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SAO PAULO (AP) -- Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff is facing possible impeachment by Congress, with the Senate expected to vote Wednesday on a measure to suspend her. The effort comes amid an angry public mood over the South American nation's worst recession in decades and a big bribery scandal at the state oil company Petrobras. Yet, it is not tied to either of those. AP explains what's behind the movement to oust her, and how it could play out:...
RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) -- The rollercoaster ride that is the impeachment process against President Dilma Rousseff took another hairpin turn after the acting speaker of the lower chamber of Congress reversed his own decision from just hours earlier that would have plunged the process into uncertainty....
GRAFING, Germany (AP) -- A German man yelled "infidel, you must die" and "Allahu akbar" as he stabbed one person to death and wounded three others at a Bavarian train station Tuesday, but authorities said they've found no links to any Islamic extremist network....
LONDON (AP) -- London Mayor Sadiq Khan on Tuesday slammed Donald Trump's "ignorant" view of Islam, after the Republican presidential contender suggested Khan could be exempted from a proposed temporary ban on Muslims entering the United States....
WASHINGTON (AP) -- In a moment seven decades in the making, President Barack Obama this month will become the first sitting American president to visit Hiroshima, where the U.S. dropped an atomic bomb during World War II, decimating a city and exploding the world into the Atomic Age....
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Monday received in private audience Cardinal Angelo Amato, S.D.B., Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. In the course of the Audience, the Supreme Pontiff authorized the Congregation to promulgate decrees regarding: the miracle, attributed to the intercession of Blessed Ludovico Pavoni, Priest, Founder of the Congregation of the Sons of Mary Immaculate; born 11 November 1784, died 1 April 1849; the miracle, attributed to the intercession of Blessed Solomon Leclercq (né Guillaume-Nicolas-Louis Leclerq), of the Brothers of the Christian Schools, Martyr; born 15 November 1745, died 2 September 1792; the heroic virtue of the Servant of God Rafaél Manuel Almansa Riaño, Diocesan Priest, formerly Professed Priest of the Order of Friars Minor; born 2 August 1840, died 28 June 1927.The recognition of miracles for Ludovico Pavoni and Solomon Leclercq clears the way for the canonization of the two blesseds.Father Ludovico ...
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Monday received in private audience Cardinal Angelo Amato, S.D.B., Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. In the course of the Audience, the Supreme Pontiff authorized the Congregation to promulgate decrees regarding:
- the miracle, attributed to the intercession of Blessed Ludovico Pavoni, Priest, Founder of the Congregation of the Sons of Mary Immaculate; born 11 November 1784, died 1 April 1849;
- the miracle, attributed to the intercession of Blessed Solomon Leclercq (né Guillaume-Nicolas-Louis Leclerq), of the Brothers of the Christian Schools, Martyr; born 15 November 1745, died 2 September 1792;
- the heroic virtue of the Servant of God Rafaél Manuel Almansa Riaño, Diocesan Priest, formerly Professed Priest of the Order of Friars Minor; born 2 August 1840, died 28 June 1927.
The recognition of miracles for Ludovico Pavoni and Solomon Leclercq clears the way for the canonization of the two blesseds.
Father Ludovico Pavoni founded the Congregation of the Sons of Mary Immaculate (the “Pavoniani”) dedicated to the human and Christian education of children, especially needy boys, with the goal of teaching them useful professions.
A member of the Brothers of the Christian Schools, Father Solomon Leclercq exercised his ministry in France in the late 19th century. Father Leclercq went into hiding when religious orders were outlawed during the French Revolution. He was martyred, along with nearly 200 hundred others, during the September Massacres of 1792.
Rafaél Manuel Almansa Riaño ministered in Colombia in the late 19th and early 20th century.
(Vatican Radio) May 10th marks the anniversary of the first encounter between Pope Paul VI, the Bishop of Rome, and head of the Coptic Orthodox Church, Pope Shenouda III, which took place 43 years ago. Today, on the Day of Friendship between Copts and Catholics, Pope Francis has written to His Holiness Tawadros II, Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of Saint Mark, to commemorate the occasion.In his letter to head of the Coptic Orthodox Church in Egypt, Pope Francis expressed his joy “at the ever deeper spiritual bonds” between the two communities, and thanked God for “the steps we have taken together along the path of reconciliation and friendship”. He went on to say, “though we are still journeying towards the day when we will gather as one at the same Eucharistic table, we are able even now to make visible the communion uniting us”.Pope Francis has also said in his letter that the Copts and Catholics are “called to offer a commo...
