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BENEDICT XVI: NEWS, PAPAL TEXTS, PHOTOS AND COMMENTARY

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See previous page for earlier posts today, 11/26/11.




I am surprised AsiaNews does not yet have this report.

New Chinese bishop to be ordained
Nov. 30 with the Pope's approval

by ANDREA TORNIELLI
Translated from the Italian service of

November 26, 2011

The relationship between the Vatican and the Chinese government proceeds in alternating phases. On November 30, at the Cathedrla of the Blessed Sacrament in Yibin, province of Sichuan, Peter Luo Xuegang, 47, wil be ordained a bishop as coadjutor with the right to succeed Bishop John Chen Shizhong, 95, a bishop in communion with Rome.

This was announced by the agency Elise d'Asia (EDA), which says that the new bishop was approved by the Chinese 'Patriotic Association' controlled by Beijing, as well as by the Holy See. This would be in keeping with the 'consensual' accord between Beijing and the Vatican on episcopal nominations which began under Benedict XVI, but which has seen a few breaches by Beijing lately.

A newphew of Mons. Matthew Luo Duxi, who was bishop of Leshan until his death in 2009, Fr. Luo Xuegang is currently the president of the Patriotic Association in Yibin. He was ordained into the priesthood 20 years ago, and in January 2010, he was voted by the priests of the dicoese to become the coadjutor bishop.

Mons. Chen will be the principal consecrator at the ceremony, but the names of the two other bishop-consecrators are still uncertain. EDA says that one of these will likely be Mons. Paul Lei Shiyin, who was ordained Bishop of Leshan last June 29 without papal mandate, thus earning automatic excommunication. Lei is also the principal representative of the Patriotic Association in Leshan.

[In which case, Beijing continues to play games! But perhaps the fact that Mons. Chen, who is loyal to Rome, is the principal consecrator, will neutralize the presence of an excommunicated consecrator!]

The ordination on November 30 follows illegitimate episcopal ordinations last summer, which prompted the Vatican to issue a formal statement that acceptance by a person of episcopal ordination without the approval of the Pope excommunicates the illegitimately-ordained bishop.

The date for the ordination, Feast of St. Andrew, is considred significant for the Catholic Churhc in China, especially for the provicne of Sichuan. Andrew was the baptismal name taken by Father Li (1692-1775), a Chinese priest trained for the priesthood by the fathers of the Missions Etrangeres of Paris. After the French missionaries were expelled from China, Father Li was left alone in Sichuan, but because of his apostolic zeal, the small Catholic community was able to keep its faith despite various persecutions.

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Pope to US bishops:
On acknowledging the sufferings
of sex abuse victims, transparency
in handling the issue, and
the need for new evangelization




Pope Benedict XVI today addressed the bishops of northeastern United States (dioceses of New England and New York state) who have been the first US group to make an ad limina visit in his Pontificate. The rest will take their turns over the next several months.

Here is the text of the address he delivered to them:

Dear Brother Bishops,

I greet you all with affection in the Lord and, through you, the Bishops from the United States who in the course of the coming year will make their visits ad limina Apostolorum.

Our meetings are the first since my 2008 Pastoral Visit to your country, which was intended to encourage the Catholics of America in the wake of the scandal and disorientation caused by the sexual abuse crisis of recent decades.


I wished to acknowledge personally the suffering inflicted on the victims and the honest efforts made both to ensure the safety of our children and to deal appropriately and transparently with allegations as they arise.

It is my hope that the Church’s conscientious efforts to confront this reality will help the broader community to recognize the causes, true extent and devastating consequences of sexual abuse, and to respond effectively to this scourge which affects every level of society.


By the same token, just as the Church is rightly held to exacting standards in this regard, all other institutions, without exception, should be held to the same standards.

A second, equally important, purpose of my Pastoral Visit was to summon the Church in America to recognize, in the light of a dramatically changing social and religious landscape, the urgency and demands of a new evangelization.

In continuity with this aim, I plan in the coming months to present for your consideration a number of reflections which I trust you will find helpful for the discernment you are called to make in your task of leading the Church into the future which Christ is opening up for us.

Many of you have shared with me your concern about the grave challenges to a consistent Christian witness presented by an increasingly secularized society.

I consider it significant, however, that there is also an increased sense of concern on the part of many men and women, whatever their religious or political views, for the future of our democratic societies.

They see a troubling breakdown in the intellectual, cultural and moral foundations of social life, and a growing sense of dislocation and insecurity, especially among the young, in the face of wide-ranging societal changes.

Despite attempts to still the Church’s voice in the public square, many people of good will continue to look to her for wisdom, insight and sound guidance in meeting this far-reaching crisis.

The present moment can thus be seen, in positive terms, as a summons to exercise the prophetic dimension of your episcopal ministry by speaking out, humbly yet insistently, in defense of moral truth, and offering a word of hope, capable of opening hearts and minds to the truth that sets us free.

At the same time, the seriousness of the challenges which the Church in America, under your leadership, is called to confront in the near future cannot be underestimated.

The obstacles to Christian faith and practice raised by a secularized culture also affect the lives of believers, leading at times to that “quiet attrition” from the Church which you raised with me during my Pastoral Visit.

Immersed in this culture, believers are daily beset by the objections, the troubling questions and the cynicism of a society which seems to have lost its roots, by a world in which the love of God has grown cold in so many hearts.


Evangelization thus appears not simply a task to be undertaken ad extra; we ourselves are the first to need re-evangelization.

As with all spiritual crises, whether of individuals or communities, we know that the ultimate answer can only be born of a searching, critical and ongoing self-assessment and conversion in the light of Christ’s truth. Only through such interior renewal will we be able to discern and meet the spiritual needs of our age with the ageless truth of the Gospel.


Here I cannot fail to express my appreciation of the real progress which the American Bishops have made, individually and as a Conference, in responding to these issues and in working together to articulate a common pastoral vision, the fruits of which can be seen, for example, in your recent documents on faithful citizenship and on the institution of marriage.

The importance of these authoritative expressions of your shared concern for the authenticity of the Church’s life and witness in your country should be evident to all.

In these days, the Church in the United States is implementing the revised translation of the Roman Missal. I am grateful for your efforts to ensure that this new translation will inspire an ongoing catechesis which emphasizes the true nature of the liturgy and, above all, the unique value of Christ’s saving sacrifice for the redemption of the world.


A weakened sense of the meaning and importance of Christian worship can only lead to a weakened sense of the specific and essential vocation of the laity to imbue the temporal order with the spirit of the Gospel.

America has a proud tradition of respect for the sabbath; this legacy needs to be consolidated as a summons to the service of God’s Kingdom and the renewal of the social fabric in accordance with its unchanging truth.

In the end, however, the renewal of the Church’s witness to the Gospel in your country is essentially linked to the recovery of a shared vision and sense of mission by the entire Catholic community.

I know that this is a concern close to your own heart, as reflected in your efforts to encourage communication, discussion and consistent witness at every level of the life of your local Churches.

I think in particular of the importance of Catholic universities and the signs of a renewed sense of their ecclesial mission, as attested by the discussions marking the tenth anniversary of the Apostolic Constitution Ex Corde Ecclesiae, and such initiatives as the symposium recently held at Catholic University of America on the intellectual tasks of the new evangelization.

Young people have a right to hear clearly the Church’s teaching and, most importantly, to be inspired by the coherence and beauty of the Christian message, so that they in turn can instill in their peers a deep love of Christ and his Church.

Dear Brother Bishops, I am conscious of the many pressing and at times apparently insoluble problems which you face daily in the exercise of your ministry.

With the confidence born of faith, and with great affection, I offer you these words of encouragement and willingly commend you and the clergy, religious and lay faithful of your Dioceses to the intercession of Mary Immaculate, Patroness of the United States.

To all of you I impart my Apostolic Blessing as a pledge of wisdom, strength and peace in the Lord.



Two black-and-white photos from tomorrow's OR. In this day and age, there is no excuse for such technically bad photographs - so bad they can't even be improved with Corel paintshop! (Compare them to the crisp and bright color photo up above, used on Page 1.) I only used the black-and-whites because the left photo shows the Pope addressing the US bishops, and the right shows him with Mons. Timothy Dolan (right), Archbishop of New York and president of the USCCB.

Unfortunately, AP seized on the Pope's remarks to cast him and the Church in a bad light - if you can imagine anyone doing that with the remarks quoted above. But then, nothing is too low to plumb for MSM - and AP, in particular (along with the professional Church-haters they use as hatchets to do their bloody work) - when seeking to impugn the Church. This is another hateful negative opinion piece from AP masquerading as a news story.:

Benedict XVI: Sex abuse
a ‘scourge’ for all society



VATICAN CITY, Nov. 26 (AP) — Pope Benedict XVI insisted on Saturday that all of society’s institutions and not just the Catholic Church must be held to "exacting" standards in their response to sex abuse of children, and defended the Church’s efforts to confront the problem. [Note the verbs 'insisted' and 'defended' which express editorial judgment on what the Pope said. What was there for him to 'insist' on, since he has hardly ever said this before, and what was there for him to 'defend' in what he said today? The tone of this lead paragraph suggests that the Pope's statements about sex abuse were defensive, when they were simply affirmative!]

Benedict acknowledged in remarks to visiting U.S. bishops during an audience at the Vatican that pedophilia was a "scourge" for society, and that decades of scandals over clergy abusing children had left Catholics in the United States bewildered.

"It is my hope that the Church’s conscientious efforts to confront this reality will help the broader community to recognize the causes, true extent and devastating consequences of sexual abuse, and to respond effectively to this scourge which affects every level of society," he said.

"By the same token, just as the Church is rightly held to exacting standards in this regard, all other institutions, without exception, should be held to the same standards," the Pope said.

An official of a U.S. group advocating for victims of clergy abuse lamented that Benedict, with his remarks, was setting a "terrible example" for bishops.

"No public figure talks more about child safety but does little to actually make children safer than Pope Benedict," David Clohessy, national director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, told The Associated Press in an emailed statement.

"The Pope would have us believe that this crisis is about sex abuse. It isn’t. It is about covering up sex abuse," Clohessy said. "And while child sex crimes happen in every institution, in no institution are they ignored or concealed as consistently as in the Catholic church."


[And a pox on all the Clohertys of the world who have nothing in mind other than a vendetta on the Church - who continue to talk as if this were the year 200,0 and nothing had been done at all in the past 11 years about both the abusive priests and the cover-ups or attempted cover-ups perpetrated by some bishops, or as if pedophile abuse and miscreant bishops were the rule of the thumb in the whole Church.... And call me 'undemocratic' but isn't there something inherently wrong when a news agency like AP gives equal space and play to statements by the Pope and the hateful Pavlov-dog reflex spitback by publicity hounds like Cloherty????]

The pedophile scandal has exploded in recent decades in the United States, but similar clergy sex abuse revelations have tainted the church in many other countries, including Mexico, Ireland, and several other European nations, including Italy.

But the most high-profile sex abuse case in the United States at the moment doesn’t involve the church. Penn State university’s former defensive football coordinator Jerry Sandusky has been charged with sexually abusing eight boys, and the fallout has led to the firing of longtime coach Joe Paterno and the departure of university president Graham Spanier.

College football in the U.S. is highly popular. The scandal has shaken the reputation of a college program that long had prided itself on integrity.

Benedict didn’t address accusations by many victims and their advocates that Church leaders, including at the office in the Vatican that Benedict headed before becoming pontiff[WHOA! What was that again? Since when have there been accusations that CDF officials have ever tried to cover up any sex abuse cases brought to their attention??? AP is brazenly incorporating a new embellishment in the boilerplate paragraph of charges against the Vatican that they routinely add to any story about sex abuse by priests], systematically tried to cover up the scandals, and that they have rarely been held accountable for that.

Investigations, often by civil authorities, revealed that church hierarchy frequently transferred pedophile priests from one parish to another.
[AP makes it appear that this is a routine happening when, in fact, this has been documented only in a few cases - not even 10, as I recal - in the United States and Ireland.]

Benedict told the bishops that his papal pilgrimage to the United States in 2008 "was intended to encourage the Catholics of America in the wake of the scandal and disorientation caused by the sexual abuse crisis of recent decades."

Echoing sentiment he has expressed in occasional meetings with victims of the abuse on trips abroad, Benedict added: "I wish to acknowledge personally the suffering inflicted on the victims and the honest efforts made to ensure both the safety of our children and to deal appropriately and transparently with allegations as they arise."

Benedict seemed to be reflecting some churchmen’s contentions that the Church has wrongly been singled out as villains for the abuse, a view that angered victims’ advocates.

"The Pope is again setting a terrible example for the world’s bishops, echoing the claim by some of them that the church hierarchy is somehow being picked on by the public, the press and their parishioners," Clohessy said.
[Forgive me for being so uncharitable, but I cannot express enough contempt for vermin like Clohessy.... and to be fair to Clohessy and his ilk, a similar contempt for the AP reporters at the Vatican and their editors for their shameless manipulation of the story..

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Pope Benedict to healthcare workers:
John Paul II bore witness with
his own suffering to his 'gospel of life'


November 26, 2011

"The important mission of the Church" in pastoral healthcare finds inspiration in the teaching of Blessed John Paul II, but especially in his testimony of the "slow Calvary, which marked his last years”, with a "vision of pain and suffering illuminated by the death and resurrection of Christ”, said Pope Benedict XVI Saturday as he greeted participants in the annual plenary assembly of the Pontifical Council for Pastoral Healthcare.

The meeting, which is in its 26th edition, opened two days ago in the Vatican on the theme "Pastoral health care at the service of life in the light of the Magisterium of Blessed John Paul II".

In his address, Pope Benedict recalled the commitment of his predecessor to the sick, made concrete in the establishment of the Pontifical Council for Healthcare Workers in 1985, the Apostolic Letter Salvifici Doloris of 1986, and the Proclamation of World Day for the Sick 20 years ago.

