* Original message posted in: VATICAN.   
   * Crossposted in: IN_CATHOLIC.   
      
   VATICAN INFORMATION SERVICE   
      
   TWENTIETH YEAR - N. 225   
   ENGLISH   
   FRIDAY, 17 DECEMBER 2010   
      
   SUMMARY:   
      
   - Pope Meets with Roman University Students   
   - Apostolic Vigour and Drive for Naples Jubilee Year   
   - Holy Father Bestows a Prize on Marian Academy of India   
   - Italian Culture Profoundly Marked by Catholic Church   
   - Vatican Christmas Tree to Be Lit in a Ceremony Today   
   - Communique Concerning Chinese Catholic Assembly   
   - Audiences   
   - Other Pontifical Acts   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
   POPE MEETS WITH ROMAN UNIVERSITY STUDENTS   
      
   VATICAN CITY, 17 DEC 2010 (VIS) - Yesterday at 5 p.m., in keeping with a   
   pre-Christmas tradition of meeting with university students, the Holy Father   
   presided at Vespers in the Vatican Basilica with students from Roman   
   universities.   
      
     "The God of Abraham", he said in his homily, "revealed Himself, He showed   
   His face and came to dwell in our flesh, in Jesus the Son of Mary - true God   
   and true man - Whom we will meet once again at the Manger in Bethlehem. To   
   return there, to that humble and cramped place, is not simply a mental   
   journey; it is a path we are called to follow by experiencing the closeness   
   of God here and now, and His action which renews and sustains our lives".   
      
     "The road to the Manger of Bethlehem is a journey of inner liberation, an   
   experience of profound freedom, because it encourages us to emerge from   
   ourselves and to move towards God, Who has come close to us. ... He wishes   
   to infuse courage into our lives, especially when we are tired and weary,   
   when we need to rediscover the serenity of the journey and joyfully to feel   
   that we are pilgrims on our way to eternity. ... The Child we will find   
   between Mary and Joseph is the Logos-Love, the Word which can give full   
   consistency to our lives. ... In Bethlehem, the today of God and the today   
   of man meet, and together they begin a journey of dialogue and intense   
   communion.   
      
    "Dear friends", the Holy Father added, "you who are following the   
   fascinating and demanding journey of research and cultural endeavour, the   
   Incarnate Word asks you to share with Him the patience 'to build'. Building   
   your lives, building society, is not an undertaking that can be achieved by   
   distracted and superficial minds and hearts. ... In our own time we feel the   
   need for a new class of intellectuals capable of interpreting social and   
   cultural dynamics, and of proposing solutions that are not abstract, but   
   concrete and realistic. Universities are called to play this vital role, in   
   which the Church will provide her committed and effective support".   
      
     The Roman university community - which is made up of State, private,   
   Catholic and Pontifical institutions - must, said Benedict XVI, "play an   
   important historical role: that of overcoming the misunderstandings and   
   prejudices which at times hinder the development of authentic culture.   
   Working together, especially with faculties of theology, Roman universities   
   can show that it is possible to implement a new dialogue and new   
   collaboration between Christian faith and the various fields of knowledge,   
   without confusion or separation but sharing the same aspiration to serve man   
   in his entirety".   
      
     At the end of the ceremony, an African university delegation consigned the   
   image of "Maria Sedes Sapientiae" to a delegation of Spanish students. The   
   image will be taken on pilgrimage to all Spanish universities in preparation   
   for World Youth Day, due to be held in the Spanish capital Madrid in August   
   next year.   
   HML/                                                                    VIS   
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   APOSTOLIC VIGOUR AND DRIVE FOR NAPLES JUBILEE YEAR   
      
   VATICAN CITY, 17 DEC 2010 (VIS) - The Holy Father has sent a Message to   
   Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe, archbishop of Naples, Italy, for opening of the   
   archdiocese's Jubilee Year which began recently and is due to last for all   
   of 2011.   
      
