* Original message posted in: VATICAN.   
   * Crossposted in: IN_CATHOLIC.   
      
   VATICAN INFORMATION SERVICE   
      
   TWENTIETH YEAR - N. 155   
   ENGLISH   
   MONDAY, 13 SEPTEMBER 2010   
      
   SUMMARY: 11 - 13 SEPTEMBER   
      
   - Fruits of Evangelisation Depend on Faith and Prayer   
   - Other Pontifical Acts   
   - Angelus: God Always Comes out to Meet Us   
   - Pope Mentions New Blessed, Leopoldo de Alpandeire   
   - Letters of Credence of New German Ambassador   
   - Bishops: Custodians of the Church   
   - Celebrations to Be Presided by Pope: October-November   
   - Reopening of the Vatican Apostolic Library   
   - Audiences   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
   FRUITS OF EVANGELISATION DEPEND ON FAITH AND PRAYER   
      
   VATICAN CITY, 11 SEP 2010 (VIS) - At midday today Benedict XVI received   
   participants in a congress for recently-consecrated bishops, regularly   
   organised at this time of year by the Congregation for the Evangelisation of   
   Peoples.   
      
     The Pope began his remarks by referring to the challenges they have to   
   face, "especially in Christian communities that live their faith in   
   difficult contexts where, apart from various kinds of poverty, they have to   
   face persecution because of their Christian faith". In this context he   
   reminded the prelates of their "duty to nourish people's hopes, to share   
   their difficulties, drawing inspiration from Christ's charity which consists   
   in care, tenderness, compassion, hospitality, availability and interest in   
   people's problems, for which we are ready to give our lives".   
      
     Speaking then of the episcopal ministry, the Holy Father explained that   
   "it can be understood only on the basis of Christ, source of the one and   
   supreme priesthood in which the bishop is made a participant. ... In order   
   to imitate Christ it is necessary to dedicate an adequate period of time to   
   'being with Him', contemplating Him in the intimacy of prayer. ... Remaining   
   frequently in God's presence, being a man of prayer and adoration; these are   
   the primary duties to which the pastor is called".   
      
     After then highlighting how "the life of the bishop must be a constant   
   oblation to God for the salvation of His Church, and especially for the   
   salvation of the souls entrusted to his care", the Pope noted that "the   
   office of bishop, like that of priest, must never be misunderstood in   
   worldly terms. It is a service of love".   
      
     "The acceptance and the fruit of the proclamation of the Good News are   
   closely linked to the quality of faith and prayer. Those called to the   
   ministry of preaching must believe in the power of God which is released in   
   the Sacraments and which accompanies them in their duty to sanctify, govern   
   and announce. They must believe and live what they proclaim and celebrate".   
      
     "In many cases", Benedict XVI went on to note, the prelates' communities   
   "represent a minority presence. In these contexts the mission of the bishop   
   is particularly demanding. Yet, it is precisely in such circumstances that,   
   through your ministry, the Gospel can reveal all its salvific power. You   
   must not give in to pessimism and discouragement, because it is the Holy   
   Spirit that guides the Church and gives her ... the courage to persevere and   
   seek new methods of evangelisation, so as to reach areas as yet unexplored.   
      
     "The Christian truth", he added in conclusion, "is attractive and   
   persuasive because it responds to the profound need of human existence,   
   convincingly announcing that Christ is the one Saviour of all of man and of   
   all mankind. This announcement remains valid today, just as it was at the   
   beginning of Christianity when the first great missionary expansion of the   
   Gospel took place".   
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   OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS   
      
   VATICAN CITY, 11 SEP 2010 (VIS) - The Holy Father appointed Bishop Fausto   
   Gabriel Travez Travez O.F.M. of Babahoyo, Ecuador, as metropolitan   
   archbishop of Quito (area 11,167, population 2,317,000, Catholics 2,085,000,   
   priests 475, permanent deacons 9, religious 2,181), Ecuador. The   
   a   
   rchbishop-elect was born in Toacazo, Ecuador in 1941, he was ordained a   
   priest in 1970 and consecrated a bishop in 2003. He succeeds Archbishop Raul   
   Eduardo Vela Chiriboga, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same   
   archdiocese the Holy Father accepted, upon having reached the age limit.   
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   ANGELUS: GOD ALWAYS COMES OUT TO MEET US   
      
   VATICAN CITY, 12 SEP 2010 (VIS) - At midday today, before praying the   
   Angelus with faithful gathered in the central courtyard of the Apostolic   
   Palace in Castelgandolfo, Benedict XVI remarked on the readings of today's   
   Mass and invited people to pray for his forthcoming trip to the United   
   Kingdom.   
      
