SUMMARY:
-
FRANCIS PRAISES THE VITALITY OF FAITH IN BULGARIA
-
POPE FRANCIS: THE FOUNDATION FOR DIALOGUE BETWEEN JEWS AND CHRISTIANS
IS THEOLOGICAL
-
CATHOLIC SCHOOLS AND UNIVERSITIES MUST NOT BE ISOLATED AND MUST
ENGAGE IN DIALOGUE WITH CONTEMPORARY CULTURE
-
FIFTY YEARS AFTER SACROSANCTUM CONCILIUM: THE CHALLENGE OF LITURGICAL
RENOVATION AND DEEPENING
-
AUDIENCES
-
OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS
______________________________________
FRANCIS
PRAISES THE VITALITY OF FAITH IN BULGARIA
Vatican
City, 13 February 2014 (VIS) – This morning Pope Francis received
in audience a group of bishops from the Episcopal Conference of
Bulgaria on their “ad limina” visit, during which he handed them
the text of an address in which he praised the vitality of the
Catholic faith in the country, as demonstrated by a series of
initiatives and activities in recent years. These include the Jubilee
Year of 2010 convoked by the Apostolic Exarchate for Catholics of
Byzantine-Slavic rite to celebrate the 150th anniversary of union
with the Apostolic See of Rome; the scientific-commemorative
convention on the work of Archbishop Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli,
apostolic visitor and delegate in Bulgaria during the years 1925 –
1934; the celebrations of the 60th anniversary of the martyrdom of
the Passionist Blessed Evgenij Bossilkov and, during the recent Year
of Faith, the National Meeting of Catholics of Bulgaria, the National
Day for Young People and a study conference on Vatican Council II.
These
initiatives confirm that the Catholic communities belonging both to
the Latin Church and the Greek-Catholic Church, while a minority in
Bulgaria, bear witness “both to natural moral values, and to
Christ's Gospel, in a society marked by the many spiritual voids left
behind by the former atheist regime and the uncritical acceptance of
cultural models in which the suggestions of a certain practical
materialism prevail”.
In
the text, the Pope encourages the bishops to follow this path with
courage and to inspire “that missionary transformation that the
Church is called upon to bring about in the entire world”. He
writes, “We are all missionary disciples, sent by the Lord to
evangelise with joy and spirit, also recognising the valuable
treasure of popular piety. This renewed missionary effort also has a
social dimension, which takes as a point of reference the social
doctrine of the Church and whose priorities are the social inclusion
of the poor and commitment to the common good and social peace. It is
therefore important for civil institutions to recognise the role of
the Holy See as a spiritual and moral authority within the
international community and to positively acknowledge the presence of
the Catholic Church in conjunction with the Bulgarian nation and the
contribution she offers in the service of the common good and the
progress of the country”.
Pope
Francis mentions the courageous witness to Christ and the Church on
the part of Bulgarian faithful during dramatic periods in history and
the path they have undertaken in the last two decades since regaining
their freedom, and he encourages them to trust in the providential
action of the Lord. He also urges the prelates to prioritise the
formation of priests and the young, and since Catholics in Bulgaria
live in close contact with the communities of the Orthodox Church, to
continue in their efforts “to promote an increasingly intense and
brotherly dialogue” with this Church, in order to “open the
hearts and minds of all to give rise to an ever more concrete hope to
arrive at the united celebration of the Eucharistic sacrifice”.
Finally,
referring to the upcoming canonisation on 27 April of Blesseds John
XXIII and John Paul II, to be attended by delegations from various
Bulgarian dioceses and exarchates, the Holy Father states: “It is
an eloquent sign of the effect the witness of the first Slavic Pope
has had on the soul and the life of the Bulgarian Catholic community
… and also a sign of the living memory left of Archbishop Angelo
Giuseppe Roncalli during the years in which he worked in Bulgaria as
apostolic delegate .. and his affection for the Bulgarian people,
which in the midst of the vicissitudes of history has kept alive the
flame of faith in Christ”.
POPE
FRANCIS: THE FOUNDATION FOR DIALOGUE BETWEEN JEWS AND CHRISTIANS IS
THEOLOGICAL
Vatican
City, 13 February 2014 (VIS) – “I am very grateful to you for the
distinguished contribution you have made to dialogue and fraternity
between Jews and Catholics, and I encourage you to continue on this
path”, said Pope Francis to the 55 members of the American Jewish
Committee delegation, whom he received this morning in the Consistory
Hall, also recalling the good relations the organisation maintained
with his predecessors, as well as with the Holy See and the many
representatives of the Catholic world.
