Bergoglio’s Intervention: A diagnosis of the problems in the Church

The archbishop of Havana, Cardinal Jaime Lucas Ortega y Alamino, on Saturday read from a document given him by Pope Francis, outlining the speech he gave during the pre-conclave General Congregation meetings of the Cardinals. Cardinal Ortega had been so impressed with the speech he asked the then-Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio for a copy of the intervention. Following the conclave, Cardinal Ortega received permission from Pope Francis to share the information.
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Posted: March 27, 2013 • Permanent link: ecu.net/?p=3510
Categories: News • In this article: church, pope, Pope Francis, Vatican Transmis : 27 mars 2013 • Lien permanente : ecu.net/?p=3510
Catégorie : News • Dans cet article : church, pope, Pope Francis, Vatican

Pope appoints advisory group of eight to advise on church reform

Pope Francis has set up an advisory board of eight cardinals from around the world to help him govern the Catholic Church and to help him reform it. Briefing journalists Saturday the head of the Holy See press office, Rev. Federico Lombardi, said the communiqué came exactly one month since Pope Francis’ election following the February 11 resignation of his predecessor Pope Benedict XVI. He said it shows that Pope Francis “listens attentively” to the suggestions of the College of Cardinals – his closest collaborators. The formation of the group came after reading the mood of cardinals at the conclave that elected the pontiff on March 13. That meeting took place behind closed doors. The Vatican spokesman also noted that the group will have no legislative power and that its main function is to “help” and “advise” the Pope. Lombardi also noted the advisers would in no way interfere in the normal functions of the Roman Curia, the body responsible for daily governance of the Vatican and the Catholic Church.
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Posted: April 13, 2013 • Permanent link: ecu.net/?p=3673
Categories: News • In this article: Catholic, pope, Pope Francis, Vatican Transmis : 13 avril 2013 • Lien permanente : ecu.net/?p=3673
Catégorie : News • Dans cet article : Catholic, pope, Pope Francis, Vatican

Pope Tawadros II and Pope Francis meet in Rome

The visit of Tawadros II, Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St. Mark, “strengthens the bonds of friendship and brotherhood that already exist between the See of Peter and the See of Mark, heir to an inestimable heritage of martyrs, theologians, holy monks, and faithful disciples of Christ, who have borne witness to the Gospel from generation to generation, often in situations of great adversity,” said Pope Francis on receiving the head of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Egypt this morning. The pontiff remarked on the memorable meeting that took place, 40 years ago, between the predecessors of both, Pope Paul VI and Pope Shenouda III, which united them “in an embrace of peace and fraternity, after centuries of mutual distance.”
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Posted: May 10, 2013 • Permanent link: ecu.net/?p=3944
Categories: News • In this article: Catholic, Christian unity, Coptic, ecumenism, Oriental Orthodox, patriarch, Pope Francis, Vatican Transmis : 10 mai 2013 • Lien permanente : ecu.net/?p=3944
Catégorie : News • Dans cet article : Catholic, Christian unity, Coptic, ecumenism, Oriental Orthodox, patriarch, Pope Francis, Vatican

Recent Ecumenical Firsts

A couple of interesting ecumenical developments occurred of late regarding [Catholic] relations with the Coptic Orthodox Church and the Anglican Communion. First, His Holiness Tawadros II, the Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the Coptic Orthodox Church, has been on an official visit to Rome (since the third century the Patriarchs of Alexandria have used the title “pope”). He arrived on May 9 and left May 13. The visit marked the first time that Pope Francis has received the head of another Christian church or ecclesial community since his installation in March, and it is also Pope Tawadros’ first trip outside Egypt since his election last November.
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Posted: May 22, 2013 • Permanent link: ecu.net/?p=4531
Categories: News • In this article: Anglican, Catholic, Coptic, ecumenism, Pope Francis Transmis : 22 mai 2013 • Lien permanente : ecu.net/?p=4531
Catégorie : News • Dans cet article : Anglican, Catholic, Coptic, ecumenism, Pope Francis

Pope, Anglican archbishop pledge to work for unity

Pope Francis and Anglican Archbishop Justin Welby of Canterbury, spiritual leader of the Anglican Communion, pledged to support each other with their prayers and to continue the search for full unity between their communities.

