Valentines Day 2014: Pope Francis Invites Engaged Couples To Vatican

Pope Francis has invited couples who are engaged to join him in a private audience at the Vatican on Valentine's Day, February 14 2014. A note released entitled "The Joy of Yes Forever" invited couples to a special ceremony at the Holy See to commemorate the day of St. Valentine. "Engaged couples who have already attended or are presently attending marriage preparation courses are invited to a meeting with the Holy Father," the statement said in several languages.

The special Valentine's Day 2014 celebration is being organized by the Vatican's Pontifical Council for the Family and participants must register by January 30 in order to secure their place. The note featured a silhouette of a man and a woman embracing and a white cross with pink borders against a blue sky backdrop. The symbolism indicates that only engaged heterosexual couples may attend as, despite the Pope's evolving stance on homosexuality, the Church remains strict on its benediction of heterosexual couples only.

In other news, Pope Francis has appointed a new team of Cardinals at the Vatican. In particular, the Argentine Pope has selected 4 new cardinals to oversee the troubled Vatican Bank. Pope Francis' new appointments replace all but one of the Cardinals named by his predecessor Pope Benedict XVI, in a new example of the Argentine Pope's consolication of power. The leader of the Holy See has also named 19 new cardinals, many of whom live outside Europe.