Saint John XXIII – Communio

New papal saints

What do you know about papal saints? How many of them are you able to name?

The Holy Father is canonizing two of predecessors on April 27, 2014. At that time there will be 83 saints who served the Church as the Roman Pontiff. That’s roughly a third of 266 bishops of Rome.

The last of the canonized Pontiffs are: Saint Celestine V (r. 1294), Saint Pius V (1566-1572), and Saint Pius X (r. 1903-1914). We also await the Church’s discernment on 9 other popes who have been beatified, plus several who are at the beginning stages of the sainthood study process.

Christopher M. Bellitto has an article online over at St Anthony Messenger: “John XXIII and John Paul II: Our Newest Saints.” As a quick overview you ought to read. Some interpretative elements pertain more to Bellitto than to me but expand your knowledge.

Good Pope John was no lightweight…

Earlier today I read a very insightful essay on the First Things blog by William Doino, Jr, “John XXIII’s Prophetic Encyclical.”

I have to say in the effort of full disclosure, I’ve never read Blessed John’s Ad Petri Cathedram (1959); neither have I read anything about it. No surprise, really, given that so many have overlooked John XXIII as a nice, rotund pope who was not much more than a jolly, inviting person. John’s teaching is not to be obscured, it needs our firm attention and implication. So, this is a great find on my part.

May I suggest that you read Mr. Doino’s essay and the pontiff’s encyclical. It is clear that the blessed pope is dealing with the hard issues of faith and reason, especially the clarity objectivity of Truth. As Doino points out Good Pope John was not a relativist on truth and good order of the proclaiming gospel. Among the contents of this obscure papal treatise are the topics of Christian unity under the guidance of the Pope, Vatican II’s preparation, the role of bishops in the Church, the mission of consecrated men and women, the value of theology, world peace, and social justice.

Blessed John XXIII

Blessed John XXIII has his liturgical memorial today. He’ll be a canonized on 27 April 2014. Good Pope John is well-known for his calling the Second Vatican Council but he’s also a pope remained close the Church’s tradition.

Hymn texts are a wonderful way of getting at who a person is. J. Michael Thompson wrote this hymn.

1. Come now, you lovers of the feasts!
In tune with heaven’s choir,
In honor of our good Pope John
We sing with harp and lyre!
From peasant stock in Bergamo
He heard at first your call,
And left his home and family
To freely give his all.

2. As priest, he healed old enmities
And followed your own path,
Resolving such disputes with love
And took the shepherd’s staff.
Sent eastward, in the time of war,
He served the Prince of Peace,
Providing help to those in need
In Turkey and in Greece.

3. When sent by Rome to France, he sought
To heal the scars of war,
He spoke of peace and love to both
Those near and those afar.
Then to the church of Venice called,
He led with shepherd’s care,
And in obedience and peace
He preached the gospel there.

4. The Spirit’s loving voice was heard
By leaders come to Rome;
Thus he ascended Peter’s chair
And took the name of John.
Instead of fierce severity,
With mercy’s medicine
He met the needs of present day,
Preached newness from within.

5. As “servant of God’s servants,” he
Convened a Council’s skills
To join the Church to changing world,
With grace to heal life’s ills.
When illness brought him near to death,
He offered up his life
That God might bless the Council’s work,
With blessings come from strife.

6. To God the Father, God the Son,
And God the Paraclete,
We sing our song of glory now,
A hymn both strong and sweet.
With Good Pope John and heaven’s choirs
May we our praises raise
Till we are joined with them at last
For endless length of days!

J. Michael Thompson
Copyright © 2010, World Library Publications
CMD
KINGSFOLD

Pacem in Terris STILL guides for a better, peaceful world

50 years after Blessed John XXIII published Pacem in Terris, an encyclical that promoted peace in a world tortured by war and various other forms of unrest, still is relevant today. Crucially so. Pacem in Terris was the first papal letter address to “all people of good will.” It followed the Cuban missal crisis. The importance of this encyclical is not important merely for social concerns, but for true peace among peoples, solidarity and justice. Justice and mercy are the parameters of life and the path of the journey in building, confessing Jesus Christ, though it was hoped that non-believers would take note of what was contained therein. The goal of the papal teaching was to provide “an opening of spaces of freedom and dialogue.”

Among the points of PT that we have to remember (and see echoes in the teachings of later popes):

• People should take an active role in public life and organizations and influence them from within (147)

• Humans should carry on temporal activities “as acts within the moral order” (150).

• A unity between faith and action is needed; solid Christian education will help achieve this unity
(152-153).

• Distinguish between false philosophical ideas and movements deriving from them (159).

• Christians need prudence in determining when to collaborate with non-Christians in social and economic affairs (160).

• “Peace will be but an empty sounding word unless it is founded on the order which the present document has outlined in confident hope: an order founded on truth, built according to justice, vivified and integrated by charity, and put into practice in freedom” (167).

