Pepe Serret. The inspiring memory of a great friend
Three decades after his death, the figure of Pepe Serret continues to inspire many people as an example of a husband, a family man and a good Christian.
Joan Xandri-November 21, 2022-Reading time: 3minutes
The affection that comes from dealing with those around us, brings about this feeling of friendship that is increased even more, if possible, when we are separated from them. When, 30 years ago now, our dear friend Pepe Serret unexpectedly left us for Heaven, it was a hard blow, there was no going back, it could not be "undone" or changed; it was a fact that had to be accepted, assumed and "taken advantage of".
After a few months the idea arose to collect the memories, the experiences, what he had left us, in a way as an inheritance. That is how the book was born: Pepe Serret. Memories of his friends. In record time, a hundred people -who all considered themselves to be one of his best friends- wrote down what it had meant to meet him, what they were grateful for, and what they had received.
Pepe was a man who knew how to love and to make himself loved. A good man, in the language we all understand.
The contact with people revealed in Pepe all his vitalistic character. Those who knew him know how much he loved life and all its expressions. His joy and optimism, his cheerfulness and the happiness that always radiated from his generous and mischievous smile, his simplicity and generosity. All of this was the fruit of her faith in Providence, and of always feeling herself in God's hands.
If we can speak of a great friend, it is for the simple reason that, in his greatness of spirit, he was always ready to lend a hand, without reservations of any kind, without stopping to think about reasons of convenience or interest: without expecting anything in return, which is, I think, one of the facets that portray the true friend. He lived intensely the problems of his friends. Being at his side the problems one might have vanished, or at least were simplified.
Another great characteristic was his great love for his family. Many times I was especially struck by the immense tenderness with which Pepe loved his children. He knew each and every one of them well: he knew their joys and problems; he lived their worries, their joys and sorrows; he suffered if he saw them worried; he prayed for them; he prayed with them, ... And above all -this could be felt quickly- he loved them with a heart that was always young and determined.
The family motto he instilled in his children was; we have to do pinya! We have to be like a pineapple, make a pineapple... teaching them to live in unity, supporting each other.
His magnanimity was striking: a good professional, a tireless fighter. Prudent, delicate and at the same time audacious, witty, funny, with that endearing shamelessness, which we all appreciated, when he spoke to us about God, the transcendent meaning of our life and put things in their proper place.
At a time when people are valued more for "having" than for "being", the personality of a man who struggled to love God more and more every day emerges. He was a man of faith. Of a living and ardent faith that every day led him to struggle to live in fidelity to his principles in the ordinary conditions of life: generous dedication to his large family, improving day by day in his professional work, trying to discover the transcendent value that is enclosed in the little things of every day, in short, the desire to feel and behave in every moment as a child of God.
His inspiring life is not only for those of us who had the good fortune to know him, but also for people who are looking for testimonies of Christian life in today's world. Pepe is one of them.
The authorJoan Xandri
Friend of Pepe Serret
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Taking a cue from the Today's GospelOn November 20, the Roman Pontiff recalled that Christ turns the title of "king" on its head and shows himself to be "our king, with open arms. If Christ became man and king to embrace all the realities of our life, the Holy Father pointed out, we must ask ourselves if "this king of the universe is the king of my existence".
Francis emphasized that Christ does not look at our life for a single moment, but "remains there", emphasizing that when he looks at each person Christ "wants to embrace you, to raise you up again and save you".
The Holy Father mentioned that salvation comes to us if we allow ourselves to be loved by the Crucified One, who is always ready to forgive us. Francis wanted to emphasize that "we do not have an unknown God who is up there in heaven, powerful and distant, but a God who is close, tender and compassionate, whose open arms console and caress".
In order to stop being spectators in the face of this display of love on the part of God, the Pope said that "we must begin with trust, with calling God by name, just as the good thief did".
After the celebration of Holy Mass, the Pope addressed the city of Asti, thanking all those involved for the welcome they gave him. He spoke about young people, inviting everyone to participate in the next WYD in Lisbon and said that "we need young transgressors, not conformists".
Francis also echoed the conflicts that are taking place around the world. He invited the faithful to remember the people who suffer from these situations, saying that "our time is experiencing a famine of peace, let us strive and continue to pray for peace".
Finally, the Pope mentioned the Virgin Mary, addressing her as Queen of Peace, and entrusted all those present to the Mother of God. After these words, the Angelus prayer began.
The brotherhood must contribute to return the world to God, that is the task that is imposed on the confreres who seek to establish the brotherhood on the pillars of theology and Christian anthropology.
The way of beauty, via pulchritudini, is a privileged and fascinating journey that opens to the brotherhoods to approach the Mystery of God, a beauty that becomes art, as in the altar of worship and musical accompaniment. The resulting work is charged with a meaning that transcends the immediate and everyday.
Sisterhoods therefore have an important task in the search for and proclamation of beauty. Nihilism, rationalism and relativism seem to have dulled our capacity to recognize Truth and with it Beauty, which is sought detached from Truth; however, there is great nostalgia for beauty in our world. Sisterhoods, which need beauty to recognize themselves as such, have the mission of recovering it. St. John Paul II in his "Letter to the Artists". explained that beauty is, "key to the mystery and a call to the transcendent. It is an invitation to savor life and to dream of the future. That is why the beauty of created things cannot completely satisfy, and arouses nostalgia for God", and added in his call to the artists, perfectly transferable to those responsible for the brotherhoods: "may your art contribute to the consolidation of an authentic beauty that, almost like a flash of the Spirit of God, transfigures matter, opening souls to the sense of the eternal". (n.16).
This is the sense of beauty that is manifested in its worship services, processions and all liturgical acts. The brothers need May the Beauty of Truth and Charity touch the innermost part of your hearts and make you more human. The brotherhood must contribute to return the world to God, that is the task that is imposed on the confreres who seek to establish the brotherhood on the pillars of theology and Christian anthropology.
We return to our Main Function, in which we leave the orchestra, choir and soloists singing the Kyrie of the Coronation Mass. Now it is understood that the Beauty of worship, of the liturgy, is the radiance of Truth, without Truth there is no Beauty. The manifestation of Beauty, of the pulchrumrehabilitates the Truth in us by experiencing a personal catharsis, more or less profound depending on our relationship with God, on our closeness to the Good and the Truth.
It is important to set up grandiose altars and to prepare the liturgical celebration in detail, always bearing in mind that the liturgical celebration is not limited to its external dimension, but is a theological event that demands the presence and action of the Trinity, in which the participation of the faithful is not limited to attendance and participation, but is prolonged in daily life.
If the doctrine of the Church on the liturgy is not kept in mind, one can easily fall, even with the best intentions, into the simple assembly of a spectacular choreography, and of course respectful, to which the faithful attend as spectators and which is exhausted with the end of it; but it is much more, all the rites that surround the celebration of the Holy Mass, on the day of the Main Function -and always- have, as the Magisterium says, a double dimension: on the one hand the real presence of the Trinity in the celebration of the sacrament of the Eucharist; on the other the participation of the faithful, through the Church, in that special and entirely perfect worship that Christ gave to the Father in his earthly life. This is what gives meaning to the altar of worship, what justifies the dalmatics and candlesticks, the timeliness of the readings, the measured movements, the incense, the lighted candlestick, the music, even the care of the brothers to be properly dressed. Everything contributes to the splendor and beauty of the act. Also the rigor in the fulfillment of the liturgical norms. The formal beauty of the Liturgy points to the beauty, truth and goodness that only in God have their perfection and ultimate source. In it the faithful are incorporated into Christ, as members of his Body, participating through the Son in the intimacy of the Father, by the action of the Holy Spirit, translating the Trinitarian mystery into human reality.
D. in Business Administration. Director of the Instituto de Investigación Aplicada a la Pyme.
Eldest Brother (2017-2020) of the Brotherhood of the Soledad de San Lorenzo, in Seville.
He has published several books, monographs and articles on brotherhoods.
German bishops in Rome: Cardinals of the Curia express "concerns and reservations" about the "synodal path".
In the meetings held in Rome during the "ad limina" visit of the German episcopate, there was even a proposal for a "moratorium" on the German process, which was only avoided when the German bishops assured that they would take into account the objections of the Curia. The Cardinal Secretary of State, Pietro Parolin, stresses that what was discussed at the meeting "cannot be ignored in the ongoing process".
This week, the German bishops came to the Vatican on their visit to the Vatican. ad liminaThe meeting was the first to be held after the establishment in Germany of a "synodal path" which began in 2019 and which, last September, took a series of decisions openly opposed to the traditional doctrine and discipline of the Church, especially the creation of a "synodal commission", in charge of preparing a Synodal Council and would "coordinate" the work of the Bishops' Conference and the Central Committee of German Catholics. This Council would openly confront the note from the Holy See last July, which recalled that the synodal path "is not empowered to oblige the bishops and the faithful to adopt new forms of government".
The visit of 62 German bishops to Rome, in addition to talks in various dicasteries of the Curia, was marked by a meeting with the Pope on Thursday, and an exceptional "interdicasterial" session on Friday - moderated by Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin and with the participation of Cardinals Luis Francisco Ladaria, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, and Marc Ouellet, Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops - both lasting several hours.
At the end of the "interdicasterial session" a joint communiqué was issued by the Holy See and the German Bishops' Conference, recalling that "the meeting had long been planned as an opportunity to reflect together on the ongoing synodal journey in Germany."
The communiqué also states that Cardinals Ladaria and Ouellet "frankly and clearly expressed their concerns and reservations about the methodology, content and proposals of the synodal journey". Cardinal Ouellet went so far as to propose a "moratorium", a postponement of the synodal journey, which was however rejected.
According to the text, the dialogue between the German bishops and representatives of the Curia revealed "the importance and urgency of defining and deepening some of the issues discussed, for example, those related to the structures of the Church, the sacred ministry and the conditions of access to it, Christian anthropology, etc.". In this context, it is significant what is also affirmed there: "Numerous interventions pointed out the centrality of evangelization and mission as the ultimate goal of the processes underway", since up to now the participants in the synodal journey had refused to speak of "evangelization and mission" in their assemblies.
The communiqué also calls attention to two statements: on the one hand, while recognizing that there are "different positions", it states that there is "an awareness that certain issues cannot be the subject of debate"; on the other hand, the fact that what was discussed in this exchange of ideas "cannot be ignored in the ongoing process".
This is what the Bishop of Passau, Stefan Oster, referred to in a comment posted on his Facebook account, in which he referred to the interdicasterial session as "a very decisive meeting of these days." In summary, he said that the cardinals "made it clear" that some topics are "non-negotiable" and that the Cardinal Secretary of State, Pietro Parolin, had "stressed to the German bishops that they must take into account the objections of Rome"; only then would the "moratorium" of the synodal path have been avoided: this "can only go ahead taking into account these objections". Bishop Oster could perceive "a clear disagreement" of both Cardinal Ladaria and Cardinal Ouellet "in relation to the questions, in my opinion, most debated" in the synodal path: anthropology and, as a consequence of this, Christian moral doctrine, but also ecclesiology and in particular "questions about the Church and about access to sacred ministries"; there was also, according to Stefan Oster, a "clear opposition" of Rome to the "recent proposals of Germany" regarding ecumenism.
For his part, the president of the German Bishops' Conference, Bishop Georg Bätzing, held a press conference on Saturday, in which he said that "all the issues had been discussed, especially the question of how evangelization can be achieved in the challenge of a secularized age."
After thanking "that the concerns that exist in Rome have been openly presented" and also "that the concerns and opinions of our Episcopal Conference have been heard on all topics", Bishop Bätzing assured that "the Church in Germany is not going down a special path and will not take any decision that would only be possible in the context of the universal Church". However, he also said that "the Church in Germany wants to and must give answers to those questions that the faithful are asking".
The President of the German Bishops' Conference also referred that "a first moment of reflection" on what was discussed in Rome "will take place at the Permanent Council of the German Bishops' Conference next Monday in Würzburg and, a few days later, at the Presidency of the Synodal Path; of course, the topics will have to be discussed with everyone at the Synodal Path". He also added: "We want to be Catholics, but we want to be Catholics in a different way".
In a comment in Die TagespostIn his article, editor-in-chief Guido Horst stated that all the critical questions of the German process had indeed been put on the table; "but the visit to Rome of the German episcopate did not provide the key to the method by which they should be resolved". This is because "when Francis speaks of synodality, he thinks of listening and discerning in the light of faith; ultimately, for the Pope, this has to do with the Holy Spirit." However, when "the protagonists of the synodal journey" speak of synodality, "they think of structural reforms, expert reports and quick decisions; that is, voting in which the majority makes the decision. There is nothing to suggest that the visit of the German bishops to Rome has changed this fundamental difference in methods."
However, Horst stressed that "Bishop Bätzing hinted on Saturday that the critics of the synodal path among the German bishops could feel reinforced by the representatives of the Roman Curia, especially by Cardinal Marc Ouellet, who had even pronounced himself in favor of a moratorium, a temporary suspension of the synodal path. The minority part of the Bishops' Conference will now be able, strengthened by Rome, to speak more clearly and unambiguously".
Advent: a thousand-year wait. Between history, scripture and astronomy.
The liturgical season of Advent places before our eyes the expectation of the Savior and also brings to the forefront the messianic expectation of the time of Christ's birth.
The Catholic Church is about to celebrate the beginning of a new liturgical year, marked by the season of Advent. The term, derived from the Latin adventusmeans the coming of the Lord and, by extension, the expectation of that coming.
The season of Advent is also called tempus ante natale Domini (time before Christmas) and has been established in the Catholic liturgy since the 7th century AD. It was, in particular, Pope Gregory the Great who fixed the Sundays of Advent as four Sundays symbolizing the four thousand years in which humanity, according to the interpretation of that time, had to wait for the coming of the Savior after committing the original sin.
Waiting for a messiah
In a previous article, we illustrated the complexity of the Jewish world at the time of Christ, pointing out how that particular moment in history was characterized by the expectation of a deliverer, an anointed one of the almighty God, whom, as he had done with Moses, God himself would raise up to free his people from slavery and foreign domination. Unlike Moses, however, the reign of this anointed one of God, of this Messiah (מָשִׁיחַ, Mašīaḥ in Hebrew and Χριστός, Christós in Greek: both terms meaning 'anointed,' as anointed by the Lord as were the kings beginning with Saul and his successor David) would be endless and he would be not only a prophet, but, as evidenced in the Dead Sea Scrolls and the expectations of the Essenes of Qumran, a shepherd-king and a priest.
This expectation, in the years immediately preceding the birth of Christ, became increasingly anxious: supposed messiahs flourished everywhere and, with them, revolts that were systematically suppressed with blood (remember that of Judas the Galilean (years 6-7 B.C.); but there also flourished pious communities that, by virtue of a very precise prophecy, awaited the advent of a liberator. We know, however, that at that time of great stability for the Roman Empire, but of fervent expectation for the people of Israel, the attention of everyone in that small corner of the world was focused on the imminent arrival of a liberator: had it always been so?
In fact, the wait for a world ruler lasted for several centuries. The first hint is even found in the book of Genesis (49:10) where Jacob proclaims to his sons that
The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the rod from between his feet, until he comes to whom it belongs, and to him shall go the obedience of the peoples.
Therefore, over time, the idea of an anointed one of the Lord who would rule over Israel intensified and became more and more precise: this anointed one, this Messiah, would be a descendant of Judah, through King David. However, in 587 B.C. the first great disappointment occurred: the capture of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar, who destroyed the temple, plundered the sacred furnishings, deported the population of Judea to Babylon and put an end to the dynasty of the kings descended from David. However, here a prophet named Daniel, the last prophet of the Old Testament, prophesies that the Messiah will come. In fact, his prophecy is called Magna Prophetia: in it (ch. 2) he proclaims that
The God of heaven will raise up a kingdom that will never be destroyed and will not pass on to other peoples: it will crush and annihilate all other kingdoms, while this one will last forever.
Not only that: in ch. 7 it is specified that the one who is to come will be "like the Son of Man" (in the Gospel of Matthew, the one destined for the Jewish communities of Palestine, Jesus uses a similar expression, "son of Man", about 30 times, which had previously been used only and exclusively by Daniel).
In chapter 9, then, prophecy is also realized in temporal terms:
Seventy weeks are appointed for your people and for your holy city, to put an end to ungodliness, to seal up sins, to atone for iniquity, to establish everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy, and to anoint the Holy of Holies. Know this and understand it well: from the time that the word went forth about the return and rebuilding of Jerusalem to an anointed prince, there will be seven weeks.
As we can see, the prophecy just quoted is extremely accurate. However, the exact Italian translation of the Hebrew term שָׁבֻעִ֨ים (šavū‛īm, "šavū‛" indicating the number 7 and "īm" as masculine plural ending) should not be "weeks" (which is instead שבועות, i.e., šavū‛ōt, where "ōt" represents the plural feminine ending), but "septennials": in practice, seventy times seven years.
The Jewish contemporaries of Jesus understood the passage correctly, however, contemporary scholars could not understand the exact count of Daniel's times: from when did the seventy seven-year count begin?
Well, recent discoveries at Qumran have shown that not only were the Hebrew Scriptures already perfectly formed in the first century of our era and were identical to those we read today, but also that the Essenes, like many of their contemporaries, had calculated the times of the Magna Prophecy: according to Hugh Schonfield, a great specialist in the study of the Dead Sea Scrolls, the Essenes would have calculated the seventy septenaries (490 years) from 586 B.C., the year of the beginning of the Babylonian exile.
The culmination would have occurred in 26 B.C., the beginning, according to them, of the messianic era and the reason why, from that date, archaeological excavations show an increase in vital and constructive activity in Qumran, which would indicate that many people moved there to await the arrival of the Messiah.
It was not, however, only the Jews of the land of Israel who were literally plotting an expectation that filled them with hope and ferment. Also Tacitus and Suetonius, the former in his Historiæ and the latter in his Life of Vespasian, report that many in the East expected, according to their writings, a ruler to come from Judea.
A star in the East
And it is precisely in the East that we find another element that helps us to understand why the messianic expectation was so fervent at the turn of the century: the fact that in other cultures, too, the advent of that "ruler" of whom even Rome had heard of was awaited.
Babylonian and Persian astrologers, in fact, expected it around 7 or 6 B.C. (today, scholars almost universally accept that the year of Jesus' birth was 6 B.C., due to an error made by the monk Dionysius the Less, who, in 533, calculated the beginning of the Vulgar Era from the birth of Christ, but delayed it by about six years).
Why precisely in that interval of time? Because of the rising of a star, we know from the Gospel of Matthew (ch. 2). But did a star really arise? This question seems to have been answered initially by the astronomer Kepler, who, in 1603, observed a very luminous phenomenon: the approach, or conjunction, of the planets Jupiter and Saturn in the constellation of Pisces. Kepler then makes some calculations and establishes that the same conjunction would have occurred in the year 7 BC. He then finds an ancient rabbinical commentary, in which it is emphasized that the coming of the Messiah would have occurred precisely at the time of that same astral conjunction.
However, no one gives credence to Kepler's intuition, among other things because at that time it was still thought that Jesus was born in the year 0, so that 7 B.C. did not impress anyone. Only in the eighteenth century another scholar, Friederich Christian Münter, Lutheran and Freemason, deciphered a commentary on the book of Daniel, the same of the "seventy septenaries", which confirmed the Jewish belief already brought to light by Kepler from another source.
Sippar Star Calendar
However, we have to wait until the 19th century for the astronomical phenomenon observed by Kepler to be confirmed, first by 19th century astronomers and then thanks to the publication of two important documents the Planetary Tablet, in 1902, an Egyptian papyrus in which planetary movements are accurately recorded, where scholars of the time reported, by direct observation, the Jupiter-Saturn conjunction in the constellation of Pisces, which they said was extremely bright; the Sippar Stellar Calendar, an earth tablet written in cuneiform characters, of Babylonian origin, where the movements of the stars are reported in the year 7 BC.C., with precision. C., since, according to Babylonian astronomers, this conjunction would have occurred three times that year (on May 29, October 1 and December 5), while, according to calculations, the same event would ordinarily occur once every 794 years.
Thus, in Babylonian symbolism, Jupiter represented the planet of the rulers of the world, Saturn the protective planet of Israel, and the constellation of Pisces was the sign of the end of time. It is not so absurd, then, to think that the Magi (or Mazdeists) of the East were expecting, having been able to foresee with astonishing clairvoyance, the arrival of something special.
The authorGerardo Ferrara
Writer, historian and expert on Middle Eastern history, politics and culture.
Working so that one day you will no longer be needed: it sounds paradoxical, but this is the ultimate goal of development cooperation. Investing resources and creativity, implementing work, projects and programs so that one day everything can go ahead without professionals, NGO's and the like. From this determination is extracted the energy that has allowed us to grow and evolve, changing connotations to meet the needs of the most vulnerable and correspond to what reality demands.
This mentality can be seen in the history of many NGOs working with the poorest. People who, with different approaches, have not accepted the idea that national borders can separate areas of development and underdevelopment.
Our destiny is united; either we all grow or we all fall. The evolution that has marked development cooperation is condensed in a preposition: we work "with", we only advance if we are together, in a process between equals.
