10 March 2010
Vatican News Update 8 March 2010
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| 03.08.2010 - Twentieth Year - Num. 44 |
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SUMMARY: 6 - 8 MARCH
- Pope Expresses His Thanks to the Italian Civil Protection - Lent: God Invites Us to Individual Conversion - Conversion Means Reading Events in the Light of Faith - Guarantee a Future for Christians in the Holy Land
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POPE EXPRESSES HIS THANKS TO THE ITALIAN CIVIL PROTECTION
VATICAN CITY, 6 MAR 2010 (VIS) - At midday today in the Vatican's Paul VI Hall, the Pope met with 7,000 volunteers of the Italian Civil Protection, led by the head of that association, Guido Bertolaso.
In opening his remarks to them the Holy Father thanked everyone for the efforts they made during the April 2009 earthquake that hit the Italian region of Abruzzo, and he reiterated words he had used on his own visit to the devastated areas of Onna and l'Aquila: "Thank you for what you have done, and especially for the love with which you did it. Thank you for the example you have shown". He also expressed his gratitude for the service of the thousands of people who assisted at World Youth Day in Rome in 2000 and at John Paul II's funeral in 2005.
"You are", the Pope told his audience, "one of the most recent and mature expressions of the long tradition of solidarity that has its roots in the altruism and generosity of the Italian people".
"The terms 'civil' and 'protection'", he continued, "are an expression of your 'vocation' to protect people and their dignity - vital benefits of civil society - in tragic moments of calamity and crisis that threaten the life and security of families or entire communities. This mission does not consist only in managing the emergency, but in making a valid and appropriate contribution to achieving the common good".
"This dual dimension of protection, which is manifested both during and after an emergency, is well expressed in the figure of the Good Samaritan ... who teaches us to look beyond the emergency and to prepare ... the return to normality".
The Holy Father went on to highlight how "love for others cannot be delegated; the State and politics, while maintaining their necessary concern for social welfare, cannot replace such love. ... Volunteers are not just there to patch up holes in the social fabric, but individuals who truly contribute to forming the human and Christian face of society. Without voluntary work the common good and society cannot last long, because their progress and dignity is largely dependent on people who do more than just their duty".
"Apart from being custodians of the territory", he concluded, "always be living icons of the Good Samaritan, remaining attentive to others, recalling man's dignity and awakening hope. When people do not limit themselves merely to performing their duty, in their jobs and in their families, but dedicate themselves to others, their hearts expand. Those who love and serve others as neighbours live and act in accordance with the Gospel and share in the mission of the Church, who always concerns herself with man in his entirety and wishes to make him feel the love of God". AC/.../CIVIL PROTECTION VIS 100308 (480)
VATICAN CITY, 6 MAR 2010 (VIS) - The Holy Father appointed Msgr. Valentino Di Cerbo of the clergy of the diocese of Rome, bureau chief in the First Section of the Secretariat of State, as bishop of Alife-Caiazzo (area 580, population 70,000, Catholics 69,759, priests 63, permanent deacons 4, religious 56), Italy. The bishop-elect was born in Frasso Telesino, Italy in 1943 and ordained a priest in 1968. NER/.../DI CERBO VIS 100308 (80)
LENT: GOD INVITES US TO INDIVIDUAL CONVERSION
VATICAN CITY, 7 MAR 2010 (VIS) - This morning Benedict XVI visited the parish of St. John of the Cross in the northern sector of the diocese of Rome, where he celebrated Mass.
In his homily, the Pope said that "during Lent each one of us is invited by God to change our lives, to think and live in accordance with the Gospel, correcting some aspect of our way of praying, acting, working and of our relations with others. Jesus makes this appeal to us not with a severity that serves as an end unto itself, but precisely because He is concerned with our good, our happiness, our salvation. For our part, we must respond to Him by making a sincere interior effort, asking Him to show us in what particular points we must seek to convert".
He then went on to comment on the parish itself, which was founded twenty-one years ago, noting how "it has opened itself to the new movements and ecclesial communities, thus maturing a broader understanding of Church and experiencing new forms of evangelisation.