     Naples, the Pope writes, "has a rich religious heritage, and this calls   
   for coherence of faith and courage of witness. In keeping with this opulent   
   tradition, Christian sanctity has flowered abundantly, finding expre   
   ssion in   
   famous figures who left profound traces in the Church and in society. These   
   shining examples have handed down the responsibility to continue the history   
   of faith and charity in your land, showing the same vigour and apostolic   
   drive as they did.   
      
     "Of course", the Holy Father adds, "today's social and cultural context is   
   very different from the past and, although we may joy in the Lord for the   
   genuine and persisting faith of so many Christians, it is painful to note   
   the spread of a secularised view of life and the emergence of evils   
   afflicting the body public, which is threatened by individualism.   
      
     "In this atmosphere, negative and deviant models also exercise their   
   influence, having a strong impact on family and social life, especially on   
   the new generations. Thus I wish to reiterate the urgent need for the human   
   and Christian formation of children and young people, because they are   
   seriously exposed to the risks of deviancy".   
      
     "Christians are called to work for truth and to bear courageous witness to   
   the Gospel in all areas of life. Each individual can and must strive to   
   ensure that spiritual and ethical values, translated into life choices, make   
   a decisive contribution to the creation of a more just and fraternal   
   society. To this end we must work to create ... relationships of authentic   
   charity which give concrete expression to solidarity and service, so as to   
   provide alternative life examples that are accessible to all and, at the   
   same time, emblematic".   
      
     The Holy Father concludes his message: "In this way we will reinforce the   
   awareness that today, as always, the seed of the Kingdom of God is present   
   and active. A seed of the future, capable, if welcomed personally and   
   generously, of transforming even the most difficult situations and of   
   renewing the heart and countenance of Naples".   
   MESS/                                                                   VIS   
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   HOLY FATHER BESTOWS A PRIZE ON MARIAN ACADEMY OF INDIA   
      
   VATICAN CITY, 17 DEC 2010 (VIS) - Yesterday evening at the Palazzo of San   
   Pio X, the Pontifical Academies held their fifteenth public session on the   
   theme: "The Assumption of Mary, a sign of consolation and of sure hope".   
      
     During the session Cardinal Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone S.D.B.   
   read out a Message sent by the Pope to Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, president   
   of the Co-ordinating Council of the Pontifical Academies, and to   
   participants.   
      
     "The fifteenth public session", the Pope writes, "was organised by the   
   Pontifical International Marian Academy and the Pontifical Academy of Mary   
   Immaculate which, most opportunely, wanted this solemn meeting to recall the   
   sixtieth anniversary of the promulgation of the Dogma of the Assumption".   
      
     Benedict XVI recalls how "Vatican Council II, in its Dogmatic Constitution   
   'Lumen gentium', teaches that Mary is a sign of sure hope and consolation   
   for the People of God on their pilgrimage through history".   
      
     "The Fathers and Doctors of the Church, echoing the shared feeling of the   
   faithful and reflecting upon what the liturgy celebrates, proclaimed Mary's   
   singular privilege and illustrated her shining beauty, which supports and   
   nourishes our hope", the Pope writes.   
      
     "Theological and spiritual reflections", he goes on, "the liturgy, Marian   
   devotion, and artistic representations are really all part of the same   
   thing, a complete and effective message capable of arousing wonder in our   
   eyes, of touching our heart, of stimulating our mind to an even deeper   
   understanding of the mystery of Mary, in whom we see our own destiny and   
   hope clearly reflected and announced".   
      
     In this context, the holy Father invites the scholars "to follow the 'via   
   pulchritudinis'", expressing the hope that, "even in our own day, thanks to   
   greater collaboration between theologians, liturgists and artists, more   
   incisive and effective messages may be presented for people's contemplation   
   and admiration".   
      
     Accepting a suggestion made by the Co-ordinating Council of the Pontifical   
   Academies, Benedict XVI also announces that his year he is assigning the   
   Pontifical   
    Ecclesiastical Academies Prize to the Marian Academy of India,   
   represented by its president Fr. Kulandaisamy Raya, and to Luis Alberto   
   Esteves dos Santos Casimiro, for his doctoral dissertation on the   
   Annunciation in sixteenth century Portuguese painting.   
      
