Papacy, unity and synodality

From Sixtus V to Francis, the Roman Curia in its key passages

Papacy, unity and synodality

The feast of Saints Peter and Paul highlights the task and mission of the successor of Peter. The priest and theologian Ramiro Pellitero, makes a clear exposition on the figure of the Pope in the Catholic Church, his task of unity at the service of the universal Church, without forgetting the synodal process in which the Church is currently involved.

Ramiro Pellitero-June 29, 2023-Reading time: 8 minutes

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The annual feast of Sts. Peter and Paul provides an opportunity to point out some fundamental questions concerning the figure of the Pope and his ministry of unity at the service of the universal Church, taking into account the current context, particularly the ongoing synodal process.

Regarding the first questions, these and others can be found developed in a synthetic way in theological dictionaries and other texts. On this occasion we have found particularly useful the term "Roman Primacy", written by D. Valentini, in the Dictionary of Ecclesiologydirected by G. Calabrese et al. and coordinated in its Spanish edition by J. R. Villar, Madrid 2016.

The primacy of Peter and its transmission

The starting point can be none other than the New Testament. Two issues stand out: the primacy of Peter in the group of the apostles - as indicated in both the synoptic gospels and the Acts of the Apostles - and its transmission in the Bishop of Rome.

Peter (formerly Simon) is the one who confesses the divinity of Jesus. Peter is promised to be the cornerstone for the unity and solidity of the Church. And Peter receives the power to interpret and transmit the teachings of the Master, with a higher apostolic authority, but always in communion with the other apostles. He is the first "fisher of men" and spokesman for the other disciples, whose duty is also to confirm them in the faith, on the living foundation and guarantee of the prayer of Jesus. He is especially present in the Gospel of St. John. He receives his primacy from Jesus (cf. Jn 21:15-17), under the category of the shepherd, in reference to his union with the Lord, who requires him to be ready for martyrdom. And all this presupposes the "succession" of Peter's primatial ministry in the Church.

Other books of the New Testament bear witness to the "exercise" of this ministry. In synthesis, as the biblical scholar R. Fabris writes: Peter "occupies a position of first place, recognized and witnessed to by the entire New Testament tradition. Peter is the historical disciple of Jesus, the authorized witness of his resurrection and the guarantor of the authenticity of the Christian tradition".

With regard to the transmission In the case of the primacy of Peter in his successors, a number of factors come together to affirm it: a certain "direction of meaning" in the texts of the Gospels referring to Peter in the framework of the attitudes of Jesus; a conviction of faith, in the ecclesial tradition, about the succession of Peter, and not only of the apostles; the succession itself as the means of that tradition; the interpretation of Peter's function as representative both of Jesus and of the apostles; the succession essentially linked to the transmission of the words of Christ and therefore of the faith, as well as of the laying on of hands.

The Petrine ministry: communion and jurisdiction

How has the Roman primacy been interpreted throughout the history of the Church? St. John Paul II wrote: "The Catholic Church is conscious of having preserved, in fidelity to the apostolic tradition and the faith of the Fathers, the ministry of the successor of Peter, which God has constituted 'the perpetual and visible principle and foundation of unity' (Lumen gentium, 23)" (Letter to Cardinal Ratzingerin "L'Osservatore Romano", esp., 13-XII-1996).

In the first millennium It is necessary to underline the references of the Fathers (St. Clement of Rome, St. Ignatius of Antioch and St. Irenaeus) to the confession of Peter (cf. Mt 16:16), even if it was not until the fourth century that a theological doctrine on the ministry of the successor of Peter was elaborated. To this is added the prestige of the authority of the "first see" and some decisive interventions of the Popes, in various formats, on the occasion of the councils of the time or of questions raised by the bishops or ecclesial communities.

In the second millennium the mode of primate intervention changes. Between the eleventh and fifteenth centuries, the Roman primacy is strongly emphasized. At the Council of Constance (15th century), the emphasis was placed on the figure of the council, with the risk of conciliarism. From then until Vatican Council I (19th century) a harmonious synthesis between the role of the Pope and that of the bishops was desired. At Vatican I, circumstances led to defining the Pope's power with juridical categories. The Second Vatican Council advanced in this desired synthesis, deepening the relationship between the Pope and the bishops, within the framework of ecclesial communion. The Petrine ministry is understood within and at the service of the episcopate and, thus, at the service of the entire ecclesial community, while promoting ecumenical commitment.

Since then, the deepening of that substantial understanding of the Roman primacy has continued, an immutable and permanent understanding, present since the first centuries. What has been changing is the exercise mode of the primacy of the successor of Peter, depending on numerous factors and circumstances. In any case, the essentials remain, so that between the second and the first millennium there is no break, but rather new in the continuity.Certainly, in the first millennium, the communion the second emphasizes the ecclesial dimension, while the third emphasizes the jurisdictionbut both dimensions are always present.

The infallibility of the Pope, at the service of unity

The constitution dogmatic Pastor aeternus of the First Vatican Council (1869-1870) focused on the ministry of the "Roman primacy" or "apostolic primacy". He wished to confront above all the risk of Gallicanism. He points out that the purpose of Peter's primatial ministry is unity among the bishops, unity of the faith and among all the faithful. He affirms that Peter received from Christ a true and proper primacy of jurisdiction (of obedience and not only of honor) over the whole Church, and that this primacy remains in the successors of Peter. The power of jurisdiction of the primacy is qualified as supreme (not only as primum inter pares; and unappealable), full (in all matters), universal (throughout the world), ordinary (not delegated), immediate (not needing the mediation of bishops or governments) and "truly episcopal" (not supplanting the local bishop). It does not distinguish between the power of jurisdiction (to teach and govern) and the power of order (to sanctify).

Regarding the infallibility of the Pope, the First Vatican Council solemnly defined that the Pope is infallible in his declarations ex cathedrathat is, in his dogmatic declarations. The infallibility of the pope is understood here in the service of his Petrine ministry, not in isolation, but as head of the college of bishops and of the ecclesial community.

The hasty end of the First Vatican Council did not allow for a harmonious configuration of the doctrine of the episcopate in its relationship with the primacy, which it would do after the Second Vatican Council in the framework of an ecclesiology of communion, declaring the doctrine of the sacramentality of the episcopate and episcopal collegiality.

In the Vatican Council II the doctrine on the Roman primacy is situated in continuity with Vatican I, or better in the perspective of a new in the continuity. Novelty above all because of the ecclesiological context, rather than because of the concrete doctrinal contributions. Let us point out three main contributions related to the primacy of the Pope:

The Council declares the sacramentality of the episcopate. That is to say, by the sacrament of Holy Orders, the bishop is conferred with the triple munus to teach, sanctify and govern, in hierarchical communion with the head and members of the episcopal college.

It also teaches the meaning of the episcopal collegialityThe college of bishops succeeds the college of the apostles, under the head who is now the Pope, successor of Peter. The unity between the pope and the college of bishops is solemnly manifested at the Ecumenical Council.

In addition to the infallibility of the dogmatic declarations of the Pope, the Vatican Council II declares three other ways in which the Church participates in the infallibility divine (the only one that is absolute). 1) The Ecumenical Council, in which the magisterium of the Pope and the bishops is solemnly exercised. 2) The ordinary and universal magisteriumThe infallibility, exercised by the Pope and the bishops in communion with him, when they propose a definitive doctrine in matters of faith and morals, even if they are not gathered in the Council, but dispersed throughout the world. 3) The body of the faithful in communion with the Pope and the bishops in matters of faith and morals enjoys infallibility (infallibility in credendo) as a manifestation of the "sense of faith".

After the Vatican Council IIThe Magisterium has explained that the primacy of the Pope and the college of bishops belong to the essence of each particular Church "from within" themselves (Letter Communionis notio1992, 14; cf. Lumen gentium, 8).

It follows from the foregoing that a distinction must be drawn between the supreme pastoral authority, that the Pope has, and the aspects and ways of exercising it. This authority can only be unique. Two extreme positions are discarded: the conciliarist-episcopalist one that defines the authority of the bishops gathered in Council above the Pope; the one considered "papalist", according to which only the Pope (or the Pope alone) would have the supreme authority in the Church, and the bishops would receive it from him.

The relationship of the Pope and the bishops today tends to be considered in the perspective of a single "subject" of the supreme authority in the Church: the college of bishops with its head; and two ways of exercising it: through the Pope, as head of the college; through the college of bishops in communion with its head.

As for episcopal collegiality, today we speak of an "effective" episcopal collegiality and an "affective" one. Both are necessary and must be carried out in communion with the Petrine ministry and vice versa. The "effective" one is manifested in the Ecumenical Council (in a solemn and fully technical-legal way) and in the ordinary universal magisterium of the bishops in communion with the Supreme Pontiff. The "affective" collegiality refers to partial realizations of collegiality such as the Synod of Bishops, the Curia The Roman Church, the local councils and the episcopal conferences.

Primacy, unity and synodality

Turning to the ministry of the Pope at the present time and in continuity especially with the pontificates that are situated in the wake of the Second Vatican Council, it should be noted that the papacy manifests itself at the same time on a double plane that is also a double challenge: on the one hand, the service to unity of faith and communion for Christians (with the ways of exercising and explaining it that are appropriate to the ecumenical context); and simultaneously, its undeniable universal moral authority (on central themes such as the dignity of the person and service to the common good and peace, effective concern for the weakest and most needy, defense of life and the family, care for the Earth as a common home).

The present Instrumentum laboris refers to the primacy of the Pope on several occasions, precisely in relation to synodality.

First of all, he cites the Second Vatican Council and its vision of the catholicity of the Church, to express that synodality must be carried out "while the primacy of the chair of Peter remains unchanged, which presides over the universal assembly of charity, protects legitimate differences and simultaneously ensures that divergences serve unity instead of damaging it" (Lumen gentium, 13).

Secondly, the primacy appears in three of the questions formulated as an aid to prayer, reflection and synodal discernment.

The first is formulated as follows: "How can the ongoing synodal process contribute to 'finding a way of exercising the primacy which, without in any way renouncing the essentials of its mission, is open to a new situation'" (the quotation is from St. John Paul II, Enc. Ut unum sint, 1995, n. 95, text quoted by Pope Francis in the Apostolic Exhortation. Evangelii gaudium,32 and in Const. Episcopalis communio, 10).

Later he asks again on this topic, "How, in a synodal Church, should the role of the Bishop of Rome and the exercise of the primacy evolve?"

Then there is an affirmation that must be substantiated and explained, as well as accompanied, with the appropriate resources (at the spiritual, formative, theological and canonical levels), by the conditions necessary for it to contribute effectively to the good of all:

"Synod 2021-2024 is clearly demonstrating that the synodal process is the most suitable context for the integrated exercise of primacy, collegiality and synodality as inalienable elements of a Church in which each subject performs his or her peculiar role in the best possible way and in synergy with the others."

Finally, the primacy reappears in a consideration and a question about the general framework of synodality: "In light of the dynamic and circular relationship between the synodality of the Church, episcopal collegiality and the Petrine primacy, how to perfect the institution of the Synod so that it becomes a certain and guaranteed space for the exercise of synodality, ensuring the full participation of all - the People of God, the Episcopal College and the Bishop of Rome - while respecting their specific roles? How can we evaluate the experiment of participative extension to a group of 'non-bishops' at the first session of the XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops (October 2023)"?

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Christian etiquette for digital disciples

In 2009, Pope Benedict XVI spoke of the importance of media etiquette and advised that the media promote "a culture of respect, dialogue and friendship."

Jennifer Elizabeth Terranova-June 29, 2023-Reading time: 4 minutes

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The Dicastery for Communication has recently published a document entitled "Towards full presence. A Pastoral Reflection on Engagement with Social Media."(Towards Full Presence. A Pastoral Reflection on Engagement with Social Networks), which offers advice and guidance to the religious community in its navigation of social networks.

The document was signed by its lay prefect Paolo Ruffini and its Argentinean secretary Monsignor Lucio A. Ruiz, who included excerpts from many of Pope Francis' speeches at past World Communications Days.

Perhaps we need to change the name of the song "Life is a Highway" to "Life is a Digital Highway", since there is no turning back: We are witnessing the digitalization of the Church.

But the question is: How do we, as individuals and as a community of faith, go about living in the digital world as "loving neighbors" who are genuinely present and attentive to one another in our shared journey along these "digital highways." While great strides have been made in the digital age, this issue has yet to be addressed.

New digital space

Since its appearance, the social networks have experienced their own growing pains, and many faithful Christians are looking for "guidance and inspiration" as digital culture continues to influence their individual and collective trajectories.

The proposals are timely but are not intended to be "precise guidelines" for pastoral ministry in this space; the goal and hope is to "foster a culture of neighborliness" in a space where challenges are inevitable. And the Church recognizes that the digital world is a significant part of most people's identity and way of life, so the "question is no longer whether to engage in the digital world." Now, the question is how do followers of Christ behave in the digital realm and remain faithful to the teachings of Jesus and... not Twitter.

In 2009, Pope Benedict XVI spoke of the importance of media etiquette and advised that the media promote "a culture of respect, dialogue and friendship." Similarly, Pope Francis understands that the digital "space" in which we are all immersed has changed the way humanity receives knowledge, "disseminates information and develops relationships."

Moreover, the Church is fully aware that digital media is, in fact, an effective and "powerful tool for its ministry." There was no better proof of this than during the Covid-19 pandemic, when the world faced its modern plague, and it was in that digital space that the frightened, the lonely, the sick and the grieving flocked and found refuge and hope.

The reflection posed questions to the faithful such as the following: "What kind of humanity is reflected in our presence in digital environments? What part of our digital relationships is the fruit of deep and truthful communication, and what part is merely shaped by unquestioning opinions and passionate reactions? What part of our faith finds lively and refreshing digital expressions? And who is my 'neighbor' on social networks?"

A new world

The text also noted that while some were born into this digital culture, others, described as "digital immigrants," are still adapting. Whether you are a digital professional or a novice, "online" versus "offline" is no longer part of the digital disciple's vocabulary, citing that "our culture is now a digital culture."

Since social media play a decisive role in shaping our values, beliefs, language and assumptions about daily life, the reflection suggests that we be aware of the "traps on the digital highway." For example, social networks can be dangerous when we rely on them to validate us and adopt behaviors incompatible with Christian values, so we need to be aware of the ethics of the digital circles in which we congregate.

In this "ecosystem, people are asked to trust the authenticity of the mission statements of social media companies," which claim to bring people together and create healthy spaces where ideas are shared.

Too often, however, companies are more concerned with "profit". Moreover, social media has "transformed users into consumers...and individuals are both consumers and commodities." More often, many people "accept at their peril terms of agreement" that they rarely read or understand.

The text reminds us that we must also be aware of other dangers, such as "encouraging extreme behavior" in an environment that can be a breeding ground and "fertile ground for violence, abuse and misinformation". And while the digital divide is real and cannot be ignored, we can combat and find solutions to "digital discontent".

The Good Samaritan online

The reflection offers good advice: "To humanize digital environments, we must not forget those who are 'left behind'. We can only see what is happening if we look from the perspective of the wounded man in the parable of the Good Samaritan. As in the parable, where we are informed of what the wounded man has seen, the perspective of the digitally marginalized and wounded helps us to better understand today's increasingly complex world."

It also reminds Christians to be part of the solution, not part of the problem. We should ask ourselves, "How can we create healthier online experiences where people can engage in conversations and overcome disagreements in a spirit of mutual listening?"

He adds that we must be "intentional listeners". He reminds: "The disciple who has encountered the merciful gaze of Christ has experienced something else. He or she knows that communicating well begins with listening and awareness that another person is before me. Listening and awareness are intended to foster encounter and overcome existing obstacles, including that of indifference....."

The document is loaded with reminders that, as Christians, we must embody the virtues of Christ and care for our "wounded neighbor," and be the change we hope to encounter. "And it may be, then, that from our loving and genuine presence in these digital spheres of human life, a way may be opened toward what St. John and St. Paul longed for in their letters: the face-to-face encounter of each wounded person with the Body of the Lord, the Church, so that in a personal, heart-to-heart encounter, their wounds and ours may be healed and "our joy may be full" (2 Jn 12).

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Gospel

Rewarded a hundredfold. Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time (A)

Joseph Evans comments on the readings for the 13th Sunday in Ordinary Time and Luis Herrera offers a short video homily.

Joseph Evans-June 29, 2023-Reading time: 2 minutes

Whatever we give to God is amply rewarded. This is the basic message of today's Mass readings. The first reading tells of an important woman from a place called Shunem who "pressed" the prophet Elijah to stay with her and her husband. And it turned out that "since then, he would stop there to eat every time he passed by.". The good woman, perceiving the sanctity of the prophet, then persuaded her husband to make a small shelter for Elijah with "a bed, a table, a chair and a lamp, so that when he comes he can retire." But this generous couple had no children. So Elijah called her and told her he would conceive a son, and sure enough, he did the following year. Not only that, but years later, when the son, now grown up, hemorrhaged and died, Elijah raised him from the dead.

What a blessing it is to contribute to the Church and its ministers! Although these should never abuse this trust and generosity (which is, in fact, what Elijah's servant Gehazi will later do in another episode - much to Elijah's chagrin and incurring great punishment for his sin), God richly blesses the generosity of those who give of their own goods to support the mission of the Church.

How Jesus rejoiced over that woman who poured costly ointment on his head (see Mt 26:13). We also see several women who supported Jesus and the disciples. "served them with their goods" (Lk 8:3).

And in today's Gospel Jesus not only praises but demands this generosity. It is not only necessary to give him the best, but to put it before all family and personal ties.. He who loves his father or his mother more than me is not worthy of me; and he who loves his son or his daughter more than me is not worthy of me" (1 Corinthians 5:1).". This is not an unreasonable demand. As God, Jesus has a right to everything we have and are: He gave it to us in the first place. But He asks it for us, not for Him. Only if we give everything to God will we be happy.

It is foolish to prefer the creature to the Creator. Therefore, discipleship may involve loss, taking up our cross to follow Jesus, losing our life to gain it. But whatever we give will be rewarded a hundredfold (see Mk 10:30). The woman of Shunem received the gift of life, a son, for caring for a prophet. God promises eternal life to those who give to him. Every small gift is taken into account and rewarded. As Jesus tells us: "Whoever gives to drink, even if it is but a cup of fresh water, to one of these little ones, just because he is my disciple, truly I say to you, he will not lose his reward." Giving to God's ministers and to God's poor will earn us "treasures in the sky" (Mt 6:20).

Homily on the readings of Sunday 13th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A)

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

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Falling number of Catholics in Germany

More than half a million people left the Catholic Church in Germany in 2022. However, in the wake of the COVID pandemic, the administration of sacraments, especially marriage, has increased.

José M. García Pelegrín-June 28, 2023-Reading time: 2 minutes

In 2022, the number of people leaving the Catholic Church in Germany reached a record high: 522,821 people left, after 359,338 had already left in 2021.

This unprecedented number is mainly due to the fact that a person who officially leaves the Church ("Kirchenaustritt") is exempted from paying the so-called church tax ("Kirchensteuer"), which - depending on the land The amount of the tax in which he lives amounts to 8-9 percent of the IRPF... and that is not replaced by another tax. In other words, whoever does not have a real commitment to the Church, saves a not insignificant amount in fiscal matters.

What is not known, on the other hand, is whether or not the fact that the German Synodal Way may have influenced these figures. In any case, this process of "reform" has created disillusionment in many people when they see issues that, in reality, have little to do with their life of faith.

Against these huge numbers of withdrawals, the number of adults admitted for the first time into the Catholic Church amounts to 1,447 in 2002 (2021: 1,465) and those who had withdrawn and are being received again amounts to 3,753 (2021: 4,116).

The above figures are derived from statistics released on Wednesday, June 28, 2023, by the German Bishops' Conference and the 27 dioceses in Germany. Catholics now make up only 24.8 percent of the total population (20,937,590 out of 84.5 million). The number of members of the Evangelical Church has also declined, to 19.1 million in 2022, or 22.60 percent.

In 2021, of the 83.2 million total population, Catholics accounted for 25.96 percent (21.6 million), while members of the evangelical church amounted to 23.68 percent (19.7 million).

With these figures, the total number of Christians in Germany has again decreased from 41.30 million (49.36 percent) to 40.1 million (48.87 percent). Of course, when comparing percentages, it must also be taken into account that migrants of religions other than Christianity play an important role in the increase of the total German population (from 83.2 million in 2021 to 84.5 million in 2022).

Increase in the reception of sacraments after Covid

Turning to the figures for the Catholic Church, a slight increase in the reception of the sacraments can be seen, once the COVID pandemic is officially over: Sunday Mass attendance rises to 5.7 percent (2021: 4.3 percent).

If 141,992 baptisms were administered in 2021, in 2022 there were 155,173. 162,506 children received First Communion (2021: 156,574) and 110,942 young people received Confirmation (2021: 125,818).

A significant increase has occurred in the number of canonical marriages: from 20,140 in 2021 to 35,467 in 2022. As for canonical burials, the figures have remained virtually unchanged: 240,144 compared to 240,040 in the previous year.

For years, the German dioceses have been concentrating their parishes, which has led to a decrease in the number of parishes from 9,790 in 2021 to 9,624 in 2022. A total of 11,987 priests live in Germany (2021: 12,280), of whom 6,069 work in parish ministry (2021: 6,215). The number of permanent deacons has also decreased: from 3,253 in 2021 to 3,184 last year. The number of priestly ordinations in 2022 amounted to 45 (33 diocesan priests and 12 religious), three less than in 2021.

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Caritas Internationalis renews its board of directors

Spain

Caritas helped 2.8 million people by 2022

This morning, Caritas published its 2022 Annual Report at a press conference held at the institution's headquarters in Madrid.

Loreto Rios-June 28, 2023-Reading time: 3 minutes

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Manuel Bretón, president of Cáritas, and Natalia Peiro, general secretary, participated in the press conference in which the data of the report were presented.

The president of Caritas began his presentation by thanking the thousands of volunteers who collaborate with Caritas to attend to those most in need, as well as all the people and institutions that make its work possible. He also pointed out that the campaign Caritas "You have a lot to do" wants to highlight the importance of the collaboration of each person in improving the living conditions of others.

Increased poverty

Natalia Peiro presented the most relevant data of the 2022 Report, indicating that this year was marked by the end of the pandemic and the beginning of the war in Ukraine, in addition to inflation and the increase in the cost of energy. This has increased the poverty conditions of the most vulnerable families, since the price of basic foodstuffs has risen the most.

"We are living in times of accumulated crises. After the pandemic caused by Covid-19, came the war in Ukraine, the increase in human mobility, the evolution of energy costs and inflation... This situation, both locally and globally, has increased poverty and inequality," stressed the secretary general.

He also stressed the importance of the distribution of purse cards for selected foodstuffs. This project, which has benefited 385,000 people, allows families to purchase the products themselves, which contributes to the dignity of the people participating in this program.

Caritas has also helped the unemployed. In 2022, there were 11.7 % more people seeking employment than in 2021. 1 in 5 people served got jobs.

Housing assistance

In housing aid, Caritas invested 54 million euros (46 million in rents and 8 million in utility bills) and another 46 million in food.

"As a result of the rising cost of living, families are spending more of their budget to pay for housing and other essential expenses. Housing has become a bottomless pit for household income. Dedicating more resources than recommended to housing means not being able to cover other basic needs, such as guaranteeing a minimum level of thermal comfort or generating debts due to non-payments," said Natalia Peiro.

International cooperation

Outside Spain's borders, Caritas has been attending to emergencies such as the war of UkraineThe company has helped displaced people, both within its borders and in neighboring countries to which they have been forced to move in order to find refuge. Aid has also been extended to other important hotspots, such as Mali, Burkina Faso and the entire Sahel area, Lebanon and Bangladesh, among others.

Caritas' annual investment increases

In total, 457.2 million euros have been invested, 54 more than in 2021, and a total of more than 2.8 million people have been helped, of which 1.5 million were inside Spain, and the rest abroad.

Only 5.9 % of Caritas' income has been invested in management expenses, a percentage that has been maintained for the last 20 years.

The support of public administrations was also highlighted, with 152 951 184 million euros, 24.2 % more than in 2021. This increase is due to the rise in European funds for post-pandemic recovery. Therefore, 66 % of Caritas funding in 2022 was private and 33 % public.

In addition, in this pre-electoral period, Caritas has sent a series of proposals to all political parties of the parliamentary arc, so that they introduce measures to improve the living conditions of the most needy and vulnerable people.

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Francis calls for "educational pact" as he exalts St. Mary MacKillop

The Pope today praised the Australian nun, St. Mary MacKillop, foundress of the Sisters of St. Joseph of the Sacred Heart, who dedicated her life to the intellectual and religious formation of the poor in rural Australia. He also called for an "educational pact" that unites families and schools, and recalled the feast of St. Peter and St. Paul.

Francisco Otamendi-June 28, 2023-Reading time: 3 minutes

After his hospital stay at the Gemelli Polyclinic and his gradual recovery, Pope Francis has set his sights on Oceania today, and before the period of rest July, has resumed in the General Audience the cycle of catechesis on the passion for evangelization with the Australian nun St. Mary MacKillop (1842-1909)

"Today we are going to Oceania, a continent made up of many islands, large and small. Faith in Christ, which so many European emigrants brought to those lands, soon took root and bore abundant fruit," he began his catechesis.

The Holy Father explained that the Australian saint Mary MacKillop focused on the realization of numerous charitable works, "such as the foundation of schools and homes for those most in need, particularly in the more rural areas of Australia".

And he gave as an example "their witness of life," which was based "on faith and trust in God's Providence," and on the fact of "patiently bearing the cross, which is an integral part of the mission," the Pope said, stressing that "the saints have had opposition even within the Church."

On one occasion, on the feast of the Exaltation of the Cross, the Pope recalled, "Mary said to one of her sisters: 'My daughter, for many years I have learned to love the Cross'".

Mary MacKillop was born near Melbourne to parents who emigrated to Australia from Scotland. "As a child, she felt called by God to serve him and witness to him not only with words, but above all with a life transformed by the presence of God (Evangelii Gaudium, 259)," Francis noted.

"Like Mary Magdalene, who was the first to encounter the risen Jesus and was sent by Him to bring the proclamation to the disciples, Mary was convinced that she too was sent to spread the Good News and draw others to encounter the living God."

Uniting families, schools, society

The Pontiff pointed out that "the apostolate carried out by Maria MacKilllop, based primarily on accompanying people in their human and spiritual growth, is still very much up to date, since we see the need for an educational pact that unites families, schools and the whole of society. We know that this is not easy, even our saint had to face various problems and difficulties.

"Brothers and sisters, the missionary discipleship of St. Mary MacKillop," the Pope stressed, "her creative response to the needs of the Church of her time, her commitment to the integral formation of young people inspire all of us today, called to be leaven of the Gospel in our rapidly changing societies."

"Let us ask the Lord, through the intercession of St. Mary MacKillop and all the saints who dedicated themselves to education, to sustain the daily work of parents and teachers, catechists and formators, for the good of youth and in view of a future of peace and fraternity. May Jesus bless you and the Holy Virgin watch over you", the Holy Father proclaimed.

