ZENIT, Daily dispatch
The World Seen From Rome
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VATICAN DOSSIER
* Replace Fear With Trust in God, Says Pope
* Pontiff Urges Aid for Cyclone-stricken Bangladesh
* Pope Warns Against Temptation of Euthanasia
* Aide: Catholic-Orthodox Dialogue Takes Important Step
ANALYSIS
* God and Caesar Seen From Down Under
WORLD FEATURES
* U.K. Church Leaders Oppose Fertilization Bill
* Israel Is Not Keeping Its Promises, Says Archbishop Sambi
ANGELUS
* On Trust in God
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VATICAN DOSSIER
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Replace Fear With Trust in God, Says Pope
Notes Christ Is Alpha and Omega of History
VATICAN CITY, NOV. 18, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI urged the faithful to live without fear for the future, and to persevere in faith when faced with hardships and difficulties.
The Pope said this today before leading the praying of the midday Angelus in St. Peter's Square. Reflecting on the Gospel of St. Luke, the Holy Father said that Jesus invited his disciples "to face difficulties, misunderstandings and even persecutions with trust, persevering in faith in him."
"History must follow its course," said the Pontiff, "which also brings human dramas and natural calamities with it. A plan of salvation that Christ has already carried out in his incarnation, death, and resurrection develops in history.
"The Church continues to proclaim and realize this mystery through preaching, the celebration of the sacraments and the witness of charity."
"Let us welcome Christ's invitation," he said, "to face daily events trusting in his providential love. Let us not be afraid of the future, even when it appears bleak to us, for the God of Jesus Christ, who took up history to open it up to its transcendent fulfillment, is its alpha and omega, the beginning and the end.
"He guarantees that in every little but genuine act of love the meaning of the whole universe is contained, and those who do not hesitate to lose their lives for him, will find them again in fullness."
Benedict XVI then turned his attention to consecrated persons, and especially those living in cloistered communities, who he said "have placed their life without reserve at the service of the kingdom of God invite us with singular effectiveness to keep this perspective alive."
Recalling that the Church will remember its cloistered members in a special way on Wednesday, the memorial of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the temple, the Pope said, "We owe much to these persons who live by what providence procures for them through the generosity of the faithful."
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Pontiff Urges Aid for Cyclone-stricken Bangladesh
VATICAN CITY, NOV. 18, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI expressed his condolences to the nation of Bangladesh in the wake of a tropical cyclone that left more than 2,200 dead, houses destroyed and acres of farmland in ruins.
After reciting the Angelus today with the crowd gathered in St. Peter's Square, the Pope said, "In recent days southern Bangladesh was struck by a terrible cyclone that injured and killed numerous people and caused grave destruction."
Tropical Cyclone Sidr struck the southern Asia country Thursday, affecting more than 2.7 million. The deadly storm destroyed 773,000 homes in southwest Bangladesh, and also ruined nearly 77,450 acres of farmland just before harvest season, reported the Associated Press.
"In renewing my profound condolences to the families and the whole nation, which is so dear to me," the Pontiff said, "I appeal for international solidarity, which has already moved to assist with immediate necessities. I ask that every possible effort be made to succor these sorely tried brothers."Many countries have already pledged aid to the government's post-cyclone relief and rehabilitation programs. The United Nations announced today that it will provide over $6 million, the European Union reported that it has already released $2.2 million in aid, and on Saturday the United States announced it was sending $2.1 million.
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Pope Warns Against Temptation of Euthanasia
Says Life Must Be Defended Against Culture of Death
VATICAN CITY, NOV. 18, 2007, (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI asked that the value of life be respected in the face of the temptation to euthanize the elderly sick, which he called a symptom of the culture of death.The Pope said this Saturday upon receiving in audience participants in the 22nd international conference promoted by the Pontifical Council for Health Care Ministry. The theme of the meeting, which was held last week in the Vatican, was on "The Pastoral Care of Elderly Sick People."
