Posted inNation / World

Donald Trump and Pope Francis meet

Pope Francis meets with President Donald Trump on the occasion of their private audience, at the Vatican, Wednesday, May 24, 2017. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino, Pool)U.S. President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump meet with Pope Francis, Wednesday, May 24, 2017, at the Vatican. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, Pool) VATICAN CITY — President Donald Trump and […]

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Posted inNation / World, sj-web

Vatican releases guidelines on scattering a Catholic’s ashes

For much of the Catholic Church’s 2,000-year-long existence, bodies of the faithful were destined for cemetery plots or mausoleum tombs. There you rested, unless you became a saint, in which case select remains ended up in more exotic destinations. St. Catherine’s mummified head and ampules of St. Januarius’s blood were displayed in Italian churches as […]

Posted inNation / World, sj-web

Vatican arrests 2 people in latest probe of leaked documents

VATICAN CITY — A monsignor and a woman who had served on a financial reform commission set up by Pope Francis have been arrested in the probe of yet another leak of confidential information and documents, the Vatican said Monday. A statement from the Holy See’s press office said that Vatican prosecutors on Monday upheld […]

Posted inNation / World, sj-web

Catholic bishops signal greater acceptance of gays in church

VATICAN CITY  — Catholic bishops showed unprecedented openness Monday to accepting the real lives of many Catholics today, saying gays had gifts to offer the church and should be accepted and that there were “positive” aspects to a couple living together without being married. A two-week meeting of bishops on family issues arrived at its […]

Posted inMaine, sj-web

Maine bishop visits Pope Francis at Vatican

On Wednesday, Sept. 10, Bishop Robert P. Deeley, Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland, visited with Pope Francis at the Vatican. During the visit, Pope Francis asked Bishop Deeley to have the people of Maine keep the Holy Father in their prayers. Bishop Deeley assured the Pope that the people of Maine are […]

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Ancient Vatican ceremony makes saints of John Paul II and John XXIII

VATICAN CITY — In front of a sprawling sea of pilgrims fanning out from St. Peter’s Square, Pope Francis on Sunday canonized John Paul II and John XXIII, bestowing sainthood on two towering figures of the 20th century who left outsize marks on the Roman Catholic Church. The hypnotic sounds of the Sistine Chapel Choir […]

Posted inNation / World, sj-web

Pope Francis wants to refocus teachings of Catholic Church

VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis is warning that the Catholic Church’s moral edifice might “fall like a house of cards” if it doesn’t balance its divisive rules about abortion, gays and contraception with the greater need to make the church a merciful, more welcoming place for all. Six months into his papacy, Francis set out […]