Catholic News 2
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) -- Saudi Arabia executed 47 prisoners convicted of terrorism charges on Saturday, including a Shiite cleric who was a central figure in 2011 Arab Spring-inspired protests in the kingdom....
PATHANKOT, India (AP) -- Indian troops killed four gunmen who had entered an Indian air force base near the border with Pakistan and exchanged fire with security forces on Saturday, officials and news reports said. At least two Indian soldiers were also killed in the ongoing violence....
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- She began as a 1970s soul singer hyped as the next Aretha Franklin and peaked in the 1990s as an old-fashioned stylist and time-defying duet partner to her late father, Nat "King" Cole....
DALLAS (AP) -- Jimmy Kimmel told people to watch. Even soap opera stars on "General Hospital" made not-so-subtle references to making plans to watch the College Football Playoff on New Year's Eve....
Vatican City, Jan 1, 2016 / 12:35 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Reflecting particularly on Mary’s title as “mother of mercy,” Pope Francis opened the Holy Door at the Basilica of St. Mary Major in Rome on Jan. 1.“It is most fitting that on this day we invoke the Blessed Virgin Mary above all as ‘mother of mercy.’ The door we have opened is, in fact, a Door of Mercy,” Pope Francis said. “Those who cross its threshold are called to enter into the merciful love of the Father with complete trust and freedom from fear; they can leave this Basilica knowing that Mary is ever at their side.”The Pope’s remarks came on the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God. As part of his celebration of the day, the pontiff opened the final holy door of the four major basilicas in Rome.The other three major basilicas – St. Peter’s, St John Lateran, and St. Paul “Outside the Wall” –have already had their holy doors opened during th...
Vatican City, Jan 1, 2016 / 12:35 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Reflecting particularly on Mary’s title as “mother of mercy,” Pope Francis opened the Holy Door at the Basilica of St. Mary Major in Rome on Jan. 1.
“It is most fitting that on this day we invoke the Blessed Virgin Mary above all as ‘mother of mercy.’ The door we have opened is, in fact, a Door of Mercy,” Pope Francis said. “Those who cross its threshold are called to enter into the merciful love of the Father with complete trust and freedom from fear; they can leave this Basilica knowing that Mary is ever at their side.”
The Pope’s remarks came on the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God. As part of his celebration of the day, the pontiff opened the final holy door of the four major basilicas in Rome.
The other three major basilicas – St. Peter’s, St John Lateran, and St. Paul “Outside the Wall” –have already had their holy doors opened during the early days of the Jubilee of Mercy, an Extraordinary Holy Year called for by Pope Francis that began Dec. 8 with the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception and will end on the Solemnity of Christ the King, Nov. 20, 2016.
Pilgrims who pass through the holy doors in Rome or in their own dioceses have the opportunity to gain a plenary indulgence, if they meet certain conditions.
As he opened the holy door at the Basilica of St. Mary Major, Pope Francis drew a connection between the Jubilee of Mercy and Mary, the mother of mercy.
“She is the Mother of mercy, because she bore in her womb the very Face of divine mercy, Jesus, …The Son of God, made incarnate for our salvation, has given us his Mother, who joins us on our pilgrimage through this life, so that we may never be left alone, especially at times of trouble and uncertainty.”
The Pope reflected on the lines of an ancient hymn: “Hail Mother of mercy, Mother of God, Mother of forgiveness, Mother of hope, Mother of grace and Mother full of holy gladness.”
“In these few words, we find a summary of the faith of generations of men and women who, with their eyes fixed firmly on the icon of the Blessed Virgin, have sought her intercession and consolation,” he said.
While the idea of “forgiveness” is misunderstood in the modern world, it is critical in the Christian faith, Pope Francis said.
“A person unable to forgive has not yet known the fullness of love. Only one who truly loves is able to forgive and forget,” he said, adding that at the foot of the Cross, Mary becomes for all people the mother of forgiveness, as she follows in the example of her Son who forgives those who are killing him.
“For us, Mary is an icon of how the Church must offer forgiveness to those who seek it,” Pope Francis continued.
“The Mother of forgiveness teaches the Church that the forgiveness granted on Golgotha knows no limits. Neither the law with its quibbles, nor the wisdom of this world with its distinctions, can hold it back. The Church’s forgiveness must be every bit as broad as that offered by Jesus on the Cross and by Mary at his feet. There is no other way.”
He also noted that Mary offers us the three-fold gift of her son: hope, grace and holy gladness.
“The gift that Mary bestows in offering us Jesus is the forgiveness which renews life, enables us once more to do God’s will and fills us with true happiness,” he said. “This grace frees the heart to look to the future with the joy born of hope.”
The pontiff emphasized the importance of forgiveness as “the true antidote to the sadness caused by resentment and vengeance.” Forgiveness brings peace and serenity by freeing the heart from resentment, he explained.
“Let us, then, pass through the Holy Door of Mercy knowing that at our side is the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Holy Mother of God, who intercedes for us,” Pope Francis said.
“Let us allow her to lead us to the rediscovery of the beauty of an encounter with her Son Jesus. Let us open wide the doors of our heart to the joy of forgiveness, conscious that we have been given new confidence and hope, and thus make our daily lives a humble instrument of God’s love.”
HONOLULU (AP) -- President Barack Obama is looking for ways to keep guns out of the hands of "a dangerous few" without depending on Congress to pass a law on the fraught subject of gun control....
ST. LOUIS (AP) -- The worst of the dangerous, deadly winter flood is over in the St. Louis area, leaving residents of several water-logged communities to spend the first day of 2016 assessing damage, cleaning up and figuring out how to bounce back - or in some cases, where to live....
ATHENS, Greece (AP) -- Bitter cold, biting winds and rough winter seas have done little to stem the seemingly endless flow of desperate people fleeing war or poverty for what they hope will be a brighter, safer future in Europe. As 2016 dawns, boatloads continue to reach Greek shores and thousands trudge across Balkan fields and country roads heading north....
(Vatican Radio) Vatican Weekend for January 3, 2015 features a report on the message of Pope Francis for the World Day of Peace, the next in the series 'There's More in the Sunday Gospel than Meets the Eye' presented by Jill Bevilacqua and Part 5 in 'The Task of Happiness: human suffering and Christian joy' presented by Dominican preacher and poet Father Paul Murray. A programme presented and produced by Veronica Scarisbrick:
(Vatican Radio) Vatican Weekend for January 3, 2015 features a report on the message of Pope Francis for the World Day of Peace, the next in the series 'There's More in the Sunday Gospel than Meets the Eye' presented by Jill Bevilacqua and Part 5 in 'The Task of Happiness: human suffering and Christian joy' presented by Dominican preacher and poet Father Paul Murray.
A programme presented and produced by Veronica Scarisbrick:
(Vatican Radio) Each year at Christmas, Vatican Radio invites Church leaders from around the world to help our listeners get into the spirit of the season, by sharing a reflection on how the mystery of the Nativity might inform our action throughout the year. Here are Christmastide greetings from the President of the Lutheran World Federation, Rev. Dr. Munib A. Younan.Click below to hear Christmastide greetings from the President of the Lutheran World Federation, Rev. Dr. Munib A. Younan
(Vatican Radio) Each year at Christmas, Vatican Radio invites Church leaders from around the world to help our listeners get into the spirit of the season, by sharing a reflection on how the mystery of the Nativity might inform our action throughout the year. Here are Christmastide greetings from the President of the Lutheran World Federation, Rev. Dr. Munib A. Younan.
Click below to hear Christmastide greetings from the President of the Lutheran World Federation, Rev. Dr. Munib A. Younan
