Subject: VISnews 110411
Organization: VIS - Ufficio Stampa della Santa Sede
From: Vatican Information Service - Eng - txt
VATICAN INFORMATION SERVICE
TWENTY FIRST YEAR - N. 69
ENGLISH
MONDAY, 11 APRIL 2011
SUMMARY 9-11 APRIL:
- Meeting on the Catholic Church in China
- Prayer and Missionary Zeal: John Paul II's "Two Pillars"
- Angelus: Christ Breaks Down the Wall of Death
- Croatia: Defending Religious and Cultural Identity
- Audiences
- Other Pontifical Acts
___________________________________________________________
MEETING ON THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN CHINA
VATICAN CITY, 9 APR 2011 (VIS) - The Holy See Press Office published the
following communique at midday today:
"The Commission established by Benedict XVI to study the most important
issues regarding the Catholic Church in China will meet in the Vatican from
11 to 13 April. The Commission shall be made up of the Superiors of the
Dicasteries of the Roman Curia competent in these matters, and various
representatives of the Chinese Episcopate and religious congregations.
"The first plenary meeting, held on 10-12 March 2008, took as its theme
the letter Benedict XVI addressed to Chinese Catholics on 27 May 2007. The
two subsequent meetings (30 March-1 April 2009 and 22-24 March 2010) were
dedicated to the themes of the human, intellectual, spiritual and pastoral
formation of seminarians and consecrated persons, as well as the permanent
training of priests.
"The next plenary meeting will examine the pastoral situation of the
ecclesiastical circumscriptions in China, with particular reference to the
challenges the Church encounters in incarnating the Gospel under current
social and economic conditions".
OP/ VIS
20110411 (180)
PRAYER AND MISSIONARY ZEAL: JOHN PAUL II'S "TWO PILLARS"
VATICAN CITY, 9 APR 2011 (VIS) - On Saturday afternoon Benedict XVI attended
a screening of the documentary "Pilgrim in White", by the Polish director
Jaropslaw Szmidt and produced by Artrama. The film narrates key moments
during the pontificate of John Paul II, with accounts from religious leaders
and figures from the media and the fields of culture, science and politics.
The screening was also attended by various cardinals and other guests,
including the makers of the documentary, who the Holy Father thanked.
He said, "For the seriousness with which it has been prepared and the
quality of its production, this documentary constitutes one of the most
valid contributions offered to the public on the occasion of my beloved
predecessor's upcoming beatification".
He continued, "There are by now numerous audiovisual works on the life of
John Paul II ... This film ... sets out to faithfully render both the
personality of the Pope and his tireless work throughout his long
pontificate".
Benedict XVI emphasised the "two pillars" of the life and ministry of the
Polish Pope: "prayer and missionary zeal. John Paul II was a great scholar
and great apostle of Christ. God chose him for the Chair of Peter and
granted him long life in order that he might accompany the Church into the
third millennium. By his example, he guided us all in this pilgrimage and
continues to do so from above".
BXVI-film/ VIS
20110411 (240)
ANGELUS: CHRIST BREAKS DOWN THE WALL OF DEATH
VATICAN CITY, 10 APR 2011 (VIS) - At midday today, before praying the
Angelus with faithful gathered in St. Peter's Square, Benedict XVI remarked
on the readings of today's Mass, dedicated to the Resurrection, "not yet
that of Jesus Christ, which breaks through as something entirely new, but
that of our own resurrection, to which we aspire and which Christ Himself
gave us, rising from the dead", said the Pope.
"In fact", the Holy Father continued, "death represents for us a wall we
are unable to see over; even though our hearts reach out beyond, and even
though we cannot know what it hides ... we imagine it, expressing our desire
for eternity through symbols". However, "even among Christians, faith in the
resurrection and in eternal life is often accompanied by many doubts and
great confusion, as it concerns a reality beyond the limits of reason and
requires an act of faith".
"In today's Gospel, the resurrection of Lazarus, Jesus says to Martha, the
dead Lazarus' sister, 'Your brother will rise again', and she answers, 'I
know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day'. Jesus
replies, 'I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even
though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will
never die'. This is the real truth, which breaks through and overcomes every
barrier!" exclaimed the Pope. "Christ breaks down the wall of death, and in
Him there resides the fullness of God, which is life, eternal life.
Therefore death had no power over Him; the resurrection of Lazarus is a sign
of his full dominion over mortal death, which is like sleep before God".
"But there is another death, against which Christ fought hard; and for
which he paid on the cross: spiritual death, sin, which threatens to ruin
the existence of every man. To defeat this death, Christ died, and his
Resurrection was not a return to his previous life but the beginning of a
new life, a 'new earth', finally reunited with God's heaven", the Pope
concluded.
After the Angelus prayer, Benedict XVI addressed the Polish pilgrims who
today commemorate the anniversary on of the Smolensk air crash on April 10
last year, in which the president of Poland Lech Kazinsky and several other
officials lost their lives while travelling to Katyn to pay homage to the
Polish soldiers and civilians massacred in the area by the Soviet army
during the Second World War. "I join you in your nation's prayer", the Pope
said, "that Christ, who is our new life and resurrection, receive them in
His glory and that he comfort you in this painful experience. I bless your
country and the Polish people with all my heart".
