Catholic News 2
TRENTON, N.J. (AP) -- Worried you might catch the Zika virus? Scammers and bug spray companies are counting on it....
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) -- Texas agreed Wednesday to weaken its voter ID law, which federal courts have said discriminated against minorities and the poor and left more than 600,000 registered voters potentially unable to cast a ballot....
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) -- All seemed normal to the 300 people aboard the Emirates airliner as it flew past the world's tallest building in hazy skies and made a slow left turn over the waters of the Persian Gulf. But as soon as the plane touched down at Dubai International Airport, everyone knew something had gone wrong....
ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) -- Prosecutors brought the first-ever federal terrorism charges against a law enforcement officer in the U.S., alleging Wednesday that a patrol officer with the D.C. region's transit police bought about $250 worth of gift cards for someone he thought was working with the Islamic State group....
BEIRUT (AP) -- The 28-year-old Syrian attorney turned down a scholarship to study economics in Germany in order to remain in his native Aleppo after rebels took it over in 2012, promising a new administration and life free of the rule of President Bashar Assad....
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Their party in crisis, Republicans' frustration with Donald Trump reached new heights on Wednesday as GOP leaders scrambled to persuade the presidential nominee to abandon divisive tactics that have led to sinking poll numbers and low morale....
(Vatican Radio) At the conclusion of his Wednesday General Audience, Pope Francis delivered his message for the upcoming Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, urging Brazilians to work for a more just and safe country.Listen to Devin Watkins' report: With the Olympic Games 2016 getting underway in Rio on Saturday, August 6th, Pope Francis told all those involved to ‘fight the good fight’ and finish the race together.He said “in a world thirsting for peace, tolerance, and reconciliation”, the prize for all participants and spectators of the Games consisted in something much more precious than a medal.Their prize, he said, is “the construction of a civilization in which solidarity reigns and is based upon the recognition that we are all members of the same human family, regardless of the differences of culture, skin color, or religion.”The Holy Father also expressed his desire that all Brazilians, “who with their joy and characteristic ...
(Vatican Radio) At the conclusion of his Wednesday General Audience, Pope Francis delivered his message for the upcoming Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, urging Brazilians to work for a more just and safe country.
Listen to Devin Watkins' report:
With the Olympic Games 2016 getting underway in Rio on Saturday, August 6th, Pope Francis told all those involved to ‘fight the good fight’ and finish the race together.
He said “in a world thirsting for peace, tolerance, and reconciliation”, the prize for all participants and spectators of the Games consisted in something much more precious than a medal.
Their prize, he said, is “the construction of a civilization in which solidarity reigns and is based upon the recognition that we are all members of the same human family, regardless of the differences of culture, skin color, or religion.”
The Holy Father also expressed his desire that all Brazilians, “who with their joy and characteristic hospitality have organized the ‘Feast of Sport’, … that this will be an opportunity to overcome difficult moments and commit themselves to working as a team to build a more just and safe country, betting all on a future full of hope and joy."
A Vatican Radio English translation of Pope Francis’ message for the Olympics is below:
I would like to send an especially warm greeting to the Brazilian people, in particular to the city of Rio de Janeiro, which is hosting the athletes and passionate fans from all over the world on the occasion of the Olympics. In a world thirsting for peace, tolerance, and reconciliation, I hope that the spirit of the Olympic Games inspires all – participants and spectators – to “fight the good fight” and finish the race together (cf. 2 Tim 4,7-8), desiring to obtain as a prize, not a medal, but something much more precious: the construction of a civilization in which solidarity reigns and is based upon the recognition that we are all members of the same human family, regardless of the differences of culture, skin color, or religion. And for all Brazilians, who with their joy and characteristic hospitality have organized the ‘Feast of Sport’, I hope that this will be an opportunity to overcome difficult moments and commit themselves to working as a team to build a more just and safe country, betting all on a future full of hope and joy. May God bless you all!
(Vatican Radio) World Youth Day may now be over, but the hundreds of thousands of pilgrims who attended will take back with them memories that will last a lifetime.Dorata Abdelmoula is the Spokesperson for WYD Krakow 2016. Looking back over the event, she told Lydia O’Kane that this World Youth Day was a place of encounter where many friendships were made.Listen: “Even now we can see many families together with pilgrims, like giving the last farewell and saying goodbye and we see they are really attached to each other . We can observe these relationships that were born during this time of exchange. So this is one proof that World Youth Day was really a real encounter that will for sure bring some fruits that will last for a long time”, she said.Asked about what she thought were some of the highlights of this event, Dorata noted, that young people were really inspired by the Pope’s words.“Well for sure those highlights are the Pope’s s...
(Vatican Radio) World Youth Day may now be over, but the hundreds of thousands of pilgrims who attended will take back with them memories that will last a lifetime.
Dorata Abdelmoula is the Spokesperson for WYD Krakow 2016. Looking back over the event, she told Lydia O’Kane that this World Youth Day was a place of encounter where many friendships were made.
