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‘Run’ to seek Christ in everyday life, Pope Francis says in Easter Sunday homily
20
Apr
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‘Run’ to seek Christ in everyday life, Pope Francis says in Easter Sunday homily

Under clear spring skies and surrounded by thousands of faithful gathered in a St. Peter’s Square adorned with vibrant yellow daffodils, Pope Francis’s Easter Sunday homily called Christians to actively seek the risen Jesus in their daily lives, urging believers to “run” just as the disciples did after discovering the empty tomb. “We must look for him without ceasing,” emphasized the pope’s text, which was delivered by Cardinal Angelo Comastri on April 20. “Because if he has risen from the dead, then he is present everywhere, he dwells among us, he hides himself and reveals himself even today in the sisters…
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How the tradition of Dutch flowers at the pope’s Easter Mass was saved
20
Apr
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How the tradition of Dutch flowers at the pope’s Easter Mass was saved

In early 2022, some Dutch Catholics were dismayed to learn that a 37-year Easter tradition would not continue. The Netherlands, known for its fields of flowers, had for more than three decades donated the colorful tulips, daffodils, and hyacinths that decorate St. Peter’s Square for the pope’s Easter Sunday Mass at the Vatican. Pope Francis celebrates Easter Sunday Mass in 2017, flanked by tulips, hyacinths, and daffodils from the Netherlands. Credit: Lucia Ballester/CNA The custom was put on hold for two years because of coronavirus restrictions, and in 2022, the Dutch florist who had organized the initiative since 2015 said…
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20
Apr
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On Easter Sunday 2025, Pope Francis did not deliver his speech in person, though he briefly greeted the faithful with a brief “Brothers and Sisters, Happy Easter”. The pope’s traditio, “urbi et orbi,” was read by Archbishop Diego Ravelli, the Master of Pontifical Liturgical Celebrations, as the 88-year-old pontiff, still convalescing, was present but physically limited. Pope Francis briefly blessed the crowd after the message was read. “Urbi et orbi” means “To the city [of Rome] and to the world.” It is a special apostolic blessing given by the pope every year on Easter Sunday, Christmas, and other special occasions.…
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Tallest cross in the world will remain despite Spanish ‘resignification’ project
05
Apr
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Tallest cross in the world will remain despite Spanish ‘resignification’ project

The spokesman for the Spanish Bishops’ Conference (CEE, by its Spanish acronym), Bishop Francisco César García Magán, stated Friday that the 492-foot cross at the Valley of the Fallen, the tallest cross in the world, will remain standing as part of the Spanish government’s “resignification” of the site. The Valley of the Fallen, inaugurated in 1959, is a huge complex built after the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939) and is located about 30 miles from Madrid. It consists of a basilica situated underground in an excavated space in the mountain, a monumental cross, a Benedictine monastery, a school, and a Stations…
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St. Peter’s Basilica to exhibit Veronica’s Veil on April 6
05
Apr
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St. Peter’s Basilica to exhibit Veronica’s Veil on April 6

On Sunday, April 6, the fifth Sunday of Lent, St. Peter’s Basilica will display the revered “Veronica’s Veil,” a cloth that, according to tradition, was used to wipe the face of Jesus on his way to Calvary, renewing a very ancient tradition of the Catholic Church. At 6 p.m. local time, while the litanies are being intoned, the faithful will walk through the naves of the basilica, entering through the Holy Door. From the Veronica loggia, the relic, also known as the Holy Face, will be displayed in an extraordinary liturgy. Afterward, the archpriest of St. Peter’s Basilica, Cardinal Mauro…
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Armed gangs murder two nuns in Haiti
05
Apr
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Armed gangs murder two nuns in Haiti

Sisters Evanette Onezaire and Jeanne Voltaire, members of the Congregation of the Little Sisters of St. Therese of the Child Jesus, were murdered in Haiti by armed gangs that continue to sow chaos in several cities across the country. The news was confirmed April 2 by Archbishop Max Leroy Mésidor of Port-au-Prince to the pontifical foundation Aid to the Church in Need, following media reports of the attack perpetrated by members of a coalition of gangs known as “Vivre Ensemble” (“Living Together”). The group stormed the town of Mirebalais in central Haiti on Monday, March 31, freeing some 500 prisoners from a…
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Former Cardinal Theodore McCarrick Dies at 94
04
Apr
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Former Cardinal Theodore McCarrick Dies at 94

Theodore McCarrick, the disgraced former cardinal and archbishop of Washington who spent decades moving in the highest circles in the Church and was later found guilty in a Vatican investigation of sexually abusing minors and adults, has died at age 94.   A spokeswoman for the Archdiocese of Washington on Friday shared a statement with CNA in which Cardinal Robert McElroy confirmed McCarrick’s passing. McCarrick, who was reportedly suffering with dementia, had been living in a facility in rural Missouri.  “Today I learned of the death of Theodore McCarrick, former archbishop of Washington. At this moment I am especially mindful…
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Arrest made in murder of Kansas priest
04
Apr
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Arrest made in murder of Kansas priest

Police have arrested a man in connection with Thursday’s shooting death of a Catholic priest in the Archdiocese of Kansas City, Kansas. Gary Hermesch was taken into custody at the Nemaha County Jail under suspicion of first-degree murder in the shooting of Father Arul Carasala, according to the Nemaha County Sheriff’s Office.  Carasala had been shot at Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Seneca on Thursday afternoon. The priest later died from his injuries at Nemaha Valley Community Hospital, according to a press release from the Kansas Bureau of Investigation. The motive for the shooting was unclear as of Friday afternoon.…
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