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Pope Francis Is Considering Trip to South Sudan by Deborah Castellano Lubov
“I’m studying, my colleagues are studying, the possibility of a trip to South Sudan.”
Responding to a question on “better and more creative” relations between Catholics and Anglicans in the South of the world, and observing the vitality of the Church’s young churches, Pope Francis confided that he is concretely thinking of visiting the African country scourged by war and great famine, which affects almost half of the population.
The Q & A took part in the midst of the Pontiff’s historic visit to Italy’s largest Anglican congregation on Sunday, Feb. 26, 2017.
All the Bishops of South Sudan, “the Anglican, the Presbyterian and the Catholic,” the Holy Father explained, had asked him: “Please, come to South Sudan, only for a day, but don’t come alone, come with Anglican Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby.”
“This request came from them, the young Churches,” the Pope commented the Pope, noting that “while the situation is awful down there,” “we are considering whether it can be done.”
Marriage Pastoral: Pope Asks Priests to Be “Ministers of Peace and Consolation” by Anne Kurian
To defend the Sacrament of Marriage, “you are called to be fellow travelers of all persons and all situations,” to “be ministers of peace and consolation,” said Pope Francis to parish priests on February 25, 2017.
Receiving the participants in a course of formation, organized by the Tribunal of the Roman Rota, on the new marriage procedure, the Pontiff recommended in particular the “care of the littlest,’ who are separated, divorced persons in free unions, in cohabitation.
The Holy Father stressed that for pastors it is first of all the need to put the accent on preparation for marriage: “how many of these young people . . . understand what “marriage” means? He asked, pleading for “a true catechumenate,” which includes “all the stages of the sacramental journey: the time of preparation for marriage, of its celebration, and of the years that follow.”
Priests must also “support those who realize . . . that their union is not a true sacramental marriage and who wish to come out of this situation.” Not as experts of bureaucratic acts or juridical norms, but as brothers who put themselves in an attitude of listening and of understanding,” said the Pope.
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On ZENIT’s Web page:
Full Text: https://zenit.org/articles/popes-address-to-parish-priests-participating-in-course-on-new-marriage-procedure/
February 28 Marks the Fourth Anniversary of Benedict XVI’s Renunciation by Federico Cenci
However, the strong sentiments remained impressed also on the spirit of the faithful present in the Square. It is difficult to forget the effect of that historic flight to Castel Gandolfo of the helicopter with the resigning Pope on board, above a carpet of arms waving to greet him.
Historic moments, whose memory penetrates the heart of those who lived it. As Benedict XVI’s words penetrated the heart, which he addressed from the balcony of the Papal Apartment of Castel Gandolfo, in the afternoon of February 28, 2013, his last appearance in public as Supreme Pontiff.
“I am simply a pilgrim who begins the last stage of his pilgrimage on this earth. However, with my heart, with my love, with my prayer, with my reflection, with all my interior strength I still want to work for the common good and the good of the Church and of humanity. And I feel very supported by your good wishes. Let us go forward together with the Lord for the good of the Church and of the world. Thank you, and now I impart to you with all my heart my Blessing,” he said.
Benedict XVI’s legacy of prayer will be renewed this coming February 28, fourth anniversary of the conclusion of his Pontificate. Every year, on this significant date, many faithful throughout the world organize moments of prayer in communion with Pope Benedict and according to his intentions; some organize, in several churches and places, moments of communal prayer.
This fourth Day will be an important moment in the path to Benedict’s 90th birthday (April 16, 2017), which will be celebrated by the site “The Lord’s Vineyard,” again with prayer and meditation, as well as with the immense gratitude for the gift received through his person.
Pope’s Homily at Anglican All Saints Church in Rome by ZENIT Staff
Marking the first Pope to enter inside an Anglican church in his own diocese as Bishop of Rome, Pope Francis’ visit Sunday, Feb. 26, 2017, to the Church of England chaplaincy of All Saints in Rome, Italy’s largest Anglican congregation, was historic. Below is the Vatican-provided translation of the Pope’s homily during the visit:
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Dear Brothers and Sisters,
I wish to thank you for your gracious invitation to celebrate this parish anniversary with you. More than two hundred years have passed since the first public Anglican liturgy was held in Rome for a group of English residents in this part of the city. A great deal has changed in Rome and in the world since then. In the course of these two centuries, much has also changed between Anglicans and Catholics, who in the past viewed each other with suspicion and hostility. Today, with gratitude to God, we recognize one another as we truly are: brothers and sisters in Christ, through our common baptism. As friends and pilgrims we wish to walk the path together, to follow our Lord Jesus Christ together.
