"With less money the Church has had and has to do many more things."
The Spanish Episcopal Conference has presented the provisional data relating to the tax allocation registered in favor of the Church in the 2021 Income Tax Return, corresponding, therefore, to the economic activity carried out in 2020.
In 2021, 31.57% of Spanish taxpayers checked the box for the allocation to the Catholic Church.
In total, 7,337,724 taxpayers marked the X on the Income Tax Return, which means, counting joint returns, 8.5 million taxpayers who trust in the work of the Church. Although this data highlights an increase of 40,000 Income Tax returns in favor of the Catholic Church with respect to the previous fiscal year, the amount collected has been lower than the 2019 fiscal year.
295,498,495 euros was the amount received by the Catholic Church in this fiscal year, which represents a decrease of 5.58 million, with respect to the previous year.
The EEC Vice-Secretary for Economic Affairs, Fernando Giménez Barriocanal insisted that this is a "logical and foreseeable" decrease given that the economic crisis generated by the coronavirus pandemic is already noticeable in this year and wanted to thank and highlight the commitment of all those who value and support the activity of the Church, which has multiplied in these months of pandemic.
"With less money the Church has had and has to do many more things," said the deputy secretary for economic affairs of the Spanish bishops.
Fewer new filers
Likewise, Giménez Barriocanal pointed out the decrease in the number of new taxpayers who mark the X in favor of the Church. In this regard, he explained that during 2020 and the entry of the ERTE workers, a high percentage of people who did not file their income tax return before had to do it that year and have not taken into account the tax allocation for the Church or for the Church. Other social purposes.
In fact, he stressed that "we see that it is not a Church issue because the percentage of new taxpayers who have not checked this box is exactly the same as those who have not checked it. Other social purposes". For this reason, he has again insisted on the need to remember these two allocations "that it does not cost us more or we will get back less and that we can help twice as much by checking the two boxes".
New "Por tantos" portal
For his part, the director of the Secretariat for the Support of the Church, José María Albalad, stressed the "sincere and emotional gratitude" to all the contributors who make it possible for the stories of so many people helped by the Church to be found behind their "x" in the declaration.
He also reviewed the website portantos.es which presents a new look and feel as well as improved content and presentation to bring the Church's work, economic data, etc. closer to the public. Among the new features of the website are the interactive graphics through which you can know, for example, the percentage of tax allocations that have marked the "x" of the Church by autonomous communities or the amount collected in each of them.
He also wanted to highlight the more than 700 initiatives included in the website. Solidarity Church and shows the work promoted by the Church in Spain during this time of pandemic.
The chaplain Ivan Lypka: "Ukraine wants to live in freedom. This conflict must be stopped".
While the Russian troops enter the Ukrainian capital, Kiev, the Catholic chaplain of the Ukrainian community in Madrid, Ivan Lypka, speaks with Omnes. Si tratta di un gruppo di ottomila-diecimila persone, molte delle quali partecipano al culto nella parrocchia di Buen Suceso. "L'Ucraina è un popolo pacifico," he says.
Rafael Miner-February 28, 2022-Reading time: 4minutes
The news and images leave no room for doubt. The Russian troops are already in Kiev, very close to the Ukrainian parliament. We spoke with the Ukrainian priest, the chaplain Ivan Lypka, who yesterday celebrated a Mass for the Ukrainian community in Madrid, and then led an Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament praying for his country and its people. All her family lives in Ukraine. Some of his words may become 'surpassed' in a few hours, because the Kiev's prey is already at stake, as you can see.
He has spent many years in Spain serving the Ukrainian community.
- Sì, circa vent'anni. I come from Ukraine. In the province we are about twenty thousand. In these years that I have been here I have organized three groups of fedeli. In Alcalá de Henares, in Getafe and here in Madrid, where the Ukrainian community was already organized, and the chaplaincy. The cardinal of that time was very interested. The first Ukrainians arrived in 1997, due to an economic crisis, and they came here to work to support their families. There are many people already living in Spain and with Spanish nationality. And there are young people who have already had success here in their careers.
Many people originating from Ukraine have relatives in their country ...
- Surely, my family, my parents, my brothers, my sisters, my brothers, my daughters, my grandchildren, are here, the whole family is here. First only two provinces were involved in this conflict, but now it is a total war.
What news are arriving?
- Si sentono suonare sempre le sirene degli allarmi, per avvertire di andare nei rifugi in luoghi protetti dai bombardamenti. Ho parlato con mio fratello proprio stamattina. Every night you have to hide, you never know when they will attack. Ieri they have attacked important places, airports, military bases, they have also bombed areas where civilians live, and they have taken to the roads. Now they are moving to the capital. Belarus is very close.
Is there anyone among your relatives or acquaintances who is thinking of leaving the country? Do you want to stay?
- You don't know anything for sure. To think about whether to leave or remain one must have time. The conflict began in 2014. Politicians were working, yesterday the military were subentrati. Now we don't know. There are so many dead, wounded, the whole Ukraine at this moment is at war, it is fighting in different places, because the Russian soldiers enter from different roads, from all sides. They are also attacking from the air.
We ask for you, for peace, as Pope Francis has asked.
- We have been fighting for years to save and solve the economy. Many people should think about taking care of their work, because it is with what we live and help the family we have there.
On Sunday, we celebrated a Mass, and then participated in a Prayer Vigil for Peace in the parish, so that all this would come to an end. Then a Veglia with the young people of the parish and of the Ukrainian community. And part of us stayed all night in the chapel to adore our Lord, and in these days it will continue.
What would you like to do now? Should we appeal to the political leaders?
- It is a necessity. This war must be stopped as soon as possible. It is all in the hands of politicians, who can stop this massacre. The people are not to be ignored. Our president [Volodymyr Zelensky] says it very clearly: Ukraine does not want to fight with anyone, it is not attacking anyone. Now, in these days, we defend our freedom, our independence, our culture, our faith, our homes, our families, our country.
In your country there is an orthodox majority ...
- Yes. Siamo cattolici di rito greco ortodosso, ed esiste anche una comunità cattolici di rito latino. The majority, however, is orthodox.
In this frangente sarete tutti uniti.
- Believe in yourself. Now is the time to unite. We want unity. To spread the faith, the Church, the culture, our country, because it is very important. Ukraine has already said it a thousand times, and very clearly, through its politicians, young people, etc., that it wants to live in freedom, as now the whole world wants, in particular Europe, wants democracy, etc.. And it is also what the Ukrainian people want, I believe. We appreciate the request very much. We need it, even the military who defend peace and Ukraine.
There are more than 4,800 Catholic priests in Ukraine and more than 1,300 suore.
- When the conflict began in 2014, the Pope organized a worldwide collection throughout the Catholic Church. We also contributed to it. That collection was dedicated to help the people involved in the conflict, in these two provinces that are now under Russian control. The representatives of the humanitarian organizations could enter those areas to bring necessary things; food, medicine, etc.
At the moment of the Ukraini, there is a shortage of foodstuffs?
- I think that there will be a lack of food generics, but we don't know it yet. Today is the second day. Nobody expected it and people are getting organized. All those with their heads on their shoulders thought that what is happening now would not be right, because what reason is there to start a war in Europe? There is no explanation.
While we talk to each other, the chaplain Ivan Lypka says: "It is a very special weapon, the preghiera. There are people who fight in the front line, but even those who ask are very supportive, because we are defending the truth and our tradition of faith, because we do not know what could happen next. Ukraine is a peaceful people, who want to live by their work, take care of themselves and support their families".
"Metaverse": a new concept, which refers to a virtual world to which people connect through avatars, to coexist and relate to each other; and which is intended to serve for everything, through a combination of technologies that facilitate this possibility.
Metaverse is the new concept that will probably be the protagonist of the evolutionary process of digital society in the current decade. It will be important to see where faith, the Church and spiritual life will be in this new reality or situation. The metaverse makes it possible to overcome the physical and temporal limitations of the real universe to enter new and infinite universes through avatars or virtual projections of people.
But it will be the metaverses of Goal (formerly Facebook), Microsoft and Google will popularize these new virtual environments. For these large companies, it is a key concept in their long-term growth strategy. It is very likely that the metaverse will follow a long, slow trajectory and, at a given moment, experience a sudden development. This is what happened with the bitcoins or with mobile telephony. Making the leap to metaverses seems much more plausible after the sudden and intense digital transformation brought about by the pandemic, which has revolutionized teleworking and the digital insertion of many people who were previously reluctant or alien to change. Shopping online or participating in video calls has reached all ages and strata of the population. Thus, the transition from web browsing or grid-screen meetings to the virtual immersive experience will be more natural and understandable.
Metaverses are all the rage. But what is meant by metaverse? Metaverse is understood as a virtual world in which we connect with avatars, to coexist and interact with each other.
The renewed idea of metaverse goes further in the search for a multipurpose, i.e., all-purpose, through a combination of technologies. The 5G, virtual reality, augmented reality, and the blockchain with the possibility of asset tokenization and NFTs, make it possible for people in the near future to live within the metaverse: to work, navigate, play, interact, educate, etc.; to be a digital extension of their physical life, to change the screen of their mobile or tablet for an integration in the metaverse, so that the line between the physical and digital universe will blur a little more.
Metaverses are expected to reach popularity within the next five years, and several technology companies are bidding to create the most attractive one, where we will all end up. It is estimated that Goal has invested $28.5 billion through 2021, and Bloomberg estimates that the business will be worth about $800 billion by 2024.
The implications of the metaverse for legislation are enormous and span all branches of law. Let us look at some examples:
-in some metaverses it is already possible to buy plots of land and even develop real estate projects on them. Recently, the sale of a plot of land for 450,000 dollars has been in the news, as well as the payment of 2.5 million dollars for several plots in a digital street for fashion establishments. So, will it be possible to mortgage these plots, can there be leasing, subleasing, assignment, usufruct or easement?
-at Decentralanda metaverse in blockchainWhat kind of voting will be possible in the metaverse? Will the majority of the inhabitants of the metaverse be able to impose their will, or will there be some kind of external control?
-If we work in the metaverse for a DAO (decentralized autonomous organization), we will have to comply with labor regulations. What should a virtual workplace look like? Can a workplace be inspected in the metaverse?
The casuistry is enormous and encompasses all types of relationships in which humans interact. The more similar the interaction in the metaverse is to that in the real world, the greater the legal implications.
Orthodox leaders stand in solidarity with Ukraine, Catholic unity with Pope
In parallel to the request for prayer and fasting for peace, implored by the Pope FrancisIn addition to the condemnation of the "Russian invasion" by the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, Omnes spoke with Metropolitan Archbishop Bessarion of Spain and Portugal (Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople) and Ukrainian Orthodox Father Constantin.
Rafael Miner-February 27, 2022-Reading time: 7minutes
Omnes has reflected these days some reactions of the Catholic hierarchy, priests and religious, and some Catholic organizations, such as ACNThe Russian President Vladimir Putin's attitude towards Ukraine, and his subsequent decision to launch a "special military operation" on the Ukrainian country.
These statements and initiatives follow the Holy Father's intense appeal to prayer and fasting during these days, especially on Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent, on March 2. And also his efforts in favor of peace.
For example, his visit last Friday to the Russian embassy to the Holy See to express to the ambassador "his concern about the war" in Ukraine, in an unusual gesture and despite the fact that he cancelled his engagements due to severe pain in his knee, among others, the trip planned for today to Florence.
Mention was also made of his phone call on Saturday to Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelenski to express his "deep sorrow for the tragic events" in his country, invaded by Russian troops, the Ukrainian embassy to the Holy See said.
The Holy Father also telephoned His Beatitude Sviatoslav Shevchuk, Major Archbishop of Kyiv-Halyč. He inquired about the conditions of those living in the territories most affected by the Russian military operations. and thanked the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church "for its choice to stand by the suffering population and for making available the basement of the main cathedral of the archbishopric, which has become a real shelter."
"Violation of international legality."
Now, Omnes collects the testimony of the new Orthodox Metropolitan Archbishop Bessarion of Spain and Portugal (Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople), and of Father Constantin, Ukrainian Orthodox bishop, a tradition to which the great majority of the Orthodox in the country belong.
Archbishop Bessarion, a Greek, refers to the words of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, who promptly called, at the outbreak of hostilities, His Beatitude Metropolitan Epiphanius, Primate of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, to express "his enormous regret for this flagrant violation of any notion of international law and legality, as well as his support for the Ukrainian people fighting 'for God and for the country' and for the families of the innocent victims."
Patriarch Bartholomew "condemns this unprovoked attack by Russia against Ukraine, an independent and sovereign state of Europe, as well as the violation of human rights and the brutal violence against our fellow human beings, especially civilians," and "prays to the God of love and peace to enlighten the leaders of the Russian Federation so that they understand the tragic consequences of their decisions and actions, which may even trigger a global military conflict."
The Orthodox Patriarch has also appealed for dialogue with the leaders of all states and international organizations in a statement that reads here.
"Moscow Orthodox Church in Ukraine with Putin".
Saints Andrew and Demetrius Orthodox Cathedral in Madrid
The Ukrainian Orthodox have their liturgy in the Orthodox Cathedral of Saints Andrew the Apostle and Demetrius Martyr (Madrid), where we met for a chat. Father Constantin, a Ukrainian Orthodox, has been in Spain for 22 years, is married and has two children. He recalls that this church is Greek Orthodox, and "the Ukrainian Orthodox rent it" for worship.
Virtually all Ukrainians living in Spain have relatives in Ukraine, he notes. "In our country we have three churches: one Greek Catholic, one Ukrainian Orthodox, and a third Russian Orthodox. I am Ukrainian from the Patriarchate of Constantinople."
As to whether there is a common position of the churches in Ukraine in the face of the Russian intervention, he replies, "There are differences," Father Constantin answers, "because on Ukrainian territory there is the Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate, which is supporting Putin."
In his opinion, "any kind of negotiations will not satisfy Russia, because what they want is Ukrainian territory. This is politics. I do not want to intervene in politics. For us, for priests, the main thing is to reach out by prayers to our people, to reassure their hearts and their thoughts. And to pray that this war will end as soon as possible, and there will be as few deaths as possible."
"We are encouraging the Orthodox community to pray for peace," he adds. "Right now I am coming from the Russian embassy, where our people are protesting against violence and against war. In the 22 years I have been here, I am known all over Spain. Now I am constantly getting calls asking us to pray for peace in Ukraine."
Olena, a Ukrainian Orthodox translator, says her family is "suffering, scared, living in basements, very afraid".
Catholic unity with the Pope
On Thursday, a few hours after the attack on Ukraine by Russian troops, the Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, stated that "there was still room to negotiate (...), to find a peaceful way out of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict."
"The tragic scenarios that everyone feared are coming true. But there is still time for good will, there is still room for negotiation, there is still room for the exercise of a wisdom that prevents the prevalence of vested interests, protects the legitimate aspirations of each and every one and spares the world the folly and horrors of war," Cardinal Parolin added.
"We believers do not lose hope in a ray of conscience of those who hold the destinies of the world in their hands. And let us continue to pray and fast - we will do so next Ash Wednesday - for peace in Ukraine and in the whole world," he concluded.
Prayer and ways to peace
On the other hand, institutions such as the Community of Sant'Egidio or the Prelature of Opus Dei have seconded the Pope's invitation, and have even proposed ways of pacification.
Monsignor Fernando Ocáriz encouraged in his Message to rely "on the power of prayer. Without the Lord, all efforts to pacify hearts are insufficient".
The prelate asked us to join "wholeheartedly in the Pope's invitation to respond to violence with prayer and fasting. In addition to the day of fasting for peace that we will experience on March 2, let us continue to implore God, many times a day, with childlike trust, for the gift of peace. Prayer and the experience of fasting bring us closer to people who are suffering deprivation and anguish, and whose future becomes uncertain." "Especially at Holy Mass and in our prayer to St. Mary, Queen of Peace, let us keep all those who are suffering very much in mind."
For his part, the founder of the Community of Sant'Egidio, Andrea Riccardi, has launched a Manifesto to which anyone who wishes can join, to reach an immediate ceasefire and urgently proclaim Kiev, the Ukrainian capital, as an "open city".
"Kiev, capital of three million inhabitants, is today a battlefield in Europe," says Andrea Riccardi, and "the civilian population, defenseless, lives in a situation of danger and terror while seeking protection in subway shelters. The weakest, from the elderly to children, or the homeless, are even more exposed. The first civilian casualties have already occurred".
"Kiev is a sanctuary city for many Christians, first of all for Orthodox Christians from all over the world," Riccardi adds. "In Kiev began the history of faith of the Ukrainian, Belarusian and Russian peoples. In Kiev Ukrainian and Russian monasticism was born. We implore those who may decide to refrain from using weapons in Kiev to declare a ceasefire in the city, to proclaim Kiev as an "open city", not to attack its inhabitants with the violence of weapons, not to violate a city to which today the whole of humanity looks. May this decision facilitate a negotiation for peace in Ukraine.
CELAM: no to destabilization
The Latin American Episcopal Council (CELAM) has expressed its concern over the situation in Ukraine, and has joined Pope Francis' appeal to political leaders, based on an examination of conscience, to put aside everything that causes suffering and destabilizes coexistence.
Miguel Cabrejos Vidarte, archbishop of Trujillo (Peru) and president of the entity, and Cardinal Odilo Scherer, archbishop of Sao Paulo (Brazil) and secretary general, reported Vatican News, the official Vatican agency.
"In union with Francis", CELAM has invited "the 22 Episcopal Conferences of Latin America and the Caribbean, the ecclesial institutions of the continent and all brothers and sisters of good will to adhere to the day of prayer and fasting for peace, called by the Bishop of Rome for next March 2 (Ash Wednesday). At the same time, CELAM encouraged to internalize the Pope's message for Lent this year, in which he calls us to never tire of doing good". Together with the Pope, they ask that "the Queen of Peace preserve the world from the madness of war," they said.
"We invoke God's tender mercy."
The Archbishop of Los Angeles, Archbishop José H. Gomez, president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, has also issued a statement, in which he stresses that, in times of distress, "we invoke the tender mercy of God, to guide our steps on the path of peace."
The Mexican Episcopal Conference, for its part, has recalled the words of Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Secretary of State, who in his statement last Thursday, pointed out that "there is still time for good will, there is still room for negotiation, there is still room for the exercise of a wisdom that spares the world the folly and horrors of war".
European Bishops
On behalf of the European Bishops' Conferences, Cardinal Hollerich reiterated "fraternal closeness and solidarity with the people and institutions of Ukraine." "And sharing Pope Francis' sentiments of anguish and concern," he has made "an appeal to the Russian authorities to refrain from further hostile actions that would inflict even more suffering and disregard the principles of international law. Therefore, the Cardinal said, "we urgently call on the international community, including the European Union, to continue to seek a peaceful solution to this crisis through diplomatic dialogue".
On the other hand, the bishops of the Mediterranean, who have met in Florence at theMeeting "Mediterranean, frontier of peace"., organized by the Italian Episcopal Conferencereported by Omnes, have expressed their "concern and grief over the dramatic scenario in Ukraine."They have renewed their closeness to the Christian communities of the country. In addition, the bishops "appeal to the conscience of those with political responsibilities to lay down their arms.".
Spain, solidarity and more prayer
In Spain, the president of the Episcopal Conference, Cardinal Juan José Omella, has sent letters to the president of the Conference of Roman Catholic Bishops of Ukraine and of the Committee for the Doctrine of the Faith, Bishop Mieczysław Mokrzycki; to the president of the Synod of Bishops of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, His Beatitude Sviatoslav Shevchuk; and to His Beatitude Metropolitan Epiphanius I of Kiev and All Ukraine.
The president of the CEE joins the prayer of Pope Francis, and conveys "the closeness and solidarity of all the members of the Spanish Episcopal Conference with all the people of Ukraine, which is hit by the conflict situation with Russia". Cardinal Omella also offers "our constant prayer that peace agreements may be reached soon".
Alicia LatorreRead more : "Abortion law reform aims to whitewash evil".
She is one of the greatest fighters for the cause of life. Alicia Latorre coordinates the Platform Yes to Life, which has called the March for Life 2022 on March 27, and chairs the Spanish Federation of Pro-Life Associations. In her opinion, the reform of the abortion law is "intimidating" and "a steamroller of rights and liberties".
Rafael Miner-February 27, 2022-Reading time: 4minutes
They have coincided almost on the same days this week. On the one hand, the Minister of Equality, Irene Montero, announced in Congress some lines of a legislative reform that obliges public hospitals to have professionals who perform abortions; eliminates the mandatory three-day period of reflection before having an abortion, and puts an end to the requirement of parental consent for girls aged 16 and 17, an issue introduced by the PP. "Abortion will be free, free and safe," said the minister.
On the other hand, the Platform Yes to Life, made up of 500 associations, and whose coordinator is Alicia Latorre, president of the Spanish Federation of Pro-Life Associations, has once again called on civil society in Spain.
The meeting will take place on March 27th at 12:00 noon in Madrid (c/Serrano/Goya), with the aim of taking to the streets in defense of all human life, asking for "respect for the dignity of all people and show the rejection of the latest laws passed, which directly threaten human life", as reported by Omnes.
This year, therefore, the International Day of Life will be celebrated once again. The closest precedent for the defense of life in the streets took place in January, with the rally of Every Life MattersThe group's main issues were the lack of public aid for maternity, the law on euthanasia, the unborn, the attack on doctors' conscientious objection, and the reform of the Penal Code against the freedom of expression of pro-lifers.
On the occasion of the March for Life at the end of March, Omnes spoke with Alicia LatorreShe has not dodged any question, and we have seen her as enthusiastic as ever.
What are the main objectives of the March for Life in March?
- On the one hand, to show one more year (and 11 since 2011) our public and united commitment to the defense of life and its dignity, from all the fields in which the different associations that make up this platform are working.
On the other hand, to raise our voices to denounce the injustice and shame of the most recent laws that threaten life (euthanasia and persecution of pro-lifers), as well as the previous ones that have taken millions of human lives.
Likewise, as every year, we want to show the precious and intense face of human life with so many positive aspects, so many testimonies of struggle, overcoming and generosity, which are almost never shown and are happening every day.
The color green hope and the resounding answer of saying Yes to life for everyone at any time and in any circumstance will run through the streets of Madrid, preceded by a joyful race for life.
How do you assess the reform that criminalizes counseling women who go to abortion centers as a "coercive, intimidating" act?
- It is yet another twist in the evil of abortion on the part of its entrepreneurs and the perverse ideology of the culture of death. It reveals, on the one hand, that they recognize that the action of those who offer information and help, or those who pray and see them as a real danger to their business, is effective.
It is an intimidating law, a steamroller of rights and liberties and, worse, they intend to whitewash evil, with a law to confuse the legal with the good. It is to present good as evil to be persecuted. They know perfectly well that there is no harassment or intimidation.
The law is written in the worst possible way, because there is a presumption of guilt, and the complaint does not even have to be made by the women, but can be made by the abortion centers themselves.
Evidently all of this will have to be demonstrated later, but in the meantime, there are previous penalties similar to the also unjust, because discriminatory, law of the so-called gender violence.
Describe that task performed by those who provide information or assistance.
- These courageous people, together with the hundreds of associations that also prevent abortions and care for pregnant women and their families, are carrying out a silent and effective revolution that gives us well-founded hope. Their mere existence has already saved tens of thousands of human lives and has supported and helped hundreds of thousands of women, men and families.
I hope and wish with all my heart that all this is just the last throes of this current of hatred and arrogance, and that as soon as possible the culture of life can spread to all corners of the world. In the meantime, we will continue to sow and spread it.
Abortion has been decriminalized in Colombia up to 24 weeks, and some media have spoken of a "historic advance".
- It is a terrible tragedy for a country that is already punished with the euthanasia law, with violence, kidnappings, drug trafficking and other fruits of the culture of death. All this only creates death, extreme suffering, hopelessness and corruption, so our pain is immense for the Colombian population, most of whom have a big heart and are being attacked in their values and beliefs. The consequences are not only for those innocent creatures whose lives are going to be taken away in such a cruel way, nor for their mothers, something we sadly already know in Spain after 36 years of abortion, but for the individual and collective conscience of the Colombian people and other countries it may influence.
Presenting it as a historical advance is part of the strategy of those who pull the economic and ideological strings of the culture of death, of those who have drawn up a plan to advance their plans for the extermination and control of peoples and nations.
These are well-known strategies of manipulating language, presenting abortion as women's freedom and pro-lifers as their enemies. The reality is that children are ignored and objectified, women are of no interest to them except as merchandise and not only do they not help them to solve their problems, but they abandon them after the abortion without wanting to solve the physical, psychological and moral consequences.
We end the brief conversation with Alicia Latorre. About the Colombian constitutional decision, the coordinator of the Platform Yes to Life affirms: "Much more could be said, but of course it is not only not an advance but a step backwards from a legislative point of view, as well as in human rights and progress". Just a small recommendation. If you have a few minutes, watch the report 'What do you need in order not to have an abortion?' Maybe it will help to think a little.
Chaplain Ivan Lypka: "Ukraine wants to live in freedom. This has to be stopped"
As Russian troops enter the Ukrainian capital, Kiev, the Catholic chaplain of the Ukrainian community in Madrid, Ivan Lypka, talks to Omnes. This is a collective of eight to ten thousand people, of whom many attend worship at the parish of Buen Suceso. "Ukraine is a peaceful people," he assures.
Rafael Miner-February 26, 2022-Reading time: 3minutes
The news and images leave no room for doubt. Russian troops are already in Kiev, very close to the Ukrainian Parliament. We spoke with the Ukrainian priest, chaplain Ivan Lypka, who yesterday evening celebrated Mass for the Ukrainian community in Madrid, and then led an Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament praying for his country and its people. His entire family resides in Ukraine. Some of his words may become 'old' in a few hours, because the seizure of Kiev is already taking place, as can be seen.
You have been serving the Ukrainian community in Spain for many years.
- Yes. About twenty years. I came from Ukraine. In the province there are about twenty thousand of us. In these years that I have been here I organized three sites. In Alcalá de Henares, in Getafe and here in Madrid, where the Ukrainian colony was organized, and the chaplaincy. The previous cardinal was very interested. The first Ukrainians began to arrive in 1997, due to an economic crisis, and they stayed here to work to support their families. There are many people who are already residents in Spain and have Spanish nationality. And there are young people who have already finished their studies here.
Many Ukrainians will have relatives back home....
- My family, my parents, my brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, are there, the whole family is there. Before there were only two provinces in this conflict, but now it is a total war, everywhere.
What news reaches them?
- They are always beeping sirens, to go to places shielded by bombing. I spoke to my brother this morning. Every night he has to hide, he doesn't know when they are going to attack. Yesterday they were attacking important places, airports, military bases, they also dropped bombs on places where people live, and they are approaching the streets. Now they tend to the capital. Belarus is very close.
Are there people among your relatives or non-relatives with the idea of leaving the country? Or do they want to stay?
- It is not clear. To leave or to stay you have to have time to think. The conflict began in 14. Politicians were working, yesterday the military began. Now it is not known. There are many dead, wounded, the whole Ukraine right now is at war, they are fighting in different places, because they are entering from different roads, from all sides. They are attacking also from the air.
We pray for you, for peace, as Pope Francis has asked.
- We have been struggling for years to start up and lift the economy. Many people have to take care of their work, because that is what we live on, and we help the family we have there.
In addition, yesterday evening we had a Mass, and then a Vigil for peace in the parish, to end it all. Then a Vigil with the youth of the parish and the Ukrainian community. And a group stayed to adore the Lord all night in the chapel. We will continue these days.
What would you like to see happen now? Make an appeal to political leaders.
- It is a necessity. This has to be stopped as soon as possible. Politicians have everything in their hands, and they can stop this slaughter. The people are not to blame. Our president [Volodymir Zelensky] says it very clearly: Ukraine does not want to fight with anyone, it is not attacking anyone. Now, these days, we are defending our freedom, our independence, our culture, our faith as well, our homes, our families, our country.
In your country there is an orthodox majority....
- Yes, we are Greek Catholics, and there is also a Latin Rite Catholic community. Most of them are Orthodox, yes.
On this issue, they will all be united.
- I think so. Now is a time for unity. Unity. To defend the faith, the Church, the culture, our country, because it is very important. Ukraine has already said a thousand times, and very clearly, politicians, bishops, etc., that Ukraine wants to live in freedom, as the whole world is asking now, especially Europe, democracy, and so on. And that is what the Ukrainian people want, I think.
I am very grateful for your prayers. They need it, also the military who are defending peace and Ukraine.
Catholic priests in Ukraine number more than 4,800, and women religious more than 1,300.
