Catholic News 2
NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- Former New Orleans Saints player Will Smith was shot and killed Saturday in what appeared to be a road rage incident that has shocked fans of the much-beloved athlete....
BALTIMORE (AP) -- A year after the death of Freddie Gray, a small part of his legacy can be seen at a southwest Baltimore recreation center, where the pounding of basketballs and squeak of sneakers echo off the walls as young black men in shorts and sweats face off....
IDOMENI, Greece (AP) -- Migrants clashed with Macedonian police Sunday after trying to scale the fence separating Greece from Macedonia in the border town of Idomeni....
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Democratic and Republican presidential candidates are coming to terms with the cold mathematical reality of chasing delegates ahead of their nominating conventions, with front-runners Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump driving for challenge-proof majorities against rivals who won't go away....
Donald Trump's inflammatory statements about Mexican immigrants, Muslim refugees and women who get abortions may eventually be his campaign's undoing, some analysts say. But don't tell that to the many supporters such as Titus Kottke, attracted to the Republican front-runner specifically because he shoots from the lip....
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, India (AP) -- The Hindu temple in southern India was packed with thousands for a religious festival early Sunday when the fireworks began - an unauthorized pyrotechnic display that went horribly wrong....
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis appealed for the immediate release of Fr. Tom Uzhunnalil, SDB, who was taken captive on March 4th during the course of a murderous terror attack on a home for the elderly operated by the Missionaries of Charity in Yemen, in which four religious sisters of the congregation founded by Bl. (soon-to-be St.) Teresa of Calcutta were slain along with a dozen other people at the facility.The specific appeal for the Salesian missionary priest immediately followed a general appeal for the immediate release of all persons taken captive in war zones.“In the hope given us by the Risen Christ,” said Pope Francis to the great crowd of pilgrims and tourists gathered in St. Peter’s Square for the Regina coeli prayer on Sunday, “I renew my appeal for the liberation of all persons seized in areas of armed conflict: in particular, I desire to remember the Salesian priest, Tom Uzhunnalil, kidnapped at Aden in Yemen this past March 4th.” &...
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis appealed for the immediate release of Fr. Tom Uzhunnalil, SDB, who was taken captive on March 4th during the course of a murderous terror attack on a home for the elderly operated by the Missionaries of Charity in Yemen, in which four religious sisters of the congregation founded by Bl. (soon-to-be St.) Teresa of Calcutta were slain along with a dozen other people at the facility.
The specific appeal for the Salesian missionary priest immediately followed a general appeal for the immediate release of all persons taken captive in war zones.
“In the hope given us by the Risen Christ,” said Pope Francis to the great crowd of pilgrims and tourists gathered in St. Peter’s Square for the Regina coeli prayer on Sunday, “I renew my appeal for the liberation of all persons seized in areas of armed conflict: in particular, I desire to remember the Salesian priest, Tom Uzhunnalil, kidnapped at Aden in Yemen this past March 4th.”
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis has sent a message expressing condolences and promising prayers for the victims of a deadly fire at a Hindu temple in the Indian state of Kerala overnight, as well as for the victims' families. Sent via telegram through the Secretary of State of the Holy See, the Pope's message also also asks God to bless the whole nation of India.Below, please find the full text of Pope Francis' telegram, in its official English version**********************************His Holiness Pope Francis was saddened to learn of the tragic fire at the Puttingal temple complex in Paravur, and he sends condolences to the relatives of the deceased and injured. Praying for all affected by this tragedy, and for the relief efforts underway, Pope Francis invokes upon the nation the divine blessings of strength and peace. Cardinal Pietro ParolinSecretary of State
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis has sent a message expressing condolences and promising prayers for the victims of a deadly fire at a Hindu temple in the Indian state of Kerala overnight, as well as for the victims' families. Sent via telegram through the Secretary of State of the Holy See, the Pope's message also also asks God to bless the whole nation of India.
Below, please find the full text of Pope Francis' telegram, in its official English version
**********************************
His Holiness Pope Francis was saddened to learn of the tragic fire at the Puttingal temple complex in Paravur, and he sends condolences to the relatives of the deceased and injured. Praying for all affected by this tragedy, and for the relief efforts underway, Pope Francis invokes upon the nation the divine blessings of strength and peace.
Cardinal Pietro Parolin
Secretary of State
Vatican City, Apr 10, 2016 / 05:39 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Among the less-noticed passages of Pope Francis’ new exhortation was a lengthy section on marriage preparation, a subject that the pontiff has repeatedly spoken on, calling for additional focus at the diocesan and parish levels. “Learning to love someone does not happen automatically, nor can it be taught in a workshop just prior to the celebration of marriage,” Pope Francis said. “For every couple, marriage preparation begins at birth.”His reflections on the October 2015 Synod on the Family were released April 8 in the lengthy post-synodal exhortation “Amoris Laetitia.” He cited many statements of the synod and added his own commentary.The main objective of marriage preparation for engaged couples is to “help each to learn how to love this very real person with whom he or she plans to share his or her whole life,” the Pope said.“We need to find the right language...
