News

Prayer to St Valentine, patron of engaged couples and happy marriages

  • It’s easy to forget in today’s world that Valentine’s Day is actually the feast of St Valentine, a Roman bishop during the 3rd century. A popular tradition surrounding St Valentine is that he secretly married Christian couples and was eventually arrested and killed for his actions.

    The story is one of the primary reasons why St Valentine has been associated with lovers over the years…

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Card. Newman and Indian Sr Mariam Thresia cleared for sainthood

  • Pope Francis on Tuesday cleared the way for the sainthood of renowned English Cardinal John Henry Newman and an Indian nun, and brought 6 others a step closer to canonization. 

    The Pope received in audience Cardinal Angelo Becciu, the Prefect of the Vatican Congregation for the Causes of Saints and authorized him to promulgated two decrees on miracles for sainthood, a decree on martyrdom and 5 on heroic virtues. 

    Cardinal Newman

    A miracle attributed to the intercession of Cardinal Newman has been recognized, clearing him for canonization. 

    Born in London on 21 February 1801 and died in Edgbaston on 11 August 1890, the noted theologian and poet was first an Anglican priest and later a Catholic priest and cardinal, who was an important figure in the religious history of England of his time…

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Owners or guardians? Moral and ecological significance of ‘Laudato Si”

Public lecture by the Interdiocesan Environment Commission

  • The Interdiocesan Environment Commission is holding a public lecture on the rights, freedoms and responsibilities towards the environment in the light of Pope Francis’ encyclical on ecology, Laudato Si’.

    Prof.  José Carlos De Miranda, from the Catholic University of Portugal and the University of Lisbon – Centre of Philosophy, will discuss the theme: “Owners or Guardians? Moral and Ecological Significance of Laudato Si’”…

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Pope Francis to visit Naples in June

  • During his visit to Naples on 21 June 2019, Pope Francis will take part in a meeting on “Theology after Veritatis Gaudium in the Mediterranean context”.

    In a communiqué released on Monday, the interim Director of the Vatican Press Office, Alessandro Gisotti, said the Pope will arrive around 9am and will address participants in the conference.

    Pope Francis will be welcomed by Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe, the Archbishop of Naples, Bishop Francesco Marino of Nola, and Fr…

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Should Christians be politically engaged?

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  • The question whether Christians should participate in politics may sound rhetorical. The answer is clearly affirmative: they should, first and foremost as citizens. Drawing on some ideas in political philosophy and key principles in Catholic social thought, the first session of the course God & Politics will discuss the why and the how (and the how not) of Christians’ participation in a pluralistic society…

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What’s the secret ingredient in the Lourdes water?

  • In a crucial scene in DreamWorks Animation’s Kung Fu Panda, Mr Ping (who raised Po) tells Po that the secret ingredient in his famous Noodle Soup is … nothing! Po can’t believe what he is hearing, but Mr Ping tells him, “In order to make something special, you just have to BELIEVE that it is special!” This revelation finally helps Po overcome his self-doubt and defeat his nemesis…

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Pope to World Government Summit: There is no development without solidarity

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  • World leaders are currently meeting at the World Government Summit, taking place in Dubai from 10-12 February. In his video message, Pope Francis greets those participating in the Summit and recalls his own visit to the United Arab Emirates earlier this month. “I encountered a modern country which is looking to the future without forgetting its roots”, he said…

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Pope to Italian judges: justice is for the good of society

  • Pope Francis on Saturday met Italian judges and spoke to them about the importance of justice for the equilibrium and good of society in the changing contexts of time. 

    Justice is a “cardinal virtue” because it “indicates the right direction”, and “without justice all social life remains jammed”, the Pope told a group of representatives of the National Association of Judges of Italy who met him in the Vatican on the occasion of the 110thanniversary of their group…

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Does our environment have to endure this much?

Statement by the Interdiocesan Environment Commission

  • The Interdiocesan Environment Commission (KA) cannot understand why some are surprised that our country is facing a crisis when it comes to construction waste. What has long been crystal clear to people with a strategic vision, does not seem to have been so obvious to whoever was or is responsible for generating such waste and to the authorities who should have devised plans to avoid ending up in the situation we are in today long ago…

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