You have invited me to bless the new icon of Christ the Saviour. Christ looks at us, and his gaze upon us is one of salvation, of love and compassion. It is the same merciful gaze which pierced the hearts of the Apostles, who left the past behind and began a journey of new life, in order to follow and proclaim the Lord. In this sacred image, as Jesus looks upon us, he seems also to call out to us, to make an appeal to us: “Are you ready to leave everything from your past for me? Do you want to make my love known, my mercy?”
His gaze of divine mercy is the source of the whole Christian ministry. The Apostle Paul says this to us, through his words to the Corinthians which we have just heard. He writes: “Having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart” (2 Cor 4:1). Our ministry flows forth from the mercy of God, which sustains our ministry and prevents it losing its vigour.
Saint Paul did not always have an easy relationship with the community at Corinth, as his letters show. There was also a painful visit to this community, with heated words exchanged in writing. But this passage shows Paul overcoming past differences. By living his ministry in the light of mercy received, he does not give up in the face of divisions, but devotes himself to reconciliation. When we, the community of baptized Christians, find ourselves confronted with disagreements and turn towards the merciful face of Christ to overcome it, it is reassuring to know that we are doing as Saint Paul did in one of the very first Christian communities.
How does Saint Paul grapple with this task, where does he begin? With humility, which is not only a beautiful virtue, but a question of identity. Paul sees himself as a servant, proclaiming not himself but Christ Jesus the Lord (v. 5). And he carries out this service, this ministry according to the mercy shown him (v. 1): not on the basis of his ability, nor by relying on his own strength, but by trusting that God is watching over him and sustaining his weakness with mercy. Becoming humble means drawing attention away from oneself, recognizing one’s dependence on God as a beggar of mercy: this is the starting point so that God may work in us. A past president of the World Council of Churches described Christian evangelization as “a beggar telling another beggar where he can find bread”. I believe Saint Paul would approve. He grasped the fact that he was “fed by mercy” and that his priority was to share his bread with others: the joy of being loved by the Lord, and of loving him.
This is our most precious good, our treasure, and it is in this context that Paul introduces one of his most famous images, one we can all apply to ourselves: “we have this treasure in earthen vessels” (v. 7). We are but earthen vessels, yet we keep within us the greatest treasure in the world. The Corinthians knew well that it was foolish to preserve something precious in earthen vessels, which were inexpensive but cracked easily. Keeping something valuable in them meant running the risk of losing it. Paul, a graced sinner, humbly recognized that he was fragile, just like an earthen vessel. But he experienced and knew that it was precisely there that human misery opens itself to God’s merciful action; the Lord performs wonders. That is how the “extraordinary power” of God works (v. 7).
Trusting in this humble power, Paul serves the Gospel. Speaking of some of his adversaries in Corinth, he calls them “super apostles” (2 Cor 12:11), perhaps, and with a certain irony, because they had criticized him for his weaknesses even as they considered themselves observant, even perfect. Paul, on the other hand, teaches that only in realizing we are weak earthen vessels, sinners always in need of mercy, can the treasure of God be poured into us and through us upon others. Otherwise, we will merely be full of our treasures, which are corrupted and spoiled in seemingly beautiful vessels. If we recognize our weakness and ask for forgiveness, then the healing mercy of God will shine in us and will be visible to those outside; others will notice in some way, through us, the gentle beauty of Christ’s face.
At a certain point, perhaps in the most difficult moment with the community in Corinth, the Apostle Paul cancelled a visit he had planned to make there, also foregoing the offerings he would have received from them (2 Cor 1:15-24). Though tensions existed in their fellowship, these did not have the final word. The relationship was restored and Paul received the offering for the care of the Church in Jerusalem. The Christians in Corinth once again took up their work, together with the other communities which Paul visited, to sustain those in need. This is a powerful sign of renewed communion. The work that your community is carrying out together with other English-speaking communities here in Rome can be viewed in this light. True, solid communion grows and is built up when people work together for those in need. Through a united witness to charity, the merciful face of Jesus is made visible in our city.