In his welcome to the English-speaking pilgrims, the Pope made special mention of those from England, Australia, Palestine, the Philippines, Canada and the United States of America. "To all of you and your families I invoke the joy and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ, God bless you!"

St. Peter and St. Paul, intercessors for Ukraine

In his catechesis in various languages, the Pope recalled the feast of the June 29 in the Church. "Tomorrow we will celebrate the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul. May the example and protection of these two Apostles sustain each one of us in following Christ," he said.

"To his intercession we commend the dear people of UkraineI hope that it will soon find peace again. There is so much suffering in Ukraine. Let us not forget this. To all my blessing".

Tomorrow, Thursday, the Pope will preside at Holy Mass in St. Peter's Basilica, with the blessing of the pallium for the new metropolitan archbishops, including several from Latin America, such as the new archbishop of Buenos Aires (Argentina), Archbishop Jorge García Cuerva.

The Mass will be attended by new Spanish archbishops. Some of them were able to greet the Holy Father this morning, after the catechesis in St. Peter's Square. They are Archbishop Enrique Benavent of Valencia; Archbishop José María Gil Tamayo of Granada; Archbishop Francisco Jose Prieto of Santiago de Compostela; Archbishop Emilio Rocha OFM of Tangiers; and Archbishop José Cobo, Archbishop-elect of Madrid.

In his catechesis, the Pope stressed, as we have seen above, the importance of the poorest and neediest in the Church. "There is no holiness without, in one way or another, this attention to the poor, to the needy, to those who are on the margins of society," he said.

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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Carlos J. MoralesI have discovered traits of St. Josemaría that continue to surprise me".

St. Josemaría Escrivá's legacy lives on

On June 26, the Church celebrated the feast of St. Josemaría Escrivá, founder of Opus Dei. Cardinal Dolan delivered a homily praising this saint in St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York.

Jennifer Elizabeth Terranova-June 28, 2023-Reading time: 2 minutes

The feast of St. Josemaría Escrivá was celebrated on June 26 at the St. Patrick's Cathedral of New York, and His Eminence, Cardinal Timothy Dolan, was the main celebrant, who spoke of his life, his legacy and the Opus Dei.

A man of prayer, reflection and great joy, St. Josemaría Escrivá always felt the yearning to do more, and he did. He believed that all men could become saints by living ordinary lives in the ordinary world. And in his homily, Cardinal Dolan mentioned some of the many reasons for extolling St. Josemaría's gifts.

Cardinal Dolan began the Mass by expressing his gratitude for Opus Dei, its charism and mission. He shared how, in the Archdiocese of New York, "I have come to know and love the vocation inspired by St. Josemaría Escrivá." He referred to the late saint as a "precocious prophet of the universal call to holiness." His spiritual legacy lives on through many of "the beloved men and women of Opus Dei.

The identity of Opus Dei in everyday life

His Eminence offered three insights into its mission and praised Opus Dei's emphasis on what is silent, its emphasis on what is invisible and its strategy of evangelization.

"You, sons and daughters of St. Josemaría, wear no distinctive religious habit; you have no overtly religious identity in your residence; you answer the telephone, not with a polite [reply] of a title, apostolate or parish...but usually with a simple hello."

In addition, Cardinal Dolan praised Opus Dei for avoiding any affiliation with "slick and noisy public relations." He recalled that our Lord "preferred to let people discover who he was by his actions, and by knowing him better, and not by broadcasting it ....." He continued, "He was silent about his identity, and so are you, and I like that."

The importance of what is not seen

He began the second part of what he called the "trifecta" by praising Opus Dei's focus on what is "invisible." He compared St. Josemaría, and his followers, to the apostles in the evening Gospel. "The apostles...do not act on the verifiable...they based their actions on the commands of Jesus, and so do you."

Cardinal Dolan concluded his homily by evoking Mother Teresa and praising the mission of Opus Dei and its ability to evangelize "one to one, soul to soul." When someone asked Mother Teresa how global poverty could be eradicated, she replied, "It's not global poverty I'm trying to solve; it's feeding, clothing and loving this poor person in my arms, in the gutter right now."

He praised St. Josemaría and said that the saint and the charism of Opus Dei share the wisdom of Jesus Christ.

Carlos J. MoralesI have discovered traits of St. Josemaría that continue to surprise me".

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Freedom Day commemorates the end of slavery in the U.S.

Juneteenth: The Second Independence of the USA

Juneteenth, June 19, is considered the second Independence Day in the United States, since it marked the abolition of slavery in the country.

Gonzalo Meza-June 28, 2023-Reading time: 7 minutes

In the 19th century, letters and communications took weeks, months or even years to reach their destination. This process was further delayed in the absence of infrastructure such as roads or due to wars. Many of these urgent notices involved life or death, slavery or freedom. Such was the case in the United States. As the third year of the American Civil War (1861-1865) approached, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, decreeing that all persons held as slaves would henceforth be free. The document changed the legal status of nearly three and a half million slaves living in the United States. But many of them did not find out about it until two years later.

On June 19, 1865, Union troops arrived at Galveston Bay, Texas with good news for the slaves, they were free: "The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a Proclamation of the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This implies absolute equality of rights and property among the former masters." Since then the event was commemorated locally on June 19 and named "Juneteenth Independence Day". Some call it the country's second independence.

After the end of the American Civil War, at the beginning of the Reconstruction Era (1863-1877) Juneteenth began to be celebrated locally in Texas. The commemoration was a solemn and celebratory event, during which prayers were said, the text of Lincoln's proclamation was read, and hymns of the African American community were sung, including James Weldon Johnson's poem "Lift Every Voice," created in 1900, which would become known as the "Negro National Anthem."

Over the years these Juneteenth celebrations were enriched with other activities, such as Sunday sermons in Protestant churches, conferences and parades through the streets of the city. The avenues were also enriched with African-American dishes. However, during the years of the "Jim Crow" era (racial segregation laws between 1876 and 1965), the Juneteenth holiday became marginalized, but acquired a commercial tone. It was not until 1979 when Texas adopted it as a state holiday and in 2021 President Joe Biden elevated it to federal holiday status, being along with other days such as Independence Day or Memorial Day, a national holiday.

Contributing to the future

To commemorate Juneteenth, Cardinal Wilton D. Gregory, Archbishop of Washington DC, presided at a Mass at Mount Calvary Parish in Forestville, Maryland on June 18, 2023. In his homily, the prelate addressed the significance of Juneteenth for African American Catholics: "People of color in the United States have a propensity to interpret the Word of God as directly related to our life situation. The story of the Exodus, when the Hebrews escaped from Pharaoh is perhaps the most applied biblical analogy in our history."

Gregory pointed out that the Emancipation Proclamation took more than two years to reach Texas and "its implications took considerable time to reach the far reaches of the nation," in part because "not everyone wanted to make known the freedom of those who were formerly enslaved. Drawing a comparison, the cardinal noted that "the Kingdom of Heaven is the land of perfect peace and freedom. Today, even with all the means of communication, the message of the Kingdom has not reached all hearts. The Kingdom is still waiting for us. We are on the way despite the obstacles we face," he said.

The Protestant churches and the Catholic Church in general were the refuge where thousands of African-Americans, first as slaves and then segregated, found a place of solace, coexistence and even educational and work opportunities. Many religious orders dedicated themselves to evangelize and care for this marginalized and discriminated sector of society, among them the Divine Word Missionaries, the Oblate Sisters of Divine Providence, the Sisters of the Holy Family, the Fathers of the Society of the Sacred Heart of Jesus (Josephites), the Franciscan Servants of Mary, among others. For their part, the African Methodist Episcopal Church, the American Baptist Home Mission Society established colleges, universities and seminaries.

These institutions would multiply and soon number more than two hundred. In this way an intellectual tradition was established in African-American society. One example is the Augusta Theological Institute, established in Augusta, Georgia in 1867. It was founded in the basement of a Baptist Church in that city. This was the epitome of the accelerated growth of universities and colleges dedicated to the education of African Americans in various branches of the sciences, social work, medicine and the liberal arts.

Reviewing the past

Slavery has been defined as one of the "original sins" of the nation. Unfortunately many used faith to justify it. Juneteenth is also an opportunity to revisit the past, as Baltimore Archbishop William E. Lori noted in a message for the holiday: "158 years after the Emancipation Proclamation came to Texas, the sin of slavery still influences the world in which we live. We are called by God to recognize the harmful influences and create lasting change."

Slave Bible

Some British and American slave-owning colonists used an ill-gotten resource, created in London in 1807. It was the "Slave Bible," an altered "bible" to justify slavery. The document omitted entire sections of the Scripture that could foment rebellion (e.g., Gal 3:28) and included parts that strengthened the colonizing ideas of the British Empire (e.g., Eph 6:5).

According to experts, this document omits about 90% of the Old Testament and 50% of the New Testament. The pamphlet was used in the USA and in the British West Indies: Jamaica, Barbados, Antigua and some Caribbean nations.

The Catholic Church

Although the nascent church in the USA fought slavery by creating educational institutions and centers to serve this sector, some dioceses were part of the collective sin of slavery in the USA. In 2018, the U.S. bishops addressed the issue in a pastoral letter against racism, "Let Us Open Our Hearts. The Unceasing Call to Love." In the document they point out: Examining our sinfulness-individually, as a Christian community, and as a society-is a lesson in humility. It requires us to acknowledge sinful deeds and thoughts, and to ask for forgiveness. To our shame, many American religious leaders, including some Catholic bishops, did not formally oppose slavery; some even owned slaves. We express deep regret and remorse for them."

The phenomenon of slavery at the institutional level in the nascent North American church was not so extensive for several reasons: until before the proclamation of emancipation there were 15 dioceses in the USA (the first was Baltimore), of which 8 were part of the North (of the 13 North American colonies), a region where slavery was not accepted, and 7 of the South. Likewise, until 1848, a large part of the current territory of the geographic south and west coast of the country belonged to New Spain (until 1810) and then to Mexico as an independent nation.

In those territories, native peoples, Indians, had lived for many centuries before, where the slave system did not acquire the same characteristics as the European-American system of trade in Africans. Likewise, slavery of indigenous peoples was not permitted in New Spain. This does not mean that this region was exempt from the phenomenon. In the states of the eastern coast of the Gulf of Mexico, the trade of people brought from Africa was also practiced. Likewise, some indigenous groups in Mesoamerica, when conquering others, subjugated the inhabitants.

In the case of the church in the USA, one of the dioceses where the phenomenon of slavery occurred was Baltimore in Maryland, the first diocese in the nation. Therefore, in May 2023, the Archdiocese announced the creation of a Commission on Slavery. On the occasion of Juneteenth 2023, Archbishop William E. Lori, Archbishop of Baltimore noted, "158 years later, the sin of slavery still greatly influences the world in which we live. We are called by God to recognize these evil influences and to create lasting change for the benefit of all. The Commission on Slavery will oversee a historical study that will prayerfully examine the Archdiocese's connection to slavery. I would ask each of us to continue to understand and address the ways in which racism destroys human dignity, destroys the unity of the human family and rejects the Good News of Our Lord Jesus Christ. Together, as brothers and sisters in Christ, we can strive for true and lasting freedom, freedom from the power of sin that alienates us from God and alienates us from one another."

Black National Anthem

Known as the Negro National Anthem, it was written by James Weldon Johnson in 1900. His brother, John Rosamond Johnson composed the music for the lyrics. It is part of the hymns sung during Juneteenth celebrations and other festivities. It has been performed by Ray Charles and Aretha Franklin, among others.

Lift every voice and sing
Till earth and heaven ring,
Ring with the harmonies of Liberty.
Let our rejoicing rise
High as the list'ning skies,
Let it resound loud as the rolling sea.
Sing a song full of the faith that the dark past has taught us,
Sing a song full of the hope that the present has brought us;
Facing the rising sun of our new day begun,
Let us march on 'til victory is won...
God of our weary years,
God of our silent tears,
Thou who hast brought us thus far on the way;
Thou who hast by Thy might
Led us into the light,
Keep us forever in the path, we pray.
Lest our feet stray from the places, our God, where we met Thee,
Lest, our hearts drunk with the wine of the world, we forget Thee;
Shadowed beneath Thy hand,
May we forever stand.   
True to our God,
True to our native land.

The Spanish translation is as follows:

Let voices lift up and sing
Till heaven and earth resound
Resound with harmonies of freedom.
Let our joy ascend
As high as the listening skies
Let it resound as high as the rolling sea.
Sing a song full of the faith that the dark past has taught us.
Sing a song full of the hope that the present has brought to us
In front of the rising sun of our new day that begins.
Let us march until victory is won.
God of our burdened years
God of our silent tears
Thou, who hast brought us thus far on the way.
Thou who by Thy power
to the light lead us,
Keep us forever on the way, we beseech thee.
Lest our feet stray from the places, where we meet with Thee, our God.
Lest our hearts, intoxicated with the wine of the world, forget Thee.
May we always remain
Faithful to our God
Faithful to our land of our birth.

United States

Freedom Day commemorates the end of slavery in the U.S.

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Reading Jacques Maritain (1882-1973) 50 years after his death

Maritain is not only a theoretical thinker, but he developed an analysis of the society of his time, highlighting how a new Christian culture can transform the structures of social life. His reading continues to challenge us today.

Jaime Nubiola-June 28, 2023-Reading time: 4 minutes

Last April 28th marked the fiftieth anniversary of the death of the French philosopher Jacques Maritain, an illustrious representative of 20th century Catholic thought. I remember my first encounter with a book of his when I was only 18 years old. It was his manual of formal logicThe order of conceptspublished in Buenos Aires by the Club de Lectores in 1965. I was impressed by its conceptual clarity, the order of its exposition and the knowledge it showed of the history of the subject, which contrasted so much with the other manuals available at that time.

Jacques Maritain was born into a Protestant family in Paris in 1882, married Raïssa Oumansoff, a Jewish immigrant of Russian origin, in 1904, and was baptized with his wife in the church of St. John the Evangelist in Montmartre on June 11, 1906, acting as godfather the controversial Catholic writer, also a convert, Léon Bloy (1846-1917).

Maritain's thought

In Raïssa's book The large friendships tells with great emotion their meeting with Charles Péguy, Henri Bergson, Pierre and Cristina Van der Meer, godchildren, like them, of Bloy. It will be Raïssa herself who will introduce her husband Jacques to the study of the thought of St. Thomas Aquinas.

Perhaps it should also be added that Maritain was not well received in post-war Spain because of his position in the Spanish civil war (1936-1939). Maritain was opposed to consider the civil war as a "crusade", not even to consider as worthy of being called Catholic the troops commanded by Francisco Franco because of the massacres of republicans.

Under the direction of Hubert Borde and Bernard Hubert, a thick volume of more than 850 pages was published last year by the Téqui publishing house in Paris under the general title of Actualité de Jacques Maritain which brings together 24 valuable contributions that delve into various aspects of his figure half a century after his death. "The thought of Maritain" -explain the editors in this volume- is part of a constellation that is easy to identify, that of a return to St. Thomas that is understood both as an attempt to reappropriate the work of the angelic doctor and to show how it can respond to the challenges of contemporary thought". Here is, in my opinion, the key to the interest of reading Maritain today, because precisely Catholic thought is in deep need of a powerful relaunching to face the pressing intellectual and vital problems that afflict our culture. Maritain, in spite of still being, "especially in Spain, a famous unknown" -In the words of Juan Manuel Burgos, it can be a decisive point of support for rethinking today's world within the framework of the Christian faith.

As is well known, Jacques Maritain participated in the drafting of the 1948 United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Maritain was the head of the official French delegation and in the face of the serious discrepancies that had arisen in the preparatory commission, he proposed to put aside theoretical disputes and assume a realistic and practical approach that defended cooperation among human beings because of their common nature.

This approach made possible the drafting and adoption of the Universal Declaration that has been so influential. In fact, Jacques Maritain's thought was decisive for the configuration of Christian Democrat parties in many countries, particularly in South America: Argentina, Chile, Venezuela, etc.

Integral humanism

I asked an expert which book from Maritain's extensive oeuvre he would recommend to commemorate the 50th anniversary of his death and he told me without hesitation Integral humanism, originally published in 1936 in both French and Spanish, which bears the significant subtitle Temporal and spiritual problems of a new Christianity. It is probably - says Burgos in the Spanish edition that I have read published by Palabra in 2015-. "of his masterpiece or, at least, the best known. [...] It is a serious and profound book, with very definite and well thought out theses, and it is precisely this intellectual force that provoked important controversies that have extended over time until very recently". (p. 10).

Today's reader of Integral humanism is impressed, first of all, by the mastery and fluency with which Maritain moves in the history of ideas: how well he describes the decline of medieval Christianity, its replacement by Renaissance and modern humanism up to the crisis of the first decades of the twentieth century in which Christianity -as it happens to us a century later- seems to lag behind the progress of the times. "Maritain" -Burgos adds (p. 10) ".wanted to build a new project of political and social action that would break once and for all with the paradigm of Medieval Christianity as a model of union between Christianity and society.".

John Paul II mentionedó Jacques Maritain in the Fides et ratio as one of those Christian thinkers who could serve as an example for us: "Paying attention to the spiritual itinerary of these masters will undoubtedly help progress in the search for truth and in the application of the results achieved in the service of man.". And he expressed his hope that this tradition "find today and in the future continuators and cultivators for the good of the Church and of humanity." (n. 74). Rereading today the Integral humanism Maritain's book invites us to rethink the action of Christians in the world in the year 2023.

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Bishop Tarcisius Isao Kikuchi elected new president of Caritas Internationalis

"Caritas communication is testimony."

The Caritas Internationalis Confederation, with more than 160 members in almost every country in the world, is always present when a crisis arises.

Antonino Piccione-June 28, 2023-Reading time: 4 minutes

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With support from small volunteer groups to some of the world's largest charities, and with the inspiration of the Catholic faith, Caritas Internationalis (CI) is the Church's helping hand reaching out to the poor, the vulnerable and the excluded, regardless of race or religion, to build a world based on justice and fraternal love. Headquartered in Rome, it coordinates emergency operations, formulates development policies and promotes a better world for all.

From the founding of the first Caritas in Germany in 1897, to the creation of CI in 1951, to the present day, Caritas has a rich history of respectfully listening to the suffering of the poor and providing them with the tools to transform their lives.

The deep moral and spiritual principles of dignity, justice, solidarity and stewardship continue to guide Caritas today.

Marta Petrosillo, CI's Director of Fundraising, Public Relations and Communications, spoke on June 27th at the meeting organized by the Iscom Association at the Pontifical University of the Holy Crosswith the participation of some communication directors of Catholic institutions.

"We build global solidarity: we speak as one Caritas family and are recognized as a credible and trusted global voice on social, ecological, humanitarian and development issues. We bear witness to the lived experience of people living in poverty, who are excluded, vulnerable or in crisis, uniting with their demands for justice through our communications. We strengthen communication skills at all levels of the Confederation through mutual learning and accompaniment. In the spirit of solidarity and fraternal cooperation, we mobilize resources to achieve our collective mission".

In the framework outlined by Petrosillo, a few elements play a key role in CI's communication strategy: first, constant cooperation and coordination with emergency response colleagues; the presence of the communication focal point in the support team (e.g., communication focal points in Ukraine and neighboring countries); constant updates, testimonials, stories, interviews; organization of conferences and briefings for the media and other interested parties, videos and photos.

Our commitment - emphasizes Petrosillo - is also to bear witness to the so-called forgotten crises, giving a voice to those who have none. The crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the crisis in South Sudan. Two countries that have experienced a serious humanitarian crisis for more than twenty years, forgotten by the media, but which continue to engage Caritas and the local churches, which have never ceased to provide aid and alleviate the suffering of populations in difficulty".

On January 27, the heads of Caritas Congo, Boniface Ata Deagbo, and Caritas South Sudan, Gabriel Yai Aropo, met at a virtual meeting point with the Confederation of Catholic Relief, Development and Social Service Organizations operating in more than 200 countries and territories around the world.

How does CI's work materialize concretely? "We seek to counteract - answers Petrosillo - poverty and, above all, the serious food insecurity that continues to worsen, also as a consequence of the Ukrainian crisis which, at the international level, has had a major impact on food insecurity, especially in recent months.

Another front on which Caritas is strongly committed is the reception and support of refugees. We have more than 5 million internally displaced people in the country due to conflicts, mainly coming from the eastern part of the DRC. The presence of child soldiers has been highlighted among them. Caritas seeks to provide them with shelter, food and basic necessities. There is also a strong commitment to the education of the youngest.

Caritas South Sudan, on the other hand, brings together members of different communities, different ethnic groups, and engages them in joint activities to promote peace."

From the point of view of communication, one cannot fail to take advantage of the opportunities offered by a papal trip and the imperative of promptness cannot be avoided.

Beyond the apostolic journey of the Pope Francis to the Democratic Republic of the Congo and South Sudan (January 31 - February 5), the CI Communications Officer mentions the visit of the Holy Father to Kazakhstan last September.

On the eve of this, Guido Trezzani, Caritas country director, in an online meeting for journalists organized by CI, said, "Caritas activity is a powerful tool to get out of that small enclosure in which we remain locked and respond to the needs of the people," because despite the fact that Kazakhstan is a country potentially rich in resources, "the reality of the people, especially the population living in rural areas, outside the big cities, is difficult". Caritas is engaged in various fields of action: education, health, assistance to the most vulnerable sectors of the population such as the elderly and people with disabilities.

Since 2014, Caritas has initiated a "pilot" project to support families with children with Down syndrome. In order to meet the needs of these parents, Caritas opened a Center in Almaty with a branch in the Caspian area and three other points are being opened. "There is a demand," Father Trezzani said, "and a total lack of specialists."

The work of Caritas seeks not only to help families by promoting school integration and job placement, but also to carry out awareness-raising initiatives, starting in clinics where abortion or abandonment in orphanages is often proposed to families because the condition of the syndrome is presented as a "hopeless situation".

The authorAntonino Piccione

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Catholics can only fear wasting their lives, says Pope

Does the Pope have a vacation?

Does Pope Francis have a vacation? What does he do during the month of July? The Holy Father also takes advantage of the hot season to rest.

Paloma López Campos-June 27, 2023-Reading time: < 1 minute

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The Press Office of the The Vatican confirmed Tuesday morning that Pope Francis will reduce his schedule as of July 1. It could be said that the Pontiff will take a vacation.

During the month of July the Pope will not hold any more audiences. Francis will not hold his usual Wednesday audience, but neither will he have special or extraordinary meetings. The time to see the Holy Father in public will be the Sunday Angelus, which he will continue to pray from his window.

These weeks of rest serve as preparation for the intense schedule of the WYDW in Lisbon in the first week of August. This meeting with young people from all over the world is the starting signal, after which Francis will resume the general audiences on August 9, just a couple of days after Portugal.

Despite reducing his schedule, the pope has been forgoing formal vacations for years and this year will be no different. He will continue to work on documents and other important issues at the Vatican. In fact, it is expected that in the coming months the Pontiff will publish a brief on the divorced in the Church, an issue that has been talked about for some time now.

Francis usually takes advantage of this time of rest to pray, read and rest. Despite not moving out of his residence in Santa Marta, the Pope also uses these days with a freer agenda to visit friends.

Pope Francis

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The war in Ukraine, mission of Cardinal Zuppi

Cardinal Zuppi visits Moscow

The Vatican has announced the upcoming visit of Cardinal Matteo Maria Cardinal Zuppi, Archbishop of Bologna, to the Russian capital on June 28-29.

Loreto Rios-June 27, 2023-Reading time: < 1 minute

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According to the brief communiqué issued by the Holy See, on June 28-29, 2023 "Cardinal Matteo Maria Cardinal Matteo Maria Zuppi, Archbishop of Bologna and President of the Italian Episcopal Conference, accompanied by an official of the Secretariat of State, will pay a visit to Moscow as an envoy of Pope Francis."
The communiqué goes on to add the objective of the visit: "The main objective of the initiative is to encourage gestures of humanity that can contribute to a solution to the current tragic situation and to find ways to achieve a just peace".

Zuppi's visit to Ukraine in early June

This visit is part of the Vatican's intention to contribute to the cessation of the war that began after the Russian invasion of Ukraine last year.

In this context, Zuppi has already visited Ukraine He met with religious and political personalities, including the country's president, Volodymir Zelensky.

He also had the opportunity to stop in Bucha, the town where the conflict began and where a massacre of civilians took place.

During this visit, he also met with Dmytro Lubinets, in charge of the defense of human rights, with whom he discussed the problem of Ukrainian children in territories occupied by Russian troops and the situation of prisoners, both military and civilian.

On the last day, the Cardinal was also able to have a moment of prayer in the cathedral of KievHagia Sophia.

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Towards the birth of the State of Israel. The First World War

Towards the birth of the state of Israel. Jews and the Diaspora

Ferrara begins, with this article, a series of four interesting cultural-historical summaries to understand the configuration of the state of Israel, the question Arab-Israeli and the presence of the Jewish people in the world today.

Gerardo Ferrara-June 27, 2023-Reading time: 7 minutes

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Israel. Palestine. Ha-Aretz (Hebrew: the Land tout court, which is how the Jews define the Land God promised them, from Dan in the north to Beersheba in the south). Filastìn (Arabic: Palestine). Yerushalayim (Hebrew name for Jerusalem, meaning "hill of peace" and, by extension, city of peace). Al-Quds (the Holy One: Arabic name for Jerusalem). In this small handkerchief of land, things often have two or more names, and the definitions of the places in this tiny region straddling Africa and Asia are emphatic, giving a sense of the absolute, of the divine, almost as if all the sights of the world, all the expectations, longings and desires of billions of men throughout history converge here.

Therefore, before delving into the Arab-Israeli question, it is necessary to clarify to whom and to what we are referring. To be even more precise, it would even be necessary to speak first of all of a Jewish questionwhich then becomes Judeo-Ottoman and at the same time Judeo-Arabic o judeo-palestineand, finally, only since 1948, Arab-Israeli o israeli-palestinian.

Jews or Israelis?

Let us begin with one of those assumptions that every novice Orientalist should be aware of. Just as one learns, during one's first lessons at university, that not all Arabs are Muslims and not all Muslims are Arabs, it is necessary to point out that not all Jews are Israelis and not all Israelis are Jews.

So who are the Israelis? They are the citizens of the State of Israel, a West Asian country of about 9 million inhabitants, of whom about 7 million are Jews, with a considerable minority (about 2 million) of Arabs, overwhelmingly Sunni Muslims, but with a small minority of Christians and Druze. Israelis, therefore, are both Jews and Arabs (or Palestinians: on the use of the latter term we refer to the following pages) and both Jews and Muslims, Druze, Christians, etc.

The Jews (a term that is synonymous, in Italian, with "Israelites" and not "Israelis"), for their part, are an ethno-religious group numbering between 17 and 20 million people, most of whom (about 10 million) reside in the United States; there are also about 7 million in Israel. There is also a fairly significant presence in France (there were 700,000 at the beginning of this century, but they are steadily decreasing), the United Kingdom, Russia and other countries. In Italy there are about 45,000 Jews.

