(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Saturday addressed the participants of a summer course organized by the Vatican Observatory, reminding them how diversity enriches scientific research, which in turn draws us ever closer to our Creator God.
The fifteenth installment of the Vatican Observatory’s summer course for astronomers falls on the 125th anniversary of the Observatory’s founding.
Listen to Devin Watkins’ report:
In his address to the summer course participants, Pope Francis focused on the importance of cultural diversity in scientific research. Noting the diverse provenance of the participants, he said their desire to discover the truth of the cosmos will lead them to the Creator.
“God’s creation, and our own place in it, is shared by men and women of very diverse cultural and religious backgrounds. All of us dwell under the same sky. All of us are moved by the beauty revealed in the cosmos and reflected in the study of the heavenly bodies and substances. In this sense, we are united by the desire to discover the truth about how this marvellous universe operates; and in this, we draw ever closer to the Creator.”
The Holy Father also reminded them that the mission of the Vatican Observatory, founded by Pope Leo XIII in 1891, is to employ “new scientific instruments as well as the tools of dialogue and cooperation with other centres of research”.
This fifteenth installment of the summer course is concerned with the study of water in our solar system and beyond, and the Pope noted its beauty and importance.
“From the tiniest snowflake to the greatest waterfalls, from lakes and rivers to immense oceans, water fascinates us by its power and, at the same time, its simplicity. The great civilizations originated beside rivers, and in our day access to pure water continues to be an issue of justice for the human race, for rich and poor alike.”
He concluded his remarks by reminding them of the commitment required by scientific research, which can also be a source of great joy. He said, “May you always find joy in your research and share the fruit of your studies with humility and fraternity.”
The official translation of Pope Francis’ address can be found below:
Greeting of His Holiness Pope Francis to Participants in the Summer Course of the Vatican Observatory
I am happy to welcome you, the professors and students of the summer course organized by the Jesuit Fathers of the Vatican Observatory. This impressive representation of persons from various countries and different cultures is a sign of how diversity can greatly enrich scientific research. I thank Father Paul Mueller, the Vice-Director of the Observatory, and the professors who generously accompany you young astronomers in the complex and exciting activity of studying the universe, the incomparable gift of the Creator. My gratitude goes also to those who through their generosity have contributed to make this international course possible.
Pope Leo XIII established the Vatican Observatory in 1891, exactly 125 years ago, not least to confirm the Church’s support for “true and solid science, whether human or divine” (Motu Proprio Ut Mysticam, 14 March 1891) . Over the years, the Observatory has sought to fulfil its original purpose by employing new scientific instruments as well as the tools of dialogue and cooperation with other centres of research.
Your presence at this summer school is also a sign that the desire to understand the universe, God’s creation, and our own place in it, is shared by men and women of very diverse cultural and religious backgrounds. All of us dwell under the same sky. All of us are moved by the beauty revealed in the cosmos and reflected in the study of the heavenly bodies and substances. In this sense, we are united by the desire to discover the truth about how this marvellous universe operates; and in this, we draw ever closer to the Creator.
It is timely and providential that this fifteenth summer school is concerned with the study of water in the solar system and elsewhere. We all know how essential water is here on earth: for life, for us human beings and for our work. From the tiniest snowflake to the greatest waterfalls, from lakes and rivers to immense oceans, water fascinates us by its power and, at the same time, its simplicity. The great civilizations originated beside rivers, and in our day access to pure water continues to be an issue of justice for the human race, for rich and poor alike.
Dear brothers and sisters, scientific research demands great commitment, yet can sometimes prove lengthy and tiresome. At the same time, it can, and should be, a source of deep joy. I pray that you will be able to cultivate that interior joy and allow it to inspire your work. Share it with your friends, your families and your nations, as well as with the international community of scientists with whom you work. May you always find joy in your research and share the fruit of your studies with humility and fraternity.
With these prayerful good wishes, I cordially invoke the Lord’s abundant blessings upon you and your work. And I ask you please to remember me in your prayers. Thank you.
(from Vatican Radio)…
Bulletin for 6/12/2016
(Vatican Radio) The Press Office of the Holy See released a statement on Friday, clarifying the reason for which the independent audit of some areas of Vatican finances being conducted by the financial services agency, PricewaterhouseCoopers, had been suspended, and announcing a new agreement between the parties, under which the accounting firm shall resume its work. Below, please find the full text of the official English-language statement.
