2015-09-15T21:02:00+00:00

Last updated on: September 15, 2015 at 9:02 pm   By

Vatican City, Sep 15, 2015 / 03:02 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- The official list of participants in this year’s synod of bishops on the family has been released, showing 45 new names personally appointed by Pope Francis – four of whom are Americans. Cardinal Donald W. Wuerl of Washington, Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan of New York, Archbishop Blase J. Cupich of Chicago, and Bishop George V. Murry of Youngstown, Ohio have officially been added to the list of voting participants in the October gathering. They will join four other American prelates already elected by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, raising the number of American participants to 8. Those previously appointed by the USCCB are Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz of Louisville and President of the USCCB; Archbishop Charles J. Chaput of Philadelphia; Archbishop José H. Gomez of Los Angeles and Cardinal Daniel N. Di Nardo of Galveston-Houston, who is vice president of the USCCB. Other participants chosen by the Pope represent a diverse group of Church leaders from Europe, Africa, South America and Asia, including Cardinal Soane Mafi of Tonga, who was elevated to the cardinalate by Pope Francis in February. Pope Francis' new additions included a total of 279 cardinals, bishops, and priests from all over the  world, who will be able to actively take part in the synod, voting on documents and specific issues. Released by the Vatican Sept. 15, the list also includes the names of the synod’s 34 auditors, which includes 17 individuals and 17 couples. Although auditors are allowed to attend synod sessions and participate in the discussions, they are not able to vote. Among the 17 individual auditors – 13 of whom are women – is American Sr. Maureen Kelleher of the Sacred Heart of Mary. A member of the International Union of Superiors General, Sr. Kelleher is a civil attorney who has worked extensively with low-income families, immigrants and women and children that have faced violence. Philadelphia couple Catherine and Anthony Witczak will also be auditing, and are in charge of Worldwide Marriage Encounter’s International Ecclesial Team. The organization is a faith-based movement dedicated to building stronger marriages. Other Americans involved in the synod include Archbishop William Skurla of the Ruthenian Archeparchy of Pittsburgh. Archbishop Skurla will represent one of the 15 Eastern Catholic Churches participating in the synod. He will be joined by Patriarch Youssif III Younan of the Syriac Catholic Church; Patriarch Bechara Boutros Rai O.M.M. of the Maronite Catholic Church; Patriarch Luis Raphael Sako of the Chaldean Catholic Church; Gregoire Pierre XX Ghabroyan of the Armenian Catholic Church; and Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk of the Ukrainian Catholic Church, among others. Four Americans will also be among the 32 assistants helping the syond’s General Secretariat, headed by Cardinal Lorenzo Baldisseri. They are Fr. Jonathan Flemings, L.C., Fr. Brian Needles, Fr. Stephen Prisk and Fr. William Donovan, who for the past two years has served as Archbishop Charles Chaput’s liaison to the Pontifical Council for the Family on behalf of the World Meeting of Families. Dr. John Grabowski, Professor of Moral Theology at the Catholic University of America will also join the synod as a collaborator. In addition to the various Church leaders filing in for October’s meeting, there will also be a number of non-Catholic observers, including Robert K. Welsh of the Church for Disciples of Christ, who heads that ecclesial community's Council on Christian Unity. In total, there will be 18 Americans – participants, auditors and collaborators included – among those gathered in the Vatican for the three-week October meeting, plus Fr. Manuel Dorantes of Chicago, who will be assisting with the Spanish-speaking media. Other participants appointed by Pope Francis include: Cardinal Angelo Sodano, dean of the College of Cardinals; Cardinal Godfried Danneels, archbishop emeritus of Mechelen-Brussels, Belgium; Cardinal Christoph Schonborn, Archbishop of Vienna and president of the Austrian Episcopal Conference; Cardinal Walter Kasper, president emeritus of the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity; Cardinal Wilfrid Napier, Archbishop of Durban, South Africa; Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga, Archbishop of Tegucigalpa, Honduras and President of the Honduran Episcopal Conference; Cardinal Peter Erdo, Archbishop of Esztergom-Budapest, President of the Hungarian Episcopal Conference and President of the Council for European Episcopal Conferences; Cardinal Raymundo Damasceno Assis, Archbishop of Aparecida, Brazil; Cardinal Antonio Tagle, Archbishop of Milan, Philippines and President of Caritas Internationalis; Cardinal Alberto Suarez Inda, Archbishop of Morelia, Mexico; Archbishop Bruno Forte, Archbishop of Chieti-Vasto, Italy; Archbishop Victor Manuel Fernandez, Rector of the Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina; Msgr. Pio Vito Pinto, Dean of the Roman Rota; Jesuit Fr. Francois-Xavier Dumortier, head of the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome; Jesuit Fr. Antonio Spadaro, editor of the Italian Catholic magazine “La Civiltà Cattolica.” Read more