The Pontiff said to the audience of scientists, researchers, medical personnel and pastoral workers that "today's mentality of efficiency" views elderly sick people as "a 'burden' and a 'problem' for society."
He added that euthanasia "appears as one of the more alarming symptoms of the culture of death that is advancing above all in the society of well-being."
"Those who have an understanding of human dignity, however, know that the elderly must be respected and supported while they face serious difficulties linked to their state," said the Holy Father.Benedict XVI then recalled John Paul II, who in his "exemplary witness of faith and courage" in his illness exhorted scientists and physicians to never cede "to the temptation to have recourse to the practices of shortening the life of the elderly or the sick, practices that would in fact result in forms of euthanasia."
A gift of God
"Man's life is a gift of God, which all of us are always called to protect," he said. "This must also involve health workers, whose specific mission is to be 'servants of life' in all its phases, especially in that phase marked by the fragility connected with infirmity."
For this reason, the Pope added, "a general commitment is necessary so that human life be respected not only in Catholic hospitals but in every place of care."
Moreover, the elderly who are affected by incurable illnesses need palliative care that is able to mitigate the pain, the Holy Father said, in order to face "in a conscious and human way the last stage of earthly existence, to serenely prepare for death."
Pontiff continued: "In general it is opportune to do what is possible for the families themselves to welcome and with grateful affection take care of them so that the elderly who are sick can pass the last period of their life at home and prepare themselves for death in a climate of family warmth."
Benedict XVI said that this is important because "the sick need understanding, comfort and constant encouragement and accompaniment," as well as competent medical care.
"May the sick person in the most difficult moments, supported by pastoral care, be encouraged to find strength to face his difficult trial in prayer and the comfort of the sacraments," said the Pope. "May he be surrounded by brothers in faith, disposed to listen to him and share his sentiments."
The Holy Father invited believers facing illness and death to "not to lose their serenity, because nothing, not even death, can separate us from the love of Christ."
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Aide: Catholic-Orthodox Dialogue Takes Important Step
Commission Recognizes Primacy of Bishop of Rome
VATICAN CITY, NOV. 18, 2007, (Zenit.org).- The Catholic-Orthodox theological commission's recognition of the primacy of the Bishop of Rome is an "important first step," says the director of the Vatican press office.
Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi said this in the latest edition of the weekly Vatican Television program "Octava Dies." He commented on the concluding document of the Oct. 8-14 plenary assembly of the Joint International Commission for Theological Dialogue Between the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church, held in Ravenna, Italy.
The statement, titled "Ecclesiological and Canonical Consequences of the Sacramental Nature of the Church: Ecclesial Communion, Conciliarity and Authority," was published Nov. 15.
While the Vatican spokesman pointed out that the document also stipulated the need to study and understand the functions of the Bishop of Rome, how his primacy is to be exercised, and the scriptural and theological foundations of it, he added that this could be "an historical turn for the dialogue between Catholics and Orthodox."
"They delved into fundamental questions about the nature of the Church and they agreed that on every level -- local, regional and universal -- there is conciliarity, but also authority," said Father Lombardi.
He said that "the primacy at a universal level from ancient times of the Bishop of Rome was recognized. But there was no agreement on what his prerogatives are and on what theological and biblical bases these are founded."
Father Lombardi added that when the commission meets again in two years, it will study the theme of the primacy of the Bishop of Rome in the first millennium, "then there will be a need to study the second millennium and the councils that were held after the division between the Churches [...] to see what consensus can be reached."
Right direction
"It is a long and arduous road," said the spokesman, "but it is a road that is finally going in the direction that John Paul II wanted in 1995 with the encyclical 'Ut Unum Sint,' when he invited the separated brethren to dialogue on the theme of the Bishop of Rome's service to the universal Church."
"The historical problems of the division between the Catholics and the Orthodox have not been resolved," he added, "but a first step -- small but important -- in the right direction" has been taken.
