Pope Francis

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http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-says-sports-coaches-must-be-models-of-integri

Pope says sports coaches must be models of integrity for young people
2015-05-14 Vatican Radio



(Vatican Radio) In a message to participants at an international seminar on the role of sports coaches, Pope Francis spoke of the crucial role that trainers play, especially in the lives of young people. The two day seminar has been organised by the Sports department of the Pontifical Council for the Laity and is focusing on the professional, personal and spiritual formation of sports coaches as role models for the next generation.

In the message to seminar participants, Pope Francis said we all need wise, mature and well-balanced people in our lives to help us grow in faith, in family relationships and in our working lives. A true educator, he continued, is a person who encourages us to take on a new activity without fear, helps to have confidence in ourselves and our companions and supports us in times of difficulty as well as at moments of joy and success.

During childhood and adolescence, he said, this is particularly important as we look for role models and feel the need to be affirmed and appreciated. During this delicate phase, Pope Francis said, the responsibility of trainers is huge since they can have great influence over both the behaviour and the development of a child’s personality. Above all, he said, coaches must be models of integrity and impartiality, joy and patience, since young people will be influenced more by a person’s behaviour than by his or her words.
 

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http://www.news.va/en/news/holy-see-palestine-make-headway-in-comprehensive-a

Holy See, Palestine make headway in Comprehensive Agreement
2015-05-13 Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio) The Bilateral Commission of the Holy See and the State of Palestine at the Vatican announced Wednesday that they have reached accord on the language of the Comprehensive Agreement toward which they have been working.

The Statement came at the conclusion of their Plenary Session at the Vatican.

The draft Agreement will now be submitted to the respective authorities for approval ahead of setting a date in the near future for the signing.

Below, please find the full text of the Joint Communique of the Bilateral Commission between the Holy See and the State of Palestine at the conclusion of the Plenary Session:

On 13 May 2015, the Bilateral Commission of the Holy See and the State of Palestine, which is working on a Comprehensive Agreement following on the Basic Agreement, signed on 15 February 2000, held a Plenary Session in the Vatican to acknowledge the work done at an informal level by the joint technical group following the last official meeting held in Ramallah at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the State of Palestine on 6 February 2014.

The talks were chaired by Mgr Antoine Camilleri, Under-Secretary for the Holy See’s Relations with States, and by Ambassador Rawan Sulaiman, Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs for Multilateral Affairs of the State of Palestine.

The discussions took place in a cordial and constructive atmosphere. Taking up the issues already examined at an informal level, the Commission noted with great satisfaction the progress achieved in formulating the text of the Agreement, which deals with essential aspects of the life and activity of the Catholic Church in Palestine.
 

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http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-fearful-and-joyless-communities-are-not-chris

Pope: Fearful and joyless communities are not Christian
2015-05-15 Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio) Communities that are fearful and without joy are sick, they are not Christian communities. That was the message of Pope Francis at his morning Mass at the Casa Santa Marta.

“Fear” and “joy” – those are the two words of the liturgy of the day. Fear, the Pope said, “is an attitude that harms us. It weakens us, it diminishes us. It even paralyzes us.” A person who is afraid “does nothing, doesn’t know what to do.” He is focused on himself, so that nothing bad will happen.” Fear “brings you to a self-centred selfishness and paralyzes you.” He continued, “A fearful Christian is a person who has not understood the message of Jesus”:

“This is why Jesus says to Paul: ‘Do not be afraid. Continue to speak.’ Fear is not a Christian attitude. It is an attitude, we could say, of a caged animal, without freedom, who does not have the freedom to look ahead, to create something, to do good… no, always: ‘No, but this is dangerous, there is something else, something else…’ And this is a vice. Fear damages.

“Do not be afraid, and ask for the grace of courage, the courage of the Holy Spirit that He sends us”:
 

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http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-to-car-bishops-promote-inter-religious-dialog

Pope to CAR bishops: Promote inter-religious dialogue
2015-05-15 Vatican Radio



(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Friday (May 15th) urged Catholic bishops of the Central African Republic (CAR) to promote inter-religious dialogue and peaceful co-existence and encourage their flock to respond to hatred and violence with forgiveness and love. The Pope’s appeal came in a speech that was handed to the bishops of the African nation during an audience with him in the Vatican. CAR is just emerging from two years of violent conflict between Muslim and Christian armed groups that killed thousands of people and displaced around a million others.