The interesting topic now is precisely that of cooperation. We are all subjects of international development cooperation: development workers, companies, universities, civil society organizations, local and national institutions, the media and the beneficiaries themselves, their families and communities, their local organizations in the countries of Africa, the Middle East, etc,
The tools are different: co-design and co-programming, subsidiarity, localization, the systemic and integrated approach, the multi-sectoral nature of projects, performance indicators, impact measurement and monitoring. But these are tools that need men and women of "cooperation", capable of looking beyond, in time and space. In other words, they need us.
Degree in Classical Literature and PhD in Sociology of Communication. Communications Director of the AVSI Foundation, based in Milan, dedicated to development cooperation and humanitarian aid worldwide. She has received several awards for her journalistic activity.
The relationship between the Church and the State in Panama in the field of education
In Panama there is a relationship of respect between the State and the Church, also in religious education, and religious freedom is respected. Giancarlos Candanedo has studied this matter, and proposes the signing of an agreement between the two in the educational and cultural fields.
Vytautas Saladis-November 18, 2022-Reading time: 6minutes
Giancarlos Candanedo has professional experiences of all kinds. After his studies in Law and Political Science, as well as a postgraduate degree in negotiation, both in Panama, and a master's degree in political and corporate communication at the University of Navarrahas worked as a lawyer, as a university professor and also as a television presenter. He has also been a public servant and has spent a few years in politics in his country; he was even part of the team responsible for organizing World Youth Day Panama 2019.
It seems that the last stage of his professional journey begins now: on November 19 Giancarlos, together with 24 other faithful of Opus Dei, will be ordained deacon in Rome, while his ordination to the priesthood is scheduled for May 20, 2023.
In a few months he will defend his doctoral thesis in canon law for the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross, Rome, on the topic "The human right to integral education and the teaching of religion in Panama", which is the subject of this interview.
How did you come to know about the need to address this issue?
- When in 2017 I was beginning my licentiate in canon law at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross, I had to submit a paper on the application of canons 804 § 2 and 805 in my country, concerning Catholic religious teaching and education and the appointment, approval and removal of teachers of religion. I never thought that in such a premature way a wide horizon would open up for me that would lead me, from that moment on, to work on a doctoral thesis.
From that experience I was able to visualize, with respect to my country, several things. First of all, the fact that there is a cordial Church-State relationship in the field of education.
Secondly, that this relationship is not based on a concordat or agreement. This being so, the question that arose was on what basis?
Thirdly, precisely because of the absence of an agreement in the field of education, there was an interesting field of research and the possibility of contributing a grain of sand on this subject in Panama, an idea that was supported by my guide in this long academic journey, Professor Stefan Mückl, as well as by the Archbishop of Panama, Monsignor José Domingo Ulloa, who encouraged me to delve deeper into the subject.
What are the key points to ensure the right to teach religion in your country? What solution do you propose?
- Respect for international law and the Panamanian Constitution are the key points to ensure the right to the teaching of religion, whatever religion it may be, and that, at the initiative of parents, the teaching of religion is requested in public schools.
In this sense, both religious freedom and the right of parents to choose the type of education for their children have ample support in international norms.
My proposal includes, among others, the signing of a Church-State agreement in the educational and cultural fields, of which I am presenting a draft.
Do you think that other countries face similar challenges? Would the solution for Panama be a valid proposal for other countries?
- Although I have not delved into the reality of other countries, except in the cases of Spain and Italy, where the topic is quite developed, from the dialogue with colleagues in Central America it seems to me that we have similar situations and challenges regarding the Church-State relationship in the educational field. From this perspective, without having thought so at the beginning of the thesis, it seems that this research with its origin in a Panamanian problem could be useful or have a regional scope.
In order to assess the validity of this proposal in other countries, it will be necessary to delve deeper into the legislation of each one; however, at first hand, everything points to the existence of common elements, at least in the Central American isthmus, and therefore, this research could shed light in other latitudes on how to deal with the legal-canonical reality in the educational field.
How important is the teaching of religion in public schools in Panama?
- It is a constitutionally mandated subject that must be taught in all public schools in the country. Article 107 of the Panamanian Constitution establishes that the Catholic religion shall be taught in public schools, but also specifies that its learning and attendance to religious services shall not be mandatory when requested by the parents or guardians of the students.
Would it not be more congruent with the secular character of the State to leave the teaching of religion to extracurricular environments? Would this not also be more effective?
- We must keep in mind that the teaching of religion in schools, whether public or private, is not synonymous with catechesis. The teaching of religion from a historical, cultural and identity point of view, and catechesis, which consists in the transmission of doctrine to those who by faith want to receive it, are two different things. The first does not require being Catholic, or even Christian, while the second does require the faith of the person receiving the catechesis.
Having this distinction clear, it is not incompatible with the secular character of the State to teach religion in schools, even public schools.
You probably had the opportunity to talk about the subject with religion teachers, with representatives of the ecclesiastical hierarchy and with people who work for the State. What reactions did you observe: interest, surprise, perhaps anger at "trying to bring the Church into" public institutions?
- I have certainly been able to converse with many people: civil servants and former civil servants; bishops; religious men and women and lay people responsible for public and private educational initiatives; teachers, etc. I was able to visit joint Church-State educational initiatives such as those of the De La Salle Brothers in the cities of Panama and Colon, even in areas of difficult access, such as the school run by the Order of Augustinian Recollects in Kankintu, in the indigenous Gnöbe Bugle region.
The reactions have always been positive. Everyone, mainly government authorities and members of civil society, recognize the work that the Catholic Church has historically carried out in the field of education in Panama.
They are also aware that this relationship is based on the good will of the parties and that, in spite of this, there are many obstacles -mainly economic and bureaucratic- that they have to face in order to fulfill a social function, which is also a human right that implies the integral education of future generations.
What are the challenges of teaching religion in Panama?
- From the point of view of the State, I believe that the challenge is precisely to guarantee compliance with the Constitution, not only in the area of teaching the Catholic religion, but also with regard to the right to religious freedom and the right of parents to choose the type of education for their children. So far there have been no conflicts in this regard, but this does not mean that they may not occur in the future, as has happened in other countries.
From the point of view of the Catholic Church, I would say that the main challenge is to guarantee that Catholic religion is really taught, both in public and private schools, and that those who teach it are suitable for this task and are accompanied in this mission.
It is also important that parents be oriented in the sense that they know when a school is Catholic or Catholic-inspired, as opposed to one that is not, even if it bears the name of a saint.
You have experience both in Panamanian politics and in working with Church institutions. What role does the Church play in Panama's public and political life? What is the relationship between the Church and the Panamanian State?
- There is a relationship of mutual respect, in which the position and role that each one, Church and State, must play is recognized. As for the Panamanian Catholic Church, it has always enjoyed great social recognition, because at all times, even in the most difficult years of the military dictatorship (1968-1989), it has maintained a conciliatory position.
Throughout history - also during democracy - it has been the guarantor, at the request of both the rulers in power and civil society, of fruitful dialogues in search of peace and the common good.
God willing, you will soon become a deacon and later a priest. Do you think this work will be useful for your future church service?
- I do not know where I will end up exercising the priestly ministry, nor if it will have anything to do with this investigation; what I do know is that I will be ordained to serve the Church wherever it is needed, and however it wants and needs me to serve it.
In any case, I believe this research in itself is already a service to my local Church and is available to the Church - Catholic or otherwise - as well as to the academic and legal community everywhere.
The authorVytautas Saladis
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Red Week" for religious freedom, a pillar of liberal democracies
The international campaign, promoted by the Aid to the Church in Need (ACN), runs from November 16 to 23 and aims to draw attention to threats to religious freedom and persecuted Christians.
It has been dubbed "Red Week": prayer meetings, testimonies and symbolic red lighting of buildings and landmarks in many cities. An initiative to raise awareness of the issue of religious freedom with special events in different countries. Like the one that took place in Brazil in 2015, with the red lighting of the Christ the Redeemer monument, in memory of the persecution of Christians in Iraq. Or in Italy in April 2016, at the initiative of the national office of Aid to the Church in Need, with the illumination of the Trevi Fountain in Rome.
It was then the office of ACN The initiative was replicated in the United Kingdom on a specific Wednesday in November, creating #RedWednesday, which was subsequently extended to a whole week in many countries. Even today, "Red Week" Wednesday, which in this sixth edition falls on November 23, will be the most hectic day.
Aid to the Church in Need is a pontifical foundation founded in 1947 and currently present in 23 countries with as many national offices. It carries out projects to support the pastoral care of the Church wherever it is persecuted, discriminated against or deprived of resources.
In 2020, it implemented more than 5,000 projects in 139 countries around the world. The Foundation has a threefold mission: to report on the daily reality of the suffering Church, to pray for persecuted Christians and to concretely help communities suffering from poverty and persecution.
This year, Aid to the Church in Need, in view of current energy saving regulations, has recommended that churches keep the red lighting on only for short periods of time or replace it with the ringing of bells. We learn this from an article published in L'Osservatore Romano on November 15, by Beatrice Guarrera.
In Australia, ten cathedrals will be lit red and a prayer vigil is planned at Canberra Cathedral. The UK is planning gatherings in both England and Scotland, including the "Taste of Home" initiative, which asks people to get together with friends and family. Sharing a traditional meal from countries where Christians are persecuted will be an opportunity to exchange stories about the suffering Church, pray and raise funds to support refugees.
The 2020-22 report on Christians persecuted for their faith, prepared by the acs office in the United Kingdom, is scheduled to be presented today and will subsequently be distributed in other countries. At the same time, a Mass will be celebrated in St. Charles Church in Vienna and initiatives are planned in some 94 churches in Austria.
In France, a round table on religious freedom and persecuted Christians will be held at the Collège des Bernardins in Paris, followed by an evening prayer vigil in Montmartre on November 23, with a testimony by the Nigerian Archbishop of Kaduna, Matthew Man-Oso Ndagoso. At the same time, the bells of a hundred churches across the country will ring out to publicize the initiative.
In Germany, meetings and testimonies are planned, such as those to be held in the cathedrals of Regensburg, Mainz and Augsburg, with guests from Iraq, Nigeria and Pakistan. A total of 60 German parishes have confirmed their participation in the "Red Week".
In Portugal, the awareness week will have an appendix on November 24, when the facades of many churches will be illuminated in red, with prayer meetings for the victims of religious persecution.
From Colombia to the Philippines, from Mexico to Canada: many other countries will mobilize to keep the spotlight on religious freedom under threat around the world.
Freedom of religion or belief is a "precious good". This definition, which first appeared in the landmark Kokkinakis case (1993), has become one of the standard citations in the jurisdiction of the European Court of Human Rights. What the international court emphasizes is that religious freedom, in addition to its obvious importance for followers of different religions, is indispensable for shaping respectful coexistence in a modern democracy. It is neither a luxury nor a privilege. To quote the Court, freedom of religion or belief is "one of the foundations of a democratic society".
Religious freedom is violated in nearly one-third of the world's countries, where approximately two-thirds of the world's population lives; 62 countries out of 196 have very serious violations of religious freedom. The number of people living in these countries exceeds 5 billion, and some of the world's most populous nations (China, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nigeria) are among the worst offenders.
In recent years, however, important steps have been taken in the direction of interreligious dialogue, and religious leaders are playing an increasingly important role in the mediation and resolution of hostilities and conflicts. It is a challenge that cannot be ignored "in a world - these are the words of Pope Francis - in which different forms of modern tyranny seek to suppress religious freedom, or attempt to reduce it to a subculture without the right of expression in the public sphere, or even try to use religion as a pretext for hatred and brutality: it is up to the followers of different religious traditions to unite their voices to call for peace, tolerance and respect for the dignity and rights of others."
Santiago García del Hoyo: "Difficulties bring God closer, although not to everyone".
To get a closer look at the pastoral activity in Antarctica, we interviewed one of the Argentinean Army chaplains who has recently performed this service.
Father Santiago Garcia del Hoyo, 37, ordained a priest in 2019 and stationed in Antarctica between November 2020 and April 2021, spoke to Omnes. He comes from a military family. His grandfather, his father and several siblings are army officers and he also has an uncle who is an officer in the Navy. Before entering the seminary, he studied industrial engineering, but left when he discovered that God was calling him on another path.
In situations of such loneliness, do you notice that people are more religious? Do they go more to confession or rely more on the priest?
-Life in Antarctica is hard. Very tough. The mission, in fact, is considered risky. Some people go to get some extra allowances and improve their financial situation, but sometimes you can break down because of the harshness of the mission. Others go to Antarctica as a form of escape, for example because their marital situation is not good. Sometimes taking distance helps them, but sometimes family remoteness exacerbates problems. So it is understandable that one is open to all the moral support one can find. Technology has also made it much easier to spiritual accompanimentfor example through whatsapp. The first few weeks and the last month of the mission are the most difficult to cope with.
Some few get closer to God, while others find a moral support in a particularly delicate moment. Feeling the grandeur of the immensity of white nature leads some to wonder about the existence of the creator, while others ask themselves these questions when feeling the loneliness of the place. Here we can see that faith in God is the main value of the Argentinean army. Difficulties bring God closer, although evidently not to everyone. However, on the long voyage back home on the navy ship, there are people who take up catechesis, the sacraments, prepare for marriage, etc.
What does a priest who has so few faithful and such limited possibilities for action spend his time doing every day? Does he take advantage of his time to write, is he on the Internet a lot...?
-I had 157 days of sailing and there are few moments with internet connection. The ship moves a lot, so it is not easy to write. In my case, I took advantage of the first few days to read a lot, but then I discovered that the ship is like a barracks, with people always working. Many ask you to bless their tasks and workplaces, especially in times of danger. By the time I realized it, my day was filled with conversations about God with one and all. I spent every waking hour of the day going back and forth to talk to anyone who asked. I never got bored. You can hardly rest, there really isn't enough time to give spiritual and moral support to the troops.
In addition, every day there was a Mass attended by 10 to 20 people. A little less to the rosary and the chaplet of divine mercy, which we also prayed every day.
Could you tell the most endearing or touching anecdote you remember from the Arctic pastoral?
-I remember a corporal who came to Mass one day on the ship and asked me to go to confession. As he had a partner and a daughter, I asked him if he was married and he said no. I told him that he could not receive communion until he regularized his situation. I told him that he could not receive communion until he regularized his situation. He did not understand the reasons, but we talked frequently and he began to attend Mass daily, to pray the rosary. He received intense catechesis, called his wife from the ship and told her of his progress. Six months later, I married them at the military base where they lived, and several family members went to confession before the ceremony.
How was the pandemic experienced?
-During the pandemic, none of the crew could get off the ship at the various ports, which was quite hard on the sailors. A psychologist came on board to help them cope with the situation, but in the end she also broke down and I had to be the one who helped her so that she didn't fall apart at times. In the end, faith is enough to be a counselor, psychologist and whatever else is needed.
I also had to accompany seven people whose parents died from Covid, four of them coinciding with the Christmas holidays.
Being away from home and living through a bereavement at sea is not easy. A female corporal cook lost her father. I remember talking to her while she was working in one of the deepest areas of the ship. A gale was raging and the waves were pounding the hull, producing tremendous sounds. Many items in the galley were dancing back and forth. She was so affected that she was telling me her feelings without giving the slightest importance to what was happening around us.
A pastoral ministry in the coldest confines of the world. The tabernacles of Antarctica
A unique pastoral work beyond the peripheries. This is the pastoral work carried out by the chaplains of the Argentinean army, who take God to the coldest corners of the world.
There have always been curious anecdotes throughout the history of Christianity. For example, when the U.S. Catholic astronaut Mike Hopkins took the Eucharist into space during a mission in 2013. Hopkins asked permission from the Diocese of Galveston-Houston, Texas, to be able to take consecrated forms into the spacecraft, so that he could receive communion on Sundays during the six months he was on a mission to the international space station. It is undoubtedly an anecdote that will go down in history and who knows if it will become commonplace if space travel and the colonization of the moon or other planets increase.
Another of these very special Eucharistic presences is located south of the 60th parallel, where the Antarctic territory begins. For this report we have counted seven Catholic chapels, five dependent on the Argentine military archbishopric, another on the Chilean military bishopric and the last one on the Chilean diocese of Rio Gallegos. Father Luis María Berthoud, one of the Argentinean chaplains, commented in an interview that in the Antarctic pastoral, "if we are more Church on the way out... we fall off the map!".
In addition to the Catholic presence, there is also a church of the Norwegian Anglican Church, a church of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church and a church of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church. Russian Orthodox ChurchThere may also be other chapels on bases in other countries. For example, one of the American bases has a multidenominational chapel that is attended two months a year by a chaplain. In any case, it is difficult to know how many tabernacles there may be in Antarctica, since pastoral care is not centralized and depends on the dioceses of the different countries with a presence in Antarctica.
Tabernacles at the South Pole
How did faith reach these places? With the scientific expeditions to the South Pole, many of them sponsored by the armies of different governments. Thus it was that on February 20, 1946, the Jesuit Felipe Lérida - who in his youth endured the cold of his native Soria - celebrated the first Mass in the Antarctic territory, after raising an 8-meter cross at the Argentinean scientific base. ArcadesThe company was the first to establish itself on the Antarctic continent in 1904.
After celebrating the religious office, at midnight on February 20, 1946, Father Lerida sent this telegram to Pope Pius XII: "First Mass celebrated, Cross erected, Virgin Mary cult established, Antarctic Continent, Orkney Islands, Republic of Argentina. Father Lérida, Jesuit, Buenos Aires, requests blessing.". They are not Armstrong's words upon stepping on the moon, but they are also memorable.
The human presence on the continent has continued to grow and there are currently 43 permanent bases, from 20 different countries, which house a winter population of about 1100 people, although in the summer months their number almost quadruples.
Frozen masses
The winter of 2022 promises to be colder than usual, as the rise in fuel prices caused by the war in Ukraine suggests that we will turn on the heating less than in other years. However, this cold is nothing compared to what it is like to attend Mass in one of the chapels on the Antarctic continent. Although it may not seem like it, there are also places of worship in such remote places.
Most of the constructions in which these chapels are housed are very rudimentary, based on construction containers and other simple prefabricated models. As the climatic conditions are extreme, the facilities of the poles are usually small, especially considering that the number of faithful attending the liturgical celebrations is very small.
The chapel of Nuestra Señora de las Nieves, the southernmost chapel on the planet, is located at the Argentinean base of Belgrano II and mass is celebrated at 18º below zero, so the ceremonies should not last long. Admittedly, this is a tolerable cold because it is very dry. The rest of the places of worship have some heating, so you can be in minimal conditions.
Of all the chapels in Antarctica, the one in Las Nieves is undoubtedly the most spectacular, as it is inside a glacier and the entire interior is made of ice. It is perhaps the southernmost shrine in the world. The photograph that illustrates this report shows its beauty. Inside the temperature remains constant, but outside it can easily be -35° in summer?
Priest rotation
When there was no shortage of clergy, some chaplains spent the whole year at the bases, but for years now they have only been able to attend them during the summer campaign. Even so, Antarctic chaplains of all churches and denominations are rotated every year. Usually the priests are at each base for a few days each year during the summer campaign, when the priest spends a few days at the base. In addition to celebrating Mass, people are blessed and prayers are said for the deceased. During these days many people come to confess or chat with the priest. To reach the bases, the chaplains usually take advantage of the icebreaker's trips. Admiral Irizar The Argentine Navy, which disembarks at each of the bases to take food supplies for the whole year and collect the garbage from the previous year.
Thanks to these trips, the priests go to places that do not have clergy all year round, and even leave the Eucharist for the faithful to receive communion throughout the year, since each base has a minister of communion who is in charge of distributing it on Sundays. Some bases receive a priest during the winter, but this is not usual. This coming year we are going to try to have a priest spending the winter at the base. Esperanza Base, and will move from there to three other Argentine bases. In some of them there are numerous personnel stationed and even some families.
When the chaplains arrive at the bases, their activity multiplies. There are only a few days on the ground and there are many people to attend to. But in the army, everyone has a job and a demanding schedule, and the priests help out with whatever is needed: chopping ice, cooking, cleaning or helping others with their tasks.
Living the faith without a pastor
At the six Argentinean army bases manned throughout the year there is a tabernacle with consecrated forms for those who wish to receive communion on Sundays. Communion is distributed and the faithful are gathered for prayer by a suitably instructed Communion minister, who is also in frequent contact with the army chaplain in charge of the Antarctic pastoral. He provides them with spiritual material or celebrates some Masses so that they can follow them. online.
The practice of faith is not easy also because of the lack of time: the workday leaves very little time to stop and pray. For this reason, chaplains often encourage people of faith working at the grassroots to get used to transforming their work into prayer.
The Pope's closeness
In April 2015, Warrant Officer Gabriel Almada could not believe his ears when he picked up the phone and heard none other than Pope Francis on the other end of the line. He had received his request to send a few lines congratulating the troops stationed at the Marambio Antarctic base for Easter. In the base chapel there is a replica of the Virgin of Luján, solemnly transferred from her sanctuary in 1995. In addition, since a short time ago, it keeps a chest with a solideo of Pope Francis and a rosary blessed by him. It arrived there by the hand of Father Leonidas Torres, who transported it on the Esperanza base in December 2015. That base has quite a few military families who spend the whole year there, so sometimes First Communions are also celebrated there.
