Saint Joseph Catholic Church

In an informal question-and-answer session with reporters who accompanied him on his return flight to Rome from Beirut on December 2, Pope Leo XIV:

• Told about his reaction when, during the papal conclave, he realized that he would be elected: “I took a deep breath. I said, ‘Here we go, Lord. You’re in charge and you lead the way.”
• Hinted that the Vatican is engaged in secret talks with Hezbollah, hoping to promote peace in Lebanon. “Our work is not something we announce publicly,” he said.
• Discouraged US military intervention in Venezuela. “I believe it’s better to look for ways of dialogue, perhaps pressure—including economic pressure,” he recommended.
• Disclosed that he hopes to visit Africa in 2026, with a particular interest in traveling to Algeria, where St. Augustine served as Bishop of Hippo. He also expressed interest in traveling to South America, possibly visiting Peru, where he had served as bishop, and Argentina. (Oddly, Pope Francis, a native of Argentina, never visited that country as Pontiff.)
• Urged the people of Europe and North America to be “a little less fearful” of Muslim immigration.

“Departing is often more difficult than arriving,” Pope Leo XIV said as he prepared to leave Lebanon on December 2, concluding the first international trip of his pontificate.

On his final day in Lebanon the Pope visited a hospital, prayed silently at the site of the devastating explosion at the port of Beirut, and celebrated Mass at the city’s waterfront for a congregation estimated at 150,000.

“The beauty of your country is also overshadowed by the many problems that afflict you,” the Pope told his Lebanese congregation. Among those problems he listed “the fragile and often unstable political context, the dramatic economic crisis that weighs heavily upon you and the violence and conflicts that have reawakened ancient fears.” He encouraged them to respond with “a transformation of the heart, a conversion of life and a realization that God has made us precisely to live in the light of faith, the promise of hope, and the joy of charity.”

Pope Leo said that he had traveled to Lebanon as “a pilgrim of hope, imploring God for the gift of peace.” He urged the nation’s people to work and pray for peace, saying that “the Middle East needs new approaches, in order to reject the mindset of revenge and violence.”

Later in the afternoon the Pontiff traveled to the Beirut airport, where Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun joined him for a farewell ceremony before the return flight to Rome.

Today the Roman Martyrology commemorates St. Bibiana (died c. 361) who was martyred at Rome under Julian the Apostate around the year 361.

The Roman Martyrology commemorates today the St. Charles Eugène de Foucauld (1858-1916), a French Catholic religious and priest, who lived among the Tuareg in the Sahara in Algeria. He was assassinated in 1916 outside the door of the fort he built for the protection of the Tuareg, and is a martyr. His inspiration and writings led to the founding of the Little Brothers of Jesus among other religious congregations. He was beatified on November 13, 2005 by Pope Benedict XVI, and canonized by Pope Francis on May 15, 2022.

For Catholics, the new Liturgical Year commences with the First Sunday of Advent, opening the Advent season. In this new Liturgical Year, the Church not only wishes to indicate the beginning of a period, but the beginning of a renewed commitment to the faith by all those who follow Christ, the Lord. This time of prayer and path of penance that is so powerful, rich and intense, endeavors to give us a renewed impetus to truly welcome the message of the One who was incarnated for us. In fact, the entire Liturgy of the Advent season, will spur us to an awakening in our Christian life and will put us in a ‘vigilant' disposition, to wait for Our Lord Jesus who is coming:

It is the Liturgical New Year's Eve: today is the last day of Ordinary Time and the current Liturgical Year. Evening marks the beginning of Advent and the New Liturgical Year..

The Roman Martyrology commemorates St. James of the Marches (1391-1476). St. James became a doctor of canon and civil law, and then decided to live austerely as a Franciscan friar. St. James studied theology with Saint John of Capistrano. He became a popular preacher, traveling all over Italy and through thirteen Central and Eastern European countries converting an estimated 250,000. He is considered one of the fathers of the modern day pawn shop.

Today in the United States is the Optional Memorial of Thanksgiving Day in the dioceses of the United States. In 1621 colonists in New England gave communal thanks and praise to God for his abundant mercies and blessings. This became a tradition and in 1863 Thanksgiving Day was proclaimed a legal holiday. It is celebrated liturgical with a Mass asking that each person's gratitude to God may bear fruit in loving service to neighbor. --Daily Roman Missal

The Roman Martyrology includes in commemoration:

Today Church celebrates the Optional Memorial of St. Catherine of Alexandria (d. 305). From time immemorial St. Catherine had been venerated at the monastery on Mount Sinai when, in the fifteenth century, the monks discovered her body. Legend has made of her a young Christian of Alexandria who rejected the advances of the Emperor Maximinus and routed a meeting of learned men gathered together to induce her to deny Christ. This feast was restored to the General Roman Calendar in 2002. St. Catherine is included in the list of Fourteen Holy Helpers.