Disgruntled Pope Francis pulls himself free from woman's grasp

ROME -- A visibly indignant Pope Francis had to pull himself away from a woman in a crowd in St Peter's Square on Tuesday after she grabbed his hand and yanked him towards her.

Pope Francis was walking through the square in Vatican City and greeting pilgrims on his way to see the large Nativity scene set up in the huge, cobbled esplanade.

After reaching out to touch a child, the pope turned away from the crowd only for a nearby woman to seize his hand and pull her towards him. The abrupt gesture appeared to cause him pain and Francis swiftly wrenched his hand free.

The woman had made the sign of the cross as the pope had approached. It was not clear what she was saying as she subsequently tugged him towards her.

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Vatican Christmas tree lights up

People take photos on the occasion of the Christmas tree and nativity scene lighting ceremony, in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Thursday. The 85-foot tall Christmas tree is decorated with energy saving lights in an attempt to reduce its environmental impacts.

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US bishop accused of sex abuse cover-up steps down

VATICAN - A New York state bishop who had been at the center of a sex abuse crisis stepped down on Wednesday after learning the conclusions of a Vatican investigation, becoming the latest high-ranking prelate toppled by the decades-old scandal.

Pope Francis accepted the resignation of Bishop Richard Malone of Buffalo, New York, and named Albany Bishop Edward Scharfenberger, to administer the Buffalo diocese until a new bishop can be appointed.

Malone, 73, who has been under pressure to resign for years, stepped down two years before bishops' normal retirement date.

A long line of priests and bishops have been toppled by the Roman Catholic Church's abuse crisis, which exploded onto the international stage in 2002 when the Boston Globe newspaper revealed priests had sexually abused children for decades and church leaders had covered it up.

Patterns of widespread abuse of children have since been reported across the United States and Europe, in Chile and Australia, undercutting the 1.2 billion-member Church's moral authority and taking a toll on its membership and coffers.

Malone, who met with the pope last month, has been accused of covering up or mishandling the abuse of dozens of minors by priests in his diocese in western New York.

Last year, a whistleblower in his office released documents to WKBW, a New York news channel, indicating that Malone withheld scores of priests' names from a list his office published of clergy accused of sexual abuse.

He has denied the accusations.

His diocese is facing more than 200 child sex abuse lawsuits, according to the New York Times. A new state law this year temporarily waived statutes of limitations for people who were victims of sexual abuse as children, allowing hundreds of people to sue over decades-old crimes.

Malone acknowledged "tremendous turmoil" in his diocese in a statement on Wednesday.

He said he had made mistakes in not addressing what he described as personnel issues more swiftly. He said the conclusions of the Vatican investigation, which have not been published, were a factor in his decision but that he was resigning "freely and voluntarily."

In September, a poll by the local newspaper, The Buffalo News, showed that about 85% of Roman Catholics or lapsed Roman Catholics in the area said he should resign.

Scharfenberger said he supported Malone's resignation.

"I think he made a prudent decision to withdraw as he did at the time that he did," he said in a news conference.

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Pope goes to Africa

Pope Francis waves as he boards an aircraft on his way to Maputo, Mozambique, in Rome's Fiumicino International airport on Wednesday. Pope Francis heads this week to the southern African nations of Mozambique, Madagascar and Mauritius, visiting some of the world's poorest countries in a region hit hard by some of his biggest concerns: conflict, corruption and climate change. 

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Pope fears for Amazon, the planet's 'vital lung'

VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis on Sunday voiced concern for the Amazon rainforest, a "vital" lung for the planet, as the worst blazes in years have sparked a global outcry.

"We are concerned about the vast fires that have developed in the Amazon," the pope told the faithful at the Vatican.

"That forest lung is vital for our planet."

He urged the world's 1.3 billion Catholics to pray for the fires to be extinguished as quickly as possible.

Official figures show 78,383 forest fires have been recorded in Brazil this year, the highest number of any year since 2013.

The Argentine pope, who will gather bishops for a conference on the Amazon in October, met Brazilian indigenous leader Raoni in 2013 when he toured Europe warning of the dangers of deforestation.

The pope denounced the exploitation of the Amazon by "huge international economic interests" in a 2015 encyclical.

In January 2018 he visited Puerto Maldonado village in the Amazonian jungle of southeastern Peru where thousands of tribespeople had gathered, including from neighboring Brazil and Bolivia.

The Catholic Church acknowledges the bloody history of the spread of Christianity through South America and that it has not always respected Amazon tribes. Today it is committed to numerous projects to support indigenous populations.

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Cardinal George Pell loses appeal on child sex abuse charges

MELBOURNE - Convicted pedophile cardinal George Pell had his appeal against child sex abuse charges rejected by an Australian court on Wednesday.

