TWELFTH GENERAL CONGREGATION

VATICAN CITY, OCT 10, 2005 (VIS) - This afternoon, the Twelfth General Congregation of the Synod of Bishops on the Eucharist was held in the Vatican's Synod Hall in the presence of 242 Synod Fathers. The president delegate on duty was Cardinal Francis Arinze, and the Pope attended for the free discussions at the end of the gathering.

  Following are excerpts from some of the speeches given:

CARDINAL IVAN DIAS, ARCHBISHOP OF BOMBAY, INDIA. "In the Synod sessions, among the many shadows in our Church today, the decreasing numbers of church goers, the waning interest in sacramental Confession, and the lack of catechesis has been mentioned. These problems have been in the Church always, albeit in different ways. On the other hand, the Church has also had persons who have tackled such situations in ways which can inspire us even today. Everyone knows of the saintly Cure of Ars and great apostle of the confessional, John Mary Vianney, and of Archbishop Fulton Sheen, the brilliant speaker who reached millions of people through his television and radio broadcasts, The secret of their resounding success was the many hours they spent in prayer before the Blessed Sacrament. They could well be role models for priests and bishops today. There is a Chinese proverb which says: instead of cursing the darkness, light a candle. As we are immersed in the darkness of spiritual and moral ills all around us, would it not be wonderful if bishops and priests all over the world would spend an hour in praise and worship before the Blessed Sacrament everyday interceding for themselves, for the faithful entrusted to their pastoral care and for the needs of the whole Church? Their flocks would certainly be edified and encouraged at seeing their shepherds practising what they preach on devotion to the Blessed Eucharist."

CARDINAL JULIAN HERRANZ, PRESIDENT OF THE PONTIFICAL COUNCIL FOR LEGISLATIVE TEXTS. "Humanity has no right before God to receive the Eucharist, precisely because this is an act of infinite generosity and mercy. But once God has given the sacraments to the Church for the good of His people, all the faithful enjoy the following right formulated by ... canon 912: 'Any baptized person who is not forbidden by law may and must be admitted to Holy Communion.' ... We are dealing here with a fundamental right but not, as some think, an absolute one. There are, in fact, personal requirements limiting that right. The need of a state of grace to receive Holy Communion, which the people concerned must judge for themselves, also has certain external manifestations that make demands on Pastors. There are cases where ... outward conduct is seriously, clearly and steadfastly contrary to the moral norm, and impedes access to Eucharistic communion. The norm concerns many irregular situations; all of them, however, are to be handled with loving patience and pastoral solicitude, in order to regularize them and prevent any of the faithful distancing themselves from the Church - or even considering themselves excommunicated - by the simple fact of not being able to receive communion. ... Perhaps we should be more sensitive to the reasonable requests of the faithful who express their 'hunger for the Eucharist.' In fact, many of them complain of the difficulty of finding a confessor, even where priests are not lacking in the parish; they point out liturgical abuses and trivializing desecration of Eucharistic celebrations; they suffer because, contrary to canonical norms on public worship, churches are always closed except during community celebrations, and people cannot remain in adoration in front of the Blessed Sacrament, etc. Since justice consists in giving each their rights ('unicuique suum tribuere'), we ask our Lady - 'Speculum Iustitiae' - to help us guarantee our lay brothers and sisters the exercise of their rights: for the good of their souls, but also for the apostolic vigor of the entire People of God."

BISHOP JOHANNES GERARDUS MARIA VON BURGSTEDEN S.S.S., AUXILIARY OF HAARLEM, NETHERLANDS. "To bring the Eucharistic celebration nearer to modern man, I feel that, at the least, the following three points are important. Firstly, catechesis continues around the center and summit of our faith, and thus, catechesis has to be a Eucharistic catechesis. A Eucharistic catechesis is, by its very nature, a Christocentric catechesis. He Himself is the heart and the summit of our faith. ... Secondly, the dignified celebration of the Eucharist deserves our attention. Here, both celebrants and the faithful have a great responsibility. By a dignified celebration I mean one that faithfully follows the rules and regulations. This aside, it must be affirmed that real dignity resides, in the final instance, in the interior disposition of both the faithful and the celebrants. ... Thirdly and finally, I would like to mention adoration of the Most Holy Sacrament. I believe - and it is certainly the case in my own area - that Eucharistic worship is becoming increasingly limited to Eucharistic celebration. ... Eucharistic fasting, the solemn exposition of the Most Holy Sacrament, but also silent adoration in front of the tabernacle, can be a great help in encouraging our desire to unite ourselves with Christ."

FR. JOHN CORRIVEAU O.F.M. Cap., MINISTER GENERAL OF THE FRANCISCAN ORDER OF FRIARS MINOR (CAPUCHINS). "Our age needs to rediscover awe. St. Francis calls us back to awe   to surprise and amazement at how God is constantly taking the initiative in our regard. This is vital for those of us who live in a culture where nothing amazes us any more because everything is the product of human planning and organization. Humanity appears as the product of its own experimentations, leaving no room for surprise and novelty. ... It is important that the Christian community re discover the profound link between the Eucharistic mystery and the circumstances of everyday life, starting from fraternal relationships and broadening out to embrace the whole of creation. Thus arises the circular movement inherent in the Christian life: the Eucharist will impel us to form fraternal relationships in the Church, in society and with the whole creation. Work for the promotion of a true brotherhood/sisterhood of peace among people and for the protection of creation will encourage us to recognize in the Eucharist the only adequate foundation for our life and action."

BISHOP ALFREDO VICTOR PETIT VERGEL OF SAN CRISTOBAL DE LA HABANA, CUBA. "In spite of the lack of priests, we have enormous esteem for the Eucharist and it is celebrated with great respect for liturgical norms. However, faced with the difficulty and the practical impossibility of constructing new churches, we have what are known as 'prayer houses' or 'mission houses' located in suburbs, in small villages and in country homes where each week, or as often as they can, small groups of faithful, not more than 40, gather together under the guidance of a committed lay person, a religious or a deacon. The priest comes to these houses and Mass is celebrated with great devotion and respect for liturgical norms, care being taken to ensure sacramental Confession for those who ... wish to participate in the Eucharistic bread."

BISHOP KARL-HEINZ WIESEMANN, AUXILIARY OF PADERBORN, GERMANY. "In spite of secularism, our times are pervaded by deep and mystical nostalgia. Yet, are we capable of celebrating the Eucharist in such a way that men and women who seek are attracted by its mystery? The highest form of the presence of the Lord, which we can best define by the concepts of real presence and transubstantiation, is revealed for St. Thomas, in his famous hymn 'Adoro te devote, latens deitas,' ... as the highest form of sacramental concealment. There is no reference here to modern skepticism, but to the exact opposite: the opening of a dialectic of 'seeking to find' and of 'finding to seek.' ... This mystical dimension must also be expressed in the way in which we talk about and celebrate the Eucharist. Only in this way can the Eucharist show itself to be effective as the one true answer to the mystical yearning of our times, because it introduces man to a deep loving relationship with Christ, and so to the mystery of the One and Triune God, making him a participant therein. Hence, we must emphasize gestures and liturgical forms that also express what is concealed, perceptible only in silence."
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