The Vatican

"Love cannot be reduced to selfies or text messages," pope says

Today, Sunday, February 11, 2024, the Pope prayed the Angelus before the faithful and offered a brief reflection on the Gospel. In addition, this morning the canonization of Mama Antula, the first Argentinean saint, was celebrated.

Loreto Rios-February 11, 2024-Reading time: 2 minutes
RelatedRelated NewsMama Antula, the first 100% Argentinean saint

Today, the feast of Our Lady of Lourdes and the canonization of the new Argentinean saint, Mama Antula, the Pope began his reflection on the Gospel by pointing out that the promptness with which Jesus responds to the words of the leper shows us "the style of Jesus with those who suffer: few words and concrete deeds".

"He always does it this way: he speaks little and words are followed by deeds: he bows, holds hands, he heals. He does not dwell on speeches or interrogations, much less on pietisms and sentimentality. Rather, he shows the delicacy of one who listens attentively and acts solicitously, preferably without drawing attention to himself," Francis explained.

The Holy Father then stressed the importance of loving in a concrete way: "Love needs concreteness, love needs presence, love needs an encounter, it needs time and space: it cannot be reduced to pretty words, images on a screen, selfies or hurried text messages. They are useful tools, they can help, but they are not enough to love. They cannot replace concrete presence".

Canonization of Mama Antula

After the Angelus, the Pope recalled that the canonization of Mama Antula was celebrated today and asked for a round of applause for the new saint.

In addition, today is the feast of Our Lady of Lourdes and the World Day of the Sick. "The first thing we need when we are sick is the closeness of our loved ones, of healthcare personnel and, in our hearts, the closeness of God. We are all called to be close to those who suffer, to visit the sick, as Jesus teaches us in the Gospel," Francis explained.

The Pope also recalled the wars in Ukraine, Palestine, Israel and Myanmar and concluded by asking the faithful not to forget to pray for him.

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Evangelization

Lourdes and its pilgrims: Order of Malta, Provencals and bikers.

Lourdes receives thousands of pilgrimages every year, and some of them are characterized by being really picturesque. Some of the most significant are those of the Order of Malta, the Provençals, the Swiss Guards or the bikers.

Xavier Michaux-February 11, 2024-Reading time: 3 minutes
RelatedRelated NewsFerrero Rocher, the chocolate inspired by the Virgin of LourdesRelated NewsLourdes: Mary's visit, source of grace

Arriving at the LourdesThe 19th century and its neo-gothic art are everywhere. It is not the only picturesque thing you can see in this place. The platform receives people from all over the world: almost 3 million pilgrims a year who express their faith in a different way.

Pilgrims to Lourdes

The Irish, blond or red-haired, white or reddish complexioned, strong and happy, usually fill Lourdes at the beginning of August with its more than 5000 pilgrims. And the Celtic songs, full of longing and confidence, resound in the grotto with rustic piety.

On August 15, and in October, it is the French who are most often seen in Lourdes, as a reminder of a time when the Virgin was the Patron Saint of the country, which loved her and worshipped her publicly. The State has changed, but not the French, who continue to pray to her in a special way on August 15.

At this time the elegant collaborators of the Order of Malta arrive, and then comes the popular pilgrimage of the Assumptionists, who have many magazines, radio broadcasts and web pages to transmit the faith. In October, the Dominicans make the Rosary pilgrimage. With their black and white habits, they carry the heritage of the preachers of the contemplated truth, and fill the sanctuary with thousands of pilgrims.

It is also during this month that the Provencals arrive in Lourdes with their white horses typical of the Rhone, and their colorful and elegant costumes (les Gardians and les Arlésiennes). It is the only procession that admits horses in the sanctuary and gathers up to 7000 pilgrims. Its language shares characteristics with three languages born from Latin: French, Spanish and Italian, and also has similarities with Catalan.

Winter is not usually a good time for mass processions. But the French dioceses bring, one after the other, their sick to the cave, so that God may help them to bear their illness with courage and, if he wills, through Mary, heal them. The priests testify that the most resounding miracles are not physical (only 70 have been officially declared miraculous), but spiritual; for there are many who confess and convert.

Spring Pilgrimages

In spring, there is again an influx of pilgrims from all over the world. At this time the pilgrimage of the military takes place, with their uniforms and flags of all countries. There is no lack of the peculiar Swiss Vatican guards, with their uniforms of the XVI century, and all pray for peace, to which they dedicate all their capacities of courageous dedication. Then come the gypsies, who fill the esplanades of the sanctuary with music and the streets of Lourdes with conversation.

In the meantime, pilgrimages from Italian dioceses, with their hospitable laywomen but elegantly dressed as nuns, continue to take place. After the French, the Italians are the most frequent visitors to the sanctuary of Lourdes. In third place are the Spaniards, who have to cross the natural barrier of the Pyrenees. In total, almost 80 nationalities officially pass through the sanctuary of Lourdes. There are up to 5 official languages at the sanctuary to welcome all these people (French, Spanish, Italian, English and Dutch).

Themed pilgrimages

There are also curious pilgrimages, because they are formed around a hobby or professional theme. Bikers usually gather once a year in Lourdes, and are easily recognizable by their leather jackets, sunglasses and tattoos.

There is also a pilgrimage of French cooks, who, not without reason, often ask God for inspiration in their cooking. In addition, there are the pilgrimages of thousands of children and young scouts. They fill the meadows of the shrine with joy, praying and learning to serve. The scouts are often recognizable by their uniforms, but you know where they are, above all, because they sing - at all times of the day and night!

Finally, the pilgrims who come to Lourdes are usually very varied in their origins, culture and piety, but the Virgin Mary usually takes care of each one as she should, because they come back every year!

This is what happens in some places where Heaven has touched the earth, and thanks to them one can experience the family of God, the Church of Our Lord Jesus.

The authorXavier Michaux

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Culture

Lourdes: Mary's visit, source of grace

The feast of Our Lady of Lourdes is celebrated on February 11. The history of the sanctuary began in the 19th century when little Bernadette Soubirous was visited by the Virgin Mary.

Loreto Rios-February 11, 2024-Reading time: 7 minutes
RelatedRelated NewsFerrero Rocher, the chocolate inspired by the Virgin of LourdesRelated NewsLourdes and its pilgrims: Order of Malta, Provencals and bikers.

In 1858, the Virgin Mary appeared to Bernadette Soubirous in Lourdes. Since then, millions of pilgrims have flocked to the shrine to pray, reconcile with God and bathe in the spring water. Here are some of the key points of the history of the sanctuary.

Bernadette's childhood

Bernadette was born on January 7, 1844 in the Boly mill in Lourdes. In 1854, the family began to face difficulties due to bad harvests. In addition, there was a cholera epidemic. Bernadette contracted it and carried the after-effects throughout her life.

The economic crisis led to the family's eviction. Thanks to a relative, they were able to move into a 5×4 meter room, a dungeon in a former prison that was no longer used due to unsanitary conditions.

Bernadette could neither read nor write. Because of her family's poverty, she began working as a maid at a very young age, in addition to taking care of household chores and her younger siblings. Eventually, she and one of her sisters began collecting and selling scrap metal, paper, cardboard and firewood. Bernadette did this even though her health was very fragile due to asthma and the after-effects of cholera.

The first appearance

It was on one of these occasions, when Bernadette, her sister and a friend went out of town to get firewood, that the first apparition took place. It was February 11, 1858, and Bernadette was 14 years old (all the apparitions took place in this year, making a total of eighteen). The place they were going to was the grotto of Massabielle.

The girl later recounted that she heard a rustling wind: "Behind the branches, inside the opening, I saw at once a young girl all white, no taller than me, who greeted me with a slight nod of her head," she later said. "From her right arm hung a rosary. I was afraid and I stepped back [...] However, it was not a fear like the one I had felt at other times, because I would have always looked at her ('aquéro'), and when you are afraid you run away immediately. Then the idea of praying came to me. [I prayed with my rosary. The young woman slipped the beads of hers, but did not move her lips. [...] When I had finished the rosary, she greeted me with a smile. She withdrew into the hollow and suddenly disappeared" (the textual words of Bernadette and Our Lady are taken from the website of the Hospitality of Our Lady of Lourdes and from the official website of the sanctuary).

Our Lady's Invitation

The second apparition, which took place on February 14, was also silent. The girl sprinkled the Virgin with holy water, the Virgin smiled and bowed her head, and when Bernadette finished praying the rosary, she disappeared. Bernadette told her parents at home what was happening to her and they forbade her to return to the grotto. However, an acquaintance of the family convinced them to let the girl return, but accompanied, and with paper and a pen so that the unknown woman could write her name. Thus, Bernadette returned to the grotto, and the third apparition took place. At the request to write her name, the woman smiled and invited Bernadette with a gesture to enter the grotto. "What I have to say need not be written down," she said. She added: "Would you do me the favor of coming here for a fortnight?". Later, Bernadette would say that it was the first time someone had called her "you". "He looked at me like a person looks at another person," she said explaining her experience. These words of the little girl are currently written at the entrance of the Cenacle of Lourdes, a place of rehabilitation for people with different addictions, especially drug addictions.

Bernadette accepted the invitation, and Our Lady added: "I do not promise you the happiness of this world, but that of the next. Between February 19 and 23, four more apparitions took place. In the meantime, the news had been spreading and many people accompanied Bernadette to the grotto of Massabielle. After the sixth apparition, the girl was interrogated by Inspector Jacomet.

The spring

The first appearances, seven in all, were happy ones for Bernadette. During the five subsequent ones, which took place between February 24 and March 1, the girl seemed sad. Our Lady asked her to pray and do penance for sinners. Bernadette prays on her knees and sometimes walks around the cave in that posture. She also eats grass at the direction of the lady, who tells her: "Go and drink and wash in the fountain".

In response to this request, Bernadette goes three times to the river. But the Virgin tells her to return and points out the place where she must dig to find the spring to which she refers.

The girl obeys and indeed discovers water, from which she drinks and with which she washes herself, although, being mixed with mud, she gets her face dirty. People tell her that she is crazy for doing these things, to which the girl replies: "It is for sinners". During the twelfth apparition, the first miracle took place: at night, a woman washed her arm, paralyzed for two years due to a dislocation, in the spring and regained mobility.

Immaculate Conception

In the apparition of March 2, Our Lady entrusted her with a task: to ask the priests to build a chapel in that place and to go there in procession. In obedience to this command, Bernadette went directly to the parish priest. The priest does not receive her very warmly and tells her that, before granting her request, the mysterious woman must reveal her name. Bernadette would never say that she had seen the Virgin, since the woman she was talking to had not told her her name.

On March 25, the girl went to the grotto at dawn, accompanied by her aunts. After praying a mystery of the rosary, the woman appears and Bernadette asks her to tell her name. The girl asks her name three times. On the fourth time, the woman replied: "I am the Immaculate Conception". The Virgin never spoke to the girl in French, but in Bernadette's native dialect, and in this language are written the words under the carving of the Virgin of Lourdes that is currently placed in the grotto: "Que soy era Immaculada Concepciou" (I am the Immaculate Conception).

This term, which refers to the fact that Mary was conceived without original sin, was unknown to Bernadette, and had been proclaimed a dogma of faith only four years earlier by Pope Pius IX.

Recognition of apparitions

Bernadette went to the parish house to give an account of what had been transmitted to her. The priest was surprised to hear that term on the girl's lips, and she explained that she had come all the way repeating the words so as not to forget them. Finally, on July 16, the last apparition took place.

The Church officially recognized the apparitions of Our Lady of Lourdes in 1862, only four years after they concluded, and while Bernadette was still alive.

After the apparitions, she entered the community of the Sisters of Charity of Nevers as a novice in 1866. She died of tuberculosis in 1879, and was canonized by Pope Pius XI in 1933, on December 8, the feast of the Immaculate Conception.

Sanctuary sites

The sanctuary has some key places to visit on any pilgrimage.

The grotto

– Supernatural Massabielle grotto is one of the most important places of the sanctuary. Mass is currently celebrated in the largest part of it. Located in the place on the rock where Mary appeared, there is a figure of the Virgin that was made from Bernadette's description: "She was wearing a white dress, which came down to her feet, of which only the tip was visible. The dress was closed at the top, around the neck. A white veil, which covered her head, descended down her shoulders and arms until it reached the floor. On each foot I saw that she had a yellow rose. The sash of her dress was blue and fell to just below her knees. The chain of the rosary was yellow, the beads white, thick and very far apart from each other". The figure is almost two meters high and was placed in the grotto on April 4, 1864. The sculptor was Joseph Fabisch, a professor at the Lyon School of Fine Arts. The place where the girl stood during the apparitions is indicated on the floor.

The water of Lourdes

The spring that nourishes the fountains of Lourdes and the pools springs from the Massabielle grotto, and it is the one that was discovered by Bernadette at the indication of the Virgin. The water has been analyzed on numerous occasions and contains nothing different from the waters of other places.

The tradition of bathing in the pools of Lourdes stems from the ninth apparition, which took place on February 25, 1858. It was on that occasion that Our Lady told Bernadette to drink and wash in the spring. In the following days, many people imitated her and the first miracles took place, which have continued to this day (the last one approved by the Church dates from 2018).

The water from the spring is also used to fill the marble pools, located near the grotto, where pilgrims immerse themselves. The immersion, during which one is covered by a towel, is done with the help of volunteers from the Hospitality of Our Lady of Lourdes.

In winter, or in pandemic season, full immersion is not possible. Access to the water and bathing are completely free. Many people also choose to take a bottle filled with water from the Lourdes spring, which is easily accessible at the fountains next to the grotto.

In total there are 17 pools, eleven for women and six for men. They are used by approximately 350,000 pilgrims a year.

Places where Bernadette lived

In addition to the sanctuary, in Lourdes you can visit the places where Bernadette was: Boly mill, where she was born; the local parish, which still preserves the baptismal font in which she was baptized; the hospice of the Sisters of Charity of Nevers, where she made her first communion; the old parish house, where she spoke with Abbot Peyramale; the "dungeon" where she lived with her family after the eviction; Bartrès, where she resided as a child and in 1857; or Moulin Lacadè, where her parents lived after the apparitions.

Processions

A very important event of the sanctuary of Lourdes is the Eucharistic procession, which has been held since 1874. It takes place from April to October every day at five o'clock in the afternoon. It begins in the meadow of the sanctuary and concludes at the Basilica of St. Pius X.

Also relevant is the torchlight procession. This has been celebrated since 1872, from April to October, every day at 9:00 p.m. The custom arose from the fact that Bernadette often went to the apparitions with a candle. The custom arose from the fact that Bernadette often went to the apparitions with a candle.

After the apparitions, three basilicas were built in the area. The first was the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, which Pope Pius IX made a minor basilica on March 13, 1874. Its stained glass windows depict both the apparitions and the dogma of the Immaculate Conception.

There is also the basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary, in Romanesque-Byzantine style. The basilica contains 15 mosaics depicting the mysteries of the rosary. The crypt, which was the chapel built at the request of the Virgin, was inaugurated in 1866 by Monsignor Laurence, Bishop of Tarbes, in a ceremony at which Bernadette was present. It is located between the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception and the Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary.

There is also the Basilica of St. Pius X, a subway church of reinforced concrete built for the centenary of the apparitions in 1958.

Finally, there is the church of St. Bernadette, built on the site where the girl saw the last apparition, on the other side of the Gave River, since she could not enter the grotto that day because it had been fenced off. The church was inaugurated more than a century later, in 1988.

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ColumnistsMontserrat Gas Aixendri

Educating the heart

The worrying figure of access to pornography among minors cannot be tackled only from a normative perspective: training in affectivity in the family is necessary.

February 10, 2024-Reading time: 2 minutes

A few days ago I read with interest the news about the approval of a law for the comprehensive protection of minors on the Internet.

One of the objectives being pursued is to limit access to the pornography by minors. Specifically, we are working on the development of a pilot age verification system for access to adult content web pages.

According to the studies of expert organizations7 out of 10 adolescents consume pornography regularly in Spain, and 53.8% of young people between the ages of 12 and 15 say they have seen pornography for the first time between the ages of 6 and 12.

It is also known that early access to this type of content has serious consequences: distortion of the perception of sexuality, development of inappropriate and violent behaviors, impact on the way in which they establish intimate relationships, etc. In addition, it is known that there is a serious risk of addiction.

However, limiting access to this content without educating the heart is simply patching it up.

The educational model in this area, at least in public schools, advocates a liberal vision of sexuality, detached from any ethical criteria: it promotes from an early age decontextualized information, teaches young people to let themselves be carried away by their impulses, encourages a sexuality of amusement, which does not prepare them to love.

Reality itself, such as the recent cases of rape, increasingly reveals the consequences of not addressing this issue correctly. We expect heroic behavior from young people, for which we are not training them.

The public authorities seem lost in ideology, and do not know -or do not want- to see reality. They think that aggressions will be avoided by prohibiting behaviors or toughening punishments, when in reality, if we do not educate the heart, if we do not teach young people to love, little will be achieved.

You learn to love by loving. And we learn best from those who love us unconditionally. That is why the role of the family in the formation of affectivity is decisive. Not only by explaining the contents, but mainly through the model they offer their sons and daughters with their own affective style.

If parents and schools do not fulfill this function, they are leaving the way open to the search for information on the Internet, social networks or peers.

The authorMontserrat Gas Aixendri

Professor at the Faculty of Law of the International University of Catalonia and director of the Institute for Advanced Family Studies. She directs the Chair on Intergenerational Solidarity in the Family (IsFamily Santander Chair) and the Childcare and Family Policies Chair of the Joaquim Molins Figueras Foundation. She is also Vice-Dean of the Faculty of Law at UIC Barcelona.

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The World

Mama Antula, an Argentinean saint for the universal Church

On February 11, Pope Francis canonized the first Argentinean saint, Mama Antula, an 18th century nun who dedicated herself to evangelizing through the spiritual exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola.

Marcelo Barrionuevo-February 10, 2024-Reading time: 4 minutes
RelatedRelated NewsMama Antula, the first 100% Argentinean saint

On February 11, the feast day of Our Lady of Lourdes, the Holy Father Francis will canonize one of the most famous women in the world. woman born in a place far away from the port of Buenos AiresSantiago de Estero, the first diocese of Argentina.

Thus, a Jesuit Pope will canonize a woman who made the Ignatian spirit her path to holiness. Like Cura Brochero, a holy priest from the Cordoba mountains of Argentina, "Mama Antula" made the Spiritual Exercises the way to encounter God, working tirelessly to evangelize from the experience of seeking and finding the will of God as taught by the saint from Loyola.

Historical and religious researchers assured, in dialogue with the media covering the canonization, that María Antonia de Paz y Figueroa tried to "reach out to all the needy, summoning all social classes" and described her work as one of the "strongest expressions of popular evangelization in the country".

Born in 1730 in Santiago del Estero, Mama Antula was a descendant of a prominent family who began her religious practice by approaching the Jesuits "with a free and spontaneous decision that sprang from love as a result of her Christian vocation," according to historian Graciela Ojeda de Río, who since 1980 has been dedicated to spreading the life of this Blessed.

"She is a woman of faith, lay, committed to the church. Like the first blessed women in history, very cultured, who read, educated themselves and served society without looking at whom, and tried to reach all those in need, calling on all social classes," said the historian.

After a process that began in 1767, the Jesuits were expelled from the region. However, Mama Antula continued her preaching in several provinces of the country, in a journey that required her to walk more than 5,000 kilometers.

We can never forget the historical and geographical context of each saint. Mama Antula began her work in an inhospitable reality, lacking in means and with the sole conviction that her faith and her awareness of the mission she had received gave her. She did not become bourgeois in her life, but "went out to the peripheries of her time" to bring God closer to all the men and women of her time.

Mama Antula's preaching

He began his preaching at the age of 49 years and "she walked thousands of kilometers through fields, hamlets and cities, villages and suburbs looking for hearts," says Aldo Marcos de Castro Paz, member of the Board of Ecclesiastical History of Argentina, who wrote the documentary portrait of the Blessed. "Her work is one of the strongest expressions of popular evangelization in our country. In a time that was ruled by the honors of lineage, etiquette, inheritances and hierarchies, she managed that both men and women attended the same retreats, that everyone ate the same bread," adds de Castro Paz.

Likewise, this expert on the saint comments that "she helped the native communities to build their own sense of national identity", at the same time that "she promoted the dignity of work", by instructing women in labor and men in the construction of their own homes.

In Mama Antula we see a foretaste of the protagonism of women in society and in the Church. With her feminine genius, as St. John Paul II used to say, women sustain the values and traditions of the people. We must not forget that Mama Antula takes that "determined determination" of which St. Ignatius speaks after the Jesuits were expelled. In the Church it is women who sustain the faith and traditions.

A woman of prayer

Mama Antula is canonized in the framework of the "Year of Prayer" that the Pope initiated in January 2024. Her great apostolate through the Spiritual Exercises constitutes her effective way of evangelization. The Exercises, even in very simple people, are a close experience with God himself. He never ceased to work for men and women to meet the merciful Father.

With her arrival in Buenos Aires in 1779, the construction of the Holy House of Spiritual Exercises was one of the main objectives of the Blessed. Cintia Suárez, researcher of the saint, points out that she managed to build it on donated land and with funds from alms from the faithful.

"She wanted to help, to serve a deprived and forgotten sector of society, but not as a nun. In fact, she did not take a vow of obedience, she did take a vow of chastity and poverty, but not of obedience in any order," Suarez explains.

The spiritual exercises consist of meditations that include silence, readings and talks with a priest.

"This is because the Jesuits were certain that God worked in a personal way with each person, and that men and women had the possibility of communicating directly with him through their spirit and intellect," says Ojeda de Río, who is in charge of the guided tours of the Holy House of Spiritual Exercises.

Committed to its people

Mama Antula "was a pioneer in the defense of human rights. because he mobilized in favor of the people, the Indians, the mulattos, at a time when social classes did not mix and the slave did not walk down the main street," says historian Suarez.

She also refers to the orphans that the Blessed took in, to whom she gave the surname "St. Joseph", the same name she took when she began her ecclesiastical career. "She managed to make retreats for those people who in civil life were separated by the caste system: skin color, different trades, functions and dignities of the American 18th century".

The saints have always been witnesses to the principle of the Incarnation: they knew how to unite the presence of God with the dignification of the human and to take the human as mediation to the divine.

May this Argentinean saint be an instrument to value more the feminine presence in the Church, in history and in the world.

The authorMarcelo Barrionuevo

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  • Dicastery for the Clergy holds a congress for the formation of priests
Vocations

Dicastery for the Clergy holds a congress for the formation of priests

From February 6 to 10, the International Congress for the Ongoing Formation of Priests will be held under the theme "Rekindling the gift of God that is in you".

Giovanni Tridente-February 9, 2024-Reading time: 3 minutes
RelatedRelated NewsCarlos Chiclana: "Priests must take care of themselves in order to take care of others".

Throughout this week, and until Saturday, February 10, at the Auditorium della Conciliazione, just a few steps from St. Peter's Basilica, is being held a congress The International Conference on the Ongoing Formation of Priests, promoted by the Dicastery for the Clergy in collaboration with the Dicastery for Evangelization and the Oriental Churches.

Among the themes at the center of the reflection is the rediscovery of the "beauty of being disciples today" and the need for a "unique, integral, communitarian and missionary formation", as also foreseen in the "Ratio Fundamentalis", the document of the same Dicastery for the Clergy on the priestly vocation.

Urgent issues

Among the questions raised by the participants are how the "change of era" affects the mission of the priest, taking into account the different geographical and cultural contexts, but also how to integrate one's own ministry within a Church that wants to be synodal and missionary. Other aspects referred to the importance of integral formation (what challenges and urgent steps need to be taken in this field), overcoming loneliness and individualism, and the new pastoral challenges.

Conversation in the Spirit

The conference activities are interspersed with the dynamic of discernment now known as Conversation in the Spirit, adopted at the last Synod of Bishops, which involves personal preparation, a time of silence and prayer, taking turns speaking and listening, a subsequent time of prayer and then sharing from what others have said, before community dialogue and a final prayer of thanksgiving.

The meeting of priests with the Pope

On Thursday, the participants, accompanied by the superiors of the Dicasteries involved, were received in audience by the Pope Francis in the Paul VI Hall. The Pontiff first encouraged priests to share good practices, to face the challenges of the times and to focus on the future of priestly formation.

He then indicated three ways to rekindle the gift of the priestly vocation. First of all, as he has suggested in recent days also to consecrated persons, the Pope stressed the need to live and transmit the "joy of the Gospel," recalling that at the center of the Christian life is friendship with the Lord, which frees from the sadness of individualism, and makes one become a witness rather than a teacher.

For the Pontiff, it is therefore necessary to cultivate "belonging to the people of God," the priestly people, by whom one feels guarded and sustained. This is why formation, which ultimately involves every baptized person, is important. Finally, we must aspire to a service that is generative, centered on the beauty and goodness that each person carries within.

Seminar trainers

Continuing with these themes, the University of the Holy Cross hosted last week a long program of studies promoted for the eighth year by the Center for Priestly Formation, dedicated this time to deepening pastoral themes. About fifty priests, seminary formators from various countries participated in the program. Bishop Fortunatus Nwachukwu, Secretary of the Dicastery for Evangelization, opened the session, focusing on the "pastoral conversion of the Church".

Carlo Bresciani, Bishop of San Benedetto del Tronto, in the Italian region of the Marche, spoke on the "human perfume of the pastor"; and Giuseppe Forlai, spiritual director of the Pontifical Major Seminary of Rome, on "spiritual paternity". They then reflected on "preaching and the homily", on "evangelization through networks" and on the "ministry of confession and spiritual accompaniment". The week concluded with a conference by the Patriarch of Venice, Msgr. Francesco Moraglia, on how to integrate spiritual life and mission.

The authorGiovanni Tridente

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  • Christoph OhlyRatzinger is one of the greatest theologians in the history of the Church".
Resources

Christoph OhlyRatzinger is one of the greatest theologians in the history of the Church".

Christoph Ohly, professor of Canon Law and rector of the Catholic Theological University of Cologne, is the president of the New Circle of Disciples of Joseph Ratzinger. In this interview, he talks about the origin of this association and the thought of Benedict XVI.

Fritz Brunthaler-February 9, 2024-Reading time: 10 minutes
RelatedRelated News"Ratzinger's theology is symphonic," says Pablo Blanco

Joseph Ratzinger -later the Pope Benedict XVI- is one of the most important theologians of the 20th and 21st centuries. He was primarily a specialist in Fundamental Theology and taught for decades at various universities in Germany: Bonn, Münster, Tübingen and Regensburg. Because of his erudition, his theological breadth and depth and, at the same time, because of his priestly lifestyle and his personal modesty, a circle of students, doctoral students and post-doctoral students gathered around him: the "Joseph Ratzinger Disciples' Circle". From 1978 onwards, they met regularly with their revered teacher. Even after his election as Pope, these meetings continued at Castel Gandolfo.

At the request of Pope Benedict himself, young theologians have been meeting since 2008 to try to research his work and - as can be read on the website of the "new" circle of disciples - have committed themselves to continue his theological approach. Christoph Ohly, professor of Canon Law and rector of the Catholic Theological University of Cologne, is the president of this new circle of disciples of Joseph Ratzinger. We asked Professor Ohly about the background and specific goals of the old and new circle of disciples.

How did the first circle of disciples come about, was it rather an initiative of Professor Ratzinger, or was it a spontaneous meeting of the students with their teacher?

It is well known that the then Professor Ratzinger accompanied numerous theologians on their way to a doctorate or habilitation at their various places of work. In addition to personal conversations, the professor's work also included colloquia with doctoral and postdoctoral students, in which topics of theology and philosophy were repeatedly discussed, often with the participation of renowned Catholic, Protestant and Orthodox theologians of the time.

When Joseph Ratzinger became Archbishop of Munich and Freising in 1977, the idea arose to continue this format of academic work and personal meetings at regular intervals, as far as possible. This idea gave rise to the meetings of the so-called "Schülerkreis" ("Circle of Disciples"), which brought together doctoral and post-doctoral students who had studied and written their dissertations with Professor Ratzinger. If I understood the students' stories correctly, it was about both: the students' concern for their academic teacher and the professor's initiative to meet for a scientific and human exchange.

Have you experienced this type of meeting, and can you describe the atmosphere in more detail? University-style, formal, or more spontaneous and informal?

No, I did not experience these meetings of the circle of disciples, as I belong to a younger generation, which was invited to the meeting days at Castel Gandolfo for the first time in 2008, at the initiative of Pope Benedict XVI and with the approval of the circle of disciples. However, I know from the different stories told by the students of the group that both characteristics combined well in these meetings. They were days of theological exchange in conferences and debates, but also days of human, personal encounters. And, from what they tell, these meetings were supported by a characteristic spiritual framework, especially in the joint celebration of the Holy Mass and the Liturgy of the Hours.

The New Circle of Disciples no longer includes doctoral students, but theologians who are engaged in researching Ratzinger's work. How has the nature of the meetings changed since 2008?

When Benedict XVI celebrated his 80th birthday in 2007, some former assistants of the Faculty of Catholic Theology at the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich published a book entitled "Symphony of Faith" to commemorate the occasion. In it we have been able to bring together approaches to Ratzinger's theological thought from the perspective of various theological disciplines.

Pope Benedict also received this book and made it - along with other publications on the occasion of his birthday - the reason for inviting representatives of this young generation of theologians to the annual meeting of the Circle of Disciples, which has been held at Castel Gandolfo since Ratzinger was elected to the Chair of Peter. From the beginning, this circle, which was initially called the "Circle of Young Disciples", but was later correctly renamed the "Joseph Ratzinger / Pope Benedict XVI New Disciples Circle", consisted of Catholic and Orthodox theologians, as well as representatives of other disciplines such as philosophy or political science, but all of them had in their work a specific connection to the theological thought of Joseph Ratzinger. Initially, both circles met on their own. This was also the case in the early years.

