Christ's ascension has given us greater privileges and joys than the devil had taken from us

On Wednesday, May 24,, the US president will land in Rome from Israel. Appointed Callista Gingrich Ambassador to the Holy See.

Fish symbols on car bumpers are common these days. Sometimes the outline of the fish contains a cross within it and is commonly known to indicate someone’s Christian faith. While it may seem like a recent invention, the symbol can be traced back all the way to the beginning of Christianity.

Despite a few pointed comments in the past and fundamental differences on issues such as immigration, economic policy, military spending and climate change, sparks are not expected to fly May 24 when Pope Francis welcomes U.S. President Donald Trump to the Vatican.

The two will have a private conversation, with interpreters present, and while anything is possible, protocol dictates that the joint statement issued after the meeting will describe it as “cordial.”

Going into the meeting, Pope Francis made it clear he hoped it would be.

Can prayer change the direction of history? Are prayer and acts of penance capable of preventing nuclear annihilation? Can prayers and penance increase our freedom? “Yes, yes and yes.” Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger (now Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI), on June 26, 2000, in reference specifically to the request of Our Lady of Fatima to pray and do penance “to save souls,” wrote: “The future is not in fact unchangeably set, and the image [of terrible destruction and suffering] which the children saw is in no way a film preview of a future in which nothing can be changed.

Francis in Ostia - takes everybody by surprise, shows up unannounced and like any other pastor he blesses the homes. He then jokingly apologizes for the inconvenience, reassuring however of having respected the condo's rule of silence.

Pope Francis and President Donald Trump will meet May 24 in the Vatican. And while Holy See watchers debate the possible topics and tone of their private conversation, it was the Holy Father who offered a clue on his own plans for engaging the new U.S. president, who has already crossed swords with the Church leader on immigration and climate change.

Interview with Republican Congressman Francis Rooney, a former US Ambassador to the Holy See.

President Donald Trump and Pope Francis are two of the most compelling figures on the world stage. Both were elected outsiders, both have shaken up their respective establishments and both have sought to build bottom-up movements with a message that is taken directly to the people.

But the pair also have radically different visions of the world while neither is afraid of confrontation.

Sixth Easter Sunday – Year A – May 21, 2017

The readings of the Bible impel me to reflect with you upon two things which are interior within us, two things that are mysterious and can be known only in their expression. One is love and the other is the Holy Spirit. Both cannot be really known in themselves; both are made real for us in their activity, in their expression, in their external manifestations that we bring into our lives in our responses to God’s love for us.