April 2015 Archives

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI celebrates his 88th birthday

17/04/2015

The Pope Emeritus, Benedict XVI marked his 88th birthday on Thursday (April 16th) with a Bavarian-style celebration. He received birthday greetings from a group of Gebirgsschutzen (mountain protection units) from his native Bavaria, dressed in traditional costumes. Among those present to celebrate his birthday were his older brother Monsignor Georg Ratzinger and the Prefect of the Pontifical Household, Archbishop George Ganswein.

Since resigning as Pope in February 2013, Benedict XVI has lived a life of prayer and reclusion at the Mater Ecclesiae situated inside the Vatican Gardens. Speaking in an interview with Vatican Radio, Monsignor Alfred Xuereb, the former second secretary of Benedict XVI, said affection for the Pope Emeritus has increased over the past two years…

17/04/2015

Saint John 6:1-15

Jesus went across the Sea of Galilee. A large crowd followed him, because they saw the signs he was performing on the sick. Jesus went up on the mountain, and there he sat down with his disciples. The Jewish feast of Passover was near. When Jesus raised his eyes and saw that a large crowd was coming to him, he said to Philip, “Where can we buy enough food for them to eat?” He said this to test him, because he himself knew what he was going to do. Philip answered him, “Two hundred days’ wages worth of food would not be enough for each of them to have a little (bit).” One of his disciples, Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, said to him, There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish; but what good are these for so many? Jesus said, “Have the people recline.” Now there was a great deal of grass in that place…

16/04/2015

F’Novembru 2014, is-Segretarjat għall-Edukazzjoni Nisranija ħabbar li se jkun hemm erba’ u sittin post għas-subien u wieħed u disgħin post għall-bniet għall-ewwel sena kindergarten fl-iskejjel tal-Knisja. F’Novembru stess saru l-applikazzjonijiet tal-ewwel kriterju, ta’ dawk li jieħdu post mill-ewwel għax, per eżempju, għandhom ħuthom diġà fi skola tal-Knisja. F’Jannar, is-Segretarjat kien ħareġ stqarrija għall-istampa, kif jagħmel kull sena, fejn spjega kemm kienu l-applikazzjonijiet tal-ewwel kriterju u konsegwentement kemm kien baqa’ postijiet, jiġifieri ħamsa u għoxrin għas-subien u tletin għall-bniet…

16/04/2015

On Thursday 16th April 2015, Archbishop Charles J. Scicluna celebrated Mass on the occasion of the State Visit of His Eminence Fra Matthew Festing, Grandmaster of the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of St John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta.
The Archbishop’s homily
Your Excellency Madame President,

Most Eminent Highness, Your Excellencies, members of the Order,

The Maltese are very familiar with four words in Latin that represent the ethos of the Order, which, we Maltese note with pride, takes its name from our country- The four words are: Tuitio Fidei; Obsequium Pauperum, the defence of the faith, respect, or rather, veneration of the poor…

16/04/2015

The number of Catholics in the world and the number of priests and permanent deacons rose slightly in 2013, while the number of men and women in religious orders declined, according to Vatican statistics.

For the second year in a row, the number of candidates for the priesthood also decreased. The numbers come from the Statistical Yearbook of the Church, which was completed in February and published in March…

16/04/2015

St John 3, 31-36

He that cometh from above is above all: he that is of the earth is earthly, and speaketh of the earth: he that cometh from heaven is above all. And what he hath seen and heard, that he testifieth; and no man receiveth his testimony. He that hath received his testimony hath set to his seal that God is true. For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him. The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand. He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him…

15/04/2015

On Tuesday 14th April 2015, Archbishop Charles J. Scicluna celebrated Mass at ‘Dar tal-Kleru’, Fleur-de-lys. The priests who are celebrating the 50th anniversary of their ordination to the priesthood, concelebrated with the Archbishop.
Photos: Ian Noel Pace

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15/04/2015

The image of God is not only displayed in man and woman individually but also together as a couple. These were the words of Pope Francis during his General Audience today in St. Peter’s Square. The Holy Father said that today’s catechesis and the following will reflect on the sacrament of marriage and the complementarity between man and woman.

The Pope began his catechesis by recalling the story of creation in which God, after creating the universe and all living things, created his masterpiece: mankind. “As we all know, sexual difference is present in many forms of life, in the long ladder of the living,” he noted…

15/04/2015

On Divine Mercy Sunday, Pope Francis proclaimed the great Armenian Saint Gregory of Narek a Doctor of the Universal Church. The solemn proclamation took place during the introductory rites at the beginning of a Mass commemorating the 100th anniversary of the beginning of the massacre of Armenians in Ottoman Turkey.

The Prefect for the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, Cardinal Angelo Amato, SDB, made the formal request for the proclamation, recalling the similar declaration, almost one hundred years ago, of another Eastern Saint, Ephrem the Syrian, as a Doctor of the Church…

15/04/2015

St John 3: 16-21

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God…