Vatican News

Pope Francis sends a hug to moms worldwide for Mother's Day

Vatican City, May 10, 2015 / 09:28 am (CNA/EWTN News).- On Sunday, Pope Francis extended a special greeting to all those around the world who are celebrating Mother's Day, after offering advice on loving to the point of laying down one's life.

“We remember all mothers with gratitude and affection,” the Pope said to the crowds gathered in Saint Peter's Square under the hot sun for the recitation of the Regina Caeli prayer May 10.

Synod will endorse Church teaching on family – Cardinal Pell

Vatican City, May 9, 2015 / 02:23 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Cardinal George Pell, prefect of the Vatican's Secretariat for the Economy, spoke this weekend on issues surrounding the family and the upcoming Synod of Bishops, saying the synod is unable to change Church teaching.

Church teaching, he said, referencing papal documents such as those of St. John Paul II on marriage and family, can’t be “abdicated, (because) it’s based on the teachings of Christ.”

What's unprecedented about Pope Francis' Year for Mercy

Vatican City, May 8, 2015 / 06:02 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- In tune with his knack for making history, Pope Francis' Year for Mercy will include things no other jubilee has: worldwide “missionaries of mercy,” and “holy doors” in every diocese for pilgrims to walk through.
    
“For the first time in the history of the Jubilee tradition, there will be an opportunity for individual dioceses to open a Holy Door – the Door of Mercy,” Archbishop Rino Fisichella said May 5.

Fr Gustavo Gutierrez: the poor are the starting point of liberation theology

Vatican City, May 8, 2015 / 01:41 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Attention to the poor was the point of departure for liberation theology claimed Fr. Gustavo Gutierrez Merino, widely acknowledged as the founder of the movement, in a May 8 article in the Vatican's newspaper.

Fr. Gutierrez underscored that this attention to the poor came from what liberation theologians experienced in their own lives and lands.

Pope's first South America stop: Ecuador's sanctuary of Divine Mercy

Vatican City, May 8, 2015 / 11:35 am (CNA/EWTN News).- After arriving to Ecuador for his 10 day trip to South America, Pope Francis' first stop will be Guayaquil's Sanctuary of Divine Mercy – breaking with his usual custom of meeting the president first.

The second largest church in Guayaquil after the city's cathedral, the Sanctuary of Divine Mercy will be the Pope’s first destination after landing in Quito July 5.

Statues for Vatican commission on protection of minors released

Vatican City, May 8, 2015 / 06:37 am (CNA/EWTN News).- After meeting for the first time as a complete entity in February, the Vatican Commission for the Protection of Minors has published their formal statues, effective for three years.

“The effective protection of minors and a commitment to ensure their human and spiritual development…are integral parts of the Gospel message that the Church and all members of the faithful are called to spread throughout the world,” the Pope said in his chirograph for the commission.

Pope Francis to star athletes: Don't forget to go to Mass

Vatican City, May 7, 2015 / 03:19 pm (CNA).- On Thursday Pope Francis demonstrated his keen interest in uniting sports with faith, telling members of Italy's Lazio club not to let training or competitions trump the spiritual essentials.

“Sometimes it happens that a guy or a girl, due to training and competitions, forgets about Mass (and) catechesis...this is not a good sign; it means we have lost the scale of values,” the Pope told members of Italian sports club Lazio during a May 7 audience.

Vatican recognizes martyrdoms of missionary, lay catechist in communist Laos

Vatican City, May 6, 2015 / 04:24 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- During a private audience on Tuesday, Pope Francis advanced the causes of canonization of 12 potential saints, two of whom were martyred by communist revolutionaries in Laos in 1960.

The May 5 audience with Cardinal Angelo Amato also formally approved the canonization of Bl. Junipero Serra – which had already been scheduled for Sept. 23.

New Swiss Guards swear oath to defend, protect Pope Francis

Vatican City, May 6, 2015 / 04:06 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- On Wednesday 32 new Swiss Guards swore an oath of allegiance to Pope Francis, who told them their role is one of courageously imitating Christ which ought to be rooted in prayer.

In an audience with the new guards and their families earlier in the week, Pope Francis said it was an occasion “to nurture a meaningful friendship, because you work so close to me.”

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