As Catholics and Anglicans, we are humbly grateful that, after centuries of mutual mistrust, we are now able to recognize that the fruitful grace of Christ is at work also in others. We thank the Lord that among Christians the desire has grown for greater closeness, which is manifested in our praying together and in our common witness to the Gospel, above all in our various forms of service. At times, progress on our journey towards full communion may seem slow and uncertain, but today we can be encouraged by our gathering. For the first time, a Bishop of Rome is visiting your community. It is a grace and also a responsibility: the responsibility of strengthening our ties, to the praise of Christ, in service of the Gospel and of this city.
Let us encourage one another to become ever more faithful disciples of Jesus, always more liberated from our respective prejudices from the past and ever more desirous to pray for and with others. A good sign of this desire is the “twinning” taking place today between your parish of All Saints and All Saints Catholic parish. May the saints of every Christian confession, fully united in the Jerusalem above, open for us here below the way to all the possible paths of a fraternal and shared Christian journey. Where we are united in the name of Jesus, he is there (cf. Mt 18:20), and turning his merciful gaze towards us, he calls us to devote ourselves fully in the cause of unity and love. May the face of God shine upon you, your families and this entire community![Original text: English] [Vatican-provided text]
Catholics and Anglicans: “Theological Questions Are Discussed Along Ecumenical Path,” Says Pope by ZENIT Staff
In the ecumenical path between Catholics and Anglicans, the priority is to seek theological agreement or in the meantime can they proceed together in social action? Taking a cue from an old affirmation of Benedict XVI, a faithful asked this question to Pope Francis yesterday, February 26, 2017, during his visit to All Saints Anglican Church of Rome.
“Both things are important. The ecumenical dialogue cannot be done by staying still,” answered Bergoglio. According to the Pontiff, “the ecumenical dialogue is done walking, because the ecumenical dialogue is a path and theological things are discussed on the way. But in the meantime we help one another, we, one with the other, in our necessities, in our life, we also help each other spiritually.”
Therefore, the Pope stressed that “theological dialogue must be sought, to seek also the roots, on the Sacraments, on so many things on which we are still not in agreement. But this can’t be done in a laboratory: it must be done walking, along the way.”
Pope’s Q & A at Anglican All Saints Church ZENIT Staff
Marking the first Pope to enter inside an Anglican church in his own diocese as Bishop of Rome, Pope Francis’ visit Sunday, Feb. 26, 2017, to the Church of England chaplaincy of All Saints in Rome, Italy’s largest Anglican congregation, was historic. Below is a ZENIT translation of the Pope’s question and answer session during the visit:
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Questions and Answers
Question: During our liturgies, many people enter our church and marvel because “in fact, it seems like a Catholic church!” Many Catholics have heard talk of King Henry VIII, but they are ignorant of the Anglican traditions and of the ecumenical progress of this half-century. What would you like to say to them about the relation between Catholics and Anglicans today?
The Pope’s Answer: It’s true, the relation between Catholics and Anglicans is good today; we love one another as brothers! It’s true that in history there are awful things everywhere, and to “tear away a piece” of history and to carry it as if it were an “icon” of [our] relations isn’t right. A historical event should be read in the hermeneutics of that moment, not with another hermeneutic. And relations today are good, I said. And they have gone beyond, since the visit of the Primate Michael Ramsey, and even more so . . . But also in the Saints, we have a common tradition of Saints that your parish priest wished to stress. And the two Churches have never, never reneged the Saints, Christians who lived the Christian witness to that point. And this is important. But there were also relations of brotherhood in bad times, in difficult times, where the political, economic and religious power was so mixed, where there was that rule “cuius regio eius religio,” but even at that time there were some relations.
I met an old, an elderly Jesuit in Argentina. I was young, he was elderly, Father Guillermo Furlong Cardiff, born in the city of Rosario, of an English family, and as a boy he was an altar server – he was Catholic, of a Catholic English family – he was an altar server at Rosario in the funeral of Queen Victoria, in the Anglican Church. There was this relation also at that time. And the relations between Catholics and Anglicans are relations – I don’t know if historically one can say this, but it is a figure that will help us to think – two steps forward, half a step back, two steps forward, half a step back . . . It’s like that. They are humans, and we must continue <doing> this.
There is something else that has kept the connection strong between our religious traditions: the monks, the monasteries. And the monks, be they Catholic or Anglican, are a great spiritual force of our traditions.
And I would like to say to you that relations have improved even more, and it pleases me, it’s good. “However, we don’t do everything the same . . .” But we walk together, we go together. For the moment that’s O.K. Every day has its own trouble. I don’t know <but> this is what comes to me to say to you. Thank you.