Father Lombardi noted that, unfortunately, the representatives of the Patriarchate of Moscow were not present at the conclusion of the meeting, a reflection of old tensions between Moscow and Constantinople.
He said: "The road toward union does not regard only Catholics and Orthodox but also -- and sometimes more so -- it regards Orthodox and Orthodox, Catholics and Catholics.
"For all the pole of common attraction must be Jesus Christ, his mandate of love and his prayer 'that all be on.' Only if we all look first at Christ, can we hope that the long road will reach its goal."
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ANALYSIS
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God and Caesar Seen From Down Under
Cardinal Pell Analyzes Religion's Role in Modern Life
By Father John Flynn, LC
ROME, NOV. 18 , 2007 (Zenit.org).- How to reconcile moral principles with the political and social demands of a secularized society is one of the main underlying fault lines in many contemporary debates. Some valuable reflections on the subject are contained in a book just published in Australia.
"God and Caesar: Selected Essays on Religion, Politics, and Society," jointly published by Connor Court Publishing and the Catholic University of America Press, is made up of 10 essays by Sydney's archbishop, Cardinal George Pell.
In the introduction to the essays, Cardinal Pell acknowledges that his central concerns are religious. Therefore, philosophical writings should not be seen as a substitute for the need to follow Christ's call to conversion, but rather as a contribution to dialogue with the surrounding society.
Law and morality is the topic of the first essay. While the law must be applicable to all, regardless of their beliefs, the supposition that law and morality must always be separated is questionable, Cardinal Pell maintains.
In fact, the morality that most seek to exclude is almost always Christian. This silencing of morality is based on false premises, the cardinal argues. For a start, any law implicitly contains a certain moral view of society. A law that legalizes abortion or euthanasia, especially if it appeals to some sort of right to these procedures, is clearly posited on an argument that is moral in its nature.
Moreover, many Christian moral principles are based on arguments drawn from reason, such as the dignity of the human person, and are therefore more universal than precepts drawn from a particular religious position. The essay challenges, "Is defending life on the basis of the inviolable dignity of the person really the same thing as imposing one's personal views on the rest of the community?"
Arbitrary decisions
Referring to Pope John Paul II, Cardinal Pell notes that democracies are having difficulty in defining rights and run the risk of falling into a situation where fundamental questions are decided in an arbitrary manner. When freedom is exalted as an absolute without any limits, then it finishes in relativism. In turn, this deforms law from being a protector of life and society, into a force that undermines them.
"Freedom today, in its everyday sense, means the limitlessness of possibility: Whatever you want, whatever you like, you can do it," the cardinal notes in one of the book's essays.
Cardinal Pell asks if democracy really require us to live in a situation where we are afflicted by millions of abortions, a flourishing pornography industry, high levels of divorce and marriage breakdown, legalized euthanasia and research using embryos.
The challenge here for Christians, the cardinal observes, is to formulate in human, nonreligious terms, "why the protection of the moral ecology is necessary and important for society." This requires, he recommends, respect for others, engaging in dialogue, and the creation of trust and friendship.
Another essay in the book warns, however, of a possible pitfall in this dialogue concerning human rights, namely the error of putting as an exclusive absolute the concept of the primacy of conscience. Too often, Cardinal Pell warns, "the primacy of conscience is being used to justify what we would like to do rather than discover what God wants us to do."
Individual conscience, he continues, does not confer the right to reject or distort the principles of morality contained in the Bible and subsequently affirmed and developed by the Church.
In addition, if we deny the role of a truth that is greater than our own preferences, we run the risk of undermining both reason and human rights, Cardinal Pell affirms. "The denial of truth makes impossible an enduring concept of justice that genuinely serves human life and love," he adds.
Law and morality
Turning to the question of the Church and politics, Cardinal Pell warns against forgetting the vertical dimension of religion, which would result in reducing the kingdom of God to the building of a just society. Church leaders need to speak out on certain matters where public morality is at stake, but there are many other issues where it is not the role of ecclesiastical authorities to enter into the details of political debate.
