Fr. Bob’s Corner

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Christmas Trees have been a part of my Christmas for 65 years. I can’t imagine Christmas without one. Yet, it was only in 1982 that John Paul II recognized the tradition. In that year John Paul II requested that a Christmas tree adorn St Peter’s Square during the Christmas Season, and one has enhanced the square every Christmas since. On December the 4th, 2009 a 100ft tree was put in place in the square. The official lighting ceremony took place on December 18th. Pope Benedict admired the tree and made the following comments:

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I guess there is a little bit more to this story than the video captures. Here is an article in the British Telegraph that provides more insight and details about the meeting between the Pope and the Archbishop of Canterbury.

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The Vatican is presently researching and reviewing women religious in the U.S.. Many are threatened and even angry for many reasons – why only women religious being a common concern. Be it as it may, many religious orders are in crisis situation (men and women)  with few or no new vocations. Let us pray that the Holy Spirit helps all involved to understand this present crisis, and that it will inspire a hopeful, loving response-answer-solution. One good article on this issue can be found in the Nov. 23, 2009 of America Magazine:  America Magazine - A Visitor’s Guide: How the Vatican Investigation could prove beneficial by Doris Gottemoeller

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The present shortage of priests often gives rise to a discussion on married priests. With the Pope’s recent invite to Anglican laity and clergy to join the Catholic Church, some saw a potential thaw in the Vatican’s position on celibate clergy. Not so, says John Thavis of Catholic New Service, as he reviews the Vatican’s response to this issue since the Synod on Priestly Formation in 1990 to the present day: Married priests? For the Vatican, still an exception to the rule. 

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New media are not just instruments for communicating, but they are having a huge impact on culture — on the way people interact and think, Pope Benedict XVI said.

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This is the latest post from the National Catholic Reporter on Twitter: NCRonlineJohn Allen on pope’s new social encyclical: Fighting hunger, beefing up unions http://tinyurl.com/lbv8lqabout 5 hours ago from web.

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I captured a few pictures from the EWTN Broadcast of the Youth Rally with The Pope. It was a glorious meeting filled with African Music, Welcoming Messages, Youth Testimonies, and a short speech by Pope Benedict encouraging the youth to be faithful to their Christian Identity. He challenged the youth to make life long decisions and commitments - the true test of real maturity in every age: Dare to make definite decisions - life long commitments, and don’t give in to doubt, corruption, and hedonism. You are the seed - the seed of the new City, the New Jerusalem, he said, and the only way to grow the seed is to die to love. Bring to life the Holy City, the Pope challenged, as the crowds applauded enthusiastically. Towards the end of the event a young man in a wheel chair came on to the stage with the Pope and sang a moving song to Jesus My Friend. The young man appeared to have been crippled during the recent civil war, and as he sang I’m sure many a tear of thanksgiving and hope were shed as he made God’s love strong and visible.

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John Allen who is following the Pope throughout Africa and attempting to give us a real feel and insight into what he sees, hears, and feels posted this on March 18, 2009. It tends to confirm what the Harvard Center reported in my previous post.

Benedict talks to journalists during his flight from Rome to Africa March 17. (CNS/ Reuters)

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I wish the Pope had handled the condom question a little differently so that the condom controversy didn’t overshadow his African pilgrimage. But now that it has become front page news I’d like to get my two cents worth in on the topic as well. It sounds to me like the Pope might be on the right track about condoms when you read what the Director of the Aids Prevention Research Project at The Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies has to say. (This quote is from First Things)

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 This event is really not attracting much attention by the main stream media either in America or Europe.

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On February 26th Pope Benedict XVI appointed Fr. Thomas Rosica (Basilian Priest) as a as a consultor to the Pontifical Council for Social Communications. Speaking to CNA, the priest said that he sees this as the Pope entrusting a special responsibility to the Church in Canada.

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I read a book by Cardinal Ratzinger two years ago, and I feel it gives a real insight into the present Pope, and the direction he would like our modern liturgy to go in. Here is a good article on the book

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Lord Cardinals,
Excellencies,
Dear Brothers and Sisters,

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My view of the world constantly vacillates between the extremes of optimism and pessimism, as I journey through the modern world. On the one hand there seems to be a new effort on the part of many to live together on this small planet. Human rights, cultural diversity and respect, new avenues of communication fostered by technology, and the new ‘green thinking’ give me great hope.

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It seems as if there is an international effort to respond to those that have seen a UFO, and believe in aliens from outer space. Recently France, Belgium, and the U.K., and a few other countries have released or are about to release their secret dossiers on this very subject. This week the Vatican waded into this highly controversial topic on May 14 with an interview in L’Osservatore Romano with Fr. Funes S.J., the director of the Vatican Observatory. Why Now? Maybe it is to counter all the debate out there and prove that there is really nothing, or maybe, just maybe, there really is proven life in outer space, and we are not alone. If you would like to hear what Fr. Funes had to say, and you may be surprised, here is a link to the CNS which covered the story. Better still, here is a translation of the interview on frroderick.com.

