Pope gives hammer and sickle crucifix to Mary

From Andrea Tornielli:

“Mother of the Saviour and our Mother,” Francis prayed, “You, Queen of Bolivia, who from the height of your Shrine in Copacabana attend to the prayers and needs of your children, especially the most poor and abandoned, and protect them: Receive as a gift from the heart of Bolivia and my filial affection the symbols of affection and closeness that – in the name of the Bolivian people – Mr. President Evo Morales Ayma has bestowed on me with cordial and generous affection, on the occasion of this Apostolic Journey, which I entrusted to your solicitous intercession...”

Link:

• Pope leaves decorative honours with the hammer and anvil in Bolivia

Praying in Front of Planned Parenthood

From Father Frank Pavone:

"People from all walks of life praying with Fr. Frank in front of Planned Parenthood."

Related:

• Father Zuhlsdorf, Father Nicholson,  Father Pavone, and Michael Voris in Washington, D.C.

Father Leo Franklin McNamara

"The following is taken from a discourse given by one of the Faithful.

Father McNamara had the stigmata.

The crucifix pictured is the one that bled on several occasions.

For your consideration:

Fr. McNamara slept on a daybed, lived in a loft at St. Adrian’s Church, not in the rectory.

He did not eat meat for 45 years, never had a housekeeper.  Was always faithful to his priestly vows and the true Mass.

Ordained in Rome on July 6, 1913, first Mass on July 7, 1913

In 1928 he was assigned to St. Adrian’s parish in south Chicago.  Established a beautiful church and school.  Remained there until death on October 26, 1973..." (continued)

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Cardinal Keith O'Brien calls on Christians to wear their crosses every day

Head of the Scottish Catholic church, Cardinal Keith O'Brien, says symbol shows you 'live by Christ's standards in daily life'

Cardinal Keith O'Brien at the Vatican, in February. Photograph: Franco Origlia/Getty Images

(The Guardian) Britain's most senior Catholic cleric has called on Christians to wear a cross every day as "a symbol of their beliefs" and to combat the marginalisation of religion in modern society.

The plea by Cardinal Keith O'Brien, head of the Catholic church in Scotland, to be made in his Easter sermon, comes as the Anglican archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, appealed for more people to attend church this Sunday – even if they are "a bit vague" about religion.

Williams, who is marking his final Easter as leader of the Church of England, said he does not "lose sleep" over the fact many people only attend church at Easter and Christmas.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4, he said that he welcomed those with little connection to Christianity who just wanted to "let the story wash over them" knowing that they would not face a "doctrine examination".

But O'Brien will call on Christians to make the cross "more prominent in their lives". Due to speak at Edinburgh's St Mary's Cathedral on Sunday, he will tell them to "wear proudly a symbol of the cross of Christ on their garments each and every day of their lives"... (continued)

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The Cross In Utah

By Fr. Erik Richtsteig at Orthometer

A common experience for Catholics and other who wear a cross or a crucifix in Utah goes something like the following:

Mormon: Why do you wear THAT?
Crossie: Wear what?
Mormon: That cross thing.
Crossie: Because Jesus died on it.
Mormon: Well if you mom was shot would you wear a gun?

It could be noose, electric chair, or guillotine, but you get the point: Utah and its majority religion are not cross friendly. Moreover, verbal attacks, teasing, and bullying of young people by classmates can be especially brutal.

But why the aversion to what orthodox Christians see as a sign of Christ's triumph over the Devil? There are several possibilities as Mormon doctrine and theology is nothing if not fluid. First, according to the Mormons Jesus is not God incarnate. He is merely our elder brother and savior. It has been taught that He didn't atone for our sins by dying on the Cross, but by weeping blood in the garden. Second, there has historically been an aversion to anything that smacks of traditional Christianity; think Protestantism on steroids. Third, a couple of years ago, The Salt Lake Tribune published an interesting article concerning some research by a professor at Cal State Sacramento. His thesis is that the extreme anti-cross attitude can be traced to President David O. McKay's virulent anti-Catholicism. My personal opinion is that while this may have intensified the opposition, it had been very present before. I base this upon anecdotes heard from both Catholics and Mormons that predate McKay.

Anyhow, this is yet more evidence that Mormonism cannot be considered Christian in an orthodox theological sense. (Also, interesting parallels can be drawn to the hatred of the cross that one finds in Islam.)

"But God forbid that I should glory except in the Cross of Our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world." -- Galatians 6:14.

(Image: murals in the sanctuary in the Cathedral of the Madeline, Salt Lake City.)

• The Cross In Utah

Father Corapi

"When we remove Christ from the cross, a cross without Christ, that's little more than they have in the oppressed communist countries. They have plenty of suffering and plenty of misery. But when you put Christ on the cross, you endow it with the power of redemptive love. As we've expunged sacrifice from the daily life of Catholics and Christians, we've expunged power."

Israeli ambassador confirms Pope Benedict may wear cross at Western Wall

Rome, Italy, Mar 18, 2009 / 02:13 am (CNA).- Contrary to comments attributed to an Israeli rabbi, Pope Benedict XVI will not be barred from entering the holy area of Jerusalem’s Western Wall while wearing a cross.

On Tuesday the Jerusalem Post quoted Rabbi Shmuel Rabinovitch, who oversees worship matters at the Western Wall, as saying that the Pope should not wear a cross during his visit to the area.

“It is not fitting to enter the Western Wall area with religious symbols, including a cross,” the rabbi reportedly said, according to SIR.

Mordechay Lewy, Israel’s Ambassador to the Holy See, issued a clarifying statement saying that the Jerusalem Post’s quotation was “misleading.”

Ambassador Lewy said that Israel will “respect, as a matter of course, the religious symbols of the Holy Father and of his entourage, as expected in accordance with rules of hospitality and dignity,” following the same procedure applied in Pope John Paul II’s papal visit to Israel in 2000.

“This was confirmed to a high Official of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Jerusalem personally by Rabbi Shmuel Rabinovitch,” the ambassador’s statement continued.

Pope Benedict is scheduled to visit the Western Wall on May 12 as part of his journey to the Holy Land.

• Israeli ambassador confirms Pope Benedict may wear cross at Western Wall
• Western Wall rabbi says pope should not wear cross at site