COMMUNIQUE: MEETING ON THE CHURCH IN CHINA

VATICAN CITY, 2 APR 2009 (VIS) - The Holy See Press Office released the following communique at midday today:

  "From 30 March to 1 April, the commission established by Benedict XVI in 2007 to study questions of importance concerning the life of the Catholic Church in China held its second meeting in the Vatican.

  "With intense interest and a deep-felt desire to offer service to the Church in China, the commission examined the main theme of the meeting: the formation of seminarians and of consecrated people, and the permanent formation of priests.

  "In association with the bishops of the Church in China - who bear prime responsibility for the ecclesial communities - it will be sought to promote a more adequate human, intellectual, spiritual and pastoral formation of clergy and of consecrated people, who have the important task of acting as faithful disciples of Christ and as members of the Church, and of contributing to the good of their country as exemplary citizens. In this context, the words of the Holy Father Benedict XVI's 2007 Letter to Chinese Catholics shone out as guidance: 'The Church, always and everywhere missionary, is called to proclaim and to bear witness to the Gospel. The Church in China must also sense in her heart the missionary ardour of her Founder and Teacher. ... Now it is your turn, Chinese disciples of the Lord, to be courageous apostles of that Kingdom. I am sure that your response will be most generous'.

  "The participants, drawing also on their own sometimes-harsh experiences, highlighted complex problems of the current ecclesial situation in China, problems deriving not just from internal difficulties of the Church, but also from the uneasy relations with the civil authorities. In this context, news of the re-arrest of Bishop Julius Jia Zhiguo of Zhengding was greeted with profound anguish. Situations of this kind create obstacles to that constructive dialogue with the competent authorities which, as is known, the Holy Father in his above-mentioned Letter expressed the hope might be pursued. This is not, unfortunately, an isolated case. Other ecclesiastics are also deprived of their freedom and subject to undue pressures and limitations in their pastoral activities. To all of them the participants wish to send assurances of fraternal closeness and constant prayers in this time of Lent, illuminated by the Paschal Mystery.

  "The meeting concluded with an audience with the Holy Father who, as Peter's Successor, perpetual and visible source and foundation of the unity of the episcopate, underlined the importance of helping Catholics in China to tell others of the beauty and reasonableness of Christian faith, and to present it as the proposal offering the best answers from an intellectual and existential standpoint. The Pope also thanked those present for their commitment in the field of formation, and encouraged them to continue their service for the good of the Church in China".
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AUDIENCES

VATICAN CITY, 2 APR 2009 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in separate audiences:

 - Cardinal Angelo Bagnasco, archbishop of Genoa, Italy and president of the Italian Episcopal Conference.

 - Two prelates from the Argentinean Episcopal Conference, on their "ad limina" visit:

    - Archbishop Andres Stanovnik O.F.M. Cap. of Corrientes.

    - Bishop Luis Urbanc of Catamarca.
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OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

VATICAN CITY, 2 APR 2009 (VIS) - The Holy Father accepted the resignation from the pastoral care of the diocese of Rourkela, India, presented by Bishop Alphonse Bilung S.V.D., upon having reached the age limit. He is succeeded by Coadjutor Bishop John Barwa S.V.D.
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HOLY FATHER RECALLS HIS APOSTOLIC TRIP TO AFRICA

VATICAN CITY, 1 APR 2009 (VIS) - As he announced during last Sunday's Angelus, Benedict XVI dedicated his general audience to an analysis of his recently-concluded apostolic visit to Cameroon and Angola. The audience, held this morning in St. Peter's Square, was attended by 20,000 people.

  The Pope began his remarks by explaining how, with his visit, he had "sought to embrace all the people of Africa, and bless them in the name of the Lord", beginning with Cameroon, a country that incorporates many characteristics of the African continent, including "a profoundly religious soul which unites the numerous ethnic groups that inhabit it".

  He went on to mention his meetings with bishops, first of Cameroon then of Angola and Sao Tome and Principe, to whom he had "reaffirmed the vital importance of evangelisation, which is first and foremost the responsibility of bishops, highlighting the collegial dimension based on sacramental communion. ... I also encouraged them to promote the pastoral care of marriage and the family, of the liturgy and of culture, also by putting lay people in a position to be able to resist the attack of sects and esoteric groups". Finally, he had invited the episcopate to continue "to exercise charity in defence of the rights of the poor".

  At the apostolic nunciature in Yaounde, Cameroon, the Holy Father had met with representatives of the local Muslim community, "reiterating the importance of inter-religious dialogue and of collaboration between Christians and Muslims in order to help the world open itself to God".

  The Pope recalled how one of the culminating moments of his Africa visit came at the stadium of Yaounde on 19 March, at the end of Mass for the Feast of St. Joseph, when he consigned the "Instrumentum laboris" of the Second Special Assembly for Africa of the Synod of Bishops. "The Synod will take place in Rome but it has in a certain sense already begun in the heart of the African continent, in the heart of the Christian family that lives, suffers and hopes there. For this reason I was pleased that the publication of the 'working document' coincided with the Feast of St. Joseph, a model of faith and hope like the first patriarch, Abraham. Faith in the 'neighbour God', Who in Jesus showed us His face of love, is the guarantee of a reliable hope for Africa and for the whole world, the guarantee for a future of reconciliation, justice and peace".

