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Pope Francis opens the Holy Door of St. Peter's Basilica to inaugurate the Jubilee Year of Mercy at the Vatican Dec. 8.

Holy Year is a reminder to put mercy before judgment, Pope says

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VATICAN CITY - On a cloudy, damp morning, Pope Francis' voice echoed in the atrium of St. Peter's Basilica: "Open the gates of justice." With five strong thrusts, the pope pushed open the Holy Door, a symbol of God's justice, which he said will always be exercised "in the light of his mercy."

Members of the Carabinieri, the Italian military police force, stand guard as people leave Pope Francis' Angelus blessing in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican Nov. 22.

Pope Francis to inaugurate Holy Year of Mercy amid security concerns

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VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis will open the Catholic Church’s jubilee on mercy on Tuesday, a nearly year-long event that is expected to bring millions of pilgrims to Rome despite security concerns and logistical challenges.

Pope Francis gestures as he leads his Angelus from the window of his studio overlooking St. Peter's Square at the Vatican Dec. 6.

Stopping climate change, poverty go hand-in-hand, says Pope

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VATICAN CITY - Heads of states at the U.N. climate change conference in Paris must do everything possible to mitigate the effects of both climate change and poverty "for the good of our common home," Pope Francis said.

In Rome or at home, Catholics urged to take part in Year of Mercy

In Rome or at home, Catholics urged to take part in Year of Mercy

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VATICAN CITY - Whether in Rome or at home, Catholics will have a variety of ways to take part in the Year of Mercy.

A young woman studies the Bible at St. Mary of Celle Parish in Berwyn, Ill., in this 2009 file photo. Pope Francis has repeatedly encouraged the faithful to carry a pocket-sized Bible and to read several verses a day.

'Dei Verbum' at 50: Where have all the Bibles gone?

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VATICAN CITY - Fifty years ago, the Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation (Dei Verbum) urged the faithful to nourish their faith by reading the Bible, putting an end to centuries of seeing direct access to the Scriptures as something reserved to the clergy.

Proclaim Gospel, worry less about structures, Pope tells German bishops

Proclaim Gospel, worry less about structures, Pope tells German bishops

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VATICAN CITY - The Catholic Church in Germany has strong institutions that contribute much to society and are extremely generous internationally, but Christianity must be more about proclaiming faith and less about maintaining impressive institutions, Pope Francis told the country's bishops.

People observe a minute of silence at the Trocadero in Paris Nov. 16.

World religious leaders condemn Paris carnage

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VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis raised the specter of a World War III “in pieces,” Muslims issued statements of condemnation, while evangelical Christians in America debated whether to speak of a “war with Islam.”

Fr. Timothy Gallagher, OSV, gave a retreat on Ignatian discernment to about 150 people in Ottawa Nov. 4

Discerning God’s will when either choice is good

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OTTAWA - Discerning God’s will when one choice is clearly immoral is easy, but discerning among good options can be helped by advice from St. Ignatius, Fr. Timothy Gallagher told a recent retreat in Ottawa.

A large family is pictured eating dinner together in late May at their St. Louis home. A family that chooses to watch TV or play with their smartphones rather than talk at the dinner table is "hardly a family," Pope Francis said.

A family that doesn't eat together is 'hardly a family,' Pope says

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VATICAN CITY - A family that chooses to watch TV or play with their smartphones rather than talk at the dinner table is "hardly a family," Pope Francis said.

Pope Francis celebrates the closing Mass of the Synod of Bishops on the family in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican Oct. 25.

Tense Synod ends by opening door for divorced, punting on gays

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VATICAN CITY - A momentous and divided gathering of global bishops ended Oct. 24 by endorsing ways that could lead to greater participation by divorced and remarried Catholics — a major source of friction here — while the 270 bishops declined to take up the even more controversial issue of how and whether to be more welcoming to gays.

Toronto’s Cardinal Thomas Collins speaks at a synagogue in Toronto. A mere 50 years ago, it would have been unheard of for a Catholic priest to do such a thing. But with the Vatican II declaration Nostra Aetate, the Catholic Church opened itself to the other faiths of the world. Oct. 28 marks the 50th anniversary of Nostra Aetate.

Nostra Aetate opened Catholics to the world

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In or out? Us or them? Where do we draw the line? Should we draw the line? Once a line is drawn, how do we look beyond our borders?

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