     The Holy Father concludes by saying: "Furthermore, as a sign of   
   appreciation and encouragement, I wish to present the pontifical medal to   
   the 'Gen Verde' Group, part of the 'Focolari' Movement, for its artistic   
   undertakings so strongly impregnated with Gospel values and open to dialogue   
   between peoples and cultures".   
   MESS/                                                                   VIS   
   20101217 (420)   
      
   ITALIAN CULTURE PROFOUNDLY MARKED BY CATHOLIC CHURCH   
      
   VATICAN CITY, 17 DEC 2010 (VIS) - Today in the Vatican, Benedict XVI   
   received the Letters of Credence of Francesco Maria Greco, the new Italian   
   ambassador to the Holy See.   
      
     In his address to the diplomat, the Pope spoke of the preparations   
   underway for the celebration of the 150th anniversary of Italian unity,   
   affirming that "one of the most important aspects of the long and sometimes   
   tiring and difficult journey which led to the modern Italian State, was the   
   search for a just distinction between the civil and religious communities,   
   and for correct forms of collaboration between them. This need is more   
   deeply felt in a county like Italy, whose history and culture are so   
   profoundly marked by the Catholic Church, and the capital of which is the   
   episcopal see of the visible head of that community, which has spread   
   throughout the world.   
      
     "These characteristics", he added, "which have been part of Italy's   
   historical and cultural heritage for centuries, cannot be denied, forgotten   
   or marginalised. The experience of these 150 years teaches us that when   
   attempts have been made to do so, they have led to dangerous imbalances and   
   painful fractures in the social life of the country".   
      
     In this context the Pope underlined the importance of the Lateran Pacts   
   and of the Villa Madama Agreement, which "set the co-ordinates for   
   well-balanced relations, which are of benefit to the Apostolic See just as   
   they are to the State and Church in Italy".   
      
     "These international agreements are not the expression of a desire for   
   power, privilege or economic and social advantage on the part of the Church   
   or the Holy See, nor do they aim to encroach into the area of the mission   
   which the Divine Founder entrusted to His community on earth. Quite the   
   contrary, the basis of these agreements lies in the State's just desire to   
   ensure that individuals and the Church can fully exercise their religious   
   freedom. This right has dimensions that are not only personal. ... Religious   
   freedom is, in fact, a right not just of individuals, but of families,   
   religious groups and the Church, and the State is called to safeguard not   
   only believers' right to freedom of conscience and religion, but also the   
   legitimate role of religion and of religious communities in the public   
   sphere".   
      
     Benedict XVI continued: "The correct exercise and reciprocal recognition   
   of this right enables society to make use of the moral resources and   
   generous service of believers. Thus, we cannot hope to achieve authentic   
   social progress by the marginalisation or even the explicit rejection of the   
   religious factor, something which is happening in various ways in our time.   
   One of these, for example, is the attempt to eliminate religious symbols   
   from public places, first among them the Crucifix which is certainly the   
   symbol par excellence of the Christian faith but which, at the same time,   
   speaks to all men and women of good will and, as such, does not   
   discriminate".   
      
     The Holy Father went on to thank the Italian government for having   
   operated in this field "in accordance with a correct view of laicism, in the   
   light of its own history, culture and traditions, finding positive support   
   therein also from other European nations. While some societies attempt to   
   marginalise the religious dimension", he said, "recent news stories   
   demonstrate how, in our own time, even flagrant violations    
   of religious   
   freedom take place. Faced with this painful truth, Italian society and   
   government have shown particular sensitivity towards the fate of those   
   Christian minorities who suffer violence and discrimination because of their   
   faith, or are forced to emigrate from their homeland.   
      