In 2003, an Antarctic mountain of over 1000 meters in altitude was dedicated to St. John Paul II, as a tribute to his 25 years of pontificate. It appears with the toponym Mons Ioannis Pauli II in the international registers. The head of the Roman Pilgrimages Work, Monsignor Andreatta, organized an expedition to Antarctica to plant a cross on the Horseshoe Valley glacier, and soon after, steps were taken to register the name of the mountain on international maps.
All the evangelists quote the inscription on the cross of Jesus, with the reason for the condemnation. They refer to different texts, but in all of them appear the words "the king of the Jews".
The scene of Calvary described by Luke, which we read today, includes three groups of mockery of the "king of the Jews": by the leaders of the people, by the soldiers and by one of the evildoers.
In contrast, Luke is the only evangelist who describes the people as not participating in the criticism: they watched to understand the meaning of what was happening.
In fact, after his death, "all the crowd that had attended this spectacle, when they saw the things that had happened, turned away beating their breasts".Jesus' saving action was already bearing fruit. The three phrases of mockery, paradoxically, emphasize the role of Jesus as savior: you who saved, save!
The leaders of the people wanted to hang him on the cross to show that he did not come from God, according to what is written in Deut 21, 22: "One hung on the tree is a curse from God.". They say to him: "Let him save himself, if he is the Messiah of God, the Chosen One." words reminiscent of demonic temptation: "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down."from the highest point of the temple.
The temptation to use faith, one's standing before God, for personal gain. The demand of the soldiers: "If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself." appeals to the king understood as political power, and can be compared to the temptation of the devil in the desert that offered him in power all the kingdoms of the earth. That of the evildoer, "save yourself and us."is comparable to the temptation to turn stones, through hunger, into bread: it proposes to Jesus a use of his saving power for a contingent earthly salvation separated from justice.
By his silence, Jesus reiterated what he had told his own: "Whoever wants to save his life will lose it.". The evildoer who is converted has understood that Jesus is saving him and everyone else precisely by offering to God, as an innocent person, his own torture. He is the only character in the entire Gospel who addresses Jesus by his name, without any other appellative: "Jesus"Salvador. She has a simple and trusting relationship with him. She tells him "remember me"as in the Psalm: "Remember me with mercy, for your goodness' sake, O Lord." (25, 7). He understood that for Jesus this is a step towards his kingdom, which is not of this world: "When you come into your kingdom.".
That Jesus is with him and at his side is the way to save him, as it had happened with Zacchaeus and as it will happen with the disciples of Emmaus, and from the beginning of his life. "today"becomes an eternal being: "you will be with me in paradise". Thus Jesus is with us, at our side, always, to be with us, always, in paradise.
Homily on the readings of the Solemnity of our Lord Jesus Christ
The priest Luis Herrera Campo offers its nanomiliaa small one-minute reflection for these readings.
The young composer and singer Luis Mas has provided music and voice to the soundtrack of the film 'El cielo no puede esperar', a feature film directed by José María Zavala about the life of the Blessed Carlo Acutis.
Known as 'the influencer of the Eucharist', the Blessed was dedicated to spreading the Gospel on digital platforms, reaching the youngest. Many of them already consider him 'the patron saint of the internet'.
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.
Pope Francis today held his usual Wednesday audience in which he continued his catechesis on discernment, paying special attention to desolation.
On his way to the foot of the basilica, Pope Francis blessed some children. At the beginning of the audience, a passage from the Book of Psalms was read.
Desolation in the heart of man
The Holy Father stressed that it is "important to read what is moving within us" and to have a "healthy capacity for solitude. Without this, we run the risk of remaining "on the surface of things and never making contact with the center of our existence".
Desolation, the Pope said, provokes "a shaking of the soul" that makes us more humble, which is necessary for discernment and spiritual growth.
Loneliness and desolation are feelings, which are part of us, and the Pope invites the faithful to understand them, avoiding aseptic indifference "it is not life, it is as if we were in a laboratory".
On the other hand, the Pontiff pointed out that Jesus was alone in some moments of his life and approaching the Lord in his solitude is a very beautiful way to connect with the humanity of Christ.
Spiritual life
In his catechesis, the Pope made some observations on the spiritual life, saying that it is "not a technique at our disposal, a program of inner well-being. The spiritual life is "the relationship with the Living One".
Finally, the faithful received a message of hope from the successor of St. Peter: "You see God in desolation". The Pope affirmed that we cannot be afraid of desolation, there we must seek the heart of Christ and "the answer always comes", we must avoid the voice of the tempter who says otherwise.
A synodal church, the focus of the U.S. bishops' Plenary Assembly
The Annual Assembly of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) will be held in Baltimore, Maryland, from November 14-17. The election of Bishop Broglio as its new president and Bishop William E. Lori as vice-president has been one of the most commented news of this plenary.
This meeting is of particular importance because the new leadership of the Conference, together with the bishops of the country, will have to design the pastoral priorities and the strategic plan of the Conference for the coming years. These plans should be based on a synodal and missionary Church.
One of the first activities of the session was the election of the new leadership of the USCCB for the triennium 2022-2025. By majority vote, the North American bishops elected Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio, Archbishop of the Archdiocese of the Military Services, and Archbishop William E. Lori, Archbishop of Baltimore, as President and Vice President, respectively. They replace Msgr. José H. GomezAllen H. Vigneron, Archbishop of Los Angeles, and Archbishop Allen H. Vigneron, Archbishop of Detroit, who will complete their terms of office.
The work of this Assembly began with an address by the Apostolic Nuncio, followed by a speech by Bishop José H. Gómez.
Living synodality in the Church
In his intervention, the Nuncio asked "Where are we as a Church and where are we going?". "The Church has to go out to evangelize or it runs the risk of becoming sick and becoming self-referential. It must be a poor Church for the poor" the Nuncio continued. "The synodal process," he continued, "involves discernment, purification and reform. A missionary Church impels all the baptized to be evangelizing disciples".
"This is why," Pierre indicated, "the laity must be seen not only as 'collaborators of the clergy' but be recognized as true co-responsible for the mission and action of the Church." "It is a matter of having mature and committed disciples," he specified. "How can this be done? By means of holiness: the exhortation. Gaudete et Exsultate is a beautiful mediation on the call to holiness of all the faithful".
"The Church in the United States," the Nuncio noted, "is beginning to think and live in a synodal way. But there are still afflictions that require understanding, listening and patience. It seems to me that a good deal of the division in the country, in neighborhoods, in families and even in the Church, comes from the fact that we have forgotten to be with one another and to talk to one another."
The Nuncio looks to the future of the North American Church with hope: "Sometimes we can get caught up in crisis thinking and elaborate a crisis dialogue, but if one looks at history, in the providential designs of God, the Church emerges and emerges from crisis experiences. These moments allow us to discern the presence of the Lord and to refocus on the mission and on the path towards which we are heading together," concluded Bishop Pierre.
"We need a new generation of saints"
The theme of crises was also present in the final speech of Bishop José H. Gómez. Probably, as he affirms, it fell to him to head the USCCB in times without precedent in history due to the number of situations that occurred simultaneously in the USA and the world: "We went through a pandemic, riots in our citiesa presidential election; deep political, economic, and cultural divisions; the annulment of Roe v. Wade; a new war in Europe; a global refugee crisis."
"In general," Gomez noted, "our society has rapidly moved toward an uncompromising secularism where traditional norms and values are severely challenged."
However, for Gomez, even in the midst of these situations, the hope that is Christ shines even brighter. The key is holiness: "Today we need a new generation of saints, men and women. I am hopeful for the next Synod of Bishops. For the Synod is about our vocation to love Jesus and build his Kingdom in the ordinary circumstances of our daily lives."
Paraphrasing the Servant of God and founding activist of the Catholic Worker Movement, Dorothy Day, Gomez said, "In our world there is room for great saints as never before. We are all called to be saints. Now more than ever, the Church needs solid pastoral strategies to communicate the Gospel, to use the media platform and networks to turn our hearts and minds to Christ, to call our people to become great saints.
In the call and in the exercise of holiness, Gomez indicated that the current times in the U.S. also offer us a providential opportunity, which is the Eucharistic Revival Initiative (link): "What keeps us united and makes us one is the Eucharist. That is why the Eucharistic Renaissance is so important. The Eucharist is the mystery of our Creator's love, the mystery of his desire to share his divine life in friendship with each one of us," he concluded.
Msgr. Timothy P. Broglio
Archbishop Broglio was born in 1951 in Cleveland Heights, Ohio. He studied at Boston College and later earned a Doctorate in Canon Law from the Gregorian University in Rome.
He was ordained to the priesthood on May 19, 1977. In 1979 he entered the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy. He worked in the Nunciatures in Ivory Coast and Paraguay.
From 1990 to 2001 he served as chief of staff to Cardinal Angelo Sodano. In February 2001 he was appointed Apostolic Nuncio to the Dominican Republic and Apostolic Delegate to Puerto Rico.
He was ordained a bishop by St. John Paul II on March 19, 2001. On November 19, 2007, he was named the fourth archbishop of the U.S. Military Services.
The headquarters of this military archdiocese is located in Washington D.C., just steps away from the USCCB headquarters.
Msgr. William E. Lori
William E. Lori was born in Louisville, Kentucky (KY). He attended St. Pius X Seminary in Erlanger, KY in 1973. He earned a master's degree from Mount St. Mary's Seminary in Emmitsburg, Maryland in 1977 and then a doctorate in theology from The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., 1982.
He was ordained to the priesthood in 1977 at St. Matthew's Cathedral in Washington, DC. In his ministry he also served as secretary to Cardinal James Hickey as well as chancellor, moderator of the curia and vicar general.
In 1995 he was ordained auxiliary bishop of Washington, DC and, in 2001, he was appointed bishop of the Diocese of Bridgeport, Connecticut.
Archbishop Lori was instrumental in the drafting of the historic Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People.
In 2005, he was elected Supreme Chaplain of the Knights of Columbus. On March 20, 2012, Pope Benedict XVI appointed him the 16th Archbishop of Baltimore.
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Madeleine Enzlberger: "The ultimate goal of state-imposed censorship is self-censorship".
The executive director of the Observatory on Intolerance and Discrimination against Christians in Europe (OIDAC Europe) believes that "freedom of religion and other intrinsically linked fundamental freedoms, such as freedom of expression, should be better monitored and protected, especially in universities."
"The less knowledge or education a Christian has about his own faith, the more likely he is to be self-censured" so states Madeleine Enzlbergerexecutive director of the Observatory on Intolerance and Discrimination against Christians in Europe (OIDAC Europe).
This platform has just published its latest report on attacks on religious freedom in Europe, in which more than 500 cases of hate crimes against the Christian faith in various European countries and areas are reported.
The report, launched as part of the International Day for Tolerance celebrated every November 16, shows how today's rate of hate crimes and growing secular intolerance are having a crippling effect (chilling effect) on the religious freedom of Christians.
In many Western societies we are faced with the reality of a lack of faith formation among Christians themselves that hinders their defense of core issues such as the dignity of life or the role of the Church in society... Do we have the key challenge in education? How to address such a broad task?
-One of the main findings of our recent study on the phenomenon of self-censorship among Christians in Germany and France revealed that the level of education of Christians correlates significantly with their tendency to self-censor.
They will do so because they do not feel confident enough to publicly express their opinion, which is often viewed critically by the public, simply a problem of low self-esteem due to lack of knowledge. We also found that it is a problem that affects Catholics more than Protestants.
In short, it is not a problem that can only be solved by generating more theological knowledge, but a personal and relational belief that manifests itself in the daily life and identity of a believer.
For a person to develop this level of faith, he or she needs sufficient space and freedom in the private and public sphere.
If, for example, a young person faces persistent discrimination or intolerance or sees peers suffering social or legal punishment for expressing opinions in accordance with his or her belief, in some cases the person is likely to conclude that the social costs of holding his or her belief are too high.
As a result, the individual might even abandon his or her faith altogether. This is a development that cannot be desirable in any pluralistic and truly tolerant society.
To address this problem, it is important to counteract the two main problems of this eroded development.
First, freedom of religion and other intrinsically linked fundamental freedoms, such as freedom of expression, must be better monitored and protected, especially in universities.
It is necessary to stop and reverse the so-called chilling effect (paralyzing effect) that even translates into a culture of annulment, not only for the benefit of Christians but of society as a whole.
Secondly, believers need safe spaces to be able to grow in their faith and, to a certain extent, also some apologetic formation.
Christians are called to speak the truth when asked to do so, or when they see an injustice being done, and this requires more and more courage.
Madeleine Enzlberger. Executive Director OIDAC Europe
Many Christians consider that defending a strong position is contrary to respect for the different ways of life or beliefs that surround us. How can we avoid the trap of self-censorship disguised as tolerance or prudence?
-This is more a spiritual question than a practical one, I would say. There is no single concept that can be applied to everyone. You also have to take into account that different denominations have different positions on some issues and on how to deal with them.
One approach that could be considered a general strategy is to discern one's own heart's motivation and posture when we speak.
A hardened heart, the perception that we are fighting against people or fear are generally poor advice. Always remember that we are not fighting against someone, but for someone.
Discerning one's own heart is a good navigator and holding stakeholders accountable to democratic principles.
Christians in Europe are not only believers, but also citizens of democratic countries, who put tolerance on their banner.
Is self-censorship or imposed censorship more dangerous?
-The answer to this question must be differentiated, because both forms of censorship can be very harmful.
Madeleine Enzlberger. Executive Director OIDAC Europe
Ultimately, state-imposed censorship is more dangerous because it is more widespread. Compared to self-censorship, it is more visible and, usually, state censorship is linked to legal punishment. Consequently, the chilling effect is very severe, and people will not only be censored but will censor themselves, which is the ultimate goal of state-imposed censorship.
It also creates a lack of trust among individuals because you never know who you can trust or not and who you can tell something to or not. State-imposed censorship is therefore one of the most essential features of a totalitarian regime in contrast to a liberal democracy.
The danger of self-censorship is that it is often not visible at first glance, and it can also occur in democracies because it is a special form of "regulating" an existing social conflict. In our time the conflict revolves above all around the foundations of our morals, which in turn function as the basis for the regulation of our coexistence in a society.
As self-censorship is a more subtle social phenomenon, it slowly erodes freedom of expression and diverse and vital public and private discourses. Without freedom of expression, religious freedom cannot be fully guaranteed.
Without the free exchange of ideas in public discourse, democracies cannot evolve and cease to be truly representative.
We are at a time when, in the public sphere, any religious sign is avoided or a person, leader, etc. who attends a religious service is criticized. Is it really a lack of plurality or respect for other believers or atheists to show not only a religious but also a spiritual dimension of the human being?
The assumption that non-religious people base their morality or thinking on a "neutral" truth without values is simply false.
All people have beliefs that are based on a fundamental truth, even when this truth does not involve God. This is one of the biggest mistakes in the world today. This means that all people derive their decisions or behaviors from some form of truth, there is no exemption.
Leaving religion out of the equation when trying to understand social reality will always lead to a biased result.
Madeleine Enzlberger. Executive Director OIDAC Europe
The second misconception is that secularity means that faith does not belong in the public space. This is not true either. Secularity, which separates the Church from the State and guarantees a healthy relationship between the two, is generally neutral with respect to religion.
– Supernatural secularism means that the State has neither a positive nor a negative position towards the Church.. In contrast, secularism, which is secularity infused with ideology, has a specifically anti-religious and often anti-Christian bias. Therefore, we speak of the dynamics of secular intolerance as the main driver of the cases of intolerance and discrimination we observe against Christians in Europe.
A third misconception is that a personal belief is something that could be compared to a lifestyle or a chosen hobby, which is not the case, in fact, it is one of the preponderant identity markers in people. Leaving religion out of the equation when we try to understand social reality it will always lead us to a biased result.
In light of these three misconceptions, it is fair to say that true respect and diversity can only exist if non-believers and believers consider themselves equal because there is no difference between them as both groups follow their way of understanding truth. A truth based on faith is worth absolutely no less than a truth not derived from faith. This is the most essential point.
OIDAC's annual report
The study conducted by OIDAC (Observatory on Intolerance and Discrimination against Christians in Europe) is based primarily on an analysis of the current treatment of freedom of religion and conscience.
To this end, the study focuses on three fundamental elements: freedom of expression, parental authority, freedom of assembly and freedom of contract. OIDAC has collected the data mainly through the Observatory's own archives, interviews, questionnaires, government reports, official statistics and the media.
Two experts on religious freedom, Janet Epp Buckingham and Todd Huizinga, also contributed to the study.
In 2021, OIDAC recorded hate crimes against Christians in 19 European countries, 14 of which involved some form of physical assault and 4 cases were murders.
On the other hand, during the same year several Christian organizations were banned from social platforms for having dissenting opinions, while in those same media violent comments and speeches against Christians were allowed.
The report also reflects increased self-censorship by Christians throughout 2021 in five areas: education, the workplace, the public sphere, private relationships and the media.
The results of the study indicate that France and Germany are the countries with the highest concentration of hate crimes, followed by Italy, Poland, the United Kingdom and Spain.
Most of the crimes consist of vandalism (graffiti, damage to property and desecration) and, in second place, are the theft of offerings, religious objects, consecrated hosts and the movable property of churches.
During religious holidays, such as Christmas, there is a concentration of hate crimes against Christians, perpetrated mainly by Satanists, Islamists and extreme left-wing political groups.
In conclusion, the IOPAC report examines the difficulties faced by practicing Christians in Europe, due to social hostility, hate crimes, discriminatory treatment and stereotyping.
These facts harm fundamental freedoms whose protection, according to the Observatory, "is vital to maintain a democratic society, and to promote tolerance, peace and respect for its members".
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In the face of the crisis that seems to embrace all areas of existence and society today, we Catholics must be, more than ever, men and women of hope.
November 16, 2022-Reading time: 3minutes
I recently learned that the "doomscrolling"is frequent enough to worry doctors and therapists. It is an obsession with negative news on social networks, a strange desire to feel good about feeling bad.
Certainly, problems abound, and on all sides. War, the economy, family disintegration, demographic collapse, loss of religious adherence and the sense that the West is decadent, with Catholics entangled in that decadence. It is all too easy to find bad news, even bad news about the Church.
On the other hand, we have always had problems. I am consoled to remember that the first person to receive the Eucharist was Judas Iscariot. More than a triumphal story, the Last Supper has betrayal etched into its core and foreshadows the agonies of the Garden and the Cross. Christianity is not a fairy tale, and the Incarnation brings redemption, but also the suffering of Christ. Indeed, he promised us our own crosses.
It is not by chance that Jesus is tempted to make things easy and secure. Bread, signs, peace, that is, prosperity, certainty and security. In many ways, the modern project promised a secure and prosperous world thanks to the certainty of science. If, as Francis Bacon asserted in his New OrganIf we were to free ourselves from superstitions, turning to human power to produce and control, we could progress toward heaven on earth, improving human fortunes forever. Or, as the Grand Inquisitor from DostoevskyChrist offers freedom, but what we want is bread. What Jesus experienced as temptations, modernity has claimed as good news.
As modern men we experience a security, certainty and prosperity rarely enjoyed throughout history. Much of this is good, of course. No prudent person looks favorably on famine or war. But perhaps we have confused realms and assume that the admirable progress in science, technology and medicine carries over into the realm of human freedom.
To the mastery of our actions, of our loves, of our spirit and, therefore, also of our sins. If science can bring health and prosperity, why can it not overcome the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life?
When human reality stubbornly resists technological solutions, many give in to three errors. For those who have become rationalists, convinced that there is a solution to all human problems, two errors appear: first, a doubling of rationalism, a willingness to sacrifice freedom and people to technology, convinced that all we have to do is try a better solution; second, a desperate resignation that the arc of decay and decline is already permanent and inexorable, and the only thing to do is to wait for the end.
Third, others embrace a kind of ahistorical fundamentalism, bent on living in a world that no longer exists (if it ever did) and who see the Church as an escape route, a place of safety when the world seems to be burning with many problems.
However, to the Catholic mind, forms of rationalism and fundamentalism have no appeal because we have hope infused in us through our baptism and the gifts of the Holy Spirit. If we despair, throwing up our hands and concluding that nothing can be done, we have lost hope. If we blithely whistle happy tunes, indifferent to challenges and suffering, we are guilty of presumption.
Instead, God gives us hope and asks us to maintain it, because we know that there is another, God, for whom nothing is impossible and who does not want anyone to perish. Christ did not come to condemn, but to save (Jn 3:17) and, above all, that there is another who acts in our world and who does not take away our freedom and responsibility, but gives us even more freedom and responsibility, as well as the necessary grace.
Our tradition understands that hope is a virtue. The virtues do not diminish the human being, but make us more perfectly human as well as making us friends of God. Hope is not a mere personality trait, but a disposition to think, choose and act as one should.
Our times need Catholics to be good Catholics and good human beings. The Catholic mind is hopeful not because it relies on rationalism; nor does it retreat to some ecclesiastical refuge. The Catholic mind is hopeful because there is a God who promises that his will will will be done, and he wills good.
