, merciful... then we will be the salt of the earth and the light of the world.

Christians, he said, “receive a mission in regard to all humanity: with faith and with love they can direct, consecrate, and make fruitful all humanity.” We are all “missionary disciples, and we are called to become in the world a living Gospel.” If Christians lose their savour, if their light goes out, their presence in the world loses its efficacy. “Do you want to be burning lamps,” he asked the crowd, “or extinguished lamps?”

After the Angelus prayer, Pope Francis noted that on Tuesday the Church will celebrate the memorial of Our Lady of Lourdes, and will commemorate the World Day of the Sick. This, he said, is the right time to put the sick “at the centre of the community, to pray for them and with them, to be close to them.” He called on each one of us to imitate the example of the Lord, who cared for all, shared their sufferings, and opened hearts to hope
 

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http://www.zenit.org/en/articles/archbishop-chaput-appointed-to-vatican-s-laity-council

Archbishop Chaput Appointed to Vatican's Laity Council
Vatican City,  February 07, 2014 

The Holy See announced Thursday that Pope Francis confirmed Cardinal Stanislaw Rylko as president of the Pontifical Council for the Laity, and Bishop Josef Clemens as secretary.

He also named Philadelphia's archbishop, Charles Chaput, to the council.
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/02/10/pope_francis:_rediscover_a_sense_of_the_sacred/en1-771852

2014-02-10 12:51:08
Pope Francis: rediscover a 'sense of the sacred'

(Vatican Radio) To rediscover the sense of the sacred, the mystery of the Real Presence of God in the Mass: that was Pope Francis’ invitation during the Eucharistic celebration this morning at Casa Santa Marta.

The first Reading of the day speaks about the “theophany” of God in the time of Solomon the king. The Lord came down like a cloud upon the temple, which was filled with the glory of God. The Lord, the Pope said, speaks to His people in many ways: through the prophets, the priests, the Sacred Scriptures. But with the theophanies, He speaks in another way, “different from the Word: it is another presence, closer, without mediation, near. It is His presence.” This, he explained, happens in the liturgical celebration. The liturgical celebration is not a social act, a good social act; it is not a gathering of the faithful to pray together. It is something else. In the liturgy, God is present,” but it is a closer presence. In the Mass, in fact, “the presence of the Lord is real, truly real.”

“When we celebrate the Mass, we don’t accomplish a representation of the Last Supper: no, it is not a representation. It is something else: it is the Last Supper itself. It is to really live once more the Passion and the redeeming Death of the Lord. It is a theophany: the Lord is made present on the altar to be offered to the Father for the salvation of the world. We hear or we say, ‘But, I can’t now, I have to go to Mass, I have to go to hear Mass.’ The Mass is not ‘heard’, it is participated in, and it is a participation in this theophany, in this mystery of the presence of the Lord among us.”
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/02/10/pius_xi:_echoes_of_that_era.../en1-771886

2014-02-10 16:20:13
Pius XI: echoes of that era...



(Vatican Radio) It was the 10th February 1939 when the founder of our radio station, Pope Pius XI died after a 16 year pontificate. For the record he was elected on the 6th of February 1922 and it was during his pontificate that the singning of the Lateran Pacts between the Holy See and the Italian State brought an end to the Roman Question.

His stature as as Pope did not go unremarked by the international media and in 1933 Time Magazine dedicated its cover to him. Also remarkable were his twenty or so encyclicals. Famous in a special way is the one focusing on social justice known as 'Quadragesimo Anno' written as the title indicates to mark forty years since Leo XIII's encyclical 'Rerum Novarum'. But also 'Mitt Brennender Sorge' in which Pius XI accuses the Nazi Government of violations of the 1933 Concordat and of sowing "the tares of suspicion, discord, hatred, calumny, of secret and open fundamental hostility to Christ and His Church"...
 

