Pope Francis

[grace-land]

http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-francis-cardinals-are-servants-of-the-church

Pope Francis: Cardinals are servants of the Church
2015-02-15 Vatican Radio



(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis presided over Mass in St Peter's Basilica on Sunday, to offer thanks to God together with the College of Cardinals, one day after bestowing the Red Hat on twenty new prelates from around the world. Below, please find the official English translation of the Holy Father's homily.
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“Lord, if you choose, you can make me clean”…  Jesus, moved with compassion, stretched out his hand and touched him, and said: “I do choose.  Be made clean!” (Mk 1:40-41).  The compassion of Jesus!  That com-passion which made him draw near to every person in pain!  Jesus does not hold back; instead, he gets involved in people’s pain and their need…  for the simple reason that he knows and wants to show com-passion, because he has a heart unashamed to have “compassion”.

“Jesus could no longer go into a town openly, but stayed in the country; and people came to him from every quarter” (Mk 1:45).  This means that Jesus not only healed the leper but also took upon himself the marginalization enjoined by the law of Moses (cf. Lev 13:1-2, 45-46).  Jesus is unafraid to risk sharing in the suffering of others; he pays the price of it in full (cf. Is 53:4).
 

YouTube video at the link

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v512gNNgewQ
Holy Mass with new Cardinals - 2015.02.15
Streamed live on Feb 15, 2015
Starts at 10:00am - Pope Francis presides at Holy Mass with the new Cardinals, created yesterday in the course of the Ordinary Public Consistory

[grace-land]

http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-francis-at-angelus-spread-goodness-compassion

Pope Francis at Angelus: spread goodness, compassion
2015-02-15 Vatican Radio



(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis recited the Angelus on Sunday, with pilgrims and tourists gathered in St. Peter’s Square. In remarks ahead of the prayer, the Holy Father offered a reflection on the Gospel reading of the day, in which St. Mark the Evangelist speaks of Christ’s battle against all manner of evil, especially in favor of those who are suffering in body and spirit, specifically telling of the Lord’s miraculous healing of a leper.

“The mercy of God overcomes all barriers,” said Pope Francis. “The hand of Jesus touched the leper,” he continued, explaining that Christ does not act from a safe distance, nor does He act by proxy, but is exposed directly to the contagion of our evil. “So,” the Holy Father went on to say, “our own evil becomes the place of contact: He, Jesus, takes our sick humanity from us and we take from Him His healing – His healthy humanity. This happens every time we receive a sacrament with faith: the Lord Jesus ‘touches’ us and gives us His grace. In this case we think especially the Sacrament of Reconciliation, to heal us from the leprosy of sin.”
 
After offering the traditional noontide Marian devotion, the Holy Father offered special greetings to all those, who in various parts of the world are in these days marking the lunar new year. “These festivities offer the happy occasion to rediscover and live intensely that fraternity, which is the precious bond of family life and the foundation of social life,” he said, adding an expression of the hope that this annual return to the roots of the person and of the family might help all peoples marking the lunar new year to build a society in which interpersonal relations are woven with respect, justice and charity.

[grace-land]

http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2015/02/16/church_of_scotland_moderator_invites_pope_francis_to_visit/1123728

Church of Scotland Moderator invites Pope Francis to visit
16/02/2015 14:19



(Vatican Radio) The Moderator of the Church of Scotland on Monday invited Pope Francis to visit the country which, he says, has overcome sectarian strife to become a place where ecumenical relations "have never been more cordial and productive".

During a meeting with the Right Reverend John Chalmers, Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, the Pope said all Christians are called to seek ever more effective ways of overcoming old prejudices and to find new forms of understanding and cooperation.
 

[grace-land]

http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2015/02/16/pope_francis_receives_king,_queen_of_tonga/1123723

Pope Francis receives King, Queen of Tonga
16/02/2015 14:09



(Vatican Radio)  Pope Francis received Their Majesties King Tupou VI of Tonga and Queen Nanasipau’u Tuku’aho in an audience in the Apostolic Palace in the Vatican Monday.  Their Royal Highnesses later met with Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, accompanied by Archbishop Paul Gallagher, secretary for Relations with States.