"All his works are a Gospel of Life", he said, in which "Blessed John Paul II declared that the service to the sick person in body and spirit constitutes a constant commitment of attention and evangelization for the whole Church community, according to the mandate of Jesus to the Twelve to heal the sick (cf. Lk 9.2)."...



Here is a full translation of the Pope's address:


Dear brothers and sisters:

It is a great joy to meet you on the occasion of the 26th International Conference organized by the Pontifical Council for Ministry to Healthcare Workers to reflect on the theme "Pastoral ministry for health in the service of life, in the light of Blessed John Paul II's Magisterium".

I greet all the bishops who are in charge of pastoral ministry for health care workers, who are meeting for the first time in Rome, by the tomb of St. Peter, to confirm collegially the ways that you have carried out your task in this very sensitive and important area of the Church's mission.

I thank the Dicastery for its invaluable service, starting with the President, Mons. Zygmunt Zymowski, whom I thank for the kind words he addressed to me, and his description of the work and the initiatives you have undertaken these past few days.

I also greet the Secretary and the Under-Secretary of the Council, both of them recently appointed, the officials and the staff, as well as the moderators and experts, officials of various health institutions, health care workers, and all who have worked to make this conference possible.

I am sure that your reflections have contributed to an examination in depth of Evangelium vitae (Teh Gospel of Life), a precious legacy from the Magisterium of Blessed John Paul II.

In 1985, he instituted this Pontifical Council to give concrete witness of that Gospel in the fast and manifold field of health. Twenty years ago, he established the celebration of a World Day for the Sick. And lastly, he set up the Good Samaritan Foundation as an instrument for new charitable activities for the poorest sick persons in various nations - and for which I make a renewed appeal for everyone to support it.

In his long and intensive Pontificate, Blessed John Paul II proclaimed that service to the sick constitutes a constant commitment of attention and evangelization for the entire ecclesial community, following Jesus's mandate to the Twelve to heal the sick
(cfr Lk 9,2).

In particular, in the Apostolic Letter Salvifici doloris, on February 11, 1984, my venerated predecessor states: "Suffering seems to belong to man's transcendence: it is one of those points at which man seems to be in a sense 'destined' to surpass himself, and is called to do so in a mysterious way" (No. 2).

The mystery of pain seems to obscure the face of God, making him almost extraneous to, or even making him responsible for human suffering, but the eyes of faith are capable of looking at this mystery profoundly.

God was incarnated to come close to man, even in the most difficult situations. He did not eliminate suffering, but in the Crucified One who resurrected, in the Son of God who suffered to death, and death on the Cross, God reveals that his love descends even into man's most profound abyss to give him hope.

The Crucified Jesus rose, death was illuminated by the morning of Easter. "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life"
(Jn 3,16).

In the Son 'given' for the salvation of mankind, the truth of love is tested, in a way, through suffering, and the Church, born of the mystery of Redemption in the Cross of Christ, "must seek to meet man in a special sense along the path of his suffering. In this meeting, man becomes the way of the Church, a way which is among the most important" (Giovanni Paolo II, Lett. ap. Salvifici doloris, 3).

Dear friends, the service of providing company, of nearness, and of caring for our sick brothers, who are alone, often tested by wounds that are not just physical, but also spiritual and moral, places you in a privileged position to bear witness to the salvific action of God, his love for man and the world, which embraces even the most difficult and terrible situations.

The face of the Savior dying on the Cross, of the Son consubstantial with the Father who suffers as a man for us
(cfr ibid.,17), teaches us to safeguard and promote life, in whatever stage or condition, recognizing the value and dignity of every human being created in the image and likeness of God (cfr Gen 1,26-27) and called to eternal life.

We witnessed this view of pain and suffering, illuminated by the death and resurrection of Christ, in the slow Calvary that marked the last years of Blessed John Paul II's life, to which we could apply the words of St. Paul: "In my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ on behalf of his body, which is the Church"
(Col 1,24).

His firm and secure faith permeated his physical weakness, making his illness, which he lived for the love of God, the Church and the world, a concrete participation in Christ's way to Calvary.

His following of Christ did not spare Blessed John Paul II from taking up his cross every day to the very end, in order to be like his only Master and Lord, who from the Cross had become the focus of attraction and salvation for all mankind
(cfr Jn 12,32; 19,37) and manifested his glory (cfr Mk 15,39).

In the homily during the Holy Mass of Beatification of my venerated predecessor. I recalled how "the Lord had stripped him gradually of everything, but he always remained a 'rock', as Christ willed it. His profound humility, rooted in his intimate union with Christ, allowed him to continue leading the Church and to give the world a message that was more eloquent when his physical strength failed him most" (Homily, May 1, 2011).

Dear friends, cherishing the treasure of the testament lived by Blessed John Paul II in his own flesh, I hope that you, too, in the exercise of your pastoral ministry and in your professional activity, you may discover in the glorious tree of the Cross of Christ "the fulfillment and the full revelation of the Gospel of life" (Lett. enc. Evangelium vitae, 50).

In the service that you render in the different areas of health ministry, may you experience that "only service to my neighbor opens my eyes to that which God does for me and to how he loves me" (Lett. enc. Deus caritas est, 18).

I entrust each of you, the sick, their families and all health care workers, to the maternal protection of Mary, and I gladly impart the Apostolic Blessing to all of you from the heart.



Note about the photo above from the Sunday issue of the OR: Inset shows the OR's original photo in its copiable size - once again a questionable photo choice, in terms of both technical quality and content. Technically, the photo is obviously a washout, especially since about 70% of the photograph is devoted to the detail of the Sala Clementina, a hall distinguished by its brightly colored mosaic walls and floors, and rich frescoes - all of which come out pale and indistinct in this photo. As for content, surely there had to be more photos to choose from than this one whose predominant message seems to be "The event was held in a sumptuous hall, even though you can't really tell from this washed-out photo, in which everything besides the foreground is blurred!".
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How likely is it that Benedict XVI
will go to Dublin for the 2012 IEC?

By ED WEST

November 25, 2011

Pope Benedict XVI may still attend the 50th International Eucharistic Congress in Dublin next year, an organiser has said.

Fr Julian Green, a national delegate who is working with representatives from each diocese to promote English and Welsh participation at the congress, also said it would be a chance to heal a wounded Church.

Fr Green said that the event would not be like the last one held in Dublin, in 1932, “with the triumphal presence of the Church in society”.

He said: “It will be one where the Eucharist as a source of reconciliation and healing will be expressed.”

Fr Green said that after the abuse crisis, “we see a very wounded Church, people wounded by the problems, but nonetheless among the faithful, there is an immense faith in the Eucharist”.

“As well as those who have been victimised, they have also been victims of abuse. But they cling to their faith in the Eucharist, which has been part of the Church’s history,” he said.

Fr Green, who helped to organise English and Welsh participation in previous congresses in Mexico in 2004 and Quebec in 2007, also said it was still unclear whether the Pope would attend.

The priest, who is incardinated in Birmingham archdiocese, said: “It will be announced beforehand whether the Pope will be there or not, but in the past the Pope has personally participated, except in the last two because of health and workload.

“The possibility is always there that the Pope might attend. We don’t know. The Irish Church doesn’t know. And I wouldn’t be surprised if the Holy See doesn’t know yet whether that will be the case.

“Papal visits are often only announced a few months in advance. The organisers in Dublin have contingency plans if it happens, but are organising on the basis that it won’t happen.”

Last month Ireland’s foreign minister Eamon Gilmore said the government had not invited the Pope to visit next year and were not considering an invitation. [If the host country won't invite him, it is unlikely that the Pope will 'force himself' on an unwilling host! Perhaps teh new Nuncio to Ireland could work it out? Or maybe a new Irish government will come in...]

Fr Kevin Doran, the secretary-general of the International Eucharistic Congress, said it would be “a very diplomatically difficult situation” if Benedict XVI did visit.

The 50th International Eucharistic Congress will take place in Dublin from June 10 to 17 next year. Among the catechists and homilists announced so far are Cardinal Peter Turkson, Cardinal Seán Brady and Patriarch Fouad Twal of Jerusalem.
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Benedict XVI and
hope for Africa


November 26, 2011

Below is the English translation of Fr. Lombardi's weekly editorial:

In his remarks ahead of the signing the post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation, Africae munus, Pope Benedict XVI referred to the pair of gates that stand hard by one another on Benin’s Atlantic coast: the “Gate of no Return” and the “Gate of Salvation”.

An appalling physical reminder of the offence against human dignity that is slavery, the Gate of no Return was the one through which slaves used to pass on their way to the ships that would carry them into servitude.

The Gate of Salvation is next to the first. The Catholic faithful built the Gate of Salvation to commemorate the coming of the first evangelists to those same shores – from which place they spread the Good News of Christ’s victory over sin and death throughout the whole of west Africa.

“The Church in Africa,” said Pope Benedict, “is called to promote peace and justice. The Gate of No Return, as well as that of Salvation, remind us of this duty and impel us to combat every form of slavery.”

Commentators not suspected of partiality toward the Catholic Church have said that there is no clearer or more complete document on the situation and the problems facing Africa, than the new Exhortation. It is a document as striking for its realism as for its respect for the dignity of the African peoples.

Africae munus arises from a genuinely African way of thinking: one that is nevertheless permeated by the Christian message and therefore at once genuinely African and truly universal; a way of thinking that opens a horizon of commitment for the future.

A European journalist friend movingly told in me that, in Benin, he felt that as a Catholic he really does belong to a universal community. The Pope, as representative of Christ, is the spiritual head of Christians from every nation and every continent.

The way the Holy Father was received in Benin showed quite clearly that his visit brought great hope to the peoples of Africa: a continent the Pope sees as a “spiritual lung” for humanity – and perhaps this is a notion worth Westerners' attention.



A word about the right translation of 'Africae munus'.

On the day the Apostolic Exhortation was made public, Vatican Radio's English service variously translated its title as 'Africa's Pledge' or 'Africa's Commitment', which was carried over to other reports in English, such as John Allen's. I did not have the time to check out the translation in English then (I should have taken the time!).

But the RV translation bothered me because I distinctly remember Benedict XVI using the noun 'munus' several times in his three-part catechesis on the three-fold task of priests in the spring of 2010 - "the tria munera that he receives: namely, the three offices of teaching, sanctifying and governing", or as he explained them one by one in the three catecheses: the munus docendi, munus sanctificandi, and munus regendi.

The English words used for 'munus' in the official Vatican translation of the catecheses were duty, function, office and task, which is the primary meaning for 'munus' in this entry from a Latin-English dictionary:

munus (moenus) -eris n. [an office, function, duty, task; a charge, tax; a service, favor, gift; a public show, esp. of gladiators; a public building.

Where did the RV people get 'pledge' or 'commitment' from? The very sense of the Apostolic Exhortation is that the Pope is defining Africa's function for the Church and for the world. It is the duty or the task she must carry out, ideallly and hopefully - it is not for the Pope or others to say that it is her 'commitment' or her 'pledge'. The African peoples themselves have to decide whether they will take on that 'munus' - task - as a commitment.


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Pope thanks Asturian orchestra
for bringing 'a piece of Spain'
to the Vatican

by MARÍA DE ÁLVARO
Translated from

November 26, 2011

Forceful at times, delicate at others, always intense and brilliant from start to end. This was the concert that the Orquesta Sinfónica del Principado de Asturias (OSPA) offered at the Vatican Saturday afternoon to an audience of 7,000 with an exceptional guest of honor, Benedict XVI, who thanked the orchestra for its performance and praised Asturias and Spain at the same time.

The Asturian orchestra, conducted by Maximiniano Valdes, performed a repertoire that was 100 percent evocative of Spain chosen especially for the Pope who, as the conductor said earlier, had requested 'no requiems, please".

OSPA is the first Spanish orchestra to play for the Pope.

The program started with the Ritual Fire Dance from Manuel De Falla's El amor brujo, to the delicate 'Triana' and 'Lavapies' from Isaac Albeniz's Iberia orhestrated by Jesus Rueda; back to De Falla with dances from the 'Sombrero de tres picos' (Three-cornered hat); then a virtuoso performance of Richard Strauss's tone poem Don Juan'; and closing with Romsky-Korsakov's Cappriccio espagnol and Fandango asturiano.

The Pope, a passionate music lover, commented on each number in his remarks, noting that in his Cappriccio, Rimsky-Korsakov had incorporated "an ancient Asturian invocation asking for the protection of the Virgin Mary".

He himself invoked the Virgin of Covadonga in his final blessing: "May the Virgin Mary, 'who shines on high more beautiful than the sun, and is mother and queen', in the words of the hymn to the celestial patroness of Asturias, always protect you in her maternal tenderness".



Here is a translation of the Holy Father's full remarks posted on the Facebook site of OSPA:


Your Eminences,
Venerated Brothers in the Episcopate and Priesthood,
Distinguished officials, and dear friends:

He began in Spanish:
From the heart, I thank the government of the Principality of Asturias and the Fundación María Cristina Masaveu Peterson, with its president, Fernando Masaveu, for the splendid concert they have offered us, and which has given us the possiblility to make an interior trip, borne by the music, through the folklore, sentiments and the very heart of Spain.

A very special thanks to the Orquesta Sinfónica del Principado de Asturias, led by Maestro Maximiliano Valdés, for the magnificent performance with which they have also brought us some of the depth and rich character of the Spanish people, particularly the
Asturians.

Likewise, I thank those who made it possible for us to enjoy this moment, and to the Archbishop of Oviedo and others who came here for this special occasion.


He continued in Italian:

This evening, one might say that a 'piece of Spain' was transferred here to the Aula Paolo VI. We were able to listen to the music of celebrated Spanish composers Manuel De Falla and Isaac Albeniz, but also of the German Richard Strauss and the Russian Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, both of whom were fascinated by what our cocnert program calls 'more hispano'- that is, the Spanish way of being, as of composing and interpreting music.

It is this element that the various pieces we heard have in common. Their basic characteristic is the capacity to communicate musically the sentiments and emotions, indeed I would say, the very daily fabric of life.

