NEWS ABOUT BENEDICT

There's been a page change. Stories filed today in the previous page:

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Saudi king's coming visit with the Pope unprecedented - Stories confirm yesterday's
one-line bulletin. From Il Riformista, Reuters and AP, which also carries yesterday's story
about the Dalai Lama's visit next month.

Angelus today - Photos from Yahoo's news service.

Beijing asks the Pope not to receive the Dalai Lama - It's SOP for the Chinese regime,
but can they take it out on Chinese Catholics? Translated.

Repubblica reports on yesterday's general audience - Because the Pope said good
Christians must be good citizens and therefore pay their taxes.

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ABOUT THE POPE AND CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTION


A lengthy article in Libero today begins with mocking the Communist newspaper Liberazione and an elderly Communist lady senator who helped scorn on Pope Benedict in yesterday's newspaper because of his address to Catholic pharmacists earlier this week.



The newspaper on its front page carried the Pope's picture with the caption SAN FA(RMA)SCISTA!, and the senator, one Lidia Menapace, railed about the Pope's 'medieval obscurantism'.

Journalist Luigi Santambrogio takes note in the introduction that only two weeks ago, the Communists were hailing the Pope as 'comrade Benedict' because he had said that young people needed stable employment in order to start families. The leftists used those words to say the Pope was on their side in a dispute with the government over some labor legislation.

But Santambrogio reserves more sarcasm for the anti-Church newspaper Repubblica for 'administering a dose of castor oil to this scamp of a Pope'. An article by one Michele Serra - writing with the supercilious arrogance of someone who smells a dead rat, according to Santambrogio - denounced the Pope as an intruder into fields outside his own, a purveyor of 'illiberal ideas' who wishes to impose 'a religious morality in order to gain hegemony of social consensus' [Come again?!?!], someone who 'incites ethical rebellion such as anti-abortion objections" but would condemn 'similar ethical stands like that of the right to die as one wishes'.

The following is a translation of the less polemical second part of Santambrogio's article:


The Pope did not invent
'conscientious objection'

... But let us consider the open question of Pope Benedict XVI and his impact on public affairs. One can take three points into consideration without offending anyone or straying into forbidden territory.

1. Recourse to conscientious objection is the extreme form of resistance and dissent to any law. One resorts to it when all other political instruments are of no avail. It is peaceful and non-violent, and because it appeals only to the individual conscience, it demands the individual's willing and knowing testimony consistent with what he believes. Knowing well he will have to pay for its consequences, including the risk of a lawsuit and penalties. That's the whole point - everything else is technical.

To protect the right to object to abortion and at the same time follow Law 194, hospitals have found appropriate solutions. Something analogous can be found for pharmacists. In this way, the legitimacy of the principle is not negated, and the problem is only how best to apply it.

2. On the issues of abortion, euthanasia, the embryo, the Pope and Catholics say their position is not from a confessional viewpoint, but from completely secular human values. Because they have to do with man as a creature of reason and sense. And therefore, to stand up and fight for these values contributes to building the common good and to reasonable laws.

3. Conscientious objection as a form of peaceful political resistance was not invented by the pope nor by Catholics. It is part of a long tradition of political, social and civic commitment. It has been used most often in the weapons race, military spending, obligatory military service, and the death penalty. Even against blood transfusions, among Jehovah's Witnesses, or against paying the TV tax.

Michele Serra should calm down. No pharmacist will question him on his sense of life or refuse to sell him cough syrup.

Libero, 31 ottobre 2007

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NB: Michele Serra is apparently known best for being a satirist and has written and produced TV satire for comedians like Beppe Grillo who recently got many headlines for attacking the Pope gratuitously. On the basis of what he wrote in Repubblica ye3sterday, he's pretty heavy-handed and too pompous for a satirist! Serra was a registered Communist before he switched to the Radical Party, so perhaps his anti-clerical bile is understandable.

And on Menapace, who is all of 83 years old - apparently a militant socialist and feminist who coined her last name [which means 'leading to peace'] as a pseudonym - the most outrageous thing she said yesterday was actually this:

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The interventions of the Pope are scandalous because they ultimately favor the politics of the right, a line started by John Paul II. Paul VI and John XXIII never entered the debate on abortion and similar issues, invading fields that are not theirs.

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What she ignores - or conveniently forgets - is that 1) abortion was not legalized in Italy till 1978, 2) both pre-1978 Popes that she refers to did not mince words about the wrongness of abortion in their public addresses and in their encyclicals.; and 3) worst of all, she forgets how Paul VI was universally demonized for the encyclical Humanae Vitae which was directed mainly against the use of the contraceptive pill.

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The Pope at the tomb of John Paul II today.

The Holy Father said private prayers in the Vatican Grottoes at the tombs
of his predecessors, in connection with the commemoration of All Souls Day today.

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POPE MOURNS DEATH OF PRIEST
WHO WAS THOUGHT BY MANY ITALIANS
TO BE 'A LIVING SAINT'

The Holy Father, through the Vatican Secretary of State, earlier sent a telegram of condolence to the Bishop of Rimini for the death of Fr. Oreste Benzi, 82, founder of the John XXIII Community Association, who had dedicated himself to the assistance and care of prostitutes, drug addicts, young vagrants, the homeless, poor and emarginated, all over Italy, and was considered by many a living saint.



Here is a translation:

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HIS EXCELLENCY
THE MOST REV. FRANCESCO LAMBIASI
BISHOP OF RIMINI

HAVING LEARNED WITH SADNESS ABOUT THE DEATH OF DON ORESTE BENZI, HUMBLE AND POOR PRIEST OF CHRIST, MERITORIOUS FOUNDER AND PRESIDENT OF THE JOHN XXIII COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION, THE HOLY FATHER WISHES TO EXPRESS HIS SINCERE CONDOLENCES TO ALL WHO MOURN HIS UNEXPECTED DEPARTURE, REMEMBERING HIS INTENSE PASTORAL LIFE AS A PARISH PRIEST AND THEN AS AN INDEFATIGABLE APOSTLE OF CHARITY IN FAVOR OF 'THE LEAST' AND THE DEFENSELESS, TAKING RESPONSIBILITY FOR SO MANY GRAVE SOCIAL PROBLEMS AFFLICTING CONTEMPORARY SOCIETY.

WHILE OFFERING UP FERVENT PRAYERS FOR THE ETERNAL REST OF THIS FAITHFUL AND LAMENTED PRIEST WHO WAS ALWAYS AN OBEDIENT SERVANT OF THE CHURCH, THE HOLY FATHER INVOKES DIVINE GOODNESS TO GRANT SUPPORT AND CHRISTIAN HOPE FOR HIS ENTIRE SPIRITUAL FAMILY AND THIS DIOCESE THAT HAS BEEN STRUCK BY SUCH A GRAVE LOSS, AND IN THE NAME OF OUR FAITH IN THE RESURRECTION OF THE LORD, AFFECTIONATELY SENDS TO ALL A COMFORTING APOSTOLIC BLESSING.

CARDINAL TARCISIO BERTONE
SECRETARY OF STATE TO HIS HOLINESS

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Pope Mourns "Apostle of Charity"


VATICAN CITY, NOV. 2, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI called the founder of the John XXIII Community, known for its work to help the most marginalized in the society, a "priest of Christ, humble and poor."

The Pope said this today upon hearing of the death of Father Oreste Benzi. The priest died early this morning of a heart attack in his home in Rimini, Italy. He was 82.

In a message of condolence, sent through Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Pope's secretary of state, the Pontiff recalled the "intense pastoral life" Father Benzi led as a parish priest in Rimini.

The Holy Father also highlighted the priest's contribution as an "untiring apostle of charity, who worked for the neediest and defenseless, taking upon himself the weight of the grave social problems that afflict the contemporary world."

The note concluded with the Benedict XVI's assurance that he will pray so that the death of Father Benzi be a reason of Christian hope for the priest's "entire spiritual family."

Father Benzi founded the Pope John XXIII Community in 1968. The community’s work has led to the establishment of numerous family hostels, which seek to help the mentally and physically disabled, children in need, and former drug addicts and alcoholics.

The community also runs detox centers for drug addicts, facilities for street children and hostels for girls freed from prostitution. Present in 14 of Italy's regions, its presence in the world has expanded through projects or partnerships with local organizations to 20 countries.


By Martin Barillas

Rev. Oreste Benzi, founder of the Community of Pope John XXIII, died November 9. Benzi had made the cause of Italy’s poor his life’s work.

Pope Benedict XVI extended his condolences to the bishop of Rimini over the death of the 82 year-old Good Samaritan, saying he was a “tireless apostle of charity and care to the poor and defenseless, who was able to take on so many grave social problems that afflict today’s world”. The Community also received condolences from Romano Prodi, President of the Council of Ministers of Italy.

Never one to trust institutions such as orphanages to care for his flock, Rev. Benzi founded houses that provided family life and education to thousands of outcasts such as prostitutes, the mentally insane, and runaway teens. Many of these would otherwise have had little family life and, through the work of Rev. Benzi, they were also provided training in a trade so as to break with despondency and victimization.

Rev. Benzi created the first family house in 1972 near Rimini, responding to a lack of government-sponsored welfare projects. The Community now has more than 500 community countries in more than two dozen countries and cares for some 39,000 people. It also offers opportunities to volunteers to live in communal poverty in order to offer service and aid to the less-fortunate.

Emboldened by the example of Abbé Pierre and Mother Teresa, Rev. Benzi got the idea for the family houses by converting an alpine hut into a spiritual retreat center with the help of local school children.

The ever-smiling priest was a scourge of prostitution and considered the trade a form of violence against prostitutes. He was known to personally confront prostitutes and their customers to try and turn them away from the practice. In a typically pragmatic approach, Rev. Benzi said that if there were no demand for prostitutes, there would be no supply. He also apparently considered homosexuality as a form of sexual deviancy.

Born in 1925 in Coriano, which is also near Rimini, Rev. Benzi was seventh son of nine born to two laborers. At his funeral on November 2, over 10,000 mourners thronged to the service. Among these were many who he rescued from a life of perdition.

AND HIS BELATED 'NEWS' ON THE COMING 'LECTIO' AT LA SAPIENZA


Today, on his blog whispersintheloggia.blogspot.com/

Pope Trip '08...
and Back to School
by ROCCO PALMO

While the official line, of course, remains that "nothing is confirmed until the Pope signs off on it," the framework of next spring's papal visit to the East Coast just keeps trickling out.

In but the latest indicator of the trip's foreseen 15-20 April timetable (currently expected to be limited to stops in Washington and New York), the customary 10 April celebration of Founder's Day at DC's Catholic University of America has quietly been pushed back a week in 2008.

The delay to 17 April - with university calendars already noting that, aside from "essential services," the US church's official institute will be closed on the date - seamlessly coincides with the currently-tipped final day of Benedict XVI's stay in the nation's capital.

As Founder's Day commemorates the university's formal sanction by Leo XIII on 10 April 1887, postponing it to mark the second papal visit to the Brookland campus (the first since John Paul II's maiden US trip in 1979) would seem particularly appropriate.

In a further reflection of Catholic U's status as the educational arm founded and governed by the American bishops, one of its larger facilities is also expected to host the expected papal address to the nation's hierarchy. The Pope's intent to spend a significant amount of time at the university was noted in the first published sketch of the visit's early plans, reported on these pages in mid-September.

The DC campus, however, isn't the only upcoming classroom stop the former Professor Ratzinger has on his calendar.



Shown above on his visit last year to the Pontifical Gregorian University, the Pope is slated to give a "lectio magistralis" later this month to open the academic year at the state-run University of Rome. [NB: The Apcom item about it was posted on this thread on 10/27, Post #9914, two pages before this.]

First reported by Robert Mickens in this weekend's edition of The Tablet, the "few people who even know" about the 30 November lecture haven't yet been briefed on its choice of topic, Mickens said.

Experience shows the heads-up would be desirable - B16's last university lecture "ignited all sorts of debates that have yet to subside," the Rome correspondent reminded.

That address, delivered last year in the Pope's hometown, quickly became known by one word: Regensburg.

by GIORGIO ACQUAVIVA

This is translated from Quotidiano Nazionale today.

VATICAN CITY - It will be a historic day on Tuesday, Nov. 6, when a Saudi Arabian monarch visits a Pope for the first time.

