Pope Francis – Page 17

A focus on mission, Pope Francis points to direction

Pope Francis met with media

I don’t think Pope Francis will be too different from the last several Roman Pontiffs. As bishop of Rome he will preach and teach, govern and sanctify.The Pope’s un-programatic homily is in fact programatic if you can read the details. In some ways Francis’s homily is an Aesopian creature.

First, style is substance. Second, the liturgical preaching thus far indicates a trajectory. Third, focus on the Pope’s connection with people of belief and unbelief because this connection ought to be assessed for the facts and and not cliché. What the Pope said and what he’s done matters. Who’s present, and who’s not. (And this data is not to be reduced to politics.) All this is to say that you can’t miss “a trick” if you really want to know what and who Pope Francis is, and why he is doing what he’s doing and with whom.

We are living nothing different from what Blessed John Paul and Pope Benedict did in their pontificates. Three things to pray for daily: conversion, vocation and mission.

A “news” man and priest whom I respect very much is the editor-in-chief for AsiaNews.it, Bernardo Cervellera. Tonight, his article, “Like Benedict, mission is Pope Francis’s focus,” captures what I am indicating and what I am urging you to attend.

Want to be informed about Christianity, and the global Church of Christ, read AsiaNews.it.

On the feast of Saint Joseph there’s a horizon of hope, horizon of God, Petrine ministry of Francis inaugurated

HOMILY OF POPE FRANCIS

INAUGURATION OF THE

PETRINE MINISTRY

ST PETER’S SQUARE

19 March 2013

Dear Brothers and Sisters, I thank the Lord that I can celebrate this Holy Mass for the inauguration of my Petrine ministry on the solemnity of Saint Joseph, the spouse of the Virgin Mary and the patron of the universal Church. It is a significant coincidence, and it is also the name-day of my venerable predecessor: we are close to him with our prayers, full of affection and gratitude.

I offer a warm greeting to my brother cardinals and bishops, the priests, deacons, men and women religious, and all the lay faithful. I thank the representatives of the other Churches and ecclesial Communities, as well as the representatives of the Jewish community and the other religious communities, for their presence. My cordial greetings go to the Heads of State and Government, the members of the official Delegations from many countries throughout the world, and the Diplomatic Corps.

In the Gospel we heard that “Joseph did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took Mary as his wife” (Mt 1:24). These words already point to the mission which God entrusts to Joseph: he is to be the custos, the protector. The protector of whom? Of Mary and Jesus; but this protection is then extended to the Church, as Blessed John Paul II pointed out: “Just as Saint Joseph took loving care of Mary and gladly dedicated himself to Jesus Christ’s upbringing, he likewise watches over and protects Christ’s Mystical Body, the Church, of which the Virgin Mary is the exemplar and model” (Redemptoris Custos, 1).

Continue reading On the feast of Saint Joseph there’s a horizon of hope, horizon of God, Petrine ministry of Francis inaugurated

Bestowal of the Fisherman’s Ring

The Cardinal Dean prays,

Most Holy Father, may Christ, the Son of the living God, the shepherd and guard- ian of our souls, who built his Church upon rock, grant you the ring, the seal of Peter the Fisherman, who put his hope in him on the sea of Galilee, and to whom the Lord Jesus entrusted the keys of the Kingdom of heaven.

Today you succeed the Blessed Apostle Peter as the Bishop of this Church which presides over the unity of charity, as the Blessed Apostle Paul has taught. May the Spirit of charity, poured into our hearts, grant you the gentleness and strength to preserve, through your ministry, all those who believe in Christ in unity and fellowship.

Note on the ring

The ring was designed by the Italian sculptor Enrico Manfrini; he died in 2004. The ring belonged to Archbishop Pasquale Macchi (1923-2003), secretary of the Venerable Servant of God Pope Paul VI. Later in life Macchi was the Prelate of Loreto. It is reported that the use of three rings was a suggestion of Monsignor Guido Marini, the Master of Pontifical Liturgical Ceremonies and Giovanni Cardinal Re, Prefect-emeritus of the Congregation of Bishops. The Pope chose this one.

