Vatican City, May 30, 2016 / 08:08 am (CNA/EWTN News).- On Sunday, Pope Francis praised Hollywood actors George Clooney, Salma Hayek, and Richard Gere at a conference promoting a Vatican education initiative that helps poor communities. Speaking in the Paul VI's Synod Hall, the Pope reminded the celebrities of their responsibility to “help the world recover the language of gestures.” During the gathering, the actors received the “Olive Medal” of peace, which were presented by the Scholas Occurentes initiative, who organized the Vatican conference. Touching on a separate topic altogether, Francis said he does not intend to step down from the papacy, as Benedict XVI did when he became the first pope to resign in centuries. “I never thought of quitting being pope, or of leaving because of the many responsibilities,” the pontiff said during a Q&A session. The Argentine-founded Scholas Occurentes is an education initiative which aims to promote “integration of communities” – especially poor communities – through the use of “technology, sports, and artistic proposals,” according to its website. The initiative, which works in various kinds of schools of different religious affiliations, is present in 82 countries and 400,000, with headquarters in Vatican City, Argentine, Spain, Paraguay and Mozambique. The May 27-29 conference also marks the launch of the Scholas's latest initiative: a new website which allows anyone to ask Pope Francis questions. Speaking in Spanish, Pope Francis praised the gathering for its climate of communication and encounter, offering a bridge in a world which is at risk of being “fragmented.” The Pope encouraged gestures such as smiling and making eye-contact, and being patient and tolerant. In contrast, “bullying is an aggression that hides a deep cruelty,” he said. “The world is cruel.” “To build a new world, a better world, we must banish all kinds of cruelty. And war is cruel. But this kind of war more cruelly still rages because an innocent.” The Pope said that the separation of peoples, families, and friends create animosity and hatred, where as “social friendship” defends “against every kind of throwaway culture.” Read more

Vatican City, May 30, 2016 / 06:32 am (CNA).- When Pope emeritus Benedict XVI resigned as pontiff three years ago, he added a new dimension to the papacy, said his personal secretary Archbishop Georg Ganswein. Archbishop Ganswein remains prefect of the Pontifical Household. He works closely with both Benedict and Pope Francis. The archbishop spoke about Benedict’s pontificate and its wake at a May 20 book presentation of “Oltre la crisi della Chiesa” (Beyond the Church’s Crisis) by Father Roberto Regoli, an historian and professor at the Pontifical Gregorian University. The book aims to be the first history-based evaluation of Benedict XVI’s pontificate. Archbishop Ganswein stressed that there is only one legitimate Pope – Francis. However, for the last three years, Catholics have lived “with two living successors of Peter among us.” He said Benedict and Francis “are not in competition with each other, though they have an extraordinary presence.”   For Archbishop Ganswein, Benedict XVI’s resignation announcement on Feb. 11, 2013 marked the introduction of a new institution into the Catholic Church: the Pope emeritus. Pope Benedict used a key phrase in his resignation speech: “munus Petrinum.” This phrase is often translated “Petrine Ministry.” According to the archbishop, the Latin word “munus” has many meanings: service, commitment, guide, gift, even wonder.   “Benedict XVI thought of his commitment as a participation in that Petrine ministry,” the archbishop said. “That means that he left the papal throne, but he did not abandon this ministry.”   Benedict XVI now acts “with a collegial and synodal dimension” and a “common ministry” that appears to echo his episcopal and papal motto: ‘cooperatores veritatis,’ ‘cooperators of the Truth’,” he said.   Hence, “since Pope Francis’ election, there are not two Popes, but there is a de facto enlarged ministry, with both an active and a contemplative member.”   The archbishop said that this is why Benedict did not renounce his papal name or give up his white cassock. “This is the reason why the correct appellation for him is ‘Your Holiness.’ This is finally the reason why he did not retire to an isolated monastery, but within the Vatican walls, as if he just took a step aside to make space for his successor and for a new step in the history of the papacy,” Archbishop Ganswein said.   This is how Benedict XVI has “profoundly and lastingly transformed” the papal ministry during his “exceptional pontificate.” Archbishop Ganswein also reflected on the meaning of Benedict XVI’s election. He said that the election was “certainly the outcome of a clash” whose key interpretation had been given by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger himself in his homily for the pre-conclave Mass on April 18, 2005. Then-Cardinal Ratzinger reflected on the clash of two forces. He criticized “a dictatorship of relativism” that does not recognize anything as definitive and whose ultimate goal consists solely of one's own ego and desire.” With this, he contrasted Christians’ goal of Jesus Christ, the Son of God and “the true man.” This is “the measure of true humanism.”   