On September 27, 2014, as early as 7:00am, hundreds of thousands of pilgrims from over 80 countries made their way to Madrid’s Parque de Valdebebas for the Beatification of Bishop Alvaro del Portillo, the first successor of the founder of Opus Dei, St. Josemaria Escriva. Our group of 50 Canadians travelled by Metro to the ...read more

Pope Paul VI waves the starting flag for the Tour of Italy cycling race from the St. Damasus courtyard at the Vatican in this May 16, 1974, file photo. (CNS photo/L’Osservatore Romano)  To learn more about the Pope Paul VI and the documents he promulgated, watch The Church Alive series.   ...read more

Day 6: Today on Inside the Synod the Post Disceptationem (summary document) is delivered by the General Relator, Cardinal Peter Erdo of Hungary, and a Mass of thanksgiving for two new Canadian Saints is celebrated by Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Basilica with hundreds of Canadian pilgrims.  Sebastian Gomes brings us the report. ...read more

On Tuesday October 7, during the Synod on the Family, Pope Francis called Cardinals to a special consistory that will address the crisis facing Christians in the Middle East. All the patriarchs of the Middle East and the heads of the Eastern Churches have been invited to attend the consistory, which will take place at ...read more

Pope Paul VI watches on television the first manned lunar landing July 21, 1969, at the Vatican Observatory in Castel Gandolfo, Italy. (CNS photo/Catholic Press Photo) (July 20, 2009)  U.S. astronaut Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin poses for a photo beside the U.S. flag July 20, 1969, during the first manned lunar landing. Pope Paul VI told ...read more

Pope Benedict XVI views a room in the house where Pope Paul VI was born in Concesio, Italy.  Paul VI, was born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini in 1897 and served as pontiff from 1963 to 1978. (CNS photo/L’Osservatore Romano via Reuters) To learn more about the Pope’s of the Second Vatican Council, watch ...read more

Pope Paul VI and Cardinal Albino Luciani, the future Pope John Paul I, are pictured in Venice in 1972. Pope Francis will beatify Pope Paul Oct. 19 during the closing Mass of the extraordinary Synod of Bishops on the family.  (CNS photo/Giancarlo Giuliani, Catholic Press Photo)  To learn more about the contributions of these great ...read more

Homily of His Holiness Pope Francis Mass of Thanksgiving for the Equivalent Canonizationof Saints François de Laval and Marie de l’Incarnation Sunday, 12 October 2014 We have heard Isaiah’s prophecy: “The Lord God will wipe away the tears from all faces…” (Is 25:8).  These words, full of hope in God, point us to the goal, ...read more

So far in part 1  and part 2, we looked at how natural law is usually defined and how some of these definitions cause confusion. I also offered a definition that has always worked well for me. It helps to repeat it: Natural law is the law that says that all things work best or ...read more

The first week of the Synod on the family has wrapped up in Rome. Participants have moved from general working sessions into small group sessions where they will go over the issues discussed “in aula” and work towards creating a unified document that can be presented to Pope Francis. While there has been unity among ...read more