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December 29

Pope prays the Angelus with pilgrims daily

Rome, 29 (NE) In this Christmas time of the Great Jubilee, the Pope's traditional Sunday meeting with pilgrims to pray the Angelus has become a daily event. As from last Sunday, Pope John Paul II has prayed the Marian prayer from his study overlooking St. Peter's Square every day of the week, accompanying pilgrims waiting in St. Peter's Square to cross the Holy Door and giving his apostolic blessing.

Last Tuesday, the Pope said he was "moved" by the number of faithful crossing the Holy Door. This "evokes in my mind the People of God in their way to the Promised Land. Christ is the true door that introduces us, His people, to the 'Promised Land' of Heaven", he said on that occasion. On Wednesday he also prayed the Angelus at midday, greeting faithful and giving his apostolic blessing, as he did as well yesterday.

"With these tender expressions of paternity and prayer", says today's edition of L'Osservatore Romano, "the Pope accompanies… the steps of the pilgrims towards the Holy Door. And he spiritually guards and participates in the path of the People of God, which is encouraged and is happy to 'videre Petrum' in the path the leads to the encounter with Christ."

Make the third Christian millennium true to its name, says Arlington Bishop

Arlington, 29 (NE) "Let the message of Christ fill you with hope so that you in turn can bring that hope to a world so much in need of its healing power." With these words Bishop Paul S. Loverde of Arlington urged faithful in his diocese to live the true meaning of the Christmas celebrations. In a message on occasion of Christmas, the Bishop stressed that "ours is now the challenge of making this third Christian millennium true to its name". He also invited faithful in Arlington to "look upon the Infant in the manger in Bethlehem, upon His mother Mary and St. Joseph, upon the Holy Family, and learn from them." "Theirs was a home marked by unity, love, respect and devotion to God. In the infant Savior, we find the answer to all the problems facing our world today: to the culture of death, the message of life; to divisiveness, the message of unity; to pride, the message of humility; to individualism and egoism, the message of self-emptying service; to the question of evil, the message of God's love and to the temptation to despair, the message of hope. Indeed, Jesus Christ is our only hope", further said the Bishop.

December 28

Rome: prayer vigils to receive new year

Vatican City, 28 (NE) Faithful in Rome will receive the new year with a solemn prayer vigil to take place in St. Peter's Square, beginning at 22.30. As it was recently announced, Pope John Paul II will give his apostolic blessing from his private study overlooking St. Peter's Square at midnight. Youth in Rome will also be able to participate at a prayer vigil to be held in Sant'Agnese in Agone church, in Piazza Navona. The vigil, organized by the youth service of the Central Committee of the Jubilee, will begin at 9 p.m. and continue with Eucharist adoration throughout the night. Two times during the night, at 11 p.m. and at 6 in the morning, Mass will be celebrated for the young faithful assisting the vigil. Meanwhile, as part of the closing celebrations for the Jubilee, Pope John Paul II will meet on January 5 groups of children from different parts of the world. In this way, the Holy Year, inaugurated with the Jubilee of Children held last January 2, will also end with a feast dedicated to them.

Indonesia: Cardinal urges reconciliation and peace after attacks on Christians

Rome, 28 (NE) Commenting the bomb blasts near churches on Christmas Eve in Indonesia, which killed at least 14 people and injured almost 100, the Archbishop of Jakarta, Cardinal Julius Darmaatmadja, urged to reconciliation in the country and called Catholics to encourage peace. The Cardinal called the bomb blasts on Christmas Eve "inhuman acts that victimized innocent people" and asked faithful not to retaliate, but the respond "to the situation in a rational manner. The meaning of Christmas must urge us to reconcile with everybody". Police defused 16 out of 31 bombs, but 15 others exploded. The bombs were planted in 21 public locations, 18 of them outside churches in six provinces. During his homily last December 25, Cardinal Darmaatmadja invited Catholics to renew Christ's love in their relationship with others in the form of genuine brotherhood and solidarity and stressed the message of peace brought by Christmas celebration. To bring peace, he further stressed, "means to reconcile, to bring peace, to forgive, to create genuine harmony, no matter what background we are from".