Meeting at the Vatican June 14, praying together in the Redemptoris Mater Chapel in the Apostolic Palace and eating lunch together in the papal residence, both remarked on the fact that Pope Francis’ inaugural Mass was celebrated March 19 and Archbishop Welby’s installation was March 21.

“Since we began our respective ministries within days of each other, I think we will always have a particular reason to support one another in prayer,” Pope Francis said. He also thanked the new Anglican leader for praying for him during his installation at Canterbury Cathedral.

Archbishop Welby told him, “I pray that the nearness of our two inaugurations may serve the reconciliation of the world and the church.”
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Posted: June 14, 2013 • Permanent link: ecu.net/?p=6272
Categories: CNS • In this article: Anglican, Archbishop of Canterbury, Catholic, pope, Pope Francis Transmis : 14 juin 2013 • Lien permanente : ecu.net/?p=6272
Catégorie : CNS • Dans cet article : Anglican, Archbishop of Canterbury, Catholic, pope, Pope Francis

Pope open to Orthodox synod structure

Pope Francis, who recently spoke of a need to increase the common responsibility all bishops hold for the universal church, told a delegation of Orthodox leaders that the Catholic Church can learn from the synod structure of the Eastern Christian churches.

Dialogue for Christian unity is not a theoretical exercise for theologians, but an essential, practical tool for growing in faith and for evangelization, Pope Francis told a delegation from the Ecumenical Orthodox Patriarchate of Constantinople.

“This is not merely a theoretical exercise, but one of getting to know each other’s traditions in order to understand and even learn from them,” the pope said during the meeting June 28.

Pope Francis said he was referring particularly “to the reflection of the Catholic Church on the meaning of episcopal collegiality and the tradition of synodality, so typical of the Orthodox churches,” in which the synods function as a symbol of the unity of the local churches and as a governing body united to the patriarch or spiritual leader of the church.
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Posted: June 28, 2013 • Permanent link: ecu.net/?p=6448
Categories: CNS • In this article: Catholic, church reform, collegiality, dialogue, Orthodox, Pope Francis, synodality Transmis : 28 juin 2013 • Lien permanente : ecu.net/?p=6448
Catégorie : CNS • Dans cet article : Catholic, church reform, collegiality, dialogue, Orthodox, Pope Francis, synodality

Dialogue doesn’t distance us from truth but leads us to whole truth

“Your presence is the sign of the profound bond that unites the Church of Constantinople with the Church of Rome in faith, in hope, and in charity,” Pope Francis said this morning on receiving the delegation of the Ecumenical Patriarch, which had arrived in Rome to celebrate the Solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul. The tradition of exchanging visits for the occasions of the respective patronal feasts dates back to 1969. The Pope emphasized that “fraternal gathering is an essential part of the journey towards unity.”

“The search for unity among Christians is an urgent task—you have said that ‘it is not a luxury, but an imperative’—from which, today more than ever, we cannot prescind. In our world that hungers and thirsts for truth, love, hope, peace, and unity, our witness demands that we should at last be able to proclaim, with one voice, the good news of the Gospel and celebrate together the Divine Mysteries of our new life in Christ. We are well aware that unity is primarily a gift from Gift that we must pray for unceasingly, but we all have the task of preparing the conditions, of cultivating the soil of the heart so that this extraordinary grace may be received.”
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Posted: June 28, 2013 • Permanent link: ecu.net/?p=6298
Categories: Vatican News • In this article: Bartholomew I, Catholic, Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, Orthodox, Pope Francis, Vatican Transmis : 28 juin 2013 • Lien permanente : ecu.net/?p=6298
Catégorie : Vatican News • Dans cet article : Bartholomew I, Catholic, Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, Orthodox, Pope Francis, Vatican

Three rabbis and a Pope

Three rabbis and a Pope: High praise for Francis after visit to Vatican

“This man is a mensch.” Standing alone, this is an unremarkable sentence. But from a rabbi about a pope?
This was what Rabbi Shmuel Goldin of Congregation Ahavath Torah in Englewood, the president of the Orthodox Rabbinical Council of America, said about Pope Francis.

