On Sunday Pope Francis kicked off the Church’s Advent season saying it is a time to let go of the worldly distractions that take us away from God, and focus on growing closer to him through prayer and concern for others.

Referring to the day’s readings, which stress the importance of being vigilant, the pope said “the watchful person is one who, in the noise of the world, does not let themselves be overwhelmed by distraction or superficiality, but lives in a full and conscious way, with a concern above all for others.”

With this attitude, we quickly become aware “of the tears and necessity of our neighbor and we can also welcome the human and spiritual qualities and capacities,” he said, adding that an attentive person, “also turns to the world, trying to counteract indifference and the cruelty of it, rejoicing in the treasures of beauty that also exist and must be preserved.”

Francis spoke to pilgrims present in St…

Pope Francis flew back to Rome from Dhaka airport Saturday afternoon, concluding his 21st foreign visit outside of Italy that took him to Myanmar and Bangladesh. 

The Pope was given an official farewell at Dhaka airport, where the Minister for Foreign Affairs was present to see him take off on a Bangladesh Airlines aircraft on his flight back to Rome. 

‎The Pope was in Myanmar, Nov…

On Saturday, the last day of his three-day visit to Bangladesh, Pope Francis visited a home for orphans, unwed mothers and destitute elderly run by the nuns of Mother Teresa.   In off-hand remarks to the nuns and priests there he praised Bangladesh for having what he called some of the best inter-religious relations in the world.  The Holy Father later met priests, religious and seminarians.

His last meeting of the entire trip was with young Bangladeshis, among whom were also Muslims and followers of other religions…