Pope Francis

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/03/22/pontifical_commission_established_for_protection_of_minors_includes/en1-783909

2014-03-22 14:50:43
Pontifical Commission established for Protection of Minors includes women, abuse victim

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis has instituted the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors whose task will be to advise the Holy Father on ways to prevent abuse and provide pastoral care for victims and their families. Cardinal Sean P. O’Malley of Boston, a member of the Pope’s advisory Council of Cardinals, had announced on Dec. 5, 2013 that such a new commission would be formed in the coming months. At the time, he said the new commission would continue Pope Benedict XVI’s efforts to combat sex abuse by clerics, study current child protection programs, and make suggestions for new Vatican initiatives together with bishops’ conferences and religious orders.
 
The members of the Commission include: French psychologist Catherine Bonnet; Marie Collins, an Irish victim of abuse; British Professor Sheila Hollins, a specialist in mental health; American Cardinal Sean Patrick O'Malley; Italian jurist Claudio Papale; Poland’s former Prime Minister and Ambassador to the Holy See, Hanna Suchocka; and the Jesuits Humberto Miguel Yanez, a moral theologian and former pupil and collaborator of Jorge Mario Bergoglio in Argentina and Hans Zollner, vice-rector of the Pontifical Gregorian University and Chair of the Centre for Child Protection at the University's Institute of Psychology.

Other members will be added to the Commission in the future, chosen from various geographical areas of the world.

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/03/23/pope_francis:_do_not_turn_away_with_prejudice,_the_encounter_with/en1-784095

2014-03-23 14:42:46
Pope Francis: do not turn away with prejudice, the encounter with Jesus changes our lives

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Sunday urged his listeners not to be afraid, judgmental or prejudiced, the Lord’s mercy – he said – is far greater than any prejudice.

Speaking to some 40,000 people gathered in St. Peter’s Square for the Sunday Angelus, the Pope reflected on the reading from John that tells of the encounter between Jesus and the Samaritan woman at the well.

“When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, ‘Will you give me a drink?’ In this way – the Pope explained – he cut across the barriers of hostility that existed between Jews and Samaritans, crushing the prejudice that existed in relating to women.

The Pope said that Jesus’ simple request signals the beginning of an open dialogue, through which, with great delicacy, He entered the interior world of a person to whom, according to social convention, He should not even have spoken to.
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/03/24/pope_francis:_humility_is_the_path_to_salvation/en1-784296

2014-03-24 13:01:40
Pope Francis: humility is the path to salvation

(Vatican Radio) Our salvation is not just in observing the Commandments, but in the humility to always feel the need to be healed by God. This was the message voiced by Pope Francis during Mass on Monday morning at the Casa Santa Marta.

Pope Francis’ homily on Monday found inspiration in these words that Jesus addressed to his fellow citizens in Nazareth: “No prophet is accepted in his hometown”. It was a place where he never worked miracles because “they had no faith”. Jesus recalls two biblical episodes: the miracle of the healing of the leper Naaman, and the meeting of the prophet Elijah with the widow of Serapta who shared her last morsel of food and was saved from famine. “Lepers and widows – Pope Francis explained – in those days were the outcasts of society”. And yet, these two outcasts, welcomed the prophets and were saved, while the people of Nazareth did not accept Jesus because “they felt so strong in their faith”, so sure of their faithful observance of the Commandments, they felt they had no need for other salvation”.
 

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http://stlouis.cbslocal.com/2014/03/24/vatican-chief-justice-obamas-policies-have-become-progressively-more-hostile-toward-christian-civilization/

Vatican Chief Justice: Obama’s Policies ‘Have Become Progressively More Hostile Toward Christian Civilization’
March 24, 2014 11:14 AM

VATICAN CITY (CBS St. Louis) — The Vatican’s chief justice feels that President Barack Obama’s policies have been hostile toward Christians.

