SUMMARY:
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BENEDICT XVI RECEIVES CONGRATULATIONS FROM CARDINALS AND BISHOPS
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THE PEACE OF CHRIST IS THE RESULT OF HIS VICTORY OVER EVIL
-
THE HOLY ROBE, SYMBOL OF THE CHURCH'S INDIVISIBLE UNITY
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HOLY SEE PRESS OFFICE DIRECTOR SPEAKS ABOUT THE ORLANDI CASE
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FIVE CARDINALS TO TAKE POSSESSION OF TITLES, DIACONATES
-
AUDIENCES
-
OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS
_____________________________________
BENEDICT
XVI RECEIVES CONGRATULATIONS FROM CARDINALS AND BISHOPS
Vatican
City, 16 April 2012 (VIS) - Benedict XVI today celebrates his
eighty-fifth birthday. He was born in the German village of Marktl am
Inn on 16 April 1927. Later this week, on Thursday 19 April, he will
also celebrate the seventh anniversary of his election to the Papacy.
For these two occasions, a Mass of thanksgiving was celebrated this
morning in the Pauline Chapel of the Vatican Apostolic Palace, in the
presence of members of the College of Cardinals and a group of
bishops from the Pope's native region of Bavaria.
Before
the Eucharistic celebration, Cardinal Angelo Sodano, dean of the
College of Cardinals, addressed some words to the Holy Father.
"Seven
years ago", he said, "the Lord called you to a great
gesture of love, asking you, as one day He did Peter: 'If you love
me, feed my lambs, tend my sheep'. With the generosity you have
always shown, you pronounced your 'yes' and thus began your Petrine
ministry. Today, on the occasion of your birthday, we wish to thank
you for the solicitude with which you carry out this service of love.
It is no coincidence that your first Encyclical was a hymn to the
Love that is God, the love which must always animate pastors, who are
called to bring the light of God, the warmth of His love, into the
world.
"Holy
Father, may the Lord continue to remain at your side, accomplishing
the promise announced by God to the just man in Psalm 90: 'With long
life I will satisfy them, and show them my salvation'".
After
presiding at the Eucharist, Benedict XVI greeted the Bavarian bishops
and received a delegation from the civil authorities of that region.
THE
PEACE OF CHRIST IS THE RESULT OF HIS VICTORY OVER EVIL
Vatican
City, 15 April 2012 (VIS) - Before praying the Regina Coeli this
morning, Benedict XVI reminded the faithful gathered in St. Peter's
Square that today, the second Sunday of Easter, is known as Divine
Mercy Sunday.
In
His two apparitions to the disciples gathered in the Upper Room,
Jesus often repeated the greeting "peace be with you".
Following the resurrection, the Pope explained, this traditional
salute became "the gift of that peace which only Jesus can give,
because it is the fruit of His victory over evil. The 'peace' which
Jesus offered His friends is the fruit of the love of God, which led
Him to die on the cross and to spill His blood as a mild and humble
Lamb 'full of grace and truth'. This is why Blessed John Paul II
chose to dedicate the Sunday after Easter to Divine Mercy".
From
the risen and living Christ "come the Paschal Sacraments of
Baptism and the Eucharist. Those who receive these Sacraments receive
the gift of eternal life", said the Holy Father. He also noted
how Christian worship is essentially "a meeting with the risen
Lord, Who lives in the dimension of God, beyond time and space, yet
at the same time is truly present in the community. He speaks to us
of Sacred Scripture and breaks with us the Bread of eternal life.
Through these signs we have the same experience as the disciples: to
see Jesus and at the same time not to recognise Him".
In
conclusion the Pope invited believers to welcome the gift offered by
the risen Christ. "Let us allow our hearts to be filled by His
Mercy", he said. "In this way, with the power of the Holy
Spirit, the Spirit which caused Jesus to arise from the dead, we too
can take these Paschal gifts to others".
Following
the Marian prayer, the Pope told the faithful: "On Thursday, the
seventh anniversary of my election to the Chair of Peter, I ask you
to pray for me, that the Lord may give me the strength to carry out
the mission with which He has entrusted me".
THE
HOLY ROBE, SYMBOL OF THE CHURCH'S INDIVISIBLE UNITY
Vatican
City, 14 April 2012 (VIS) - Thousands of pilgrims are currently
converging on the cathedral of Trier, Germany, for the fifth
centenary of the first public display of the "Heiliger Rock",
said to be the Holy Robe which Jesus wore before His crucifixion and
for which, according to the Gospel of St. John, the Roman soldiers
cast lots.
