The fast pace of your life may seem to
leave little time and energy for the traditional Lenten practices. But
you can weave moments of spiritual awareness and service
into even the busiest of schedules. The trick is to see Lenten practice
as part of, rather than in addition to, each activity of your ordinary
hectic day.
The three foundational practices of Lent are prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. Here’s how to think about them in a new way:
Praying Daily
If you make a habit of saying a little prayer whenever someone
irritates you, cuts you off in traffic, or makes life difficult; when
someone does you a favor, you experience great and friendly service, or
when something joyful happens to you—you will soon find yourself praying
your way through the day. Try this simple practice and you will be
observing the Catholic Church’s call for greater prayer during the
Lenten season. You will also find that this habit makes your life flow
smoother, your self more centered, and your Spirit more aware of God’s
presence.
A Different Type of Fasting
There are many ways to fast. Why not fast from criticism, gossip,
judging others, or passing on rumors? Why not abstain from unwarranted
fear and anxiety? You can also tell that inner voice inside your head
that criticizes you to abstain from eroding your ability to be the
confident, blessed person God calls you to be. These are beautiful ways
to observe the Lenten call to fasting and abstinence.
Give of Yourself
Daily life also offers countless opportunities to give of yourself to
others (alms), and most don’t involve dipping into your wallet. Give
encouragement to the doubting, give a word of praise to the insecure,
show kindness to someone who could use a friend, and offer a word of
thanks to those whose service of others often goes unappreciated. Give
the gift of your attention to someone who simply wants to be noticed.
Tell your children stories about people whose values you admire when you
gather at mealtime. Don’t be stingy with your smiles—give them freely
to everyone you meet. And most important, give your love to those close
to you. Hug them, hold them, and tell them what they mean to you. In
this way you open your heart to God and others.
So no matter how busy your are in life, with some greater awareness and
new perspectives you can consciously pray, fast, and give of yourself
this Lent—and you will be ready to celebrate when a joyful dawn breaks
upon you Easter morning.
Mar 19, 2014
Mar 5, 2014
Ash Wednesday
These traditions afford us an opportunity to free ourselves from distraction and also deepen our awareness of Christ in our lives by attempting to remain focused on His voice calling to us.
There is more to this season than simple abstinence, fasting and almsgiving.
These give us moments to practice this Season's discipline within tradition but there is more to this holy time than these practices.
It is a time for us to admit humbly that we need God. We have a personal, intimate need for Him in our day to day lives. The ashes on our foreheads remind us that "we are dust." We did not bring ourselves into this world and we cannot, despite all we hear, keep ourselves alive in this world with God. To get in touch with our "nothingness" is the greatest challenge. Never before have we been so tempted to believe that we are the sole Masters of our destiny. Each and ever day we are bombarded with thye message that we can have whatever we want and whenever we would like it. We are an entitled people, my dear friends.
I find myself again and again returning to the need to pray and reflect on the central mystery of what these weeks of Lent lead up too: the Redemptive act of Jesus' love for the world and of Our Father.
If I am going to live as a Christian in the world, I must have a solid appreciation for the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Christ. I must be able to find myself again and again in that narrative, that story, that experience, that mystery.
I must never give up hope that my Lord's Redeeming love is not finished with me and with our world. I am given chances every day to practice that mystery. I am challenged to forgive both myself and my friend. Like Jesus, I can never forgive enough.
It begins with my acknowledging that I need God. It then challenges me to revisit what I have grown blind, deaf and accepting of in my life: the poor, the suffering, the violence, the apathy, the cursing, the despair, the value of permanent and faithful love between all persons - gay or straight. These name a few - there are many more. What more can I find if I just invite Jesus to invigorate me this Lenten Season?
My friends, follow the dicipline of our Faith and renounce sin, fast, pray and give to the poor. Please do not let it end there. Help me to make this Season one of real and lasting growth, by not settling for what worked in the past. It is not just a time of denial, but of action.
Dec 18, 2013
New Apostolic Nuncio for Canada - Pope Names New Ambassador to Canada
His Holiness Pope Francis today, December 18, 2013, appointed the
Most Reverend Luigi Bonazzi Apostolic Nuncio to Canada. At the time of
his appointment, Archbishop Bonazzi was Apostolic Nuncio to Lithuania,
Estonia and Latvia. The previous Apostolic Nuncio, the Most Reverend
Pedro López Quintana, ended his mission in Canada at the end of September 2013 in order to receive a new assignment from the Holy Father.
Archbishop Bonazzi was born in Gazzaniga, Italy, on June 19, 1948,
and ordained priest on June 30, 1973, for the Diocese of Bergamo. Having
obtained a Doctorate in Education, he entered the diplomatic service of
the Holy See on March 25, 1980. He previously served in the diplomatic
missions of the Holy See in Cameroon, Trinidad and Tobago, Malta,
Mozambique, Spain, the U.S.A., and Italy, as well in Canada. On June 19,
1999, Archbishop Bonazzi was appointed Apostolic Nuncio to Haiti,
following which he was named Apostolic Nuncio to Cuba on March 30, 2004,
and then Apostolic Nuncio to Lithuania and Estonia, as of March 14,
2009, and to Latvia, as of March 25, 2009.
