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If you think it's been crowded so far in Rome, consider the last weekend of April for on back to back days will be the canonization of Blessed Sister Faustina on Sunday, April 30th and the next day a huge celebration with over 200,000 workers from around the world for the Feast of Saint Joseph the Worker, which will be climaxed by a special Mass by the Holy Father on Monday, May 1st. During this two day festival, even the labor unions in Italy will participate and John Paul II knows well the meaning of this weekend with the crowning glory of this Polish nun he labored so long to promote and his own labors in the stone quarries of Zakrzowek and the ovens of Solivay in Borek Falecki in Poland during his earlier days. After the Monday Mass the Pope will hold a special meeting with international labor leaders.continued inside
VATICAN CITY, APR 14 (ZENIT).- "Work for All: The Road to Solidarity and
Justice," is the slogan for the Jubilee of the labor world, which will
be held in Rome on May 1. When presenting the program for this special
day, Cardinal Roger Etchegaray, president of the Central Committee of
the Great Jubilee, acknowledged that what is most worrying today is not
so much human working conditions, but the unemployed, because
unemployment amputates us from our own personalities. "And those wounded
by the modern economy are very numerous," he added.
On May 1, there will be an unprecedented feast in Rome, which will
include all Italian labor unions, on the same day as their annual
holiday. "The participation of this Pope, who came out of the stone
quarries of Zakrzowek and of the ovens of Solvay in Borek Falecki and
afterwards Nowa Huta... will give this meeting a Jubilee dimension for
the whole Church and the whole of humanity," the Cardinal explained.
The Workers' Jubilee will begin on April 30 at night, with a Prayer Vigil in the Basilica of St. John Lateran. The impressive meeting will take place the following day, with over 200,000 workers beginning to arrive in Tor Vergata in the early hours of the morning. Among them will be men and women who have positions of responsibility in different areas of labor at the world level: entrepreneurs, labor unionists, leaders of workers' associations, leaders of the financial world, and of cooperation and business. Although the majority will be Italian, including communist unions, workers' representatives from all countries of the world will be in Rome on May 1.
Next on the program is a musical recital by tenor Andrea Bocelli, who will sing the Jubilee Hymn and several compositions of sacred music, accompanied by the choir and orchestra of the Academy of St. Cecilia, directed by maestro Myung-Whun-Chung.
Later, the Pontiff will give a message to the world of labor and will be greeted by a delegation from various categories of the working world. The meeting will end with the song "Life Is Beautiful."
The Estonian prelate of Belarus who has seen his share of prison time under the KGB is digging in and ordering Father Zbigniew Karolyak to remain in his parish in the western Belarusian town of Brest. The priest is of Polis origin and his visa had not been renewed, and the government is fining Fr. Karolyak each day he remains in Belarus but if he leaves the people will be without a priest. Thus the cardinal insists he stay. continued inside
MINSK (CWNews.com) - One hour before Friday's deadline, by
which he was due to leave Belarus, Catholic priest Father
Zbigniew Karolyak said the head of the Catholic Church in
the country, Cardinal Kazimierz Swiatek, has ordered him to
defy the government expulsion order and remain in his parish
in the western Belarusian town of Brest.
"Cardinal Swiatek told me that I remain, as before, priest
of the parish of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. So I
must stay in the parish," he said. The Belarusian
government had ordered the Polish priest to leave the
country on Thursday after refusing to extend his visa which
expired in March. At a hearing, Father Karolyak was fined
and a deportation stamp was placed in his passport.
The priest's lawyer, Igor Kabalik, said that since the
cardinal has issued the instruction to Father Karolyak to
remain to serve his parish, the priest will not comply with
the expulsion order. Kabalik believes that given Father
Karolyak's decision to comply with his cardinal's
instructions and remain, the authorities will forcibly
deport him once the deadline has expired. Kabalik said some
half a dozen parishioners at a time are mounting a guard
outside Father Karolyak's home in an attempt to defend him.
Father Karolyak added that the parishioners will stay all
night in the parish church.
The police chief of the Leninsky district of Brest, Arkady
Kostyuchik, fined Father Karolyak, who is a Polish citizen,
44,000 rubles (just over $50) on Thursday for remaining in
Belarus without permission. Kostyuchik also issued the
order for him to leave the country and the deportation
order was stamped in his passport. The parish is contesting
this decision and Kabalik said: "We have already lodged an
appeal with the police."
Under canon law, a priest is named to a parish by his
bishop and is to exercise that responsibility until the
bishop relieves him of it. Father Karolyak has served as
priest of the parish for nine years, despite the persistent
attempts of the local authorities to remove him. Father
Karolyak said there had been "great pressure" on the parish
from the authorities.
The Belarusian government has waged a campaign in recent
years against Polish priests who they consider a
destabilizing force in the mainly Russian Orthodox country.
