Much has been said by Pope Francis around the world, from secular media all the way to the inner workings of the Church. Lately, he was featured on the “Rolling Stone” magazine cover, accompanied by Bob Dylan lyrics “The Times they are a-changin”. As a friend of mine from the Vatican commented, this is probably the […]
Tag: Lent
The Pope’s last words on nature: Scaling the mountain
In Pope Benedict XVI’s very last address in Castelgandolfo, already ‘retired’ he mentioned that one of his joys is to be in the beauty of creation: “I am happy to be with you, surrounded by the beauty of Creation and your kindness, which does me so much good…” Though certainly not the central theme in […]
Lent and Nature II: From Creation to the Cross
This year Pope Benedict XVI launched Lent with a homily for Ash Wednesday that offered several insights into the Catholic view of creation and the environment. His homily centered on the “ashes”, the central symbol for Ash Wednesday and an important one for the Lenten season. Following the trajectory of ashes from creation, through sin to […]
Deus é Brasileiro
This is a saying in Brazil: “God is Brazilian”. You often here it after a world Cup title victory, or when Aryton Senna won the Formula 1 Championship, perhaps during the celebrations of carnival, or even upon the discovery of a new paradise-like beach. It is meant with a bit of tongue and cheek, and […]
The Ecological Conversion
“Without the light of faith, the entire universe finishes shut within a tomb devoid of any future, any hope.” These are words in this years Message for Lent by Pope Benedict XVI. The term ‘ecological conversion’ has been widely used in Catholic environmental discourse, hinted at in Pope John Paul II’s 1990 World Day of […]