Roots and bridges. The Pope in Hungary

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Pope's teachings

Roots and bridges. The Pope in Hungary

Roots are the source of life. Bridges are necessary to go beyond ourselves. Without roots we cannot build bridges, but without bridges we cannot extend our life to others or allow them to live with us. A summary of the Pope's messages in Hungary.

Ramiro Pellitero-June 3, 2023-Reading time: 8 minutes

At his general audience on Wednesday, May 3, Pope Francis took stock of his pastoral trip to Hungary, "a courageous people rich in memory".. And he used two images: the roots y the bridges.

Europe, bridges and saints

It all started at the meeting with the authorities (cfr. Speech28-IV-2023), when the Pope drew his inspiration from the city of Budapestcharacterized by its history, its bridges and its saints, which is part of the roots of that land and its people.

Referring to the recent history of Europe, the Pope noted: "In the postwar period Europe represented, together with the United Nations, the great hope, with the common goal that a closer bond between nations would prevent further conflict.".

He regretted that this was not the case: "In general, it seems that the enthusiasm for building a peaceful and stable community of nations has been dissolved in people's spirits, delimiting zones, accentuating differences, making nationalism roar again and exasperating judgments and tones towards others. It even seems that politics at the international level had the effect of inflaming tempers rather than solving problems, forgetting the maturity it achieved after the horrors of war and regressing to a kind of warlike infantilism"..

But Europe must regain its role in the current historical moment: "Europe is fundamental. Because it, thanks to its history, represents the memory of humanity [...]. It is essential to rediscover the European soul: the enthusiasm and the dream of the founding fathers."The Pope said that he was not aware of the great statesmen who were De Gasperi, Schuman and Adenauer in their work for unity and peace. The Pope complained, asking himself, now, "where are the peace-creating efforts".. This, no doubt, had to do not only with roots, but also with bridges.

Preserving identity without retreating

Francis proposes that Europe should avoid two extremes: on the one hand, falling prey to the "self-referential populisms" countries; on the other hand, the transformation of the "in a fluid, or gaseous, reality, in a kind of abstract supranationalism, which does not take into account the life of the people".. Here he made a first reference to the "ideological colonizations" -He cited the case of the so-called culture of gender ideology, or the reductionism of freedom -such as the insensate "right to abortion"which is always a tragic defeat.

The construction of Europe must be "person-centered and village-centered, where there are effective policies for birth and family.". In Hungary, Francis specified, the Christian faith can help the ecumenical work of "pontonero" that facilitates coexistence between different confessions in a constructive spirit.

Thirdly, Budapest is a city of santos. Saints such as St. Stephen, the first king of Hungary, and St. Elizabeth, as well as Mary, Queen of Hungary, taught by their lives that "Christian values cannot be witnessed by means of rigidity and closed-mindedness, because the truth of Christ entails meekness, it entails gentleness, in the spirit of the Beatitudes.".

Therefore - Francis pointed out - true human richness is shaped by the conjunction of a solid identity together with openness to others, as recognized in the Hungarian Constitution, which is committed to respecting both the freedom and culture of other peoples and nations and of national minorities within the country. This is important, he stressed, in the face of "a certain tendency - sometimes justified in the name of one's traditions and even faith - to withdraw into oneself.".

At the same time, the Pope left other criteria - also with Christian roots - for the present moment in Hungary and Europe: it is a duty to assist the needy and the poor, "and not lend itself to a kind of collaborationism with the logics of power."; "a healthy secularism, which does not fall into generalized secularism", is a good thing". (which rejects religion in order to fall into the arms of the pseudo-religion of profit); it is good to cultivate "a humanism inspired by the Gospel and based on two fundamental paths: to recognize ourselves as beloved children of the Father and to love each other as brothers and sisters".The reception of foreigners must be dealt with in a reasonable way and shared with other European countries.

Welcoming, announcement, discernment

He followed this line in his meeting with the clergy (cf. Speech at St. Stephen's Cathedral, 28-IV-2023). As the foundation and central root of our life, we must look to Christ: "We can look at the storms that sometimes batter our world, the rapid and continuous changes in society and the very crisis of faith in the West with a gaze that does not give in to resignation and that does not lose sight of the centrality of Easter: the risen Christ, the center of history, is the future.". Also so as not to fall into the great danger of worldliness. To say that Christ is our future is not to say that the future is Christ.

Francis put them on guard against two interpretations or temptations: "First, a catastrophic reading of present history, which feeds on the defeatism of those who repeat that all is lost, that the values of the past no longer exist, that we do not know where we will end up." Secondly, the risk of "of the naïve reading of the times themselves, which instead is based on the comfort of conformism and makes us believe that after all everything is fine, that the world has changed and we must adapt - without discernment, this is ugly -".

Neither defeatism nor conformism

To avoid these two risks - catastrophic defeatism and worldly conformism, "the Gospel gives us new eyes, it gives us the grace of discernment to enter our time with an attitude of welcome, but also with a spirit of prophecy".We must accept the times in which we live, with their changes and challenges, knowing how to distinguish the signs of the coming of the Lord.

All this, without becoming worldly, without falling into secularism - living as if God did not exist -, in materialism and hedonism, in a "soft paganism" and anesthetized. And on the other extreme, without closing ourselves, by reaction, in a rigidity of "fighters"; because the realities we live are opportunities to find new ways and languages, new purifications of any worldliness, as Benedict XVI already warned (cfr. Meeting with Catholics involved in the Church and society, Freiburg im Breisgau, September 25, 2011).

What to do then? Here are the Pope's proposals. Encourage Christian witness and listening, even in the midst of difficulties (such as the decrease in vocations and, therefore, the increase in pastoral work). And always on the basis of prayer - which protects the strength of faith - and of enthusiastic contact with young people. Not to be afraid of dialogue and proclamation, evangelization and the beautiful task of catechesis. To promote ongoing formation, fraternity, attention to the needs of the weakest. To flee from rigidity, gossip and ideologies. Promote family spirit and service, mercy and compassion.

The language of charity

As in other pastoral trips, the encounter with the poor and refugees (cfr. Speech at the church of St. Elizabeth of Hungary29 APRIL 2023). In this context - and thanking the efforts of the Church in Hungary on so many charitable fronts - Francis spoke forcefully of an impressive challenge, along the lines of what both St. John Paul II and Benedict XVI had already warned of: "that the faith we profess is not a prisoner of a cult far removed from life and does not become prey to a kind of 'spiritual egoism', that is, a spirituality that I build to the measure of my inner tranquility and satisfaction.". Instead, "true faith is that which makes us uncomfortable, which risks, which makes us go out to meet the poor and enables us to speak with our lives the language of charity". (cf. 1 Cor 13:1-13).

We need, Francis added, to know how to speak "fluently the language of charity, a universal language that everyone hears and understands, even those who are farthest away, even those who do not believe.".

And he also warned that, looking at and touching the needy, it is not enough to give bread; it is necessary to nourish people's hearts with the proclamation and love of Jesus, which helps to recover beauty and dignity.

Do not "virtualize life".

On the same day he met with the young people, and spoke to them with clarity and enthusiasm (cfr. Speech at the Papp László Budapest Sportaréna, 20-IV-2023). He spoke to them about Christ, alive and close, brother and friend, who likes to ask questions and not to give prefabricated answers. He told them that to become great, one must become small by serving others. Courageous advice: "Don't be afraid to go against the current, to find a quiet time every day to stop and pray."Although today's environment pushes us to be efficient like machines," he observed, "we are not machines. At the same time, it is true that we often run out of gas, and that is why we need to collect ourselves in silence. But "not to stay glued to the cell phone and social networks."; because "life is real, not virtual; it doesn't happen on a screen, life happens in the world! Please don't virtualize life.".

To be "open doors

In addition to the roots, bridges are necessary, as the Pope pointed out in his first speech. He maintained this backdrop in his homily on Sunday, April 30, in Budapest, where Christians of different confessions, rites and countries were present, working together to build bridges of harmony and unity.

Francis presented the figure of Jesus, the Good Shepherd, who came so that the sheep might have life in abundance (cf. Jn 10:10). First he calls them, then he leads them out.

Just like us, also today: "In every situation of life, in what we carry in our hearts, in our wanderings, in our fears, in the sense of defeat that sometimes assails us, in the prison of sadness that threatens to imprison us, He calls us.". "He comes as a good Shepherd and calls us by name, to tell us how valuable we are in his eyes, to heal our wounds and take upon himself our weaknesses, to gather us into his flock and make us family with the Father and with each other.".

The Pope insists on the central message of his pastoral trip: to support each other in the roots for bridge the gapwithout shutting ourselves in. Jesus invites us "to cultivate relationships of fraternity and collaboration, without dividing ourselves among ourselves, without considering our community as a reserved environment, without letting ourselves be dragged by the concern of defending each one's own space, but opening ourselves to mutual love.".

Jesus, after calling them, brings out his sheep (cf. Jn 10:3). Therefore," Francis proposes, "we must open our sad and harmful "closed doors": our selfishness and individualism, our indifference to those who need us; our closedness, even as ecclesial communities somewhat closed to God's forgiveness (cf. Evangelii gadium, 20).

The Pope invites us, instead, to "to be like Jesus, an open door, a door that never closes in anyone's face, a door that allows you to enter to experience the beauty of the Lord's love and forgiveness.". Thus we will be "'facilitators' of God's grace, experts in closeness, ready to offer life.".

Opposing ideological colonization

Finally, in his encounter with the world of academia and culture (cfr. Speech at the Péter Pázmány Catholic University, 30-IV-2023), Francis relied on Romano Guardini to distinguish two types of knowledge that should not be opposed: the humanistic and the technological.

The former is in itself humble and places itself at the service of people and created nature. The second tends to analyze life in order to transform it, but, if it prevails in an inadequate way, can life remain alive?

"Let's think -Pope proposes to Hungarian university students. in the desire to put at the center of everything not the person and his relationships, but the individual centered on his own needs, greedy to win and voracious to grasp reality.".

The successor of Peter does not intend to sow pessimism, but rather to help us reflect on the "arrogance of being and having", "which Homer already saw as threatening at the dawn of European culture and which the technocratic paradigm exasperates, with a certain use of algorithms that may represent a further risk of destabilization of the human.".

Francis alludes once again to the need to oppose the "ideological colonization" of a world dominated by technology, of a dehumanized humanism. A world that falls into the temptation of imposing consensus against people themselves (hence the discarding of the weak, the sick, the elderly, etc.), in the name of universal peace.

In this environment, the university has the responsibility to promote open thinking, culture and transcendent values, along with the knowledge of human limits. For wisdom is not achieved with a freedom forced and imposed from outside. Nor with a freedom enslaved by consumption. The way is of the truth that liberates (cf. Jn 8:32).

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Sergio Rodríguez López-Ros is a member of the Royal Academy of History and Vice Rector of International Relations at CEU. A few years ago, he found in the Vatican Apostolic Library a book by the Spanish theologian Miguel de Molinos that had been missing for centuries.

This week, on May 31, 2023, the presentation of the book Miguel de Molinos. Letters for the exercise of mental prayer (Editorial Herder) in Rome, at the Spanish Embassy to the Holy See. The event was attended by the Prefect of the Vatican Apostolic Library, Mauro Mantovani, and the official archivist of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, Manuela Borbolla.

In this interview with Omnes, Sergio Rodríguez López-Ros talks about Miguel de Molinos and the discovery of the book. The history of this character is not exempt of controversy and in some aspects it is still a mystery today.

Who was Miguel de Molinos?

Miguel de Molinos is one of the most unknown Spanish historical figures. He was a theologian of the Spanish Baroque.

She was born into a middle-class family in Muniesa, a small town in Teruel. When he was 18 years old, he went to Valencia to study, because he had a sister there who was a nun. He was educated at the Jesuit College of San Pablo, which depended on the University of Coimbra, also run by the Jesuits. At the same time, she had several chaplaincies: that of the Augustinian Sisters, that of the Franciscan Sisters....

He trained with Father Francisco Jerónimo Simón, a Valencian priest. He received a doctorate in Theology and was chaplain of different convents, also confessor at the Corpus Christi College. When his spiritual master, Father Jerónimo Simón, died, Miguel de Molinos entered the process of the cause of beatification. The Deputation of Valencia sends him to Rome to carry out the process.

Thus, he arrived in Rome in 1663, at the height of the Baroque period and in the midst of the struggle between France and Spain to see who had the most influence with the Popes. At first he lived in some streets that I was able to locate.

When he arrived in Rome, he established what he had known from Father Jerónimo Simón, which was the School of Christ. It consisted of small spiritual exercises in which he gathered once a week a series of people who were rotating: on Mondays some, on Tuesdays others, on Wednesdays others... They met in a crypt, which I was also able to locate, and which is under the church of St. Thomas of Villanova and St. Ildefonso.

I was able to access this room after many centuries without anyone seeing it. Most Spanish Augustinians to this day are of Basque or Navarrese origin. They liked to play fronton and Basque pelota and used the crypt for that during the later centuries, when the name Molinos was lost.

In the past, during the time of Molinos, the high society of the time used to go there: Roman princes, counts, people linked to the papal court, cardinals...

Molinos was well positioned and, in fact, the Pope, Blessed Innocent XI, thought of making him a cardinal and had a great fondness for him.

What happens is that when one does things well one usually has enemies, envy, not only in Spain. The Jesuits, who were developing their own school with the exercises of St. Augustine, began to show suspicion towards him, and also the Dominicans.

They are the ones who provoke a first process of the Inquisition. But the six theologians appointed by the Pope gave a positive opinion, so that he perfectly saved this first attack. Let us remember that he had just published the Spiritual guidewhich is the central book of Miguel de Molinos. He had two currents: on the one hand, there was the Spiritual guidethe Carts for the exercise of mental prayer and the Defense of contemplationon the other hand, it has the Practice for the eexercise of the good death and the Defense of daily communion.

The letters were not a book. He corresponded with a lot of people, he wrote about 12,000 letters, which is a lot. A disciple of his devoted himself to compiling them. From there came the Letters for the exercise of mental prayer. They are nothing more than a simplified version, made by one of his disciples, of the Spiritual guide.

The inquisitorial process took place in 1681-1682 and, when it concluded, the ruling was favorable to Molinos. At that time, he wrote the Defense of contemplationbecause some currents wanted to attack this contemplative method.

Molinos, basing himself on St. Augustine, says that we have to seek God within ourselves, since the devil puts before us many temptations. He says that we must empty ourselves of ourselves. In that Rome of the splendor of the Baroque, of great stagings, this made them very angry and provoked envy. When the School of Christ began to spread outside Rome, throughout Italy and reached Naples, which was Spanish at the time, France was afraid that it would gain more strength and obscure the role that its mystics had been playing up to that time. Therefore, it provokes a new inquisitorial case, I suspect with corrupt methods.

The trial took place in 1685. To trace today everything that happened is very difficult, because, when the French Revolution arrived in Rome, many papers of the inquisitorial processes disappeared, and only 46 files of Molinos' processes remained. In my opinion, what France did was to slander, to attribute to Molinos things that he had never said. In fact, none of the theses for which he is prosecuted are in his writings. It is all the product of confessions either forced or falsely attributed to him by bought witnesses. Finally, the Pope had no choice but to imprison his friend, and in 1687 he decreed his condemnation for life.

He was imprisoned in the prisons of the Inquisition, in the headquarters, today the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith. During his imprisonment, Molinos wore a stoleña, a kind of sack, very austere, and led a life of recollection. He defended himself with great serenity and always reiterated his love for the Church. He also refuted any criticism that prayer supplanted the sacraments, which was one of the theses attributed to him. The bad thing is that France at that time has more strength than Spain, let's think that in 1687 the Habsburgs are disappearing in Spain, on the other hand the Bourbons, with Louis XIV at their head, are at their peak.

The process coincided with a period of decadence in Spain, while France was more thriving. In 1704 the last Habsburg died and the war began between France and Spain to see who was the successor of the Habsburgs, who were finally the Bourbons. All of this was driven by Louis XIV, who later succeeded in placing his nephew Philip V on the Spanish throne. Miguel de Molinos was so significant in Rome that to capture him and to kill him was to give the lace to the Spanish empire, it was to achieve to give Spain where it was hurting the most.

Molinos was in prison for 8 years, until he was executed in 1696. The reason why he was executed remains unknown to all of us, because the whole procedure is not known. I believe that it must have been the result of French intrigues within the Inquisition. Nor do we know if it was a settling of scores within the prison itself. In 1696 he died and with the investigation I also discovered where the remains were: in the ossuary that is just below the archive of the Dicastery itself.

How were the letters found?

I knew that there was a book by Miguel de Molinos that had been missing for centuries, which was las Letters written to a discouraged Spanish gentleman to help him to have mental prayer by giving him a way to exercise it.. The title was very baroque. The publisher summed it up as Letters for the exercise of mental prayer. It was a book written by Miguel de Molinos during his Roman period. I located the book in the Vatican Apostolic Library.

In 1966 all the books that had been considered unfit to be read by Catholics were made available to researchers. Among them were the spiritual letters of Miguel de Molinos, which had not been condemned because of doctrine, as I have mentioned, but because of a political dispute between France and Spain, because Molinos had a lot of power in Rome.

When I found it in the library, it had been 347 years since anyone had seen that book. I immediately thought of editing it and translating it. Because there are only two copies of the Spanish edition, one in the Biblioteca Nacional de España, in Madrid, and the other is the later edition made in Italy and kept in the Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana. The book was new, the old one could be seen underneath and it was evidently from the Inquisition's collections. I always say that it is necessary to understand that the Inquisition was trying to guide people to good reading.

The people of today are very different from the people of the past. Before, no one had theological formation, first of all because they did not know how to read, and, in addition, it was not until the Second Vatican Council that people began to be formed in the faith. The role of the Inquisition was always to protect those humble people, people who had no criteria about the readings that could harm them spiritually. It was a kind of help, a guide, and it is not that which appears in the movies of scorn, torture, bonfires....

When I found the letters, what I did was to order a translation of the second edition, corrected and enlarged with respect to the first Spanish edition. They have two parts: one part in which he talks about the theological apparatus on which he bases himself, quoting St. Teresa, St. John of the Cross, St. Ignatius, the Fathers of the Church, St. John Chrysostom, and so on. Then there is a second part in which he explains how to put all this into practice.

It is very curious, because, on one occasion, he sends the book to a Spanish official, and says: "If you had every day one ratico to practice prayer, it would be very good for him. After so many years living in Italy, he still has that Aragonese touch.

The book is published thanks to the great work of the Vatican Apostolic Library. Since the time of Cardinal Javierre, who was a great cardinal, the archives have been opened.

The research has not only consisted in the publication of the book, but also in having found the places where he lived, where he did the School of Christ, where he lived when he was imprisoned, where he was tried, where he was later imprisoned and finally where he was executed and where his remains are.

What was Miguel de Molinos' thinking?

What Molinos supports comes to be the mysticism of St. Teresa: the ascetic life, simple and straightforward. He proposes an austere life, that Spanish austerity of few words, rather of deeds. Then, she seeks purgation, to remove from our life everything that is in excess, that which harms us (ambitions, power), to focus on what God wants from us. He also speaks of that last part which is contemplation, when one walks the way of the Cross, of the Passion, and tries to unite oneself to Jesus in that suffering, to configure oneself with Him, and, through that, to transfigure one's own life and become a better person. This is basically the method of Molinos, which could be exemplified with many quotations.

It is a matter of persevering in the prayerThe final objective is to become configured to Jesus, feeling that the saving and redeeming Passion of Jesus on the Cross is for all humanity, but it begins with oneself. He says that we have to kill at any cost "that seven-headed hydra that is our selfishness". He says that we have that selfishness that the devil, the will to power, puts in our hearts. Today it would be, for example, to want more money, to travel, a better car, or to have worldly success at all costs. Molinos proposes the opposite: He was simple at birth, simple in death, so let us share life with Him.

It may seem that this emptying of desire is related to Eastern spirituality, but what Molinos advocates is to turn off the ego to make room for God. Most people, from the moment they get up until they go to bed, are thinking about a better job, a better television, a vacation this summer, and they ignore the essentials. What Molinos supports is not this annihilation of desire a la oriental, in the sense that whatever happens to the world is all the same to me. Precisely what he encourages is commitment: let's leave aside what we want and let's see what God wants from us.

When the ego occupies our whole soul, our whole heart, we leave no room for God. Buddhist salvation is basically the salvation of oneself, it is more egoistic. In the Christian world, on the contrary, it is the salvation of oneself through others and for others. It is the method of St. Francis de Sales, of Introduction to the devotional life. Or when St. Ignatius proposes the synthesis between conscience and the world, it is not for oneself, but for others.

I believe that reading Molinos today is a good way to return to the simple life, to the essential, to forget about a world where everything is at our fingertips at the click of a button. But we lack the essential, we forget faith, we forget charity, hope, surrender, gratuitous love towards God, first of all, and towards others.

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Bible translation, a possible task?

Scripture

James ProthroThe Bible is a book that we must bring to life".

James Prothro is Professor of Theology and Sacred Scripture at Augustine Institute. He has studied ancient Greek and the letters of St. Paul in depth, and in his academic career he tries to help his students get the most out of the Bible.

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Reading the Bible can be difficult, but getting the translation right and accurate is even more so. Because "if the Bible is a book that we have to bring to life and through which we hear God speak to us, then every detail of the translation is important," as James Prothro, professor of Theology and Sacred Scripture at the Augustine Institute.

Prothro explains in this interview some of the challenges faced by translators and provides tips on how to get the most out of the reading of the Bible.

Is there any idea or concept that Catholics should always keep in mind when reading or translating the Bible?

James Prothro, professor at Augustine Institute

- Not one thing, but many. In the U.S., many Catholics do not care about the translation of the Bible and, if they care, all they ask is that it be theologically correct. This is good, but in the end they end up choosing the one they are most familiar with.

But I think it is good to keep two things in mind, which are very well explained in two encyclicals. One is "Providentissimus Deus"(1893) and the other, "Divino Afflante Spiritu" (1943).

In the first, Pope Leo XIII calls for a renewal of biblical studies. One of the things he says is that people should go back to the original languages and the ancient manuscripts. He says that the Vulgate is the official Bible of the Church and that it is substantially correct, but that doesn't mean that every single verse translated gives the best translation of what the author meant. But if you read the whole Vulgate, there are no deviations in Doctrine or morals. In 1943, Pius XII says the same thing. The Vulgate remains the official Bible of the Church, it is free of errors in faith and morals.

So why should we try to go back to the original languages? This is because if we believe that God inspired the authors as such, so that God makes statements and points us to the truth through what they teach, even if the translation is secure and doctrinally correct, it may not be giving us all that God originally intended to inspire.

Now, if you read the whole Vulgate you will not go astray in terms of Doctrine or morals, you will be on the right path.

Sometimes, with translations, I like to ask people to test them: what do you think reading the Bible is good for? We might think that's an easy answer, but no. If someone says that the reason we have the Bible is so we can read it and acquire the Bible. If someone says that the reason we have the Bible is so that we can read it and acquire doctrine, and then we can go and look for other sources, then they think that the Bible is not a book to live by, so as long as the translation is orthodox it will be fine.

On the contrary, if the Bible is a book that we have to bring to life and through which we hear God speak to us, then every detail of the translation is important. It is true that there will always be imperfections, but trying to interpret the mind of the human author in order to hear well the voice of the divine Author is really important. The Bible is a book that we must make alive and to which we must return again and again.

Language is alive and changes with society. Do you think Bible translations will have to change with languages and our society?

- I think so. If we think about the differences between Spanish in the fifteenth century and Spanish today, we can see that there are certain things that at the time were correct expressions but today have a different meaning.

For example, in English the word "silly" used to mean "clean" or "innocent". That is why there were songs and hymns about the "silly Virgin Mary", which would be translated as the "clean Virgin Mary", but today it means "the silly Virgin Mary".

The same goes for the language we translate into: because of changes in our languages we have to adjust things so that people hear the right thing. The same goes for ancient languages. I have spent a lot of time working with ancient Greek and if I use a dictionary that translates Greek from the time of Homer and then use it to translate the New Testament, I am going to get it wrong because the language changed over time.

Translating the Bible is very difficult, especially because of the different social situations of the people for whom it is written. If you want to make a translation that is really good to study, then it has to be accurate word for word. But that may not communicate the message well to those people who are not studying the Scriptures in depth, who are just listening or can't read.

So what kind of translation should we do? It depends on the audience you are writing for, because not only do languages change, there are also differences in people according to social groups.

One of my favorite examples of this is an indigenous tribe that had no sheep. The missionaries realized that they didn't even know what a sheep was nor could they associate the idea of a shepherd who cares, but they did have pigs. So they translated Jesus saying "I am the good shepherd who gives his life for the pigs". On the one hand, this helps them understand the affection of Christ and you speak to them in terms they understand. But on the other hand, in the Old Testament God singles out pigs as unclean and forbids the Jews to touch them. Therefore, you win and lose at the same time by making such a translation.

In short, when people ask me which translation of the Bible they should buy, I recommend that they buy two different ones, something that St. Augustine already said.

The Bible is originally written in Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek. Knowing this, it is very easy to lose the essence of the words used through translations. How can we know what God really intended?

I am going to go back to St. Augustine for this, which has to do with what we have said about seeking an orthodox translation of the Bible. St. Augustine says that if you read with faith, love God and love your neighbor, you can interpret even the most confusing passages in the best possible way. If reading the Bible does not lead you to pray or to love, you are not reading it well. For Augustine this is essential.

In any case, the definitive word of God is the Word, Jesus Christ. He shows us who God is, his salvation and his love. So if we know this Word, we can come to know the rest.

However, the next step for those who want to deepen their study of the Bible is to get a study edition or a commentary with notes that refer to the context and contain explanations.

Reading and understanding the Bible is sometimes difficult and confusing, so where is the best place to start?

There are many good answers to that question. I do not recommend starting at the beginning and reading all the way to the end, because it is easy to get lost in Leviticus. What I recommend, especially if the reader is a Christian with knowledge of the basics, is to start with the Gospels, especially Luke.

First of all, if we want to read the whole Bible in the light of Christ, the Gospels help us to begin well because they focus precisely on Him. On the other hand, since they are narratives, it is easy for them to resonate for us.

The Gospels are simpler than the letters of St. Paul, where it is assumed that the reader knows the story and discussions are opened about concrete ideas.

Exodus and Genesis are also good places to start, but they have certain things that may shock some readers. That's why I think starting with Jesus and the Gospels is best before reading the rest.

You have written about penance and reconciliation, could you explain how the idea of penance changes from the Old Testament to the New Testament? What meaning does it have for Catholics today?

To be brief, I will look at 2 Corinthians 3, where St. Paul contrasts the two Testaments. He does so in different ways, but he places special emphasis on the gift of the Holy Spirit sent by Christ.

If the Holy Spirit unites us to Christ and to the life of divine grace, then every act of penance unites us more closely to the death and resurrection of Christ. In the following passage, St. Paul speaks about the way to carry the death of Christ in us in order to put it at the service of life. All our sufferings can bring us closer to the glory of Heaven.

There are many things about penance that do not change from one Testament to another. Prayer, fasting and almsgiving are very important, they are still essential. Both corporal and spiritual works of mercy are also found in both Testaments. The idea that rejecting oneself, whether through fasting or other penance, sanctifies us and teaches us to love is inscribed throughout Scripture.

And yet, by being united to the Holy Spirit, the forgiveness of sins can be complete, we do not count only on an anticipation. Moreover, penance is not only a way of learning to love, it is a way of uniting ourselves to the love of Christ.

Do you think that in the future people will not understand certain references in the Bible because of social changes and advances? For example, by losing contact with nature, it is possible that in the future people will not know the figure of the shepherd.

-I think there are some things we will miss, but I insist on the idea of a good study Bible to explain the concepts to us. So we may not always be able to translate everything in the exact context. But we can explain it and people who want to know more will be able to do so thanks to history.

I also believe that ideas related to nature, even if we live in such a digital world, we will be able to preserve them thanks to good literature. But other concepts like love will become more complicated. The more we hold on to certain details of the Bible the more we tarnish them with our own interpretations. This is something we will have to work on, to redefine the concepts.

Do you think we would have to go back to studying Greek and Latin to read the Bible?

Let's see, I am a Greek teacher. I tell my students that studying ancient Greek is not for everyone. It requires a lot of memory work, you can't learn it by watching series with subtitles. But I will also tell you that I haven't met anyone who has told me that it wasn't worth it. They all say that learning Greek has helped them deepen their understanding of the Bible, increased their interest, or even changed the way they read it, even when it's translated.

