Catholics From The United States

"Our religious convictions are not a private matter. We may think our lives are private but really they are not. Our concern for family values, our sense of honesty and decency, our dedication to the church our love for the things of God, in all of these things and so many more our attention is always directed beyond to someone else. This is the way to live our lives as clergy."

"I will measure the effectiveness of my leadership by the ability and willingness of this local Church to call forth, develop and utilize the gifts and talents not only of its priests and religious but all its people."

"The Church makes so many mistakes, we're made up of human beings and so there are errors that are made in the administration of the of the Church, especially, and we recognize that harshly."

"It is important for us to be knowledgeable, to understand certain psychological and pedagogical principles in order to be a good teacher, but it is even more important to be a good witness to Jesus Christ, to have a disciple's spirituality, to be in an ongoing conversion to Jesus Christ, the living word of God, a conversion that turns you inside out and sets you on fire with love for God and all others, even the last, the littlest and the least."

"It turned out to be a blessing that I didn't know anything about the diocese. I didn't have any preconceived notions. I learned about the diocese's sense of openness and togetherness. I tried to cultivate that, and I know I experienced it."

"The most practical solution we see is the adoption of an immigration reform; this country has need of many workers in the countryside, in hotels and restaurants, in the building construction and these people just want to work."

"Everyone is searching for meaning and purpose in life. I believe we have something precious to offer in that search, so to help people to connect the yearnings of their heart with what we have discovered in Christ—that's the great opportunity."

"It's only when we're unsatisfied or restless, and something about our current place is not enough, that we begin a great pilgrimage."

"We cannot use a time of so-called crisis as an excuse for feeling sorry for ourselves for declining numbers of occasion, neither should we blame the changes in the church or even the human faults and failings of her members."

"Ayatollah Ali Khameni, Iran’s Supreme leader, has agreed to conduct an inquiry into claims that the election was rigged in favor of President Ahmadinejad. Saturday Khameni said that the election was fair, but Sunday he agreed to meet with former Prime Minister Hussein Moussavi to discuss his concerns over what Moussavi called an unfair election- leaving many to think that Iran's leadership may be reconsidering their position. Thousands of people have taken to the streets to protest the election -at least one person has been killed and the protests are expected to get more violent--James Rosen reports from the State Department and Brit Hume shares his commentary."

"The church is still alive. There may be institutional decline, but it is not a decline in the Gospel or in the Eucharist or the Lord himself, right? That is all well and good and alive, and will be as long as there are people who will surrender themselves and trust in his grace."

"We are wounded as we journey through life and I know that there are wounds in this place as there are everywhere and one of the most important things a good shepherd does is communicate the healing presence of Christ so I will humbly ask the Lord to help me to do that."

"You can't drive to Juneau, you can only get to Juneau by air or by water. I come to the diocese of Dallas and I learned that there are no islands and all roads, so just trying to manage that is a challenge. But when people speak to me about the vastness, the number of people, I assure them: "You can only interact with one person at a time, one congregation at a time, one project at a time, so you just stay focused and lean into it.""

"We have to focus on things like the promise and new possibilities that Jesus can give us, the reassurance of love that our intimate relationship with Jesus can offer, the peace and forgiveness that the Holy Spirit can bestow upon us and the revelation of the plan of God that the Sacred Scriptures can reveal to us. It is turning our minds to those positive realities that makes room for the light of faith to shine."

"This is a time when the institutional church at every level is badly in need of lay assistance. Go into it with your eyes open, but also, go into it with the recognition that the church has a special need right now, and that laypeople can enable the clergy to do what they were called to do, what they were trained to do and what they can do best. We can take some of that burden off of the clergy."

"Once we know what our offerings support and how these dollars are spent, we learn how much the Church is doing for so many people."

"We in the United States tend to be kind of an immigrant church. I think we all came from so many places and found a home here, but we're citizens and we belong to this wonderful country of ours and we must not be afraid. It isn't politics, it's faith."