The Catholic mind also knows that the way of God's purpose includes the Cross, and it cannot avoid the Cross, it cannot reach its purpose by any other easier way. Therefore, while we lament over so much bad news, so much terrible news, we do not despair.
The Spanish Episcopal Conference is already working in anticipation of next week's intense agenda, during which it will hold the 120th Plenary Assembly of the Bishops of Spain The new Secretary General and Spokesman of the Spanish Episcopate is expected to be named.
Msgr. Luis Argüellowho has held this position until now, has presented his resignation (which will be formalized at the beginning of the next plenary session) upon his appointment as Archbishop of Valladolid.
Thus, this morning, in an informative briefing for the media, the director of the Press Office of the Spanish Episcopal Conference, José Gabriel Vera, announced the timing and key points of the election to the General Secretariat of the Spanish bishops.
On Wednesday morning, the Spanish bishops will appoint a new Secretary General. It will be the first, and perhaps the most mediatic, item of that day's meeting, which usually begins around 10:00 a.m.
A meeting will be held the previous evening ad hoc of the Standing Committee The bishops' meeting, after which the names proposed for this position will be announced.
One of the questions that has floated in the air is the possibility of separating the tasks of spokesperson of the Spanish Episcopal Conference from the person of the Secretary General. A change of "roles" that, in any case, would depend directly on the new Secretary General since only he can decide to delegate the function of spokesperson, which is included as one of the attributions of the office of Secretary General of the EEC in epigraph 8 of article 45 of the Statutes of the Spanish Episcopal Conference which refers to the task of the Secretary General.
How are the candidates for General Secretary determined?
The Permanent Commission, in this case, meeting ad hoc within the Plenary Assembly itself, draws up a list of candidates.
Although traditionally referred to as a "terna", the statutes do not determine a specific number of candidates that may be presented to the Plenary. The statutes do not determine a specific number of candidates that may be presented to the Plenary.
In addition to the names to be proposed, candidates who have the endorsement of at least ten bishops (which may include the candidate himself) should be included.
In order to be presented, the candidate must have previously accepted and, if he is a layman or a priest, he must request the consent of his diocesan bishop. Although there is the possibility of a layman being Secretary General of the Spanish bishops, this is a situation that has never occurred in the Spanish Episcopal Conference and that, for the moment, does not seem to be going to change.
The election of the General Secretary
The new Secretary shall be elected by an absolute majority (one-half +1) of the quorum that, at the beginning of the Assembly, shall be established, with the attendees present.
In this case, there are 78 bishops electors in this Plenary Assembly that begins next week. The full members of the EEC have the right to vote, currently: 3 cardinals (Cardinal Antonio Cañizares as apostolic administrator of Valencia); 14 archbishops, 47 diocesan bishops and 11 auxiliary bishops. In addition to the diocesan administrators of Avila, Menorca and Girona. In this case, neither the bishop-elect of San Sebastian nor the auxiliary bishop-elect of Getafe have the right to vote since they have not received episcopal ordination, at which time they will become full members of the EEC.
The voting is done digitally and is secret. It is the first time that the Secretary General of the EEC is elected by this modality of voting that the bishops used, for the first time, in March 2019 and that has been consolidated.
If after two ballots no one obtains the required majority, a third ballot shall be held between the two candidates with the highest number of votes. If in this ballot there is a three-way tie, a vote shall be taken between the two oldest. If there is a tie between these two, the oldest is elected.
If the person elected as Secretary General is not in the Plenary Hall, the President of the Episcopal Conference will be in charge of communicating the election to the person concerned, who will have to accept the office. The process is completed once the President communicates in the room the acceptance of the office.
The Secretary General is elected for a term of 5 years, with the possibility of reelection only for a second successive five-year term.
The "Argüello stage" comes to an end
Luis Argüello, who began this task as Auxiliary Bishop of Valladolid and left it as Titular Archbishop of the same diocese.
Bishop Argüello was elected as Secretary General of the Spanish bishops on November 21, 2018 for the 2018-2023 quinquennium. During this time, he has been a member, therefore, of the Permanent Commission of the EEC and of the Executive Commission of the EEC.
During the years that Msgr. Arguello has been at the head of the Secretariat, he has had to deal with many delicate issues and situations. These have been the years of development of the work in favor of the protection of minors and the the Church's commitment to address sexual abuse.
These years have also seen the renewal of the EEC statutes, the implementation of the formation plan for seminaries or the renewal of the presidency of the Spanish bishops, which took place a week before the establishment of the state of alarm due to the Covid pandemic in March 2020.
In addition, Bishop Argüello has been the voice of the bishops on issues such as euthanasia, in view of the approval of the Organic Law regulating euthanasia in the Congress of Deputies. In 2020, the Executive Commission of the EEC issued, on September 14, the note with the title There are no "unquantifiable" patientsThey promoted a day of fasting and prayer to ask the Lord to inspire laws that promote the care of human life.
Another big issue, the defense of life and abortion has been present in these years before different governmental legislations. Thus, the new Law on sexual and reproductive health and voluntary interruption of pregnancy and the Law for the real and effective equality of trans people and for the guarantee of the rights of LGTBI people and its notorious curtailment of freedoms also gave rise to the note "In favor of the dignity and equality of all human life".
Poland and Hungary: family programs in the face of Spanish birth rates
The investment in family in Poland and Hungary has shown a strong contrast with the bleak outlook of the birth rate in Spain, according to a conference on 'Birth Rate and Family Support Policies' at the Universitat Abat Oliba CEU. The Polish Deputy Minister of Family, Barbara Socha, and the Hungarian Ambassador to Spain, Katalin Tóth, showed yesterday the commitment to the family of their countries.
Francisco Otamendi-November 15, 2022-Reading time: 5minutes
Last year, Spain had 11.5 million more inhabitants than in 1976, to 47.5 million, but 50 % fewer children were born than 45 years earlier. Fertility has fallen to 1.2 children per woman, "a catastrophically low level". In Spain more people die than are born, said Alejandro Macarrón, coordinator of the CEU's Demographic Observatory.
With recent Spanish fertility patterns, 40 % or more of young Spaniards will not have even one child, and of older Spaniards, about half will not even have a grandchild. A generation and a half ago, only 10 to 12 % of Spaniards were childless, the expert added.
He continued: The vast majority of families in Spain with children have only one or two children, and truly large families (with 4 or 5 children, or more) are now a tiny percentage of the total. Until 40-50 years ago, large families were very abundant.
These and other data, presented by Alejando Macarrón in the morning, contrasted with the commitment to the family and the birth rate launched in the afternoon by the representatives of Hungary and Poland.
Investment for the future
"Family is the most important value for us, it is even more important than having good health, a good career, economic prosperity, wealth, good friends or success in general. We identify happiness as family happiness," said Barbara Socha, number 2 of Poland's Family Department, telematically.
"All the measures we take in Poland are aimed at creating an appropriate environment for starting a family and having children. This is a necessary investment in Poland's future. It is a challenge, not only for the Polish government, but also for local governments, employees, and non-governmental organizations and many other stakeholders," the deputy minister noted.
The Polish politician then outlined programs and plans to support families, such as Family500+, now general benefits for raising children; the Good Start Program, designed to support families with children in schools, regardless of income; or another instrument created this year, Family Care Capital, which helps implement forms for childcare for children under 3 years old with preferences that parents have, in addition to a card for large families, the Large Family Cardwhich is used by 1.2 million families in Poland, and so on.
Economic and family policy, hand in hand
For her part, the Hungarian ambassador to Spain, Katalin Tóth, stressed that "we invest 6.2 % of GDP to help families, a percentage that has no comparison in other countries", and the main objective is that "parents can have as many children as they want and when they want".
"We want to help families plan their future, with children, so that they can think about starting a large family," the Hungarian ambassador added. The key, in her view, is that "the success of economic policy and the success of family policy go hand in hand," and "enable young couples to realize their family-related goals."
"In Hungary, having children is not the privilege of some, but of all," she added, before giving a brief summary of the Hungarian Constitution: "Human dignity is inviolable, every human being has the right to life and human dignity, and the life of the fetus must be protected from conception. Moreover, the ambassador added that "Hungary will protect the institution of marriage as the union of a man and a woman on a voluntary basis," and "we are neither homophobic nor fascist," she added. On the other hand, "the more children, the less income tax you pay," she said.
When more people die than are born
The speech heard in the morning was quite different. "After decades with a great insufficiency of births for the generational change" -situated at 2.1 children per woman in countries with almost no infant and child mortality-, "for years in Spain more people have been dying than being born, and the differential is growing", Alejandro Macarrón had stated. "And without considering the impact of immigrants in births (many) and deaths (few), being more fecund and younger on average than Spaniards, since 2014 the deaths of native Spaniards already exceed by one million the babies of mothers born in Spain since then."
In more than a few Spanish provinces, "deaths are double the number of births. In some, they triple them," added the CEU expert. "As a consequence, if fertility does not increase, the native Spanish population, according to INE, UN or Eurostat projections, would decrease by around 14-16 million people in the next 50 years. The total population variation would be a function of this enormous loss and of how much new foreign immigration comes (and how many children it then has here)".
The conference, which was an initiative of the Plataforma per la Familia Catalunya-ONU and the CEU Institute of Family Studies, was inaugurated by the rector Rafael Rodriguez-Ponga, and was also attended by Daniel Arasa, president of the platform; Luciano Malfer, head of family policies in Trento (Italy); María Calvo Charro, professor of Administrative Law at the Carlos III University; Carmen Fernández de la Cigoña, director of the CEU Institute of the Family; Raúl Sánchez, secretary general of the European Confederation of Large Families Associations (ELFAC); Eva López, deputy mayor of the Castelldefels City Council, and members of the candidates for mayor of Barcelona in the upcoming municipal elections.
On the other hand, at the 'Fighters for the Family' awards ceremony, the international award went to the president of the Federation of Catholic Family Associations of Europe, Vincenzo Bassiinterviewed by Omnes in June of this year, and that of the national category, for the president of Neos and One of Us, Jaime Mayor Orejaalso interviewed by Omnes, by the end of 2021.
Cultural change in the face of aging
Some additional data put on the table by Alejandro Macarrón are that the average age of the population of Spain has increased from 33 years in 1976 to 44 years in 2022, and 46 native Spaniards. Approximately 75 % of this increase has been due to the collapse of the birth rate, and the consequent decline in the child and youth population, he said.
"The enormous aging of the population due to the lack of children and young people, which will continue to grow significantly if the birth rate does not increase, has very negative consequences on the economy (much more spending on pensions, health and dependency; less demand for consumption and investment; less and less productive labor force; etc.) and on innovation and social dynamism. And it profoundly alters the electorate, as retirees become the preponderant segment with homogeneous interests (electoral gerontocracy)," stressed Macarrón.
Moreover, it is true that immigration palliates the lack of birth rate of the autochthonous. But speaking of productivity, to which Josep Miró i Ardevol, president of e-Cristians, referred, it is worth remembering that the "only agent providing human capital is the family. And if the human capital is immigration, its productivity is below that of the natives," he pointed out.
Finally, the CEU expert outlined policies to promote the birth rate in Spain, in the context of the need for "a pro-birth and pro-family cultural change. Without that, little or nothing will be achieved," he said. In short, they include raising awareness of the problem, giving prestige to maternity/paternity and the family, without stigmatizing traditional mothers (who do not work outside the home), and not stigmatizing the figure of the father; compensating fathers economically and fiscally for having children; relieve companies of all maternity/paternity costs; encourage and facilitate having the first (and subsequent) children earlier; make life easier for fathers; involve civil society ("this is not just a problem of policies and politicians"), and "do not harass religion. People of faith have more children," he said.
God forgets our faults when, repentant, we confess them. For Him we can always be a blank sheet of paper.
November 15, 2022-Reading time: 3minutes
One of the most difficult moments in the life of a journalist or writer is the blank page. It is true that, sometimes, writing is an impulse, an uncontrollable instinct that makes words and ideas gush out, making the search for an instrument to fix them a relief; but these are the fewest.
The usual thing is to have more or less imposed deadlines that force the author, not to look for a topic but, what is worse, to choose from one of the thousands of topics that are going around in his head.
They all want their chance, they all want to get off the bench, but one is perhaps still too green and needs to mature, another is thorny and requires too much effort or time that one does not have, another would not be understood in the current social context...
All subjects have their pros and cons, but in the end it is one that, in the end, pushes its way through with its insistent raised hand and ends up, like this one you hold in your hands, black on white.
But I am going to confess something. This is not the article I had started writing for you today. I had chosen another topic. It seemed topical, not too thorny and I had the idea matured and ready. I was enjoying the ease with which the ideas came to my mind, thinking about how you would confirm or reject them, and how it would work in social networks. But, halfway through the page, the phrases seemed strangely familiar. So much so, that a terrible doubt assailed me: Haven't I already written this?
I ran to consult my archive and it immediately appeared: an article on the same subject, developing almost the same ideas, with almost identical phrases and dated exactly one year ago.
I was immediately reminded of that terrifying scene in the movie "The Shining" in which Wendy (Shelley Duvall) discovers that the pile of pages of the novel her husband Jack (Jack Nicholson) has been writing for months contains the same phrase repeated over and over again, confirming her suspicion that madness had taken hold of him.
Those who know me, know of my tremendous absent-mindedness and my lack of memory, so this repeated article is just one more anecdote to add to the list. Of course, when I told my wife about it, she hurried to hide the axe that we keep in the shed, just in case I might start to attack the doors, like Jack.
Out of jokes -I have no shed, no axe-, the case makes me reflect on the lack of memory, which makes us have to repeat the important things over and over again so that we do not forget them.
In a few days, with the feast of Christ the King, the liturgical year will come to an end and we will begin a new cycle in which, once again, we will delve into the main mysteries of the life of Jesus, beginning with the expectation of his coming: Advent.
Making a cyclical memorial of the Lord's life keeps us always alert, helps our spirit not to become drowsy, to be in a continuous disposition of conversion; that is to say, to correct the course of our existence that our natural weakness makes us lose again and again, over and over again.
On second thought, lack of memory is not such a bad thing, perhaps more than a defect it can even become a virtue, because even God has that capacity.
It is said that when St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, promoter of the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, told her confessor about the visions of Jesus that she had experienced, the holy priest (Claude de la Colombiere) proposed a test of veracity. He asked him to ask the vision what was the last sin of which he had confessed. The next day, Jesus answered him: "I do not remember it, I have forgotten it".
Such is God's mercy toward us. So forgetful is He of our faults when, repentant, we confess them.
With him we can always break that ugly story we had awkwardly started to write and start from scratch.
Today, once again, we can be, for Him, a blank sheet of paper.
Journalist. Graduate in Communication Sciences and Bachelor in Religious Sciences. He works in the Diocesan Delegation of Media in Malaga. His numerous "threads" on Twitter about faith and daily life have a great popularity.
Three medical and obstetrics professionals from the University of Navarra explain, in a short video, the development of human life in its early stages.
Professors Mar Cuadrado, Begoña Olartecoechea, a midwife, and Elisa Mengual, of the University of Navarra A video that, in a graphic way and supported by medicine and biology, shows the uniqueness of each life from the moment of conception.
A process in which the qualitative leap "is fertilization," they emphasize. From there, in the first eight weeks of life, the baby is formed in the mother's womb. These are the essential months, in which, from the very beginning, all the information "about its sex, the color of its hair, its eyes, etc., is already present.
Among the moments reviewed in this video, the doctors and midwives point out, for example, the baby's heartbeat, which begins around day 22 after gestation, and "in the fourth week the neural tube has already formed and the limbs have begun to develop; two weeks later, at six weeks of life, you can already start to see the baby's little hands".
At two months all organs are formed in the human being; from then on, a process of weight gain and maturation begins.
The video demonstrates the inviolability and uniqueness of each life from the first moment of its existence.
World Youth Day will be held from August 1 to 6, 2023 in the Portuguese capital with the theme "Mary arose and departed without delay".
After years of pandemic, this event will gather hundreds of thousands of young people from all over the world. Registrations are open and the Pope was the first to do so.
1. Learn from Mary. In 2019, in an audience with hundreds of children, the Holy Father confessed "what happens to spoiled children happened to me: don't you like soup? Two dishes, don't you like to travel? You will travel a lot... in fact, during your travels you meet a lot of people, good people and you learn a lot". His first trip was to the south of Italy (Lampedusa) where he changed his mind: "after Lampedusa I understood that I had to travel".
Francis has made 41 trips and Portugal will host Francis for the second time, after his visit in 2017. If the first one was marked by a slogan of Marian identity ("We have Mother"), this second one has as its motto "Mary arose and departed without delay".
Apostolic journeys serve to reform the Church, placing the peripheries at the center, to seek new paths of evangelization, where Mary - and in Portugal, the Virgin of Fatima - is the great teacher.
2. More than a summer storm. WYD has an eminently spiritual purpose, and means nothing more than "an encounter with God".
Francis has high hopes for the impact he can have on the attendees. To give you an idea, during WYD 2013 in Rio de Janeiro, many people noticed that there was a church located under the statue of Christ the Redeemer and for 45% of the participants it was the most impactful event of their lives.
The experiences of past editions (Panama, Krakow, Rio de Janeiro and Madrid) show that WYD multiplies the spiritual fruits in the Church: greater participation in Sunday Mass and confession; more decisions to correspond to one's vocation. And among the thousands of volunteers, many continue to collaborate with their dioceses in social activities.
3. Don't forget Jesus' phone number. In a pre-WYD audience in Panama, the Pope recalled that "we all have Jesus' telephone and we can all connect with Jesus. He is there, he always has space, always, always! He always listens to us because He is like that, close to us".
The logistics of an event can distract us from the essentials, from moments of adoration, from participation in Holy Mass and from the possibility of getting back on the phone with a good confession. These are the best fruits. A great ecclesial event resembles the Gospel episode of the Wedding at Cana: the guests at that feast in Galilee left happy, but the organizers were sure that it did not depend on the talent of the bride and groom's organization.
4. Enjoy with your friends after the pandemic.. In his message for WYD 2023, Francis recalled that "recent times have been difficult, when humanity, already tested by the trauma of the pandemic, is torn apart by the drama of war".
The solution seems to be Our Lady's model of service, who with her visit to her cousin "reopens for everyone, and especially for you, who are young like her, the path of closeness and encounter". The Pope asks us to be in a hurry to put the needs of others above our own.
5. Make bridges. An alliance between young and old is necessary, so as not to forget the lessons of history, to overcome the extremisms of this time. The age difference between the Pope and those attending this event seems to have been overcome: more than 1 million young people are preparing to listen to an 86-year-old man.
Francis calls us to build bridges with people of other generations or who think differently, to know how to live delicately with the different charisms of the Church.
Henrique Monteiro, editor of ExpressoPortugal's most important weekly newspaper, acknowledged: "I, who am not a Catholic, think it is great that WYD is coming to Portugal and that they are celebrating youth, peace and harmony. This is the spirit of fraternity and tolerance, proper of a secular state, which is opposed to the dogmatism and sectarianism of those who do not respect others."
Building bridges: this is the great challenge. A symbolic fact in this regard: the closing ceremony of WYD will take place under the largest bridge in the European Union (12.3 km) in the eastern part of the Portuguese capital.
6. Imitates Isabel's hospitality. Faith and vocation open us to others, even to their most human and material needs, in order to make the world more welcoming for all, with special attention to the most vulnerable. "It was not enough for Jesus to look at us from afar, he wanted to be with us, he wanted to share his life with us".
From Mary's encounter with her cousin arise those words that millions repeat daily in the Hail Mary What prevents us from serving? Constantly looking in the mirror, contemplating one's own image, getting caught up in social networks.
Bishop Américo Aguiar, the bishop responsible for WYD in Lisbon, recalls another challenge in this regard: this will be the first WYD that will include the generation of digital natives, people who were born in the digital era, with the internet. We have to think about how we can welcome them so that they feel at home in the Church".
7. Sign up! The Holy Father did so on October 23rd during the Angelus. Registration can be made through the following website lisboa2023.org.
The Organizing Committee provided a series of services such as lodging, food, personal accident insurance, transportation and pilgrim kit. Now it is up to you, your group or your parish. It is also possible to sign up as a volunteer.
It's time to get up and go fast because there are 10% discounts for registrations through December 31, 2022.
The authorJorge Oliveira
Author of the chapter "Jornada Mundial da Juventude (JMJ) 2023 em Lisboa" of the Portuguese version of Austen Ivereigh's book "Como defender a fé sem levantar a voz".
The 'Fratelli Tutti' Foundation celebrates its first anniversary
On December 8, 2021, Pope Francis instituted the Foundation Fratelli Tuttifrom which the spirit of fraternity advocated in the encyclical of the same name is intended to radiate to the world.
The Foundation Fratelli Tuttiis about to celebrate its first year of life within the Holy See (and more specifically in the Fabbrica di San Pietro(the organization in charge of the construction and artistic care of the basilica). An organism of religion and worship that is inspired by the contents of the last encyclical of the Holy Father dedicated to fraternity and social friendship, and that wants to promote initiatives of dialogue with the world around St. Peter's Basilica.
