VATICAN INFORMATION SERVICE   
   YEAR XXII - # 197   
   DATE 10-11-2014   
      
   Summary:   
   - Pope Francis receives the president of Ghana   
   - The Pope receives the bishops of Senegal, Mauritania, Cape Verde and   
   Guinea-Bissau: focus on the quality rather than the quality of priests   
   - The Pope deeply saddened by the traffic accident in Cartagena   
   - Angelus: by virtue of Baptism we are part of God's edifice   
   - "We need bridges, not walls", says Pope Francis on the 25th anniversary of   
   the fall of the Berlin Wall   
   - The seminary, training in fraternity, prayer and mission   
   - Witness the Salesian charism of encounter, says Francis to the Daughters of   
   Mary Help of Christians   
   - The Pope to the Adult Scouts Movement: respecting nature and eliminating   
   wastefulness   
   - Decrees of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints   
   - Audiences   
   - Other Pontifical Acts   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    Pope Francis receives the president of Ghana   
    Vatican City, 10 November 2014 (VIS) - Today, in the Vatican Apostolic   
   Palace, the Holy Father Francis received in audience John Dramani Mahama,   
   president of the Republic of Ghana, who subsequently met with Cardinal   
   Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, accompanied by Archbishop Dominique   
   Mamberti, secretary for Relations with States.   
    During the cordial discussions, the Parties noted the good relations between   
   the Holy See and Ghana and underlined the positive contribution offered by the   
   Catholic Church in the social, educational and healthcare spheres, as well as   
   in relation to the promotion of dialogue between different members of society.   
   Furthermore, mention was made of the promotion of the good of the family.   
    Finally, attention turned to various current issues of an international   
   nature, and in particular the serious humanitarian crisis caused by the recent   
   epidemic of the Ebola virus in West Africa.   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    The Pope receives the bishops of Senegal, Mauritania, Cape Verde and   
   Guinea-Bissau: focus on the quality rather than the quality of priests   
    Vatican City, 10 November 2014 (VIS) - The prelates of the Conference of   
   Bishops of Senegal, Mauritania, Cape Verde and Guinea-Bissau were received in   
   audience by the Holy Father this morning, at the end of their five-yearly "ad   
   Limina" visit. In the written discourse that he handed to them at the end of   
   the visit, the Pope writes that the bishops' visit to the See of Peter is "an   
   opportunity to strengthen the communion the particular Churches maintain with   
   the Church of Rome and with her bishop. However, it is also an opportunity to   
   strengthen the bonds of love between you ... and to experience collegiality.   
   This represents a great challenge for an episcopal conference that groups   
   together the bishops of four countries - Senegal, Mauritania, Cape Verde and   
   Guinea-Bissau - that are different in terms of language, geography, culture   
   and history, but which nonetheless feel the need to be united and to support   
   each other in their ministry".   
    "Among the challenges you face, there is that of rooting faith more deeply in   
   hearts so that it is put into practice in life. This is particularly true in   
   areas experiencing first evangelisation, but it also applies where the Gospel   
   has been announced a long time ago, as faith is a gift that must always be   
   strengthened and which is under threat in many ways nowadays, owing to other   
   religious proposals that prove easier and more attractive from a moral point   
   of view, and as a result of the phenomenon of the secularisation that affects   
   African societies".   
    Therefore, "it is useful for laypeople to receive a solid doctrinal and   
   spiritual formation, and continual support so that they are able to become   
   witnesses of Christ in all areas of their lives, and to imbue society with the   
   principles of the Gospel, avoiding the marginalisation of faith in public   
   life. The pastoral care of families, as shown in the recent Synod of Bishops,   
   must receive special attention since the family ... is the place where the   
   foundations of faith are laid, where the basic principles of community life   
   are learned, and frequently where the priestly and religious vocations are   
   nurtured - vocations your Churches need".   
