Subject: VISnews140203
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VATICAN INFORMATION SERVICE
YEAR XXII - N° 22
DATE 03-02-2014
Summary:
- HUMAN PROMOTION, REGIONAL CO-OPERATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT: THEMES OF
MEETING BETWEEN POPE FRANCIS AND SAMOAN HEAD OF STATE
- POPE FRANCIS' PRAYER INTENTIONS FOR FEBRUARY
- ANGELUS: CONSECRATED PERSONS, LEAVEN FOR THE GROWTH OF A MORE JUST SOCIETY
- THE POPE CLOSE TO THOSE AFFECTED BY HEAVY RAIN IN ITALY
- DAY OF CONSECRATED LIFE: OBSERVANCE AND PROPHECY ARE NOT IN OPPOSITION
- TO THE NEOCATECHUMENAL WAY: BUILD AND MAINTAIN COMMUNION WITHIN YOUR LOCAL
CHURCH
- THE ALMONER OF HIS HOLINESS CELEBRATES MASS FOR THOSE WHO DIE HOMELESS
- AUDIENCES
- OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS
___________________________________________________________
HUMAN PROMOTION, REGIONAL CO-OPERATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT: THEMES OF MEETING
BETWEEN POPE FRANCIS AND SAMOAN HEAD OF STATE
Vatican City, 3 February 2014 (VIS) – Today, Pope Francis received the
Head of State of the Independent State of Samoa, His Highness Tui Atua Tupua
Tamasese Efi, who subsequently went on to meet with Archbishop Pietro Parolin,
secretary of State,
accompanied by Archbishop Dominique Mamberti, secretary for Relations with
States.
During the cordial discussions, the Parties focused on a number of aspects of
the social and economic life of the country, as well as the valuable
contribution of the Catholic Church in various sectors of Samoan society and,
in particular, in the field
of human promotion. This was followed by a fruitful exchange of opinions
regarding the international situation, with particular reference to regional
co-operation and environmental matters affecting several Pacific countries.
___________________________________________________________
POPE FRANCIS' PRAYER INTENTIONS FOR FEBRUARY
Vatican City, 3 February 2014 (VIS) – Pope Francis' universal prayer
intention for February is: “That the Church and society may respect the
wisdom and experience of older people”.
His intention for evangelization is: “That priests, religious, and lay
people may work together with generosity for evangelization”.
___________________________________________________________
ANGELUS: CONSECRATED PERSONS, LEAVEN FOR THE GROWTH OF A MORE JUST SOCIETY
Vatican City, 2 February 2014 (VIS) – After celebrating Holy Mass in St.
Peter's Basilica, on the 18th Day of Consecrated Life, the Pope appeared at
the window of his study to pray the Angelus with thousands of people gathered
below, despite heavy
rain, in St. Peter's Square.
The Bishop of Rome, after thanking the many faithful and pilgrims for their
presence, commented on today's Gospel reading, in which St. Luke narrates the
presentation of Jesus in the Temple; an episode which is also “an icon
of the giving of their
lives by those who, through a gift of God, take on the typical traits of
Jesus, chaste, poor and obedient”.
“The offering of oneself to God relates to every Christian, because we
are all consecrated to Him through baptism … making a generous gift of
our life, in the family, at work, in the service the Church, in works of
mercy. Nevertheless, this
consecration is lived in a particular way by the religious, monks, consecrated
lay people, who with the profession of vows, fully and exclusively belong to
God. Totally consecrated to God, they are totally consigned to their brethren,
to bring the light
of Christ there where the darkness is densest and to spread His hope in the
hearts of the disheartened".
After emphasising that consecrated persons are a sign of God in the various
contexts of life and “leaven for the growth of a more just and fraternal
society”. The Pope repeated the need for these presences, “which
fortify and renew
commitment to the spread of the Gospel, of Christian education, of charity
towards the neediest, of contemplative prayer; commitment to human formation,
the spiritual formation of the young, of families; commitment for justice and
peace in the human
family. Let us imagine a moment what would happen if there were no nuns in
hospitals, no nuns in missions, no nuns in schools. Imagine a church without
nuns! It is unimaginable. They are … the yeast that carries forward the
people of God. These
women, who consecrate their lives to God, who bring forward the message of
Jesus, are great”.
The Church and the world need “this witness of love and of God's mercy.
