ZENIT
The World Seen From Rome
Daily dispatch - May 11, 2008
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VATICAN DOSSIER Spirit Gives Life to Universal Church, Says Pope Pope Invites a Rediscovery of Baptism's Beauty Pontiff Urges Lebanese to Shun Violence Via Concert, Pope Sent Message to Beijing Cardinal Bertone Gets a Special Honor ANALYSIS Where Religious Liberty Suffers NEWS BRIEFS Cause Opens for US Priest INTERVIEW Media Management to Protect Your Family REGINA CAELI On Pentecost DOCUMENTS Benedict XVI's Pentecost Homily
VATICAN DOSSIER
Spirit Gives Life to Universal Church, Says Pope
Emphasizes the Intertwining of Multiplicity and Unity at Pentecost
VATICAN CITY, MAY 11, 2008 (
Zenit.org).- At Pentecost, the Holy Spirit gave life to a community that is at the same time both one and universal, says Benedict XVI.
The Pope affirmed this today during the homily at a Mass he celebrated on the feast of Pentecost in St. Peter's Square.
"I would like to reflect on a particular aspect of the Holy Spirit, on the intertwining of multiplicity and unity," he said. "In the event of Pentecost it is made clear that multiple languages and different cultures belong to the Church; they can understand and make each other fruitful. St. Luke clearly wants to convey a fundamental idea, namely, in the act itself of her birth the Church is already 'catholic,' universal.
"She speaks all languages from the very beginning, because the Gospel that is entrusted to her is destined for all peoples, according to the will and the mandate of the risen Christ."
"The Church that is born at Pentecost is not above all a particular community -- the Church of Jerusalem -- but the universal Church, that speaks the language of all peoples," the Holy Father explained. "From her, other communities in every corner of the world will be born, particular Churches that are all and always actualizations of the one and only Church of Christ. The Catholic Church is therefore not a federation of churches, but a single reality: The universal Church has ontological priority. A community that is not catholic in this sense would not even be a Church."
Peace and reconciliation
Benedict XVI also emphasized the gift of peace, which Christ won with the price of his blood.
"John's Gospel offers us a word, which accords very well with the mystery of the Church created by the Spirit," the Pope said. "The word spoken twice by the risen Jesus when he appears in the midst of the disciples in the Cenacle on Easter evening: 'Shalom -- Peace to you!'"
"The expression 'shalom' is not a simple greeting; it is much more," the Holy Father explained. "It is the gift of the promised peace and is won by Jesus with the price of his blood, it is the fruit of this victory and his struggle against the spirit of evil. It is thus a peace 'not as given by the world' but as God alone can give it."
The Pontiff continued: "On this feast of the Spirit of the Church we would like to thank God for having given to his people, chosen and formed from all nations, the inestimable gift of peace, of his peace!
"At the same time we renew the awareness of the responsibility connected with this gift: the Church's responsibility to constitutionally be a sign and an instrument of the peace of God for all peoples. [...] The Church realizes her service to the peace of Christ above all in her ordinary presence and action among men, with the preaching of the Gospel and with the signs of love and mercy that accompany it."
Benedict XVI said that among these signs, the sacrament of reconciliation should be emphasized.
"How important and, unfortunately, how insufficiently understood is the gift of reconciliation that brings peace to hearts," the Bishop of Rome affirmed. "Christ's peace spreads only through the renewed hearts of men and women who have been reconciled and made themselves servants of justice, ready to spread peace in the world only with the force of truth, without compromising with the mentality of the world, because the world cannot give Christ's peace.
"This is how the Church can be a ferment of that reconciliation that comes from God. She can do this only if she remains docile to the Spirit and bears witness to the Gospel, only if she carries the cross like Jesus and with Jesus. This is precisely what the saints of every age testify to!
"In light of this word of life, dear brothers and sisters, may the prayer that today we address to God in spiritual union with the Virgin Mary become ever more fervent and intense. May the Virgin who listens, the Mother of the Church, obtain for our community and for all Christians a renewed outpouring of the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete."
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Pope Invites a Rediscovery of Baptism's Beauty
Says Spirit Is Like a Waterfall Able to Purify All Hearts
VATICAN CITY, MAY 11, 2008 (
Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI is encouraging the faithful to rediscover the beauty of being baptized in the Holy Spirit.
The Pope made this invitation today from the window of his study before praying the Regina Caeli with thousands of people gathered in St. Peter's Square. The Holy Father gave his traditional Sunday greeting shortly after finishing the celebration of Mass for the feast of Pentecost.
The Pontiff first noted that Pentecost was an ancient Hebrew feast that became a Christian feast on account of the Holy Spirit's descent upon Mary and the disciples in the Upper Room that day, 50 days after the Resurrection.
