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The World Seen From Rome
Daily dispatch - April 08, 2009
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VATICAN DOSSIER Pope: Easter Triduum "Fulcrum" of Liturgical Year Pontiff Announces Plan to Visit Earthquake Site Papal Preparation Aids Vatican-Israeli Relations WORLD FEATURES Cardinal: Youth Day Continues to Bear Fruit Aid Agency Affirms Priority of Supporting Priests NEWS BRIEFS Franciscans Going "Home" for 800th Birthday Caritas President: We Can Transform Society INTERVIEW On Notre Dame, Law Degrees, and Catholic Politics WORDS MADE FLESH The Silence and Courage of the Resurrection Witnesses WEDNESDAY'S AUDIENCE On the Holy Triduum
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VATICAN DOSSIER
Pope: Easter Triduum "Fulcrum" of Liturgical Year
Offers Reflection at General Audience
VATICAN CITY, APRIL 8, 2009 (
Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI reflected on the Easter triduum at the general audience today, which he called the "fulcrum of the entire liturgical year."
Holy Week, the Pope said, "offers us the opportunity to be immersed in the central events of Redemption, to relive the Paschal Mystery, the great mystery of the faith."
"How marvelous, and at the same time amazing, is this mystery," the Pontiff said. "We can never meditate this reality sufficiently. Jesus, though being God, did not want to make of his divine prerogatives an exclusive possession; he did not want to use his being God, his glorious dignity and power, as an instrument of triumph and sign of distance from us.
"On the contrary, 'he emptied himself' assuming our miserable and weak human condition."
Benedict XVI noted that the Easter triduum begins Thursday afternoon with the Mass of the Lord's Supper: "The Church commemorates the institution of the Eucharist, the ministerial priesthood and the new commandment of charity, left by Jesus to his disciples."
Holy Thursday, he said, is "a renewed invitation to render thanks to God for the supreme gift of the Eucharist, to be received with devotion and to be adored with lively faith."
Good Friday, the Pontiff continued, is the "day of the Passion and crucifixion of the Lord. Every year, placing ourselves in silence before Jesus nailed to the wood of the cross, we realize how full of love were the words he pronounced on the eve, in the course of the Last Supper."
"Jesus willed to offer his life in sacrifice for the remission of humanity's sins," the Holy Father reflected. "Just as before the Eucharist, so before the Passion and Death of Jesus on the cross the mystery is unfathomable to reason. We are placed before something that humanly might seem absurd: a God who not only is made man, with all man's needs, not only suffers to save man, burdening himself with all the tragedy of humanity, but dies for man.
"Christ's death recalls the accumulation of sorrows and evils that beset humanity of all times: the crushing weight of our dying, the hatred and violence that again today bloody the earth. The Lord's Passion continues in the suffering of men."
He added, "If Good Friday is a day full of sadness, then it is at the same time all the more propitious a day to reawaken our faith, to strengthen our hope and courage so that each one of us will carry his cross with humility, trust and abandonment in God, certain of his support and victory."
"Hope," said Benedict XVI, "is nourished in the great silence of Holy Saturday, awaiting the resurrection of Jesus. On this day the Churches are stripped and no particular liturgical rites are provided. The Church watches in prayer like Mary, and together with Mary, sharing the same feelings of sorrow and trust in God.
"Justly recommended is to preserve throughout the day a prayerful climate, favorable to meditation and reconciliation; the faithful are encouraged to approach the sacrament of penance, to be able to participate truly renewed in the Easter celebrations."
Following the "recollection and silence of Holy Saturday" is the solemn Easter Vigil, which the Pope called the "mother of all vigils."
"Proclaimed once again will be the victory of light over darkness, of life over death, and the Church will rejoice in the encounter with her Lord," he added. "We will thus enter into the climate of the Easter of Resurrection."
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Pontiff Announces Plan to Visit Earthquake Site
Salesian Community Aids With Volunteer Workers
VATICAN CITY, APRIL 8, 2009 (
Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI affirmed that he is planning to travel as soon as possible to the Abruzzo area affected by an earthquake Monday.
The Pope announced this today during the general audience in St. Peter's Square, and he expressed his "spiritual closeness" to the victims of the earthquake that struck close to the city of L'Aquila, around 70 miles northeast of Rome. Officials report 250 dead.
"The speed with which the authorities, the police, volunteers and other workers are helping our brothers shows the importance of solidarity to overcome together such painful trials," he affirmed.
The Pontiff said, "Once again, I want to say to those people that the Pope shares your pain and your concern; very dear ones, I hope to be able to visit you as soon as possible.
"Know that the Pope prays for all, imploring the Lord's mercy for the deceased, Mary's maternal consolation and the support of Christian hope for your families and the survivors."
Setting a date
Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, director of the Vatican press office, said that the visit "will be in a short time, but not imminent; a date has yet to be fixed."
"The fact that the Holy Father wishes to go to the people affected by the earthquake does not mean that he is going to leave before Easter," said the Vatican spokesman.
On Good Friday morning in L'Aquila, the town closest to the epicenter of the quake, a solemn funeral for most of the 272 people who died in the disaster will be held.
Archbishop Giuseppe Molinari of L'Aquila told SIR agency that Benedict XVI will most likely visit the victims of the earthquake next week.
