Documents seized from office managing St. Peter’s as Pope Francis appoints commissioner

Vatican City, Dec 30, 2020 / 03:25 am (CNA).- Catholics can change the world by being “bearers of gratitude,” Pope Francis said at the general audience Wednesday.

In his address Dec. 30, the pope said that thanksgiving was a hallmark … […]

Vatican City, Jun 6, 2017 / 05:30 am (CNA/EWTN News).- More than 130 imams and religious leaders throughout the UK have joined voices in strongly condemning recent terrorist attacks in London and Manchester, calling the acts “cold-blooded murders.”

In a joint statement issued June 5, the imams and other religious leaders said they condemn the recent terror attacks in Manchester and London “in the strongest terms possible.”

Coming from a range of backgrounds across the UK, the signatories said that in “feeling the pain the rest of the nation feels, we have come together to express our shock and utter disgust at these cold-blooded murders.”

In an unprecedented move, the imams who signed the statement also declared that they will not perform the traditional Islamic funeral prayer for the attackers.

Signatories urged fellow imams and religious authorities to withdraw the privilege of the prayer because of the “indefensible actions” of the perpetrators, which are “completely at odds with the lofty teachings of Islam.”

Seven people were killed and 48 others injured in London the night of June 3 when three men drove a van into a crowd of people on London Bridge around 10 p.m. local time. The men then went on a stabbing spree in nearby Borough Market, where people were enjoying a night out at restaurants and pubs.

The three men reportedly shouted “this is for Allah” during the attack. The three attackers were shot dead by police within eight minutes of the first emergency call.

According to police, 12 more people have been arrested in connection to the attacks.

Saturday’s assault marked the third terror attack in the UK in three months. In March a separate car and knife attack in Westminster left five people dead, and a bombing at an Ariana Grade concert in Manchester May 22, killed 22 people, most of whom were youth.

Such “ruthless violence” is never acceptable, the declaration read, but especially during Ramadan, when Muslims around the world are focused on “prayer, charity and the cultivation of good character.”

This only serves to demonstrate how “utterly misguided and distant the terrorists are” from the Islamic faith, the signatories said, adding that the “reprehensible actions” of the attackers has neither religious legitimacy nor their sympathy.

“Alongside our friends and neighbors, we mourn this attack on our home, society and people, and feel pain for the suffering of the victims and their families,” they said, and prayed “that the perpetrators be judged in accordance with the gravity of their crimes in the hereafter.”

“Their acts and willful dismissal of our religious principles alienates them from any association with our community for whom the inviolability of every human life is the founding principle,” they said, quoting the Qaran.

The signatories also commended the actions of the police and emergency personnel for their courage and “rapid response” the night of the attack.

Closing their statement, the faith leaders said they are praying “for peace and unity, and for all the victims of terror both at home and across the globe, who are targeted, irrespective of their faith.”

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Vatican City, Feb 10, 2020 / 11:34 am (CNA).- Pope Francis emphasized unity in a message sent Monday to bishops connected to the Focolare Movement, which is celebrating 100 years since the birth of its founder.

“The charism of unity is one of these graces for our time, which is experiencing a momentous change, and calls for a simple and radical spiritual and pastoral reform which brings the Church back to the ever new and current source of the Gospel of Jesus,” the pope said in the Feb. 10 message.

The pope referenced John 17:21, in which Christ prays, “so that they may all be one, as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us, that the world may believe that you sent me.”

“Through the charism of unity, fully attuned to the magisterium of the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, the Holy Spirit concretely teaches how to live the grace of unity” according to Christ’s prayer, he said.

The message from Pope Francis was read aloud at the opening of a conference of seven cardinals and 137 Catholic bishops from 50 countries Feb. 10.

The bishops and cardinals are connected to the Focolare Movement and referred to as “friends” of the group. The meeting, titled “a charism at the service of the Church and humanity,” is taking place Feb. 10-12 in Loppiano, Italy.

The Focolare Movement is a Catholic organization focused on the principles of unity and fraternity; it began in northern Italy in 1943.

In 2020, the movement is celebrating the centenary of the birth of its founder, laywoman Chiara Lubich, whose cause for beatification was opened by the Vatican in 2015.   

Lubich was born on Jan. 22, 1920 in Trento and died March 14, 2008 in Rocca di Papa, surrounded by members of the movement. In the days leading up to her death, she was visited by many people, including important political and religious leaders.

Her funeral was celebrated at St. Paul’s Outside the Walls in Rome and was attended by nearly 40,000 people.

In his message, the pope also spoke about the Holy Spirit’s invitation to choose Christ Crucified as the “compass of our ministry” and to become “one with everyone, starting from the least, from the excluded, from the discarded, to bring them light, joy, peace.”

“The Spirit opens the dialogue of charity and truth with every man and woman, of all cultures, religious traditions, ideal convictions, to build the new civilization of love in encounter,” he continued. “The Spirit puts us at the school of Mary, where we learn that what is worthy and remains is love.”

The president of the Focolare Movement, Maria Voce, sent a video message to the bishops’ meeting Feb. 10.

Voce said they want to promote “a lifestyle of fellowship and communion with Jesus among Catholic bishops from all over the world… Such a lifestyle contributes to making collegiality ever more effective and affective.”

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