NCR Today is the group blog of NCR. Each member of our diverse team of bloggers writes on different topics, including the politics of the church and secular society (and the interaction between the two), culture, management of the church and more.
Speaking before a packed St. Peter's Square on Pentecost, Pope Francis Sunday, once again stressed the need "to go out" of the church and to serve the poor.
He made his remarks in off the cuff comments during a homily on always being prepared for the new, on living the faith in diversity and harmony with the church, and on going out to live and preach the faith. These, he said, are characteristics of a life of the Spirit.
Across the United States, people are fasting in support of the fasting prisoners at Guantanamo Bay and of the closure of the Cuban prison. Friday marks 100 days since inmates began fasting. Witness Against Torture invites people to join a one-day solidarity fast over the weekend.
Since Watergate in the 1970s, a certain media-driven script has unfolded that goes something like this: During a president's first term, the media, generally speaking, allow the new leader some breathing space. However, if re-elected, the script calls for a new version of Watergate and a focus on presidential scandals.
Well, if faith leaders can do it -- actually promote civility in Washington, D.C. -- they will have worked a miracle that rivals those recorded in the Gospels.
Apparently, some are trying. Recently, the nonpartisan Faith and Politics Institute sponsored a two-day conversation among faith groups, "Faith, Politics and Our Better Angels: A Christian Dialogue to Promote Civility."
Eugene McClory died May 3 in Cincinnati and was buried May 9 following a funeral Mass in Michigan City, Ind. Back in the late 1960s, he was a priest of the Chicago archdiocese serving as vicar for religious under Cardinal John Cody. This was a time of great turmoil, when religious orders were being restructured and many sisters were leaving. Gene was constantly in action, visiting convents and motherhouses not only in Chicago, but around the country. He was a great listener and wise counselor.
NCR Today: Parish opened, parishes closed; The media and Pope Francis' agenda; G. Weigel's agenda.
A strong and vital official dialogue between Catholics and Lutherans continues yet remains one of the best-kept secrets in Christianity. The common understanding of the doctrine of justification is a case in point.
NCR Today: Sr. Dorothy Stang's murder suspect granted a new trial; priest politicians in Zambia and the Philippines; Schönborn had signs Bergoglio was 'the chosen.'
"There is a need for financial reform along ethical lines that would produce in its turn an economic reform to benefit everyone," Pope Francis told a group of ambassadors Thursday. "Money has to serve, not to rule."
"Tthe majority of the men and women of our time continue to live daily in situations of insecurity, with dire consequences," Francis said. "... People have to struggle to live and, frequently, to live in an undignified way."
Check out a photo that captures a happy spirit. Pope Francis is drawing crowds to St. Peter's Square in numbers not seen in decades. Some 100,000 pack the square weekly for his Wednesday audience. Yesterday a woman handed him a bird cage with two doves in it. He asked if he could release the birds. Then, reached in, taking one out. The first went to flight. The second perched on the papal hand for a bit, checking out the scene, before taking to flight.
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