Pope Francis

Pope to LGBT Catholics: ‘God is Father who does not disown any of his children’

10/05/2022

“God’s style is closeness, mercy and tenderness” Pope Francis said answering three questions put to him by Jesuit Fr James Martin who ministers to LGBT Catholics. On 5 May Fr Martin had written to the Pope in Spanish asking him to answer some questions that he is most commonly asked by LGBT Catholics and their families.

He received a hand-written response a couple of days afterward, that was published in the form of a short interview on Fr Martin’s website Outreach… Read more »

The Pope at Regina Caeli: The way to discover the Lord’s love is to listen to him

08/05/2022   St Peter's Square, the Vatican

Dear brothers and sisters, buongiorno!

The Gospel for today’s Liturgy speaks to us about the bond that exists between the Lord and each one of us (cf. Jn 10:27-30). In doing so, Jesus uses a tender image, a beautiful image of the shepherd who stays with the sheep. And he explains it with three verbs: “My sheep”, Jesus says, “hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me” (v… Read more »

Pope at Audience: Faith is not a symbol of our weakness but rather a sign of its strength

04/05/2022   The Vatican

Catechesis on Old Age

Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!

On the path of these catecheses on old age, today we meet a biblical figure – and old man – named Eleazar, who lived at the time of the persecution of Antiochus Epiphanes. He is a wonderful character. His character gives us a testimony of the special relationship that exists between the fidelity of old age and the honour of faith… Read more »

Pope at Regina Coeli: May we rediscover the impulse to do good

01/05/2022

At the Sunday Regina Coeli prayer, Pope Francis encourages us to look beyond the “empty nets” we can find in life and look always with courage to the Lord who can fill our nets with his overflowing love and consolation, renewing our desire to do good.

Dear brothers and sisters, happy Sunday!

The Gospel of today’s Liturgy (Jn 21:1-19) recounts the third appearance of the Risen Jesus to the Apostles… Read more »

Pope at Audience: The bridge between youths and the elderly must be rebuilt in a strong way

27/04/2022   The Vatican

Catechesis on Old Age – Naomi, the alliance between the generations that opens up the future

Dear brothers and sisters, good morning and welcome!

Today we will continue to reflect on the elderly, on grandparents, on old age – the word seems ugly but no, the elderly are great, they are beautiful! And today we will let ourselves be inspired by the splendid book of Ruth, a jewel of the Bible… Read more »

Divine mercy often makes us aware of the sufferings of our neighbour – Pope Francis

24/04/2022   St Peter's Basilica, the Vatican

Today the risen Lord appears to the disciples. To those who had abandoned him he offers his mercy and shows his wounds. The words he speaks to them are punctuated with a greeting that we hear three times in the Gospel: “Peace be with you!” (Jn 20:19.21.26). Peace be with you! These are the words of the risen Jesus as he encounters every human weakness and error… Read more »

Pope at Audience: Bring your young children, closer to the elderly, always bring them closer

20/04/2022   The Vatican

Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!

Today, with the help of the Word of God that we have heard, we open a passage through the fragility of old age, marked in a special way by the experiences of confusion and despondency, of loss and abandonment, of disillusionment and doubt. Of course, the experiences of our frailty in the face of life’s dramatic – sometimes tragic – situations can occur at any stage of life… Read more »

Pope Francis at Urbi et Orbi: Peace is a duty

17/04/2022   Central loggia of the Vatican Basilica

Dear brothers and sisters, Happy Easter!

Jesus, the Crucified One, is risen! He stands in the midst of those who mourned him, locked behind closed doors and full of fear and anguish. He comes to them and says: “Peace be with you!” (Jn 20:19). He shows the wounds in his hands and feet, and the wound in his side. He is no ghost; it is truly Jesus, the same Jesus who died on the cross and was laid in the tomb… Read more »

Pope at Way of the Cross: Grant that we never act as enemies of the cross of Christ, so we may share in the glory of his resurrection

15/04/2022   Rome, Italy

Pope Francis presides over the Way of the Cross on the evening of Good Friday, with families offering meditations for each of the 14 Stations based on their own experiences of suffering and hope.

The traditional Via Crucis returned on Good Friday evening to the Colosseum in Rome for the first time since 2019, a hiatus of nearly three years… Read more »

Pope at Chrism Mass: There is no peace greater than his forgiveness

14/04/2022   Vatican Basilica

In the reading from the Prophet Isaiah that we have heard, the Lord makes a promise full of hope, one that concerns us at first hand: “You shall be called priests of the Lord; they shall speak of you as the ministers of our God… I will faithfully give them their recompense, and I will make an everlasting covenant with them” (61:6.8). Being priests, dear brothers, is a grace, a very great grace, yet it is not primarily a grace for us, but for our people. [1] The fact that the Lord chooses, from among his flock, some who devote themselves exclusively to the care of his flock as fathers and shepherds is a great gift for our people… Read more »