VATICAN INFORMATION SERVICE   
   YEAR XXII - # 125   
   DATE 06-07-2015   
      
   Summary:   
   - The Pope arrives in Ecuador, the first stage of his apostolic trip in Latin   
   America   
   - Francis prays to Our Lady at the Basilica of St. Mary Major before his trip   
   to   
   Latin America   
   - To the members of Charismatic Renewal movement: share with all the baptism   
   you   
   have received   
   - Benedict XVI receives Doctorate honoris causa from the Pontifical University   
   of John Paul II and the Musical Academy of Krakow   
   - Other Pontifical Acts   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    The Pope arrives in Ecuador, the first stage of his apostolic trip in Latin   
   America   
    Vatican City, 6 July 2015 (VIS) - At 10 p.m. yesterday, 5 July, Pope Francis   
   arrived in Quito, the capital of Ecuador, on the first leg of his ninth   
   apostolic trip during which he will also visit Bolivia and Paraguay.   
    The Holy Father left Rome by air at 9 a.m; during the long flight he spoke   
   with   
   the journalists who accompanied him on the aircraft and, as is customary, sent   
   telegrams to the Heads of State of those countries through whose airspace he   
   passed.   
    Upon arrival in Quito, the Pontiff was received by a group of children dressed   
   in the traditional costumes of the various Ecuadorian peoples: two of them, a   
   boy and a girl, offered him a floral tribute. The president, Rafael Correa,   
   then   
   gave a welcome address in which, in the light of the Encyclical "Laudato si'",   
   he mentioned that 20% of the national territory is protected in 44 nature   
   reserves and parks, and he underlined the diversity of cultures present in   
   Ecuador, which is home to not only a mestizo majority but also 14 indigenous   
   nationalities with corresponding ancestral languages, including two populations   
   who live in the heart of virgin forest, choosing voluntary isolation. The   
   president also mentioned various documents constituting the pastoral   
   Magisterium, with clear reference to the Social Doctrine of the Church, and   
   concluded amiably: "The Argentines very proudly say 'the Pope is Argentine',   
   and   
   my dear friend Dilma Rousseff, president of Brazil, says, 'very well, the Pope   
   is Argentine, but God is Brazilian!'. Of course the Pope is Argentine, and   
   perhaps God is Brazilian, but one thing is certain: paradise is Ecuadorian!".   
    The Pope expressed his joy and gratitude for the warm welcome he received, "a   
   sign of the hospitality which so well defines the people of this noble nation".   
    "I thank you, Mr President, for your words and I appreciate the convergence of   
   what you have said with my own way of thinking: you have quoted me far too   
   much,   
   thank you!", he continued. "I, in turn, express my cordial good wishes for the   
   exercise of your office: that you may achieve your objectives for the good of   
   your people. I greet the distinguished government authorities, my brother   
   bishops, the faithful of the Church in this country, and all those who today   
   have opened to me their hearts, their homes, their nation. To all of you, I   
   express my affection and sincere appreciation".   
    "I have visited Ecuador on a number of occasions for pastoral reasons. Today   
   too I have come as a witness of God's mercy and of faith in Jesus Christ. For   
   centuries that faith has shaped the identity of this people and borne much good   
   fruit, including the outstanding figures of St. Mariana de Jesus, St. Miguel   
   Febres, St. Narcisa de Jesus and Blessed Mercedes de Jesus Molina, beatified in   
   Guayaquil thirty years ago, during the visit of Pope St. John Paul II. These,   
   and others like them, lived their faith with intensity and enthusiasm, and by   
   their works of mercy they contributed in a variety of ways to improving the   
   Ecuadorian society of their day".   
    "In our own time too, we can find in the Gospel a key to meeting contemporary   
   challenges, respecting differences, fostering dialogue and full participation,   
   so that the growth in progress and development already registered will be   
   strengthened and ensure a better future for everyone, with particular concern   
   for the most vulnerable of our brothers and sisters who are the debt still   
   outstanding in Latin America. In these efforts, Mr President, you can always   
   count on the commitment and cooperation of the Church to serve the Ecuadorian   
   people who move forward with great dignity".   
    "Dear friends, I begin my visit filled with excitement and hope for the days   
   ahead. In Ecuador is the point closest to outer space: it is the Chimborazo,   
   which for that reason is called the place 'closest to the sun', the moon and   
   the   
   stars. We Christians identify Christ with the sun, and the moon with the   
   Church;   
   the moon does not have its own light, indeed if it hides from the sun it will   
   be   
   enveloped by darkness. The sun is Jesus Christ and if the Church moves away or   
   hides from him, she will be in darkness and no longer able to offer witness.   