- When the conflict began in '14, the Pope organized a worldwide collection throughout the Catholic Church. Those collections were dedicated to help the people who were in the conflict, in these two provinces that are now under Russian control. There representatives of organizations could come in to bring necessary things; food, medicine, etc.
Are Ukrainians lacking food, food, now?
- I think there is going to be a shortage, but we don't know yet. Today is the second day. Nobody expected this, and people are getting organized. Everybody with a good, normal head thought that this was not going to happen, because what is the reason to start a war inside Europe? There is no explanation for this.
Chaplain Ivan Lypka says at the farewell: "We need a very special weapon, prayer. There are people who are in the front row, but those who pray are also supporting a lot, because we are defending the truth, and our tradition in faith, because you don't know what can happen next. Ukraine is a peaceful people, who want to live from their work, care for and support their family."
ACN launches campaign to support the Church in Ukraine
Aid to the Church in Need wants to strengthen its support for the nearly 5,000 priests and religious and 1,350 nuns in Ukraine, so that they can continue their pastoral and social programs.
The Pontifical Foundation Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) has launched the campaign "Aid to the Church in Need".Emergency Ukraine: War begins, the Church remains". With it they want to send one million euros of emergency aid in support of the Church in Ukraine, in the face of the advancing war and increasing needs in the country.
The Catholic Church in Ukraine is offering assistance to the displaced and wants to continue its mission with those who suffer the most. A few days ago, at a meeting organized by ACN, Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk, Major Archbishop of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church had indicated that they would not abandon the population despite the attacks. He also stressed the need for the believers' prayers to support those suffering from the conflict.
ACN Help
With the outbreak of war, Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) is strengthening its support for the 4,879 priests and religious and 1,350 nuns in Ukraine so that they can continue their pastoral and social programs.
The Pontifical Foundation will also provide emergency assistance to the four Greek Catholic exarchates and two Latin Catholic dioceses in eastern Ukraine, which include Kharkov, Zaporizhya, Donetsk, Lugansk, Odessa and Crimea.
Ukraine was the second most aided country by Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) in 2020, with 4.8 million euros. The aid is mainly for the training of clergy and the reconstruction of churches, monasteries, seminaries and parish houses, many of which were confiscated or destroyed during Soviet control.
At this time, the aid will focus on ensuring "the presence of priests, religious men and women with their people, in parishes, with refugees, in orphanages and homes for single mothers and the elderly," as highlighted by the director of Aid to the Church in Need in Spain. Javier Menéndez Ros also recalled that "this conflict is also a psychological war. People need comfort, strength and support. We also want to assure them of our prayers for peace in Ukraine".
Juan Ignacio GonzalezBishop of St. Bernard: "It is not clear what religious freedom is".
Interview with Juan Ignacio González, Bishop of San Bernardo, who talks about the situation in Chile, on the occasion of the latest changes made by the Constituent Convention regarding religious freedom in the country.
In July 2021, the 155-member Constituent Convention began operating in Chile. They were elected in a democratic vote last May. They have a maximum term of 12 months to draft a new Constitution, which must be approved by 2/3 of its members. Sixty days later (year 2022) it must be submitted to a Plebiscite with a mandatory vote. If the majority of Chileans approve it, the Chilean Congress will enact it. On the other hand, if the majority (50 % +1) rejects it, the current Constitution would remain in force.
In recent months, various citizens' initiatives have been presented to the Convention. In October, representatives of various religious denominations (Catholics, Orthodox, Evangelicals, Muslims, Jews, Mormons, Pentecostals, Adventists and indigenous groups) submitted a common proposal with the ideas they considered fundamental to ensure religious freedom in the future Magna Carta. This was joined by several similar proposals, which gathered 80,000 signatures in support of this initiative.
In October 2021, the group of confessions proposed a document agreed by them, which established the essential elements of religious freedom in a modern and democratic state. They requested to favor the collaboration and cooperation between the religious confessions and the State; that the State does not have the competence to intervene in the conscience, nor in the life and development of the religious confessions, whose limits are the respect of the laws, the good customs, the morals and the public order; that it be recognized that "the confessions have the right and the duty to teach their own doctrine on society, to exercise their mission among men without hindrance and to give their moral judgment, even on matters concerning the social order, when the essential rights of the human person so require."
More specifically, they requested that "without prejudice to the right of the State to regulate civil effects, religious denominations have the right to regulate the marriage of their members, even if only one of the contracting parties is married". In the field of education, the State must respect the right of parents over the religious and moral orientation of their children's education. They should be able to promote and direct educational establishments for their children and the State must recognize such establishments and subsidize them.
Finally, they proposed that religious denominations have the right to promote social initiatives (hospitals, media, orphanages, shelters, soup kitchens, etc.) and that the State should recognize these works under the same conditions as other initiatives of this type promoted by other citizens (tax exemptions, subsidies, possibility of collecting donations, etc.).
In December, the confessions presented to the Convention a specific article to be studied by the commissions and then the plenary of the Convention. In January, the Bishop of the Diocese of San Bernardo, Juan Ignacio González - lawyer and canonist, member of the Standing Committee and coordinator of the legal team of the Episcopal Conference - intervened on behalf of the religious communities before the Convention's Commission on Fundamental Rights. At the beginning of February, this Commission rejected this proposal and approved a different one, drawn up by a group of Convention members; it does not include most of the proposals of the confessions. This proposal will have to be voted on by all the Convention members at an unspecified date.
We spoke with Bishop Gonzalez, who has first-hand knowledge of what happened.
González, how was it possible for such different churches and religious communities to make a common proposal?
-It was a practical exercise in true ecumenism, because in this area all the confessions share the same principles. The document presented in October is a novelty in the ecumenical field. We have had a very fluid and open dialogue with all the confessions for many months, until we arrived at a common text.
Do you consider that the proposal approved by the constituents represents a step backward for religious freedom with respect to the current Chilean Constitution? Why?
-The Convention, it must be said, is dominated by many ideological prejudices, also in the area of the consideration of religious confessions. The prevailing conceptions are far removed from a Christian anthropology. Perhaps out of ignorance and a failure to understand that the treatment of religion by the State should be as an essential social factor in the life of the country. In this sense, the approved article, which came from within the Convention, implies a step backwards in relation to the reality that exists today in Chile regarding religious freedom. We hope that with indications some points can be corrected.
But do you believe that there is an intention to persecute or control the life of the denominations?
-I think that in theory no, but in practice yes. The norms that were approved are introduced in subjects outside the competence of the State. Basically, the confessions are subject to the State and to the administrative authority in their own juridical existence. They are treated as just another associative phenomenon and anyone who knows a little knows that this does not correspond to the proper physiognomy of the religious phenomenon. For example, they try to demand - in the Constitution of the country - that the directors are not criminally convicted. That they must keep transparent accounts, etc. Obvious things, which are proper of the law and apply to all social groups, but which in this case denote the distrust of many conventional people towards religious confessions.
Reading the approved proposal, one gets the impression that, although it has positive aspects, it does not protect the right of parents to the religious education of their children; nor does it mention that religious denominations can promote and manage various social and health initiatives, etc., and receive some state aid. What is your opinion?
-The proposals that are being approved by the Convention indicate a path towards an intervening State, which manages not only the economy, but also institutions, people and also realities such as religious faith. It is clear that in this scheme the rights you mention are undermined or disappear. We will see, if this is approved, how we will move from a regime of freedom as it exists today, to one of control and subjection.
Are any privileges requested for the confessions?
-None. The idea was to move forward from the current situation, which is acceptable and allows the confessions a regime of freedom, proper of a democratic country, towards something better and in accordance with the norms recognized by the international treaties signed by Chile. But what is happening is the opposite: a minimalist recognition of the confessions.
What is your opinion on the article that has been approved?
-It is a very basic wording, which can still be changed in the harmonizing committee. But there is already a marked line, with a wrong direction.
What aspects of the approved proposal do you find most dangerous to religious freedom?
-Many. It is not specified what religious freedom is in its fullness. It is imprecise in essential matters such as education, an essential element being the right of parents to choose the religious education of their children; it does not recognize the autonomy of the confessions to have their own norms; freedom of conscience - which is mentioned - should have its correlate in that no one can be forced to act against it; the right of the confessions to establish agreements with the State and its institutions, especially in the field of service to the most needy and needy, is not recognized. It is said that the State will encourage peaceful coexistence and the collaboration of religious entities. Nothing is said about the goods, essential for the development of the work of the confessions.
What does it mean to establish that Chile is a secular and non-denominational state?
-The imprint of the article is not secular, it is secularist. It is reaffirmed by saying that the State in this matter is governed by the principle of neutrality. It is an equivocal wording. It is affirming that the State is neither concerned nor interested in the religious faith of its members. Of course it is interested, but not specifically as a religious faith, but as an essential social factor in the life of Chile. This wording implies a very serious ignorance of the organization of a modern State.
How do you interpret the provisions of the approved article that "legal entities with religious purposes may not be for profit and their income and expenses must be managed in a transparent manner"?
-As an expression of the distrust, distance and ignorance of the drafters with respect to the religious phenomenon. I do not believe that there is a Magna Carta that establishes something like that. It starts from an assumption of suspicion. It is of the essence of a confession not to have lucrative purposes. And if they have assets that produce income, they must pay taxes like all persons and institutions, according to Chilean law.
What to say about the requirement that the ministers of worship, authorities or directors do not have convictions for child abuse or domestic violence... Now it is the Constitution that regulates the internal regime of the confessions. One more expression of the tremendous distrust towards religious entities.
What do you think of the treatment of the legal personality of denominations?
-A setback in every sense. It is another example of how confused we are on this issue. The confessions are prior to the State, religious faith is not in its sphere, nobody asks the State to make an act of faith: people do it. But the wording indicates that "religious entities and groups of spiritual order may choose to organize themselves as juridical persons of public law, according to the law..." That is to say, they exist on the juridical level because the law grants them to exist... That same law that can make them disappear... This is an attack against the connatural autonomy of the confessions.
What do the denominations that submitted the proposed article, which was rejected, think?
-There is a lot of disagreement. We worked for many months, we made serious efforts and in one session the Commission rejects it. This will logically have consequences in the future. There are many laws that will have to be rewritten and these ideas will be embodied and developed in them. The opportunity for a freer and more respectful society of the essential rights of the person seems lost. And that is always serious.
Lucas Calonje. Divine content in the ordinary of every day.
Lucas will be ordained a priest in May in Rome: a native of Madrid, a music lover and member of Opus Dei, he longs to fill everything ordinary with divine content and to be very universal, living with youthfulness of soul.
"I love music, I play the guitar, the harmonica and I hope to learn to play the Xaphoon that the Three Kings brought me.". Lucas Calonje Espinosa, 31, was ordained a deacon in Rome along with 23 other faithful of Opus Dei on November 20. He tells me that on that great day, with a bit of fear, the question came to his mind: "Lucas, but what kind of trouble are you getting into?". He was consoled by the thought that his vocation was a decision of God that he accepted, because he knows that he is in good hands: "He always delivers what he promises.".
Surrender to God
In his adolescence, he decided to give himself completely to God's plans as a numerary of Opus Dei. He studied for a degree in Economics and before the opportunity to go to Rome, he spent two years in two cities: Barcelona (two years) and La Coruña (three). He enjoyed them so much that he even composed a song for them.
It reminds me of how St. Josemaría defined Opus Dei, which he founded on October 2, 1928, as a great catechesis: "its members, especially the numeraries and aggregates, study philosophy and theology, combining it with our studies and professional work wherever we are.".
Going to Rome to study meant maturing little by little the possibility of the call to the priesthood within the vocation to Opus Dei. He arrived in 2013 and plunged into the study of theology. From 2015 until now he combined it with other assignments thanks to the CARF foundation that helped him finance a large part of his studies. From 2015 to 2018 he was in charge of the maintenance and care of Cavabianca, the headquarters of the Roman College of the Holy Cross: he managed workers, small renovations or part of the accounting. It was office work but with some adventure:"I remember when I literally had to go diving, dressed in a jacket and tie, to unclog a drain that almost flooded the house.". What he learned the most from this stage came from dealing with the workers: gardeners, bricklayers, painters, small businessmen. Lucas tells me that they were simple people ".who knows how to give importance to the important things, both inside and outside of work, something that is sometimes difficult for us.".
He spent the next three years almost fully involved in training young people. Lucas is optimistic: "it is an exciting job because it is very easy to sow good seed, even if it takes a long time for the soil to bear fruit.". She confesses as an undeserved gift that the children have wanted to entrust her with so many things of their soul: "I am very grateful to them.I have seen them cry, laugh, sing or fall in love.". Some came closer to God, others moved away. Of the latter he says that they will return to the right path, even if they do not know it yet.
So many experiences
I force him to summarize what he has learned during this time. He is a little reluctant at first: there are so many experiences! What has filled him the most is living with people who know how to fill with divine content the ordinary of every day: "I have learned to live with people who know how to fill with divine content the ordinary of every day.I have seen it incarnated in normal people, flawed like everyone else, but heroic.". As if that were not enough, his stay in Rome has taught him to be Roman, Catholic and universal: "I am a Roman Catholic.I have met seminarians, priests and consecrated persons at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross, each one called to live the faith in the Church in very different ways.". He states that he was surprised to note that ".in spite of the differences in charisma or style, we all felt that we were looked at by Christ, which quickly generated a great harmony.". That is why he has often thought that "the lack of unity that unfortunately exists in the Church would disappear if we would remember that it is One who has sought us all out and called us all.".
May 21 is approaching, the day on which Luke will receive the gift of priestly ministry. He asks God to make him faithful: "I will be faithful to you.I would like to die an old man one day, if I ever get there, but in love with Him and happy.". In Rome he has been able to care for elderly priests who "when they lost their minds due to some kind of dementia, they said ejaculatory prayers, tenderly kissed a crucifix or caressed an image of the Virgin thinking that no one was watching them.". Lucas wishes to live always with that youthfulness of soul, looking with a clean look at everything noble and good that God gives him.
Pope makes strong appeal for peace in Ukraine, prayer and fasting
Pope Francis called on "believers and non-believers" to unite in prayer for peace in Ukraine on March 2, Ash Wednesday, and urged all parties involved in the crisis to "a serious examination of conscience before God", "who is the God of peace and not of war", in order to stop "the diabolical senselessness of violence".
Rafael Miner-February 24, 2022-Reading time: 3minutes
"I have great pain in my heart about the worsening situation in Ukraine. Despite the diplomatic efforts of recent weeks, increasingly alarming scenarios are opening up." Thus began the Pope a Appeal at the end of yesterday's General Audience in the Paul VI Hall.
"Like me, many people around the world feel anguish and concern," the Pontiff added, noting that "once again the peace of all is threatened by the interests of the parties."
The Holy Father then made a pressing appeal to political leaders: "I would like to appeal to political leaders to make a serious examination of conscience before God, who is the God of peace and not of war; who is the Father of all, not just of some, who wants us to be brothers and sisters and not enemies. I ask all parties involved to refrain from any action that causes even more suffering to populations, destabilizing coexistence among nations and discrediting international law".
"God's weapons, prayer and fasting."
The Holy Father extended the appeal to all, "believers and non-believers", inviting them to unite in a day of joint prayer for peace: "Jesus taught us that the diabolical senselessness of violence can be answered with the weapons of God, with prayer and fasting. I invite everyone to make March 2, Ash Wednesday, a day of fasting for peace. I especially encourage believers to dedicate themselves intensely to prayer and fasting on that day. May the Queen of Peace preserve the world from the madness of war.
"Ukraine suffers and deserves peace"
This is not the first time that the Pope has made an appeal for peace in the conflict affecting that country. At the end of January, Francis appealed to the filiation to God the Father and to fraternity among men, in relation to Ukraine: "Let us pray for peace with the Our Father: it is the prayer of children who address the same Father, it is the prayer that makes us brothers, it is the prayer of brothers who implore reconciliation and concord".
The Papa asked "the Lord with insistence that this land may see fraternity flourish and overcome the wounds, fears and divisions". The Day of Fasting and Prayer for Peace had three key points: the Vatican, the Basilica of Santa Maria in Trastevere in Rome, and the Ukrainian capital, Kiev. Ukraine "is a suffering people, they have suffered much cruelty and they deserve peace," the Holy Father cried out.
"Gathered together in prayer we implore peace for Ukraine," Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, Secretary for Relations with States of the Holy See, asked at the. Basilica of Santa Maria in Trastevere in Rome, in a celebration promoted by the Community of Sant'Egidio. "May the winds of war be silent, may the wounds be healed, may men, women and children be preserved from the horror of conflict."
"We are in communion with the Pope so that every initiative may be at the service of human fraternity," added Monsignor Gallagher. His words highlighted, first of all, the drama of conflicts and the disparity between those who decide them and those who suffer them, between those who systematically carry them out and those who suffer the pain, the official Vatican agency reported.
"We know how dramatic war is and how serious its consequences are: they are painful situations that deprive many people of the most fundamental rights," he added. But even more scandalous "is to see that those who suffer most from conflicts are not those who decide whether or not to start them, but are above all those who are only helpless victims of them," Archbishop Gallagher stressed.
Subsequently, Sviatoslav Shevchuk, Major Archbishop of the Greek Catholic Church of Ukraine, said that "the Catholics of Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, are united in prayer, and seek peace". He made this statement at an online press conference organized by Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) on the Ukrainian crisis.
Maximum voltage
According to various sources, the Russian President, Vladimir Putin, assured last night that, "in accordance with Article 51 of the UN Charter, with the approval of the Federation Council" (Russian Upper House), he has decided to "carry out a special military intervention", which has set off all the alarms.For his part, the President of the United States, Joe Biden, has assured, according to the BBC, that Ukraine is suffering "an unprovoked and unjustified attack by Russian military forces", following Vladimir Putin's announcement of a "special military operation" against the neighboring country.
Pope Francis breaks down in his Message for Lent a passage from St. Paul's letter to the Galatians where he encourages perseverance in this "favorable time for personal and community renewal."
Today, Thursday, February 24, Pope Francis published his message for Lent 2022. Next Wednesday, March 2, Ash Wednesday, will mark the beginning of a time "favorable for personal and communal renewal that leads us to the Easter of Jesus Christ, dead and risen". For this reason, Francis wants us to meditate on this passage from the letter of St. Paul to the Galatians: "Let us not grow weary in doing good, for if we do not lose heart, we will reap the rewards in due season. Therefore, while we have the opportunity, let us do good to all" (Gal 6:9-10a).. To this end, the pontiff has broken it down: he assures that this is a "favorable time" for sowing and harvesting, as well as encouraging us to have hope and not grow weary of doing good. Finally, he affirms that the harvest of good is a fruit of perseverance.
We reproduce in full below Pope Francis' Message for Lent 2022:
"Lent is a favorable time for personal and communal renewal that leads us toward the Easter of Jesus Christ dead and risen. For our Lenten journey in 2022, it will do us good to reflect on St. Paul's exhortation to the Galatians: "Let us not grow weary in doing good, for if we do not lose heart, we will reap the rewards in due season. Therefore, while we have the opportunity (kairos), let us do good to all" (Ga 6,9-10a).
Sowing and harvesting
In this passage the Apostle evokes the image of sowing and reaping, which Jesus was so fond of (cf. Mt 13). St. Paul speaks to us of a kairosWhat is this favorable time for us? Certainly, Lent is a favorable time, but so is our whole earthly existence, of which Lent is in some way an image.[1] All too often, greed and pride prevail in our lives, the desire to have, to accumulate and to consume, as shown in the Gospel parable of the foolish man, who considered his life safe and happy because he had accumulated a great harvest in his barns (cf. Lc 12,16-21). Lent invites us to conversion, to change our mentality, so that the truth and beauty of our life do not lie so much in possessing as in giving, not so much in accumulating as in sowing goodness and sharing.
The first farmer is God himself, who generously "continues to pour out into humanity seeds of goodness" (Encyclical Letter, p. 4). Fratelli tutti, 54). During Lent we are called to respond to God's gift by welcoming his "living and effective" Word (Hb 4,12). Assiduous listening to the Word of God makes us mature a docility that disposes us to welcome his work in us (cf. St 1:21), which makes our life fruitful. If this is already a reason to rejoice, even greater is the call to be "God's co-workers" (1 Co 3,9), using the present tense well (cf. Ef 5:16) so that we too can sow by doing good. This call to sow good must not be seen as a burden, but as a grace with which the Creator wants us to be actively united to his fruitful magnanimity.
What about the harvest? Isn't all the sowing done with a view to the harvest? Of course it is. The close link between sowing and reaping is corroborated by St. Paul himself when he affirms: "To a stingy sower, a stingy harvest; to a generous sower, a generous harvest" (2 Co 9,6). But what is the harvest? The first fruit of the good that we sow is in ourselves and in our daily relationships, even in the smallest gestures of kindness. In God no act of love is lost, no matter how small it may be, no "generous fatigue" is wasted (cf. Evangelii gaudium, 279). Just as a tree is known by its fruit (cf. Mt 7:16,20), a life full of good works is luminous (cf. Mt 5:14-16) and brings the perfume of Christ to the world (cf. 2 Co 2,15). Serving God, freed from sin, brings forth fruits of sanctification for the salvation of all (cf. Rm 6,22).
In reality, we only see a small part of the fruit of what we sow, since according to the Gospel proverb "one sows and another reaps" (Jn 4,37). It is precisely by sowing for the good of others that we participate in the magnanimity of God: "It is a great nobility to be capable of unleashing processes whose fruits will be gathered by others, with the hope placed in the secret forces of the good that is sown" (Encyclical Letter, 4:37). Fratelli tutti, 196). Sowing good for others frees us from the narrow logic of personal benefit and gives our actions the broad scope of gratuitousness, introducing us to the marvelous horizon of God's benevolent designs.
The Word of God broadens and elevates our gaze even more, announces to us that the truest harvest is the eschatological harvest, that of the last day, the day without sunset. The complete fruit of our life and our actions is the "fruit for eternal life" (Jn 4:36), which will be our "treasure in heaven" (Lc 18:22; cf. 12:33). Jesus himself uses the image of the seed that dies when it falls to the ground and bears fruit to express the mystery of his death and resurrection (cf. Jn 12:24); and St. Paul takes it up again to speak of the resurrection of our body: "The corruptible is sown and rises incorruptible; the dishonorable is sown and rises glorious; the weak is sown and rises full of strength; in short, a material body is sown and a spiritual body is raised" (1 Co 15,42-44). This hope is the great light that the risen Christ brings to the world: "If what we hope for in Christ is reduced only to this life, we are the most miserable of all human beings. What is certain is that Christ has risen from the dead as the first fruit of those who have died" (1 Co 15:19-20), so that those who are intimately united to Him in love, in a death like His (cf. Rm 6:5), let us also be united to his resurrection for eternal life (cf. Jn 5,29). "Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the Kingdom of their Father" (Mt 13,43).
2. "Let us not grow weary of doing good".
The resurrection of Christ enlivens earthly hopes with the "great hope" of eternal life and introduces the seed of salvation already in the present time (cf. Benedict XVI, Encyclical Letter, p. 4). Spe salvi, 3; 7). Faced with the bitter disappointment of so many broken dreams, with concern for the challenges that concern us, with discouragement at the poverty of our means, we are tempted to withdraw into our own individualistic selfishness and take refuge in indifference to the suffering of others. Indeed, even the best resources are limited, "the young grow weary and tired, the young stumble and fall" (Is 40,30). Nevertheless, God "gives strength to those who are weary, and increases the strength of those who are exhausted. [Those who hope in the Lord renew their strength, they fly like eagles; they run and do not grow weary, they walk and do not grow tired" (Is 40,29.31). Lent calls us to place our faith and hope in the Lord (cf. 1 P 1:21), because only with eyes fixed on the risen Christ (cf. Hb 12:2) we can welcome the Apostle's exhortation: "Let us not grow weary in doing good" (Ga 6,9).
Let us not tire of praying. Jesus has taught us that it is necessary to "pray always without becoming discouraged" (Lc 18,1). We need to pray because we need God. To think that we are sufficient on our own is a dangerous illusion. With the pandemic we have felt our personal and social fragility. May Lent now allow us to experience the consolation of faith in God, without which we cannot have stability (cf. Is 7,9). No one is saved alone, because we are all in the same boat amid the storms of history;[2] but above all, no one is saved without God, because only the paschal mystery of Jesus Christ enables us to overcome the dark waters of death. Faith does not exempt us from the tribulations of life, but it enables us to go through them united to God in Christ, with the great hope that does not disappoint and whose pledge is the love that God has poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit (cf. Rm 5,1-5).
Let us not tire of removing evil from our lives.. May the bodily fasting that the Church asks of us during Lent strengthen our spirit for the fight against sin. Let us never tire of asking for forgiveness in the sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation, knowing that God never tires of forgiving[3]. Let us not tire of fighting against concupiscence.The fragility that drives us to selfishness and to all kinds of evil, and which throughout the centuries has found different ways to plunge man into sin (cf. Encyclical Letter, "The Eternal Life of Man"). Fratelli tutti, 166). One of these ways is the risk of dependence on digital media, which impoverishes human relationships. Lent is a propitious time to counteract these insidiousnesses and cultivate, instead, a more integral human communication (cf. ibid., 43) made up of "real encounters" (ibid., 50), face to face. Let us not grow weary of doing good in active charity towards our fellow man. During this Lent let us practice almsgiving, giving joyfully (cf. 2 Co 9,7). God, "who provides seed for the sower and bread for food" (2 Co 9:10), provides each of us not only with what we need to subsist, but also so that we can be generous in doing good to others.
If it is true that our whole life is a time for sowing good, let us take advantage especially of this Lent to care for those close to us, to be neighbor to those brothers and sisters who are wounded on life's journey (cf. Lc 10,25-37). Lent is a propitious time to seek out - and not avoid - those in need; to call - and not ignore - those who wish to be heard and receive a good word; to visit - and not abandon - those who suffer loneliness. Let us put into practice the call to do good. to allWe must take time to love the least and defenseless, the abandoned and despised, those who are discriminated against and marginalized (cf. Encyclical Letter, p. 4). Fratelli tutti, 193).
3. "If we do not falter, we will reap in due time".
Lent reminds us every year that "goodness, as well as love, justice and solidarity, are not achieved once and for all; they must be conquered every day" (ibid., 11). Therefore, let us ask God for the patient constancy of the farmer (cf. St 5:7) so as not to give up doing good, one step after another. Whoever falls, reach out to the Father, who always raises us up again. Whoever finds himself lost, deceived by the seductions of the evil one, let him not delay in returning to Him, who "is rich in forgiveness" (Is 55,7). In this time of conversion, relying on the grace of God and the communion of the Church, let us not tire of sowing good. Fasting prepares the soil, prayer waters, charity makes fruitful.
We have the certainty in faith that "if we do not lose heart, in due time we will reap" and that, with the gift of perseverance, we will attain the promised goods (cf. Hb 10:36) for our salvation and that of others (cf. 1 Tm 4,16). By practicing fraternal love with everyone, we unite ourselves to Christ, who gave his life for us (cf. 2 Co 5:14-15), and we begin to savor the joy of the Kingdom of heaven, when God will be "all in all" (1 Co 15:28), that the Virgin Mary, in whose womb the Savior was born and who "kept all these things and pondered them in her heart" (Lc 2:19) obtain for us the gift of patience and remain at our side with her maternal presence, so that this time of conversion may bear fruits of eternal salvation."
La Marcia per la Vita 2022, guardando a Washington e alla Colombia
The fight for life continues, on the streets and in parliaments, with victories and defeats. In Washington, thousands of people are sitting in the piazza in January to celebrate life with Marchforlifewhile Colombia has decriminalized abortion until the twentieth week. In Spain, the Yes to Life platform has declared the March for Life for Sunday, March 27, 2022 in Madrid.
Rafael Miner-February 24, 2022-Reading time: 4minutes
The Piattaforma Yes to Life has once again called on Spanish civil society to take to the piazza in defense of all human beings, on March 27 at 12 noon in Madrid, to demand "respect for the dignity of all people and to demonstrate the rejection of the latest laws recently passed, which directly undermine human life". The International Day of Life will be celebrated again after two years without taking place due to the sanitary situation.
The procession of demonstrators will start in via Serrano in Madrid at the intersection with Goya, and will reach Plaza de Cibeles, where a demonstration will take place with testimonies, music and a final manifesto prepared by the participating organizations.
The Piattaforma Yes to Life is composed of more than 500 associations working for the promotion of Life from its beginning to its natural end. In 2011, all of them gathered in this platform to celebrate around March 25th, the International Day of Life, a public and unitary event to celebrate this date under the same color: green hope and under the same motto: Yes to life.