They define themselves as an "ethno-religious group", and not simply as followers of a religion, because the concept of ethnicity and religious faith, in Judaism, are closely related. Before the ShoahIn the Holocaust, the genocide that exterminated most of the Jewish communities in Europe, the Old Continent was the cradle of more than half of the world's Jews.

Ashkenazi and Sephardic

Jews, both those living in Israel and those scattered throughout the world, are generally divided into two large groups, based on different factors, which are, first of all, all the cultural aspects that distinguish them, such as language, traditions, customs and habits, as well as the historical vicissitudes through which they have passed and the geographical situation of the community to which they belong.

These two groups are called "Ashkenazi" and "Sephardic" (from Ashkenaz and Sepharad, which in medieval Hebrew mean Germany and Spain respectively).

In general, the Sephardim are those Israelites (Isaac Abravanel, Jew and Minister of Finance of the Kingdom until the expulsion, speaks of between 200,000 and 300,000) who refused to convert to Christianity and were expelled from Spain in 1492, after the definitive Reconquest of the country from the Moors by Ferdinand, King of Aragon, and Isabella, Queen of Castile. They found refuge in North Africa, in the Ottoman Empire, in Egypt, in the Middle East.

However, nowadays the Jewish communities of Yemen, Iraq, Palestine and other countries of Asia and Africa, which have little or nothing to do with the refugees expelled in the 15th century from the Iberian Peninsula, are also defined as Sephardic. This is because, in the 16th century, a scholar and mystic of Andalusian origin, Yossef Caro (1488-1575), wrote a code, called the Shulhan Arukh, which collected all the traditions, customs, rules of lawfulness and unlawfulness and rituals of the Hispanic communities.

In response, a Polish Jewish scholar, Moshe Isserles, also known as Harema, commented on Caro's code, ruling that some of the rules contained therein did not conform to Ashkenazic tradition. This created the distinction between Ashkenazim and Sephardim (a difference ranging from rituals to food, to the way of relating to non-Jews, to the language used in daily life, etc.), which many also refer to as European Jews and Oriental Jews, respectively.

What we have just expressed is no more than a generalization of the many and varied differences among Jews throughout the world, who, in spite of everything, have always preserved their common roots, worship and, above all, the nostalgic longing for the return to the Promised Land, accompanied by the pain of exile (components, the latter, omnipresent in gestures and words of daily life and the most important celebrations).

Diaspora

The Diaspora, that is, the dispersion of the Israelites (a term that is synonymous with 'Jew' and not 'Israelite') throughout the four corners of the globe had already begun between 597 and 587 B.C., with the so-called 'Babylonian Captivity', that is, the deportation of the inhabitants of the kingdoms of Israel and Judah to Assyria and Babylon, and with the destruction of the temple built by Solomon, at the hands of King Nebuchadnezzar.

In 538, with the Edict of Cyrus, king of the Persians, part of the Jews were able to rebuild the temple on their return home, although many Jews remained in Babylon or went to live in other regions, a process that continued in the Hellenistic and Roman eras.

It was Rome, however, that put an end - and for almost two thousand years - to the national and territorial aspirations of the Jewish people, with the bloody three Jewish Wars. The first of these (66-73 A.D.), initiated by a series of revolts of the local population against Roman authority, culminated in the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple, as well as other cities and military strongholds such as Masada, and the death, according to the historian of the time Josephus Flavius, of more than a million Jews and twenty thousand Romans. The second (115-117) took place in the Roman cities of the Diaspora and also claimed thousands of victims. In the third (132-135), also known as the Bar-Kokhba revoltThe Roman war machine steamrolled like a steamroller over everything in its path, razing some 50 cities (including what was left of Jerusalem) and 1,000 villages. Not only the rebels, but almost the entire Jewish population that had survived the First Jewish War was annihilated (there were some 600,000 dead), along with the very idea of a Jewish presence in the region, which was Romanized even in its topography. In fact, the name Palestine, and more specifically Syria Palæstinawas given by Emperor Hadrian to the ancient province of Judea in 135 A.D., after the end of the Third Jewish War (Palestine proper was, until then, a thin strip of land, roughly corresponding to today's Gaza Strip, in which the ancient Philistine Pentapolis was located).

The same emperor had Jerusalem rebuilt as a pagan city, under the name of Aelia CapitolinaThe Jewish people, placing temples to Greco-Roman divinities just above the Jewish and Christian holy places (Jews and Christians were then assimilated), and prevented the entry to any Jew, although, at least during the first centuries of the Christian era, a Jewish minority survived in the countryside of Judea and especially in the holy cities of Safed and Tiberias, in Galilee, A Jewish minority survived in the Judean countryside and especially in the holy cities of Safed and Tiberias, in Galilee. So much so that it appears in the chronicles of the time that, during the revolt against the Byzantine emperor Heraclius in 614, the Israelite minority participated in massacres of Christians (about 90,000 dead) and in the destruction of the Jewish holy places.000 dead) and in the destruction of some holy places such as the Holy SepulcherHe even ruled Jerusalem for 15 years before it was almost completely massacred in turn and favored the advance and conquest of the Arab-Islamic troops in 637.

One wonders, in any case, why there was not, before 1880, the date that traditionally marks the beginning of the Arab-Israeli question - at this time it would be more correct to call it still Jewish-Palestinian - a massive immigration of Jews to the region, which in the meantime had passed from hand to hand: Romans, Persians, Byzantines, Arabs, Crusaders, Ottoman Turks.

Certainly for economic reasons (the Jewish communities, already highly urbanized and engaged in trade, had settled permanently in many important centers of Mediterranean Europe, Asia and Africa and had woven a dense commercial network), but probably also religious: the Babylonian Talmud, in fact (tractate Ketubot, 111a), states that God would prevent the Israelites from rebelling against the nations by creating their own State; from immigrating en masse to the Holy Land; from hastening the arrival of the Messiah. These prohibitions form the basis of the rigidly anti-Zionist and anti-Israel doctrine of the Neturei Karta (Guardians of the City, an extremist Jewish group living today mainly in two Jerusalem neighborhoods, Me'ah She'arim and Ge'ula), an Orthodox Jewish movement that refuses to recognize the authority and very existence of the State of Israel.

In any case, at the end of the 19th century, Palestine was part of the largest province (vilayet) of Syria and its population was almost exclusively Arabic and Islamic-speaking (although there were significant Christian minorities, especially in cities such as Nazareth, Bethlehem and Jerusalem itself, where Christians sometimes represented a relative majority). There were only 24,000 Jews, 4.8% of the population.

As Ottoman subjects, they were considered (like Christians) second-class citizens, that is, dhimmiand were subject to the payment of a capitulation tax, called a capitulation tax. jizyaand a tax on the land they owned, kharàjuntil 1839, when, after the Edict (Hatti sherif) of Gülhane followed by the Edict (Hatti) Hümayun (1856) and the Islahat Fermani, Sultan Abdülmecit I granted full legal equality with Muslims to all non-Islamic subjects of the Sublime Porte, within the framework of the famous TanzimatThe reforms, liberal reforms of European inspiration.

Paradoxically, the germs of the Arab-Israeli question came to light at the very moment when, at the time of the liberal revolutions and the opening of the ghettos in Europe and the Middle East, the Arab-Israeli question was being raised. Tanzimat In the Ottoman Empire, violent pogroms and more subtle acts and episodes of anti-Semitism continued to occur, especially in Europe and Russia, but also in Syria and other parts of the Western and Eastern world.

It was then, in the context of European nationalism and also as a consequence of the Haskalah, the Jewish Enlightenment (which saw the rebirth of Jewish-European literature and culture), that the ideology that forms the basis of the current State of Israel was born and developed: Zionism.

The authorGerardo Ferrara

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

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Snippets of my friendship with Pope Francis

Víctor Urrestarazu, Vicar of Opus Dei in Paraguay, got to know Pope Francis closely when the latter was Archbishop of Buenos Aires and Urrestarazu was Regional Vicar of Opus Dei in Argentina, Paraguay and Bolivia. Some memories about the Pope who celebrates the anniversary of his episcopal consecration on June 27.

Victor Urrestarazu-June 27, 2023-Reading time: 5 minutes

My first three years as Regional Vicar of the Opus Dei in Argentina, Paraguay and Bolivia ran parallel to Cardinal Bergoglio's last three years as Archbishop of Buenos Aires. This circumstance allowed me to meet him on several occasions and a precious friendship was forged that lasts until today.

Treating the Pope as a friend through letters, personal encounters and Eucharistic concelebrations has allowed me to witness live and direct what I consider a defining feature of his personality: simple self-forgetfulness. Moreover, on that basis of humility, I have been able to sense his touching piety, his concern for priests, and his evident predilection for the poor and vulnerable.

I was with him for the first time during a multitudinous Mass in the Cathedral of Buenos Aires. He was presiding and I was concelebrating. It was on June 26, 2010, the feast of St. Josemaría. Along with being at ease, surrounded by the affection of so many of the faithful of the Prelature of Opus Dei, I saw it as an opportunity for me to be at ease. tucked away in the mystery: pious, recollected, spreading to all those present the vibration of his faith and the impetus of his apostolic fire.

Before the celebration began, he took a very sincere interest in me and in the work that awaited me: I had just arrived in Buenos Aires. I then accompanied him to two more Masses for St. Josemaría, in 2011 and 2012, where I was able to admire once again his priestly temperament. That temperament that, so to speak, was sacramentally configured on a day like today, June 27, 1992, when he received his episcopal ordination from the hands of Cardinal Antonio Quarracino.

I saw his piety shine forth in all the Masses I concelebrated with him, both in the intimacy of his oratory in Santa Marta and in the open air in Paraguay, surrounded by a million and a half people. As if isolated from his surroundings, I always saw him attentive to the Lord in the Eucharist.

Drinking tereré

During that three-year period in Buenos Aires, I felt supported by his virtues as a good shepherd: always very fatherly, always very close. Until March 13, 2013, when we saw him appear in St. Peter's Square dressed in white.

That day I experienced what every Argentinean probably experienced: emotion, amazement, happy surprise, and the feeling that nothing would ever be the same again, that I might never see him again.

But I was wrong. Just two years later, in March 2015, I traveled to Rome and was with him at the conclusion of a general audience. I knew that the following July he would visit Paraguay. For that reason, and because I also knew that he professes a particular affection for that country, I dared to offer him "a tereré".

The photo of the Pope enjoying this typical Paraguayan drink, made of yerba mate and almost frozen water, was quickly spread by the Paraguayan media: it was the prelude to what would be an unforgettable trip, marked by the enthusiasm and emotions of a people who love Francis with all the fibers of their soul.

In the Pope's pocket

I believe, without fear of exaggeration, that the way in which the Paraguayan people received the Pope with such affection is an example for the whole world. And I, by the grace of God, had the immense good fortune to be received alone for a few minutes during those exhausting days. It was on Saturday, July 11, 2015, at the Nunciature.

At the end of our talk, intimate and intense, from son to father, from priest to priest, from friend to friend, from compatriot to compatriot, I gave him a rare and very small Stations of the Cross: with its stations carved in silver, it is an ancient miniature owned by a Paraguayan family who generously offered it to the Pope with all their heart.

I have to say that I gave him this authentic work of art with the well-founded fear that he would leave it in other hands, as he usually does with the many gifts he receives, but this time I was wrong. In very quick sequence, having that treasure already in his hands, his face lit up, he immediately put it in his pocket, and visibly moved, he told me: "I'll keep this!", adding that it would be very useful for him to review it every day.

It has been eight years that this valuable piece is still there, in the Pope's pocket. He has even shown it in public meetings to explain that the Cross, apparent "failure of God," is in reality his great victory. "With these two things, I do not lose hope," he went so far as to say, for example, in Kenya, on November 27, 2015, showing the crowd a rosary and the Paraguayan Stations of the Cross.

Handwritten answers

In 2020, in the midst of the pandemic, I wrote him my first letter. I wanted to ask him for pastoral advice on how to better serve the people who depended most directly on my work as Regional Vicar.

His brief reply, in his own handwriting, never failed to move me. He encouraged me to have patience, and patience, and more patience; to cultivate an understanding and hopeful gaze toward each soul; and he begged me to please pray for him and his intentions as he would pray for me and mine.

Our correspondence now totals twenty letters: mine, digital; those of Francis, handwritten. I keep them as relics and they all end the same, with the simple request that I pray for him. This fact, in itself, is really impressive and I cannot understand why: the Pope does not have to answer me and yet he has not failed to answer a single one of my letters. But what surprises me most is another detail: the reply usually arrives the same day I write to him, or the following day. This is something extraordinary and can only be explained by his generous dedication.

Among the last lines I wrote to him in March 2023, I told him that I was about to undergo spinal surgery. As is now incredibly usual, he replied the same day, assuring me that he was praying for my speedy recovery. Then, a month later, I told him that I was already better, recovering, and he answered me again, as fast as always and adding the usual: "don't forget to pray for me; I pray for you".

"Don't get soggy with chipa"

In October 2021 I wrote to him to tell him an important news: I was saying goodbye to Buenos Aires and returning to Asunción to take up my post as Vicar of Opus Dei in Paraguay. Faced with this new challenge, I begged him to offer me some guidance or suggestions.

He wrote to me rejoicing that I am returning to this country that he carries so deep in his priestly heart and, apparently, he judged that I did not need advice because he limited himself to playing a joke on me: "Don't get soaked with chipa!

For those who are not familiar with Paraguayan gastronomy, it should be explained that chipa is a very popular bread made with manioc starch and, as the Pope knows well, it is almost irresistible. So, on the face of it, this is a piece of advice that hides more wisdom than it appears at first glance.

"How did you get here?"

In the middle of 2021, due to the duties of my pastoral assignment, I had to travel to Rome. And by the grace of God, the Pope received me in his office. He was most affectionate and the first thing he asked me, more than intrigued, was, "How did you get here?"

The question was not an idle one because in those days of rampant global pandemic crossing the Atlantic was an impossible undertaking. I was able to do so by a surprising and providential constellation of factors: I would say by miracle.

In that meeting something unthinkable happened: I had to suspend it! Francis, forgetful of himself, dedicated his time to me as if he had no agenda, as if we were lifelong friends. I, who clearly do not deserve such treatment, felt that I could not take any more advantage of the Pope's kindness and after 45 minutes I suggested to him that it was time for me to leave.

I now conclude my account of my memories: I have undeservedly received, as if without seeking it, the gift and privilege of friendship with the Pope. And today, from my humble position as a priest, on the anniversary of his episcopal ordination, I intend to redouble my prayers for him and his intentions. May I ask you, dear reader, to also say a prayer for Francis?

The authorVictor Urrestarazu

Vicar of Opus Dei in Paraguay

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ColumnistsJoseángel Domínguez

Antigone and the Crossroads of the Humanities

There is a more or less explicit belief that advances in artificial intelligence can and should replace the study of the humanities. Are we then faced with the tragedy and moral duty to bury the humanities?

June 26, 2023-Reading time: 4 minutes

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"Beauty," an essay by Roger Scruton.

Let's set the scene. We are in the heart of the ancient city of Thebes, under a relentless sun. A defiant young woman confronts her king's order and goes in search of her brother's corpse to bury him. Her name is Antigone, a beacon of unwavering moral conviction at the crossroads of personal duty and the law of the state, the sacred and the profane. Her brother Polynices had been murdered in the struggle for power, and her kinsman, King Creon, has issued a decree that his body should remain unburied as a warning to traitors. However, Antigone, moved by love and divine law, defies the decree and comes to bury her brother, accepting the fatal consequences that follow.

This is a tragedy, literally. This haunting narrative of individual conscience rebelling against unjust rules resonates through the centuries. It comes to us in versions, translations and adaptations. It is a classic that has touched something in the human heart, shedding light on our journey as we struggle with our contemporary conflicts.

In today's rapidly changing world, accelerated by technology, we, like Antigone, find ourselves at a crossroads where our rich humanistic traditions are threatened with oblivion, their value unrecognized, like Polynices left unburied on the battlefield. The Humanities are dead and it is up to us to bury them. Or are we facing a new Renaissance?

Eliminating Humanities

In recent decades we have seen the trend to remove access to the humanities and a huge tradition from education (formal or informal). What are these humanistic traditions? They are the collective wisdom of humanity encapsulated in the humanities-literature, culture, language, philosophy-that are at risk of being marginalized in our race toward a technology-dominated future. The King Creon of our times is the dominant narrative that dismisses the humanities as impractical and irrelevant in an era increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence and data science.

A common reaction has been to "rescue" the humanities by arguing that "beauty is useless". We take it for granted that philosophy, literature and art are not capable of adding value to the bottom line, but we sense that they have a value of their own. But perhaps this attitude has been the final straw, the last nail in the coffin of tradition. A "silver lifeline" that, while flattering the beauty of the humanities, discards them for the world of the real.

"Death craves the same rites for everyone," lamented Antigone to her sister Ismene. This poignant statement resonates with the predicament of the humanities today, faced with the growth of silicone intelligence.

There is a belief, more or less explicit, that advances in artificial intelligence can and should replace the study of the humanities. Are we then faced with the tragedy and moral duty to bury the humanities? Or are we, instead, immersed in an epic adventure?

Artificial intelligence and Latin

Consider Latin, the once rich and vibrant language of an entire civilization (and part of others). It has been reduced to mere etymology and is in danger of being forgotten. This struggle mirrors Antigone's conflict against the severe edict of King Creon. Yet she remained unperturbed, defying Creon by asking, "Can anyone live, as I live, with evil all around me, to think that death is less than a friend?"

To extend this analogy to our modern context, we are facing our own cultural Creon: the rejection of the humanities in the face of the rapid advance of the humanities. artificial intelligence and technology. The prevailing culture leads us to oppose the humanities to technology. But in doing so, we risk losing the essence of our humanity, which is deeply embedded in our traditional languages and cultural wisdom in coalition with technology. It is not for nothing that the Greek word "techne" translates in Latin as "ars". Art and technique are in the humanistic vision one and the same thing.

Pragmatic humanities

The challenge before us is to find a harmony, to make visible the advantages of a coalition of humanities and technology. We could propose a "Pragmatic Humanities", a concept that transforms the humanities from being perceived as merely "beautiful but useless" to being just the resource that makes us masters of our future in the context of artificial intelligence.

This concept is not just a theoretical proposal. The growth of humanistic studies in the 21st century is a reality. There are recently created institutions that are already benefiting from this growing interest in the humanities: the Polis Institute in Jerusalem, the Paideia Institute in New York, the Caelvm in Madrid, and the Latinitas Project in Oxford. At the same time, the application of humanistic knowledge in the world of entrepreneurship, technology, and business opens the door to practical humanities with great potential.

For example, knowledge of linguistics and literature is a great help in branding and naming. A deeper understanding of Latin syntax and structure can improve coding skills, helping programmers generate better results. From Aristotle's Poetics to contemporary films and novels, the tradition of storytelling offers a wealth of knowledge that is invaluable for creating compelling narratives in any medium, be it a marketing campaign or a screenplay.

Similarly, the story of Antigone, rich in human motivations and emotional depth, provides insights into the human condition that can enhance empathy, a critical skill in areas as diverse as psychology, leadership and even AI.

In the face of the growth of artificial intelligence, it is appropriate to boost human intelligence: the humanities, in their most pragmatic version. In this way, we demonstrate that the wisdom codified in our humanistic traditions can offer practical solutions to contemporary problems.

The renaissance of the humanities

Let us recall Antigone's poignant declaration: "I was born to unite in love, not in hate". These words resonate with our mission to reconnect with our intellectual heritage, to rekindle our 'love' for the humanities and affirm their importance in today's world. As the tragic story of Antigone continues to echo down the centuries, let it inspire us to affirm the intrinsic value of the humanities and embrace the renaissance that awaits us.

To conclude: 3 things we can do this summer to increase our level of practical Humanism:

Reading a classic: the work of Antigone (Sophocles) can be read in 2 hours. Aristotle's "Poetics", which is the basis for contemporary Storytelling, in less time.
Start learning Latin. There are many simple resources for connecting with the language. For example, reading Hans Orberg's book "Roman Family" little by little is a great start.
Locate the nearest humanistic pole. Surrounding yourself with people who promote the humanities is essential; look for people with these interests around you, the world is a small world.

The authorJoseángel Domínguez

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Gospel

The papacy, rock of the Church. Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul.

Priest Joseph Evans comments on the readings proper to the Solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul.

Joseph Evans-June 26, 2023-Reading time: 2 minutes

Peter, by a special grace of God, "understood" the messianic and divine condition of Jesus.For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven". Based on this, Jesus makes Peter - and his successors the Popes - the rock of the Church, giving them the power to bind and loose and promising them that their decisions will be confirmed in heaven. It is as if Our Lord said: "The special sensitivity you showed in recognizing me as Messiah and Son of God is granted to you as part of your mission, of your function, as Pope"..

Discernment and bonding go together in the Pope. By the special grace he receives from God to discern, he can then bind. Because he sees so clearly, with the light of heaven, he is better able to bind or unbind. I think of a craftsman who needs good eyesight to tie the threads of an object he is making. He needs to see well to be able to do so. As Peter sees well with the light of heaven, heaven confirms his decisions.

This is what we celebrate in today's beautiful feast: the special assistance that God in Christ promised Peter, an assistance that will endure throughout history.

The Church is too divine a project for God to allow human error to spoil it. Certainly, Popes can be fallible in their lives or even make errors of judgment. Immediately after this episode, Peter tries to prevent Jesus from going through his Passion and later cowardly denies his Lord three times. Peter, as a man, may be more of a "man" than a "man".skandalon"a stone of stumbling, than a rock. But the papacy is always a rock, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it.

The Popes need our prayers, as we see in today's first reading. The whole Church prays for Peter's release, after Herod had him arrested for execution. Peter, who binds and looses, was bound, but was loosed by the united prayer of the Church. In a mysterious way, we support the Pope in his office, we help him to bind and unbind. But let us not forget St. Paul. There is a strong tradition of unity between these two great apostles. Although on one occasion Paul rightly corrected Peter (cf. Gal 2:11-14), the latter took it well and later refers to Paul as "our dear brother" (2 Pet 3:15). Christian art has often depicted the "embrace" between the two, and this joint feast is a further sign of their unity. Today's second reading also shows Paul "bound": imprisoned and in chains, he foresees his imminent death. But he is aware of God's protection: "But the Lord stood by me and gave me strength so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed... The Lord will deliver me from every evil deed.". The apostles of the Church may be bound physically, but not spiritually, for as Paul says earlier in the same letter "the word of God is not in chains". (2 Tim 2:9).

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Charism and hierarchy in Opus Dei, two dimensions in the same reality. The Relationship between the Gifts of the Holy Spirit in the Church

Carlos J. MoralesI have discovered traits of St. Josemaría that continue to surprise me".

Carlos Morales is the author of Brief history of Opus Dei. A book that presents in broad strokes the development and nature of the charism given by God to St. Josemaría Escrivá, and which is recommended both for those who know the Work and for those who want to know the keys to Opus Dei.

Maria José Atienza-June 26, 2023-Reading time: 4 minutes

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The beginning of 2023 saw the launch of the Brief history of Opus Deiwritten by Carlos Morales. This renowned poet and essayist, a native of Santa Cruz de Tenerife (Spain), where he currently teaches Spanish Language and Literature at a high school, writes in this volume an explanatory, clear and, in a certain way, didactic narration of the figure of the Opus Dei and its founder St. Josemaría.

In this interview with Omnes, Morales, a member of Opus Dei since his youth, reviews the discoveries made in the course of writing his book and the timeliness of the message of sanctification in the midst of the world that God made St. Josemaría see.

– Supernatural Brief history of Opus Dei What traits have you discovered or rediscovered about St. Josemaría during this time?

-My brief history is, yes, an explanatory narration of the events that, in my opinion, are most significant in the life of St. Josemaría, but it is also a history of his spiritual children and of the institutional vicissitudes of Opus Dei in the foundational stage, which culminated on June 26, 1975, and in the stage of the continuity of the charism received by St. Josemaría, in which we now find ourselves.

From founder of Opus Dei I have been discovering very significant traits since I got to know the Work, more than forty years ago. Traits that have always surprised me and continue to surprise me more and more.

With the writing of this book there are two particularly revealing qualities of the personality of St. Josemaría Escriva. One is the difficult harmony, evident from a very young age, between the profound and elevated contemplative life, on the one hand, and, on the other, the unceasing activity to develop day by day, even in its smallest concreteness, the institution that God had entrusted to him. Another feature is her fidelity to the foundational charism for almost fifty years, whatever the winds of change in the life of the Church and the world.

In this sense, it amazes me that in the beginning, during the 30s and 40s of the last century, many people considered him a revolutionary, even in ecclesiastical circles, and that in the last decade of his life he was branded as a conservative and reactionary. The truth is that, studying his life and reading his writings from the beginning to the end, St. Josemaría Escriva always preached the same message.

Carlos J. Morales, author of "A Brief History of Opus Dei".

How does a member of Opus Dei approach this reality without being carried away by a "blinding passion"?

-My profession is that of a professor of literature and writer. Now, because of my experience of the spirit of Opus Dei over so many years, I understand that there are people - and very good people - who do not understand the novelty of the message of Opus Dei. Opus Dei.

For example, there have been and there are many people who do not understand that a few hours and a professional life dedicated to study and literary creation can sanctify a Christian as much as a few hours and a professional life dedicated to the study of theology.

Obviously, Theology is the supreme knowledge, and we should all know it to a greater or lesser extent, but that does not mean that its subject matter is more apt to attain sanctity than the subject matter of a writer, an engineer or a bricklayer.

One of the aspects that you underline in the book is the lay mentality that the founder of Opus Dei had. How does St. Josemaría combine his being a priest with this lay mentality?

-St. Josemaría always taught that every Christian, whether a cleric, consecrated religious or layman, is a priest. And that, therefore, the mission of his life is to be configured to the high and eternal priest, who is Jesus Christ.

In the laity, this priestly mediation is realized through temporal tasks, provided they are lived out of love for Jesus Christ.

In the ordained priest this mediation is carried out by exercising the functions of Christ the head of his Mystical Body, which is the Church. But the head and the body are one and the same Christ. Hence the ordained priest is at the service of the lay faithful, helping them in an irreplaceable way so that they can fulfill their priestly mediation in complete freedom.

And the lay faithful know that their priestly mediation will not reach its end without a sacred minister who offers to God the Father, in the Eucharist and in the other sacraments, the sacrifice of his ordinary life.

"They have arrived a century in advance." This was what a high Vatican cleric said about Opus Dei. Today (not yet a century old), is this conception of freedom and personal vocation in the midst of the world still difficult or, on the contrary, has it already been assumed by most of the Church?

-The two phenomena are not contradictory, but rather tremendously true. On the one hand, the Church has made her own the message of the sanctification of ordinary work and by ordinary work, as is eloquently revealed by the magisterial documents of the Second Vatican Council, which clearly define the proper mission of the laity within the Church.

However, in practice, there are still many Catholics who do not understand that a tradesman or a waiter can be as holy as a bishop, operating in the world with the same freedom as any tradesman or waiter.

In theory they do understand this, but in practice there are still many Catholics for whom the supreme path to holiness lies in the ministerial priesthood or in the consecrated life (which are, moreover, fundamental missions for the Church).