     In today's Gospel "Jesus narrates the three 'parables of mercy'", said the   
   Pope. "When He speaks 'of the shepherd who goes after the lost sheep, of the   
   woman who looks for the lost coin, of the father who goes to meet and   
   embrace his prodigal son, these are no mere words: they constitute an   
   explanation of His very being and activity'. The shepherd who finds the lost   
   sheep is the Lord Himself Who, with the Cross, takes sinful man upon Himself   
   in order to redeem him".   
      
     "How can we not open our hearts to the certainty that, though sinners, we   
   are loved by God? He never tires of coming out to meet us, He is always the   
   first to start down the road that separates us from Him. The Book of Exodus   
   shows how Moses, with a faithful and audacious prayer, managed to move God,   
   so to say, from the throne of justice to the throne of mercy. Penitence is   
   the measure of faith, thanks to which we return to Truth".   
      
     With reference to the Parable of the Prodigal Son, the Holy Father noted   
   how "when the elder son is offended by the festive welcome shown to his   
   brother, it is again the father who goes out to meet him. ... Only faith can   
   transform selfishness into joy and re-establish proper relations with others   
   and with God", he said.   
      
     Finally, the Holy Father asked for prayers for his apostolic visit to the   
   United Kingdom where, next Sunday, he is due to beatify Cardinal John Henry   
   Newman. "To the Virgin Mary", he said, "whose Holy Name is celebrated in the   
   Church today, we entrust our journey of conversion towards God".   
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   POPE MENTIONS NEW BLESSED, LEOPOLDO DE ALPANDEIRE   
      
   VATICAN CITY, 12 SEP 2010 (VIS) - After praying the Angelus today the Pope   
   recalled how Br. Leopoldo Sanchez Marquez de Alpandeire (ne Francesco), was   
   beatified this morning in the Spanish city of Granada.   
      
     "The life of this simple and austere Capuchin religious", he said, "is a   
   hymn to humility and to trust in God, as well as a shining example of   
   devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. I invite everyone, following the   
   example of this new blessed, to serve the Lord with a sincere heart, that we   
   may experience the immense love He has for us, which makes it possible to   
   love all mankind without exception".   
   ANG/                                                                    VIS   
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   LETTERS OF CREDENCE OF NEW GERMAN AMBASSADOR   
      
   VATICAN CITY, 13 SEP 2010 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received the Letters   
   of Credence of Walter Jurgen Schmid, the new ambassador of Germany to the   
   Holy See.   
      
     The Pope began by mentioning Fr. Gerhard Hirschfelder, a martyr priest who   
   died under the Nazi regime and who is due to be beatified in Munster on 19   
   September. He also referred to the beatifications of four other priests and   
   the commemoration of an Evangelical pastor, scheduled for 2011.   
      
     "Contemplating these martyrs", said Benedict XVI, "it emerges ever more   
   clearly how certain men, on the basis of their Christian convictions, are   
   ready to give their lives for the faith, for the right to exercise their   
   beliefs freely and for freedom of speech, for peace and human dignity".   
      
     However, he went on, "many men tend to show an overriding inclination   
   towards more permissive religious convictions. The personal God of   
   Christianity, Who reveals Himself in the Bible, is replaced    
   by a supreme   
   being, mysterious and undefined, who has only a vague relation with the   
   personal life of human beings.   
      
