Catholic News 2
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) -- A massive explosion rocked a highly secure diplomatic area of Kabul on Wednesday morning, killing 80 people and wounding as many as 350, an attack that left a scene of mayhem and destruction and sent a huge plume of smoke over the Afghan capital....
(Vatican Radio) In this week's edition of There's More in the Sunday Gospel Than Meets the Eye, Jill Bevilacqua and Seàn Patrick Lovett bring us readings and reflections for Pentecost Sunday. Listen: Gospel Jn 20:19-23On the evening of that first day of the week,when the doors were locked, where the disciples were,for fear of the Jews,Jesus came and stood in their midstand said to them, "Peace be with you."When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side.The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you.As the Father has sent me, so I send you."And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them,"Receive the Holy Spirit.Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them,and whose sins you retain are retained."
(Vatican Radio) In this week's edition of There's More in the Sunday Gospel Than Meets the Eye, Jill Bevilacqua and Seàn Patrick Lovett bring us readings and reflections for Pentecost Sunday. Listen:
Gospel Jn 20:19-23
On the evening of that first day of the week,
when the doors were locked, where the disciples were,
for fear of the Jews,
Jesus came and stood in their midst
and said to them, "Peace be with you."
When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side.
The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.
Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you.
As the Father has sent me, so I send you."
And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them,
"Receive the Holy Spirit.
Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them,
and whose sins you retain are retained."
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis continued his catecheses on Christian hope during his Wednesday General Audience in St. Peter's Square, reflecting on how the Holy Spirit makes us abound in hope as St. Paul writes in Romans 15,13-14.Please find below the official English-language synthesis of the Pope's catechesis:Dear Brothers and Sisters: As we prepare to celebrate the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, our catechesis on Christian hope now turns to the Spirit and his saving work. Saint Paul concludes his Letter to the Romans by praying that “the God of hope” will make us “abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” (Rom 15:13). As a gift of the Spirit, hope is both an anchor (cf. Heb 6:18-19) giving us security amid the storms of life, and a “sail” driving us forward towards the safe harbour of eternal life. The Spirit bears witness within our hearts to the consoling truth of God’s pro...
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis continued his catecheses on Christian hope during his Wednesday General Audience in St. Peter's Square, reflecting on how the Holy Spirit makes us abound in hope as St. Paul writes in Romans 15,13-14.
Please find below the official English-language synthesis of the Pope's catechesis:
Dear Brothers and Sisters: As we prepare to celebrate the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, our catechesis on Christian hope now turns to the Spirit and his saving work. Saint Paul concludes his Letter to the Romans by praying that “the God of hope” will make us “abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” (Rom 15:13). As a gift of the Spirit, hope is both an anchor (cf. Heb 6:18-19) giving us security amid the storms of life, and a “sail” driving us forward towards the safe harbour of eternal life. The Spirit bears witness within our hearts to the consoling truth of God’s promises and the inheritance that awaits us as his beloved sons and daughters (cf. Rom 8:16). Filled with this hope, we can become, in the words of Cardinal Newman, “consolers in the image of the Paraclete… advocates, helpers and bringers of comfort” to others. The Spirit, who brings hope to all creation (cf. Rom 8:20-22), also inspires in us love and respect for this world in which we live. May this Pentecost find us, like Mary and the Apostles, gathered in prayer, and may the gift of the Holy Spirit make us “abound in hope”.
Vatican City, May 31, 2017 / 12:29 am (CNA/EWTN News).- On the eve of President Trump’s visit to the Holy See, the newly elected president of South Korea sent a special envoy to ask for Vatican support in efforts to foster reconciliation in the Korean peninsula.Bishop Hyginus Kim Hee-jong, archbishop of Gwangju and president of the Korean Bishops Conference, served as South Korean president Moon Jae-in’s special envoy for a one-week mission.He was able to meet with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican Secretary of State, on May 23, and to talk briefly with Pope Francis at the end of morning Mass in Domus Sanctae Marthae on May 26.“I was sent by the president to ask the Holy Father for his support in the reconciliation process between North and South Korea, and I hope the Vatican can act as a mediator,” he told CNA.He added that the mediation “could be the same as the mediation made during the restoration of relations between Cuba and the Unites States.&rdqu...