The date for his official installation as Apostolic Nuncio to Canada has not yet been announced.
 |
| Archbishop Luigi Bonazzi |
The date for his official installation as Apostolic Nuncio to Canada has not yet been announced.
Dec 17, 2013
Preparing a Generation of "Francis" Bishops - John Allen jr, NCR
Pope Francis is celebrating his 77th birthday in relatively quiet
fashion, which isn't stopping others from marking the occasion --
including, improbably enough, the pro-gay magazine The Advocate, which named him its Person of the Year.
In truth, however, Francis had already given himself a major birthday present 24 hours before by shaking up the membership of the Congregation for Bishops in order to lay the groundwork for a new generation of "Francis bishops."
In the United States, attention was understandably focused on the nomination of Cardinal Donald Wuerl of Washington, D.C., and the effective removal of Cardinal Raymond Burke, president of the Apostolic Signatura, the Vatican's supreme court. Putting in the moderate Wuerl and taking the strongly conservative Burke off couldn't help but seem a signal of the kind of bishop Francis intends to elevate in the United States.
As pope, however, Francis is responsible not just for the 6 percent of the world's Catholic population that lives in the United States, but the whole shooting match, 1.2 billion faithful all over the planet.
In that regard, it's worth looking at the other appointments Francis made Monday to the Congregation for Bishops -- 30 in all, including 12 new members and confirmations for 18 prelates who already sat on the body.
For the sake of analysis, two assumptions need to be stipulated:
· The 12 new members best reflect Francis' personal touch, given that most of the 18 confirmations were for Vatican personnel whose jobs generally entitle them to a seat at the table;
· The kind of man Francis picks for the Congregation for Bishops is, in effect, a proxy for the kind of bishops he wants this panel to identify.
If those postulates are correct, we can draw some early conclusions about what a "Francis bishop" looks like -- ideological moderates with the broad support of their fellow bishops and a real commitment to the social Gospel.
From Mexico, Francis turned not to Cardinal Norberto Rivera Carrera, generally seen as a John Paul II protégé and a champion of the church's conservative wing, but to Cardinal Francisco Robles Ortega of Guadalajara, who comes from a working-class family in Jalisco and, though he's never been part of the liberation theology movement, has good relationships with progressive sectors of the Mexican church.
Robles commands the respect of his brother bishops, having been elected in November 2012 to take over as president of the episcopal conference. He's also drawn good marks for his candor and lack of defensiveness, among other things offering an apology in a recent homily for "the scandals of those who lead the church."
From Colombia, Francis tapped Cardinal Rubén Salazar Gómez, who has occasionally come under fire for alleged waffling on the church's moral teachings.
In 2011, he drew criticism for voicing qualified support for the de-penalization of drugs, and in 2012, he was compelled by the Vatican's Secretariat of State to amend comments implying acceptance of the de-penalization of abortion in three cases anticipated by Colombian law, including rape, incest and threats to the life of the mother.
Despite those controversies, Salazar too has the support of his fellow bishops, having twice been elected president of the Colombian conference.
From Westminster in the United Kingdom, Francis elevated Archbishop Vincent Nichols, generally seen as a doctrinal and political moderate who has been criticized from the right in the U.K., among other things, for his allegedly lukewarm support for the old Latin Mass and for the new structure created under Benedict XVI to welcome former Anglicans into the Catholic church.
On the other hand, admirers say Nichols is a gifted administrator and builder of consensus who serves as the elected president of the bishop's conference in England and Wales.
In terms of new Vatican personnel named to the Congregation for Bishops, Francis added several of his own nominations, including his new secretary of state, Archbishop Pietro Parolin, and the new prefect of the Congregation for Clergy, Archbishop Beniamino Stella. Both are veteran Italian diplomats known for pragmatic and generally nonideological approaches.
Francis also tapped two Vatican officials he inherited from Benedict XVI, including one, Brazilian Cardinal João Braz de Aviz, prefect of the Congregation for Religious, who has occasionally come under fire for allegedly being too soft, including in the Vatican's ongoing examination of American nuns.
His efforts to promote reconciliation with religious women began even before he got to Rome in an interview he gave to NCR the day his Vatican appointment was announced.
"I want to learn from them and walk with them," he said of the sisters. "You have to see people up close, get to know them, what will help them overcome whatever problem there is."
Certainly no one can accuse Bráz de Aviz of having lived a sheltered life, disconnected from the sufferings of ordinary people in the developing world.
As a young priest, Bráz de Aviz was once on his way to a village to say Mass when he stumbled upon an armored car robbery. He was shot during the crossfire, with bullets perforating his lungs and intestines and one eye. Although he survived and surgeons were able to save his eye, he still carries fragments of those bullets in his body.
To be sure, Francis did not exactly flush out the more conservative elements from the congregation. For instance, he confirmed Cardinal George Pell of Australia, who's also a member of the pope's Council of Cardinals, as well as Spanish Cardinal Antonio Cañizares Llovera, prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and known around Rome as the "little Ratzinger" -- not only because of his diminutive size, but also his affinity for Benedict's doctrinal views.
No doubt, Francis thinks it's important to maintain some balance, helping to ensure that bishops around the world are capable of understanding the concerns of all types of Catholics.
