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In the aftermath of the U.S. visit by Pope Benedict XVI, traditional Catholics are asking a troublesome question: Did pro-choice politicians receiving Communion at the papal Masses indicate the pope had softened on the abortion question? The answer is no. On the contrary, it reflected disobedience to Benedict by the archbishops of New York and Washington. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Sens. John Kerry, Christopher Dodd and Edward M. Kennedy received Communion at Nationals Park in Washington, as did former mayor Rudolph Giuliani at Yankee Stadium in New York. Archbishop Donald Wuerl of Washington and Cardinal Edward Egan, archbishop of...

April 28, 2008 -- NEW YORK - New York Cardinal Edward Egan says Rudy Giuliani should not have received Holy Communion during the pope's visit because he supports abortion rights. Egan says he had "an understanding" with the former presidential candidate and New York mayor that he is not to receive the Eucharist. The Catholic Church teaches "that abortion is a grave offense against the will of God." The cardinal says Giuliani broke that understanding when he received the Eucharist during Pope Benedict XVI's visit. Egan says he will be seeking a meeting with Giuliani "to insist that he abide...

In the run-up to Pope Benedict XVI's visit to the United States, there was a tremendous display of unseriousness at the National Press Club, followed by a sacrilege at a nearby Washington, D.C., church. A misguided group called the Women's Ordination Conference held a protest – a press conference and an all-woman "Mass" at a local Methodist church. The group, as the name suggests, wants to see "the ordination of women as priests, deacons and bishops." Sadly, the group doesn't understand women or the Catholic Church. In a prepared statement, WOC executive director Aisha Taylor declared: "The failure to ordain...

Yonkers, NY, Apr 26, 2008 / 03:45 am (CNA).- St. Joseph Seminary in Yonkers, New York, has received dozens of applications following Pope Benedict’s visit, the New York Daily News reports."It's been like a tsunami, a good tsunami of interest," said Father Luke Sweeney, the Archdiocese of New York's vocations director.  “I've been meeting people all week and have a lot of e-mails I haven't had the chance yet to respond to. It has been incredible.”For the first time in 108 years, the seminary had been preparing for a year with no students.  Only 23 seminarians are expected to...

This month I must reflect on a phone call I received from an old and discerning friend who was extremely upset over the music used at the papal Mass in Washington on April 17, and on a note another friend sent saying, "It was as if the Washington, D.C., crowd were pleasing themselves and not their guest."  I missed the Mass but heard that it included quite a mélange of musical styles. My oldest son, who watched at his grade school, did not like it. Neither did Rev. Richard John Neuhaus, who apparently said on EWTN that the music was...

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- When Pope Benedict XVI left New York April 20 after his six-day visit to the United States, Catholics were catching their breath from the whirlwind tour and many were trying to figure out what kind of impact the visit would leave in its wake. The trip -- anticipated since last November -- prompted a fair amount of guesswork about what the pontiff would and wouldn't say. Pope Benedict, not swayed by hearsay, frequently reiterated that the theme of the visit was "Christ Our Hope" and stressed his optimism that the visit would prompt "a time of spiritual...

Pope Benedict XVI came as our Pastor and as our Shepherd, and he spoke to us of our most human joys and sorrows, our hopes and our failures. He came in the name of Jesus Christ and he reminded us "to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus" [Hebrews 12:2]. Our Holy Father did not hesitate to lift up for us challenges and difficulties which our Church was facing here in the United States, but he never left us alone with our failures and problems. He stood with us, acknowledged the shame of sinful behavior, and urged us forward in...

NEW YORK—It is not every day that the Pope visits the United States. In fact, this past week saw the first visit of German-born Pope Benedict XVI to the United States, preceded by the visit of Pope John Paul II to St. Louis, Mo. in 1999. Whether Catholic or non-Catholic, the sheer popularity of this man—leader of approximately 1 billion Catholics worldwide and head of state of the Vatican—turns such a visit into a cultural phenomenon. The main theme behind the Pope's U.S. visit, which covered Washington, D.C. and New York City spanning five days from Apr. 15 to 20,...