ANG/ VIS 20110411
(470)
CROATIA: DEFENDING RELIGIOUS AND CULTURAL IDENTITY
VATICAN CITY, 11 APR 2011 (VIS) - Today the Holy Father received the letters
of credence of Filip Vucak, new ambassador of Croatia to the Holy See, a
country he will visit on 4-5 June.
Benedict XVI referred to the "beauty of its culture and the depth of its
ancestors' faith", and highlighted the importance of "[fortifying] the
current generations by showing them clearly their rich Croatian historical
heritage and the Christian culture with which it is deeply permeated, and
which has always supported the Croatian people in times of adversity".
Recalling that "Croatia will soon fully enter the European Union",
Benedict XVI remarked that "this integration must be achieved fully
respecting Croatia's specific characteristics, regarding its religious life
and culture. It would be illusory to repudiate this identity in favour of
another born in circumstances different to those of the birth and
construction of Croatia".
"In entering the European Union", he continued "your country shall not
only be the recipient of an economic and legal system with both advantages
and limits, but should also bring its own, typically Croatian contribution.
Croatia should not be afraid to make a determined claim for respect for its
history and its religious and cultural identity. Dour voices dispute
Europe's religious roots with bewildering regularity. Amnesia and the denial
of historical evidence have become customary. To declare that Europe does
not have Christian roots is like claiming that a man may live without oxygen
or nourishment ... I am sure that your country will know how to defend its
identity with conviction and pride and to avoid the new pitfalls as they
appear which, under the pretext of a misunderstood religious freedom, are
contrary to natural law, the family, and morality".
The Pope expressed his satisfaction at the interest the country has shown
in enabling "Croatians in Bosnia-Herzegovina to fulfil their role a sone of
the three constituent peoples of that country". In this context, he
confirmed that "Croatia contributes its specific experience to facilitate
dialogue and comprehension between people of different traditions
co-existing throughout the centuries" and encouraged them to "continue along
this path of consolidating peace through respect for all". Likewise, he
expressed his pleasure that Croatia "promotes religious freedom and respects
the specific mission of the Church".
"For all these reasons", he concluded his address to the ambassador, "I am
most pleased to be able to visit your country in a few weeks' time... As you
know, the theme chosen for the trip will be 'Together in Christ!'...
Together in spite of the innumerable human differences, together in
diversity! ... In the name of Christ, who accompanied the Croatian people
throughout centuries with goodness and mercy, I wish to offer encouragement
to your country and to the Church which accompanies you".
CD/ VIS
20110411 (470)
AUDIENCES
VATICAN CITY, 11 APR 2011 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in separate
audiences:
- Cardinal Lluis Martinez Sistach, archbishop of Barcelona, Spain, and
retinue.
- Cardinal Edmund Casimir Szoka, president emeritus of the Pontifical
Commission for Vatican City State and of the Governorate of Vatican City
State.
- Archbishop Salvatore Fisichella, president of the Pontifical Council for
Promoting the New Evangelisation.
- Archbishop Gerald Cyprien Lacroix of Quebec, Canada.
On Saturday the Holy Father received in separate audiences:
- Cardinal Marc Ouellet P.S.S., prefect of the Congregation for Bishops.
- Cardinal Carlo Maria Martini S.J., archbishop emeritus of Milan, Italy.
AP/ VIS
20110411 (100)
OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS
VATICAN CITY, 11 APR 2011 (VIS) - The Holy Father:
- Appointed Fr. Paul Donoghue, S.M., as bishop of Rarotonga (area 234,
population 12,760, Catholics 2,531, priests 9, religious 12), Cook Islands.
The bishop-elect was born in Auckland, New Zealand in 1949 and ordained a
priest in 1975. He succeeds Msgr Stuart France O'Connell, S.M., whose
resignation from the pastoral care of the same diocese the Holy Father
accepted, upon having reached the age limit.
On Saturday, it was made public that the Holy Father:
- Accepted the resignation from the pastoral care of the apostolic
vicariate of Machiques, Venezuala, presented by Msgr Ramiro Diaz Sanchez,
O.M.I., upon having reached the age limit.
- Elevated the apostolic vicariate of Machiques (area 25,350, population
325,000, Catholics 282,000, priests 20, permanent deacons 1, religious 52),
Venezuala, to the rank of diocese, with the same name and territorial
configuration, making it a suffragan of the metropolitan Church of
Maracaibo. He nominated as first bishop of the diocese of Machiques Msgr.
Jesus Alfonso Guerrero Contreras, O.F.M. The bishop-elect was born in
Merida, Venezuela, in 1951, and was ordained a priest in 1977.
- Appointed Msgr. Gyorgy Udvardy, auxiliary bishop of Esztergom-Budapest as
Bishop of the diocese of Pecs (area 8,196, population 662,000, Catholics
438,000, priests 114, permanent deacons 3, religious 66), Hungary.
- Appointed Msgr. John Moolachira, bishop of Diphu, as coadjutor archbishop
of Guwahati (area 17,551, population 7,040,000, Catholics 75,551, priests
126, religious 515), India.
- Appointed Cardinal Salvatore De Giorgi, archbishop emeritus of Palermo,
as Special Envoy to the Diocesan Pauline Jubilee Year celebrations in
Pozzuoli Italy, on 30 May 2011, on the occasion of the 1950th anniversary of
St. Paul's landing in the city.
NER:RE:ECE:NA:NEC/ VIS 20110411
(290)
_____________________________________________
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