In his address to the CAR bishops who are in Rome on their ad-limina visit, Pope Francis referred to the recent sectarian violence in the African nation and the huge suffering this has caused to many of its population. He said he was particularly grateful for the assistance that many Catholic communities provided to victims of the violence and to those who were displaced. “Your task is difficult,” he told the bishops but stressed that when violence and hatred are unleashed, that’s when Christians "are called to respond with forgiveness and love." The Pope expressed regret that this was “not always the case” during the recent fighting and said this was a sign that “the Gospel has not yet penetrated sufficiently deeply into the hearts of the people everywhere” to prompt them to “change their reflexes and behaviour.”
 

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http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-francis-meets-president-of-romania

Pope Francis meets President of Romania
2015-05-15 Vatican Radio



(Vatican Radio)  On Friday (May 15th) Pope Francis received in audience at the Vatican Romania’s President Klaus Werner Iohannis during which they discussed bilateral relations and international issues. Romania’s Head of State also held talks with the Vatican Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, who was accompanied by Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, Secretary for Relations with States.

Please find below an English translation of a communique issued by the Holy See's Press Office following the talks.
 

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http://www.news.va/en/news/cardinal-tagle-elected-caritas-president

Cardinal Tagle elected Caritas President
2015-05-15 Vatican Radio



(Vatican Radio) Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle of Manila, Philippines has been elected as the new president of Caritas Internationalis. He was nominated at the confederation's 20th General Assembly in Rome.

Following his election, the Cardinal, speaking by phone to the delegates from over 130 member organisations from all over the world said "Buona sera a tutti!" "Thank you for your trust. I'm limited in my capacities but with all of you, with the love that Jesus has poured into our hearts and in the name of all of the poor people in the world, I accept this election."
 

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http://www.news.va/en/news/canonisation-of-marie-alphonsine-danil-ghattas-and

Two new Palestinian Saints: a sign of hope for the men and women of the Middle East



Vatican City, 15 May 2015 (VIS) – This morning in the Holy See Press Office Fr. Rifat Bader, director of the Catholic Centre for Studies and Media in Amman, Jordan, presented the figure of the Palestinian blesseds Sister Marie-Alphonsine Danil Ghattas, founder of the Sisters of the Most Holy Rosary of Jerusalem, and the descalzed Carmelite Maryam Baouardy (Mary of Jesus Crucified). Along with another two women religious, the French Jeanne-Emilie de Villeneuve and the Italian Maria Cristina of the Immaculate Conception Brando, they will be canonised by Pope Francis this coming Sunday in St. Peter's Square.

The solemn celebration will be attended by cardinals and bishops resident in Rome and from various parts of the world, including a delegation of 2124 people from the Palestine territories and Jordan headed by the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Fouad Twal. The Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas will also be present, along with numerous prelates from Lebanon, Iraq, Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt, Libya and Cyprus.
 

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http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-francis-meets-with-the-religious-of-the-dioce

Pope Francis meets with the Religious of the Diocese of Rome
2015-05-16 Vatican Radio



(Vatican Radio)  Pope Francis met with the male and female religious of the Diocese of Rome in a private audience on Saturday in occasion of the Year of Consecrated Life.

In his meeting, Pope Francis spoke off-the-cuff in response to questions ranging from the tensions of urban monastic life to the practical aspects of priestly ministry.

In response to a question by a nun about the delicate balance between concealment and visibility in the convent, the Holy Father called it a ‘vital tension, a tension lived in your soul; it is the call of God toward both the hidden life and the need to be a sign’.

‘But Father, should the news be heard in the monastery? It must be!’, he said.  ‘The news of what happens in the world, for example, of war, of disease, of how much people suffer’.

Explaining, he continued: ‘Your vocation is not a refuge; it is going onto the battlefield, like Moses with his hands raised in prayer as the people fought’.
 

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http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-palestinian-president-express-hopes-for-peace

Pope, Palestinian President express hopes for peace
2015-05-16 Vatican Radio



(Vatican Radio)  Pope Francis and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, meeting in the Vatican Saturday, expressed their hopes for a resumption of peace negotiations between Palestine and Israel and for "courageous decisions" for peace, with international support.

A Vatican statement described the talks as “cordial,” and said the two sides “expressed great satisfaction with the agreement reached on the text of a comprehensive agreement  between the Parties concerning essential aspects of the life and activity of the Catholic Church in Palestine, which will be signed in the near future. "

Mahmoud Abbas will attend Sunday’s canonization Mass for two Palestinian Blessed, for which he thanked Pope Francis.

