Pope Benedict XVI visits the United States in an election year with intense political cross-currents. Some commentators may see his journey of hope through a secular political lens. They may try to put his prophetic defense of human life from conception until natural death in a partisan context. They may hear appeals for peace as [...]
Archive for March, 2008
Pope’s Political Message Apt To Disappoint Partisans
Posted in General on March 31, 2008 | 1 Comment »
Ecumenical Gatherings Regular Part of Papal Trips
Posted in General on March 30, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
Pope Benedict will meet with leaders of other Christian churches on April 18 at a special Vespers service at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church on East 87th Street in New York. Gatherings of this kind have become a regular feature of papal visits abroad, and recent popes have used them as a way of encouraging the [...]
Papal Thought — Remarks of Archbishop Timothy Broglio
Posted in General on March 27, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
Allow me to begin by thanking Archbishop Wuerl for his kind invitation to join all of you this morning in this press briefing on Papal Thought in preparation for the historic first visit of Pope Benedict XVI to the United States of America. It seems so appropriate that we gather here in the National Shrine [...]
Pope Benedict May Shake Off Misconceptions
Posted in General on March 26, 2008 | 4 Comments »
One of the best things to come from Pope Benedict XVI’s visit to the United States will be that people will get to know him.
There’s a lack of awareness of who he is for three reasons:
He follows Pope John Paul II, who revolutionized the papacy. Before his election, the papacy had [...]
Pope Benedict XVI: a Co-Worker in the Truth
Posted in General on March 26, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
Not all popes are great theologians. Yet the present Pontiff can rightly be considered one of the greatest theological minds to assume the Chair of Peter.
Prior to his election on April 19, 2005, Joseph Ratzinger looked forward to a retirement in which he could set to work on scholarly projects that had been placed [...]
Benedict XVI’s Plea: Put the Poor at the Heart of Catholic Life
Posted in General on March 25, 2008 | 2 Comments »
Pope Benedict XVI clearly puts care for the poor at the heart of the Catholic Church. In his first encyclical, Deus Caritas Est (God is Love), he said three things make the Church the Church: Proclaiming the Gospel, celebrating the Sacraments and caring for the poor. This love of the poor is an essential and [...]
Like Peter, Benedict is Today’s Rock
Posted in General on March 13, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
Catholics recognize that when Pope Benedict XVI comes to our country he does so as the successor of St. Peter. As Peter was chosen to be the head of the first Apostles and chief shepherd of the newly born Church, so Pope Benedict is the head of the Apostolic College, that is, the head of [...]
Diversity Sets Stage For The Pope’s Visit
Posted in General on March 11, 2008 | 7 Comments »
Pope Benedict XVI will find a striking diversity on his first visit as pope to the United States. This, perhaps more than any other reality, impacts the Church’s current and future vitality
People from every conceivable culture and race make up the Church’s membership now. The pope will be coming to a faith community that [...]
Christ Our Hope
Posted in Christ Our Hope on March 9, 2008 | 5 Comments »
Seems like a safe theme for the 2008 papal visit, doesn’t it? Hope is a nice word; the politicians have grabbed on to it; it’s a great Scripture for newlyweds.
But hope can be a very dangerous word, if you really believe in Christian hope. Just ask Martha Sweed Walker.
Lies, Damned Lies and Statistics
Posted in General on March 9, 2008 | 1 Comment »
Lies, Damned Lies and Statistics (As Benjamin Disraeli and Mark Twain say)
Media coverage on the Catholic Church will increase as we draw closer to the papal visit. Anyone who has seen recent research by Pew on the nation’s religious landscape might want to consider a review from the Georgetown University-based Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate. [...]