In an interview with Polonia Christiana magazine –and transcribed by Life Site News — Cardinal Raymond Burke said that Obama “promotes anti-life and anti-family policies.”
---------------------
http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/english-exclusive-cardinal-burke-on-faith-the-right-to-life-and-the-family
Cardinal Burke on faith, the right to life, and the family: English exclusive
by Izabella Parowicz
Thu Mar 20, 2014 14:02 EST

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/03/25/pope_francis:_salvation_is_a_gift_to_be_received_with_a_humble_heart,/en1-784629

2014-03-25 12:40:45
Pope Francis: Salvation is a gift to be received with a humble heart, just like Mary

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis said salvation can’t be bought or sold but is a gift that requires a humble heart like that of Mary. The qualities needed for salvation were the focus of his homily at Tuesday’s Mass in the Santa Marta residence, taking place on the Solemnity of the Annunciation.
Listen to this report by Susy Hodges: RealAudioMP3

The Pope recalled how pride of heart led Adam and Eve to disobey God but said this knot of disobedience was then loosened by Mary with her act of obedience.

“The Lord is walking alongside his people. And why does he walk alongside them with so much tenderness? It’s to soften our hearts. He explicitly says this, ‘I will make your heart of stone become a heart of flesh.’ It’s to soften our hearts to receive a promise he made in Heaven. Sin entered among mankind but for another man comes salvation. And this very long road will help all of us to have a more human heart, closer to God, not so proud, not so self-sufficient.”
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/03/25/vatican_radio’s_digitalization_of_its_sound_archives_containing_the/en1-784806

2014-03-25 16:35:38
Vatican Radio’s digitalization of its sound archives containing the Popes’ voices

(Vatican Radio) Vatican Radio says it has completed the digitalization of thousands of audio recordings featuring the voices of all the Pontiffs from Pius XI to Pope Francis. Entitled “the Voice of the Popes”, the digital archive containing these recordings will be officially unveiled at a news conference on Tuesday April 1st at the Radio’s headquarters. 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/03/26/pope_reflects_on_sacrament_of_holy_orders_at_general_audience/en1-784928

2014-03-26 10:51:29
Pope reflects on sacrament of Holy Orders at General Audience

(Vatican Radio) Greeting thousands of people gathered for his General Audience on Wednesday, Pope Francis spoke about the sacrament of Holy Orders, praying that the Lord may provide holy, generous and merciful pastors for his Church.
Philippa Hitchen reports:
Listen: RealAudioMP3

Speaking to pilgrims and visitors huddled under umbrellas in a grey, wet St Peter’s Square, the Pope continued his reflections on the different sacraments, turning his attention this week to Holy Orders. Building on the sacraments of Christian initiation – Baptism, Confirmation and Eucharist – Pope Francis said Matrimony and Holy Orders correspond to two specific vocations or ways of building up Christ’s Church.
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/03/26/vatican_press_office_issues_note_on_resignation_of_german_bishop/en1-785033

2014-03-26 12:47:31
Vatican Press Office issues note on resignation of German bishop Tebartz van Elst

(Vatican Radio) The Holy See has accepted the resignation of Bishop Franz-Peter Tebarts van Elst of the diocese of Limburg, Germany. A statement issued Wednesday by the Vatican Press office to the administration of the diocese of Limburg , Germany said the Congregation for Bishops has “carefully studied the report of the Commission requested by the Bishop and by the Cathedral Chapter, to undertake thorough investigations about the responsibilities involved in the construction of the Diocesan Centre ‘St. Nikolaus.’”

The statement further acknowledges that the diocese of Limburg has come to “a situation that prevents a fruitful exercise of the ministry of Bishop Franz -Peter Tebartz -van Elst.” The statement says the Holy See has accepted the resignation presented by the Bishop on October 20, 2013, and has appointed a sede vacante Apostolic Administrator in the person of Bishop Manfred Grothe .

The Vatican Press Office states that Bishop Tebartz -van Elst , “in due course will receive another assignment.”
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/03/26/pope_francis_to_meet_with_president_obama_on_thursday/en1-784960

2014-03-26 11:26:14
Pope Francis to meet with President Obama on Thursday

(Vatican Radio) US President Barack Obama’s trip to Rome on March 27 will be his first audience with Pope Francis.

It will be the second time that President Barack Obama has been received at the Vatican, after an audience with Pope Benedict XVI on July 10, 2009.

Barack Obama is the ninth US President to make ​​an official visit to the Vatican. The first, Woodrow Wilson, received by Pope Benedict XV after the end of the First World War.

The next audience for a sitting president came thirty years later, when Blessed Pope John XXIII, received President Dwight Eisenhower 1959. John Fitzgerald Kennedy, the first (and so far only) Catholic president met with Pope Paul VI in 1963. Paul VI later received three other Presidents, meeting twice each with both Lyndon Johnson and Richard Nixon, and once with Gerald Ford.

