Pope Francis at his general audience in St Peter s Square on April 26, 2023. / Daniel Ibanez/CNAVatican City, Apr 26, 2023 / 05:15 am (CNA).It is no accident that the patron saint of foreign missionaries is a cloistered nun, Pope Francis said Wednesday.Speaking in St. Peter s Square on April 26, the pope pointed to the example of St. Thérèse of Lisieux, the patron saint of missionaries, and other cloistered religious who sustain the life of the Church through intercessory prayer."Truly, the monastics are the beating heart of the proclamation [of the Gospel]. Their prayer is oxygen for all the members of the Body of Christ, their prayer is the invisible force that sustains the mission," Pope Francis at his general audience.The pope said that the witness of "nuns and monks, sisters and brothers who renounce themselves and the world to imitate Jesus on the path of poverty, chastity, obedience and to intercede on behalf of all" is a great testimony that runs through h
Archbishop Vincenzo Paglia, grand chancellor of the Pontifical Institute John Paul II, speaks at a press conference. / Daniel Ibáñez/CNA.Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Apr 23, 2023 / 15:02 pm (CNA).Archbishop Vincenzo Paglia, president of the Pontifical Academy for Life, has spoken in support of legalized medically assisted suicide, calling it "feasible" despite the clear teachings of the Catholic Church against it."Personally, I would not practice suicide assistance, but I understand that legal mediation may be the greatest common good concretely possible under the conditions we find ourselves in," Paglia said in a speech on April 19 during the International Journalism Festival in Perugia, Italy.The Italian archbishop s remarks were part of a presentation that included a documentary about an Italian man who went to Switzerland to die by assisted suicide. A video of the discussion, in Italian, is available here.The Italian news outlet Il Riformista publ
Archbishop Vincenzo Paglia, grand chancellor of the Pontifical Institute John Paul II, speaks at a press conference. / Daniel Ibáñez/CNA.Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Apr 23, 2023 / 15:02 pm (CNA).Archbishop Vincenzo Paglia, president of the Pontifical Academy for Life, has spoken in support of legalized medically assisted suicide, calling it "feasible" despite the clear teachings of the Catholic Church against it."Personally, I would not practice suicide assistance, but I understand that legal mediation may be the greatest common good concretely possible under the conditions we find ourselves in," Paglia said in a speech on April 19 during the International Journalism Festival in Perugia, Italy.The Italian archbishop s remarks were part of a presentation that included a documentary about an Italian man who went to Switzerland to die by assisted suicide. A video of the discussion, in Italian, is available here.The Italian news outlet Il Riformista publ
Pope Francis prayed the Regina Caeli in St. Peter's Square on April 23, 2023. / Vatican MediaVatican City, Apr 23, 2023 / 05:10 am (CNA).Pope Francis recommended making an examination of conscience at the end of each day as a way to invite Jesus into the joys and struggles of daily life. "Indeed, for us to it is important to reread our history together with Jesus: the story of our life, of a certain period, of our days, with its disappointments and hopes," the pope said April 23."There is a good way of doing this, and today I would like to propose it to you: it consists of dedicating time, every evening, to a brief examination of conscience," he said. "What happened inside of me today? That is the question. It means rereading the day with Jesus."Pope Francis addressed around 30,000 people during the Regina Caeli in St. Peter s Square on April 23, 2023. Vatican MediaPope Francis addressed a crowd of around 30,000 people on Sunday from a window overlook
Donald Trump. / Christopher Halloran via www.shutterstock.com.Washington D.C., Apr 21, 2023 / 16:26 pm (CNA).Even though former President Donald Trump s Supreme Court nominees were instrumental in overturning Roe V. Wade, the 2024 presidential candidate is in hot water with a pro-life organization after his recent comments about abortion.In a statement from the Trump campaign published in the Washington Post on Thursday, April 20, campaign spokesman Steven Cheung said that Trump believes abortion should be decided at the state level."President Donald J. Trump believes that the Supreme Court, led by the three justices which he supported, got it right when they ruled this is an issue that should be decided at the state level," the statement read. Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, which has encouraged state-level and federal lawmakers to change abortion policies, called Trump s comments "a morally indefensible position for a self-proclaimed pro-life presidential candi