Vatican City, 30 October 2015 (VIS) – The Holy Father’s universal prayer intention for November is: “That we may be open to personal encounter and dialogue with all, even those whose convictions differ from our own”.
His intention for evangelisation is: “That pastors of the Church, with profound love for their flocks, may accompany them and enliven their hope”….
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis greeted pilgrims from El Salvador who came to the Vatican on Friday to thank the Holy Father for beatifying Archbishop Oscar Romero in May of this year.
Listen to Lydia O’Kane’s report
500 people including Bishops, priests, religious, lay people and seminarians from El Salvador came to the Vatican on Friday to say quite simply “Thank You” to Pope Francis for beatifying Archbishop Oscar Romero in May 2015. The Archbishop was shot dead as he celebrated Mass in a hospital chapel on 24 March 1980. Speaking to the pilgrims gathered, Pope Francis said Oscar Romero’s life was taken violently, while he was celebrating the Eucharist, a supreme sacrifice of love, sealing with his blood the announcement of the Gospel.
At the heart of his address was the theme of martyrdom. The Pope recalled the martyrs of the past and said that today too the blood of many Christian martyrs is still being dramatically shed in the world, but he added, with the certain hope that it will bear fruit “in a rich harvest of holiness, justice, reconciliation and love for God.”
He also underlined that no one is born a martyr, saying that it is a grace that the Lord gives. The Holy Father recalled the words of Archbishop Romero himself when he said, “We must be willing to die for our faith, even if the Lord does not give us this honour.”
Pope Francis went to say that the martyr is not someone who is relegated to the past, a beautiful image that adorns our churches and we remember with nostalgia.
No, he stressed, the martyr is a brother, a sister, who continues to accompany us in the mystery of the communion of saints, and that, “united to Christ, does not ignore our earthly pilgrimage, our sufferings, our agonies.”
People like Archbishop Romero, said the Pope, are a treasure and a hope for the Church and for Salvadoran society.
Concluding his address the Holy Father noted that the upcoming Jubilee of Mercy, and the example shown by Oscar Romero for his beloved nation was a stimulus for a renewed proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
The Pope added that “the holy people of God on pilgrimage in El Salvador who still face a series of difficult tasks, need like the rest of the world, the evangelizing announcement of the Gospel that will help to advance the promotion and development of a nation in search of true justice, genuine peace and the reconciliation of hearts.
(from Vatican Radio)…
Pope Francis has received an unusual gift aimed at boosting relations between the Catholic and Anglican Churches – a cricket bat signed by the Archbishop of Canterbury and his team following their recent rematch with the Vatican’s XI on Rome’s Campanelle grounds.
Australian Cardinal George Pell, a former rugby player who nevertheless knows cricket, gave Francis the bat on Thursday after the St. Peter’s Cricket Club beat the Church of England’s XI by 43 runs in a 20-over match this weekend. Pope Francis promptly signed it himself.
The Vatican team includes seminarians and priests studying at Rome’s pontifical universities. They are 4-0 this season ahead of an April rematch with the Royal Household. Australia’s Vatican ambassador, John McCarthy, said the Anglicans’ visit “strengthened personal and institutional relations” between the two churches. (Source: AP)
(from Vatican Radio)…
Vatican City, 29 October 2015 (VIS) – This morning the Pope received in the Sala Clementina the participants in the Radio Maria 6th World Congress, taking place in the shrine of Collevallenza, Italy from 25 to 30 October and attended by the presidents and priests who direct the 75 Radio Maria broadcasters throughout the world and the further six who will shortly become active. Thousands of volunteers contribute to the running of Radio Maria, which has around 30 million listeners worldwide. Pope Francis began his address by commenting that ever since its creation the aim of Radio Maria has been to help the Church in her task of evangelising, and to do so in its own special way, “with closeness to the concerns and problems of the people, with words of consolation and hope, the fruit of faith and commitment to solidarity. … The spread of Radio Maria in many environments, very diverse in terms of culture, language and tradition, is good news for all as it shows that, when we have the courage to propose high profile content from a clearly Christian position, the initiative is well-received, beyond our best predictions, and at times by those who thereby perhaps come into contact with the message of the Gospel for the first time”. The Pope invited the members of Radio Maria to continue their work, trusting in Providence that has always enabled them to find the means to respond to their daily needs regarding the modernisation of technologies and the development of the radio station, which has spread rapidly and organically. “In this respect, the challenge is to maintain your style of sobriety, while continuing to seek suitable tools”. The work of Radio Maria has become “a true mission”, which must be carried out “with fidelity to the Gospel and to the Magisterium of the Church, and listening to society and to the people, especially the poorest and most marginalised, so as to be a point of reference and a support to all your listeners. … All those who listen to your radio programmes recognise you as a broadcaster that offers ample space to prayer, demonstrating that when one opens up to prayer, one opens the door … to the Lord. Your model in this is Our Lady. It is therefore necessary to love Mary with your heart to live and feel in harmony with the Church”. The Pope concluded by urging the directors “always to cultivate the inner garden of prayer, of listening to the Word of God”, and to seek out “good readings, so as to deepen your faith. In other words, always be aware that you give something great and unique: Christian hope, which is far more than a mere spiritual consolation, since it is based on the power of the Resurrection, witnessed with faith and works of charity”….
Vatican City, 29 October 2015 (VIS) – This morning the Pope received in the Sala Clementina the participants in the Radio Maria 6th World Congress, taking place in the shrine of Collevallenza, Italy from 25 to 30 October and attended by the presidents and priests who direct the 75 Radio Maria broadcasters throughout the world and the further six who will shortly become active. Thousands of volunteers contribute to the running of Radio Maria, which has around 30 million listeners worldwide. Pope Francis began his address by commenting that ever since its creation the aim of Radio Maria has been to help the Church in her task of evangelising, and to do so in its own special way, “with closeness to the concerns and problems of the people, with words of consolation and hope, the fruit of faith and commitment to solidarity. … The spread of Radio Maria in many environments, very diverse in terms of culture, language and tradition, is good news for all as it shows that, when we have the courage to propose high profile content from a clearly Christian position, the initiative is well-received, beyond our best predictions, and at times by those who thereby perhaps come into contact with the message of the Gospel for the first time”. The Pope invited the members of Radio Maria to continue their work, trusting in Providence that has always enabled them to find the means to respond to their daily needs regarding the modernisation of technologies and the development of the radio station, which has spread rapidly and organically. “In this respect, the challenge is to maintain your style of sobriety, while continuing to seek suitable tools”. The work of Radio Maria has become “a true mission”, which must be carried out “with fidelity to the Gospel and to the Magisterium of the Church, and listening to society and to the people, especially the poorest and most marginalised, so as to be a point of reference and a support to all your listeners. … All those who listen to your radio programmes recognise you as a broadcaster that offers ample space to prayer, demonstrating that when one opens up to prayer, one opens the door … to the Lord. Your model in this is Our Lady. It is therefore necessary to love Mary with your heart to live and feel in harmony with the Church”. The Pope concluded by urging the directors “always to cultivate the inner garden of prayer, of listening to the Word of God”, and to seek out “good readings, so as to deepen your faith. In other words, always be aware that you give something great and unique: Christian hope, which is far more than a mere spiritual consolation, since it is based on the power of the Resurrection, witnessed with faith and works of charity”….