Category: +PopeFrancis

The Weekly Francis – 3 May 2016

popefrancis

This version of The Weekly Francis covers material released in the last week from 19 March 2016 to 1 May 2016.

Daily Homilies (fervorinos)

General Audiences

Homilies

Letters

Messages

Regina Cæli

Speeches

Papal Tweets

  • “Climate change represents one of the principal challenges facing humanity today, and the response requires the solidarity of all.” @Pontifex 21 April 2016
  • “A true ecological approach knows how to safeguard the environment and justice, hearing the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor.” @Pontifex 22 April 2016
  • “Dear Young Friends, your names are written in heaven in the merciful heart of the Father. Be brave and go against the tide!” @Pontifex 23 April 2016
  • “Dear Young People, with the grace of God you can become authentic and courageous Christians, witnesses to love and peace.” @Pontifex 24 April 2016
  • “All are called to love and cherish family life, for families are not a problem; they are first
    and foremost an opportunity.” @Pontifex 25 April 2016
  • “Let us break open our sealed tombs to the Lord – each of us knows what they are – so that he may enter and grant us life.” @Pontifex 26 April 2016
  • “Christian hope is a gift that God gives us if we come out of ourselves and open our hearts to him.” @Pontifex 27 April 2016
  • “Before the spiritual and moral abysses of mankind, only God’s infinite mercy can bring us salvation.” @Pontifex 28 April 2016
  • “Jesus conquered evil at the root: he is the Door of Salvation, open wide so that each person may find mercy.” @Pontifex 29 April 2016
  • “Work is proper to the human person and expresses the dignity of being created in the image of God.” @Pontifex 30 April 2016
  • “I address a cordial greeting to the faithful of the Eastern Churches who are celebrating Holy Pascha today. Χριστὸς ἀνέστη!” @Pontifex 1 May 2016

The Weekly Francis – 20 April 2016

PopeFrancis-finger

This version of The Weekly Francis covers material released in the last week from 7 April 2016 to 20 April 2016.

Daily Homilies (fervorinos)

General Audiences

Regina Cæli

Speeches

Papal Tweets

  • “Love is the only light which can constantly illuminate a world grown dim.” @Pontifex 14 April 2016
  • “In the darkest hours of a family’s life, union with Jesus can help avoid a breakup.” @Pontifex 15 April 2016
  • “Refugees are not numbers, they are people who have faces, names, stories, and need to be treated as such.” @Pontifex 15 April 2016
  • “Today is Benedict XVI’s birthday. Let us remember him in our prayers and thank God for giving him to the Church and the world.” @Pontifex 16 April 2016
  • “Each vocation in the Church has its origin in the compassionate gaze of Jesus, who forgives us and calls us to follow Him.” @Pontifex 17 April 2016
  • “We pray for the earthquake victims in Ecuador and Japan. May God and all our brothers and sisters give them help and support.” @Pontifex 18 April 2016
  • “The royal road to peace is to see others not as enemies to be opposed but as brothers and sisters to be embraced.” @Pontifex 19 April 2016
  • “To form a family is to be a part of God’s dream, to join him in building a world where no one will feel alone.” @Pontifex 20 April 2016

The Weekly Francis – 13 April 2016

francis-reading

This version of The Weekly Francis covers material released in the last week from 17 March 2016 to 13 April 2016.

