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Catholic News episodes

  • October 20, 2023
    A daily news briefing from Catholic News Agency, powered by artificial intelligence. Ask your smart speaker to play “Catholic News,” or listen every morning wherever you get podcasts.
    www.catholicnewsagency.com
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    The president of Catholic Relief Services (CRS) this week said he was hoping for a quick reopening of border access to Gaza and deployment of aid to stricken civilians in the war-torn area. CRS on Wednesday repeated its call for “an end to all violence and immediate humanitarian access to Gaza,” with the group and partner aid workers “mobilized and standing ready to meet the immediate needs of displaced families.” CRS president and CEO Sean Callahan told CNA on Thursday that the group was waiting for aid access to the embattled region. There are about 3,000 tons of supplies in humanitarian aid awaiting entry to Gaza from the Egyptian side of the border, according to the UN. Israel agreed to the aid being transferred to the Palestinian people as long as it goes only to civilians and not Hamas.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255755/catholic-relief-president-on-aid-to-gaza-let-s-get-it-going-take-care-of-these-people
    Three Catholic nuns, a seminarian, and their driver who were abducted from Nigeria’s Abakaliki Diocese on October 5 have been released. Vicar General Sister Gloria Nnabuchi of the Missionary Daughters of Mater Ecclesiae said a ransom of 1 million Naira, or 1,305 US dollars, had been paid for their release. The five were on their way to a burial in Nigeria’s Imo State when they came in contact with their abductors. Nigeria has been experiencing insecurity since 2009 when Boko Haram insurgency began with the aim of turning the country into an Islamic state. Since then, the group, one of largest Islamist groups in Africa, has been orchestrating indiscriminate terrorist attacks on various targets, including religious and political groups as well as civilians. The insecurity situation in the country has further been complicated by the involvement of the predominantly Muslim Fulani herdsmen.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255748/religious-congregation-grateful-after-release-of-abducted-nuns-seminarian-in-nigeria
    The Nicaraguan dictatorship reported that it has released 12 priests it had imprisoned and sent them to the Vatican after an agreement was reached with the authorities of the Catholic Church. Bishop Rolando Álvarez of the Diocese of Matagalpa was not among those released. Álvarez was sentenced on February 10 to 26 years and four months in prison. A day before the sentence, the prelate refused to be part of the group of 222 deportees who were sent to the United States and who were then stripped of their nationality and property in Nicaragua by the oppressive dictatorship of Daniel Ortega. The Ortega regime announced that the release of the 12 priests took place “after fruitful conversations with the Holy See.” The priests, the release said, are headed to the Vatican and “traveled to Rome, Italy, this afternoon.” The Vatican did not confirm whether the Holy See was involved in arranging for the release of the priests.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255740/government-of-nicaragua-claims-that-it-freed-12-priests-after-an-agreement-with-the-vatican
    Today the Church celebrates Saint Irene, a Portuguese nun who was martyred in defense of her chastity in the year 653. Saint Irene’s body was miraculously recovered after being thrown into the river. She was canonized in part because of the great amount of miracles that occured at her tomb.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/st-irene-26
    The Church also honors Saint Bertilla Boscardin, a sister and nurse who cared for Italian soldiers during World War One.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/st-bertilla-boscardin-630
    4 min
  • October 19, 2023
    A daily news briefing from Catholic News Agency, powered by artificial intelligence. Ask your smart speaker to play “Catholic News,” or listen every morning wherever you get podcasts.