"In effect, Jesus' whole mission was aimed at giving the Spirit of God to men and baptizing them in the 'bath' of regeneration," the Pope said. "This was realized through his glorification, that is, through his death and resurrection: Then the Spirit of God was poured out in a super-abundant way, like a waterfall able to purify every heart, to extinguish the flames of evil and ignite the fire of divine love in the world.
"The Acts of the Apostles present Pentecost as a fulfillment of such a promise and therefore as the crowning moment of Jesus' whole mission. After his resurrection, he himself ordered his disciples to stay in Jerusalem, because, he said, 'In a short time you will be baptized in the Holy Spirit'; and he added: 'You will have the power of the Holy Spirit, who will descend upon you and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all of Galilee and Samaria unto the ends of the earth.'"
Church's baptism
Benedict XVI said that Pentecost is thus, "in a special way, the baptism of the Church who undertakes her universal mission beginning from the streets of Jerusalem with prodigious preaching in the different languages of humanity."
"In this baptism of the Holy Spirit," the Pope continued, "the personal and communal dimensions -- the 'I' of the disciple and the 'we' of the Church -- are inseparable. The Spirit consecrates the person and at the same time makes him a living member of the mystical body of Christ, participant in the mission to witness to his love."
This consecration and insertion into the mystical body of Christ, "is actualized through the sacraments of Christian initiation: baptism and confirmation," he said.
"In my message for World Youth Day 2008, I invited young people to rediscover the presence of the Holy Spirit in their lives and, therefore, the importance of these sacraments," the Holy Father added. "Today I would like to extend this invitation to everyone: Let us rediscover, dear brothers and sisters, the beauty of being baptized in the Holy Spirit; let us be aware again of our baptism and of our confirmation, sources of grace that are always present.
"Let us ask the Virgin Mary to obtain a renewed Pentecost for the Church again today, a Pentecost that will spread in everyone the joy of living and witnessing to the Gospel."
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Pontiff Urges Lebanese to Shun Violence
Cautions About "Irreparable Damage" to Nation
VATICAN CITY, MAY 11, 2008 (
Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI is urging the Lebanese to abandon violence so that the nation can be an example of peaceful coexistence for the world.
The Pope expressed his hopes for a peaceful Lebanon today after praying the Regina Caeli with thousands gathered in St. Peter's Square.
Fighting began in Lebanon last Wednesday, resulting in the deaths of 38 people. The fighting today moved beyond the capital.
The Holy Father said he has been following the situation "with great concern in recent days [...] where, political initiatives having stalled, verbal violence and then armed confrontations followed, with many dead and wounded."
"Even if in these last hours the tensions have slackened, I believe that it is a duty today to exhort the Lebanese to abandon every argument for aggressive opposition that would cause their country irreparable damage," the Pontiff said.
He continued: "Dialogue, mutual understanding and the search for reasonable compromise are the only way to restore to Lebanon its institutions, and to the people, the necessary security for a daily life that is dignified and rich with hope for tomorrow.
"May Lebanon, through the intercession of Our Lady of Lebanon, know how to respond with courage to its vocation of being, for the Middle East and for the whole world, a sign of the real possibility of constructive and peaceful coexistence among people.
"The different communities that make up Lebanon, as the postsynodal exhortation 'A New Hope for Lebanon' observed, are at the same time 'a richness, an originality and a difficulty. But bringing Lebanon to life is a common task for all of its inhabitants.'"
Benedict XVI prayed through the intercession of Mary, "the Virgin in prayer at Pentecost," that God would give "an abundant outpouring of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of unity and concord, who inspires inspirations of peace and reconciliation in all."
Lebanon has not been able to elect a president since last November due to fighting between the government and the opposition Hezbollah movement.
The Shiite Hezbollah group is considered a terrorist organization by some countries, and is backed by Syria and Iran.
The fighting over the last week is the worst the country has seen since its 1975-1990 civil war.
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Via Concert, Pope Sent Message to Beijing
Spokesman Says Event Showed Church's Desire to Serve
VATICAN CITY, MAY 11, 2008 (
Zenit.org).- A performance of Mozart by Chinese musicians at the Vatican last week enabled Benedict XVI to express again the Church's openness to dialogue with the Asian nation, says a Vatican spokesman.
Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, director of the Vatican press office, affirmed this on the most recent edition of Vatican Television's "Octava Dies."
The Philharmonic Orchestra of China and the Choir of the Shanghai Opera House interpreted Mozart's Requiem in Paul VI Hall on Wednesday.
This gesture, Father Lombardi said, "effectively demonstrates [...] the Catholic Church's openness to dialogue and her limitless desire to be of spiritual service."
