NEWS ABOUT BENEDICT

The Holy Father held the General Audience at St. Peter's Square today and finished his catechesis
on St. Gregory of Nyssa. He also remembered Mother Teresa on the tenth anniverary of her death
today and called her a 'real disciple of Christ', urging her fellow missionaries to continue her work
among the world's poor.
















Pope remembers Mother Teresa,
“true disciple of Christ”


Vatican City, Sept. 5 (AsiaNews) – In today’s audience, the Pope paid tribute to Mother Teresa, on the tenth anniversary of her death and on the Blessed’s liturgical feast day.

“Dear friends, the life and witness of this true disciple of Christ, whose liturgical memory we celebrate today, are an invitation to you and the entire Church to always serve Christ in the poor and the needy. Keep following her example and always be the instrument of Divine Mercy,” Benedict XVI said as he greeted a large group of missionaries, both men and women, and their collaborators.

In a hoarse or as he put it “a bit damaged” voice, for which the Pontiff apologised and for which he received applause, the Pope mentioned the conference on the environment in the Arctic that Bartholomew I, the Ecumenical Orthodox Patriarch of Constantinople, is promoting and which he will open tomorrow.

In English he said: “I wish to greet all the participants, the various religious leaders and scientists. I pledge to them my support for their efforts. Protecting water resources and paying attention to climate change are important issues for the entire human family. Encouraged by the growing concern for the needs of the environment and the necessity to preserve it, I urge all of you to join me in prayer and in the commitment to better respect the wonders of God’s creation.”

In the catechesis, Benedict XVI today focused on some of the teachings of Gregory of Nyssa and his “high” view of man, whose purpose, according to Gregory, was “to make himself similar to God through love.”

“When man loves he works with God to shape himself in the divine image,” he explained. This love is addressed to God, but also to the poor.

“Gregory said that Christ is also present in the poor and for this reason they should never be offended,” he noted.

Benedict XVI also underscored the meaning of the word “Christian” in Gregory of Nyssa’s thoughts. “A Christian is someone who bears the name of Christ and thus should conform himself or herself to Christ. In [carrying] the name Christian we bear a great responsibility.”

“Christians must always closely examine their thoughts, words, actions to see if they are addressed to Christ or if they move away from him...In order to move towards perfection and carry God’s love in oneself, man must turn to God confidently, and find inspiration in the Lord’s Prayer,” he added.

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MOTHER TERESA'S EDITOR-POSTULATOR
PRESENTS HIS BOOK TO THE POPE


The Holy Father greets 2 Missionaries of Charity who are with
Fr. Kolodiejchuk, Mother Teresa's postulate.


Here's a translation of an APCOM item, posted by Lella on her blog:

VATICAN CITY, Sept. 5 (Apcom) - At the end of the general audience today, Pope Benedict XVI greeted Fr. Brian Kolodiejchuk, postulator fot Mother Teresa's canonization and editor of Come Be my Light, a collection of 40-plus letters documenting a half-century of spiritual ordeal.

The letters are part of the documentation put together for the Albanina-born nun's beatification process. She was beatified by John Paul II in 2003 within 6 years of her death in September 1997.

Fr. Kolidiejchuk presented the Pope with a copy of the book, which sold out its initial printing of 60,000 in the English edition, prompting its publisher Doubleday to print 15,000 more. The Italian edition published by Rizzoli comes out on September 26. It also has editions in German, Spanish, French and Chinese.

The Flap about Mother Teresa

The book just released about Mother Teresa's dark night of the soul and the TIME magazine article on it must have really caused an uproar. Various figures at the Vatican and Benedict himself (twice now) have tried to explain Mother Teresa's situation in the light of faith and to calm the fears and concerns of the flock. It is stunning how many articles on this subject have appeared in the media in the past week by religious scholars of various faiths, social commentators, and even atheists. I think our forum now has about 3 pages on the Saints thread full of some of these articles plus a few of our own comments. If anybody reads the book, "Mother Teresa: Come Be My Light," please post your thoughts on the subject. Has anyone seen a copy of the book yet? I think it was supposed to be released somewhere yesterday.

September 5, 2007
Catholic News Agency (www.catholicnewsagency.com)

LONDON (CNA) – Archbishop Vincent Nichols of Birmingham, England, has enthusiastically endorsed Pope Benedict XVI's motu proprio concerning the renewal of the 1962 Latin Mass.

In a speech to the Latin Mass Society in Oxford this last week, the archbishop urged members to "remember that what you study here is not a relic, not a reverting to the past, but part of the living tradition of the church."

"It is, therefore, to be understood and entered into in the light of that living tradition today," he said.

This warm reception of the new motu proprio is far from typical, according to the British papers The Times of London and The Catholic Herald.

Damian Thompson, editor-in-chief of The Catholic Herald, said: “On the whole, the bishops of England and Wales have failed to respond to the pope's deeply inspiring apostolic letter, which liberated the ancient liturgy and offered it as a resource for the whole church. The only bishop who appears to understand the pope's program of liturgical reform and seems prepared to respond to it is the archbishop of Birmingham.”

The archbishop's backing for liturgical renewal has led The Times to speculate that Archbishop Nichols is a prime candidate to succeed Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor, who will hand in his resignation this time next year.

Archbishop Nichols also turned some heads in Rome with his campaigns to improve the way Catholicism is covered by the media. His highest profile effort was the fight against the BBC series "Popetown," which forced the British media giant to withdraw the cartoon series.

The prelate also was able to stop the government to abandon its plans for a non-faith quota of pupils for faith schools.


SOURCE:http://www.catholic.org/international/international_story.php?id=25257

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Sorry, this is an item I was going to post yesterday in NEWS ABOUT THE CHURCH, but I failed to do so because I did not copy it off the Times online when I first saw it. So although it's not really about the Pope, I've decided to piggyback it to Lori's post which refers to it:


Church traditionalist and papal favourite
tipped as new Archbishop of Westminster
Ruth Gledhill, Religion Correspondent
Times of London
Sept. 4, 2007


The Roman Catholic Archbishop of Birmingham has emerged as the front-runner to succeed Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor as Archbishop of Westminster, according to sources in London and Rome.

The Most Rev Vincent Nichols, who was the first English bishop to receive a blessing from Pope Benedict XVI after the Cardinal, is said to have impressed the hierarchy in Rome with a sermon he gave in Oxford last week on traditionalism in the Church.

The Archbishop is on the Church’s conservative wing and is known to be an enthusiastic supporter of the Pope’s campaign for liturgical renewal. He also made the headlines when he stopped a satirical cartoon series about the Vatican from appearing on the BBC. If successful, he will replace Cardinal Murphy-O’Connor this time next year, when the cardinal is expected to stand down.

