(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis used his remarks ahead of the traditional Sunday Angelus prayer to reflect on the essential characteristics of Christian missionary discipleship, which he identified as being bound to Our Lord Jesus Christ and being bearers of Him – ambassadors of Christ, as St. Paul says – who put on Christ and bring Him to others, forsaking themselves and all others and everything else in the world for His sake.
“Not,” explained Pope Francis, “because He wants us to be heartless and ungrateful – not hardly, not at all.”
“On the contrary,” he continued, “because the condition of the disciple requires that one’s relationship with the Master take precedence over all others.”
Departing from his prepared text, the Holy Father said, “Any and every disciple, whether he be a lay man, a lay woman, a priest, a bishop: the relationship [with Christ, the Divine Teacher] takes precedence.”
Pope Francis concluded, saying, “The Virgin Mary felt in her own person what it means to love Jesus, detaching oneself from oneself, giving new meaning to family ties, beginning with faith in Him: may she help us, with her maternal intercession, to be free and cheerful missionaries of the Gospel.”
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis appealed for peace and reconciliation in Venezuela on Sunday. Addressing pilgrims and tourists gathered in St. Peter’s Square to pray the traditional noonday Angelus with him on Sunday, the Holy Father renewed his call for prayerful solidarity with the people of Venezuela, just a few days ahead of the nation’s Independence Day on July 5 th . “I promise my own prayers for this beloved nation [Venezuela] and express my closeness to the families who have lost their children in the streets,” Pope Francis said, referring to the often violent – protests in the country that began in March in the wake of a constitutional crisis and subsequent political stalemate that has yet to be broken. Nearly one hundred people have been killed in the ongoing civil unrest. “I call for end to violence and a peaceful and democratic solution to the crisis,” the Holy Father said, before imploring the intercession of Our Lady of Coromoto – Patroness of Venezuela – and leading the faithful gathered beneath the window of the Papal apartments in the recitation of the Hail Mary. (from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Saturday named Archbishop Luis Ladaria, SJ, to replace Cardinal Gerhard Ludwig Müller as the Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, at the end of Cardinal Müller’s five-year term.
Archbishop Ladaria is a Spanish Jesuit and theologian who spent many years teaching at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, before being called to serve as Secretary of CDF in 2008.
A note from the Press Office of the Holy See released Saturday says the Holy Father thanks Cardinal Müller at the end his quinquennial mandate as Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and President of the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei, the Pontifical Biblical Commission and the International Theological Commission, and now calls the former Secretary, Archbishop Ladaria, to take on those roles.
Cardinal Müller’s term as Prefect officially expires on July 2 nd .
(from Vatican Radio)…
Bulletin for 07/02/2017
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis met Friday morning with representatives of the Italo-Latin American Organization , an institution dedicated to promoting development and coordination, as well as identifying possibilities for reciprocal assistance and for common action among the member countries.
The Holy Father’s address to the members of the organization focused precisely on three aspects of those goals: identifying potential, coordinating action, and moving forward.
Pope Francis noted that the countries of Latin America are “rich in history, culture, and natural resources; that their people are good, and committed to solidarity with others. Such values must be appreciated and strengthened. But, he said, in spite of these goods, the people of Latin America are experiencing an economic and social crisis that has led to increased poverty, unemployment, and social inequality, as well as abuse and exploitation of our common home. Any analysis of the situation must recognize the real needs and potentials of the people of these countries.
The second point, the Pope said, is “to coordinate efforts to offer concrete answers, to meet the demands and the necessities of the sons and daughters of our countries.” This does not mean leaving the work to others, and signaling our approval afterwards, he said, but requires time and effort on our part. He focused especially on the phenomenon of migration, which has grown steadily in recent years. In this area, the Pope said, we must not seek to place blame and avoid responsibility, but must rather work together in a coordinate manner.
Finally, among the many things that can be done, Pope Francis identified the promotion of a culture of dialogue as fundamentally important. Many countries, he said, are going through social, political, and economic crises; and it is the poor who are the first to note the corruption that exists between different social classes, and the “wicked” distribution of wealth. Dialogue, he said, is essential to facing these crises. But dialogue, the Pope said, must not be a “dialogue between the deaf.” Rather, “it requires a receptive attitude that welcomes suggestions and shares aspirations.”
Pope Francis concluded his remarks by encouraging the representatives of the Italo-Latin American Organization in their commitment to work “for the common good of the American continent”; and he expressed his hope that “collaboration among all can favour the construction of an ever more human and more just world.”
(from Vatican Radio)…