The Conclave to elect Pope Francis’s successor began in Rome on 7 May. This post explores the sacred traditions behind choosing a new pope.
Category: Church News
Remembering Pope Francis 1936 -2025
Remembering Pope Francis, who passed away after a life of humble service and faith. Discover his journey from Buenos Aires to the papacy and his lasting legacy in the Church.
Celebrating Saint Bernadette and Lourdes
In the year 2001 I remember going to see the relics of St Thérèse of Lisieux which were on an eleven-week tour of Ireland. Now in 2024, we have the privilege of the presence of another saint amongst us, Bernadette of Lourdes. Bernadette Soubirous, the young peasant girl and shepherdess who witnessed apparitions of Our… Read More
We Are Family: St. Martha, Mary, and Lazarus of Bethany
Image: www.dominusest.ph In the New Testament, we find quite a few Marys but only one Martha! She was the sister of Mary and Lazarus of Bethany and up until February 2021, she had a feast day to herself on 29 July. In 2021 Pope Francis approved a decree changing the liturgical feast of St Martha… Read More
The Internet Saint – Carlo Acutis
Image: Wikipedia In the city of London on 3 May 1991, a baby boy was born to an Italian mother and a father who was partly English. His parents Antonia and Andrea were nominal Catholics who rarely attended Mass. Antonia came from a non-practising family and his father’s faith was lukewarm. They might well have… Read More
Celebrating the Holy Spirit- Pentecost
Image: medium.com This year the Feast of Pentecost will be celebrated on May 19. This is a very significant day because it is the birthday of the Church, the moment when the Holy Spirit utterly transformed the apostles from being fearful and without direction into a community empowered to carry on the mission of Jesus…. Read More
World Youth Day- Lisbon 2023
Image: www.dioceseofleeds.org.uk On Tuesday of this week, August 2nd, Pope Francis arrived in Portugal for the first World Youth Day (WYD) since the Covid -19 Pandemic. He was accompanied by journalists on the papal flight, and he joked with them that he will return to Rome on Sunday “more youthful”. WYD brings together young people… Read More
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit- The Holy Trinity
Image: www.ncregister.com Last Sunday, June 4, we celebrated the feast of the Holy Trinity, one of the most profound mysteries of the Christian faith, the nature of God as Father, Son, and Spirit. The doctrine of the Trinity sums up the Christian understanding of the mystery of God. “It is impossible to believe explicitly in… Read More
The Mystery of Holy Week
Image: Canva When we enter Holy Week and Jesus enters Jerusalem, we begin to confront the great mystery of our faith – the Paschal Mystery: the passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Christians call this “a mystery” because it is a truth known only because it has been revealed to us by God. Reason alone… Read More
Happy Anniversary Pope Francis!
Image:www.americamagazine.org On Monday of this week, Pope Francis marked 10 years as head of the Roman Catholic Church by celebrating Mass with cardinals in the chapel of the Vatican’s Santa Marta residence where he has lived since his election. He never took possession of the papal apartments in the Apostolic palace used by his predecessors,… Read More
The Transfiguration of the Lord
Image: www.catholicnewsagency.com In his apostolic letter Rosarium Virginis Maria, Pope St John Paul II instituted the Luminous Mysteries, also referred to as the Mysteries of Light. The Fourth Mystery is a meditation on the Transfiguration of the Lord and the gospel reading at Mass last Sunday was about this beautiful and glorious event. The word… Read More
Some Symbolic Lenten Foods
Image: Canva The word ‘symbol’ comes from a Greek word that means ‘to juxtapose’ or ‘throw together’. Broadly, a symbol can be an object, word, or drawing that represents another reality not directly perceivable or expressed. An obvious example is the exchange of wedding rings which symbolize the love of a couple getting married. Symbols… Read More
Farewell to Pope Emeritus Benedict, (1927 – 2022)
Image: www.britannica.com As I write this the funeral of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI is taking place in Saint Peter’s Square in Vatican City, before the burial in a crypt beneath St Peter’s Basilica. The former pope died on New Year’s Eve at the age of 95, nearly a decade after he stood down due to… Read More
Our Lady of Guadalupe: Patroness of the Americas
Image: www.franciscanmedia.org On December 12 we celebrated the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. It was December 9, 1531, when Mary appeared to a man called Juan Diego on the hill of Tepeyac, in Mexico. A poor Aztec Indian, who had been raised in line with the Aztec pagan religion, Juan had converted to Catholicism… Read More
Left Out in the Cold
Image: StSavioursPriory Two people I was talking with recently both mentioned in passing that snow is expected later in the year. This is not good news. We have been warned incessantly that we are facing a very difficult winter ahead, mainly as a consequence of the huge rise in energy costs caused by Putin’s war… Read More
No Catholics Need Apply !
Image:members.parliament.uk History was made on two accounts this week when Liz Truss was elected Prime Minister in the United Kingdom. For the first time the Leader and the Deputy Leader are both women and the latter, Thérèse Coffey, is the first Catholic to serve in this position. There has only been one baptized Catholic… Read More