There's equally no doubt, however, that as of Monday, Francis shifted the center of the gravity inside the body responsible for selecting bishops towards the middle -- not just with the American members, as it turns out, but across the board.
In truth, however, Francis had already given himself a major birthday present 24 hours before by shaking up the membership of the Congregation for Bishops in order to lay the groundwork for a new generation of "Francis bishops."
In the United States, attention was understandably focused on the nomination of Cardinal Donald Wuerl of Washington, D.C., and the effective removal of Cardinal Raymond Burke, president of the Apostolic Signatura, the Vatican's supreme court. Putting in the moderate Wuerl and taking the strongly conservative Burke off couldn't help but seem a signal of the kind of bishop Francis intends to elevate in the United States.
As pope, however, Francis is responsible not just for the 6 percent of the world's Catholic population that lives in the United States, but the whole shooting match, 1.2 billion faithful all over the planet.
In that regard, it's worth looking at the other appointments Francis made Monday to the Congregation for Bishops -- 30 in all, including 12 new members and confirmations for 18 prelates who already sat on the body.
For the sake of analysis, two assumptions need to be stipulated:
· The 12 new members best reflect Francis' personal touch, given that most of the 18 confirmations were for Vatican personnel whose jobs generally entitle them to a seat at the table;
· The kind of man Francis picks for the Congregation for Bishops is, in effect, a proxy for the kind of bishops he wants this panel to identify.
If those postulates are correct, we can draw some early conclusions about what a "Francis bishop" looks like -- ideological moderates with the broad support of their fellow bishops and a real commitment to the social Gospel.
From Mexico, Francis turned not to Cardinal Norberto Rivera Carrera, generally seen as a John Paul II protégé and a champion of the church's conservative wing, but to Cardinal Francisco Robles Ortega of Guadalajara, who comes from a working-class family in Jalisco and, though he's never been part of the liberation theology movement, has good relationships with progressive sectors of the Mexican church.
Robles commands the respect of his brother bishops, having been elected in November 2012 to take over as president of the episcopal conference. He's also drawn good marks for his candor and lack of defensiveness, among other things offering an apology in a recent homily for "the scandals of those who lead the church."
From Colombia, Francis tapped Cardinal Rubén Salazar Gómez, who has occasionally come under fire for alleged waffling on the church's moral teachings.
In 2011, he drew criticism for voicing qualified support for the de-penalization of drugs, and in 2012, he was compelled by the Vatican's Secretariat of State to amend comments implying acceptance of the de-penalization of abortion in three cases anticipated by Colombian law, including rape, incest and threats to the life of the mother.
Despite those controversies, Salazar too has the support of his fellow bishops, having twice been elected president of the Colombian conference.
From Westminster in the United Kingdom, Francis elevated Archbishop Vincent Nichols, generally seen as a doctrinal and political moderate who has been criticized from the right in the U.K., among other things, for his allegedly lukewarm support for the old Latin Mass and for the new structure created under Benedict XVI to welcome former Anglicans into the Catholic church.
On the other hand, admirers say Nichols is a gifted administrator and builder of consensus who serves as the elected president of the bishop's conference in England and Wales.
In terms of new Vatican personnel named to the Congregation for Bishops, Francis added several of his own nominations, including his new secretary of state, Archbishop Pietro Parolin, and the new prefect of the Congregation for Clergy, Archbishop Beniamino Stella. Both are veteran Italian diplomats known for pragmatic and generally nonideological approaches.
Francis also tapped two Vatican officials he inherited from Benedict XVI, including one, Brazilian Cardinal João Braz de Aviz, prefect of the Congregation for Religious, who has occasionally come under fire for allegedly being too soft, including in the Vatican's ongoing examination of American nuns.
His efforts to promote reconciliation with religious women began even before he got to Rome in an interview he gave to NCR the day his Vatican appointment was announced.
"I want to learn from them and walk with them," he said of the sisters. "You have to see people up close, get to know them, what will help them overcome whatever problem there is."
Certainly no one can accuse Bráz de Aviz of having lived a sheltered life, disconnected from the sufferings of ordinary people in the developing world.
As a young priest, Bráz de Aviz was once on his way to a village to say Mass when he stumbled upon an armored car robbery. He was shot during the crossfire, with bullets perforating his lungs and intestines and one eye. Although he survived and surgeons were able to save his eye, he still carries fragments of those bullets in his body.
To be sure, Francis did not exactly flush out the more conservative elements from the congregation. For instance, he confirmed Cardinal George Pell of Australia, who's also a member of the pope's Council of Cardinals, as well as Spanish Cardinal Antonio Cañizares Llovera, prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and known around Rome as the "little Ratzinger" -- not only because of his diminutive size, but also his affinity for Benedict's doctrinal views.
No doubt, Francis thinks it's important to maintain some balance, helping to ensure that bishops around the world are capable of understanding the concerns of all types of Catholics.
There's equally no doubt, however, that as of Monday, Francis shifted the center of the gravity inside the body responsible for selecting bishops towards the middle -- not just with the American members, as it turns out, but across the board.