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"Church for Decent Work" calls for decent job creation policies

Working on Sunday, the Lord's Day?

Is it lawful for employers to force employees to work on days dedicated to religious worship? The question is now in the hands of the U.S. Supreme Court following claims by Gerald Groff, an evangelical Christian.

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Dedicate Sunday to work or to God? For Gerald Groff, an evangelical Christian from Pennsylvaniawho worked as a rural mail carrier, the answer is clear: "Sunday is a day on which we gather as believers. We honor the Lord's Day" and it is not possible to dedicate that day to work.

That statement earned him reprimands and warnings of dismissal for absenteeism from his employer, the United States Post Office (USPS). Before he was fired, Groff resigned but sued USPS for "religious discrimination" under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and a 1977 Supreme Court decision known as "Trans World Airlines, Inc. v. Hardison."

His case did not succeed in either a Pennsylvania District Court or its Court of Appeals. Now, the case is being argued in the Supreme Court, which must decide a fundamental question that could affect U.S. labor laws: whether an employer must make allowances for an employee's religious practices, even if it affects the company and other employees. The case is known as "Groff v. DeJoy" because Groff is suing USPS CEO Louis DeJoy.

Employment

Gerald Groff grew up in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. As a child he attended Mennonite-run schools. He lived across the street from his grandparents' farm. So when his grandfather died, Groff became so close to God that he decided to participate in evangelical Christian missions in various parts of the world. Upon his return to the U.S. he held several jobs until he started working for the USPS in 2012 as a rural mail carrier.

Groff knew he would probably have to work weekends, since mail delivery does not stop. For some time, Groff obtained concessions to not work on Sundays and fill in on other days. However, in 2013 corporate giant Amazon signed a contract with USPS for delivery of merchandise even on Sundays. For some time Groff's situation did not change. However, to avoid future complications Groff switched to a USPS branch with a lower workload.

At their new branch, managers also looked for ways to grant Groff's request. But in 2018 it was impossible to do so due to the absence of employees who could cover shifts on Sundays. Groff was therefore notified that he had to report for duty on Sundays. As he had done several times before, Groff informed his branch manager that he would not do so due to his religious beliefs. His response earned him notices of possible disciplinary action for absenteeism and even termination of his contract. Before that happened Groff resigned, but filed suit in a Pennsylvania District Court.

Legal basis

The basis for this lawsuit was several statutes, including Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and a 1977 U.S. Supreme Court decision known as "Trans World Airlines, Inc. v. Hardison". The former prohibits an employer from discriminating against an individual because of his or her religion (defined as "all aspects of religious practice and observance, as well as belief"). When an employee requests reasonable accommodations from his or her employer to exercise his or her faith, the employer must seek ways to grant them, unless they involve unduly burdensome hardship to the business. In this regard, the 1977 Trans World Airlines v. Hardison decision states that such onerous concessions mean that in granting them the employer must "assume a cost greater than the minimum" ("de minimis cost").

USPS and other employers have pointed out that this more-than-minimal cost creates burdensome problems for the business and other workers. When a worker is granted such a leave, someone must work the hours and days that the furloughed employee is absent. And when that arises on a weekly basis, it can create tensions of various kinds among the other employees. In the "Groff v DeJoy" case, the refusal to report to work on Sundays created, according to USPS, a "tense atmosphere and resentment" among the workers.

The Supreme Court will have to decide what are the minimum cost parameters that an employer must demonstrate in the event that it refused to make reasonable religious allowances to an employee. It will not be an easy case as the plaintiff seeks to reverse or at least review the 1977 "Trans World Airlines, Inc. v. Hardison" ruling. The Court is expected to issue a decision in June. This ruling could mark federal labor laws and the meaning of holy days not only for Christians, but for the Jews (on Saturday) and Muslims (Friday).

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Bohdan and Ihor, seminarians in Rome: "We Ukrainians want to be free".

Caritas Spain helps fight human trafficking in Ukraine

Since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, human trafficking in the country has increased considerably. In response to this situation, Caritas Spain has contributed 214,000 euros to a program to combat this scourge.

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Caritas has reported in a press release that since the Russian invasion began in Ukraine by February 2022, "100,000 minors have been forcibly transferred to Russia for the purposes of sexual exploitation, labor, organ trafficking and forced enlistment". In addition, there has been an increase in sexual violence in the occupied areas.

Increase in trafficking during the war

During this time, Caritas Ukraine has detected that human trafficking has been on the rise, not only in Ukraine, but also in transit countries, as well as sexual abuse.

"Survivors hardly ever seek help from official institutions (social services or police). They usually turn to social organizations such as Caritas, as both the state and local authorities do not have the capacity to deal with the problem and help victims in a comprehensive way. Most social organizations focus exclusively on the field of prevention, but not on providing reintegration services to survivors," explains Carmen Gómez de Barreda, head of the campaign. Caritas with Ukraine.

For all these reasons, Caritas Spain has earmarked 214,000 euros for a program to combat human trafficking in Ukraine. According to Caritas in its press release, the aim of this program is to "prevent this scourge, identify victims among the most vulnerable population and provide them with services for their social reintegration."

Psychological and material assistance

"Caritas staff know how to identify victims of trafficking. First of all, internally displaced persons, those who were captured by the occupants, asylum seekers who have returned, labor migrants and traditionally vulnerable people, such as young people, the unemployed or people from remote rural areas, will be assisted. Once these people have been registered, an ad hoc assistance and reintegration plan will be designed," explains Carmen Gómez de Barreda.

Victims and their families will receive individualized psychological assistance, as well as material, social, medical and legal aid. This project will last for two years and is expected to assist 125 people and their families each year.

This is not the first of Caritas Spain's contributions to Ukraine, as since 2010 it has been collaborating in different projects in the country and, since the invasion began, it has contributed five million euros to meet the needs caused by the war.

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Cinema

What to see this month at the cinema or at home?

Patricio Sánchez Jaúregui recommends new releases, classics, or content that you haven't yet seen at the movies or on your favorite platforms.

Patricio Sánchez-Jáuregui-June 2, 2023-Reading time: < 1 minute

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Movies: Wonder

The story of a child suffering from hemophilia and the story of four Jamaican athletes are the film proposals for the month of June.

Glassboy

DirectorSamuele Rossi

ScriptRolando Colla, Josella Porto and Samuele Rossi

ActorsAndrea Arru, Loretta Goggi, Giorgia Wurth

Pino is a boy who suffers from hemophilia and lives confined to his home. Every day he
She looks out the window and sees the life she can't have. He wants to be free, but above all
everything wants to be normal. Encouraged by his desire to live, he decides to run away and
to embark on his own adventure, followed by his new friends.

This entertaining journey full of emotion and values serves as the perfect excuse for
to bring to the forefront the relationships family membersand freedom, confronting freedom and
responsibility in an era of extreme overprotectionism.

A coproduction of several European countries that arrives in Spain after
collect a good string of awards. Add your name to others
charismatic and endearing titles such as Stand by me, The Gooniesor the recent
family comedies by Santiago Segura.

Chosen for the triumph

Address: Jon Turteltaub

Script: Lynn Siefert, Michael Goldberg, Tommy Swerdlow, Michael Ritchie

Actors: John Candy, Leon, Doug E.Doug

MusicHans Zimmer

The true story of four Jamaican athletes who were denied their desire to
and created a bosley team. Without resources or
snow knowledge, former champion recruited as coach
American (John Candy).

Wacky, exhilarating and exciting, Chosen for the triumph is a
comedy of the 90's. For the whole family, it still enjoys a good acceptance today among
public and critical acclaim, and has become a love letter to all those who have been
who seek to fulfill their dreams. Sweet and inspirational, a good film for
any occasion

The authorPatricio Sánchez-Jáuregui

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U.S. Catholicism with a Hispanic Flavor

Father Salvo, rector of Saint Patrick's, and Providence

Father Enrique Salvo is the current rector of Saint Patrick's Cathedral in New York. His appointment in November 2021 marked a historic moment, as Father Salvo is the first Hispanic rector of the cathedral.

Jennifer Elizabeth Terranova-June 2, 2023-Reading time: 5 minutes

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Father Enrique Salvo was born in Managua, Nicaraguain a Catholic home. At the age of seven, he moved with his family to the United States, forced into exile during the war in his country. He grew up in Miami, where he attended a Catholic school, and also resided for some time in Texas. He returned briefly to Nicaragua and again returned to Texas, where he graduated from A&M University, later earning his master's degree in Monterrey, Mexico. He is currently the rector of Saint Patrick's Cathedral in New York.

Speaking of his exile at such a young age, instead of considering the abrupt and necessary departure from his native country as a challenge, Father Salvo considered it in a different way: "At that time it was very difficult, but it was a blessing that we were received here, a great blessing".

Maria and I

When we talk about his faith as a child, Father Salvo recalls that his parents taught him that "Catholicism should be the foundation of our life, and everything we do, the way we live, has to be based on our faith." He goes on to say that "faith colors the way you see life, through the eyes of faith...and trust in God and in our Blessed Mother."

He said that his home was "very Marian," so it was no surprise to discover that Father Salvo always had a picture of our Blessed Mother Mary in his room, next to his bed. And, as a curious fact, his mother, as a student in Florida, prayed to Mary that her first-born son would become a priest.

The call

Can it be considered a sign from Heaven that the rector of the Saint Patrick's Cathedral lived near the old cathedral before he was ordained?

Father Salvo moved to New York when he was in his thirties and not yet a seminarian, but he believes that "I had to move to New York to hear the call... A place where you wouldn't believe it...".

He visited the cathedral as a resident of the Italian quarter of the city and discovered the beauty of the place. Father Salvo, later, speaks of the spiritual journey to the priesthood and recalls how he recognized the presence of the Lord. "God did some things, and it was providential."

I asked him if the "invitation" was clear. He replied, "I started to feel the call, and it's like falling in love. Some days it is a delicate thing, other days it becomes very striking". He considers that one has to "be open to the discernment of the vocation".

He also acknowledges and pays tribute to the Church that "helps with the process of discernment". He adds that "the Church will help you discern if you are called to this lifestyle; and if you are, everything begins to unfold."

At Saint Joseph's Seminary in New York, things began to become evident. Finally, he was ready to accept God's invitation after a time of reflection, spiritual direction and prayer. Thus, on May 15, 2010, at Saint Patrick's Cathedral in New York, Enrique Salvo was ordained a priest.

Should I leave or should I stay?

With the certainty of his vocation, Father Salvo had something else to think about: would he return to Nicaragua to exercise his priesthood there, or should he stay in the United States? He decided to stay in New York and continue taking steps in his vocation. He remembered that "that is where God put me, and we must flourish where we are planted."

He also based his decision on the fact that he is bilingual and multicultural, which he felt could help him serve better in the New York archdiocese, given the high percentage of Spanish-speakers. In his opinion, "the hand of God could be felt there. He finally made the decision when he realized that he could serve many more people in that city.

Once upon a time in New York

Father Salvo enjoyed helping out at Saint Elizabeth Church in Washington Heights for three consecutive years during his summers as a seminarian. He shares how blessed he felt when he celebrated his first Mass there. The day after he was assigned to that church, Cardinal Timothy Dolan appointed him parochial vicar. He still remembers the emotion he felt when he received the news: "It was a very special place for me. They were so kind and welcoming, they were very supportive." Thanks to the community's support, his new task was made easier. He says they "gave him a great start to his priesthood."

The task can be challenging for many young priests, especially in the beginning, but God always gives us the tools and the people who can help us. Father Salvo emphasizes how "good it was to have such an encouraging community".

Welcome to St. Patrick's Cathedral!

Father Salvo was Vocation Director for the Archdiocese of New York for four years before being assigned to Saint Anselm and Saint Roch Church in the South Bronx. He was there until 2021.

Upon hearing that there was a vacancy at St. Patrick's Cathedral, Fr. Salvo turned to the Holy Spirit, trusting that "He would speak to Cardinal Dolan". When it came to the assignments that might be entrusted to him, his way of proceeding was to "ask for nothing and refuse nothing." He left it in the Lord's hands, but prayed to Jesus saying, "If you want me to go there, you have to tell Cardinal Dolan." Message received!

The priest also speaks of what he felt when he was assigned to the cathedral; the very thought "tugged at his heart." It gave him peace to be assigned to go to St. Patrick's without his asking, and that "shows Providence."

When news reached him about the assignment from Cardinal Dolan, it was both unexpected and wonderful. He felt and continues to feel grateful to be Father Henry Salvo, rector of St. Patrick's Cathedral.

Every man is your teacher

Father Salvo has settled well into his new residence in his role as rector, and is well aware of the opportunity it offers him to reach out to more people. Through his videos on the cathedral's YouTube, he hopes to have promoted among the faithful a greater appreciation of the Mass and a better understanding of it. He believes that fewer people would be distracted or bored during the liturgy "if they understood what was going on and the miracle they were witnessing." He goes on to say that "it is important to contemplate the Mass."

The priest shares his favorite moment of the Mass: "The consecration of the Eucharist, the moment in which Jesus takes our soul... To be able to unite ourselves to Him in that moment".

In addition to posting his videos in English, the rector also shares them in Spanish. Not only for all Spanish speakers who use YouTube, but also for all the Spanish-speaking faithful in the Archdiocese of New York.

A historic moment

Saint Patrick's Cathedral opened its doors on May 25, 1879 and has had many rectors. In November 2021, Father Salvo became the first Hispanic rector. It is certainly a special moment for him and for the entire Hispanic community.

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Latino Catholics in the U.S.: The Hispanic Moment

The Church in the United States is changing. Right now, 43% of U.S. Catholics are Latino, and they are breathing new life to the Church. Michael Kueber, priest in charge of the Hispanic Ministry in Portland, talks about the "Hispanic moment" in this interview with Omnes.

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The Church is changing in United States. Immigrants arriving in the country, many of them Hispanic Catholics, find their way in their new home looking for a Church that can welcome them and that, at the same time, they can enrich with their traditions. However, this phenomenon encounters several obstacles, among them the language and the lack of knowledge of the Latino culture on the part of the Americans. This does not mean that this great opportunity of the North American Church is lost and there are people who are making an effort to break down the barriers.

One of these people is Michael Kueber, a priest from the Archdiocese of Portland, Oregon (United States). He’s in charge of the “Ministerio Hispano”, focused on Catholic Latinos. During his ministry, he has realized that “bishops, priests, deacons, catechists and directors of religious education feel unequipped to care pastorally for Latinos in the U.S.”. That’s why he has written a book, “Preaching to Latinos”, to help “pastoral workers to understand Hispanic culture to better enable them to exercise pastoral care”.

Father Kueber speaks with Omnes in this interview about his book and the reality of the “Hispanic Moment” in the Church.

What is the "Hispanic Moment" in the U.S. Church?

–The Hispanic or Latino “moment” refers to the demographic shift occurring in U.S. Catholicism. The U.S. church is undergoing a present transformation, becoming predominantly Latino. It’s estimated that 43% of U.S. Catholics are Latinos while 60% under age 18 are Hispanic. The “Hispanic moment” is breathing new life into the larger church in the U.S. because the Hispanic population is younger and Hispanic couples are having families. They want to raise those families in the Catholic faith. Besides growth, the Hispanic community brings their culture to enrich the experience of Catholic life in the U.S. Their love for processions, statues, images and devotions — the music and food that enriches the experience of the Catholic parish.

How do you help the Hispanic community grow in faith?

– Pastoral workers seeking to help the Hispanic community to grow in the faith should value what the Hispanics value. The center for the Hispanic spirituality is the home and devotions, such as Our Lady of Guadalupe, the cross, and the rosary. These are expressions of popular piety that have handed on the faith for generations. Hispanics often have an altarcito (a little altar) in their home at which they offer their daily prayers and devotions.

Pastoral workers should acknowledge and affirm where the Hispanics are at, and at the same time draw them into the life of the institutional church. They often have not been baptized or confirmed or have made their first communion. They are often married civilly and need to regularize their marriages. Or they are living in “una union libre” (cohabitating). As Hispanics participate in the life of the institutional Church, they should experience mother Church welcoming them and embracing them. They need to hear the gospel and be called to conversion to Christ. They need on-going formation and teaching to progress in their faith over the span of a lifetime.

Is preaching to Latinos different from preaching to Americans?

–Preaching the gospel is different when speaking with Latinos than with North Americans. Hispanics like to participate in preaching much like African American Christians with call and response. Hispanics love stories and vivid imagery in homilies. They also want to learn more about the Bible and their Catholic faith. They want to hear the gospel in Spanish, the language in which they first learned the faith and their prayers. They want the preacher to touch their hearts and call them to live the gospel. They want to encounter God anew so that they have a new hope and strength to return to their lives of family and work.

Are the first generation Catholic Latino immigrants different from the following generations?

–The faith is alive in first-generation immigrants, who believe deeply in Jesus Christ and his Blessed Mother and want to see the power of God manifested in their families. The countries they came from imparted this faith to them through signs and symbols, and they seek to practice this faith in the new world. Every Hispanic country has specific devotions to the Blessed Virgin Mary. The most famous of these comes from Mexico: Our Lady of Guadalupe.

Nevertheless, in Cuba they celebrate the Nuestra Señora de Caridad del Cobre (Our Lady of Charity of the Copper) to commemorate Mary’s maternal care for the mineworkers in Cuba. In El Salvador, Catholics venerate Our Lady of Peace, whereas in Honduras, they celebrate Our Lady of Suyapa.

First-generation immigrants want to hand their traditions on to second and third generations who, as they integrate more fully into the U.S. culture, are becoming more secular and less Catholic. It’s an alarming trend. Church leaders have called for ongoing reflection and, in some cases, changes in Catholic pedagogy in Catholic schools and in the catechetical programs in parishes.

Why did you feel the need to write a book like “Preaching to Latinos: Welcoming the Hispanic Moment in the U.S. Church”?

Michael Kueber's book, due out in February 2023 (OSV News Photo/Courtesy Michael I. Kueber)

–Bishops, priests, deacons, catechists and directors of religious education feel unequipped to care pastorally for Latinos in the U.S. One barrier they face is language. When Hispanics come seeking the sacraments, the clergyman often answers, “No hablo español,” (“I don’t speak Spanish”).

Nevertheless, the greater — and often overlooked — obstacle is culture. This book helps pastoral workers to understand Hispanic culture to better enable them to exercise pastoral care. I envision it as a handbook that Anglo pastoral workers can keep in their back pockets as they minister among Latinos. When they don’t understand something in U.S. Latino Catholicism, they can seek the answer in this handbook.

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The 'Fratelli Tutti' Foundation celebrates its first anniversary

Universal fraternity as a cultural option

The Fratelli Tutti Foundation is the promoter of the meeting that on June 10 will bring together young people, Nobel laureates and the Pope himself in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican.

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A participatory process to help rediscover the meaning of fraternity and build it together through dialogue, knowledge, encounter, words, shared gestures and the experience of beauty.

With these intentions in mind, the worldwide event inspired by the Encyclical "The Encyclical Fratelli tutti of Pope Francis.

The activity is promoted by the Fratelli Tutti Vatican FoundationThe event, instituted by the Holy Father on December 8, 2021, will involve more than thirty Nobel Peace Laureates, who will participate in a series of initiatives that will take place throughout the afternoon, until late in the evening.

In fact, there will be performances by artists and testimonies... with the aim of sensitizing "individuals and communities to commit themselves to a radical change" - reads a note - in reference to the central message of the Encyclical of Pope Francissigned, as will be recalled, in Assisi in October 2020.

Among the other objectives of this major event is to promote the fraternity and social friendship between individuals and peoples, trying to overcome loneliness, marginalization, forms of violence and slavery, and the roots of the many wars raging in the world, starting with the tormented Ukraine.

During the initiative, the winning project of a special contest on fraternity launched in all Italian schools with the collaboration of the Ministry of Education will also be illustrated. There will also be live connections with some of the most significant squares in the world: Jerusalem, Buenos Aires, Bangui, Tokyo, among others.

There is great expectation before the reading of the text of the Declaration on Human Fraternity that the more than thirty Nobel Peace Prize laureates will deliver directly to Pope Francis, in line with the Document on Human Fraternity which the Pontiff himself signed in Abu Dhabi in February 2019, together with the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar Ahmad Al-Tayyeb.

In addition, at the closing of the event - which can be followed on social networks with the hashtag #notalone - there will be a very emotional and significant moment, which will be the big hug in which hundreds of boys and girls from all over the world will participate along the majestic Bernini colonnade in St. Peter's Square.

In the letter of invitation sent for the occasion, Cardinal Mauro Gambetti, president of the Fratelli Tutti Foundation, as well as vicar general of His Holiness for Vatican City, emphasizes the value of the "experience" of this World Meeting, which "can be a first step towards the construction of fraternity as a cultural option".

Not in vain, in his Encyclical, Pope Francis invites everyone to "relaunch a new anthropological paradigm on which to rebuild choices and lifestyles, programs and worldviews," knowing that fraternity is an excellent ingredient for promoting freedom and equality.

The Papal Basilica of St. Peter, the Dicastery for the Service of Integral Human Development and the Dicastery for Communication are also collaborating in the event.

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Omnes Magazine June issues: Sacred architecture, von Balthasar and experiences of communion

An extensive and interesting dossier on sacred architecture, communion experiences, a report on the so-called "chemical abortion" and Jacques Maritain or Von Balthasar are some of the topics of issue 728 of Omnes.

Maria José Atienza-June 1, 2023-Reading time: 4 minutes

The number 728 of Omnesfor the month of June 2023 is now available for web subscribers and will be delivered to the homes of paper subscribers in the coming days.

Many topics are covered in this issue, which includes experiences of communion and marriage formation, an interesting report on the so-called "chemical abortion" and important interviews.

Sacred architecture under debate

The main theme of this issue is dedicated to sacred architecture today. The debate and the different opinions on sacred projects and constructions: temples, places of worship, etc., especially since the Second Vatican Council, was highlighted in the Omnes Forum which was held on May 16 in Madrid, and whose main lines are included in the pages of this month's magazine.

Architects Felipe Samarán, Ignacio Vicens and Emilio Delgado, and the priest Jesús Higueras, parish priest of Santa María de Caná, presented, in what was an interesting and dynamic conversation, their personal ideas and points of view, not always coinciding, on the functionalities of sacred space, the personal imprint of the architect or the nature of sacred space and its reception by the faithful. All of this is extensively detailed in the June issue.

Omnes also includes a practical reflection by the architect Esteban Fernández Cobián, professor at the University of La Coruña, expert in sacred architecture and coordinator of the International Congresses on Contemporary Religious Architecture (CIARC). Fernández Cobián approaches the subject from a professional perspective and reflects on the principles of an architect when faced with the project of creating a sacred space today.

Likewise, and from a totally different perspective to many of the opinions expressed, for example, in the Omnes Forum on sacred architecture, Steven Schloeder, architect and theologian, describes his vision of the last decades of sacred architecture, stating, for example, that we must "recover a way of expressing the different meanings of the baptistery" or the return to the idea of baroque confessionals, where the priest is at the center.

A mosaic of opposing opinions on a subject that is always controversial and multifaceted, to which are added brief explanations of some of the latest projects of this nature that have been erected in various parts of the world, from the chapel of Notre-Dame du Haut by Le Corbusier to the Sanctuary of the Lord of Tula developed by the team composed of AGENdA Agencia de Arquitectura | Camilo Restrepo (Colombia) and the firm of Derek Dellakamp and Jachen Schleich (Mexico), with Francisco Eduardo Franco Ramirez.

Synod and communion

From Rome, the head of communications of the Synod of Bishops 2021-2023 of the Vatican, Thierry Bonaventura, refers to the key points of the communication that the Holy See is carrying out in relation to the Synod of Synodality. In this regard, Bonaventura even affirms that "those who actively participate in the life of the Church, but also those who have distanced themselves for different reasons, have been listened to. We have also listened to the silences of those who have not felt challenged and those who have not wanted to be involved in the synodal process".

From the diocese of Ibarra, Ecuador, comes an interesting testimony of communion and popular piety during Holy Week. Lay people from Regnum Christi together with students and teachers from the La Salle Educational Unit and Salesian Sisters, prepared the various Holy Week celebrations in the different towns to which they were sent, performing the Liturgy of the Word in the small chapels or communal houses. An initiative that complements the interview with Fernando de Haro, author of a recommendable biography of Luigi Giussani, founder of Communion and Liberation, which highlights the relevance of the method of education in the faith that Giussani started and that, today, continues to be equally valid and active.

Hans Urs von Balthasar and St. Basil the Great

The section of Reasons also includes an interesting article by professor and theologian Juan Luis Lorda on Only love is worthy of faitha decisive book by Hans Urs von Balthasar. Lorda unravels the fundamental lines of a key work of von Balthasar in which he exposes his idea that Christianity is that dazzling novelty, which demonstrates itself by overcoming and transforming every human conception.

Omnes also approaches the figure of St. Basil the Great, whose humanistic sensibility and thought on the service of the poor are clearly shown in the communities that follow his rule, which is today the basis of monasticism in the Orthodox Church.

Abortion pill

The June issue also brings with it an extensive and documented report on chemical abortion, or in other words, the abortion pill, whose serious consequences for women's health have once again been brought to light in the wake of the recent rulings on the legality of mifepristone in the United States.

Jacques Maritain

The 50th anniversary of the death of Jacques MaritainThe author, Jaime Nubiola, briefly recalls the key events and lines of thought of this author who developed an analysis of the society of his time, highlighting how a new Christian culture can transform the structures of social life.

All of this and much more make up the issue of Omnes June 2023. Remember that, if you are a subscriber, you can access these contents through your personal area and if you are not yet a subscriber, you can sign up for one of the various forms of subscription of the magazine through the web.

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Gospel

God makes us sharers in his intimacy. Most Holy Trinity (A)

Joseph Evans comments on the Holy Trinity readings (A) and Luis Herrera offers a brief video homily.

Joseph Evans-June 1, 2023-Reading time: 2 minutes

Too often we worship God not as Christians but as pious Jews or Muslims. We insist on talking to God – just God, uniquely God – without realizing that this God, though totally one, is also Trinity: i.e. three in one. This mystery is just that, a mystery, and a particularly difficult one at that and we could be tempted to wish that the reality were simpler, or at least that God had not revealed it.

But such a desire would be like wishing that a marvellous piece of classical music were only the four simple chords of pop music, or that an extraordinary work of art didn’t have such depth. The beauty of the divine mystery is that it is an invitation to explore it even more, to dive ever deeper into what is like an infinite ocean of wonders to be discovered.

The readings for today's feast, the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, begin with the moment when God gave a glimpse of his mystery, revealing himself to Moses on Mount Sinai. The full revelation of his glory would have been too much for Moses - in fact, we can only see it in heaven through a special elevation of our nature by grace - so God places him in the cleft of the rock, saying: "I will cover you with my hand until I have passed. Then, when I remove my hand, you will be able to see my back, but you will not see my face.". God then goes on to reveal Himself as the "Lord, Lord, compassionate and merciful God, slow to anger and rich in mercy and loyalty.". In this way, God begins to share his intimacy with Moses and, through him, with humanity.

This is the raison d'être of the revelation of the Trinity. God reveals his inner life to us so that we can share it forever in heaven. We understand this very well: the more you love someone, the more willing you are to open your intimacy to them. And so, wanting to reveal to us the fullness of his love for us in Christ Jesus, and having gradually prepared us throughout history to receive this love, it is through Jesus that God teaches us about the Trinity. As Our Lord says to Nicodemus in today's Gospel: "God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.". This act of revelation is for salvation, as Jesus teaches, but even more: it is an invitation to relationship. As we see in the saints, we are to have a relationship of love and trust with each person of the Trinity, loving the Father through Jesus his Son, with the Holy Spirit working in our soul. What St. Paul says to the Corinthians in today's second reading is like a summary of this truth: "The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God [i.e., the Father] and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all always.".

Homily on the readings of the Holy Trinity (A)

The priest Luis Herrera Campo offers its nanomiliaA short one-minute reflection for these Sunday readings.

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ColumnistsAntonio Moreno

Birth rate

A son is a banner that says NO to consumerism, to individualism, to the collective suicide in which we have embarked as a society jaded with earthly goods, but with nothing to look forward to, with no common sense.

June 1, 2023-Reading time: 3 minutes

Chatting the other day with a friend who just became a father, we calculated that, had he and his wife had the social benefits he and his wife are enjoying for having a child, the State would owe me, my wife and the whole family more than two years of sick leave.

I agree with all the benefits provided by the administrations to help families, especially in the first years of their children's lives, but I predict that we will need more than labor or economic stimuli if we want to get out of the crisis. demographic winter we've gotten ourselves into.