2015-09-15T14:07:00+00:00

Last updated on: September 15, 2015 at 2:07 pm   By

Vatican City, Sep 15, 2015 / 08:07 am (CNA/EWTN News).- The Vatican announced today that Bishop James V. Johnston, Jr. of Springfield-Cape Girardeau has been selected as the new head of the Kansas City-St. Joseph diocese. Announced in a Sept. 15 com... Read more

2015-09-15T12:24:00+00:00

Last updated on: September 15, 2015 at 12:24 pm   By

Vatican City, Sep 15, 2015 / 06:24 am (CNA/EWTN News).- While Pope Francis is in Cuba next week chances are high that he will meet with former president Fidel Castro, though no specific time has been set, Vatican spokesman Fr. Federico Lombardi has announced. Anticipating questions on whether a meeting between the Pope and the former Cuban president would happen, Fr. Lombardi said that “in all likelihood it's very predictable that it will happen, clearly during the day in Havana.” However, he stressed that it hasn't put in the schedule at a specific time, “so we have to see when is easier, or when it's possible to organize it. But it's very likely that it will happen.” “The desire has also been expressed by the State, also when President Raul Castro came here to Rome, so it's quite normal.” Fr. Lombardi made his comments during a Sept. 15 press briefing on the Pope’s upcoming trip to Cuba and the United States. Pope Francis will arrive at the Cuban capital of Havana this Saturday, Sept. 19, where he will receive an official welcome. The next morning he is set to meet with Raul Castro, current Cuban president and younger brother to Fidel, leader of Cuba’s communist revolution. He will travel to Holguín Sept. 21, where he will celebrate Mass and bless the city before flying to Santiago that evening. He departs from Santiago at 12:30 p.m. on the 22nd, and is scheduled to land in Washington D.C. at 4 p.m. local time. Raul Castro met with Francis at the Vatican May 10, where the two spoke about the Pope’s role in bettering relations between Cuba and the United States. They also spoke of Francis’ visit to Cuba, which falls directly ahead of his week-long trip to the United States. Last fall Pope Francis helped to broker improved relations between Cuba and the United States, culminating in the full restoration of diplomatic ties after 50 years of strained relations. After their May meeting, Castro thanked the Pope “for his active role in the development of the improvement of relations between Cuba and the United States of America.” He also suggested he could return to the Church in the future. “I will start praying again and return to the Church” if the Pope continues what he has been doing, Raul Castro said. Fr. Lombardi also announced during the press briefing that Pope Francis will administer First Communion to five children during Sunday’s Mass in Havana’s Plaza de la Revolución. The Pope giving First Communions is a first for him on a trip abroad, the spokesman said, noting that it serves as a sign “of hope and growth” for Church in Cuba. Lombardi also noted how the Pope’s visit Monday to Santiago’s shrine for Our Lady of Charity falls during the 100th anniversary of the letter sent to Pope Benedict XV by veterans of the Cuban war for independence, asking him to declare her Patroness of Cuba. This detail, he said, makes the visit more significant for the Cuban people. A press conference during the 3.5 hour flight from Cuba to the United States is also a possibility, he said, but stressed that it will be done only if it's possible, and if the Pope agrees. Pope Francis lands in Washington D.C. the evening of Sept. 23, where he will be welcomed by President Obama, the First Lady and likely their two children. He will speak to them and U.S. authorities in English the next morning. Following his private meeting with the president, Francis will speak with the more than 400 bishops of the U.S., giving them a general speech before heading to the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, where he will canonize Bl. Junipero Serra. Francis will address the U.S. Congress Sept. 24 around 10a.m. in English, which Fr. Lombardi said will be an opportunity for him to speak to all U.S. citizens, “not just the Catholics.” The Pope’s visit to the headquarters of the United Nations in New York the following morning will take place in Spanish, the spokesman said, and will be followed by an interreligious gathering at Ground Zero. Pope Francis’ visit to the site of the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks will be different than that of Benedict XVI when he went in 2008, he said, because since then the memorial and museum have been finished. Fr. Lombardi stressed that the fundamental character of the Pope’s visit to Ground Zero is the interreligious encounter set to take place there, adding that “the ecumenical, interreligious moment of the trip is at Ground Zero.” Pope Francis’ visit to the U.S. will culminate with his participation in the Philadelphia World Meeting of Families, which is expected to draw large crowds, especially for Francis’ closing Mass Sept. 27. Read more

