Pope Francis

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https://zenit.org/articles/russia-patriarch-kirill-receives-cardinal-parolin/

Russia: Patriarch Kirill Receives Cardinal Parolin 
Development of Relations between the Two Churches
August 23, 2017

Patriarch Kirill receives card. Parolin in Moscow © mospat.ru

On August 22, 2017 Patriarch Kirill of Moscow Received the Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin at the patriarchal and synodal residence of Saint Daniel’s monastery in Russia. At the heart of the exchanges was, notably, “aid to Christians of the Middle East, the Ukrainian conflict, and the development of relations between the two Churches.

Greeting “a highly symbolic ecumenical meeting, which attests to the thaw in relations between the Vatican and the Orthodox Patriarchate of Moscow, Vatican Radio reported in French Cardinal Parolin’s words, who transmitted Pope Francis’ greetings to his “brother Krill.”

According to the same source, the interview was the occasion to recall the convergence between the Holy See and the Russian Orthodox Church on several questions, notably “humanitarian assistance to populations victims of conflicts in the Near East.”

Also on the list of exchanges was the conflict in Ukraine, on which “contrasts exist always concerning the very delicate question of relations with the four million Greek-Catholics.” However, “Vatican Radio believes that it’s not today a dossier that creates an obstacle to dialogue.”

In this connection, following a press release of the Patriarchate, Patriarch Kirill stressed in this regard that “the Church can play no other role than a peaceful role while people are in conflict with one another.

For Cardinal Parolin, the historic meeting between the Russian Patriarch and Pope Francis at Havana, Cuba in February 2016 “set the basis for a new stage in relations between our Churches, giving a new impulse to those relations.”
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2017/08/24/pope_francis_liturgical_reform_is_irreversible/1332602

Pope Francis: Liturgical reform is irreversible
24/08/2017 14:29

Pope Francis addresses participants in Italy's National Liturgical Week.
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis gave an important address on the liturgical reform on Thursday, speaking to participants of the 68th Italian National Liturgical Week.

The liturgical reform, he said, did not “flourish suddenly,” but was the result of a long preparation. It was brought to maturity by the Second Vatican Council with the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, Sacrosanctum Concilium, “whose lines of general reform respond to real needs and to the concrete hope of a renewal; it desired a living liturgy for a Church completely vivified by the mysteries celebrated.”

The direction marked out by the Council, the Pope continued, found expression in the revised liturgical books promulgated by Blessed Paul VI. But “it is not enough to reform the liturgical books; the mentality of the people must be reformed as well.” The reformation of the liturgical books was the first step in a process, he said, “that requires time, faithful reception, practical obedience, wise implementation” on the part first of the ordained ministers, but also of the other ministers, and indeed, of all who take part in the liturgy.

Today, Pope Francis said, “there is still work to do in this direction, in particular rediscovering the reasons for the decisions made with the liturgical reform, overcoming unfounded and superficial readings, partial receptions, and practices that disfigure it.” He said that this is not a question “of rethinking the reform by reviewing its choices, but of knowing better the underlying reasons [for it]… [and] of internalizing its inspirational principles and of observing the discipline that governs it.”

The Supreme Pontiff insisted, “After this magisterial, and after this long journey, we can assert with certainty and magisterial authority that the liturgical reform is irreversible.”
 
https://www.catholicculture.org/commentary/otn.cfm?id=1237
What does Pope Francis mean by ‘irreversible’ liturgical reform?
By Phil Lawler (bio - articles - email) | Aug 24, 2017

http://www.catholicnews.com/services/englishnews/2017/vatican-ii-liturgical-reform-irreversible-pope-says.cfm
Vatican II liturgical reform 'irreversible,' pope says
By Junno Arocho Esteves  Catholic News Service
8.24.2017 9:45 AM ET

https://zenit.org/articles/vatican-iis-liturgy-a-school-of-prayer-full-translation/
Vatican II’s Liturgy: a “school of prayer” (full translation)
Pope’s Address to the 68th National Italian Liturgical Week
August 24, 2017

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2017/08/25/pope_francis_%e2%80%98pleased%e2%80%99_with_card_parolin%e2%80%99s_visit_to_russia/1332800

EXCLUSIVE: Pope Francis ‘pleased’ with Card Parolin’s ‘constructive’ visit to Russia
25/08/2017 14:25

Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin (R) meets with Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill during his trip to Russia - EPA
(Vatican Radio) Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican Secretary of State, is just returned from a 4-day state visit to Russia, with which he says Pope Francis is “pleased”.

