Category: +PopeFrancis

The Weekly Francis – 23 February 2014

pope-francis2This version of The Weekly Francis covers material released in the last week from 16 to 22 February 2014.

Angelus

General Audiences

Homilies

Speeches

Daily Homilies (fervorinos)

Papal Tweets

The Weekly Francis – 16 February 2014

pope-francis2This version of The Weekly Francis covers material released in the last week from 7 to 15 February 2014.

Angelus

General Audiences

Speeches

Daily Homilies (fervorinos)

Papal Tweets

  • “Let us pray for all good and faithful priests who dedicate themselves to their people with generosity and unknown sacrifices.” @pontifex, 10 February 2013
  • “Today I ask you to join me in prayer for His Holiness Benedict XVI, a man of great courage and humility.” @pontifex, 11 February 2013
  • “I greet all those who are sick and suffering. Christ Crucified is with you; cling to him!” @pontifex, 11 February 2013
  • “Let us pray for seminarians, that they may listen to the voice of the Lord and follow it with courage and joy.” @pontifex, 13 February 2013
  • “Dear young people, don’t be afraid to marry. A faithful and fruitful marriage will bring you happiness.” @pontifex, 14 February 2013
  • “Let us pray for peace in Africa, especially in the Central African Republic and in South Sudan. #prayforpeace” @pontifex, 15 February 2013

The Weekly Francis – 9 February 2014

pope-francis

This version of The Weekly Francis covers material released in the last week from 26 December 2013 to 8 February 2014.

Angelus

General Audiences

Homilies

Messages

Speeches

Daily Homilies (fervorinos)

Papal Tweets

  • “It is important to have friends we can trust. But it is essential to trust the Lord, who never lets us down.” @pontifex, 3 February 2013
  • “Dear young people, Jesus gives us life, life in abundance. If we are close to him we will have joy in our hearts and a smile on our face.” @pontifex, 4 February 2013
  • “The world makes us look towards ourselves, our possessions, our desires.The Gospel invites us to be open to others, to share with the poor.” @pontifex, 6 February 2013
  • “What zest life acquires when we allow ourselves to be filled by the love of God!” @pontifex, 7 February 2013
  • “The Sacraments, especially Confession and the Eucharist, are privileged places of encountering Christ.” @pontifex, 8 February 2013

The Weekly Francis – 2 February 2014

popefrancisThis version of The Weekly Francis covers material released in the last week from 16 October 2013 to 1 February 2014.

Angelus

General Audiences

Homilies

Messages

Speeches

Daily Homilies (fervorinos)

Papal Tweets

  • “Dear young people, let us not be satisfied with a mediocre life. Be amazed by what is true and beautiful, what is of God!” @pontifex, 27 January 2014
  • “Let us pray for Christian unity. There are so many beautiful things which unite us” @pontifex, 28 January 2014
  • “I cannot imagine a Christian who does not know how to smile. May we joyfully witness to our faith.” @pontifex, 30 January 2014
  • “No one saves oneself. The community is essential.” @pontifex, 31 January 2014
  • “Sometimes we are saddened by the weight of our sins. May we not be discouraged. Christ has come to lift this burden and give us peace.” @pontifex, 1 February 2014
  • “May the World Day of Consecrated Life be a timely occasion to rediscover the centrality of Jesus in our lives.” @pontifex, 2 February 2014

Notes:

  • The “Message on the occasion of World Food Day 2013” for the English translation was a broken link on the Vatican site and just recently fixed.

The Weekly Francis – 26 January 2014

pope-francis2This version of The Weekly Francis covers material released in the last week from 11 January 2014 to 25 January 2014.

Angelus

General Audiences

Homilies

Messages

Speeches

Daily Homilies (fervorinos)

Papal Tweets

  • “It is not enough to say we are Christians. We must live the faith, not only with our words, but with our actions.” @pontifex, 20 January 2014
  • “If we live the faith in our daily life, then our work too becomes a chance to spread the joy of being a Christian.” @pontifex, 21 January 2014
  • “I join the March for Life in Washington with my prayers. May God help us respect all life, especially the most vulnerable” @pontifex, 22 January 2014
  • “Like Mary, may we nurture the light born within us at Christmas. May we carry it everywhere in our daily lives.” @pontifex, 23 January 2014
  • “We are called to live our baptism every day, as new creatures, clothed in Christ.” @pontifex, 24 January 2014
  • “It is easy to ask God for things; we all do it. When will we also learn to give him thanks and to adore him?” @pontifex, 25 January 2014

The Weekly Francis – 19 January 2014

Pope Francis is having his "Inaugural Mass"? What's happens in this Mass, and why is it important?This version of The Weekly Francis covers material released in the last week from 10 September 2013 to 18 January 2014.

Angelus

General Audiences

Homilies

Letters

Messages

Speeches

Daily Homilies (fervorinos)

Papal Tweets

Pope Francis on the “parable” of the loaves and fishes: 11 things to know and share

francis-windowRecently Pope Francis has said a few things about the miracle of the loaves and the fishes that have concerned a few people.

They’ve thought he might be denying that it was an actual, physical miracle.

What’s more, the press can’t be blamed, because these statements weren’t the subject of media-distorting headlines or news stories.

They’re right there in the pope’s own words—in context!

