More African countries sign agreements with the Holy See
http://www.myspiritfm.com/apps/articles/default.asp?blogid=0&view=post&articleid=150736&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0
Pope Francis Monday revealed that the number of ambassadors accredited to the Holy See has grown. In his annual address to members of the Diplomatic Corps accredited to the Holy See, it also emerged that in the course of last year, the number of African countries that signed or ratified bilateral Agreements with the Holy See had increased. The establishment of diplomatic relations between the Holy See and the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, a month ago, brings to 182 countries and entities that have diplomatic relations with the Holy See in the world.In his annual address to the diplomats, Pope Francis named the Democratic Republic of Congo, Central African Republic and Benin as African countries that signed or ratified agreements aimed at recognising the Catholic Church’s juridical status, last year.Speaking to Pope Francis on behalf of the Diplomatic Corps accredited to the Holy See, the Dean, His Excellency Armindo Fernandes do Espírito Santo Vieira, of Angola, tha...
Pope Francis Monday revealed that the number of ambassadors accredited to the Holy See has grown. In his annual address to members of the Diplomatic Corps accredited to the Holy See, it also emerged that in the course of last year, the number of African countries that signed or ratified bilateral Agreements with the Holy See had increased. The establishment of diplomatic relations between the Holy See and the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, a month ago, brings to 182 countries and entities that have diplomatic relations with the Holy See in the world.
In his annual address to the diplomats, Pope Francis named the Democratic Republic of Congo, Central African Republic and Benin as African countries that signed or ratified agreements aimed at recognising the Catholic Church’s juridical status, last year.
Speaking to Pope Francis on behalf of the Diplomatic Corps accredited to the Holy See, the Dean, His Excellency Armindo Fernandes do Espírito Santo Vieira, of Angola, thanked the Holy Father for his concrete steps in reducing suffering in the word as evidenced during the Jubilee Year of Mercy. The ambassador thanked the Pope for his leadership in encouraging peace; his stand on migration, social change and the climate.
“Despite many efforts, we feel sad because certain tragedies (in the world) highlight our inability to prevent them. The attacks in Germany, Bangladesh, Belgium, Burkina Faso, Egypt, the United States, France, Jordan, Nigeria, Pakistan, Tunisia, Turkey and many other countries; The suffering of the civilian population in Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, the Democratic Republic of Congo, South Sudan, Syria and Yemen reveal that the road to peace is still a long way off,” Ambassador Armindo said.
Fr. Paul Samasumo (Vatican Radio)
Email: engafrica@vatiradio.va
Full Article
http://www.myspiritfm.com/apps/articles/default.asp?blogid=0&url=10&view=post&articleid=275467&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0
Pope Francis waves while traveling by boat in Venice, Italy, for a meeting with young people at the Basilica della Madonna della Salute on April 28, 2024. Earlier in the day he met with inmates at a women's prison. / Credit: Daniel Ibañez/CNARome Newsroom, Apr 28, 2024 / 08:00 am (CNA).Pope Francis opened his one-day visit to Venice on Sunday morning with a meeting with female inmates where he reaffirmed the importance of fraternity and human dignity, noting that prison can be a place of new beginnings. "A stay in prison can mark the beginning of something new, through the rediscovery of the unsuspected beauty in us and in others, as symbolized by the artistic event you are hosting and the project to which you actively contribute," the pope said to the female inmates gathered in the intimate courtyard of the Women's Prison on the Island of Giudecca. Pope Francis left the Vatican by helicopter at approximately 6:30 in the mo...
http://www.myspiritfm.com/apps/articles/default.asp?blogid=0&url=10&view=post&articleid=275466&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0
Pope Francis prays in front of the tomb of St. Mark the Evangelist inside St. Mark's Basilica in Venice on April 28, 2024. / Credit: Daniel Ibañez/CNARome Newsroom, Apr 28, 2024 / 09:35 am (CNA).Pope Francis had a full slate of events Sunday during his day trip to Venice, a trip that tied together a message of unity and fraternity with the artistic patrimony of a city that has been a privileged place of encounter across the centuries. "Faith in Jesus, the bond with him, does not imprison our freedom. On the contrary, it opens us to receive the sap of God's love, which multiplies our joy, takes care of us like a skilled vintner, and brings forth shoots even when the soil of our life becomes arid," the pope said to over 10,000 pilgrims gathered in St. Mark's Square. Framing his homily during the Mass on the theme of unity, one of the central points articulated throughout several audiences spread across the morning, Pope Francis reminded Christians: "Remaining ...
http://www.myspiritfm.com/apps/articles/default.asp?blogid=0&url=10&view=post&articleid=275461&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0
Prayer house at San Simeone, Italy, September 2012. / Credit: Courtesy of Ricostruttori nella preghieraRome, Italy, Apr 28, 2024 / 06:00 am (CNA).Across Italy there are houses of prayer run by the Ricostruttori (Reconstructors) community, a Catholic movement dedicated to people who are far from the Church but attracted to spirituality, particularly Eastern meditation and Buddhist practices. The Reconstructors was founded in 1978 by Jesuit Father Gian Vittorio Cappelletto. "During the postconciliar period, the Church was faced with the need for new forms of evangelization and apostolate, to reach out to people who were drifting away," Don Roberto Rondanina, priest and superior of the Ricostruttori, explained to CNA. "It was a time when Eastern meditation, Hinduism, Buddhism, the New Age ... were beginning to spread in Europe." "Father Cappelletto, who lived in Turin, sought to understand the meaning of this 'flight to the East' and felt the need to find new forms of sp...