At a Mass before the conclave that will elect the next pope, the dean of the College of Cardinals urged his brothers to choose the shepherd the Church and all of humanity need “at this difficult and complex and tormented” turning point in history.
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The funeral Mass of Pope Francis will be celebrated April 26 in St. Peter’s Square, the Vatican announced.
The Knights of Columbus, the world’s largest Catholic fraternal service organization, celebrated the 125th anniversary of its patriotic fourth degree with an exemplification ceremony, Mass, and unveiling of a statue of its founder Blessed Michael J. McGivney at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City.
Sunday Mass attendance in person at Catholic churches in the U.S. is back to pre-pandemic levels — although just under one quarter of the nation’s Catholics are in the pews on a regular weekly basis.
The Xavier Society for the Blind is celebrating 125 years of helping generations of Catholics, either blind or vision-impaired, participate in worship through braille texts, large-type books, and audio books.
When a holy day of obligation falls on a Sunday and so is transferred to another day, the Catholic faithful are encouraged to attend Mass, but they are not obliged to do so, the Vatican said.
Bishops worldwide celebrated the opening of the 2025 Holy Year Dec. 29 with Masses in their cathedrals and co-cathedrals to mark the jubilee, which is themed “Pilgrims of Hope.”
The path of priestly formation resembles a eucharistic procession, shaped by a spirit of closeness and devotion, Pope Francis said.
The true significance of Singapore’s soaring skyscrapers, robust economy and high-tech achievements must be found in the stories of love and care that are behind them, Pope Francis said.
The “sense of mystery” and awe Catholics should experience at Mass is not one prompted by Latin or by “creative” elements added to the celebration, but by an awareness of sacrifice of Christ and his real presence in the Eucharist, Pope Francis said.