(Vatican Radio) The President of Italy, Sergio Mattarella, on Wednesday hosted a lunch at the Quirinale Palace for the newly-created Italian Cardinals: The Archbishop of Ancona-Osimo,Cardinal Edoardo Menichelli; and the Archbishop of Agrigento, Cardinal Francesco Montenegro.
Also attending the lunch was the Cardinal Secretary of State, Pietro Parolin, and the Apostolic Nuncio to Italy, Archbishop Adriano Bernardini.
The discussions were “friendly”, and touched on the economic crisis affecting Italy, especially the country’s young people, as well as the situation of refugees arriving from across the Mediterranean, who are often people fleeing areas devastated by war and conflict.
Cardinal Montenegro, who serves as the President of “Fondazione Migrantes” as well has heading the Commission for Migration for the Italian Bishops’ Conference (CEI), has been urging the member states of the European Union to collaborate on effective measures to help refugees, especially in providing emergency assistance to asylum seekers, protecting unaccompanied minors, facilitating family reunification, and battling people-smugglers and human-traffickers.
Cardinal Montenegro and Cardinal Menicheilli received their red hats at the Consistory help on February 14th this year.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Wednesday again appealed that the “logic of profit” not prevail over solidarity and justice.
Speaking to Italian pilgrims at the end of his General Audience, the Holy Father directly a group of workers from the province of Vibo Valentia, in the southern Italian region of Calabria, has been particularly affected by Italy’s economic crisis.
“I express my concern and closeness to your persistent problems,” Pope Francis said.
“I make a heartfelt appeal that the logic of profit may not prevail over that of solidarity and justice,” he said.
“At the centre of every issue, especially in relation to work, there must always be the human person and his or her dignity,” continued Pope Francis. “And the ability to have work is a question of justice, and it is an injustice not to have work.”
The Holy Father said “being unable to bring bread to the table means losing one’s dignity,” adding that “this is the crisis of our time, especially for the young who, without work, have no prospects for the future and may become easy prey to criminal organisations”.
Pope Francis concluded by asking people to “fight” for the justice of work.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio/VIS) Pope Francis has confirmed more members and substitutes for the Fourteenth Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops , which will take place from October 4-25, 2015, under the theme “The vocation and mission of the family in the Church and in the contemporary world.”
The following is a list of the members and substitutes appointed by the competent entities and ratified by the Holy Father on 17 March.
A) Episcopal Conferences
NORTH AFRICA (C.E.R.N.A.)
Member: Bishop Jean-Paul Vesco, O.P., of Oran, Algeria
Substitute: Archbishop Santiago Agrelo Martinez, O.F.M., of Tangier, Morocco
BOTSWANA, SOUTH AFRICA and SWAZILAND
Members: Archbishop Stephen Brislin, of Cape Town, Kaapstad, president of the Episcopal Conference, South Africa
Bishop Zolile Peter Mpambani, S.C.I., of Kokstad, South Africa
Substitutes: Bishop Dabula Anton Mpako of Queenstown, South Africa
Bishop Jan De Groef, M. Afr., of Bethlehem, South Africa
BURKINA FASO and NIGER
Member: Bishop Joseph Sama of Nouna, Burkina Faso
Substitute: Archbishop Djalwana Laurent Lompo of Niamey, Niger
CHAD
Member: Bishop Henri Coudray, S.J., apostolic vicar of Mongo
Substitute: Bishop Joachim Kouraleyo Tarounga of Moundou
CONGO (Democratic Republic)
Members: Bishop Nicolas Djomo Lola of Tshumbe, president of the Episcopal Conference
Bishop Philibert Tembo Nlandu, C.I.C.M., of Budjala
Substitute: Bishop Joseph Banga Bane of Buta
GUINEA
Member: Archbishop Vincent Coulibaly of Conakry
Substitute: Bishop Raphael Balla Guilavogui of N’Zerekore
LESOTHO
Member: Archbishop Gerard Tlali Lerotholi, O.M.I., of Maseru, president of the Episcopal Conference
