ZE090313
ZENIT
The World Seen From Rome
Daily dispatch - March 13, 2009
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ZENIT was able to grow last year thanks to donations from readers -- which covered more than 90% of our annual budget -- in addition to advertising and republication fees.
This year we hope to raise US $420,000 from our English-edition readers in order to fund our growth, and to continue providing our free news service to 600,000 private readers worldwide.
As in previous years, we are confident that your generosity will support our growth.
We invite all of you to visit our donation pages at: http://www.zenit.org/english/donation.html
U.S. donors' contributions to ZENIT are tax-deductible under IRS rules. You can find more details at: http://zenit.org/english/tax-exemption.html.
Tax deduction is also possible for donations to ZENIT from: France, Germany, Mexico and Spain.
VATICAN DOSSIER
Pope to Visit Rome's Synagogue Next Fall
Pontiff Promoting Eucharistic Adoration
WORLD FEATURES
Bishop Fellay Thanks Pope for Redirecting Debate
NEWS BRIEFS
Focolare Marks Anniversary of Founder
Mother Teresa Successor to Preach Retreat
DOCUMENTS
Benedict XVI's Address to Benedictine Sisters
Pius X Society Response to Benedict XVI
Reports on Distribution of 2008 Holy Land Collection
Letter on Occasion of Collection for Holy Land
Pope to Visit Rome's Synagogue Next Fall
Chief Rabbi Calls It an "Important Gesture"VATICAN CITY, MARCH 13, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI will visit Rome's main synagogue this fall, confirms a Vatican spokesman.
Jesuit Father Jesuit Lombardi, director of the Vatican press office, said Thursday that the visit is scheduled for the fall, but the exact date has yet to be determined.
Benedict XVI will be the second Pope to visit that temple in the history of Vatican-Jewish relations. Pope John Paul II visited Rome's synagogue in 1986.
The current Pope has visited two other synagogues as Pope. The first was during the 2005 World Youth Day in Cologne, German, and the second was the synagogue of New York in 2008.
Rome's chief rabbi, Riccardo Di Segni, told Vatican Radio that the planned visit is "an important gesture that confirms the will to continue an attitude of respect and friendship."
He said John Paul II's visit to the synagogue of Rome "opened a new era" of Vatican-Jewish relations.
The rabbi also spoke positively of Benedict XVI's scheduled trip to the Holy Land. He called it a gesture of "attention" and "respect."
Di Segni admitted there are "many problems" in relations between Jews and Christians -- "theological, historical, delicate problems that separate us."
While admitting some differences will never be resolved, he acknowledged that the two traditions share many common values: "If the conflictive elements are taken away, everything that follows can be a great fruit and a great good for all."
The rabbi added that relations between Jews and the Vatican have calmed down this week: "Many of the clouds that had gathered have disappeared. A climate of good will prevails, and that is very important."
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Pontiff Promoting Eucharistic Adoration
Says It Brings About TransformationVATICAN CITY, MARCH 13, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI is calling for a renewal of Eucharistic adoration, which he said helps to bring about a "fundamental transformation."
The Pope said this today upon receiving in audience participants in the plenary assembly of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments, who have been meeting to consider the question of Eucharistic adoration.
The Pontiff said he hoped the meeting would help to clarify "the liturgical and pastoral means by which the Church of our time can promote faith in the real presence of the Lord in the Blessed Eucharist, and to ensure that the celebration of Mass fully incorporates the aspect of adoration."
"The doctrine of the transubstantiation of the bread and wine, and of the real presence, are a truth of faith," the Holy Father affirmed, "already evident in sacred Scripture and later confirmed by the Fathers of the Church."
"Adoration must become union," Benedict XVI added, "union with the living Lord and with His mystical Body."
Citing his address at the 2005 World Youth Day in Cologne, Germany, Benedict XVI explained that in the Eucharist, "God no longer simply stands before us as the One who is totally Other. He is within us, and we are in him. His dynamic enters into us and then seeks to spread outward to others until it fills the world, so that his love can truly become the dominant measure of the world."
The Pontiff said that in Cologne he also told the youth present that in the Eucharist "we experience the fundamental transformation of violence into love, of death into life. This brings other changes in its wake."
He noted that a renewal of Eucharistic adoration "will only be possible through a greater awareness of the mystery in complete faithfulness to sacred Tradition, and by enhancing liturgical life within our communities."
