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THURSDAY February 10, 2000 vol. 11, no. 29 SECTION THREESee why so many consider the Daily CATHOLIC as the "USA Today for CATHOLICS!"
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The Holy Father illustrated Wednesday's the intricate link of the Jubilee with history in respect to the Holy Trinity and God's great love for His creation - mankind. For the full text, see today's VICAR OF CHRIST SPEAKS. He spoke to over 13,000 of not only the Catholic Faith but other persuasions as well under balmy weather conditions for this time of year in Rome. Because of the vast crowds during this Jubilee year, many venues scheduled for Paul VI Hall such as the Pope's weekly Audience have been moved to St. Peter's to accommodate the overflow. continued inside.
VATICAN CITY, FEB 9 (ZENIT).- The Jubilee aims to help all men and women
to discover the "secret and effective presence" of God in history, so
that all will be able to hope for a "new, more authentically Christian
and human world," explained the Holy Father in this week's catechesis.
Some 13 thousand faithful from fifteen countries gathered in St. Peter's
Square today to hear the Pope's traditional Wednesday Audience. Among
those present was a group of American Baptists from Wisconsin,
representatives of Tamil Indians, and numerous Pentecostal African
American Bishops who traveled to Rome with the explicit desire to better
understand the role and work of the Holy See.
The Pope delved into the most beautiful passages of the Old and New
Testament that reveal the tenderness and affection of God for humanity,
concluding that "by the light of the Father, the Son, and the Spirit,
history ceases to be a succession of events dissolved in the chasm of
the dead, but becomes fertile ground for the seeds of eternity, a path
that brings us to that sublime destination in which 'God may be all in
all.' "
The theme of the Pope's meeting with the faithful, "The Glory of the
Trinity in History," constituted another chapter in a series of
meditations about the Mystery of Christian mysteries, the Triune God,
which the Holy Father has chosen for this Jubilee year 2000.
And so, the Holy Spirit "not only unveils the sense of history, but imparts the strength to collaborate in the divine project that is accomplished in it," according to the Pope.
Also in St. Peter's Square today were numerous sick people, who have come to Rome to participate in their Jubilee, which will begin tomorrow and end on Sunday. The Pope implored for them the "consolation and hope" of our Lady of Lourdes. Given the large numbers of pilgrims participating in the Audiences during the Holy Year 2000, they are being held outside, and not in the Audience Hall of Paul VI. Today the skies were gray, but the temperature was quite pleasant for a Roman winter morning. ZE00020908
Having passed his 80th birthday a month a little less than a month ago, New York's Archbishop Cardinal John J. O'Connor made what is possibly his last trip to Rome in what many are calling his "farewell tour" as he met with fellow colleagues in the Curia and the Holy Father, thanking the Pope for all that he has done. The Vicar of Christ extended his mutual appreciation for this orthodox, loyal cardinal who has been one of the stalwarts of the conservative movement in the United States. continued inside.
VATICAN (CWNews.com) - Cardinal John O'Connor of New York
came to the Vatican today for a "farewell tour" according
to a report in The Associated Press.
The cardinal turned 80 last month and is recovering from
brain surgery last August to remove a tumor. He has already
served five years past the mandatory retirement age of 75
and is preparing to leave his office permanently, pending
appointment of a successor by Pope John Paul II.
"It's a personal trip to say thanks and goodbye," his
secretary, Monsignor Gregory Mustaciuolo, told The
Associated Press. He said the cardinal wanted to thank the
Holy Father "for all he has done for him" and bid farewell
to other Vatican officials. He said the cardinal will
return to New York either Friday or Saturday.
A special Jubilee convention for Health Care Workers from around the world opened yesterday at the Vatican, tying in with the Jubilee observation this weekend of World Weekend for the Sick in conjunction with the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes on Friday. The emphasis is in placing Jesus in the center of all medical care in treating His children. The special two-day seminar leading up to this weekend's events is being sponsored by the Pontifical Council for Pastoral Care of Health Care Workers.
continued inside.
VATICAN CITY, FEB 9 (ZENIT). - The celebrations for the Jubilee of the
Sick, which officially begin tomorrow and will end next Sunday, were
preceded by with a convention of prayer and reflection for Catholic
Health care workers from all over the world. The purpose was to help
these professionals rediscover their own "identity" in their field as
Christians and also to help them understand the "challenges" that the
medical profession puts for them at the beginning of the Third
Millennium.
