Rome, Italy, Feb 12, 2015 / 04:23 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- An Iraqi priest currently living in Rome said that those living the nightmare of ISIS are tired of hearing talk about dialogue and human rights, and are ready to see concrete action on the part of ... Read more
Vatican City, Feb 12, 2015 / 02:13 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- A reform to promote a greater harmony in the work of the Roman Curia, in Pope Francis’ words, was the topic of discussion on Thursday, the opening day of an extraordinary consistory of cardinals held at the Vatican. Opening the consistory Feb. 12, Pope Francis stressed that the aim of reform “is always that of promoting greater harmony in the work of the various dicasteries and offices, in order to achieve more effective collaboration in that absolute transparency which builds authentic synodality and collegiality.” “Reform is not an end in itself,” he said, “but a way of giving strong Christian witness; to promote more effective evangelization; to promote a fruitful ecumenical spirit; and to encourage a more constructive dialogue with all.” The Pope then said reform was “strongly advocated by the majority of cardinals” in the pre-conclave meetings, and is intended to “enhance the identity of the Roman Curia itself, which is to assist Peter's successor in the exercise of his supreme pastoral office for the good and in the service of the universal Church and the particular Churches, in order to strengthen the unity of faith and the communion of the people of God, and to promote the mission of the Church in the world.” According to Pope Francis “it is not easy to achieve such a goal,” and it will require “time, determination and, above all, the collaboration of all. But to achieve this we must first entrust ourselves to the Holy Spirit, the true guide of the Church, imploring the gift of authentic discernment in prayer.” After Pope Francis, Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga of Tegucigalpa, who coordinates the Council of Cardinals, read an introduction in which “he summarized the modus operandi of the Council, the way they collected the some 100 contributions from Vatican dicasteries, and the way they achieved the summary,” Fr. Federico Lombardi, director of the Holy See press office, said in a media briefing. Cardinal Rodriguez also explained that the council did not focus exclusively on curial reform: in their eight meetings and more than 50 sessions, the council has also discussed the Synod of Bishops, the work of the Commission for the Protection of Minors, and economic issues. Bishop Marcello Semeraro of Albano, secretary of the Council of Cardinals, then presented to the cardinals a summary of a possible curial reform. According to Fr. Lombardi, the draft was divided in two parts: the first part explained the main lines of the reform, and the second part provided the theological roots of the new outline of the Roman Curia. Fr. Lombardi explained that the main proposal is that of establishing two super-congregations, for Charity, Justice and Peace, and for Laity, Family, and Life. These two congregations may be established ‘ad experimentum’, while the Roman Curia continue functioning as the drafting of a comprehensive apostolic constitution to regulate its functions will be carried forward. Fr. Lombardi said there “may be a commission to draft the new constitution, and its conclusion may submitted to a restricted commission of cardinal that will make the final draft. After that, the Pope will make the decision.” This process “would involve canon lawyers and theologians,” since “there is the need to give theological foundation to the reform,” and this is the reason why “the path to reform will be long.” Bishop Semeraro’s report took in consideration the functions of the Roman Curia, its relationship with bishops conferences, and criteria for rationalization and simplification. The role of the State Secretariat has also been discussed. Fr. Lombardi stated there had been the proposal of establishing a “moderator curiae,” but that it had not to be considered a separate office, but rather one of the tasks with which the Secretariat of State is entrusted. In fact, the First Section of the State Secretariat is entrusted with handling general affairs, and it is to be seen how this function may be improved. After Bishop Semeraro’s relations, 12 cardinals took the floor, “mainly cardinals who have a profound knowledge of the workings of the Curia, although there have been contributions from a diverse range of contexts,” Fr. Lombardi said. Among the issues at stake, there were those of synodality and collegiality, as well as that of the ongoing training of the staff of the Roman Curia. According to “L’Osservatore Romano,” there were 148 cardinals and 19 out of 20 cardinal-designates at the consistory. Tomorrow, Cardinal George Pell, prefect of the Secretariat for the Economy, will report at the consistory about the Vatican economic reform. Read more