He described the visit as "a comforting presence and a great gift" and said he received the news with "gratitude" and "emotion."
The prelate continued: "The Pope's visit gives us hope and strength to face the present situation, which is so difficult, and the future, which is so uncertain. We are moved and grateful to the Holy Father for his visit. His presence is truly comforting."
Volunteer teams
The Salesians in Italy have made public their intention to send volunteers to the area affected by the quake, and they offered a center which will serve as a base for various strategic interventions.
In agreement with those in charge of civil protection, Father Alberto Lorenzelli, superior of the Salesians in Central Italy -- which includes the Abruzzo region -- has committed himself to organize the aid of Salesian volunteers, including young people and the Salesians themselves.
"We are preparing ourselves because we want to coordinate our intervention with the diocese of L'Aquila and the structures of the territory, so that we can be more useful and efficient," said Father Lorenzelli to the Salesian agency ANS.
He continued, "We hope to give qualified continuity to the hectic work being carried out these days by the specialized civil protection personnel and the entities that intervened promptly.
"We hope that our work in L'Aquila will pass the inspection of the firemen and become a center of reference for different interventions."
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Papal Preparation Aids Vatican-Israeli Relations
Formal Negotiations Not Expected to Conclude
JERUSALEM, APRIL 8, 2009 (
Zenit.org).- Preparation for Benedict XVI's Holy Land visit is advancing the relationship between the Holy See and Israel, though formal agreements are still pending, notes the Franciscan custodians Web site.
The Franciscan Custodians of the Holy Land, a group that is helping plan the Pope's May 8-15 visit, published online an article by Marie Armelle Beaulieu, which analyzed the current atmosphere in Jerusalem.
The article noted that although this Papal trip will not conclude the pending agreements between the Holy See and Israel, the friendly atmosphere the visit has generated is serving to advance towards that objective.
The agreements currently being negotiated, within a bilateral commission of Israeli and Vatican negotiators, will govern the legal status of the Catholic Church in that country. This follows the Fundamental Agreement, signed in 1993, which established the diplomatic relations between the Holy See and Israel.
In recent months, the committee's meetings have made such progress that it was believed the negotiations might be concluded on the occasion of the Papal visit.
Father David Jaeger, an Israeli Franciscan and expert in relations between the Church and the State of Israel, stated, "there is no relation between the works of the bilateral commission and the Holy Father's pilgrimage, with the exception, of course, of the 'good atmosphere,' as the latter has made possible the intensification of negotiations."
Pilgrimage
He continued, "In any event, we must recall that the Holy Father is preparing to make a pilgrimage, that is, a spiritual journey to pray in the holy places of revelation and to visit the Christian community; he will also have important meetings with the civil authorities of the states and territories that are found today in the holy places, and of which believers form part as citizens, namely: the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, the State of Israel and the Palestinian Territories."
The article stated that there is no hope that these agreements will be signed now, "but yes" that the signing is "not too far off."
At present the negotiators of the Holy See and Israel are studying the "Economic Agreement," with which the fiscal regime and the Church's properties will be regulated.
However, the article noted, 15 years after the inauguration of the Israel-Holy See Fundamental Agreement on March 10, 1994, and 10 years after the Agreement on the Legal Personality of the Church (February 3, 1999), the signed and ratified treaties have yet to be included in the juridical order by the Israeli Parliament. Therefore, it clarified, they cannot be applied by the courts, which seriously limits them.
The journalist explained that when the Holy See established diplomatic relations with the State of Israel in 1993, as a gesture of good will, Pope John Paul II opted for a Fundamental Treaty, and left the negotiation of the details of the issues for later.
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WORLD FEATURES
Cardinal: Youth Day Continues to Bear Fruit
Benedict XVI Retreat Center Opened to Train Leaders
By Carmen Elena Villa
ROME, APRIL 8, 2009 (
Zenit.org).- Even in a secularized country like Australia, the World Youth Day in Sydney last year continues to bear fruit inside and outside the Church, says Cardinal George Pell.
The archbishop of Sydney affirmed this about the July event in his presentation during a gathering of World Youth Day organizers, held in Rome last Friday through Sunday.
In this congress, 150 leaders of various dioceses, episcopal conferences and ecclesial movements gathered in order to evaluate the last youth day and to prepare for the 2011 event in Madrid.
Cardinal Pell noted that after the youth day, in his country where only 28% of the population is Catholic, "Many people in Sydney saw the Catholic Church in a different light."
External witness
Many Australians who had seen the Church as "traditional, conservative, somewhat closed, institutional and old-fashioned," changed their opinions, he affirmed. After the youth day, they saw the Church "come alive in the public eye," and they recognized it as "international, open and engaging with the young people in the streets."
The cardinal described some important moments in the event, such as the Way of the Cross, in which many Australians "were pleasantly surprised to find the thousands of young so happy, living life well as believers, living in friendship and prayer."
He added, "This made many of them think about Christ once again and in a new light."
He affirmed that the police were also surprised at the good behavior of the young people in the streets of Sydney during those days.
Internal results
The cardinal noted that before the event, youth groups in the Sydney parishes were scarce. In the years before the youth day, the archdiocese trained 600 university student leaders that worked with the pilgrims in 51 schools around the city, and now are engaged in the follow-up activities of the event.