Father Lombardi recalled how the Holy Father spoke of Paul VI Hall as "a window opening onto the world, a place where people from all over the world meet, each with his or her own personal history and culture, each welcomed with esteem and affection."
In that context, the Pope "welcomed the whole Chinese people," the Jesuit noted.
And, Father Lombardi recalled, the Holy Father wished them well in their preparations of the Olympic Games, an event he said is "of great importance for the entire human family."
"As we prepare for the day of prayer for the Church in China on May 24, established by the Pope in his famous letter of last year," Father Lombardi concluded, "we look with confidence toward the pursuit of a long path of dialogue between the Church, the Chinese people and its leaders."
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Cardinal Bertone Gets a Special Honor
Given Historical Title of Cardinal-Bishop
VATICAN CITY, MAY 11, 2008 (
Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI's secretary of state was given the dignity of cardinal-bishop, a role held by only a few cardinals.
Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone was assigned the historical dignity with the titular see of Frascati. The see was left vacant with the death of Cardinal Alfonso López Trujillo on April 19.
Cardinal-bishops are members of the highest order within the College of Cardinals. The dean of the college is elected from among their number.
The dignity is a historical reference to the roles formerly played by cardinals in certain major ecclesiastical offices associated with the See of Rome.
Today, cardinal-bishops are associated with one of the seven suburbicarian dioceses that make up the ecclesiastical province of Rome. These sees correspond to only six cardinal-bishops because the dean of the College of Cardinals takes the See of Ostia as well as the see he was assigned before his election to the rank of dean.
In addition to these cardinal bishops, certain patriarchs of Eastern Churches hold the rank.
Cardinal Bertone has been the Pope's secretary of state since September 2006. Last July, he was sworn in as the chamberlain of the Holy Roman Church -- the cardinal who oversees the affairs of the Church between the death of a pope and the election of a successor.
Tarcisio Bertone was born in 1934. He is a member of the Congregation of the Salesians of St. John Bosco. He was secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith from 1995 to 2002 and archbishop of Genoa from 2002 to 2006.
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ANALYSIS
Where Religious Liberty Suffers
Annual Report Criticizes Lack of Action
By Father John Flynn, LC
ROME, MAY 11, 2008 (Zenit.org).- On May 2 the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom released both its 2008 Annual Report and its recommendations to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on countries of particular concern.
The commission was created by the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998. The act also requires that the United States designate as countries of particular concern (CPC) those states whose governments have engaged in or tolerated systematic and egregious violations of religious freedom.
"In the past year, violent government repression of religious communities in China, Burma and Sudan, among other countries, confirms that religious freedom is a vulnerable human right that must be protected by the international community," said the commission chair, Michael Cromartie, in a press release.
The commission's recommendations for the 2008 CPC list are Burma (also known as Myanmar), North Korea, Eritrea, Iran, Pakistan, China, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Vietnam.
The actual designation of a country as a CPC depends on a decision by the U.S. State Department.
The recommendations are the same as in 2007, and the commission repeated its request from last year that the State Department put Vietnam back on the CPC list, from which it was removed in 2006.
In its press release the commission acknowledged that Vietnam had made "notable progress," but at the same time stated that there have been "persistent abuses, discrimination and restrictions."
The commission's letter to Condoleezza Rice gave more details on Vietnam, stating that during a trip to the country in October 2007, it found that progress in improving religious freedom was very patchy. The commission also argued, contrary to the State Department's view, that there continue to be religious "prisoners of concern" in Vietnam. In addition, authorities also limit human rights in general, the letter concluded.
In fact, the commission's letter to the State Department spoke openly of its dissatisfaction over the lack of action on countries that seriously limit religious freedom. The letter noted that the State Department has not designated any country as a CPC since November 2006.
This delay in naming CPCs "may send the unfortunate signal that the U.S. government is not sufficiently committed" to seeking improvements in countries that are severe violators of religious freedom, declared the commission's letter.
Iraq concern
The commission also publishes a "Watch List" that names countries where violations are serious, but less grave than those in the CPC group. The list is made up of the following countries: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Belarus, Cuba, Egypt, Indonesia and Nigeria.
As well, the commission declared that it remains seriously concerned about religious freedom in Iraq. In 2007, Iraq was included on the Watch List, but this year the commission will shortly be making a visit to Iraq to investigate conditions. After the visit the commission will issue a report, along with any recommendations on what designation to give Iraq.
In the meantime the commission noted its concern for the "particularly dire conditions affecting non-Muslims in Iraq," saying the minority faces widespread violence from Sunni insurgents and foreign extremists, and also persecution and discrimination from government authorities.
