The bridge builder

“The Holy Spirit,” Pope Francis said during the Angelus address on Pentecost Sunday, “is a specialist in bridging distances, teaching us how to overcome them.”

“With him the words of Christ come alive. He does not fear the passing of the centuries; rather, he makes believers attentive to the problems and events of their time. For when the Spirit teaches, he actualises: he keeps faith ever young.  For the Holy Spirit does not bind himself to passing epochs or fashions, but brings into today the relevance of Jesus, risen and living. The Spirit changes our lives: he makes Jesus’s thoughts become our thoughts. And he does this by reminding us of his words.”

All families welcome

Presenting the programme of the World Meeting of Families, to be held from June 22-26 in Rome, Gabriella Gambino, undersecretary of the Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life, said: “All families must feel welcomed by the Church. There is no recipe that works for all. The meeting is dedicated to the families of Amoris Laetitia. It’s about having a pastoral approach with everyone, with an attitude of mercy. Mercy is not a rule but an attitude for welcoming families.”

‘Take action on guns’

After several tragic mass shootings, four US bishops wrote to US Congress urging members to “unite in our humanity to stop the massacres of innocent lives”.  

“There is something deeply wrong with a culture where these acts of violence are increasingly common. …Among the many steps towards addressing this endemic of violence is the passage of reasonable gun control measures. In this, we implore you to join the Holy Father who, after the tragedy in Texas, declared: ‘It is time to say ‘no more’ to the indiscriminate trafficking of weapons.’”

(Compiled by Fr Joe Borg)