Consecrated and religious persons offer witness that God is good and merciful.
… We must pray that many young people answer 'yes!' to the Lord who
calls to them to
consecrate themselves fully to Him, in the disinterested service of their
brothers, who consecrate their lives to serving God and their brothers”.
___________________________________________________________
THE POPE CLOSE TO THOSE AFFECTED BY HEAVY RAIN IN ITALY
Vatican City, 2 February 2014 (VIS) – Following the Angelus prayer, the
Pope greeted, amongst others, the participants in the Day for Life, celebrated
today in Italy with the theme “Generating the Future”. He extended
his greetings and
his encouragement to “the associations, movements and cultural centres
who participate in the defence and promotion of life. I join with the Italian
bishops today in repeating that 'every child is the face of the Lord Who loves
life, a gift for
the family and for society”. Everyone, in his own role and environment,
is called to love and serve life, to welcome it, to respect and promote it,
especially when it is fragile and in need of attention and care, from the womb
until its natural
end on this earth”.
The Bishop of Rome also mentioned the inhabitants of Rome and the region of
Tuscany, who are suffering the consequences of the intense rainfall of recent
days which has caused flooding and inundations. “Our solidarity and our
prayers are with
these brothers of ours. Dear brothers and sisters, I am very close to
you”.
___________________________________________________________
DAY OF CONSECRATED LIFE: OBSERVANCE AND PROPHECY ARE NOT IN OPPOSITION
Vatican City, 2 February 2014 (VIS) – On the 18th World Day for
Consecrated Life, on the Feast of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple,
Pope Francis celebrated Holy Mass at 10 a.m. in St. Peter's Basilica with
members of the Institutes of
Consecrated Life and the Societies of Apostolic Life. For the first time in
his pontificate, the Bishop of Rome began the rite with the blessing of the
candles used in the procession before the Eucharistic celebration and in his
homily he emphasised the
importance of the encounter between observance and prophecy, the young and the
elderly, within consecrated life.
“The Feast of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple is … the
encounter between Jesus and His people … represented by the elderly
Simeon and Anna. … It was also an encounter within the history of a
population, an encounter
between the young and the elderly: the young were Mary and Joseph, with their
newborn son; and the elderly were Simeon and Anna”.
The Pope remarked that in the Gospel of St. Luke, “one intuits, almost
perceives that Jesus' parents have the joy of observing the precepts of God,
the joy of walking according to the law of the Lord! They are two newly-weds,
they have just had
their baby, and they are motivated by the desire to do what is prescribed.
This is not an external fact ... It is a strong, profound desire, full of
joy”.
St. Luke affirms that Simeon was “a just and pious man, who awaited the
consolation of Israel, and that Anna was 'a prophetess'”. He comments
that they are both “full of life, because they are inspired by the Holy
Spirit”. And
“at the centre of this encounter there is Jesus. It is He Who sets
everything in motion, who attracts them to the Temple, which is the house of
the Father.
It is an “encounter between the young who are full of joy in observing
the Law of the Lord, and the old, full of joy by the action of the Holy
Spirit. It is a singular encounter between observation and prophecy. …
In the light of this scene
in the Gospel, let us regard the consecrated life as an encounter with Christ:
it is He Who comes to us; brought to us by Mary and Joseph, and we are led
towards Him by the Holy Spirit. But He is in the centre. … He moves
everything along, He
attracts us to the Temple, to the Church, where we are able to encounter Him,
recognise Him”.
Jesus comes towards us in the Church through the foundational charism of an
Institute: it is good to think of our vocation in this way. Our encounter with
Christ has taken shape within the Church through the charism of one of its
witnesses. … And
also in consecrated life, we live the encounter between the young and the
elderly, between observance and prophecy. Let us not see these as two opposing
realities! Let us rather allow the Holy Spirit to animate both of them, and a
sign of this is joy:
the joy of journeying within a rule of life; the joy of being led by the
Spirit, never unyielding, never closed, always open to voice of God that
speaks, that opens, that leads us and invites us to go towards the
horizon”.
“It is good for the elderly to communicate their wisdom to the young;
and is good for the young to gather this wealth of experience and wisdom, and
to carry it forward, not so as to preserve it in a museum, but to bring it
forward in addressing
the challenges of life, to carry it forward for the good of the various
religious orders and of the entire Church”, concluded the Holy Father.