Now that Opus Dei finds itself in a new chapter of its history, what do you consider to be the keys to its future?

-For Opus Dei, and for every member of Opus DeiEach day is a new chapter, for all that it entails in terms of vital creativity in fidelity to the Gospel, which is always new news.

For me personally, the fact of its foundation on October 2, 1928, and the first two decades of the Work's history are especially revealing. During this time it becomes especially clear that Opus Dei is indeed a work of God, and that, despite all the difficulties that St. Josemaría and his sons encountered in the 1930s and 1940s, Opus Dei will always move forward.

I believe that the spirit of faith and hope of the beginnings must be an ever-present reality for any member of the Work.

Brief history of Opus Dei

AuthorCarlos Javier Morales Alonso

Publisher: Alliance

Pages: 352

City: Madrid

Year: 2023

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"God's style is discreet, does not impose itself," says Pope Francis

Catholics can only fear wasting their lives, says Pope

Pope Francis prayed the Angelus from his window and focused his speech on the phrase that Jesus repeats today in the Gospel: "Do not be afraid". But is there anything for Catholics to fear? The Holy Father addressed this topic and also mentioned Emmanuela Orlandi, the violence in a women's prison in Honduras and greeted several communities.

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Pope Francis today dedicated a few words to fear and its impact on the lives of Catholics in his address accompanying the prayer of the Eucharist. Angelus. In his message he deepened the phrase that Christ repeats three times in today's Gospel: "Do not be afraid".

Meditating on the words of Jesus, the Holy Father underlined a paradox that we find in the New Testament and in the life of Catholics. "The proclamation of the Kingdom of God is a message of peace and justice, founded on fraternal charity and forgiveness, and yet it encounters opposition, violence and persecution."

How can it be then that the Lord tells us not to be afraid? Francis replied that "not because everything will go well in the world, no, not because of that, but because we are precious to the Father and nothing that is good will be lost."

The fear of Catholics

But there is something that Catholics should be afraid of and "we discover it through an image that Jesus uses today: the image of "Gehenna". This Gehenna was "the great garbage dump of the city. Jesus speaks of it to say that the real fear to have is that of throwing away one's own life".

What Christ wants to say through this is that "we should not be so afraid of being misunderstood and criticized, of losing prestige and economic advantages for remaining faithful to the Gospel, but rather of wasting our existence looking for things of little value, which do not fulfill the meaning of life".

Nowadays "one can be the object of ridicule or discrimination if one does not follow certain fashionable models, which, however, often place second-class realities at the center". The Pope mentioned some examples, such as parents who work and take care of their children, religious women and priests, or young people with illusions who want to meet other people, "without wasting time on things that pass and leave no trace".

True to what matters

All this entails renunciations "but it is necessary in order not to lose oneself in things, which are then thrown away, as was then done in Gehenna". Francisco He assured that "to remain faithful to what matters is costly; it costs to go against the current, it costs to free oneself from the conditioning of common thinking, it costs to be set aside by those who follow fashion". However, the Pope insisted on what "Jesus says: what counts is not to waste the greatest good, that is, life. Do not throw life away. This alone should frighten us."

For this reason, Francis invited us all to ask ourselves: "What am I afraid of? Of not having what I like? Of not achieving the goals that society imposes? Of the judgment of others? Or rather, of not pleasing the Lord and not putting his Gospel first?

After the Angelus message, the Pope expressed his sorrow for the deaths that occurred after a gang fight in a prison in Honduras. The Holy Father also remembered Emanuela Orlandi and her family, to whom he assured of his prayers. Finally, he greeted several Italian communities and groups.

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The Vatican library, a treasure of more than 500 years of history

Rome Reports-June 25, 2023-Reading time: < 1 minute

More than one million printed books, 80,000 manuscripts and 100,000 documents from the archives of historic Roman families are part of the Vatican Library's collection.

The oldest texts are in Latin, Greek and Hebrew. But it also has writings in other alphabets, such as Japanese or Chinese. There are even some without words, such as these from South America.

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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Sister Lucia, the visionary of Fatima, is now Venerable

Mary Elizabeth Lange, the venerable professor

A decree of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints has recognized the heroic virtues of Mary Elizabeth Lange, a Cuban nun whose cause for beatification has been open since 1991.

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The Dicastery for the Causes of Saints has recognized the heroic virtues of the Servant of God Mary Elizabeth Lange, who was born in San Domingo in 1789. Not much is known about her parents, but it is believed that her mother was the daughter of a plantation owner, while her father was a mulatto slave on the hacienda.

During the revolution in Haiti, her family fled to Santiago de Cuba. There Elizabeth received a thorough education and, at the beginning of the 19th century, she emigrated to the United States, where she remained until her death.

School opening

After passing through South Carolina and Virginia, Lange settled in Baltimore, Maryland, in 1813. There he observed the deficiencies in the education of African-American children. While it is true that some Protestant communities and churches had schools open for them, the demands of the growing population were far greater than the services available. Faced with this situation, Elizabeth opened a school in her own home.

At the same time that Lange was teaching, a priest named James Nicholas Joubert was looking for solutions to help girls in the city get an education. When he met Elizabeth and her companion, Marie Balas, he suggested founding a religious community to care for the little ones. The two women had been thinking for some time that they wanted to consecrate themselves to God, so they agreed and Father Joubert immediately began the process of opening the foundation.

First community in Baltimore

On July 2, 1829, the first community was formed in the Oblate Sisters of Providencewith Lange as superior. The order began with only four sisters and 20 students, but by 1832 there were already 11 consecrated sisters.

In addition to educating children, the Oblates opened a home for orphans and centers to care for the elderly. They also taught adult women how to work in the evening and helped widows in need.

Legacy

Mary Elizabeth Lange dedicated herself to the care of children and the sick in her community until her death in 1882. Her reputation for sainthood began immediately after her death and the legacy she left behind is so crucial that her name was included in the Maryland Women's Hall of Fame.

The life of the foundress is an example to be followed for the oblates today. They themselves consider that the charism of the community is clearly reflected in the life of Lange, who embodied the spirit that enables them "from total trust in God, to bring joy, healing and the redemptive love of the sufferings of Jesus to the victims of poverty, racism and injustice, despite contradictions, prejudices and pain".

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The Apostolic Penitentiary, the Vatican "Tribunal of Mercy

The Apostolic Penitentiary, described by Pope Francis as "the tribunal of Mercy", is the Supreme Tribunal of the Catholic Church and deals with granting forgiveness to the penitent in particular cases.

Hernan Sergio Mora-June 25, 2023-Reading time: 3 minutes

Forgiveness of sins, mercy, is at the heart of the message that Jesus gives in the Gospel, as is the ability to forgive them. So - one might ask - when a sin is committed, is not the absolution given by a priest sufficient, what is the Apostolic Penitentiary for?

The Apostolic Penitentiary is the Supreme Tribunal of the Catholic Church and is responsible for granting pardon to penitents in particular cases, that is, to those who repent. Pope Francis likes to define it as "mercy court".

It must not be forgotten that it is God who forgives and through the sacrament of reconciliation the penitent has the assurance that he has been absolved. In the meantime, there are particularly serious cases in which the Sacrament of Reconciliation is not sufficient.

We are talking about extreme cases, such as sacrilegesblack masses, profanation of the Holy Eucharist, when there is a violation of the confidentiality of confession; in the case of a suspended priest a divinis because he adhered to a movement or a cult distant from the Church; or of a person who renounced his Catholic faith and asks to be readmitted.

Pope Francis, on September 21, 2013 appointed Cardinal Mauro Piacenza as Major Penitentiary of this millenary institution, and its headquarters in Rome is located in a building dating back to the late fifteenth century, in Piazza della Cancelleria, a stone's throw from "Campo de' Fiori".

The work of the Apostolic Penitentiary

Cardinal Piacenza, interviewed by Omnes about this tribunal of the Church, recalled that "the Penitentiary is for sinners - and all of us are sinners - regeneration", and considered that one can have a meaningful image of this institution "looking at the representation of the Sacred Heart of Jesus with open arms and with the phrase: 'Come to me all you who are burdened and tired'".

The Apostolic Penitentiary studies difficult cases, looking for a way out, and can grant dispensations and indulgences reserved to the Pontiff, or in the so-called internal forum cases (of conscience), it can grant absolution, dispensations, etc.

There is also the dispensation from vows or exclaustration requested by a nun, or the request to leave an institute of pontifical law, among many other situations.

Without forgetting the actions of "censure", i.e. excommunication, interdiction, suspension, suspension, etc. a divinis and in some very serious cases even the resignation from the clerical state.

The Penitentiary must also provide that in the four papal basilicas of Rome (San Pietro, San Giovanni in Laterano, San Paolo, and Santa Maria Maggiore) there be a sufficient number of penitentiaries with the proper faculties, as well as the granting of indulgences.

Cardinal Piacenza, in charge of the highest of the three existing tribunals in the Church, explained to Omnes the utmost importance of this institution, because "the mission of the Church in the world is the prolongation of the very mission of Jesus: when John the Baptist saw Jesus on the banks of the Jordan, he said to the crowd: 'Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. What other mission could the Church have? Well, the Apostolic Penitentiary is at the total service of this mandate. Well, the Apostolic Penitentiary is at the total service of this mandate. Could anything be more important than this?".

Bishop Piacenza adds that the relationship between penance and mercy "could not be closer". For "the truly repentant person has the right to that mercy which the merciful Lord brings down upon him, ordinarily as a regenerating dew through the sacrament of Reconciliation".

The Cardinal concluded by pointing out that "the Penitentiary is the custodian of the most intimate secrets of the human soul, which is why everything is welcome here: listening, consolation, understanding, discretion, silence, encouragement and then interior celebration, interior joy. A reality that is breathed in the papers of the Apostolic Penitentiary is the reality of the communion of saints".

Shared location and competencies

In the same "Palazzo della Cancelleria" are located the Apostolic Signatura, the highest tribunal on canon law, and the Roman RotaThe court of cassation of various offenses, on jurisprudence, and also known in cases of appeal in matrimonial nullity (wrongly called divorce).

Cases of sexual abuse of minors by clerics or persons connected with the Church, on the other hand, go directly to the former Holy Office, now called the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, so that the 'bad apples' are removed and punished as quickly as possible.

The powers of the Penitentiary are as follows in articles 190-193 of the Apostolic Constitution Praedicate evangelium of Pope Francis (2022)

The authorHernan Sergio Mora

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ColumnistsSantiago Leyra Curiá

About Joan of Arc

Joan of Arc was a French saint who was born in the 15th century, although she was not canonized until 500 years later, in 1920, by Pope Benedict XV.

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As is known, Joan was born during the Hundred Years' War between France and England, in 1412, in the small village of Domrémy, belonging to the province of Armagnac, loyal to the French Dauphin Charles, in contrast to the neighboring villages of Maxey, supporters of the English and their Burgundian allies. The latter, forgetting their roots, aspired to be independent of France.

The anguish suffered by the French because of the war was also experienced by her since, in her youth, in her hometown she suffered the terror of the Burgundians and various bandits.

As a peasant, she soon became accustomed to the hard work of her rural environment. With no more education than elementary Christianity, typical of those simple people, she knew how to weave and spin; she also knew how to ride a horse and rode it in the races of her village.

When she was twelve years old, she heard, next to the church, a voice accompanied by a radiance, which told her to frequent the house of God more, to be virtuous and to trust in the protection of Heaven.

When she was seventeen or eighteen, in 1428, those voices, which she attributed to the archangel St. Michael, accompanied by St. Catherine and St. Margaret, became more imperative ("Leave your village, daughter of God, and run to France! Take your banner and raise it bravely! You will lead the Dauphin to Reims, so that he may be worthily consecrated there! You will free France from the English!") and she decided to obey them, thus giving rise to her incredible adventure.

Saving the kingdom of France did not then seem to have any chance of being realized. The struggle between France and England had been going on for more than ninety years. Only five years earlier, the last two major armies in the Dauphin's service had been shattered. No human intervention seemed possible. Pope Martin V himself, besides being close to his death, was busy putting some order in the Church divided by the schism.

However, that poor young woman was able to attract to her mission, in the first place, a valiant royal officer, who had begun by laughing at the shepherdess, and ended by giving her his sword, his horse and his escort. When she reached Chinon, the locality where the Dauphin had taken refuge, she recognized the latter, who had concealed his condition, by slyly placing himself among his courtiers. And, after being examined in Poitiers by a commission of priests and doctors, she began her military epic: on May 8, 1429, she entered the besieged Orleans, and, after forcing the besiegers to lift the siege, she entered the city with troops hitherto accustomed to continuous defeats. Then, in a few weeks, the clearing of the Loire valley took place, the victory of Patay was achieved -on June 18- and the march on Reims took place, through a region controlled by the English. On July 17 took place, in the basilica of Reims, the consecration of the Dauphin that would make him king of France.

On May 24, 1430, it was captured in Compiègne by the Burgundians, who sold it to the English for 10,000 escudos of gold. The English chose as chief judge Peter Chaucon, Bishop of Beauvais, puppet man of the Burgundians and mortal enemy of the royal party. The prisoner was denied the services of a lawyer. As Joan's attitude won admiration and sympathy among those present, the trial was held behind closed doors inside the prison. She was condemned as a heretic and handed over to the civil power who condemned her to be burned alive.

In the process, which lasted from February to May 1430, there was a previous will to condemn the accused, showing that the voices she heard were diabolical, thus discrediting the new King Charles VII.

A Church historian -Daniel Rops-, values Joan of Arc's patriotism in this way: In God he loved France, as the saints loved the poor and sinners in God; and he loved her precisely because he saw her as miserable, torn, sinful, and he loved her with a love of redemption. There was nothing proud or aggressive in this love; he never spoke of going to conquer England, nor of imposing his domination on anyone. He never thought that, in doing what he was doing, he was filling his country with glory and that his exploits would give him the right to command others. He fought for God's reign of justice and for no other cause: Does God hate the English, they will ask him, setting a trap for him. Not at all. He loves them as much as any other people, but in their land, according to equity, and not when they infringe on the liberties of others. Joan was not so much fighting the English as she was fighting injustice. No heroine on the battlefield ever showed herself so tender and fraternal with her own enemies.

Another historian -Jose A. Dunney- said that, When she took up the sword, France was a defeated nation; but, before dying, a martyr of truth, Joan rescued her beloved country from the clutches of the invader and saved it from schism. Had the French been defeated, they would have joined the victor, England, and then the heretical House of Tudor would have found support in the French Huguenots to extirpate the influence of the Church.

When, on May 30, 1431, he went to the stake on the old market square in Rouen, he proclaimed to the end his fidelity to the Pope, to whom he addressed his last appeal.

Four years after Joan's martyrdom, France and Burgundy were reconciled by the Treaty of Arras; the following year, Paris fell into the hands of the Burgundians and, shortly after, the English crossed the Channel and returned to their homeland.

She was canonized in 1920, Pope Benedict XV.

The authorSantiago Leyra Curiá

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Eucharistic Congress, marveling at "the gift of the Lord".

On June 19, Pope Francis met in audience with the organizing committee of the National Eucharistic Congress in the United States. He thanked the members for the work they are doing and encouraged them to continue working to "contribute to the rebirth of faith and love for the Holy Eucharist."

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Pope Francis held a meeting with audience with the organizing committee of the National Eucharistic Congress of the United States. In addition to thanking the organizers for their work, Francis reminded the committee that "the Eucharist is God's response to the deepest hunger of the human heart, the hunger for authentic life, because in the Eucharist Christ himself is truly in our midst, to nourish, console and sustain us on our journey."

Many Catholics think that the Eucharist is a mere symbol and that God is not really present in the Bread and Wine. Therefore, Francis hopes "that the Eucharistic Congress will inspire Catholics throughout the country to rediscover a sense of wonder and awe before the Lord's great gift of Himself and to spend time with Him in the celebration of Holy Mass and in personal prayer and adoration before the Blessed Sacrament."

The Pontiff noted with concern that "we have lost the meaning of adoration in our days. We must rediscover the meaning of silent adoration. It is a form of prayer that we have lost". The responsibility for undertaking this task falls on the bishops, who are charged with "catechizing the faithful about prayer through adoration."

Eucharist and mission

Through the Eucharist the faithful also learn to be apostles sent to proclaim the Gospel. This is one of the results the Pope hopes to observe after the congress. The Pope explained that, through the Eucharist, "we become credible witnesses of the joy and transforming beauty of the Gospel". Thanks to this sacrament we understand that the love of Christ cannot be kept to ourselves, "but demands to be shared with everyone."

Francis expressed that "the Eucharist impels us to a strong and committed love of neighbor". Considering Christ's own life, "we cannot truly understand and live the meaning of the Eucharist if our heart is closed to our brothers and sisters, especially the poor, the suffering, the weary or those who have gone astray in life".

The Pope concluded the audience by stressing the importance of the Eucharistic Congress within the life of the Church in the United States and asked the intercession of the Virgin Mary for all those involved.

Pope Francis during the audience with the organizing committee of the U.S. National Eucharistic Congress (CNS photo / Vatican Media)

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"We need grandparents, let's not allow them to be discarded!"

Pope Francis' message for the third edition of the World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly focuses on the role of the elderly in families, loneliness and their contribution to society.

Antonino Piccione-June 24, 2023-Reading time: 2 minutes

In his moving message in view of the World Day to be celebrated next July 23rdin exactly one month's time, the Pope Francis has drawn attention to the important role that grandparents and the elderly play in the life of families and in society as a whole.

With the commitment to value their wisdom and experience because they are "a treasure in our families". He emphasizes that the grandparents bring with them a wealth of knowledge and a unique perspective that they can share with younger generations.

The Pope also highlighted the crucial role of grandparents in the education of grandchildren, stating that "their voice is precious because it speaks to the hearts of children." He encouraged grandparents to spend time with their grandchildren, to share with them their stories, their faith and their life experience. This generational exchange, the Pope stressed, is fundamental for the growth and development of children.

The Pope's message also highlights the challenge that many grandparents face in the context of modern society, where people often live far from family members. He emphasizes the importance of maintaining a strong bond between grandparents and grandchildren despite physical distances, encouraging the use of technology to keep in touch and share special moments.

The Pope also speaks about the loneliness that many elderly people experiencenoting that "many grandparents feel lonely, often due to the new social and cultural dynamics in which we live". He urges families and society as a whole not to forget grandparents and to care for them. He recalls that respect and care for the elderly are indicators of a healthy and humane society.

Messages also to young people

Finally, the Pope encourages young people to never forget the roots and history of their families. He invites young people to learn from the elderly and to value the gift of life they receive from them. He concludes his message with a call to all to celebrate grandparents, thank them for their love and dedicate a special day during the year to them.

The World Day of Grandparents and the Elderlyestablished by Pope Francis in 2021The event offers an opportunity to reflect on the importance of grandparents in our lives and to recognize their valuable contribution to society. It is an occasion to celebrate and honor grandparents, thank them for their love, support and wisdom.

Francis emphasizes: "Yes, it is the elderly who transmit to us our belonging to the holy People of God. The Church, like society, needs them. They bring to the present a past necessary for building the future. Let us honor them, let us not deprive ourselves of their company and let us not deprive them of ours, let us not allow them to be discarded!".

The authorAntonino Piccione

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"Tutela Minorum" consults on measures for the protection of minors.

The Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors opens a period of public consultation for the updating of the guidelines for the protection of minors and vulnerable persons.

Paloma López Campos-June 23, 2023-Reading time: 2 minutes

– Supernatural Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors ("Tutela Minorum") is launching a worldwide public consultation with the aim of updating the guidelines for the prevention of sexual abuse in the Church.

During the morning of June 23, "Tutela Minorum" issued a press release announcing the opening of the online survey, which will close at the end of September 2023. The form is available in four languages and consists of a series of frequently asked questions, as well as the proposed Marco Universale Guidelines.

This framework document is the model produced by the Commission to define the procedures to be followed by churches around the world in the area of prevention. The role of these guidelines is "to promote protection from abuse in the Church in accordance with existing good practice in safeguarding, focusing on assistance to those affected by abuse and the importance of dealing appropriately with cases of abuse."

Result of the consultation

The responses to the survey will be reviewed, collated and incorporated into a final framework document, which will then be evaluated and approved by the Pontifical Commission. By the end of 2023, the final guidelines will be distributed to all the local Churches of the world, who will have to review the measures they have had so far and update them.

One of the modifications that the Commission wants to ask local communities to incorporate is related to the management of accusations. "Tutela Minorum" will ask that systems be established to receive and process complaints, seeking at all times to support those affected, "especially the victims and survivors, in accordance with the requirements of the Motu Proprio of the Holy Father, Vos Estis Lux Mundi". Other essential elements to incorporate are the guarantee of safe environments, risk prevention measures and accountability mechanisms.

On the other hand, in October 2023 the draft Annual Report of the Commission will be presented, but it will be necessary to wait until October 2024 to obtain the complete and definitive Report with data from the entire Church.

Creation of resources

The press release also warns that the Commission will provide assistance to local communities and churches that, due to lack of resources, are unable to implement the guidelines. They have developed "Memorare", "a capacity building program, to ensure that the Safeguarding Guidelines are developed and implemented".

All information can be found on the "Tutela Minorum" website, where you can also access the Commission's documents and the consultation survey.

Tutela Minorum

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Meeting of the Pope with artists

On the morning of June 23, 2023, Pope Francis held an audience with artists from around the world. The meeting was held on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the inauguration of the Collection of Modern and Contemporary Art of the Vatican Museums.

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The audience took place in the Sistine Chapel, which hosted some 200 artists: painters, sculptors, architects, writers, poets, musicians, directors and actors. Among them were writers Javier Cercas (Premio Planeta 2019) and Cristina Morales, artist Gonzalo Borondo and guitarist Amigo Girol.

The Church and art

"Your presence makes me happy, because the Church has always had a relationship with artists that can be described as natural and special. It is a natural friendship, because the artist takes seriously the inexhaustible depth of existence, of life and of the world, even in its contradictions and tragic sides. This depth runs the risk of becoming invisible to the gaze of many specialized knowledges, which respond to immediate needs, but struggle to see life as a multifaceted reality.

The artist reminds us all that the dimension in which we move, even if we are not aware of it, is that of the Spirit. Your art is like a candle that is filled with the Spirit and keeps us moving. The Church's friendship with art is, therefore, something natural. But it is also a special friendship, especially if we think of the many stretches of history we have travelled together, which belong to the patrimony of all, believers or non-believers", the Pope said in his speech.

Francis also pointed out that the relationship that has always existed between the Church and art must also exist in our time.

The creativity of the artist

"The artist is a child -this should not sound like an insult-; it means that he moves first and foremost in the space of invention, of novelty, of creation, of bringing to the world something that has never been seen before. In so doing, it disproves the idea that man is a being for death. It is true that man must accept his mortality, but he is not a being for death, but for life. A great thinker like Hannah Arendt affirms that what is proper to the human being is to live in order to bring novelty to the world. This is the dimension of human fecundity. To bring novelty. Even in natural fecundity, each child is a novelty".

This same natural creativity is also experienced by artists, who contribute their own "originality": "In your works you always introduce yourselves as the unrepeatable beings that we all are, but with the intention of creating even more (...) you bring to light the unpublished, you enrich the world with a new reality (...) The creativity of the artist thus seems to participate in the generative passion of God, that passion with which God created. You are allies of God's dream! You are eyes that look and dream. It is not enough to look, we must also dream (...) We human beings long for a new world that we will not fully see with our own eyes. But we long for it, we seek it, we dream of it. Artists, then, have the capacity to dream new versions of the world".

Between reality and dream

In this sense, quoting Guardini, the Pope pointed out that artists are "prophets". Art goes beyond appearances and false beauty, of "make-up", since it acts "as a critical conscience of society". In this way, it "makes us think", "makes us alert", revealing reality with "its contradictions, in its aspects that it is more comfortable or convenient to keep hidden". Art, the Pope commented, has the ability to confront us with things that "sometimes disturb us, criticizing the false myths of today, the new idols, the trivial discourses, the traps of consumerism, the wiles of power". Therefore, artists have "the ability to go beyond, in tension between reality and dream".

Further on, the Pope established a relationship between art and faith: "One of the things that brings art closer to faith is that it disturbs a little. Art and faith cannot leave things as they are: they change them, transform them, move them. Art can never be an anesthetic; it gives peace, but it does not put consciences to sleep, it keeps them awake. Often you, the artists, also try to plumb the depths of the human condition, the abysses, the dark parts. We are not only light, and you remind us of that; but it is necessary to throw the light of hope in the darkness of the human being, of individualism and indifference".

Art and beauty

In this regard, the Pope asked artists to help us "glimpse the light, the beauty that saves."

Because, as Francis pointed out, "art has always been linked to the experience of beauty. Simone Weil wrote: 'Beauty seduces the flesh to obtain permission to pass into the soul' (L'ombra e la grazia, Bologna 2021, 193). Art touches the senses to animate the spirit and does so through beauty, which is the reflection of things when they are good, right, true. It is the sign that something has fullness: it is then that we spontaneously say: 'How beautiful!'. Beauty makes us feel that life is oriented towards fullness. In true beauty we begin to feel God's longing. Many expect art to return more to beauty".

The Pope recalled that it is true that there is a kind of beauty that is false and artificial. "True beauty, in fact, is a reflection of harmony. In theology - it is interesting - theologians describe the fatherhood of God, the sonship of Jesus Christ, but when it comes to describing the Holy Spirit: the Spirit is harmony. Ipse harmonia est. It is the Spirit who makes the harmony.

The harmony of the Spirit

Francisco went on to say that the artist also possesses something of that Spirit to create harmony. "Harmony is when there are several parts, different from each other, but which compose a unity, different from each of the parts and different from the sum of the parts. It is something difficult, that only the Spirit can make possible: that differences do not become conflicts, but diversities that integrate; and at the same time that unity is not uniformity, but that it welcomes the multiple. Harmony works these miracles, as at Pentecost".

This harmony is sometimes born, paradoxically, from a commotion: "It always strikes me to think of the Holy Spirit as the one who allows the greatest disturbances to take place - let us think of the morning of Pentecost - and then makes harmony. Which is not equilibrium, no, to make harmony you first need imbalance; harmony is a different thing from equilibrium." This message, the Pope continued, is very timely, since he pointed out that we live in a "globalizing globalization", which is the "danger of our time". The Pope warned that this standardization "can operate under a false pretense of unity".

The artists' mission

In this context, the role of the art is fundamental: "You artists can help us to make room for the Spirit. When we see the work of the Spirit, which is to create harmony out of differences, not to annihilate them, not to make them uniform, but to harmonize them, then we understand what beauty is."

The Pope encouraged the artists to continue to push their creativity and to "walk this path". Before taking his leave, the Holy Father asked them not to forget the poor, who also need art and beauty, even more than others, due to very hard circumstances in their lives. "They usually have no voice to make themselves heard. You can be the interpreters of their silent cry." He has also expressed his desire that his works of art "give glory to God, who is Father of all, and whom all seek, even through art."

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Cardinal FarrellThe lay movements must feel that they are an integral part of the Church".

