Pope Francis is a surprising Pontiff in his choices, but nonetheless methodical in terms of consistory timings: the Pope, in fact, has often conferred the cardinal's red hat on bishops of non-traditionally cardinal seats but has wanted to celebrate one consistory per year, except for the break in 2021. He has presided over eight of them, creating a total of 121 cardinals, of whom 95 were electors at the time of their appointment, coming from 56 different nations. On October 5, 2019, the sixth consistory of the pontificate took place. Pope Francis created 13 Cardinals, of whom 10 were electors. Among them were Fridolin Ambongo Besungu, Metropolitan Archbishop of Kinshasa; Michael Czerny, Undersecretary with delegation for migrants of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, who would later lead it; and Matteo Maria Zuppi, Metropolitan Archbishop of Bologna and future President of the Italian Episcopal Conference. In his 8 consistories, Pope Francis has appointed for the first time to the Sacred College 21 Cardinals from countries that had never been represented before: Haiti, Dominica, Myanmar, Panama (although Cardinal Lacunza was born in Spain), Cape Verde, Tonga, Central African Republic, Bangladesh, Papua New Guinea, Malaysia, Lesotho, Mali, Sweden, Laos, El Salvador, Luxembourg, Rwanda, Brunei, East Timor, Singapore, and Paraguay. Journalist based in Rome. He worked for 'Area' Press Agency, dealing with internal politics, economics but above all with the Vatican. Accredited at the Press Office of the Holy See, professional journalist since 2008, he followed the conclaves of 2005 and 2013. Currently works for ACI Stampa, EWTN News agency in Italian. He is the author, together with his colleague Andrea Gagliarducci, of "La Quaresima della Chiesa", and "Benedetto XVI, a total Pope".   Calendar   |   Contact Us By Cindy Wooden Catholic News Service VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Archbishop Gualtiero Bassetti said a parishioner told him he’d been named a cardinal by Pope Francis, and "my jaw dropped" when he found out it was true. The 71-year-old archbishop of Perugia-Citta della Pieve and president of the bishops’ conference of Umbria in central Italy said he was not informed before Pope Francis told the world Jan. 12 that he would induct Cardinal-designate Bassetti and 18 others into the College of Cardinals Feb. 22. The cardinal-designate told the same story to several Italian newspapers: "I was in a church in Perugia to administer the sacrament of confirmation to 80 young people; after Mass, one of the women in the parish, rushing and out of breath, told me the pope had just named me a cardinal. "Like the apostles who didn’t believe it when the women brought them news of the Resurrection, I didn’t believe it until I verified it with my own eyes by looking on the Vatican website," he said. "I almost fainted." Cardinal-designate Bassetti will be the first cardinal from Perugia named in 160 years, Italian newspapers reported. The last Perugia bishop to wear the red hat, Cardinal Gioacchino Pecci, became Pope Leo XIII in 1878. The fact that Pope Francis chose him and not the archbishops of the traditional cardinal sees of Venice and Turin was widely interpreted as evidence the pope was focusing on people rather than places in making his choice. "Maybe the pope wanted to underline the value of being a pastor rather than the history of a diocese," the cardinal-designate told Avvenire, the Italian Catholic newspaper. Cardinal-designate Bassetti told the newspaper Il Giornale, "Power in the church is service and self-giving, and the pope is giving a witness of this. I’m convinced that a cardinal isn’t closer to God, but to the pope and to serving people, especially the least." Born April 7, 1942, in Popolano di Marradi near Florence, he attended the Archdiocese of Florence’s minor and major seminaries before being ordained to the priesthood in 1966. After brief service in a parish, he returned to the minor seminary, serving on the staff and eventually becoming rector. Later he was named rector of the major seminary. In 1994, he was named bishop of Massa Marittima-Piombino and four years later was transferred to the Diocese of Arezzo-Cortona-Sansepolcro. Pope Benedict XVI named him archbishop of Perugia-Citta della Pieve in 2009. He serves as vice president for central Italy in the Italian bishops’ conference and is a member of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity. Copyright (c)2014 Catholic News Service/USCCB. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed. CNS – 3211 Fourth St NE – Washington DC 20017 – 202.541.3250 Choose from news (Monday), leisure (Thursday) or worship (Saturday) — or get all three! rewritten or otherwise distributed including by such means as framing or other digital copying and/or distribution methods leisure (Thursday) or worship (Saturday) — or get all three No, Thanks Pope Francis released the names of 19 new princes of the Catholic Church Sunday — none from the United States The list included cardinals for Burkina Faso and Haiti to show “concern for people struck by poverty,” according to Vatican spokesman the Rev. Federico Lombardi And the pope created new cardinalatial sees, Perugia in Italy and Cotabato on the island of Mindanao in the Philippines.  will fill 13 vacant seats plus bring in three more cardinals to replace those who will turn age 80 — too old to vote in a papal election — by the end of May Francis, the first Jesuit pope, did not include any Jesuits although four of those named are members of religious orders Francis also named three cardinals who are well beyond voting age to honor their contributions to the church: Archbishop Capovilla the secretary of soon-to-be-canonized Pope John XXIII; Fernando Sebastian Aguilar The 16 eligible to vote are: Got something to say about what you're reading Pope Francis has named Vatican Secretary of State Archbishop Pietro Parolin as a new cardinal Cardinal Matteo Maria Zuppi has been elected new president of the Italian Bishops' Conference (CEI) Pope Francis named the 66-year-old Archbishop of Bologna who has been long affiliated with the Community of Sant'Egidio The nomination came shortly after the end of the second session of the 76th General Assembly of the CEI at the Hilton Rome Airport in Fiumicino and is focused on the theme: “Listening to the Narratives of the People of God: The first discernment: What priorities are emerging along the Synodal Journey?” Cardinal Zuppi succeeds outgoing CEI president Archbishop