   May   
   the coming days make all of us ever more clearly aware of how close is the sun   
   which 'dawns upon us from on high'. May each of us be a true reflection of his   
   light and his love".   
    "From this place, I wish to embrace all of Ecuador. From the peak of   
   Chimborazo   
   to the Pacific coast; from the Amazon rainforest to the Galapagos Islands, may   
   you never lose the ability to thank God for what he has done and is doing for   
   you. May you never lose the ability to protect what is small and simple, to   
   care   
   for your children and for your elderly, who are the living memory of your   
   people, to have confidence in the young, and to be constantly struck by the   
   nobility of your people and the singular beauty of your country, which,   
   according to the President, is nothing short of paradise".   
    "May the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary, to which   
   Ecuador has been consecrated, grant you every grace and blessing. Thank you",   
   concluded the Pope.   
    Following a brief private audience with President Correa, the Pope travelled   
   by   
   popemobile the forty kilometres between Mariscal Sucre airport and the centre   
   of   
   Quito, the best conserved capital of all South America. It was the first, along   
   with the Polish city of Krakow, to be declared a World Heritage Site by Unesco   
   in 1978. During his journey the Pope was greeted by thousands of people who had   
   gathered around Quito to await his arrival. Upon arrival at the apostolic   
   nunciature, where he was to dine and rest for a few hours, Francis went out   
   into   
   the street to greet the faithful, who applauded him. "I come to bless you   
   before   
   we go to rest, and let the neighbours sleep!" he said, and after reciting the   
   Lord's Prayer with them, he returned inside the nunciature.   
    This afternoon the Pope will transfer to Guayaquil where he will visit the   
   Shrine of Divine Mercy and celebrate Holy Mass.   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    Francis prays to Our Lady at the Basilica of St. Mary Major before his trip to   
   Latin America   
    Vatican City, 4 July 2015 (VIS) - At 7 p.m. today, the eve of his departure   
   for   
   Latin America, the Holy Father went to the Basilica of St. Mary Major to   
   commend   
   his imminent apostolic trip to Our Lady. He left a floral tribute before the   
   image of the Virgin, composed of flowers in the colours of the flags of the   
   three countries he will visit, and spent around twenty minutes in prayer.   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    To the members of Charismatic Renewal movement: share with all the baptism you   
   have received   
    Vatican City, 4 July 2015 (VIS) - Unity in diversity and ecumenism of prayer,   
   word and blood were the key themes of the Pope's improvised address to the   
   thousands of members of the Renewal in the Holy Spirit movement yesterday   
   afternoon, on the occasion of their 38th National Convocation, held in Rome   
   from   
   3-4 July on the theme "Ways of Unity and Peace - Voices of prayer for the   
   martyrs of today and for a spiritual ecumenism". The encounter began at 4 p.m.   
   in St. Peter's Square, and was attended by Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, prefect of   
   the Congregation for the Oriental Churches; Cardinal Kurt Koch, president of   
   the   
   Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, and Cardinal Angelo Bagnasco,   
   president of the Italian Episcopal Conference, along with the Orthodox and   
   Catholic oriental Patriarchs, Anglican and Lutheran bishops, and Pentecostal   
   pastors.   
    In his address, the Pope emphasised that unity does not mean uniformity. It is   
   not a "spherical" unity in which "every point is equidistant from the centre   
   and   
   there is no difference between one point and another. The model is the   
   polyhedron, which reflects the confluence of all the parts that nonetheless   
   maintain their originality, and these are the charisms, in unity but also   
   diversity. ... The distinction is important because we are speaking about the   
   work   
   of the Holy Spirit, not our own. Unity in the diversity of expressions of   
   reality, as many as the Holy Spirit has wished to inspire".   
    Another point the Holy Father considered very important to clarify related to   
   those who guide. "There exists a great temptation for leaders to believe   
   themselves indispensable, step by step to head towards authoritarianism, to   
   personality cults, and not to allow the communities renewed in the Holy Spirit   
   to thrive. This temptation renders 'eternal' the position of those who consider   
      
   --- MPost/386 v1.21   
    * Origin: Sursum Corda! BBS=Huntsville AL=bbs.sursum-corda.com (1:396/45)