Depenalization in Colombia
The call of the Piattaforma has usually annual frequency, and this time comes a few days after the Constitutional Court of Colombia has approved the decriminalization of abortion up to 24 weeks this very Monday, with a historic vote but with a narrow result: five votes in favor and four against - criticized by the president of the Latin American country.
Iván Duque has underlined his concern for the fact that the decision "makes it easier for abortion to become almost a contraceptive practice, a restrictive and regular one". In a radio interview, the Colombian president called himself "a pro-life person", and insisted on the fact that "life begins at conception", according to him. El Mundo. .
Marce per la Vita: Washington
At the end of January, the annual Marcia per la Vita, sponsored by Marchforlife with the participation of thousands of people, who have joined in the hope that it would be the last national march, and who have joined in a new cry for "the gift of every human life to be protected by law and accepted with love".
The freezing temperatures of -6º Celsius in the North American capital and the high infection rates of the omicron variant of Covid.19 did not dampen the spirits of thousands of young people from all over the country who returned to the 40th edition of MarchforLife, as our guest Gonzalo Meza reports.
Catholic colleges and universities were represented by hundreds of students who came to the capital from different parts of the country to participate in the march.
Also in Finland
In September of last year a historic event took place in Helsinki: the first Marcia per la Vita in Helsinki. Finland. The objective, as Raimo Goyarrola refers, was identical to that of the other marches that have been held in many places, i.e. to stimulate public debate on the reality of human life in the maternal body, on the phenomenon of abortion and on the defense of the right to life of unborn children.
Abortion in Finland is allowed almost freely. And that Saturday March 11 September in Helsinki was a first and a second. "About 9,000 unborn Finns come to abortion every year. This is exactly the number that would be useful for a general change in society. We are at unsustainable numbers for a stable future. There are still children. But now the time has come to talk, to communicate, to dialogue", wrote Raimo Goyarrola.
500 associations in Spain
In Spain, the Yes to Life Platform is made up of more than 500 associations working for the promotion of Life from its beginning to its natural end. In 2011, the associations met within the framework of this Platform to carry out, around March 25 - International Day of Life - a public and unitary event with the same motto: Yes to Life.
Since then, the piattaforma has not failed in its commitment. In the last two years, the demonstrations have been held online, with a wave on the Piattaforma's YouTube channel; and according to the note published today, "this 2022 we will once again be on the square with strength to celebrate life in a well-established demonstration, which grows every year in the number of participants, especially young people. In addition to expressing this commitment and the greatness of life, respect for the dignity of each person will be sought and the refusal of the latest laws passed, which directly undermine human life, will be expressed.
L' Associazione of Sportivi per la Vita e la Famiglia will carry out the second Corsa di Solidarietà per la Vita, as a sign of the union of the world of sport in favor of human life. This event, preceding and complementary, will take place at 10:00 a.m. in Via Serrano, in the form of the Urban Run and with a maximum of 500 participants.
During these days the site will be updated with materials of interest: merchandising, locations to advertise the Marcia, ecc. Who wants can collaborate as a volunteer by registering in the module that compares on the page. And whoever can collaborate with a donation is encouraged to do it through Bizum ONG: 00589: also through a bonus on account ES28 0081 7306 6900 0140 0041, intestate to the Spanish Federation of Associations for Life. The reason to indicate is: Yes to Life, with the name of the person or the association that is making the will.
Convening associations
Among the convening associations are ABIMAD, ACdP, ADEVIDA, AEDOS, AESVIDA, Associazione di Bioetica di Madrid, Associazione Spagnola di Farmacia Sociale, Associazione Europea degli Avvocati di Famiglia, ANDEVI, Associazione Universitaria APEX, AYUVI, Centro Legale Tomás Moro, CIDEVIDA, CIVICA, COFAPA , CONCAPA, e-cristians, El Encinar de Mambré, Evangelium Vitae, Famiglia e dignità umana, Famiglie affidatarie, FAPACE, Federazione spagnola delle associazioni per la vita, Forum delle famiglie, Fondazione Educatio Servanda, Fondazione Jérome Lejeune, REDMADRE, Fundación Vida, Fundación Más Futuro, Fundación Villacisneros, Fundación +Vida, HO- Right to Live, Hogares de Santa María, Hogares de Santa Maria, Lands Care, One of Us, Más Futuro, NEOS, Professionals for Ethics, Red Mission, RENAFER, Giovanni Paolo II Soccorritori, SOS Famiglia, Spei Mater, Fondazione Valori e Società, Voce Postaborto, ecc.
Natalia PeiroCaritas' key points of action are people".
Cáritas Española celebrates its 75th anniversary. Since 1947, Spanish society has changed a lot in terms of its needs and social structure. However, as its secretary general, Natalia Peiro, emphasizes in this interview with Omnes, the heart of Caritas remains unchanged.
Interview with the Secretary General of Cáritas Española.
Cáritas Española is, according to its official denomination, the official confederation of charitable and social action entities of the Catholic Church in Spain, instituted by the Episcopal Conference. But, beyond its structural definition, Cáritas could be called, as its Secretary General calls it, "Cáritas Española", "the caress of God".
Today, and for three quarters of a century, Caritas has been the charitable arm for hundreds of thousands of people who find accompaniment, help, a way out or training for employment through the various diocesan and parish Caritas and the various projects.
A year ago, the Permanent Commission of the Spanish Episcopal Conference renewed Manuel Bretón as president of Cáritas Española and Natalia Peiro as secretary general, a task she had held since 2017, for a new three-year term. This General Services team has lived through the socioeconomic crisis resulting from the pandemic, as well as the emergence of new gaps of social exclusion. A change in society that makes essential, even more if possible, that ministry of charity that Caritas volunteers and workers personify.
Caritas is preparing to celebrate 75 years of life in Spain. What has changed and what remains since its birth?
-The root remains. Our feet are founded on the Gospel, on the Christian community. Caritas is an expression of that Christian community and that remains true in all countries of the world.
What remains? The spirit that animates us and the experience of God that we have in our work in Caritas. In Caritas there is a special care for the formation of the heart of the people who are part of it. Our work breaks down these disjunctions between action and contemplation, between justice and spiritual life.
There remains that raison d'être that tells us that our task is an expression of our faith. And it remains, always, the service to all, without exception, without asking where you come from or how they are.
The organization and activities have changed a lot because the social reality has changed. From the American milk that was distributed when Caritas was born to the employment and recycling projects... many things have changed. Life has changed.
What makes Caritas different from any other NGO, even one made up of Catholics?
-The key difference is our organization, which is indivisible from the Church. In each diocese our presidents are the bishops, and our local organization is the parishes. We are the Church. We are the Church's ministry of charity, one of the three ministries along with Liturgy and the Word.
This identification gives us, apart from the sense, that permeability, the possibility of reaching all places, all corners. Being Church gives us a universality that other NGOs, not even international ones, do not have. By belonging to the universal Church we have a different capillarity, a vision of the world as a single human family.
In these 75 years, Caritas has seen the evolution of Spanish society and has evolved with it. What are the key points of Caritas' work today?
-I think Caritas makes a huge effort to try to support and accompany people on their way to a full, integrated life. You ask me what are the key points of Caritas' work: the key points are people.
We are not an organization that has a set of priorities, for example, in the field of health or education, but we accompany people along the way.
If I had to highlight some different challenges today I think that, at present, we work with some situations of more extreme marginality: people who are victims of trafficking or homeless people. This work has very different challenges if we think about the life we can give to those people. Another big challenge is loneliness and isolation. This is especially evident in the elderly or, for example, in migrants. We are in a more individualistic society and accompaniment changes.
In this regard, we view with great concern the intergenerational transmission of poverty and the danger of the breakdown of the welfare state. When we presented the FOESSA report on the consequences of the pandemic in Spain, we spoke of the rupture of the social contract with youth. In other words, if we do not transfer the best we can to present and future generations, if we do not help the weakest, we are heading towards a society that has nothing to do with the rule of law or social cohesion.
We have to ask ourselves in which society we want to live: in a State where those who do not have papers are forced to live and even die in the street? Or in a place where there is social cohesion and solidarity that allows us to live in peace and justice? Our accompaniment has resulted in a work of prophetic denunciation that we frame in the Gospel.
These two years of pandemic have undoubtedly been a challenge for the entire organization of Caritas Española. How have you experienced these moments from within and in your work?
-It has been a shock for the Church and, especially, for an institution like Caritas, where the difference lies in the being and being. We are used to being very close to people and, therefore, this situation has violated our way of working, our volunteers' way of being, etc. A very big impact for the whole Spanish society and especially strong in those groups, parish or neighborhood communities... which are rooted in human relationships on a daily basis.
The first transformation we had to make centered on how to follow being close without being able to be physically close. Power remain open having to close.
Our campaign of these years points out that "charity does not close", and so it has been. All Caritas, diocesan and parochial, received many people referred by the public administration, which could not take care of them....
Half a million new people reached Caritas through the hotlines, the website and social networks.
Just as many people came asking for help, we also had to transform ourselves to have the capacity to receive initiatives, proposals, and many people who wanted to help.
Attending to all this tsunami of petitions and solidarity had to be very tightly organized. We had to put in a lot of work, from the parish Caritas to the General Services. We all had to be at 150% to be able to attend to everything that was asked of us.
We quickly saw that the digital issue was leaving many people out. The administration, collapsed and completely digitalized, was leaving many people out. The regulatory tangle that arose required a lot of analysis: what volunteers could and could not do, how to apply for the Minimum Vital Income, what happened with domestic workers, what social canteens and insertion companies could do, etc.
We had to make a very quick analysis, within an organization that is not dedicated to just one thing. This analysis was an opportunity to dialogue with the administration, asking, for example, to be declared essential services, or how to transform our insertion companies so as not to lose jobs.
In the medium term, we had to face the accompaniment of families, and the training programs that already had to be very digital. We analyzed which were the jobs that could be most required for our employment programs and, already in summer 2020, many courses were scheduled for people specialized in cleaning and disinfection, mask manufacturing, etc.
In addition to all this, many initiatives were also promoted to help neighbors, those close to us... to solve, in a way, the difficulty of the presence. In this sense, the young people gave a lot of support: they got involved in social networks, made videos, virtual presence...
Are there still volunteers and is there a future for Caritas volunteers?
-There are still volunteers, thank God. We have a great challenge in this field, which is the challenge of the whole Church. Caritas volunteers are born from the Christian community and the parishes. Volunteering in Caritas has to do with our learning about the logic of gift, of gratuitousness, of giving ourselves to others. It is not the same as other volunteer work we know.
The challenge, like that of the whole Church, is the transmission of faith, the transmission of values. Caritas has to contribute that part to the Church.
We see, for example, how in rural environments, in parishes, there is a lack of young people to make this transition. At this point there is an important issue. Caritas is the caress of the Church. It has an outreach and an outreach to the people, and we have to learn to integrate volunteers who are not strictly "parish volunteers", but who discover the face of Christ through the people we work with and accompany.
Being Church has given us everything, and we want to be a contribution to the future of this transmission of faith.
In Europe, for example, there is a youth Caritas revolution. It has been difficult to understand that young people are in universities, in companies or in movements and we have to let ourselves be surprised by them and integrate them. Welcome these people who have a lot to give.
Obviously, we have to be very careful because being a volunteer in Caritas is not the same as being a volunteer in any other NGO. With this challenge in mind, we are trying to change ways and means, so that more people can become part of Caritas.
There are some years in which it is very difficult to be a volunteer; the profession and the care of the family do not leave any time, etc. But, if you have been a volunteer when you were young at university, it is easier that, at the age of 50, when your children are already grown up, you can take up this task again. That seed had to be planted by someone and there we have a task.
Our strategic plan has a key focus on the renewal of volunteerism and, within it, a very nice point, which is the intergenerational relationship of volunteers.
What do you consider to be the new forms of poverty?
-I believe that, in general, there is little new in terms of the difficulties that people have and that cause them to be excluded. The profiles are essentially young people, women with dependent minors and immigrants.
The new forms of poverty are those caused by two fundamental issues. The first is the deterioration of labor market conditions. The working conditions of people who started working before 2008 and keep that job have nothing to do with the working conditions of those who started working after the 2008 crisis. This is a reality that we see all around us. In addition to this reality, there is the second issue, which is the opposite trend between wages and housing prices. In the end, employment and housing remain the fundamental keys to social inclusion. If a person earns little and, when paying housing costs, remains poor, it is very difficult to do anything else: education, health, social relations or to fix a deterioration of the house. These new poor are people who work, maybe only part-time or on temporary contracts, but most of them prefer working to the "little paycheck".
Have we come out of this crisis "better" or worse?
-The truth is that I have doubts. The Pope told us, at the beginning of this crisis, that we are not going to come out of it the same way. It is true that, in the pressure of need, all people bring out the best in themselves, but in the exit from an emergency there is a great tendency not to look back to get out. This "not seeing" is reflected, for example, in the data of the FOESSA report. Those of us who have a certain stability in life -a paycheck, a job-, have some daily problems, but there are other issues that are there and we do not "see" them. For example, what has happened to those children who have been left alone because their parents had to go out to work and teleworking did not fit, or to those households in which only one person works and has been fired, what about people who have no digital skills and could not go to the bank or make a doctor's appointment? We have to realize that the gap exists, that these realities exist, even if we don't see them every day or don't want to "look back".
And these realities do not occur because these people do not make an effort. When we ask people what they are doing to get out of this situation, eight out of ten are active: working a few hours, actively looking for a job or participating in a training program. As a society, we sometimes close doors because we don't know the reality. It is necessary to know it in order to understand it.
Pope Francis has called believers and non-believers to a day of prayer and fasting for peace in Ukraine on Wednesday, March 2, which coincides with Ash Wednesday.
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The meeting of bishops and mayors of the Mediterranean began this Wednesday in Florence. The main theme was to reflect on how to make the Mediterranean a "border of peace".
At the initiative of the Italian Bishops' Conference, a meeting of bishops and mayors of Mediterranean coastal towns is being held in Florence. Pope Francis is also expected to visit next Sunday. This is the second initiative of its kind, personally led by Cardinal Gualtiero Bassetti, president of the Italian Bishops' Conference. The first took place exactly two years ago, just before the outbreak of the pandemic, in Bari, also in the presence of the Pope.
The bishops of no less than 20 countries bordering the "mare nostrum" participated in the meeting to reflect on how to make it more and more a "frontier of peace", and today this concern of the local Churches becomes even more urgent and necessary in the face of the winds of war blowing over Europe in these very weeks.
The Florence meeting, like that of Bari, was born from the example of a happy intuition of the Venerable Giorgio La Pira, mayor of the Renaissance city and constituent father, who in the 1950s and 1960s gave life to the so-called "Mediterranean talks" as a strategic opportunity to achieve world peace. And he suggested an analogy between the time of Jesus and the contemporary era, between the environment in which the Messiah moved and that in which the peoples of the Mediterranean lived then - but also today: a heterogeneous context of culture and beliefs, multiform, not exempt from economic, religious and political conflicts and, therefore, in need of unity and peace.
To the bishops gathered in the Basilica of St. Nicholas of Bari, Pope Francis reiterated that, precisely because of its conformation, the Mediterranean "obliges the cultures and peoples bordering it to a constant proximity", in the awareness that "only by living in harmony can they enjoy the opportunities that this region offers from the point of view of resources, the beauty of the territory and the different human traditions".
If the ultimate goal of every human society remains peace," the Pontiff explained on that occasion, "war is rather the failure of every human and divine project. But there can be no peace without justice, which is trampled underfoot whenever "the needs of the people are ignored" or "partisan economic interests are placed above the rights of individuals and the community", or people are treated "as if they were things".
The Pope's program for Sunday includes, after greeting civil and religious authorities, including the mayors of Athens, Jerusalem and Istanbul, a meeting with refugee and displaced families and Holy Mass in the Basilica of the Holy Cross.
"As Christian communities, we have the moral duty and missionary task of fostering and promoting, with faith and courage, new international balances based, first of all, on the defense and valorization of the human person, as well as on an effective and concrete solidarity" - said Cardinal Bassetti in his opening address to the Meeting of Bishops of the Mediterranean. He then recalled: "Our brothers and sisters crushed by wars, hunger, climate change, some of whom are freezing to death on the borders of Europe or drowning in the Mediterranean, are the first and privileged recipients of the proclamation of the Gospel".
The meeting will be attended by 58 bishops - among them the Archbishop of Barcelona and president of the Spanish Episcopal Conference, Juan José Omella, and the auxiliary bishop of Madrid, José Cobo Cano - and 65 mayors, among them those of Granada, Seville and Valencia.
March for Life 2022, with an eye on Washington and Colombia
The fight for life goes on, in streets and parliaments, with victories and defeats. In Washington, thousands of people took to the streets in January to defend life with Marchforlifewhile Colombia has decriminalized abortion up to the 24th week. In Spain, the Platform Yes to Life has called for the March for Life 2022 on Sunday, March 27 in Madrid.
Rafael Miner-February 23, 2022-Reading time: 4minutes
The Plataforma Sí a la Vida (Yes to Life Platform) has once again called on civil society in Spain, on March 27 at 12:00 noon in Madrid, to take to the streets in defense of every human being, to demand "respect for the dignity of all persons and to show rejection of the latest laws passed, which directly threaten human life". The International Day of Life will be celebrated again after two years without taking to the streets due to the health situation.
The tour will begin in Madrid's Serrano and Goya streets, and will reach the Plaza de Cibeles, where a ceremony will be held with testimonies, music and a final manifesto prepared by the member organizations.
The Platform Yes to Life is made up of more than 500 associations that work for the defense of Life from its beginning to its natural end. All of them joined together in 2011 under this Platform to perform around March 25, International Day of Life, a public and unitary act to celebrate this date under the same color: green hope, and under the same slogan: Yes to Life.
Decriminalization in Colombia
The Platform's call is usual every year, and comes a few days after Colombia's Constitutional Court approved the decriminalization of abortion up to 24 weeks on Monday, in a historic vote with a close result -five votes in favor and four against-, which has been criticized by the president of the Latin American country.
Iván Duque stressed his concern that the decision "will make it easier for abortion to become an almost contraceptive, recurrent and regular practice". In a radio interview, the Colombian president declared himself to be "a pro-life person", and insisted that "life begins at conception", as reported by El Mundo.
Marches for Life: Washington
A few weeks earlier, at the end of January, the annual March for Life took place in Washington, D.C., promoted by Marchforlife and supported by thousands of people, which took place in the hope that it would be the last march nationwide, and which was a new cry for the "gift of every human life to be protected by law and welcomed with love".
The freezing temperatures of -6º Celsius in the U.S. capital and the high infection rates of the Omicron variant of Covid.19, did not dampen the spirits of thousands of young people from all over the country who gathered at the 49th edition of the MarchforLifeas reported by our correspondent, Gonzalo Meza. Catholic colleges and universities were represented with hundreds of students who traveled from different parts of the country to the capital to participate in the walk.
Also in Finland
In September last year, a historic event took place in Helsinki: the first March for Life in Helsinki. Finland. The objective, like that of other marches that have been held in numerous places, was to stimulate public debate on the reality of human life in the womb, the phenomenon of abortion and the defense of the right to life of unborn children, reported Raimo Goyarrola.
Abortion in Finland is allowed almost freely. And that March on Saturday, September 11 in Helsinki marked a before and after. "About 9,000 unborn Finns are killed every year. That's just the number needed for a generational replacement in society. We are at unsustainable numbers for a stable future. Children are needed. But the time has come to talk, to communicate, to dialogue," wrote Raimo Goyarrola.
500 associations in Spain
In Spain, the Platform Yes to Life is made up of more than 500 associations that work for the defense of Life from its beginning to its natural end. In 2011, the associations united under this Platform to carry out, around March 25 -International Day of Life-, a public and united act with the same slogan: Yes to Life.
Since then, the platform has not failed to fulfill its commitment. The last two years have been carried out online, with a retransmission through the YouTube channel of the Platform; and according to the note made public today, "this 2022 will again take to the streets with force to celebrate life in an already consolidated act, which is growing every year in number of attendees especially young people. In addition to expressing this commitment and the greatness of life, respect for the dignity of all people will be demanded and the rejection of the latest laws passed, which directly threaten human life, will be shown".
– Supernatural Association of Deportistas por la Vida y la Familia will hold the II Carrera Solidaria por la Vida, as a sign of the union of the sports world to the defense of human life. This event, previous and complementary, will take place at 10.00 am in Serrano Street, in the form of Urban Mile and with a maximum of 500 participants.
During these days, the website will be updated with materials of interest: merchandising, posters to promote the March, etc. Anyone who wishes to collaborate as a volunteer can register in the form that appears on the page. And those who can collaborate with a donation are encouraged to do it through Bizum ONG: 00589: Also by transfer to the account ES28 0081 7306 6900 0140 0041, whose owner is the Spanish Federation of Pro-Life Associations, concept: Yes to Life, indicating which person or association is making the payment.
Convening associations
Among the convening associations are ABIMAD, ACdP, ADEVIDA, AEDOS, AESVIDA, Asociación de Bioética de Madrid, Asociación Española de Farmacia social, Asociación Europea de Abogados de Familia, ANDEVI, Asociación Universitaria APEX, AYUVI, Centro Jurídico Tomás Moro, CIDEVIDA, CIVICA, COFAPA, CONCAPA, e-cristians, El Encinar de Mambré, Evangelium Vitae, Familia y Dignidad Humana, Familias para la acogida, FAPACE, Federación Española de Asociaciones Provida, Foro de la Familia, Fundación Educatio Servanda, Fundación Jérome Lejeune, Fundación REDMADRE, Fundación Vida, Fundación Más Futuro, Fundación Villacisneros, Fundación +Vida, HO- Derecho a vivir, Hogares de Santa María, Hogares de Santa María, Lands Care, One of Us, Más Futuro, NEOS, Profesionales por la Ética, Red Misión, RENAFER, , Rescatadores Juan Pablo II, SOS Familia, Spei Mater, Fundación Valores y Sociedad, Voz Postaborto, etcetera.
"The admiration for the German poet Novalis has gone ahead of his knowledge in Spain. The halo has preceded the image. His attractiveness was intuited. Spanish authors had forged an image of him with a few sentences. It took him more than a century to arrive in Spain and before he arrived he already aroused enthusiasm. And both his life and his work can shed some light today in these times in which we live".
In 2020 we celebrate -coinciding with the beginning of the pandemic- the 250th anniversary of the birth of three German geniuses: Beethoven, Hölderlin and Hegel. That year I was able to read the excellent biography of the German romantic poet Novalis, a contemporary of the above, written by Antonio Pau. It was not and is not his birthday, but it seems to me that his life and work can be tremendously luminous these days. For as he once wrote: the poet understands nature better than the scientist.
In this strange situation that we are still dragging along in which we receive so much news about deaths, hospital admissions, daily heroes, lights and meanness, loneliness and solidarity, it seems inevitable - as has already been rightly said by some - to realize what is really valuable in our lives, and I think that this is precisely what the great German artist can help us with.
Everything about Friedrich von Hardenberg, who was called Novalis before he chose his famous pseudonym, is brief in his fruitful life. Just twenty-eight years on earth, a minuscule geography - he only moved through a few villages in Saxony - a few friends, a few pages. And yet his life was a constant search for the absolute.
Exercise slowness, he wrote in one of the notebooks he always had at hand. He felt almost from childhood the imminence of death and precisely for that reason he had to write slowly. There would be no time for revision. Everything is seed, he also wrote, in another place, in another notebook. A seed that he knew well that he would not see germinate.
He searched for the absolute that every man intuits among the ephemeral that surrounds him. We search everywhere for the absolute -he wrote- and we always and only find things. But the fact that he only found things did not discourage him. What he did was to delve into them, and he did so by two seemingly contradictory paths: the study of things through science and the search for their mystery through poetry.
The events we have lived and are living through with intensity, which bring us the experience of pain together with the clear insufficiency of a fragile material well-being to attain happiness, can be propitious for reflection. Faced with the loneliness of the sick who have been forced to fight for their lives with the help of so many heroic doctors and nurses, there is no choice but to try to delve into the spiritual dimension of our lives.
Novalis was a good man, of a kindness that was at once childlike and mature. His life and his work are impregnated with that gaze of kindness -recious and wholehearted, not soft or tearful- with which he contemplated everything. The romantic is usually assimilated to a childish candor, to a vaporous and vague reverie. And our poet was rigorous and precise. That is why he wrote: Scientific accuracy is what is absolutely poetic.
The life and work, both truncated, of the great poet, have remained like those Greek torsos that time has mutilated with such beauty. Goethe lived eighty-two years in perfect health and left an impeccable work. Novalis lived twenty-eight, a great part of it ill, and has left only unconnected fragments, unfinished novels and a handful of poems. It seems as if his life and his work had to have been like this, suffering and mutilated, to reach the perfection that corresponded to them.
In that short life he left two imperishable works: Christianity or Europe and the Hymns to the night. In the first essay, written in 1799 while the cries of the French Revolution and Napoleon's cannon fire and the collision between religious fervor and anti-religious enthusiasm resounded, Novalis adopts a radical stance for those times.
The young poet, as a good romantic, is nostalgic, if one can call it that, for a more spiritual and harmonious future time. The romantic is uncomfortable in the days he has had to live. He feels stateless and bets that the present difficulties will serve as the birth of a better future time: the time of the reconciliation of Europeans, the time of a new unity of Europe founded on eminently spiritual ties.
For their part, the Hymns to the Nightare, at the same time, the story of an intimate experience and a cosmogony. The premature death at the age of 15 of his fiancée, Sophie von Kühn, paradoxically leads him to exalt the world - of worlds, better, the visible and the invisible -, the great realities - light, night, infinite spaces, time, earth, nature, man, death, joy - and God.
It is striking that a man who suffered so much during his short life writes with an enthusiasm that, at a distance of more than two centuries, is still moving. The same man who wrote that every man has his years of martyrdom, also said that through prayer everything is achieved. Prayer is a universal medicine and that God must be sought among men. It is in human events and in human thoughts and feelings that the spirit of heaven is most clearly revealed.
I recommend reading this wonderful biography of Novalis while so many people suffer in silence, some in the solitude of their illness and others trying to fight the physical and psychological virus of living in permanent fear. These are hard times, as Saint Teresa of Avila used to say, but among so many difficulties, the goodness of so many people shines brightly and can emerge transfigured from this journey we share. And that is why I wanted to share it with you.
In the central part of the "sermon on the plain", Jesus had opened to his disciples and to the pagans who listened to him the way to become Sons of the Most High and to be merciful like the Father. Central words of Jesus' message and of Luke's Gospel. Jesus had expressed in a positive way the program of life of his disciples, with seventeen exhortative imperatives: "Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who slander you; offer your cheek, do not deny him the robe, give to him who asks you, do not demand from him who takes from you; do unto men as you would have them do unto you, love, do, lend, be merciful, do not judge, forgive, give, measure abundantly". In the next part of his discourse, Jesus warns them about possible spiritual dangers in their relationship with God and with their brothers and sisters in the faith.
If they do not accept the way of Mercy, and follow other ways, or consider themselves better than others, or think they are better than the Master, then they will be like blind men, and if they act as a guide they will be blind leading other blind men. Jesus uses this image in Matthew speaking of the Pharisees. In Luke, Jesus uses it for his disciples. Thus we understand that the deviations of the Pharisees are not their exclusive domain, they can also happen to Christians. In fraternal relationships, those who do not follow the path of non-judgment and non-condemnation easily fall into the temptation of wanting perfection for their brothers without specks in their eyes, but also without reference to God and his mercy. This temptation is comparable to having a beam in one's eye, which blinds.
Paul writes to the Philippians that he sees himself as ".a Jew, son of Jews; as to the Law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the Church; as to the righteousness arising from the observance of the Law, blameless". But after knowing Christ he considers all these things to be "a loss before the sublimity of the knowledge of Christ Jesus, my Lord. For his sake I have lost all things, and count them as garbage, that I may gain Christ and be found in him.". If we abandon the pursuit of perfection in our own strength and embrace the path of the sublimity of the knowledge of Christ, then we can help a brother remove the speck from his eye. We are no longer blind. Thus we bear good fruits of God's love, received and given, which undoubtedly reveal to us that the tree is good, even if it is flawed. Jesus assures us that from the good treasure of the good man's heart good works and words and fruits of the Spirit are born:"love, joy, peace, magnanimity, benevolence, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control".
Homily on the readings for the Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time
The priest Luis Herrera Campo offers its nanomiliaa small one-minute reflection for these readings.
The investigation of abuses in the Spanish Church will have "all the necessary scope".