Vatican Radio carried a piece today on Pacem in Terris with Pope Francis’ remarks. A few paragraphs are excerpted here:

The Encyclical, Pope Francis said, reminds us that the basis of peace-making exists in mankind’s “divine origin” and thus everyone, from individuals and families to society and States are called to “build peace, on the example of Jesus Christ… by promoting and practicing justice with truth and love…(and) contributing…to integral human development” through solidarity. And that means an end to “egotism, individualism, and group interests at every level.”

But has today’s world learned any lessons from Pacem in Terris? the Pope asked: “Are the words justice and solidarity” found “solely in our dictionary or are we all working to realize them?”

Pacem in Terris reminds us that “there can be no real peace and harmony if we fail to work for a more just” and jointly supportive society, the Pope said.

And if man, and indeed, society and authorities themselves share a common divine origin, then every human being shares a common dignity “to promote, respect and safeguard always.”

John XXIII and John Paul II to be canonized

In a meeting with Cardinal Angelo Amato, SDB, Prefect of the Congregation for Saints this morning in Rome, Pope Francis was presented with causes of several persons being studied for beatification and sainthood.

A special Consistory of Cardinals has been called to discuss the proposed canonizations. Notably, the cardinals will discuss the canonizations of Blessed John Paul II and Blessed John XXIII.

In today’s Ordinary Consistory of Cardinals and Bishops of the Congregation for Saints, Pope Francis received the favorable votes for both popes canonization. John XXIII, though without the usual required second miracle. Moreover of note, the Prelates favorably voted on the beatification of Bishop Álvaro del Portillo, the successor of Saint Josémaría Escriva. The former Prelate of Opus Dei died in 1994. The Venerable Servant of God was in his early life as a priest a significant contributor of the work of the Second Vatican Council. Several of recognitions of sanctity were made.

The dares for the special Consistory and canonizations has not yet been set, and the canonization is expected to happen by year’s end.

Pope Francis shows the import of Blessed John XXIII on his anniversary of death

Dear friends of the Diocese of Bergamo,

I am pleased to welcome you here, at the tomb of the Apostle Peter, in this place that is home to every Catholic. I affectionately greet your Pastor, Bishop Francesco Beschi, and thank him for the kind words he addressed to me on behalf of all.

Exactly fifty years ago, just at this moment, Blessed John XXIII left this world. Those who, like me, [are of] a certain age, retain a vivid memory of the commotion that spread everywhere in those days: St. Peter’s Square had become a sanctuary in the open, day and night welcoming the faithful of all ages and social conditions, in trepidation and prayer for the Pope’s health. The whole world had recognized in Pope John a pastor and a father: a shepherd because [he was] father. What made him such? How could he reach the hearts of so many different people, even many non-Christians? To answer this question, we can refer to his episcopal motto, oboedientia et pax: obedience and peace. “These words,” noted the then-Archbishop Roncalli on the eve of his episcopal ordination, “are [in a way] my story and my life.” (Journal of a Soul, retreat in preparation for consecration as bishop, 13-17 March 1925).

Continue reading Pope Francis shows the import of Blessed John XXIII on his anniversary of death

Anniversary of death of Pope John XXIII, the Mosul martyrs, and a Trappist

In daily life most of occasionally remember the passing of a loved with a visit to the cemetery, saying a prayer for the peaceful repose of the soul, perhaps having a Mass offered for the loved. These are normal Catholic practices in remembering the dead. But when you are a pope similar things happen, but just like with loved ones, there comes a point that we just don’t actively remember anymore. Do we actively remember the dead? In my family, I think I am the only one to keep the memory of loved ones known, and try to beg God for mercy on the dead. This is a sad stage in our the evolving of our society.

Today happens to be anniversary of death that I am recalling, four people from widely different backgrounds and vocations:

Blessed Pope John XXIII‘s 50 years since his death
Aunt Helen, 2002
Dom Basil Pennington, OCSO, monk, abbot, and author, Spencer, MA, 2005
Father Raghed Ganni and 3 subdeacons killed in Mosul, Iraq, 2007

John XXIII, was the supreme pontiff less than 5 years, was the smiling pope who called the Second Vatican Council, Aunt Helen was a wife and mother, Dom Basil was a Trappist monk of St Joseph’s Abbey, Spencer, MA who was a prolific writer on the spiritual life and on Cistercian life, and Father Raghed Ganni and the subdeacons we gunned down for being Christian in a context of Islamic persecution. Of note, pilgrims from Blessed John’s native region in Italy will be at Mass today and meet with Pope Francis. It is a good thing to remember our loved ones. They still are a part of our lives; they make up our DNA.

Let’s offer a prayer for all these people asking God the Father of Mercies to be gentle and loving. But let’s ask these people to ask God to bestow mercy upon us.