"We are trying to preach an experience and relationship with Jesus above all else. Many people don't know Jesus or about the Church he founded. A good homily feeds the hunger they have to know Him, and prompts them to go and learn more. Whatever the priest says should flow from his relationship with Jesus."

"All these ministries are connected in one way or another to the advancement of the Gospel and the Kingdom of God. These offices are not ends in themselves. The purpose is to help parishes spread the Gospel and build the Kingdom."

"Real happiness, contentment, comes from being at peace with our life because we have a purpose. This is very consoling to me. And I can bear difficulties because I know that I am where God wants me."

"If we understand the Faith, then we can explain the Faith. And after nearly half a century of failed catechesis, our people are unable to do that, and they don't even remember what some of the answers are, or even that the Church has the answers. So the secret is not just preaching the Word, but preaching the Word to those who claim to be Catholics, and giving them adequate formation to share the Faith."

"I'm a firm believer in giving people a message to take away that they can that they can work on for that day — that if you're trying to overload the message then you're going to lose people. I believe in precision — shooting one arrow, not 50."

"I enjoy being a pastor, as a pastor, you walk with and care for your flock. The challenge is going to be to shift my focus a little bit. My flock will be the pastors who are under my care, and I will have to walk with and care for them and their flocks."

"A Franciscan, he reflected the deep faith and true Christian charity of St. Francis. We will all miss his kindness and support."

"Scripture is not seen as primarily a written norm, but rather a consecration of the History of Salvation under the species of the human word. The content and unity of Scripture does not refer to the books of the Scriptures themselves but to the reality to which these books give testimony and witness to the gospel of Jesus Christ."

"Two events related to clergy sexual abuse have touched the figure of Prevost. The first dates back to the early 2000s, when, as Augustinian provincial in Chicago, he was involved in a case of hospitality to a priest already convicted of paedophilia. The second, more recent, concerns his episcopate in Peru: he allegedly handled an investigation into two priests accused of molestation with little transparency."

"Sinner: The ball, there it is. If you want to play a little. Pope Leo XIV: But we'll break something here! We'd better not."

"This morning's meeting went very well. We also discussed the need to make the Church more collegial. He is an excellent Pope and received well over 100 votes."

"It’s shocking, mind-numbing, mind-blowing. How do you describe that? I don’t know. I still haven’t figured out how to tell anybody what I feel, other than out of my head, crazy with happiness, pride, joy, love for my brother.When he made his appearance, then it became real. It’s one thing to hear the name, but when Rob came out onto the balcony and we saw him, it just brought tears to my eyes. You know that’s my little brother. He’s now pope. I don’t know how to describe it spiritually. He was special. When we were kids and went to play games, he wanted to play priest. How many little kids want to play priest, you know? As soon as he got out of eighth grade, he went directly into the seminary. It was like he knew what he wanted to do, and more power to him, and he’s been quite successful at it, right?"

"Please join me in thanking Our Lord for the election of Pope Leo XIV, Successor of St. Peter, as Shepherd of the Church throughout the world.The Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe in La Crosse has a particularly strong bond with the Roman Pontiff, especially through its affiliation with the Papal Basilica of St. Mary Major. I urge all pilgrims and friends of the Shrine to pray fervently for Pope Leo XIV that Our Lord, through the intercession of Our Lady of Guadalupe, St. Peter the Apostle and Pope St. Leo the Great, may grant him abundant wisdom, strength and courage to do all that Our Lord asks of him in these tumultuous times. May God bless Pope Leo and grant him many years."

"It will be a pontificate in continuity with the magisterium of Pope Francis. I am very happy about that. This is what the majority of the cardinals wanted ... but with a style of their own. [...] Pope Leo XIV, in his first message, spoke of a “synodal Church.” Having participated in the work of the Synod, we have a Pope who knows synodality, who understands it, who dares to be synodal. There will not be a revolution, but an evolution."

