Pope says he wants to change the words to the Lord's Prayer because current interpretation suggests God leads us 'into temptation'

By Reuters and Sara Malm for MailOnline

Pope Francis has said he wants to change the interpretation of 'Our Father', the best known prayer in Christianity.

The Pontiff said the Roman Catholic Church should adopt a better translation of the phrase 'lead us not into temptation' in the Italian version of the Lord's Prayer.

He said the current phrasing, which is the same in English and many other languages, suggests that it is God who has a choice to lead us into temptation or not.

'That is not a good translation, because it speaks of a God who induces temptation',' the pope said in a television interview on Wednesday night.

Francis said the Catholic Church in France had opted for a different phrasing, which worked around this particular issue.

The French translation uses the phrase 'do not let us fall into temptation' as an alternative, which, the Pope said, implies that the fault would be human.

He indicated that it or something similar should be applied worldwide.

The prayer is part of Christian liturgical culture and memorised from childhood by hundreds of millions of people within all branches of the religion - both Catholic and Protestant.

It is a translation from the Latin vulgate, which was translated from ancient Greek, which was in turn translated from Aramaic, the language spoken by Jesus.

Liturgical translations are usually done by local Churches in coordination with the Vatican.

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• Pope says he wants to change the words to the Lord's Prayer because current interpretation suggests God leads us 'into temptation'

U.K., French foreign ministers snub emergency EU meeting about President-elect Donald Trump

By Yvette C. Hammett

BRUSSELS, Nov. 13 (UPI) -- French and United Kingdom foreign ministers opted out of a European Union emergency meeting being held in response to the election of Donald Trump as U.S. president.

U.K. Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson and French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault do not plan to attend but instead will send representatives to Brussels for the meeting called by EU Council President Donald Tusk, at the suggestion of Germany.

EU members plan to discuss how far they believe Trump will go to live up to his pledges to turn U.S. foreign policy upside down on issues including Syria, Iran, Russia and NATO, The Guardian reported.

"We do not see the need for an additional meeting on Sunday because the U.S. election timetable is long established," a spokesman for Johnson said. "An act of democracy has taken place, there is a transition and we will work with the current and future administrations to ensure the best outcomes for Britain..." (continued)

Read More at UPI.com

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• U.K., French foreign ministers snub emergency EU meeting about President-elect Donald Trump

France's Hollande escalates row with Catholics over gay marriage

By Tom Heneghan, Religion Editor

PARIS | Sun Jan 6, 2013 12:09pm EST
 

(Reuters) - France's President Francois Hollande has weighed this weekend into the war of words between his government and the Catholic Church over holding discussions in schools on the planned legalization of same-sex marriage.

He defended Education Minister Vincent Peillon on Saturday for urging Catholic schools, which teach about one-fifth of all pupils in France, to stay neutral in the debate.

Peillon's supporters and critics dominated the headlines and airwaves on Sunday, a week before a Church-backed protest in Paris that organizers say could draw as many as half a million people opposed to any change in traditional marriage.

The shrill polemics could not drown out another big news story, the growing unpopularity of Hollande and his government. One poll said 75 percent of voters doubt he can keep a New Year's promise to turn around rising unemployment this year.

Laurent Wauquiez, a former conservative higher education minister, slammed Peillon for implying that Catholic opposition to the reform was responsible for suicides of gay teenagers.
"This is a big political manipulation," he said.

Conservatives also cried foul because government spokeswoman Najat Vallaud-Belkacem was filmed in a state school last October praising the marriage reform as progress towards more freedom.

Opinion polls show up to 60 percent of the French back same-sex marriage, which the government plans to legalize by June, and just under 50 percent support adoption rights for gays.

A new poll said 69 percent wanted a referendum on the issue, which all main religions here - Catholic, Muslim, Protestant, Jewish and Orthodox Christian - have opposed.

SECULAR RALLYING CRY

Peillon triggered the row by saying the director of Catholic education system, heavily subsidized by the state, was wrong to urge his schools to discuss same-sex marriage with pupils.

"This education system, which is under contract to the state, should respect the principle of neutrality and the freedom of conscience of all," he stated in a letter to regional education officials who oversee both state and private schools.