King Abdullah II - who has arrived in Europe for a diplomatic tour with 5 jumbo jets, 50 officials and advisers, several wives and at least a hundred servants - will meet with Benedict XVI to discuss Middle East issues, from religious freedom to Israeli-Palestinian politics.

The Vatican and Saudi Arabia have no diplomatic relations, but the recent reciprocal recognition between the Holy See and the United Arab Emirates indicates a change in climate.

It is believed that US behind-the-scenes diplomacy on both sides led to the meeting last September 6 in Castel Gandolfo between the Pope and the Saudi foreign minister.

The October letter from 138 Muslim religious leaders to Christian leaders including the Pope - expressing the need for 'better understanding' between Islam and Christianity - is also seen as a new positive element in this improved climate.

The internal debate in Islam provoked by the Pope's Regensburg lecture has apparently laid the groundwork, contributing to force a choice of isolating extreme fundamentalist elements in Islam (led by Iran's Ahmadinejad). [This is a surprising, probably unfounded conclusion. The 'letter from the 138' does not even explicitly denounce terrorist killers.]

The nomination of an experienced diplomat like French Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran to head the Pontifical Council for Inter-Religious Dialog is another important mosaic in the new picture shaping up of relations between the Church and Islam.

But King Abdullah will find himself facing a theologian Pope who is very committed to the cause of religious freedom everywhere. And this will be a difficult point in their talks. The international organization Open Doors recently said Saudi Arabia was only next to North Korea in terms of oppressing religious minorities. (In Saudi Arabia, it is a crime for any Christian to carry a Bible or a crucifix in public, much less to worship in public.]

Then there is the Palestinian question. The Saudis are holding out a hand to Israel by proposing a 'peace for land' formula, whereby 22 Arab nations would formally recognize Israel in return for 1) a retreat to Israel's pre-1967 boundaries, 2) Jerusalem as the capital of a new Palestine state, and 3) a 'just solution' for Palestinian refugees. They are hoping to get Vatican support the proposal.

Quotidiano Nazionale, 2 novembre 2007

Tibetan official comments
on Dalai Lama's coming visit
with Pope Benedict


Dharamsala, India, Nov. 3 (AsiaNews) – The Chinese government “routinely warns serious repercussions” against all those who meet with the Dalai Lama, but this “does not stop our leader's work: his meeting with Benedict XVI makes us very happy and encourages us for our future”.

This was the reaction of Samdhong Rinpoche, head of the Central Administration of Tibet in exile, commenting to AsiaNews on the threats made by the Chinese Foreign Minister in view of the upcoming meeting between the Pope and the Dalai Lama, set for December 13th.

When the Dalai Lama was in Washington, D.C., last week, the Rinpoche noted, “Every foreign embassy received personal letters from China’s Ambassador in Washington, stating that if they went to the gold medal function [confmerment of the Congressional Medal of Honor on the Dalai Lama], there would be repercussions in ‘our relationship’, yet everyone attended. The same happened in Germany and Canada”.

[China's government admonished President Bush directly and publicly against attending the ceremony, but Bush used it as an occasion to call on the Chiense government to welcome the Dalai Lama as 'a man of peace' to Beijing before the China Olympics next year. He said earlier he had spoken about the Dalai Lama's visit to the Chinese Prime Minister when they met in Australia recently.]

“The meeting with the Pope is on another level," Samdhong pointed out. "The Dalai Lama respects all religious leaders, and all the world religions, and Benedict XVI is one of the most important religious leaders in the world. Moreover the Catholic Church always speaks in favour of religious freedom and human rights”.

Thus this meeting “is extremely important, special and significant. It will send out a positive sign to world leaders, religious heads and also to every worker for religious freedom and human rights in the entire international community”.

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The Holy Father today met with
- Mons. Paul Tschang In-Nam, Apostolic Nuncio to Uganda;
- Bishops of Portugal on ad-limina visit
- Participants of the 'New Families" international meeting sponsored by the Focolari movement. Address in Italian.
- Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, Prefect of the Congregation for Bishops (weekly meeting).

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Here is a translation of a PETRUS report on the Pope's address to the 'New Families' meeting:

'Sacrament of matrimony is true response
to comtemporary crisis of the family'


VATICAN CITY - "The family, as the primary cell of society, should not forget it can draw strength from the sacrament intended by Christ to consecrate and work with the love between a man and a woman - a love that is intense, reciprocal and profound, being a gift of oneself."

Pope Benedict XVI re-stated today the Church's advocacy of the traditional family based on matrimony, in an address to participants of the 'New Families' international meeting sponsored by the Focolari movement.

Promotion of family values and spreading the Gospel through the concrete example of Christian fmaily living constitute the mission of Focolari's 'New Families' initiative launched 40 years ago.

"According to divine plan," the Pope said, "the family is a sacred and sanctifying place, and the Church, which is always close to families, supports them in that mission more than ever today when the institution is assailed by so many internal and external threats."

Among the 'complex and difficult situations' that constitute such threats, the Pope mentioned "the uncertainties of engaged couples in making definitive choices for the future, the crisis of couples deciding for separation and divorce, irregular unions, as well as the plight of widows, families in difficulty, and abandoned minors."

"I hope with all my heart," he told the Focolari members, "that with your help, pastoral strategies can be worked out to meet the growing needs of contemporary families and the multiple challenges they confront, as part of your special mission in the Church and in society."

Focolari's 'New Families' is a network of 800,000 families found in 182 nations committed, as the Pope underscored, "to make their homes a 'hearth' (focolare in Italian) that radiates to the world the testimony of familial living according to the Gospel."

"You carry out a silent but profound evangelical mission," he told them, "which aims to show that only family unity, a gift of God-who-is-love, can make the family a true nest of love, a welcoming home for life, and a school of virtues and Christian values for its children."

He encouraged them to continue "being the privileged space where the beauty of placing Christ in the center of life and following his Gospel faithfully is proclaimed in everyday life."

The Pope cited the Holy Family of Nazareth the 'prototype', 'exemplar','original domestic Church' and 'icon and model of every human family'.

He extended special greetings and thanks to Chiara Lubich, founder of the Focolari movement.

A full translation of today's Angelus messages has been posted in AUDIENCE AND ANGELUS TEXTS.






The Pope gave a brief homily on the Gospel episode between Jesus and Zacchaeus; remembered St. Charles Borromeo, 16th century bishop of Milan, on his feast day today, as well as John Paul II, whose baptismal name is Karol (Charles); and expresed hope for a peaceful resolution soon of the conflict between Turkey and Iran over Kurdish rebels on their border.

Vatican Radio reported there were more than 50,000 pilgrims present for the Angelus.

OF PRIESTS ACCUSED OF SEXUAL OFFENSES
By FILIPPO DI GIACOMO

This is a story today that appears to be an exclusive of La Stampa, the Turin-based Italian newspaper. The writer is also a priest and canon law specialist. I therefore find the gossipy tone of this article, particularly its second part, very inappropriate.

I am posting it in this section because the main item reported, if true, would be a major innovation of this Pontificate.


His name is already on the door of the office he will occupy in the Vatican secretariat of state. American lawyer Jeffrey Lena has been hired by the Holy See to take charge of the various legal suits around the world against priests accused of sexual offenses. That's the official explanation.

The unofficial explanation is suggested by recent events within Vatican walls and appears to be confirmed by the location of the office midway between the administrative and legal sections of the Vatican central bureaucracy.

In effect, Lena will serve both the personnel office as well as the disciplinary commission for a problem which the Vatican appears to be taking firmly in hand.

The Catholic Church is the only Christian confession that keeps a complete and precise personnel archive.

An analysis of the dossiers on some 150,000 priests and religious who served the Church in the United States from the 1960s to 1999, shows that almost 500 persons have been actually charged in court, representing 0.3% of the total, of which two-thirds were found guilty (i.e., 0.2% of all priests).

The results in the United States appear to represent the typical incidence analyzed in other national churches that have had the same problem.

The same studies however show show that the problem is complicated by the presence of homosexuals in the clergy, of whom the exact number is not known [since sexual orientation is not part of a priest's documented personal data].

Several years ago, Donald Cozzens, rector of the Catholic seminary of Cleveland, reported in The Changing Face of the Priesthood an incidence between 23-80% [in the USA, presumably].

Another scholar, Leon J. Podles, suggested - from a more definitive analysis - that the incidence among ordained priests was below 20%, which would be 7-8 times greater than the incidence of homosexuality in the general population.

Michael Rose in his book Goodbye! Good Men, argues that there is an active homosexual subculture within the Catholic Church in the United States.

This is the result, according to many analysts, of the confusion that followed the sexual revolution of the 1960s coupled with the doctrinal and disciplinary tumult that followed the Second Vatican Council and the increasing social approval of homosexuality.

All this facilitated the admission of actively practising homosexuals into the priesthood, and not infrequently, created a climate that enabled their co-optation to positions of importance within the Church.

For all of which, the Vatican obviously has had no structures to deal with such problems, much less get a handle on controlling anyone. The task facing Lena is therefore critical and will probably prove to be thankless. Because priests can have other legal problems.

For instance, it is said that Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, Prefect of the Congregation for Bishops, is about to be relieved of his duties because of some obscure entanglement with the affairs of his friend Antonio Fazio and others who are involved in a bank scandal.

One newspaper had claimed a few months ago that Re was the recipient of a furious letter from one Fiorani, who upon leaving jail, had written a high-ranking prelate saying: "You are now seeing someone who gives you money, as I always gave it to you, in cash, without any problems. But then, when a person is in disgrace, you will not even make a telephone call to his wife to ask how he is."

The prelate supposedly replied: "The Church is made up of men, and men make mistakes."

To which Fiorani reportedly answered: "Yes, that is true, it is made up of men. But I am talking to you, not to a country priest."

It is easy to see why previously unreported or under-reported news start to circulate every time the Holy See is considering an important nomination.

It is now clear that the ecclesiastical version of the Cencelli manual* is no longer valid. [*The 'Cencelli manual' is described in a footnote as containing guidelines used in the first and second Italian republics for assigning government posts in proportion to the electoral weight of the different political parties. Ministers and undersecretaries are named almost always on the basis of party representation rather than for actual competence or by the prime minister's personal choice.]

Monsignor Domenico Segalini, the true organizer of World Youth Day in the jubilee year 2000, a friend of Cardinal Re, was named yesterday as general deputy of Italian Catholic Action. The Pope chose him over don Gianni Ambrosio, a friend of Cardinal Ruini and present spiritual adviser at the Catholic University of Milan.

And Palestrina, the diocese that Segalini led, may soon be assigned to one of those persons who must be kept distant from Rome under the rule of 'promoveatur ut amoveatur' (promote in order to remove).

La Stampa, 4 novembre 2007

Saudi king's historic Vatican visit
comes amid tension

Rome, Nov. 4 (DPA) - When Saudi King Abdullah arrives in Rome Tuesday, he may wish to take a break from his schedule, including a historic meeting with Pope Benedict XVI in the Vatican, for a quiet moment of prayer at the city's central mosque, Europe's largest Muslim house of worship.

In the highly unlikely event of Benedict visiting Saudi Arabia, there the pontiff would not find a single church to pray in. The kingdom prohibits all public religious displays that are not Islamic and routinely refuses clerics from other faiths entry into the country.

Rome's central mosque, reportedly built for more than $50 million largely donated by Saudi Arabia's former king Fahd, stands on a hilltop overlooking a city, which is the centre of the Roman Catholic world. The mosque was inaugurated in 1995 in a ceremony attended by representatives of the Catholic, Jewish and Buddhist faiths.

"Reciprocity is what we hope for, precisely because we permit the Saudi Arabians to have a place of worship here," Cardinal Francesco Colasuonno, the then Papal Nuncio or envoy to Italy who attended the inauguration, was quoted as saying at the time.

"It is necessary to take account of the needs of Christians" in Saudi Arabia, he added.

Twelve years on and those words still ring true for the Vatican, which continues to lament the lack of religious freedom in Saudi Arabia, the birthplace of Islam and the site of two of its holiest sites, Mecca and Medina.

While no precise figures exist on the religious denomination of the some eight million mostly Asian and African foreign guest workers in the kingdom, according to the Philippines government, some 90 percent of the 1.2 million Filipinos who form part of this contingent are Catholic. Christians, like other non-Muslims, are not only denied places of worship but also face arrest if found in possession of religious books and symbols.

Last month, Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, who as president of the Pontifical Council for Inter-religious Dialogue is the Vatican's top official for dealing with Islam, reiterated what he said was the Holy See's willingness to reach out to Muslims.