And, let's not forget, the popularization of contraceptives and the use of the abortion as another method at the end of the twentieth century meant a paradigm shift in the depths of human identity. Children ceased to be a surprise gift that life had in store for us (or not), and became an object that could only be accessed if it was part of the parents' plans.

Thus, people began to be born on demand, destined to satisfy the most disparate human desires. Perhaps you, who read me, were once for your parents a cuddly toy-person, a mirror-person or a couple-person. And obviously, things of life, maybe you did not satisfy your parents' wishes at all, because, in the first case, your character is surly and you always forget to call them by their birthday; in the second case, you did not follow your father's career and did not want to inherit your mother's business; and, in the third case, you turned out to be of the same sex as the first offspring, annoying one of your two parents.

Sons, however they come, have a damned habit of not stating their specifications in advance and in detail, as befits any good Amazon product. Many, many of them go wrong and do not do what the applicant wants, but what they want them to do. They don't even take care of the parents anymore when it's time for them to be taken care of, which in fairness compensated for the effort of raising them.

So, why become parents, how can we motivate couples to bet on life? To answer this question, we need only go back a few decades in time and analyze what happened at the time when we were conceived, the so called baby boomers, What was it about our families that caused the birth rate to experience such a sharp increase in the post-World War II population explosion? boom of such caliber? Certainly, the economic boom helped, but today we are much richer than then and everything seems little to us. What really encouraged families not to be afraid of their children was not to be afraid of tomorrow. The fact of having left the wars behind made society look forward with illusion, since any future time would always be better than the war hell. A pregnancy was a reason to rejoice because it was considered a good for the family, for the people, for society.

The economic and working conditions were not particularly good, many worked from dawn to dusk or had to emigrate, but there was hope. In a recent speech, the Pope has just affirmed that: "if few children are born, it means that there is little hope", denouncing that the young generations "grow up in uncertainty, if not in disillusionment and fear. They live in a social climate in which to establish a family is becoming a titanic effort, rather than a shared value that everyone recognizes and supports."

I have witnessed on a few occasions how people have no qualms about scolding a young, proud mother with her precious baby in her arms for bringing it into the world because of "how bad things are and how much work they are".

A baby is a slap in the face of the general bitterness that invades us, of the supposed progress with a vinegar face; it is a fart in the face of the prophets of calamity; it is a cry of hope in the midst of a world self-absorbed in indulging itself without realizing that men and women are fulfilled in service, in giving to others and to the whole world.

A son is a banner that says NO to consumerism, NO to individualism, NO to the loss of human bonds, NO to the collective suicide we have embarked on as a society jaded by earthly goods, but with nothing to look forward to, with no common sense.

It is urgent to return to intangible and spiritual values, those that made us leave the cave and progress as a species looking forward, without fear of the future, pushing each other as a tribe. Do you want children? Seek the source of hope that does not fail. It is worth more than all the gold in the world.

The authorAntonio Moreno

Journalist. Graduate in Communication Sciences and Bachelor in Religious Sciences. He works in the Diocesan Delegation of Media in Malaga. His numerous "threads" on Twitter about faith and daily life have a great popularity.

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The five love languages

The author reflects on the best seller by Gary Chapman which is a very interesting read to discover the "love languages" of oneself and those around us.

Juan Ignacio Izquierdo Hübner-June 1, 2023-Reading time: 3 minutes

I discovered this book thanks to Pierluigi Bartolomei. It was about three years ago, in Rome, when I attended a talk of his. He struck me as a nice and outgoing Roman, a guy with a mixture of Dante's fire and Alberto Sordi's mischievousness. And since he is also a school principal, married and the father of several children, he was the perfect candidate to talk about marriage.

Pierluigi had a good relationship with his wife and they were happy with the children. But she had been complaining for some time that he didn't tell her that he loved her. Pierluigi did not understand: he worked a lot, he supported her in the house, he played with the children, what else could he do to show his love for her? One day his wife passed him a book:

-If you want to understand me, read this," he said.

It was about "The five love languages"by Gary Chapman. He received the copy with some astonishment... and put it off. He told himself that he had plenty of experience in the marriage business, that he didn't need any prescriptions, and left the book on the bedside table as if to give the impression that he would read it someday.

So the little book remained there, gathering dust. Until the woman counterattacked: she took out all the magazines in the bathroom and replaced them with the book. It was a perfect ambush. Without realizing it, Pierluigi kept reading and reading, and in a few days he had devoured the book. This fact, he says, apparently banal, transformed his marriage. And then it catapulted him to give lectures all over Italy, because he felt called to transmit Chapman's ideas, adapted by him, to all the people who would listen to him.

Ever since I heard this anecdote, I was left with a thorn in my side. Some time later I read the book and, indeed, I was fascinated. The plot is simple, 188 pages long and gives sensational clues. The author presents five love languages, illustrated with numerous examples taken from real life. It is not a book written for marriage scholars, says Chapman, but for those who live in it.

The concept of the book is that love has "languages," that is, it has different ways of expressing itself depending on one's personality. The author proposes that there are five main languages: Words of affirmation, quality time, gift giving, acts of service and physical contact. We all like to be spoken to in all five languages, of course, but we usually have a preference for one or two that we value much more than the others. Discovering one's own languages, and even more so those of the other, can be extremely useful knowledge.

The biggest challenge is to find out what is the preferred language of the spouse (or children, friends, etc.), so that we are able to better express our love. Surprises are guaranteed, because it is quite possible that you have not stopped long enough to learn the other person's language. And by loving according to the other person's language we can much more effectively fill their tank of love and emotional well-being.

All this may seem paradoxical. At a time when young people place their trust in the feelings of infatuation, does it make sense for a proposal of make an effort to learn to love with quality? Unfortunately, says Chapman, according to statistics, the period of falling in love, where everything looks rosy, does not last more than two years. What comes after that is love as a decision, that is, it depends on a daily effort to keep the fire of affection burning.

Anyone who aspires to have a lasting bond should learn to love and always renew himself in this endeavor; he should be interested in the art of channeling the energies of affection well so that the relationship prospers and matures. Love cannot be left to the impulses of emotion, but must grow as the result of a work of reason and will, always with the help of God. "The five love languages"I found it to be a simple, entertaining and effective little book. Although it is from 1992, this title is still selling like hot cakes: it has been translated into 50 languages, has sold 20 million copies in English and is in the 30th place of Amazon's bestsellers. It's wild. It is that the author touched a key that everyone is interested in. Married couples and anyone who has the illusion of loving someone. Pierluigi Bartolomei, for his part, read this little book and his marriage improved radically. And you, what are you waiting for?

The five love languages

AuthorGary Chapman

EditorialUnilit

Pages: 205

Year: 2017

The authorJuan Ignacio Izquierdo Hübner

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ColumnistsJosé María Calderón

A question of fashion

If we Christians are convinced of the truth of what we live and profess, we will really make it fashionable in our society.

June 1, 2023-Reading time: 2 minutes

When I was a little boy and my mother noticed that my socks were showing... she told me to take off my pants to remove the hem: you go as if you were a fisherman!

The only ones who showed white or colorful socks were the clowns in the circus. Today it is a fashion everywhere to wear pants above the ankle and you can see the sock (and often the sock with drawings...) or the flesh.

It became fashionable to wear ripped jeans, and they are sold like that, ripped! Before, my mother would have called me all sorts of names if I had gone out with ripped jeans! And so many things!

It is impressive that these fashions immediately spread all over the world: in America and Europe, but also in Africa and Asia... Everyone has taken it on as their own! People of all ages, grown men, the odd old man, children and, of course, the young people.

It is a matter of fashion, which is transmitted to us by the media, social networks, influencers and, I say, some company that makes a profit from it.

And I ask myself, what do we Christians do in order not to make fashionable what we believe and live? We are not so few, and it seems that what we have in our hearts never ends up being part of our fashions, customs or ways?

There is something that fails me, Christians should be light, leaven, salt... and with the number of baptized that we are... How can we accept with normality laws that go against life, against the dignity of the family, of women, of work, of freedom, of children, of property...?

If something as insubstantial as fashion imposes itself as a criterion of behavior and normality, when in itself one thing is indifferent to the opposite... How is it possible that we have so little influence on what is really important, on what is transcendental for the human being?

The authorJosé María Calderón

Director of the Pontifical Mission Societies in Spain.

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Christians in social networks

Rome Reports-May 31, 2023-Reading time: < 1 minute

"Towards a full presence". This is the title of the document published by the Dicastery for Communication that reflects on the role of Christians in social networks.

Among other things, the Holy See advocates using social networks "in a way that goes beyond one's own watertight compartments, going beyond the group of one's 'peers' to meet others."

AhNow you can enjoy a 20% discount on your subscription to Rome Reports Premiumthe international news agency specializing in the activities of the Pope and the Vatican.

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EEC reiterates its commitment to the development of safe environments for minors

New agreement signed for the protection of minors

The Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors and the Dicastery for the Clergy signed a cooperation and information exchange agreement on Friday, May 26, 2023.

Loreto Rios-May 31, 2023-Reading time: 2 minutes

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The May 26 agreement is the second of its kind signed between the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors and a curial institution.

On the part of the Dicastery, the agreement is signed by Prefect Cardinal Lazarus You Heung-Sik and, on the part of the Commissionby Cardinal Sean O'Malley.

Main points of the agreement

The document highlights three main aspects of common interest. Firstly, it is proposed to create listening spaces for victims and for people who report cases of abuse.

The second point that has been emphasized is the collaboration in the protection of content according to the Ratio NationalisThe document, "a document elaborated and adopted by each particular church that regulates all aspects of priestly formation, adapting them to the local cultural context.

Finally, the agreement has pointed out that it seeks to facilitate the training of the clergy, who, by virtue of their ministry, can do the most to prevent cases.

Open communication channels

According to the statement on the signing of the agreement issued by the Vatican, "the collaboration between the entities of the Roman Curia will provide information for the Commission's Annual Report, as requested by the Holy Father in his April 2022 private audience with the PCPM and reiterated in the May 2023 private audience. Cardinal O'Malley stated: 'This second Cooperation Agreement marks another encouraging milestone for the Commission in its new position within the Curia.

This agreement with the Dicastery for the Clergy allows us to open important channels of communication with the office in the service of the formation of our priests around the world. Priests and deacons are perhaps the most visible face of the daily life of the Church, so it is essential to ensure that their lives and ministry are subject to good policies and procedures regarding the safeguarding of children and vulnerable people'".

Prevention practices

On the other hand, the communiqué indicates that the Prefect of the Dicastery for the Clergy, the Korean cardinal Lazarus You Heung-SikThe Holy Father has welcomed this increased collaboration: 'Our commitment in this difficult area of the Church's ministry is further expressed by today's cooperation agreement. We hope, through our joint efforts, to deepen our understanding of the impact of abuse on victims and how best to accompany them, as well as to offer best practices of prevention and assistance to our priests who are called, as Pope Francis has said, to be Apostles of Safeguarding for their communities.'"

Rome

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The Holy See and China to renew agreement on the appointment of bishops

Pope praises Matteo Ricci's friendship and consistency in China

On the Feast of the Visitation of the Virgin Mary, the Holy Father gave as an example of apostolic zeal the Venerable Jesuit Mateo Ricci, who evangelized China in the 16th and early 17th centuries, and whose "attitude of friendship with everyone, his exemplary and consistent life, and his inculturated Christian message" he emphasized. He also praised the Ukrainians and Russians "who live as brothers, not as enemies".

Francisco Otamendi-May 31, 2023-Reading time: 3 minutes

Korea, China, Mary Help of Christians and the Holy Spirit resound in Rome Related News

Pope Francis has been speaking about evangelization in China, or at the gates of China, for at least three consecutive Wednesday general audiences.

In the first two, he referred to the example of saint Francis Xavierwhich was not able to enter China, and the Shrine of Our Lady of Scheshan at Shanghai.

In the Audience This morning, he gave as an example of a witness of faith "another figure of apostolic zeal, Matteo Ricci"(The Marches, Italy, 1552 - Peking, China, 1610), also a Jesuit, who patiently managed to establish himself in southern China and was even received by the Emperor in Peking.

This is how the Pope told it: "After Francis Xavier's attempt, twenty-five other Jesuits had tried in vain to enter China. But Ricci and his brother prepared themselves very well, carefully studying the Chinese language and customs, and in the end they succeeded in establishing themselves in the south of the country. It took eighteen years, with four stages through four different cities, before they reached Beijing. With constancy and patience, animated by an unshakable faith, Mateo Ricci was able to overcome difficulties and dangers, mistrust and opposition".

Dialogue and friendship, and a vast culture

The Pontiff revealed "two resources" that Fr. Matteo Ricci had to pursue his mission: "on the one hand, an attitude of friendship towards everyone, combined with an exemplary life that caused admiration; on the other, a vast culture that was recognized by his contemporaries, which he knew how to combine with a study of the Confucian classics, thus presenting the Christian message perfectly inculturated". "This made it possible for him to enter the territory and, with patience, to approach the capital".

"Dressed as a scholar, thanks to great collaborators, also Chinese, he was able to win the respect of all, and to bring the message of Christ to his contemporaries, through his life of piety and his teachings," Pope Francis summed up in his address to Romans and pilgrims from Italy and many countries.

"Matteo Ricci died in Beijing in 1610, at the age of 57, consumed by the fatigues of the mission, in particular by his continuous availability to welcome visitors who sought him out at all times to take advantage of his wisdom and advice. He was the first foreigner to be buried by the Emperor on Chinese soil", the Holy Father explained.

Coherence of life

In his greeting to the Spanish-speaking pilgrims, the Pope encouraged them to ask "the Lord to give us the humility to know how to approach others with an attitude of friendship, respect and knowledge of their culture and values; may we know how to welcome all that is good in them, as Jesus did when he became incarnate, to make us capable of speaking their language. May we not hesitate to offer them all the good that we have, to give proof of the love that moves us".

He also added at the end of this part of the Audience: "May we have the strength to live with coherence the faith we profess in order to transmit the Gospel of the Kingdom, without impositions or proselytism. May this be the blessing of Jesus and may the Blessed Virgin, the first missionary, on this feast of the Visitation, sustain us in this purpose".

Ukrainians and Russians: "living like brothers".

In his greeting to the Italian-speaking faithful, the Roman Pontiff encouraged them to "live the Gospel in imitation of the apostolic zeal of the Blessed Virgin" and had "a grateful thought for those who, coming from Ukraine, Russia and other countries at war, have decided not to be enemies but to live as brothers and sisters. May your example inspire intentions of peace in everyone, even in those who have political responsibilities. And this must lead us to pray more for the martyred Ukraine, and to be close to it".

The Holy Father also referred to "today, the last day of the month of May," on which "the Church celebrates the visit of Mary to her cousin Elizabeth, through whom she is proclaimed blessed because she believed the words of the Lord. Turn your gaze towards her and implore her for the gift of an ever more courageous faith. To her maternal intercession let us entrust all those tried by the war, especially the beloved and tormented Ukraine, which suffers so much. To all my blessing".

In the last catechesis on 'the passion of evangelization, the apostolic zeal of the believer', Pope Francis also gave as an example the "great Korean witness", St. Andrew Kim TaegonHe was the first priest to be martyred in Korea when, two hundred years ago, a severe persecution took place in that Asian country.

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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Nappa is the new president of the Pontifical Mission Societies.

Pontifical Mission Societies' annual assembly begins

The annual assembly of the Pontifical Mission Societies begins this afternoon in Rome and will be held from May 31 to June 6, 2023.

Loreto Rios-May 31, 2023-Reading time: 2 minutes

"Of me you shall be witnesses", the evangelizing mission of every believer Related News

The PMS assembly is an annual event that brings together the president, the national directors of each country (the Pontifical Mission Societies have 120 national directorates) and the international secretaries. It will take place at the Istituto Madonna del Carmine, on the outskirts of Rome.

The assembly will begin with the welcome of the new president, Monsignor Emilio Nappa, and the presentation of the new directors.

This will be followed by an address by Cardinal Luis Antonio Gokin Tagle, proprefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization.

On Saturday, June 3, the members of the Assembly will be received in audience by Pope Francis.

The missionary Church

As indicated OMPThe Pontifical Mission Societies have, as one of their main objectives, along with the principal one, the missionary animation of the people of God throughout the world, the search for material and personal means to support the missionary Church. The universal character of this search for means on the part of the Pontifical Mission Societies will be clearly seen in this Assembly. All the countries contribute according to their possibilities, creating a Universal Solidarity Fund that gathers, from the small but very meritorious contributions of countries such as Benin or Angola, to the larger contributions of European countries or the United States. It is this Universal Solidarity Fund that finances the mission territories - with a fixed aid to each of the 1,119 - and the hundreds of "extraordinary" projects that these territories present".

This Universal Solidarity Fund collects contributions from all countries and finances the needs of the missions.

Just prior to the Assembly, on May 29 and 30, a training seminar for new directors was held at the Centro Internazionale di Animazione Missionaria (CIAM).

The challenges of evangelization

The assembly is a moment to share the challenges of evangelization and "expresses the charism and communion that characterize the PMS. It is "an opportunity to share and listen to enriching reflections on evangelization activities and on the methods of cooperation proper to the PMS, always in the context of the universal mission of the Church," the Pontifical Mission Societies said in a communiqué.

According to Fides AgencyOn Thursday, June 1, Bishop Marco Mellino will give a conference entitled "Praedicate evangelium and the PMO". After the lecture, the participants will have meetings and working groups on the New Rules and the PMS in relation to the apostolic constitution. Praedicate evangelium. On the afternoon of June 2, reports will be given by the Finance Council and by Monsignor Carlo Soldateschi, who is in charge of administration.

On Saturday, June 3, in addition to the audience with Pope Francis, Father Andrew Recepcion will give a lecture on "Synodality and Missionarity", while on Sunday, June 4, there will be a pilgrimage to the Shrine of Greccio.

On Monday, June 5, Father Tadeusz Nowak, OMI, Secretary General of the Pontifical Work for the Propagation of the Faith, Sister Roberta Tremarelli, AMSS, Secretary General of the Pontifical Work of Missionary Childhood, and Father Guy Bognon, PSS, Secretary General of the Pontifical Work of St. Peter the Apostle, will speak.

On Tuesday, June 6, after the final presentations and discussions, Bishop Emilio Nappa, President of the Pontifical Mission Societies, will deliver the closing address.

"Of me you shall be witnesses", the evangelizing mission of every believer Related News

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Massimiliano Padula: "Journalism must reflect the truth".

ColumnistsGreg Erlandson

The value of Catholic journalism

Much of the media coverage suggests that the U.S. bishops are the opposition to Pope Francis' agenda. The author disproves the polarization, and points out ideas for sound journalism.

May 31, 2023-Reading time: 2 minutes

Against fake news, Journalism Related News

It is a disgrace that, in recent years, the Catholic Church in United States is more known for its divisions than its devotion. Earlier this year, I was invited to speak about Catholic journalists' reporting of these divisions.

I was part of a panel at the 26th International Days of St. Francis de Sales in Lourdes, an annual gathering of Catholic journalists. Organizers and participants were interested in what was happening in the Church in the United States. Much of the media coverage suggests that the U.S. bishops are somehow the opposition party to Pope Francis' agenda. This narrative suits both progressive and conservative commentators.

In reality, the U.S. bishops are not collectively an anti-papal group. While some are partisan and others are uncomfortable with the pope's agenda, most, I said, may not always understand his vision (e.g., synodality), but they consider themselves loyal and dislike polarizing reports.

One of the reasons for the misunderstanding is that bishops who are very critical of Rome are not publicly rebutted by their counterparts. Bishops are reluctant to make these divisions public, but their silence can sometimes cause confusion.

How can Catholic journalists cover events honestly and openly when there is such an aversion to bad press among Catholic leaders?

But the press is not blameless. In both secular and religious media, the lines between opinion, analysis and news have blurred. Commentators reflect divisions in the Church (progressives versus traditionalists, for example), and their coverage can exaggerate the scale and scope of polarization.

At the same time, church leaders sometimes seem to lack faith in the Gospel adage that "the truth will set us free." Transparency, both in Rome and in the dioceses, is more a virtue preached than practiced. This hinders the work of good journalists and favors that of bad ones. It favors leaks and anonymous sources, and allows events to be easily manipulated to affirm pre-existing opinions.

As the crisis of the sexual abuse of the clergy, a Church that is not transparent and honest will eventually suffer, and the price paid in cynicism and abandonment of the faithful is devastating.

The Church as a whole, and the bishops in particular, need to recover the sense of purpose, value and vocation of Catholic journalism. Journalists must be well trained, but what is needed is not propaganda. On the contrary, solid journalism will inform and help form Catholics.

The authorGreg Erlandson

Journalist, author and editor. Director of Catholic News Service (CNS)

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Artificial Neural Network. Artificial Intelligence Tools

Guest writersJoseángel Dominguez

Year zero does not exist and the AI knows it.

Eliminating the name of Christ from the temporal references is not only clearly useless, but it is also a sign of cultural erosion.

May 31, 2023-Reading time: 5 minutes

Without a second's hesitation, the student raised his hand to ask. He looked agitated, as if my explanation had made him uncomfortable. And with a certain vibration in his voice, he challenged me with a question I had not expected:

-Professor," he said, maintaining his respect at all times, "why do you constantly say 'before Christ' and 'after Christ', wouldn't it be better to say 'in the common era'?

In my defense, I will say that this had never happened to me before. In Spanish it is not common to use such terminology and I certainly did not expect a university student to be concerned about such an issue. But I do not miss any opportunity to enter into conversation with someone who shows interest. Disinterest I don't know how to deal with, but discussing has always been one of my hobbies.

-The year zero doesn't exist," I answered, still thinking about the best way to answer my interlocutor's question, "And that doesn't make much sense. But it is something very human. Let me explain.

"The Greek and Roman civilizations are at the basis of modern culture, but they had a great shortcoming in their scientific system, they did not know the number zero. The number zero is arbitrary to a certain extent, and not knowing it did not stop Aristotle in his philosophy or Virgil in his epic. But it is true that this technological device represents an unquestionable advance for the cultures that possess it. Neither Rome nor Greece knew the number zero, and thus their algebraic development was limited.

Christ, point of reference?

Back to my student's question. The idea that history has a reference point and that this point in time is the birth of Jesus of Nazareth is arbitrary in many ways. Even worse: the demarcation of that exact year is wrong and we have known that for a long time. Dionysius the Exiguous invested much energy in recomposing the timeline that led him to conclude the exact year of the Birth of Christ, but we now know that his calculations were wrong, or at least inaccurate, by about 6 years. Jesus of Nazareth was born in the year six before Christ".

The conversation was getting lively. Year zero does not exist and Jesus was born in the year six B.C., but I insist on using the terminology "before Christ" for events that occurred more than 2023 years ago. My English-speaking peers tend, increasingly, to use the nomenclature "common era"to refer to the dates before and after Christ. And so it is common to find the acronyms BCE or CE (before Common Era / Common Era) instead of the traditional BC/AD (before Christ / before Christ / after Christ). anno Domini). It was clear that this was the underlying idea behind my student's question.

Analyzing the transition process that is leading more and more specialists to use common era instead of the classic "year of the Lord", we discovered that this is not an arbitrary process. The tension in my student's voice was caused, as he later acknowledged, by a sense that using "before Christ" was inappropriate in a scientific context. Moreover, such a Christo-centric reference is not very inclusive: many of the students, and the scientific community in a broad sense, do not recognize Jesus of Nazareth as the Savior.

Legitimate secularization

This is not an arbitrary process, but neither is it new. Almost a quarter of a century ago, the Secretary General of the United Nations said: "There is so much interaction between people of different religions and cultures, different civilizations, if you will, that a shared way of reckoning time is necessary. And so the Christian Era has become the Common Era" ("Common Values for a Common Era," Kofi A. Anan, in "Civilization: The Magazine of the Library of Congress," 28 June 1999). The globally respected Kofi Anan calls for the "Common Era", and frames his proposal in a process of universalization of Christian culture.

In other fields this process of "openness" applied to the Christian tradition has been called inclusivity, or legitimate secularization. A somewhat radical exponent of such a consideration is the acclaimed historian and researcher Yuval Noah Harari. I say radical because in his speeches he does not refrain from categorizing religions as a pure human invention and as a tool for control. The Israeli historian says: "we use language to create mythology and laws, to create gods and money, to create art and science (...). Gods are not a biological or physical reality. Gods are something that humans have created through language, by telling legends and writing scriptures" (Y. N. Harari, Speech "AI and the Future of Humanity". Frontiers Forum, Montreux, April 29, 2023. Transcription and translation are mine).

Erasing Christ from the culture

The logic of this secularization process is evident, and could be summarized as follows: if we men and women have been the inventors of religions, and these traditions are not physical or biological, they become tools of control, and therefore must be eradicated. Not only in general, but in the specifics, in the subtlest cultural traces... which brings us back to "before/after Christ". Replace that expression with a less culturally marked one.

My interlocutor was hooked on our conversation. We were understanding each other. This university student considered it his responsibility to cleanse public discourse of the exclusivist marks of culturally Christian language: in this way, he thought, the discourse becomes more inclusive, respectful and less Christocentric.

Inclusivity

This was the moment for me to raise the question that was to reverse the direction of the conversation: Is it truly inclusive to replace "BC" with "CE"? what is it for? If we want to see a clear example of cultural inclusivity in the realm of calendars, the best example I can find is the week in Christian cultures: it is seven days, like the days of creation according to Jewish tradition. One of the days is the Sabbath (for the Shabbat Jewish), the next is Sunday (dies Dominicaeby the resurrection of Christ, the Dominus), but the preceding day is Friday, from Latin dies Veneris (the day of Venus) for the Roman goddess, and we start the week on Monday, the day of the moon.

In English it is even more interesting, as the Norse gods make their entrance into a week of Jewish origin at a time of clear Christian markings: Thursdayday of Thor, y Fridayday of Freyacoexist with Sunday, the day of the sun (Sunday) and the Sabbath which takes its origin from the Roman tradition (SaturdaySaturn's day).

In contrast to this inclusive and integrating process that crystallizes in the week in the West, eliminating the name of Christ from the temporal references is not only clearly useless (the year 1592 after Christ and the year 1592 of the common era are the same date), but also presents a sign of cultural erosion: eliminating a traditional and cultural reference is not very inclusive, since, at least, it excludes those who identify their roots with a specific tradition and culture. An inclusiveness that eliminates differences is of no use.

Human intelligence and AI

Being aware of these details makes us very human. In this context, we are called to a more human leadership in a time of Artificial Intelligence (as Jesús Hijas says in his works). The ubiquitous AI beats us at chess, and soon at the stock market. It will always beat us in processing speed, accuracy and scope of the tasks it performs.

The human being, on the other hand, excels in empathy and self-awareness. These are skills that need to be developed in particular. Thus, human intelligence and artificial intelligence working together, without eliminating their differences, but protecting and developing them, is the path to success in the year 2023 AD and the years that will follow.

The authorJoseángel Dominguez

Co-founder, Executive Director CRETIO Foundation

Artificial Neural Network. Artificial Intelligence Tools

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Crisis on the U.S.-Mexico border

San Diego, the priorities of a border diocese

The great Church in the United States contains a great diversity, which is very noticeable in the dioceses located on the borders. This will be the subject of a series of reports in Omnes magazine, reserved for subscribers. In particular, the border between Mexico and the United States is one of the most dynamic transnational spaces in the world. In the June issue, we turn to the Diocese of San Diego.

Juan Portela-May 31, 2023-Reading time: 2 minutes

In San Diego, adjacent to the Mexican diocese of Tijuana, pastoral priorities include the promotion of sacramental life; catechesis and evangelization; the defense of the dignity of human life in all its stages; the promotion of the family and vocations to marriage, the priesthood and consecrated life, as well as educational formation, faith formation and social services. But one of the most relevant programs is the one aimed at immigrants.

It is estimated that in the region covered by the diocese there are close to 200,000 undocumented immigrants, mostly from Mexico. As a result, "the border influences the pastoral life of the entire diocese, not just the parishes and Catholic schools closest to the border," explains Aida Bustos, media director for the San Diego diocese. Omnes approaches several people who work with migrants and reports on some of the initiatives undertaken by the pastoral ministry of care for people crossing the border, making some parishes and communities true oases of mercy.

The cover theme of the June issue is "Temples of the 21st Century. Sacred architecture, the meeting point of liturgy and art, is all about combining beauty with transcendence and welcome. On the occasion of a Omnes Forum held in May, with the participation of several architects with experience in the field of contemporary sacred architecture, we have collected several of their contributions. The formulas proposed vary greatly, of course, depending on subjective tastes and personal sensibilities. The diversity of the considerations of architects such as the Spaniard Ignacio Vicens or the American Steven J. Schloder, which have resulted in new, well-known churches, enriches the dossier on contemporary sacred architecture.

