Egypt is a beacon of hope and refuge, pope says at audience
http://www.myspiritfm.com/apps/articles/default.asp?blogid=0&view=post&articleid=159701&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0
IMAGE: CNS/Paul HaringBy Junno Arocho EstevesVATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Just as it had been for centuries, Egypt can be a sign of hope forthose who long for peace,Pope Francis said. During hisweekly general audience May 3, the pope reflected on his recent visit to Egyptand said that because of its religious and cultural heritage as well as itsrole in the Middle East, Egypt has the task of promoting a lasting peace that"rests not on the law of force but on the force of law.""For us, Egypt has been a sign of hope, refuge andhelp. When that part of the world suffered famine, Jacob and his sons went there. Then whenJesus was persecuted, he went there," he said. " Egypt, for us, is that sign of hopeboth in history and for today, this brotherhood."The pope's April 28-29 visit to Cairo began with a gatheringorganized by Egypt's al-Azhar University, Sunni Islam's highest institute of learning. Thevisit to the university, he said, had the twofold purpose of promoting Christian-Muslimdialogue and...
IMAGE: CNS/Paul Haring
By Junno Arocho Esteves
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Just as it had been for centuries, Egypt can be a sign of hope for
those who long for peace,
Pope Francis said.
During his
weekly general audience May 3, the pope reflected on his recent visit to Egypt
and said that because of its religious and cultural heritage as well as its
role in the Middle East, Egypt has the task of promoting a lasting peace that
"rests not on the law of force but on the force of law."
"For us, Egypt has been a sign of hope, refuge and
help. When that part of the world suffered famine, Jacob and his sons went there. Then when
Jesus was persecuted, he went there," he said. " Egypt, for us, is that sign of hope
both in history and for today, this brotherhood."
The pope's April 28-29 visit to Cairo began with a gathering
organized by Egypt's al-Azhar University, Sunni Islam's highest institute of learning.
The
visit to the university, he said, had the twofold purpose of promoting Christian-Muslim
dialogue and promoting peace in the world.
Peace
between Christians and Muslims in Egypt, he said, is a sign of the country's
identity "as a land of civilization and a land of covenant."
"For all of humanity, Egypt is synonymous with ancient
civilization, treasures of art and of knowledge, of a humanism that has, as an integral part, a
religious dimension -- the relationship with God," he said.
Christians in Egypt, the pope continued, play a pivotal role in
contributing to peace in the country and are "called to be a leaven of brotherhood," but
that is possible only if Christians themselves are united in Christ.
The historic
agreement signed by Pope Francis and Coptic Orthodox Pope Tawadros II ending a longtime
disagreement between the churches over the sacrament of baptism "renews
the commitment" to peace and is "a strong sign of communion," he
said.
"Together we prayed for the martyrs of the recent
attacks that tragically struck that venerable church," Pope Francis said. "Their
blood made fruitful that ecumenical encounter, which included Ecumenical Patriarch
Bartholomew of Constantinople, my dear brother."
Talking
about his Mass with the country's Catholic community and his meeting with the country's
priests and religious men and women, Pope Francis said he encounter a "community
of men and women who have chosen to give their lives to Christ for the kingdom
of God."
"I
have seen the beauty of the church in Egypt," he said, "and I prayed
for all Christians in the Middle East so that, guided by their pastors and
accompanied by consecrated men and women, they may be salt and light in that
land."
- - -
Follow Arocho on Twitter: @arochoju.
- - -
Copyright © 2017 Catholic News Service/U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. www.catholicnews.com. All rights reserved. Republishing or redistributing of CNS content, including by framing or similar means without prior permission, is prohibited. You may link to stories on our public site. This copy is for your personal, non-commercial use only. To request permission for republishing or redistributing of CNS content, please contact permissions at cns@catholicnews.com.
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...