Dialogue, meeting and exchange
It is no coincidence that the Foundation's motto is precisely Recognizing each other as brothers and sisters and evangelizing cultures in order to walk together. All of this is based on three key principles, which are also included in the encyclical: dialogue, encounter and sharing.
Through this Foundation, St. Peter's Basilica is being given centrality and prominence with initiatives related to spirituality, art, education and dialogue with society, as desired by the Pope himself in the foundation's chirograph.
In addition to the president GambettiThe foundation's board of directors includes managers, economists, communicators and theologians, all of whom are Italian.
"Realizing the new humanism requires the generous and willing commitment of everyone, and the foundation is a means to rewrite together a 'grammar of the human' that makes us re-know each other even if we do not know each other personally."explain the promoters.
The life of the first bishop of Rome
One of the latest initiatives was dedicated to the life of the first bishop of Rome, the apostle Peter, through a videomapping projected for two consecutive weeks on the same façade of the Vatican Basilica, every evening from 9 to 11 p.m., with the title of Follow me at.
The project aimed to get to the heart of the figure and personality of Simon, who later became Peter, from the call to the following, from the mission to the martyrdom. And it made use of important iconographic repertoires made available both by the basilica and the Vatican Museums (referring to artists such as Raphael, Perugino, Reni and Cavallucci), harmonized and enhanced also through sounds and words.
It was a way for thousands of believers to get closer to the humanity of the fisherman from Galilee and his spirituality, including the jumps, the falls, the tenacity, the doubt and even the gift of life for Christ and his Church.
In addition to art and faith courses, the foundation's mission areas also include cultural and spiritual education and dialogue with other Christian denominations and other religions on the themes of the Pope's latest encyclicals.
School of Arts and Crafts
Precisely in the area of training, the deadlines for registration for the School of Arts and CraftsThe courses will begin in January 2023 and will last six months with compulsory attendance. The recipients will be stonemasons, masons, plasterers and decorators, carpenters, for a maximum number of 20 students.
The lecturers will come from various Italian universities, but there will also be staff from the technical office of the Fabbrica di San Pietro and experienced craftsmen. Guided tours and study visits are obviously planned, and the workshop hours will take place in the workshops of the organization that manages all the work necessary for the construction and artistic realization of St. Peter's Basilica.
Jubilee Strolls
Obviously, the foundation is also looking ahead to the next Jubilee of 2025, when the Basilica will become the point of concentration and radiation of the massive experience of faith that will involve the faithful from all over the world. Along these lines are the meetings called Jubilee Synodal PathwaysThe series of meetings will always focus on the themes of the encyclical, such as proximity, the purification of social memory and political love. In many of these initiatives, St. Peter's Square will always be the backdrop, precisely to represent that embrace that extends from Bernini's columns to the whole world.
Pope Francis: "Perseverance is the reflection of God's love".
Pope Francis presided at Mass this morning in St. Peter's Basilica on the occasion of the Sixth World Day of the Poor and then addressed the faithful in his traditional address before the Angelus.
– Supernatural World Day of the Poors, instituted in 2017 by the Holy Father, is one of the most dear to Pope Francis because of its significance and unity with one of the main lines of his pontificate. A day whose significance has also been very present in the allocution prior to the Angelus.
Together with the faithful gathered in St. Peter's Square, the Pope stressed how "what really matters often does not coincide with what attracts our interest: often, like those people in the temple, we give priority to the works of our hands, our achievements, our religious and civil traditions, our sacred and social symbols. These things are important, but they happen", the Pope wanted to point out.
Francis wanted to point out that "perseverance is to build good every day. To persevere is to remain constant in doing good, especially when the surrounding reality pushes us to do something else," referring, as in the homily of the previous Mass, to the temptation to let ourselves be discouraged by apparently adverse circumstances.
The Pope encouraged us to make a brief personal examination of our perseverance "Let us ask ourselves: how is my perseverance going? Am I constant, or do I live faith, justice and charity according to the moment, that is, if I feel like it, I pray, if it suits me, I am just, helpful and attentive, while, if I am dissatisfied, if no one thanks me, I stop doing it? In short, do my prayer and my service depend on circumstances or on a firm heart in the Lord?" and he concluded his address by affirming that "perseverance is the reflection of God's love in the world, because God's love is faithful, it never changes".
Doing "the possible good" and giving hope even in situations of suffering
The Sixth World Day of the Poor was marked by a Holy Mass presided over by Pope Francis in the Vatican Basilica on Sunday, November 13. In the days leading up to the event, various initiatives were launched around this day.
In the face of dramatic events, situations of pain, wars, revolutions and calamities, the Christian's outlook is nourished by faith. So, then, do not adopt catastrophic and superstitious attitudes, or even defeatist and conspiratorial ones, certain that "being close to God 'not a hair of one's head will be lost'".
These are the words with which Pope Francis began his commentary on the liturgy in the Mass of the VI World Day of the Poor, celebrated in St. Peter's Basilica on Sunday, November 13 in the presence of numerous categories of "excluded", as has been the custom since 2017, when he himself instituted it at the end of the Jubilee of Mercy.
In the face of pandemics and wars, such as those we are experiencing, we must not "allow ourselves to be paralyzed by fear or give in to defeatism," the Pontiff explained in his homily, falling into a lax attitude of resignation. Rather, the Christian is the one who precisely in the most difficult situations "gets up", looks up and starts again, because "his God is the God of resurrection and hope".
To give concreteness
Here, then, is where the concreteness of one's actions comes in, as the Pope also wrote in the Message dedicated to this Day: do not let others "do something" to solve the world's problems, but get your hands dirty in the first person. In short, seizing the opportunity to do "the possible good, that little good that is possible to do, and to build even from negative situations".
It is also a way of growing and maturing precisely in faith, abandoning a fearful disinterest in the facts of the world, "the way of worldliness," but taking advantage of these opportunities as a way of "bearing witness to the Gospel" without wasting the meaning of one's own existence.
Listen to
Days like these serve, therefore - Pope Francis reiterated in his homily - "to break that inner deafness that we all have" and that makes us indifferent to the "stifled cry of pain of the weakest".
Rather - and the Pope could not fail to make repeated reference to the war in Ukraine and the unspeakable suffering inflicted on the population, but also to the situation of those who migrate because of the environmental crisis or the lack of work - it is necessary to listen to these feeble pleas for help and learn "to weep with them and for them, to see how much loneliness and anguish are hidden even in the forgotten corners of our cities," and that is where we must go.
Let us distance ourselves, then, from so many deceivers and doomsayers, and learn to bear witness, lighting "lights of hope in the midst of darkness" and building a more fraternal, just, lawful and peaceful world: "let us not flee to defend ourselves from history, but let us fight to give another face to the history in which we live".
The strength comes from the Lord, from recognizing that as a Father he is at our side and watches over us, and we too must be "fathers" of the discarded.
Charitable initiatives
As is customary, in the week leading up to the World Day of the PoorIn the world, numerous initiatives of "mercy" for the poor and the least of the poor, coordinated by the Dicastery for Evangelization, are being carried out all over the world.
In particular, after two years of suspension due to the pandemic, the Health Presidium was reestablished in St. Peter's Square to offer medical examinations and medicines to disadvantaged people, who thus have a place to go free of charge.
For his part, Pope Francis supported the parishes of Rome with tons of food that was distributed to families in the area with more than 5,000 boxes of basic foodstuffs such as pasta, rice, flour, sugar, oil and milk.
Another intervention was to alleviate the consequences of the energy crisis that has led to rising utility bills; the Catholic community took over the payment of gas and electricity bills for families in difficulty.
As in the past, after the Holy Mass in St. Peter's, lunch was served to some 1,300 poor people in the Paul VI Hall of the Vatican.
"Shelter"
Also within the framework of the Day dedicated to the Poor, last Wednesday, at the end of the General Audience, Pope Francis blessed in St. Peter's Square a new sculpture by the Canadian artist Timothy Schmalz, "Shelter", which aims to raise awareness about homelessness. The work, in fact, shows the life-size figure of a homeless person sheltered by a blanket pulled by a pigeon in flight. It was donated to the Vincentian Family, which is carrying out the "13 Homes Campaign" around the world to provide housing for all those (some 1.2 billion people) who live in extreme and precarious situations, in makeshift places that cannot be called home.
Among other things, Schmalz is the author of the work 'Angels Without Knowing' on the plight of refugees, which has been permanently installed under Bernini's columns since 2019.
All Christians are called, in spite of our faults, and even more so, with them, to full holiness.
November 13, 2022-Reading time: 3minutes
We are still close to the Solemnity of All Saints, followed by the commemoration of the faithful departed. It is a call from the Church, our Mother, not to forget that our goal is heaven.
In n.11 of the dogmatic constitution on the Church of Vatican Council II "Lumen Gentium"We are reminded that the entire People of God is priestly, since Christ, the Lord, the Pontiff taken from among men, has made the new People of God "a kingdom of priests to God his Father" (Rev 1:6).
This priesthood is actualized through participation in the sacraments of the Church, as a means that the Lord offers us to communicate his grace in the Holy Spirit, and through the virtues.
The Lord offers us the sacraments - those abundant and efficacious means - so that all Christians, each one in his or her own way, may reach the perfection of holiness, whose model is our Father God.
We are to bear witness to Christ everywhere and at all times and give an account of our hope in eternal life and in the resurrection there, in that condition, in which the Lord has placed us (cf. 1Pt. 3:5).
But to speak of the perfection of holiness frightens us. We immediately think and say: "That's not for me!"; "I know myself!"; "I know my defects and sins well and I experience them every day!" Yes. That is true.
We all experience more or less the same thing. But that cannot be an excuse to stop struggling. The call to holiness is for all Christians.
Let us take a look at the apostles, the first to follow the Lord's call. Let us read what the Gospels tell us about them: they are ambitious, intolerant at times, boastful, sometimes pessimistic and at other times overzealous..., but in time, with the grace of the Holy Spirit and their constant struggle, they will come to give their lives for Christ.
The same thing has happened down through the centuries in those who have wanted to follow Christ. There is St. Augustine, whose conversion we know, but also St. Therese of the Child Jesus, who at times has been presented as very childish, when in reality she had a stubborn character. Her mother said: "She is of an almost invincible stubbornness.
When she says no, there is no human power that can reduce her; even if we put her in the dark room for a whole day, she would rather sleep in it than say yes" (Autobiographical Manuscripts of St. Therese) or St. Therese, "When she says no, there is no human power that can reduce her; even if we put her in the dark room for a whole day, she would rather sleep in it than say yes. Alphonsus Mary Liguoriwho, at the age of eighty, said to a person: "If we are to argue, let the table be between the two of us; I have blood in my veins".
I suggest that you read and meditate on the Apostolic Exhortation "Gaudete et Exultate", in which Pope Francis invites us to follow this path, speaking to us of the saints next door.
Let us not lose hope! Holiness consists in fighting.
If we have fallen, let us try to get up. Let us try to say to the Lord: I'm starting now! And so many, many times throughout the day and throughout life.
We do not know the road we have yet to travel. There will be falls, but with God's grace, with prayer, with the sacraments, with the example of our brothers and sisters in the faith, we will get up and keep on walking: I'm starting now!
Let us try that what we do today be done with a little more love, affection and fervor than what we did yesterday. May the Lord meet us in this way, in this struggle, which gives us peace and happiness also on this earth.
Emmaus retreats, Ephpheta or Alpha dinners are some of the new methods that dioceses and groups are implementing for the evangelization of a secularized society.
In recent years, the fame acquired by the methods of new evangelization has been appreciated. These are experiences in which a group of people get together to promote special interior growth, formation and community life. Many parishes rely on these projects and organize them to reach more and more of the faithful.
There are many and very diverse group initiatives that mobilize people from the churches, fostering an environment of diversity in which both laity and priests are involved.
New methods of evangelization
One example of these experiences is Proyecto de Amor Conyugal, which organizes retreats for married couples and families with the aim of building stronger marital relationships, centered on Jesus Christ and faith. They follow a formation plan for married couples that is given in different cities of Spain, collaborating with parishes in family ministry. This itinerary is mainly inspired by the catechesis of St. John Paul II on human love, but it is not limited exclusively to the practical sphere, but its main objective is to transform marital relationships in order to establish them in the faith. The mission of the meetings organized on weekends can be summarized basically in two aspects: to discover and understand the treasure of the sacrament of marriage, and to help people live their marital vocation as it was originally intended by God.
Another new project that is growing in popularity is Effetá. It was born in Colombia and arrived in Spain in 2013. It is aimed at young people between 18 and 30 years old, and is based on a retreat whose main objective is the encounter with God through testimonies and experiences.
The Emmaus Retreat, founded in Miami and inspired by the Gospel of St. Luke, is organized in many cities of Spain. It is a project directed by and for lay people, although parish priests provide the necessary spiritual accompaniment. The Emmaus organizers define the experience as an encounter with God's love, mainly through testimonies.
Alpha is an initiative based on a series of sessions during which there is a meal, a formation talk and a discussion. Through these meetings we try to explore the fundamentals of the faith, asking questions and finding answers about the Christian life. It is characterized by the fact that the meetings are more spaced out and are not reduced to one weekend, but are extended over approximately eleven weeks with different sessions.
By their fruits ye shall know them
The testimonies of those who return from these experiences are often encouraging. People return home excited, but the Christian's life cannot be reduced to that moment of excitement. Does this make the new methods negative and unproductive? Not necessarily.
It is possible that all these experiences, in a negative aspect, lead to a "consumerism of experiences", in a constant search for "spiritual highs" that end up being extinguished once the disciple is faced with the reality of daily life.
In spite of this, the important question when examining these new formulas is the results: "by their fruits you will know them" (Matthew 7:15-20). We cannot fall into the temptation of believing that after a weekend we can count on new disciples who can set out immediately. The Christian's journey needs constant accompaniment, during which individuals and communities can always be strengthened by their pastors, encouraged, corrected and guided. It is necessary to establish a follow-up, a care for the faithful on the part of priests.
Keys to pastoral care
The Spanish Episcopal Conference has suggested some guidelines for approaching both the social and ecclesial reality, helping pastoral care to face the questions that open up with the new methods of evangelization. Among these guidelines, the missionary spirit that should preside over all initiatives, trying to transmit the joy and certainty that faith in God brings, stands out in the first place. This eagerness for mission is supported by the laity, who are beginning to grow in responsibility and are becoming more and more involved in church activities.
The change in society to which these new methods must respond poses new challenges that the Episcopal Conference echoes, such as internal secularization, lack of communion, mistrust and social confrontation. These challenges are an opportunity for renewal for the Church and for society, fostering occasions for encounter, listening and dialogue.
The Spanish Episcopal Conference stresses the need to continue affirming, today more than ever, that "religious experience, faith in God, brings clarity and firmness to ethical evaluations; human life is enriched by the knowledge and acceptance of God, who is Love and moves us to love all people; the experience of being loved by God the Father leads us to fraternal charity; at the same time, fraternal love brings us closer to God". People should also be reminded that "Christian marriage, a yes forever open to life, as the fruit of love, is the promise fulfilled of the need and desire we all have to love and to be loved". New methods of evangelization can help to bring these messages to more people, announcing the Good News to all those who participate in these projects.
As the bishops point out, the present time, with its dynamism, demands an active missionary life that has its origin in the joy that mercy gives and presents the opportunity for new paths linked to a conversion that knows how to combine fidelity to tradition and the newness of our times.
The Sovereign Order of Malta is one of the oldest charitable institutions in the world, operating in 120 countries where it assists people in need through its medical, social and humanitarian activities.
The Sovereign Order of Malta is one of the oldest charitable institutions in the world; it is headquartered in Rome and operates in 120 countries where it assists people in need through its medical, social and humanitarian activities.
It is a lay religious Order of the Catholic Church (combining the religious reality with that of knights) since 1113. It is also a subject of international law, the Sovereign Order of Malta maintains diplomatic relations with more than 100 States and the European Union and has permanent observer status at the United Nations.
The Order is headed by the Grand Master, who rules both as sovereign and religious superior and is assisted by the Sovereign Council, over which he presides. The first seat in Rome was on the Aventine Hill, initially entrusted to a Benedictine monastery and then transferred to the Knights of Malta. The construction of the Magistral Villa was then completed in the eighteenth century.
Presence of active help
Today, the Order of Malta is particularly active in the medical sector, and has been present for several centuries in most parts of the world, where its 13,500 members, 95,000 permanent volunteers and qualified personnel work. There are 52,000 professionals - most of them medical and paramedical personnel - who form an emergency relief network for refugees and displaced persons living in conditions of war and conflict.
Assistance to victims of natural disasters and armed conflicts has intensified in recent decades. Through its National Associations, its volunteer corps and its international relief agency, the Order of Malta provides emergency medical and humanitarian assistance and works with affected populations to implement reconstruction and disaster prevention programs.
The Order of Malta has intervened to support refugees, displaced persons and migrants in general. For example, refugees fleeing Syria are received at the Malteser International field hospital in Kilis, on the Turkish border. The hospital has 100 beds and can perform emergency operations. Thanks to cooperation with local partners, Malteser International also supports 9 medical centers, of which 3 are mobile clinics in the Aleppo region of Syria.
Its oldest hospital presence is in Palestine, where a hospital was established in the city of Bethlehem in 1895 and operated for almost 100 years until the hospital was forced to close in 1985 for political and social reasons related to the Arab-Israeli conflict. But that same year the Order of Malta decided to reopen a 28-bed maternity wing. Over the years, the hospital has increased its commitment, drawing on foreign aid (European Union, United States, etc.).
The Order of Malta often intervenes in the face of disasters and natural catastrophes. Emergency interventions have taken place in recent years in Indonesia following the earthquake and tsunami of September 2018, in Nepal following extremely severe earthquakes, in the Philippines devastated by Typhoon Haiyan, in the famine-stricken Horn of Africa, and across Europe, where relief corps respond to floods and extreme weather events. In Haiti, the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, long-term sustainable development projects are underway.
Diseases and epidemics are a constant challenge, leading to intervention in the case of leprosy, a disease famous throughout history, in addition to "more modern" diseases such as tuberculosis, malaria and HIV/AIDS, which are currently the leading causes of death in Africa. Malteser International, an international aid organization and agency based in Cologne and New York, has been active for almost 60 years and currently organizes more than 140 projects in 35 countries in Africa, Asia and the Americas.
The Order of Malta has a history of centuries, even millennia, and it is understandable that its headquarters are located in the center of Rome. There are three such places: the Magistral Palace, the Magistral Villa and the House of the Knights of Rhodes.
The Magistral Palace
This is the residence of the Grand Master and the seat of government of the Sovereign Order of Malta since 1834; it is located in Via Condotti, one of the central points of the city of Rome; it has belonged to the Order of Malta since 1629.
At first, the palace served as the seat of the Order of Malta's ambassador to the Papal States. Two centuries later, when the Order arrived in Rome in 1834, it became the residence of the Grand Master and the seat of his government.
The Italian Republic granted this seat the right of extraterritoriality.
The Villa Magistral
The same right of extraterritoriality applies to the Magistral Villa, located on the Aventine Hill and housing the seat of the Grand Priory of Rome.
It has hosted some of the most significant events in the institutional life of the Order in recent times: the elections of the last six Grand Masters and the feast of St. John the Baptist -patron saint of the Order- which has been celebrated annually in its gardens on June 24 for centuries.
The Villa Magistral also boasts an important artistic treasure: its church, Santa Maria in Aventino, is the only architectural example of the artist Giovanni Battista Piranesi (1720-1778), who modified an ancient plant established in the tenth century, when there were Benedictine monks.
Very famous is the so-called "keyhole", where visitors arriving at the Aventine come to peer into this keyhole that frames the dome of St. Peter's Basilica.
House of the Knights of Rhodes
The House of the Knights of Rhodes is a building in the heart of the Roman Forum, in its part dedicated to Augustus. After a long history over the centuries, it was entrusted to the Order of Malta at the end of World War II, and this assignment is due to the fact that this 13th century building belonged to the Knights of St. John of Jerusalem, a chivalric order with a long history that merged with the Sovereign Military Order of Malta.
New stage of the Synod. Continental and until 2024
The unfolding of the final phase of the Synod of Synodality, the homily on the 60th anniversary of the Second Vatican Council and the condemnations of the war in Ukraine have been the main news of this month.
After Pope Francis' surprising announcement that the synodal process underway in the Church has been extended by one more year - in addition to the October 2023 stage, already scheduled, the conclusion will take place in 2024 - this month the continental stage of the synod comes to life, which will last until next March.
The Pontiff considers it necessary to proceed with caution, without haste, so that the many fruits that this process is generating "reach their full maturity". This is, at least, the official motivation, but it also fits perfectly with the correct understanding of this instrument desired almost sixty years ago by St. Paul VI: it is not a parliament, but rather "a moment of grace, a process guided by the Spirit who makes all things new."as Francis recently reminded a group of French pilgrims.
Document for the continental stage
A few days ago, the document for the continental stage was presented to journalists at the Vatican press office, the fruit of the broad consultation of the first phase of the synodal process, in which local communities and episcopal conferences participated.
