How God wants guide the young people for the next WYD in Panama in 2019?
Message of the Holy Father Francis for the XXXII World Youth Day (Palm Sunday, April 9, 2017) Dear Young Friends, Here we are, on the road again, following our great meeting in Kraków, where we celebrated the Thirty-first World Youth Day and the Jubilee for Young People as part of the Holy Year of Mercy. We took as our guides Saint John Paul II and Saint Faustina Kowalska, the apostles of divine mercy, in order to offer a concrete response to the challenges of our time. We had a powerful experience of fraternity and joy, and we gave the world a sign of hope. Our different flags and languages were not a reason for rivalry and division, but an opportunity ...

Do you know The Way of Peace?
Let’s say you want to explore the world and see with your own eyes some of the most beautiful landmarks you have only heard about it on tv. You know there is much more than what you see on your daily basis: new places, new cultures, new food and costumes. You may even find a variety of vegetation, animals and other wonders of nature that will amaze you for days. So you may ask yourself, “how should I begin?” A good and experienced traveller will tell you that planning your journey is one of the most important things to do before you start. It will save you time, keep you focused on your goal, save you money and will prepare ...

The Choices of God
The choice of God towards the little shepherd David Moved by the readings of the book of Samuel, I felt motivated to meditate and pray upon the choice of God towards the little shepherd David. After personal prayer and meditation upon those passages of the book of Samuel I was amazed to see how God makes his choices, mainly when those choices made by God are towards small and weak creatures like us. I could not leave it to myself only; therefore I would like to share with you. From the book of Samuel we see (1 Samuel 16: 6) “When they arrived, he looked at Eliab and thought, ‘This must be Yahweh’s anointed now before him’, but Yahweh said ...

Novena to Saint Joseph
The Shalom Catholic Community invites you to pray the Novena to Saint Joseph. It can be said at any time of the year, specially on the days surrounding St Joseph’s Feast which is held on the 19th of March. Saint Joseph is a dear saint to our beloved Pope Francis and to many Catholics around the world. In Shalom Community, so many graces have been received through the intercession of Jesus’ earthly father. His intercession is well known as a powerful instrument of God’s Divine Providence in the lives of many, most of all in providing for the homes and families as he did to the Holy Family of Nazareth. If you wish to be a witness of his intercession, join us as we will start the ...

Why Herod was afraid of a little child?
Who was King Herod and why did he decide to kill all the children in his kingdom who were less than two years old? Why did a powerful king fear poor and unknown baby? Why does fear often generate violent and disproportionate reactions?
And why does the Catholic Church celebrate this tragedy as a feast at Christmas time? These questions are difficult to answer but we can reflect about it and live the feast of the holy innocents in a deeper way. We can reflect on our reactions when we feel threatened by something or someone who can change our life. How do we deal with the innocents who are still been killed today? Herod’s fear made him kill because he ...

Where does the joy of Mary come from? The power of the Blessed Virgin Mary’s Joy
Where does the joy of Mary come from? What was the importance of this joy in the journey of her life? What power is exercised by the joy in the life of the Mother of Jesus? And why we say that Mary was a cheerful person? Through the Scriptures it will become clear that joy is a gift of God, a fruit of the Holy Spirit. In The Virgin Mary you can see the joy overflowing and contagious everything she touch because of her purity that reflects perfectly the action of God. Soon after the Holy Spirit acted filling her, making her the Mother of the Savior, Mary of Nazareth, pregnant, went to visit Elizabeth full of joy (isn’t it ...

“Let our lives be conquered and transformed by the Resurrection,”
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis recited the Regina Coeli on Easter Monday, leading the pilgrims in St. Peter’s Square in a rousing chant of “Christ is risen!” “In Him, through our Baptism, we are risen, we have passed from death to life, from the slavery of sin to the freedom of love,” said the Pope. “This is the Good News that we are called to carry to others in every environment, animated by the Holy Spirit,” he said. “Faith in the resurrection of Jesus and the hope He has brought to us is the most beautiful gift that a Christian can and must offer his brothers and sisters,” continued Pope Francis. “To one and all, therefore, do not tire of repeating: ...

First Advent homily by papal preacher Fr Cantalamessa
The preacher of the Pontifical Household, Capuchin Father Raniero Cantalamessa, on Friday gave his first Advent homily in the Redemptoris Mater chapel of the Apostolic Palace in the Vatican. Fr Cantalamessa said he has decided to focus all three of his reflections for the Advent season on the theme of peace, since peace is “the loudest cry that is in the heart of billions of people”. While the first meditation explores the theme of peace as gift of God in Christ Jesus, the papal preacher said the second meditation next Friday will focus on peace as a task to work for and the third, on Friday 19th, will look at peace as fruit of the Spirit, namely, of the soul’s ...

10 Issues With The Media’s Narrative About Catholicism & The Synod on Marriage & Family
by Aggie Catholics The media frames all the synod’s discussions in terms of politics. The usual narrative is progressive vs conservative and too often Catholics get caught in this game as well. We have to learn that these are political terms and don’t really apply to The Church. The media only sees the human element of the Church, not the divine element. There is more to the Catholic Church than just humans who have agendas, play political games, and are trying to get their way. But, since all the media sees are these human elements, the divine elements are not part of the story. A discussion on issues doesn’t mean the Church is adopting every aspect of the discussion. Pope Francis has asked the ...

Can You ID the Devil?
The Chief Exorcist of Rome explains how the devil does appear. In a short interview with Rome’s Chief Exorcist, Fr. Gabriele Amorth, reporter Stefano Stimamiglio asks what the devil looks like. Father Gabriele: The devil is pure spirit, he has no corporeal substance and therefore cannot be represented in a form we can fully comprehend. This also applies to God’s angels who, if they wish to appear to men, must take on characteristics and features we can understand. One example is the Archangel Raphael, who in the Book of Tobit accompanies young Tobias on his mission in the form of a young man. Returning to the devil, what we can say is that he is much uglier than anything we ...