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http://www.adnkronos.com/IGN/Aki/English/Religion/Vatican-Pope-Benedicts-abdication-great-act-says-spokesman_321210070479.html

Vatican: Pope Benedict's abdication 'great act' says spokesman
last update: February 10, 19:48

Rome, 10 Feb. (AKI) - Benedict XVI's resignation in February last year - the first by a pope since the Middle Ages - was "a great act of government", Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi said on Monday.

"What I say, and what I said then, is that it seemed to me a great act of government, that is a decision taken freely that truly affects the situation and the history of the Church," Lombardi stated.

German-born Joseph Ratzinger's abdication from the papacy was "done with deep spirituality, great preparation" and "great courage," Lombardi said.

For the Catholic Church, the Benedict is "the grand old man, the sage, even the saint," he said.
 
Benedict XVI is no longer in the public spotlight but continues to lead an active life with meetings and spiritual exchanges with many people including the current pontiff, Pope Francis, Lombardi said.

"He really gives an impression of great spiritual serenity. He has kept his usual smile," said Lombardi, who is a Jesuit priest.

Having both an emeritus pope coexist with a reigning one has never been a cause for concern, since the papacy "is a service and not a power," Lombardi added.

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/02/11/pope_francis:_“pray_with_me_for_benedict_xvi,_man_of_courage_and/en1-772124

2014-02-11 11:16:13
Pope Francis: “pray with me for Benedict XVI, man of courage and humility”



(Vatican Radio) On the first anniversary of Benedict XVI’s historic announcement of his resignation, Pope Francis has launched a tweet calling the faithful to join him in praying for his predecessor.    “Today I ask you to join me in prayer for His Holiness Benedict XVI, a man of great courage and humility.

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/02/11/benedict_xvi’s_personal_secretary:_former_pope’s_resignation/en1-772115

2014-02-11 11:01:54
Benedict XVI’s personal secretary: former Pope’s resignation "revolutionary and courageous”



(Vatican Radio) In an interview with the Vatican Television Center (CTV) Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI’s personal secretary recalls the day on which Pope Francis’ predecessor announced his decision to resign. “The 11th of February last year was a very special day,” said Archbishop Georg Gänswein, a day he says was marked by feelings of “sadness and gratitude.”

“Clearly, taking one’s leave is always a sad thing, a thing that hurts, that is painful” says Gänswein who is also head of the papal household. “On the other hand, there was also the feeling of gratitude for these years that I was able to live near a great Pope. I knew about (the announcement) a little before, and certainly, when the Pope told me, he told me with orders not to tell anyone, and I did not say anything. I knew about it, however, at the moment he said it, I was shocked. For me, the last day of his pontificate was a day of great sorrow.”
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/02/11/benedict_xvi_resignation:_cdfs_msgr._john_kennedy_recalls/en1-772172

2014-02-11 12:36:53
Benedict XVI resignation: CDF's Msgr. John Kennedy recalls



(Vatican Radio) It was exactly one year ago that Pope Benedict XVI made history with the announcement of his resignation from the papacy.
Less than three weeks later, on 28 February, he officially stepped down from office, retiring temporarily to the palace in Castel Gandolfo. He currently resides in the Mater Ecclesiae monastery located within the Vatican Walls.

For more than twenty years leading up to his election to the papacy 2005, Cardinal Josef Ratzinger served as the prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. One of the officials working for the Congregation at this time was Monsignor John Kennedy.

One year on since his resignation, the CDF official still recalls the moment of Pope Benedict’s resignation. “Part of me could understand why,” Mons Kennedy told Vatican Radio, “having known him since 1998, knowing that he would always want the Petrine ministry to be the most effective, to be the fullest, to be occupied by a person who could give complete energy to it.” All the same, he said, there has been “a great sadness” among the officials, who he often referred to as his family.