The visit of Blessed John Paul II to Washington in 1979, when he met Jimmy Carter, was the first visit of a Pope to the White House. It was also the first of many meetings with American Presidents during his long pontificate. During the presidency of Ronald Reagan, diplomatic relations between the Holy See and the United States were established at the highest level. George Bush, Sr, met twice times with Pope John Paul, both times at the Vatican. President Bill Clinton welcomed Pope John Paul to the United States three times, and travelled once to the Vatican.

George W. Bush became the first President to meet two different Popes while in office, meeting three times each with Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI. He is thus far the only President to be received by a Pope at the summer papal residence of Castel Gandalfo (in 2001).

As President, George W. Bush attended the funeral of Blessed John Paul II, along with former Presidents George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton; both Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger and Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio (later Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis), were, of course, also present.
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/03/27/pope_to_italy’s_parliamentarians:_no_to_slaves_of_duty,_yes_to_god/en1-785300

2014-03-27 11:54:41
Pope to Italy’s Parliamentarians: no to slaves of duty, yes to God

(Vatican Radio) In Jesus’ time, the leading class had distanced itself from the people, abandoning them by pursuing their own ideologies and sliding ever downwards into corruption.

That’s what Pope Francis said Thursday morning in his homily while celebrating Mass in St Peter’s Basilica, with the presence of nearly 500 Members of the Italian Parliament.

Most members of Italy’s Parliament attended the mass, including nine ministers and the Speakers of the Senate and the House.
Listen to Tracey McClure's report: RealAudioMP3

In his remarks, Pope Francis referred to the day’s first reading from the Book of Jeremiah which speaks of the prophet who gives voice to God’s pain regarding a generation which, the Pope observed, failed to welcome his messengers, preferring instead to justify its sins. This turning away from the Lord caused Him great pain, the Pope said, noting that this theme also runs through today’s Gospel reading which speaks of the leaders of the people as being blind to God.

"The hearts of this people, this group, with time became hardened so, so, so much - so that it was impossible to hear the voice of the Lord. And as sinners, they slid (downwards); they became corrupt. It 's very hard for a corrupt person to go back (on his tracks). The sinner, yes, because the Lord is merciful and awaits us all. But the corrupt person is fixated on his affairs, and these people were corrupt. And for this, they justify themselves, because Jesus, with his simplicity, but with his strength in God - he made trouble for them (it: dava loro fastidio). "
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/03/27/pope_francis_holy_land_pilgrimage_schedule_released/en1-785366

2014-03-27 13:26:15
Pope Francis Holy Land Pilgrimage schedule released

(Vatican Radio) The official programme of the Pilgrimage of Pope Francis to the Holy Land was released on Thursday at a Press Conference at the offices of the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem. The Holy Father will visit three countries: Jordan, the State of Palestine, and Israel. The Holy Father will celebrate Mass in all three countries.

In a statement, the Director of the Holy See Press Office Father Federico Lombardi, SJ, said the publication of the programme demonstrated the preparation of the trip is “continuing as planned.”

When asked about the current strike of diplomatic personnel in the Israeli foreign ministry, Father Lombardi said that he hoped they would soon be able to resume the “formal contacts” with the authorities responsible for the proper preparation for the visit of the Pope.

Pilgrimage of His Holiness Pope Francis in the Holy Land on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the meeting in Jerusalem between Pope Paul VI and Patriarch Athenagoras .(May 24 – 26, 2014) – Program, 27.3.2014

Saturday, May 24, 2014
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/03/27/vatican_statement_on_meeting_of_pope_francis_and_president_obama/en1-785409

2014-03-27 14:52:38
Vatican statement on meeting of Pope Francis and President Obama



(Vatican Radio) The Vatican Press Office has released a statement on Thursday morning’s meeting between Pope Francis and U.S President Barack Obama. The statement notes that the two leaders discussed “current international themes” and expressed the hope that “in areas of conflict there would be respect for humanitarian and international law and a negotiated solution between the parties involved.”
The statement goes on to say that in the context of bilateral relations between the U.S. and the Holy See, the Pope and the President discussed “questions of particular relevance for the Church in that country, such as the exercise of the rights to religious freedom, life and conscientious objection, as well as the issue of immigration reform.”
Finally the statement notes that Pope Francis and President Obama spoke of a “common commitment to the eradication of human trafficking. Listen to our report: RealAudioMP3

Please find below the full English text of the statement released by the Holy See press office on Thursday:
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/03/27/pope_francis_receives_us_president_barack_obama/en1-785394

2014-03-27 14:29:38   
Pope Francis receives US President Barack Obama

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis received the President of the United States, Barack Obama on Thursday morning in the Apostolic Palace at the Vatican.