Washington D.C., Feb 12, 2015 / 10:41 am (CNA/EWTN News).- As the U.S. aims to re-establish full relations with Cuba, it is also pushing the country to redeem its poor track record fighting human trafficking, said a U.S. State Department official. &... Read more
Rome, Italy, Feb 12, 2015 / 04:02 am (CNA/EWTN News).- While church attendees dwindle in Germany, questions have arisen once again over the controversial state-imposed church tax – and whether it's time for the country's bishops to address concerns around it. “We are in a time when more and more people realize that the financial apparatus Church works well, that the facade is optimal but what is behind it? Where is the true faith?” asked Martin Lohmann, Catholic publicist, author and spokesperson of the advocacy group Christian Action in Germany. “While we have a decreasing of Church membership,” he told CNA on Feb. 9, “on the other side we have a raising of Church tax.” When Germans register as Catholic, Protestant, or Jewish on their tax forms, the government automatically collects an income tax from them which amounts to 8 or 9 percent of their total income tax, or 3-4 percent of their salary. The “church tax” is given to the religious communities, rather than those communities collecting a tithe. The Church uses its funds to help run its parishes, schools, hospitals, and welfare projects. “But when we pose the question today in 2015, then we have to ask ourselves if the tax is still just and fair: is it just, since only Church members pay the tax? The question is pressing,” Lohmann said. Many Germans have de-registered in recent years, so as to avoid paying the additional tax. The number of persons declaring their departure from the Church has been substantial – in 2010, the figure was more than 180,000. The number of de-registrations has been heightened this year, as the church tax is now being withheld from capital gains, as well as from salary. Many of those who have de-registered from the Church on the German government's forms continue to practice the faith, and have de-registered to avoid the tax altogether, or to support the Church with private tithes. In response, the German bishops – who each earn an average salary of 7,000 Euro per month (some up to 14,000 Euro along with free housing and cars, according to Lohmann) – issued a decree in September 2012 calling such departure “a serious lapse” and listing a number of ways they are barred from participating in the life of the Church. The decree specified that those who do not pay the church tax cannot receive the sacraments of Confession, Communion, Confirmation, or Anointing of the Sick, except when in danger of death; cannot hold ecclesial office or perform functions within the Church; cannot be a godparent or sponsor; cannot be a member of diocesan or parish councils; and cannot be members of public associations of the Church. If those who de-registered show no sign of repentance before their death, they can even be refused a religious burial. And while these penalties have been described as “de facto excommunication,” the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts, wrote in a March 13, 2006 document that opting out of taxes in a civil situation was not the same as renouncing the faith, and thus excommunication did not apply to such persons. “I know enough people who cannot understand how a distancing oneself from the tax is necessarily connected with an exclusion from salvation,” Lohmann said. What's more, he said, “only 10 percent of the Catholics and even less Protestants go to Church on Sunday. In the view of the administration they are all considered 'good faithful' nevertheless, since they pay diligently.” Lohmann added that the bishop's conference treats non-tax payers as dissidents and that former pope Benedict XVI's effort to resolve this remained thwarted. “From Rome there was an attempt to solve this structural schizophrenia between finances and exclusion from the sacraments under Benedict XVI but it was in vain.” In the interview-book “Salt of the Earth,” published 1994, then-Cardinal Ratzinger already mentioned criticism of the system as it was. Lohmann himself contributed to a book about Church tax in 1993 and tried to impartially comment on it in the face of what he perceived as anti-Catholic opposition. “I contributed to the book back then because enemies of the Church had attacked her with this argument, there was no guarantee that fairness ruled the discussion.” But now he believes that the tax issue has lead to an underlying problem with understanding what the Church is and what it means to be a member of it. “Is it necessary that a general vicariate in Germany is blessed with million – and billion – Euro sized budgets? Is this automatism useful for the spearing spreading of the faith?” “The Second Vatican Council taught an Ecclesiology that was not dependent on finances. I think that the implausibly high income of the Church has shifted how she sees herself.” Lohmann also thinks that the financial interconnectedness of Church and state has stifled the voice of the country's bishops on social and moral issues. “Because of the decades-long connection of