Month: November 2024

ROME (CNS) – Pope Francis prayed at the graves of children and of miscarried babies on the feast of All Souls before concelebrating Mass with several hundred mourners.

The pope traveled Nov. 2 to Rome’s Laurentino cemetery, which has a special section for children who have died and, nearby, a section called the “Garden of the Angels” where parents who have experienced a miscarriage can opt to have their children buried rather than having a hospital dispose of the remains.

A father who had lost a son greeted the pope, kneeling to kiss the pope’s hand, and then pointing to his son’s grave.

Pope Francis left a bouquet of white roses at the entrance to the garden where stuffed animals, toys, pinwheels and pots of white chrysanthemums in the shape of a heart stand in contrast to the candles and flowers on other graves. The grave markers have only one date on them.

Rather than giving a homily during the Mass, the pope led the congregation in a long moment silent reflection.

Pope Francis’ prayer intention for the month of November is for parents who have lost a child. In his video message asking people to join him in the prayer, he began by saying, “What can we say to parents who have lost a child? How can we console them? There are no words.”

At the end of the Mass, the pope prayed that by visiting the graves of their beloved deceased, people would renew their faith in Jesus, who died, was buried and rose again to save humanity.

The bodies of those who have died will rise again on the last day, he said, and those who have fallen asleep in the Lord will join him in the triumph over death.

He prayed that God would hear people’s prayers for their beloved dead and would “open your arms of mercy” and receive them into the heavenly host.

“Comfort those who are suffering the pain of separation with the certainty that the dead live in you,” he prayed, “and that even the bodies entrusted to the earth will one day participate in the paschal victory of your son.”

The main celebrant at the Mass was Archbishop Diego Ravelli, the master of papal liturgical ceremonies. However, unlike at most public Masses in the last few years where the pope presides, but does not concelebrate, Pope Francis stood for the Eucharistic prayer and concelebrated the Mass.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) – With the Holy Year 2025 beginning on Christmas Eve, the Vatican’s 2024 Christmas stamps feature the Jubilee message of hope as well as a prayer for peace.

Both Christmas stamps, set to go on sale Nov. 4, feature the logo of the Holy Year.

The 1.25-euro stamp features “the Christmas angel bearing a scroll that reads ‘Glory to God’ and ‘Peace on Earth,'” excerpts from the hymn Luke 2:14 says was sung by the angels announcing the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem, said a note from the Vatican philatelic office.

“It is the invocation that in recent years rises heartfelt from so many parts of the world crushed by violence and war,” said the note, released Oct. 30.

The second stamp, with a value of 1.30 euros, shows the Baby Jesus in the manger with his hand raised in blessing. A scroll above his head has the Latin title of Pope Francis’ bull of indiction, formally proclaiming the Holy Year: “Spes Non Confundit,” which means “Hope does not disappoint.”

The Vatican post office also sells two of each stamp in a booklet for collectors; the cover features a detail from Orazio Zecca da Montefortino’s early 17th-century painting, the Adoration of the Shepherds, which is kept in the Rome Basilica of St. Mary Major.

ROME (CNS) – Approximately 40,000 visitors enter St. Peter’s Basilica each day, and now they can gain deeper insights into what they are seeing inside the world’s largest church.

In the leadup to the Holy Year 2025, the Vatican inaugurated the “Official Area” for St. Peter’s Basilica. Located at the start of the long avenue leading to the basilica, the center aims to enhance pilgrims’ experiences and serve as a information point.

Cardinal Mauro Gambetti, archpriest of the basilica, blessed the information point during its inauguration Oct. 31, stating that enhancing the visitor experience for the basilica “fosters spaces of freedom in each person’s heart to return to a deep awareness of oneself, but also of the other.”

Inside, visitors will find informative books, guides, memorabilia from the basilica, and they can buy tickets to visit the dome — the only part of the basilica that requires a paid ticket. Above all they can encounter a multilingual staff that can answer their questions.

Any profits from the sale of goods from the info point will be used for nonprofit projects in partnership with the Be Human Foundation.

The info point will also offer augmented reality experiences to show visitors aspects of the basilica in greater detail, such as the recent restoration of Gian Lorenzo Bernini’s 10-story bronze canopy that stands over the basilica’s main altar.

For those with mobility concerns, the center provides support to organize accessible visits to the basilica, including tactile resources for the visually impaired.

Franciscan Father Enzo Fortunato, communications director of St. Peter’s Basilica, told Catholic News Service that people visiting Rome “many times, not knowing the city, feel lost, and so having a signpost that can help them orient themselves I think is a service in the true sense of the word.”

As a major destination for pilgrims, the basilica should be accessible to everyone, he said, and the church should enable visitors to have a meaningful and profound experience as they walk through it.

Many visitors “come here only once their whole lives,” he said. “If we are not close to these people, then who should we be close to?”

Cardinal Gambetti said that the next step for the basilica lies in the digital realm: the basilica is in the process of launching a digital platform that includes an app with podcasts, videos and information about religious sites in Rome.

The platform will help people reserve tours for groups and advise pilgrims, in real time, which sites are busy and suggesting alternatives.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Young people need “big-hearted educators” to guide them through the complexities of modernity, Pope Francis told leaders in Catholic education.