Another country where the commission's report expressed dissatisfaction over the State Department's stand was Saudi Arabia. After a recommendation from the commission in 2004, Saudi Arabia was put on the CPC list. In 2006, however, the State Department removed it from the list.
In its 2008 report, the commission commented that after two visits to Saudi Arabia in 2007, the panel remains perturbed over the lack of religious liberty. In fact, the report stated, the promises given by authorities regarding steps to be taken to permit more religious freedom remain unfulfilled. Not only that, but during the commission's visits, the Saudi government refused requests for meetings with a number of key officials.
One of the conclusions drawn from the visits is that Saudi authorities continue to severely restrict all forms of public religious expression other than the officially approved version of Sunni Islam. "This policy violates the rights of the large communities of Muslims from a variety of schools of Islam who reside in Saudi Arabia," the report stated.
The commission also highlighted the Saudi government funding of religious schools and literature that supports intolerance and, in some cases, violence toward non-Muslims and those Muslims not approved by authorities.
Growth amid trials
Turning to Asia, the report lamented the serious violations of religion freedom in China, but also noted that in spite of repression, religious communities are growing rapidly. Authorities endeavor to restrict religion to government-approved associations and engage in "sometimes brutal abuses" against unregistered groups, the commission commented.
Protestant house church groups and underground Catholic priests continue to experience the most intense coercion, according to the report. It also noted the Chinese government's continued actions in demolishing Tibetan Buddhist structures and statues. Authorities even acknowledge that more than 100 Tibetan Buddhist monks and nuns are being held in prison, the report added.
Myanmar was another country singled out by the commission for its violation of religious freedom. In fact, the already very poor record on human rights further deteriorated in the past year, the report stated.
Among recent abuses, the report mentioned the violent action taken by the military junta in putting an end to the peaceful demonstrations by Buddhist monks in September 2007. At least 30 deaths were reported, although some estimates are much higher, the commission noted. Thousands of people were arrested and hundreds still remain in detention.
Matters are no better in North Korea, where, the report stated, "Freedom of thought, conscience, and religion or belief does not exist." There is no evidence that religious freedom conditions have improved in the past year, according to the commission. Reports by some refugees speak of some 6,000 Christians imprisoned in a camp in the north of the country.
Most violent
In Africa the commission observed that in the past it had singled out Sudan, "as the world's most violent abuser of the right to freedom of religion or belief." Conditions have improved in recent times, but mainly just in the south of the country.
In the north, few changes have been implemented and all citizens, including Christians and followers of traditional African religions, are subject to the Islamic Shariah law. Muslims receive preferential treatment when it comes to government services, and conversion from Islam is a crime punishable by death.
Another African country examined in the commission's report was Nigeria, where it described the government's response to persistent religious freedom concerns as "inadequate."
Among problems mentioned by the report were the expansion of Shariah law into the criminal codes of several northern Nigerian states; and discrimination against minority communities of Christians and Muslims.
Nigeria has also been severely affected by ethnic and religious violence in past years. Last year the situation improved somewhat, but even so the report said that dozens of people were killed and dozens of churches and mosques were destroyed in communal violence in several towns and villages in various parts of the country.
One of the last countries mentioned in the report is Russia. Although the nation is not singled out for one of the commission's lists, the report nevertheless expressed concern about Russia's increasingly fragile human rights situation, which it says directly affects the status of religious freedom.
Minority religious groups continue to face some restrictions on religious activities, the report said, and one of the major problems is the lack of a clear national policy on religious affairs. This means that the status of freedom of religion varies dramatically from region to region.
As the report clearly shows, religious freedom is under threat in many countries. Convincing governments to take action to change the situation is, however, not so easy to achieve.
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NEWS BRIEFS
Cause Opens for US Priest
ROME, MAY 11, 2008 (
Zenit.org).- The cause for beatification for a 20th-century Massachusetts-born priest officially opened in Rome.
The cause of Father Theodore Foley (1913-1974) officially opened Friday.
For 10 years, Father Foley was the superior general of the Congregation of the Passion, also known as the Passionists.
Cardinal Camillo Ruini, Benedict XVI's vicar for the Diocese of Rome, described the priest's life during the inauguration ceremony. He invited the Passionist Fathers to walk the way of sanctity, "which Father Foley followed with such dedication."
Daniel Foley was born in 1913 in Springfield to a family of Irish immigrants. He attended the schools the Passionist Fathers, where he heard the call to the priesthood. He entered the Passionists congregation in 1932 and in the following year made his first profession, taking the name Theodore. He was ordained a priest in 1940 in Baltimore, Maryland.
In 1958, Father Foley became the general consultor and assistant to the superior-general of the Passionists. He was himself elected superior-general in 1964, a post that he held until his death on Oct. 9, 1974.