    www.catholicnewsagency.com
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    Pope Francis at the end of his general audience on Wednesday morning announced another day of prayer and fasting for an end to the Israel-Hamas war, on October 27th. It will be “a day of penance to which I invite sisters and brothers of the various Christian denominations, those belonging to other religions, and all those who have at heart the cause of peace in the world, to join in as they see fit,” the Holy Father continued. The Holy Father’s announcement comes after the Catholic Latin patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, called for a global day of prayer and fasting, which was held on October 17, “to deliver to God the Father our thirst for peace, justice, and reconciliation.” The Holy Father’s announcement was preceded by his renewed appeal for peace in the Holy Land.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255729/pope-francis-announces-prayer-vigil-day-of-fasting-for-peace-in-israel-hamas-war
    As the fighting between Hamas and the Israeli army continues in the Holy Land, the Catholic Church in Gaza is doing everything in its power to alleviate the burden of war on its affected members. The bloodshed and displacement have not spared the civilians in Gaza, who have borne the brunt of the raging war in a region that has not known safety and stability for about 75 years. At least 20 homes of Christian civilians have been completely destroyed as a result of Israeli bombing as well as homes that were partially damaged. Holy Family Church is the only Roman Catholic parish in the Gaza Strip and is located in the northern part of Gaza City. Israel’s military had ordered the Palestinian civilians to evacuate south last week, but the church today still has several hundred people taking refuge in its buildings. Despite the siege and the harshness of war, the church continues to open its doors to worshippers daily, fulfilling its spiritual duties toward them, including the baptism of a baby.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255735/we-lack-food-and-medicine-catholics-in-gaza-take-refuge-in-only-parish-church
    Today, the Church celebrates Saint Paul of the Cross. After receiving a vision, and while still a layman, he founded the Barefoot Clerks of the Cross and the Passion (Passionists) in 1721 to preach about Jesus Crucified. He became a preacher of such power that even hardened soldiers and bandits were seen to weep. At one point all the brothers in the order deserted him, but in 1741 his rule was approved by Pope Benedict XIV, and the community began to grow again. Numerous miracles, in addition those special ones brought forward at his beatification and canonization, attested the favor he enjoyed with God.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/st-paul-of-the-cross-24
    The Church also celebrates the eight North American martyrs, also known as the Candian Martyrs, the Jesuit Martyrs of North America or the Martyrs of France, which included six priests and two lay brothers. They were heroic members of the Society of Jesus who were martyred in North America in order to bring the Faith that is necessary for salvation to the Huron, the Iroquois and the Mohawks. Five of the eight North American martyrs were put to death in what is now Canada, and three of them in New York State. There is a shrine to the United States' martyrs at Auriesville in New York, and there is a shrine to the Canadian martyrs at Fort Saint Mary near Midland, Ontario.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/the-north-american-martyrs-25
    3 min
  • October 18, 2023
    A daily news briefing from Catholic News Agency, powered by artificial intelligence. Ask your smart speaker to play “Catholic News,” or listen every morning wherever you get podcasts.
    www.catholicnewsagency.com
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    Officials linked to Hamas claimed that an Israeli airstrike killed hundreds of people at a Palestinian hospital on Tuesday, while the Israeli government said a terrorist group was responsible for the destruction. The actual origin of the missile strike was unclear as of late Tuesday afternoon. The Palestinians “are falsely claiming Israel targeted a hospital in the Gaza Strip,” Israel said in a followup tweet. Reports indicated the death toll in Israel on Tuesday stood at around 1,400, while Gaza had suffered approximately 3,000 casualties since the war began earlier this month.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255719/report-israel-strike-allegedly-kills-hundreds-at-palestinian-hospital
    In a new interview published on October 17, Pope Francis said that he plans to visit his native Argentina, adding: “Somebody said that if I go to Argentina, I should stop at Rio Gallegos, then head to the South Pole, land in Melbourne, and visit New Zealand.” “It would be a rather long journey,” he joked. The 86-year-old pope does not currently have any international trips on his official schedule, but he recently made a 4,000-mile journey to Mongolia and visited the French city of Marseille. Pope Francis would not be the first religious leader to visit Antarctica. Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill visited an Antarctic research station, and walked with penguins, in 2016 as part of a trip to Latin America, which included a historic meeting with Pope Francis in Cuba. In the interview with Argentina’s national news agency, Télam, Pope Francis also expressed an interest to visit Oceania.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255714/a-papal-visit-to-the-south-pole-pope-francis-looks-to-new-peripheries
    Today the Church celebrates the feast of Saint Luke, the physician and companion of Saint Paul whose gospel preserved the most extensive biography of Jesus Christ. Saint Luke wrote a greater volume of the New Testament than any other single author, including the earliest history of the Church. Ancient traditions also acknowledge Luke as the founder of Christian iconography, making him a patron of artists as well as doctors and other medical caregivers.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/st-luke-the-evangelist-23
    2 min
  • October 17, 2023
    A daily news briefing from Catholic News Agency, powered by artificial intelligence. Ask your smart speaker to play “Catholic News,” or listen every morning wherever you get podcasts.
