Pope Francis, pictured on Oct. 3, 2015. / Mazur/catholicnews.org.uk.
Vatican City, Mar 22, 2022 / 12:50 pm (CNA).
Pope Francis offered his “heartfelt condolences” on Tuesday after a Boeing 737 plane carrying 132 passengers crashed in hills in southern China.
The pope sent a condolence telegram to China’s President Xi Jinping on March 22 after China Eastern Airlines Flight MU5735 crashed on Monday in Guangxi province.
China’s Civil Aviation Administration said on Tuesday that rescuers had so far failed to discover any survivors.
The telegram sent on the pope’s behalf by Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin said: “Upon hearing the sad news of the tragic air accident in the province of Guangxi and the loss of human lives, His Holiness Pope Francis sends his heartfelt condolences to you and your fellow citizens.”
“He prays for those who perished and for the consolation of those who mourn. His Holiness invokes upon each one the Divine Blessing.”
China and the Holy See have not had diplomatic relations since 1951, following the Chinese Communist Revolution. But the two parties signed a provisional agreement on the appointment of bishops in 2018, which was renewed for a further two years in 2020.
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Pope Francis speaks to religious leaders on the grounds of Indonesia’s national mosque in Jakarta, Indonesia, Sept 5, 2024. / Daniel Ibáñez/CNA
Jakarta, Indonesia, Sep 5, 2024 / 00:13 am (CNA).
Pope Francis visited the grounds of Southeast Asia’s largest mosque on Wednesday for an interfaith meeting in Indonesia, where he signed a joint declaration condemning religious-based violence with Muslim leader Grand Imam Nasaruddin Umar.
The Istiqlal Joint Declaration 2024 is titled “Fostering Religious Harmony for the Sake of Humanity.”
Named for Indonesia’s national Istiqlal Mosque, the document calls for religious leaders to work together to promote human dignity, interreligious dialogue, and environmental protection.
“The values shared by our religious traditions should be effectively promoted in order to defeat the culture of violence,” the declaration says.
“Our religious beliefs and rituals have a particular capacity to speak to the human heart and thus foster a deeper respect for human dignity.”
Pope Francis arrives at Istiqlal Mosque in Jakarta, Indonesia for an interreligious meeting on Sep. 5, 2024. Daniel Ibáñez / CNA
Pope Francis became the first pope to visit the grounds of Jakarta’s Istiqlal Mosque on Sept. 5. The massive mosque is among the largest in the world, accommodating up to 250,000 people at a time. John Paul II, who visited Indonesia in 1989, was the first pope to ever visit a mosque during his visit to Damascus in 2001.
According to the mosque’s grand imam, Istiqlal is second only in size to Mecca and Medina, and its influence extends to Indonesia’s roughly 242 million Muslims.
The interfaith meeting sought to promote religious tolerance and moderation in Indonesia, which faces challenges with the rise of hardline Islamist groups and instances of violence against Christians.
Speaking to representatives of Indonesia’s six officially recognized religions — Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Confucianism, Catholicism, and Protestantism — Pope Francis articulated his vision for interreligious dialogue.
“Sometimes we think that a meeting between religions is a matter of seeking common ground between different religious doctrines and beliefs no matter the cost. Such an approach, however, may end up dividing us, because the doctrines and dogmas of each religious experience are different,” the pope said.
“What really brings us closer is creating a connection in the midst of diversity, cultivating bonds of friendship, care and reciprocity.”
Pope Francis added that when religious leaders cultivate bonds, it enables them “to move forward together in pursuit of the same goals: defense of human dignity, the fight against poverty and the promotion of peace.”
Pope Francis arrived at the mosque through the Alfattah Gate, where Grand Imam Nasaruddin Umar warmly greeted him. The two leaders then proceeded to the newly constructed “Tunnel of Friendship,” an underground passage connecting the mosque to Jakarta’s Catholic Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption, built by the Indonesian government to foster dialogue and unity.
Before entering the “Tunnel of Friendship,” Pope Francis expressed his hope that it would become “a place of dialogue and encounter.”
Pope Francis told the grand imam, “I hope that our communities may increasingly be open to interreligious dialogue and be symbols of the peaceful coexistence that characterizes Indonesia.”