The law firm Cremades-Calvo Sotelo has been chosen by the Spanish Episcopal Conference to carry out an independent legal audit on cases of sexual abuse of minors committed by members of the Church in Spain.
The investigation will have "all the necessary scope to clarify the cases that occurred in the past and to incorporate the highest levels of responsibility to prevent the repetition of these cases in the future", this was the statement of Mons. Juan José Omella, president of the Spanish Episcopal Conference in a large press conference in which the audit that the law firm Cremades-Calvo Sotelo has initiated in order to know, clarify and repair the victims of sexual abuse in the Church was presented.
The EEC, emphasized its president, "wants to assume its responsibility to the victims, to the authorities and to society by establishing a new vehicle to help clarify the events of the past and help prevent them from happening again".
"It is a service to society, especially to the victims and to clarify some episodes that must be overcome", added Javier Cremades, who assumes this task aware of the "delicacy and exceptionality of the matter". In fact, Cremades himself wanted to point out that this concept of service to society has led to the decision not to charge the Episcopal Conference for this audit, except for third party expenses.
Complement government research, not supplant it.
Both the president of the Spanish Episcopal Conference and Javier Cremades have insisted that this investigation opens a new stage in the management of child abuse by the Spanish Church.
"Omella pointed out that "the objective of this audit is the reparation of the victims by establishing new channels of collaboration and assistance in addition to those that already exist and, secondly, to create a bridge that facilitates the work of the authorities by establishing a close and efficient channel of collaboration, regardless of the means with which the authorities are equipped for their investigations".
In the same line Cremades has expressed himself by emphasizing that this investigation commissioned by the Spanish bishops does not come to "supplant the authorities but to complement them and help them to fulfill their function". In fact, Javier Cremades himself has pointed out that, upon receiving this assignment from the EEC, he himself informed the parliamentary Ángel Gabilondo, Ombudsman and one of the members to be included in the commission that the Spanish government wants to form to investigate these cases of abuse but only in the Catholic Church.
A "Spanish" methodology with German influence
For the firm, with more than 25 years of professional experience, this investigation into the abuse of minors in the Spanish Church is "the most complex matter we have faced to date", according to Javier Cremades, partner of the firm.
For the execution of this audit, "the work methods carried out in countries such as France, Germany, Ireland and Australia have been studied". The work carried out in the diocese of Munich by the Munich law firm Westpfahl, Spilker, Wastl offers, in Cremades' opinion, "very interesting references", so that two members of this firm, Ulrich Wastl and Martin Pusch, will be part of this investigation contributing, in monthly meetings, their methodology and points of view.
However, Cremades - Calvo Sotelo will create its own "Spanish model" that incorporates the useful points of those already studied and at the same time corrects the methodological deficiencies that some of these studies may have had.
The audit will also include the work of the offices of the Spanish dioceses that, for more than a year, have been working with and accompanying victims of abuse throughout the country. This work will also be analyzed and improved as required. CONFER will also collaborate in this audit.
In principle, 18 people will take on this audit in a team that is expected to grow and for which lawyers of the stature of Encarnación Roca, former vice-president of the Constitutional Court and member of the Supreme Court, Rafael Fernández Montalvo, emeritus judge of the Supreme Court, Juan Saavedra, former president of Chamber II of the Supreme Court, Vicente Conde Martín de Hijas, also a former judge of the Supreme Court, and Santiago Calvo Sotelo, partner of the firm, among others, are already working for the firm.
Over time, and taking into account the process and needs of the victims and victims' associations, as pointed out by Javier Cremades, the team could be expanded to include people from the fields of "culture, society, psychiatry or psychology".
"We need everyone's input."
The planned duration of the audit, which began its work a few days ago, is set at one year. A reasonable time, according to the jurist "to have a true picture of what happened".
The "necessary amplitude" requested by the Episcopal Conference points to the fact that there will be no time limit for the cases to be investigated, despite their civil statute of limitations.
In this line, Cremades has appealed to society "we need information from everyone", he stressed, "first of all from those affected, the victims, their associations, from the media that have done work in this regard and have lists. Of course, from the offices and the Public Prosecutor's Office, the Ombudsman and the authorities".
The firm has created a specific e-mail address for this matter. [email protected] in order to receive complaints from individuals and associations and to initiate contact with them.
The new stage in the management of abuse in the Spanish Church has begun with this investigation which, as the president of the Episcopal Conference also wanted to point out, will be carried out in parallel to what the Church is already doing in this field and with which, in the words of Bishop Omella, "we want to clarify the facts, to communicate to society what is being done and what we must improve".
Coordination and advisory service for diocesan offices
Likewise, coinciding with the presentation of this research, the new Coordination and Advice Service for Diocesan Offices created by the Spanish Episcopal Conference has been made public. This new service was created with the aim of serving as a support and reference to these offices in their work and will be formed by the psychiatrist Montserrat Lafuente, who already works in the Office of the diocese of Vic; Mª José Diez, responsible for the Office of Astorga; the priest Jesús Rodríguez, member of the Tribunal of the Rota; and Jesús Miguel Zamora, secretary general of CONFER.
Every living organism subject to evolution goes through crises, which are understood as moments of necessary transition in the development process of its own life cycle. Crises are moments of instability, which can generate in people a degree of insecurity and even fear. Every crisis poses challenges in which aspects that need to be changed emerge. If crises were necessarily irreparable failures, there would be no trace of organized life left on earth.
The family, as a network of relationships, also has a vital cycle, in which moments of crisis inevitably occur. Today, many, with a negative and pessimistic vision, live these family crises -normal and necessary- as authentic failures, as irreparable ruptures. They act in their family relationships as they would not act with their property. As if, on detecting a crack in a wall of the house, or on discovering a fault in the electrical connections, or in the heating pipes, they would consider as the only solution to demolish the house and try to build a different one, in another place.
Mariolina Ceriotti affirms that being oneself and, at the same time, "being in relationship" requires flexibility and adaptability. It also requires, on certain occasions, to be able to re-establish the relationship on new bases. A sort of renewed pact between the same people. It is necessary to lose the fear of facing crises, which mark the end of a way of relating, and require finding the way to a new fullness. It is the end of a vital stage and the beginning of another, which must be based on a love and trust given with greater maturity, assuming the limitations and defects of each one. The result is a relationship that is not only stronger, but also renewed.
We live in a complex world, full of tensions. It is therefore not surprising that difficulties and crises are more frequent, and sometimes deeper. It is not easy to get out of these situations alone. It is increasingly necessary - almost essential - to have the support and accompaniment of other people. Ordinarily we experience difficulties, for which extraordinary actions will not be necessary: the example of other family friends, a good advice from our loved ones, or from other people we trust, can be enough. At other times, however, it will be necessary to turn to an expert who can help restore damaged relationships by providing deeper structural support. In any case, it is always worth investing in repairing what can be repaired. In not foolishly giving up something as valuable and irreplaceable as one's own family.
Professor at the Faculty of Law of the International University of Catalonia and director of the Institute for Advanced Family Studies. She directs the Chair on Intergenerational Solidarity in the Family (IsFamily Santander Chair) and the Childcare and Family Policies Chair of the Joaquim Molins Figueras Foundation. She is also Vice-Dean of the Faculty of Law at UIC Barcelona.
The purpose of an institutional communication plan in a brotherhood is not to gain prestige and recognition; that would be the means to be more effective, efficient and effective in its mission: evangelization.
February 21, 2022-Reading time: 3minutes
Since people are sociable by nature, they need others in order to develop their potential, this leads them to join different groups: cultural societies, commercial companies, sports clubs, political parties, neighborhood associations and also brotherhoods.
Organizations are very different, depending on the purpose of each one, but they all have something in common: they need basic management tools, more or less sophisticated depending on their size and the complexity of their purposes: accounting, process management, definition of objectives, attention to their associates, and something that is often forgotten, manage your institutional communication wellThis means taking care of and promoting their image, which is more than just publishing press releases and handling concepts such as positioning, brand image, identification of the target public, communication policy and some others.
It would be convenient to overcome the resistance that is observed in some environments at the time of applying these concepts to the sisterhoods. Living with one's back turned to this reality has a very high cost. There are companies that become engrossed in production and one day, without knowing why, find themselves out of the market. This can also happen in the brotherhoods, which sometimes try to protect them from concepts and models that are not strictly ecclesiastical, or rather clerical, isolating them in a bubble that leads them to lose contact with reality, transforming them into organizations with a lot of past and little future.
The person in charge of a sorority might be surprised, or even uncomfortable, if someone were to ask him or her what is the brand image But if you ask him what is the opinion that is held in the street about the brotherhood sure he would tell us something, although perhaps his opinion does not match the reality.
The brand image is something like the perceptions and feelings that people have towards a certain organization. There are brands that are associated with exclusivity, quality and high price; others are identified with reliability and so on for each product, service or organization. In order to apply these ideas to sisterhoods, we must make some clarifications, at least two fundamental ones: the first is that the purpose of most organizations is to attend to the needs of the market, that of a sisterhood is evangelization; there we deal with clients, here with souls.
Two preliminary questions: everything communicatesis not only the task of specific people at specific times. The organization of the procession, the care of the liturgy or the actions, even private, of those responsible for the brotherhood, among others, are transmitting a model of brotherhood. The second issue is that it is not a matter of planning a series of actions, disjointed, more or less original, but of designing a model of brotherhood. institutional communication plan complete and consistent.
In order to do so, it is necessary to reflect on the character of my brotherhood by sincerely answering a threefold question.
How do I think my sisterhood should be perceived?
Is this how it is perceived?
What should I do to make the two perceptions coincide and reinforce each other?
The image of a brotherhood is not built from scratch, it has been developed over the years, sometimes centuries. There are classic, popular, rigorous, flexible, universal, neighborhood, innovative, sober in its heritage, rich and exuberant. Thus we could combine different characteristics to define the profile that the years and the environment has been giving it, assumed and reinforced by those responsible for it.
There are no good and bad brotherhoods, each one is comparable only with itself according to its evangelizing mission; but it is convenient to identify, fix and implement its image, eliminating the adherences and deformations that have been fixed over time (one thing is that a brotherhood is recognized for its musical importance and another that in the end it is not a brotherhood, but a music band that is placed in front of a procession).
From here, develop an institutional communication policy of the institution and plan the appropriate measures. The purpose of an institutional Communication Plan in a brotherhood is not to gain prestige and recognition, that would be the means to be more effective, efficient and effective in its mission: evangelization.
This poses a challenge to those responsible for it: to dare to be progressive in the literal sense of the term, or in other words, to overcome the loop of managing routine and dare to set new challenges, new horizons.
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.
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"To believe" or "not to believe": what do these personal expressions (these decisions) mean? Professor Antonio Aranda analyzes the motives and factors surrounding or explaining these two different attitudes, particularly in the context of a social and cultural environment with Catholic roots.
Antonio Aranda-February 21, 2022-Reading time: 10minutes
To ask oneself about the reason for personal attitudes which, as in the case we are studying, refer mainly to the freedom and availability of man in the face of the mystery of God and of himself, is to enter into a question of a certain difficulty.
Not only, in fact, is the magnitude of the notions that come into play (God, man, faith, freedom, truth, etc.) unmanageable, but also, since these are acts that belong to the particular sphere of each subject, the objective of giving a general answer is inadequate. The verb creer or its opposite is not properly conjugated in the impersonal form (se cree-no se cree), but in the first person singular (creo-no creo), or in the plural (creemos-no creemos).
This double question (why one believes-why one does not believe), given the reality and transcendence of the human phenomenon it contains, has been studied in its fundamental anthropological meaning, since in all times and in all places there have been, and there are, men who have believed or have not believed. Analyzing the tendency to believe that beats in the human creature as such, as well as that of its opposite, is undoubtedly of great interest.
However, without fundamentally abandoning this terrain, we will approach the question from a different point of view. We will situate ourselves in the here and now of contemporary society, but what we will take into consideration, looking above all at the Western world, is not so much its "postmodern" condition as its nature as a "post-Christian" society, as it is sometimes called, that is to say, religiously and culturally influenced by faith in Jesus Christ and trust in the Church, but now distanced in practice - albeit only partially - from its roots. In this context, when a citizen raised and educated in a social and cultural environment with Catholic roots says "I believe", or "I do not believe", what is he saying and why is he saying it?
Faith, trust and truth
Believing is a personal act and attitude, essentially linked to the rational and relational nature of man. It means to accept the truth of what is made known to me by someone else, in whom I trust. It is not only to know what is transmitted to me, but to accept it as truth, and this because it is communicated to me by someone in whom I have placed my trust. The attitude of faith, insofar as the acceptance of something as true even though it is here and now inevitable, is inseparably linked to the trust that the believer has placed in the one who manifests that truth to him. The knowledge of faith is, above all, as it is usually said, a knowledge of the truth. per testimonium.
Faith in the truth of something and trust in the one who says it are inseparable: if trust in the witness fails, the acceptance of his message as truth vanishes and, consequently, the certainty of the knowledge of faith is broken. As Christians, in particular, we accept with obedience of faith the truth of a doctrine that is communicated to us, or the coherence of a moral behavior that is taught to us, because "before", or simultaneously, we have placed our trust in the witness of the Church, in which we recognize the authority of Jesus Christ, in whom we believe and trust as God and Savior.
In the current crisis of faith - or rather of the life of faith, since it is the external actions that we can observe - in people and populations of ancient Christian tradition, various situations can be detected, which we will describe briefly until we reach the last one, on which we will dwell.
a) Sometimes, for example, there is a weakening of the acceptance of the doctrine and the model of life taught by the Church, and a distancing from the Church itself, because of a previous deterioration of trust, perhaps due to the lack of exemplarity of some of her representatives. But this, although not a minor issue, is not the main reason for the widespread crisis of faith.
b) In a second example, the distancing from the faith could be revealing a morally deficient disposition that does not want to be corrected, and that induces to deny the assent to a doctrine that would oblige to rectify the behavior. When that happens, when a believer does not want to accept a personal commitment to the truth in which he believes, he may end up refusing to be so. A wounded heart is capable, in effect, of silencing the voice of conscience and attenuating the natural tendency of the intelligence to rest in the truth.
c) As a concretization of the previous case, it could also happen that the deterioration of trust no longer refers to the Church as a witness to Christ, but rather to oneself as unworthy of God's trust. One who, by reason of his moral behavior, does not consider himself susceptible to receive divine mercy - which means wrongly distrusting it - can also end up putting his faith in quarantine. This disposition, like the previous one, can only be overcome, as the parable of the prodigal son teaches, by a movement of conversion towards the paternal mercy of God. And in both cases this conversion is achievable, because in these subjects there is a personal sense of guilt, even if they are reluctant to admit it.
d) But, in addition to these modes of behavior, which derive more towards not practicing faith or not wanting to accept it for moral reasons than towards non-belief in the strict sense, we can also observe in contemporary society an attitude contrary to faith, which is widespread and has objectively more serious consequences. It consists, in essence, in denying with theoretical arguments the very existence of any objective truth, and in rejecting any authority that claims to transmit it. The prolonged hegemony of this intellectual position, which has led to relativism and the culture of indifference prevailing in the Western world, is causally present in the current non-belief of many. If in the previous cases we alluded to a relatively feasible conversion, in this one, on the contrary, it is necessary to underline the difficulty, since the denial of all objective truth entails the rejection of the objectivity of guilt, and without consciousness of guilt there can be no conversion.
Relativism and unbelief
To know and embrace the truth is the great capacity and, at the same time, the great temptation of man, for he can also freely not embrace it. This capacity is inscribed - focusing the question from the light of faith - in the fact that man is a creature in the image of God. In God himself, the Truth known (the Word) is always Truth loved; moreover, Love in God is Love of Truth. Having placed his image in us, he has made us capable of freely loving the truth, but also of rejecting it. In this sense, when one denies the existence of truth as such and consequently rejects the natural tendency of human intelligence towards it, its quality as the foundation of personal freedom, etc., ... one is also denying at the root the condition of man as the image of God.
The great contemporary conflicts and challenges - also that of believing or not believing, which we are considering here - are in fact being debated in an essentially anthropological scenario, in which different conceptions are confronted. It is important, therefore, to refer, without departing from our theme, to what basically distinguishes the believing (Christian) understanding of man from that which is widespread in postmodern, relativistic and indifferent society. As we have just mentioned, the revealed root of man's greatness and dignity is his having been created in the image of God and made capable of becoming, through grace, a child of God. From this perspective, natural knowledge and the knowledge of faith enjoy, in the unity of the subject, an intimate coherence and continuity. Christian thought, in different cultural contexts but permanently throughout its history, has been able to show and defend this intimate relationship between faith and reason, while at the same time underlining their qualitative differences and their different epistemological statuses. This has made it possible, for example - although the example is of the utmost importance - to develop a metaphysical knowledge whose speculative vigor is admirable.
The affirmation of the objectivity of being, of the real analogy and ontological difference between the creature and God, and of the capacity to attain objective truth both in the natural order and - through grace - in the supernatural order, are indispensable elements of Christian reasoning. In it, to put it simply, man's reason is measured by objective truth, truth by being and being by the Creator.
At the same time, always within the dynamic of the development of Christian thought, the knowledge of faith is linked by its very nature to testimonial sources that transmit it faithfully and interpret it with authority. It is not that reason remains linked in the exercise of its proper operation to the faith and to the Magisterium that proposes it, but rather that it is the object of this operation (truth) that the Magisterium can show with authority. The reason of the believer says necessary reference to the doctrine of the Church through the mediation of the truth that she proposes. And in the same way, the free moral behavior of the Christian and the personal judgment of conscience must refer to that truth and to that authority, to the degree that the Church manifests it.
These affirmations, which we make so briefly because they are well known doctrines, have nevertheless been subjected to strong criticism and even rejected by a part of philosophical and theological thought for three centuries. As is well known, modern thought - through the introduction of a new notion of reason - established two ruptures with the Christian tradition: the rupture with the objectivity of being and truth, and the rupture of the intimate relationship between faith and reason. Reason is no longer seen as the capacity to know a truth that transcends it, but as a function of a truth that it itself constitutes.
Reasoning is therefore detached from everything external to the subject, and finds its justification in itself. Reason means, then, self-determination and liberation from the normative power of all tradition and authority.
A new way of understanding
We are thus faced not only with a new concept of reason and knowledge, but also, in the long run, and going to the heart of the matter, with a novelty in the way man understands himself, an anthropological conception that moves away from that taught in the Catholic tradition. The consequences of this intellectual dynamic, which postulates the fracture of the unity between faith and reason, have been and are decisive in our question.
In matters of morality, for example, such a breakdown translates into sustaining the total separation between an ethics of faith (not organically related to reason) and a rational ethics (which finds its validation in the autonomy of practical reason). And it will end up presenting the doctrine of the Church in moral matters as contrary to the dignity of man and his freedom. And, similarly, by rejecting the objective foundation of truth and reducing it to pure subjectivity, any reference of conscience to a moral norm external to the subject will be challenged as unworthy of man, as pure legalistic formalism and as the destruction of authentic morality.
It should come as no surprise, therefore, that the evangelical phrase: "the truth shall set you free" be replaced by the opposite: "freedom will make you true".. This reversal sets the premises for seriously harmful moral consequences.
In fact, the doctrine of faith and the moral praxis transmitted by the Church in these matters seem to have lost plausibility in the structure of thought of the modern world, and are presented and considered by many of our contemporaries as something that has already been superseded by time. But, while this is serious, it is objectively even more so the fact that these ways of understanding man - which basically pose the alternative between faith and opposition to faith, between believing and not believing - have become commonplace, and find an echo and even acceptance among Christians.
In the culture of relativism and unbelief
As we have been pointing out, behind belief and non-belief there is always a certain vision of man (an anthropology) that necessarily leads to a theory of moral behavior (an ethics) congruent with that starting point, and that, as a final consequence, ends up converging in a conception of social, cultural, political life, etc. (a sense of the way society is made). For this reason, in the disaffection of many of the baptized with respect to the doctrine and the meaning of life transmitted by the Church - and with respect to the Church herself - or, in other words, behind the reason for the distancing and even the theoretical or practical non-belief of so many, it is necessary to discover the weakening in them - through ignorance, through lack of formation - of the Christian sense of the person, under the dominant influence of other anthropological conceptions and, in particular, of the relativism that pervades society and the media.
It is no easy task to present an orderly synthesis of what this obscuring of the Christian vision of the person is representing in the real life of believers, and even less to indicate particular solutions to the problems it poses. However, because of their importance, we mention, by way of example only, two areas in which the weakening of the Christian sense of man is contributing to fostering among believers moral and social attitudes of unbelief, that is, an underhand shift in practice from believing to non-belief. They are: a) lack of personal commitment to the truth; b) indifference to the crisis provoked against marriage and the family.
a) Knowing the truth and not loving it -which leads to rejecting it- is seriously damaging to the conscience, and inevitably leads to a fracture of the inner unity of the person. This is a serious spiritual illness, suffered today by many citizens born and educated in traditionally Christian societies. Those who behave in this way in matters of faith and morals contrast their generic belonging to the community of believers with an existential attitude of unbelievers. He also easily ends up postulating a "double morality" and admitting a "double truth", which is a step away from pure non-belief. On the contrary, the commitment of the believer to the truth translates into moral attitudes of great personal and social importance, capable of overcoming the current ethical conformism, dominant in almost all countries. We thus leave alluded to, although we do not develop it, the evangelizing transcendence of the Christian's unity of life.
b) In the sphere of marriage and the family - and also in that of primary and secondary education - the first and decisive transmission of the model of a believing life is ordinarily carried out. The proper unfolding of its educative function contains important reasons why people believe, just as, in a similar way, its breakdown nourishes the roots of why people do not believe. In this regard, a few words of Benedict XVI deserve to be highlighted: "There is an obvious correspondence between the crisis of faith and the crisis of marriage." (Homily at the Mass inaugurating the Synod of Bishops, October 8, 2012). Indeed, everything that harms the truth of marriage and the family also harms the transmission of the faith as a religious attitude and as a trusting adherence to certain truths.
When the Christian meaning of marriage and the family is actively combated, as is happening today in a relentless manner, and its image is disfigured before public opinion, its capacity to propagate the basic foundations of the formation of conscience and moral attitudes is also being badly wounded: the filial reference to God and the Church, the importance of sincerity, the duties of fidelity, charity and justice, the sense of sin, the obligation to do good, etc.
It is there, in the assimilation of these basic elements of moral responsibility, transmitted in the family by the most effective way, which is that of love, that the personality of the believer begins to be forged. Hence the urgent need to protect the truth of marriage and the Christian family in order to contribute to the preservation and propagation of the richness of faith, without which the human as such is also lost. The centrality of a reality also outlined by Benedict XVI is thus pointed out, although, as in the previous case, not developed: in the present situation, "marriage is called to be not only the object, but also the subject of the new evangelization". (ibidem).
The authorAntonio Aranda
Professor Emeritus, School of Theology, University of Navarra, Spain
In June 2020, in the middle of the pandemic, and without vaccines, half a thousand activists entered San Francisco's Golden Gate Park and tore down the bronze effigy of the Spanish Franciscan Fray Junipero Serra, evangelizer of California. A symbol of this 'woke' ideology or culture of cancellation that seems to be taking root in several areas.
Rafael Miner-February 20, 2022-Reading time: 7minutes
Translation of the article into English. You can read the German version here.
The toppling of the statue of Friar Junipero was just an emblem of this 'woke' movement, which I would like to describe as anything but cultural. A few weeks ago, Friar Antonio Arevalo Sanchez, OFM, who has a degree in Modern History, showed in the pages of Omnes Junípero (1713-1784), under the motto 'Always forward, never backward', "dedicated his intelligence and energy to instill human dignity in the natives of Querétaro and the two Californias, through evangelical doctrine, civilizing progress and the exemplary life of patience, humility, poverty and enormous sacrifices that consumed his body".
He also recalled that Fray Junipero Serra is the only Spaniard with a statue in Washington's Capitol, and that it was Pope Francis who canonized the illustrious Spanish friar on September 23, 2015.
Among other authors, Omnes contributor Javier Segura referred to Fray Junípero in his article 'Cultura 'woke' en el aula'. "We all remember the demolition of statues of famous people in our history such as Fray Junipero Serra or Christopher Columbus. We are witnesses to the revision of History that some social movements want to make, presumably linked to a struggle for social justice of certain groups."
And Javier Segura added: "The same pressure scheme is joined by other groups (LGTBI, radical feminism, pantheistic environmentalism, animalists, etc.) that want to promote and ultimately impose their vision of reality". The expert then alluded to one of the rare but very clear occasions in which Pope Francis has referred to this 'woke' ideology.
Alert to single thinking
It was in the usual Speech before the Diplomatic Corps accredited to the See, just one month ago, last January 10. The Holy Father said: "Frequently, the focus of interest (of many international organizations) has shifted to issues that by their nature are divisive and not closely related to the purpose of the organization, resulting in agendas increasingly dictated by a thinking that denies the natural foundations of humanity and the cultural roots that constitute the identity of many peoples".
The Pope then pointed to the "single thought" that leads to a culture of cancellation. "As I have had occasion to state on other occasions, I consider this to be a form of ideological colonization, which leaves no room for freedom of expression and which today increasingly assumes the form of that 'culture of cancellation,' which pervades many public spheres and institutions. In the name of the protection of diversitiesthe meaning of each of our products is erased. identityThe risk is to silence the positions that defend a respectful and balanced idea of the different sensitivities".
In the Pope's opinion, "a single thought is being elaborated - a dangerous one - forced to deny history or, worse, to rewrite it on the basis of contemporary categories, while every historical situation must be interpreted according to the hermeneutics of the time, not according to the hermeneutics of today".
At the drop of a hat, we could bring up here the withdrawal by the HBO Max platform, in 2020, of the movie 'Gone with the Wind', accused of giving pabulum to slavery in a Los Angeles Times column.
Or to give just another example, let us cite a young professor of Classics at Princeton (United States), Dan-el Padilla Peralta, who called against the study of Greek and Latin authors for encouraging racism, as evoked by the French philosopher Rémi Brague at the opening of the Congress of Catholics and Public Life at the CEU, as he recalled Omnes.
Salvation History
This movement or 'woke' ideology has been widely referred to by various personalities, within the framework of the aforementioned Congress, and subsequently. With them and with some other authors, I only intend to underline in these lines three aspects derived from this ideology, applicable to the present in the way each one prefers.
"Whatever we call these movements - "social justice," "woke culture," "identity politics," "intersectionality," "successor ideology" - they claim to offer what religion provides. Moreover, like Christianity, these new movements tell their own 'salvation story,'" warned Archbishop Jose Gomez, archbishop of Los Angeles and president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, via videoconference.
This is the first, nuclear aspect. "Now more than ever, the Church and every Catholic needs to know the Christian story, and to proclaim it in all its beauty and in all its truth, because today, there is another story going around. An antagonistic narrative of 'salvation' that we hear in the media and in our institutions, coming from the new social justice movements," he added.
What we might call the history of the "woke" movement, the Archbishop of Los Angeles continued, goes something like this: "We cannot know where we come from, but we are aware that we have common interests with those who share our skin color or our position in society. The cause of our unhappiness is that we are victims of oppression by other groups in society. And we achieve liberation and redemption through our constant struggle against our oppressors, waging a battle for political and cultural power, in the name of creating an equitable society."
A language that, as the archbishop himself warned, sounds like a class struggle antagonism, "a Marxist cultural vision", similar to the way gender ideology confronts men and women in a thousand ways, in another antagonism present in our days.
Christian beliefs
Monsignor José Gómez also referred to a second issue that the Pope warned about in his address to the diplomats. It is about the patrimony of the faith and the sacraments, in relation to the nature of marriage and the family, or to the educational postulates of Christian roots, which some also wish to "cancel".
"In the program you set for this Congress, you allude to the "culture of cancellation" and being "politically correct." And we realize that often what is cancelled and corrected are perspectives that are rooted in Christian beliefs about life and the human person, about marriage, the family and much more," the U.S. prelate added.
"In your society and mine, "the 'space' that the Church and believing Christians can occupy is shrinking. Church institutions and Christian-owned businesses are increasingly challenged and harassed. So are Christians working in education, health care, government and other sectors."
Boycott, stigmatization
As seen at the beginning, there were moments when Pope Francis referred to these issues in his remarks to the Diplomatic Corps. For example, when he alluded to "agendas increasingly dictated by a thinking that denies the natural foundations of humanity and the cultural roots that constitute the identity of many peoples." Or when he clearly pointed out that "we must never forget that there are some permanent values. It is not always easy to recognize them, but accepting them gives solidity and stability to a social ethic. Even when we have recognized and assumed them thanks to dialogue and consensus, we see that these basic values are beyond any consensus". I wish to emphasize in particular," he added, "the right to life, from conception to its natural end, and the right to religious freedom.
