“God’s weakness” is that, after having forgiven us, he forgets our sins. He is always ready to make us radically “change [our] life, not just mentality and heart”. For our part, however, we must commit to this “new covenant,” this “recreation”, putting aside the temptation to condemn others and the nonsense of worldliness, and continuously reviving [...]
January 20, 2017, Friday -- Ten Found Safe Some good news from central Italy. Ten survivors have now been dug out of tons of snow and are alive and well after an avalanche buried a mountain hotel at about 5 p.m. on Wednesday afternoon. Rescuers are continuing to look for another 20 people who are thought [...]
The heart of every Christian is the site of a “struggle”. Each time the Father “draws us” toward Jesus, there is “someone else waging war with us”. Pope Francis highlighted this message in his homily at Santa Marta on Thursday morning, 19 January. Reflecting on the day’s Gospel passage (Mk 3:7-12), the Holy Father focused on [...]
January 19, 2017, Thursday -- Avalanche and Prayer Further heartbreaking news from central Italy. Yesterday morning four earthquakes hit central Italy. We could feel the tremors here in Rome, just slightly. At first it seemed that no one had been hurt. Then came the news that as many as 30 people had been buried in snow [...]
· “When things become dark, more prayer is needed! And there will be more hope”. · This lesson from the Book of Jonah was offered by Pope Francis. Dear Brothers and Sisters, Good morning. In Sacred Scripture, among the prophets of Israel, a rather anomalous figure stands out, a prophet who attempts to avoid the Lord’s [...]
Be courageous Christians, anchored in hope and capable of enduring dark moments. This was the forceful invitation of Pope Francis at the morning Mass on Tuesday at the Casa Santa Marta. Lazy Christians, on the other hand, are stationary, the Pope said, and for them, the Church is a good parking spot. The life of a [...]
“To follow Jesus you have to take risks”, without fear of “appearing ridiculous”, and without trying to be “too polite”; and in this, “women are better than men”. During Mass on Friday, 13 January, in the Santa Marta chapel, Pope Francis renewed his invitation to the faithful not to “remain seated in life, looking on motionless”. [...]
· Pope Francis warns against worldly false hope · Pope Francis, warning against the false hopes that idols offer, continued his series of catecheses on Christian hope, in light of Scripture. His reflection was inspired by Psalm 115. Dear Brothers and Sisters, Good morning! In the month of December and in the first part of January [...]
Only if we know, recognize, adore and follow Jesus will he truly be “the centre of our life”. And to do this there are a few gestures available to everyone: to always have close at hand a pocket version of the Gospel so as to easily read it each day, along with the recitation of brief [...]
Rachel’s tears reflect “the suffering of all the mothers of the world, of all time, and the tears of every human being who suffers irreparable losses”. This was the Pontiff’s message at the General Audience in Saint Peter’s Square on Wednesday, 4 January. Continuing the series of catecheses dedicated to hope, the Pope focused on the [...]