Above all, this is because whoever composes more hispano is almost naturally drawn to harmonize the elements of folklore and popular song that come from daily life, with that which we call 'elevated music'.

Indeed, it was a mixture of sentiments that was conveyed tonight: the joie de vivre, the climate of celebration, evident in numbers like the three dances from De Falla's El sombrero de tres picos, or the battle against evil described by the famous Ritual Fire Dance by the same composer; the animated life of urban neighborhoods in the 'lavapies' from Albeniz's Iberia; the tragedy of a life that is unable to experience authentic love, as in the tone poem Don Juan, whose eponymous hero finally realizes the emptiness of his existence. This short masterpiece by Richard Strauss perfectly expresses the passage from the euphoria which animates the composition initially to the sadness of the void expressed in the finale.

But there is another element that emerges constantly in the compositions of more hispano - the religious element that is profoundly ingrained in the people of Spain. Rimsky-Korsakov captured this very well in his splendid Cappriccio spagnolo, using folk songs and dances, with various motifs from popular religious melodies, as in the first part of the composition, in which we recognize an ancient Asturian hymn invoking the protection of the Virgin Mary and St. Peter, or in the second movement which incorporates a gypsy hymn to Mary.

These are wonders produced by music, a universal language that allows us to overcome all barriers to enter into the world of others, of a nation, of a culture, while allowing us at the same time to turn our minds and hearts to the Other, with a capital O, uplifting us to the world of God.

He resumed in Spanish:
Thanks once again to the Government of Asturias, to the Foundation, to the professors of the Symphony Orchestra of Asturias, to Maestro Mazimiliano Valdes, to the organizers, to those who have come here from Asturias, and to you all.

May the Virgin Mary "who shines on high more beautiful than the sun, who is Mother and Queen", as it says in the hymn to the celestial patroness of Asturias, always protect you with her maternal tenderness.



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November 27, First Sunday of Advent

Second photo from right: John Paul II praying at the saint's tomb in Lucera.
ST. FRANCESCO ANTONIO FASANI (Italy, 1681-1747), Franciscan friar, Mystic, Theologian
One of the many Franciscan saints (more than any other order), Fr. Fasani was a teacher, master of novices, provincial of his order, and parish priest in his hometown of Lucera, southeast Italy, and was known for his holiness and gifts of communication. In his various ministries, he was loving, devout and penitential. He was a sought-after confessor and preacher. One witness at the canonical hearings before his canonization testified, "In his preaching he spoke in a familiar way, filled as he was with the love of God and neighbor; fired by the Spirit, he made use of the words and deed of Holy Scripture, stirring his listeners and moving them to do penance." Francesco showed himself a loyal friend of the poor, never hesitating to seek from benefactors what was needed. When he died, children ran through the town shouting "The saint is dead! The saint is dead!". He was canonized in 1986. His tomb in Lucera continues to be a popular pilgrims' destination.
Readings for today's Mass:
www.usccb.org/bible/readings/112711.cfm



AT THE VATICAN TODAY

Sunday Angelus - The Holy Father commented on Jesus's words to his disciples to "Be watchful' in today's Gospel reading, as a suitable start for the liturgical year; and on the Reading from Isaiah which reads in part, he said, like a description of the post-modern world that has cast God aside. After the prayers, he expressed hope that the UN climate change conference in Durban will come out with measures that will not further disadvantage the poorer nations.


OR today.

Benedict XVI addresses first group of US bishops on ad-limina visit
'Evangelization and conversion are the priorities of the Church'
He calls for conscientious and transparent efforts to deal with sex abuses by priests
Other Page 1 items: An essay on adult stem-cell research -myth vs reality; Europe far from stable, amid reports that major Western banks are making contingency plans for the probable disintegration of the eurozone; in Pakistan, a NATO airstrike hits a Pakistani military outpost on the Afghan border, killing 25 and wounding 14; and teaser headlines for articles in the inside pages on the Holy Father's meeting with the participants of this year's plenary assembly of the Pontifical Council for Healthcare Workers, and an essay by Mons. Barthelemy Adoukonou, secretary of the Pontifical Council for Culture and a Beninese, on the significance for Africa of the Holy Father's recent trip to Benin. The issue also contains an interview with Arhbishop Timothy Dolan of New York, president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

I hate to intrude on the climate of Advent joy with this latest display of insane political correctness, but it is good for an exasperated chuckle! From an online roundup of German news in English:

Pope sued for not wearing
a seat belt on the Popemobile


Nov. 26, 2011

A man from Dortmund has filed a complaint against Pope Benedikt XVI for not wearing a seat belt in his Popemobile during his last trip to Germany.

Johannes Christian Sundermann, a lawyer from Unna in North Rhine Westphalia, filed a legal complaint against the German-born Pope formerly known as Joseph Ratzinger for not wearing his seat belt on several occasions “for more than one hour at a time,” according to a report in the Westfälischen Rundschau newspaper.

The Pope allegedly broke the law during his visit to Freiburg at the end of September as part of his tour of Germany.

Sundermann represents a Dortmund man. As evidence the two are offering YouTube videos and are also calling the Archbishop of Freiburg, the chairman of Germany’s Bishops Conference and Winfried Kretschmann, the Green Party politician who heads the state government in Baden-Württemberg.

The lawyer, a member of the socialist Left party, took on the case after several other attorneys rejected it. Both Sundermann and his client are no longer members of the Catholic Church.

In a worst-case scenario the Pope would have to pay a fine of between €30 and €2,500. However, if the Pope enjoys diplomatic immunity, even a miracle won’t help this case.


See what happens when mindless lawyers apply the law to a situation that obviously that does not fall under the law. The Popemobile is not travelling much slower than the slowest speed limit possible and cannot be considered as being in a regular traffic situaiton, to which the seatbelt rule applies!

P.S. Today, this thread broke the 500,000 visits mark. Thank you for all who have been following the Forum. I continue to hope for more active participation by way of comments or contributions of photos, news reports and commentary - old or new - about Joseph Ratzinger/Benedict XVI.
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Background on the new translation
by Msgr. James P. Moroney


Pope John Paul II presented the Church with a gift for the millennium: the third edition of the Missale Romanum (Roman Missal) since the Second Vatican Council. [The reason why the new English translation is called the Third Edition, even if the translation itself is actually just the second translation - the first since the original English translation was done for the 1970 change-over to the Novus Ordo. The so-called 'typical edition', or standard edition, of the Novus Ordo Missal is in Latin, and is the basis for translation into other languages. The current typical edition of the Extraordinary Form is the 1962 edition as revised by Blessed John XXIII.]

The Roman Missal is the book that sits on the altar at Mass and contains all the prayers and a description of the actions that make up the celebration of the Mass, “the source and summit of the entire Christian Life.”

Along with this new missal, the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments provided us with an entirely new instruction on the translation of liturgical texts entitled G]Liturgiam Authenticam (On authentic liturgy).

This instruction, the fruit of decades of consultation, describes a new way of translating that is more capable of conveying the meaning, beauty, and form of the ancient Latin prayers. Indeed, the vast majority of the prayers we pray at Mass have been preserved by the Latin Church for more than a thousand years and help not only to hand on what we believe but also to make clear who we are.

The prayers of the Roman Missal serve an indispensable role in passing on the faith, for, as the ancient axiom lex orandi, lex credendi reminds us,what we pray is what we believe. The authentic translation of these prayers, therefore, plays an important role in the catechetical life of the Church.

Thanks to the new Roman Missal and the instruction Liturgiam authenticam, the Church in the English-­speaking world receives a new translation of the Mass, beginning with the First Sunday of Advent of 2011.

Catechists play an important role, not only in the effective introduction of these texts at Mass, but also in the exciting process of unpacking their meaning for years to come.

How did a new translation come about?

The principles of translation by which our present liturgical books were rendered into English were first articulated in the 1968 instruction Comme le prévoit. Although admirable in its attempts to enthusiastically and creatively render a text into modern forms of English, the 1968 instruction’s reliance on the subjective judgments of the translator often ended up with a time‐bound translation influenced by the translator’s theological presuppositions.

In the subsequent decades, a new way of translating evolved that engaged a variety of experts, from Latinists and patrologists to theologians and pastors, musicians and poets, and specialists in English literature.

Such a collaborative model of translation sought to reach a final product that was at once more precise and more memorable. It was a task as ambitious as the process to achieve it was complex.

The first agent of liturgical translation is the conference of bishops, which is charged by the Council Fathers with the translation and approval of liturgical texts. Bishops, however, are not necessarily translators, so experts need to be engaged to accomplish this work.

For this purpose, the Holy See forms mixed commissions at the requests of the conferences of bishops, organizations devoted exclusively to the development of translations of liturgical texts into a common language. The mixed commission for the English language is called the International Commission on English in the Liturgy (ICEL) and is made up of the eleven major conferences of bishops where English is spoken.

ICEL’s chairman is Bishop Arthur Roche of Leeds, and the U.S. representative is Bishop Arthur Serratelli of Paterson. ICEL is located on Connecticut Avenue in Washington, D.C., but it employs specialists from around the English‐speaking world to assist in its work of translating the Latin liturgical books into the sort of English that is spoken today.

Over the past decade, our conference of bishops, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, has reviewed translations of the Roman Missal produced by ICEL in several different forms.

In November 2009, the bishops approved the last of the twelve segments of the Roman Missal by the requisite two-­‐thirds vote of all de iure Latin rite members.

The Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, essentially the Pope’s Liturgy Office, hold the responsibility of reviewing all translations of liturgical texts that have been approved by conferences of bishops.

Cardinal Antonio Cañizares Llovera serves as prefect to that Congregation, while two native English speakers — Archbishop J. Augustine DiNoia, OP, and Reverend Anthony Ward, SM — serve as secretary and undersecretary, respectively.

So important is the task of confirmation of the Roman Missal, that with the advent of the instruction Liturgiam Authenticam, the Congregation undertook the formation of a committee of advice on the question of the translation of English-­language liturgical texts.

That committee is chaired by Cardinal George Pell of Sydney and is composed of senior prelates from all around the English‐speaking world.

On March 25, 2010, the English language edition of the Roman Missal was confirmed, an event commemorated by a luncheon with the Vox Clara Committee in the presence of the Holy Father on May 10. [It was decided at the time that the new translation would be implemented in all churches of the English-speaking world on the first Sunday of Advent 2011 to give sufficient time for the parishes to prepare.]



Here are excerpts from the extemporaneous remarks about the new translation made by the Holy Father at that luncheon last year:

I thank you for the work that Vox Clara has done over the last eight years, assisting and advising the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments in fulfilling its responsibilities with regard to the English translations of liturgical texts....

Saint Augustine spoke beautifully of the relation between John the Baptist, the vox clara that resounded on the banks of the Jordan, and the Word that he spoke.

A voice, he said, serves to share with the listener the message that is already in the speaker’s heart. Once the word has been spoken, it is present in the hearts of both, and so the voice, its task having been completed, can fade away
(cf. Sermon 293).

I welcome the news that the English translation of the Roman Missal will soon be ready for publication, so that the texts you have worked so hard to prepare may be proclaimed in the liturgy that is celebrated across the anglophone world.

Through these sacred texts and the actions that accompany them, Christ will be made present and active in the midst of his people. The voice that helped bring these words to birth will have completed its task.

A new task will then present itself, one which falls outside the direct competence of Vox Clara, but which in one way or another will involve all of you – the task of preparing for the reception of the new translation by clergy and lay faithful.

Many will find it hard to adjust to unfamiliar texts after nearly forty years of continuous use of the previous translation. The change will need to be introduced with due sensitivity, and the opportunity for catechesis that it presents will need to be firmly grasped.

I pray that in this way any risk of confusion or bewilderment will be averted, and the change will serve instead as a springboard for a renewal and a deepening of Eucharistic devotion all over the English-speaking world...

As the prayers of God’s people rise before him like incense
(cf. Psalm 140:2), may the Lord’s blessing come down upon all who have contributed their time and expertise to crafting the texts in which those prayers are expressed. Thank you, and may you be abundantly rewarded for your generous service to God’s people.

And addressing the bishops of northeastern United States at the Vatican yesterday, he said this about the new translation:

In these days, the Church in the United States is implementing the revised translation of the Roman Missal. I am grateful for your efforts to ensure that this new translation will inspire an ongoing catechesis which emphasizes the true nature of the liturgy and, above all, the unique value of Christ’s saving sacrifice for the redemption of the world.

A weakened sense of the meaning and importance of Christian worship can only lead to a weakened sense of the specific and essential vocation of the laity to imbue the temporal order with the spirit of the Gospel.



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In US churches today, the First Sunday of Advent and the start of the liturgical year, start using the new English translation of the Roman Missal (ordinary form).


THE ROMAN MISSAL,3rd edition:
New words with deeper meaning,
but the same Mass

Adapted from



The Roman Missal, Third Edition, the ritual text containing prayers and instructions for the celebration of the Mass, starts being used in the United States of America today.

Pope John Paul II announced a revised version of the Missale Romanum during the Jubilee Year 2000. Among other things, the revised edition of the Missale Romanum contains prayers for the observances of recently canonized saints, additional prefaces for the Eucharistic Prayers, additional Votive Masses and Masses and Prayers for Various Needs and Occasions, and some updated and revised rubrics (instructions) for the celebration of the Mass.

The new English translation of the Roman Missal also includes updated translations of existing prayers, including some of the well-known responses and acclamations of the people.

The entire Church in the United States has been blessed with this opportunity to deepen its understanding of the Sacred Liturgy, and to appreciate its meaning and importance in our lives.

Parish leadership and various sectors of the parish community have been preparing for months to receive the new translation. Musicians and parishioners alike have to learn the various new and revised musical settings of the Order of Mass.

The entire Church in the United States has been blessed with this opportunity to deepen its understanding of the Sacred Liturgy, and to appreciate its meaning and importance in our lives.

The website of the USCCB has been prepared to serve as a reliable resource for all engaged in the formation process. Resources are provided for the faithful, for the clergy, and for parish and diocesan leaders.