He stated "Many parish ethnic youth groups and movement youth groups have already started planning and raising money to attend the World Youth Day in Madrid 2011."
Cardinal Pell added, "The relationship between young people and their priests has been strengthened."
Another result, he observed, is that many adults were strengthened in their faith thanks to the testimony of the youth. He reported that many families that welcomed pilgrims into their homes decided to become Catholic.
The cardinal stated that "in Catholic school communities, the teachers have shown a greater interest in school retreats."
Even a year after this youth day, he said, "The Holy Father, as a successor of St. Peter, continues to play the priority human role of unity in the Church."
He described the online social networking site, Xt3.com, that his archdiocese opened after the World Youth Day, noting that 48,000 members currently use it to share their experiences of Christian life after this event.
As well, the archdiocese of Sydney inaugurated a retreat center named after Benedict XVI, with the goal of gathering new leaders in the faith, youth as well as adults, affirmed Cardinal Pell.
After his presentation, the cardinal told ZENIT: "It was a privilege to host World Youth Day 2008. It cost a lot of money, a lot of effort, but it was a huge privilege and honor to do so."
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Aid Agency Affirms Priority of Supporting Priests
Thanks Benedict XVI for Proclaiming Year for Ordained Ministers
KOENIGSTEIN, Germany, APRIL 8, 2009 (
Zenit.org).- The president of Aid to the Church in Need is thanking Benedict XVI for proclaiming a year for priests, and is affirming the agency's support for all ordained ministers.
Father Joaquín Alliende, president of the international aid agency, wrote, "Holy Father, we wish to support you and all the priests in the world during this Year for Priests and to sustain you through our prayers, our life and our work."
The Year for Priests proclaimed by the Pope will begin on June 19 and end on the same day next year.
The agency's president expressed the hope that this year will be a time "of great gratitude for priests and for their vocation and a new discovery of the priestly identity, not only for the priests themselves but for the entire Church."
He noted the opportunity that this year provides, to "help priests to rediscover the beauty of their vocation and give them a new faith in their priesthood."
The priest affirmed that those is this vocation are "never alone," as each one lives "in a vital bond with Christ, who shares everything with him -- all his treasures, but also his loneliness and his sacrifice for the redemption of the world."
He recalled the thousands of priests worldwide that "are sharing the poverty of the poor, especially in the current financial crisis," as well as those that are persecuted, threatened and deprived of freedom for their faith. Father Alliende noted that the aid agency strives to accompany these priests on all the continents.
Rediscovered gift
He said that he prayers that lay people also may "rediscover the gift of the priesthood and learn to treasure it" and thus go, "through their priests, to the Heart of God."
"Pastoral ministry is impossible" without priests, affirmed Father Alliende, and each one can be valued as "the most important man on earth, since as an alter Christus, he holds the life of the Church in his hands."
The agency's president noted that "through the charism of its founder, Father Werenfried van Straaten," the organization "is profoundly imbued with the priestly character of the Church."
He explained that the founder understood that "as a pastoral charity, we can only truly ease human suffering if we work together with, and for priests," and thus is has been an agency priority to support priestly training throughout 150 countries.
Father Alliende affirmed that Christ has "taken a great risk in entrusting such a sacred and sensitive mission into human hands," and that given recent "painful events," this year is a call for everyone to "rediscover a purified vision of the priesthood."
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NEWS BRIEFS
Franciscans Going "Home" for 800th Birthday
Will Commemorate Meeting Called by St. Francis
ROME, APRIL 8, 2009 (
Zenit.org).- More than 2,000 Franciscans will gather in Assisi next week, marking 800 years since the approval of St. Francis' Rule, as well as the first international general chapter the founder called.
The April 15-18 meeting was presented Tuesday at Vatican Radio by the minister-general of the Order of Friars Minor, Father José Rodríguez Carballo.
The chapter will mark Pope Innocent III's approval of the Rule of St. Francis in April 1209. It also will point to the first general chapter of the Franciscans, called by Francis in 1221, five years before his death. That meeting gathered 5,000 friars and came to be known as the chapter of the "mats"; due to a lack of beds, the friars slept on mats on the floor.
"This chapter of the mats will be an intense moment of witness to the world as fraternity and reflection on the fundamental topics of our life," explained Father Rodríguez Carballo.
The delegates will meet in Assisi and later in Rome, in representation of the 35,000 Franciscan friars of four denominations present in 65 countries.
An April 18 audience with Benedict XVI will bring the chapter to a close.
During the three days, the Franciscans plan to reflect on hospitality, witness, the meaning of penance and fasting, and gratitude.
Father Rodríguez Carballo also noted that time will be spent reflecting on the missionary commitment, given that the Franciscans are the first missionary order: "St. Francis is the first founder who wrote in his rule a chapter for missions in Christian lands, but he is also the first to write a chapter for the 'missio ad gentes,' for those who went among the Saracens and other non-Christians.
"We have always been on the frontier of evangelization and this will be our commitment also for the future. The world is our cloister."
Those unable to attend the chapter will be able to follow it live on the Internet at TeleRadio Padre Pio.
