The VII World Congress on the Pastoral Care of migration organized by the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People on the theme “Cooperation and development in the pastoral care of immigrants” opened on Monday at the Pontifical Urban University in Rome. About three hundred participants came from 93 countries in…
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(Vatican Radio) In the last weeks of the liturgical year the Church calls us to think very, very seriously about our Christian life. In Scripture, Jesus warns us against being corrupt, comfortable Christians of appearance and he calls us to conversion.
Listen to our report
Conversion is a grace, “it is a visit from God” said Pope Francis at Tuesday morning Mass in Casa Santa Marta. The Pope based his reflections on the Readings of the Day taken from Revelation Chapter 3 and the Gospel according to St. Luke on the encounter Jesus and Zacchaeus the tax collector.
In the first reading, he noted, the Lord asks Christians in Laodicea to convert because they have become “lukewarm”. They live a “comfortable spirituality”. They think: “I do what I can, but I am at peace and do not want to be disturbed with strange things”. Pope Francis noted that people who “live well think nothing is missing: I go to Mass on Sundays, I pray a few times, I feel good, I am in God’s grace, I’m rich” and “I do not need anything, I’m fine.” This “state of mind – he warned – is a state of sin, feeling spiritually comfortable is a state of sin”. The Lord has harsh words for people like this, he says: “Because you are lukewarm, I will spit you out of my mouth”. Despite this, the Lord gives them some advice, he tells them to “dress themselves” because ” comfortable Christians are naked”.
Then, he added, “there is a second call” to “those who live by appearances, Christians of appearances.” These believe they are alive but they are dead. And the Lord asks them to be vigilant. “Appearances – the Pope said – are these Christians shroud: they are dead.” And the Lord “calls them to conversion”.
“Am I one of these Christians of appearances? Am I alive inside, do I have a spiritual life? Do I hear the Holy Spirit, do I listen to the Holy Spirit, do I move forward, or …? But, if everything looks good, I have nothing to reproach myself about: I have a good family, people do not gossip about me, I have everything I need, I married in church …I am ‘in the grace of God’, I am alright. Appearances! Christians of appearance … they are dead! Instead [we must] seek something alive within ourselves, and with memory and vigilance, reinvigorate this so we can move forward. Convert: from appearances to reality. From being neither hot nor cold to fervor “.
The third call to conversion is with Zacchaeus, “the chief tax collector, and rich.” “He is corrupt – the Pope said – he was working for foreigners, for the Romans, he betrayed his homeland”:
“He was just like many leaders we know: corrupt. Those who, instead of serving the people, exploit the people to serve themselves. There are some like this, in the world. And people did not want him. Yes, he wasn’t lukewarm; He was not dead. He was in a state of putrefaction. He was corrupt. But he felt something inside: this healer, this prophet who people say speaks so well, I would like to see him, out of curiosity. The Holy Spirit is clever, eh! He sowed the seed of curiosity, and so in order to seem him this man even does something a little ‘ridiculous. Think of an important leader, who is also corrupt, a leader of leaders – he was the chief – climb a tree to watch a procession: Just think of it. How ridiculous!”.
Zacchaeus, he said, “had no shame.” He wanted to see him and ” the Holy Spirit was working in him”. Then “the Word of God came into the heart and with the Word, the joy.” “Those of comfort and those of appearance – he said – had forgotten what joy was; this corrupt man immediately gets it”, “his heart changes, he converts”. So Zacchaeus promises to give back four times what he has stolen:
” When conversion touches pockets, it’s a certainty. Christians in heart? Yes, everyone is. Christians by blood? All of us. However, Christians with pockets, very few. But, conversion … and here, it arrived straight away: the authentic word. He converted. But faced with this word, the words of the others, those who did not want conversion, who did not want to convert: ‘Seeing this, they grumbled: ‘He has gone to the house of a sinner!’: He has dirtied himself, he has lost his purity. He must purify himself because he entered the house of a sinner “.
Pope Francis reiterated that these are “the three calls to conversion” that Jesus himself makes to “the lukewarm, the comfortable, to those of appearance, to those who think they are rich but are poor, who have nothing, who are dead”. The Word of God, “is able to change everything”, but “we don’t always have the courage to believe in the Word of God, to receive that Word that heals us within”. In the last weeks of the Liturgical Year, the Church wants us all to “think very, very seriously about our conversion, so that we can move forward on the path of our Christian life”. It tells us to “remember the Word of God, appeals to our memory, to custody it, to be vigilant, and also to obey the Word of God, so that we can begin a new life, converted”.