of Perugia-Città della Pieve Cardinal Zuppi thanked the Pope and the bishops “Let's walk together to listen to everyone's suffering.” The new CEI president was created and proclaimed Cardinal by Pope Francis in the 5 October 2019 consistory His titular church is that of Sant’Egidio in the Roman neighbourhood of Trastevere He serves as member of the Vatican's Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development and Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See Matteo Maria Zuppi was born in Rome on 11 October 1955 and began to frequent the community and to collaborate in its efforts to help the disadvantaged ranged "from popular schools for marginalized children from Roman slums to initiatives for the elderly who are alone and not self-sufficient prisoners and victims of conflicts; its ecumenical activities for Christian unity; and its work in interfaith dialogue which took shape in the Assisi Meetings." after obtaining a degree in letters and philosophy from the University of Rome “La Sapienza” with a thesis on the history of Christianity he entered the seminary in the suburbicarian diocese of Palestrina following the course of preparation for the priesthood at the Pontifical Lateran University where he obtained a bachelor’s degree in theology He was ordained a priest for the clergy of Palestrina on 9 May 1981 Zuppi was appointed as vicar to the parish priest of the Roman Basilica of Santa Maria in Trastevere it was natural for “don Matteo” – as he is still known today – to assume the role He was incardinated in Rome on 15 November 1988 and was also rector of the church of Santa Croce alla Lungara from 1983 to 2012 and member of the diocesan presbyteral council from 1995 to 2012 In the second five-year period as parish priest in Trastevere he was also prefect of the third prefecture of Rome and from 2000 he was general ecclesiastical assistant of the Sant’Egidio Community after performing a mediation role in Mozambique in the process that led to peace after more than seventeen years of bloody civil war in 2010 he left the Basilica of Santa Maria in Trastevere to begin his ministry as a parish priest in the parish of Santi Simone e Giuda Taddeo a Torre Angela one of the most populous communities of the diocese Benedict XVI appointed him as titular bishop of Villanova and auxiliary of Rome He received episcopal ordination the following 14 April from the then-cardinal vicar Agostino Vallini and selected the motto Gaudium Domini fortitude vestra Pope Francis promoted him to the metropolitan see of Bologna After convening the Diocesan Eucharistic Congress he received the Pope on a visit to the principal city of Emilia Romagna on 1 October 2017 he participated in the XV Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops Cardinal Zuppi has written various publications of a pastoral nature Thank you for reading our article. You can keep up-to-date by subscribing to our daily newsletter. Just click here the Solemnity of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul will bless the palliums that will then be delivered and imposed in their respective sees to the Metropolitan Archbishops appointed during the year In the early years of his pontificate Pope Francis used to impose the pallium on the metropolitans the pontiff decided only to bless them and then have them imposed in their proper sees by one of his representatives The pallium is that special white wool scarf with black crosses worn by the Pope and metropolitan archbishops and signifying the special bond between the Bishop of Rome and the individual metropolitan sees.    the pallium will be given to Europeans: Ivan Maffeis Metropolitan Archbishop of Perugia-Città del Pieve (Italy) Norbert José Henri Turini Metropolitan Archbishop of Montpellier (France); Enrique Benavent Vidal Metropolitan Archbishop of Valencia (Spain); Mate Uzinić Metropolitan Archbishop of Rijeka (Croatia); Ladislav Nemet Metropolitan Archbishop of Belgrade (Serbia); Giovanni Checchinato Metropolitan Archbishop of Cosenza-Bisignano (Italy); José María Gil Tamayo Metropolitan Archbishop of Granada (Spain); Francisco José Prieto Fernández Metropolitan Archbishop of Santiago de Compostela (Spain); Laurent Le Boulc'h Metropolitan Archbishop of Lille (France); Dražen Kutleša Metropolitan Archbishop of Zagreb (Croatia); Adrian Józef Galbas Metropolitan Archbishop of Katowice (Poland); José Cobo Cano Metropolitan Archbishop of Madrid (Spain); Luc Terlinden Metropolitan Archbishop of Mechelen-Brussels (Belgium) The Americas will be represented by Luis Fernando Rodríguez Velásquez Metropolitan Archbishop of Cali (Colombia); José Carlos Souza Campos Metropolitan Archbishop of Montes Claros (Brazil); Misael Vacca Ramírez Metropolitan Archbishop of Villavicencio (Colombia); Juarez Sousa da Silva Metropolitan Archbishop of Teresina (Brazil); Cardinal Baltazar Enrique Porras Cardozo Metropolitan Archbishop of Caracas (Venezuela); Hugo Alberto Torres Marín Metropolitan Archbishop of Santa Fe de Antioquia (Colombia); José Vicente Nácher Tatay Metropolitan Archbishop of Tegucigalpa (Honduras); Michael Leniham Metropolitan Archbishop of San Pedro Sula (Honduras); Helizandro Terán Bermúdez Metropolitan Archbishop of Mérida (Venezuela); Frank Leo Metropolitan Archbishop of Toronto (Canada); Jorge Ignacio García Cuerva Metropolitan Archbishop of Buenos Aires (Argentina); George Leo Thomas Metropolitan Archbishop of Las Vegas (USA); Paulo Jackson Nóbrega de Sousa Metropolitan Archbishop of Olinda and Recife (Brazil).  The Asians on the other hand are Simon Ok hyun-jin Metropolitan Archbishop of Gwangju (Korea); Victor Barnuevo Bendico Metropolitan Archbishop of Capiz (Philippines); Julius Sullan Tonel Metropolitan Archbishop of Zamboanga (Philippines   For Africa two Metropolitans: João Carlos Hatoa Nunes Metropolitan Archbishop of Maputo (Mozambique) and Jean De Dieu Raoelison Metropolitan Archbishop of Antananarivo (Madagascar) Finally for Oceania the pallium intended for Paul Gerard Martin Metropolitan Archbishop of Wellington (New Zealand).  Accredited at the Press Office of the Holy See he followed the conclaves of 2005 and 2013 together with his colleague Andrea Gagliarducci Vatican City, May 27, 2017 / 06:02 am (CNA/EWTN News).