President Obama arrived at the meeting through the Hall of St. Ambrose - a bright, high-ceilinged rectangular room decorated with allegories of Felicity, Prudence and the Virtues, Rest and Security. He was preceded by a column of the Gentlemen of His Holiness, and accompanied by the Prefect of the Papal Household, Archbishop Georg Ganswein, who walked at his side. Pope Francis made his way briskly from the library to the Sala dei troni – the Hall of Thrones - to greet the President. Listen: RealAudioMP3

A handshake and a brief exchange of pleasantries, and the Pope and the President were in the library of the Apostolic Palace, sitting across from one another at the Holy Father’s desk. “It’s a great honor,” said the President to the Pope, “I’m a great admirer – thank you so much for receiving me.” President Obama went on to say, “[I bring] greetings from my family,” adding, “the last time I came to meet your predecessor I was able to bring my wife and children.”

Then, the room was cleared of journalists, and the Pope and the President, assisted by their interpreters – Msgr. Mark Miles of the Vatican’s Secretariat of State, and Alessandra Bonatti of the US State Dept. – spoke privately for nearly an hour: fifty-two minutes, to be precise.

The private meeting concluded and the members of the official White House delegation were presented to Pope Francis, among whom were the Secretary of State, John Kerry, US Ambassador to the Holy See, Kenneth Hackett, National Security Adviser Susan Rice, and White House Press Secretary Jay Carney. After the Holy Father greeted the delegation members, the Pope and the President exchanged gifts.
 

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Video at the link

http://www.romereports.com/pg156234-pope-to-obama-this-gift-isn-t-from-the-pope-but-from-jorge-mario-bergoglio-en
Pope to Obama: This gift isn't from the 'Pope' but from Jorge Mario Bergoglio
2014-03-27

A few additional articles regarding the meeting today--

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/28/world/europe/president-obama-pope-francis.html?_r=0
An Exchange of Views, Some in Accord
President Obama Meets With Pope Francis
MARCH 27, 2014

http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/1401254.htm
Mar-27-2014
Pope and Obama discuss religious freedom, life issues, immigration

http://www.lifenews.com/2014/03/27/pope-francis-brings-up-pro-life-religous-freedom-concerns-during-obama-meeting/
Pope Francis Brings Up Pro-Life, ReligIous Freedom Concerns During Obama Meeting
 The Vatican | LifeNews.com | 3/27/14 11:04 AM

http://whispersintheloggia.blogspot.com/
Thursday, March 27, 2014
The Talking Points: "Freedom, Life, Conscience"... And A Promise Kept
(Updated 1.45pm ET with White House readout.)

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/03/28/pope:_god_always_forgives,_celebrates_every_person’s_return_to_him/en1-785705

2014-03-28 14:03:22
Pope: God always forgives, celebrates every person’s return to him

(Vatican Radio) God always forgives and does not know how to do otherwise, said Pope Francis in his homily at Friday morning Mass at Casa Santa Marta. The Lord always waits for us and forgives us, he said. He is “the God of forgiveness” and he celebrates every person’s return to him.

The Pope went on to say that God longs for us when we distance ourselves from him. Drawing on the day’s first reading from Hosea, he observed that the Lord speaks to his people with tenderness.

Even when God invites us to conversion and uses stern words, God’s words always include “this loving longing” and the exhortation of the Father who says to the son: “Come back. It is time to come back home.”

“This is the heart of our Father,” he said. “God is like that: he does not tire, he does not tire. And God did this for many centuries, with so much apostasy… among the people. And he always returns because our God is a God who waits.
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/03/28/pope_francis_presides_over_penance_service/en1-785674

2014-03-28 17:38:22
Pope Francis presides over penance service

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis delivered the homily at a penitential service over which he was presiding in St. Peter’s Basilica on Friday afternoon. The order of the celebration included Psalms, readings from Sacred Scripture, and hymns, all focused on the theme of repentance and God’s boundless mercy.

