Washington D.C., Aug 31, 2016 / 06:32 am (CNA/EWTN News).- The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has given $1.25 million in aid to Catholic refugee relief efforts. “Together, as people of faith, we know that refugees desperately need o... Read more
London, England, Aug 31, 2016 / 05:33 am (CNA/EWTN News).- A relative of Princess Diana, Prince William and Prince Harry has moved one step closer to sainthood. According to reports from the British news source Catholic Herald, a 20-year investigation... Read more
Vatican City, Aug 31, 2016 / 04:00 am (CNA/EWTN News).- On Wednesday the Vatican announced Pope Francis’ decision to form a new mega-dicastery merging the Vatican offices for Justice and Peace, Migrants, charity and healthcare. Dedicated to &ldq... Read more
Rome, Italy, Aug 31, 2016 / 03:02 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Mother Teresa didn't try to solve all of the world's problems: she simply lived her life in radical service and love of her neighbor, expecting God to take care of the rest, said her spiritual advisor. “Hindus, Muslims, and Christians alike saw in her a role model. She was popular because she was authentic and she loved people genuinely,” Msgr. Leo Maasburg told CNA. CNA interviewed Msgr. Maasburg in anticipation of Mother Teresa's canonization, which takes place in Rome Sept. 4. During the Q&A, the priest talked about her spiritual philosophy, how she helped society in India, her under-recognized political interest and her “darkness of the soul,” among other things. Msgr. Maasburg, a priest of the Archdiocese of Vienna who was ordained in 1982, met Mother Teresa a few years into his priesthood, remaining her good friend until her death in 1997. Over the years, Msgr. Maasburg joined Mother Teresa and her religious sisters on various travels, including to Rome, India, and Armenia. He also acted as her spiritual advisor, translator, and confessor, and he is the author of Mother Teresa of Calcutta: A Personal Portrait. The full text of the interview follows:CNA: You spent much time with Mother Teresa. Is there something about her that has remained untold?Msgr. Maasburg: There are probably many stories and details that remain yet to be told. Mother Teresa was someone who tried rather to act than to talk. At the same time, she was deeply rooted in prayer. I think this is what made her so effective. Everything she did, she tried to do for and with “the first and only love of her life”: Jesus. And this is probably related to something that we still have to discover and seek to understand more clearly: the spirituality of Mother Teresa. With her canonization, the Church invites us to advance further into the relationship that she entertained with the divine. There is a whole spiritual philosophy to be discovered when we contemplate her life, deeds, and words. I also believe that her political views on society and her messages to the world's elite when receiving the Nobel Peace Prize or addressing the UN General Assembly have not had the attention they would deserve. Mother Teresa was more than just a Catholic nun with a big heart for the poor. She was a missionary and an ambassador for the sanctity of life, never growing weary of advocating for the dignity of the unborn, the sick, and the dying.CNA: Critics of Mother Teresa often address the way she pushed people to accept suffering. Are these critics preposterous? How did she address the various problems of the Indian society?Msgr. Maasburg: Mother Teresa once was confronted with a famous metaphor: Someone asked her if it would not be better to teach the poor how to fish instead of simply feeding them the fish. She agreed, but also answered: 'My poor are too weak to hold the fishing rod. When they recover in my homes I send them to you so that you can teach them how to fish.' Although she was always interested in politics, she never tried to be a politician. She attempted to radically love her neighbor – and expected Jesus to take care of the rest. She addressed the problems of the Indian society by living the gospel among the poor. And misery rooted in unimaginable poverty is, and was, certainly one of the sub-continent's gravest problems. But the cure that she wanted to give the people was not a medical, but a spiritual one: unconditional and tender love and care.CNA: How has India changed thanks to Mother Teresa's work? And how can it still change?Msgr. Maasburg: People called Mother Teresa the Queen of India. This shows how much they loved her. Hindus, Muslims and Christians alike saw in her a role model. She was popular because she was authentic and she loved people genuinely. Her example certainly helped to nurture the understanding in the country that every human being, regardless of their social status, deserves to be treated with respect and has an innate dignity. She was also famous for being a Missionary of Charity and for living her faith openly. Today, some states in India show a tendency to curb religious freedom through anti-conversion laws. Some radical groups try to ignite violence against Christians and Muslims. India can and should be a country where people of different religions respect and live peacefully next to each other.CNA: Mother Teresa also experienced the "darkness of the soul," as many saints before and after her. How can this darkness of the soul be explained? And how can Mother Teresa's experience teach us to get out of a "darkness of the soul?"Msgr. Maasburg: It is not easy to explain the "darkness of the soul" since it is a mystical experience. Sometimes saintly people receive it as a particular gift from God. It allows them to share in the redemption of mankind, which has distanced itself from God through sin. Mother Teresa’s experience will not teach us how “to get out” of this darkness, it can help us to bear it if we are granted the honor to experience it. However, it is certainly not an easy experience. In her letters, Mother Teresa described it as experiencing the absence of God. Remaining faithful in this suffering has a deeply spiritual effect on souls. Read more
