VATICAN : POPE : LIVE GOD'S LOVE AND OTHER NEWS
POPE IN AREZZO: FOMENT A CULTURE OF
SOLIDARITY
Vatican City, 13 May 2012 (VIS) - Benedict XVI today made a pastoral visit to Arezzo in the Italian region of Tuscany, where he was greeted on arrival by Mario Monti, prime minister of Italy, and by the local religious and civil authorities. The Holy Father then went on to celebrate Mass at the "Il Prato" park behind the cathedral of Arezzo. (IMAGE SOURCE: RADIO VATICANA)
"The first reading presented us with an important moment which expresses the universality of Christ and the Church’s message: St. Peter, in the house of Cornelius, baptised the first pagans. In the Old Testament God had wanted the blessing of the Jewish people not to remain exclusive, but to extend to all nations". Thus "Peter’s gesture becomes a symbol of the Church’s openness to all humanity. Following the great tradition of your Church and your community, be authentic witnesses of God’s love for all", said the Holy Father.
He then mentioned some of the outstanding figures of the local Church, such as San Donato and Blessed Gregory X who is buried in the cathedral. In this context he exhorted the modern-day faithful to be "ferment in society, ... active and coherent. With its centuries-old history, the city of Arezzo brings together significant expressions of culture and values", he said. "This land was the birthplace of great Renaissance personalities, from Petrarch to Vasari, and played an active role in affirming that concept of man which left its mark on the history of Europe, drawing strength from Christian values. ... Within the context of the Church in Italy, which has dedicated this decade to the theme of education, we must ask - especially in this region where the Renaissance was born - what vision of man we are proposing to the new generations. The Word of God we have heard is a powerful invitation to live God’s love towards all; and indeed, among its distinctive values, the culture of this land includes solidarity, attention to the weak and respect for the dignity of all. ... Showing solidarity with the poor, means recognising the plan of God the Creator, Who made us all one family".
Benedict XVI then turned to consider the current economic crisis. "The complexity of the problems makes it difficult to find quick and effective solutions to emerge from the present situation, which particularly affects the weakest elements of society and is of special concern to young people. Since earliest times, attention to others has moved the Church to show concrete signs of solidarity with those in need, sharing resources, promoting simpler lifestyles, going against an ephemeral culture which has disappointed many and determined a profound spiritual crisis. May this diocesan Church, enriched by the shining witness of St. Francis of Assisi, continue to be caring and attentive towards those in need, and may it teach people to go beyond the purely materialistic ideologies that often mark our age and end up clouding our sense of solidarity and charity.
"Bearing witness to the love of God by caring for the weakest is tied to the defence of human life, from beginning to natural end", the Pope added. "In your region, ensuring everyone dignity, health and fundamental rights, is justly considered an indispensable good. The defence of the family, through laws that are just and protect the weakest, is always an important point that keeps the fabric of society strong and offers hope for the future. Just as in the Middle Ages, the statutes of your city became instruments that ensured inalienable rights to many, may they continue that task today, promoting a city with an ever more human face. The Church offers her contribution to this task so that the love of God may always be accompanied love for neighbour".
REGINA COELI: RESIST THE TEMPTATION TO BECOME DISCOURAGED
Vatican City, 13 May 2012 (VIS) - "As Mother of the Church, Our Lady always wants to comfort her children at the time of their greatest difficulty and suffering", said the Pope today before praying the Regina Coeli with thousands of faithful who had attended his Mass at the "Il Prato" park in the Italian city of Arezzo.
"Through Mary, we invoke moral consolation from God, so that this community and the whole of Italy may resist the temptation to become discouraged and, strengthened by their great humanist tradition, may set out again on the road to spiritual and moral renewal which is the only thing that can bring authentic improvement in social and civil life".
After praying the Regina Coeli, Benedict XVI made a private visit to the cathedral of San Donato where he paused before the Chapel of Our Lady of Good Comfort to adore the Blessed Sacrament and venerate the image of the Virgin. From there, he travelled to the bishop's palace where he had lunch with bishops from the Tuscan region.
HONESTY AND DISINTERESTED ALTRUISM MUST GIVE NEW FLAVOUR TO CIVIL SOCIETY
Vatican City, 13 May 2012 (VIS) - At 6 p.m. today the Holy Father arrived by helicopter at the town of Sansepolcro which is currently celebrating the thousandth year of its foundation. Before going there he had been due to travel to the shrine of La Verna but because of bad weather and in particular fog, he was unable to do so and his visit to Sansepolcro was brought forward. There he met with local citizens in the Piazza Torre di Berta which for the occasion had been decorated with more than 300 standards.
Before meeting the locals, Benedict XVI visited the cathedral of St. John the Baptist where he paused in adoration before the Blessed Sacrament and venerated a famous crucifix known as the "Santo Volto" (Holy Face), considered to be one of the oldest images of the the clothed and crucified Christ.
In his address to the citizenry the Pope recalled how a thousand years ago the pilgrim saints Arcano and Egidio, "in the midst of the great transformations of their time, set out for the Holy Land to discover truth and the meaning of life. On their return, not only did they bring stones they had gathered on Mount Sion, but also an idea they had matured in the Land of Jesus: constructing in the upper reaches of the Tiber valley a 'civitas hominis' in the image of Jerusalem which, in its very name, evokes justice and peace". Arcano and Egidio "imagined a complex model city full of hope for the future, in which Christ's disciples were called to be a motor of society, promoting peace through the practice of justice". Their idea became reality "thanks to the support first of the Benedictine then of the Camaldolese charism, and continued for generations. Great commitment was needed to found a monastic community and later, around their church, your town", the Holy Father said.
That church, he went on, is "a point of reference which everyone can use as guidance for their journey, and especially for their lives. It is a powerful invitation to look to heaven, to rise above daily life ... in a constant striving towards spiritual vales and communion with God, which do not alienate us from daily life but orient it and enable us to experience it more intensely. This also holds true today, helping us to rediscover the search for 'truth', to perceive life as a journey which brings us towards the 'true' and the 'right'".
"Today it is particularly important for the Church’s service to the world to be expressed through illuminated lay men and women, who are able to work inside the city of man, moved by a desire to serve which goes beyond private interests and partisan concerns. The common good is more important than the good of the individual, and Christians too must contribute to the growth of a new public ethic. ... Christians, and especially the young, are called to counterpoise widespread misgivings about political and social activism with commitment and love for responsibility, animated by evangelical charity which requires us not to remain closed in ourselves but to take responsibility for others. I invite young people to think big: Have the courage to dare. Be ready to give new flavour to civil society, with the salt of honesty and disinterested altruism".
One of the main challenges facing the ancient town of Sansepolcro is "harmonising a rediscovery of its own centuries-old identity with welcoming and incorporating other cultures and sensibilities", the Pope observed. "St. Paul teaches us that the Church and the whole of society are like a human body in which each part is different from the others, but all work together for the good of the organism".
Finally Benedict XVI recalled that the basilica "is the seat of rediscovered harmony between worship and civic life, the point of reference for the pacification of souls. Just as your forefathers were able to build a splendid church of stone as a sign of communion of life, so it is up to you to make the meaning of this sacred building visible and credible, living in peace in the ecclesial and civil communities. ... Look to your rich cultural heritage and be a living Church at the service of the Gospel. A hospitable and generous Church which with her witness brings the love of God to all human beings, especially those who suffer and are in need".
