SUMMARY:
- RENEWED JURIDICAL FRAMEWORK FOR CARITAS INTERNATIONALIS
- EIGHTEENTH PLENARY SESSION OF THE PONTIFICAL ACADEMY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES
- OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS
_______________________________________
ST.
STEPHEN: MEDITATION UPON SACRED SCRIPTURE IN ORDER TO UNDERSTAND THE
PRESENT
Vatican
City, 2 May 2012 (VIS) - The prayer of St. Stephen, the first
Christian martyr, was the theme of the Holy Father's catechesis
during his general audience this morning.
Addressing
more than 20,000 faithful filling St. Peter's Square, the Pope
explained how, according to the narrative of the Acts of the
Apostles, Stephen was taken before the Sanhedrin accused of having
declared that Jesus would destroy the Temple and change the customs
handed down by Moses. In his address before the council Stephen
explained that, in saying these things, Jesus had been referring to
His body, which was the new temple. In this way, Christ "inaugurated
the new worship and, with the offer of Himself on the cross, replaced
the ancient sacrifices", Benedict XVI said.
Stephen
wished to show that the accusation of subverting the Law of Moses was
unfounded, to which end he outlined his view of the history of
salvation, of the covenant between God and man. "Thus", the
Holy Father explained, "he reread the entire biblical narrative
to show that it led to the 'place' of God's definitive presence,
which is Jesus Christ and in particular His passion, death and
resurrection. Stephen interpreted his status as a disciple of Jesus
in the same light, ... following Him to martyrdom. Thus, meditation
upon Sacred Scripture helped him to understand ... the present".
"In
his meditation upon God's action in the history of salvation"
the proto-martyr "highlighted the perennial temptation to reject
God and His acts, and affirmed that Jesus is the Just One announced
by the prophets. In Him, God made Himself definitively and uniquely
present: Jesus is the 'place' of true worship".
Stephen's
explanations and his life were interrupted by his stoning, yet
"martyrdom was the culmination of his life and message, because
he became one with Christ. Thus his meditation upon the action of God
in history, on the divine Word which was entirely fulfilled in Jesus,
became a form of participation in Christ's prayer on the cross".
The
moment of Stephen's martyrdom "again revealed the fruitful
relationship between the Word of God and prayer", the Pope said.
Yet "where did this first Christian martyr find the strength to
face his persecutors and to make the ultimate gift of self? The
answer is simple: in his relationship with God, in his communion with
Christ, in meditating upon the history of salvation, in witnessing
the action of God which reached its apex in Jesus Christ".
St.
Stephen believed that Jesus was "the Temple, 'not made by human
hands', in which the presence of God the Father came so close as to
enter our human flesh, bringing us to God and opening the doors of
heaven for us. Our prayer must, then, be contemplation of Jesus
sitting at the right hand of God, of Jesus as Lord of our daily life.
In Him, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, we too can address God
... with the trust and abandonment of children who turn to a Father
Who loves them with an infinite love".
RENEWED
JURIDICAL FRAMEWORK FOR CARITAS INTERNATIONALIS
Vatican
City, 2 May 2012 (VIS) - Made public today was a General Decree
concerning the renewed juridical framework of Caritas
Internationalis. The document, which bears the signature of Cardinal
Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone S.D.B., was approved by the Holy
Father on 27 April, and comes into force from the moment of its
publication.
The
publication of the decree is being accompanied by an explanatory text
in English, written by Msgr. Osvaldo Neves de Almeida, excerpts from
which are given below.
"In
its sixty-one years of existence, Caritas Internationalis has always
been a privileged instrument of the Church’s charitable activity.
Drawing upon its long experience of this worthy institution, and in
particular the developments of recent years, the Holy See has sought
to update the juridical status of Caritas Internationalis, in order
the better to support its activity in the context of the modern
world".
"Blessed
John Paul II gave it public canonical juridical personality by means
of the Chirograph 'Durante l'ultima Cena'. ... This public juridical
person is governed principally, though not exclusively, by its proper
legislation and by the relevant provisions of the Code of Canon Law.
The Chirograph 'Durante l’Ultima Cena', in recognising the special
bond linking Caritas Internationalis with the Apostolic See,
implicitly established that its governance and operation should make
reference to the First Section of the Secretariat of State. At the
same time, the Chirograph gave the Pontifical Council 'Cor Unum' the
task of following and accompanying the activity of Caritas
Internationalis".
The
process of updating the juridical framework of Caritas
Internationalis
"The
experience garnered in almost eight years of applying the Chirograph
'Durante l’Ultima Cena' has made it possible to understand in
greater detail how to carry forward a process of juridical updating
that not only respects but expresses even better the nature of the
organisation and clarifies the distribution of competences among
dicasteries and offices with an interest in it".
"Between
January and May of last year, a working group of representatives from
Caritas Internationalis and the Holy See studied a new version of the
Statutes of Caritas Internationalis, with the intention of resolving
the interlinked doctrinal, juridical and economic issues. ... During
the said meetings of the working group, one of the points to emerge
was the need for legislation to complement the Chirograph 'Durante
l’Ultima Cena', as a normative reference-point for the application
of the new Statutes. Having received the draft Statutes, the Holy
Father gave precise instructions to the Cardinal Secretary of State
on the contents of the said text due to complement the Chirograph.