(from Vatican Radio)…
It is
indeed a particular privilege and honor to be invited to address you on the
auspicious occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Pro Oriente Foundation. This
event marks a special and significant milestone in the history of relations
between the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Churches. In many
ways it is a mirror of the relations between our Churches inasmuch as it
reflects and parallels the extraordinary steps of rapprochement and
reconciliation that began half a century ago and have led to the theological
dialogue and sincere exchanges between us on the parish and local, regional and
national, as well as international levels. As you are all aware, in a few days,
our beloved brother in Christ, Pope Francis, will visit Istanbul, which has
served as the sacred center and see of the Ecumenical Patriarchate for over
seventeen centuries. We very much look forward to welcoming His Holiness to the
Phanar on November 29th and 30th for the commemoration of St. Andrew the
first-called of the Apostles and Thronal Feast of the Church of Constantinople.
This official visit follows in the wake of our joint pilgrimage to Jerusalem
only a few months ago to celebrate another 50th anniversary, namely the journey
to the Holy Land by the late Pope – now officially proclaimed Saint in the
Roman Catholic Church – Paul VI and Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras. We were
deeply touched that Pope Francis accepted our invitation for a common
observance of that occasion, which we proposed to him during our own attendance
at his enthronement and solemn Inaugural Mass in March 2013. Dear listeners, these instances are
not purely coincidental; nor again are they merely historical. We would dare to
say that they are in fact nothing less than providential. Fifty years ago, such
events would not have been conceivable or even achievable. It is surely the
grace of God that inspired our venerable and visionary predecessors to assume
these bold initiatives. In some ways, after so many years of estrangement and
silence, only the Spirit of God could possibly bring about the conditions and
circumstances for greater partnership and closer relations between our
Churches, which were previously alienated for an entire millennium. It is precisely within such an
atmosphere of ecumenical openness and sincere desire for dialogue that the Pro
Oriente Foundation was envisaged and established in 1964 by the Viennese
bishop, the late Franz Cardinal König, who discerned the spirit of the times
and perceived the importance of adhering to the commandment and prayer of our
Lord, “that [His disciples] may be one.” (John 17.21) The sacred
purpose and fundamental goal of the Foundation – with its various charters in
Vienna, Graz, Salzburg and Linz – was to improve relations between the Roman
Catholic and Eastern Orthodox as well as Oriental Orthodox Churches, echoing
the papal decree “Unitatis Redintegratio” issued on November 21st,
1964, half a century ago. Its founding president was the renowned and respected
Alfred Stirnemann, who led the Foundation until his death in 1988. We remember
both of these leaders, together with our cherished departed friends, the late
Metropolitans Chrysosotomos and his successor Michael of Austria, Patriarchal
Exarchs of Hungary and Mid-Europe. These two Orthodox hierarchs were
unconditionally convinced of the essential role of positive relations with the
Roman Catholic Church, working tirelessly toward advancing dialogue and
enhancing cooperation. May their memory be eternal and may their example be a
model for us all! Let us, however, recall some of the
groundbreaking steps taken just over fifty years ago, which in turn led to the
fertile conditions for the creation of a foundation such as Pro Oriente. In the
opening days of 1964, Pope Paul VI and Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras broke a
silence of many centuries with just a few simple words and a loving embrace. On
January 5, 1964, when Pope Paul VI met with Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras on
the Mount of Olives, it was the first time the Western pontiff and the Eastern
primate – the Pope of Rome and the Archbishop of New Rome – were meeting
face-to-face since the Council of Florence in 1438. And the venue for the
encounter in 1964 was the very site where Christ addressed His Father on the
night of His betrayal for the unity of His followers. Prior to this meeting, for many
centuries the Eastern and Western Churches had no formal contact and little
unofficial communication. After what is today known as the “great
schism” of 1054, there were two brief encounters of exchange and dialogues
of reunification at the Council of Lyon in 1274 and at the Council of
Ferrara-Florence in 1438-39; yet both occasions left feelings of bitterness
rather than hopefulness. The estrangement was further accentuated and sealed
after the tragic events of the Crusades, especially the Fourth Crusade with the
sack of Constantinople in 1202-04 with the unjustifiable slaughter of
Christians by Christians. Thus began the historical
“dialogue of love” – a term coined by the late Metropolitan Meliton
of Chalcedon – which in turn initiated a process of gradually breaking down
barriers created over centuries. It was followed one year later – in a joint
declaration read simultaneously at St. Peter’s in Rome and in the Patriarchal