Omnes magazine is always attentive to information about what is happening in the Church throughout the world. In June, readers will find an interview with Thierry Bonaventura, the person responsible for Communications in the Secretariat of the Synod of Bishops, who explains some aspects (not only communicative) of the synodal process to which Pope Francis has summoned the Church. In the Rome section, the other areas of news about the Vatican and the Pope are presented, and in a specific section, the teachings of the Roman Pontiff are summarized and commented on.

"Reasons" is a news block of its own. In this issue we offer a report on chemical abortion, based on the controversies in the United States about mifepristone. And in the section on the "Theology of the 20th century", in which the theologian Juan Luis Lorda describes month by month the most relevant people and movements that influence recent theology, we approach the figure of the Swiss theologian Hans Urs von Balthasar.

In the "Culture" section, the life and work of the French philosopher Jacques Maritain are remembered on this occasion. It also reviews recently published books and includes reviews of television series.

Each issue also includes commentaries on the liturgical readings for each Sunday; a section dedicated to practical situations in the priestly life, which this month presents some pastoral suggestions for overcoming addictions; and a collection of initiatives and testimonies of people around the world who work every day to spread the Gospel message, with creativity and enthusiasm.

We welcome readers to the Omnes magazine, by subscription only, which can be made by HERE.

The authorJuan Portela

United States

Crisis on the U.S.-Mexico border

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EditorialOmnes

Omnes in the United States: a new way of reporting

Omnes arrives in a new version adapted to the United States, with the hope of offering Spanish-speaking readers in the country quality content for reporting on the Church.

May 31, 2023-Reading time: 2 minutes

Today a new informative project on the life of the Church is becoming a reality, expressed synthetically in the formula with which it is defined OmnesA Catholic look at current affairs". This is an important step, even if necessarily modest in a country like the United States of America, where there are numerous news companies, also in the Catholic field, and some of them of great quality.

What, then, does this new means of religious communication bring to the table? Primarily, Omnes brings the purpose of rendering a service to evangelization, through a certain style of information based on three main characteristics:

It has a constructive approach. We do not understand that our service to the Church can be based on criticism or polarization. We want to stay away from personal polemics or partisan positions. We choose to cultivate the unity of the Church, based on the common foundations of the Catholic faith.
It is intended to offer a analytical informationOmnes, so that readers can get to know the facts in a broader and deeper perspective, and understand their real scope. Omnes tries to go to the sources of the news, to orient with reference to the contents of the faith, and also to offer specifically formative materials, which serve to continue to grow intellectually and spiritually.
Omnes wants to be a reference for all types of readers ("all" is the meaning of the Latin word "Omnes"). Some will seek arguments and resources; others, believers or non-believers, will want to keep abreast of the life of the Church; there will be people properly "of the Church" who seek a means of ongoing formation, be they lay men and women, priests or religious men and women.

A fourth feature of Omnes in the United States appears in something that readers have been able to perceive from the first line: our medium is written in Spanish (although the website can be read in English through an automatic translation tool, and also in French, Polish, German, Italian and Portuguese). The reason is that our main audience is the Latino communities: we put in the hands of those in charge of Hispanic ministry, and of every Spanish speaker in the United States, an informative and formative tool to sustain and grow the faith of their roots.

Omnes uses the variety of channels possible in the digital world. The two main formats are the website www.omnesmag.comThe Omnes magazine is reserved for subscribers, and contains in-depth or specifically educational topics. They are accompanied by information and materials via Newsletter, podcast, WhatsApp and other social networks, Forums and meetings, etc.

Finally, we would like to emphasize that, if Omnes is for everyone, it should also advance with the contribution of all its readers. If now is the time to begin, the road will be traveled with the suggestions and proposals of the readers.

The authorOmnes

United States

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ColumnistsMario Paredes

Faith in the new Hispanic generations

The Church must address and convincingly challenge the hegemonic culture to present a viable alternative in a culture sustained by materialism and ambition.

May 31, 2023-Reading time: 3 minutes

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Although the Catholic faith is the faith professed by the majority of Hispanics in the United States, it is also the faith that loses more Latinos than any other religious group, with a growing number of Hispanics reporting no religious affiliation. These are some of the most relevant findings from the survey. Pew Research Center published on April 13.

In 2010, 67 % of Hispanics in the United States claimed to be Catholic. This figure fell sharply to 43 % in 2022, but was already at 49 % in 2018. Nearly one in four Hispanics are former Catholics. Of the 65 % of Hispanics who claim to have been raised Catholic, 23 % acknowledge that they no longer identify with that religion. Some have joined another faith, mainly Protestant, while the majority no longer belong to any church.

Protestants are the second largest religious group for Hispanics, with 21 %. Among Hispanics residing in the United States, 39 % say religion is "very important". Among evangelical Hispanics, 73 % say the same, and 46 % of Catholic Hispanics feel the same way. Among U.S. Hispanic Catholics, 22 % go to church weekly or more often. Only 1 % of those who say they have no religious affiliation do the same.

Hispanics who identify themselves as atheist, agnostic or "nothing in particular" rank at 30 %, in contrast to 10 % who belonged to this category in 2010 and 18 % in 2013. It should be noted that 29 % of Hispanics who practice no faith still pray at least once a week. Nearly a quarter of all U.S. Hispanics are former Catholics.

The abandonment of Catholicism is more pronounced among young people between 18 and 29 years of age. In this population group, 49 % say they have no religious affiliation. In the 50-64 and 65 and over age groups, it is less common to identify themselves in this category, with 20 % and 18%, respectively. Even so, these figures are significant.

Among Hispanics born outside the United States and living here, 52 % belong to the Catholic Church, and 21 % say they have no religious affiliation. In contrast, 36 % of U.S.-born Hispanics profess the Catholic faith and 39 % have no religious affiliation. Language also plays a role: 56 % of Spanish speakers identify themselves as Catholic, in contrast to 32 % of English speakers. This figure stands at 42 % among bilingual respondents.

The decline in the number of Hispanics professing the Catholic faith - especially, but not exclusively, among the young - should be of concern to Church leaders. It compels them to devise innovative forms of evangelization that take into account what is most important in people's lives, and for many of them that is material success. Hispanics attending Mass and living a Catholic life should no longer be taken for granted.

A crisis, a time for change

It seems more than evident that the American way of life, based on entertainment and the accumulation of money and material goods, makes Hispanics oblivious to their Catholic roots and values. It leaves them empty in crucial aspects of their lives. Many people work two or three jobs to try to get ahead, leaving aside reflection and spirituality.

There is a serious setback in the valuation of the faith that delineated and gave sustenance to Latin American cultures. For centuries, the Church has played a central role in Latin American countries and their cultures, so that Catholicism is also a foundational foundation in the formation of human beings.

Church leaders face the inescapable task of presenting Catholicism in a more dynamic and attractive way, capable of bringing home the historical and contemporary relevance of the faith. Somehow, the Church must convincingly address and challenge the hegemonic culture to present a viable alternative in a culture sustained by materialism and ambition in order to succeed in that arena. The Church can emulate evangelical practice and its commitment to go in search of people rather than sitting back and waiting for people to come to church.

There is also a political and ideological battle to be waged. According to the Pew survey, former Catholics pointed to the lack of LGBTQ inclusion, sexual abuse scandals and the impediment to women being ordained as some of the key factors that led them to leave their Church. In this regard, the Church must also demonstrate a high degree of sensitivity and sophistication to defend its teachings in a convincing manner.

Without a concerted and creative effort by the Church to address these and other deficiencies, the loss of Hispanic Catholics will continue unabated, further undermining the faith that truly touches the heart of the Hispanic community.

The authorMario Paredes

Executive Director of SOMOS Community Care

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Rafael Navarro-VallsJoaquín wanted access to the Pope and transparency".

A few days ago, the memoirs of Joaquín Navarro-Valls, spokesperson for the Holy See for twenty-two years (1984-2006) during the pontificates of St. John Paul II and Benedict XVI, were presented at the CEU San Pablo University. His brother, professor and academic Rafael Navarro-Valls, has edited and revised the book, entitled 'My years with John Paul II. Personal Notes', and answers Omnes' questions.

Francisco Otamendi-May 31, 2023-Reading time: 7 minutes

On May 24, four years ago, the then director of the Holy See Press Office, Alessandro Gisotti, wanted to give the name of Joaquín Navarro-Valls to the work room of journalists accredited to the Vatican Press Office.

"Giving the name of Navarro-Valls, who had also been president of the Foreign Press Association in Italy, to the room where accredited journalists work every day reporting on the Vatican, I said, is 'a sign to underline that, in the Church and in the Holy See, information counts and must always count more'," said Alessandro Gisotti at the presentation at CEU of the book published by Espasa. An event attended by the Nuncio of His Holiness Bernardito Auza, Cardinal Rouco Varela, the president of the Academy of Jurisprudence and Legislation, Manuel Pizarro, and the rector of the University CEU San Pablo, Rosa Visiedo, among other personalities.

In Gisotti's opinion, now deputy managing editor of the Vatican Media, "this is certainly the most important and lasting legacy, in my opinion, that Director Navarro has left us: communication is fundamental in today's world and this is also true for the Church and the Holy See"..

In the interview with Omnes, Rafael Navarro-Valls underlined something that Alessandro Gisotti also said: "'Joaquín Navarro Valls was not a spokesman, he was a spokesman, he was a spokeswoman. the spokesman', praising his prestige among all journalists accredited to the Holy See".

Also speaking at the event were Diego Contreras, editor and professor at the Universidad de la Plata. Santa Cruz (Rome); former government spokesman Iñigo Méndez de Vigo; Jesús Trillo-Figueroa, State lawyer and member of the Honorary Council of the Institute Karol Wojtyla-John Paul II; and Fernando Lostao, director of the Foundation Ángel Herrera Oria, who moderated the event.

Rafael Navarro-Valls, president of the Permanent Conference of Ibero-American Juridical Academies and vice-president of the Royal Academy of Jurisprudence and Legislation of Spain, commented on his brother Joaquín's book.

What has been your task in the genesis and editing of this book of your brother Joaquín's personal notes on Pope St. John Paul II?

-My intervention consisted in reviewing the excellent version prepared by the editor, Diego Contreras, making some suggestions, and encouraging Joaquín when he was alive to finish the version contained in more than 600 pages of annotations. The spokesman for 22 years wrote down his impressions day by day, with a great effort, because he did it at the end of days full of incidents and which meant a great deal of work for him.

You coordinated the edition of the book 'Navarro-Valls, el portavoz', with valuable testimonies about your brother Joaquín and his work in the Holy See. Is that a book about your brother, and this is a book about St. John Paul II?

-Indeed, the book "The Spokesman, which I had the honor of coordinating, contains 20 testimonies of personalities from Europe and America about Joaquín. It is a book of statements by people who knew and dealt with him. Naturally there are also references to St. John Paul II, but as you say, it focuses more on the figure of the spokesman.

The Memories The narrator of Joaquín's life looks towards John Paul II, so that the narrator remains more in the shadows. But since this is a book that covers an arc of more than 20 years, it is inevitable that the figure of Joaquín also appears.

My years with John Paul II

Author: Joaquín Navarro-Valls

Editorial: Espasa

Pages: 640

Year: 2023

Did your brother consult you about John Paul II's proposal to head the Sala Stampa and become spokesman for the Holy See? Did he speak to you about any conditions he would place on accepting the position? One has been mentioned: access to the leader, the Pope in this case.

-Rather than consulting me, he informed me that he had been offered these positions. It seemed to me to be a fortunate choice and I spoke to him about how much good he could do from that position. In fact, he told me that he had set two conditions: direct contact with the Pope and transparency. Hence the many times he had lunch and dinner with him, and his frequent access to him. Stanislaw Dziwisz, the Pope's own personal secretary, played an important role in this access. Regarding his efforts to make the Press Room transparent, I remember his decision to communicate to the press the principle of Parkinson's that John Paul II had, which led to a clash with the Secretariat of State.

You have been a member of Opus Dei for many years, as was your brother Joaquín. Did Blessed Álvaro del Portillo, prelate of Opus Dei during those years, or later his successor, Bishop Javier Echevarría, say anything to you?

-The members of the Opus Dei We are absolutely free - and correlatively responsible - for the exercise of our professional work. I do not believe that I received "instructions" from the Prelature. We never spoke about this.

On Tuesday this book was presented at the CEU. Any ideas that you think are worth highlighting from what was said there?

-All the speakers made very intelligent interventions. To say one that struck me, Alessandro Gisotti, former spokesman for the Holy See and current deputy editorial director of the Vatican Media, observed that "Joaquín Navarro Valls was not a spokesman, he was a spokesman". the spokesman", praising his prestige among all journalists accredited to the Holy See.

Is it possible to be a friend, a very good friend, of a Pope? Your brother was, as far as we can see. With filial friendship, you said, he saw and treated him as a father. Did the Pope see him as a son? There are photos that speak for themselves.

-Joachim denied that he could be friends with the Pope. And he quoted Plato who said that for there to be friendship between two people there must be a certain equality between them. My brother added that the distance between John Paul II and himself was enormous. But the truth is that there was friendship between them. It is enough to see the photos to which you refer to discover the complicity between them. In my modest opinion, Plato was not right: friendship between unequals is possible.

The Pope often made jokes about him and his mission as spokesman. In them one can detect that affection that exists between a father and a son.

Tell me something that is not in the book, or that could have been and is not. Any confidences that your brother told you.

-I remember that at the Cairo conference he used harsh words to describe the difference between what Al Gore - Vice President of the United States - was saying ("we do not intend to defend the use of texts to promote abortion") and what, at the command of his team, was actually being done. Joaquín publicly stated: "The draft document on population, whose main promoter is the United States, contradicts Mr. Gore's statement". In case there were any doubts, when an American journalist asked the spokesman: "You claim that the Vice President of the United States is lying". Joaquín, without flinching, replied: "Yes, that is what I say". The latter was omitted from the book.

And now, something that is. It's 640 pages, and it does readers a favor.

-Joachim had a big head, but also a big heart. Twice in the book the spokesman's tears are described: once, when, before millions of people following his words on television, he announced the extreme seriousness of John Paul II. The other, when he read to John Paul II a dispatch from the Reuters agency that included some words of the schismatic Lefebvre about the Pope: that he was a heretic, that he no longer had the Catholic faith, etc. He could not finish reading these things. He got a lump in his throat and tears came to his eyes. St. John Paul II encouraged him to continue and to ease the tension he alluded to Lefebvre's possible illness. Joachim replied that, as a doctor, he could understand an illness, but that the devil can also act in history through illness.

Joaquín Navarro-Valls was spokesman for the Holy See for twenty-two years, in the pontificates of St. John Paul II and Benedict XVI, the first non-Italian in that position, and played an important role in Vatican diplomacy. This is a bit surprising...

-Yes, it is very exceptional for a spokesman of the "Greats" to remain so long in office. Even his dismissal during the pontificate of Benedict XVI was at his own request. I remember that RAI made a program of great repercussion connecting simultaneously with three spokesmen of three "greats": the one for the United States, the one for the Soviet Union and Joachim for the Holy See. At one point in the three-way conversation, the spokesmen of the two big countries (they were in office for no more than six years, Joaquín for 22) expressed their astonishment at Joaquín's tenure for so many years. This was made possible by the great rapport between the "Boss" and his spokesman.

You explained that John Paul II raised three fronts: the battle against the process of secularization; the second, the Soviet bloc: his objective was to protect human rights; and in the third world, "the enemy was the incredible morass of poverty". Anything to add or clarify?

-These three fronts are described throughout the book. But what is really interesting is the great serenity and good humor with which John Paul II faced the serious issues he had to deal with. In other words, the human and spiritual side of a saint. Joaquín was fascinated by the "human side" of the Pontiff: his courage and bravery, his deep joy, his strength and harmony of spirit, and so on. Naturally, also his spiritual side and related virtues. For example, how he prayed. In the Nunciature of an African country, where they were staying, Joaquin entered the chapel for a moment and found the Pope praying on his face before the tabernacle. Joachim waited for an hour and left quietly. The next morning he asked the nuns what time the Pope had retired to his bedroom. They told him that he had spent the whole night in prayer.

Can you tell an anecdote about John Paul II's request for mercy for a condemned man in the United States?

-It is contained in the book. In synthesis, it happened like this. On one of John Paul II's many trips, he arrived in the city of St. Louis (Missouri, USA). He learned, through Joaquin, that a convicted murderer, a Vietnam veteran (Darrell J. Mease) was going to be executed during his visit. The Pope intercedes for his life with the governor. The governor's press chief suggested that John Paul II ask the governor directly. Thus, at the conclusion of a solemn ceremony in St. Louis Cathedral, with President Clinton and Governor Carnaham seated in the front row, the Pope stops before the governor and with all simplicity says: "Have merci on Mr. Mease". With identical simplicity the governor replies: "I will do it". In this way, the condemned man saved his life.

You also mentioned an event related to Frank Sinatra's song My Way. John Paul II is already a saint, was his brother, in your opinion??

-I believe Joaquín was a man with many human and also supernatural virtues. When my brothers and I were moving Joaquín's coffin to the hearse, it is true that in an inexplicable way my cell phone went off and we began to hear the chords of one of Joaquín's favorite songs: My Way. I interpreted this as a way of telling us that he was on the road to success.

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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Gabriella GambinoIt is important not to leave families on their own".

The Holy See presents the World Pact for the Family

The Global Compact for the Family (Family Global Compact) is an initiative of the Dicastery for the Laity, Family and Life, together with the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences, which seeks to highlight the anthropological and cultural importance of the family.

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At 11:30 a.m. on Tuesday, May 30, the press conference for the launch of the World Pact for the Family was broadcast live from the Holy See Press Office, Aula San Pio X. (Family Global Compact). Sister Helen Alford, President of the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences; Prof. Gabriella GambinoProf. Pierpaolo Donati, sociologist and member of the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences. Also present in the hall, at the disposal of journalists, were Prof. Stefano Zamagni, former President of the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences, and Dr. Francesco Belletti, Director of the International Center for Studies on the Family (CISF).

The Global Compact for the Family

The Global Pact for the Family is an initiative promoted by the Dicastery for the Laity, the Family and Life, together with the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences, with the collaboration of the International Center for Family Studies.

In the words of the Pope in his message for the launch of the pact on May 13, 2023, the World Pact for the Family is "a common program of actions aimed at bringing the pastoral care of the family into dialogue with centers of study and research on the family present in Catholic universities throughout the world, to promote the family in the light of the Social Doctrine of the Church."

The importance of the irreplaceable role of the family in society and of the research work of Catholic universities in this area has been stressed. This is why the World Pact for the Family seeks to foster collaboration between the pastoral care of the family and centers for the study of the family.

This was also indicated by the Pope in his message: "The goal is synergy, to ensure that family pastoral care in the particular Churches makes more effective use of the results of research and of the teaching and formation efforts that take place in the Universities (...) Together, Catholic Universities and pastoral care can better promote a culture of the family and of life that, starting from reality, helps new generations to appreciate marriage, family life with its resources and challenges, the beauty of engendering and appreciating human life".

The family, the foundation of society

Sister Helen Alford pointed out that we are living in a time of light and shadow with regard to families, for while the family "remains a central value in people's lives," it is true that "we are witnessing a weakening of the family," due in large part to contemporary individualistic tendencies and "as families weaken, so do social structures." However, Alford looks to the future with optimism, commenting that "it was clear from the discussions at last year's plenary session that the family remains a very resilient social structure, capable of absorbing shocks and providing support and healing to people in very diverse circumstances."

He stressed the "fundamental contribution that the family makes in support of society, especially thanks to its role in forming, maintaining and deepening the capacity to establish relationships in a world that experiences so much loneliness and the suffering that results from it".

The four stages of the Pact

Professor Gabriella Gambino, undersecretary of the Dicastery for the Laity, Family and Life noted that "the Global Pact for the Family is not a static program aimed at crystallizing certain ideas, but a path proposed to Catholic universities to deepen and develop Christian anthropology and the message it conveys about marriage, the family and human life."

He also explained that, as the Pope indicated in his message of May 13, the Pact envisages four stages:

1. Activate a process of reflection, dialogue and greater collaboration among university centers of study and research that deal with family issues, so that their activity may be more effective and fruitful, in particular through the creation or relaunching of networks of university institutes inspired by the Social Doctrine of the Church.

2. Create a greater synergy between the Church and the university institutes of study and research that deal with family issues when planning content and objectives. At the ecclesial level, pastoral action needs concrete support from the academic thinking of Catholic-inspired university centers.

3. Revitalize the culture of life and the family in society, so that strategic proposals and objectives for public policies can be derived from it.

4. Once the proposals have been elaborated, promote collaboration between the Church and Catholic universities in the planning of content and objectives.

The logo

Gambino also commented that another of the objectives of the pact is to "develop and expand the already existing networks of institutes and centers for the family that are inspired by the Social Doctrine of the Church". Among them, he pointed to Rediuf, the International Network of University Institutes for the Family.

Gambino explained the meaning of the logo: "It is composed of three elements: a network, a family and a cross.the network is the global network that ideally connects the universities and university centers to which the Global Compact is proposed and which are inspired by the Social Doctrine of the Catholic Church. At the same time, it represents the vision of a dynamic network between families - the subject and not the object of the Pact - and between the various actors in civil society, the economy, law and culture mobilized in favor of families.The family, as the subject of the World Pact for Families, is at the center of the logo.

People represent a family that is the source and origin of a social life inspired by solidarity and the development of the person. Human life, for its part, is represented by the pregnant woman, in order to deepen the theme of nascent life and the care of all human life. Generationality is also the image of a new era that we wish to promote by adhering to the Global Compact: a common commitment to promote the role of the family in the economy, in society, in the development of the human person and the common good. It is a symbol of hope, love and the future.

The research process

Professor Pierpaolo Donati underlined that "the idea of the World Pact for the Family is to stimulate the application of the Apostolic Exhortation Amoris Laetitia in the studies and research carried out in Catholic or Catholic-inspired universities".

To implement this project, "the CISF [Centro Internazionale Studi FamigliaThe first step was to draw up a list, as complete as possible, of Catholic universities, specifying those in which there is a study and research center dedicated to the family. (...) Two questionnaires were then sent to these universities to find out in detail about their activities. The most complete information came from 30 universities. Three webinars were then organized with all the centers that declared themselves available (in fact, mainly from Europe and Central and South America, some from North America and a couple from Africa).

(...) The main conclusions were: (i) the weakness of support (including financial) for research in this field compared to other fields; (ii) the relative isolation of each Center (with the exception of the Redifam network of Spanish-American Centers); (iii) the evident deficiencies in the multidisciplinarity and transdisciplinarity of research on the family, which, as a 'multifaceted object', should be dealt with by linking biological, social, legal, economic, cultural, service and social policy aspects, including pastoral aspects, while interest in philosophical and value-related topics predominates; (iv) the need for greater creativity in research, having noted a scarce capacity to anticipate the most relevant topics; (v) the need for linking research on the family, which, as a 'multifaceted object', should be dealt with by linking biological, social, legal, economic, cultural, service and social policy aspects, including pastoral aspects, while interest in philosophical and value-related topics predominates; and (v) the need to link research, and studies in general, to operational implications in terms of services, social policies and pastoral activities (...)".)".

The website of the Global Compact for the Family

There will be a website dedicated to the Pact, which will be accessible starting today: www.familyglobalcompact.org. The text of the Pact in three languages (Italian, English and Spanish), a summarized version in these three languages, the Pope's message, an explanation of the logo and a reference e-mail address for information and to request adherence to the Pact will be available there.

The press conference for the launch of the Global Compact for Families

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Twentieth Century Theology

The work of Cardinal Mercier

A particularly interesting chapter in Cardinal Mercier's life were the ecumenical conversations with representatives of the Anglican world. The "Mechelen conversations" occupied the last part of his life (1921-1926).

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Desirée-Joseph Mercier (1851-1926) was a notable professor of philosophy, founder of the Institute of Philosophy of the University of Louvain and representative of neo-scholasticism. As Archbishop of Mechelen (Brussels), he promoted the university and the formation of the clergy, encouraged conversations with Anglicanism and intervened in the great affairs of the Church at the beginning of the 20th century.

Leo XIII (1810-1903) came to the pontificate (in 1878) at a fairly advanced age (67) and with thirty-two years of experience as bishop of Perugia (1846-1878) at a time of disagreements with Modernity. The Holy See had just lost the Papal States (1870), liberal regimes in half the world had fought against the Church for a century (and had expropriated it of everything they could), many Catholic institutions had collapsed or had been banned, although others were emerging. There was contestation and doctrinal unrest in the Catholic world due to the influence of new currents of thought. And nations were agitated by the tensions of the industrial revolution. Much encouragement and discernment was needed. And Leo XIII, despite his fragile appearance, had it.

The will of Leo XIII

In the first weeks, he already entered into all these important topics, thinking that his pontificate would be short (however, it would last twenty-five years, to his and others' surprise). And within a year he published Aeterni Patris (1879), recommending Thomistic philosophy in ecclesiastical studies. He supported him with appointments of professors in Rome (Gregoriana, Antonianum) and abroad. He formally asked the Cardinal of Mechelen (Brussels) to endow a chair of Thomistic philosophy at the University of Louvain. This Catholic university had been refounded in 1834, and had survived well the debacle of the century.

The Belgian episcopate resisted for reasons of political expediency. But Leo XIII sent an Italian Dominican (Rossi) at his expense. Then they immediately looked for a Belgian candidate (and sent back the Dominican). Ruling out great and difficult figures, the choice fell on a young professor and spiritual director of the minor seminary of Mechelen, Desirée-Joseph Mercier. He had just turned thirty and had to make himself respected (and make Thomism respectable) both in the university itself and in the Belgian liberal circles, which were very critical of Catholicism.

Leo XIII invited him to Rome to comment on the program. And the classes began on October 27, 1883. By the will of the Pope they were obligatory for all the ecclesiastical students of the university. Doctoral students of philosophy and letters also attended, as well as all lay students who wanted to. Mercier strove to acquire a good scientific training, especially in psychology (and physiology). And his classes acquired fame. His disciples remember him as a well-documented, brilliant and welcoming teacher. He prepared notes for his students and turned them into textbooks. Some disciples joined him and he divided the courses.

The Higher Institute of Philosophy

He kept Leo XIII informed. In 1887 he traveled to Rome and proposed to him to create in Louvain a Higher Institute of Philosophy, distinct from the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters, which had a historical and philological orientation. The Pope liked the idea and appointed him domestic prelate on the spot. On the other hand, the rector of Louvain and orientalist Bishop Abbeloos, who had felt "bridged" from the beginning, objected and created an opinion: this "medievalism" could lead nowhere. The matter became tense. Mercier was even tempted to accept the proposal that came to him to transfer the project to the newly created Catholic University of Washington. But Leo XIII made it known that he supported him, and when Mercier proposed to create two chairs, one of philosophy and the other of propaedeutic sciences, he sent the funding and erected the institute (1889).

Mercier developed the courses and sought new professors, making sure that they were well informed both in the positive sciences and in medieval history (De Wulf). He obtained funding, built classrooms and also experimental psychology laboratories (in the style of Wundt). He wanted a "Higher" Institute of Philosophy: not elementary education. After a new interview with Leo XIII, he composed statutes defining the intellectual orientation of the Institute and its relationship with the University. The rector opposed again, alleging this time that what was taught was modern science with a Thomistic veneer, and that it should be taught in Latin and not in French.

Mercier relented on Latin instruction for ecclesiastics, but not on guidance. He published Psychology (1892), Logic and Metaphysics (1894), and later a Criteriology. With this I would compose a Philosophy Course in 4 volumes (Logic, General metaphysics, Psychology, y Criteriology or general theory of certainty). He also published an essay on The origins of contemporary psychology (1894) In 1894, he founded the Revue Néoescolastiquewhich later became the Révue Philosophique de Louvain.

Years of growth followed, stabilizing the Institute, which still exists at the University of Louvain. And he started a seminary (under the name of Leo XIII) to accommodate the students who came to him from all over the world.

An important experience

There is no doubt that Mercier had enormous capacities, nor that his challenge is still posed in almost the same terms. It can be observed that the direct mixture of philosophy and experimental sciences (especially in his psychology) produces a rapid expiration, as the state of the sciences changes. This must be taken into account.