The text, which is now available to the entire ecclesial community, was drafted at the end of September by a group of more than 50 experts from around the world, gathered at the John XXIII Center in Frascati, a few kilometers from Rome, to prepare a synthesis of the hundreds of documents received by the Secretariat of the Synod. In addition to the episcopal conferences (112 out of 114) and the Eastern Catholic Churches, religious congregations, ecclesial associations and movements and Vatican dicasteries also participated in the first phase of consultation.
Unique and extraordinary experience
Meeting with Pope Francis at the end of this work of synthesis that lasted twelve days and was marked by the method of spiritual conversation, the Cardinal Secretary General of the Synod, Mario Grech, called the experience of "unique and extraordinary"by having made it possible to know "the richness of the fruits that the Spirit is awakening in the Holy People of God"..
Cardinal Grech added: "We will be able to say that the Church offers itself as a home for all, because the experience of synodality that we are living leads us to 'widen the space of the tent' to truly welcome all"..
The work of synthesis that resulted in the document for the continental stage was coordinated by Fr. Giacomo Costa, who heads the preparatory commission, and was co-chaired by Cardinal Grech, as well as by the general rapporteur for the next General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, Luxembourg Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich.
Consultation regions
The document will, of course, accompany all the consultation that will take place in the coming months in the major regions of the world. In particular, the subdivision of the different areas of the world foresees assemblies for North America, Latin America and the Caribbean (CELAM), Europe (CCEE), Africa and Madagascar (SECAM), the Middle East - which will have the contribution of the Eastern Catholic Churches in particular - Asia (FABC) and Oceania (FCBCO).
The Secretariat has envisioned the whole process as a continuous exchange from the universal Church to the particular Church and back again through reflection in the various continents. It is also intended to generalize a constant flow that can be consolidated through the creation or consolidation of links between neighboring Churches and between Churches in specific regions.
It was Cardinal Grech himself who explained this dynamic at a meeting a few months ago, stating that. "to understand the synodal process we must think of a fruitful circularity of prophecy and discernment". which is operationally supported by the "restitution to the churches" of everything that has come to Rome from them.
In short, this continental phase will be characterized by discernment - on the basis of the working document prepared by the committee of experts - on what has emerged from the previous consultations: it is a matter of carefully formulating the open questions, as well as demonstrating and clarifying the perceptions and the overall vision, while still listening to those realities that were not integrated in the previous phase. In any case, there will be no suggestions for answers or decisions on courses of action, which will instead be referred to the broader discussion at the General Assemblies of 2023 and 2024.
60 years of the Council
Celebrating the 60th anniversary of the opening of the Vatican Council II by his predecessor St. John XXIII, Pope Francis emphasized the aspect of unity in spite of diversity that must characterize the Church's journey of this era and of the near future, an essentially synodal journey that finds its roots precisely in that dynamism of the last century.
"A Church in love with Jesus has no time for confrontation, poisoning and polemics."Pope Francis said in his homily of October 11, and added: "God forbid we should be critical and intolerant, bitter and angry.". Obviously, it is not just a question of style, "but of love, for he who loves, as the apostle Paul teaches, does all things without murmuring.".
Finally, he added: "that the Church be inhabited by joy. If she does not rejoice, she denies herself, because she forgets the love that created her. Yet how many of us do not live the faith with joy, without murmuring and without criticism?".
An excellent warning precisely for the subsequent stage of the synodal process that is beginning, which rather wants to encourage us to be participants and to discern rather than to occupy spaces or positions or even to raise objections that clash with those of our own. suggestions of the Holy Spirit.
Upcoming events of the Pontiff
In this month of November there will be several appointments in which Pope Francis will participate. It begins with the Apostolic Journey to the Kingdom of Bahrainfrom November 3 to 6, visiting the cities of Manama and Awali on the occasion of the Forum for Dialogue: East and West for Human Coexistencewith an immediate reference to the Document on Human Fraternity for World Peace signed in Abu Dhabi on February 4, 2019 by the Pontiff and the Grand Imam of al-Azhar, Ahmad Al-Tayyeb.
On November 13, Pope Francis will celebrate Mass in St. Peter's Basilica on the occasion of the sixth World Day of the Poor, which he instituted at the conclusion of the Jubilee of Mercy. In the message written for the occasion, the Holy Father had also referred to the many forms of poverty caused by the "poverty of the poor".meaninglessness of war".The company's activities in Ukraine, which has been generating uncertainty and precariousness, with special reference to the conflict in Ukraine, have been "to join the regional wars that in these years are reaping death and destruction.".
Several doctors will treat, free of charge, homeless people in medical caravans set up in St. Peter's Square. This initiative, promoted by the World Day of the Poor, is the fourth time it has been carried out after the forced suspension due to the pandemic.
The doctors responsible for this initiative are confident that thanks to word of mouth among the homeless themselves, during the weekend quite a few will trust them and put themselves in good hands.
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The covenant of conjugal love, a source of hope in the great narratives
The stories of outreach, when they reflect the truth of love, "show the sure hope of full life that is born of the love of the spouses," said José Miguel Granados Temes at the presentation of his book 'Transformar el amor' (Transforming Love), at the San Dámaso University (Madrid) a few days ago. In this way, "they teach how to live and fulfill the dream of God and of the human being in every marriage and family for the good of society".
Francisco Otamendi-November 11, 2022-Reading time: 6minutes
There, in the traditional and also university Madrid, accompanied by the vice-dean of the Faculty of Theology, Juan de Dios Larrú Ramos, who presided over the event, and by the rector of the Basilica of San Miguel, Juan Ramón García-Morato, theologian and doctor, José Miguel Granados Temes, who adds to his pastoral work in the diocese of Madrid, an intense research work on marriage and the family, presented to a large audience his latest book, 'Transformar el amor. Marriage and hope in the great stories', edited by Eunsa.
José Miguel Granados has already published in the San Dámaso University her doctoral thesis on 'The Spousal Ethics of John Paul II', defended years ago at the Lateran University in Rome. Her last two works have been 'The Gospel of marriage and the family', and a reflection on human and family values in Anglo-Saxon authors, entitled 'Woman, help me to love'.
Granados Temes' speech included a parade of universally known authors, and others not so well known. As if it were "a visit to a literary art exhibition," he said. "We enter the fairgrounds of the great stories that reflect human life and history. And we do so with the gaze or perspective of the gospel of marriage and the family. We could say that this is a visit to an exhibition that we could title 'the ages of marriage,' discovered in great stories."
Domestic virtues, family values
Because "as we enter into the literary exposition contained in this book, we discover in these captivating accounts of human stories and relationships, on the one hand, a bouquet of beautiful domestic virtuesThe author added: "We are proud of the fact that we have been able to develop our own values, such as patience, forgiveness, humility, courage, fortitude, perseverance, trust, joy and industriousness.
And "on the other hand, we will be surprised to find important family values"He continued, "such as the task of forming a home, a place of welcome for each person, of care for the weak and needy, a place of shelter and support, of promotion and encouragement, of human and Christian formation; or the gaze of tenderness towards others, with sincere affection, life in common, service generously rendered, shared joy".
But above all, José Miguel Granados emphasized, "we will consider fundamental aspects and dimensions of the identitythe vocation and the mission of marriage. Thus, procreation as a sublime form of the fecundity of love, in receiving the incomparable gift of each child; the dignity of the woman, wife and mother, the specific mission of the father; education as an extension of fatherhood and motherhood; affective maturation; the protagonism of the family in social transformation to build a civilization of life and love".
They teach how to live
Some of the authors and stories that we find in the fairgrounds described by Granados are, among others, J.R.R.Tolkien, "with his impressive mythological recreation of admirable anthropological depth", which takes us "to a cosmos full of beauty and dramatic tension between the forces of good and evil", in the words of the author; his friend and university colleague C. S. Lewis, with his "beautiful allegory of the history of salvation" and the lesson of the boy Eustace, in 'The Chronicles of Narnia'; memorable characters of the brilliant Charles Dickens, whom we will quote at the end in his 'Bleak House'; Elizabeth Gaskell and her very strong social denunciation; Oscar Wilde and The Portrait of Dorian Grey; Jane Austen's novels ('Sense and Sensibility', 'Pride and Prejudice'); mystery and suspense stories like those of Anna Katharine Green, or ghostly ones, like those of Wilkie Collins; adventures, like those of Jules Verne; or solitude, like that of Robinson Crusoe (Daniel Defoe).
It is also possible to observe the double moral life in Robert Louis Stevenson's 'Doctor Jekyll and Mr. Hyde'; children's stories by Danish Hans Christian Andersen, like 'The Snow Queen', or Edith Nesbit ('Five Children and That'); the detective novel, with masters of suspense and crime investigation, like Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Agatha Christie, Mary Elizabeth Braddon, Fergus Hume, Austen Freeman or Nicholas Carter; the brilliant G. K. Chesterton in the human wisdom of Father Brown; or "sagas of American novelists with Christian family values and admirable female figures, who also teach us to appreciate the gift of children".
Russian, French, English...
The author does not forget the great European playwrights of the 19th century either, such as "the profound Russian writer Fyodor Dostoyevsky, a modern giant of the Christian spirit, who makes us think of the moral conscience asleep and awakened by love, with the story of the young anarchist Raskolnikov in Crime and Punishment"; the French writer Victor Hugo, who "transmits, in the great story Les Miserables, the Christian meaning of life and of unjust suffering, overcome with mercy"; the also French Alexandre Dumas, who delights us with the misfortunes and the epic of Edmund Dantes in 'The Count of Monte Cristo', with the need to overcome rancor through Christian forgiveness".
Finally, he cites English novelists of the early 10th century who "show the power of grace in situations of moral ruin", such as Graham Greene or Evelyn Waugh, in 'Return to Brideshead'., or "the warnings of famous contemporary denouncing dystopias. Like the socio-political diatribe '1984', by George Orwell. Or the anguished prophecy of postmodern totalitarianism in Aldous Huxley's 'Brave New World'".
The reason for the title
Often a book begins with a brief quotation of a phrase from an author that is particularly inspiring for the work being done, explained José Miguel Granados. "In my case, I chose these two concatenated statements from the apostolic exhortation to the young entitled 'Christus vivit'.Pope Francis: "Only what is loved can be saved. Only what is embraced can be transformed".
Hence the title of this work: "Transforming love," he said. "For human love is not something spontaneous and automatic, which works by itself with its own internal dynamics in an inexorable way. It must not be forgotten that our nature is wounded by sin. For this reason, a work of recovery is indispensable. In reality, the human being as a person called to love needs to be transformed with the help of teachers of life and formative communities. Whoever undertakes the task of living and walking together with others towards a goal of transcendence must be educated, matured, improved, in a delicate and laborious process of purification, healing and constant learning".
And the author added that, "as the papal sentence mentioned above insinuates, what most renews and embellishes the heart and one's entire existence is the awareness of being loved personally, in a unique, unconditional and full way. To be truly loved fills one's existence with meaning and motivates one to give the best of oneself in the gift of self, in the gift of oneself to others. Moreover, divine grace comes to the aid of human weakness in a superabundant way. Christ is the redeemer of the heart, who gives us the effective ability to overcome difficulties and live according to our dignity and God's plan. This is what has happened in the lives of the saints.
For this reason, Granados explained, "throughout the book we allude to various Christian spouses and exemplary marriages, whose testimony shows the heroic fulfillment of the conjugal vocation in concrete life".
Hope, the central nerve
As for the subtitle of the book -'Marriage and hope in the great stories'-, "the area considered is marriage as a source of hope in some fictional narratives," said Granados, who then outlined an attractive panorama.
"The covenant of conjugal love is the space willed by God to engender and educate human life, to unfold its virtuality to the full," he concluded. "It is the school of true and beautiful love. It springs from the mutual commitment of man and woman who, rereading the spousal language of the body and heart, commit themselves and give themselves for life to build humanity. The divine promise underlies, precedes and accompanies the mutual promise of the spouses. God's gift, by overcoming human fractures, brings forth the hope of a beautiful, faithful and fruitful home of love, a human participation in the mystery of the Trinitarian family communion of the divine persons.
It is precisely hope that is the central nerve in the brief conclusion of the book, entitled 'From Gift to Engagement'. After recounting the gifts that Galadriel, the wise princess of the elves in the kingdom of Lothlórien, offers when bidding farewell to the community of the ring - we are talking about 'The Lord of the Rings' -, the author points out that "so too, the promise of conjugal love contains a divine seed of fecundity capable of overcoming all trials, to bloom with eternal beauty, which begins already on this earth".
He who loves always wins
Granados mentions in the book "the culture of careThe encyclical, so highly praised by Pope Francis, with the reading of Dickens' last complete novel, 'Our Mutual Friend'"; the encyclical, 'Our Mutual Friend', was published by the Pope. Spe salvi ('In hope we have been saved') by Benedict XVI, and to St. John Paul II, with his Letter to familiesamong other authors. But we must quote a phrase of his when commenting on a novel by Charles Dickens. "We understand that - unlike the mundane parameters of competition and the law of the strongest - in reality, the one who loves always wins, even if he seems defeated. This is the case with several characters in the splendid novel Gloomy house".
Without wanting to make a spoiler, in 'Bleak House' we see, the author comments, "apparent losers, such as Ada Claire who accompanies her husband in the fall, seduced by the false expectation of an inheritance; or the young Esther Summerson, who catches a serious illness by caring for the miserable families of the workers; or Mr. Jarndyce, the young woman's guardian, always patient and willing to help everyone; or Colonel George Runcewell, who risks his business to protect a street child; or Caddy Jellib, who is always patient and willing to lend a hand. Jarndyce, the young girl's guardian, always patient and willing to lend a helping hand to all; or Colonel George Runcewell, who risks his business to protect a street child; or Caddy Jelliby, who manages to contract an honorable marriage and form a decent home after overcoming his dire family circumstances; or, finally, Baron Sir Leicester Deadlock, who overrides his noble pride to save his disgraced wife: all these apparent failures are the ones who save the world in which they live with authentic and discreet gestures of self-sacrificing love."
Joseph Weiler's reflection at the Omnes Forum on the identity and future of Europe is part of a line of thought defended, among others, by Pope Benedict XVI.
November 11, 2022-Reading time: 2minutes
The American professor Joseph Weiler has intervened in an Omnes Forum, exposing his vision on the spiritual crisis of Europe. Once again, our media has had the opportunity to invite a thinker distinguished with the Ratzinger Prize, awarded every year by the Foundation that bears the name of the Pope Emeritus: in this case, the 2022 Ratzinger Prize, which the Holy Father will present to him in December.
It will be recalled that St. John Paul II had pointed out the convenience of seeing Europe not as a geographical unit, but as a "a predominantly cultural and historical concept, which characterizes a reality born as a Continent also thanks to the binding force of Christianity". (Ecclesia in Europa, 108). And that Benedict XVI, in 2004, stated that Europejust at this hour of its maximum success". for having exported its political model, its economic system and its way of life to many places, "she seems to have emptied herself inside, paralyzed in a sense by a crisis of her circulatory system, a crisis that puts her life at risk, depending, as it were, on transplants, which however cannot eliminate her identity.".
The Omnes Forum did not require a detailed treatment of the subject, and Prof. Weiler only summarized the main features of this crisis. He noted that political principles based on democracy, the rule of law and human rights are still indispensable, but they need to recover a content of which they have been emptied, in a process simultaneous with the forgetting or denial of their Christian roots.
Joseph Weiler has denounced three concrete expressions of this emptying: first, the privatization of faith, which is relegated to the realm of the intimate; second, a conception of the neutrality of public institutions that is false, because it leaves room only for a secularist vision; and finally, an individualistic reduction of rights.
Since the analysis refers to a spiritual crisis, and not only an economic, political or geopolitical one, the proposal outlined by the Ratzinger Prize 2022 does not think first of a project to reform laws or institutions. Weiler defended the validity of values that are beyond the law, such as: personal responsibility; the ability to seek peace also through forgiveness and reconciliation (as the European countries did after the Second World War, when they began the process of European integration); charity (in which the Christian horizon is even more visible), generosity, personal initiative, etc.
It is easy to transfer these considerations beyond the European scope, thinking of any developed democratic society; or to aspects not explicitly mentioned by Weiler: for example, cultural and religious diversity, today the object of special attention, on which he focused. Silvio Ferrari in a recent interview in www.omnesmag.comThe fact that it is an enriching element if it does not add just another empty principle or an apology for leaving a part of the citizens on the sidelines.
Lydia Jiménez: "Creative minorities are yeast, not dynamite".
The general director of the Santa Maria Crusades, Lidia Jiménez, was in charge of presenting the twenty-fourth edition of the congress. Catholics and Public Life at CEU.
The CEU auditorium was the venue for the presentation of the Catholics and Public Life Congress This year's event will have a strong testimonial character, key in the transmission of the Faith, as the president of the Congress, Rafael Sanchez Saus, wanted to emphasize.
"It is not a matter of looking at the past with nostalgia but of interpreting a living heritage that becomes a conscious mission of the greatness we have received". This statement by Lydia Jiménez could summarize the core of the Catholics and Public Life Congress which this year celebrates its twenty-fourth edition.
In her presentation, the director general of the Santa Maria Crusades alluded to the need for Christians to be creative minorities, as defined by Joseph Ratzinger, who must be aware that the "inheritance we have received calls for responsibility: we are the continuators of a previous history that must be carried forward. To the full: turned to the future. It is not to repeat as a dead letter but to draw all the richness in the face of new challenges".
The future belongs to creative minorities
Jimenez focused much of this presentation at the 24th Catholics and Public Life Congress on the challenge for Catholics to become a creative minority.
"A creative minority can be small but not sectarian. What distinguishes it is its capacity to generate culture", said Lydia Jiménez, who did not hesitate to affirm that "a holy creative minority will be able to change Europe".
The creative minorities, Jiménez defended, "do not destroy the present but renew it. It is about being leaven, not dynamite. A leaven that is translated "in the credible testimony of the transforming truth of the Gospel".
Faith recovers the best of Europe
In this line of being a witness, Lydia Jiménez pointed out the need to be coherent Catholics in the public space, the basis of this congress: "A faith that remains locked up in intimacy is incapable of really directing life".
Lydia Jiménez advocated recovering the truth of Europe through this witness and experience of faith: "Europe is, above all, a spiritual and cultural concept, a civilization, and culture needs a religious dimension. The Christian faith can help Europe to recover the best of its heritage and continue to be a place of welcome and growth, not only in material terms, but above all, in humanity".
Catholics and Public Life Congress
The XXIV Catholics and Public Life Congress will take place November 18-20 in Madrid with the theme: "We propose faith. We pass on a legacy.". Speakers at the Congress will include the president of the Political Network for Values and former presidential candidate of Chile, José Antonio Kast; the director of the B. Kenneth Simon Center for American Studies of the Heritage Foundation, Richard Reinsch; the president of European Fraternity, and Archduke Imre of Habsburg-Lorraine.
The Nuncio of His Holiness in Spain, Archbishop Bernardito Auza, will be in charge of inaugurating this congress in which the Cardinal Archbishop of Madrid, Archbishop Carlos Osoro, will preside the Mass on Sunday morning.
In addition to the conferences of the congress, several workshops will be held on topics such as family, science, economics, law and art.
At the same time, a youth congress will be held under the title "Youth, God's Now", which will include testimonies, conferences and a workshop on the proposals of the Apostolic Exhortation Christus Vivit.
Pope Francis and initiatives for dialogue with Islam
The last meeting of Pope Francis with the Grand Imam of al Azhar in Bahrain confirms that the Pope maintains a dialogue based on encounter.
Andrea Gagliarducci-November 10, 2022-Reading time: 5minutes
Pope Francis' visit to Bahrain was his seventh meeting with the Grand Imam of al Azhar, Ahmed al Tayyeb; a relaunching of the document on Human Fraternity, which the Pope himself described as "current" in the press conference on the plane on the return flight; and the confirmation that Francis maintains a "multilateral" dialogue with Islam, based more on encounters than on strategies.
The Pope had been invited to Bahrain since 2014, and the 2019 trip to the UAE had clamorously shifted the balance of the dialogue towards Sunni Islam: after all, Pope Francis had been in Cairo in 2017 at an Al Azhar conference.
The trip to Iraq in 2021, where the meeting with Ayatollah Al Sistani took place, was intended to redirect the dialogue with Islam to a more marked balance, also looking towards Shiite Islam. The trip to Bahrain, in a way, closes the circle, since the Pope has gone to a country with a Shiite majority, but governed by Sunnis.
Sunnis and Shiites
To understand this, one must define the differences between Shiite and Sunni Islam. When Muhammad died in 632 A.D., the succession was disputed between Abu Bakr, friend and father of Muhammad's wife Aisha, and Ali, Muhammad's cousin and son-in-law. The former took their name from the "Sunna", the code of conduct of the communities loyal to Islam, while the latter called themselves "Shiaat Ali", supporters of Ali.
The Sunnis prevailed, but for a short time Ali was the fourth caliph. In 680, the Sunnis killed Imam Hussein, son of Ali, in Kerbala, in what is remembered in the Shiite world as the "Ashura". The division thus became irremediable.
