On the occasion of the 50th anniversary
of the Joint Working Group between the Catholic Church and the World Council of
Churches, the Holy Father sent a message to Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit General
Secretary World Council of Churches. The Pope’s message was read aloud on
Tuesday afternoon, 23 June, by Cardinal Kurt Koch, President of the Pontifical
Council for Promoting Christian Unity, during a commemorative congress held in
Rome. The following is the English text of the Pope’s message . To the
Reverend Dr Olav Fykse Tveit General
Secretary World Council of Churches The 50th anniversary of the Joint Working
Group between the Catholic Church and the World Council of Churches is an
occasion of thanksgiving to Almighty God for the meaningful ecumenical
relationship which we enjoy today. So too, it is a moment to thank the Lord for
all that the ecumenical movement has achieved since its beginning over one
hundred years ago, inspired by a longing for the unity which Christ intended
for his body, the Church, and by an emerging sense of sorrow for the scandal of
division between Christians. Since its inauguration in 1965, the Joint
Working Group has fostered the necessary conditions for a greater common
witness of the Catholic Church and the Churches and Ecclesial Communities of
the World Council of Churches. Reflecting on these past 50 years, we should be
encouraged by the collaboration which the Joint Working Group has promoted, not
only in ecumenical issues, but also in the areas of interreligious dialogue,
peace and social justice, and works of charity and humanitarian aid. The Joint
Working Group should not be an inward-looking forum. Rather, it must become
ever more a “think-tank”, open to all the opportunities and challenges facing
the Churches today in their mission of accompanying suffering humanity on the
path to the Kingdom, by imbuing society and culture with Gospel truths and
values. In my Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii
Gaudium , I noted that realities are more important than ideas (cf. n. 233).
The Joint Working Group must be oriented to addressing the real concerns of the
Churches throughout the world. In this way, it will be better suited to
proposing collaborative steps that not only draw the Churches closer together,
but also ensure that they offer an effective diakonia suited to the
people’s needs. In fulfilling this task, the Joint Working
Group distinguishes itself by its own character and aims. The nine reports
produced thus far bear witness to the growing understanding and appreciation of
the bonds of brotherhood and reconciliation which, in the context of the
changing landscape of Christianity in the modern world, sustain Christians in
their common witness and evangelizing mission. We must recognize, though, that
in spite of the many ecumenical achievements of the past half century,
Christian mission and witness still suffer due to our divisions. Disagreements
on various subjects — in particular anthropological, ethical and social issues,
as well as issues related to the understanding of the nature and conditions of
the unity we seek — demand further sustained efforts. Our dialogue must
continue! I encourage the Joint Working Group to further its discussion on
crucial ecumenical issues and, at the same time, to promote ways for Christians
to testify together to the real, though imperfect, communion shared by all the
baptized. May we always trust that the Holy Spirit will continue to assist and
guide our journey, often in new and sometimes unexpected ways. This anniversary similarly is an
opportunity to express our gratitude to all those who, these past 50 years,
have tirelessly served the cause of Christian unity and advanced the joyful
proclamation of the Gospel (cf. Mt 28:18-20). Let us join together in imploring
our heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ our Redeemer, and in the power of the
Holy Spirit, to grant us the gift of full visible unity among all Christians,
so that the Church will ever more be a sign of hope to the world and an
instrument of reconciliation for all peoples….
On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Joint Working Group between the Catholic Church and the World Council of Churches, the Holy Father sent a message to Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit General Secretary World Council of Churches. The Pope’s message was read aloud on Tuesday afternoon, 23 June, by Cardinal Kurt Koch,…
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(Vatican Radio) The self-inflicted wounds of the family and the need to put aside anger and friction to protect the couple’s children were at the heart of Pope Francis’ message to thousands of pilgrims gathered for the weekly General Audience on Wednesday.
Listen to this report by Tracey McClure:
Speaking under overcast skies in St. Peter’s Square, Pope Francis reflected on the Gospel reading from Matthew (Mt 18,6) in which Jesus says to his disciples, “unless you turn and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.” And, Christ’s grave warning: “Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.”
A family’s wounds and end of conjugal love a “landslide” burying children
No family is immune to words and actions – or lack there-of – which “diminish or even worse, mortify love,” the Pope said. “When these wounds, which can still be remedied, are neglected, they become worse: they turn into arrogance , hostility, contempt.” They can then fester into deep lacerations, the Pope continued, that divide husband and wife who may “look elsewhere for understanding.”