In the meantime, they exchanged views on their respective works, and on Sunday the program included the joint celebration of a Mass with Pope Benedict and a brief meeting with him. Over the years many friendships have arisen from these meetings and discussions, and the two circles have been able to grow well together, with their different origins and characteristics. To strengthen the prospects for future work, the New Circle of Disciples adopted in 2017 the juridical form of a registered association at the request of Pope Benedict. While the Circle of Disciples retained a rather loose structure, the New Circle of Disciples deliberately endowed itself with a juridical form, which will provide a good space for academic collaboration and personal encounters for future generations.

How would you describe the interaction between the two groups of students?

As I have already mentioned, interaction has intensified over the years thanks to the personal relationships that develop outside of meetings. I would like to give just one example. Since 2019 we have also been organizing every year, on the occasion of the days of meetings in Rome, a public symposium with which we want to shed light on the theological thought of Joseph Ratzinger in relation to the theme of the day, with various lectures and discussions and, at the same time, making it accessible to many interested parties.

In recent years, we have been able to devote ourselves to important topics related to the theological thought of Pope Benedict: the meaning and mission of the ministry in the Church, the fundamental question of God, the message of the redemption of man in Jesus Christ and the relationship between the binding truth of the faith and a possible further development of the Church's doctrine. The result was a series of lecture volumes containing all the lectures and sermons, which were published in the Ratzinger-Studien of the Regensburg publishing house Pustet-Verlag and are therefore available for anyone who wishes to read them. These particular publications are a good example of the cooperation between the two student groups.

Sacred Scripture, exegesis, Church Fathers, Church, liturgy, ecumenism are the hallmarks of Ratzinger's theology. Is it possible to choose, among so many, one key point?

Indeed, that is difficult, given that the New Circle of Disciples is currently composed of almost 40 members who address in a very diverse way the major and minor themes of Joseph Ratzinger's theological thought. It can be affirmed that themes such as Sacred Scripture and its exegesis in the light of the unity of the Old and New Testaments, the reunion with the Fathers of the Church and the history of theology in general, and other fundamental themes related to various theological thematic areas, are always touched upon, since they are fundamental and set a trend.

Because of my personal specialization in canon law, I am naturally interested in all those topics that have to do with questions of law. From a spiritual point of view, the books of Jesus or the sermon volumes of the Gesammelte Schriften (JRGS) series can and should also be mentioned, which also offer an incomparable source of inspiration and impetus in the field of preaching and spiritual life.

The "Open Reason Award" refers to "open reason" as promoted by Ratzinger. Is this "open reason" reflected in the fact that his students did not belong to a particular school?

It is well known that Joseph Ratzinger never wanted to found a "school of his own," if you will. And if one looks at the circle of his doctoral and postdoctoral students with this in mind, one comes to the conclusion that it is not a uniform "school." The characters and theological research specialties of its students are too different for that. However, it can be said that one can identify again and again the basic approaches of its theological thinking, which the New Circle of Disciples later formulated in its statutes as the goals and convictions of its own theological work.

These include the fundamental importance of Sacred Scripture, with its unity between the Old and New Testaments; the connection between historical-critical exegesis and theological interpretation of Scripture; the importance of the Church Fathers for theology; the indispensable rootedness of theology and theologians in the life of the Church; the importance of the liturgy for theology; or the ecumenical orientation, both towards the Orthodox and the Reformation communities.

Various writings and statements by Ratzinger show that, for him, faith is Jesus Christ Himself or the encounter with Him. Was this also manifested in his practical, everyday life?

The last words pronounced by Pope Benedict XVI on his deathbed are still alive in our hearts as words of prayer and confession of Christ: "Signore, ti amo" ("Lord, I love you!"). They immediately remind us of the words of Peter, who, when Jesus asked him three times if he loved him, finally replied: "Lord, you know everything, you know that I love you" (Jn 21:17). This "final chord" of his earthly life points to the center of his life, which was not, as he formulated at the beginning of his encyclical "Deus caritas est," an idea or a construction, but a person, the encounter with the person of Jesus Christ, whom the Church knows as true God and true man.

On the occasion of Benedict XVI's 65th anniversary as a priest, Pope Francis aptly expressed this Christological core present in the life and work of his predecessor: "This is the tone that dominates a whole life immersed in priestly service and in the service of true theology, which you defined, not by chance, as 'the search for the Beloved'. This is what you have always witnessed and still witness today: that the decisive thing of our days [...], that with which everything else comes alone, lies in the fact that the Lord is truly present, that we long for him, that we are inwardly close to him, that we love him, that we really believe in him deeply and truly love him in faith.

It is this true love that truly fills our hearts, it is this faith that allows us to walk safely and calmly on the waters, even in the midst of the storm, as happened to Peter. It is this love and this faith that allows us to look to the future not with fear or nostalgia, but with joy, even in the already advanced years of our life" (June 28, 2016).

The conferences and publications of the disciples' circles are a means of achieving the association's objectives. Is there a resonance in research at universities?

To illustrate your question, I would like to give just one example of the many possible publication formats of the members of the two circles of disciples. Since we organized a public symposium on the topic of encounter within the framework of the annual conferences in Rome, we have published the lectures, statements and sermons of these conferences as conference proceedings in the series "Ratzinger-Studien" published by Pustet-Verlag in Regensburg.

Since 2019, these publications have aroused lively interest and have been welcomed both in personal readings and in reviews and discussions. We are grateful that this instrument - among others - also contributes to making Joseph Ratzinger's theological thought accessible in the light of topical issues and thus also to making it known. The countless positive responses we have received motivate us to continue to do so in the years to come and, in this way, to offer important support to the theology and faith that Pope Benedict XVI served throughout his life.

The website of the New Circle of Disciples lists German as the main language of the site. Has the Circle of Disciples succeeded in perpetuating the Pope's theological legacy beyond Germany??

In short, these are two sides of the same coin. On the one hand, we assume that a member of the New Circle of Disciples is fluent in German in order to be able to read Joseph Ratzinger in the original language and discuss theologically. It is important to read and understand an author in his native language. This also applies to the writings of the Church Fathers, and to great figures in theology and philosophy in the history of the Church up to the Modern Age. Translations are always also interpretations. It is therefore necessary to be able to empathize with the peculiarities of a language and its expressive possibilities.

On the other hand, in the New Circle of Disciples we also have many members who are not native German speakers, but come from other linguistic areas. Also very important for us is the international, one could say global, dimension of the Church, which has strongly characterized the person of Joseph Ratzinger. Through these members, we also have the opportunity to have an impact in other linguistic areas. For example, we are now broadcasting the Rome symposium live in English and Spanish with simultaneous translation to have an impact in two important linguistic areas of the world and of the Church.

Ratzinger said that, like other professors, he would have liked to write a complete work at the end of his academic career. This was not possible for him. Will you be able to compensate to some extent with your research and publications?

When it comes to this type of project, the first and most important thing is humility. We are well aware that in Joseph Ratzinger we are dealing with one of the greatest theologians and ecclesiastical figures in the recent history of the Church, who far surpasses us in our thinking. It would be arrogant to pretend that we could write such a complete work in his name and based on his thought. No, I believe that Benedict XVI was not interested in writing a complete work of any kind - apart from the three-volume book of Jesus, which was always one of his main concerns and for which he took advantage of every free moment and the energy available to him during his pontificate.

Rather, his innumerable publications open up before me like the small and large building blocks of a mosaic, which together form a whole picture. Our work consists, therefore, in opening up individual topics and interrelated lines and continuing them in the form of his theological thought. In view of many current topics, this is an enormous mountain of work that awaits us in the coming years and decades. I am firmly convinced that future generations will rediscover Pope Benedict XVI as a teacher of faith and a great initiator of theological thought and reflection.

The first meeting without the Pope Benedict XVI was last year's symposium in Rome on September 23. How did it differ from previous meetings?

The first meeting after the death of Pope Benedict XVI naturally had its own character and was dedicated to his theological legacy. The title of the conference clearly expresses this: "Being collaborators of the truth. Passing on to future generations the rich legacy of Pope Benedict XVI". Fundamental facets of his thought were discussed in lectures, statements, stories and sermons, as well as detailed questions about his theology and his person.

The four great themes of the Constitutions of the Second Vatican Council, which can also be considered the central pillars of its theology: Revelation of God, Church, Liturgy, Church and World, were placed in the foreground. I was particularly impressed by the celebration of Holy Mass at the tomb of St. Peter the Apostle and the subsequent joint visit and prayer at his tomb in the grottoes of St. Peter's Basilica. By the way, all the presentations of the symposium can be heard on the New Circle of Disciples web site before the full conference proceedings are published later this year.

Even before the publication of the books of Jesus of Nazareth, well-known Church figures considered the Pope a Doctor of the Church. Can the work of the Circle of Disciples contribute to his soon being declared as such?

It is important to me that we organize our work as the New Circle of Disciples well and profitably in the coming years. According to the statutes of our association, this work includes promoting the scholarly development of Joseph Ratzinger's theological work, safeguarding and developing his intellectual legacy for Catholic theology, and promoting international and interdenominational cooperation among theologians. I believe that we have been entrusted with much in this regard. If we can make a contribution that makes his importance as a teacher for the Church of our time and of the future recognizable, I would of course be very grateful.

The authorFritz Brunthaler

Austria

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Gospel

Humble faith. Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time (B)

Joseph Evans comments on the readings for the Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time (B) and Luis Herrera offers a brief video homily.

Joseph Evans-February 9, 2024-Reading time: 2 minutes

Leprosy, although now curable, has long been a highly contagious, incurable and deeply destructive disease, leading its victims to be forcibly excluded from society. This was the case in ancient Israel, and the events of today's readings are set in this context. Lepers had to live apart and warn people of their sickness. 

In today's Gospel, the leper approaches Jesus. He shows great trust in the Lord and does not feel the need to keep his distance: such is the trust that Christ inspires. The Church wants us to learn that we do not need to keep our distance from Jesus, even when we feel we are spiritual lepers because of our sins. We can receive his saving and healing touch, especially through the sacrament of Confession. Once Christ touches us through Confession, we are ready for him to enter us in Holy Communion.

The leper managed to overcome despair. Many other lepers throughout history probably did not. The reality of their illness led to isolation, self-loathing and the need to flee rather than reach out to others. An essential part of healing is reaching out to others, to those who can understand and help us. Above all, we need the confidence to draw near to Christ for deep and lasting healing.

We do this through prayer, which does not have to be very sophisticated. The leper had a simple request to make: "I am a leper".If you want, you can cure me". It was not the quality or quantity of his words that moved Jesus, but the intensity of his desire and faith. This is beautifully expressed in these words: "Begging on your knees". 

Jesus is moved by his humility and his faith. The leper does not assume failure, he assumes the possibility of success, he assumes the power of Jesus to heal him. The only thing in doubt was whether our Lord wanted to do it. Yes, the leper's attitude was flawed: several other accounts of miracles in the Gospels show people with absolute confidence in both Christ's power and his willingness to act. The leper is unsure of the latter. He does not yet understand the depth of Christ's compassion. In the same way, Our Lord heals the man knowing that his disobedience to His command and his lack of discretion will cause him trouble. But this also helps us, because it comforts us to know that Jesus does not demand perfect faith or faithfulness to show his mercy.

Homily on the readings of Sunday V in Ordinary Time (B)

The priest Luis Herrera Campo offers its nanomiliaA short one-minute reflection for these Sunday readings.

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Photo Gallery

The "running" nuns of Florida

Juliana Alfonso and Nicole Daly, Salesians from St. John Bosco, participated in the 13.1 mile half marathon in Naples and in good time: they finished the race in 2 hours and 21 minutes.

Maria José Atienza-February 8, 2024-Reading time: < 1 minute
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The World

Abu Dhabi document: historic and decisive but little known

Abu Dhabi, capital of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and other capitals, such as Madrid, have recently hosted events commemorating the signing by Pope Francis and the Grand Imam of Al Azhar, Ahmed Al-Tayyeb, on February 4, 2019, of the historic Document on Human Fraternity, for World Peace and Common Coexistence.

Francisco Otamendi-February 8, 2024-Reading time: 4 minutes
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In the Spanish capital, the initiative has been taken by the Foundation for Islamic Culture and Religious Tolerance (FICRT), with the participation of its chairman, Ahmed Al Jarwan, who also chairs the Global Council for Tolerance and Peace (GCTP), who hosted the event, which was attended by His Holiness' nuncio, Archbishop Bernardito Auza; the deputy ambassador of the UAE, Ali Al Nuaimi; and other personalities. 

Ahmed Al Jarwan underlined the historical importance of the Document Bernardito Auza, who recalled that Pope Francis is convinced that "the decisive stage that was inaugurated in Abu Dhabi will continue to bear fruits of friendship and dialogue in the spirit of universal fraternity". 

One of the consequences of the Document was the resolution with which the United Nations General Assembly decided "to proclaim February 4, starting in 2021, as International Day of Human Fraternity, in order to further mobilize the efforts of the international community to promote peace, tolerance, inclusion, understanding and solidarity".

"The great challenge of our time"

Another immense fruit, Monsignor Auza emphasized, "is the encyclical "Fratelli tutti" (Brothers All), signed by the Pope on October 3, 2020 in Assisi, the city of St. Francis," which calls for "authentic dialogue," which implies "the ability to respect the point of view of the other."

"The interreligious and intercultural dialogue between the Holy See and the Catholic Church, and the Islamic religion and the Arab world, continues to be sincere and fruitful. Both Muslims and Christians believe that this dialogue is today more necessary than ever," added the nuncio, who cited St. Francis of Assisi, and trips of the Holy Father to Egypt and Morocco, stressing that "in the pontificate of Pope Francis this dialogue has made historic progress." 

He also recalled that, according to the Pontiff, "true human fraternity is the great challenge of our time." "May we, believers and non-believers, bear witness to our belonging to the one human family, fratelli tutti, brothers all," he concluded.

"Making the Document known"

A few minutes later, the Delegate for Interfaith Relations of the Archbishopric of Madrid, Aitor de la Morena, representing the Archbishop, Cardinal José Cobo, recalled one of the final points of the Abu Dhabi text, in which "Al-Azhar and the Catholic Church ask that this Document be the object of research and reflection in all schools, universities and institutes of education and training, so as to help create new generations that bring good and peace, and defend everywhere the rights of the oppressed and the last".

De la Morena referred to the educational commitmentIn a recent meeting with seminarians in Madrid, he revealed that "none of the seminarians with whom I spoke had read the Document, and some did not even know of its existence. I also ask myself: how many Catholic religion teachers have spoken to their students about this Document, or about its content and what it means?"

The question is whether we are doing enough. In his opinion, "no, we are not". On the occasion of these five years, "within the Catholic Church, in the archbishopric of MadridWe surely have to do much more to make this Document known". We are committed to the promotion of fraternity and peace, but "a very valuable means" could be this Document, and this is how the seminarians saw it when I presented it to them, said Aitor de la Morena. "We can all do much more to make the Document known". 

"Peace is possible", "si vis pacem, para verbum".

Father Ángel, president of the NGO Mensajeros de la Paz (Messengers of Peace), who spoke at the event, launched an optimistic message when he said that "peace is possible" and that "this can be fixed". He also recalled the scene of Pope Francis kneeling before African political leaders, asking them to please work for peace, because "we are all brothers and sisters, children of God". 

For his part, Federico Mayor Zaragoza, former director general of UNESCO and former minister, who was awarded for his career in defense of peace, referred to the fact that "every human being is the solution, because he is capable of creating, of being an actor", and proposed in his words to transform the well-known phrase "Si vis pacem, para bellum", into "si vis pacem, para verbum", that is, "if you want peace, prepare the word".

The event was also attended by parliamentary representatives such as Carlos Rojas (Congress) and María Jesus Bonilla (Senate), Enrique Millo (Junta de Andalucía), and other speakers such as Lorena García de Izarra (Fundación Tres Culturas del Mediterráneo), or Said Benabdennour, president of the Abraham Forum for Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue in Spain.

Daily compass

In the past few days, the following have taken place in Abu Dhabi a series of conferences, activities and celebrations commemorating the fifth anniversary of the Document on Human Fraternity. The Prefect of the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue, Cardinal Michelangelo 

Ayuso Guixot, referred at various times to the role of religions in promoting and building peace, and reiterated his words of January 31. "The document on human fraternity represents not only a map for the future, but also a compass in the daily commitment of people of different religions and of good will to work together for the benefit of every woman and every man."

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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The Vatican

World Week Against Trafficking in Persons concludes in Rome

February 8 marks the end of the week of prayer against human trafficking, established by Pope Francis in 2015 on the feast of St. Bakhita, a Sudanese nun who was a victim of slavery.

Hernan Sergio Mora-February 8, 2024-Reading time: 3 minutes
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A week of mobilization and prayer against human trafficking was celebrated internationally from February 2 to 8. This event was established on February 8, 2015 by Pope Francis on the feast of St. Bakhita, a Sudanese nun who was a victim of trafficking and a universal symbol of the Church's commitment against this scourge.

"Walking for dignity."

With the slogan "Walking for dignity. To listen. Dream. Act", the 10th World Day of Prayer and Reflection against Human Trafficking brought together 50 young people from all continents in Rome.

Among the initiatives, which began in Rome on February 2, participants attended the Angelus in St. Peter's Square on Sunday, February 4. In addition, on Tuesday, February 6, there was a flash-mob against trafficking in Piazza Santa Maria in Trastevere, which culminated in an ecumenical vigil in the church of the same name.

Yesterday, Wednesday 7, the participants attended the audience with Pope Francis, and today the week closes with a pilgrimage. As in recent years, a message from Pope Francis on trafficking is expected.

"This initiative was born from the heart of the Pope."

Omnes had the opportunity to speak with Msgr. Marco Gnavi, pastor of the church of Santa Maria in Trastevere, of the Community of Sant'Egidio, and head of the Office and of the Diocesan Commission for Ecumenism, who indicated that this initiative "was born first of all in the heart of the Pope", because "he is concerned about this theme in a viscerally evangelical way". "Let us try to be - together with him - repeaters of his voice, of this revolution of tenderness that is also measured against evil," Gnavi added.

In addition, the parish priest explains that this initiative "has found strong support and synergy in the Dicastery for Integral Development, in the Talitha Kum international network and in many other associations", and that "above all, it gathers a great hope for liberation, because when we speak in particular of the trafficking of women, it humiliates and wounds them, sometimes indelibly, but also debases the humanity of which they are the bearers".

"Trafficking occurs in all contexts."

Monsignor Gnavi then pointed out that "they often have to be rescued very discreetly, because the structures of evil are powerful and aggressive", and that "trafficking occurs in all contexts", without forgetting that many of these "humiliated women arrive in Italy under blackmail" or that later "they painfully discover that they have been captured, by the designs of evil".

The parish priest of Santa Maria in Trastevere underscored other similar phenomena: for example, "child labor, prisons where minors, the weakest, are abandoned. Moreover, there are regions of the world where they are put in prison along with adults and then no one remembers they exist, because they do not even have the right to a civil registry, they are nothing to the world".

"Today," Don Marco acknowledges, "there is a greater awareness of the dignity of women, but at the same time the world is becoming more brutal than yesterday. Because every conflict - even the third world war in pieces - brings with it obscenities and monstrosities. And we must not let our guard down, because in times of conflict everything becomes licit."

Don Marco concluded by pointing out that Talitha Kum, the Dicastery and all the associations that have come together, have thought of a meeting, a journey, a pilgrimage, which in itself does not end in a week.

Collaborating entities

The day, supported by the Global Solidarity Fund (GSF), is coordinated by Talitha Kum, an international anti-trafficking network of more than 6,000 nuns, friends and partners, and is promoted by the International Union of Superiors General (UISG) and the Union of Superiors General (USG).

Collaborating in the initiative are the Dicastery for the Service of Integral Human Development, the Dicastery for Communication, the Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, the Pope's Worldwide Prayer Network, Caritas Internationalis, CoatNet, the Focolare Movement, the Jesuit Refugee Service, the International Union of Catholic Women's Associations (WUCWO), JPIC-Anti-Trafficking Working Group (UISG/UISG), The Clever Initiative, the Pope John XXIII Community Association, the International Federation of Catholic Action, the Italian Catholic Association of Guides and Scouts (Agesci), the Santa Marta Group and many other organizations around the world.

The authorHernan Sergio Mora

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  • Monsignor Espinoza MateusWe want to renew Eucharistic life in Ecuador".
The World

Monsignor Espinoza MateusWe want to renew Eucharistic life in Ecuador".

On the occasion of the next International Eucharistic Congress, to be held in Quito in September of this year, we interviewed Monsignor Alfredo José Espinoza Mateus. Born in Guayaquil, he was ordained a priest in 1988 and is currently Archbishop of Quito and Primate of Ecuador.

Juan Carlos Vasconez-February 8, 2024-Reading time: 7 minutes
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2024 has a very special tinge for the Catholic faithful in Ecuador: Quito will host the 2024 World 53rd International Eucharistic Congress. On this occasion, Omnes interviewed the Primate of Ecuador, a country whose reasons for being chosen as host include the 150th anniversary of the consecration of Ecuador to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, which made it the first country to perform this consecration.

What was the reason that led the Pope to choose Quito as the site for the International Eucharistic Congress (CEI)?

-The Bishops of Ecuador, in a plenary assembly in 2014, ratified the request, made a few years earlier, to ask to host the International Eucharistic Congress in 2024 on the occasion of the celebration of the 150th anniversary of the consecration of Ecuador to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Historically, Ecuador was the first country in the world to consecrate itself to the Heart of Jesus. The Holy Father took into account this very particular celebration and clearly manifested it last March 20, 2021 when he communicated to the whole world that Ecuador and Quito, in particular, would be the site of the 53rd International Eucharistic Congress.

In addition, the Holy Father was able to clearly express his desire for this great event of the Church: "In this ecclesial meeting, the fruitfulness of the Eucharist for evangelization and the renewal of faith in the Latin American continent will be manifested". It is important to remember that after twenty years, Latin America returns to be the venue, since the city of Guadalajara was the venue of the 48th International Eucharistic Congress. As we say, the Congress once again has a "Latin American face".

What benefits do you anticipate in the diocese itself as a result of this designation as the seat of the IEC? In what specific aspects is this decision expected to have a positive impact?

-The great benefit is undoubtedly a pastoral benefit. I believe, as the Cardinal of Quebec, His Eminence Gérald Lacroix, told me in Budapest, the great wealth that the congress leaves is the way of preparation in the archdiocese. And we are working intensely on it, not only in Quito, but at the level of the whole country. We want to renew the Eucharistic life in our country. We also want, I could say, to correct errors that occur in the Eucharistic celebrations, we seek to deepen the great love for the Eucharist and renew as a country and as an Ecuadorian family our Consecration to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

How have you managed to coordinate the preparation in Quito, and what advice would you give to other countries facing similar challenges?

-The organizational issue is complex; it is not an easy task. First I will refer to the strictly operational aspects and then go into pastoral details.

From the first moment we learned of the designation of Quito as the venue of the International Eucharistic Congress, we began to form the various committees, I proceeded to appoint a general secretary of the congress in the person of Juan Carlos Garzon, a priest of the Archdiocese of Quito, we communicated with the International Eucharistic Pontifical Committee, and here I must greatly appreciate the support and joint work we have been doing with Corrado Maggioni and Vittore Boccardi, with whom we have had meetings both in Rome and in Quito. I would also like to emphasize that we have been working together with the Episcopal Conference of Ecuador. I am aware that Quito is the venue but I am convinced that it is the Church of Ecuador that is responsible for the congress. We have had meetings both with the highest authorities of the country and the city, as well as with various public institutions to work together for the success of the congress.

On the pastoral side, I could point out many aspects. Triptychs and diptychs have been prepared to communicate what a Eucharistic Congress is. Several subsidies have been elaborated, among them I can point out the catechesis How to live the Eucharist, of which one hundred thousand copies have already been sold, and the Eucharist, heart of the Church. Both booklets contain the Eucharistic catecheses of Pope Francis, what has been done is to give it a methodology of reflection. In Quito, this year in the catechesis of Christian initiation we are working on the first booklet of Eucharistic catechesis.

An interesting work has been the elaboration of a booklet with nine Eucharistic adoration celebrations especially for young people, which we have entitled Face to face.

There is the Basic Document of the Congress with the theme Fraternity to heal the world. The road to arrive at the Base Document was long, a Theological Commission was formed and worked hard. The work was sent to Rome, corrections were made, it was re-structured. In short, a whole work, I could say "handmade", until arriving at a Document that has a "Latin American touch" that seeks to be a contribution for the universal Church. Two booklets have been published, one with only the complete text of the Document and the other with the Document, as well as a celebration of Eucharistic adoration and nine study guides to understand the text. This process of entering into the Basic Document will be the path of the year 2024.

Other elements that have helped would be: the logo of the congress, the congress prayer, already translated into several languages, including Shuar and Quichua. And I highlight the hymn contest. Now, the hymn is practically sung in the two hundred parishes of the archdiocese.

I cannot fail to mention the work we have been doing with the IEC 2024 National Commission. This commission is made up of delegates from the twenty-six ecclesiastical jurisdictions of the country and is chaired by Bishop Maximiliano Ordóñez, auxiliary bishop of Quito. Maximiliano Ordóñez, auxiliary bishop of Quito. With them, we disseminated the congress and they are responsible for replicating all the work, in addition to having various pastoral initiatives in their own jurisdictions.

Finally, the symbol of the congress, a large gospel book, helps us to evangelize. It is the Word of God that summons us, gathers us around the Eucharistic table and invites us to build fraternity. The symbol is already traveling through the ecclesiastical jurisdictions of Ecuador.

Who are the main drivers in your diocese and what are the most effective tools you use to ensure the transmission of the message?

-It is a joint mission. I do not say that it is a work, I go further, I speak of a mission because we are in a great evangelizing mission around the Eucharistic Congress, the same that involves first of all the bishops. In the case of Quito, the three auxiliary bishops and myself as archbishop. It also involves priests, religious men and women, catechists, to whom we have given the responsibility of being "Eucharistic missionaries", and it also involves the lay movements, which have assumed this task with great enthusiasm.

I can highlight several initiatives in the jurisdictions. In Quito, the "Eucharistic Year" was convoked, which is open to many pastoral initiatives that are underway. In the archdiocese of Guayaquil, the archbishop, Luis Cabrera, has just opened the "Year of the Sacred Heart of Jesus", because we must not forget the main reason for the congress, although everything is centered on the Eucharist.

And in the Archdiocese of Cuenca, Marcos Perez Caicedo has planned the organization of a symposium entitled "Mary and the Eucharist" for the month of May. Cuenca is a city with a unique Marian tinge. Initiatives arise, but you ask me how we achieve a "uniformity". I would answer rather that we are looking for a "unity", respecting the pastoral creativity in the ecclesiastical jurisdictions, in the parishes, movements and other members. There is coordination, from the General Secretariat and from the IEC 2024 Local Committee. The IEC 2024 National Commission is working to achieve this unity, guidelines are given, materials are elaborated and yes, I must not deny it, mistakes are being corrected.

What has been the role of the laity in the organization?

-It is a joint work. We are all involved, as I said before: bishops, priests, religious and lay people. Both in the Local Committee and in the commissions of the congress, the laity have a leading role. We can say that we "weave" a work network and we do it with great responsibility, with a deep sense of Church and with a pastoral vision.

What achievements or fruits can be highlighted so far in the archdiocese as a result of this designation as the seat of the IEC?

-I dare to say that the main fruit at the moment is that the Eucharistic Congress is already being lived in our archdiocese. We have been saying it for a year, the congress in Quito will not be in 2024, the Congress for our archdiocese is an "already", we must live it, and the preparation for it helps us to live, celebrate, sing, pray and deepen the Eucharist in the heart of each faithful and each parish.

What arguments would you consider most convincing to encourage people to travel to Quito and participate in this event?

Pope Francis, in a private audience with the Council of the Presidency of the Ecuadorian Episcopal Conference, of which I am vice-president, told me that he wanted an "austere but fruitful" Eucharistic Congress. I base myself on these words to say that the main argument would be that we want to live a "fruitful" Congress, which will help us to reflect, celebrate and deepen in our lives as Christians, the centrality of the Eucharist and to assume the commitment of a "fraternity to heal the world".

Every Eucharistic Congress has its structure or its dynamics, to be more exact. In the symposium we want to propose a more real and pastoral vision, we want to start from a reflection of fraternity from seven different points of view: politics, indigenous world, economy, philosophy, education and others.

One thing I must emphasize is that from the beginning we have not wanted, and it will not be, a "clericalized" congress. And, as Cardinal Mario Grech told us, "the Eucharistic Congress is the Vigil of the Synod". Let us remember that it will take place a month or so before the installation of the second session of the Synod of Synodality. For this reason, we want the catechesis of the five days to be given by representatives of the People of God: a religious, a lay person, a priest, a Cardinal and a bishop who has a relationship with the Amazon reality. In addition, we are looking for lay people, religious men and women, priests, indigenous people, for the different testimonies that will be given in the Congress.

What experiences might those attending this special occasion at the new IEC headquarters expect to experience?

-I would tell them that they can expect a great welcome, an atmosphere of joy, the richness of the experience of a people who love God, live the Eucharist and manifest their faith, who ask for a blessing, a characteristic sign of our people. You can expect cultural diversity and a unique folklore, and something that no one else has, Quito is "The Middle of the World", the congress takes place at latitude zero of the world, and from here, for the whole world, we want to open our hands and our hearts. We are waiting for you!

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RelatedRelated NewsThe Eucharistic Congress in Quito and Olivia Maurel in Omnes February magazine
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Integral ecology

Martin FoleyAbout 50 million people are enslaved today".

We spoke with Martin Foley, CEO of Arise Foundation, an organization that, since 2015, has been fighting to eradicate new forms of slavery around the world.

Maria José Atienza-February 8, 2024-Reading time: 4 minutes

Martin Foley is CEO at Arise Foundation, a charity founded in 2015 by John Studzinski and Luke de Pulford. Since then, Arise fights for the eradication of the new slaveries that survive on our planet.

