HOLY FATHER TO CANONIZE 123 BLESSEDS ON OCTOBER 1

VATICAN CITY, SEP 26, 2000 (VIS) - Pope John Paul will preside at a Eucharistic celebration in St. Peter's Square at 10 a.m. on Sunday, October 1, during which he will canonize 123 Blesseds, from Asia, Europe, America and Africa.

The future Saints are: Agostino Zhao Rong, priest (d. 1815), and 119 companions, martyrs in China (d. 1648-1930); Maria Josefa del Corazon de Jesus Sancho de Guerra, virgin and foundress of the Institute of the Servants of Jesus of Charity (1842-1912); Katharine Drexel; virgin, foundress of the Sisters of the Most Holy Sacrament for Indians and Colored People (1858-1955); Giuseppina Bakhita, virgin, of the Institute of the Daughters of Charity, Canossians (1869-1947).

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TELEGRAM FOR THE DEATH OF CARDINAL GOUYON

VATICAN CITY, SEP 26, 2000 (VIS) - Given below is the text of the telegram sent by the Pope to Archbishop Francois Saint-Macary of Rennes, France, for the death at the age of 89 of Cardinal Paul Gouyon, archbishop emeritus of the same archdiocese:

"Having learned with sorrow of the death of Cardinal Paul Gouyon, I wish to express to you my union in prayer with the archdiocese of Rennes, with the family of the deceased and with all who are touched by this mourning. I give thanks to God for the episcopal ministry of this zealous pastor who ardently devoted himself in the dioceses of Bayonne and then Rennes, giving the best of himself so that the Gospel might be announced to everyone, especially through a generous commitment to the service of Christian unity and peace among men. Through the maternal intercession of the Virgin Mary, may God received the deceased in His Kingdom of light! To you, to all in the diocese, to those close to the deceased and to all who will take part in his funeral Mass, I send my heartfelt apostolic blessing."

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JOHN PAUL II PRESIDES FUNERAL MASS FOR CARDINAL FAGIOLO

VATICAN CITY, SEP 26, 2000 (VIS) - At 10 this morning in St. Peter's Basilica, Pope John Paul presided over the funeral Mass for Cardinal Vincenzo Fagiolo, who died Friday, September 22, at the age of 82. He was the president emeritus of the Pontifical Council for the Interpretation of Legislative Texts.

In his homily, the Pope said that the "dear and venerated Cardinal Fagiolo ... belonged, we think, to the great numbers of those 'who did good,' and for this we trust that he now awaits to be called by the voice of Christ to 'the resurrection of life'."

"At this time," he said, "it pleases me to remember the late lamented cardinal as a 'master of justice'. The study and teaching of canon law was a constant during his life. ... Educating to true justice, the justice of Christ, this was the ministry that Cardinal Fagiolo exercised throughout his life."

The Holy Father observed that "Cardinal Vincenzo Fagiolo fell asleep in the Lord precisely during the Jubilee Year, after having lived a considerable part of it. This was surely a comfort to him on the last part of his path towards the encounter with Christ."

In closing, the Pope said; "The Father wished for the Son to give eternal life to all those who believed in Him and to raise them on the last day. ... This luminous Gospel truth comforts us every time that we say our final goodbye to a deceased brother."

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INTERNATIONAL THEOLOGICAL COMMISSION TO HOLD PLENARY

VATICAN CITY, SEP 26, 2000 (VIS) - The International Theological Commission will hold its annual plenary session in the Domus Sanctae Marthae in the Vatican from October 2 to 7, under the presidency of Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Fr. Georges Cottier, O.P., secretary general of the commission and theologian of the papal household, will lead the work sessions.

Participants will discuss the theme of the diaconate, for which a 60-page "Instrumentum laboris" has been prepared, and the theme of "Revelation and Inculturation." They will also dedicate time to the presentation of the preparatory reports drafted by the members of the sub-commission which is dealing with the theme "de hominis creatione."

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VATICAN COUNCIL II, RECEPTION PAST AND PRESENT

VATICAN CITY, SEP 26, 2000 (VIS) - At midday today in the Holy See Press Office, the book "Vatican Council II, Reception Past and Present in the Light of the Jubilee," was presented. The volume is published by the Central Committee for the Great Jubilee 2000.