Church and State taxation system, financial offices etc. there is dependence,” he said. “The last years and decades there is a fear from the side of the bishops to proclaim the truth in social-political topics since they want to avoid a hostile reaction from the parties.” Lohmann added that the Church loses financially if it upholds less popular teachings on divorce and contraception. Preaching about that means losing “paying customers” – he said – and “softening” these teachings means more money for the Church. As long as this is the case, the Church, in Lohmann's view, “will remain limited and not-free, darkened, and in a state without courage to proclaim the truth.” However, Lohmann doesn't think the tax should be “abolished wholesale” – the Church “needs money for her projects and for her evangelization, that should be a given.” But, he says money should not rule of the contents of faith, social doctrine or mercy. “Mercy can never be a question of money. It is not the question of the budget of a diocese but of the heart!” “Faith is more than money; faith needs money, but faith is more than money. That the materially richest Church on earth is spiritually the poorest one is very telling,” he said. “The Church tax is a topic that the Church would be well off to discuss instead of trying to discard it.” Read more
Canberra, Australia, Feb 12, 2015 / 02:03 am (CNA/EWTN News).- With two of their nationals on Indonesia's death row over drug trafficking offenses, the Australian bishops are appealing to the government to stay their executions by firing squad, believed to be imminent. Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran were in a group of nine Australians arrested in Bali in 2005 with more than 18 lb of heroin. Their fellow drug traffickers were sentenced to life in prison, but in 2006 they were given the death penalty. “Justice must prevail and appropriate punishment used for the common good for our societies when such crimes are committed,” Archbishop Denis Hart of Melbourne wrote in a recent letter to Joko Widodo, the Indonesian president. “However, we believe that jail sentences, not execution, are the more appropriate means of punishing offenders and deterring those who would consider committing such crimes,” Archbishop Hart wrote. “Our concern for the sacredness of life motivates this plea for clemency.” During their ten years on death row, it is reported that the two prisoners have been helping other inmates in Kerobokan Prison. Sukumaran helps in teaching art, and Chen is studying to be a pastor. Archbishop Hart noted Chan and Sukumaran's remorse and reformation, writing that they have “initiated education programs with the intention of supporting and reforming other prisoners.” “This is a testimony to the opportunity for rehabilitation afforded by time in Indonesia’s penal system and to the commitment of these two men to make a positive contribution to the lives of fellow inmates and to the broader Indonesian community,” said Archbishop Hart. The prisoners' clemency appeals have already been rejected by Widodo, and they are among the next group to be executed. Indonesia resumed the death penalty in 2013, and regularly executes drug traffickers, including those who are foreign nationals; six were put to death last month. Indonesian officials claim that 40 to 50 of their citizens die daily because of drug overdoses. Archbishop Anthony Fisher of Sydney issued a joint statement Feb. 8 with Ibrahim Abu Mohammed, of the Australian National Imams' Council, pleading clemency for Chan and Sukumaran “to allow them to be further rehabilitated and to make reparation to the communities they betrayed by their crimes.” “Our request today is for clemency or a commuted sentence for Andrew and Myuran so as to allow them to be further rehabilitated; to execute would prematurely end these lives, robbing both of them and our communities of the opportunity for ongoing repentance and rehabilitation,” they said. “We acknowledge that illegal drugs tear at the social fabric of all communities and we applaud the efforts of the Indonesian government to protect its society-and indeed ours-from drug smuggling,” they added. “Our plea today to the President and people of Indonesia is on the basis of their apparent remorse and repentance for a crime they committed nearly ten years ago. By all accounts Andrew and Myuran have come to appreciate clearly the gravity of their crimes.” Read more