___________________________________________________________
TO THE NEOCATECHUMENAL WAY: BUILD AND MAINTAIN COMMUNION WITHIN YOUR LOCAL
CHURCH
Vatican City, 1 February 2014 (VIS) – Today Pope Francis received in
audience eight thousand members of the Neocatechumenal Way, the Catholic
formation itinerary initiated by the Spanish laypeople Francisco Jose Gomez
Arguello (better known as
Kiko Arguello) and Carmen Hernandez who, along with the Italian priest Mario
Pezzi, form the “International Responsible Team of the Way”.
“The Church is grateful for your generosity!” said the Pope.
“I thank you for everything you do in the Church and in the world. And
in the name of the Church, our Mother, I would like to make some simple
recommendations to you. The
first is to take the greatest care to construct and conserve communion within
the particular Churches in which you carry out your work. The Way has its own
charisma, its own dynamics, a gift which, like all the gifts of the Spirit,
has a profound
ecclesial dimension; this means listening to life of the Churches to which
your leaders send you, to recognising the value of their richness, suffering
for their weaknesses when necessary, and walking together as a single flock,
under the guidance of
the pastors of the local Churches. Communion is essential: at times it can be
better to set aside some of the details that your itinerary requires in order
to guarantee unity between the brothers that form the single ecclesial
community, of w
hich
you must always consider yourselves to be a part”.
Pope Francis' second recommendation was, “wherever you go, it will do
you good to think that the Spirit of God always arrives before us. The Lord
always precedes us! Even in the most distant places, even in the most diverse
cultures, God sows
everywhere the seeds of his Word. From this, there arises the need for special
attention to the cultural context in which you, as families, go to carry out
your work; it is an environment often very different to that from which you
come. Many of you
take great pains to learn the local language, at times difficult, and these
efforts are commendable. Even more important will be your effort to 'learn'
the cultures you encounter, to recognise the need for the Gospel that is
present everywhere, but also
that action that the Holy Spirit has accomplished in the life and history of
every people”.
Finally, the Holy Father urged them all to “care, with love, for each
other, especially the weakest. The Neocatechumenal Way, as an intinerary for
the discovery of one's own Baptism, is a demanding path, along which a brother
or sister may
encounter unexpected difficulties. In these cases, the exercise of patience
and mercy by the community is a sign of mature faith. The freedom of each
person must not be forced, and it is necessary to respect the eventual
decision of those who decide to
seek, outside the Way, other forms of Christian life that may help them to
grow in their response to the call of the Lord”.
The Holy Father concluded, “I encourage you to take the Gospel of Jesus
Christ everywhere, even in the least Christianised environments, especially in
the existential peripheries. Evangelise with love, take God's love to all.
Tell those you
encounter on the streets of your mission that God loves man just as he is,
even with his limits, with his errors, with his sins. Be messengers and
witnesses to the infinite goodness and inexhaustible mercy of the
Father”.
___________________________________________________________
THE ALMONER OF HIS HOLINESS CELEBRATES MASS FOR THOSE WHO DIE HOMELESS
Vatican City, 1 February 2014 (VIS) – Yesterday, in the Roman basilica
of Santa Maria in Trastevere, Archbishop Konrad Krajewski, Almoner of His
Holiness, celebrated mass in memory of Modesta Valenti, an elderly woman
without a fixed abode, who
died in 1983 when, after taking ill in Rome's Termini Station, she was refused
transit by ambulance because she was “dirty”.
Every year, on this date, the Sant'Egidio Community, along with volunteers and
associations who assist the homeless, celebrate Mass in the name of all the
poor and homeless who have lost their lives due to inadequate living
conditions and as a result of
their abandonment. The memory of their names represents a form of consolation
for each one and the promise that they will never be forgotten.
The liturgical celebration was attended by the poor and their friends; there
were five hundred guests at the lunch held after the celebration. This
memorial has been extended to many parishes in Rome and other cities in Italy
and throughout the world,
wherever the Sant'Egidio Community is close to those who live on the streets.
