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Catholics and non-Catholics Receive Communion Together in “Ecumenical Mass” Promoted by Turin Archdiocese The “ecumenical mass” promoted by the Archdiocese of Turin, ItalyThe group “Spezzare il pane” (“Breaking the Bread”) in the archdiocese of Turin, Italy, has officially started with the celebration of “ecumenical masses” where Holy Communion is distributed to Catholics and non-Catholics. The group is headed by Catholic priest Father Fredo Oliviero, an apologist for illegal immigration, who has the support of his archbishop, Monsignor Cesare Nosiglia. The practice of the group to distribute Holy Communion to non-Catholics, is openly promoted in the newspaper of the Turin Archdiocese “La...

Yoga led Laurette Willis into a New Age lifestyle. Now she's warning others of the spiritual pitfalls—and offering an alternative. The attractive couple on the television screen gracefully moved their bodies into the next yoga pose: arms extended, head tilted slightly back, a deep breath in. In front of the TV set, a seven-year-old girl and her mother did their best to mimic the posture. The little girl, Laurette, loved this special time with her mom. It was 1965, and Laurette's mom, Jacquie, didn't think twice about exercising along with this yoga program that came on the TV after Jack...

“You will be like God” (Gen. 3:5). This was the original temptation, the archetypal seduction aimed at our first parents by the Serpent. Created as vice-regents with dominion over the earth, Adam and Eve wanted more. They reached for autonomy, stretching greedy arms toward the throne of God, only to fall headlong into the abyss of evil. Expulsion from Eden was their fate. They could not go back. Paradise was lost. An angel with a flaming sword stood guard at the gateway to the garden. This is the first reference in Scripture to a weapon of any sort. Before God...

We are all born with the same malady. Love for God and affection for Christ are not natural to us. Before we can love God, something must happen to us. Our hearts of stone must be changed into hearts of flesh, hearts that pulsate with new life and new affection for God. When one speaks of being “born again,”he is speaking of his change of heart. When God quickens us from spiritual death, when He regenerates us by His Holy Spirit, He does radical surgery on our hearts. He turns the stone into living tissue. To be converted is to...

For some years I have been convinced of the need for a Church-wide theological statement on sexuality. In fact, I actually wrote one that never saw the light of day. I was glad, therefore, to be invited to a day-long analysis of the proposed Nashville Statement, which appeared in public a few days later. Though some of us urged the inclusion of biblical references, this statement faithfully reflects the Scriptural teaching on human sexuality. This basic statement of biblical truth is crucial in our day of biblical ignorance. Since many evangelicals now use egalitarianism (no difference between males and females)...

September 1 is observed in both the Catholic and Orthodox Churches as the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation. This year, the leaders of both Churches will issue a joint statement inviting everyone “to take an attitude of respect and responsibility towards creation.”On Friday, Pope Francis and Patriarch Bartholomew will issue a joint message to mark the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation. During his general audience on Wednesday, Francis appealed for those with influence to “listen to the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor, who suffer most because of...

[...] Jesus is not the Son of God and belief in the Trinity is "excess": "O People of the Book! Do not exaggerate in your religion nor utter anything concerning Allah save the truth. The Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, was only a messenger of Allah, and his word which he conveyed to Mary, and a spirit from him. So believe in Allah and His messengers, and do not say 'Three.' Cease! It is better for you! Allah is only One Allah. It is far removed from his transcendent majesty that he should have a son. His is all that...

Moscow, Russia, Aug 23, 2017 / 12:50 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- After a joint meeting during Cardinal Pietro Parolin's visit to Russia this week, both he and Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill said the trip marks “a new stage” in relations between their Churches. This stage, they said, is thanks not only to Pope Francis' meeting with Patriarch Kirill in Havana in February 2016, but is also due to the loaning of the relics of St. Nicholas to Russia over the summer, drawing millions of Orthodox faithful for veneration. Cardinal Parolin, the Vatican's Secretary of State, was welcomed to Patriarch Kirill's residence...

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis has urged Methodist and Waldensian Churches to continue to walk together with the Catholic Church on the path towards full Christian unity pointing out that in a world lacerated by violence and fear it is all the more important to live and to convey the Christian message of welcome and fraternity. The Pope’s words of friendship and closeness came in a message on Monday to the annual Synod of the Italian Methodist and Waldensian Churches taking place in Torre Pellice - near Turin - from 20 to 25 August. Recalling recent encounters between the Churches and...

It was Indian Catholic Heritage Day on Aug. 12, sponsored by the Indian American Catholic Association of Greater Philadelphia and celebrated at St. Thomas Syro-Malabar Catholic Church in Northeast Philadelphia. The congregation was mostly India-born adults and their American-born children, many in the colorful festive garments of their native land. For the most part they were members of the Syro-Malabar Rite Catholic Church, and the Syro-Malankara Rite Catholic Church, with a smattering of Roman-rite Catholics, all with a common heritage. ..“Ethnicity gives us identity,” he said, relating his own ethnic heritage. “My family brought traditions from Eastern Europe that...

