SUMMARY:
-
POPE RECALLS SERMON ON MOUNT TO AFFIRM THAT JESUS IS DOOR TO ENTER
INTO KINGDOM OF GOD
-
MESSAGE TO EUCHARISTIC CONGRESS OF COSTA RICA
-
POPE TO ADMINISTER SACRAMENT OF CONFIRMATION
-
CARDINAL SALAZAR TAKES POSSESSION OF HIS TITULAR CHURCH
-
BE PASTORS NOT FUNCTIONARIES, POPE SAYS TO NEW PRIESTS
-
REGINA COELI: RECOGNIZING JESUS' VOICE AND FOLLOWING IT
-
PATHS OF JUSTICE AND PEACEFUL SOLUTIONS FOR VENEZUELA
-
POPE WRITES PRESIDENT OF ITALIAN REPUBLIC
-
TELEGRAM FOR EXPLOSION IN WEST, TEXAS, USA
-
NEW LIFE IN HISTORIC RUSSIAN CONVENT OF DORMITION OF THE MOTHER OF
GOD IN ROME
-
AUDIENCES
-
OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS
______________________________________
POPE
RECALLS SERMON ON MOUNT TO AFFIRM THAT JESUS IS DOOR TO ENTER INTO
KINGDOM OF GOD
Vatican
City, 22 April 2013 (VIS) – The reflection on Jesus as the “door”
to enter into the Kingdom of God was the central theme of this
morning's Mass celebrated by the Pope in the Domus Sanctae Marthae,
at which the personnel of the Press Office of the Holy See and
various technicians of Vatican Radio were in attendance.
The
Holy Father recalled that in today's Gospel, which narrated the story
of the Good Shepherd, Jesus asserted that: “whoever doesn't enter
the sheepfold by the gate is not the shepherd. … He is a thief or a
robber,” the Pope said, “someone seeking his own profit. ...There
are also such people in the Christian community, who seek their own
profit and, consciously or unconsciously, pretend to enter at the
door. But they are thieves … because the steal Jesus' glory and
seek their own. … They have not entered by the true door. … The
true door is Jesus and whoever does not enter by this door errs.”
“How
do we know that the true door is Jesus?” the pontiff asked.
“Reading what the Beatitudes say, as they are told in St. Matthew:
'Be humble, be poor, be meek, be just' … When they give you another
suggestion, don't listen to it. The door is always Jesus and whoever
enters by that door is not mistaken. Jesus isn't only the door; He is
the way, the path. There are many paths: some seems more advantageous
for arriving but they are misleading. They are false.”
“Let
us ask today for the grace to always knock at that door. …
Sometimes we have problems doing so. But we don't have to go looking
for other, easier doors. The door is Jesus, who doesn't disappoint,
who doesn't deceive. He has given his life for us. And each of us has
to say: 'You have given your life for me, open, please, that I might
enter. Open, Lord, because I want to enter by 'this' door, not by
that other,” Pope Francis concluded.
MESSAGE
TO EUCHARISTIC CONGRESS OF COSTA RICA
Vatican
City, 22 April 2013 (VIS) – Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, S.D.B.,
secretary of State, sent a short message on behalf of the Holy Father
to the organizers and participants in the National Eucharistic
Congress that is being held in Costa Rica with the theme of
“Eucharist: Bread of Life for Our People”.
The
Pope invites all to “intensify their prayer lives, making the
Eucharist the true centre of Christian communities, where praise and
thanksgiving are the impetus to a renewed commitment to
evangelization and ecclesial communion. May the Blessed Sacrament at
the altar give all the Baptised plentiful spiritual energy to build a
world that is ever more just and harmonious, according to the message
of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
With
these regards,” the text concludes, “the Supreme Pontiff entrusts
to the loving protection of Our Lady of the Angels, the pastors and
faithful who have made the pilgrimage to the House of the Father in
Costa Rica. As a sign of abundant heavenly gifts, he affectionately
imparts to them the besought Apostolic Blessing.”
POPE
TO ADMINISTER SACRAMENT OF CONFIRMATION
Vatican
City, 22 April 2013 (VIS) - The Office of Liturgical Celebrations of
the Supreme Pontiff today announced that next Sunday, 28 April, the
Fifth Sunday of Easter at 10:00am in St. Peter's Square, the Holy
Father Francis will celebrate Mass for confirmands who have come in
pilgrimage to Rome from around the world for the Year of Faith. He
will administer the sacrament of Confirmation to some of them.
