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ZENIT
The World Seen From Rome
Daily dispatch - July 10, 2009
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VATICAN DOSSIER
Benedict XVI Offers Life Lessons to Obama
Pope Encourages Mexico in Drug War
WORLD FEATURES
Supreme Knight on Obama-Pope Visit
US Politicians: Encyclical Points to Human Dignity
NEWS BRIEFS
Holy See-Israel Economic Talks Advance
INTERVIEW
Kishore Jayabalan: Development Involves "Breathing Space"
Commemorating the Feast of St. Benedict of Nursia
FORUM
James Stoner: Encyclical Forces Catholics Out of the Bunker
DOCUMENTS
Vatican Statement on Obama Visit
Benedict XVI Offers Life Lessons to Obama
US President Makes 1st Visit to VaticanVATICAN CITY, JULY 10, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Abortion, conscience protection and bioethics took center stage as Benedict XVI and U.S. President Barack Obama met for the first time today.
The Pope received the president, who was in Italy for the Group of Eight summit that end today in L'Aquila, for about a half hour in a private, closed-door meeting.
In a communiqué issued shortly after the meeting concluded, the Vatican reported that the "conversation turned first of all to questions which are in the interests of all and which constitute a great challenge for the future of every nation and for the true progress of peoples, such as the defense and promotion of life and the right to abide by one's conscience."
"Reference was also made to immigration with particular attention to the matter of reuniting families," the note added. "The meeting focused as well upon matters of international politics, especially in light of the outcome of the G-8 Summit.
"The conversation also dealt with the peace process in the Middle East, on which there was general agreement, and with other regional situations. Certain current issues were then considered, such as dialogue between cultures and religions, the global economic crisis and its ethical implications, food security, development aid especially for Africa and Latin America, and the problem of drug trafficking.
"Finally, the importance of educating young people everywhere in the value of tolerance was highlighted."
Reading material
Benedict XVI gave to the U.S. president a copy of his recently published encyclical, "Caritas in Veritate," and a copy of the 2009 letter of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith "Dignitas Personae" (The Dignity of a Person), which deals with questions of bioethics.
Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, the director of the Vatican press office, told Vatican Radio after the audience that the Pope's gift of the letter "Dignitas Humane" was "very significant."
"In the United States," he explained, "there is currently a great debate on the fundamental value of the defense of life, and in this the perspective of the Church and the politics of President Obama show differences, at time quite significant."
Father Lombardi revealed that the president confirmed that "he has every intention, with the commitment of the government, to reduce as much as possible, the number of abortions."
The two also discussed "moral values in international politics, immigration and the Catholic Church’s contribution in developing countries," added Father Lombardi, and the "the importance of the education of tolerance in every country."
Obama gave to Benedict XVI a stole that had been placed on the remains of St. John Neumann (1811-1860), a Redemptorist who is currently the only canonized bishop of the United States.
An honor
Upon meeting Benedict XVI, Obama told that him that it was a "great honor" to meet him.
The Pontiff asked Obama how the G-8 meetings had gone, and Obama answered that they were "very productive."
After the private meeting, the Holy Father greeted Obama's wife, Michelle, and their two daughters, Malia and Sasha.
Michelle and the two Obama daughters arrived to the Vatican an hour before the president to visit St. Peter's Basilica.
After the audience with the Pope, the family visited the Vatican Grottoes and the Sistine Chapel, which is currently closed to the public.
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Pope Encourages Mexico in Drug War
Supports Social Work Without CoercionVATICAN CITY, JULY 10, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI is affirming Mexico's efforts in favor of life and against drug trafficking problems, while calling for a deeper understanding of the citizen's right to religious freedom.
The Pope stated this today in an audience with the new Mexican ambassador to the Holy See, Federico Ling Altamirano.
The Pontiff recognized that Mexico's identity has been shaped by years of "a fruitful relationship with the message of salvation proclaimed by the Catholic Church."
He explained, "Faith in Jesus Christ has engendered a culture in Mexico that provides a specific and complete meaning for life, and a hopeful vision of existence, at the same time setting out a series of fundamental principles for the harmonious development of all society."
The Holy Father recalled the World Meeting of Families held last January in Mexico City.