     "My hope is", the Pope concluded, "that awareness of this problem may   
   increase and, as a consequence, efforts may be intensified to ensure full   
   respect for religious freedom, everywhere and for everyone. I am certain the   
   Holy See's commitment in this field will not lack Italian support in the   
   international arena".   
   CD/                                                                     VIS   
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   VATICAN CHRISTMAS TREE TO BE LIT IN A CEREMONY TODAY   
      
   VATICAN CITY, 17 DEC 2010 (VIS) - Benedict XVI today received a delegation   
   from the town of Luson in the province of Bolzano, part of the Italian   
   region of Alto Adige, which has donated the Christmas tree which will   
   decorate St. Peter's Square during the festive season this year.   
      
     The tree, which will be lit this evening during a public ceremony to be   
   presided by Cardinal Giovanni Lajolo, president of the Governorate of   
   Vatican City State, is a Norway spruce, thirty-four metres high and   
   ninety-three years old. Apart from the main tree, Luson has also donated   
   fifty smaller trees which will be used to decorate various sites in the   
   Vatican.   
      
     The Holy Father noted that the spruce, "which stood at an altitude of 1500   
   metres and was cut down without damaging the forest environment, will stand   
   next to the nativity scene until the end of the Christmas festivities".   
      
     "The Christmas tree", he went on, "enriches the symbolic value of the   
   nativity scene, which is a message of fraternity and friendship, an   
   invitation to unity and peace, an invitation to make space for God in our   
   life and society. He offers us His omnipotent love through the fragile   
   figure of a child, because He wants us to respond freely with our own love.   
   Thus the nativity scene and the tree bear a message of hope and love, and   
   help to create an environment in which to experience the mystery of the   
   birth of the Redeemer in the right spiritual and religious context".   
   AC/                                                                     VIS   
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   COMMUNIQUE CONCERNING CHINESE CATHOLIC ASSEMBLY   
      
   VATICAN CITY, 17 DEC 2010 (VIS) - At midday today the Holy See Press Office   
   released the following English-language communique concerning the Eighth   
   Assembly of Chinese Catholic Representatives, which took place in Beijing   
   from 7 to 9 December.   
      
     "With profound sorrow, the Holy See laments the fact that from 7 to 9   
   December there was held in Beijing the Eighth Assembly of Chinese Catholic   
   Representatives. This was imposed on numerous bishops, priests, religious   
   and lay faithful. The manner in which it was convoked and its unfolding   
   manifest a repressive attitude with regard to the exercise of religious   
   liberty, which it was hoped had been consigned to the past in present-day   
   China. The persistent desire to control the most intimate area of citizens'   
   lives, namely their conscience, and to interfere in the internal life of the   
   Catholic Church does no credit to China. On the contrary, it seems to be a   
   sign of fear and weakness rather than of strength; of intransigent   
   intolerance rather than of openness to freedom and to effective respect both   
   of human dignity and of a correct distinction between the civil and   
   religious spheres.   
      
     "On several occasions the Holy See had let it be known, first and foremost   
   to the bishops, but also to all the faithful, and publicly, that they should   
   not take part in the event. Each one of those who were present knows to what   
   extent he or she is responsible before God and the Church. The bishops in   
   particular and the priests will also have to face the expectations of their   
   respective communities, who look to their own pastor and have a right to   
   receive from him sure guidance in the faith and in the moral life.   
      
     "It is known, moreover, that many bishops and priests were forced to take   
   part in th   
   e assembly. The Holy See condemns this grave violation of their   
   human rights, particularly their freedom of religion and of conscience.   
   Moreover, the Holy See expresses its deepest esteem for those who, in   
   different ways, have borne witness to their faith with courage and it   
   invites the others to pray, to do penance and, through their works, to   
   reaffirm their own will to follow Christ with love, in full communion with   
   the universal Church.   
      
     "Addressing those whose hearts are full of dismay and profound suffering,   
   those who are wondering how it is possible that their own bishop or their   
   own priests should have taken part in the assembly, the Holy See asks them   
   to remain steadfast and patient in the faith; it invites them to take   
   account of the pressures experienced by many of their pastors and to pray   
   for them; it exhorts them to continue courageously supporting them in the   
   face of the unjust impositions that they encounter in the exercise of their   
   ministry.   
      