In an exclusive interview with Vatican media on Friday, Cardinal Pietro Parolin reviewed his state visit to Russia this week, pointing out its highlights and the issues as yet unresolved between the Holy See and the Russian Federation.

Pope Francis ‘pleased’ with Parolin’s visit

Cardinal Parolin said he briefed Pope Francis immediately upon his return to the Vatican on Thursday.

He said the Pope “was pleased with the impressions and positive results which I shared with him.”

“The Pope as we know – and as he repeated also in this instance – is very, very attentive to all possible occasions for dialogue. He is very attentive to evaluating all existing occasions for dialogue, and he is very happy when steps forward are made in this direction,” he said.

Cardinal Parolin said he relayed the many greetings he was asked to give the Pope “from all the people I met, including the warmth and closeness of the Catholic community… and the fraternal greetings of Patriarch Kirill.”

‘Constructive, positive visit’
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2017/08/25/pope,_wcc_leaders_talk_ecumenism,_ecology,_economic_justice/1332849

Pope and WCC leaders discuss ecumenism, ecology, economic justice
25/08/2017 15:36

Pope Francis meets with WCC General Secretary, Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit and Central Committee Moderator Dr Agnes Abuom on Thursday August 24th
(Vatican Radio) Leaders of the World Council of Churches have expressed gratitude for a “very constructive and fruitful meeting with Pope Francis” in the Vatican.

The informal encounter took place on Thursday, during the second day of a visit to Rome by the WCC general secretary , Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit and Central Committee moderator, Dr Agnes Abuom from Kenya.

The two WCC leaders met privately with the pope and the head of the Pontifical Council for Christian Unity, Cardinal Kurt Koch, focusing on how to deepen relations within the ecumenical movement. They also discussed the challenges of climate change and economic justice, as well as the important role of faith leaders in seeking solutions to conflicts in different parts of the world.
 

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http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/video-shows-isis-destroying-catholic-church-threatening-rome-68966/

Video shows ISIS destroying Catholic church, threatening Rome

Marawi, Philippines, Aug 25, 2017 / 10:49 am (CNA/EWTN News).- A new video has been released showing ISIS militants in the Philippines threatening to come to Rome as they desecrate a Catholic church.

Filmed in the Philippine city of Marawi, the video shows militants shooting and setting fires within a church, as they destroy a crucifix and statues of Mary and St. Joseph.

One jihadist tears up photos of Pope Francis and Benedict XVI while saying, “Remember this, you kuffar [non-Muslims] – we will be in Rome, we will be in Rome, inshallah [god willing].”

Over the footage, another narrator can be heard saying “after all their efforts, it would be the religion of the cross that would be broken. The crusaders’ enmity toward the Muslims only served to embolden a generation of youth.”
 

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https://cruxnow.com/vatican/2017/08/26/popes-top-aide-calls-isis-threats-rome-worrying/

Pope’s top aide calls ISIS threats to Rome ‘worrying’
Inés San Martín   August 26, 2017

ROME - Pope Francis’s top aide acknowledged Saturday that given a recently published video from ISIS threatening Rome and calling on lone wolves to drive cars into the crowds around the Vatican, “one cannot avoid worrying.”

“I saw, yes, yesterday that video that was shown on TV: evidently, one cannot avoid worrying. Especially because of this senseless hatred that there is,” said Italian Cardinal Pietro Parolin, speaking to reporters during a Catholic gathering in the Italian city of Rimini.

The prelate also said that, to his knowledge, no particular new security measures are in place in the Vatican as a direct result of that video, and the alarm level is the same as before.
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2017/08/27/pope_francis_at_angelus_all_have_role_in_building_church/1333105

Pope Francis at Angelus: all have role in building Church
27/08/2017 14:13

The crowd at the Angelus on Sunday, August 27, 2017 - AP
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis prayed the Angelus with pilgrims and tourists gathered in St. Peter’s Square on Sunday.