With a vision focused on the promotion of human dignity and the conviction that it is impossible to turn our backs on human suffering, Arise works through the cooperation of local and international networks to end human trafficking, organ trafficking or sexual exploitation among other new forms of slavery.

Martin Foley and Theresa May, former UK Prime Minister at a conference

Although it does not belong to any religious denomination, Arise defines itself as faith-friendlyIt does so by noting "the power of faith to bring about lasting change" and the numerous projects in this field carried out by religious and consecrated men and women throughout the world.

Foley, a law graduate from the University of Manchester, has been involved in the third sector for many years. Following his time at Lifea UK charity supporting people facing complicated pregnancies and miscarriages, Martin became the UK managing director of the international organization Stella Marisof which he became the European coordinator. He currently directs Arise

According to Arise, there are more slaves today than ever before in history. Why is it not being talked about as it should be?

-For too many people, slavery is considered a matter of "past history," a crime abolished hundreds of years ago. However, the terrible reality is that approximately 50 million people are enslaved today.

Too often, slavery is a hidden crime, exploiting vulnerable people, including immigrants, and taking place behind closed doors in factories, brothels and even private homes. So lack of awareness contributes to slavery not being talked about as it should be.

Another factor is indifference at all levels of society, from governments to individuals. Slavery is woven into many supply chains, but too often governments are unwilling to confront this crime and we, as individuals, prioritize our thirst for fast fashion, cheap food and sexual gratification over the human rights of exploited people.

The case of children is blatant: forced marriages, labor slavery and sex trafficking, what is happening in the laws of many countries so that this reality is still present in so many areas?

-Laws are not enforced. This allows criminals to evade responsibility for their actions. Compared to the fight against other crimes, such as drug trafficking, it is clear that the fight against slavery and human trafficking is chronically under-resourced.

Arise works especially on the root causes of these situations. What are the causes of the new forms of slavery? Can they really be tackled?

-Poverty and lack of education and awareness are root causes of slavery, which increase people's vulnerability to criminal traffickers. But we must also not forget that trafficking is a crime, where criminals consciously choose to exploit their fellow human beings.

We believe that it is possible to tackle the causes, through a locally driven approach, coupled with vigorous prosecution of those who commit crime. Individuals and organizations rooted in communities are best placed to provide meaningful support to those who suffer, as well as to identify and address the systemic causes that put people in their communities at risk.

How does the work of frontline groups and support networks against slavery complement each other in Arise? How do they develop projects in different countries?

-Frontline groups and networks are central to Arise's work. Catholic women religious, embedded in the communities they serve, are among the primary frontline groups Arise supports. For real change to occur, a deep quality of caring and trust is essential. These qualities abound in Catholic women religious. Arise is privileged to support them in the fight against slavery.

Through a process of listening, dialogue and accompaniment with frontline groups working in communities where people are vulnerable to exploitation. Everything we do is based on our values of respect for human dignity, humility and trust. Through a process of accompaniment, we try to determine what the local needs are and how we can respond most effectively.

Do you think it is possible to achieve a world without these new forms of slavery?

-Yes. Our vision is a world without slavery and human trafficking, where the dignity of all people is respected. We can all help make this vision a reality by becoming aware of the reality of slavery today, by being responsible consumers and by supporting Arise's mission to strengthen the strength, sustainability and direct impact of frontline groups working to prevent slavery and human trafficking.

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Integral ecology

Individual choice has become superior to life.

Today, in most European countries, abortion has been normalized. The only debate is to extend the legal duration more and more, from 10 to 14 weeks, from 14 to 16... or even for psychological, social or economic reasons.

Emilie Vas-February 8, 2024-Reading time: 4 minutes
RelatedRelated NewsIsabel Vaughan-Spruce: "The damage abortion inflicts on women alone should be enough to make us pro-life".

The presentation of a bill, filed on October 7, 2022, by Mathilde Panot, could be an opportunity to raise the debate on the validity of the "right" to abortion, as its inclusion in the French Constitution on October 29, 2023, by Emmanuel Macron, transforms it into a fundamental right. Emmanuel Macron, a convinced Europeanist and progressive, follows the predominant current of thought on most "societal" issues and has always advocated for the advancement of individual rights.

A right, from the medieval Latin "directum", meaning "that which is just", must govern human relations and be based on the defense of the individual and of justice. If it is fundamental, from the Latin "fundamentalis", meaning "base", the law serves as the foundation of a system, an institution. A fundamental right must therefore correspond to the "inalienable and sacred" rights cited in the first article of the preamble of the French Constitution of 27 October 1946, i.e. all the rights that each individual possesses by virtue of the fact that he belongs to humanity and not to the society in which he lives. The natural right, inherent to humanity, universal and unalterable, includes in particular the right to life and health.

Abortion, through its inclusion in the French Constitution, becomes a fundamental rule, a law that responds to the moral need for justice, at the very foundation of the structure of society.

Contradiction of rights

However, there is a contradiction between abortion, the act of taking the life of a human being by another human being, that is the moral prohibition of killing, because abortion is killing, and the man's natural and inalienable right to life. Why then is there no debate in France, and why is Poland's opposition to this “right” considered retrograde and medieval?

Since the 1970s, abortion has been considered the symbol of the "struggle for women's emancipation," implying the right to reproductive autonomy and free sexuality. This right is essentially individualistic; thanks to the "sovereignty of her body," the woman is the only one who can decide.

The intention openly described in this bill is "to protect and guarantee the fundamental right to voluntary termination of pregnancy", itself derived "from the general principle of freedom established in Article 2 of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen of 1789 [...] to terminate a pregnancy". As Françoise Laurant, president of the Commission on Health, Sexual and Reproductive Rights of the HCEfh, pointed out in the newspaper Le Monde on 07 November 2013, calling abortion into question means "giving rise to a discourse that makes women feel guilty [...] which can be experienced as a humiliation"....

Nevertheless, "my body, my choice" is a dishonest premise because the fetus is not a part of the woman's body but is temporarily housed within it. The biological reality of pregnancy involves two bodies, two distinct and unique DNAs living in symbiosis for a determined period of time.

Dehumanization of the fetus

For a long time, feminist discourse has dehumanized the fetus by labeling it as a mere "clump of cells," perhaps to assuage the guilt of women who undergo abortion... And this dehumanization has become normalized. Amnesty International considers abortion as "basic health care for millions of women or girls" which consists of "removing the contents of the uterus".

It is good to examine this content and see that the fetus is biologically a human being, because it has all the specific and natural characteristics of Homo sapiens. At 16 weeks of amenorrhea, the duration of pregnancy since the last menstruation and the legal period of abortion, the fetus has the same organs as the rest of our species, a heart that beats at 140 beats per minute, a head that turns, agile little hands that grab, pull, push, play....

The fetus possesses all the specific characteristics of the human species according to its age, and being under 18 years of age can be defined, according to the criteria of the 1989 UNESCO Convention on the Rights of the Child, as a child... who has no rights whatsoever, unless the mother decides otherwise.

According to Article 6 of the 1989 Unesco Convention, "States Parties recognize that every child has the inherent right to life". The right to abortion is contrary to the right to life, which must be superior to all others, because without life there is neither freedom nor humanity.

The term abortion, from the Latin "abortare", means "to die at birth", but also that which could not reach its full development. Abortion eliminates "what is growing in the body", the embryo or fetus, the "newborn". Abortion cannot be "health care", because the aim is not to cure, but to cause death, and this only to fulfill the will and desire of the woman, excluding in fact from this debate men and future fathers.

If France, like many other European states, defends the natural and sacred right to the life of children, how can it transform abortion into a constitutional right?

Normalization of abortion

Today, in most European countries, abortion has become normalized. There is only debated to increasingly extend the legal duration, from 10 to 14 weeks, from 14 to 16... or even for psychological, social, or economic reasons.

On November 26, 1974, in her speech to the National Assembly, Simone Veil proclaimed that "abortion must remain the exception, the last resort for dead-end situations". Her conviction was that "no woman resorts to abortion with joy of heart" and that to admit "the possibility of terminating a pregnancy is to control it and, as far as possible, to dissuade the woman".

Why, in 2024, do progressive societies ignore these convictions and turn the act of killing a human being into individual freedom and right? We should not ignore the exorbitant human cost of this right, with 44 million abortions worldwide in 2022, including 227,300 in France, 90,189 in Spain, and 63,653 in Italy. In this period where the demographic decline is starting to be worrying in Europe and the world, it would be time to open our eyes, to debate, and especially, as Christians, to testify to the Truth.

The authorEmilie Vas

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RelatedRelated NewsIsabel Vaughan-Spruce: "The damage abortion inflicts on women alone should be enough to make us pro-life".
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The Vatican

Pope's encouragement to fight sadness with Jesus and with our holiness

No matter how full life may be of contradictions, defeated desires, unfulfilled dreams, lost friendships, we can fight sadness, "a cunning demon," with the thought of the resurrection of Jesus and with holiness, Pope Francis said this morning. In his meditation he drew on Bernanos and Leo Bloy.

Francisco Otamendi-February 7, 2024-Reading time: 3 minutes
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In the catechetical session of the Audience of this Wednesday, which since the beginning of the year is dedicated to the "vices and virtues"The Pope reflected on sadness, "a cunning demon, which the desert fathers described as a worm of the heart, which erodes and empties those who harbor it", and on which he has already reflected. previously. 

Francis defined sadness as "a dejection of the soul, a constant affliction that prevents human beings from experiencing joy in their existence". In his meditation, he pointed out that the Fathers made an important distinction. 

"There is indeed a sadness that is proper to the Christian life and that with God's grace is transformed into joy: this, of course, must not be rejected and is part of the journey of conversion." In this line, he cited the parable of the prodigal son who suffered "a friendly sadness" that leads us to salvation. 

"But there is also a second kind of sadness, which insinuates itself into the soul and causes it to fall into a state of despondency: it is this second kind of sadness that must be resolutely combated with all one's strength, because it comes from the Evil One. We also find this distinction in St. Paul, who, writing to the Corinthians, says: "The sorrow of God produces a repentance that leads to salvation and is not to be regretted, but the sorrow of the world produces death" (2 Cor 7:10). 

Disciples of Emmaus, disillusioned heart

Here we can refer to the account of the disciples of EmmausThe Pope went on to say: "Those two disciples leave Jerusalem with a disillusioned heart, and entrust themselves to the stranger who accompanies them. "Those two disciples leave Jerusalem with a disillusioned heart, and entrust themselves to the stranger, who at a certain point accompanies them: "We had hoped that it was he, that is, Jesus, who would deliver Israel" (Lk 24:21). 

The dynamics of sadness is linked to the experience of loss, the Pope affirms. "In the heart of the human being, hopes are born that are sometimes disappointed. It can be the desire to possess something that cannot be obtained; but also something important, such as the loss of an affection. When this happens, it is as if the heart of the human being falls into a precipice, and the feelings he experiences are discouragement, weakness of spirit, depression, anguish". 

Overcoming sadness with holiness

To combat sadness, the Pontiff launched several messages, which can be summarized in two. In the first place, sadness "can be easily combated by guarding the thought of Christ's resurrection. However full life may be of contradictions, of defeated desires, of unfulfilled dreams, of lost friendships, thanks to the resurrection of Jesus we can believe that all will be saved".

"Faith casts out fear, and the resurrection of Christ removes sadness like the stone from the tomb. Every Christian's day is an exercise in resurrection". 

The second weapon is holiness. "Georges Bernanos, in his famous novel "Diary of a Country Priest", makes the parish priest of Torcy say the following: "The Church has joy, all that joy that is reserved for this sad world. What they have done against it, they have done against joy". And another French writer, Léon Bloy, left us this wonderful sentence: "There is only one sadness, (...) that of not being saints!

Sunday, Our Lady of Lourdes, Day of the Sick

"May the Spirit of the Risen Jesus help us to overcome sadness with holiness," prayed the Pope, who also referred to the Virgin Mary in addressing pilgrims of different languages. 

Specifically, before giving the Blessing, the Holy Father recalled. the feast of Our Lady of Lourdes Sunday the 11th, when the Church celebrates the feast of World Day of the Sick. "May Our Lady of Lourdes protect you with her maternal tenderness on your journey," the Pope prayed, addressing the patients and all the faithful.

Also, as usual in all his messages and addresses, Francis prayed for all those who suffer because of wars, for peace in the martyred Ukraine, for Palestine, Israel, the Rohingyas and others in so many places. "Let us pray for peace, we need peace," he asked the pilgrims in the Paul VI Hall.

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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  • Carmen Álvarez: "Wojtyła wrote 'Jeremiah' to strengthen faith".
Culture

Carmen Álvarez: "Wojtyła wrote 'Jeremiah' to strengthen faith".

March 27 is World Theater Day. We are reviving "Jeremiah", a theatrical drama by Karol Wojtyła, eThe book was written when he was 19 years old, in the spring of 1940. Theologian Carmen Álvarez, a professor at the San Dámaso Ecclesiastical University and an expert on the figure of St. John Paul II, explains the work of the young Wojtyła to Omnes.

Francisco Otamendi-February 7, 2024-Reading time: 7 minutes
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Written when he was 19 years old, in the spring of 1940, "Jeremiah" is a theatrical drama by Karol Wojtyła, which had remained unknown outside the Polish sphere. Now, theologian Carmen Álvarez, professor at the San Dámaso Ecclesiastical University and expert on the figure of St. John Paul II, explains the work of the young Wojtyła to Omnes.

Shortly after the outbreak of World War II, in the midst of an extremely harsh situation of pain and suffering of the Polish people, Germany and Russia began with the occupation a tremendous campaign of "depolonization", The aim was to erase all traces of Polish culture and, especially, all traces of its Christian roots. 

It was the most effective way to dissolve the national identity and the sense of homeland in the Polish people, in order to manipulate them more easily, explains to Omnes Carmen Alvarez, editor of "Jeremiah", a work that for the first time has been translated into Spanish from its Polish original. It is a bilingual edition of Didaskalospreceded by a comprehensive introductory study by the theologian from San Damaso and academic.

"Wojtyła writes "Jeremiah" to console his people, to encourage their hope and strengthen their faith in God, but also to reflect on that somber historical moment from the Christian vision of history and to ask himself about the causes of the nation's fall," adds Carmen Alvarez, who is presenting the work in various Spanish dioceses. The last one, Seville.

A similar situation was experienced by the prophet JeremiahThe book's title is the work of the prophet, who announced the destruction of Israel if the people did not return to be faithful to the covenant established with Yahweh and to their identity as God's chosen people. Hence the title of the work.

Jeremiah

AuthorKarol Józef Wojtyła; Carmen Álvarez Alonso
Editorial: Didaskalos
Pages: 290
Year: 2023

Professor, how did your interest in the literary works of Karol Wojtyła, and in particular on "Jeremiah" arise?

-The rediscovery of these works came about as part of a research project. As a result of my doctoral thesis in philosophy on the literary works of Karol Wojtyła, I discovered that the documentary sources were all in Polish and that they were practically unknown outside his country. I understood, then, that they had to be translated and made known. Until now, we scholars of Karol Wojtyła had as a reference an Italian translation from more than 20 years ago; however, I believe that in this Spanish edition we have achieved notable improvements in translation and interpretation.

You have edited the play from its Polish original into Spanish directly.  

- That's right, it has been a joint work with the translator. I have been in charge of all the editing, interpretation and final revision of the work. It is a bilingual edition, whose Polish text faithfully respects the original manuscript, just as Wojtyła wrote it. The work is preceded by an extensive introductory study, in which I offer some keys for reading that will help the Spanish-speaking reader to enter into the cultural and historical context of the Polish nation. It was necessary to contextualize the work, the plot and the characters in order to bring this work closer to the reader unfamiliar with Slavic culture.

Until almost the year 2020, when we celebrate the centenary of the birth of St. John Paul II, we have not been able to collect the original texts of these works of his youth. In fact, different versions of the same composition have been preserved. On the occasion of this anniversary, the Diocese of Krakow formed a team of scholars and experts who carried out an exhaustive search in libraries and archives, as well as a difficult work of textual criticism that helped to fix the original texts. The result of this arduous work was the publication of three volumes containing the whole of this juvenile literary work in its original Polish. This opened the door to the translation and dissemination of this great literary treasure left to us by the young Karol Wojtyła.

In addition, it includes an introductory study, practically another book, in which he speaks of the imprint of St. John of the Cross.

- Karol Wojtyła's theater is very philosophical and conceptual, difficult to represent because he conceives it as an "inner theater" rather than as a theater of entertainment or recreation. Hence, the critical and internal analysis of the play is very interesting, because it has brought to light the Hispanic roots of the early thought of the young Wojtyła. In his play Jeremiah, Wojtyła dialogues with the worldview proper to Romanticism, especially Polish, but in the work. the mark of Calderón de la Barca, Cervantes and his great character, Don Quixote, is also present. In addition, the legends of Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer are evoked and, above all, the imprint of St. John of the Cross is very clear. 

This fact is very interesting because all biographers of John Paul II agree in affirming that Wojtyła met St. John of the Cross through the hand of the layman Jan Leopold Tyranowski, whom he met in March 1940. In the work Jeremiah San Juan's imprint is very clear and it is a work that was already written before that meeting with Tyranowski. 

But, in addition, both in his work Jobwritten in the first months of that same year 1940, as in his first poems, written in the spring of 1939, we also find Sanjuanist themes and elements. Therefore, I believe that the data provided by the biographers should be reformulated. Karol Wojtyła's approach to the figure, doctrine and poetical symbolism of St. John of the Cross is much earlier and could even be situated in the years of his childhood in Wadowice, during which he frequently visited the Carmelite monastery in the city. All this Hispanic background of Wojtyła's early thought, which we were unaware of, we are now discovering, thanks to the study and translation of these literary works of his youth.

Context. Wojtyła writes Jeremiah in the first months of 1940...

- Yes, when Poland has just been invaded by Germany and Russia. It is one of the most difficult and darkest moments in Polish history. With the occupation, both Germany and Russia started a tremendous campaign of "depolonization", which aimed to erase any trace of Polish culture and especially any trace of its deep Christian roots. It was the most effective way to dissolve the national identity and the sense of homeland in the Polish people, in order to subjugate and manipulate them more easily. 

Wojtyła writes Jeremiah to console his people, to encourage their hope and strengthen their faith in God, present in the darkness of the trial, but also to reflect on this dark historical moment in the light of the Christian vision of the history of nations. Why has Poland fallen, asks the author. The plot of the play and the dialogues of the characters show how the fall of a nation is related to the loss of its Christian identity and the abandonment of the moral order willed by God.

Are you targeting only the Polish people?

Karol Wojtyła writes his play "Jeremiah" in dialogue with the history of Poland, but anyone who thinks that this theatrical drama is intended only for the Polish nation would be mistaken. The play has a universal projection. Wojtyła does not seek to resolve the Polish question, but to raise, among others, the great question of national identity and, consequently, to invite every man to reflect on his personal identity in the light of his origin. In fact, when I reflect on my national identity, in the end I also ask myself who I am, who man is. Because the notion of homeland is not a political, ideological or sporting category, but one that shapes every man from his very origin. In the first roots of my personal identity there is God, family and homeland. 

For Wojtyła, the destiny of every man is inseparably linked to the history and destiny of the nation. Jeremiah shows already how the question of man's identity, which will be a central axis in the magisterium of John Paul II, is already present in Karol Wojtyła's early thought.

The warning of the character Skarga, who assumes a prophetic mission, like Jeremiah, seems striking.

- The work contains a subtle but scathing critique of the national myths that spread strongly during the years of Polish Romanticism. Among them, Wojtyła dialogues especially with Sarmatism and messianism, which served to ideologically justify the exclusivist appropriation of the concept of nation by a select and elitist minority. They were the ideologies of an era which, like the ideologies of today, violently and forcibly imposed their arguments and the personal interest of a few above the truth and the common good of the nation or the individual good of the subject. 

In this regard, the great speech that Wojtyła puts into the mouth of one of the protagonists of the drama, Father Peter Skarga, and which occupies the entire second act of the drama, is extremely topical. Addressing the Polish nobility, Fr. szlachta, who considered themselves as the true chosen people and the true Polish stock, Skarga harshly admonishes them against the disregard of God's Law and the economic, political, moral and cultural corruption that slowly prepared the historical downfall of Poland and its disappearance as a nation in the 18th century, during the time of the partitions.

The same thing happened at the time of the prophet Jeremiah, who announced the fall of Israel, because it was turning away from its identity as a chosen people and from the fulfillment of the covenant with Yahweh. When a nation falls into the trap of ideologies and sells its culture, its history, its religion or its morals, sooner or later it tastes its historical failure and loses the moral, historical and social strength of its specific identity.

 Any additional comments?

- It seems significant to me that the work is being published in Spain, at a time when the question of national identity is being strongly raised, and also in the context of the 45th anniversary of the election of John Paul II and the beginning of his pontificate, which we celebrated on October 16, 2023. 

The study of the work Jeremiah It reminded me of John Paul II's trips to Spain and, in a special way, of the event he held in Santiago de Compostela, in November 1982, and of the memorable speech that John Paul II addressed to Europe: "From Santiago, I send you, old Europe, a cry full of love: Come back to find yourself. Be yourself. Discover your origins. Revive your roots. Revive those authentic values that made your history glorious and your presence in the other continents beneficial. Rebuild your spiritual unity, in a climate of full respect for other religions and genuine freedoms... You can still be a beacon of civilization and a stimulus of progress for the world". 

In light of what Karol Wojtyła discusses in his work. Jeremiah, I believe that the Pope was already announcing the fall and the moral and cultural failure of Europe, as we are seeing it today, by departing from its Christian identity and from the moral order willed by God.

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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Evangelization

Pilgrims of Hope

The logo of the next Jubilee 2025 represents pilgrims coming from the four cardinal points, symbolized by the colors, embracing an Anchor-Cross.

Arturo Cattaneo-February 7, 2024-Reading time: 2 minutes
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The logo of the Jubilee 2025 represents that we are pilgrims, we walk towards the heavenly homeland and, as in every pilgrimage, we help each other to overcome difficulties, but the one who helps us most and precedes us is Jesus who, on the Cross, gave us his life and continues to give it to us in the Eucharist, that is why the Cross leans towards the four pilgrims who represent humanity coming from the four cardinal points. The pilgrims embrace, indicating the solidarity and fraternity that unites them, with the first in line who is clinging to the Cross of Christ, sign of faith, love and hope.

We are pilgrims of hope as we prepare to celebrate the 2025th anniversary of the birth of Christ, 2025 years of grace, mercy, mission and holiness. He alone is holy, but united with Him and with each other we hope to grow every day in holiness, despite the waves that beset us, because in the pilgrimage of life we are called to face difficulties and sometimes storms, but united with Christ we will not be shipwrecked, as shown by the anchor of salvation, which resists the waves.

The creator of the logo, Giacomo Trevisani, said he had "imagined people of all 'colors,' nationalities and cultures, coming from the four cardinal points and moving forward en route to the future, like the sails of a great common ship, unfurled by the wind of Hope that is the Cross of Christ and Christ himself." The colors also have a meaning, as he explained: "Red is love, action and sharing; yellow/orange is the color of human warmth; green evokes peace and balance; blue recalls security and protection. The black/gray of the Cross/Anchor, meanwhile, represents authority and the inner aspect."

The representation of the logo is completed with the motto of the Holy Year 2025, "Pilgrims of Hope", in the color green that recalls spring and, therefore, the hope in the new life that Jesus continues to offer us.

Jubilee 2025 logo
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The Vatican

When the FBI spied on Bishop Sheen

Rome Reports-February 6, 2024-Reading time: < 1 minute
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'Follow that Bishop!' 'Follow that bishop!' has been selected as one of the three finalists for Best Documentary at the Mirabile Dictu 2024 Festival.

The documentary unveils secret documents declassified by the FBI about a popular American bishop, Fulton Sheen. The investigative agency feared the success and following this bishop had on television, with millions of viewers in the 1950s.

AhNow you can enjoy a 20% discount on your subscription to Rome Reports Premiumthe international news agency specializing in the activities of the Pope and the Vatican.
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The World

Manos Unidas launches the campaign "The Human Being Effect".

The organization Manos Unidas presented today its campaign "The Human Being Effect", in which it "appeals for climate justice for the most impoverished".

Loreto Rios-February 6, 2024-Reading time: 2 minutes
RelatedRelated NewsClara PardoI am very proud of the work of Manos Unidas in this difficult moment".

– Supernatural The Human Being Effect" campaign coincides with the 65th anniversary of Manos Unidas and, as indicated in the documents provided by the organization itself, seeks to "convey to Spanish society the urgent need to end the climate injustice suffered by the most vulnerable peoples".

Cecilia Pilar Gracia, president of Manos Unidas, stated that "we will denounce how the mistreatment of the planet affects to a greater extent, and with much more devastating consequences, millions of disadvantaged people living in countries that have contributed little or nothing" to this deterioration.

Furthermore, Cecilia Pilar Gracia stressed that "in southern countries affected by extreme droughts, hurricanes, cyclones or torrential rains, these phenomena and the lack of means to mitigate or adapt to them are the cause of hunger, conflicts, poverty, migration and even death. And that is inequality. And that is climate injustice.

For the social projects being carried out by Manos Unidas (currently 550 in total, in 51 different countries), it relies on the help of 6460 volunteers, "distributed in the 72 delegations that the organization has", in addition to 73100 members.

Missionary of Turkana, Kenya

Manos Unidas is currently working in 50 countries in the world. AfricaAsia and America. As an example of the impact of climate change in Africa, the press conference was attended by María Soledad Villigua, a missionary in the Turkana desert in Kenya.

The missionary explained how in the last years the rains are scarcer in this area, which is reducing the water of Lake Turkana and making fishing difficult, besides causing deaths to the livestock of the nomadic herders of the area.

At the same time, María Soledad Villigua pointed out other difficulties faced in these environments, such as the exchange of girls for goats to men much older than them who already have several wives. In view of this, a shelter has been created for girls, both for orphans and for those who run away from their families when they are going to be exchanged.

This was followed by Donald Hernández, who explained the effects of the climate crisis in his country, Honduras.

Youth and climate change

Manos Unidas has also carried out a study, conducted by the consulting firm Gfk, "to know the perception that young Spaniards have about climate injustice and their commitment to reverse its effects".

The results of this study, briefly presented during the press conference, indicate that "76 % of young people in Spain believe that the climate crisis is real and a large majority are concerned about the situation, have a high sensitivity to environmental issues and are well aware that the future of all is linked to a large extent to our ability to care for the earth and its resources".

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RelatedRelated NewsClara PardoI am very proud of the work of Manos Unidas in this difficult moment".
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Initiatives

Mass schedules. Find a Mass near you by cell phone.

Pablo Licheri is an Argentinean who 10 years ago started a simple mobile application with the Mass schedule of the city of Buenos Aires. This application has grown to include Mass, confession and adoration schedules for churches all over the world. It already has more than 1.5 million downloads. 

Maria José Atienza-February 6, 2024-Reading time: 4 minutes

Mass Schedule is a mobile application, available for Android e iOS which collects Mass schedules from churches around the world. Its creator is an Argentinean, Pablo Licheri, married and father of 7 children. The application, which today has more than 1.5 million downloads, -and rising-, was born and grew thanks to him, his wife and children. "It started in a private, lay way. We don't have the backing of any bishopric or movement. It is a personal initiative, like many startups". states. 

The beginnings 

In 2014 Pablo was working at a bank in his native Argentina where he was leading software development teams. At the time, he tells Omnes, "I was looking for ways to help others. It was the time of the iPad launch and I was excited. I thought I had to learn to program for it. At that time, I also attended a spiritual retreat. The priest talked about the importance of going to Mass every day: He reminded us that Mass is the most important thing that happens in the world every day. Those things really touched me and connected with each other".. 

Licheri's initial idea was, however, very different from Mass Schedule: "I wanted to create a site that would transmit live Masses from different parts of the world, through the Internet, 24 hours a day. A site where you could watch a Mass live, at any time, and you could pray or listen to it if you couldn't go". He discussed this idea with a friend of his, but the friend pointed out the difficulties involved and encouraged him to start with something easier, such as a mobile application to look up Mass times. 

It seemed to Paul "too simple", but it convinced him as a first step and he developed it. "I made it very quickly, on Saturdays and Sundays, in the morning, before my children woke up."recalls Licheri. "I loaded only churches in Buenos Aires and sent it to my friends. After a short time, about two hundred people were using it. I was very happy and thought I had accomplished my mission. But I didn't. They started asking me to develop the application for Android. This meant making the whole application from scratch again. 

Licheri developed the application for both systems and within a short time, more than 2,000 people were using it to find out Mass times. Users were sending information about the churches they frequented: schedule changes, location errors, etc. 

The growth

Mass Schedule grew, and continues to grow, thanks to users. Users of the application began to send information about churches they met on their leisure or professional trips, outside of Buenos Aires and even beyond Argentina's national borders. "I started getting a backlog of new church data and bug reports." recalls Pablo Licheri and "I asked my older sons and daughters, who were about 10 - 12 years old, to help me. I taught them some basic programming skills and they were enthusiastic to help me. 

Licheri points out that there came a time when he realized that he had to work in a professional manner. The company already had several thousand users. app and the error reports and new information were accumulating. He started with a team of volunteers, but, although they helped a lot, the problem was not solved. At this point, he hired several professional developers and the application took off on new flights: "I'm not sure what to expect.We were able to start responding to users, uncorrected bug reports and bugs disappeared, etc. Moreover, this way, a virtuous circle is created: people see that we answer bug reports and they use the app more, they recommend it, more users enter, who, in turn, send more information and more corrections". 

Until last year, all expenses were borne by him and his wife. Today, the Mass Schedule has the possibility of making donations, from five dollars and up. "That has at least allowed us to cover the basic costs of the application." notes its creatorWe receive donations from all over the world, but they are still small. We still need to grow a bit more to hire one or two more full time employees, but it is a step"..