Vatican City, May 31, 2017 / 12:29 am (CNA/EWTN News).- On the eve of President Trump’s visit to the Holy See, the newly elected president of South Korea sent a special envoy to ask for Vatican support in efforts to foster reconciliation in the Korean peninsula.
Bishop Hyginus Kim Hee-jong, archbishop of Gwangju and president of the Korean Bishops Conference, served as South Korean president Moon Jae-in’s special envoy for a one-week mission.
He was able to meet with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican Secretary of State, on May 23, and to talk briefly with Pope Francis at the end of morning Mass in Domus Sanctae Marthae on May 26.
“I was sent by the president to ask the Holy Father for his support in the reconciliation process between North and South Korea, and I hope the Vatican can act as a mediator,” he told CNA.
He added that the mediation “could be the same as the mediation made during the restoration of relations between Cuba and the Unites States.”
Bishop Kim said that one of the main goals of the mission is to ask the Holy See to facilitate the opening of relations between North Korea and the United States, which “would help Korea in the path toward reconciliation” with the South, as at the moment “North Korea has not the trust of Western countries.”
The bishop stressed that “dialogue is the only way. North Korea is trying to show its military strength, but we have to keep engaging in dialogue. If North Korea becomes open to dialogue, tensions in the Korean peninsula will drop.”
Bishop Kim said that the meeting with Cardinal Parolin was scheduled to be only 15 minutes, but lasted instead 45 minutes.
“Cardinal Parolin,” he underscored, “wanted to know in depth the situation in South Korea and the relations with the North. He agreed that dialogue is the only way out.”
The meeting with Pope Francis was just a short greeting at the end of the morning Mass. It lasted about five minutes, and Bishop Kim briefed the Holy Father on the Korean situation. “The Pope seemed very interested to get the details,” he said.
According to the bishop, “the Catholic Church is a reference point in South Korea. For any issue of national interest, they look at the Catholic Church, and look for the Church’s statements and recommendations.”
Bishop Kim is familiar with the situation inside North Korea, and has able to travel across the border a number of times. He will be in the North again next week as part of a delegation of seven South Korean religious leaders invited by Pyongyang to a meeting.
“There is the wish for North Korea to allow Catholics to travel to the South, and let South Korean priests to meet the communities in the North,” he explained.
“The Holy See has always been on the side of Korea in the difficult moments of its history, and we hope this will happen again. If we achieve peace between North and South Korea, we state as from now our commitment to work for peace in East Asia and, on a larger scale, for peace in the world. We want to be a tool for peace.”
It's worth remembering now that one of the first times "Tiger Woods" and "drugs" turned up in the same sentence, it was just a punchline....
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Nest Labs is adding Google's facial recognition technology to a high-resolution home-security camera, offering a glimpse of a future in which increasingly intelligent, internet-connected computers can see and understand what's going on in people's homes....
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) -- When Gaza's 2 million residents break their dawn-to-dusk fast during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, much of the territory is engulfed by darkness and homes have to rely on generators or batteries for the post-sundown family meals....
SHANGHAI (AP) -- The arrest and disappearance of three labor activists investigating a Chinese company that produces Ivanka Trump-branded shoes in China prompted a call for her brand to cease working with the supplier and raised questions about whether the first family's commercial interests would muddy U.S. leadership on human rights....
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) -- A man charged with fatally stabbing two men and injuring a third who tried to shield young women from an anti-Muslim tirade appeared to brag about the attacks as he sat in the back of a police patrol car, saying "that's what liberalism gets you," according to court documents....