Church of St. George in Istanbul – by the unprecedented “mutual lifting of
the anathemas” on December 7, 1965, when the same two prelates
“removed from both the memory and the midst of the Church the sentences of
excommunication” dating back to 1054, agreeing that “the past be
confided to the mercy of God.” The year 1969 saw the beginning of a
paramount and hitherto uninterrupted tradition, namely the exchange of formal
annual delegations at the respective Patron Feasts of our two “sister
churches” – in Rome on June 29 for the feast of Saints Peter and Paul; and
in Istanbul on November 30, which Pope Francis will honor at the end of this
month. These momentous initiatives later culminated in the creation – during
the papal visit to the Phanar on November 30, 1979 – of the Joint International
Commission for Theological Dialogue between the Roman Catholic Church and the
Orthodox Church. Thus, the Holy See and fourteen autocephalous Orthodox
Churches commenced an official theological “dialogue of truth” on May
29, 1980 – during the tenure of our revered predecessor, the late Ecumenical
Patriarch Dimitrios and the successor to Pope Paul VI, the late Pope John Paul
II – in order to expand the “dialogue of love” and examine jointly
the doctrinal differences between the two sister Churches. Thankfully today, through the
important and influential contribution of such foundations and institutes as
Pro Oriente, this spirit of fraternal love and mutual respect has replaced the
old theological polemic and reciprocal suspicion. Of course, we are realistic
enough to recognize that much remains to be achieved, and the path sometimes
seems long and laborious. There are the thorny theological issues of primacy
and collegiality, which are currently on the table for deliberation; and there
is the delicate problem of Uniatism, which has already once suspended the
dialogue. However, we must confess that there is no alternative path to
dialogue and reconciliation. This is especially valid and true
for our age, when we encounter the global use and abuse of religion for
political and other secular purposes; the difficulties facing Christians all
over the world – particularly in the Holy Land and the Middle East, regardless
of confessional identities; the injustices inflicted on the weak and vulnerable
members of contemporary societies; as well as the alarming ecological crisis
which threatens the integrity and very survival of God’s creation. All of these
challenges call for a common and collaborative solution to the problems that
still divide us. They demand our mutual cooperation and shared concern. Indeed, we might also include here
another aspect of Pro Oriente, which is implied in its very identity, namely
the responsibility and advocacy of Christian minorities persecuted in the
Middle East and Northern Africa, in the very places where Christianity emerged
and flourished from the earliest years of our Church. After all, the term
“orient” is not only an ecclesiastical designation; it is also a
geographical specification. This dimension is surely part and parcel of the
mission and ministry of Pro Oriente, and we would gladly welcome its support in
this vital area. And we are all well aware of the critical situation and
unjustifiable suffering endured by our brothers and sisters in the Middle East and
Northern Africa. As we declared jointly in Jerusalem
with His Holiness Pope Francis: “We express our shared profound concern
for the situation of Christians in the Middle East and for their right to
remain full citizens of their homelands. In trust we turn to the almighty and
merciful God in a prayer for peace in the Holy Land and in the Middle East in
general. We especially pray for the Churches in Egypt, Syria, and Iraq, which
have suffered most grievously due to recent events. We encourage all parties
regardless of their religious convictions to continue to work for
reconciliation and for the just recognition of peoples’ rights. We are
persuaded that it is not arms, but dialogue, pardon and reconciliation that are
the only possible means to achieve peace.” Permit us paternally to urge
you to focus more of your attention toward this crisis. Eminent and beloved friends, The ecumenical work of Pro Oriente
has proved invaluable and instrumental for the promotion of closer and stronger
relations between our Churches. Its work has undoubtedly been both remarkable
and admirable. Yet, as we all know, in our world, the work of unity remains
constant and unceasing until the fullness of the heavenly kingdom. It is,
therefore, our humble vocation and moral obligation to continue and reinforce
our efforts toward reconciliation. Let us not simply preserve the memory of the
pioneers of this blessed Foundation; let us carry on their example and increase
their endeavors. For this would be the best commemoration and celebration of
their legacy and longing for Christian unity. May God bless you all – those
directly involved in as well as those who fervently pray for and support the
work of the Pro Oriente Foundation. Bartolomeo…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis received the Bishops of Zambia on Monday who are in Rome on their Ad Limina Visit. In his prepared remarks to the group the Pope spoke about the importance of the family and the need to reach out to the poorest and most afflicted and in society. He also spoke to the Bishops about encouraging young people to play an active role in the life of the the Church.
