Pope Francis, the new Bishop of Rome, the Supreme Pontiff, the First American Pope

Pope Francis.jpg
Annuntio vobis gaudium magnum:

Habemus Papam!
Eminentissimum ac reverendissimum Dominum,
Dominum Jorge Sanctæ Romanæ Ecclesiæ Cardinalem Bergoglio,
Qui sibi nomen imposuit Franciscum.

In English

I announce to you a great joy:

We have a Pope!
The most eminent and most reverend Lord,
Lord Jorge Mario Cardinal of the Holy Roman Church Bergoglio,
Who takes for himself the name of Francis.

Ratzinger on the Holy Spirit electing a pope

The well-known journalist John Allen quoted Pope Benedict about the role of the Holy Spirit’s work in the conclave:

Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was asked on Bavarian television in 1997 if the Holy Spirit is responsible for who gets elected. This was his response:

I would not say so, in the sense that the Holy Spirit picks out the Pope. … I would say that the Spirit does not exactly take control of the affair, but rather like a good educator, as it were, leaves us much space, much freedom, without entirely abandoning us. Thus the Spirit’s role should be understood in a much more elastic sense, not that he dictates the candidate for whom one must vote. Probably the only assurance he offers is that the thing cannot be totally ruined.

Further:

There are too many contrary instances of popes the Holy Spirit obviously would not have picked!

Saint Leander of Seville

Leander of Seville

The Church honors a Spanish saint that many I am sure have not heard about, or know very little of today, Saint Leander of Seville (c. 534-c.600). His parents were known to be pious, his brothers were the famous Saint Isidore of Seville and Saint Fulgentius of Ecija and his sister was Saint Florentina of Cartegena. Leander was both a Benedictine monk and bishop in Seville. 

Holy people encourage others to be holy. Leander was a friend Saint Gregory the Great whom he met when Gregory was a papal legate. Apparently, Leander encouraged to Gregory to write his famous treatise on Job known as the Moralia.

Saint Leander’s central pastoral and intellectual work was to work against the Arian heresy and in 589 called and presided over the Third Council of Toledo. His theological acumen and the priority he gave to worship inspired Leander to teach with clarity which resulted in keeping the Christian faith, at least in Spain, orthodox. The Creed aided in the catechetical work of contradicting the Arian belief that Jesus was not the Son of God; the Creed also clarified the teaching on the Holy Spirit. Saint Leander was defended by Saint Maximus the Confessor for his insertion of the filioque clause into the Creed (a theological datum that was catechetical and later politicized, even today). For historical purposes, the filioque clause was not the straw that caused the Church to split in two (East and West). 
All this catechetical work led the Visigothic kings, therefore, the rest of kingdom, to owe their salvation to Saint Leander.
Liturgical historians credit him with bring together various elements of liturgical practice into a unified whole. It was Leander who added the recitation of the Nicene Creed in the sacred Liturgy.
Spain honors Saint Leander as a Doctor of the Faith. 

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Novena of Prayer to Saint Benedict, Day 2


St Benedict icon.jpgThe order of prayer


The man of God, Benedict, forsook the glory of the world, for the Spirit of God was in him. (antiphon)

Pray Psalm 15

The prayer of petition to Saint Benedict may be found here, and then pray the following prayer.

Let us pray.

Mighty God, the source of all perfection, by the gift of Your grace, the blessed Benedict left all things that he might dedicate himself more fully to Your service for the salvation of the world. May all those, who strive to walk the path of perfection, not go astray, but run without stumbling and be rewarded by You with the gift eternal life. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Step by Step Through the Papal Interregnum

ombrellino-keys.pngIf you are looking for a quick run-through of the papal inter-regnum, almost over at this writing, you may be interested in the booklet by The Catholic Truth Society, a handy Step by Step Through the Papal Interregnum (2013) by Monsignor Charles Burns, OBE.

Step by Step does what it proposes to do: the booklet takes the reader through terms, legislation and processes of the period in the Church known as the interregnum and the subsequent papal election. Burns attempts to be exact in what is expected of the cardinals fulfilling their key work as a cardinal of the Holy Roman Church. Historians will like this brief booklet for its mentioning of key historical facts of the conclave.

Monsignor Burns, a priest of the Diocese of Paisely, has worked for the Holy See in the Vatican Secret Archives for more than 35 years; he taught for 25 years at the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy. Since 2012, Burns has been a Canon of Saint Peter’s Basilica.
Here is an audio introduction with Monsignor Burns produced by Vatican Radio.

Novena of Prayer to Saint Benedict, Day 1

St Benedict detail.jpgToday begins nine days of prayer to Saint Benedict, ending at First Vespers of Saint Benedict’s Transitus (March 20). On March 21, many Benedictine monasteries around the world will observe the death of Benedict (+547) with solemnity, if you follow another liturgical calendar other than the Roman one, while other monasteries will celebrate July 11 as a feast, the translation of Benedict’s bones.

The order of prayer

There was a man of venerable Life, Benedict, blessed by God both in grace and in name. (antiphon)
Pray Psalm 1
The prayer of petition to Saint Benedict may be found here, and then pray the following prayer.
Let us pray.
Almighty and eternal God, may the example of blessed Benedict urge us to strive for holiness of life and, by celebrating his memory, may we be inspired to follow him in the spirit of his Rule. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Cardinal’s mother doesn’t think son can handle the …

Cardinal Christoph Schonborn.jpg

“Christoph would not be up to the bitchiness in the Vatican. The intrigues in Vienna are enough for him.”

What right-minded person wouldn’t get annoyed at dishonesty?

“The whole family is afraid that Christoph will be elected pope,” Eleonore Schoenborn, 92, told the Kleine Zeitung newspaper

The Litany Run

Jenn Garza training for the OC Marathon_in_preparation of her litany run.jpgThose recent college graduates with educational debt need to pay off their debts prior to following their vocation as a priest, brother, nun or sister. No one is allowed to carry debt into religious life. Morally and economically religious orders can’t assume the educational debt of new recruits. They can help, but it is unfair for them shoulder the entire financial burden given finances today. Some orders, depending on the size of the loan will pay the student loans off over time as the new recruit progresses in the order. But there are ways to work through the financial burden without getting despondent.

Here is Jenn Garza’s story. Jenn wants to be a Norbertine nun of the Bethlehem Priory of Saint Joseph but needs help in paying off $53,000.
Read this website about the Litany Run: 26.2 to the Monastery, and how to help as part of your lenten almsgiving.
Living in debt to a bank, government or a family member is not a good thing at all, even if you are not entering religious life or priesthood. But it is unavoidable today. Modest income people can’t afford huge tuition bills but at the same time our students deserve the best education. So the tensions for Christians is that they ought not to carry large amounts debt, educational or personal for very long. If anything, Christians ought to save a percentage of money for a “rainy day” (like unemployment) and make a sensible donations to worthy causes.