CARDINAL
SALAZAR TAKES POSSESSION OF HIS TITULAR CHURCH
Vatican
City, 22 April 2013 (VIS) - The Office of Liturgical Celebrations of
the Supreme Pontiff today announced that next Sunday, 28 April, at
11:00am, Cardinal Ruben Salazar Gomez, archbishop of Bogota,
Colombia, will take possession of the title of St. Gerardo Maiella on
Via Romolo Balzani, 74.
BE
PASTORS NOT FUNCTIONARIES, POPE SAYS TO NEW PRIESTS
Vatican
City, 21 April 2013 (VIS) – This morning in St. Peter's Basilica,
Pope Francis conferred priestly ordination upon ten deacons from
several Roman diocesan seminaries: the Major Seminary, the Seminary
of the Oblates, the sanctuary of the Virgin of Divine Love, and the
Redemptoris Mater Seminary. Concelebrating with the Holy Father were
Cardinal Agostino Vallini, vicar general of His Holiness for Rome,
Archbishop Filippo Iannone, O. Carm., vice gerent of the diocese of
Rome, auxiliary bishops, and the superiors of the seminaries from
which the new priests came.
The
homily delivered by the Bishop of Rome was based on the one that
appears in the Pontificale Romanum for the ordination of priests,
with one or two personal additions, mainly emphasizing the mercy that
must characterize the new priests. Following are ample extracts from
his homily.
“It
is true that God has made his entire holy people a royal priesthood
in Christ. Nevertheless, our great Priest himself, Jesus Christ,
chose certain disciples to carry out publicly in his name, and on
behalf of mankind, a priestly office in the Church. For Christ was
sent by the Father and he in turn sent the Apostles into the world,
so that through them and their successors, the Bishops, he might
continue to exercise his office of Teacher, Priest, and Shepherd.
Indeed, priests are established co-workers of the Order of Bishops,
with whom they are joined in the priestly office and with whom they
are called to the service of the people of God.”
“Now
... you are to be raised to the Order of the Priesthood. For your
part you will exercise the sacred duty of teaching in the name of
Christ the Teacher. Impart to everyone the Word of God which you have
received with joy. Remember your mothers, your grandmothers, your
catechists, who gave you the Word of God, the faith ... the gift of
faith! ... Meditating on the law of the Lord, see that you believe
what you read, that you teach what you believe, and that you practise
what you teach. Remember too that the Word of God is not your
property: it is the Word of God. And the Church is the custodian of
the Word of God.”
“You
will exercise in Christ the office of sanctifying. … You will
gather others into the people of God through Baptism, and you will
forgive sins in the name of Christ and the Church in the sacrament of
Penance. Today I ask you in the name of Christ and the Church, never
tire of being merciful. You will comfort the sick and the elderly
with holy oil: do not hesitate to show tenderness towards the
elderly.”
“Remember
then that you are taken from among men and appointed on their behalf
for those things that pertain to God. Therefore, carry out the
ministry of Christ the Priest with constant joy and genuine love,
attending not to your own concerns but to those of Jesus Christ. You
are pastors, not functionaries. Be mediators, not intermediaries.”
“Finally,
dear sons, exercising for your part the office of Christ, Head and
Shepherd, while united with the Bishop and subject to him, strive to
bring the faithful together into one family, so that you may lead
them to God the Father through Christ in the Holy Spirit. Keep always
before your eyes the example of the Good Shepherd who came not to be
served but to serve, and who came to seek out and save what was
lost.”
REGINA
COELI: RECOGNIZING JESUS' VOICE AND FOLLOWING IT
Vatican
City, 21 April 2013 (VIS) – At the end of the Mass celebrated in
the Vatican Basilica for the ordination of ten deacons, the Holy
Father appeared at the window of his study in the Vatican Apostolic
Palace to pray the Regina Coeli with the faithful gathered in St.
Peter's Square.
The
Pope explained that the fourth Sunday of Easter is characterized by
the Gospel of the Good Shepherd, citing the four verses that contain
“Jesus' entire message”. “My sheep hear my voice; I know them,
and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never
perish. No one can take them out of my hand. My Father, who has given
them to me, is greater than all, and no one can take them out of the
Father’s hand. The Father and I are one” (Jn 10:27-30).
“Jesus
wants to establish a relationship with his friends that reflects the
one he has with the Father: a relationship of mutual belonging in
complete confidence, in intimate communion.” To express this it is
necessary to use the image of the sheep who recognize the voice of
the shepherd and follow him. “The mystery of the voice is
suggestive. Already at our mother's breast we learn to recognize her
voice, and that of our father. By someone's tone of voice we can
perceive love or contempt, affection or coldness. Jesus' voice is
unique! If we learn to distinguish it, He guides us on the path of
life, a path that even overcomes the abyss of death.”