Father Giovanni Zubiani, postulator of the cause of beatification, spoke of Father Foley as a man open to dialogue "but firm on the principles and charism of the congregation."
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INTERVIEW
Media Management to Protect Your Family
Interview With Talk Show Host Teresa Tomeo
By Carrie Gress
DETROIT, Michigan, MAY 11, 2008 (Zenit.org).- Catholic families are beginning to realize there is more to life than what the secular media promises, says a Catholic talk show host.
Teresa Tomeo has just published "Noise: How Our Media-saturated Culture Dominates Lives and Dismantles Families."
In this interview with ZENIT, Tomeo discusses her book and how families can guard against the effects of the ever-encroaching secular media.
Q: In your book, you discuss how the media is the most dominant force in American culture today. What do you think are the most damaging effects it has had on us morally and spiritually?
Tomeo: I think the biggest issue is with the overall desensitization of the Catholic culture and belief system. As one Catholic author said on my show recently, the culture has been forming our faith and not the other way around. Birth control, abortion, cohabitation, pre-marital sex, have all become the "norm" in society and most of the messages come from the entertainment media and the news media, which embrace and promote all of the above.
That combined with very poor catechesis over the past 40-50 years along with the sexual revolution has led to disaster. The good news is the Church has -- and always has had -- the answers in her teachings. And there are some real positive efforts such as a huge explosion in Catholic media that are making a big difference.
Many Catholics are coming home and realizing that the culture has been selling them a bill of goods and there is something more to life.
Q: What would your response be to someone who said you were overstating the case -- that the media, including Internet, video games, etc. -- is only harmless entertainment?
Tomeo: I would say they are in denial. Many people who make such statements don't want to take a close look at their own bad media habits such as too much time on the Internet or cell phone or too much time in front of the TV. I also hear this a lot from families as I travel across the United States speaking about this topic -- families, namely parents -- who don't want to take the time to stop and see what their children are up to.
It takes a lot of time and effort to become a media savvy family, but we all must do our part.
To give you an example of just what a media-obsessed culture we are, just nine days after the Pope left the United States the extremely violent video game "Grand Theft Auto Four; Liberty City" went on sale around the world. People were lined up for hours waiting to grab their copy. Now we find out the game has broken sales records -- actually beaten the all-time entertainment record in sales. Six million people purchased the game in its first week on the store shelves.
The Pope mentioned the culture several times in his U.S. visit and in his address to bishops. He went so far as to say that we can't talk about protecting our children if we are not willing to take a look at the big picture, including easy access to pornography and media products that promote violence.
I would point to Madison Avenue and ask them why it exists if the media doesn't have an impact? Or how about the Super Bowl where companies spend millions and millions on 30- and 60-second commercials to reach a prime audience.
And then I would point them directly to the thousands of studies done by secular universities as well as professional organizations, such as the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Psychological Association and the American Medical Association, just to name a few, all of whom have been studying media influence for years.
Q: How are children affected by large doses of the media compared to adults?
Tomeo: The American Academy of Pediatrics issued a policy statement nine years ago saying "no TV for children under 2." They also recommend only two hours a day for young children. That's how concerned the AAP is about the impact media exposure has on children.
The medical experts say young children have a hard time separating what they see on TV from reality and it is also important, they explain, for their attention spans -- not to be viewing a lot of fast-paced imagery that today's TV/mass media are loaded with.
Q: Your book makes a number of suggestions as to how parents can protect their children -- and themselves -- from the negative influences of media. What are some of these?
Tomeo: No. 1 on the list is to keep the TV and the computer in a central area of the home where the usage can be closely monitored. Leaving kids alone in their rooms with access to the Internet and to TV is a recipe for disaster.
Parents should also set guidelines and stick to them and make sure that meal times are media free -- no TV, no iPods or cell phones allowed. Families should also take advantage of the many tools that are available, such as Internet filters and TV ratings, as well as helpful media activist groups such as the well-known Parents TV Council. Their Web site is a wealth of information for any parent or concerned citizen who wants to make a difference in their homes and the culture.
I would also recommend reading Pope Benedict's World Communications Day statements along with Pope John Paul II's message from World Communications Day 2004. There is a wealth of information and guidance to be found in these documents and, of course, in all the Catholic teachings on social communications.
Q: As a former broadcast journalist, you discuss the bias found in mainstream media. As average readers/listeners, how can we protect ourselves from the bias in important news stories, for example, when preparing to vote?
Tomeo: We need to consider the source. Research shows that at least 50% of those working in today's secular media are atheist or agnostic and only about 12% go to some type of church service. The majority of them also admit to supporting legalized abortion, as well as other actions that go directly against Church teaching.