The proper texts for Advent and Christmas Time were provided in advance so that Priest celebrants could review the text before the new Missals arrived around October 1.

In addition, the Order of Mass – both standalone and Scripturally annotated versions – can allow Priests and the faithful alike to be familiar with the change in translation as well as the cadence of the various prayers.

Celebrants are encouraged to undertake some supplemental reading that will enable them to proclaim the new texts with a deeper appreciation; resources are provided in the Further Reading section for this purpose.

It is time to seize the opportunity given to all Catholics in the United States to deepen, nurture, and celebrate our faith through the renewal of our worship and the celebration of the Sacred Liturgy.



Basic guides to the new Missal, published by the USCCB.

The following essay was written by Fr. Barron for CNA last week.

The new Missal is good for the Mass
by FATHER ROBERT BARRON

11/23/2011

In just a few days, Catholics in this country will notice a rather significant change when they come to Mass. Commencing the First Sunday of Advent, the Church will be using a new translation of the Roman Missal.

I would like to emphasize, at the outset, that this in no way represents a return to “the old Mass,” for the Latin texts that provide the basis for the new translation were all approved after Vatican II. [In short, the new translation is based on the Latin, or standard, text for the Novus Ordo.]

So why the change? What had come increasingly to bother a number of bishops, priests and liturgists over the years was that the translation of the liturgical texts, which was made in some haste in the late ‘60s of the last century, was not sufficiently faithful to the Latin and was, at least in some instances, informed by questionable theological assumptions.

And so, over the course of many years, two groups in particular — ICEL (the International Commission on English in the Liturgy) and Vox Clara (a committee of bishops, liturgical experts and linguists from around the English-speaking world) — labored over a new translation. This work was approved by the U.S. Bishops’ Conference and finally by the Vatican, and Advent 2011 was determined to be the time to begin use of the new Missal.

What marks these new texts? They are, I would argue, more courtly, more theologically rich, and more scripturally poetic than the current prayers — and this is all to the good.

An unmistakable feature of the Latin liturgical texts is their nobility and stately seriousness. They were composed by people who clearly knew that liturgical prayer is a manner of addressing almighty God, the Lord of heaven and earth.

Accordingly, they utilized not the language of the street or of the market or political forum, but, instead, the speech appropriate at the court of a King to whom supplication is being made. Or to situate things more in the context of our culture: They employ the kind of speech one might use in addressing the president in a formal letter or the recipient of an honorary degree at a university commencement exercise.

Now, when these texts were rendered into English in the late ‘60s of the last century, they were translated in accord with certain definite cultural tendencies of that time. Starting in the 1960s, we began to prize speech that is blunt, clear, direct, casual and unadorned. And we developed a prejudice against language that seems fussy or overly ornamental.

To see a vivid illustration of this shift, compare the sermons of John Henry Newman or Fulton J. Sheen to almost any sermon delivered today.

But what this gave us, many came to see, was a certain flattening out of the language of the liturgy, a rendering pedestrian of that which ought to be elevated.

I will give just one example from hundreds that I could have chosen. Here is the prayer that we currently offer as the opening collect for Tuesday of the first week of Advent: “God of mercy and consolation, help us in our weakness and free us from sin. Hear our prayers that we may rejoice at the coming of your Son.” Pretty clear, direct, straightforward.

Now here is the new translation of the same Latin prayer: “Look with favor, Lord God, on our petitions, and in our trials grant us your compassionate help that, consoled by the presence of your Son, whose coming we now await, we may be tainted no longer by the corruption of former ways.”

We notice first that a great deal of the Latin original was simply not translated in the earlier version, but we also remark that the formality and courtly elegance of the Latin is preserved in the new version.

Next, let us consider the increased theological density of the new translations. It appears to have been a conviction of the translators in the ‘60s that overly theological language would turn people off and make the liturgy less immediately appealing.

A particularly clear example of the application of this principle is the old translation of the post-Communion prayer for the 30th Sunday of the year: “Lord, bring to perfection within us the communion we share in this sacrament. May our celebration have an effect in our lives.” That prayer, I think you’ll agree, is rather bland and inelegant, landing, as one wag put it, “with a thud in heaven.”

But it is also remarkably lacking in theological density and precision. Effect? What kind of effect? Good, bad, sacred, secular, psychological? Now listen to the new translation of the same Latin prayer: “May your sacraments, O Lord, we pray, perfect in us what lies within them, that what we now celebrate in signs we may one day possess in truth.”

In a rather pithy formula, we find both a subtle theology of grace as well as a presentation of the eschatological dimension of the sacraments. Now we know fairly precisely what the “effect” is that we’re praying for.

Finally, let us look at the richly poetic and scriptural quality of the new translations. Once more, it seems to have been a conscious decision of the earlier translators that much of the poetic imagery of the Bible — so evident in the Latin originals — should be trimmed from the English versions.

I will give one example of dozens I could have chosen. The older translation of the opening Collect for the First Sunday of Advent runs, in part, as follows: “All powerful God, increase our strength of will for doing good, that Christ may find an eager welcome at his coming …”

And here is the new version of the same prayer: “Grant your faithful, we pray, almighty God, the resolve to run forth to meet your Christ with righteous deeds at his coming, so that, gathered at his right hand, they may be worthy to possess the heavenly Kingdom.”

Our longing for Christ was pretty blandly communicated in the earlier version as “eager”; but in the new translation, it is given wonderfully rich expression as “running forth to meet” the Lord. If the new prayers sometimes won’t seem as immediately understandable as their predecessors, we should remember that poetry is generally harder to grasp than prose, but infinitely richer than prose in its evocative and descriptive power.

There has been, over the past several decades, an enormous debate concerning this process of translation. If you doubt me, dip into blogs written by liturgists — if you dare. But the Church has given us these new texts, and I think it is wise for us to accept them in a positive spirit. We will find in time, I believe, that they will deepen and enrich our prayer together.

Contrast this piece by Fr. Barron with an almost ludicrous piece I read elsewhere by the Jesuit priest James Martin, SJ,
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rev-james-martin-sj/goodbye-to-the-old-mass_b_1106423.html
who, in a textbook display of outright historical relativism, mourns the now-superseded 40-year-old translation in a way almost analogous to how traditionalists in the 1970s mourned the loss of the 500-year-old Tridentine Mass! And what does it say that his essay should come out in the ultra-left Huffington Post?

I bet Martin and his colleagues in the 'spirit of Vatican II' generation never once thought about the far more radical impact on 'serious' Church-going Catholics of a literal overnight replacement in 1970 of the entire Mass itself as the Church had known it for almost half a millennium, compared to what should be a fairly smooth and soft transition to this new English translation, for which the US Church has been preparing her parishes for almost two years now? And is it possible that an educated and highly cultured man like Martin has so little appreciation of the need to address the Lord in a different, more exalted way? Do he and people like him think the King James version of the Bible was inconsequential in its exalted expression that made it one of the great glories of the English language, and even if most of the best-known Biblical quotations cited today by ordinary people are quotations from the KJV????

And as compelling as Father Barron's presentation is, I find it rather 'defensive', as if the new translation has to be defended at all! It almost seems to assume that most English Churchgoers would be so Philistine as not to appreciate appropriate language for prayer when they see it! But he does makes his points very well, as he always does, and I thank him for his ministry. He truly has a gift for communication.

BTW, for those who have not yet seen it, do not fail to watch Fr. Barron's CATHOLICISM TV series which EWTN will replay in December. It is stunning in its content and presentation. I was in tears all the time while watching it, in renewed awe and appreciation of the beauty of the faith we are so favored by God to have and to practice.




The blogger behind ROMA LOCUTUS EST (Rome has spoken), who identifies himself only as a Catholic fahter of 5, from Ohio, apparently spent 52 weekly installments of his blog presenting and examining the changes resulting from the new English translation of the Missal. Here is his final installment...

The new translation of the Roman Missal:
An opportunity for prayer

from the blog
'ROMA LOCUTUS EST'

...The blessings that these new words will bestow on our worship for years to come are innumerable. We have been given the gift of a language that is not only more faithful to the Latin but also is elevated in a way that is more suitable to the sacred action that is the Mass.

As with anything new, there will be an adjustment period, but we need not view that adjustment in a negative light. For the first time in years, perhaps for the first time in our lives, we will have to read the words of the Mass...

The mysteries of our faith are beautiful, and the new translation of the Roman Missal can provide an impetus to deepen our understanding of the Deposit of Faith. Rather than be troubled by the four syllables in the word “consubstantial” that will soon appear in the Nicene Creed, priests can capitalize on an opportunity to bring the faithful into the reality of the Blessed Trinity, and people can listen attentively and enter into the Mystery.

Perhaps the most important effect of the elevated language in the new translation is its ability to help us understand that the Mass is not primarily about us but rather about the proper worship of God.

The more formal texts will undoubtedly pierce our ears that have grown comfortable in a world tragically lacking a sense of the formal. In providing us with a language that is decidedly different from “street talk,” the new translation will help us to see that we are but actors in a reality that is bigger than us.

The Liturgy is not something that we are free to create and re-create with the changing winds of a fickle culture, but it is a reality that is to be received in a posture of humility. And like any great drama, the Sacred Liturgy has a script worthy of its author. In this drama, the author just happens to be divine.

While the majority of the Church in their last minute preparations will be focused on the people’s parts, it should not go unnoticed or unremarked that the priests too have a part to play. The changes coming to their texts are even greater than those of the people.

In fact, the vast array of improvement is not even limited to the Ordinary. Every Collect, every Prayer over the Gifts, and every Prayer After Communion is being gifted with a brand new rendering. Priests too for the first time in many years will find themselves having to study the new words so that they can speak them with accuracy and proper inflection. As with people’s parts, properly seen, this is a blessing.

While the people may not be aware of all the changes coming to every prayer, they will undoubtably notice a difference in language. From the very first Opening Prayer of the First Sunday of Advent, an attentive congregation will say, “I am not sure what the prayer used to say, but assuredly it was not that.” To illustrate the point, listen carefully to the difference. The current translation of Advent’s first Opening Prayer is:
“All-powerful God,
increase our strength of will for doing good
that Christ may find an eager welcome at his coming
and call us to his side in the kingdom of heaven.”

The new and improved translation:
“Grant your faithful, we pray, almighty God,
the resolve to run forth to meet your Christ
with righteous deeds at his coming,
so that, gathered at his right hand,
they may be worthy to possess the heavenly kingdom.”

Quite simply, the is no comparison.

...We could, in fact, say that the new translation renders the prayer, along with the entire Mass, “worthy to possess the heavenly kingdom".
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ANGELUS TODAY



The Holy Father reflected today on the Gospel and First Reading on the First Sunday of Advent. He said in English:

Today, the Church begins the celebration of Advent, which marks the beginning of a new liturgical year and our spiritual preparation for the celebration of Christmas. Let us heed the message in today’s Gospel by entering prayerfully into this holy season, so that we may be ready to greet Jesus Christ, who is God with us. I wish you all a good Sunday. May God bless all of you!

After the prayer, he said this (translated from the Italian) about a UN conference on climate change:

Tomorrow the work of a UN conference on climate change and the Kyoto Protocol begins in Durban, South Africa. I hope that all the members of the international community will agree on a responsible, credible and fraternally supportive response to a worrisome and complex phenomenon, bearing in mind the needs of the poorest populations and of future generations.






Dear brothers and sisters:

Today the whole Church begins the new liturgical year: a new journey of faith to be lived together in the Christian communities, but also, as always, to be done within the history of the world, to open it to the mystery of God, to the salvation that comes from his love.

The liturgical year begins with Advent - an amazing time in which the expectation of the coming of Christ is reawakened in every heart, and the memory of his first coming when he stripped himself of his divine glory to assume our mortal flesh.

"Be watchful!" This is Jesus's appeal in today's Gospel, and he addresses it not just to his disciples but to everyone: "Be awake!"
(Mt 3,37). It is a healthy reminder to us that life does not have only an earthly dimension, but that it is projected towards a 'beyond', like a seedling that germinates in the earth and opens up to the sky.

A thinking plantlet, man is endowed with freedom and responsibility, under which each of us will be called on to give an accounting of how we lived, of how we have used our own abilities - if we held these for ourselves alone or made them bear fruit for the good of our brothers.

Even Isaiah, the prophet of Advent, makes us reflect today with a heartfelt prayer addressed to God in the name of the people. He recognizes the shortcomings of his people and says at one point: "There is none who calls upon your name, who rouses himself to cling to you; for you have hidden your face from us and have delivered us up to our guilt"
(Is 64,6).

How can we not be struck by this description? It seems to mirror some panoramas of the post-modern world: cities where life has become anonymous and horizontal, where God seems absent and man the only master, as if he had been the creator and director of everything: constructions, work, economy, transport, science, technology - all seems to depend only on man.

But sometimes, in this world which seems almost perfect, things happen which are overwhelming, either in nature or in society, which makes us think that God has retired, that he has, so to speak, abandoned us to ourselves.

In truth, the true master of the world is not man but God. The Gospel says:" Watch, therefore; you do not know when the Lord of the house is coming, whether in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or in the morning. May he not come suddenly and find you sleeping"
(Mk 13,35-36).

The season of Advent comes every year to remind us of this, so that our life may find its right orientation, towards the face of God. The face not of a 'master' but of a father and a friend.

With the Virgin Mary, who guides us in the Advent journey, let us make ours the words of the prophet: "O LORD, you are our father; we are the clay and you the potter: we are all the work of your hands"
(Is 64,7).







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AP, of course, took the two brief statements made by the Pope above about the UN climate change conference to file for a politically correct story that happens to promote the MXM narrative of climate change (aka global warming - a term which Al Gore and company no longer use because there seems to be more objective data for global cooling rather than warming), a buzzword that earns major MSM buzz when it occurs in the Pope's statements, almost as much as abortion, birth control, condoms, gays and sex. And judging by online headline compilations today , the AP story has been picked up by most Anglophone outlets...