Speaking to members of the educational engagement branch of the Italian lay Catholic Action movement Oct. 31, the pope highlighted the critical role of Catholic educators in shaping young people and society in the face of widespread cultural shifts and secularization.

“In this change of epoch, amid the process of secularization” — which he described as “clearly the spirit of this world” — education “finds itself immersed in an almost unprecedented horizon,” the pope said. As a result, “Chistian education traverses uncharted terrain, marked by anthropological and cultural changes on which we are still seeking answers in the light of the Word of God.”

Leaders in Catholic education, he said, “should not be afraid to put forward high ideals, to not be discouraged in the face of difficulties.”

To be effective agents of change, Pope Francis encouraged Catholic educators to “build and strengthen fruitful relationships with different actors in the process of education: families, teachers, social actors, coaches, catechists, priests, religious women and men, without overlooking collaboration with public institutions.”

He also stressed the importance of involving children directly, since children “must not be passive in the educational process; they must be active.”

In his vision for Catholic education, Pope Francis urged educators to center their work on the dignity of each person.

“Bring forward an idea and practice of education that effectively places each person, his or her essential value and original dignity, at the center,” he said.

Teaching, he added, “means first of all rediscovering and valuing the centrality of the person in a relationship where the dignity of human life finds fulfillment and adequate space to grow.”

Looking ahead to the Holy Year 2025, Pope Francis called for particular attention to be given to young people, who are “the present and the future of the church.” He urged educators to look to young people with “trust, empathy, with the gaze and heart of Jesus,” embodying a compassionate approach to teaching and mentorship.

November 4, 2024

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

 

Every December 8, Catholics joyfully celebrate the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Patroness of the United States.

This year, December 8 will fall on a Sunday – specifically the Second Sunday of Advent.

As a result, the celebration of the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception is transferred to Monday, December 9th.

In the past, it was understood that when this situation occurred, the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception did not maintain the obligation to attend Mass due to its proximity to the Sunday Mass obligation. However, the Holy See just recently clarified that the obligation must remain.

As we quickly approach the end of the liturgical year, I am keenly aware that many parishes have already finalized their schedules for December and many deaneries are planning communal penance services around that time. Furthermore, the short notice of this change might cause confusion.

Therefore, in accord with canon 87, §1, I am hereby granting a dispensation to the Catholic faithful from the obligation to attend Mass on Monday, December 9, 2024, the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception throughout the territory of the Diocese of Scranton.

In granting this dispensation, I want to emphasize two things.

First, while the obligation will not be in effect this year, I strongly encourage all faithful who are able to make a special effort to attend Mass on December 9, or do some form of extra prayer, like praying the Rosary.

Second, this dispensation is for this year (2024) only. Next year, in 2025, the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception will fall on a Monday and there will be NO dispensation from the obligation to attend Mass on that day.

Please be assured of my prayers for you and your family as the sacred season of Advent approaches.

 

Faithfully yours in Christ,

 

Most Reverend Joseph C. Bambera, D.D., J.C.L.

Bishop of Scranton

 

 

VATICAN CITY (CNS) – God wants everyone to be a saint, and the clearest path to achieving that goal is loving service to others, Pope Francis said.

Celebrating the feast of All Saints, the pope led the midday recitation of the Angelus prayer Nov. 1 with thousands of visitors in St. Peter’s Square. Hundreds of them had just finished the annual Race of the Saints, a 10-km run that begins and ends at the square.

The runners remind everyone that “the Christian life is a race, but not the way the world races, no! It is the race of a heart that loves,” the pope said, adding thanks to the runners for supporting a Salesian Missions’ project in Ukraine.

God calls everyone to holiness, the pope said, and he gives all the baptized what they need to become saints, “but he does not impose it.”

God gives everyone the freedom to follow the example of Jesus, to discern and accept God’s plan, to treat others the way God would and to place themselves at “the service of others with an ever more universal charity, open and addressed to all,” Pope Francis said.

The Eight Beatitudes, listed in the feast day’s Gospel reading — Matthew 5:1-12 — are a clear roadmap to sainthood, the pope said, and the path followed by Blessed Carlo Acutis, St. Maximilian Kolbe, St. Teresa of Kolkata and St. Oscar Romero.

Everyone can list many saints, he said, both those formally canonized and those “I like to call the ‘saints next door,’ the everyday, hidden ones who carry on their daily Christian lives,” the pope said. “Brothers and sisters, how much hidden holiness there is in the church!”

“So many brothers and sisters” have lived lives “shaped by the Beatitudes: poor, meek, merciful, hungry and thirsty for justice, peacemakers,” he said. “They are ‘God-filled’ people, unable to remain indifferent to their neighbor’s needs; they are witnesses of luminous paths, which is possible for us as well.”

The feast of All Saints is a good time to reflect, Pope Francis said. “Do I ask God, in prayer, for the gift of a holy life? Do I let myself be guided by the good impulses that his Spirit inspires in me? And do I commit myself personally to practicing the Beatitudes of the Gospel?”

The pope also encouraged people to visit, if possible, the graves of their loved ones Nov. 2, the feast of All Souls. And he told them the Mass “is the greatest and most effective prayer for the souls of the deceased.”

As always, the pope asked people in the square to pray for peace in Ukraine, Israel and Palestine, for the victims of a terrorist attack on a military base in Chad Oct. 28, and for the victims of recent flooding in Spain, particularly in and around Valencia.