Category: 2025 News

PARIS (OSV News) – A mere three months after Notre Dame Cathedral reopened, some Catholics in France worry the massive influx of tourists has overshadowed its religious essence.

But the auxiliary bishop of Paris told OSV News it’s the opposite — with a large flow of people, more strangers are exposed to the Catholic faith, with their hearts touched by God’s presence in renovated interiors.

With 29,000 visitors a day, up from 23,500 a day before the fire in 2019, Notre Dame’s guest rates are comparable to those of the Louvre Museum, even though the museum’s surface area is considerably larger.

Auxiliary Bishop Emmanuel Tois of Paris, whose office is just about 60 feet from the cathedral, told OSV News that the number of tourists flooding the cathedral doesn’t bother him. It’s a chance to meet the Lord, he said.

Bishop Tois said that the rector and chaplains of Notre Dame often circulate among the visitors in the aisles of the cathedral. “And they are regularly approached by people who ask for explanations, and who sometimes explicitly ask them how they can be baptized.”

Bishop Tois often celebrates Mass at Notre Dame himself, and regularly goes there on Saturday mornings to hear confessions.

“People come to me for confession even if they had not thought of it when they walked in,” he recounted. “Some tell me it is the first time they have been to confession in 40 years! Others are not baptized and know nothing about faith. But they come and sit next to me and ask me lots of questions,” he said of the conversion power of the place.

“They have come to visit a historic place, which had to be seen, given its notoriety. But in the course of the visit, they are surprised by metaphysical questions that sometimes touch explicitly on faith,” Bishop Tois said.

When asked about criticism by Alain-Marc Plasman in the French Catholic paper La Croix that the cathedral “locked in its status as a monument … loses its primary function,” Bishop Tois said that “Notre Dame has been offering visitors works that speak of God for 900 years, and that intrigues them.”

He explained that “visits do not stop during Masses and liturgical services. Visitors are interested in what is going on. They are respectful. They lower their voices and watch. They see that this heritage has been handed down and is still alive today. Many are impressed.”

“The cathedral is always full, whatever the time, and it is true that when you enter it, you can be surprised by the noise and tourist bustle there,” Bishop Tois told OSV News. “It is also true that many visitors are moved by the aesthetic beauty of the cathedral, just as one might be when visiting a fine museum.”

For Mathieu Lours, too, the “historical density” of Notre Dame, which attracts the crowds, is not in contradiction with its religious life.

“As for the crowd of visitors who pass through the doors of the cathedral, how does their presence interfere with the spiritual life of the building?” the architecture historian asked in La Croix.

“Its openness to all is rather a guarantee of its vitality,” Lours wrote. “How could a cathedral, in today’s world, be a place of conversion if it only attracts the convinced? Crowds are the hallmark of great sanctuaries. And the Church must take up the challenge of maintaining, despite everything, the dignity that is due to them.”

He also pointed out that the cathedral is a witness to the living faith with the Blessed Sacrament that “has found its place within a tabernacle placed on the high altar. Every visitor, every faithful now understands — or at least has the intuition — that the centre of the cathedral is this inaccessible space … It is the very definition of the sacred that he experiences here.”

Bishop Tois agreed. “From the outset, the Archdiocese of Paris has endeavored to welcome both pilgrims — who know they are pilgrims — and other visitors,” he told OSV News.

“That’s why we don’t charge admission to the cathedral. We must not separate pilgrims from other visitors. People enter Notre Dame with many different approaches. There are those who have a very lively faith, and those who are conscious of not having faith,” he said.

“But between the two, there is a whole margin of people who are neither on one side nor the other, and who, moreover, do not want to be lumped into one side or the other. But they are receptive when they enter the cathedral, and can open up to an unexpected encounter.”

He concluded: “Many are likely to let themselves be touched by a visit to Notre Dame, even if they first entered it simply as tourists. I am a witness to that.”

VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Pope Francis marked Ash Wednesday on his 20th day in Rome’s Gemelli hospital by taking part in the rite of the blessing of the ashes and receiving them in a short prayer service, the Vatican said.