Russian historian Evghenjia Tokareva has released a monograph of "Fascism, the Church, and the Catholic Movement in Italy" published by the Institute of World History. In this monograph there appears a letter dated January 1941 in which Pope Pius XII addresses a letter to Germany strongly protesting the arrest and deportation of 40,000 Jews. This adds to the countless other testimonies which clearly show Pius XII did all he could to help the Jews threatened by the horrible holocaust. continued inside.
ROME, APR 14 (ZENIT.org).- Russian historian Evghenjia Tokareva, author
of the first Russian monograph on "Fascism, the Church, and the Catholic
Movement in Italy (1922-1943)," published by the Institute of World
History of the Russian Academy of Sciences, said that in "January 1941,
Pius XII was ready to address a letter to Germany, to be published in
L'Osservatore Romano, with a strong protest for the arrest and
deportation of 40,000 Jews to 'lagers,' but he burnt it, explaining that
the protests he expressed before caused very harsh reprisals."
During an interview with the Italian weekly newspaper "Tempi" ("Times"),
Tokareva said that in 1943 there were 2,644 priests from 24 countries
registered in Dachau. In 1941, under threats from Goebbels, Vatican
Radio was obliged to suspend its transmissions for the same reason. Just
listening to these was cause for persecution. To name the Catholics and
Jews who were arrested or deported was a sure way of eliciting even
worse consequences. Moreover, "information on the genocide of Jews was
very limited. The Vatican could not even contact Poland, which was
invaded. On innumerable occasions Nuncio Orsenigo requested
permission... to go there, but not one possibility opened," the Russian
historian said.
ZE00041401
As if Fidel Castro doesn't have enough pr headaches with the Elian Gonzalez situation, now comes word that Dr. Oscar Elias Biscet, a man Castro had imprisoned as a political prisoner, has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts in defending the human rights of Cubans, including the unborn. Biscet, a staunch Catholic, founded the Lawton Society for the Defense of Human Rights. Now the problem is confirmation which has not yet come from Castro's regime.
continued inside.
HAVANA (CWNews.com) - The most influential leaders of the
Cuban dissident movement agreed yesterday to nominate Dr.
Oscar Elias Biscet for the Nobel Peace Prize for his
efforts in defending human rights of Cubans, including the
unborn.
Biscet, founder of the Lawton Society for the Defense of
Human Rights, was sentenced in March to three years in
prison after he lead several protests against abortion and
the death penalty.
The committee created to promote Biscet's candidacy for the
peace prize, includes the most prominent leaders of
dissident organizations including as Elizardo Sanchez,
Jesus Yanez, Maria de los Angeles Melendez, and Carlos
Alberto Dominguez.
Dominguez, head of the illegal "Democratic Party," claimed
that "Biscet has become a figure similar to Mahatma Ghandi
in Cuba, because of the power of his convictions and his
absolutely peaceful means."
The committee has sent a letter to the leaders of the
"Group of 77" gathered in Havana, asking them to support
Biscet's candidacy despite "the censorship of the Cuban
government which will not allow you to see for yourselves
the lack of political and civil rights suffered by the
people of Cuba."
Speaking at the Vatican to students and faculty from Sacred Heart Catholic University campuses in various parts of Italy, Pope John Paul II stressed again and again that the Doctrine, Dogmas and Teachings of Holy Mother Church must not be compromised as he called for all Catholic Universities to measure up to the very name they proclaim: Catholic! While he was speaking to Italians, his main target is really many Catholic universities and educators in America where liberal professors and administrators have been openly defiant. continued inside.
VATICAN CITY, 14 (NE) Pope John Paul II received yesterday
participants in the Jubilee of Sacred Heart Catholic University,
coming from the university's bases in Milan, Rome, Brescia and
Piacenza. The pilgrimage falls on the 40th anniversary of the
death of its founder, Fr. Agostino Gemelli, and on the 80th
anniversary of the foundation of the university in December
1920.
Addressing professors and students from the university, the Holy
Father recalled the Apostolic Constitution "Ex corde Ecclesiae"
-directed to Catholic universities-, stating that "university
pastoral is that activity from the University which offers to
the members of the community the opportunity to coordinate
academic studies and 'para-academic' activities with religious
and moral values, integrating faith and life."
Afterwards, the Pope stressed that "the Christian scholar,
professor and student, distinguishes himself for his capacity to
combine the rigorousness of scientific investigation with the
certainty of faith in Jesus Christ, Eternal Word of God, who is
the Truth in its fullest sense."
Conversions to Catholicism in France are on the rise as evident by the number of converts to be received into the Church during the solemn celebrations of Easter. The reason is that the French people are returning to their spiritual roots and turning back to God in their search. Many who dropped out years ago are returning now because of what was missing in their life. Also returning are playgoers to the play "Jesus, the Resurrection" in Paris' Sports Palace which is a sequel to the play "His Name Was Jesus." The new play, like the first, is gaining rave reviews from audiences and critics alike and will play through July.continued inside.