Question: Your Predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI, has put us on guard regarding the risk in the ecumenical dialogue of giving priority to collaboration in social action rather than following the more exacting path of theological agreement. From all appearance, it seems that you prefer the opposite, namely “to walk and work” together to reach the goal of Christian unity. True?
The Pope’s Answer:
I don’t know the context in which Pope Benedict said this, I don’t know; therefore, it’s a bit difficult for me, you put me in an embarrassing position to answer . . . Did you wish to say this or not . . . Perhaps it was in a conversation with theologians . . . but I’m not sure. Both things are important. This certainly is. Which of the two has priority? And on the other side there is the famous witty remark of Patriarch Athenagoras – which is true, because I asked Patriarch Bartholomew the question and he said to me: “This is true,” when he said to Blessed Pope Paul VI: “We will bring about unity between us, and we will put all the theologians on an Island so that they think!” It was a joke, but historically true, because I doubted, but Patriarch Bartholomew said to me that it was true. But what is the kernel of this, because I think that what Pope Benedict said is true: the theological dialogue must be sought also to seek the roots . . . on the Sacraments . . . , on so many things on which we are not yet in agreement . . . However, this can’t be done in a laboratory: it must be done walking, along the way. We are on the way and on the way we also have these discussions. The theologians do so. But in the meantime, we help one another in our necessities, in our life, we also help one another spiritually. For instance, in the twinning there was the fact of studying Scripture together, and we help each other in the service of charity, in the service of the poor, in hospitals, in wars. It’s so important; this is so important — the ecumenical dialogue can’t be made by being still. No. The ecumenical dialogue is done on the way, because the ecumenical dialogue is a path, and theological things are discussed on the way. I think that with this I don’t betray Pope Benedict’s mind, or the reality of the ecumenical dialogue. I interpret it so. If I knew the context in which that expression was said, perhaps I would say otherwise, but this is what comes to me to say.
Question: All Saints church began with a group of British faithful, but it is now an international Congregation with people from different countries. In some areas of Africa, of Asia and of the Pacific, ecumenical relations between the Churches are better and more creative than here in Europe. What can we learn from the example of the Churches of the South of the world?
The Pope’s Answer: Thank you. It’s true. The young Churches have a different vitality, because they are young. And they look for a way to express themselves differently. For instance, a liturgy here at Rome, or think at London or Paris, is not the same as a liturgy in your country, where the liturgical ceremony, Catholic also, is expressed with joy, with dance and so many ways that are in fact proper to those young Churches. The young Churches have more creativity; and in the beginning it was the same here in Europe too: they sought . . .When you read in the Didache, for instance, how the Eucharist was done, the meeting between Christians, there was great creativity. Then growing, growing the Church was consolidated well; she grew to an adult age. But the young Churches have more vitality and they also have the need to collaborate – a strong need. For instance, I’m studying, and my collaborators are studying the possibility of a trip to South Sudan. Why? Because the Bishops came, the Anglican, the Presbyterian and the Catholic, the three together to tell me: “please, come to South Sudan, only for one day, but don’t come alone. Come with Justin Welby,” that is, with the Archbishop of Canterbury. This creativity came from them, the young Churches. And we are thinking if it can be done, <or> if the situation is too awful down there . . . But we should do it, because they, the three, together want peace, and they work together for peace . . . There is a very interesting anecdote. When Blessed Paul VI did the Beatification of the martyrs of Uganda — a young Church –, among the martyrs were catechists, all young; some were Catholics, others Anglicans, and they were all martyred by the same king, out of hatred for the faith and because they didn’t want to follow the king’s filthy proposals. And Paul VI found himself embarrassed because he said” I must beatify the one and the other, one and the other are martyrs.” However, in that moment of the Catholic Church, it wasn’t possible to do that. The Council had just taken place . . . However, today those young Churches celebrate with one another together; in the homily, in his address, in the Mass of Beatification, Paul VI also wished to name the Anglican catechists, martyrs of the faith, at the same level of the Catholic catechists. A young Church does this. The young Churches have courage, because they are young; as all young people, they have more courage than we do … <who are> not so young!