Following his address and after greeting the local authorities, the Holy Father began his return journey to Rome.
SACRED MUSIC IS AN EXPRESSION OF THE FAITH OF THE CHURCH
Vatican City, 12 May 2012 (VIS) - Giorgio Napolitano, president of the Republic of Italy, yesterday offered a concert to Benedict XVI to mark the seventh anniversary of his election to the pontificate. The performance was held in the Paul VI Hall where the Orchestra and Choir of the Roman Opera House, conducted by Riccardo Muti and Roberto Gabbiani, played Antonio Vivaldi's "Magnificat RV611", and the "Stabat Mater" and "Te Deum" from Giuseppe Verdi's "Quattro pezzi sacri".
At the end of the concert, the Pope thanked those who had participated in the preparation and performance of the event, expressing his appreciation for Riccardo Muti's sensitivity for sacred music and his efforts to disseminate awareness of "this rich repertory which expresses the faith of the Church in music. ... The 'Magnificat' we have heard is a hymn of praise to Mary and to all the humble of heart who joyfully and gratefully recognise and celebrate God's action in their lives and in history. God's 'style' is different from that of man, because He stands alongside the poorest and weakest to give them hope. With extraordinary depth of feeling, Vivaldi's music expresses praise, exultation, thanksgiving, and wonder before the works of God".
The Holy Father continued his remarks by nothing that, "with the two pieces of sacred music by Giuseppe Verdi, ... there was a change of register. We found ourselves in the presence of Mary's suffering at the foot of the cross. ... Just as he explored and expressed the drama of so many characters in his operas, here Verdi outlines the drama of the Virgin as she contemplates her Son on the cross. The music is reduced to the essential, almost 'seizing' the words to express their significance as intensely as possible, ... enabling us to participate in her maternal suffering and allowing the love of Christ to burn in our hearts, until the last passage which is an intensely powerful supplication to God that the soul be given the glory of heaven, the ultimate aspiration of humankind.
"The 'Te Deum' is also replete with contrasts", the Pope added. "Verdi is scrupulously attentive to the holy text but his reading thereof diverges from that of tradition. He does not concentrate on the song of victory or coronation but, as he himself wrote, on the successive situations: initial exultation, ... contemplation of Christ incarnate Who frees and opens the Kingdom of Heaven, ... invocation ... for Him to have mercy and, in the end, the cry repeated by soprano and the choir: 'In te, Domine, speravi', with which the piece closes, almost a request on Verdi's part for hope and light in the last stage of his life".
AUDIENCES
Vatican City, 12 May 2012 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in audience:
- Cardinal Fernando Filoni, prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples.
- Cardinal Agostino Vallini, vicar general of His Holiness for the diocese of Rome.
OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS
Vatican City, 14 May 2012 (VIS) - The Holy Father:
- Appointed Fr. Dieudonne Nzapalainga C.S.Sp., apostolic administrator of the archdiocese of Bangui, Central African Republic, as metropolitan archbishop of the same archdiocese (area 38,342, population 1.043,000, Catholics 246,657, priests 104, religious 124). The archbishop-elect was born in Mbomou, Central African Republic in 1967 and ordained a priest in 1998. He studied in the Central African Republic, Cameroon, Gabon and France, and has worked in pastoral care in France and in the Central African Republic.
- Appointed Fr. Dennis Kofi Agbenyadzi S.M.A., regional superior of the Society of African Missions for the Central African Republic, as bishop of Berberati (area 45,000, population 450,000, Catholics 110,000, priests 33, religious 30), Central African Republic. The bishop-elect was born in Kadjebi-Akan, Ghana in 1964 and ordained a priest in 1997. He studied in Ghana, Benin and Cote d'Ivoire and has worked as a pastor and in administrative positions.
- Appointed Fr. Nestor-Desire Nongo-Aziagbia S.M.A., superior of the Haguenau Community in Strasbourg, France and superior of the same district for the Society of African Missions, as bishop of Bossangoa (area 62,420, population 612,000, Catholics 281,000, priests 38, religious 22), Central African Republic. The bishop-elect was born in M'Baiki, Central African Republic in 1970 and ordained a priest in 1998. He studied in the Central African Republic, Nigeria and France. He worked in pastoral care and administration in Nigeria before moving to France.
- Appointed Fr. Cyr-Nestor Yapaupa, vicar general of Alindao, Central African Republic, as coadjutor of the same diocese (area 18,475, population 171,600, Catholics 63,000, priests 13, religious 13). The bishop-elect was born in Bangassou, Central African Republic in 1970 and ordained a priest in 2001. He has held various roles in the diocese of Alindao including parochial vicar, head of the diocesan liturgical commission and pastor of the cathedral.
- Appointed Bishop Alvaro Leonel Ramazzini Imeri of San Marcos, Guatemala, as bishop of Huehuetenango (area 7,400, population 917,713, Catholics 706,449, priests 27, religious 57), Guatemala. He succeeds Bishop Rodolfo Francesco Bobadilla Mata C.M., whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same diocese the Holy Father accepted, upon having reached the age limit.
- Appointed Msgr. Robert McGuckin as bishop of Toowoomba (area 487,000, population 276,700, Catholics 77,400, priests 48, religious 57), Australia. The bishop-elect was born in Sydney, Australia in 1944 and ordained a priest in 1973. Among other roles, he has worked in pastoral care in numerous parishes, as professor of canon law and as judge of the appeals tribunal of Australia and New Zealand.
- Appointed as consultors of the Pontifical Council for Promoting New Evangelisation: Fr. Marco Frisina, president of the Commission for Sacred Art of the diocese of Rome, and professor at the Pontifical Lateran University and the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross; Fr. Jeremy Driscoll O.S.B., professor at the Mount Angel Seminary in St. Benedict, Oregon, U.S.A., and at the Theological Faculty of Rome's St. Anselm Pontifical Athenaeum; Fr. Marko Ivan Rupnik S.J., director of the Aletti Centre, and professor at the Pontifical Oriental Institute, the Pontifical Gregorian University and the Pontifical Liturgical Institute of Rome's St. Anselm Pontifical Athenaeum, and Salvatore Martinez, president of the Renewal in the Holy Spirit Association, Italy.
On Saturday 12 May it was made public that the Holy Father appointed:
- Bishop Andrzej Jez, auxiliary of Tarnow, Poland, as bishop of the same diocese (area 7,566, population 1,124,000, Catholics 1,117,000, priests 1,423, religious 1,243).
- Fr. Archimandrite Donato Oliverio, delegate "ad omnia" of the eparchy of Lungro of the Italo-Albanians, Italy, as bishop of the same eparchy (area 493, population 33,400, Catholics 32,300, priests 39, permanent deacons 1, religious 28). The bishop-elect was born in Cosenza, Italy in 1956 and ordained a priest in 1982. Among other roles he has served as a pastor, director of the eparchial office for catechesis, bursar and secretary of Lungro's Institute for Religious Sciences.
- Fr. Orlando Roa Barboasa of the clergy of the archdiocese of Ibague, Colombia, rector of the "Maria Inmaculada" major archdiocesan seminary, as auxiliary of the archdiocese of Ibague (area 6,044, population 591,000, Catholics 531,000, priests 105, permanent deacons 12, religious 184). The bishop-elect was born in Cali, Colombia in 1958 and ordained a priest in 1984. He studied in Colombia and in Rome and has worked as a pastor and in the field of pastoral care of young people.
Vatican City, 13 May 2012 (VIS) - Benedict XVI today made a pastoral visit to Arezzo in the Italian region of Tuscany, where he was greeted on arrival by Mario Monti, prime minister of Italy, and by the local religious and civil authorities. The Holy Father then went on to celebrate Mass at the "Il Prato" park behind the cathedral of Arezzo. (IMAGE SOURCE: RADIO VATICANA)
"The first reading presented us with an important moment which expresses the universality of Christ and the Church’s message: St. Peter, in the house of Cornelius, baptised the first pagans. In the Old Testament God had wanted the blessing of the Jewish people not to remain exclusive, but to extend to all nations". Thus "Peter’s gesture becomes a symbol of the Church’s openness to all humanity. Following the great tradition of your Church and your community, be authentic witnesses of God’s love for all", said the Holy Father.
He then mentioned some of the outstanding figures of the local Church, such as San Donato and Blessed Gregory X who is buried in the cathedral. In this context he exhorted the modern-day faithful to be "ferment in society, ... active and coherent. With its centuries-old history, the city of Arezzo brings together significant expressions of culture and values", he said. "This land was the birthplace of great Renaissance personalities, from Petrarch to Vasari, and played an active role in affirming that concept of man which left its mark on the history of Europe, drawing strength from Christian values. ... Within the context of the Church in Italy, which has dedicated this decade to the theme of education, we must ask - especially in this region where the Renaissance was born - what vision of man we are proposing to the new generations. The Word of God we have heard is a powerful invitation to live God’s love towards all; and indeed, among its distinctive values, the culture of this land includes solidarity, attention to the weak and respect for the dignity of all. ... Showing solidarity with the poor, means recognising the plan of God the Creator, Who made us all one family".
Benedict XVI then turned to consider the current economic crisis. "The complexity of the problems makes it difficult to find quick and effective solutions to emerge from the present situation, which particularly affects the weakest elements of society and is of special concern to young people. Since earliest times, attention to others has moved the Church to show concrete signs of solidarity with those in need, sharing resources, promoting simpler lifestyles, going against an ephemeral culture which has disappointed many and determined a profound spiritual crisis. May this diocesan Church, enriched by the shining witness of St. Francis of Assisi, continue to be caring and attentive towards those in need, and may it teach people to go beyond the purely materialistic ideologies that often mark our age and end up clouding our sense of solidarity and charity.
"Bearing witness to the love of God by caring for the weakest is tied to the defence of human life, from beginning to natural end", the Pope added. "In your region, ensuring everyone dignity, health and fundamental rights, is justly considered an indispensable good. The defence of the family, through laws that are just and protect the weakest, is always an important point that keeps the fabric of society strong and offers hope for the future. Just as in the Middle Ages, the statutes of your city became instruments that ensured inalienable rights to many, may they continue that task today, promoting a city with an ever more human face. The Church offers her contribution to this task so that the love of God may always be accompanied love for neighbour".
REGINA COELI: RESIST THE TEMPTATION TO BECOME DISCOURAGED
Vatican City, 13 May 2012 (VIS) - "As Mother of the Church, Our Lady always wants to comfort her children at the time of their greatest difficulty and suffering", said the Pope today before praying the Regina Coeli with thousands of faithful who had attended his Mass at the "Il Prato" park in the Italian city of Arezzo.
"Through Mary, we invoke moral consolation from God, so that this community and the whole of Italy may resist the temptation to become discouraged and, strengthened by their great humanist tradition, may set out again on the road to spiritual and moral renewal which is the only thing that can bring authentic improvement in social and civil life".
After praying the Regina Coeli, Benedict XVI made a private visit to the cathedral of San Donato where he paused before the Chapel of Our Lady of Good Comfort to adore the Blessed Sacrament and venerate the image of the Virgin. From there, he travelled to the bishop's palace where he had lunch with bishops from the Tuscan region.
HONESTY AND DISINTERESTED ALTRUISM MUST GIVE NEW FLAVOUR TO CIVIL SOCIETY
Vatican City, 13 May 2012 (VIS) - At 6 p.m. today the Holy Father arrived by helicopter at the town of Sansepolcro which is currently celebrating the thousandth year of its foundation. Before going there he had been due to travel to the shrine of La Verna but because of bad weather and in particular fog, he was unable to do so and his visit to Sansepolcro was brought forward. There he met with local citizens in the Piazza Torre di Berta which for the occasion had been decorated with more than 300 standards.
Before meeting the locals, Benedict XVI visited the cathedral of St. John the Baptist where he paused in adoration before the Blessed Sacrament and venerated a famous crucifix known as the "Santo Volto" (Holy Face), considered to be one of the oldest images of the the clothed and crucified Christ.
In his address to the citizenry the Pope recalled how a thousand years ago the pilgrim saints Arcano and Egidio, "in the midst of the great transformations of their time, set out for the Holy Land to discover truth and the meaning of life. On their return, not only did they bring stones they had gathered on Mount Sion, but also an idea they had matured in the Land of Jesus: constructing in the upper reaches of the Tiber valley a 'civitas hominis' in the image of Jerusalem which, in its very name, evokes justice and peace". Arcano and Egidio "imagined a complex model city full of hope for the future, in which Christ's disciples were called to be a motor of society, promoting peace through the practice of justice". Their idea became reality "thanks to the support first of the Benedictine then of the Camaldolese charism, and continued for generations. Great commitment was needed to found a monastic community and later, around their church, your town", the Holy Father said.
That church, he went on, is "a point of reference which everyone can use as guidance for their journey, and especially for their lives. It is a powerful invitation to look to heaven, to rise above daily life ... in a constant striving towards spiritual vales and communion with God, which do not alienate us from daily life but orient it and enable us to experience it more intensely. This also holds true today, helping us to rediscover the search for 'truth', to perceive life as a journey which brings us towards the 'true' and the 'right'".
"Today it is particularly important for the Church’s service to the world to be expressed through illuminated lay men and women, who are able to work inside the city of man, moved by a desire to serve which goes beyond private interests and partisan concerns. The common good is more important than the good of the individual, and Christians too must contribute to the growth of a new public ethic. ... Christians, and especially the young, are called to counterpoise widespread misgivings about political and social activism with commitment and love for responsibility, animated by evangelical charity which requires us not to remain closed in ourselves but to take responsibility for others. I invite young people to think big: Have the courage to dare. Be ready to give new flavour to civil society, with the salt of honesty and disinterested altruism".
One of the main challenges facing the ancient town of Sansepolcro is "harmonising a rediscovery of its own centuries-old identity with welcoming and incorporating other cultures and sensibilities", the Pope observed. "St. Paul teaches us that the Church and the whole of society are like a human body in which each part is different from the others, but all work together for the good of the organism".
