FAITH/STORIES
"Amoris Laetitia" lets us know sex is not something to be looked down upon
By Michael Swan, The Catholic RegisterSex is not something the Church fears or is trying to control. Sex is not the opposite of prayer and spirituality, it’s not something we grudgingly concede to the young. Sex is not merely the mechanism of reproduction, although there’s no such thing as a full and true understanding of sex that can’t live with our human capacity to make babies.
Pope Francis’ long meditation on love in the family does more than sum up two meetings of the world’s bishops in Rome in 2014 and 2015. Francis is bringing a new spark to an old fire.
TORONTO – In six months Cardinal Thomas Collins’ misgivings about the 2015 Synod on the Family have been banished by a deeply scriptural Synod summation from Pope Francis.
Persecution is the Church's daily bread
Pope Francis said on Tuesday that "persecution is the Church’s daily bread.”
Pope Francis warns against those who 'judge' with closed hearts
Pope Francis on Monday spoke of the importance of taking stock of what is in people’s hearts and lives instead of only taking the law into account.
For Catholic astronauts, flying to space doesn't mean giving up the faith
By Dennis Sadowski, Catholic News ServiceWASHINGTON - On the International Space Station there's a place, while filled with robotic equipment, where astronauts like to hang out. Called the Cupola, the small module has seven large bay windows that give crew members a panoramic view of Earth.
50 years ago, Time asked if God was dead? Millions today would say no
By Mark Pattison, Catholic News ServiceWASHINGTON - It hit like the proverbial ton of bricks: the Time magazine cover story of April 8, 1966 — Good Friday that year — asking, “Is God Dead?”
Canadian bishops point to "Amoris Laetitia" in fight against euthanasia
By Deborah Gyapong, Canadian Catholic NewsOTTAWA — Canada’s Catholic bishops are glad to count Pope Francis as an ally in their fight against euthanasia. The bishops were anxious to point out how strong the Pope rejects euthanasia in his post-synodal exhortation Amoris Laetita: On Love in the Family, Apr. 8, noting in its teachings its rejection of euthanasia.
Document on family develops doctrine, doesn't change it, says Schonborn
By Carol Glatz, Catholic News ServiceVATICAN CITY - Pope Francis' document on the family reflects an "organic development" of Church teaching and doctrine, said Vienna Cardinal Christoph Schonborn, theologian and participant in both Synods that dealt with the topic.
Gestures, spirituality are essential in family life, Pope says
By Junno Arocho Esteves, Catholic News ServiceVATICAN CITY – Simple gestures such as a kind look or a morning kiss and family prayer can strengthen couples in living out their vocation to marriage, Pope Francis said in his apostolic exhortation.
Share truth of family with mercy, Pope says in apostolic exhortation
By Cindy Wooden, Catholic News ServiceVATICAN CITY – The same mercy and patience that are essential for building a strong family must be shown to those whose families are in trouble or have broken up, Pope Francis said in his highly anticipated post-synodal apostolic exhortation.
Papal exhortation expected to stress broader conception of family
By Rosie Scammell, Religion News ServiceVATICAN CITY - Pope Francis’ landmark text on the family, scheduled for release on Friday, is expected to encourage a more open attitude toward the non-nuclear family but contain no change in Church doctrine.
Pope to visit Lesbos to highlight plight of refugees
By Carol Glatz, Catholic News ServiceVATICAN CITY - In an effort to highlight the dramatic situation of refugees left in limbo on the Greek island of Lesbos, Pope Francis and other Christian leaders will meet with the migrants April 16.