Once the Vatican's third-ranking official, 78-year-old Pell was sentenced this year to 6 years in jail for sexually assaulting two 13-year-old choirboys at a Melbourne cathedral in the 1990s.

"He will continue to serve his sentence of six years imprisonment," said Chief Justice Anne Ferguson, dismissing a series of appeals from Pell's lawyers.

Pell is the most senior Catholic convicted of child sex abuse, making his case and Wednesday's ruling a touchstone moment for believers and victims groups around the world.

A large crowd of victims, advocates, lawyers and media gathered outside the court ahead of the hotly awaited verdict, with a long queue to enter the building forming along the street.

After more than two months of deliberations, a three-judge appeals panel handed down its decision.

The clergyman's lawyers raised 13 objections to his conviction, casting doubt on everything from the physical possibility of Pell removing his robes to the credibility of the main witness.

They argued the verdict was "unreasonable".

The case was unusual in that it relied heavily on the closed-door testimony of the sole surviving victim, who cannot be named for legal reasons.

The verdict could have wide-ranging implications for sexual assault cases that rely on the account of a single victim.

On Monday, the father of the second victim -- who died of a drug overdose in 2014 -- expressed hopes that "justice would prevail" and that the ordeal would soon be over.

"He just wants closure so he can try to get on with his life and stop thinking about it every single day," lawyer Lisa Flynn told AFP.

ANOTHER APPEAL POSSIBLE

Two so-called "fallback" arguments for Pell related to alleged procedural errors during his trial.

His lawyers argued they should have been allowed to show an animated reconstruction of people's movements in the cathedral on the days of the assaults.

They also took issue with the fact that Pell was not arraigned in the presence of the jury. The process was completed via video link so the large pool of potential jurors was able to watch.

Pell had already faced two juries, after his first trial in 2018 ended in a hung jury.

But Pell is still be able to challenge the decision in Australia's High Court, the country's final court of appeal.

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Pained Pope pays tribute to Notre-Dame firefighters

VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis on Wednesday thanked rescuers who put their lives at risk to salvage the medieval Catholic cathedral of Notre-Dame in Paris from a devastating blaze and said he was eager to see it restored.

"The gratitude of the entire Church goes to those who did everything in their power to save the basilica, even risking their lives," he told tens of thousands of people in St. Peter's Square for his general audience.

Notre-Dame's spire was destroyed and its roof gutted but the bell towers were still standing and many valuable art works were saved after more than 400 firemen contained Monday's blaze.

Addressing French pilgrims and visitors in Rome, the pontiff told them he felt their pain.

"May the Virgin Mary bless and support the work of reconstruction. May it be a harmonious work of praise and glory to God," he added.

The Vatican has said it is willing to offer restoration know-how to help rebuild the fire-damaged landmark.

"We have many relationships with the Louvre, other museums and other institutions of French Christianity. Clearly, we are willing to do anything we can to help," Barbara Jatta, the head of the Vatican Museums, told Reuters.

Jatta and her staff of art historians and restorers have worked on such stone masterpieces as Michelangelo's Pieta and his Sistine Chapel frescoes.

Father Enzo Fortunato, a Franciscan at the Basilica of St. Francis in Assisi who was inside that church when the roof collapsed in a 1997 earthquake, also offered words of encouragement to the French.

"Notre Dame is like Assisi. It will rise again. Our experience showed that through pain and hard work, but above all with solidarity, life can come from destruction," he told Reuters. "Prayer was the weapon that allowed us to never lose hope."

Fortunato and other survivors emerged covered in white dust from the collapse, which killed two monks and two city workers.

The Assisi basilica reopened after two years of painstaking restoration that included piecing together thousands of pieces of ceiling frescoes.

"Assisi and Notre-Dame are both symbols of Christian identity and national identity. Precisely because of this, they offer the strength and courage to be reborn," he said.

France hopes Notre-Dame can be restored in five years. 

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Palm Sunday at the Vatican

Pope Francis walks along Cardinals holding palm fronds across St. Peter's square as he celebrates the Palm Sunday Mass in the Vatican. The pope marked the moveable feast by blessing the palm fronds of Catholic faithful before celebrating Mass.

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Pope gives Rome homeless Christmas gift of new clinic in Vatican

VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis has given the homeless a Christmas gift of a new clinic in St. Peter's Square where they can get free medical help, the Vatican said on Saturday, announcing his latest move to help Rome's destitute.

The Rome Catholic charity Caritas estimated late last year that there are more than 16,000 homeless in Rome and their number congregating near the Vatican has grown visibly in recent years, especially at night when they cluster under arcades to sleep.

