VATICAN INFORMATION SERVICE   
   YEAR XXII - # 153   
   DATE 12-09-2014   
      
   Summary:   
   - To the bishops of the Democratic Republic of Congo: work for a society based   
   on respect for the dignity of the person   
   - The exegete perceives the Divine Word through a fervent spiritual life   
   - Catholics and orthodox in Amman on "Synodality and the Primate"   
   - Archbishop Tomasi: human trafficking is not confined to poor and developing   
   countries   
   - Audiences   
   - Other Pontifical Acts   
   - Notice   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    To the bishops of the Democratic Republic of Congo: work for a society based   
   on respect for the dignity of the person   
    Vatican City, 12 September 2014 (VIS) - The education of young people in   
   order to overcome violence and inequality, the participation of the Church in   
   building society and the consolidation of peace and her mission in aid of   
   "those whom life has wounded" were the main issues in the discourse Pope   
   Francis handed to the bishops of the Democratic Republic of Congo this   
   morning, at the end of their "ad Limina" visit.   
    "The Church in the Democratic Republic of Congo is a young Church", writes   
   the Holy Father. "However, it is also a Church of youth. Children and   
   adolescents, in particular, need God's strength to help them resist the many   
   temptations of a precarious life in which they are unable to study or find   
   work. I am sympathetic to their plight, and I know you share their sorrows,   
   their joys and hopes. I think with horror especially of those children and   
   young people conscripted into militias and forced to kill their own   
   countrymen. I encourage you, therefore, to pursue the pastoral care of youth.   
   By providing the greatest assistance possible, especially through the creation   
   of spaces for human, spiritual and professional formation, you can help them   
   discover their deepest vocation that predisposes them to encounter the Lord".   
    "The most effective way to overcome violence, inequality and ethnic divisions   
   is to equip the young with a critical mind and to offer them the opportunity   
   to mature an understanding of Gospel values. It is also necessary to   
   strengthen pastoral care in universities and in Catholic and public schools,   
   combining education with the clear proclamation of the Gospel. ... Similarly,   
   to face the problem of family breakdown, caused in particular by war and   
   poverty, it is essential to promote and encourage all initiatives to   
   strengthen the family, the source of brotherhood and the foundation and first   
   road to peace".   
    "Fidelity to the Gospel also implies that the Church participates in the   
   construction of the city. One of the most valuable contributions that the   
   local church can offer your country is to help people rediscover the relevance   
   of faith in daily life and the need to promote the common good. Similarly,   
   leading figures in the nation, enlightened by pastors and in relation to their   
   skills, can also be supported in incorporating Christian teachings in their   
   personal lives and in the exercise of their duties in the service of the state   
   and society. In this sense, the Magisterium of the Church, especially the   
   encyclical Caritas in Veritate, the post-Synodal apostolic exhortation   
   "Africae munus" and the recent apostolic exhortation "Evangelii gaudium", are   
   invaluable tools".   
    The Pope urges the Congolese bishops to "work tirelessly for the   
   establishment of a just and lasting peace through a pastoral of dialogue and   
   reconciliation among the various sectors of society, supporting the process of   
   disarmament, and promoting effective collaboration with other religious   
   denominations". He emphasises that at this time, when the country is currently   
   experiencing political events that are important for the future, "it is   
   necessary for the Church to make her contribution, avoiding the risk of   
   becoming substitute for political institutions and temporal realities that   
   must retain their autonomy". In particular, pastors must be careful not to   
   take on roles that rightfully belong to the lay faithful, whose mission is   
   justly that of bearing witness to Christ and the Gospel in politics and in all   
   other areas of their activities".   
    After highlighting the need for collaboration between all pastoral workers in   
   the various fields of the apostolate, especially in education, health and   
   charitable aid, Francis reminds the prelates that there are high expectations   
   of them "in defence of spiritual and social values", and he urges them to   
   "provide guidance and solutions for the promotion of a society based on   
   respect for the dignity of the human person". In this regard, "attention to   
   the poor and needy, as well as the elderly, the sick and disabled, should be   
   the subject of adequate pastoral care under constant review". Indeed, "the   
   Church is called to be concerned with the wellbeing of these people and to   
   bring the attention of society and public authorities to their situation".   
    The Holy Father concludes by encouraging the bishops to be "men of hope for   
   the people" and gave thanks for the work of all missionaries, priests,   
   religious and other pastoral workers dedicated to the service of "those who   
   have been wounded by life, the victims of violence, especially in the most   
   isolated and remote areas of the country", and reserved special mention for   
   "the internally displaced and the many people who come from neighbouring   
   countries".   
      
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    The exegete perceives the Divine Word through a fervent spiritual life   
    Vatican City, 12 September 2014 (VIS) - This morning the Holy Father met with   
   the participants in the 43rd National Biblical Week, organised by the Italian   
   Biblical Association, a meeting that inaugurated the celebrations for the   
   fiftieth anniversary of the Dogmatic Constitution of Vatican Council II on the   
   Divine Revelation "Dei Verbum", promulgated on 18 November 1965.   
    "Faith, to respond, and so as not to be suffocated, must be constantly   
   nurtured by the Word of God", said the Pope, expressing his esteem and   
   acknowledgement of the "valuable work" that the Association has carried out   
   through the teachings of its lecturers and Bible scholars. He continued, "God   
   has made the most of all the possibilities of human language, but at the same   
   time He has had to submit His Word to the limitations of this language. True   
   respect for the inspired Scriptures requires us to make all the efforts   
   necessary to fully grasp their meaning". As it is not possible for every   
   Christian personally to carry out the research of every type necessary to   
   arrive at a good understanding of Biblical texts, he added, "this task is   
   entrusted to exegetes, those who are responsible in this sector for the good   
   of all. ... Therefore, alongside academic competence, the Catholic exegete   
   needs above all, faith: received from and shared with all believers who, in   
   their entirety, cannot be mistaken".   
    Pope Francis recalled the words of St. John Paul II: "to respect the   
   coherence of the faith of the Church and the inspiration of the Scripture,   
   Catholic exegesis must be careful not merely to comply with the human aspects   
   of biblical texts. First and foremost, exegesis must help Christian people to   
   perceive more clearly the Word of God in these texts, so as to accept it   
   better, to live fully in communion with God. ... Naturally it is necessary for   
   the exegete to know how to perceive the Divine Word in the texts, and this is   
   possible only if his spiritual life is fervent, rich in dialogue with the   
   Lord; otherwise exegetic research remains incomplete, and the main objective   
   is lost from sight".   
      
   --- MPost/386 v1.21   
    * Origin: Sursum Corda! BBS=Huntsville AL=bbs.sursum-corda.com (1:396/45)