Happy Birthday Francis - Pope Celebrates 77th Birthday as only He could
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- As part of a
low-key celebration of his 77th birthday, Pope Francis had breakfast
with three people who live on the streets near the Vatican. A small dog,
belonging to one of the homeless men, was also on the guest list.
The pope started the day with his usual morning Mass held in the chapel of the Domus Sanctae Marthae residence where he lives.
However, he requested that the Mass be attended by the residence staff "in order to create a particularly family atmosphere for the celebration," the Vatican press office said in a written statement Dec. 17. Cardinal Angelo Sodano, dean of the College of Cardinals, represented the world's cardinals at the Mass, and Archbishop Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, attended.
After the Mass, all those present sang "Happy Birthday" to the pope, the Vatican statement said. The pope then met with everyone, including three homeless men who were brought there by Archbishop Konrad Krajewski, the papal almoner.
The archbishop invited the first group of men he had found early that morning sleeping under the large portico in front of the Vatican press hall on the main boulevard in front of St. Peter's Square, according to the Vatican newspaper, L'Osservatore Romano.
"Would you like to come Pope Francis' birthday party," he asked them, reported the paper.
The men, in their forties, were from Slovakia, Poland and the Czech Republic. They loaded all their belongings in the archbishop's car; the dog rode in the middle.
When they got to the residence, they waited for the Mass to end, then greeted the pope. Together with Archbishop Krajewski, they gave the pope a bouquet of sunflowers, because they always turn toward the sun like the church turns toward its sun, Christ, the archbishop explained.
The pope invited the men to have breakfast with him in the residence dining room, where they talked and shared a few laughs.
One of the men told the pope, "It's worthwhile being a vagrant because you get to meet the pope," the paper said.
The pope was scheduled to carry out a normal workday, the Vatican said.
Some Vatican offices paid homage to the pope in different ways: the Vatican television center created a special video of visual highlights of Pope Francis' nine-month-long pontificate; the Vatican internet office posted on the vatican.va website an e-album of images and quotes by the pope; the Vatican newspaper, L'Osservatore Romano, rolled out a newly designed website at www.osservatoreromano.va that lets readers easily share stories on social media.
A group representing the pope's favorite soccer squad -- San Lorenzo de Almagro -- had wanted to celebrate the pope's birthday by showing him the Argentine league championship trophy they won Dec. 16.
However, Passionist Father Ciro Benedettini, vice director of the Vatican press office, said it was expected the group would meet the pope Dec. 18.
A group of children receiving assistance from the Vatican's St. Martha Dispensary, a maternal and pediatric clinic, had given the pope a surprise birthday party Dec. 14 marked with singing, a real cake with candles and a sweater as a gift.
When presented with the cake, the pope blew out the candles with the children and joked, "I'll tell you later if it's good or not."
Pilgrims gathered for the Angelus prayer in St. Peter's Square Dec. 15 also sang "Happy Birthday" as they waited for the pope to appear at the window of the apostolic palace.
The pope started the day with his usual morning Mass held in the chapel of the Domus Sanctae Marthae residence where he lives.
However, he requested that the Mass be attended by the residence staff "in order to create a particularly family atmosphere for the celebration," the Vatican press office said in a written statement Dec. 17. Cardinal Angelo Sodano, dean of the College of Cardinals, represented the world's cardinals at the Mass, and Archbishop Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, attended.
After the Mass, all those present sang "Happy Birthday" to the pope, the Vatican statement said. The pope then met with everyone, including three homeless men who were brought there by Archbishop Konrad Krajewski, the papal almoner.
The archbishop invited the first group of men he had found early that morning sleeping under the large portico in front of the Vatican press hall on the main boulevard in front of St. Peter's Square, according to the Vatican newspaper, L'Osservatore Romano.
"Would you like to come Pope Francis' birthday party," he asked them, reported the paper.
The men, in their forties, were from Slovakia, Poland and the Czech Republic. They loaded all their belongings in the archbishop's car; the dog rode in the middle.
When they got to the residence, they waited for the Mass to end, then greeted the pope. Together with Archbishop Krajewski, they gave the pope a bouquet of sunflowers, because they always turn toward the sun like the church turns toward its sun, Christ, the archbishop explained.
The pope invited the men to have breakfast with him in the residence dining room, where they talked and shared a few laughs.
One of the men told the pope, "It's worthwhile being a vagrant because you get to meet the pope," the paper said.
The pope was scheduled to carry out a normal workday, the Vatican said.
Some Vatican offices paid homage to the pope in different ways: the Vatican television center created a special video of visual highlights of Pope Francis' nine-month-long pontificate; the Vatican internet office posted on the vatican.va website an e-album of images and quotes by the pope; the Vatican newspaper, L'Osservatore Romano, rolled out a newly designed website at www.osservatoreromano.va that lets readers easily share stories on social media.
A group representing the pope's favorite soccer squad -- San Lorenzo de Almagro -- had wanted to celebrate the pope's birthday by showing him the Argentine league championship trophy they won Dec. 16.
However, Passionist Father Ciro Benedettini, vice director of the Vatican press office, said it was expected the group would meet the pope Dec. 18.
A group of children receiving assistance from the Vatican's St. Martha Dispensary, a maternal and pediatric clinic, had given the pope a surprise birthday party Dec. 14 marked with singing, a real cake with candles and a sweater as a gift.