These officials should scrutinize the Catholic debates and report any anti-gay views aired in them, Peillon said, urging extreme caution on this issue because young homosexuals were five times more prone to suicide than heterosexual youths.

Hollande backed him in the name of "laicite", the legal separation of church and state that is a secular rallying cry for French opposed to any religion in the public sphere.

"Laicite is a principle of the Republic," he said.

Religious leaders have encouraged people to join next Sunday's protest but most will not march themselves.

Opponents of the new law caught its supporters off guard in November when they brought about 100,000 out in Paris for what was meant as a warm-up to the protest in a week's time.

The protest will converge on the Eiffel Tower and include people from all over France, organizers said.

Although few in traditionally Catholic France attend Mass on Sunday, the Church can still rally crowds larger than most political protests when its core interests are threatened.

Passing the law would make France the 12th country around the world to legalize same-sex marriage. It is already allowed in Argentina, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Iceland, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, and Sweden.

In the United States, Washington, D.C. and nine states have legalized it, three of them in last November's elections.

(Editing by Louise Ireland)

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• France's Hollande escalates row with Catholics over gay marriage

France set to ban the words 'mother' and 'father' from official documents

France is set to ban the words "mother" and "father" from all official documents under controversial plans to legalise gay marriage.

France's Justice Minister Christiane Taubira Photo: Reuters 

(The Telegraph)  The move, which has outraged Catholics, means only the word "parents" would be used in identical marriage ceremonies for all heterosexual and same-sex couples.

The draft law states that "marriage is a union of two people, of different or the same gender".

It says all references to "mothers and fathers" in the civil code – which enshrines French law – will be swapped for simply "parents".

The law would also give equal adoption rights to homosexual and heterosexual couples.

Justice Minister Christiane Taubira told France's Catholic newspaper La Croix: "Who is to say that a heterosexual couple will bring a child up better than a homosexual couple, that they will guarantee the best conditions for the child's development?"

"What is certain is that the interest of the child is a major preoccupation for the government."

The head of the French Catholic Church Cardinal Philippe Barbarin warned followers last week that gay marriage could lead to legalised incest and polygamy in society.

He told the Christian's RFC radio station: "Gay marriage would herald a complete breakdown in society.

"This could have innumerable consequences. Afterward they will want to create couples with three or four members. And after that, perhaps one day the taboo of incest will fall."

Leading French Catholics have also published a 'Prayer for France', which says: "Children should not be subjected to adults' desires and conflicts, so they can fully benefit from the love of their mother and father."

And Pope Benedict XVI invited 30 French bishops to Italy to urge them to fight against the new law.

He told them: "We have there a true challenge to take on.

"The family that is the foundation of social life is threatened in many places, following a concept of human nature that has proven defective."

President Francois Hollande pledged in his manifesto to legalise gay marriage. The draft law will be presented to his cabinet for approval on October 31.

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• France set to ban the words 'mother' and 'father' from official documents 

Blood red lakes in France

By Victoria Cavaliere

(Daily News) At first glance, it might look like a sign of the apocalypse - but scientists say the blood red lakes in southern France are actually a natural phenomenon.

Camargue, France is a river delta where the Rhône meets the sea. The picturesque area is home to numerous salt flats, and it is this concentration of salt that will occasionally stain red the regions normally blue water.

A photographer driving through the region recently stopped to chronicle the incredible blood-red color of the water and the trillions of salt crystals crusting rocks, branches and shoreline.

Though it is unclear how often this phenomenon occurs, salt has been a lifeblood of the region for hundreds of years.

Today, evaporation pans at Salin-de-Giraud, the largest salt extraction city in Europe, extend for thousands of acres and produce some 1,000,000 metric tons of salt per year, according to Languedoc.com.

The area is also home to riz rouge, or red rice, so-named for its unmistakable blood red color.

It might look like something more a horror movie (or the Old Testament), but these red waters in France are a natural phenomenon caused by the high levels of salt in the water.

