On May 1st we celebrated the Beatification of John Paul II. That 1.5 million (!) people gathered in Rome for this historic event is a testament to the connection that the Polish Pontiff had with the faithful. He was a great communicator — and some consider that one of the lasting hallmarks of his life. ...read more

The following is the full text of the homily of Pope Benedict XVI, preached today at the Mass of Beatification of John Paul II in St. Peter’s Square. Homily of His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI Beatification of Pope John Paul II Sunday, 1 May 2011 Dear Brothers and Sisters, Six years ago we gathered in ...read more

The following is an unofficial English translation of the Rite of Beatification of John Paul II, pronounced moments ago in St. Peter’s Square. RITE OF BEATIFICATION 1. CARDINAL AGOSTINO VALLINI, VICAR GENERAL OF ROME: Beatissimo Padre, il Vicario Generale di Vostra Santità per la Diocesi di Roma domanda umilmente alla Santità Vostra di voler iscrivere ...read more

The theme song for World Youth Day 2000, held in Rome began with the lines, “from many roads we come to Rome, following the footsteps of faith.” Today, St. Peter’s is again a meeting point for the youth of world, this time to celebrate the man who taught them that they have an indispensable place ...read more

The crowds shouted “Santo Subito” — Sainthood now! – at his funeral, and now some six years later he’ll be joining the ranks of the saints! This Sunday Pope John Paul II will be declared Blessed. Our coverage for the Beatification Mass begins at 3:30am ET/12:30am PT on May 1st, and includes our production Thank ...read more

Do you have a “JP II moment”? Most of us do. This charismatic man was a fixture in my life. He was all I ever knew as Pope until the ripe old age of 20! To be sure (and later to be reinforced over and over): he shaped my experience of the Church and, in ...read more

I’ve been doing a fair bit of traveling lately and one of the things I like to do while in airports is browse through the magazine and bookstores. I never buy magazines or even look through them much, so this is about the only time that I have a sense of what magazines are publishing. ...read more

Totus Tuus – “totally yours” – the apostolic motto for Pope John II inspired by Mother Mary’s perfect example, is also the title of the concert gala hosted by Catholic Youth Studio on Sunday, May 8th at Roy Thompson Hall. The Mother’s Day gala concert is in honour of Pope John Paul’s May 1st beatification ...read more

Seventy-year-old Fr. Michael Prieur is a professor of Moral and Sacramental Theology at St. Peter’s Seminary in London, Ontario; he is also a bioethics specialist and an author of numerous books.  But there is one topic that has intrigued him so much that he wrote a book about it and shared it with us at ...read more

Do you love the pull of a good mystery, the intrigue of a “who dunnit?” Well, before you pick up that mystery novel, consider for a moment the mysteries that are right in front of us – the mysteries of the Catholic Church and, in particular, the central mystery of the Holy Trinity. Now, there ...read more