2015-09-15T12:08:00+00:00

Last updated on: September 15, 2015 at 12:08 pm   By

Jerusalem, Israel, Sep 15, 2015 / 06:08 am (CNA/EWTN News).- European bishops are gathering in the Holy Land Sept. 11-16 to show closeness to Christians in the Middle East and to trace a path of hope for them, in an unprecented assembly.   &ldqu... Read more

2015-09-15T10:01:00+00:00

Last updated on: September 15, 2015 at 10:01 am   By

New York City, N.Y., Sep 15, 2015 / 04:01 am (CNA/EWTN News).- The Pope, a priest, and Bill Murray walk into a bar… Just kidding. Sort of. But if you can come up with a funny ending to that joke, you should “donate” it to the just-launched Joke with the Pope campaign, sponsored by the Pontifical Mission Societies in the United States. The campaign is an effort to raise awareness and funds for three pontifical missions throughout the world, just ahead of Pope Francis’ visit to the U.S. and the organization’s launch of their new app, Missio. Jokes can be written or filmed and submitted online at jokewiththepope.org, and the person voted as the funniest jokester will get to choose which of the three missions will receive a $10,000 donation. Oh, and they'll also receive the title of “honorary comedic adviser to the Pope,” the first-ever person in the history of the Church to receive such a title. Probably. Father Andrew Small, national director of the Pontifical Mission Societies in the United States, said he thought the campaign would be a fun way to raise awareness of the missions in the spirit of Pope Francis. “I've met him several times and there's that great spirit of warmth and connection that he has, so we thought this would be sort of an off-beat way to introduce people to the Church's missionary activity and to create this sort of spirit of connection, which comes from Pope Francis,” he told CNA. Francis, of course, is the same Pope who wrote “The Joy of the Gospel” encyclical, in which he wrote that missionaries especially should not be known for being “sourpusses,” Fr. Small said. At the time this article was written, the campaign already received 400 jokes from people – Catholics and non-Catholics – from 22 countries throughout the world. It has also attracted some big-name contributors, including late-night television host Conan O'Brien, who joked on his show: “The California drought is so bad, people in Napa are asking the pope to change the wine into water.” Other well-known Pope jokesters include Cardinal Timothy Dolan, EWTN TV host Raymond Arroyo, and even actor Bill Murray, who is kind of the “godfather” of the project and will help judge which joke is the funniest, Fr. Small said. “God works in mysterious ways,” Fr. Small said when asked how Murray became involved. “When we spoke to him about it he was very excited, he has a Catholic background, one of his sisters is a Dominican nun, so he’s got that in his bones and in his blood.” The three causes that the winner will be able to choose from are helping children in need in Argentina, housing the homeless in Ethiopia, or feeding the hungry in Kenya. The Argentinian cause, based out of Buenos Aires, has a special connection to Pope Francis. Father Pepe, the parish priest in the area, is a long-time acquaintance of the Pope’s back when he was Archbishop of the diocese, and considers Francis his spiritual father. Fr. Small said besides being a fun way to spread the spirit of Pope Francis before his U.S. visit, the campaign is a way to raise awareness of the new Missio app, which helps connect people to similar causes throughout the world. “Pontifical Mission Societies is responsible for missionary activity in 1150 dioceses around the world, mostly in Africa and Asia, and also in Latin America,” Fr. Small said. The app will help connect users to people throughout the various missions, and from there they can learn about the people involved and offer prayers or financial support. “Humor gets us over that initial bump of trying to meet new people who are not your family and friends, he said. “You tell a joke, you learn about the good causes that the Church is engaging in throughout the world, and then you stay connected through the app.” Jokes can be donated to the campaign on jokewiththepope.org through Oct. 2, and the winner will be announced Oct. 5. The Missio app is available for free download in the App Stores and Google Play. Read more

2015-09-15T06:04:00+00:00

Last updated on: September 15, 2015 at 6:04 am   By

Washington D.C., Sep 15, 2015 / 12:04 am (CNA/EWTN News).- All official events for Pope Francis’ upcoming visit to Washington, D.C. are ticketed, but there is a new opportunity for the public to see the Pope without needing a ticket. After his... Read more

2015-09-14T21:30:00+00:00

Last updated on: September 14, 2015 at 9:30 pm   By

Vatican City, Sep 14, 2015 / 03:30 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Today’s feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross reminds us that the way of Christ and his followers is one of humble surrender, Pope Francis said in his homily on Monday. “(I)f a ... Read more

