Subject: VISnews 110328
Organization: VIS - Ufficio Stampa della Santa Sede
From: Vatican Information Service - Eng - txt
VATICAN INFORMATION SERVICE
TWENTY FIRST YEAR - N. 59
ENGLISH
MONDAY, 28 MARCH 2011
SUMMARY: 26 - 28 MARCH
- Pope's Video Message to the "Courtyard of the Gentiles"
- Holy Father Calls for Safe, Dignified, Stable Employment
- Benedict XVI Visits Rome's "Fosse Ardeatine"
- Christ's Thirst, a Symbol of His Humanity
- Appeals for Libya and for Dialogue in the Middle East
- Benedict XVI Receives His Beatitude Chrysostomos II
- Holy See, Observer at International Conference on Libya
- Cardinals Take Possession of Diaconate, Titular Churches
- Audiences
___________________________________________________________
POPE'S VIDEO MESSAGE TO THE "COURTYARD OF THE GENTILES"
VATICAN CITY, 26 MAR 2011 (VIS) - Given below is the complete text of the
Holy Father's video message to participants in the "Courtyard of the
Gentiles", a meeting between believers and non-believers promoted by the
Pontifical Council for Culture and dedicated to the theme "Enlightenment,
religion, shared reason". The event closed yesterday in Paris on the
forecourt of the cathedral of Notre-Dame where the Pope's message was
broadcast on giant screens.
"Dear young people, dear friends!
"I know that - at the invitation of Cardinal Andre Vingt-Trois, archbishop
of Paris, and of Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, president of the Pontifical
Council for Culture - you have gathered in large numbers on the forecourt of
Notre-Dame de Paris. I greet you all, not forgetting our brothers and
friends of the Taize Community. I am grateful to the pontifical council for
having taken up and extended my invitation to open a 'Courtyard of the
Gentiles' in the Church. The image of the courtyard evokes that vast open
space near the Temple of Jerusalem where everyone who did not share the
faith of Israel could approach the Temple and pose questions about that
religion. There they could meet the scribes, discuss the faith and even pray
to the God they did not know. And if, at that time, the Courtyard was also a
place of exclusion because Gentiles did not have the right to enter the
consecrated area, Jesus Christ came to 'break down the dividing wall'
between Jews and Gentiles, so as to 'reconcile both groups to God in one
body through the cross, thus putting to death that hostility through it. So
he came and proclaimed peace...', as St. Paul tells us.
"At the heart of the 'City of Light', in front of that magnificent
masterpiece of French religious culture which is Notre-Dame, a great space
has been opened to give fresh impetus to respectful and friendly encounter
among people of differing convictions. You young people, believers and
non-believers, have chosen to come together, this evening as in your
everyday lives, to meet and to discuss the great questions of human
existence. Many people today affirm that they do not belong to any religion,
but wish for a new and freer world, more just and more united, more peaceful
and happier. As I address you today, I consider everything you have to say
to one another. You non-believers call on believers, in particular, to offer
the witness of a life coherent with the faith they profess, and you reject
any deviation from religion which renders it inhuman. You believers wish to
tell your friends that the treasure that is within you merits sharing, it
needs to be announced, it requires reflection. The question of God is not a
danger to society, it does not imperil human life! The question of God must
not be absent from the great questions of our time.
"Dear friends, you must build bridges between one another. You must seize
the opportunity that has been given you to seek, in the depths of your
consciences and through solid and well-reasoned reflection, the ways to a
profound dialogue. You have so much to say to one another. Do not close your
consciences before the challenges and problems facing you.
"I deeply believe that the encounter between faith and reason enables man
to discover himself. But all too often reason is warped by the pressure of
interests and the lure of profit, which it is forced to recognise as the
ultimate criterion. The search for truth is not easy. And if each of us is
called to make a courageous decision in favour of truth, this is because
there are no shortcuts to the happiness and beauty of a perfect life. Jesus
says as much in the Gospel: 'The truth will make you free'.
"Dear young people, it is up to you to ensure that in your own countries
and in Europe as a whole, believers and non-believers rediscover the path of
dialogue. Religions cannot be afraid of a just secularism, a secularism that
is open and allows individuals to live according to what they believe in
their own consciences. If we are to build a world of freedom, equality and
fraternity, believers and non-believers should feel themselves to be free,
with equal rights to live their individual and community lives in accordance
with their own convictions; and they must be brothers to one another.
"One of the reasons behind this Courtyard of the Gentiles is to foster
such feelings of fraternity, over and above individual beliefs but without
denying differences and, even more profoundly, recognising that only God, in
Christ, gives us inner freedom and the possibility of truly coming together
as brothers.