Vatican City, Feb 12, 2015 / 12:24 am (CNA/EWTN News).- During his weekly general audience, Pope Francis said he was following “with concern” the news of hundreds of immigrants who perished in the Mediterranean Sea this week. “I wish to assure you of my prayers for the victims, and encourage once again solidarity in order that no one lacks the necessary relief,” the Pope said Feb. 11. The United Nations' refugee agency, UNHCR, says that some 300 migrants are feared dead after their boat sank in the Mediterranean. Survivors said they had left Libya late last week. The Italian government had launched the Mare Nostrum operation to patrol the sea to aid ships carrying migrants after 366 people died off the coast of Lampedusa in October 2013. The program was disbanded a year later, taken over by the European Union program known as Triton. According to the BBC, Triton is less equipped than its predecessor in rescue operations, responding when lives are in immediate danger but being unable to pre-empt trouble on international waters. In a Feb. 10 interview with Vatican Radio, Secretary General of the Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the European Community, (COMECE) Father Patrick Daly said “there is a growing sense of urgency within Europe about a EU-wide, Europe-wide commitment to help solve the refugee problem.” Fr. Daly expressed “a more coordinated policy in this area, but also the EU as a whole must do all that it can to help the countries of transit from which many of our migrants come.” Pope Francis visited the migrants of Lampedusa months ahead of the 2013 tragedy, thanking them for their “solidarity with migrants,” while condemning the “globalization of indifference” which “makes us all 'unnamed'.” UNHCR says more than 218,000 migrants cross the Mediterranean into Italy in 2014, with some 3,500 people losing their lives on the journey. Read more
Denver, Colo., Feb 11, 2015 / 05:01 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- If you ask Archbishop Aquila, theology of the body and natural family planning – both practical resources on human sexuality – may be the Church’s best-kept secrets. “The truth is, the Church has many positive things to say about the gift of our sexuality,” Archbishop Samuel Aquila of Denver said Feb. 8 at a dinner for teachers of natural family planning. 'Theology of the Body' is the corpus of 129 General Audience addresses delivered by St. John Paul II from 1979 to 1984, regarding the human person and human sexuality. The heart of these teachings is the sacramental view of reality on human sexuality, Archbishop Aquila said, meaning that human bodies have a language that reveals something about the mystery of God’s inner life. Archbishop Aquila believes the importance of Theology of the Body and the positive impact of natural family planning are foundational pillars to understand how Christ redeemed human sexuality after the fall of Adam and Eve. “What makes Theology of the Body unique is that it brings true joy to relationships, marriages and friendships,” the archbishop noted, saying that without Theology of the Body, natural family planning can become “a kind of Catholic contraception, something which is really a contradiction in terms.” “If you desire to experience and impart the joy and beauty of natural family planning, then you must understand the Theology of the Body,” Archbishop Aquila stated, saying that both of these resources are “one of the best-kept secrets of the Catholic Church.” Looking at the past 40 years, the archbishop pointed to the abuse of power, loss of respect, and the belief that man has unlimited dominion over his own body as some of the causes for today’s societal sexual meltdown. “We have seen an increase in infidelity, a surge in divorce, more dysfunctional families, a decrease in children’s psychological well-being and a boom in single-parent households,” Archbishop Aquila noted, pointing to the sexual revolution of the 60s and 70s as the culprit in the rejection of Christian sexual values. Great numbers of people find themselves dissatisfied with the culture of meaningless sex and objectification, he noted, saying that a manifestation of this can be seen in the upcoming film ‘50 Shades of Gray.’ “We were created and called into being to love and be loved, not to be used, not to be an object for someone else’s fantasy,” the archbishop noted. Although the modern-day understanding of sexuality points to self-gratification, rather than self-giving, Archbishop Aquila called for a return to the mutual love and respect that men and women should have for each other. “When a couple’s relationship is characterized by a love that is free, total, faithful and fruitful, then they are able to experience the joy God intended for them and so reflect God’s love to the world,” he said, emphasizing the importance of both natural family planning and Theology of the Body for couples and their understanding of sexuality. However, when a couple uses contraception, they contradict this message of total self-giving, he stated. “They say rather, ‘I give you part of myself, but I also deliberately withhold part of myself,’” Archbishop Aquila noted, believing that this is why the use of contraception is deceptive. “As loudly and as persistently as our disbelieving culture proclaims its view of sex and happiness, a simple look around reveals the sad truth: too many people are left alone in the dark, searching for and failing to find love.” While the secular approach to sexuality promotes objectification of the person, the archbishop believes that the Church views sexuality as the ultimate exchange of love in self-gift. “We need to proclaim even louder and more persistently: God has the best, richest, and fullest plan for the happiness of married couples,” he went on to say. “Love is a Person, and He has written a wonderful design for human love into each of our bodies and hearts.” Read more