Sunnis and Shiites pray differently and make different professions of faith. Sunnis do not have an organized clergy, in the proper sense: it is the imams who lead the prayer. The Shiites, on the other hand, prepare their clergy in Islamic universities for this purpose. For the Shiites, the ayatollahs, their religious leaders, are representatives of the divinity on earth and await the revelation of the twelfth and last imam, who will one day reveal himself to fulfill Allah's will on earth.
Towards Sunni Islam
But why was there an imbalance towards Sunni Islam? Because Sunni Islam has done very important work on the issue of citizenship. Sunni Islam has done very important work on citizenship, with the goal of no longer considering non-Muslims as "second-class citizens."
This effort led to the Marrakech Declaration of 2016, the Beirut meeting, the Cairo Peace Conference in 2017, attended by the Pope, the pronouncement of 500 imams in Pakistan in January 2019 (which also defended Asia Bibi, the Christian sentenced to death in Pakistan for blasphemy, who was later acquitted and had to leave the country) and, finally, the Conference on Fraternity in Abu Dhabi in February 2019.
The relationship with Al Azhar
Al Azhar University, one of the highest Sunni authorities, had broken off dialogue with the Vatican in 2011, when Al Azhar accused the Holy See of "interference in Egypt's internal affairs" after Benedict XVI raised his voice to condemn the attack on Coptic Christians killed in a church in Alexandria.
It was a formal closure, because several gestures of rapprochement followed. Although an official dialogue was lacking, Mahmoud Azab represented the Grand Imam of Al Azhar in March 2014 at a conference at the Vatican, at the end of which an interfaith declaration against human trafficking was signed. And he had drawn attention, in February 2015, to Al Azhar's harsh condemnation of the self-styled Islamic State, which had burned at the stake a Jordanian pilot.
In February 2016, a delegation from the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue went to al Azhar, reopening relations with the Holy See and opening what would be the first meeting between Pope Francis and the Grand Imam of al Azhar, Ahmed bin Tayyeb.
The meeting added an ulterior motive for Pope Francis to visit Egypt. The trip took place in 2017, on the occasion of a Peace Conference organized precisely by Al Azhar.
That the meeting took place in Egypt was an important fact. In 2014, Egyptian President Al Sisi had said at Al Azhar itself that a revolution within Islam was needed. The applause was formidable. That same year, the Muslim Council of Elders was created, with the aim of "promoting peace among Muslim communities".
In 2015, the same university launched an online observatory to counter accusations of terrorism and renew the religious discourse in Islam. This movement towards a moderate interpretation of Islam had a visible sign in the international conference held again at Al Azhar, between February 28 and March 1, 2017. The conference was entitled "Freedom and Citizenship. Diversity and Integration," and produced a document, the "Al Azhar Declaration on Coexistence between Catholics and Muslims."
The declaration condemned all forms of violence committed in the name of religion, and declared firm opposition to all forms of political power based on discrimination between Muslims and non-Muslims.
The reform movement in Islam
The Al Azhar statement added to the various declarations that have followed one after another in the Islamic world condemning violence in the name of God. Another such statement is that of the Kingdom of Bahrain, cited by Pope Francis in his speech at the "Bahrain Forum for Dialogue" conference, which he closed in 2014.
If Sunni Islam had somehow become the spokesman for a new way of seeing Islam, Pope Francis has also tried to establish a bridge with Shiite Islam. And he did so by going to Najaf, during his trip to Iraq in March 2021, to meet with Ayatollah Muhammad al Sistani, who over the years has become not only a religious authority, but also an authority of reference to whom everything can be asked.
It was a meeting much desired by Cardinal Raffael Sako, Patriarch of Babylon of the Chaldeans, who hoped that the Pope would sign a declaration of Human Fraternity also with the highest Shiite authority, as he had done with the Grand Imam of al Azhar in Abu Dhabi.
The idea was to somehow calm the divided tempers of Islam, because the Islamic State (Daesh), which put Iraq for years to fire and sword, was in reality, as Jesuit Father Khalil Samir Khalil has explained on several occasions, the product of an entirely internal war of Islam.
With Sunni Islam, Pope Francis has supported a new vision of the concept of citizenship within the Islamic world. In visiting Al Sistani, Pope Francis showed his support for the "quietist" interpretation of Islam promoted by the Grand Ayatollah, in which religion and politics are not united, but separated, with the idea that "only good citizens can create a good society."
Finally, the Forum of Bahrain, passing through Kazakhstan
After visiting another Islamic majority country, Kazakhstan, to close the Congress of Leaders of the World's Religions and Traditions, the Pope went on to Bahrain, where he participated in the "Global Interfaith Forum" organized by the "King Hamad Global Center for Peaceful Coexistence".
Leaving aside the human rights issues raised by various organizations, Pope Francis symbolically wanted to participate in a conference whose theme was "East and West for human coexistence". At the heart of it all was another declaration, that of Bahrain, which reiterated that there can be no violence in the name of religion.
It is part of an ongoing effort of dialogue with Islam. In Iran, the University of Qom has helped publish the Catechism of the Catholic Church in the Farsi language. While the Secretary of the Muslim World League, Muhammad al Issa, considered the new face of Saudi Islam, visited Pope Francis in 2017, and has long called in his speeches for the development of interreligious dialogue.
The trip to Bahrain was, in the end, only one of the various bridges of dialogue established by Pope Francis with the Islamic world. The effort consists in going where there seems to be an intention of peace. To, in the style of Pope Francis, open processes, rather than outlining paths.
The Holy See at COP27: the environmental issue is of "dramatic urgency".
Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican Secretary of State, is currently participating in the United Nations Climate Change Conference COP27. The Holy See is one of the states most committed to environmental management.
From November 6 to 18, the United Nations Climate Change Conference COP27 will be held in Sharm el-Sheikh (Egypt), which will also be attended by the Church of Rome. It is no coincidence that the ecological issue is one of the main themes of the pontificate of Pope Francis, to which, among other things, he has dedicated the well-known encyclical Laudato si'.
Dramatic urgency
For this particular event, the Pontiff has been present through an address by Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, who recalled how a few days earlier, during his trip to Bahrain, the Holy Father himself recalled the "dramatic urgency" of the environmental issue.
It is also the first time that the Holy See is a signatory to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Paris Agreement. The Holy See has been committed, through the Vatican City State and for several years now, to reduce net emissions to zero by 2050 by improving its environmental management. But also to stimulate education for an integral ecology, which can foster development and sustainability "based on care, fraternity and cooperation," as Parolin recalled.
Moment of conversion
The Secretary of State's address then emphasized that the ecological crisis we are experiencing represents "a propitious moment for individual and collective conversion" in order to arrive at "concrete decisions that can no longer be postponed." It is a "moral duty," Parolin stressed, to prevent and resolve the frequent and serious human impacts caused precisely by climate change, such as the phenomenon of displaced persons and migrants.
Faced with a now interconnected world, the response to these crises must be one of "international and intergenerational solidarity," the Cardinal Secretary of State reflected: "We must be responsible, courageous and farsighted not only for ourselves, but also for our children."
Finally, Parolin stressed that, by adhering to the Convention and the Paris Agreement, the Holy See's commitment is to walk together with nations "for the common good of humanity and, above all, in favor of our young people, who expect us to take care of present and future generations."
Responsibility, prudence and solidarity
In his Message for the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation, celebrated on September 1, Pope Francis, referring precisely to COP27, had also called for the urgency of "converting patterns of consumption and production, as well as lifestyles, in a direction more respectful of creation and the integral human development of all present and future peoples," from the perspective of responsibility, prudence, solidarity and concern for the poor.
"At the basis of everything must be the alliance between the human being and the environment - the Pontiff wrote on that occasion - which, for us believers, is a mirror of "God's creative love, from which we come and towards which we journey"."
The importance and objectives of COP27
The UN Climate Change Conference brings together heads of state, ministers, climate activists, civil society representatives and business leaders. It is the most important annual meeting on global climate action. The aim is to increase public and private investment in support of projects and initiatives towards a sustainable energy transition worldwide, as well as to establish policies that reduce the gap in economic and financial flows between rich and emerging countries.
In fact, one of the most eagerly awaited measures is to intervene to compensate developing countries, which suffer the most from climate change-related catastrophes, since it is the rich countries that are most responsible for greenhouse gas emissions.
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The Synod, which will have its universal phase in the sessions of October 2023 and October 2024, is seen as one of the mature fruits of the Second Vatican Council.
November 10, 2022-Reading time: 2minutes
If there is one verb that perhaps best describes the newness of the Vatican Council II is "to participate. As the Pope emphasized in his homily for the 60th anniversary of the opening of the ecumenical assembly, for the first time in history, the Church "has dedicated a Council to questioning itself, to reflecting on its own nature and mission".. In order to carry out such an extraordinary task, the Council could not limit itself to involving only a part of the faithful, but it had to "open for a season" to involve all the baptized. "In the Church"we read in the conciliar decree Apostolicam Actuositatem, "there is diversity of mystery, but unity of mission". And, therefore, the same dignity.
Precisely with the Council, with the Lumen Gentium in particular, it affirmed the definition of the Church as the People of Godin which we are all members and are all called upon to share the "joy and hope" (Gaudium et Spes) that flows from the Gospel. This was the great dream of John XXIII, 60 years ago. This is also the vision Francis has for the Church of the Third Millennium. For this reason, the first Pope "son of the Council" (he was ordained a priest in 1969) holds the Synod so close to his heart. A mature fruit of the Council itself which - in the intention of Paul VI who instituted it - continues and develops precisely its participatory dimension of the people: that ecclesial communion without which the Christian faith could not be fully lived.
Synod means "walking together". This is what the Pope exhorts us to do: to feel and be all of us on the way ("Church on the way out") to encounter the Risen Lord and to bear witness with joy to the women and men of our time to the beauty of this encounter that gives eternal life. It is the joy that comes from a relationship with a living Person, not with a memory of the past, because, as the philosopher already pointed out Kirkegaard, "the only relationship one can have with Christ is contemporaneity"..
The authorAlessandro Gisotti
Deputy Director. Editorial Direction of the Dicastery for Communication.
In the last book of the Old Testament, Malachi, of whom nothing is known, speaks of the day of the Lord, when God will pronounce his judgment on human history. He uses the apocalyptic symbol of the fire that will burn the proud and unjust like chaff, but will be like a sun with beneficial rays for those who follow the Lord.
We must wait for that day without falling into the error of some Thessalonians, who abandon their work because it is not worth the effort to improve a world that will soon come to an end. Paul corrects them, after writing to them that "do not easily lose your heads or be alarmed by any revelation, rumor, or supposed letter from us, as though the day of the Lord were at hand." (2 Thess 2:2).
The same message of active and prudent vigilance emerges from Jesus' discourse on the end of time, which Luke places before his passion, death and resurrection. Jesus takes advantage of the phrases of admiration for the temple of Jerusalem to prophesy its ruin.
Surprised by this announcement, his listeners ask him with curiosity and fear when these things will happen, and what the signs will be. But Jesus, who links the references to the destruction of the temple with others about the end of time, does not go into details of curiosity, but directs his listeners to be concerned about how to live the time of waiting, which is the time of the Church.
He warns his disciples against false prophets who will claim to be him, or who will announce the imminent end and his return, which, as he had said, will take place "at the hour you least expect" (Lk 12:40). Wars and revolutions will happen, but they should not terrify believers. He uses the apocalyptic language known in his time: earthquakes, famines, plagues, terrifying events and signs in the sky. But it is not yet the end.
Before that, believers will have to experience what Christ has already experienced: being betrayed by close relatives and friends, being captured: "they shall lay their hands on you"The company has been brought to trial before the religious authorities: "they shall deliver you to the synagogues"; and before civilian and military authorities: "before kings and governors", imprisoned. Luke will return to the identification of the Christian with the passion and death of Jesus from the martyrdom of Stephen, in the Acts of the Apostles.
It is the occasion of the testimony. Jesus already promised that the Holy Spirit would inspire them in their defense (Lk 12:12); now he says that he himself will be the one to give his own "mouth and wisdom" to defend themselves. However, "they will kill some of you." y "all will hate you". But the final message is one of hope: "not a hair of your head shall perish; by your perseverance you will save your soul.".
The homily on the readings of Sunday 33rd Sunday
The priest Luis Herrera Campo offers its nanomiliaa small one-minute reflection for these readings.
Pope Francis' audience on Wednesday focused on his recent trip to Bahrain. A meeting that the Pope summed up in three words: dialogue, encounter and journey.
Pope Francis held his usual Wednesday morning audience this morning. The Pope was able to greet the thousands of people who were waiting for him in St. Peter's Square, with the weather already cold, as he himself pointed out.
During his journey to the foot of the Petrine Basilica he was able to bless many children and even have some brief conversations with several of the pilgrims.
After the reading from the prophet Isaiah (Is 2:2-5), which announces the end of time, Pope Francis began his catechesis by focusing on his recent trip to Bahrain, "a kingdom I did not know. Three words summarize, according to the Holy Father, this trip: dialogue, encounter and journey.
Dialogue, encounter and journey
"The dialogue is the oxygen of peace, stressed the Pope, who explained that the reason for his trip was to respond to the invitation of the King of Bahrain to participate in the "Forum for Dialogue: East and West for Human Coexistence". In this sense, the Pope affirmed, it is necessary to dialogue, to know and discover the richness of those who belong to other countries, to other faiths.
In Bahrain, "I felt the need to say that, throughout the world, religious and civil leaders must be able to look beyond themselves to care for the whole. In this way, other issues such as the forgetfulness of God, hunger and the stewardship of creation can be addressed".
"We need to find us at"The Pope also emphasized the second defining word of his trip. In order to carry out dialogue, it is necessary to encounter. In this sense, the Pope gave the example of "Bahrain, which is made up of islands and they went to meet each other, they did not separate but met", he explained, referring to the Mass presided by the Holy Father in the National Stadium of Bahrain.
The Pope stressed the need for more meetings between Muslims and Christians. In this regard, he underscored his meeting with "my brother, the great imam of Al Azhar," with young people at the Sacred Heart School and the meeting with the council of Muslim elders.
He also recalled a significant gesture: "In Barein people hold their hand to their heart when they greet, and I did it too, to give space inside me to the person I was greeting".
The road to peace needs everyone
A way of peace. Pope Francis wanted to point out that "this trip to Bahrain is not an isolated episode, it is part of a journey begun by John Paul II on his trip to Morocco. Not to water down the faith, but to build". The Pope recalled that "in order to dialogue, one must start from one's own identity. For a dialogue to be good, one must be aware of one's own identity".
Finally, the Pope wanted to highlight the example of unity among Christians of very diverse origins that he saw in Bahrain. A community "on the way", as Pope Francis defined it. "The brothers in Barein live on the road, many are immigrant workers from different countries who have found their home in the great family of the Church. It is beautiful to see these Filipino Christians, from India... who gather and are strengthened in the faith," he recalled.
At the end of his remarks, the Pope made a call to "broaden your horizons, open your hearts. We are all brothers", he said, pointing out that it is necessary that "this fraternity goes further". Moreover, the Pope wanted to point out that "if you dedicate yourself to know the other you will not feel threatened, but if you are afraid of the other you will live in the threat. The path of peace needs each and every one of us".
Going to God with the freedom of children
The children were once again the protagonists of this audience, several of them came to greet the Pope while the readings were given in different languages. In fact, the Pope wanted to give an example of this freedom of the children who "did not ask permission, they did not say 'I am afraid'. They came directly. This is how we have to be with God. Go ahead, He is always waiting for us".
"A trip of encounter because the objective was precisely to be in interreligious dialogue with Islam and ecumenical dialogue with Bartholomew. The ideas put forward by the great Imam of al Azhar were in the direction of seeking unity within Islam, respecting differences, and unity with Christians and other religions."
On his return flight from Bahrain, answering questions from journalists, Pope Francis took stock of the apostolic journey that concluded on Sunday, November 6.
A journey born of the Abu Dhabi Document, whose genesis Bergoglio reconstructs, recounting that at the end of an audience at the Vatican of the great imam of Al Azhar invited him to lunch "and sitting at the table we took the bread, broke it and gave it to each other". It was a fraternal lunch and at the end the idea of the Document of Human Brotherhood signed in 2019 was born. It was a God thing, which came out of a friendly lunch'.
Let us now recall other highlights of the visit: the embrace of the Catholic community with the Mass presided by Francis at the National Stadium of Bahrain, the meeting with the young people at the Sacred Heart School and, finally, with the bishops, the local clergy, the consecrated, seminarians and pastoral agents.
"Faith is not a privilege but a gift to be shared."
At the entrance to the Cathedral of Our Lady of Arabia for the ecumenical meeting and prayer for peace, the Pope was welcomed by Bishop Paul Hinder, Apostolic Administrator of the Apostolic Vicariate of North Arabia. Here, in the presence of representatives of other Christian confessions, the Pontiff expressed his awareness that "what unites us far outweighs what separates us and that, the more we walk according to the Spirit, the more it will lead us to desire and, with God's help, to restore full unity among us."
Hence the invitation to bear witness. "Ours, in fact, is not so much a discourse of words, but a witness to be shown by deeds; faith is not a privilege to be claimed, but a gift to be shared". Finally, the "Christian distinctive, the essence of witness": to love everyone.
On the third day of the apostolic journey, Francis celebrated Mass in the morning at the Bahrain National Stadium. In the afternoon, he met with some 800 young people at Sacred Heart College, addressing three invitations to them: "not so much to teach you something, but to encourage you".
Embrace the culture of care," the Pope began, "first of all for yourselves: not so much for the exterior, but for the interior, for the most hidden and precious part of yourselves, for your soul, for your heart. The culture of care, therefore, as "an antidote to a world that is closed and permeated by individualism, prey to sadness, which generates indifference and loneliness".
Because if we do not learn to take care of what surrounds us - of others, of the city, of society, of creation - we end up spending our lives like those who run, work hard, do many things, but, in the end, remain sad and lonely because they have never fully tasted the joy of friendship and gratuitousness". The second invitation: sow fraternity and "you will be reapers of the future, because the world will only have a future in fraternity". Be close to everyone, without making differences because "words are not enough: we need concrete gestures carried out daily".
Finally, the last invitation, to make decisions in life. "As at a crossroads," he stressed, "you have to choose, get involved, take risks, decide. But this requires a good strategy: one cannot improvise, live only by instinct or only in an improvised way! But how can we train our 'capacity to choose', our creativity, our courage, our tenacity, how can we sharpen our interior gaze, learn to judge situations, to grasp the essential? In "silent prayer", trusting in the constant presence of God who "does not leave you alone, ready to lend you a hand when you ask him for it". He accompanies and guides us. Not with wonders and miracles, but by speaking gently through our thoughts and feelings".
"What is essential for the Christian is to know how to love like Christ."
In the morning, the Pope met with the Catholic community at the Mass for Peace and Justice at the Bahrain National Stadium. Some 30,000 people were present from the four countries of the Apostolic Vicariate of North Arabia - Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and Saudi Arabia - but also from other Gulf countries and other territories.
In his homily, Francis took a high note, inviting the faithful to reflect on Christ's strength: love, exhorting everyone to "love in his name, to love as he loved. And what Christ proposes "is not a sentimental and romantic love" - the Pope explained - but a concrete and realistic one because "he speaks explicitly of the wicked and the enemies". And peace cannot be restored - the Pontiff affirmed - if one bad word is answered with another even more bad word, if one slap is followed by another: no, "it is necessary to "deactivate", to break the chain of evil, to break the spiral of violence, to stop brooding resentment, to stop complaining and pitying". But love is not enough "if we limit it to the narrow sphere of those from whom we receive so much love".
The real challenge, in order to be children of the Father and build a world of brothers and sisters, is to learn to love everyone, even the enemy, and this "means bringing to earth the reflection of Heaven," he added, "it is to bring down upon the world the gaze and the heart of the Father, who does not make distinctions, does not discriminate". And this ability," he concluded, "cannot only be the fruit of our efforts, it is above all a grace" that must be asked of God, because many times we bring many requests to the Lord, but this is the essential thing for the Christian, to know how to love like Christ. To love is the greatest gift.
The last stop was a visit, on the morning of Sunday, November 6, to the Sacred Heart Church in Manama, the oldest in the country, founded in 1939. The Pope met with pastoral workers, who gave him a warm welcome.
He urged them to "firmly build the Kingdom of God in which love, justice and peace are opposed to every form of selfishness, violence and degradation". He then stopped at the service among women prisoners, in prisons, carried out by the nuns.
Before the Bahraini Minister of Justice, present at the meeting as a representative of the government, the Pope recalled: "Caring for prisoners is good for everyone, as a human community, because it is by how the last ones are treated that the dignity and hope of a society is measured".
Finally, he thanked the King for the magnificent welcome he had received in recent days, as well as those who had organized the visit. In a hall of the Sacred Heart complex, he received some of the faithful from other parts of the Gulf region as the last act of the trip, thanking them for their witness.
On his return to Rome after accompanying Pope Francis to the Gulf country, Miguel Angel Ayuso Guixot, Cardinal Prefect of the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue, expressed his satisfaction for the continuity of relations between Muslims and Christians and the importance of dialogue as an "existential skill". An opportunity for encounter in a world in conflict: "Dialogue, mutual respect, fraternity and peace". If we really want to walk on the paths of peace, we must continue to promote these aspects".
