A privileged spot for Newlyweds at the Pope's General Audience

http://youtu.be/bLRlSNRXeec

Pope Francis: Let us welcome Jesus into our lives with joy

(Vatican Radio) At his Angelus on Sunday, Pope Francis spoke about the day’s Gospel account of the conversion of Zacchaeus.

The Holy Father recalled that Zacchaeus, a man “short in stature,” because he was a publican “was a lost sheep, despised, an ‘excommunicate’ . . . a friend of the hated Roman occupiers, a thief and an exploiter.”

Nonetheless, although he was far away from Jesus, he climbed a tree in order to be able to see the Master as He passed by. Although it seemed ridiculous, the Pope said, “this exterior act expressed the interior act of a man who sought to bring himself beyond the crowd to come into contact with Jesus.” Zacchaeus himself probably did not recognize the significance of his action, but Jesus, when He passed by, called him by name. “This man of short stature, rejected by all and far from Jesus, was like one lost in anonymity; but Jesus calls him, and his name has a significance full of allusions: Zacchaeus, in fact, means ‘God remembers.'”

Jesus, calling Zacchaeus and going to his house, is criticised by the people of Jericho. Why, the Pope asked, with so many good people in Jericho, did Jesus go to the house of that publican? It was precisely because Zacchaeus was ‘lost.’

“There is no occupation or social condition,” Pope Francis said, “no sin or crime of any kind, that could erase from the memory and the heart of God even one of His children.” God is a Father, always keeping a watchful and loving vigil “to see reborn in the hearts of the child the desire to return home. And when He recognizes that desire, even simply stated, He is immediately close by, and with His forgiveness He makes the path of conversion and return easier.”

“Let's look at Zacchaeus, today, on the tree,” the Pope continued. “His is a ridiculous gesture, but it is an act of salvation. And I say to you: if you have a weight on your conscience, if you are ashamed of so many things that you’ve done, stop for a moment, do not panic. Think about the fact that that Someone is waiting for you because He has never stopped remembering you — and this Somone is your Father, it is God Who waits for you! Climb up, as did Zacchaeus, climb onto the tree of the desire of being forgiven. I will assure you that you will not be disappointed. Jesus is merciful and never grows tired of forgiving! Remember well, that’s the way Jesus is.”

“Brothers and sisters, let us also call upon the name Jesus!” Pope Francis said, concluding his Angelus address. “In the depths of the heart, let us listen to His voice that says to us: ‘Today I must stay at your house,’ that is in your life. And let us welcome Him with joy: He can change us, can transform our hearts of stone into hearts of flesh, He can liberate us from selfishness and make our lives a gift of love.”

Bishops asked to assess marriage, family life to prepare for synod

By Cindy Wooden
Catholic News Service

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Bishops around the world are being asked to take a realistic look at the situation of families under their care and at how effective pastoral and educational programs have been at promoting church teaching on sexuality, marriage and family life.

The preparatory document for the extraordinary Synod of Bishops on the family, which will be held in October 2014, ends with 38 questions about how church teaching is promoted, how well it is accepted and ways in which modern people and societies challenge the Catholic view of marriage and family.

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http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/1304603.htm

Pope Francis celebrates All Saints Mass and prays for migrants who perished

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis celebrated Mass on Friday marking the solemnity of All Saints and afterwards prayed for the migrants who died in the desert or drowned at sea. The Mass was celebrated at the entrance of Rome’s Verano cemetery and took place exactly 20 years after the last papal visit there.

In his homily which was spoken entirely off the cuff, Pope Francis said our thoughts on this occasion go to “those who have preceded us and who are now in heaven with the Lord. “ And they are there, he continued, “because they were saved by Christ.” They were not saved merely because of their good works although they did those as well.

The Pope reminded us that “we can only enter the doors of Heaven thanks to the blood of Christ.” It is he who judges us and who opens the door to Heaven. This is our hope, he continued, and if we walk the path of Christ, accompanied by this hope, “He will never let us down.”

Recalling how "the early Christians depicted hope as an anchor," the Pope said this was a beautiful image. “Hope is having our hearts anchored to our loved ones, our ancestors, to where the saints are, where Christ is, where God is.” This, he said, is our hope.

Each of us in these days, the Pope continued, may think “about the end of our lives” and we must “look forward to it with hope and with the joy of being received by the Lord.” We must ask ourselves, "where is my heart anchored" and make sure it is well anchored in that shore.

At the end of the mass, the Pope prayed for the migrants who died in the desert or who drowned in the sea in their attempt to reach Europe. 

New Cardinals to be created in February 2014

(Vatican Radio) The Holy See Press Office has confirmed a Consistory to create new Cardinals will be held next February. Pope Francis had informed both the Council of Cardinals and the Council of the Synod of his intention earlier this month, according to statement issued by Rev. Federico Lombardi, SJ, the head of the Press Office.

The Consistory will be on the Feast of the Chair of St. Peter, February 22, 2014. Pope Francis decided to make the date known so that other meetings could be planned which involve Cardinals from around the world.

Father Lombardi said a Meeting of the Cardinals could be expected to happen before the Consistory, as has been customary with his predecessors. Prior to this meeting, will be the third meeting of the 8-member Council of Cardinals, while a meeting of the Council of the Synod will start two days after the Consistory.

Father Lombardi said a meeting of the 15 Member Council of Cardinals for the Study of Organisational and Economic Problems of the Holy See will also happen, as usual, in February. Although the date is not confirmed, it will probably be before the Consistory.

As for who the new Cardinals would be, Father Lombardi did not bring up the subject in his statement, although in previous Consistories, the names were usually announced a few weeks in advance.

Pope: reconciliation, peace, unity and stability for Iraq

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis appealed for peace in Iraq on Wednesday.The Holy Father made his appeal at the close of his weekly General Audience on Wednesday, before greeting Iraqi civil authorities and representatives of the various religious groups which, said Pope Francis, “constitute the richness of the country.” The Iraqi delegation was accompanied by the President of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, Card. Jean-Louis Tauran.

Pope Francis said, “I invite you all to pray for the dear nation of Iraq, unfortunately affected daily by tragic episodes of violence, in order that Iraq might find the way that leads to reconciliation, peace, unity and stability.” At least a dozen incidents claimed scores of lives in Iraq this past weekend - the latest in a wave of deadly violence that has been on the rise since April of this year.

Pope Francis at General Audience: Communion of Saints Church's deepest reality

(Vatican Radio) At his weekly General Audience on Wednesday, Pope Francis continued his series of catechetical reflections on the Creed, focusing this week on the Communion of Saints. In the English-language synthesis of the Holy Father’s remarks read out following the main catechesis in Italian, Pope Francis writes, “The Catechism of the Catholic Church reminds us that the Communion of Saints is a communion “in holy things” and “among holy persons” (No. 948).

The Holy Father’s remarks go on to say that the Communion of Saints is the deepest reality of the Church, because in Christ, through Baptism, we are made sharers in the communion of life and love which is the Blessed Trinity:

As such, we are united to one another in the Body of Christ. Through this fraternal communion we draw nearer to God and we are called to support one another spiritually. The communion of saints does not only embrace the Church on earth; it also embraces all who have died in Christ, the souls in purgatory and the saints in heaven.

Pope Francis’s remarks go on to say that that we experience this solidarity between heaven and earth in our intercessory prayer and in the feasts of All Saints and All Souls which we shall soon celebrate. “As we rejoice in this great mystery,” his remarks conclude, “let us ask the Lord to draw us ever closer to Him and to all our brothers and sisters in the Church.”