has sent a telegram of condolences on behalf of the Holy Father to Bishop   
   Joseph   
   Osei-Bonsu of Konongo-Mampong, president of the Ghana Catholic Bishops'   
   Conference, for the many victims of the explosion and subsequent fire in a   
   petrol station in Accra.   
    "Deeply saddened to learn of the tragic incident at a petrol station in Accra   
   in which so many people died or were seriously injured, the Holy Father sends   
   heartfelt condolences to the relatives of the deceased and injured, to the   
   authorities and to the entire nation. His Holiness commends the souls of the   
   departed to Almighty God and willingly invokes the divine gifts of consolation   
   and strength upon those who mourn and upon all who have been affected by this   
   tragedy".   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    Solemnity of Corpus Christi: the Eucharist is not a reward for the good   
    Vatican City, 5 June 2015 (VIS) - Yesterday, on the Solemnity of the Body and   
   Blood of Christ (Corpus Christi), the Holy Father celebrated Holy Mass before   
   thousands of people at the Basilica of St. John Lateran. The Eucharist the   
   procession began, led by Cardinal Agostino Vallini, vicar of His Holiness for   
   the diocese of Rome, along the Via Merulana to the Basilica of St. Mary Major,   
   where the Pope imparted his solemn blessing with the Holy Sacrament.   
    In his homily, the Pope recalled that during the Last Supper, Jesus gives us   
   His Body and Blood in the bread and wine, to leave us the memorial of His   
   sacrifice of infinite love, and by means of this 'viaticum', full of grace, the   
   disciples have everything that is necessary for their path through history, to   
   extend the kingdom of God to all. As the responsory of today's liturgy shows,   
   "See in this bread the body of Christ which hung upon the cross, and in this   
   cup   
   the blood which flowed from His side. Take His body, then, and eat it; take His   
   blood and drink it, and you will become His members. The body of Christ is the   
   bond which unites you to Him: eat it, or you will have no part in Him. The   
   blood   
   is the price He paid for your redemption: drink it, lest you despair of your   
   sinfulness".   
    Francis explained the meaning today of being torn from Him and of despairing,   
   as cowards. "We are torn from Him when we are not obedient to the Word of the   
   Lord, when we do not live brotherhood between us, when we race to occupy the   
   first places, ... when we find the courage to witness to charity, when we are   
   unable to offer hope. The Eucharist allows us to be not torn from Him, for it   
   is   
   the bond of communion, is the fulfilment of the Covenant ... that we might   
   remain   
   united. ... The Christ present in our midst, in the signs of bread and wine,   
   requires that the power of love exceed every laceration, and at the same time   
   that it become communion with the poor, support for the weak, fraternal   
   attention to those who are struggling to carry the weight of everyday life and   
   are in danger of losing faith".   
    To be cowardly, to despair of our sinfulness, he said, "means to let ourselves   
   be affected by the idolatries of our time: appearance, consumption, the self at   
   the centre of everything; but also being competitive, arrogance as the winning   
   attitude, the idea that one never need admit to a mistake or to find oneself in   
   need. All this demeans us, makes us mediocre, lukewarm, insipid Christians,   
   pagans".   
    "Jesus shed his blood as a ransom and as a lavacrum - a cleansing agent, that   
   we might be purified of all sins", he continued, "that we might be preserved   
   from the risk of corruption. ... The Blood of Christ will ... give us back our   
   dignity. ... We will be His eyes that go in search of Zacchaeus and of the   
   Magdalene; we will be His hand who helps the sick in body and spirit; we will   
   be   
   His heart that loves those in need of reconciliation and understanding. ... In   
   this way we understand that the Eucharist is not a reward for the good, but   
   rather strength for the weak, for sinners. It is forgiveness, the viaticum that   
   helps us on our way".   