However,
referring to his sheep, Jesus also says: “My Father, who has given
them to me. This is very important. It is a profound mystery that is
not easy to understand. If I feel attracted to Jesus, if his voice
warms my heart, it is thanks to God the Father who has put this
desire for love, for truth, for life, for beauty within me. And Jesus
is all this completely. This helps us to understand the mystery of
vocation, especially of the call to a special consecration.”
“Today
there are many young persons in the piazza,” the pontiff observed.
“I want to ask you, has there been a time when you have heard the
Lord's voice, who through a desire, a restlessness, has invited you
to follow him more closely? … Youth needs to put its high ideals
into action. Have you thought of this? … Ask Jesus what He wants of
you and be courageous! … Behind and before each vocation to the
priesthood or the consecrated life there is always someone's strong
and intense prayer: a grandmother, a grandfather,a mother, a father,
a community. This is why Jesus said 'ask the master of the
harvest—that is, God the Father—to send out labourers for his
harvest'. Vocations are born in prayer and from prayer. Only in
prayer can they persevere and bear fruit. I would like to emphasize
that today is the 'World Day of Prayer for Vocations'. Let us pray in
particular for the new priests of the Diocese of Rome who I had the
joy or ordaining this morning. … And let us call upon the
intercession of Mary, who is the Woman of the 'Yes'. She said 'Yes'
her entire life. She learned to recognize Jesus' voice from when she
carried him in her womb. May Mary, our Mother, help us to always know
better Jesus' voice and to follow it, to walk in the path of life.”
PATHS
OF JUSTICE AND PEACEFUL SOLUTIONS FOR VENEZUELA
Vatican
City, 21 April 2013 (VIS) – After the Regina Coeli, the Pope asked
for prayers for those suffering from the political violence in
Venezuela and from the earthquake in China.
“I
am following attentively the events that are happening in Venezuela,”
the Pontiff said. “I accompany them with deep concern, with intense
prayer, and with the hope that you will seek and find ways to
overcome, with justice and peace, this moment of serious difficulty
that the country is undergoing. I call upon the beloved Venezuelan
people, especially institutional and political decision makers, to
firmly reject any type of violence and to establish a dialogue based
in truth, mutual recognition, in the search for the common good, and
in love for the Nation. I ask believers to pray and work for
reconciliation and peace. Let us join together in a prayer full of
hope for Venezuela, placing it in the hands of Our Lady of Coromoto.”
“My
thoughts are also with, the pontiff continued, “those who have been
affected by the earthquake that struck the south-west of mainland
China. We pray for the victims and those who are suffering because of
the violent earthquake.”
The
Pope also noted that, this afternoon in Sondrio, Italy, Fr. Nicolo
Rusca, who lived between the 16th and 17th centuries, will be
beatified. “For a long time he was an exemplary pastor in Sondrio
and he fell victim to the political-religious conflicts that were
afflicting Europe at that time. Let us give thanks to God for his
witness.”
Finally,
he spoke of the World Day of Prayer for Vocations, which was “born
50 years ago thanks to the happy intuition of Pope Paul VI. I invite
everyone to pray that the Lord send many workers to his vineyard. St.
Annibale Maria di Francia, apostle of prayer for vocations, remind us
of this very important task.”
POPE
WRITES PRESIDENT OF ITALIAN REPUBLIC
Vatican
City, 20 April 2013 (VIS) – Pope Francis has written a telegram to
the President of the Italian Republic, Giorgio Napolitano, on the
occasion of his re-election.
“At
this moment in which you, with ready willingness and a spirit of
sacrifice, have again accepted the supreme magistrature of the
Italian State as President of the Republic, I wish to express my most
sincere and heartfelt best wishes. Wishing that you may continue your
enlightened and wise activity, supported by the responsible
cooperation of all, I invoke upon your person and your exalted
service to the Nation, constant divine assistance. I wholeheartedly
impart to you and to the beloved Italian Nation, the Apostolic
Blessing, as encouragement to building a future of harmony,
solidarity, and hope.”
TELEGRAM
FOR EXPLOSION IN WEST, TEXAS, USA
Vatican
City, 20 April 2013 (VIS) – Following is the text of the telegram
sent, on behalf of the Holy Father, by Secretary of State Cardinal
Tarcisio Bertone to Bishop Joe S. Vasquez of Austin, Texas, USA for
the explosion Wednesday night of a fertilizer plant in West, Texas,
USA which has caused 14 deaths and hundreds of wounded to date.
