Pope Benedict XVI’s new encyclical, titled “Caritas in Veritate” (in English, “Love in Truth” or “Charity in Truth”), is now available on the Vatican’s web site. Enjoy!

Okay, so it’s official — we can hold our breath — Pope Benedict XVI’s third encyclical Caritas in Veritate (Love in Truth) is coming out. According to the Vatican Information Service, it will be officially presented at a July 7 press conference.

At 10:45 am today, President Obama is to meet with eight reporters and editors from Catholic media, according to this National Catholic Register blog entry. Apparently, all those invited are from print media, including National Catholic Register publisher Father Owen Kearns, who explained that the meeting is unprecedented. The article states that Kearns “has not previously met a sitting U.S. president, nor has he been previously invited by the president to a White House gathering for members of the Catholic press.” The meeting’s purpose is to discuss Obama’s upcoming meeting with Pope Benedict XVI, slated for July 10.

Apparently, St. Paul is buried there, according to scientists and as reported by FoxNews.com. Pope Benedict XVI spoke of the scientific team’s carbon dating, saying, “This seems to confirm the unanimous and uncontested tradition that they are the mortal remains of the Apostle Paul.” Benedict announced the findings at a service in the basilica to mark the end of the Vatican’s Pauline year, in honor of the apostle.

Today kicks off the “Year for Priests”. Here is the opening of the pope’s recently issued letter:

Dear Brother Priests,

On the forthcoming Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, Friday 19 June 2009 – a day traditionally devoted to prayer for the sanctification of the clergy –, I have decided to inaugurate a “Year for Priests” in celebration of the 150th anniversary of the “dies natalis” of John Mary Vianney, the patron saint of parish priests worldwide. This Year, meant to deepen the commitment of all priests to interior renewal for the sake of a more forceful and incisive witness to the Gospel in today’s world, will conclude on the same Solemnity in 2010. The priesthood is the love of the heart of Jesus”, the saintly Curé of Ars would often say. This touching expression makes us reflect, first of all, with heartfelt gratitude on the immense gift which priests represent, not only for the Church, but also for humanity itself. I think of all those priests who quietly present Christ’s words and actions each day to the faithful and to the whole world, striving to be one with the Lord in their thoughts and their will, their sentiments and their style of life. How can I not pay tribute to their apostolic labours, their tireless and hidden service, their universal charity? And how can I not praise the courageous fidelity of so many priests who, even amid difficulties and incomprehension, remain faithful to their vocation as “friends of Christ”, whom he has called by name, chosen and sent?

The full letter is available here.

June 29 has been set as the release date for Pope Benedict XVI’s third encyclical, Caritas in Veritate (Love in Truth). Don’t hold your breath, though, as this encyclical has been delayed several times in the past. (I’m sure Borders and Barnes & Noble will have to be loose in their plans to hold release parties, as they did with the Harry Potter books.)

But seriously, an article in Britian’s The Catholic Herald today explains that “Benedict calls for new world economic order“. The pope stated, “As you know, my encyclical on the vast theme of economics and labour will soon be published. It will highlight what, for us Christians, are the objectives to be pursued and the values to be promoted and tirelessly defended, with the purpose of realising a truly free and human coexistence in solidarity.”

Leaders of certain Catholic colleges are “lobbying U.S. Bishops to withdraw their 2004 policy banning pro-abortion speakers,” according to today’s National Catholic Register. In the article, Cardinal Newman Society president Patrick Reilly is quoted as concluding:

It is sadly all too clear that the many secularized Catholic colleges and universities are more concerned with doing away with the rules than ending the scandals. Lobbying the bishops to back off a perfectly reasonable policy would be a shameful action by the Catholic higher education establishment, and hardly an appropriate response to Notre Dame’s betrayal of the nation’s bishops and the university’s own Catholic mission.

I just saw on Twitter that a free e-book is now available from Ascension Press to combat lies and inaccuracies in Angels & Demons:

Angels & Demons is a thinly-veiled, but brutal attack on the Catholic Faith that will again shake the faith of potentially millions of people who know little about Catholic teaching and Catholic and Western history. It is full of half-truths, historical inaccuracies, and outright lies.

Answering Angels & Demons, by Mark Shea is an electronic book provided for free to help you answer the errors contained in the book and movie. Please feel free to download this resources and share it with your friends, family and neighbors.

Just go to http://answeringangelsanddemons.com/ to get it (PDF, 23 pages).

Several Catholic colleges and universities are doing it right when it comes to selecting commencement speakers. The Cardinal Newman Society issued a news release listing a number of Catholic educational institutions that are choosing to honor individuals dedicated to promoting a Culture of Life:

“We are blessed in this country by the presence of many honorable leaders who promote the defense of innocent life in the public square,” said Patrick J. Reilly, President of The Cardinal Newman Society (CNS). “Notre Dame could learn a valuable lesson from Catholic colleges that place principle before prestige when deciding whom to honor at commencement.”

Read all about it: ‘Newman Guide’ Catholic Colleges Honoring Pro-Life Commencement Speakers

Last Sunday, Pope Benedict XVI canonized five saints: Italian Blesseds Arcangelo Tadini (1846-1912), Bernardo Tolomei (1272-1348), Gertrude Comensoli (1847-1903) and Caterina Volpicelli (1839-1894), and the Portuguese Blessed Nuno de Santa Maria Alvares Pereira (1360-1431). The Vatican lists bios, but not all have been translated to English yet. I’ll try to post them as they are available.

*Update: April 29*
I promised links to their bios. Here are three that are in English so far:

• Bernardo Tolomei (1272-1348)
• Nuno De Santa Maria Álvares Pereira (1360-1431)
• Geltrude Comensoli (1847-1903)