The relationship of the ecclesial movements to the Pope's mission

This year marks the 25th anniversary of the first International Congress of Ecclesial Movements and New Communities, and the Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life hosted the moderators of associations, ecclesial movements and new communities in Rome on June 22, 2023.

Giovanni Tridente-June 23, 2023-Reading time: 3 minutes

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"In the Church there must always be services and missions that do not have a purely local character, but serve the mandate that invests the global ecclesial reality and the propagation of the Gospel. The Pope has need of these services, and they have need of him, and in the reciprocity of the two types of mission the symphony of ecclesial life is realized." These are the words of the then Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, pronounced in 1998 at the World Congress of Ecclesial Movements promoted by the then Pontifical Council for the Laity.

25th anniversary of the Congress

Twenty-five years after that meeting, in which the Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith explained the "theological place" of the ecclesial movements in the Church, confessing that he himself had experienced, in the early 1970s, the impetus and enthusiasm with which some of them (e.g., the Neocatechumenal Way, Communion and Liberation, the Focolare) lived the joy of faith. On June 22, the annual meeting with the moderators of international associations of the faithful, ecclesial movements and new communities, convened by the current Dicastery for the Laity, the Family and Life, took place in Rome.

Dozens of representatives of the most widespread ecclesial movements from various countries throughout the Church gathered in the Aula Magna of the Jesuit General Curia, just a few steps from St. Peter's Square, to reflect on the subject "On mission with Peter. Apostolicity at the heart of the identity of the movements".

The vocation of the movements

Before the meeting, participants were invited to reread the same lecture by Joseph Ratzinger to reflect on the specific "vocation" of ecclesial movements within the mission of the Church.

On that occasion, the Bavarian theologian, who later became Pope, affirmed: "In history, apostolic movements appear under ever new forms, and necessarily so, since they are precisely the response of the Holy Spirit to the changing situations in which the Church finds herself. And, therefore, just as vocations to the priesthood cannot be produced or established administratively, much less can movements be organized and launched systematically by authority. They must be given, and they are given.

He then made it clear that "those who do not share the apostolic faith cannot claim to carry out apostolic activity"; to it must be "necessarily united the desire for unity, the will to be in the living community of the whole Church". And he added: "the apostolic life, moreover, is not an end in itself, but gives the freedom to serve".

Gospel, mission and service

In inviting the assembly, the Cardinal Prefect of the Dicastery for the Laity, the Family and Life, Kevin Farrell, underlined the three essential elements highlighted at the time also by Ratzinger: evangelical life, missionary outreach and service, as a challenge also for the present times, in which "keeping apostolicity alive in the Church is certainly a great gift, but it is also a task that is not always easy for the movements themselves to fulfill."

Among the obvious risks are the loss of the desire to serve, the loss of the sense of one's own charism, of the missionary impulse and of openness to the whole world, as well as the loss of the link with Peter by entering into conflict with the Church.

The representatives of the various movements and communities shared their reflections and testimonies on these challenges, responding in particular to how they try to live a true apostolicity of life, through what initiatives of proclamation, preaching, charity and service, reasoning also on the obstacles to the mission and the bold and creative impulse for a possible renewal of structures, styles and methods.

The introductory report was instead entrusted to Father Paolo Prosperi, of the Priestly Fraternity of the Missionaries of St. Charles Borromeo - founded in 1985 by Bishop Massimo Camisasca, one of the first disciples of Father Luigi Giussani, founder of the Communion and Liberation movement - who spoke about the theological position of the movements in the magisterium of the Popes, starting from the first reflection of Pope Ratzinger.

The authorGiovanni Tridente

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Cardinal FarrellThe lay movements must feel that they are an integral part of the Church".

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Instrumentum laboris" for the next Synod assembly published

U.S. Bishops welcome the "Instrumentum Laboris".

The U.S. bishops have welcomed the "Instrumentum Laboris" prepared for the Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops to be held this October.

Gonzalo Meza-June 23, 2023-Reading time: 2 minutes

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The U.S. bishops welcomed the publication of the Instrumentum Laboris for the first session of the XV Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, to be held in October 2023. Bishop Daniel E. Flores, Bishop of Brownsville and coordinator of the synodal process in the USA, said that the Instrumentum "offers the People of God an extraordinary opportunity to reflect on what we have learned so far about the nature of a synodal Church and ways to embrace it more fully".

Bishop Flores, who is also President of the Doctrinal Committee of the North American Episcopal Conference, pointed out that the objective of this document is to present the basis for discernment and urged everyone to read, pray and discuss this document. The prelate also invited everyone to reflect on the text, putting it in perspective with the synodal consultations that were held locally, nationally and continentally.

National Summary

In September 2022, the National Synthesis was published in the USA. The document summarizes the common hopes and wounds expressed in the synodal consultations. The synod process in the United States received more than 22,000 reports from parishes and individual groups from 700,000 participants. Most participants expressed gratitude for the opportunity to be heard and for the spirit of openness.

The synodal consultations highlighted the importance of lay participation in the Church and allowed hundreds of Catholics to resume the practice of meeting to pray together and listen to one another. In this regard, the Synthesis indicates that "the People of God desire to come closer to God and to one another through a deeper knowledge of the Writingprayer and sacramental celebrations, especially the Eucharist".

The three wounds that the participants pointed to are three problems that have affected the church, with long-term consequences: the sexual abuse crisis in previous decades, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the polarization that exists in North American society and that also affects the Church in the country.

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Immaculate Heart of Mary. The message of Fatima is alive

Sister Lucia, the visionary of Fatima, is now Venerable

The Dicastery for the Causes of Saints has issued a decree declaring Lucia dos Santos, one of the visionaries of Fatima, venerable.

Paloma López Campos-June 22, 2023-Reading time: 2 minutes

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18 years after the death of the last seeress of Fatima, Lucia dos SantosThe Dicastery for the Causes of Saints published the decree recognizing her heroic virtues. As of June 22, 2023, Lucia is venerable, which is a further step on the road to her canonization.

The little shepherds of Fatima (Wikimedia Commons)

The diocesan phase to beatify Lucia began only three years after her death. On February 14, 2008, Cardinal José Saraiva Martins, then Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, announced that Benedict XVI had approved the opening of the beatification process.

Sister Maria Lucia of Jesus and of the Immaculate Heart, known as Sister Lucia, was born simply Lucia dos Santos. Her childhood passed normally in the village of Aljustrel (Portugal), until she was ten years old.

While she was shepherding sheep with her cousins, Francisco Marto and Jacinta, she saw an angel. This "angel of peace" taught the children to pray for sinners and to adore God in the Eucharistic sacrament. The three little shepherds agreed in considering this angelic visit as a preparation for what would happen a year later.

Seer and consecrated

On May 13, 1917, the Virgin Mary appeared to the three cousins in Cova da Iria. Years later, Sister Lucia described her as a woman "brighter than the sun". Our Lady appeared several times throughout that year, communicating especially with Lucia. While she could see, hear and speak with Mary, Jacinta listened to her without speaking and Francisco could only see her, later learning what she said thanks to the girls.

At the age of fourteen, the bishop of Leiria, with the aim of protecting her, got her into the school of the Dorotheas Sisters, near Oporto, since the thousands of pilgrims who came to Fatima they wanted to talk to Lucia. In 1952, the young woman moved to Pontevedra (Spain) and professed as a Dorothean nun after her novitiate. While in the convent she continued to receive apparitions of the Child Jesus, the Holy Trinity and the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

Entrance to Carmel

In 1945 he met St. Josemaría Escrivá, founder of the Opus Dei, for whom she obtained some documents so that she could take the prelature to Portugal. A year later she returned to Portugal and in 1949 professed as a Discalced Carmelite.

While in the convent of Coimbra, at the request of the bishop, she wrote her memoirs, which she expanded three times. In the texts he revealed details of the apparitions and deepened the character of his little cousins.

End of life

Lucia died on February 13 in Carmel, where it is thought that she was still receiving a visit from the Virgin Mary, although she never confirmed it. Those who shared the cloister with her say that she was full of joy and that, as she advanced in age, she progressed in spiritual childhood. It seemed that she was once again the little shepherdess who saw Our Lady at Fatima.

All the heroic virtues mentioned by those who knew her are now also demonstrated by the decree proclaiming her venerable.

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Thierry Bonaventura: "The Synod has come to involve all the people of God".

Women and Synod

Sister Nadia Coppa, president of the International Union of Superiors General (UISG), Anna Maria Tarantola, president of the Centesimus Annus Pro Pontifice Foundation, and theologian Simona Segoloni discuss the participation of women in the synodal assembly with Omnes.

Federico Piana-June 22, 2023-Reading time: 3 minutes

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Some of the most committed women at the ecclesial level are precisely the ones who have broken down all doubts, if there were any: on the road to the Synod, the feminine universe has found its space to listen and share. Some examples? Let us begin with the epoch-making decision taken by Pope Francis to extend participation in the synodal assembly, scheduled for next October at the Vatican, to religious, consecrated and lay people, half of whom must be women. All will have the right to vote, like the bishops. Nadia Coppa, president of the International Union of Superiors General (UISG), judged the election positively surprising, underlining that "it enriches the ecclesial dynamism, showing all the richness of our diversities that are expressed in multiple charisms".

And then we have Anna Maria Tarantola, president of the Centesimus Annus Pro Pontifice Foundation, who frames this choice in a broader project of valorization of women in the Church initiated by the Pope since the beginning of his pontificate. "It is one more step," she says, "which has given me great emotion. It is a recognition that women can make their contribution in areas apparently distant to them." Theologian Simona Segoloni also speaks of great openness and innovation. The professor, vice-president of the Coordination of Italian Women Theologians and professor at the John Paul II Theological Institute in Rome, says with satisfaction that this "was a decision that was long awaited. Now it is understood that the Synod of Bishops does not refer only to the bishops, but represents the whole Church. One could say: it was about time".

In the Church, the role of women has increased

In their long conversation with Omnes, the three women do not limit themselves, however, to focusing on the Synod, noting that the feminine contribution has been and will be fundamental: they also extend their reflection to the changing role of women in the Church. All three start from a common and shared point: with the pontificate of Pope Francis this role has grown in quantity and quality.

Sister Nadia Coppa uses a phrase pronounced in Manila in 2015 by the pontiff himself to make it clear how the growth of women in the Church is an unrenounceable assumption for FranciscoThe Pope had the courage to say that women know how to see things with different eyes than men. And then he added that women know how to ask questions that men cannot even imagine, because they have within them something extraordinary: the source of life. Women know how to keep dreams and the concrete together".

Appointments at the top: a sign of change

Concreteness, no doubt. A quality that also characterizes the election of the women recently appointed to head important Vatican institutions, such as the Governatorato and the Congregation for Bishops. "These are steps that indicate the end of discrimination and prejudice," says Professor Segoloni, according to whom "all this was by no means taken for granted. Now, however, it is necessary to consolidate this practice so that it becomes customary and institutionalized".

The future of women in the Church, Anna Maria Tarantola - who in the past held high positions in the Bank of Italy and in the Italian state radio and television, tasks previously unthinkable for a woman - sees it projected towards equality and inclusion, respecting the different roles: "In the encyclicals, women's participation in the Church has been a key element in the development of the Church. Laudato Sì and Fratelli Tutti - he concludes - Pope Francis has shown us the way: we must make our world more egalitarian and inclusive with concrete and feasible actions".

The authorFederico Piana

Journalist. He works for Vatican Radio and collaborates with L'Osservatore Romano.

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Eucharistic Revival in the United States: Time of Grace and Encounter with Jesus.

Parishes, protagonists of the Eucharistic Renaissance

On June 11, 2023, the second phase of the Eucharistic Renaissance initiative, a three-year program promoted by the North American bishops to promote understanding of the mystery of the real presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist, began.

Gonzalo Meza-June 22, 2023-Reading time: 3 minutes

On June 11, 2023, the Solemnity of Corpus Christi in the United States, the second phase of the initiative began. National Eucharistic Revivala three-year program promoted by the North American bishops to foster understanding of the mystery of the Real Presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist and to rekindle devotion and love for this central Mystery of faith.

This project arose in 2019 from a study conducted by the Pew Research Center which revealed that two-thirds of American Catholics do not understand the mystery of the real presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist. For them, the Eucharist is only a "sign" or a "symbol". This massive ignorance prompted the bishops to initiate the National Eucharistic Renaissance, 2022-2025.

Objectives and phases

The objectives of this initiative are, among others: to promote Eucharistic devotion; to offer a solid catechesis on the Mystery of the real presence of Jesus in the Eucharist; to promote prayer movements and apostolates at the parish level; and to discover the presence of Jesus in the most vulnerable of the communities: the elderly, the imprisoned, the hungry and the homeless.

It has three phases: diocesan phase, parish phase and mission phase, preceded by the 10th National Eucharistic Congress in July 2024 and a National Eucharistic Pilgrimage from May 17, 2024 to July 17. This pilgrimage will depart from four points in the country to travel four routes, covering a combined distance of 6,500 miles through cities, highways, mountain ranges and towns. Each route will have a group of twelve "perpetual pilgrims," a priest chaplain, and vehicles to support the pilgrims on different routes.

During the tour, there will be Masses, days of adoration and processions in the towns along the route. In addition, various communities through which the procession passes will organize prayer and worship services, the 40-hour devotion, as well as socializing opportunities. All four routes converge in Indianapolis for the National Eucharistic Congress.

The first stage of the project began on June 19, 2022 and concluded on June 11, 2023. The organization of this period corresponded to the dioceses throughout the country, which organized congresses, processions, liturgical ceremonies and catechesis in their respective jurisdictions.

Second stage (2023-2024): Parishes

The second stage began on June 11, 2023 and will conclude on July 17, 2024 with the 10th National Eucharistic Congress in the city of Indianapolis. It will be a historic event. The last one was held 83 years ago and 100,000 delegates from all over the country are expected to attend.

The second stage comprises four aspects: revitalizing attention to the Ars Celebrandi; promoting personal encounters with Jesus in the Sacrament through "evenings of encounter"; providing a solid formation on the doctrine of the Real Presence through small study groups; sending Eucharistic missionaries to their communities to make the initiative known and invite people to have a personal encounter with Jesus Christ-Eucharist; going to the peripheries of each parish community to discover the presence of Jesus in the most vulnerable.

Eucharistic Processions from north to south

Hundreds of parishes across the country began this second stage with Eucharistic processions through the streets of their cities. Jesus in the Sacrament walked the avenues of the main cities of the United States, from Los Angeles to New York, from Washington to Atlanta and even in Alaska. Some of the most representative processions were the following:

Los Angeles: Eucharistic Miracles in the World

In Los Angeles, in the parish of Christ the King, after the celebration of Holy Mass, a procession with the Blessed Sacrament was held, followed by the inauguration of the international exhibition "Eucharistic Miracles in the World", designed and created by the Servant of God Carlo Acutis.

The exhibition includes panels with photographs and historical descriptions of the main Eucharistic miracles in the world. This exhibit will be presented in 25 parishes of the archdiocese.

Baltimore. Sending Eucharistic Missionaries

In Baltimore, Bishops Adam Parker and Bruce Lewandowski presided at the Corpus Christi Vigil Mass at Mary Our Queen Cathedral on June 10. At this ceremony they introduced and blessed the Eucharistic missionaries who will go around the parishes of the diocese teaching and promoting the central mystery of our faith.

New York City

In the Archdiocese of New York, about 20 churches, including the St. Patrick's Cathedral organized processions in different parts of Manhattan. In the Bronx, Auxiliary Bishop Joseph Espaillat led a procession that lasted four hours and gathered more than two thousand people along the Grand Concourse in the Bronx.

Washington DC

In the capital of the country, the Eucharistic procession began at the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle and traveled a mile through the streets of the city until it reached the Church of the Immaculate Conception.

Atlanta

In the Archdiocese of Atlanta, a dozen parishes organized Eucharistic processions through the streets of several cities, including Atlanta, its capital.

Fairbanks, Alaska

In the Diocese of Fairbanks, Alaska, a procession was held from Sacred Heart Cathedral to Immaculate Conception Church.

Eucharistic Revival in the United States: Time of Grace and Encounter with Jesus.

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Gospel

Evil fear and holy fear. Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time (A)

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

Joseph Evans-June 22, 2023-Reading time: 2 minutes

A clear theme running through this week’s readings is fear. But we need to make a distinction between good and bad fear. There is a holy fear: indeed, precisely one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit is fear of the Lord. This is a holy reverence towards God (confidence in God as a loving Father should not be confused with disrespect towards him). This fear can also be a sensible fear of hell, as the ultimate danger we rightly want to avoid. And finally, it can be an expression of affection: the tender fear of offending he whom we love.

But there can also be bad fear. This happens when we lose our trust in God, as Adam and Eve hid from the Lord after they had eaten from the forbidden tree. Fear can result from a wrong understanding of God, seeing him erroneously as a strict judge or tyrant and failing to appreciate he is a loving, merciful father. Finally, there can be a fear when one knows one is behaving badly and is afraid of being caught, like a criminal fleeing the police.

The devil constantly provokes these latter types of fear, leading us to fear God and lose our trust in Him. This leads to panic, which in turn leads to bad actions and decisions. We see this in today's readings, when Jeremiah's adversaries falsely accuse him of promoting terror among the Jews of his time, when Jerusalem was being besieged by the Babylonians: "I'd hear the accusation from people: 'Pavor-en-torno, rat him out, let's rat him out!'". This was an exaggerated distortion of Jeremiah's message, when in fact his call to surrender to the Babylonians was the right thing to do and would have prevented much bloodshed and the destruction of the city, which in fact happened because they disregarded Jeremiah's words.

The psalmist, however, encourages trust in the Lord. He is able to suffer mockery, shame and rejection because he trusts in God. What would cause fear in others only leads him to renew his abandonment to God. And in the Gospel, Jesus teaches us holy fear and what St. Josemaría called the "fear of God.holy shamelessness".. Jesus tells us not to fear those who attack him and his disciples. On the contrary, let us lose all fear and be courageous in our witness: "Whosoever shall declare himself for me before men, him will I also declare myself for him before my Father which is in heaven. And if one denies me before men, I will also deny him before my Father who is in heaven.". However, it is right to fear and keep well away from Satan, as one would sensibly keep away from a vicious beast: "Do not be afraid of those who kill the body, but cannot kill the soul. No; fear him who can bring to perdition soul and body in Gehenna.". Finally, what should give us the most confidence is knowing how much God loves and values us: "Do not be afraid: you are worth more than many sparrows.".

Homily on the readings of the XII Sunday in Ordinary Time (A)

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

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Dialogue for peace between Buddhists and Catholics

A delegation of Buddhist monks meets with Cardinal Ayuso on the same day that Archbishop Gallagher participates in a round table on interreligious dialogue at the Italian Parliament.

Antonino Piccione-June 21, 2023-Reading time: 2 minutes

Interreligious dialogue is a tool for diplomacy and peace building. On Thursday, June 15, a round table organized by the Institute for International Policy Studies (ISPI) on this topic was held at the Italian Parliament.

The initiative was attended by Paul Richard GallagherThe Archbishop said: "When we speak of religion and peace, the first thing that comes to mind is prayer," he said. "When one speaks of religion and peace, the first thing that comes to mind is prayer," the Archbishop began, because it is "a privileged way through which only those who have faith can express their desire for peace."

A desire "based on four ethical guidelines, typical of the great religious traditions: respect for life, dialogue, honesty, mutual respect". Only in this way can interreligious dialogue work, "fundamental for building peace among nations, given that about 85% of the world's population identifies with a religion" and to "prevent fundamentalism from gaining the upper hand and religious persecution from multiplying".

What is the way forward in the midst of so many conflicts that stain the world with blood, the Christian community being the most persecuted? "It is necessary to activate measures that allow the parties to enter into a state of peace and justice, not of aggression and death," Gallagher explained, "peace must no longer be seen as the absence of war imposed by force, but as an act of justice inscribed in reality."

Decisive then is 'fraternity, considered by Pope Francis as the foundation and path to peace. Just as it guides individuals, it must guide the family of nations, together with nonviolence and charity.

To promote human contact, not to relegate religion to the individual sphere in order to promote the public dimension of faith. In this context, a delegation of about 80 monks began a two-day visit to Rome on June 15. At the Augustinianum, they met with representatives of the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue, directed by the Cardinal Ayuso.

The delegation was scheduled to meet Pope Francis, but due to the Pontiff's convalescence, they wrote him a letter, signed by the Venerable Somdet Phra Mahathirachan, abbot of the Royal Temple of Wat Phra Cetuphon.

The Thai delegation consisted of members of the Supreme Sangha Council of Thailand, the Wat Phra Chetuphon Sangha Assembly, the Regulatory Office of the Bhikkhus Dhammaduta Overseas and the staff of the King Prajadhipok Institute.

The letter to the Pope, written in Italian on behalf of all the members of the delegation, the Archbishop of Chiang Mai, Francesco Saverio Vira Arpondratana, and the Thai embassies in Italy and at the Holy See, opened by assuring Pope Francis that he was deeply present in their prayers, especially as he continues to recover from abdominal surgery at Gemelli Hospital, from where he was discharged on June 16.

The Buddhist monks then prayed for peace and visited the tomb of the late Pope Benedict XVI, gathering around it and remaining for a few moments in silence.

In his greeting to the delegation, Cardinal Ayuso recalled that, "as friends", we share "the same joys, the same sorrows, the same concerns and visions". The two delegations, Catholic and Buddhist, represent a pilgrimage of friends, the cardinal continued, of which Pope Francis is a witness.

The authorAntonino Piccione

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The Holy See's position on the German Synodal Pathway

Division in the German Bishops' Conference over the "Synodal Committee".

The Cardinal of Cologne and the Bishops of Eichstätt, Passau and Regensburg are vetoing the planned funding for this committee, which jeopardizes its viability. However, both the president of the DBK and the chairwoman of the Central Committee of German Catholics (ZdK) are still holding out November 10 and 11, 2023, for the start of such a committee.

José M. García Pelegrín-June 21, 2023-Reading time: 2 minutes

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The meeting of the Permanent Council of the German Bishops' Conference, held on June 19 and 20, revealed the dissent within the Conference. Cardinal Rainer Woelki (Cologne) and Bishops Gregor Maria Hanke (Eichstätt), Stefan Oster (Passau), and Rudolf Voderholzer (Regensburg) issued a statement at noon on Tuesday, June 20, explaining the reasons for their opposition to financing the so-called Synodical CommitteeThe Synod Council.

As is well known, on several occasions various Vatican bodies - especially Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin and the then Prefects of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, Luis Ladaria, and of the Bishops' Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Luis Ladaria, and of the Bishops' Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Luis Ladaria, Marc OuelletThe letter was addressed, with the Pope's express instruction, on January 16, 2023 to the President of the German Bishops' Conference, Msgr. Georg Bätzing- prohibited the creation of such governing bodies "at the national, diocesan or parish level". This is what the four "dissident" bishops now refer to.

They also recall that during the visit ad limina last November, the German bishops agreed that they would take up the issues raised in the German Synodal Way to deal with them in Rome, but that at no time was there any talk of a new body. "It would not be improbable," they say in their statement, "that a body would now be created whose competencies are not clear, and that in the end we will find out that we cannot do it that way. Before we ask ourselves about new organizational forms in Germany, we would have to wait for the results of the Universal Synod of Synodality.

They also refer to the fact that many decisions of the Synodal Path have caused "uneasiness among many believers around the world: these are profound questions of doctrine, especially the doctrine of the Church, of anthropology and the sacraments. If we were to go ahead here in Germany, the polarization among the faithful in our country, among the bishops and in the interactions of the universal Church would only intensify." While the questions of the Synodal Way are also being addressed in other countries, especially in Western Europe, "everywhere there are voices advocating the maintenance of the current doctrine."

The titular bishops of the other 23 German dioceses are apparently willing to finance the Synodal Committee. However, as the DBK pointed out in a press release, the planned funding through the Association of German Dioceses (VDD) must be approved unanimously. In other words, the planned funding will not be possible due to the veto of the four bishops mentioned above, so another source of funding will have to be sought. However, the DBK still stands by the plan agreed upon by the presidents of the Synodal Way - Bishop Georg Bätzing, president of the DBK, and Irme Stetter-Karp, president of the ZdK - that the first meeting of the Synodal Committee will take place on November 10-11, 2023.

In a first reaction, the ZdK encourages most of the bishops to find an alternative source of funding. In this context, Irme Stetter-Karp considers "important reforms of the financial structure of the Church to be necessary in the long term". The ZdK president continues: "It is high time for the Church people and the bishops to jointly discuss priorities and the distribution of funds.

Whether or not a way can be found to fund and staff the "Synodal Committee," the veto of the four bishops has made clear the dissent caused by the German Synodal Way within the DBK.

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Keys and risks of a Synod that aims to involve the whole Church

Instrumentum laboris" for the next Synod assembly published

A press conference has been held for the presentation of the Instrumentum laboris of the first session of the XVI General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops on the theme: "For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation, Mission".

Loreto Rios-June 21, 2023-Reading time: 3 minutes

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The event, which took place on June 20 in the Sala Stampa, was attended by Cardinal Mario Grech, Secretary General of the General Secretariat, Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich, Archbishop of Luxembourg, and Father Giacomo Costa, consultant to the General Secretariat of the World Council of Churches. Synod.

During the press conference, brief testimonies on the preparation of the October assembly were presented by Helena Jeppesen-Spuhler, member of the Swiss delegation to the Continental Assembly in Prague; Sister Ester Lucas, member of the SECAM Synodal Team, Theology Commission, who read the text of Father Rafael Simbine Junior, Secretary General of SECAM; and Nadia Coppa, President of the International Union of Superiors General.

Stages of the Synod

"The Synod began on October 10, 2021, with the opening celebration in St. Peter's. Since then, the first phase has been divided into three stages: the first, in the local Churches, with the
consultation with the People of God. The invitation was addressed to everyone, in particular to the peripheries and to those who for one reason or another feel "excluded"; the second, in the Episcopal Conferences, with the discernment of the bishops on the contributions of the local Churches; the third, in the continental Assemblies, with another level of discernment in view of the second phase of the Synod. Listening is necessary, because the synodal Church is, by definition, the 'Church of listening'", said Cardinal Mario Grech.

For his part, Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich focused in his intervention on the Instrumentum laboris document: "It is the outcome of the synodal process at all levels, an outcome that gives rise to many questions that could be answered by the participants in the Synod of Bishops. The structure of the text and the structural dynamics of the Synodal Assembly are intimately related. First of all, the text offers a narrative of the synodal process that the Church has undertaken. The text is based on a myriad of personal and communal experiences. The Church is in Synod: as we try to walk together we experience a new art of walking guided by the Spirit".

He stressed that, therefore, the text leads to a question of discernment, "a discernment about the concreteness of communion, mission and participation".

Episcopalis Communio

Father Giacomo Costa underlined the fact that the frame of reference for the assembly remains the apostolic constitution. Episcopalis CommunioThe proposed methodology is therefore in continuity with that of the most recent Assemblies, with some variations. "The proposed methodology is therefore in continuity with that of the most recent Assemblies, with some variations. In part this is due to practical reasons, related to the increase in the number of members. There is an increase in the number of bishops: about 20 more than at the last Ordinary General Assembly, that of 2018, given the growth in the number of bishops in the world. And there is an increase in non-bishops, following the expansion of participation approved by Pope Francis in April." In total, he has indicated that there are about 370 assembly members, excluding experts, while in 2018 there were 267 synod fathers, plus half a hundred auditors.