When presented with the cake, the pope blew out the candles with the children and joked, "I'll tell you later if it's good or not."
Pilgrims gathered for the Angelus prayer in St. Peter's Square Dec. 15 also sang "Happy Birthday" as they waited for the pope to appear at the window of the apostolic palace.
Dec 2, 2013
Church Reform, Divorced Catholics and more - Commentary by Fr. Hans Kung - Special to the National Catholic Reporter
Church reform is forging ahead. In his apostolic exhortation Evangelii Gaudium,
Pope Francis not only intensifies his criticism of capitalism and the
fact that money rules the world, but speaks out clearly in favor of
church reform “at all levels.” He specifically advocates structural
reforms -- namely, decentralization toward local dioceses and
communities, reform of the papal office, upgrading the laity and against
excessive clericalism, in favor of a more effective presence of women
in the church, above all in the decision-making bodies. And he comes out
equally clearly in favor of ecumenism and interreligious dialogue,
especially with Judaism and Islam.
All this will meet with wide approval far beyond the Catholic church. His undifferentiated rejection of abortion and women’s ordination will, however, probably provoke criticism. This is where the dogmatic limits of this pope become apparent. Or is he perhaps under pressure from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and its Prefect, Archbishop Gerhard Ludwig Müller?
In a long guest contribution [1] in Osservatore Romano (Oct. 23), Müller demonstrated his ultra-conservative stance by corroborating the exclusion of remarried divorcees from the sacraments who, unless they live together as brother and sister (!), are ostensibly in a state of mortal sin on account of the sexual character of their relationship.
As Bishop of Regensburg, Müller, as a clerical hard-liner who provoked numerous conflicts with parish priests and theologians, lay bodies and the Central Committee of German Catholics, was as controversial and unpopular as his brother bishop at Limburg. That Müller, as a loyal supporter and publisher of his collected works, was nevertheless appointed CDF prefect by Papa Ratzinger, surprised people less than the fact that Francis confirmed him in office quite so soon.
And worried observers are already asking whether Pope Emeritus Ratzinger is in fact operating as a kind of “shadow Pope” behind the scenes through Müller and Georg Gänswein, [Benedict’s] secretary and Prefect of the Papal Household, whom he also promoted to archbishop. One remembers how in 1993 Ratzinger as cardinal whistled back the then-bishops of Freiburg (Oskar Saier), Rottenburg-Stuttgart (Walter Kasper) and Mainz (Karl Lehmann) when they suggested a pragmatic solution for the problem of remarried divorcees. It is revealing that the present debate 20 years later was again triggered by the Archbishop of Freiburg, namely Robert Zollitsch, the president of the German bishops’ conference. It was Zollitsch who ventured a fresh attempt to rethink pastoral practice as far as remarried divorcees are concerned. And Francis?
For many the situation is self-contradictory: on the one side, church reform, and on the other, remarried divorcees.
The pope wants to move forward -- the CDF prefect puts on the brakes.
The pope has actual people in mind -- the prefect above all has traditional Catholic doctrine in mind.
The pope wants to practice mercy -- the prefect appeals to God’s holiness and justice.
The pope wants the coming bishops’ synod on family matters in October 2014 to find practical solutions based on feedback from the laity -- the prefect draws on traditionalist dogmatic arguments in order to be able to maintain the unmerciful status quo.
The pope wants the bishops’ synod to make new attempts at reform -- the prefect, a former neoscholastic professor of dogmatics, thinks his statements can nip any such attempts in the bud.
Is the pope still in control of his Guardian of the Faith?
As to the subject itself, one must point out the following: Jesus came out quite clearly against divorce: “What therefore God has joined together, let not man put asunder” (Mark 10:9). But he said that above all for the benefit of women, who were legally and socially disadvantaged in comparison to men in society at the time, because in Judaism only husbands could have letters of divorce made out. And thus in following Jesus, the Catholic church, even in a completely different social situation, will emphatically champion the indissolubility of marriage which guarantees the partners and their children a stable and lasting relationship.
But Müller obviously ignores the fact that Jesus pronounced a commandment based on an aim. As with other commandments, this one does not exclude failure and forgiveness. Can one really imagine Jesus sanctioning the present way we treat remarried divorcees? This Jesus who protected the adulteress particularly against the scribes and Pharisees (John 8:1-11), who especially devoted himself to sinners and those who had failed in life, and even dared to declare that they were forgiven? The pope rightly says “Jesus must be freed from the boring templates in which we have wrapped him [translation from the Küng’s German].”
The Christians of the New Testament did not understand Jesus’ words on divorce as a law but as an ethical directive. The failure of a marriage obviously did not correspond to what men and women were created for. Only dogmatic rigidity, however, cannot take seriously that already in the days of the Apostles, Jesus’ words on divorce were applied with a certain flexibility, namely in cases of “porneia/unchastity” (cf. Matthew 5:32; 19:9) and when a Christian and a nonbeliever separated (cf. 1 Corinthians 7:12-15). Already in the early church, one was obviously aware that there were situations when a further life together was unacceptable. However, to assume that remarried divorcees in general just casually and light-heartedly gave up their first marriages for trivial reasons is malicious. There is no more bitter experience than the failure of a love relationship on which one has set the hopes of a lifetime. In view of the millions of Catholics the world over nowadays who, although they are members of the church, cannot take part in its sacramental life, it is of little help to keep quoting one Vatican document after the other without convincingly answering the decisive question as to why there should be no forgiveness just for this particular failure. Hasn’t the magisterium already failed miserably as far as contraception is concerned and thus been unable to assert itself in the church? A similar failure in the question of divorce should be avoided at all costs.
