The Valley Catholic
February 3, 2015
cns neWs
15
Pope says he will canonize Blessed Junipero Serra in Washington
ABOARD THE PAPAL FLIGHT FROM
MANILA, Philippines (CNS) -- Pope
Francis said his September trip to the
U.S. will take him to Philadelphia,
New York and Washington -- where he
intends to canonize Blessed Junipero
Serra -- but probably no other stops.
Pope Francis made his remarks Jan. 19,
in an hour-long news conference with
reporters accompanying him back to
Rome from a week-long trip to Asia.
Four days after announcing he
would canonize Blessed Junipero in
the U.S. in September, the pope said he
wished he could do so in California,
the 18th-century Franciscan’s mission
field, but would not have time to travel
there. The pope said he planned instead
to perform the canonization ceremony
at the Basilica of the National Shrine
of the Immaculate Conception, saying
Washington would be a fitting location
because a statue of Blessed Junipero
stands in the U.S. Capitol.
The pope also confirmed he would
visit the United Nations in New York.
He had already announced his participation in the late-September World
Meeting of Families in Philadelphia.
Asked about widespread speculation
that he would visit the U.S.-Mexico border on the same trip, Pope Francis said
“entering the United States by crossing
the border from Mexico would be a
beautiful thing, as a sign of brotherhood
and of help to the immigrants.” But he
said making such a visit would raise expectations that he would visit Mexico’s
shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe, and
he joked that “war could break out” if
he failed to do so. “There will be time to
go to Mexico later on,” he said.
114th congress makes combating
human trafficking top priority
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- At a House
leadership news conference Jan. 27,
Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy of
California announced a list of bills
to combat human trafficking that he
expected would pass the House of
Representatives by week’s end. “Human
trafficking affects so many of the vulnerable throughout the world,” said McCarthy, so “we have 12 bills, bipartisan,
Republicans and Democrats, to protect
the most vulnerable out there.” He said
in the week ahead, the House would
be “strong on legislation.” A statement
issued by McCarthy’s office said: There
are unseen prisons in the world that
exist even in towns and cities across
our country. Though few are aware
of the severity of the problem, human
trafficking affects thousands of people
in America alone. This week, the House
will pass 12 anti-human trafficking bills
to improve the tools available to law
enforcement, identify and develop best
practices to prevent human trafficking,
help victim survivors recover, train government employees on how to properly
detect and respond to human trafficking
and more.” Congress’ focus on the trafficking issue comes at a time when the
Catholic Church has put a spotlight on
the global human trafficking crisis by
declaring the first International Day of
Prayer and Awareness against Human
Trafficking. It will take place Feb. 8, the
feast of St. Josephine Bakhita, a Sudanese slave who eventually was freed
and became a Canossian nun.
(CNS photo/Gregory A. Shemitz)
Bishops welcome cour ӊéɕ٥