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VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Whether simple or elaborate, the same every year or constantly changing, a Nativity scene echoes “the beauty of our faith,” Pope Francis wrote. Marking the 800th anniversary of St. Francis of Assisi putting together the first Christmas crèche in a cave in Greccio, Italy, the Vatican publishing house compiled texts by…
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — When Mbengue Nyimbilo Crepin told Pope Francis of his harrowing journey to Italy and about the deaths of his wife and 6-year-old daughter in the desert along the border between Libya and Tunisia, the pope told him he had been praying for them since July. Nyimbilo, known as “Pato,” sobbed Nov.…
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — The material, cultural and spiritual poverties that exist in the world are a “scandal” that Christians are called to address by putting their God-given capacity for charity and love into action, Pope Francis said. The poor, whether “the oppressed, fatigued, marginalized, victims of war,” migrants, the hungry, those without work or…
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — In the month Catholics traditionally honor the dead, the Vatican Museums opened a new entrance to an ancient necropolis where carved marble sarcophagi sit near open graves filled with bones. In the Via Triumphalis Necropolis, some of the tombs and cremation urns have the person’s name on them. Others also include…
BALTIMORE – The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) gathered November 13-16 for their Fall Plenary Assembly in Baltimore. The bishops began their plenary with a Mass for Peace at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, with an afternoon of regional meetings. On Tuesday, the public…
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — The daily rhythm of the life of a priest should resemble “ping pong” — praying on one’s knees before the tabernacle, helping those in need and returning to prayer, Pope Francis told a group of Latino priests from the United States. “Do not leave those who suffer alone; do not leave…