    "Today, the feast of Corpus Christi, we have the joy not only of celebrating   
   this mystery, but also of praising Him and singing in the streets of our city",   
   he continued. "May the procession we will make at the end of the Mass, express   
   our gratitude for all the journey that God has allowed us to make through the   
   desert of our poverty, to take us out of slavery, by nourishing us with His   
   love   
   through the Sacrament of his Body and the Blood. Soon, as we walk the streets,   
   let us perceive ourselves in communion with our many brothers and sisters who   
   do   
   not have the freedom to express their faith in the Lord Jesus. Let us feel that   
   we are united with them, let us sing with them, praise with them, worship with   
   them. And we venerate in our hearts those brothers and sisters who have been   
   asked to sacrifice their lives for their fidelity to Christ. May their blood,   
   united to that of the Lord, be a pledge of peace and reconciliation for the   
   whole world".   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    Pope Francis' new encyclical to be published on 18 June   
    Vatican City, 5 June 2015 (VIS) - The Holy See Press Office Bulletin today   
   reports that Pope Francis' new encyclical will be published on Thursday 18   
   June.   
   Further information on its presentation will shortly be made available in the   
   Bulletin.   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    Audiences   
    Vatican City, 5 June 2015 (VIS) - The Holy Father received in audience:   
    - Michelle Bachelet Jeria, president of the Republic of Chile, and entourage;   
    - Archbishop Leon Kalenga Badikebele, apostolic nuncio in El Salvador and in   
   Belize;   
    - Claudio Descalzi, chief executive officer of ENI SpA., with his family.   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    Other Pontifical Acts   
    Vatican City, 5 June 2015 (VIS) - The Holy Father has:   
    - accepted the resignation from the office of auxiliary of the archdiocese of   
   Cologne, Germany, presented by Bishop Manfred Melzer, in accordance with canons   
   401 para. 2 and 411 of the Code of Canon Law.   
    - Fr. Oscar Munera Ochoa as apostolic vicar of Tierradentro (area 2,087,   
   population 68,000, Catholics 64,000, priests 15, religious 17), Colombia. The   
   bishop-elect was born in San Pedro de los Milagros, Colombia in 1962 and was   
   ordained a priest in 1988. He holds a licentiate in philosophy and religious   
   sciences at the Catholic University of Oriente, Colombia and a diploma in   
   "Missione ad gentes y etnias" from the Pontifical Xavierian University, Bogota,   
   Colombia. He has served in a number of pastoral roles in the diocese of Santa   
   Rosa de Osos, including parish vicar, spiritual director and subsequently   
   rector   
   of the Apostolic School in Liborina, diocesan delegate for youth and vocational   
   pastoral ministry, director of the department of youth in the Episcopal   
   Conference of Colombia; episcopal vicar for the western sector of the diocese;   
   vicar for pastoral ministry and bursar, and director of the department for   
   missions of the Episcopal Conference of Colombia. He is currently parish priest   
   of the "Senor de los Milagros de San Pedro" parish.   
    - appointed Libero Milone as auditor general of the Holy See and Vatican City   
   State.   
    On Thursday 4 June, the Holy Father appointed Bishop Joseph Dinh Duc Dao,   
   auxiliary of the Xuan Loc, Vietnam, as coadjutor of the same diocese.   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    Notice   
    Vatican City, 5 June 2015 (VIS) - A special edition of the Vatican Information   
   Service bulletin will be transmitted tomorrow, Saturday 6 June, on the occasion   
   of Pope Francis' apostolic trip to Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina.   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
   For more information and to search for documents refer to the site:   
   www.visnews.org and www.vatican.va   
      
   Copyright (VIS):  the news contained in the services of the Vatican   
   Information Service may be reproduced wholly or partially by quoting   
   the source:  V. I. S. - Vatican Information Service.   
   http://www.vatican.va/news_services/press/vis/vis_en.html   
      
   --- MPost/386 v1.21   
    * Origin: Sursum Corda! BBS=Huntsville AL=bbs.sursum-corda.com (1:396/45)