He recognized the country's "high esteem" for families, and thus requested that they be given "adequate assistance."
In this way, he added, homes can "continue to be schools of mutual respect and understanding, seedbeds of human virtues and a reason for hope in the rest of society."
Benedict XVI affirmed the "reciprocal autonomy and healthy collaboration" between the Holy See and Mexico.
Church and state
He underlined the state's duty to "protect and support religious freedom in all aspects of its public and social life."
The Pope continued, "The truth is that religious freedom is not just one more right among many others, nor a privilege claimed by the Catholic Church."
"It belongs to the essence of each individual," he said, "of each people and each nation," and cannot be "restricted to the mere coexistence of citizens who practice their religion privately, or limited to the free exercise of worship."
Believers must be assured that they can "express their religious beliefs, at the same time making their contribution to forging the common good and a just social order in all aspects of life, with no restriction or coercion," the Pontiff stated.
He acknowledged the nation's efforts to build a more "just and united ordering of society and to overcome the contrasts that continue to afflict the country."
In particular, the Holy Father noted Mexico's work to eliminate "violence, drug trafficking, and inequality and poverty, which are fertile ground for delinquency."
He lauded the country's abolishment of the death penalty in 2005, as well as recent initiatives by some states to "protect human life from its beginnings."
"It cannot be overemphasized that the right to life must be recognized in all its fullness," he affirmed.
Benedict XVI stated that these recent moves in favor of life "should be an emblem of your homeland, one of which it can be justly proud."
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Supreme Knight on Obama-Pope Visit
Marks New Step in US-Vatican RelationsNEW HAVEN, Connecticut, JULY 10, 2009 (Zenit.org).- The first meeting between Benedict XVI and Barack Obama could mark the first step in finding common ground between the U.S. president and the Church on abortion, says the supreme knight of the Knights of Columbus.
"It is obvious that President Obama has a serious interest in engaging in a meaningful dialogue with the Catholic Church, and with Catholics, who make up one fourth of the U.S. population," Carl Anderson said in a press statement released after Barack Obama's visit to the Vatican today.
"President Obama clearly had much to gain from a successful meeting with the Pope," he continued. "Certainly this is another achievement for Vatican and American diplomacy and represents a positive development for those of us who hoped that this meeting might mark a new opportunity in the important relationship between the Catholic Church and U.S. government."
The supreme knight applauded the U.S. president for "showing sensitivity to the growing consensus among the American people favoring the right to life, restriction of abortion, and the protection of conscience."
Anderson articulated five key issues that will "help provide a true gauge of the progress made on achieving common ground with the Catholic community."
The first is the "adoption of a federal conscience clause regulation that gives real protection to Catholic institutions and individuals."
He also noted "health care legislation that does not contain a back door mandate for abortion," and "abortion-reduction programs that respect pro-life crisis pregnancy and teenage abstinence programs."
A fourth issue is the "preservation of the pro-life riders that currently exist in the annual appropriations legislation."
"These riders," Anderson explained, "which restrict federal abortion funding, also raise conscience protection issues, since their removal would force taxpayers to pay for abortions against their conscience."
Finally, he suggested "dropping any attempts to codify by statute the president's rescission of the Mexico City Policy, which allows international abortion funding by the United States."
"This is an important moment," the supreme knight added. "The Pope and the president have laid the foundation for trying to achieve authentic common ground. How we build on this meeting in a constructive way in the months and years ahead is critical."
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US Politicians: Encyclical Points to Human Dignity
Affirm Value of Document for Catholic, Secular WorldWASHINGTON, D.C., JULY 10, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Two U.S. legislators are underlining the value of Benedict XVI's latest encyclical and are endorsing its study by Catholics and non-Catholics alike, as food for thought in the economic crisis.
The House of Representatives republican leader, John Boehner, and the republican policy committee chairman, Thaddeus McCotter, affirmed this in a joint statement issued today.
The statement pointed out that "Caritas in Veritate" is "neither an indictment of capitalism nor an endorsement of any political or economic agenda."
It added that "ideologues and politicos hoping to spin it" as either of these things are "destined to be unsuccessful."
