The United Nations General Assembly decided unanimously that Feb. 4 be observed each year as the International Day of Human Fraternity, starting in 2021. It invited member states, the U.N. system and others to observe the date in a manner each would consider appropriate. It was...
Pope Francis sent a message on Tuesday to the bishops, diocesan priests and religious of Venezuela, during a virtual meeting organized as a space to share their experiences during this time of health emergency caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. “I thank the Lord for the opportunity...
Robert Cardinal Sarah, the Prefect of the Congregation for the Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacrament in the Vatican, re-echoes the reminder of Pope Francis of the importance of the celebration of the Sunday of the Word of God, which falls on January...
“A society is all the more human to the degree that it cares effectively for its most frail and suffering members, in a spirit of fraternal love.” Pope Francis makes the point in his message for this year's World Day of the Sick. In order to...
There is no pandemic or crisis that can turn off the light of Christmas, Pope Francis affirmed, as he greeted the faithful present in St. Peter’s Square and following through the media during the Sunday Angelus. Noting that the Vatican’s Christmas tree has been erected in...
Pope Francis sent a video message on Thursday to participants in the tenth Festival of the Social Doctrine of the Church, taking place in Verona, Italy from 26 – 29 November. Extending his cordial greetings to those attending physically and virtually, the Pope underlined the creative...
Pope Francis on Sunday expressed his closeness in prayer to the people of the Philippines who are suffering because of the destruction and flooding caused by a strong typhoon. The death toll from Typhoon Vamco, the deadliest to hit the Philippines this year has officially climbed...
Pope Francis expressed his sorrow and offered prayers for the Church in France following the tragic murders of three people at the Basilica of Notre Dame on Thursday. A message addressed to Bishop André Marceau of Nice by Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin conveyed...
Archbishop Charles John Brown, the new papal ambassador to the Philippines, met Pope Francis as he prepares for his new mission. Brown, a 61-year-old American theologian, was received by the pope during a private audience in the Vatican on October 23. Present during the audience was Cardinal...
VATICAN — Pope Francis said Wednesday that Christians should pray from the heart and not “like parrots.” In his general audience address in the Paul VI Audience Hall Oct. 21, he said: “The worst service someone can give God, and others as well, is to pray...