Pope Francis recognized the martyrdom of members of a Polish family who were sheltering a Jewish family during World War II, and, for the first time, advanced the sainthood cause of a candidate under the category of heroically offering his life out of loving service to others.

Pope Francis said he wrote a resignation letter in 2013, his first year in office, to be used in case he became physically or mentally impaired and unable to fulfill the duties of the papacy.

Fourth Sunday of Advent (Year A) Dec. 18 (Isaiah 7:10-14; Psalm 24; Romans 1:1-7; Matthew 1:18-24)

God, give me a sign! How often we may have wished and prayed fervently for a sign, especially when we were in a desperate situation. 

Third Sunday of Advent (Year A) Dec. 11 (Isaiah 35:1-6a, 10; Psalm 146; James 5:7-10; Matthew 11:2-11)

Should we blame God for the dark and frightening state of the world? People tend to do that in one way or another. Either they blame God for “allowing” negative things to happen and then reject God, or they accuse God outright of being the perpetrator. 

Graydon Nicholas, the former Lieutenant Governor of New Brunswick, will share his devotion to Our Lady of Guadalupe in Hamilton, Ont., Dec. 12.

Second Sunday of Advent (Year A) Dec. 4 (Isaiah 11:1-10; Psalm 72; Romans 15:4-9; Matthew 3:1-12)

The prophecy from Isaiah does not describe anyone we have ever met, or the sort of person seen in the media. Although a descendant of King David, the figure seems to be from another world far above our own. He represents humanity’s hope and dream for millennia — someone who will put the world right. The saviour figure is one who is wise, just, righteous in judgment, incorruptible and filled with understanding and knowledge of God. 

These are dangerously murky times. Passionate voices ring out all over; few listen to each other. We risk losing one another as forces pull and push us apart, like the sudden crush in a crowd, when people going different directions create forces by which some get suffocated and trampled. How can we find our way together amidst such forces?  

Presenting the Ratzinger Prize to a French Jesuit theologian and a Jewish law professor, Pope Francis paid tribute to his predecessor and his theological work.

Three years after Pope Francis appointed him to speed up financial reforms, transparency and budget controls at the Vatican, Jesuit Father Juan Antonio Guerrero Alves has resigned for health reasons.

While formal dialogue about the theological and historical causes of the splits in Christianity are essential, so, too, is a recognition that "sinful actions and attitudes" have contributed and continue to contribute to divisions in the body of Christ, Pope Francis said.