    www.catholicnewsagency.com
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    Today, Catholics are invited to take part in a day of prayer and fasting for peace and reconciliation in the Holy Land, as war continues to devastate that region. The day of prayer comes amid the second week of war between Israel and the terrorist group Hamas, the latter of which launched a surprise attack on Israel October 7, which resulted in the deaths of 1,300 Israelis and international civilians.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255703/us-bishops-urge-faithful-to-join-in-day-of-prayer-and-fasting-for-peace-in-holy-land
    Catholic Relief Services on Saturday called for “immediate humanitarian access” in the Gaza Strip as the war between Israel and the terrorist group Hamas continues to unfold after Hamas’ surprise attack on Israel earlier this month.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255701/catholic-relief-services-calls-for-immediate-humanitarian-access-to-gaza-strip
    The bishop of Arras, France, Olivier Leborgne, condemned the murder of a teacher in an Islamist terrorist attack in which two other people were seriously wounded.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255704/islamist-kills-teacher-at-french-high-school-bishop-condemns-the-terrorist-attack
    The latest full season of the hit Christian series “The Chosen” will be shown exclusively in theaters before its release on streaming services.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255705/the-chosen-announces-season-4-theatrical-release-new-trailer
    Today the Church celebrates the early Church Father, bishop, and martyr Saint Ignatius of Antioch, whose writings attest to the sacramental and hierarchical nature of the Church from its earliest days. Eastern Catholics and Eastern Orthodox Christians celebrate his memory on December 20. Born in Syria in the middle of the first century AD, Ignatius is said to have been personally instructed – along with another future martyr, Saint Polycarp – by the Apostle Saint John. When Ignatius became the Bishop of Antioch around the year 70, he assumed leadership of a local church that was, according to tradition, first led by Saint Peter before his move to Rome. Although Saint Peter transmitted his Papal primacy to the bishops of Rome rather than Antioch, the city played an important role in the life of the early Church. Located in present-day Turkey, it was a chief city of the Roman Empire, and was also the location where the believers in Jesus' teachings and his resurrection were first called “Christians.” Saint Ignatius of Antioch bore witness to Christ publicly for the last time in Rome's Flavian Amphitheater, where he was mauled to death by lions. “I am the wheat of the Lord,” he had declared, before facing them. “I must be ground by the teeth of these beasts to be made the pure bread of Christ.”
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/st-ignatius-of-antioch-396
    5 min
  • October 16, 2023
    A daily news briefing from Catholic News Agency, powered by artificial intelligence. Ask your smart speaker to play “Catholic News,” or listen every morning wherever you get podcasts.
    www.catholicnewsagency.com
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    The Vatican’s Synod on Synodality has passed the halfway mark for this year.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255696/this-week-at-the-synod-on-synodality-participation-focus-comes-amid-possible-early-exit-of-chinese-bishops
    Midway through the Synod on Synodality, two bishops from mainland China are suddenly departing the assembly early, and as of Monday there is not yet an explanation.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255697/chinese-bishops-leaving-synod-on-synodality-early
    The Latin Catholic patriarch of Jerusalem has offered to be exchanged for the children being held hostage in the Gaza Strip by Hamas.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255694/jerusalem-cardinal-pizzaballa-offers-to-be-exchanged-for-gaza-hostages
    Today the Church celebrates Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque, the French nun whose visions of Christ helped to spread devotion to the Sacred Heart throughout the Western Church. Her life changed in response to a vision she saw one night while returning from a dance, in which she saw Christ being scourged. Margaret believed she had betrayed Jesus, by pursuing the pleasures of the world rather than her religious vocation, and a the at the age of 22, she decided to enter a convent. Two days after Christmas of 1673, Margaret experienced Christ's presence in an extraordinary way while in prayer. She heard Christ explain that he desired to show his love for the human race in a special way, by encouraging devotion to “the heart that so loved mankind.”
