Pope Francis Tag

FRANCIS IN ROME • “Then we’ll have a serious conversation with the Blessed Mother and the Lord one of these days,” my friend José A. said, after sharing his thoughts on Whatsapp about Francis’ catechesis on 28 December, where he said: “complaining to the Lord is a way of praying. At times when I hear confession, people say: “I complained to the Lord …”, and I respond: “No, complain! He is the father!”. This is a way of praying: complaining to the Lord, this is good.” He is Father.  TrulyRead More
POPE FRANCIS • The Secretariat for Communication of the Holy See on 30 December published a video with the most distinctive images of Pope Francis’ activities for the year that had just ended. Video Which message of Pope Francis touched me the most in 2016? What gesture moved me the most? Original: Spanish. Translation: Sarah-Leah Pimentel, Cape Town, South Africa  Read More
CHRISTMAS WITH POPE FRANCIS • At the Mass Pope Francis presided at 21:30 Roman time in St. Peter’s Basilica, he explained the real meaning of Christmas: “If we want to celebrate Christmas authentically, we need to contemplate this sign: the frail simplicity of a tiny newborn child, the meekness with which he is placed in a manger, the tender affection with which he is wrapped in his swaddling clothes. That is where God is.” “The newborn Child challenges us. He calls us to leave behind fleeting illusions and to turnRead More
100 HOUSES, Maria Fischer and Ani Souberlich • We are advancing…on the road towards Christmas We, a searching people, a people of waiting, a people of hope… We are advancing…on the road toward Christmas Guided by a star, a star of peace and of solidarity… We are advancing …on the road toward Christmas A single desire guides our steps: to find a child, to find the smile of a child, to find the humanity of a child… We are advancing …on the road toward Christmas Hands extending toward others, theRead More
Maria Fischer • “Then, I opened the door, and I found myself before the Blessed Sacrament. After this long trip through cold and darkness, tired and without even knowing if I would find the Shrine, I found her myself, illuminated this this warm light. It was time for Eucharistic Adoration, tears fell, and I did not care about anything else… I arrived and there was only joy within me, simply joy, within me; it is Christmas.” Gabrielle Pietro belongs to the Schoenstatt Girls’ Youth in San Antonio, Texas USA. SheRead More
Germany, Mons. Peter Wolf • On 6 December, Germany’s “friends of Belmonte” travelled overnight by bus, through St. Gotthard Pass towards Rome, and arrived at Belmonte in the morning.  Fr. Daniel Lozano, the Belmonte rector, welcomed them and Fr. Georg Egle, in his homily, spoke about the Salve Regina and their pilgrimage to Rome, which this year would take them through different images of the Blessed Mother in the Eternal City.  After settling in at the TRAI NOI hotel, they visited St Peter’s Basilica, where they admired Michelangelo’s world-famous PietaRead More
CHILE, Maria Fischer with “Razón en Cristo” (Reason in Christ) • Did you know that in Amoris Laetitia, the Pope speaks of the family from the aspect of the Covenant of Love?  If you do not, it is worth reading – or watch the testimony of Pilar and Luis Jensen in the video on REC, Razón en Cristo. Two married people in the setting of an REC event were invited to give their testimony.  Stemming from their experience of thirty-five years of marriage, Pilar and Luis narrate on the vocationRead More
VATICAN, Maria Fischer • Pope Francis will turn 80 on December 17th. To commemorate this event, the Vatican Philatelic and Numismatic Office issued a stamp with a reproduction of a painting by the Spanish artist, Raúl Berzosa Fernández. Pope Francis is in the center of the work’s composition. The Holy Father assumed the Chair of St. Peter always protected by “Our Lady of Luján,” Patroness of Argentina. “Pope Francis is inspired by the Holy Spirit; this is represented by the light radiating from the upper part of the painting, enlighteningRead More
Maria Fischer • The title of one book could be translated as “Outdated Model”, or it could also be “Setting sail”; the other book is entitled “Living with Mary”. Both are about the Pope from the “end of the world”, the Pope without a doctorate or a career in the Roman Curia, who with his message of mercy creates a holy upheaval in the church – an upheaval that feels like the Holy Spirit after Pentecost. Both books and their messages formed the focal point of the day of recollectionRead More
ROME – CUBA, Fr. Rolando Gibert Montes de Oca Valero • I was not aware there was a Marian Jubilee.  I found out about it from a friend’s invitation.  So I thought: the Church wants to give Blessed Mother a gift… but surely she will give us something better, and I began to ask myself what would be the richest gift that Blessed Mother would want to give us… In conjunction with the Jubilee, some friends from the Neo-catechumenal Way invited me to a “Catechetical Symphonic Celebration.”  It was aRead More