"I encourage you to continue courageously in this direction, while undertaking to involve all sides in a united pastoral project", the Holy Father added. In this context he expressed his joy at the fact that the parish community "aims to promote - while respecting the vocations and roles of consecrated and lay people - the co-responsibility of all members of the People of God. ... This requires a change of mentality, especially as regards lay persons, 'considering them not merely as collaborators of the clergy but recognising them as co-responsible in the life and activity of the Church, thus favouring the promotion of a mature and committed laity'".
Turning then to address the families and young people of the local area who frequent the parish, Benedict XVI encouraged them "to announce the Gospel of Jesus Christ to everyone. Do not wait for others to come bringing you other messages, messages which do not lead to life, but make yourselves missionaries of Christ for your brothers and sisters in the places where they live, study or spend their free time. Here too, implement a capillary and organic activity of pastoral care of vocations, consisting in the education of families and young people to prayer and to living life as a gift that comes from God".
Lent, he said, "invites each of us to recognise the mystery of God present in our lives. ... On the hill of Golgotha God, Who on the flight from Egypt revealed Himself as the One Who frees us from slavery, revealed Himself as the One Who embraces all men and women with the salvific power of the Cross and the Resurrection, freeing them from sin and death and accepting them in the embrace of His love".
The Pope concluded by encouraging the faithful to continue "contemplating this mystery of the name of God in order better to understand the mystery of Lent and to live as individuals and communities in a permanent state of conversion, so as to be a constant epiphany in the world, witnesses of the living God Who frees and saves us out of love". HML/CONVERSION/ST. JOHN OF THE CROSS PARISH VIS 100308 (550)
CONVERSION MEANS READING EVENTS IN THE LIGHT OF FAITH
VATICAN CITY, 7 MAR 2010 (VIS) - At midday today, following his morning visit to the Roman parish of St. John of the Cross, the Holy Father appeared at the window of his study in order to pray the Angelus with faithful gathered below in St. Peter's Square.
Commenting on the first reading from today's liturgy - the narrative of Moses and the burning bush which was not consumed by the flames but continued to burn, and whence God called to Moses - the Pope explained how "God shows Himself in various ways, also in our own lives. However, in order to recognise His presence it is necessary for us to approach Him with an awareness of our own lowliness and with profound respect. Otherwise we would be incapable of meeting and entering into communion with Him".
He then went on to comment on the day's Gospel reading in which Jesus is asked about certain tragic events: the murder in the Temple of certain Galileans by order of Pilate, and the collapse of a tower that killed several passers-by. "Against the facile conclusion of considering evil as the effect of a divine punishment", said Benedict XVI, "Jesus proclaims the innocence of God, Who is good and cannot wish evil, and He warns against thinking that calamities are the immediate consequence of the personal guilt of those who suffer them".
Jesus replies to His questioners saying: "Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way they were worse sinners than all other Galileans? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish as they did". Christ, the Pope explained, "is inviting us to read those events differently, to see them in the perspective of conversion: calamities and tragic events must not arouse our curiosity or our desire to find the supposedly guilty, but should be occasions to reflect, to reject the illusion that we can live without God and to strengthen, with God's help, our commitment to change our lives".
"The possibility of conversion demands that we learn to read the events of life in the light of faith. ... In the presence of suffering and tragedy, true wisdom is to ask ourselves about the precarious nature of existence and to read human history with the eye of God Who, always wanting only the good of His children for an inscrutable design of His love, sometimes allows them to be tried by pain in order to lead them to a greater good".
After praying the Angelus the Pope greeted, among others, a group of French pilgrims making particular mention of the people affected by the storm that struck western France last week. ANG/CONVERSION/... VIS 100308 (460)
GUARANTEE A FUTURE FOR CHRISTIANS IN THE HOLY LAND
VATICAN CITY, 8 MAR 2010 (VIS) - Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, prefect of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches, has sent a letter to the bishops of the world encouraging them to participate in the collection for the Holy Land, which traditionally takes place on Good Friday.
