(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis has received in audience the first Resident Ambassador of Malaysia to the Holy See, Tan Sri Bernard Giluk Dompok .
During a private audience in the Vatican on Thursday morning, Ambassador Dompok presented his Credentials.
The Ambassador is the former minister of Plantation Industries and Commodities in Malaysia and prior to that he was Chief Minister of the State of Sabah.
Born in 1949 in what was then British North Borneo, Dompok received his education at the mission schools of St. Michael and La Salle Secondary School before graduating at the University of East London.
His appointment as the country’s first resident ambassador to the Holy See was announced on 22 March 2016; however he has been credited with being instrumental in laying the groundwork for the establishment of diplomatic ties with the Vatican in 2011.
In a conversation with Vatican Radio’s Linda Bordoni , Ambassador Dompok speaks of the how the establishment of formal ties between Malaysia and the Holy See came about and what he hopes his contribution will be in his new role.
Listen :
Ambassador Dompok explains that the establishment of formal relations between his country and the Holy See goes back some time. He says he had the privilege to be present during discussions held with the former Apostolic Nuncio who was resident in Bangkok , and who had been coming to Malaysia and meeting with politicians and his counterparts in the hope of setting up diplomatic ties during the Papacy Saint John Paul II, and he speaks of the general feeling that “the people he met were very keen to do so”.
However, he says, the opportune moment arose only some years later when Prime Minister Najib took a serious stand regarding the issue and together with Dompok, which whom he had served on the Federal Cabinet for more than a decade, came to visit Pope Benedict XVI at his summer residence in Castel Gandolfo in 2011 where it all came to a “happy ending” with the formal establishment of diplomatic ties.
The Ambassador explains that the process has taken a long time because Malaysia is a diverse and complex nation with a vast multi-cultural, multi-racial and multi-religious reality.
“We have 60% Muslims, 30% Buddhists, Hindus and so on, and only about 10% – and a bit – Christians, and of that 10% about half of them are Catholics” he says.
He says time was needed to understand that having diplomatic ties with the Vatican will actually “convey to the world a nation that is confident of itself and is willing to take part in the world conversation”.
In fact he points out that Malaysia has much to contribute in experience to the development of inter-religious dialogue.
He speaks of how Malaysia and its ‘bigger’ neighbor, Indonesia, which both have a majority Muslim population, have much to teach the world in this sense and that, although there may be challenges and problems “we are still able to overcome most of them in order to make it possible for all races to live together”.
Dompok speaks of the current Prime Minister’s campaign to encourage “a movement of moderates” trying to rally people together to understand that communities cannot live in isolation and that those with more moderate views have a responsibility to work for peaceful dialogue.
The Ambassador says that extremism is a problem throughout the world and expresses his belief that the only way to overcome the fanaticism that leads to terrorism is to engage in reasoning and dialogue.
One of Ambassador Dompok’s core concerns is the promotion of education. “I wouldn’t be here today, speaking to you” he says “if I hadn’t the opportunity to go to a Mission school”.
And so important has Catholic education been in Malaysia, he says, that it has impacted society and empowered the people like nothing else.
“Catholics came to Borneo Island on the back of education. It was education first and then the spreading of the good news!” he says.
He explains that back home, at this moment in time, the Government has had to take over the running of the Mission schools as they have no funding and it is his concern that the Mission fathers be empowered once again.
“The Church, and the related organizations of the Church, have a vast amount of resources – not fixed assets – but expertise: people in the Church have been in education for a long time (…) and some of this can be transported to the rest of the world” he says.
Education – Ambassador Dompok believes – is the most precious tool for people in developing nations to overcome poverty, and he says one of his main appeals to people in the Vatican would certainly be to support this belief and to engage in the commitment to promote education for peace and development.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis warned on Thursday against an excessive rigidity, saying those within the Church who tell us “it’s this or nothing” are heretics and not Catholics. His remarks came during the morning Mass on Thursday celebrated at the Santa Marta residence.
In his homily the Pope reflected on the harm caused by Churchmen who do the opposite of what they preach and urged them to free themselves from a rigid idealism that prevents reconciliation between each other.