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As previously noted, with respect to the relationship between the Holy See and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) it was deemed useful to suspend auditing activity to examine the meaning and scope of certain contract clauses, as well as to examine the manner in which the contract was executed. Together with PwC, those issues were duly examined in an atmosphere of serene collaboration, resolving the questions originally identified. In particular, it was recognized that, by law, the task of performing the financial statement audit is entrusted to the Office of the Auditor General (URG), as is normally the case for every sovereign state. Given that, in conformity with the legal framework in force this institutional responsibility falls upon the URG, PwC will play an assisting role and will also be available to those dicasteries that wish to avail themselves of its support and consulting services. It is important to clarify that, contrary to what has been reported by some sources, the suspension was not due to considerations regarding the integrity or the quality of PwC’s work, nor is it attributable to the desire of one or more entities of the Holy See to hinder reforms. The path towards a correct and appropriate implementation of International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) is normally complex and prolonged. That path requires a series of legislative choices as well as the adoption of administrative and accounting procedures, which are presently under development. Keeping in mind the valued activity already carried out by PwC, the Holy See announces that the parties, have entered into a new agreement which, in conformity with the institutional framework, provides for a broader collaboration with PwC that is adaptable to the Holy See’s needs. This agreement permits all of the entities of the Holy See to participate more actively in the reforms under way. With this initiative, the Holy See will promptly reassume its collaboration with PwC. The commitment to the economic-financial audit of the Holy See and of the State of Vatican City has been, and remains, a priority.
(from Vatican Radio)…
By the express
wish of the Holy Father, Pope Francis, the Congregation for Divine Worship and the
Discipline of the Sacraments published a new Decree on the Solemnity of the
Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, 3 June 2016, in which the celebration of Saint
Mary Magdalene was elevated and inscribed in the General Roman Calendar with
the rank of Feast. This decision,
in the current ecclesial context, seeks to reflect more deeply upon the
dignity of women, on the new evangelisation and on the greatness of the
mystery of God’s Mercy. Saint John
Paul II paid great attention not only to the importance of women in the
mission of Christ and the Church, but also and with special emphasis on the
particular role of Mary of Magdala as the first witness who saw the risen
Christ, and as the first messenger who announced the Lord’s resurrection to
the Apostles (
Mulieris dignitatem n.
16). The importance of this continues
today in the Church, as is evident in the new evangelisation, which seeks to
welcome all men and women “of every race, people, language and nation” (Rev
5: 9), without any distinction, to announce to them the Good News of the
Gospel of Jesus Christ while accompanying them on their earthly pilgrimage,
and offering them the wonders of God’s salvation. Saint Mary Magdalene is an example of a
true and authentic evangeliser, that is an evangelist who announces the
central joyful message of Easter (cf. Collect for 22 July and the new Preface).
It is precisely in the context of the
Jubilee of Mercy that our Holy Father Pope Francis has taken this decision,
in order to underline the relevance of this woman “who so loved Christ and
was so greatly loved by Christ”, as Rabanus Maurus affirms on various
occasions when he speaks of her (“dilectrix Christi et a Christo plurimum
dilecta”:
De vita Mariae Magdalenae,
Prologus
), as well as Saint Anselm of Canterbury who says of her “chosen
because you are beloved and beloved because you are chosen of God” (“electa
dilectrix et dilecta electrix Dei”:
Oratio
LXXIII ad sanctam Mariam Magdalenam
).
It is true that ecclesial tradition in the West, especially since the
time of Gregory the Great, has identified Saint Mary Magdalene, and the woman
who anointed Christ’s feet with perfume in the house of Simon the Pharisee,
and the sister of Lazarus and Martha, as one and the same person. This interpretation continued to influence
western ecclesiastical authors, Christian art and liturgical texts relative
to this Saint. The Bollandists made a
detailed study of the problem of identifying these three women and prepared a
path for the liturgical reform of the Roman Calendar. The outcome of this reform of the Second
Vatican Council led to the texts of the
Missale
Romanum
, the Liturgia Horarum and
the
Martyrologium referring to Mary
of Magdala. What is certain is that
Mary Magdalene was part of the group of Jesus’ disciples, she accompanied him
to the foot of the Cross and, in the garden where she met him at the tomb,
was the first “witness of Divine Mercy” (Gregory the Great,
XL Hom.
