Monday thru Friday on the CATHOLIC-INTERNET NETWORK at http://www.catholic-internet.org See why so many consider the Daily CATHOLIC as the "USA Today for CATHOLICS!" e-mail: DailyCatholic@catholic-internet.org

     For events throughout the centuries that are memorable in Church history today, click on TIME CAPSULES: ALL ROADS LEAD TO ROME

Historical Events in Church Annals for June 18:

1155 A.D.


Pope Adrian IV or Hadrian IV, the only English Pope in the history of the pontiffs, crowns Frederick I Barbarossa as Holy Roman Emperor after the German king repented for refusing to hold the bridle of the Pope's mule, a tradition that Frederick broke and Adrian had retaliated by refusing him the kiss of peace at Mass. Though the Pope coronated Frederick, any benevolence between the two soon dissipated and for over a century there would be distrust and intrigue between the German kings and the Holy See.

1164 A.D.


Death of Saint Elizabeth of Schonau, Benedictine abbess who experienced ecstacies, visions, and messages of prophecy. She also suffered greatly from bruises received in confrontations with the devil throughout her life.

1464 A.D.


Pope Pius II becomes the first pope to lead a crusade, but his own personal crusade against Islam and the Koran never materializes as he died two months later, thus ending the last possible chance of an organized crusade. Since it never occurred, it is not included in the list of crusades.

Saint Peter's Tomb getting face lift for Jubilee 2000

     The celebrated Tomb of Saint Peter, Apostle and first Pope - the "Petrus" or "rock" upon which Christ built His One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church - will be a major focal point during the Jubilee 2000 celebration thanks to a restoration process being undertaken to make the tomb, which sits directly in front in the crypt deep below the main altar of St. Peter's Basilica, more accessible and easier to see for the millions of pilgrims expected to pass by it. For more, click on Saint Peter's Tomb.

      VATICAN (CWNews.com) -- A thorough restoration of the tomb of St. Peter, underneath the altar of St. Peter's basilica, is scheduled to be completed by Christmas of 1999. The project has been sponsored by Italy's national electrical utility, ENEL (Ente Nazionale d'Energia Elettrica).

      At a press conference in Rome today, Cardinal Virgilio Noe, whose responsibilities include the buildings of the Holy See, and Franco Tatto of ENEL explained the process of restoration. The goal of the project is to allow better access to the tomb of St. Peter, while at the same time preserving and beautifying the site.

      The first step in the process is to arrest the natural process of decay in the surrounding rock, and installing climate controls to slow that process in the future. The tomb will be illuminated, but the lighting must also be carefully planned to avoid causing any damage.

When the Holy Father visits Austria in a few days, will the hills be alive with the sound of music or dissension?

     Many officials are holding their breath in anticipation of the Holy Father's visit this weekend to Austria for the beatification of three Austrians. But they are not apprehensive about the ceremonies but more the reactions of the people who are divided in their obedience to the Church and the fallout of the former cardinal of Vienna whom the Pope replaced with Cardinal Christoph Schoenborn. For more, click on Austrian visit.

      VATICAN (CWNews.com) -- Pope John Paul II hopes that his upcoming visit to Austria will help to promote "the unity of the Church in truth and love" in that country.

      Along with his usual catechetical talk, the Pope today addressed his weekly public audience in German, speaking about the trip to Austria which he will make this weekend. Vatican Radio has acknowledged that he will encounter a "delicate" situation within the Church there, because of widespread dissent over Church teachings and because of the revelations about child abuse by the former archbishop of Vienna, Cardinal Hans Hermann Groer. The Pope said that he and the Austrian bishops should "work together to overcome the difficulties." And he said that the suffering which the Church has undergone could be a means of spiritual growth.

      Finally, the Pope mentioned the most unmistakably positive aspect of his trip: the beatification of three Austrians, Fathers Anton Maria Schwartz and Jacob Kern, and Sister Restituta Kafka. Those beatifications, the Pope said, were "a sign of the liveliness of the Church in Austria."

Croatia on agenda for Pope in October

     The Vatican announced on Wednesday that the Pope will be traveling to Split in Croatia for the occasion of the city's 1,700th anniversary. He will also beatify Cardinal Alojzije Stepanic, who was imprisoned in communist labor camps. With his announced visit, the speculation arises once more whether the Holy Father will make a helicopter side-trip south to Our Lady's shrine in Medjugorje where he has expressed interest in visiting. For more, click on Croatian Pastoral Visit.

      VATICAN (CWNews.com) -- Pope John Paul II will make a pastoral visit to Croatia in October, highlighted by the beatification of Cardinal Alojzije Stepanic.

      Archbishop Jean-Louis Tauran, the Vatican Secretary for Relations with States, today made the announcement that the Pope would visit Croatia on October 2 - 5. On October 3, he will preside at the beatification ceremonies for Cardinal Stepanic in the Marian sanctuary of Marija Bistrica. That date marks the anniversary of the day in 1946 when Cardinal Stepanic was sentenced to the labor camps by the Communist regime. On the following day the Holy Father will visit Split for the 1,700th anniversary of that city's foundation.

      Archbishop Tauran told Croatians that Pope's visit was designed "to strengthen you to continue to live the Christian life with confidence on Croatian soil, without worrying about the future." Archbishop Ante Juric of Split, in a pastoral message to the people of that archdiocese, said that the papal visit would be "a great gift and grace for us all" and predicted "great spiritual fruits."

Knights of Columbus remain strong bastion of Church and top all organizations in donations

     The Knights of Columbus fraternal order, long considered the last great bastion in the Roman Catholic Church, have topped all other organizations internationally for donations to the Church and her causes. Supreme Commander Virgil Dechant announced that the Knights collected over 107 million dollars in 1997, bringing the total to well over 800 million dollars given away to charities for the Church over the past ten years. Dechant's report also revealed that KC members contributed over 50 million man-hours in time. For more, click on KC generosity.

      NEW HAVEN, Connecticut (CWNews.com) - The Knights of Columbus fraternal order announced on Tuesday that it had donated a record $107.1 million to charity in 1997 and volunteered more than 50 million hours of service to their communities and parishes.

      The 117-year-old Catholic brotherhood, which funds much of its charitable efforts through investing of insurance premiums for members, said more than $88 million was donated to the Catholic Church and charitable causes directly by state and local councils last year, while the remaining $18.9 million was distributed directly by the Supreme Council of the Knights.

      Over the past ten years, the Knights have donated more than $274 million to the Catholic Church through parishes, schools, religious education programs, seminaries, and other projects. Other community and youth charities, including the Special Olympics, have received more than $545 million during the same time frame.

For more headlines and articles, we suggest you go to the Catholic World News site. CWN is not affiliated with the Daily CATHOLIC but provides this service via e-mail to the Daily CATHOLIC Monday through Friday.

To review past articles in textonly format, click on Archives.

Click here to return to SECTION ONE or click here to return to the graphics front page of this issue.

June 18, 1998 volume 9, no. 118   DAILY CATHOLIC