CLARIFICATION OF CANONS DEALING WITH CARE OF THE EUCHARIST

VATICAN CITY, JUL 9, 1999 (VIS) - Made public yesterday was a note from the Pontifical Council for the Interpretation of Legislative Texts, signed by council president, Archbishop Julian Herranz, regarding the authentic interpretation of canons dealing with the care of the Most Holy Eucharist.

In the note, Archbishop Herranz recalls that the Eucharist is the center and root of the life of the Church. Consequently, "we can understand the care and commitment taken by the pastors of the Church so that this invaluable gift of God be deeply and religiously loved, safeguarded and surrounded by that cult which expresses, in the best way possible within human limits, faith in the real presence of Christ - blood, body, soul and divinity - under the species of bread and wine, even after the celebration of the Holy Sacrifice."

In contrast to this veneration of the Eucharist, cases exist "not only of deplorable disciplinary abuses, but even of acts of contempt and profanation by individuals who, almost diabolically inspired, presume to thus oppose that which is most sacred for the Church and the faithful, and what they most protect, adore and love."

After referring to acts "of hatred for and offense against the Holy Sacrament" that constitute "a very grave moral fault of sacrilege," Archbishop Herranz indicates that "in certain cases these acts of sacrilege constitute genuine and authentic crimes, according to the canons of ecclesiastical legislation."

The text of Canon 1367 of the C.I.C. reads as follows: "A person who throws away the consecrated species or who takes them or retains them for a sacrilegious purpose incurs an automatic (latae sententiae) excommunication reserved to the Apostolic See; if a cleric, he can be punished with another penalty including dismissal from the clerical state."

With regard to abuses against the species of bread and wine, the following doubt was expressed: "Whether in Canons 1367 of the C.I.C. and 1442 of the C.C.E.O. (Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches), the word 'abicere' is to be understood or not as the act of throwing away." The Fathers of the pontifical council have replied: "Negatively and 'ad mentem'."

They explain that the "mente" is "Any voluntary action that is gravely contemptuous must be included in the word 'abicere'."

"The verb 'abicit'," adds Archbishop Herranz, "must not only be understood in the strict sense of to throw away, nor even generically in the sense of to profane, but rather in the broader meaning of to have contempt for, to despise, to humiliate. Consequently, a grave act of sacrilege against the Body and Blood of Christ is committed by anyone who takes and/or retains the sacred species for sacrilegious ends (obscene, superstitious or impious) or by anyone who, even without removing it from the tabernacle, the monstrance or the altar, makes it the object of any external voluntary and grave act of contempt. For anyone guilty of this act the provision exists, in the Latin Church, for the penalty of 'latae sententiae' (automatic) excommunication, the absolution of which is reserved to the Holy See; and, in the Oriental Catholic Churches, for major excommunication 'ferendae sententiae' (imposed)."

Finally, the document recalls that "the sin of sacrilege must not be confused with the crime of sacrilege; not all the sins committed in this regard are to be considered as crimes. ... The crime of sacrilege which is being dealt with here, must entail an external act, though not necessarily a public one."

The Holy Father, in the audience granted to Archbishop Herranz on July 3, was informed of the decision taken by the council, confirmed the decision and ordered its publication.

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OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

VATICAN CITY, JUL 9, 1999 (VIS) - The Holy Father:

- Appointed Bishop Salvatore Boccaccio of Sabina-Poggio Mirteto, Italy, as bishop of Frosinone-Veroli-Ferentino (area 804, population 185,570, Catholics 183,000, priests 134, religious 274), Italy. He succeeds Bishop Angelo Cella M.S.C., whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same diocese the Holy Father accepted, upon having reached the age limit.

- Appointed Msgr. Leonard P. Blair of the clergy of Detroit (area 10,106, population 4,266,654, Catholics 1,452,100, priests 789, permanent deacons 143, religious 2,436), U.S.A., as auxiliary of the same archdiocese. The bishop-elect was born in Detroit in 1949, ordained a priest in 1976 and since 1997 has been pastor in the parish of Saint Paul at Grosse Pointe.

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POPE'S MESSAGE TO KAREKIN I PUBLISHED POSTHUMOUSLY

VATICAN CITY, JUL 8, 1999 (VIS) - The funeral of Patriarch Karekin I, Catholicos of all the Armenians, took place today in Etchmiadzin, Armenia, and was attended by a delegation from the Holy See led by Cardinal Edward Cassidy, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity.

Cardinal Cassidy was scheduled to visit Karekin I from July 1 to 3, bearing a Message from the Holy Father, but the patriarch died on June 29, following a long illness. Made public today was the Pope's Message, written in English and dated June 29.

In it he expressed his "spiritual closeness at this difficult time of ill health," and recalled the two visits that Karekin I had paid him in Rome.