Benedict XVI also noted "three penitential practices particularly dear to biblical and Christian tradition (prayer, almsgiving and fasting)," and urged the faithful to "encourage one another to rediscover and practice fasting with renewed fervor, not only as a form of asceticism but also as a preparation for the Eucharist and as a spiritual weapon to fight against any disordered attachment to ourselves."
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Bishop Fellay Thanks Pope for Redirecting Debate
Shares Pontiff's Wish to Preach Word to Modern AgeMENZINGEN, Switzerland, MARCH 13, 2009 (Zenit.org).- The general-superior of the Society of St. Pius X thanked Benedict XVI for his letter concerning the situation of his congregation as the text refocused the debate to doctrinal concerns.
Bishop Bernard Fellay said this in a communiqué released Thursday, the same day the Vatican published a letter written by Benedict XVI that explained the intentions behind lifting the excommunications of four Lefebvrite bishops.
The four, including Bishop Fellay, were excommunicated in 1988 when they received episcopal ordination illicitly at the hands of Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, who ordained them without papal permission.
The decree to lift the excommunications was made public days after one of the four -- Bishop Richard Williamson -- appeared on Swedish television in a previously taped interview in which he refuted the extent of Holocaust. A furor ensued which led Vatican-Jewish relations to the breaking point.
"After 'an avalanche of protests was unleashed' recently," Bishop Fellay wrote, "we greatly thank the Holy Father for having placed the debate at the level on which it should take place, that of the faith."
Quoting Benedict XVI's letter, the prelate assured that the society fully shares the Pope's "utmost concern for preaching to 'our age, when in vast areas of the world the faith is in danger of dying out like a flame which no longer has fuel.'"
Bishop Fellay continued: "The Church lives, in fact, through a major crisis which cannot be solved other than by an integral return to the purity of the faith."
"Far from wanting to stop Tradition in 1962," he added, "we wish to consider the Second Vatican Council and the post-Conciliar magisterium in the light of this Tradition."
The superior-general assured the Pontiff of the society's "will to address the doctrinal discussions considered 'necessary' by the decree of Jan. 21, with the desire of serving the revealed Truth which is the first charity to be shown toward all men, Christian or not."
A February note from the Vatican Secretariat of State clarified that "a full recognition of the Second Vatican Council and the magisterium of Popes John XXIII, Paul VI, John Paul I, John Paul II and Benedict XVI himself is an indispensable condition for any future recognition of the Society of St. Pius X."
"We place these doctrinal discussions under the protection of Our Lady of Trust," Bishop Fellay concluded, "with the assurance that she will obtain for us the grace of faithfully delivering that which we received."
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On ZENIT's Web Page:
Full text: www.zenit.org/article-25354?l=english
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Focolare Marks Anniversary of Founder
ROME, MARCH 13, 2009 (Zenit.org).- The Focolare Movement will be marking the one-year anniversary of the death of its founder Chiara Lubich this weekend with various events around the world.Cardinal Paul Poupard, the former president of the Pontifical Council for Culture, will preside at a Mass in Rome to commemorate Lubich's death, which took place last March 14. The service will be held at 11 am at the Basilica of St. Mary Major.
An Internet broadcast, titled "With Chiara -- a Continuing Dialogue," will be shown Saturday on http://live.focolare.org.
The program will be broadcast from the Centro Mariapoli in Castelgandolfo, with contributions from leading representatives of various Churches and civil society.
A high point will be the taped testimony of Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz on the relationship between Pope John Paul II and Lubich.
On Sunday, Bartholomew I, ecumenical patriarch of Constantinople, will deliver a commemorative speech after vespers in the Church of the Panagia, at the Belgrade Gate in Istanbul.
Earlier Sunday, a Mass said at the Maria Theotokos Shrine in Loppiano, Italy, will be broadcast live on RAI Uno. The presiding celebrant will be Bishop Luciano Giovannetti of Fiesole.
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On the Net:
For information on local events: http://www.focolare.org/
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Mother Teresa Successor to Preach Retreat
ROME, MARCH 13, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Sister Nirmala Joshi, Mother Teresa's successor as the leader of the Missionaries of Charity, will preach spiritual exercises for the leaders of Caritas Asia and other ecclesial groups.The Pontifical Council Cor Unum has asked Sr. Joshi, as well as other Asian cardinals and bishops, to preach the Sept. 6-11 retreat.