___________________________________________________________
AUDIENCES
Vatican City, 3 February 2014 (VIS) – Today the Holy Father received in
audience:
- Twenty prelates of the Polish Episcopal Conference on their “ad
limina” visit:
- Cardinal Kazimierz Nycz, archbishop of Warszawa, with his auxiliary Bishop
Tadeusz Pikus;
- Bishop Piotr Libera of Plock;
- Archbishop-bishop Henryk Hoser S.A.C. of Warszawa-Praga, with his auxiliary
Bishop Marek Solarczyk;
- Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, archbishop of Krakow, with his auxiliaries
Bishop Jan Szkodon, Bishop Jan Zajac, Bishop Grzegorz Rys, Bishop Damian
Andrzej Muskus, O.F.M., Bishop Tadeusz Pieronek;
- Bishop Roman Pindel of Bielsko-Zywiec, and his auxiliary Bishop Piotr Greger;
- Bishop Kazimierz Ryczan of Kielce, with his auxiliaries Bishop Marian
Florczyk and Bishop Kazimierz Gurda;
- Bishop Andrzej Jez of Tarnow, with his auxiliary Bishop Wieslaw Lechowicz
and former auxiliary Bishop Wladislaw Bobowski;
- Bishop Jozef Guzdek, military ordinary of Poland.
On the morning of Saturday, 1 February the Holy Father received in audience:
- Cardinal Marc Ouellet, prefect of the Congregation for Bishops.
- eighteen prelates of the Polish Episcopal Conference on their “ad
limina” visit:
- Archbishop Jozef Kowalczyk of Gniezno accompanied by his auxiliaries, Bishop
Wojciech Polak, Bishop Krzysztof Jakub Wetkowski, and Archbishop emeritus
Henryk Jozef Muszynski;
- Bishop Wieslaw Alojzy Mering of Wloclawek, with his auxiliary Stanislaw
Gebicki;
- Bishop Jan Tyrawa of Bydgoszcz;
- Archbishop Stanislaw Gadecki of Poznan with his auxiliaries Bishop Zdislaw
Fortuniak, Bishop Grzegorz Balcerek, and Bishop Damian Bryl;
- Bishop Edward Janiak of Kalisz;
- Archbishop Marek Jedraszewski of Lodz, accompanied by his auxiliaries,
Bishop Adam Lepa and Bishop Ireneusz Josef Pekalski;
- Bishop Andrzej Franciszek Dziuba of Lowicz;
- Archbishop Jan Martyniak of Przemysl-Warszawa of Byzantine-Ukrainian rite;
and
- Bishop Wlodzimierz Roman Juszczak of Wroclaw-Gdansk.
In the afternoon of Saturday, 1 February the Holy Father received in audience
Cardinal Joao Braz de Aviz, prefect of the Congregation for the Institutes of
Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, and Bishop Jose Rodriguez
Carbahlo O.F.M.,
secretary of the same Congregation.
___________________________________________________________
OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS
Vatican City, 3 February 2014 (VIS) – The Holy Father has:
- appointed Archbishop Thomas Menamparampil S.D.B., emeritus of Guwahati, as
apostolic administrator “sede vacante et ad nutum Sanctae Sedis”
of the diocese of Jowai (area 17,551, population 7,236,000, Catholics 78,526,
priests 145,
religious 678), India.
Yesterday, 2 February, the Holy Father appointed Fr. Vincent Mduduzi Zungo,
O.F.M., as bishop of Port Elizabeth (area 71,828, population 2,952,000,
Catholics 1110,000, priests 56, religious 138), South Africa. The bishop-elect
was born in Mbongolwane,
South Africa in 1966. He took his perpetual vows in 1994. He studied
philosophy and theology at the “St. John Vianney” major seminary
in Pretoria, and holds a doctorate in moral theology from the Catholic
University of Strasbourg, France. He
has served in a number of pastoral roles, including parish vicar in the
mission of Hardenberg, master of novices and guardian of the convent of
Besters, professor in the “St. John Vianney” major seminary,
provincial vicar and assistant to
the master of postulants, and provincial of the Franciscans in South Africa.
Since 2009 he has served as definitor general for Africa and for the Middle
East in Rome.
On Saturday, 1 February the Holy Father:
- accepted the resignation from the office of auxiliary of the archdiocese of
New York, U.S.A., presented by Bishop Josu Iriondo, upon having reached the
age limit.
- appointed Rev. Alex Joseph Vadakumthala as bishop of Kannur (area 4,988,
population 2,772,000, Catholics 50,768, priests 122, religious 692), India.