The letter, which also bears the signature of Archbishop Cyril Vasil S.J., secretary of the congregation, "is inspired by the pilgrimage 'in the historical footsteps of Jesus' which the Holy Father Benedict XVI made last May".
Cardinal Sandri recalls "the pastoral, ecumenical and inter-religious concern that enlivened" the Pope's words and actions on that trip and notes how, "together with the ecclesial community of Israel and Palestine" we heard "'a voice' of brotherhood and peace. Strongly emphasising the ceaseless problem of emigration, His Holiness recalled that 'in the Holy Land there is room for everyone', and he urged the authorities to support the Christian presence" while assuring "the Christians of this land of the Church's solidarity".
"The Year for Priests involves the beloved priests and seminarians of the whole Church, together with their respective bishops, in a commitment to the Holy Places", writes the cardinal, inviting everyone to "work tirelessly to guarantee a future for Christians in the place where 'the kindness and humanity' of Our God and Father first appeared.
"The Pope has entrusted the Congregation for the Oriental Churches with the task of keeping alive interest in that blessed Land", Cardinal Sandri adds. "In his name I urge everyone to reinforce the solidarity that has been shown so far. In fact, the Christians of the East have a responsibility that belongs to the Universal Church, in other words the responsibility to preserve the 'Christian origins', the places and people who are the sign of them, so that those origins may always be the reference of the Christian mission, the measure of the ecclesial future and its security. They therefore deserve the support of the entire Church".
A document drawn up by the Custody of the Holy Land and a note from the Congregation for the Oriental Churches, details the projects undertaken using the 2008-2009 collection.
Apart from providing study grants for priests and seminarians from the Holy Land to study in pontifical universities, various restoration projects were carried out in, among other places: Ain Karem (shrine of the Visitation), Jerusalem, Bethany, Bethlehem, Haifa, Magdala, Nazareth, Mount Nebo, Mount Tabor and Nain. Funds were also distributed to support parishes, families, schools and universities, and - through the Custody of the Holy Land - to various cultural projects, such as the faculty of biblical sciences and archaeology of the "Studium Biblicum Franciscanum" in Jerusalem, and the Francisca Media Centre, a new form of apostolate which uses television networks to divulge the message of the Holy Places and the life of the local Christian communities. .../COLLECTION HOLY LAND/SANDRI VIS 100308 (490)
VATICAN CITY, 8 MAR 2010 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in separate audiences:
- Cardinal Ivan Dias, prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples.
- Three prelates from the Uganda Episcopal Conference, on their "ad limina" visit:
- Bishop Henry Apaloryamam Ssentongo of Moroto.
- Bishop Emmanuel Obbo of Soroti.
- Archbishop James Odongo, emeritus of Tororo and military ordinary.
On Saturday 6 March he received in separate audiences:
- Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, prefect of the Congregation for Bishops.
- Two prelates from the Uganda Episcopal Conference, on their "ad limina" visit:
- Bishop Joseph B. Willigers M.H.M. of Jinja.
- Bishop Giuseppe Filippi M.C.C.J. of Kotido. AP:AL/.../... VIS 100308 (120)
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Vatican News Update 5 March 2010
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| 03.05.2010 - Twentieth Year - Num. 43 |
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SUMMARY:
- Ugandan Bishops, Close to the Needs of Their People - Lenten Sermons in the Presence of the Holy Father
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UGANDAN BISHOPS, CLOSE TO THE NEEDS OF THEIR PEOPLE
VATICAN CITY, 5 MAR 2010 (VIS) - This morning in the Vatican, the Holy Father received bishops from the Uganda Episcopal Conference, who have just completed their "ad limina" visit. Before beginning his remarks to them, the Holy Father mentioned the recent landslides in the Bududa region of the country, saying "I offer prayers to Almighty God, the Father of all mercies, that He may grant eternal rest to the souls of the deceased, and give strength and hope to all who are suffering the consequences of this tragic event".