Beatriz Ozores. A great popularizer of the Bible on the radio and YouTube.
Beatriz Ozores. Age 54. Married, with three children. Committed to her faith: she never stops. Studied Advertising and Marketing. Sworn translator of English. She has a degree in Religious Sciences from the University of Navarra.
Beatriz tells me that her husband, Gonzalo, goes every Saturday to the Teresa of Calcutta nuns' house to care for the poorest of the poor. The eldest of her sons, Jaime, 25, entered the seminary in Madrid on September 30. He studied at the Retamar school, finished an engineering degree at the Polytechnic and worked at Toyota. His courtship was looking good, but he suddenly decided to leave everything and dedicate his life to God. Bea, 24, studied at the Aldeafuente school and studied psychology in Navarra. She was studying for the PIR when she decided to give up everything and entered the Hogar de la Madre. She is now a novice. It can be seen that God has taken a great interest in this family. The youngest, Tere, will soon be 19 years old. She is in her second year of law with philosophy in Navarra. Let's see what happens.
Beatriz felt at one point in her life that God was calling her to study in order to evangelize. In her second year of her career, María Vallejo Nágera asked her to teach Bible classes in San Jorge, her parish: "I had no idea about the Bible, but I talked to my spiritual director and he encouraged me to take the plunge.". Still, he told the pastor that he had no idea about the Bible and that he was not going to teach any classes. He was surprised by his response: "You're perfect!". He arrived on the first day, trembling, with a Power Point. He gave classes for four years in that parish and also in La Moraleja: "There were as many as 200 people in attendance and that made me feel the thirst people had for the word of God"..
One day Pilar Sartorius "kidnapped" her and took her to Radio María. They gave her a program and she has been there for ten years now. She explains the Bible. "Above all, it is an experience."he confesses. Study straightforward the Word of God, which he has already done, bores him and dries up his heart, because the Word is alive: "I prepare the programs and go to the Blessed Sacrament with my 700 sheets of paper and 700 markers. I'm already known in the parish as the crazy woman who sits in the first pew and does that.". At Mater Mundi is recording videos on the history of salvation. He has also had a prayer and catechetical group of 60 people in his home.
In HM, the television of the Home of the Mother, he did a series on Jesus of Nazareth with Javier Paredes, professor of History, following the book of Benedict XVI. Later he did another one on Apocalypse. He tells me amusingly that when he started filming there, his daughter Bea was studying first year psychology and showed up at home in May because she was getting very good grades: "I was horrified because you can't summer since May.". He called the nuns and sent Bea to Ecuador for missions. Her daughter, when she returned, told him that she had loved the experience, but not that she did not want to see those nuns again: "Because they're as radical as you are, Mom."she said. She is now a novice with them.
Beatriz not only gives conferences in parishes, but also in movements such as Emmaus or Hakuna. She is tucked with her husband in the Project Conjugal Love -this very day we are speaking they are going to conduct a retreat-. They also collaborate in Effetá. He likes the doctrine very much, but if he has an inspiration he checks beforehand that it is not a heresy. Professor Arocena taught him that: "If you discover something that no one else has discovered by now, you're on the wrong track.".
He has a thousand anecdotes. I ask him for one. When he finished teaching a class in the parish, a lady approached him. She said to him: "These are the divorce papers and I have come with this friend to accompany me to the lawyer, but first she asked me to accompany her to the Bible class. Listening to this session on Abraham, even though I am a person who practices little faith, I have realized that God does not want me to divorce.". He tore up those papers in front of Beatriz. She started with daily Mass, prayer, Rosary. She became closer to God than ever before.
During his 39th apostolic journey, Pope Francis shared moments with the small Catholic community at Sacred Heart Church. Other highlights of the trip were his private meeting with the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar before the meeting with Muslims or the visit to a school where he was received by some 800 students of different nationalities and religions.
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The beauty of the creature lies there where God is pleased, in the very center of its being. A beauty that flows from God, which is truth and good par excellence.
November 8, 2022-Reading time: 2minutes
Main Function of Institute, the big day of the brotherhood in which it honors its titular. On the main altar of the church a structure of imposing beauty had been erected, crowned by the image of the titular Virgin of the brotherhood dressed in her best clothes. A cascade of candles, perfectly arranged, all lit, was pouring down from the Virgin, bridging the gap with her children.
The search for Beauty
The solemn Mass was about to begin. The procession left the sacristy. The procession was preceded by two "servers" in livery. Behind them the parish cross approached the altar leading a procession of acolytes, with superb dalmatics, each one with its specific function: candlesticks, censer, navetas, accompanying the cardinal celebrant and concelebrating priests. The organ, from the 18th century, solemnized the progress of the procession through the central nave. Upon reaching the altar, each acolyte went to his place in a silent and precise choreography.
Such an opening preluded something even more solemn: as the celebrant began the Kyrie, the orchestra, choir and soloists at the back of the nave intoned Mozart's Coronation Mass.
If, as a 19th century writer explained, people are chalices of acceptance of beauty, here they overflowed, updating Stendhal's emotion in the face of authentic beauty, which is not only aesthetic pleasure.
There is a beauty that refers to things in themselves, independently of the relationship with the subject that knows them, which is fleeting and superficial, produces aesthetic joy, but does not touch the most intimate part of our heart. We are not referring to that one. The authentic beauty of something, of someone, capable of arousing emotion and true joy in the hearts of men, is manifested when that something or someone merges with their true being, thus manifesting the Truth. This perfect union is the Good, which manifests itself as Beauty. That is why God, in his perfect harmony with Charity - God is love - is the Truth, and inÉlserecognizes the Good. This is the source of the authentic Beautycapable of arousing trembling in the hearts of men: "Late I loved you, beauty so old and so new, late I loved you!"lamented St. Augustine.
In the case of the Virgin (tota pulchra es Maria), her beauty does not lie in her human figure, although it certainly does. The beauty of the Virgin is the beauty of sanctifying grace, of her adequacy to God's will (fiat!). The beauty of the creature lies there where God is pleased, in the very center of its being. A beauty that flows from God, who is truth and good par excellence.
D. in Business Administration. Director of the Instituto de Investigación Aplicada a la Pyme.
Eldest Brother (2017-2020) of the Brotherhood of the Soledad de San Lorenzo, in Seville.
He has published several books, monographs and articles on brotherhoods.
Palliative care essential for public health, Secpal says
Francisco Otamendi-November 8, 2022-Reading time: 4minutes
The need to recognize palliative care as essential for public health, an "essential approach" to improve the quality of care, will be the strategic line of the Spanish Society of Palliative Care (SECPAL) until 2025. On the other hand, universities such as Navarra, Francisco de Vitoria and CEU incorporate learning about palliative care.
This challenge requires awareness and the joint efforts of professionals, administrations and citizens "and its core must be the sick people and their families," said Dr. Juan Pablo Leiva, president of the palliative care society.
One of the priority objectives of this line of work is to achieve the involvement of the Ministry of Universities so that a truly effective plan can be implemented to guarantee undergraduate and postgraduate training in palliative care in all health-related disciplines.
These were some of the postulates defended in an event with which the scientific society culminated the activities developed in October to commemorate the month of palliative care. Held in the small amphitheater of the Official College of Physicians of Madrid (ICOMEM), the meeting brought together professionals from the fields of medicine, nursing, psychology and social work around a program in which the protagonists were patients and family caregivers.
"When you're not alone, it's less hard." "It's reassuring to know that someone is there to take care of you." "They helped us make sure he was in cotton wool until the end." "He was very vital and traveled almost to the last moment." "I learned to cry and breathe."
These are brushstrokes of the experiences which could be heard in the voices of Rosa Pérez, Mercedes Francisco, Elisa Nieto, Laura Castellanos, Consuelo Romero and Lilia Quiroz, during an event that served to pay tribute to the sick and the loved ones who are dedicated to their care, key elements in guaranteeing adequate palliative care.
"Palliative care support teams that go to the home are fundamental," said Consuelo Romero, family caregiver of María, a woman "with a great desire to live" who had highly complex metastatic ovarian cancer and who was able to maintain her independence and autonomy until a few days before her death thanks to the care of her family and the support and accompaniment of a home support team.
Inequity in the access to palliative care
However, despite the fact that palliative home care is "extremely beneficial for patients and their families" and allows the patient to stay at home as long as possible, in Spain it is not fully developed, as reported by Omnes several occasions.
This was recalled at this event by the nurse Alejandra González Bonet, and emphasized by the president of SECPAL, who highlighted the existing inequity in access to palliative home care 24 hours a day, every day of the year, a service that does not exist in all the autonomous communities.
"We cannot allow access to palliative care to depend on the zip code," said Dr. Juan Pablo Leiva, who appreciated the growing awareness of the importance of considering palliative care as a human right.
"We will all meet an end of life at some point, whether it is that of a loved one or our own. What unites us all is suffering. In palliative care we work on therapeutic presence, that presence that facilitates the encounter with the suffering person, without fleeing or fighting senselessly, or becoming paralyzed in the face of suffering," he stressed.
Patient associations
Over the next two years, the scientific society SECPAL will seek synergies between specific and general palliative care resources, as well as with the global community, to ensure that palliative care is recognized as essential for public health. This is a challenge for which it is necessary to "understand that promoting its development in our country is everyone's responsibility".
In advancing towards this objective, Dr. Leiva highlighted the leading role to be played by patient associations, which were represented at the commemorative ceremony by Andoni Lorenzo, president of the Spanish Patient Forum (FEP), who assumed this: "Our great claim has always been that patients should be in the places where decisions are made and health strategies are defined," he recalled.
Holistic" care
Dr. Magdalena Sánchez Sobrino, regional coordinator of Palliative Care of the Madrid Health Service, and Dr. Luisa González Pérez, vice-president of ICOMEM, also participated in the inaugural round table, both of whom agreed in highlighting the integral nature that defines palliative care. Faced with an advanced disease or with a limited life prognosis, "our whole being is affected, so people must be cared for holistically" [as a whole], stressed Sánchez Sobrino, who urged professionals, institutions and patient organizations to "work together" to achieve adequate development of palliative care.
For her part, Dr. González Pérez recalled that the College of Physicians of Madrid has recently set up the Scientific Committee on Care, as part of the ICOMEM campaign Care from start to finish.
"Care is an attitude, a message that we physicians want to send out to awaken society to the need to demand that it be a reality: care that must be structured, financed, at all stages of the disease and in all age groups, because the medicine of the future is a medicine of care," he stressed.
In some universities
"Unlike most European countries, Spain does not have a specialty in palliative medicine. This is perhaps the most critical point for the development of palliative medicine," Miguel Sánchez Cárdenas, a researcher at Omnes, pointed out some time ago. Atlantes Research Group (ICS) of the University of Navarra.
Well, this same university is one of the few with a compulsory subject taught in the sixth year, and which was included in the curriculum thanks to the students themselves, as explained by Dr. Carlos Centeno, who is in charge of the subject, to 'Redacción médica'. This same media reports that Dr. Centeno has asked himself: "Is it logical that students are asked about very specific aspects of Palliative Medicine in the MIR and have not been given any subject?
Another center that has also opted for this same signature is the Universidad Francisco de Vitoria, adds the publication, by incorporating this competence constantly between the second and sixth year, through simulation workshops, expert visits and internships, explains Professor Javier Rocafort.
On the other hand, third year students of the Degree in Nursing at the CEU Cardenal Herrera University have produced 32 videos, where they explain the benefits of palliative care, in addition to highlighting the work of health professionals in this specialty.
This is what happens in the evangelizing task of the Church. Everything that we are able to live, to advance, is because, before us, there have been people who did a great work, on which we rely.
November 8, 2022-Reading time: 2minutes
This expression, "on the shoulders of giants", may seem funny or curious and we may not realize how much it explains. Everything that man is able to discover today is thanks to what others, before us, were able to do.
This is what happens in the evangelizing task of the Church. Everything that we are able to live, to advance, is because, before us, there have been people who did a great work, on which we rely. If we are able to see further than them, it is not because we are better or more capable: it is because we rely on them! We are standing on their shoulders, shoulders of giants!
In the field of mission and missionary animation, we would not be able to do what we are doing if there had not been people like St. Francis Xavier, Pauline Jaricot, Gregory XV, Blessed Paolo Manna or Pius XII. They have been giants in their zeal for evangelization and their missionary initiatives. The Pontifical Mission Societies of Spain and the whole world are what they are, thanks to them.
This year we are celebrating many events that remind us of these giants: a year ago 400 years since Gregory XV created the Congregation for the Propagation of the FaithThe Pope, later called the Evangelization of Peoples, reminded us that evangelization is the task of the whole Church, and not of individuals. In the same year, this Pope canonized the Patron of the Missions, Francis Xavier, together with Ignatius of Loyola, Teresa of Jesus, Isidore Labrador and Philip Neri. It is also 200 years since Pauline Jaricot "conceived" the Association for the Propagation of the Faith, which would give rise to the DOMUND. In 1922, this association was elevated by Pope Pius XI to Pontifical Missionary Work, together with the Work of St. Peter the Apostle, founded by Jeanne Bigard and the Work of Missionary Childhood founded by Bishop Forbid Janson. Thanks to all these giants!
"Euthanasia-Free Spaces will be a beacon in a society threatened by the inculturation of discarding."
This initiative, born in Spain, aims to encourage and defend, especially in social and healthcare settings, the defense of the dignified life of the patient until natural death.
To create places in which "the culture of care prevails" without professionals feeling pressured to end the lives of patients, nor patients seeing themselves as a "burden and having the assurance that they will be cared for and comprehensively attended to until the natural end".
This is the objective of Euthanasia-free spacesan initiative that a group of professionals from various fields has launched in Spain to preserve, among other things, the right to personal and community conscientious objection to laws such as euthanasia, which, in Spain, has been imposed without due debate and, above all, without nurturing the alternative to death with an expansion and improvement of access to palliative care.
One of its promoters, Luis Zayas, explains that in spite of the pressures suffered, it is encouraging to see that "many institutions are clear about the principles under which they exercise their medical or assistance activity and are not willing to abandon them".
What does the euthanasia-free spaces initiative consist of?
-The initiative Espacios Libres de Eutanasia (Euthanasia Free Spaces) was created to promote the culture of care in the face of the serious threat to coexistence in Spain posed by the legalization of the possibility of killing people who request it.
What was the germ of this initiative?
-It was born out of the concern of a group of people aware of the terrible experience lived in nations that have already legalized euthanasia. In those nations, trust in the doctor-patient relationship has been broken; it has been demonstrated that, in many cases, people have been killed without their consent; there has been evidence of a renunciation of the effort required to care for sick people; many elderly people consider themselves a burden to their families and society and believe that, by asking for death, they will cease to be so; there are cases of sick people who are denied treatment under the excuse that the option of requesting death is more economical.
All this contributes to shaping a disconnected, individualistic society, where those who cannot fend for themselves end up being seen as a problem and are discarded, society forgets about them and looks for a shortcut, a quick "solution" which is death. This is what is called the slippery slope that has been sold and repeated in all the nations that have approved euthanasia and that ends up dehumanizing societies.
What is your main mission?
-Our first mission is to fight against this dehumanization of society by promoting a culture of care that values the person, that accompanies and cares for the person in any situation, that is capable of providing the medical advances available at any time, and that is also capable of giving meaning to suffering. Euthanasia-free spaces is born to keep alive the debate that all life is worthwhile and deserves to be cared for and accompanied. If this debate disappears, the inculturation of death will have prevailed.
Secondly, Euthanasia-free spaces has a clear objective: to repeal the law that allows the killing of people who request it. It is an unjust law and in a legal system worthy of the name there is no place for laws contrary to the dignity, freedom and rights of persons.
Finally, we would like to propose what we call the Euthanasia-free spaces. Places (hospitals, residences, health or care centers, ...) where the culture of care prevails; where health professionals can freely exercise their profession in accordance with the principles of the Hippocratic oath, without fear of being threatened with having to kill patients or stop attending them; where patients and their families can be sure that they will be cared for and comprehensively attended to until the natural end of their lives. Places that show society that every life, in whatever circumstance it may be, deserves to be cared for and accompanied. The Euthanasia-free spaces will be a beacon in a society threatened by the inculturation of death and discarding.
The euthanasia law has been passed "behind the back and as a matter of urgency" without even giving rise to a real debate. Is society aware of what it means for an act such as aid in dying to become a benefit (a right) backed by law?
-It is clear that society has been denied a debate on this issue. And in this sense, the approval of a regulation such as this one being extremely serious, it hurts even more that it has been done at night and with malice aforethought, as a matter of urgency and at a time when the whole of Spain was busy saving lives.
This lack of debate, together with a good-natured campaign in which the government presented the regulation as a response to the demands of extreme cases in which families or individuals requested euthanasia, have caused a large part of society to be unaware of the seriousness of this regulation and its effects in the medium and long term.
Society tends to think that there will be few situations in which people request death and are killed. However, the experience of other countries does not say that. It tells us that euthanasia is gradually creeping into society and making it gangrenous. In the nations that have had euthanasia legalized for the longest time, people requesting to be killed account for between 4-5% of annual deaths. That would be between 16,000 and 20,000 people killed every year. That is a lot of people, a lot of people to whom we have not known or wanted, as a society, to give hope.
We believe that using the terms "health care" or "aid in dying", which appear in the text of the law, contributes to falsify the reality of what the law means to kill sick or elderly people. There is nothing more opposed to health care and aid than to intentionally kill an innocent human being.
Therefore, it is necessary to maintain the debate, Spanish society must be aware of the seriousness and danger of having legalized the possibility of killing those who request it.
In the case, for example, of healthcare entities with principles that are not compatible with this euthanasia law, is the right to collective conscientious objection respected?
-This is a complex issue from the legal point of view. The Spanish Bioethics Committee issued a report in which it considered that conscientious objection by legal institutions is protected by our legal system. However, the law has tried to avoid it expressly in its articles. Therefore, this is an issue that will possibly have to be settled in the courts.
There are other rights recognized in our legal system, such as freedom of enterprise or respect for the ideology of the institution (in the field of education, there are many rulings that recognize the right of an educational center to have its ideology respected by public administrations, which is perfectly applicable to the world of healthcare.) that can be ways, without the need to enter into a complex debate on the conscientious objection of legal persons, that allow institutions that are committed to the care of people and life, not to have to apply a law that goes against the basic principles of medicine.
Do you think that, sometimes, there is fear in the healthcare field of losing, for example, agreements with public administrations if they oppose laws such as those on abortion or euthanasia?
-Undoubtedly, in many cases, healthcare institutions, especially those belonging to the Catholic Church, in their desire to contribute as much as possible to society, have placed their facilities and resources at the service of the public healthcare system in the different autonomous regions with a twofold objective: to support the function of public healthcare and to enable it to reach the greatest possible number of people. This support has materialized in the signing of agreements with the administration.
Right now, these concerts do not contemplate, in most cases, the practice of euthanasia. But the risk exists in the renewal of these agreements. And yes, there is fear in the healthcare institutions that some administrations may use the renewal of the agreements to impose this practice, which is contrary to medical principles. There is no doubt that for some institutions, which through their generosity have placed themselves at the service of public healthcare, the non-renewal of the agreements could pose a risk to their economic viability in the short term, and this is causing a great deal of concern in the sector.
I must also say that many institutions are clear about the principles under which they exercise their medical or assistance activity and are not willing to abandon them, regardless of the pressures they are under.
Hence the importance, from our point of view, of initiatives such as the following Euthanasia-Free Spaces and others, so that society is aware of what is at stake and supports these institutions in the face of the possible attack they may suffer from public administrations. It is necessary to mobilize civil society in favor of these institutions. The public administrations must know that they can count on the support of society to continue caring for and attending to all patients, regardless of their situation.
What work lies ahead for lawyers, physicians and civil society? Is it possible to turn this type of legislation around?
-There is a lot of work ahead. It is necessary to make society aware of the seriousness of this regulation. Of the disastrous impact it will have in the medium term on coexistence and social cohesion. And this is a job for everyone: for lawyers to make them understand the injustice of this law; for healthcare professionals to make them understand how this law damages the doctor-patient relationship and seriously harms the development of palliative care and medical practice; for society to demand that it wants public administrations that are committed to life and not to the discarding or false compassion of offering to kill patients.
If we do not give up the battle in civil society and in the political arena, it is certainly possible to turn this type of legislation around. We have the example of the recent ruling in the United States of the Dobbs vs Jackson which has allowed the reversal of the judgment Roe vs Wade which enshrined the alleged right to abortion. This ruling has brought down one of the pillars of the inculturation of death that seemed untouchable. For that it has taken almost 50 years of work by civil society in all its spheres. Therefore, yes, it is possible, the only thing we need is not to despair or give up the battle. If you want to, you can.
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Statistics
Technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.Storage or technical access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a request, voluntary compliance by your Internet service provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved solely for this purpose cannot be used to identify you.
Marketing
The storage or technical access is necessary to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or multiple websites for similar marketing purposes.
Jesus, remember me! Solemnity of our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe
