Vatican City, May 31, 2015 / 12:52 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- In the revelation of the Holy Trinity, God shows the Church his selfless love and unity that we are called to foster in our own communities, Pope Francis said in his Sunday Angelus address. &ldq... Read more

Vatican City, May 31, 2015 / 07:11 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Taken from St. Francis of Assisi’s “Canticle of the Sun” prayer praising God for creation, the likely name of the Pope’s upcoming encyclical was informally announced just weeks before its anticipated publication. Fr. Giuseppe Costa, director of the Vatican Publishing House, reportedly announced the encyclical’s title during the delivery of the Cardinal Michele Giordano prize Saturday afternoon, May 30, in Naples. The prize honors the former archbishop of Naples, who died in 2010, and was inspired by his keen appreciation for the media. Expected to be published in mid-late June, the Pope's encyclical “Laudato sii” has already been written and is currently being translated. Although the title has not been officially confirmed, it will most likely contain the phrase coined by Pope Francis’ namesake in his famous prayer praising elements of creation such as “Brother Fire,” “Sister Moon” and “Mother Earth.” Also referred to as the Canticle of Creatures, the Canticle of the Sun was written by St. Francis of Assisi around the year 1224. The encyclical is also expected to be given the Italian subtitle: “Sulla cura della casa comune,” (On the care of the common home). Fr. Costa told SIR – the official news agency of the Italian Bishops Conference – May 30 that “There are many foreign publishers who are already interested in the publication of the encyclical in their countries.” Pope Francis himself spoke of the encyclical on his return flight from Seoul, South Korea last year, where he traveled Aug. 14-18 to participate in the 6th Asian Youth Day. While in route back to Rome Francis said that he had frequently spoken about the encyclical with Cardinal Peter Turkson, President of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, which is responsible for handling themes such as this. After being questioned about the encyclical by journalist Juergen Erbacher from German TV, the Pope said that he had “spoken a lot with Cardinal Turkson and also with others and I have asked Cardinal Turkson to bring together all of the contributions.” The Pope said then than the contributions had arrived and that a first draft of the encyclical – which he said was “a third bigger" than his apostolic exhortation Evangelii Gaudium – was delivered to him just four days before he left for South Korea. He told journalists that ecology is “not an easy issue because on the protection of creation and the study of human ecology, you can speak with sure certainty up to a certain point then come the scientific hypotheses some of which are rather sure, others aren't.” “In an encyclical like this that must be magisterial, it must only go forward on certainties, things that are sure,” he said, explaining that if the Pope decides to say that the earth is the center of the universe rather than the sun, then he’s wrong because he said something that’s scientifically untrue. “We need to make the study, number by number, and I think (the encyclical) will become smaller. But going to the essence is what we can affirm with certainty.” The encyclical could also have a huge weigh-in on talks surrounding climate change, and is expected to set a key ethical framework for discussion and policies surrounding the topic ahead of the Pope's address to the United Nations during his visit to the U.S. in September. Francis is set to address a U.N. Special Summit on Sustainable Development Sept. 25. U.N. secretary-general Ban Ki Moon told journalists while in Rome April 28 for a summit on the theme of the environment and sustainable development that the Pope’s speech will have “a profound impact.” In a private meeting with Pope Francis ahead of the summit, the U.N. secretary-general said he told the Pope that he’s “looking forward to his encyclical as soon as possible…I count on his moral voice and moral leadership.” Pope Francis recently spoke of the importance of caring for creation during his May 24 homily for the feast of Pentecost. The feast serves an occasion to remind Christians of their duty to care for and respect the earth, he said, explaining that “the Holy Spirit whom Christ sent from the Father, and the Creator Spirit who gives life to all things, are one and the same.” “Respect for creation, then, is a requirement of our faith: the 'garden' in which we live is not entrusted to us to be exploited, but rather to be cultivated and tended with respect.” Read more