He then turned his attention to the Second Special Assembly for Africa of the Synod of Bishops, held last autumn. It was, he said, "memorable in its call for renewed efforts in the service of a more profound evangelisation of your continent. The power of the word of God and the knowledge and love of Jesus cannot but transform people's lives by changing for the better the way they think and act.
"In the light of the Gospel message", he added, "you are aware of the need to encourage the Catholics of Uganda to appreciate fully the Sacrament of marriage in its unity and indissolubility, and the sacred right to life. I urge you to help them, priests as well as the lay faithful, to resist the seduction of a materialistic culture of individualism which has taken root in so many countries. Continue to call for lasting peace based on justice, generosity towards those in need and a spirit of dialogue and reconciliation".
And he continued his English-language remarks to the prelates: "While promoting true ecumenism, be especially close to those who are more vulnerable to the advances of sects. Guide them to reject superficial sentiments and a preaching that would empty the cross of Christ of its power; in this way you will continue, as responsible pastors, to keep them and their children faithful to the Church of Christ. ... Continue to sustain all who with generous hearts assist displaced persons and orphans from war-torn areas. Encourage those who care for people afflicted by poverty, AIDS and other diseases, teaching them to see in those whom they serve the suffering face of Jesus.
"Renewed evangelisation gives rise in turn to a deeper Catholic culture which takes root in the family", said the Pope, noting how the bishops' reports show that "programmes of education in parishes, schools and associations, and your own interventions on topics of common interest, are spreading a stronger Catholic culture. Great good can come from well-prepared lay people who are active in the media, in politics and culture", he explained, highlighting how such people need to be well versed in Catholic social doctrine.
"Bishops, as the first agents of evangelisation, are called to bear clear witness to the practical solidarity born of our communion in Christ. In a spirit of Christian charity dioceses that enjoy more resources, both materially and spiritually, should assist those that have less. At the same time, all communities have a duty to strive for self-sufficiency. It is important that your people develop a sense of responsibility towards themselves, their community and their Church, and become more deeply imbued with a Catholic spirit of sensitivity to the needs of the universal Church".
The Holy Father concluded: "Your priests, as committed ministers of evangelisation, already benefit greatly from your fatherly concern and guidance. In this Year for Priests ... exhort them to prayer and vigilance, especially with regard to self-centred, worldly or political ambitions, or excessive attachment to family or ethnic group. Continue promoting vocations, providing for due discernment of candidates and for their proper motivation and formation. ... Priests and religious require constant support in their lives of celibacy and consecrated virginity. By your own example, teach them of the beauty of this way of life, of the spiritual fatherhood and motherhood with which they can enrich and deepen the love of the faithful for the Creator and Giver of all good gifts". AL/.../UGANDA VIS 100305 (670)
LENTEN SERMONS IN THE PRESENCE OF THE HOLY FATHER
VATICAN CITY, 5 MAR 2010 (VIS) - In the "Redemptoris Mater" Chapel of the Vatican Apostolic Palace at 9 a.m. today, in the presence of the Holy Father, Fr. Raniero Cantalamessa O.F.M. Cap., preacher of the Pontifical Household, delivered the first Lenten sermon. The theme of his meditations this year is: "Dispensers of the Mysteries of God: priests, ministers of the Word and the Sacraments".
This year's Lenten meditations will continue to explore the episcopal and priestly ministries in the context of the current Year for Priests. Particular attention will be given to the following aspects: the person of Jesus Christ, heart of the Christian message; announcing what we live and living what we announce; how to live and help others to live the Eucharistic mystery; towards a renewal of the Catholic priesthood in the Holy Spirit.
The next two sermons will be given on the Friday 12 and Friday 26 March. No sermon will be given on 19 March. .../LENTEN SERMONS/CANTALAMESSA VIS 100305 (170)
VATICAN CITY, 5 MAR 2010 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in separate audiences seven prelates from the Uganda Episcopal Conference, on their "ad limina" visit:
- Bishop Robert Muhiirwa of Fort Portal, accompanied by Auxiliary Bishop Joseph Mugenyi Sabiiti and by Bishop emeritus Paul L. Kalanda.