- On Saturday Pope Francis paid a visit to the Italian diocese of Genoa where he had lengthy Q&A sessions with youth challenging them and offering antidotes to modern problems In each of the meetings Pope Francis responded to questions taking his time to respond well to each of their concerns refugees and prisoners before greeting sick children at the Pediatric Gianna Gaslini Hospital The Pope made a phone call to the hospital earlier this week to tell the children that he was coming to see them and assured them that Jesus is always with us difficult moments the hospital is linked to the University of Genoa and is considered as one of the most prestigious children’s hospitals in Europe It has formally recognized as a scientific institute for research Pope Francis will head to the city’s Kennedy Square to celebrate Mass before returning to Rome Francis responded to four questions: one from an entrepreneur who asked for a word of encouragement in his responsibilities; two questions from workers on how to recover from the economic crisis and how to avoid careerism and foster fraternity and one question from an unemployed woman who asked how to stay strong despite challenges of not having consistent work work today is “at risk,” because “it’s a world where work isn’t considered with the dignity it has and gives.” Work “is a human priority,” and because of this the Pope said he wanted to meet with them there because the Church is where the people are “there is no good economy without good businessmen,” adding that they are “the figure of a good economy,” since society functions well when there are honest and caring people in charge He cautioned against the temptation to do one’s work well just because they get paid to do it saying this mentality is an injustice to the working system “because it negates the dignity of work “Let’s not forget that a businessman above all must be a worker If he doesn’t have this sense of the dignity of work he won’t be a good businessman.” The Pope then warned against the temptation to solve problems in a company by firing people explaining that a person who does this “is not a businessman “A sickness of the economy is the progressive transformation of workers into speculators adding that “workers must absolutely not be confused with profiteers,” because they are different things leaving the economy abstract and “without a face.” In addition laws intended to help the honest then end up penalizing the honest and profiting the corrupt He also warned the workers against competition in the workplace calling it “an anthropological and Christian error,” as well as an “economic error,” since it forces people to work against each other Too much competition destroys the “fabric of trust” that binds every organization “the company implodes” because there is no longer a sense of collegiality uniting it Francis then issued a stern warning against the “non-virtue” of meritocracy referring to the political philosophy that power ought to be invested in individuals solely based on their abilities and talents This attitude “denatures” the human being and creates inequality explaining that under this mentality the poor are faulted for their disadvantage and the rich are “exonerated.” there often come illegal contracts and inhumane working conditions He noted that many people are forced into working 11 hours a day for just 800 euro a month or they are paid illegally under the table with no contract or benefits “we become more human,” since we participate in God’s act of creation and man is work’s friend,” he said explaining that there are few joys greater than what one experiences in a good and healthy workplace and there are fewer sorrows than when one work harms exploits or even “kills” people He pointed to the societal paradox that there is an increasing number of people who are unemployed but want to work and that there are fewer and fewer people who work too much and want time off calling it “an idol of our time” that eventually leads us to worship “pure pleasure,” rather than appreciating the value of “fatigue and sweat,” which are the backbone of work Pope Francis opened his nearly 2-hour conversation with bishops religious and seminarians by leading them in a moment of silent prayer for the victims of yesterday’s attack on Coptic Christians in Egypt After then reciting a Hail Mary for the deceased the Pope took four questions on how to maintain a good spiritual life daily how to keep the charism of an order fresh as time passes how to foster priestly brotherhood and what to do about the current vocational crisis When it comes to having a good spiritual life the Pope said two things are essential: a constant encounter with God through prayer He noted that the world today is constantly “in a hurry,” and that it’s often difficult to take time to be with people and listen to their problems and concerns But this doesn’t mean being inactive adding that “I am afraid of static priests.” Priests who are obsessed with structure and organization are better “businessman” than pastors noting that they might pray and celebrate Mass Jesus himself was “always a man on the street,” in the midst of his people and “open to the surprises of God.” There’s a certain tension between these two extremes but urged consecrated people to “not be afraid of this tension,” because it’s a sign of “vitality” and movement He told priests to be flexible in their prayer and urged them to allow themselves to “get worn out be the people,” and not to “defend your own tranquility,” since Jesus himself prioritized relationships with the people yet always set aside time to be with his Father When it comes to fostering a stronger sense of brotherhood among priests the Pope said that first of all this means letting go of “that image of the priest who knows everything,” and who doesn’t need the input of others Self-sufficiency does a lot of harm to a consecrated person and asked the priests and religious how many times during a meeting they stop paying attention to what a fellow brother or sister is saying and let their minds to “into orbit” with other things Even if what the other person says isn’t necessarily of immediate interest explaining that each person “is a richness.” He told them to look for moments to pray together He also warned against “murmuring” and “jealousy,” noting that at times when he reviews information collected on possible candidates for bishops “you find true calumny or opinions that could be serious calumny but which devalue the priest.” To speak poorly of a brother is to “betray” him about the dangers of gossip and the importance of forgiveness the Pope emphasized the importance of staying attached to the concrete realities of a diocese or project While a congregation might be “universal” in the sense that it has houses throughout the world the “concreteness” of involvement in the helps give the order “roots,” allowing it to stay remain and also to grow as they see different needs come up Francis immediately pointed out the low birthrate in Europe saying the lack of vocations is also tied to the “demographic problem” that people don’t want to get married or have children “If there are no young men and women explaining that while this is not the only reason for the crisis it’s something that must be kept in mind He also stressed the importance of looking critically at what is happening in the world and posing the question: “what is the Lord asking right now?” “The vocational crisis is affecting the entire Church,” including the priesthood noting that many young couples don’t want to commit themselves to the vocation of marriage adding that “to face the problems is necessary (but) to learn from problems is obligatory.” His words have a special resonance given that the next Synod of Bishops will address the topic: “Young People Faith and the Discernment of Vocation.” Francis cautioned against the temptation of “conquest” when it comes to filling empty convents and seminaries stressing that true vocational work “is hard and emphasized the importance of bearing personal witness through the living of one’s own vocation which “is key” to showing youth how rewarding a life offered for Christ and others can be In a meeting with youth at Genoa’s Sanctuary of Our Lady of the Guard telling them he wouldn’t give them “pre-made answers,” but personal answers the youth asked how to be a missionary in the face modern challenges; how to go beyond modern distractions and love those in difficulty and crisis around us; how to have a strong prayer and spiritual life and how to have sincere relationships in a culture of indifference Francis said that being a missionary above all “means letting yourself be transformed by the Lord “Normally when we live these activities but there is another transformation that you don’t see it’s hidden and is born in the lives of all of us,” he said adding that to be a missionary “allows us to learn how to look He told the youth to stop being “tourists,” many of whom come to the city and take pictures of everything but “don’t look at anything.” “To look at life with the eyes of tourists is superficial…it means I don’t touch reality I don’t see things as they are,” he said noting that going on mission helps us to go beyond the superficial and “draw near to the heart of another…and it destroys hypocrisy.” but especially for youth to have this attitude stressing that accepting Jesus’ invitation to me a missionary helps us to look at each other in the eye and purifies us from seeing the Church divided into the “good” and the “bad.” He said that to respond to the needs of people in difficulty – the poor homeless and unemployed – we must first of all “love them We can’t do anything without love.” No matter how many projects we set up or are involved in explaining that whenever he can he likes to ask people if they “touch the hand of the person” they give to is the ability to take hold of the “dirty hand” and to look at people in situations of drugs Pope Francis said focusing on the person who has been wounded and excluded is part of “the madness of the faith,” and of the announcement of Jesus He told the youth to never ignore people or “make the person into an adjective,” calling them a “drunk,” because they are a person with a name “Never make people into adjectives!” he said adding that “God is the only one who can judge and he will do it in the Final Judgement for each one of us.” Giving advice for how to have a strong spiritual life the Pope tied the his answer to the city’s link with boaters and sailors telling them that if they want to be a good disciple “you need the same heart as a navigator: a horizon and courage.” “If you don’t have a horizon…you will never be a good missionary,” he said and warned against the distractions new media technologies bring “You have the opportunity to know everything with new technologies but these information technologies make you fall into a canal many times the horizon “gets closer and closer” and soon “you have a wall in front of you.” the horizon is lost as is the ability to contemplate and told the youth to take time to contemplate and make good decisions instead of eating whatever is put in front of them He also urged the youth to question what has become almost routine in today’s “normal culture,” using smoking as an example Instead of just accepting that this is normal he told them to ask themselves: “is this normal or is this not normal?” and to “have courage to seek the truth.” Francis offered a special greeting to prisoners of watching the meeting via television before heading to lunch with poor If you value the news and views Catholic World Report provides, please consider donating to support our efforts Your contribution will help us continue to make CWR available to all readers worldwide for free Click here for more information on donating to CWR. Click here to sign up for our newsletter Pope Francis: Jesus intercedes for us – every day detail of the facade of the Church of Santa Maria Novella in Florence Pope Benedict XVI returns to his homeland for his first international event since being elected pope He participated in World Youth Day in Cologne 2019 / 09:00 am (CNA).- Pope Francis said Friday that Catholics and Orthodox are bonded by a “shared inheritance” of suffering for Christ from the apostles to modern martyrs “How many were the martyrs and… […] All comments posted at Catholic World Report are moderated While vigorous debate is welcome and encouraged please note that in the interest of maintaining a civilized and helpful level of discussion comments containing obscene language or personal attacks—or those that are deemed by the editors to be needlessly combative or inflammatory—will not be published Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value" Below is the text of Pope Francis’ Wednesday General Audience catechesis, delivered today in St. Peter’s Square. Via Vatican Radio. *** Dear brothers and sisters, Today I would like briefly to refer to one more […] You can see how this popup was set up in our step-by-step guide: https://wppopupmaker.com/guides/auto-opening-announcement-popups/ Sign up to receive a weekly email with news (function($) {window.fnames = new Array(); window.ftypes = new