Articles by Courtney Mares
Cameroon bishop says Africa offers synod an example
Oct 24, 2018 / 11:00 amWhile European bishops discuss how to bring young people back to the Church at the 2018 Synod of Bishops, one bishop from Cameroon said that he has the opposite problem.
Pope Francis: Marriage prep should be more than a few parish meetings
Oct 24, 2018 / 02:57 amIn his general audience Wednesday, Pope Francis said that engaged couples require “careful preparation” for the lifelong fidelity that marriage requires.
Congressman asks House to protect religious minorities in Iraq
Oct 23, 2018 / 11:00 amCongressman Jeff Fortenberry introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives Oct. 5 a security resolution intended to protect religious minorities in northern Iraq.
Young people pray for St. John Paul II’s intercession during youth synod
Oct 23, 2018 / 05:03 amThe adoration holy hour on Saint John Paul II’s feast day included meditations on the pope’s Gospel reflections in St. Lawrence in Piscibus, a church which St. John Paul II rededicated as a youth center in the 1980s.
'What is a youth?' A synod glossary
Oct 22, 2018 / 09:16 amThe 15th ordinary Synod of Bishops is meeting now to discuss young people, the faith, and vocational discernment. Many have referred to this nearly month-long meeting as the “Youth Synod.” This raises a question: What is a youth?
Synod bishop: 'John Paul II guided me through my youth'
Oct 22, 2018 / 07:43 amOn the feast of Saint John Paul II, one synod bishop reflected on how the Polish pope inspired generations of young people, including himself, to pursue holiness.
Global Catholic tech: Online Arabic catechetical program unites Middle East Catholics
Oct 21, 2018 / 12:00 pmA bishop from Lebanon shared at the 2018 Synod of Bishops how his online catechesis program in Arabic has helped him to unite young Catholics across the Middle East.
Pope Francis & South Korean president pray for peace
Oct 18, 2018 / 08:45 amSouth Korea’s President Moon Jae-in met with Pope Francis today after praying for peace on the Korean peninsula in St. Peter’s Basilica. The visit marked the 55th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Seoul and the Vatican.
Hacking pastoral care: Youth synod bishops talk technology
Oct 17, 2018 / 17:00 pmSmartphone apps and Skype have transformed the way at least one synod bishop conducts his pastoral ministry with young people.
Tiananmen Square to St. Peter’s Square: Who are the Chinese bishops at the synod?
Oct 17, 2018 / 07:40 amWeeks after his excommunication was lifted last month as a part of an agreement between China and the Holy See, Bishop Guo garnered attention in Rome as one of the first Chinese bishops to ever participate in an ecclesial synod, along with Bishop Yang Xiaoting of Yan'an.
Pope Francis at canonization Mass: 'Jesus is radical'
Oct 14, 2018 / 04:19 am"Jesus is radical,” Pope Francis said in his homily at the canonization of Pope Paul VI, Oscar Romero, and five other new saints. “He gives all and he asks all: he gives a love that is total and asks for an undivided heart,” the pope told the pilgrims gathered in St. Peter’s Square Oct. 14.
Bishop Barron at Synod of Bishops: Young people are ‘hungry for mission’
Oct 12, 2018 / 09:17 amYoung people are “hungry for mission,” Bishop Robert Barron said Friday during the 2018 Synod of Bishops, convened to discuss young people, the faith, and vocational discernment
South Korean bishop: Before Pope Francis plans a trip, ‘some things in North Korea should change’
Oct 11, 2018 / 13:00 pmBishop Yoo Heung Sik of Daejeon, who has made multiple trips to North Korea on behalf of the South Korean Bishops Conference, originally welcomed the news that South Korea’s President Moon Jae-in and Chairman Kim Jong Un had discussed inviting Pope Francis to visit the DPRK during their meeting in late-September.
Pope Francis: Abortion is like hiring a hitman
Oct 10, 2018 / 03:04 amIn his general audience Wednesday, Pope Francis said that abortion “suppresses innocent and helpless life in its blossoming.” “Is it right to take a human life to solve a problem? It's like hiring a hitman,” Pope Francis said in St. Peter’s Square Oct. 10, in a departure from his prepared remarks.
Cardinal Lacroix: Young people, clerics included, need better formation on sexuality
Oct 9, 2018 / 12:24 pmYoung Catholics, particularly clerics, need better formation on sexuality, affectivity, and the body, Cardinal Gérald Lacroix told reporters Tuesday, speaking about the 2018 Synod of Bishops.
Kim Jong Un invites Pope Francis to meet in Pyongyang
Oct 9, 2018 / 04:40 amNorth Korean dictator Kim Jong Un has invited Pope Francis to meet in Pyongyang, a South Korean spokesman said Tuesday. Pope Francis is already set to meet with South Korean President Moon Jae-in Oct. 18 for an audience at the Vatican Apostolic Palace, where Moon will personally deliver the invitation from Kim Jong Un.
Youth synod bishop apologizes to young people on behalf of Church leaders
Oct 5, 2018 / 09:26 amArchbishop Anthony Fisher of Sydney apologized to young people on behalf of Church leaders in a speech at the Synod of Bishops Friday.
Youth synod bishop: The world is rich in technology & poor in principles
Oct 4, 2018 / 09:00 amA Polish archbishop participating in the Vatican synod on youth said Thursday that today’s young people have benefited from technological progress, but face a world that is “poorer in principles.” Archbishop Stanisław Gądecki of Poznan discussed technology and ethics during his homily at an Oct.4 Mass celebrated at the tomb of St. John Paul II in St. Peter’s Basilica.
Pope Francis donates for Indonesia earthquake recovery
Oct 4, 2018 / 04:03 amPope Francis donated to recovery efforts in Indonesia after an earthquake and tsunami devastated the Sulawesi coast leaving at least 1,400 people dead.
Pope Francis calls for a youth synod 'anointed by hope'
Oct 3, 2018 / 03:02 amPope Francis began the Synod on young people Oct. 3 with a homily calling for the Holy Spirit to renew hope and dynamism in the Church.