- Bishop Callistus Rubaramira of Kabale.
- Bishop Egidio Nkaijanabwo of Kasese.
- Archbishop Denis Kiwanuka Tote of Tororo, accompanied by Auxiliary Bishop Charles Martin Wamika. AL/.../... VIS 100305 (80)
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Vatican News Update 4 March 2010
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| 03.04.2010 - Twentieth Year - Num. 42 |
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SUMMARY:
- Pope to Visit Santiago de Compostela and Barcelona
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POPE TO VISIT SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA AND BARCELONA
VATICAN CITY, 4 MAR 2010 (VIS) - Benedict XVI is due to visit the Spanish cities of Santiago de Compostela and Barcelona in November this year, according to announcements made yesterday by Archbishop Julian Barrio Barrio of Santiago de Compostela, and Cardinal Lluis Martinez Sistach, archbishop of Barcelona.
The Holy Father will travel to Santiago de Compostela on 6 November, for the occasion of the Compostela Holy Year, then move on to Barcelona on 7 November where he will consecrate the church of the "Sagrada Familia".
This will be Benedict XVI's second visit to Spain, the first having been in July 2006 for the Fifth World Meeting of Families in Valencia. Furthermore, he is expected to return to the country in August 2011 for the celebration of World Youth Day. .../.../... VIS 100304 (140)
VATICAN CITY, 4 MAR 2010 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in separate audiences:
- Nine prelates from the Uganda Episcopal Conference, on their "ad limina" visit:
- Archbishop Cyprian Kizito Lwanga of Kampala, accompanied by Auxiliary Bishop Christopher Kakooza and by Cardinal Emmanuel Wamala, archbishop emeritus.
- Bishop Paul Ssemogerere of Kasana-Luweero.
- Bishop Joseph Anthony Zziwa of Kiyinda-Mityana.
- Bishop Matthias Ssekamanya of Lugazi.
- Bishop John Baptist Kaggwa of Masaka.
- Archbishop Paul K. Bakyenga of Mbarara.
- Bishop Lambert Bainomugisha, auxiliary of Mbarara, apostolic administrator of Hoima.
- Francisco A. Soler, ambassador of El Salvador, on his farewell visit. AL:AP/.../... VIS 100304 (110)
VATICAN CITY, 4 MAR 2010 (VIS) - The Holy Father:
- Accepted the resignation from the office of auxiliary of the archdiocese of Vilnius, Lithuania, presented by Bishop Juozas Tunaitis, in accordance with canons 411 and 401 para. 1 of the Code of Canon Law.
- Appointed as members of the Pontifical Committee for International Eucharistic Congresses: Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson, president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace; Cardinal Antonio Canizares Llovera, prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments; Fr. Wojciech Giertych O.P., theologian of the Pontifical Household, and Fr. Theodore Mascarenhas S.F.X., official of the Pontifical Council for Culture. RE:NA/.../... VIS 100304 (120)
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Vatican News Update 3 March 2010
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| 03.03.2010 - Twentieth Year - Num. 41 |
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SUMMARY:
- St. Bonaventure: a Man of Action and Contemplation - Greetings to Pilgrims at the General Audience
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ST. BONAVENTURE: A MAN OF ACTION AND CONTEMPLATION
VATICAN CITY, 3 MAR 2010 (VIS) - In his catechesis during this morning's general audience, Benedict XVI turned his attention to St. Bonaventure who, he said, "makes me feel a certain nostalgia because, as a young scholar, my research focused on this author, who is particularly dear to me".
Bonaventure, who was born around the year 1217 in the Italian town of Bagnoregio and died in 1274, was one of the great Christian figures who contributed to the "harmony between faith and culture" in thirteenth-century Europe. He was "a man of action and contemplation, of profound piety and prudent government".