While the media are supposed to be objective and balanced, that often is not the case. The media tend to preach instead of report by telling us in the way they cover stories that we need to believe a certain way -- and that way is not the way of the Church.
So again, consider the source of the news story and then check everything against the Catechism and Scripture. Make sure you know what the Church actually teaches instead of what the media say it teaches. Read the U.S. bishops' recent document on "Faithful Citizenship." Also turn to orthodox Catholic sources for issues that concern Catholics and voting. There are a number of good Catholic Web sites available, such as Priests for Life, that can help Catholics in the voting process.
Q: Many people feel powerless when it comes to being able to effect change in what is broadcast. Are there ways that one person can make a difference?
Tomeo: Absolutely. Joining media activist groups is a great way to make a difference. Parents TV Council has over a million members now and not only informs its members on what's happening with the media but also is active with petition drives, awareness campaigns, and congressional efforts to raise media awareness and protect children and families.
Writing letters or sending e-mails to stations as well as writing letters to the editor is also very effective. The competition keeps getting stronger for all media outlets. They need every viewer, listener and newspaper reader. That's why every voice counts. And just like voting, one person can indeed make a difference.
--- --- ---
On the net:
"Noise: How Our Media-saturated Culture Dominates Lives and Dismantles Families": www.teresatomeo.com/store.htm#noise
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REGINA CAELI
On Pentecost
"The Baptism of the Church"
VATICAN CITY, MAY 11, 2008 (
Zenit.org).- Here is a translation of the greeting Benedict XVI gave today before praying the Regina Caeli with several thousand people gathered in St. Peter's Square. The Holy Father had just finished celebrating Mass for the feast of Pentecost.
* * *
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Today we celebrate the solemnity of Pentecost, an ancient Hebrew feast in which the covenant made between God and his people on Mount Sinai (cf. Exodus 19) was celebrated. It became a Christian feast on account of what happened during this celebration 50 days after Jesus' resurrection.
We read in the Acts of the Apostles that the disciples were gathered together in prayer in the Cenacle when the Holy Spirit descended upon them with power like wind and fire. They then began to proclaim the glad tidings of Christ's resurrection in many languages (cf. Acts 2:1-4). That was the "baptism in the Holy Spirit," which had already been announced by John the Baptist: "I have baptized you with water," he said to the crowds, "but he who comes after me is more powerful than me. (...) He will baptize you in the Holy Spirit" (Matthew 3:11).
In effect, Jesus' whole mission was aimed at giving the Spirit of God to men and baptizing them in the "bath" of regeneration. This was realized through his glorification (cf. John 7:39), that is, through his death and resurrection: Then the Spirit of God was poured out in a superabundant way, like a waterfall able to purify every heart, to extinguish the flames of evil and ignite the fire of divine love in the world.
The Acts of the Apostles present Pentecost as a fulfillment of such a promise and therefore as the crowning moment of Jesus' whole mission. After his resurrection, he himself ordered his disciples to stay in Jerusalem, because, he said, "In a short time you will be baptized in the Holy Spirit" (Acts 1:8); and he added: "You will have the power of the Holy Spirit, who will descend upon you and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all of Galilee and Samaria unto the ends of the earth" (Acts 1:8).
Pentecost is, thus, in a special way, the baptism of the Church who undertakes her universal mission beginning from the streets of Jerusalem with prodigious preaching in the different languages of humanity. In this baptism of the Holy Spirit the personal and communal dimensions -- the "I" of the disciple and the "we" of the Church -- are inseparable. The Spirit consecrates the person and at the same time makes him a living member of the mystical body of Christ, a participant in the mission to witness to his love.
And this is actualized through the sacraments of Christian initiation: baptism and confirmation. In my message for World Youth Day 2008, I invited young people to rediscover the presence of the Holy Spirit in their lives and, therefore, the importance of these sacraments. Today I would like to extend this invitation to everyone: Let us rediscover, dear brothers and sisters, the beauty of being baptized in the Holy Spirit; let us be aware again of our baptism and of our confirmation, sources of grace that are always present.
Let us ask the Virgin Mary to obtain a renewed Pentecost for the Church again today, a Pentecost that will spread in everyone the joy of living and witnessing to the Gospel.
[After the Regina Caeli, the Pope continued:]
With great concern in recent days I have followed the situation in Lebanon, where, political initiatives having stalled, verbal violence and then armed confrontations followed, with many dead and wounded. Even if in these last hours the tensions have slackened, I believe that it is a duty today to exhort the Lebanese to abandon every argument for aggressive opposition that would cause their country irreparable damage.
