"Through Mary, we invoke moral consolation from God, so that this community
and the whole of Italy may resist the temptation to become discouraged and,
strengthened by their great humanist tradition, may set out again on the road
to spiritual and
moral renewal which is the only thing that can bring authentic improvement in
social and civil life".
After praying the Regina Coeli, Benedict XVI made a private visit to the
cathedral of San Donato where he paused before the Chapel of Our Lady of Good
Comfort to adore the Blessed Sacrament and venerate the image of the Virgin.
From there, he
Subject: VISnews120514
From: Vatican Information Service - Eng - txt
travelled to the bishop's palace where he had lunch with bishops from the
Tuscan region.
___________________________________________________________
HONESTY AND DISINTERESTED ALTRUISM MUST GIVE NEW FLAVOUR TO CIVIL
SOCIETY
Vatican City, 13 May 2012 (VIS) - At 6 p.m. today the Holy Father arrived
by helicopter at the town of Sansepolcro which is currently celebrating the
thousandth year of its foundation. Before going there he had been due to
travel to the shrine of La
Verna but because of bad weather and in particular fog, he was unable to do so
and his visit to Sansepolcro was brought forward. There he met with local
citizens in the Piazza Torre di Berta which for the occasion had been
decorated with more than 300
standards.
Before meeting the locals, Benedict XVI visited the cathedral of St. John
the Baptist where he paused in adoration before the Blessed Sacrament and
venerated a famous crucifix known as the "Santo Volto" (Holy Face), considered
to be one of the oldest
images of the the clothed and crucified Christ.
In his address to the citizenry the Pope recalled how a thousand years ago
the pilgrim saints Arcano and Egidio, "in the midst of the great
transformations of their time, set out for the Holy Land to discover truth and
the meaning of life. On their
return, not only did they bring stones they had gathered on Mount Sion, but
also an idea they had matured in the Land of Jesus: constructing in the upper
reaches of the Tiber valley a 'civitas hominis' in the image of Jerusalem
which, in its very name,
evokes justice and peace". Arcano and Egidio "imagined a complex model city
full of hope for the future, in which Christ's disciples were called to be a
motor of society, promoting peace through the practice of justice". Their idea
became reality
"thanks to the support first of the Benedictine then of the Camaldolese
charism, and continued for generations. Great commitment was needed to found a
monastic community and later, around their
church, your town", the Holy Father said.
That church, he went on, is "a point of reference which everyone can use as
guidance for their journey, and especially for their lives. It is a powerful
invitation to look to heaven, to rise above daily life ... in a constant
striving towards
spiritual vales and communion with God, which do not alienate us from daily
life but orient it and enable us to experience it more intensely. This also
holds true today, helping us to rediscover the search for 'truth', to perceive
life as a journey
which brings us towards the 'true' and the 'right'".
"Today it is particularly important for the Church’s service to the
world to be expressed through illuminated lay men and women, who are able to
work inside the city of man, moved by a desire to serve which goes beyond
private interests and
partisan concerns. The common good is more important than the good of the
individual, and Christians too must contribute to the growth of a new public
ethic. ... Christians, and especially the young, are called to counterpoise
widespread misgivings
about political and social activism with commitment and love for
responsibility, animated by evangelical charity which requires us not to
remain closed in ourselves but to take responsibility for others. I invite
young people to think big: Have the
courage to dare. Be ready to give new flavour to civil society, with the salt
of honesty and disinterested altruism".
One of the main challenges facing the ancient town of Sansepolcro is
"harmonising a rediscovery of its own centuries-old identity with welcoming
and incorporating other cultures and sensibilities", the Pope observed. "St.
Paul teaches us that the
Church and the whole of society are like a human body in which each part is
different from the others, but all work together for the good of the
organism".
Finally Benedict XVI recalled that the basilica "is the seat of
rediscovered harmony between worship and civic life, the point of reference
for the pacification of souls. Just as your forefathers were able to build a
splendid church of stone as a
sign of communion of life, so it is up to you to make the meaning of this
sacred building visible and credible, living in peace in the ecclesial and
civil communities. ... Look to your rich cultural heritage and be a living
Church at the service of the
Gospel. A hospitable and generous Church which with her witness brings the
love of God to all human beings, especially those who suffer and are in
need".