Archbishop Nichols was among the most enthusiastic English bishops to welcome Pope Benedict’s election. According to Damian Thompson, editor of The Catholic Herald, he is the only bishop in England and Wales to have enthusiastically taken up the Pope’s recent Apostolic Letter on celebrating the Tridentine rite, or extraordinary Mass.

In his speech to the Latin Mass Society in Oxford, Archbishop Nichols said: “Please remember that what you study here is not a relic, not a reverting to the past, but part of the living tradition of the Church. It is, therefore, to be understood and entered into in the light of that living tradition today.”

The Pope believes that the answer to Church growth lies in liturgical renewal and he wants his senior bishops to embrace his reforms. Those in Rome think that the Archbishop has raised the profile of his Birmingham archdiocese, overtaking Liverpool to become the second-most-important archdioceses in the country. Christopher Gillibrand, the conservative Catholic blogger, said: “He’s been playing all his cards right. His chances are good.”

Thompson of The Catholic Herald said: “On the whole, the bishops of England and Wales have failed to respond to the Pope’s deeply inspiring Apostolic Letter, which liberated the ancient liturgy and offered it as a resource for the whole Church. The only bishop who appears to understand the Pope’s programme of liturgical reform and seems prepared to respond to it is the Archbishop of Birmingham.”

The biggest mark against Archbishop Nichols is that he is perceived as ambitious, although his supporters insist that he is ambitious for the Church and for God, not for himself.

Dr Thompson said: “We need someone to close the gap between the real signs of vigorous life in many parishes and the leadership of the Pope. At the moment there is nothing in between.”

Peter Jennings, spokesman for Archbishop Nichols, said of the speculation: “It is the Holy See and not journalists or bookmakers who appoint archbishops. Archbishop Nichols does not discuss the matter of the appointment of a new Archbishop of Westminster with me, nor would I expect him to do so.”

Archbishop Nichols, 61, impressed Rome with his campaigns to improve the way Catholicism is covered by the media. He forced the BBC to withdraw the cartoon series Popetown and the Government to abandon its plans for a nonfaith quota of pupils for faith schools.

In Oxford last week, he chose to use the 1970 “ordinary” rite introduced by Pope Paul VI for the Latin Mass. In Rome this will be interpreted as Archbishop Nichols being true to the Pope’s view that there is really just “one rite” for the Mass, whether in “ordinary” or “extraordinary” form.

A new Archbishop of Westminster on the extreme conservative wing of the Church would be accepted with reluctance by most priests and bishops. But by using the “ordinary” Mass in Latin at the meeting of the Latin Mass Society, Archbishop Nichols showed himself to be sympathetic to traditionalists while at the same time not being their prisoner. Although regarded as a conservative in the context of the English Church, in Rome he would be seen as more of a church diplomat.

The Holy Father with the Syrian Vice President today.


After meeting with Vice President Farouk al-Charaa of Syria at the Vatican this morning, the Holy Father meets in Castel Gandolfo tomorrow with President Shimon Peres of Israel and the Foreign Minister of SAuti Arabia, Prince Saud Al-Faisal Bin Abdul Aziz Al-Saud.

There are opportunities for the Pope to press his advocacy of serious genuine negotiations among all parties concerned in the various crises afflicting the Middle East.

He will probably take up the question of reciprocity in the treatment of Christians within Saudi Arabia.

The communique from the Vatican today on the Pope's meeting with the Syrian vice president said:

"This morning, Farouk al-Charaa, vice-president of the Syrian Arab Republic was received by His Holiness Benedict XVI, to whom he delivered a personal message from Bashar al-Asad, president of Syria. Farouk al-Charaa then went on to meet Archbishop Dominique Mamberti, secretary for Relations with States.

"During the course of the conversation, having highlighted the efforts being made by Syria to receive hundreds of thousands of Iraqi refugees and the assistance expected from multilateral organizations, attention turned to the problems faced by Christians in the country, and to the decisive contribution the Syrian Arab Republic can make to the grave crises affecting many peoples in the Middle East."

Meanwhile, the bilateral talks between the Holy See and the State of Israel resumed Monday with a four-hour session in Jerusalem.

Here is the AsiaNews report:

After the summer pause, negotiations were resumed on Monday, September 3, between the Holy See and the State of Israel. The two Delegations worked about four hours.

At the end of their meeting, they released a Joint Communiqué, which reports that the two Delegations had “carried forward their work", and that they had done so "in an atmosphere of cordiality." It announcef that the next meeting will take place on 7 November.

The main object of the talks is the Common Accord on relations between the Church and State in Israel regarding issues of taxation on material goods and ecclesial property. The treaty, as set out in the Fundamental Accord between the Holy See and Israel signed in 1993, has yet to be implemented.

This session of talks came about on the vigil of a long awaited visit to the Vatican by Israeli President Simon Peres. Peres will have a private audience with Benedict XVI on September 6.

Peres, as Foreign Minister in 1993, drew up the Fundamental Accord and promoted relations with the Holy See. It is hoped by Church authorities in Israel that Peres's visit with the Pope will speed up negotiations.

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CNS has this story about the meeting with the Syrian vice president:



Pope discusses exodus
of Christians from Iraq
with Syrian leader
By John Thavis
Catholic News Service



VATICAN CITY. Sept. 5 (CNS) - Pope Benedict XVI met with Syria's vice president to discuss the exodus of Christian and other refugees from Iraq, many of whom have fled to Syria.

During private audience Sept. 5, Vice President Farouk al-Sharaa gave the pope a personal message from Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad, the Vatican said in a statement.

Later, the Syrian vice president met for separate talks with Archbishop Dominique Mamberti, the Vatican's top foreign affairs expert.

The Vatican said the discussions focused on Syria's efforts to host hundreds of thousands of Iraqi refugees and on Syria's requests for aid from international agencies.

Also on the agenda were the problems and conditions of Christians in Syria and what the Vatican termed the "decisive contribution that Syria can give in order to overcome the serious crises that afflict many populations of the Middle East."

Syria is now home to an estimated 1.5 million Iraqi refugees, and Syrian officials have said the international community has not helped the country to deal with the influx. With at least 30,000 new refugees arriving each month, Syria recently established visa restrictions to limit the number.

Many of those arriving in Syria have been Iraqi Christians who have fled their homeland because of increasing violence and religious discrimination. Humanitarian experts say as many as half of Iraq's Christians, believed to have once numbered more than 1 million, may have left the country since the U.S.-led invasion of 2003.

