This is Pope Benedict’s homily at the closing mass of the VII World Meeting of Families in Milan. Dear Brothers and Sisters, It is a time of great joy and communion that we are experiencing this morning, as we celebrate the Eucharistic Sacrifice: a great gathering, in union with the Successor of Peter, consisting of ...read more

The following is the unofficial translation of Pope Benedict XVI’s talk to the men and women religious of the Archdiocese of Milan during his visit to the city for the VII World Meeting of Families. We have gathered in prayer, answering the invitation of the Ambrosian hymn for the Third Hour: “It is the third ...read more

In anticipation of the world premiere of “Across the Divide” this Sunday, June 3 in Vancouver, the creators take you behind-the-scenes of the making of the new S+L documentary. Yesterday on the blog, we heard from Kris Dmytrenko, the writer and one of the co-directors. Today we meet the editor and second co-director, Richard Valenti, ...read more

Left to right: Marie Brunet, Pierluigi Molla, Andre Brunet after presentations in Varese, Italy during the VII World Meeting of Families. Varese, Italy – On our  second full day of the VII World Meeting of Families, we spent the afternoon outside of Milan, in the town of Varese. To our great surprise, this trip outside ...read more

Across the Divide takes viewers to Bethlehem University, the only Catholic university in the Holy Land. Throughout its history, the campus has been caught in the crossfire of the ongoing conflict. In the first of our series of behind the scenes interviews, we hear from the documentary’s writer/co-director, Kris Dmytrenko (who you might already recognize ...read more

This blog comes to us from Marie and Andre Brunet of Winnipeg, Manitoba who are attending the VII World Meeting of Families. Milan, Italy –  Here we are!  Today was the first of the three days of meetings on many topics regarding the family.  This part of the week takes place at Milan’s Conference Centre ...read more

We hear of places all over the world where people find themselves living amid turmoil and hardship. It is in these very places where we find individuals who, despite having to endure great suffering, remain grounded in their faith and continue to have hope for a better world. Across the Divide takes viewers to Bethlehem ...read more

Photo: DePaul University student Emily LaHood speaking with Dr. Ronald Rychlak after his talk on the diplomacy of Pope Pius XII during WWII – at the Bishop Molloy Passionist Retreat House, NY.  The Path to Peace Foundation’s annual Catholic Social Teaching Seminar took place last week in New York City with fifty hand-selected students from ...read more

Many of you have heard the story that when I was twelve years old a doctor in my parish was ordained a permanent deacon. Ever since that day, the permanent diaconate has been in my heart. Many of you also know that four years ago, I was accepted into the Permanent Diaconate formation program for the ...read more

Marie and Andre Brunet of Winnipeg are in Italy for the VII meeting of families. They will be blogging from Milan throughout the week long event. Day 1: Rome – The pilgrimage has begun! Andre and I arrived in Italy a few days before the World Meeting of Families in order to spend a little ...read more