We can recall here a few stories of boycotts and of stimagtization in the United States. For example, if Jeff Bezos and his wife donated 2.5 million to a campaign to legalize gay marriage in Washington State, "it was a sign of their progressive liberality and no one would argue to do so".
But when Dan Canthy, owner of the Chick.fil-A restaurant chain, declared in an interview that "the company supported the traditional family and also happened to have donated to organizations opposed to same-sex marriage, gay activist groups called for a boycott of his restaurants, and mayors of major cities were quick to say that the chain would not be well received in their communities". Ignacio Aréchaga recounts this in his article 'La cultura del boicot' (Aceprensa), who comments: "It is curious that in a country where making money has never been frowned upon, the freedom to donate it to the cause of one's choice is questioned".
Clarity
In a couple of weekends, Omnes has published in this same portal two interviews that have not left indifferent, by the echo aroused. One with the medievalist professor Manuel Alejandro Rodriguez de la Peña (CEU), in which he pointed out in no uncertain terms that "the woke movement and the culture of cancellation can only degenerate into a censorious, inquisitorial movement that prevents freedom of expression and denies compassion".
In the same line, in the middle of last month, the campaigns of Canceledpromoted by the Catholic Association of Propagandists (ACdP), in order to "give a voice to normal people who have been cancelled for saying things with common sense and making this world a more livable place," they say. Right now, they have on the portal "Dr. Jesús Poveda, one of the main promoters of the pro-life movement in Spain, who has been arrested more than 20 times for his sit-ins and rescue operations," explains their website.
The other interview has been conducted with Professor José María Torralba (University of Navarra), in the context of the presentation of the Master's Degree in Christianity and Contemporary Culture being launched by the academic center. José María Torralba, director of the university's Core Curriculum Institute, alluded to the alleged crisis in the humanities, but pointed out that "there are reasons for hope". The Master's also aims to become "a platform, a forum, to participate in the cultural and intellectual debates that are currently taking place in our country, and to be a way of being more present in Madrid. We intend to create a forum for dialogue and meeting for anyone who wants to come".
Undoubtedly, there are many more universities and media spotlights that we will continue to report on, as Omnes has done so far.
No hostility
The question we can now ask ourselves is the extent of this battle in the face of the 'woke' ideology, and others like it. This would be a third and final question.
Mario Iceta, Archbishop of Burgos, in the same session in which the Archbishop of Los Angeles spoke. "At a time when there is talk of post-truth, with an interpretation of the world linked to ideologies, in which real truth is confused with certainty or opinion, we Christians must have hope in Christ and in the Gospel, because they are capable of dialoguing with all cultures and thoughts." he stressed.
Finally, he asked: "What then is our attitude? We Christians are called not to confrontation or hostility, but to goodness and beauty. A proposal certainly, of proposal, of encounter, of enlightenment. Our proposal is to show the good, it is the fullness. That is our way".
As Pope Francis has reminded us almost to exhaustion, the way is "dialogue and fraternity". And that is complicated when others are perceived as people to be beaten down in any way. A climate of respect and tolerance must prevail.
In this dilemma that sometimes arises "between forgiving or condemning", Rémi Brague has gone so far as to say that "condemnation is a satanic stance. Satanism can be relatively gentle, and all the more efficient. According to Satan, everything that exists is guilty and must disappear. These are the words that Goethe puts in the mouth of his Mephistopheles (Alles was entsteht, / Ist wert, daß es zugrunde geht)."
Pope Francis concluded his address to diplomats last month: "We must not be afraid to make room for peace in our lives, cultivating dialogue and fraternity among ourselves. Peace is a 'contagious' good, which spreads from the hearts of those who desire it and aspire to live it, reaching out to the whole world."
Silvia LibradaSociety is aging and will need more care".
A third of people over the age of 65 and almost half of those over the age of 80 in Spain have some form of disability, bringing the number of recognized dependents to 1.4 million. Silvia Librada, director of the New Health Foundation's 'Todos Contigo' program, told Omnes: "Society is aging and we need to get involved in caring for it.
Rafael Miner-February 19, 2022-Reading time: 9minutes
The social panorama that lies ahead is complicated, and "very scary," says Silvia Librada. According to the latest World Health Organization (WHO) report on 'Aging and Health', by 2050, almost 22 % of the world's population will be 60 or older, and people over 80 will triple to almost 450 million.
In Spain, the data point in the same direction. Our country had 18.7 million households in 2020, and an average of 2.5 people per household, according to the National Institute of Statistics (INE). 32 % of people over 65 years of age and 47.4 % of those over 80 years of age have some form of disability. The most frequent is difficulty in moving around outside the home, followed by disability in performing household chores.
The dependency rate - the ratio between the dependent population, under 16 years of age or over 64 years of age, and the working-age population, from 16 to 64 years of age - stood at 54.4 % in 2020, and forecasts point to a progressive increase: 60 % within a decade and 83.7 % by 2050, according to the National Statistics Institute (INE).
"The message is that society is aging, with more and more chronic disease, our life expectancy is getting much longer, life expectancy is going to increase to 86 years in men, and 90 years in women." In addition, "we will live longer, with more chronic disease, which will lead to higher rates of disability and dependency. And this is what causes a greater burden of care," says Silvia Librada, born in Mérida, who has been living in Seville for 12 years. This Extremaduran woman is director of the 'Todos Contigo' program in the New Health Foundationas part of its project 'Sevilla Contigo. Compassionate City' project.
All with you' is a audiovisual series aimed primarily at non-professional caregivers and family members in charge of people with chronic or advanced disease, explains the biologist director. These are eight short training videos on 'Care in Advanced Illness' promoted by this non-profit organization, in collaboration with the La Caixa Foundation, Cajasol Foundation and the Andalusian Regional Government, as part of the training areas aimed at caregivers and family members.
We talked with Silvia Librada, master in management tools and health research, which relates to her work on compassionate communities at the end of life, which she has developed in her doctoral thesis. This woman has been with the New Health Foundation since it was founded in 2013, and has been working in palliative care for 18 years.
About to become a doctor.
- In two weeks. I submit the thesis on March 4. It is already deposited. The only thing left is the defense before the examining board. Soon I will be a doctor in Health Sciences. It was one of the objectives and one of the dreams I had to fulfill at the academic level.
The data provided above are frightening.
- In addition to the fact that, besides needing more care, we are a society that is increasingly lonely. Loneliness is present. Almost 5 million people live alone in Spain. Loneliness, chronic, complex, increasingly advanced disease, means that there are more people who require such care. Everything converges in the fact that we are going to need care, and in many cases we have no one to provide it.
New Health Foundation vindicates the role of non-professional caregivers, who number in the millions in Spain.
- The central motif of these eight recordings, didactic videos, is 'How to care and how to care for oneself'. The idea arises in response to the need to offer basic training material that can be easily understood and implemented by caregivers at home, in the usual spaces of every home where there is a person with dependency.
In addition, it aims to be a useful tool to improve the quality of life of people affected by advanced disease and their non-professional caregivers, through training.
It is online training, and free of charge.
- Yes. The didactic material has been designed to continue with the distance training of caregivers within the program 'Sevilla Contigo. Compassionate City' program, adapting to the situation we are living in due to the pandemic and the resulting distancing measures. These circumstances do not advise the realization of face-to-face workshops for caregivers in order to avoid possible contagions.
They have published a booklet with tips and exercises for taking care of yourself while you take care of yourself. Care takes a lot of wear and tear.
- It is a compilation of recommendations and 'Self-care' exercises for caregivers and relatives of people who are in a situation of advanced illness and at the end of life. The objective is to create a physical and material space for caregivers to reflect, where they can express their feelings, draw, organize their care, and "take care of themselves with the 5 senses".
The idea for this Notebook for Caregivers came to me during the pandemic. I was writing at home as a life book for two years. I was scared, as we all were, and it was very useful for me, to make a notebook of gratitude, to tell what was happening on an emotional level, etc. In the end it was self-care... I was alone, I lived alone, and caregivers can reflect on their vital moment, during the act of caring. We have all cared at some point in our lives, we are going to be cared for... To see what we are and how we can help others.
How many people can benefit from your actions?
- Currently, the 'Todos Contigo' program is being developed to meet community objectives in the San Pablo-Santa Justa district and in the Macarena district of Seville, and reaches around 100,000 Sevillians who can benefit from this method whose progress has managed, over this period of time, to improve the quality of life of both the people facing illnesses and their families.
There will be people who need palliative care.
- We have two lines. One whereby we want to raise awareness not only among the population of Seville, but among the entire population, about the importance of caring and accompanying, so that they learn and become empowered in the act of caring. Then, in a direct way, we work with palliative care teams, with health professionals, city council professionals, directly in the care of people who are just in a process of end of life.
You started working in palliative care 18 years ago, practically your entire working life.
- I started working in palliative care, in research, at the age of 23, where I was able to enter, and there I got to know this profession, the professionals who were dedicated to it. And it was love at first sight. In love with the profession and what all the professionals do, my place has always been to help in innovation, research and development in palliative care. That is my job.
In the end, the idea is part of a project to create communities involved in care, and to create a society involved in the values of care. A message that involves citizens in the first place, and all organizations, public, private, that begin to connect and try to help with all the services that make all these needs.
We always try to promote a network of agents, institutions, organizations, professionals, citizens, volunteers..., volunteering is very important. So that everyone is involved in these values of caring, so that we wake up once and for all to this situation. We keep talking about the epidemic of loneliness that we have before us, society is getting older, more and more, but it seems that we have not woken up to the situation that we have before us, which is very scary.
What more could be done to care for people who are not currently receiving palliative care?
- Every 10 minutes a person suffers a death in Spain. The latest data from the Secpalwhich we helped to develop, highlighted the fact that in Spain we need to double the resources available for palliative care in order to reach the population.
And it is not so much a question of duplicating resources, but of trying to identify where these people are, because palliative care is still not available today. And I believe that this is due to a lack of identification, and because it is also necessary for the rest of the professionals, in primary care, in specialized care, or in any other organization, to see that they have a person in front of them who should require palliative care. Because we are still late, we are still arriving in the last days, training is very important because we need to talk about all this at universities...
I am doing a compassionate university project, which tries to include the themes of care, compassion, community, in the university. I do interviews, I do surveys with medical, nursing and psychology students. And I would tell you that in 30 percent, there are 7 out of 10 students who do not talk about death, in a faculty of Nursing, Medicine and Psychology.
The reality of death is almost absent in the university.
- And if the university does not address death, it means that we are turning our backs on a reality that occupies one hundred percent of the world's population, it is the most important prevalence we have, one hundred percent of us are going to die. And you still haven't solved that.
The training, the creation of specific resources in palliative care, all of that has to be built. I have been working in this field for 18 years, and I remember a big push in palliative care 18 years ago, maybe 20 years ago. Palliative care has been in Spain for 40 years. Eighteen years ago I saw a lot of resources available, but they have remained stagnant, those that exist are what they were 20 years ago, and I say: they have not created more..., and some have been eliminated.
It is not difficult to guess that he would agree that there should be a law to promote palliative care in Spain.
- In all this time I have known many bills, and they do not come out. Let's see. It is the right of every citizen to be treated well until the end of life. If we have that right, we should be given that benefit from a service. And if it is a public service in Spain, then it should be a public service. And we are not guaranteed this benefit for palliative care.
There are national palliative care strategies that have been put in place. There are some resources, but I do not know if it is guaranteed in rural areas, in other areas, in which they are providing you with a service just like a trauma service, cardiology, etc. Some time ago these strategies and action plans were there, but they have come to a standstill.
Compassionate cities
Will there be more compassionate cities in Spain? New Health focuses on Seville?
- The development of compassionate cities began to have an important impulse six years ago, when we started the project in Seville, which is like our demonstration project. But from the Foundation we have a process, a method, by which we help organizations to also create compassionate communities.
In Spain there are cities like Badajoz contigo, which is now promoting the Cuidándonos association. Rafael Mota, who is a doctor from Badajoz [former president of Secpal], is also promoting it, and they are called like us, Badajoz with you, we have Pamplona with you, with the order of San Juan de Dios, Bidasoa with you, the Basque Country also works with us, in Galicia also...
There are several cities in Spain that are beginning to work in the methods we use, but then other initiatives have emerged online, such as the development of communities and cities that care: there are in Vitoria, in Vic ..., are other cities that are in the same line of creating communities that care.
Its website states that there are 'compassionate cities' in Colombia...
- An important movement has begun to emerge to raise awareness in society. We also have cities in Colombia, in six cities that are working with us, such as Bogotá, Santa Marta, Ibagué, Villavicencio, Manizales, Cartagena, where I have been a few times. It is a very nice thing. It is an expansion that hopefully will be extended, and will involve the entities that promote them, and a whole network of agents.
This is leading to more and more knowledge about palliative care, which I think is the most important thing. If I have a good knowledge of palliative care, society will be very strong in saying: hey, sir, why don't you refer me to a palliative care program.
May it be the person himself who says: oh, oh, the treatments are not working, could it be that I am going to die? That we ourselves can say: please, can you provide me with a team to relieve my pain, to alleviate my emotional suffering, and to help my family through this transition? And if we say that in a simple and clear way, talking about death without any taboo, I believe that society will come to push more and more the way to approach this. Then there is another society that turns its back on death, that tries to almost hide it.
To hide it, or to provoke it...
- I would like to emphasize the value of palliative care, which I am passionate about. We were recently invited by the World Health Organization (WHO) to talk about the 'Sevilla Contigo' project, as an example of an innovation project, with Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director General of the WHO. One of the political leaders of the World Association for Palliative Care came to the Foundation. I told her: my politics, my religion and my love are palliative care. She laughed. I believe in palliative care, it is like a creed, and it includes everything.
We conclude the conversation with Silvia Librada. I would like to add that there are 'compassionate cities' not only in Colombia, but also in Argentina and Chile. And that the trustees include a prestigious palliativist, Dr. Álvaro Gándara del Castillo, coordinator of the Palliative Care Unit at the Fundación Jiménez Díaz University Hospital (Madrid), and former president of Secpal.
Pope sends telegram for Galician trawler sinking in Newfoundland
The Holy Father has sent his condolences to the Archbishop of Santiago on the occasion of the death of the fishermen aboard the Galician fishing boat Villa de Pitanxo, wrecked off the island of Newfoundland.
Pope Francis has sent a telegram of condolences for the victims of the shipwreck of the Spanish fishing boat Villa de Pitanxo, which occurred last Tuesday off the Canadian island of Newfoundland, sent - on behalf of the Holy Father - by Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin to the Archbishop of Santiago de Compostela, H.E. Msgr. Julián Barrio Barrio.
The telegram reads as follows:
"Upon hearing the sad news of the shipwreck of the fishing boat Villa de Pitanxo, which occurred on February 15, off the coast of Canada, and in which several people lost their lives, the Holy Father expresses his heartfelt condolences, as well as his solidarity, in these moments of sorrow.
His Holiness Francis raises to God his prayers for the eternal repose of the victims and also expresses his closeness to the families who mourn their loved ones. He also commends to the mercy of the Lord and to the maternal care of the Mother of God those affected by this mishap, while imparting the Apostolic Blessing, as a pledge of the constant help of the Most High and a sign of sure hope in the Resurrection".
María Hilda, witness of St. Oscar Romero and Rutilio Grande: "We cannot keep silent about what we have seen".
Interview with María Hilda, a Salvadoran living in Los Angeles, who has first-hand knowledge of the work of Saint Oscar Romero and the recent Blessed Rutilio Grande.
Pope Francis in his teachings frequently reminds us that the primary vocation of all the baptized is holiness. The pontiff goes further when he affirms that even without realizing it, we live with "the saints next door": parents, men and women who work to bring home the bread, the sick, the religious; ordinary people who with their work, in the ordinary things of life, in their own states of life strive to give glory to God with their lives.
It is about "the holiness of the Church militant. That is the holiness of the next door, of those who live close to us and are a reflection of God's presence" (Gaudete et Exultate, 7). Indeed, we live with many of these saints next door. However, there are few who can say with certainty that they lived and lived with canonized saints and blessed. One such person is Maria Hilda Flamenco de Gonzalez, born in El Salvador and living with her family in Los Angeles, California, for the past 19 years.
Maria Hilda, "Mama Hilda" as she is affectionately called, was born and lived in Aguilares, where she met Rutilio Grande in 1972 and later St. Oscar Arnulfo Romero, Archbishop of San Salvador in 1977. Years later Divine Providence allowed Maria Hilda to be present at the canonization of her Archbishop Oscar Romero in 2018 and then at the beatification of her parish priest Rutilio Grande in January 2022.
After visiting El Salvador to attend the beatification of Father Rutilio Grande in January 2022, Maria Hilda grants Omnes an exclusive interview from Los Angeles, California.
Maria Hilda, what was the area where the parish of Blessed Rutilio Grande was located like?
-My homeland is Aguilares, Department of San Salvador, a region dedicated to commerce because it is surrounded by four sugar mills. At that time there were a few landowners and most of the population was dedicated to planting sugar cane, growing corn, cotton, sugar processing and transportation. Despite the long and arduous workdays, the vast majority of the population lived in extreme poverty.
How and why did you meet Father Rutilio?
-We were parishioners of the parish of Aguilares, where Father Rutilio Grande was. That is why we had the joy of knowing him closely. From the beginning we could see in his work, his dedication to the mission and to the formation of base communities. Usually every month, we brought to the parish "the first fruits" which means to provide the parish house with the necessary provisions. That is how we got to know Father Rutilio better. From the beginning we were struck by his simplicity, his humility, his social sensitivity and his poverty. He and his companions preferred to help people rather than keep even the most necessary things for themselves.
Rutilio's pastoral mission took place in a difficult situation, both because of the poverty of the area and the austere conditions of the parish house and the social and political conflict of El Salvador in the 1970s.
-The poverty of the region awakened in Father Rutilio the desire to help the people and protect them, announcing to them the good news of the Gospel and making them feel that we are all equal in the eyes of God. Living in an area of extreme poverty, he himself lived with only the bare necessities. Once when we went to the parish house, we noticed that instead of armchairs they had pieces of wood to sit on and instead of bookcases, tin cans with boards for their books. Their kitchen lacked a lot of utensils. My mother, a detail-oriented and very observant person, told my father that the wood stove was not enough and that she was going to bring him a gas stove.
Some time later we were able to install it and leave it in service for the parish. However, another time we went there, my mother was surprised to find that the stove was gone. It had disappeared. My mother asked Father Rutilio, "What happened to the stove?" He replied, "Don't worry Paulita because that stove is in the hands of other families who need it more than we do. But I have something for you." And he gave her this letter (See image). That letter for us means a valuable relic that not only contains a manuscript of "Father Tilo", but also details that express the friendship between him and our family.
What was Father Tilo's trademark?
-His love for the Eucharist. At Mass he often told us: "Let us all go to the Banquet of the Lord, to which we are all invited, each one with his own Mission". Another of his characteristics was his joy. He joked a lot and knew how to use that as an instrument of evangelization. He knew that many members of the community did not know how to read or write and so he had to evangelize them by means of songs with the word of God. And with joy.
Saint Oscar Arnulfo Romero
As I said at the beginning, Providence chose you to live and live among saints, Blessed Rutilio Grande, but also St. Oscar Romero. How did you meet St. Oscar Romero?
-We knew Monsignor Romero from a Cursillo de Cristiandad made in Santiago de Maria when he was already Archbishop. We stayed close to him, from the funeral of Father Rutilio Grande and then in the Ultreyas of the Cursillos, which he attended.
In the 1970s, El Salvador was experiencing a social and political crisis and an armed conflict between 1979 and 1992. The number of victims is estimated at more than 70,000 dead and 15,000 disappeared. How did Saint Oscar Romero react to this dramatic situation?
-St. Oscar Romero was secretary of the Episcopal Conference of El Salvador, then bishop of San Miguel -the eastern region of our country- and finally Archbishop of San Salvador in 1977.
St. Oscar Romero saw first hand the armed conflict and the persecution of the church, which had begun with the expulsion of foreign priests and then with the assassination of catechists and priests, among them his great friend Father Rutilio Grande.
How did Father Rutilio influence Oscar Romero's life?
-Oscar Romero and Rutilio Grande were an inseparable pair. It is impossible to speak of one without being able to speak of the other; this because of their friendship, because of the closeness and trust they had since they met at the San José de la Montaña Seminary, where Father Rutilio was the teacher of the seminarians. It was the martyrdom of his great friend Father Rutilio -of which we were witnesses and participants in the funeral- what made Monsignor Romero reorient the line of pastoral work. From that homily on the night of March 12, 1977, the day they martyred his great friend, the prophetic influence that the Holy Spirit poured on Romero was noticeable. From that moment on he declared himself to be the defender of the poor, the voice of the voiceless.
Were you at the funeral of Father Rutilio and also at the funeral of Monsignor Romero?
-It was no coincidence that we were also able to participate in the funeral mass of Monsignor Romero in the Cathedral, where we ran the risk of suffocating to death. Due to the number of people the mass was offered outside the cathedral, with the altar located at the entrance. Everything was going well until halfway through the ceremony, when a group of snipers began to open fire on the crowd.
People began to run to take refuge inside the cathedral, which very quickly filled up to the point that it was almost impossible to breathe inside. More than 30 people died in that funeral. In that context and among the chaos and stampede was where we picked up the microphone that Romero used in his homilies and that day was in the funeral mass.
Do you still have that microphone?
-Yes. That microphone (See image) we keep and take care of it since that day to evangelize and make known the testimony of the life of a defender of the poor, prophet, pastor and martyr. We presented that microphone at the Mass of thanksgiving for his canonization in Rome in October 2018. And I also brought it to show Pope Francis. The microphone reminds us of what Romero told us so much: "If one day they kill me and turn off my voice, remember that you are God's microphones". This has been our motto and work guide for four decades.
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Maria Hilda has since dedicated herself to Evangelization in the media in the United States. She has hosted Catholic television and radio programs for several years. Now, using new technologies, she continues her mission through podcasts and YouTube where she organizes prayer groups and interviews with preachers, religious, priests and of course, with the saints of ordinary life. One of her most recent projects is the evangelization of the little ones, an apostolate she discovered while living closely, as a grandmother, with her six grandchildren. Her husband Guillermo and her three children work with her in the creation of these children's books to initiate the little ones to discover the faith.
Leopoldo Panero (1909-1962). The everyday and the transcendent
Leopoldo Panero, a poet inspired by depth and cordiality, emerges in recent times with the same fervor as in the forties and fifties of the last century, when his lyrical work revealed the human quality of a poet who wrote poetry attentive to daily life and the most universal realities.
His collection of poems has always been mentioned in connection with the figure of Leopoldo Panero. Written at every momentThe most extensive of all and the one that has deserved more attention and recognition, thanks to which his other books of verses have gained some interest from readers and scholars of his lyrical work. But within Written...a collection of poems -among others, the title poem of the book The empty temple-have been definitive to unravel the poetic thought of the author from Astorga.
He died prematurely at the age of 53, his first poetic production opened the way with a poetry of avant-garde style in which the breath of his personal universe could already be guessed with poems wrapped in the fog, in beautifully vivid skies and in the beauty of the landscape. It was the publication, in 1944, of the long poem The empty roomin the magazine EscorialThis gave him a prestigious name in the poetry of his time, to the point that literary personalities such as Jorge Guillén ended up considering him as the best poet after the civil war. However, this appreciation was not only due to his first poetic delivery but, as we have pointed out before, to Written at every momentwhich, at the time of its publication in 1949, came to close the liveliness of a few splendid collections of poems by other authors of his generation also printed in that decade: Dark News (1944) e Sons of wrath (1944) by Dámaso Alonso and, in parallel, The lighted house (1949), of Luis Rosales, all within the same atmosphere full of unknowns and enchantment, and focused on the mystery of the most elemental realities of human existence, marked in turn by the imprint of Machado, Unamuno, and even by the stoicism of some poets of the XVII century.
Word in time
Written at every momenta unique book, of great expressive rigor, with many poems elaborated prior to The empty roomwas the one that gave him the stature of the great poet that Leopoldo Panero is. In it are intertwined the keys of a temporalist poetry, full of affectivities: his wife, his children, his grandparents, his parents, sisters, friends, neighbors, enemies, Macaria the chestnut seller of the Plaza Mayor in Madrid, the streets of his childhood, various landscapes contemplated and, of course, God, on which Panero projects an intense loving gaze that gives reason that his verses are based on lived experiences, which makes them always taste true. Thus, in the delicate three sonnets that he dedicates to his wife, it is worthwhile to extract the final tercets of Of your deep lightThe beloved is a guarantee of the rejuvenation of both of them towards the future, as Luis Felipe Vivanco points out, because only one of them gets old soon: "...the beloved is the guarantee of the rejuvenation of both of them towards the future, because only one of them gets old soon: "...".With a new destiny and a purer will, / and a clearer truth than the one dreamed of, / you refresh my past in your oblivion / towards a virgin future youth / that sleeps darkly in your gaze.". Along with them, it is worth mentioning other sonnets such as the one he wrote to his sisters, or to his brother Juan -also a poet, who died in a traffic accident in 1937-, or to Dolores, the seamstress of his house, literary pieces of enormous charm that reveal an authentic emotional autobiography of the poet, capable of touching anyone thanks to their humanity and verbal exquisiteness.
Poetry anchored in pain
However, apart from this vital lyric, endearingly kind and domestic, Leopoldo Panero is an existential poet of pain, of the clamorous mystery of pain, where the deaths of his loved ones and the ineluctable evidence of the passing of time converge; he is also a poet of solitude, which he continually turns into prayer, in search of God. In both cases, his poetry is still explicitly religious, or prayerful poetry.
As for the theme of pain, the poem quoted at the beginning of this article is famous The empty temple written in alexandrines and integrated in the Liturgy of the Hours (the first sixteen verses are recited on the vespers of Sunday IV). It contains the poet's own compunction after having been "he who is cold of himself"that is, the proud, the haughty. Again and again he expresses it in different ways, as if in a loop, in a continuous return to personal conversion -in the collection of poems there are more compositions in which he expresses this incessant return to the presence of God, such as the one titled "Thou who walkest in the snow"when he writes: "Now that I lift up my heart, and lift it up / turned to You my love."-At the same time, he discovers the value of grace at work in his soul: "You gave me the grace to live with you.". In this context, the word pain - "The best thing in my life is the pain."he repeats on several occasions as a refrain - seems to refer more to the affliction of love, that is, to repentance, than to any other kind of sorrow. In fact, the author announces: "My pain kneels, like the trunk of a willow, over the water of time, where I come and go."The poem is a constant that prevails throughout the poem and in many others of the poem. Written at every momentThus, Panero feels the need of God to settle his restless and dissatisfied life: "I am the guest of time; I am, Lord, wayfarer / who blurs in the forest and in the shadow stumbles."You can't say it any clearer poetically.
Experience of God
At the same time, pain is the result of the frequent losses that mark his existence and lead him to that disconcerting loneliness or emptiness from which his most personal lyrical creation bursts forth. Loneliness or emptiness, moreover, linked to the experience of God as a being whom he certainly does not know, but which he intuits as essential for the poet to know himself: "Now that the stupor lifts me from the soles of my feet, / and I lift up to Thee my eyes, / Lord, tell me who Thou art, / illuminate who Thou art, / tell me who I am too, / and why the sadness of being a man?".
Already in The empty room wrote in the homonymous poem: "I am alone and I hide in my innocence / God has passed through my life (...) / I am alone, Lord, on the shore / reverberating with pain (...) / I am alone, Lord. I breathe blindly / the virginal scent of Your word. / And I begin to understand my own death; my original anguish, my brackish god."The poet's inner itinerary is to some extent summarized in this thought, which, from his solitude, and from the absence of the most loved ones who occupied his childhood life, he discovers God. As Manuel José Rodríguez stated in his study God in postwar Spanish poetry: "The loneliness that Leopoldo Panero sings is revealed as an essential condition to realize that God is man's destiny, even if he does not understand it and even makes it increasingly incomprehensible"..
Fervent thanksgiving
A loneliness or emptiness that neither springs from sin, but from the bewilderment of having lost original innocence, nor remains infertile because, when the poet assumes his condition of man in complete meekness, he surrenders to God in a fervent thanksgiving: "Lord, I owed you / this song bathed / in gratitude... You could / You always can, always- / take me in a gust / as one uproots a tree / to burn it still green (...), / You did not want to uproot me.". It is the culmination of Panero's poetic, metaphysical and human thought after realizing that, in his passage through life, he has the generous, though incomprehensible, hand of God extended to him; hence his acceptance of his limitations; hence his understanding that all love is the shadow of a living God.