Finally Benedict XVI recalled that the basilica "is the seat of rediscovered harmony between worship and civic life, the point of reference for the pacification of souls. Just as your forefathers were able to build a splendid church of stone as a sign of communion of life, so it is up to you to make the meaning of this sacred building visible and credible, living in peace in the ecclesial and civil communities. ... Look to your rich cultural heritage and be a living Church at the service of the Gospel. A hospitable and generous Church which with her witness brings the love of God to all human beings, especially those who suffer and are in need".
Following his address and after greeting the local authorities, the Holy Father began his return journey to Rome.
SACRED MUSIC IS AN EXPRESSION OF THE FAITH OF THE CHURCH
Vatican City, 12 May 2012 (VIS) - Giorgio Napolitano, president of the Republic of Italy, yesterday offered a concert to Benedict XVI to mark the seventh anniversary of his election to the pontificate. The performance was held in the Paul VI Hall where the Orchestra and Choir of the Roman Opera House, conducted by Riccardo Muti and Roberto Gabbiani, played Antonio Vivaldi's "Magnificat RV611", and the "Stabat Mater" and "Te Deum" from Giuseppe Verdi's "Quattro pezzi sacri".
At the end of the concert, the Pope thanked those who had participated in the preparation and performance of the event, expressing his appreciation for Riccardo Muti's sensitivity for sacred music and his efforts to disseminate awareness of "this rich repertory which expresses the faith of the Church in music. ... The 'Magnificat' we have heard is a hymn of praise to Mary and to all the humble of heart who joyfully and gratefully recognise and celebrate God's action in their lives and in history. God's 'style' is different from that of man, because He stands alongside the poorest and weakest to give them hope. With extraordinary depth of feeling, Vivaldi's music expresses praise, exultation, thanksgiving, and wonder before the works of God".
The Holy Father continued his remarks by nothing that, "with the two pieces of sacred music by Giuseppe Verdi, ... there was a change of register. We found ourselves in the presence of Mary's suffering at the foot of the cross. ... Just as he explored and expressed the drama of so many characters in his operas, here Verdi outlines the drama of the Virgin as she contemplates her Son on the cross. The music is reduced to the essential, almost 'seizing' the words to express their significance as intensely as possible, ... enabling us to participate in her maternal suffering and allowing the love of Christ to burn in our hearts, until the last passage which is an intensely powerful supplication to God that the soul be given the glory of heaven, the ultimate aspiration of humankind.
"The 'Te Deum' is also replete with contrasts", the Pope added. "Verdi is scrupulously attentive to the holy text but his reading thereof diverges from that of tradition. He does not concentrate on the song of victory or coronation but, as he himself wrote, on the successive situations: initial exultation, ... contemplation of Christ incarnate Who frees and opens the Kingdom of Heaven, ... invocation ... for Him to have mercy and, in the end, the cry repeated by soprano and the choir: 'In te, Domine, speravi', with which the piece closes, almost a request on Verdi's part for hope and light in the last stage of his life".
AUDIENCES
Vatican City, 12 May 2012 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in audience:
- Cardinal Fernando Filoni, prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples.
- Cardinal Agostino Vallini, vicar general of His Holiness for the diocese of Rome.
OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS
Vatican City, 14 May 2012 (VIS) - The Holy Father:
- Appointed Fr. Dieudonne Nzapalainga C.S.Sp., apostolic administrator of the archdiocese of Bangui, Central African Republic, as metropolitan archbishop of the same archdiocese (area 38,342, population 1.043,000, Catholics 246,657, priests 104, religious 124). The archbishop-elect was born in Mbomou, Central African Republic in 1967 and ordained a priest in 1998. He studied in the Central African Republic, Cameroon, Gabon and France, and has worked in pastoral care in France and in the Central African Republic.
- Appointed Fr. Dennis Kofi Agbenyadzi S.M.A., regional superior of the Society of African Missions for the Central African Republic, as bishop of Berberati (area 45,000, population 450,000, Catholics 110,000, priests 33, religious 30), Central African Republic. The bishop-elect was born in Kadjebi-Akan, Ghana in 1964 and ordained a priest in 1997. He studied in Ghana, Benin and Cote d'Ivoire and has worked as a pastor and in administrative positions.
- Appointed Fr. Nestor-Desire Nongo-Aziagbia S.M.A., superior of the Haguenau Community in Strasbourg, France and superior of the same district for the Society of African Missions, as bishop of Bossangoa (area 62,420, population 612,000, Catholics 281,000, priests 38, religious 22), Central African Republic. The bishop-elect was born in M'Baiki, Central African Republic in 1970 and ordained a priest in 1998. He studied in the Central African Republic, Nigeria and France. He worked in pastoral care and administration in Nigeria before moving to France.
- Appointed Fr. Cyr-Nestor Yapaupa, vicar general of Alindao, Central African Republic, as coadjutor of the same diocese (area 18,475, population 171,600, Catholics 63,000, priests 13, religious 13). The bishop-elect was born in Bangassou, Central African Republic in 1970 and ordained a priest in 2001. He has held various roles in the diocese of Alindao including parochial vicar, head of the diocesan liturgical commission and pastor of the cathedral.
- Appointed Bishop Alvaro Leonel Ramazzini Imeri of San Marcos, Guatemala, as bishop of Huehuetenango (area 7,400, population 917,713, Catholics 706,449, priests 27, religious 57), Guatemala. He succeeds Bishop Rodolfo Francesco Bobadilla Mata C.M., whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same diocese the Holy Father accepted, upon having reached the age limit.
- Appointed Msgr. Robert McGuckin as bishop of Toowoomba (area 487,000, population 276,700, Catholics 77,400, priests 48, religious 57), Australia. The bishop-elect was born in Sydney, Australia in 1944 and ordained a priest in 1973. Among other roles, he has worked in pastoral care in numerous parishes, as professor of canon law and as judge of the appeals tribunal of Australia and New Zealand.
- Appointed as consultors of the Pontifical Council for Promoting New Evangelisation: Fr. Marco Frisina, president of the Commission for Sacred Art of the diocese of Rome, and professor at the Pontifical Lateran University and the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross; Fr. Jeremy Driscoll O.S.B., professor at the Mount Angel Seminary in St. Benedict, Oregon, U.S.A., and at the Theological Faculty of Rome's St. Anselm Pontifical Athenaeum; Fr. Marko Ivan Rupnik S.J., director of the Aletti Centre, and professor at the Pontifical Oriental Institute, the Pontifical Gregorian University and the Pontifical Liturgical Institute of Rome's St. Anselm Pontifical Athenaeum, and Salvatore Martinez, president of the Renewal in the Holy Spirit Association, Italy.
On Saturday 12 May it was made public that the Holy Father appointed:
- Bishop Andrzej Jez, auxiliary of Tarnow, Poland, as bishop of the same diocese (area 7,566, population 1,124,000, Catholics 1,117,000, priests 1,423, religious 1,243).
- Fr. Archimandrite Donato Oliverio, delegate "ad omnia" of the eparchy of Lungro of the Italo-Albanians, Italy, as bishop of the same eparchy (area 493, population 33,400, Catholics 32,300, priests 39, permanent deacons 1, religious 28). The bishop-elect was born in Cosenza, Italy in 1956 and ordained a priest in 1982. Among other roles he has served as a pastor, director of the eparchial office for catechesis, bursar and secretary of Lungro's Institute for Religious Sciences.