The new clinic with 3 visiting rooms will be open 3 days a week and will be staffed by volunteer doctors from the Vatican medical services and Rome hospitals.

Foot specialists will be available once a week. Charities say homeless people suffer particularly from foot ailments because they rarely remove their socks and shoes, and also wear ill-fitting shoes, causing ailments such as fungal infections, blisters and calluses.

The new clinic replaces an older temporary one nearby, also set up by the 82-year-old Francis. He has also opened facilities where the homeless can bathe and get haircuts.

When it is not serving the homeless, the new clinic, built on the premises of the old Vatican post office, will serve as a first aid station for pilgrims and tourists.

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Vatican's Sistine Chapel hosts first live online concert

VATICAN CITY - The Vatican's Sistine Chapel, an artistic Renaissance jewel, opened up to the digital age on Sunday with the first live concert streamed over the internet from the famous sacred space.

It was a performance of Scottish composer James MacMillan's acclaimed version of the "Stabat Mater."


A British choir group The Sixteen and chamber orchestra ensemble Britten Sinfonia took to the stage against the backdrop of Michelangelo's masterpiece of The Last Judgement, while lovers of classical music from around the world tuned in to watch on the web.

The "Stabat Mater" is a 13th century poem most likely written by Franciscan friar Jacopone da Todi (1230–1306), but sometimes ascribed to Pope Innocent III, which portrays the Virgin Mary's suffering during Jesus Christ's death by crucifixion.

MacMillan, 58, who has composed many pieces of sacred music, was commissioned by the Genesis Foundation, which has been working since 2001 to support young artistic talent and develop the link between art and faith.

His version of "Stabat Matar" was heaped with praise upon its premiere at London's Barbican Center in 2016, and Cardinal Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster, pushed for the composer to present his work at the Vatican.

Some 300 people filled the Sistine Chapel Sunday evening for the concert while live video of the performance was streamed over the website of Classic FM.

As the British choir began to sing the audience there and online was reminded that the acoustics as much as the frescoes have made the chapel world famous over the centuries.

The Sistine Chapel attracts some six million visitors each year as part of the Vatican Museum, but it is also "a musical center where composers have written for the liturgy for hundreds of years, some of the great composers of Western civilization, Palestrina, Allegri, Josquin... And to have my music played here is a very special priviledge," said MacMillan.

Conductor Harry Christophers added that "these great sacred places always have something special about the acoustics. The details we can hear, the resonance, is fantastic; it's so emotional."

And for him the performance at the Sistine Chapel was the chance of a lifetime.

"These occasions, you are lucky if they appear once in a lifetime, and here we are, I can't think of anything greater."

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'Superpope' Francis T-shirts to help poor, needy

A work of street art that turned Pope Francis into "superpope" will now support Vatican charitable projects through the sale of t-shirts bearing the flying pontiff, artist MauPal said Friday.

In 2014, graffiti artist MauPal -- whose real name is Mauro Pallotta -- depicted Francis as a superman on a wall in the Eternal City, flying through the air with his right fist outstretched and white cassock billowing behind him.

The pope clutched his trademark black bag in his left hand, from which a blue-and-red striped scarf peeked out.



When it appeared in Rome in January 2014, it captured the imagination of tourists and locals alike.

Two years later, MauPal drew Francis in a school-boy spirit, playing a cheeky wall game of noughts and crosses while a Swiss Guard kept watch.

"With the economic and social crisis that hit Italy and the world, I saw Francis as a symbol of hope for all," the artist said.

"I graphically summed up a widely-shared opinion of the pope as someone with a lot of power who is also humane and humble at the same time".

The images, put up near Saint Peter's Basilica, were quickly scrubbed off by city workers.

But the sketches remained and reappear on T-shirts. Part of the proceeds from their sale go towards works of charity supported by the Vatican.

Not everyone loved the drawings at first, with some earnest Francis supporters bristling at the tongue-in-cheek portrayal of a superman pope.

But it seems Francis himself has given MauPal's works his blessing.

"I offered him the drawing I had painted on a simple piece of wood, a medium I thought fit his (anti-luxury) philosophy. He looked at me, he smiled at me, then he affectionately pinched my cheek," MauPal said.

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Pope reveals anti-stress secrets - and it's not prozac

Pope Francis has shrugged off recent in-fighting in the Vatican and other stresses of his job by joking: "I am not on tranquilizers."

"There is corruption in the Vatican. But I am at peace," the pontiff said in a personally revealing interview with Italy's Corriere della Sera, published on Thursday.

In it, the erstwhile Jorge Bergoglio reveals how feelings of anxiety he sometimes experienced while he was bishop of Buenos Aires disappeared following his elevation to the papacy.

