Pope sends condolences after French WYD pilgrim dies in crash
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Francis joined French World Youth Day pilgrims in mourning the death of 21-year-old Sophie Moriniere, a member of a Paris WYD group, who was killed July 17 in a road accident in French Guiana.
Be generous givers of mercy, not condemnation, disapproval, pope says
CASTEL GANDOLFO, Italy (CNS) -- God wants people to be generous and merciful, not full of condemnation toward others, Pope Francis said. God is well aware of "our miseries, our difficulties, even our sins, and he gives all of us this merciful heart," capable of being loving and merciful toward others, he told pilgrims gathered outside the papal summer villa.
Vatican updates laws; pope expands jurisdiction of Vatican court
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Francis has approved a major updating of the criminal laws of Vatican City State, including in areas dealing with child abuse and terrorism financing, and has ruled that any Vatican employee can be tried by the Vatican court for violating those laws. The laws were adopted by the Pontifical Commission […]
Resist sleek cars, ‘living on the edge,’ Pope tells future priests, nuns
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Be joyous, authentic and loving while resisting fly-by-night commitments, catty gossip and sleek cars, Pope Francis told future priests, brothers and nuns. Vocations don’t come from catchy campaigns or pursuing personal goals; the consecrated life is the result of prayer and answering an “unsettling” yet loving invitation from God, he told […]
Pope to set up ‘study group’ to look into Vatican audits, cardinal says
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Francis will be forming a new committee to investigate the findings and concerns expressed in an external audit of the internal budgets of Vatican offices. The pope told the Council of Cardinals for the Study of the Organizational and Economic Problems of the Holy See that he was thinking of forming "a study group" that would look at issues such as transparency and accountability, South African Cardinal Wilfred F. Napier of Durban told Catholic News Service.
In first encyclical, pope celebrates faith as the light of human life
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Francis' first encyclical, "Lumen Fidei" ("The Light of Faith"), is a celebration of Christian faith as the guiding light of a "successful and fruitful life," inspiring social action as well as devotion to God, and illuminating "every aspect of human existence," including philosophy and the natural sciences. The document, released July 5, completes a papal trilogy on the three "theological virtues," following Pope Benedict XVI's encyclicals "Deus Caritas Est" (2005) on charity and "Spe Salvi" (2007) on hope. Publication of the encyclical was one of the most awaited events of the Year of Faith which began in October 2012.
Pope clears the way for the canonizations of John Paul II, John XXIII
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Francis signed a decree clearing the way for the canonization of Blessed John Paul II and has decided also to ask the world's cardinals to vote on the canonization of Blessed John XXIII, even in the absence of a miracle. After Pope Francis met July 5 with Cardinal Angelo Amato, prefect of the Congregation for Saints' Causes, the Vatican published a list of decrees the pope approved related to Blessed John Paul's canonization and 11 other sainthood causes.
Pope: Escape from sin, don’t be afraid of where God will take you
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Don’t let sin and temptation be a trap — flee from evil and don’t look back, Pope Francis said. Sometimes “the only answer is to flee and not be embarrassed about fleeing. Recognize that we are weak and we have to run away” from harmful sins, he said July 2 during […]
Don’t be holier than the pope
The Catholic Campaign for Human Development, the official domestic anti-poverty agency of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, works to break the cycle of poverty by helping people help themselves. It has been doing good deeds for more than four decades. It has also been the subject of repeated criticism by those who say the agency does not directly help the poor and works for social change. The most recent criticisms focus on the agency's grants made to coalitions, not all of whose member organizations support all Catholic positions on social issues.
The superficial and the rigid ‘masquerade’ as Christians, pope says
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Christianity isn’t a school for teaching a superficial form of being nice to everyone, but it’s also not a boot camp where everything is rigidity, rules and long faces, Pope Francis said. “The Lord calls us to build our Christian life on him, the rock, the one who gives us freedom, […]