The “emptying” of conjugal love, the Pope said, spreads resentment in relationships and the falling apart of the family is like a “landslide” which buries the children.
Are we “anesthetized” to the psychological trauma children suffer?
The Pope asked if we who have an “apparently evolved sensitivity” and access to the most “refined psychological analysis” have not become “anesthetized” to the psychological trauma that children suffer.
Giving them gifts and snacks just desensitizes one to the deep pain that children suffer, the Pope noted. “We speak often of behavioral disorders, psychological health , the wellbeing of the child, of the anxiety of parents and children… But do we know yet what is a wounded spirit?
“We feel the weight of the mountain which crushes the spirit of a child” in families in which people hurt each other “to the point of breaking conjugal fidelity,” said the Pope.
“When the adults lose their head, when everyone thinks about him/herself, when the father and mother hurt each other,” Pope Francis observed, it is the children who suffer the most.
When the family is injured in one part, the whole is infected
Everything is tied together in the family, he said, and when it is injured in one part, the whole becomes infected. Observing that married couples are called to be “one body” in marriage and the rearing of children, the Pope said that obsessive attachment to one’s own freedom and gratification is a “distortion” that deeply affects children.
Recalling Christ’s admonition in Matthew not to “scandalize” the little ones, the Pope said we can better understand the “grave responsibility of caring for the conjugal bond.”
Separation can be “inevitable” or “morally necessary”
However, the Pope admitted “there are cases in which separation is inevitable. Sometimes it can become even morally necessary, precisely when it comes to subtracting the weaker spouse, or small children, from more serious injuries caused by arrogance and violence, by humiliation and exploitation, by extraneousness (non-involvement) and by indifference.”
“There are, thank God, those who, sustained by faith and love for their children,” the Pope continued, “give witness to their loyalty to a relationship in which they believed, even though it appears impossible to revive it. Not all separated [couples], however, feel this vocation . Not everyone recognizes, in solitude, the Lord’s call to them.”
Families living “irregular” situations
Some families today live in so-called “irregular” situations, the Pope observed, saying that he does not like that word, and that we must reflect on how to help and accompany them – and accompany them so that the children do not become “hostages of the father or the mother.”
Below please find the English summary of the Pope’s remarks read out to pilgrims attending the General Audience:
Dear Brothers and Sisters: We know well that every family on occasion suffers moments when one family member offends another. Through our words, actions, or omissions, instead of expressing love for our spouse or children, we can sometimes diminish or demean that love. Hiding these hurts only deepens such wounds, leading to anger and friction between loved ones. If these wounds are particularly deep, they can even lead a spouse to search for understanding elsewhere, to the detriment of the family, especially children. Being one flesh, any wounds that spouses suffer are shared by their children, born of their flesh. When we remember how Jesus warned adults not to scandalize little ones (cf. Mt 18:6), we better understand the vital responsibility to maintain and protect the bond of marriage which is the foundation of the human family. We thank God that although these wounds may lead some to separation, even then many men and women remain true to their conjugal bond, sustained by faith and by love for their children. For those who enter into so-called irregular situations, we must reflect on how best to help and accompany them in their lives. Let us ask the Lord for a strong faith to see with his eyes the reality of family life, and for a deep love to approach all families with his merciful heart.
I offer an affectionate greeting to all the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors present at today’s Audience, including those from England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, Sweden, Australia, Indonesia, Japan, the Philippines, Vietnam, the Islands of the Bahamas, Canada and the United States. May Jesus Christ heal every wound present in the life of your families, and may he make you witnesses of his mercy and love. May God bless you all!
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) The self-inflicted wounds of the family and the need to put aside anger and friction to protect the couple’s children were at the heart of Pope Francis’ message to thousands of pilgrims gathered for the weekly General Audience on Wednesday. Listen to this report by Tracey McClure: Speaking under overcast skies in St.…
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A five-day workshop on the theme: Training of Trainers on the effective dissemination of the ‘SECAM Pastoral Training Manual in Response to HIV and AIDS’ has ended in Lome, Togo on 21 June, 2014 with a call on all dioceses in Africa to endeavour to effectively and efficiently disseminate an HIV/AIDS Pastoral Training Manual. This…
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