Without specifically mentioning Saudi Arabia with which the Vatican does not have formal diplomatic relations, he also suggested something was expected in return.

"In a dialogue among believers, it is fundamental to say what is good for one is good for the other. For example, we must explain to the Muslims that if they can have mosques in Europe, it is normal that churches can be built in their countries," Tauran was quoted as saying in an interview with the French Catholic newspaper, La Croix.

Tuesday's scheduled meeting in the Vatican, the first between a pope and a Saudi monarch - a position that carries the Islamic title, Custodian of the Holy Sites - is important for its symbolism, according to Mario Scajola who heads the Italian branch of the Saudi-based World Muslim League.

The meeting, which comes at the behest of Abdullah, is an example of his 'illuminated reign', said Scajola, a former Italian ambassador to Saudi Arabia who converted to Islam in 1987.

Since the king succeeded to the throne in Aug 2005 following the death of his half-brother Fahd, he has introduced reforms including elevating women to important positions in the business and diplomatic fields, Scajola said.

This is in a country where women are not allowed to drive and are only granted legal status through their husbands or a male relative.

But an accord on non-Muslims practicing their faith in Saudi Arabia, 'where this is banned but tolerated in practice', Scajola insisted, was 'difficult' he said, referring to the possible outcome of the meeting between Benedict and Abdullah.

"It is not for me to tell the Saudi king what he should do, but in accordance with the teachings of the Quran I am personally in favour of religious freedom," Scajola said.

Speaking on condition of anonymity a Catholic priest who says he has visited Saudi Arabia clandestinely said Tuesday's scheduled meeting was 'pretty remarkable'.

However, he believes the talks would not have a major impact on conditions faced by Christians in Saudi Arabia where non-Muslim religious services are also prohibited from being held inside foreign embassies.

"When we tell the Saudis: 'Look, we allow you to build a mosque in Rome, why won't you allow us to build churches in Saudi Arabia?' the standard reply is: 'Yes, but that would be like building a mosque in the Vatican," the priest said.

Still, whatever practical objectives Abdullah's visit to the Vatican achieves, it offers Benedict an opportunity to be seen engaging in dialogue with a top representative of Islam, the world's second largest religion after Christianity.

The pope opened a wound in September 2006 during a trip in his native Germany when during a speech he appeared to associate Islam with violence, sparking protests, in many cases violent, by Muslims around the world.

The pontiff has since somewhat made amends. First by stating that his words had been misinterpreted and that he meant no disrespect to Muslims, then by a visit last November to Turkey where he stopped to pray in Istanbul's main Blue Mosque becoming the second pope after John Paul II to enter a Muslim house of worship.

On Tuesday he may have another chance to show the world his intention to heal relations with Islam.

[No, the Pope does not need 'another chance' - he has never shown any other intention otherwise! The onus for anything coming out of this meeting rests entirely on the Saudi king who can adopt some compromise that will allow religious freedom that makes clear doing so is not a violation of the Koran.]


For the Arab perspective on the King's trip, here's a report from Arab News. Significantly, apart from mentioning the visit to the Pope, the entire story is focused on the visit to Italy. Also note that the story leads off with the appellative 'custodian of the two Holy Mosques' for the King:

Mideast peace high
on King's agenda in Rome
By P.K. Abdul Ghafour
Arab News


JEDDAH, 5 November 2007 - Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah arrives in Rome today on the second leg of a European tour which has already taken him to Britain. He will hold talks with Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi and Pope Benedict XVI tomorrow.

Diplomatic sources said King Abdullah's talks with Prodi would focus on the Middle East peace and prospects for expanding trade and investment cooperation. Prodi will be at the airport to receive the king and his delegation.

The royal visit will witness the signing of a number of bilateral agreements to expand cooperation in the areas of health, higher education, technical and vocational training and combating terrorism.

The Saudi-Italian Business Council will hold a meeting in Rome to mark the visit. Abdullah and Prodi are expected to attend the council's concluding session.

King Abdullah will arrive in Rome from Geneva, where he arrived on Thursday on a private visit at the conclusion of his three-day state visit to the UK. He will also visit Germany and Turkey, during the current European tour, his second after becoming king in August 2005.

Prominent Italian officials have highlighted the significance of the king's visit, saying it would boost Saudi-Italian ties. "I am very happy about the king's visit," said former Prime Minister Giulio Andreotti. "The present global situation is extremely sensitive and everybody has to work to cool world public concern and prepare a better future for the younger generation. In this respect, King Abdullah's visit is not only important but also gives hope."

Andreotti emphasized Saudi Arabia's growing international role. "Nobody can ignore Saudi Arabia's historic role," he said and expressed his readiness to participate in any efforts to promote bilateral ties.

Speaking to the Saudi Press Agency, Italian Deputy Foreign Minister Acco Antini said his country gave great importance to the king's visit. He praised Riyadh's efforts to resolve the Arab-Israeli conflict. "King Abdullah has taken a series of initiatives to settle complex issues, winning international applause," Antini said.

Saudi-Italian relations date back to 1932 when Italy established diplomatic relations with the Kingdom and opened a consulate in Jeddah.
In 1933 the two countries signed a cooperation agreement. King Faisal visited Italy in 1933 when he was the country's foreign minister and met King Victor Emmanuel III.

Faisal visited the country again in June 1973. In 1999, Abdullah visited Italy when he was crown prince and met Italian President Carlo Ciampi and Prime Minister Massimo D'Alema.

Pope Benedict XVI in Bucharest?
Published 11/01/07
www.nineoclock.ro/


Nine O'Clock is a daily newspaper in English started 12 years ago by a group of Romanian journalists.


Monsignor Jean-Claude Perisset, the Apostolic Nuncio accredited to Bucharest, had a farewell meeting at Cotroceni Palace, yesterday, as his term in Romania’s capital came to an end.

The apostolic nuncio was received by President Traian Basescu, who remarked the significant contribution brought by the Holy See representative during his Bucharest tenure of close to nine years.

President Basescu brought the issue of a potential visit to Romania by the Sovereign Pontiff, His Holiness, Pope Benedict XVI.

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Irony of ironies! There's an ongoing political storm in Italy over immigrants, in particular Romanians, because of recent violent crimes against Italians committed by foreigners. Romanians figured in some of the most recently ublicized incidents.


Italian anger swells
against Romanian immigrants


ROME. Nov. 4 (AP) — Opposition leader Silvio Berlusconi urged Italy to close its borders to Romanian workers and a conservative ally called for the expulsion of tens of thousands of immigrants as the nation grappled Sunday with public outrage over a wave of violent crimes blamed on foreigners.

Pope Benedict XVI added his voice to the debate over the balance between citizen safety and treatment of foreigners by reminding authorities that immigrants have rights, as well as obligations.

The Vatican wields considerable political influence in Italy, and the pope weighed in as lawmakers prepared to debate the government's response, which includes fast-track expulsions of Romanians and other EU citizens deemed dangerous, as well bulldozing shantytowns housing thousands of immigrants.

"In Rome alone, 20,000 expulsions should be carried out right away," right-wing leader Gianfranco Fini, a key Berlusconi ally and a potential contender in the next election for premier, said on a TV talk show.

Berlusconi told La Stampa newspaper that Italy should enact a moratorium against Romanian workers. "If I were in the government, I would have done it," the billionaire media mogul and former premier was quoted as saying.

Armed with a government decree approved in an emergency Cabinet session on Oct. 31, authorities across Italy have begun expelling or readying expulsion orders for European Union citizens with criminal records or those deemed dangerous to public safety.

To remain in force more than a few months, the decree requires approval in Parliament, where Premier Romano Prodi's center-left forces have a narrow and sometime unreliable majority.

Berlusconi said he was mulling over whether his conservative lawmakers should approve the decree, while Fini said his forces would vote for it only if expulsions are expanded to include Romanians and other EU citizens without the means to support themselves.

Another right-wing leader, Roberto Calderoli, advocated vigilante patrols to keep Italian cities safe from criminal immigrants.

Police on Sunday searched for several Italians who, with clubs and knives, wounded three Romanians in a Rome parking lot on Friday night.

The attack prompted Romania's government to warn Italy against letting public concern about crime turn into xenophobia.

In Bucharest, Romanian's prime minister, Calin Popescu Tariceanu, summoned top Cabinet ministers Sunday to discuss the issue.

"We should fight against the wave of xenophobia that is manifesting itself in Italy and we must fight against the bad image that Romanians who are working in Italy have," he said Saturday.

Italian authorities say statistics show foreigners commit a disproportionate number of crimes in Italy, and Rome Mayor Walter Veltroni said 75% of arrests in the city in the last year involved Romanians.

On the national level, figures from Italy's statistics bureau found that while less than 5% of the population in 2004 were foreigners, foreigners accounted for 26% of all those convicted, although the report cautioned that immigrants were less likely to obtain adequate legal defense.

Romanians have been detained as suspects in several recent crimes, including the rape of a woman on church steps in northern Italy, a Tiber River bank mugging that left a Rome cyclist in a coma for weeks before he died and the robbery of a Milan coffee bar in which the elderly owner was beaten and her daughter raped.

Other recent crimes in which foreigners are suspected include the mugging of Oscar-winning director Giuseppe Tornatore, which sent him to the hospital; the holdup of a prominent TV anchorman and the mugging of a Rome municipal commissioner.

The savage beating last week of the wife of an Italian naval commander triggered the decree calling for quick expulsions of some EU citizens after a Romanian was arrested in connection with the assault.

Amid the tensions, Pope Benedict offered his concern as he addressed pilgrims in St. Peter's Square.

Speaking about the relations between migrants and local populations, Benedict expressed hope that "those who deal with security and welcoming programs know how to use instruments aimed at guaranteeing the rights and duties that are at the foundations" of coexistence.

After Romania joined the EU this year, Romanians poured into Italy in search of work as maids, nannies, waiters, janitors and bricklayers, and they now account for nearly 1% of the population in Italy.

Predictably, the Italian media are all reporting the Pope's Angelus message yesterday because of the 'political' messages he made after the prayers for a peaceful resolution of the Kurdish problem on the Turkey-Iraq border, but mostly, for his reference to problems regarding immigrants, which is very topical in Italy these days.

First, here is how an international wire service agency reported it today:


Pope weighs in on Romanian problem


VATICAN CITY, Nov. 5 (UPI) -- A controversy over the expulsion of 38 Romanian immigrants by the Italian government has drawn an admonition from Pope Benedict XVI.

Benedict called on Italians to respect the rights of immigrants in the wake of a new policy of deporting Romanians who commit crimes, The Independent reported Monday.

"I wish that relations between migrant and local populations should be in the spirit of moral civility and the fruit of the spiritual and cultural values of every people and every country," the pope told a crowd gathered Sunday in St. Peter's Square.

His remarks followed calls by Italian government opposition leader Silvio Berlusconi for closing the borders to Romanian workers.

"People can't take it any more, because this wave of immigration has caused a growth in criminality," said Gianfranco Fini, who served as foreign minister in Berlusconi's government.

Several crimes recently, including the killing last week of an Italian woman near a squatter camp on Rome's outskirts, were alleged to have been carried out by Romanian immigrants.

Friday night a group of Romanians was attacked in a Rome suburb.

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Here is a translation of an article in today's Repubblica - a newspaper usually critical of the Pope - to show that the Pope's message was uniformly welcomed.

The Pope to Italian authorities:
'Prevent violence and avoid intolerance'
By ALBERTO CUSTODERO


ROME - An appeal so that the "rights and duties which are the basis for every true coexistence and encounter between peoples" may be guaranteed. The hope that relations between immigrants and the host population should take place "in the spirit of that high moral civility which is a fruit of the spiritual and cultural values of each nation and people."

Thus did Pope Benedict XVI intervene yesterday, with a high-minded appeal addressed to 'those who have responsibility for security and hospitality', on the emergency provoked by the killing of an Italian woman by Romanian immigrants last week in the Roman district of Tor de Quinto.

The Pope did not directly refer to the killing of Giovanna Reggiani nor the stepped-up police patrols of immigrant neighborhoods, the planned decrees on expelling some immigrants, and the polemics between Italian and Romanian authorities on the issue.

Although it could be taken as a general reference to the situation of immigrants in many Western countries, the Pope did allude to the controversy over the appropriate measures to curb immigrant crimes, as he appealed for everyone 'to avoid violence and intolerance'.