Below, we publish a working translation of the Vatican statement:
 

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http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-francis-homily-for-mass-and-canonization

Pope Francis: Homily for Mass and Canonization
2015-05-17 Vatican Radio



(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis canonized four women religious on Sunday, all 19th century nuns who worked in education. St Marie-Alphonsine and St Mary of Jesus Crucified were from the territory that made up historical Palestine; St Jeanne Emilie de Villeneuve was a French nun and foundress; and St Maria Cristina of the Immaculate Conception came from Italy.

“To abide in God and in His love, and thus to proclaim by our words and our lives the resurrection of Jesus, to live in unity with one another and with charity towards all – this is what the four women Saints canonized today did,” Pope Francis said in his homily. “Their luminous example challenges us in our lives as Christians.”

Below, please find the full English translation of Pope Francis’ homily for Holy Mass for the VII Sunday of Easter with the Rite of Canonization:

HOMILY OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS
17 May 2015
 

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http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-francis-appeal-for-peace-in-burundi-at-regina

Pope Francis: Appeal for peace in Burundi at Regina coeli
2015-05-17 Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis appealed on Sunday (May 17th) for an end to the violence in Burundi and urged its people to act responsibly for the good of the nation. Burundi saw an attempted coup earlier this week and has been the scene of violent clashes between supporters and opponents of the president. The Pope's appeal for peace in Burundi came during his address just before the recitation of the traditional Easter Marian prayer, the Regina coeli.

Below, please find Vatican Radio’s translation of Pope Francis' remarks ahead of the Regina coeli:

Dear brothers and sisters,
 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xb6TWDHCkkE
Holy Mass with Canonization and Regina Caeli 2015.05.17
Streamed live on May 17, 2015
Starts at 10:00 am - Pope Francis presides at Holy Mass and the canonization of four Blesseds; in conclusion recitation of the Marian prayer Regina Caeli.

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http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/will-francis-build-on-benedicts-legacy-when-he-visits-the-us-87801/

Will Francis build on Benedict's legacy when he visits the US?

Washington D.C., May 17, 2015 / 06:02 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Pope Francis will remain within the tradition of previous papal visits to the U.S. when he comes to the east coast this autumn said Bishop Jaime Soto of Sacramento, who added that the Pope's voyage would build upon Benedict XVI's papacy if he addresses the environment.

“Pope Benedict initiated a lot of commentary on climate change,” Bishop Soto explained, “and I think Pope Francis is going to be pushing that significantly, especially from the perspective of how that affects the poor.”

Benedict talked repeatedly about the need to care for the environment as God’s creation, and made the theme of the 2010 World Day of Peace “If you want to cultivate peace, protect creation.”

During his 2008 visit to the U.S., he told the United Nations General Assembly that “international action to preserve the environment and to protect various forms of life on earth must not only guarantee a rational use of technology and science, but must also rediscover the authentic image of creation.”

Pope Francis, meanwhile, has written an encyclical on ecology which is expected to be published this summer. He too has often spoken out about the need to protect creation.
 

http://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2015/05/a_catholic_perspective_on_climate_change_.html
May 17, 2015
A Catholic Perspective on Climate Change

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http://vaticaninsider.lastampa.it/en/world-news/detail/articolo/41115/

05/16/2015
LCWR response to CDF doctrinal assessment points out “positive outcome” but more dialogue needed on key issues


(©AFP) The LCWR hopes for "the creation of additional spaces within the Catholic Church" to discuss theological and pastoral problems

The nuns of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, who have been under investigation by the Vatican for years, have issued their first public statement since the conclusion of the assessment. But the statement and the talks don’t seem to have addressed one of the biggest problems faced by the orders within the LCWR
 marco tosatti
 vatican city
The US nuns who had been under a Vatican investigation for years, have issued an official statement for the first time since the conclusion of the doctrinal assessment. The statement was signed by the heads of the organization which brings together the leaders of congregations of Catholic women religious in the United States under one umbrella. The current President, Sharon Holland; the future President, Marcia Allen; the former President, Carol Zinn and the Executive Director of the LCWR, Joan Marie Steadman. The statement says the assessment had a “positive outcome” and the nuns expressed the hope that this outcome  would lead to “the creation of additional spaces within the Catholic Church” to discuss theological and pastoral issues.

