Church celebrates 25th anniversary of election of Pope John Paul I

Rome, 26 (NE) With a Mass presided by Archbishop Angelo Scola, Patriarch of Venice, the Church will celebrate today the 25th anniversary of the election of Pope John Paul I. Archbishop Scola will celebrate Mass in Canale d'Agordo, where Pope Luciani -who was Pope for only 33 days- was born.

Meanwhile, Bishop Vincenzo Savio of Belluno Feltre, diocese to which belongs Canale d' Agordo, reported that in the last months has concluded in a positive way the investigation that has verified the premises to open the beatification cause of Pope Luciani.

Albino Luciani was born on October 17, 1912, in Forno di Canale (currently named Canale d' Agordo), then a village of little more than a thousand inhabitants in northern Italy, in the diocese of Belluno. Albino was the older among four brothers. After studying in the local seminar of Belluno, he was ordained priest on July 7, 1935. Subsequently he went to Rome to continue his theological studies in the Gregorian University.

In 1937 he returned to his hometown, where he had been named coadjutor of a parish. Soon he would be named vice-rector of Belluno's Gregorian Seminar and there, for ten years, he dedicated himself to teach different subjects: dogmatic theology, moral, law and religious arts.

On 1954 he was named general vicar of Belluno, and four years later Pope John XXIII, in Rome, consecrated him Bishop of the Vittorio Veneto's, a diocese near Venice. In 1969 Pope Paul VI named him Patriarch of Venice, and in 1973 the same Pope created him cardinal. On August 26, 1978 he was elected as Saint Peter's Successor, being called to the house of the Father only 33 days later.

Holy Father asks Europe not to forget its catholic roots

Rome, 26 (NE) Last Sunday, in the internal patio of the Apostolic Palace in Castelgandolfo, Pope John Paul II invited the pilgrims to elevate their prayers to the Virgin Mary so that the European Union does not reject the spiritual heritage that the Gospel means for the peoples of this continent.

"We invoke -exhorted the Holy Father- Blessed Mary, so she helps Europeans not to forget, in the construction of today and tomorrow's Europe, that spiritual inspiration indispensable to operate in authentic way at man's service". "Such inspiration -he explained- finds in the Gospel a sure guarantee and the advantage of liberty, of justice and peace of all, believers and not believers".

In that same sense, the Holy Father indicated that "the Catholic Church is convinced that the Gospel of Christ, that has been constituted into an unifying element of European peoples for many centuries, continues remaining as an endless source of spirituality and fraternity".

Archbishop of Denver calls to "to announce the Gospel without concessions"

Denver, 26 (NE) Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver gave an interview to the newspaper 'Rocky Mountain News' speaking about many current issues, among which was the defense of Christian doctrine in the present culture. In fact, he affirmed that one of the major challenges facing not only the Archdiocese, but every Christian, "is to preach the gospel without compromising in a culture that is increasingly unfriendly". He indicated that some 'Christians and Christian groups might be willing to adjust the Christian message to fit the times', succumbing to the 'pressures to compromise' that the world puts. Standing before this reality, he said that "the role of a bishop is to do all you can to make sure the Church is faithful to the teachings of the apostles. We don't have a right to change the teachings".

When the interviewer asked that he specified a little more those "pressures to compromise", the Prelate explained that he referred primarily "to the life issues - abortion, capital punishment and physician-assisted suicide-". He added, then, other important issues, "especially regarding sexuality, such as contraception, homosexual marriage and cohabitation outside of marriage" and also "the genetic issues, including experimentation on embryos and certain fertility techniques". " The church -he added- has a clear role to play in preserving the dignity of the individual and promoting society's common good".

Among the issues that he spoke about was also the movie "The Passion" produced by Mel Gibson, that he thought to be "an extraordinary work of art and extraordinarily faithful to the Gospels". He also commented that he was in disagreement with the ones who affirm that the movie is anti-Semite and he emphasized that the anti-Semitism is a sin. "But to clearly proclaim our belief that Jesus is the Messiah and that he suffered, died and rose from the dead is for us something we have a duty to proclaim", asserted.