Masses around the world

Currently, Mass Schedule covers the schedules of Eucharistic celebrations in churches around the world: Europe, Latin America and also Asia and even Oceania. When a user sends information, the application team searches for that church on the web, checks the geolocation data, if the parish has a website and other information is also added, etc. Each published information has, in addition to the first submission of information, hours of work behind it. And it is not always easy. 

As Pablo points out, the differences in information between countries are very large. In the case of the United States, "The parishes have virtually every parish with an up-to-date website, with people working professionally on it. This has allowed 100% of the U.S. Mass schedules to be included in the application in 2023." In the case of Europe, this percentage is lower and it is more difficult, in many cases, to verify the information. Much more in Asia, Africa and Latin America. But even so, users provide a lot of information and this is what makes it possible for new temples to be uploaded every day. Every month, some 130,000 people download the application. 

As Licheri says, "We are 1.3 billion Catholics around the world, so imagine what we have left to grow and help! Periodically, in addition, the Mass Schedule prepares and sends a newsletter on various aspects of the faith, devotions or the Eucharist. 

An example to trust in God 

Perhaps Pablo Licheri's clearest experience in this adventure is that of trust in God: "If I had done this project on my own and with the business in mind, it would have disappeared."

In addition to the history of the application, Pablo himself and his family have lived new experiences thanks to the application, including finding the city where they now live: Ave Maria, Florida. "Seven years ago I came to give a lecture in Miami. My wife came with me and we stayed a few more days. We were driving down the highway wondering where we could go to Mass. My wife opened the app and told me 'there is a church near here that has Mass in a little while'. We were in Florida, in the middle of the Everglades. We took a detour and that's how we got to know this city. A beautiful city, built around a Catholic university built by Tom Monaghan, the founder of Domino's Pizza, with an impressive history behind it. We loved it for raising our children and came here. We're all still here except for my oldest son, who is in Rome studying because he wants to be a priest." narrates Pablo Licheri. He concludes: "I would like the story of Horarios de Misa, to serve as an example for other people to start different things and trust in God's providence.".

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  • St. Hedwig, the saint who unites the Germanic and Slavic worlds
Vocations

St. Hedwig, the saint who unites the Germanic and Slavic worlds

Canonized In 1267, because of her dedication to the poor and her strong devotional life, the cult of St. Hedwig spread rapidly throughout Poland and Germany.

José M. García Pelegrín-February 6, 2024-Reading time: 4 minutes
RelatedRelated NewsPilgrimage to Germany: the Aachen Cathedral

Some saints have played the role of building bridges between peoples and countries, passing into history under different names. A well-known example is St. Anthony of Padua (c. 1195-1231). Originally from Lisbon, he spent most of his life in Italy, where he is known as Antonio di Padova, while in Portugal he is called António de Lisboa. The same can be said of St. Elizabeth of Hungary (1207-1231), so called because of her birthplace, but known in Germany as Elizabeth of Thuringia, since she married Landgrave Ludwig of Thuringia-Hesse.

The same is true of St. Hedwig (Hedwig), aunt of Elizabeth of Thuringia, since her mother, Gertrude, was her sister. In Bavaria, she is known as Hedwig of Andechs, after the village - at that time only a castle - on the shores of Lake Ammersee, where she was born in 1174, as the daughter of Count Berthold IV of Andechs. However, she generally went down in history as Hedwig of Silesia, where she lived most of her life. In Polish she is called Święta Jadwiga Śląska: due to the influence of her husband Henry I of Silesia, the originally Slavic region experienced a mixture of Polish and German population until the end of World War II.

Marriage to Henry I of Silesia

After spending her childhood in the abbey of Kitzingen, educated by Benedictine nuns of whom her aunt was the abbess, her father married her - as we have just said - to the future Count Henry I of Silesia and "princeps" of Poland. At the end of the 12th century, childhood ended early: Hedwig was 12 years old when she married and 13 when she gave birth to her first child; over the years, she had five more children. According to tradition, after 22 years of marriage, Hedwig and Henry took a vow of continence; however, this did not affect the happiness of their marriage. Contrary to the common belief about political marriages, many of them turned out to be happy; without going any further, so was that of her niece Elisabeth with Landgrave Ludwig of Thuringia.

In 1201, Henry I became Duke of Silesia and obtained the southern part of Greater Poland and the Duchy of Krakow, which is why he called himself "Duke of Silesia, Poland and Krakow" and why, in various medieval and modern chronicles, Hedwig usually appears as "Duchess of Poland".

While her husband was busy consolidating his possessions, Eduvigis strove to spread Christian ideas, devotedly cared for the poor and sick, founded women's monasteries and supported various religious orders in the establishment of branches. According to tradition, she always carried a statuette of the Virgin Mary with her to contemplate with devotion, even in the midst of adversities such as the destruction of her birthplace, the castle of Andechs. Her sister Gertrude - the mother of Elizabeth of Hungary or Thuringia - was the victim of an assassination attempt. In addition, she had to come to terms with the untimely death of her three sons and two of her daughters, for the only one of her six children to survive her will be a daughter, also named Gertrude. Eduvigis bears it with the consolation of faith and daily prayer, which eventually led her to the desire to lead a consecrated life.

Widowhood and religious life

After the death of her husband in 1238 and the loss of her first-born son, her father's successor as Duke of Silesia and princeps of Poland, in the battle of Liegnitz against the Mongols three years later, Eduvigis entered the Cistercian monastery of Trebnitz, which she herself had founded in 1202, the first female convent in Silesia. The monastery grew rapidly to house about a thousand nuns, pupils and servants. She died there on October 15, 1243, at the age of almost 70.

In addition to the foundation of Trebnitz, for which he is usually depicted with a church on his hand - as is usual in many images of saints of the Middle Ages - and so appears in the early 15th-century statue of the Niedernburg monastery, he also built hospitals and asylums, such as the Hospital of the Holy Spirit in Wroclaw (Breslau, in German; Wrocław, in Polish) and a hospital for leprous women near Neumarkt.

Hedwig's reputation for holiness is due not only to the monastic life to which she withdrew during the last years of her life, but mainly to her service to the poor and her constant generosity towards them. According to the chronicles, in addition to building hospices and shelters, he also made a personal effort to help them; he even learned Polish to better serve them. Her modesty and sober dress make her conspicuously foreign to her status. Hedwig is not ashamed to wear used clothes, old shoes or even go barefoot: in some representations she carries her shoes in her hand, as an allusion to this circumstance. Hedwig does not want to distinguish herself from the poor because, as she tells her daughter Gertrude, the poor "are our masters".

Worship of St. Hedwig

These claims are based on the main source for her life story, the "Vita beate Hedwigis," written in Latin around 1300 by an unknown scholar, and which has been translated into German several times since the late 14th century. These claims are supported by the canonization document of Pope Clement IV, who canonized her on March 26, 1267; her feast day is celebrated on October 16.

Besides being the most important patroness of Silesia and Poland along with St. Adalbert and St. Stanislaus, her veneration spread westward, from Gdansk and Krakow to Vienna, Trent and Antwerp, favored by the Cistercian nuns and the Polish Piast dynasty.

In 1773, Frederick the Great, King of Prussia, built the Cathedral of St. Hedwig in Berlin, now the seat of the Archdiocese of Berlin, primarily for the Catholic immigrants from Silesia. Thus, Hedwig also became the patron saint of Brandenburg and Berlin, in addition to her birthplace, Andechs in Bavaria. In this way, St. Hedwig builds a special bridge between the Germanic and Slavic worlds.

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  • Thomas PowersGod knows what he created each person for".
Vocations

Thomas PowersGod knows what he created each person for".

Monsignor Powers, rector of the Pontifical North American College, affirms that "the world has changed radically since its foundation, but the mission of the College remains the same: to form men for the priesthood, with hearts configured to Christ".

Gonzalo Meza-February 6, 2024-Reading time: 7 minutes
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The new building of the Pontifical North American College in Rome (PNAC, by its acronym), inaugurated in 2015, has on the top of one of its walls the inscription, "Resonare Christum corde romano," a hallmark that comes true for the college's seminarians and future priests of the North American church.

The rector of PNAC, Monsignor Thomas Powers, states on the college's welcome page: "The world has changed radically since its founding, but the mission of the College remains the same: to form men for the priesthood, with hearts configured to Christ, High and Eternal Priest, so that they may return to their dioceses eager to serve God's people with fidelity, generosity and joy.

Bishop Powers knows the seminary very well since he studied there and later served as spiritual director, a role he held while working in the Dicastery for Bishops. Just prior to assuming his position as the new rector, he was pastor of St. John's Church in Darien, Connecticut. To learn more about the life, history and mission of PNAC, Omnes spoke with Bishop Powers.

Could you share with us a brief biography and your priestly ministry so far?

- I grew up in Newtown, Connecticut. We are five siblings. Three girls and two boys. My dad is going to be 90 years old and my mom is 88 years old. My family always attended Mass because faith was and is very important to us. I attended Catholic schools in elementary and high school and then studied economics at the University of Notre Dame.

Later, I worked for three years as a financial consultant and even went on to work in New York. At that time I felt that God was calling me to something different, probably the priesthood. So before I made the decision to go to the seminary I went to Puerto Rico to work with the poor, get away from the business world and dedicate myself to thinking and praying about what God wanted me to do. When I returned I entered our diocesan seminary in 1992. A year later I was sent to the North American College.

I was there for five years. I earned my bachelor's degree from the John Paul II Institute for Marriage and Family. I then returned to my diocese for seven years to work as a parochial vicar and as a high school chaplain and spiritual director of our seminary.

In 2005 I was asked to go to Rome to work for the Holy See in what is now the Dicastery for Bishops. I worked there for ten years. During that time I was assisting as associate spiritual director at PNAC. At the end of that period I returned to my diocese in 2015. I was vicar general for all those years and then the last year and a half I was pastor. In 2022 I again received a surprise call asking me to return to Rome for a third time to serve as rector. My priesthood has been a fascinating journey. I have received things and appointments that I never expected. I am grateful for all that God has done for me and grateful to be here as well.

Could you tell us about the three sections of the PNAC: the seminary and the ICTE both in the "Gianicolo" and the Casa Santa Maria in the historic center?

- The easiest way to think of these three sections is to visualize that we have three buildings with three missions. The oldest building is now called Casa Santa Maria. It was founded in 1859 under Blessed Pius IX. We were there from 1859 until 1953. That building is now the House where the priests who are doing graduate studies live.

The current building, the PNAC headquarters, was established in October 1953, 70 years ago. It is a majestic and beautiful building. It is located on the Gianicolo hill. The third building, also on the Gianicolo campus, is the Institute of Continuing Theological Education (ICTE), dedicated to house priests who are on sabbatical after 10 or 15 years of ordination.

They come here during this period to dedicate themselves to prayer, study and travel. They receive excellent classes and their stay here renews their energies to continue their priesthood and leave here happy to return to their ministry. Both seminarians and priests come from the USA, but we also have some from Australia. There is currently one Australian in the seminary and two priests at St. Mary's House. In the past we have had Canadians. We are proud of those three programs. We have very good seminarians and priests who want to be holy, joyful and good.

Where do seminarians go to study the first or second cycle of theology?

- The period of formation of seminarians in Rome at this stage is four years. Some stay another year to complete five. Unlike most seminaries in the USA, which have classes in the seminary itself, our students have theology classes off-site.

The first cycle is studied at the Pontifical Gregorian University (of the Jesuits), the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas ("Angelicum", of the Dominican friars) and the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross (of the Prelature of the Holy Cross). Opus Dei). Then, if they stay for the second cycle to get their license or start it, they can go to other Catholic universities in Rome. They study hard and work very hard. Monday through Friday, after morning prayer, we have Mass and breakfast. Then the seminarians go to their universities either walking, by bicycle or by bus. They come back for lunch and then continue with their study, apostolate and formation activities. They are always busy.

What is the formation program for seminarians at PNAC like and what is it based on?

- John Paul II identified in "Pastores Dabo Vobis" four dimensions of seminary formation: human, spiritual, intellectual and pastoral. I call Rome "the fifth dimension" for several reasons: students walk the streets where the saints passed through; they can go to pray at the tombs of the apostles and other saints; they can travel and learn from other parts of Italy or Europe.

In addition, we live right next door to the Holy Father, the successor of St. Peter and next to the tomb of St. Peter. Living here, students are steeped in the rich history and tradition of the Church. They are formed in these five dimensions and then take all of that back home to their dioceses to share with their people, their parishioners. 

Part of seminary formation is service. What apostolates do PNAC seminarians carry out in Rome? 

- I am very proud of our apostolic formation, because our seminarians - from the second semester of their first year to their fifth year - carry out apostolic works in the city and outside the city.

We have 22 apostolates in which we are involved. Some of them are: service to the sisters of Mother Teresa of Calcutta; the apostolate focused on the poor in the streets; the apostolate with American students living in Rome; guided tours in the basilicas of St. Peter and St. Paul. We also have a ministry in a parish and we also go to U.S. naval and air force bases in Italy.

These apostolates constitute a diversity of experiences. We have to consider that some of the students have to do their service in Italian or Spanish, which is very good because they have to adapt to going to an unfamiliar place or environment, situations that any priest has to do at some point in his ministry. These are very good and sometimes challenging experiences.

There are many traditions in the life of PNAC, for example, the rector's gala dinner or the so-called "Station Churches" (Lenten Stations in Rome), which bring the seminary community and the English-speaking people of Rome together daily during this period in one of the historic churches to celebrate Mass and venerate the relics of the martyrs or saints. 

- The "Lenten Seasons" is truly a phenomenal experience. Its history dates back to the fourth century when, during the LentThe bishop of Rome gathered with the people in different churches of the city to celebrate Mass and venerate the relics of the martyrs. Hence the name "station", "statio" in Latin. This tradition ended in 1309 when the Pope moved to Avignon. Centuries later Pope Leo XIII took it up again; however, when it really acquired its full force was with Pope St. John XXIII.

The Americans at the North American College took up and revived the tradition in 1975 and invited everyone, especially the English-speaking community in Rome. What we do on those dates is that from Ash Wednesday until Holy Week, Monday through Saturday, our boys attend daily Lenten stations. They get up very early in the morning - since Mass starts at 7:00 a.m. - and walk from the "Gianicolo" to the church of the station of the day. We priests take turns to celebrate the Masses.

Many English speakers participate, including university students or American pilgrims. Some of them come to Rome and stay for the entire period of Lent exclusively to live this wonderful tradition. I think this reminds us that we are on pilgrimage, making sacrifices together and celebrating the Eucharist as one people of God.

Another event, of great relevance to our College, is the "Rector's Dinner", which this year will be 30 years old and will be held on April 11. It gives us the opportunity to thank our benefactors, friends of the college and the university, for their generosity and constant support, material and spiritual, to the seminarians.

The feast of the Immaculate Conception, patroness of the Seminary, is another very special time for the entire PNAC community, since Our Lady is the one who protects us and intercedes for us. We also have internal traditions among the students themselves, for example, the annual soccer game called "Spaghetti Bowl" or the Thanksgiving Day race. 

What are the main achievements of PNAC over the last ten years?

- Looking back, I have lived here for 15 years of my life: as a seminarian, then as associate spiritual director and now as rector. I have seen that the college has always had an excellent formation program, which gets better as the Church teaches us on that topic. For example, in the 1990s when I was a seminarian, the reference was "Pastores Dabo Vobis" and its implementation, but then in 2016 it also included the "Ratio Fundamentalis Institutionis Sacerdotalis," the new priestly formation program that we are taking as our guide.

From an infrastructural point of view, the building of the "Gianicolo" has had many renovations and expansions. In 2015, a new tower was built which now has an adoration chapel, liturgy practice chapels so students can practice how to celebrate Mass, how to hear confession, etc. It also has classrooms, since we didn't have much space before.

In spite of this, the boys live very simply: their individual rooms are not air-conditioned, they do not have their own bathrooms. We have air conditioning only in some common areas, so that the boys can do in those places what they do best: pray and study. In that sense, our chapel and library are air conditioned for the hot months. Now, as rector, we also have plans for the future that we hope to realize in the next two years. 

What would you say to a young man or woman who is in the process of discerning whether God is calling him or her to the priesthood, religious or consecrated life? 

- I would advise them to open themselves and keep their hearts open, because God knows what he created each person for and what their purpose is. Some are called to the priesthood and consecrated life. If we keep our hearts open and are willing, we will listen to the Lord. Trust in Him. He will always guide you to where He wants you to be and will not lead you astray.

 It is also necessary to mention to the young people that there are other options to follow the Lord for example as a consecrated person, teacher, policeman, doctor, lawyer, etc. In my case, I tried to leave my heart open to God and let him surprise me. And He certainly did. The important thing is to keep our hearts open to God.

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The Vatican

Pope condemns rise in anti-Semitism

The Pope has published a letter addressed to the "Jewish brothers of Israel". In it, Francis recalls the very close relationship that exists between Catholics and Jews, the people of the Covenant, and expresses his condemnation of the current rise in anti-Semitism. The December 2023 issue of Omnes delved into the situation in the Holy Land.

Loreto Rios-February 5, 2024-Reading time: 3 minutes
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The Pope begins the letter to the Jews recalling that "we live in times of painful tribulations" and that "wars and divisions are increasing throughout the world". "We are, in fact, as I said some time ago, in a kind of 'world war in pieces,' with grave consequences for the lives of many populations," the Holy Father indicated.

In this regard, Francis made reference to the situation that is being experienced in Holy LandEven the Holy Land, unfortunately, has not been spared this pain, and since October 7 it has been plunged into an unprecedented spiral of violence. The Pope expressed his sorrow for these events: "My heart is torn to see what is happening in the Holy Land, by the force of so much division and hatred".

"These are sentiments that express a special closeness and affection for the people who inhabit the land that has witnessed the history of Revelation," the document continues.

The Holy Father then lamented that this situation has led to some anti-Semitic attitudes in the world: "Sadly, however, it must be said that this war has also produced in world public opinion attitudes of division, which sometimes lead to forms of anti-Semitism and anti-Judaism".

The link between Catholics and Jews

Faced with this situation, Francis recalled the close relationship that unites Catholics with Jews: "I can only reiterate what my Predecessors have also said clearly on several occasions: the relationship that unites us with you is special and unique, without ever obscuring, of course, the relationship that the Church has with others and the commitment also with them".

This bond makes the Church more strongly reject anti-Semitism: "The path that the Church has walked with you, ancient people of the covenant, rejects every form of anti-Judaism and anti-Semitism, unequivocally condemning manifestations of hatred towards Jews and Judaism as a sin against God."

Rejection of current anti-Semitism

For this reason, the Pope expressed his concern about current anti-Semitic attitudes: "Together with you, we Catholics are very concerned about the terrible increase in attacks against Jews throughout the world. We had hoped that 'never again' would be a refrain heard by new generations, and yet we now see that the road ahead demands ever closer cooperation to eradicate these phenomena."

Francis then stressed his closeness to the Holy Land: "My heart is close to you, to the Holy Land, to all the peoples who inhabit it, Israelis and Palestinians, and I pray that the desire for peace may prevail over all. I want you to know that you are close to my heart and to the heart of the Church. In the light of the many communications I have received from various Jewish friends and organizations throughout the world and of your letter, which I appreciate very much, I feel the desire to assure you of my closeness and affection".

Prayer for the return of the hostages

In addition, the Holy Father explained that he is praying for the return of the hostages and for the end of the war: "I embrace each and every one of you, especially those of you who are consumed by anguish, pain, fear and even rage. Words are so difficult to formulate in the face of a tragedy such as that which has occurred in recent months. Together with you, we mourn the dead, the wounded, the traumatized, beseeching God the Father to intervene and put an end to war and hatred, to these endless cycles that endanger the whole world. In a special way, we pray for the return of the hostages, rejoicing for those who have already returned home, and praying that all the others will soon join them."

Hope and appeal for peace

Moreover, towards the end of the document, the Pope called on us not to lose hope: "I would also add that we must never lose hope in a possible peace and that we must do everything possible to promote it, rejecting all forms of defeatism and mistrust. We must look to God, the only source of certain hope. [In times of desolation, we have great difficulty in seeing a future horizon in which light replaces darkness, in which friendship replaces hatred, in which cooperation replaces war. Yet we, as Jews and Catholics, are witnesses to that horizon. And we must build it, beginning first of all in the Holy Land, where together we want to work for peace and justice, doing everything possible to create relationships capable of opening new horizons of light for all, Israelis and Palestinians alike."

Concluding his letter to the Jews, the Pope pointed out that Jews and Catholics "must commit ourselves to this path of friendship, solidarity and cooperation in the search for ways to repair a broken world, working together in all parts of the world, and especially in the Holy Land, to recover the ability to see in the face of each person the image of God in which we have been created.

We still have much to do together to ensure that the world we leave to those who will come after us is a better world, but I am confident that we can continue to work together for this purpose."

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RelatedRelated NewsRoberto Regoli: "In the new Vatican documentation, a worldwide network of support for Jews is discernible."Related NewsItalian religious institutions hid thousands of Jews from the NazisRelated NewsHoly Land. Unattainable peace, the theme of the December issue of Omnes magazine.
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  • María Rita Martín: "Wherever the Teresian Association is, it has a common charism and its own characteristics".
Vocations

María Rita Martín: "Wherever the Teresian Association is, it has a common charism and its own characteristics".

The Teresian Association, founded by St. Pedro Poveda in 1911, celebrates the centenary of its pontifical approval by Pius XI in January 1924. On the occasion of the centenary, its world vice-director, Maria Rita Martin, explains to Omnes the charism and life of the TA, spread over thirty countries, which has drawn up a 2023-2028 plan that goes far beyond the centenary.

Francisco Otamendi-February 5, 2024-Reading time: 7 minutes
RelatedRelated News"The Pope asks us to live our religious vocation with depth and joy."

When María Rita Martín, number 2 of the Teresian AssociationThe Pope, who asked us what they are thinking in this year of the centenary of the approval, has no doubt: they want the renewing force of this commemoration to nourish all that they have to "set in motion, support, encourage, promote..., among all and with the strength of the Spirit.

María Rita Martín Artacho is currently deputy director of the Teresian Associationfounded by saint Pedro Poveda (Linares, Spain, 1874-1936), whose director is the Filipina Gregoria Ruiz. Born in Benamejí (Córdoba), María Rita Martín met the Teresian Association when she was a student teacher in Cordoba and obtained a teaching position by direct access. She worked for six years as a teacher of Spanish emigrants in Belgium.

On her return to Spain, she took a leave of absence to coordinate the ACIT Youth Movement, residing in Madrid, and at the same time studied Theology at the Pontifical University of Comillas where she obtained a Licentiate in Dogmatic-Fundamental Studies. From 2012 to 2019, Maria Rita worked at Loyola Andalucía University as director of the Department of Evangelization and Dialogue. Before being elected Vice-Director, she was part of the Governing Council in the period 2018-2023.

On Friday, January 12, in the Cathedral of Santa María de la Almudena, Cardinal José Cobo, Archbishop of Madrid, presided over a Eucharist of thanksgiving for the centenary, and thanksgiving multiplied in Barcelona and other Spanish cities, Holguín (Cuba), Buenos Aires (Argentina), Rome (Italy), Cochabamba (Bolivia), at the University of Bethlehem (Holy Land), Jerusalem, Amman (Jordan), Our Lady of Guadalupe (Mexico), Tokyo (Japan), in Iloilo, Davao, the Poveda College of Manila (Philippines), etc., as reported by the Vatican Agency. IT is integrated in the Dicastery The Holy See's International Association for the Laity, the Family and Life, as an international association of the lay faithful, its leaders point out.

Let's go in chronological order, María Rita: In what year did St. Pedro Poveda found the Teresian Association, what was its founding charism?

-Pedro Poveda opened a first "Academy" for student teachers in Oviedo in 1911. The objective was to train female teachers -and teachers, although later the male ones did not crystallize- who united "faith and science", intellectual preparation and a solid Christianity to exercise their work in public education giving a coherent testimony of life. In a few years it had several centers, such as the one in Oviedo throughout Spain and a Residence for university students in Madrid (1914), and a stable group of women who began to dedicate their lives and their profession, as they were teachers or university students, to the nascent work.

 Why did he call it Teresiana?

-For the attractiveness of St. Teresa as a woman, as a teacher of prayer and as a person who knew how to embrace the human in her relationships, in her writings, in her ability to make her way in the face of difficulties. "The human filled with God," wrote Poveda. There would be much to say about Teresa and what Poveda was attracted to her, which we can call "temper", the character... These are very brief brushstrokes that I give.

Father Poveda, its founder, martyred in 1936, was beatified in Rome in October 1993, and canonized by St. John Paul II in 2003, together with a woman of the Teresian Association, Victoria. Is this correct? 

-What concerns Pedro Poveda is true; what concerns Victoria is not. Victoria Díez y Bustos de Molina, a member of the Teresian Association, was a teacher in the school of Hornachuelos, Córdoba, died a martyr on August 12, 1936 and was beatified with Pedro Poveda in 1993 in Rome.

Can you tell us about your memories of the canonization?

-I was living in Rome at the time, but I had the gift of participating in that event. It was a multitudinous act, in the Plaza de Colón, more than a million people, I think I remember. Five Blessed were canonized: Mother Maravillas de Jesús, Genoveva Torres, Sister Ángela de la Cruz, José María Rubio and Pedro Poveda.

Thousands of members, families, friends, IT collaborators... came to Madrid to share this historic moment. I remember having lived it with serene joy, with deep gratitude, in communion with all the people who felt and feel encouraged and accompanied in their life of faith by the life and work of this priest born in Linares who was instrument of God "and only that," as he used to say. It brings to mind his personal prayer that he left written in his diary in 1933: "Lord, may I think what you want me to think; may I want what you want me to want; may I speak as you want me to speak; may I act as you want me to act. This is my only aspiration.

The Teresian Association was born "in difficult times, and in times of martyrdom," said Cardinal José Cobo, Archbishop of Madrid, during the Eucharist on the occasion of the centenary. Any comments?

Well, as the Cardinal himself pointed out, "Educating in difficult times" is the slogan or the title of a socio-educational proposal, a collective effort of the projects and educational centers of the Institution in Latin America to unite criteria and experiences. In difficult times it is necessary to join forces and to propose and project in dialogue and discernment with others who are in the same boat.

I dare not say that this time is more or less difficult than the previous ones, but it is the time we have to live, just as Poveda had to live his time and did not look at the difficulty, but lived it in coherence with his vocation. Today, it is up to us to face the difficulties knowing that we have good tools: prayer, study, mutual accompaniment, always attentive to reality, working with others, the international dimension of the TI, belonging to the Church..., which put us in a privileged situation to live with confidence, with courage, with the desire to contribute to our society the values that Jesus offered in his Gospel so that we all have life and abundant life.

Josefa Segovia met St. Pedro Poveda in 1913, and in 1919 she was appointed Director General. She presented the Teresian Association to the Holy See in 1923.

Josefa Segovia, who was and is recognized as the first general director of the Institution, traveled to Rome in October 1923 when she was 32 years old, with the vice-director, Isabel del Catillo and another member of the board, Eulalia García Escriche, somewhat older, a widowed woman. They carried the documentation that had been carefully prepared by Pedro Poveda and Josefa Segovia.

Once in Rome, they made several visits and consultations looking for the juridical framework of the Institution. On October 27, 1923, they had a private audience with Pope Pius XI in which Josefa Segovia was able to ask the Holy Father, directly, for the blessing and approval of the Institution by means of a Brief.

They returned to Spain and on January 11, 1924, the Brief was received at the Madrid address. Inter frugiferas which recognizes the Institution as a primary Pious Union depending on the then called Congregation of the Council, that is to say, giving it a different canonical character and place from the religious orders. Later the Code of Canon Law would call these works "Associations of the faithful".

Along these lines, can you briefly describe the The itinerary of the Teresian Sisters in the Church, in life and in law, during these years? The Vatican agency has reported the thanksgiving, with one voice and with great joy, in thirty countries where they work.

-The Teresian Association in these more than 100 years since its foundation has lived through many situations, some changes... Always open to the calls of the Church, of reality, of the life of its members. Thus, its development in each of the countries where it is present has the seal, the common denominator, of the charism that we share, but in a certain way also its own characteristics, an expression of the rootedness of the charism in other cultures and contexts. 

This is also related to our call to live the faith through education and culture, which asks us to respect the different ways of incarnating the Gospel in each place, but in communion with the universal Church.

Regarding the juridical trajectory, in the Brief of Pope Pius XI, in 1924, a diversity of members was recognized in the Institution: nucleus, cooperators, former students... For a time, due to historical circumstances, this diversity of associations was not reflected. In the 60's of the 20th century - and more with the call of the Second Vatican Council to the lay apostolate - the Institution recovered its original form: to be constituted by a Primary Association, which is universal, and by ACIT Associations, which are regional or local.

The purpose of the Teresian Association is human promotion and social transformation through education and culture, from public and private entities and organizations, you point out. Comment a little. 

-The members of the TI carry out their professional task as a mission, wherever they are, trying to be the salt that helps to give a taste of the Gospel to the concrete reality. They may be state officials, workers in a private company or self-employed; each situation is personal, but the commitment is to live it as a mission. This is what is essential.

On the other hand, there are works and projects of the Institution. The Academies of the first period of the IT are today, in some cases, subsidized schools or "Colleges", if we speak of other countries. The boarding schools for teachers that were opened in Spain in the first decades of the 20th century are now University Colleges or University Residences... These entities of the TI may have one or more members and the rest are collaborators who assume their own character.

Society is constantly changing and is asking us for new ways of acting and being present: projects, foundations, NGOs, etc. In the countries where we are, in many cases, the mission we carry out in association and the projects promoted locally require these new formulas. For example, for work with migrants; for school support to children or young people at risk; for the development and promotion of women; for the defense of human rights...

The work initiated by St. Pedro Poveda wants to remain open to evangelize and open roads and future. What are you thinking about now in this year of celebrations?