The pope's meeting with the Syrian vice president came the day before he was scheduled to meet with Israeli President Shimon Peres for talks expected to touch on the Middle East conflicts and the financial and legal status of Catholic organizations in Israel.

Israeli president meets Pope
in first foreign trip




VATICAN CITY, Sept. 6 (AFP) - Shimon Peres had a 35-minute audience with Pope Benedict XVI on Thursday, the Vatican said, in the Israeli President's first overseas trip since being elected in June.

The two men talked about "the suffering of people" in the Middle East, said the Vatican in a statement.

They expressed hope that "in the current international context which seems to be particularly favourable ... each of the parties make every effort to respond to the needs of the people," it added.

Peres reiterated an invitation for the pope to visit Israel, Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi said after the "cordial" talks at the pope's Castel Gandolfo summer residence near Rome.

Israel has issued several invitations for the pope to visit but the Vatican has said this will only be possible when there is lasting peace or at least a solid truce between Israelis and Palestinians.

Peres, who held talks with Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi on his arrival in Italy late Wednesday, met with the Vatican secretary of state Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone after his audience with the pope.


Pope meets Israel's Peres

ROME, Sept. 6 (AP) - Pope Benedict XVI met Thursday with Israeli President Shimon Peres, as the elder statesman and Nobel Peace Prize laureate continued his visit to Italy amid an international push for peace in the Middle East.

The meeting took place in the papal summer retreat of Castel Gandolfo, in the hills south of Rome. The Vatican did not immediately release details of the talks, the first since Peres became president in July.

Peres, holding five days of talks with political and business leaders in Italy, said Wednesday that recent meetings between Israeli and Palestinian leaders and the flurry of diplomatic activity in the Middle East could be the most promising developments yet in efforts to bring peace to the region.

"The overall atmosphere is encouraging," he said after meeting in Rome with Italian Premier Romano Prodi.

Benedict has issued several appeals for peace in the Middle East in recent months.

The Vatican and Israel established diplomatic relations in 1993. However, a long-standing tax dispute has irritated relations between the two sides, and is seen by Israel as the main obstacle to wider cooperation.

The Vatican is seeking ways to lessen its tax burden as one of the significant land owners in the Holy Land and wants access to Israeli courts to handle any quarrels over ownership.

Israel strongly resists giving any special tax exemptions to the Vatican and has offered to create a special panel to oversee property cases involving the Vatican. Israel fears that giving special tax terms to the Vatican could open the door for other churches and groups to seek similar loopholes.

On Thursday, Benedict also met with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud, and a day earlier with the Syrian vice-president, Farouk al-Sharaa.

This weekend Peres travels to an international political and finance conference on Lake Como, which annually gathers world leaders, including statesmen from Arab countries.





The Pope is OK -
hoarseness yesterday
was not due to flu

VATICAN CITY, Sept. 6 (Apcom) - 'No need to be concerned' about the Pope's health, he was a 'bit hoarse' yesterday but 'he is better today," said Fr. Federico Lombardi, Vatican press director, responding to an Austrian headline that said "The Pope will be arriving sick in Austria'.

The Pope leaves tomorrow for a 3-day visit to Austria.

At the general audience yesterday, the Pope himself referred to his hoarseness: "I beg your excuse, my voice is a bit damaged today, but I'll do my best."

The newspaper Oesterreich speculated that the Pope had the flu, most likely due to the air-conditioning in Castel Gandolfo.

Pope may visit Holy Land next year

Thu Sep 6, 2007 1:00PM EDT
ROME (Reuters) - Pope Benedict could visit the Holy Land next year, Israeli President Shimon Peres said on Thursday after a private audience with the Pontiff.

"His initial inclination is to do it next year," Peres told a news conference. "I believe he will try to do whatever he can to have his visit not postponed for any length of time."

The Pope told Peres's predecessor two years ago that he hoped to visit Israel in 2006, but that failed to happen and his spokesman said the timing of a visit was still not clear.

"As you know, the Pope is ready but the timetable still needs to be seen," Federico Lombardi told reporters after the audience.

The German-born Pope, who visited the former Nazi concentration camp at Auschwitz last year, is due to pray at a memorial for Austrian victims of the Holocaust when he visits Vienna on Friday.

Thanks for the articles about the Holy Father's meeting with the president of Israel. A very interesting statement is made in the first article, of which I had never heard of before:

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Israel has issued several invitations for the pope to visit but the Vatican has said this will only be possible when there is lasting peace or at least a solid truce between Israelis and Palestinians.

---

Kind of strange since further on Pres. Peres' statements indicate that the Holy Father's trip is definitely happening and they only need to set a timetable. Oh well.

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The invitations from Israel have been reported promptly. The first one was extended by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon during a visit to the Vatican early during Benedict's Pontificate. Other Istraeli officials have since repeated it, and the Palestinians have also invited the Pope to visit the Holy Land.

But the Pope has said on more than one occasion that although he would love to visit the Holy Land, he would only do that when the peace situation warrants it. Given the situation in the Gaza Strip, and who knows what other unforeseen aggravations, obviously the Vatican cannot set a timetable as the timing is something that must be providential. TERESA

By Carol Glatz
9/6/2007
Catholic News Service (www.catholicnews.com)

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- True Christian dialogue includes "listening as well as speaking," Pope Benedict XVI said in a message to an ecumenical meeting of European church leaders.

When people listen to each other, these encounters lead to good relationships that are then based on understanding, which involves a "deepening and transformation of our lives as Christians," he told participants of the third European Ecumenical Assembly meeting in Sibiu, Romania. The written message was released Sept. 5 by the Vatican.

The Sept. 4-9 ecumenical assembly brought together representatives of the Conference of European Churches and the Council of European Bishops' Conferences. The delegates, who represented European Catholic bishops' conferences and representatives of the Orthodox, Protestant and Anglican confessions, considered issues of unity, spirituality, paying common witness, interreligious dialogue, migration, respect for creation, and justice and peace.

In his message, Pope Benedict said, "We Christians must be aware of the task entrusted to us, that of bringing to Europe and the world" the voice of Christ, who said in the Gospel of St. John, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."

Evangelization is about promoting Christ, not oneself, he said.

"It is our duty to let the light of Christ shine before the men and women of today; not our own light, but the light of Christ," he said.

He urged Christians to continue to work for full and visible Christian unity "and peace for people in Europe," as well as band together to foster "true development" in European communities.


SOURCE: www.catholic.org/international/international_story.php?...

Pope emphasizes Catholic identity
and respect for other traditions


Vatican City, Sept. 6, 2007(CNA)- Pope Benedict XVI addressed bishops from the Episcopal Conferences of Laos and Cambodia today as they concluded their visit to the Holy See. He called them to maintain their Catholic identity while respecting the traditions of the culture in which they live.