Vatican City, Feb 11, 2015 / 01:03 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- The secretary of the Council of Cardinals will present tomorrow at the consistory a proposal for curial reform based on the pivotal notion of charity, according to a source who has seen the latest draft of the proposal. The nine-member Council of Cardinals met Feb. 9-11 with Pope Francis at the Vatican's St. Martha house, continuing their discussion on the reform of the Roman Curia. The meeting precedes a Feb. 12-13 consistory also discussing the reform, and a Feb. 14-15 consistory for the creation of new cardinals. Bishop Marcello Semeraro of Albano, who serves as coordinator of the Council of Cardinals, will report Thursday in front of the some 150 cardinals and cardinals-designate who are taking part in the consistory. A source who has seen one of the latest updates of Bishop Semeraro’s draft told CNA Feb. 11 that “charity has now become pivotal in the new Congregation for Charity, Justice and Peace.” The new congregation will include the Pontifical Councils for Justice and Peace, Migrants, Cor Unum and Pastoral Health Care, and the first option was that of putting everything under the umbrella of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace. Following some observations of the chief of dicasteries, “the draft has been amended, and enriched with a theological basis. It now states that charity comes first, and provided several quotes from Benedict XVI’s encyclicals Deus Caritas Est and Caritas in veritate, as well as quotes by Bl. Paul VI,” the source explained. According to the source, the super-congregation would now be “under the umbrella of the Pontifical Council of Cor Unum, and assisted by Caritas Internationalis, even though this latter may not be assimilated into a body of the Roman Curia.” If this design come true, charity will be pivotal in the redesigned Roman Curia. Bishop Semeraro's presentation will follow an introduction by Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga of Tegucigalpa, who serves as coordinator of the Council of Cardinals. The consistory will begin with a short address by Pope Francis, and an introduction by Cardinal Angelo Sodano, Dean of the College of Cardinals. According to Fr. Lombardi, Holy See press officer, Cardinal Sodano’s speech will zero-in on the several adjustments Pastor bonus, the apostolic constitution on the Roman Curia promulgated in 1988, has undergone in the course of subsequent years. Fr. Lombardi also stressed during a press briefing that “the comprehensive rewriting of the constitution will take time,” while it is possible that “in the mean time new bodies are established” in order to start building the new structure of the curia. He also underscored that one first step toward curial reform may be “the creation of two super-congregations, the Congregation for Charity, Justice and Peace, and the Congregation for Laity, Family and Life.” A source who works in a pontifical council underscored Feb. 11 that this “streamlining of the curia would lead to a diminution of the curial cardinals, and to an increase of lay people employed at the Vatican,” and that this is “reflected in Pope Francis’ picks for the last consistory, which awarded just one archbishop from the Roman Curia.” The streamlining of the Roman Curia may be further achieved by the establishment of a central body for Vatican communications, which would also act as a central coordination body for editorial contents. “This is one of the ideas the Vatican committee for communication is working on,” a source close to members of the Vatican communication committee said Feb. 8. An interim report of the committee was presented Feb. 10 to the Council of Cardinals by Msgr. Paul Tighe, who serves as secretary of the committee. Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, president of the Pontifical Council for Culture, reported to the Council Feb. 9 about the role the Pontifical Council he leads may have in the curial reform. According to the Portuguese agency “Ecclesia,” Cardinal Ravasi proposed to elevate his council to the rank of a super-congregation, which would also include the Congregation for Catholic Education and would administer the Vatican Apostolic Library and the Vatican Observatory and the Vatican Museums. The Council of Cardinals also heard reports on the newly-established Secretariat for the Economy and the Council for the Economy, with a view to the finalization of the statutes for the two new bodies. Fr. Lombardi said Cardinal Seán O’Malley of Boston is expected to address the Council of Cardinals on Wednesday afternoon, updating them on the work of the Commission for the Protection of Minors. The Council of Cardinals has scheduled its next meeting for April 13-15, and is also expected to meet in July. Fr. Lombardi underscored that “there is a long path forward to carry out curial reform.” Read more