In Evangelia, lib. II Hom. 25,10
).
The Gospel of John tells us that Mary Magdalene wept because she could
not find the body of the Lord (Jn 20:11); and that Jesus had mercy on her by
letting himself be known as her Master, thus transforming her tears into
paschal joy.
Taking advantage of this opportune
moment, I would like to underline two ideas inherent in the biblical and
liturgical texts of this Feast which assist us to better grasp the importance
of this holy woman for today.
On the one hand, she has the
honour to be the first witness of the Lord’s resurrection (“prima testis” –
Hymnus, Ad Laudes matutinas ), the
first who saw the empty tomb and the first to hear the truth about his
resurrection. Christ showed special consideration
and mercy to this woman who showed her love for Christ by seeking him in her
anguish and suffering in the garden, or as Saint Anselm says in the prayer
mentioned above with “lacrimas humilitatis” (“the tears of humility”). In this way it is possible to highlight the
contrast between the woman present in the garden of paradise and the woman
present in the garden of the resurrection.
The first spread death where there was life; the second announced life
from a sepulchre, the place of death.
As Gregory the Great underlines: “Quia in paradiso mulier viro
propinavit mortem, a sepulcro mulier viris annuntiat vitam” (“Indeed because
a woman offered death to a man in Paradise, a woman announces life to the men
from the tomb”:
XL Hom. In Evangelia,
lib. II, Hom. 25
). Yet, there is
more, as we see precisely in the garden of the resurrection where the Lord
says to Mary, “Noli me tangere” (“Do not cling to me” Jn 20:17). This is an invitation to enter into an
experience of faith that goes beyond materialistic assumptions and the human
grasping after the divine Mystery which is not simply addressed to Mary but
to the entire Church. This is an
ecclesial moment! This is an important
lesson for every disciple of Jesus Christ to neither seek human securities
nor the vainglory of this world, but in faith to seek the living and risen
Christ!
On the other hand, precisely
because she was an eyewitness to the risen Christ, she was also the first one
to bear witness to him before the Apostles.
She fulfils the command of the Risen Lord: “‘Go to my brethren and say
to them, I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your
God.’ Mary Magdalene went and
announced to the disciples ‘I have seen the Lord’ and she told them that he
had said these things to her” (Jn 20:17-18).
Thus, as already indicated she becomes an evangelist, that is a
messenger who announces the Good News of the Lord’s resurrection or, as
Rabanus Maurus and Saint Thomas Aquinas say, she becomes the “apostolorum
apostola” because she announces to the apostles what in turn they will
announce to the whole world (Rabanus Maurus
, De vita beatae Mariae
Magdalenae, XXVII;
Saint Thomas Aquinas , In Ioannem Evangelistam Expositio, c. XX, L. III, 6 ). It was with good reason that the Angelic
Doctor applied this term to Mary of Magdala, for she is the witness to the
risen Christ and announces the message of the Lord’s resurrection just like
the rest of the Apostles. For this
reason it is right that the liturgical celebration of this woman should have
the same rank of Feast as that given to the celebration of the Apostles in
the General Roman Calendar and that the special mission of this woman should
be underlined, she who is an example and model for all women in the Church.
Arthur Roche, Archbishop Secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship and
the Discipline of the Sacraments
…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis told leaders of the Reformed Churches on Friday that there is an urgent need for an ecumenism capable of promoting “a shared mission of evangelization and service”. Unless people find in the Church a spirituality offering healing and liberation, he said, they will end up being taken in by solutions which “neither make life truly human, nor give glory to God”.
Philippa Hitchen reports:
In his meeting with the delegation from the World Communion of Reformed Churches, the Pope said we must be grateful to God for our rediscovered brotherhood. Quoting from his predecessor, Saint John Paul II, he said this is not the consequence of a big-hearted philanthropy or “a vague family spirit”, but rather it is rooted in recognition of “the oneness of Baptism” which compels us to strive to “grow together in order to better serve the Lord”.
Speaking in Spanish, Pope Francis noted especially the recent conclusion of the fourth phase of theological dialogue between the WCRC and the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, which dealt with ‘Justification and Sacramentality: the Christian Community as an Agent for Justice’.