This clash is epitomized in what Archbishop Ganswein described as “the dramatic struggle” between two parties in the conclave. He labeled one the “Salt of the Earth” party after the name of a book-length interview with Cardinal Ratzinger. This party gathered around Cardinals Lopez Trujillo, Ruini, Herranz, Rouco Varela and Medina Estevez. Then there is the so-called St. Gallen group gathered around Cardinals Daneels, Martini, Silvestrini and Murphy-O’Connor. This is the group, Archbishop Ganswein noted, that Cardinal Daneels “himself amusedly described as ‘a sort of Mafia-club’.”   Archbishop Ganswein said that “the dictatorship of relativism” is now being channeled through the new media that could barely be imagined in 2005.   Once for all, Archbishop Ganswein rejected the notion that Benedict XVI’s resigned because of the scandals or following the “black year” of 2010. That year was marked by the breaking of new clergy sex abuse scandals in Europe and followed controversies like that of the Lefebvrist Bishop Richard Williamson, whose excommunication was lifted without knowledge of his remarks minimizing the death toll of Jews in the Holocaust.   Archbishop Ganswein said there are more personal reasons for the Pope to consider 2010 “a black year.” That was the year of the death of Manuela Camagni, one of the four consecrated lay women who were part of the pontifical household. She died after she was struck by a car.   “The media sensationalism of those years, from the Williamson case to escalating attacks on the Pope, did not strike the Pope as much as Manuela’s death did,” Archbishop Ganswein said. The papal butler, Paolo Gabriele, was then exposed as the source of confidential information about the papacy, which news stories have labeled “Vatileaks.”   The archbishop stressed that “as the Pope was shocked by Manuela Camagni’s sudden death, he then suffered a lot from the betrayal of Paolo Gabriele.”   But he said that Benedict did not resign due to these, or due to “spicy news.” Rather, as the former pontiff said in his resignation announcement, his decision was based on his advanced age and declining strength, which led him to believe that he could no longer exercise the ministry entrusted to him. “No betrayer or any journalist could push the Pope to that decision,” Archbishop Ganswein stressed, as “that scandal was too tiny” compared with the “well pondered historical step” Benedict XVI made with his resignation.     Read more

Vatican City, May 30, 2016 / 06:32 am (CNA).- When Pope emeritus Benedict XVI resigned as pontiff three years ago, he added a new dimension to the papacy, said his personal secretary Archbishop Georg Ganswein. Archbishop Ganswein remains prefect of the Pontifical Household. He works closely with both Benedict and Pope Francis. The archbishop spoke about Benedict’s pontificate and its wake at a May 20 book presentation of “Oltre la crisi della Chiesa” (Beyond the Church’s Crisis) by Father Roberto Regoli, an historian and professor at the Pontifical Gregorian University. The book aims to be the first history-based evaluation of Benedict XVI’s pontificate. Archbishop Ganswein stressed that there is only one legitimate Pope – Francis. However, for the last three years, Catholics have lived “with two living successors of Peter among us.” He said Benedict and Francis “are not in competition with each other, though they have an extraordinary presence.”   For Archbishop Ganswein, Benedict XVI’s resignation announcement on Feb. 11, 2013 marked the introduction of a new institution into the Catholic Church: the Pope emeritus. Pope Benedict used a key phrase in his resignation speech: “munus Petrinum.” This phrase is often translated “Petrine Ministry.” According to the archbishop, the Latin word “munus” has many meanings: service, commitment, guide, gift, even wonder.   “Benedict XVI thought of his commitment as a participation in that Petrine ministry,” the archbishop said. “That means that he left the papal throne, but he did not abandon this ministry.”   Benedict XVI now acts “with a collegial and synodal dimension” and a “common ministry” that appears to echo his episcopal and papal motto: ‘cooperatores veritatis,’ ‘cooperators of the Truth’,” he said.   Hence, “since Pope Francis’ election, there are not two Popes, but there is a de facto enlarged ministry, with both an active and a contemplative member.”   The archbishop said that this is why Benedict did not renounce his papal name or give up his white cassock. “This is the reason why the correct appellation for him is ‘Your Holiness.’ This is finally the reason why he did not retire to an isolated monastery, but within the Vatican walls, as if he just took a step aside to make space for his successor and for a new step in the history of the papacy,” Archbishop Ganswein said.   This is how Benedict XVI has “profoundly and lastingly transformed” the papal ministry during his “exceptional pontificate.” Archbishop Ganswein also reflected on the meaning of Benedict XVI’s election. He said that the election was “certainly the outcome of a clash” whose key interpretation had been given by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger himself in his homily for the pre-conclave Mass on April 18, 2005. Then-Cardinal Ratzinger reflected on the clash of two forces. He criticized “a dictatorship of relativism” that does not recognize anything as definitive and whose ultimate goal consists solely of one's own ego and desire.” With this, he contrasted Christians’ goal of Jesus Christ, the Son of God and “the true man.” This is “the measure of true humanism.”   