According to a statement from the council, this initiative follows from the first such gathering in Guadalajara, Mexico, last June, which brought together some 500 leaders of charity groups from North America, Latin America and the Caribbean. Capuchin Father Raniero Cantalamessa, preacher of the Pontifical Household, gave that retreat.
The statement noted how "Benedict XVI has sought to place the personal encounter with God as the source that inspires and motivates Christian life."
It added: "To know and impart God's love as revealed in Jesus Christ through the gift of self for the other constitutes the specificity of Christian charitable activity. […] Yet, at the same time, Christians are convinced that, beside material assistance, human affliction needs a message of hope that only Christ can give through faith-filled witnesses."
More than 300 Caritas leaders from the Asian continent have already registered for the event.
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Benedict XVI's Address to Benedictine Sisters
"Mary's Heart Is the Cloister Where the Word Continues to Speak in Silence"VATICAN CITY, MARCH 13, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Here is a translation of the address Benedict XVI gave March 9 upon visiting the monastery of the Benedictine Oblate Sisters of St. Frances of Rome at Tor de' Specchi.
* * *
Dear Oblate Sisters,
After my Visit to the nearby Municipal Hall on the Capitoline Hill, I come with great joy to meet you at this historic Monastery of Santa Francesca Romana, while you are still celebrating the fourth centenary of her canonization on 29 May 1608. Moreover, the Feast of this great Saint occurs this very day, commemorating the date of her birth in Heaven. I am therefore particularly grateful to the Lord to be able to pay this tribute to the "most Roman of women Saints", in felicitous continuity with the meeting I have just had with the Administrators at the municipal headquarters. As I address my cordial greeting to your community, and in particular to the President, Mother Maria Camilla Rea whom I thank for her courteous words expressing your common sentiments I also extend my greeting to Auxiliary Bishop Ernesto Mandara, to the students who live here and to everyone present.
As you know, together with my collaborators in the Roman Curia, I have just completed the Spiritual Exercises which coincided with the first week of Lent. In these days I have experienced once again how indispensable silence and prayer are. And I also thought of St Frances of Rome, of her unreserved dedication to God and neighbour which gave rise to the experience of community life here, at Tor de' Specchi. Contemplation and action, prayer and charitable service, the monastic ideal and social involvement: all this has found here a "laboratory" rich in fruits, in close connection with the Olivetan nuns of Santa Maria Nova. But the real impetus behind all that was achieved in the course of time was the heart of Frances, into which the Holy Spirit had poured out his spiritual gifts and at the same time inspired a multitude of good initiatives.
Your monastery is located in the heart of the city. How is it possible not to see in this, as it were, the symbol of the need to bring the spiritual dimension back to the centre of civil coexistence, to give full meaning to the many activities of the human being? Precisely in this perspective your community, together with all other communities of contemplative life, is called to be a sort of spiritual "lung" of society, so that all that is to be done, all that happens in a city, does not lack a spiritual "breath", the reference to God and his saving plan. This is the service that is carried out in particular by monasteries, places of silence and meditation on the divine word, places where there is constant concern to keep the earth open to Heaven. Then your monastery has its own special feature which naturally reflects the charism of St Frances of Rome. Here you keep a unique balance between religious life and secular life, between life in the world and outside the world. This model did not come into being on paper but in the practical experience of a young woman of Rome; it was written one might say by God himself in the extraordinary life of Francesca, in her history as a child, an adolescent, a very young wife and mother, a mature woman conquered by Jesus Christ, as St Paul would say. Not without reason are the walls of these premises decorated with scenes from her life, to show that the true building which God likes to build is the life of Saints.
In our day too, Rome needs women and of course also men but here I wish to emphasize the feminine dimension women, as I was saying, who belong wholly to God and wholly to their neighbour; women who are capable of recollection and of generous and discreet service; women who know how to obey their Pastors but also how to support them and encourage them with their suggestions, developed in conversation with Christ and in first-hand experience in the area of charity, assistance to the sick, to the marginalized, to minors in difficulty. This is the gift of a motherhood that is one with religious self-gift, after the model of Mary Most Holy. Let us think of the mystery of the Visitation. Immediately after conceiving the Word of God in her heart and in her flesh, Mary set out to go and help her elderly kinswoman Elizabeth. Mary's heart is the cloister where the Word continues to speak in silence, and at the same time it is the crucible of a charity that is conducive to courageous gestures, as well as to a persevering and hidden sharing.
