Showing posts with label Pope. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pope. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Monday, January 10, 2011
Pope Benedict baptizes 21 at Mass in the Sistine Chapel
from catholicnewsagency.com
The gift of faith is the “most beautiful reason to live,” said Pope Benedict XVI on Sunday, the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord. Faith is sought through baptism and brought to maturity within the Church community, he added.
The Pope celebrated Sunday's feast with a rare Mass in the Sistine Chapel followed by the Angelus prayer in St. Peter's Square. During the celebration of the Mass, which has become a tradition in the Vatican every Jan. 9, he baptized 21 children.
With baptism, he said during his homily, the child is inserted into the "mutual exchange of love" between God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
The gift of faith is the “most beautiful reason to live,” said Pope Benedict XVI on Sunday, the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord. Faith is sought through baptism and brought to maturity within the Church community, he added.
The Pope celebrated Sunday's feast with a rare Mass in the Sistine Chapel followed by the Angelus prayer in St. Peter's Square. During the celebration of the Mass, which has become a tradition in the Vatican every Jan. 9, he baptized 21 children.
With baptism, he said during his homily, the child is inserted into the "mutual exchange of love" between God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Sunday, January 2, 2011
Pope Benedict...Hold on tight to God during times of trouble, temptation...
from thebostonpilot.com
In times of trouble, doubt or deep spiritual crisis, never let go of believing in God, because he will help lead people out of darkness, Pope Benedict XVI said.
"Let us always be led by God, carry out his will every day even if often it doesn't correspond to our plans, and trust in his providence that he never leaves us on our own," he said during his weekly general audience in the Vatican's Paul VI hall Dec. 29.
In his catechesis, the pope described the life of St. Catherine of Bologna, an abbess of the Poor Clares and "a woman of great wisdom and culture" who lived in the 15th century.
Despite the many centuries that separate her time and today, St. Catherine still speaks to modern men and women, said the pope.
"Like us, she suffered from many temptations -- the temptations of disbelief and sensuality, she suffered from a difficult spiritual battle, she felt abandoned by God and she found herself in the darkness" of doubting her faith, he said.
However, throughout all of her struggles, St. Catherine "always held onto the Lord's hand," he said.
Because she never let go of trusting in God's will and let herself always be guided by him, "she went along the right path and found the road leading to the light," he said.
"In this way, she is also telling us 'Have courage' even when struggling with one's faith or when feeling doubt" or uncertainty, he added.
"Don't let go of the Lord's hand, believe in God's goodness and that way we will go along the right road," said the pope.
St. Catherine of Bologna wrote the "Treatise on the Seven Spiritual Weapons" in which she describes "the many graces she received and lists the most effective means of resisting the temptations of the devil," he said.
The pope said her treatise showed how to fight temptations and deceptions, which cause doubt and uncertainty about one's faith and vocation; her writing represents "a beautiful spiritual program for every one of us even today."
The pope listed the seven spiritual weapons as the following:
• Take great care to always work for the good.
• Know that nothing truly good can ever be done by oneself.
• Trust in God and never be afraid of the battle against evil either in the world or inside oneself.
• Reflect often on the words and life of Jesus, especially on his passion and death.
• Remember that everyone must die.
• Keep firmly in mind the rewards of paradise.
• Be familiar with sacred Scripture so that it can guide all thoughts and actions.
The pope praised the way St. Catherine led a life of humility and obedience to God.
"She saw all disobedience as a sign of that spiritual pride which destroys all virtue," he said.
Her humility showed she preferred a life of service over power.
"She wanted to serve, carry out God's will, be at the service of others and for that reason she was credible" in her position of authority, said the pope.
"You could see that, for her, authority was serving others," he said.
Sunday, December 26, 2010
Monday, November 8, 2010
11/9 Feast Day...Dedication of Saint John Lateran
Most Catholics think of St. Peter’s as the pope’s main church, but they are wrong. St. John Lateran is the pope’s church, the cathedral of the Diocese of Rome where the Bishop of Rome presides.