Angelus

Apostolic Exhortation

Daily Homilies (fervorinos)

General Audiences

Homilies

Messages

Speeches

Papal Tweets

  • “The phenomenon of migration raises a serious cultural issue which necessarily demands a response.” @Pontifex 31 March 2016
  • “Passing through the Holy Door, let us put our trust in God’s grace, which can change our lives.” @Pontifex 1 April 2016
  • “To be merciful means to grow in a love which is courageous, generous and real.” @Pontifex 2 April 2016
  • “Mercy: the bridge that connects God and man, opening our hearts to the hope of being loved forever despite our sinfulness.” @Pontifex 3 April 2016
  • “Christian faith is a gift which we receive in Baptism and which allows us to encounter God.” @Pontifex 4 April 2016
  • “The Lord asks us to be men and women who radiate the truth, beauty and the life-changing power of the Gospel.” @Pontifex 5 April 2016
  • “The Jubilee is a year-long celebration, in which every moment becomes a chance for us to grow in holiness.” @Pontifex 6 April 2016
  • “I encourage you to bear witness to Christ in your personal life and families: a witness of gratuitousness, solidarity, spirit of service.” @Pontifex 7 April 2016
  • “The Joy of Love experienced by families is also the joy of the Church.” @Pontifex 8 April 2016
  • “The family is the place where parents become their children’s first teachers in the faith.” @Pontifex 8 April 2016
  • “The word of God is a source of comfort for every family that experiences difficulty or suffering.” @Pontifex 8 April 2016
  • “The welfare of the family is decisive for the future of the world.” @Pontifex 8 April 2016
  • “The family is a good which society cannot do without, and it ought to be protected.” @Pontifex 8 April 2016
  • “People with disabilities are a gift for the family and an opportunity to grow in love, mutual aid and unity.” @Pontifex 9 April 2016
  • “No one can think that the weakening of the family will prove beneficial to society as a whole.” @Pontifex 9 April 2016
  • “The strength of the family lies in its capacity to love and to teach how to love.” @Pontifex 9 April 2016
  • “Our teaching on marriage and the family cannot fail to be inspired by the message of love and tenderness.” @Pontifex 9 April 2016
  • “Every family, despite its weaknesses, can become a light in the darkness of the world.” @Pontifex 9 April 2016
  • “In our families, we must learn to imitate Jesus’ own gentleness.” @Pontifex 10 April 2016
  • “Love opens our eyes and enables us to see the great worth of a human being.” @Pontifex 10 April 2016
  • “Each new life allows us to appreciate the utterly gratuitous dimension of love.” @Pontifex 10 April 2016
  • “It is important for a child to feel wanted. He or she is not an accessory or a solution to some personal need.” @Pontifex 10 April 2016
  • “Open and caring families find a place for the poor.” @Pontifex 10 April 2016
  • “The divorced who have entered a new union should be made to feel part of the Church. They are not excommunicated.” @Pontifex 11 April 2016
  • “To know how to forgive and feel forgiven is a basic experience in family life.” @Pontifex 11 April 2016
  • “Fidelity has to do with patience. Its joys and sacrifices bear fruit as the years go by.” @Pontifex 11 April 2016
  • “Children are a wonderful gift from God and a joy for parents.” @Pontifex 11 April 2016
  • “The family is where we first learn to listen and share, to be patient and show respect, to help one another.” @Pontifex 11 April 2016
  • “The home is the place where we learn to appreciate the beauty of the faith, to pray and serve our neighbor.” @Pontifex 12 April 2016
  • “It is essential that children see that prayer is something truly important for their parents.” @Pontifex 12 April 2016
  • “To understand, forgive, accompany and integrate. That is the mindset which should prevail in the Church.” @Pontifex 12 April 2016
  • “The Church must pattern her behavior after the Son of God who went out to everyone without exception.” @Pontifex 12 April 2016
  • “The way of the Church is not to condemn anyone for ever, it is to pour out the balm of God’s mercy.” @Pontifex 12 April 2016
  • “The Lord’s presence dwells in families, with all their daily troubles and struggles, joys and hopes.” @Pontifex 13 April 2016

Papal Instagram

The Weekly Francis – 30 March 2016

pope-francis-st-patrickThis version of The Weekly Francis covers material released in the last week from 24 March 2016 to 30 March 2016.