December 27

Pope "moved" by number of pilgrims crossing Holy Door

Vatican City, 27 (NE) Pope John Paul II offered yesterday some reflections about Christmas during his brief address before the Angelus prayer. Speaking from his window over St. Peter's Square, the Pope related the celebration of Christmas with the feast of St. Stephen, the first martyr of the Church. Although not every Christian is called to be a martyr, he said, "every Christian must be coherent with his own faith throughout his existence".

To follow the Gospel "is certainly a demanding and arduous path, but we are comforted by the gift that the Lord offers to men and women of goodwill". "In Bethlehem, in fact, the angels announce to the shepherds 'peace on earth to men who God loves'. The much awaited and hoped peace, the only one which can calm the conscience and heart of every person, is assured to all those who, in spite of the trials in life, welcome the word of God and make the effort to observe it with perseverance until the end."

After the Marian prayer, the Pope expressed his joy for the great number of pilgrims crossing the Holy Door. "This morning too I have seen and I see in this plaza the multitude of people that, taking advantage of the last days of the Jubilee, patiently wait to enter the Basilica through the Holy Door." "It is a scene that moves me and evokes in my mind the People of God in their way to the Promised Land. Christ is the true door that introduces us, His people, to the 'Promised Land' of Heaven", he concluded.

December 26

Christ is the reason for our hope, recalls Pope in "Urbi et orbi" message

Rome, 26 (NE) "O Christ, whom we look on today in the arms of Mary, you are the reason for our hope!" With these words Pope John Paul II addressed yesterday thousands of faithful gathered in St. Peter's Square, during his traditional "Urbi et orbi" message. This year, on occasion of Christmas, the Pope greeted pilgrims from different nations in 59 languages.

In his message "to Rome and to the world", the Holy Father recalled the incarnation of the Eternal Word of the Father, "a mystery which the Church re-lives with profound emotion during this Christmas of the Year 2000, the Year of the Great Jubilee." "The whole history of the world tends towards him, born in Bethlehem in order to restore hope to every man and woman on the face of the earth," he said.

The Pope also mentioned several situations that today affect man's dignity. "We cannot but recall today", he said "that shadows of death threaten people's lives at every stage of life, and are especially menacing at its earliest beginning and its natural end." "We are faced by alarming signs of the 'culture of death', which pose a serious threat for the future", he further stressed.

"Yet however dense the darkness may appear, our hope for the triumph of the Light which appeared on this Holy Night at Bethlehem is stronger still. So much good is being done, silently, by men and women who daily live their faith, their work, their dedication to their families and to the good of society."

"Of humanity as it approaches the new millennium", the Pope said in closing, "You, Lord Jesus, born for us at Bethlehem ask respect for every person, especially the small and the weak; you ask for an end to all forms of violence! To wars, oppression, and all attacks on life! O Christ, whom we look on today in the arms of Mary, you are the reason for our hope! Saint Paul tells us: 'The old has passed away, behold, the new has come!' In you, only in you, is humanity offered the chance to become 'a new creation'. Thank you, Child Jesus, for this your gift! Happy Christmas to all!

December 22

Pope renews call to peace in Holy Land

Vatican City, 22 (NE) During his meeting with Cardinals of the Roman Curia along with other collaborators for the exchange of Christmas wishes, Pope John Paul II renewed yesterday his call to peace in Holy Land. During the traditional meeting, the Holy Father also recalled important events taken place during the Great Jubilee of the year 2000.

"The Holy Door is about to close but Christ Whom it represents is 'the same yesterday, today and always'. He is the 'door'!" The Pope said that the "very great number of pilgrims" who passed through the Holy Door of St. Peter's Basilica offered "ever new witnesses of faith and devotion." He especially recalled the World Youth Day and the Jubilee of Young People, "not only for the dimensions which marked it but above all for the commitment that 'the Pope's boys and girls - as they are called - knew how to show."

