VATICAN CITY – Understanding the roots of past conflicts can help Catholics and Mennonites heal their relationship and move toward a common witness of faith in Jesus, Pope Benedict XVI said.

VATICAN CITY – Understanding the roots of past conflicts can help Catholics and Mennonites heal their relationship and move toward a common witness of faith in Jesus, Pope Benedict XVI said.
The Basilica of the National Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton in Emmitsburg will observe All Saints’ Day with a celebration Nov. 1. A noon Mass will be held in the basilica, followed by a eucharistic procession from the basilica to White House chapel, the restored house where St. Elizabeth Ann Seton lived and worked from 1810 until her death in 1821.

VATICAN CITY – Pope Benedict XVI and Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete held talks on pacification in central Africa and the importance of Christian-Muslim cooperation. The pope and the Tanzanian president met for 15 minutes of private discussions Oct. 19. Afterward, Kikwete held separate talks with the Vatican’s top foreign affairs officials.
VATICAN CITY – Involvement in politics is a role reserved to laypeople, but Catholic Church leaders must explain and promote the moral principles that will contribute to the common good, Pope Benedict XVI said.
UNITED NATIONS – If Pope Paul VI reappeared on earth to assess progress toward meeting the challenges he addressed in his 1967 social encyclical, “Populorum Progressio,” he would say: “You’ve done a lot, but you haven’t even started – and you’ve lost a lot of enthusiasm.”
WASHINGTON – In contrast to the 2000 and 2004 presidential election cycles, when some saw Republican candidates as too cozy with religious leaders and too willing to bring their faith into the public sphere, this year’s GOP candidates for president have been relatively quiet on the topic of religion.

BANGALORE, India – The Pakistan Catholic Bishops’ Conference has condemned the bomb blasts that killed and injured hundreds of people marking the return of a former prime minister from self-imposed exile.

As Mark Willyard installs one of the restored 82-year-old stained-glass windows in St. Casimir, Canton, he can tell immediately the sunlight illuminates the holy image in the panel more radiantly than the religiously colored glass that has yet to be refurbished.
St. Joseph Medical Center will name its chapel, which is undergoing a renovation, after Cardinal William H. Keeler.
The Maryland State Council of the Knights of Columbus will sponsor a premiere of the movie “Bella” on Oct. 26 at the AMC Owings Mills 17.
SAN FRANCISCO – Reaction to San Francisco Archbishop George H. Niederauer giving Communion to two men in mock nuns’ garb during an Oct. 7 Mass has been overblown, said the pastor of the church where the Mass was celebrated.

HOUSTON – Cardinal-designate Daniel N. DiNardo of Galveston-Houston called Pope Benedict XVI’s decision to name him a cardinal “very humbling and surprising,” but also said it illustrates the Vatican’s recognition of the church’s growth “in the Southern part of the United States.”