The Holy Father also highlighted how "the Christian faith has shaped Armenian culture, just as Armenian culture has contributed to enriching the understanding of the Christian faith in new and unique ways. ... The Armenian Apostolic Church developed its own identity in a spirit of great openness to the different ecclesial traditions around it. ... (Its) present contribution to the ecumenical movement is part of a long tradition of openness and fraternal exchange."

John Paul II underscored the need to proceed on the path of dialogue in the search for Christian unity, writing that "the one condition necessary for union .... is the truth of faith in charity. May we come to rediscover one full communion precisely in the truth of faith in charity!"

"A crucial question on the path towards full communion concerns the ministry of the Bishop of Rome," wrote the Pope. "Since my election to the See of Peter, I have sought to exercise this ministry as an effective service to the communion of all the Churches. Inspired by the mission of Peter, I have striven to be the servant of unity, and I shall continue to do so."

He emphasized the importance of "concentrating efforts so that ... we may restore the fabric of the undivided Church. Where we cannot at the present time find a way forward, the future will surely show us new paths."

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HOLY SEE HAD NET SURPLUS OF $1.5 MILLION FOR 1998

VATICAN CITY, JUL 8, 1999 (VIS) - Archbishop Sergio Sebastiani, president of the Prefecture of the Economic Affairs of the Holy See, announced this morning at a conference in which he presented the Consolidated Financial Statement of the Holy See, that there was a net surplus of $1.5 million for the fiscal year 1998. The exchange rate used was 1,653 lire to $1.

Joining him in the Holy See Press Office for the biannual conference on Holy See finances were Msgr. Franco Croci and Ivan Ruggiero, respectively secretary and general accountant of the prefecture. The 1998 statements were published in both Italian and English.

The archbishop explained that a Consolidated Financial Statement "means that there are grouped together in one statement the costs and revenues of the seven administrations of the Holy See: APSA (Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See), the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, the Apostolic Chamber, Vatican Radio, the Vatican Printing Press/L'Osservatore Romano, the Vatican Publishing House and the Vatican Television Center."

He highlighted that Canon 1271 of the Code of Canon Law, which asks dioceses to make financial contributions to the Apostolic See, was enforced after an April 1991 meeting of all the presidents of the episcopal conferences in the world. The income deriving from this provision has increased from 10.398 billion lire ($6.3 million) in 1992 to 37.766 billion lire ($22.9 million) in 1998.

Archbishop Sebastiani then explained that the Operating Financial Statement of the Holy See is divided into four sectors: Institutional Activities (all Roman Curia offices: a loss of $20 million in 1998); Financial Activities (a gain of $26 million); Real Estate Activities (a gain of $15.6 million) and Activities of the Four Institutions Connected with the Holy See (a loss of $21.3 million).

The Consolidated Financial Statement," he concluded, "will now be translated into English, French, German and Spanish and a copy will be sent to all the bishops in the world and to the major superiors of Religious Institutes."

According to a communique released this morning along with the financial statement, the Council of Cardinals for the Study of Organizational and Economic Questions of the Holy See met yesterday in the Vatican under the presidency of Cardinal Secretary of State Angelo Sodano. Also present at the meeting were eight other cardinals as well as Archbishop Sergio Sebastiani.

Archbishop Sebastiani presented the Consolidated Financial Statement of the Holy See for 1998, which showed a surplus of 2.506 billion lire ($1.5 million).

The president of the prefecture also announced that the financial statements of Vatican City State show a surplus of 15.507 billion lire ($9.4 million).

Finally, it was announced that the 1998 Peter's Pence - the offerings of the faithful for the Pontiff's charitable works and for the support of needy churches - amounted to $52,758,527.

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OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

VATICAN CITY, JUL 8, 1999 (VIS) - The Holy Father:
- Accepted the resignation from the pastoral care of Cochabamba, Bolivia, presented by Archbishop Rene Fernandez Apaza, upon having reached the age limit. He is succeeded by Coadjutor Archbishop Tito Solari S.D.B.

- Appointed Bishop Luis Hector Villalba of San Martin, Argentina, as metropolitan archbishop of Tucuman (area 10,679, population 961,279, Catholics 849,290, priests 134, permanent deacons 8, religious 249), Argentina. The archbishop-elect was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in 1934 and ordained a priest in 1960. He succeeds Archbishop Arsenio Raul Casado whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same archdiocese the Holy Father accepted in accordance with Canon 401, para. 2 of the Code of Canon Law.

- Appointed Archbishop Agostino Marchetto, apostolic nuncio, as Holy See Permanent Observer to the United Nations Food and Agriculture organizations and organisms (F.A.O., I.F.A.D., P.A.M. and C.M.A.).
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