- Fr. Orlando Roa Barboasa of the clergy of the archdiocese of Ibague, Colombia, rector of the "Maria Inmaculada" major archdiocesan seminary, as auxiliary of the archdiocese of Ibague (area 6,044, population 591,000, Catholics 531,000, priests 105, permanent deacons 12, religious 184). The bishop-elect was born in Cali, Colombia in 1958 and ordained a priest in 1984. He studied in Colombia and in Rome and has worked as a pastor and in the field of pastoral care of young people.
AUSTRALIA : NEW BUGET DISAPPOINTMENT FOR POOR
ARCHDIOCESE OF SYDNEY REPORT:
Catholic Communications, Sydney Archdiocese,
9 May 2012
Health and
social welfare services are disappointed with a Budget they say has come with a
huge cost for the disadvantaged, the poor and unemployed.
The agencies claimed today the slim Budget surplus has been achieved by slashing spending on sub-acute hospital beds, putting a knife to the Medicare Safety Net and cutting millions from the GP Super Clinics program.
While giving generous hand-outs of as much as $2000 in benefits and bonuses to lower and middle income families, the poor and unemployed received virtually no help at all, according to the agencies.
International aid agencies said today the world's poorest communities have also missed out with $2.9 billion in foreign aid put on hold, despite the Government's reiterating its promise to pledge 0.5 percent of Gross National Income by 2015.
The Budget also failed to address an expected shortfall across Australia's public and private hospitals of more than 110,000 nurses by 2025.
"One of the great disappointments of this Budget is the $120
million cut from multi-purpose services which means more than 200 hospital
sub-acute beds promised as part of last year's COAG (Council of Australian
Governments) Health Reform Agreement will not now be built," says Martin
Laverty, CEO of Catholic Health Australia (CHA).
Mr Laverty also expressed disappointment that only a modest $55.2 million in new spending has been allocated to the aged care sector, which he describes as being under immense strain and in urgent need of reform and additional funding.
Less than three weeks ago, PM Julia Gillard announced an ambitious $3.7 billion plan to overhaul the aged care sector. But the majority of the funding for the Government's heavily-promoted "Living Longer, Living Better" scheme turns out to be made up of redirected allocations from the scaled back Aged Care Funding Instrument Program, with only half a billion in new funding allocated over five years. Of this amount, just $55.2 million has been put aside for 2012-13.
Despite welcoming $1 billion in new funding over four years to kick-start a National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), $225 million in new funding to give a $515 million boost to public dental care, and applauding improved access to free bowel cancer screening for older Australians, Mr Laverty is troubled that health issues at a wider level were not addressed.
"One of the
disappointments is the lack of any policy - and associated funding - to address
the expected shortfall of nurses by 2025," he says.
The predicted shortfall was included in a report by Health Workforce Australia issued two weeks ago. But instead of confronting the issue, the Government responded with a Budget that cut back workforce spending in the sector by $68 million.
Health experienced more than $1 billion in cuts in last night's Budget, including trimming back the Medicare Safety Net and winding back the medical expenses tax offset.
Among the severest critics of Wayne Swan's Budget last night is Dr John Falzon, Chief Executive of St Vincent de Paul Society's National Council.
"The Government's bid to get back into surplus has come on the back of sole parents and the unemployed," he charges, sharply criticising the 2012 Budget for failing to deliver relief for people who are outside the labour market.
"The
Budget confirms one thing that both sides of politics agree on; and that's their
belief in the existence of the undeserving poor," he says. "The message is that
if you're poor, it's because you are just not trying hard enough. So the
unemployed are left below the poverty line."
The Newstart Allowance has not been increased since 1996 and at $245 per week is less than half Australia's minimum wage. But despite Vinnies and welfare organisations lobbying the Government to give Newstart a much needed boost of $50 a week, the Budget increased the entitlement by just $4 per week.
As part of the Government's scramble to keep its promise and return the Budget to surplus by 2012-13, single mothers will be taken off parenting payments and forced onto Newstart once their youngest child reaches eight years of age. For mothers this means having to live on less than $38 per day while for the Government it represents a saving of more than $700 million over four years.
"The surplus has been achieved by skimming from the pockets of single parents and their children," Dr Falzon says. "There is nothing wrong with bringing home the bacon for middle Australia. But the people living at the rough end of Struggle Street are trying to get by on baked beans."
Caritas Australia,
the aid and development arm of the Catholic Church, is also troubled by the
Government's decision to renege on its Millennium promise to commit 0.5% of
Gross National Income (GNI) in foreign aid by 2015. Instead Foreign Affairs
Minister confirmed last night that Australia would no longer meet this
commitment.
The earlier $2.9 billion pledged in foreign aid has been deferred.
Australians individually are among the most generous on earth but despite its wealth, as a nation Australia lags behind most other OCED countries. Despite being in a recession, Britain gives 0.7% of GNI in foreign aid while Australia gives less than 3.5% of GNI.
Of the 20 developing nations helped by AusAid, 18 are in our region and include Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu and poverty stricken communities across Asia.
According to Caritas CEO, Jack de Groot, along with helping with agriculture, sustainability, health, education and job skills, foreign aid helps lift people out of poverty and in doing so, creates stability and security across the region.
"We would like Australians to understand they have been responsible for changing the lives of countless men, women and children through their generous commitment to helping those in need during natural disasters and through federally-funded programs that change lives in the long term," he says. "But put in perspective, the Budget potentially leaves us behind other comparable nations."
As one of the world's healthiest economies, Australia should be leading the push to address injustice and poverty, not following or lagging behind, he says.
Catholic Communications, Sydney Archdiocese,
9 May 2012
Treasurer Wayne Swan
The agencies claimed today the slim Budget surplus has been achieved by slashing spending on sub-acute hospital beds, putting a knife to the Medicare Safety Net and cutting millions from the GP Super Clinics program.
While giving generous hand-outs of as much as $2000 in benefits and bonuses to lower and middle income families, the poor and unemployed received virtually no help at all, according to the agencies.
International aid agencies said today the world's poorest communities have also missed out with $2.9 billion in foreign aid put on hold, despite the Government's reiterating its promise to pledge 0.5 percent of Gross National Income by 2015.
The Budget also failed to address an expected shortfall across Australia's public and private hospitals of more than 110,000 nurses by 2025.
Just $55.2 million put aside for Government's
heavily promoted Aged Care
Reforms
Mr Laverty also expressed disappointment that only a modest $55.2 million in new spending has been allocated to the aged care sector, which he describes as being under immense strain and in urgent need of reform and additional funding.
Less than three weeks ago, PM Julia Gillard announced an ambitious $3.7 billion plan to overhaul the aged care sector. But the majority of the funding for the Government's heavily-promoted "Living Longer, Living Better" scheme turns out to be made up of redirected allocations from the scaled back Aged Care Funding Instrument Program, with only half a billion in new funding allocated over five years. Of this amount, just $55.2 million has been put aside for 2012-13.
Despite welcoming $1 billion in new funding over four years to kick-start a National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), $225 million in new funding to give a $515 million boost to public dental care, and applauding improved access to free bowel cancer screening for older Australians, Mr Laverty is troubled that health issues at a wider level were not addressed.