A statement released by the Vatican’s Press Office said:

His Majesty first expressed his satisfaction at the election of the first Cardinal from the Pacific archipelago, Cardinal Soane Patita Paini Mafi, underlining the enthusiasm of the population and the presence of Her Majesty the Queen and numerous Tongans at the Ordinary Public Consistory held on 14 February. During the cordial discussions, attention was paid to the recent political developments in the country and on a number of aspects of social and economic life, as well as the positive contribution of the Catholic Church in various areas of society. 

[grace-land]

http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2015/02/16/pope_francis_the_blood_of_murdered_copts_a_witness/1123688

Pope Francis: The blood of murdered Copts a "witness that cries out"
16/02/2015 12:33

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Monday denounced the murder of 21 Coptic Christians by ISIL militants in Libya. The Islamist terrorist organization released a video of the killings on Sunday.

Speaking in Spanish to an ecumenical delegation from the Church of Scotland, the Holy Father noted those killed only said “Jesus help me.”

“They were killed simply for the fact they were Christians,” Pope Francis said.

“The blood of our Christian brothers and sisters is a testimony which cries out to be heard,” said the Pope.  It makes no difference whether they be Catholics, Orthodox, Copts or Protestants. They are Christians! Their blood is one and the same. Their blood confesses Christ.''
 

[grace-land]

http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2015/02/16/pope_receives_members_of_the_association_pro_petri_sede/1123692

Pope receives members of the Association "Pro Petri Sede"
16/02/2015 12:40

(Vatican Radio) On Monday, Pope Francis received members of the "Pro Petri Sede" Association from the countries of Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg, which annually offers economic assistance for the needs of the Holy See.

In his address, the Holy Father said “The growing number of people who are marginalized or who live in great insecurity challenges us and demands a burst of solidarity to give them the material and spiritual support they need.” At the same time, he said, “we have much to receive from the poor whom we approach and whom we help.” The poor “are often witnesses of what is essential, of family values; they are able to share with those who are even poorer than they, and they know how to rejoice,” the Pope said, remarking that he had seen this himself in his recent Apostolic Voyage to Asia.

Pope Francis thanked the members of the Association for their generous donation to assist the poor, and called on them to pray earnestly for peace.

Below, please find the English translation of Pope Francis’ remarks, which were delivered in Italian:
 

[grace-land]

http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2015/02/17/pope_at_santa_marta_mass_for_the_slain_coptic_christians/1123915

Pope at Santa Marta: Slain because they were Christian
17/02/2015 12:11

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis offered Mass Tuesday morning for the repose of the souls of the twenty-one Coptic Christians martyred for their faith in Christ. The Mass was attended by the Pope’s personal secretary, Abuna Yoannis Lahzi Gaid, who is Coptic Catholic.

As he prepared to begin Mass in the Santa Marta Chapel, the Pope invited the congregation to join him in prayer for ‘our brother Copts, whose throats were slit for the sole reason of being Christian, that the Lord welcome them as martyrs, for their families, for my brother Tawadros, who is suffering greatly’.

He then prayed: “Be my protector, O God, a mighty stronghold to save me. For you are my rock, my stronghold! Lead me; guide me, for the sake of your name”.

Monday evening the Pope had made a personal phone call to Patriarch Tawadros, who is the Coptic Orthodox Patriarch of Alexandria, to express his sorrow at the brutal murder.

During his homily the Pope spoke of man’s capability for evil and destruction and condemned what he termed ‘merchants of death’, business people who sell arms to those at war, furthering a cycle of hate, fratricide and violence.   

Pope Francis was reflecting on the passage from Genesis that speaks of God’s wrath at man’s wickedness that is a prelude to the great flood. The Pope noted with regret that man, "seems to be more powerful than God", because he is capable of destroying the good things that God has made.

Man is capable of destroying fraternity

Pope Francis pointed out that in the first chapters of the Bible we find many examples - Sodom and Gomorrah, the Tower of Babel - in which man reveals his wickedness. "An evil that lurks in the depths of the heart”.
 

[grace-land]

http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2015/02/17/pope_francis_message_for_2015_world_youth_day_/1123879

Pope Francis' Message for World Youth Day: "Have the courage to be happy"
17/02/2015 12:00

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis has told young people to “have the courage to be happy” in his Message for the 30th World Youth Day, which will be celebrated in dioceses around the world on Palm Sunday.

It is the last diocesan World Youth Day before next year’s International World Youth Day in Krakow, Poland, in July.

