St John 15:18-21 Jesus said to his disciples: “If the world hates you, realize that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, the world would love its own; but because you do not belong to the world, and I have chosen you out of the world, the world hates you. Remember the word I spoke to you, ‘No slave is greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you…
"Research requires unwavering attention to moral issues if it is to be an instrument which safeguards human life and the dignity of the person"
29/04/2016
Pope Francis on Friday addressed participants of an International Conference on the Progress of Regenerative Medicine and its Cultural Impact. The Conference is being sponsored by the Pontifical Council for Culture, the Stem for Life Foundation, and the STOQ Foundation. The 2016 conference focused on pediatric cancers and rare diseases, as well as diseases that occur with aging. It featured talks and discussions with leading cell therapy scientists, physicians, patient advocates, ethicists, philanthropists, leaders of faith and government officials…
Archbishop celebrates Mass on the installation of the new Parish Priest of Tal-Ibraġ
29/04/2016
Nhar il-Ħadd 24 ta’ April 2016, l-Arċisqof Charles J. Scicluna ċċelebra Quddiesa tal-pussess tal-kappillan il-ġdid tal-Ibraġ, Dun Mario Tong, fil-Knisja Parrokjali. Homily by Archbishop Charles J. Scicluna
Knisja Parrokjali Tal-Ibraġ 24 ta’ April 2016 Għażiż Fr Mario, nixtieq inwassal ftit kliem ta’ inkoraġġiment u nsellem lil din il-komunità għażiża li int se tkun bħala r-ragħaj tagħha. L-ewwel ispirazzjoni li tiġini hija mill-Ewwel Qari tal-lum (Atti 14, 21-27) fejn nisimgħu b’ħafna postijiet b’mod speċjali fil-Greċja u fit-Turkija, li kienu l-bliet fejn marru Pawlu u Barnaba…
There is always resistance to the surprises of the Spirit, but it’s the Spirit who continues to lead the Church forward. That was Pope Francis’ message at Mass on Thursday at the Santa Marta chapel as he reflected on the reading about division and resistance within the early Church in Jerusalem. Commenting on today’s reading from Acts about the Council of Jerusalem, Pope Francis said the protagonist in the Church is always the Holy Spirit…
St John 15:12-17 Jesus said to his disciples: “This is my commandment: love one another as I love you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. I no longer call you slaves, because a slave does not know what his master is doing…
Being deprived of the possibility of conscientious objection is another type of persecution, says the Pope.
28/04/2016
Pope Francis on Tuesday said that, “persecution is the Church’s daily bread”. Speaking during morning Mass at the Casa Santa Marta, the Pope recalled the first Christian martyr, St Stephen and said that “still today so many Christians are killed or persecuted for their faith in Christ”. Pope Francis said “there are bloody persecutions, like being torn to pieces by wild beasts to the delight of the audience in the stands or being blown up by a bomb at the end of Mass” and there are “velvet-gloved” persecutions that are “cloaked in politeness”: the ones that marginalize you, take your job away if you fail to adapt to laws that “go against God the Creator.” The story of the martyrdom of Stephen, described in the Acts of the Apostles in the liturgy of the day, led the Pope to remark on how persecution is a reality that has been part of the history of Christian faith for 2000 years…
St John 15:9-11 Jesus said to his disciples: “As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. “I have told you this so that my joy might be in you and your joy might be complete.” Saint of the day: St…
On Wednesday 27th April 2016, Archbishop Charles J. Scicluna received the new Ambassador for the United States of America, H.E. G. Kathleen Hill, during a courtesy visit at the Archbishop’s Curia, Floriana. Photo: Curia Communications Office
The story of the Good Samaritan and its lesson of “love thy neighbour” were at the heart of Pope Francis’ catechesis during the General Audience on Wednesday 27th April. Message by Pope Francis Dear Brothers and Sisters: In our catechesis for this Holy Year of Mercy, we now turn to the parable of the Good Samaritan. Jesus had taught the great commandment of love for God and neighbour. In reply to the question: “Who is my neighbour?”, he recounts the story of the priest and the levite who pass by a man in need at the side of the road. Their religiosity is ultimately inauthentic, for it does not find expression in service to others. Love, the Lord tells us, is never abstract or distant; it “sees” and it responds. The compassion shown by the Samaritan is an image of the infinite mercy of God, who always sees our needs and draws near to us in love.
The command to love God and neighbour, then, is supremely practical; it entails caring for others even to the point of personal sacrifice. By the end of the parable, we see that the “neighbour” is not so much the man in need, but rather the one who responded to that need with compassion. Jesus tells all of us to be neighbours in this sense: “Go and do likewise”. He himself is the model of the Good Samaritan; by imitating his love and compassion, we show ourselves truly to be his followers…
St John 15:1-8 Jesus said to his disciples: “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine grower. He takes away every branch in me that does not bear fruit, and everyone that does he prunes so that it bears more fruit. You are already pruned because of the word that I spoke to you. Remain in me, as I remain in you…