Budget fails to address shortfall of 110,000
nurses by 2025
The predicted shortfall was included in a report by Health Workforce Australia issued two weeks ago. But instead of confronting the issue, the Government responded with a Budget that cut back workforce spending in the sector by $68 million.
Health experienced more than $1 billion in cuts in last night's Budget, including trimming back the Medicare Safety Net and winding back the medical expenses tax offset.
Among the severest critics of Wayne Swan's Budget last night is Dr John Falzon, Chief Executive of St Vincent de Paul Society's National Council.
"The Government's bid to get back into surplus has come on the back of sole parents and the unemployed," he charges, sharply criticising the 2012 Budget for failing to deliver relief for people who are outside the labour market.
Budget cuts mean a loss of more than
200 sub acute hospital beds
The Newstart Allowance has not been increased since 1996 and at $245 per week is less than half Australia's minimum wage. But despite Vinnies and welfare organisations lobbying the Government to give Newstart a much needed boost of $50 a week, the Budget increased the entitlement by just $4 per week.
As part of the Government's scramble to keep its promise and return the Budget to surplus by 2012-13, single mothers will be taken off parenting payments and forced onto Newstart once their youngest child reaches eight years of age. For mothers this means having to live on less than $38 per day while for the Government it represents a saving of more than $700 million over four years.
"The surplus has been achieved by skimming from the pockets of single parents and their children," Dr Falzon says. "There is nothing wrong with bringing home the bacon for middle Australia. But the people living at the rough end of Struggle Street are trying to get by on baked beans."
The Newstart Allowance pays
jobseekers $243.40 a week
or just $35 a day
The earlier $2.9 billion pledged in foreign aid has been deferred.
Australians individually are among the most generous on earth but despite its wealth, as a nation Australia lags behind most other OCED countries. Despite being in a recession, Britain gives 0.7% of GNI in foreign aid while Australia gives less than 3.5% of GNI.
Of the 20 developing nations helped by AusAid, 18 are in our region and include Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu and poverty stricken communities across Asia.
According to Caritas CEO, Jack de Groot, along with helping with agriculture, sustainability, health, education and job skills, foreign aid helps lift people out of poverty and in doing so, creates stability and security across the region.
"We would like Australians to understand they have been responsible for changing the lives of countless men, women and children through their generous commitment to helping those in need during natural disasters and through federally-funded programs that change lives in the long term," he says. "But put in perspective, the Budget potentially leaves us behind other comparable nations."
As one of the world's healthiest economies, Australia should be leading the push to address injustice and poverty, not following or lagging behind, he says.
EUROPE : FRANCE : CHURCH UNVEILS RESTORED MURALS AND ORGAN
A special
Mass and reception took place at the Church of Notre Dame de France in Leicester
Square - on Saturday, to celebrate the unveiling of the newly-restored Cocteau
murals and the renovated organ.
Matthew Fisher (Pioneer Scout Group leader) & Florent David members of the parish Lay Community by murals
Organist Duncan Middleton played improvizations during the blessing of the organ and accompanied the special choir who sang beautifully throughout the Mass. The celebration was dedicated to Fr Gerard Noblet SM, who died this year after serving at Notre Dame for 16 years.
In his homily, Fr Guy Wernert spoke of how each statue and image in the church had been lovingly chosen to praise God and lead the congregation to prayer.
The murals, adorning the walls of a side chapel, were carried out in 1960 by the well-known artist, filmmaker, writer and poet Jean Cocteau. They depict the Annunciation, the Crucifixion and the Assumption of Our Lady.
It was Mr René Varin, cultural advisor at the French Embassy in London who thought of asking Cocteau to take part in the decoration work of the new Church. The building had been virtually destroyed by a bomb during World Wall II and was being rebuilt.
Cocteau, who was 70 at the time, spent slightly more than a week on the project, from 3 - 11 November 1959. His films, particularly Le Testament d’Orphee, were enjoying huge success in London at that time and he had to be protected from the invasion of reporters and fans by a wooden scaffolding all around the chapel.
Cocteau had only recently returned to practicing his Catholic faith after a long absence from the Church, and was very devout. According to eyewitnesses, he would arrive each morning at about ten and always began by lighting a candle before the statue of Our Lady of Lourdes.
He would then pray aloud while he worked on the drawings. When he spoke to the Virgin of the Annunciation, he was full of joy, and said: "O you, most beautiful of women, loveliest of God's creatures, you were the best loved. So I want you to be my best piece of work too...
I am drawing you with light strokes... You are the yet unfinished work of Grace..."
Once he had finished his tasks, Jean Cocteau was sad to leave. He told friends: "I am sorry to go. It is as if the wall of the chapel had drawn me into another world..."
He went on to comment: "I shall never forget that wide open heart of Notre Dame de France, and the place you allowed me to take within it."
Cocteau died nearly four years later, on 11 October 1963. He was buried according to his wishes, in the chapel of St Blaise of the Simple Ones, at Milly la Forêt, near Fontainebleau.
Notre Dame de France, served by the Marist Fathers, has a very lively pastoral outreach to London's French speakers and the wider community. There is a residential lay community of young people, an African refugee support project and homeless project.
Next month the parish is participating in Spirit in the City with other West End Catholic churches. On Thursday, 7 June, a Marian street procession will arrive there (from Our Lady of the Assumption, after a talk by Fr Christopher Jamison), for testimonies, sung night prayer and a social evening.
On Friday, 8 June, After Mass at 12.15, there will be a talk by Fr Keith Barltrop on ‘the call to be witnesses in the world.’ From 1.15 – 5.30pm there will be Sanctuary in the City – Adoration in the church and outreach in Leicester Square. During the evening programme which starts at 7pm there will be music, prayer and testimonies in Notre Dame before a talk by Sr Gemma Simmonds, CJ, on ‘the call to be witnesses of the Eucharistic Lord’. At 8pm a Eucharistic street procession will set out to Corpus Christi in Covent Garden where there will be a time of Adoration, Benediction and Night Prayer.
Later, on 17 June, the entire parish of Notre Dame de France will have their annual picnic together after Sunday Mass. Nathalie Champel, who leads a team of about 100 catechists working in the parish and with children from the French Lycee, said: “It’s a wonderful event which we all look forward to. We love our parish.”
Matthew Fisher (Pioneer Scout Group leader) & Florent David members of the parish Lay Community by murals
Organist Duncan Middleton played improvizations during the blessing of the organ and accompanied the special choir who sang beautifully throughout the Mass. The celebration was dedicated to Fr Gerard Noblet SM, who died this year after serving at Notre Dame for 16 years.
In his homily, Fr Guy Wernert spoke of how each statue and image in the church had been lovingly chosen to praise God and lead the congregation to prayer.
The murals, adorning the walls of a side chapel, were carried out in 1960 by the well-known artist, filmmaker, writer and poet Jean Cocteau. They depict the Annunciation, the Crucifixion and the Assumption of Our Lady.
It was Mr René Varin, cultural advisor at the French Embassy in London who thought of asking Cocteau to take part in the decoration work of the new Church. The building had been virtually destroyed by a bomb during World Wall II and was being rebuilt.
Cocteau, who was 70 at the time, spent slightly more than a week on the project, from 3 - 11 November 1959. His films, particularly Le Testament d’Orphee, were enjoying huge success in London at that time and he had to be protected from the invasion of reporters and fans by a wooden scaffolding all around the chapel.