The work of St. Thomas is important to Christian philosophical thought for at least three reasons: it provides a Christian reinterpretation of classical philosophy, which partly composes our worldview (logic and metaphysics); it conveys important analyses of anthropology or rational psychology, which are of interest to ethics and our self-knowledge (intelligence, free act, affectivity, passions); and thirdly, it provides a vocabulary that belongs to the tradition of theology and is of interest to understand well.

On the one hand, it is important to transmit Thomistic philosophy (metaphysics, logic, cosmology, anthropology) in its historical context, so as not to alter its meaning. This is what Gilson did, for example. Secondly, it is necessary to enter into dialogue with our knowledge of the world. The logic and anthropology (and ethics) transmitted by St. Thomas, in what they have of introspective knowledge, continue to have great force, although they may need complements or developments.

Whereas cosmology, our knowledge about the universe, has changed greatly with our ability to observe and understand it. This has repercussions on metaphysics, which universalizes our knowledge about being: it is more stable with regard to intelligence and less so with regard to matter. It is obvious that one cannot today make a cosmology or a philosophy of nature without taking into account what we know about the composition of matter, the origin of the universe or the evolution of life. And this affects our idea of being (metaphysics).

It is certainly in the interest of those who dedicate themselves to these branches of philosophy in Christian contexts to have, at the same time, a good historical formation, which allows them to access and preserve the original meaning, and, on the other hand, a good scientific formation. And this, without rushing into concordance.

Archbishop of Brussels

After the death of Leo XIII (1903), his successor, St. Pius X, elected him directly as Archbishop of Mechelen and Primate of Belgium (1906) and, the following year, Cardinal (1907). From the beginning he was committed to the formation of the clergy. He preached many retreats for his priests (which are published), and founded an association to cultivate their spirituality (Priestly fraternity of the friends of Jesus). He also created a diocesan magazine. He supported the university and prepared professors looking for a high scientific level. He encouraged, for example, Georges Lemaître (who was a member of the priestly fraternity) to study physics and to be related to Eistein, and thus postulated his theory of the Big Bang.

During the pontificate of St. Pius X, the modernist question arose. The cardinal supported the Pope and described the situation in an important conference at the University (Modernism). But he also contributed to overcome misunderstandings (Lagrange, Blondel); he tried to soften the canonical situation of Laberthonniére and to dialogue with Tyrrell, for example.

Moreover, since 1909, he supported Dom Lambert Beaudoin in his spirit of liturgical renewal, which sought a greater participation of the faithful, and also in his efforts of ecumenical openness. He also supported the growth of Catholic Action and was very interested in the social question.

The Great War (1914-1918)

In 1914, with a kind of suicidal naivety and without any means to prevent it, the European nations entered into a brutal war that wiped out at once four empires, perhaps a fifth of Europe's youthful population and, incidentally, the enlightened myth of progress.

In the first movements, Germany invaded by surprise the neutral Belgium to attack France. And it punished harshly the isolated reaction of the Belgian resistance, systematically bombing towns and Louvain itself, where the cathedral, the university, the library... Cardinal Mercier was caught in Rome, where he had attended the funeral of St. Pius X and the conclave. On his return (December 1914), he walked through the enormous destruction and wrote a harsh pastoral letter to be read in all the churches, with the title Patriotism and firmness (Patriotism and endurance), which can be found online.

He praises patriotism as a Christian virtue, values the dedication of the soldiers who have given their lives for their country, encourages the population to support the Belgian government, the king and the army in exile. He declares that the invading government is illegitimate, that only those laws that are necessary for the common good and public order should be obeyed, but asks that no unnecessary violence be done beyond that which concerns the Belgian army.

The German military command tried to prevent the dissemination, seized the copies and threatened the parish priests, but fearing repercussions among German Catholics, it held the cardinal for only a few hours. The documentation and correspondence are preserved. In those moments, the cardinal represented the honor of the nation. However, the Holy See asked him to moderate his political expressions. At the end of the war, he became a national hero in Belgium, but also in England and the United States. He made a triumphant trip to the United States (1919), where, among other things, he obtained generous aid for the reconstruction of the University of Louvain.

The great cardinal

Since then, Mercier has been a figure with an immense influence throughout the Catholic world. And he made the role. It is necessary to understand him. He was not a Renaissance cardinal who built baroque palaces. He was a cardinal of the Church at a time of enormous weakness before the States. Prestige was needed to be heard. He acquired it and used it for the good of the Church. Even the Holy See wanted him to intervene, after the war, in the Treaty of Versailles to resolve the painful question of the Papal States, but he could do nothing. At his death, the Belgian government granted him a state funeral with full honors (there are old recordings of his death). online).

The density of the period and of the character himself has meant that the biography he deserves does not yet exist. There is a first sketch by the canonical A. Simon, Cardinal Mercier. And Roger Aubert, a great historian from the University of Louvain, dedicated a major set of studies to it, collected on the occasion of Aubert's eightieth birthday: Le cardinal Mercier (1851-1926). A prelat d'avant-garde. They have helped me to compose this portrait. Apart from other specialized studies.

Some features

He is accused of haughtiness and misunderstanding of the Flemish sector in Belgium. The question has been studied and needs a lot of nuances. On the other hand, despite his cardinal's pose, he was a person of sober tastes. Especially during the war and post-war period, he did not want to be out of tune with the hardships of his people, and for example, he dispensed with heating and simplified food as much as possible.

He was devoted to the Sacred HeartHe was a Christian, of the Holy Spirit, of the Virgin and of the Eucharist. And from what can be deduced from his correspondence, he had a Christian reaction to the many misunderstandings and difficulties of his life. In his later years he was very interested in promoting the proclamation of the dogma of the universal mediation of Mary and held conversations with the pontiffs and many theologians.

The Mechelen talks

A particularly interesting chapter were the ecumenical conversations with representatives of the Anglican world. They occupied the last part of his life (1921-1926). Pombal's friendship with Lord Halifax, a well-known Anglican nobleman who aspired to the unity of the Church. They went to the Cardinal to see what could be done. After informing the Holy See, and without publicity, conversations took place between Catholic and Anglican theologians to study the difficulties in common: the question of the value of Anglican ordinations, of the episcopate and of the sacraments. And especially, the exercise of the Roman Primacy. It was noted that an attempt could be made to approach the exercise of the first millennium.

The cardinal's death put the matter on hold, but those conversations were an important precedent in the ecumenical thrust of the Second Vatican Council, and formulated questions and approaches that continue to shed light.

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Family

Andrea, a champion of life

Andrea is the real protagonist of her life. At 27 years of age, she is a two-time Spanish karate champion, works in an international company and participates in her Charismatic Renewal group. Her Down syndrome has not prevented her from doing anything because she was born, as her mother says, "to break down barriers".

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Juanjo and Beatriz have been married for 37 years. They have two daughters: Olga, 28, and Andrea, 27. In Seville, the city where they lived for two years for work reasons, Andrea was born with Down syndrome and a very severe heart condition. In her first six months of life she underwent three heart surgeries: "It was tremendous, we were alone."says Beatriz. As time went by, they realized that there was always someone protecting them. Andrea was baptized when she was one and a half years old in the barracks of the Santa María de Caná parish in Madrid: "We added Mary to Andrea's name because we were aware that she was going to need a lot of help from Our Lady."his mother confesses to me.

At the beginning, Andrea had many health problems, including several pneumonias and a cardiorespiratory arrest. She caught everything, "did not deprive himself of anything". He began his education and training at the María Corredentora special education school. His mother, Beatriz, emphasizes that "the education he has received has been fundamental in his development as a person".. Andrea has always enjoyed being a protagonist and not a supporting actress in life: she even appeared on the cover of the newspaper ABC nationally in relation to the defense of special education, which is under attack by the Celáa Law.

With the support of the foundation Prodis arrived at the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid and there she obtained her own degree for the labor inclusion of people with intellectual disabilities. Through a job placement program, she started working in the human resources area of the company. Accenture. He has been there for four years "and is integrated and valued. She is an important pillar within her work environment.".

Andrea has always been very restless and sporty. Down syndrome has never prevented her from doing the same things that other children did: rhythmic gymnastics, paddle tennis or basketball. But she found her true passion in karate. Her mother tells how this discovery happened after seeing the film Karate Kid ten years ago.

Her father took her to the karate club; they had never had any students with Down syndrome before. Her coach said it was a challenge and encouraged her to start. And Andrea has become the first woman with Down syndrome to get the black belt in the Community of Madrid in 2019. She was champion of Spain in 2022 and is the current champion of Spain in 2023 in her category K-22. Recently, in the European Karate Championships, being the first time she competed at international level, she was bronze medalist.

Protagonist and healthy nonconformist. Andrea has the thorn in her side of not being able to play soccer, which she loves. Although she doesn't play, she follows it passionately. Andrea is a regular at the Santiago Bernabéu with her father. Music and painting complete her hobbies. She is a very restless, awake and excited person. She likes to participate in the Sunday Mass choir at St. Mary of Cana parish. She is a fan of the Carisas she calls the Charismatic Renewal group. "She is cheerful, outgoing, very empathetic. Family life revolves around her, she really likes to be the protagonist."his mother tells me cheerfully.

Olga, her older sister, is the other gift of the family. The two have always had a special complicity and understanding between them. Her parents attribute a lot of responsibility for all of Andrea's progress to her. Looking back, Beatriz says that Andrea "it's a miracle, because it was unthinkable, in the first months of life, when I was in the ICU so many times, to believe that I could make it this far.".

When Andrea was born, her parents did not know anything about Down syndrome and they have been learning all the time. There is one clear motto in their lives: "Never give up.". In those first months in which they suffered and asked themselves many questions, they were greatly helped by the words of a priest: "There is not always a why but there is always a wherefore."

"Andrea came to break down barriers, to make us better people and to value what is really worthwhile in life and thus realize that the Lord loves us and cares for us." his mother says excitedly. And also "to help many other young people with Down syndrome who have come after her and found a path already made.".

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Gospel

The atoning priesthood of Christ. Our Lord Jesus Christ, High and Eternal Priest (A)

Joseph Evans comments on the readings of Our Lord Jesus Christ, High and Eternal Priest (A).

Joseph Evans-May 29, 2023-Reading time: 2 minutes

The feast of Our Lord Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, which we celebrate today, is relatively new in the Church. The Holy See first gave approval for the feast in 1987 and then in 2012 offered episcopal conferences the possibility of including it in their national liturgical calendars. Little by little, therefore, the feast is spreading throughout the world and one can now find it in such countries as Australia, Spain, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic, and England and Wales.

Celebrated annually on the first Thursday after Pentecost, the feast focuses on the priestly aspect of Christ's mission on earth. The New Testament Letter to the Hebrews especially points to this aspect. Jesus is "merciful and faithful high priest as far as God is concerned."to atone for the sins of the people. It is "the apostle and high priest of the faith we profess".the "great high priest who has passed through heaven"..

In the Old Testament, the Jewish High Priest, and only the High Priest, entered once a year (only) in the Sanctum Sanctorum of the Temple in Jerusalem to offer a sacrifice for the sins of the people, including his own. But the new and greater High Priest, Jesus, has entered the heavenly Holy of Holies, the very presence of the Father, "made" not by human hands but by God himself. And he, without sin, "ever lives to make intercession" for us.

Today's readings underline the atoning aspect of Jesus' priesthood, that is, how he atones for and cleanses our sins. He does not offer the blood of animals, as did the Jewish priests, which is "the blood of animals".impossible that [...] takes away sins".. He offers his own blood, his own self, in a perfect sacrifice of obedience. We see Him living this obedience when He struggles, successfully, in His agony in the garden, to unite His human will, which naturally feared suffering, to the divine will of His Father: "My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me. But not as I will, but as you will.".

At a time when priestly vocations in the West are in decline, it is necessary to beg God for the grace of many more priests for his Church, ready to make of themselves a sacrifice to God for the good of souls. We must pray for many humble and obedient priests who are willing to drink the cup that God holds out to them. Most of the time it will be a cup of joy, as we read in the famous 23rd Psalm: "Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies; thou anointest my head with perfume, and my cup runneth over.". But at times that cup will be one of suffering. With the prayers and love of the faithful, the priests will rejoice in the sweet wine of the cup and remain faithful when the chalice is harder to drink.

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Caritas Internationalis: sustainable solutions to end world hunger

On the occasion of World Hunger Day 2023, which took place on Sunday, May 28, Caritas Internationalis is calling on the international community to eliminate food waste and implement sustainable solutions to end world hunger once and for all.

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There are still many populations facing poverty and food shortages; millions of people who, due to conflict, the consequences of pandemics and the rising cost of living, are unable to adequately access nutrition.

The appeal of Caritas Internationalis focuses, once again, on "promoting sustainable agriculture and food production, reducing food waste and supporting local food systems".

Measures that, in addition to adequately combating hunger, will also, according to the international organization, "help preserve the planet for future generations". Obviously, this goes hand in hand with the preservation of nature, also in global terms.

This request was also expressed by Pope Francis in his recent Message for the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creationwhich will take place on September 1.

Standing with the victims of environmental injustice

The Pontiff reflects especially on the importance of guaranteeing "justice and peace" for all the peoples of the planet.

One of the conditions for this is to "stand with the victims of environmental and climate injustice", putting an end to this "senseless war against creation".

This requires "transforming our hearts, our lifestyles and the public policies that govern our cities".

Less waste and unnecessary consumption

In particular, lifestyles must be transformed so that there is "less waste and less unnecessary consumption, especially where production processes are toxic and unsustainable". This is important so that "everyone can be better off: our fellow human beings, wherever they are, and also our children's children".

Regarding the public and economic policies "that govern our societies and shape the lives of the young people of today and tomorrow", the Pope's denunciation is forceful: they often "favor scandalous wealth for a few and degrading conditions for many".

Let's raise our voice

In the face of this dynamic," writes the Holy Father, "let us raise our voices," because once again it will be the poor who will suffer "the worst impacts". Pope Francis had already explained it in the Encyclical Fratelli tutti, considering it unfair that only the powerful and scientists have a voice in the public debate.

In this sense, Caritas Internationalis -The company always seeks to work with local communities "to implement sustainable agricultural practices, build capacity to adapt to climate change, and support world leaders and decision-makers to address and revise policies that exacerbate world hunger," it said in a release.

This has been the case, for example, in a number of countries of Africabut also in Pakistan, where since 2018 Caritas has been promoting sustainable agricultural practices and implementing programs focused on the resilience of smallholder families and improving their capacity to adapt to climate change and disasters while maintaining ecosystem and soil health.

In Somalia, on the other hand, initiatives to help drought victims have long been funded, as well as educational activities for young people and the marginalized.

On the occasion of the Bonn Climate Change Conference, to be held from June 5 to 15, Caritas will also organize an event on the possibilities of "working together on agriculture and food systems" between religious and local leaders, with the participation of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the Green Climate Fund (GCF), negotiators from the African Group and the European Union (EU).

Global access to nature's goods

As for the world leaders who will gather again for the COP28 summit, this time in Dubai from November 30 to December 12, the Pope's appeal in his Message for the World Day of Creation aims to achieve a "rapid and equitable transition" to put an early end to the exploitation of fossil fuels, curb the risks of climate change and safeguard global and secure access to nature's goods.

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"Ukraine suffers and deserves peace," says Pope on Day of Prayer

The war in Ukraine, mission of Cardinal Zuppi

He will not only go to Kiev sent by the Pope, but also to Moscow. The contours of the peace mission of Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, Archbishop of Bologna, commissioned by the Pope to act as his special envoy to try to alleviate the war situation in Ukraine, are just beginning to be defined.

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The Cardinal Matteo Zuppi will not only be the Pope's envoy to Kiev, but also to Moscow, for a mission that "does not have mediation as its immediate objective," but rather that of "easing tensions," in the words of Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican Secretary of State.

But why has Pope Francis chosen Cardinal Zuppi for such a delicate mission? What does the Pope hope to achieve?

Seeking a dialogue with the aggressor

Since the beginning of the large-scale Russian aggression in UkrainePope Francis has sought a direct edge with Russia. On February 25, 2022, in a totally unconventional manner, he even went to the Russian Federation's embassy to the Holy See, seeking in several interviews what he would later call a "window" of dialogue with Russian President Vladimir Putin. In vain.

Then came the videoconference with the Patriarch of Moscow, Kirillon March 16, 2022. It should have led to a historic second meeting between the Pope and the Patriarch, and to be fair, it was already underway. In reality, that videoconference further strained relations, not so much because of what happened during the conversation, but because of how Pope Francis described it afterwards, stressing that he had told Kirill that "we are not state clerics."

With Ukraine, Pope Francis has different connections. The major archbishop of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, Sviatoslav ShevchukHe has known the Pope since he was eparch of Buenos Aires, and the Pope has repeatedly shown benevolence towards him. And the Pope's gestures of closeness to Ukraine have not been few.

As, for example, when in 2016 he launched the Extraordinary Collection for Ukraine. Or as when, in 2019, he convened an interdicasterial meeting with synods and bishops of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church precisely to discuss the Ukrainian crisis.

But Pope Francis has never left aside the link with Russia, to which he has always paid special attention. Putin is the current head of state who has been received by the Pope the most times (three), while in absolute terms he is second in number of meetings only to former German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who had met Francis five times.

Contacts with Moscow have always been considered important. The meeting with Patriarch Kirill in Havana in 2016 resulted in a final document that seemed biased toward Russian positions, although it was appreciable as an effort.

Certainly, Moscow was considered an interlocutor, if not a privileged one, at least one to which close attention should be paid. And there were results. In 2017, Cardinal Pietro Parolin was the second Vatican Secretary of State to visit Moscow. In 2021, it was the archbishop Paul Richard Gallagherthe Vatican's "foreign minister" to visit the country.

These figures serve to affirm that the Pope has always been attentive to the Ukrainian situation, although in a different way from normal chancelleries and diplomacies. But the Pope has always felt a predilection for Russia, to the point that he has always made it known that he is willing to go to Moscow as soon as he is invited. In fact, although he has been invited several times to go to Ukraine to see the situation with his own eyes, the Pope has always linked a possible trip to Kiev to a trip to Moscow.

The Pope's personal diplomacy

Thus, Pope Francis seems to think that the future of the region lies more in a dialogue with Moscow than with Ukraine. However, papal diplomacy has not failed to express its support, and even Archbishop Gallagher visited Ukraine in May 2022. From the beginning, the Pope's diplomacy pointed out the danger of military escalation, but never denied Ukraine's right to defense.

For his part, the Pope has repeatedly sent Cardinal Konrad Krajewski, prefect of the Dicastery of Charity, to bring aid to Ukraine, and has also sent Cardinal Michael CzernyThe meeting was attended by the Prefect of the Dicastery for the Service of Integral Human Development, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Service of Integral Human Development, to evaluate the situation of refugees.

Now, the Pope seems to have decided that another personal envoy is needed, and the choice has fallen on Cardinal Matteo Zuppi.

Why? Because Cardinal Zuppi, as a member of the Sant'Egidio community, was among the negotiators of the successful peace agreement in Mozambique. And then because Sant'Egidio has had a position very close to that of the Pope on the war, to the point of leading a pacifist demonstration in November 2022, and of incessantly asking for a "cease-fire", going so far as to think about the possibility of declaring Kiev an "open city", thus accepting the eventual occupation.

Zuppi represents the diplomacy of peace, but he is also an exponent of positions that the Pope seems to share. Once again, therefore, Pope Francis decides to act personally, in the hope that Cardinal Zuppi, also thanks to the contacts on the ground of Sant'Egidio's charitable organizations, can at least bring some concrete results.

At the end of the day, it is about alleviating suffering, and this is the work that Christian organizations have been doing since the beginning in Ukraine. In fact, it has always been, if we think that the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches is more than 25 years old, and has been one of the organizations closest to the victims of the conflict that has been going on for years in the border areas, in the self-proclaimed republics of Dombas and Luhansk.

In fact, neither Russia nor Ukraine wants peace mediation missions, and they have made this clear in various ways. But a mission that could at least lead to a cease-fire has received praise last week from a Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman, indicating an openness on Russia's part in this regard. Is this a statement of form, a signal of Russian need to stop to rearm and regroup, or a sincere desire for peace?

A possible peace

It is difficult to define, because what is noticeable in this war is that it is a hybrid war, fought not only on the ground, but also with the dissemination of information, in a great game between the parties.

The Holy See knows this, and Parolin also spoke of hybrid warfare in the interdicasterial with the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church in 2019. For the moment, however, what Cardinal Parolin called "creative solutions" are needed first and foremost. And one of these solutions would be a great Peace Conference in Europe, to rediscover what is called the "spirit of Helsinki".

What does it consist of? The spirit that led, in 1975, to the Declaration of Helsinki, which gave rise to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. The declaration also established, at the proposal of the Holy See, the principle of the defense of religious freedom in all States adhering to the initiative, and this included the Soviet Union, which had promoted the conference and had wanted the Holy See to be present.

It was this passage that marked the first crackle of the atheist regimes, now obliged not to pursue religion, on pain of compromising a dialogue that had been conducted with difficulty. It is no coincidence that, in the ten years following Helsinki, the Soviet world began to creak, while Mikhail Gorbachev's perestroika policy created the conditions for the fall of the Berlin Wall.

However, times are very different, and the "spirit of Helsinki" could hardly return in the form of fifty years ago, because history and the situation are different. But the Holy See wants to propose a new multilateral world, as opposed to the polarized one that is in fact dividing even the reactions to the war in Ukraine into blocs.

Peace mediation

Ideally, therefore, the Holy See would be called upon to mediate. But even this seems difficult. When the Pope revealed Cardinal Zuppi's mission, without going into details, it was April 30, and the Pope was on the flight back from his trip to Hungary. But the Pope's words were interpreted as those of a possible mediation, and he immediately hastened to deny it. A sign, after all, that peace is especially difficult to achieve, and that in Ukraine it is unlikely to be reached unless the two sides reach a compromise.

The Pope is trying to reach the compromise with a special envoy. It is not certain that this will be enough.

Last week, Pope Francis appointed Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, president of the Italian Bishops' Conference, as special envoy for Ukraine and Russia.

The news came a day after statements by Archbishop Claudio Gugerotti, prefect of the Dicastery for the Oriental Churches and former nuncio to Ukraine, who stressed that he knew nothing about his possible role as envoy to Moscow. But this role will be Zuppi's, Cardinal Parolin said at a round table for peace in Bologna. Zuppi," the Vatican Secretary of State said, "will be a delegate of the Pope not only in Kiev, but also in Moscow. So we must make our support felt for the person who has received such a delicate mission."

Further detailing the mission of the CEI president, Cardinal Parolin said - speaking on the sidelines of the presentation of the book edited by Msgr. Dario Edoardo Viganò "Popes and the Media. Edition and reception of the documents of Pius XI and Pius XII in cinema, radio and television". - that the mission does not have "mediation as an immediate objective", but rather that of "easing tensions in the Ukrainian conflict", trying to "foster an environment that can lead to paths of peace".

News about sending a representative of the Pope had been going on since Pope Francis announced a confidential mission for peace in Ukraine, a mission denied by both the Russian and Ukrainian sides, but reiterated several times by Cardinal Parolin himself, the Vatican Secretary of State.

Mission to be defined

The modalities of the mission have not yet been defined. Vaticanist Sandro Magister points out that Cardinal Zuppi is a member of the Community of Sant'Egidio, and that Andrea Riccardi, founder of Sant'Egidio, has had positions not exactly favorable to Ukraine in relation to the war, first taking sides for Kiev to be declared an "open city" (he made the same appeal for Aleppo), and then organizing a pacifist procession on November 5 in which he called for a cease-fire.

Magister also points out that the position of an immediate ceasefire is far removed from that of Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, Vatican Secretary for Relations with States, who has been to Ukraine and who has repeatedly supported the need for an armed (but proportionate) defense, even with all the diplomatic prudence of the Holy See, which has repeatedly called for creative solutions and immediately warned against escalation.

For this reason, the Pope would have preferred Sant'Egidio's parallel diplomacy, which led, among other things, to the peace agreement in Mozambique, which Zuppi brokered, but which has proved problematic in other regions of the world.

Cardinal Zuppi's mission received, however, a kind of endorsement from the Kremlin. In fact, a spokesman for Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, in statements to the state agency Ria Novosti, made it known that Moscow "positively values the Vatican's peace initiative," although so far the Holy See "has not taken any initiative for the trip of an emissary to Russia."

The Foreign Ministry stressed that it took note of the Holy See's "sincere desire to promote the peace process," adding that "any efforts in this direction will only make sense if they take into account Russia's well-known principled position on possible peace negotiations."

The Foreign Ministry was also keen to point out that so far Kiev "continues to categorically reject the possibility of negotiations with Moscow and is betting on war."

The authorAndrea Gagliarducci

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Pope calls for "harmony in the Church" and to pray for the Synod

At Mass on Pentecost Sunday, Pope Francis asked with intensity that "we put the Holy Spirit back at the center of the Church" and that "we build harmony in the Church!" "The People of God, to be filled with the Spirit, must walk together, make synod," he said. At the Regina Caeli he invited to ask "the Virgin Mary to accompany this important stage of the Synod", the October Assembly.

Francisco Otamendi-May 28, 2023-Reading time: 6 minutes

In his homily at the Solemn Mass of Pentecost, inside St. Peter's Square, and with red chasubles on the Pope himself and on the celebrants, Pope Francis made a strong appeal to the people to be "the first to be baptized" and "the first to be baptized". appeal Let us build harmony in the Church". "Let us put the Holy Spirit back at the center of the Church, (...), let us put the Spirit at the beginning and at the center of the synodal work".

"Today the Word of God shows us the Holy Spirit at work. We see him at work in three moments: in the world he created, in the Church and in our hearts," the Pope began his homily. And in the second part, saying that "in addition to being present in creation, we see him at work in the Church since the day of Pentecost, he pointed out, among other things, that the Holy Spirit is at work in the world he created, in the Church and in our hearts:

"The Synod that is taking place is - and must be - a journey according to the Spirit; not a parliament to claim rights and needs according to the agenda of the world, not the occasion to go where the wind takes us, but the opportunity to be docile to the breath of the Spirit. Because, in the sea of history, the Church sails only with Him, who is 'the soul of the Church' (St. Paul VI, Address to the Sacred College for the congratulations onomastics, June 21, 1976), the heart of synodality, the motor of evangelization", Pope Francis has called the Holy Spirit.

"Without Him the Church remains inert, faith is a mere doctrine, morals only a duty, pastoral work a simple job," he continued. "Sometimes we listen to so-called thinkers, theologians, who give us cold doctrines, they seem mathematical because inside they lack the Spirit. With Him, instead, faith is life, the love of the Lord conquers us and hope is reborn. Let us put the Holy Spirit at the center of the Church, otherwise our hearts will not be inflamed with love for Jesus, but for ourselves. Let us put the Spirit at the beginning and at the center of the work of the Synod. For it is 'him, above all, whom the Church needs today. Let us say to him every day: Come!' (cf. General Audience, 29 November 1972)".

The Spirit, at the center of the synod's work

He then appealed for harmony and "walking together", basing his meditation on Scripture: "And let us walk together, because the Spirit, as at Pentecost, loves to descend while 'all are gathered together' (cf. Ac 2,1). Yes, in order to show Himself to the world, He chose the time and the place in which were all together. Therefore, the People of God, in order to be filled with the Spirit, must walk together in synod, thus renewing harmony in the Church: walking together with the Spirit at the center. This is how harmony is renewed in the Church: walking together with the Spirit at the center. Brothers and sisters, let us build harmony in the Church!"

Going to Our Lady in Marian sanctuaries

A few minutes later, before praying the Marian prayer for the Regina CaeliFrom the window of the Apostolic Palace, the Holy Father made a specific prayer request for these days: "With the end of the month of May, in Marian shrines throughout the world, moments of prayer are planned to prepare us for the Ordinary Assembly of the Synod of Bishops. Let us ask the Virgin Mary to accompany this important stage of the Synod of Bishops. Synodwith her maternal protection".

And then the war in Ukraine, as she has been doing for some time: "To her we also entrust the desire for peace of so many people throughout the world. Especially, of the martyred Ukraine.

"A lot of division, a lot of discord."

During the Mass, presided over by the Holy Father and concelebrated at the main altar by Cardinal João Braz de Aviz, Prefect of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, together with other cardinals, the Pope did not fail to refer to the divisions.

"Today in the world there is much discord, much division," he stressed. "We are all connected and yet we find ourselves disconnected from one another, anesthetized by indifference and oppressed by loneliness. Many wars, many conflicts; it seems unbelievable the evil that man can do! But, in reality, what fuels our hostilities is the spirit of division, the devil, whose name means precisely 'he who divides'. Yes, the one who precedes and exceeds our evil, our disunity, is the evil spirit, the "seducer of the whole world" (Rev 12:9). He rejoices in antagonisms, injustices and slander.