(Vatican Radio) May 10th marks the anniversary of the first encounter between Pope Paul VI, the Bishop of Rome, and head of the Coptic Orthodox Church, Pope Shenouda III, which took place 43 years ago. Today, on the Day of Friendship between Copts and Catholics, Pope Francis has written to His Holiness Tawadros II, Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of Saint Mark, to commemorate the occasion.
In his letter to head of the Coptic Orthodox Church in Egypt, Pope Francis expressed his joy “at the ever deeper spiritual bonds” between the two communities, and thanked God for “the steps we have taken together along the path of reconciliation and friendship”. He went on to say, “though we are still journeying towards the day when we will gather as one at the same Eucharistic table, we are able even now to make visible the communion uniting us”.
Pope Francis has also said in his letter that the Copts and Catholics are “called to offer a common response founded upon the Gospel”, in the face of contemporary challenges, particularly in the Middle East, where Christians continue to face daily persecution. “As we continue our earthly pilgrimage, if we learn to bear each other as burdens and to exchange the rich patrimony of our respective traditions, the we will see more clearly that what unites us is greater than what divides us.”
Below please find the full text by Pope Francis:
PONTIFICAL LETTER
For the Day of Friendship between Copts and Catholics
10 May 2016
To His Holiness Tawadros II
Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of Saint Mark
Recalling with pleasure the third anniversary of our fraternal meeting in Rome on 10 May 2013, I offer heartfelt best wishes to Your Holiness for peace and health, and I express my joy at the ever deeper spiritual bonds uniting the See of Peter and the See of Mark.
It is with gratitude to the Lord our God that I recall the steps we have taken together along the path of reconciliation and friendship. After centuries of silence, misunderstanding and even hostility, Catholics and Copts increasingly are encountering one another, entering into dialogue, and cooperating together in proclaiming the Gospel and serving humanity. In this renewed spirit of friendship, the Lord helps us to see that the bond uniting us is born of the same call and mission we received from the Father on the day of our baptism. Indeed, it is through baptism that we become members of the one Body of Christ that is the Church (cf. 1 Cor 12:13), God’s own people, who proclaim his praises (cf.1 Pet 2:9). May the Holy Spirit, the mainspring and bearer of all gifts, unite us evermore in the bond of Christian love and guide us in our shared pilgrimage, in truth and charity, towards full communion.
I would like also to express to Your Holiness my deep appreciation for the generous hospitality offered during the thirteenth meeting of the Joint International Commission for the Theological Dialogue Between the Catholic Church and the Oriental Orthodox Churches, held in Cairo at the invitation of the Patriarchate of the See of Saint Mark. I am grateful to you for receiving the members of the Joint Commission at the Saint Bishoy Monastery in Wadi Natrum, and I am certain that we share the ardent hope that this important dialogue may continue to progress and bear abundant fruits.
Though we are still journeying towards the day when we will gather as one at the same eucharistic table, we are able even now to make visible the communion uniting us. Copts and Catholics can witness together to important values such as the holiness and dignity of every human life, the sanctity of marriage and family life, and respect for the creation entrusted to us by God. In the face of many contemporary challenges, Copts and Catholics are called to offer a common response founded upon the Gospel. As we continue our earthly pilgrimage, if we learn to bear each other’s burdens and to exchange the rich patrimony of our respective traditions, then we will see more clearly that what unites us is greater than what divides us.
Your Holiness, every day my thoughts and prayers are with the Christian communities in Egypt and the Middle East, so many of whom are experiencing great hardship and tragic situations. I am well aware of your grave concern for the situation in the Middle East, especially in Iraq and Syria, where our Christian brothers and sisters and other religious communities are facing daily trials. May God our Father grant peace and consolation to all those who suffer, and inspire the international community to respond wisely and justly to such unprecedented violence.
On this occasion that has rightly become known as the day of friendship between Copts and Catholics, I willingly exchange with Your Holiness a fraternal embrace of peace in Christ the Risen Lord.
FRANCIS
(Vatican Radio) The Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines said on Tuesday that the Church will work with the new government. In a statement, the Archbishop of Lingayen-Dagupan urged newly elected officials to see their success not as a popularity contest but as God calling them to service for the weakest and most distressed.Below please find the statement of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the PhilippinesBrothers and sisters in Christ:“All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me…” (Mt. 28:18)This is the Lord Jesus’ ultimate claim to universal kingship and dominion. These are the words of the Ascended One, gloriously sitting at the right hand of the Father.We wrote to you before the elections. We write to you once more now that the elections are done.Several critical, even spiteful, voices have asked us to desist from “interfering” in politics. We cannot. We do not aspire after office and we have sought none. We do not even...