Pope calls for responsible,
credible climate deal

by Nicole Winfield


VATICAN CITY, Nov. 27 (AP) - Pope Benedict XVI called Sunday for delegates attending this week's U.N. climate change conference in South Africa to craft a responsible and credible deal to cut greenhouse gases that takes into account the needs of the poor.

Some 25,000 government officials, lobbyists and scientists are expected to attend the two-week conference that opens Monday in Durban. The immediate focus is the pending expiration of the Kyoto Protocol, the 1997 agreement requiring 37 industrialized countries to slash carbon emissions to 5 percent below 1990 levels by 2012.

Western governments are expected to try to get China and other growing economies to accept legally binding curbs on greenhouse gases, as well. Poor countries want the signatories to accept further reductions in a second commitment period up to at least 2017.

Benedict, who has been dubbed the "green pope" for his environmental concerns, launched an appeal Sunday to government representatives attending the Durban conference to craft a responsible revised Kyoto deal.

"I hope that all members of the international community agree on a responsible and credible response to this worrisome and complex phenomenon, taking into account the needs of the poorest and future generations," he said during his traditional Sunday blessing from his studio overlooking St. Peter's Square.

Benedict denounced the failure of world leaders to agree to a successor treaty to Kyoto during a 2009 U.N. climate summit in Copenhagen. He said then that world peace depends on safeguarding God's creation.

The 84-year-old German pope has voiced increasing concern about protecting the environment in his encyclicals, during foreign trips, speeches to diplomats and in his annual peace message.

Under Benedict's watch, the Vatican has installed photovoltaic cells on its main auditorium to convert sunlight into electricity and has joined a reforestation project aimed at offsetting its CO2 emissions.

For the pontiff, it's a moral issue: Church teaching holds that man must respect creation because it's destined for the benefit of humanity's future. He has argued that climate change and natural catastrophes threaten people's rights to life, food, health and ultimately peace.


It's a fairly objective story, for a change, but the problem is that some kooks out there have used it to mock the Pope, as a blogger who has been an avid envirowatcher and who is skeptical of Al Gore and his extremist friends. Using nothing but the AP story above, he entitled his blog entry 'Pope endorses climate hoax swindle; suggests that world peace depends on CO2 levels; installs solar panels in an attempt to prevent bad weather'.

I am on the side of the prudent skeptics, who say the evidence so far does not show that manmade CO2 emissions are significantly responsible for the unpredictable climatic phenomena the earth has been experiencing - similar episodes of literally blow-hot-blow-cold weather have affected the earth in the late Middle Ages and in the 19th century - - and that these unpredictable changes are likely due more to cosmic factors beyond human control (principally, periodic solar flares and the complex dynamics of ocean warming and cooling) and which periodically recur throughout history.

Nevertheless, man, individually and collectively, must do his best to discipline his lifestyle in order to minimize harming the environment - and this is a principle that goes above and beyond inflated or artificial concerns about climate change. The expensive technologies suggested by those whose religion it is to blame man alone for climate change cannot be afforded in a time of global crisis even by the richest nations on earth.

The Pope, of course, expresses an ideal hope for a 'responsible, credible and fraternally supportive' agreement to emerge from Durban. The Kyoto Protocol - which was neither responsible nor credible nor fraternally supportive (it would have economically penalized the emerging economies like China and India) was nothing but a patting-their-own-backs quixotic scheme dreamed up by the richest nations, which they themselves cannot comply with and remains a dead letter 15 years after it was passed. I personally think the UN should have cancelled Durban (think of the millions that will be spent just to hold the conference and the millions more spent by all the junketing enviroquacks) in light of the global economic crisis - unless they have miracle workers who have devised 'global climate control measures' that can immediately be carried out at minimal cost to everyone! (But I very much doubt that any of them is thinking in terms of other than get-rich-quick schemes promoting untested wholly speculative ventures, each one running into hundreds of millions of dollars in start-up cost, like Obama's Solyndra flop!]

If you missed it, earlier this month I posted a compelling article by Cardinal George Pell, who has studied the climate change controversy for years, on Page 259 of this thread. It's well worth checking out
benedettoxviforum.freeforumzone.leonardo.it/discussione.aspx?idd=85272... !

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Lebanese Premier looks forward to meeting the Pope,
confirms he is relaying his President's
formal invitation for Benedict XVI to visit Lebanon


November 27, 2011

Lebanon’s Prime Minister says he is “keen to discuss” with Pope Benedict XVI the different issues of concern for his country and the region.

In an interview with Vatican Radio in Rome Sunday, the day before he was to be received by the Pope for a private audience in the Vatican, Prime Minister Najib Mikati commented on the planned meeting which he said he expects to focus on “our bilateral relations and the ‘message of Lebanon’ in the Middle East. And (the) coalition of communities in our society" as being very important.

Mr. Mikati may well have been alluding to Pope John Paul II’s description of Lebanon’s 18 different communities, including Sunni, Shiite, Druze and Christian, as a “model” or “message” of harmonious coexistence for the region and for the world.

Mr. Mikati said he will assure Pope Benedict on Monday that the Lebanese desire to preserve Lebanon as this kind of model of coexistence between peoples. “We have to keep it forever,” the Prime Minister told Vatican Radio.

The Lebanese Premier said he also expected to discuss with Pope Benedict the current events in the region and the role that Christians can play there.

Referring to press reports of a possible papal visit to Lebanon, Mr. Mikati said, “If I may disclose a secret, tomorrow I am definitely going to relay an invitation from the President of the Republic (Michel Suleiman) to invite him to visit Lebanon.”

Addressing the concern that Christians have been emigrating from the Middle East due to conflict and economic hardship, Mr. Mikati said, "All the statistics are saying that maybe the other religions, they have relatively more immigration in the communities than the Christians but this doesn’t mean it’s a healthy signal, even if it’s other than Christians. But we care to preserve and to keep the Christians.

"It is their land (too)…I believe myself the key issue here, the key issue, is peace in the Middle East. This is very important. We have to find a way how we can live in the peace time with Israel where …we will not be under any threat anymore, neither Christians or Muslims. For this reason, we have all together to work for peace and we have to preserve our community from further (immigration to the West)."

Regarding the situation in Syria and possible repercussions in his country, the Lebanese Prime Minister said: “What is happening in Syria, definitely has a direct effect on Lebanon. For this reason, what I am trying to do myself as Prime Minister of Lebanon, is to shy away from anything going on in Syria as much as I can. I am trying really to isolate Lebanon from this issue.

"Our position at the Security Council was to disassociate ourselves from anything related to Syria. We are following this (line of action) in the Arab League. And I will tell you frankly yes, we will think about it. We are worried, but I am sure (of) and I am betting on the wisdom of the Lebanese to try to avoid any consequences on the Lebanese scene.”

Mr. Mikati has come to Rome at a delicate time for his government. The Prime Minister has said he would resign if the Cabinet fails to approve funding of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon investigating the 2005 murder of the former Premier, Rafic Hariri. But several big Cabinet players vigorously oppose funding. That vote is expected November 30th, just days after Mr. Mikati returns to Beirut from Rome.

“My objective,” Prime Minister Mikati told Vatican Radio’s Tracey McClure, “is to obtain justice and that Lebanon will not be selective in choosing the international resolution. The international resolution should be completely honoured. We have few resolutions related to Lebanon and we respect all resolutions and we have to keep respecting this. This will be to the interest and benefit of Lebanon.”
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Monday, November 28, Monday of the First Week in Advent

Third from left: 16th-century painting showing, from left, Francis of Assisi, Bernardine of Siena, Giacomo della Marca and Dominic around the Crucifix.
ST. GIACOMO DELLA MARCA [James of the Marche] (Italy, 1394-1476), Franciscan and Preacher
Born to a poor family in Ancona in the northeast central Italian region called the Marche, he obtained doctorates in civil and canon law from the University of Perugia and studied with the future Saints Bernardine of Siena and John of Capistrano. Along with Albert of Santeano, the four came to be known as the 'four pillars of the Franciscan observant movement'. Giacomo was a gifted preacher who carried the Word all over Italy and to 13 countries in eastern and central Europe. He had a special devotion to the Holy Name of Jesus, and lived such a severely austere life that Bernardine advised him to moderate his penances. He is also remembered for starting the Catholic monte pietatis - non-profit pawnshops to help the poor. He was canonized in 1726.
Readings for today's Mass:
www.usccb.org/bible/readings/112811.cfm



AT THE VATICAN TODAY

The Holy Father met with

- H.E. Najib Mikati, President of the Council of Ministers of Lebanon, with his wife and delegation

- Cardinal Marc Ouellet, Prefect of the Congregation for Bishops (weekly meeting)

- Cardinal Justin Francis Rigali, Emeritus Archbishop of Philadelphia

- Student participants at a meeting sponsored by the 'Sorella Natura' (Sister Nature) Foundation. Address in Italian.


Sorry for another very late start today.

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Lebanon PM invites Pope to visit,
discusses Syria tensions during
meetings at the Vatican




[The Mikatis with the Pope - an Advent wreath in the foreground.

VATICAN CITY, Nov. 28 (AP) — Lebanon’s Prime Minister has invited Pope Benedict XVI to visit his country, which the Vatican sees as an important symbol of religious coexistence in the Middle East.

Prime Minister Najib Mikati met with Benedict for about 20 minutes Monday during an overnight visit to Rome that also included talks with the new Italian foreign minister.

The Vatican said the discussions touched on the crisis in Syria and “the need for all parties to commit themselves to peaceful coexistence founded on justice, reconciliation and respect for the dignity of human beings and their inalienable rights.”

Members of Mikati’s delegation said he extended an invitation to Benedict to visit Lebanon. There was no word from the Vatican, but such a trip has been rumored.


Not a usual sight at a Papal audience, but Benedict XVI obviously enjoys moments like this.



And hat tip to Angela Ambrogetti for having 'scooped' her male colleague in the Vatican press corps last week on the probability of a papal visit to Lebanon next year.... Now let's wait and see what develops on the Ukraine, the third trip abroad in 2012 that Ambrogetti presents as a probability... Meanwhile, it seems that a papal trip to Mexico and Cuba in 2012 is all but certain. Here's an update from one of the officials involved in the planning...

Nuncio says Benedict XVI is sure to address Mexico's
alarming levels of violence when he visits in 2012
]




VATICAN CITY, Nov. 28 (CNS) -- Mexico's high level of violence is of deep concern and will surely be addressed by Pope Benedict XVI during his visit to the country next year, said a Vatican official.

The Vatican missionary news agency Fides reported that during a news conference in Merida, Mexico on Nov. 22, Archbishop Christophe Pierre, the apostolic nuncio to Mexico, said the Pope's visit will provide hope for the country and bring a message of "peace and encouragement" to people suffering from violence.

The Vatican recently announced that a papal trip to Mexico and Cuba for the spring of 2012 was in the advanced planning stages.

"The Pope will bring us courage in these difficult times, in order to have the strength to fight against violence and help us unite for peace," the archbishop said. He said violence in Mexico was a matter of concern for the Church, government leaders and the entire country.

Mexico has experienced a dramatic increase in violence related to organized crime in recent years. From 2007 to 2010, 34,550 killings were linked to organized crime compared to about 8,900 such killings from 2000 to 2006, according to government data.
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Pope to young nature lovers:
'Be the true guardians
of life and creation'


November 28, 2011




As representatives from over 190 countries gathered today in Durban, South Africa, to tackle the thorny issue of climate change, Honduran Cardinal Oscar Rodríguez Maradiaga led a large group of Italian teenagers to meet Pope Benedict XVI, who asked them to be the “true guardians of life and creation”.

The high school students are members of the Fondazione Sorella Natura (Sister Nature) promoted by the Franciscan community in Assisi. Monday’s meeting took place on the anniversary eve of the day Blessed John Paul II proclaimed St Francis the Patron Saint of ecology.

Vatican Radio translated almost the entire address by the Holy Father:

First of all we must remember that your foundation and this same meeting have a deep Franciscan inspiration. Even today's date was chosen to commemorate the proclamation of St. Francis of Assisi, patron saint of ecology by my beloved predecessor, Blessed John Paul II in 1979.

You all know that St. Francis is also a patron of Italy. But perhaps you do not know that he was so declared by Pope Pius XII, in 1939, who called him 'the most Italian of the saints, the holiest of the Italians'.

If, therefore, the patron saint of Italy is also the patron of ecology, it seems fitting that young Italians should have a special feeling for 'Sister Nature', and concretely work to defend her.

In your study of Italian literature, one of the earliest texts found in the anthologies is in fact St Francis of Assisi’s 'Canticle of Brother Sun', also known as 'the canticle of creatures', which begins, "Most high, all powerful, all good Lord!..."

This song highlights the right place to give to the Creator, the One who has called into existence all the great symphony of creatures. "All praise is yours, all glory, all honor, and all blessing. To you, alone, Most High, do they belong. Be praised, my Lord, through all your creatures".

These verses are part of your educational and cultural tradition. But first they are a prayer, that educates the heart in dialogue with God, teaches it to see the imprint of the great heavenly Artist on all creatures, as we read in the beautiful Psalm 19:

"The heavens declare the glory of God, the firmament proclaims the works of his hands... There is no speech, no words; their voice is not heard; A report goes forth through all the earth, their messages, to the ends of the world"
(cfr 1.4-5).

Brother Francis, faithful to Sacred Scripture invites us to recognize in nature a wonderful book that speaks to us of God, its beauty and goodness. It is enough to think of the fact that the 'Poverello' of Assisi always asked the monk in charge of the garden of the convent, not to cultivate all the land for vegetables, but leave some for flowers, moreover to cultivate a beautiful bed of flowers, so that the people who passed by would raise their thoughts to God, the creator of such beauty (cf. Vita, Thomas of Celano, CXXIV, 165).

Dear friends, the Church, noting with appreciation the most important research and scientific discoveries, has never ceased to recall that respect for the Creator’s imprint in all creation, leads to a better understanding of our true and deepest human identity.

If properly undertaken, this respect can help a young person to also discover talents and personal ability, and therefore help prepare them for a certain profession, which they will always try to perform in full respect for the environment.