The Pope remarked, “You carry out your ministry at the service of the Church in often-difficult conditions and in a great variety of situations. Be sure that you have my fraternal support and the support of the Universal Church in your service to the people of God."

The pontiff also drew particular attention to one facet of ministry in Laos and Cambodia: "the announcement of the Christian faith within a particular culture." He recalled how "the recent celebration of the 450th anniversary of the presence of the Church in Cambodia was an occasion for the faithful to gain a deeper awareness of the long history of Christians in the region."

Though the strong majority of people in both Cambodia and Laos identify as Buddhist, "In truth, the Christian faith is not foreign to your peoples. 'Jesus is the Good News for the men and women of every time and place in their search for the meaning of existence and for the truth of their own humanity', and in her announcement to all peoples the Church does not wish to impose herself but to bear witness to her respect for human beings and for the society in which she lives.”

The Pope emphasized the importance of Catholics respecting the traditions and cultures of others while expressing one’s own Catholic identity, “This identity must be expressed, primarily, through an authentic spiritual experience based on accepting the Word of God and on the Sacraments of the Church."

Another area of significance addressed by the Pope was, "the formation of the faithful, above all that of religious and of catechists" whose "role in vitalizing Christian communities is of great importance."

Moreover, "with a solidly-founded Christian faith, they can establish authentic dialogue with members of other religions so as to cooperate in developing your countries and in promoting the common good."

In closing, Pope Benedict addressed how "the resolute commitment of the Christian community in favor of the least privileged is also a specific sign of the authenticity of its faith. The Church's social activities ... enjoy the appreciation of the population and of the authorities" because "they eloquently highlight God's love for all human beings with distinction."

"It is very important that the Church's charitable work maintains all of its splendor and does not become just another form of social assistance."


Pope tells prison chaplains
to respect human dignity

VATICAN CITY, SEP 6, 2007 (VIS) - In Castelgandolfo at midday today, the Pope received participants in the Twelfth World Congress of the International Commission of Catholic Prison Pastoral Care, which is currently being held in Rome on the theme: "Discovering the Face of Christ in Every Prisoner."

Addressing the group in English, the Holy Father acknowledged that the work of prison chaplains "requires much patience and perseverance. Not infrequently there are disappointments and frustrations," but "this ministry within the local Christian community will encourage others to join you in performing corporal works of mercy, thus enriching the ecclesial life of the diocese. Likewise, it will help to draw those whom you serve into the heart of the universal Church, especially through their regular participation in the celebration of the Sacraments of Penance and the Holy Eucharist.

"Chaplains and their collaborators are called to be heralds of God's infinite compassion and forgiveness. In cooperation with civil authorities, they are entrusted with the weighty task of helping the incarcerated rediscover a sense of purpose so that, with God's grace, they can reform their lives, be reconciled with their families and friends, and, insofar as possible, assume the responsibilities and duties which will enable them to conduct upright and honest lives within society."

Judicial and penal institutions, the Pope went on, "must contribute to the rehabilitation of offenders, facilitating their transition from despair to hope and from unreliability to dependability. When conditions within jails and prisons are not conducive to the process of regaining a sense of a worth and accepting its related duties, these institutions fail to achieve one of their essential ends.

"Public authorities must be ever vigilant in this task, eschewing any means of punishment or correction that either undermine or debase the human dignity of prisoners. In this regard," he concluded, "I reiterate that the prohibition against torture 'cannot be contravened under any circumstances'."

VATICAN - ISRAEL
Shimon Peres: Within a year
the most important problems between
Israel and Holy See will be resolved




Rome, Sept. 6 (AsiaNews) – The Israeli President Shimon Peres is “quite optimistic” regarding negotiations between Israel and the Holy See and has declared that “within the years end the most important problems will be resolved”.

Answering a question put forward by AsiaNews, during a press conference, he also said that he had invited Benedict XVI to visit Israel.

In his first foreign visit as president, Peres was received in audience today by the pope in Castel Gandolfo and also met with Secretary of State Card. Tarcisio Bertone, Msgr. Dominique Mamberti, and Secretary for relations with states and Oded Ben Hur, Israeli ambassador to the Holy See.

According to a Vatican press office statement, discussions focused on the possibilities for peace between Israel and Palestine in the “the current international climate, which appears to be particularly favourable”. In November in fact, there will be a peace conference in Washington. The Vatican hopes that “each of the parties involved will do all in their power to meet the expectations of the populations, bowed by crises that has lasted for over 60 years now and which continues to sow the seeds of death and destruction”.

In order to study “common initiatives in favour of peace”, the pontiff also met today with Saudi Foreign Minister, Prince Saud Al Faisal. Saudi Arabia and the Arab League have long put forward a peace programme for the Middle East.

On the long standing question of the implementation of the Fundamental Agreement, 13 years on from its signing, the Holy See statement urges “a rapid conclusion to the important ongoing negotiations and the beginning of a constant dialogue with Israeli Authorities and local Christian communities, in view of their participation in working for the common good”.

September 3 last –after a long summer pause – and after years of deadlock, negotiations between the Holy See and Israel recommenced. They aim to lead to an agreement regarding issues of taxation and Church properties, which have been waiting implementation since ’93.

The Vatican statement makes no reference whatsoever to a possible visit by Benedict XVI to Israel, even if the pope has already expressed a positive opinion in the past.

Peres told journalists that he was “moved” by the pope’s reaction to his proposal and defined Benedict XVI as “great spiritual figure”, underlining that “the Spirit” incarnated in the religions can give an important impulse to peace and the elimination of violence, “assassins and killings”.

According to Peres, Hamas extremism and Iranian interference in the region are the cause of the blocked peace process. “Hamas –he said – is not looking for a political solution, but an ideological one: the destruction of our nation”.

The Israeli president instead, expressed his trust in the President of the Palestinian Authority, Abu Mazen, and his commitment to the November peace conference. Peres revealed that it will not only focus on political issues (two peoples – two states), but also on the question of collaboration in the economic and ecological field.


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ALL REPORTS ABOUT THE POPE'S VISIT TO AUSTRIA
WILL BE POSTED IN THE THREAD
'APOSTOLIC VOYAGE TO AUSTRIA'.

Ah, I see. I wasn't too clear on that. Thanks Teresa for clearing the situation regarding the invitations up.

Pope to name Italian as
'Archbishop of Moscow'
By Andrea Tornielli


The Pope leaves for Austria today. But on his return, he will name an Italian prelate to be the new metropolitan archbishop of the Cathedral of the Mother of God in Moscow.