In referring to the need for both 'security and hospitality', the Pope obviously wished to emphasize both the duty to welcome immigrants appropriately and to safeguard the the security of citizens.

At the same time, he said immigrants had both rights as well as duties, which are the basis for 'true coexistence' with the residents of the host country.

The Pope thereby expressed the position set out Friday by Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone who spoke out on the immigrant issue, calling on Italians to "honor our old tradition of hospitality" and at the same time, "be firm with those who commit crimes and do not accept either the criteria for citizenship in a democratic country nor the fundamental rules for living together."

Bertone also said it was important 'to distinguish the wheat from the chaff, and not to make a sheaf out of a single stalk.'

In his message after the noonday Angelus yesterday, the Pope first expressed his concerns over the conflict in the border region of Turkey and Iraq over Kurdish rebels, and his hopes for 'a peaceful solution for the civilian populations involved, including many Christians who have found refuge in the border region from the bloody violence in parts of Iraq.

He then proceeded to speak about the immigrant issue.

Repubblica, 5 novembre 2007

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To place this issue in better perspective, here is an editorial commentary today by SIR, the news agency of the Italian bishops conference, translated here.


TO EDUCATE EVERYONE ABOUT LAW:
RESPECT AND ENFORCEMENT

We do not want the questions raised by the barbaric killing of Giovanna Reggiani - so tragic in its horrendous banality - to be the nth political debate Italian-style.

We do not want it to be the nth occasion for a collective rhetorical exercise on the question - doubtless crucial - of immigration and the politics of public safety and security that is connected with it in many ways. A excess of rhetoric in which everyone - from do-gooders to strict disciplinarians - seems to be reciting from a well-known script.

Instead, it is time to face this question in its complex totality and with the good sense that most Italians look at it.

Good sense requires us to recognize, in fact, that immigration per se is not in question. Italian economy and society need foreign immigrants, now and in the foreseeable future. This presupposes forms of integration and adaptation.

But this does not mean that the system of Italian laws and regulations would require a different interpretation for immigrants. The law is the law, for all, and above all.

But legality is a word that has never been quite understood in our collective vocabulary. It wasn't by chance that in the 20th century - 1992 to be exact - the Italian bishops conference, published a document with a title that is still very relevant: "Educating in legality".

Laws exist, and it should not be difficult to update them as needed. But that is not the point. What's important first is that everyone respects the law, and those who have the responsibility to enforce it should do so and impose respect for it. Without distinction - among equals, among those who have more, or those who have less.

This is the crux of the question regarding immigrants who break the law. Along with another point not less relevant and connected to it, which is, in the words of Pope Benedict XVI, 'the moral profile of civil coexistence'.

In short, wrongdoers should answer for their offenses, according to the law and the penal code. But civilian coexistence also must have a code of values, principles and moral standards which go beyond just an assertion of individual rights, and reflect the patrimony of civilization, that identity of the collective which needs to be defined and developed now more than ever, in order to make it grow and be properly appreciated.

This is an endless and urgent area of commitment for everyone - from he forces of law and order to the courts, and all who have any educative responsibilities in society.

It is time for everyone to carry out his duties, and this is the way to assure both hospitality and security - hospitality for immigrants, and security for everyone, beginning with Italian citizens.

But this education for legality is obviously not limited to the question of immigrants. If we ask young adults - people in their 20s now, when we are almost 40 years away from 1968 - we will find how far removed they are from the 'revolutionary' order of that year; we will find that they demand 're-regulation' of public life, even if they can mostly express it 'poorly' through their disorientation.

In fact, as the Pope recently said, we have an educational emergency, and Italy needs urgent and adequate responses.

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Here is Il Messaggero's more comprehensive report about the Pope's Angelus message, translated here:


The Pope: Safety and hospitality
in dealing with immigrants
by FRANCA GIANSOLDATI


VATICAN CITY - Foreign immigrants have rights but duties as well.

After calling on society in general to 'keep an elevated profile of civilian coexistence' the day after the murder in Rome of Giovanna Reggiani by a Romanian immigrant, Papa Ratzinger spoke about issues linked with immigration, emphasizing the need to exercise hospitality as well as enforcing the law.

At the Sunday Angelus yesterday, after a reflection on the tax collector Zacchaeus in the Gospel of the day, the Pope stated in a few lines a formula for 'true living together' in community. In essence, he told tens of thousands gathered in St. Peter's Square,
civilian coexistence is an 'encounter among peoples.'

Those three words enclose a world that consists of decades-long efforts by the Church to build bridges with Islam, as well as the desire not to be closed off from anything 'different', in the difficult task of relating to various cultures in an increasingly globalized world society.

And religion - as John Paul II intuited in 1979 when,for the first time, he called Muslims 'brothers' - is an invaluable vehicle for breaking down walls and building bridges.

"Once again," Benedict XVI said, "the Gospel tells us that love, coming from the heart of God and working through the heart of man, is the force that renews the world."

Without ever explicitly citing the homicide committed by the immigrant in Rome, nor the risk of Italian xenophobia against immigrants from Romania, the Pope said he was hopeful that 'relations between immigrant populations and the local people' would take place 'in the spirit of that high moral civility that is the fruit of spiritual and cultural values in every people and country'.

At the same time, he did not fail to call on the authorities, especially 'those who have the responsibility for public safety as well as hospitality (for immigrants)' to guarantee their rights, and for immigrants to recognize their duties, since 'rights and duties are the basis of all genuine living together.'

It was thought that the Pope deliberately avoided specific references to the Italian situation because similar situations occur in other parts of the world, including for many Christians forced to flee war zones.

After the Angelus, Fr. Federico Lombardi, Vatican press director, said: "The Pope made general statements. Even if he earlier referred to his concerns for the problems that have arisen between Turkey and the Kurds of Iraq, he was not referring only to that region of the world. Even the Italian situation comes into that general frame."

It must be noted that the Church, with respect to the great question of immigration in our time, has used every means, including Papal addresses and not a few Vatican documents, to advocate Biblical hospitality - exemplified by the Holy Family seeking refuge in Egypt -
along with respect for the law.

Last October, in his address to the new ambassador from Belgium to the Holy See, the Pope referred to the tragedy of undocumented immigrants, urging that Western nations, in their immigration policies, should 'reconcile their interests' with the needs of 'disadvantaged nations'.

Such policies, he said, should also promote reciprocal knowledge about each other's cultures, respecting each other's religious convictions, as well as 'the legitimate demands of social life, and following laws in force'.

According to Papa Ratzinger, that would be the only way to neutralize the bad weed of 'exaggerated nationalism and xenophobia', so that and 'one may hope for harmonious development in our society.'

A recent article by Fr.Michele Simone in La Civilta Cattolica on the statistical dossier of Caritas on immigration in Italy shows a change in mentality towards immigrants on the part of millions of Italians.

The Jesuit magazine - which reflects the orientation of the Vatican secretariat of state - denounced the dissemination of stereotypes about immigrants, particularly that which equates immigrant with criminal.

"This does not mean that one must yield to mere do-goodism and ignore that there are many problems and difficulties," Simone's article said. "But these should be faced squarely, because immigrants are, and will be, even more in the future, a necessary presence in European society."


Il Messaggero, 5 novembre 2007

A full translation of the Pope's homily has been posted in HOMILIES, DISCOURSES, MESSAGES.

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The Pope today celebrated a Mass at the Altar of Peter's Chair in St. Peter's Basilica to remember all the cardinals,
patriarchs, bishops and archbishops who died during the past 12 months.

The deceased cardinals were Salvatore Pappalardo, Frédéric Etsou-Nzabi Bamungwabi, Antonio María Javierre,
Angelo Felici, Jean-Marie Lustiger, Edouard Gagnon, Adam Kozłowiecki and Rosalio José Castillo Lara.

---

Pope Offers Mass for Deceased Cardinals:
8 Passed Away Since Last November


VATICAN CITY, NOV. 5, 2007 (Zenit.org)- Benedict XVI concelebrated Mass with the College of Cardinals today, offering it for the souls of their brother bishops and cardinals who died this year.

At the beginning of the homily, the Pope mentioned the cardinals who had died in the past 12 months: Cardinals Salvatore Pappalardo, Frédéric Etsou-Nzabi Bamungwabi, Antonio Javierre, Angelo Felici, Jean-Marie Lustiger, Edouard Gagnon, Adam Kozłowiecki and Rosalio José Castillo Lara.

The Holy Father offered an invitation to give thanks to God "for the gift he has given the Church through them and for all the good achieved with their help. Likewise, we entrust the souls of the departed patriarchs, archbishops, and bishops to the eternal Father, also expressing our recognition of their work in the name of the entire Catholic community."

These men, our brothers, he continued, "were certainly men of distinct character, both for their personal trials as well as for the ministry they exercised. Nevertheless, they all had a great commonality: their friendship with the Lord Jesus."

"During their temporal existence," the Holy Father said, "Jesus led them to know the name of God, granting them participation in the love of the most holy Trinity, [...] an experience of divine communion that, by its nature, tends to envelop one's entire existence, transfiguring it and preparing it for the glory of eternal life."

Alluding to the responsorial psalm, the Pope emphasized that "this thirst [for God] holds a truth that does not betray, a hope that does not delude. It is a thirst that, even through the darkest night, illuminates that path toward the source of life."

Benedict XVI pointed out that the psalm acquires a tone of confidence at its heart as well as at its end: "Why are you discouraged, my soul, why do you worry me? Trust in God that I may praise him, my salvation and my God.

"In the light of Christ and his paschal mystery these words reveal a wonderful truth: Not even death can render a believer's hope worthless because Christ has entered the sanctuary of heaven for us and wants to lead us there where he has prepared us a place."






This was the first Mass at which Mons. Guido Marini acted as Master of Pontifical Liturgical Celebrations.


In the smaller picture, Mons. Guido is the 'cerimoniere' on the right. .


In the main forum, Caterina posted this picture to note the sleeve of the Pope's alb which appears to have a brocaded pattern.

'THE CLERGY AT EVERY LEVEL HAVE A DUTY TO OBEY'

Here is a translation of an interview in PETRUS today with the #2 man in the Congregation for Divine Worship.




Pride and prejudice
motivate the Pope's opponents
By Bruno Volpe


VATICAN CITY - 'The clergy at every level have a duty to obey the Pope' is the central message from Mons. Albert Malcolm Ranjith Patabendige, secretary-general of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, in this exclusive interview.



Excellency, how would you describe the reception so far of the Pope's Motu Proprio liberalizing the use of the traditional Mass? Some in the Church have turned up their noses at it...

There have been positive reactions, and of course, we cannot deny that there have been criticisms and direct opposition from some theologians, liturgists, bishops and even cardinals.

Frankly, I do not understand these forms of distancing from the Pope, or better still, call it for what it is, rebellion.

I invite everyone, especially bishops, to obey the Pope, who is the Successor of Peter. Bishops, in particular, have sworn their loyalty to the Pontiff, and should be consistent and faithful to that vow.


In your opinion, what is the reason for this display of opposition to the Pope?

You know that there have been, in some dioceses, 'interpretative' documents aimed, inexplicably, at delimiting the Pope's Motu Proprio. Such actions are partly motivated by ideological prejudice as well as arrogance, one of the gravest of sins.

I can only repeat: I call on everyone to obey the Pope. If the Holy Father thought that it was his duty to issue this Motu Proprio, he made his reasons clear, and I share them fully.


The liberalization of the traditional Mass also seems like a proper remedy to so many liturgical abuses that were unfortunately committed after Varican-II in connection with the Novus Ordo...

I don't criticize the Novus Ordo. But it makes me laugh when I hear it said, even by some friends of mine, that in a parish, the priest is a saint because of his homilies or how he speaks.

The Holy Mass is a sacrifice, an offering, a mystery, that is independent of the priest who celebrates it. It is therefore important - in fact, fundamental - that the priest knows his place in it: the protagonist of the Mass is Christ.

Therefore, I do not understand the eucharistic celebrations transformed into performances with singing and dancing and clapping, which unfortunately takes place in many Novus Ordo Masses.


Mons. Patabendige, your Congregation has often spoken against such liturgical abuses...

Yes. We have issued so many documents which, however, remain dead letters, that end up in dusty shelves, or worse, in the weatebasket.


Another point - sometimes, one has to sit through excessively long homilies...