    "Priestly formation is decisive for the future", writes Francis. "Your   
   countries experience very different situations, but the primacy of quality   
   above quantity is always important. I invite you to be close to your priests,   
   especially those who are young, to ensure that after their ordination they   
   continue their formation, persevere in their life of prayer, and are able to   
   count on a spiritual guide, so that they are able to meet the challenges   
   presented to them: for some, this means a certain isolation, for others,   
   material poverty and the lack of resources, or worldly attractions. Contact   
   with other religions is an important issue in many of your dioceses where   
   there is an Islamic majority, in terms of mutual relations between different   
   communities. I believe that it is important for the clergy to receive a   
   formation to establish a constructive dialogue with Muslims, a dialogue that   
   is increasingly necessary for peaceful coexistence. If we all, believers in   
   God, wish to contribute to reconciliation, justice and peace, we need to work   
   together to prevent all forms of discrimination, intolerance and religious   
   fundamentalism".   
    "More generally, it seems to me that it is important not to hesitate in   
   occupying all the space that is yours in civil society. I know that you work   
   tirelessly, in particular in Senegal and Guinea-Bissau, for peace and   
   reconciliation, and for this I rejoice. I urge you to maintain good relations   
   with the political authorities in order to promote the official    
   cknowledgement of Church structures, which will be of great help in   
   facilitating evangelisation. Some of you, such as the bishops of Cape Verde,   
   already benefit from the existence of a framework agreement between the State   
   and the Holy See. Even where the Church is in a minority, or is completely at   
   the margins of civil life, she is appreciated and recognised for her important   
   contribution in the fields of human development, healthcare and education. I   
   thank you for what you achieve in your dioceses, often due to the efforts of   
   many religious congregations and laypeople".   
    "Dear brothers", the Pontiff concludes, "some of your Churches are small and   
   fragile, but they are courageous and generous in the proclamation of faith and   
   you are witnesses to their dynamism. I offer thanks to God for the wonders He   
   performs through you, and likewise I thank again those who participate in our   
   common task of evangelisation".   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    The Pope deeply saddened by the traffic accident in Cartagena   
    Vatican City, 10 November 2014 (VIS) - The Holy Father sent a telegram to   
   Bishop Jose Manuel Lorca Planes of Cartagena, Spain, upon hearing of the news   
   of a serious road accident in the city of Cieza that has claimed many victims,   
   including the young priest of Bullas, Rev. Fr. Miguel Conesa Andujar. Pope   
   Francis, deeply saddened, raises fervent prayers to God for the eternal repose   
   of the souls of the departed, for the full recovery of the injured, and for   
   the consolation of those who have lost their loved ones.   
    "I urge the sons and daughters of these noble lands to find in faith the   
   encouragement and the strength of spirit to overcome these painful   
   circumstances, and impart to them the comfort of my apostolic blessing, as a   
   sign of hope in the risen Christ", he writes.   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    Angelus: by virtue of Baptism we are part of God's edifice   
    Vatican City, 9 November 2014 (VIS) - At midday the Holy Father appeared at   
   the window of his study to pray the Angelus with the faithful gathered in St.   
   Peter's Square, explaining that today's liturgy recalls the dedication of the   
   Basilica of St. John Lateran, the Cathedral of Rome, traditionally defined as   
   the "mother of all the churches in the city and in the world".   
    "The term 'mother' refers not only to the sacred building of the Basilica,   
   but also to the work of the Holy Spirit, made manifest in this building and   
   fruitful through the ministry of the Bishop of Rome, in all the communities in   
   unity with the Church over whom He presides", he explained. "Every time we   
   celebrate the dedication of a church, an essential truth is recalled to us:   
   the material temple made of bricks is a sign of the living Church at work in   
   history, that 'spiritual temple' ... of which Christ Himself is 'a living   
   stone, though rejected by mortals yet chosen and precious in God's sight'".   