Pope Francis calls Archbishop Loris Capovilla

Keeping up appearances…by phone…with previous papal administrations. Pope Francis apparently is touching base with key people in history of the Church from the 20th century. He spoke with Archbishop Loris Francesco Capovilla, 97, one of the oldest prelates in the Church today. A priest (73 years) of Venice, he was ordained to the episcopacy in 1967 and served as the archbishop of Cheiti-Vasto and later he was the Prelate of the Shrine of Loreto. His Excellency is the former secretary of Blessed John XXIII. L’Osservatore Romano will run this story on April 3.

A simple, moving gesture: last Monday, at 6:30 p.m., the telephone rang at Ca’ Maitino di Sotto il Monte, John XXIII’s summer residence, where today Archbishop Loris Francesco Capovilla lives and where the Suore Poverelle cherish memories of Pope John. As usual Capovilla answered himself. It was Pope Francis who was calling him because, among the many messages of good wishes, he had received directly an Easter message written in the light of the Second Vatican Council, edited by Pope Roncalli’s former Secretary, subtitled: “With Pope Francis we are celebrating the 50th anniversary of Pacem in Terris on 11 April 2013 and on 3 June 2013 of the passing of John XXIII: a detailed agenda. With the Bishop of Rome who greets the Secretary who was the companion at arms of the Pope of the Council and says to him “I see him with the eyes of my heart“, Capovilla told us. “It was a very great surprise and I like to consider this telephone call made to this place where John XXIII was born rather than to me myself: as a tribute to him and to his roots“. Capovilla, who will be ninety [-eight] in October, mentioned that the Pope had stressed certain parts of the message he had sent him: a few pages together with a few pictures (of Manzù’s medal for the opening of the Second Vatican Council, Francis on the Loggia the evening of his election; Francis and Benedict XVI from behind, kneeling in prayer together at Castel Gandolfo; a portrait of John XXIII by Hans-Jürgen Kallmann), and some very short texts “as precious as a homily”, as Francis described them. In their brief conversation the Pope asked Capovilla “to pray John XXIII to help the Pope and everyone to be better people”, Archbishop Capovilla continued: “I also reminded him of my age and he remarked that the spirit counts more. I told him that I have both Christian and non-Christian friends and that to this day the Lord has accompanied me”. And he added that he had “humbly asked His Holiness for a blessing for the inhabitants of Sotto il Monte, for his parish community, for the relatives of the Pope of the Council”, and for “all those who work with me together with the Bishop of Bergamo”.

Marco Roncalli

April 3, 2013

Pacem in Terris after 50 years

A Public Symposium in Celebration of the 50th Anniversary of Pope John XXIII’s Encyclical on Establishing Universal Peace on Earth

Thursday, April 4, 2013, 5:00PM – 7:00PM

5 – 7 p.m. EST

4 – 6 p.m. CST

Max Palevsky Cinema, Ida Noyes Hall

University of Chicago

1212 East 59th Street, Chicago, IL 60637

Keynote
Roland Minnerath, Archbishop of Dijon

Respondents
Mary Ann Glendon, Harvard Law School
Joseph Weiler, New York University Law School
Russell Hittinger, University of Tulsa Thursday, April 4, 2013

Presented by

The Lumen Christi Institute for Catholic Faith, Thought, and Culture, the Committee on Social Thought at the University of Chicago, and the Center for Civil and Human Rights at the University of Notre Dame Law School

For more information on other presentations, visit this site.

Year of Faith: sharing Christ’s Good News is new life, a journey that transforms

In the presence of hundreds of bishops, the Eastern Catholic Patriarchs, ecumenical partners and laity, Pope Benedict prayed the Mass and preached on the meaning of both the Second Vatican Council and the Year of Faith through the lens of conversion. Benedict is clear: the Year of Faith is not celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Second Vatican Council. The Church needs not a special forum for this anniversary; it is all an invitation to conversion and to deepen one’s faith in the Christ. The homily Pope Benedict delivered today follows.

Today,
fifty years from the opening of the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, we begin
with great joy the Year of Faith. I am delighted to greet all of you,
particularly His Holiness Bartholomaois I, Patriarch of Constantinople, and His
Grace Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury. A special greeting goes to the
Patriarchs and Major Archbishops of the Eastern Catholic Churches, and to the
Presidents of the Bishops’ Conferences. In order to evoke the Council, which
some present had the grace to experience for themselves – and I greet them with
particular affection – this celebration has been enriched by several special
signs: the opening procession, intended to recall the memorable one of the
Council Fathers when they entered this Basilica; the enthronement of a copy of
the Book of the Gospels used at the Council; the consignment of the seven final
Messages of the Council, and of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, which I
will do before the final blessing. These signs help us not only to remember,
they also offer us the possibility of going beyond commemorating. They invite
us to enter more deeply into the spiritual movement which characterized Vatican
II, to make it ours and to develop it according to its true meaning. And its
true meaning was and remains faith in Christ, the apostolic faith, animated by
the inner desire to communicate Christ to individuals and all people, in the
Church’s pilgrimage along the pathways of history.

Continue reading Year of Faith: sharing Christ’s Good News is new life, a journey that transforms