Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A) Feb. 16, 2014 (Sirach 15:15-20; Psalm 119; 1 Corinthians 2:6-10; Matthew 5:17-37)

Accepting responsibility for one’s actions is a rather uncommon human trait. People love to blame everyone and everything — it’s the fault of my parents, my religion, my environment, my genes or even God. The role of victim is more comfortable than that of perpetrator.

For more than a thousand years, Christians have not had the joy of being one family around Christ. Although there were already tensions within the earliest Christian communities, it was not until the year 1054 that there was a formal split so as to, in effect, establish two formal Christian communities, the Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church in the West. Then, with the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century, there was a further split within the Western Church and Christianity fragmented still further. Today there are more than a hundred Christian denominations, many of them, sadly, not on friendly terms with each other.

VATICAN CITY - Courageously follow Jesus in seeking out the poor and sinners, and in making difficult sacrifices in order to help and heal others, Pope Francis said.

VATICAN CITY - Three key figures in the establishment of the Catholic Church in Canada and in Brazil are likely to be declared saints before the end of the year, said a Jesuit who is helping prepare the material needed for their canonizations.

VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis has chosen the theme, "He became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich," for this year's Lenten message, said a Vatican statement Jan. 31.

On one of the darkest, chilliest days of the year, I met an old friend. This day had been long coming: I’d accidentally managed to stand him up a couple of times before this rendez-vous. He forgave me.

Given the speed and change in our world today, the oceans of information being given us by the new technologies, the speed with which knowledge now passes through our lives, the increasing specialization and fragmentation inside higher education and the ever-increasing complexity of our lives, you occasionally hear someone say, usually just after offering an opinion on something: But what do I know anyway? Good question: What do we know anyway?

Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A) Feb. 9 (Isaiah 58:6-10; Psalm 112; 1 Corinthians 2:1-5; Matthew 5:13-16)

Religion can be a risky business. The prophets of Israel and Jesus of Nazareth recognized the care and spiritual awareness required in the exercise of faith and worship. Without this care, religion — any religion — can become many things, none of them divine: opiate of the masses, maintainer of the status quo, superstition and even a tool of oppression.

VATICAN CITY - Prayers of praise for God aren't just for charismatics, Pope Francis said in a morning homily.

VATICAN CITY - As protests against the Ukrainian president spread to cities across the country, Pope Francis offered his prayers for the nation's people, "particularly for those who lost their lives in the last few days and for their families."