While the 88-year-old pope’s overall clinical case remained complex, his condition was “stable” and he did not experience any episodes of “respiratory insufficiency,” the Vatican said in its evening medical bulletin March 5.

The pope received ashes and the Eucharist in the morning from a celebrant, who was not named in the bulletin. It was most likely one of the hospital chaplains, a Vatican source said.

The rite was held in the private suite of rooms on the 10th floor of the hospital where the pope has been receiving treatment for double pneumonia and other respiratory ailments, the Vatican said.

The pope was diagnosed with double pneumonia Feb. 18 after being admitted to the hospital Feb. 14 for breathing difficulties. A Vatican source said the pneumonia is following a “normal evolution” that is expected to be seen in someone receiving treatment. Each case is different and “patience is needed” because the illness “does not disappear in one day,” the source said.

The pope is “in a good mood” and cooperative, the source added.

Pope Francis spent March 5 sitting in an armchair and increased the amount of “respiratory physiotherapy” he has been getting, which often consists of breathing exercises, as well as physiotherapy, the bulletin said. A source said a physiotherapist is working with him to help prevent any of the usual consequences that arise when a person has limited opportunities for movement while hospitalized.

“As scheduled, the pope receives high-flow oxygen” through a nasal cannula during the day, the bulletin said, and, at night, he wears a mask covering his nose and mouth for “noninvasive mechanical ventilation.”

Although the pope no longer needed oxygen through a breathing mask during the day March 4 and 5, a Vatican source has said mechanical ventilation is used at night so he can sleep better.

Also March 5 he telephoned Father Gabriel Romanelli, parish priest of Holy Family Church in Gaza, which, the source said, indicates the pope is able to talk. The pope spent the afternoon alternating between working and resting, the bulletin said.

Because of the continued complexity of his case, his doctors continue to hold that his “prognosis remains guarded.”

The Vatican had said in the morning that the pope had rested well overnight and had woken up a bit after 8 a.m. It was the first time doctors had communicated the waking time of the pope, whose normal schedule had been waking as early as 4 or 5 a.m. for prayer and reflection.

Pope Francis had suffered “two episodes of acute respiratory insufficiency” March 3, which occurs when the lungs are unable to effectively take in sufficient oxygen or expel enough carbon dioxide to meet the body’s needs.

Those crises led doctors to put the pope back on “noninvasive mechanical ventilation” – a treatment that delivers air with added oxygen through a tightly fitted face mask and using positive pressure to assist breathing. He also underwent two bronchoscopies that day but “remained alert, oriented and cooperative at all times,” the Vatican said.

Cardinal Angelo De Donatis, head of the Apostolic Penitentiary, a church court, led the traditional Ash Wednesday celebration that usually is presided over by the pope. The celebration March 5 began with a penitential procession from the Benedictine monastery of St. Anselm on Rome’s Aventine Hill and to the Dominican-run Basilica of Santa Sabina, followed by Mass and the distribution of ashes.

The cardinal read the homily prepared by Pope Francis, however, he prefaced his reading by saying, “We are deeply united” with the pope, and “we thank him for offering his prayer and his sufferings for the good of the whole church and the entire world.”

The Vatican also announced that the pope would not be present for the March 8-9 Jubilee for Volunteers, and that the Mass March 9 would be presided over by Cardinal Michael Czerny, prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development. About 25,000 people from more than 100 countries were expected to attend.

Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, prefect of the Dicastery for Saints’ Causes, was scheduled to lead the nightly recitation of the rosary for Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Square March 5.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) – After experiencing progressive improvement the past few days, Pope Francis experienced “an isolated crisis of bronchospasm” which led to coughing and “vomiting with inhalation,” which worsened his respiratory condition, the Vatican said.

The pope had spent the morning “alternating respiratory physiotherapy with prayer in the chapel” in his suite of rooms on the 10th floor of Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, according to the Vatican bulletin Feb. 28. He had also received the Eucharist.

However, around 2 p.m. local time, the pope experienced “an isolated crisis of bronchospasm” followed by “an episode of vomiting,” according to the Vatican’s evening medical bulletin.