"Alarming news continues to emerge from the Middle East, especially from Iran. Against this tragic backdrop, which includes Israel and Palestine, people’s daily suffering, especially in Gaza and the other territories, where the need for adequate humanitarian aid is becoming increasingly urgent, risks being forgotten."

"With great joy I extend my cordial greetings to all of you, Representatives of other Churches and Ecclesial Communities, as well as of other religions, who participated in the inaugural celebration of my ministry as Bishop of Rome and Successor of Peter. [...] One of the strong emphases of Pope Francis’ pontificate was that of universal fraternity. In this regard the Holy Spirit really “urged” him to advance with great strides the initiatives already undertaken by previous Pontiffs, especially since Saint John XXIII. The Pope of Fratelli Tutti promoted both the ecumenical path and interreligious dialogue. He did so above all by cultivating interpersonal relations, in such a way that, without taking anything away from ecclesial bonds, the human trait of the encounter was always valued. May God help us to treasure his witness! [...]"

"Today more than ever, humanity cries out and calls for peace. This is a cry that requires responsibility and reason, and it must not be drowned out by the din of weapons or the rhetoric that incites conflict. Every member of the international community has a moral responsibility to stop the tragedy of war before it becomes an irreparable chasm. There are no "distant" conflicts when human dignity is at stake."

"God's charity, which makes us brothers and sisters, is at the heart of the Gospel, and with Leo XIII, we can ask ourselves today: if this criterion ‘were to prevail in the world, would not all strife cease and peace return?’ (Encyclical Letter Rerum novarum, 21). With the light and strength of the Holy Spirit, let us build a Church founded on God's love and a sign of unity, a missionary Church that opens its arms to the world, proclaims the Word, allows itself to be unsettled by history, and becomes a leaven of harmony for humanity. Together, as one people, as Fratelli tutti [brothers and sisters], let us walk towards God and love one another."

"War does not solve problems; on the contrary, it amplifies them and inflicts deep wounds on the history of peoples, which take generations to heal. No armed victory can compensate for the pain of mothers, the fear of children, or stolen futures. May diplomacy silence the weapons! May nations chart their futures with works of peace, not with violence and bloodstained conflicts!"

"The bishop proposes the teachings, and says what is inconsistent with those teachings. But in terms of follow-through, he can't mandate conformity. He can do no more than teach and propose, and call the people to enflesh these in their political decisions, regarding the social and political life of our country. It's up to the people to apply the guidelines and principles to the particular situation."

"The whole community has to nurture vocations and every priest has to be a vocation director that you asked about growing up who inspired me well the biggest influence upon me were the parish priests, then I think families have to recognize how necessary and how essential the priesthood is to the life of the church and encourage their sons to consider a religious vocation if that be God's will."

"°I consider myself an amateur tennis player. [...] I really enjoy reading, going for long walks, travelling, seeing new places and enjoying the countryside in a different environment. I like to relax with friends and get to know people who are so different from me, whose gifts I learn from and appreciate greatly."

"Perseverance is a great gift that the Lord is ready to offer us. But we must learn to welcome it and make it come alive, to be strong. It is one of those gifts that are built up over time, in the small trials of the beginning that help us to be stronger, to be able to carry the Cross when it becomes heavier. It is what enables us and makes us capable of moving forward."

"Today is the day of the Supplication to the Madonna of Pompeii. Our Mother Mary always wants to walk with us, to be close, to help us with her intercession and her love. Then I would like to pray with you. Let us pray together for this new mission, for the whole Church, for peace in the world and let us ask this special grace from Mary, our mother."

"Brother Cardinals, I greet and thank you all for this meeting and for the days that preceded it, days that were painful because of the loss of the Holy Father Francis, demanding because of the responsibilities we face together, and at the same time, according to the promise Jesus himself made to us, rich in grace and consolation in the Spirit. Your presence reminds me that the Lord who entrusted this mission to me does not leave me alone in bearing its responsibility. I know, first of all, that I can always, always count on his help, the help of the Lord, and, by his grace and providence, on your closeness and that of so many brothers and sisters throughout the world who believe in God, love the Church, and support the Vicar of Christ with their prayers and good works."