Gospel episode

Ahead of the traditional prayer of Marian devotion, the Holy Father reflected on the day’s reading from the Holy Gospel according to St. Matthew, in which the Lord asks the disciples, “Who do you say that I am?” and Peter responds, “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.”

Jesus said to Peter in reply, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father. And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven;
 and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”
 
https://zenit.org/articles/angelus-address-on-the-profession-of-faith-in-christ-the-son-of-god/
Angelus Address: Every little stone has its place in the Church (full translation) 
On the Profession of Faith in Christ, the Son of God
August 27, 2017

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_bieWzAAAU
2017.08.27 Angelus Domini

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2017/08/27/pope_to_catholic_pols_heed_church_moral,_social_teaching/1333123

Pope to Catholic lawmakers: heed Church's moral, social teaching
27/08/2017 15:49

Members of Parliament Catholic legislators Episcopal Conference of Malawi - RV
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis received a group of lawmakers on Sunday, who are in Rome for a meeting of the International Catholic Legislators Network.

ICLN origins

Founded in 2010 by Cardinal Christoph Schönborn of Vienna and British parliamentarian Lord David Alton, the ICLN brings together Catholic legislators to discuss issues of common concern and share ideas about how best to bring their common faith to bear on their work in favor of the common good.

Pope Francis to ICLN: be guided by Church’s moral and social doctrine

In his remarks to the legislators, Pope Francis noted the broad spectrum of political opinion represented by the legislators taking part, as well as their increased number with respect to previous years.

“As long as the contribution of the Church to the great questions of society in our time can be put into discussion,” said Pope Francis, “it is vital that your commitment be constantly pervaded by her moral and social teachings, in order to build a more humane and just society."
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2017/08/28/pope_francis_to_visit_myanmar,_bangladesh_in_november/1333158

Pope Francis to visit Myanmar, Bangladesh in November
28/08/2017 10:27

A map depicts Myanmar and Bangladesh - RV
(Vatican Radio)  Pope Francis will make an Apostolic Journey to Myanmar from 27 to 30 November 2017 and to Bangladesh from 30 November to 2 December 2017

Greg Burke, Director of the Holy See Press Office, made the official announcement in a statement on Monday, also revealing the logos for the trip.

He said the Pope had welcomed "the invitation of the respective heads of state and bishops".

Whilst in Myanmar (also known as Burma), Pope Francis will visit the cities of Yangon and Nay Pyi Taw. In Bangladesh the Pope will visit Dhaka.
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2017/08/28/logos_for_popes_visit_to_bangladesh,_myanmar/1333179

Vatican releases logos for Pope Francis' visit to Bangladesh, Myanmar
28/08/2017 11:53

Official logos for Pope Francis' trip to Myanmar (left) and Bangladesh (right) - RV

(Vatican Radio)  The Vatican on Monday released the official logos for Pope Francis’ Apostolic Journey to Myanmar and Bangladesh.

The Pope travels to Myanmar (also known as Burma) on 27-30 November and to Bangladesh on 30 November-2 December 2017.

Myanmar logo

The logo for his visit to Myanmar depicts Pope Francis releasing a white dove from within a heart drawn in the colors of Myanmar’s flag: yellow, green, and red.

An outline of Myanmar’s landmass sits beside the Pope within the heart, while the motto for his journey is shown above: “Love & Peace”.

Bangladesh logo
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2017/08/30/pope_at_audience_‘youthful,_searching_heart_helps_love/1333634

Pope at Audience: ‘Youthful, searching heart fans flame of love’
30/08/2017 13:57

(Vatican Radio)  Pope Francis at his Wednesday General Audience continued his catechesis on Christian hope, reflecting on the relationship between hope and memory and inviting all to have a youthful, searching heart.

Pope Francis invited the faithful gathered in St. Peter’s Square on Wednesday to have a youthful, searching heart, one full of desire for life and happiness.

It is this restless heart, he said, which allows one to come to Jesus.

Reflecting on the call of the first disciples, the Pope said, “Jesus appears in the Gospels as an expert on the human heart.”

When two young men “with healthily restless” hearts come seeking the day after Jesus’ baptism in the Jordan, Jesus inflames their hearts.