Dear Sisters, thank you for the prayers with which you always accompany the ministry of the Successor of Peter and thank you for your invaluable presence in the heart of Rome. I hope that you will experience every day the joy of preferring nothing to love of Christ, a motto we have inherited from St Benedict but which clearly mirrors the spirituality of the Apostle Paul, venerated by you as Patron of your Congregation. To you, to the Olivetan monks and to everyone present here, I warmly impart a special Apostolic Blessing.
© Copyright 2009 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana
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Pius X Society Response to Benedict XVI
"We Fully Share His Utmost Concern for Preaching to Our Age"MENZINGEN, Switzerland, MARCH 13, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Here is the communiqué released Thursday by the superior-general of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Pius X, Bishop Bernard Fellay, which responds to the March 10 letter sent by the Pope on the situation regarding the society.
* * *
Pope Benedict XVI addressed a letter to the Bishops of the Catholic Church, dated March 10, 2009, in which he made them aware of the intentions which guided him in this important step which is the Decree of Jan. 21, 2009.
After "an avalanche of protests was unleashed" recently, we greatly thank the Holy Father for having placed the debate at the level on which it should take place, that of the faith. We fully share his utmost concern for preaching to "our age, when in vast areas of the world the faith is in danger of dying out like a flame which no longer has fuel."
The Church lives, in fact, through a major crisis which cannot be solved other than by an integral return to the purity of the faith. With St. Athanasius, we profess that "Whoever wants to be saved should above all cling to the Catholic faith: Whoever does not guard it whole and inviolable will doubtless perish eternally." (Quicumque Creed)
Far from wanting to stop Tradition in 1962, we wish to consider the Second Vatican Council and the post-Conciliar magisterium in the light of this Tradition which St. Vincent of Lérins defined as that "which has been believed everywhere, always, by all" (Commonitorium), without rupture and in a perfectly homogeneous development. It is thus that we will be able to contribute efficaciously to the evangelization asked for by the Savior (cf. Matthew, 28,19-20).
The Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X assures Benedict XVI of its will to address the doctrinal discussions considered "necessary" by the Decree of Jan. 21, with the desire of serving the revealed Truth which is the first charity to be shown towards all men, Christian or not. It assures him of its prayers so that his faith may not fail and that he may confirm all his brethren (cf. Luke 22 32).
We place these doctrinal discussions under the protection of Our Lady of Trust, with the assurance that she will obtain for us the grace of faithfully delivering that which we received, "tradidi quod et accepi" (I Cor. 15,3).
Menzingen, March 12, 2009
+ Bernard Fellay
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Reports on Distribution of 2008 Holy Land Collection
VATICAN CITY, MARCH 13, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Here are the reports published today by the Congregation for Eastern Churches and the Custody of the Holy Land on the distribution of the monies received during the 2008 Good Friday Collection for the Holy Land.* * *
As with every year, the Congregation for the Eastern Churches receives the Collection’s monies directly from the Apostolic Nuncios. According to its designated percentage, the Congregation then confers ordinary and extraordinary subsidies to the Ecclesiastical Circumscriptions, to the Religious Orders and to other ecclesiastical juridical persons in the Sacred Places.
Following the usual custom, special attention was given during the year 2008 to the scholastic institutions, such as the Bethlehem University and to the Catholic Schools of various levels. Hence, the Congregation has responded to the expenses of the Secretary of Solidarity, who coordinates the scholastic activity of the Catholic Church in the Holy Land.
Also during the year 2008, this Dicastery has maintained its program of scholarship for priests and seminarians who belong to the Holy Places, and who study at the Pontifical Universities. These are assisted by the Central Office of Students for those from outside Italy.
Moreover, when there are meetings involving the Catholic Bishops, the Congregation promotes awareness concerning the needs of the Holy Land, and especially encourages pilgrimage. With regard to the Collection, the Dicastery manages its every aspect, in conformity with institutional directives, and while maintaining regular contact with the Custody of the Holy Land, the Apostolic Nunciatures, and the entire Hierarchy.
* * *
Order of Friars Minor Summary Report 2007/2008
The Custos of the Holy Land in function of its centuries old mission to safeguard the Holy Sites of Redemption, officiate worship, assist pilgrims and augment apostolic works therein, in the period 2007/2008 paid particular attention to the promotion and realization of the following projects:
Holy Sites/Pilgrims
1. Ain Karem
The restoration of the entrance to the Sanctuary of the Visitation. Archaeological surveys and excavations in the main front square, a complete overhaul of the water and waste conduits and the renovation of the long entrance stairwell to the Sanctuary.