Listen to Lydia O’Kane’s interview with Zambian priest and Head of Vatican Radio’s English Africa Section, Fr Paul Samasumo, about the Pope’s words to the Bishops of Zambia
Please find below the Pope’s English language remarks to the Bishops of Zambia
Dear Brother Bishops,
I welcome you to the City of the Apostles, where you have come as shepherd pilgrims ad Limina Apostolorum Petri et Pauli , and I thank Archbishop Mpundu for his gracious words on behalf of all the bishops, priests and people of your country. As Christ our light and our life draws us together as brothers in the Church, may he deepen the ties between the Successor of Peter a nd the Bishops of Zambia. This time in Rome offers you a fresh opportunity to reflect on the many ways in which the Lord’s flock entrusted to you has been growing in Africa. Pray in these days to discern the way ahead in solidarity and fraternity, towards the plentiful harvest ( Jn 10:2) to which the Holy Spirit is leading you.
Looking back to the beginnings of the Church in Zambia, it is well known that the rich deposit of faith brought by missionary religious from lands overflowing with growth prompted your forebears to respond with their own works of charity, whose effects are felt throughout your country today. Preparing for generations unborn, these spiritual leaders actively planted the word which the Holy Spirit had proposed to them (cf. 1 Cor 3:6). Despite the sometimes painful meeting of ancient ways with the new hope that Christ the Lord brings to all cultures, the word of faith took deep root, multiplying a hundredfold, and a new Zambian society transformed by Christian values emerged. It is at once evident how plentiful the spiritual harvest in your vast land already is – blessed with Catholic-run clinics, hospitals and schools, many parishes alive and growing across Zambia, a wide diversity of lay ministries, and substantial numbers of vocations to the priesthood. With the whole Church, we can give thanks to God for what he has already accomplished in the people entrusted to your care.
In our own days, Zambians continue to seek a happy and fulfilling future in the Church and in society, despite great challenges which militate against stability in social and ecclesial life, in particular for families. When family life is endangered, then the life of faith is also put at risk. As you yourselves have recounted, many – especially the poor in their struggle for survival – are led astray by empty promises in false teachings that seem to offer quick relief in times of desperation.
In regard to these difficulties, I am convinced that “the weakening of [family] bonds is particularly serious because the family is the fundamental cell of society, where we learn to live with others despite our differences and to belong to one another; it is also the place where parents pass on the faith to their children” ( Evangelii Gaudium , 66). Be solicitous whether in or out of season, by supporting this “sanctuary of life” ( Africae Munus , 42) which is the family, for it is here that the Church’s well-being in Zambia must grow and be fostered.
I ask you, with your priests, to form strong Christian families, who – by your catechizing – will know, understand and love the truths of the faith more deeply, and thus be protected from those currents which may tempt them to fall away. Affirm Catholic couples in their desire for fidelity in conjugal life and in their yearning to provide a stable spiritual home for their children, helping them to nurture the life of virtue in the family. By so doing, your authentic teaching of the doctrines of the faith will touch the daily life of Zambian households.
I urge you to be close to your young people as they seek to establish and articulate their identity in a disorienting age. Help them to find their purpose in the challenge and joy of co-creation with God that is the vocation to married life, fulfilled in the blessing of children; or indeed in the celibate vocations to the sacred priesthood or religious life, which the Church has been given for the salvation of souls. Encourage young Catholics by living lives of virtue to experience the liberating gift of chastity as adults. I pray that you will foster ever greater cooperation with Zambia’s networks of active Catholic youth, who can in turn lead many others into the Church’s family.
In a special way invite those who have grown lukewarm and feel lost to return to the full practice of the faith. As pastors of the flock, do not forget to seek out the weakest members of Zambian society, among whom are the materially poor and those afflicted with AIDS; for “the great majority of the poor have a special openness to the faith; they need God and we must not fail to offer them his friendship, his blessing, his word, the celebration of the sacraments and a journey of growth and maturity in the faith” ( Evangelii Gaudium , 200).
Despite all that the Church in Zambia faces, it is a time not to be discouraged but rather to offer the true freedom which only the Lord can give, sustained by the sacraments. I encourage you to remain sensitive as shepherds to the spiritual and human needs of your closest coworkers: never tire of being kind and firm fathers to your priests, helping them resist materialism and the standards of the world, while recognizing their just needs. Continue also to promote the treasure of religious life in your Dioceses, so that outstanding examples may be brought forth of Zambian men and women seeking to love the Lord with undivided hearts.