     "During the assembly, among other things, the leaders of the so-called   
   Episcopal Conference and of the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association were   
   appointed. Concerning these two entities, and concerning the assembly   
   itself, the words written by Pope Benedict XVI in his 2007 Letter to the   
   Church in China continue to apply.   
      
     "In particular, the present college of Catholic bishops of China cannot be   
   recognised as an episcopal conference by the Apostolic See: the   
   'clandestine' bishops, those not recognised by the government but in   
   communion with the Pope, are not part of it; it includes bishops who are   
   still illegitimate, and it is governed by statutes that contain elements   
   incompatible with Catholic doctrine. It is deeply deplorable that an   
   illegitimate bishop has been appointed as its president.   
      
     "Furthermore, regarding the declared purpose to implement the principles   
   of independence and autonomy, self-management and democratic administration   
   of the Church, it should be remembered that this is incompatible with   
   Catholic doctrine, which from the time of the ancient Creeds professes the   
   Church to be 'one, holy, catholic and apostolic'. It is therefore lamentable   
   also that a legitimate bishop has been appointed president of the Chinese   
   Catholic Patriotic Association.   
      
     "This is not the path that the Church must follow in the context of a   
   great and noble nation, which attracts the attention of world opinion for   
   its significant achievements in so many spheres, but still finds it hard to   
   implement the demands of genuine religious freedom, despite the fact that it   
   professes in its Constitution to respect that freedom. What is more, the   
   assembly has rendered more difficult the path of reconciliation between   
   Catholics of the 'clandestine communities' and those of the 'official   
   communities', thereby inflicting a deep wound not only upon the Church in   
   China but also upon the universal Church.   
      
     "The Holy See profoundly regrets the fact that the celebration of the   
   abovementioned assembly, as also the recent episcopal ordination without the   
   indispensable papal mandate, have unilaterally damaged the dialogue and the   
   climate of trust that had been established in its relations with the   
   government of the People's Republic of China. The Holy See, while   
   reaffirming its own wish to dialogue honestly, feels bound to state that   
   unacceptable and hostile acts such as those just mentioned provoke among the   
   faithful, both in China and elsewhere, a grave loss of the trust that is   
   necessary for overcoming the difficulties and building a correct   
   relationship with the Church, for the sake of the common good.   
      
     "In the light of what has happened, the Holy Father's invitation -   
   addressed on 1 December 2010 to all the Catholics of the world to pray for   
   the Church in China which is going through a particularly difficult time -   
   remains pressing".   
   OP/                                                                     VIS   
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   AUDIENCES   
      
   VATICAN CITY, 17 DEC 2010 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in separate   
   audiences:   
      
    - Carl A. Anderson, supreme knight of the Knights of Col   
   umbus, accompanied   
   by Bishop William Edward Lori of Bridgeport, U.S.A.   
      
    - Cardinal Agostino Vallini, his vicar general for the diocese of Rome.   
      
     This evening he is scheduled to receive in audience Cardinal Marc Ouellet   
   P.S.S., prefect of the Congregation for Bishops.   
   AP/                                                                     VIS   
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   OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS   
      
   VATICAN CITY, 17 DEC 2010 (VIS) - The Holy Father appointed Msgr. Peter Paul   
   Angkyier, former vicar general and diocesan consultant of Damongo, Ghana, as   
   bishop of the same diocese (area 29,000, population 440,000, Catholics   
   22,700, priests 42, religious 32). The bishop-elect was born in Nandon,   
   Ghana in 1961 and ordained a priest in 1992.   
   NER/                                                                    VIS   
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    - Origin: VIS - Ufficio Stampa della Santa Sede (1:396/3)    
   --- timEd/2 1.10.y2k+   
    * Origin: Sursum Corda! BBS-Meridian, MS-bbs.sursum-corda.com (1:396/45)