The ongoing restoration project on the ancient boundary wall of the Sanctuary of St John in the Desert and the renovation of single pilgrim areas for the experience of hermitage.
2. Bethany
Restoration project for the Convent of St. Lazarus. Overhaul of the hydro and electrical systems, resurfacing of pavements in the Convent of the Sacristy and of areas for welcoming pilgrims.
3. Bethlehem
Milk Grotto: Completed (May 2007) restoration and extension of the Convent for the sisters who lend their service to the Sanctuary.
Renovation project for some areas of the Convent of St Catherine in Bethlehem including the installation of a surveillance system in the sanctuary and grotto.
Partial restoration of areas in the New House in view of the increasing number of pilgrims.
4. Jerusalem
Project for seismic survey and tests on the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre and the installation of a new lightening system for Holy Calvary.
Complete restoration of services for Pilgrims in the zone of the Sanctuary of Gethsemane. The start of a project to restore the Cedron Valley between the Sanctuary and the ancient walls of Jerusalem and the preparation of spaces for prayer and meditation.
Restoration of a part of the Dominus Flevit Convent and the drawing up of a project to overhaul the garden and areas for pilgrims.
Restoration project for the custodial infirmary. The restoration of areas first built in 1955 for ageing religious in need of care due to their age or illness, after a lifetime spent in service to the Holy Sites and works of the Custos of the Holy Land.
5. Jaffa
Beginning of the second stage of restoration works on St Peter’s Sanctuary in Jaffa, including a complete renovation of the Convent and spaces allocated to pastoral work for foreign workers (in Spanish, French and Polish) and for the Jewish community.
6. Magdala
Conservation project for the archaeological area of Magdala. The restoration and consolidation of the remains unearthed following an archaeological excavation in the ’70s. The removal, restoration and relocation on adequate support systems of mosaic floor coverings was necessary in order to protect them from atmospheric agents. A visitors route is currently being prepared that will allow pilgrims to visit the ruins that will lend itself to effectively showing life during Christ’s time in the evangelical city.
6. Nazareth
Reorganisation of the entrance routes for visitors to the Sanctuary and for processions. The project is due to conclude in December 2008. Study into feasibility of a project to roof the ancient Church Seforis (which commemorates the nativity and childhood of the Virgin); payment of the first installment to obtain authorization from the heritage office.
7. Sebastiya (Nablus)
Project to render buildings on the verge of collapse in the historic centre of Sebastiya structurally safe. Work is ongoing on redevelopment of the historic centre area adjacent to the mosque walls (former crusade cathedral).
8. Mount Nebo (Jordan)
First phase of recovering the fagade of the memorial Basilica of the death of the Prophet Moses: consolidation of the foundations, of the land and the laying of structural supports for the future roofing of the basilica.
Holy Sites/Local Communities
1. Work in favor of youth
Ongoing "scholarship" project, which consists of financing completion of studies for a duration of four years. This counts 300 university scholarships per annum, distributed throughout the different regional universities (Bethlehem, Hebrew in Jerusalem, Haifa, Bir Zeit, Amman and others).
(Bethlehem) ongoing project for the formation and insertion into the workplace of newly-graduated. This consists of facilitating the introduction of qualified and worthy young people to the jobs market by offering the selected companies and institutions 2/3 of the wage for a period of 12 months. In this way the young people are given the possibility of gaining work experience and the companies to get to know and train new personnel in view of possible future employment. Moreover the program provides formation courses for intems working in various fields.
(Bethlehem, Jerusalem) Ongoing project for the formation and re-introduction of unemployed people to the jobs market. It is a similar project to the aforementioned one, but has as its objective the requalification and re-introduction to the workplace of people who had previous employment in Jerusalem, but have since lost their jobs.
Ongoing project to sustain local craftwork. This consists basically of about 10 small artistic projects by procuring replacement pieces, means of production and to ensure security during production.
2. Family Activities
(Bethlehem) Ongoing projects in support of families organized by parish centers in coordination with the Franciscan Family Centre. This type of aid foresees social assistance to the principal needs of the families.
Franciscan Boy’s Home. It is home to over 20 boys between the ages of 6 and 12 who come from poor families with diverse difficulties. Beyond basic housing and education, the boys are closely followed by an educator, a social assistant and a psychologist. The project is developed in close contact with the Franciscan Family Centre.