Dialogue, mutual understanding and the search for reasonable compromise are the only way to restore to Lebanon its institutions, and to the people, the necessary security for a daily life that is dignified and rich with hope for tomorrow.
May Lebanon, through the intercession of Our Lady of Lebanon, know how to respond with courage to its vocation of being, for the Middle East and for the whole world, a sign of the real possibility of constructive and peaceful coexistence among men. The different communities that make up Lebanon, as the postsynodal exhortation "A New Hope for Lebanon" observed (cf. No. 1), are at the same time "a richness, an originality and a difficulty. But bringing Lebanon to life is a common task for all of its inhabitants."
With Mary, the Virgin in prayer at Pentecost, we ask the Almighty for an abundant outpouring of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of unity and concord, who inspires inspirations of peace and reconciliation in all.
[Translation by Joseph G. Trabbic]
[The Holy Father then greeted the people in several languages. In English, he said:]
I offer a warm welcome to the English-speaking visitors gathered for this prayer, including the group from Magdalen College in the United States. On this Pentecost Sunday let us pray for a fresh outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon the Church. May the Spirit's gifts of life and holiness confirm us in our witness to the Risen Lord and fill our hearts with fervent hope in his promises! Upon all of you I cordially invoke Holy Spirit's gifts of wisdom, joy and peace. God bless you!
© Copyright 2008 -- Libreria Editrice Vaticana
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DOCUMENTS
Benedict XVI's Pentecost Homily
"In the Act Itself of Her Birth the Church Is Already 'Catholic'"
VATICAN CITY, MAY 11, 2008 (
Zenit.org).- Here is a translation of the homily Benedict XVI gave today when he celebrated Mass in St. Peter's Square for the feast of Pentecost.
* * *
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
The account of the event of Pentecost that we heard in the first reading is placed by St. Luke at the beginning of the Acts of the Apostles. The second chapter is introduced with these words: "When the time for Pentecost was fulfilled, they were all in one place together" (Acts 2:1). These words refer to the previous chapter in which Luke described the little group of disciples that assiduously gathered in Jerusalem after Jesus' ascension into heaven (cf. Acts 1:12-14). It is a description that is rich in details: The place "where they lived" -- the cenacle -- is an environment "in the upper room"; the 11 apostles are listed by name, and the first three are Peter, John and James, the "pillars" of the community, already integrated into this new family, no longer based on family bonds but on faith in Christ.
The total number of persons, which was "about 120," a multiple of the 12 of the apostolic college, clearly alludes to this "new Israel." The group constitutes an authentic "qāhāl," an assembly on the model of the first covenant, the community convoked to hear the voice of the Lord and to walk in his ways. The Book of Acts emphasizes that "all of them devoted themselves with one accord to prayer" (1:14). Prayer, therefore, is the principal activity of the nascent Church. It is through prayer that she receives her unity from the Lord and allows herself to be guided by his will, as the decision to cast lots for the one to take Judas' place shows (cf. Acts 2:25).
This community found itself gathered together again in the same place, the cenacle, on the morning of the Jewish feast of Pentecost, a feast of the covenant, in which there was commemorated the event on Sinai where, through Moses, God proposed that Israel be his property among all the nations, to be a sign of his holiness (cf. Exodus 19). According to the Book of Exodus, that ancient covenant was accompanied by a terrifying sign of power on the part of the Lord: "Mount Sinai," one reads there, "was all wrapped in smoke, for the Lord came down upon it in fire. The smoke rose from it as though from a furnace, and the whole mountain trembled violently" (Exodus 19:18).
We find the elements of wind and fire again at the Pentecost of the New Testament but without the resonances of fear. In particular the fire takes the form of tongues that come to rest upon all the disciples, "who were all full of the Holy Spirit" and on account of that outpouring, "began to speak in other languages" (Acts 2:4). We have here the community's true "baptism" with fire, a kind of new creation. At Pentecost the Church is not constituted by a human will, but by the power of the Spirit of God. And it immediately appears how this Spirit gives life to a community that is at the same time one and universal, thus overcoming the curse of Babel (cf. John 11:7-9). Only the Spirit, in fact, which creates unity in love and in the reciprocal acceptance of diversity, can liberate humanity from the constant tension of an earthly will-to-power that wants to dominate and make everything uniform.
"Societas Spiritus," society of the Spirit: This is what St. Augustine calls the Church in one of his sermons (71, 19, 32: PL 38, 462). But already before him, St. Irenaeus formulated a truth that I would like to recall here: "Where the Church is, there is the Spirit of God, and where the Spirit of God is, there is the Church and every grace, and the Spirit is truth; to distance yourself from the Church is to reject the Spirit" and thus "to exclude yourself from life" (Adv. Haer. III, 24, 1). Beginning with the event of Pentecost, this connubium or "marriage" is manifested between the Spirit of Christ and his mystical body, that is, the Church.