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On the Net:
Teleradio Padri Pio:
www.teleradiopadrepio.it
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Caritas President: We Can Transform Society
Urges Aid Agencies to Be Expressions of God
ROME, APRIL 8, 2009 (
Zenit.org).- Thanks to Jesus' resurrection, volunteers can transform society into "something better," says the president of Caritas Internationalis.
Cardinal Óscar Rodríguez Maradiaga, the archbishop of Tegucigalpa, Honduras, said this in an Easter message to the global federation of aid organizations of the Catholic Church.
He told the aid organization that they should be "an expression and a sacrament of the redeeming love of God for the whole of humanity."
"I saw in a recent report" that "donations from some of our Caritas organizations have increased, instead of diminishing during the world economic crisis," explained the archbishop. "This is a sign that the risen Christ can engender more love than hatred in the world, more concern for one's needy neighbor than egoism and avarice."
"We must firmly believe that we can transform our society into something better. A better place to live in, a better place to work in and a better place to praise God," the cardinal continued.
The cardinal appealed to all Caritas collaborators to keep close to their heart "the victims of the earthquake in L'Aquila, Italy. May their suffering be transformed into the joy of the resurrected Lord."
The president of Caritas concluded: "My prayer for the Caritas community around the world is that we be an expression and a sacrament of the redeeming love of God for the whole of humanity."
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INTERVIEW
On Notre Dame, Law Degrees, and Catholic Politics
Law Student Coalition Calls for Renewed Pro-Life Commitment
By Genevieve Pollock
SOUTH BEND, Indiana, APRIL 8, 2009 (Zenit.org).- The founder of a new law student coalition at Notre Dame stated that the university's decision to honor President Barack Obama at this year's spring commencement points to a deeper problem of Catholicism in the United States.
Mariangela Sullivan, founder and director of Notre Dame Action Coalition, shared with ZENIT her views about the "decades-old elephant in the closet:" the issue that many Catholics privately disagree with abortion while publicly supporting it.
Today the Notre Dame Action Coalition sent out a letter announcing its Festival of Life, an initiative that not only responds to the decision of Father John Jenkins, the university's president, to honor President Obama, but also invites Catholics nationwide to renew their pro-life commitment.
In this interview with ZENIT, Sullivan explains the issues, the event and its goals.
Q: Why do you think the university's decision to honor President Obama has drawn such international attention?
Sullivan: Make no mistake, the controversy surrounding Father Jenkin's invitation bringing President Obama to Notre Dame is not about Father Jenkins or President Obama or Notre Dame.
Like a couple whose marriage is suddenly on the rocks over a burned pot roast, the troubles at issue here run much deeper than a single incident at a single moment in time.
The reality is that Catholicism in America has quietly become a house divided, and now with one very public act, Notre Dame has dragged into view a decades-old elephant in the room: American Catholics no longer oppose pro-choice politicians.
As the White House shrewdly noted when it fielded the first wave of outrage, half of American Catholics voted for Barack Obama. Home run, Mr. President, as usual.
The White House is aware of the true crux of the issue, and so should we be: Catholicism in America -- as well as the entire pro-life movement -- is a house divided. Indeed, many who say they are pro-life are part of the new president's constituency. The choir is not the choir anymore.
A university identifies with a religion that recognizes that fetuses are people. A president makes it a priority to defend through law the choice of women to have fetuses killed. The same university gives to the same president an honorary doctorate of law.
Unlike American voters exercising their civic duties in the privacy of town libraries and city halls, Notre Dame has no cubicle, no curtain. She is the flagship Catholic education institution in the United States; her votes are anything but private.
And the fact that she has chosen to award President Obama an honorary law degree has had the effect of ripping the curtain off the voting booths of all the Catholics in the country, shining light on the division that runs like a canyon straight through the middle of them. Thus the outrage. Thus the feeling that salt has been poured in a wound.
Q: What are the reasons behind the fact that so many Catholics voted for Obama in the national elections?
Sullivan: Like any decision made privately by thousands of people, the answer is both complicated and unknowable.
Political life can be challenging for a Catholic; the truths we embrace do not align smoothly with either major political party. The patience to uncover and reflect on the philosophies and records of individual candidates is necessary to cast a Catholic vote.
That kind of in-depth inquiry is unfamiliar to modern American culture, in which everyone is entitled to her uninformed opinion. Catholics, of course, are not immune to that.
Just a casual look at the Catholics I know can tell us something about how the Catholic vote worked this year. Some believed, in good faith, and without much attention to facts, that the president would honor his promise to find moderate common ground and unity between the parties.
Others factored environmental policy, or health care policy, or economic policy most heavily in their decision-making calculus. Others, dissatisfied with the candidates, settled for various but important victories, like the prospect of ending torture, or the possibility of increased aid to the poor.
Others voted on emotional grounds -- they felt the "hope" that swept the nation. Others didn't have a decision-making calculus at all.
The famous Catholic vote did not appear as a bloc in the last election. Our voting was as divided as we are, and there were significant shifts toward Obama among the traditional conservative Catholic vote
Q: Is there a division among Catholics on the life issue? How can this be overcome?
Sullivan: There is certainly division. The action of Father Jenkins only served to point out an existing source of division and confusion: what exactly is the Catholic role within American citizenship?