And then, there is my experience. I was very friendly with the Anglicans at Buenos Aires, because the back of the parish of Merced was connected with the Anglican Cathedral. I was very friendly with Bishop Gregory Venables, very friendly. But there’s another experience: In the north of Argentina there are the Anglican missions with the aborigines, and the Anglican Bishop and the Catholic Bishop there work together and teach. And when people can’t go on Sunday to the Catholic celebration they go to the Anglican, and the Anglicans go to the Catholic, because they don’t want to spend Sunday without a celebration; and they work together. And here, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith knows this. And they engage in charity together. And the two Bishops are friends and the two communities are friends.
I think this is a richness that our young Churches can bring to Europe and to the Churches that have a great tradition. And they give to us the solidity of a very, very well cared for and very thought out tradition. It’s true, — ecumenism in young Churches is easier. It’s true. But I believe that – and I return to the second question – ecumenism is perhaps more solid in theological research in a more mature Church, older in research, in the study of history, of Theology, of the Liturgy, as the Church in Europe is. And I think it would do us good, to both Churches: from here, from Europe to send some seminarians to have pastoral experience in the young Churches, so much is learned. We know <that> they come, from the young Churches, to study at Rome, at least the Catholics <do>. But to send them to see, to learn from the young Churches would be a great richness in the sense you said. Ecumenism is easier there, it’s easier, something that does not mean <it’s> more superficial, no, no, it’s not superficial. They don’t negotiate the faith and <their> identity. In the north of Argentina, an aborigine says to you: “I’m Anglican.” But the bishop is not here, the Pastor is not here, the Reverend is not here . . . “I want to praise God on Sunday and so I go to the Catholic Cathedral,” and vice versa. They are riches of the young Churches. I don’t know, this is what comes to me to say to you.
[Original text: Italian] [Translation by Virginia M. Forrester]
Pope Approves Decrees for Saints’ Causes, Including 2 Laypeople by ZENIT Staff
On Monday afternoon, Pope Francis received Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, Cardinal Angelo Amato, in private. During the audience, the Pope authorized the Congregation to promulgate the following decrees:
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MARTYRDOM:
– Servant of God Tito Zeman, Slovakian professed priest of the Salesian Society of St. John Bosco (1915-1969)
HEROIC VIRTUES:
– Servant of God Octavio Ortiz Arrieta, Peruvian bishop, of the Salesians of St. John Bosco (1878-1958)
– Servant of God Antonio Provolo, Italian diocesan priest, founder of the Society of Mary for the Education of the Deaf-Mutes, and the Sisters of the Society of Mary for the Education of the Deaf-Mute (1801-1842)
– Servant of God Antonio Repiso Martínez de Orbe, Mexican professed priest of the Society of Jesus, founder of the Congregation of the Sisters of the Divine Shepherd (1856-1929)
– Servant of God María de las Mercedes Cabezas Terrera, Spanish founder of the Missionary Workers of the Sacred Heart of Jesus (1911-1993)
– Servant of God Lucia of the Immaculate Conception (née Maria Ripamonti), Italian professed religious of the Congregation of the Sisters of Charity (1909-1954)
– Servant of God Pedro Herrero Rubio, Spanish layperson (1904-1978)
– Servant of God Vittorio Trancanelli, Italian layperson and father (1944-1998)
Pope’s Address to the Members of the Community of Capodarco by ZENIT Staff
Below is a Zenit translation of Pope Francis’ address to members of the Community of Capodarco in the Vatican’s Paul VI Hall Saturday, Feb. 25, 2017:
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Dear Brothers and Sisters,
I am happy about this meeting of ours, and happy for what I have heard, very happy, and I greet you all affectionately. My heartfelt thanks to Father Franco Monterubbianesi, Founder of your Community, and Father Vinicio Albanesi, current President, for their words, and I thank you who have given us your testimony.
The Community of Capodarco, articulated in numerous local realities, celebrated its 50th anniversary last year. With you, I thank the Lord for the good carried out in these years at the service of disabled persons, minors, of all those who live in situations of dependence and of hardship, and of their families. You have chosen to be on the side of these less protected persons, to offer them hospitality, support and hope, in a dynamic of sharing. In this way you have contributed and you contribute to make society better.
The quality of life within a society is measured, to a great extent, by the capacity to include those who are the weakest and neediest, in effective respect of their dignity as men and women. And maturity is reached when such inclusion is not perceived as something extraordinary but normal. A person with physical, psychic or moral disabilities and frailties must be able to participate in the life of society and be helped to act his potentialities in their varied dimensions. Only if the rights of the weakest are recognized, can a society say that it is founded on law and justice. A society that gives space only to fully functional persons, altogether autonomous and independent, would not be a society worthy of man. Discrimination on the basis of efficiency is no less deplorable than that carried out on the basis of race, or wealth or religion.