Helena Jeppesen-Spuhler emphasized the role of the laity in this process: "We are not simply Christians who are expected to receive and accept rules and prescriptions. Now we are interested in how we, the faithful, understand the Christian faith in our specific context. And in the respective texts, which summarize the results of the listening and discernment processes, our concerns and needs are reflected. They are testimonies that we are on the way to a synodal church.

The Synod and the Holy Spirit

Father Rafael Simbine Junior, in the text read by Sister Ester Lucas, pointed out the importance of the African Synodal Continental Assembly, which "marked an important milestone in the journey of the Church in Africa towards synodality. It provided an inclusive platform for delegates from all over Africa and its islands to embark on a spiritual synodal journey, guided by the Document for the Continental Stage".

Lastly, Nadia Coppa, president of the International Union of Superiors General, indicated that the synodality is not possible without the Holy Spirit: "The experience of synodality is first of all an experience of the Spirit, it is an open path, not laid out in advance, which is woven through encounter, dialogue and sharing, which comes to broaden and modify the vision of each one. To be a synodal Church, we read in the Istrumentum Laboris, is to recognize the common dignity that derives from Baptism, which makes those who receive it sons and daughters of God, members of his family and, therefore, brothers and sisters in the Church and sent to fulfill a common mission (n. 20)".

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Juan Ignacio GonzalezBishop of St. Bernard: "It is not clear what religious freedom is".

A week dedicated to religious freedom

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops convenes a week of prayer, reflection and action for religious freedom on June 22.

Paloma López Campos-June 21, 2023-Reading time: 8 minutes

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On June 22, the Catholic Church celebrates St. Thomas More and St. John Fisher. Through the intercession and patronage of these saints, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) calls for a week of prayer, reflection and action for religious freedom.

The episcopate considers these men an example of "faithful citizenship". Both "loved and served their country". They were two men who "never rose up to incite rebellion or foment revolution. They were not traitors. But when the law of the king came into conflict with the law of Christ, they submitted to Christ."

St. Thomas More and St. John Fisher "gave their lives for the freedom of the Church and for freedom of conscience. They are witnesses to the truth that no government can lay claim to a person's soul." Therefore, the bishops ask for their intercession that they "continue to light the way for us as we seek to faithfully serve our Church and our country."

Freedom, a divine gift

Under the motto "Let us embrace the divine gift of freedom," the USCCB wants to focus for a week on various aspects of religious freedom. Specifically, there are eight aspects proposed by the episcopate for prayer, reflection and action:

-Respect for sacred spaces

-Secret of confession

-Nicaragua

-Students on campus

-Christians in Nigeria

-Faith in business

-immigrants

-Catholic medical care

Respect for sacred spaces

The bishops explain that "the very nature of a sacred space is that it is set apart from other places as an area for divine worship and, therefore, should be treated with respect." Consideration of these spaces "is fundamental to the benefit of civic peace, which is part of the common good."

One of the prayer intention posters for the 22nd (USCCB)

The USCCB denounces the increase in attacks on sacred sites, especially since the annulment of Roe v. Wade. "But Catholics and other Christians are not the only ones defending their sacred spaces. In Arizona, Native American tribes have been fighting to prevent Oak Flat, a place that has been used for prayer and worship since time immemorial, from being destroyed by a copper mining company." Although the context varies in these cases, "the underlying principle is the same: attacks on sacred spaces, whether for political ideology or commerce, are detrimental to religious freedom."

In the face of this, the bishops ask for prayers "that Christian witness in the face of attacks on our churches will convert hearts to faith in Jesus Christ, and that people of all religions will be free to gather in holy places without fear."

Secret of confession

The USCCB defines the sacrament of confession or reconciliation as "a sacred encounter between the penitent and the Lord that offers forgiveness and healing through the ministry of the priest." Given the clear importance of this, "the Code of Canon Law prohibits priests from divulging information they have received in confession." In addition, the Church established excommunication as a penalty for a priest who directly violates the secrecy of confession.

Today, especially with the exposure of sexual abuse cases, many institutions are calling for the revocation of the seal of confession, and the bishops recognize that "it is essential that, as far as possible, the Church work with civil authorities to ensure that criminals are brought to justice and that communities are safe." However, "a priest may not force a penitent to turn himself in as a condition of receiving absolution, priests may encourage the penitent to report the crimes to the proper authorities, or may ask the penitent to speak with him outside the context of confession."

Respect for this secret in reconciliation with God "is the recognition of the proper relationship between church and state and the right to the free exercise of religion, not only for Catholics, but for people of all religions."

Given the current context, the USCCB asks Catholics to pray "that governments will respect the secrecy of the confessional as the Church in the United States continues to work to eliminate the scourge of abuse by clergy."

Nicaragua

The bishops denounce the situation experienced by the Church in Nicaragua which, since 2018, "has been facing a systematic and persistent campaign of aggression by the government and pro-government agents, with churches attacked with lethal force, priests and religious imprisoned or exiled, the apostolic nuncio expelled and, in February 2023, the unjust sentencing of Bishop Rolando Alvarez of Matagalpa, Nicaragua, to 26 years in prison."

The episcopate points out that "the cruelty of the persecution is highlighted in the numerous acts of profanation against the Blessed Sacrament that pro-government forces have been committing and the prohibition of traditional processions by the mostly Catholic population during Holy Week. These are politically calculated acts of psychological and spiritual terrorism against the faithful in Nicaragua. They are intended to send a message to the bishops, priests and faithful that the regime will do everything possible to crush and silence the moral voice of the Catholic Church in the country."

Students on campus

U.S. universities allow students to participate in religious-related groups. "However, university policies intended to promote inclusion, such as the rule that any student has the right to be a caretaker of a campus student group, have been used to prohibit religious student groups from ensuring that their caretakers and members share their faith."

These rules give rise to inconsistent situations, as "an atheist might lead a Bible study, a climate change denier might lead the ecology club, or a Republican might lead the College Democrats." University policies give a "false idea of inclusiveness" and prevent "groups from having a distinctive mission or identity."

In the opinion of the episcopate, universities, in order to welcome the gift of freedom, have to allow "student groups to operate according to their distinctive missions."

Christians in Nigeria

The USCCB echoes the communiqué sent by the Bishops' Conference of Nigeria in 2021, in which they denounced the grave situation in the country. The bishops say that "the lack of security is total". The confrontations have been aggravated "due to the fact that the herdsmen are generally Muslims of the Fulani tribe and the farmers are Christians of various ethnic groups", which has further increased "the ethnic and religious differences in the conflicts that originated over access to agricultural resources".

Poster with the intention of praying for Nigeria on the 26th.

The shortcomings in the solutions provided by public institutions have resulted in a cycle of reprisals spread throughout Nigeria. "For example, in January 2022, Islamic terrorists attacked and burned down a rectory, killing one priest and seriously injuring another. Subsequently, a mob of Christians burned down the local police office in response to the perception that police do not respond as quickly to attacks against Christians as they do against Muslims."

The controversy is so serious that "the possibility of dialogue between opposing groups" is inhibited and endangers religious freedom. Therefore, the U.S. bishops ask that Catholics pray especially this week "that pastoralists and farmers in Nigeria, whose conflict over access to land and resources has fueled religious tensions, may find the means to compromise and resolve their differences nonviolently."

Faith in business

The episcopate reminds that "Christians are Christians not only when they pray or serve in a non-profit ministry," but that their faith should extend to all spheres of their lives. This means that "Catholics also seek to live their faith in their work life," but not only they "should be able to live their religion holistically. All people should be free to allow faith to guide them in their daily affairs, including at work and in business."

The USCCB explains that conflicts between the world of work and religious freedom "may arise when an employee seeks accommodation for his or her practices, such as an exception to attire rules in order to wear certain religious garments or a request to accommodate schedules for certain days or times, such as the Sabbath or certain prayer times." Another kind of conflict "involves cases where the business itself conflicts with some government policy," as might be the case with health care plans deemed immoral or speech that goes against religious convictions. "In all these cases, a culture that welcomes the divine gift of freedom will be one that leaves as much room as possible for people to participate in working life in accordance with their religious convictions."

Immigrants

The bishops speak of the delicate balance between defending national borders and respecting the dignity of all people. Alongside the actions of public institutions, the Church also seeks to address the needs of immigrants, ranging "from meeting basic needs to assisting with resettlement and offering legal services to help newcomers explore the expectations of the host country."

However, some of these Christian services face legal attacks "because the Church refuses to facilitate abortions for children in our care, while elsewhere, state governments have passed or proposed laws that prohibit 'providing asylum' or transporting undocumented immigrants, even when the 'providing asylum' is just providing a safe place to sleep, or the transport is just a trip to Mass, which could essentially criminalize much of the Church's ministry to immigrants."

The USCCB believes that "a nation that embraces the divine gift of freedom will respect the dignity of all people and enable the Church to carry out its mission to vulnerable people, including migrants and refugees."

Catholic medical care

The bishops point to the Church's great dedication to the sick through "institutions dedicated to medicine and the accompaniment of the dying." Today, however, Catholic hospitals and professionals face a number of challenges, some of which attack religious freedom.

"Activists have sought to harm the Church's mission by forcing Catholic hospitals to perform procedures that destroy human life and undermine human dignity, such as sterilization, sex change surgery and even abortion, and people of faith working in secular institutions may be forced to perform abortions."

The changes promoted by the U.S. government in federal regulations resulted, in many cases, in the elimination of "conscience protections for health care institutions and personnel." The USCCB stresses that "a culture that welcomes the gift of divine freedom is one that respects the conscience of hospitals and professionals seeking to carry out the healing ministry of Christ."

Praying, reflecting and acting for religious freedom

Along with the reflections of the USCCB, the bishops encourage each day a concrete prayer intention and action to give visibility to religious freedom.

All the information on this initiative can be found at English and in SpanishThe following information can be found on the website of the Bishops' Conference.

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Pope to journalists: "A mission to explain the world and make it less obscure".

Catholic journalists should proclaim the message of Christ

Cardinal Wilton D. Gregory, Archbishop of Washington, addressed journalists and other media professionals at the annual conference of the Catholic Media Association.

Jennifer Elizabeth Terranova-June 20, 2023-Reading time: 2 minutes

Cardinal Wilton D. Gregory, Archbishop of Washington, celebrated the Mass at the basilica of the national sanctuary of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Maryin Baltimore. The Eucharist took place during the Annual Conference of the Catholic Media Association (CMA), which took place from June 6 to 9. And the cardinal's message to journalists and media professionals was clear: proclaim the "Good News" and remain faithful to what is true.

The Catholic Media Association is an organization of Catholic media professionals whose mission is to support, enrich and help its members develop their skills to effectively communicate the Gospel.

The task of modern journalism

Cardinal Gregory spoke of the challenges facing Catholic communicators and urged them to "adhere to the highest principles of your profession...and to be diligent in research, honest in your editorial policy, competent in the use of modern media, but always motivated by the truth of Christ, which too often is only whispered in closed rooms or spoken in the dark. You are people who bring the full force of modern journalism to the task of revealing God's own design for us in Christ."

Competence is essential, Cardinal Gregory said, but Catholic communicators must be more than "competent reporters and recorders of religious events...". He encouraged attendees to remain steadfast in their call to proclaim the truth despite the current climate in society. "Take comfort in knowing that people can still listen with delight to the truth of the Lord's teachings, even in our often cynical world."

Love of truth

His Eminence also reminded Catholic journalists that "yours is the great opportunity to report a word of truth that has changed your own life. It is love of that truth that motivates you to reveal those hidden things so that they can - in turn - change the lives of others."

Cardinal Gregory also expressed his gratitude for the work of the AMC, because good news always uplifts and creates light in the darkness. And he offered prayers for the members of the CMA who have passed away in the past year.

Pope to journalists: "A mission to explain the world and make it less obscure".

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Thierry Bonaventura: "The Synod has come to involve all the people of God".

In this interview with Omnes, Thierry Bonaventura reviews some of the most important points of the Synod. Among other topics, he tells us what the preparation process was like, what initiatives have emerged along the way, what the main challenges have been, how criticism has been handled and what steps need to be taken next.

Giovanni Tridente-June 20, 2023-Reading time: 5 minutes

Thierry Bonaventura is in charge of communications for the Synod of Bishops 2021-2023.

This June, the publication of the Instrumentum laboris for the first session of the XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, which will take place in Rome from October 4 to 29, 2023. A journey begun more than two years ago that has involved many people of the ecclesial reality in different stages, first local and then international.

A mobilization in which communication has played an essential role, since it has allowed the greatest possible number of people, the manifestation of the people of God, to be involved. In this interview with Omnes, Thierry Bonaventura, in charge of communications for the Synod, tells us first-hand what this long synodal journey initiated by Pope Francis has meant at the global level.

In a few months the work of the first session of the Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod, a journey that began in 2021, will begin. ¿What has it meant for you to manage this whole process communicatively?

-These words come to mind: the process has been a challenge, but above all a gift. I arrived at the General Secretariat of the Synod in August 2021, that is, two months before the official opening of the synodal process. Like most of the faithful, I hardly knew about the Synod or synodality. I had to face a new environment, both large and complex: the Vatican, with its sometimes complicated internal structures and procedures. I set out to make tangible and coherent the invitation of Pope Francis to promote a Church open to listening, close, like the Good Samaritan, to the sufferings of this world, to people who are distant or indifferent to Christ's message of salvation. In some way he had to contribute to give a new image to a Church structure that people perceive as a bit distant.

We assume that he had the support of his superiors?

-I am grateful to have had a general secretary behind some of my ideas, who has always supported me. That made all the difference. Since then, I have never stopped! There have been many meetings, challenges have increased, but also satisfactions, which have then influenced my communication work. Let me give you a concrete example.

The Pope had opened the synodal process on October 10 and had asked all the dioceses of the world to initiate the process, marking the beginning with a diocesan celebration. Given my lack of preparation, I had the intuition to spread a WhatsApp number through a newsletter I had just opened. I received hundreds of messages with photos, short testimonies, homilies or other materials, some of the highest quality, prepared directly by the dioceses. This gave rise to the idea of creating the portal synodresources.orgwhere to gather all this information.

There I realized that my way of communicating could only be participative, not participatory. for but together with colleagues from bishops' conferences, dioceses, parishes, associations, religious congregations...

How to deal with the perplexity of those who are struggling to understand the true meaning of the Synod?

-For a long time, the Synod of Bishops was perceived as a distant reality, the prerogative of the bishops, dealing with issues that were certainly very important, but which were not always experienced by the common people with the same urgency as that of the so-called "insiders". Often, the Synod was reduced to the working document, the celebration of the event and the awaiting of a final document from the Pope, known as a Post-Synodal Exhortation.

Pope Francis wanted to give back to the whole Church this important instrument of discernment. Already with the two special assemblies on the family he invited the faithful to participate by sending a form. In 2018, with the apostolic constitution Episcopalis Communioupdated the way in which the Synod is conducted: from being an event, it has become a process in which it is important to involve all the people of God who form the Church.

This broad participation of the People of God, of which the bishops are also an expression, is in reality nothing more than the natural development of the ecclesiology of the People of God of the Second Vatican Council, which was somewhat muted by an ecclesiology that understood communion in the Church primarily as hierarchical communion. But on the other hand, it should not be forgotten that the far-sighted St. Paul VI had already suggested an evolution of the structure at the very moment of its constitution.

There was no shortage of criticism and misunderstanding throughout the preparations. How did you manage all this?

-With respect, seriousness and charity. Pope Francis has asked that we listen to everyone and we have done so. We have listened to those who actively participate in the life of the Church, but also to those who have distanced themselves for various reasons. We have also listened to the silences of those who have not felt challenged and those who have not wanted to be involved in the synodal process. I believe that people today need an authentic Church, and as the secretariat of the Synod we have tried to be authentic by listening to the criticisms, misunderstandings and fears of individuals and groups.

All these opinions must be taken seriously. They are fundamental for the synodal process. I would be afraid if there were no debate or misunderstandings, because that would not show the face of a living Church. On a communicative level I have never closed a door to a colleague critical of the process, because I believe in dialogue. The important thing is that people who are skeptical or critical of the process really demonstrate a willingness to understand, to walk together. I am completely convinced that, regardless of my arguments or my convictions, the true protagonist of this process is the Holy Spirit. He will be the one who will allow a progressive conversion of the heart of my interlocutor.

For me, this should be the attitude of those who have the task of carrying out the communication of the Church from an institutional point of view: to be true and authentic, to do and give the best of oneself to help first of all fellow journalists to do their job better.

What is the air behind the scenes of a "machine" that has mobilized and will mobilize thousands of people, who represented in fact that true listening to the people of God desired by Pope Francis?

-A lot of enthusiasm, excitement, but also a little restlessness. I believe that in many of the people of the secretariat or of the commissions that work with us we perceive a great enthusiasm accompanied by a feeling of gratitude, because we are aware that we are living something special, historical, in the life of the Church.

Not only the reflection, but also the practice of synodality within the Church is becoming more and more important, as well as the understanding of this Synod, on this topic, so difficult to comprehend for those who do not master ecclesiology. It is clear that organizational questions now occupy much of our time, but that is not all.

In fact, we want to do our best to offer a good welcome to the participants, the many diocesan and parish groups, associations and religious congregations that are asking us how to be an active part of next October's meeting. In short, there is a great desire to put into practice synodality, to listen to one another, to work and to make decisions together for the good of the Church.

Do you see any risk?

-The risk would be to fail to make it understood that the Synod is not about a specific question, but about the Church as a synod and about the steps to be taken to better live communion and share the mission of proclaiming Christ and building the Kingdom of God through the participation of all. Judgment on the event should depend on this and not on the resolution of a specific question.

What are the most immediate steps towards the celebration of the Assembly?

-First and foremost, the publication of the Instrumentum LaborisThis means the delivery to the people of God of the document that will be used for the preparation and discussion of the participants in the Assembly. And then the publication of the list of participants, which will create links between the people of God and the bishops called to represent them.

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The "cross of nails" of Coventry

A "historical memory" based on reconciliation between nations and peoples, with the idea of "healing the wounds of history".

José M. García Pelegrín-June 20, 2023-Reading time: 4 minutes

On the night of November 14-15, 1940, the German air force (Luftwaffe) bombed the English city of Coventry, in the context of the so-called "Battle of Britain" of World War II. In Coventry, a city located 153 kilometers northwest of London, were based large companies that supplied the British aviation (Royal Air Force, RAF), which Hitler was trying to neutralize, as a precondition for the intended occupation.

That night, 449 bombing planes dropped hundreds of thousands of bombs; 550 people lost their lives and several thousand were wounded. The city and with it also the Anglican cathedral were reduced to ruins. The cathedral has remained in the ruined state in which it was left as a symbol of the terrible consequences of the bombing.

But from Coventry Cathedral also emerged a symbol, not of destruction but of reconciliation. During the removal work, large iron nails were found in the rubble, which originally held the heavy beams of the nave vault since the 14th century. Three of these nails were used to form a cross.

This gave rise to the symbol of the "Cross-of-Nails" in Coventry, which still stands on the ruined altar and was to be the original symbol for a movement of reconciliation. In his Christmas 1940 radio address, the then Dean Richard Howard - from the ruins of the cathedral - called on the English not to seek revenge, but to work for reconciliation. Shortly afterwards he had the words FATHER FORGIVE inscribed on the wall of the ruined choir.

Dresden, Berlin and Hamburg

From Coventry, "nail crosses" were initially sent to German cities destroyed in the war, in this case by British and American aircraft. Of particular importance were Dresden, Berlin and Hamburg.

In Dresden, the British-American air raids of February 13-15, 1945 left the city completely destroyed, including the famous Frauenkirche, which would not be rebuilt until 2005.

In Berlin, it was the memorial church - so called because Kaiser Wilhelm II had it built in memory of his grandfather Wilhelm I - that was left in ruins after the air raids of World War II. After the war, new modern buildings were combined with the ruins of one of the towers.

The church of St. Nicholas in Hamburg was also left in ruins as a memorial. In all three of the above-mentioned churches, nail crosses can be found today.

The movement spread and in 1974 the "International Community of the Cross of Nails" was founded, which is spread over five continents, from European countries such as Bosnia-Herzegovina to Australia, the United States and Canada, Jordan and Sudan. Its main objective is to "heal the wounds of history".

– Supernatural prayer of reconciliation

The international community of the cross of nails is spiritually united by three elements: firstly, the so-called "cross of nails". prayer of reconciliationThe first edition of the Cross of Nails, formulated in 1958, has since been prayed on Fridays at 12 o'clock in the ruins of the old cathedral in Coventry and in numerous "cross of nails centers" around the world:

"All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Rom 3:23).

The hatred that divides nation from nation, race from race, class from class,
Father, forgive me.
The greedy desire of people and nations to possess what is not theirs,
Father, forgive me.
The ambition that exploits the labor of men and women and devastates the Earth,
Father, forgive me.
Our envy of the well-being and happiness of others,
Father, forgive me.
Our indifference to the plight of the homeless and displaced,
Father, forgive me.
Greed that dishonors the bodies of men, women and children,
Father, forgive me.
The pride that leads us to trust only in ourselves, and not in God,
Father, forgive me.

But be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God forgave you in Christ (Eph. 4:32)."

Joint service for reconciliation and Saint Benedict

The second element is "joint service for reconciliation in areas of the world in conflict" and thirdly, the so-called "rule of life", which is rooted in the rule of St. Benedict of Nursia: "Prayer and work (ora et labora), piety and life are understood as a unity".

The "Community of the Cross of Nails in Germany" ("Nagelkreuzgemeinschaft in Deutschland e.V.") was established in 1991 as an ecumenical community, with currently 78 centers, mostly evangelical churches, although there are also some Catholic ones such as St. Barbara in Munich, as well as other institutions dedicated to historical memory.

In its program it says: "The cross of nails challenges us Germans again and again to face our past and also the tense present in a spirit of truth and reconciliation. In the cities where we live, we want to live the 'spirit of Coventry'."

The latest institutions to receive the Coventry "cross of nails" in Germany were the Evangelical Church of St. Michael in Jena, which became the center with the symbolic number 77 of the German community; on March 19, Coventry Dean John Witcombe handed it over. More recently, on May 29, John Witcombe presented a nail cross to the Evangelical Cathedral of Brunswick (Braunschweig).

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The Pope praises Blaise Blaise Pascal with the Letter "Sublimitas et miseria hominis".

On the fourth centenary of the birth of the French philosopher Blaise Pascal (1623-1662), Pope Francis has extolled his figure with a Letter entitled "The Greatness and Misery of Man", which pays tribute to this "indefatigable seeker of truth". Cardinal José Tolentino de Mendonça, Prefect of the Dicastery for Culture and Education, highlighted "his exquisite charity towards the poor and the sick".

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In its Letter "Sublimitas et miseria hominis", the Pope highlights, among other aspects of the life and work of the French thinker Blaise Pascal, as the "Pensées"(Thoughts), the search for truth. "The greatness and misery of man form the paradox at the heart of the philosopher's reflection and message," "born four centuries ago, on June 19, 1623, in Clermont, in central France. From childhood and throughout his life he sought the truth," writes the Holy Father.

"With reason he traced his signs, especially in the fields of mathematics, geometry, physics and philosophy," the Pontiff described. "He made extraordinary discoveries from a very tender age, to the point of achieving considerable fame. But he did not stop there. In a century of great progress in many fields of science, accompanied by a growing spirit of philosophical and religious skepticism, Blaise Pascal showed himself to be an indefatigable seeker of truth, and as such he always remained 'restless', attracted by new and wider horizons."

The cardinal José Tolentino de Mendonça offered some keys to the Letter in the Vatican's Sala Stampa. First of all, Pascal's knowledge of Pope Francis. "The Holy Father, lover of the 'Pensées'. and a deep admirer of Pascal (...), has decided to honor his figure with an Apostolic Letter with the captivating title "Sublimitas et miseria hominis" - that is, "Greatness and misery of man".

"Exquisite charity towards the poor and the sick."

Cardinal José Tolentino de Mendonça then said: "I would like to emphasize how in the text of the pontifical letter, Pope Francis highlights some aspects, perhaps less known, of the great philosopher. First of all, his exquisite charity towards the poor and the sick. Pascal's life was dotted with practical gestures of charity and love for the weak, the sick and the suffering".

"This behavior of his, which he did not make public," added the Prefect of the Dicastery for Education and Culture of the Holy See, "was certainly tinged by his own experience of pain and illness - suffice it to think of his prayer 'for the good use of illnesses' in 1659 - but it was also the search, in the concrete, for a way to express his gratitude for the divine Grace that had undeservedly entered what he considered his human littleness."

"This shows that Pascal never separated his faith in God from concrete works in favor of his brothers, and helps to understand the complexity of his relationship with the Jansenist theories, which he came to know by reading Jansenius' 'Augustinus' and attending the circle of Port Royal," said Cardinal José Tolentino de Mendonça, who was accompanied by François-Xavier Adam, director of the Institut Francais - Centre Saint Louis, among other personalities.

"Stimulating the Christians of our time."

Some of the features of the life and work of the French thinker Blaise Pascal (he lived only 39 years), which the Holy Father Francis highlights in his Letter, are the following.

First of all, the objective. "I am happy that Providence gives me the opportunity to pay homage to him and to bring out what, in his thought and in his life, I consider appropriate to stimulate the Christians of our time and all our contemporaries of good will in the search for true happiness: 'All men seek the way to be happy. This has no exception, no matter how different the means they employ, they all tend to this end'", the Pope said, quoting Pascal.

"Four centuries after his birth, Pascal remains for us the companion along the way that accompanies our search for true happiness and, according to the gift of faith, our humble and joyful recognition of the dead and risen Lord," Francis begins.

"A lover of Christ who speaks to all."

Next, the Pope reflects on the appeal of the figure of the French philosopher. "If Blaise Pascal is capable of moving the whole world, it is because he spoke of the human condition in an admirable way. It would be misleading, however, to see in him only a specialist in human morality, however brilliant he was. The monument formed by his ThoughtsThe "The Church, some of whose isolated formulas have become famous, cannot be truly understood if one ignores the fact that Jesus Christ and Sacred Scripture are both the center and the key".

"For if Pascal began to speak of man and God," the Pope continues, "it was because he had come to the certainty that 'not only do we know God only through Jesus Christ, but we know ourselves only through Jesus Christ; we know life and death only through Jesus Christ. Apart from Jesus Christ we know neither our life, nor our death, nor God, nor ourselves. Thus, without Scripture, which has Jesus Christ alone for its object, we know nothing and see only darkness,'" the Pope quotes Pascal again.

It's really worth it

"This is the reason why I propose to all those who want to continue searching for truth - a task that never ends in this life - to listen to Blaise Pascal, a man of prodigious intelligence who wanted to remind us how outside the objectives of love there is no truth worthwhile: 'We do not make an idol out of truth itself, because truth without charity is not God and is his image and an idol not to be loved or adored'."