"And, faced with the evil of discord, our efforts to build harmony are not enough," Pope Francis noted. "Behold then that the Lord, at the height of his Passover, at the height of salvation, poured out upon the created world his good Spirit, the Holy Spirit, who opposes the spirit of division because he is harmony; Spirit of unity who brings peace. Let us ask him to come every day into our world!"

"The Spirit creates harmony; he invites us to let his love and his gifts, which are present in others, surprise us. As St. Paul has told us: 'There are varieties of gifts, but they all come from the same Spirit [...] For we were all baptized into one Spirit to form one body' (1 Cor 12:4,13). To see every brother and sister in the faith as part of the same body to which I belong; this is the harmonious gaze of the Spirit, this is the path that he shows us", the Pontiff added.

"Do I forgive, promote reconciliation and create communion?"

Commenting on the third aspect, "the Spirit creates harmony in our hearts," the Holy Father stressed that "we see this in the Gospel, when Jesus, on Easter evening, breathed on his disciples and said: 'Receive the Holy Spirit' (Jn 20:22). He gives it for a specific purpose: to forgive sins, that is, to reconcile souls, to harmonize hearts lacerated by evil, broken by wounds, disintegrated by feelings of guilt. Only the Spirit restores harmony to the heart because He is the One who creates "intimacy with God" (St. Basil, Spir., XIX,49). If we want harmony, let us seek Him, not worldly substitutes. Let us invoke the Holy Spirit every day, let us begin by praying to Him every day, let us be docile to Him!"

"And today, on his feast, let us ask ourselves," he invited. "Am I docile to the harmony of the Spirit or do I follow my projects, my ideas, without allowing myself to be shaped, without allowing myself to be transformed by Him? Am I quick to judge, do I point the finger and slam the door in the face of others, considering myself a victim of everything and everyone? Or, on the contrary, do I draw from His harmonious creative power, the "grace of the whole" that He inspires, His forgiveness that gives peace, and in my turn forgive, promote reconciliation and create communion?

"If the world is divided, if the Church is polarized, if the heart is fragmented, let us not waste time criticizing others and getting angry with ourselves, but let us invoke the Spirit," Francis encouraged, with the following prayer:

"Holy Spirit, Spirit of Jesus and of the Father, inexhaustible source of harmony, we entrust the world to you, we consecrate to you the Church and our hearts. Come, creative Spirit, harmony of humanity, renew the face of the earth. Come, Gift of gifts, harmony of the Church, unite us to You. Come, Spirit of forgiveness, harmony of the heart, transform us as You know how, through the intercession of Mary".

Regina Caeli: do we close in on ourselves".

Before praying the Regina Caeli, which took place after Mass at 12:00 noon, the Pope pointed out in his speech address that "with the gift of the Spirit, Jesus wants to free the disciples from the fear that keeps them locked up in their homes, so that they can go out and become witnesses and proclaimers of the Gospel. Let us dwell, then, on the Spirit who liberates from fear".

At that moment, Francis asked: "How often do we close in on ourselves? How often, because of a difficult situation, a personal or family problem, the suffering we experience or the evil we breathe around us, do we run the risk of gradually losing hope and lacking the courage to move forward? Then, like the apostles, we close in on ourselves, entrenching ourselves in the labyrinth of worries".

"The Holy Spirit delivers from fear"

"Fear blocks, paralyzes. And it isolates: let us think of the fear of the other, of the stranger, of the one who is different, of the one who thinks differently," the Pope reflected. "And there can even be fear of God: that he will punish me, that he will be angry with me... If we give space to these false fears, the doors are closed: those of the heart, those of society, and even the doors of the Church! Where there is fear, there is closed-mindedness. And that is not right," he said forcefully.

"The Gospel, however, offers us the remedy of the Risen One: the Holy Spirit. He frees from the prisons of fear. Upon receiving the Spirit, the apostles - today we celebrate it - leave the Cenacle and go out into the world to forgive sins and proclaim the Good News. Thanks to him, fears are overcome and doors are opened. Because this is what the Spirit does: he makes us feel God's closeness and thus his love casts out fear, illuminates the way, consoles, sustains in adversity," he told the faithful and pilgrims.

"A new Pentecost to chase away fears".

Finally, "in the face of our fears and our closed-mindedness, let us invoke the Holy Spirit for ourselves, for the Church and for the whole world: that a new Pentecost may drive away the fears that assail us and rekindle the fire of God's love. May Mary Most Holy, the first to be filled with the Holy Spirit, intercede for us," the Pope concluded.

After the recitation of the Marian prayer, Pope Francis recalled the 150th anniversary of the death of one of the greatest figures of literature, Alessandro ManzoniThe company has invited to "pray for the populations living on the border between Myanmar and Bangladesh, hard hit by a cycloneI appeal to the people of the Congo: more than 800,000 people, in addition to the many Rohingya who are already living in precarious conditions. As I renew my closeness to these populations, I appeal to the leaders to facilitate access for humanitarian aid, and I appeal to the sense of human and ecclesial solidarity to come to the aid of our brothers and sisters.

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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The Essence of Christianity, by Romano Guardini

Singing churches

Sacred architecture in the 20th and 21st century according to Romano Guardini, Rudolf Schwarz, Louis Bouyer and Frédéric Debuyst.

Fernando López Arias-May 28, 2023-Reading time: 4 minutes

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The French poet Paul Valéry wrote in Eupalinos or the Architect that in the cities there are mute buildings, others that speak and some others, the rarest ones, that sing. It is a difficult task for the architect who tries to make sing their buildings, without going out of tune with strident notes. Continuing with this image, we could say that many Christian churches built in the last decades have emitted sound registers that oscillate between vulgar mutism and a few stammering words. Some, on the other hand, are the rarest, sing celestial music. At the same time, the twentieth century has been a time of extraordinary production of "liturgical music" in order to make the architecture Christian "cante". Four outstanding Catholic "composers" of the last century in this field were Romano Guardini, Rudolf Schwarz, Louis Bouyer and Frédéric Debuyst. In the June issue of Omnes We will talk more extensively about sacred architecture in the 21st century.

Romano Guardini (1885-1968)

Few figures of the past century have been more influential in Christian thought than Romano Guardiniespecially for the theology of the liturgy. In his well-known book The spirit of the liturgy (Vom Geist der Liturgie1918) devotes some significant pages to the celebratory space. This space arises from the encounter of two "inner worlds": that of God and that of man. A person can only perceive this existential space through the Church and at the Church. For all these reasons, the "environment" in which to experience this interior liturgical space is precisely prayer.

Guardini conceives the "formation" of the celebratory space from the movement of the body in the rite. This living space merges with the architectural space - that takes shape from it - to give rise to the celebratory space. On the other hand, one of Guardini's essential contributions to sacred architecture is his reflection on liturgical images. The Christian church is fundamentally a symbolic, sacramental, epiphanic place. In it, the sacred image participates especially in this capacity to manifest the divine mystery. Through his experience of the image, man enters into communion with God. The presence of images in the temple is therefore not only a question of devotion and much less of ornamentation. In this sense, even the empty surface itself has a symbolic meaning for Guardini, as an image of the ineffable God whose presence is made eloquent in the iconic "silence".

Rudolf Schwarz (1897-1961)

Closely related to Guardini is Rudolf Schwarz. As an architect, he collaborated closely with Guardini in the remodeling of the chapel and the Knights' Hall at Rothenfels Castle, a meeting place for the youth of the Quickborn (a German youth movement of the interwar period, whose alma mater and spiritual guide was Guardini). One of these young men was Schwarz himself, whose churches would become icons of the renewal of contemporary Christian architecture.

In terms of his theoretical production, his work The edification of the Church (Vom Bau der Kirche1938) is possibly the most influential book of the last century in this field. Churches and the objects of worship "must not be serve to the liturgy, but they must be the liturgy. Schwarz considered his "first church" a chalice he designed for Guardini. He wanted every church to be in its turn a "first church". calyxreceptive to grace, a space open to the encounter with God.

Schwarz's book will go down in history, however, for its famous "seven plans" for church construction. These were layouts of the liturgical assembly and altar conceived as snapshots of the progressive spatial configuration of the community (though often misinterpreted as possible floor plans for sacred buildings). The living space that is the liturgical assembly moves, oscillates and varies over time, generating the various symbolic arrangements.

Louis Bouyer (1913-2004)

Despite the fact that Louis Bouyer's work Architecture and liturgy (Liturgy and ArchitectureThe book was relatively unnoticed when it was published, but its importance has been progressively recognized over the years. In it Bouyer enunciates his well-known theory on the origin of Christian architecture. The celebratory space would be directly related to the architecture of the synagogues of the Hebrew diaspora, especially those of Syria. The mainly Jewish origin of these first Christian communities determined the assumption of the synagogal scheme as the basic structure for the churches. The essential difference would be that the place of the chest where the Torah scrolls were kept was occupied by the altar.

Using a bold image, Bouyer conceives the temple as a nuptial thalamus, where the spousal encounter between Christ and the Church takes place. The liturgy is precisely the moment of interpersonal communion in which life is generated. At the genesis of the celebratory space is the proclamation of the Word: the Church is born of the Word of God, which gathers it around itself as a community of worship (Ekklesia). This generation of the celebratory space from the Word explains Bouyer's proposal to place, as in the ancient Byzantine churches, the ambo in the center of the nave. From the Word, Christ leads the assembly to the altar, orienting it towards the heavenly Jerusalem (the altar would be located at the eastern end of the building).

Frédéric Debuyst (1922-2017)

The recently deceased Frédéric Debuyst, founder and prior of the Benedictine monastery of Clerlande, was always a passionate promoter of human-sized celebratory spaces, where the closeness of God in the midst of a small community was felt in a living way. In his architectural proposals, he always sought a delicate balance between familiarity and mystery, closeness and transcendence, beauty and simplicity, distance and proximity... This ambivalence of the celebratory space was what he considered the genuine character of the domus ecclesiaeor, The Christian genius of the place (The Christian nature of the site, 1997).

The "genius of the place" (genius loci) was in the Roman world the "ambience" or the specific "atmosphere" of a site. In recent times, this concept has been at the center of architectural debate since the publication of Christian Norberg-Schulz's famous work Genius loci (1979). Debuyst attempts to define the character of this genius in the case of churches, by discovering it in their destination for the liturgy and in their capacity to delicately maintain and reinforce the character of the place where they are built (space), as well as the historical circumstances of the moment in which they are built (time). Debuyst, as a connoisseur of Guardini and Schwarz, recalls that architecture develops from the rite and in function of it.

Fortunately, the music of these four masters has not ceased to be heard to this day: their works continue to inspire architects and liturgical studies. As in the case of other great authors, their books have already become classics. And classics are those inexhaustible works that you never tire of reading... and rereading.

The authorFernando López Arias

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Worship music. Music and its beauty as a channel to bring us closer to God.

Caring for music, the Pontifical Institute of Sacred Music

In 1910, Pope St. Pius X founded in Rome an institute of excellence under the name "....Scuola superiore di musica sacra (School of Sacred Music)"The aim is to preserve the musical treasures that have emerged over the centuries and in the various places and cultures of the world.

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The Catholic Church from its origins gave great importance to music, particularly that which enlivens and gives beauty to the liturgy. Aware of this, Pope St. Pius X founded in 1910 in Rome, an institute of excellence under the name ".Scuola superiore di musica sacra (School of Sacred Music)"The aim is to preserve the musical treasures that have emerged over the centuries and in the various places and cultures of the world. In addition, to train new and future musicians and composers who will brighten the religious ceremonies in the most diverse countries of the world.

Today, the Pontificium Institutum Musicae Sacrae (Vincenzo de Gregorio, 77 years old, in whom one can see the joy of a serene priestly and artistic itinerary, which led him from his previous assignment - director of the Naples Symphony Orchestra - to this Institute. PIMS, by faculty of the Apostolic See, confers the academic degrees of bachelor's, licentiate, master's and doctorate.

The contents

"This institute has in its interior," explains Bishop De Gregorio, "seven organs, study rooms, several pianos, a lecture hall, the main chapel with a choir from the ancient church of St. Callixtus and a library with 40,000 volumes that is part of the Italian library system.

The program is vast: you learn Gregorian chant, composition, polyphonic, chorality -in particular of the Schola Romana- through the 'coro a cappella medioevale' and on to contemporary music, without forgetting piano, organography, liturgy, liturgical programming, pastoral, musicology and didactic singing.

The organ deserves a special chapter, since the three-year stage teaches ancient, baroque and modern organ literature. The second two-year academic level is placed in the perspective of three typologies: early music, the organ in the literature of the 17th and 18th century, improvisation and composition for the liturgy.

The students

To enter this coeducational university, one does not necessarily have to be Catholic, according to its Rector, but applicants "must bring a letter of introduction from a bishop and pass an exam to certify their level," although some must take previous studies before entering.

"The institute has grown from just under 50 students at the beginning of my mandate eleven years ago to almost 160 today, coming from some 40 countries, including 35 students in the university residence," explains the priest. He acknowledges, however, that it is not possible to have a larger number of students, "because, unlike other disciplines, each one of them needs individual attention.

In September, the composition exams are held, with specific tests, followed by the admission exam, and in October the academic year begins.

The headquarters

Its present location, the abbey "San Girolamo in urbe" built at the beginning of the last century, was given to the Benedictines of France and Luxembourg, who, by the will of Pius XI, deepened the literary criticism of Sacred Scripture, using philology, semiotics, archeology and other sciences.

As of 1984, it became the headquarters of the Pontificium Institutum Musicae Sacrae (PIMS), which also maintains its auditorium at the Piazza di Sant'Agostino. Today, PIMS enjoys its own legal personality, ".sui juris"and is governed by the norms of canon law, it is dependent on the Dicastery for Culture and Education, created by Pope Francis with the Apostolic Constitution Praedicate evangeliumThe new law, promulgated on March 19, 2022, merged two dicasteries: the Pontifical Council for Culture and the Congregation for Catholic Education.

The authorHernan Sergio Mora

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Which priests do we need? To form missionary pastors

The 50% of OMP delegations increased its collection in 2022

On Wednesday, May 24, the National Days of Mission Delegates and the National Assembly of the Pontifical Mission Societies concluded.

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Wednesday marked the conclusion of the National Mission Delegates' Days and the National Assembly of the Pontifical Mission Societies (PMO), which were held from May 22 to 24. The theme was "Pontifical Mission Societies: part of history".

The conference was held in San Lorenzo del Escorial, with the participation of the director of the Episcopal Commission for the Missions, Monsignor Francisco Pérez González, and the director of Pontifical Missionary Works Mexico, Antonio de Jesús Mascorro.

Both events were presided over by the national director of OMP Spain, José María Calderón.

The theme, "Pontifical Mission Societies: Part of History," was intended to highlight the importance of evangelization in the creation of societies as we know them. It also highlights the work of the Pontifical Mission Societies. missionaries throughout history.

The conference began with a presentation by historian Alfredo Verdoy entitled "Spanish missionaries, builders of a new Christian civilization".

On the 23rd the conference focused on the economic aspect. It was commented that last year 50 % of the delegations increased their collections, so that OMP Spain was able to send 2.9 % more to the mission territories.

The National Director, José María Calderón, also spoke about the three days of the Pontifical Mission Societies: Missionary Childhood, Native Vocations and World Mission Sunday.

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Aniceto MasferrerThe vast majority prefers not to think for oneself".

The values assumed by the majority of a society constitute public ethics, which tend to evolve over time. Omnes spoke with Aniceto Masferrer, professor at the University of Valencia, about his latest book, 'Libertad y ética pública', in which he talks about freedom, the need to stimulate critical thinking and encourage dialogue, civil society, law and ideologies.

Francisco Otamendi-May 26, 2023-Reading time: 12 minutes

"The vast majority prefer not to have to overcome laziness or overcome the fear of thinking for oneself, or assume the risks involved, such as the possibility of being wrong, being exposed and having to rectify," says Professor Aniceto Masferrer (Girona, Spain, 1971), professor of History of Law and Institutions at the University of Valencia, in his recent book, 'Freedom and public ethics'..

Talking to Aniceto Masferrer requires intellectual honesty. And reading him also, because he argues that "a society is more mature and democratic when its individuals are able to strengthen bonds of friendship, also with those who do not think like them, to see those who disagree with their ideas as someone who helps and enriches them, and not as a nuisance or obstacle to their personal fulfillment".

In the interview, the intellectual refers to young people's initiatives that promote the creation of spaces for the free expression of ideas, dialogue and interpersonal relationships. (@FreeThinkers.fu, It's Time to Think, We are Seekersamong others).

On these and other issues, such as the war in Ukraine, we talked with Aniceto Masferrer, researcher and professor at European, American and Oceania universities, and prolific author.

Freedom is the central theme of his recent book 'Freedom and Public Ethics'.

-I think that a life would not be truly human if it renounced to love in freedom, it would not be truly free if it disregarded the truth, and it would not be able to access the truth if it did not think for itself. Freedom is a fundamental feature of the human being. A human life without freedom is no life at all.

According to the postmodern myth of freedom, what one wants is good and what one does not want is bad. It is not admitted that something that one really wants can be bad, nor that something that one does not really want can be good. And it is a 'myth' because reality itself is responsible for denying such an approach. As Ortega y Gasset said, "every ignored reality prepares its revenge".

And his disciple Julián Marías He pointed out that "one can 'in good faith' be in the belief that 2 and 2 are 5. The bad thing is that when one acts according to that conviction, one stumbles against reality, because it does not tolerate falsehoods and always takes revenge on them. From there comes the failure of life".

It is true, as noted by T. S. Eliot, that "the human race cannot bear much reality", but some seem not to bear any other reality or truth that does not coincide with their personal wishes and interests, an attitude criticized by Bertrand RussellI find it fundamentally dishonest and damaging to intellectual integrity to believe something just because it benefits you and not because you think it is true.

In the presentation you referred to the need to stimulate critical thinking. Why this conviction?

-The vast majority prefers not to have to overcome laziness or the fear of thinking for oneself, nor to assume the risks involved, such as the possibility of being wrong, being exposed and having to rectify. An important part of the citizenry prefers to be part of that amorphous mass of which Ortega y Gasset spoke (The rebellion of the masses), lacking personality, who does not think for himself but needs to be thought by another person or collective -sometimes victimized-, limiting himself to imitate and reproduce what he sees in others.

The person who does not think for himself, renounces to be himself and surrenders his freedom, thus feeling protected by an anonymous collectivity from which he no longer dares to dissent. She becomes a living corpse because she is no longer herself, she is not even capable of thinking of being the person she would really like to become. It is the new citizenship that, believing it enjoys a freedom that runs on the fringes of reality, generates disillusionment, emptiness, anxiety and frustration.

Freedom and public ethics

AuthorAniceto Masferrer

Editorial: Sekotia

Pages: 272

Year: 2022

He also alludes to the promotion of dialogue, particularly with those who think differently. On the other hand, the escalation of war in Ukraine continues.

-Human beings have a tendency to sectarianism, which leads them to think that they know best. than others, or that belonging to a group makes one better than the rest. We find it hard to accept that truth, beauty and justice are not the exclusive patrimony of anyone. No one possesses the whole truth, but only parts of it. Perhaps it would be even more accurate to say that it is the truth that possesses someone. But it cannot possess someone who does not dialogue, someone who is not capable of taking seriously the reasons of those who do not think like him.

There are three ways to access knowledge of reality: observation, reflection and dialogue. Without dialogue there can be no knowledge of reality, nor any possibility of advancing or progressing as a society. Hence the importance of encouraging critical thinking and the expression of one's own ideas in a climate of respect for all, and in particular for those who think differently. Otherwise, dialogue is not possible. And without dialogue, there can be no peaceful coexistence in all spheres (family, social, national or between nations). When there is no dialogue, differences are settled with the mere sum of votes or with violence. And the result is usually unreason and the death -both civil and natural- of people, as is happening in Ukraine and in so many other countries around the world.

He points out in his book that freedom of expression, including dissent, and the culture of dialogue, are key to safeguarding democracy...

-Discrepancy is required for one reason of elementary education, and for another of common sense in the coexistence of people with different visions within the framework of a plural democracy. But there is another, even more important reason: only discrepancy allows us to reach a broader and more complete vision of reality, which is never simple, plain and uniform, but rich, complex and multifaceted. The scientist Karl R. Popper stated that "the increase of knowledge depends entirely on the existence of disagreement".. It has also been said, and rightly so, that "the ability to listen to intelligent people who disagree with you is a hard talent to find" (Ken Follet). Indeed, it is easier to cuddle up to those who please us, as children do, because, as Kant said, "It is so comfortable to be a minor!".

However, a society is more mature and democratic when its individuals are capable of strengthening bonds of friendship, also with those who do not think as they do, of seeing those who disagree with their ideas as someone who helps and enriches them, and not as a nuisance or obstacle to their personal fulfillment. To be friends only with those people whose ideas please us and whom we share, is to remain in immaturity, to renounce to a fullness that implies the recognition that one does not have the whole truth and that I can only get closer to it by listening and understanding the point of view of the others..

Why has reason been replaced by ideology?

-Hannah Arendt shows, in The Origins of TotalitarianismThe relationship between totalitarianism and ideology, and points out that "totalitarian domination (...) is aimed at the abolition of freedom, even at the abolition of human spontaneity in general". In reality, human freedom and reason are the great enemies of ideology.

However, it is wrong to think that this threat occurs only in totalitarian political regimes (both right-wing and left-wing), that in many Western countries this danger has been overcome and is now a thing of the past. This was the thinking at the beginning of the last century, as described by Stefan Zweig in his novel Castellio v. Calvino. Conscience versus violence (1936).

You perceive a certain social apathy. Everything is delegated to governments or to the State, and we are content.

-Benjamin ConstantIn his famous lecture ('On the liberty of the ancients compared with that of the moderns') delivered at the Paris Athenaeum in February 1819, he already warned that an excessive intervention of the public power "is always a nuisance and a hindrance". And he added: "Whenever the collective power wants to get mixed up in particular operations, it harms those concerned. Whenever governments pretend to do our business, they do it worse and more wastefully than we do."

Constant urged society to exercise "an active and constant vigilance over its representatives, and to reserve to itself, at periods which are not separated by too long intervals, the right to remove them if they have erred and to revoke from them the powers they have abused."

Linked to the above, are we witnessing in the West the role of states and governments as shaping agents of the fundamental values that sustain coexistence? Or is this perception excessive?

-It is symptomatic that politicians look favorably on the lack of citizen involvement and participation in public life, limited only - at best - to casting a ballot in the ballot box from time to time. The vast majority of today's political class seems to reason in a very similar way to how Constant put it two centuries ago: "The citizen's participation in public life is limited, at best, to casting a ballot at the ballot box every so often.They are completely willing to spare us any concern, except that of obeying and paying! They will say to us: What is the ultimate goal of your effort, of your work, of all your hopes? Is it not happiness? Well, let us do it and we will give you that happiness. No, gentlemen, let us not let them do it, no matter how touching such a touching interest may be; let us beg the authority to remain within its limits, to limit itself to being just. We will see to it that we are happy".

And an issue that the citizenry should never delegate to any power -not even the political one- is that of shaping the public ethics of society, because what is proper to a true liberal democracy is that citizens should be the main agents in shaping public ethics.

I think that in a free and plural democracy, the State should not be the main agent shaping the fundamental values that sustain social coexistence. Neither should the big business, media and financial groups. Otherwise, democracy becomes corrupted and turns into demagogy, easily leading to an authoritarian or totalitarian regime.

This process of corruption of democracy is avoided when the political freedom of a community is based on the sum of individual freedoms, not in the abstract, but in their concrete and free exercise. It is therefore essential that every citizen think for himself, that he express his thoughts publicly in a climate of freedom - regardless of what he thinks - and that he contribute, within his possibilities, to shaping the public ethics of the society in which it is his lot to live.

You note that in the arguments that are offered when presenting legal reforms, there is talk of social demands that are then almost non-existent..., and then the legal is perceived as moral....

-Indeed, the distinction between the legal and moral spheres, so important in Western legal thought and culture, is being lost. In fact, it is a consequence of the lack of critical thinking. Those who do not think for themselves tend to believe that everything legal is morally lawful, and do not realize that some laws passed by the political power may be unjust because they do not safeguard the dignity and rights of all, particularly the most vulnerable.

The history of human rights shows this reality. The recognition of certain rights has often been the response to morally unsustainable social situations.

Untenable was the treatment of the indigenous people in America by some colonists (16th century); untenable were the abuses of religious freedom and the consequent wars of religion (16th and 17th centuries); untenable was the omnipotent power of absolute monarchies (16th-18th centuries); untenable were the conditions of most workers, as well as the undignified treatment of women, children and people without work, sick or disabled (19th and 20th centuries); untenable were the conditions of most workers, as well as the undignified treatment of women, children and people without work, sick or disabled (19th and 20th centuries). XVI-XVIII); unsustainable were the conditions of the majority of workers, as well as the undignified treatment of women, children and unemployed, sick or disabled people (XIX and XX centuries); unsustainable were the philosophical-political theories that propitiated -or even justified- the two world wars (XX century).

Unsustainable is the global dualism that exists today, where some live in the most complete opulence at the expense of many others who lack the essentials to live with a minimum of dignity (drinking water, food, housing, education, communication, etc.), while the rest contemplate - with a certain complicity and helplessness - the wealth of some and the destitution of so many others.It is unsustainable that a part of the world leads a consumerist and hedonistic life, justifying the trampling of the rights of the defenseless, of the most vulnerable beings, of those who cannot fend for themselves, or of those who when they come will no longer be able to enjoy the world and the environment that we currently enjoy.

What would you propose to strengthen civil society? You know the history and you have traveled halfway around the world...

-The key is to return to reality, to live in it, not out of it. I will illustrate this with an anecdote from this week. When I told an administrator at my university that in a few days I would be attending a conference with a paper on sexual freedom in modern criminal law, she interrupted me and asked: "Sexual freedom or perversion of the sexual? I answered her by telling her that I did not think that was the best way to raise the issue in an international congress held in Paris, the city that experienced the revolution of May 68. She told me: "Today there is more perversion than sexual freedom". And she added: "What we have is a lot of ignorance. When you lose touch with reality, it is very easy to blow things out of proportion and lose common sense. This is what has happened with sex in today's society".

It is not necessary to have a great cultural formation to discern between the true and the false, between the good and the bad, between that which humanizes us and that which dehumanizes us; nor is it necessary to have free time that we do not have. It is necessary, however, to find a vital rhythm that allows us to observe reality more attentively, to reflect more critically on what is happening in the world -in our life and in the lives of others-, to have -find or create- spaces that encourage the free expression of our own ideas and dialogue with everyone -including those who think differently- and to promote interpersonal relationships, and promote authentic interpersonal relationships - face-to-face, not virtual - that allow us to strengthen bonds of friendship and mutual collaboration in the search for what is authentic, good and beautiful for society as a whole. This is a human need, an inclination towards what is authentically human.

Along these lines, in recent months several initiatives have arisen in Spain -by young people- that promote the creation of spaces for the free expression of ideas, dialogue and interpersonal relationships (Free Thinkers, It's Time to Think, We Are Seekersamong others). People need spaces of freedom where they can think for themselves, express their ideas and engage in dialogue, activities that are difficult or involve a high risk if carried out in politics, universities and other professional and cultural spheres.

In your book you talk about the dehumanization and politicization of law. Both.

-The law dehumanizes every time it fails to protect the underdog, those who have no voice or are unable to make themselves heard in a society dazed by the din of a strenuous pace of life and the attempt to relieve this tension with entertainment and pleasure, with the danger - today, true and widespread - of falling into addictions (social networks, pornography, alcohol, drugs). Not infrequently, these dehumanizing laws are presented as achievements in the field of rights, sometimes the rights of some at the expense of the life, dignity and rights of others.

It is undeniable that today the law depends excessively on politics; the political class, on the media; and the latter, in turn, on the media. lobbies and pressure groups that defend certain interests unrelated to the common good. Sometimes, under the guise of "protecting" a minority, the general interest is seriously undermined, to the detriment of the rights of the majority.

In this well-known hierarchical structure of interlocking interests, which might make some people think of feudal European society, the fundamental freedoms of which Western civilization prides itself on are often conspicuous by their absence or lack clear and coherent protection.

In your opinion, is intolerance, and even discrimination against Christians for thinking in a certain way, growing?