  (photo by Dr. Geraldine M. Rohling)The Holy Father is greeted by the staffs of the National Shrine, the USCCB, and the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C. Monsignor Rossi, Rector of the National Shrine (left), and Archbishop Wuerl of Washington, D.C. (right), pause while the Holy Father admires the Basilica's beautiful mosaic domes.      Archbishop Wuerl and Monsignor Rossi escort the Holy Father on a tour of the Great Upper Church.  The Holy Father stopped to pray at the Blessed Sacrament Chapel and the Oratory of Our Lady of  Altötting.  Both chapels are open to those visiting the National Shrine.  ...

Media: Lou Dobbs has gone from branding companies unpatriotic for practicing free trade to ridiculing religion. Now he describes the Pope as "absolutely repugnant." Can CNN tolerate bigotry in populist clothing?The cable news anchor has gone from newsman to anti-corporate agitator to, most recently, derider of Pope Benedict for critiquing the darkest recesses of popular culture. While elsewhere on CNN sex abuse victims described an impressive private meeting with the pontiff last Thursday, Dobbs ridiculed the Catholic leader that day into the weekend. Benedict had said the U.S. bishops' new anti-sexual-abuse policies must "be placed in a wider context." Those...

New York, NY (LifeNews.com) -- Pope Benedict XVI closed out his visit to the United States over the weekend with a strong pro-life message on the topic of abortion. The homily came after sharing his pro-life views with President Bush and a White House crowd and then urging Catholic Colleges not to give a platform to abortion advocates. During the sermon at Yankee Stadium in New York, the pope proclaimed the "inalienable dignity and rights" of "the most defenseless of all human beings, the unborn child in the mother's womb." He called on pro-life advocates to stand up for "those...

Mr. Vice-President, Distinguished Civil Authorities, My Brother Bishops, Dear Brothers and Sisters, The time has come for me to bid farewell to your country. These days that I have spent in the United States have been blessed with many memorable experiences of American hospitality, and I wish to express my deep appreciation to all of you for your kind welcome. It has been a joy for me to witness the faith and devotion of the Catholic community here. It was heart-warming to spend time with leaders and representatives of other Christian communities and other religions, and I renew my...

Remember back in 2004 when some U.S. Catholic bishops declared they would deny communion to the Democratic candidate, Senator John Kerry, because he supported abortion rights? Reporters spied on him in church to see if he received or not. Pundits dreamed up terrible catch phrases like “wafer watch” and “wafer war.” The issue became part of the campaign that year. Now, four years later, Pope Benedict is visiting the U.S. and three prominent pro-choice politicians — Kerry, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and former New York Mayor Rudi Giuliani — have stepped up and taken communion at his Masses with a...

Aide: Pope Looking for Ecumenical Honesty Says Benedict XVI Not Satisfied With "Well Wishing" NEW YORK, APRIL 20, 2008 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI is looking for a "commitment of honesty" from Christians engaged in ecumenical dialogue, according to a Vatican aide. Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, director of the Vatican press office, said this Saturday in comments to the press on the address the Pope gave to ecumenical leaders Friday evening. The meeting of over 300 religious leaders involved in ecumenical dialogue gathered at St. Joseph's Parish in Manhattan. According to organizers, some 250 represented various Protestant churches, 50 were Orthodox leaders...

I searched, but didn't see this posted. This is the video of Kelly Clarkson singing Ave Maria for the Pope. It was for the youth rally and I think she did a great job.CLICK HERE

Pope's cat writes purrfect book BY STEPHANIE GASKELL DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER Sunday, April 20th 2008, 4:00 AM There's one very unusual biography of Pope Benedict - a children's book, supposedly written by his cat."Joseph and Chico: The Life of Pope Benedict XVI as Told by a Cat" is a 36-page illustrated book that chronicles the life of Benedict through the words of his cat, Chico. "I'm meeting you in the pages of this book to tell you a story about my very best friend, a wonderful man with whom I've shared so many happy times," Chico says. "I...