Imposition of the Pallium

The Senior Cardinal Deacon prays,

May the God of peace, who brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus Christ, the great shepherd of the sheep, bestow upon you the Pallium taken from the Tomb of the Apostle Peter.

The Good Shepherd charged Peter to feed his lambs and his sheep; today you succeed him as the Bishop of this Church to which he and the Apostle Paul were fathers in faith.

May the Spirit of Truth, who proceeds from the Father, grant you his abundant gifts of wisdom and eloquence in the ministry of confirming your brethren in the unity of faith.

Let us pray.

O God, who do not disappoint those who call upon you with upright and devout hearts, hear the fervent prayer of your Church and pour forth your blessing upon your servant Francis, our Pope, to whom, through our humble service, you have granted primacy in the apostolic office. May he be strengthened by the gift of your Holy Spirit and worthily exercise his high ministry in accordance with the eminent charism he has received. Through Christ our Lord.

Bishop of Rome –appreciating its significance for the churches

The chair of the Bishop of Rome, Basilica Saint John Lateran, Rome.

In the first moments of his introduction to the world, Pope Francis has spoken of his ministry as the bishop of Rome, and his exercise of said ministry. Nine times, in fact. I think many were surprised at the theological precision that Pope Francis expressed so quickly. How is this possible? Because Francis is clearly Christocentric, and the Petrine ministry located in service of the other and at the foot of the Cross.

We ought to recall that ministries in the Church have gradually taken on new significance over time as the issues of teaching, preaching and sanctifying and governing (leading) surfaced and challenged the unity of the faithful. We know historically that by the third century the parameters of the bishop of Rome began to develop because of the work of Saints Peter and Paul, and because of the importance of the imperial city of Rome, and by the fourth century the influence of the Roman bishop was well-situated; and by the fifth century “canonical” letters, i.e., decrees, were sent to the world’s bishops carrying with them certain authority. One can posit that from almost the beginning bishops from across the Christian world had appealed to the bishop of Rome for assistance in resolving with pastoral problems.

Continue reading Bishop of Rome –appreciating its significance for the churches

Pope Francis’ coat of arms

Pope Francis has decided to stick –more or less, with the heraldic art, that is, his coat of arms that he had when he was called to the Order of Bishop and then as a cardinal. The most identifiable change made is the replacing of the red cardinal’s galero and tassels with the papal keys and miter that Pope Benedict XVI chose for his arms in 2005 when he accepted the pontifical dignity but gone is the pallium. The other change is turning the star representing Mary, the Mother of God and the flower of nard representing Saint Joseph, to gold as opposed to silver. Add to the artscape is the image most associated to the Society of Jesus with the IHS sunburst. The Holy Family, hence, is illustrated here.

The keys of Saint Peter refer to the gospel passage of Saint Matthew 16:16 where Jesus says to Peter, “I will give you the keys of the kingdom.” The keys represent the pastoral authority of Jesus given to Peter and thus to Peter’s successor to forgive sins, and lead us to salvation. The silver key concerns things of earth, and the gold key things of heaven joined together by the red cord symbolizing the common witness of the blood of the Savior shed for humanity. You may want to read the Catechism on the Petrine ministry at paragraphs 880-882, the whole section “I believe in the holy Catholic Church is worth” some study and prayer.

“By having mercy and making decisions” by following Christ

~the way Pope Francis intends to exercise the Petrine ministry he’s been called to~

Smearing the Pope

The honeymoon was very short-lived: as tools of communication fling far and wide information and misinformation, social media gurus are now producing conflicting information about Pope Francis. But if you think I am talking exclusively of those who are Catholic haters think again; the Church has her detractors –enemies?– and sadly from within. There are some insightful readers that help us to connect the dots of a new papacy. Father Raymond de Souza, John Allen and John Thavis comes to mind as credible.

I am not surprised that smear campaigns are spreading pretty fast with a click of the button, for example of topics being covered: Francis dealing with dictatorships; Francis and liturgical practice; Francis and the moral teachings of the Church; Francis, the poor and the papal ministry; Cardinals turning on Benedic; Francis and the Ignatian (and Jesuit charism); Francis and Communion and Liberation; Francis and Benedict.