–Sometimes we cling so tightly to our ideas and conceptions of life that we consider any manifestation of dissent as an affront. We are so ingrained with the idea that personal fulfillment depends on our autonomy of will, that is, that we can only be happy if we are allowed to satisfy our desires or choices, that we consider it a personal attack if someone tells us that there are better options, and that ours is not the best for society as a whole (or perhaps for us). And we take it as something offensive. We are unable to distinguish between criticism of our opinion and respect for our person. And we think that such discrepancy necessarily implies contempt and disqualification.

Hence, many interpret it as offensive that Christians can defend the human life (from conception to natural death), marriage as a lifelong commitment between a man and a woman, etc., and think that they should not impose their views on the rest of society.

Apart from the fact that giving your opinion does not mean imposing (and there should be no second-class citizens who are forbidden to express their opinion), many people seem to be unable to distinguish between understanding themselves and their ideas; hence they conceive any discrepancy to their ideas as a direct attack on their person.

It is time to finish. You speak of fear...

–The antonym of love is not only hate, but also fear, so widespread in today's society. Many people live in fear: of making a mistake -or failing-, of disappointing, of looking bad -and being ridiculed or rejected-. And fear is incompatible with love, as it is with living in freedom. One feels insecure, perceives his lack of knowledge, and chooses to give up to others the task of thinking and expressing his ideas (which are not really his own).

Fear is paralyzing and prevents the free development of one's own personality, confining its victim to the realm of an anonymous and amorphous mass, whose members neither think, nor speak, nor act for themselves, but according to the dictates of a weak thought, but (hyper)protected by force.potestasno auctoritas- which gives it its supposedly majority character, as well as its media, political and cultural hegemony.

I would dare to say that fear is the main obstacle to live authentically in freedom, to be oneself and to live in fullness, achieving the happiness that every human being longs for. Controlling that fear -for it is not a matter of making it disappear or ignoring it completely-, is the key to enjoy a full and happy life. Augustine of Hippo said that there are two ways to make mistakes in life: one is to choose the path that does not lead us to our destination. The other consists of not choosing a path at all because we are afraid of making a mistake.

Succumbing to fear, allowing yourself to be bound by it, choosing not to pursue what excites you and makes you better for fear of error, failure or the effort it may bring, is probably the biggest mistake you can make in your life.

And liberal democracy needs, today more than ever, an active civil society that, by respectfully expressing its ideas and engaging in dialogue with serenity, contributes to shaping a freer, fairer and more humane society.

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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Photo Gallery

A Kneeling Rosary in Fatima

A pilgrim walks on her knees while praying the Rosary in Fatima, Portugal. Some 4 million people flock to this Marian shrine each year.

Maria José Atienza-May 25, 2023-Reading time: < 1 minute

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Scripture

Christ is risen, my Hope

Easter is the most special time of the year. The Apostolic Letter of St. Paul VI, Mysterii paschali, on the general norms of the liturgical year, n. 22, reminds us that all the days of Easter should be celebrated as if they were one.

Bernardo Estrada-May 25, 2023-Reading time: 3 minutes

Easter is the most special time of the year. The Apostolic Letter of St. Paul VI, Mysterii paschali, on the general norms of the liturgical year, n. 22, reminds us that every day of the liturgical year is a day of the year. Easter should be celebrated as one. The Easter sequence is also repeated in them Victimæ paschali, where, at the end, it is said: "Christ is risen, my Hope".

The resurrection has always been spoken of as a mystery of faith, as in Lk 24:34: "Indeed [actually: óntôs]The Lord is risen and has appeared to Simon!". Following Paul's teaching to the Corinthians, this reality is emphasized in a Semitic style: "Now if it is preached that Christ is risen from the dead, how do some of you go about saying that there is no resurrection of the dead? If there is no resurrection of the dead, neither is Christ risen. And if Christ is not risen, our preaching is empty, your faith is also empty." (1Cor 15:12-17).

True human nature

This is a reaction to the Gnostic tendency (duality of evil-good, matter-spirit, with a process of salvation through knowledge and not through the Redemption of Christ on the Cross) that began to take shape in the first century of our era, and which was consolidated in the second century. Already Ignatius of Antioch fought vividly against docetism (Jesus Christ would have had an apparent body), which, like the Gnostic doctrine, did not recognize in Jesus a true human nature, emphasizing at the same time his being God and man. At the end of the century, St. Irenaeus again emphasized this mystery in the face of the Gnostics.

The emphasis of theology on highlighting the real resurrection of Jesus Christ, with the same body that he had during his life on earth, although with different characteristics, judging by some passages of the Gospel in which the disciples do not recognize him (cf. Lk 24:16; Jn 21:4), is therefore understandable. In the words of Benedict XVI, "The empty tomb cannot, in itself, demonstrate the resurrection; this is true. But there is also the inverse question: Is the resurrection compatible with the permanence of the body in the tomb? Can Jesus have risen if he lies in the tomb? What kind of resurrection would this be?"; and added: "While the empty tomb per se cannot prove the resurrection, it remains a necessary presupposition for faith in the resurrection, since the resurrection refers precisely to the body and, by it, to the whole person." (Jesus of Nazareth II, Encuentro, Madrid, 312).

Indeed, faith in the mystery of the Resurrection of the Son of God presupposes the confession of the Incarnation according to the teaching of Chalcedon. verus Deus, verus homotrue God and true man. Other types of theories would lead, it is true, to certain doctrines, today in vogue, such as reincarnation, or the return to a different life, the apokatastasiswhich was already mentioned in Origins.

Foundation of hope

Looking closely at the beginning of chapter 11 of the Letter to the Hebrews, we find the statement: "Faith is a guarantee [hypostasis] of what is expected; the proof of unseen realities".. The Greek word presented to us by the author of the letter refers to the foundation, to that on which everything a Christian can hope for rests.

Thinking again of the paschal mystery, the logical consequence, according to this reasoning, is that faith in the resurrection will be the foundation of our Christian hope. This is what St. Peter says: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who, by his great mercy, through the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, has regenerated us to a living hope, to an inheritance incorruptible, undefiled and unfading, reserved in heaven for you, whom the power of God, through faith, protects unto salvation, ready now to be revealed at the last moment." (1 Pet 1:3-9).

This liturgical hymn presented to us by the Apostle Peter begins with a doxology linked to a thanksgiving, expressing the motive that led him to this praise, and ending with an exhortation to reach the goal of our faith, salvation. Not many think that it is a liturgical text within a baptismal catechesis, speaking at first of the regeneration that is achieved through the resurrection of Christ, by participating, through baptism, in his death (immersion) and in his resurrection (emersion), acquiring a divine life that will serve as a pledge of the future resurrection. This is why Peter speaks of an inheritance aphthartos, that nothing on earth can corrupt; amíantosthat cannot be contaminated by any earthly reality that is contrary to it, and amaranthIt is a hope that is unfading, unfading, that retains its radiance and strength throughout the Christian's life. This is why the mystery of the resurrection gives rise in a special way to hope, which is the true driving force of the Christian life. It is a hope that takes root in baptism, as the first letter of St. Peter says, the sacrament that opens the door to all the gifts and graces of salvation.

The authorBernardo Estrada

D. in Biblical Philology and Biblical Theology.

Scripture

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Gospel

The Holy Spirit, life of the Church. Pentecost Sunday (A)

Joseph Evans comments on the readings for Pentecost Sunday (A) and Luis Herrera offers a short video homily.

Joseph Evans-May 25, 2023-Reading time: 2 minutes

The Holy Spirit bestows gifts, both personal and communal, and thus builds up the Church in its individual parts and as a body. This is very much the message of today's readings on this great feast of Pentecost.

The readings show the Holy Spirit as the power of God that overcomes the fear and ignorance of human beings.

When the disciples were gathered together with the door shut "for fear of the Jews." Jesus appears among them.

In sending them, he gives them the gift of the Spirit so that, as priests and bishops, they can forgive sins. The Spirit thus shows himself to be the Spirit of courage, evangelizing zeal and forgiveness.

The first reading speaks to us of Pentecost. What was first the gentle breath of Christ on the day of his Resurrection is now magnified, after his Ascension, into an impetuous wind that impels the apostles to go out and preach to the multitudes (the Hebrew word for Pentecost). "ruah" may mean "puff", "wind" y "spirit").

It is as if, having been exalted once again to the right hand of his Father, the Son of God had regained all of his "puff", which he then pours out upon the earth. As taught by several Fathers of the Church, the Spirit can be considered as the "kiss" loving relationship between the Father and the Son, their shared breath, yet without forgetting that he is as much God and divine person as the Father and the Son.

At Pentecost, the Spirit becomes the Spirit of understanding that allows people of very different languages and cultures to understand in their own language what was probably the Aramaic preaching of the apostles. "Are not all those who are speaking Galileans? Then how is it that each of us hears them speaking in our native tongue?"

In this way, the Spirit overcomes in the Church the divisions and the lack of communication caused by human pride after the Tower of Babel: "And the Lord said, 'Let us go down and confuse their language there, so that no one may understand the language of his neighbor'... Therefore it is called Babel, for there the Lord confused the language of the whole earth" (Gen 11:7-9).

As we read in the psalm, the Spirit is the creative Spirit, who renews the face of the earth and gives life to all things.

And in the second reading, St. Paul tells the Corinthians that the Spirit creates in us the virtue of faith, leading us to proclaim Jesus as "Sir" and inspiring us to realize "diversity of ministries", granting all kinds of gifts to individuals for the purpose of "the common good": wisdom, knowledge, miracles, prophecy, tongues...

This is what the Spirit could do in our lives and communities, if only, close to Mary, we were more open to his action.

Greater prayer to the Spirit would lead to greater courage, zeal for souls, forgiveness and understanding, and to a whole range of spiritual gifts and greater creativity in our interior and ecclesial life.

Homily on the readings of Pentecost Sunday (A)

The priest Luis Herrera Campo offers its nanomiliaA short one-minute reflection for these Pentecost Sunday readings.

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Education

José M. Pardo: "We cannot demand from young people a perfection that does not correspond to their age".

José María Pardo, priest and physician, is the director of the Permanent Formation Program in spiritual accompaniment and conflict resolution launched by the University of Navarra.

Maria José Atienza-May 25, 2023-Reading time: 5 minutes

Next academic year, the University of Navarra is launching its own degree program. It is the Permanent Formation Program in Spiritual Accompaniment and Conflict Resolution.

A project aimed at people involved in human and Christian formation, in spiritual accompaniment and in the governance of educational or ecclesiastical institutions.

The program aims to provide these people with the basic tools to correctly approach and help people with problems in their personal, family, social and work life.

José María Pardo, priest, doctor in Medicine and Surgery and in Moral Theology and director of this program highlights, in this interview for Omnes, the need for this program since, on many occasions, there is in people with formation tasks in the Church "a gap in basic psychological knowledge, which prevents them from attending in an adequate way to the people entrusted to them".

In recent years we speak of spiritual "accompaniment" but does it mean the same thing as "spiritual direction"?

-The term "accompaniment" is a more general term. Accompaniment can be exercised by many people and in various dimensions or areas of a person's life.

In the university environment, for example, there is the figure of the mentor, the professor who accompanies the student in university life. Or the coachingwhich accompanies its clients to achieve their objectives.

The term "spiritual direction" has been reserved for the sphere of the spiritual life, the interior life of the person. Traditionally it has been reserved for priests, because of its relation to the sacrament of Reconciliation.

Today, some lay people and consecrated persons also carry out this activity of accompanying people in their self-knowledge and in their relationship with God.

One of the open fronts of the Church today is the fight against spiritual abuse. How are cases of this nature detected and manifested?

-As in the matryoshkasThe broadest concept that encompasses all the others is "abuse of power" (whether of government or of moral authority), one form of which is "psychological abuse.

When this is done in the name of God, we are dealing with "spiritual abuse"; and within this, as its most serious form, we find "abuse of conscience", which can be defined as follows: those actions, carried out in the context of a relationship of spiritual direction or help, where the person who guides attributes to himself a divine authority - that is, he identifies his advice with the will of God - imposing himself on the identity, freedom and responsibility of the person guided in an area related to moral judgment.

Since the best prevention is education, it would be desirable that this delicate subject be part of the formation plans of seminaries and houses of formation, including a course on spiritual direction and on how to exercise the function of government in the Church.

One of the characteristics of the crystal generation is its low "resistance" to correction. Are we facing a complicated scenario when combining the necessary indication with hyperesthesia in the face of any "defeat"?

-Youth has many positive points and some horizons for improvement. One of these challenges is to allow themselves to be accompanied, advised and instructed. I would not dare to say that they do not want to face them, but that it is difficult for them, also because they are immersed in a society that proclaims "absolute freedom". To this, I can add that they may have had bad experiences or negative role models.

My experience with young people leads me to trust them. You cannot demand of them a perfection that does not correspond to their age, they are people under construction. Sometimes, those of us who are in charge of accompanying them are in a hurry, we want immediate results, radical changes. This is not possible, and even less so in the inner life of people. I always remember a piece of advice my father passed on to me: "snacks of patience and juices of good humor".

If you expect young people to change overnight, the best thing you can do is to dedicate yourself to something else. People have their times and rhythms. The important thing is not to abandon them, to let them know that you will always be available when they need you.

I confess to you two maxims that have served me well in my pastoral work with young people: "show, don't show" and "accompany, don't judge". When a young person sees that we trust him, that we treat him as an adult (not as a child) and that we want him to be the one who decides about his life, he begins to respond.

St. John Bosco already said: "Love what young people love, and they will learn to love what you want them to love". Moreover, without saying it in words, he is asking you to be his model, to accompany him.

The university stage is the most frequent age range of attendance to psychologists and consumption of psychotropic drugs today. Do we fall into the temptation of "psychologizing" life?

-In this area, the University of Navarra, of which I have been a member for more than thirty years, has created the Health and Wellness Unit as part of Strategy 2025. A multidisciplinary unit that supports the overall health (including mental health) of students and professionals.

Everyone is aware of the significant increase in psychic symptomatology in the current era, particularly in relation to anxiety, addictions, depression and professional stress.

The Faculty of Theology of this University has also warned that many trainers in Church-related centers detect a lack of basic psychological knowledge, which prevents them from adequately caring for the people entrusted to their care.

The dedication to formative tasks and spiritual accompaniment requires specific and profound knowledge of psychological normality and its variants as well as of possible disorders.

For all these reasons, it has seemed necessary to us to offer an in-depth formation in Psychology and related subjects, as a complement to the training of teachers, spiritual guides or persons related to managerial tasks or sensitive areas in both secular and religious educational entities. For this purpose, three Programs of Permanent Formation (PFP) have been designed: in Psychology and Moral Life; in Spiritual Accompaniment and Conflict Resolution; and in Diversity Management.

In these PFP, together with specific subjects of moral and spiritual theology, subjects of a more psychological profile are addressed, always seeking their application to the concrete situations in which many people find themselves; situations that end up having an impact on the moral and spiritual life of people.

The subjects of these programs are not designed as a mere study of psychology or exclusively technical knowledge. Since they are taught in a Faculty of Theology, the approach is necessarily multidisciplinary, focusing on their theological, spiritual and pastoral dimension.

When are we facing a real conflict and how to approach it?

-A conflict is a difference of interests, ideas, styles and perceptions that come into contact. Interpersonal conflicts are the ones we are most interested in. People get to know each other better when they resolve conflict together: it improves the quality of relationships and openness in conversations.

There are three main potential causes of conflict: personal differences, conflicting human tendencies and contextual causes (e.g. lack of space for dialogue in a company). This point is important, because the conflict can only be solved if the cause or causes are known.

Conflict resolution involves managing imperfection -one's own and that of others-, so it is necessary to deepen one's own knowledge and that of others in order to detect potential reasons for conflict and foster personal attitudes.

In particular, it can help to develop and enhance attitudes such as openness, flexibility, generosity to overcome one's own, willingness to reach consensus, etc.

The Ongoing Formation Program in Spiritual Accompaniment and Conflict Resolution

The Permanent Formation Program in Spiritual Accompaniment and Conflict Resolution is a degree of the University of Navarra. The course will be given at the Pamplona campus between October 26 and December 7, 2023.

It is composed of four subjects, which will focus on different scenarios of Christian life (priesthood, consecrated life and laity). They will address the centrality of freedom in personal choice and in the life of the person.

The influence of psychic factors, personality and external circumstances on the moral and spiritual life of the person will also be discussed. Likewise, the detection, classification, influence and treatments of the most relevant psychiatric disorders will be studied in depth and, finally, the approach and resolution of personal, family and community conflicts will be dealt with.

Interviews

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Korea, China, Mary Help of Christians and the Holy Spirit resound in Rome

The example of evangelization of the first priest martyr of Korea, St. Andrew Kim Taegon, in times of persecution; prayer to the patroness of Shanghai and closeness to the faithful of China; devotion to Mary Help of Christians so that "she may be close to the Ukrainian people"; and the petition "to the Lord to give us the strength of the Holy Spirit", were the main themes of the Pope's Audience today in Rome.

Francisco Otamendi-May 24, 2023-Reading time: 4 minutes

The "great Korean witness", in the words of Pope Francis, St. Andrew Kim Taegon, the first priest martyred in Korea when a great persecution took place in that Asian country two hundred years ago; the prayer for the Catholic Church in China; the feast of Mary Help of Christians, which the Church celebrates today, Wednesday, and the petition to the Holy Spirit to be "disciples of Jesus in the vocation to which God has called us", were the main themes of the Audience This morning in St. Peter's Square, the Holy Father delivered his fourteenth catechesis on "The Passion to Evangelize. The apostolic zeal of the believer".

"In this Audience I would like to present to you another witness of apostolic zeal. This time it comes to us from distant lands," the Pope began. "Indeed, St. Andrew Kim Taegon was the first priest martyred in Korea. Two hundred years ago, there was a strong persecution in that country, and it was not possible to confess the faith openly. Before that, it was the laity who evangelized Korea," the Pope began, commenting on the reading from the Gospel of St. Matthew (Mt 10:24-25.27).

"His life was and continues to be an eloquent witness of zeal for the proclamation of the Gospel. Some two hundred years ago, the Korean land was the scene of a harsh persecution of the Christian faith. To believe in Jesus Christ, in Korea at that time, meant being ready to bear witness to the point of death". St. Andrew Kim Taegon was one of the 103 Korean martyrs canonized by St. John Paul II in 1984.

"Walking in the snow."

"I highlight two scenes that give us proof of this zeal," Pope Francis continued. "In the first, we see St. Andrew faced with the difficulty of having no choice but to meet the faithful in public, and managing to recognize himself without anyone noticing, summarizing his identity in two words. The words he had to say were 'disciples of Jesus'. It is very interesting that this is the summary of all that can be said, since in them it is supposed to give life to the Gospel, to witness to it", the Roman Pontiff emphasized.

"In the second, we meet him when he was a seminarian walking in the snow to look for a missionary and, completely exhausted, he fell to the ground, but a helping hand lifted him up and pushed him on. The lesson of this scene is that even though we may fall, we can always get up again because Jesus sustains us."

"This experience of the great Korean witness makes us realize a very important aspect of apostolic zeal," Francis noted. "Namely, the courage to get up again when one falls. However difficult the situation may be, even at times it may even seem to leave no room for the Gospel message, we must not give up and we must not give up pursuing what is essential in our Christian life, namely evangelization."

"We can always get back up again."

"Perhaps at times we get discouraged, due to external obstacles, and the fact of bearing witness to the Gospel attracts incomprehension and contempt," the Pope added. "However, at the same time, we can always get up again, because the Lord Jesus never abandons us, he is always near us, he encourages us and takes us by the hand. And he always repeats to us: 'Arise, walk!' He himself is the one who rose from the dead. His Resurrection is precisely the mystery in which lies the possibility for us to rise from every fall; it is the source of the strength that allows us to go forward.

"Brothers and sisters, let us not lose heart, let us not allow ourselves to be robbed of the sweet joy of evangelizing (cf. Paul VI), and with the strength that Jesus Christ gives us, let us go forward," the Holy Father encouraged.

Later, he reiterated this same idea. "I cordially greet the Spanish-speaking pilgrims. Let us ask the Lord for the zeal that moved St. Andrew, that the Lord may give us the strength of his Holy Spirit; at this time we ask with special intensity to witness to his Gospel in daily life, simply by being "disciples of Jesus", in the vocation to which God has called us. Let us also ask him to always be that friend who sustains us in difficulties, so that we may persevere on the path of goodness until the end. May the Lord bless you and may the Blessed Virgin watch over you. Thank you very much.

"May Mary be close to the Ukrainian people".

The Pope referred on several occasions to Mary Help of Christians. "Today is the feast of Our Lady venerated under the title of Mary Help of Christians. May she obtain consolation and serenity for you, dear elderly and sick people. And to the newlyweds, may she encourage you to live the commandment of love in your daily life. On the feast of Mary Help of Christians, the Marian invocation so dear to our hearts, may she obtain consolation and comfort for you, dear elderly and sick people. don BoscoA special greeting to the Salesian families, I thank them for all they do for the Church".

A call to pray for Ukraine. "And still a sadness, which comes to all of us, for the martyred Ukraine. There is so much suffering there. Let us not forget. Today let us ask Mary Help of Christians to be close to the Ukrainian people. And to all my blessing".

Then, after the summary in Polish, the Holy Father also said: "We remind you of the Blessed Virgin Mary Help of Christians, and may she, Mother of Consolation, grant the Church in Poland, the pastors and the faithful, especially families, the elderly and the sick, the grace to be ready to bear witness to the faith. Live in such a way that others recognize in you the disciples of Christ. I bless you from my heart".

Our Lady of Sheshan in Shanghai

Before addressing a catechesis to the Italian-speaking faithful, Pope Francis made an appeal: "Today is the World Day of Prayer for the Catholic Church in China. It coincides with the feast of the Blessed Virgin Mary Help of Christians, venerated and invoked in the Shrine of Our Lady of Sheshan in Shanghai.

"On this occasion, I wish to assure the remembrance and express closeness to our brothers and sisters in China, sharing their joys and hopes. A special thought goes to all those who suffer, pastors and faithful, so that in the communion and solidarity of the universal Church they may experience consolation and encouragement. I invite all to raise their prayers to God, so that the Good News of Christ crucified and risen may be proclaimed in its fullness, beauty and freedom, bearing fruit for the good of the Catholic Church and of the whole of Chinese society".

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

Pope Francis

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ColumnistsSantiago Leyra Curiá

Historical friendships and faith according to Ratzinger

There are many examples of emblematic friendships throughout history and also in literature. Faith, in essence, is the same: trust in someone you love.

May 24, 2023-Reading time: 3 minutes

"In Indonesia we are few Catholics, but with ardent faith." Related News

"Fratelli Tutti": Friendship and fraternity, dialogue and encounter.

History and literature record great friendships on the human level.

One of the best known is that of David and Jonathan. This endearing friendship, probably the best example of friendship in the Old Testament, was confronted by Saul, Jonathan's father, who envied David to the point of ordering his assassination, so that David had to flee from the court. When he found out, Jonathan - Saul's eldest son and heir - sided with his friend David.

Saul, rejected by God and killed on the battlefield against the Philistines, lost the throne, which passed to David, the new king.

Another famous friendship is that of Pylades and Orestes. Clytemnestra, unfaithful wife of Agamemnonsent his son Orestes - so that he would not witness his infidelity - to the care of King Strophios of Phocis. Orestes grew up there in friendship with Pylades, son of the king. On his return from Troy, Agamemnon was killed by Aegisthus, his wife's lover.

Orestes, with the help of Pylades, killed Clytemnestra and Aegisthus, after which the two sailed to the borders of Scythia. Arriving in the country of Tauros, Orestes fell to the ground affected by his usual madness and lay on the ground; Pylades wiped off the foam and cared for his body.

Each of them offered to save the life of the other. In the end, both were saved, and Orestes reigned in Mycenae and Pylades in Electra.

Other close friendships were those between Roland and Oliveros and between Amis and Amilis, in the time of Charlemagne.

Closer to us, Ratzinger has left us some luminous ideas about faith, as a superior form of love, in many of his works, among others in his Introduction to Christianity. And I would like to recall here some of those ideas that have not lost their relevance.

In the leaden solitude of a world orphaned of God, in its inner boredom, the search for the divine has reemerged. In the face of the somber and devastating ecstasy of drugs, of asphyxiating rhythms, of noise and drunkenness, we find the diaphanous light and the admirable discovery of the sun of God.

The future is built where men meet each other with convictions capable of shaping life. And the good future grows where these convictions come from the truth and lead to it.

There are, however, some scandals for the life of faith today:

-The distance between the visible (what surrounds us, the palpable reality) and the invisible (God, faith).

- The distance between progress (that which drives toward the future) and tradition (faith as something of the past, even in the clothing of the religious).

Every human person has to take a stand in some way in the area of fundamental decisions, and this can only be done in the form of faith. There is an area in which there is no other response than that of faith, which no one can avoid. Every human being has to believe in some way.

But what is faith properly speaking?

Faith is a way of situating the human being in the face of reality.

Man does not only live on the bread of the feasible; he lives on the word, on love, on meaning. Meaning is the bread on which man feeds in his innermost being. Orphaned of word, of meaning and of love, he falls in the "life is no longer worth living", even if you live in extraordinary comfort.

Believing in Christ "It means trusting in meaning, which sustains me and the world, considered as the firm foundation on which I can stand without fear".

Therefore, it cannot be denied that the Christian faith constitutes a double affront to the predominant attitude in the world today... The primacy of the invisible over the visible and of receiving over doing, runs in the complete opposite direction to the predominant situation today.

But faith does not mean placing oneself blindly in the hands of the irrational. On the contrary, it means approaching the "logos", the ratio, the meaning and, therefore, the truth itself.

Christian faith is much more than an option in favor of the spiritual foundation of the world. Its key statement does not say I believe in something, but rather I believe in something. "I believe in you", in the immediate and vigorous character of his union... with the Father, in Jesus, the witness of God, through whom the intangible becomes tangible and the distant becomes near; he is not a pure and simple witness... he is the presence of the eternal in this world. In his life, in the unreserved surrender of his being to mankind, the meaning of the world is made present.

"Are you really...?". The honesty of thought compels us to ask ourselves these questions even though to very few the divine manifests itself in an evident way.

The authorSantiago Leyra Curiá

"In Indonesia we are few Catholics, but with ardent faith." Related News

"Fratelli Tutti": Friendship and fraternity, dialogue and encounter.

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Twentieth Century Theology

The International Theological Commission at the service of commission and dialogue

The International Theological Commission, created by Paul VI in 1969, has played an important role of communion and dialogue between Catholic theologians and the Magisterium, and has contributed to calming the situation of Catholic theologians. theological and has given rise to a remarkable body of quality documents.

Juan Luis Lorda-May 24, 2023-Reading time: 8 minutes

In the session of 28-IV-1969, Paul VI communicated to the cardinals the creation of an International Theological Commission (ITC): "According to the orientations of the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council (1962-1965), we have taken care, among other things, to better adjust the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith to its high and grave duty. In addition to the reform mandated by the motu proprio "Integrae servandae", we have welcomed the vow of the first Synod of Bishops (1967), that is, to create, together with this Sacred Congregation, a team of scholars who are excellent cultivators of the research of sacred doctrines and theology, faithful to the entire magisterium of the teaching Church. We have therefore carried out, during all this time, a wide consultation as required by the seriousness of the matter; this being the only reason that has delayed the fulfillment of this project.".

In fact, during the Council itself, the desirability of reforming the style and composition of the Congregation of the Holy Office had been insisted upon, and it had been suggested that it should have a kind of advisory council of theologians.

In welcoming the CIW, on October 6, 1969, after clearly confirming the role of the Magisterium in the Church, he added: "We do not wish to create unduly in your minds the suspicion of an emulation between two primacies, the primacy of science and the primacy of authority, when in this field of divine doctrine there is only one primacy, that of revealed truth, that of faith, which both theology and the ecclesiastical magisterium want to protect with a unanimous desire, although in different ways.". And he asked them to be especially sensitive both to work for the union of Christians (ecumenism) and to find a "kerygmatic" way of presenting the faith to the modern world.

Paul VI approved statutes ad experimentumand John Paul II made some definitive ones with the motu proprio Tredecim anni (1982). According to these statutes, the elected theologians must not exceed 30 members, must be representative of theology in its various dimensions and places, and meet annually in Rome. They have been slightly tweaked with the reform of the Curia by Pope Francis.

Contexts

ECI has an interesting page on the Vatican website where the documents that gave rise to it, the speeches addressed to it by the Popes and all their documents are collected. At a glance you can see the volume of work done and also the special attention given to it by Benedict XVI, who received it every year on the occasion of the annual meeting and dedicated some substantial and personal words to it.