Pope Francis explains the figure of the priest at an important congress in Rome
The Pontiff opened the International Symposium "For a Fundamental Theology of the Priesthood" at the Vatican with a conference in which he referred to his fifty years of priesthood and pointed out the essential elements of the priest.
Nicolás Álvarez de las Asturias-February 17, 2022-Reading time: 2minutes
Pope Francis inaugurated this morning in Rome an important congress on the ministerial priesthood, organized by the Congregation of Bishops, which is being held these days in Rome. The symposium brings together more than 700 experts in the Paul VI Hall, including cardinals, bishops, priests, theologians, lay people and religious from around the world, to reflect on the priestly vocation, the formation of seminarians, priestly celibacy and their spirituality.
In his opening address, the Holy Father, in fact, wanted to start from his more than fifty years of priestly life, finding in them God's passage through his life and the light to illuminate the ultimate meaning of the ordained ministry. In this way, his words move away from any hint of academicism and point out those essential elements that allow the priest to aspire joyfully to holiness, even in the midst of his own weaknesses and the misunderstandings of others. It seems to me that these essential elements pointed out by the Pope can be summarized in three:
At the forefront of the mission
First, "Offshore"(cf. Lk 5:4), as the proper horizon of the priestly mission. In the Pope's mind, priests are not in the rearguard but, together with the rest of the baptized, in the vanguard of the Church's mission. The fear of difficulties is warded off by anchoring themselves in the "wise, living and living Tradition of the Church".
Responding to God's love
Secondly, knowing oneself to be a baptized person called to holiness implies seeking to respond every day to God's love, which always precedes us: "even in the midst of crisis, the Lord does not cease to love and, therefore, to call".
Four "commuter trains
And the third element is enveloped in four "closenesses" that give joy and fruitfulness to his life: God's closeness, which "allows us to confront our life with his"; the closeness of the Bishop, presenting obedience as "the fundamental choice to welcome the one who has been placed before us as a concrete sign of that universal sacrament of salvation which is the Church"; closeness with priests, because "fraternity is deliberately choosing to be saints with others and not in solitude"; and closeness to people, grace before duty and which invites to a lifestyle in the image of Jesus, Good Samaritan.
In short, words that are born from a heart grateful for the gift of the priesthood and from a mind convinced of the importance of both the mission of priests and their need to seriously seek holiness within the Church they serve. A masterly portico for a Congress in which, certainly, we will have the opportunity to hear many things and very good things.
Faced with some voices that defend that the suppression of celibacy would be a solution to cases of abuse, the professor of Spiritual Theology Laurent Touze considers it an erroneous reasoning and defends celibacy that is freely chosen by priests.
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.
Cardinal Marc OuelletThe real cause of abuse is not celibacy, but lack of self-control and affective imbalance".
In this interview for Omnes, Cardinal Marc Ouellet, Prefect of the Congregation for Bishops, affirms that celibacy is not the cause of abuse, but rather the lack of self-control and affective imbalance of some priests. He argues that celibacy is justified in a vision of faith: it is a confession of faith in the divine identity of Christ who calls, and a response to his call of love.
Maria José Atienza / Giovanni Tridente-February 17, 2022-Reading time: 4minutes
On Thursday, February 17, a Symposium on the baptismal vocation will begin at the Vatican, entitled For a fundamental theology of the priesthood. The inaugural lecture was entrusted to Pope Francis, who reflected on the Faith and priesthood in our times. During the course of the meeting, which will continue until Saturday, sacramentality, mission, celibacy, charisms and spirituality will also be discussed.
The initiative was personally owed to Cardinal Marc Ouellet, Prefect of the Congregation for Bishops, who founded in 2020 the Centro di Ricerca e di Antropologia e VocazioniThe Center for Research and Anthropology and Vocations, independent of the Holy See, is based in France.
In this interview with Omnes, Cardinal Ouellet reflects on various aspects of the priesthood and the baptismal vocation, and on other topics that will be addressed during the course of the Symposium in these days.
At the Symposium, you will present the priesthood in a Trinitarian perspective. In contrast, we perceive a more "human" or even "functionalist" conception of the priest. Is this the root of some proposals, as in the German Synodal Way?
-The priesthood refers to man's relationship with God. In Christianity, Christ is the sole mediator of this relationship, which is a covenant of love. The priest sacramentally represents Christ as mediator and can only be understood in this light. We cannot be satisfied with a sociological point of view that considers the distribution of power, nor can we limit ourselves to the perspectives of the media.
A recurring idea is that of female ordination. The opening of lay ministries to women has also been seen as a step towards the diaconate, or perhaps also towards the priesthood. Are the diaconate and/or the female priesthood an open possibility?
-Asking the question in this way reflects a functional male mentality that homologizes women to the male role and neglects their own charismatic dimension. Changes in the Church must go much deeper than an assignment of roles, which keeps women in a subordinate position to men. It is time for theology to reflect on the feminine mystery in itself and in reciprocity with the masculine.
The "fundamental theology of the priesthood," on which the Symposium is based, is part of a theology of the Church. However, is the Church understood today?
-A fundamental theology of the priesthood thinks first of baptism as the first participation in the priesthood of Christ, since baptism communicates to us the grace of his divine filiation, which is the foundation of his priesthood and of our participation in it as members of his Body. The ordained ministry presupposes baptism and consists in a subsequent charism of representation of Christ the Head, placed at the service of the growth of the filial priesthood of the baptized. Therefore, the Church must not be reduced to its hierarchy, since it is above all the community of the baptized around the Mother of God.
The life of the Church is rooted in the Eucharist. The priesthood is born of the Eucharist and lives for the Eucharist, but how can we also foster the Eucharistic identity of all the baptized?
- The Church makes the Eucharist and the Eucharist makes the Church," said Father de Lubac. The Church performs the rite, but it is Christ in the Eucharist who gives life to the Church, which is his Body constituted by baptism. The Eucharistic celebration is a nuptial mystery where the risen Christ gives his Body to the Church, his Bride, and awaits the personal response of love of each baptized person and member of the assembly. We need to re-evangelize the meaning of Sunday.
In what sense do we speak of "vocational culture"?
-The Synod on Youth spoke of a vocational culture in the sense, first of all, of a response to God in all the services that we, the baptized, render to society. Each person receives a particular gift from the Holy Spirit, which is concretized in the choice of a state of life and, therefore, of a specific service to the Church and to society. An ecclesial community should be concerned with awakening and accompanying the particular vocations that normally flourish where there is a vocational awareness of the baptized.
Celibacy and abuse
The child abuse scandal has put priests in the spotlight. With a view to prevention, how can we take care of their formation, especially in the affective area?
-Priests need understanding and solidarity. They are very tested by the current situation of abuses, and they need the community to better live their commitment. This need also concerns the formation of priests, which should not be completely isolated, but should be done in relationship and synergy with families, local communities, consecrated persons and the laity. Priestly friendship has always been a precious resource for maintaining the impetus towards holiness.
Some think that abolishing priestly celibacy would help to stop abuse.
-Some people think that celibacy is the cause of abuse, whereas abuse exists in all situations of education, family life, sporting life, etc. The real cause is not the state of consecrated celibacy but the lack of self-control and affective imbalance. It is certainly necessary to improve the discernment of vocations to the priesthood and to watch over the psycho-affective and moral balance of the candidates.
How can celibacy be explained today?
-Celibacy must be presented from the perspective of faith. Christ called his disciples to leave everything to follow him. He was able to do so by virtue of his divine identity as the eternal Son of the Father who came in the flesh to bring salvation to humanity. To follow him in celibacy is above all a confession of faith in this identity and an act of love in response to his loving call.
Priests have a special task in the mission of the Church. How does the mission, the "sending", define the priesthood?
-The fundamental priesthood is the baptismal consecration that makes us sons and daughters of God. The ordained ministry is at the service of the growth of the baptized through the proclamation of the Word and the gift of the sacraments. The priest thus exercises a spiritual fatherhood that can fill his heart with apostolic joy when lived in a spirit of holiness.
Are there any other aspects of the Symposium that you would like to highlight?
-Yes, indeed. Perhaps the surprise of the Symposium is to see the importance and role of the consecrated life for the communion of the two participations in the one priesthood of Christ, the baptismal priesthood and the ordained ministry.
The "Madonna della Colonna", "Mater Ecclesiae", in the Vatican
When the faithful come to St. Peter's Square to pray the Eucharistic Angelusthe image of the Virgin Mary that presides over this prayer is the Mater Ecclesiaevisible in a mosaic on the façade of the Apostolic Palace.
Kardinal Marc OuelletThe real cause of the abuse is not the zolibat, but rather the Mangel an Selbstbeherrschung and the emotional instability".
In this interview for everyone, Cardinal Marc Ouellet, head of the Bischofskongregation, emphasizes that the Bible is not the cause of the abuse, but rather the source of self-destruction and the emotional instability of a priest. He argues that the Zölibat is part of a vision of the faith: it is an acknowledgement of the faith in the divine identity of Christ, which is the source, and an answer to the call of love.
On Saturday, February 17, a Symposium on the Taufberufung began in the Vatikan under the title "For a Fundamentaltheology of the Priesthood". The opening address was given by Pope Franziskus, who spoke about the faith and the priesthood in our time. In the course of the conference, which lasts until Saturday, there will also be discussions on Sacramentality, Mission, the Bible, Charism and Spirituality.
The initiative is based on Kardinal Marc Ouellet, head of the Bischofskongregation, who has established the Center for Research and Anthropology of Businesses with headquarters in Frankreich by 2020 from the Heiligen Stuhl.
In this interview with everyone, Kardinal Ouellet speaks about various aspects of the Priestertums and the Taufberufung as well as about other topics that will be discussed at the Symposium in these days.
At the Symposium, you will learn about the Priesthood from a Trinitarian perspective. In contrast to this, we see a rather "human" or even "functionalistic" understanding of the Priests. Is this the cause of one of the proposals, as, for example, in the German Synodal Weg?
- The priesthood is based on people's relationship with God. In Christendom, Christus is the only one who is a part of this relationship, who is a gift of God. In the sacrament of Christus, the Priest is the one and only one who can understand Christ in this sense. We cannot be immersed in a social-ecological consciousness, which is the expression of power, and we cannot restrict ourselves to the perspective of the media.
One of the most frequently occurring problems is the female coordination. The opening of the Laienämter für Frauen wurde auch als ein Schritt in Richtung Diakonat oder vielleicht auch in Richtung Priesteramt gesehen. Ist das Diakonat und/oder das Priesteramt für Frauen eine offene Möglichkeit?
- This question shows a functional mentality of the human being as a whole, which enables women to play an important role and thus to recognize their own charismatic dimension. Changes in the Church must be much more like a work experience that puts women in an interdisciplinary position. It is at the time that theology is about the infinite reality in itself and in the interaction with mankind.
The "Fundamentaltheologie des Priestertums", on which the Symposium is based, is part of a theology of the Church. But what is the Church today?
- A fundamental theology of the priesthood is based on the faith as the first part of the first part of the Priesthood of Christ, because the faith transmits to us its own Gnade, which is once again the foundation of its priesthood and our part of the faith as the Glory of its own life. The Holy Spirit sets the stage for the death of Jesus Christ, which will be represented in the service of the Holy Priests of the Holy Spirit in the days of the Holy Mass of the Holy Spirit. Therefore, the Church should not be reduced to its hierarchy, since it is above all the community of the Holy Apostles for the Mother of God.
The life of the Church is in the Eucharist. The priesthood is born out of the Eucharist and lives for the Eucharist, but how can the eucharistic identity of all those who receive the Eucharist be expressed in the Eucharist?ördert werden?
- The Church makes the Eucharist and the Eucharist makes the Church", says Pater de Lubac. The Church fills the rite, but it is Christus in the Eucharist, the life of the Church, which, through the faith, is the source of life. The Eucharistic celebration is a symbolic event, in which the risen Christus, who is the Lord of the Church, his own heart, is the source and the personal response to the love of all the people and all the members of the community. We must evangelize the significance of the Sonntags.
In what sense do we speak of a "culture of jobs"?
- The youth movement is based on a culture of recreation in the sense of an answer to God in all the services we offer to our society. Every human being receives from the Holy Spirit a special gift, which is connected to the Church and society in the choice of his or her life and thus to a particular service. A community of faith needs to be able to make use of the special benefits to be gained and to benefit from those who normally live there, where there is a benefit under the responsibility.
Zölibat und Missbrauch
The scandal of the child abuse has caused the priests to be repulsed by the scandal. In terms of prevention: How should they be educated, especially in an emotional way?
- Priests need understanding and solidarity. The current abuse situation puts them to the test, and they need the community to be able to better meet their obligations. This need also applies to the priesthood education, which should not be completely isolated, but should be pursued in partnership and collaboration with families, the local communities, the elderly and lay people. The principle of freedom of expression was always a valuable tool to help us to move towards a sense of security.
Manche meinen, dass die Abschaffung des priesterlichen Zölibats dazu beitragen würde, Missbrauch zu verhindern.
- Many people think that the solution is the reason for the abuse, although abuse in all situations of life, in family life, in sporting activities, etc. takes place. The real cause is not the free life, but rather the desire for self-restraint and emotional instability. It is certainly necessary to optimize the pursuit of a real commitment to the priesthood and to ensure the psycho-affective and moral balance of the candidates.
Wie lässt sich der Zölibat heute erklären?
- The Bible must be drawn from the perspective of the faith. Christus rief seine Jünger auf, alles zu verlassen und ihm nachzufolgen. Er konnte dies aufgrund seiner göttlichen Identität als ewiger Sohn des Vaters tun, der im Fleisch kam, um den Menschen das Heil zu bringen. Ihm im Zölibat zu folgen, ist in erster Linie ein Bekenntnis zu dieser Identität und ein Akt der Liebe als Antwort auf seinen liebevollen Ruf.
The priests have a special role in the mission of the Church. How do you define this mission, the "path", the priesthood?
- The main priority is the Taufweihe, which makes us to be the solemn and holy ones. The order is in the service of the growth of the priesthood through the examination of the words and the spending of the sakramente. The Priest thus draws from a spiritual community that can fill his heart with apostolic joy when it becomes part of the Spirit of the Holy Spirit.
There is another aspect of the Symposium, which you should consider.öchten?
- Yes, of course. The overarching goal of the Symposium may well be to recognize the importance and role of the life gained for the community of the two groups in the presence of Christ, the priestly priesthood and the Order.
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Papa Francesco spiega la figura del sacerdote in un importante Congresso a Roma
The pontiff opened the International Symposium "For a fundamental theology of the priesthood" in the Vatican with a conference in which he referred to his fifty years of priesthood and highlighted the essential elements of the priest.
Nicolás Álvarez de las Asturias-February 17, 2022-Reading time: 2minutes
Pope Francis opened this morning in Rome an important congress on ministerial priesthood, organized by the Congregation of the Bishops, which is taking place these days in Rome. The symposium brings together more than 700 experts in the Paul VI Hall, among cardinals, priests, theologians, laymen and religious from all over the world, to discuss the priestly vocation, the formation of seminarians, priestly celibacy and their spirituality.
The Holy Father, in fact, wanted to begin, in his opening speech, with those who have been in his priestly life for over fifty years, searching in them the passage of God through his life and the light to illuminate the ultimate meaning of priestly ordination. In this way, his words are far removed from any apparent touch of formality, indicating the essential elements that allow the priest to aspire with joy to sanctity, even in the midst of his own weaknesses and the incomprehension of others. It seems to me that these essential elements pointed out by the Pope can be summarized in three points:
In prima linea nella missione
In the first place, the "Take the high road" (cf. Lk 5:4), as the very orizzonte of the priestly mission. In the Pope's thinking, priests are not in the background but, together with the rest of the faithful, are at the forefront of the Church's mission. The peace of the difficulties is fought with the anchoring to the "wisdom of the living and present Tradition of the Church".
Corrispondere all'amore di Dio
Secondly, to know that a martyr is called to holiness implies trying to respond every day to God's love, which always precedes us: "even in the midst of difficulty, the Lord does not smile to love and, therefore, to call".
Quattro "vicinanze".
And the third element, which includes four "vicinanze" that give your life joy and fertility: the vicinanza of God, which "allows us to confront our life with his"; the vicinanza of the Lord, which presents obedience as "a fundamental option to welcome those who have been placed close to us as a concrete sign of that universal sacrament of salvation which is the Church"; closeness to priests, because "fraternity is deliberately choosing to be holy together with others and not in solitude"; and closeness to people, which before being a duty is a grace, and which invites to a way of life in the image of Jesus, Good Samaritan.
Insomma, a few words that come from a heart grateful for the gift of priesthood and from a mind convinced of the importance of both the mission of priests and their need to seriously seek sanctity in the Church they serve. It is the prelude to the masterly entrance in a Congress where, certainly, you will have the opportunity to feel many things, and very good.
Antonio Moreno, one of today's best-known journalists and digital evangelists, has been a regular contributor to Omnes since its inception.
February 16, 2022-Reading time: 3minutes
In a recent publication, psychologist Paloma Carrasco reflected on the importance of leaving a margin of error in everything we do, of not pretending to have everything under control.
The Omicron tsunami has forced us to live without knowing what will happen tomorrow. If I test positive, who will take my daughters to school? And if one of them is infected, how will I go to work, who will I leave her with, will I infect my classmates?
The obsession with security has made us run out of antigen tests at prices far above their cost to the delight of those who have made a killing on fear; but the reality is that their effectiveness is relative and not even PCR tests assure us one hundred percent that we are not infected and that we are not infecting our loved ones.
In order not to become obsessed with the control of our lives, Carrasco proposes introducing in our language phrases such as "in theory", "in principle", or "God willing". In this way, our mind gets used to understanding that what we have in our hands is not absolutely certain and opens up to the surprise factor.
I have to admit that the best things in my life came by surprise, unplanned, without me intervening at all. No one ever asked me if I wanted to be born. I suddenly found myself surrounded by a family that took me in, took care of me... and to this day.
By surprise I met my wife, who is now my partner in marriage vocation, and by surprise she said yes when I asked her out. I wanted to study journalism when in my city there was no such career and my family could not pay me to study abroad; but just the year I was preparing for selectivity, I read in the newspaper that the following year would open the Faculty of Information Sciences. Surprise!
By surprise I started working in that great school of journalism that is Diario Sur and, by surprise, I contacted the teacher José Luis Arranz who introduced me to the then Media Delegate of the Diocese of Malaga who, by surprise, asked me to work in diocesan communication. I had never seen me writing about ecclesiastical matters and it has been 25 years already!
Each one of my seven children came by surprise, when they wanted to, and each one of them comes to surprise me every day with their particular personality. Where did they come from?
There have been many other surprises that the Lord has been giving me personally, spiritually and professionally throughout my life, and one of the most satisfying ones lately is my collaboration with Omnes.
A space that came to me suddenly, without expecting it, when I had other plans, and that has shown me that the God of surprises, as Pope Francis often calls him, always surprises us for the better, because his will is always the best for us. Here I have felt at home, I have been able to express myself freely, tell my stories and receive the affection of many readers.
In this first year of life of Omnes, I have seen a media with a clear vocation of universality, as its name indicates, where everything that happens in the Church and in the world has a place; a convergent media in which traditional journalism in paper and digital join to reach everyone, to leave no one behind; a Catholic media that does not allow itself to be pigeonholed and that, from its identity, has open doors and windows to the ecclesial plurality; a medium in which, as in so many other evangelical projects, resources are used to the maximum, yielding a hundredfold; a medium made with great faith and, I know, with great effort on the part of a dedicated editorial staff; a medium, in short, destined to be a point of reference in the ecclesial communications panorama of the coming years.
In the face of the uncertainty about the future that the psychologist was talking about, the Spanish language has a precious word. It is the term "ojalá", with which we express the wish for something to happen that is not in our hands, and which many people do not know has a believing origin.
The Royal Academy Dictionary explains that its etymology is Hispanic Arabic "law šá lláh" (If God wills-God wills it); which means that, when we say it, we are entrusting its fulfillment to God.
So, as I said, hopefully this first year of Omnes and this, my first year with Omnes, is just one among many, many more.
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.
David acted in agreement with God and did not kill Saul, because he was the Lord's anointed. Every human being is like Saul, consecrated to the Lord. In the "sermon on the plain", the heart of Luke's Gospel, we enter into the heart of God, with the sublime words of Jesus, which reveal his plan for us: that we may be like God, not by the wrong way of the first Adam, but by following the way of Jesus. Words that define who the Christian is: a child of God according to the Father's way of thinking. After having pronounced his "ay"Jesus' message, addressed to the rich and to those of whom people speak well, is addressed to the disciples who, on the other hand, will have enemies, will be hated, cursed and mistreated. Jesus proposes to them to react with good.
He explains in a crescendoTo love one's enemies is a profound attitude, but it is not enough. It is about showing that love by doing good to those who hate us. But it is still not enough: if they use the word and curse, then the disciples will respond by saying good: blessing. If they also come to mistreat them physically, socially or morally, Jesus asks the disciples to respond with a prayer for them.
This is what Jesus will do on the cross and the martyrs with him. But even here, Jesus continues, prayer is not enough, but also gestures that cure evil with good: turn the other cheek, do not refuse to remain without clothes, like Jesus on the cross, because they take everything. Giving without asking for anything in return. It is not a social program, but a path of detachment out of love. The well-known golden rule: "do not do to others what you do not want them to do to you."Jesus turns it into a positive: do with them what you would like them to do with you.
Even sinners love those who love them. If you lend to him who can repay you: what grace do you receive? Thus in Greek: grace. Doing good for free gives us grace, beauty and joy. But there is also a reward that Jesus promises: to be children of the Most High. This is the name of Jesus according to the angel Gabriel. So the reward is to be like Him. The center of it all is: "Be merciful like your Father"with her maternal bowels of mercy. In the original, Jesus says "becomes"merciful: it is a way. Jesus teaches it to us. In the family, in the Church, in society: do not judge, do not condemn, forgive, give.
In this way, we will not be judged, we will not be condemned, we will be forgiven and we will receive as our reward a full and overflowing measure. The measureless measure of God's love. Therefore, shall we think that it is a grace to have enemies next door, or even in the same house, to love, to forgive, to do good, with the help of God that we will not lack?
The homily on the readings of Sunday, Sunday VII
The priest Luis Herrera Campo offers its nanomiliaa small one-minute reflection for these readings.
Pope Francis reforms the structure of the Doctrine of the Faith
This reform gives greater strength and autonomy to each section - Doctrinal and Disciplinary - in favor of evangelization and the promotion of the faith, without diminishing disciplinary activity.
"Keeping the faith"is the main task and the ultimate criterion to be followed in the life of the Church. And for this purpose the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith was created, which assumes this important task, thus assuming the doctrinal and disciplinary competencies attributed to it by the pontiffs before Francis.
Pope Francis has modified the structure of the Congregation through this motu proprio in order to make its work more effective. Specifically, he wanted to distinguish the Congregation into two sections: the Doctrinal Section and the Disciplinary Section.
The Doctrinal Section
On the one hand, the Doctrinal Section, through the Doctrinal Office, will deal with matters related to the promotion and protection of the doctrine of the faith and morals. It also fosters studies aimed at increasing the understanding and transmission of the faith in the service of evangelization, so that it may help in the understanding of the meaning of life, especially in the face of the questions raised by the progress of science and the development of society.
With regard to faith and morals, the Section will be responsible for examining documents to be published by other Dicasteries of the Roman Curia, as well as writings and opinions that appear to be problematic for the right faith, encouraging dialogue with their authors and proposing appropriate corrections to be made, so that these documents may be easily accessible to the public.
In addition, this Section is entrusted with the task of studying questions relating to the Personal Ordinariates established by the Apostolic Constitution Constitution Anglicanorum Coetibus. The Doctrinal Section is also responsible for the Matrimonial Bureau, which has been created to examine, both in law and in fact, all matters relating to the ".privileium fidei"and shall examine the dissolution of marriages between unbaptized persons or between a baptized person and an unbaptized person.
The Disciplinary Section
On the other hand, the Disciplinary Section, through its corresponding office, deals with infractions reserved to the Congregation and those which the latter deals with through the jurisdiction of the Supreme Apostolic Tribunal established there. Its task is to prepare and elaborate the procedures foreseen by the canonical norms so that the Congregation, in its various instances (Prefect, Secretary, Promoter of Justice, Congress, Ordinary Session, College for the examination of appeals in matters of delicta graviora), can promote the proper administration of justice.
The current configuration
The configuration of the Congregation was established by St. Paul VI, who in his motu proprio Integrae Servandae had changed the name of the Dicastery to the present Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. St. John Paul II also collaborated with its configuration, which, in the apostolic constitution Pastor Bonus specified its competencies.
I am sometimes envious when I see executives in suits prowling the street with an iPhone in front of them. That device can serve as an accessory that ennobles the presence, like a ring; or it can dissipate the embarrassment of the idler exposed to the public, like a cloak of invisibility. I, on the other hand, have a modest Huawei with 3 or 4 years of use, choked with an operating system that has been updated several times and that won't let me download WhatsApp videos because of the little memory it has left.
It was a sunny Valentine's Day morning. I was rushing off to the University while checking a message (a measly "haha"), when my cell phone fell to the ground. It landed on the side required by Murphy's law and shattered its screen. Fixing that, as you know, is almost as expensive as buying a new device; and the budget of a student like me can be severely resented with an unforeseen event of that caliber, so I was left hesitating whether to change it or wait. In the end I settled the matter with a vague but reassuring "I'll decide tomorrow".
That night I had a strange dream. I woke up in the darkness of the room with the urge to check the damage to my cell phone: I stretched out my arm to pick it up from the bedside table and hold it before my eyes. I would press the button on the side to turn it on, and then I would discover something unheard of: it had recovered, the glass was smooth again, shiny, like new!
Then the dream got worse: the cell phone unlocked and the notes app opened by itself. I panicked: I tried to turn it off, it didn't respond; I thought about throwing it out the window, but curiosity held me back. I sat on the edge of the bed, resting my elbows on my knees, and squinted to follow the stream of words that were running across the screen:
- Hi, Juan Ignacio, it's Wuawi... Happy Valentine's Day! I've been wanting to ask you something for years: Do you love me?
I choked and coughed - what an impertinence! But I soon recovered and went back to reading.
- Because love manifests itself in deeds, you know? For example, when will you buy me a new case? Don't tell me you can't find one, there are now more stores for cell phones than pharmacies for humans. Besides, street vendors in the big cities have long since stopped offering souvenirs I have been able to get rid of tourists in order to dedicate myself to the much more lucrative business, of course, of gifts for my family... except when it rains, then umbrellas sprout like mushrooms. Yeah, yeah, don't play dumb.
I kept reading with wide eyes, like a rabbit dazzled by the headlights of a car.
- As for your strategy to unlock my screen, you are not very creative: after 3 years of swiping and swiping drawing the Z of Zorro with your finger, don't you think it would be smarter to vary the route? Anyone who steals from me will be able to see... no longer a small trace on the glass, but a whole groove you have dug for me! It's just that you're... yes, yes, keep reading, I'm not finished!
I stopped reading. So many strokes in a short time had made me dizzy. Why put up with this? I tapped the screen, the keyboard popped up and interjected a few words, "Don't worry, I'll change you and you can rest."
- What are you saying, hey, have a little patience with me; Juanito (can I call you that?), don't be alarmed... it's not all criticism, I also want to thank you. For example, I feel safe in your pocket, do you remember the day we were on the bus and a lady shouted saying she had been robbed? Your first reaction was to check if I was still with you and only then did you check your back pocket to feel Wallet. Thanks for making me feel special.
That comforted me.
- I also like your gifts. While many friends are being tied to the end of a stick to be mercilessly exposed to the cold (with an instrument of torture they call "selfie stick"You gave me a beautiful metal plate to decorate my back, which also turned out to be perfect to anchor me on the heating grill of the car with a magnet. I love that wind massage, and even more that we can chat face to face on the road, like friends.
Then I laughed... but she said a few concluding words and then shut down:
- I know you well, Juani, and you need me. Despite my programmed obsolescence, I also want to continue with you. Just remember these two or three things I ask of you. I woke up, this time for real. I turned on the bedside lamp, jumped out of bed to check the integrity of my cell phone and saw with paradoxical relief that the crack in the screen was still there. However, it was true that I had been negligent with Wuawi: the Z on the glass and the rusty casing gave me away. And she's been good to me, I told myself. I smiled with glimpses of melancholy and, suddenly - I trust you won't take this as cheesy–I had the intriguing feeling that the cut in the glass was the drawing of a heart. That helped me decide.