Many have fallen in love with Pope Francis –at the moment he’s the People’s Pope. It won’t be long before concerted ugliness is mainstream seeking to discredit, distract and divide, and lead away from the faith in Christ and the Church. Division has appeared and it’s the work of the devil, not of the Holy Spirit. Don’t believe me, just wait and see…

Stuff to read first…

Mary Anastasia O’Grady, “Behind the Campaign to Smear the Pope” (WSJ, March 17, 2013) —a must-read, a good job done

John Allen, “Path to the papacy: ‘Not him, not him, therefore him,” (NCR, March 17, 2013) –lots of good details and analysis

Ross Douthat, “What the Church Needs Now,” (NYT, March 15, 2013) –key points need heeding

To understand the problem of Ms Manson’s thinking see article below, you need to read what Father John Zuhlsdorf writes, “Liberals will soon turn on Pope Francis” -(my thoughts later on what Manson wrote).

A sampling of the detractors:

Jamie L. Manson, “One of Pope Francis’ allegiances might tell us something of the church’s future” (NCR, March 15, 2013)

Jesuit Father Thomas Reese, “Francis, the Jesuits and the Dirty War,” (NCR, March 17, 2013) –gives very questionable analysis of the political and religious landscape but identifies Francis’ “acceptability” within the Society of Jesus; recall that Father Reese was sacked by Pope Benedict

Pope Francis in Motion

This is THE funniest thing I’ve seen on Pope Francis and the cardinals thus far…Brandon Vogt’s humor refreshes…in Pope Francis in Motion.

h/t to Father John

Pope Francis: What is your Lenten Gesture of Solidarity?

An English Translation of Cardinal Bergoglio’s Lenten Letter 2013

And rend your hearts, and not your garments, and turn to the Lord your God: for he is gracious and merciful, patient and rich in mercy, and ready to repent of the evil. (Joel 2:13)

Little by little we become accustomed to hearing and seeing, through the mass media, the dark chronicle of contemporary society, presented with an almost perverse elation, and also we become [desensitized] to touching it and feeling it all around us [even] in our own flesh. Drama plays out on the streets, in our neighborhoods, in our homes and — why not? — even in our own hearts. We live alongside a violence that kills, that destroys families, that enlivens wars and conflicts in so many countries of the world. We live with envy, hatred, slander, the mundane in our heart.

Continue reading Pope Francis: What is your Lenten Gesture of Solidarity?

Pope Francis: “Mercy is the Lord’s most powerful message.”

At his first praying of the Angelus and address, the Holy Father told the crowd of 300K this experience.

The Pope “told a story, of an elderly widow he encountered during a Mass for the sick celebrated in connection with a visit of the image of Our Lady of Fatima. “I went to confession during the Mass,” he said, “and near the end – I had to go to do confirmations afterward, and an elderly lady approached me – humble [she was] so very humble, more than eighty years old. I looked at her, and said, ‘Grandmother,’ – where I come from, we call elderly people grandmother and grandfather – ‘would you like to make your confession?’ ‘Yes,’ she said – and I said, ‘but, if you have not sinned…’ and she said, ‘we all have sinned.’ [I replied], ‘if perhaps He should not forgive [you]?’ and, sure, she replied, ‘The Lord forgives everything.’ I asked, ‘How do you know this for sure, madam?’ and she replied, ‘If the Lord hadn’t forgiven all, then the world wouldn’t [still] be here.’ And, I wanted to ask her, ‘Madam, did you study at the Gregorian (the Pontifical Gregorian University, founded in 1551 by St Ignatius Loyola, the oldest Jesuit university in the world)?’ – because that is wisdom, which the Holy Spirit gives – interior wisdom regarding the mercy of God. Let us not forget this word: God never tires of forgiving us,” he repeated, “but we sometimes tire of asking Him to forgive us.” Pope Francis went on to say, “Let us never tire of asking God’s forgiveness.”

Source: Vatican Radio