Vatican City, May 30, 2015 / 04:02 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- What needs to change in the Vatican's communications department to make it worthy of Pope Francis? How are the problems of understaffed and overwhelmed office going to be fixed? What does excellence in communicating look like in 2015 for an institution that's 2,000 year-old? These and other questions were recently tackled by the committee tasked with Vatican media reforms – a hopeful project, but one that's destined for a long road ahead. “We were always conscious that Pope Francis is an extraordinary communicator himself and it made us realize how much the rest of us have to do – to use a sporting phrase – to up our game,” Lord Patten, chair of the Vatican Media Committee, said in a May 27 lecture for the English and Welsh Bishops’ World Communication Day. “We wanted to propose a communications structure that would be worthy of him,” continued the British peer, who is a former head of the BBC's governing body. Lord Patten said the Vatican committee wanted a communications and media structure for the Holy See that would “aim at excellence.” The committee was given a “clear mandate” to propose reforms. These proposals include a unified structure of governance and management for Vatican communications. Lord Patten stressed that the committee sought to outline “a best possible configuration” that builds on the Vatican’s existing assets while aiming for the gains that “closer integration and cooperation could make possible.” One of these assets, the Holy See Press Office is “understaffed and under huge pressure,” he said. The committee envisions a major role for a strengthened press office, which Lord Patten said “should operate in more languages in a way that accommodates a 24-hour news cycle.” The Vatican’s media entities include Vatican Radio, the newspaper L’Osservatore Romano, Vatican Television, the Holy See website, and the news aggregator News.va, as well as publishing operations and archival facilities.   Among Lord Patten’s criticisms of the overall Vatican communications structure, he highlighted the “strong compartmentalization” of the various media entities and the absence of cohesive management. The fragmentation of media operations has made it “unnecessarily difficult for the Holy See to produce the type of multimedia content involving the convergence of print, voice and images that is necessary for an effective digital presence and to engage contemporary audiences.” The main goal of the committee was to achieve savings in its annual budget, which exceeds $76 million. However, Lord Patten explained that the committee “quickly realized that major savings would only be possible through cut backs in the staff of over 600 – an approach that we judged not to be ethically appropriate.”   The committee’s structural reform includes the establishment of a unique body for Vatican communication, to be composed of five departments: a pastoral department, an administrative department, a commercial department, a technology department and a media operations department.   The pastoral department would perform many tasks currently done by the Pontifical Council for Social Communications, including relations with bishops’ conferences.   The administrative department is intended to carry forward reorganization and to integrate functions that are presently replicated in different media entities. The commercial department would oversee the development of the Vatican’s media operation through partnerships and sponsorships, as well as the management and sale of publishing rights. This department would also have responsibility for archival materials, and the publishing, promotion and marketing of all Vatican products and contents.   These two departments would help some of the Vatican’s media operations pay for themselves, thus addressing savings.   The proposed technology department would support “the sourcing, development and maintenance of suitable technological platforms and programs” and would be responsible for internet security and data.   The media operations department would restructure the Holy See’s “core media activities,” including media relations, content production and dissemination. The committee has proposed a department of content production that would serve as a “central content hub” that oversees the shared production of general news and media content. This would use the skills and expertise of some employees now working mainly in radio, television and print media. A proposed editorial service would centralize the delivery of content that will be distributed through existing channels. Also planned is an integrated social media channel that will customize its content in accord with the particular needs of the media entities and their audiences. Lord Patten also emphasized the need for continued editorial integrity among the Vatican’s media outlets. He stressed that the proposed changes should be gradual, but always made in a way that advances the clear objective of reform. The committee’s final report included an implementation plan whose key first steps include finding a suitable plan in the light of “foreseeable opposition and resistance.” According to Lord Patten, the report’s presentation to the Council of Cardinals advising Pope Francis received a positive response. The proposals will undergo further reflection by a commission established April 30 A source involved in the Vatican communication reform process told CNA May 28 that this commission is “carrying forward its job independently.” It is also working on the committee’s document to possibly outline a new proposal. In the end, the reform of Vatican communication is a process that will take longer than planned. Read more

Vatican City, May 30, 2015 / 12:16 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- “Why do children suffer?” Pope Francis asked this of a group of children with serious illnesses or disabilities and their parents, some of whom had been told to abort their babies beca... Read more

Vatican City, May 30, 2015 / 09:20 am (CNA/EWTN News).- A civilization whose technological advancements do not seek to protect the most vulnerable, from conception until natural death, fails to live up to its responsibility, Pope Francis said. In rem... Read more

Vatican City, May 30, 2015 / 09:20 am (CNA/EWTN News).- A civilization whose technological advancements do not seek to protect the most vulnerable, from conception until natural death, fails to live up to its responsibility, Pope Francis said. In rem... Read more