Here’s another thought, from Rabbi Noam Marans of Teaneck, the Conservative rabbi who is director of interreligious and intergroup relations at the American Jewish Committee (AJC).

“Pope Francis is the quintessential religious symbol par excellence; unassuming, unscripted, warm. It is a religious experience to be in his presence.”

And a third, from Rabbi Dr. Eugene Korn of New Milford, the Orthodox rabbi who is the American director of the Center for Jewish-Christian Understanding and Cooperation in Israel.

“He is very warm.”

The three of them were among the 25 or so Jews who met with the pope last week. Each represents his organization in the umbrella group called the International Jewish Committee for Interreligious Consultations (which is abbreviated as IJCIC, uneuphoniously pronounced Idge-kick). IJCIC is the official liaison between the Jewish world and the Vatican.
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Posted: July 5, 2013 • Permanent link: ecu.net/?p=6452
Categories: News • In this article: IJCIC, interfaith, Judaism, Pope Francis Transmis : 5 juillet 2013 • Lien permanente : ecu.net/?p=6452
Catégorie : News • Dans cet article : IJCIC, interfaith, Judaism, Pope Francis

Comprehending the nature of the theology in number thirty-six

The new encyclical, issued by Pope Francis, Lumen fidei, is a splendid document that deserves to be pondered prayerfully. Its clarity and depth will repay multiple readings by all in the Church – indeed, by all who are seeking the meaning and truth of human existence.

However, one section will prove of particular interest to theologians. Number thirty-six of the encyclical sets forth briefly, but in a remarkably rich way, an understanding of the task of theology. From one perspective, of course, it is a traditional view (as the footnote reference to Bonaventure and Aquinas shows). But it places that traditional understanding into an intersubjective context that brings out, in a new and deeper way, its significance and implications.

The Pope writes: “God is a subject who makes himself known and perceived in an interpersonal relationship.” Thus the theologian cannot approach the theological task in a distant, neutral manner, as would a scientist or a mere observer. Theology flourishes through participatory knowledge in which reason, will, and affections are all engaged. The encyclical appeals to the biblical notion of the “heart” and insists that, as Blessed John Henry Newman expresses it: cor ad cor loquitur — heart speaks to heart. Theology reflects upon the Word of God, fully revealed, in the death and resurrection of Jesus, as abiding Love. The heart of God speaks to our heart his Word of Love in interpersonal encounter.
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Posted: July 13, 2013 • Permanent link: ecu.net/?p=6602
Categories: Opinion • In this article: encyclicals, Pope Francis, theology Transmis : 13 juillet 2013 • Lien permanente : ecu.net/?p=6602
Catégorie : Opinion • Dans cet article : encyclicals, Pope Francis, theology

Pope who can’t be pigeonholed bound to disappoint some, says cardinal

Many Catholics who identify themselves as either conservatives or progressives will be disappointed in Pope Francis, whose program of spiritual renewal, doctrinal continuity and emphasis on the poor fits none of the traditional moulds, a top German cardinal said.

Cardinal Walter Kasper, a theologian and retired president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, said Pope Francis will also face resistance within the curia, which needs both organizational revamping and a change of mentality.

Attempts at reform will bring resistance and difficulties “just like with every big institution,” he said in a July 16 interview with the Italian newspaper Il Foglio.

“However, this pope is very determined: He knows what he wants,” he said.
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Posted: July 17, 2013 • Permanent link: ecu.net/?p=6509
Categories: CNS • In this article: church reform, Pope Francis, Walter Kasper Transmis : 17 juillet 2013 • Lien permanente : ecu.net/?p=6509
Catégorie : CNS • Dans cet article : church reform, Pope Francis, Walter Kasper