And he insists that he is losing no sleep over the maneuvering of conservatives opposed to his reforms of Church teaching and governance.

The 80-year-old says his secret for dealing with stress is to write down all his problems in letters to Saint Joseph.

He then places the missives under a statue of the man described in the bible as the carpenter father of Jesus.

"And now he is sleeping on a mattress of letters! That's why I sleep well: it is the grace of God. I always sleep six hours. And I pray," Francis said.

Francis's reform drive has run into opposition from conservative cardinals and entrenched interests in the Vatican bureaucracy.

Tensions have appeared to be running particularly high of late.

Francis last month dismissed the head of the Knights of Malta after the ancient order challenged his authority in a dispute seen as being linked to a broader row over the direction of the Church.

And the last week has seen a series of anti-pope posters plastered all over Rome by unidentified agitators.

Asked how he dealt with such tensions and the challenges he faces, Francis quipped: "I'm not on tranquilisers.

"The Italians offer a good lesson - to live in peace you need a healthy 'couldn't care less' attitude.

"I don't mind telling you that what I am going through is a completely new experience for me.

"In Buenos Aires I was more anxious, I admit it. I felt more tense and worried. Basically I wasn't like I am now.

"From the moment I was elected I had a very particular feeling of profound peace. And that has never left me. I am at peace. I don't know how to explain it."

In what may have been an allusion to opponents led by US Cardinal Raymond Burke, Francis implied he had made his intentions clear in meetings with other senior clerics before his election.

"In the general assemblies we discussed the Vatican's problems, we discussed reforms. Everyone wanted them," he said.

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Pope Francis says 'wait and see' on Trump

MADRID - Pope Francis on Sunday said he would not make an opinion on Donald Trump until he first had a chance to see the specific policies the new U.S. president would implement.

On Friday, as Trump was taking office, Francis urged him to be guided by ethical values, saying he must take care of the poor and the outcast during his time in office.

"I think that we must wait and see. I don't like to get ahead of myself nor judge people prematurely," the Pope told Spanish newspaper El Pais in an interview.

"We will see how he acts, what he does, and then I will have an opinion. But being afraid or rejoicing beforehand because of something that might happen is, in my view, quite unwise. It would be like prophets predicting calamities," he said.

Francis also warned Europeans against populism. The Pope said Europe should not repeat the same mistakes of the 1930s when nations turned to "saviors" to resolve economic and political crises only to end up at war.

"Crises provoke fear, alarm. In my opinion, the most obvious example of European populism is Germany in 1933... A people that was immersed in a crisis, that looked for its identity until this charismatic leader came and promised to give their identity back, and he gave them a distorted identity, and we all know what happened," the Pope said.

"In times of crisis, we lack judgment, and that is a constant reference for me... That is why I always try to say: talk among yourselves, talk to one another," he added. (Reporting by Julien Toyer; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore)

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McDonald's riles cardinals with branch near Vatican

ROME - McDonald's is dishing up "hallowed" hamburgers after the Vatican backed it in a fight with cardinals over a new outlet at the foot of the tiny city state in Rome.

Big Macs were being scoffed with glee Tuesday at the US fast food giant a stone's throw from Saint Peter's Square.

Cardinals had warned the Vatican against supping with that symbol of Western consumerism, including a group of the red-hatted "Princes of the Church" who live above the Vatican-owned site.

One even wrote to the pope slamming a commercial decision which is reportedly to bring 30,000 euros ($33,000) a month into the Vatican's coffers, but which locals fear will ruin a historical area.

Their protests fell on deaf ears and the new McDonald's branch opened Friday after the site, which covers 538 square metres (5,800 square foot), was rented to the restaurant chain by ASPA, the authority in charge of the Vatican's real estate.

While it lies outside the Holy See's walls, those popping in for a burger and chips have a good view of the papal apartment windows.

It's a panorama Angelo Tosti used to show off to tourists at his restaurant "Da Marcella", which has been in his family for three generations -- and now sits directly across the street from the fast food behemoth.

"What amazes me most is that the pope rises up against the multinationals, and then they give a Vatican property for rent" to McDonald's, Tosti said sadly. "It will ruin the whole area".

'ENOUGH TRADITIONAL RESTAURANTS'

Pope Francis has criticized multinationals in the past for food waste, poor nutrition and financial speculation. Others had argued that the space near the heart of the Roman Catholic Church should go to entities which help the needy, not the Golden Arches.

"When you come to Rome you should eat Roman food," Tosti told AFP, showing off a menu with specialities of the capital, from Carbonara to fried artichokes.