Array();fnames[0]='EMAIL';ftypes[0]='email';fnames[3]='MMERGE3';ftypes[3]='text';fnames[1]='FNAME';ftypes[1]='text';fnames[2]='LNAME';ftypes[2]='text';fnames[4]='MMERGE4';ftypes[4]='text';fnames[5]='MMERGE5';ftypes[5]='text';fnames[6]='MMERGE6';ftypes[6]='number';fnames[7]='MMERGE7';ftypes[7]='radio';}(jQuery));var $mcj = jQuery.noConflict(true); including the archbishops of Westminster and Quebec and six men from his home region of Latin America and announced a consistory for their formal induction into the College of Cardinals on Feb The selection of new cardinals does not include a prelate from the United States but strongly represents the church in the developing world The consistory will bring the total number of cardinals to 218 and the number of cardinals under age 80 to 122 cardinals are eligible to vote in a conclave to elect a new pope Two current cardinal electors will turn 80 in March bringing the number of electors back to the limit of 120 set by Pope Paul VI (Other popes have occasionally exceeded that limit for short periods of time.) The College of Cardinals is currently 13 shy of that 120-mark among eligible-to-vote members That means Francis chose the exact number of new cardinals needed to bring the voting ranks up to 120 during the next few months Five of the new electors are from Latin America an increase by one-third of the current number from the region home to about 40 percent of the world's Catholics will account for 16 percent of the group eligible to choose the next pope Bassetti becomes the first archbishop of Perugia to enter the College since the late 19th century No cardinals were selected from the United States for the first time since 1979 adding that may only reflect the fact that the traditional complement of U.S cardinals at the college had already been reached Four new cardinal electors are Vatican officials three of them in offices that traditionally entail membership in the college Another three of the new cardinals are already over the age of 80 and The pope uses such nominations to honor churchmen for their scholarship or other service to the church Among the new so-called honorary cardinals is Cardinal-designate Loris Capovilla who served as personal secretary to Blessed John XXIII The pope announced the nominations to the faithful in St coming from "every part of the world represent the deep church ecclesial relationship between the church of Rome and the other churches scattered throughout the world." The pope passed over a prominent Irish prelate who has notably criticized church handling of the worldwide clerical sex abuse scandal The Director of the Press Office of the Holy See shared some observations about the Pope's selections: • The Pope has adhered to the rule of 120 Cardinals under 80 years of age who will be eligible to vote in a papal election Currently there were 13 seats “vacant”; 3 others will be “vacant” by the end of May ¼ of the total) and 12 are residential archbishops or bishops • The distribution of electors who are residential prelates is well distributed among the different continents: Two from Europe • The choice of Cardinals of Burkina Faso and Haiti shows concern for people struck by poverty • Two residential prelates were chosen from places not traditionally considered Cardinalatial Sees (namely and Cotabato on the island of Mindanao in the Philippines) • Among the Cardinals who are not electors the secretary of Pope John XXIII (who will soon be canonized during the 50th anniversary of the Second Vatican Council) is the oldest of the Cardinals-elect; the youngest is Bishop Chibly Langlois of Haiti (55 years old) prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith -- English Archbishop Vincent Nichols of Westminster -- Nicaraguan Archbishop Leopoldo Brenes Solorzano of Managua -- Canadian Archbishop Gerald Lacroix of Quebec -- Ivorian Archbishop Jean-Pierre Kutwa of Abidjan -- Brazilian Archbishop Orani Tempesta of Rio de Janeiro -- Italian Archbishop Gualtiero Bassetti of Perguia-Citta della Pieve -- Argentine Archbishop Mario Poli of Buenos Aires -- Korean Archbishop Andrew Yeom Soo-jung of Seoul -- Chilean Archbishop Ricardo Ezzati Andrello of Santiago -- Burkina Faso Archbishop Philippe Ouedraogo of Ouagadougou -- Philippine Archbishop Orlando Quevedo of Cotabato -- Haitian Bishop Chibly Langlois of Les Cayes -- Spanish Archbishop Fernando Sebastian Aguilar Password reset instructions will be sent to your registered email address As a frequent reader of our website, you know how important America’s voice is in the conversation about the church and the world. We can't do it without you—America Media relies on generous support from our readers. Please visit our membership page to learn how you can invest in our work by subscribing to the magazine or making a donation If you’re already a subscriber or donor, thank you! If you login and register your print subscription number with your account, you’ll have unlimited access to the website. Please contact us at members@americamedia.org with any questions Pope Francis had “a restful night and woke up shortly after 8 a.m.,” the Vatican said on Friday morning It was his 22nd night in Rome’s Gemelli Hospital where he is being treated for pneumonia in both lungs His general condition continues to be stable but still with a guarded prognosis and his mental faculties are “those of a man of 60.” Pope Francis surprised the world on Thursday evening, and brought much joy and even tears to many people when he sent a brief audio message to those gathered in St Peter’s Square to pray the Rosary for the pope’s recovery told journalists today that the idea to send the voice message came from the pope himself: “It was his personal wish to have the audio be broadcast at the start of the Rosary Pope Francis wanted to express his gratitude to everyone for the countless prayers offered on his behalf through which he feels ‘carried’ and supported by the entire people of God.” [What Pope Francis’ voice memo reveals about his understanding of the papacy] An informed Vatican source said Pope Francis “continued his prescribed therapy this morning.” The source reported that during the previous night the pope slept wearing a mask over his nose and mouth to receive oxygen by non-invasive mechanical ventilation he is using nasal tubes to receive high-flow supplemental oxygen His overall clinical condition “appears stable in the context of a complex picture,” due to his various pathologies and age meaning they believe the pope is still not out of danger The Vatican announced on Thursday evening that given this stability in the pope’s overall condition his doctors decided they would