Homilies

Messages

Speeches

Papal Tweets

  • “Annointed with the oil of gladness to pass on the joy of the Gospel.” @Pontifex 24 March 2016
  • “Jesus loved us. Jesus loves us. Without limit, always, to the end.” @Pontifex 24 March 2016
  • “Impress, Lord, in our hearts the sentiments of faith, hope, love and sorrow for our sins.” @Pontifex 25 March 2016
  • “The Cross is the word through which God has responded to evil in the world.” @Pontifex 25 March 2016
  • “To live Easter means to enter into the mystery of Jesus who died and rose for us.” @Pontifex 26 March 2016
  • “Jesus Christ is risen! Love has triumphed over hatred, life has conquered death, light has dispelled the darkness!” @Pontifex 26 March 2016
  • “Every Christian is a “Christopher”, that is, a bearer of Christ!” @Pontifex 27 March 2016
  • “Jesus shows us the real face of God, for whom power does not mean destruction but love, and for whom justice is not vengeance but mercy.” @Pontifex 28 March 2016
  • “If we open ourselves up to welcome God’s mercy for ourselves, in turn we become capable of forgiveness.” @Pontifex 30 March 2016

Papal Instagram

UK’s Mirror Incompetently Botches Easter Pope Story

mirrorheadlineOn Easter Sunday Matt Drudge was carrying the following headline:

POPE: Defeat ISIS with ‘weapons of love’ . . .

The link was to this story by the UK’s Mirror, which itself carried the headline:

Pope Francis says defeat Islamic State ‘with weapons of love’ during Easter message

The headline is utterly false—as well as an example of incompetent journalism.

The headline makes it look like the pope was advocating some kind of nonviolent approach to ISIS, and that’s simply not what he was doing.

Here are the facts . . .

 

1) What message was the story referring to?

Although the story did not say so, it was the pope’s Easter Urbi et Orbi message.

Every Christmas and Easter, pope release an Urbi et Orbi (Latin, “to the city and the world”) message. It addresses concerns in the city of Rome and the world at large.

The official English translation of this message is not yet out, but the Italian original is here.

And here’s a Google Translate version.

UPDATE: Here’s a translation provided by Edward Pentin.

 

2) Did the pope say anything about Iraq?

Yes. He mentioned it twice, first saying that he hoped the “message of life” would “promote a fruitful exchange between peoples and cultures in other areas of the Mediterranean basin and the Middle East, particularly in Iraq, Yemen and Libya.”

Then he expressed closeness to the victims of terrorism “in different parts of the world, as has happened in recent attacks in Belgium, Turkey, Nigeria, Chad, Cameroon, Ivory Coast and Iraq.”

 

3) But he didn’t mention the Islamic State?

Nope. Not once.

 

4) Does he say anyone should defeat anybody with “weapons of love”?

Nope. Not once.

 

4) Does he mention “weapons of love”?

Yes. He says that “With the weapons of love, God has defeated selfishness and death.”

 

5) Are you quoting from Google Translate for that?

Nope. I’m quoting from the Mirror article itself.

 

6) Wait. You mean the Mirror article itself quotes the pope saying God (not humans) has (not should) defeated evil and selfishness (not the Islamic State) and in the past (not the future)? That’s completely different than what its headline says!

That’s right.

 

7) Who writes newspaper headlines?

They can be suggested by the authors of the pieces, but ultimate control of them is in the hands of editors—who frequently write them.

 

8) Who wrote and edited this piece?

The piece was written by John Shammas, whose Twitter profile describes him as “Half Irish, Half Iraqi.”

I have not yet been able to establish who edited the piece or whether the author or editor wrote the headline.

 

9) Can we let the author off on the grounds that the editor may have written the headline?

Unfortunately, no. The first paragraph of the article reads:

Pope Francis has urged the world in his Easter message to use the “weapons of love” to combat the evil of “blind and brutal violence” following the tragic attacks in Brussels.

That is not what the pope said. The only time he referred to anyone using “weapons of love” was when he applied this metaphor to God’s action in the past.