In his Message, Pope Francis continues his use of the Beatitudes a guide to the journey to Krakow, this year focusing on “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God” (Mt 5: 8 ).

Pope Francis writes the search for happiness is shared by people of all times and all ages.

“God has placed in the heart of every man and woman an irrepressible desire for happiness, for fulfillment,” he says.
 

[grace-land]

http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2015/02/17/centre_for_child_protection_steps_up_work_to_combat_abuse/1123896

Centre for Child Protection steps up work to combat sex abuse
17/02/2015 11:57



(Vatican Radio)  Pope Francis has sent a message of support to the Centre for Child Protection which has moved its headquarters to Rome to scale up its work of preventing the sexual abuse of minors and vulnerable adults.

At a ceremony on Monday evening at Rome’s Gregorian University, Cardinal Sean O’Malley, head of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors joined directors of the Centre to underline the work that still needs to be done in Churches across the world to keep children safe.

In his message to all those involved with the Centre for Child Protection, Pope Francis says he’s greatly encouraged by their work which he knows will bear much fruit. Over the past three years since its foundation, the CCP has been running an e-learning course, offering online training in awareness, prevention and care for survivors of child sexual abuse. Working with Church and non-religious institutions around the world, it has drawn on the expertise of theologians, canon lawyers, psychologists and social scientists to provide a multidisciplinary approach to one of the most serious problems facing the Church today. A problem that Cardinal O’Malley of Boston, America’s “ground zero” of the sex abuse crisis, knows only too well…
 

[grace-land]

http://www.zenit.org/en/articles/pope-names-apostolic-nuncio-to-australia

Pope Names Apostolic Nuncio to Australia
Rome,  February 17, 2015

This morning, the Vatican announced the appointment of Archbishop Tito Yllana as Apostolic Nuncio to Australia. Archbishop Yllana, until now, has served as the Apostolic Nuncio to the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Archbishop Yllana replaced Archbishop Paul Gallagher, who now serves at the Vatican's Secretary for Relations with States.

The Filipino Prelate studied international diplomacy at the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy in Rome and was named to his first post in 2001, as the Nuncio to Papua New Guinea. He has also served as the diplomatic representative to the Holy See in the Solomon Islands, Pakistan and the Congo.

Following the announcement by the Holy See, Archbishop Denis Hart, president of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference expressed his gratitude to the Holy Father for the appointment and welcomed Archbishop Yllana.
 

[grace-land]

http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2015/02/17/international_women’s_day_in_the_vatican_voices_of_faith/1123913

International Women’s Day in the Vatican: Voices of Faith
17/02/2015 12:13



(Vatican Radio) To celebrate International Women’s Day on 8 March, the second edition of the Voices of Faith storytelling event will once again be held in the Vatican, bringing together talented Catholic women of faith from around the globe to share their inspiring experiences in reaching out to the world’s poor and marginalised.  This extraordinary event will take place at the heart of the Vatican in the 16th century Casina Pio IV, home to the Pontifical Academy of Sciences.  Voices of Faith’s first edition on 8 March 2014 was held in the Vatican’s Cinema-Film Library.

As part of the event, the € 20,000 “Women Sowers of Development” prize  will be awarded by Caritas Internationalis and Voices of Faith.

In a statement, organizers say “The event will highlight the contribution of women to the work of the Catholic Church in accompanying the poor, upholding human dignity and promoting equality.”  The speakers will include human rights advocates, policy makers, academics and visionaries - many of whom have faced adversity and seemingly insurmountable challenges in carrying out their work. The event will be live streamed on the web:  www.voicesoffaith.org starting at 15:00 Central European Time (1400 UTC) on Sunday 8 March.

Among the speakers:
 

[Sister]

grace-land,
couple of questions for you -- I am thinking about going to a Catholic church in the community.  As a non-Catholic, what conduct is proper. i.e. standing, kneeling, etc.  I just want to be respectful.  Since my retirement, I have gone to several different churches, what I am looking for is a place to be "fed" and not a place where I am asked to do some of the "feeding" -- if you know what I mean.
Blessings.
 

[grace-land]

grace-land,
couple of questions for you -- I am thinking about going to a Catholic church in the community.  As a non-Catholic, what conduct is proper. i.e. standing, kneeling, etc.  I just want to be respectful.  Since my retirement, I have gone to several different churches, what I am looking for is a place to be "fed" and not a place where I am asked to do some of the "feeding" -- if you know what I mean.
Blessings.
 