He is Don Paolo Pezzi, 45, who belongs to the Priestly Fraternity of St. Charles and is currently rector of the seminary of St. Petersburg, where the priests for Russia's four Catholic dioceses are trained.

Pezzi would be replacing Mons. Tadeusz Kondruciewicz, 61, of Polish-Byelorussian ancestry, who will be promoted to Archbishop of Minsk, in Belarus, to fill up the post left vacant by the nonagenarian Cardinal Swiatek after his retirement due to age.

The choice, which is expected to be announced by the end of the month, would be an important development in relations between the Vatican and the Russian Orthodox Church, whose leaders have resented the appointment of prelates with Polish ancestry.

The Russian-Polish hostility is atavistic. The two peoples have been hostile to each other for centuries. When President Putin had to choose a national holiday for Russia, he chose November 4 which marks the liberation of Moscow from Polish invaders in the past.

For that reason, John Paul II's very nationality weighed like a boulder on Vatican-Russian Orthodox relations - despite all the gestures of friendship and ecumenical dialog on the Pope's part.

The choice to send Polish priests and missionaries to the ex-Soviet Union only aggravated matters - even if it was justified by the fact that the few Catholics in Russia are mostly of Polish origin. They were systematically deported to remote peripheries by the czars as well as Stalin.

The other Vatican move in John Paul II's time that angered Moscow was the creation in 2002 of four dioceses in Russia - an area that the Russian Orthodox claims to be canonically its exclusive territory. [For this reason, the Catholic metropolitan archbishop in Moscow is not called Archbishop of Moscow, but Archbishop of the Cathedral of the Mother of God.]

The Vatican responded that the Russian Orthodox had established permanent dioceses in Vienna, Berlin and Brussels in teritories that are traditionally Catholic.

With the nomination of Mons. Pezzi, Benedict XVI hopes to turn a new page. As far as Il Giornale could learn, both the Moscow Patriarchate as well as the Kremlin have expressed their approval of the move.

The Fraternity of St. Charles is an order born from the Comunione e Liberazione movement, founded in 1985 by Fr. Massimo Camisasca, who remains its superior. Pezzi is the first episcopal nomination for any member of the fraternity.

Pezzi comes from a commune which happens to be called Russi, in the province of Ravenna. He spent years as a missionary in Novosibirsk, capital of Siberia.

After the diocesan crisis of 2002, the Vatican sent Mons. Antonio Mennini, an Italian bishop, as Apostolic Nuncio to Russia. He successfully opened a new season of dialog, and last week, he was honored by Patriarch Alexei II with the Order of St. Danilo, Prince of Moscow, in recognition of "his efforts to establish good relations between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church."

Il Giornale, 7 settembre 2007

Pope inspires addicts to seek treatment in Brazil


Sao Paulo, Sep 7, 2007 / 02:27 pm (CNA).- Not everyone was expected to be impacted by the Pope’s visit to Brazil last summer, however since Benedict XVI visited Fazenda da Esperança, a drug rehabilitation center, hundreds have been inspired to seek treatment and to strive to find happiness in Christ.

ACN reports the story of one 23 year old woman, Maria de Campo who was an addict and worked occasionally as a prostitute. She relates how at first she had no interest in meeting the Pope. Describing herself as an “unbeliever,” she had previously told her friends on the Fazenda, “I don’t listen to the Church. I am here to get myself off drugs, not to see someone you call the ‘Pope.’”

She ended up attending the Pope’s visit and found herself standing in the front row. The Pope took her hand and blessed this young woman. She tells ACN: “He looked me straight in the eyes, and it was as though he could see everything in me. I’ve never experienced anything like this before.” She broke into tears. “This meeting converted me. I had the feeling that God was reflected in him. I cannot explain it, but since then everything has changed.”


Since his visit, hundreds have visited the Fazenda drug rehabilitation center as well as the community church which is the first church dedicated to St. Antonio Galvao.

In his letter to Austrian Catholics, Pope Benedict XVI wrote, “In Brazil, in the Fazenda da Esperança, in a way that I will never forget I encountered young people who had fallen victim to drugs and had therefore lost their joy in life and their faith in the future.

Discovering God meant for them – so they told me – finding hope again and once more gaining joy in life and in the future. Precisely because faith has deep roots, it can unlock the future and bestow life.”

There are currently Fazendas throughout South America, Philippines, and Germany.

A wonderful conversion story! Thanks for posting benefan.

Here is an article writen by the editor of the British weekly newspaper, Catholic Herald, for this wek's issue of The Spectator. It was posted online Sept. 8, but I missed seeing it right away because of the Austria visit.


This is a true Catholic revolution
By Damian Thompson

Next Friday, 14 September, the worldwide restrictions on the celebration of the ancient Latin liturgy of the Catholic Church will be swept away.

With a stroke of his pen, Pope Benedict XVI has ended a 40-year campaign to eradicate the Tridentine Mass, whose solemn rubrics are regarded with contempt by liberal bishops. In doing so, he has indicated that the entire worship of the Church — which has become tired and dreary since the Second Vatican Council — is on the brink of reformation.

This is an exciting time to be a Catholic. Unless, that is, you are a diehard ‘go-ahead’ 1970s trendy, in which case you are probably hoping that the Good Lord will call Joseph Ratzinger to his reward as soon as possible.

First, let us get some terminology out of the way. Until 7 July this year, Catholics believed that there were two main Rites of Mass: the Tridentine or Old Rite, promulgated by Pope Pius V in 1570; and the New Rite, promulgated by Pope Paul VI in 1970.

When I was growing up in the years after the Council, I was taught that the New Rite had completely superseded the Old. The only people who attended the Tridentine Mass were hatchet-faced old men wearing berets and gabardine raincoats, who muttered darkly about Satan’s capture of the papacy.

I had never been to the Old Mass and knew only two things about it: that it was said by the priest ‘with his back to the people’ — how rude! — and that most priests who celebrated it were followers of the rebel French Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre.

These people were unaccountably ‘attached’ to the Tridentine Rite and its ‘fussy’ accretions — the prayers at the foot of the altar; the intricately choreographed bows, crossings and genuflections of the celebrant; the ‘blessed mutter’ of the Canon in a voice inaudible to the congregation. The New Mass, in contrast, was said by the priest facing the people, nearly always in English. It was for everyone. Including people who didn’t like it.

In the 1980s, in an attempt to woo back the followers of Lefebvre, Pope John Paul II eased the almost total ban on the Tridentine Rite. If groups of the faithful were still ‘attached’ (that word again) to the old liturgy, they could approach their bishop and ask him to make provision for it.