"In order to feed the thousands of people who came to listen to him and to ask for healing, Jesus invited the Apostles to bring him what little they had; he then blessed the loaves and fishes, and told them to distribute them to everyone. The result was astonishing: not only did everyone receive enough food, but there was an abundance left over … Beyond being a marvel, the miracle is a "sign" that reminds us that God’s gifts, even the smallest, grow whenever they are shared. Reading this on the day of Corpus Christi, however, leads us to reflect on an even deeper reality. For we know that at the root of every human sharing lies a greater sharing that precedes it, namely God’s sharing with us."

"Let us think of how wonderful it is when we give a gift — even a small one, proportionate to our means — and see that it is appreciated by the recipient; how happy we are when the gift, despite its simplicity, unites us even more to those we love. Indeed, what happens between us and God through the Eucharist is precisely that the Lord welcomes, sanctifies and blesses the bread and wine that we place on the altar, together with the offering of our lives, and he transforms them into the Body and Blood of Christ, the sacrifice of love for the salvation of the world. God unites himself to us by joyfully accepting what we bring, and he invites us to unite ourselves to him by likewise joyfully receiving and sharing his gift of love."

"Peace be with you all! Dear brothers and sisters, this is the first greeting of the Risen Christ, the good shepherd who gave his life for the flock of God. I too would like this greeting of peace to enter your heart, to reach your families, to all people, wherever they are, to all peoples, to all the earth. Peace be with you! This is the peace of the Risen Christ, an unarmed peace and a disarming, humble and persevering peace. He comes from God, God who loves us all unconditionally."

"Ideologies have become more powerful than humanity's real experience, faith, and the different values we live by. Some will misunderstand unity as uniformity: ‘You must be like us.’ No, it cannot be so. Nor can diversity be understood as a way of living without criteria or order. The latter lose sight of the fact that since the very creation of the world, the gift of nature, the gift of human life, the gift of so many different things that we experience and celebrate, cannot be sustained by inventing my own rules and doing things my way. These are ideological positions. When an ideology becomes, so to speak, the master of my life, then I can no longer dialogue with another person because I have already decided how things will be. Therefore, I am closed to encounter and transformation cannot take place. And this can happen anywhere in the world, on any subject. This obviously makes it very difficult to be Church, to be community, to be brothers and sisters."

"I don't think I'm revealing any secrets when I write that a long and warm round of applause followed that ‘I accept,’ which made him the 267th Pope of the Catholic Church. [...] I met Cardinal Prevost years ago, in connection with a thorny issue involving the Church in Peru. Even then, I saw in him a sense of balance, calmness, love for people and attention to detail. [...] Pope Leo XIV, he continues, is well aware of the world's problems, as he demonstrated from his very first words from the Loggia, evoking a ‘disarmed and disarming’ peace. [...] I am certain that he will find strength in the grace of the Lord, in his experience as a religious and in the example of the great Father Augustine, whom he mentioned in his first speech. We are close to him with our affection, our obedience and our prayers."

"I met Leo XIV in Peru, and I was struck by his serenity. He is the right man to lead the Church."

"The priorities of pastoral work will always be different in one place or another, but recognising the great richness of the diversity of the People of God is tremendously helpful because it makes us more sensitive to reaching out and responding better to what is expected of us."

"One of the things that comes to mind when I think of St Augustine, his vision and his understanding of what it means to belong to the Church, is what he says about not being able to say you are a follower of Christ without being part of the Church. Christ is part of the Church. He is the head. So anyone who thinks they can follow Christ ‘in their own way’ without being part of the body is, unfortunately, a distortion of what is an authentic experience. St Augustine has an omnipresent wisdom that helps us to live in communion. Unity and communion are essential charisms of the life of the Order and a fundamental part of understanding what the Church is and what it means to be in the Church."