“Next
year we will commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the Declaration
of the Second Vatican Council, 'Nostra Aetate', which today
constitutes for the Church the sure point of reference for relations
with our 'elder brothers'”, he continued. “From this document,
our reflection on the spiritual patrimony which unites us and which
is the foundation of our dialogue has developed with renewed vigour.
This foundation is theological, and not simply an expression of our
desire for reciprocal respect and esteem. Therefore, it is important
that our dialogue be always profoundly marked by the awareness of our
relationship with God”.
“In
addition to dialogue, it is also important to find ways in which Jews
and Christians can cooperate in constructing a more just and
fraternal world. In this regard, I call to mind in a particular way
our common efforts to serve the poor, the marginalized and those who
suffer. Our commitment to this service is anchored in the protection
of the poor, widows, orphans, and foreigners as shown in Sacred
Scripture. It is a God given duty, one which reflects His holy will
and His justice; it is a true religious obligation”.
Finally,
in order that common efforts may not be fruitless, “it is important
that we dedicate ourselves to transmitting to new generations the
heritage of our mutual knowledge, esteem and friendship which, thanks
to the commitment of associations like yours, has grown over these
years. It is my hope therefore that the study of relations with
Judaism may continue to flourish in seminaries and in centres of
formation for lay Catholics, as I am similarly hopeful that a desire
for an understanding of Christianity may grow among young Rabbis and
the Jewish community”.
“Dear
friends”, concluded the Holy Father, “in a few months I will have
the joy of visiting Jerusalem, where – as the Psalm says – we are
all born and where all peoples will one day meet. Accompany me with
your prayers, so that this pilgrimage may bring forth the fruits of
communion, hope and peace. Shalom!”
CATHOLIC
SCHOOLS AND UNIVERSITIES MUST NOT BE ISOLATED AND MUST ENGAGE IN
DIALOGUE WITH CONTEMPORARY CULTURE
Vatican
City, 13 February 2014 (VIS) – “Catholic education is one of the
most important challenges for the Church, currently committed to new
evangelisation in an historical and cultural context that is
undergoing constant transformation”, remarked the Holy Father in
his address to participants in the plenary session of the
Congregation for Catholic Education (for Educational Institutions),
whom he received in audience in the Sala Clementina this morning.
The
agenda of the plenary session, the Pope commented, includes themes of
primary importance such as the implementation of the Apostolic
Constitution “Sapientia Christiana”, the consolidation of the
identity of Catholic universities, and the preparations for the
events which will fall in 2015: the fiftieth anniversary of the
Conciliar Declaration “Gravissimum educationis” and the
twenty-fifth anniversary of the Apostolic Constitution “Ex Corde
Ecclesiae”.
Pope
Francis proposed three aspects for consideration by the participants:
the value of dialogue in education, the qualified preparation of
formators and the responsibility of educational institutions to
express the living presence of the Gospel in the fields of education,
science and culture.
Referring
to the first of these points, he said, “Effectively, Catholic
schools and universities are attended by many students who are not
Christian or do not believe. Catholic educational institutions offer
to all an approach to education that has as its aim the full
development of the person, which responds to the right of every
person to access to knowledge. However, they are also called upon to
offer, with full respect for the freedom of each person and using the
methods appropriate to the scholastic environment, the Christian
belief, that is, to present Jesus Christ as the meaning of life, the
cosmos and history. Jesus began to proclaim the good news of the
'Galilee of the people', a crossroads of people, diverse in terms of
race, culture and religion. This context resembles today's world, in
certain respects. The profound changes that have led to the ever
wider diffusion of multicultural societies require those who work in
the school or university sector to be involved in educational
itineraries involving comparison and dialogue, with a courageous and
innovative fidelity that enables Catholic identity to encounter the
various 'souls' of multicultural society”.
With
regard to the second aspect, the Pope remarked that during his
meeting with the Superior Generals, he had emphasised that education
in our times “is guided by a changing generation, and that,
therefore, every educator – and the Church as a whole is an
educating mother – is required to change, in the sense of knowing
how to communicate with the young”.
In
relation to the responsibility of educational institutions to
“express the living presence of the Gospel in the field of
education, science and culture”, Pope Francis reiterated the need
for Catholic academic institutions to avoid “isolating themselves
in the world”, and instead to “know how to enter, with courage,
into the Areopagus of contemporary cultures and to initiate dialogue,
aware of the gift they are able to offer to all”.