     "These ideas are increasingly animating discussion within society,   
   especially as regards the areas of justice and lawmaking", the Pope added.   
   "If, however, one abandons faith in a personal God, then an alternative   
   'god' arises, one who does not know, does not feel and does not speak". ...   
   If God does not have His own will, then good and bad end up being   
   indistinguishable. ... Man thus loses the moral and spiritual energy   
   necessary for the overall development of the person. Social activity is   
   increasingly dominated by private interest or by power calculations, to the   
   detriment of society".   
      
     "The Church", the Holy Father explained, "looks with concern at the   
   growing attempts to eliminate the Christian concept of marriage and the   
   family from the conscience of society. Marriage is the lasting union of love   
   between a man and a woman, which is always open to the transmission of human   
   life". In this context he identified the need for a "culture of the person",   
   using an expression of John Paul II. Moreover, he continued, "the success of   
   marriages depends upon us all and on the personal culture of each individual   
   citizen. In this sense, the Church cannot approve legislative initiatives   
   that involve a re-evaluation of alternative models of marriage and family   
   life. They contribute to a weakening of the principles of natural law, and   
   thus to the relativisation of all legislation and confusion about values in   
   society".   
      
     Going on then to address the question of "new possibilities" in   
   biotechnology and medicine, the Pope laid emphasis on "our duty to study how   
   these methods can help man, and where they involve manipulation of man, the   
   violation of his integrity and dignity. We cannot reject these developments,   
   but we must remain highly vigilant. Once we have begun to distinguish (and   
   this often already happens in the mother's womb) between a life that is   
   worthy to be lived and one which is unworthy, then no other phase of   
   existence will be spared, particularly old age and infirmity".   
      
     The Holy Father concluded by highlighting how "the construction of a human   
   society requires faithfulness to truth". In this context he mentioned   
   certain phenomena related to the communications media. "Being in   
   ever-greater competition with one another", he said, they "feel impelled to   
   attract as much attention as possible. Moreover, in general it is contrast   
   that makes news, even if this goes against the truth of the story. The   
   question becomes particularly problematic when authority figures take up   
   public stances on the matter, without being able to verify all aspects   
   adequately. The intention of the federal government to look into these cases   
   is to be welcomed".   
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   BISHOPS: CUSTODIANS OF THE CHURCH   
      
   VATICAN CITY, 13 SEP 2010 (VIS) - A hundred and twenty recently-appointed   
   bishops from various countries, currently participating in an annual   
   congress promoted by the Congregation for Bishops, were received today by   
   the Holy Father who began his remarks to them by greeting Cardinal Marc   
   Ouellet P.S.S., the new prefect of the Congregation for Bishops, and   
   Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, prefect of the Congregation for the Oriental   
   Churches.   
      
     In his address to them the Pope referred to the "important custom" of new   
   bishops making a pilgrimage to the tomb of St. Peter, "who conformed himself   
   to Christ, Teacher and Shepherd, until death and death on the cross". And he   
   quoted Jesus' words from the Gospel of St. John: "The Good Shepherd lays   
   down his life for the sheep".   
      
     Thus, the Holy Father went on, "the mission of the bishop cannot be   
   understood with a mindset of efficiency and effectiveness in which attention   
   is primarily focused on what has to be done; rather, it is important to   
   concentrate on the ontological dimension, which acts as foundation for the   
   functional level. The bishop, in fact, by the authority of Christ with which   
   he is invested, when   
    he sits on the Cathedra is 'above' and 'in front of'   
   the community, in that he is 'for' the community towards which his pastoral   
   solicitude is directed".   
      
     Reflecting then on the words used when consigning the ring during   
   episcopal consecrations - "Take this ring, the seal of your fidelity. With   
   integrity of faith and purity of life protect the bride of God, His Holy   
   Church" - Benedict explained: "The concept of 'protecting' does not only   
   mean conserving what has already been established (though this must not be   
   lacking); rather, in its essence it also includes the dynamic aspect: a   
   perpetual and concrete tendency towards perfection, in complete harmony   
   with, and continually adapting to, the new requirements that arise with the   
   development and progress of that living organism which is the community.   
      
