In March, Pope Francis proclaimed a Holy Year of Mercy beginning Dec. 8 and continuing until Nov. 20, 2016.   To mark the solemn occasion of this Jubilee Year, the Vatican, with the Congregation of the Causes of Saints, has announced the extraordinary pilgrimage of the relics of Saint Maria Go...
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Society and the church have much to learn from the family and, in fact, the bond between the church and the family is "indissoluble," Pope Francis said. Families bring needed values and a humanizing spirit to society and, when they mirror God's love for all, they teach the ch...
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Q. We've been having a bit of a debate among some parishioners and are hoping that you can help solve it. What is the rule for flowers on the altar in a Catholic church: Do they have to be fresh, or can they be artificial? (Columbus, Ohio) A. Not to be technical, but I will assume that by the words...
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The family is the answer to the two extremes facing the world -- fragmentation and "homogenization," in which everything is forced to be the same, Pope Francis said. The family based on marriage between a man and a woman is the answer because "it is the cell of a society that...
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Q. I am uncomfortable when Mass is interrupted by announcements relating to parish activities and events prior to the actual end of Mass. After holy Communion at our parish, when the vessels have been cleaned and the priest is seated behind the altar, general announcements are made. Then, after the...
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  PHILADELPHIA (CNS) – Pope Francis discarded a prepared text and, to the delight of tens of thousands of people on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, spoke from the heart about the challenges and love that come with being part of a family.         
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ABOARD THE PAPAL FLIGHT FROM PHILADELPHIA (CNS) -- As the American Airlines plane taking him to Rome from Philadelphia took off, Pope Francis said he pictured the faces of all the people he met, and he prayed for them. At the end of his first-ever visit to the United States, the pope told reporters...
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WASHINGTON (CNS) -- The past, the promise and the potential of the United States must not be smothered by bickering and even hatred at a time when the U.S. people and indeed the world need a helping hand, Pope Francis told the U.S. Congress. Making history by being the first pope ever to address a...
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  SANTIAGO, Cuba (CNS) -- A key task of a traveling pope is to confirm his brothers and sisters in the faith. For Pope Francis in Cuba, that ministry took on added importance as Cuba and its people stand on the threshold of potentially epochal change.        ...
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Q. Somewhere in the Scriptures, it quotes Jesus as saying that "my house has many rooms." I'm wondering what he meant -- does it mean that not all of us in heaven will see God? (Cedar Lake, Indiana) A. The passage to which you refer comes in John's Gospel (14:2), during Christ's discourse to the ap...
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