The legislators agreed that the Pope's central point in the encyclical is that "at times of economic challenge, the inherent dignity of the individual must be preserved and sustained through genuine charity and compassion."
Their statement explained, "This message is clearly distinct from efforts to 'remake' government into a soul-crushing centralized welfare state in which independent citizens are remade into dependent servants."
It noted the Holy Father's emphasis "that the human being must remain as the center of our free-market system."
It underlined the Pontiff's warning that "individuals, families, churches, communities, and businesses must never become subservient to the state."
The politicians highlighted Benedict XVI's point that "the sanctity of all human life must always be protected."
They also noted the encyclical's support of conservation, not "radical environmentalism."
The statement concluded that "Caritas in Veritate is not a political document, but rather a complex work that warrants careful and thoughtful contemplation by American Catholics and non-Catholics alike at this time of economic anxiety."
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Holy See-Israel Economic Talks Advance
JERUSALEM, JULY 10, 2009 (Zenit.org).- The Bilateral Permanent Working Commission between the Holy See and the State of Israel met to advance negotiations on an economic agreement.A Vatican communiqué reported today that the meeting, which took place Thursday at Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was in an atmosphere of "great cordiality."
It noted that the delegations "believe they have contributed to taking the talks forward towards the desired agreement."
Since signing the Fundamental Agreement in 1993, which established diplomatic relations between the Holy See and Israel, the two sides have been negotiating the particulars of tax exemptions and property rights for the Church, in particular for the holy sites. Talks stopped altogether in 2003 for several years, and began again in 2005.
After the meeting, the commission publicized the dates for their next meetings: Aug. 26, Sep. 15-16, Oct. 14-15 and Nov. 11-12.
The plenary commission will meet Dec. 10 in the Vatican.
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Kishore Jayabalan: Development Involves "Breathing Space"
Acton Institute Director Discusses New EncyclicalBy Antonio Gaspari
ROME, JULY 10, 2009 (Zenit.org).- An Acton Institute director is explaining the importance of "Caritas in Veritate" for India and China, and is pointing out the innovative ideas of Benedict XVI's latest encyclical.
Kishore Jayabalan is the director of the Acton Institute's Rome office. He is a former analyst for the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, where he dealt with environmental and disarmament issues and served as a desk officer for English-speaking countries.
In this interview with ZENIT, he spoke about Benedict XVI's latest encyclical, which was released to the public Tuesday.
ZENIT: What is your overall opinion of the encyclical "Caritas in Veritate?"
Jayabalan: My very first reaction was that it is long and not an easy document to read quickly and summarize. But as I have been reading and re-reading it, I am starting to appreciate its vast scope and significance.
The moral and ethical basis for the market economy is very often neglected.
Even its supporters tend to make utilitarian arguments in favor of the market, while opponents tend to blame the free exchange of goods and services for all kinds of cultural phenomena which have little to do with economics itself.
When things are going well and everyone is making money, no one wants to hear about greed and materialism. But once the bubble bursts, everyone seems to become a moralist and a prophet with amazing hindsight.
This is what Benedict has referred to in other places as "cheap moralism," one which takes no account of the technical workings of the economy but reminds us of the need to make ethics more integral to our everyday lives. So in this encyclical, the pope realizes it makes no sense to issue condemnations that a child can make.
Instead he has chosen to engage us spiritually and intellectually, with an "adult faith" as he said recently.
The fruits of this encyclical will come once experts in the fields of finance and economics attempt to apply this new way of thinking and acting.
ZENIT: What are the points that you have most appreciated, or what ideas are most innovative in the encyclical?
Jayabalan: Because I used to work on environmental questions at the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, I appreciated the section on the environment, which criticized both the abuse as well as the worship of creation.
In many ways, environmental issues are intellectual at their core because they require us to think about and differentiate between the Creator and his order of creation.
The call for a closer relationship between respect for human life -- especially procreation -- social justice, and international development was also much appreciated.
One of the innovative aspects in my mind was the Pope's use of the term "breathing-space" (respiro) in numbers 3, 11 and 20.
The first time it is used to describe how truth rescues charity from fideism, in other words, from a deterministic view of faith that negates human freedom.
The second time the context is that of eternal life, which requires us to recognize "higher goods," those beyond the accumulation of wealth.