Living the phases of a courtship properly: knowing and valuing the other and adapting to my life in all senses, is key to not having "avoidable surprises" in marriage.
Preparing for an Olympics is a tough task for athletes. Undoubtedly, without preparation, there is no personal success.
This, which seems so obvious, is not lived in other more personal facets such as, for example, in courtship, which is, or should be, the preparation for marriage.
Marriage failures, which we often see in our society, are in many cases a consequence of not living the courtship. Something else is being lived, but courtship, which should be a time in which we get to know the other person, to know if I can share my life with him/her, courtship, as I said, is not lived as such.
Therefore, many marriages pass their courtship once married, and others fail because they did not have a courtship.
From an affective point of view, it could be said that a courtship has four parts: desire, attraction, falling in love and love; at the beginning, there is a desire to be with the other, it is a good time, time goes very fast, their presence is exciting.
Then, or together with the desire to be together, there is a phase of physical attraction, which makes everything very beautiful and attractive. There is an emotional overflow.
These two phases that have no solution of continuity conclude in a habitual way, in an infatuation, where everything of the other seems well. What he does and what he says. One is like in a cloud. The continuous presence that one has of the other person, even if one is not with him/her, is tremendously attractive. It is confused with love.
We think we are loving with intensity. It seems impossible that this is not love.
It has to be. The emotional attachment is very great, it seems unbelievable that I could have lived until now without this person. Life appears meaningless if she is not with me in the future. A attention deficitJulián Marías called falling in love.
We think we love each other very much, but the reality is that love has not yet appeared. It is a good start to begin to love, but loving - besides affections, emotions - implies wanting the good of the other, quoting Aristotle's definition of friendship. What is best for the other as a person.
Love implies that I will often have to make an effort to love, it no longer comes only in the form of a feeling, as it did before. When you become aware of it, you start to love. You begin to see that the other person has defects, does things that bother me. It is coming down from the cloud, to be with her, sometimes, I may not feel like it. She demands things from me that I don't want to give, she doesn't want to give me things that I would like her to give me.
One is beginning to realize that love is demanding. It goes to the movies when I don't feel like it and doesn't go to soccer when I would like to. The struggle to love begins. Feelings have descended to a state of normalcy. Desire, attraction and infatuation become more mature.
It is time to realize if this is the person you were looking for to share your life with.
If it is not, it will be necessary to leave it, even if the attachment has not disappeared and leaving it is costly.
If, in the midst of desire, attraction and falling in love, sexual intercourse has taken place, then it is much more difficult, especially for the woman. In a sexual relationship, the woman gives her heart before her body. Hence the difficulty. Nevertheless, if it is not what you were looking for, you have to leave that person.
That's what dating is for, to find the right person to share your life with.
The awareness that one should not have had sex appears on many occasions.
Also the impotence to stop. If the desire to not have sex is manifested, it is possible to break the relationship. This is a manifestation of being together only for sex. Since, if it disappears, it is possible that the relationship is over. It is a symptom that this relationship was united only by sex, if that were to happen. In other words, it is not a relationship of courtship, but of lovers who are united by sex.
It is one of the great difficulties of confusing feelings, only feelings, with love.
The consequence of all this is to see a series of people with affective and sexual problems that, if they had known what each thing meant at each moment, would not have appeared.
Logically, the courtship would have been freer. And if in the end there is marriage, less dangerous.
We have to take into account that the attachment will disappear and freedom will appear, and with it you can rewind all the previous and think that one has married because there have been relationships in the courtship. Or because he was not able to break the relationship.
It is a dangerous time. You have to ask for help.
On the other hand, seen from a more rational point of view, which logically will be intermingled with the emotional, the phases of courtship could be said to be: consistency, trust and commitment.
The first indicates that we must get to know the other person, see what he says he believes and how he lives it. That is to say, if he is a coherent person, if the values he defends, he lives them. A person can say many things, but the important thing is what he does. We are what we do.
We must not confuse opinions and beliefs. An opinion is something I hold; I believe that this actor is better than that actor. Beliefs are what I hold. This is what we have to check.
If the values that you see the other person living, are those that you are looking for in the person with whom you would like to share your life, a trust is generated that grows with time and, sooner or later, generates commitment.
These phases of courtship, in many cases, are not being lived. At the moment you think you are loving each other because there is a certain attraction and a desire to be with each other, you have sexual relations and the rhythm of time is not the one that would be convenient.
Before the coherence of the other has been checked, by having sex, a commitment is generated that makes it impossible for the relationship to develop with the required rhythm and freedom. There is a lack of freedom. There is commitment when there should not be.
I have seen broken couples, due to the mess that sex puts into a dating relationship that probably would have ended in a good marriage.
With the "Motu Proprio" entitled "Custody of the Faith", the Pope divides the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith into two sections: a doctrinal section that deals with promoting and protecting the Church's teaching; and a disciplinary section for abuses committed in the Church.
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Saint Isidore the Farmer. 400 years of canonization and 850 years of devotion.
Saint Isidro Labrador, together with his wife, María de la Cabeza, are today an example of a Christian family, of workers and of holiness in a simple life.
Alberto Fernández Sánchez-February 13, 2022-Reading time: 3minutes
On March 12, 1622, Pope Gregory XV solemnly canonized five saints who, with the passage of time, would be recognized as great figures in the history of the Church: St. Philip Neri, St. Teresa of Jesus, St. Ignatius of Loyola, St. Francis Xavier and St. Isidore Labrador.
The news spread among the Italians, perhaps moved by a certain envy, that on that day the Pope had canonized four Spaniards and one saint. What is certain is that, of the five new saints, four were relatively contemporary, while the cult of St. Isidore had been going on for centuries.
In the present year 2022 we celebrate the fourth centenary of this great event for the Church, and also the 850th anniversary of the popular devotion to St. Isidore Labrador since his death, which according to the sources took place in the year 1172.
To celebrate this event, the Holy See has granted the Archdiocese of Madrid a Jubilee Year of St. Isidore, which will last from May 15, 2022 to May 15, 2023.
Madrid thus joins the major celebrations that will take place around March 12, including a solemn celebration of the Eucharist presided over by Pope Francis at the Gesù in Rome, and a recently announced Jubilee Year of St. Teresa in the diocese of Avila.
Holiness in the life of the Church is felt in the sentiments of God's faithful people.
The processes of beatification and canonization are perhaps one of the ecclesiastical events where the most important role is played by the sensus fideliumIn them the Church listens to the voice of the faithful who, in a spontaneous way, moved internally by the Spirit, ask for solemn recognition of what the faithful already know with certainty: that this person has lived and died a holy life, fulfilling the will of God, and that he or she can be held up as a model and intercessor before the Father.
Only a century after the death of St. Isidore, the codex of John Deacon gathered all this fame of sanctity of the saintly farmer from Madrid, his abandonment to the will of God, his love for the poor and needy, his trusting prayer, his work lived under the provident gaze of the Father.
What the Christians of Madrid transmitted to each other was put in writing in this codex, and centuries later, as we have said, on March 12, 1622, it was solemnly recognized by the papal magisterium. His cult spread rapidly throughout the Church, and it is not uncommon to find chapels and hermitages dedicated to this saint, who was also named patron saint of Spanish farmers by Pope John XXIII in 1960.
In Madrid, in addition, the famous relic of the sacred incorrupt body of Saint Isidro Labrador is kept and venerated, which has been preserved uninterruptedly since his death, and which, beyond the miracles of which he has been the protagonist, is another example of the devotion that the people of Madrid, with the kings and authorities at the head, have paid to this great saint.
When Christians venerate the relics of the saints, they do so supported by the certainty of the resurrection of the flesh promised by the Lord: our bodies are called to glory. On occasions of special relevance for the life of the city of Madrid and the archdiocese, the urn containing the incorrupt body of the saint has been opened so that the faithful could venerate his relics closely.
One of the central events of this Jubilee Year will be a solemn public exposition of the incorrupt sacred body for a whole week, something that has not taken place for more than thirty years, since the last one took place in 1985, on the occasion of the centenary of the diocese of Madrid.
And what does a small worker who lived and died more than nine centuries ago have to tell us today?
In a society so in need of models of family life, St. Isidore, together with his wife, St. Maria de la Cabeza, and his son, Illán, are given to us as a concrete example of a family that lives in mutual love. In a society so in need of encouragement and example for workers, the saintly farmer is given to us as a model of work that trusts in the providence of God the Father.
In a society, in short, jaded by lies and empty of meaning, in St. Isidore those words of the Lord are fulfilled: "I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and learned and revealed them to the simple. Yes, Father, it seemed better to you".
The authorAlberto Fernández Sánchez
Episcopal Delegate for the Causes of the Saints of the Archdiocese of Madrid
Perhaps one of the most impressive wonders of the Catholic faith is summed up in that phrase of the Creed "I believe in the resurrection of the body and the life everlasting." It doesn't end there.
February 12, 2022-Reading time: < 1minute
The good things, the good friends, your loves and mine, the ones that have made this world better do not end... because as the popular saying goes "this life deserves another one". And so it is.
Antoni Vadell, who enthusiastically embarked on this adventure of Omnes shortly before his illness was diagnosed, can only be explained in this way. He preferred Paradise, as he often repeated in recent months, and Paradise soon preferred Toni, and Francisco José, and Cristina, and Tito, and Angela and Juan...and all the names that you and I can put in this sentence.
All those who "deserved more time on earth" have deserved Heaven. Our human logic does not understand: young people, dedicated to the service and love of God in different ways, good people, loved by many. Why them?
Our human heart rebels against physical separation and, then, that Sunday, almost mechanically we recite that phrase of the Creed and everything, even if it hurts, takes on a new perspective: I believe that this is not over. I affirm, today, now, that, like that song -that I leave you- by Pablo Martinez, this is a "see you later".
For us, heaven has the name of a family: Father, Mother, Son and siblings, the name of Toni, Francisco José, Cristina, Tito, Angela and Juan, and the name of hope, the hope that our names will be next to theirs in the Book of Life.
Director of Omnes. Degree in Communication, with more than 15 years of experience in Church communication. She has collaborated in media such as COPE or RNE.
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José María TorralbaA Christianity with a bourgeois mentality is problematic".
An ambitious Master in Christianity and Contemporary Culture has just been presented on the campus of the University of Navarra in Madrid. Omnes spoke with José María Torralba, professor of Moral and Political Philosophy, who participated in its design. "Reinforcing humanistic training will help Christian thought in the great debates," he points out.
Rafael Miner-February 12, 2022-Reading time: 10minutes
He recognizes that "we are in a moment of crisis in the humanities", although he assures that "there are reasons for hope". He is in favor of betting on "humanistic training", and this is what he has launched at the University of Navarra. And he affirms "as a hypothesis", after many conversations with different people, that "from the sociological point of view, Christianity in Spain today can be described as bourgeois", in the sense of "not taking risks, having everything under control, defined", whose "superior value is stability. And a Christianity with a bourgeois mentality is problematic. Because it lacks the sense of mission that Christianity has always had".
The author of these and other reflections is José María Torralba (Valencia, 1979), professor of Moral and Political Philosophy and director of the Core Curriculum Institute at the University of Navarra, who has been a visiting researcher at the universities of Oxford, Munich, Chicago and Leipzig. Professor Torralba directs the Great Books Program at the University of Navarra, as you will see in the interview, and has just published the book "A Liberal Education. Elogio de los grandes libros", by Ediciones Encuentro, which will go on sale on March 1.
Like someone who has never broken a dish, in a calm voice, Professor Torralba says things that should be noted. For example, that his wish is that the Master's Degree in Christianity and Contemporary Culture presented in Madrid will serve "as a platform, or forum to participate in the cultural and intellectual debates that are currently taking place in our country, and as a way to be more present in Madrid. A forum for dialogue and meeting for all those who wish to come".
This week, more than 400 people gathered, in person and online, for a colloquium organized by the University of Navarra at its Madrid campus, on the occasion of the Master's program that will be launched in the next academic year 2022-23. Participants included Gregorio Luri, philosopher and educator; Lupe de la Vallina, photographer; and Ricardo Piñero, professor of Aesthetics and professor of the Master's program.
In this interview, José María Torralba unravels some of the inner workings of this Master's program, its gestation and the ideas behind it.
The new president of the University of Navarra, Maria IraburuD. in Biology, referred to Strategy 2025 when she took office: "Transformative teaching, research focused on social, environmental and economic issues, and interdisciplinary projects, such as the Bioma Center and its Science Museum, which will enable us to contribute to the great challenges of our time". Well, here is another one, "interdisciplinary", as José María Torralba calls it, "a shared project of the whole University", reveals the professor.
Where did you study, Professor?
-I studied philosophy at the University of Valencia, the public university, and I ended up in Navarra.
I have been the director of the Core Curriculum Institute at the University of Navarra since 2013, 9 years ago.
His latest book is about to come out, according to what has been leaked to us. And as Umbral said that he had gone to a program to talk about his book, I ask him about his.
-I picked it up yesterday from the publisher. It is materially published, and now the dissemination stage begins. The title is 'A liberal education. Eulogy of the great books', in Ediciones Encuentro. There I gather the experience of ten years of work on the Core Curriculum. This is a concept that is not well understood in Spain.
Define the Core Curriculum.
-Core Curriculum is the humanistic education aimed at students of any career in the university. That all students benefit from having a good humanistic foundation is the ideal of the Core Curriculum or liberal education, according to Newman's original term. It is an education that is not only pragmatic or utilitarian, focused on getting a job, but is the education of the free man. This vision connects with the classical world and the humanities.
In the book, I talk about this project, which we have in the University of Navarraand which also exists in a few other universities. In fact, the book is intended to be a vindication. Education in Spain would improve if we incorporated what some other good universities do, in the United States but also in Europe.
Specifically, I am talking about a methodology that is that of great books seminar. The idea is to make a list of classic works of literature and thought (Shakespeare, the Odyssey, Aristotle, etc.). The students read these books, and then in class, in small groups of 25 students, in a seminar format, they comment on them and talk about them, the major themes that are there. Another element is that the students must write argumentative essays, choosing a major theme: freedom, destiny, justice, love....
At the University of Navarra we started it eight years ago and it is called the Great Books Program. We have been running the program since Core Curriculum Institute. It is already consolidated, and is now attended by close to a thousand students.
It is interdisciplinary...
We call it inter-faculty, because in the classes there are students from various degrees: Architecture, Economics, Law...etc. This is very enriching and very university-like: to have different perspectives. These subjects are part of the curriculum. At the University of Navarra, as in other universities, the degrees now have 240 credits that students must take. Of those 240, there are 18, in our case, which are Core Curriculum, humanistic subjects. And we tell the students: one of the possibilities to take those 18 credits are the seminars of great books. These are subjects with evaluation, obligatory, but taking the great books seminars is optional.
Let us delve a little deeper. These educational commitments do not seem to be made just for the sake of it. Have we been witnessing for some time now a certain cancellation of the humanities, a crisis of the humanities?
-There is a general tendency in the Western world for education to be very much oriented to the labor market, to what is immediately useful. That is clear, and everything that goes in the direction of the spirit, of the humanistic, of culture or reflection, is left behind. I would say that in universities even more clearly. Although there are humanities degrees, which there still are, effectively, the bulk of education continues to be of a professional nature. This is not bad in itself, because the university has to have careers to qualify for professional life. The interesting thing about the great books program that we have discussed, and humanistic education in general, is that it can also be offered to engineering or medical students. I think that is the educational ideal. A good education is one that offers you a qualification, a specialized qualification, but it is not reduced to that, it is combined with a good humanistic base of reflection, of the ability to ask the big questions about society and life.
I would say that, although we are in a moment of crisis in the humanities, there are also reasons for hope. And movements. I can mention two, in which I am closely involved and familiar with. In Europe, for the last six years, there has been a group of professors from different countries, especially from Holland, England and Germany, who organized a European congress on the Core Curriculum, the 'Liberal Arts and Core Texts Education'.
What is the dominant idea?
- In the three editions held so far, we have brought together almost 400 teachers from Europe. All of them are interested in the idea that education should not be reduced to the utilitarian. Although it is still a minority, there is progress. And then there are countries like Holland, whose university system is especially dynamic - the Spanish system is very static, because it is very controlled by the State. There they have much greater creativity. In the last 10 or 15 years, quite a few institutions have appeared, which are called Liberal Arts College, and they put this idea into practice. Education does not have to be directly focused on obtaining a job, but to give you a more basic, broader and more humanistic education. That on the one hand.
On the other hand, there is an association, the Association for Core Texts and Courses (ACTC), in the United States, a country where this subject is more developed. It has many universities, large and small, that offer a liberal education in this sense of humanistic training.
Also, for example, in Chile there is a university that a few years ago implemented a very good great books program. I do not accept the pessimism that we in the humanities have because 'this is sinking' and there is nothing to do. Things can be improved, even if it is difficult.
Could this sowing of concerns be somehow linked to, or provoked by, the debate on the deficit of intellectuals and Christian thought on issues such as freedom, education, family, etc.?
- From the educational point of view of institutions that have a Christian ideology, which is where the question of where is the voice of Christians, or the Christian perspective in the great debates, I agree that it is absent, especially in our country. It is all the more striking because of the sociological change that has taken place in a few decades, from an officially Christian society. What are the causes? One of the main ones is the type of education offered in Christian institutions or in religious formation in parishes, which is not as good as it should be, or is not up to the needs of the moment.
If we look at other countries -the United States is the reference-, any university, but also colleges, with a Christian identity, always have a very solid humanistic formation program. This is still not so present in Spain.
Indeed, in this reflection that has been opened on the fact that something must be done to change, clearly one of the ways to improve is to strengthen humanistic education. And here I would say one thing that seems important to me: a Core Curriculum, or a program of great books, cannot be approached in a utilitarian sense. In fact, if you want people to approach religion with a utilitarian perspective, you would be going against Newman's principle of liberal education. The only goal has to be to educate, that is, to get people to think for themselves and, to do that, to know the cultural tradition.
That in Spain, in the end, those who have a program of great books are universities of Christian inspiration? That is true. Nor is it a coincidence. But this is not something instrumental, a kind of strategy, but the fruit of conviction. A Christian-inspired university is interested in truth and considers tradition important. For this reason, it is not by chance that we have made this commitment at the University of Navarra.
Master in Christianity and Contemporary Culture
In this line is situated, I suppose, the Master in Christianity and Contemporary Culture that the University of Navarra is launching. You have been involved in its gestation?
- The Master's program begins in September. The idea began to take shape almost three years ago, and is organized by the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters, in collaboration with the Faculty of Theology, the Core Curriculum Institute, the group of Science, Reason and Faith (CRYF) and the Institute for Culture and Society. It is a shared project of the entire University.
Although it comes out now, at a time when the debate of Christian intellectuals, of the academic and intellectual formation of people interested in Christianity, does not respond to this conjunctural situation. In any case, it comes at a very opportune moment. This is an idea.
The other idea that I can share, having been part of the commission that designed the Master's Degree, is that from the beginning there was an interest in it not being a Master's Degree in Humanities in general (in the sense of dealing with culture, or Christianity from history), nor a Master's Degree in Theology, but a Master's Degree in Christianity and Contemporary Culture.
For this, a large teaching staff (36 people) was thought of, because each subject has two teachers. There are professors of Theology, History, Philosophy, Literature, and also some of Science (Biology, Environment, etc.). And since the subjects are taught in pairs, it is easy for a philosopher and a theologian, a scientist and a theologian, etc. to coincide.
This helps interdisciplinary dialogue, which is very necessary, and also to ensure that the title of the Master's program is not misinterpreted, as if Christianity were on the one hand and contemporary culture on the other. The idea behind the Master's is that, in reality, there is a dialogue between both elements and that Christianity is present in contemporary culture, so that today's world is not foreign to Christianity.
There are also professors from other universities.
- Indeed. It is noteworthy that almost a third of the professors are not from the University of Navarra. There has been interest in having colleagues from Madrid, Valencia, and other places, for several reasons. First of all, the main objective of the Master's program is to offer a training program. For whom? We are thinking of professionals who want to better understand the contemporary world and its relationship with Christianity. It seems to us that this will be of great interest to people who work in the world of education, from secondary school to university, but also in the world of culture, journalists... It is a Master's degree that will enable them to create a qualified opinion on all these issues.
We would also like the Master's Degree to serve as a platform, a forum, to participate in the cultural and intellectual debates that are currently taking place in our country, and to be a way to be more present in Madrid. We intend to create a forum for dialogue and meeting for anyone who wants to come.
Christianity today
Sometimes Nietzsche (God is dead) or Azaña (Spain is no longer Catholic) come to mind. In some laws of not a few countries it is difficult to appreciate the dignity of the person. Are we afraid to dialogue?
- I can think of two answers. One, which also connects with the Master, is the idea of hope. The Christian is someone who lives with hope, because he has an origin and a destiny, and knows that the world has a meaning. We are not in a situation of nihilism, in which God is dead or has abandoned us.
I think that this experience of hope is becoming more present right now, and I could give examples from the field of literature or cultural creation. We have been in a cultural situation for some decades where there was no longer any remnant of the religious, at least publicly, that was relevant, and what is emerging in the last two or three years is a kind of longing. The reason is that it is a human need: to seek and find meaning in life, and the main source of meaning is religious. It is not the only one, but it is the main one.
We are in a very interesting moment, in which Christianity continues to have a proposal, as always, but perhaps now more people can appreciate it, in contrast to what we have been living in recent years. And then I would underline: what should be the Christian proposal today? There are still many ethical challenges, without a doubt. These are challenges that must not be abandoned. But the focus should be on showing why Christianity is a source of hope for the life of individuals and society. Because otherwise, in the end, we have an inhuman world: dominated by success, money or results. In the face of this inhuman world, Christian hope rises up.
And in relation to Spanish society?
-I would dare to formulate a hypothesis, because I have been talking about it for some time with a variety of people, and I see a good deal of agreement. It is the following. From the sociological point of view, Christianity in Spain at present can be described as bourgeois. I explain this. When I say bourgeois, I am not referring to the social class, but bourgeois in mentality. According to the dictionary of the Royal Academy, bourgeois is the person for whom the highest value is stability: not to take risks, to have everything controlled and defined. And a Christianity with a bourgeois mentality is problematic, because it lacks the sense of mission that Christianity has always had. Why don't more Christians decide to get involved in public life? Perhaps because Christian formation is received in a bourgeois intellectual and social framework.
We are accommodated.
- The bourgeois mentality goes a little further. It's not that it's more comfortable, which it is, but that you don't even see the need to get involved, to do something. It's not that you are lazy, but that you don't see the need. On the other hand, the natural consequence of having a conception of life, of having a hope, is to want to share it, to propose it to society, because it seems good to you.
We concluded the conversation with José María Torralba. I do not know if you will like the headline, because the topic came up almost at the end, and there were excellent options. But it has been a pleasure to chat with this young Valencian professor, a man who thinks, embedded in the humanities, but one hundred percent "interfaculty" with the Core Curriculum and the Master, at the University of Navarra.
The Church teaches us that "the plan of divine revelation is realized in deeds and words intrinsically connected with each other". (Dei Verbum, n. 2). We see this fulfilled in the Gospel where we meet Jesus who "began to make and teach" (Acts 1:1). His public life is intermingled with "words and deeds, signs and wonders."thus bringing divine promises to fulfillment "to deliver us from the darkness of sin and death and to raise us to eternal life." (Dei Verbum, n. 4). The Gospels bear witness to this perfect harmony of Jesus' deeds and sayings: "He went through all Galilee preaching in their synagogues and casting out demons." (Mk 1:39), so that Jesus, with his word, at the same time that he teaches, saves.
In the synagogues
Jesus, as a good Israelite, went to the synagogue on the Sabbath, in the cities and villages he visited, and took the initiative to teach the meaning of the Scriptures in a new way, creating a strong impression on the listeners. This is what happened when he entered Capernaum: "As soon as the Sabbath came, he went into the synagogue and began to teach. And they were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes." (Mk 1:21-22). Moreover, on that same occasion, he cast a demon out of a man who was in the synagogue. When he saw him, "they were all stupefied, so that they asked each other: -What is this? A new teaching with power. He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him." (Mk 1:27). This first preaching and the first miracles of Jesus made his fame spread to the rest of the world. "soon everywhere" (Mk 1:28), so that they followed him "great multitudes from Galilee, Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and beyond the Jordan." (Mt 4:25).
Home and away
Such was the fame of Jesus, "that he could no longer enter openly into any city, but remained outside, in solitary places. But they came to him from everywhere." (Mk 1:45). We see Jesus obliged to carry out his public ministry outside the urban centers of Galilee, turning the unpopulated land into a busy place. But he had to return; the evangelist tells us that Jesus, "after a few days" (Mk 2:1) returned to Capernaum. We can think that he arrived by stealth, after entering by a secondary entrance to the city, so as not to be seen by the people. But Jesus is very well known in Capernaum: he is "your city" (Mt 9:1), since, returning to Galilee from Judea, he had left Nazareth (cf. Mt 4:13); and there he has a house, most probably Peter's (cf. Mk 1:29). On another occasion, at the door of the house there was crowded together "the whole city": There they brought the sick and demon-possessed to him and he cured them (cf. Mk 1:32-34). As was to be expected, "it became known that he was at home and so many people gathered that there was no longer room even at the door". (Mk 2:2). Once again, the house of Capernaum was the meeting place of a crowd that was not satisfied with the weekly preaching in the synagogue, but was hungry for the word of God. The words that the Lord addressed to Moses were fulfilled: "Man does not live by bread alone, but by everything that proceeds out of the mouth of the Lord." (Dt 8:3). And Peter's house became an improvised synagogue, for in the presence of the crowd Jesus "preached the word to them" (Mk 2:2).
Your sins are forgiven
Already when he was in the synagogue Jesus had healed a demoniac; on this other occasion, "at home" (Mk 2:1), during the preaching, "they came bringing him a paralytic, carried by four".. Because of the huge crowd it was impossible to get him close to Jesus, so, making a hole in the ceiling, they lowered him on his stretcher so that he was facing Jesus. This time it was he who was admired: "When he saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, "Son, your sins are forgiven you." (Mk 2:5). Everyone would expect another healing prodigy; however, these words were new. Undoubtedly, some would think that the cause of that sickness was the man's sins, according to the widespread mentality of the time. Others, the simpler ones, would be convinced of the divine power of Jesus, also to forgive sins. But the scribes present there "They thought in their hearts, 'Why does this man speak like this? He blasphemes. Who can forgive sins but God alone?'" (Mk 2:7). In the latter, they were right, but they did not have faith.
It is significant that this phrase is accurately reported in the three gospels that narrate the miracle (Matthew, Mark and Luke): "Your sins are forgiven you.". In the rest of the narrative there are slight variations, as is usual in the parallel passages of the synoptic Gospels. It is an expression in passive voice whose agent subject is God, but it is not quoted, out of respect for the divine name: it is called in biblical exegesis "divine passive".
After forgiving sins, Jesus heals the paralytic, thus confirming his divinity. Therefore, the Master of Nazareth is Jesus, "God who saves" with his word. At the end, seeing the paralytic completely healed, "they were all amazed and glorified God, saying, 'We have never seen anything like it.'" (Mk 2:12).
"There is a current that wants to destroy Benedict XVI and his work."
Following the Pope Emeritus' statement, the German media reacted accusingly. In the meantime, the German bishops made brief statements or avoided making any pronouncements. Bishop Georg Gänswein speaks of a "campaign" against Benedict XVI.
In the media, the reactions to the letter of Benedict XVI of February 8 The reactions of the Pope emeritus, with few exceptions, would almost certainly have been the same, whatever he wrote: from those who accuse him of using "tricks" to dismiss his "personal responsibility" (Georg Löwisch in the weekly "Die Zeit") to the theologian Doris Reisinger who calls the Pope's letter a "mockery for those affected" and criticizes Benedict's referring to Jesus as "friend", "brother" and "advocate", because "to the ears of those affected" that sounds as if Jesus "is not on their side, but on the side of those who have tormented, ignored and hurt them".
However, in "Der Spiegel", Thomas Fischer - a member between 2000 and 2017 of the German Supreme Court, and since 2013 its President - writes: "Since 1945, there have been seven archbishops in Munich. During that same time, seven bishops of Rome ruled the Church: Pius XII, John XXIII, Paul VI, John Paul I, John Paul II, Benedict XVI and Francis. And that is not counting the number of auxiliary bishops, vicars general and judicial vicars. Now, one of those mentioned has had to "apologize". He will soon be 95 years old and, by his own admission, he made a mistake in refusing to attend a meeting held 42 years ago. Predictably, that did him no good. He is required to apologize again, and again, and again. And, what's more, a full-fledged one.