Cocteau had only recently returned to practicing his Catholic faith after a long absence from the Church, and was very devout. According to eyewitnesses, he would arrive each morning at about ten and always began by lighting a candle before the statue of Our Lady of Lourdes.
He would then pray aloud while he worked on the drawings. When he spoke to the Virgin of the Annunciation, he was full of joy, and said: "O you, most beautiful of women, loveliest of God's creatures, you were the best loved. So I want you to be my best piece of work too...
I am drawing you with light strokes... You are the yet unfinished work of Grace..."
Once he had finished his tasks, Jean Cocteau was sad to leave. He told friends: "I am sorry to go. It is as if the wall of the chapel had drawn me into another world..."
He went on to comment: "I shall never forget that wide open heart of Notre Dame de France, and the place you allowed me to take within it."
Cocteau died nearly four years later, on 11 October 1963. He was buried according to his wishes, in the chapel of St Blaise of the Simple Ones, at Milly la Forêt, near Fontainebleau.
Notre Dame de France, served by the Marist Fathers, has a very lively pastoral outreach to London's French speakers and the wider community. There is a residential lay community of young people, an African refugee support project and homeless project.
Next month the parish is participating in Spirit in the City with other West End Catholic churches. On Thursday, 7 June, a Marian street procession will arrive there (from Our Lady of the Assumption, after a talk by Fr Christopher Jamison), for testimonies, sung night prayer and a social evening.
On Friday, 8 June, After Mass at 12.15, there will be a talk by Fr Keith Barltrop on ‘the call to be witnesses in the world.’ From 1.15 – 5.30pm there will be Sanctuary in the City – Adoration in the church and outreach in Leicester Square. During the evening programme which starts at 7pm there will be music, prayer and testimonies in Notre Dame before a talk by Sr Gemma Simmonds, CJ, on ‘the call to be witnesses of the Eucharistic Lord’. At 8pm a Eucharistic street procession will set out to Corpus Christi in Covent Garden where there will be a time of Adoration, Benediction and Night Prayer.
Later, on 17 June, the entire parish of Notre Dame de France will have their annual picnic together after Sunday Mass. Nathalie Champel, who leads a team of about 100 catechists working in the parish and with children from the French Lycee, said: “It’s a wonderful event which we all look forward to. We love our parish.”
AFRICA : SOUTH SUDAN : BISHOPS POSTPONE ASSEMBLY
CISA NEWS REPORT:
KHARTOUM, May 11, 2012 (CISA) –The Bishops
of Sudan and South Sudan have postponed their annual Plenary Assembly because of
tensions between the two countries, read a message sent by the Secretary General
of the Episcopal Conference, the Sudan Catholic Bishops’ Conference
(SCBC).
The Plenary Assembly was scheduled to be held in Juba, South Sudan from June 12 to 17.
The message further said that the holding of the meeting will depend on political developments.
According to Fides, South Sudan has accused Khartoum of bombing several locations in its territory, in the Upper Nile, Unity and Western Bahr el-Ghazal. Both Khartoum and Juba claim to respect a cease-fire agreement imposed by a UN Security Council resolution of May 4.
Meanwhile, on Thursday May 10, the South Sudan said that it was ready to reopen negotiations with its northern neighbor, Sudan, to try to resolve oil, security and frontier disputes that ignited border fighting last month.
The Plenary Assembly was scheduled to be held in Juba, South Sudan from June 12 to 17.
The message further said that the holding of the meeting will depend on political developments.
According to Fides, South Sudan has accused Khartoum of bombing several locations in its territory, in the Upper Nile, Unity and Western Bahr el-Ghazal. Both Khartoum and Juba claim to respect a cease-fire agreement imposed by a UN Security Council resolution of May 4.
Meanwhile, on Thursday May 10, the South Sudan said that it was ready to reopen negotiations with its northern neighbor, Sudan, to try to resolve oil, security and frontier disputes that ignited border fighting last month.
AMERICA : MEXICO : CHILDREN SUFFER FROM HUNGER
Agenzia Fides REPORT– It is unacceptable that children
die or remain disabled because of hunger. This is what emerges in a document
released by the Archdiocese of Mexico, which is based in Mexico City, which
proposes some actions for the establishment of a national agreement to deal with
this tragedy. To raise awareness on social levels of poverty and inequality that
exist in Mexico, the Catholic Church has just published its second National
Report "Dolor de la Tierra, Dolor de los Pobres. ¡Actuemos ya! "Which emphasizes
that "it is unacceptable that a quarter of Mexicans live in hunger and thirst,
and that children cannot continue to die or be disabled because of hunger."
"Neither - continues the document - it is possible that there are communities
where more than 90% of the population are poor. We cannot continue to follow a
policy of social development that goes beyond emergencies without thinking about
what is essential for the daily living of the people." The Archdiocese has
proposed to give rise to "a national agreement that establishes priorities for
tackling poverty and inequality, promoting the mobilization and the
concentration on agreements at a regional and national level." In the work,
coordinated by Caritas Mexico, the head of the Episcopal Commission for the
Social Pastoral (CEPS-Caritas), His Exc. Mgr. Gustavo Rodríguez Vega, Bishop of
Nuevo Laredo, said that "there are situations that require new attitudes and new
actions on our behalf, which cannot be postponed."(AP) (Agenzia Fides
ASIA : VIETNAM : PRAYERS TO MARY FOR PEACE
ASIA NEWS REPORT: by Trung
Tin
The country's 26 dioceses organise events that include songs, poetry readings, traditional dancing and floral offerings to Mary. Former students at Don Bosco schools organise small groups to pray and read the Bible.
Ho Chi Minh City (AsiaNews) - The Marian month, an
important time of the year in Vietnam, is being marked by prayers of peace for
families, Vietnamese society and the Church in China.
For the Marian month, Vietnam's 26 dioceses have organised ceremonies that include songs, poetry readings, traditional dances and flower offerings for Mary. In the Diocese of Saigon, at least 198 parishes have organised poetry readings and floral offerings (Dâng Hoa in Vietnamese) with the participation of children and young people.
The Catholic Church in Vietnam has also responded to Pope Benedict XVI's appeal to pray for the Church in China during the month of May. On 18 May 2007, the pontiff said, "all Catholics throughout the world have a duty to pray for the Church in China."
In Ho Chi Minh City, about 500 former students from Don Bosco schools organised prayers and Bible readings.
The celebrations also include taking a statue of Our Lady of Help for Christians from home to home, where it stays for one or two days, allowing residents to pray to her on behalf of Catholic families and for peace in today's Vietnamese society.
Prayers groups also come together, drawing members such as doctors, business people, teachers, public servants and workers.
"Our Lady is a 'bridge' that united us," Joseph Đỗ Văn Đức, a supervisor in a Japanese company, told AsiaNews. "By praying together we can create communion and help each other more".
"We organise floral offerings, read the rosary and pray to the Virgin in the month of May," members of the Thanh Đa Parish. "The Virgin Mother will certainly not forget our families. May she bless us and give our country peace."
Every month, some 10,000 Vietnamese, including some non-Catholics, take part in pilgrimages to Our Lady of Tapao, Phan Thiết diocese. However, Our Lady of La Vang draws even more pilgrims in need of help and support.