One of the questions gave him the opportunity to reproach the reaction of some catholic politicians on the recommendations of the Church regarding the homosexual relations. "They rushed to say that they weren't going to let the Vatican tell them what to think or how to vote". Against it he argued that "it's the Vatican's job to help guide Catholics in understanding and applying their faith. That's not news. Catholics believe in the separation of church and state, but if you're a Catholic and take your faith seriously then Catholic teaching informs your judgment. To say you won't let your convictions influence your political decision-making is a strange position to take. It implies that public service demands moral neutrality. That doesn't make any sense, and it results in a civic life without character or meaning".

Cardinal Ratzinger speaks about the crisis of sex abuse in the United States

Denver, 22 (NE - eclesiales.org) The catholic channel EWTN has recently informed that Cardinal Ratzinger has granted an exclusive interview to the EWTNews Director, Raymond Arroy, in which responds to several fundamental questions regarding the situation of the world and the Church. Although the integral interview will air on Friday, September 5 (at 8 PM EDT), the television network has advanced some of the Cardinal's questions and answers.

Among the questions responded, here there is one about his retirement. " Yes, I had the desire to retire in 1991, 1996, 2001 because I had the idea I could write some books and return to my studies as Cardinal Martini did… but, on the other hand, seeing the suffering Pope, I cannot say to the Pope, 'I will retire, I will write my books' … I have to continue."

Another answer that EWTN has advanced was about the root cause of the current crisis of sex abuse in the United States. The Cardinal explained that "The general element is a weakness of human beings, even of priests…temptations are present also for the priests…I think the essential point is a weakness of faith…So, two things are essential. Conversion to a profound and deep faith with a life of prayer and sacraments and clear moral teaching and connection of the teaching that the Church has the Holy Spirit and can give us the way".

The EWTNews Director also asked what did Cardinal think about the role that the Episcopal Conference should play in the solution of this delicate matter. "Coordination between the bishops is certainly necessary because the United States is a great continent. From the outset it is clear that the personal responsibility of the bishop is fundamental for the Church, and perhaps the anonymity of the Bishops' Conferences can be a danger for the Church. Nobody is personally, immediately responsible. It was always the Conference and you do not know where or who is the conference."

Finally, EWTN advanced a question on how to bring the Church teaching into a culture where we now have homosexual marriages being legalized, in vitro fertilization and technologies of reproduction outside of the marital act. "It is always essential that the nature of a human being is a given, and we understand that men and women were created one for the other…So I think even if our culture is against marriage as an essential form of relations between women and men, I think our nature is always present and we can understand it if we will to understand it. I hope it is possible in a sincere and open dialogue with the people to understand even today that our nature is this: man and woman are created one for the other."

Pope John Paul II will beatify two martyrs in his travel to Slovakia

Rome, 19 (NE) The Holy See has published today the program of Holy Father's next trip to Slovakia, to be taken from September 11th to 14th and which will have like peak point the beatification of two martyrs of the 20th century.

According to the program, the Pontifical will arrive to the international airport of Bratislava at 10:40am, where there will be a welcome ceremony in which the Pope will deliver a speech. After going to the Apostolic Nunciature, the Holy Father will receive the President of Slovakia, and then he will receive the visit of the Parliament President and the Prime Minister. In the afternoon from that day the program foresees a visit to the Trnava Cathedral, a Gothic church dedicated to San Nicolas and built in the middle of the 14th Century. Trnava, located 37 km from Bratislava northeast, is called "the Roman Slovakia", both due to the its numerous monasteries and churches and for having been an important Catholicism center in the medieval Period.

On September 12th the Holy Father leaves in the morning to Banska Bystrica, the administrative, economic and cultural center of Slovakia's middle region. Later on, at 10:30 the Holy Father will preside a Mass in the Resurgence National Plaza and at 13:45 will have lunch in the Major Seminar with the members of the Slovak Episcopal Conference to whom he will read a message, returning to Bratislava in the afternoon.

On Saturday 13th, the Holy Father will dedicate himself to visit Rožnava, a city founded 700 years ago in the oriental region of the country. At 11:30 he will have a Mass in the Podrákoš Field on the city's outwards, after which he will have lunch with the city bishops in the Archbishop Palace.