Sister! 

Thank you for thinking of visiting a Catholic church in pursuit of your spiritual nourishment.

1.  Respectful conduct.  When you come to mass, just watch what the other people are doing regarding standing, kneeling, etc.  It might be helpful to sit at the back of the church.  I think most churches have mass booklets in the pews, they're helpful in prayerfully following the mass, readings, gospel, etc.

2.  "Fed" and spiritually nourished.  Before I visit a new church in my area, I usually go online and look up the church and download its weekly bulletin--it gives me an idea of the mission of that particular parish church, schedule of masses, the pastor's reflections and other helpful information.  It might be helpful to visit several Catholic churches in your community in order to find one that meets your spiritual needs and feels comfortable and welcoming.

Oh Sister, it is Lent and you're on a journey of discovery...  Also, here are some links that might be helpful--

http://smcaustin.org/outline-of-the-roman-catholic-mass
Outline of the Roman Catholic Mass

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=co0qalRkEJs
Draw Near - A Video Guide to the Catholic Mass

[grace-land]

http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-at-audience-we-are-our-brothers-keeper

Pope at Audience: We are our brother's keeper
2015-02-18 Vatican Radio

Vatican Radio)  In families, we learn how to be good brothers and sisters; what we learn at home then becomes a source of enrichment for society as a whole, said Pope Francis Wednesday during the general audience as he continued his series of lessons on the family.

Below a Vatican Radio translation of the Holy Father’s catechesis

Dear brothers and sisters,

in our journey of catechesis on the family, after considering the role of mother, father, children, today it is the turn of brothers and sisters. "Brother," "sister" are words that Christianity loves very much. And, thanks to the family experience, they are words that all cultures and all ages understand.

The fraternal bond has a special place in the history of the People of God, which receives its revelation in the living human experience. The psalmist sings of the beauty of the fraternal bond "How good and how pleasant it is, when brothers dwell together as one!" (Ps 132,1). This is true; being brothers and sisters is beautiful. Jesus Christ brought even this human experience of being brothers and sisters to fulfillment, assimilating it into Trinitarian love and strengthening it so that it goes well beyond the ties of kinship and is capable of overcoming every obstacle of estrangement.
 

[grace-land]

http://www.news.va/en/news/dominicans-set-to-welcome-pope-francis-at-santa-sa

Dominicans set to welcome Pope Francis at Santa Sabina
2015-02-18 Vatican Radio



(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis will celebrate Mass for Ash Wednesday at the Basilica of Santa Sabina in Rome, marking the beginning of the season of Lent. Santa Sabina is the first of the traditional Lenten Station churches. Since the beginning of the thirteenth century, the church of Santa Sabina has been entrusted to the Dominican Order.

“We’re always very pleased that the Pope comes to Santa Sabina on Ash Wednesday, that Lent begins here for the Church,” said Father Vivian Boland, OP, a friar of the Irish Province. Father Boland is currently assigned to Santa Sabina, where he is an assistant to the Master of the Order.
 

[grace-land]

http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-francis-ash-wednesday-homily

Pope Francis: Ash Wednesday homily
2015-02-18 Vatican Radio



(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis delivered the homily at Mass in the Basilica of St. Sabina on the Aventine Hilll in Rome on Wednesday afternoon – Ash Wednesday – the beginning of the great penitential season of Lent. Below, please find Vatican Radio’s translation of the text the Holy Father prepared for the occasion.
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As God's people today we begin the journey of Lent, a time in which we try to unite ourselves more closely to the Lord Jesus Christ, to share the mystery of His passion and resurrection.

The Ash Wednesday liturgy offers us, first of all, the passage from the prophet Joel, sent by God to call the people to repentance and conversion, due to a calamity (an invasion of locusts) that devastates Judea. Only the Lord can save from the scourge, and so there is need of supplication, with prayer and fasting, each confessing his sin.

The prophet insists on inner conversion: “Return to me with all your heart” (2:12). To return to the Lord “with all [one’s] heart,” means taking the path of a conversion that is neither superficial nor transient, but is a spiritual journey that reaches the deepest place of our self. The heart, in fact, is the seat of our sentiments, the center in which our decisions and our attitudes mature.
 