Following his address and after greeting the local authorities, the Holy
Father began his return journey to Rome.
___________________________________________________________
SACRED MUSIC IS AN EXPRESSION OF THE FAITH OF THE CHURCH
Vatican City, 12 May 2012 (VIS) - Giorgio Napolitano, president of the
Republic of Italy, yesterday offered a concert to Benedict XVI to mark the
seventh anniversary of his election to the pontificate. The performance was
held in the Paul VI Hall
where the Orchestra and Choir of the Roman Opera House, conducted by Riccardo
Muti and Roberto Gabbiani, played Antonio Vivaldi's "Magnificat RV611", and
the "Stabat Mater" and "Te Deum" from Giuseppe Verdi's "Quattro pezzi
sacri".
At the end of the concert, the Pope thanked those who had participated in
the preparation and performance of the event, expressing his appreciation for
Riccardo Muti's sensitivity for sacred music and his efforts to disseminate
awareness of "this
rich repertory which expresses the faith of the Church in music. ... The
'Magnificat' we have heard is a hymn of praise to Mary and to all the humble
of heart who joyfully and gratefully recognise and celebrate God's action in
their lives and in
history. God's 'style' is different from that of man, because He stands
alongside the poorest and weakest to give them hope. With extraordinary depth
of feeling, Vivaldi's music expresses praise, exultation, thanksgiving, and
wonder before the works of
God".
The Holy Father continued his remarks by nothing that, "with the two pieces
of sacred music by Giuseppe Verdi, ... there was a change of register. We
found ourselves in the presence of Mary's suffering at the foot of the cross.
... Just as he
explored and expressed the drama of so many characters in his operas, here
Verdi outlines the drama of the Virgin as she contemplates her Son on the
cross. The music is reduced to the essential, almost 'seizing' the words to
express their significance
as intensely as possible, ... enabling us to participate in her maternal
suffering and allowing the love of Christ to burn in our hearts, until the
last passage which is an intensely powerful supplication to God that the soul
be given the glory of
heaven, the ultimate aspiration of humankind.
"The 'Te Deum' is also replete with contrasts", the Pope added. "Verdi is
scrupulously attentive to the holy text but his reading thereof diverges from
that of tradition. He does not concentrate on the song of victory or
coronation but, as he himself
wrote, on the successive situations: initial exultation, ... contemplation of
Christ incarnate Who frees and opens the Kingdom of Heaven, ... invocation ...
for Him to have mercy and, in the end, the cry repeated by soprano and the
choir: 'In te,
Domine, speravi', with which the piece closes, almost a request on Verdi's
part for hope and light in the last stage of his life".
___________________________________________________________
AUDIENCES
Vatican City, 12 May 2012 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in
audience:
- Cardinal Fernando Filoni, prefect of the Congregation for the
Evangelisation of Peoples.
- Cardinal Agostino Vallini, vicar general of His Holiness for the diocese
of Rome.
___________________________________________________________
OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS
Vatican City, 14 May 2012 (VIS) - The Holy Father:
- Appointed Fr. Dieudonne Nzapalainga C.S.Sp., apostolic administrator of
the archdiocese of Bangui, Central African Republic, as metropolitan
archbishop of the same archdiocese (area 38,342, population 1.043,000,
Catholics 246,657, priests 104,
religious 124). The archbishop-elect was born in Mbomou, Central African
Republic in 1967 and ordained a priest in 1998. He studied in the Central
African Republic, Cameroon, Gabon and France, and has worked in pastoral care
in France and in the Central
African Republic.
- Appointed Fr. Dennis Kofi Agbenyadzi S.M.A., regional superior of the
Society of African Missions for the Central African Republic, as bishop of
Berberati (area 45,000, population 450,000, Catholics 110,000, priests 33,
religious 30), Central
African Republic. The bishop-elect was born in Kadjebi-Akan, Ghana in 1964 and
ordained a priest in 1997. He studied in Ghana, Benin and Cote d'Ivoire and
has worked as a pastor and in administrative positions.