Vatican City, Apr 10, 2016 / 05:39 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Among the less-noticed passages of Pope Francis’ new exhortation was a lengthy section on marriage preparation, a subject that the pontiff has repeatedly spoken on, calling for additional focus at the diocesan and parish levels.
“Learning to love someone does not happen automatically, nor can it be taught in a workshop just prior to the celebration of marriage,” Pope Francis said. “For every couple, marriage preparation begins at birth.”
His reflections on the October 2015 Synod on the Family were released April 8 in the lengthy post-synodal exhortation “Amoris Laetitia.” He cited many statements of the synod and added his own commentary.
The main objective of marriage preparation for engaged couples is to “help each to learn how to love this very real person with whom he or she plans to share his or her whole life,” the Pope said.
“We need to find the right language, arguments and forms of witness that can help us reach the hearts of young people, appealing to their capacity for generosity, commitment, love and even heroism, and in this way inviting them to take up the challenge of marriage with enthusiasm and courage,” he added.
Among those who are best prepared for marriage are likely those who witnessed the example of Christian marriage from their parents, the pontiff said.
He characterized marriage preparation as an initiation to the Sacrament of Matrimony. It provides couples with “the help they need to receive the sacrament worthily and to make a solid beginning of life as a family.”
The Church can help engaged couples’ love grow and mature through the example and advice of missionary families and the couples’ own families; other pastoral resources; discussion groups; and optional talks, he advised. However, individual meetings with the couple are still essential.
The Pope also stressed the Sacrament of Reconciliation as a means for engaged couples to find the mercy and “healing strength” of God from their past sins. He encouraged couples to reflect on the Bible readings of their wedding Mass and the meaning of the rings they will exchange.
“Nor would it be good for them to arrive at the wedding without ever having prayed together,” he said, suggesting that couples consecrate their love before an image of the Virgin Mary.
In preparing for marriage, the Pope cautioned that the financial and social preparations for the wedding ceremony risk leaving spouses “exhausted and harried, rather than focused and ready for the great step that they are about to take.”
Noting that some people in relationships never get married due to concerns about the expenses, he encouraged more modest and simple weddings.
“Have the courage to be different. Don’t let yourselves get swallowed up by a society of consumption and empty appearances. What is important is the love you share, strengthened and sanctified by grace.”
Pope Francis also commented on the various reasons that some young people choose not to get married – reasons ranging from financial motivations and a feeling of not having a future to anti-marriage ideologies and a sense that marriage limits one’s options and independence.
“The Synod Fathers stated in a number of ways that we need to help young people discover the dignity and beauty of marriage,” the Pope reflected.
“They should be helped to perceive the attraction of a complete union that elevates and perfects the social dimension of existence, gives sexuality its deepest meaning, and benefits children by offering them the best context for their growth and development.”
Furthermore, couples should be encouraged to see the meaning in the Catholic wedding ceremony and the “God-given meaning” in their created bodies, signs of the covenant of love between Christ and the Church, he continued.
Those charged with helping couples prepare for marriage should take care not to overwhelm them with too much information, but to focus on aiding them in accepting Church teaching and offering access to resources, practical advice, programs, and guidance, the pontiff said.
In addition, he recommended that marriage preparation help couples recognize eventual problems and risks before they commit to marriage.
“In this way, they can come to realize the wisdom of breaking off a relationship whose failure and painful aftermath can be foreseen. In their initial enchantment with one another, couples can attempt to conceal or relativize certain things and to avoid disagreements; only later do problems surface.”
“Sadly, many couples marry without really knowing one another,” the Pope lamented, saying that couples should be strongly encouraged to discuss their expectations in marriage, their understanding of love and commitment, what they want from each other, and what kind of life they want to build together. These discussions can help them discover if they have little in common and realize that mutual attraction alone is not sufficient for an enduring marriage.
“The decision to marry should never be encouraged unless the couple has discerned deeper reasons that will ensure a genuine and stable commitment,” he said.
At the same time, engaged couples discerning marriage must have a “realistic trust” in the possibility that each other’s weak points can be countered by developing good qualities.
“This entails a willingness to face eventual sacrifices, problems and situations of conflict; it demands a firm resolve to be ready for this,” the Pope said. Marriage is not the “end of the road” but “a life-long calling based on a firm and realistic decision to face all trials and difficult moments together.”
Noting that many couples tend to “drop out” of the Christian community after their wedding, the Pope encouraged Christian communities to recognize the great benefit they receive from supporting and engaged and newlywed couples.
Marriage support must also extend through the first years of marriage, when initial affection or attraction can diminish, he commented. Couples who were insufficiently mature at the time of their wedding merit special attention.
“Young love needs to keep dancing towards the future with immense hope,” Pope Francis said. “Hope is the leaven that, in those first years of engagement and marriage, makes it possible to look beyond arguments, conflicts and problems and to see things in a broader perspective.”
Photo credit: Mila Supinskaya via www.shutterstock.com.
PRINCIPOVAC, Serbia (AP) -- Walking a winding path inside a thick oak forest at the border between Serbia and Croatia, Jiyan Ali cannot believe his misfortune: he barely made it to Europe across rough seas and rugged mountains, only to be abruptly halted just meters away from his dream destination - the European Union....