"Our primary attitude, the first action we must undertake together, is
that of respecting, assisting and loving all human beings, because they are
creatures of God and, in a certain way, embody the path that leads to Him.
By continuing the experience you are having this evening you will help to
break down the barriers of fear of the other, of foreigners, of those who
are not like you; a fear that often arises from mutual ignorance, from
scepticism or from indifference. Be sure to strengthen your bonds with all
young people without distinction, not forgetting those who live in poverty
and solitude, those who suffer through unemployment or sickness, or who feel
they are on the margins of society.
"Dear young people, you can share not only your life experience but also
your approach to prayer. You believers and non-believers, present here in
this Courtyard of the Unknown, are also invited to enter the consecrated
area, to pass the magnificent portal of Notre-Dame and enter the cathedral
for a moment of prayer. For some of you this will be a prayer to a God you
know through the faith, but for others it may be a prayer to an unknown God.
Dear young non-believers, joining those who are praying inside Notre-Dame on
this day of the Annunciation of the Lord, open your hearts to the Sacred
Scriptures, allow yourselves to be drawn by the beauty of the music and, if
you truly desire it, allow the feelings closed within you to rise towards
the unknown God.
"I am happy to have had the chance to address you this evening for the
inauguration of the Courtyard of the Gentiles. And I hope you will be able
to respond to other invitations I have made, especially that of this
summer's World Youth Day in Madrid. The God Whom believers learn to know
invites you to discover Him and to live in Him. Do not be afraid! On your
journey together towards a new world, seek the Absolute, seek God, even
those of you for whom He is an unknown God.
"May He Who loves each and every one of you bless and protect you. He
relies on you to show concern for others and for the future, and you can
always rely on Him!"
MESS/ VIS
20110328 (1180)
HOLY FATHER CALLS FOR SAFE, DIGNIFIED, STABLE EMPLOYMENT
VATICAN CITY, 26 MAR 2011 (VIS) - This morning Benedict XVI received in
audience participants in a pilgrimage from the Italian diocese of
Terni-Narni-Amelia, organised to mark the thirtieth anniversary of John Paul
II's visit to the steel factories of Terni.
"Today we particularly wish to recall John Paul II for the love he showed
towards the world of work", said Pope Benedict, going on to comment on the
difficult situation the diocese is facing due to the crisis in the steel
industry which is affecting the lives of thousands of people. "I know that
the diocesan Church shares your concerns", he told his audience, "and feels
her responsibility to remain at your side to communicate the hope of the
Gospel and the strength to build a society that is more just and more worthy
of man. She does this from the source, from the Eucharist", he said.
"Indeed it is from the Eucharist, in which Christ makes Himself present in
His supreme act of love for us all, that we learn to live as Christians in
society, so as to make it more welcoming, more united, richer in love, and
more attentive to everyone's needs especially those of the weakest".
"The subject of work also comes into this context, a subject which
concerns you today with its problems, especially that of unemployment. It is
important always to bear in mind that work is a fundamental element for both
human beings and society. Difficult or precarious working conditions make
the conditions of society itself difficult and precarious, the conditions
for ordered living in accordance with the needs of the common good", said
the Holy Father. He also turned his attention to workplace safety, noting
that "every effort must be made to interrupt the sequence of deaths and
accidents. And what can we say about the precariousness of work, especially
as concerns the young? This is a factor which does not fail to create
anguish in many families!"
"Work", Pope Benedict explained, "helps us to come closer to God and to
other people. Jesus Himself was a worker; indeed He spent a large part of
His earthly life in Nazareth, in Joseph's workshop. ... His work, which was
real physical effort, occupied most of His life on this earth and thus
became part of the redemption of man and of the world.
"This fact", he added, "speaks to us of the dignity of work, indeed of the
specific dignity of human work which becomes part of the mystery of
redemption itself. It is important to see work in this Christian
perspective. Often, however, it is seen merely as a means of earning money
and even, in some situations in the world, as a means of exploitation and
therefore of offence to the very dignity of the person. I would also like to
mention the problem of working on Sundays. Unfortunately in our societies
the rhythm of consumption risks stealing even the significance of the Sunday
feast as a day for the Lord and the community".
Benedict XVI concluded his remarks by reiterating how the Church
"supports, comforts and encourages all efforts that seek to guarantee safe,
dignified and stable work for everyone", and expressed his closeness to the
families of the diocese of Terni-Narni-Amelia.
AC/ VIS
20110328 (560)
BENEDICT XVI VISITS ROME'S "FOSSE ARDEATINE"
VATICAN CITY, 27 MAR 2011 (VIS) - This morning Benedict XVI visited Rome's
"Fosse Ardeatine" to commemorate the 335 victims executed there in 1944 by
German occupying forces in Rome, in reprisal for a bomb attack which had
left thirty-three Germans dead.