    In the Gospel of today's liturgy, Jesus speaks about the "temple", revealing   
   a surprising truth: the temple of God is not merely the edifice built of   
   bricks, but it is His body, made up of living stones. "By virtue of Baptism,   
   every Christian forms part of God's edifice, or rather, becomes the God's   
   Church. The spiritual edifice, the Church that is the community of men and   
   women sanctified by Christ's blood and the Spirit of the Risen Lord, asks each   
   one of us to be consistent with the gift of faith and to take the path of   
   Christian witness. ... The Church, at the origin of her life and her mission   
   in the world, was none other than a community constituted to confess faith in   
   Jesus Christ, Son of God and Redeemer of humanity, a faith that works through   
   charity. ... Today, too, the Church is required to take her place in the world   
   as a community that, rooted in Christ through Baptism, professes faith in Him   
   with humility and courage, bearing witness to it through charity. In the same   
   way, institutional elements, structures and pastoral entities must be ordered   
   in accordance with this essential objective".   
    "Today's celebration invites us to reflect on the communion of all the   
   Churches, of this Christian community, and by analogy, it stimulates us to   
   make efforts to enable humanity to overcome the barriers of enmity and   
   indifference, to build bridges of understanding and dialogue, to make the   
   entire world into a family of peoples, reconciled among themselves, fraternal   
   and in solidarity".   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    "We need bridges, not walls", says Pope Francis on the 25th anniversary of   
   the fall of the Berlin Wall   
    Vatican City, 9 November 2014 (VIS) - After praying the Angelus, the Pope   
   commented that 25 years ago today, on 8 November 1989, saw the fall of the   
   Berlin Wall "which had long divided the city in two and was a symbol of the   
   ideological division of Europe and the entire world. It took place suddenly,   
   but it had been made possible by the long and tireless efforts of many people   
   who fought, prayed and suffered for it; some of them even sacrificed their   
   lives". Among these people, St. John Paul II played a central role. Let us   
   pray that, with the Lord's help and the collaboration of all persons of good   
   will, a culture of encounter may become ever more widespread, able to bring   
   down all the walls that continue to divide the world; and that innocent people   
   will never more be persecuted and even killed for their beliefs and their   
   religion. Where there is a wall, there is a closed heart. We need bridges, not   
   walls!"   
    He added that today Italy holds a day of thanksgiving, the theme of which   
   this year is "Feed the planet, energy for life", and the Holy Father joined   
   with the bishops in expressing his hope that renewed efforts might ensure   
   "that no-one lacks the daily sustenance that God gives to all". He added, "I   
   assure my closeness to the world of agriculture, and urge you to cultivate the   
   land in a sustainable and fair way. In this context, the Diocese of Rome is   
   holding a day for the protection of the creation, the aim of which is to   
   promote lifestyles based on respect for the environment, reaffirming the   
   alliance between human beings, guardians of creation, and the Creator".   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    The seminary, training in fraternity, prayer and mission   
    Vatican City, 10 November 2014 (VIS) - In the evening of Saturday 8 November   
   Pope Francis sent a message to the 750 French seminarians gathered at the   
   Marian shrine at Lourdes, France from 8 to 10 November, for the autumn Plenary   
   Assembly of the Episcopal Conference of France. In the text, the Pope urges   
   them to remember the three key words in their lives as seminarians:   
   fraternity, prayer and mission.   
    In relation to fraternity, he emphasises that "the priestly mission cannot in   
   any case be individual, and certainly not individualistic"; instead, together   
   they should "bear witness to the love with which we recognise Jesus'   
   disciples". With regard to prayer, he remarks that "everything that you learn   
   comes to life in prayer", and recalls that Jesus Himself retired in silence   
   and solitude to immerse himself in the mystery of His Father. "May your prayer   
   be an appeal to the Spirit, Who builds the Church, leads the disciples and   
   infuses with pastoral charity. ... At the foundation of your formation there   
   is the Word of God, that enters you, nourishes you, and enlightens you", he   
   writes, urging the seminarians to dedicate long periods each day to prayer,   
   since "it is in prayer that you encounter the loving presence of the Lord and   
   allow yourselves to be transformed by Him".   
      
   --- MPost/386 v1.21   
    * Origin: Sursum Corda! BBS=Huntsville AL=bbs.sursum-corda.com (1:396/45)