Taking part in the presentation were Cardinal Roger Etchegaray and Archbishop Crescenzio Sepe, respectively president and secretary of the Central Committee for the Great Jubilee 2000, and Bishop Rino Fisichella, vice-president of the Historical-Theological Commission of the Great Jubilee 2000.

Cardinal Etchegaray indicated that "since Vatican Council II, the world has undergone one of the greatest accelerations that history has ever known, and the Church was the first to realize that it is easier to alter structures than it is to change mentalities. Of course, there have been excesses or oversights in the application of conciliar decisions. Nonetheless, it may be supposed that the Church, caught up in the storm of change in the world, would have been in a worse position had she not had the benefit of the Council as a solid and luminous point of reference."

For his part, Archbishop Sepe recalled that this book contains the acts of the congress on the implementation of the measures of Vatican Council II, which was held in the Vatican from February 25 to 27, 2000.

Bishop Fisichella affirmed that "the process of interpreting the Council has not been concluded, nor can it be. Indeed, (such interpretation) is part of a current that goes beyond ecclesial confines because the event is part of history. The Church is, nonetheless, the primary interpreter of the Council; it not only belongs to her, but defines her very historical and ecclesial existence."

With reference to the contents of the book, Bishop Fisichella explained that the first part deals with the themes of the four conciliar constitutions: "Dei verbum," "Sacrosanctum concilium," "Lumen gentium" and "Gaudium et spes," while the second part contains some reflections on the reception and implementation of Vatican Council II by the various Churches.

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DECLARATION ON CANONIZATION OF 120 MARTYRS IN CHINA

VATICAN CITY, SEP 26, 2000 (VIS) - The following declaration was made this afternoon by Holy See Press Office Director Joaquin Navarro-Valls concerning the canonization on Sunday, October 1, of 120 martyrs in China:

"The declaration made on September 26 by the spokesman of the foreign affairs ministry in Beijing, Sun Yuxi, can only deeply sadden those who see in the imminent canonization of 120 martyrs in China the exaltation of men and women, the majority of whom were Chinese citizens (87 of 120), who knew how to live their own commitment to faith with coherence, up to the point of giving their lives.

"Next Sunday's ceremony has no political motivation and is not directed against anyone, much less the great Chinese people, whose traditions of civility have always been recognized and appreciated by the Holy See, in particular by Pope John Paul II.

"To accuse this body of witnesses (including defenseless men and women of all ages) of 'enormous crimes' is the result of a unilateral reading of history and a mystification, if concrete proofs are not presented.

"Obviously, it is entirely something else to talk about the misdeeds which were sometimes committed by the colonial powers. But whoever reads dispassionately and with objectivity the biographies of the well-deserving missionaries who will be canonized next Sunday can only be struck by and filled with admiration at their self-denial and their desire to serve the Chinese people.

"Besides, as is well known, the Holy See proceeds with a beatification or a canonization only after a very serious and deeply studied examination, not only of the sources of the historical testimonials but also of the heroic virtues of the persons to be honored. How is it possible to imagine that the Holy See would canonize persons who have committed 'enormous crimes'? If it were true that historical reality had been distorted, why did the Chinese community - civil and religious - not react against the processes of beatification of the 120 martyrs, which were celebrated starting in 1893, during the pontificate of Leo XIII?
"With the canonization, the intention is not to formulate a judgment on complex historical periods, during which the majority of the 120 martyrs were called to give their own supreme witness. The solemn ceremony aims instead at making the light of their faith in Christ, Savior of all men, shine before the Church and the eyes of people of good will from throughout the world."

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CONFERENCE TO PRESENT RESTORATION OF VATICAN NECROPOLIS

VATICAN CITY, SEP 26, 2000 (VIS) - On Friday, September 29 at 11 a.m. in the Holy See Press Office Cardinal Virgilio Noe, archpriest of the Vatican Basilica, will preside at a press conference for the presentation of the restoration and new lighting of the Vatican necropolis.

Joining Cardinal Noe will be: Franco Tato, an engineer and managing director of ENEL S.p.A., an Italian power company, Pietro Zonder from the works and restoration office of the necropolis and Nazzareno Gabrielli, responsible for the restoration.

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