Ongoing Healthcare project. The project is elaborated in diverse forms of medical aid and coordinates with the Franciscan Family Centre, with Caritas, and with the Bethlehem Arab society
for Rehabilitation. The principal aim is to ensure families in economic difficult, partial or complete coverage of healthcare costs (cost of medicines, medical visits and hospital stays).
3. Parish Communities
(Jerusalem) Preparation for the second phase of the renovation project on the buildings of Beit Hanina’s Parish Centre. Payment of the first instalments for the restoration and extension of the church.
Nazareth Parish Centre. Completed and inaugurated the building of a parish centre for the various parish and social activities of the city’s Christian Community (almost exclusively financed by the German bishops and His Holiness Benedict XVI). Work continues on the sports centre of the young people and the preparation of recreational areas for children.
(Jaffa) A project to reorganize and prepare new areas for parish activities, the community activities and the activities of the foreign community (over twenty-two thousand faithful) for the local Parish of St Anthony.
4. Schools
Restoration of the third floor of the Girls school in Bethlehem. Extra classes were added during rebuilding allowing improved use of school spaces.
The installation of a heating system in the Boys school in Bethlehem.
The construction of a kindergarten in Jericho. It can cater to circa 100 infants (completed in December 2008). Work is ongoing on the restoration of the boundary wall. The project for the construction of a new school is in preparatory stages.
Complete overhaul of the facade of the Emmaus-Qubeibeh pre-school (250 children).
5. Building of apartments for the poor and young couples
St Francis Housing project in Bethlehem. It involves the construction of 20 apartments for the same number of families, above all for young couples with a low or middle income.
The Franciscan neighborhood in Jaffa. It includes 124 apartments for Christian families from the parish.
Housing project in Nazareth. It lies 2 kilometers from the basilica of the Annunciation. Beyond the chapel and spaces for social use, it consists of 80 apartments to answer to the housing needs of young families.
The restoration of houses in the Old City of Jerusalem. The old buildings, many dating back to the ottoman period, are often in precarious conditions and dwellers are forced to abandon them. The project foresees the progressive renovation of circa 300 homes. In the period from December 2007 to December 2008 over 30 apartments were renovated.
6. Other cultural projects
Each year the Custos of the Holy Land financially supports the Faculty of Biblical Science and Archaeology at the Studium Biblicum Franciscanum in Jerusalem. Apart from the complete financial coverage of the faculty’s activities, 30 students from diverse diocese and religious institutes are offered scholarships that guarantee bed and board for the duration of their studies.
Franciscan Media Centre. Is a new form of apostolate with the aim of transmitting the message of the Holy Land and the life of local Christian communities through television.
Magniji’cat Institute. In a few short years of activity the Magnificat has become a music school capable of forming musicians and involve students from diverse cultures, religions and social classes. Today there are over 2 10 students enrolled under the guidance of 25 maestri and professors. The Magnificat promotes research activities as well as cultural expos6s both locally and internationally.
Numerous ongoing projects in Syria and Lebanon can be added to all of the above. We would like to particularly note the building of a new Memorial to St Paul in Damascus (inaugurated June 29t’ last to mark the opening of the Pauline year) which marks the site traditionally held to be where the Apostle to the Gentiles was converted; the renovation of the facade of the parish church and the Convent of St Francis (Aleppo); the building of 90 new apartments and a pre-school in Tripoli (Lebanon); the complete restoration of the church in Latakiye (old Laodicea, Syria), the nuns Convent and the pre-school in Jakubiye (Syria), and the Convent in Knaye (Syria).
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Letter on Occasion of Collection for Holy Land
"The Cradle of Christianity Risks to Remain With Fewer and Fewer Christians"VATICAN CITY, MARCH 13, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Here is the letter addressed to the hierarchy of the Church published today by the Congregation for Eastern Churches on the occasion of the 2009 Good Friday Collection for the Holy Land.
* * *
Your Excellency,
It is with pleasure that I once again approach you and the faithful entrusted to your pastoral care, requesting assistance on behalf of the Christian community in the Holy Land. They, together with the inhabitants of the vast region of Middle East, continue to aspire for peace and tranquility as they have for so many years, but which hope still remains fragile.