In other words, the decision was left in the hands of diocesan bishops, many of whom displayed a shocking meanness of spirit when interpreting the new guidelines. And John Paul, being a busy and ill man who was not terribly fond of the Tridentine Rite, let them get away with it.

Three years ago, lovers of the traditional liturgy were despondent. Yes, matters had improved since the 1970s. The Old Mass was no longer the preserve of Lefebvrists: it was now attracting growing numbers of loyal young Catholics on the run from geriatric ‘worship leaders’. But in many English dioceses it was still easier to track down a witches’ coven than a traditional Mass. And, depressingly, the one curial cardinal who really cared about these things was heading for retirement.

Only he didn’t retire. He became Pope instead. And, on 7 July, he issued a document that did more than abolish restrictions governing the celebration of the Tridentine Mass. The apostolic letter Summorum Pontificum, issued ‘Motu Proprio’ (that is, as a personal decree), restores the traditional liturgy — the whole Missal, not just the Mass — to full parity with the post-Vatican II liturgy of 1970. It was a move of breathtaking boldness.

The enemies of the old Latin Mass are so horrified by Summorum Pontificum and its accompanying letter that they have either pretended that it does not exist or have misrepresented its contents. The key points are as follows.

From next Friday, priests do not need to ask permission to say the traditional Mass privately, and lay people can attend these private celebrations. More important, if a group of the faithful — no number is given, but it need only be a handful — ask their parish priest to provide a public Sunday celebration of the traditional Mass, he is to do so.

He does not have to say it himself — most priests have no idea how to celebrate it — but if he cannot find a qualified priest then his bishop will draft one in. And if the bishop decides to throw a spanner in the works, Rome will intervene.

Even more striking than these provisions, however, is the new liturgical landscape in which the Motu Proprio will be applied. From Friday, there will be no Tridentine Rite, no New Rite. The pre- and post-Vatican II Masses will no longer be referred to as separate Rites, but as the ‘extraordinary’ and ‘ordinary’ forms of one Latin Rite.

The traditional Mass will not be called after the Council of Trent, but after the Pope who issued the most recent (1962) revision of it, Blessed Pope John XIII. For anyone who enjoys the sight of liberals squirming, that is the nicest touch of all: the former Tridentine Rite now bears the name of the man who convened Vatican II. Why not? It was the only Mass he ever knew. The vernacular Mass was entirely Paul VI’s doing.

‘The Pope is not a trained liturgist,’ squealed the right-on Catholic magazine The Tablet after the Motu Proprio was published. On the contrary: he is a liturgist and theologian of genius. And what he is trying to achieve with Summorum Pontificum and the forthcoming new English translation of Paul VI’s Missal is to move beyond the liturgical squabbles of the past.

‘In Christ there is neither Jew nor Greek,’ said St Paul. ‘Nor traditionalist nor liberal,’ adds Benedict. The Pope knows that the vast majority of Catholics wish to worship God in their own language — but he also knows that the communities that use the Missal of John XXIII are among the most dynamic in the universal Church.

Summorum Pontificum tore down the liturgical veil separating the old from the new; now the social barriers must be removed.

For that to happen, former traditionalists will have to stop thinking of themselves as a spiritual elite; and former liberals must turn their eyes towards the astonishing treasures that this greatest of modern Popes has reclaimed from the rubbish heap. As I said, this is an exciting time to be a Catholic.



Yesterday, a story in Catholic Herald re-states what Pope Benedict XVI said about Vatican-II in his meeting with the clergy of Belluno and Treviso dioceses in Lorenzago last July. Both the meeting and what the Pope said about Vatican-II at the meeting were seriously under-reported in the Anglophone media.


BENEDICT XVI:
VATICAN-II SET THE 'MAGNA CARTA'
FOR THE CATHOLIC CHURCH


POPE BENEDICT XVI has responded to fears that the church is moving away from the reforms of Vatican II by declaring that the Council is the church’s “magna carta”.

Speaking to clergy from the northern Italian dioceses of Belluno-Feltre and Treviso, he said: “The Council has given us a great road marker, we can go forward full of hope”.

Vatican II was “essential and fundamental” to the future of the faith, he said. Pope Benedict was answering a question from a priest who, describing himself as a member of the Vatican II generation, said that many of his counterparts were disheartened following the enthusiasm that accompanied the Council.

The priest’s concerns echoed those of many other Catholics, who feel that the recent motu proprio relaxing restrictions on the Traditional Mass has undermined the authority of the liturgical reforms of the Second Vatican Council. But the pope encouraged his audience to stress the positive elements that grew out of the Council, including “the renewal of the liturgy”.

He said: “It seems to me that we must rediscover the great heritage of the Council, which is not a ’spirit’ reconstructed behind the texts, but the great Conciliar texts themselves, re-read today with the experiences that we have had and that have born fruit in so many movements, in so many new religious communities.”

Commentators who were previously nervous about the direction of the current papacy welcomed the pope’s words. Father Joseph Komonchak, writing for the liberal Catholic journal Commonweal, commented: “I see no reason to fear that he is about to go back on the great conciliar texts on the church’s relationship to the modern world.

“[Pope Benedict] distinguishes two extremes … a progressive mentality that thought everything can and ought to change in the church and an absolute anti-conciliarism, between which, he says, a third and more valid interpretation had difficulty making its way. The idea that Pope Benedict wants to return us to ‘those thrilling days of yesteryear’, that is, before the Council, should be discredited.”

Pope Benedict spoke to the Italian priests of his own experience of the Council. “I too lived through Vatican Council II,” he said, “coming to St. Peter’s Basilica with great enthusiasm and seeing how new doors were opening. It really seemed to be the new Pentecost, in which the church would once again be able to convince humanity.”

The pontiff observed, however, that historically great church councils have always been followed by periods of turbulence. “So it is not now, in retrospect, such a great surprise how difficult it was at first for all of us to digest the Council, this great message,” he said. “To grow is always to suffer as well, because it means leaving one condition and passing to another.”

Benedict XVI went on to discuss the post-conciliar age, which he argued was defined by two great moments in history.

The first was the “explosion” of revolutionary activity in 1968, which the pope said triggered a “cultural crisis” in the West. The “new, healthy modernity” put forward by the Council Fathers found itself facing a violent ideological rupture with the past, he said.

Some Catholics, he added, embraced Vatican II as an invitation to begin a “cultural revolution that wants to change everything”, while others rejected the Council because they understood it in the same terms.

The second turning point came in 1989 with the collapse of Communist regimes across Europe. “The response was … total scepticism, so called postmodernity,” the pope said. “There was the affirmation of materialism, of a blind pseudo-rationalistic skepticism.”