Listen:
“Even now we can see many families together with pilgrims, like giving the last farewell and saying goodbye and we see they are really attached to each other . We can observe these relationships that were born during this time of exchange. So this is one proof that World Youth Day was really a real encounter that will for sure bring some fruits that will last for a long time”, she said.
Asked about what she thought were some of the highlights of this event, Dorata noted, that young people were really inspired by the Pope’s words.
“Well for sure those highlights are the Pope’s speeches and within those speeches every young person will find another sentence that will inspire him…”
The next World Youth Day will be held in Panama in three years’ time and the WYD spokesperson said, ”we are in touch with the local organizing committee from Panama, first of all to share with them our experience…”
Dorata also said, it is also of way all sharing with them what the universal is because, she added, for her and her colleagues the three years of preparation was about discovering and recognizing the community of the universal Church.
Rouen, France, Aug 3, 2016 / 06:01 am (CNA/EWTN News).- During Tuesday's funeral Mass for Fr. Jacques Hamel, who was killed last week by Islamic State terrorists, the Archbishop of Rouen said the priest's death urges us to respond to God in our lives.“The death of Jacques Hamel called me to a frank yes – not to a tepid yes,” Archbishop Dominique Lebrun said Aug. 2 at Rouen's Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption.“A 'yes' to life, like Jacques' 'yes' at his ordination. Is this possible? We must respond yes every time. God will not force us. God is patient. God is merciful. Even when I, Dominique, said no to love, even when I said to God 'perhaps later', even when I forgot, God waits for me because of his infinite mercy. But today, can the world still wait for the chain of love which will replace the chain of hate?”Fr. Hamel, who was 85, was killed July 26 in Saint-Étienne-du-Rouvray, a suburb of Rouen, whi...
Rouen, France, Aug 3, 2016 / 06:01 am (CNA/EWTN News).- During Tuesday's funeral Mass for Fr. Jacques Hamel, who was killed last week by Islamic State terrorists, the Archbishop of Rouen said the priest's death urges us to respond to God in our lives.
“The death of Jacques Hamel called me to a frank yes – not to a tepid yes,” Archbishop Dominique Lebrun said Aug. 2 at Rouen's Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption.
“A 'yes' to life, like Jacques' 'yes' at his ordination. Is this possible? We must respond yes every time. God will not force us. God is patient. God is merciful. Even when I, Dominique, said no to love, even when I said to God 'perhaps later', even when I forgot, God waits for me because of his infinite mercy. But today, can the world still wait for the chain of love which will replace the chain of hate?”
Fr. Hamel, who was 85, was killed July 26 in Saint-Étienne-du-Rouvray, a suburb of Rouen, while saying Mass. The assailants, who were armed with knives, declared their allegiance to the Islamic State, and were later shot dead by police.
Thousands attended the priest's funeral Mass, including government officials and representatives from the Jewish and Muslim communities.
Archbishop Lebrun said Fr. Hamel “has no more to fear God. He presents himself with his just works.”
“Of course, we cannot pass judgement on the heart of our brother. But so many testimonies cannot be wrong! Fr. Jacques Hamel had a simple heart.”
He recounted that Fr. Hamel had been ordained a priest 58 years, adding that before the priest's years of faithful charity “I feel small.”
“Jacques, you were a faithful disciple of Jesus. Wherever you went, you did well.”
Prior to the homily, Fr. Hamel's sister Roselyne spoke about his mercy and love, saying that he had refused to become an officer during his military service in colonial Algeria so that he would not have to order others to kill. She said: “The God of love and mercy chose you to be at the service of others … until your last breath.”
Archbishop Lebrun suggested that Fr. Hamel's confidence in Christ's resurrection was “rooted in the experience of death in Algeria … Perhaps this mystery, this secret you confided was what was winning hearts in our assembly: yes, Christ is risen. Death is not the last word.”
“For you, Jacques, the resurrection of Jesus is not a catechism lesson, it is a reality, a reality for our heart, for the secret of the heart, a reality at the same time to share with others, as a confidence,” the archbishop said.
He added, “God knows, before the reality of your death – so brutal, unjust, and horrible – that we must look deep into our hearts to find the light.”
The archbishop exhorted those present: “let us be simple and true with ourselves. It is in our heart, in the depth of our heart that we must say 'yes' or 'no' to Jesus, 'yes' or 'no' to the path of truth and of peace; 'yes' or 'no' to the victory of love over hate, 'yes' or 'no' to his resurrection.”
He lamented, asking if there would be “any other killings before we are to be converted to love, and to the justice which builds up love?”
Archbishop Lebrun exclaimed that there are “too many deaths in the Middle East, too many deaths in Africa, too many deaths in America! Too many violent deaths, enough!”