In these decades, your community has listened constantly, attentively and lovingly to persons’ lives, making every effort to respond to the needs of each one, taking into account their capacities and their limitations. Your approach to the weakest surpasses the pietistic and welfare attitude, to foster leadership in a person with difficulties in a context not closed in on itself but open to society. I encourage you to continue in this way, which sees in the first place, the personal and direct action of the disabled themselves. In face of the economic problems and the negative consequences of globalization, your community seeks to help all those who are being tested to not feel themselves excluded or marginalized but, on the contrary, to walk in the front line, bringing the testimony of personal experience. It is about promoting the dignity and respect of every individual, making “life’s defeated” feel the tenderness of God, loving Father of every creature of His.
I want to thank you again for the testimony you give to society, helping it to discover ever more the dignity of all, beginning with the least, the most disadvantaged. The institutions, the associations and the various agencies of social promotion are called to foster the effective inclusion of these persons. You work for this purpose with generosity and competence, with the courageous help of families and volunteers who remind us of the meaning and value of every existence. By gathering all these “little ones,” marked by mental or physical impediments, or of wounds of the soul, you recognize in them particular witnesses of God’s tenderness, of whom we have much to learn and who also have a privileged place in the Church. In fact, their participation in the ecclesial community opens the way to simple and fraternal relations, and their filial and spontaneous prayer invites us all to turn to our heavenly Father.
Your association originated in pilgrimages to the Shrines of Lourdes and of Loreto, in which Father Franco intuited the way to be able to assess the human and spiritual resources innate in every person diversely able. In your activity, so precious for the Church and for society, the Virgin Mary has always accompanied you and continues to do so, helping you to find every time new energies and to keep always the style of the Gospel, tenderness, solicitude, closeness and also courage and a spirit of sacrifice, because it is not easy to work in the field of personal and social hardship.
Dear brothers and sisters, I thank you again for your visit. I bless you and accompany you with my prayer. May your Community continue to walk with joy and hope. And you also, please pray for me. Thank you!
And I invite you to pray to our Mother, she who gives strength to mothers, to women, to you, and to all of us who work. [Hail Mary][Original text: Italian] [Translation by Virginia M. Forrester]
Pope’s Address to Catholic Delegation for Cooperation of French Bishops Conference by ZENIT Staff
Below is a Zenit translation of Pope Francis’ address to the Catholic Delegation for Cooperation of the Conference of Bishops of France, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of its foundation:
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Dear Friends,
I receive you with joy during the pilgrimage you are fulfilling at Rome on the 50th anniversary of the Delegation Catholique pour la Cooperation. Through you, I give my cordial greeting to all the volunteers on mission in more than 50 countries, as well as to all the persons that, today as yesterday, benefit from their presence and their competence.
As Blessed Paul VI wrote in the Encyclical Populorum Progressio, “development is not reduced to simple economic growth. To be genuine development, it must be integral, which is to say geared to the promotion of every man and of the whole man. […] Global solidarity, ever more efficient, must make it possible for all peoples to become themselves the architects of their destiny” (nn.14 and 65). Such convictions have led the Church in France to create , some 50 years ago now, the Delegation Catholique pour la Cooperation, in fidelity to the great missionary outburst, to which it was able to offer its generous contribution in the course of the centuries. With you I thank the Lord for the work of His Spirit, manifested in the human and spiritual journey of the volunteers and in the work of support of development projects that your Organization made possible. In this way, you serve a genuine cooperation between the local Churches and the people, opposing yourselves to the misery, and working for a more just and more fraternal world.
The word “solidarity” has been somewhat exhausted and at times it is badly interpreted, but it indicates much more than a sporadic act of generosity. It calls for creating a new mentality that thinks in terms of community, of priority in the life of all as regards the appropriation of goods on the part of some” (Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Gaudium, 188). And it is in fact in this dynamic that the Delegation Catholique pour la Cooperation wished to inscribe its action, realizing a true partnership with the local Churches and actors of the countries to which volunteers are sent, and working in agreement with the civil authorities and all persons of good will. It also contributes to a genuine ecological conversion, which recognizes the eminent dignity of every person, the value proper to him, his creativity and his capacity to seek and promote the common good (cf. Encyclical Laudato Si’, 216-221).