In fact, in his work, man forgets he is God’s collaborator, then he can cause violence to damage to creation which always have a negative impact on humans, as we have seen, unfortunately, on several occasions.

Today more than ever, it has becomes clear that respect for the environment cannot exclude recognizing the value of the human person and his inviolability at every stage and in every condition of life.

Respect for the human being and respect for nature are one, but both can grow and find their right measure if we respect in the human being and in nature the Creator and his creation.

In this, dear young people, I believe I find allies in you, true 'guardians of life and creation'.

And now I would like to take this opportunity to say some words to the teachers and authorities who are present here. I would emphasize the great importance of education in this field of ecology.

I gladly accepted the proposal of this meeting because it involves so many young students, and because it has a clear educational perspective.

In fact it has become apparent that there will be no good future for humanity on earth if we do not educate everyone to a more responsible way of life for creation. And this lifestyle is learned first at home and in school.

I encourage you, therefore, parents, school administrators and teachers to carry on with a constant commitment to education and teaching focus for this purpose. Moreover, it is essential that institutions in charge, who are well represented here today, support this work of families and schools.

Dear friends, we entrust these thoughts and aspirations to the Virgin Mary, Mother of all humanity. As we have just entered the season of Advent, may she accompany us and lead us to recognize in Christ the center of the universe, the light that enlightens every man and every creature.

And may St. Francis teach us to sing with all creation, a hymn of praise and thanksgiving to our Heavenly Father, giver of every gift. Thank you so much for coming, and I willingly accompany your study, your work and your commitment with my blessing.


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Some unpleasant disclosures
that we could live without
about some papal messages


I was wondering when and how Sandro Magister would retract his mistake when he wrote two weeks ago that a new directive from the Secretariat of State seeking to 'control' documents issued by Vatican Curial heads was prompted by the Pontifical Council on Justice and Peace document on the world economic and financial crisis. John Thavis of CNS disputed that claim a few days later, and I have been checking Magister's blog to see if he would make a correction. He finally did today on his regular www.chiesa outlet, though not quite as honestly as he ought to have done. In the process, he provides us with the text of the directive from the SecState.

I must say again that it seems strange that cardinals and high-ranking prelates who work at the Vatican should need to be sent a letter of this sort. In fact, it is outrageous that people like them would not even think on their own that it is only elementary courtesy to furnish an advance copy to the SecState and to the Pope's secretary of any document about Church and Vatican affairs intended for public consumption - even when the document is not issued in the name of the Pope. He has a right - and so does SecState - to know about these documents before the public does, so that in case it raises any question or dispute, appropriate measures can be taken before they are made public! ... In any case, this is not the kind of stupid inside stuff we want to hear about... Even Magister's title for thjs piece is is more aggravating than his usual exasperating headlines, and it's all of a piece with everyone involved in this episode somehow being cavalier about the Pope - even if they say that the measure is intended to protect the Papal Magisterium - as if he had nothing to do with all this except to lend his signature.



The Pope signs, after
Bertone stamps his approval



VATICAN CITY, Nov. 28 - With a circular letter to cardinals and archbishops who lead the various agencies of the Roman Curia - congregations, tribunals, political councils and commissions - the Vatican Secretariat of State has reiterated the practical measures that have always been 'in force' to regulate the publication of documents from 'the Vatican'.

The letter issued on November 4, which was not publicized, was disclosed in www.chiesa on November 10 in an item entitled "Too much confusion: Bertone places the Curia under lock and key'.

It is authoritatively signed by Archbishop Angelo Maria Becciu, who as Deputy secretary of State (Sostituto) for General Affairs, heads the First Section of the Secretariat of State. It is the office that most closely collaborates with the Pope in governing the Church.

The letter reiterates that the practice in force at the Vatican requires that any document to be published with the Holy Father's signature must be sent with reasonable time before its anticipated publication both as a paper document and an electronic document to the Secretariat of State which will have the responsibility, after reviewing the document for its content, to distribute it to the communications covering the Holy See.

[That sounds even worse than one thought! Surely, no one ought to dare put the Pope's signature on anything he has not read, much less expressly approved. One assumes that the Pope's messages for major events - such as the various World Days observed by the Church - would start with an initial draft prepared by the Vatican agency most close and knowledgeable about the topic - health or migrants or priests or families, etc. A draft that would provide up-to-date and accurate information on the topic as well as presenting a point of view that the agency may wish to push, and which would be for the Pope to decide whether he goes along or not! And that the Pope would then go through the draft, marking the parts he wishes to use, the parts he finds questionable or needs more information about, and the parts he does not want included at all. I imagine a competent papal aide, in consultation with the originating agency, would then put together a fresh draft in keeping with the Pope's indications, and that this becomes the basis for the final message. In which the 'final cut', to use a film term, would be the Pope's decision, not some middle-level clerk in the Secretariat of State!... But as we shall see, apparently, the papal Message for the World Day of Migrants appears never to have passed the Pope's desk at all, nor the Secretariat of State. That is a grievous and unpardonable presumption on the part of the culprits. Why does there seem to be a general lack of common sense among the officials in the Vatican who are supposed to help the Pope do his work?]

Here is the text of the letter (translated here):

SECRETARIAT OF STATE
First Section - General Affairs
The Vatican
November 4, 2011

Most Reverend Eminence,
Most Reverend Excellency,

In order to assure a correct and secure distribution of documents carrying the signature of the Holy Father, I am constrained to remind your Most Reverend Eminence/Excellency of the principles that govern the divulgation of pontifical texts through the social communications media of the Holy See.

In publishing a document with the Holy Father's signature, the practice in force requires that it be sent in a r4easonable time ahead of its intended publication, in the original test as well as eventual translations, in paper form and with electronic support, to the Secretariat of State, which, after careful review of its contents, will take care of distributing it to the Holy See's communications media. [What, without even the courtesy of showing it to the Pope for his approval and comments???? Under the circumstances, I question even the disclosure of this internal circular which seems to be telling the world, in effect, that some documents made public under the Pope's signature may not even have been seen by him at all! This is perhaps the most distressing aspect of this episode, and I almost find it a disservice by Magister to have done this. Some imbecilities are best kept hidden, not made a public spectacle!]

Your Eminence/Excellency will understand that such a procedure is intended primarily to defend the integrity of the Petrine Magisterium that could be harmed by the circulation of texts that have not been reviewed or are unduly disclosed before the embargo is lifted on their publication.

As I thank Your Eminence/Excellency in advance for the attention you will give to this subject, I take the occasion to confirm my deference to Your Most Reverend Eminence/Excellency

Most devotedly in the Lord,

+ ANGELO BECCIU, Sostituto


TO THE HEADS OF DICASTERIES
At their Respective Headquarters
VATICAN CITY


With regard to what www.chiesa earlier wrote about this, it must be noted that the obligation for documents to have prior review by the Secretariat of State refers exclusively to texts which are published with the Pope's signature, and not to those which are signed only by the officials of any of the Curial offices.

Therefore, strictly speaking, the circular could not have referred to the Note from the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace (PCJP) which was presented at the Vatican Press Office and is entitled "For a reform of the international financial system in the perspective of a public authority with universal competence'. The Note was not signed by Benedict XVI but only by the officials of PCJP. [Magister is being less than forthright here. He could have directly said "...as I wrongly wrote in my Nov. 14 article". It took John Thavis of CNS and VATICAN INSIDER, giving a chance for PCJP's Cardinal Turkson to speak out, to make that clear shortly after Magister's article came out. I am disappointed that after waiting so long to react to the Thavis and Insider correction, he decided after all to gloss over his error.]

It is plausible however - as the USCCB news agency CNS wrote on November 17 - that the circular in question was prompted by a deviance in connection with Benedict XVI's Message for the 98th World Day for Migrants and Refugees which was presented at the Vatican Press Office on October 18.

In fact, major excerpts of the document were reported by Vatican Information Service - the Holy See's online news agency - five days before the scheduled publication date.

This does not rule out that at the 'summit' held in the Secretariat of State on November 4 to prevent similar incidents from recurring, the PCJP Note autonomously published by that Council was also discussed, which was the subject of much criticism within the Vatican and outside it after it was published. [Yeah, but it does not justify claiming that the circular was prompted by the PCJP Note, as Magister did!]

Thus, the authoritative intervention of the Deputy Secretary of State, who in the chain of command at the Vatican, comes right after the Pope and Cardinal Bertone.

I must say no one comes out well in this entire episode! And the worst part is they all make it look as if it's OK for someone in the Secretariat of State - quite likely some anonymous subordinate - to pass judgment on some documents published with the Pope's signature with which Benedict XVI may personally have had nothing to do at all! IMHO, that is a terrible disservice to the Pope.

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Tuesday, November 29, First Week of Advent


The site of St. Patrick's Church in Washington, DC, used to carry an admirable compendium of all the saints and blesseds venerated by the Church for every day of the year, with substantial biographies or known accounts based on legend and hagiography and good illustrations, but they discontinued the service. In the past three years, I have relied on the 'Saints of the Day' calendar published by American Catholic.org - which, I assume, reports on the liturgical feast days for the year prescribed in the United States - for the designated 'saint of the day' in the current year, but it does not have anyone listed for November 29 this year (nor last year), although other calendars mention the two Saints Saturninus, bishops of Carthage and Toulouse, respectively, who were martyred in the 4th century,. Obviously, the saints and blesseds who somehow never make it to the calendar of liturgical feasts observed throughout the universal Church during the year are nonetheless venerated on their feast day in their countries of origin or where they served most.
Readings for today's Mass:
www.usccb.org/bible/readings/112911.cfm



No events scheduled for the Holy Father today,
nor other bulletins from the Vatican Press Office.




- According to the Belgian media today, a Brussels court has ruled that the raid and search ordered by a local judge on the Archbishop's Palace and the residence of Cardinal Godfreed Danneels, former Archbishop of Brussels, on June 24, 2010, were illegal, and that all materials seized should be returned forthwith. However, those conducted in this connection in the State Archives of Belgium itself and in the Cathedral of St. Rombaut in Mechlen (where the tombs of two archbishops were opened and searched) were considered legal. The raids were carried out in connection with inquiries into alleged abuses committed by priests against minors, at the recommendation of the former head of Belgium's Commission on Sexual Abuse. The Vatican promptly protested the raids at the time, especially since while the raids were being done, the members of Belgium's conference of bishops who were meeting at the Archbishop's Palace, were sequestered for several hours.


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Cardinal Burke's view from the Vatican:
'Benedict XVI a tremendous gift to the Church'

by DAVID KERR


Rome, Italy, Nov 28, 2011 (CNA/EWTN News).- Cardinal Raymond Leo Burke, one of the Catholic Church's top U.S.-born clerics, is marking the first anniversary of his November 2010 elevation to the Sacred College of Cardinals.

"Well, it’s been a very fast-moving year," Cardinal Burke told CNA in his Roman apartment just yards from the Vatican, where he serves as head of the Church's highest court.

"But, it’s been a very good year, I'd have to say. And I’ve certainly come to understand more fully what it is to give this service to the Holy Father and hope that I am doing it better."

About Benedict XVI, he said: "I hope that the present Holy Father lives a long time. He’s a tremendous gift to the Church and that’s my great prayer – that the Lord gives him many more years."

The College of Cardinals consists of the men considered the Pope’s closest aides, giving counsel and assistance to the pontiff when needed. It currently has under 200 members, with only 115, those under age 80, eligible to elect a future Pope.

Cardinal Burke, 63, has had a remarkable journey from America's rural Midwest—where he grew up as the youngest of six children—to his current post as Prefect of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura.

"I never dreamed of it, to be honest with you," he said, reflecting on God's guidance of his path to the Vatican.

"I grew up, thanks be to God, in a very good Catholic home," he recalled. "We were small dairy farmers in Wisconsin, which was a very common situation in that part of the world. But I see how God has been at work all along, and I marvel at it."

While much has changed since those days, his life as a cardinal is "not unrelated to what my parents were trying to teach me from the time I was little."

"And, the truth of the matter is that the older I get, the more I appreciate those first lessons that were taught to me, that early formation in the faith."

After 14 years leading dioceses in Wisconsin and Missouri, Cardinal Burke was chosen in 2008 to head the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura, often called the "Supreme Court" of the Catholic Church.

"Whenever I've done whatever's been asked of me," he said, "I’ve always found a happiness in my work as a priest, and I continue to find that today."

A patriot with an obvious love for the United States, the Rome-based cardinal remains invested in the struggle for his country's culture.

"It is a war," he stated, describing the battle lines between "a culture of secularization which is quite strong in our nation," and "the Christian culture which has marked the life of the United States strongly during the first 200 years of its history."

He says it is "critical at this time that Christians stand up for the natural moral law," especially in defense of life and the family.

"If Christians do not stand strong, give a strong witness and insist on what is right and good for us both as and individuals and society," he warned, "this secularization will in fact predominate and it will destroy us."

Cardinal Burke favors realism over pessimism, and believes "things are getting better" in America, particularly among the young.

"I think that sometimes the young people understand much better the bankruptcy of a totally secularized culture because they’ve grown up with it," he observed.

Many youth "have seen their families broken" and "have been exposed to all the evils of pornography," leading them to conclude that the secularization project "is going nowhere and that it will destroy them" if left unchecked.

But the cardinal also thinks persecution may be looming for the U.S. Church.

"Yes, I think we’re well on the way to it," he said, pointing to areas of social outreach - such as adoption and foster care - where the Church has had to withdraw rather than compromise its principles.

This trend could reach a point where the Church, "even by announcing her own teaching," is accused of "engaging in illegal activity, for instance, in its teaching on human sexuality."

Asked if he could envision U.S. Catholics ever being arrested for preaching their faith, he replied: "I can see it happening, yes."

The Vatican's top judge takes a dim view of self-professed Catholic politicians who oppose the Church on key moral issues.

Among them is U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, currently seeking to force most of the country's employers, including Catholic institutions, to cover contraception and sterilization in employee health plans.

