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A woman receives ashes on the observance of Ash Wednesday at a church in Manila, Philippines, on March 5, 2025. The 40-day period of Lent begins for Catholics around the world on Ash Wednesday. / Credit: TED ALJIBE/AFP via Getty ImagesVatican City, Mar 5, 2025 / 11:00 am (CNA).Pope Francis asked Christians on Ash Wednesday to set out in the footsteps of Jesus Christ, full of hope, throughout the season of Lent.In his prepared March 5 catechesis, the Holy Father, who remains in Rome's Gemelli Hospital for treatment of double pneumonia, spoke about the 12-year-old Jesus' desire to live his mission as the Son of God."Jesus wants to live his vocation as the son of the Father who is at his service and lives immersed in his word," he said. "Jesus' first words [in the Bible] recognize that this paternity traces his origins from that of his heavenly Father, whose undisputed primacy he acknowledges." In his catechesis, the Holy Father also reflected on how Jesus' parents, Mary and ...
Ashes at Sant'Anselmo all'Aventino in Rome. / Credit: Vatican MediaACI Prensa Staff, Mar 5, 2025 / 04:00 am (CNA).Ash Wednesday begins the holy season of Lent, which is structured to spiritually prepare to walk with the Lord through his passion and celebrate his resurrection on Easter Sunday. Below are 10 important things to know about Ash Wednesday and its significance.1. Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent.Ash Wednesday begins the 40 days in which the Church calls the faithful to conversion and to truly prepare to live the mysteries of the passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.The Roman Missal, which prescribes the ritual for Ash Wednesday, explains that at Mass the ashes made from the palms blessed on Palm Sunday of the previous year are blessed and placed on the foreheads of the faithful.2. The use of ashes developed over the years.The tradition of placing ashes on penitents dates back to the early Church. Back then people placed the ashes on their heads and a...
A statue of St. John Paul II stands outside Gemelli Hospital in Rome. / Credit: Daniel Ibañez/CNAVatican City, Mar 5, 2025 / 06:40 am (CNA).Pope Francis was admitted to Rome's Gemelli Hospital on Friday, Feb. 14, to undergo testing and treatment for bronchitis. Follow here for the latest news on his health and hospitalization:
Anna Halpine, CEO of FEMM Foundation, at SEEK 2025 in Salt Lake City on Jan. 3, 2025. / Credit: Kate Quiñones/CNACNA Staff, Mar 4, 2025 / 15:40 pm (CNA).As in vitro fertilization (IVF) rises in popularity, discussion continues surrounding its ethics as well as about how to respond to the plight of couples struggling with infertility. One group addressing that need is FEMM (Fertility Education and Medical Management), which focuses on the root causes of women's reproductive health issues, offering various kinds of support for infertility.Anna Halpine, CEO of FEMM, founded the organization in 2012 to expand options for women's health care. FEMM provides women from puberty to menopause with health support and information, offering telehealth resources as well as an app to track cycles and symptoms. FEMM serves a lot of women who struggle with fertility issues, offering them alternatives to IVF, which is often an arduous and expensive process. IVF is a fertility trea...
The flag of the European Union. / Credit: U. J. Alexander/ShutterstockACI Prensa Staff, Mar 4, 2025 / 16:30 pm (CNA).In the context of the growing geopolitical complexity and uncertainty surrounding peace in Ukraine, the presidency of the Commission of the Episcopal Conferences of the European Union (COMECE) issued a statement on Tuesday, March 4, expressing strong support for Ukraine.The European Catholic bishops stated that "Ukraine's struggle for peace will also be decisive for the fate of Europe and the world." They also emphasized that "Ukraine's struggle for peace and the defense of its territorial integrity is not only a fight for its own future. Its outcome will also be decisive for the fate of the entire European continent and of a free and democratic world." In a geopolitical landscape that the bishops of the European Union described as "complex" and marked by "the unpredictability of the actions taken by some members of the international community," the COM...