FIFTY
YEARS AFTER SACROSANCTUM CONCILIUM: THE CHALLENGE OF LITURGICAL
RENOVATION AND DEEPENING
Vatican
City, 13 February 2014 (VIS) – This morning a press conference was
held in the Holy See Press Office to present the Symposium
“Sacrosanctum Concilium. Gratitude and commitment for a great
ecclesial movement”, organised by the Congregation for Divine
Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments. The congress, organised
in collaboration with the Pontifical Lateran University and scheduled
to take place from 18 to 20 February, will commemorate the 50th
anniversary of the Council Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy,
promulgated by Pope Paul VI on 4 December 1963.
The
speakers at the conference were Archbishop Arthur Roche, secretary of
the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the
Sacraments, Msgr. Juan Miguel Ferrer Grenesche, under-secretary of
the same Congregation, and Philippe Chenaux, professor of modern and
contemporary history of the Church at the Pontifical Lateran
University and director of the “Vatican Council II” Centre for
Study and Research.
In
addition, a text prepared by Cardinal Antonio Canizares Llovera,
prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of
the Sacraments was read by Msgr. Juan Miguel Ferrer Grenesche, and a
text by Bishop Enrico dal Covolo, S.D.B., rector of the Pontifical
Lateran University, was read by Professor Philippe Chenaux.
Cardinal
Canizares commented that the Council was “an invitation to the
Church to be herself, as God wished her to be and created her, and to
act in a manner coherent with her vocation and with the mission that
God Himself has given her. … With this beginning, which focuses on
the theme of the Liturgy, the emphasis is unequivocally placed on the
primacy of God in the Church; God first of all. … When God is not
in first place, everything else loses its way”.
The
Vatican Council II Fathers demonstrated this priority first by
approving the Constitution “Sacrosanctum Concilium”, clarifying
that “worship comes first; God comes first. Therefore, beginning
with the theme of the Liturgy, the Council explicitly turned
attention to God's primacy and at the same time indicated it as a
sure point of orientation for the path to be followed in the future”.
With
regard to “gratitude” and “commitment”, the prelate added,
“We must, indeed, thank God for this first fruit of the Council …
not only for the Constitution itself, but also for the renewing
dynamism of the Church that it has given rise to, and continues to
provide. At the same time, urgent commitment on our part to the
continuation and deepening of the liturgical renewal hoped for by the
Vatican Council II is now called for. It is true that much has been
done, but there remains much still to do”.
The
Symposium will include a component dedicated to theological and
pastoral reflection, and will offer important opportunities for
celebrations and time for prayer; ample space will also be dedicated
to the beauty of art in the service of liturgy, represented by
concerts and exhibitions. The participants will meet with the Holy
Father on Wednesday 19 February during the general audience.
AUDIENCES
Vatican
City, 13 February 2014 (VIS) – Today, the Holy Father received in
audience:
-
Three prelates of the Episcopal Conference of Bulgaria on their “ad
limina” visit:
-
Bishop Petko Jordanov Christov of Nicopoli;
-
Bishop Gheorghi Ivanov Jovcek of Sofia and Plovdiv;
-
Bishop Christo Proykov, apostolic esarch of Sofia for Catholics of
Byzantine-Slavic rite resident in Bulgaria.
Yesterday
the Holy Father received in audience Bishop Nunzio Galantino of
Cassano all'Jonio, secretary general “ad interim” of the Italian
Episcopal Conference.
OTHER
PONTIFICAL ACTS
Vatican
City, 13 February 2014 (VIS) – The Holy Father has:
-
confirmed the erection of the archiepiscopal esarchate of Krym of the
Ukrainians, Ukraine by the Synod of the Greek Catholic Church, with
territory from the current archiepiscopal esarchate of Odessa-Krym;
-
confirmed the transfer of Bishop Vasyl Ivasyuk from the office of
archiepiscopal esarch of Odessa-Krym to the eparchy of
Kolomyia-Chernivtsi of the Ukrainians.
-
given his assent to the canonical election by the Synod of the Greek
Catholic Church of Pr. Mykhaylo Bubniy, C.SS.R., as first bishop of
the archiepiscopal eparchy of Krym, Ukraine. The bishop-elect was
born in Khlivchany, Ukraine in 1970, took his religious vows in 1996
and was ordained a priest in 1977. He holds a licentiate in canon law
from the Pontifical Oriental Institute in Rome. He has served in
pastoral roles in Novoiavorivsk, Kokhavino and Lviv, and is currently
superior of the Community of Redemptorist Fathers in Ivano-Frankivsk
and priest in the parish of “Our Lady of Perpetual Help” in the
same city.
You
can find more information at: www.visnews.org
The
news items contained in the Vatican Information Service may be used,
in part or in their entirety, by quoting the source:
V.I.S.
-Vatican Information Service.
Copyright
© Vatican Information Service 00120 Vatican City
No comments:
Post a Comment