Referring to the situation in Holy Land, the Pope expressed his "closeness to all of those who are suffering in this protracted conflict, and we ask God to placate the violence of both feelings and arms, and to orient people to adequate solutions for a just and lasting peace."

Lima: thousands of poor children live the joy of a Christmas

Lima, 22 (NE) Thousands of poor children in the city of Lima have been celebrating Christmas as a true celebration of joy and happiness. With the participation of over 1.800 young volunteers and married couples, members of the Christian Life Movement, over 20 thousand children from the North, South and East areas of the Peruvian capital have celebrated a Christmas with the Lord Jesus at the very center of the celebrations. In addition, they have received gifts and have taken part in the feast that the birth of the Savior means.

The Christmas campaign sponsored by the members of the Christian Life Movement has reached on this occasion over 30 different locations in the poorest zones of the city. With the motto "Christmas is Jesus", the initiative has also included intense activity of catechism. After the meaning of Christmas was emphasized, the children received gifts and enjoyed the traditional Christmas cake and hot chocolate.

The celebrations in each of the various poor areas of the periphery of the city begin with a prayer and allusive songs. Theatrical representations symbolizing the birth of the Lord Jesus in Bethlehem, two thousand years ago, and other activities of catechism also were held. Thousands of children and people of different ages could, thus, celebrate with great joy the birth of Holy Mary's Son, proclaiming that "Christmas is Jesus".

Mexico: Church willing to help people affected by volcano

Mexico City, 22 (NE) Before the large number of people hurt and affected by the activity of the Popocatéptl Volcano in Mexico, Cardinal Norberto Rivera confirmed the willingness of the Catholic Church to collaborate in the work of assistance and solidarity. Talking to the press of this country, Cardinal Rivera affirmed the willingness of the Catholic Church to help in the emergency work, through Caritas in the Archdiocese of Mexico, "if they ask us help." On the other hand, Archbishop Rivera asked the whole population to avoid acts of vandalism in the circumstances they are living in, making an invitation to solidarity with those who have been affected by the rain of ashes thrown by the Popocatéptl Volcano, one of world's biggest volcanoes in activity.

Cardinal Law: "Bring to a close this Jubilee Year receiving the Sacrament of Penance"

Boston, 22 (NE) "There is no better way to bring to a close this Jubilee Year than to receive the Sacrament of Penance", stressed Cardinal Bernard Law, Archbishop of Boston, in a recent column written for the archdiocesan weekly The Pilot. In his words, the Cardinal called faithful "to be attentive to the call to renewal, the call to conversion" and "never cease to open wide the doors of our hearts, our lives to Christ"

Stressing the importance of the Sacrament of Reconciliation as a privileged way to live this renewal, the Archbishop of Boston said that "it is no secret that many Catholics do not avail themselves of this great sacrament. Why? Perhaps some erroneously believe it is no longer necessary. Perhaps some have lost a consciousness of sin. This is not difficult to do in our world. Too much stress is placed on self-expression, on the right to choose whatever the object of that choice, that a sense of moral responsibility can easily be lost."

"The Sacrament of Penance", he said in closing, "is the ordinary way for us to make straight the way of the Lord into our hearts". "There is no better way to bring to a close this Jubilee Year than to receive the Sacrament of Penance. My prayers have been that we might begin to see a revival of this sacrament in the Church."

Mexico: shrine in honor of Blessed Juan Diego soon to be built

Mexico City, 22 (NE) The Director of the Center for Guadalupan Studies in Mexico, Msgr. Enrique Salazar, presented this week the project for the construction of a shrine in honor of Blessed Juan Diego. According to the Director, the first phase of the shrine could be finished in 12 months. During the press conference, Msgr. Salazar stressed that he expected the canonization of Blessed Juan Diego to take place next year, although no date could be yet given. He also raised the possibility of a new visit from Pope John Paul II to inaugurate the shrine. "That is what we want", he affirmed, "but first may the canonization take place, and that will give a further thrust to the building of the shrine". "With this shrine we will demonstrate the great devotion towards Blessed Juan Diego", he commented. The church in honor of the Blessed will stand in the hill of Zacahutizco, in a land donated to the Church by the government.

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