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/st-margaret-mary-alacoque-626
    The Church also celebrates Saint Gerard Majella. Saint Gerard entered the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer in 1749 and professed of perpetual vows under the Redemptorist's founder, Saint Alphonsus Liguori, in 1751. He served as tailor and infirmarian and became known for his extraordinary supernatural gifts of bilocation, prophecy, ecstasies, visions, and infused knowledge. Though not ordained to the holy order of priest, his spiritual direction and advice were sought by many among the clergy and communities of nuns, to which he also gave conferences. He was most successful in converting sinners, and was widely known for his sanctity and charity.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/st-gerard-majella-21
    5 min
  • October 13, 2023
    A daily news briefing from Catholic News Agency, powered by artificial intelligence. Ask your smart speaker to play “Catholic News,” or listen every morning wherever you get podcasts.
    www.catholicnewsagency.com
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    John Kirby, a White House National Security Council spokesman, announced during a Thursday press conference that beginning Friday the US government will begin evacuating US citizens from Israel through charter flights. Kirby said that the administration is still working through the details of the arrangement but that the flights out of Israel will take Americans to Europe. He added that the administration is “exploring other options to expand the capacity of doing this. Including exploring whether it’s possible to help Americans leave by land and by sea.” Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle had urged the Biden administration to immediately evacuate US citizens from Israel. It is uncertain how many Americans are currently in Israel, but the death toll of US citizens in the country continues to rise. For the latest on the conflict in Israel, visit catholic news agency dot com.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255665/bipartisan-group-of-lawmakers-urges-biden-to-evacuate-americans-trapped-in-israel
    Pope Francis received Sultan Al Jaber, president-designate of COP28 UAE, on Wednesday at the Vatican. The meeting comes ahead of the COP28 meeting taking place at Expo City Dubai from November 30 to December 12. The Conference of the Parties (COP) is an annual conference that was established after the signing of the United Nations Climate Change Conference (UNFCCC) treaty in 1992 at the UN Rio Conference, also known as the Earth Summit. The COP represents all the states that are party to the UNFCCC and is an opportunity for world leaders, representing state and nonstate actors, to meet and discuss policy goals that seek to establish common — and often ambitious — goals for climate change mitigation. During their meeting October 11, Pope Francis and Al Jaber discussed the role that faith leaders and faith-based organizations can play in promoting the climate objectives of COP28. Advocacy for climate change has been at the center of Francis’ pontificate. On October 4, the pope published his much-anticipated apostolic exhortation Laudate Deum, which is seen as the second installment of Laudato Si’.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255661/cop28-president-designate-meets-with-pope-francis-to-discuss-common-climate-goals
    Today the Church honors Saint Edward the Confessor, king of England from 1042 to 1066. His saintly bearing made him a popular sovereign, and his actions even more so. He abolished an unjust tax and was known to cure people with his touch. Edward died on January 5, 1066, and was canonized by Pope Alexander III in 1161.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/st-edward-the-confessor-392
    3 min
  • October 12, 2023
    A daily news briefing from Catholic News Agency, powered by artificial intelligence. Ask your smart speaker to play “Catholic News,” or listen every morning wherever you get podcasts.
    www.catholicnewsagency.com
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    The Israeli Embassy to the US said on Wednesday that over 1,200 were killed and more than 3,000 injured as a result of a recent Hamas attack on Israel. Besides the killed and injured, the BBC reported that as many as 150 Israeli hostages were taken by Hamas, according to the Israeli government. The scale of the casualties and victims, which includes women, children, and the elderly, makes this one of the largest terrorist attacks since 9/11. The US has promised to send military equipment and supplies to support Israel. According to the IDF, the first shipment of US equipment landed in Israel’s Nevatim Air Force Base in southern Israel on Wednesday. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in Israel to express American solidarity and support and to further assess the situation.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255656/update-over-1000-killed-including-22-americans-in-saturday-terrorist-attacks-on-israel
    The Latin Catholic patriarch of Jerusalem has called for a day of prayer and fasting on Tuesday, October 17, for peace and reconciliation in the Holy Land.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255660/catholic-patriarch-calls-day-of-prayer-and-fasting-for-peace-in-the-holy-land
    Caritas Jerusalem, which serves the needs of people in the West Bank, Gaza Strip, and Jerusalem, reported that some of its staff are among those displaced.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255658/caritas-jerusalem-suspends-activities-in-gaza-and-israel-but-announces-emergency-plan
    A New York pro-life pregnancy center that was seriously damaged in an arson attack in June 2022 and was subsequently vandalized again with pro-abortion graffiti in March, has filed a federal lawsuit against two “known pro-abortion activists.”