"I found myself facing many difficulties," said Teresa, from Thánh Linh Parish. "I face discrimination and lack of respect in the office where I work. Sometimes, I have endured harassment, but I keep my faith."
"Every day," she explained, "I go to the Redemptorists to pray to the Mother of Perpetual Help and feel peace in my heart. I have seen many non-Catholics come to pray with their families and children. The walls are full of ex-voto thanksgiving messages Mary."
The country's 26 dioceses organise events that include songs, poetry readings, traditional dancing and floral offerings to Mary. Former students at Don Bosco schools organise small groups to pray and read the Bible.
Ho Chi Minh City (AsiaNews) - The Marian month, an
important time of the year in Vietnam, is being marked by prayers of peace for
families, Vietnamese society and the Church in China. For the Marian month, Vietnam's 26 dioceses have organised ceremonies that include songs, poetry readings, traditional dances and flower offerings for Mary. In the Diocese of Saigon, at least 198 parishes have organised poetry readings and floral offerings (Dâng Hoa in Vietnamese) with the participation of children and young people.
The Catholic Church in Vietnam has also responded to Pope Benedict XVI's appeal to pray for the Church in China during the month of May. On 18 May 2007, the pontiff said, "all Catholics throughout the world have a duty to pray for the Church in China."
In Ho Chi Minh City, about 500 former students from Don Bosco schools organised prayers and Bible readings.
The celebrations also include taking a statue of Our Lady of Help for Christians from home to home, where it stays for one or two days, allowing residents to pray to her on behalf of Catholic families and for peace in today's Vietnamese society.
Prayers groups also come together, drawing members such as doctors, business people, teachers, public servants and workers.
"Our Lady is a 'bridge' that united us," Joseph Đỗ Văn Đức, a supervisor in a Japanese company, told AsiaNews. "By praying together we can create communion and help each other more".
"We organise floral offerings, read the rosary and pray to the Virgin in the month of May," members of the Thanh Đa Parish. "The Virgin Mother will certainly not forget our families. May she bless us and give our country peace."
Every month, some 10,000 Vietnamese, including some non-Catholics, take part in pilgrimages to Our Lady of Tapao, Phan Thiết diocese. However, Our Lady of La Vang draws even more pilgrims in need of help and support.
"I found myself facing many difficulties," said Teresa, from Thánh Linh Parish. "I face discrimination and lack of respect in the office where I work. Sometimes, I have endured harassment, but I keep my faith."
"Every day," she explained, "I go to the Redemptorists to pray to the Mother of Perpetual Help and feel peace in my heart. I have seen many non-Catholics come to pray with their families and children. The walls are full of ex-voto thanksgiving messages Mary."
TODAY'S MASS ONLINE : MON. MAY 14, 2012
| John 15:
9 - 17
| |
| 9 | As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you; abide in my love. |
| 10 | If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love. |
| 11 | These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full. |
| 12 | "This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. |
| 13 | Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. |
| 14 | You are my friends if you do what I command you. |
| 15 | No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you. |
| 16 | You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide; so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. |
| 17 | This I command you, to love one another. |
TODAY'S SAINT : MAY 14 : ST. MATTHIAS APOSTLE
St. Matthias
APOSTLE
Feast: May 14
 Information:
|
The Greek Matthias (or, in
some manuscripts, Maththias), is a name derived from Mattathias, Heb.
Mattithiah, signifying "gift of Yahweh." Matthias was one of the seventy
disciples of Jesus, and had been with Him from His baptism by John to the
Ascension (Acts i, 21, 22). It is related (Acts, i, 15-26) that in the days
following the Ascension, Peter proposed to the assembled brethren, who numbered
one hundred and twenty, that they choose one to fill the place of the traitor
Judas in the Apostolate. Two disciples, Joseph, called Barsabas, and Matthias
were selected, and lots were drawn, with the result in favour of Matthias, who
thus became associated with the eleven Apostles. Zeller has declared this
narrative unhistoric, on the plea that the Apostles were in Galilee after the
death of Jesus. As a matter of fact they did return to Galilee, but the Acts of
the Apostles clearly state that about the feast of Pentecost they went back to
Jerusalem. All further information concerning the life and death of Matthias is vague and contradictory. According to Nicephorus (Hist. eccl., 2, 40), he first preached the Gospel in Judea, then in Ethiopia (that is to say, Colchis) and was crucified. The Synopsis of Dorotheus contains this tradition: Matthias in interiore AEthiopia, ubi Hyssus maris portus et Phasis fluvius est, hominibus barbaris et carnivoris praedicavit Evangelium. Mortuus est autem in Sebastopoli, ibique prope templum Solis sepultus (Matthias preached the Gospel to barbarians and cannibals in the interior of Ethiopia, at the harbour of the sea of Hyssus, at the mouth of the river Phasis. He died at Sebastopolis, and was buried there, near the Temple of the Sun). Still another tradition maintains that Matthias was stoned at Jerusalem by the Jews, and then beheaded (cf. Tillemont, "Memoires pour servir a l'histoire eccl. des six premiers siècles", I, 406-7). It is said that St. Helena brought the relics of St. Matthias to Rome, and that a portion of them was at Trier. Bollandus (Acta SS., May, III) doubts if the relics that are in Rome are not rather those of the St. Matthias who was Bishop of Jerusalem about the year 120, and whose history would seem to have been confounded with that of the Apostle. The Latin Church celebrates the feast of St. Matthias on 24 February and the Greek Church on 9 August. Clement of Alexandria (Strom., III, 4) records a sentence that the Nicolaitans ascribe to Matthias: "we must combat our flesh, set no value upon it, and concede to it nothing that can flatter it, but rather increase the growth of our soul by faith and knowledge". This teaching was probably found in the Gospel of Matthias which was mentioned by Origen (Hom. i in Lucam); by Eusebius (Hist. eccl., III, 25), who attributes it to heretics; by St. Jerome (Praef. in Matth.), and in the Decree of Gelasius (VI, 8) which declares it apocryphal. It is at the end of the list of the Codex Barrocciamus (206). This Gospel is probably the document whence Clement of Alexandria quoted several passages, saying that they were borrowed from the traditions of Matthias, Paradoseis, the testimony of which he claimed to have been invoked by the heretics Valentinus, Marcion, and Basilides (Strom., VII, 17). According to the Philosophoumena, VII, 20, Basilides quoted apocryphal discourses, which he attributed to Matthias. These three writings: the gospel, the Traditions, and the Apocryphal Discourses were identified by Zahn (Gesch. des N. T. Kanon, II, 751), but Harnack (Chron. der altchrist. Litteratur, 597) denies this identification. Tischendorf ("Acta apostolorum apocrypha", Leipzig, l85I) published after Thilo, 1846, "Acta Andreae et Matthiae in urbe anthropophagarum ", which, according to Lipsius, belonged to the middle of the second century. This apocrypha relates that Matthias went among the cannibals and, being cast into prison, was delivered by Andrew. Needless to say, the entire narrative is without historical value. Moreover, it should be remembered that, in the apocryphal writings, Matthew and Matthias have sometimes been confounded. |
source: http://www.ewtn.com/saintsHoly/saints/M/stmatthias.asp#ixzz1upbuGz2s
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