Medical staff promptly aspirated the pope’s airways to remove any obstruction “and began noninvasive mechanical ventilation, with a good response on gas exchange,” that is, with his blood’s oxygen levels returning to the levels he had before the crisis.

The Vatican said, “The Holy Father remained alert and oriented at all times, cooperating with the therapeutic procedures.”

His prognosis remains guarded, which means, a Vatican source said, that the pope is still not out of danger.

The source said the mechanical ventilation entails pumping a greater amount of oxygen mixed with air delivered through a mask covering the pope’s nose and mouth. It offers a greater flow of oxygen than the “ventimask” that he had been using since Feb. 27 and the nasal cannula, which he had been using previously when he needed it.

Doctors will need another 24 to 48 hours to see if his condition worsens from having inhaled vomit, the source said. Usually, people who experience this have “worse consequences,” but the pope overcame the crisis.

The source said the pope is in good spirits, vigilant and reacts normally to his surroundings. The source added the pope has received “an incredible amount” of cards, letters, drawings and flowers from children and well-wishers.

The pope had experienced an asthmatic breathing crisis Feb. 22, in which the pope could not breathe, the source said. The crisis Feb. 28 was a coughing fit, which led to vomiting. Inhaling vomit can lead to irritation, infection or inflammation of lung tissue.

While Pope Francis’ condition had continued to improve, the Vatican announced Feb. 28 that he would not lead his traditional Ash Wednesday services in Rome March 5.

Instead, the Vatican said, the Ash Wednesday procession from the Rome Church of St. Anselm to the Basilica of Santa Sabina for Mass will be celebrated by Cardinal Angelo De Donatis, the major penitentiary or head of the Apostolic Penitentiary, a church court dealing with matters of conscience.

The Vatican announcement Feb. 28 came after a brief morning bulletin that said the pope had had a peaceful night and was resting.

A source later said the pope got out of bed, had breakfast, was reading newspapers and was continuing to receive his treatment and doing his respiratory physiotherapy. Pope Francis, 88, has been undergoing treatment for double pneumonia in Rome’s Gemelli hospital since Feb. 14.

As of Feb. 26, the evening bulletins had no longer been describing the pope’s condition as “critical” as they had each day since Feb. 22 when he had the “asthmatic respiratory crisis.” He began receiving high-flow oxygen through a nasal cannula after that incident and, as of Feb. 27, after the pope’s breathing had improved enough, he was alternating between using the high-flow oxygen and using a “ventimask,” which offers a steady and controlled lower-flow of oxygen.

The Vatican also announced that Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith and an Argentine like the pope, would lead the rosary in St. Peter’s Square Feb. 28. Cardinals have been leading a nightly rosary to pray for the pope since Feb. 24.

As of Feb. 28, the Vatican had not said what would happen with the midday recitation of the Angelus prayer March 2.

The previous two Sundays the Vatican released the text the pope had prepared for the Angelus, but the pope was not able to not send an audio message or go to the window of his hospital room to greet people gathered in the hospital courtyard to pray for him.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Pope Francis’ clinical condition continued to improve Feb. 27, the Vatican said, and he had respiratory physiotherapy in the morning and the afternoon.

For the second day in a row, the 88-year-old pope’s doctors at Rome’s Gemelli hospital did not use the word “critical” when describing the pope’s condition in the medical bulletin they drafted for the Vatican press office to distribute.

Still, the bulletin said, “more days of clinical stability are needed” before the doctors will lift their “guarded” prognosis of the pope’s condition.

The medical bulletin also specified that the pope’s breathing had improved enough for him to alternate receiving high-flow oxygen through a nasal cannula and using a “ventimask” with a mix of room air.

Pope Francis has been hospitalized since Feb. 14 and was diagnosed with double pneumonia and a “polymicrobial” infection; he experienced an “asthmatic respiratory crisis” Feb. 22.