not continue to issue a medical bulletin every day since there is little new to add Their next update will be released on Saturday evening The Vatican also let it be known that Pope Francis spent 20 minutes in the private chapel in the suite he now occupies on the 10th floor of Gemelli Hospital as he continues to govern the church from the hospital by approving the nomination of bishops accepting resignations and establishing new dioceses he appointed several new members to the Pontifical Academy of Sciences including one member from China and another from the United States Since Francis was admitted to Gemelli Hospital on Feb the Italian daily newspapers have interviewed many doctors and cardinals seeking to better understand the pope’s situation One interview was particularly enlightening: Corriere della Sera’s interview yesterday with Cardinal Gualtiero Bassetti the emeritus archbishop of Perugia-Città della Pieve and former president of the Italian Bishops’ Conference (2017-22) Cardinal Bassetti fell ill with Covid-19 and was rushed to intensive care He spent one month in a hospital in Perugia and 20 days in Gemelli Hospital “I had pneumonia in both lungs combined with septicemia “The doctor who treated me at a certain point told my secretary: Alert his relatives humanly speaking the cardinal is at the end.” He was almost 80 years old then and “there didn’t seem to be much to do for me now.” “I understand what the pope may have felt [when he had his breathing crises] I know what it means when you remain without air Not being able to breathe is terrible; it’s worse than any pain.” Asked if he felt loneliness in such critical moments but you realize that you are detaching yourself from life I don’t think there is a more solitary act than death I always say that the worst death was that of Jesus on the Cross because he also felt the abandonment of the Father Cardinal Bassetti said: “I really don’t know how they brought me back into the world But the moment you feel that your breath fails and he said to me: Do you know why you are not dead Because in hell there was no place for you!” Referring to the pope’s difficult situation today Cardinal Bassetti said: “I know Francis well I know that he is ready to do the will of the Lord a Jesuit trained in the spirituality of St one who before dawn recollects himself in prayer for two hours every morning Commenting on the fact that so many people across the world are praying for Pope Francis’ recovery the cardinal said: “Prayers fill loneliness and make you trust fully in God’s mercy I think it is a great consolation for Francis to feel so much affection and gratitude around him I pray that he may recover in the best possible way and continue to lead the church He can govern as he has done so far; if God gives him strength Gerard O’Connell is America’s Vatican correspondent and author of The Election of Pope Francis: An Inside Story of the Conclave That Changed History He has been covering the Vatican since 1985 此網頁需要支援 JavaScript 才能正確運行,請先至你的瀏覽器設定中開啟 JavaScript。 This webpage requires JavaScript to function properly Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings Cette page web nécessite JavaScript pour fonctionner correctement Veuillez activer JavaScript dans les paramètres de votre navigateur Esta página web requiere JavaScript para funcionar correctamente habilite JavaScript en la configuración de su navegador Bitte aktivieren Sie JavaScript in Ihren Browser-Einstellungen Для корректной работы этой веб-страницы требуется поддержка JavaScript включите JavaScript в настройках вашего браузера このウェブページを正常に動作するにはJavaScriptが必要です。ブラウザの設定でJavaScriptを有効にしてください。 Tato webová stránka vyžaduje pro svůj správný chod podporu JavaScriptu povolte JavaScript v nastavení vašeho prohlížeče Ez a weboldal a megfelelő működéshez JavaScript támogatásra szorul engedélyezze a JavaScript használatát a böngészőjében Questa pagina web richiede JavaScript per funzionare correttamente Si prega di abilitare JavaScript nelle impostazioni del browser Šī tīmekļa lapa darbībai ir vajadzīgs JavaScript atbalsts ieslēdziet JavaScript savā pārlūkprogrammas iestatījumos Esta página da web requer JavaScript para funcionar corretamente ative o JavaScript nas configurações do seu navegador Deze webpagina vereist JavaScript om correct te functioneren Schakel JavaScript in uw browserinstellingen in Proszę włączyć obsługę JavaScript w ustawieniach przeglądarki Laman web ini memerlukan JavaScript untuk berfungsi dengan betul Sila aktifkan JavaScript dalam tetapan pelayar anda Halaman web ini memerlukan JavaScript untuk berfungsi dengan baik Harap aktifkan JavaScript di pengaturan browser Anda เว็บไซต์นี้ต้องการ JavaScript เพื่อทำงานอย่างถูกต้อง โปรดเปิด JavaScript ในการตั้งค่าบราวเซอร์ของคุณ Bu web sayfasının düzgün çalışması için JavaScript gereklidir Lütfen tarayıcı ayarlarınızda JavaScript'i etkinleştirin Trang web này yêu cầu JavaScript để hoạt động đúng Vui lòng kích hoạt JavaScript trong cài đặt trình duyệt của bạn Эн вэб хуудас нь зөв ажиллахын тулд JavaScript дэмжлэг авах шаардлагатай Таны броузерын тохиргоонд JavaScript-ийг идэвхжүүлнэ үү ဒီဝန်ဆောင်မှုစာမျက်နှာကိုမှားယွင်းရန် JavaScript ကိုလိုအပ်ပါ။ သင့်ရဲ့ဘောဒီကိုပြင်ဆင်ရန် JavaScript ကိုဖွင့်ပါ။ ບໍ່ສາມາດເຮັດວຽກເວັບໄຊນີ້ໄດ້ຖ້າບໍ່ມີການສະຫລັບ JavaScript ກະລຸນາໃຊ້ການຕັ້ງຄ່າຂອງເວັບໄຊໃຫ້ເປີດ JavaScript ກ່ອນ ទំព័រវេបសាយនេះត្រូវការ JavaScript ដើម្បីដំណើរការប្រើប្រាស់បានល្អ។ សូមបើក JavaScript នៅក្នុងការកំណត់របស់អ្នកក្នុងក This morning the Holy Father received in audience: co-ordinator of the Council for the Economy; - His Eminence Cardinal Gualtiero Bassetti president of the Italian Episcopal Conference; - His Eminence Cardinal Gregorio Rosa Chávez - Prelates of the Chinese Regional Bishops’ Conference apostolic administrator of the Kinmen or Quemoy and Matzu Islands; (soruces:https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/en/bollettino/pubblico/2018/05/14/180514a.html) Privacy PolicyAccessibilityRSS Home - The Church - Ten cardinals will lose conclave voting rights in 2022 That means they will no longer be able to participate in the election of a new pope six participated in the 2013 conclave that elected Pope Francis Ricardo Blázquez Pérez will celebrate his 80th birthday paid a visit to Pope Francis at the Vatican in November 2021 He became El Salvador's first cardinal in 2017 He was the President of the Governorate of Vatican City State from 2011 until 2021 He is currently the President of the Pontifical Council for Culture will turn 80 and lose the right to participate in future