Last April, the Holy See announced that the “doctrinal assessment” of the LCWR had concluded. The mutual agreement was that 30 days would have to pass before any additional public statement was made. The Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Cardinal Gerhard Müller, had stated that the LCWR “has made clear its mission to support its member Institutes by fostering a vision of religious life that is centered on the Person of Jesus Christ and is rooted in the Tradition of the Church”. One of the reasons for the investigation and doctrinal assessment, was a previous investigation which asked whether the LCWR was deviating from "authentic" church teaching about the essentials of religious life.
 

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bbm in black below...did the president think that the pope would be sympathetic to him because of the many sisters on the plane with him?  Guess not.   

http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-to-mideast-nuns-pray-for-peace-persecuted

Pope to Mideast nuns: pray for peace, persecuted
2015-05-18 Vatican Radio



Vatican Radio) Saying he was giving them a “mission,”  Pope Francis has asked religious sisters from Bethlehem and the Middle East to pray for peace in the region and for two new Palestinian saints.

19th century Sister Miriam of Jesus Crucified Baouardy and Sister Marie-Alphonsine Ghattas were canonized in a big outdoor Mass presided by Pope Francis in St. Peter’s square on Sunday.

Many of the Carmelite and Rosary sisters who had attended the canonization had flown into Rome from Jordan – on the same plane as Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas who was also present as the two Palestinian religious were made saints.   In receiving the visiting nuns in the Clementine Hall in the Apostolic Palace Monday, Pope Francis said the president had told him the flight was "full of sisters!"  “Poor pilot,” the Pope chuckled.

The Pope urged the nuns to pray for an end to “this interminable” conflict in the Holy Land so that “there will be peace” between Israelis and Palestinians.
 

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http://www.zenit.org/en/articles/francis-meets-with-curia-leaders-ahead-of-jubilee-year

Francis Meets With Curia Leaders Ahead of Jubilee Year
Vatican City State,  May 18, 2015

Pope Francis presided this morning over a meeting with the prefects and presidents of the various Congregations and Pontifical Councils of the Holy See. According to the Vatican, the private meeting was in regards to the Jubilee Year of Mercy.

As previously announced, the Extraordinary Jubilee Year will begin on December 8th, 2015, the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception and will conclude on November 20th, 2016, the Feast of Christ the King.

Last week, several security measures were being tested in preparation for the upcoming year. During the General Audience on Wednesday, police closed off several paths leading to Saint Peter's Square.
 

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http://vaticaninsider.lastampa.it/en/the-vatican/detail/articolo/41170/

05/18/2015
Pope’s message to Italian bishops: Don’t be shy in speaking out against corruption

Francis introduced the General Assembly of the Italian Episcopal Conference (CEI) dedicated to the Evangelii Gaudium, by asking bishops not to be shy in speaking out against corruption which robs the young of jobs. He also warned against “ideological colonization”. He asked them not to be “pilot bishops” but to give more space to the laity, allowing lay people to assume their social and political responsibilities. He also called for documents to be less abstract and encouraged more collegiality, asking bishops to listen to the community more. He urged against the same voices always being heard during conferences and said that these must not drug the community with uniformity. The Pope also put forward suggestions for the merging of monasteries and religious orders.

The speech Francis delivered to members of the Italian Episcopate before his private meeting with the bishops, was brief but dense. Above all, Francis said that at a time “when we are often surrounded by discouraging news, local and international scenes of affliction and tribulation – in this realistic and disheartening context – our Christian and Episcopal vocation is to go against the current, that is, to be joyous testimonies  of the Risen Christ, to transit joy and hope to others.” Going against the current means bearing witness to joy.

He asked bishops “to console, to help, to encourage, indiscriminately, all of our oppressed brothers and sisters who are burdened by the weight of their crosses.” It isn’t nice to come across a dispirited, demotivated and lifeless consecrated person: this person I like a dried up well, where people no longer find any water to quench their thirst.”
 

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http://www.zenit.org/en/articles/vatican-spokesman-explains-pope-s-angel-of-peace-gift-to-president-abbas

Vatican Spokesman Explains Pope's 'Angel of Peace' Gift to President Abbas
Vatican City State,  May 18, 2015

Pope Francis' invitation to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to become "an angel of peace" has made headlines around the world. The Pope said those words while presenting a medallion with the image of the 'Angel of Peace' during President Abbas' visit to the Vatican on Saturday.

