Feb

29

Pope to US: Rights of All Should Be Considered

February 29, 2008 | 2 Comments

Receives Credentials of Ambassador Mary Ann Glendon
All decision-making affecting the future of the international community should take into account the rights of all members of the human family, Benedict XVI told the new U.S. envoy to the Holy See.
The Pope said this today upon receiving the letters of credence of Mary Ann Glendon. In 2004, […]

Feb

29

Pope Urges Release of Chaldean Archbishop of Mosul

February 29, 2008 | Leave a Comment

Benedict XVI urged the release of the Chaldean archbishop of Mosul who was abducted by gunmen today in the northern Iraqi city.AsiaNews reported that Archbishop Paulos Faraj Rahho had just left Mosul’s Holy Spirit Cathedral when he was kidnapped in the al-Nour district in the eastern section of the city. Three people who accompanied him […]

Feb

29

Conferees: Aid Not a Cure-all for Poverty

February 29, 2008 | Leave a Comment

“Populorum Progressio” Event Focuses on Development
By Carrie Gress
When considering the problem of poverty, instead of looking at why people are poor, we should consider what creates wealth, said a participant in a Rome conference commemorating the encyclical “Populorum Progressio.”
Michael Miller, the director of programs for the Acton Institute, a Michigan and Rome-based think tank, affirmed […]

Feb

29

2nd Lenten Sermon of Father Cantalamessa

February 29, 2008 | Leave a Comment

“Keep Us From Pronouncing Useless Words When We Speak of You”
Here is a translation of the Lenten meditation delivered today by Capuchin Father Rainero Cantalamessa, preacher of the Pontifical Household, to Benedict XVI and the Roman Curia, titled “‘For Every Useless Word’: Speaking ‘as With Words of God.’”This is the second in a series of […]

Feb

29

Reply from Doctrine of the Faith on Baptismal Formulae

February 29, 2008 | 1 Comment

  Made public today were the responses of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith to two questions concerning the validity of Baptism conferred with certain non-standard formulae.
  The first question is: “Is a Baptism valid if conferred with the words ‘I baptise you in the name of the Creator, and of the Redeemer, […]

Feb

29

Katharine Drexel Shrine Designated as National

February 29, 2008 | Leave a Comment

U.S.-Born Saint Was Dedicated to Eucharist
The U.S. episcopal conference named the shrine of St. Katherine Drexel as a national shrine, making it the 27th with that title in the United States.
“It was with great pleasure that I received the news that the Shrine of St. Katharine Drexel has been elevated in status to a National […]

Feb

29

Archbishop: Emigration Threatens Salvadoran Families

February 29, 2008 | Leave a Comment

Says Country Remains Strong in Vocations and Life Issues
The disintegration of the family provoked by emigration is a concern for the bishops of El Salvador, affirmed the president of that nation’s episcopal conference.
Archbishop Fernando Sáenz Lacalle of San Salvador explained this and other challenges while in Rome for the five-yearly visit of El Salvador’s bishops, […]

Feb

29

Interdependence and Solidarity to Meet World Challenges

February 29, 2008 | Leave a Comment

  Today in the Vatican, the Holy Father received the Letters of Credence of Mary Ann Glendon, the new ambassador of the United States to the Holy See and former president of the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences.
  Addressing the new ambassador in English, the Pope expressed his conviction “that the knowledge and experience born […]

Feb

29

Coffee and Love Letters: Parishes Go on Missions

February 29, 2008 | Leave a Comment

Cardinal Schönborn Recounts First Steps of Vienna Experience
By Gisèle Plantec
The West is no longer the Christian land it once was. Parishes are attended by a minority and thus, must reconsider their role, affirmed Cardinal Christoph Schönborn.
Cardinal Schönborn, who is archbishop of Vienna, explained some of the ways parishes must change to reach out to modern […]

Feb

29

Presentation of Pontifical Yearbook 2008

February 29, 2008 | Leave a Comment

  This morning, Cardinal Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone S.D.B. presented the Holy Father with the 2008 edition of the “Annuario Pontificio,” or pontifical yearbook. Also present were Archbishop Fernando Filoni, substitute for General Affairs, and the officials responsible for compiling and printing the volume.
  A communique regarding the presentation highlights some of the salient […]

Feb

29

Revolutionaries Take Over Cardinal’s Office in Caracas

February 29, 2008 | Leave a Comment

Prelate Calls for Government to Halt Escalating Political Violence
The archbishop of Caracas is again appealing for peace in the wake of escalating political violence, this time after supporters of President Hugo Chávez took temporary possession of the archiepiscopal palace.
On Wednesday, the group of “students and other revolutionaries” as the archdiocese’s Web site referred to them, […]

Feb

29

Conclusions of Monotheistic Religions Meeting

February 29, 2008 | 1 Comment

Here is the final declaration of the annual meeting of the joint committee for dialogue between the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue and the Permanent Committee of al-Azhar for Dialogue Among the Monotheistic Religions. The meeting took place Monday and Tuesday in Cairo.
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– Believing in the role of monotheistic religions in providing a […]