500TH SWISS GUARD ANNIVERSARY

Meet the army of the sovereign state of the Vatican. They may be best known for their colorful costumes, but for 500 years, popes have entrusted their very lives to the protection of this band of Swiss mercenaries. To this day each Swiss Guard swears fidelity to the head of the Holy See “with all my strength, ready to sacrifice, should it become necessary, even my own life.” Their army is made up of 100 soldiers — never more nor less, each with specified duties. Seventy bear swords and axes. Two man the drums. All are in the front lines of defense at St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome.

Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki of Cologne attends a German Synodal Way assembly on March 9, 2023.

Four German Bishops Resist Push to Install Permanent ‘Synodal Council’

Given the Vatican’s repeated interventions against the German process, the bishops said they would instead look to the Synod of Bishops in Rome. Meanwhile, on Monday, German diocesan bishops approved the statutes for a synodal committee; and there are reports that the synodal committee will meet again in June.

Palestinian Christians celebrate Easter Sunday Mass at Holy Family Church in Gaza City on March 31, amid the ongoing battles Israel and the Hamas militant group.

People Explain ‘Why I Go to Mass’

‘Why go to Mass on Sundays? It is not enough to answer that it is a precept of the Church. … We Christians need to participate in Sunday Mass because only with the grace of Jesus, with his living presence in us and among us, can we put into practice his commandment, and thus be his credible witnesses.’ —Pope Francis