Justification and Justice
Stressing the necessary link between justification and justice, the Pope said our faith in Jesus impels us to live charity through concrete gestures capable of affecting our way of life, our relationships, and the world around us. On the basis of an agreement on the doctrine of justification, he said, there are many areas in which Reformed and Catholics can work together bearing witness to God’s merciful love as a “remedy for the confusion and indifference that seems to surround us”.
Christians, the Pope insisted, are called to receive and rekindle God’s grace, to overcome self-centredness and to be open to mission, rather than living in self-referential communities that are resistant to change. Some new forms of religiosity, he warned, at times risk encouraging concern for oneself alone and promoting a kind of spiritual consumerism. Instead, the Pope called for a shared mission of evangelisation and service, enouraging Reformed and Catholic communities to work together to bring the joy and peace of the Gospel to all men and women of our time.
Please find below the full address of Pope Francis to the World Communion of Reformed Churches
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
I offer you a warm welcome and I thank you for your visit: “Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ!” (1 Cor 1:3). I especially thank the Secretary General for his kind words.
Our meeting here today is one more step along the journey that marks the ecumenical movement, a blessed and hope-filled journey whereby we strive to live ever more fully in accord with the Lord’s prayer “that all may be one” (Jn 17:21).
Ten years have passed since a delegation of the World Alliance of Reformed Churches visited my predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI. Since then, in 2010, the historic unification between the Reformed Ecumenical Council and the World Alliance of Reformed Churches took place. This union offered a tangible example of progress towards the goal of Christian unity, and was a source of encouragement to many on the path of ecumenism.
Today, we must above all be grateful to God for our rediscovered brotherhood, which, as Saint John Paul II wrote, is not the consequence of a large-hearted philanthropy or a vague family spirit, but is rooted in recognition of the oneness of Baptism and the subsequent duty to glorify God in his work (cf. Ut Unum Sint, 42). In this spiritual fellowship, Catholics and Reformed Christians can strive to grow together in order to better serve the Lord.
A specific motive of gratitude is the recent conclusion of the fourth phase of the theological dialogue between the World Communion of Reformed Churches and the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, dealing with Justification and Sacramentality: The Christian Community as an Agent for Justice. I am happy to note that the final report clearly emphasizes the necessary link between justification and justice. Our faith in Jesus impels us to live charity through concrete gestures capable of affecting our way of life, our relationships and the world around us. On the basis of an agreement on the doctrine of justification, there are many areas in which Reformed and Catholics can work together in bearing witness to God’s merciful love, which is the true remedy for the confusion and indifference that seem to surround us.
In effect, today we often experience “a spiritual desertification”. Especially in places where people live as if God did not exist, our Christian communities are meant to be sources of living water quenching thirst with hope, a presence capable of inspiring encounter, solidarity and love (cf. Evangelii Gaudium, 86-87). They are called to receive and rekindle God’s grace, to overcome self-centredness and to be open to mission. Faith cannot be shared if it is practiced apart from life, in unreal isolation and in self-referential communities resistant to change. Thus it would be impossible to respond to the insistent thirst for God that nowadays finds expression also in various new forms of religiosity. These at times risk encouraging concern for oneself and one’s needs alone, and promoting a kind of “spiritual consumerism”. Unless people today “find in the Church a spirituality which can offer healing and liberation, and fill them with life and peace, while at the same time summoning them to fraternal communion and missionary fruitfulness, they will end up by being taken in by solutions which neither make life truly human nor give glory to God” (cf. ibid., 89).
There is urgent need for an ecumenism that, along with theological dialogue aimed at settling traditional doctrinal disagreements between Christians, can promote a shared mission of evangelization and service. Certainly many such initiatives and good forms of cooperation exist in many places. Yet clearly we can all do more, together, “to offer a convincing reason for the hope that is in us” (cf. 1 Pet 3:15), by sharing with others the Father’s merciful love that we graciously receive and are called generously to bestow in turn.
Dear brothers and sisters, in renewing my gratitude for your visit and your commitment in service to the Gospel, I express my hope that this meeting may be an effective sign of our resolution to journey together towards full unity. May it encourage all Reformed and Catholic communities to continue to work together to bring the joy of the Gospel to the men and women of our time. God bless you all.
(from Vatican Radio)…