The bishop-elect was born in Maradu-Panangad, India in 1959 and was ordained a
priest in 1984. He
holds a doctorate in canon law from the Pontifical Urbaniana University, Rome.
He has served in a number of pastoral and administrative roles, including
parish assistant in the cathedral of Verapoly, priest of St. Philomenas'
Church, Koonammavu;
official at the Pontifical Council for Healthcare Workers (for Health Pastoral
Care); secretary general of the Health Commission of the Catholic Bishops
Conference of India (CBCI); lecturer at St. Joseph's Pontifical seminary,
Alwaye, India, director of
the Cochin Arts Communications of Verapoly, director of the Society of Medical
Education in North India project, Ranchi; and president of the Canon Law
Society of India. He is currently vicar general of the archdiocese of Verapoly.
- appointed Msgr. Luis Fernando Ramos Perez as auxiliary bishop of the
archdiocese of Santiago de Chile (area 9,132, population 5,958,000, Catholics
4,135,000, priests 969, permanent deacons 318, religious 3037), Chile. The
bishop-elect was born in
Santiago, Chile in 1959 and was ordained a priest in 1990. He studied
engineering at the University of Chile. He studied philosophy and theology at
the major seminary of Santiago and holds a doctorate in theology, specialising
in sacred Scriptures, from
the Pontifical Gregorian University, Rome. He has served in a number of
pastoral roles, including prefect of philosophy in the major seminary of
Santiago, vicar of the parishes of “Cristo Emaus” and “Santo
Toribo de Mogrovejo”,
official of the Congregation for Bishops, and archdiocesan episcopal vicar for
education. He is currently rector of the major seminary of Santiago and
episcopal vicar for the clergy.
- appointed Rev. Galo Fernandez Villasecca as auxiliary bishop of the
archdiocese of Santiago de Chile, Chile. He was born in Santiago, Chile in
1961 and ordained a priest in 1987. He has served in the following pastoral
roles: vicar of the parish of
“Nuestra Senora de las Mercedes” in Santiago; priest of the parish
of “Cristo Redentor” in Penalolen, priest of the parish of
“Santa Clara”, and episcopal vicar of “Vicaria de la
Esperanza Joven”, He is
currently episcopal vicar of the western zone of the archdiocese.
___________________________________________________________
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VISnews140203
VATICAN INFORMATION SERVICE YEAR XXII - N° 22DATE 03-02-2014
Summary: - HUMAN PROMOTION, REGIONAL
CO-OPERATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT:
THEMES OF MEETING BETWEEN POPE FRANCIS AND SAMOAN HEAD OF STATE - POPE
FRANCIS' PRAYER INTENTIONS FOR FEBRUARY - ANGELUS: CONSECRATED PERSONS,
LEAVEN FOR THE GROWTH OF A MORE JUST SOCIETY - THE POPE CLOSE TO THOSE
AFFECTED BY HEAVY
RAIN IN ITALY - DAY OF CONSECRATED LIFE: OBSERVANCE AND PROPHECY ARE NOT
IN OPPOSITION - TO THE NEOCATECHUMENAL WAY: BUILD AND MAINTAIN COMMUNION
WITHIN YOUR LOCAL CHURCH - THE ALMONER OF HIS HOLINESS CELEBRATES MASS
FOR THOSE WHO DIE
HOMELESS - AUDIENCES - OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS ___________________________________________________________
HUMAN PROMOTION, REGIONAL CO-OPERATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT: THEMES OF
MEETING BETWEEN POPE FRANCIS AND SAMOAN HEAD OF STATE
Vatican City, 3 February 2014 (VIS) – Today, Pope Francis received
the Head of State of the Independent State of Samoa, His Highness Tui Atua
Tupua Tamasese Efi, who subsequently went on to meet with Archbishop Pietro
Parolin, secretary of
State, accompanied by Archbishop Dominique Mamberti, secretary for Relations
with States.
During the cordial discussions, the Parties focused on a number of aspects
of the social and economic life of the country, as well as the valuable
contribution of the Catholic Church in various sectors of Samoan society and,
in particular, in the
field of human promotion. This was followed by a fruitful exchange of opinions
regarding the international situation, with particular reference to regional
co-operation and environmental matters affecting several Pacific countries.