Wolfgang Huber, former Council President of the Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD), believes in a "breakthrough" at the communion of Protestants and Catholics to the Ecumenical Church Day of 2021. "I can not imagine that we will celebrate this church day without A breakthrough has been achieved in the area of ​​Eucharistic hospitality, "said the former bishop of Berlin in the interview of the" Weser-Kurier "(Saturday). Until the event in Frankfurt am Main 2021 something must move. "Machistort des Papstes" less promising According to Huber, the next steps in the Eucharist and the Lord's Supper will be "decentralized". "My feeling...

Gunmen numbering about 5 invaded St Philips Catholic Church, Amakwa Ozubulu, Ekwusigo Local Government Area, Anambra state and killed many worshippers. Reports say 50 people were killed but Police said only 12 died and 18 seriously injured. According to an eyewitness, the gunmen invaded the church around 7:30 am today, Sunday, August 6th, 2017 This may be due to gang violence as opposed to sectarian conflict. More… Gunmen on Sunday morning attacked worshippers at St. Philip’s Catholic Church, Ozubulu, near Nnewi, Anambra State killing at least eight. Several worshippers with gunshot wounds were also receiving treatment at the hospital. Witnesses...

I've been reading Did Muhammad Exist?: An Inquiry into Islam's Obscure Originand What the Modern Martyr Should Know: 72 Grapes and not a single virgin. andNo God but One: Allah or Jesus? (with Bonus Content): A Former Muslim Investigates the Evidence for Islam and ChristianityandThe Impact of Islam And for fellow Freepers who know me, I'm an amateur historian.The information in these books blew my mind.To summarise: The Arab empires in the 7th and 8th centuries do not mention any prophet, leave alone a prophet Muhammad. The Buddhists, Christians, Zoroastrians do not mention anything about a prophet Muhamad or Islam...

I was reading a debate on this and saw that in English the verse says "hate" (and this is in the KJV, NKJV, NIV, Douay-Rheims) and yet in other languages it does not. Isn't this strange? Does anyone know why? In English 25 Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said:26 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple. 27 And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.But in Polish:...

The head of the Lutheran World Federation has called on theologians to remove the obstacles that hinder unity with the Catholic Church. Rev. Dr. Martin Junge made his remarks in a letter commemorating the 50th anniversary of official Lutheran dialogue with the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity. “Our task as theologians and as pastors should never be to provide explanations as to why unity is not yet possible; our task shall be to creatively and courageously remove the obstacles that still prevent us from the enjoyment of God’s gift of unity,” wrote Junge. He added, “Decades of ecumenical dialogue,...

Several of the people who contribute articles to Rapture Ready have addressed the possibility of Emmanuel Macron being the Antichrist. Most have approached the subject with a good bit of caution. Because the Antichrist comes to power after the Rapture, we, as the bride of Christ, cannot be certain of his identity. The Antichrist will be a man of such incredible charm and charisma, students of Bible prophecy may be able to place high odds on him being the man who will rule the whole world. The Tribulation starts with the Antichrist confirming a peace agreement between Israel and its...

Pope Francis has all the qualifications to be the False Prophet. He hasn’t yet called for a one world religion, but he is nearly there by stressing interfaith unity when he says, “We are all children of God.” Francis gives homosexuals a free pass by saying, “Who am I to judge?” He is clearly the type of man who would be for in favor of a movement to join together all of the world’s faiths. The biggest factor against Pope Francis fulfilling the Bible’s prophecies about the False Prophet is his age. If the seven-year Tribulation started today, the Pope...

A worldwide coalition of Reformed churches representing approximately 80 million Christians has signed onto an ecumenical statement with the Roman Catholic Church to "overcome divisions" from the time of the Protestant Reformation.The World Communion of Reformed Churches signed a "Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification" with Catholic, Lutheran, and Methodist leaders last week at a church in Wittenberg, Germany. According to a WCRC press release, "The declaration stated that mutual condemnations pronounced by the two sides during the Reformation do not apply to their current teaching on justification." (Photo: Wikipedia Commons)Portrait of Martin Luther, the founder of the Protestant Reformation,...

The Benefit of Christ – The Most Influential Book You Have Never Read By Simonetta Carr It was 1543. North of the Alps, Protestant reformers were busy publishing books. In Rome, the papacy was busy banning them. Still, the publishers in Venice, a proudly independent republic with a reputation of opposition to the pope, were persistent. That year’s best-seller was an Italian essay by a characteristically long name: Trattato utilissimo del beneficio di Giesù Cristo crocifisso verso i cristiani (Most useful treatise on the benefit of Jesus Christ crucified for Christians). It was called, for short, Il Beneficio di Cristo...

In the Old Testament, the prophets spoke of the day of the “visitation of God.” It was seen sometimes as a day of great comfort and rejoicing, and at other times as a day of great distress and judgment. At the birth of Jesus, God visited the earth. This visitation is celebrated in the Spirit-inspired hymn of Zacharias, in which he twice makes mention of God’s divine visitation (Luke 1:68–69, 78). The New Testament calls Jesus the “Bishop of our souls.” He is the Bishop Incarnate. His visit to this world has changed the course of history. The initial visit...