Here is a fantastic list of the public speeches and homilies that Pope Benedict gave on his 6 day visit to the United States.

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As the Benedict XVI processed into the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington on Wednesday evening for evening prayer, he wore an ermine trimmed half-cape. Why does he want to dress like this, I wondered? Isn’t this the Pope that reminds us that liturgy should de-focus the person, and draw us into the worship of a God we cannot see? Yet, here he was definitely drawing my attention to his attire, and thus the man.

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This year’s Lenten Message reflects on the practice of almsgiving, which represents a specific way to assist those in need and, at the same time, an exercise in self-denial to free us from attachment to worldly goods.

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Author of the American Papist lamented in a recent post: “Too cruel? I’m sorry. I just can’t believe Italians got mad that the Pope told them to clean up their city.” Read the full story

First Sunday of Advent

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Twenty-three new Cardinals were named this month. Eighteen are able to vote for the next pope because they are under 80 years of age. Twelve of the Eighteen came from the North (10 Europeans and 2 Americans).

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In this last year the Vatican and Benedict XVI have been increasing their advocacy on behalf of the environment. On Sept 2, 2007 the Pope called on people to make “courageous decisions” on the future of the planet at an address to 300,000 Roman Catholics at an environment festival in

Loreto, Italy. We need a decisive ‘yes’ to care for creation and a strong commitment to reverse those trends that risk making the situation of decay irreversible,” he stated. 

Surprisingly, or maybe not so surprising, there is a great furor in Austria about five small trees that were planted at the time of John Paul II’s visit to Austria ten years ago. The trees were cut to build the public platform for an outdoor Mass.  Some how or other many seem to feel this action smacks of hypocrisy. (Say one thing and do another - isn’t that just like him, they are saying.) I suppose, if one wants to find fault and to be critical, a way can be found, and they found it. It’s too bad that some loose focus and can’t see the forest for the trees, literally speaking.

Most serious environmentalist are applauding the Pope and the

Vatican’s actions on behalf of humanity and the planet. Let us pray that the human family will wake up before it is too late. The this week the New York Time reported that biologist in the last 250 years have only been able to identify and categorize only 1.8 million species of plants, animals and micro-organisms which is estimated to be about 10 percent of the planet’s life forms. The good news is that with recent technological advances it is now going to be possible to identify and classify the other 90 percent in the next 25 years:“Why bother making such an effort,” asks the NY Times? “Because each species from a bacterium to a whale is a masterpiece of evolution. Each has persisted, its mix of genes slowly evolving, for thousands to millions of years. And each is exquisitely adapted to its environment and interlocks with a legion of other species to form the ecosystems upon which our own lives ultimately depend. We need to properly explore Earth’s biodiversity if we are to understand, preserve and manage it.”

Meanwhile bulldozers and chainsaws are furiously competing with the Scientist who are trying to preserve and understand God’s creation. Each day unknown species become extinct as their habitat fall prey to the ruthless rampage of so called developers. Maybe our Austrian friends should stop worring about five trees and rally behind church leaders who are trying to save the world’s forests and their inhabitants.

“What will we and future generations lose if a large part of the living environment continues to disappear, asks the Times.” And the answer they provide from the scientific community should make all men and women of good will applaud the Pope’s efforts to halt our planet’s destruction. “Huge potential stores of scientific information will never exist. Novel classes of pharmaceuticals and future crops will be thrown away. Ecological services like water purification, soil renewal and pollination — which are approximately equal to the world gross domestic product, and given away by natural ecosystems — will be diminished. Environmental stability will be harder to achieve.

If you would like to know more about the Pope’s visit to Austria go to this link.

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When I was growing up in the 40’s and 50’s, I had a strong Catholic Identity. I considered my self, as a Roman Catholic, a true Christian, and a member of the true church. Catholics, in my mind, were the real Christians and all others who called themselves Christian were heretics. We were a people that did what God wanted: attended a Latin Mass every Sunday and other Holy Days of Obligation, abstained from meat on Fridays, and confessed our sins to a priest on a regualar basis, (at least once a year, as our Easter Duty.)
In the 60’s the Vatican Council inspired a new Catholic Identity. One that recognized with a new respect the faith and baptism of other Christians, and the revelatory presence of God in othe religions. Mass was celebrated in English, abstinence from meat on Fridays was no longer compulsory, and confession became more communal. Today, the great excitement of the years of the Vatican Council is long forgotten, and most who call themselves Catholic know little of their faith, and attend Mass a few times a year, particularly at Christmas. Do we still have a Catholic Identity? Should we have a Catholic Identity? Many would say no, or who cares, to the first question. The second question is a little harder to comment on, but few would want the relgious bigotry of the 40’s, and 50’s. John Allen in this article comments on recent vatican decisions from the point of view of present day Roman Catholicism and its identity in the secular west. (Read his article)

Neusner commented on the pope’s book in an article published on May 29 in the Israeli newspaper “The Jerusalem Post.” Rabbi Jacob Neusner States: “Someone once called me the most contentious person he had ever known. Now I have met my match. Pope Benedict XVI is another truth-seeker.
We are in for interesting times.”

