Pontiff says he shares in suffering for the at least six children “barbarically killed” in an attack on a school. “May God enlighten hearts” to bring peace and silence weapons, he prays
“Europe, find yourself! Rediscover your most deeply-rooted ideals. Be yourself!”, Francis writes in letter to “weary and listless” continent “possessed of little hope”
Cardinal Charles Bo of Yangon expresses “great shock and agony” at “cold-hearted” incarceration of elderly Indian Indigenous rights activist Stan Swamy SJ
“Moral and religious life cannot be reduced to an anxious and forced obedience”, Francis warns in catechesis
Rev. Dr. Ioan Sauca applauds “great interreligious potential” of Pope’s new encyclical
Pope repeats plea “for a new and more inclusive socio-economic paradigm that reflects the truth that we are a single human family”
“This new encyclical is a call for a new way of living human relations: not only on paper, not only by words, but with our daily actions”, says COMECE secretary general Fr. Manuel Barrios Prieto
“Not to recognise the human person as the image of God is a sacrilege, an abomination, the worst offence”, alerts Francis
“God will ask an accounting of those who failed to seek peace, or who fomented tensions and conflicts”, Pope warns in “Spirit of Assisi” interfaith prayer meeting
“Love alone is the path towards full communion among us”, pontiff preaches in ecumenical prayer event in Rome
“Although current levels of food production are more than sufficient to feed the world’s population, food is not where it should be and one in nine lacks access to daily meals”, decries Archbishop Gabriele Caccia
“Poverty, decadence and suffering in one part of the earth are a breeding ground for problems that will end up affecting the entire planet”, warns Francis
Francis sets out 7-point plan “to renew the fabric of relationships for the sake of a humanity capable of speaking the language of fraternity”
“Before God we are not strangers, or numbers. We are faces and hearts, known one by one, by name”, Pope stresses in catechesis
Denounces present “outdated”, “ill-implemented” and “chaotic” situation leading to tragedies such as the fires in the Moria camp on Lesbos
“The proposed solution of ‘fraternity’ as an antidote to inequality simply does not get to the root of gender injustice”, decries Women’s Ordination Conference
“The Earth must be worked and nursed, cultivated and protected. We cannot continue to squeeze it like an orange”, warns Pope
“We must promote the integration of women in the places in which important decisions are taken”, insists Francis at the Angelus
Prelates call for greater investment in mental health, particularly during COVID-19, “so that no one is left behind”
Declaration of the ‘Faith for Nature’ Multi-Faith Action Conference from Iceland: “Current extremes of wealth and poverty need to give way to greater equity and justice”
In a message October 7 to the Women’s Consultation Group of the Pontifical Council for Culture, Pope Francis praised the genius of “feminine insight” in the Church and the world, highlighting that “women have the gift of offering a wisdom that can heal, forgive, reinvent and renew”.
In a message to an online plenary meeting of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, Pope Francis has urged that scientific and technological innovation be put at the service of more equality and social inclusion.
Pax Christi International has welcomed the Pope’s condemnation of war in his new encyclical Fratelli tutti, observing that the document’s reflection on how the ‘just war’ tradition fails in the face of modern warfare “goes further than any papal encyclical in history”.
In his General Audience today, Pope Francis warned against narcissistic piety, cautioning that “prayer is not about locking oneself up with the Lord to make one’s soul appear beautiful: no, this is not prayer, this is false prayer”. Rather, “the proof of prayer is the real love of one’s neighbour”, the pontiff insisted.
After individual meetings over the past month with the Pope’s nuncio in Paris, Frenchwomen aiming to shatter the stained-glass ceiling and access traditionally male-only Catholic roles have shared their dream of an “egalitarian Church truly inspired by the message of Christ”.
“The vineyard is the Lord’s, not ours. Authority is a service, and as such should be exercised, for the good of all and for the dissemination of the Gospel”, Francis pleads at the Angelus
In a High-level meeting at the UN, the Holy See has decried the “dehumanisation, violence and brutality” suffered by women and girls worldwide.
In his Wednesday General Audience today, Pope Francis hit out at what he called the “false prophets” of “trickle-down” economics, lamenting that “the glass grows and grows and never overflows to the poor”. “We must be careful”, he warned.
“Any closure to others in order to defend ourselves, any individual interests, to the point of profiting from misfortune, is against personal dignity, against the community: ultimately, it is against human rights”, the bishops of the Council of Bishops’ Conferences of Europe (CCEE) have warned in a message after a plenary assembly.
Catholic women worldwide are asking Pope Francis to change the “painful” title of his new encyclical ‘Brothers all’, warning him that “the masculine noun will alienate many”.