    "The bishop has responsibility for the good of his diocese, but also for   
   that of society", the Pope added. "He is called to be 'strong and   
   determined, just and serene' in order to be able exercise that wise   
   discernment of people, facts and events which is required of him in his duty   
   to be 'father, brother and friend' along the Christian and human journey".   
      
     And Pope Benedict concluded: "The ministry of the bishop - who is not a   
   mere governor or bureaucrat, or a simple moderator or organiser of diocesan   
   life - is part of a profound perspective that is not simply human,   
   administrative or sociological, but a perspective of faith. It is paternity   
   and fraternity in Christ that enable the bishop to create a climate of   
   trust, acceptance and affection, but also of frankness and justice".   
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   CELEBRATIONS TO BE PRESIDED BY POPE: OCTOBER-NOVEMBER   
      
   VATICAN CITY, 13 SEP 2010 (VIS) - The Office of Liturgical Celebrations of   
   the Supreme Pontiff today published the calendar of celebrations to be   
   presided by the Holy Father in the months of October and November:   
      
   OCTOBER   
      
    - Sunday 3: Pastoral visit to Palermo, Italy, for the occasion of the   
   regional meeting of families and young people.   
      
    - Sunday 10: At 9.30 a.m. in the Vatican Basilica, opening of the Special   
   Assembly for the Middle East of the Synod of Bishops.   
      
    - Sunday 17: At 10 a.m. in St. Peter's Square, canonisation of the   
   following blesseds: Stanislao Soltys (Kazimierczyk), Andre Bessette (ne   
   Alfred), Candida Maria de Jesus Cipitria y Barriola (nee Juana Josefa), Mary   
   of the Cross MacKillop (nee Mary Helen), Giulia Salzano and Battista da   
   Varano (nee Camilla).   
      
    - Sunday 24: At 9.30 a.m. in the Vatican Basilica, conclusion of the   
   Special Assembly for the Middle East of the Synod of Bishops.   
      
   NOVEMBER   
      
    - Thursday 4: At 11.30 a.m. at the altar of the Cathedra in the Vatican   
   Basilica, Mass for cardinals and bishops who died over the course of the   
   year.   
      
    - Saturday 6 - Sunday 7: Apostolic trip to the Spanish cities of Santiago   
   de Compostela and Barcelona.   
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   REOPENING OF THE VATICAN APOSTOLIC LIBRARY   
      
   VATICAN CITY, 13 SEP 2010 (VIS) - Following three years of restoration work,   
   the Vatican Apostolic Library is due to reopen its doors on 20 September.   
   The announcement was made in a press conference, held this morning in the   
   Sistine Hall of the Vatican Museums and presented by Cardinal Raffaele   
   Farina S.D.B., archivist and librarian of Holy Roman Church; Msgr. Cesare   
   Pasini, prefect of the Vatican Apostolic Library; Pier Carlo Cuscianna,   
   director of Technical Services of the Governorate of Vatican City State;   
   Giovanni Giavazzi, president of the "Italcementi" Foundation, and Gennaro   
   Guala, also of "Italcementi", the company which undertook the restoration   
   work.   
      
     The wing in which the collections are kept was in need of structural   
   repair work including strengthening the floor which was showing signs of   
   subsiding, bringing large areas of the building into line with safety norms,   
   and moving a number of sectors in order to rationalise access to the works.   
      
     During the course of the press conference it was an   
   nounced that an   
   exhibition entitled "Knowing the Vatican Apostolic Library: a story open to   
   the future" will open in the Vatican's Charlemagne Wing on 10 November. It   
   was further announced that a congress will be held from 11 to 13 November on   
   the theme: "The Vatican Apostolic Library as a place of research and an   
   institution at the service of scholars".   
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   AUDIENCES   
      
   VATICAN CITY, 13 SEP 2010 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in audience   
   Cardinal Marc Ouellet P.S.S., prefect of the Congregation for Bishops.   
      
     On Saturday 11 September he received in audience Archbishop Reinhard Marx   
   of Munich and Freising, Germany.   
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   --- timEd/2 1.10.y2k+   
    * Origin: Sursum Corda! BBS-Meridian, MS-bbs.sursum-corda.com (1:396/45)