During his final engagement of his one-day visit to Albania on Sunday, Pope Francis visited a residential centre for disabled and needy children, run by an Italian charity in the Albanian capital, Tirana. In his address at the Bethany Centre (full text found below), the pope spoke of how faith, working through charity, can dislodge ...read more

Pope Francis urges Albanian youth to say yes to acceptance and solidarity during his Angelus address. Dear Brothers and Sisters, Before concluding this celebration, I wish to greet each of you who have come from all over Albania and from nearby countries. I thank you for your presence and for the witness of your faith. ...read more

  Below you will find the full text of Pope Francis’ homily during his first trip to Albania. Homily of His Holiness Pope Francis Holy Mass in Mother Teresa Square (Tirana, 21 September 2014) Today’s Gospel tells us that, as well as the Twelve Apostles, Jesus calls another seventy-two disciples and that he sends them ...read more

Pope Francis’ visit to Albania marks the first time a pontiff has visited the ‘Land of the Eagles’ since Pope John Paul II’s trip in 1993. His opening address, full text found below, focuses on a fruitful co-existence between people of different beliefs. “I am very happy to be here with you, in this noble land of Albania, a ...read more

The following is Pope Francis’ original speech during the celebration of Vespers in Albania.  Dear brothers and sisters, It is a great joy for me to meet with you in your beloved homeland; I thank God for the opportunity and I thank you for your hospitality! Here in your midst, I can better express my ...read more

“Today we have touched the martyrs.” – Pope Francis On Sunday, September 21, 2014, during his visit to Albania, Pope Francis met with priests, seminarians, religious men & women & lay leaders in Tirana Cathedral to celebrate Vespers. Upon hearing the very moving testimonies of a priest and sister who were imprisoned for many years under ...read more

Last Sunday was the Feast of the Triumph or Exaltation of the Cross. For the last two Sundays on the S+L Blog, we’ve been looking at why we exalt the cross, an instrument of death. We saw that Jesus died to destroy death forever, so we don’t have to be under the power of death anymore. ...read more

Thought we’d dig this one out of our photo archives for you. It’s a snapshot of our visit to the Archdiocese of New York during our filming for The Church Alive series and Go and Teach documentary.This photo was taken after a fantastic interview with Cardinal Timothy Dolan, who is featured in both shows. Left ...read more

At Salt and Light, we make a concerted effort to keep alive the memory of the Second Vatican Council. It’s not, as some might think, because we appreciate history. It’s because we look to the future. Those Catholics who are familiar with the history and context of Vatican II and with the sixteen official documents ...read more

So much has happened in the past couple of years.  If we rewind the clock back to September of 2012 we feel the first gusts of what became a great wind of new life and energy in the Catholic Church. At the S+L studios in Toronto we were busy preparing for the Synod of Bishops ...read more