Members and guests on the floor of the House during a joint session of Congress. / Credit: mark reinstein/ShutterstockWashington, D.C. Newsroom, Mar 4, 2025 / 17:45 pm (CNA).A woman athlete and a parental rights advocate are among the guests invited by the White House for President Donald Trump's speech in front of a joint session of Congress scheduled for 9 p.m. Tuesday. In Trump's first address to Congress in his second term, the president will focus on the theme of "The Renewal of the American Dream." He is expected to discuss some of his executive orders from the first month and a half of his presidency, which include policies to combat gender ideology in public life and curtail illegal immigration.Payton McNabb, advocate for women's sportsOne of Trump's 15 guests is Payton McNabb, a former high school athlete from North Carolina.McNabb, according to the White House, suffered a traumatic brain injury when playing women's high school ...
A balloon with an image of Pope Francis stands outside Gemelli Hospital in Rome, where Pope Francis is hospitalized with pneumonia. Pope Francis suffered two new breathing attacks on March 3, 2025, the Vatican said, as the 88-year-old pontiff struggles to recover from pneumonia. / Credit: FILIPPO MONTEFORTE/AFP via Getty ImagesVatican City, Mar 3, 2025 / 14:35 pm (CNA).Pope Francis on Monday had two episodes of acute respiratory insufficiency, according to the latest health update from the Vatican.The Holy Father was admitted to Rome's Gemelli Hospital on Feb. 14 and has since been treated for respiratory infections, double pneumonia, and mild kidney insufficiency, alongside his other chronic illnesses."The Holy Father presented two episodes of acute respiratory insufficiency, caused by significant accumulation of endobronchial mucus and consequent bronchospasm," the Holy See Press Office shared on Monday.Gemelli Hospital medical staff performed two bronchoscopies&nbs...
Pilgrims from Chicago are among those who are stopping by Gemelli Hospital to pray for Pope Francis. / Credit: Almudena Martínez-Bordiú/ACI PrensaVatican City, Mar 3, 2025 / 15:45 pm (CNA).Since Pope Francis was admitted to the hospital on Feb. 14, the world has focused its attention on Gemelli Hospital in Rome.As people from different countries continue to arrive in the Eternal City to experience this year's Jubilee of Hope, the hospital where Pope Francis is staying has also now become a part of their pilgrimage.Just outside the hospital, hundreds of the faithful with their own stories stop to pray every day at the feet of the statue of St. John Paul II. Their gaze rises to heaven and, with special devotion, to the top floor of the hospital, where the pontiff continues to recover.'It's not just a hospital. It's like being at a general audience with the pope'This past weekend, Father Enzo del Brocco, a Passionist priest, took a moment to pray with devotion before the statue of...
Bishop Robert Barron is the founder of Word on Fire, a media apostolate focused on evangelization. / Credit: Word on FireWashington, D.C. Newsroom, Mar 3, 2025 / 16:15 pm (CNA).Word on Fire Founder Bishop Robert Barron will attend President Donald Trump's address to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday following an invitation from Rep. Riley Moore of West Virginia. "Through Word on Fire, Bishop Barron has helped countless souls discover, strengthen, or return to the Catholic Church by proclaiming the Gospel 'through the culture,'" Moore, who is Catholic, said in a press release shared with CNA on Monday.Word on Fire is a nonprofit global media apostolate founded to evangelize and educate with an emphasis on contemporary media that produces blogs, podcasts, books, videos, and educational materials.While he is in Washington for the president's address, Barron will celebrate Mass for Catholic members of Congress."His use of contemporary media to reach people is in...
Tiny Jesus figurines have been popping up all over the U.S. Capitol in recent days. / Credit: Tessa Gervasini/CNAWashington D.C., Mar 3, 2025 / 16:45 pm (CNA).In recent days, congressional staff working in the U.S. Capitol have reported seeing something unusual in the normally staid grand corridors and offices where Congress conducts its business: Tiny Jesus figurines are popping up everywhere.Congressional aides have shared images of the little statues on X after spotting them around the Capitol. One was found perched on a marble column in Statuary Hall, another was seen propped up on a pillar directly outside the doors of the Speaker of House's office.Some are a bit more hidden, including a diminutive Jesus placed high on a small ledge and one tucked next to a frame on the wall. Another tiny figurine was even discovered inside a lawmaker's office in the Cannon House Office Building.Capitol Hill mystery: More of these little Jesus statues are popping up all...