- Appointed Fr. Nestor-Desire Nongo-Aziagbia S.M.A., superior of the
Haguenau Community in Strasbourg, France and superior of the same district for
the Society of African Missions, as bishop of Bossangoa (area 62,420,
population 612,000, Catholics
281,000, priests 38, religious 22), Central African Republic. The bishop-elect
was born in M'Baiki, Central African Republic in 1970 and ordained a priest in
1998. He studied in the Central African Republic, Nigeria and France. He
worked in pastoral
care and administration in Nigeria before moving to France.
- Appointed Fr. Cyr-Nestor Yapaupa, vicar general of Alindao, Central
African Republic, as coadjutor of the same diocese (area 18,475, population
171,600, Catholics 63,000, priests 13, religious 13). The bishop-elect was
born in Bangassou, Central
African Republic in 1970 and ordained a priest in 2001. He has held various
roles in the diocese of Alindao including parochial vicar, head of the
diocesan liturgical commission and pastor of the cathedral.
- Appointed Bishop Alvaro Leonel Ramazzini Imeri of San Marcos, Guatemala,
as bishop of Huehuetenango (area 7,400, population 917,713, Catholics 706,449,
priests 27, religious 57), Guatemala. He succeeds Bishop Rodolfo Francesco
Bobadilla Mata C.M.,
whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same diocese the Holy Father
accepted, upon having reached the age limit.
- Appointed Msgr. Robert McGuckin as bishop of Toowoomba (area 487,000,
population 276,700, Catholics 77,400, priests 48, religious 57), Australia.
The bishop-elect was born in Sydney, Australia in 1944 and ordained a priest
in 1973. Among other
roles, he has worked in pastoral care in numerous parishes, as professor of
canon law and as judge of the appeals tribunal of Australia and New
Zealand.
- Appointed as consultors of the Pontifical Council for Promoting New
Evangelisation: Fr. Marco Frisina, president of the Commission for Sacred Art
of the diocese of Rome, and professor at the Pontifical Lateran University and
the Pontifical
University of the Holy Cross; Fr. Jeremy Driscoll O.S.B., professor at the
Mount Angel Seminary in St. Benedict, Oregon, U.S.A., and at the Theological
Faculty of Rome's St. Anselm Pontifical Athenaeum; Fr. Marko Ivan Rupnik S.J.,
director of the Aletti
Centre, and professor at the Pontifical Oriental Institute, the Pontifical
Gregorian University and the Pontifical Liturgical Institute of Rome's St.
Anselm Pontifical Athenaeum, and Salvatore Martinez, president of the Renewal
in the Holy Spirit
Association, Italy.
On Saturday 12 May it was made public that the Holy Father appointed:
- Bishop Andrzej Jez, auxiliary of Tarnow, Poland, as bishop of the same
diocese (area 7,566, population 1,124,000, Catholics 1,117,000, priests 1,423,
religious 1,243).
- Fr. Archimandrite Donato Oliverio, delegate "ad omnia" of the eparchy of
Lungro of the Italo-Albanians, Italy, as bishop of the same eparchy (area 493,
population 33,400, Catholics 32,300, priests 39, permanent deacons 1,
religious 28). The
bishop-elect was born in Cosenza, Italy in 1956 and ordained a priest in 1982.
Among other roles he has served as a pastor, director of the eparchial office
for catechesis, bursar and secretary of Lungro's Institute for Religious
Sciences.
- Fr. Orlando Roa Barboasa of the clergy of the archdiocese of Ibague,
Colombia, rector of the "Maria Inmaculada" major archdiocesan seminary, as
auxiliary of the archdiocese of Ibague (area 6,044, population 591,000,
Catholics 531,000, priests 105,
permanent deacons 12, religious 184). The bishop-elect was born in Cali,
Colombia in 1958 and ordained a priest in 1984. He studied in Colombia and in
Rome and has worked as a pastor and in the field of pastoral care of young
people.
___________________________________________________________
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