“The Holy Father devoted the morning to respiratory physiotherapy alternating with rest, while in the afternoon after an additional session of physiotherapy he spent time in prayer in the chapel” of the private suite of rooms reserved for the popes on the 10th floor of the hospital, the bulletin said.

He received the Eucharist, it said, “then he devoted himself to work.”

Earlier in the day, the Vatican announced the cancellation of the special Jubilee general audience Pope Francis was scheduled to hold March 1 for Holy Year pilgrims. But as of Feb. 27, the Vatican had not said what would happen with the midday recitation of the Angelus prayer March 2.

The previous two Sundays the Vatican released the text the pope had prepared for the Angelus, but the pope was not able to not send an audio message or go to the window of his hospital room to greet people gathered in the hospital courtyard to pray for him.

The Vatican’s customarily brief morning statement said that Pope Francis had slept well and was resting.

A few hours later, a Vatican source said the pope was out of bed and had eaten breakfast but was still using supplemental oxygen.

In the St. John Paul II Chapel of the Gemelli hospital, people gather every day at noon for an hour of Eucharistic adoration to pray for Pope Francis. At 1 p.m. each day Mass in the chapel also is offered for him.

Father Nunzio Currao, the hospital chaplain, presided over the Mass Feb. 27 and told the staff that while they were supposed to be at the now-canceled Jubilee audience March 1 during their own Holy Year pilgrimage, “we have him here, so let’s be satisfied with that.”

 

At night, in St. Peter’s Square, cardinals, Roman Curia officials and the faithful gather at 9 p.m. to pray the rosary for the pope. Cardinal Baldassare Reina, the papal vicar for Rome, was scheduled to lead the prayer Feb. 27.

SCRANTON – On Ash Wednesday, March 5, 2025, the Most Rev. Joseph C. Bambera, Bishop of Scranton, will be principal celebrant and homilist for the 12:10 p.m. Mass at the Cathedral of Saint Peter in Scranton.

Ash Wednesday marks the start of Lent, a 40-day season of prayer, fasting and almsgiving that ends at sundown on Holy Thursday. It is a period of preparation to celebrate the Lord’s Resurrection at Easter.

During Lent, fasting and abstinence regulations are observed. Fasting and abstinence are church-imposed penitential practices that deny us food and drink during certain seasons and on certain days. These acts of self-denial dispose us to free ourselves from worldly distractions, to express our longing for Jesus, to somehow imitate His suffering.

Abstinence and fasting are required on both Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. On those days, one full meal is allowed along with two other smaller meals. Catholics bound by the law of abstinence include everyone age 14 and over; the law of fasting includes individuals age 18 through the beginning of their 60th year.

In addition to the 12:10 p.m. Mass with Bishop Bambera, ashes will also be distributed at the Cathedral of Saint Peter in Scranton during Masses held at 6:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. Mass with the distribution of ashes will also take place at Immaculate Conception Parish, which is linked with the Cathedral, at 8:00 a.m. and a Liturgy of the Word Service with the distribution of ashes will be held at 4:30 p.m.

A full listing of Ash Wednesday Masses for all 106 parishes in the Diocese of Scranton is available on the Diocese of Scranton website at dioceseofscranton.org.

Throughout the Season of Lent, Bishop Bambera will also visit every geographic area of the Diocese of Scranton holding a Lenten Holy Hour. A Holy Hour is a period of time spent in prayer before the Lord, present to all sacramentally in the Eucharist.

A Holy Hour involves personal prayer, meditation readings from Scripture, hymns and more.

The dates and locations for Bishop Bambera’s Lenten Holy Hours during the 2025 Jubilee Year of Hope across the Diocese of Scranton are listed below.

(OSV News) – The start of Lent is now less than one week away. Are you ready?

Lent gets its name from a word meaning “springtime,” the time of year when the hours of daylight are lengthening and the sun is bringing back its warmth and light.

The Lenten season, indeed all of springtime, is a time of hope: We deepen our relationship with Christ through our Lenten disciplines and look to his crucifixion, death and resurrection to overcome the darkness that can cause us to struggle and despair.

