SUMMARY:
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St. Gregory of Narek, Doctor of the Church
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Lent, time for spiritual battle against evil
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Spiritual exercises of the Pope and the Roman Curia
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Audience with the German Chancellor Angela Merkel
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The Pope again urges affiliates of organised crime to convert
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Audiences
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Other Pontifical Acts
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St.
Gregory of Narek, Doctor of the Church
Vatican
City, 21 February 2015 (VIS) – On Saturday, 21 February the Holy
Father received in audience Cardinal Angelo Amato, S.D.B., prefect of
the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. During the audience he
confirmed the proposal by the cardinals and bishops, members of the
Plenary Session of the Congregation, to concede the title of Doctor
of the Universal Church to St. Gregory of Narek, priest and monk, who
was born in Andzevatsij (then Armenia, present-day Turkey) in 1005
and died in Narek (then Armenia, present-day Turkey) around 1005.
Lent,
time for spiritual battle against evil
Vatican
City, 21 February 2015 (VIS) – Lent, the liturgical time that
refers to the forty days Jesus spent in the desert after his baptism
in the river Jordan, was the subject of the Pope's reflection before
this Sunday's Angelus prayer with the faithful gathered in St.
Peter's Square.
On
the first Sunday of Lent, Francis explained that during these forty
days of solitude in which Jesus prepared himself to announce the
Gospel of the Kingdom of God, he “faces Satan 'body to body', he
unmasks his temptations and is victorious. And in Him we all win, but
it is up to us to protect this victory in our daily life”.
“The
Church reminds us of this mystery at the beginning of every Lenten
period”, he continued, “because it gives us the prospect and the
meaning of this time, which is a time of combat – during Lent one
must fight – a time of spiritual combat against the spirit of evil.
And while we cross the Lenten 'desert', we keep our gaze fixed upon
Easter, the definitive victory of Jesus against the Evil One, against
sin and against death. This, then, is the meaning of this first
Sunday of Lent: placing ourselves on the path of Christ, the road
that leads to life”.
“And
this, Jesus' path, passes through the desert, ... the place where
both the voice of God and the voice of the Tempter can be heard. Amid
noise and confusion; only superficial voices can be heard. Instead,
in the desert we are able to descend to the depths, where our destiny
is truly played out, life or death. And how do we hear the voice of
God? We hear it in His Word. This is why it is important to know the
Scripture, as otherwise we do not know how to respond to the
deceptions of the Evil One. … Always keep a copy of the Gospel to
hand. The Lenten desert helps us to say no to worldliness, to
'idols'; it helps us to make courageous decisions consistent with the
Gospel and to strengthen solidarity with our brothers”.
“Therefore,
let us enter into the desert without fear, because we are not alone;
we are with Jesus, with the Father and with the Holy Spirit”, added
the Holy Father. “Lent is an auspicious time to lead us to be
increasingly aware of how much the Holy Spirit, received in baptism,
has worked and can work in us. At the end of the Lenten itinerary, on
the Easter Vigil, we are able to renew the baptismal alliance and the
duties that derive from this with greater awareness”.
The
Pope completed his reflection by entrusting to the Virgin the week of
Spiritual Exercises that began yesterday afternoon, and in which his
collaborators in the Roman Curia will also participate. He asked
those present to pray, “so that in this 'desert' of the Spiritual
Exercises, we can hear the voice of Jesus and also correct many flaws
that we all have, and also to face up to the temptations that assail
us every day. I therefore ask you to accompany us with your prayer”.
Following
the Angelus prayer, the Pope referred again to Lent, “a path of
conversion whose centre is the heart”, and gave the faithful
present in the square a small booklet entitled “Custodisci il
cuore”, “Safeguard your heart”. Distributed by a group of
volunteers, including various homeless persons, it brings together a
number of Jesus' teachings and the essential content of the faith,
such as for instance the seven Sacraments, the gifts of the Holy
Spirit, the ten commandments, the virtues, the works of mercy, and so
on.
