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Pope Francis at the general audience in St. Peter’s Square on May 23, 2018. / Daniel Ibáñez/CNA.

Vatican City, Mar 23, 2022 / 07:10 am (CNA).

The Vatican has unveiled the logos and mottos for Pope Francis’ July trip to South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

In South Sudan, where Francis will travel from July 5-7, the motto comes from John 17: “I pray that all may be one.”

The logo depicts a dove carrying an olive branch flying above the outline of South Sudan colored like the country’s flag. The design also includes a cross and two clasped hands.

According to the visit’s organizers, the clasped hands represent the reconciliation of the tribes making up the single nation, while the cross symbolizes South Sudan’s Christian heritage and its suffering.

The dove and olive branch point to the desire for peace in the country.

The motto of Pope Francis’ July 2-5 visit to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is “All Reconciled in Jesus Christ.” The logo includes a blue cross, the image of Pope Francis, a landscape of river, mountains, and a tree, and an okapi.

The okapi is a cross between a zebra and a giraffe, and the DRC is the only country where it is found in the wild. The okapi was included in the logo, according to organizers, to represent the wealth of the Congolese fauna.

Another important symbol in the image is a palm branch, which recalls the martyrdom rooted in the DRC’s history.

“The palm tree, expressing in fact victory, rebirth and immortality, refers to the message of hope that offers the visit of the Holy Father,” a press release said.

Organizers said the blue cross shows the devotion of the Congolese people for the Virgin Mary, Our Lady of Congo, who “carries and sustains the prayers of the whole nation to Christ the Redeemer, our strength.”

Three abstract people in orange are under the blue cross as a symbol of fraternity, which can only be a gift of God, the press release said.

“The vibrant colors used here are intended to manifest the feeling and dynamism that characterizes the Congolese people, ready to welcome in joy and unity the Vicar of Christ and Successor of Peter.”

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CNA Staff, Apr 7, 2021 / 04:00 am America/Denver (CNA). Pope Francis said on Wednesday that the communion of saints means that Christians are never alone in the darkest moments of their lives. Speaking at […]

CNA Staff, Oct 22, 2020 / 07:00 pm (CNA).- The Knights of Columbus has launched a nine-day novena to prepare for the beatification of the organization’s founder, Fr. Michael McGivney, at the end of the month.

The novena starts October 22 and continues through October 30, the eve of Fr. McGivney’s beatification.

During the novena, participants will reflect on different aspects of McGivney’s life, including his pastoral leadership, charity toward the poor, and support for family life and the domestic church.

Each day of the novena will include prayers for McGivney’s intercession and reflections on virtues to imitate. It will also include a prayer for McGivney’s canonization, which will require one more approved miracle.

“We are praying that many graces will come through the beatification of Father McGivney, that by his example of virtue we may be inspired to put our faith into action for the good of our families, parishes and communities,” said Supreme Knight Carl Anderson in a press release.

“We will also pray for a miracle that will lead to the canonization of Father McGivney.”

McGivney will be beatified October 31 at the Cathedral of St. Joseph in Hartford, Connecticut.

The priest founded the Knights of Columbus in 1882. Today it is the world’s largest Catholic fraternal service organization, with nearly two million members in more than a dozen countries. Over the past year, the Knights of Columbus have volunteered over 77 million service hours and donated $187 million in charitable funds.

Born in Waterbury, Connecticut, in 1852, McGivney played a critical role in the growth of the Church in the United States in the latter part of the 19th century. After his ordination in Baltimore in 1877, he served a largely Irish-American and immigrant community in New Haven.

Amid an anti-Catholic climate, he established the Knights to provide spiritual aid to Catholic men and financial help for families that had lost their breadwinner.

McGivney’s sainthood cause officially opened in 1997 in the Archdiocese of Hartford, Connecticut. In 2008, Pope Benedict XVI declared the American-born priest a Venerable Servant of God in recognition of his life of heroic virtue.

Pope Francis approved McGivney’s first miracle in May. The miracle involved an unborn child in the United States who was healed in utero of a life-threatening condition in 2015 after his family prayed to McGivney.

Following his beatification, McGivney’s cause will require one more authenticated miracle before he can be considered for canonization.

He would not be the first member of the Knights of Columbus to be canonized. A group of six Mexican members of the organization were martyred during the Cristero War of 1926-29 and its aftermath.

The six are St. Luis Batis, St. Rodrigo Aguilar, St. Miguel de la Mora, St. Pedro de Jesús Maldonado, St. José María Robles, and St. Mateo Correa.

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