The roles of government and church are clearly different. Nevertheless, he added, it is important to keep in mind that while "Catholics can acknowledge that not all immoral activities should be illegal, it does not follow that all legal activities are thereby moral."
One valuable contribution that the Church and believers can make to the state is to provide a source of values. The temptation of individualism and materialism cannot be countered adequately by a purely secular approach, said Cardinal Pell.
In fact, in the essay "Catholicism and Democracy" the archbishop of Sydney observes that many of the institutions of modern society, ranging from universities to hospitals and schools, owe their origin and development to Christianity.
Attempts to privatize religious belief are justified by an appeal to the importance of maintaining neutrality in the public arena, the cardinal notes. Nevertheless, this is not real neutrality, but a way of silencing opponents and imposing a specific cultural view.
In a democracy, religion can play a vital role through its influence on the family and daily living. Christianity also serves as a counterbalance to the excesses of a rights culture that only too often forgets we also have duties.
The natural right for children to be loved and reared by a father and a mother, for example, is a matter of justice that should be supported by society and the state. Unfortunately, Cardinal Pell laments, the state today only too often encourages the breakdown of marriage and the family.
Pseudo-rights
"Supporting marriage and the family is just one way in which strong religious belief and belief in human rights combined can help expose the pseudo-rights of modernity," the cardinal observes.
Religion can also play a key role in favor of love and not violence, for service and not for triumph. It is important, therefore, that the efforts of dogmatic liberalism that seek to silence the Church not triumph. In theory, Cardinal Pell adds, liberalism ought to be concerned about giving everyone an equal voice. Only too often, however, "dogmatic secular liberals increasingly use liberalism to exclude the voice of the Church."
Faced with such attacks Cardinal Pell advises an approach in which it is made clear that many Christian moral arguments are based on not only revealed truth, but also on natural law truths, which are acceptable to all regardless of their religion.
Another point to keep in mind is to avoid making an absolute of democracy, as if it were endowed with some species of infallibility. "The legitimacy of a democracy, as of any form of government, stands or falls on whether it serves the common good, and does so well," according to Cardinal Pell.
Resolving conflicts about rights, he continues, would be well served if society were to take seriously the concept of natural rights. Democracy needs to be legitimated by a concern for the common good and basic human rights. Rights that are founded on the moral truth about the person. A truth only too often lost from sight in many countries today.
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WORLD FEATURES
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U.K. Church Leaders Oppose Fertilization Bill
Legislation to Pave Way for Hybrid Embryos
GLASGOW, Scotland, NOV. 18, 2007, (Zenit.org).- Two of Scotland's leading prelates are urging politicians to seriously consider the Catholic community's concerns regarding the Human Fertilization and Embryology Bill, which will legalize the creation of human-animal embryos.
The statement released today was signed by Cardinal Keith O'Brien, the archbishop of Saint Andrews and Edinburgh, and Archbishop Mario Conti of Glasgow, who is also chairman of the Joint Catholic Bioethics Committee of Britain and Ireland.
The bill, previously known as the Human Tissue and Embryos Bill, will be debated in the House of Lords on Monday. It updates current regulation of assisted reproduction and embryo research in Great Britain.
If passed, the bill will legalize the creation of hybrid embryos by fertilizing animal eggs with human sperm and vice versa, and also allow lesbian couples to be named as the parents to test-tube babies, without reference to a father. Opponents of the bill also worry that it could reopen the abortion debate, leading way to even greater liberalization of the procedure.
The statement of Cardinal O'Brien and Archbishop Conti states that the bill's proposal to create hybrid embryos "is not a justifiable direction for legitimate scientific research."
Human dignity
They added, "It is a dangerous and unnecessary precedent which does not respect the dignity of the human person. We note that such practices are banned in Canada, Australia and many European countries."