Accordingly, in deference to these indications, the General Decree
was drawn up and the new Statutes and Internal Rules were revised in
accordance with it".
Some
characteristic features of the new General Decree
"Articles
1, 2 and 3 of the General Decree clarify the competences of the
principal dicasteries involved. In this regard, first and foremost,
the role of the Pontifical Council 'Cor Unum' has been strengthened
(art. 1), the dicastery, that is, that follows the institutional
activity of Caritas Internationalis and is responsible for approving
its texts with doctrinal or moral content".
"Articles
4 and 5 establish guidelines for the future redaction of specific
norms governing employment of personnel and the preparation of a
suitable welfare regime. The employees of Caritas Internationalis, in
fact, while they are not Vatican employees, are part of the working
community of the Apostolic See".
"Article
6 ... establishes that at least three members of the Executive Board
be papal appointments. This allows the Holy Father to designate
individuals of specific proven competence, particular those coming
from poor regions or regions deserving of privileged attention. ...
It remains the case, however, that the majority of members are chosen
by national Caritas agencies, which therefore continue to be
responsible for the governance of this important structure of the
Confederation.
"Moreover,
provision is made for an Ecclesiastical Assistant and a Support
Commission. ... In addition to the 'nihil obstat' of the Holy See for
candidates for the offices of President and Secretary-General, ...
the General Decree and the new Statutes require a 'nihil obstat' for
the candidates for Treasurer".
"Article
7 re-affirms the general principle that significant canonical and
Vatican legislation is binding upon those who are employed in
entities situated within Vatican City and institutionally linked to
the Holy See".
EIGHTEENTH
PLENARY SESSION OF THE PONTIFICAL ACADEMY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES
Vatican
City, 2 May 2012 (VIS) - A press conference was held this morning in
the Holy See Press Office to present the conclusions of the
eighteenth plenary session of the Pontifical Academy of Social
Sciences. The meeting was held in Rome from 27 April to 1 May and
examined the theme: "The Global Search for 'Tranquillitas
Ordinis'. 'Pacem in Terris', fifty years on". The conference was
presented by Bishop Marcelo Sanchez Sorondo, chancellor of the
"Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences; Archbishop Roland
Minnerath of Dijon, France, and Margaret S. Archer, professor at the
Ecole Polytechnique Federale of Lausanne, Switzerland.
During
the meeting participants focused their attention on the contribution
Blessed John XXIII’s Encyclical "Pacem in Terris" has
made to the social doctrine of the Church. That document reaffirms
the central thesis of all Church social doctrine, which is that "each
individual man is truly a person. His is a nature that is endowed
with intelligence and free will". On this basis the Encyclical
underlines the notion of the common good, that is to say "all
those social conditions which favour the full development of human
personality". Participants in the plenary concluded that, in the
modern world characterised by globalisation, the economic crisis and
nationalist and religious conflicts, it is vital to rediscover the
truth about human beings and the common good, because they are the
cornerstones of social life.
OTHER
PONTIFICAL ACTS
Vatican
City, 2 May 2012 (VIS) - The Holy Father:
-
Accepted the resignation from the pastoral care of the diocese of
Papantla, Mexico, presented by Bishop Lorenzo Cardenas Aregullin,
upon having reached the age limit. He is succeeded by Coadjutor
Bishop Jorge Carlos Patron Wong.
-
Appointed Msgr. Paul R. Sanchez of the clergy of Brooklyn, U.S.A.,
episcopal vicar for Queens, and Msgr. Raymond F. Chappetto, also of
the clergy of Brooklyn, vicar for clergy and consecrated life and
pastor of Our Lady of the Snows at Floral Park, as auxiliaries of
Brooklyn (area 466, population 4,849,605, Catholics 1,556,575,
priests 619, permanent deacons 179, religious 177). Bishop-elect
Sanchez was born in Brooklyn in 1946 and ordained a priest in 1971.
He has worked as pastor in a number of parishes and is a member of
the diocesan liturgical commission. Bishop-elect Chappetto was born
in Astoria in 1945 and ordained a priest in 1971. He has worked as
pastor in various parishes in Brooklyn.
On
Tuesday 1 May it was made public that the Holy Father appointed Fr.
Raymond Poisson, pastor of the Sainte-Marguerite-d'Younville pastoral
unit in the diocese of Saint-Jean-Longueuil, Canada, as auxiliary of
Saint-Jerome (area 2,156, population 444,000, Catholics 431,000,
priests 91, permanent deacons 19, religious 137), Canada. The
bishop-elect was born in Saint-Hyacinthe, Canada in 1958 and ordained
a priest in 1983. He studied in Canada and in Rome, and has served in
pastoral duties and as private secretary to the bishop of
Saint-Jean-Longueuil.
You
can find more information at: www.visnews.org
The
news items contained in the Vatican Information Service may be used,
in part or in their entirety, by quoting the source:
V.I.S.
-Vatican Information Service.
Copyright
© Vatican Information Service 00120 Vatican City
