Thanks to Beatrice, who has opened a new subsite for 2010 on her
I realize what I have missed that needs to be shared from the French media - and once again it is La Croix's new permanent correspondent in Rome, whose December 23 'Ecce homo' about Benedict XVI I translated and posted on Page 54 of this thread... Finally, someone from MSM who gives the Holy Father due credit for how he literally 'bounced back' from his Christmas Eve fall.
The Pope's path
by Frédéric Mounier
Special Correspondent in Rome
Translated from
Dec. 27, 2009
They have been saying he is tired. And earlier, the media made a fuss about the new schedule for Christmas Eve Mass at the Vatican, which began at 10 p.m.instead of midnight.
Instead, one must remark that Benedict XVI on that occasion showed a resounding example not merely of his physical form but also his spiritual state.
Pulled down to the floor by a deranged person, under the eyes of tens of millions of TV viewers around the world, he was back on his feet immediately. And as though immune from the circumstances that could have been tragic, he went on calmly towards the altar of St. Peter's Basilica.
Up front, cardinals and diplomats who were seated in the front rows, suspected nothing of what had happened as they watched him firmly ascend the steps to the Pope's altar.
Then, above all, he read irreproachably a homily that was very personal. The theologian Pope used simple words to call on all those who have been baptized to emerge from their daydreaming and awaken to the Essential, with humility - not to let themselves be crushed by day-to-day emergencies in order to dedicate time to God and to one's neighbor.
Later, the Vatican said firmly: "The Pope is a pastor. He must remain close to the people. There will not be a wall between him and the faithful," in a prompt statement from Fr. Federico Lombardi, Vatican press director.
Since the incident, the Pope has kept his schedule. On Christmas Day, at noon, from the central loggia of St. Peter's, Benedict XVI appealed to the world to welcome immigrants, respect human rights, go beyond selfish and technical mentalities, consider mankind as a family, and cultivate the bonds of brotherhood and the common good.
This man, whom people have thought to be physically weak, as well as indifferent to the media, has shown that his strength lies precisely in his distance from the media.
Far from the false urgencies of the media, the seeming weakness of the Gospel and those who seek to bring it throughout the world can be an overwhelming force.
For this, one must accept to be touched - if sometimes at the cost of a fall - in order to go ahead. The path that leads from the modest light of Christmas to the empty tomb of Easter still lies ahead.
And Benedict XI will take this path in stride - his stride.
Earlier, Mounier gave a personal account of the Christmas Eve Mass on his blog on La Croix...
What I saw in St. Peter's
on Christmas Eve
Translated from
by Frederick Mounier
Dec. 25, 2009
There was a moment of uncertainty and uneasy emotion Thursday evening at St. Peter's Basilica.
As the Pope was going down the central aisle at 10 p.m. to celebrate the Christmas Eve Mass, which had been advanced two hours this year, Susanna Maiolo, 25, jumped over the barrier to accost him, seized him by the pallium and dragged him down, causing a crush down the line.
A sudden silence followed by a brouhaha from those who were near the event, in a basilica that was full to overflowing. In the crush, the Pope was pulled down but was helped to his feet immediately without apparent difficulty.
But that was not the case for Cardinal Roger Etchegaray, 87, former president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace
[and John Paul II's special envoy for delicate missions, such as that to Saddam Hussein ebfore the 2003 Iraq war].
After falling down, the French prelate had to be carried out in a stretcher and taken to the Gemelli polyclinic. He did not lose consciousness, but shortly afterwards, doctors diagnosed a fracture of his hip bone.
Susanna Maiolo was taken away by the Vatican police, showing signs of obvious mental disturbance.
The evening had begun at 6 p.m., when Pope Benedict lit a candle for peace at his study window overlooking St. Peter's Square, after the Nativity scene at the foot of the obelisque had been unveiled.
Starting at 9 p.m., one had to fall in line at St. Peter's Square, under an almost springlike shower, in order to enter the Basilica. All available entrance tickets had been given away three months before.
Within, seating protocol had cardinals in red, prelates of all ranks in purple. and the formal tails of the diplomats with their wives in black veils.
On the Square, the huge creche (occupying 300 square meters} had been unveiled - depicting in a realistic way, other than the Nativity scene itself, various Gospel vignettes taken from Matthew and Luke.
As Benedict XVI - with joyous step despite the recent incident - ascended to the papal altar, attention was also drawn to the 14th century wooden sculpture of the Madonna which had been placed in front of the left pillar of Bernini's baldachin since the first Vespers of Advent. The Pope's liturgical office wished to show thereby the Marian aspect of Advent and Christmastide.
Much of the Mass was said in Latin, which according to the Pope's liturgical master, is "the language of the Church, in which the faithful can find its unity and catholicity, beyond the different origins of everyone". That diversity was evident in the congregation. The whole world was at St. Peter's, attentive and even meditative.
A moment of joy marked the start of the Gloria - as all the bells inside and outside St. Peter's rang out to signify joy in the world.
Benedict's homily which he read with much facility and pedagogy, seemed to have flowed naturally from his pen, with simple words to affirm the essence of the Christian faith on this Christmas night.
The clear truth: "The Lord is here" - not the remote God which "through his Creation and with the help of one's mind, can be glimpsed, somehow, from afar. He has come into the world".
If the shepehrds could respond to the message announcing the birth of Jesus, it is "because they were awake". In his usual way, Benedict draws from this a conclusion for today, which would run through his homily:
"We must wake up... We must become truly vigilant... To awaken means to emerge from this particular state of daydreaming and enter common reality within truth which alone can unite us all. The conflicts of the world, our relational difficulties, come from the fact that we are all enclosed in our own interests and in our personal opinions, in our small interior world."