The prelates also noted with concern that the bill will diminish the natural status of fathers, and disrupt the natural bonds between parents and children.
Noting the complexity of the issues, the cardinal and the archbishop proposed the creation of national advisory committee to give appropriate advice to the government on bioethical issues.
"The public debate has so far been dominated by scientific and medical opinion," continued the statement, "when in reality mature ethical systems have a more crucial contribution in dealing with the issues at stake."
Archbishop Conti told reporters: "We are frankly appalled at proposals which would allow the creation of organisms which cross the species barrier. We call on the government to think again about the role of the Human Fertilization and Embryology Authority which has proved completely inadequate in dealing with ethical issues.
"The bill includes disturbing developments in embryonic experimentation and breaks down the natural bonds of family life linked with procreation."
"Profoundly wrong"
Cardinal Comac Murphy-O'Connor, archbishop of Westminster, also spoke out against the bill. In a letter published in today's edition of The Times online newspaper, he called the legislation "profoundly wrong."
He wrote: "The bill proposes to remove the need for in-vitro providers to take into account the child's need for a father when considering an in-vitro application, and to confer legal parenthood on people who have no biological relationship to a child born as a result of in-vitro.
"This radically undermines the place of the father in a child's life, and makes the natural rights of the child subordinate to the desires of the couple."
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Israel Is Not Keeping Its Promises, Says Archbishop Sambi
Nuncio Notes That Nation Lacks the Political Will
WASHINGTON, D.C., NOV. 18, 2007, (Zenit.org).- Israel doesn't have the political will to keep the promises it made to the Holy See, according to the apostolic nuncio to the United States, Archbishop Pietro Sambi.
"If I must be frank, the relations between the Catholic Church and the state of Israel were better when there were not diplomatic relations," said the archbishop, who was the nuncio to Israel from 1998-2005, in an interview Friday with Terrasanta.net.
"The Holy See decided to establish diplomatic relations with Israel as an act of faith," he said, "leaving for later the promises to handle the more concrete aspects of the life of Catholic communities and the Church to be addressed later."
On Dec. 30, 1993, the fundamental agreement was signed, which, besides establishing diplomatic relations "dictates that there also be a legal agreement, signed in 1997, but never implemented on Israeli territory, and an economic agreement."
The economic agreement, Archbishop Sambi said, dealt with three issues: the status of Church property; equal compensation for services the Church provides to the Israeli population, whether Jewish or Palestinian; taxes.
Taxes
"In regard to the question about taxes, the Holy See asks something simple and natural," he said. "It desires that that which has happened in the last three centuries, that which Israel promised at the moment of its independence in 1948, that which is implicit in the legal agreement, that which in fact has been happening up until this moment in regard to tax exemption for Christian religious institutions, be crystallized in an agreement that has international value."
"Now there is a strange situation," continued Archbishop Sambi. "The agreements that are already signed, the fundamental and the legal one, are internationally valid, but they are not valid in Israel because Israeli law requires the approval of the Knesset [Israeli Parliament] for an internationally valid agreement to be valid in Israeli territory.
"And no one has any concern to seek the approval of the Knesset. The economic agreement, after nearly 10 years of negotiations that have been made useless by the Israeli delegation's delays because of its lack of authority in these negotiations, in a word, because of a lack of political will, has not yet been signed."
"The confidence that can be placed in Israel's promises is plain for all to see," he observed.
"The problem of visas for Catholic religious," the archbishop added, "was easier to deal with when there were no diplomatic relations between the Holy See and Israel."
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ANGELUS
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On Trust in God
"Let Us Not be Afraid of the Future, Even When it Appears Bleak"
VATICAN CITY, NOV. 18, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Here is a translation of the address Benedict XVI delivered today before reciting the midday Angelus with several thousand people gathered in St. Peter's Square.
* * *
Dear Brothers and Sisters!