More surprising are the reactions of precisely those bishops who demanded explanations from the Pope emeritus. The president of the DBK, Bishop Bätzing, merely wrote on Twitter, to express satisfaction with Benedict's letter and his apology to the victims of abuse. "The Pope emeritus had promised to speak and now he has done so. I thank him for it and he deserves respect for it."
For his part, the current Archbishop of Munich, Cardinal Reinhard Marx, made a brief statement welcoming the letter: "I am pleased that my predecessor as Archbishop of Munich and Freising, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, has commented on the publication of the opinion of the law firm WSW in a personal letter. However, he also emphasized that the report, "the results of which Benedict's lawyers doubt," is taken very seriously in the diocese.
On the other hand, Bishop Franz-Josef Overbeck of Essen has openly criticized the statement of the Pope emeritus: "I am afraid that the statement will not be of much help to those affected in dealing with their past. I am concerned that those affected by sexual violence have reacted with disappointment and partly with indignation to the former Pope's statements about his time as Archbishop of Munich and Freising." Other bishops, such as Bishop Franz Jung of Würzburg and Bishop Bertram Meier of Augsburg, declined to comment when asked by the DPA press agency.
And the President of the ZdK says that the statement "lacks empathy for those affected", so that "Pope Benedict's second reaction is unfortunately not convincing".
In the meantime, bishops from other European countries have also spoken out: Cardinal Dominik Duka, Archbishop of Prague, is critical of the preparation of a report on sexual abuse by a law firm; the events connected with it have caused him "astonishment and shame". Specifically, he referred to the case of the priest "H.": in 1980, "according to the canon law then and now in force," the Archbishop of Munich had no authority over a priest coming from the diocese of Essen. Nor could he refuse to have him transferred to Munich for psychiatric treatment: "If he had refused the possibility of such a priest being treated, his behavior would have been inhuman and unchristian".
For his part, the bishop of Fréjus-Toulon, in the south of France, Msgr. Dominique Rey, describes as "unjust" the treatment being given to Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI. "It is even slanderous not to recognize that Benedict XVI has played a decisive role in improving the treatment of sexual crimes in the Church. Benedict tirelessly reminded us of the need to repent, to purify the Church and to learn to forgive," although he always made it clear that forgiveness is no substitute for justice. "As a pioneer in the fight against abuse, Benedict XVI took it upon himself, in word and deed, to bring about in the Church a greater awareness of the evil of sexual abuse."
The mostly accusatory reactions - almost all of them without adhering to the facts refuted in the study of Benedict's advisors - demanding a "full-fledged" confession of personal guilt has led Bishop Georg Gänswein to speak out - in an interview with the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera- of a "campaign" against the Pope emeritus. "There is a current that really wants to destroy his person and his work", a current that "has never loved him, his theology or his pontificate" and many are fooled by this "cowardly attack". Those who know Benedict - he continued - know that "the accusation that he lied is absurd"; one must know "how to distinguish between an error and a lie".
For his part, Pope Francis - at Wednesday's general audience - thanked Benedict XVI for his words on his approaching death. He recalled that the Pope emeritus had recently spoken of being "at the dark door of death". He added: "It is beautiful to thank the Pope who, at 95, is still so lucid. It was wonderful advice that Benedict gave. "Christian faith does not dispel the fear of death," Francis said, but "only through faith in the resurrection can we face the abyss of death without being overwhelmed by fear.
The precedents
In the presentation -on January 20- of the report on sexual abuse committed in the diocese of Munich-Freising between 1945 and 2019, prepared by the law firm Westpfahl Spilker Wastl (WSW) on behalf of the diocese, Benedict XVI was accused of "not having reacted adequately or in accordance with the norms to cases of (alleged) abuse that had come to his attention" in four cases; special attention was given to the case of a priest "H." -to which a special volume of more than 350 pages was devoted. In particular, the report reproached the Pope emeritus for the fact that, in his answer to the questions put to him by WSW's lawyers in preparing the report, Benedict had replied that he was not present at a certain meeting of the diocesan curia on January 15, 1980, at which it was a question of accommodating the priest, since he was moving from Essen to Munich for psychiatric treatment. However, the lawyers presented evidence that he had been present.
Immediately afterwards, voices were raised demanding explanations from the Pope emeritus, including those of several bishops such as the President of the German Bishops' Conference (DBK), Bishop Georg Bätzing, the person in charge of abuse at the DBK, Bishop Stefan Ackermann ("For many believers, it is difficult to understand and to endure that even a former Pope is accused of serious misconduct"). Stefan Ackermann ("for many believers it is difficult to understand and to bear that even a former Pope is accused of serious misconduct"), as well as the Bishop of Mainz, Bishop Peter Kohlgraf, and the Central Committee of German Catholics ZdK, whose President Irme Stetter-Karp called it "shameful" that Benedict XVI "did not admit to improper behavior".
On January 24, the Pope emeritus' secretary, Msgr. Georg Gänswein, issued a statement correcting the information: "Benedict wishes to clarify that, contrary to what he stated in response to the lawyers' questions, he did participate in the curia meeting of January 15, 1980". Furthermore, the Pope Emeritus "wishes to emphasize that the objectively erroneous statement was not made with malice, but was an oversight in the editing of his statement."
Bishop Gänswein announced that Benedict XVI would make a lengthy statement explaining how this mistake in the wording could have occurred. This happened with a letter from the Pope Emeritus himself on February 8, accompanied by a report prepared by four collaborators - three specialists in canon law, as well as another lawyer - in which they explained in great detail how the "transcription error" had occurred; They also refuted the other accusations point by point and, based on the answer given by one of the WSW lawyers to a journalist's question, made it clear that they had no proof of any "guilt" of the then Cardinal Ratzinger, but that their accusations were based on assumptions of probability.
In the mid-nineteenth century, in southern Spain, a girl in love with her boyfriend begins to experience signs that will lead her to question her entire existence. A century later, two partisans loot and burn a shrine in Barcelona, taking with them a cloth sack with a curious and macabre content.
Personal aspect of the supernatural, Petra de San José tells a story of sanctity and redemption, through jumps in time that tell the story of two tomb robbers during the Spanish Civil War, as well as the story of a woman waiting for her happy marriage. The film is born with the vocation of showing the goodness of a saint during her lifetime and the graces she continues to bestow after her death. To do so, it begins in the deep Andalusia of the 19th century, in the wanderings of a laughing girl in love who begins to experience divine signs that gradually change her way of life. First she will break up with her boyfriend, and little by little she will adopt rules of piety that will lead her to her true vocation: caring for the poor and helpless.
Intertwining the sacking of the Royal Sanctuary of San José de la Montaña, the death of Prim and the uprising of 1936, Petra de San José (1845-1906) is a historical-religious film that portrays the tragedy of a poor Spain, which had in the drama of this persevering character a work recognized in his beatification by St. John Paul II (1994). Modestly but carefully produced, the touching story of surrender also provides a somewhat sanitized but transparent testimony about the situation in Spain during both the 19th and 20th centuries, as well as the role of the religious congregations of the Catholic Church, especially the Mothers of the homeless.
With a careful hand and measured cinematography, Pablo Moreno, Pedro Delgado and Andrés Garrido, who between them put together a copious filmography of piousness.Holy Land. The last pilgrim (reviewed in Omnes), Fatima, Poveda, Claret, Freedom Network, etc.They bring us a careful production, with a large cast and respectable numbers. A stimulating play for all audiences, which tells the story of a challenging but inspiring journey.
Voice of the Mass. Read and proclaim the Word of God well
The experience of unclear or confusing diction in the reading of liturgical celebrations is what has led a journalist and professional announcer to start Voz de Misa, short courses to learn how to read in liturgical celebrations.
"When the sacred Scriptures are read in the Church, God himself speaks to his people, and Christ, present in his word, proclaims the Gospel. For this reason the readings from the Word of God, which give the Liturgy an element of the greatest importance, should be listened to by all with veneration.
In texts that are to be pronounced in a loud and clear voice, whether by the priest or by the deacon, or by the lector, or by all, the voice should respond to the nature of the respective text, whether it is a reading, prayer, monition, acclamation or hymn, as well as to the form of the celebration and the solemnity of the assembly.
In addition, the nature of the various languages and the nature of the peoples must be taken into account". These words from the General Instruction of the Roman Missal speak for themselves of the importance not only of listening to, but also of proclaiming the Word of God in liturgical celebrations. Both listening and reading are key to achieving an encounter with Christ, the Incarnate Word, with each of the faithful.
However, the experience of many of the faithful at Sunday or daily Masses, as well as at other celebrations, is far from this affirmation. Too often the readings are not prepared in advance, the texts are not known or are read with a monotonous or meaningless intonation, which makes it difficult for those listening to understand and reflect on them.
The repetition of this experience and the realization that this reality was more than widespread was what led Angel Manuel Perez, journalist and professional radio and television broadcaster, to prepare specific courses for those who read, regularly or sporadically, in the various liturgical celebrations.
"When I went to Mass, I found that I could not hear or understand what the laity read at the ambo, says the journalist. Specializing in voice-over in audiovisual media, Ángel did not hesitate to do his bit to try to improve, as far as possible, those public reading skills that many people, who are not communication professionals, do not have developed.
A personal service
"I decided to start offering this course in different parishes in the archdiocese of Madrid." Little by little, this initiative has been spreading throughout Spain and there are numerous parishes, brotherhoods, schools and youth groups in which Angel Manuel has taught the main tools to convey the Word of God in a clear way.
Among the main mistakes we tend to make when reading, for example, during a Eucharistic celebration are the following "go out to read the Word of God without having prepared the text by reading it beforehand. I always recommend reading it aloud twice". before the celebration, in order to ensure that "read something they understand. Readers have to understand what they read, so that the faithful will understand it"..
In this sense, as Perez also emphasizes, knowing and reading Sacred Scripture on a regular basis is another of the bases for being able to proclaim it correctly.
At present, the premise fides ex auditu is perhaps one of the most important realities in the Church, since many people only have contact with Sacred Scripture during liturgical celebrations. It is therefore important to know what we read because, as this professional points out, "the reader communicates the Word of God not only with the words pronounced correctly but also the conviction, the tone, the volume, the voice inflections according to the phrases, etc.".
Angel Manuel has been professionalizing this course in such a way that, in a short time, he prepares interested people, adults, young people or children to face a public reading, something that is often costly. His web page www.vozdemisa.com gives an example of this. In it, he collects some basic tips and shows the different reader's courses he has been giving since he started, in a completely personal way, this work.
At present, it teaches some 150 courses a year throughout Spain.
Liturgical lector course
The Mass Reader Course "It is an intensive course, lasting three and a half hours. It contains a first part of an hour and a half in which I loosen up and relax the participants. After a 15-minute break, the second part begins, in which I focus on helping them, one by one, to make themselves heard and understood. And they succeed"..
A basic premise is, obviously, to have a certain daily reading habit. A point that is increasingly difficult to find, and not only in young people. Moreover, this personal daily reading, as Angel Manuel points out, will be much more effective if everyone who reads on a regular basis, "read a few minutes out loud. I do it every day as a professional"..
Angel Manuel Perez, who has been working with the voice all his professional life, is clear that in many occasions at present "the management of the spoken voice is totally neglected.".
For his students, he provides examples and simple habits to help them improve beyond the three intensive hours of his Mass lector course. "Something very useful." notes "for readers is for them to imitate a professional."a radio or television announcer.
In addition, once the course is completed, "To all the groups I send the Sunday readings read by me via WhatsApp. In this way, with the text and listening to me, they have a sure way to improve. I have more than twenty WhatsApp groups to which I send these audios every week. In total, about 300 people and I have more and more groups".
A key participation of the laity
On January 23, Sunday of the Word, Pope Francis granted the ministry of lector and acolyte to women. An opening that "will increase the recognition, also through a liturgical act (institution), of the precious contribution that for a long time many lay people, including women, have been making to the life and mission of the Church". and which shows that care in the proclamation of the Word of God, as Angel Manuel Perez emphasizes "it is an essential task for the participation of the laity.".
Celso Morga: "We are committed to eradicating child abuse".
The Spanish bishops are "committed to eradicate" the abuse of minors, and "help the victims, trying to repair the damage. They study for this "case by case, also those of the past," said the Archbishop of Merida-Badajoz, Monsignor Celso Morga, in an article published today on the Omnes website.
María José Atienza / Rafael Miner-February 10, 2022-Reading time: 4minutes
"All Catholics are pained in our souls by these facts that have as their object a grave matter before God and that are grave crimes also before men, leaving indelible negative traces on those who are victims," he begins by stating in Omnes the Archbishop of Mérida - Badajoz, Celso Morga.
Monsignor Morga assures that "the bishops in Spain, in communion with the Holy Father and the entire universal Church, are committed to eradicating, as far as possible, these absolutely unacceptable behaviors in all areas of society and, even more so, in the Church".
The Spanish Episcopal Conference, for its part, "has sent to Rome for approval a very extensive and detailed General Decree on how to deal with abuses in the Church, whose approval we are awaiting.
At the same time, "each Diocese has created an Office for the Protection of Minors and Prevention of Abuse to receive complaints, accompany and assist victims as a preliminary step to criminal legal treatment if appropriate".
A false interpretation
Monsignor Celso Morga wishes to avoid any possible confusion. "The initiative of some political parties for Congress [it seems that it will be the Ombudsman] to examine cases of abuse in the Church," he says, "should not be interpreted as if the bishops are not doing anything, nor are they interested in clarifying cases of abuse, nor the pain of the victims. This is not the case.
"In the Episcopal Conference it did not seem convenient to create a national Commission to examine the cases of abuse committed, as has been done, for example, by the French Episcopal Conference -adds the Archbishop of Emerita-, "because it seemed that it is a way that does not solve the problem.
These initiatives bring to light an absolute number of cases, which subsequently receive well-founded criticism as to their statistical accuracy because it is objectively difficult, over such a long time span, to be precise.
Case by case study
"To the Spanish Episcopal Conference, until now, it has seemed more effective and fair to study case by caseThe same applies to past cases, but with procedural guarantees and an attitude of sincere and Christian help to the victims, trying by all means to repair the damage, as far as possible".
Archbishop Celso Morga recognizes that, "perhaps in the past we did not take sufficiently into consideration, neither in the Church nor in society in general, the enormous gravity of these facts, which on the other hand are linked to our human condition, which struggles in an endless combat against what is not worthy of the human being. It is time to react and for all of us to make every effort to stop, as far as possible, these deplorable events".
"We are sincerely committed to this in the Church and the Lord will help us," concludes Archbishop Morga.
He is not the only Spanish bishop who, in recent days, has spoken out on this issue. A sad issue that, although it comes from afar, in recent weeks has returned to the forefront after the government's announcement of commissioning a commission of inquiry into sexual abuse in the Church.
This is in addition to the recent visit ad limina The meeting of the Spanish prelates in which the management and reparation of these terrible acts was one of the topics discussed with Pope Francis who, shortly before, had received a dossier containing 251 reports of abuse in the last seventy years referring to Spanish clerics, diocesan priests and religious prepared by a Spanish newspaper.
Bishops such as the Bishop of Burgos, Mario Iceta, have also thanked the media and others for their efforts to help us clarify the facts guided by the principle of truth and justice, to repair as far as possible the damage caused, to hold accountable those who have committed such crimes, and to do everything possible to ensure that these events do not happen again.
For his part, the bishop spokesman of the EEC, Luis Argüello, has reiterated his willingness to investigate all cases that may have been committed in the ecclesiastical sphere and the seriousness of these cases, regardless of whether they are many or few.
"We want to know the truth."
In this regard, the video published by the Spanish Episcopal Conference in which the director of the Episcopal Commission for Social Communications, José Gabriel Vera, points out that, although cases of abuse of minors in the Church are estimated at around 0.2% (Data from the ANAR Foundation), "even if there was only one case for the Church it is something serious and terrible, which it has to look at and take care of. We cannot say that the cases are not significant. They are painful and cause great shame," says the director of the Episcopal Commission for Social Communications.
In addition, Vera points out the desire of the Spanish Church to "know the truth, to know how many cases there have been, under what circumstances they have occurred and why these people have been treated badly". A knowledge aimed at the prevention of these cases and the creation of safe spaces.
Diocesan offices
What is certain is that the Catholic Church in Spain has promptly set up offices for the protection of minors and the presentation of complaints of abuse committed.
These offices, as José Gabriel Vera explains, "seek to welcome, from the point of view of restorative accompaniment, the victims and to put their demands in the appropriate channel". These offices differ from the legal channel established for the denunciation of cases committed by priests and religious.
In fact, its work is directed to all those who have suffered abuse, whether or not the statute of limitations has expired or the abuser has died, and even to people who have suffered abuse in areas other than the ecclesiastical sphere.
In addition, many dioceses, religious orders and Catholic schools have implemented common processes for the protection of minors, protocols for educational centers and training for teachers and students for the detection and prevention of child abuse.
As Vera emphasizes, "all victims deserve reparations". Even though there is still a long way to go and to investigate, the Spanish Church does not shirk its responsibility and action in this painful but necessary task.
Cristián Sahli, priest and writer: "Marriage and celibacy are paths to happiness".
Interview with Cristián Sahli, Chilean priest and writer. His work reflects his interest in spreading knowledge of a valuable life, entertaining and transmitting positive messages. We talked about this and about his latest book, about marriage and celibacy, as "two wonderful gifts".
Throughout history there have been many Catholic priests who have written books of various kinds. Theologian writers such as St. Thomas Aquinas and, in contemporary times, Joseph RatzingerOthers who have published ascetic works such as St. Alphonsus Liguori and St. Josemaría Escrivá; priest poets such as José Miguel Ibáñez; disseminators of the Catholic faith such as Leo Trese; priest historians such as Hubert Jedin and José Orlandis.
Less frequent are the priests who have written novels such as saint John Henry Newman. This is the case of Cristian Sahli (1975), Chilean, with a degree in Law and a doctorate in Canon Law, priest since 2010. In the last five years he has published biographical books, novels and short stories in Chile, Spain and France. He has received awards in Spain and Chile. His biographies include Would you dare to go to Chile? A portrait of Adolfo Rodríguez Vidal (he is the pioneer priest of Opus Dei in Chile, who arrived in 1950), published by Rialp, and José Enrique. Among his novels are The agony of Julian Bacaicoa (Didaskalos, 2019), a juvenile: The big puzzle (Palabra, 2020); another realistic-historical: Two daughters of the great earthquake (Didaskalos, 2021). He has written the short story entitled Captain Chocolateanother Christmas one called A lucky donkey and an award-winning micro-story. He has also ventured into the spiritual theological field with Two wonderful gifts (Rialp, 2021), on Christian marriage and celibacy.
Through these books we can appreciate his interest in spreading the knowledge of a valuable life, entertaining and transmitting positive messages. His biographical sketch and his works can be found at www.cristiansahliescritor.cl.
Cristián, your literary vocation is relatively late, since your first book appears in 2017. What motivates you to write?
I would say that the ripe fruits are late, but I always had a penchant for writing. In high school I won some contests, I made a bulletin for the class, and in college, a periodical. I can't explain the origin of my taste for writing, but it probably comes from an innate creative desire. My current motivation for writing stems from the possibility of transmitting, to a tired and often hopeless world, examples of successful lives and ideas of human and spiritual content.
You have ventured into several literary genres. Do you consider yourself a multifaceted author or have you not yet found your true niche as a writer?
I consider myself an amateur who has the desire to grow and better fulfill his vocation and profession, so I try to improve myself and face new challenges. I began with biographical sketches, then I ventured into literary fiction, and finally I published my first spiritual book. I try to develop each style respecting its own rules. There is nothing more repulsive than trying to read a moralizing or implausible novel.
How can you write fiction in Christian?
Fiction has its own rules and does not talk about religion. However, the characters in a good novel make decisions that always carry with them a moral value. That is where the true value of a literary text comes into play, in the relationship of those actions with happiness. Edith Wharton said that "a good theme, then, must contain within itself something that sheds light on our moral experience. If it is incapable of this expansion, of this vital irradiation, then, however showy the surface it presents, it is no more than a mere out-of-place occurrence, a meaningless piece of fact torn out of its context." That's what I'm trying to do, to make the characters show their humanity, and for them to show it fully, their orientation to the divine is necessary. I remember reading that Evelyn Waugh once said that characters without reference to God are not true characters.
Do you see any relationship between literary fiction and catechesis?
Yes, in terms of renewing the way of transmitting the faith to each generation. In this regard, it is worth recalling the words of Pope Francis in Evangelii GaudiumIt is desirable that each particular Church encourage the use of the arts in its evangelizing task, in continuity with the richness of the past, but also in the vastness of its present multiple expressions, in order to transmit the faith in a new way". parabolic language. We must dare to encounter the new signs, the new symbols, a new flesh for the transmission of the Word, the diverse forms of beauty that are valued in different cultural settings, and even those unconventional modes of beauty, which may be of little significance to evangelizers, but which have become particularly attractive to others".
How do you choose topics for your novels?
I want the plot and the lives of the characters to be marked by the deep moral dilemmas of existence. The old and successful doctor, Julián Bacaicoa, wonders in his agony if his life has been happy. Miguel Russo and Almudena, his companion, are wondering, as they leave adolescence, what are the appropriate choices for a life full of possibilities, as many as the pieces of a big puzzle. Amelia Candau and Erika Baier, after the unparalleled catastrophe of the Valdivia earthquake and tsunami, face the dilemma of giving meaning to their lives after experiences of pain and death. All my writings speak, deep down, of the redeeming value of love.
And what is your opinion of today's readers?
It is said that novels have different reading levels, and that is why there are different types of readers, who decipher more or less messages in the text. Some are content with mere distraction, others notice historical, psychological, geographical, sociological elements, but only the most cultivated readers discover the anthropological background. I have the best opinion of the readers, and I hope that in reading it everyone will be able to access the third level. For my part, I try to base my works on a Christian anthropological vision and it is up to the readers to judge whether I succeed.
Why treat Christian marriage and celibacy together in your spiritual book "Two Wonderful Gifts"?
Because these are two great loves on which the whole existence of a person can be based, and although they are different, they have many points in common. Both are paths to happiness, since they allow us to give ourselves and to receive from others; both are fruitful realities, which enable us to live fatherhood and motherhood, provide companionship, and allow us to live with God in a special way.
In the de-Christianized culture in which many Western countries live, celibacy is considered a rarity from ancient times. What is your contribution to a greater understanding of celibacy in "Two Wonderful Gifts"?
Celibacy has been hidden from the horizon of many young people because to understand it requires faith. The person who lives celibacy for the sake of the Kingdom of Heaven renounces marriage because he or she accepts an invitation from God to love him without sharing his heart and to occupy himself more immediately with his divine projects in the world. Perhaps my contribution can be expressed in these words from the book: "I think that the celibate person for the Kingdom of Heaven must be defined on the basis of what he has received and not on what he lacks. It is true that he has not married and will not marry, but the most important thing is not what he has left. The main thing is that she has found something that is better for her, a gift that she has received in addition".
Any new literary projects in the pipeline?
God willing, there will be a book of illustrated Christmas stories, and a biographical sketch of a Chilean priest who exercised his pastoral ministry in Africa.
These days the media have been informing us of the initiative of some political parties for the Congress of Deputies to examine the abuse of minors within the Catholic Church. In the end, it seems that it will be the Ombudsman who will carry out the investigation.
February 10, 2022-Reading time: 2minutes
All Catholics are pained in our souls by these acts, which are a grave matter before God and which are also grave crimes before mankind, leaving indelible negative marks on those who are the victims: "Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me. But whoever scandalizes one of these little ones who believe in me, it would be better for him to have one of those millstones hung around his neck which the asses move, and to be drowned in the depths of the sea." (Mt 18:5-6).
The bishops in Spain, in communion with the Holy Father and the entire universal Church, are committed to eradicating, as far as possible, this absolutely unacceptable behavior in all areas of society and, even more so, in the Church.
Especially in recent years, the Apostolic See has publicly asked for forgiveness on several occasions and has made a strong commitment to shed light on what happened and to the reparation of the victims as a priority.
Thus, Pope John Paul II published, in 2001, the motu proprio "Sacramentorum sanctitatis tutela"(The protection of the sanctity of the Sacraments), which was followed, in the time of Pope Francis, by the reform of Book VI (book on penalties) of the Code of Canon Law and, in 2019, again by a motu proprio of Pope Francis entitled "Vos estis lux mundi" (You are the light of the world).
The Spanish Episcopal Conference, for its part, has sent to Rome for approval a very extensive and detailed General Decree on how to deal with abuses in the Church, whose approval we are awaiting.
Each Diocese has created an Office for the Protection of Minors and Prevention of Abuse to receive complaints, accompany and assist victims as a preliminary step to criminal legal treatment if appropriate.
The initiative of these political parties for Congress to examine the cases of abuse in the Church should not be interpreted as if the bishops are not doing anything, nor are they interested in clarifying the cases of abuse, nor the pain of the victims.
This is not the case.
In the Episcopal Conference it did not seem convenient to create a national Commission to examine the cases of abuse committed, as, for example, the French Episcopal Conference has done, because it seemed to be a way that does not solve the problem. These initiatives bring to light an absolute number of cases, which subsequently receive well-founded criticism as to their statistical accuracy because it is objectively difficult, over such a long period of time, to be precise.
To the Spanish Episcopal Conference, until now, it has seemed more effective and fair to study case by case, also the cases of the past, but with procedural guarantees and an attitude of sincere and Christian help to the victims, trying by all means to repair the damage, as far as possible.
Perhaps in the past we did not take sufficiently into consideration, neither in the Church nor in society in general, the enormous gravity of these events, which are linked to our human condition, which struggles in a never-ending battle against what is not worthy of human beings. It is time to react and for all of us to make every effort to stop, as far as possible, these deplorable events.
We are sincerely committed to this in the Church and the Lord will help us.
Loving life begins by accepting and welcoming it from the very first moment. This act resembles God the Father who, with immense tenderness, already had us in his heart from the very first moment. Sometimes it is difficult for us to accept a new life because we did not expect it to come at that moment or in that way. Because it doesn't adapt to what we had planned and it upsets us.
We live in a society where parenting is a real adventure. Reconciling work and family life, access to housing... it all seems very difficult and costly.
In addition, there is a trend that veiled rejection of children. We have seen it in the pandemic. They bother, they make noise, they touch everything... It seems that children bother us. They disturb their innocence and spontaneity. It bothers that they demand from everyone a response, a going out of oneself to take care of them, to attend to them or simply to put up with them. Their dependence bothers us.
Welcoming life means defending it from attacks as unnatural as abortion. But it also means not making a bad face when a child bothers us on public transportation or in line at the doctor's office. It means giving understanding and support to those who are afraid of being parents and feel alone in a task that belongs to all of us as a society.
We will not end abortion as long as we do not end the individualistic mentality, incapable of tolerating and loving others for being just who they are. For being a person. How much joy and happiness is given by true surrender. To give oneself to others and not to live thinking of oneself and our rights. So many families who welcome children, even if they are born in a moment of difficulty, know this. Those who take in and care for the elderly at enormous personal cost. In hard times we have the experience that the warmth of others and feeling united is what matters most.
There are many foundations and associations helping mothers at risk of miscarriage and families, which could tell so many examples of how support and being with each other radically change the attitude of the parents towards the new child. When a woman becomes pregnant she is not afraid and overwhelmed just because of how she will buy diapers. She is afraid because from the very first moment, every mother knows that she will be united to that child forever and will have to take care of it, accompany it... It is a task of the parents but also of the whole society.
The human being was created for donation. To give himself. We often find people frustrated because their life has not developed as they thought it would. Because they have not achieved everything they intended. How many lies in those self-help books that say that we achieve everything with our strength and our mind. Human beings are only happy in relationship with others. We depend on others. And that others are happy, also depends a lot on us.
To love life is to pursue the dream that God had when he created human beings. He dreamed us in full communion with one another. In harmony. It is true that because of sin this dream appears today blurred and damaged. We are not perfect. We hurt each other. Or we shout at each other. We put ourselves first in front of those who need us most... But all is not lost.
We can fight to change what depends on us. Even if they are just a few. Spending time listening, constantly fighting to achieve a balance between family and work, not complaining about the inconvenience caused by others...
There are a thousand ways in which we can advance in the love of life. It is not enough to participate in demonstrations against abortion, although they are also necessary to express our rejection of this cruel act. Let us change society with a few. Let us change society with our attitude towards life, loving others. Welcoming and accepting them from the first moment and until the end.
We leave you a history to help you understand God's dreams
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