Catholic News 2
BEIRUT (AP) -- The Latest on the suspected chemical attack in Syria, the deadliest in years (all times local):...
ST. PETERSBURG, Russia (AP) -- Investigators say they have searched the home of the suspected suicide bomber behind Monday's deadly explosion on the St. Petersburg subway....
BEIRUT (AP) -- A Syrian monitoring group says the death toll from a suspected chemical attack on a northern town the previous day has now increased to 72 as activists reported renewed airstrikes on the town hit in the harrowing assault....
New Haven, Conn., Apr 4, 2017 / 08:02 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- When parish priest Father Michael J. McGivney founded the Knights of Columbus in 1882, he showed that holiness has a timeless quality, Archbishop William Lori of Baltimore has said.“It’s not hard for us to see that Fr. McGivney was a priest of charity and mercy. Pastoral charity permeated his priestly ministry: he was filled with love for his parishioners; engaged with their needs; involved in their moments of joy but also times of loss and sorrow,” Archbishop Lori, Supreme Chaplain of the Knights of Columbus, said March 29.The archbishop spoke on the 135th anniversary of the founding of the Knights of Columbus at St. Mary’s Church in New Haven, Conn., the church where Fr. McGivney founded the Catholic fraternity that now has 1.9 million members worldwide.Archbishop Lori reflected on the life of Fr. McGivney, who died in 1890 at the age of 38.“How many confessions he heard within the walls of th...
New Haven, Conn., Apr 4, 2017 / 08:02 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- When parish priest Father Michael J. McGivney founded the Knights of Columbus in 1882, he showed that holiness has a timeless quality, Archbishop William Lori of Baltimore has said.
“It’s not hard for us to see that Fr. McGivney was a priest of charity and mercy. Pastoral charity permeated his priestly ministry: he was filled with love for his parishioners; engaged with their needs; involved in their moments of joy but also times of loss and sorrow,” Archbishop Lori, Supreme Chaplain of the Knights of Columbus, said March 29.
The archbishop spoke on the 135th anniversary of the founding of the Knights of Columbus at St. Mary’s Church in New Haven, Conn., the church where Fr. McGivney founded the Catholic fraternity that now has 1.9 million members worldwide.
Archbishop Lori reflected on the life of Fr. McGivney, who died in 1890 at the age of 38.
“How many confessions he heard within the walls of this church and how many people’s hearts did he open to the mercies of God,” he said. “It’s not too surprising, then, that when the Knights were founded in this very church their first and abiding principle would be charity – not the ersatz charity that talks big but does little – but a true love and concern for the orphan and widow and the outcast.”
“Did he not implant a culture of encounter in the Knights of Columbus 135 years ago?” the archbishop asked.
For Archbishop Lori, Fr. McGivney’s life showed the virtues of the Christian that Pope Francis would later describe as fostering a “culture of encounter,” being a “missionary disciple,” showing “accompaniment” and reaching out to those on the peripheries.
“Fr. McGivney was a missionary disciple. He was no stuffy cleric sitting in his overstuffed rectory waiting for people to call,” the archbishop said. “No, he was a disciple, a follower of the Lord, who loved him, believed in him, and preached the Gospel with conviction.”
The priest’s prayer and preaching “drove him outward and onward into the community where he ministered as a good shepherd, built bridges everywhere he could, and brought Christ to people and people to Christ.”
“There is something timeless about people who are holy,” said the archbishop. “They are timeless – but not as a work of art is said to be timeless. Holy people are such because their lives speak to each new generation, including times and seasons very different from their own.”
Archbishop Lori also reflected on the approach of Pope Francis towards Christian spirituality.
When Pope Francis speaks of the encounter with Jesus Christ, he does not mean a superficial meeting but rather “a true and deep meeting of minds and hearts.” The Pope “encourages us to allow the heart of Christ to speak to our heart, and to draw us into real intimacy with himself and his heavenly Father.”
“We encounter the Lord when we enter heart and soul into the celebration of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, when we worthily receive the Sacrament of Penance or Reconciliation, and when we pray privately, allowing the Lord’s voice to echo in our hearts,” the archbishop said.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- A White House offensive to resurrect the moribund House Republican health care bill got an uneven reception Tuesday from GOP moderates and conservatives, leaving prospects shaky for the party to salvage one of its leading priorities....
FERGUSON, Mo. (AP) -- Ferguson, Missouri's top elected official in the tumultuous 32 months since the fatal police shooting of Michael Brown won another three-year term Tuesday....
MOCOA, Colombia (AP) -- People were caught off guard when a devastating flash flood surged through a small city in southern Colombia, but not everyone was surprised....
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) -- North Korea fired a ballistic missile into its eastern waters Wednesday, U.S. and South Korean officials said, amid worries the North might conduct nuclear or long-range rocket tests ahead of the first summit between President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping this week....