Taking his cue from Jesus’ warning to his disciples that unless their righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees they will not enter into the Kingdom of Heaven, Pope Francis stressed the importance of Christian realism. Jesus, he said, asks us to go beyond the laws and love God and neighbour, stressing that whoever is angry with their brother will be liable to judgement.
Insulting our brother is like giving a slap to his soul
The Pope said we have “a very creative vocabulary for insulting others” but stressed that such insults are a sin and are akin to killing because they are giving a slap to our brother’s soul and to his dignity. Noting the presence of several children at the Mass, Pope Francis urged them to stay calm, saying the preaching of a child in a church is much more beautiful than that of a priest, bishop or of the Pope.
A Churchman who does the opposite of what he preaches is a scandal
Jesus, said the Pope, urged his confused people to look beyond and go forward. But at the same time, Christ warned about the harm caused to the people of God by Christians who do not follow their own teachings.
“How many times do we in the Church hear these things: how many times! ‘But that priest, that man or that woman from the Catholic Action, that bishop, or that Pope tell us we must do this this way!’ and then they do the opposite. This is the scandal that wounds the people and prevents the people of God from growing and going forward. It doesn’t free them. In addition, these people had seen the rigidity of those scribes and Pharisees and when a prophet came to give them a bit of joy, they (the scribes and Pharisees) persecuted them and even murdered them; there was no place for prophets there. And Jesus said to them, to the Pharisees: ‘you have killed the prophets, you have persecuted the prophets: those who were bringing fresh air.’”
Follow the healthy realism of the Church: No to idealism and rigidity
Pope Francis urged his listeners to recall how Jesus’s request for generosity and holiness is all about going forward and always looking out beyond ourselves. This, he explained, frees us from the rigidity of the laws and from an idealism that harms us. Jesus knows only too well our nature, said the Pope, and asks us to seek reconciliation whenever we have quarrelled with somebody. He also teaches us a healthy realism, saying there are so many times “we can’t be perfect” but “do what you can do and settle your disagreements.”
“This (is the) healthy realism of the Catholic Church: the Church never teaches us ‘or this or that.’ That is not Catholic. The Church says to us: ‘this and that.’ ‘Strive for perfectionism: reconcile with your brother. Do not insult him. Love him. And if there is a problem, at the very least settle your differences so that war doesn’t break out.’ This (is) the healthy realism of Catholicism. It is not Catholic (to say) ‘or this or nothing:’ This is not Catholic, this is heretical. Jesus always knows how to accompany us, he gives us the ideal, he accompanies us towards the ideal, He frees us from the chains of the laws’ rigidity and tells us: ‘But do that up to the point that you are capable.’ And he understands us very well. He is our Lord and this is what he teaches us.”
Reconciling amongst ourselves is the tiny sanctity of negotiation
Pope Francis concluded his homily by reminding how Jesus exhorted us to avoid hypocrisy and do what we can and at the very least avoid disputes amongst ourselves by coming to an agreement.
“And allow me to use this word that seems a bit strange: it’s the tiny sanctity of negotiations. ‘So, I can’t do everything but I want to do everything, therefore I reach an agreement with you, at least we don’t trade insults, we don’t wage a war and we can all live in peace.’ Jesus is a great person! He frees us from all our miseries and also from that idealism which is not Catholic. Let us implore our Lord to teach us, first to escape from all rigidity but also to go out beyond ourselves, so we can adore and praise God who teaches us to be reconciled amongst ourselves and who also teaches us to reach an agreement up to the point that we are able to do so.”
Listen to this report by Susy Hodges that includes clips of the Pope’s voice:
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Health professionals are the “true personification” of mercy, Pope Francis said Thursday in his address to the Medical Associations of Spain and Latin America in the Clementine Hall at the Vatican. And, he says, it fits with the Jubilee of Mercy to express gratitude for those who through dedication and professionalism help those who suffer.
Listen to Alexander MacDonald’s report:
The identity of the physician, the Pope said, relies not only on skills but mainly on a compassionate and merciful attitude towards those who suffer in body and spirit. Compassion is the very soul of medicine and compassion is not pity, it is suffering-with.