(Vatican Radio) The Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines said on Tuesday that the Church will work with the new government. In a statement, the Archbishop of Lingayen-Dagupan urged newly elected officials to see their success not as a popularity contest but as God calling them to service for the weakest and most distressed.
Below please find the statement of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines
Brothers and sisters in Christ:
“All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me…” (Mt. 28:18)
This is the Lord Jesus’ ultimate claim to universal kingship and dominion. These are the words of the Ascended One, gloriously sitting at the right hand of the Father.
We wrote to you before the elections. We write to you once more now that the elections are done.
Several critical, even spiteful, voices have asked us to desist from “interfering” in politics. We cannot. We do not aspire after office and we have sought none. We do not even impose upon the Catholic faithful a set of anointed candidates. But it would be a denial of Christ’s universal lordship were we to desist from reminding his disciples of what fidelity to him — in all things, including political life — demands.
The votes have been cast and are now being counted.
To those who have been voted to office, we assure them of our prayers, principally for wisdom, that they may discern God’s will for his people and courageously do as he bids. God’s hand is to be recognized in the events of history. Credit then your victory, neither to fame nor popularity, but to God who calls you to service and to care for the weakest and the most distressed in our midst. Children need care that cannot be postponed. And many women still find themselves in situations of exploitation. Indigenous peoples remain marginalized and the vaunted growth in the economy still has to mean something significant for Filipinos living outside urban areas.
To those who did not succeed, you, as persons, as sons and daughters of God, are infinitely so much more than the positions after which you aspired. Rather than becoming despondent and discouraged, you should challenge yourselves by asking how it is that the Risen Lord sends you “to make disciples of all nations”. Surely there are so many other ways to contribute to the building of the Kingdom of God. It is for you to discover your paths, in faith and in docility to God’s spirit.
The greatest promise the Church can offer any government is vigilant collaboration, and that offer, we make now. We will urge our people to work with the government for the good of all, and we shall continue to be vigilant so that ever so often we may speak out to teach and to prophesy, to admonish and to correct — for this is our vocation.
Get up now let us go…
From the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, May 9, 2016
+ SOCRATES B. VILLEGAS
Archbishop of Lingayen Dagupan
President, CBCP
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis said missionaries are docile to the call of the Holy Spirit which leads them to be consumed by a burning desire to dedicate their life to announcing the gospel, even in the most distant places. The characteristics of those men and women who choose to serve the Church by going on mission were the focus of the Pope’s homily at his morning Mass celebrated in the Santa Marta residence on Tuesday.The cue for Pope Francis’ reflections during his homily were taken from the day’s reading where Paul takes his leave from the community at Miletus and talks of being compelled by the Holy Spirit to go next to Jerusalem. The Pope describes this call from the Spirit as an irresistible drive to donate one’s life to the service of Christ and even to consume it or burn it up on His behalf. He said this was the flame that burned in the heart of St Paul and every apostle and it’s the same flame that’s alive in the hearts of so many youn...
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis said missionaries are docile to the call of the Holy Spirit which leads them to be consumed by a burning desire to dedicate their life to announcing the gospel, even in the most distant places. The characteristics of those men and women who choose to serve the Church by going on mission were the focus of the Pope’s homily at his morning Mass celebrated in the Santa Marta residence on Tuesday.
The cue for Pope Francis’ reflections during his homily were taken from the day’s reading where Paul takes his leave from the community at Miletus and talks of being compelled by the Holy Spirit to go next to Jerusalem. The Pope describes this call from the Spirit as an irresistible drive to donate one’s life to the service of Christ and even to consume it or burn it up on His behalf. He said this was the flame that burned in the heart of St Paul and every apostle and it’s the same flame that’s alive in the hearts of so many young people who have left their family and homeland to announce Jesus in far off lands.
“Compelled by the Spirit”
Referring to the day’s reading, Pope Francis said it was a touching episode where Paul knows that he will not see the community of Miletus again and tells his listeners that the Spirit was leading him to Jerusalem. He noted that Paul acknowledges the absolute mastery of the Spirit over his life who has always pushed him to announce the gospel despite the problems and difficulties. I believe, the Pope said, this excerpt evokes for us the life of missionaries throughout the ages.