The third case presents the various aspects of integral human development that give "breathing-space and direction" to our social activities. Allowing for "breathing-space" seems to be an argument against central planning and control, and an innovative way of understanding the spiritual aspects of human reason and freedom.
ZENIT: What reaction has the United States had to the encyclical?
Jayabalan: The reaction in the United States has been very mixed.
Some critics of the market economy see it as an attack against capitalism, which it is only to the extent that capitalism exists outside the realms of law, politics and morality -- a mythical situation and certainly one that does not describe the banking and financial sectors of today.
Some, like the New York Times, think Benedict is calling for a "New World Economic Order," not just in a moral or ethical sense but also structurally.
Still others are trying to make sense of how the encyclical affects the day-to-day operations of business and finance. Considering that the encyclical is a few days old, it is obviously too early to know this.
ZENIT: Do you know how India has reacted to the encyclical?
Jayabalan: I don't know since I haven't been there in the last few days. But I would imagine that in countries like India and China, which have experienced so much growth over the last 20 years, there might be both some agreement about the human costs of purely economic growth as well as a little bit of resentment and annoyance that the critics of capitalism -- those who interpret the Pope to be such a critic, primarily -- want to draw up the bridge to material progress before others can join them as developed nations.
The words of the Pope on the sanctity of all human life, especially at its earliest stages and regardless of gender, within the context of international development should also be welcome in countries like India and China that have often been the target of population control advocates.
Many of these advocates base their argument on the concept of "sustainable development" and represent [non-governmental organizations] and international institutions located in and funded by the developed nations.
The Pope's advocacy of religious freedom as a contributor to the common good ought to resonate where the Church has recently come under attack and persecution for preaching her mission.
ZENIT: The encyclical indicates that the demographic collapse and the reduction of births is a central cause of the economic crisis. What is your opinion on this?
Jayabalan: The anti-birth mentality is a real phenomenon all over the world.
I've already mentioned anti-natal efforts in China and India, but as far as I know, there is not one nation in the world that has an increasing fertility rate.
In some European countries such as Italy and Spain, the rate is so low that the native population is on its way to collective extinction.
This is of course bad per se, but it also has very bad social and economic consequences, such as serious strains on pension systems and housing markets.
In fact, David P. Goldman, an associate editor at the journal First Things has attributed demographic causes to economic depressions, especially when there are too many elderly savers and not enough productive, entrepreneurial borrowers (see his article "Demographics and Depression" in the May 2009 issue).
As the Canadian columnist Mark Steyn has argued, once populations lose the primal instinct to reproduce, they also lose the will to defend themselves, create wealth and generally improve society.
Pope Benedict does not use the exact same language in his new encyclical, but he seems to agree with the general analysis.
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Commemorating the Feast of St. Benedict of Nursia
Interview With the Archabbot of Monte CassinoBy Father Thomas Rosica, CSB
TORONTO, JULY 10, 2009 (Zenit.org).- To commemorate the memorial of St. Benedict of Nursia on Saturday, we present this interview by Basilian Father Thomas Rosica, the chief executive officer of Salt and Light Catholic Television Network in Canada, with the Archabbot of Monte Cassino, Benedictine Father Pietro Vittorelli.
The interview took place during the abbot's recent visit to Canada and aired on the Salt and Light Catholic Television Network in Canada
Father Rosica: Abbot Pietro Vitorelli, you are Father Abbot of an abbey that is famous around the world -- Monte Cassino. When one thinks of Monte Cassino, one think of the Great War, of the battle of Monte Cassino and the long, rich history of this abbey. You are a very young Father Abbot, how is this possible?
Archabbot Pietro: Well, when the need arises to elect a new abbot, the Holy Spirit is invoked and the brothers decide, autonomously, according to what the what needs of community are at that time. Then there is the need to respond to another vocation. Saying "yes" after an election is a vocation within a vocation.