Representatives of Indonesia’s six officially recognized religions — Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Confucianism, Catholicism, and Protestantism — attend the interfaith meeting with Pope Francis and Grand Imam Nasaruddin Umar on Sept. 5, 2024, in Jakarta, Indonesia. Daniel Ibáñez/CNA
´The interfaith event took place in a red and white tent on the mosque grounds. It unfolded with a traditional Muslim welcome dance known as Marawis, followed by a brief chanting of a passage from the Quran by an Indonesian woman and a reading from the Gospel of Luke.
Representatives of the other four recognized religions stood in solidarity as the declaration was read aloud to participants in the tent.
The Istiqlal document identifies dehumanization and climate change as two serious crises facing the world today, emphasizing the shared responsibility of religious communities in tackling global challenges. It also affirms the need for interreligious dialogue to resolve “local, regional and international conflicts, especially those incited by the abuse of religion.”
The joint declaration at the Indonesian mosque was reminiscent of the Abu Dhabi declaration on “Human Fraternity” that Pope Francis signed with Ahmed el-Tayeb, Grand Imam of al-Azhar in the United Arab Emirates, when he became the first pope to visit the Arabian Peninsula in 2019.
On Thursday, the Indonesian grand imam underlined the significance of the meeting, pointing to Istiqlal Mosque’s influence across Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim country.
As Indonesia’s only state mosque, the Istiqlal Mosque is “expected to provide guidance to more than one million mosques and prayer rooms scattered throughout the islands of the Republic of Indonesia,” he explained.
“This mosque also seeks to promote religious tolerance and moderation in Indonesia,” the Muslim leader underlined.
Pope Francis kisses the hand of Grand Imam Nasaruddin Umar after the signing of the Istiqlal Joint Declaration on Sept. 5, 2024, in Jakarta, Indonesia. Daniel Ibáñez / CNA
In a moving gesture of solidarity and friendship at the closing of the event, the imam kissed Pope Francis on the head, while the pope kissed the grand imam’s hand and then touched it to his cheek.
Pope Francis will conclude the third day of his apostolic journey to Southeast Asia and Oceania by celebrating Holy Mass in Gelora Bung Karno Stadium in Jakarta. On Friday he is expected to depart Indonesia for Papua New Guinea.
Pope Leo XIV celebrates Mass for the Solemnity of Pentecost in St. Peter’s Square on June 8, 2025. In his homily, he emphasized the significance of the Holy Spirit in the life of a Christian. / Credit: Vatican Media
Vatican City, Jun 8, 2025 / 08:42 am (CNA).
Pope Leo XIV celebrated Mass for the Solemnity of Pentecost in St. Peter’s Square on Sunday with international pilgrims belonging to new Church movements, associations, and communities celebrating this year’s Jubilee Year of Hope in Rome.
Emphasizing the significance of the Holy Spirit in the life of a Christian, the Holy Father noted that it is the third person of the Blessed Trinity who anoints, heals, and strengthens followers of Jesus to “open borders” in hearts, in relationships with others, and between nations.
“Let us invoke the Spirit of love and peace, that he may open borders, break down walls, dispel hatred and help us to live as children of our one Father who is in heaven,” the pope said on a hot Sunday morning.
“Brothers and sisters, Pentecost renews the Church and the world!” he said. “May the strong wind of the Spirit come upon us and within us, open the borders of our hearts, grant us the grace of encounter with God, enlarge the horizons of our love and sustain our efforts to build a world in which peace reigns.”
Approximately 70,000 people from more than 100 countries registered to take part in this year’s special Jubilee of Ecclesial Movements, Associations, and New Communities taking place over the June 7–8 weekend in Rome.
Approximately 70,000 people from more than 100 countries registered to take part in the Jubilee of Ecclesial Movements, Associations, and New Communities in Rome, which concluded with Mass for Pentecost in St. Peter’s Square on June 8, 2025. Credit: Vatican Media
Celebrating Sunday Mass alongside cardinals, bishops, and other priests wearing red vestments to represent the fire of the Holy Spirit who descended upon the apostles on the day of Pentecost, the Holy Father invited those gathered in St. Peter’s Square and along Via della Conciliazione to also reflect on the words of his papal predecessors.
“The Spirit opens borders… The Church must always become anew what she already is,” the pope said, quoting Benedict XVI. “She must open the borders between peoples and break down the barriers between class and race.”
During his homily, Pope Leo reiterated Pope Francis’ pleas for the end of ongoing violence, including femicide, creating “much discord” and “such great division” in the world.
