In today’s photo of the day, children play in the Vidigal neighborhood in the southern section of Rio de Janiero. In 1980 Pope John Paul II was so stunned by the poverty he saw there that he gave Vidigal his gold ring as an offering. With help from the church, the dangerous and drug-ridden neighborhood ...

Blessed Albertina Berkenbrock Albertina Berkenbrock was born in Santa Catarina, Brazil in 1919. On August 16, 1928, she made her First Holy Communion; an experience she described as the most beautiful day of her life. She had a special devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary and St. Aloysius Gonzaga, a model of purity and the ...

Archbishop Murray Chatlain of Keewatin-Le Pas, Manitoba, stands up after receiving a pallium from Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican, today, June 29, 2013. The pope presented woolen pallia to 34 archbishops during the liturgy. His Holiness Pope Francis gave the pallia to newly appointed Metropolitan Archbishops at the Mass celebrating the ...

Dolores Hart was a rising starlet in Hollywood in the 50’s and 60’s with ten successful movies to her credit. Then she made a surprising decision: She left all the glitz and glamour and entered a contemplative monastery. Her story is now a book, The Ear of the Heart, published by Ignatius Press. This week ...

  Below find the homily of Pope Francis during this morning’s celebration of the Solemnity Sts. Peter and Paul in St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican.  During the mass, the Pope bestowed the pallium on the shoulders of 34 metropolitan archbishops from around the world.   Your Eminences,Your Eminence, Metropolitan Ioannis,My Brother Bishops and Priests,Dear ...

Blessed Adilio Daronch Born in October 1908 to a family of modest means in an isolated town in the interior of Brazil, Adilio Daronch from early childhood loved to pray and serve at Mass. At 16, he was killed alongside Fr. Manuel Gomez Gonzalez, when revolutionaries met them on the road during a trip to ...

Musicians take part in a parade during the Festa do Divino, or Festival of the Divine, in Sao Luiz do Paraitinga, Brazil. The Festa do Divino is one of Brazil’s most important Catholic celebrations, marking Pentecost 50 days after Easter. To find out more about the upcoming World Youth Day in Rio de Janiero, Brazil ...

Most people know Brazil to be the home of the Amazon river and the home of the Amazon rainforest. Brazil is also known for its samba music, their soccer teams, Copacaba beach, the Christ the Redeemer Statue, the favela slums and the annual Carnival celebrations. Brazil is also the fifth largest country in the world ...

Yesterday in Rome Salt + Light was awarded the “Capax Dei” Prize at the Mirabile Dictu International Catholic Film Festival, organized annually by the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Culture. The award was presented for Salt + Light’s documentary “In Her Footsteps: the Story of Kateri Tekakwitha,” which premiered in Rome last October. The following story ...

Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati Handsome, athletic, courageous Pier Giorgio Frassati was born in Turin, Italy on April 6, 1901. He was born into a well-respected, devoutly Catholic family. His mother, Adelaide Ametis, was a painter. His father Alfredo was the founder of the newspaper, “La Stampa”. At birth he presented respiratory failure, so he was ...