Link:

• In France, waters that look like blood

France: Muslims stone Christians in church during mass

From Supertradmum at Etheldredasplace:

No one will take much note of this. It is just one story among the thousands that together tell the tale of France's decline and Islamization. Eurabia Update: Here is my translation of "Carcassonne Des fidèles caillassés pendant la messe à Saint-Joseph," by Yannick Bonnefoy in Midi Libre, May 27 (thanks to David):

Carcassonne: The faithful stoned during Mass at St. Joseph 

Yesterday at 6:20PM, as Fr. Roger Barthes began to celebrate mass, four youths, aged 14 to 18, broke into the Church of St. Joseph, before launching handfuls of pebbles at 150 faithful present at the service. Immediately, men began pursuing the young troublemakers, but in vain. They managed to vanish into thin air, heading towards the city La Conte.


Interrupted by regrettable unexpected event, Mass was finally able to proceed as planned. Although no one was injured and nothing was broken in the church, located along the Avenue Jean Moulin, the parishioners, many of whom are elderly, were greatly shocked by the disrespectful act of the youths of North African origin....

and from a comment on the website, "North African origin"—read, "Muslim".

Carcassonne has been under Muslim conquest before. In 725, the Wali Ambisa took the city following the Islamic conquest of the Visigoth kingdom of Spain. The city remained in the hands of Muslims until 752, when it was freed by the Franks led by Pippin the Short.

Link:

• Pay attention Christians in France--you voted for this...

French Revolution martyr Father Pierre-Adrien Toulorge beatified

(Catholic Culture) Father Pierre-Adrien Toulorge (1757-93), a Norbertine priest martyred during the French Revolution, was beatified on April 29 at the cathedral in Coutances, France. Cardinal Angelo Amato, prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, presided at the beatification, which was attended by 1,500 faithful and hundreds of priests and religious.

When Father Toulorge was sentenced to death, a nun who was arrested with him wept, prompting this rebuke from the priest:

Madame, the tears you are shedding are unworthy of you and me. What would worldly people say if they knew that having renounced the world, we found it difficult to leave it? If we are loathe to die, we will give the children of this century a bad example, and perhaps your discouragement will close the door of salvation for many souls who might find themselves in the same situation. Let us teach them by our constancy what they must do. Let us show that faith is victorious over torture, and open a path to heaven amidst the final efforts of hell.

French Revolution martyr beatified

A place at the table

From RORATE CÆLI:

On Holy Thursday, Cardinal Jean-Pierre Ricard, archbishop of Bordeaux, hosted all the priests of his diocese for dinner. Taking to heart the recent decision of the pope (the lifting of excommunication of the bishops of the FSSPX on January 21st), he invited all Catholic priests and priors who exercise ministry within the Archdiocese of Bordeaux and Bazas, including the prior of the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X - marking the first time he’s dined with his Diocesan confreres or other communities, especially those dependant on the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei. The Cardinal recalled the speech made by Benedict XVI in France last September:

"No one is too many in the Church. Everyone, without exception, must be able to feel at home and never feel rejected."

Le Salon Beige

Mass at Lourdes

2/20/09 - 10 AM

• BloggingLourdes
• TV Lourdes en direct 24h/24
• Lourdes-france.org

Traditional Latin Solemn High Mass: Feast of the Sacred Heart

SSPX: pilgrimage and a new Crusade of the Rosary

From Rorate via Father Z:
____________________________________________

CATEGORY: SESSIUNCULUM — Fr. John Zuhlsdorf @ 8:15 am

Our colleagues at Rorate have this stunner. Be sure to visit their site. My emphases and comments.

SSPX: pilgrimage and a new Crusade of the Rosary

Pictures of the Solemn Mass, of the public recitation of the Holy Rosary, and of the Adoration of the Most Holy Sacrament, as the Sanctuary of Lourdes once again opens its doors and buildings to the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X (FSSPX / SSPX) during the weekend of Christ the King. The four bishops of the SSPX, who were consecrated by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre in 1988, were present in the pilgrimage.

Regarding developments in the ongoing conversation between the leadership of the Fraternity and Cardinal Castrillón Hoyos, President of the Pontifical Commission "Ecclesia Dei", the SSPX will start this Saturday a "Crusade of the Rosary" to "obtain from Our Lady the removal of the Decree of Excommunication", a "crusade" which will last from November 1 to Christmas Day. [OKAY! Well… this is a good initiative. But let us not forget that grace builds on nature. Hopefully some of that prayer will be dedicated to softening hearts, not just in the Holy See, but also in the SSPX and its followers so that they will submit in concrete ways to the Roman Pontiff.]