Substitute: Bishop Augustinus Tumaole Bane, O.M.I., of Leribe
LIBERIA
Member: Bishop Anthony Fallah Borwah of Gbarnga
Substitute: Bishop Andrew Jagaye Karnley of Cape Palmas
MALI
Member: Bishop Jonas Dembele of Kayes
Substitute: Archbishop Jean Zerbo of Bamako
MOZAMBIQUE
Member: Archbishop Francisco Chimoio, O.F.M. Cap., of Maputo
Substitute: Bishop Adriano Langa, O.F.M., of Inhambane
NAMIBIA
Member: Bishop Philipp Pollitzer, O.M.I., of Keetmanshoop
Substitute: Bishop Joseph Shipandeni Shikongo, O.M.I., apostolic vicar of Rundu
NIGERIA
Members: Archbishop Matthew Man-oso Ndagoso of Kaduna
Bishop Camillus Raymond Umoh of Ikot Ekpene
Bishop Jude Ayodeji Arogundade of Ondo
Substitutes: Bishop Hilary Paul Odili Okeke of Nnewi
Archbishop Ignatius Ayau Kaigama of Jos, president of the Episcopal Conference
TOGO
Member: Bishop Jacques Danka Longa of Kara
Substitute: Bishop Benoit Comlan Messan Alowonou of Kpalime
UGANDA
Members: Archbishop John Baptist Odama of Gulu, president of the Episcopal Conference
Bishop Joseph Anthony Zziwa of Kiyinda-Mityana, Vice president of the Episcopal Conference
Substitutes: Bishop Lambert Bainomugisha, auxiliary of Mbarara
Bishop Sanctus Lino WANOK of Nebbi
AMERICA
ANTILLES
Member: Bishop Francis Alleyne, O.S.B., of Georgetown, Co-operative Republic of Guiana
Substitute: Bishop Emmanuel Lafont of Cayenne, French Guiana
BOLIVIA
Members: Bishop Braulio Saez Garcia, O.C.D., auxiliary of Santa Cruz de la Sierra
Bishop Krzysztof Janusz Bialasik Wawrowska, S.V.D., of Oruro
Substitute: Bishop Aurelio Pesoa Ribera, O.F.M., auxiliary La Paz
GUATEMALA
Member: Bishop Rodolfo Valenzuela Nunez of Vera Paz, Coban, president of the Episcopal Conference
Substitute: Bishop Gonzalo De Villa y Vasquez, S.J., of Solola-Chimaltenango
HAITI
Member: Bishop Yves-Marie Pean, C.S.C., of Les Gonaives
Substitute: Archbishop Max Leroy Mesidor of Cap-Haitien
NICARAGUA
Member: Bishop Cesar Bosco Vivas Robelo of Leon en Nicaragua
Substitute: Bishop Juan Abelardo Mata Guevara, S.D.B., of Esteli
PANAMA
Member: Bishop Aníbal Saldana Santamaria, O.A.R., prelate of Bocas del Toro
Substitute: Cardinal Jose Luis Lacunza Maestrojuan, O.A.R., bishop of David, president of the Episcopal Conference
PERU
Members: Archbishop Salvador Pineiro Garcia-Calderon of Ayacucho, president of the Episcopal Conference
Archbishop Hector Miguel Cabrejos Vidarte, O.F.M., of Trujillo
Substitute: Archbishop Jose Antonio Eguren Anselmi, S.C.V., of Piura
VENEZUELA
Members: Cardinal Jorge Liberato Urosa Savino, archbishop of Caracas
Archbishop Diego Rafael Padron Sanchez of Cumana, president of the Episcopal Conference
Substitutes: Bishop Fernando Jose Castro Aguayo, auxiliary of Caracas, Santiago de Venezuela
Bishop Rafael Ramon Conde Alfonzo of Maracay
ASIA
CHINA
Member: Bishop John Baptist Lee Keh-Mien of Hsinchu
Substitute: Bishop Thomas Chung An-Zu of Kiayi
PHILIPPINES
Members: Archbishop Romulo G. Valles of Davao
Archbishop Jose S. Palma of Cebu
Bishop Gilbert A. Garcera of Daet
Substitutes: Bishop Pablo Virgilio S. David, auxiliary of San Fernando
Archbishop Antonio J. Ledesma, S.J., of Cagayan de Oro
INDONESIA
Members: Archbishop Ignatius Suharyo Hardjoatmodjo of Jakarta, president of the Episcopal Conference, military ordinary for Indonesia
Bishop Fransiskus Kopong Kung of Larantuka
Substitute: Bishop Leo Laba Ladjar, O.F.M., of Jayapura
KAZAKHSTAN
Member: Archbishop Tomash Bernard Peta, of Mary Most Holy in Astana, president of the Episcopal Conference
Substitute: Athanasius Schneider, O.R.C., auxiliary of Mary Most Holy in Astana
LAOS and CAMBODIA
Member: Bishop Louis-Marie Ling Mangkhanekhoun, apostolic vicar of Pakse, Laos
Substitute: Olivier Michel Marie Schmitthaeusler, M.E.P., apostolic vicar of Phnom-Penh, Cambodia, president of the Episcopal Conference
MALAYSIA – SINGAPORE – BRUNEI
Member: Archbishop John Wong Soo Kau of Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia
Substitute: Bishop Sebastian Francis of Penang, Malaysia
MYANMAR
Member: Cardinal Charles Maung Bo, S.D.B., archbishop of Yangon
Substitute: Bishop Felix Lian Khen Thang of Kalay
ARAB STATES (C.E.L.R.A.)