The following is a transcript of Pope Benedict XVI's remarks at ground zero: O God of love, compassion, and healing, look on us, people of many different faiths and traditions, who gather today at this site, the scene of incredible violence and pain. We ask you in your goodness to give eternal light and peace to all who died here -- the heroic first-responders: our fire fighters, police officers, emergency service workers, and Port Authority personnel, along with all the innocent men and women who were victims of this tragedy simply because their work or service brought them here on...

A Catholic priest from California who attended Mass with the Pope in New York at the weekend said afterwards that he thought His Holiness might have been “a little stunned and surprised by the warm welcome he's received”. This is entirely possible. The US has a way of surprising visitors, whether they be Benedict XVI or tourists attracted by the exchange rate and then won over by a diversity and generosity of spirit that defy stereotypes. But the real surprises of the Pope's visit have been for his hosts. Few of them can have expected him to be so candid...

Just announced on FOX there is a website up with a petition to get Bill Maher off the air. Maher insulted the Pope and all Catholics with his comments last week calling the Pope a "Nazi" and calling the Catholic Church "a child-abusing cult." Go to Fire Bill Maher Petition

I became my own story last week when I got word that a large Catholic University in Minnesota, University of Saint Thomas, denied permission for me to speak there as part of my college speaking tour. How could this be happening? A Catholic university, which has played host to talks from left wing Al Franken and a transgendered woman named Debra Davis, nixes a presentation on abortion from a conservative black woman? Conservative blogs were soon aflame. Then stories in print. Plenty of flak started reaching the university and soon a representative was on the phone to put me back...

NEW YORK - Pope Benedict XVI's U.S. visit left behind the impression of a compassionate and candid leader who has made a successful transition from professor to pope. But it's uncertain whether the pontiff's six-day pilgrimage, which ended Sunday, will make a lasting imprint on a country he obviously admires. "In the short term, the trip was an enormous success, probably beyond anyone's expectations, including those of the pope himself," said Russell Shaw, a Catholic writer and former spokesman for the U.S. bishops' conference. "Whether the trip is going to have a significant outcome regarding the large problems facing American...

NEW YORK CITY -- Pope Benedict XVI will always have his detractors, but even his toughest critics will admit that this past week the aging pontiff brought the need to heal the clergy sex abuse crisis high up onto his papal platform.Whether one believes that reform is coming or that Benedict’s speeches are merely words on a page, the pontiff has confronted the thorny issue in ways that defied expectations.Before the Holy Father set foot on American soil, he told reporters aboard the papal airplane that pedophile priests left him “deeply ashamed.� During his homily at St. Patrick’s Cathedral...

YOU knew he had arrived by the cheer that welled up from the street. It was electric. Suddenly inside the cathedral, where 3,000 people were waiting, it turned quiet and everyone turned. And now the great huge doors of St. Patrick's opened and sunlight poured in, crashed down, and there was the pope, and the crowd - nuns and religious, deacons and priests, meaning a lot of people who actually deserved to be there - sent a wave of applause crashing against the old Gothic dome. He reacted the way we now know Benedict does. Modest, meek, surprised by love,...

Before he was elected to succeed John Paul II, the modern era's most popular pope, the cardinal who would become Pope Benedict XVI earned the nickname "the Rottweiler" for his staunch enforcement of Roman Catholic orthodoxy. But for a pope so steeped in the infallibility of the church, Benedict's visit to America this week will be remembered for his historic reaching out to the victims of the very church he leads — those thousands of children sexually molested by priests in the past five decades. His decision to focus on their pain and the church's betrayal sent a powerful message...