A large section of the Catholic population is now floating away from the old pro-life mother ship, on a raft Americans have been steadily constructing for some time.
That raft was launched here at Notre Dame, when Governor Mario Cuomo of New York popularized the most baffling position in the abortion debate: being privately pro-life but publicly unopposed to abortion.
The logic of the pro-choice position is easy to grasp -- though based in error: A fetus is not a person with rights, and therefore can be legally killed. Equally simple is the pro-life view: A fetus is a person with rights, and therefore cannot be legally killed.
The increasingly trendy view for Catholics, however, is a logical house of horrors: A fetus is a person, has rights, and can be legally killed.
This is why it is true that all the pro-life Supreme Court justices in the world could not end abortion. As a wise professor here told me, even as we try to bring the law to the just defense of human life, the transformation that will ultimately end abortion can only be one of hearts and minds.
To that end, I founded ND Action for the particular purpose of reaching beyond Notre Dame to the hearts and minds of the wider American community. The group's focus and energy is entirely devoted to carrying out that purpose.
ND Action is composed of law students who see the scope of the controversy at issue here as much, much larger than Father Jenkin's decision. We are also collaborating with ND Response and the entire coalition of pro-life students.
Q: What is your law student coalition doing to reach the Catholic community?
Sullivan: We find ourselves at a crossroads for Catholicism in America. Many Catholics believe that unborn children are persons with rights, and yet do not oppose their legal termination.
We are calling for renewed dedication among American Catholics, and all human-rights-loving Americans, to defend innocent human life at all stages.
We invite the nation to join with Notre Dame in a two-day Festival of Life here on campus during Commencement Weekend 2009. From the campus of Our Lady's University, through peaceful prayer and solidarity, we will unequivocally proclaim that the protection of innocent human life must be enshrined in law.
The message that goes forth from Notre Dame at this time must revolve not around Father Jenkins, but around American Catholicism, and must go to the heart of the issue, rather than a single symptom of it.
Our message is one of renewal and truth, and aims to remind all American Catholics of their duty to defend human life at all stages. This occasion at Notre Dame is a rebirth in our commitment to defend human rights.
Q: What is the main issue at stake here?
Sullivan: In the grand scheme of things, Notre Dame's 2009 commencement decision will fade from national view. But what the two sides of the Catholic population say to one another in the light of this controversy will have staying power and long-term effects.
If we hold that Notre Dame was wrong to honor a man with this view of the law, in regard to life, do we implicate ourselves as well? Conversely, if we hold that our president's views merit an honorary law degree from the University of Notre Dame, are we living our Catholic convictions?
The stakes are high; the feelings run deep. The danger is that, rather than address the disease of our internal divisions, Catholics will focus only on the single symptom at hand.
If we address only the controversial commencement, the heart of the issue will never be reached. It must be reached. We all know what becomes of a house divided. So, American Catholics who are floating away on the Cuomo-Pelosi-Biden raft, I ask you to take a thoughtful look at the truths of Catholicism regarding human life. If upon reflection you find that you're in the wrong place, start swimming.
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For more information: NDAction@gmail.com
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WORDS MADE FLESH
The Silence and Courage of the Resurrection Witnesses
Biblical Reflections for Easter Sunday
By Father Thomas Rosica, CSB
TORONTO, APRIL 8, 2009 (
Zenit.org).- Easter is the promise that death will visit each of us. But more important, it is the assurance that death is not the last word. The Resurrection of Jesus prompts us to recall, from the darkest moments of grief to life's smallest trials, how much God comforts us and gives us the strength to persevere. The Easter mysteries give us a new identity and a new name: we are saved, redeemed, renewed; we are Christian, and we have no more need for fear or despair.
Through the powerful Scripture readings of the Triduum, and especially the Gospels of the Easter Vigil and Easter morning, we catch glimpses of just what resurrection means. How can we give expression to the conquest of death and the harrowing of hell? We must honestly admit to ourselves that there are no words. Therefore we turn to the experiences of the women at the tomb in Mark's Resurrection account and to Mary Magdalene, witness of the Risen Lord, to find images and words to describe what has happened.
The Silence of the Women
Mark's Gospel text for the Easter Vigil [16:1-8] leaves us more than perplexed. We read that after discovering Jesus' tomb to be open and empty and hearing the angelic message about the resurrection and a future meeting with him in Galilee, the women "went out and fled from the tomb, for terror and amazement had seized them; and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid."
Is it possible that Mark's Gospel can really end with 16:8? Early Christian editors, puzzled by such a shocking ending, supplied two more conventional endings for the Gospel; the longer of these is printed in most bibles as Mark 16:9-20. Nevertheless, the question lingers: What can we say about a resurrection story in which the risen Jesus, himself never appears? How could Mark differ so much from Luke's masterful resurrection chapter [24] or John's highly developed portraits of the first witnesses of the resurrection [20-21]?
Rather than dismiss the strangeness of Mark's ending, let us reflect carefully on what Mark's Gospel offers us. First of all, we never see the Risen Jesus, himself. We are offered instead a rather haunting scene. It early morning, still dark, and the women arrive at the tomb for a near impossible task. The tomb is already opened and they are greeted by someone from heaven who commissions them: "Go and tell his disciples and Peter that he goes before you into Galilee; there you will see him as he told you." [16:7]
The fear and trembling that accompanies the women prevents them from telling anyone about what they have seen. Of what are they afraid? By remaining silent, are they disobeying the message of the angel to "Go and tell…?" What are we to make of the silence of the women?