Fellow critics had decried as madness a move to pack more people into an area considered at high risk of a terror attack.

But not all were turning their backs on a "Big Vac" calorie fest after a lengthy trek around the Sistine Chapel and museums.

"It's next to the monuments, the service is fast and it's more convenient," said one young Australian tourist named Brooke.

And it got the seal of approval from passing Italian nun Sister Francesca, who said there were "enough traditional restaurants in the area" to satisfy pasta-happy gourmands.

It is not McDonald's first run-in over a branch location in Italy.

It made headlines in November after filing a $20-million lawsuit against Florence for blocking a proposed outlet in the city's most revered square.

The chain wanted to open a branch in the historic Piazza del Duomo, one of the most visited places in Europe.

Florence's center-left mayor Dario Nardella said while McDonald's "has the right to submit an application... we also have the right to say no".

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Gays cannot enter Catholic priesthood, insists Vatican

VATICAN - A decree on training for Roman Catholic priests published on Wednesday stresses the obligation of sexual abstinence, as well as barring gays and those who support "gay culture" from holy orders.

"The Church, while deeply respecting the people concerned, cannot admit to a seminary or into holy orders those who practise homosexuality, show deep-seated homosexual tendencies or support what is called gay culture," said the document.

The new comprehensive guide to the training of Catholic clergy, which runs to about 100 pages, was approved by Pope Francis and published by the Osservatore Romano, the Vatican's official journal.

It updates a previous version dating back 30 years. But the barring of people who present homosexual tendencies was already stipulated by the Catholic Church in 2005.

The new decree does however allow an exemption for "homosexual tendencies which may only be the expression of a transitory problem, such as for example that of adolescence which is not yet complete".

The document also says it would be "seriously imprudent to admit (to holy orders) a seminarian who had not reached a mature, settled and free emotional state, chaste and faithful in celibacy," while saying that future priests also need to understand "the feminine reality".

The document broaches several other issues including the digital revolution.

"One must be prudent in the face of inevitable risks of frequenting the digital world, including different forms of dependency which can be treated with adequate spiritual and psychological means," it notes.

At the same time it recommends that "social media form part of daily seminary life," because they offer "new possibilities of interpersonal relations (and) to meet other people," added the document by the Vatican, which has come to use social media widely.

cm/mt/pvh

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Pope scolds clergy over their part-time availability

VATICAN CITY - Clergymen should make themselves available to their flocks day and night instead of keeping visiting hours and relaxing once the church doors close, Pope Francis said Sunday.

"One who serves cannot hoard his free time; he has to give up the idea of being the master of his day," the pontiff said in a homily in Saint Peter's Basilica to mark the Church's Jubilee of Deacons.

"It deeply troubles me when I see a timetable in a parish: 'From such a time to such a time'. And then? There is no open door, no priest, no deacon, no layperson to receive people. This is not good," he said.

The 79-year old said clergymen should welcome "those who knock on those doors at odd hours, even if that entails setting aside something he likes to do or giving up some well-deserved rest".

He also stressed the importance of priests and deacons being mild-mannered, saying: "Never shout, never".

Deacons from around the world and their families convened in Rome this weekend to take part in special jubilee as part of Francis' Jubilee year which is dedicated to the theme of mercy.

In a shock move earlier this month, the Argentine pontiff said he would set up a commission to study the possibility of women entering the Catholic clergy as deacons, in a potentially historic move for the Church.

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Viva Santo Papa: Huge crowds bid farewell to Pope

MANILA - Pope Francis left the Philippines on Monday, ending a week-long trip to Asia that culminated with a rain-soaked Mass for about seven million people in the capital of Asia's most populous Catholic nation, the largest-ever crowd for a papal event.

Vatican officials have said between six million and seven million people attended Sunday's Mass in Manila's Rizal Park and surrounding areas, eclipsing the roughly five million worshippers who flocked to a Mass by Pope John Paul in the same park 20 years ago.

The Pope's plane took off from Manila at about 10 a.m. local time (0200 GMT) in clear blue skies, a stark contrast to the stormy weather since he arrived on Thursday.

Huge crowds greeted Francis at all his stops in the Philippines despite the bad weather. Thousands lined the streets along the papal route to the airport on Monday, some shouting "Viva Santo Papa!" and "Pope Francis, we love you!"

About a thousand schoolchildren danced and sang as he boarded the plane taking him back to Rome.

Several of Francis's scheduled events in the Philippines were cut short by torrential rains and high winds, particularly on Saturday when he went to comfort survivors of Typhoon Haiyan that killed at least 6,300 people in the central Philippines in November 2013.

The Pope and the millions of faithful wore plastic ponchos during Sunday's rain-soaked Mass.

