Q. I have asked several people this, but no one seems to know: Why do Catholics light candles in church? When did this tradition start, and what was the reason? (Troy, New York)        ...
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Q. I have always been against the death penalty -- since the prisoner is behind bars and removed from doing further harm to the public. But a recent piece in The Wall Street Journal included statements by criminals who said that they were not as aggressive with victims when they knew there was a de...
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PHILADELPHIA (CNS) – Philadelphia Archbishop Charles J. Chaput is asking Pope Francis to call off the Synod of Bishops on young people this October to focus instead on the life of the bishops.             "I have written the Holy Father a...
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ABOARD THE PAPAL FLIGHT FROM DUBLIN (CNS) – Pope Francis said Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò's long document calling on him to resign is written in a way that people should be able to draw their own conclusions.    "I read the statement this morning and, sincerely, I must s...
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) – A former apostolic nuncio to the United States has accused church officials, including Pope Francis, of failing to act on accusations of abuse of conscience and power by now-Archbishop Theodore E. McCarrick.           ...
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WASHINGTON (CNS) -- The president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops said he is "eager for an audience" with Pope Francis to gain his support for the bishops' plan to respond to the clergy sexual abuse crisis.             In an Aug. 27...
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The news of ex-Cardinal Theodore E. McCarrick's crimes is deeply troubling for two reasons.   The first is that it is a serious blow to the church's moral authority. We suffered something like this in 2002, with the disclosure of priestly abuse in Boston and elsewhere.   There was a time...
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On Aug. 20, Pope Francis wrote a letter to the people of God regarding recent reports of sexual abuse in the Church. Following is the complete text of the Holy Father’s letter, as posted on Aug. 20 to the Vatican website.  Vatican City, 20 August 2018  Letter of the Holy Father...
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Perhaps the most surprising thing about the encyclical "Humanae Vitae" 50 years on, is how reports of its imminent death were continually exaggerated. Very few brave souls would have predicted in 1968 that the document would ever enjoy enthusiastic support from more than a few female Catholic intel...
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The power of God's name is manifested in the lives of people who live their faith in an authentic way, while it is taken in vain by those who live in hypocrisy, Pope Francis said.     By adhering to the commandment to not take the name of the Lord in vain, Chris...
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