He continued: Compassion is not always well received in our individualistic and highly technological culture because sometimes it is seen as a humiliation. There are even some who hide behind alleged compassion to justify killing a patient. True compassion, says Pope Francis, does not marginalize, humiliate or exclude and doesn’t celebrate the passing away of a patient. No, this is the triumph of selfishness, of the “culture of disposability” that rejects people who do not meet certain standards of health, beauty or utility.
“Health is one of the most precious gifts and everyone desires it,” Pope Francis said. “The biblical tradition has always highlighted the closeness between salvation and health, as well as their mutual and numerous implications. I like to remember that title with which the Church Fathers employed in reference to Christ and his work of salvation: Christus Medicus . He is the Good Shepherd who cares for the wounded sheep and comforts the sick (cf. Ez 34,16); he is the Good Samaritan who does not pass before the badly injured person by the wayside but, moved by compassion, he heals and serves (cf. Lk 10.33 to 34). Christian medical tradition has always been inspired by the parable of the Good Samaritan. It is identified with the love of the Son of God, who ‘went about doing good and healing all those who were oppressed’ (Acts 10:38). How much good the practice of medicine does in thinking of the sick person as our neighbor, as our flesh and blood, and the mystery of the flesh of Christ himself reflected in his wounded body! ‘Every time you did it to one of these, my brethren, you did it to me’ (Mt 25:40).
Compassion, the Pope continued, is the appropriate response to the immense value of the sick person, a response made of respect, understanding and tenderness, because the sacred value of the life of the patient does not disappear, neither is it ever darkened, but it shines with more splendor precisely in the person’s suffering and helplessness. This is what is understood when St. Camillo de Lellis says with respect to treating patients: “Put more heart in those hands.” Fragility, pain and disease are a tough test for everyone, including medical staff; they are a call to patience, to suffer-with; therefore one cannot yield to the temptation to apply quick, merely functional and drastic solutions driven by false compassion or by criteria of efficiency or cost savings. At stake is the dignity of human life; at stake is the dignity of the medical vocation.
Pope Francis concluded by assuring those present of his appreciation for their daily efforts to accompany, nurture and enhance the immense gift of the human person. He asked for the prayers of those present and also asked that they never cease praying for him.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) The Council of Cardinals concluded three days of meetings in the Vatican on Wednesday, continuing their discussions on the ongoing reform of the different Vatican offices and institutions. The head of the Holy See Press Office, Fr Federico Lombardi briefed journalists on the contents of the meetings, noting that Pope Francis was present for most of the time with the nine cardinals in the group.
Listen to our report:
Fr Lombardi said a large part of the consultations was dedicated to discussing the reforms regarding the Secretariat of State, the Congregations for Catholic Education, for Oriental Churches, for the Clergy and for Bishops, as well as the Pontifical Councils for Culture, for Christian Unity and for Interreligious Dialogue.
He also noted that the results of previous consultations regarding the Congregations for the Doctrine of the Faith, for Worship and the Sacraments, for the Causes of Saints and for Consecrated Life, as well as the new Charity, Justice and Peace office, have been handed over to Pope Francis for his deliberations.
Fr Lombardi said that the reforms were focused on the criteria of simplifying and harmonizing the work of the different offices, as well as exploring ways of decentralizing tasks to the different bishops conferences.
Finally he noted that Cardinal Reinhard Marx and Cardinal George Pell discussed questions relating to the Council and the Secretariat for the Economy, while Mgr Dario Viganò reported on the continuing reform of the Vatican media offices, especially the process of integrating Vatican Radio and the Vatican Television Centre which is taking place this year.
The next meetings of the C9 group of cardinals are scheduled to take place on September 12th, 13th and 14th and December 12th, 13th and 14th.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis has has established a working group coordinated by the Secretary General of the Italian Bishops’ Conference – the CEI – regarding the implementation in the country of the Holy Father’s Apostolic Letter Motu proprio , Mitis Iudex Dominus Iesus , which deals with the adjudication of cases of marital nullity.
Italy faces particular challenges in implementing the Pope’s changes, due to the number of dioceses in Italy and the inter-diocesan structure of regional and provincial tribunals in place – challenges the CEI addressed in a recent plenary meeting.
The working table is set up to encourage and, in fact, define the “main interpretation and application issues of common interest.”
(from Vatican Radio)…