-No doubt. In the summer of 2023 we had an International Meeting and a General Assembly that set the course for five years. We have some lines of mission, impulses and commitments, rooted in our spirituality of incarnation, which invite us to look, discern and act in the world with the depth with which Jesus does, they invite us to evangelize in the heart of the world in which we live and offer a word of transcendence and meaning. 

These are broad lines that then each local reality lands in concrete plans. We talk about: weaving networks of fraternity in the world, promoting diversity, inclusion, dialogue and equality; committing ourselves with families, agents of social transformation; and walking with young people in this changing society that does not always help them to grow as persons.

The plan we are drawing up for the period 2023-2028 goes far beyond the centenary of the pontifical approval and we hope that the renewing force of this commemoration will nourish all that we have to set in motion, support, encourage and promote... among all of us and with the strength of the Spirit.

What do you think it is most necessary to emphasize in the Church in view of the Jubilee of 2025?

-All that the Pope is proposing: synodality, prayer life, ecclesial communion; dialogue with the different confessions and religions, also with those who are far away; commitment to peace and care for creation, without forgetting the real commitment to the most disadvantaged... To underline, as the Pope does, that in the Church we all fit because salvation is for every person who welcomes it and God is waiting for each person.

Have you been with Pope Francis?

-It is a wish that we would like to see fulfilled in the near future.

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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ColumnistsJavier Segura

Let's talk about authority

All sociologists state that one of the characteristics of the so-called Generation Z, i.e. today's adolescents and young people, is precisely the lack of authority referents and an education that has expanded into unconventional channels.

February 5, 2024-Reading time: 3 minutes
RelatedRelated NewsAlfonso Carrasco: "It is important to be aware of the educational task carried out by the Church."

"Teacher, do we have to do what we want again?" is the somewhat provocative subtitle that has the II Congress on Education organized by the Diocese of Getafe to be held on Saturday, February 10. The central theme to be addressed is the crisis of authority and its repercussions on education. The venue for these interesting reflections will be the San Pablo CEU University of Montepríncipe.

All sociologists state that one of the characteristics of the so-called Z generation, i.e. today's adolescents and young people, is precisely the lack of authority referents and an education that has been extended to unconventional channels. Perhaps our young people are trained more by YouTube tutorials or other social networks than by other more regulated methods. Institutions in general -something that also affects the school institution- have entered into crisis and their relevance is less relevant for today's youth than it has been for the youth of any other generation.

The figure of the teacher as a reference of authority does not escape this crisis either. The new pedagogy (which, by the way, is already more than a hundred years old) has undermined the reference of knowledge and morality that the figure of the teacher used to be. His authority has been relegated to the position of a mere mediator in the learning process that the child must carry out by himself. Something that has been reinforced today by the access to any information by students through the Internet, which seems to have unsettled many teachers.

If they can find all the information on the web, what is the role of the teacher? Does his role in transmitting knowledge make any sense? But if the school has been disrupted by this crisis, no institution is left out of this 'irreverence' with respect to authority that sociologists point out when describing our young people. The family, the church, the various governments... are all affected by this crisis of authority.

Different specialists will be taking part in this congress to address this complicated issue. The morning will be marked by a dialogue between the Swedish pedagogue Inger Enkvist and the judge Natalia Velilla, author of the book "The crisis of authority". A dialogue that will undoubtedly shed light on the subject from the dual perspective offered by these two personalities.

In the afternoon, several speakers will examine different facets in smaller groups, which attendees will be able to choose from. Juan Antonio Gómez Trinidad will examine "The crisis of authority in the educational system"; Tasio Pérez will present the topic "Love and sexuality, the authority of the body"; Diego Blanco will introduce us to the use of cell phones and screens in young people in the workshop "Freedom against the power of screens", José Luis Almarza, a specialist in the seventh art, will introduce us to this topic in "Authority in cinema" and the director Clara Fontana will help us land in the classroom and in the life of schools in "Authority in the educational center".

An intuition makes us all understand that without authority there is no true education. Although it is obvious that in order to correctly address what authority should be and how to achieve it, precisely in a context in which everything seems to go against this vision, it is necessary to first be clear about what it is to educate and the role of the educator and the role of the student in the educational process. These are important questions that attendees will have the opportunity to ask themselves in this interesting initiative. It is worth stopping for a while to think about where we want to go in the education of our children.

The authorJavier Segura

Teaching Delegate in the Diocese of Getafe since the 2010-2011 academic year, he has previously exercised this service in the Archbishopric of Pamplona and Tudela, for seven years (2003-2009). He currently combines this work with his dedication to youth ministry directing the Public Association of the Faithful 'Milicia de Santa Maria' and the educational association 'VEN Y VERÁS. EDUCATION', of which he is President.

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The Vatican

Jesus shows us the "face of the Father," Pope teaches

God is not a distant master who speaks to us from on high, but a Father full of love and compassion who comes close to us, the Pope stressed on Sunday. After praying the Angelus, Francis congratulated the lunar New Year, which begins on the 10th, and prayed for peace, human life, against human trafficking, and for victims of serious fires in Chile.

Francisco Otamendi-February 4, 2024-Reading time: 3 minutes
RelatedRelated NewsPope Francis Let us ask God to make us see and have compassion".

Lunar New Year greetings to millions of families in East Asian nations and other countries, perhaps one of the most important holidays in China; "the immense value of human life," on the occasion of the 46th World Lunar New Year's Day; and "the immense value of human life," on the occasion of the 46th World Lunar New Year's Day. for Life in ItalyThe theme is "The power of life surprises us", and the union to "counteract human trafficking", following the World Day of Prayer and Reflection against Trafficking in Human Beings. human traffickingThe Pope Francis made some of the following requests after the meeting on February 8, which will be held on February 8. Angelus this Sunday.

In addition, the Pontiff prayed for peaceThe President of the Republic, who is "the responsibility of the entire human family", especially in Ukraine, Palestine, Israel; he saluted the consecrated men and women participating in the meeting "Pilgrims of hope". on the road to peace, and prayed for the victims and those affected by the serious fires in central Chile.

God, Father of mercy

Before the recitation of the prayer of the Angelus the Virgin Mary, the Pope focused his brief meditation on rediscovering the true face of God, the "Face of the Father" as shown to us by Jesus in the Gospel, in the readings corresponding.

The Gospel of today's Liturgy shows us Jesus on the move, the Pope said. "Indeed, he has just finished preaching and, after leaving the synagogue, he goes to Simon Peter's house and cures his mother-in-law who was ill with fever."

"Then, in the evening, he goes out again to the gate of the city, where he meets many sick and demoniacs and heals them; the next morning, he rises very early and goes out to retire to pray; finally he sets out again and travels throughout Galilee."

After a whole day on the move, Jesus withdraws in prayer, to bring everything and everyone to the heart of the Father; and prayer gives him the strength to return to his brothers and sisters. "This unceasing journey of Jesus challenges us. We can ask ourselves: have we discovered the Face of God as the Father of mercy, or do we rather announce and believe in a cold and distant God? Does faith move us to set out on the journey, or is it an intimate consolation that leaves us at ease? Do we pray only to feel at peace, or does the Word that we hear and preach make us go out, like Jesus, to encounter others to spread the consolation of God?"

God is closeness, compassion and tenderness

These are some of the reflections and questions that the Pontiff posed aloud for interior examination. "Let us look, then, at the way of Jesus, and let us remember that our first spiritual work is this: to abandon the God we think we know and convert ourselves every day to the God Jesus presents to us in the Gospel, the Father of love and compassion."

"And when we discover the true Face of the Father, our faith matures: we no longer remain "sacristy Christians" or "parlor Christians," but we feel called to be bearers of God's hope and healing." 

May Mary Most Holy, Woman on the Way, help us to go out of ourselves to proclaim and bear witness to the Lord, concluded Francis on this Sunday, which is now close to Lent.

Inalienable dignity of each person, concrete expressions of it

In greeting families for the Lunar New Year, the Pope noted "the desire that this feast be an opportunity to live relationships of affection and gestures of affection, which contribute to creating a society of solidarity and fraternity, in which each person is recognized and welcomed in his or her inalienable dignity."

Then, invoking the Lord's blessing on all, he referred to peace in these terms. "Pray for peace, for which the world yearns so much and which, today, is so difficult to attain.

for which the world yearns so much and which, today more than ever, is in danger in many places. It is not the responsibility of a few, but of the entire human family: let us all work together to build it with gestures of compassion and courage".

Referring to the Day for Life in Italy, he remarked: "I join the Italian bishops in the desire to overcome ideological visions in order to rediscover that every human life, even the most marked by limitations, has immense value and is capable of giving something to others".

And with regard to trafficking, these were his words. "I greet the young people from so many countries who have come for the World Day of Prayer and Reflection against Trafficking, to be celebrated on February 8, in memory of St. Josephine Bakhita, the Sudanese nun from Sudan who had been a slave as a child. Even today, many brothers and sisters are deceived with false promises and then subjected to exploitation and abuse. Let us all unite to fight against the dramatic worldwide phenomenon of human trafficking".

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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Evangelization

Blessed Justus Takayama Ukon, the Christian samurai

February 4 marks the feast day of Justus Takayama Ukon, a samurai who lived in the late 16th and early 17th centuries and was beatified in 2017 by Pope Francis.

Loreto Rios-February 4, 2024-Reading time: 3 minutes
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Blessed Justus Takayama Ukon was a samurai, that is, a Japanese noble warrior in the service of the daimios, aristocrats of a higher class.

He was born in 1552, the same year of the death of St. Francis Xavier, in the castle of Sawa, south of the Japanese city of Nara. His father was a Buddhist, but was converted by the preaching of Brother Lawrence, a Japanese converted to Christianity by St. Francis Xavier. As a result of his father's conversion, all the Takayama family was baptized. Ukon was 11 years old at the time, and received the name Justus at his baptism.

This "Christian samurai", as he is known, trained in arms at a very young age, and soon became lord of a territory, beginning his military and political career. Takayama Ukon was openly Christian and by his example many of his vassals converted to Christianity. In addition, "he received the Jesuit Alessandro Valignano (1539-1606) in Takatsuki as a guest of honor; he collaborated in the foundation of a seminary in Azuchi, Nobunaga's new city on the shores of Lake Biwa" and "advised Nobunaga in the preparations for the famous Kyoto parade in which the emperor himself was present," states a comprehensive article on this blessed man in the Lord Takayama Jubilee Foundation.

Ukon was a vassal of Oda Nobunaga and, when he was assassinated in 1583, of Toyotomi Hideyoshi. He propagated Christianity in several Japanese regions, and many of his noble friends were also baptized.

Exile

However, Hideyoshi was not entirely happy with Takayama Ukon's faith. In 1586 he ordered him to abandon the Christian faith. Upon his refusal, he was condemned to exile.

Six years later, in 1592, Hideyoshi readmitted Takayama Ukon to his circle, although he continued to openly practice his faith. After the death of his lord a few years later, the samurai became a vassal of Maeda Toshinaga, and, soon after, of his brother, Maeda Toshitsune. It was then, in 1614, that Tokugawa Ieyasu, considered one of the great unifiers of Japan, ordered the expulsion of the Christian missionaries, and with them, that of Takayama Ukon and his family, among others.

Death in Manila

At this news, Maeda Toshitsune, believing that Ukon would rebel because of this sentence, prepared to fight, but the samurai sent him a message in which he said: "I do not strive for my salvation with weapons, but with patience and humility, according to the doctrine of Jesus Christ that I profess".

So, accompanied by his wife and family, in a group of 300 Christians condemned to exile, Ukon embarked in November 1614 for Manila. Once there, he was received with great honors by the Spanish government, but a few days later he fell ill, dying in Manila on February 3, 1615.

"He was 63 years old, most of which he spent as an extraordinary witness to the Christian faith in difficult times of conflict and persecution," the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints states.

For his part, Cardinal Angelo Amato, who presided over his beatification ceremony in Osaka on February 7, 2017, called him "the Christian samurai," a "tireless promoter of the evangelization of Japan."

Takayama Ukon and the Popes

Pope Francis referred to this saint at the February 8, 2017 general audience, one day after his beatification, saying that Takayama Ukon "renounced honors and riches, accepting humiliation and exile. He remained faithful to Christ and to the Gospel, making him an admirable example of fortitude in faith and dedication in charity."

Francis also referred to this Blessed in a letter to the bishops of Japan on the occasion of the pastoral visit of Cardinal Fernando Filoni, Prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, on September 14, 2017. In it, Pope Francis noted that, in thinking of the Church in Japan, he recalled the many martyrs who had offered their "life for the faith." "They have always had a special place in my heart: I think of St. Paul Miki and his companions, who in 1597 were immolated, faithful to Christ and his Church; I think of the countless confessors of the faith, Blessed Justus Takayama Ukon, who in the same period preferred poverty and the path of exile rather than deny the name of Jesus."

Pope John Paul II also mentioned this at the general audience of June 15, 1988, when he greeted the pilgrims of Kanazawa: "I congratulate you on the celebrations with which you are commemorating the first centenary of the reconstruction of your parish church. Your parish church has as its founder the venerable Ukon Takayama, who was exiled for the sake of the faith. I wish you, following his example, to maintain and strengthen your faith more and more with the help of Our Lady".

Statue in Manila

In Manila there is a statue commemorating this Christian samurai, who is depicted with a cross instead of a sword. It can be seen here.

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Pope's teachings

Promoting the Christian spirit in communication

Pope Francis has recently emphasized the need to promote in communication and education the Christian spirit, which places God at the center and recognizes the dignity and responsibility of man.

Ramiro Pellitero-February 3, 2024-Reading time: 8 minutes

How to communicate and educate from a Christian perspective? Is it exactly the same as doing it outside of faith or with only "professional" criteria?

Among Francis' teachings in the past weeks, we have chosen three themes that are interconnected: worship, communication and education.

Worship: "to kneel the heart".

The core teaching of the Pope Francis during Christmas was the need for adoration. Already in his address to the Roman Curia to congratulate Christmas (December 21, 2023), he referred to "the need for adoration.listen with your heart" o "listen on your knees". 

"Listening with the heart is much more than hearing a message or exchanging information; it is an inner listening capable of intercepting the desires and needs of others, a relationship that invites us to overcome schemes and overcome the prejudices in which we sometimes pigeonhole the lives of those around us".

Like Mary we have to listen "kneeling", i.e. "with humility and awe".. 

"Listen 'on your knees'" -says the Pope- It is the best way to really listen, because it means that we are not in front of the other in the position of someone who thinks he already knows everything, of someone who has already interpreted things before even listening, of someone who looks down, but, on the contrary, we open ourselves to the mystery of the other, ready to receive with humility what he wants to teach us.".

When it comes to listening, Francis went on to explain, sometimes we are like wolves who are always trying to devour as soon as possible the words of the other, with our impressions and judgments. "On the other hand, listening to each other requires inner silence, but also a space of silence between listening and answering.".

And all this is learned in prayer:"We learn all this in prayer, because it widens the heart, brings our self-centeredness down from its pedestal, teaches us to listen to others and generates in us the silence of contemplation. We learn contemplation in prayer, kneeling before the Lord, but not only with our legs, kneeling with our heart!"

The art of listening is learned, in short, when prejudices are set aside, with openness and sincerity, "with my heart on my knees".

This helps us to another art, the "art of discernment": "That art of the spiritual life that strips us of the pretension of knowing everything, of the risk of thinking that it is enough to apply the rules, of the temptation to go ahead [...] simply repeating patterns, without considering that the Mystery of God always surpasses us and that the life of people and the reality that surrounds us are and will always be superior to ideas and theories. Life is always superior to ideas. We need to practice spiritual discernment. 

All of this will also help us to exercise discernment at the pastoral level. "The Christian faith - let us remember - does not want to confirm our certainties, nor settle us in easy religious certainties, nor give us quick answers to the complex problems of life.".

Contemplation, awe, adoration

Adoration once again occupies a central place in the homily for Christmas Eve (December 24, 2013). The first thing, the Pope points out, is to contemplate the way in which God becomes incarnate, taking the path of humility and littleness, in a world in which power and strength are often the most important things. For this reason, "How ingrained in us is the worldly idea of a distant and controlling God, rigid and powerful, who helps his own to impose himself on others! [...] He was born 'for all'...., during the census of ‘the whole earth'.". When we look at the tenderness of God, his face in that Child, we see that he is God of "...".compassion and mercy, omnipotent always and only in masterr". That is God's way of being.

Contemplation is the source of wonder. Before God each one of us is not a number in a census, but our name is written in his heart. And he says to us: "For you I became flesh, for you I became like you.". And the consequence: "He, who became flesh, does not expect from you your successful results, but your open and trusting heart. And you in Him will rediscover who you are: a beloved son of God, a beloved daughter of God. Now you can believe it, because tonight the Lord came into the light to illuminate your life and His eyes shine with love for you.""Christ does not look at numbers but at faces". But who looks at Him?

Hence the need for adoration, which is "the way to welcome the Incarnation".. As the Pope points out:"To adore is not to waste time, but to allow God to dwell in our time. It is to make the seed of the incarnation flourish in us, it is to collaborate with the work of the Lord, who as leaven changes the world. To adore is to intercede, to make reparation, to allow God to set history right."And especially before the Eucharist, as Tolkien writes: "I set before you what there is on earth worthy of love: the Blessed Sacrament. In it you will find romance, glory, honor, honor, fidelity and the true way to all that you love on earth." (J.R.R. Tolkien, Letter 43, March 1941).

Communicating: "disarming language".

Another theme to which the Bishop of Rome frequently returns is communication. In an Address to the Association of German Catholic Journalists (January 4, 2024), he proposes to them, in the context of our conflictive communication, flooded with inflammatory statements, the demilitarization of the heart and the "language disarmament": 

"This is fundamental: to foster tones of peace and understanding, to build bridges, to be available to listen, to exercise respectful communication towards the other and his reasons. This is urgent in society, but also the Church needs a 'kind and at the same time prophetic' communication.".

Spiritual dimension and universal vision

Francis reminds them of two proposals from his Letter to the People of God on pilgrimage in Germany (2019). First, care for the spiritual dimension.. That is,"concrete and constant adaptation to the Gospel and not to the models of the world, rediscovering personal and communal conversion through the Sacraments and prayer, docility to the Holy Spirit and not to the spirit of the times".

And secondly, the universal, Catholic dimension, "not to conceive the life of faith as something relative only to one's own cultural and national sphere. Participation in the universal synodal process is good from this point of view.".

In this dual perspective, Catholic communicators have a valuable role to play: "By providing correct information, they can help to clarify misunderstandings and, above all, prevent them from arising, helping mutual understanding and not oppositions.". They should not be kept "neutral" language they convey, but rather "put yourself on the line"to become involved in order to be a point of reference. This also requires "communicators who highlight the stories and faces of those to whom few or no one pays attention. [Even if it means going against the tide and wearing out the soles of their shoes!".

Testimony, courage, a broad outlook

In another speech to those responsible for communication in dioceses and ecclesial institutions (January 12, 2014), he invited them to "go to the world".the root of what we communicate, the truth we are called to bear witness to, the communion that unites us in Jesus Christ"; also to "not to fall into the error of thinking that the object of our communication is our strategies or individual companies.", "not to close ourselves in our solitude, in our fears or ambitions", "not betting everything on technological progress". 

We must be realistic: "The challenge of good communication is today more complex than ever, and there is the risk of facing it with a worldly mentality: with the obsession of control, power, success; with the idea that the problems are primarily material, technological, organizational, economic.". 

Realism is also, and he encouraged them, to "starting from the heart"listening, communicating, seeing with the heart things that others do not see, sharing them and telling them, overcoming a purely mundane perspective. 

For us, communicating is not just a matter of marketing or technology: "We are not just a matter of marketing or technology.is to be in the world to take care of the other, of others, and to become all things to all people; to share a Christian reading of events; not to surrender to the culture of aggressiveness and denigration; to build a network to share goodness, truth and beauty through sincere relationships; and to involve young people in our communication.". 

Peter's successor wanted to leave these communicators with three words: witness, courage and a broad outlook. Witness makes our communication credible and attractive. He told them that after the shame of the (sexual) abuses in countries like France, the Church is living a path of purification; but the darkest moments are those that precede the light. He advised them to work with creativity, welcome and fraternity towards all. 

"The courage that comes from humility and professional seriousness, and that makes your communication a coherent and at the same time open, extroverted network.". This must be your courage, the Pope told them. "Even if the recipients may seem indifferent, sometimes critical, even hostile, do not be discouraged. Do not judge them. Share the joy of the Gospel, the love that makes us know God and understand the world."because many today are thirsty for God and seek him also through us. 

"Broad look", finally. "To look at the whole world in its beauty and complexity. In the midst of the murmurings of our time, of the inability to see the essential, to discover that what unites us is greater than what divides us; and that it is communicated with the creativity that is born of love. [Everything becomes clearer - even our communication - from a heart that sees with love.".

Educating: towards a true humanism

In his address to the International Federation of Catholic Universities (FIUC) on January 19, Francis welcomed the centenary of its roots in the time of Pius XI and Pius XII. From those roots, he noted, emerge two aspects that Pope Bergoglio wished to underline. 

First of all, networking. He proposed the "the audacity to go against the tide, globalizing hope, unity and harmony, instead of indifference, polarization and conflict.". 

Second, to be instruments for "to reconcile and confirm peace and charity among men". (Pius XII, Letter Catholicas studiorum universitates, 1949), and to do so today, when we are in a war scenario ("the third world war in pieces") in an interdisciplinary way.

Educational passion 

In the Magna Carta of the Catholic universities, the Apostolic Constitution Ex corde Ecclesiae (1990), John Paul II began by saying that they are born "of the heart of the Church". (and not only of Christian intelligence), because they are an expression of the love that animates the action of the Church. Especially in these universities it must be seen what and how is an educational project: 

"An educational project -Francisco points out. is not based only on a perfect program, nor on efficient equipment, nor on good corporate governance. In the university there must be a greater passion, a common search for truth, a horizon of meaning, and all this lived in a community of knowledge where the generosity of love, as it were, is palpable.".

Paraphrasing Hannah Arendt (who studied love as desire in the work of St. Augustine), the Pope urged not to replace desire with functionalism or bureaucracy. In that sense "it is not enough to grant academic degrees, it is necessary to awaken and safeguard in each person the desire to be." Nor is it enough to design competitive careers, but "the discovery of fruitful vocations must be promoted, inspiring paths of authentic life and integrating the contribution of each person into the creative dynamics of the community."And alluding to a very topical subject, he added: "It is true that we must think about artificial intelligence, but also about spiritual intelligence, without which man remains a stranger to himself.". 

The university is an indispensable resource for not only living "in step with the times".The responsibility for the great human needs and dreams of the youth has been postponed.

Alluding to a fable by Kafka, he called for the university not to be driven by fear, shutting itself up in a bubble of security but with its back to reality. "Fear devours the soul".  

"Knowing for the sake of knowing."said Unamuno, "is inhumane.". The task of every university must be lived with clarity by a Catholic university: "....It must take a stand and demonstrate it with its actions in a transparent way, "getting its hands dirty" evangelically in the transformation of the world and in the service of the human person.".

In other words, it is about"to translate culturally, with a language open to new generations and new times, the richness of Christian inspiration, to identify the new frontiers of thought, science and technology and to assume them with balance and wisdom [...], to build intergenerational and intercultural alliances in favor of the care forthe common home, of a vision of integral ecology that gives an effective response to the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor".

Indeed, this is a program not only for Catholic universities, but for any educational institution of Catholic (and in general Christian) inspiration.

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Family

Jason Evert:"Chastity is a virtue that liberates"

Jason Evert and his wife founded "Chastity Project," a platform through which they remind young people that "their hearts are made for love and their minds for truth, and chastity gives them both."

Paloma López Campos-February 3, 2024-Reading time: 9 minutes
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Jason Evert begins the interview on the phone and in the car. He and his wife work intensively outside the home, and with eight children, it's important to be as effective as possible, even on the road. Together they founded "Chastity Project", a platform through which he talks about chastity.

As soon as he can, he parks the car to talk about this topic, with words that combine reflection and experience. He is convinced that "the peace and joy that come from chastity are worth more than all the pleasures of the world".

Evert does not speak about this virtue with accusations or by stirring up sorrows. He considers that living chastity is the only way to realize that for which we were created, "to receive love and to give love".

To better understand his message, based on the theology of the body of St. John Paul II, we asked him about sexuality in couples, the hope of young people and the beauty of chastity.

Can you give us a positive definition of chastity?

– Pope John Paul II said that the word “chastity” needs to be rehabilitated. There’s so many negative connotations associated with it. But one thing he also said was that the virtue of chastity can only be thought of in association with the virtue of love. And I think that what he meant by that was that the function of chastity is to free us to love and to be authentically loved.

How does it free us to love? From a man’s perspective, if I can’t say no to my sexual impulses, then saying yes to them means nothing. If I don’t have self-control, I can’t make the gift of myself to my wife. And if a man never learns self-mastery prior to marriage, I don’t think he’ll ever make love to his own wife, he’ll just use her body as an outlet of what he thinks of as his sexual needs. And a woman knows the difference.

Chastity also frees you to know if you are being loved. From a woman’s perspective, if a guy is unwilling to date you if you are not going to give him certain sexual pleasures, then it shows that it’s not you that he desires, but the pleasure that he can get from you. And so chastity can really help a woman to discern if a man loves her or if he just wants to use her.

Chastity it’s a virtue that is not simply abstinence. The virtue of chastity is more synonymous with purity, purity of heart. And one of the benefits of that is that it makes you free to see God. Not only to see God in Heaven, but to see God in your girlfriend, in yourself and in the created universe. So, chastity gives you clarity of vision.

Chastity is not a negative and prudish attitude towards sexuality, it’s a virtue that frees you to love.

You have stated that purity is the only way to authentic intimacy. What do you mean by that?

– Lust blocks intimacy, because lust is not sexual attraction or desire, those in themselves are good things. Lust is the reduction of a human person to their sexual value. And there’s really nothing intimate about that. You don’t see a person, you see a body.

Lust blocks intimacy, but chastity makes it possible., because you are seeing the person as a person, not just as something that you can extract pleasure from.

Sexuality is experienced very differently between men and women. How can we find balance in the couple, both in dating and in marriage, when living in chastity?

– It’s important that we have regard for one another’s weaknesses. The other might be tempted in areas that we are not. And I think that the word ‘modesty’ is important. We have reduced it to clothing, but that’s not all of it.

Of course, clothing is a part of modesty and we tend to think about it in relation to women. But modesty is also a male thing, in particular we need to talk about the modesty in the men’s intentions. Because sometimes the intentions of a man towards a woman could be far from immodest than any outfit that she could possibly put on. So men need to check if they are being emotionally impure.

Girls can fall into the opposite side. They need to check if they are trying to physically manipulate the guy in order to obtain emotional pleasure from him.

So we have to understand our own weaknesses and challenges, and understand those of the other sex, in order to have regard for that. And that’s why John Paul II called modesty the “guardian of love”, because it opens up a way towards love and helps you to fall in love for the right reasons.

You founded the “Chastity Project” with your wife. Why did you start this project?

– I started it for two reasons. One is I led many high school retreats and on these retreats the high school students would share with me all the struggles they were having and a lot of them were related to chastity, or the lack of it. There was a lot of confusion in the relationships and they had no formation, no guidance on this subject.

At the same time, he counseled women who were considering abortion. He did this as a "sidewalk counselor," so he would talk to women just before they had an abortion. But I felt I was late. Yes, I was talking to a woman but she had an abortion appointment 45 minutes later. There I was wondering why I couldn't have met her when I was 16. Because maybe then, if she had learned about chastity, she wouldn't be in this difficult situation. You don't save babies in front of an abortion clinic, you don't do that by trying to change the supply of abortion. You do that by reducing the demand for abortion. You have to act first.

And so, as I was doing these different ministries, I was also reading Pope John Paul II’s book “Love and responsibility”, and I started seeing that as the antidote for so much of this hurt and confusion.

Many people think that the Church shouldn’t speak about sex, claiming that priests don’t know much about it. Could we say that what they claim is true?

– I think that the world makes a big mistake in discrediting the Church’s teachings on sexuality, because they are being proclaimed by celibate men. In particular, when Pope John Paull II was a professor at the university in Lublin (Poland), his classrooms were packed. His female students thought he must have been married at some point, or at least engaged, because of how well he understood women. But he understood women that well because he was an extraordinary listener. A priest listens to thousands of confessions, many of them are from women, married women, who say things that they might not even say to their own husband.

You don’t need to engage in sexual activity to understand the gift of our sexuality as male and female, any more than an oncologist needs to have cancer to be able to treat it. And if anybody doubts this, they should just read the book “Love and responsibility”.

When asked about how to teach all this to the modern world, Pope John Paul II answered by saying: “It is necessary to understand the soul of the woman”. All of these things that have promised to liberate her, premarital sex, contraception, abortion… They have enslaved her instead.

Pope John Paul II also talks about when Adam first saw Eve’s naked body. John Paul II says that she experienced “the peace of the interior gaze”. What he meant by that is that women are very perceptive as to how men look at them. If a woman senses that a man is looking at her in an objectifying way, she becomes defensive and restless, she feels vulnerable and exposed. She might even be resentful towards him or towards sexuality in general. But if a man has purity of heart, in particular a husband towards his wife, he’s able to give to her all of the peace of the interior gaze. Meaning she is at rest in his presence, she can be naked without shame because she knows he’s looking at her with love.

It seems that once you get married, everything is allowed in sex. How do you live chastity in marriage?

– God’s plan for sex in marriage is to speak the wedding vows with the body. In your wedding vows you promise that your love will be free, total, faithful and that it’ll welcome children. And so when a husband and a wife make love, what they are doing is they are renewing their wedding vows in their bodies.

As a spouse, I give myself to you freely, I’m not forcing you, not manipulating or pressuring you, it’s a free gift of self. I’m not addicted to lust. It’s a total gift, you are holding back nothing from each other, not even your fatherhood or motherhood. It’s a faithful gift, not only with your body but also with your imagination. And it’s a fruitful act, so it’s never sterilized, contraceptive or aborted.