The service was a part of the “24 Hours for the Lord” initiative, being celebrated throughout the Rome diocese and in many local Churches throughout the world, in which the faithful receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation and then become special ambassadors of Christ’s mercy, inviting people to avail themselves of the Lord’s forgiveness in churches that are to remain open through the night.

Below, please find Vatican Radio’s translation of the full text of the Holy Father’s prepared remarks…
 

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Video at the link

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/03/28/pope-francis-breaks-tradition-and-stuns-thousands-with-bold-move/

Pope Francis Breaks Tradition and Stuns Thousands With Bold Move
 Mar. 28, 2014 5:18pm


In this picture made available by the Vatican newspaper L’ Osservatore Romano, Pope Francis is confessed by a priest in St. Peter’s Basilica, at the Vatican, Friday, March 28, 2014. (AP Photo/L’ Osservatore Romano)


Pope Francis stunned parishioners, faith leaders and his own master of ceremonies Friday when he broke protocol to do something wholly unexpected: he bowed down in front of the crowd at St. Peter’s Basilica and confessed his sins to an ordinary priest, Reuters reported.

Typically, the pope goes to confession in private, so his decision was a departure from the past.

Francis made the noteworthy move after uttering a sermon in which he covered the importance of confession in the Catholic faith.
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/03/29/pope_francis:_disabled_a_witness_to_encounter/en1-786024

2014-03-29 13:49:00
Pope Francis: Disabled a "witness to encounter"

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Saturday met with members of the Movimento Apostolico Ciechi (Apostolic Movement for the Blind) and the Piccola Missione per i Sordomuti (Little Mission for the Deaf), who were holding a joint “Days of Sharing” in Rome.

The two Catholic organizations were reflecting on the theme “Witnesses of the Gospel for a culture of encounter.” Pope Francis told them the word “encounter” in their theme presupposes another encounter, the one with Christ.

“In effect, to be witnesses of the Gospel, we must have met Him, Jesus,” Pope Francis said. “One who really knows him, becomes his witness. Like the Samaritan woman – as we read last Sunday – This woman met Jesus, spoke to Him, and her life changed. She returned to her people and said ‘Come, see a man who told me all that I ever did. Can this be the Messiah?’”

Pope Francis said the Samaritan woman is the kind of person Jesus loved to meet and make disciples: the marginalized, the excluded, the despised.

“But we think of the many people Jesus wanted to meet, overall those people marked by illness and disability, to heal and restore them to full dignity,” he said.

The Holy Father said it was important for these people to become witnesses to a “new attitude”, which may be called a culture of encounter.
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/03/29/holy_see_studying_possible_venezuela_mediation/en1-785960

2014-03-29 11:29:18
Holy See studying possible Venezuela mediation



(Vatican Radio) Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Holy See’s Secretary of State, is “certainly willing and desirous to do whatever is possible for the good and serenity” of Venezuela. President Nicolas Maduro suggested Cardinal Parolin as an outside ******* to oversee talks with the opposition in the country.

The Director of the Holy See Press Office, Father Federico Lombardi, SJ, told the press Cardinal Parolin, who once served as Apostolic Nuncio to Venezuela, “knows and loves” the country. He added the Holy See is studying the issue in order to understand what expectations there are for a possible intervention, and whether it could help bring about a “desired outcome.”
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/03/30/pope_angelus:_be_open_to_the_light_of_christ/en1-786227

2014-03-30 13:52:45
Pope Angelus: Be open to the light of Christ

(Vatican Radio) A the heart of the Pope’s message during his Angelus address on Sunday was not to remain blind in one’s soul.

Pope Francis was referring to the day’s Gospel reading from John where it is written that Jesus gives sight to the blind man and thus sees the light of Christ.

The Holy Father compared the man blind from birth and whose sight is restored, to "those who supposedly have sight but continue to remain blind in their soul".

The Pope went on to say that "While the blind man gradually approaches the light, on the contrary the doctors of the law slip ever deeper into inner blindness. Locked in their arrogance, he continued, they believe they already have the light, and so do not open themselves to the truth of Jesus. They do everything to deny the evidence.”

The Holy Father noted that “our life is sometimes similar to that of the blind man who opened to the light of God and His grace. But, sometimes, unfortunately, he said, it is also like that of the doctors of law, in that, there is judgment of others.

But Pope Francis stressed, we are invited to open ourselves to the light of Christ to bear fruit in our lives, to eliminate behaviour that is not Christian, to walk firmly on the path of holiness.