NEWS & VIEWS
from a CATHOLIC perspective

    VATICAN CITY, SEP 3 (ZENIT).- Each month, the Holy Father publishes two prayer intentions for the entire Church. This month, they center on ethics in the mass media and world refugees.

    The first intention says, "That those who work in the media always be more conscious of their responsibilities and commit themselves actively to respect for the dignity of every human person, created in the image and likeness of God the Father."

    The second, which each month has a missionary focus, prays "that the bread of the Word of God be shared with millions of refugees, especially in Africa, and that they be offered an effective program of assistance and human development."

    The general and missionary intentions of the Apostolate of Prayer are chosen and approved each month by the Holy Father himself. He chooses among proposals presented by the leadership of the Apostolate (for the general intention) and the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples (for the missionary intention).

    The Apostolate of Prayer is a so-called "pious union" in the Church, with statutes approved by the Holy See. It arose in the middle of the last century as an initiative of the Jesuits inspired by the revelations of the Sacred Heart to St. Margarite Mary Alacoque in the 17th century. The apostolate takes on various functions in diocese throughout the world, and is headquartered in Rome.

    According to their statutes, the Apostolate of Prayer consists primarily in the promotion of the union of the faithful to the Eucharistic sacrifice by offering the prayers, works, joys, and sorrows of each day in reparation for the offenses to the Heart of Jesus, the embodiment of God's redemptive love for humanity. ZE99090201

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