IMAGE: CNS photo/Bob Roller By Junno Arocho Esteves KRAKOW, Poland (CNS) — Take risks and do not let life’s obstacles get in the way of encountering the true joy and life that Jesus can give, Pope Francis told more than 1 million young people. “Don’t be afraid to say ‘yes’

IMAGE: CNS photo/Jaclyn Lippelmann, Catholic Standard By Junno Arocho Esteves KRAKOW, Poland (CNS) — Pope Francis told young people they are not called to be couch potatoes, living boring lives, but should leave their mark in history and not let others determine their future. Like a soccer match, life “only

IMAGE: CNS photo/Agency Gazeta, Jakub Porzycki, via Reuters By Junno Arocho Esteves KRAKOW, Poland (CNS) — Humankind’s cruelty did not end with the Holocaust, but rages on in the suffering of those living through war, homelessness and persecution, Pope Francis said. “This cruelty exists today. We say: ‘Yes, we have

IMAGE: CNS photo/Bob Roller By Jonathan Luxmoore KRAKOW, Poland (CNS) — In a giant circus tent on Piastowska Street, next to the Jagiellonian University’s sports center, a rock band wound up its full-volume refrain against a dazzling background of lights and streamers. In the foreground, more than 3,000 young people

IMAGE: CNS/Paul Haring By Junno Arocho Esteves KRAKOW, Poland (CNS) — By embracing the hunger, thirst and loneliness of others, young people can touch Jesus’ cross and experience the light of the resurrection, Pope Francis said. It was Jesus who chose to identify with people who suffer pain and anguish,

IMAGE: CNS photo/Elizabeth Evans By Elizabeth Eisenstadt Evans PHILADELPHIA (CNS) — At a time when the official party platform advocates for removing current legislative restrictions on obtaining abortions, pro-life Democrats came to Philadelphia with a counter message: You can’t win big without us. Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton has called for

IMAGE: CNS/Paul Haring By Junno Arocho Esteves OSWIECIM, Poland (CNS) — Sitting with head bowed and eyes closed, Pope Francis paid silent tribute to the victims of one of the worst atrocities of the 20th century. The pope arrived July 29 at the Auschwitz-BirkenauNazi death camp in Oswiecim, an area

IMAGE: CNS/Paul Haring By Junno Arocho Esteves CZESTOCHOWA, Poland (CNS) — God chose to manifest his power not by amazing feats of greatness but rather through small acts of humility, choosing to enter the world as a child born of a woman, Pope Francis said. The Lord’s “humble love” is

IMAGE: CNS/Paul Haring By Junno Arocho Esteves KRAKOW, Poland (CNS) — The youthful face of God’s mercy can change the hearts of people who have lost hope, Pope Francis said. A young person who is touched by Christ is “capable of truly great things,” the pope told thousands of young

IMAGE: CNS photo/Bob Roller By Dennis Sadowski KRAKOW, Poland (CNS) — Tara Gouldring never thought of herself as a missionary to others. But the 18-year-old from Birmingham, England, decided it’s not such a strange idea after hearing Bishop Frank J. Caggiano of Bridgeport, Connecticut, during a morning catechetical session July