conclaves The last of the new former cardinal-electors will be Card “Speak with the heart: Veritatem facientes in caritate” (Doing the truth in charity) is the theme for World Day of Social Communications 2023 announced the Holy See Press Office on Thursday which connects with that of 2022 – “Listen with the ear of the heart” is intended to form part of the path that will lead the entire Church to the celebration of the Synod in October 2023 means giving “a reason for your hope” and by doing so gently “using the gift of communication as a bridge and not as a wall.” It is an invitation to “go against the grain” at a time characterized by polarization and heated debates that exacerbate tempers – even in ecclesial life The theme further invites everyone not to “fear to state the at times uncomfortable truth that finds its foundation in the Gospel.” must not be separated from “a style of mercy of sincere participation in the joys and sufferings of people of our time,” as shown in the dialogue between the mysterious wayfarer and the disciples of Emmaus in the Bible In the dramatic context of conflicts in different regions of the globe the theme affirms the importance of non-hostile communication “a communication open to dialogue with the other that strives to dismantle the “psychosis of war” that lurks in our hearts,” as Saint John XXIII prophetically exhorted sixty years ago in Pacem in Terris and in particular those who work in the field of communications are called upon to exercise their profession “as a mission for building a more just appointed two new members and 10 new consultors to the Dicastery for Communications The members include Archbishop Ivan Maffeis archbishop of Perugia-Città della Pieve (Italy) and Bishop Valdir Jose De Castro secretary of the Office of Social Communication of the Federation of Asian Bishops' Conferences (FABC); Oscar Elizade Prada coordinator of the Department of Communication of CELAM; Helen Osman dean of the Faculty of Communication Sciences at the Pontifical Salesian University; Sr head of the National Service for the Pastoral Care of Persons with Disabilities of the Italian Bishops' Conference national executive secretary of the Commission for Social Communications of the Kenyan Bishops' Conference and director of Radio Waumini; Father Andrew Kaufa coordinator of the Office of Communications of the AMECEA Regional Conference of Bishops; Tomas Insua executive director of the Laudato Si movement; Professor Antonio Cisternino president of the University of Pisa's Ateno Information System (CIO); and John E This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page president of the Italian bishops’ conference the president of the Italian bishops’ conference the archbishop of Perugia-Città della Pieve according to a statement released by the bishops’ conference Oct “The cardinal lives this moment with faith and courage,” the bishops’ conference said noting that those who had been in contact with the cardinal were being tested Bassetti is the fourth cardinal to test positive for the coronavirus this year the head of the Vatican’s evangelization congregation tested positive for COVID-19 while traveling to the Philippines The Archdiocese of Manila announced that Tagle had recovered on Sept Cardinal Philippe Ouedraogo of Burkina Faso and Cardinal Angelo De Donatis both tested positive and recovered from COVID-19 in March Europe is currently experiencing a second wave of coronavirus cases which has led France to reimpose a nationwide lockdown and Germany to close all bars and restaurants for a month Italy has documented 156,215 new cases within the past week the Italian government imposed new restrictions requiring all restaurants and bars to close at 6 p.m. with 13 Swiss Guards testing positive for COVID-19 in October the Vatican hotel where Pope Francis lives tested positive for the coronavirus on Oct Italy was one of Europe’s worst-hit countries during the first wave of the coronavirus More than 689,766 people have tested positive for COVID-19 and 37,905 have died in Italy as of Oct The Italian health ministry said Wednesday that the country had recorded 24,991 new cases over 24 hours — a new daily record Some 276,457 people are currently confirmed positive with the virus in Italy The announcement to the Bishops was made by Cardinal Gualtiero Bassetti who read the communication from the Holy Father Pope Francis has appointed the cardinal Matthew Maria Zuppi president of the Italian Bishops' Conference (CEI) the bishops gathered for their 76th General Assembly proceeded with the election of the triad for the appointment of the president in accordance with the provisions of the Statute Today the Vatican announced appointments and confirmations for one of its most significant governing bodies which is responsible for vetting and nominating bishops worldwide president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity; prefect of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life; prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy; secretary general of the Synod of Bishops; Archbishop Vincent Gerard Nichols of Westminster Archbishop Gualtiero Bassetti of Perugia-Citta della Pieve who was provisionally appointed to the position of prefect when Pope Francis took office last spring He has served as head of the Congregation for Bishops since 2010 when he was named to the post by Pope Benedict XVI John Allen describes the process by which the congregation vets and nominates episcopal candidates: Under the Vatican’s process for picking bishops in each country is responsible for compiling a list of names of candidates That terna is then submitted to the Congregation for Bishops whose members vote on the final list to be submitted to the pope Although all members vote on every nomination observers say there’s a natural tendency within the congregation to defer to the members who come from a particular part of the world when a vacancy arises in their region tend to be especially influential in shaping picks for the United States Although in theory the pope is free to ignore the recommendations in most cases the pope simply takes the top pick submitted by the Congregation for Bishops In addition to the new members named today 18 current members of the congregation were confirmed in their positions former prefect for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith Receiving as much, if not more, attention as the new and confirmed members—from US commentators, at least—is one name missing from the lists above: Cardinal Raymond Burke. Cardinal Burke, who is head of the Vatican’s highest court, the Apostolic Signatura, had served on the Congregation for Bishops since 2009. Some, such as Religion News Services’ David Gibson are painting today’s announcement as Pope Francis’ rejection of the “culture warrior” Burke in favor of the “more pastoral” Wuerl: [The Congregation for Bishops] gave Burke a decisive voice in pushing through a number of key stateside appointments sometimes against the wishes of U.S.