Faith

ROME - Celebrating the feast of St. Ignatius with more than 200 of his Jesuit confreres, Pope Francis prayed that he and all of them would receive "the grace of shame" for their failures and the humility to recognize that whatever good they accomplish is really done by the Lord.

VATICAN CITY - An overemphasis on "personal well-being" and general indifference have eroded any sense of responsibility toward others, especially toward the poor, said a note from the Vatican announcing Pope Francis' choice of a theme for World Peace Day 2014.

VATICAN CITY - When Pope Francis told reporters July 28, "Who am I to judge" a homosexual person, he was emphasizing a part of Catholic teaching often overlooked by the media and misunderstood by many people.

VATICAN CITY - At the end of his first foreign trip, Pope Francis told reporters that it's good for a Pope to travel and there are plans in the works for visits in Italy, to Jerusalem, to Asia, but nothing planned soon for his Argentine homeland.

ABOARD THE PAPAL FLIGHT FROM BRAZIL - Pope Francis said he was responding to the clear wishes of the College of Cardinals when he set up commissions to study the Vatican bank, Vatican financial and administrative procedures and the reform of the Roman Curia.

ABOARD THE PAPAL FLIGHT FROM BRAZIL - From his personal prayer life and spirituality to the role of women in the church and the pastoral care of the divorced, Pope Francis responded to several questions about church teaching and ministry July 28 when he met reporters on his flight from Rio de Janeiro to Rome.

ABOARD THE PAPAL FLIGHT FROM BRAZIL - With a few Vatican police standing at attention in the very back of the Alitalia plane flying him back to Rome, Pope Francis told reporters about his security even before being asked.

VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis has named a new commission to investigate current accounting practices among all Vatican offices and bodies and to help devise new strategies for greater fiscal responsibility and transparency.

TORONTO - Catholics aren’t the only ones who go hungry for their faith. On July 8 or 9, depending on lunar sightings, Canada’s one million Muslims began a month of fasting.

Wonderful, wonderful news! John Paul II, the globe-trotting Polish pope who led the Church for 27 years will be canonized by Pope Francis, probably before the end of the year. So, too, will Pope John XXIII, best remembered for calling the Second Vatican Council. But it is John Paul “The Great” who is my subject.