I would like to reflect on a particular aspect of the Holy Spirit, on the intertwining of multiplicity and unity. The second reading speaks about this, treating of the harmony of the different charisms in the communion of the same Spirit. But already in the passage from Acts that we have listened to, this intertwining reveals itself with extraordinary evidence. In the event of Pentecost it is made clear that multiple languages and different cultures belong to the Church; they can understand and make each other fruitful. St. Luke clearly wants to convey a fundamental idea, namely, in the act itself of her birth the Church is already "catholic," universal. She speaks all languages from the very beginning, because the Gospel that is entrusted to her is destined for all peoples, according to the will and the mandate of the risen Christ (cf. Matthew 28:19). The Church that is born at Pentecost is not above all a particular community -- the Church of Jerusalem -- but the universal Church, that speaks the language of all peoples. From her, other communities in every corner of the world will be born, particular Churches that are all and always actualizations of the one and only Church of Christ. The Catholic Church is therefore not a federation of churches, but a single reality: The universal Church has ontological priority. A community that is not catholic in this sense would not even be a Church.
In this regard it is necessary to add another aspect: that of the theological vision of the Acts of the Apostles in respect of the journey of the Church from Jerusalem to Rome. Luke notes that among the peoples represented in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost there are also "foreigners from Rome" (Acts 2:10). At that time Rome was still distant, "foreign" for the nascent Church: It was a symbol of the pagan world in general. But the power of the Holy Spirit will guide the steps of the witnesses "to the ends of the earth" (Acts 1:8), to Rome. The Acts of the Apostles ends precisely when Paul, by providential design, arrives at the empire's capital and proclaims the Gospel there (cf. Acts 28:30-31). Thus the journey of God's Word, begun in Jerusalem, arrives at its goal, because Rome represents the whole world and thus incarnates the Lucan idea of catholicity. The universal Church is realized, the catholic Church, which is the continuation of the chosen people and makes its history and mission her own.
At this point, and to conclude, John's Gospel offers us a word, which accords very well with the mystery of the Church created by the Spirit. The word spoken twice by the risen Jesus when he appears in the midst of the disciples in the Cenacle on Easter evening: "Shalom -- Peace to you!" (John 20:19, 21). The expression "shalom" is not a simple greeting; it is much more: It is the gift of the promised peace (cf. John 14:27) and is won by Jesus with the price of his blood, it is the fruit of this victory and his struggle against the spirit of evil. It is thus a peace "not as given by the world" but as God alone can give it.
On this feast of the Spirit of the Church we would like to thank God for having given to his people, chosen and formed from all nations, the inestimable gift of peace, of his peace! At the same time we renew the awareness of the responsibility connected with this gift: the Church's responsibility to constitutionally be a sign and an instrument of the peace of God for all peoples. I tried to be a conveyor of this message when I recently went to the headquarters of the U.N. to speak to the representatives of the nations. But one must not only think of these "summits." The Church realizes her service to the peace of Christ above all in her ordinary presence and action among men, with the preaching of the Gospel and with the signs of love and mercy that accompany it (cf. Matthew 16:20).
Among these signs, the sacrament of reconciliation must naturally be emphasized, the sacrament that the risen Christ instituted at the same time that he gave his disciples the gift of his peace and his Spirit. As we heard in the passage from the Gospel, Jesus breathed upon his disciples and said: "Receive the Holy Spirit; whose sins you forgive are forgiven them and whose sins you retain are retained" (John 20:21-23). How important and, unfortunately, how insufficiently understood is the gift of reconciliation that brings peace to hearts! Christ's peace spreads only through the renewed hearts of men and women who have been reconciled and made themselves servants of justice, ready to spread peace in the world only with the force of truth, without compromising with the mentality of the world, because the world cannot give Christ's peace: This is how the Church can be a ferment of that reconciliation that comes from God. She can do this only if she remains docile to the Spirit and bears witness to the Gospel, only if she carries the cross like Jesus and with Jesus. This is precisely what the saints of every age testify to!
In light of this word of life, dear brothers and sisters, may the prayer that today we address to God in spiritual union with the Virgin Mary become ever more fervent and intense. May the Virgin who listens, the Mother of the Church, obtain for our community and for all Christians a renewed outpouring of the Holy Spirit the Paraclete. "Emitte Spiritum tuum et creabuntur, et renovabis faciem terrae -- Send forth your Spirit and everything will be recreated and you will renew the face of the earth." Amen!
[Translation by Joseph G. Trabbic]
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