Archbishop Javier Lozano, President of the Pontifical Council for
Pastoral Assistance to Health Care Workers, in his opening remarks,
stressed the necessity that exists for the doctor, nurse, or pharmacist
that calls himself a Christian, "to put Christ at the center of
medicine, with all its meanings."
Faced by the "globalizing" tendency in health care to treat its problems
only under the economic viewpoint, "we propose," affirmed Archbishop
Barragan, "a new model for practicing medicine, that has Christ as its
goal, as its end, as its only horizon." In front of a world, he added,
that often sees it harmony destroyed, the response cannot but be
fundamental Christian solidarity.
Later, those participating in the convention were divided into four
groups (Bishops in health care ministries, doctors, nurses, and
pharmacists) in order to discuss their identity and the challenges
created by the reality of today's world. Today in the afternoon, they
began to share their reflections with the whole group.
Professor Di Virgilio, alluding to the many advances in bioengineering,
reminded the audience of an old saying, "Not all that can be done,
should be done." "Faith and the Church are not an obstacle to
technological and scientific advances. The Holy Father repeats this
continually. But it means that scientific progress cannot be like a
river that overflows its banks. It needs a guide. Any progress
directed to the good and to the excellence of man's life is welcome."
Sister Bertilla Lavacone, director of the professional nursing school of
St. John's Hospital in Rome, said, "We see that suffering is the most
dominating aspect in a hospital. People speaks of their own suffering,
of their own disease. Some speak of their own misery. I have learned
that people do not ask for anything, but expect much, especially from us
who care for him. We religious, offer professionalism, but most of all
that spirit of sacrifice that allows us to be with them. A smile is a
good thing, but what is important is to put yourself in their place, to
understand their loneliness. Often they are abandoned to their luck, at
that point we must intervene, here is where suffering is most painful."
Sister Anabel Mamon, a Philippine student of Sister Bertilla, added, "We
are specifically trained in order to assist the ailing, and on the
sickbed we see Christ crucified. The sick person does not need lots of
words or discourses. Treatments and technology are a good thing, but if
the ailing person is left alone, even having the technologies, he
remains a lonely patient. What does this person seek? He looks for
somone that will understand him, to be at his side, to help him at that
moment. We also receive much in offering our help -- we learn to give
ourselves."
ZE00020909
A truly universal presence was made evident in Bethlehem yesterday when the first synod every held by the Catholic Church in the Holy Land opened with representation from all the eastern rites in union with Rome and the western rite as well. The five day event, hosted by Latin Patriarch Michael Sabbah of Jerusalem is intended to delve into apostolic options for Catholics in the Holy Land, greater communication between the various churches and pave the way for the Holy Father's visit in about six weeks. continued inside.
BETHLEHEM, 9 (NE) The first synod ever held by the Catholic
Church in the Holy Land began yesterday in Bethlehem, gathering
representatives from the different Catholic rites from Israel,
the Palestinian areas, Jordan and Cyprus. More than 300 bishops,
priests, religious and lay people inaugurated this important
Church event in the city where the Lord Jesus was born 2000
years ago. Those gathered will reflect on the different
apostolic plans to encourage the life of Catholics in the Holy
Land, a minority often subject to pressures and attacks.
The Synod will last five days. "It is the first time that we
have this synod since the beginning of our existence as
Christians in this land," emphasized the Latin Patriarch of
Jerusalem, Michel Sabbah, before the opening ceremony.
Representatives of the Latin, Greek, Maronite, Syrian, Armenian
and Chaldean rites were present in the event. The gathering of
Catholics in the Holy Land is expected to be an important moment
to decide several action guidelines for the next years.
Patriarch Sabbah informed as well that Pope John Paul II will
present during his visit to the Holy Land the final document for
the pastoral plan that will be elaborated to encourage the life
of the Church in this region. The meeting will also be a good
moment to reflect on the preparation for the future pilgrimage
of the Holy Father to the Holy Land.
Should we be surprised that Richard McBrien, who is an ordained priest but refuses to wear the collar and doesn't want to be called "Father," and is currently still on the faculty of the Theology Department of Notre Dame University is rejecting the Holy Father's Ex Corde Ecclesia? It is no secret he is one of the leading voices of the dissident modernist movement and, as Pat Ludwa points out in his column today, a cornered animal will fight back. continued inside.
SOUTH BEND, Indiana (CWNews.com) - A prominent theologian
at the University of Notre Dame said this week that he
expects most of his American colleagues at Catholic
colleges to refuse to ask for teaching mandates from local
bishops as required by new rules.
