As the European Union marks its annual Europe Day on 9 May, the President of the Commission of the Bishops' Conferences of the European Union (COMECE) and the president of the Italian Episcopal Conference (CEI), Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, urge the EU to rediscover its founding values of peace, unity and solidarity.

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Pope Francis expresses sorrow for an attack on a refugee camp in the Democratic Republic of Congo and appeals to political leaders to work "in the service of peace and fraternity.“

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The Pontifical Academy of Sciences hosts a conference focusing on the transformative potential of art, commencing with the Pope's call to establish a network of "cities of refuge" and with the inauguration of the "Changes" photo exhibition.

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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The world is in great need of hope and patience, Pope Francis said at his weekly general audience.

Those who are patient "are weavers of goodness. They stubbornly desire peace, and even if others are hasty and would like everything straight away, patience is capable of waiting," he said. 

"Even when many around us have succumbed to disillusionment, those who are inspired by hope and are patient are able to get through the darkest of nights," he said in St. Peter's Square May 8, the feast of Our Lady of Luján, patroness of Argentina. Before giving his catechesis, the pope prayed a few moments before a small statue of the Our Lady of Luján that was placed with two small floral bouquets to the right of his chair.

The pope continued his series of audience talks about vices and virtues by reflecting on the "theological" or New Testament virtue of hope. 

The Catechism of the Catholic Church, the pope noted, says, "Hope is the theological virtue by which we desire the kingdom of heaven and eternal life as our happiness, placing our trust in Christ's promises and relying not on our own strength, but on the help of the grace of the Holy Spirit."

Life without meaning gives rise to sadness and desperation, he said.

"Many may rebel" by insisting they have "striven to be virtuous, to be prudent, just, strong, temperate," the pope said. They declare, "I have also been a man or woman of faith.… What was the use of my fight if everything ends here?"

"If hope is missing, all the other virtues risk crumbling and ending up as ashes. If no reliable tomorrow, no bright horizon, were to exist, one would only have to conclude that virtue is a futile effort," the pope said.

Christian hope "is not an obstinacy we want to convince ourselves of, but it is a gift that comes directly from God," he said. It is a belief in the future "because Christ died and rose again and gave us his spirit." 

"If you believe in the resurrection of Christ, then you know with certainty that no defeat and no death is forever," he said.

However, the pope said, "hope is a virtue against which we sin often: in our bad nostalgia, in our melancholy, when we think that the happiness of the past is buried forever."

"We sin against hope when we become despondent over our sins, forgetting that God is merciful and greater than our hearts," he said, emphasizing that "God forgives everything; God always forgives."

"The world today is in great need of this Christian virtue" of hope, he said, "just as it needs patience, a virtue that walks in close contact with hope."

The pope asked people to pray for "the grace of hope along with patience" and to "always look toward that ultimate encounter; always see that the Lord is always near us and that death will never, ever be victorious."

Pope Francis releases a mandate for the parish priests who were gathered for the “Parish Priests for the Synod” international meeting in Rome last week, urging them to become missionaries of synodality to their fellow parish priests.

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Trafficking in persons has been a cruel reality in Nigeria since the 1980s, one that is unfortunately still present. In response to an appeal made by the Bishops of Nigeria and Major Superiors to join in the fight against human trafficking, Sister Anthonia M. Essien, HHCJ, and her team have launched awareness raising programs in rural villages in Akwa Ibom State.

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Israel says it has reopened one of the main crossing points into Gaza just days after a Hamas rocket attack.

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Pope Francis reflects on the need for new models of action for fair, just and dignified work for all people of our world and highlights the urgency of good policies for migrants.

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Following the 3 May twin bombing of the Lac Vert and Mugunga Internally Displaced Persons Camp in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)’s eastern region, which claimed the lives of at least 12 persons and injured hundreds, the National Episcopal Conference of Congo (CENCO) has expressed its indignation and condemnation.

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Ahead of Pope Francis' Apostolic Journey to Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Timor Leste, and Singapore, the Vatican releases the official logos and mottos for these visits, offering a glimpse into the Pope's longest-ever journey.

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