"To the degree to which (Sebelius) proclaims herself to be a practicing Catholic, she is very wrong," said Cardinal Burke. He sees it as "simply incomprehensible" for a Catholic to "support the kind of measures that she is supporting."

The cardinal says America’s 2012 election will be "very significant."

Catholics, he said, "have a serious duty to vote and to try and find the best candidate to elect." And some "good and solid, right-thinking individuals" may even be called to run for public office themselves.

Above all, the cardinal hopes for a "new evangelization" of the United States - starting with faithful families, strong religious education, and reverent liturgical worship.

The family, he noted, is where a child "first learns the truths of the faith, first prayers, first practices his or her life in Christ." But the Mass itself is the "source of our solid teaching, of our solid witness," and also "the most beautiful and fullest expression we give to that teaching."

Cardinal Burke is also responsible for overseeing the Church's liturgy as a member of the Vatican's Congregation for Divine Worship.

He is grateful to Blessed John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI for giving the Church "a font of solid direction" regarding worship, based on the Second Vatican Council's vision of a "God-centered liturgy and not a man-centered liturgy."

That intention was not always realized, he said, since the council's call for liturgical reform coincided with a "cultural revolution."

Many congregations lost their "fundamental sense that the liturgy is Jesus Christ himself acting, God himself acting in our midst to sanctify us."

Cardinal Burke said greater access to the traditional Latin Mass, now know as the "extraordinary form" of the Roman rite, has helped correct the problem.

"The celebration of the Mass in the extraordinary form is now less and less contested," he noted, "and people are seeing the great beauty of the rite as it was celebrated practically since the time if Pope Gregory the Great" in the sixth century.

Many Catholics now see that the Church's "ordinary form" of Mass, celebrated in modern languages, "could be enriched by elements of that long tradition."

In time, Cardinal Burke expects the Western Church's ancient and modern forms of Mass to be combined in one normative rite, a move he suggests the Pope also favors.

"It seems to me that is what he has in mind is that this mutual enrichment would seem to naturally produce a new form of the Roman rite – the 'reform of the reform,' if we may – all of which I would welcome and look forward to its advent."

Cardinal Burke's main role, however, is to uphold the Church's legal system. He describes canon law as "the fundamental discipline which makes possible our life in the Church," since it is "not a society of angels" but a communion of men and women who require norms for living.

He acknowledges that canon law fell out of fashion beginning in the late 1960s, during a period where many Catholics bristled at the notion of such rules.

"The whole euphoria that set in within society – and in the Church itself – was that this was the age of freedom, the age of love, and so, in those years nobody talked anymore about ‘sin,’ this was considered to be negative talk."

But since "human nature didn’t actually change," the "lack of attention to discipline and to law" produced a great deal of "bad fruit."

One consequence, the cardinal believes, was the mishandling of clerical abuse accusations.

"Absolutely, there’s no question in my mind about that," said Cardinal Burke. He pointed out that both the 1917 and 1983 canon law codes put "a discipline in place" to confront an "evil" the Church had faced before.

"All of that was in place," he reflected, "but, first of all, it wasn’t known in the sense that people were not studying the law, were not paying attention to it, and so, if it wasn’t known or studied then it wasn’t being applied."

Historically, he believes, it was an "unfortunate coincidence" that a cultural upheaval accompanied Blessed Pope John XXIII’s call for a reform of canon law.

"This added to the notion that we didn’t really have a law anymore – then the attitude developed that we don’t need it."

Bl. John Paul II resolved the situation after his election in 1978, implementing a new code of law by 1983. Cardinal Burke remains "deeply grateful" for the late Pope's action.

Since he is a cardinal, he could someday cast his vote for a future Pope. But could divine providence ever call the son of a Midwestern farming family to the papacy himself?

"Oh, I don’t believe so," Cardinal Burke laughed. "I hope that the present Holy Father lives a long time. He’s a tremendous gift to the Church and that’s my great prayer – that the Lord gives him many more years."
[Modificato da TERESA BENEDETTA 01/12/2011 01:46]
30/11/2011 06:35
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FSSPX head says he will shortly submit
proposed changes to Vatican's 'doctrinal preamble'

By John Thavis


VATICAN CITY, Nov. 29 (CNS) -- The head of the traditionalist Society of St. Pius X said a "doctrinal preamble" presented by the Vatican needs changes before it can be accepted as the basis for the group's reconciliation.

The statement by Bishop Bernard Fellay, superior of the society, appeared to hold out hope for further discussions with the Vatican, but it was unclear whether the Vatican would be willing to revisit the text.

"It is true that this doctrinal preamble cannot receive our endorsement, although leeway has been allowed for a 'legitimate discussion' about certain points of the (Second Vatican) Council. What is the extent of this leeway?" Bishop Fellay said in an interview posted on the society's website Nov. 29.

In September, when Bishop Fellay was handed the preamble, the Vatican did not publish the document but said it "states some doctrinal principles and criteria for the interpretation of Catholic doctrine necessary to guarantee fidelity" to the formal teaching of the church.

In his interview, however, Bishop Fellay said the preamble was "a document which can be clarified and modified, as the accompanying note points out. It is not a definitive text."

"The proposal that I will make in the next few days to the Roman authorities, and their response to it, will enable us to evaluate our remaining options. And whatever the result of these talks may be, the final document that will have been accepted or rejected will be made public," he said.

Asked whether the past two years of talks with the Vatican have been pointless, Bishop Fellay said they have allowed the society to present their objections to the doctrinal difficulties caused by Vatican II "and consequently show why adherence to the council is problematic. This is an essential first step."

"In Rome itself, the evolving interpretations given to religious liberty, the modifications that have been made on this subject in the Catechism of the Catholic Church and in the Compendium of it, the corrections that are currently being studied for the Code of Canon Law ... all this shows the difficulties that you run into when you try to abide by the conciliar documents at all costs," Bishop Fellay said.

"From our perspective, this nicely shows the impossibility of adhering in a stable way to a doctrine in motion," he added.

The eventual "canonical solution" envisioned by the Vatican for the society was expected to take the form of a personal prelature, or a Church jurisdiction without geographical boundaries. Bishop Fellay said such an arrangement would be pointless unless the doctrinal differences were resolved.


Andrea Tornielli provides more detail in his account for VATICAN INSIDER, translated here (I am omitting his first two pragraphs in which he quotes the first two statements from Fellay quoted by Thavis in his article. he continues:

The doctrinal preamble, one learns from Fellay's published interview, was accompanied by a note which states that it would be possible for the Lefebvrians to seek clarifications [about Vatican II] for the purpose of proposing eventual modifications.

But it is known that the authorities of Ecclesia Dei - Cardinal William Levada who is president of the CDF, and Mons. Guido Pozzo, secretary-general of Ecclesia Dei - maintain that such modifications cannot be 'substantial'.

The Preamble calls on the FSSPX to make the Profession of Faith required of very person who takes on an ecclesiastical function. It is a profession of faith that calls for agreement on three levels - revealed truth, dogmatic declarations, and the ordinary Magisterium.

NB: [My addendum] Here is the text of the "Profession of Faith on assuming an office to be exercised in the name of the Church" as required by the CDF since ....:

I, N., with firm faith believe and profess everything that is contained in the Symbol of faith: namely:

I believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is seen and unseen. I believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten not made, one in Being with the Father. Through him all things were made. For us men and for our salvation, he came down from heaven: by the power of the Holy Spirit he became incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and became man. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried. On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures; he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son. With the Father and the Son he is worshiped and glorified. He has spoken through the Prophets. I believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church. I acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. I look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.

With firm faith, I also believe everything contained in the Word of God, whether written or handed down in Tradition, which the Church, either by a solemn judgement or by the ordinary and universal Magisterium, sets forth to be believed as divinely revealed.

I also firmly accept and hold each and everything definitively proposed by the Church regarding teaching on faith and morals.

Moreover, I adhere with religious submission of will and intellect to the teachings which either the Roman pontiff or the College of Bishops enunciate when they exercise their authentic Magisterium, even if they do not intend to proclaim these teachings by a definitive act.

The Holy See has therefore not excluded the possibility of keeping an open discussion on some aspects of Vatican II that the Lefebvrians continue to find problematic. [That's an understatement!]

But the way to a possible agreement with the FSSPX still appears to be uphill, confirming the rumors in the past weeks about strong internal opposition within the society against reconciling with Rome at all.

Fellay is asked in the interview: "Since this document is not quite clear, would it not have been more simple to just tell the Vatican that it was unacceptable?"

Fellay replies: "It would have been simpler, but not honest. Since the accompanying note anticipates the possibility [of keepimg discussions open] clearly, it seems necessary to ask them for such modifications rather than simply saying No a priori. And this should not prejudice the response we shall give".

Fellay points out that the only unchangeable doctrine is the Creed, which is the profession of Catholic faith, whereas Vatican II was pastoral Council "which did not define dogmas and did not add new articles of faith, such as 'I believe in religious freedom, in ecumenism, in collegiality'. Does that mean that the Creed itself does not suffice these days to define what is Catholic? Does it not express the entire Catholic faith?"

Fellay appears to be saying that it is the Creed - not the doctrinal preamble with the Profession of Faith - is the only common text with which the FSSPX would be disposed to agree. [But that is patently untenable = because that would mean allowing the FSSPX to selectively repudiate the teaching of the Popes about specifics of the faith that they may disagree with, but who are they to say what Magisterium is acceptable and what not?]

It is obvious that the interview given by Fellay does not yet represent the response. Knowing very well how much and who within the FSSPX are dead set against any agreement with Rome, Fellay will certainly propose substantial changes. When he says "If the actual text 'cannot receive our approval', it is clear that the FSSPX is not just disputing commas and nuances but substantial points.

And so this game is still wide open, and one wonders how the Holy See will respond to the FSSPX counter-proposal. It is unlikely that the Vatican reaction will simply depend on what Levada and Pozzo think, but on what Benedict XVI himself will decide.]
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From left: Matrimony, Roger van der Weyden, 1445; Marriage of Mary and Joseph, Raphael, 1504; Matrimony, Guercino, 1649; and another popular painting of the Marriage of Mary and Joseph.

The pastoral approach to marriage
should be founded on truth

Concerning some objections to the Church’s teaching on the reception
of Holy Communion by divorced and remarried members of the faithful

by CARDINAL JOSEPH RATZINGER
Preface to CDF 'Documenti e Studi' No. 17, 1998
Online English translation from
the 11/30/11 issue of



Editor's Note: In 1998, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, introduced the volume entitled '*On the Pastoral Care of the Divorced and Remarried'*, published by the Libreria Editrice Vaticana in the CDF series "Documenti e Studi" (No.17). Because of current interest in the topic and the article's breadth of perspective, we reproduce below the third part along with the addition of three notes. This text is available on the OR website also Italian, French, German, English Portuguese and Spanish.

The Letter of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith of 14 September 1994 concerning the reception of Holy Communion by divorced and remarried members of the faithful was met with a very lively response across wide sections of the Church. Along with many positive reactions, more than a few critical voices were also heard. The fundamental objections against the teaching and practice of the Church are outlined below in simplified form.

Several of the more significant objections – principally, the reference to the supposedly more flexible practice of the Church Fathers which would be the inspiration for the practice of the Eastern Churches separated from Rome, as well as the allusion to the traditional principles of epicheia and of aequitas canonica – were studied in-depth by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Articles by Professors Pelland, Marcuzzi and Rodriguez Luñoz, among others, were developed in the course of this study. The main conclusions of the research, which suggest the direction of an answer to the objections, will be briefly summarized here.

Some maintain that several passages of the New Testament suggest that the words of Jesus on the indissolubility of marriage allow for a flexible application and cannot be classified in a strictly legal sense.

Several exegetes point out critically that with regard to the indissolubility of marriage, the Magisterium cites almost exclusively one pericope – namely, Mk. 10:11-12 ­– and does not sufficiently take into account other passages from the Gospel of Matthew and the First Letter to Corinthians. They claim that these biblical passages speak of a certain exception to the Lord’s words about the indissolubility of marriage, notably in the case of porneia (Mt. 5:32; 19:9) and in the case of separation because of the faith (1 Cor. 7:12-16). They hold that these texts should be an indication that, already in apostolic times, Christians in difficult situations had known a flexible application of the words of Jesus.

In replying to this objection, one notes that magisterial documents do not intend to present the biblical foundations of the teachings on marriage in a complete and exhaustive way. They entrust this important task to competent experts.

The Magisterium emphasizes, however, that the teaching of the Church on the indissolubility of marriage is faithful to the words of Jesus. Jesus clearly identifies the Old Testament practice of divorce as a consequence of the hardness of the human heart.

He refers – over and above the law ­– to the beginning of creation, to the will of the Creator, and summarizes his teaching with the words: “Therefore what God has joined together, no human being must separate,” (Mk. 10:9).

With the coming of the Redeemer, marriage is therefore restored to its original form intended at creation and is wrested away from human arbitrariness – above all from the whim of the husband, since for wives there really was no possibility of divorce.

Jesus’s words on the indissolubility of marriage overcome the old order of the law with the new order of faith and grace. Only in this way can marriage fully become a God-given vocation to love and human dignity and the sign of the unconditional covenant of divine love, i.e., a sacrament (cf. Eph. 5:32).

The possibility of separation, which Paul discusses in 1 Cor. 7, regards marriage between a Christian and a non-baptized person. Later theological reflection has clarified that only marriages between baptized persons are a sacrament in the strict sense of the word, and that absolute indissolubility holds only for those marriages falling within the scope of Christian faith.

So-called “natural marriage” has its dignity from the order of creation and is therefore oriented toward indissolubility, but it can be dissolved under certain circumstances because of a higher good – which in this case is faith.

This is how systematic theology correctly classified St. Paul’s reference as the privilegium paulinum, that is, the possibility of dissolving a non-sacramental marriage for the good of the faith. The indissolubility of a truly sacramental marriage remains safeguarded; it is not therefore an exception to the word of the Lord. We will come back to this later.