All of these means no adultery, no pornography, no contraception, purity of heart, reverence for the gift of sexuality… Essentially, what you are doing then is you are speaking the truth with your body. Because sex is saying with your body that I am completely yours, I give myself totally to you. And so, within marriage, you are speaking the truth in your body, you are renewing your wedding vows.

Unfortunately, a lot of people think that sexual desire is lust. So, if you are experiencing sexual desire you must be lusting, but that’s not the Church’s understanding of these terms, because otherwise just the act of love making itself would have to be sterile, unemotional and objectively disinterested. But that’s not the way that God designed it to work.

Pope John Paul II said that the sexual drive is a gift from God. And so we just have to reclaim it from the ways that the world has twisted it up.

Many young people attend your conferences, why are they so interested in this topic? What are they looking for?

Evert during one of his lectures

– They are looking for love. They were created by love, for love, to receive love. And chastity makes love possible. They’ve been through heartbreak, they’ve been through the hurt. They know that all the pornography they’ve consumed has not brought them one inch closer to the love that their hearts really crave. Young people are looking for something that can break through all this hurt and confusion.

They are hungry for this because their hearts are made for love and their minds are made for the truth, and chastity gives them both.

What if someone has not lived chastity from a young age? How to heal those wounds?

– The first step is to realize that it is never too late. You are valuable, your value does not come from your virginity. Your sexuality has value because of you, you are the gift. You still have yourself to give, we are not damaged goods.

If you feel wounded from the past, don’t infect the wound, don0t go back to that old lifestyle of false consolations. But start over. If your future wife or husband is out there and has made mistakes, would you not love them because of their past? No. You’d love them and you’d want them to start over.

Today is that day of your life when you can start over. Love your spouse before you meet your spouse, and this will give you greater clarity to realize if that is the right person to marry. Once you become sexually intimate with someone, your capacity to be objective is just gone.

So start over. If you are Catholic, go to the Sacrament of Confession, and begin again.

You say it is important for young people to be the ones to tell others about the beauty of chastity. Why do you think this is relevant?

– Chastity is a virtue that is easy to resent. It’s easy to dismiss it, saying that it is not for you, that it is unhealthy or unrealistic. But when you have a young person saying that it is not unhealthy and that he or she is happy, that chastity is not unrealistic and it is as hard as you make it, that it can be enjoyable, you make it harder to dismiss this virtue.

How do you strike a balance between not being embarrassed to talk about sex and not turning it into a banal topic?

– One, I think it is an easy topic to talk about because it is already on people’s minds. But it can be an awkward subject, so I try to use humor in a tasteful way, and that helps people to relax. It’s almost as when you are using anesthesia before you operate. If you don’t numb the patient and you just stick a knife in them, they are going to run away. So I use humor as a kind of anesthesia and then I go on and make some strong points.

Again, it’s not much of a talk about shame and guilt. It’s more like explaining to them that you struggle to, and if I open up to them it helps them to relax.

Also, I like to focus on why this is a beautiful thing. Because truth and goodness, you can debate them, but beauty is irrefutable, you can’t argue with beauty.

Now the question you probably get asked at all your conferences: Is it really worth being chaste? Is it really possible?

– I would ask the question backwards. Is it really realistic to be unchaste and happy? Think about it. Do I really wanna grow up to be an adult that is still looking at pornography? Do I want to shut my computer when my five year old daughter comes into the room? Do I want to hide the porn from my wife? Is sleeping with a bunch of guys in college really what I long for in the depths of my soul? Do I want to sleep with a guy, not knowing if he’ll text me back two weeks from now? I think the answer to all that is no.

It seems like we are fighting against the very thing that we desire, which is authentic human love. So to me, chastity is not unrealistic, what is unrealistic is expecting people to find fulfillment living outside of the will of God.

People say that chastity is hard, but what is actually hard is unchastity. But we need to be realistic. When it comes to temptation, we cause 90 % of them by what we look at and who we hang out with. If we control that a little better, it comes a lot easier.

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RelatedRelated News"In the face of hypersexualization, educate the body to love".Related NewsErik Varden: "No truly edifying word has ever been uttered with contempt."
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The World

Shiite Islam and the Iranian regime

In this second of three articles on Iran, Ferrara analyzes the characteristics of Shiite Islam and the functioning of the Iranian regime.

Gerardo Ferrara-February 3, 2024-Reading time: 7 minutes
RelatedRelated NewsIran, from ancient Persia to the Islamic RepublicRelated NewsReligious minorities in Iran

In the previous article on Iran, we described the complex history of this great and wonderful country and mentioned the fact that, from a religious point of view, the Iranian people are quite compact, being 99% Muslim (90% of the nearly 90 million Iranians are Shiites, representing about 40% of the world's followers of this branch of Islam).

The iShiite slam

The origin of the term "Shi'i" or "Shi'ism" (from the Arabic shiʿa, meaning "party", "faction") dates back to 632 AD, when, a year after Muhammad's death, his followers were divided over who should succeed him as caliph (from the Arabic khalifa, meaning "vicar," "successor") and thus "prince of the Muslim believers" (amìr al-mu'minìn), as political and religious authority.

The majority opted for Abu Bakr, Muhammad's friend and father of his second wife, Aisha, while a minority "aligned" with Ali, who was Muhammad's cousin and son-in-law.

Abu Bakr thus became the first caliph, but Ali was the fourth, after the assassination of his predecessor Uthman. In turn, Ali was assassinated in 661 by an exponent of another incipient Islamic sect (Jargism) in Kufa, near Najaf (present-day Iraq), the city where he is buried and which thus became the third holiest city for the Shiites after Mecca and Medina.

The rifts within the Islamic community came to a head in 680, in Kerbala (also in Iraq), when the troops of the ruling Sunni caliph massacred Hussein, second son of Ali and grandson of Muhammad, and the 72 people in his entourage, including women and children. This event is commemorated today by the Shiites on the feast of Ashura, during which many practice matam, an act of self-flagellation, to express their gratitude for the martyrdom of Hussein, considered the second successor of Ali and the Imam, a figure invested with sacredness for the Shiites themselves, who believe that the Imam is the true successor of Muhammad, infallible and appointed by God.

Although at first the differences between Sunnis and Shiites were purely political, and thus related to the succession of Muhammad, they eventually became doctrinal as well.

Characteristics of Shiite Islamta

Most Shiites follow the doctrine of the Twelve Imams (Duodeciman Shiites), and the twelfth (Muhammad al-Mahdi) is considered a Mahdi, a kind of messiah. According to the faithful, the Twelfth Imam never died, but went into hiding (ghayba) in 940 to escape persecution by the Sunni Abbasid caliph, in power at the time. His hiding would last until the end of the world, when he would reappear to restore the purity of early Islam.

All Muslims, Sunni and Shia, observe the five pillars of Islam (profession of faith, prayer five times a day, almsgiving, fasting in the month of Ramadan, pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in a lifetime), share one holy book, the Quran, and agree that Allah is the only god and Muhammad his prophet. However, while Sunnis also base much of their religious practice on the acts of the prophet and his teachings (the sunna), Shiites see their religious leaders, the ayatollahs, as a reflection of God on Earth.

For this reason, the Sunnis consider the Shiites as heretics, while the latter accuse the former of extremist dogmatism, and their divisions have now been accentuated politically as well (which is evident in the alliances between governments and countries considered Shiite or in some way pro-Shiite, such as Iran, Syria and Lebanon, versus the Sunnis of the Persian Gulf, such as Saudi Arabia).

Other practices characteristic of Shi'i Islam are taqiyya, which consists of hiding or making concessions in difficult circumstances to protect one's own life or that of others (in practice, pretending not to be a Muslim, even adhering to the precepts of another religion), and mut'a, temporary marriage.

The mut'a

Mut'a is a form of temporary marriage, specific (but not exclusive) to Shi'i Islam. It is a stipulated marriage contract with a fixed duration. It can last a minimum of one hour and up to 99 years: in the first case, some jurists equate it to prostitution. At the expiration of the term, the marriage is considered dissolved without the need for formal divorce (which takes place, in Islam, in a non-consensual manner between the parties, through the repudiation of the man by the woman).

Abolished by the Pahlavi dynasty in the 20th century, but reinstated with the 1979 Revolution and the birth of the Islamic Republic (when Khomeini relegitimized polygamy), mut'a has become common among young men, to escape the control of religious and civil authorities and have "lawful" sexual relations, or among women with economic difficulties, who are forced to accept money from men to temporarily marry them.

In the early years of the 21st century, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad made efforts to amend the family code to make mut'a even simpler and more favorable to men, which triggered a massive mobilization of women, with the collection of millions of signatures, to oppose this bill.

The ayatollahs

Ayatollah (Arabic: "divine sign") is an honorific title typical of Shiite Islam, attributed to men considered experts in theology and Islamic jurisprudence (a kind of clergy unknown in Sunni Islam), who enjoy great respect within the community.

In Iran, the role of these figures is especially important and many religious leaders in the country hold this title.

The role of the ayatollahs is to impart religious teachings, legal interpretations and moral guidance. The most eminent among them may be recognized as Grand Ayatollah or "marja' al-taqlid" (Arabic: source of emulation) and become supreme authorities, as in the case of Ali Khamenei, Grand Ayatollah who holds the powerful position of Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution in Iran.

The Iranian regime

In Iran, imams and ayatollahs play a role of religious and political supremacy. As the country has been a presidential Islamic republic since 1979, guided by a theocratic system, the supreme leader is a grand ayatollah, known as "Vali-ye-Faqih" (Persian for "jurist ruler"), and is considered the highest religious and political authority.

There is a division of powers in the country between the civilian (elected by the people, but with limited jurisdiction) and religious powers. It is up to the religious power of the ayatollahs to select candidates for the presidency and to ensure that laws passed by the government and parliament do not contradict the Koran and Islamic doctrine. The president, for example, cannot appoint the minister of justice.

The Supreme Guide (Ayatollah Khamenei since 1989) appoints the six religious members of the Council of Guardians of the Revolution (12 in total, six of whom are lay people appointed by Parliament), is the head of the armed forces and also appoints the heads of the secret services, the religious foundations, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards (Pasdaran) and the national radio and television channels.

Iran is increasingly in the international news, not only because of its important strategic and geopolitical role, but also because of its ongoing human rights violations, especially against women and religious minorities.

Anti-regime protests are the order of the day, heightened especially by the so-called Arab Springs (2011) and the tightening of US sanctions since 2018, which have led to a rise in unemployment and inflation, from 10% to 40%, and a severe recession.

In 2022, the protests almost turned into a revolution when Mahsa Amini, 22 years old and of Kurdish ethnicity, was arrested by the Moral Police for not wearing the veil properly (art. 638 of the Islamic Penal Code: it is forbidden for women to appear in public without a veil). If, in fact, in previous years the hijàb issue had lost importance and for Iranian women had become almost a fetish, a headscarf that could leave loose strands of hair, Ebrahim Raisi, Iran's president since 2021 and considered an intransigent (his presidency has led to a stalemate in negotiations with the United States on the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, JCPOA), fearing a decline in customs has made it mandatory to cover even locks of hair and stiffened penalties against women who do not abide by the rules.

The categories most affected during the events of 2022 were obviously, in addition to women, young students, activists, intellectuals and journalists, but also lawyers assisting people guilty of apostasy (especially towards Christianity: there are cases of converted couples whose children have been taken away from them by social services or others who are in prison).

Since 2015, therefore, the Iranian government has introduced biometric identity cards with facial and iris recognition, thus being able to identify the growing number of women who protest by removing their veils and cutting off locks of hair.

From September 2023, moreover, a new law "supporting the culture of chastity and hijab" provides for punishments not only for women who do not wear the veil in public or do not wear it "properly", but also for all public and private officials (including cab drivers), traders, workers in the tourism and communication sector, etc., who fail to monitor or report women who are "guilty" of not observing the hijab regulations or who wear "inappropriate clothing", i.e. "skimpy or tight clothing or clothing that shows a part of the body below the neck or above the ankles or above the forearms".

The measure provides for fines of up to the equivalent of $6,000 (the average monthly salary in Iran was about $300 in 2021), dismissals, jail terms of varying lengths, confiscation of cars, closure of businesses, seizure of passports and a ban on leaving the country for six months to two years.

Penalties are also stiffened for those who "collaborate with foreign governments and media" (up to ten years in prison) and for those who promote "immoral sexuality, unhealthy relationships and individualistic and anti-family models" through the media. The Ministry of Economy and Finance, then, will have to "prohibit the import of prohibited clothing, statues, dolls, mannequins, paintings and other products promoting nudity and indecency" and books or images promoting "immorality" will be detained at customs, while the Ministry of Tourism will have to promote trips and excursions based on the "Islamic model of Iran."

The Global Gender Gap Report on gender equality in 2022 ranks Iran 143rd out of 146 countries analyzed, even worse than the previous year (rank 150th out of 156 countries analyzed).
Finally, the death penalty in Iran is applied not only for the most serious crimes, such as murder, but also (but not always) for apostasy, serious crimes against Islam, homosexuality and illicit sexual relations, adultery, treason, espionage and serious cases of prostitution.

The authorGerardo Ferrara

Writer, historian and expert on Middle Eastern history, politics and culture.

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Photo Gallery

National Prayer Breakfast on Capitol Hill

U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Republican, holds a Bible during the annual National Prayer Breakfast at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Feb. 1, 2024.

Maria José Atienza-February 2, 2024-Reading time: < 1 minute
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The Vatican

4 children from Gaza cared for at Bambino Gesú

Rome Reports-February 2, 2024-Reading time: < 1 minute
rome reports88

4 children from Gaza are already in Rome to continue their treatment at the Bambino Gesú hospital. The war had made it impossible for them to receive the necessary care in their homeland.

Although so far only a small group of children have been able to travel to Italy, it is expected that more will be able to come in the future. In fact, there are more hospitals in the country that will receive minors to provide them with the medical assistance they need.

AhNow you can enjoy a 20% discount on your subscription to Rome Reports Premiumthe international news agency specializing in the activities of the Pope and the Vatican.
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  • Eucharist at the center of Omnes' February issue
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Eucharist at the center of Omnes' February issue

The February issue of Omnes deals with topics such as the Eucharist, the Syro-Malabar Church and the formation of American seminarians at the Pontifical North American College in Rome.

María José Atienza / Paloma López-February 2, 2024-Reading time: 3 minutes
RelatedRelated NewsWe return with joy to the Eucharist!

Quito will host the next International Eucharistic Congress. The Ecuadorian capital is expecting some 5,000 people to attend the event, which is intended to give impetus to the Eucharistic life of Ecuador and the whole world. Indeed, the Eucharist, the central mystery of the Catholic faith, is the central theme of the February 2024 issue of Omnes magazine.

The dossier begins with an interview with Archbishop Alfredo José Espinoza Mateus, Archbishop of Quito and Primate of Ecuador, on this event that the country is eagerly awaiting despite the difficult social times the Ecuadorian nation is going through.

Along with this interview, Omnes delves into the history and objectives of the International Eucharistic Congresses, which have been held in the Church since the mid-19th century.

The deepening of the Eucharist continues in the dossier with a series of short articles, of an experiential and catechetical nature, on the Holy Mass, Eucharistic Communion, Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, the Sunday celebration and a special contribution - prayer on the Adoration of Jesus in the Sacrament of the Blessed Sacrament.

The Pontifical North American College

In the U.S. version of the Omnes issue, there is a story on the Pontifical North American College in Rome, the seminary where many Americans go for training before returning to their home country to exercise their pastoral ministry.

The report, which tells the history of the College, is followed by an interview with the rector of the seminary, Monsignor Thomas Powers. Throughout the conversation, the rector explains the spirit that inspires the activities at PNAC and delves into the day-to-day life of the young seminarians.

Olivia Maurel, the voice against surrogacy

Omnes also includes an interview with Olivia Maurel, this young French woman, born through surrogacy, has become the spokesperson for the international reference in the fight against this form of exploitation.

Maurel has experienced firsthand the consequences of being the fruit of a "commission" from her parents and wants to make society aware of the flagrant violation of human rights that this practice entails, as well as the consequences that this denaturalization of motherhood has for surrogate mothers and surrogate children.

Although an atheist, she wrote a face to the Pope telling her testimony and the pontiff denounced, in early January 2024, the practice of surrogacy in an address to members of the diplomatic corps accredited to the Holy See.

The Syro-Malabar Church conflict

The "World" section focuses on the conflict between the Holy See and a group of four hundred Eastern priests, Syro-Malabar Rite Catholics in India, over the direction in which the priest should celebrate the Holy Qurbana (Eucharistic celebration).

This debate, which has its origin in a provision of the Second Vatican Council for the Eastern regions to abandon Latin customs and rites and return to their traditional Eastern rites, had a partial solution in the Synod of the Syro-Malabar Church where a uniform solution was agreed upon, which was not equally welcomed among Syro-Malabar Catholics.

The Pope's key themes

The Rome and World sections, in turn, display the main themes touched upon by Pope Francis in his various public appearances during the month of January. In this regard, the meetings with the members of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith and with the judges of the Tribunal of the Roman Rota on the occasion of the inauguration of the Judicial Year stand out. In both, Francis reiterated the urgency of proclaiming the Gospel in response to the needs of the present times.

Likewise, communication was another of the topics addressed by Francis. The Pope asked communicators for three words: witness, courage and a broad outlook.

Poets and theologians

The poet Circe Maia and the influence of the German theologians Johann Adam Möhler and Mathias Scheeben are other topics to be found in the February issue. The content of this magazine is available to Omnes subscribers.

The February 2024 issue of Omnes is now available in its digital version for the magazine's subscribers. In the next few days, it will also arrive at the usual address of those who have this type of subscription. subscription.

The authorMaría José Atienza / Paloma López

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EditorialOmnes

International Eucharistic Congress in Quito. Eucharist, fraternity and unity

The petition included in the official prayer of the Quito Eucharistic Congress "Send us your Spirit of love, so that, seeking paths of fraternity, peace, dialogue and forgiveness". is more topical than ever in the Church.

February 2, 2024-Reading time: 2 minutes

The 53rd International Eucharistic Congress will be held in Quito (Ecuador) in September. It will follow the one held in Budapest in 2021, which was attended by Pope Francis.

The objective of the convocation of these congresses, and the experience proven throughout their history, is to contribute to the strengthening of Eucharistic devotion throughout the Church, in the Catholic conviction that the Eucharist, the first among the sacraments, is a source of supernatural life and of human fraternity. In each of the convocations, the emphasis has been placed on the needs perceived at each moment. 

At the same time, the most immediate fruit is naturally produced for the benefit of the particular Church that organizes it and where it is held. In this sense, one can immediately sense the repercussions that the International Congress next September can have for Ecuador, the host country, which is currently in a very difficult situation, caused by the open confrontation that groups linked to drug trafficking have posed to the institutions.

The motto of the Congress is "Fraternity to heal the world"; although it was established before the latest social events and is not reduced to that key, it undoubtedly encompasses the need that the country has for peaceful and fraternal coexistence.

The prayer prepared and disseminated in the country as an aid for the spiritual preparation of the Congress comes to gather this hope, expressed in the form of a petition to God: "You who gather us around your table to feed us with your Body, grant that, overcoming all division, hatred and selfishness, we may be united as true brothers, children of the heavenly Father.".

Monsignor Alfredo Espinoza, Archbishop of Quito, capital of Ecuador, and pastor of the diocese that is the main organizer of the Congress, gave an interview to Omnes in which he explains the state of the preparations and the expectations for the host country.

Almost in parallel, we are witnessing a delicate situation that has arisen in recent years in the Syro-Malabar Church (established in Kerala, India) precisely around the celebration of the Eucharist at Mass.

It is obvious that the problems and their context are very different, but in view of the seriousness of the information on the attitude of some of the priests of this rite, the petition included in the prayer of the Eucharistic Congress seems to be equally necessary. "Send us your Spirit of love, so that, seeking ways of fraternity, peace, dialogue and forgiveness, we may collaborate to heal the wounds of the world."

As reported in the pages of this issue, the resistance of a group of the clergy of the archieparchy of Ernakulam-Angamaly to accept the decisions of the Synod of 2021, which wanted to harmonize the way of celebrating Mass in the various zones, emphasizes that we are dealing not only with an issue of liturgical order, but also of obedience and unity.

The authorOmnes

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Cinema

Film proposals: two suggestions for different audiences

An intimate film for a more adult audience and a series for the whole family, from the Disney factory, are Patricio Sánchez Jaúregui's movie recommendations for this month.

Patricio Sánchez-Jáuregui-February 2, 2024-Reading time: 2 minutes

On low heat, a film aimed at an adult audience and a lover of cinema and the saga of Percy Jackson and the Gods of Olympus are the proposals of movies and series to watch this month.

On a low flame

At the end of the 19th century, a great French chef lives a relationship of complete devotion to food and to a woman. Through the art of gourmet food, Dodin and Eugénie express their love for each other, a love at once timeless and transitory, like a meal, which persists only in memory.

This is both a hunger-inducing film and an excellent love story superbly acted.

Tran Anh Hung - The smell of green papaya - uses Binoche and Magimel in good measure with the many delicious ingredients in their cinematic pantry to create a beautiful, meaningful and extremely satisfying love story to savor.

A contemplative, precious film that displays an irresistible sensitivity and tenderness.

NotesNudity and partial sensuality : Nudity and partial sensuality : Tobacco

On a low flame

AddressTran Anh Hung
ScriptTran Anh Hung
ActorsJuliette Binoche, Magimel
Platform: Cinemas

Percy Jackson and the Gods of Olympus

Disney resurrects a stimulating and interesting saga by bringing to our televisions a faithful adaptation of Rick Riordan's novels. Percy Jackson and the Gods of Olympus is a loving odyssey through adolescence and myth.

A dangerous quest, an adventure, an odyssey. Overcoming monsters and gods, Percy must travel across America to return Zeus' master lightning bolt and stop an all-out war.

With the help of fellow missionaries Annabeth and Grover, Percy's journey will bring him closer to the answers he seeks: how to fit into a world where he feels out of place and discover who he is meant to be.

A series whose first season is an adventure, friendship and adolescence in a hero's journey for all audiences.

Percy Jackson and the Gods of Olympus

HistoryRick Riordan
Actors: Walker Scobell, Leah Jeffries, Aryan Simhadri
Platform: Disney +
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The Eucharistic Congress in Quito and Olivia Maurel in Omnes February magazine

The Eucharist and the upcoming International Eucharistic Congress in Quito are the focus of the February 2024 issue of Omnes magazine. Along with this, we can find an interview with Olivia Maurel, spokesperson of the Casablanca Declaration against surrogate motherhood.

Maria José Atienza-February 2, 2024-Reading time: 3 minutes

Quito will host the next International Eucharistic Congress. The Ecuadorian capital is expecting some 5,000 people for an event that aims to be a boost to the Eucharistic life of Ecuador and the whole world.

Indeed, the Eucharist, the central mystery of the Catholic faith, is the central theme of the February 2024 issue of Omnes magazine.

The dossier begins with an interview with Archbishop Alfredo José Espinoza Mateus, Archbishop of Quito and Primate of Ecuador, on this event that the country is eagerly awaiting despite the difficult social times the Ecuadorian nation is going through.

Along with this interview, Omnes delves into the history and objectives of the International Eucharistic Congresses, which have been held in the Church since the mid-19th century.

The deepening of the Eucharist continues in the dossier with a series of short articles, of an experiential and catechetical nature, on the Holy Mass, Eucharistic Communion, Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, the Sunday celebration and a special contribution - prayer on the Adoration of Jesus in the Sacrament of the Blessed Sacrament.

Olivia Maurel, the voice against surrogacy

Omnes also includes an interview with Olivia Maurel, this young French woman, born through surrogacy, has become the spokesperson for the international reference in the fight against this form of exploitation.

Maurel has experienced firsthand the consequences of being the fruit of a "commission" from her parents and wants to make society aware of the flagrant violation of human rights that this practice entails, as well as the consequences that this denaturalization of motherhood has for surrogate mothers and surrogate children.

Although an atheist, she wrote a face to the Pope telling her testimony and the pontiff denounced, in early January 2024, the practice of surrogacy in an address to members of the diplomatic corps accredited to the Holy See.

The Syro-Malabar Church conflict

The "World" section focuses on the conflict between the Holy See and a group of four hundred Eastern priests, Syro-Malabar Rite Catholics in India, over the direction in which the priest should celebrate the Holy Qurbana (Eucharistic celebration).

This debate, which has its origins in a
The provision of the Second Vatican Council for the Eastern regions to abandon the Latin customs and rites and return to their traditional Eastern rites, had a partial solution in the Synod of the Syro-Malabar Church where a uniform solution was agreed upon, which was not equally welcomed among the Syro-Malabar Catholics.

The Pope's key themes

The Rome and World sections, in turn, display the main themes touched upon by Pope Francis in his various public appearances during the month of January. In this regard, the meetings with the members of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith and with the judges of the Tribunal of the Roman Rota on the occasion of the inauguration of the Judicial Year stand out. In both, Francis reiterated the urgency of proclaiming the Gospel in response to the needs of the present times.

Likewise, communication was another of the topics addressed by Francis. The Pope asked communicators for three words: witness, courage and a broad outlook.

Poets and theologians

The poet Circe Maia and the influence of German theologians Johann Adam Möhler and Mathias Scheeben are other topics to be found in the February issue.

The content of this magazine is available to Omnes subscribers. The February 2024 issue of Omnes is now available in its digital version for Omnes subscribers. In the next few days, it will also arrive at the usual address of those who have this type of subscription. subscription.

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What the Pope expects from Catholic universities

In recent weeks, Pope Francis has received in audience, at different times, representatives of Catholic university institutions operating in different parts of the world and in different cultural contexts.

Giovanni Tridente-February 2, 2024-Reading time: 3 minutes

Recently, Francis has held meetings with representatives of different Catholic universities. He met, for example, with a delegation from the University of Notre Dame (Indiana, USA), and before that with the Rectors and professors of the Catholic Universities belonging to the International Federation of Catholic Universities (FIUC). Finally, in mid-January, he addressed some reflections to the academic authorities and students of the Studium Biblicum Franciscanum in Jerusalem.

In the various meetings, the Pontiff underscored how Catholic-inspired universities have always played an important role in society, promoting the integral formation of persons in line with Gospel values. For this reason, he encouraged them to play an even more significant role in the contemporary world, reconciling the various souls of educational, cultural and social outreach commitment.

Union and collaboration

One of the main challenges the Pope assigns to Catholic Universities is to work together as a global network, to overcome fragmentation and promote more effective collaboration between institutions that, however, were born in different times and contexts.

In their vision, these universities should join together to share resources, knowledge and experience, going beyond the limits of their own institutions. Without forgetting the need to maintain contact with local communities, also contributing indirectly to the construction of a culture of peace and justice.

Christian humanism as a foundation

It is evident that at the basis of these institutions there is and must continue to be a Christian vision of humanism. It is not only a matter of offering a quality academic formation, as the Pope has emphasized on various occasions, but of cultivating each person in his or her integrity. Hence the importance of an education that integrates the intellectual, affective and spiritual development of students.

In essence, the Holy Father called attention to the fact that Christian education is not limited to the acquisition of knowledge, but aims to form people capable of living according to Gospel values, thus integrating faith and reason, and thus developing a deep understanding of the truth in order to then apply it in their daily lives.

Truth and the promotion of peace

This search for truth is also carried out through interdisciplinary dialogue and respect for the diversity of perspectives, striving to find solutions to global problems that are in harmony with all the teachings of the Church.

This certainly includes all efforts to promote peace: in a world marked by conflict and division, these institutions must be key actors in building a culture of reconciliation. This implies a commitment to social justice, respect for human rights and the promotion of the dignity of every person.

Commitment to the most vulnerable

Another central aspect of Pope Francis' vision for Catholic universities is the commitment to the most vulnerable. These institutions can be a beacon of hope for the excluded and marginalized, and ways and means must be found to reflect on how to combat, for example, poverty, discrimination and injustice. Likewise, there is the commitment to the environment and the protection of creation, another central element throughout Francis' pontificate.

As custodians of creation, these institutions have a responsibility to promote sustainable development and raise awareness of the environmental challenges facing the entire world.

Ultimately, only through a concrete commitment and a human-centered vision - this is Pope Francis' thinking in a nutshell - can these formation centers truly play a significant role in transforming society and promoting the better world that everyone hopes for.

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Lent is "time of conversion" and "of freedom", says Pope

Pope Francis has made public his message for Lent 2024, on the theme "Through the desert, God leads us to freedom".

Loreto Rios-February 1, 2024-Reading time: 5 minutes
RelatedRelated News"Wielki post", the great fast: Lent and Easter in Poland

Pope Francis today published his message for Lent 2024This year it will begin on February 14, Ash Wednesday. Palm Sunday will be celebrated on March 24, and Maundy Thursday and Good Friday will be March 28 and 29, respectively.

From slavery to freedom

The Pope opens his Lenten message this year by explaining that from the moment God reveals himself to the people of Israel, he announces freedom: "'I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of a place of slavery' (Ex 20:2). Thus opens the Decalogue given to Moses on Mount Sinai. The people know well what exodus God is talking about; the experience of slavery is still imprinted on their flesh".

In this context, Francis points out that the people of Israel received the commandments as a path to freedom, not simply as a series of rules to follow: "(The people of Israel) received the ten words of the covenant in the desert as a path to freedom. We call them 'commandments', underlining the power of the love with which God educates his people".

The Holy Father goes on to point out that this path to freedom is a process that matures gradually, it is not reached overnight, and we are all on this path: "Just as Israel in the desert still carries Egypt within itself - often longing for the past and murmuring against heaven and Moses - so too today the people of God carries within itself oppressive bonds that it must decide to abandon".

The Pope points out some signs to detect these "ties": "We become aware of this when we lack hope and wander through life as in a desolate wasteland, without a promised land towards which to set out together".