This clash is epitomized in what Archbishop Ganswein described as “the dramatic struggle” between two parties in the conclave. He labeled one the “Salt of the Earth” party after the name of a book-length interview with Cardinal Ratzinger. This party gathered around Cardinals Lopez Trujillo, Ruini, Herranz, Rouco Varela and Medina Estevez. Then there is the so-called St. Gallen group gathered around Cardinals Daneels, Martini, Silvestrini and Murphy-O’Connor. This is the group, Archbishop Ganswein noted, that Cardinal Daneels “himself amusedly described as ‘a sort of Mafia-club’.”   Archbishop Ganswein said that “the dictatorship of relativism” is now being channeled through the new media that could barely be imagined in 2005.   Once for all, Archbishop Ganswein rejected the notion that Benedict XVI’s resigned because of the scandals or following the “black year” of 2010. That year was marked by the breaking of new clergy sex abuse scandals in Europe and followed controversies like that of the Lefebvrist Bishop Richard Williamson, whose excommunication was lifted without knowledge of his remarks minimizing the death toll of Jews in the Holocaust.   Archbishop Ganswein said there are more personal reasons for the Pope to consider 2010 “a black year.” That was the year of the death of Manuela Camagni, one of the four consecrated lay women who were part of the pontifical household. She died after she was struck by a car.   “The media sensationalism of those years, from the Williamson case to escalating attacks on the Pope, did not strike the Pope as much as Manuela’s death did,” Archbishop Ganswein said. The papal butler, Paolo Gabriele, was then exposed as the source of confidential information about the papacy, which news stories have labeled “Vatileaks.”   The archbishop stressed that “as the Pope was shocked by Manuela Camagni’s sudden death, he then suffered a lot from the betrayal of Paolo Gabriele.”   But he said that Benedict did not resign due to these, or due to “spicy news.” Rather, as the former pontiff said in his resignation announcement, his decision was based on his advanced age and declining strength, which led him to believe that he could no longer exercise the ministry entrusted to him. “No betrayer or any journalist could push the Pope to that decision,” Archbishop Ganswein stressed, as “that scandal was too tiny” compared with the “well pondered historical step” Benedict XVI made with his resignation.     Read more

Vatican City, May 29, 2016 / 11:52 am (CNA/EWTN News).- After becoming the first Pope to author a children's book earlier this year, Pope Francis will soon come out with another, based on his responses to questions posed by youth through a new online platform. Speaking at the May 27-29 World Encounter of the Directors of Scholas Occurrentes, Italian journalist and author Tiziana Lupi explained the idea behind the new book, which she said seeks to “open a door” to dialogue with youth. Scholas was founded by Pope Francis in August 2013 as an initiative to encourage social integration and the culture of encounter through technology, arts and sports. The foundation has organized several events at the Vatican, including two Google hangout sessions with Pope Francis, as well as 2014’s interreligious Match for Peace. Both Richard Gere and George Clooney were present for the May 29 meeting between the Pope and participants in the encounter. Lupi, who works with Italian editorial Mondadori, said May 29 that the publication has joined efforts with Scholas in creating a new technological platform “which allows all youth from all over the world, all social classes, all religious to ask Pope Francis a question without filters.” While it’s generally journalists who ask the questions, this time it will be the youth who open their hearts to the Pope through the new webpage “askpopefrancis.scholasoccurrentes,” which has yet to be launched. Since there will obviously be too many questions to include all of them in the book, only certain questions, which come more authentically from the heart, will be selected. “We’ll select the ones that seem more from the heart and which allow Pope Francis to touch on topics he hasn’t been able to until today,” Lupi said, adding that the book will likely be released sometime in October or November. Pope Francis met with participants in the gathering May 29, which also marked the presentation of the platform the new book project, called “Chiedete” in Italian. In addition to the announcement of the new book, several other projects and initiatives were presented to the Pope. After hearing the tearful testimony of a teen girl from Mexico who was bullied after coming to the United States following her parents’ separation, the Pope was told that a new anti-bullying campaign was being launched by Scholas with the hashtag “#nosotrossomosunicos,” meaning “#weareunique.” Following the girl’s testimony, 12 young, influential Youtube users from around the world asked the Pope how to build a better, more diverse and integrated world. In his response, Francis said that each person must be recognized for their own personal identity, explaining that “there is no future” if a person lacks a clear identity. He spoke of the importance of the “language of gestures” in making someone feel included. These gestures, he said, can be “pat, a smile, a smile that gives hope, looking into one’s eyes. Gestures of approval or patience, tolerance.” If bullying is ever going to stop, we must leave aggressions behind, he said, adding that “bullying is an aggression that hides a profound cruelty.” “The world is cruel. Wars are monuments of cruelty,” he said, and pulled out from his pocket graphic pictures sent to him by a nun living in an African country torn apart by civil war. Showing the pictures