-based bishops Burke was something of an outlier on that list — a very conservative holdover from the Benedict XVI era and a fan of the kind of high liturgical finery that Pope Francis does not take to Today the calculus of the “Top Four” list changed as Francis dropped Burke from the Congregation for Bishops and added Wuerl The two cardinals are not known to be allies It’s even less likely now that they’ll be exchanging Christmas cards this year Thomas Peters, writing at Catholic Vote has a decidedly different take on the changes at the Congregation for Bishops: [T]he real reason some are trying to make a big deal of this news is because a) they are trying to create the perception that there is a rift between Pope Francis and conservatives and b) because they hope Burke’s absence from the congregation will yield more liberal episcopal appointments here in America There is absolutely no sign the Congregation for Bishops is about to reverse the 70 or 80 streak of conservative Episcopal appointments to U.S dioceses we witnessed under the reign of Pope Benedict  This massive swell of young conservative bishops is already having a huge impact on the Catholic Church in America It was these bishops who upset precedent and elected Cardinal Dolan over Bishop Kicanas for USCCB President Yesterday, April 24th, Gonzaga University’s Faith and Reason Institute welcomed the distinguished Jesuit philosopher and writer, Fr. James V. Schall, SJ, who gave an address, “On Remembering What We Know”, in honor of the prolific […] Italy - January 2022 - With the Eucharist presided on January 31 Archbishop of Perugia-Città della Pieve and President of the Italian Episcopal Conference (CEI ) the celebrations for the centenary of the Salesians have begun in Perugia the cardinal underlined a concept dear to Don Bosco: “Our hope is in young people”; and he continued: “It is very beautiful to see the cathedral full of your significant hope as in this moment your bishop smiles at you “We want to celebrate the hundredth anniversary of the presence of the Salesians in Perugia,” said the cardinal “One hundred years is a long time and the hundreds and hundreds of young people who passed by the Salesians for school sport and formation have been a beautiful and significant presence And the dear image of Don Bosco has been impressed on many people that this is also the case for your lives.” ANS - “Agenzia iNfo Salesiana” is a on-line almost daily publication the communication agency of the Salesian Congregation enrolled in the Press Register of the Tibunal of Rome as n 153/2007 This site also uses third-party cookies to improve user experience and for statistical purposes By scrolling through this page or by clicking on any of its elements Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker (ANS – Rome) – "When I was about nine years l had a dream" - two hundred years have passed since the founding of all Salesian spirituality: St John Bosco's dream at nine years of age It was 1824 and since then hundreds of thousands of young people have gotten to know Don Bosco and his Salesians special lighting for the bas-relief dedicated to the event will be inaugurated at the Don Bosco Basilica in Rome The initiative is part of the rich program of celebrations dedicated to Don Bosco at the Roman parish which will begin on 22 January with the 6:00 pm celebration presided over by Fr Mauro Mantovani Prefect of the Vatican Apostolic Library and Rector Magnificus Emeritus of the Pontifical Salesian University (UPS) From 22 to 31 January – the real feast day of Don Bosco – every day there will be a celebration presided over by Bishops to underline the attention paid to the Patron Saint we try to offer the faithful and the entire community of the parish territory a journey made up of religious celebrations and artistic designed to pay homage to our holy founder and to develop collaboration and shared responsibility in our community This is perhaps one of the best possible ways to carry on Don Bosco's dream 200 years later"  the Rector and Parish Priest of the community the Mass will be celebrated by Fr Pierluigi Cameroni Postulator General of the Causes of Saints of the Salesian Family and will be followed by a meeting of the local Salesian Family on the theme: "The beauty of the Gospel according to the Salesian charism" For the triduum of preparation and the day of the feast itself the Eucharistic concelebrations will be presided over by Bishop Michele di Tolve Auxiliary Bishop of Rome (Sunday 28 January); Cardinal Angelo Bagnasco Archbishop Emeritus of Genoa (Monday 29th); Cardinal Gualtiero Bassetti Archbishop Emeritus of Perugia-Città della Pieve (Tuesday 30th); and Cardinal Robert Sarah Prefect Emeritus of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments (Wednesday 31st) it is worth noting the presence of Fr Luigi Ciotti after the Eucharistic celebration at 6:00 pm will meet the citizens at the Cinema Teatro Don Bosco is "Legality is the tool to achieve justice" after celebrating the Eucharist at 6:00 pm Fr Giulio Albanese – Director of the Office of Social Communications and Missionary Cooperation between the Churches of the Diocese of Rome – will hold a meeting on the subject of "There is No Peace without Justice" 28 January at 4:30 pm; and the concert of voices and music in honour of Don Bosco held by the Maria Ausiliatrice Choir 30 January at 6:00 pm – events that will take place in the Basilica the Basilica itself will be open to the public Sign in to listen to groundbreaking journalism Philippines – Cotabato Archbishop Orlando Quevedo was among the 16 new cardinals named by Pope Francis on Sunday and will join the College of Cardinals in a Consistory to be held in February: The Pope also named into the College of Cardinals 3 Archbishops emeriti distinguished for their service to the Holy See and to the Church: that vested in the virtues and the sentiments of the Lord Jesus they might be able to help more effectively the Bishop of Rome in his service to the universal Church,” continued the statement