EXCEPT WE SHOULD PAY ATTENTION


What has the Pope been saying
about the environment?
By John-Henry Westen

VATICAN CITY, September 10, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Over the past week, Pope Benedict XVI has maintained a consistent focus on environmental issues, more so than ever before in his pontificate. Perhaps most controversial have been his remarks on the hotly debated subject of climate change.

In order to decipher the meaning and intent of the Pope's foray into environmental issues, LifeSiteNews.com spoke with Jesuit Father Joseph Fessio, Editor-In-Chief of Ignatius Press, Theologian in Residence of Ave Maria University and a longtime friend of Joseph Ratzinger, Pope Benedict XVI.

Ignatius Press, which Father Fessio founded in 1978, is the primary English-language publisher of Benedict XVI's works. Joseph Ratzinger was Fr. Fessio's doctoral director and mentor at the University of Regensburg in then West Germany from 1972-1975.

As a member of Ratzinger's "Schülerkreis", or group of former students, Fr. Fessio still participates in many of the yearly three-day-long gatherings of that group with the Pope. [The 2007 reunion starts this Friday, in act!]

A focus on environmental issues began in earnest with the September 2nd homily of the Pope given to an Italian youth gathering in Loreto numbering around 500,000. [That's not accurate. The Pope spoke about the environment several times before!]

"There is no doubt that one of the fields in which it seems urgent to take action is that of safeguarding creation," said the Pope. "The future of the planet is entrusted to the new generations, in which there are evident signs of a development that has not always been able to protect the delicate balances of nature."

"Before it is too late, it is necessary to make courageous decisions that can recreate a strong alliance between humankind and the earth. A decisive Yes is needed to protect creation and also a strong commitment to invert those trends which risk leading to irreversibly degrading situations."

Although it comprised little over 10% of the homily it was quickly picked up by the mainstream media with headlines such as:
- "Pope Urges Catholics to Go Green"
- "Pope Benedict XVI leads 'eco-friendly' youth rally in Loreto, Italy"
- "Save the planet before it's too late, Pope urges"
- "The first eco-pope"

The messages in the coming days, although mostly ignored by the media were even more specific.

In a brief comment after the General Audience of Wednesday September 5, the Pope noted an upcoming conference in Greenland on the environment. "Care of water resources and attention to climate change are matters of grave importance for the entire human family," he said.

A couple of days later on September 9, Cardinal Theodore McCarrick attended that environmental meeting on behalf of the Pope bringing the Pope's blessing and message to the group. "Preservation of the environment, promotion of sustainable development and particular attention to climate change are matters of grave concern for the entire human family," said the Pope's message.

"No nation or business sector can ignore the ethical implications present in all economic and social development," it continued. "With increasing clarity scientific research demonstrates that the impact of human actions in any one place or region can have worldwide effects. The consequences of disregard for the environment cannot be limited to an immediate area or populus because they always harm human coexistence, and thus betray human dignity and violate the rights of citizens who desire to live in a safe environment."

The comments were significant since there is a strong debate among scientists over the ability of humans to alter climate with some believing that climate change is human caused and can be altered by cutting emissions, and others suggesting that human activity is not responsible for climate change.

Some are also stating that the most recent global warming has stopped since the late 1990s and that warming still being experienced in some nations are only regional cyclical phenomena. Moreover, many of the most outspoken believers in human-caused climate change, such as Al Gore, are known world de-population advocates. They have lately begun to publicly advocate more de-population policies as a critically needed solution to otherwise soon to occur world-wide climate change catastrophe.

Asked what the Pope was meaning to convey with his recent comments, particularly on the hotly debated issue of climate change, Fr. Fessio told LifeSiteNews.com, "First, he didn't say much."

"In his homily of September 2nd, addressed to young people, he encourages them, among many other things, to be attentive to the 'preservation of creation' and the 'delicate equilibriums of nature'," explained Fessio. "Nothing surprising here, nor sensational, nor new."

The Church has long been a proponent of man's stewardship of creation, and thus has been concerned about pollution and waste especially since there remain so many in the world deprived of basic necessities.

Fessio points out that Benedict XVI has not at all come out on either side of the climate change debate. "All he says about climate change is that attention to it is a matter of serious importance," said Fessio.

Asked if the Pope was conveying the message that there is indeed man made climate change and that man can indeed do something to alleviate climate change, Fr. Fessio replied, "He's not saying that. If he wants to say something, he does."

Fessio added: "Nothing he says indicates what kind of climate change he's talking about or in what direction the changes may be."

But what of the Pope's statement that attention to climate change is of "grave importance for the entire human family"?

Fessio responded: "Climate change in itself is not a moral evil and in many ways isn't even a physical evil. (Canada and Russia would benefit from some warming.). Some things (like war) may be of grave importance in themselves and yet not be a personal moral issue for the vast majority of people (who can't do anything about it)."

Concluding his points, Fr. Fessio said, "We have a moral obligation to do what we can to respect and protect the goods of creation. For most of us that's not much. For climate change, even the little we might be able to do depends on whether anything needs doing at all. We should give it reasonable attention. But what kind of change is actually occurring (weather is always changing), whether we can do anything significant about it (if I take fewer showers, will that affect the water supply?), and whether we should do something about it (one might be convinced that the direction of change is on balance beneficial to man). For most people, most of the time, it's more important to be helpful to the old lady next door."

See the homily from the Italy Mass with Youth:
www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/homilies/2007...

See the General Audience with note on the conference here:
www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/audiences/200...

See the Pope's message to the conference here:
212.77.1.245/news_services/bulletin/news/20728.php?in...

I would be very cautious with the words of Joseph Komonchak. His version of Pope Benedict's intentions is very tendentious and conforms to the "Bologna School" of Vatican II interpretation. Sandro Magister has already taken issue with Komonchak's remarks in this case and so do I. He clearly distorts the Pope's Address to the Roman Curia (December 2005) as well as his response to the priest here.

=====================================================================

Komonchak's statements, past and present, were rather thoroughly commented on, in this Forum, when his Commonweal article came out last July. In the Catholic Herald article, Thompson mentioned only the one 'positive'-sounding statement Komonchak made about Benedict XVI and Vatican II.

Anyone who has read Komonchak's previous writings on Benedict XVI knows he is not friendly, to say the least; and his liberal advocacy, as well as the fact that he is the American editor of the Bologna school's history of Vatican-II, is known to anyone who follows Church reporting.

TERESA

Teresa,

I was not casting aspersions on the thoroughness of your commentary. I was merely offering a comment and I will not bother to comment here again. I don't see any reason for your snottiness. But it's really offensive.