According
to tradition, part of this robe was found by Helena, mother of
Constantine the Great, who gave it to St. Agricius, archbishop of
Trier. The faithful were able to see it for the first time in 1512
when the emperor Maximilian I asked Archbishop Richard von
Greiffenklau of Trier to put it on public display.
For
the inauguration of the pilgrimage, which will last until 13 May,
Benedict XVI has sent a message to Bishop Stephan Ackermann of Trier.
The document bears the date of 6 April, Good Friday.
The
Holy Father recalls how St. John says that the tunic was a single
seamless piece of cloth, for which reason the soldiers decided not to
tear it but to cast lots. "The Church Fathers saw in this the
unity of the Church, founded as one indivisible community by the love
of Christ", the Pope says. "The Saviour's love brings
together that which has been divided. ... Moreover, the Robe of
Christ is 'woven in one piece from the top'. This too is an image of
the Church, which lives not thanks to her own efforts but because of
the action of God. As one indivisible community she is a work of God,
not the result of man's abilities. At the same time, the Holy Robe is
a monition to the Church to remain faithful to her origins, in the
awareness that her unity, consensus, effectiveness and witness ...
can only be a gift of God".
Finally,
the Holy Father writes, "the Holy Robe is not a toga, an elegant
garment expressing a social function; it is a modest habiliment which
serves to cover and protect the person wearing it, to protect his
propriety. It is the undivided gift of the Crucified Christ to the
Church which He sanctified with His blood. For this reason the Holy
Robe reminds the Church of her own dignity. ... We must be constantly
open to conversion and humility, in order to be disciples of the Lord
in love and truth. At the same time, the special dignity and
integrity of the Church cannot be sold short and abandoned to the
clamour and the summary judgement of public opinion".
Concluding
his message the Pope notes that "the jubilee pilgrimage has
taken as its motto an invocation of the Lord: 'Lead to unity that
which is divided'. We do not want to be isolated. We want to ask the
Lord to guide us on the shared path of faith, to make it live again
for us. In this way - growing together as Christians in faith, prayer
and witness, and amidst of the trials of our time - we will be able
to proclaim His magnificence and His goodness".
HOLY
SEE PRESS OFFICE DIRECTOR SPEAKS ABOUT THE ORLANDI CASE
Vatican
City, 14 April 2012 (VIS) - Holy See Press Office Director Fr.
Federico Lombardi S.J. today issued a note concerning news which has
appeared recently in Italian media outlets about the Vatican and the
Emanuela Orlandi case. Emanuela Orlandi, the daughter of an employee
of Vatican City State and herself a Vatican citizen, disappeared on
22 June 1983 at the age of 15. Her disappearance has given rise to
much speculation over the last thirty years. Among other theories, it
has been conjectured that the case was related to the assassination
attempt against John Paul II in 1981, and that it involved secret
services or groups active in the Roman underworld of the time. In
2008 an Italian television programme transmitted information
suggesting that Emanuela Orlandi's remains may be buried in the same
grave as the leader of one of those criminal gangs.
Extracts
from Fr. Lombardi's note are given below.
"It
should be recalled that Pope John Paul II demonstrated particular
personal interest in this tragic abduction, intervening publicly on
various occasions (no fewer than eight in less than a year) with
appeals for the liberation of Emanuela. He also went in person to
visit the family. ... This personal commitment of the Pope was
naturally backed up by the commitment of his collaborators. Cardinal
Agostino Casaroli, secretary of State and therefore the Pope's main
collaborator, followed events personally, and made a special
telephone available line for contact with the kidnappers.
"As
has been stated in the past, and is still maintained by Cardinal
Giovanni Battista Re - then assessor of the Secretariat of State and
today the main and most authoritative witness from that time - both
the Secretariat of State and the Governorate did everything possible
to deal with the painful situation by collaborating with the Italian
authorities, who obviously had responsibility for the investigations
as the abduction took place in Italy. The complete readiness to
collaborate on the part of people holding positions of responsibility
within the Vatican at the time is proven by the facts and the
circumstances. ... All the letters and information which reached the
Vatican were immediately passed on to Inspector Sica at the General
Inspectorate for Public Security in the Vatican, and are presumably
still held in the competent Italian judicial offices.