[grace-land]

http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-urges-int-community-to-find-peaceful-solution

Pope urges int. community to find peaceful solution for Libya
2015-02-18 Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis has urged the international community to find peaceful solutions to the difficult situation in Libya.

Speaking after the General Audience in St. Peter’s Square, the Pope asked for prayers for our “Egyptian brothers who were killed in Libya three days ago for the mere fact of being Christians”.

Pope Francis prayed that the Lord may receive them in heaven and give comfort to their families and communities.
 

[grace-land]

http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-thanks-italys-coastguard-after-massive-migran

Pope thanks Italy's coastguard, after massive migrant rescue operation
2015-02-18 Vatican Radio



(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis welcomed a delegation from the Italian coastguard to Casa Santa Marta Tuesday evening, two days after a massive operation saw them rescue a record 2,000 migrants and refugees from the sea between Italy and Libya.

The Pope met with the group of eight people for forty-five minutes.  The Holy See press officer, Fr. Federico Lombardi, reports that during the meeting the members of the coastguard told the Pope about their concrete experiences in a dialogue which Fr. Lombardi described as ‘moving and inspiring’.

Pope Francis in turn expressed his heartfelt appreciation and thanks to the men and women for their courageous service and dedication in favor of people in dire need.
 

[grace-land]

http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2015/02/19/pope_at_santa_marta_the_courage_to_choose_god_every_time/1124390

Pope at Santa Marta: The courage to choose God every time
19/02/2015 11:18

(Vatican Radio)  Choose God, choose good, not to be a total failure, maybe hailed by the masses, but ultimately nothing more than a worshiper of "trivial, pithy things that pass".

This was Pope Francis reflection Thursday morning during Mass at Casa Santa Marta. The Pope centered his homily on the Bible passage in which God says to Moses, “Today I have set before you life and prosperity, death and doom.  Obey the commandments of the Lord, Your God, which I enjoin on you today, loving him and walking in his ways”.

Followers of meaningless gods

Pope Francis said the choice of Moses is one Christians are faced with every day. And it is a difficult choice. The Pope noted that it is easier to let oneself be carried along by inertia, by situations, habits.  It is often easier to become servants of “other gods”.

"The choice is between God and other gods who do not have the power to give us anything other than trivial, pithy little things that pass.  It is not easy to choose, we always have this habit of following the herd, like everyone else. Like everyone else. Everyone and no one. Today the Church tells us: 'But, stop! Stop and choose '. This is good advice. It would do us all good to stop and think a little during the day: What is my lifestyle like? Which path am I on? ".
 

[grace-land]

http://www.zenit.org/en/articles/pope-holds-two-hour-meeting-with-roman-clergy

Pope Holds Two Hour Meeting with Roman Clergy
Rome,  February 19, 2015

While many newspapers have reported solely on comments regarding 'married priests', there is much more to Pope Francis' address during his annual meeting with the clergy of Rome today. The Bishop of Rome spent almost two hours with hundreds of priests, speaking briefly on homiletics and the Ars celebrandi. However, he spent most of the time engaging in an open discussion with the clergy saying: "I am more interested in your questions." The Pontiff's intentions weren't on giving a lecture, but in conversing directly with "his priests."

After the opening greetings given by Cardinal Agostino Vallini, the Vicar General of Rome, the meeting began with discussions on an address given by the Holy Father to the plenary assembly of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments on the theme of the Ars celebrandi on March 1st, 2005. The text was distributed to the participants and was republished today by L'Osservatore Romano. Still, the centerpiece of today's audience were the questions by several priests, including some not programmed, to which the Pope did not hold back and was ready to respond. Furthermore, in order to allow for more freedom to speak, the Holy Father requested that no television cameras be present in the Paul VI Audience Hall.
 
http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2015/02/19/priest_reacts_to_pope_francis’_meeting_with_roman_clergy/1124484
Priest reacts to Pope Francis’ meeting with Roman clergy
19/02/2015 15:39

http://ncronline.org/blogs/francis-chronicles/liturgies-need-help-people-experience-awe-mystery-god-pope-says
Liturgies need to help people experience awe, mystery of God, pope says
Feb. 19, 2015

http://www.cruxnow.com/church/2015/02/19/pope-sympathizes-with-married-ex-priests-but-doesnt-say-they-should-return/
Pope sympathizes with married ex-priests, but doesn't say they should return
February 19, 2015