PARIS, APR 13 (ZENIT.org).- Close to 2,500 adults will be baptized in
France this Easter, according to the catechumen service of the Catholic
Church in France. At present some 9,500 adults convert to Catholicism
every year, a figure that has doubled over the past decade.
According to data given by the dioceses, 80% of those who will be
baptized are between 18 and 40 years of age. They come from all social
classes, including government employees and persons with an unknown
address. About 30% are of humble origin, and 11% live in precarious
circumstances. The majority of adult catechumens (79%) did not belong to
another religion.
"They are people searching for God. Many are children of '68 who are
seeking a spiritual dimension," stated Fr. Dominique Sentucq, the
director of the catechumen service of the French Church.
Meanwhile in Paris, nine years after his colossal "His Name Was
Jesus," Robert Hossein has again won the applause of public and critics
alike with his drama "Jesus, the Resurrection," which is playing in the
Sports Palace to 5,000-capacity audiences. The play will run until July
16.
Hossein, a convert to Christianity after achieving professional success,
is both producer and director of the new work. His collaborator in
writing the script is French historian and academic Alain Decaux. Both
hoped to repeat their success with a work dedicated to Christ. In 1991
Hossein presented "His Name Was Jesus," a gigantic remake of the
grandiose "A Man Called Jesus," performed in 1984. Its 700,000
spectators made it the greatest box office success in the history of
French theater.
Over the past two decades, Hossein and Decaux, who have become close
friends, have given the public a series of works inspired in historical
personages or literary masterpieces, including "Rasputin," "Les
Miserables," "The Hunchback of Notre Dame," "Danton and Robespierre."
Last year, the play "De Gaulle, the Man who Said No," played for 6
months.
"With Robert I share a common faith in God and man; what is more, the figure of Christ is more contemporary than ever," historian Decaux added.
Hossein concurred. "His currency needs no emphasizing. Jesus is the man who identifies with the victims of all the tragedies of our time."
In contrast to the previous works on Christ, this time Hossein's stage design is much more sober. He does not need to take recourse to extraordinary special effects. There are no projections on gigantic screens. The technical prowess is discreet. But Hossein retains his very singular aesthetic outlook. He tries to reconstruct sacred Medieval representations, with dashes of 70s hippie imagination, which have characterized his creativity. If the spectator accepts this world, he will experience very powerful moments.
In one scene, a young woman wends her way slowly down a mountain, resting her hand gently on her abdomen: it is Mary, silently following Joseph. Behind them, three crosses rise in the distance, while the lighting transforms the caves into Bethlehem's streets. The couple disappears behind a door; night descends. The scenes succeed one another, like choreographic pictures inspired in the paintings of Italian Renaissance masters, or early Flemings, but especially Salvador Dalí.
There have been two criticisms of the drama, however. A certain coldness in Jesus, played by 6 foot 3 inch tall Georges Ichenko, an impassible Swede with a blond beard and long hair. At all times there is an ethereal air about him. The only moment of tenderness is when he turns to the paralytic, one of the highlights of the "pičce." This would seem to be the director's response to contemporary representations of a very human Christ, like the latest television production, "Jesus."
Another criticism of the drama is the recourse to surprise effects, already used in previous Hossein productions, which were in part the reason for his success. As, for example, the trick of mixing actors with the public, so that during the miracle of the loaves and fishes, they distribute half a loaf of bread to a number of spectators. Or the fictitious interval when a very human Jesus expels the ice cream and Coca-Cola vendors from the Parisian figure-skating temple.
The impression is that Hossein is not keen on innovation. He limits himself to removing all that is superfluous and retains those elements that are necessary to witness to his faith. The result is a sort of personal catechism, which attests to the Resurrection as Jesus among us.
When the performances end in Paris in July, the producers hope to take the play to Rome for the World Youth Day, scheduled for mid-August. ZE00041420 and ZE00041308
Speaking of plays, there is none better than one that will cleanse the soul and Bishop John J. Myers of the Diocese of Peoria, Illinois has called its recent "Weekend Reconciliation" a huge success. On one night more than 3,000 Catholics attended penance services in 14 regional churches. This same occurrence is happening in various dioceses throughout the country and the world in preparation for the Easter Triduum and Easter and, like in France, fruits are being realized with many fallen-away and lapsed Catholics coming home at last! continued inside.
PEORIA, 14 (NE) Continuing with an initiative of different US
dioceses, a "Weekend of Reconciliation" has also taken place in
the Diocese of Peoria, Ill., and has been greatly attended by
Catholic faithful. "It was a moment of grace and homecoming,"
stated Bishop John J. Myers of Peoria, commenting the event. On
Friday night alone, more than 3,000 Catholics reportedly
attended penance services at 14 regional churches in the
diocese.
Other penitential acts in the different parishes of the
diocese took place on Saturday. A similar activity took place
last weekend in the Archdiocese of Newark, NJ, after an intense
three-month campaign to promote the sacrament of confession.
Thousands of American faithful went to the 81 temples selected,
many of them attending confession for the first time in years.
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