"In this way," the Pontiff adds, "Pascal warns us against false doctrines, superstitions or licentiousness that keep many of us from the lasting peace and joy of the One who wants us to choose 'life and happiness,' and not 'death and misery' (Dt 30:15)."

Greatness of human reason

Another aspect on which Pope Francis reflects is that of the reasonableness of faith, and for this, in addition to Pascal, he cites St. John Paul II and Benedict XVI.

"From the age of seventeen he (Pascal) was in contact with the greatest scientists of his time," the Pope recounted. "Discoveries and publications followed one after the other quite rapidly (...) In 1642, at the age of nineteen, he invented an arithmetic machine, the ancestor of our calculators. Blaise Pascal is extremely stimulating for us because he reminds us of the greatness of human reason and invites us to use it to decipher the world around us."

"The spirit of geometrywhich is the ability to understand in detail the functioning of things, will serve him throughout his life, as the eminent theologian Hans Urs von Balthasar pointed out: 'Pascal is capable [...] of reaching from the planes proper to geometry and the sciences of nature, the very different precision proper to the plane of existence in general and of the Christian life in particular'.

And Francis points out: "This confident practice of natural reason, which made him in solidarity with all his brothers in search of truth, will allow him to recognize the limits of intelligence itself and, at the same time, to open himself to the supernatural reasons of Revelation, according to a logic of paradox which is his philosophical peculiarity and the literary charm of his Pensées: 'It cost the Church as much to demonstrate that Jesus Christ was man against those who denied it, as to demonstrate that he was God; and the possibilities were equally great'".

Meaning of our life, rejection of presumption

"Human reason is undoubtedly a marvel of creation, which sets man apart from all other creatures, because 'man is only a reed, the weakest of nature, but he is a reed that thinks,'" Francis again quotes Pascal. And he continues: "We understand then that the limits of philosophers will simply be the limits of created reason. For as much as Democritus said: 'I am going to talk about everything', reason alone cannot resolve the highest and most urgent questions".

The Pope then asks: "What, in fact, both in Pascal's time and today, is the theme that matters most to us? It is that of the full meaning of our destiny, of our life and of our hope, that of a happiness which it is not forbidden to conceive as eternal, but which only God is authorized to grant: 'Nothing is so important to man as his state; nothing inspires him so much fear as eternity'" (new quotation from Pascal).

The "night of fire

"As St. John Paul II recalled in his encyclical on the relationship between faith and reason," Francis mentions, "philosophers like Blaise Pascal distinguished themselves by their rejection of all presumption, as well as by their choice of a posture made of humility and courage. They experienced that 'faith frees reason from presumption'. Before the night of November 23, 1654, it is clear that Pascal does not doubt the existence of God. He also knows that this God is the supreme good; what he lacks and what he hopes for is not knowledge but power, not truth but force."

"Now, this strength is given to him by grace; he is drawn, with certainty and joy, to Jesus Christ (...). "Like any authentic conversion, Blaise Pascal's conversion takes place in humility, which frees us 'from our isolated conscience and self-referentiality'." This episode, that of his conversion, took place on the date cited by the Pope, in 1654, and is known to this day as his "Night of Fire" ("Nuit de feu").

"This mystical experience, which caused him to shed tears of joy, was so intense and decisive for him that he wrote it down on a precisely dated piece of paper, the "Memorial," which he had sewn into the lining of his coat, and which was discovered after his death," the Pontiff details."

Rejection of fideism

The Pope refers in the Apostolic Letter to these words of Benedict XVI: "The Catholic tradition, from the beginning, has rejected the so-called fideism, which is the will to believe against reason'. In this line, Pascal is deeply attached to 'the reasonableness of faith in God', not only because 'the spirit cannot be forced to believe what he knows to be false', but because, 'if we offend the principles of reason, our religion will be absurd and ridiculous'," Pascal argues, commented on by the Pope.

"But if faith is reasonable, it is also a gift of God and cannot be imposed," the Holy Father adds: "'It is not demonstrated that we should be loved by submitting the causes of love to method; it would be ridiculous,' Pascal points out with the finesse of his humor, drawing a parallel between human love and the way in which God manifests himself to us."

"Nothing but love, 'which proposes but does not impose itself - the love of God never imposes itself', Jesus bore witness to the truth (cf. Jn 18:37) but 'did not wish to impose it by force on those who contradicted him'. This is the reason why 'there is enough light for those who only wish to see, and enough darkness for those who have a contrary disposition'.

"And then he goes on to affirm that 'faith is different from proof. The latter is human, and the former is a gift of God'. Therefore, it is impossible to believe 'if God does not incline our heart'. Even if faith is of a higher order than reason, this certainly does not mean that it is opposed to it, but rather that it infinitely surpasses it," the Pope writes.

Summarizing this aspect, Francis writes that "to read Pascal's work is not, first of all, to discover the reason that illuminates faith; it is to place oneself in the school of a Christian with an uncommon rationality, who knew how to give an account of an order established by the gift of God superior to reason".

Pascal's death: sacraments, last words

Describing the end of his life, the Pope describes that "being very ill and on the point of death, he asked to receive communion, but it was not immediately possible. Then he begged his sister: 'Since I cannot take communion with the head [Jesus Christ], I would like to take communion with the limbs.' And 'he had a great desire to die in the company of the poor.' It was said of him, shortly before his last breath on August 19, 1662, that he died 'with the simplicity of a child'. After receiving the sacraments, his last words were: 'May God never forsake me'.

"May his luminous work and the examples of his life, so deeply immersed in Jesus Christ, help us to follow to the end the path of truth, conversion and charity. For the life of a man is very brief: 'Eternally joyful for a day of suffering on earth,'" Pope Francis concludes.

Cardinal Mendonça: "Pascal's honesty".

In the presentation mentioned at the beginning, Cardinal José Tolentino de Mendonça also emphasized that "Pascal was a true realist capable of confronting the misery and greatness of the human. The answers to this real misery and to this human thirst for greatness were to be found in the individual revelation of a personal God".

"Before the 'Nuit de feuPascal already believed in God, but that night he had the illumination to recognize in sin the symbol of the lack of desire for God. From that mystical experience came his concepts of pride and humility and, above all, the category of the 'heart' that was so dear to him."

"What Pope Francis wanted to celebrate is, above all, the honesty of Blaise Pascal, who was fond of the phrase 'one must be sincere, true'," added the cardinal José Tolentino de Mendonça.

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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Integral ecology

A Festival to remember that water is a fundamental right

A Festival entirely dedicated to "sister water", inspired by the contents of Pope Francis' Encyclical Laudato si' on the care of our common home, will take place over the next few days in Montefiascone, a small town of Etruscan origin located about a hundred kilometers from Rome.

Giovanni Tridente-June 19, 2023-Reading time: 3 minutes

From June 22 to 25, politicians, ecology experts, environmental scholars and artists will take turns in performances, debates, exhibitions and conferences, framing the environmental theme in a universal perspective, considering creation as a "common good that must be defended in the present time and for future generations," explain the organizers.

The initiative is promoted for the third year by the "Rocca dei Papi" Association, founded in December 2019 by Archbishop Fabio Fabene, then undersecretary of the Synod of Bishops and now secretary of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints. It takes its name from the medieval fortress that dominates the valley of Viterbo, preserving vestiges of pre-Christian settlements.

For many centuries, the Rocca was a center from which the popes administered the political affairs of their dominions in Central Italy. The Association that bears his name, for its part, was created to enhance the value of a territory that, for its geomorphological, historical, cultural, artistic and anthropological qualities, as well as for its rich religious tradition, lends itself well to communicate and disseminate the principles linked to the care of the common home in the wake of the magisterium of Pope Francis.

Water in the center

This year's edition, dedicated as we said to the theme of water, will be inaugurated with a keynote lecture by the economist Stefano Zamagniformer president of the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences and one of the "fathers" of civil economy, highly appreciated by both Benedict XVI and Bergoglio.

This will be followed by a theatrical performance and a performance by the Papal Chapel Choir of Assisi. The following day, various professionals will discuss how to valorize the land and protect the water resources available to citizens, while in the afternoon, the Bishop of Viterbo (the diocese to which the municipality of Montefiascone belongs) will give a lecture on water as "a gift that quenches thirst and vivifies". Other speeches will explore the theme of water in communication, business and art.

Laudato si'

The reference to water in the Encyclical Laudato si' appears 39 times, from the very first lines. It is present in reference to the "wounds" inflicted on creation through the many types of pollution, and there is also a whole section devoted to what is called "an issue of paramount importance," as in numbers 28-31. For example, there is discussion of the poverty of public water in Africa, and the problem of its "quality" in reference to the water available to the poor, which generates not only suffering, but in some cases also infant mortality.

In his second Encyclical, Pope Francis makes it unambiguously clear that access to safe and potable water is rather "an essential, fundamental and universal human right," a condition for the exercise of all other rights, and as such must be absolutely safeguarded. If only because water itself, along with, for example, the soil and the mountains "is God's caress" (n. 84).

The time of creation

A warning to the international community (see nn. 164-175) that is also reiterated in the recent Message for the upcoming World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation, which will take place as usual on September 1 together with the other Christian communities. This year's theme is inspired by the words of the prophet Amos (5:24): "Let justice and righteousness flow like an everlasting stream".

An opportunity to "create a more sustainable and just world," which, according to Pope Francis, to become so, must see "our hearts," "lifestyles" and the "public policies" that govern societies transformed. Hearts that are transformed by considering creation no longer as an "object to be exploited" but as a "sacred gift of the Creator" to be safeguarded.

Regarding lifestyles, we must learn to waste less and avoid unnecessary consumption, improving habits and economic choices and "practicing joyful sobriety".

Finally, public policies, thanks to which it is necessary to put an end to "the era of fossil fuels" to curb global warming, a commitment that world leaders had made on several occasions, both with the Paris Agreement and at the various COP summits, but which to this day remains unfulfilled.

"Let us live, work and pray so that in our common home life may once again abound," Pope Francis concludes in the Message, entrusting this renewal to the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

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The role of social networks in today's world

Social networks have revolutionized the way we communicate and connect with the world, but they also present dangers to our mental and emotional health.

José Luis Pascual-June 19, 2023-Reading time: 2 minutes

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In the digital age, social networks have become a ubiquitous part of our daily lives. From Facebook, TikTok, Twitter, to YouTube, Instagram, to WhatsApp and Telegram, these "digital highways" allow us to communicate and connect with people around the world. However, as members of the Catholic Church, we must consider how our use of social media aligns with our values as followers of Jesus Christ. In the context of the publication of the document "Towards a full presence - Pastoral reflection on interaction in Social Networks".In the May 28, 2023, issue of the Dicastery for Communication, we will explore both the benefits and dangers of these platforms.

The importance of social networks

Social media has become an integral part of our lives. From sharing photos and status updates to connecting with friends and family around the world, they offer us the opportunity to interact with others like never before.

In addition, they also have a major impact on the way we consume news and information. We no longer rely solely on traditional media for our daily news: we can now access a wide range of different sources and perspectives through the Internet.

Another key benefit of social networking is its ability to connect people with common interests. Specialized groups on any topic imaginable are available at our fingertips, allowing us to find like-minded people no matter where they are.

However, as we will see below, there are also potential dangers associated with the excessive or inappropriate use of these digital platforms.

The dangers of social networks

The dangers of social networks are a reality that we cannot ignore.

One of the most relevant is excessive exposure to inappropriate content. Networks are full of violent images, vulgar language and hate speech.

Another risk is addiction. Spending too much time on them can affect our ability to concentrate on other important activities, such as work or studies. In addition, spending many hours in front of a screen can also have negative effects on our mental and physical health.

We should also be concerned about the issue of online privacy. We often share too much personal information without realizing how far-reaching this can be. We must learn to discern what information is safe to share and what information we should keep private. While we enjoy social networks to interact with other users we should always be aware of the potential emotional and even psychological damage that can be caused if we misuse these technological resources.

How to use social networks in a positive way

Social networks can be very useful for connecting with others and it is important that we learn to use them in a positive way.

First, it is essential to discern what type of content we share. We must ensure that what we publish does not offend or harm anyone. We must also take care of our privacy and the security of our personal data.

In addition, we can take advantage of the networks to spread positive messages and promote just causes. In this way, we contribute to the collective welfare and promote a culture of solidarity.

It is also important to consider how we interact with other users. We should treat others with respect and empathy, avoiding hurtful or discriminatory comments.

Following the example of the Good Samaritan, we can become true online missionaries if we take time to reflect on our interaction on social networks and if we make an effort to show love and compassion to all those we meet.

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Raymond Studzinski:"The Bible is an encounter with the divine"

Whether Catholic or not, everybody knows about the Bible, but for Christians it is not just a book. It’s a fountain for us to go and drink God’s Word , it is a place that helps us grow in our faith, a way “to view the world and ourselves from God’s perspective”, just like Rev. Raymond Studzinski explains in this interview with Omnes.

Paloma López Campos-June 19, 2023-Reading time: 4 minutes

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The Bible is one of the most famous books in the world, and it has been so for centuries now. And even though all Catholics know about it, sometimes it’s difficult to understand how to add the Scriptures to our prayer lives. In this interview with Omnes, Rev. Raymond Studzinski: helps us to understand how to use the Bible by answering some questions that we all could have when approaching these texts.

Raymond Studzinski, O.S.B., is the editor of the International Journal of Evangelization and Catechetics and the director of the Catechetics and Pastoral Studies areas in the School of Theology and Religious Studies at The Catholic University of America. He teaches and publishes in the areas of religious development and spiritual practices. A recent book is"Reading to Live: The Evolving Practice of Lectio Divina" (Cistercian Publications).

Why is the Bible a good book to use in prayer. Can we all use it?

–People often describe prayer as talking with God. St. Cyprian (d. 256) observed that reading the Bible is allowing God to talk to us. The passages we read from the Bible become a part of the dialogue we have with God when we pray. Another early Church figure, Origen (185-234) noted that the Bible speaks to us at whatever level of the spiritual life we happen to be. If we are beginners, we find God’s word in the Bible directing us on how to live virtuous lives and avoid sin. For those more advanced in the spiritual life, the Bible brings us God’s invitation to a deeper relationship with our triune God.

The point is that the Bible has a very personal message for us wherever we find ourselves, if we read it much as we might read a letter from a very close friend. As we read slowly and savor what we read, the Bible shapes and forms us into the Lord’s disciples. We begin to view the world and ourselves from God’s perspective.

How can we tell the difference between something that comes from God because it is something He wants to tell us, and an interpretation we make ourselves when praying the Bible?

–In the early Church, Christians believed that the same Spirit who inspired the writers of the sacred texts is at work in us as we read the Bible. St. Paul reminds us that the fruits of the Spirit are “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (Gal 5:22). If those signs of the Spirit are absent or if we find ourselves out of harmony with what the Christian community believes, we have evidence that we are guided by some spirit other than the Holy Spirit.

The Scriptures function as a mirror in which we see our true condition and also serve as a measuring rod for assessing our progress in the Christian life. The Holy Spirit as we read the Scriptures works to shape us into people who love as God loves us.

What should we do when there’s something in the Bible that we don’t understand?

–Many find a Catholic Study Bible helpful as they read the Scriptures because difficult passages are explained in footnotes and in introductions for each of the books of the Bible. Christian readers also learn to look for deeper meanings in a text when the literal sense does not seem to apply. The prayer that should accompany reading the Bible can take the form of a request for understanding what the text is communicating about the divine and our growth in Christian discipleship.

If we want to start praying with the Bible, where’s the best place to start?

–Admittedly, some books in the Bible are easier to understand and to apply to what is going on in our lives. The Gospels, the Letters of St. Paul, the Prophets, and the Psalms are texts that many turn to for nourishment in their spiritual lives. If we are just beginning to incorporate reading the Scriptures into our spiritual practices, those writings are a good place to start. The Bible then functions as a spiritual trainer guiding us to exercises that are foundational in Christian living and help us to mature spiritually.

When talking about the Bible, it is easy to hear the term "Lectio Divina". What does it mean?

–Lectio Divina (Sacred Reading) is a spiritual practice involving a slow, meditative reading of the Scriptures or some other classic spiritual text. It typically includes four steps:

slow reading of a short passage, letting words sink in;
meditating/pondering on what God is communicating to the reader through that passage;
praying for what the passage describes or asks;
contemplating/resting in an experience of God that may come because of reading the passage.

A belief undergirding this practice is that the text has something particular to communicate to the reader in his or her unique circumstances. Texts have layers of spiritual meaning in addition to their literal meaning. Those devoted to this practice usually spend twenty to thirty minutes daily doing lectio divina.

What would you advise a person that told you: “I’ve already read the Bible many times, there’s nothing more to learn from it. Now what?”

–We read the Bible not for information but for formation. Consequently, readers believe the Biblical text never loses its potency to transform them as they continue their journey of faith.

It provides the reader with a sacramental experience of an encounter with the divine. They may know the story presented in the passage very well, but that sacred story continues to impact them and their personal life story. What they read is a script that they are to enact. It is not simply to be thought about but to be performed and that is a lifelong task.

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Francis expresses "heartfelt thanks" for the "human and spiritual closeness" at Gemelli

A smiling Pope expressed his gratitude today at the Angelus to all those who have shown him "affection, concern and friendship, and prayer. This human and spiritual closeness has been of great help and comfort to me. He also expressed his "great sadness and great pain" for the victims of the "very serious" shipwreck off the coast of Greece, and prayed for Uganda and Ukraine.

Francisco Otamendi-June 18, 2023-Reading time: 3 minutes

Pope Francis' smile before praying the Angelus, and after the final Blessing, and his thanks to so many people for their "human and spiritual closeness" in the days before the Angelus, and after the final Blessing. hospitalized at the Gemelli was the best news today, Sunday, in San Pedro.

"This closeness has been of great help to me, comforting. Thank you all, thank you, thank you from the bottom of my heart," said the Holy Father before beginning his customary meditation before the prayer of the Angelus with Romans and pilgrims from various countries, from the window of the Apostolic Palace in St. Peter's Square.

Closeness was precisely the theme of his initial reflection before praying the Angelus. The Pope referred to the closeness of God. "Today, in the Gospel, Jesus calls by name and sends the twelve Apostles," the Holy Father said. "In sending them out, he asks them to proclaim only one thing: 'Go and proclaim that the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand' (Mt 10:7). It is the same proclamation with which Jesus began his preaching: the kingdom of God, that is, his lordship of love, has come near, it is coming in our midst. And this is not one piece of news among others, but the fundamental reality of life: the nearness of God, the nearness of Jesus.

"God is my father, our Father."

"In fact, if the God of heaven is near, we are not alone on earth and in difficulties we do not lose faith either," the Pope pointed out. "This is the first thing to tell people: God is not distant, but he is Father, he knows you and loves you; he wants to take you by the hand, also when you go down steep and difficult paths, also when you fall and find it hard to get up and get back on your feet. He knows the way, he is with you, he is your Father! "He is my Father! He is our Father!" he reiterated with emphasis.

Francis then turned to the image of the trusting and confident child with his father. "We remain with this image, because to proclaim God close to us is to invite us to think like a child who walks hand in hand with his father: everything seems different to him. The world, big and mysterious, becomes familiar and safe, because the child knows he is protected. He is not afraid and learns to open himself: he meets other people, finds new friends, learns with joy things he did not know and then returns home and tells everyone what he has seen, while the desire grows in him to grow up and do the things he has seen his father do".

And he continued in his brief message: "This is why Jesus starts from here, because the closeness of God is the first proclamation: being close to God we overcome fear, we open ourselves to love, we grow in goodness and we feel the need and the joy of proclaiming.

If we want to be good apostles, we must be like children: sit "on God's knees" and from there look at the world with trust and love, to witness that God is Father, that He alone transforms our hearts and gives us that joy and peace that we ourselves cannot attain".

Then he asked: "Proclaim that God is near, but how can we do it?" and he answered: with witness, with gestures, without many words. "In the Gospel, Jesus advises us not to say many words, but to make many gestures of love and hope in the name of the Lord: "Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. Freely you received it: freely give it" (Mt 10:8). This is the heart of the proclamation: gratuitous witness, service".

A little examination

In closing, the Pope returned to the questions, as he usually does, and to the Virgin Mary. "Having arrived at this point, let us ask ourselves some questions: we, who believe in the God who is near, do we trust in Him? Do we know how to look ahead with confidence, like a child who knows he is carried in the arms of the Father? Do we know how to sit on the Father's knees with prayer, with listening to the Word, approaching the Sacraments?"

"And finally, close to Him, do we know how to instill courage in others, to be close to those who suffer and are alone, to those who are far away and also to those who are hostile to us? In recent days I have received much closeness and for this I bless God and I am grateful to all of you: thank you from the bottom of my heart! Now let us pray to Mary, that she may help us to feel loved and to transmit trust and closeness to one another".

Uganda, Ukraine, victims at sea

In his concluding remarks, the Pope recalled the recent wreck on the Greek coasts and its prayer for the victims, and implored "that everything possible be done to prevent similar tragedies", recalling that next Tuesday, June 20, is World Refugee Day, promoted by the United Nations".

He also recalled "the brutal attack that took place in Uganda"He prayed for the young students. "This struggle, this war on all sides...", he pointed out. He has also prayed that "let us persevere in prayer for the martyred Ukraine, which suffers so much." "Let us pray for peace"was the request of Pope Francis.

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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Eucharistic Christocentrism II

The author reflects and proposes a series of notions with the aim of inviting a greater approach to the Eucharist.

Emilio Liaño-June 18, 2023-Reading time: 6 minutes

This article is a continuation of another article that was published under the title of "Eucharist: the personal encounter with Christ". The truth is that although the title is very correct, it was not the one initially proposed, which was "Eucharistic Christocentrism" as the present one is titled. For this reason, I proposed to write a second article that would take up the notion from its title in order to insist a little more on these ideas.

In the first text it was already said that both Christocentrism and the Eucharist are not new themes in the Church and that both have received much attention from theologians and pastors. However, they are not usually treated together, which seems to me could help a better understanding of both.

I would also like to recall that something that was at the origin of these articles has been the scarce presence of Christians in the temples outside of liturgical celebrations or other community pastoral practices. This is not to say that attendance at these events is wrong, or that they should not be convened, but that, in addition to them, there is also a need for a more regular accompaniment of God in the Eucharist, who has remained there to be with us.

In this line, we insist once again on these two notions so that they invite us to draw closer to the Eucharist. The reflections will be brief because it is not a question of supporting them with great arguments, but only by way of appeals, which, in the end, is what Christ does when he seeks us out.

1. Christocentrism

Christcentrism, as we saw in the previous article, seeks to place the person of Christ at the center of the Christian religion. But can it be otherwise? Of course it can.

A relatively easy way to understand Christianity is through the actions of its followers. For example, Christianity is the religion in which you have to go to Mass because it is there that the death of the God-Man is celebrated where he obtained the salvation of the whole human race. To this we could add many other actions that may have more or less importance.

Another way of understanding Christianity could be through the Decalogue that binds Christians. Christians would then identify themselves by obeying the commands given by God. All this is understandable because when someone of good will comes into contact with Christianity he usually asks himself what one must do to be a Christian. A normative type of answer is then expected.

However, when asked what is the center of Christianity, looking at the New Testament, the short answer is to believe in the gospel. And what is there to believe? That Christ, the man who gave his life for us, is God. Christcentrism tries to put this reality in the focus of our religion, putting order over other themes that may have their relevance, but must always be in second place to this most nuclear truth.

The Christian religion is the hope in the coming of a savior messiah who brings us forgiveness and joy. Faith tells us that this messiah died and rose from the dead, never to die again. Therefore Christ lives, and if one day he gave his life for us, now we cannot think that he is indifferent to our lives. Christ lives and wants to be with us, by our side. Now there is nothing to prevent Him from doing so except our will.

Unfortunately, we may think that Christ expects something from us, but we do not know that what he expects is ourselves. Christ has a will and an understanding, and a tongue to speak, and also a heart that desires a lot of things, among them ours. It is a lack of faith to think that Christ cannot communicate with us, and even more to think that he does not. That is false because Christ does not abandon any of his creatures for whom he gave his blood.

It may be true that in our days it is more difficult for us to discover where Jesus is. This is a barrier that is probably very widespread and may seem imposing to us, but we should not fear it in the least because we overcome it as soon as we place ourselves in the presence of God, addressing ourselves directly to Him. But don't I feel anything? Perhaps there is nothing to feel. If we judge our relationship with God from our feelings, it is quite possible that it is a bit deteriorated because it will understand many things from where it should not. Christ does not seek to fill our feelings, but to reach our heart, or what is the same thing, that we reach His heart.

Moving in this direction helps to rebuild our relationship with God. To go towards God, we need her grace which means in itself to be pleasing in the eyes of God. The Virgin Mary is full of grace. And this grace can only be given to us by God. Christ does not ask us to be able to go to Him, nor does He ask us to have the strength, or even the desire. He simply asks us to come to Him sincerely, from the heart, because He does the rest.

Perhaps we make an effort one day, or several, and then we think that later it must be easier because we have already been generous for a more or less long time. These kinds of thoughts eventually decay because Christ wants us to come to Him again and again, and to leave everything else in His heart. I am not saying that going to the heart of Christ is easy, but it is an open and welcoming place as long as we move towards Him. Christ's heart closes only when we give up, and only as long as we leave Him abandoned. That this moving towards Christ is not easy also tells us that we must go to Him little by little, according to our strength. Christ is not in a hurry because he has our whole life ahead of us. He only asks us to come to him with the intention of meeting him personally, of seeking his face.

2. Eucharistic

The second term is Eucharistic. When we discover that Christ has a heart that loves us, we ask ourselves where we can find Him and the answer is in the Eucharist.

We cannot forget that God can be addressed everywhere, and so can Jesus. Certainly, we do not need any special circumstance or a specific place to address God, but Jesus wanted to remain with mankind until the end of time, and this he has concretized in a material presence in the Eucharist.

Jesus is in the tabernacles waiting for us to come, not to watch the time pass. Jesus in the Eucharist wants us to meet Him. When someone enters a church, He longs for us to look at Him, to say something to Him. It may happen that many times we pass by indifferently as if the tabernacle were just another stone in the temple, but this does not leave His heart indifferent. Jesus, the great lover, has remained materially on earth for us to feel His love. Truly no one can say that today God has forgotten mankind because that only means that he has not understood what the Eucharist is.

On the other hand, the Eucharist is the great remedy for all our needs. If we notice that we are sad, or that life is not going well for us, or so many things that can make us suffer, our solution is to go to the Tabernacle. The Tabernacle comes to fulfill a great desire of Jesus to be with us, and also comes to resolve all our needs, physical, moral, personal, family, professional, etc. The Tabernacle is the best place where we can be because it is where God gives Himself to us in the fullest way, according to His will.

Perhaps we may notice that going to the Tabernacle is costly, something that should not surprise us because we have been allowing indifference to this divine reality to creep in more and more. For this reason, sometimes we may approach the Tabernacle and feel like leaving His presence, or of thinking about things that have nothing to do with Him, distracting our mind. As we said before, we must know that He only asks us to come into His presence and turn to Him. The rest we leave in His hands. We only have to persevere in that intention and rectify it when we see that it goes wrong.