Papal Lessons


BY The Editors
National Catholic Register
September 16-22, 2007 Issue | Posted 9/11/07 at 2:37 PM

Last year, Pope Benedict XVI got high marks for some for his willingness to engage Muslims in dialogue. He did so honestly and charitably, pointing in his Regensburg speech to potential landmines, and pointing in his remarks in Turkey to potential goldmines.

A year later, the Holy Father has taken on a task every bit as daunting as Islamic dialogue. He has taken on the beliefs and attitudes of the secularized West.

Recent high-profile events in Italy and Austria show that the Holy Father has embraced lessons that other public leaders either will not or cannot understand.

It’s easiest to see the difference by considering the Pope’s approach to young people.

There have been sporadic attempts on the part of public leaders to engage young people. They have been mostly unsuccessful. One thinks of Bill Clinton playing the saxophone on a then-popular variety show, or of Bob Dole answering questions on MTV.

The difference between the Holy Father’s approach and these politicians’ is stark.

When politicians address young people, they seem uncomfortable and anxious. They search for things to say that they think the young people will want to hear. The Holy Father, on the other hand, seems eminently comfortable with young people — and willing to say challenging things.

That’s probably because for a politician, young people are a voting block, one of many — and less predictable than most. To the Pope, they are souls as valuable as any others — and more open-minded than most.

Politicians see young people as a source of power for them — the Pope sees them as a flock that has been entrusted to him.

At a Sept. 1 Mass for 500,000 young people in Loreto, Italy, Pope Benedict gave young people a simple message, but a difficult one. Reject helping yourself to what society has to offer you; instead be someone who can offer society what only God can give.

“The message is this: Do not follow the way of pride but the way of humility,” said the Holy Father. “Go against the current: Don’t listen to the persuasive and self-seeking voices that today promote lifestyles marked by arrogance and violence, by self-importance and success at any cost, by ‘appearing’ and ‘having’ to the detriment of ‘being.’”

That’s a tough sell in the West, dominated as it is by a hedonistic entertainment media. But Pope Benedict brought the same message to adults in Austria that he delivered to young people in Loreto.

He asked adults to go against the current as well in an area where we are most hesitant to yield — the use of our time. He zeroed in on the Lord’s Day.

“Sunday has been transformed in our Western societies into the weekend, into leisure time,” he said at St. Stephen’s Cathedral in Vienna Sept. 9.

“Leisure time is certainly something good and necessary, especially amid the mad rush of the modern world,” he said. “Yet if leisure time lacks an inner focus, an overall sense of direction, then ultimately it becomes wasted time that neither strengthens nor builds us up.”

To honor the Sabbath is the Third Commandment — but Pope Benedict was more interested in singing the praises of worshiping on Sunday than decrying the sinfulness of skipping it.

Going to Sunday Mass is not just a rule to follow; it’s an “inner necessity,” he said.

The Holy Father’s homily repeated the plea of the early Christian martyrs who died for honoring Sunday: “Without Sunday we cannot live.” “Does this attitude of the Christians of that time apply also to us who are Christians today?” the Pope asked.

“Free time requires a focus — the encounter with him who is our origin and goal,” he said. “We too need access to the Risen One, who sustains us through and beyond death. We need this encounter which brings us together, which gives us space for freedom, which lets us see beyond the bustle of everyday life to God’s creative love, from which we come and toward which we are traveling.”

It is from this source that Pope Benedict hopes Christians in the West will draw the strength they need to address the defining moral issue of our day: the “dictatorship of relativism.”

In his Sept. 8 homily at the shrine of Mariazell, Pope Benedict XVI defended truth.

“If truth does not exist for man, then neither can he ultimately distinguish between good and evil.

“We need truth,” said the Holy Father.

“Yet admittedly, in the light of our history we are fearful that faith in the truth might entail intolerance,” he said. “If we are gripped by this fear, which is historically well-grounded, then it is time to look toward Jesus as we see him in the shrine at Mariazell. We see him here in two images: as the child in his mother’s arms, and above the high altar of the basilica as the Crucified.”

The humility of Christ — who was the way, the truth and the life — is the key to embracing the truth while avoiding intolerance.

Christ is also the explanation for 500,000 young people flocking to a shrine in Loreto to hear Pope Benedict, and for tens of thousands greeting the Pope in the rain — a passion no politician could elicit.

Far more of us want to hear the challenging truths of the Gospel than the empty promises of the world.

And we are eager to hear from a man like Benedict who asks to give everything to Christ. Far more eager than we are to hear from anyone who just wants a piece of us for himself.

At the General Audience today, the Holy Father reported on his recent pilgrimage to Austria. A full translation of his test has been posted in AUDIENCE AND ANGELUS TEXTS.








Pope says Christianity saved Europe
from nihilism and fundamentalism


Vatican City, Sept. 12 (AsiaNews) – Sunday is “the Lord’s day“ and must not become a mere “occasion for mundane or commercial interests”. Europe must not abandon its traditions, among them Christianity, which saved European conscience from nihilistic and fundamentalist trends.

The two themes were among the pope’s chief concerns during his recent trip to Austria, “a country that is dear to me”. They were also the focus of his address during his general audience today, during which he retraced the highlights of his journey which concluded Sunday.

Meeting state authorities and the diplomatic corps in a country “of great importance in international politics, Benedict XVI encouraged the process of European unity, “based on values inspired by our common Christian patrimony”.

“How can we forget that Europe is the custodian of a tradition of thought that binds faith, reason and sentiment? Illustrious philosophers, even independently of faith, recognise the central role of Christianity in safeguarding modern conscience from nihilistic and fundamentalist trends”, the Pope said.

On the importance of Sunday, the Pope said, “I wanted to deepen the value and meaning of Sunday." Citing the phrase 'Sine dominica non possum' (Without Sunday we cannot live) said by some early North African Christian martyrs, the Pope defined 'the Lord’s day' as “a day which gives meaning to work and rest, which brings to bear the meaning of redemption and creation, expresses the value of freedom and of service to our neighbour."

"If the people of the ancient Christian communities had abandoned this meaning and had allowed for Sunday to have been reduced to a mere week-end, in other words an occasion for mundane and commercial interests, it would have meant renouncing their culture," he added.

Referring to his meeting with volunteers, he said their service was “not just something to do, (but) above all a way of being which begins in the heart, an attitude of gratitude towards life which pushes one to share ones gifts with his or her neighbour”.

He reiterated that volunteer work “must not be seen as making up for the failures of the State and its institutions, but as a necessary form of promoting attention and care for those considered 'least' in society."