Two cardinals turned 80 last week, bringing the total number of cardinals eligible to vote in a possible conclave to 109. Cardinal Adam Joseph Maida, the retired archbishop of Detroit, turned 80 on March 18, and New Zealand’s Cardinal Thomas Stafford Williams, the retired archbishop of Wellington, turned 80 on Saturday.

The College of Cardinals is currently made up of 182 members, with 73 of them being 80 years old or older, and thus ineligible to vote in a conclave… Read more »

Benedict XVI is planning on spending the entire summer at Castel Gandolfo this year, rather than taking a few days to vacation in the Alps.

“Next summer, the Holy Father will travel directly from Rome to Castel Gandolfo to spend there the entire summer period,” a statement from the Vatican press office announced Thursday.

The communiqué adds that the Pope is appreciative of the invitations that have come this year to spend time in various mountain regions, “and has sincerely thanked the bishops that have made [these invitations].”

“But this year,” the statement reports, “he prefers to quickly begin the summer season of rest and study without taking on more travels.”

VATICAN CITY, (Zenit.org) Read more »

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On Thursday, 1st April, 2010, Archbishop Paul Cremona OP celebrated Pontifical Mass during which he performed the rite of the washing of the feet and commemorated the institution of the Eucharist and the Sacrament of Holy Order, at John’s Co Cathedral, Valletta.

Click on the photo to enlarge… Read more »

On Wednesday,  31st March, 2010, Archbishop Paul Cremona OP led the prayers of the Way of the Cross from Saint Mary Parish in Birkirkara to the grounds of Dar tal-Kleru. Since this year is dedicated to Priesthood, the text used during the Via Crucis was taken from Pope Benedict XVI’s writings.

Click on the photo to enlarge… Read more »

The Vatican announced that it has formed a commission to look into the phenomenon of Medjugorje, in Bosnia-Herzegovina, where six young people have said they have had visions of Mary since the early 1980’s.

A short communique issued by the Vatican press office indicated that, “An international investigative commission on Medjugorje has been constituted, under the presidency of Cardinal Camillo Ruini and dependent upon the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.”

“Said commission — made up of cardinals, bishops, specialists and experts — will work privately, submitting the results of its work to the authority of the dicastery,” added the text… Read more »

‘Experiencing Childhood in Malta’ is DISCERN Institute for Research on the Signs of the Times, latest publication authored by Rev Dr Joe Inguanez and Ms Rebecca Gatt. This study on the Maltese children’s thoughts and attitudes was commissioned by The Children’s Foundation of the Malta Financial and Services Authority.

Several studies indicate that children’s attitudes and behaviour are continuously being influenced by dynamic societal processes… Read more »

The archbishop of Lima has called a Eucharistic and Marian conference in celebration of the Year for Priests and the Eucharistic vocation of the priesthood. Cardinal Juan Luis Cipriani Thorne, archbishop of Lima, announced Wednesday the May 29-June 6 event. He placed the conference in the context of the continental mission called for in 2007 in Aparecida.

“Saints in love with Christ, witnesses of Christ, are needed,” the cardinal said in announcing the event… Read more »

The Holy See added the Catechism of the Catholic Church to the Chinese section of its Web site Thursday.

The Vatican’s semiofficial newspaper, L’Osservatore Romano, reported today in its Italian edition that an online Chinese version of the Catechism is now available, and that the Code of Canon Law and texts from the Second Vatican Council would become available in that language in the coming months… Read more »