As well as comforting typhoon survivors in the Philippines, Francis urged the government to tackle corruption and poverty, and pleaded for the world to hear the cries of poor, hungry, homeless and abused children.

Francis also took another swipe at the government's population control efforts, saying the family was under threat from "insidious attacks and programs contrary to all that we hold true and sacred".

Before the Philippines, the Pope spent two days in Sri Lanka, where he preached reconciliation between different religions after the predominantly Buddhist country's 26-year civil war that ended in 2009 and killed up to 100,000 people. (Editing by Paul Tait)

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Pope had different homily for Tacloban Mass

TACLOBAN - Pope Francis' message for typhoon victims in Tacloban on Saturday was very different from the homily he had prepared before the outdoor Mass.

According to a Vatican report, the Pope set aside his prepared homily in English and spoke from his heart in his native Spanish to thousands of victims of typhoon Yolanda who braved wind and rain to take part in the liturgy at the Tacloban airport.

Below is a transcript of the Holy Father's remarks, which were translated on-site by one of the ministers in the sanctuary.

************************************************

We have a high priest who is capable of sympathising with our weaknesses. Jesus is like us. Jesus lived like us and is the same us in every respect, except sin because he was not a sinner. But to be more like us he assumed our condition and our sin. He made himself into sin. This is what St Paul tells us. And Jesus always goes before us and when we pass an experience, a cross, he passed there before us. And if today we find ourselves here 14 months afterwards, 14 months precisely after the Typhoon Yolanda hit, it is because we have the security of knowing we will not weaken in our faith because Jesus has been here before us. In his Passion he assumed all our pain. Therefore he is capable of understanding us, as we heard in the first reading.

I’d like to tell you something close to my heart. When I saw from Rome that catastrophe I had to be here. And on those very days I decided to come here. I am here to be with you – a little bit late, but I’m here. I have come to tell you that Jesus is Lord. And he never lets us down. Father, you might say to me, I was let down because I have lost so many things, my house, my livelihood. It’s true if you say that and I respect those sentiments. But Jesus is there, nailed to the cross, and from there he does not let us down. He was consecrated as Lord on that throne and there he experienced all the calamities that we experience. Jesus is Lord. And the Lord from the cross is there for you. In everything the same as us. That is why we have a Lord who cries with us and walks with us in the most difficult moments of life.

So many of you have lost everything. I don’t know what to say to you. But the Lord does know what to say to you. Some of you have lost part of your families. All I can do is keep silence and walk with you all with my silent heart. Many of you have asked the Lord – why lord? And to each of you, to your heart, Christ responds with his heart from the cross. I have no more words for you. Let us look to Christ. He is the lord. He understands us because he underwent all the trials that we, that you, have experienced. And beside the cross was his Mother. We are like a little child in the moments when we have so much pain and no longer understand anything. All we can do is grab hold of her hand firmly and say “Mommy” - like a child does when it is afraid. It is perhaps the only words we can say in difficult times – “Mommy”.

Let us respect a moment of silence together and look to Christ on the cross. He understands us because he endured everything. Let us look to our Mother and, like a little child, let us hold onto her mantle and with a true heart say – “Mother”. In silence, tell your Mother what you feel in your heart. Let us know that we have a Mother, Mary, and a great Brother, Jesus. We are not alone. We also have many brothers who in this moment of catastrophe came to help. And we too, because of this, we feel more like brothers and sisters because we helped each other.

This is what comes from my heart. Forgive me if I have no other words to express myself. Please know that Jesus never lets you down. Know that the tenderness of Mary never lets you down. And holding onto her mantle and with the power that cones from Jesus’ love on the cross, let us move forward and walk together as brothers and sisters in the Lord.

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Below is the prepared text of the Pope's Homily that was no delivered:

Homily of His Holiness Pope Francis
Holy Mass
Tacloban, Airport Area
17 January 2015

What words of consolation we have just heard! Once again, we have been told that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, our Savior, our high priest who brings us mercy, grace and help in all our needs (cf. Heb 4:14-16). He heals our wounds, he forgives our sins, and he calls us, as he did Saint Matthew (cf. Mk 2:14), to be his disciples. Let us praise him for his love, his mercy and his compassion. Let us praise our great God!

I thank the Lord Jesus that we can be together this morning. I have come to be with you, in this city which was ravaged by Typhoon Yolanda fourteen months ago. I bring to you the love of a father, the prayers of the entire Church, the promise that you are not forgotten as you continue to rebuild. Here, the strongest storm ever recorded on earth was overcome by the strongest force in the universe: God’s love. We are here this morning to bear witness to that love, to its power to transform death and destruction into life and community. Christ’s resurrection, which we celebrate at this Mass, is our hope and a reality which we experience even now. We know that the resurrection comes only after the cross, the cross which you have borne with faith, dignity and God-given strength.