The Pope, who had been invited to make the visit by the National
Association of Italian Families of Martyrs who Fell for the Freedom of the
Homeland (ANFIM), was accompanied by Riccardo Di Segni, chief rabbi of Rome,
and by Cardinal Andrea Cordero Lanza di Montezemolo whose father was one of
the victims of the massacre.
The Holy Father laid a roses at the foot of the monument to the victims
and paused for a moment of prayer. Rabbi Di Segni then read out Psalm 129 in
Hebrew, while the Pope read Psalm 123 in Italian, and pronounced a prayer
for the dead.
Benedict XVI then entered the mausoleum where he signed the visitors' book
then delivered an address to the families of the victims and to others
present at the ceremony.
"What happened here on 24 March 1944 was a grave offence to God, because
it was deliberate violence of man against man. It was the most deplorable
effect of war, of any war; while God is life, peace and communion", said the
Pontiff.
"Like my predecessors [Paul VI and John Paul II] I have come here to
prayer and to renew the memory. I have come to invoke divine Mercy, which
alone can fill the void, the abysses opened by men when, impelled by blind
violence, they renounce their dignity as children of God and brothers of one
another".
"Yes", the Holy Father cried, "wherever man is, on all continents, to
whatever people he belongs, he is the child of that Father Who is in heaven;
he is brother to everyone in humanity. But the status of son and brother
cannot be taken for granted as, unfortunately the Fosse Ardeatine show. We
must seek it, we must say yes to good and no to evil. We must believe in the
God of love and life, rejecting any other false image of the divine which
betrays His Holy Name and, consequently, betrays man, made in His image.
"For this reason", the Pope added concluding his address, "in this place,
sorrowful memorial of the most horrendous of evils, the most authentic
response is to take one another by the hand, as brothers, and say: Our
Father, we believe in You, and with the strength of Your love we wish to
walk together in peace, in Rome, in Italy, in Europe in the whole world".
BXVI-VISIT/ VIS
20110328 (450)
CHRIST'S THIRST, A SYMBOL OF HIS HUMANITY
VATICAN CITY, 27 MAR 2011 (VIS) - At midday today, returning from his visit
to Rome's "Fosse Ardeatine", the Holy Father appeared at the window of his
study to pray the Angelus with faithful gathered in St. Peter's Square.
He spoke about the Gospel reading of this third Sunday of Lent, which
describes Christ's meeting with the Samaritan woman "who daily went to draw
water from the ancient well that dated back to the Patriarch Jacob. That day
she found Jesus there, 'tired out by his journey'", the Pope said. "Jesus'
tiredness, a sign of His authentic humanity, can be seen as a prelude to the
Passion in which He fulfilled the work of our redemption. What particularly
emerges from His meeting with the Samaritan woman at the well is the theme
of Christ's thirst, which culminates with His cry on the cross: 'I am
thirsty'.
"His thirst, like His tiredness, certainly had a physical basis", Benedict
XVI added, but as St. Augustine says, Jesus was also "'thirsting for the
faith of the woman', as He thirsts for the faith of each one of us. God the
Father sent Him to satisfy our thirst for eternal life, giving us His love;
but to make us this gift Jesus asks for our faith. The omnipotence of Love
always respects man's freedom; it knocks at the door of his heart and
patiently awaits an answer.
"The meeting with the Samaritan woman highlights the symbol of water, a
clear allusion to the Sacrament of Baptism, font of new life for the faith
in the Grace of God", the Holy Father concluded. "This water represents the
Holy Spirit, the 'gift' par excellence which Jesus came to bring us from God
the Father. ... Thanks to the meeting with Jesus Christ and to the gift of
the Holy Spirit, the faith of each individual attains fulfilment in response
to the fullness of God's revelation".
ANG/ VIS
20110328 (330)
APPEALS FOR LIBYA AND FOR DIALOGUE IN THE MIDDLE EAST
VATICAN CITY, 27 MAR 2011 (VIS) - "Faced with the increasingly dramatic news
coming out of Libya, I am becoming progressively more concerned about the
wellbeing and safety of civilians, and apprehensive over the developments in
the situation, which is currently characterised by the use of arms", said
the Pope following today's Angelus.
"At times of greater tension it is even more essential to make use of all
means at the disposal of diplomacy, and to support even the faintest sign of
openness and of desire for reconciliation between the parties involved, in
the search for peaceful and lasting solutions.
