St. Teresa was canonized in 1998. “We bow down before the testimony of the life and death of Edith Stein, an outstanding daughter of Israel and at the same time a daughter of the Carmelite Order, Sister Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, a personality who united within her rich life a dramatic synthesis of our […]
The communion of holy persons who grow through participation in spiritual goods, and above all the Sacraments, the charisms and charity, was the theme of Pope Francis’ catechesis during today’s general audience. In the Sacraments, each one of us is “incorporated in Christ and united with the entire community of believers. Therefore, if one the […]
Universal: Scientists: That those involved in scientific research may serve the well-being of the whole human person. Evangelization: Contribution of Women: That the unique contribution of women to the life of the Church may be recognized always. – See more at: http://www.catholiclane.com/popes-prayer-intention-for-november-2013/?preview=true&preview_id=44496&preview_nonce=8ac242c2c2#sthash.PKeBkbi8.dpuf
“The communion of the holy”, one of the most beautiful aspects of our faith, as it was defined by Pope Francis, was the theme of the catechesis of this Wednesday’s general audience, which took place in St. Peter’s Square and was attended by more than 80,000 people. The communion of the holy consists of two […]
“The family is a community of life with its own consistency. It is not the sum of the persons by whom it is constituted, but rather a ‘community of persons’”, said Pope Francis, quoting Blessed John Paul II’s encyclical “Familiaris consortio,” in an address to participants in the twenty-first plenary assembly of the Pontifical Council […]
Mary as a model of the Church “in the order of faith, charity and the perfect union with Christ”, according to the definition offered by the Vatican Council II, was the theme of Pope Francis’ catechesis during this Wednesday’s general audience in St. Peter’s Square, attended by over ninety thousand people. Mary is a model […]
At midday on Sunday the Pope appeared at the window of his study to recite the Angelus with the faithful gathered in St. Peter’s Square and, before the Marian prayer, he commented on today’s Gospel reading in which Jesus tells a parable on the need to pray, always and incessantly. “The protagonist is a widow […]
After considering the unity, holiness and catholicity of the Church, as defined by the Creed, the Holy Father today addressed her apostolic nature. During the catechesis of the Pope’s general audience in St. Peter’s Square, he stated that “to profess that the Church is apostolic means underlining her constitutive bond with the Apostles, with that […]
INTRODUCTION 1. In recent years, various questions relating to homosexuality have been addressed with some frequency by Pope John Paul II and by the relevant Dicasteries of the Holy See.(1) Homosexuality is a troubling moral and social phenomenon, even in those countries where it does not present significant legal issues. It gives rise to greater […]
The Holy Father’s Sunday meditation before praying the Angelus this morning was dedicated to Jesus’ visit to the house of Martha and Mary in Bethany in the Gospel of St. Luke, and the two key themes of Christian life: contemplation, listening to the Word of God and the concrete service of our neighbor. These are […]
Angelus message from July 7, 2013. “Jesus is not an isolated missionary”, Pope Francis said; “he does not want to fulfill his mission alone, but involves his disciples. Today we see that, in addition to the Twelve Apostles, He calls seventy-two others, and sends them into the villages, two by two, to announce that the […]
Lumen fidei – The light of faith (LF) is the first Encyclical signed by Pope Francis. Divided into four chapters, plus an introduction and a conclusion, the Pontiff explains that the Letter supplements Benedict XVI’s Encyclicals on charity and hope, and takes up the “fine work” carried out by the Pope Emeritus, who had already […]
Yesterday in the Basilica of St. John Lateran, Pope Francis celebrated Mass for the Solemnity of Corpus Christi. He then led, on foot, the Eucharistic procession that wound along Rome’s Via Merulana, until reaching the Basilica of Saint Mary Major. Following are ample extracts from the Holy Father’s homily, which focused on the Gospel story […]
The mystery of the Church will be the theme of Pope Francis’ new cycle of catechesis during the Wednesday general audiences. “A mystery,” he said, “that we all live and in which we all take part.” The Pope, who will discuss this topic in light of Vatican Council II texts, began from the parable of […]
“We are living in an age when we are rather sceptical regarding truth,” the Holy Father said to the over 75,000 people gathered in St. Peter’s Square on May 15th. “Benedict XVI spoke many times about relativism, that is, the tendency to believe that there is nothing definitive and to think that truth comes from […]
Pope Francis dedicated the catechesis of his Wednesday general audience to three Gospel texts that help us to enter into the mystery of one of the truths professed in the Creed: that Jesus “will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead”. The three texts are: the parable of the ten virgins; […]
“I am happy to welcome you to this, my first general audience,” Pope Francis said to the thousands of faithful who filled St. Peter’s Square to participate in the Bishop of Rome’s first catechesis. “With gratitude and veneration,” he continued, “I take up this ‘witness’ from the hands of my beloved predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI. […]
Following is the whole text of Pope Francis’ homily during the Palm Sunday Mass that begins the Holy Week celebrations. The Holy Father commented on the World Youth Day that the entire Church celebrates today, asking that we live the faith “with a young heart”. The pontiff urged the youth to “tell the world that […]
Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, S.J., Archbishop of Buenos Aires, Argentina, Ordinary for Eastern-rite faithful in Argentina who lack an Ordinary of their own rite, was born on 17 December 1936 in Buenos Aires. He studied as and holds a degree as a chemical technician, but then chose the priesthood and entered the seminary of Villa […]
The question of religious education and the formation in the faith of the next generation of Catholics in the United States was the theme of the Holy Father’s remarks to prelates from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (Regions X-XIII), who have just completed their five-yearly “ad limina” visit: Speaking to the group in […]
