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(Vatican Radio) Announcing the word of God should never be dissociated from the understanding of human weakness. That was Pope Francis’ message during the daily Mass at the Casa Santa Marta. Commenting on the Gospel passage in which Christ speaks with the Pharisees about adultery, he said the Lord overcomes the human vision which would reduce the vision of God to a casuistic equation.The Gospel, the Pope said, is full of examples of the Pharisees and the doctors of the law attempting to trap Jesus by catching Him off guard, seeking to undermine the authority and favour he enjoys with the people. One of those attempts is related in the day’s Gospel, in which the Pharisees tempt Him by asking if it is licit for a man to put away his wife.Truth, not casuistryPope Francis speaks of the “trap” of “casuistry,” concocted by “a small group of enlightened theologians,” convinced that they “have all the knowledge and wisdom of the people...
The Kenya Government’s cabinet secretary for East African Affairs, Commerce and Tourism, Phyllis Kandie has said that the family is the fundamental unit of society.“If we get it right at the family level, then we are assured of a stable well-structured society,” Kandie affirmed. She was speaking, this week, during the National Family Conference to commemorate The United Nations International day of the family at Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD) in Nairobi.Kandie revealed that the government of Kenya was focusing on youth empowerment and involvement by developing specific programs targeting the young people to mitigate challenges that they face.Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB) – Commission for Pastoral and Lay Apostolate National Executive Secretary Fr. Charles Odira told the same conference that diminishing family values and poor leadership had immensely contributed to challenges that families face. He called on Kenyan political l...
(Vatican Radio) Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle of Manila, President of Caritas Internationalis, says the way we help people caught in emergencies can be more efficient and effective by engaging local organisations, including faith-based institutions.Cardinal Tagle will speak at the Special Session on the Religious Engagement on the first day of the World Humanitarian Summit, which takes place on 23-24 May in Istanbul.In a press release ahead of the summit, Cardinal Tagle said, “We know that growing inequality, climate change, water scarcity, urbanisation, conflict for resources and the spread of extremism will put millions more in peril. We need a humanitarian system fit for purpose to address these growing needs.”“Despite local organisations, including faith-based institutions, offering extensive networks of infrastructure serving as a source of shelter, care and education, the current humanitarian system of donors too often fails to recognise them....
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis has issued a binding clarification of a question arising under Canon Law with regard to the proper procedure for the creation of new diocesan Institutes of Consecrated Life. Specifically, the Holy Father has, by way of Papal Rescript, established that prior consultation by the local Ordinary who desires to erect a new Institute of Consecrated Life within his jurisdiction and under his authority, must have prior consultation with the Holy See before deciding to erect any such new Institute.The Secretary of the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts, Bishop Juan Ignacio Arrieta, told Vatican Radio the Rescript does not require local Ordinaries to obtain permission, per se, but only to consult with and hear from the Holy See (through the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life) before proceeding.“The bishop is always responsible in his diocese – but he has to evaluate the answer, the opinion, of t...
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Friday urged Italian football (soccer) players to not just be champions in their sport but above all champions in their lives, by displaying key moral values such as brotherhood, mutual respect, understanding and forgiveness. His remarks came during an audience at the Vatican with top representatives of Italy’s Seria A Football League as well as players from the Juventus and AC Milan teams. The two Seria A teams play each other at the weekend in the final of the Italian cup (Coppa Italia) in Rome’s Olympic Stadium.A keen football fan himself, Pope Francis reminded the players, that as role models for many fans, especially the young, their behaviour should always reflect “the authentic values of sport.” He said the success of a team depends on a fusion of human and moral virtues such as “harmony, loyalty, friendship, dialogue and solidarity.” By being a witness of those moral virtues, he continued, you can em...
Cartagena, Colombia, May 20, 2016 / 03:02 am (CNA).- In what's been labeled an “absurd” move, a judge in Colombia has banned prayer and “fraternal hugs” at the start of Cartagena city council sessions as well as local educational institutions.The ban on civic prayer – as well as the baffling prohibition against “fraternal hugs” anywhere from businesses to private family life – has generated immense controversy and protests among Christians on the country's coast.Judge Alejandro Bonilla Aldana's May 10 ruling suspends the first article of a 2007 accord which established prayer at “the beginning of all daily activities in local government entities as a basic approach to recovering the religious principles of the city.”The daily El Colmbiano reported that a lawsuit against the accord was filed by Miguel Ángel Garcés who is connected with the Autonomous University of the Caribbean. Garcés took u...
HONOLULU (AP) -- The last 50 wild donkeys on Hawaii's Big Island will be rounded up to mark the final step in a six-year effort to get them in adoptive homes....
DEVADI VILLAGE, India (AP) -- For two years the farmer was hopeful. He borrowed hundreds of thousands of rupees (thousands of dollars) to build a pipeline that connected a local dam to his fields of cotton and sugarcane. Two years ago the water stopped. The debts kept growing....
LONDON (AP) -- A convicted murderer climbed over a wall and wandered the grounds of Buckingham Palace while Queen Elizabeth II was at home, British prosecutors said Friday....
BOSTON (AP) -- When colleges pick their graduation speakers, many strive to put a celebrity behind the podium. It can bring prestige. It can bring publicity. And it can bring a steep bill....
