Faith · Observations · Society · Rome

I listened yesterday to Pope Francis opening a conference on the priesthood, and tried to look at the pontiff afresh

I listened yesterday to Pope Francis opening a conference on the priesthood, and tried to look at the pontiff afresh. We have grown used to the Pope saying, almost invariably, the right things, the things that many would like to hear in their progressive secrecy. But alongside these things, expected

Faith · Society · People

Pope Francis called clericalism a perversion of faith and said what pastors the people need

Pope Francis criticised clericalism, calling it a perversion of faith, because it is founded not on closeness but on distance. While the People of God need shepherds like Jesus, not church functionaries or professionals of holiness, but shepherds full of compassion and care, courageous men ready to draw near to

Faith · Society · People

Sister André of Toulon, the oldest resident of Europe, has turned 118

Sister André, a Catholic nun and the oldest resident of Europe, has turned 118. Born Lucile Randon, she came into the world on 11 February 1904. In 1944 she became a nun of the congregation of the Daughters of Charity. Sister André now lives in Toulon, in France. Last year

Faith · People · Rome

Benedict XVI on facing the judge of his life and the grace of being a Christian

In his penitential letter addressed to the faithful, Benedict XVI shares his reflections on death:. "Soon I shall find myself before the final judge of my life. Even if, looking back on my long life, I may have many fears, I nonetheless await it with a glad heart, because

Faith · Society · People

Benedict XVI, 94, Answers for Failures to Punish Priests Guilty of Abusing Children during His Years as Archbishop in the Bavarian Diocese

The recent accusations against the Pope Emeritus concerned his connivance in, and mishandling of, four cases of abuse of minors between 1977 and 1982 in the Archdiocese of Munich and Freising. The Pope answered these accusations in a letter: "…and before the victims whom I met during my pontificate,

NB! · Faith · Monarchies · Society

"Jewish communities everywhere have offered up their prayers for His late Majesty, and they will now offer up their sincere prayers for Her Majesty the Queen as she takes upon herself the heavy burden of ruling the countries of the British Commonwealth"

NB! · Archive · Architecture · Faith · Paris

The Building of the Basilica of Sacré-Cœur, Paris, 1895

Faith · Observations · People

Pope emeritus Benedict XVI, aged 94, remains the longest-lived pope in history

Do you recognise this elderly man with the meek gaze? The chief clue is the white robe. His Holiness Benedict XVI, now 94, may be Pope Emeritus, but he still always wears white, for he remains the Pope. At present Benedict is the longest-lived Pope in history. When he

An elderly man in white papal vestments with a pectoral cross sits in an armchair, with a microphone beside him.

NB! · Faith · Observations · Society · People

Pope Francis calls for universal prayer for peace in Ukraine

Pope Francis has called on everyone to pray for peace in Ukraine. Unexpectedly.

NB! · Faith · Monarchies · Society

This is how the solemn requiem for King Louis XVI is held in the churches of France

Archive · In the Press · Faith · Observations · Society

Epiphany bathing in Saratov in 1949 and the feuilleton in the newspaper “Pravda”

Legendary images of Epiphany bathing in the Stalin era were printed in the country's main newspaper. In 1949 the feast of the Epiphany in Saratov became the subject of a satirical feuilleton in Pravda; the mocking piece dwells on stories of those who fell ill with pneumonia after

NB! · Architecture · Faith · Heritage

The Sretensky-Mikhailovskaya Church of 1655 in the vanished village of Krasnaya Lyaga, Kargopolye, Arkhangelsk Oblast

The Sretensky-Mikhailovskaya Church of 1655 in the vanished village of Krasnaya Lyaga, Kargopolye, Arkhangelsk Oblast. Russia 💙