Pope Benedict XVI has spoken out for the first time about growing up under the "monster" of Nazism.Speaking at a youth rally in New York, he said his teenage years had been "marred by a sinister regime". The Pope was a Hitler Youth member as a teen, usual for young Germans at the time, and was conscripted by the German army near the end of World War II. Earlier, during a Mass at St Patrick's Cathedral in Manhattan he again condemned paedophile Catholic priests. Pope Benedict's tour of the US is his first visit to the country since being elected...

- Pope Benedict XVI, nearing the end of his six-day trip to the United States, opened a rare window yesterday evening into his own struggles as a child in Nazi Germany, telling a large rally of seminarians and young Catholics that his difficulties in that era helped him understand the challenges that young people face. (snip) "My own years as a teenager were marred by a sinister regime that thought it had all the answers," he told the seminarians and young people outside St. Joseph's Seminary, in the Dunwoodie section of Yonkers. "Its influence grew, infiltrating schools and civic bodies,...

Here is the text of the Holy Father’s sermon for his Holy Mass in The Bronx, in NYC.  My emphases and comments:   Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,In the Gospel we have just heard, Jesus tells his Apostles to put their faith in him, for he is "the way, and the truth and the life" (Jn 14:6). Christ is the way that leads to the Father, the truth which gives meaning to human existence, and the source of that life which is eternal joy with all the saints in his heavenly Kingdom. Let us take the Lord at his...

During the Mass for the Fifth Sunday of Easter celebrated 20 April 2008, the Holy Father gave the following homily.   Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, In the Gospel we have just heard, Jesus tells his Apostles to put their faith in him, for he is "the way, and the truth and the life" (Jn 14:6). Christ is the way that leads to the Father, the truth which gives meaning to human existence, and the source of that life which is eternal joy with all the saints in his heavenly Kingdom. Let us take the Lord at his...

WASHINGTON, DC, April 18, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - A resolution welcoming the Pope to the United States was stalled in the U.S. Senate after Democrats said they would not vote on the resolution unless offending "pro-life language" was removed from it.The resolution was introduced on Tuesday by Republican Senator Sam Brownback and was co-sponsored by Democratic Senator Bob Casey, both Catholics. The original text included, amongst a series of statements regarding the Holy Father's biography and accomplishments, the statement, "Whereas Pope Benedict XVI has spoken out for the weak and vulnerable, witnessing to the value of each and every human...

 EWTN Television Coverage VISIT TO GROUND ZEROPope Benedict XVI visits the former World Trade Center site known as Ground Zero in New York City. Sunday, April 20, 9:00 AM Encore April 20, 11AM; April 21, 1AM.   HOLY MASS AT YANKEE STADIUM, NYCPope Benedict XVI celebrates Holy Mass at Yankee Stadium in New York bringing his historic U.S. visit to a close. Sunday, April 20, 2:00 PM  Encore April 20, 10 PM   DEPARTUREPope Benedict XVI leaves the US. Sunday, April 20, 7:30 PM Encore April 21, 2:30AM.

The first formal ecclesiastical event in Pope Benedict’s pastoral visit to the United States was his meeting with the entire body of U.S. bishops on Wednesday at the Basilica of the National Shrine in Washington, DC. Here he laid out his program for the episcopate in reviving Catholic life in America. It goes without saying that the goal is to make all things new, to enable the faith to permeate every aspect of life. But the primary means to this goal, according to Benedict, is formation in the faith, particularly Christian moral formation. Three American Obstacles To demonstrate why this...

Pope Benedict XVI has spoken out for the first time about growing up under the "monster" of Nazism. Speaking at a youth rally in New York, the German-born pontiff said his teenager years had been "marred by a sinister regime". Earlier, during a Mass at St Patrick's Cathedral in Manhattan he spoke out again about the suffering of victims of paedophile Catholic priests. On Sunday, he is due to visit the scene of the 9/11 attacks in New York. Pope Benedict's tour of the US is his first visit to the country since being elected head of the Catholic Church...