I was born in Rome. I met the Benedictines because my family comes from the land of St. Benedict, which is the area around the Abbey of Monte Cassino. This little town is called San Vittorio del Lazio. That's where my grandparents were born and in the summers I would often go visit them in the town. My great-grandmother spoke to me often about the Abbey of Monte Cassino because in southern Italy there's a saying that goes, "Whoever doesn't see Monte Cassino, doesn't believe in Paradise." I never would have thought that one day I'd be in that paradise that is Monte Cassino
Father Rosica: You saw and you also believed! Let's go back to rediscover the appeal of St. Benedict. Ever since April 19, 2005, Benedict is a well-known name. The Holy Father explained the influence that St. Benedict had on his life. Who was Benedict of Nursia?
Archabbot: In his Second Book of Dialogues, St. Gregory the Great tells us about Benedict of Nursia who knew even as a young man, the attraction of a calling. After completing his studies in Rome as was common in the sixth century, Benedict moves towards answering his calling as a hermit. First he goes to the grotto of Subiaco, close to Rome, then wanting to bring to fruition his vision of a monastic life that still needed to be fleshed out, he moves to Cassino and at Monte Cassino. There he finds an ancient Roman building that became the first monastery. There he gives life to a great adventure, the Benedictine Family, writing a short rule for novices that consists of 73 chapters and he calls it the "Regula Monacorum" or the Rule for Monks.
Father Rosica: Benedict constructed the first monastery in 529, if I've read my history correctly, and from that moment to the present day that monastery has had several reincarnations. It's had a very interesting history. Talk to us a little bit about the principle of "Ora et Labora" (Prayer and Work), in the Benedictine life. Talk to us about this motto of Benedictine life.
Archabbot: It's a winning motto, I would say, especially in these times. The younger generations tend to underline whatever is extraordinary, exceptional, outside the normal experience. In the sixth century Benedict was already saying, and continues to say, that what's important is the ordinary, the daily, the normal.
Today, whatever is normal is an exception. And we, in the normality of a life lived in prayer and work, reaffirm that Christ died and rose again to save humanity. This is, I think, what Benedict wanted to pass on to his monks as a unique way of living the Gospel, to give it flesh day after day. Monte Cassino is, in a way, the icon of all of this. It's an abbey with almost 1,500 years of history, the essence of its strength is summarized in a motto that reads "Succisa virecit;" that is, the plant that is cut is reborn again, like a great oak. Since 1529, Monte Cassino has been destroyed four times, but has always been rebuilt. The last time was in 1944 when it seemed impossible to rebuild.
Father Rosica: We could say that God truly wanted the existence of this nucleus of culture and religious life!
Archabbot: I think I can say yes. Today especially, with such a rich history behind it, especially because even today I see how an energy radiates from this place not just through the Italian territory, but around the world. Also because today the Benedictine confederation is present in all corners of the world with almost 370 monasteries around the world.
Father Rosica: Where in the Benedictine world are you seeing growth and where are you seeing, perhaps, a drop in vocations?
Archabbot: Well, just like the rest of the church, there is a drop in vocations in Europe and the West, while there's a great effervescence in the East and in South America where we're seeing many vocations, just like in Africa where we're seeing a new season of the Holy Spirit. There are some monasteries in old Europe, the big monasteries, are suffering from a lack of vocations, while in the Philippines and South America I can think of some monasteries that are not big enough for all the monks they have and we need to build new monasteries.
Father Rosica: What about at Monte Cassino? Are there vocations?
Archabbot: At this time we have vocations following the crisis of vocations that happened right after the Second Vatican Council when there was that great transformation in the way of thinking about and living the Church. Today, following a trend that started about ten years ago, there is a slow resurgence in our community at Monte Cassino and we have six young men in formation -- all Italians!
Their backgrounds are quite varied. Because Monte Cassino is known internationally, we attract vocations from all of Italy, but we also have a constantly growing cultural life and of these six young men four of them have university degrees from different parts of Italy, each with a different background. We have an engineer, an architect, one with a degree in literature, an accountant and a land surveyor.
Father Rosica: Another important component of your monastic life is the liturgy. You give great dignity to liturgy in the Benedictine world. Why is the liturgy and the care given to it so important?