The US bishops approved new guidelines for implementing the
papal document on Catholic higher education, "Ex Corde
Ecclesia," at their biennial meeting last November. They
were forwarded on to the Vatican which will approve them.
Father Richard McBrien said in the current issue of the
Jesuit magazine America that he believes most Catholic
theologians will follow his lead in refusing to request a
teaching mandate. "I'm simply the first one to come out,"
he said. He added that the plan will be unworkable if
tenured professors refuse to seek a mandate. Father McBrien
is an outspoken critic of Pope John Paul II and his pastoral
initiatives.
Some Catholic academics support the plan. Father Michael
Scanlan of Franciscan University of Steubenville, Ohio, has
said the Ex Corde guidelines allow the nation's 235-Catholic
colleges and universities to more clearly project their
Catholic identity.
To do anything he can to keep the peace accord alive, the Bishop of Derry Bishop Seamus Hegarty has offered to oversee and safeguard the weapons cache of the IRA for a year's time. The IRA has until now been insistant that by turning in their guns fear would spread further for they would be vulnerable to attacks by the Protestant Orange factions. continued inside.
BELFAST (CWNews.com) - Bishop Seamus Hegarty of Derry has
offered to personally accept arms from the Irish Republican
Army in an attempt to end the deadlock over the
decommissioning of weapons which has created a stumbling
block in Northern Ireland's peace process.
In a statement published in the Belfast-based Irish News
newspaper, the bishop has said that he was ready to act as
a guarantor and supervisor for the safekeeping of a
quantity of weapons. Bishop Hegarty, 60, said he has taken
the initiative "to allow time and space for the political
process to develop."
Acting with the agreement of the Primate of All-Ireland,
Archbishop Sean Brady, Bishop Hegarty said he is willing to
act as guarantor for the safekeeping of a quantity of
weapons for a 12-month period, on the clear understanding
that they would be put beyond use by the international
decommissioning body headed by General de Chastelain. But
he stresses he will not enter into political negotiations
on the details or substance of the initiative.
"I am prepared to act as guarantor and supervisor for the
safekeeping of a quantity of weapons of war on the clear
understanding that, under the auspices of General de
Chastelain, they will put beyond use," he said. "I would do
this for a 12-month period starting immediately."
Slowly but surely the Pope's recent episcopal appointments in Mexico, especially San Cristobal, has strengthened the Church and weakened liberation theology to such an extent that the people are abandoning it in droves in opting for the spiritual over the political. continued inside.
SAN CRISTÓBAL, MEXICO, FEB 9 (ZENIT).- Recent changes in the leadership
of Mexican dioceses have put the future of "liberation theology" in
question. The movement, largely fueled by European intellectuals, is
faltering throughout the Americas, but some enclaves hang onto its
doctrines.
The local Church in San Cristóbal de las Casas, in Chiapas, has been one
of the strongest proponents of this theory, which is characterized by a
radical option for the poor, often to the point of encouraging violent
uprisings. However, with the retirement of Bishop Samuel Ruiz García,
the Holy Father has chosen not to permit his Coadjutor Bishop to succeed
him, instead transferring Bishop Raúl Vera López to the diocese of
Saltillo. Some see this as a sign that this local Church will now move
closer to John Paul II's advocacy for the poor, without rhetoric of
class struggle and armed revolution.
Instead of tending to their flock, stated a Catholic doctor on condition of anonymity, "most of the priests and catechists in the diocese teach the people about the revolution and that they can take from the rich what they themselves don't have, even by violent means."
The diocese has been so firmly entrenched in its policies that the new movements have not been permitted to enter. Bernardo Cantu of the Cursillos movement stated, "We were not allowed to enter the Diocese of San Cristóbal, because the bishops said that the only thing that works there is their own base communities."
The Vicar General of the diocese, Fr. Felipe Toussaint, however, claimed that movements are only denied entrance if they refuse to work in "close coordination" with the diocese and the parishes. He added that many of the new movements want to create a "parallel Church."
Another priest, Fr. Luis Beltran Mijangos, said he was suspended "for not supporting the Zapatista guerillas and for providing the sacraments to those humble peasants who oppose the highly ideological pastoral approach of the diocese."
The National Catholic Register's article notes, however, that many of the faithful are pleased by the Vatican's decision. "We were absolutely discouraged with the idea of waiting for another 20 years," said Ana María Rivera. "But now we realize that the Holy Father has not forgotten us... We are now expecting a new springtime for the Church in San Cristóbal." ZE00020920