“From here there comes that question of His that attempts to bring out the desire for life and happiness, which every young person carries within: ‘What are you seeking?’”, he said.
 
https://zenit.org/articles/memory-hope-and-vocation/
“Do you have in your heart the wind of joy?”  
Catechesis on Memory, Hope and Vocation (translation)
August 30, 2017

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0c99c2-VaM
2017.08.30 General Audience

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2017/08/30/pope_francis_appeals_for_day_of_prayer_for_care_of_creation/1333578

Pope Francis appeals for World Day of Prayer for Care of Creation
30/08/2017 11:26

Pope Francis appealed for the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation at his Wednesday General Audience - ANSA
(Vatican Radio)  Pope Francis on Wednesday appealed for “a respectful and responsible attitude towards Creation” ahead of the third World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation.

At his General Audience, the Pope said he and “our dear brother Bartholomew, Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople” had prepared a Message to be released on September 1.

“In [the message],” the Holy Father said, “we invite all to assume a respectful and responsible attitude towards Creation.”

He said the two Church leaders “also appeal, to all who occupy influential roles, to listen to the cry of the Earth and the cry of the poor, who suffer most from ecological imbalances.”

World Day of Prayer for Care of Creation

Pope Francis declared September 1 as World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation in 2015 and celebrated a special Liturgy of the Word in St. Peter’s Basilica to mark its first occurrence.

The Orthodox Church has commemorated the Day since 1989.
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2017/08/30/pope_francis_greetings_for_afc_chapecoense/1333610

Pope Francis: greetings for AFC Chapecoense
30/08/2017 13:06

Pope Francis with players of the AFC Chapecoense football club, August 30, 2017 (pool photo by Maurizio Brambatti for ANSA) - ANSA
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis had special greetings on Wednesday for the players, coaches, and staff of Brazil’s Chapecoense soccer club, who were present at the weekly General Audience.

“My desire for you is that you grow in the wisdom that comes from God,” said Pope Francis in greetings to Potruguese-speaking pilgrims, which included the soccer club-members, “in order that, having been made experts in the things of God, you might be able to communicate to others the sweetness of His love.”

Air tragedy

Chapecoense suffered tragedy on November 28th, 2016, when the LaMia Flight 2933 carrying the  club’s first team crashed en route from Bolivia to Colombia, killing all but three members of the squad. Two of the survivors, Jackson Follman and Alan Ruschel, were in attendance, and met with Pope Francis along with the other members of the club on the sidelines of the Audience on Wednesday.
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2017/08/31/pope_francis_prayers_for_harvey_victims/1333965

Pope Francis: prayers for Harvey victims
31/08/2017 18:38

Flooding in the wake of hurricane Harvey - AFP

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis has sent a Message to Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, Archbishop of Galveston-Houston and President of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, expressing his condolences to the loved-ones of the victims of hurricane Harvey, promising continued spiritual solicitude for all those affected, and asking for the prayerful solidarity that has already been shown, to continue in the days and weeks to come.
 
His Holiness Pope Francis asks you kindly to convey the assurance of his spiritual closeness and pastoral concern to all those affected by the violent hurricane that swept through the states of Texas and Louisiana in these days.  Deeply moved by the tragic loss of life and the immense material devastation that this natural catastrophe has left in its wake, he prays for the victims and their families, and for all those engaged in the vital work of relief, recovery and rebuilding.  He likewise trusts that the immense and immediate needs of so many individuals and communities will continue to inspire a vast outpouring of solidarity and mutual aid in the best traditions of the nation.  With these sentiments, and with the renewed promise of his prayers, the Holy Father sends his blessing as a pledge of consolation, strength and peace in the Lord.
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2017/08/31/pope_greets_rabbis_highlighting_dialogue_and_cooperation/1333820

Pope greets Rabbis highlighting dialogue and cooperation
31/08/2017 12:29

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Thursday greeted a Delegation of Rabbis in the Vatican for the presentation of the Statement “Between Jerusalem and Rome”.

Below find the English translation of Pope Francis' address

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

         I offer a cordial welcome to all of you, and in a special way to the representatives of the Conference of European Rabbis, the Rabbinical Council of America, and the Commission of the Chief Rabbinate of Israel in dialogue with the Holy See’s Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews. I thank Rabbi Pinchas Goldschmidt for his kind greeting in your name.
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2017/09/01/the_day_of_prayer_for_the_care_of_creation_joint_message/1333983

The Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation: Joint message
01/09/2017 07:54

File photo of Pope Francis, right, and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I signing a joint declaration on the Greek island of Lesbos, in 2016. - AP
(Vatican Radio) The Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation is being marked today September 1 and has special importance in this its third year.