Pope Benedict XVI has arrived on the stage at the youth rally at St. Joseph's Seminary at Yonkers, NY.

Washington DC, Apr 19, 2008 / 01:05 pm (CNA).- The President of Franciscan University of Steubenville, Father Terence Henry, TOR, has given his reaction to Catholic News Agency on the Pope’s message to Catholic university leaders. Father Henry said that he believes Pope Benedict’s address taught that authentic Catholic education “springs from the heart of the Church.” Father Henry was particularly struck by Pope Benedict’s idea that Catholic institutions are “instruments of hope” to the world and to young people. “There are some out there who think that authentic freedom means to speculate on everything under the sun,” Father Henry...

Your Eminence, Dear Brother Bishops, Dear Young Friends,"Proclaim the Lord Christ … and always have your answer ready for people who ask the reason for the hope that is within you" (1 Pet 3:15). With these words from the First Letter of Peter I greet each of you with heartfelt affection. I thank Cardinal Egan for his kind words of welcome and I also thank the representatives chosen from among you for their gestures of welcome. To Bishop Walsh, Rector of Saint Joseph Seminary, staff and seminarians, I offer my special greetings and gratitude. Young friends, I am very...

The New York Archdiocesan Deaf Choir "signed" a song for Pope Benedict XVI Saturday at a seminary outside New York, where the pontiff blessed some 50 children with disabilities and visited students. The 81-year-old pontiff rose and applauded the choir of 15, accompanied vocally by the Cathedral of Saint Patrick Young Singers, after they had finished their song, "Take Lord, Receive." "God has blessed you with life and with differing talents and gifts," Benedict said in a short speech to the crowd of around 50 families of children with disabilities. "Sometimes it is challenging to find a reason for what...

I was watching the local Fox news affiliate tonight and noticed that when they were showing video of the Pope visiting the synagogue in New York City, that they pixelated the crucifix that he wears. Did anyone else see this? Does Fox have a policy of blurring out religious symbols?

During the Mass for Clergy and Religious at New York's St. Patrick's Cathedral on Saturday 19 April 2008, the third anniversary of his election to the Chair of St. Peter, the Holy Father delivered the following homily.Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, With great affection in the Lord, I greet all of you, who represent the Bishops, priests and deacons, the men and women in consecrated life, and the seminarians of the United States. I thank Cardinal Egan for his warm welcome and the good wishes which he has expressed in your name as I begin the fourth year of...

Twice-divorced former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani took Communion at a Mass celebrated by Pope Benedict on Saturday, breaching rules that bar those who remarry outside the Church from doing so. As he left New York's St. Patrick's Cathedral with his third wife, Judith, the failed presidential candidate confirmed to Reuters that he took Communion from a priest. Asked if he was uncomfortable with having broken the Church ban on the divorced and remarried taking Communion, Giuliani said, "No." The Church does not recognize divorce and teaches that divorced Catholics are still married to their earlier partner unless the...

The Pope used the structure of the great Cathedral as a symbolic framework for addressing the interior meaning of the Christian vocation and mission.

WASHINGTON, DC, April 18, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - At a Q&A session following Pope Benedict XVI's Wednesday address to the Bishops of the United States, he addressed the "particular problem" of secularism in America. While it allows profession of belief in God, it "can subtly reduce religious belief to a lowest common denominator," he said. Thus there is a separation "of faith from life: living 'as if God did not exist'." The Pope noted that rather than "thinking with the Church", some Catholics believe they have "a right to pick and choose" in the faith, "maintaining external social bonds but without...

...If journalists expected Benedict to take swipes at President Bush's foreign policy there, they could only be disappointed.... There's a reason that yesterday Bush declared with gusto at the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast in Washington: "His Holiness believes that freedom is the Almighty's gift to every man, woman and child on Earth." ...When they stood together on the White House lawn in a majestic welcoming ceremony on Wednesday, it symbolized the growing rapprochement of American evangelical Protestantism and the Catholic Church.... It was West Texas meets Rome; plain-spoken man of faith meets intellectual of great depth; representative of America's awesome...