The desert, promise of something new

However, this desert, this apparently negative state, can be transformed into something more beautiful than it was before, like a land that is being prepared for an orchard to bloom in it: "Lent is the time of grace in which the desert once again becomes - as the prophet Hosea announces - the place of first love (Hos 2:16-17)". In this perspective, the Pope points out that the desert is a phase of the divine pedagogy with man: "God educates his people to abandon their slavery and to experience the passage from death to life".

But this concept could remain "an abstract path," Francis warns. "For our Lent to also be concrete, the first step is to want to see reality. When at the burning bush the Lord drew Moses and spoke to him, he immediately revealed himself as a God who sees and above all listens: 'I have seen the oppression of my people in Egypt and heard their complaints against their oppressors; I know their sufferings. I have come down to deliver them from the Egyptians, to bring them out of this land, to bring them into a fruitful and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey' (Ex 3:7-8)".

"Where is your brother?"

The Pope invites us to ask ourselves if this cry also reaches us: "Today, too, the cry of so many oppressed brothers and sisters reaches heaven. Let us ask ourselves: does it reach us too, does it shake us, does it move us? Many factors distance us from one another, denying the fraternity that unites us from the beginning".

Other useful questions for the examination of conscience pointed out by Francis are: "Where are you?" (Gen 3:9) and "Where is your brother?" (Gen 4:9).

The Holy Father invites us to reflect on them and warns us of a possible longing for "Pharaoh's dominion," that is, slavery, even though it is "a dominion that leaves us exhausted and makes us insensitive. And the fact is that, "although our liberation has already begun with baptism, there remains in us an inexplicable longing for slavery. It is like an attraction to the security of what we have already seen, to the detriment of freedom.

Faced with this fact, the Pope proposes these questions for reflection: "Do I desire a new world? Am I ready to break my commitments to the old one?". Because, according to the Holy Father, one of the most important evils of our time is the lack of hope: "The witness of many brother bishops and of a great number of those who work for peace and justice convinces me more and more that what needs to be denounced is a deficit of hope. It is an impediment to dreaming, a mute cry that reaches to heaven and touches the heart of God. It resembles that longing for slavery that paralyzes Israel in the desert, preventing it from moving forward".

The spiritual battle

Lent, however, can be the ideal time to decide "not to fall back into slavery": "God does not tire of us. Let us embrace Lent as the powerful time in which his Word is addressed to us anew. [It is a time of conversion, a time of freedom. Jesus himself, as we remember every year on the first Sunday of Lent, was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tested in his freedom. For forty days he will be before us and with us: he is the Son incarnate. Unlike Pharaoh, God does not want subjects, but sons. The desert is the space in which our freedom can mature into a personal decision not to fall back into slavery. In Lent, we find new criteria of judgment and a community with which to embark on a path we have never traveled before".

This return to freedom also entails an attitude of combat, since the Christian life is above all a spiritual battle: "This involves a struggle, which the book of Exodus and the temptations of Jesus in the desert tell us clearly. The voice of God, who says: 'You are my beloved Son' (Mk 1:11) and 'You shall have no other gods before me' (Ex 20:3), is in fact opposed by the lies of the enemy".

Along these lines, the Pope also warns of the danger of "idols": "Feeling omnipotent, recognized by all, taking advantage of others: every human being feels within himself the seduction of this lie". We can also be slaves to the wealthWe can become attached to money, to certain projects, ideas, objectives, to our position, to a tradition and even to some people. "Those things, instead of driving us, will paralyze us," Francis warns.

To act is also to stop

In this fast-paced and unbridled society, the Holy Father also invites us to change the rhythm during these forty days: "It is time to act, and in Lent to act is also to pause. To pause in prayer, to welcome the Word of God, and to stop, like the Samaritan, before the wounded brother. The love of God and neighbor is a single love. To have no other gods is to pause before the presence of God, in the flesh of our neighbor".

For this reason, the Pope points out that prayer, almsgiving and fasting, which are proposed for these days, "are not three independent exercises, but a single movement of opening, of emptying: away with the idols that weigh us down, away with the attachments that imprison us. Then the atrophied and isolated heart will awaken".

Moreover, Lent makes us rediscover "the contemplative dimension of life", which "will mobilize new energies", leading us towards others: "In the presence of God we become sisters and brothers [...]; instead of threats and enemies we find companions on the journey. This is God's dream, the promised land towards which we march when we leave slavery".

Quoting a speech he gave at WYD in Lisbon, the Pope pointed out that it is true that we live in a time with many challenges, but he encourages us to think "that we are not in agony, but in labor; not at the end, but at the beginning of a great spectacle."

"Faith and charity take this little hope by the hand," the Pope concludes, "they teach it to walk and, at the same time, it is it that drags them forward."

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What are new age and pseudo religions?

Without being a religion and without a fixed doctrine, the new age -or new era - is a way of seeing, thinking and acting that many people and organizations have adopted in their lives.

Alejandro Vázquez-Dodero-February 1, 2024-Reading time: 5 minutes

The development of the personality of the human being has a spiritual component to fully correspond to his nature. This goes beyond the mere fact of not being only matter, and makes him look for a religion -in a broad sense- understanding it as that desired reality where he can hope and deposit his desires.

Our survival instinct is linked to the awareness of the passing of time, and of the fact that the future may come; something that does not happen to the rest of animals, the non-rational ones. This is precisely what makes man a seeker of the meaning of his life, which transcends the immediate, the earthly, the ephemeral and passing. That is precisely where religion -as we say, in a broad sense- comes to the fore, fulfilling such yearnings.

Now, the true religion can only be one, for religions contradict each other, and the truth can only be in one place. If one says that Goya was born in Spain and another says that he was born in Sweden, it is evident that they cannot both be right at the same time. One of the two is undoubtedly wrong.

It would be absurd to think that God has revealed several contradictory religions. The only true religion is the one that God has revealed, and we can know it by certain signs, such as the miracles of Jesus Christ. 

It turns out that the Catholic religion was founded by Christ-God; all the others were founded by men. Neither Buddha, nor Confucius, nor Mohammed, nor Luther claimed to be God.

Jesus Christ Himself affirmed repeatedly in His life that He was God, and from that condition He founded only one Church, which is holy, catholic and apostolic. All other churches and religions are wrong: some, like Buddhism, because they do not recognize the true God; others, like Protestantism, because they separated from the original and true Church.

But, apart from religions, we have other realities that are not religions, and that nevertheless come to take the place of those.

In order to focus the discourse, we will refer to the phenomenon of the new age -This is not a religion, nor a church, nor a sect, nor a fixed doctrine, but a way of seeing, thinking and acting that many people and organizations have adopted to change the world according to beliefs they have in common. For these people, this is their religion. 

How to identify a pseudo-religious reality of the new age? 

The objective of the new age is to introduce man to what its ideologues call a new paradigm, that is, a totally different way of seeing oneself and perceiving reality. The most outstanding characteristic of the new ageThe result of all their beliefs is religious, spiritual and moral relativism.

What it promotes is manifested in music, in cinema, in literature, in the field of self-help, in some therapies.

It is about pushing Humanity towards a new spiritual current, and to procure a new era or epoch -new age- for the former.

The Holy See, in 2003, expressly referred to this reality, and stressed the importance of the difficulty of reconciling the underlying perspective of the new age with Christian doctrine and spirituality. 

This current emphasizes the importance of the spiritual dimension of man and its integration with the rest of his life, the search for a meaning to existence, the relationship between human beings and the rest of creation, the desire for personal and social change.

However, what is being criticized is that the new age does not offer an authentic answer, but a substitute: it looks for happiness where it is not.

New age and the Catholic Church

In fact, the 2003 document of the Holy See stresses that, as a reaction to modernity, the new age acts above all at the level of feelings, instincts and emotions. Anxiety in the face of an apocalyptic future of economic instability, political uncertainty and climate change plays an important role in the search for an alternative, a decidedly optimistic relationship with the cosmos. 

It is not a coincidence - the document continues - that the new age has been enormously successful in an era characterized by an almost universal exaltation of diversity. For many, absolute norms and creeds are nothing more than the inability to tolerate the views and convictions of others. In such a climate, alternative lifestyles and theories have been extraordinarily successful, and therein lies the new age.

With it arises a spirituality that is based more on sensitive experience than on reason, and that puts feeling before truth. In this way, spirituality is reduced to the sphere of the sensitive and irrational: to feeling good, to an exclusive search for one's own individual well-being. Thus, prayer ceases to be an interpersonal dialogue with the transcendent God, and becomes a mere interior monologue, an introspective search for the self.

The characteristic of the new age It is also the spirit of individualism that allows everyone to formulate his own religious, philosophical and ethical truth. It proposes a new consciousness by which man will become aware of his supernatural powers and will know that there is no God outside himself. 

Each man, therefore, creates his own truth. There is no good and evil, every experience is a step towards the full consciousness of his divinity. Everything is "god" and "god" is in everything; all religions are the same and, at bottom, say the same thing. It also holds that all men live many lives, reincarnating again and again until they achieve new consciousness and dissolve into the divine force of the cosmos, which is obviously incompatible with the Catholic faith. 

How is the God of the Catholic faith different from the God of the new age?

The God of the Catholic faith is a person, the "god" of the new age is an impersonal and anonymous force.

The God of the Catholic faith is Creator of all, but is not identified with anything created. The God of the new age is the creation that gradually becomes aware of itself.

The God of the Catholic faith is infinitely superior to man, but he bends down to him in order to enter into friendship with him: he is his Father.

The God of the Catholic faith will judge each man according to his response to that love. The "god" of the new age is the same man who is beyond good and evil. In the new age the highest love is love of self. 

– Supernatural new age holds that Jesus Christ was one more enlightened teacher among many. He maintains that the only difference between Jesus Christ and other men is that he realized his divinity while most men have not yet discovered it. Thus, he denies that God became man to save us from sin. 

The new age concept of divinity

– Supernatural new age has no qualms about mixing religious forms from very different traditions, even when there are fundamental contradictions. It should be remembered that Christian prayer is based on the Word of God, is centered on the person of Christ, leads to loving dialogue with Jesus Christ and always leads to charity for one's neighbor. The techniques of deep concentration and the Eastern methods of meditation enclose the subject in himself, push him towards an impersonal or undefined absolute and ignore the Gospel of Christ. 

He will also want to redefine death as a pleasant transition without being accountable to a personal God, on the assumption that one decides for oneself what is good and what is bad, which breaks down values and leads to an emotional trap.

– Supernatural new age holds that "things as we now see them"-culture, knowledge, family relationships, life, death, friendships, suffering, sin, goodness, etc.-are mere illusion, the product of unenlightened consciousness.Take the step from the assertion that everything is god to the assertion that there is no god outside yourself. 

The revelation of God in Jesus Christ loses its singular and unrepeatable character.Many would be the "messiahs" who have appeared, that is, specially enlightened masters who appear to guide humanity: Krishna, Buddha, Jesus, Quetzacoatl, Mohammed, Sun Myung Moon, Osho, Sai Baba and countless others would be prophets of the same stature with the same message.Christianity, thus, turns out to be little more than a passing period in history.  

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ColumnistsAntonio Moreno

My God, have you forsaken me?

There are situations in one's personal history in which one cries out to heaven and finds no answer. The problems and difficulties of life run over one another at times and one seems to find oneself alone, without help.

February 1, 2024-Reading time: 4 minutes

An illness is followed by the death of a family member and, when one has not yet recovered, the economic or labor problem arrives. There are times when we can only exclaim: "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? But can God abandon us, and would that be the attitude of a good father, a father who loves his children?

Certainly, there are situations in one's personal history when one cries out to heaven and finds no answer. Life's problems and difficulties sometimes run over you and you seem to find yourself alone, without help, in the very center of the whirlpool that sucks you into the dark waters of the deepest ocean.

It is understood that God is not a fairy godmother who comes to get us out of every difficulty. Nature, in this imperfect world in which we await the new heavens and the new earth, has its rules and acts without asking permission from its creator at every moment. That is why sickness, death or natural misfortunes come. To this we must also add the evil created by man: injustices, quarrels, disappointments....

One by one, the blows are overcome, but when they come one after the other, not even the best sparring partner can withstand them, and the question naturally arises: "Has God rejected us forever and will not favor us again? Has his mercy run out, has his promise ended forever? Has God forgotten his goodness, or has anger closed his heart?

There is nothing like the Psalms - the above quotation is a fragment of the 77th Psalm - to put words to the feelings of abandonment, loneliness and incomprehension of man in the face of evil and the apparent silence of God. If you are all-powerful, why don't you act, why are you silent, why do you allow this to happen to me?

Jesus himself prayed with one of them, number 22, when he experienced the bitterest face of his humanity, nailed to the cross. He who said, "He who has seen me has seen the Father," he who could not distance himself from God because he was God himself, also had feelings of remoteness, of abandonment; to a certain extent, of doubt, of uncertainty. This is the human frailty that he assumed to the extreme.

God's silence in the face of the suffering of his creatures has caused rivers of ink to flow and has burned billions of neurons of the most sublime thinkers, but an ancient legend runs through the Internet. norway -I have not been able to confirm if it is really Norwegian and if it is really old, which explains in a very simple way why God is so often silent.

The main character was a hermit named Haakon, who took care of a chapel where the local people went to pray before an image of a very miraculous Christ. One day, the anchorite, full of zeal and love for God, knelt before the image and asked the Lord to replace him on the cross:

-I want to suffer for you, let me take your place," he said.

His prayer reached the Most High, who accepted the exchange on the condition that the hermit should always keep silent, as He did.

Things went well in the early days, because Haakon was always silent up there on the cross and the Lord passed himself off as him without people noticing. But one day a rich man came to pray and, as he knelt down, he dropped his wallet. Our protagonist saw it and kept silent. After a while, a poor man appeared who, after praying, found the wallet, took it and left, jumping up and down with joy. Haakon continued to be silent when, shortly after, a young man entered and began to ask for protection for a dangerous journey he was about to undertake. At this, the rich man came back in looking for his wallet. Seeing the young man praying, he thought he might have found it and demanded it. Although the young man told him that he had not seen it, the rich man did not believe him and beat him up.

-Stop! -Haakon shouted from the top of the cross.

The attacked and the aggressor were stunned and, frightened by the sight of the speaking Christ, fled each in turn, leaving the hermit alone again with Jesus, who ordered him to come down from the cross for not having kept his word.

-Do you see how you were not fit to take my place? -the crucified man scolded him as he returned to his post.

-I could not allow this injustice, my Lord! -replied the hermit, already at the foot of the cross. You have seen that the boy was innocent.

Looking at him with mercy, Jesus explained:

-You didn't know that the rich man carried in his wallet the money to buy the virginity of a young girl, while the poor man needed that money so that his family would not die of hunger. That's why I let him take her. With the rich man's beating of the young traveler, I wanted to have prevented him from arriving in time, as he finally did because of you, to embark on a ship on which he had just met his death, for it had sunk. You did not know anything. I did, that's why I keep quiet.

And so ends this kind of midrash that teaches us to believe that, in God's will, is what is best for us and to trust in the one who we know, with his apparent silence, is also loving us dearly.

If you know someone who is getting beaten up by life, you might want to listen to this story of Haakon to understand the mysteries of the one who never leaves us, especially when we are on the cross.

The authorAntonio Moreno

Journalist. Graduate in Communication Sciences and Bachelor in Religious Sciences. He works in the Diocesan Delegation of Media in Malaga. His numerous "threads" on Twitter about faith and daily life have a great popularity.

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Gospel

Inner freedom. Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time (B)

Joseph Evans comments on the readings for the Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time (B) and Luis Herrera offers a short video homily.

Joseph Evans-February 1, 2024-Reading time: 2 minutes

In today's Gospel we see Jesus perform all kinds of miracles: healing Simon's mother-in-law of fever, casting out demons and curing diseases. But this is only a sign that the Holy Spirit is upon Him. Jesus does these actions because He is filled with the Spirit and the deliverance is a sign of the Spirit's action: "He is the Spirit of God.The Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom." (2 Cor 3:17). The Spirit is like the wind, which cannot be constrained. This is how our Lord described the activity of the Spirit to Nicodemus when he went to visit him (cf. Jn 3:1-8). 

There may be times in life when we feel very constrained, lacking in freedom, like Job in the first reading: "...".Is not man's life on earth a militia, and his days like those of a day laborer; like a slave, he sighs for shade; like a day laborer, he awaits his wages. My inheritance has been wasted months, I have been allotted nights of toil. When I go to bed I think: When will I get up? The night lasts forever and I am tired of tossing and turning until dawn. 

This feeling may be objective or exaggerated. In any case, we must remember that freedom is first and foremost interior. What really takes away freedom are interior limitations: addictions, weaknesses of character. Someone - Christian martyrs, for example - can be locked up in a prison and be interiorly totally free. 

We need the Holy Spirit to give us the grace to find freedom. Lent will soon begin and it is a good opportunity to ask ourselves what we need to change in order to grow in freedom: what needs to be cut in us (a vice to eliminate) or improved (a virtue to grow in)? What defect, bad habit or addiction is taking away my freedom? It could be laziness, attachment to the phone or internet, food or drink, spending, or anything else. Lent is a time of grace to fight more against these addictions and find greater freedom in God. The sacrament of Confession is the sacrament of freedom, as it frees us from our sins.

If we are filled with the Holy Spirit, we will be filled with freedom. Indeed, as St. Paul explains in the second reading, this freedom leads us to willingly make ourselves slaves of others: "...".Because, being free as I am, I have made myself the slave of all in order to win over as many as possible". As Jesus did. Freedom finds its fullest expression in loving surrender.

Homily on the readings of Sunday V in Ordinary Time (B)

The priest Luis Herrera Campo offers its nanomiliaA short one-minute reflection for these Sunday readings.

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Francis encourages forgiveness to overcome anger

The Pope meditated this morning at the General Audience on anger, and encouraged to seek reconciliation with others before nightfall, to the "commitment to forgive, in the art of forgiveness", and to transform anger, in the case of some injustice, into a holy zeal for the good. He also prayed for the victims of war.

Francisco Otamendi-January 31, 2024-Reading time: 3 minutes
RelatedRelated News"Forgiveness is a source of peace," Pope encourages in KinshasaRelated News"Forgiveness is a fundamental condition for the Christian", Francis stresses

In the sixth session of the cycle of catechesis on "the vices and virtues", Pope Francis meditated in the Paul VI Hall, in the Audience of this January 31, the feast of St. John BoscoThe report, on anger, a "visible" vice, "difficult to hide", "capable of taking away sleep", and that "does not subside with time".

Anger transforms our countenance and puts our body in turmoil, and develops in us "the negative perception of the other", the Pontiff said in his meditationin which he offered two prescriptions against anger.

First, "that we do not go into the night without seeking reconciliation, in order to nip this demonic spiral in the bud. And secondly, "to bring to prayer the commitment to forgive others, as God does with us".

Holy indignation of Jesus, zeal for goodness

There is also "a holy anger," the Pope recalled, "of which the Gospel also speaks to us, which is born of our being. It does not allow us to remain indifferent in the face of injustice. The ancients were well aware that "there is an irascible part in us that cannot and must not be denied (...). We are not responsible for anger in its emergence, but always in its development, and sometimes it is good for anger to be vented in a proper way".

If a person never gets angry, if he is not indignant in the face of injustice, if he does not feel something that shakes him to the core when faced with the oppression of a weak person, then he is not human, much less Christian, Francis pointed out. There is a holy indignation, which is not anger. Jesus knew holy indignation several times in his life, he never responded to evil with evil, but in his soul he experienced this feeling, and in the case of the merchants in the temple, he carried out a strong and prophetic action, dictated not by anger but by zeal for the house of the Lord.

It is up to us, with the help of the Holy Spirit, to find the right measure of the passions, to educate them well, so that they turn towards good and not towards evil, the Holy Father stressed.

"Let us ask the Lord to be aware of our weakness in the face of anger, so that when it arises, we can channel it positively, so that it does not dominate us, but that we transform it into a holy zeal for the good," he said to the Spanish-speaking pilgrims.

At the origin of wars and violence

Francis has encouraged in the Audience to practice the art of forgiveness. What counteracts anger is benevolence, gentleness, patience. Anger is a terrible vice that is at the origin of wars and violence.

In this regard, the Pope recalled that tomorrow Italy celebrates the National Day for Civilian Victims of War. To the memory of those who fell in the two world wars, he added "the many, too many, defenseless victims of the wars that unfortunately still bloody our planet, such as the Middle East and Ukraine. May their cry of pain reach the hearts of those responsible for the nations, and arouse projects of peace".

The stories of wars these days denote "so much cruelty," Francis lamented. "Peace is meek, it is not cruel."

Priests at the University of the Holy Cross, Feast of St. John Bosco

Before giving the blessing, the Pope welcomed in Italian the more than six thousand faithful present in the Aula, and he made a special mention of the priests who are participating in a training course promoted by the Pontifical University of the Holy CrossThe event was attended by pilgrims from the parish of the Divine Christ the Worker of Ancona, and students from various schools and musical bands.

As always, his thoughts have been addressed to young people, in the memory of St. John BoscoHe quoted him when addressing pilgrims of different languages, the sick, the elderly and the newlyweds.

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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RelatedRelated News"Forgiveness is a source of peace," Pope encourages in KinshasaRelated News"Forgiveness is a fundamental condition for the Christian", Francis stresses
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Culture

The Flower Shop, the "behind-the-scenes" work of Vatican celebrations

About forty people make up the Vatican Flower Shop, a former service of the Holy See in charge of preparing the Vatican celebrations.

Hernan Sergio Mora-January 31, 2024-Reading time: 3 minutes

Behind the beautiful ceremonies, audiences and events that take place in the Vatican, behind the scenes there is an institution little known to the general public that - quietly and with difficulty - takes care of the logistics that allow these great ceremonies to take place.

We are talking about the Flower Shop, made up of about forty people, who coordinate and prepare whatever is necessary inside the Vatican Basilica, in St. Peter's Square, in the Roman Papal Basilicas, in the Paul VI Hall, in the Pope's apartment, as well as in the audiences inside the Apostolic Palace and in various Vatican buildings.

It also takes care of the decoration and routine maintenance of the furniture and has three restoration laboratories at its disposal: one for furniture and upholstery, another for cabinetmaking and furniture restoration, and a third specialized in gilding. Then there is the assembly department in charge, among other tasks, of setting up to 30,000 chairs when there are celebrations outside the Plaza.

Origin

The name Floreria has an ancient origin. It probably comes from Spanish and referred to those who took care of flowers for ceremonies. The inventories of the 16th century tell us that, from the beginning, there was a Florería (Flower Shop) with tapestries, gobelins and fabrics destined to decorate the rooms and cover large walls. Today the Florist's Shop houses all the non-consecrated objects necessary for pontifical functions.

Formerly it was called Apostolic flower shop and depended on the Apostolic Palace, that is, directly from the Pope, the Secretariat of State and the Prefecture of the Papal Household. In the 1960s and 1970s it was transferred to the Governorate of Vatican City under the name of "Vatican City Governorate".Flower Service"It currently reports to the Infrastructure and Services Directorate, together with the Gardens and Environment service and the Infrastructure sector.

Also spirituality

A tradition of the employees of the entire infrastructure and services management, on which the Flower Shop also depends, is to attend mass every first Friday in the shed of the mechanical workshop.

All employees of the Governorate who so desire can also count on spiritual assistance and can meet with the Pope in various circumstances throughout the year. In addition, this year a family celebration was introduced, which is held outdoors.

Other work

Another task is to take care of removals and restorations present not only in the Vatican, but also in extraterritorial areas and in other parts of Rome, including the headquarters of the Congregations located in via della Conciliazione or in the palace of St. Callixtus.

Not to mention preparations such as, for example, the celebration of the Corpus Dominithe traditional procession that starts from the Basilica of St. John Lateran Lateran to Santa Maria Maggiore.

Conclave

Even knowing that the date of a conclave cannot be predicted, the Flower Shop has an updated plan ready for its organization. From the Sistine Chapel, with the thrones with their mobile canopies, to the iron stove and chimney that will announce with its black smoke and then with its white smoke the election or less of a new pontiff.

In the past they also took care of the 500 rooms that had to be prepared for the accommodation of the cardinals and their entourage, a task now simplified thanks to the accommodation in the Domus Santa Marta, or of other issues such as the task of cutting all the telephone lines.

Floral objects sold for Pope's charity

Today in the Clothing Store, near the train station, there is a section where some of the gifts that Francis receives from the Heads of State and Government during audiences or meetings are exhibited. Even many objects that were stored and dusty in the Flower Shop can now be purchased in exchange for an offering that will go to the Pope's charity.

The Pope's gratitude

Pope Francis in the January 17, 2014 audience with the employees of the Flower Shop expressed his personal thanks for the "care, professionalism and availability" with which they carry out their mission.

He recalled that "organizing the environments for the various meetings of the Pope with pilgrims and the various activities of the Holy See" is an "indispensable" task, in order to obtain welcoming spaces and functional tools.

The authorHernan Sergio Mora

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Pope stresses the work of palliative care

Pope Francis asks Catholics to pray especially for the terminally ill during the month of February.

Paloma López Campos-January 30, 2024-Reading time: 2 minutes
RelatedRelated News"Palliative care should be a right, not a privilege."Related News"Caring for the sick is not an 'optional activity' for the Church."

Pope Francis always shows great closeness to people suffering from illness. So it is not surprising that he asks Catholics around the world to join him during the month of February to pray for "the terminally ill and their families."

The Holy Father shows concern for the "necessary care and accompaniment, both from a medical and human point of view" that is needed for those who are ill.

Francis points out in the video for the Global Prayer Network that there is a big difference between the concepts of "incurable and 'incurable'". Drawing on a quote from Pope St. John Paul II, he affirms that, while cure is not always given, "care is always" possible.

The Pope claims that "even when there is little chance of cure, all the sick have the right to medical accompaniment, psychological accompaniment, spiritual accompaniment and human accompaniment".

Palliative care

The Pontiff takes the opportunity to speak about palliative care. These "guarantee the patient not only medical attention, but also a human and close accompaniment".

Moreover, the Pope recalls in his message that the families of the sick "cannot be left alone in these difficult moments. For this reason, he calls for the promotion of support for those who are close to the sick that is noticeable on the physical, spiritual and social levels.

World Day of the Sick

This intention of the Pope comes precisely in the month in which the World Day of the Sick is celebrated. On February 11, on the occasion of the memory of the Virgin of LourdesThe entire Church unites to pray for those who suffer from the disease.

In its message for this day, published at the beginning of 2024, the Pope pointed out that "the first care we need in sickness is that of a closeness full of compassion and tenderness". He even took the opportunity to encourage the sick to "not be ashamed of their desire for closeness and tenderness."

The Holy Father stressed that "we Christians are especially called to make our own the compassionate gaze of Jesus". In this way, we will be able to "counteract the culture of individualism, indifference and discarding", and change it for a "culture of tenderness and compassion".

Pope Francis' Prayer Intention for February 2024
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RelatedRelated News"Palliative care should be a right, not a privilege."Related News"Caring for the sick is not an 'optional activity' for the Church."
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The Vatican

Truth, charity, courage: the Pope's recommendations to the Catholic media

In a meeting with the media belonging to the Italian Bishops' Conference, Pope Francis outlined the characteristics that, in his opinion, communicators should have.

Antonino Piccione-January 30, 2024-Reading time: 3 minutes

Journalism as a search for truth, a complex subject that implies the virtue of listening, the capacity for discernment and care in the use of words. A few days after his message for the 58th World Communications DayPope Francis offers a new reflection on the field of information and communication, with the help of an audience with journalists and technicians of Tv2000 and RadioinBlu2000, received on January 29 in the Paul VI Hall, on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the birth of the stations of the Italian Episcopal Conference.

The Pontiff stressed the importance of constructive communication, protected from the sins that undermine it, especially that of disinformation, "to tell the good and the beautiful of our communities with closeness", to "make protagonists of those who normally end up as extras or are not even taken into account".

Referring to the audience granted in 2014, the Pontiff noted that since then "much has changed in the media landscape," but that today, as then, both media, along with the daily "Avvenire" and Agenzia Sir, have "a very precise affiliation: the Italian Bishops' Conference." 

This, in the opinion of Francis, is in no way a limitation, "on the contrary, it is an expression of great freedom, because it reminds us that communication and information are always rooted in the human". Crucial, in this sense, is the role and function of witness, so that the journalist is called to tell "stories in which the darkness that surrounds us does not extinguish the light of hope".

Journalists, a "bridge" and not a "wall".

On the involvement of those who narrate the Church through its media, one cannot fail to "start from the heart" to make "closeness" possible and affirm the truth without separating it from charity. "Never separate the facts from the heart! And then, have courage. It is not by chance that 'courage' comes from the heart. He who has heart also has the courage to be alternative, without becoming polemical or aggressive; to be credible, without trying to impose his own point of view; to be a "bridge builder".

To avoid the other sins in which information professionals often engage: slander, defamation and the love of scandal. Because "scandal sells", as the Holy Father said at the end of August when he received the "It's Journalism.".

In the light of these considerations, the audience addressed to Catholics can well be considered a further and more specific contribution that Pope Benedict makes to his magisterium on the subject of journalism, which cannot avoid "responsibility" - another key word - from the perspective of objectivity, respect for human dignity and attention to the common good. "In this way," he points out, "we will be able to repair the fractures, to transform indifference into a lack of welcome and relationship.

The person, in short, is the foundation and the goal "of every service, of every article, of every program". The person must be served and the truth must be told "with respect and competence". Avoid, or rather govern, all instruments of manipulation, of cognitive contamination and of "alteration of reality", because man continues to make the difference.

Information," observes the Pope in his Message published on the liturgical feast of St. Francis de Sales, patron saint of journalists, "cannot be separated from existential relationships: it involves the body, being in reality; it calls for reporting not only data, but experiences; it demands a face, a look, compassion, as well as sharing".