 

10) Regardless of how the blame should be apportioned between the reporter and the editor, can this be chalked up to anything less than journalistic incompetence?

No. Both the article and the headline lead the reader to think that the pope said something which he did not say.

They both take a phrase that the pope used to describe God’s past action and made it appear that the pope applied it to man’s future actions.

That’s at least incompetence.

It may even be worse than incompetence. It may be malfeasance.

 

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The Weekly Francis – 23 March 2016

Pope Francis waves to crowds as he arrives to his inauguration mass on 19 March 2013.

This version of The Weekly Francis covers material released in the last week from 7 December 2015 to 23 March 2016.

Angelus

Daily Homilies (fervorinos)

General Audiences

Homilies

Letters

Messages

Speeches

Papal Tweets

  • “… That families in need may receive the necessary support and that children may grow up in healthy and peaceful environments.” @Pontifex 12 March 2016
  • “Pray for me.” @Pontifex 13 March 2016
  • “The Sacrament of Reconciliation allows us to draw near to the Father with trust to have the certainty of his forgiveness.” @Pontifex 14 March 2016
  • “God is truly “rich in mercy” and extends it abundantly upon those who appeal to Him with a sincere heart.” @Pontifex 15 March 2016
  • “As we exit the confessional, we will feel his strength which gives new life and restores ardor to the faith. After confession we are reborn.” @Pontifex 16 March 2016
  • “No one can be excluded from the mercy of God. The Church is the house where everyone is welcomed and no one is rejected.” @Pontifex 17 March 2016
  • “The greater the sin, the greater the love that must be shown by the Church to those who repent.” @Pontifex 18 March 2016
  • “I am beginning a new journey, on Instagram, to walk with you along the path of mercy and the tenderness of God.” @Pontifex 19 March 2016
  • “Let us come to Him and let us not be afraid! Let us come to Him and say from the depths of our hearts: “Jesus, I trust in You!”” @Pontifex 20 March 2016
  • “Let us take our Christian calling seriously and commit to live as believers.” @Pontifex 21 March 2016
  • “I entrust to God’s mercy all those who lost their lives. #Brussels” @Pontifex 22 March 2016
  • “With how much love Jesus looks at us! With how much love He heals our sinful heart! Our sins never scare Him.” @Pontifex 23 March 2016

Papal Instagram

The Weekly Francis – 9 March 2016

PopeFrancis-fingerThis version of The Weekly Francis covers material released in the last week from 25 February 2016 to 9 March 2016.

Angelus

Daily Homilies (fervorinos)

General Audiences

Homilies

Speeches

Papal Tweets

  • “Open your heart to mercy! Divine mercy is stronger than the sins of men” @Pontifex 3 March 2016
  • “Jesus Christ, with his closeness and tenderness, leads sinners into the place of grace and pardon. This is the mercy of God.” @Pontifex 4 March 2016
  • “May the Lord free us from all temptation that separates us from what is essential in our mission and help rediscover the beauty of faith.” @Pontifex 5 March 2016
  • “The Jubilee of Mercy is a propitious occasion to promote in the world ways to respect life and the dignity of each person.” @Pontifex 6 March 2016
  • “My life, my attitude, the way of going through life, must really be a concrete sign of the fact that God is close to us.” @Pontifex 7 March 2016
  • “Small gestures of love, of tenderness, of care, make people feel that the Lord is with us. This is how the door of mercy opens.” @Pontifex 8 March 2016
  • “God has caressed us with his mercy. Let us bring God’s tender caress to others, to those who are in need.” @Pontifex 9 March 2016

The Weekly Francis – 2 March 2016

This version of The Weekly Francis covers material released in the last week from 22 January 2016 to 29 February 2016.

Angelus

Daily Homilies (fervorinos)

General Audiences

Homilies

Messages

Speeches

The Weekly Francis – 17 February 2016

popefrancisThis version of The Weekly Francis covers material released in the last week from 28 January 2016 to 17 February 2016.