The first basilica on the site was built in the fourth century when Constantine donated land he had received from the wealthy Lateran family. That structure and its successors suffered fire, earthquake and the ravages of war, but the Lateran remained the church where popes were consecrated until the popes returned from Avignon in the 14th century to find the church and the adjoining palace in ruins.
Pope Innocent X commissioned the present structure in 1646. One of Rome’s most imposing churches, the Lateran’s towering facade is crowned with 15 colossal statues of Christ, John the Baptist, John the Evangelist and 12 doctors of the Church. Beneath its high altar rest the remains of the small wooden table on which tradition holds St. Peter himself celebrated Mass.
Comment:
Unlike the commemorations of other Roman churches (St. Mary Major, August 5; Sts. Peter and Paul, November 18), this anniversary is a feast. The dedication of a church is a feast for all its parishioners. In a sense, St. John Lateran is the parish church of all Catholics, because it is the pope's cathedral. This church is the spiritual home of the people who are the Church.
Quote:
"What was done here, as these walls were rising, is reproduced when we bring together those who believe in Christ. For, by believing they are hewn out, as it were, from mountains and forests, like stones and timber; but by catechizing, baptism and instruction they are, as it were, shaped, squared and planed by the hands of the workers and artisans. Nevertheless, they do not make a house for the Lord until they are fitted together through love" (St. Augustine, Sermon 36>).
The first basilica on the site was built in the fourth century when Constantine donated land he had received from the wealthy Lateran family. That structure and its successors suffered fire, earthquake and the ravages of war, but the Lateran remained the church where popes were consecrated until the popes returned from Avignon in the 14th century to find the church and the adjoining palace in ruins.
Pope Innocent X commissioned the present structure in 1646. One of Rome’s most imposing churches, the Lateran’s towering facade is crowned with 15 colossal statues of Christ, John the Baptist, John the Evangelist and 12 doctors of the Church. Beneath its high altar rest the remains of the small wooden table on which tradition holds St. Peter himself celebrated Mass.
Comment:
Unlike the commemorations of other Roman churches (St. Mary Major, August 5; Sts. Peter and Paul, November 18), this anniversary is a feast. The dedication of a church is a feast for all its parishioners. In a sense, St. John Lateran is the parish church of all Catholics, because it is the pope's cathedral. This church is the spiritual home of the people who are the Church.
Quote:
"What was done here, as these walls were rising, is reproduced when we bring together those who believe in Christ. For, by believing they are hewn out, as it were, from mountains and forests, like stones and timber; but by catechizing, baptism and instruction they are, as it were, shaped, squared and planed by the hands of the workers and artisans. Nevertheless, they do not make a house for the Lord until they are fitted together through love" (St. Augustine, Sermon 36>).
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Making smoke in the Cathedral of Santiago
from Whispers...
In one of the great spectacles of Christendom, yesterday's visit by Pope Benedict at the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela saw the unleashing of the botafumeiro -- the Spanish shrine's famous 5-foot-tall mega-thurible, suspended from its ceiling and said to reach top speeds approaching 70 kilometers an hour (42mph) as it swings across the sanctuary, peaking at an arc of some 200 feet....
While the tradition of a large swinging censer at Santiago dates to the 11th century, the botafumeiro used yesterday first took flight in 1851.
Centuries earlier, in one of the device's many mid-swing accidents, a prior model flew out a window of the cathedral, which was dedicated in 1128.
In one of the great spectacles of Christendom, yesterday's visit by Pope Benedict at the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela saw the unleashing of the botafumeiro -- the Spanish shrine's famous 5-foot-tall mega-thurible, suspended from its ceiling and said to reach top speeds approaching 70 kilometers an hour (42mph) as it swings across the sanctuary, peaking at an arc of some 200 feet....
While the tradition of a large swinging censer at Santiago dates to the 11th century, the botafumeiro used yesterday first took flight in 1851.