In today's Gospel passage St. Luke re-proposes the biblical vision of history for our reflection and reports the words of Jesus that invite the disciples not to have fear but to face difficulties, misunderstandings and even persecutions with trust, persevering in faith in him.
"When you hear of wars and insurrections," the Lord says, "do not be terrified; for such things must happen first, but it will not immediately be the end" (Luke 21:9). Mindful of this admonition of the Lord, the Church has from the very beginning lived in the prayerful expectation of the Lord's return, scrutinizing the signs of the times and putting the faithful on guard against recurring messianic movements that from time to time proclaim that the end of the world is imminent.
In reality, history must follow its course, which also brings human dramas and natural calamities with it. A plan of salvation that Christ has already carried out in his incarnation, death, and resurrection develops in history. The Church continues to proclaim and realize this mystery through preaching, the celebration of the sacraments and the witness of charity.
Dear brothers and sisters, let us welcome Christ's invitation to face daily events trusting in his providential love. Let us not be afraid of the future, even when it appears bleak to us, for the God of Jesus Christ, who took up history to open it up to its transcendent fulfillment, is its alpha and omega, the beginning and the end (cf. Revelation 1:8). He guarantees that in every little but genuine act of love the meaning of the whole universe is contained, and those who do not hesitate to lose their lives for him, will find them again in fullness (cf. Matthew 16:25).
Consecrated persons, who have placed their life without reserve at the service of the kingdom of God invite us with singular effectiveness to keep this perspective alive. Among these persons I would like especially to draw attention to those who are called to contemplation in cloistered monasteries. The Church dedicates a particular day to them on Wednesday, Nov. 21, the memorial of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the temple. We owe much to these persons who live by what providence procures for them through the generosity of the faithful.
"As a spiritual oasis, a monastery reminds today's world of the most important, and indeed, in the end, the only decisive thing: that there is an ultimate reason why life is worth living -- God and his unfathomable love" (Address at Heiligenkreuz, Sept. 9, 2007). Faith that works in charity is the true antidote for the nihilistic mentality, which in our epoch spreads its influence further and further throughout the world.
May Mary, Mother of the Incarnate Word, accompany us on the earthly pilgrimage. We ask her to support the witness of all Christians, that it always rest on a solid and persevering faith.
[After praying the Angelus, the Holy Father greeted pilgrims in several languages. In Italian, he said:]
In recent days southern Bangladesh was struck by a terrible cyclone that injured and killed numerous people and caused grave destruction. In renewing my profound condolences to the families and the whole nation, which is so dear to me, I appeal for international solidarity, which has already moved to assist with immediate necessities. I ask that every possible effort be made to succor these sorely tried brothers.
Today there opens in Jordan the 8th meeting of the countries who signed the convention on the ban of the use, stockpiling, manufacture and transport of anti-personnel mines and on their destruction. The Holy See is among the principal promoters of the convention that was signed 10 years ago. From my heart I convey my greeting and encouragement for a good outcome to the meeting so that these explosives, which continue to generate victims -- among whom are many children -- be completely prohibited.
This afternoon at Novara there will be beatified the venerable servant of God, Antonio Rosmini, a great figure of a priest and an illustrious man of culture, animated by fervid love for God and the Church. He bore witness to the virtue of charity in all of its dimensions and at a high level, but that for which he was mostly known was his generous commitment to what he called "intellectual charity," that is to say the reconciliation of faith and reason. May his example help the Church, especially Italian ecclesial communities, to grow in the awareness that the light of reason and that of grace, when they walk together, become a source of benediction for the human person and for society.
[Translation by ZENIT]
[In English, he said:]
I offer a warm welcome to the English-speaking visitors gathered for this Angelus prayer, including the communities of the Neocatechumenal Way from Malta. Today's Gospel urges us to be steadfast in our faith, trusting in Christ's victory and the coming of his Kingdom. May we find in prayer the strength to remain always faithful to the Lord and his Church! God bless you and your families!
© Copyright 2007 -- Libreria Editrice Vaticana
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