It is at any rate no solution if one calls for fresh “pastoral efforts” and wants to see annulments handled more generously, as the archbishop has suggested. For many Catholics, divorce and remarriage are not the real scandal but the shameless hypocrisy of many annulments, even when the couple whose marriage is annulled have several children.
Given the actual number of divorces at the moment, which in Germany alone in 2012 was about 46 percent in proportion to the number of weddings in the same year, and if one adds to that the increasing number of Catholic couples who only married in a registry office or are cohabiting, then in all probability, in Germany alone, roughly 50 percent of Catholics are excluded from the sacraments. And we should not forget the many children who are affected and suffer under their parents’ disturbed relationship with the Church. We are thus concerned with pastoral problems which have far-reaching consequences and which today call the official church’s – but also the pope’s – credibility into question. That is why, in the light of generally available findings in the fields of the social sciences, sexology, the history of theology, ethics, dogmatics and exegesis, bishops have repeatedly cautioned that it is absolutely imperative to undertake a reappraisal of pastoral practice.
It was precisely the reactionary strategy of the CDF which led to the present church crisis and triggered the exit of millions of Catholics from the church, particularly the remarried divorcees as they were excluded from the sacraments. It would hugely damage the Catholic church if, 50 years after the Second Vatican Council, a new “Cardinal Ottaviani”, then Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith – or rather of the Holy Office or Inquisition, were able to establish himself in the Vatican, and who feels called to impose his conservative beliefs on the pope, the Council and indeed on the whole church.
And it would immensely damage the credibility of Pope Francis if the reactionaries in the Vatican were to prevent him from translating his words and gestures, which are so permeated by mercy and a sense for pastoral work, into action as soon as possible. The enormous capital of credibility that the pope has accumulated in the first months of his papacy must not be squandered by the curia. Innumerable Catholics hope:
All this will meet with wide approval far beyond the Catholic church. His undifferentiated rejection of abortion and women’s ordination will, however, probably provoke criticism. This is where the dogmatic limits of this pope become apparent. Or is he perhaps under pressure from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and its Prefect, Archbishop Gerhard Ludwig Müller?
In a long guest contribution [1] in Osservatore Romano (Oct. 23), Müller demonstrated his ultra-conservative stance by corroborating the exclusion of remarried divorcees from the sacraments who, unless they live together as brother and sister (!), are ostensibly in a state of mortal sin on account of the sexual character of their relationship.
As Bishop of Regensburg, Müller, as a clerical hard-liner who provoked numerous conflicts with parish priests and theologians, lay bodies and the Central Committee of German Catholics, was as controversial and unpopular as his brother bishop at Limburg. That Müller, as a loyal supporter and publisher of his collected works, was nevertheless appointed CDF prefect by Papa Ratzinger, surprised people less than the fact that Francis confirmed him in office quite so soon.
And worried observers are already asking whether Pope Emeritus Ratzinger is in fact operating as a kind of “shadow Pope” behind the scenes through Müller and Georg Gänswein, [Benedict’s] secretary and Prefect of the Papal Household, whom he also promoted to archbishop. One remembers how in 1993 Ratzinger as cardinal whistled back the then-bishops of Freiburg (Oskar Saier), Rottenburg-Stuttgart (Walter Kasper) and Mainz (Karl Lehmann) when they suggested a pragmatic solution for the problem of remarried divorcees. It is revealing that the present debate 20 years later was again triggered by the Archbishop of Freiburg, namely Robert Zollitsch, the president of the German bishops’ conference. It was Zollitsch who ventured a fresh attempt to rethink pastoral practice as far as remarried divorcees are concerned. And Francis?
For many the situation is self-contradictory: on the one side, church reform, and on the other, remarried divorcees.
The pope wants to move forward -- the CDF prefect puts on the brakes.
The pope has actual people in mind -- the prefect above all has traditional Catholic doctrine in mind.
The pope wants to practice mercy -- the prefect appeals to God’s holiness and justice.
The pope wants the coming bishops’ synod on family matters in October 2014 to find practical solutions based on feedback from the laity -- the prefect draws on traditionalist dogmatic arguments in order to be able to maintain the unmerciful status quo.
The pope wants the bishops’ synod to make new attempts at reform -- the prefect, a former neoscholastic professor of dogmatics, thinks his statements can nip any such attempts in the bud.
Is the pope still in control of his Guardian of the Faith?
As to the subject itself, one must point out the following: Jesus came out quite clearly against divorce: “What therefore God has joined together, let not man put asunder” (Mark 10:9). But he said that above all for the benefit of women, who were legally and socially disadvantaged in comparison to men in society at the time, because in Judaism only husbands could have letters of divorce made out. And thus in following Jesus, the Catholic church, even in a completely different social situation, will emphatically champion the indissolubility of marriage which guarantees the partners and their children a stable and lasting relationship.