Therefore, I encourage all the members of the Delegation Catholique pour la Cooperation to “make a culture of mercy grow, based on the rediscovery of encounter with others: a culture in which no one looks at the other with indifference or turns his gaze when he sees the suffering of brothers” (Apostolic Letter Misericordia et misera, 20). Do not be afraid to go on the ways of fraternity and to build bridges between persons and peoples, in a world in which so many walls are raised out of fear of others. Through your initiatives, your projects and your actions you make visible a poor Church with the poor, an outgoing Church that makes herself close to persons in a state of suffering or precariousness, of marginalization, of exclusion. I encourage you to be at the service of a Church which enables each one to recognize God’s astonishing proximity, His tenderness and His love, and to receive the strength that He gives us in Jesus Christ, His living Word, so that we employ our talents in view of the good of all and of the safeguarding of our common home.
While I ask the Lord to help you to serve the culture of encounter within the one human family, I impart the Apostolic Blessing to you and to all the members of the Delegation Catholique pour la Cooperation. Thank you.[Original text: Italian] [Translation by Virginia M. Forrester]
Pope’s Address to Parish Priests Participating in Course on New Marriage Procedure by ZENIT Staff
Below is a Zenit translation of Pope Francis’ address to participants in a course of formation for parish priests on the new marriage procedure, organized by the Tribunal of the Roman Rota (Rome, Palazzo della Cancelleria, February 22-25, 2017):
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Dear Brothers, I am happy to meet with you at the end of the course of formation for parish priests, organized by the Roman Rota, on the new marriage procedure. I thank the Dean and Pro-Dean for their commitment to these formative courses. What was discussed and proposed in the Synod of Bishops on the subject of “Marriage and the Family,” has been received and integrated organically in the Apostolic Exhortation Amors Laetitia, and translated into opportune juridical norms contained in two specific measures: the Motu Proprio Mitis Iudex and the Motu Proprio Misericors Jesus. It is a good thing that, through these initiatives of study, you parish priests can reflect further on the subject, because it is for you above all to apply it concretely in your daily contact with families.
In the majority of cases, you are the first interlocutors of young people who wish to form a new family and to get married in the Sacrament of Marriage. And it is again to you that in the main spouses turn who have serious problems in their relationship, are in crisis, are in need of reviving the faith and of rediscovering the grace of the Sacrament and, in certain cases, ask for pointers to initiate a process of annulment. No one knows better than you, and is in contact with, the reality of the social fabric in the territory, experiencing its variegated complexity: unions celebrated in Christ, de facto unions, civil unions, failed unions, happy and unhappy families and young people. For every person and every situation you are called to be fellow travelers to witness and support.May your concern be first of all to witness the grace of the Sacrament of Marriage and the primordial good of the family, vital cell of the Church and of society, through the proclamation that marriage between a man and a woman is a sign of the spousal union between Christ and the Church. You carry out this witness concretely when you prepare engaged couples for marriage, making them aware of the profound meaning of the step they are about to take, and when you accompany young couples with solicitude, helping them to live in the lights and in the shadows, in the moments of joy and in those of fatigue, the divine strength and beauty of their marriage. However, I wonder how many of these young people that come to pre-marriage courses understand what “marriage” means, the sign of Christ’s union and of the Church. “Yes, yes” – they say yes, but do they understand this? Have they faith in this? I am convinced that a true catechumenate is necessary for the Sacrament of Marriage, and not a preparation with two or three meetings and then onwards.
Do not fail to remind Christian spouses always that, in the Sacrament of Marriage, God — so to speak — is reflected in them, imprinting His image and the ineradicable character of their love. Marriage, in fact, is an icon of God, created for us by Him, which is the perfect communion of the three Persons: of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. May the love of God One and Triune and the love between Christ and the Church His spouse be at the center of catechesis and of matrimonial evangelization: through personal or communal meetings, planned or spontaneous, do not tire to show all, especially spouses, this “great mystery” (cf. Ephesians 5:32).
When you offer this witness, may your care be also to support all those who have realized the fact that their union is not a true sacramental marriage and want to come out of this situation. In this delicate and necessary work, proceed in such a way that your faithful recognize you not so much as experts of bureaucratic acts or juridical norms, but as brothers who put themselves in an attitude of listening and of understanding.