Some days we may not feel the love of God that is always present, but we can rely on hope to move us forward in faith, especially in the 2025 Jubilee Year, which Pope Francis gave the theme “Pilgrims of Hope.” Exercise hope this Lent and find renewal for the coming Easter season, where we celebrate Christ’s joyful resurrection.

Hope is a theological virtue, a gift from God that helps us act as his children.

Received at baptism, hope gives us confidence and inspiration as we look forward to heaven and salvation. Hope allows us to move forward in faith even in the most doubtful or difficult times. Hope can help us feel secure even in the midst of our own failings or the injustices we see in the world around us.

St. Thomas Aquinas said, “Hope denotes a movement or a stretching forth of the appetite toward an arduous good.”

In other words, we are reaching for the goodness of God when we exercise hope – even when it isn’t easy.

Hope is also a form of trust in, and surrendering to, our loving God. We have faith in his goodness, and we trust his guidance for our lives and future. And, while hope is a gift, it is also an active choice we make to stretch toward God’s goodness.

This stretching exercise can take many forms as we live the days of Lent through prayer, fasting and almsgiving.

• Pray with hope. The season of Lent calls us to deepen our prayer lives.
  St. Padre Pio’s famous phrase, “Pray, hope and don’t worry,” is a reminder that prayer can give us comfort when we place our hope in God.
  Prayer shows our reliance on God as well as our confidence in God. Along with praying traditional Catholic prayers, it is helpful to pray with God’s word. This Lent, renew your prayer life by reflecting on these hope-filled Scripture passages:

“Rejoice in hope, endure in affliction, persevere in prayer” (Rom 12:12).

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” (Rom 15:13).

“Let us hold unwaveringly to our confession that gives us hope, for he who made the promise is trustworthy” (Heb 10:23).

Another way to deepen our faith this Lent is to learn and recite the Act of Hope.
Consider God’s mercy as you reflect on Christ’s death and resurrection and find hope in the promise of salvation:

“O my God, relying on your infinite mercy and promises, I hope to obtain pardon of my sins, the help of your grace, and life everlasting, through the merits of Jesus Christ, my Lord and Redeemer. Amen.”

• Fast with hope. During Lent, Catholics are called to days of fasting from food and abstinence from meat as we refocus our discipleship.

The goal of fasting is to improve our relationship with Christ as we experience sacrifice in honor of his sacrifice for us. Fasting can help us feel connected with Christ and solidarity with the poor. Many Catholics also traditionally “give up” something for Lent.

Here are some ideas to make your Lenten sacrifice a hope-building exercise.

Refrain from negative or hopeless comments; try saying things only in positive ways. Avoid watching television or movies with negative messages or dialogue. Give away items that are burdening you with clutter; find new homes for them with a charity donation. Trade the time you usually spend on screens or sports viewing to take walks with family or friends. Skip buying desserts or treats and use the money you save to purchase flowers for someone who needs a day-brightener.

As you fast, consider Pope Francis’ April 2017 TED Talk in which he addressed misconceptions around hope.

“Feeling hopeful does not mean to be optimistically naive and ignore the tragedy humanity is facing,” he said. “Hope is the virtue of a heart that doesn’t lock itself into darkness, that doesn’t dwell on the past, (that) does not simply get by in the present, but is able to see a tomorrow. … And it can do so much, because a tiny flicker of light that feeds on hope is enough to shatter the shield of darkness.”

• Give alms with hope. “It is in giving that we receive,” according to the Prayer of St. Francis. Almsgiving can seem the easiest of Lenten disciplines.

Most parishes have opportunities to donate funds to missions or the poor, and these are important works of charity.

Giving funds to help support others has been a part of Lent since the earliest days of Christianity and brings hope to others. However, as St. Teresa of Kolkata said, “It’s not how much we give but how much love we put into the giving” that’s important. Exercising hope means we are relying on God’s love for us, which calls us to truly love others. This might mean that we exercise our hope this Lent by giving our love in time as well as in treasure.

This Lent, consider volunteering time at your parish during one of their Lenten activities, or help clean or decorate the church in preparation for Holy Week. Write cards to family and friends expressing ways they help you feel more hopeful and thanking them for their support.