Centuries earlier, in one of the device's many mid-swing accidents, a prior model flew out a window of the cathedral, which was dedicated in 1128.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Not power, not more people...be servants
Pope Benedict had a great, off-the-cuff answer to a question he received on his trip to England recently. He was asked what the Church could do to make herself a more credible and attractive institution. Our goals should not be more power and more people, but instead to be at the service of one another - to be servants.
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Monday, September 20, 2010
Pope Benedict's trip changes minds & hearts...
“You have challenged the whole country to sit up and think.”
Those are the words of Prime Minister Cameron to the Holy Father as he departed from a pastoral visit one of the gloomiest pre-trip observers hailed as a “personal triumph for the Pope.” I think it was not the Pope’s triumph so much as Christ’s.
Continue to read post...
Saturday, September 18, 2010
"Among the Future Saints"
Rebecca Teti wrote on Faith & Family Blog... In spite of a terror plot against him, the Holy Father seems to be having another smashing success of a day, as I expected would turn out to be the case.
I tuned in this morning to his visit with school kids from all over Scotland, England & Wales.
I absolutely love the way he talks to young people. He keeps it simple, but he does not talk down to them.
Friday, September 10, 2010
Church is depending on youth, writes Benedict XVI in WYD 2011 message
Drawing on the metaphor of a plant that grows firm on a foundation of strong roots, Pope Benedict XVI asked youth in his message for World Youth Day 2011 to strengthen their faith to counter the influence of secular society. The presence of youth, he wrote, "renews, rejuvenates and gives new energy to the Church."
Directing his words to all youth who might be interested in coming, the Holy Father encouraged participation in the "decisive" experience offered by World Youth Day 2011. The encounter is set to take place in Madrid, Spain from Aug. 16-21 under the theme "Planted and built up in Jesus Christ, firm in the faith."
Imploring young people to pursue their yearning for "something really truly greater," Pope Benedict challenged them to confront secular culture. Next year's celebration, he wrote, comes at an important time "when Europe greatly needs to rediscover its Christian roots."
Against what he called the "eclipse of God" in a contemporary culture that has the tendency to exclude God and consider faith only relevant to the private sphere, he encouraged youth to strengthen their faith, exclaiming, "You are the future of society and of the Church!"
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Papal Masses in Britain will use some new English texts
 Msgr. Guido Marini, papal master of ceremonies, places a zuchetto on Pope Benedict XVI's head during a Mass this year in St. Peter's Basilica. (CNS/Paul Haring) |
Catholic News Service
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- People attending Pope Benedict XVI's Masses in Scotland and England in September will get a chance to hear and sing a few of the newly translated Mass texts, according to the pope's chief liturgist.
Msgr. Guido Marini, papal master of liturgical ceremonies, told Catholic News Service Aug. 19 that the prayers sung in English at the papal Masses in Great Britain will use the translations from the new Order of the Mass approved by the Vatican in 2008.
"The songs from the Order of the Mass -- for example the Gloria -- will be from the new translation, which was approved a while ago," he said.
The words for the rest of the Mass prayers "will be from the text currently in use," he said, because when the papal Masses were being planned, the Vatican had not yet granted final approval to the bishops of Scotland, England and Wales for the complete English translation of the Roman Missal.
Although the new translation of the Order of the Mass, which contains the main prayers used at Mass, was approved by the Vatican two years ago, bishops' conferences in English-speaking countries decided to wait to introduce the prayers until the entire Roman Missal was translated and approved.
The new translation of the Mass was designed to follow more closely the text in the original Latin.
In the Gloria, which Msgr. Marini said would be sung during the papal trip, the new English text begins: "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to people of good will. We praise you, we bless you, we adore you, we glorify you, we give you thanks for your great glory, Lord God, heavenly King, O God, almighty Father."
The text currently in use begins: "Glory to God in the highest and peace to his people on earth. Lord God, heavenly King, almighty God and Father, we worship you, we give you thanks, we praise you for your glory."
END
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