So what should we make of these?

Here are 11 things to know and share . . .

 

1) What, precisely, did Pope Francis say?

He has said two things. One was in a Sunday Angelus he gave on June 2, where he stated:

This is the miracle: rather than a multiplication it is a sharing, inspired by faith and prayer. Everyone eats and some is left over: it is the sign of Jesus, the Bread of God for humanity.

This makes it sound like he’s advocating the lame “miracle of sharing” theory, according to which people in the crowd had food hidden on their persons and then shared it with others after Jesus’ disciples began distributing the five loaves and two fish.

This theory downgrades the miracle to a purely natural event.

I’ve written about that before. And not just once.

 

2) What was the other thing he said?

More recently, in a video appeal released in December to help a hunger relief project, he stated:

The parable of the multiplication of the loaves and fish teaches us exactly this: that if there is the will, what we have never ends. On the contrary, it abounds and does not get wasted.

This makes it sound as if he’s saying that the multiplication of loaves and fishes wasn’t even a natural event. Instead, it sounds like he’s saying it’s a mere parable—a fiction designed to teach a lesson.

 

3) What should we make of these?

KEEP READING.

The Yearly Benedict/Francis: The Audiences

benedict-francisThe pope’s weekly audiences offer a fascinating look at topics that often aren’t covered in the major papal documents.

Unfortunately, in recent years, the folks at the Vatican web site have not been giving titles to the audiences that indicate their content. All you get (normally) is a list of dates.

To help me navigate these in the future, here is an annotated version of Pope Francis’s 2013 audiences that indicates their content, as well as Pope Benedict’s final audiences.

Although these are found in reverse-chronological order on the Vatican web site (like a blog!), I’ve put them in chronological order here, since most of them form a walk though the Apostles’ Creed for the Year of Faith.

Incidentally, papal audiences like these seem to be pre-written, way in advance.

This means that Pope Francis was almost certainly delivering texts at his Wednesday audiences that were prepared for Pope Benedict.

He clearly took liberties with them. Many passages in Pope Francis’s audiences were expressed in his own voice, rather than Pope Benedict’s.

Now that the Year of Faith is concluded, we’re likely to get our first pure taste of Pope Francis’s style of audiences in 2014.

For now, here’s a review of 2013 . . .

 

Pope Benedict XVI

Pope Francis

The Weekly Francis – 22 December 2013

Pope Francis is having his "Inaugural Mass"? What's happens in this Mass, and why is it important?This version of The Weekly Francis covers material released in the last week from 30 November to 21 December 2013.

Angelus

General Audiences

Messages

Speeches

Daily Homilies (fervorinos)

Papal Tweets

Pope Francis takes on allegations and rumors about his papacy: 9 things to know and share

francis-windowPope Francis has given a new interview in which he makes several important clarifications.

These concern allegations that he is a Marxist, suggestions that he will soon appoint women cardinals, and proposals to give Holy Communion to those who have divorced and remarried without an annulment.

He also makes several other interesting comments, including plans for an upcoming trip to the Holy Land, breastfeeding in public, and what happened right after he was elected.

Here are 9 things to know and share . . .

 

1) Who did he give the interview to?

He gave it to the Italian newspaper La Stampa.

You can read the full interview here (and should; it’s worth it!).

This interview is different than the recent one which was yanked from the Vatican web site. That one was conducted by an atheist publisher (Eugenio Scalfari) who relied on his memory to give a partly fictitious account of what the pope said.

This one is with a well-known and respected Catholic expert on the Vatican, Andrea Tornielli.

Much greater care appears to have been taken with this interview, and at one point the Pope goes out of his way to deliberately correct what was written in the other one.
2) What does the Pope say regarding a proposed trip to the Holy Land?

In addition to expressing concern for the plight of Christians in Bethlehem, he indicates that he plans to go, stating:

Fifty years ago, Paul VI had the courage to go out and go there and this marked the beginning of the era of papal journeys.

I would also like to go there, to meet my brother Bartholomew, the Patriarch of Constantinople, and commemorate this 50th anniversary with him, renewing that embrace which took place between Pope Montini and Athenagoras in Jerusalem, in 1964.

We are preparing for this.”

We may thus expect a papal visit to the Holy Land very soon.

On a side note, observe that he refers to Paul VI as “Pope Montini.” This custom of referring to a pope by his family name is an established one in Italy and is not considered disrespectful.

 

3) What did the pope say about breastfeeding in public?

Pope Francis refers to breastfeeding in public as part of a set of larger remarks about the scourge of world hunger.

In the course of discussing this very weighty problem, he tells the following story:

At the Wednesday General Audience the other day there was a young mother behind one of the barriers with a baby that was just a few months old.

The child was crying its eyes out as I came past.

The mother was caressing it. I said to her: Madam, I think the child’s hungry.

“Yes, it’s probably time…” she replied.

“Please give it something to eat!” I said.

She was shy and didn’t want to breastfeed in public, while the Pope was passing.

Though the subject of breastfeeding in public is tiny compared to world hunger, this statement is noteworthy.

Pope Francis apparently has no problem with public breastfeeding, even at a papal event. As one might expect from Francis, his attitude is: If the child is hungry, feed it!

 

4) What did the pope say about allegations that he is a Marxist?

KEEP READING.