May 31, 2015, Sunday, Feast of the Most Holy Trinity — The Glory of God Before All Else There is a Benedictine community in Ireland called Silverstream Priory in County Meath. The Prior today sent out a reflection on his country and the Catholic faith which seemed worth sharing.. . (link) Restoring Ireland to Christ Sunday, [...]
May 23, 2015, Saturday — Thinking about Francis The news stories keep coming: — the Irish referendum yesterday on marriage (the Irish voted "Yes," to allow same-gender marriage); — the upcoming papal encyclical on the environment (June); — preparations for the Pope's trip to Cuba and the USA (September); — the "Bishops' Synod, Part #2" (October); [...]
Many Catholics on opposing sides of the religious spectrum, namely those in favor of tradition and others upholding a progressive vision of the Church, perhaps still remember, albeit for different reasons, the celebration of the Feast of Corpus Christi in Rome on May 25, 2008, when Benedict XVI started for the first time to publicly administer [...]
Michael Hesemann, German historian and writer, greets Pope Benedict XVI. Interview with Michael Hesemann, author of Papst Franziskus: Das Vermächtnis Benedikts XVI. und die Zukunft der Kirche (“Pope Francis: The Heritage of Benedict XVI and the Future of the Church”). In July 2013, Michael Hesemann’s book Papst Franziskus: Das Vermächtnis Benedikts XVI. und die [...]
Father Stephan Otto Horn. Could you briefly describe the last Schülerkreis meeting? Father Stephan Otto Horn: The Holy Father Emeritus invited members of the Schülerkreis (former students) together with those of the New Schülerkreis (scholars of Benedict’s thought) to celebrate Holy Mass privately with him at the Vatican. We were very happy that he [...]
“I arrived in Italy on the same day as Bob — on May 17, 1984. He arrived in Rome by plane from the United States; I entered northern Italy by bus from Poland. I wanted to be at Monte Cassino on May 18, but the pilgrimage was organized in such a way that we were there [...]
Courtesy of therecord.com.au Since March 1, as he himself announced, Benedict XVI has been living “hidden from the world,” and since May 2 he has been living in the Mater Ecclesiae (Mother of the Church) monastery inside the Vatican Gardens, the residence he chose, remodelled to receive him with his personal secretary and [...]
After spending four years in Venezuela, Archbishop Pietro Parolin will return to the Vatican as the new secretary of state. Pope Francis announced his decision during the hot Roman summer, in August (in theory, the summer holiday of the Curia). Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone will hand over his office to his successor on October 15. The Pope [...]
“Pope Francis brings a universal message of modesty, caring for the poor, struggle for peace and care for the environment,” Zion Evrony said to Inside the Vatican. “We very much hope to see him visit Israel during the year 2014. He has been officially invited by President Peres, by Deputy Foreign Minister Elkin, and by me to [...]
By what looks like a providential coincidence, Sull’aereo di Papa Benedetto (Flying with Pope Benedict XVI), a book collecting the German Pope’s conversations with journalists during his 24 international apostolic journeys, was published at the end of his pontificate, during the vacancy of the Holy See in March. From Benedict XVI’s first journey to his homeland [...]