Article Archive
Please click below to view any of the articles in our archive.
OSWIECIM, Poland (AP) -- Pope Francis paid a somber visit in silence to the Nazi German death camp of Auschwitz-Birkenau on Friday, with his only public comment a guest book entry begging God's "forgiveness for so much cruelty."...
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) -- The Latest on the Zika virus in Florida (all times local):...
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The computers of the House Democratic campaign committee have been hacked in an intrusion that investigators say resembles the recent cyber breach of the Democratic National Committee, a spokeswoman for the committee said Friday....
PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- Hillary Clinton capped a four-day convention celebration with a plea for national unity and tolerance. Now, one of the most divisive and distrusted figures in American politics must convince voters that she, rather than Republican rival Donald Trump, can bring a deeply divided nation together....
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Saturday was scheduled to visit Divine Mercy Sanctuary in Kraków, Poland.The Basilica is the resting place of Saint Faustina Kowalska, the founder of the Divine Mercy devotion.Father Krzysztof Marcjanowicz is from Kraków and now works at the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelization.He told Vatican Radio the Devotion to Divine Mercy is important to the devotional life of the people of Poland.Listen to the Vatican Viewpoint featuring the interview with Krzysztof Marcjanowicz: “I think that devotion to the Divine Mercy in Poland is maybe the second largest religious idea immediately after the Madonna in Czestochowa,” – he said – “We feel the idea of Divine Mercy like our personal thoughts and personal thing that touches the heart of every one of us in Poland.”“Speaking of Divine Mercy, and speaking of God’s Mercy like a general idea: The Mercy is the way God acts with u...
(VATICAN RADIO) With Pope Francis visiting Auschwitz on Friday, many World Youth Day pilgrims have also been paying a visit to the Nazi concentration camp.The Centre for Dialogue and Prayer in Oswiecim was founded for all those who were touched by what happened in the Nazi concentration and extermination camps located there.Vatican Radio’s Lydia O’Kane interviewed Fr. Manfred Deselaers, programme manager at the Centre for Dialogue and Prayer in Oswiecim, to find out what he hopes visitors will gain from their experience.Listen: “The first experience is always something like a shock,” Father explained“This negative experience of evil is very powerful, and my hope (and our task) is that this is not only a negative experience, that we do not go home depressed,” he added.Fr. Manfred hopes that guests do not leave Auschwitz doubting the goodness of the human race, nor doubting the goodness of God. Though after seeing such horrific marks left fr...
(Vatican Radio) Thousands of young people from all over the world are in Krakow, Poland this week taking part in the World Youth Day (WYD) celebrations.The 6-day WYD gathering offers the opportunity for young people to deepen their own Catholic faith and to grow in confidence about witnessing faith in contemporary society.Vatican Radio’s Lydia O’Kane spoke to Bishop Mark O’Toole from the Diocese of Plymouth, to discuss the importance of WYD in terms of evangelization and catechesis and what he hopes young people will gain from the experience.Listen: Bishop O’Toole says “World Youth Day is at the heart of evangelization”. Millions of people who have experienced World Youth Day have grown in confidence in their faith, no matter what their cultural context, with many discovering a “new sense of purpose and vocation in reaching out to others”.Talking about the significance of WYD in this Year of Mercy, Bishop O’Toole said that it i...
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Friday morning paid an emotional visit to the Auschwitz-Birkenau memorial and museum, the site of a Nazi concentration and extermination camp where more than 1.1 million people, mostly Jews, were put to death during the Second World War.Prior to his visit to the camp, the Pope decided he would not give a speech, saying he preferred to enter alone, in silent prayer. “I would like to go to that place of horror without speeches, without crowds -- only the few people necessary,” he explained. “Alone, enter, pray. And may the Lord give me the grace to cry.”Lydia O’Kane is in Poland with Pope Francis, and sends this report: For the Pope, this visit to the former Nazi concentration camp at Auschwitz-Birkenau was to be one of silence and prayer.The only sounds to the heard were the shutters of the ever present cameras as a solemn Pope Francis walked alone through the infamous gate that reads “Arbeit macht frei” &nda...
The United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Thursday that South Sudan stands on the brink of an abyss. Ban Ki-moon made the remarks during a United Nations open debate on peacebuilding in Africa.“As we meet, South Sudan remains precariously poised on the brink of an abyss. The promises of the new State for peace, justice and opportunity have been squandered. I am appalled by the scale of sexual violence documented by our Human Rights teams. We demand accountability for all atrocities and that the leaders of South Sudan commit to the peace process,” the UN Chief said in remarks at the gathering. UN rights officials are reporting at least 120 cases of rape over the past three weeks around Juba in South Sudan.Recently Oxfam South Sudan also spoke of its concerns regarding the troubled nation. The organisation said the country is facing an acute humanitarian crisis and emergency levels of food insecurity due to the on-going conflict that has persisted ...
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Friday appointed Father Fintan Monahan as the new Bishop of Killaloe in Ireland. Aged 49, the Bishop-elect is currently serving as Diocesan Secretary in the Archdiocese of Tuam.In a separate development, Pope Francis on Friday accepted the resignations of Martin Drennan, Bishop of Galway and Kilmacduagh and Bishop Seamus Freeman of Ossory, both of Ireland. The two men stepped down in accordance with Article 401§2 of the Code of Canon Law. Please see below an overview of the life and ministry of Bishop-elect Monahan:• Fintan Monahan was born in Tullamore, Co Offaly, on 23 January 1967. His parents are Tom and Peg Monahan and he has one brother, Seán, and one sister, Caitríona, who is married to Dominic. From 1980-1996 the family lived in Carraroe, Co Galway where his father was principal teacher at Scoil Chuimsitheach Chiaráin, An C...