This is a most auspicious development, considering that the last time a Crusade of the Rosary was proposed by the SSPX (in July 2006), its main intention was to "obtain from Heaven for Pope Benedict XVI the strength required to completely free up the Mass of all time, called the Tridentine Mass". [I hope they are not thinking that all the credit goes to them, though I don’t hesitate to affirm that PRAYER HELPS!] All eyes to Heaven, and to Rome, in the next few months.

I will participate in this Rosary "Crusade". It would be a joy to see the excommunications lifted.

I urge you to do the same. Add this intention to your daily recitation of the Rosary.

In the meantime… I guess you can say the old Mass at Lourdes after all!

• Rorate Reports: SSPX bishops and Mass at Lourdes - Rosary CRUSADE re: the excommunications
• SSPX: pilgrimage and a new Crusade of the Rosary
  

Pope Benedict XVI prays during a ceremony following an Eucharistic procession at La Prairie in Lourdes on September 14, 2008. The pontiff is on a pilgrimage to the shrine where the faithful believe the Virgin Mary appeared to a peasant girl, Bernadette Soubirous, 150 years ago. REUTERS/Jean-Philippe Arles (FRANCE)

A baby is lifted up to Pope Benedict XVI in his popemobile at the end of an eucharistic procession in Lourdes, southwestern France, Sunday, Sept. 14, 2008. Pope Benedict XVI celebrated Mass on Sunday at the Lourdes shrine renowned for miracles, telling tens of thousands of faithful they should hold onto hope in a world full of evil, torture, suffering and injustice. The pope is making a three-day pilgrimage to the sanctuary, which is visited each year by 6 million pilgrims.

(AP Photo/Bob Edme)

Pope Says Hope Still Strong in France

Affirms Church Is Where to Find Promises of Eternal Life

PARIS, SEPT. 13, 2008 (Zenit.org).- Though some speak of Europe turning its back on Christianity, Benedict XVI today in Paris affirmed that hope will continue to be stronger than all else.

The Pope spoke of hope in his homily at a Mass celebrated at the Esplanade des Invalides, which gathered some 260,000 people.

"Hope will always remain stronger than all else," he said. "The Church, built upon the rock of Christ, possesses the promises of eternal life, not because her members are holier than others, but because Christ made this promise to Peter: 'You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my Church, and the powers of death shall not prevail against it.'"

Leading up to the Pope's visit, which is underway through Monday, the press published statistics about the decline of religious practice among the French.

In this context, the Holy Father told them: "In this unfailing hope in God's eternal presence to the souls of each of us, in this joy of knowing that Christ is with us until the end of time, in this power that the Holy Spirit gives to all those who let themselves be filled with him, I entrust you, dear Christians of Paris and France, to the powerful and merciful action of the God of love who died for us upon the cross and rose victorious on Easter morning."

French Prime Minister François Fillon was among those who attended the Mass. The Pope was joined by some 90 cardinals and bishops and 1,500 priests. A choir of 1,200 voices led the songs.

The offerings were presented by members of Aux Captifs La Libération (To Captives, Freedom) an association dedicated to caring for those who live on the street.

And Benedict XVI left a demanding message: "Do not be afraid," he said, directing himself especially to youth who hear the call to consecrated or priestly life. "Do not be afraid to give your life to Christ.

"Nothing will ever replace the ministry of priests at the heart of the Church. Nothing will ever replace a Mass for the salvation of the world."

• Link
  

In Paris, Burgers Turn Chic

By JANE SIGAL

Published: July 16, 2008

EVEN if you couldn’t be on the Champs-Élysées for Bastille Day on Monday to watch seven parachutists float down in front of President Nicolas Sarkozy, you can still celebrate the greatness of France with a new local tradition.

Eat a hamburger...

“It has the taste of the forbidden, the illicit — the subversive, even,” said Hélène Samuel, a restaurant consultant here. “Eating with your hands, it’s pure regression. Naturally, everyone wants it...

Emil Lager, a waiter, said that many of the diners seem self-conscious about ordering.

“Another thing I’ve noticed is that the muscled guys order the boeuf double with bacon, egg and fries, and a Diet Coke,” he said. “Then they share a cheesecake. They don’t want to gain weight.”

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