In the midst of ongoing conflicts, European Christians must intercede with prayer and work actively together toward peace and dialogue. Pope Francis said these words this morning in the Vatican when addressing the Joint Committee of the Conference of European Churches (CEC) and the Council of European Bishops' Conferences (CCEE).
 
Noting how the committee intends to support the ecumenical journey in Europe, "where many of the divisions that still exist between Christians had their beginning," Francis said, "today, thank God, the situation is very different."
 
The ecumenical movement, the Pope stated, has enabled the Churches and the Ecclesial Communities in Europe "to take great steps on the way of reconciliation and peace."

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Pope Francis will send an army of globe-trotting priests - his "missionaries of mercy" - to absolve women who've had abortions, in the latest Vatican bid to catch up with modern times. The effort, which includes reaching out to doctors and nurses who've performed abortions, will commence in the Holy Year of Mercy, which Francis has declared will be celebrated between Dec. 8, 2015, and Nov. 20, 2016.
 
Archbishop Rino Fisichella, the head of the Pontifical Council for Promoting the New Evangelization, announced the bold initiative and said the church should always be in the absolution business. "The missionaries of mercy are priests sent out by the Holy Father . . . as a tangible sign of how a priest should be a man of pardon, close to everyone," Fisichella said.
 
"There are a number of clergy with the ability to pardon abortions already, it is not that rare," said the Rev. Federico Lombardi, a Vatican spokesman.

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It's a thought that is just a little too Orwellian for most people -- putting a microchip inside your body. But there are people who are doing just that already.
 
For most of those who have, it's a matter of convenience. Now, they can log onto their computer, lock or unlock their front door, or even start their car with a wave of a microchip implanted in their hand.
 
Now let's take the technology one step further. What if you could implant a chip in your child which could help bring him or her home in the event they were lost or worse -- kidnapped? Experts are working on that possibility right now. There are already working on products you can buy, like watches or bracelets or tracking bugs to drop into a backpack which can be tracked by GPS. But tracking a microchip, placed inside a human body is another matter.