Even that is an abuse. I am against dancing and applause during Mass, because one is not at the circus or a stadium. As for homilies, they should be exclusively catechetical, as the Pope has underscored, and avoid sociologisms and useless patter.

Often, the priest ends up talking about politics because he has not really prepared a homily [which should always be based on the Gospel and readings of the day]. And a homily should be prepared carefully, scrupulously.

An excessively long homily usually means little preparation. A homily should be about 10 minutes, 15 at the most. The priest must consider that the culminating moment of the celebration is the Eucharistic mystery. This is not to diminish the liturgy of the Word but to clarify the correct application of liturgy.


Going back to the Motu Proprio, there are those who criticize the use of Latin for the Mass...

The Tridentine rite in Latin is part of Church tradition. The Pope has dutifully explained the reasons for his decision - it is an act of liberation and of justice for the traditionalists.

As for the use of Latin, I would like to emphasize that it was never abolished. [The so-called 'typical' Missals, even that of the Novus Ordo - on which all other language translations are based - are in Latin.] Latin is a guarantee of the universality of the Church.

I can only repeat: I call on all priests, bishops and cardinals to obey the Pope, setting aside any pride or prejudice.


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A CWN report based on the PETRUS interview adds this :

Early in October, in an address to the Latin Liturgy Association in the Netherlands, Archbishop Ranjith had delivered an equally blunt assessment of the response to Summorum Pontificum, saying that bishops were being "disobedient" to the Pope, and stifling the impact of the motu proprio by their policies. Diocesan bishops "do not have this right," he said, and bishops who defy the Pope's authority are allowing themselves "to be used as instruments of the devil."

[The full text of the Netherlands speech was posted at the time in READINGS].

Thank you for this post, Teresa. It is almost unbelievable that the Pope has to contend with the negative reaction of so many clerics with regard to the liturgy, whether "old" or "new". One can only hope that with time the beauty and reverence of the "traditional" Mass will eventually have a positive influence on the Novus Ordo in the cases where it is being abused.

Saudi King Abdullah arrives
for historic meeting with Pope


He's 83! Abdullah in an Oct 2007 AFP file photo.

ROME, Nov. 5 (AFP) - King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia arrived Monday in Rome for an audience with Pope Benedict XVI, the first between a Saudi monarch and a leader of the Roman Catholic Church.

Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal came to Rome in September to pave the way for the visit, the third leg of a European tour that has taken the 84-year-old monarch to London and Geneva.

The meeting with the pope is set for 12:30 pm (1130 GMT) on Tuesday.

The Holy See and Saudi Arabia do not have diplomatic ties, but King Abdullah met Benedict's predecessor John Paul II in 1999 when he was crown prince to his half brother King Fahd.

The Vatican said the talks in September between al-Faisal and the pope centred on "defence of religious and moral values, the Middle East conflict, the political and religious situation in Saudi Arabia (and) the importance of inter-cultural and inter-faith dialogue."

A Vatican source told AFP the same topics would be on the agenda between the king and the Pope when they meet Tuesday.

Saudi Arabia held an Arab summit in Riyadh in March to relaunch a five-year-old Saudi peace initiative for the Middle East.

Abdullah's visit comes as relations between the Vatican and the Muslim world have eased since the crisis provoked in September 2006 when Benedict appeared to link Islam with violence in a speech at Regensburg University, Germany.

Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi, who travelled to Riyadh in April, was to meet the Saudi king late Tuesday, while Foreign Minister Massimo D'Alema was to have talks with his Saudi counterpart Al-Faisal.

Abdullah's lavish three-day state visit to Britain, the first by a Saudi monarch in 20 years, sparked human rights protests.

He will travel next to Germany and Turkey.



Saudi king to hold
landmark meeting with Pope


King Abdullah leaves Buckingham Palace
after meeting Queen Elizabeth on Nov. 1.


Rome, 5 Nov.(AdnKronos) - Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah Bin-Abd-al-Aziz Al Saud arrived in Italy late on Monday with a 22-member delegation for a two-day visit to the capital, Rome. During his stay he was due to meet Italy's president Georgio Napolitano, prime minister Romano Prodi and Pope Benedict XVI - for the first time.

Diplomatic sources told Adnkronos that the visit was taking place in the context of a consolidated relationship between Italy and Saudi Arabia. The leaders will sign on Tuesday sign several key accords in the areas of counter-terrorism, defence, higher education, professional training and health, the sources said.

Abdullah's talks with top government and institutional representatives are expected to centre on international politics, especially Lebanon, the Arab-Israeli peace process, Iraq and Iran's nuclear file.

Italian diplomats told Adnkronos they will be asking Abdullah and his delegation to elaborate on a recent Saudi proposal for a consortium of Gulf states to enrich uranium in a 'neutral country' as a way out of the international crisis over Iran's nuclear programme.

Abdullah's first official engagement was a dinner on Monday as Napolitano's guest at the Quirinale Palace - official residence of the Italian president.

The Saudi monarch is due on Tuesday to pay an historic visit the Vatican - a state with which Saudi Arabia does not have diplomatic relations - for an audience with Benedict XVI.

Custodian of the Mecca and Medina mosques in Saudia Arabia - two of the holiest Muslim sites - Abdullah is the first Saudi king to meet a pope.

Discussions between Abdullah - viewed as a moderate reformer - and Benedict XVI are expected to focus on increasing dialogue between Catholics and Muslims.

Although it does not have diplomatic relations with Saudi Arabia, the Vatican has ties with many other Islamic nations.

It is forbidden to practise Christianity inside Saudi Arabia and illegal to bring symbols from religions other than Islam into the country. Bibles and crucifixes must be left at the border.

The Vatican has stressed its demands for "reciprocity" meaning that countries such as Saudi Arabia should ease limits on worship by Christians and other non-Muslims.

Church relations with Muslims were badly strained last year after a speech by the pontiff in Germany linking Islam to violence. Benedict later said he regretted that Muslims were offended by his remarks, and the Vatican has since tried to improve relations with Muslims.

Abdullah will on Tuesday meet Rome's mayor and leader of the newly formed centre-left Democratic Party, Walter Veltroni. Also on Tuesday, he will meet Prodi during a meeting of the joint Italo-Saudi Business Council taking place at Rome's Excelsior Hotel.

Abdullah will later hold separate talks with Prodi and Italy's foreign minister Massimo D'Alema at the Renaissance Villa Madama, where he is staying during his visit.

Abdullah is on a 13-day European tour that has already taken in Britain and includes Germany and Turkey on the next leg of his journey.

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BRIEF BACKGROUND ON KING ABDULLAH


Abdullah with US Vice-President Cheney
after his coronation in August 2005.

The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud, born 1924, is the King of Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia is an absolute monarchy run by the House of Saud family.

Abdullah succeeded to the throne on August 1, 2005, following the death of his half-brother, King Fahd. As crown prince, he had previously acted as de facto regent and thus ruler of Saudi Arabia since 1995 when King Fahd was incapacitated by a major stroke.

He was formally enthroned on August 3, 2005, but he inherited the title of King immediately after the death of his half-brother. One of his sons, Prince Mutaib, serves as a deputy commander in the Saudi National Guard.

Abdullah also serves as Prime Minister and Commander of the Saudi National Guard. He is Chairman of the Supreme Economic Council, President of the High Council for Petroleum and Minerals, President of the King Abdulaziz Centre for National Dialogue, Chairman of the Council of Civil Service and Head of the Military Service Council.

Abdullah is the fifth son (out of 37 sons) of King Abdulaziz bin Abdulrahman Al Saud, the founder of modern Saudi Arabia, to ascend to the throne.

King Abdul Aziz began conquering today's Saudi Arabia in 1902, by restoring his family as emirs of Riyadh. He then proceeded to conquer first the Nejd (1922) and then the Hejaz (1925). He progressed from Sultan of Nejd, to King of Hejaz and Nejd, and finally to King of Saudi Arabia (1932).

The other kings have all been sons of his, and all likely immediate successors to the reigning King Abdullah are his sons as well. Sons of Ibn Saud are considered to have primary claim on the Kingship of Saudi Arabia. This makes the Saudi Monarchy quite distinct from Western monarchies, which usually feature large, clearly defined royal families and orders of succession.

The kings after Faisal have named a "second Deputy Prime Minister" as the subsequent heir after the Crown Prince, who is also the "Deputy Prime Minister." The current Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia is Abdullah's half-brother, Prince Sultan, and it is intended that a family assembly choose heirs from their or the next generation at some time in the future, however at the current time, Abdullah has named no "second Deputy."

Saudi Arabia is ruled by Islamic law and purports to be an Islamic state; but many Muslims see a monarchy as being a non-Islamic system of government. This attitude stems in part from traditional Sunni doctrine, which prefers selecting rulers based on who is most qualified, even though the caliphate became a hereditary system after the time of the first four Sunni Caliphs (the Rashidun).

The ruling family is often perceived as unreligious due to rumours of decadent behaviour. This is part of a deeper underlying tension in Saudi Arabia between the strive for modernization and conservation of culture and values.

But King Abdullah is considered a devout Muslim and follows the Salafi understanding of Islam which is a strict interpretation of the religion based on the teachings of the first three generations of Muslims, and is said to have meetings with leaders of Saudi Arabia's religious establishment on a weekly basis to garner advice and guidance.

The status of women in his kingdom has received critisism where "they are banned from driving, from leaving the house without a male guardian or from holding a passport."


An across-the-board criticism of Abdullah and his regime can be read in this article in the UK newspaper Independent as Abdullah arrived in London on a state visit last week.
news.independent.co.uk/uk/politics/article3106888.ece

A key paragraph has to do with Saudi funding of the Wahhabi brand of extremist Islamism that. See also report on what Saudi-funded mosques and schools teach in the UK, and presumably around the world.

ANTICIPATING THE VISIT OF THE SAUDI KING
by Giuseppe Fiorentino



Here is the translation of a front-page article in the November 5-6 issue of L'Osservatore Romano:


The King of Saudi Arabia, Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, will meet Pope Benedict XVI Tuesday, Nov. 6. It will be the first visit by a
Saudi King with a Pope, although as Crown Prince, Abdullah met with John Paul II on May 25, 1999.

The visit of the monarch, who also has the supreme religious title of Custodian of the Two Sacred Mosques of Mecca and Medina, is obviously of great significance.

It takes place a few weeks after 138 Muslim scholars, among them some Saudis, sent a letter to the Pope and other Christian leaders on the subject of dialog between Islam and Christianity. The 138 signatories come from 47 nations, including some non-Muslim states,

Although not explicitly stated, the letter also addresses all Muslims who believe in the need for a sincere and reciprocally respectful dialog with Christians.

In a world whose borders are opening up more each day, dialog, more than being just a choice, has become a necessity. This is clear from the presence of millions of Muslims in Western countries, and the growing presence of Christians in some Muslim countries of the Arabian Peninsula.

In the United Arab Emirates, which opened diplomatic relations with the Vatican recently, Christians are already 35% of the population (mostly foreign workers). Even in Saudi Arabia itself, it is estimated there are over 1.5 million Catholics today (mostly Filipino workers).

King Abdullah is accompanied by his Foreign Minister, Prince Saud Al Faisal who met with the Pope in Castel Gandolfo last September 6.

The Saudi monarch is carrying out a diplomatic tour of Europe which started in the United Kingdom last week and will take him to Germany and Turkey.

Abdullah became the sixth King of Saudi Arabia on August 1, 2005, after the death of his half-brother King Fahd. But he had been Regent since 1995, when Fahd fell ill and incapacitated.

He was born in Riyadh in 1924, one of 37 sons of King Abdel Aziz Al Saud, who founded the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 1932. His first official position was Mayor of the Holy City of Mecca.

In 1962, he became vice-minister of defense and commandant of the National Guard in 1975, second deputy Prime Minister; and in 1982, Crown Prince and deputy Prime Minister.

Shortly after he became King, he held the first elections in the country's history - nationwide municipal elections.

Considered by many observers to be open to the West, with which he has been trying to strengthen political and economic relations, he has also shown himself attentive to the concerns of neighboring Arab countries.

Thanks to him, in recent years, Saudi Arabia has assumed an important role as mediator of conflicts in the Middle East. In 2002, before he became King, he presented in Beirut a peace initiative that proposed the willingness of the Arab nations to normalize relations with Israel in exchange for its retreat from Palestinian territories occupied after the 1967 War. This remains the formula that Arab leaders are proposing in order to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Perhaps one can say of the Saudi king's visit tomorrow the recent words of Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, president of the Pontifical Council for InterReligious Dialog, to define Christian-Muslim relations.

