Merciful Consolation After Abortion

By Msgr. Anthony Hernandez Recently, it was announced that the Holy Father, Pope Francis, will extend to all priests the faculty to absolve those who have procured the sin of abortion and who with contrite hearts seek forgiveness for it. This was done within the context of explaining to the faithful how one can receive […]

Papal Proclamation Seeks Mercy, Not Sacrifice

Reflecting on the upcoming Year of Mercy, Msgr. Michael J. Cantley shares his thoughts on the invitation Pope Francis is extending to look at the face of Jesus and discover God’s mercy as it is revealed in the Scriptures.

Pilgrims Make Reservations to Enter Through the Holy Door

Drawing on the experience of the public exposition of the Shroud of Turin, Vatican officials are adopting a free, online reservation system for pilgrims who want to cross the threshold of the Holy Door at St. Peter’s Basilica during the Year of Mercy.

An Oasis of Mercy

Last April 11, at First Vespers of Divine Mercy Sunday (Second Sunday of Easter), Pope Francis presented the Bull of Indiction of the Jubilee of Mercy, entitled “Misericordiae Vultus” or “The Face of Mercy.”

Fr. Robert Lauder

Job, Shakespeare and Romero

10th in a series. THROUGHOUT HIS BOOK, “The Human Poetry of Faith: A Spiritual Guide to Life (New York: Paulist Press, 2001, pp. 142, $12.95) Father Michael Paul Gallagher, S.J., has placed marvelous quotations from well-known authors.

Pope Recommends Reading Dante To Prepare for the Year of Mercy

By Elliot Williams VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Dante Alighieri’s “Divine Comedy” is more than a literary masterpiece, it is an invitation “to rediscover the lost or obscured meaning of our human path and to hope to see again the glowing horizon on which the dignity of the human person shines in its fullness,” Pope Francis […]

Announcing the Holy Year

Celebrating the first vespers for Divine Mercy Sunday, Pope Francis formally will deliver the “bull of indiction” or proclamation of the extraordinary Holy Year of Mercy.

Sacrament of Mercy

We’re still waiting on the concrete plans for the Holy Year of Mercy, which will be a Jubilee Year, announced by Pope Francis. We know that a papal bull will be proclaimed by the pope on Divine Mercy Sunday, April 12, and that the year will officially begin with the opening of the Holy Door […]

Pope Announces Holy Year of Mercy

The biblical theme of the year, he said, will be “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful,” an admonition that applies “especially to confessors,” the pope said with a smile.