But the documents can only indirectly reflect the complicated situation that gave rise to this commission. There are at least six points to consider.

The role, at times, not very wise and excessive that the Holy Office played in the fifties of the twentieth century, channeling theologians who, in many cases, represented legitimate theological options, but different from the Thomism generally assumed in the Roman universities. This is the question of theological pluralism, obvious today, but not then. Moreover, the procedures used in the Congregation, which were secret and where the accused felt defenseless, without knowing what was happening, needed to be revised.

In particular, the confrontation of some Thomistic representatives with what would later be called neo-patristics, represented by De Lubac or by the historical approach to theology, represented by Congar or Chenu. It was considered that Thomism had already ordered all theology, that it was the proper method of theology, that it surpassed patristics and that it only remained to develop it. But this was evidently an exaggeration. The studies of the first part of the century had shown that there was much to learn from patristic theology, that it could not be considered surpassed or summarized in Thomism, and that other developments were possible.

On the other hand, it was evident that the best results of so much theology and biblical erudition had to be taken in. Undoubtedly this is what St. Thomas himself would have done, for he was very sensitive to everything that could serve the development of theology and took advantage of all the resources at his disposal.

The brilliant role that theologians had played during the Second Vatican Council, inspiring the bishops and enriching the documents, created in the theologians themselves a reinforced awareness of their guiding mission. It pushed them to a greater protagonism and raised, incidentally, the relationship between the magisterium of theologians and the magisterium of the bishops, which has a doctrinal foundation. Paul VI himself, while defending the identity of the doctrinal Magisterium of the Church, recognized the role of theology as an indispensable service, although, naturally, in ecclesial communion.

The Council was presented as a great opportunity to update all aspects of the Church in relation to the evangelization of the modern world. On the one hand, assuming that the modern world was represented by Western culture, which is not, of course, the only environment in which the Catholic Church exists and develops.

On the other hand, there is the problem that any accommodation to the world presents in the life of the Church, which is called to convert the world and not to be converted by the world. Of course, because of the legitimate autonomy of temporal things, there is always something to learn from the world, but salvation comes only from the Lord. This has always required much ecclesial discernment, which cannot be done by theologians alone.

Since Paul VI wanted the documents to be approved by large majorities, as was happily the case, all the things that could clash had been ironed out and some affirmations had been toned down. This had created unease among some theologians and a desire to continue to push for theological and ecclesial renewal. This was notably the view of Rahner, who had come to be regarded as the most characteristic theologian, had an idea of his own about how theology should be renewed, and had promoted various editorial initiatives and the journal "Concilium" to maintain this spirit.

Thus a "conflict of interpretations" would originate with a dialectic between the "spirit of the Council", which was supposed to be incarnated in the wishes of some theologians, and "the letter of the Council", with the texts approved by the bishops. There was even the prospect of a Third Vatican Council, to carry out all that some felt was lacking for a complete renewal (quite utopian, moreover) of the Church. This conflict of interpretations would be sharpened by the history of the Council by Giuseppe Alberigo (1926-2007) in the so-called Bologna School, following Giuseppe Dossetti, clearly in favor of the "spirit" over the "letter".

Moreover, it was evident that there was still a need for official discernment on the great theological questions or on the dissident options that were shaking the life of the Church. In 1969, when the Commission was established, the Church was suffering from the serious crisis of the Dutch Catechism, which was not only a doctrinal crisis, but also a crisis of communion, and it raised the crude question of the relationship between the Magisterium and theological opinions (especially those of Schillebeeckx and Schoonenberg). The complex and painful process of Paul VI's encyclical had taken place, Humanae vitae (1968), contested in some theological circles and episcopal conferences. The public dissent of some theologians, such as Hans Küng himself, was growing, in essays on The Church (1968), called to Rome for consultations with the Congregation, but did not attend. Infallible? for the following year (1970). Schillebeeckx and the American moralist Charles Curran had also been called for consultations.

In this uncomfortable atmosphere, with the initiative of Hans Küng, the review "Concilium" published in December '68 a declaration of theological freedom, to which some notables adhered (Chenu, Congar), while others criticized it (De Lubac, Daniélou).

The results

The very establishment of the ECI had an immediate "visual" effect. The fact that some thirty important and representative theologians from all over the world gathered in Rome at the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith was, in itself, an image of communion with Rome, as well as a great occasion for fruitful exchanges and dialogue. From this point of view, the creation of the ECI was very timely.

Among the first, after consulting faculties and episcopates, there were many important conciliar experts, such as De Lubac, Congar, Von Balthasar, Rahner, Ratzinger, Philips, Schnackenburg, to mention the best known. There was also the Spaniard Olegario González de Cardedal. Some of them would repeat many times. Bouyer excused himself. The lists of theologians who have been renewed, in part, every five years can be consulted on the above-mentioned web pages. In recent times, some women theologians have also been incorporated.

Karl Rahner, accustomed to a position of leadership in his media and in the journal ConciliumHe did not always feel comfortable in an environment where, as had been the case in the editorial department of Dei VerbumThe position on revelation and the anthropocentric rethinking of the whole theology was not assumed. Moreover, other members of that commission and friends of his, such as Von Balthasar, De Lubac, Ratzinger, immediately promoted the journal Communio (1972), called upon to counterbalance the magisterium of Concilium on the theology that should illuminate the future of the Church. Hans Küng, who had not been called to the commission, was already in a clearly critical position that was difficult to reconduct.

Refocus

Some of the aspirations at the beginning were not very realistic. It was not conceivable that such a diverse group with occasional meetings could effectively help in the day-to-day running of the Congregation, unless they went to work in the Congregation. Of course, it facilitated relationships and many consultations, but, in addition to language problems, the theologians lived mostly outside Rome and were engaged in other things. In any case, the Congregation took great pains to internationalize itself, to improve its theological preparation and procedures.

The ECI had and has a clearer mission in relation to the in-depth work on important themes. In such a way that the relevance of the Commission, apart from its symbolic function of communion, depended and depends entirely on the category of the themes proposed to it to work on.

The topics

To date, ECI has published 30 documents, many of them of considerable length and depth. It must be recognized that this has been a fruitful trajectory and an intense, self-sacrificing work, not always appreciated as it deserves. Commission work usually requires much more effort than personal work, as a lot of material has to be agreed upon and synthesized. Also, the fact of working in commission usually means that the texts are less linear and synthetic than those produced by a single expert. But the whole is a valuable contribution to theology.

The first period, that of Paul VI (1969-1978), was marked by the issues that had given rise to the ECI and by some issues that remained to be dealt with after the Council. After some Reflections on the aims and methods of the Commission (1969) and on The Catholic priesthood (1970), among other topics, dealt with Unity of faith and theological pluralism (1972) y Magisterium and theology (1975). In addition, in relation to the then nascent Theology of Liberation, Human promotion and Christian salvation (1976).

The era of John Paul II (1978-2005), as soon as Cardinal Ratzinger was appointed as prefect of the Congregation (1982), addressed the major issues that the pontiff wanted to deal with and other strategic issues on which the congregation was working: Dignity and rights of the human person (1983), Jesus' awareness of himself and of his mission (1985), Interpretation of dogmas (1989), Christianity and religions (1997), Memory and reconciliation: The Church and the faults of the past (2000). Closing with the comprehensive document Communion and Service: The Human Person Created in the Image of God (2004).

With Pope Benedict XVI (2005-2013), a very close relationship continued, but only three documents were published: a rather specialized one, one of which was published by the Pope, and the other by Pope Benedict XVI (2005-2013). Hope of salvation for children who die without baptism (2007); another of notable actuality In search of a universal ethics: a new look at natural law (2009) and a very broad presentation of what theology is: Theology Today: Perspectives, Principles and Criteria (2012)

In the time of Pope Francis (2013-), some themes that are dear to him stand out, such as. The sensus fidei in the life of the Church (2014) y Synodality in the life and mission of the Church (2018).

Documentation

Around the fiftieth anniversary of the founding of the ECI (2019) some works were prepared. The book by A. Avallone stands out, The International Theological Commission. History and proposals (Marcianum Press, Venice 2016), which is a good history of the ECI with plenty of documentation.

Interesting articles also appeared, such as the one by Philippe Chenaux, Magistère et théologiens dans l'après-concilein RevSR 96 (2022) 13-28; and that of Carlos María Galli, The 50th Anniversary of the International Theological Commissionin Ecclesiastical Studies96 (2021) 167-192, among others. The CIW itself edited a video with its history in Italian, which can be found by searching for "Commissione Teologica Internazionale" on Youtube.

Theology

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25 new priests of Opus Dei

Rome Reports-May 23, 2023-Reading time: < 1 minute

On May 20, the Prefect for the Dicastery for the Clergy ordained 25 faithful of Opus Dei from 12 countries.

The new priests, who are part of the reduced clergy of the Prelature, have exercised civilian tasks in banking or politics to others who worked in the promotion of social projects. There is also a mechanical engineer and a journalist and university professor.

AhNow you can enjoy a 20% discount on your subscription to Rome Reports Premiumthe international news agency specializing in the activities of the Pope and the Vatican.

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Integral ecology

The Church's money. Financial transparency

Interview with Mimmo Muolo, author of the book "The Church's Money" and Vatican reporter for the Avvenire newspaper.

Antonino Piccione-May 23, 2023-Reading time: 4 minutes

Mimmo Muolo, has been a Vaticanist for the Italian daily Avvenire since 1991 and since 2015 deputy editor-in-chief of the Roman edition of the same newspaper. He has followed the second part of the pontificate of St. John Paul II, then those of Benedict XVI and Pope Francis.

Author of several books, including 'I soldi della Chiesa - The money of the Church' (Ed. Paolinas 2019). His most recent book is the novel 'Per un'altra strada - La leggenda del Quarto Magio'.

Muolo talks to Omnes about the Vatican financial organizations, their latest reforms and some curiosities.

Normally, with laudable exceptions, the predominant perspective of those who deal with the relationship between the Church and money is that of scandal. This is where it is convenient to focus on the general scenario in which the facts are inscribed in order to favor a correct understanding. How to do it?

- Many will remember the beginning of the bestseller by Vittorio Messori Ipotesi su Gesù (Hypothesis on Jesus): "Jesus is not discussed among educated people. Along with sex, money, death, Jesus figures among the topics that are uncomfortable in a civilized conversation".

Ultimately, even 45 years after the first edition of the book, this incipit has not lost its relevance. Especially for one of the topics listed, the money of the Church. One cannot talk about Church money and transparency without having at least the basic notions about this complex subject.

One cannot speak of Vatican finances without knowing the scope and magnitude of the budgets of the Holy See and Vatican City.

What is the real scope of these budgets, what are the reference assets, and what is the relationship between these two budgets?

- First of all, three very important clarifications must be made: the "Vatican" is not the whole Church, but only a segment of it, in very small economic terms; in the word "Vatican" there is actually a layering of meanings that includes (simplifying as much as possible) at least two realities: the Holy See and the Vatican City State; therefore, the "Vatican" budget is also twofold.

On the one hand that of the State, or more precisely that of the Governatoratowhich can be compared to the executive power of any sovereign State, and which refers to the territorial management (0.44 square kilometers) of the Pope's State.

On the other hand, the budget of the Holy See, understood as the set of dicasteries, offices, commissions and related bodies that assist the Pope in the exercise of his Petrine office. For the latter, we speak of a consolidated balance sheet, since it shows the financial and economic results of a set of entities (about sixty) that are part of a single entity.

It should be noted that the budget of the Vatican City State, normally in surplus, contributes to cover the deficit of the latter, which does not have sufficient revenues. Between 2016 and 2020, revenues and expenses remained constant: about 270 million for the former, more or less 320 million the latter. An imbalance, therefore, of 60-70 million.

Just to make some comparisons, Italian State revenues in 2019 amounted to almost 579 billion. As you can see, we are talking about a size that it is no exaggeration to qualify as minuscule. With all due respect to those who still talk about Vatican treasures.

In terms of income, can we identify the main sources?

- It can be said in a nutshell that "Vatican" revenues are of three types: offerings, a small Pil consisting mainly of tertiary activities belonging to the Vatican City State, and the yield from movable and immovable property.

The "donations" chapter mainly includes, on the one hand, the contributions relating to canon 1271 of the Code of Canon Law, i.e. the rule according to which diocesan bishops throughout the world are obliged to send the Pope each year a sum of money in proportion to the availabilities of their dioceses; on the other hand, the Obolo di san Pietro (St. Peter's Offering), which gathers the offerings of the faithful, usually on June 29, addressed to all the activities of the Holy See.

The small Pil "Vatican" (PIB), on the other hand, is made up of the income from the Vatican Museums, the annona and stores (the internal supermarket), gas stations, pharmacy and post office, as well as the sale of products (eggs and milk above all) from the Pontifical Villas of Castel Gandolfo.

Finally, there are the revenues of the patrimony, formed over the centuries thanks to the legacies of the faithful. A patrimony that was almost annihilated at the time of the breakup of Porta Pia (1870) and that today is largely the result of the investments in the following decades of the sum paid by the Italian State when the Lateran Treaties were signed in 1929 (a total of one billion seven hundred and fifty million lire of the time, between cash and securities).

How is this revenue-generating activity currently carried out and which agencies are responsible for it?

- It focuses on three agencies (Apsa, Ior and the Dicastero de Propaganda Fide), although with different natures and purposes.

The real estate assets managed by Apsa consists of 2,400 apartments and 600 stores, while for that of Propaganda Fide there are only journalistic estimates ranging from a minimum of 3-4 billion to a maximum of 9-10 billion (but it is good to remember that the income from these properties is all earmarked for evangelization in mission lands, according to the declared intention of the benefactors who donated these assets).

While the balance of the IOR (which is not a bank, but a financial promoter) is already public and easily accessible on the web.

Budget 2022 in the "red" (33 million) due to Covid and a drop in donations and alms, but the accounts are improving due to expenditure control. How can this be interpreted?

-Among the items of expenditure, the largest is undoubtedly that for employees. The Holy See has 2,880, the Vatican City State 1,930. Then there are the expenses for ordinary and extraordinary maintenance of the buildings, the Imu, the energy bill and the expenses of the Vatican media. In recent years, these expenses have almost always exceeded income.

Guerrero (former Prefect of Economy) spoke of centralizing financial investments, improving personnel management and procurement, and announced a code for the latter that should produce savings.

Whatever measures are adopted, it is certain that Francis' will is to preserve the nearly 5,000 internal jobs. After all, as he himself wrote in Evangelii Gaudium, "money must serve and not rule".

The authorAntonino Piccione

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"Stewardship has transformed the lives of many people."

Spain

Grateful disciples, co-responsibility and leadership

The Spanish Episcopal Conference has a program dedicated to the promotion of co-responsibility and pastoral leadership in parishes. Through the platform "Grateful Disciples", the Episcopal Conference "wants to help achieve communities with a strong identity".

Paloma López Campos-May 23, 2023-Reading time: 2 minutes

Ideas for growing stewardship with parishes Related News

From the Spanish Episcopal Conference are seeking to strengthen the identity of the Christian community through the current disciples. The desire is that the members "feel co-responsible for the evangelizing task of the Church" and that they are willing to contribute with the necessary means to this end.

In addition to resources, there is a need for "inspirational leaders, women and men with a pastoral heart, capable of identifying and developing the many charisms that exist in each community, most of them still undiscovered".

To achieve its objectives, the Conference has made available to all a web page, "Grateful disciplesThe "Grateful Followers" platform, where you can find a variety of resources such as videos and articles. Soon a platform will also be available that will connect a multitude of grateful supporters working in their communities and parishes.

A community with 10 A's

One of the most interesting articles already published on the website outlines the characteristics of a grateful and co-responsible community:

Joy: A community "that has learned to give of itself without measure", which is evident in all its activities.

Grateful: That community that knows how to "thank the faithful for their commitment and dedication".

Administrator: Because she is aware that she does not own the assets, but rather advises them.

Open: For its capacity to "know how to discover the voice of God" through the suggestions of the faithful.

Welcoming: Because it knows how to value all gifts, so that "all the faithful feel that they are unique and indispensable to the mission of the parish, while placing all their trust in God who uses their talents and offers them this wonderful opportunity".

Autonomous: Self-sustaining and "enjoys being responsible for its mission".

Current: Take advantage of all legal modern advances to put them at the service of the mission.

Authentic: A community that "is transparent".

Bold: Because "he is not afraid to sow gratuitousness because he knows that he will receive a lot and will have all that God wants and needs to make his Church".

Adorant: A community that knows that "its strength, its mission and its talents are divine and therefore lives from the surrender of Jesus in the Eucharist".

Parish stewardship

On the website you can also find the registration form for the pilot program on parish stewardship that will take place during the 2023/2024 school year. The link redirects to a form to fill in the data before July 31, the deadline for registration.

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"Stewardship has transformed the lives of many people."

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João ChagasVatican WYD official: "Young people will be more involved than in previous editions".

Dates announced for Pope's visit to Portugal for WYD 2023

The Pope will be in Lisbon from August 2-6, after which he will return to Rome. The visit will include a brief trip to Fatima, which will take place on August 5.

Loreto Rios-May 22, 2023-Reading time: < 1 minute

7 things the Pope asks of you for WYD Lisbon 2023 Related News

Today the Holy See officially announced that Pope Francis will visit Portugal this summer on the occasion of the WYDW and has announced the dates of his stay in the Portuguese country.

The Pope will be in Lisbon from August 2 to 6, after which he will return to Rome. The Pope has personally expressed his desire to visit the shrine of Fatima, so the official program includes a trip to the shrine on August 5.

This is Pope Francisco's second visit to Portugal, as in 2017 he also visited the shrine of Fatima to canonize the little shepherds Jacinta and Francisco Marto.

Visits of Popes to Portugal

The shrine has already been visited by Popes Paul VI, who made a pilgrimage in 1967; John Paul II, who traveled three times to Fatima: in 1982, to thank Our Lady for having survived the attack on St. Peter's Square in 1981, in 1991 and in 2000, to beatify the little shepherds Jacinta and Francisco; Francisco's predecessor, Benedict XVI, also traveled to Fatima in 2010, for the tenth anniversary of the beatification of Francisco and Jacinta.

However, this summer's visit will be the longest ever made by a pontiff to Portugal, since Paul VI's visit lasted twelve hours, and those of John Paul II and Benedict XVI never lasted more than three days.

WYD registration

The final WYD program is still under development, but registrations are open and can be done through the official website.

7 things the Pope asks of you for WYD Lisbon 2023 Related News

João ChagasVatican WYD official: "Young people will be more involved than in previous editions".

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Cardinal Tagle: "Chinese Catholics know how to value the Pope's teachings".

"The Magisterium of Pope Francis. A guide for the reading of his Encyclicals and Apostolic Exhortations" edited in Chinese collects various texts of the magisterium of Pope Francis.

Giovanni Tridente-May 22, 2023-Reading time: 3 minutes

In China "there is a whole living network of prayers, liturgies, catechesis and pastoral initiatives directly inspired by the ordinary Magisterium of Pope Francis".

These are the words of Cardinal Luis Antonio Cardinal Gokim Tagle, Pro-Prefect of the Dicastery for EvangelizationThe Chinese language version of these remarks, delivered a few days ago at the presentation of a book in Chinese titled "The Magisterium of Pope Francis. A guide to reading his Encyclicals and Apostolic Exhortations." (教宗方济各牧职训导 - 宗座通谕及劝谕阅读指南) born within the framework of the magazine "La Civiltà CattolicaThe "The World of the Catholic Church" on the occasion of the tenth anniversary of Bergoglio's pontificate and edited by its director, Antonio Spadaro, SJ.

The aim of the publication is to transmit the richness of this Magisterium to bishops, priests, catechists and those who pastorally guide the Catholic communities of the great Asian nation.

"It will be received as a very welcome gift, which comes at the right time," said Cardinal Tagle, who in his speech also thanked the great work carried out over the years by the Fides Agency -which belongs to the Dicastery he directs, and which publishes weekly news on China from dozens of parishes in communion with the universal Church.

Welcoming from afar

Among the examples of this communion and adherence to the Pontiff, Cardinal Tagle cited in his speech the important mobilization of small Chinese communities for the Year of the Eucharist proclaimed in 2004 by St. John Paul II; the prayers for the beginning of the pontificate of his successor Benedict XVI; the impressive series of initiatives carried out for the special Year dedicated to the Apostle Paul (2008) or the subsequent Year for Priests, Year of Faith, etc.

With Pope Francis, Cardinal Tagle emphasized the Special Holy Year of MercyThe Pope said: "Many people went through the Holy Doors of the cathedrals. And many bishops published pastoral letters to revive the words of Pope Francis on mercy". But also the daily closeness of the Holy Father during the hard months of the pandemic: "groups of young Chinese Catholics, with their digital skills, managed to get images of the Pope's Masses into homes, along with simultaneous Chinese translations of his homilies."

Returning to the texts of the magisterial production of the current pontiff, now also "annotated" in Chinese, according to Tagle, they find "great resonance in the present condition of Chinese Catholics", precisely because Francis, besides pointing out the sources and treasures of the faith and offering pastoral and spiritual suggestions, "offers words of wisdom even in the face of the problems, trials and sufferings that affect the entire human family".

The specifics of each document

For example, thinking concretely of Chinese Catholics, from the Exhortation Evangelii gaudium four principles for social life emerge here (time superior to space, unity prevailing over conflict; reality more important than the idea and the whole superior to space), which according to the Pro-Prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization are ideal for "enlightening and comforting the journey of Chinese Catholics in recent decades, even in the most difficult and painful passages".

The same applies to Amoris laetitiawhere, although values rooted in tradition (virtuous practices, filial love, respect for the elderly) remain among the people, "today they are undermined by the disintegration linked to models of development totally conditioned by economic interests," Cardinal Tagle stressed.

– Supernatural Gaudete ed ExultateThe Pope's message, with its universal call to holiness, can also be a tribute to those who in recent decades have guarded and transmitted the treasure of the faith from person to person and between generations: "people who witnessed and witness to their faith not with great proclamations or great events, but with simplicity, through the power of the sacraments, amid the problems of daily life, beginning precisely with family life".

China, as we know, is also not exempt from the serious environmental crisis with its consequent extreme ecological problems, and here too come to the "rescue" documents such as Laudato si' and Dear Amazonia, which are a real warning to take care of the future, rebalancing the excessive predominance of economic development alone.

Finally, Fratelli tutti, with all its load of "solutions" to the crisis and to the conflicts between men - which unfortunately persist (wars, culture of waste, xenophobia, slavery...) - and, in particular, to dissipate all those clouds of a possible confrontation between the West and China of which political analysts speak so much.

Welcome, then, are the occasions when we can foster greater mutual understanding and enable the Church to reach out with her message of hope to all those cultures that have shown themselves to be well prepared to welcome it and incorporate it into daily life.

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Christian Bobin. The immobile traveler

Christian Bobin is one of those writers who should be reread from time to time. Surprising for his ability to show the brighter side of reality, Bobin is capable of making us see that everyday life is the most prodigious and fruitful thing that one can contemplate and be grateful for, something so within the reach of anyone.

Carmelo Guillén-May 22, 2023-Reading time: 5 minutes

Practically confined to his native village, Le Creusot, Christian Bobin shows himself in his literary trajectory as an immobile traveler, stationed in a specific enclave, in the manner of the American poet Emily DickinsonHe was so much admired by her that it has become known her inclination to be alone. Without internet, without computer -that is what is said about him-, books have been his great and faithful friends. Prisoner in the cradle (2005) tells of his childhood: "Every summer I spent locked up at home, walking through the cloister of readings, enjoying the miraculous freshness of this or that phrase. When I wanted to go out, an angel would close the door. I gave up my project and returned to my room. The angel took my life away from me. I found it again in books". And it is in this space of solitude where the very young poet bursts into existence, finding not only in books, but in the neighboring nature, his territories of intimacy.

Contemplative as the most, the exquisiteness of his prose, the meticulousness of his descriptions and his inner refinement make it possible for him to be considered as an outstanding author. No one like him makes it possible for everyday life to be so enriching, so astonishing, so overwhelming, because, as he writes: "You can only see well on condition that you do not seek your own interest in what you see.". Or as the poet Jesús Montiel, a great enthusiast of his work, expressed it, Bibon tries to put into practice the motto of the Dominican saint Thomas Aquinas contemplata aliis traderethat is, to give to others what has been contemplated, because writing is for this French author a way of going out of oneself: "I write to get out of myself".

Literary motifs

Many of his literary motifs arise from what he experiences daily, continuous and insignificant discoveries in all cases: the contemplation of the clouds, the encounter with wild flowers, the flight of a butterfly, the flight of sparrows..., revelations, in short, that lead him to think that nothing is hidden and that "...nothing is hidden.everything is within our reach". It is worthwhile, therefore, to record one of the many descriptions he makes: "...".The rose bush that shivers under the kitchen window [...], the acacias [...], the magnolia [...] that falls asleep and wakes up with the song of the turtledoves and the lime tree in front of my window, whose green sparkles burst on the page of the book I read, are all part of my family and, although rooted forever where they are, their leaves, inside my heart that loves them, touch and speak to each other"This is a sublime text, like so many others, in which he expresses the immensity of life that he absorbs from nature itself in its original simplicity. However, his contemplative capacity does not end here; it extends much further:"There are islands of light in the middle of the day. Pure, fresh, silent, immediate islands. Only love knows how to find them".

It is very clear where the root of this discovering gaze lies: "Beauty comes from love, love comes from attention. Simple attention to the simple, humble attention to the humble, living attention to all life". Metaphysics of the goodwhich, if we go deeper, the author inescapably settles on God: "If God is not in our love stories, then our stories become clouded, crumble and sink. It is not essential that God be named. It is not even essential that those who love each other know his name: it is enough that they meet in heaven on this earth." In that God who recalls that of St. Teresa of Jesus, who, without needing to allude to him, saw him among the pots and pans; the same God that Bobin announces when he speaks of his father: "...".My father's daily life spoke enough of God without the need to name him."or to the one who finds in everything: "I have found God in the lagoons, in the perfume of the honeysuckle, in the purity of some books and even in atheists".

Undoubtedly, it is in this thematic framework that Bobin's gaze is perceived, always at the service of the intrinsic beauty of reality itself, to the point that the quality of beauty provides him with a unique experience of goodness, of integrity, based on what he attentively observes without, on any occasion, resorting to moralisms to justify his literary texts. Beauty in itself attracts him, shocks him and elevates him to a rapturous way of knowing the truth of the world: "Fifteen seconds of purity here, ten seconds more there: with a little luck, when I leave my life, there will have been enough purity in it to complete an hour." And it is that: "The day we allow ourselves a little kindness is a day that death will no longer be able to tear off the calendar." idea that he assimilated from his father: "Watching my father live I learned what goodness was, and that it was the only reality we could ever find in this unreal life." To conclude: "Everything I know about heaven comes from the amazement I experience before the inexplicable goodness of this or that person, illuminated by a word or a gesture so pure that the fact that there is nothing in the world that can be its source suddenly imposes itself before me".

Death

There are many other possible threads that could be unraveled from the poetic thought of Christian Bobin. I focus, to conclude in some way, on an extremely explicit one -that of death-, which is very much alive in one of his publications, the book Resurrectin which, with that poetic, diaphanous and tense prose that characterizes him, he develops a series of considerations based on the death of his father, after suffering from Alzheimer's disease. As Víctor Herrera de Miguel points out, in a very beautiful article entitled The gift of receiving. The open pupil by Christian Bobin: "The exit door of existence is, in Bobin's poetics, the threshold of life: it happens that when life loses its horizontal expansion, a new verticality emerges. In his work he frequently engages in dialogue with the dead, to whom he interpellates and narrates the world, with whom he feels he is on the way.". In order to appreciate this splendorous presence of death, it is necessary to point out that, in Bobin, its eulogy entails a hymn to life. This explains why he writes phrases such as: "Death is a gift of life".Death perfects his work" o "His death [his father's] had suddenly come to comfort him" or, finally: "Love for the dead is the most luminous thing there can be". And, as Montiel, quoted above, states: "Bobin approaches the issue of death and illness from a perspective diametrically opposed to that of contemporary literature: rather than as a random event or a cause for pique, [as] an opportunity for growth or the possibility of transcendence....". In fact, with regard to the work of mercy of visiting the sick, he says: "Visiting a sick person is the most extraordinary journey one can make in life.".

Coda

At this point, I finally leave the door open so that the reader - from this approach to Bobin's work - can take a look at any of his books, true wells of light, in which he will find the nakedness of one who looks at God and realizes that "...".the only real thing in this life is the heart".

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