But Müller obviously ignores the fact that Jesus pronounced a commandment based on an aim. As with other commandments, this one does not exclude failure and forgiveness. Can one really imagine Jesus sanctioning the present way we treat remarried divorcees? This Jesus who protected the adulteress particularly against the scribes and Pharisees (John 8:1-11), who especially devoted himself to sinners and those who had failed in life, and even dared to declare that they were forgiven? The pope rightly says “Jesus must be freed from the boring templates in which we have wrapped him [translation from the Küng’s German].”
The Christians of the New Testament did not understand Jesus’ words on divorce as a law but as an ethical directive. The failure of a marriage obviously did not correspond to what men and women were created for. Only dogmatic rigidity, however, cannot take seriously that already in the days of the Apostles, Jesus’ words on divorce were applied with a certain flexibility, namely in cases of “porneia/unchastity” (cf. Matthew 5:32; 19:9) and when a Christian and a nonbeliever separated (cf. 1 Corinthians 7:12-15). Already in the early church, one was obviously aware that there were situations when a further life together was unacceptable. However, to assume that remarried divorcees in general just casually and light-heartedly gave up their first marriages for trivial reasons is malicious. There is no more bitter experience than the failure of a love relationship on which one has set the hopes of a lifetime. In view of the millions of Catholics the world over nowadays who, although they are members of the church, cannot take part in its sacramental life, it is of little help to keep quoting one Vatican document after the other without convincingly answering the decisive question as to why there should be no forgiveness just for this particular failure. Hasn’t the magisterium already failed miserably as far as contraception is concerned and thus been unable to assert itself in the church? A similar failure in the question of divorce should be avoided at all costs.
It is at any rate no solution if one calls for fresh “pastoral efforts” and wants to see annulments handled more generously, as the archbishop has suggested. For many Catholics, divorce and remarriage are not the real scandal but the shameless hypocrisy of many annulments, even when the couple whose marriage is annulled have several children.
Given the actual number of divorces at the moment, which in Germany alone in 2012 was about 46 percent in proportion to the number of weddings in the same year, and if one adds to that the increasing number of Catholic couples who only married in a registry office or are cohabiting, then in all probability, in Germany alone, roughly 50 percent of Catholics are excluded from the sacraments. And we should not forget the many children who are affected and suffer under their parents’ disturbed relationship with the Church. We are thus concerned with pastoral problems which have far-reaching consequences and which today call the official church’s – but also the pope’s – credibility into question. That is why, in the light of generally available findings in the fields of the social sciences, sexology, the history of theology, ethics, dogmatics and exegesis, bishops have repeatedly cautioned that it is absolutely imperative to undertake a reappraisal of pastoral practice.
It was precisely the reactionary strategy of the CDF which led to the present church crisis and triggered the exit of millions of Catholics from the church, particularly the remarried divorcees as they were excluded from the sacraments. It would hugely damage the Catholic church if, 50 years after the Second Vatican Council, a new “Cardinal Ottaviani”, then Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith – or rather of the Holy Office or Inquisition, were able to establish himself in the Vatican, and who feels called to impose his conservative beliefs on the pope, the Council and indeed on the whole church.
And it would immensely damage the credibility of Pope Francis if the reactionaries in the Vatican were to prevent him from translating his words and gestures, which are so permeated by mercy and a sense for pastoral work, into action as soon as possible. The enormous capital of credibility that the pope has accumulated in the first months of his papacy must not be squandered by the curia. Innumerable Catholics hope:
- That the pope will see through the Guardian of the Faith’s – that is Müller’s – questionable theological and pastoral stance;
- That he will put the CDF in its place and make his theologically based pastoral line obligatory;
- That the praiseworthy questioning of bishops and laity with regard to the coming Family Synod will lead to clear, biblically-founded and realistic decisions.
First Sunday of Advent Homily
The First Sunday of Advent has arrived. It is forever a time of joyful anticipation and we are called, as Church, to make it so.
Unlike Lent, Advent's focus is on preparing for Christ not only at Christmas time, but also preparing to welcome Our Lord when he comes to fulfill his Kingdom on earth.
We are challenged in this First Sunday of Lent to find the grace necessary to see those things in our lives which we may be blind too that can inhibit our being able to fully be ready for when Our Lord comes. We have no idea when this may be and so we remain watchful and vigilant.
Here is my homily for the First Sunday of Advent:
New Year - New Hope - New Beginnings
Good day, Church
It has been since April since I last posted. I regret that. Life has taken it's own share of twists and turns and I dropped off the digital map with my blog for too long. Many have emailed and asked to have these pages up and running again and so I have decided to make this Season of Advent, the Church's New Year, to make a resolution to try.
It has been some wonderful months here at St. Ann's Parish and in Snow Lake and Cranberry Portage, MB. Many experiences and many opportunities to see God's love and mercy reflected in many people's lives.
Like many of you, I have fallen in love with our Holy Father, Pope Francis. I have not seen a witness to the Gospel as charismatic in my life as a Catholic. Like many priests, I find myself confessing that, he makes me want to be a better priest.