When asked to expand on the Holy Father's words by journalists, Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, director of the Holy See Press Office, explained that the medallion is a gift that the Pope often gives to heads of state.

"When the Pope presents [the medallion] to the president, he says a few words to explain why he gives this gift, that is the desire and commitment to peace. The meaning of the gift is clear as a hope and invitation to commit themselves to peace," Fr. Lombardi explained.
 

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http://www.zenit.org/en/articles/andrea-bocelli-speaks-on-importance-of-family-at-vatican

Andrea Bocelli Speaks on Importance of Family at Vatican
Vatican City State,  May 18, 2015

Widely considered one of the greatest singing talents in the world today, Andrea Bocelli will bring attention to the beauty of the family in a Vatican-launched initiative.

Having sold more than 70 million records worldwide, the multiple award winning and world recognized Italian tenor has not had an easy life. Born in 1958, Bocelli was afflicted with congenital glaucoma. After suffering a brain hemorrhage following a soccer accident, he permanently lost his sight. After practicing law, he pursued his musical career, with which he has taken the world by storm. The 56-year-old singer is married with three children. In addition, he has a charitable foundation, has met the current and past two Popes, and never forgets what matters most.

During a press conference held Saturday in the Holy See Press Office, the world famous tenor stressed that “family is such an important thing,” and said he is pleased to be the voice which will celebrate the family in “The Great Mystery: The Gospel of the Family, School of Humanity for Our Times,” produced by CitySounds and Events.

Cardinal Vincenzo Paglia, President of the Pontifical Council for the Family, is a key protagonist behind the program and noted how "this is timely and is one of the events they're having in the lead up to the second phase for the Synod on the Family in October.”

Some of the key objectives, saying perhaps their greatest ones, he noted, is “discussing the Gospel of the family, the beauty of the family.” He reminded all present how when God made the family, he marveled at its beauty Himself.

The initiative, he noted, while recognizing details are still being confirmed, will celebrate the beauty of the family with, appropriately, the beautiful voice of Andrea Bocelli.

More information about the program and obtaining tickets, he explained, will be made available by a website which will be launched in Italian and English.

The tenor, he noted, will sing in various venues, the most important two will be in the Basilica of the Holy Family in Barcelona, May 28, and in Philadelphia during the World Congress of the Families on Saturday, September 26th.
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2015/05/18/caritas_internationalis_concludes_general_assembly/1145001

Caritas Internationalis concludes general assembly
18/05/2015 16:11

Caritas Internationalis, the confederation of 164 national Catholic charities worldwide, ended its General Assembly on Sunday with member organizations adopting a vision of putting the human family and human dignity at the heart of the development process.  From May 12 to 17, over 400 Caritas delegates from around the world discussed the theme, ‎“One Human Family, Caring for Creation”‎.  Filipino Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, Archbishop of Manila, the newly-elected Caritas Internationalis president said, “Pope Francis gave us inspirational words on seeking to expand our work at the beginning of our General Assembly.”  “With the launch of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Pope Francis’s encyclical on ecology and the UN climate meeting in Paris this year, Caritas will work towards putting the human family and human dignity at the heart of development” Cardinal Tagle said.   Regarding the SDGs, the final message adopted by the General Assembly stated that “no target should be considered as met unless achieved for all income and social groups; this fundamental, person-centred strategy must be central”.  The message urged governments to look beyond their own borders and to recognize the moral imperative that is inherent in care for creation.
 

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http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-we-should-think-about-our-final-farewell

Pope at Mass: We should think about our final farewell
2015-05-19 Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio)  Pope Francis said on Tuesday (May 19th) many people like the Rohingya of Myanmar or the Christians and Yazidis in Iraq have been forced to say farewell to their homes and the lives of all of us are marked by farewells of varying importance.  He said each of us should reflect on our own final farewell from this life and what it means for Christians to entrust themselves to God. The Pope’s words came during his morning Mass at the Santa Marta residence.

Pope Francis’ homily was a reflection on how our lives are marked by saying goodbye or farewell, how we do it and the reasons why we do it. He took as his inspiration the day’s readings where Jesus bids farewell to the disciples before his Passion and death and where St Paul bids farewell before going to Jerusalem and weeps on the beach with those who have come to say goodbye to him.

He said our lives are made up of many farewells, small and big ones and with some of them there is a great deal of tears and suffering.