Extensive literature exists regarding the correct understanding of the porneia clauses, with many differing and even conflicting hypotheses. There is no unanimity among exegetes on this point. Many maintain that it refers to invalid marital unions, not to an exception to the indissolubility of marriage. In any case, the Church cannot construct her doctrine and praxis on uncertain exegetical hypotheses. She must adhere to the clear teaching of Christ.

Others object that the patristic tradition leaves room for a more varied praxis, which would be more equitable in difficult situations; furthermore, the Catholic Church could learn from the principle of “economy” employed by Eastern Churches separated from Rome.

It is claimed that the current Magisterium relies on only one strand of the patristic tradition, and not on the whole legacy of the ancient Church. Although the Fathers clearly held fast to the doctrinal principle of the indissolubility of marriage, some of them tolerated a certain flexibility on the pastoral level with regard to difficult individual cases.

On this basis Eastern Churches separated from Rome later developed alongside the principle of akribia, fidelity to revealed truth, that of oikonomia, benevolent leniency in difficult situations.

Without renouncing the doctrine of the indissolubility of marriage, in some cases they permit a second and even a third marriage, which is distinct, however, from the sacramental first marriage and is marked by a penitential character.

Some say that this practice has never been explicitly condemned by the Catholic Church. They claim that the 1980 Synod of Bishops proposed to study this tradition thoroughly, in order to allow the mercy of God to be more resplendent.

Father Pelland’s study points out the direction in which the answers to these questions can be sought. Naturally, for the interpretation of individual patristic texts, the work of historians is necessary. Because of the difficult textual issues involved, controversies will not be lacking in the future. Theologically, one must affirm the following:

a. There exists a clear consensus among the Fathers regarding the indissolubility of marriage. Since it derives from the will of the Lord, the Church has no authority over it. For this reason, from the outset Christian marriage was distinct from marriage in Roman society, even though in the first centuries there did not yet exist any canonical system. The Church in the time of the Fathers clearly excluded divorce and remarriage, precisely out of faithful obedience to the New Testament.

b. In the Church at the time of the Fathers, divorced and remarried members of the faithful were never officially admitted to Holy Communion after a time of penance. It is true, however, that the Church did not always rigorously revoke concessions in certain territories, even when they were identified as not in agreement with her doctrine and discipline. It also seems true that individual Fathers, Leo the Great being among them, sought pastoral solutions for rare borderline cases.

c. This led to two opposing developments:

- In the Imperial Church after Constantine, with the ever stronger interplay between Church and State, a greater flexibility and readiness for compromise in difficult marital situations was sought.

Up until the Gregorian reform, a similar tendency was present in Gallic and Germanic lands. In the Eastern churches separated from Rome, this development progressed farther in the second millennium and led to an increasingly more liberal praxis.

Today in some of these churches there are numerous grounds for divorce, even a theology of divorce, which is in no way compatible with Jesus’ words regarding the indissolubility of marriage. Without fail, this problem must be addressed in ecumenical dialogue.

- In the West, on account of the Gregorian reform, the original concept of the Church Fathers was recovered. This development came to its conclusion at the Council of Trent and was once again expressed as a doctrine of the Church at the Second Vatican Council.

On doctrinal grounds, the praxis of the Eastern churches separated from Rome cannot be taken up by the Catholic Church, as it is the result of a complex historical process, an increasingly liberal – and thus more and more removed from the words of the Lord – interpretation of several obscure patristic texts which were significantly influenced by civil law.

Furthermore, the claim is incorrect that the Church simply tolerated such a praxis. Admittedly, the Council of Trent did not pronounce any explicit condemnation.

The medieval canonists, however, consistently spoke of the praxis as improper. Furthermore, there is evidence that groups of Orthodox believers who became Catholic had to sign a profession of faith with an explicit reference to the impossibility of a second marriage.

Many propose to allow exceptions to the Church’s norm on the basis of the traditional principles of epikeia and aequitas canonica.

Certain marriage cases, it is said, cannot be handled in the external forum. Some claim that the Church should not simply rely on juridical norms, but on the contrary ought to respect and tolerate the conscience of the individual.

They say that theological notions of epikeia and aequitas canonica could serve to justify, from moral theology as well as juridically, a decision of conscience at variance from the general norm. Especially regarding the question of receiving the sacraments, they claim that the Church should take some steps forward and not just issue prohibitions to the faithful.

The contributions made by Professor Marcuzzi and Professor Rodríguez Luño throw light on his complex problem. To this end, there are three areas of inquiry which clearly need to be distinguished from each other:

a. Epikeia and aequitas canonica exist in the sphere of human and purely ecclesiastical norms of great significance, but cannot be applied to those norms over which the Church has no discretionary authority.

The indissoluble nature of marriage is one of these norms which goes back to Christ Himself and is thus identified as a norm of divine law. The Church cannot sanction pastoral practices - for example, sacramental pastoral practices - which contradict the clear instruction of the Lord.

In other words, if the prior marriage of two divorced and remarried members of the faithful was valid, under no circumstances can their new union be considered lawful and therefore reception of the sacraments is intrinsically impossible. The conscience of the individual is bound to this norm without exception.3

b. However the Church has the authority to clarify those conditions which must be fulfilled for a marriage to be considered indissoluble according to the sense of Jesus' teaching.

In line with the Pauline assertion in 1 Cor. 7, she established that only two baptized Christians can enter into a sacramental marriage. She developed the legal concept of the Pauline privilege and the Petrine privilege.

With reference to the porneia clauses in Matthew and in Acts 15:20, the impediments to marriage were established. Furthermore, grounds for the nullity of marriage were identified with ever greater clarity, and the procedural system was developed in greater detail. All of this contributed to delineating and articulating more precisely the concept of the indissolubility of marriage.

One can say that, in this way, the Western Church also made allowance for the principle of oikonomia, but without touching the indissolubility of marriage as such. The further juridical development of the 1983 Code of Canon Law was in this same direction, granting probative force to the declarations of the parties. Therefore, according to experts in this area, it seems that cases in which an invalid marriage cannot be shown to be such by the procedural are practically excluded.

Since marriage has a fundamental public ecclesial character and the axiom applies that nemo iudex in propria causa (no one is judge in his own case), marital cases must be resolved in the external forum. If divorced and remarried members of the faithful believe that their prior marriage was invalid, they are thereby obligated to appeal to the competent marriage tribunal so that the question will be examined objectively and under all available juridical possibilities.

c. Admittedly, it cannot be excluded that mistakes occur in marriage cases. In some parts of the Church, well-functioning marriage tribunals still do not exist. Occasionally, such cases last an excessive amount of time. Once in a while they conclude with questionable decisions.

Here it seems that the application of epikeia in the internal forum is not automatically excluded from the outset. This is implied in the 1994 letter of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, in which it was stated that new canonical ways of demonstrating nullity should exclude “as far as possible” every divergence from the truth verifiable in the judicial process (cf. No. 9).

Some theologians are of the opinion that the faithful ought to adhere strictly even in the internal forum to juridical decisions which they believe to be false. Others maintain that exceptions are possible here in the internal forum, because the juridical forum does not deal with norms of divine law, but rather with norms of ecclesiastical law. This question, however, demands further study and clarification.

Admittedly, the conditions for asserting an exception would need to be clarified very precisely, in order to avoid arbitrariness and to safeguard the public character of marriage, removing it from subjective decisions.

4. Some accuse the current Magisterium of reversing the doctrinal development of the Council and of substituting a pre-conciliar view of marriage.

Some theologians claim that at the new magisterial documents having to do with questions of marriage are based on a naturalistic, legalistic concept of marriage. Attention is given to the contract between the spouses and to the ius in corpus.

It is claimed that the Council overturned this static understanding and described marriage in a more personalistic way as a covenant of love and life. Thus it would have opened up possibilities for resolving difficult situations more humanely.

Thinking further along this line, some scholars pose the question of whether or not one could speak of the death of the marriage, if the personal bond of love between the spouses no longer exists. Others resurrect the old question of whether or not the Pope would have the capability of dissolving marriage in such cases.

Yet anyone who attentively reads the more recent statements of the Church will note that their central assertions are based on Gaudium et spes and that they further develop the teaching contained therein in a thoroughly personalist line, in the direction indicated by the Council.

However, it is inappropriate to set up a contradiction between the personalist and juridical views of marriage. The Council did not break with the traditional concept of marriage, but on the contrary developed it further.

When, for example, it is continually pointed out that the Council substituted the broader and theologically more profound concept of covenant for the strictly legal concept of contract, one must not forget that within covenant, the element of contract is also contained and indeed placed within a broader perspective.

The fact that marriage reaches well beyond the purely juridical realm into the depths of humanity and into the mystery of the divine, has always been indicated by the word “sacrament,” although often it has not been pondered with the same clarity which the Council gave to these aspects.

Law is not everything, but it is an indispensable part, one dimension of the whole. Marriage without a juridical dimension which integrates it into the whole fabric of society and the Church simply does not exist. If the post-Conciliar revision of canon law included the realm of marriage, this is not a betrayal of the Council, but the implementation of its mandate.

If the Church were to accept the theory that a marriage is dead when the two spouses no longer love one another, then she would thereby sanction divorce and would uphold the indissolubility of marriage only in word, and no longer in fact.

Therefore, the opinion that the Pope could potentially dissolve a consummated sacramental marriage, which has been irrevocably broken, must be considered erroneous. Such a marriage cannot be dissolved by anyone. At their wedding, the spouses promise to be faithful to each other until death.

Further study is required, however, concerning the question of whether non-believing Christians – baptized persons who never or who no longer believe in God – can truly enter into a sacramental marriage.

In other words, it needs to be clarified whether every marriage between two baptized persons is ipso facto a sacramental marriage. In fact, the Code states that only a “valid” marriage between baptized persons is at the same time a sacrament (cf. CIC, can. 1055, § 2).

Faith belongs to the essence of the sacrament; what remains to be clarified is the juridical question of what evidence of the “absence of faith” would have as a consequence that the sacrament does not come into being.4

5. Many argue that the position of the Church on the question of divorced and remarried faithful is overly legalistic and not pastoral.

A series of critical objections against the doctrine and praxis of the Church pertain to questions of a pastoral nature. Some say, for example, that the language used in the ecclesial documents is too legalistic, that the rigidity of law prevails over an understanding of dramatic human situations.

They claim that the human person of today is no longer able to understand such language, that Jesus would have had an open ear for the needs of people, particularly for those on the margins of society. They say that the Church, on the other hand, presents herself like a judge who excludes wounded people from the sacraments and from certain public responsibilities.

One can readily admit that the Magisterium’s manner of expression does not seem very easy to understand at times. It needs to be translated by preachers and catechists into a language which relates to people and to their respective cultural environments. The essential content of the Church’s teaching, however, must be upheld in this process. It must not be watered down on allegedly pastoral grounds, because it communicates the revealed truth.

Certainly, it is difficult to make the demands of the Gospel understandable to secularized people. But this pastoral difficulty must not lead to compromises with the truth. In his Encyclical Veritatis splendor, John Paul II clearly rejected so-called pastoral solutions which stand in opposition to the statements of the Magisterium (cf. ibid. 56).

Furthermore, concerning the position of the Magisterium as regards the question of divorced and remarried members of the faithful, it must be stressed that the more recent documents of the Church bring together the demands of truth with those of love in a very balanced way.

If at times in the past, love shone forth too little in the explanation of the truth, so today the danger is great that in the name of love, truth is either to be silenced or compromised. Assuredly, the word of truth can be painful and uncomfortable. But it is the way to holiness, to peace, and to inner freedom.

A pastoral approach which truly wants to help the people concerned must always be grounded in the truth. In the end, only the truth can be pastoral. “Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (Jn. 8:32).

Notes:

1 This text reproduces the third part of Cardinal Ratzinger’s Introduction to Volume 17 of the series produced by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, entitled “Documenti e Studi”, On the Pastoral Care of the Divorced and Remarried, LEV, Vatican City 1998, pp. 20-29. Footnotes have been added.

2 Cf. Angel Rodríguez Luño, L’epicheia nella cura pastorale dei fedeli divorziati risposati, ibid., pp. 75-87; Piero Giorgio Marcuzzi, S.D.B., Applicazione di "aequitas et epikeia" ai contenuti della Lettera della Congregazione per la Dottrina della Fede del 14 settembre 1994, ibid., pp. 88-98; Gilles Pelland, S.J., La pratica della Chiesa antica relativa ai fedeli divorziati risposati, ibid., pp. 99-131.

3 On this matter the norm referred to by John Paul II in his Apostolic Letter Familiaris consortio, no. 84, is quite valuable: “Reconciliation in the sacrament of Penance which would open the way to the Eucharist, can only be granted to those who, repenting of having broken the sign of the Covenant and of fidelity to Christ, are sincerely ready to undertake a way of life that is no longer in contradiction to the indissolubility of marriage. This means, in practice, that when, for serious reasons, such as for example the children's upbringing, a man and a woman cannot satisfy the obligation to separate, they ‘take on themselves the duty to live in complete continence, that is, by abstinence from the acts proper to married couples.’” See also the Apostolic Letter of Benedict XVI, Sacramentum caritatis, n. 29.

4 During the meeting with clergy in the Diocese of Aosta, which took place 25 July 2005, Pope Benedict XVI spoke of this difficult question: “ those who were married in the Church for the sake of tradition but were not truly believers, and who later find themselves in a new and invalid marriage and subsequently convert, discover faith and feel excluded from the Sacrament, are in a particularly painful situation. This really is a cause of great suffering and when I was Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, I invited various Bishops’ Conferences and experts to study this problem: a sacrament celebrated without faith. Whether, in fact, a moment of invalidity could be discovered here because the Sacrament was found to be lacking a fundamental dimension, I do not dare to say. I personally thought so, but from the discussions we had I realized that it is a highly complex problem and ought to be studied further. But given these people's painful plight, it must be studied further.”


[Modificato da TERESA BENEDETTA 01/12/2011 15:02]
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