Archabbot: Because the Benedictines treat the Lord as Lord. There is a place of honor given to the "opus Dei," as St. Benedict called it in his rule, the work of God, the first work of God is prayer. Benedictine monks have always given much attention to this primary aspect of their lives, which feeds everything else. The "labora" the work gets it strength and energy from the "ora," prayer and one cannot be separated from the other. This way even work becomes prayer itself, because it becomes part of that praying without ceasing, as St. Benedict says in the rule, that unceasing prayer of the heart that is so dear especially in the Eastern tradition and which St. Benedict proposed to his monks in the sixth century.
Father Rosica: Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger is not a stranger to your life or to your monastery because he has a special place in his life for the Benedictine rule. Tell me about your friendship with Cardinal Ratzinger.
Archabbot: I had the honor of assisting him during one of his longer visits to the monastery, when he stayed for about eight days while writing one of his books. That time he stayed quite awhile and I was able to be close to him for an extended period of time.
On April 19, 2005, Father Abbot gave us permission to watch the television -- we don't normally watch television -- and we were all gathered around the television when it was announced that Cardinal Ratzinger had been elected Pope and had chosen the name Benedict, there was an explosion of joy that the austerity of monasticism had never seen before: bells rang, people were making phone calls to get more details about the event. The joy was great. Very soon after we asked Pope Benedict XVI to come in pilgrimage to the tomb of St. Benedict, this time as Pope.
Father Rosica: Benedict XVI, has allowed the life and teachings of Benedict to permeate his life, his though, his theology.
Archabbot: I have been most impressed by Pope Ratzinger's ability to enter deeply into the Benedictine spirituality, even though he is not a Benedictine himself, and interpret it with modern eyes. This can be seen in an extraordinary way during his last apostolic voyage to France, at the Collège des Bernardins, where the Pope addressed the world of culture and gave a splendid speech on monastic spirituality.
Father Rosica: Father Abbot, you live at Monte Cassino, and in addition to being the Father Abbot you're also in a certain sense a bishop of the place. You’re not a bishop, but it is a territorial abbey, a diocese itself. You're dressed like a bishop, with the pectoral cross which is also used by a Father Abbot, you wear the mitre just like a bishop. What does it mean to be Father Abbot and pastor of this flock that is around you?
Archabbot: St. Benedict has always suggested that we proceed with evangelization of the territory. The Benedictines would found a small house, but around this house, which would slowly become a nucleus of interest because they would teach how to work the land, or they would teach plumbing techniques, or they would teach prayer, or how to read and write. All of this created a nucleus of interest that was filtered through the Gospel message, the message of Jesus Christ, and also the message of St. Benedict. This slowly created clusters; this is why many European cities have names that recall their monastic roots, like Monaco, but also many of the great cities in England, France, and even Italy.
Father Rosica: The territory of Monte Cassino includes Cassino.
Archabbot: Yes, there are 53 parishes, it's a small diocese that's all around the Abbey of Monte Cassino, and all the towns have a saint's name because they are all founded by monks, so we have San Vittore, Sant'Andrea, Sant'Elia, are all towns of our diocese.
Father Rosica: So the influence of the monastery extends into these towns and parishes, we can say it's a diocese with a Benedictine spirit. The monastic life today has many different forms and takes on many different incarnations, but it is still important to the heart of this world. The world is in difficulty in many regions and the monastic life, as is said in the theme of the monastery of the Grande Chartreuse, "the world turns and the cross remains." How do you see the world from inside the monastery? There are many difficulties in Italy when it comes to the practice of the faith, the crises in the Church, instead your life is prayer and work, and there is a calm and peace.
Archabbot: I think, just like Paul VI said in his famous speech for the reconsecration of the Basilica on Oct. 24, 1964, that modern man needs to stand before the Benedictine cloister once again to experience peace, silence and prayer. I always think of the monk as a missionary in reverse, in the sense that his mission is to give witness through a life lived in silence, in prayer, in calm and peace, so that whoever arrives at the monastery -- they generally arrive full of stress and tiredness, spiritual or psychological confusion -- can find an environment that lends itself to healing, to rest for the soul, and can return to the world recharged but also calm and above all full of God.
Father Rosica: You touched on something very important, because another part of Benedictine life is hospitality. Wherever I've been in the world, in France, in Italy, in South America, in many countries, I've always visited Benedictine Monasteries and I've enjoyed this hospitality. What type of person comes to do spiritual exercises, to spend a weekend, a few days? Where do these people come from and why are they coming to the monastery?