Member: His Beatitude Fouad TWAL, Patriarch of Jerusalem of the Latins, president of the Episcopal Conference
Substitute: Archbishop Maroun Elias Lahham, auxiliary and patriarchal vicar for Jerusalem of the Latins for Jordan
EUROPE
BELARUS
Member: Archbishop Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz of Minsk-Mohilev
Substitute: Bishop Antoni Dziemianko of Pinsk
CROATIA
Member: Bishop Valter Zupan, emeritus of Krk, president of the Council of the Croation Episcopal Conference for the Family and Life
Substitute: Bishop Antun Skvorcevic of Pozega
RUSSIAN FEDERATION
Member: Archbishop Paolo Pezzi, F.S.C.B., of Mother of God in Moscow, president of the Episcopal Conference
Substitute: Bishop Joseph Werth, S.J., of Transfiguration in Novosibirsk
GERMANY
Members: Cardinal Reinhard Marx, archbishop of Munchen und Freising
Bishop Heiner Koch of Dresden-Meissen
Bishop Franz-Josef Hermann Bode of Osnabruck
Substitutes: Bishop Karl-Heinz Wiesemann of Speyer
Bishop Wilfried Theising, auxiliary of Munster
GREAT BRITAIN (SCOTLAND)
Member: Archbishop Philip Tartaglia of Glasgow, president of the Episcopal Conference of Scotland
Substitute: Bishop John Keenan of Paisley
PORTUGAL
Members: Cardinal Manuel Jose Macario Do Nascimento Clemente, Patriarch of Lisbon, president of the Episcopal Conference
Bishop Antonino Eugenio Fernandes Dias of Portalegre-Castelo Branco, president of the Episcopal Commission for the Laity and the Family
Substitute: Bishop Antonio Augusto Dos Santos Marto of Leiria-Fatima, vice president of the Episcopal Conference
CZECH REPUBLIC
Member: Bishop Jan Vokal of Hradec Kralove
Substitute: Bishop Ladislav Hucko, apostolic exarch for Catholic of Byzantine rite in the Czech Republic
SWITZERLAND
Member: Bishop Jean-Marie Lovey, C.R.B., of Sion, Sitten
Substitute: Bishop Valerio Lazzeri of Lugano
B) “Sui Iuris” Oriental Catholic Churches
Synod of the Syro-Malabar Churches
Members:Bishop Joseph Kallarangatt of Palai of the Syro-Malabars, India
Archbishop Andrews Thazhath of Trichur of the Syro-Malabars, India
Substitutes: Archbishop Kuriakose Bharanikulangara of Faridabad of the Syro-Malabars, India
Bishop Thomas Elavanal, M.C.B.S., of Kalyan of the Syro-Malabars, India
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio/VIS) A press conference was held in the Holy See Press Office on Wednesday to present the upcoming exhibition of the Holy Shroud of Turin (Turin, 19 April – 24 June 2015), on the occasion of the second centenary of the birth of St. John Bosco, which will be specially dedicated to the young and to those who suffer. The Pope will also make a pilgrimage to Turin from 21 to 22 June.
The speakers at the conference were the Archbishop of Turin, Cesare Nosaglia, Papal guardian of the Shroud; Elide Tisi, mayor of the city; Roberto Gottardo, president of the diocesan commission for the Shroud; and Rev. Luca Ramello, director of youth pastoral ministry for the diocese.
Archbishop Nosaglia explained that the Shroud represents, for the Universal Church, a point of reference of the first order for the life of the faith of many people and communities, who in this image recognise the signs of the Lord’s passion, of Jesus who “inspires our lives and challenges us to fully realise our deepest vocation. Therefore”, he added “the theme I have chosen for the next exhibition is ‘The Greatest Love’: the gift of salvation which is made visible in our response, the worship of God and service to our brothers”.
“The Pope’s trip, like the exhibition as a whole, is also intended to give thanks for ‘the Saint of youth’, and for the service that the Salesian family carries out in Turin and throughout the world in the fields of education, mission, sport and communication. … The world of youth is particularly involved in the Salesian mission, and during the Pope’s visit there will be a sort of mini Youth Day, a series of meetings, encounters, prayer, moments of celebration that help resume contact with the young. An extraordinary sign will be the presence of the Word Youth Day Cross, which will make a stop in Turin during its journey to Krakow”.