Mark's resurrection story contains an initial declaration and summary statement of all of Jesus' teaching in the Gospel: "Do not be alarmed!" [16:6]. The reader is told to abandon every fear. Second, the reader is told: "you are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has been raised; he is not here. Look, there is the place they laid him" [16:6].
The crucifixion of the Lord Jesus was not the final, definitive moment of his life. As Christians, our faith is not placed in a crucified, dead man, nor in an empty tomb, but in a risen, living Lord who lives among us with a whole new type of presence. "He is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him, just as he told you" [16:7]. The message of the resurrection in Mark's Gospel is given to us. The event is simply too great to be presented with meager words!
Mark's resurrection account is constructed to unsettle us–to undo the ease that makes us forget that the call to discipleship is the call to the cross. Throughout the entire Gospel, we are invited to view our lives in the shadow of the cross.
The women go to the tomb, drawn unconsciously by the powerful and enticing mystery of God about to be revealed to them. They flee from the tomb [16:8] shocked by the awesome message of Jesus' resurrection. Faced with this rather incredible news of the resurrection of the crucified Jesus, the silent and fearful flight of the women is not only understandable but also highly appropriate.
Is it not also the same for you and for me? When faced with the awesome power of God at work in our lives, raising those dead parts back to life and restoring our dashed hopes and crushed spirits, a response of silence and fear, wonder and awe, is also understandable and at times appropriate –even for us.
The Witness of Mary Magdalene
Mary Magdalene, Mary of Bethany (sister of Martha and Lazarus), and the unnamed penitent woman who anointed Jesus' feet (Luke 7:36-48) are sometimes understood to be the same woman. From this, plus the statement that Jesus had cast seven demons out of Mary Magdalene (Luke 8:2), has risen the tradition that Mary Magdalene had been a prostitute before she met Jesus. But in reality we know nothing about her sins or weaknesses. They could have been inexplicable physical disease, mental illness, or anything that prevented her from wholeness in mind and body.
Mary Magdalene is mentioned in the Gospels as being among the women of Galilee who followed Jesus and His disciples, ministered to him, and who, according to each of the evangelists, was present at His crucifixion and burial, and went to the tomb on Easter Sunday to anoint His body.
Jesus lived in an androcentric society. Women were property, first of their fathers, then of their husbands; they did not have the right to testify; they could not study the Torah. In this restricting atmosphere, Jesus acted without animosity, accepting women, honoring them, respecting them, and treasuring their friendship. He journeyed with them, touched and cured them, loved them and allowed them to love him.
In our Easter Sunday Gospel [John 20 :1-18], we peer once again into the early morning scene of sadness as Mary Magdalene weeps uncontrollably at the grave of her friend, Jesus. We hear anew their conversation: "Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?" "…Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him away." Jesus said to her, "Mary!" She turned and said to Him in Hebrew, "Rabbouni!" (which means, Teacher). ... "Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, 'I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God.'" Mary Magdalene came, announcing to the disciples, "I have seen the Lord," and that He had said these things to her. (John 20:15-18)
Because of her incredible message and mission, Mary Magdalene was fittingly called "Apostola Apostolorum" (Apostle to the Apostles) in the early Church because she was the first to see the Risen Lord, and to announce His Resurrection to the other apostles.
For Jesus, women were equally as able as men to penetrate the great religious truths, live them and announce them to others. There is no secret code about this story, which is still astonishingly good news more than 2,000 years later. Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia!
[The readings for Easter Sunday are Acts 10:34a, 37-43; Colossians 3:1-4 or 1 Corinthians 5:6b-8; John 20:1-9 or Mark 16:1-7 or Luke 24:13-35]
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Basilian Father Thomas Rosica, chief executive officer of the Salt and Light Catholic Media Foundation and Television Network in Canada, is a consultor to the Pontifical Council for Social Communications. He can be reached at: rosica@saltandlighttv.org.
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On the Net:
Salt and Light Web site:
www.saltandlighttv.orgThe Beauty of the Resurrection:
www.saltandlighttv.org/prog_slprog_snl_presents_easter_video0.htmlHow Shall We Find Words for the Resurrection?:
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Wednesday's Audience
On the Holy Triduum
"Hope Is Nourished in the Great Silence of Holy Saturday"
VATICAN CITY, APRIL 8, 2009 (
Zenit.org).- Here is a translation of the address Benedict XVI gave today at the general audience in St. Peter's Square.
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Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Holy Week, which for us Christians is the most important week of the year, offers us the opportunity to be immersed in the central events of Redemption, to relive the Paschal Mystery, the great mystery of the faith. Beginning tomorrow afternoon, with the Mass "In Coena Domini," the solemn liturgical rites will help us to meditate in a more lively manner on the Passion, Death and Resurrection of the Lord in the days of the Holy Paschal Triduum, fulcrum of the entire liturgical year.