Bill Maher on Friday night's "Real Time" made something crystal clear that conservatives have known for decades: Liberal means never having to say you're sorry. Having on last Friday's program (as reported by my colleague Matthew Balan) "stated that the Pope 'used to be a Nazi,'" Maher was supposed to apologize for his transgression. Well, if the nonsense he uttered last evening is what liberals call an apology, it should act as a grander indictment as to what's wrong with the extreme-left in our nation (video embedded upper-right courtesy our friend Ms Underestimated): Last week, I got into some trouble...

<p>Comedian Bill Maher stopped short of apologizing Friday night for accusing Pope Benedict XVI of being a Nazi, but he said he'd refrain in the future from drawing that connection.</p> <p>"I will never make 'the pope is a Nazi' joke again," Maher said on his HBO show, "Real Time With Bill Maher."</p>

WASHINGTON, April 18, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - President George W. Bush addressed the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast just after 8:30 this morning, in a speech filled with glowing references to Pope Benedict XVI.  "It's not every day you get to be the warm-up act to the Holy Father," began the President jovially, referring to the fact that the guests would soon be viewing a live broadcast of the Pope's remarks to the United Nations. "This has been a joyous week," said the President beaming and eliciting applause. "It's been a joyous time for Catholics - and it wasn't such a bad...

 Television Coverage ARRIVALPope Benedict XVI arrives at Andrews Air Force Base and is greeted by President and Mrs. Bush,  local dignitaries of the Church, and the apostolic nuncio. Tuesday, April 15, 3:30PM Eastern Encore April 15, 8PM; April 16, 4AM.   THE WHITE HOUSEPope Benedict XVI is received by President and Mrs. Bush at a White House welcoming ceremony, followed by a private meeting between the President and the Pope, and the dignitaries of the two states. Wednesday, April 16, 10:00 AM Eastern  Encore April 16, 2PM & 9PM.   ADDRESS TO THE BISHOPS OF THE UNITED STATESPope Benedict...

MYFOXNY.COM -- The NYPD's Harbor Unit, patrolling the East River near the United Nations as a part of security operations for the Pope's visit, rescued an apparently sick beaver from the water. The ever-vigilant harbor cops spotted the animal, which appeared to be having trouble breathing and struggled to swim, not far from the U.N., where the Pope was speaking. >>VIDEO: SCUBA COPS BRING BEAVER ASHORE >>VIDEO: OFFICER DESCRIBES BEAVER RESCUE Police Officer John Angus caught the beaver in a safety noose, pulled it aboard, and placed it in a bucket with water. Officers brought the beaver to shore for...

Original Free Republic LinkFree Republic:Pope Benedict XVI Pays Historical Visit To The Park Street Synagogue

So, the pope came to town. Yes, and the town (little Washington, D.C.) practically came unglued. The media fell all over themselves, situating cameras all over the city and scrambling for position to broadcast every move His Eminence made. He even made Entertainment Tonight, and virtually every news show on TV. There was the president himself, waiting at the foot of the stairs as his guest descended from Shepherd I, to welcome the pope, who stepped nimbly down to the tarmac, beaming with delight. There were cherry-blossomed streets for the motorcade through the city, a grandly arrayed White House lawn...

Address to New York Jewish Community, Park East Synagogue   On 18 April 2008 the Holy Father gave the following address to representatives of the Jewish Community in New York gathered at Park East Synagogue in Manhattan. Dear Friends, Shalom! It is with joy that I come here, just a few hours before the celebration of your Pesah, to express my respect and esteem for the Jewish community in New York City. The proximity of this place of worship to my residence gives me the opportunity to greet some of you today. I find it moving to recall that...