Tradition is a source of inspiration for seeking out new paths to take with Jesus and for avoiding the traps of stagnation or impromptu experimentation, Pope Francis said.
Pope Francis
Pope Francis expressed his “spiritual closeness” and “solidarity” with those affected by a pair of powerful earthquakes that struck Turkey and Syria Feb. 6.
Across regions where armies recently fought deadly battles, a Catholic bishop in South Sudan embarked on a long and grueling trek to meet the pope. Bishop Christian Carlassare of Rumbek is walking for nearly 93 miles of the 260 that separate his diocese in the center of the country and the capital city of Juba. The 46-year-old member of the Comboni missionaries started the walk in the company of 80 youth on Jan. 25. In what is called the Ecumenical Pilgrimage of Peace Feb. 3-5, Pope Francis will visit South Sudan’s capital, Juba, in the presence of Anglican Archbishop Justin Welby of Canterbury and the Rev. Iain Greenshields, moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland. The apostolic trip will follow a stop in Congo, where Pope Francis landed on Jan. 31.
The call to faith in Jesus always is a call to service and mission, Pope Francis told seminarians, priests and staff of the Pontifical North American College.
Pope Benedict XVI “spread and testified to” the Gospel his entire life, Pope Francis told tens of thousands of people gathered Jan. 5 for his predecessor’s funeral Mass.
The Jan. 5 funeral Mass for Pope Benedict XVI will be a papal funeral with a few changes to fit with the fact that he was not the reigning pope and has not left behind a “sede vacante.”
Two days after Pope Francis told people retired Pope Benedict was “very sick” and in need of prayers, the Vatican said he again had had a restful night and was able to participate in the celebration of Mass in his room.
Saying that retired Pope Benedict XVI was “very sick,” Pope Francis asked people to offer special prayers for him.
The day after Christmas the Catholic Church celebrates the feast of St. Stephen, the first Christian martyr, which emphasizes how the story of Jesus’ birth is not a “fairy tale,” but a call to live as witnesses of the Gospel, Pope Francis said.
The interconnected “moral, social, political and economic crises” facing the world cannot be solved if individuals and nations continue to focus only on their own, immediate interests, Pope Francis said in his message for World Peace Day 2023.