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255650/firebombed-pro-life-pregnancy-center-files-face-act-lawsuit
    Participants in the Synod on Synodality have asked “for greater discernment on the teaching of the Church on the subject of sexuality,” a Vatican spokesman said at a press briefing Wednesday.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255655/synod-members-ask-for-greater-discernment-of-church-teaching-on-sexuality
    Today the Church honors Our Lady of the Pillar, the first recorded Marian apparition. Mary appeared to Saint James the Apostle, the brother of Saint John the Evangelist, on the bank of the river Ebro in Saragossa, Spain. Unlike every other recorded apparition, this one took place during the earthly life of the Mother of God. In the year 40 A.D., while praying one night on the river bank, the Virgin appeared with the Child Jesus standing on a pillar and asked Saint James and his eight disciples to build a church on the site, promising that “it will stand from that moment until the end of time in order that God may work miracles and wonders through my intercession for all those who place themselves under my patronage.” Nuestra Señora del Pilar is the patron of Spain and all Hispanic peoples.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/nuestra-senora-del-pilar-our-lady-of-the-pillar-622
    The Church also celebrates Saint Wilfrid of York. Wilfrid worked to enforce Roman liturgical practice in seventh-century England, founded Benedictine monasteries, and rebuilt the minster of York, all while living a simple and holy life himself.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/st-wilfrid-of-york-17
    6 min
  • October 11, 2023
    A daily news briefing from Catholic News Agency, powered by artificial intelligence. Ask your smart speaker to play “Catholic News,” or listen every morning wherever you get podcasts.
    www.catholicnewsagency.com
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    Pope Francis has spoken by telephone with a Catholic priest serving in Gaza, according to the news agency of the Italian bishops’ conference. The pope called Father Gabriel Romanelli, pastor of Holy Family Church, the only Catholic Church in Gaza City and in the Gaza Strip, on October 9. Romanelli said Francis shared “his closeness and prayers for the entire Church community of Gaza and all the parishioners and inhabitants” and imparted his blessing on them.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255630/pope-francis-calls-gaza-priest-as-israel-announces-blockade
    In a message to Vancouver’s Jewish community, Vancouver Archbishop J Michael Miller “unequivocally condemned” Saturday’s attack on Israel, calling it an offense against moral and international law. Commenting from Rome where he is attending the Synod on Synodality, the archbishop said Monday the news about “the Hamas incursion into Israel is devastating.” The nature of the attack and the taking of women and children as hostages was “a serious violation not only of international law but, even more importantly, of the moral law that is written in the conscience of every human being,” he said.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255640/archbishop-of-vancouver-calls-attack-on-israel-contrary-to-moral-and-international-law
    Two 12-year-olds were identified by police Sunday as suspects in the vandalism of a Massachusetts Catholic church, which included a fire being set to an altar cloth, a tabernacle cloth, and the lectionary. The two juveniles, a boy and a girl, will not face any charges at this time, police said.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255635/two-12-year-olds-identified-as-vandals-in-massachusetts-church-fire
    An Oklahoma school authority on Monday gave the thumbs-up to a contract for the nation’s first religious charter school, a virtual Catholic institution that is facing challenges from advocates who claim the school would violate state law.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255634/oklahoma-board-approves-catholic-charter-school-contract
    Today the Church celebrates Saint John the 23rd. Born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli at Sotto il Monte, Italy on November 25, 1881, Pope John XXIII was elected on October 28, 1958. He died June 3, 1963 in Rome and was beatified by Pope John Paul II on September 3, 2000. Elected Pope on the death of Pope Pius XII, he was an example of a ‘pastoral’ Pope, a good shepherd who cared deeply for his sheep. He manifested this concern in his social enyclicals, especially Pacem in Terris, “On peace in the World.” His greatest act as Pope however was undoubtedly the inspiration to convoke the Second Vatican Council, which he opened on October 11, 1962. Pope John’s spirit of humble simplicity, profound goodness, and deep life of prayer radiated in all that he did, and inspired people to affectionately call him “Good Pope John.”