Vatican City, Apr 4, 2017 / 02:02 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Charles, Prince of Wales, and his wife Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, met Pope Francis Tuesday at the Vatican, shortly after the British prince had received the Renaissance Man of the Year award for his philanthropic work.Charles, 68, is heir to the British throne, and in recent years has drawn attention to the plight of Christians in the Middle East and to his own country's Christian heritage.During the April 4 meeting the Pope and the royal couple discussed topics of mutual interest and exchanged gifts, a release from the British Embassy to the Holy See. Pope Francis gave them a bronze sculpture of an olive branch, while they presented him with food from their private residence, Highgrove House, to be distributed to the poor and homeless. The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall are received by His Holiness Pope Francis in Vatican City. #RoyalVisitHolySee @Pontifex pic.twitter.com/C2IPgPSAGf— Clarence Hous...
Vatican City, Apr 4, 2017 / 02:02 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Charles, Prince of Wales, and his wife Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, met Pope Francis Tuesday at the Vatican, shortly after the British prince had received the Renaissance Man of the Year award for his philanthropic work.
Charles, 68, is heir to the British throne, and in recent years has drawn attention to the plight of Christians in the Middle East and to his own country's Christian heritage.
During the April 4 meeting the Pope and the royal couple discussed topics of mutual interest and exchanged gifts, a release from the British Embassy to the Holy See. Pope Francis gave them a bronze sculpture of an olive branch, while they presented him with food from their private residence, Highgrove House, to be distributed to the poor and homeless.
The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall are received by His Holiness Pope Francis in Vatican City. #RoyalVisitHolySee @Pontifex pic.twitter.com/C2IPgPSAGf
— Clarence House (@ClarenceHouse) April 4, 2017
Following the papal audience, Charles and a British diplomat met with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican Secretary of State, to discuss environmental issues, as well as officials from the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue.
Charles and Camilla also visited the Vatican Library and Secret Archives, and met at the Venerable English College with Britons working at the Holy See.
The royal visit to the Vatican marked the conclusion to the couple's visit to the continent.
They visited a Commonwealth cemetery in Vicenza commemorating the First World War, the earthquake-stricken city of Amatrice, and charities helping trafficked persons and the poor.
This was their first meeting with Pope Francis. They encountered Benedict XVI in 2009, and Charles met St. John Paul II with his first wife, Diana, at the Vatican in 1985.
Philadelphia, Pa., Apr 4, 2017 / 05:11 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- On Monday, 17 year-old Santos Colon of Lindenwold, New Jersey pleaded guilty to charges related to a plot to kill the Pope.The teen had reportedly devised a plot to kill Pope Francis and detonate explosives during the Holy Father’s visit to Philadelphia for the World Meeting of Families in 2015.The event was the last stop on Pope Francis’ six-day trip to the United States, during which he also visited New York City and Washington, D.C.Hundreds of thousands of people were gathered at the Benjamin Franklin Parkway for the final papal Mass on Sunday, September 27th, 2015.Colon was 15 years old at the time.In the months leading up to the Pope’s visit, Colon thought he had made contact with a would-be sniper, when in fact he was engaging with an undercover FBI source, the Justice Department said in a statement.“Colon engaged in target reconnaissance with an FBI confidential source and instructed the sourc...
Philadelphia, Pa., Apr 4, 2017 / 05:11 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- On Monday, 17 year-old Santos Colon of Lindenwold, New Jersey pleaded guilty to charges related to a plot to kill the Pope.
The teen had reportedly devised a plot to kill Pope Francis and detonate explosives during the Holy Father’s visit to Philadelphia for the World Meeting of Families in 2015.
The event was the last stop on Pope Francis’ six-day trip to the United States, during which he also visited New York City and Washington, D.C.
Hundreds of thousands of people were gathered at the Benjamin Franklin Parkway for the final papal Mass on Sunday, September 27th, 2015.
Colon was 15 years old at the time.
In the months leading up to the Pope’s visit, Colon thought he had made contact with a would-be sniper, when in fact he was engaging with an undercover FBI source, the Justice Department said in a statement.
“Colon engaged in target reconnaissance with an FBI confidential source and instructed the source to purchase materials to make explosive devices,” the department said.
FBI agents were able to quietly arrest Colon about two weeks before the Pope’s visit.
According to AFP news agency, the attack Colon was plotting was allegedly inspired by the Islamic State terrorist group, though it is unclear how connected he was to the group or whether he had made contact with any of their members.
Colon has pleaded guilty as an adult to one count of attempting to provide material support to terrorists. The charges filed against him as a juvenile have thus been dropped.
According to the Department of Justice, Colon faces a maximum of 15 years in prison and a fine of $250,000. A date has not yet been set for sentencing.
It is likely that Colon will be treated in a secure psychiatric facility before serving his sentence, if convicted.