“As
is always the case, today in the square the needy give us a great
wealth: the wealth of our doctrine to safeguard the heart”, he
remarked, referring to the work of the homeless volunteers. “Take a
booklet and carry it with you, to help in spiritual conversion and
growth, which always starts from the heart: there, where the daily
choices between good and evil are made, between worldliness and the
Gospel, between indifference and sharing. Humanity needs justice,
peace and love, and will obtain this only by returning wholeheartedly
to God, the source”.
Spiritual
exercises of the Pope and the Roman Curia
Vatican
City, 22 February 2015 (VIS) – At 6 p.m. today, the first Sunday of
Lent, at the House of the Divine Master in Ariccia, a few kilometres
from Rome, the Roman Curia began its Spiritual Exercises, in which
the Holy Father participates.
The
meditations will be proposed by Fr. Bruno Secondin, O. Carm., and the
theme will be “Servants and prophets of the living God”, a
pastoral reading of the prophet Elijah.
The
Exercises will be concluded on the morning of Friday, 27 February.
During
the week of the Spiritual Exercises all audiences will be suspended,
including the General Audience on Wednesday, 25 February.
Audience
with the German Chancellor Angela Merkel
Vatican
City, 21 February 2015 (VIS) – This morning, 21 February 2015, the
Holy Father Francis received in Audience in the Vatican Apostolic
Palace the Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany, Her
Excellency Angela Merkel, who subsequently met with His Eminence
Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, accompanied by His
Excellency Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, Secretary for Relations
with States.
During
the cordial discussions, and in view of the upcoming G7 Summit to be
held in Bavaria, special attention was paid to various questions of
an International nature, with particular reference to the struggle
against poverty and hunger; the exploitation of human beings and the
rights of women; and the challenges of promoting world health and the
protection of Creation. The themes of human rights and religious
freedom in various parts of the world were also considered,
emphasising the importance of spiritual values to social cohesion.
Finally,
the Parties considered the situation in Europe, underlining in
particular the commitment to reaching a peaceful solution to the
conflict in Ukraine.
The
Pope again urges affiliates of organised crime to convert
Vatican
City, 21 February 2015 (VIS) – This morning in the Paul VI Hall the
Pope received in audience more than seven thousand people from the
Italian diocese of Cassano all'Jonio, in the region of Calabria,
which Francis visited last June, and whose church welcomes different
rites and traditions that express “the variety of gifts that enrich
Christ's Church”.
The
Holy Father greeted the representatives of the various associations
from the area that are occupied in “welcoming the suffering
Christ”, especially those who have problems of substance abuse
through support centres and homes, and recalled last year's meeting
with the detainees in the Castrovillari prison, with the sick, and
the extraordinary presence of the people on the Sibaris plain. “May
the Lord help you to be welcoming communities, to accompany toward
Christ those who find it difficult to discern his presence that
saves”.
“I
would like to reaffirm a thought that I suggested to you during my
visit: he who loves Jesus, he who listens to Him and welcomes His
Word, and he who lives in a sincere way the response to the Lord's
call cannot in any way lend himself to the works of evil. Either
Jesus, or evil! Jesus did not invite us to dine with demons: he cast
them out, because they were evil. It is not possible to declare
oneself Christian and then violate the dignity of people; those who
belong to the Christian community cannot plan and implement violent
acts against others and against the environment. The outward gestures
of religiosity, unaccompanied by true and public conversion, are not
sufficient to believe oneself in communion with Jesus and with His
Church. The external gestures of religiosity are not enough to credit
as believers those who, with the wickedness and arrogance typical of
miscreants, make illegality their way of living. To those who have
chosen the way of evil and who are affiliated to delinquent
organisations, I renew my invitation to conversion. Open your heart
to the Lord! The Lord awaits you and the Church will welcome you if,
just as your decision to serve evil is public, your wish to serve
good is clear and public”.
“The
beauty of your land is a gift from God and an asset to conserve and
to hand down in all its splendour to future generations”, remarked
Francis. “Therefore, there is a need for courageous efforts by all,
starting with the institutions, to ensure that it is not defaced
irreparably by sordid interests”. He went on to list the Emmanuel
Community among the places of beauty in the area: an place of
“welcome and sharing” where young people whose lives have been
devastated by drug abuse can find a “good Samaritan who tends to
their wounds and knows how to anoint them with the balsam of
closeness and affection”, and noted that it has restored hope to
many families. “The Church thanks you for this service”, he said.