"Likewise
in the second phase of the investigation, years later, the three
rogatory letters send to the Vatican authorities by Italian
investigators ... all received a response". At the request of
the Italian judges numerous people were interrogated in the Vatican
and their declarations sent to the authorities concerned. "The
relevant files still exist and remain at the disposal of
investigators. It should also be pointed out that at the time of
Emanuela's abduction, the Vatican authorities granted Italian
investigators of SISDE (the Italian secret service) authorisation to
place the telephone line of the Orlandi family under surveillance,
and gave them free access to the Vatican allowing them to go to the
Orlandi home without mediation by Vatican functionaries. It is not,
then, correct to accuse the Vatican of having refused to collaborate
with the Italian investigative authorities".
"The
main issue is that, unfortunately, no information useful for the
solution of the case ... was found in the Vatican. At that time the
Vatican authorities, on the basis of messages they received referring
to Ali Agca - a period which effectively coincided with the
investigation on the attack against the Pope - shared the prevailing
opinion that the kidnapping was used by an obscure criminal
organisation to send a message or to apply pressure in relation to
the incarceration and interrogation of the Pope's attacker.
"There
was no reason to imagine other possible motives for the kidnapping.
Attributing knowledge of secrets related to the abduction, allegedly
possessed by people belonging to Vatican institutions, but without
giving any names, is neither a reliable nor well-founded way to
proceed. At times it almost seems to be a pretext against the anguish
and frustration of not being able to discover the truth.
"In
conclusion, ... it has not emerged that there is anything hidden, nor
that there are 'secrets' to be revealed in the Vatican. Continuing to
affirm the contrary is completely unjustified".
"Finally,
since the location of the grave of Enrico De Pedis in the basilica of
Sant'Apollinare in Rome has given, and continues to give rise to
questions and discussion, over and above any links he may have had
with the Orlandi case, we reiterate that the Church has no objection
to the opening of the tomb and the burial of the body elsewhere, in
order to restore the serenity that is right and just for a holy
place.
"To
conclude, we would like to draw inspiration from John Paul II's own
intense personal participation in this tragic event, and in the
suffering of the family, ... a suffering unfortunately rekindled
every time a new explanation of the case emerges. ... Alas, many
people disappear in Italy every year, and are never heard from again
despite searches and enquiries; yet the affair of this young and
innocent Vatican citizen continues to come under the spotlight. This
should not be a reason to attribute the Vatican with a guilt it does
not have, but rather an occasion to gain greater awareness of
terrible and often forgotten disappearances (especially of young
people), and to make every effort to oppose all criminal activity
from whatever source".
FIVE
CARDINALS TO TAKE POSSESSION OF TITLES, DIACONATES
Vatican
City, 16 April 2012 (VIS) - A note released today by the Office of
Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff provides details
concerning the taking of possession of the following titles and
diaconates:
Cardinal
Prosper Grech O.S.A., will take possession of the diaconate of Santa
Maria Goretti in Via di Santa Maria Goretti 29, Rome, at 6 p.m. on
Saturday 21 April.
Cardinal
Karl Josef Becker S.J., will take possession of the diaconate of San
Giuliano Martire in Via Cassia 1036, Rome, at 11 a.m. on Sunday 22
April.
Cardinal
Manuel Monteiro de Castro, penitentiary major, will take possession
of the diaconate of San Domenico di Guzman in Via Vincenzo Marmorale
25, Rome, at 11.15 a.m. on Sunday 22 April.
Cardinal
John Tong Hon, bishop of Hong Kong, China, will take possession of
the title of title of Regina Apostolorum in Via Antonino Pio 75,
Rome, at 11.30 a.m. on Sunday 22 April.
Cardinal
Francesco Coccopalmerio, president of the Pontifical Council for
Legislative Texts, will take possession of the diaconate of San
Giuseppe dei Falegnami in Clivo Argentario 1, Rome, at 5 p.m. on
Thursday 26 April.
AUDIENCES
Vatican
City, 16 April 2012 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in
audience Horst Seehofer, minister-president of Bavaria, Germany.
OTHER
PONTIFICAL ACTS
Vatican
City, 14 April 2012 (VIS) - The Holy Father appointed:
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Archbishop Marek Solczynski, apostolic nuncio to Georgia and Armenia,
also as apostolic nuncio to Azerbaijan.
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As consultors of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints: Msgr.
Luis Manuel Cuna Ramos, Fr. Filippo Urso, Fr. Wojciech Giertych O.P.,
Fr. Antonio Escudero Cabello S.D.B., Fr. Marek Rostkowsi O.M.I., Fr.
Alfonso Amarante C.SS.R., Sr. Albarosa Ines Bassani S.V.D.I., and Sr.
Grazia Loparco F.M.A.
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