Archabbot: It's people from various backgrounds who are coming for many different reasons. Sometimes they're, obviously many are priests or religious who come to make retreat, to pray, but atheists come to us too, or people who don't believe in God or in religion but are curious about monastic life. Monasticism has an easy relationship with other Christian denominations but also with other religions, and we get visits from representatives of various levels from other Christian denominations or even other religions. For example, it's been three years in a row that Lutheran pastors from Sweden have come to spend Holy Week with us, and I see that there is a very profound spiritual participation. I think monasticism offers great possibilities in this area.
Father Rosica: Is there such a thing as a profile of monk? When a young man presents himself at the door of the monastery, what are you, as Father Abbott looking for in that young man?
Archabbot: I can easily answer with the words of St. Benedict to the master of novices; he says that one must see if the candidate si revera deum querit is truly seeking God. I think this is the only thing asked of the monk. There are no specific human characteristics he must have, but if his heart truly seeks God it will be evident in his desire to explore this life and renew himself through the Gospel, through the way of life taught by St. Benedict. Today even monasticism is called to challenge our times, because the young people who knock on our door don't come from the moon, they don't come fully formed as Christians or as monks. They bring with them all the contradictions, difficulties and wounds of our times, and we are called to rise to this challenge and say that God's call was true 1500 years ago it is true today, and monk -- like the rest of the Church -- are asked to understand the language of the young generation in order to respond to them in that same language.
Father Rosica: The tomb of St. Benedict is with you, his mortal remains are in your church if I remember correctly from when I visited as a student. What does it mean to be that close to this great founder of this movement that has been so important in the history of the Church?
Archbbot: It's a very big commitment and responsibility. Every day after the singing of Vespers, in Gregorian chant, the community goes to the tomb of St. Benedict and his sister Scholastica, and we sing a beautiful hymn- every day- called Signifer Invictissime, that is O Strongest Flag-Bearer, a reference to the person who, in battle, carried the flag. And we feel that like St. Benedict we are called to carry high our one and only standard -- the cross. Paul VI said, in the Apostolic Brief in which he proclaimed St. Benedict patron of Europe, “He and his monks Christianized Europe with the book, the cross and the plow. The book is a symbol of prayer, the cross the symbol of the Christian faith which was being spread throughout Europe, and the plow was the symbol of manual labour with which the monks sanctify their day.”
Father Rosica: We have only a few minutes left, I'd like to conclude with that marvelous scene of Benedict and his sister, Scholastica. What is the significance of this last scene between Benedict and Scholastica?
Archbbot: In the foothills of the mountains of Monte Cassino still stands the place where, according to tradition, St. Benedict and St. Scholastica met. And on the seventh of February, three days before the feast of St. Scholastica -- that's what St. Gregory the Great tells us -- everyone at the Abbey of Monte Cassino comes down to that place to celebrate a mass, with many other people. The significance I give to this profound event in the lives of Benedict and Scholastica is that it's all linked to the freedom of female genius. Because Scholastica, according to tradition, observed the rule that Benedict had given to his monks. At a certain point she asks her brother to stay with her to talk, because she felt that she was going to die. But her brother, we men are a little more tied to the firmness of rules, said "no, I have to go back because I've written in the rule that monks must return to the monastery." Scholastica asks God to do something. A great downpour begins and St. Benedict is forced to stay and he asks, "Sister of mine, what have you done?" she says, "I prayed to God and he listened to me, you didn’t listen to me." St. Gregory the Great writes that Scholastica could do more because she loved more. This, in my view, is a lesson that beyond the written rule there is a higher rule, that of love, because sometimes even the laws of man can be unfair and unjust, but the law of God is never unjust.
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Full interview: http://www.saltandlighttv.org/prog_slprog_witness_popup_0905_vittorelli.html
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James Stoner: Encyclical Forces Catholics Out of the Bunker
"Caritas in Veritate" Presents a Challenge to EveryoneBy James Stoner
BATON ROUGE, Louisiana, JULY 10, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Faithful Catholics in America today often seem tempted by cultural hostility to withdraw into our own circle of faith and family, asking of law and government only that we be left alone.