In this challenging time after the death of President Sata, I invite you to continue working with your political leaders for the common good, deepening your prophetic witness in defence of the poor in order to uplift the lives of the weak (cf. Pastoral Statement of the Zambia Episcopal Conference, “Act Justly and Walk Humbly with Your God”, 27 January 2013).
In all things, cooperate with the graces of the Holy Spirit, in unity of belief and purpose. In union with priests, deacons, religious, catechists and lay leaders, irrigate with your corporal and spiritual works of mercy the vineyard of the Lord which stretches across Zambia like the great Zambezi River.
The Church’s mission to evangelize never ends: “it is imperative to evangelize cultures in order to inculturate the Gospel… Each culture and social group needs purification and growth” ( Evangelii Gaudium , 69). Then the People of God in Zambia will receive the gift of the Gospel from you with fresh vigour, as you offer them Christ’s joy and mercy anew. May their lives conform ever more deeply to the pattern of the Gospel; then the Lord’s Kingdom of peace will spread and grow in your beloved nation.
The Lord of the harvest is preparing to send the rains he promises in due season ( Lev 26:4); for you are cultivating his fields until he returns at harvest time ( Mt 13:30). Until then, knowing well how much your work demands personal sacrifice, patience and love, draw on the faith and sacrifice of the Apostles to whose threshold you have come, in order to return strengthened to the Church in Zambia.
Dear Brothers, trusting in the saving grace of Almighty God, and commending you – along with all priests, religious and lay faithful in your Dioceses – to the intercession of Mary “Mother of the Church which evangelizes” ( Evangelii Gaudium , 284), I cordially impart my Apostolic Blessing as a pledge of peace and joy in the Risen Lord.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Human rights and Christian values in Europe and ecumenism and interfaith dialogue in Turkey top the Pope’s busy agenda next week as he prepares for his 5th and 6th pastoral visits abroad.
At a press conference on Monday morning, Father Federico Lombardi SJ, Director of the Vatican Press Office illustrated the Pope’s schedule for the last week in November which will take him to Strasbourg, seat of the European Parliament and Council of Europe, and only two days afterwards to Ankara and Istanbul in occasion of the festivity of Saint Andrew.
Listen to the report by Linda Bordoni :
Pointing out that the visit to Strasbourg is a visit to Europe’s top governing bodies and not to France, Father Lombardi said it will be the briefest apostolic journey a Pope has ever made.
For a total of 3 hours and 50 minutes, Pope Francis will address the Plenary Assembly, first of the European Parliament (EP) and then of the Council of Europe (CoE) as well as meet with their heads Martin Schultz and Thorbjorn Jagland and some of their closest collaborators.
Lombardi recalled that the last Pope to address the European Institutions in Strasbourg was Saint John Paul II in 1988. He pointed out that by addressing the Parliament’s 28 member nations and the 47 member states of the Council, Pope Francis is speaking to the heart of Europe and will invariably raise issues such as economic inequality, freedom of religion and a throwaway culture within a continent that is facing many challenges. He made it quite clear that it is only a “technical” touchdown on French soil, thus President Hollande will not be at the airport to meet him, whilst he will be meeting with key figures of the just started Italian Semester of the EU Council, Matteo Renzi and Jean-Claude Juncker. He explained Francis will arrive at the EP just in time to address the Session there and will be back on the plane for Rome before lunch!
Turkey also marks another record as it takes place only 2 days later. Father Lombardi said the main themes of this journey are ecumenical, of inter-faith dialogue and to encourage the small Turkish Catholic community in its faith.
Taking him to first to Ankara and then to Istanbul, Pope Francis will be received by State authorities and then by the president of Religious Affairs in the Diyanet.
On the following day, he will travel to Istanbul where he will visit significant landmarks such as the Blue Mosque, and the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit where he will celebrate Mass before participating in an ecumenical prayer and meeting in private with the Orthodox Patriarch, Bartholomew I.
Sunday 30 is the Feast day of St. Andrew, the Patron of the Eastern world and the Pope will preside over a divine liturgy in the patriarchal Church of St. George, impart an ecumenical blessing and sign a Joint Declaration with Bartholomew before departing. It can really be seen – Lombardi pointed out – as a continuation of his apostolic journey to the Holy Land last May, and it germinates in fertile soil that has already been tread upon by Popes Paul VIth, John Paul II, Benedict XVIth and well watered by John XXIIIrd who was Apostolic Nuncio to Turkey for 10 years before becoming Pope!
(from Vatican Radio)…