Rome, Italy, Aug 31, 2016 / 03:02 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Mother Teresa didn't try to solve all of the world's problems: she simply lived her life in radical service and love of her neighbor, expecting God to take care of the rest, said her spiritual advisor. “Hindus, Muslims, and Christians alike saw in her a role model. She was popular because she was authentic and she loved people genuinely,” Msgr. Leo Maasburg told CNA. CNA interviewed Msgr. Maasburg in anticipation of Mother Teresa's canonization, which takes place in Rome Sept. 4. During the Q&A, the priest talked about her spiritual philosophy, how she helped society in India, her under-recognized political interest and her “darkness of the soul,” among other things. Msgr. Maasburg, a priest of the Archdiocese of Vienna who was ordained in 1982, met Mother Teresa a few years into his priesthood, remaining her good friend until her death in 1997. Over the years, Msgr. Maasburg joined Mother Teresa and her religious sisters on various travels, including to Rome, India, and Armenia. He also acted as her spiritual advisor, translator, and confessor, and he is the author of Mother Teresa of Calcutta: A Personal Portrait. The full text of the interview follows:CNA: You spent much time with Mother Teresa. Is there something about her that has remained untold?Msgr. Maasburg: There are probably many stories and details that remain yet to be told. Mother Teresa was someone who tried rather to act than to talk. At the same time, she was deeply rooted in prayer. I think this is what made her so effective. Everything she did, she tried to do for and with “the first and only love of her life”: Jesus. And this is probably related to something that we still have to discover and seek to understand more clearly: the spirituality of Mother Teresa. With her canonization, the Church invites us to advance further into the relationship that she entertained with the divine. There is a whole spiritual philosophy to be discovered when we contemplate her life, deeds, and words. I also believe that her political views on society and her messages to the world's elite when receiving the Nobel Peace Prize or addressing the UN General Assembly have not had the attention they would deserve. Mother Teresa was more than just a Catholic nun with a big heart for the poor. She was a missionary and an ambassador for the sanctity of life, never growing weary of advocating for the dignity of the unborn, the sick, and the dying.CNA: Critics of Mother Teresa often address the way she pushed people to accept suffering. Are these critics preposterous? How did she address the various problems of the Indian society?Msgr. Maasburg: Mother Teresa once was confronted with a famous metaphor: Someone asked her if it would not be better to teach the poor how to fish instead of simply feeding them the fish. She agreed, but also answered: 'My poor are too weak to hold the fishing rod. When they recover in my homes I send them to you so that you can teach them how to fish.' Although she was always interested in politics, she never tried to be a politician. She attempted to radically love her neighbor – and expected Jesus to take care of the rest. She addressed the problems of the Indian society by living the gospel among the poor. And misery rooted in unimaginable poverty is, and was, certainly one of the sub-continent's gravest problems. But the cure that she wanted to give the people was not a medical, but a spiritual one: unconditional and tender love and care.CNA: How has India changed thanks to Mother Teresa's work? And how can it still change?Msgr. Maasburg: People called Mother Teresa the Queen of India. This shows how much they loved her. Hindus, Muslims and Christians alike saw in her a role model. She was popular because she was authentic and she loved people genuinely. Her example certainly helped to nurture the understanding in the country that every human being, regardless of their social status, deserves to be treated with respect and has an innate dignity. She was also famous for being a Missionary of Charity and for living her faith openly. Today, some states in India show a tendency to curb religious freedom through anti-conversion laws. Some radical groups try to ignite violence against Christians and Muslims. India can and should be a country where people of different religions respect and live peacefully next to each other.CNA: Mother Teresa also experienced the "darkness of the soul," as many saints before and after her. How can this darkness of the soul be explained? And how can Mother Teresa's experience teach us to get out of a "darkness of the soul?"Msgr. Maasburg: It is not easy to explain the "darkness of the soul" since it is a mystical experience. Sometimes saintly people receive it as a particular gift from God. It allows them to share in the redemption of mankind, which has distanced itself from God through sin. Mother Teresa’s experience will not teach us how “to get out” of this darkness, it can help us to bear it if we are granted the honor to experience it. However, it is certainly not an easy experience. In her letters, Mother Teresa described it as experiencing the absence of God. Remaining faithful in this suffering has a deeply spiritual effect on souls. Read more