to the participants, Francis lamented how they depicted grotesque images such as a child with their throat cut and another “butchered in the head.” “If this happens, how will bullying not? It’s the same cruelty,” he said, explaining that if we want to build a better world, we must first eliminate “all forms of cruelty. War is a form of cruelty.” Instead of aggression, we must gain the ability to listen to one another and to dialogue, rather than argue, he said, telling attendees “don’t be afraid of dialogue,” because with dialogue “everyone wins, no one loses.” Pope Francis also stressed the importance of leaving one’s pride and superiority behind, because these attitudes “always end badly.” The world today “needs to lower the level of aggression, it needs tenderness, it needs to listen, it needs to walk together,” he said, and, pointing to the photos, said added that “this is happening today because all these attitudes are lacking.” Francis was then presented with several other initiatives before receiving a signed copy of all the commitments made by participants during the three-day gathering. Mention of the second interreligious Match for Peace, to be played June 10 in Rome’s Olympic Stadium and which draws together major soccer stars from around the world, was also mentioned. The Pope closed the gathering by offering his gratitude to participants for their prayers and work, and praying for youth around the world. Read more

Vatican City, May 29, 2016 / 06:19 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Millions of children have either been killed, displaced or orphaned as a result of Syria’s ongoing, bloody civil war. Some have witnessed bombings, the death of friends and loved ones, and have been forced to leave their homes and villages, seeking refuge in places where soldiers and gunfire don’t wake them up at night. Hundreds of Syrian children, scarred by five years of civil war, will now be the protagonists in a special June 1 prayer event, which takes place on International Children’s Day and will join together Christians from both Catholic and Orthodox Churches in Syria to pray for peace. Backed by both Catholic and Orthodox leaders in Syria, the event will gather hundreds of children from different denominations, who will lead processions in ravaged cities throughout Syria such as Damascus, Aleppo, Homs, Tartus and Marmarita. In a show of support for these children and all those suffering due to the country’s gruesome war, Pope Francis on Sunday gave a shoutout to the event after celebrating Mass for the Jubilee of Deacons, urging children around the world to join their peers in Syria in praying for peace June 1. “This Wednesday, June 1, on the occasion of International Children's Day, the Christian Community of Syria, both Catholic and Orthodox, will participate together in special prayer for peace, which will have children as the protagonists,” the Pope said May 29. “The Syrian children invite children from all over the world to unite with them in their prayer for peace,” he said, and led the deacons and other pilgrims present at the Mass in praying the Angelus. Francis’ promotion of the event fell the day after giving a speech to children, which he centered on the heartbreaking story of a young Syrian girl who drowned at sea in an attempt to reach Europe after fleeing the war with her family. He assured the children that he didn’t want to make them sad, but instead wanted to tell them the truth: “they are in danger – many boys and girls, small children, men, women – they are in danger.” The June 1 prayer event is being promoted by Catholic charitable organization Aid to the Church in Need, who is asking children from schools and parishes throughout the world to join the youth in Syria in praying for a peaceful end to the conflict. In a joint message issued by Syria’s Catholic and Orthodox Patriarchs, the leaders said the children will gather and pray so that “peace may come at last.” “The children in our own home country of Syria are the little brothers and sisters of the suffering Child Jesus,” they said. For more than five years these kids have been “dragged through a cruel war, wounded, traumatized or even killed,” they said, explaining that “their tears and their sufferings cry out to heaven.” They noted how Jesus, the God of all creation, chose to become a defenseless child. Often times the Christ Child is portrayed not as a naked infant in a manger, “but as a King, holding in his left hand the globe, representing the world, and with his right hand blessing the whole earth.” Because of this, the June 1 event has been entrusted to the patronage of the Child Jesus, as well as the Catholic image of Infant of Prague and the Orthodox icon of “The Mother of God of the Never Fading Rose,” in which the Blessed Virgin Mary is depicted holding a crowned Christ Child in her arms. The children will carry both of the images with them during the June 1 processions. In their message, the Catholic and Orthodox leaders of Syria asked God to “Protect and save the children of this land! Hear our prayers, now! Delay no longer in granting peace to our land! Look upon the tears of the children; dry the tears of the mothers; let the cries of grief at last fall silent!”  Photo credit: Credit: ZouZou via www.shutterstock.com Read more

Vatican City, May 29, 2016 / 03:52 am (CNA/EWTN News).- On Sunday Pope Francis celebrated a special jubilee for deacons, telling them that a good servant is one who forgets themselves, letting go of their own plans and humbly placing their lives at the... Read more