"The important things," Tauran said, "is to get to know each other, to know each other, to know each other. Each of us always ha something to learn from the other."


L'Osservatore Romano - 5-6 Novembre 2007

Can we expect something new
from the Saudi king's visit with the Pope?
By FRANCO CARDINI

Here is a translation of an editorial commentary from Il Tempo today.

The visit to the Pontiff of the King of Saudi Arabia and Custodian of the Sacred Mosques of Mecca and Medina, Abdullah II, is both interesting and problematic.

The King, born in 1924, came to the throne in 2005 but he had been Regent since 1996 when his brother Fahd became ill and incapacitated.

The 83-year-old Abdullah is an interesting and controversial personage. He has been called, a bit too picturesquely, the Red Prince, and has distinguished himself as the leader of a modernizing trend in the court and the country.

After 9/11, he reacted to pressures from the United States with almost 'revolutionary' measures, such as the proposal (though immediately placed in deep-freeze) to convert the petroleum market from the dollar to the euro, the re-establishment in 2001 of diplomatic relations with Yemen and Iran, and his refusal to allow military bases in his country to be used for the invasion of Iraq. This led the United States to transfer its Middle East military staff command to Qatar and withdrawal of US troops from Saudi Arabia.

Meanwhile, Abdullah, still as Prince Regent, also proposed an autonomous Arab solution for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that would not be mediated by the West.

Internally, Abdullah has not hesitated to make institutional innovations: between 2004-2005, he instituted a series of reforms which led to the first democratic consultations and elections in the kingdom since it was born in 1932 under the British aegis. (Saudi Arabia then entered into a rigid alliance with the United States and has been Washington's most 'trusted' ally in the Arab Middle East.)

But Saudi Arabia ha always been a source of outrage to the outside world. Along with the Gulf emirates, it has been the Arab country most closed to democracy and modernity. The reigning dynasty is considered the leader of the Wahhabi sect, which supports the strict and rigorous application of sharia.

Because it has remained an ally of the West, the dark reactionary side of the regime - paradoxical in the world's leading oil producer and a dynasty that is a giant in international finance - has been minimally discussed in the Western mass media. It would be embarrassing them to do so, especially when the ruling house claims it is fighting fundamentalism (which is not the same as religious radicalism).

The paradox is that the 'regressive' character of the Saudi regime is beginning to be denounced only now - while Abdullah is showing signs of loosening up his alliance with the United States and is playing leading role in some innovations.

What will the King, who is in many ways unpredictable, say to the Pope? Doubtless, and perhaps above all, they will talk about the Israeli-Palestinian problem and the security of the Christian holy sites int the Middle East.

But perhaps even the delicate and difficult situation of Christians in Saudi Arabia where, by virtue of a very strict (and to Western eyes, unacceptable) interpretation of sharia, public worship by Christians or other manifestation of Christianity is prohibited in any form.

The word 'reciprocity' has been mentioned. But reciprocity, by nature, can only be practised between analogous juridical and institutional subjects. The Pope, head of Catholicism, cannot ask for any form of reciprocity from the King of Saudi Arabia who, although he is custodian of Islam's most holy mosques, is not the leader of Islam, not even of the Sunnis, who consider him suspect because of his association with the Wahhabis.

What about a bilateral accord between the sovereign of Vatican state and the King of Saudi Arabia? This is certainly possible on the juridical and formal level, but on the political and moral level, it seems impossible that the Pontiff could act only as a regular head of state, especially since his state only has 800 inhabitants. [??? Why not? The Vatican remains a sovereign state no matter how tiny it is, and why can't the Pope act as a head of state?]

On the other hand, Abdullah is a reformer. In the Arab and Islamic world, there are models in which, without 'betraying' the sharia in any way, but adapting a more open interpretation, other governments have guaranteed religious freedom for Christians. So it is in Jordan, Syria, Iraq (even under Saddam Hussein), Egypt and the other North African countries.

Abdullah knows that any step, however cautious, that he takes in this direction, will alienate him from the extremist fringes of Islam but, with the backing of the Pope, would earn him extraordinary diplomatic prestige and moral capital in the West.

In short, there is reason to hope for something new.

Il Tempo, 6 novembre 2007

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

Here are some of the Anglophone situationers:


Saudi king meets pope at the Vatican

VATICAN CITY, Nov. 6 (UPI) -- Pope Benedict XVI became the first Roman Catholic leader Tuesday to host talks with a Saudi monarch, as King Abdullah and he discussed interreligious dialogue.

Abdullah arrived in Rome Monday night and hinted as to the talks' purpose at a dinner hosted by Italian President Giorgio Napolitano, the Saudi newspaper Okaz reported.

"All religions encourage people to love the next person," Abdullah said. "If everyone followed the principles of their religions, and that which Allah ordered, the world would be free of clashes."

Vatican sources said the pope was expected to bring up the Arabic ban on public Christian worship as well as the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, A BBC correspondent reported.

Benedict infuriated Muslims in a September 2006 speech at Regensburg University in Germany when he associated Islam with violence but he later apologized and launched a campaign of improving interreligious dialogue.



Pope, Saudi king to hold
historic meeting

ROME, Nov. 6 (AFP) - Pope Benedict XVI was to hold an historic audience with King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, on the first visit to the Vatican by a monarch from the ultra-conservative Muslim kingdom.

The Holy See does not have diplomatic ties with Saudi Arabia, which is home to Islam's holiest shrines in Mecca and Medina and applies a rigorous doctrine of Sunni Islam known as Wahhabism.

Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal came to Rome in September to pave the way for the meeting which is expected to focus on the rights of Christians in Saudi Arabia and Islamic-Christian relations in general.

The meeting with the pope is set for 12:30 pm (1130 GMT).

Abdullah's visit comes as relations between the Vatican and the Muslim world have eased since the crisis provoked in September 2006 when Benedict appeared to link Islam with violence in a speech at Regensburg University, Germany.

The lecture sparked days of sometimes violent protests in Muslim countries, prompting the pontiff to say that he was "deeply sorry" for any offence and attributing Muslim anger to an "unfortunate misunderstanding".

The pope also held a meeting with the ambassadors and charge d'affaires from 22 Muslim countries as he sought to underline his commitment to inter-faith dialogue.

It will not be King Abdullah's first contact with the head of the Roman Catholic Church. He met Benedict's predecessor John Paul II in 1999 when he was crown prince to his half brother King Fahd.

The question of religious freedoms in Saudi Arabia for Christians and other non-Muslims remains an extremely sensitive one.

In September, the US State Department annual report on religious freedoms noted some improvement in "specific areas" in Saudi Arabia but said "overall government policies continue to place severe restrictions on religious freedom."

The report mentioned discrimination against non-Muslims, or against Muslims with practices different from Saudi Arabia's strict conservative Wahabi version of Sunni Islam.

"Non-Muslims and Muslims who do not adhere to the government's interpretation of Islam continued to face significant political, economic, legal, social, and religious discrimination," it said.

"Charges of harassment, abuse, and even killings at the hands of the muttawa (religious police) continued to surface. Saudi textbooks continued to contain statements of intolerance."

King Abdullah arrived in Rome on Monday on the third leg of a European tour that has taken the 84-year-old monarch to London and Geneva.

Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi, who travelled to Riyadh in April, was to meet the Saudi king late Tuesday, while Foreign Minister Massimo D'Alema was to have talks with his Saudi counterpart Al-Faisal.

Abdullah's lavish three-day state visit to Britain, the first by a Saudi monarch in 20 years, sparked human rights protests.

He will travel next to Germany and Turkey.



Benedict-Abdullah Talks Will Be First
for a Pope, Saudi Monarch
By Flavia Krause-Jackson

Nov. 6 (Bloomberg) -- Pope Benedict XVI and Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah will hold talks today, the first meeting of a pontiff with a leader of the kingdom and a step toward establishing diplomatic ties between the two states.

The Vatican devoted a front-page column to the talks in its newspaper, L'Osservatore Romano, and stressed that dialogue between Roman Catholicism and Islam had become a 'necessity'. The visit comes less than a month after 138 Muslim scholars wrote an open letter to 28 Christian leaders, inviting them to find the ``common essentials of our two religions.''

King Abdullah is also known to Muslims as the custodian of the two holy mosques for his role as protector of Islam's holiest sites, in the Saudi cities of Mecca and Medina. He is in Rome as part of a European tour and will meet with Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi late today.

Saudi Arabia is one of nine majority-Muslim countries with which the Holy See doesn't have diplomatic relations. In Saudi Arabia, Christians aren't allowed to worship in public, churches are outlawed, and crucifixes and copies of the Bible can't be brought into the country.

Benedict has been trying to heal relations with Muslims since he gave a speech in his native Germany in September 2006 in which he quoted a Byzantine emperor who linked Islam with violence. The comments sparked protests by Muslims worldwide. On a four-day trip to Turkey in December, Benedict's first to a mostly Muslim nation, the pope turned toward Mecca during a visit to a mosque.

Vatican: Saudi king and Pope Benedict XVI
pledge closer religious ties

Vatican City, 6 Nov. (ADNkronos) - King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia and Pope Benedict XVI pledged to work for peace and build closer religious ties at an historic meeting at the Vatican in Rome on Tuesday.

It was the first official visit by a Saudi monarch to the Holy See and the meeting lasted for thirty minutes.

The 84-year-old monarch, wearing a traditional blue, gold and white robe, gave the 80-year-old pope a gold sword encrusted with stones and in exchange the pontiff gave King Abdullah a 16th century engraving of the Vatican.

The Saudi king is the custodian of the mosques in the Muslim holy cities of Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia.



Accompanied by a 12-member delegation, he met the Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone and the Vatican secretary for relations with states, Mons. Dominique Mamberti.

The Vatican does not have diplomatic ties with Saudi Arabia, but the two leaders discussed cultural and religious dialogue in Arabic and Italian through interpreters, according to a statement released by the Vatican on Tuesday.

The statement said that it was a "cordial meeting that allowed them to touch on topics close to their hearts".

"In particular they renewed their commitment to inter-cultural and inter-religious dialogue, aimed at peace and fruitful cohabitation among men and people, and the value of collaboration between Christians, Muslims and Jews for the promotion of peace, justice and spiritual and moral values, especially in support of the family," the statement said.

The Vatican also expressed "the hope for prosperity for all the people of Saudi Arabia" and made a special reference to the "positive and hardworking presence of the Christians in the kingdom".

The question of religious freedom in Saudi Arabia is a sensitive one.

It is forbidden to practise Christianity in public inside Saudi Arabia and illegal to bring symbols from religions other than Islam into the country. Bibles and crucifixes must be left at the border.

The pope and the king also exchanged ideas about the Middle East and the need to find a fair solution to the conflicts that affect the region, in particular the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The Tuesday meeting was not the first for King Abdullah with the Roman Catholic church. The Saudi king met Pope John Paul II in 1999 when he was Crown Prince to his brother King Fahd.



Saudi king meets the pope
Al-Jazeera English News
Nov. 6, 2007



King Abdullah has become the first Saudi monarch to meet a Catholic pontiff after he was received by Pope Benedict XVI in the Vatican.

The two men were reported to have discussed on Tuesday the situation of Saudi Arabia's Christian minority, the need for greater inter-faith collaboration and prospects for peace in the Middle East.

They spoke for about half an hour in Benedict's private study with the help of interpreters in what both the Vatican and reporters described as a cordial atmosphere.

A Vatican statement said "the presence and hard work of Christians [in Saudi Arabia] was discussed".

Vatican sources said before the meeting that they expected Benedict to raise his concern over the situation of Catholics and other Christians in Saudi Arabia.

The Vatican wants greater rights for the one million Catholics who live in Saudi Arabia, most of them migrant workers who are not allowed to practise their religion in public.

They are only allowed to worship in private places, usually homes, and cannot wear signs of their faith in public.

The Vatican said other topics discussed included inter-cultural and inter-religious dialogue and "collaboration among Christians, Muslims and Jews for the promotion of peace, justice and spiritual and moral values, especially those which support the family".

Benedict and Abdullah also discussed the Middle East, particularly the need to find "a just solution to the conflicts that afflict the region, in particular the Israeli-Palestinian [conflict]".

Many Muslims around the world protested last year after Benedict, speaking at a university in his native Germany, used a quote that associated Islam with violence.