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/pope-saint-john-xxiii-390
    The Church also celebrates Saint Firminus, a fifth and sixth century bishop of bishop of Uzès. In 538, he signed the fourth and fifth Councils of Orléans in 541 and 549, respectively. In 551, he assisted at the second council of Paris.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/st-firminus-of-uzes-10
    5 min
  • October 10, 2023
    A daily news briefing from Catholic News Agency, powered by artificial intelligence. Ask your smart speaker to play “Catholic News,” or listen every morning wherever you get podcasts.
    www.catholicnewsagency.com
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    The US Catholic bishops are calling for peace in the embattled Holy Land after last week’s surprise incursion by Hamas into Israel resulted in a declaration of war by Israel. Rockford Bishop David Malloy, who chairs the USCCB’s Committee on International Justice and Peace, lamented the “mounting casualties and hostilities unfolding on all sides,” as well as the “increased threats to the status quo of the holy places among Jews, Muslims, and Christians.” The strike by Hamas resulted in hundreds of Israeli deaths, as well as reports of Hamas insurgents roaming through Israeli neighborhoods and allegedly abducting and killing citizens there. Malloy in his statement urged the faithful to “recall especially all the families and individuals” suffering amid the conflict. “We call on the faithful, and all people of goodwill to not grow weary and to continue to pray for peace in the land Our Lord, the Prince of Peace, called home,” he said.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255620/us-bishops-call-for-prayers-for-peace-in-holy-land-amid-escalating-war
    Pope Francis’ prayer intention for the month of October is for the Synod on Synodality, taking place this month in Rome. The pope said: “Our mission and the voice that draws us to him spring from him. This voice reveals to us that the heart of mission is to reach out to everyone, to seek everyone, to welcome everyone, to involve everyone, without excluding anyone.” He concluded with a prayer: “Let us pray for the Church, that she may adopt listening and dialogue as a style of life at every level, allowing herself to be guided by the Holy Spirit towards the world’s peripheries.”
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255619/this-is-pope-francis-prayer-intention-for-the-month-of-october
    Today the Church celebrates Saint Francis Borgia, a reformer of the Jesuit order. Francis introduced so many reforms to the society of Jesus that he was considered in some ways to be its second founder. Francis was a man of contemplation and action in the fullest sense, and clearly drew much strength from the silence of his prayer.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/st-francis-borgia-389
    2 min
  • October 9, 2023
    A daily news briefing from Catholic News Agency, powered by artificial intelligence. Ask your smart speaker to play “Catholic News,” or listen every morning wherever you get podcasts.
    www.catholicnewsagency.com
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    A series of rocket attacks and incursions on Israel from Hamas militants had reportedly killed hundreds and wounded many between Saturday and Sunday morning. The surprise attacks began early on the morning of October 7, the start of the observance of the Jewish holiday Simchat Torah. Pope Francis and the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem called for peace after Israel declared “war” following a major attack by Hamas fighters over the weekend. The pope said at the end of a public address on Sunday he is following the violence “with apprehension and sorrow,” and issued an appeal to “please stop weapons attacks!” The head of the Catholic Church in Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, called for a de-escalation of the situation in a statement October 7. “The continuing bloodshed and declarations of war remind us once again of the urgent need to find a lasting and comprehensive solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict in this land,” he said. An October 7 joint statement from the patriarchs and heads of the Churches in Jerusalem also called for the protection of both Israelis and Palestinians. Coverage of the war between Israel and Hamas is ongoing; the war has so far killed more than 700 people in Israel, including at least 260 at a music fesitval, and almost 500 people in Gaza.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255612/pope-francis-jerusalem-patriarch-react-to-violence-between-israel-and-hamas
    The Synod on Synodality at the Vatican will see another premiere this week, as the gathering switches from group work in small circles to a plenary assembly. Journalists will finally, for a time, be able to tune into actual speeches and proceedings in the audience hall. One important speech is the statement of Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich in his role as relator general, given at the end of the discussion of every section of the document. The next report — called “presentation” in the synod’s schedule — is expected on October 13, and another one will take place on October 18. It is likely these will be livestreamed, too.
    For complete coverage of the ongoing Synod on Synodality, visit catholic news agency dot com.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255615/this-week-at-the-synod-on-synodality-deliberations-and-veiled-agendas
    Today, the Church celebrates Saint Denis, a missionary and the first bishop of Paris. He was killed for his Christian faith by pagans on what is known as the “Montmartre” – the mount of martyrs - in 258, along with Eleutherius and Rusticus, a priest and a deacon. He is the patron saint of France.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/st-denis-619
    The Church also honors the memory of Saint John Leonardi, who studied to become a pharmacist but eventually chose the life of the priesthood. He founded a religious order, and helped establish the Vatican department formerly known as the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, now part of the Dicastery for Evangelization.
    https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/st-john-leonardi-712
    3 min

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