Pope Francis and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople kiss the Stone of Unction in Jerusalem’s Church of the Holy Sepulcher May 25. The two leaders marked the 50th anniversary of the meeting in Jerusalem between Pope Paul VI and Patriarch Athenagoras. (CNS photo) VATICAN CITY Given the Holy Land’s long and complex history of […]
Manaolana | Priesthood calling: Different paths, one burning desire, as vocations are discerned
Father Joseph Cazenavette, right, and other clergymen lay their hands on men during their ordination Mass at St. Dominic’s Church in Washington May 23. Statistics for this year’s ordination class show that the median age of the men is 32 and a Catholic education stands out as a strong factor in their background. (CNS photo/Bob […]
The pontiff invites Israeli, Palestinian leaders to Rome to pray for peace
JERUSALEM Pope Francis invited Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli President Shimon Peres to pray together at the Vatican for peace between their nations. The pope made the announcement May 25, after praying the “Regina Coeli” at the end of Mass that Abbas attended in Manger Square, in Bethlehem, West Bank. Later in the day, […]
Pope, at charismatics rally, invites them to Vatican in 2017
ROME Meeting more than 50,000 Catholic charismatics in Rome’s Olympic Stadium, Pope Francis admitted he was not always comfortable with the way they prayed, but he knelt onstage as they prayed for him and over him by singing and speaking in tongues. “In the early years of the charismatic renewal in Buenos Aires, I did […]
Pope Francis: Priests, be merciful; Catholics, ‘pester your priests’
VATICAN CITY — Always be merciful, just like Jesus, who came to forgive, not condemn, Pope Francis told new priests. “Always have in front of your eyes the example of the Good Shepherd, who didn’t come to be served, but to serve and to look for and save those who were lost,” he said in […]
Pope Francis’ homily: A Martian walks into church and asks to be baptized …
VATICAN CITY — Christians must recognize that they do not lead or guide the church, but that the Holy Spirit does and the Holy Spirit can be unpredictable, Pope Francis said. “If, for example, an expedition of Martians arrived tomorrow,” and one said he wanted to be baptized, “What would happen?” the pope asked May […]
Pope Francis to seminarians: Don’t be princes; don’t give long, boring homilies
ADVICE TO SEMINARIANS Don’t be businessmen or princes; don’t give long, boring homilies VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis told seminarians not to become “orphan priests,” who are motherless without Mary; “businessman priests,” who are after money; or “prince priests,” who are aloof from the people. He also warned them not to give “boring homilies,” saying […]
‘I love my job,’ says woman whose life’s work inspired the film ‘Gimme Shelter’
Kathy DiFiore, on whom the movie “Gimme Shelter” is based, poses with stars of the movie James Earl Jones, Vanessa Hudgens and director-writer Ronald Krauss. The movie tells the powerful story of a teenager faced with desperate choices when she finds herself pregnant and homeless in New Jersey and how meeting people who cared changes […]
Photo: Gentle touch
A young man touches the cheek of Pope Francis during the pontiff’s weekly audience in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican May 14. (CNS photo/Claudio Peri, EPA)
Pope Francis, with retired Benedict, canonizes Sts. John and John Paul
A massive crowd, an estimated one million people, is seen as Pope Francis celebrates the canonization Mass for Sts. John XXIII and John Paul II in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican April 27. (CNS photo/Paul Haring) VATICAN CITY — Canonizing two recent popes in the presence of his immediate predecessor, Pope Francis praised […]