(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis and members of the Vatican Curia travelled on Sunday afternoon to the “Casa del Divin Maestro,” a retreat centre in Ariccia, located in the Alban hills just outside Rome. They are taking part in the week-long Curial Spiritual Exercises .
Listen to the report by Linda Bordoni:
The Pope himself reminded the faithful of his annual retreat after praying the Angelus in St Peter’s Square and asked them for prayers for himself and for his collaborators.
Each day will include moments of prayer, meditation, and Eucharistic adoration.
At the heart of this year’s meditations is the theme of the Passion, the Death and the Resurrection of Christ according to the Gospel of Matthew.
The spiritual exercises will be led by Franciscan Friar Giulio Michelini.
The exercises are traditionally conducted during the first week of Lent, and as always, all the Pope’s audiences, including Wednesday’s General Audience, are suspended.
The participants will return to the Vatican on Friday.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Sunday called on Christians to consult the Bible with the same frequency as they might consult their cellphones for messages.
Speaking to the crowds gathered in St. Peter’s Square following his weekly Angelus blessing, the Pope urged those present to give the Bible the same place in daily life as cellphones and asked: “What would happen if we turned back when we forget it, if we opened it more times a day, if we read the message of God contained in the Bible the way we read messages on our cellphones?”
The Bible, he explained, contains the Word of God, the most effective tool in fighting evil and keeping us close to God.
Clearly, Francis said, the comparison between the Bible and the cellphone is paradoxical, but it induces us to reflect.
“If we always carried God’s Word in our hearts, no temptation would distance us from the Father, and no obstacle would take us off the path towards good” he said.
He pointed out that in this first Sunday of Lent, the Gospel of Matthew tells of Jesus’s forty days in the desert and of how he was tempted by the devil.
With his temptations, the Pope said, Satan wanted to divert Jesus from the path of obedience and humbleness – because he knew that this was the way to conquer evil – and he wanted him to take the false shortcut towards glory and success.
“But the devil’s poisonous darts are all ‘blocked’ by Jesus with the shield provided by God’s Word” he said, pointing out that Jesus never uses his own words but only God’s Word, and thus, filled with the force of the Holy Spirit, he victoriously crosses the desert.
Pope Francis invited all Christians to follow in Jesus’ footsteps during the forty days of Lent and to confront the spiritual battle against evil with the strength of God’s Word.
“That’s why, he said, it is necessary to become familiar with the Bible: read it often, reflect upon it, assimilate it. The Bible contains the Word of God which is always topical and effective” he said.
Inviting the faithful to carry a pocket-sized Gospel all the time, the Pope concluded with the words: “don’t forget what would happen if we treated the Bible as we treat our cellphone, always with us, always close to us!”
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) A communiqué released on Saturday by the Vatican’s Secretariat for the Economy provides a synopsis of the Annual Accounts of the Holy See, Vatican City State and Related Entities for 2015.
Please find the full text of the communiqué below:
The Holy See recorded a deficit of Euros 12.4 million in 2015. The main sources of income for 2015, in addition to investments, include the contributions made pursuant to Canon 1271 of the Code of Canon Law (Euros 24 million) and the contribution from the Institute of Works of Religion (Euros 50 million). As in previous years, the most significant expense for the Holy See is the cost of personnel. The Governatorato of the Vatican City State indicates a surplus of Euros 59.9 million for 2015, largely due to continued revenue from the cultural activities, especially those linked to the Museums. The 2015 Annual Accounts represent the first set of financial information prepared following the Vatican Financial Management Policies (VFMP), approved by Pope Francis on 24 October 2014, which are based on International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS). The Secretariat for the Economy informed the Council for the Economy that the journey towards a full implementation of the VFMP is firmly underway and highlighted that, however, a few more years will be necessary for this process to be completed and a full audit to be performed. The 2015 Annual Accounts represent an important step for the economic reforms and along the journey towards new policies, which are progressing well. The Council for the Economy noted the unaudited 2015 Consolidated Annual Accounts during this transition period. The adoption of the VFMP greatly benefits the Holy See and the Vatican City State in enhancing quality and transparency of the financial information and increasing discipline in the financial reporting and control systems. Following the recommendation of the Council for the Economy in November of 2016, the Holy Father took note of the 2015 Consolidated Annual Accounts. Important progress has been made in the budgeting process. The 2017 Budget has been presented, for the first time prior to the start of the new calendar year, to the Council for the Economy, which recommended its approval. This will allow further control on reviewing expenses, through the monitoring of actual performances against approved financial plans. The Council for the Economy thanked the Secretariat for the Economy for the strong commitment in implementing the economic reforms approved by the Holy Father.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Saturday received the participants in a major international conference on sacred music, a half-century after the promulgation of the Conciliar document, Musicam sacram on music in the sacred liturgy.
Over 400 people taking part in the gathering organized by the Congregation for Catholic Education and the Pontifical Council for Culture around the theme: Music and the Church: cult and culture fifty years after Musicam sacram, met in the Clementine Hall of the Apostolic Palace to hear the Holy Father.
Click below to hear our report
“Certainly,” said Pope Francis, “the encounter with modernity and the introduction of [vernacular] tongues into the Liturgy stirred up many problems: of musical languages, forms and genres.”
The Holy father went on to say, “Sometimes a certain mediocrity, superficiality and banality have prevailed, to the detriment of the beauty and intensity of liturgical celebrations.”
The Pope encouraged the various actors in the field of liturgical music – from composers, conductors, musicians and choristers, to liturgical animators – to do their best to contribute to the renewal of sacred music and liturgical chant, especially as far as the quality of sacred music is concerned.
“To facilitate this process,” Pope Francis said, “we need to promote proper musical education, especially for those who are preparing to become priests – in dialogue with the musical trends of our time, with the demands of the different cultural areas, and with an ecumenical attitude.”
(from Vatican Radio)…
Bulletin for 3/05/2017