Another peculiarity of this exhibition is attention to the world of those who suffer, and therefore this year sick or disabled pilgrims and those who accompany them will be able to benefit from new hospitality structures based on the model of the ‘Accueil’ in Lourdes. It is also hoped that the Pilgrimage to the Shroud will offer an opportunity to partake in the sacrament of Reconciliation, as a “concrete sign of forgiveness” and, as on previous occasions, “in various places priests will hear the confessions of the faithful in all the world’s major languages”.
The Archbishop emphasised that the 2015 exhibition has been organised according to the criterion of austerity, in a period of severe economic and social crisis throughout the area, and he thanked those entities that have offered their cooperation to help limit costs as far as possible. He also announced that during the display of the Shroud, Beato Angelico’s celebrated “Lamentation over the Dead Christ” will be exhibited in the diocesan museum, on loan for the occasion from the city of Florence.
“As you are aware, visiting the Shroud is completely free. Traditionally many pilgrims at the leave a simple offering at the end of their journey, deposited with full discretion at the exit of the Cathedral and in the areas by the confessionals. On this occasion all the offerings will be given to the Pope when he is with us in Turin on June 21st. We will ask him to use them, naturally at his discretion, for a work, or a project to assist the poorest or neediest”.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Among those greeting Pope Francis at the end of his general audience in St Peter’s Square was Mike Haines, whose brother, David, was murdered by a so-called Islamic State militant in September 2014. Since then, Mike has been working tirelessly to spread a message of interfaith cooperation and unity to combat violence and extremism.
Accompanying him to the Vatican on Wednesday to share this testimony was the wife of another British murder victim, Alan Henning, as well as a Muslim friend of the Haines family, London-based Imam Shahnawaz Haque. Philippa Hitchen met Mike and Shahnawaz just after the audience to find out more about their mission …
Listen here to Philippa’s report:
If you look up the story of David Haines’ kidnapping, you’ll see an all-too-familiar picture of a black clad executioner holding his pale faced victim in a bright orange suit, with a warning that he’ll be the next to die. It’s an image that has haunted Mike Haines, ever since the terrorists murdered US journalist Stephen Sotloff and David’s family knew they had little chance of ever seeing him alive again.
Yet it’s also the image that drives Mike forward with his mission of trying to end fear and hostility between people of different cultures and religions, knowing that it’s the best way he can honour the work that David was doing with refugees on the border between Turkey and Iraq.
That’s why he was here in the Vatican, fighting back the tears, as he told Pope Francis about the message he was bringing. Mike says he’d tried to prepare the right words, but when he saw the Pope arriving, his mind went blank. However, he continued, Pope Francis made him feel at ease, by saying that he was praying for the Haines family and praying for him to continue his work…
Recalling the day he found out his brother had been kidnapped, Mike says he received a phone call from the head of ACTED (Agency for Technical Cooperation and Development) for whom David had been working……his brother, Mike says, was doing what he was best at, going out and helping others… “it was his calling”. Following his capture, Mike adds, he knew that the chances of getting David out were not good so the family’s mantra was “to prepare for the worst and hope for the best”….
Though Mike finds it hard to talk about the tragedy his family has endured, he’s quite clear in his condemnation of those who try to blame the Muslim community for the terrorist atrocities. In fact one of the first things he did in the wake of David’s murder was to seek the advice of a Muslim scholar so he could quote a couple of verses from the Koran to show his solidarity with Britain’s Muslim communities. Islam, he says is about “understanding, tolerance, welcoming, it’s about giving strength” but like every religion, he continues, there are groups of people who take sentences of their holy books to give them justification for their actions and that is wrong….
In his mission to close the gap of fear and suspicion that the terrorists are trying to create, Mike is supported by his friend, psychotherapist and Muslim scholar Shahnawaz Haque who says it is “extremely disturbing, distressing and traumatic” when terrorists use the words of the Koran to justify their acts of unspeakable violence. He recalls that as a young child of Asian immigrants in the UK he suffered from prejudice and racist slurs in the streets and now, he says, it’s hard to imagine or understand the fear that people say they have of the Muslim community…
Shahnawaz Haque says the only way to combat the prejudice and fear is through education and interaction between ordinary people. He believes Pope Francis himself is modelling the true religious qualities of humility and compassion, as well as creating new opportunities for encounter and interfaith understanding between people of so many cultures and communities. “I pray that God assists him in the good work that he’s doing”, he says.
(from Vatican Radio)…