and the Church’s pastoral leadership: such discord harms the
Church’s witness and, as experience has shown, can easily be exploited
to compromise her authority and her freedom.
"It is no exaggeration", the Pope added, "to say that providing young
people with a sound education in the faith represents the most urgent internal
challenge facing the Catholic community in your country".
"First, as we know, the essential task of authentic education ... is not
simply that of passing on knowledge, essential as this is, but also of shaping
hearts. There is a constant need to balance intellectual rigour in
communicating ... the richness
of the Church’s faith with forming the young in the love of God, the
praxis of the Christian moral and sacramental life and, not least, the
cultivation of personal and liturgical prayer".
The Holy Father went on to explain that "the question of Catholic identity,
not least at the university level, entails much more than the teaching of
religion or the mere presence of a chaplaincy on campus. All too often, it
seems, Catholic schools
and colleges have failed to challenge students to reappropriate their faith as
part of the exciting intellectual discoveries which mark the experience of
higher education. The fact that so many new students find themselves
dissociated from the family,
school and community support systems that previously facilitated the
transmission of the faith should continually spur Catholic institutions of
learning to create new and effective networks of support.
"In every aspect of their education, students need to be encouraged to
articulate a vision of the harmony of faith and reason capable of guiding a
life-long pursuit of knowledge and virtue. ... In effect, faith by its very
nature demands a constant
and all-embracing conversion to the fullness of truth revealed in Christ. ...
The Christian commitment to learning, which gave birth to the medieval
universities, was based upon this conviction that the one God, as the source
of all truth and goodness,
is likewise the source of the intellect’s passionate desire to know and
the will’s yearning for fulfilment in love.
"Only in this light can we appreciate the distinctive contribution of
Catholic education, which engages in a “diakonia of truth”
inspired by an intellectual charity which knows that leading others to the
truth is ultimately an act of
love. Faith’s recognition of the essential unity of all knowledge
provides a bulwark against the alienation and fragmentation which occurs when
the use of reason is detached from the pursuit of truth and virtue; in this
sense, Catholic
institutions have a specific role to play in helping to overcome the crisis of
universities today".
___________________________________________________________
POPE RECEIVES THE PRESIDENT OF ALBANIA
Vatican City, 5 May 2012 (VIS) - This morning the Holy Father received in
audience Bamir Topi, president of the Republic of Albania. The president
subsequently went on to meet with Cardinal Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone
S.D.B. who was
accompanied by Archbishop Dominique Mamberti, secretary for Relations with
States.
A communique released by the Holy See Press Office states that, "during
their cordial discussions the parties highlighted the good relations that
exist between the Holy See and the Republic of Albania, and turned their
attention to questions of
mutual interest regarding relations between the ecclesial and civil
communities, including inter-religious dialogue and the Church's contribution
in the fields of education and social care. Consideration was also given to
Albania's journey towards full
integration into the European Union. Finally, the parties exchanged opinions
on the current international and regional situation, with particular focus on
the economic crisis".
___________________________________________________________
CARDINAL SCHONBORN, SPECIAL PAPAL ENVOY TO PRAGUE CELEBRATIONS
Vatican City, 5 May 2012 (VIS) - Made public today was the letter by which
the Holy Father appoints Cardinal Christoph Schonborn O.P., archbishop of
Vienna, Austria, as his special envoy to celebrations marking the 450th
anniversary of the formal
renewal of the archbishopric of Prague, due to take place on 12 May.
In the text, written in Latin and dated 30 March, the Pope mentions the
long centuries of Church activity in that region of Europe, evangelised by the
brothers Cyril and Methodius and homeland to Blessed Ludmilla and St.
Wenceslaus.
The cardinal will be accompanied on his mission by Fr. Benedikt Mohelnik
O.P., provincial of the Dominican Province of Bohemia, and by Fr. Vojtech
Novak, pastor and dean of Rakovnik, and director of the Pontifical Missionary
Works for the archdiocese
of Prague.
___________________________________________________________
AUDIENCES
Vatican City, 7 May 2012 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in
audience:
- Eight prelates of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, on
their "ad limina" visit:
- Archbishop Wilton Daniel Gregory of Atlanta, accompanied by Auxiliary
Bishop Luis Rafael Zarama.
- Bishop Robert E. Guglielmone of Charleston, accompanied by Bishop
emeritus David Bernard Thompson.
- Bishop Peter Joseph Jugis of Charlotte.
- Bishop Michael Francis Burbidge of Raleigh.
- Bishop Gregory John Hartmayer O.F.M. Conv. of Savannah, accompanied by
Bishop emeritus John Kevin Boland.
- Ali Akbar Naseri, ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran, on his
farewell visit.
On Saturday 5 May he received in audience:
- Archbishop Santo Gangemi, apostolic nuncio to Papua New Guinea and the
Solomon Islands, accompanied by members of his family.
- Cardinal Marc Ouellet P.S.S., prefect of the Congregation for Bishops.
___________________________________________________________
OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS
Vatican City, 7 May 2012 (VIS) - The Holy Father accepted the resignation
from the pastoral care of the diocese of Ecatepec, Mexico, presented by Bishop
Onesimo Cepeda Silva, upon having reached the age limit.
On Saturday 5 May it was made public that the Holy Father appointed
Cardinal Joseph Zen Ze-kiun S.D.B., bishop emeritus of Hong Kong, China, as
his special envoy to celebrations marking the centenary of the birth of
Blessed Peter To Rot, catechist
and martyr of Papua New Guinea, due to take place in Rabaul on 7 July.
___________________________________________________________
Per ulteriori informazioni e per la ricerca di documenti consultare il
sito: www.wisnews.org e www.vatican.va
Il servizio
del VIS viene inviato soltanto agli indirizzi di posta
elettronica che
ne hanno
fatto richiesta. Se per qualunque motivo
non si desidera continuare a
riceverlo, si prega di visitare nostra pagina
dinizio:
http://212.77.1.245/news_services/press/v
s/italinde.php
Copyright (VIS): Le notizie contenute nei servizi del Vatican
Information Service possono essere riprodotte parzialmente o totalmente
citando la fonte: V.I.S. - Vatican Information Service.