Bogotá, Colombia, Aug 31, 2016 / 12:04 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Christian mercy has the power to break down the barriers of a changing world where people have forgotten the presence of God, Archbishop Jose H. Gómez of Los Angeles has said. “Mercy is missionary. It is driven by a universal love for humanity, by desire for the salvation and liberation of the human person,” he said Aug. 30. “Mercy aims to draw men and women out of their solitude and into an encounter of brotherhood and sisterhood in fellowship with the living God.” Mercy helps transform one’s outlook to “to see the world through the merciful eyes of Christ,” the archbishop continued. “When mercy becomes the fundamental outlook and practice of the Christian disciple, we begin to see the outlines of an entirely new culture. A culture of encounter rooted in compassion – especially for the poor and dispossessed, for the lonely and those left discarded on the ‘peripheries’,” he said, using a common image of Pope Francis. Archbishop Gómez spoke on the last day of the Celebration of the Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy held in Bogota, Colombia Aug. 27-30. The event drew Catholic cardinals, bishops, and other leaders from all the Americas and received a special video message from Pope Francis. The event was jointly organized by the Pontifical Commission for Latin America and the Latin American Episcopal Council. Archbishop Gómez said news media wrongly depicted Pope Francis’ emphasis on mercy as a break with preceding Popes. “Pope Francis did not ‘invent’ mercy,” he added. Rather, mercy has been at the heart of the Christian proclamation from the start. “In his dying and rising, Jesus Christ revealed the truth that God is a Father who is rich in mercy,” the archbishop said. The Pope’s image of the Church as a field hospital suggests that God’s mercy is “the medicine needed by a humanity that is deeply wounded by modernity.” “Mercy is healing medicine – not only for the physical wounds inflicted by the many wars, injustices and slaveries of body and mind we find in modern society,” the archbishop continued. “Mercy also speaks to the existential woundedness of people living in a culture where the memory of God is dimming, where people are no longer able to feel God’s presence and activity in the world.” For Archbishop Gómez, the Pope’s vision is that of a priest who has spent much time in the confessional, as both a confessor and a penitent. He suggested that Pope Francis’ approach was anticipated in St. John Paul II’s 1980 encyclical Dives in Misericordia, or “Rich in Mercy.” Christians must enter into the reality of people who are broken and wounded, who feel abandoned by the Church, or who have grown indifferent to God, the archbishop advised. In the U.S., he said, “there is a growing coldness of heart, a harsh and fearful rhetoric in our media and politics, a growing inability of ordinary people to empathize with the humanity of others.” He noted the cruel treatment of refugees and undocumented migrants, debates over social programs for the poor and the homeless, and severe punishments and poor conditions for criminals. Archbishop Gómez suggested secularization and de-Christianization are the dominant realities in the Americas and throughout the West. Wondering whether the Church has come to terms with these threats to Christian institutions and souls, he said they are the “great test” for the Church. “I speak from my perspective in the United States. But I think all of us can agree that the elites who govern and shape the direction of our societies are deeply secularized and hostile to religion, religious values and traditional culture,” he said. Where there is no violent persecution, elites use the “raw power of law and public policy” to impose their views and to deny freedoms of those who disagree with them. The archbishop said Catholicism faces “a powerful and false ‘humanism’” that purports to describe human happiness and flourishing under hedonistic, materialistic assumptions, adding that these assumptions are “completely opposed” to revealed truths of Christianity. The witness of works of mercy is even more important in a society that denies the reality of God and the relevance of faith. “In a post-Christian society, mercy – lived through works of love – becomes the best ‘proof’ for God’s presence and power,” he said. “By our love and tenderness, by our joy, we attract others to the cause of our joy, to the person of Jesus Christ. By our love and tenderness, we make God’s own mercy a reality that our neighbors can believe in and give their lives to.” Archbishop Gómez cited the example of St. Junipero Serra as a true missionary of mercy. “Like the first missionaries to this continent, we need to proclaim the beautiful reality of God’s compassion and tenderness,” he said. “The glad tidings of God’s complete mercy and love — and his desire that everyone might find the salvation he wants for us.” Read more
Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, Aug 30, 2016 / 04:47 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- On Sunday Mongolia witnessed the ordination of its first indigenous priest, Fr. Joseph Enkh Baatar, a 29-year-old man who represents the first fruits of 24 years of missionary work in the east Asian country. Bishop Wenceslao Padilla, the prefect of Ulaanbaatar, ordained Joseph Enkh Baatar a priest at an Aug. 28 Mass at St. Peter and Paul Cathedral in the Mongolian capital. “Fr. Joseph’s ordination is a blessing of God and a moment of immense joy and inspiration for our young Mongolian Church,” Chamingerel Ruffina, a member of the organizing committee for communications at the National Catechetical Center of Mongolia, told CNA Aug. 30. The first modern mission to Mongolia was established in 1922 and was entrusted to the Congregation of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. But under a communist government influenced by the Soviet Union, religious expression was soon thereafter suppressed. Bishop Padilla, a member of the Congregation of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, was one of the first three missionaries allowed into Mongolia in 1992, after the fall of communism. He became superior of the mission in Mongolia, and was instrumental in helping to discern Fr. Baatar's vocation. The bishop praised God for the historic moment of the apostolic prefecture's first native vocation, and prayed that many more such vocations would arise to help the local Church. The Mass was concelebrated by Archbishop Osvaldo Padilla, apostolic nuncio to Mongolia and Korea; Bishop Lazarus You Heung-sik of Daejon, in South Korea; and more than 100 priests from South Korea and Hong Kong. More than 1,500 persons attended the Mass, including dignitaries of foreign embassies, local Orthodox churches, and Buddhist monks. The Mass was followed by joyous festival. Ruffina commented that “This meaningful liturgical celebration of the sacrament of priestly ordination conducted in their own indigenous language gave an opportunity to the faithful to actually witness in proximity, to celebrate, and to understand the various steps in preparation for the priesthood and the ordination rite.” The faithful of Mongolia had prepared for the event by reciting a novena to St. Paul to strengthen their missionary spirit during the Year of Mercy. Fr. Baatar was born June 24, 1987. He lost his father at a young age, and his sister introduced him to the Catholic faith. His dream of joining the priesthood was initially postponed, due to his family's strong desire that he complete his university studies. After graduating with a degree in biotechnology and with the support of his family, he then applied to become a seminarian for the Prefecture Apostolic of Ulaanbaatar. Fr. Baatar entered the Daejeon seminary in South Korea, and was ordained a deacon in December 2014. Concluding the Mass, the newly ordained priest profoundly thanked his family and his mentors at the seminary, especially Bishop You. He also praised the important role played by Bishop Padilla through his support of his vocation. Fr. Baatar urged the faithful to pray for his priestly ministry so that he could faithfully fulfill his ordination motto, chosen from the gospel of Luke: "Deny yourself, take up your cross daily, and follow me." “I thank the Lord who has called me to serve Him through the priesthood. I am also grateful to all the people who have helped me respond to this calling,” Fr. Baatar expressed. Bishop You reminded the new priest that “the best way of announcing the good news is a life of witnessing.” Commenting on the vast missionary work that lies ahead in Mongolia, the South Korean bishop said, “Fr. Joseph, being a Mongolian citizen, has to live as a missionary in his own country.” Ruffina also recounted that the parishioners of Saint Mary’s parish gave Fr. Baatar a Bible which was handwritten by the parishioners themselves. A young family ministry volunteer, Clara Gantesetseg, told CNA that “the ordination gift of Fr. Joseph Enkh is sign of hope to our people in Mongolia, and a special a gift during this Year of Mercy.” Clara noted that “Fr. Joseph’s indigenous roots, his cultural and life experiences of his own and the people, will help to transcend the teachings of the Church to the local culture for better understanding, and also will foster interreligious dialogue.” Among the guests at the Mass was the Abbot Dambajav of Dashi Choi Lin Buddhist Monastery. He praised the efforts of the Catholic Church and encouraged Fr. Baatar to take up the responsibility of helping the Mongolian people. He also gave the new priest a blue khadag, a ceremonial scarf, as a mark of friendship. Ruffina pointed out that the Buddhist monk's participation and his kind words of encouragement will further forge bonds of friendship and interreligious dialogue between the communities for peaceful co-existence. A little over half Mongolia's population is Buddhist, and following the decades of communist rule, 39 percent of Mongolia's population is non-religious. Islam, shamanism, and Christianity have mere footholds among the people. The Prefecture Apostolic of Ulaanbaatar serves all of the estimated 1,200 Catholics in the country, which has a population of 3 million. In 2014, the local Church had three diocesan priests, who were aided by 14 religious. Read more
Washington D.C., Aug 30, 2016 / 04:23 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- With some recent election polls showing Hillary Clinton with a large lead over Donald Trump among Catholics, does Trump have a “Catholic problem” as some are saying he does? &ldquo... Read more
Buenos Aires, Argentina, Aug 30, 2016 / 12:49 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- The community of the Missionaries of Charity in Mar del Plata, Argentina, became the target of criminals late last week, as three men broke in, beat the sisters and desecrated their cha... Read more
Vatican City, Aug 30, 2016 / 10:14 am (CNA/EWTN News).- In honor of all “workers and volunteers of mercy,” the Vatican is asking those who volunteer in different service opportunities to share their testimony on social media with the hashta... Read more
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