We come together above all to pray for those who died, those who are still missing and those who were injured. We lift up to God the souls of the dead, our mothers, fathers, sons and daughters, family, friends and neighbors. We can be confident that, in coming into the presence of God, they have encountered mercy and peace (cf. Heb 4:16). There remains much sadness because of their absence. For you who knew and loved them – and love them still – the pain of losing them is real. But let us look with the eyes of faith to the future. Our sadness is a seed which will one day bear fruit in the joy which our Lord has promised to those who trust in his words: “Blessed are you who mourn, for you will be comforted” (cf. Mt 5:4).
We have also come together this morning to give thanks to God for his help in time of need. God has been your strength in these very difficult months. There has been great loss of life, suffering, and destruction. Yet we are still able to gather and to thank him. We know that he cares for us, that in Jesus his Son, we have a high priest who is able to sympathize with us (cf. Heb 4:15), who suffers with us. God’s com-passion, his suffering with us, gives eternal meaning and value to our struggles. Your desire to thank him for every grace and blessing, even when you have lost so much, is not only a triumph of the resilience and strength of the Filipino people; it is also a sign of God’s goodness, his closeness, his tenderness, his saving power.

We also give thanks to Almighty God for so much that has been done to help, to rebuild, to assist in these months of unprecedented need. I think in the first place of those who welcomed and housed the great number of displaced families, elderly, and youth. How hard it is to flee one’s home and livelihood! We thank those who have taken care of the homeless, the orphaned and the destitute. Priests, and men and women religious, gave as much as they could. To those of you who housed and fed people seeking safety, in churches, convents, rectories, and who continue to assist those still struggling, I thank you. You are a credit to the Church. You are the pride of your nation. I personally thank each one of you. For whatever you did for the least of Christ’s brothers and sisters, you did for him (cf. Mt 25:41).

At this Mass we wish also to thank God for the good men and women who served as rescue and relief workers. We thank him for the many people around the world who generously gave of their time, money and goods. Countries, organizations and individuals across the globe put the needy first; it is an example that should be followed. I ask government leaders, international agencies, benefactors and people of goodwill not to give up. There is much that remains to be done. Though the headlines have changed, the needs continue.

Today’s first reading, from the Letter to the Hebrews, urges us to hold fast in our confession, to persevere in our faith, to draw near with confidence to the throne of God’s grace (cf. Heb 4:16). These words have a special resonance in this place. Amid great suffering you never ceased to confess the victory of the cross, the triumph of God’s love. You have seen the power of that love revealed in the generosity of so many people and in so many small miracles of goodness. But you have also seen, in the profiteering, the looting and the failed responses to this great human drama, so many tragic signs of the evil from which Christ came to save us. Let us pray that this, too, will lead us to greater trust in the power of God’s grace to overcome sin and selfishness. Let us pray in particular that it will make everyone more sensitive to the cry of our brothers and sisters in need. Let us pray that it will lead to a rejection of all forms of injustice and corruption which, by stealing from the poor, poison the very roots of society.

Dear brothers and sisters, throughout this ordeal you have felt the grace of God in a special way through the presence and loving care of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Our Lady of Perpetual Help. She is our Mother. May she help you to persevere in faith and hope, and to reach out to all in need. And with Saints Lorenzo Ruiz and Pedro Calungsod and all the saints, may she continue to implore God’s mercy and loving compassion for this country, and for all the beloved Filipino people. Amen

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Sick woman's recovery led to John Paul II's sainthood

ROME - The journey to sainthood of popes John XXIII and John Paul II will culminate on Sunday at the Vatican.

For many of their followers, like Floribeth Mora Diaz, who claims she was healed from cerebral fusiform aneurysm through the intercession of John Paul II, the double canonization of the two popes is a jubilant celebration for them.

In a translation, Diaz said the canonization on Sunday will be the most important part of the story in her life. She said it all started last year when her healing was recognized as a miracle of John Paul II.

She prayed to John Paul II to be healed and on the day of his beatification in 2011, and she believes the miracle happened.

"I saw a magazine with the picture of John Paul II with his arms open wide, and I heard his voice saying to me: 'Get up and do not be afraid'," she said.

Diaz, who was only given days to live by her doctor, got well.

"After I had an x-ray, the doctors were dumbfounded to see something happened to me. They cannot explain what happened. I was sitting with the doctor and he was re-reading the result over and over again, analyzing it. My husband asked, "What's wrong?" And he did not respond. And then I said, 'I know what's wrong: I have been healed by the intercession of Pope John Paul II," she shared.