His stepping down from the papacy was a “gesture of humility”, the official went on, one that “has opened up for us the enormous possibilities that have been seen in Pope Francis.”
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/02/11/pope-emeritus_benedict_xvi_a_year_from_his_resignation/en1-772196

2014-02-11 14:06:47
Pope-emeritus Benedict XVI a year from his resignation



(Vatican Radio) It was exactly one year ago, on February 11th, 2013, that the then-Pope, Benedict XVI, stunned the Church and the world with the announcement of his resignation, effective just over two weeks later, at the end of the month.

The resignation set in motion a series of events, the momentum of which is still very much with us. Since his resignation took effect, however, Pope-emeritus Benedict XVI has stayed largely out of the public eye: “withdrawn from the world,” as he himself described his circumstances.
 
According to a report appearing in The Voice of Romagna, a small regional daily published in the Italian city of Rimini, some recent guests of Benedict were the archbishop of Ferrara-Comacchio, Luigi Negri, and Professor Marco Ferrini, who together lead the John Paul II International Fund for the Social Magisterium of the Church, with the professor describing the Pope-emeritus as, “lively,” though the weight of his 87 years is apparent.

Though he is out of the public spotlight, the Pope-emeritus has maintained an interest in affairs. “He spoke to us of the difficulty of the context in which the Church of today moves and acts, experiencing as it is an ever more virulent attack from the world,” said Ferrini, who went on to say that his host is not discouraged by the state of thing. He quoted the Holy Father as saying, “If there is no struggle, then it is not Christianity.”

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/02/11/pilgrimage_to_lourdes:_a_place_of_great_spirituality_and_joy/en1-772174

2014-02-11 15:15:00
Pilgrimage to Lourdes: a place of great spirituality and joy



(Vatican Radio) The Church’s World Day of Sick on February 11th is celebrated on the anniversary of the date of the first apparition of Our Lady to St. Bernadette in a cave just outside Lourdes. The French town has since become one of the major pilgrimage destinations in the world with millions of sick and disabled people travelling there each year.
 

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http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/02/11/pope-francis-pope-john-name_n_4767765.html

Pope Francis Would Have Been Named Pope John XXIV, Before Ultimate Decision On Papal Moniker
Posted:  02/11/2014 1:22 pm EST    Updated:  02/11/2014 1:59 pm EST   

Though Pope Francis' name is now on the whole world's lips, it seems that the former Cardinal Jose Mario Bergoglio did not always intend on choosing it as his papal name, reports David Gibson of Religion News Service.

A recently published book by Gianluca Barile, Diario di un Papista, reveals that Bergoglio told friend and fellow Cardinal, Francesco Marchisano, that if he had been elected pope during the 2005 conclave he would have taken the name "John," or "Giovanni," after Pope John XIII. Barile is a journalist and writer who has met extensively with the Pope Francis and Pope Benedict.

Pope Francis came very close to being elected Pontiff in the 2005 conclave that elected Pope Benedict, as Bergoglio received 40 votes to Ratzinger's 72 after three rounds of balloting, standing in second place. In an attempt to avoid a long conclave, Bergoglio reportedly signaled his supporters to cease backing him, and in the fourth round of voting he took only 26 votes while Ratzinger won with 84, according to Religion News Service.

Italian newspaper La Stampa highlighted the excerpt from Barile's book, reporting that Beroglio commented in 2005 that if he had been elected, "John, I would have called myself John, like the Good Pope; I would have been completely inspired by him."
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/02/12/pope_francis:_eucharist_leads_us_to_help_those_most_in_need/en1-772568

2014-02-12 14:32:12
Pope Francis: Eucharist leads us to help those most in need

(Vatican Radio) The Eucharist is not just a weekly way of celebrating our faith, but should radically affect our relationship with others, especially with those most in need. That was the message Pope Francis shared with the crowds gathered in St Peter’s square for his general audience on Wednesday.
Philippa Hitchen takes a closer look at what the Pope had to say: RealAudioMP3