This Lent, let us work to become more understanding, compassionate and faithful through developing a habit of hope!

An annual Lenten collection taken up by Catholics across the U.S. continues to provide life-changing hope to others.

This year, the Catholic Relief Services (CRS) Rice Bowl program is celebrating its 50th year of funding hunger and poverty alleviation efforts around the world.

The program, which is supported by more than 12,000 Catholic parishes and schools across the United States, has raised more than $350 million since its inception.

“For half a century, CRS Rice Bowl has been a pillar of our work,” said Sean Callahan, CRS president and CEO. “It has given hope to millions of our sisters and brothers experiencing hunger. We are humbled by the generous support that Catholics across the United States have shown for CRS Rice Bowl and for their global family.”

In 1975, CRS Rice Bowl began in Allentown, Pennsylvania, as a response to the devastating drought and famine affecting families in the Sahel region of Africa.

“Operation Rice Bowl,” as it was known then, was adopted in 1976 under the guidance of CRS in preparation for 41st International Eucharistic Congress. The bishops in the United States voted for it to be the official program of CRS in 1977.

Sadly, the issue of hunger is just as relevant now as it was in 1975. Since 2020 and the COVID-19 pandemic, hunger levels have remained high. In some parts of the world, the levels are increasing. Despite efforts to combat this rise, the world is still far off track to achieve the United Nations’ Zero Hunger goal.

According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, more than 580 million people could be chronically undernourished in 2030 – just five years away – if the trajectory is left unchecked.

Direct donations to CRS are accepted online at crsricebowl.org/give; by phone at (877) 435-7277 between 8 a.m. and 11 p.m.; or mail. Please write “CRS Rice Bowl” on the memo line of a check and mail it to: Catholic Relief Services, Attn: Rice Bowl, PO Box 5200, Harlan, IA 51593-0700.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Pope Francis’ condition showed “further slight improvement” in the previous 24 hours, the Vatican said in its evening medical bulletin Feb. 26.

The “mild renal insufficiency” previously noted in the pope’s condition “has receded,” the bulletin said, and the results of a CT scan performed Feb. 25 showed a “normal evolution” of his pulmonary inflammation.

The results come from the third CT scan the pope has received during his hospitalization; he was diagnosed with pneumonia in both lungs after the second scan, which was performed Feb. 18.

The 88-year-old pope, who has been in Rome’s Gemelli hospital since Feb. 14, “continues high-flow oxygen therapy” and did not have another “asthmatic respiratory crisis” like the one he experienced Feb. 22, the Vatican said. The pope began receiving oxygen through a nasal cannula after that incident and “continues respiratory physiotherapy.”

Notably, the evening bulletin did not describe the pope’s condition as “critical,” as it had each day since Feb. 22, but said his “prognosis remains guarded.”

The pope was previously given blood transfusions after tests showed signs of anemia – when blood is unable to carry healthy amounts of oxygen.

Blood tests assessing hematochemical parameters, indicators of overall blood composition, and hematocrit levels, which measure the proportion of red blood cells in the blood, “confirmed yesterday’s improvement,” the bulletin said.

“During the morning, the Holy Father received the Eucharist,” it added. “The afternoon was devoted to work activities.”

A Vatican source said the pope had not had any visitors during the day.

The Vatican had said the pope met Feb. 24 in the hospital with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, and Archbishop Edgar Peña Parra, substitute secretary of state, and signed a series of decrees related to sainthood causes which were released the following day.

In its scant morning bulletin Feb. 26, the Vatican said the pope “had a peaceful night and is resting.”

At 1 p.m. local time, Cardinal Baldassare Reina, papal vicar for the Diocese of Rome, celebrated Mass in the hospital’s St. John Paul II Chapel with the special intention of praying for Pope Francis.

The 9 p.m. recitation of the rosary in St. Peter’s Square to pray for the pope’s health, which the Vatican said has become a fixed appointment, was scheduled to be led Feb. 26 by Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, dean of the College of Cardinals.