“Placing yourself by the side of young people and adults who suffer
as a result of addiction, you have embraced the suffering Christ and
sowed hope”.
“Our
time has a great need for hope!”, exclaimed the Holy Father. “The
young can no longer be robbed of hope. … The young need hope. It is
necessary to offer concrete signs of hope to those who experience
pain and suffering. Social organisations and associations, as well as
individuals who strive towards acceptance and sharing, are generators
of hope. Therefore, I exhort your Christian communities to be agents
of solidarity, never to stop before those who, for mere personal
interest, sow self-centredness, violence and injustice. Oppose
yourselves to the culture of death and be witnesses to the Gospel of
life! May the light of God's Word and the support of the Holy Spirit
help you to look with new and willing eyes upon the new forms of
poverty that drive so many young people and families to desperation”.
Audiences
Vatican
City, 21 February 2015 (VIS) – Today, the Holy Father received in
separate audiences:
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Cardinal Marc Ouellet, P.S.S., prefect of the Congregation for
Bishops;
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Cardinal Angelo Amato, S.D.B., prefect of the Congregation for the
Causes of Saints.
Other
Pontifical Acts
Vatican
City, 21 February 2015 (VIS) – The Holy Father has appointed:
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Bishop Freddy Antonio de Jesus Breton Martinez of Bani, Dominican
Republic, as metropolitan archbishop of Santiago de los Caballeros
(area 3,633, population 1,320,000, Catholics 1,105,000, priests 128,
permanent deacons 121, religious 325), Dominican Republic. He
succeeds Archbishop Ramon Benito de la Rosa y Carpio, whose
resignation from the pastoral care of the same diocese upon reaching
the age limit was accepted by the Holy Father.
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Rev. Andres Napoleon Romero Cardenas as bishop of Barahona (area
6,973, population 396,270, Catholics 215,000, priests 28, permanent
deacons 2, religious 54), Dominican Repubilc. The bishop-elect was
born in Ramonal Arriba, Dominican Republic in 1967 and was ordained a
priest in 1995. He holds a licentiate in philosophy and letters and
in religious sciences from the Pontifical University Mater et
Magistra, Dominican Republic, and in biblical theology from the
Pontifical Gregorian University, and has served in a number of
pastoral and academic roles, including parish vicar, formator in the
minor seminary and diocesan director for priestly vocations,
professor of sacred scripture and research methodology, dean of the
faculties of philosophy and theology, and formator at the St. Thomas
Aquinas Pontifical major seminary. He is currently parish priest of
the Cathedral of Santa Ana in the diocese of San Francisco de
Macoris. He succeeds Bishop Rafael Leonidas Felipe y Nunez, whose
resignation from the pastoral governance of the same diocese upon
reaching the age limit was accepted by the Holy Father.
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Fr. Hector Rafael Rodriguez Rodriguez M.S.C., as bishop of La Vega
(area 4,919, population 977,000, Catholics 801,000, priests 92,
permanent deacons 65, religious 223), Dominican Republic. The
bishop-elect was born in Sanchez, Dominican Republic in 1961, gave
his solemn vows in 1984 and was ordained a priest in 1989. He holds a
licentiate in spiritual theology from the Pontifical Gregorian
University. During his pastoral ministry he has served as parish
vicar and, within his community, director for aspirants at the
Vocational Centre, director of the post-novitiate, master of novices,
Provincial. He has also served as member of the Managing Body of the
Dominican Conference of Religious. He is currently first adviser of
the Congregation of Missionaries of the Sacred Heart. He succeeds
Bishop Antonio Camilo Gonzalez, whose resignation from the pastoral
care of the same diocese upon reaching the age limit was accepted by
the Holy Father.
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Bishop Jose Miguel Gonzalez Rodriguez of Libano-Honda, Colombia, as
bishop of Facatativa (area 2,311, population 546,000, Catholics
512,000, priests 93, permanent deacons 4, religious 305), Colombia.
On
Saturday, 21 February appointed Archbishop Edgar Pena Parra,
apostolic nuncio in Pakistan, as apostolic nuncio in Mozambique.
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