Angelus

Daily Homilies (fervorinos)

General Audiences

Homilies

Messages

Speeches

Papal Tweets

  • “God wants to live amidst his sons and daughters. Let us make space for him in our hearts.” @Pontifex 4 February 2016
  • “Entering through the Holy Door means discovering the depths of the Father’s mercy, who seeks each of us personally.” @Pontifex 8 February 2016
  • “In Mexico I will look into the eyes of the Virgin Mary and implore her to look upon us always with mercy. I entrust my journey to her.” @Pontifex 11 February 2016
  • “Today is a day of grace. The meeting with Patriarch Kirill is a gift from God. Pray for us.” @Pontifex 12 February 2016
  • “Dear Mexican friends, you are in my heart. Let us put our trust in the Blessed Virgin of Guadalupe who always looks on us with tenderness.” @Pontifex 12 February 2016
  • “Mexico has a young face. This makes it possible to contemplate and plan for a future, for a tomorrow. This offers hope.” @Pontifex 13 February 2016
  • “Mary is the woman who says yes, a yes of surrender to God, a yes of surrender to her brothers and sisters. May we follow her example.” @Pontifex 13 February 2016
  • “Simply looking at you, O Mother, to have eyes only for you, looking upon you without saying anything…” @Pontifex 14 February 2016
  • “Lent is a time for reconsidering our feelings, for letting our eyes be opened to injustice, to open our hearts to those suffering.” @Pontifex 14 February 2016
  • “May the Lord help us overcome the temptations of wealth, vanity and pride which seek to destroy the truth of the Gospel.” @Pontifex 14 February 2016
  • “Jesus is waiting for us and wants to heal our hearts of all that tears us down. He is the God who has a name: Mercy.” @Pontifex 14 February 2016
  • “In the heart of every person is a desire to live in freedom, in a place where change is possible in fellowship and solidarity.” @Pontifex 15 February 2016
  • “Among the poor being treated worst is our planet. We cannot pretend all is fine in the face of the great environmental crisis.” @Pontifex 15 February 2016
  • “I prefer a family with a tired face from sacrifices made rather than a pretty one which is unfamiliar with tenderness and compassion.” @Pontifex 15 February 2016
  • “We learn how to pray, just as we do to walk, speak and listen. If you tell me how you pray, I can tell you how you live.” @Pontifex 16 February 2016
  • “Our first calling is to learn how to say the “Our Father”. Father, help us to avoid the temptation of resignation.” @Pontifex 16 February 2016
  • “In Jesus I have met the one who is able to bring out the best in me.” @Pontifex 16 February 2016
  • “You have asked me for a word of hope: what I have to offer you has a name: Jesus Christ.” @Pontifex 16 February 2016
  • “Jesus would never ask us to be assassins; he calls us to be disciples. He would never send us to die. He invites us to life.” @Pontifex 16 February 2016
  • “The mercy of Jesus embraces everyone in every part of the world: open your hearts!” @Pontifex 17 February 2016
  • “Celebrating the Jubilee of Mercy means learning how to not remain prisoners of the past. It means believing things can be different.” @Pontifex 17 February 2016
  • “Dear prisoners, while you have experienced great pain, you can become prophets of a better society without violence and exclusion.” @Pontifex 17 February 2016
  • “All of us must struggle so that work can become a reality of humanization and a positive future.” @Pontifex 17 February 2016

The Weekly Francis – 3 February 2016

This version of The Weekly Francis covers material released in the last week from 1 January 2016 to 2 February 2016.

Angelus

Daily Homilies (fervorinos)

General Audiences

Homilies

Messages

Speeches

Papal Tweets

  • “As Christians, we cannot be self-centred, but must always be open to others and for others.” @Pontifex 28 January 2016
  • “Mary, Mother of Jesus, help us to share the wonders of the Lord with all whom we meet on the way.” @Pontifex 2 February 2016