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Pope Benedict Continues Drawing Huge Crowds Vatican, Apr. 17, 2007 (CWNews.com)

Two years into his reign, Pope Benedict XVI finally is poised to make a major mark on American Catholicism with a string of key bishop appointments and important decisions about the future of U.S. seminaries and bishops’ involvement in politics.

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The words of Jesus “Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another” (Jn 13:34 [show]John 13:34 [34]A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. (ESV)
) inspired Pope Benedict XVI for his message on the occasion of the 22nd World Youth Day, to be celebrated on Passion Sunday, 1 April 2007.
Message for the 22nd World Youth Day (1st April 2007)

Fr. Thomas Dowd of Montreal has written a book review of this new book by John Allen. Quote from review: “The inside story of how the Vatican really thinks. My grade: A+. My Amazon score: 5/5.”
Read Review

Those of you interested in European Church will find this news story helpful.

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Catholic World News : Faith & reason: Pope returns to Regensburg themes: “Faith & reason: Pope returns to Regensburg themes
Vatican, Jan. 29, 2007 (CWNews.com) - Returning to the theme of the noted speech he delivered in Regensburg last October, Pope Benedict XVI (bio - news) spoke on the partnership of faith and reason during his Angelus audience on January 28.
Noting that the date marked the feast of St. Thomas Aquinas, the Holy Father said that the work of that great theologian is “a valid model for harmony between reason and faith, dimensions of the human spirit that that are fully realized in the meeting and dialogue between them.’ “

“Rome, Jan. 17, 2007 (CWNews.com) - The Italian weekly Panorama has predicted that the first phase of the cause of beatification for Pope John Paul II (bio - news) will be completed by April 2: the 2nd anniversary of the late Pontiff’s death.
Panorama reports that an investigation into the life and work of the Polish Pontiff, currently being undertaken by the Rome diocese, will be completed soon, with the dossier then forwarded to the Vatican’s Congregation for the Causes of Saints. Neither the Vatican nor the Rome diocese has commented on the report. “

In a Jan. 18 statement, the Coordination of Episcopal Conferences in Support of the Church of the Holy Land said that “future of all peoples of the Holy Land depends upon securing a just and lasting peace.” They also called for the recognition and securing of rights for the region’s small minority Christian community.

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Vatican Welcomes New Stem Cell Advance

Modern culture undermines foundations of family, pope says at year’s last Angelus - Catholic Online

FOXNews.com - Vatican Denounces Saddam’s Execution as ‘Tragic’ - International News News of the World Middle East News Europe News

Catholic World News : Vatican confirms excommunication for US dissident group

Vatican confirms St Paul’s coffin has been found - World - smh.com.au

CTV.ca | Pope reaffirms mandatory celibacy for priests

Yet all that said, the fact remains that Benedict’s most consequential appointments to date don’t bear a strong ideological imprint. How to explain this?
One would probably do well to return to Pope Benedict’s homily on April 24, 2005, during his Inaugural Mass: “My real program of governance is not to do my own will, not to pursue my own ideas, but to listen, together with the whole church,” he said that day.
Most commentators assumed that this was little more than the pro-forma paean to unity that candidates who win elections always sing, and that his real agenda would emerge once Benedict got his hands on the levers of power. In fact, however, Benedict’s major appointments suggest that by and large, he actually meant what he said.

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Pope Benedict gave Catholics four news saints Sunday, bestowing the honour on a 19th-century nun who struggled on the American frontier, a bishop who tended to the wounded during the Mexican Revolution and two Italian clergy.

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CTV.ca Pope’s Turkey trip on despite row over remarks

Code: ZE06091209
Date: 2006-09-12
Papal Address at University of Regensburg

Catholic Politicians in Europe Unite
Will Promote Church Teachings in ParliamentENIT News Agency–The World Seen from Rome

Pope approves four new saints - Yahoo! News UK: “Benedict has pledged to slow the rate at which new sainthoods and beatifications are declared. His predecessor John Paul II declared 482 saints and 1,338 beatifications during his 26-year papacy.

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Editorial-Commentary on the Pope’s First Year in the Irish Examiner:
Examiner

Pope Celebrates Mass With 15 New Cardinals - CBS News

Why I chose love as the theme of my first encyclical - Pope Benedict XVI

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Pope Benedict XVI’s choice of “love’ as the focus of his first encyclical will likely surprise both his supporters and critics says Father Thomas Williams, a Dean at Rome’s Regina Apostolorum.

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ZENIT News Agency–The World Seen from Rome

Independent Catholic NewsROME - 19 January 2006 - 245 words

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God is love: Simple papal message reflects basics of faith

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Priorities

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