"In this perspective, as I raise my prayers to the Lord for a return to
harmony in Libya and in the entire region of North Africa, I make a
heartfelt appeal to international organisations and to political and
military leaders for the immediate launch of a dialogue that will halt the
use of arms.
"My thoughts also go to the authorities and the citizens of the Middle
East where various episodes of violence have taken place over recent days.
There too, may the path of dialogue and reconciliation be favoured, in the
search for just and fraternal coexistence".
ANG/ VIS
20110328 (210)
BENEDICT XVI RECEIVES HIS BEATITUDE CHRYSOSTOMOS II
VATICAN CITY, 28 MAR 2011 (VIS) - The Holy See Press Office released the
following communique at midday today:
"This morning Benedict XVI received in audience His Beatitude Chrysostomos
II, archbishop of New Justiniana and All Cyprus, primate of the Orthodox
Church of Cyprus. His Beatitude was accompanied by Fr. Demosthenis
Demosthenous and by Ioannis Charilaou.
"The discussions served to examine, among other things, the situation of
Christians in the Middle East, and the question of religious freedom on the
island of Cyprus. Subsequently, His Beatitude also went on to meet with
Cardinal Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone S.D.B".
OP/ VIS
20110328 (110)
HOLY SEE, OBSERVER AT INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON LIBYA
VATICAN CITY, 28 MAR 2011 (VIS) - The Holy See is to participate as an
observer at an international conference on Libya scheduled to take place
tomorrow, 29 March, in London, England. According to a declaration by Holy
See Press Office Director Fr. Federico Lombardi S.J., the Holy See will be
represented by Archbishop Antonio Mennini, apostolic nuncio to Great
Britain.
OP/ VIS
20110328 (70)
CARDINALS TAKE POSSESSION OF DIACONATE, TITULAR CHURCHES
VATICAN CITY, 28 MAR 2011 (VIS) - A note published today by the Office of
Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff announces details of
forthcoming ceremonies in which cardinals will take possession of their
titular or diaconate churches:
At 4.30 p.m. on Saturday 2 April, Cardinal Mauro Piacenza, prefect of the
Congregation for the Clergy, will take possession of the diaconate of St.
Paul at the Three Fountains, Via Laurentina 473, Rome.
At midday on Sunday 3 April, Cardinal Raymundo Damasceno Assis, archbishop
of Aparecida, Brazil, will take possession of the title of Our Lady
Immaculate al Tiburtino, Via del Mortaro 24, Rome.
OCL/ VIS
20110328 (110)
AUDIENCES
VATICAN CITY, 28 MAR 2011 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in separate
audiences:
- Archbishop Joseph Perumthottam of Changanacherry of the Syro-Malabars,
India, on his "ad limina" visit, accompanied by Archbishop emeritus Joseph
Powathil.
- Bishop Matthew Moolakkatt, O.S.B., auxiliary of Kottayam of the
Syro-Malabars, India, on his "ad limina" visit, accompanied by Auxiliary
Bishop Joseph Pandarasseril O.S.B.
- Archbishop George Valiamattam of Tellicherry of the Syro-Malabars, India,
on his "ad limina" visit.
- Archbishop Andrews Thazhath of Trichur of the Syro-Malabars, India, on
his "ad limina" visit, accompanied by Auxiliary Bishop Raphael Thattil.
On Saturday 26 March he received in separate audiences:
- Cardinal Ivan Dias, prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelisation of
Peoples.
- Bishop Abraham Julios Kackanatt of Muvattupuzha of the Syro-Malankars,
India, on his "ad limina" visit.
- Bishop Geevarghese Divannasios Ottathengil of Puthur of the
Syro-Malankars, India, on his "ad limina" visit.
- Bishop Joseph Thomas Konnath of Battery of the Syro-Malankars, India, on
his "ad limina" visit.
- Bishop Jacob Barnabas Aerath O.I.C., apostolic visitor for Syro-Malankar
faithful living outside their "territorium proprium", on his "ad limina"
visit.
On Friday 25 March he received in audience Bishop Gerhard Ludwig Muller of
Regensburg, Germany.
AL:AP/ VIS 20110328
(210)
_____________________________________________
For further information and research of documents visit:
www.visnews.org and www.vatican.va
VIS english (text format) sends its news service only to those who have
requested it. If you no longer wish to receive the service, visit the
following link and click on calcel. Don't forget to select language and text
format:
http://212.77.1.245/news_services/press/vis/englinde.php#start
COPYRIGHT: The news items contained in the Vatican Information Service
may be used, in part or in their entirety, by quoting the source:
V.I.S. -Vatican Information Service
--- NetMgr/2 1.0y+
* Origin: NetMgr+ @ Sursum Corda! BBS Meridian MS USA (1:396/45)
|