Because journalism can only continue to do its valuable work if it does not abdicate its fundamentals. There are overriding issues related to regulation, intellectual property and commercial competition.

There are also deep societal concerns about AI, particularly in relation to misinformation, discrimination and prejudice, and the risks of media manipulation by large corporate or government entities. It is imperative to maintain a holistic view that builds on the recommendations of Pope Francis.

The authorAntonino Piccione

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Culture

Manuel GarridoEvery colleague is a person, not a threat".

Interview with Manuel Garrido, winner of the Bravo! of Institutional Communication 2024 and responsible, for years, for the Information Office of Opus Dei and the Torreciudad sanctuary.

Maria José Atienza-January 30, 2024-Reading time: 4 minutes

It is called Manuel Garrido González but for communication professionals in Spain it is Manolo.

This journalist from Oviedo, who is almost 68 years old, has dedicated his professional life to institutional communications in the Catholic Church, especially at the Torreciudad Sanctuary and in the Communications Office of the Opus Dei Prelature. Now he combines consulting work with a determined fight against an illness, which he faces with "the confidence that comes from being in the best hands: in those of God, in those of the doctors and in those of so many friends and colleagues, who help me with their affection and closeness.

On January 29, 2024, Manuel Garrido picked up the Award Bravo! of Institutional Communication. Alongside him, names such as Ana Iris Simón, film director Santos Blancoor the creators of the campaign for the ACdP #ThatDoesn'tGetYouSpun in favor of the family and motherhood received this recognition, awarded by the Spanish Episcopal Conference.

On that day, many colleagues wanted to accompany Manuel Garrido in the presentation of an award that he gave to all communication professionals.

How did you receive the award Bravo! What does such recognition mean after years of work and service?

-Surprisingly, I was not expecting it. In any case, I welcome this boost of encouragement that comes from my colleagues in the informative tasks, to whom I offer it. And it is a luxury to receive it together with some extraordinary, high-level award winners, such as Ana Iris Simón, whom I follow on a weekly basis. She recently referred to the importance of looking ahead without losing sight of the past, to appreciate so many good, beautiful and true things. And to have a clean look to know how to appreciate them and tell them. I wrote it down, it seems to me a good advice.

You have experienced firsthand the change in communication paradigms and in the Church. How do you deal with professional problems when they also affect your own faith?

-Faith leads you to prayer to see with God the things you have in hand, to try to work with joy and hope. It is not passivity or laziness, or tododa igualThe aim is to achieve quality without perfectionism, to try to do things well, in spite of mistakes.

Faith gives you a perspective that helps you in the immediate overwhelm, it takes away the limelight and importance and helps you to see things in their right measure. It is more than an ally in the day to day. And at the same time it is comforting to see so many positive behaviors that build and are in the majority. They are the ones we have to tell and share, which will make the face of the Church more friendly.

What communication moments do you take away from your career?

-I could say that I have enjoyed every piece I have prepared, looking forward to seeing it published or broadcast in whatever medium. Having said that, I would choose the beatification and canonization of St. Josemaría, which I experienced in Rome with my fellow Barbastro residents and which was followed by numerous media outlets. And I would also highlight, as a moment, I have been in charge of the communication between Torreciudad and Alto Aragon for 21 joyful years, during which I have been able to see what a great gift the sanctuary is for the Church, the diocese and the territory. And we must continue to take care of it together.

In your opinion, what should be the keys to communication in a Church institution?

-I see two keys. Closeness and personal affection for the professionals and offering the media useful information. Those of us who are in the field of institutional communication must be intermediaries between our institution and the media. Therefore, get to know your house and the media in depth. And then frequent contact with the media to offer them information that is useful to them.

In an increasingly "digital" world, has personal contact been lost in the professional arena?

-I think that journalism is carried inside and lived 24 hours a day, although I understand that this is no longer the case and I'm glad, because now it is being reconciled more with other obligations. But I will say that if you follow a colleague's work closely and talk to him or her, it is easy to share other things. It's caring, not marketing or coaching. Every colleague is a person, not a threat or an instrument, said St. John Paul II, who thought of journalists as people and tried to establish personal contact with them. It is sincere, supernatural and joyful closeness, as we have just seen in Pope Francis and his January 22 audience with accredited journalists at the Vatican.

In your life, do you have any communication reference?

-Joaquín Navarro-Valls. I had the good fortune to know him and follow him. I recently read his personal notes in "My years with John Paul II", in Espasa. I found it very useful and I recommend it for any communicator, because he was a great spokesman for a great pope.

I well remember Navarro's conference on 18 November 2013 at the Rafael del Pino Foundation on John Paul II and human suffering, which was very thought-provoking. And I have at hand some words from 2011 that have helped me a lot: "everything can be communicated and much should be communicated; also pain, illness and even doubts. The only thing that cannot be communicated is a lie, not even to make oneself look good and improve one's image". Quite a challenge.

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The Year of Prayer 2024 will have as its theme "Lord, teach us to pray".

With the words "Lord, teach us to pray" the Apostles addressed Jesus, and these same words have been chosen by the Pope as the motto for 2024, the Year of Prayer, during which we too, disciples of Christ, are called to rediscover the value of daily prayer in our lives.

Arturo Cattaneo-January 30, 2024-Reading time: 14 minutes

When people want to undertake an initiative, they usually start by looking at the organizational aspects: what people or resources they can count on to achieve their goal in the best possible way. Who, however, thinks of praying first? Obviously, it is very difficult for those who have never experienced the power of prayer to understand that, in order to prepare for an important event or choice in life, prayer is not only advisable, it is indispensable.

In this perspective, it is significant and a great lesson that Pope Francis offers us with this initiative. In the Angelus of January 21The Pope has officially launched the Year of Prayer in preparation for the Jubilee of 2025, encouraging us to pray that this Holy Year will have an impact on the whole Church, on the holiness of Christians. It will certainly require the organization and work of many people, but only with remote preparation in prayer will this Jubilee bear fruits of grace and reconciliation.

At the presentation of the initiative in the Vatican press room, Monsignor Rino Fisichella, Pro-prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization, hoped that this would be a year in which to rediscover "how to pray and, above all, how to educate people to pray today, in the age of digital culture, so that prayer can be effective and fruitful". The Pontiff, at the Angelus, spoke explicitly of an absolute need for prayer, for a "symphony" of prayer at both the personal and community levels. At the press conference of January 23, 2024, he specified what the characteristics of this prayer should be: to be before the Lord in a relationship of trust and friendship, ready to listen to him. And to thank him.

Through prayer we will also grow in our capacity to pay attention to others, to welcome them and to reach out to them with a merciful heart like that of Jesus.

In the preface to "Praying Today. A Challenge to Overcome," the first of eight books that the Dicastery for Evangelization is about to publish, the Pope writes: "Prayer is the breath of faith, it is its most appropriate expression. Like a cry that comes from the heart of those who believe and entrust themselves to God." In this year, with the Jubilee just around the corner, says the Holy Father, "we are invited to be more humble and to give space to the prayer that flows from the Holy Spirit".

Truly, since the beginning of his pontificate, that of prayer has been one of the most recurring themes, a theme to which he has dedicated no less than 38 general audiences throughout 2020 and 2021 with reflections and suggestions that are profound and at the same time simple, concrete, full of common sense and also of that good humor that characterizes him.

In the coming months the Pope will create a "School of Prayer", but it will be above all the local Churches that will be called upon to develop initiatives that will help the faithful to rediscover prayer as "nourishment for the Christian life of faith, hope and charity". For these reasons, I have collected in a small anthology phrases and considerations of Pope Francis that help to better understand why and how to pray.

Pope Francis talks about prayer, explaining why and how to pray

Texts of Pope Francis collected by Arturo Cattaneo

The Holy Father speaks of prayer in practically all his texts, exhortations, homilies, letters, audiences, etc. A theme to which he has also dedicated no less than 38 general audiences during 2020 and 2021. They can be downloaded for example with this link.

Below, you will find his phrases or reflections that I have found particularly significant, arranged in six chapters.

What is prayer

Prayer is the breath of the soul, the breath of faith. In a relationship of trust, in a relationship of love, dialogue cannot be absent, and prayer is the dialogue of the soul with God. It is important to find moments in the day to open the heart to God, even with simple words (Discourse, 14-XII-2014).

The Christian's prayer, on the other hand, is born of a revelation: the "You" has not remained shrouded in mystery, but has entered into a relationship with us... The Christian's prayer enters into a relationship with the most tender-faced God, who does not wish to instill any fear in mankind. This is the first characteristic of Christian prayer. If people have always been accustomed to approaching God with a certain intimidation, a certain fear of this fascinating and terrible mystery, if they have been accustomed to venerating him with a servile attitude, similar to that of a subject who does not want to disrespect his master, Christians turn to him instead, daring to call him with confidence by the name of "Father". Even more, Jesus uses another word: "father" (General Audience, May 13, 1920).

Prayer is an encounter with God, with God who never disappoints; with God who is faithful to his word; with God who does not abandon his children (Homily, June 29, 2015).

To pray is to give time back to God, to get out of the obsession of a life that always lacks time, to rediscover the peace of necessary things and to discover the joy of unexpected gifts (General Audience, 26-VIII-2015).

Why pray

Why do I pray? I pray because I am in need. This I feel, what drives me, as if God is calling me to speak (Interview of Pope Francis with young people in Belgium, 31-III-2014).

The encounter with God in prayer will help you to know the Lord and yourselves better. The voice of Jesus will set your hearts on fire and your eyes will be opened to recognize his presence in your history, thus discovering the plan of love that he has for your life (Message for the XXX WYD, 17-II-2015).

Prayer gives us the grace to live faithful to God's plan (General Audience, April 17, 2013).

Each story is unique, but they all start from an encounter that illuminates the depths, touches the heart and involves the whole person: affections, intellect, senses, everything. It is a love so great, so beautiful, so true, that it deserves everything and deserves all our trust (Meeting with the young people of Umbria, October 4, 2013).

Another important element is the awareness of feeling part of a greater plan, to which one wishes to offer one's contribution (General Audience, 7-XII-2022).

God calls us to struggle with Him, every day, at every moment, to overcome evil with good (Speech, October 20, 2013).

Faith does not take us away from the world, but inserts us more deeply into it. This is very important! We must enter the world, but with the strength of prayer. Each of us plays a special role in preparing for the coming of the Kingdom of God in the world (Address in Manila, 16-I-2015).

Prayer, fasting and almsgiving help us not to let ourselves be dominated by things that appear: what counts is not appearance; the value of life does not depend on the approval of others or success, but on what we have inside (Homily, 05-III-2014).

Prayer preserves man from the protagonism by which everything revolves around him, from indifference and victimhood (Discourse, 15-VI-2014).

With prayer we allow the Holy Spirit to enlighten us and advise us on what we should do at that moment (General Audience, 07-V-2014).

Without prayer our action becomes empty and our proclamation has no soul, because it is not animated by the Spirit (General Audience, May 22, 2013).

Prayer is not a sedative to alleviate the anxieties of life; or, in any case, such prayer is certainly not Christian. Rather, prayer empowers each of us (General Audience, October 21, 2020).

The first motivation to evangelize is the love of Jesus that we have received, that experience of being saved by Him that moves us to love Him more and more. But what love is that which does not feel the need to speak of the loved one, to show him, to make him known? If we do not feel the intense desire to communicate it, we need to stop in prayer to ask Him to captivate us again. We need to cry out every day, to ask for His grace to open our cold hearts and shake our lukewarm and superficial lives. Standing before him with an open heart, letting him contemplate us, we recognize the gaze of love that Nathanael discovered the day Jesus appeared and said to him: "When you were under the fig tree, I saw you" (Jn 1:48). How sweet it is to stand before a crucifix, or kneel before the Blessed Sacrament, and simply be before his eyes! How good it is to let him touch our existence and launch us out to communicate his new life. (Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii gaudium 264).

How to pray

Simplicity, humility, attentiveness, understanding and silence: these are the five qualities that correspond to the five fingers.

The thumb is the biggest finger, so it is also the finger of praise to God. But it is also the finger that is closest to us and tells us to pray for those closest to us, for our loved ones, for our friends. The index finger is the finger that teaches, that shows us the way and the path to follow. We pray for all those who in life teach us or will teach us something.

The middle finger reminds us of those who govern us. To them, God has entrusted the destiny of the nations, and for them we pray that they may always follow the teachings of Jesus in their duty. The ring finger is the finger of promise: we ask God to protect those we love the most, as well as the weakest and neediest.

The little finger is the smallest finger. It teaches and reminds us to pray for the children. It also reminds us to make ourselves small like them and not to fall into pride.

Pray in a simple way, but concrete at the same time. And, since we have two hands, prayer can also be repeated a second time. Because we know that "praying is the oxygen of our soul" and of our spiritual life (Written by Jorge Mario Bergoglio, when he was Archbishop of Buenos Aires).

True prayer is familiarity and trust with God, it is not reciting prayers like a parrot... Being in prayer does not mean saying words, words, words: no, it means opening my heart to Jesus, getting close to Jesus, letting him enter my heart and making me feel his presence there. And there we can discern when it is Jesus or when it is us with our thoughts, so often far from Jesus. Let us ask for this grace: to live a relationship of friendship with the Lord, as a friend speaks to his friend (General Audience, 28-IX-2022).

When we pray we must be humble: this is the first attitude to go to prayer. Then our words will really be prayers and not gibberish that God rejects (General Audience, May 26, 2011).

At the origin of every vocation there is always a strong experience of God, an experience that is not forgotten, it is remembered all our lives! God always surprises us! It is God who calls; but it is important to have a daily relationship with Him, to listen to Him in silence before the Tabernacle and in the depths of ourselves, to speak with Him, to approach the Sacraments. Having this familiar relationship with the Lord is like having the window of our life open, so that he can let us hear his voice, what he wants from us (To the young people in Assisi, October 5, 2013).

This is the way to accept God, not ability, but humility: to recognize oneself as a sinner. To confess, first to oneself and then to the priest in the sacrament of reconciliation, one's sins, one's shortcomings, one's hypocrisies; to come down from the pedestal and immerse oneself in the water of repentance (Angelus, 4-XII-2022).

We must take off our masks-everyone has one-and put ourselves on the same level as the humble; free ourselves from the presumption of believing we are self-sufficient, go and confess our sins, the hidden ones, and accept God's forgiveness, ask forgiveness of those we have offended. Thus begins a new life (Angelus, 4-XII-2022).

Prayer unceasingly purifies the heart. Praise and supplication to God prevent the heart from hardening into resentment and selfishness (General Audience, 11.III.2015).

It is the Holy Spirit who gives life to the soul! Let him enter. Speak to the Spirit as you speak to the Father, as you speak to the Son: speak to the Holy Spirit, who has nothing paralyzing about him! In him is the strength of the Church; it is he who carries you forward (General Audience, December 21, 2022).

With a friend we talk, we share the most secret things. With Jesus we also converse. Prayer is a challenge and an adventure, and what an adventure! It allows us to know him better and better, to enter into his depths and to grow in an ever stronger union. Prayer allows us to tell him everything that happens to us and to remain confidently in his arms, and at the same time it gives us moments of precious intimacy and affection, where Jesus pours his own life into us. By praying, we "open the way" to Him, we give Him room "so that He can act and enter and conquer" (Apostolic Exhortation Christus vivit 155).

In this way it is possible to experience a constant unity with him that surpasses anything we can experience with other people: "It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me" (Gal 2:20). Do not deprive your youth of this friendship. You will be able to feel him at your side not only when you pray. You will recognize that he walks with you at all times. Try to discover it and you will live the beautiful experience of knowing that you are always accompanied. This is what the disciples of Emmaus experienced when, while they were walking and conversing in disorientation, Jesus made himself present and "walked with them" (Lk 24:15). Christus vivit 156).

A young man to the Pope: "Can you explain to me how you pray and why you pray? As concretely as possible...".

How I pray... Many times I pick up the Bible, read a little, then put it down and let the Lord look at me: that is the most common idea of my prayer. I let Him look at me. And I feel - but it is not sentimentalism - I feel deeply the things the Lord tells me. Sometimes He doesn't speak... nothing, empty, empty, empty, empty... but patiently I stay there, and so I pray... I sit, I pray sitting down, because it hurts me to kneel, and sometimes I fall asleep praying... It is also a way of praying, like a son with the Father, and this is important: I feel like a son with the Father (Interview of Pope Francis to young people in Belgium, 31-III-2014).

Jesus, teacher of prayer

Jesus has constant recourse to the power of prayer. The Gospels show this when he withdraws to secluded places to pray. These are sober and discreet observations, which leave us only to imagine these prayerful dialogues. They clearly testify that, even in his moments of greatest dedication to the poor and the sick, Jesus never neglected his intimate dialogue with the Father. The more immersed he was in the needs of the people, the more he felt the need to rest in the Trinitarian Communion, to return to the Father and the Spirit.

In the life of Jesus there is, therefore, a secret, hidden from human eyes, which represents the core of everything. The prayer of Jesus is a mysterious reality, of which we can only intuit something, but which allows us to read his entire mission in the right perspective. In those solitary hours - before dawn or at night - Jesus immerses himself in his intimacy with the Father, that is, in the Love for which every soul thirsts. This is what emerges from the first days of his public ministry.

One Sabbath, for example, the small town of Capernaum is transformed into a "field hospital": after sunset, all the sick are brought to Jesus and he heals them. But, before dawn, Jesus disappears: he withdraws to a solitary place and prays. Simon and the others look for him, and when they find him, they say to him, "They are all looking for you!" What does Jesus reply: "Let us go elsewhere, to the neighboring towns, so that I may preach there also; for that is why I have come out" (cf. Mk 1:35-38). Jesus is always beyond, beyond in prayer with the Father and beyond, in other towns, other horizons to go and preach, other towns.

Prayer is the rudder that guides Jesus' route. The stages of his mission are not dictated by success, nor by consensus, nor by that seductive phrase "everyone is looking for you". The less comfortable way is the one that traces the path of Jesus, but that obeys the inspiration of the Father, which Jesus listens to and welcomes in his solitary prayer.

The Catechism affirms: "By his prayer, Jesus teaches us to pray" (n. 2607). Therefore, from the example of Jesus we can draw some characteristics of Christian prayer.

Above all, it possesses a primacy: it is the first desire of the day, something practiced at dawn, before the world wakes up. It restores a soul to what would otherwise be breathless. A day lived without prayer runs the risk of becoming an annoying or boring experience: everything that happens to us could become for us an unbearable and blind fate. Jesus, however, educates in obedience to reality and therefore to listening. Prayer is above all listening and meeting with God. The problems of every day, then, do not become obstacles, but rather calls from God himself to listen and meet the one who is in front of us. The trials of life thus become occasions for growth in faith and charity. The daily journey, including the fatigues, acquires the perspective of a "vocation". Prayer has the power to transform into good what in life would otherwise be a condemnation; prayer has the power to open a great horizon to the mind and to enlarge the heart.

Secondly, prayer is an art to be practiced with insistence. Jesus himself tells us: call, call, call. We are all capable of episodic prayers, born of the emotion of a moment; but Jesus educates us in another type of prayer: the one that knows a discipline, an exercise and is assumed within a rule of life. A persevering prayer produces a progressive transformation, makes us strong in periods of tribulation, gives us the grace of being sustained by the One who loves us and protects us always.

Another characteristic of Jesus' prayer is solitude. The one who prays does not escape from the world, but prefers deserted places. There, in silence, many voices that we hide in intimacy can emerge: the most repressed desires, the truths that we persist in suffocating, etc. And above all, in silence God speaks. Every person needs a space for himself, where he can cultivate his inner life, where actions find meaning. Without interior life we become superficial, restless, anxious - how bad anxiety makes us - that is why we have to go to prayer; without interior life we flee from reality, and we also flee from ourselves, we are men and women always on the run.

Finally, the prayer of Jesus is the place where we perceive that everything comes from God and He returns. Sometimes we human beings think we are masters of everything, or on the contrary we lose all esteem for ourselves, we go from one side to the other. Prayer helps us to find the right dimension in our relationship with God, our Father, and with all creation. And the prayer of Jesus is finally to abandon ourselves into the hands of the Father, like Jesus in the Garden of Olives, in that anguish: "Father, if it is possible..., but your will be done". Abandonment in the hands of the Father. It is beautiful when we are anxious, a little worried and the Holy Spirit transforms us from within and leads us to this abandonment into the hands of the Father: "Father, your will be done" (General Audience, November 4, 2020).

But what if God does not answer our prayers?

There is a radical answer to prayer, which derives from an observation we all make: we pray, we ask, yet sometimes it seems that our prayers are not heard: what we have asked for - for ourselves or for others - does not happen. We have this experience many times. If, moreover, the reason for which we prayed was noble (such as intercession for the health of a sick person, or for the cessation of a war), the non-fulfillment seems scandalous to us. For example, for wars: we are praying for the end of wars, these wars in so many parts of the world, let us think of Yemen, let us think of Syria, countries that have been at war for years, years! Countries tormented by wars, we pray and they do not end. But how can this be? "There are those who stop praying because they think that their prayer is not heard" (Catechism of the Catholic Church, n. 2734) But if God is Father, why does he not listen to us? He who has assured us that he gives good things to the children who ask him (cfr. Mt 7:10), why does he not answer our requests? We all have experience of this: we have prayed, prayed, for the illness of this friend, of this father, of this mother and then they have gone away, God has not listened to us. It is an experience of all of us.

The Catechism offers us a good synthesis of this question. It warns us of the risk of not living an authentic experience of faith, but of transforming our relationship with God into something magical. Prayer is not a magic wand: it is a dialogue with the Lord. In fact, when we pray, we can run the risk of not being the ones who serve God, but of pretending that he is the one who serves us (cf. n. 2735). Here, then, is a prayer that is always demanding, that wants to direct events according to our design, that admits no other projects but our desires. Jesus, however, had great wisdom in putting the "Our Father" on our lips. It is a prayer of petitions only, as we know, but the first ones we utter are all on God's side. They ask for the fulfillment not of our project, but of His will in relation to the world. It is better to let Him do it: "Thy name be hallowed, thy kingdom come, thy will be done" (Mt 6:9-10) (General Audience, May 26, 2011).

Our Lady's example and help

Mary does not direct her life autonomously: she waits for God to take the reins of her path and guide her where He wants her to go. She is docile, and with her availability she predisposes the great events that involve God in the world... There is no better way to pray than to place oneself like Mary in an attitude of openness, of a heart open to God: "Lord, whatever You want, whenever You want and however You want". That is, the heart open to the will of God....

Mary accompanies the whole life of Jesus in prayer, up to his death and resurrection; and at the end she continues and accompanies the first steps of the nascent Church (cf. Acts 1:14). Mary prays with the disciples who have gone through the scandal of the cross. She prays with Peter, who gave in to fear and wept in repentance. Mary is there, with the disciples, in the midst of the men and women whom her Son has called to form his Community....

Praying with the nascent Church, she becomes Mother of the Church, accompanying the disciples in the first steps of the Church in prayer, waiting for the Holy Spirit. In silence, always in silence. Mary's prayer is silent. The Gospel tells us of only one prayer of Mary: at Cana, when she asks her Son, for those poor people, who are going to look bad at the feast.

Mary is present because she is Mother, but she is also present because she is the first disciple, the one who has learned the best things from Jesus. Mary never says: "Come, I will sort things out". Some have compared Mary's heart to a pearl of incomparable splendor, formed and softened by the patient acceptance of God's will through the mysteries of Jesus meditated on in prayer. How beautiful if we too can resemble our Mother a little! With a heart open to the Word of God, with a silent heart, with an obedient heart, with a heart that knows how to receive the Word of God and allows it to grow with a seed of the good of the Church (General Audience, 18-XI-2020).

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ColumnistsMaria José Atienza

A Bravo! by Manolo

There are few references that unite, almost unanimously, those who make up a profession such as communication in these times. Fewer still, within the Church. Manuel Garrido is one of those exceptions.

January 30, 2024-Reading time: 2 minutes
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Receiving an award is always a double-edged sword. Along with the recipient's own pride, there is often biting criticism and even distrust of the person who has been left off the list. But there are exceptions.

One of them was the recent presentation of the Bravo! awards, with which the Episcopal Commission for Social Communications of the Spanish Episcopal Conference has been recognizing, for 54 years, the work of professionals and companies in different fields of communication. This year, the Bravo! Award for Institutional Communication was awarded to Manuel Garrido, "for his intense career dedicated to institutional communication in the Information Office of the Opus Dei and, previously, in Torreciudad."

Manolo has been, for decades, "Opus" for journalists, the image that formed in the heads of dozens of communication professionals when they spoke of this personal prelature. Beyond stereotypes, philias and phobias, prejudices and commonplaces, there was Manolo.

Manolo has been able to move in the turbulent waters of a Church that is not at all comfortable for the communicator, but above all, Manolo has been able to become a companion of the communication professionals he has dealt with, whom he has served, even when his work "has not served them at all".

Manolo has received a Bravo Award! a few months after the goring of the bull of ALS hit him full in the face. He had just left professional bullfighting to enjoy a well-deserved retirement and, in a matter of days, he exchanged his motorcycle for crutches. From Torreciudad he wrote to his colleagues and friends telling them the news and asking for prayers. Smiling. With the same smile with which he received his award, in a crowded room where journalists from all the institutions of the Church applauded a colleague, a reference, a friend.

There are few references that unite, almost unanimously, those who make up a profession such as communication in these times and even less, within the Church. Even fewer are the sincere friendships that this work brings you. But when I saw Manolo with his crutches picking up the Bravo! there were many in the room who pointed to the man and said to whoever was next to him "That's my friend over there.". And surely, for Manolo, it is a better prize.

The authorMaria José Atienza

Director of Omnes. Degree in Communication, with more than 15 years of experience in Church communication. She has collaborated in media such as COPE or RNE.

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Experiences

Gustavo Ron, "in love with the work of Nadiesolo's volunteers".

After a life of professional entrepreneurship in the hotel business, Gustavo Ron embarked in 2010 on Nadiesolo, whose two thousand volunteers accompany forty thousand people, with names and surnames, who suffer unwanted loneliness due to illness, dependence, disability or at risk of exclusion. "There is an increasing social demand for accompaniment," he says.

Francisco Otamendi-January 30, 2024-Reading time: 3 minutes
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"Yes, I am Gustavo Ron's father", says with good humor this hotel businessman, who has turned to the management of volunteers to accompany vulnerable and often lonely people. Because his son Gustavo is a well-known Spanish screenwriter and film director. Nor Gustavo Ron senior (Zaragoza, 1945), is unknown. He chairs the board of Nadiesolo Voluntariado, the fourth largest in the sector in Madrid after Caritas, Red Cross and Manos Unidas, and before that he was, for example, CEO of Hoteles Husa and founded Café y Té.

We recently met Gustavo Ron, the father, "I am doing a voluntary 'tournée', that's why I'm from Nadiesolowhich is a volunteer NGO, with two objectives. To make people aware of existing initiatives; and to recruit volunteers, not immediately, but in the medium term, because we need them. "We have 2,000," adds Ron, "but before the pandemic we had 2,300, and we went to 1,500. Now we are going up. There is more and more social demand for accompaniment, that's the reality".

About the beginnings, Gustavo Ron says: "This is a lay foundation, which does not belong to any creed, but it must be said that this foundation was started in 1995 by a group of supernumeraries of Opus Dei, and they continue to promote it. Our board of trustees is made up of a majority of supernumeraries, without this fact being persecuted, because there are trustees who do not belong to the Work, and they are people concerned about what it means to accompany people who are alone.

"Thank God, I was born into a Catholic family," explains this Aragonese. "My father had belonged to the Luises, he was from Malaga, and my mother, born in Zaragoza, was fundamentally a Pilarista, as befits a good maña. We went to the Cardinal Xavierre school of the Dominicans in Zaragoza, for whom I still have tremendous respect and appreciation. My father died when I was 15 years old. This served to direct my professional future, and I ended up at the School of Hotel Management, which placed me in the world of services, which has a lot to do with my current dedication at Nadiesolo. In other words, we are here to serve, and if we serve and fall in love with it, we have a great time working". 

Gustavo Ron explains that he got to know Nadiesolo (Development and Assistance) through its then president, Rafael Izquierdo, a civil engineer. "He was an absolutely endearing person. We met in Fatima, and one day he told me: 'come with me'. Later, when Rafael had passed away, the women, who were the majority on the board of trustees, told me that I had to be president. Ron reveals that "I have accompanied volunteers to visit users, on excursions, to places of leisure, etc., and I have absolutely fallen in love with the task. I defend the work of Nadiesolo's volunteers, because they are enormously available people, and at the same time enormously grateful. And what happens over time, and not much, is that the volunteer becomes a friend of the user, and vice versa, an available friend". 

Last year, the organization's volunteers dedicated 83,000 hours of accompaniment through its programs (see nadiesolo.org). "There is a program that is perhaps the most beautiful and easiest to understand, which is to take disabled children out for a walk. These kids, under 13 years of age, because the older ones have a different program, are taken out for a walk one Saturday a month by a married couple with their children. This is 'family volunteering', beneficial for everyone, and also formative".

We talked about the so-called 'Support for homeless people'. "People who live on the street have dependencies, almost all of them, and they are people who are difficult to live with. The Madrid City Council has three residences, shelters. I know the two shelters we serve, and there we go to spend time with these people: playing cards, chatting with those who want to, and with some we become friends. I remember an excursion to Avila with a group of 50 people. I have experienced what the trip meant, the hotel, the visit to the cathedral, the walls...., we have also been to Segovia, Toledo, etc.".

"This is important for these people because they feel loved, because we give them affection, because I shook hands with 50 people I don't usually shake hands with, and at that moment I regretted not doing it often". They have such a good time, and at least provisionally they feel included in society", Gustavo Ron affirms.

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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The drama of the border

Unaccompanied minors from Honduras sit on the riverbank in Roma, Texas, after crossing the Rio Grande. Each year thousands of these minors cross into the U.S. at various border points.

Maria José Atienza-January 29, 2024-Reading time: < 1 minute
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