“Saddened
by news of the destruction caused by the explosion in West, the Holy
Father asks you kindly to convey his heartfelt condolences to the
civil authorities and the afflicted families. He prays for the
eternal rest of the victims and implores God’s blessings of
consolation and peace upon those who mourn and all who generously aid
in the continuing work of relief.”
NEW
LIFE IN HISTORIC RUSSIAN CONVENT OF DORMITION OF THE MOTHER OF GOD IN
ROME
Vatican
City, 20 April 2013 (VIS) - Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, prefect of the
Congregation for the Oriental Churches, accompanied by Msgr. Maurizio
Malvestiti, under secretary of the same dicastery, visited the
Russian Monastery of the Dormition in Rome on the occasion of the
arrival of some aspirants to the monastic life these past months.
The
cardinal recalled the great richness of the Eastern monastic
tradition at the heart of the Church of Rome, called to preside in
charity over the entire Church, and offering its prayers in a special
way for the intentions of the universal Pastor, Pope Francis. These
prayers, the prefect affirmed, will sustain the life of all the
Oriental Catholic Churches, which are often beset by suffering and
persecution, and they will represent an inestimable assistance on the
path toward the reconciliation and unity of all Christians.
The
community, which supported itself in the past by creating icons and
liturgical vestments for bishops and priests, will resume the
activity of its workshops.
The
Monastery of the Dormition of Mary (Uspenskij in Slavic) was
officially established on 15 December 1957, in realization of the
wishes and commitment of the then-secretary of the Congregation for
the Oriental Churches, Cardinal Eugenio Tisserant, as well as the
dedication of the Jesuit fathers. Founded during the years of
persecution that the Church behind the Iron Curtain suffered, the
monastery was blessed by Pope Pius XII so that it might contribute,
with its prayers, to the spiritual rebirth of the Eastern European
lands, especially Russia. In an audience granted to Cardinal
Tisserant in 1956, he agreed to the establishment in Rome of a
Russian monastery for women in order to “beg the clemency of God
Almighty toward the Russian peoples”.
The
monastery's liturgy, as Cardinal Tisserant desired, is in the
Byzantine Rite, always carried out in communion with the Bishop of
Rome, who is named seven times in the daily office of prayers. For
more than 50 years this prayer has continued without interruption.
The monastery has been considered an island of Russia, through which
Russian students, prelates, monks, and nuns have passed, feeling
themselves at home. One such visitor was the current patriarch of
Moscow, Kirill I, who came to know the monastery when he was a young
priest.
AUDIENCES
Vatican
City, 22 April 2013 (VIS) – Today, the Holy Father received in
separate audiences:
eight
prelates of the Umbria region of the Italian Episcopal Conference on
their "ad limina" visit:
-
Archbishop Gualtiero Bassetti of Perugia-Città della Pieve,
-
Archbishop Domenico Sorrentino, bishop of Assisi-Nocera Umbra-Gualdo
Tadino,
-
Archbishop Renato Boccardo of Spoleto-Norcia,
-
Bishop Mario Ceccobelli of Gubbio,
-
Bishop Benedetto Tuzia of Orvieto-Todi,
-
Bishop Domenico Cancian, F.A.M., of Città di Castello,
-
Bishop Gualtiero Sigismondi of Foligno,
-
Bishop Ernesto Vecchi, titular Bishop of Lemellefa, Apostolic
Administrator of Terni-Narni-Amelia, and
Cardinal
George Pell, archbishop of Sydney, Australia.
On
Saturday, 20 April, the Holy Father received:
-
Cardinal Marc Ouellet, P.S.S., prefect of the Congregation for
Bishops, and
-
Archbishop Vincenzo Paglia, president of the Pontifical Council for
the Family.
OTHER
PONTIFICAL ACTS
Vatican
City, 20 April 2013 (VIS) - Today, the Holy Father appointed:
Fr.
Stanislaw Jamrozek as auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Przemysl
(area 9,750, population 741,500, Catholics 730,000, priests 1,027,
religious 1,312), Poland. The bishop-elect was born in Malawa, Poland
in 1960 and was ordained a priest in 1989. Since ordination he has
served in several pastoral, academic, and administrative roles, most
recently as spiritual director and Theology professor at the Major
Seminary of Przemysl. He is an ordinary canon “de numero” of the
Cathedral Chapter. The Holy Father has assigned him the Titular See
of Chelm.
Fr.
Alejandro W. Bunge, judicial vicar of the Interdiocesan Tribunal of
Buenos Aires, Argentina, as prelate auditor of the Tribunal of the
Roman Rota.
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