May divine grace open our hearts to comprehend the inestimable gift that salvation is, obtained for us by Christ's sacrifice. We find this immense gift wonderfully narrated in a famous hymn contained in the Letter to the Philippians (cf. 2:6-11), on which we meditated several times in Lent. The Apostle reviews, both in an essential and effective manner, the whole mystery of the history of salvation referring to Adam's pride who, not being God, wanted to be like God. And he contrasts this pride of the first man, which all of us feel a bit in our being, with the humility of the true Son of God who, becoming man, did not hesitate to take upon himself all the weaknesses of the human being, except sin, and pushed himself to the profundity of death. This descent to the last profundity of the Passion and Death is then followed by his exaltation, the true glory, the glory of the love that went all the way to the end. And that is why it is right -- as Paul says -- that "at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord!" (2:10-11). With these words, St. Paul refers to a prophecy of Isaiah where God says: I am the Lord, to me every knee shall bow in heaven and on earth (cf. Isaiah 45: 23). This -- says Paul -- is also true for Jesus Christ. He really is, in his humility, in the true greatness of his love, the Lord of the world and before him every knee truly bows.
How marvelous, and at the same time amazing, is this mystery! We can never meditate this reality sufficiently. Jesus, though being God, did not want to make of his divine prerogatives an exclusive possession; he did not want to use his being God, his glorious dignity and power, as an instrument of triumph and sign of distance from us. On the contrary, "he emptied himself" assuming our miserable and weak human condition -- in this regard, Paul uses a quite meaningful Greek verb to indicate the kenosis, this descent of Jesus. The divine form (morphe) is hidden in Christ under the human form, namely, under our reality marked by suffering, poverty, human limitations and death. The radical and true sharing of our nature, a sharing in everything except sin, leads him to that frontier that is the sign of our finiteness -- death. But all this was not the fruit of a dark mechanism or a blind fatality: It was instead his free choice, by his generous adherence to the salvific plan of the Father. And the death which he went out to meet -- adds Paul -- was that of the cross, the most humiliating and degrading that one can imagine. The Lord of the universe did all this out of love for us: out of love he willed to "empty himself" and make himself our brother; out of love he shared our condition, that of every man and every woman. In this connection, Theodoret of Cyrus, a great witness of the Eastern tradition, writes: "Being God and God by nature and having equality with God, he did not retain this as something great, as do those who have received some honor beyond their merits, but concealing his merits, he chose the most profound humility and took the form of a human being" (Commentary on the Letter to the Philippians, 2:6-7).
As prelude to the Paschal Triduum, which will begin tomorrow -- as I was saying -- with the thought-provoking afternoon rites of Holy Thursday, is the solemn Chrism Mass, which the bishop celebrates in the morning with his presbytery, and in the course of which at the same time the priestly promises are renewed, made on the day of ordination. It is a gesture of great value, an occasion all the more propitious in which the priests confirm their fidelity to Christ who chose them as his ministers. Moreover, this priestly meeting assumes a particular meaning, because it is almost a preparation to the Priestly Year, which I have proclaimed on the occasion of the 150th anniversary of the death of the holy Curé of Ars and which will begin next June 19. Blessed also in the Chrism Mass will be the oil of the sick and of catechumens, and the chrism will be consecrated. These are rites that signify symbolically the fullness of Christ's priesthood and the ecclesial communion that must animate Christian people, gathered for the Eucharistic sacrifice and vivified in the unity of the gift of the Holy Spirit.
In the afternoon Mass, called "In Coena Domini," the Church commemorates the institution of the Eucharist, the ministerial priesthood and the new commandment of charity, left by Jesus to his disciples. St. Paul gives one of the earliest testimonies of all that happened in the Cenacle, vigil of the Lord's Passion. "The Lord Jesus," he wrote, at the beginning of the 50's years, based on a text he received from the Lord's own realm, "on the night when he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, 'This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.' In the same way also the cup, after supper, saying, 'This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me'" (1 Corinthians 11:23-25). Words charged with mystery, which manifest clearly the will of Christ: Under the species of bread and wine he renders himself present in his body given and with his bloodshed. It is the sacrifice of the new and definitive covenant offered to all, without distinction of race or culture. And from this sacramental rite, which he entrusts to the Church as supreme proof of his love, Jesus appointed his disciples as ministers, and those who followed them in the course of the centuries. Holy Thursday is, therefore, a renewed invitation to render thanks to God for the supreme gift of the Eucharist, to be received with devotion and to be adored with lively faith. Because of this, the Church encourages, after the celebration of Holy Mass, watching in the presence of the Most Holy Sacrament, recalling the sad hour that Jesus passed in solitude and prayer in Gethsemane, before being arrested and then being condemned to death.
And so we come to Good Friday, day of the Passion and crucifixion of the Lord. Every year, placing ourselves in silence before Jesus nailed to the wood of the cross, we realize how full of love were the words he pronounced on the eve, in the course of the Last Supper. "This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many" (Mark 14:24). Jesus willed to offer his life in sacrifice for the remission of humanity's sins. Just as before the Eucharist, so before the Passion and Death of Jesus on the cross the mystery is unfathomable to reason. We are placed before something that humanly might seem absurd: a God who not only is made man, with all man's needs, not only suffers to save man, burdening himself with all the tragedy of humanity, but dies for man.