“They went forward compelled by the Holy Spirit: a vocation! And when we went to the cemeteries in those places, we see their tombs: so many of them died at an early age before they reached 40. The reason is because they were not used to and couldn’t recover from the diseases present in those places. They gave up their young lives: they had consumed their lives. I’m thinking of them in their last moment on earth, far from their homeland, their families and their loved ones, who said: ‘What I did was worth it!’”
Missionaries: glory of the Church
Pope Francis went on to describe how a missionary sets out without knowing what awaits him or her and mentions in this context the final farewell given by St Francis Xavier on his deathbed which evokes that of St. Paul. In his speech bidding farewell at Miletus, Paul said that “in one city after another the Holy Spirit has been warning me that imprisonment and hardships await me.” The missionary, he continued, ‘knows that life will not be easy but he goes ahead,’ just like the apostles of our times.
“Our missionaries, these evangelisation heroes of our times….. Europe who filled up other continents with missionaries…. And these people went there without ever returning home…. I think it is only right that we give thanks to the Lord for their testimony. It’s right that we rejoice for having these missionaries who are true witnesses. I’m wondering what the final moment on earth was like for these people: how did they bid farewell? Like Xaxier: ‘I left everything but it was worth it!’ They passed away, nameless. They were martyrs who offered up their lives for the Gospel. These missionaries are our glory! The glory of our Church!”
Young people who consumed their lives for a noble cause
Concluding his homily, Pope Francis said one key quality of a missionary is that “docility” towards the Spirit and said he prayed that instead of the dissatisfaction afflicting today’s young people the voice of the Spirit compels them to give over their lives for a noble cause.
“I would like to say to the young men and women of nowadays who don't feel at ease – (who say) ‘But I’m not that happy with this consumerist and narcissistic culture ….’ ‘But look at the horizon! Look who’s there, look at our missionaries!’ Pray to the Holy Spirit who compels them to go far away, to consume or burn up their lives. It’s a rather hard word but it’s worth it to really live our lives. But we need to live it in a good way, to ‘consume’ it in service, in evangelizing and journey forward. This is the joy of announcing the Gospel.”
(Vatican Radio) A new project providing work for Iraqi refugees in Jordan will be inaugurated in the capital, Amman, on Thursday May 12th by the undersecretary of the Pontifical Council ‘Cor Unum’, Mgr Segundo Tejado Munoz.The project will be funded by money raised by the Holy See’s pavilion at the Milan Expo which took place from May 1st to October 31st 2015. Pope Francis personally requested that the 150.000 dollars, collected through visitors’ donations, should go directly to the development scheme entitled ‘Promoting job opportunities for displaced Iraqis in Jordan’.Philippa Hitchen reports: Caritas Jordan will oversee the launch of the project which guarantees a regular income for 15 Iraqi refugees and their families, employed in making preserves, as well as the production and sale of oil and vegetables.A further 200 refugees will be offered professional training in carpentry, agriculture and food technology, while another 500 will be...
(Vatican Radio) A new project providing work for Iraqi refugees in Jordan will be inaugurated in the capital, Amman, on Thursday May 12th by the undersecretary of the Pontifical Council ‘Cor Unum’, Mgr Segundo Tejado Munoz.
The project will be funded by money raised by the Holy See’s pavilion at the Milan Expo which took place from May 1st to October 31st 2015. Pope Francis personally requested that the 150.000 dollars, collected through visitors’ donations, should go directly to the development scheme entitled ‘Promoting job opportunities for displaced Iraqis in Jordan’.
Philippa Hitchen reports:
Caritas Jordan will oversee the launch of the project which guarantees a regular income for 15 Iraqi refugees and their families, employed in making preserves, as well as the production and sale of oil and vegetables.
A further 200 refugees will be offered professional training in carpentry, agriculture and food technology, while another 500 will be given temporary employment throughout the year.
After the first six months of funding by the initial donation, the project is expected to support itself through income from the sale of the produce.
The project was presented and approved by ‘Cor Unum’ as a direct response to the Pope’s desire to help the most vulnerable people suffering from the effects of the conflicts in Syria and Iraq.
Jordan currently hosts around 130.000 Iraqi refugees and over 1.3 million Syrians who have fled from the fighting in their country – and those are just the numbers who’ve been registered by the United Nations.
The director of Caritas Jordan, Wael Suleiman, noted that despite the efforts of the local Church and of various government authorities, it remains extremely hard for refugees to find regular work.