I will attempt to post my homilies for this season as they become available.
For now....join me in opening our hearts to the coming of Christ, not just at Christmas, but at His second coming among us.
Blessings,
Fr. Paul
It has been since April since I last posted. I regret that. Life has taken it's own share of twists and turns and I dropped off the digital map with my blog for too long. Many have emailed and asked to have these pages up and running again and so I have decided to make this Season of Advent, the Church's New Year, to make a resolution to try.
It has been some wonderful months here at St. Ann's Parish and in Snow Lake and Cranberry Portage, MB. Many experiences and many opportunities to see God's love and mercy reflected in many people's lives.
Like many of you, I have fallen in love with our Holy Father, Pope Francis. I have not seen a witness to the Gospel as charismatic in my life as a Catholic. Like many priests, I find myself confessing that, he makes me want to be a better priest.
I will attempt to post my homilies for this season as they become available.
For now....join me in opening our hearts to the coming of Christ, not just at Christmas, but at His second coming among us.
Blessings,
Fr. Paul
Apr 16, 2013
Christianity Undermined By Pastors & Faithful Who Preach One Thing & Do Another: Pope
ROME (CNS) -- The credibility of Christianity is undermined by pastors and faithful who preach one thing and do another, Pope Francis said.
"One cannot proclaim the Gospel of Jesus without the tangible witness of one's life," the pope said April 14 during a homily at Rome's Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls.
Before beginning the evening Mass, Pope Francis walked down to St. Paul's tomb under the main altar. He blessed the area with incense, and then bowed deeply in prayer for several minutes.
He was welcomed to the basilica by U.S. Cardinal James M. Harvey, the archpriest, who spoke of the importance of Rome's two patron saints -- Peter and Paul -- and how their martyrdom in Rome should be a lesson to all believers that the "renewal of the church" requires that all Christians live their faith in their daily lives.
In his homily, Pope Francis said people outside the church "must be able to see in our actions what they hear from our lips."
"Inconsistency on the part of the pastors and the faithful between what they say and what they do, between word and manner of life, is undermining the church's credibility," the pope said.
Pope Francis said St. Paul teaches Christians that following Christ requires a combination of three things: proclaiming the Gospel; bearing witness to the faith in one's life, even to the point of martyrdom; and worshipping God with all one's heart.
The proclamation of the faith made by the apostles, he said, was not merely or primarily in words. Their lives were changed by their encounter with Christ, and it was through their actions and their words that Christianity spread.
In the day's Gospel reading, Jesus tells Peter to feed his sheep.
"These words are addressed first and foremost to those of us who are pastors: We cannot feed God's flock unless we let ourselves be carried by God's will even where we would rather not go, unless we are prepared to bear witness to Christ with the gift of ourselves, unreservedly, not in a calculating way, sometimes even at the cost of our lives," Pope Francis said.
"The testimony of faith comes in very many forms," the pope said. "In God's great plan, every detail is important even yours, even my humble little witness, even the hidden witness of those who live their faith with simplicity in everyday family relationships, work relationships, friendships."
While most Christians are called to the "middle class of holiness" of fidelity and witness in the normal business of everyday life, Pope Francis noted how in some parts of the world even average Christians suffer, are persecuted and even die for their faith in Christ.
Looking at what it means to worship God with all one's heart, the pope said it, too, has a very practical, concrete expression. Worshipping God is not simply a matter of prayer -- although that is a big part of it -- but rather it means demonstrating in one's life that God alone is God.
"This has a consequence in our lives: We have to empty ourselves of the many small or great idols that we have and in which we take refuge, on which we often seek to base our security," he said.
"They are idols that we sometimes keep well hidden," like ambition, careerism or a drive to dominate others, he said. "This evening I would like a question to resound in the heart of each one of you, and I would like you to answer it honestly: Have I considered which idol lies hidden in my life that prevents me from worshipping the Lord?"
At the end of the Mass, the Jesuit Pope Francis went into the basilica's Chapel of the Crucifix where a 13th-century icon of the Madonna and Child hangs. St. Ignatius of Loyola and his first Jesuit companions made their vows as religious before the image in 1541.
Earlier in the day, the pope recited the "Regina Coeli" prayer with tens of thousands of people gathered in St. Peter's Square. In brief remarks, he commented on the same Scripture readings used at Mass that evening.
Talking about the apostles' courage in the face of persecution, Pope Francis told the crowd, "We cannot forget that the apostles were simple people; they weren't Scribes or doctors of the law and they did not belong to the priestly class."
Yet, he said, their faith was based on "such a strong and personal experience of Christ, who died and was risen, that they feared no one and nothing; in fact, they saw persecution as an honor that allowed them to follow in the footsteps of Jesus."
Mar 8, 2013
Lenten Retreat Part II
Dear Friends,
Here is the link to the second installment of a Lenten Retreat for this year.
Please follow the first part (also posted on an earlier post) in order to enter into the spirit of these talks.
I continue to pray for all of you during this Holy Season.
Blessings,
FP
Here is the link to the second installment of a Lenten Retreat for this year.
Please follow the first part (also posted on an earlier post) in order to enter into the spirit of these talks.
I continue to pray for all of you during this Holy Season.
Blessings,
FP
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