The Universal Church is greatly preoccupied about the unstable situation in the Middle East; a situation which leads to multiple problems. First among them is the absence of peace. The joy of this Christmas has been marred, in fact, by the violence and hostility in the Gaza Strip. Several innocent children are among the innumerable victims. And the Christmas message itself has been obscured by these latest military events. This is even more unfortunate in view of the crucial spiritual and material sustenance which has been received from the Christian population of pilgrims, and whose numbers have increased significantly between the Jubilee Year 2000 and 2008.
During the course of the Synodal Assembly last October, the Patriarchs and the Major Archbishops of the Eastern Catholics have expressed to the Holy Father their strong appeal for peace; an appeal inspired by the Word of God. The Apostle Paul, for example, has conveyed to us a certainty that "Christ is our peace" (Eph 2,14). The appeal was addressed to the whole world, and was made in consideration of the actual difficulties and needs of our time.
Still further, Pope Benedict XVI constantly offers comfort to the Christians and to the entire population of the Holy Land with words and gestures of profound solicitude. These are linked with his desire to visit them as a pilgrim to the historic sites related to life of Jesus. On the day of the Nativity of the Lord, and afterwards on the Solemnity of the Holy Mother of God, the Holy Father pleaded before the world for the restoration of peace in that Land. The Pontif's concern has been expressed particularly during his meeting for the exchange of New Year greetings with the Ambassadors of the one hundred seventy-seven nations accredited to the Holy See. The Pontiff commented that: "The birth of Christ in the lowly stable of Bethlehem leads us naturally to think of the situation in the Middle East and, in the first place, in the Holy Land, where, in these days, we have witnessed a renewed outbreak of violence provoking immense damage and suffering for the civilian population… Once again I would repeat that military options are no solution and that violence, wherever it comes from and whatever form it takes, must be firmly condemned" (L’Osservatore Romano, January 9, 2009).
The wound caused by the violence worsens the emigration problem, which inexorably deprives the minority Christians of resources for their future. The land which has been the cradle of Christianity risks to remain with fewer and fewer Christians.
In the General Audience of Wednesday, October 1, 2008, Pope Benedict X-VI has clearly emphasized the biblical basis warranting attention to the Holy Land: "Perhaps we are no longer able to understand fully the meaning that Paul and his communities attributed to the collection for the poor of Jerusalem. It was a completely new initiative in the area of religious activities: it was not obligatory, but free and spontaneous; all the Churches that were founded by Paul in the West took part. The collection expressed the community’s debt to the Mother Church of Palestine, from which they had received the ineffable gift of the Gospel". The Pope continues: "Tbe value that Paul attributes to this gesture of sharing is so great that he seldom calls it merely a "collection". Rather, for him it is "service", "blessing", "gift", ligrace", even "liturgy" (cf. 2 Cor 9). Particularly surprising is the latter term which gives a value that is even religious to a collection of money: on the one hand it is a liturgical act or "service" offered by every community to God and, on the other, it is a loving action made for people" (L’Osservatore Romano, October 2, 2008, p. 1).
The Congregation for the Eastern Churches similarly focuses, in the name of the Holy Father, upon the ecclesial community in Holy Land, and likewise conveys the Pontiff's loving solicitude, repeating his exhortation to all Catholics that they contribute materially as well for the necessary maintenance of the Sacred Places. It is an honor to assure you of the gratitude and prayers of the Pope towards those who carry in their heart the importance of the traditional Collection pro Terra Sancta, during the coming Good Friday. The Churches of the Latin Rite and of the different Eastern Rites which benefit from this indispensable help, acknowledge their gratitude by their constant prayer for the particular Churches throughout the world.
I have personally experienced this sentiment during my pilgrimage to the Holy Places from February 24 to March 2, 2008. This occasion revealed to me the intense desire for unity among the pastors and the faithful in the ecclesiastical mission, as well as their ecumenical and inter-religious commitment.
Everywhere, I have promised the solicitude of this Dicastery and of the Church. I was then, as now, certain that all of our Catholic Bishops will generously confirm it, for such has always been demonstrated towards Jerusalem and the Land of Our Lord Jesus.
Enclosed you will please find documents for your information, prepared by this Dicastery and by the Custody of the Holy Land. These outline some of those actions undertaken through our auspices during 2008.
Along with the entire Catholic community in the Holy Places, I am delighted to invoke upon you and your collaborators the blessings of He who "loves those who are donors with joy" (2 Cor 9,7).
In the spirit of Episcopal fraternity I remain,
Devotedly yours in Our Lord,
Cardinal Leonardo Sandri
Prefect
Antonio Maria Vegliò
Archbishop Secretary
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