Baptised with the name of Giovanni da Fidanza, he suffered an illness during childhood from which he nearly died, but his mother entrusted him to the recently-canonised St. Francis of Assisi and the young Giovanni recovered. This event marked his whole life. During his education in Paris, where he studied theology, he decided to enter a Franciscan convent and took the name of Bonaventure. In the first years of his religious life he stood out for his knowledge of Sacred Scripture, the 'Sentences' of Peter Lombard, and other great theologians of his age.
Bonaventure's book entitled "Evangelical Perfection" was his response to critics of the Minor Orders who questioned their right to teach in universities and even the authenticity of their consecrated life. In that work the saint showed "how the Minor Orders, and especially the Friars Minor, by practicing the vows of poverty, chastity and obedience, were in fact following the counsels of the Gospel itself", the Pope explained.
"Over and above these historical circumstances, Bonaventure's teachings in this book and in his own life still retain all their validity", he said. "The Church is enlightened and beautified by the faithfulness to their vocation of these sons and daughters of hers, who not only put the evangelical precepts into practice but, by God's grace, are called to observe the evangelical counsels and thus bear witness - with their poor, chaste and obedient lifestyle - to the fact that the Gospel is a source of joy and perfection".
When in 1257 Bonaventure was elected minister general of his order, the Franciscans numbered more than 30,000; most of them were in Europe but they also had a presence in North Africa, the Middle East and China. "It was necessary", said the Holy Father, "to consolidate this growth and, especially, to give it a unity of action and spirit, in complete faithfulness to the charism of St. Francis. In fact, various ways of interpreting the saint of Assisi's message had arisen among his followers and there was a real risk of internal division".
In order to preserve the saint's authentic charism, his life and teachings, Bonaventure "zealously gathered documents concerning Francis and carefully listened to the recollections of those who had known him personally". Thus the "Legenda Maior" came into being, which is considered the most complete biography of St. Francis.
Bonaventure presents Francis as "a man who passionately sought Christ. With the love that leads to imitation, he entirely conformed himself to Him. Bonaventure indicated this as a living ideal for all the followers of St. Francis.
"Such an ideal, which remains valid for all Christians, yesterday, today and always, was also suggested as a programme for the Church in the third millennium by my venerable predecessor John Paul II", Pope Benedict added.
Almost at the end of his life, Bonaventure was consecrated a bishop and appointed a cardinal by Pope Gregory X, who entrusted him with the preparations for the Council of Lyons which sought to reunify the Latin and Greek Churches. However Bonaventure never saw the results of his labours because he died while the council was still underway.
The Pope concluded his reflections with a call to take up the heritage of this saint and doctor of the Church, who "reminds us of the meaning of our lives with the following words: 'On earth we can contemplate the immensity of divine things by reason and admiration; in the heavenly homeland, on the other hand, we can view them, when we will have been made similar to God and by ecstasy will enter into the joy of God'". AG/BONAVENTURE/... VIS 100303 (710)
GREETINGS TO PILGRIMS AT THE GENERAL AUDIENCE
VATICAN CITY, 3 MAR 2010 (VIS) - At the end of today's general audience, the Holy Father delivered greetings in different languages to various groups of pilgrims present in the Paul VI Hall.
Addressing a group from Sophia University in Tokyo, Japan, the Holy Father said in English: "I offer my prayerful good wishes that the coming centenary of your university will strengthen your service to the pursuit of truth and your witness to the harmony of faith and reason".
Speaking Polish, Benedict XVI then recalled the fact that this year is the Year of Fryderyk Chopin, marking the bicentenary of his birth. "May the music of this famous Polish composer, who made such a great contribution to the culture of Europe and the world, bring those who listen to him close to God and help them discover the depth of man's spirit", he said.
Turning then to address participants in a meeting currently being celebrated in the Vatican on the subject of the pastoral care of gypsies, the Pope expressed the hope that "local Churches may work together to make an ever more effective commitment in support of gypsies". AG/GREETINGS/... VIS 100303 (200)
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