(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis has sent his condolences to the Bishop of Bergamo, Italy for the death of Cardinal Loris Francesco Capovilla, the former private secretary of Pope John XXIII. Upon hearing of the Cardinal’s passing 26 May 2016 at the age of 100, Pope Francis wrote in a telegram to Bishop Francesco Beschi, in whose diocese Cardinal Capovilla lived the last years of his life: “I think with affection of this dear brother who in his long and fruitful existence gave witness to the Gospel with joy and obediently served the Church, first in the diocese of Venice, then with attentive affection at the side of Pope John XXIII, of whose memory he was the zealous custodian and expert interpreter. In his episcopal ministry, especially in Chieti-Vasto and Loreto (Italy), he was always a pastor totally dedicated to the wellbeing of all priests and the faithful …with a solid fidelity to the teachings of the Second Vatican Council.”
Pope Francis concluded his telegram with a prayer, “with the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary and of Saint Mark the Evangelist,” so that the Lord will receive his soul “nel Gaudio” and “in eternal peace, ” and offered his apostolic blessing to all those who grieve his passing.
Cardinal Capovilla was born on 14 October 1915 in Pontelungo, northern Italy.
He was ordained a priest in Venice, Italy, in 1940; he was appointed and ordained Archbishop of Chieti, in 1967. From 1971 to 1988, he served as prelate of Loreto, Italy
On 22 February 2014, Pope Francis elevated him cardinal and, cardinal-priest of Santa Maria in Trastevere, Rome.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis received the President of Costa Rica, Luis Guillermo Solís Rivera, who was accompanied by his wife and daughter, in the Vatican on Friday for a private audience.
A press release from the Holy See Press Office called the meeting ‘cordial’, saying the Holy Father and Mr. Solís spoke about the good relationship between the Holy See and Costa Rica.
Mr. Solís expressed his appreciation for the important contribution of the Catholic Church to Costa Rican society, especially in the areas of education, health care, the promotion of human and spiritual values, and charitable works. The two leaders also spoke about several themes of common interest, including the protection of human life, migration, and drug trafficking. Finally, mention was made of the regional situation and a number of international issues.
Following his audience with the Holy Father, Mr. Solís met with the Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, and the Secretary for Relations with States, Archbishop Paul Gallagher.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Friday greeted members of the Congregation of Don Orione, the Sons of Divine Providence, on the occasion of their 14th General Chapter.
The Congregation takes its inspiration from its founder, St Luigi Orione, whose motto was: “Do good to all; harm no one.” St Luigi Orione is remembered for his commitment to social justice and the service of those in need, a service guided and inspired by the teachings of the Catholic Church.
Listen to Christopher Wells’ report:
In his address to the General Chapter, Pope Francis said, “The whole Church is called to journey with Jesus along the paths of the world, to encounter the humanity of today, which needs, as Don Orione wrote, ‘the bread of the body, and the divine balm of the Faith’.”
To put these words into practice today, the Pope said, the members of the Congregation must keep in mind their identity as “servants of Christ and of the poor.”
“You were called and consecrated by God,” he said, “to remain with Jesus and to serve Him in the poor and in those excluded from society.” He called them to vigilance, that their faith “might not become an ideology,” or their charity a mere “philanthropy.”
Pope Francis recalled that, even during the lifetime of Don Orione, the Orionine Fathers were known as “running priests” because they “seemed to be always on the go, in the midst of the people, with the rapid pace of those who care.”
He exhorted them, “with Don Orione, to to not remain enclosed within your particular environment, but to ‘go out’.”
At the same time, it is important to never “lose sight of the Church” or of their own religious community. Rather, he said, “your heart must be there in your ‘cenaculum’, but then needs to go out to bring the mercy of God to all, without distinction.”
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) In a tribute to Cardinal Loris Capovilla, personal secretary to Saint John XXIII,who passed away on the 26th of May, we bring you a Vatican Radio archive interview in which he explains how this twentieth century Pope rather than arouse in us feelings of nostalgia should encourage us to look towards the future.
Listen to a programme presented and produced by Veronica Scarisbrick:
As ked what he meant by that comment the cardinal replied that as Pope John once said we are not called to be custodians of a shrine, a reliquary or a museum but rather to be custodians of a garden where is sown the seed of the Word, of the Word Incarnate. In fact he went on to say, we are called to cultivate our garden, to foster the advent of a new Pentecost, a new Easter, a new Spring, not just for our personal joy but for the joy of all of humanity.
Cardinal Capovilla also shares the idea that he viewed the Pope as someone sent by God. ” I never felt”, he remarked in this interview, ” that I was collaborator or a secretary and still less an advisor, I would have perceived this as a scandalous assumption”.
What he did experience, he highlights, was the joy that came with being close to a man who was certainly guided by God and who set the seed for the future of the Church although it was difficult to grasp to the full what was in his soul: “… as I said he set the seed for the future”.
(from Vatican Radio)…