Vatican News

Why the Feast of St. Dominic is not actually the Dominicans' biggest feast day

Vatican City, Aug 8, 2017 / 12:38 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Tuesday marks the Feast Day of St. Dominic, the 13th century priest known for founding the Order of Preachers, commonly called the Dominicans, and for spreading devotion to the Rosary.

Surprisingly, though, the Dominicans don’t usually do much to celebrate the saint’s Aug. 8 feast day.

While the August feast “is for us certainly always a feast,” Dominican Fr. Angelo Giuseppe Urru told CNA, it’s not the primary one.

Pope urges Peruvians to focus on hope, unity ahead of trip

Vatican City, Aug 7, 2017 / 12:32 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Pope Francis has sent a special message to Peruvians ahead of his visit to their country next year, telling them to look to the great saints of the nation as they prepare, and pointing to hope and unity as key areas of reflection.

Standing beside a statue of St. Martin de Porres, the Pope told Peruvians in his native Spanish that he will be with them in just a short time, and that “I have a great desire to go.”

Pope Francis visits Blessed Paul VI's tomb on anniversary of his death

Vatican City, Aug 7, 2017 / 11:51 am (CNA/EWTN News).- On Sunday morning Pope Francis descended to the grotto beneath St Peter's Basilica, where many past Popes are buried, to pray at the tomb of Bl. Paul VI.

According to a Vatican communique, the Pope spent about half an hour in “a moment of recollection” and prayer before the tomb Aug. 6, the 39th anniversary of the late Roman Pontiff's 1978 death.

Pope Francis offers prayers after deadly Nigeria attack

Vatican City, Aug 7, 2017 / 07:26 am (CNA/EWTN News).- After a bloody attack at a Catholic Church in southern Nigeria left 11 dead and several more wounded, Pope Francis conveyed his sympathy to the victims and their families, assuring the community of his prayer.

In an Aug. 7 telegram addressed to Bishop Hilary Paul Odili Okeke of Nnewi, Pope Francis said he was “deeply saddened to learn of the loss of life and injury following the violent attack in Saint Philip’s Catholic Church, Ozubulu.”

Pope prays for openness, courage at close of Asian Youth Day

Vatican City, Aug 6, 2017 / 06:04 am (CNA/EWTN News).- As young people gathered in Indonesia for the 7th Asian Youth Day prepare to head home, Pope Francis sent a message encouraging them to be courageous, and to turn to Mary as a model of what it means to be a missionary.

In an Aug. 6 telegram signed by Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the prelate extended “warm greetings and prayerful best wishes” to all participating in the event on behalf of Pope Francis.

Pope Francis: summer is an ideal time to re-focus our life on God

Vatican City, Aug 6, 2017 / 04:31 am (CNA/EWTN News).- On Sunday Pope Francis said the Feast of the Transfiguration is an invitation to put God and others first, adding that the lazy summer months are the perfect time to take a step back and refocus on the essentials.

“The event of the Transfiguration of the Lord offers us a message of hope: it invites us to encounter Jesus, in order to be at the service of our brothers,” the Pope said during his Aug. 6 Angelus address.

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