He later said he was misunderstood and has several times expressed esteem for Muslims.



At the end of the meeting, Abdullah gave Benedict a gold and silver sword studded with precious jewels, in keeping with a bedouin custom the Saudis follow when foreign leaders visit their country.

The king also presented Benedict with a small silver and gold statue depicting a palm tree and a man riding a camel.

In an interview with Reuters on the eve of the meeting, the bishop in charge of Catholics in Saudi Arabia called on the country to guarantee more freedom and security for minority Christians and allow more priests in to minister to the faithful.

"What I am hoping is that there can be more security and freedom for our people in a very low profile manner," Paul Hinder, a Swiss bishop who is based in Abu Dhabi, said.

"I am not expecting to be able to build a cathedral. But at least [we need] the freedom to worship in security



King Abdullah meets
with Pope Benedict XVI



VATICAN CITY, Nov. 6 (Pravda) - Pope Benedict XVI met with King Abdullah, king of Saudi Arabia. It was the first meeting between a pontiff and a reigning Saudi monarch. Vatican concerns about restrictions on Christian worship in the Muslim kingdom.

The Vatican said the "positive presence and work of Christians was raised" during the talks between Benedict and King Abdullah, who is protector of Islam's holiest sites.

The talks were "warm" and allowed a wide discussion on the need for interreligious and intercultural dialogue among Christians, Muslims and Jews "for the promotion of peace, justice and spiritual and moral values, especially in support of the family," the Vatican said in a statement.

Both sides also emphasized the need for a "just solution" to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the Vatican said.

Benedict has said he wants to reach out to all countries that still don't have diplomatic relations with the Holy See, which include Saudi Arabia and China.

At the same time, Benedict and other Vatican officials have often protested that Christians are unable to worship openly in Saudi Arabia and are barred from opening churches in the desert kingdom.

The Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano said the Vatican hoped the meeting would produce a frank dialogue between the two sides over the issue, noting that there are more than 1 million Christian guest workers in Saudi Arabia.

Abdullah also met separately with the Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone.

At the start of the audience, Benedict warmly greeted Abdullah, grasping both his hands before heading into 30 minutes of private talks in his library.

The Vatican said Abdullah had requested the audience, which came during his European tour. He had visited the Vatican twice before, as crown prince and deputy prime minister.

At the end of the meeting, Abdullah presented Benedict with a traditional Middle Eastern gift - a golden sword studded with jewels - as well as a gold and silver statue of a palm tree and man riding a camel.



The pope admired the statue but merely touched the sword.

Benedict sparked anger in the Muslim world in 2006 when he delivered a speech linking Islam to violence.

He said he was misunderstood and regretted offending Muslims. Since then, he has met a number of Islamic leaders and a year ago visited predominantly Muslim Turkey.

The Vatican has said it wants to pursue a dialogue with moderate Muslims.


Saudi king has historic meeting
with Pope Benedict



VATICAN CITY, Nov, 6 (AP) - Benedict XVI raised concerns about restrictions on Christian worship in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday in the first meeting ever between a pope and a reigning Saudi king.

Benedict and other Vatican officials have often protested that Christians are unable to worship openly in Saudi Arabia and are barred from opening churches in the desert kingdom where Islam's holiest sites, Mecca and Medina, are located.

King Abdullah, the protector of the holy sites, requested the audience during his European tour, the Vatican said. Benedict warmly greeted the king, grasping both his hands before heading into 30 minutes of private talks in his library.

At the end of the meeting, Abdullah presented Benedict with a traditional Middle Eastern gift -- a golden sword studded with jewels -- as well as a gold and silver statue of a palm tree and man riding a camel. The pope admired the statue but merely touched the sword.

Islam is the official religion of Saudi Arabia and the kingdom requires all Saudi citizens to be Muslims. Only Muslims can visit the cities of Mecca and Medina.

Under the authoritarian rule of the royal family, the kingdom enforces strict Sharia, or Islamic law. It follows a severe interpretation of Islam known as Wahhabism which rejects the possibility of diplomatic relations with a Christian entity. This interpretation would prohibit a Vatican embassy in Saudi Arabia on the grounds it would be equivalent to raising the cross inside the site of Islam's holiest places.

It is forbidden to practice Christianity publicly inside Saudi Arabia, and it is illegal to bring symbols from religions other than Islam into the country. Bibles and crosses, for instance, are confiscated at the border.

Some Christian worship services are held secretly, but the government has been known to crack down on them, or deport workers from the Philippines if they are known to hold even private services.

The United States has also criticized Saudi Arabia's restrictions on other religions.

The Vatican has said it wants to pursue a dialogue with moderate Muslims after the pope angered the Muslim world in 2006 with a speech linking Islam to violence.

He later said he was misunderstood and regretted offending Muslims. He has since met a number of Islamic leaders and a year ago visited predominantly Muslim Turkey.

The Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano said the Vatican hoped the meeting with the Saudi king would produce a frank dialogue on Christian worship in the country, noting that there are more than 1 million Christian guest workers in Saudi Arabia.

The Vatican said the "positive presence and work of Christians was raised" during the talks. The talks were "warm" and allowed a wide discussion on the need for interreligious and intercultural dialogue among Christians, Muslims and Jews "for the promotion of peace, justice and spiritual and moral values, especially in support of the family," a statement said.

Benedict has said he wants to reach out to all countries that still do not have diplomatic relations with the Vatican, which include Saudi Arabia and China.

Abdullah had visited the Vatican twice before, as crown prince and deputy prime minister.


Pope meets Saudi king
in historic visit



VATICAN CITY (AFP) - Pope Benedict XVI raised the issue of Christians living in Saudi Arabia in a historic meeting Tuesday with King Abdullah, the first monarch of the ultra-conservative Muslim kingdom to visit the Vatican.

During their talks, which also touched on conflicts in the Middle East, the pope highlighted "the positive and hard-working presence of the Christians" in Saudi Arabia, a Vatican communique said.

The two men also stressed "the value of collaboration among Christians, Muslims and Jews" and renewed a commitment to "intercultural and inter-faith dialogue with the goal of peaceful and fruitful coexistence," the statement said.

The Holy See does not have diplomatic ties with Saudi Arabia, which is home to Islam's holiest shrines in Mecca and Medina and applies a rigorous doctrine of Sunni Islam known as Wahhabism.

The question of religious freedoms for the roughly one million Christians and other non-Muslims in Saudi Arabia remains an extremely sensitive one.

In September, the US State Department's annual report on religious freedoms noted some improvement in "specific areas" in Saudi Arabia but said overall government policies continued to place "severe restrictions on religious freedom."

The report mentioned discrimination against non-Muslims, or against Muslims with practices other than Wahhabism, citing allegations of harassment, abuse and "even killings".

The groundbreaking talks were not King Abdullah's first contact with the head of the Roman Catholic Church, since he met Pope Benedict's predecessor John Paul II in 1999 when he was crown prince to his half brother King Fahd.

King Abdullah, 84, and the 80-year-old pontiff also exchanged "ideas on the Middle East and the need to find a fair solution to the conflicts afflicting the region, in particular the Israeli-Palestinian conflict," the Vatican communique said.

The king offered Pope Benedict a gold sword encrusted with precious stones and accepted a 16th-century engraving of the Vatican in return.



Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi met the Saudi king later, saying afterward that he hoped a planned Middle East peace conference in Annapolis, Maryland, later this year would "yield solid expectations for an end, once and for all, to this conflict."

He said the conference held out "strong expectations" among Palestinians for a future sovereign state "with geographical continuity in peace and security with the state of Israel, which in turn would be recognised by all the countries of the region."

Prodi also mentioned the upcoming election by the Lebanese parliament of a new president, saying that Italy and Saudi Arabia were in "constant close contact to facilitate dialogue and to exhort Lebanese political forces to reach a compromise in the primary interests of the people."

Lebanese officials said Tuesday that the parliamentary speaker might again postpone a special session to elect a president to replace Emile Lahoud, whose mandate expires November 24.

Two other sessions to pick a president have already been delayed for lack of consensus between the Western-backed ruling majority and the Hezbollah-led opposition supported by Syria and Iran.

King Abdullah, who ascended the throne two years ago, had arrived in Rome late Monday following a lavish three-day visit to London at the invitation of Queen Elizabeth II.

That visit, the first by a Saudi monarch in 20 years, sparked human rights protests.

King Abdullah's meeting with the pope came as relations between the Vatican and the Muslim world have eased since the crisis provoked in September 2006 when the pontiff appeared to link Islam with violence in a speech at a German university.

The lecture sparked days of sometimes violent protests in Muslim countries, prompting the pontiff to say that he was "deeply sorry" for any offence and attributing Muslim anger to an "unfortunate misunderstanding".

King Abdullah will travel on to Germany and Turkey before returning home.


POPE LAUDS CHRISTIAN PRESENCE
IN SAUDI ARABIA

VATICAN CITY, Nov. 6 (AP) - Pope Benedict XVI lauded the contributions of Christians in Saudi Arabia — a kingdom that embraces a strict version of Islam, restricts worship by other faiths and bans Bibles and crucifixes — in the first meeting ever Tuesday between a pope and reigning Saudi king.

Benedict and the Vatican's No. 2 official raised their concerns during separate meetings with King Abdullah, the protector of Islam's holiest sites.

The Vatican counts 890,000 Catholics, mainly guest workers from the Philippines, among the estimated 1.5 million Christians in Saudi Arabia. Christians are barred from opening churches in the desert kingdom where Islam's holiest sites, Mecca and Medina, are located.

"The Vatican authorities expressed their hope for the prosperity of all the inhabitants of the country, and mention was made of the positive and industrious presence of Christians," said the Vatican communique on the meetings, referring in diplomatic language to the religious plight of non-Muslims in the kingdom.



Benedict greeted the king warmly, grasping both his hands before heading into 30 minutes of private talks in his library.

At the end of the meeting, Abdullah presented Benedict with a traditional Middle Eastern gift — a golden sword studded with jewels — and a gold and silver statue of a palm tree and a man riding a camel. The pope admired the statue but merely touched the sword.



He gave Abdullah a 16th century print and a gold medal of his pontificate.

Islam is the official religion of Saudi Arabia, and the kingdom requires all Saudi citizens to be Muslims. Only Muslims can visit the cities of Mecca and Medina.

Under the authoritarian rule of the royal family, the kingdom enforces Sharia, or Islamic law. It follows a severe interpretation of Islam known as Wahhabism that rejects the possibility of diplomatic relations with a Christian entity. This interpretation would prohibit a Vatican embassy in Saudi Arabia on the grounds it is equivalent to raising the cross inside Islam's holiest places.

The Vatican maintains diplomatic relations with 176 states and institutions, including many in the Islamic world. Before the king's meeting with the pope, a Saudi official said the Vatican has not asked to have a diplomatic mission in the kingdom or to have diplomatic relations.

And a Vatican official said Saudi Arabia has never asked for such a relationship. The official, who asked that his name not be used because of the sensitivity of the issue, said Saudi Arabia is effectively a theocratic state but that the Vatican believes it must speak out for the rights of believers.

It is forbidden to practice Christianity publicly inside Saudi Arabia, and it is illegal to bring symbols from religions other than Islam into the country. Bibles and crosses are confiscated at the border.

Some Christian worship services are held secretly, but the government has been known to crack down on them, or deport Filipino workers if they hold even private services.

The Vatican has said it wants to pursue a dialogue with moderate Muslims after the pope angered the Muslim world in 2006 with a speech linking Islam to violence.

He later said he was misunderstood and regretted offending Muslims. He has since met a number of Islamic leaders and a year ago visited predominantly Muslim Turkey.

The Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano said the Vatican hoped the meeting with the Saudi king would produce a "sincere" dialogue on Christian worship in the country.

The Vatican said the talks were "warm" and allowed a wide discussion on the need for inter-religious and intercultural dialogue among Christians, Muslims and Jews "for the promotion of peace, justice and spiritual and moral values, especially in support of the family," a statement said.

Benedict has said he wants to reach out to all countries that still do not have diplomatic relations with the Vatican. Those countries include Saudi Arabia and China.

Abdullah had visited the Vatican twice before, as crown prince and deputy prime minister.


POPE LAUDS HARD-WORKING
CHRISTIANS IN SAUDI ARABIA

VATICAN CITY, Nov. 6 (AFP) - Pope Benedict XVI raised the issue of Christians living in Saudi Arabia in a historic meeting Tuesday with King Abdullah, the first monarch of the ultra-conservative Muslim kingdom to visit the Vatican.