Sunday September 14th will be the peak moment of the whole trip. During a Mass at 10:00 in the morning on the Petržalka Terrace in Bratislava, the Holy Father will beatify two martyrs, bishop Basilio Hopko (1904-1976) and sister Zdenka Schelingová (1916-1955). The future beatified religious have died due to the sufferings and bad treatments received during their imprisonment by the communist state. The former was imprisoned in 1950 when the Greek catholic Church was suppressed by the government and died in jail and the latter was arrested in February 1952, by contributing in the escape of a sick priest unjustly imprisoned and died in 1955 few months after being released.

The Holy Father will recite his traditional Angelus Sunday prayer in the same place, the Petržalka Terrace.

After the beatification mass, the Pope will have lunch with the archdiocese bishops in the Apostolic Nunciature and in the afternoon, after the farewell ceremony at the international airport of Bratislava, he will return to Rome.

According to statistics diffused by the Holy See, Slovakia has a population of 5,4 million people, among which near 4 million are catholic. Besides that, the country has 20 bishops and close to 2.500 priests.

Holy Father calls Europe to recover its true identity

Rome, 18 (NE - eclesiales.org) In his habitual message to the pilgrims before the Angelus prayer in Castelgandolfo, the Holy Father insisted once more this Sunday in the theme of Europe's Christian identity. The Holy Father began his words making a reference to the solemnity of the Assumption, celebrated yesterday, recalling the words of the Lord in the Apocalypse: "Behold, I make all things new". "In the Apocalypse -explained the Holy Father- the Gospel of Hope echoes vigorously, what does not urge to receive the 'novelty of God', scatological gift that goes beyond all human possibility, and that only He can do. This 'novelty' will be totally fulfilled in the end of times, but is already present in the history. Since now, in fact, God is renewing and transforming the world, and the perceptible reflections of His action are also 'in every form of human relation encouraged by the Gospel'".

About this theme, he turned his look to the European Continent, "that for two millenniums has been listening to the Gospel of the kingdom inaugurated by Jesus", and "cannot deny to be interpelated by this 'novelty'". "The Christian faith has given its form, -continues explaining the Holy Father- and some of its fundamental values have inspired thereafter 'the democratic ideal and the human rights' of European modernity. More than 'a geographical place', Europe is 'a predominantly cultural and historic concept', being characterized as Continent thanks only to the unifying force of Christianity, that has known to integrate the different towns and cultures by itself ".

Standing before the undeniable "crisis of values" Europe is facing "in these our times", the Holy Father marked again the need of "recovering its true identity". He explained that "the process of enlargement of the European Union to other countries cannot consider only geographical and economical aspects, but should be translated in a renewed agreement of values that must be expressed in the right and life".

The Pontifical concluded his words with a call to pray "to the Holy Virgin, venerated in so many European sanctuaries, so she may help the Continent to be always conscious of its own spiritual vocation and to contribute to the construction of solidarity and peace 'inside its bounds and all over world' ".

Archbishop Charles Chaput named by President Bush for the International Commission for Religious Liberty

Denver, 18 (NE - eclesiales.org) The Archbishop of Denver, archbishop Charles Chaput, was named by the president Bush for the North American Commission for the International Religious Liberty by a period of one year. As reported by the Archdiocese of Denver, the Commission is a governmental organ created by the Certificate of International Religious Liberty in 1998 to monitor the religious liberty in the different countries and to advise the President how to promote it best.

It is not the first time that a Catholic Bishop is named for the charge. In fact, archbishop Chaput, regarding its assignment, affirmed that "is a privilege to follow Cardinal McCarrick and bishop Murphy in the Commission to build on what they have already done during their service", being referred their two ancestors in the charge, respectively Archbishop of Washington and Bishop of Rockville Centre, the former, in charge from 1999 to 2001 and the latter from 2001 to 2003.

After the announcement, made public last Wednesday, the Archbishop also said that "liberty of religion is one of the most basic human rights. It is also the most severe and brutally right violated in many countries in the world. Because of it I appreciate President Bush for this assignment, and I am very grateful for doing whatever I can to promote the people's right of giving worship according to their own convictions".

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