Benedict, a refined musician, uses an appropriate metaphor: "There are persons who say they do not have an ear for religion". It is almost as if the aptitude to perceive God is a gift that some people do not get.
And indeed, our way of thinking and behaving, the mentality of the contemporary world, the spectrum of our experiences are such as to benumb sensitivity to God, to 'deprive us of the musical ear' for him.
And yet, in every soul, overt or hidden, there is a waiting for God, the capacity to meet him. To gain the necessary vigilance, the state of waking for the essential, "we must pray for ourselves and for others, for those who seem to be 'lacking a musical ear' who, nonetheless, have a sincere desire to see God manifest himself".
One finds again the Pope's preoccupation, that he had expressed last a few days earlier to the Roman Curia, for those who are indifferent to God. He knows that "Most men do not consider the question of God a priority - it does not concern us just now."
So he goes back to the shepherds of Bethlehem: "We must learn from them how not to let ourselves be crushed by all the urgencies of daily life. We must learn from them the interior freedom of placing other occupations - as important as they may be - in second place so we can approach God, let him enter into our life and our time. The time dedicated to God is never time lost, with respect to him, and to our neighbor."
Bceause there is a way for everyone. Even if the way 'may surpass our strength'. "God has come down to us. By ourselves, we could never meet him. He has gone down the greater part of the way. And now, he asks of us: Come and see how much I love you."
Finally, Benedict turns back to the essential meaning of Christmas: "The sign of God is his humility... We become similar to God if we let ourselves be shaped by this mark - if we ourselves learn humility, and therefore, true greatness, if we renounce violence and resort only to the weapons of truth and love".
The Mass went on without a hitch. In the Piazza, in front of jumbo screens, several thousand attentive pilgrims took part in their own way. The rain had stopped.
The Pope can go back to his apartment, but the lights will stay on a little bit more on that third floor of the Apostolic Palace.
His next appointment - noon on Christmas Day for his Christmas message to the city and to the world.
Mounieer wrote a second Christmas Day blog on what he saw at St. Peter's on Christmas Day.
What I saw and heard
on St. Peter's Square
on Christmas Day:
the Pope's 'us'
Translated from
by Frederick Mounier
Dec. 25, 2009
Clement weather this morning on St. Peter's Square. It is a pleasant 18 degrees (Centigrade = 64 Fahrenheit) by Bernini's colonnade. The crowds flow in, appreciably more numerous than on an 'ordinary' Christmas.
The incident that had taken place before the Christmas Eve Mass is on their minds. Many came to show their support for Benedict XVI.
Appearing on the central loggia of the Basilica, he himself showed no trace of the previous night's occurence.
And once again, the papal message was distinguished by its personal and simple tone. "The liturgy of the Dawn Mass reminded us that now that the night is gone, the day is here - the light that came from the cave in Bethlehem shines down on us".
This 'us' is at the center of the message. "This 'us' is the Church, the great family of believers in Christ who awaited with hope the new birth of the Savior and who, today, celebrate in this mystery the permanent reality of that event".
And Benedict XVI proceeds to paint a broad fresco, both historical and theological: "At the start, around the crib in Bethlehem, this 'us' was almost invisible to the eyes of men... God loves to kindle circumscribed lights which will later illumine a vast radius. Truth, like Love, which are in that light, enlighten wherever the light is welcomed, to spread afterwards in concentric circles, almost by contact, in the hearts and spirits of those who, opening themselves to its splendor, become in turn sources of light".
True to his method, in going from the past to today, Benedict XVI clarifies the present: "Today, as well, through those who go forth to meet the Baby, God still kindles lights in the night of the world so that men may recognize in Jesus the 'sign' of his saving and liberating presence, and to broaden the 'us' of the believers in Christ to all of mankind".
He evokes the present crisis: "Today, too, for the human family that is profoundly affected by a grave economic crisis, which is first of all moral, and by the painful wounds of wars and conflicts, through its sharing and fidelity to men, the Church repeats with the shepherds: 'Let us go to Bethlehem!' (Lk 2,15) - there we will find our hope."
From the Holy Land to Iraq, passing through Sri Lanka, the Philippines and all of Africa, the Pope reviewed the local situations, appealing tirelessly in behalf of human rights.
Elsewhere, in Europe and North America, the 'us' of the Church urges going "beyond selfish and technocentric mentality to promote the common good and respect weaker peoples, starting with those who are yet unborn".
The Pope defined in simple words what the Church is today, opportunely or not: "In the face of the exodus of those who are emigrating from their countries and who are pushed far afield by hunger, by intolerance or by environmental degradation, the Church is a presence that offers welcome. In short, the Church announces the Gospel of Christ everywhere, despite persecutions, discrimination, attacks and indifference, sometimes hostile, which allows Christians, whoever they are, to share the fate of their Lord and Master".
In the piazza, the atmosphere is peaceful. When the Pope expresses greetings in 65 languages, including Mongolian, each group addressed reacts noisily.
Obviously, this means a lot to these men and women, often having come from afar, migrants and tourists commingled with the natives.
The blessing 'urbi et orbi' binds them all together in hope for justice and peace. And then a huge roar comes from the crowd. Visibly moved, the Pope contemplates them.
The bells of St. Peter peal at full volume. And life goes on...
[Modificato da TERESA BENEDETTA 03/01/2010 02:57]