Christ's death recalls the accumulation of sorrows and evils that beset humanity of all times: the crushing weight of our dying, the hatred and violence that again today bloody the earth. The Lord's Passion continues in the suffering of men. As Blaise Pascal correctly writes, "Jesus will be in agony until the end of the world; one must not sleep during this time" (Pensées, 553). If Good Friday is a day full of sadness, and hence at the same time, all the more propitious a day to reawaken our faith, to strengthen our hope and courage so that each one of us will carry his cross with humility, trust and abandonment in God, certain of his support and victory. The liturgy of this day sings: "O Crux, ave, spes unica" (Hail, O cross, our only hope)."
This hope is nourished in the great silence of Holy Saturday, awaiting the resurrection of Jesus. On this day the Churches are stripped and no particular liturgical rites are provided. The Church watches in prayer like Mary, and together with Mary, sharing the same feelings of sorrow and trust in God. Justly recommended is to preserve throughout the day a prayerful climate, favorable to meditation and reconciliation; the faithful are encouraged to approach the sacrament of penance, to be able to participate truly renewed in the Easter celebrations.
The recollection and silence of Holy Saturday lead us at night to the solemn Easter Vigil, "mother of all vigils," when the singing of the joy of the resurrection of Christ will erupt in all the churches and communities. Proclaimed once again will be the victory of light over darkness, of life over death, and the Church will rejoice in the encounter with her Lord. We will thus enter into the climate of the Easter of Resurrection.
Dear brothers and sisters, let us dispose ourselves to live the Holy Triduum intensely, to participate ever more profoundly in the mystery of Christ. We are accompanied on this journey by the Holy Virgin, who in silence followed her son Jesus to Calvary, taking part with great sorrow in his sacrifice, thus cooperating with the mystery of the Redemption and becoming Mother of all believers (cf. John 19:25-27). Together with her we will enter the Cenacle, we will stay at the foot of the Cross, we will watch next to the dead Christ, awaiting with hope the dawn of the radiant day of the Resurrection. In this perspective, I now express to all of you the most cordial wishes for a happy and holy Easter, together with your families, parishes and communities.
[The Pope then greeted pilgrims in several languages. In Italian, he said:]
I address a cordial welcome to Italian-speaking pilgrims. In the first place I renew my spiritual closeness to the dear community of L'Aquila and of the other regions, harshly stricken by the violent seismic phenomenon of past days, which has caused numerous victims, many wounded and immense material damage. The solicitude with which the authorities, forces of order, volunteers and other workers are helping these brothers of ours shows the importance of solidarity, to overcome together such painful trials. Once again I wish to say to those populations that the Pope shares their sorrow and concern. Very dear ones, I hope to come to see you as soon as possible. Know that the Pope prays for all, imploring the Lord's mercy for the deceased and the maternal comfort of Mary for the families and survivors, and the support of Christian hope.
Then I greet the participants in the UNIV international convention, promoted by the prelature of the Opus Dei. Dear friends, I exhort you to respond with joy to the Lord's call to give full meaning to your lives: in study, in relations with colleagues, in the family and in society. "Don't forget that many great things depend on the fact that you and I," said St. Josemaría Escrivá, "behave as God wishes" (The Way, 755). I greet the faithful of the parish of St. John the Baptist, in Campagnano of Rome, and the directors, teachers and numerous young students of the Don Milani Didactic Circle of Galatone. I hope that the visit to the tombs of the Apostles will arouse in all the desire to always serve Christ and brethren ever more generously.
I greet young people, the sick and newlyweds. Tomorrow we will enter in the Holy Triduum, which will make us relive the central mysteries of our salvation. I invite you, dear young people, to draw from the Cross the necessary light to walk in the footsteps of the Redeemer. For you, dear sick people, may the Passion of the Lord, culminating in the triumph of Easter, always be the source of hope. And you, dear newlyweds, by living the Paschal Mystery, make your existence become a mutual gift.
[Translation by ZENIT]
[In English, he said]
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Tomorrow we begin the Holy Triduum, the heart of the entire liturgical year: a time when we immerse ourselves in the central events of our Redemption. The Chrism Mass serves as a prelude to these three days, as priests renew their promises to the Bishop, who then blesses the holy oils and consecrates the chrism signifying the gift of the Holy Spirit. At the Mass of the Lord's Supper, we recall the institution of the Eucharist, the supreme sign of Christ's love for us. As we venerate his Cross on Good Friday, we contemplate the full meaning of his words: "This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many" (Mk 14:24). Holy Saturday finds us waiting in silent hope for the Easter Vigil, when every church will break forth in a song of joy at the Lord's Resurrection. The celebration of the Paschal mystery recalls the depth of Christ's love: he did not wish to exercise his divinity as an exclusive possession, a means of domination, or a sign of distance between him and us. Rather, "he emptied himself, taking the form of a servant" (Phil 2:7) by sharing fully in our human condition, even to the point of death: not a death imposed by blind chance or fate, but one freely chosen in obedience to the Father's will for the salvation for all. May our fervent celebration of the Triduum draw us ever more deeply into Christ's Paschal mystery!
I am pleased to greet the English-speaking pilgrims present at today's Audience. May your visit to Rome during this Holy Week fill you with the peace, hope and joy of Christ Jesus!
© Copyright 2009 -- Libreria Editrice Vaticana
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