He recalled that Fr. Hamel tried to push away his murderer with his feet, saying twice, “Go away, Satan.” The archbishop interpreted this as Fr. Hamel expressing his “faith in man, created good, but grasped by the devil.”
“With Jesus every man, every woman, every human person can change their heart with his grace. We recall the words of Jesus even as they seem beyond our strength today: 'I say to you: love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you'.”
The archbishop said that in the face of such diabolical violence, we must remember in our heart that “God has fashioned us for love” and be ready to pray for those in the power of evil.
He offered his admiration to Fr. Hamel's family, saying, “Your brother, your uncle was a pillar. He continues to be.”
“It is not for me yet to declare Fr. Jacques 'martyr'. But how do we not recognize the fecundity of the sacrifice he has lived, in union with the sacrifice of Jesus which he faithfully celebrated in the Eucharist?”
Archbishop Lebrun then turned to the Catholic community of France, especially those who do not often attend Mass.
He appealed to them to visit a church in the coming days “to affirm that violence will not take root in your heart, to ask for grace from God; please to light a candle in the church, a sign of the resurrection, to collect yourself and open your heart to what is most profound; if you can to pray, to supplicate.”
Toronto, Canada, Aug 3, 2016 / 09:29 am (CNA/EWTN News).- The Little Sisters of the Poor have received the Knights of Columbus’ highest honor for their fight for religious liberty and their continued service to the elderly poor.“We Little Sisters are honored and profoundly humbled to have been chosen to receive the Gaudium et Spes Award,” Mother Loraine Marie Maguire, superior of the Little Sisters’ Baltimore province, said at the Knights of Columbus Supreme Convention in Toronto Aug. 2. “Although we never would have chosen to become the public face of conscientious objection to the HHS Mandate, we felt compelled to take a stand for the sake of the elderly residents we serve.”The Little Sisters of the Poor run 27 homes for the elderly poor in the U.S.They have challenged the Obama administration’s efforts to compel them to cover drugs and procedures that violate Catholic doctrine and ethics in their health care coverage for employees. T...
Toronto, Canada, Aug 3, 2016 / 09:29 am (CNA/EWTN News).- The Little Sisters of the Poor have received the Knights of Columbus’ highest honor for their fight for religious liberty and their continued service to the elderly poor.
“We Little Sisters are honored and profoundly humbled to have been chosen to receive the Gaudium et Spes Award,” Mother Loraine Marie Maguire, superior of the Little Sisters’ Baltimore province, said at the Knights of Columbus Supreme Convention in Toronto Aug. 2.
“Although we never would have chosen to become the public face of conscientious objection to the HHS Mandate, we felt compelled to take a stand for the sake of the elderly residents we serve.”
The Little Sisters of the Poor run 27 homes for the elderly poor in the U.S.
They have challenged the Obama administration’s efforts to compel them to cover drugs and procedures that violate Catholic doctrine and ethics in their health care coverage for employees. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has said they must collaborate in providing health coverage of sterilization and contraception, including some drugs that may cause abortion.
Knights of Columbus Supreme Chaplain Archbishop William Lori of Baltimore, reading the award citation at the international convention’s States Dinner, said the Knights of Columbus wanted to recognize the Little Sisters’ “wholehearted response to the Gospel” and their stand “with singular courage for the Catholic faith and for the religious liberty of all.”
“These sisters could no more comply with coercive government mandates than they could abandon the poor, the elderly and the dying,” the archbishop said.
The Gaudium et Spes Award aims to recognize those who have made outstanding contributions to the Catholic Church and society. The award includes a gold medal and a $100,000 honorarium.
The Little Sisters have taken their fight against the federal restrictions to the U.S. Supreme Court. In May 2016 the court unanimously ordered a lower court to re-hear the case, which was seen as a favorable decision.
Mother Loraine said the experience has renewed her sense of the Communion of Saints and the solidarity of the Church: “when one member rejoices all rejoice.”
“As we descended the white marble steps of the Supreme Court on March 23 after our case was argued, I felt as if I was walking on air. When I saw so many religious sisters, young people and others chanting and applauding, I thought to myself “this is one of the most hopeful, joy?filled, days of my life!” I will never forget it!
Mother Loraine voiced thanks for the prayers and support of those who support religious liberty and the dignity of human life.
“Our only desire has been to ensure that we will be able to continue to care for the elderly poor with dignity and love, just as we have for over 175 years. Together with our residents we have had the honor of witnessing to the Culture of Life in the Church and in the world.”
Pope Francis visited the Little Sisters during his 2015 U.S. visit to show his support for them.
The Gaudium et Spes Award was established by the Knights of Columbus in 1992, taking its name from a key document of the Second Vatican Council. Its name is Latin for “Joy and Hope.”
The Little Sisters of the Poor are the first religious order to receive the award, rather than an individual.
The Knights of Columbus, a Catholic fraternal organization, has over 1.9 million members worldwide. It helped fund attorneys from the Becket Fund who defended the Little Sisters in court.