At the same time, make yourselves close with the style of the Gospel itself, in the encounter and reception of those young people that prefer to live together without getting married. On the spiritual and moral plane, they are among the poor and the little ones, toward whom the Church, following in the footsteps of her Teacher and Lord, wants to be a Mother that does not abandon but comes close and takes care. These persons are also loved by Christ’s heart. This care of the last, precisely because it emanates from the Gospel, is an essential part of your work of promotion and defense of the Sacrament of Marriage. In fact, the parish is the place par excellence of the salus animarum. Blessed Paul VI taught thus: “The parish […] is the presence of Christ in the fullness of His saving function. […] it is the home of the Gospel, the home of truth, the school of Our Lord” (Address at the Parish of the Great Mother of God in Rome, March 8, 1964: Insegnamenti II [1964], 1077.
Dear brothers, speaking recently at the Roman Rota I recommended carrying out a true catechumenate of future spouses, which includes all the stages of the sacramental journey: the times of preparation for marriage, of its celebration and of the immediate subsequent years. To you, parish priests, indispensable collaborators of the Bishops, this catechumenate is primarily entrusted. I encourage you to implement it despite the difficulties you might meet. And I believe the greatest difficulty is to think or live marriage as a social event – “we must have this social event” – and not as a true Sacrament, which requires long, long preparation.
I thank you for your commitment to the proclamation of the Gospel of the family. May the Holy Spirit help you to be ministers of peace and consolation in the midst of the holy, faithful people of God, especially to the most frail and needy persons of your pastoral solicitude. While I ask you to pray for me, I bless each one of you and your parish communities from my heart.
Thank you.[Original text: Italian] [Translation by Virginia M. Forrester]
Chile: The Pope’s 2nd Unique Meeting With Bishops on Their Ad Limina Visit by Anita Bourdin
For the second time, the Bishops of Chile on their ad Limina Visit met with Pope Francis and his collaborators of the Roman Curia on Thursday afternoon, Feb. 23, 2017 for a unique three-hour meeting, indicates the Website of the Chilean Episcopal Conference, after their first audience last Monday, February 20. The week was also marked by the anniversary of the Peace Agreements between Chile and Argentina, the Pope’s homeland, with a Mass on the occasion.
Thursday’s meeting took place “in an atmosphere of communion, of fraternity and of synodality. Ever close, Pope Francis shared coffee with the pastors, and spoke briefly with each bishop,” stressed the Conference of Bishops.
The site also underscored the innovative character of this form of meeting: “a unique meeting where they sought to speak of the reality of the pilgrimaging Church in Chile with a wider look.”
The Chilean Bishops took part in this meeting around the Pope with Cardinals Pietro Parolin, Secretary of State; Marc Ouellet (Bishops and Commission for Latin America; Gerhard Ludwig Muller (Doctrine of the Faith); Kevin Farrell (Laity); Giuseppe Versaldi (Catholic Education); Beniamino Stella (Clergy); Joao Braz (Consecrated Life) and with Monsignor Paul Richard Gallagher (Relations with States) and Monsignor Ilson de Jesus Montanari (Secretary of the Episcopal Conference).
In the framework of this ad Limina Visit, on February 20 a Mass marked the 30th anniversary of Saint John Paul II’s mediation, which avoided a bloody conflict between the two nations, and the 34th anniversary of the death of Italian Cardinal Antonio Samore (1905-1983). In 1978 Cardinal Samore was sent as a special representative of the Pope to seek a peaceful settlement to the border conflict “of the Beagle.”
Monsignor Gallagher presided over the Mass, which was concelebrated by 15 Chilean Bishops and 15 Argentine priests, in the presence of the two Ambassadors to the Holy See: Mariano Fernandez of Chile and Rogelio Pfirter of Argentina.
Monsignor Gallagher hailed the present “fraternal relations” between Chile and Argentina, and the “political will” of the two countries to maintain this “cordiality.”
The Bishops of Chile prepared for their ad Limina Visit (February 20-28) with a retreat at Assisi. They arrived at Rome last Sunday, February 19.
They then began their Roman pilgrimage with a Mass on Monday at the tomb of the Apostle Peter, presided over by Monsignor Santiago Silva, Military Bishop of Chile and President of the Episcopal Conference.
Together, they met with Pope Francis at 10 o’clock on that same February 20, in the Library of the Vatican’s Apostolic Palace.
Monsignor Cristian Contreras V., Bishop of Melipilla and Vice-President of the Chilean Episcopal Conference greeted the Pope on behalf of all, saying notably: “We are here to express to you our sentiment of closeness and affection in the faith, so that you will confirm us and we in turn will confirm our faithful in our dioceses.”
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