“The Spirit breaks down barriers and tears down the walls of indifference and hatred because he ‘teaches us all things’ and ‘reminds us of Jesus’ words,” he said, reflecting on the Gospel of St. John.
“Where there is love, there is no room for prejudice, for ‘security’ zones separating us from our neighbors, for the exclusionary mindset that, tragically, we now see emerging also in political nationalisms,” he added.
The pope also prayed to God for his gift of unity and fraternity in the world.
Pope Leo XIV greets members of new Church movements, associations, and communities during Mass for Pentecost Sunday in St. Peter’s Square on June 8, 2025. Credit: Vatican Media
Before concluding the celebration of the Mass with the Regina Caeli prayer in Latin, the Holy Father thanked his brother cardinals, bishops, and all representatives of ecclesial associations, movements, and new communities in Rome for their presence and witness of faith.
“Dear sisters and brothers, with the strength of the Holy Spirit, set out renewed from this Jubilee of yours. Go and bring to everyone the hope of the Lord Jesus!” he said. “May the Spirit of the Risen Christ open paths of reconciliation wherever there is war; may he enlighten governments and give them the courage to make gestures of de-escalation and dialogue.”
The statue of St. Peter holding the keys, outside St. Peter’s Basilica. / Daniel Ibanez/CNA.
Vatican City, Apr 14, 2021 / 06:10 am (CNA).
The Vatican’s Congregation for the Causes of the Saints has denied an accusation that an official asked for money to advance the beatification cause of an Italian statesman murdered in 1978.
“What was said is not true,” Fr. Bogusław Turek, undersecretary of the saints congregation, wrote in an April 9 letter to the journalists of an Italian investigative news program which aired April 12.
In the episode, a postulator, whose work is to guide a diocese through the canonization process in Rome, accused the undersecretary of asking him for a bribe in June 2018 to advance the beatification cause of former Italian Prime Minister Aldo Moro.
“I have never been concerned with, nor dealt with, Aldo Moro’s cause because it has not yet been presented in the Dicastery,” Turek said in the letter shared by the Vatican’s press office April 13.
In a separate note, dated April 9, the Congregation for the Causes of the Saints said it had received notice in April 2018 that the promoters of Moro’s cause had revoked the mandate of postulator Nicola Giampaolo, and assigned someone new.
“It should therefore be noted that the alleged financial request could not have been made to Mr. Giampaolo in June 2018, as he asserts, as he was no longer a postulator,” the saints office stated.
The postulator, Giampaolo, made the accusation in an interview on the program “Report,” which airs on the state-owned channel Rai3. Giampaolo is a journalist and author, who has also worked in local politics.
Undersecretary Turek said that he had met with Giampaolo in the offices of the saints congregation for another reason: to explain to him that he had not been approved by the dicastery as postulator of two other beatification causes “due to the lack of the requisites required by the canonical norms.”
Aldo Moro was a prominent Catholic politician and jurist. He was a founding member of Italy’s center-left Christian Democracy party and is said to be one of the most popular leaders in the history of the Italian Republic.
Moro was also one of Italy’s longest-serving prime ministers in the post-war era, holding the office from 1963 to 1968 and again from 1974 to 1976.
He was assassinated by the far-left terrorist group Red Brigades on May 9, 1978, after having been kidnapped and held in captivity for 55 days.
Moro’s cause for beatification was opened by the Diocese of Rome for investigation in September 2012. In 2015, controversies emerged around the statesman, held by some to have been killed in “hatred of the faith.” Moro’s then-postulator, Giampaolo, said the beatification process would possibly be put on hold.
At the time, Moro’s oldest daughter, Senator Maria Fida Moro, called the controversies “completely unjustified,” and described her father as “persecuted in life, in death, and after.”
On “Report,” Giampaolo said “unfortunately the cause was temporarily suspended, because I saw strong pressure from the outside towards the cause and at the same time, the supreme interests of the Church were at risk.”
“There were probably too many interests behind a beatification and canonization process,” he said.
The undersecretary of the Congregation for the Causes of the Saints, Fr. Bogusław Turek, told the journalists of “Report” last week that the Vicariate of Rome had not been authorized by the congregation to open Moro’s beatification cause.
And in its April 9 note, the saints office said Nicola Giampaolo had never been ratified as postulator of Moro’s cause and the congregation does not offer any form of “accreditation of postulators” as Giampaolo claims to have on his curriculum vitae.
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