It is a Joint Message which was released on Friday morning from Pope Francis and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, who for the first time are writing together on Themes of the Day, inviting all the faithful and men of good will to prayer and to reflect on how to live in a simple and solid manner, responsibly using earthly goods.

The Day of Prayer for the Creation of the Creation was instituted by Pope Francis in 2015. The Orthodox Church has commemorated the Day since 1989.

Below find the English Language translation of the Joint Message from Pope Francis and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew
 

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Video and the text of the video at the link

http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2017/09/01/pope_francis_prayer_intention_for_september/1334038

Pope Francis' prayer intention for September: 'For parishes at service of mission'
01/09/2017 13:00

(Vatican Radio)  Pope Francis has released a video message accompanying his monthly prayer intention for September.

This month’s intention is for parishes at the service of the mission: "That they not be simple offices, but that animated by a missionary spirit, may be places where faith is communicated and charity is seen."
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2017/09/01/programme_for_popes_visit_to_colombia_presented_to_the_pres/1334158

Programme for Pope's visit to Colombia presented to the press
01/09/2017 17:01

 
During the five-day visit Pope Francis will visit four cities making day trips from the capital Bogotà where he will be based, to Villavicencio, Medellin and Cartagena.

As always he will be meeting with political and with Church leaders, but also with groups of victims, with families, with disabled people, with poor people, with former guerrillas, with his brother bishops, with  CELAM as well as with priests, nuns, religious and laypeople.

In Villavicencio he will beatify two Catholic priests killed during the conflict and in Cartagena he will pray at the Church of St. Peter Claver.

Francis will preside over Mass in all four cities and his discourses and homilies are expected to touch on issues that are particularly poignant to Colombians such as the care for creation, the power of reconciliation, the defense of life and the upholding of human dignity and rights.

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http://www.catholicnews.com/services/englishnews/2017/in-new-book-pope-upholds-traditional-marriage-need-to-help-sinners.cfm

In new book, pope upholds traditional marriage, need to help sinners
By Carol Glatz Catholic News Service
9.1.2017 1:35 PM ET

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- By virtue of its very definition, marriage can only be between a man and a woman, Pope Francis said in a new book-length interview.

"We cannot change it. This is the nature of things," not just in the church, but in human history, he said in a series of interviews with Dominique Wolton, a 70-year-old French sociologist and expert in media and political communication.

Published in French, the 417-page book, "Politique et Societe" ("Politics and Society") was to be released Sept. 6. Catholic News Service obtained an advance copy, and excerpts appeared online.

When it comes to the true nature of marriage as well as gender, there is "critical confusion at the moment," the pope said.

When asked about marriage for same-sex couples, the pope said, "Let's call this 'civil unions.' We do not joke around with truth."

Teaching children that they can choose their gender, he said, also plays a part in fostering such mistakes about the truth or facts of nature.

The pope said he wondered whether these new ideas about gender and marriage were somehow based on a fear of differences, and he encouraged researchers to study the subject.
 

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Hmmm...

https://www.lifesitenews.com/blogs/has-popes-theologian-suggested-francis-has-a-cavalier-approach-to-papal-mag

Fri Sep 1, 2017 - 1:02 pm EST
Has Pope’s theologian suggested Francis has a ‘cavalier’ approach to papal magisterium?

KINGSTON, Ontario, September 1, 2017 (LifeSiteNews) — It seems that the Pope’s Argentinian theologian Victor Manuel Fernández didn’t do his boss any favors when he recently defended Amoris Laetitia.

Fernández made headlines once again when he contributed an essay entitled “Chapter Eight of Amoris Laetitia: What Remains after the Storm” to a special edition of Latin American theology journal Medellín (Vol. 43, Num 168, 2017).

According to Convivium Editor-in-chief Father Raymond J. de Souza, Fernández gives the impression that the Holy Father wanted to remain “ambiguous and unclear” in Amoris Laetitia, “a document addressed to the entire Church” while reserving clarity for a private letter that was leaked to the press.

“This suggests a rather cavalier approach to the papal magisterium,” De Souza remarked.