The Tabernacle should not be reduced to the place where we go to pray. That may be fine, but it is insufficient. The Tabernacle is the place where we go to address God, to invoke Him in order to access His Presence. From Christ-centeredness, the Eucharist is the place where we can discover the face of the Man-God. In the Eucharist, Jesus wants a true relationship of intimacy with us, not simply that we pass the time by saying a few prayers. We must know that discovering the face of Jesus, or being intimate with Him, requires going again and again in the spirit of meeting Him.

When we go to the Tabernacle with the sincere desire to be close to Him, Jesus changes our hearts, but little by little, according to His times, not according to what seems to us because of the effort we have put in. To demand something from God is not a good practice because He is the One who really knows what we need. We easily allow ourselves to be deceived by so many trifles because we are so ignorant about the things of God. We must go to the Tabernacle with the intention of giving, without wanting to receive anything in return, because otherwise we immediately find too many reasons to leave, not the least of which is the uneasiness that invades us. However, and this is within the reach of everyone, going to the Tabernacle with the sole idea of pleasing Him changes our life.

3. Conclusions

The conclusion of this article is simple. It is only intended to encourage us not to leave Jesus cornered in the churches. It is enough to go as much as we can, better if it is every day, as long as our generosity and strength suggest.

It is not a matter of spending many hours a day, but of spending as much time as we can with the one we know loves us, and who loves us to be by his side.

The authorEmilio Liaño

Eucharist

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"In the face of hypersexualization, educate the body to love".

Initiatives

Courage, helping people with same-sex attraction

"Courage International is "a Catholic apostolate for people experiencing same-sex attraction and their loved ones". In this interview, the Courage team talks about their work, chastity, the importance of friendship and recognizing our dignity as children of God.

Paloma López Campos-June 18, 2023-Reading time: 8 minutes

The apostolate of "Courage International"Courage is a spiritual and pastoral accompaniment for people who experience same-sex attractions. The Courage team wants to remember that the most important thing about everyone is our dignity as children of God, which is not lost according to our sexual tendencies.

The entire apostolate of this group is based on the Holy Scriptures and the Gospel. They live welcoming everyone "with love and mercy, as Jesus would do". They talk about this in this interview, in which they deal with topics such as chastity, friendship and feelings of guilt.

What does the work of "Courage" consist of?

- The work of the "Courage International" apostolate - founded in 1980 and now present in more than 20 countries - consists in the spiritual and pastoral accompaniment of men and women who experience same-sex attraction. These people have freely decided to live a life of chastity according to the teachings of the Catholic Church.

Members of the apostolate meet regularly in chapters (groups) led by a chaplain-a priest or permanent deacon appointed by their local bishop-who guides them spiritually based on the Five Goals of Courage. In summary, these goals invite and encourage Courage members to deepen their understanding and living of the virtue of chastity; to have a strong spiritual and sacramental life; to build a spirit of brotherhood among members so that they may help one another; to forge chaste friendships recognizing the blessing they signify in the Christian life; and to have their lives be a witness to others.

What is chastity and how can we commit to living it in a hyper-sexualized world?

- The virtue of chastity, as the Catechism explains, is "the achieved integration of the sexuality in the person and thus in the inner unity of man in his bodily and spiritual being". Regardless of his state in life - single, married, priestly or consecrated - every baptized person is called to live chastity. This virtue purifies the soul and body in an integral way according to the nature and vocation of each person for a total gift of self.
Our commitment to live chastity should arise from the recognition of our own dignity as beloved children of God, made in his image and likeness. Certainly, living chastity has always been demanding and even more so today, given the hypersexualized and hedonistic social climate in which we live. However, it is possible to live chastity with God's grace and a solid spiritual life.

With regard to the latter, the Church proposes various means to help us live chastity. Among them are: the sacramental life, prayer, order and asceticism according to one's state in life, the living of the moral virtues, especially temperance (a virtue that puts the passions under the control of reason), and self-knowledge (Catechism of the Catholic Church, n. 2337). It is essential for each person to know himself in the light of God's plan. Since it is "Christ who reveals the man to the man himself" (Gaudium et spes(n. 22) that personal knowledge is only fully possible through an encounter with Christ, the model of our own humanity. It is he who speaks to our heart and soul and urges us to be light in the midst of the world.
Apart from spiritual work, this commitment to living chastity also requires a purification of the culture and social climate.(Catechism of the Catholic Churchn. 2525) that must begin in marriage and in the family itself. If one does not know about sexuality, it is difficult to understand the virtue of chastity and the freedom that living it brings. Unfortunately, it is a topic that is still taboo in the home. If parents do not discuss it in time with their children, they will look elsewhere for answers. Developments in communications have facilitated access to other immediate "answers" that are often not only incorrect, but contrary to natural law and faith.

After the home, it is important to address the issue in ecclesial environments, so that the experience of chastity will not only be better understood, but also more bearable. Sometimes it is thought to be a repression of feelings or desires, when in fact it is the opposite. Chastity allows the fullness of love in freedom, in the integrity of the human person.

In Courage you talk a lot about friendship, how important is it in the life of Christians?

- The virtue of friendship, which is "a direct requirement of human and Christian fraternity".(Catechism of the Catholic Church(b. 1939), plays a very important role in the life of a Christian. Friendship unites two or more people as they strive to achieve a common interest or goal, including the desire to attain holiness together and to grow in their relationship with Christ, who said to his apostles, "I call you friends" (Jn 15:15). Christ calls his friends to form one Body with him and with each other, so that the clearest sign of one's love for God is the extent to which he loves his neighbor (cf. 1 John 4:20-21).

In our apostolate we talk a lot about friendship because we know, as the Church teaches us, that "chastity develops in friendship".(Catechism of the Catholic Church, n. 2347). As Fr. Philip Bochanski, who until a few weeks ago was executive director of Courage International, used to say, "Friendship is not a consolation prize, not a 'second-class love,' but a real bond, the foundation of every authentic relationship." Jesus himself taught us to cultivate these human relationships and we see it throughout the Gospels. As Sirach tells us, "a faithful friend is a sure refuge, he who finds him has found a treasure" (Sirach 6:14).

How can families help and support their LGBT loved ones?

- In the Church, families have the wonderful mission of accompanying their loved ones and helping them, little by little, to come to an encounter with Jesus Christ, always welcoming them with charity and truth.

The first thing I recommend to those who have just learned that a family member or loved one identifies as LGBT is not to be alarmed. I recommend that you listen to the person and try, even if it is difficult, to understand the particular moment they are going through. It is very important that you express your unconditional love for him/her and help him/her little by little to rediscover his/her deepest identity as a child of God. May they walk with their loved one towards the encounter with the Heart of Jesus. There they can find that Love and freedom that we all seek.

It is not always prudent to begin this accompaniment by explaining everything the Catechism says on the subject. It all depends on their situation, their faith life and the moment they are living. Families should consider all this when helping their loved ones.

After this first big step, in order to be able to accompany in the best way, besides having an active spiritual life, it is very necessary that the family members be formed with the teachings of the Church on this subject. Our experience in this pastoral is that there is a lot of ignorance and ignorance on the subject. It is urgent and necessary that they be formed in the teachings of the Church in the light of the Holy Spirit. This will help them to love with greater freedom and to know and live the Truth not only in what refers to same sex attraction, but in everything that concerns the human person, always with charity, patience and gentleness.

It is essential that they pray, not only for their family member, but also for themselves. May they pray to be faithful instruments of God's love in their families, aware that the salvation of their children is not in their own hands, but in God's hands. Prayer also disposes the hearts of parents to trust in the Lord and respect the freedom and processes of their children, who, in due time, will listen to the voice of God in their hearts. The life of prayer allows parents to recognize that they are not in control of their children's lives, thus opening themselves to the overwhelming power of grace.

I also invite you to entrust yourselves to the intercession of Mary Most Holy, St. Monica and St. Augustine. Finally, if possible, I recommend that you seek a priest or spiritual director to accompany you spiritually on this journey.

It seems that today we tend to focus on people's sexuality and tendencies. How do we avoid defining people solely by their sexual tendencies?

- Indeed, people today are increasingly defined by their sexual or affective attractions. However, a person's humanity encompasses much more than his or her sexual desires. The Church views the person in light of his or her identity as a child of God, created good, free and in God's image and likeness.

Consequently, the Church tells us that the person "cannot be adequately defined by a reductive reference only to his or her sexual orientation" (Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, "Letter to the Bishops of the Catholic Church on the Pastoral Care of Homosexual Persons" (1986), no. 15). As Pope Francis once stated, "Persons should not be defined solely on the basis of their sexual tendencies." Therefore, in order to avoid reducing people to their sexual tendencies, we must always keep in mind their dignity as children of God.
At Courage Apostolate, we do not refer to our members as "gay" or "LGBTQ". These terms could give the impression that same-sex attractions define a separate type or category of person with different morals. Rather, we refer to them as our brothers and sisters, men and women, who experience same-sex attraction.

From the beginning God has revealed to man his identity: "Male and female he created them"! Our whole being speaks of who we are, beginning with each of our cells, down to the most obvious differences in our bodies. We must strive to use the right language to be able to express the full dignity of the human person and not remain in only one aspect.

Conversations about sexual proclivities and LGBT are highly polarized.. Is it possible to discuss this without falling into radical or ideological positions?

- Of course, because we are talking about the human person. This dialogue is possible when we know with clarity the teachings of the Church and when we have an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ, Truth itself. It is of no use to know the truths of our faith, if they are not incarnated in our lives to share them with deep charity as Jesus did. And certainly living what Jesus himself taught us is the most liberating for the human heart, and demanding.
As Jesus explains in the Gospel, in the world we must be "shrewd as serpents and innocent as doves" (Mt 10:16). It is important to know how to discern in the light of the Holy Spirit whether it is the right time, the right situation or the right place to engage in this dialogue. It is a subject that touches very sensitive and deep fibers of the human being, in many cases, also wounds of the heart. Therefore, it is essential to be aware that we are entering sacred ground. This is how to begin a dialogue on the subject: with charity and truth. If both are not present, it is better to leave it for another time.
Enlightened by the truth of Scripture and the Magisterium, and inflamed with the love of Christ in our hearts, we will be able to engage in these dialogues with "the Jesus method," as one of our Courage members calls it.

How does Courage help people recover from feelings of guilt and unworthiness after offenses against chastity?

- Welcoming them with love and mercy, as Jesus would do. Letting them know that God loves them infinitely, that they are much more than their falls and sins, that they are -once again- beloved children of God. That the Lord, in his infinite mercy always forgives them whenever they repent, because he knows their heart. The spiritual fatherhood of the chaplain of "Courage" is an invaluable benefit for the members of the local chapters. In the chaplain they find the loving welcome and pastoral accompaniment that the Church offers her children.

As Pope Francis said, "we must always consider the person. Here we enter into the mystery of the human being. In life, God accompanies people and we must accompany them starting from their situation. It is necessary to accompany them with mercy. When that happens, the Holy Spirit inspires the priest to say the right words" (Pope Francis, quoted by Antonio Spadaro, "A Big Heart Open to God," America 209:8, September 30, 2013).
The good that priests can do in the confessional is a gift given by God from on high and a treasure in the Church. We invite all priests to show the love and mercy of the Heart of Jesus to those who come to their confessionals in repentance. Do not fail to speak to them with the Truth that liberates the soul and with the mercy that embraces the human heart. Be truly other Christs and act as the Lord did with the sinful woman: "Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more" (Jn 8:11).

"In the face of hypersexualization, educate the body to love".

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U.S. Bishops' Plenary Meeting begins

United States Bishops' Spring Plenary Concludes

On June 16, the Spring Plenary Assembly of the United States Conference of Bishops concluded in Orlando, Florida.

Gonzalo Meza-June 17, 2023-Reading time: 3 minutes

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On Friday, June 16, the Spring Plenary Assembly of the United States Conference of Bishops (USCCB). It was a time of discussion, prayer and fraternal sharing among the bishops. During the Assembly, the progress of the National Eucharistic Congress in 2024 was presented, the Synod on Synodality and World Youth Day were discussed. The prelates also approved several documents including a guide for the ongoing formation of priests and a new translation of some parts of the Liturgy of the Hours.

The bishops also agreed to initiate the drafting of a new pastoral statement for persons with disabilities in the Church. They also approved a new pastoral plan to strengthen Hispanic ministry and finally agreed to continue with the process for the cause of beatification and canonization at the diocesan level of the "Martyrs of Shreveport" in Louisiana.

New National Plan for Hispanic Ministry

The new plan focuses on the realities of the pastoral hispana. It is the fruit of the V Encuentro Hispano and includes vital aspects for developing Latino ministry in the coming years at the national, diocesan and parish levels. The text outlines a set of objectives for pastoral practices that prioritize the encounter with people from the peripheries with a message of welcome and hope. Each of the points has precise dates for accomplishing the goals, which begin in 2023.

The objectives are to support lifelong learning and ongoing conversion; provide sacramental preparation and mystagogical catechesis; assist Hispanic parents in the transmission of the faith to their children; strengthen marriage formation in the community; formation of leaders in the domestic church and pastoral accompaniment of families. The plan also seeks to reach out to Hispanic youth to form them as missionary disciples and provide them with ongoing spiritual and pastoral formation.

The goals of the new plan also include providing pastoral care and accompaniment to families separated due to deportation or detention; advocating for comprehensive and just immigration reform; and accompanying Hispanics in discovering their gifts and discernment for ministry in the Church and service in society. The text also marks as an important goal the formation of liturgical ministers for Hispanic communities as well as increasing the number of Hispanic vocations to the priesthood, consecrated life, permanent diaconate, lay ministry and marriage.

The Shreveport Martyrs

As in other Assemblies, the bishops discussed and approved causes for beatification and canonization. In this meeting the protagonists were the "martyrs of Shreveport". Five Servants of God of French origin: Jean Pierre, Isidore Quémerais, Jean Marie Biler, Louis Gergaud, and François LeVézouët, who exercised their ministry in Louisiana and died during the yellow fever epidemic of 1873, one of the worst plagues ever recorded in the USA. The city lost a quarter of its population in less than three months.

The priests were recruited by the bishop of the now defunct diocese of Natchitoches, Louisiana, Auguste Marie Martin who went to Rennes, France to extend to them an invitation already circulating in France to recruit priests and seminarians to serve in Florida and Louisiana. The prospects did not sound very encouraging: "We offer you no salary or rewards, no vacation or pension, but a lot of work, poor housing, few comforts, many setbacks, frequent illnesses, a violent or lonely death and an unknown grave.

In spite of this warning, the five Breton priests accepted, keeping in mind the teachings of St. Paul: "The sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed in us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? tribulation? distress? persecution? famine? nakedness? peril? sword? For I am sure that neither death nor life nor angels nor principalities nor things present nor things to come nor powers nor height nor depth nor any other creature will be able to separate us from the love of God manifested in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Rom 8:18,35,38-39).

In October 1873, the martyrs of Shreveport died imparting the sacraments to the sick and dying, exercising their priestly ministry. A few days before his death, some parishioners warned Father Le Vézouët that if he continued his work with the people he would die of the epidemic. To which he replied: "I know. But I think I am taking the safest and shortest way to Paradise".

Learn more about the martyrs of Shreveport: https://shreveportmartyrs.org/

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Cardinal Grech: the challenge of communication in the synodal journey

Books

The Holy See's communication, between reform and evangelization

Angelo Scelzo's book 'Dal Concilio al web. La comunicazione vaticana e la scorta della riforma' analyzes the communication challenges facing the Church in a world dominated by new technologies, to decline them as instruments of evangelization.

Antonino Piccione-June 17, 2023-Reading time: 3 minutes

Angelo Scelzo, author of 'Dal Concilio al web. La comunicazione vaticana e la scorta della riforma' (CNS photo/Catholic Press Photo).

The invitation to recover the conciliar lesson that urges "not to trivialize the message". This was formulated by Cardinal Matteo ZuppiArchbishop of Bologna and President of the Italian Episcopal Conference, during the presentation, on Wednesday, June 14, at the Lumsa University of Romefrom Angelo Scelzo's book 'Dal Concilio al web. La comunicazione vaticana e la scorta della riforma', published by Libreria Editrice Vaticana.

The work represents "the testimony left by a modest 'insider' at an important moment of change", as the author himself, who was vice-director of 'L'Osservatore Romano', undersecretary of the then Pontifical Council for Social Communications and vice-director of the Holy See Press Office, points out in conclusion.

"Sometimes journalistic interpretation does not include the reading of the text," Zuppi pointed out, citing the case of the speech delivered by Benedict XVI at Regensburg. Sometimes it happens that "the journalist's attitude is so prejudiced that the text ends up becoming irrelevant."

The challenges of communication

The book analyzes the communication challenges facing the Church in a world dominated by new technologies, in order to use them as instruments of evangelization. In the first pages the story of the steps that led to the reform desired by Pope Francis. In the background, the origins of Vatican communication born of the Council. Mention is made of the changes in the field of communication, the great events covered by the media, the different styles and languages of the popes and communication in times of pandemic.

Zuppi described it as a "historical excursus" that helps to retrace the "complexity" of the Holy See's communication from Vatican II to today, explaining that "there is a 'speaking with the language of the heart', simple, direct, immediate", like that of Pope Francis, but there is also "interpretation", in which there is sometimes a certain "malice".

Communication, a fundamental part of the mission

After the greeting of the Rector of Lumsa Francesco Bonini, the Prefect of the Dicastery for Communication, Paolo Ruffini, pointed out that "communication is a fundamental part of the Church's mission". The challenge is "to build, with the humility of artisans, a relational system capable of collecting, organizing and networking a different reading of the world".

Father Federico Lombardi, director of the Holy See Press Office from 2006 to 2016, lived through the first steps of the reform. "There was a common conviction that it was necessary," he says, "it was felt that it was urgent and that too much was being expected, but the feeling was that someone was missing who had the courage to set a process in motion. This happened with the pontificate of Pope Francis."

In recent years, Vatican communication has experienced "an avalanche of scoops," added Gabriele Romagnoli, columnist for La Repubblica, recalling Benedict XVI's helicopter flight to Castel Gandolfo after resigning from the papacy, and Pope Francis' prayer in a deserted St. Peter's Square during the pandemic.

For Marco Tarquinio, former editor-in-chief of Avvenire, in an age in which everything "goes fast," even the Church has to catch up. It is enough to think "of the means that bring to earth the voice of man speaking for God, at a time when machines are beginning to speak for and in place of man."

The meeting was moderated by Valentina Alazraki, correspondent for Tve Mexico.

The authorAntonino Piccione

Communication

Cardinal Grech: the challenge of communication in the synodal journey

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Scripture

Mark Giszczak on the Bible, truthfulness and inclusive language

Mark Giszczak holds a PhD in Biblical Studies, specializing in the Old Testament. He teaches at the Augustine Institute and has written many texts on the Bible, its interpretations and translations. In this interview he discusses the current challenges facing translators, the inclusive language debate and the veracity of texts.

Paloma López Campos-June 17, 2023-Reading time: 8 minutes

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Mark Giszczak, Ph.D., teaches classes at the Augustine Institute, but he also writes books and gives talks about the Bible. He thinks that "we need to get to know God, read his word and let ourselves be changed and impacted by it". At the same time, "we have to recognize that we will never know everything."

– Supernatural Holy Bible Do we know if the texts are accurate? How does inclusive language impact translations? What are the challenges to capturing the authentic message of the Word? In this interview with Omnes, Dr. Giszczak addresses these and other questions.

What is the biggest challenge now facing Bible translators?

- In my book on Bible translation I talk about the challenge of inclusive language, which has been a very important topic of discussion over the last fifty years. There has been a real shift in the way we think about men and women, about roles, and language has a lot to do with it.

In Bible translation, some translators have gone in the direction of trying to make the Bible as inclusive as possible. And others have taken a different, more conservative approach. They say we should make as many things as we can as inclusive as possible, but if the biblical text is gendered, then we should translate it as it is.

This becomes a kind of dialogue about the right way to translate. And I think as the conversation around genre continues to change, Bible translators will continue to have to reflect on the right approach.

On the one hand, there is a kind of tendency to yield to whatever the culture is doing at the time. On the other, there is a tendency to resist the culture. I think the right way to go is somewhere in between. Christian translators should resist the idea that contemporary culture can rewrite biblical anthropology. But, on the other hand, I think we must translate in a way that communicates with contemporary culture.

How can translators make sure that they do not miss the true meaning of what God meant?

- In certain religious traditions they solved this problem by not translating, the Koran is famous for that. In Islam, if you really want to be a scholar of the religion, you have to study Arabic and read the Koran in the original language. Something similar happens in Judaism. In Christianity, however, we have a tradition of translating the Scriptures.

This actually goes back to early Judaism. In Greek and Roman times, around the time of Jesus, most Jews did not know Hebrew, many of them spoke Greek. The Old Testament was translated into Greek for them and that is the version of the Old Testament that the early Christians adopted, because most of them also spoke Greek.

When the Church began to evangelize, many Christians spoke Latin. Therefore, it was necessary to have both a Greek and a Latin version of the Bible. This meant that our sacred text existed in several languages and always faced the problem of translation.

We have inherited this problem in a special way in our time. Today Christianity is a global phenomenon and there are many languages into which the Bible needs to be translated.

All translators face problems because, in order to make a good translation, the translator has to understand the original languages and cultures very well, but also has to be a good student of the target language, to understand how the meaning of one language family can be translated or transferred to a different one.

There are two basic approaches to Bible translation. One is dynamic (or functional) equivalence and the other is word-for-word (or formal) equivalence. Dynamic equivalence can be very helpful in getting as many Bible translations done as quickly as possible, but the theory of dynamic equivalence is inaccurate by design, it is meant to be very flexible. And when it comes to theological ideas and the teaching and tradition of the Church, it is very important that our translations convey as carefully as possible what God intends to teach us in the sacred text.

This is where the Vatican changed its policy on translation. We can see this in a 2001 document, "Liturgiam authenticamThe Bible is a "Bible translator," which promotes fidelity and accuracy in Bible translation. It says that one should strive to maintain fidelity to the original text. But also strive to explain the text in a way that is understandable to speakers of the target language.

It is a constant tension in Bible translation. Are you going to focus primarily on the text and be very accurate, or are you going to focus more on the audience and exactly how they are going to understand it? Different translations and different translators have adopted different theories depending on how they are going to answer that question.

It seems that language is now a volatile thing that changes rapidly. Also, people are easily offended when others use certain words. This is a challenge for translators, how can they deal with it?

- Language has always been political, because it's the way we communicate ideas and concepts. And there are things in the Bible that offend people, and depending on what era you live in, people will be offended by different things. I think as catechists and evangelists we can do our best to explain the ideas of the Bible in the most inoffensive way possible. But it is true that the language of the Bible is sacred and therefore unalterable.

An example of this is that God reveals himself as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We know theologically that God has no gender, but the fact that we know that theological idea does not allow us to change the way God reveals himself. For example, some Christians have experimented with referring to God as Mother or the Holy Spirit as "she," and this kind of manipulation of biblical language is very dangerous. It runs the risk of completely undermining God's revelation to us.

If we start changing the principles of the Bible that we don't like, suddenly we are no longer students or disciples of the Bible, but in a way we are telling the Bible what it should teach us. This is a very risky position to take.

How do we know that the Bible we read today is the Bible that was written hundreds of years ago? How do we know that it has not been tampered with?

- This is a complex issue. In libraries all over the world we have ancient copies of the Holy Scriptures and many of them are fragmentary. Many of the earliest copies we have of the Bible come in small pieces, but some of the largest manuscripts we have are very old, from the time of Emperor Constantine.

As scholars have analyzed all the evidence of these fragments and manuscripts, they have been able to demonstrate that there is continuity over time. There are no major breaks in the chain of transmission from antiquity through medieval times and monasteries to modern libraries and translations.

The text of the New Testament, for example, has been examined in great detail by scholars. We are certain about it, about 98 % and 99 %. There are certain passages where it is not very clear what the original text was, but for the most part, 99 %, we know it is accurate.

Another major piece of evidence that has been useful is the Dead Sea Scrolls. Our earliest copies of the complete Hebrew Bible are quite late, around 900 A.D., but the Dead Sea Scrolls are dated around the time of Jesus. These scrolls verify that our copies of the Hebrew Bible are accurate. Now, it is true that some things have changed. The spelling conventions have changed and there are certain parts that are slightly different, what we call textual variation. But we have found, for example, a complete copy of the book of Isaiah, which has 66 chapters, and it matches our text of the Hebrew Bible. Thus, we can verify that the Jewish tradition of transmitting the Hebrew text really preserved the original text with great accuracy.

Fragments of the Dead Sea Scrolls (Wikimedia Commons / Ken and Nyetta)

How can we explain the different interpretations that each of us gives to the texts and make sure that they do not divert us from the true teachings of the Church?

- God, in his wisdom, did not create us all exactly alike. Each of us has our own personality, characteristics and life history. God, in his wisdom and truth, is able to reach each of us in our own individuality.

Thus, whether we think of the difference between one Pope and another, or the differences between the homily of one priest and that of another on the same Sunday Gospel, each person, in his or her own individuality, is able to respond to the Word of God in a unique way.

There is something really beautiful about this. Because God creates us as individuals, each of us has an individual story and an individual life, and our response to God is going to be unique. And yet, when we come together as Church, we are united in the one truth of the Gospel, in the one Church of Christ and in the one Baptism.

What should we do when we do not understand the Bible?

- This is a really important concept for us. Each of us, in our particular vocation and life, needs to get to know God, read his word and allow ourselves to be changed and impacted by it. And we need to recognize that we will never know everything.

If we look back in the Christian tradition, we see many attempts in the lives of the saints and doctors of the Church, and even in ecclesiastical architecture, to make the Bible understandable. For example, if you walk through the famous Gothic cathedrals of France and look at the stained glass windows, they tell the stories of the Bible.

That is why I believe that in the life of the Church we have a constant need to grow in our relationship with God, in prayer and in knowledge. And this is where every effort we make to educate people about the Bible is really useful and valuable. Without that kind of education that accompanies Scripture, Scripture will remain a kind of dead letter or something that people cannot understand. That's why homilies should focus on teaching Scripture and its meaning. We need to publish books and commentaries that explain it and organize retreats, conferences and seminars. These are all great ways for people to understand more.

Now, it is true that there are certain topics in the Bible that are very difficult and require a lot of study to understand, but most of the topics in the Bible can be understood by children. As we learn and grow, more and more passages become clear to us. But there may be some that require additional study to really understand, and this is where I think scholars can be really helpful and solve the most difficult problems.

What would you say to someone who is lost trying to read the Bible?

- If they are reading on your own, I would start with the Gospel of John. But the real answer is to find a community. Find a parish, a Bible study group, a teacher or a school... A group of people who know the Bible and are able to teach about it in a way you can understand.

There are many videos and programs on YouTube, but the best thing is to find people. In the United States we have a lot of resources in this regard. The resources will become apparent as you do so. But the main thing, in my opinion, is to find a community of people who love the Bible and want to share it with you.

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