2015-09-14T21:03:00+00:00

Last updated on: September 14, 2015 at 9:03 pm   By

Tzaneen, South Africa, Sep 14, 2015 / 03:03 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Benedict Daswa, a South African catechist whose Christian opposition to witchcraft led to his murder in 1990, was beatified on Sunday as Catholic leaders praised his heroic witness to the faith. Pope Francis in his beatification decree described him as “a zealous Catechist, all-round educator who gave heroic witness to the gospel, even to the shedding of blood.” When Daswa was declared blessed at the Sept. 13 Mass, the crowd applauded and blew traditional animal horns to celebrate, Vatican Radio reports. About 30,000 people, including Blessed Daswa’s eight children and his 91-year-old mother, attended the beatification at his shrine in his home village of Tshitanini, more than 100 miles northeast of Tzaneen. Cardinal Angelo Amato, prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, concelebrated the Mass with many bishops and priests. Millions of Catholics in Africa are believed to have followed the ceremony on television. Daswa is the first South Africa-born Catholic to be beatified. Bishop Joao Rodrigues of Tzaneen praised Dawsa (using his full name), saying that “by his courage and his fidelity to the Catholic faith, Tshimangadzo Samuel Benedict Daswa is a model for all the people in Africa.” Benedict Daswa was born in 1946 and belonged to the Jewish Lemba tribe in rural Limpopo, the northernmost province of South Africa. He grew up observing Jewish customs, then converted to Christianity and was baptized in the Church at the age of 17. He took the name Benedict after the sixth century monk and after Benedict Risimati, his catechist who instructed him in his faith as a teen. Daswa was a husband, and the father of eight. He helped build a parish, and was principal of the primary school and a teacher. He refused to take part in anything related to witchcraft or the occult. This would lead to his violent murder in 1990 at the age of 43, when he refused to join his neighbors in paying a sorcerer who claimed to be able to end severe storms. A group of men ambushed him for his stance; he prayed on his knees as they killed him. According to the diocese investigation into his death, when Daswa saw a man coming towards him with a club to deliver the final blow, he said, “God, into your hands, receive my spirit.” His grave, located in a small cemetery near his home, has become a site of pilgrimage. He was officially recognized as a martyr in January. Mutshiro Michael, 33, one of Daswa’s sons, reacted to the beatification. “Proud is an understatement to describe what I feel,” he told Agence France Presse. He added that he had forgiven his father’s murderers. Bishop Rodrigues said that Daswa’s death “makes him a hero for all Christians in Africa and elsewhere who are struggling to break free from the enslavement of the world of witchcraft.” Cardinal Amato also reflected on the beatified man’s life. “The Holy Spirit transformed this young South African into an authentic hero of the Gospel. His heart was full of love for God and neighbor. Benedict Daswa is like the first martyrs of the Church who, during the persecutions of the Roman emperors, defended their faith with prayer, courage and forgiveness of enemies,” he said in an interview. The cardinal said the beatification invites the faithful “to nourish only feelings of love, of brotherhood, harmony, solidarity beyond any ethnic, social and religious divisions.” A spokesperson for South Africa’s president, Jacob Zuma, also spoke at the beatification ceremony, as did South Africa's vice president, Cyril Ramaphosa. Pope Francis has declared Feb. 1 as Blessed Benedict Daswa’s feast day. During his Angelus address Sunday, the Pope praised Daswa’s great consistency, his courageous assumption of Christian attitudes, and his refusal of “worldly and pagan customs.” He said Daswa’s witness is united with “the testimony of so many of our brothers and sisters, young, old, children, children, persecuted, driven out, killed for confessing Jesus Christ.” The Roman Pontiff encouraged Catholics to “thank them for their witness and ask them to intercede for us.” Read more

2015-09-14T17:34:00+00:00

Last updated on: September 14, 2015 at 5:34 pm   By

Washington D.C., Sep 14, 2015 / 11:34 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Members of Congress introduced a resolution on Thursday to label the atrocities committed by the Islamic State against Christians and other religious minorities “genocide.” &ldqu... Read more

2015-09-14T10:40:00+00:00

Last updated on: September 14, 2015 at 10:40 am   By

Vatican City, Sep 14, 2015 / 04:40 am (CNA/EWTN News).- In a new, wide-ranging interview Pope Francis touched on a variety of serious and lighthearted topics, such as the current refugee crisis, youth unemployment and how often the he goes to confessio... Read more

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