Vatican City, Feb 11, 2015 / 12:00 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Two years to the day since Pope Benedict XVI told the world of his historic decision to step down from the papal office, those impacted by his pontificate say that his legacy is still burning bright. “Pope Benedict's legacy is really very massive,” said Archbishop Arthur Roche, secretary for the congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments. “His teaching, his balance, his ability to get to the bottom of so many things with such clarity” are among the marks that remain from Benedict’s pontificate, the archbishop told CNA. While Feb. 11 is normally set aside as a holiday in the Vatican for the feast of Our Lady of Lourdes, the day took on huge added significance in 2013, when Benedict used the opportunity to announce his retirement at a relatively routine consistory – most of the prelates in the room had expected to hear little more than the dates for some upcoming canonizations. Three weeks later, on Feb. 28, Benedict XVI would greet the crowds from the balcony of the papal palace at Castel Gandolfo for the last time as the reigning pontiff. Shortly thereafter, the resignation took effect, and the See of Peter was vacant until the election of Pope Francis on Mar. 13, 2013. Since his retirement, Benedict’s days have been filled with prayer and study, largely out of the public view. He now goes by the simple title, “Fr. Benedict.” However, some see the legacy of the Pope Emeritus as continuing to resonate in complementarity to that of his successor, Pope Francis. Archbishop Roche reflected on what he sees as the lasting impact of the former Pope. He criticized negative portrayals of Benedict XVI as “somebody who was very severe,” saying that this media-fueled reputation was unfair and inaccurate. Speaking from his personal experience, the archbishop said that in reality, Benedict “was the most easy person to speak to in the whole of the curia, because he was very interested in what you had to say. And, he was very interested about the problems which bishops were encountering.” “I think that his magisterium is something that will remain and will be known as very great in years to come.” Benedict XVI's legacy has also extended well beyond the curia, with many young Catholics attributing their conversions to his pontificate. Following his 2010 visit to the UK, for instance, there has been a rise in Catholic youth-initiated movements – Youth 2000, Night Fever, Flame Congress – as well as a slow and steady increase in men and women pursuing vocations to the priesthood and religious life. The impact of this visit on UK Catholics was demonstrated shortly after the papal resignation was announced through an online initiative entitled “Generation Benedict,” in which 40 young people were invited to share their testimonies of how the German pontiff had touched their lives. The initiative came in response to “a lot of negative media surrounding his abdication,” said Collette Power, co-founder of the Generation Benedict, along with Lisette Carr, both young laywomen from Britain. “Our lives had been profoundly changed by his papacy, and by the invitation he had extended to us to know the Lord and to become saints,” she said, “and we knew a lot of other young people that had the same experience. This wasn’t being told in the media.” Power told CNA she had lapsed from her faith, but experienced a conversion during Benedict's visit to the UK, culminating in the Beatification of Cardinal John Henry Newman in Cofton Park. Although she had gone to Mass as a child, she said “no one had ever really explained the heart of the Gospel which Pope Benedict did when he visited England.” “To know that God loves me, and that I’m called to have a personal relationship with Jesus, and that I’m called to holiness, nothing less, not the mediocrity of the world, that the Church challenges me and the Lord challenges me to be a saint.” One year later, during the 2011 World Youth Day in Madrid, Power says she experienced the sense that she was being called by the Pope to share what she had received, “to go forward and to take the Gospel to all the places in kind of my life, all the people that I know, and to the ends of the earth in my area, to really go out and spread the good news.” Two years after the papal resignation, Power reflected that “Pope Benedict really laid a foundation for what Pope Francis is doing now.” “He encouraged us to know our faith, to know the culture that we live in, so that we can speak the Gospel effectively,” she said. “Through Pope Francis now, we’re being sent, having been equipped by Pope Benedict, we’re being sent out to share the Gospel with everyone we meet and take it to the fringes of society.” Read more
Vatican City, Feb 11, 2015 / 10:47 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Pope Francis has encouraged African bishops to focus efforts on young people, suggesting education can help them counter new forms of colonization that tempt them to bad ways of life. “Ab... Read more
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