How do we experience the Eucharist, Pope Francis asked the crowds gathered in a sunny St Peter’s Square on Wednesday? Does it just make us feel good about ourselves or is it something more than that? He suggested three ways of discovering how the Eucharist can make a real difference in our lives and in our relationships with those around us.
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/02/13/pope_mass:_faith_in_the_word_of_god_leads_to_salvation/en1-772812

2014-02-13 11:46:42
Pope Mass: Faith in the word of God leads to salvation

(Vatican Radio) Believers can lose their faith because of passion and vanity, while a pagan can become a believer through his or her humility. Those were the Pope’s comments during his Homily at morning Mass Thursday at the Casa Santa Marta.
Lydia O’Kane reports. RealAudioMP3

In his Homily at the Casa Santa Marta, Pope Francis, referring to Thursday’s readings recalled a courageous woman, a pagan, who asks Jesus to free her daughter from the devil. Jesus , recounted the pope, says to her, “Let the children be fed first. For it is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs.” She replies“Lord, even the dogs under the table eat the children’s scraps.”

The Holy Father explained that this woman was “not ashamed” of having faith in Jesus and, therefore, he grants her a miracle and drives the demon out of her daughter.
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/02/13/pope_francis:_christians_and_jews_should_build_a_more_just_and/en1-772806

2014-02-13 11:49:17
Pope Francis: Christians and Jews should build "a more just and fraternal world"



(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Thursday urged Christians and Jews to cooperate in constructing “a more just and fraternal world” during a meeting with members of the American Jewish Committee.

“In this regard, I call to mind in a particular way our common efforts to serve the poor, the marginalized and those who suffer,” said Pope Francis. “Our commitment to this service is anchored in the protection of the poor, widows, orphans, and foreigners as shown in Sacred Scripture. It is a God given duty, one which reflects his holy will and his justice; it is a true religious obligation.”

The Holy Father also said it is important to transmit to new generations the “heritage of our mutual knowledge, esteem and friendship which has, thanks to the commitment of associations like yours, grown over these years.”

The full text of the address by Pope Francis to the American Jewish Committee is printed below
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/02/13/pope_francis_receives_catholic_education_plenary_participants/en1-772889

2014-02-13 14:51:39
Pope Francis receives Catholic Education plenary participants

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis received the participants in the Plenary Assembly of the Congregation for Catholic Education on Thursday. Members are gathered for three days this week to discuss a series of issues, including the reform of the Apostolic Constitution, Sapientia Christiana, which governs the Pontifical university system, the recovery and strengthening of Catholic identity in Catholic institutions of higher learning, and the preparation of two major anniversaries: the 25th anniversary of the promulgation of the Apostolic Constitution, Ex corde Ecclesiae, on the nature and mission of Catholic universities, and the 50th anniversary of the II Vatican Council’s declaration, Gravissimum educationis, which called for a renewal of Catholic instruction and formation at all levels.

One major focus of the Holy Father’s remarks was the need for those who work in Catholic schools, colleges and universities, “To be involved in educational itineraries of encounter and of dialogue, with a courageous and innovative faithfulness that is capable of bringing the different ‘souls’ of a multicultural society together with Catholic identity.”
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/02/14/pope_francis:_walk_joyfully_as_lamb_of_the_lord/en1-773237

2014-02-14 14:48:50
Pope Francis: walk joyfully as lamb of the Lord

(Vatican Radio) A true Christian is someone who walks joyfully through the world as a lamb of the Lord. These were the words of Pope Francis at Mass on Friday morning in the Vatican’s Casa Santa Marta.

Commenting on the day’s first reading, taken from the Acts of the Apostles, Pope Francis reflected on the nature of Christian identity, noting that a Christian is first of all someone who is “sent”: the Lord sends his disciples out into the world to proclaim the Gospel, so a Christian is a disciple “who walks, who always moves forward”. A Christian who stands still “is sick”, the Pope said, because the first marker of Christian identity is the capacity “to walk even where there are difficulties, to go beyond those difficulties”.