It is also believed that the intercession of Pope John XXIII healed miraculously Sister Caterina Capitani from a very serious hemorrhaging ulcerative gastritis.

The friend of the deceased Sister Caterina said the canonization of Pope John XXIII on Sunday will make Caterina very happy.

"Sister Catarina was filled with joy during the beatification of John XXIII. And, if she was still alive today, she would be rejoicing in the same way for the canonization," said Sister Adele Labianca.

While John Paul II met the required two miracles for the canonization, without the customary certification of another miracle, Pope Francis is making Pope John XXIII saint.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Pope holds historic meet with Benedict XVI

CASTEL GANDOLFO, Italy - Pope Francis flew in to a papal residence near Rome on Saturday for an unprecedented encounter with "pope emeritus" Benedict XVI -- the first time a pontiff has met his predecessor.

The talks round off a historic few weeks for the Roman Catholic Church after Benedict became the first pope to resign in over 700 years and only the second to do so by choice in 2,000 years.

The last pope to resign -- Celestine V in 1294 -- was locked up and perhaps killed off by his successor Boniface VIII and there is no record of the two ever meeting post-resignation.

Highlighting the unusual nature of the encounter, both men are expected to wear white papal vestments since Benedict has been allowed to continue wearing his pontifical robes as well as using the title "Your Holiness".

Cardinals in a conclave in the Sistine Chapel last week elected Francis as his replacement -- Latin America's first pontiff and the first non-European pontiff in nearly 1,300 years.

The Vatican said Benedict followed television news coverage of Francis' election from Castel Gandolfo, the lakeside residence where he has been staying ever since he stepped down.

The talks are private and the Vatican has said very little is likely to emerge about their content -- with any number of urgent issues for a troubled Roman Catholic Church possibly on the agenda.

Francis's helicopter was seen landing at near the palace, which has been the papal summer residence for centuries.

The Vatican said Benedict was there to greet Francis along with household staff and that the two would have lunch.

The two men -- Francis is 76 and Benedict is 85 -- have very different styles but important core similarities on matters of doctrine and ways forward for the Church after Benedict's often troubled eight-year pontificate.

Francis has paid homage to Benedict and has called him twice since becoming pope.

Analysts say he will rely heavily on the theological legacy of the former pope.

Benedict, before he stepped down, pledged allegiance to whoever his successor might be.

The two leaders of the world's 1.2 billion Catholics are both preoccupied with issues ranging from rising secularism in Western countries, to the reform of Vatican bureaucracy, to the ongoing scandal of clerical child abuse.

The two could also discuss "Vatileaks" -- a scandal that broke last year over the leaks of hundreds of confidential papal documents that revealed allegations of intrigue and corruption inside the secretive Vatican.

Benedict has said he will live "hidden from the world" as a "simple pilgrim" on life's last journey and is expected next month to move back and live in a former nunnery on Vatican grounds in a life of quiet contemplation and academic research.

But the Vatican has said he could also provide "spiritual guidance" to his successor.

Benedict is living temporarily in Castel Gandolfo with his secretary Georg Gaenswein -- who confusingly is also the head of his successor's papal household -- and with the four housekeepers who looked after him when he was still pope.

Francis, formerly Jorge Bergoglio, has known Benedict for a long time.

At the 2005 conclave, Bergoglio was the main rival to Joseph Ratzinger, the future Benedict XVI, and represented a more socially progressive current among the cardinals but reports at the time indicated that he pulled out of the race.

While Ratzinger was reserved in public, Bergoglio is more spontaneous and people-friendly and has shunned some of the trappings of papal office.

Ratzinger was more a follower of tradition and never liked innovation.

But the two are very alike on doctrine and several of Francis's remarks in the first days of his papacy have been borrowed from his predecessor.

Both are opposed to gay marriage, abortion and euthanasia -- which Catholic believers considers a form of interference with God's "creation".

Francis's popularity is being seen with bitterness in some quarters in the Vatican where the memory of Benedict still shines strongly, unlike for many ordinary Catholics who have said they prefer the new pope's more direct style.

When he takes up residence in the Vatican, Benedict will be just a stone's throw from Francis -- an unexpected and delicate situation for the Church.

"This papacy will be rooted in Benedict's teachings," Samuel Gregg from the US-based Acton Institute religious think tank said earlier.

"For the past 25 years, he has been the main intellectual force in the Church," he said.

But at least for some people, Benedict is already being written out of the record.

Postcards on sale around the Vatican in recent days show a smiling Francis next to a picture of the ever-popular John Paul II -- with no depiction of the pope in between, Benedict.

source: abs-cbnnews.com