During their talks, which also touched on conflicts in the Middle East, the pope highlighted "the positive and hard-working presence of the Christians" in Saudi Arabia, a Vatican communique said.

The two men also stressed "the value of collaboration among Christians, Muslims and Jews" and renewed a commitment to "intercultural and inter-faith dialogue with the goal of peaceful and fruitful coexistence," the statement said.

The Holy See does not have diplomatic ties with Saudi Arabia, which is home to Islam's holiest shrines in Mecca and Medina and applies a rigorous doctrine of Sunni Islam known as Wahhabism.

The question of religious freedoms for the roughly one million Christians and other non-Muslims in Saudi Arabia remains an extremely sensitive one.

In September, the US State Department's annual report on religious freedoms noted some improvement in "specific areas" in Saudi Arabia but said overall government policies continued to place "severe restrictions on religious freedom."

The report mentioned discrimination against non-Muslims, or against Muslims with practices other than Wahhabism, citing allegations of harassment, abuse and "even killings".

The groundbreaking talks were not King Abdullah's first contact with the head of the Roman Catholic Church, since he met Pope Benedict's predecessor John Paul II in 1999 when he was crown prince to his half brother King Fahd.

King Abdullah, 84, and the 80-year-old pontiff also exchanged "ideas on the Middle East and the need to find a fair solution to the conflicts afflicting the region, in particular the Israeli-Palestinian conflict," the Vatican communique said.

The king offered Pope Benedict a gold sword encrusted with precious stones and accepted a 16th-century engraving of the Vatican in return.

Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi met the Saudi king later, saying afterward that he hoped a planned Middle East peace conference in Annapolis, Maryland, later this year would "yield solid expectations for an end, once and for all, to this conflict."

He said the conference held out "strong expectations" among Palestinians for a future sovereign state "with geographical continuity in peace and security with the state of Israel, which in turn would be recognised by all the countries of the region."

Prodi also mentioned the upcoming election by the Lebanese parliament of a new president, saying that Italy and Saudi Arabia were in "constant close contact to facilitate dialogue and to exhort Lebanese political forces to reach a compromise in the primary interests of the people."

Lebanese officials said Tuesday that the parliamentary speaker might again postpone a special session to elect a president to replace Emile Lahoud, whose mandate expires November 24.

Two other sessions to pick a president have already been delayed for lack of consensus between the Western-backed ruling majority and the Hezbollah-led opposition supported by Syria and Iran.

King Abdullah, who ascended the throne two years ago, had arrived in Rome late Monday following a lavish three-day visit to London at the invitation of Queen Elizabeth II.

That visit, the first by a Saudi monarch in 20 years, sparked human rights protests.

King Abdullah's meeting with the pope came as relations between the Vatican and the Muslim world have eased since the crisis provoked in September 2006 when the pontiff appeared to link Islam with violence in a speech at a German university.

The lecture sparked days of sometimes violent protests in Muslim countries, prompting the pontiff to say that he was "deeply sorry" for any offence and attributing Muslim anger to an "unfortunate misunderstanding".

King Abdullah will travel on to Germany and Turkey before returning home.

By ELISABETH ROSENTHAL
The New York Times
Published: November 6, 2007

ROME, Nov. 6 — Pope Benedict XVI and King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia clasped hands at the Vatican on Tuesday in the first meeting ever between a pope and the Saudi monarch, who is entrusted to protect Mecca, the birthplace of Mohammad and the center of the Islamic world.

The two met for half an hour, speaking through interpreters, in a conversation that a Vatican press release later said was cordial and covered themes from the "value of collaboration between Christians, Muslims and Jews for promoting peace" and "the necessity of finding a just solution" to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Marco Politi, the Vatican correspondent for La Repubblica and a biographer of Pope John Paul II, said, "I think it is extraordinarily important that an official communiqué from the Vatican and an important Islamic state like Saudi Arabia mentions 'cooperation' between Christians Muslims and Jews — not dialogue but cooperation."

The meeting, presaged by an upbeat front-page story in L'Osservatore Romano, the Vatican's official newspaper, was also a clear attempt by the Vatican to repair damage done by the pope's earlier statement on Islam, which had been seen as insensitive if not incendiary in the Arab world.

In a speech in Regensburg, Germany, a little over a year ago, Benedict quoted a 14th-century Byzantine emperor who called Islam "evil and inhuman." The comment led to protests in Islamic nations, and prompted some Islamic states to recall their ambassadors to the Vatican. Firebombers attacked churches in the West Bank and Gaza, gunmen killed an Italian nun in Somalia, and the pope himself was threatened. The Vatican expressed "deepest regrets" but said the remark had been misinterpreted in a way that "absolutely did not correspond" to the pope's intentions.

The article in the Vatican newspaper seemed to open the door for a new diplomatic initiative toward Islam and the Middle East. It said the meeting with King Adbullah was "of great importance," noting, "In a world where the boundaries have become day by day more open, dialogue is not a choice but a necessity."

The article also acknowledged that some weeks ago Pope Benedict had received a letter from 138 Islamic religious leaders from 43 nations, appealing for more dialogue between Christians and Muslims. As the weeks went by with no response, some scholars here had complained that the pope seemed slow to address an important appeal. The Vatican allayed those fears Tuesday.

The meeting represents a triumph of sorts for the Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, and especially for Cardinal Jean Louis Tauran, president of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue. Cardinal Tauran, who previously served the church in Lebanon and Syria, is familiar with the Middle East and has promoted greater contact with Islamic states.

But official statements issued Tuesday made no mention of establishing diplomatic relations between the Vatican and Saudi Arabia, and it was not clear that the topic was even discussed. In May, the United Arab Emirates became the latest Islamic country to establish diplomatic relations with the Vatican, according to the Vatican paper.

One reason why the Vatican is interested in forging diplomatic relations, or at least greater diplomatic influence, in the Middle East is the presence of significant Roman Catholic populations living in predominantly Muslim countries. Almost all are guest workers from elsewhere. There are 1.5 million Christians in Saudi Arabia, the Vatican noted, the majority of them Catholics from the Philippines.

The State Department has criticized Saudi Arabia for religious intolerance and persecution of non-Muslims. "Charges of harassment, abuse and even killings at the hands of the muttawa (religious police) continue to surface," the department said in a report issued this year.

But little sign of tension was evident Tuesday. The pope gave the king a 16th-century engraving of the Vatican and a gold medal with his seal. The king gave the pope a sword, telling him it was "made of gold and precious stones."

In 1999, long before becoming king, Abdullah met Benedict's predecessor, John Paul II, who also met other prominent Muslim leaders, including Mohammad Khatami, a moderate cleric who was president of Iran, also in 1999.


SOURCE: www.nytimes.com/2007/11/06/world/07vatican.html?_r=1&hp&ore...

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The report in the LA Times provides additional context:

Benedict XVI meets with Saudi king in Vatican City
By Maria De Cristofaro and Jeffrey Fleishman
Los Angeles Times Staff Writers
November 7, 2007

ROME - Pope Benedict XVI met with King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia on Tuesday at a time of strained relations between Islam and Christianity over global terrorism, the Iraq war and the lack of religious freedoms for nearly 1 million Roman Catholic migrant workers living in the Persian Gulf state.

It was the first meeting between a Saudi monarch, who also oversees Islam's holiest shrine at Mecca, and the head of the Catholic Church. The talks in the pope's Vatican library came a year after Benedict suggested that Islam was prone to violence, igniting a furor across the Muslim world and setting back interreligious efforts by his predecessor, Pope John Paul II.

It was unclear whether the 30-minute conversation between the two leaders, both octogenarians draped in pressed robes, rose beyond the symbolic. The Vatican has urged the Saudis to loosen religious restrictions in the kingdom, which forbids non-Muslim religious services and icons such as crucifixes. Many migrant workers in Saudi Arabia, most of whom are Filipinos working as maids and laborers, attend Mass in private homes in near secrecy.

The Vatican media office said the meeting was cordial and "provided an opportunity to consider questions close to the heart" of both sides. The statement said that Vatican officials wished for the prosperity of all peoples living in Saudi Arabia while noting "the positive and industrious presence of Christians."

Saudi Arabia and the Holy See do not have formal diplomatic relations; the country's practice of strict Wahhabi Islam opposes close ties to Christian organizations on Saudi soil.

The meeting and handshake between the king and the pope offered encouragement to efforts to resolve the religious and political turmoil across the Middle East. The Vatican statement said the two leaders emphasized the "importance of collaboration between Christians, Muslims and Jews for the promotion of peace, justice and spiritual and moral values."

The trip to a city-state of holy crypts and exquisitely painted saints was politically risky for Abdullah, who since taking power in 2005 has lifted his country's standing in the Arab world while contending with Al Qaeda and other extremist networks.

Many Muslim clerics and intellectuals view Benedict as a dogmatic conservative who disparages religions other than Catholicism and lacks John Paul II's diplomatic skills and moral stature.

"This is a very courageous step by King Abdullah given all the pressures he faces in Saudi society from extremists who regard Christians as enemies," said Mustafa Alani, a political analyst at the Gulf Research Center in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. "These talks are more important than a meeting with any other Arab leader. The king comes from the heart of Islam."

Alani added, however, that although the talks were a "major step, this will not mean the establishment of diplomatic relations tomorrow or anytime soon."

Relations between Christianity and Islam have become more sensitive since the Sept. 11 attacks. And though the friction has eased over the last year, divisions remain. Christian clergy have criticized Muslim religious leaders for not speaking more forcefully against Islamic radicals, especially in Saudi Arabia.

In Europe, the Catholic Church and other Christian denominations are facing falling church attendance at the same time mosques and Islamic schools are being built to meet the needs of a growing population of Muslim immigrants.

A native of Germany, Benedict has said Europe must not deny its "inalienable" Christian roots, a comment that drew criticism from Muslims. The remark followed Benedict's citing of a quote from a 14th century Byzantine emperor that linked Islam with violence and described the religion as "evil and inhuman."

The pope said the comment, made in a university lecture, was taken out of context, and he has since emphasized the need for interfaith understanding. In 2006, he visited predominantly Muslim Turkey, where he called for religious tolerance.

In recent weeks, Muslim leaders from 43 nations sent the pope a letter urging the Vatican to promote religious dialogue.

"In every civilization there is a positive side that must be followed when there's a possibility of conflict with other civilizations," Abdullah, who is on a European tour, was quoted as saying in the Saudi press the day he met Benedict. "The moment has come to restart proactive dialogue which destroys negative ideas and gives humanity hope for a bright future."

Tuesday's meeting, where the king reportedly presented Benedict with a jewel-encrusted golden sword, was the second time Abdullah had met with a pope. As crown prince, Abdullah met with John Paul in 1999.


De Cristofaro reported from Rome and Fleishman from Cairo.

November 6, 2007
Catholic News Agency (www.catholicnewsagency.com)

QUEBEC CITY (CNA) - A massive Catholic event is scheduled to take place in Quebec City in June 2008. Canada's first Eucharistic Congress since 1910 is expected to draw over 100,000 people and their numbers could include Pope Benedict XVI, reports the CanWest News Service. Local Catholics hopes it will revivify Christian life in the area.

"This will certainly be the culmination of our efforts to re-evangelize Quebec," said Cardinal Marc Oullet, the archbishop of Quebec. "We have been preparing for this for years. There is a need in Quebec to reconnect with our Christian roots and to revive the Catholic identity," he continued.

The International Eucharistic Congress will include 15,000 delegates and 50 cardinals from 60 countries will meet to foster devotion to the Eucharist. Pope Benedict XVI might visit to preside over the congress' outdoor Mass on the historic Plains of Abraham, the site of a 1759 battle that led to the British takeover of French Canada.

The congress also coincides with Quebec City's 400th anniversary.

Quebec was the center of a strong Catholic population until the 1960s, when the so-called Quiet Revolution began a rapid secularization of the region. The fallout from this secularization has caused many people to become hostile to the Catholic Church.

Cardinal Oullet expressed hope that the Eucharistic Congress would dispel some of that animosity. "There is a lot of criticism in the society now against the Catholic Church, and we need to be reminded of those positive values," the cardinal said.

Cardinal Oullet has invited Pope Benedict to the conference, but the Pope has not confirmed his attendance. The cardinal hopes to get a final answer at the end of November when he visits Rome.


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