To this tendency, Pope Benedict's new encyclical on the social teaching of the Church, "Caritas in Veritate," is a thorough rebuke, for it is a call to engage the world—not only through evangelization, but through economic, social, and political thought and action; through commitment to the cause of integral human development and social progress.
One can see why liberal commentators quickly seized on the encyclical as friendly to their agenda. The Pope is critical of contemporary market society, with its "scandalous speculation," its emphasis on short-term profit, its ambivalent record in combating poverty, and its disregard of the cultural fabric of societies it would modernize; moreover, he calls for extensive global reform and even "for a reform of the United Nations...so that the concept of the family of nations can acquire real teeth."
One doubts liberals will cheer so loudly when they read more carefully, because he also insists that the culture of life needs to be recovered, that atheism and relativism are threats to genuine human development, that "a metaphysical understanding of the relations between persons" is essential, that cultural and religious syncretism is dangerous, and that freedom is not autonomous license but formation under the natural moral law.
And he warns against "a dangerous universal power of a tyrannical nature," which must be countered by the principle of subsidiarity.
On the one hand, the failure to think and act boldly for world-wide justice indicates a dearth of charity, while on the other, charity needs to be anchored in universal truth -- as the title of the encyclical makes plain.
Vast in its sweep of topics -- the Pope comments not only on major institutions of governance and finance but on the environment, on migration, on international aid, even on tourism -- there is much that will bear further study and ought genuinely to provoke fresh thought.
I found suggestive his notion that the categories of most 20th century Catholic reflection on social justice have been altered, as many economic and social institutions in contemporary global civilization cannot be identified as clearly public or private; to debate state versus market solutions to social problems is thus to miss the question.
The Pope's attention to the centrality of "the astonishing experience of gift" or "gratuitousness," while not completely unknown in social science, might prove fertile in the development of paradigms of social and economic life that transcend the pinched model of economic man as rational maximizer, without falling into the trap of totalitarian socialism.
His discussion of technology, as simultaneously a testimony to the power of the human spirit and the characteristic engine of soulless materialism, is lucid; recovering respect for nature as God's gift is an imperative not only for planetary survival, but for self-knowledge.
Papal encyclicals studiously avoid being partisan documents -- that's one reason why they are sometimes hard to read -- but citizens who heed the Pope's call to enter the fray of political "praxis" in the search for justice and the common good will rarely be able to escape the pull of partisanship.
By giving each side a picture of its own strengths and failings and by urging sustained dialogue over global policy, the Pope deepens his project of reconciling faithful Christians and the children of Enlightenment. His term "praxis," an ancient Greek word for "action," "deed," or even "business," known to modern intellectuals chiefly through its use by Marxists, is, after all, in its plural form, the title of the New Testament's fifth book.
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James Stoner is a professor of political science at Louisiana State University. He is the author, most recently, of "Common Law Liberty: Rethinking American Constitutionalism" (University Press of Kansas).
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Vatican Statement on Obama Visit
VATICAN CITY, JULY 10, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Here is the press release the Vatican published today after Benedict XVI received U.S. President Barack Obama in audience.* * *
This afternoon, Friday 10 July 2009, His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI received in Audience the President of the United States of America, His Excellency Mr. Barack H. Obama. Prior to the Audience, the President met His Eminence Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, Secretary of State, and also His Excellency Archbishop Dominique Mamberti, Secretary for Relations with States.
In the course of their cordial exchanges the conversation turned first of all to questions which are in the interests of all and which constitute a great challenge for the future of every nation and for the true progress of peoples, such as the defence and promotion of life and the right to abide by one’s conscience.
Reference was also made to immigration with particular attention to the matter of reuniting families.
The meeting focused as well upon matters of international politics, especially in light of the outcome of the G8 Summit. The conversation also dealt with the peace process in the Middle East, on which there was general agreement, and with other regional situations. Certain current issues were then considered, such as dialogue between cultures and religions, the global economic crisis and its ethical implications, food security, development aid especially for Africa and Latin America, and the problem of drug trafficking. Finally, the importance of educating young people everywhere in the value of tolerance was highlighted.
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