  During his meeting with members of the Special Council for Africa of the Synod of Bishops, Benedict XVI reflected upon the continent's history "from a theological and pastoral perspective", recalling the deep Christian roots in African soil. "At the present time, as Africa is busy consolidating her political independence and constructing national identities in a now globalised world, the Church accompanies Africans, recalling the great message of Vatican Council II".

  "Amidst the unfortunately numerous and dramatic conflicts still afflicting various parts of the continent, the Church is aware she must be a sign and instrument of reconciliation, so that all Africa may come together to build a future of justice, solidarity and peace, implementing the teachings of the Gospel", said the Holy Father.

  He also reserved some words for the sick people of the Cardinal Leger Centre with whom, in the midst of their suffering, he had shared "the hope that springs from faith".

  Turning then to consider the second stage of his African journey, which took him to Angola, the Pope recalled how that county, "having emerged from a long civil war, is now committed to reconciliation and national reconstruction". This, however, could not hope to be successful if it came about "at the expense of the poorest who, like everyone else, have the right to share in the resources of their land.

  "This is why, with my visit, the primary aim of which was to confirm the Church in her faith, I also sought to encourage the ongoing social processes", the Holy Father added. "In Angola there is a palpable sense of something my venerated predecessors oft repeated: everything is lost with war, everything can be reborn with peace. But great moral energy is required to build a nation; and here, once again, the Church has an important part, called to play an educational role, and working to renew and form people's consciences".

  In the cathedral of Luanda, which is dedicated to St. Paul, the Pope recalled how he had spoken of the risen Christ "Who is capable of transforming individuals and society. Historical contexts change - something we must not forget - but Christ remains the true force for radical renewal of mankind and of human communities".

  Remarking then upon two special meetings he had held, with young people and with women, the Pope first reiterated his sorrow for the death of two girls killed in a stampede at the Stadio dos Coqueiros in Luanda, then said: "Africa is a very young continent, but too many of her sons and daughters - children and adolescents -have suffered serious wounds. Only Jesus Christ, crucified and risen, can heal them, infusing them ... with the power to love and to commit themselves to justice and peace".

  In his meeting with women, Benedict XVI recalled how he had reaffirmed "their full right to participate in public life, yet without compromising their role in the family, which is a fundamental mission that must always be carried out through shared responsibility with husbands and fathers".

  "I told the African people that if, like ancient Israel, they base their hope on the Word of God, in the richness of their religious and cultural heritage, they can truly build a future of reconciliation and stable peace for everyone".

  Finally, the Pope dwelt on "the generous activity of missionaries, religious, volunteers, priests and catechists, in young communities full of enthusiasm and faith". And he asked everyone to pray "for the people of Africa, who are so dear to me, that with courage they may face the great social, economic and spiritual challenges of the present time".
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AVOID NATIONALISTIC SELFISHNESS AND PROTECTIONISM

VATICAN CITY, 1 APR 2009 (VIS) - Benedict XVI has expressed his appreciation to heads of State and government who are due to participate in the G20 Summit which will take place in London, England, on 2 and 3 April for the "noble objectives" they have set themselves. These objectives, he writes, arise from the conviction "that the way out of the current global crisis can only be reached together, avoiding solutions marked by any nationalistic selfishness or protectionism".

  In his English-language Letter, addressed to British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, the Pope recalls that the aim of the gathering is "to co-ordinate, with urgency, measures necessary to stabilise financial markets and to enable companies and families to weather this period of deep recession, as well as to restore sustainable growth in the world economy and to reform and substantially strengthen systems of global governance, in order to ensure that such a crisis is not repeated in the future".

  Pope Benedict mentions his recent visit to Africa, where he was able "to see at first hand the reality of severe poverty and marginalization, which the crisis risks aggravating dramatically".

  He also notes the fact that "sub-Saharan Africa is represented [at the meeting] by just one State and some regional organisations". This, he writes, "must prompt a profound reflection among the summit participants, since those whose voice has least force in the political scene are precisely the ones who suffer most from the harmful effects of a crisis for which they do not bear responsibility".

  After underlining how "a key element of the crisis is a deficit of ethics in economic structures", the Pope insists that "the same crisis teaches us that ethics is not 'external' to the economy but 'internal' and that the economy cannot function if it does not bear within it an ethical component".

  He also emphasises the need for "a courageous and generous strengthening of international co-operation, capable of promoting a truly humane and integral development. Positive faith in the human person, and above all faith in the poorest men and women - of Africa and other regions of the world affected by extreme poverty - is what is needed if we are truly to come through the crisis once and for all, without turning our back on any region, and if we are definitively to prevent any recurrence of a situation similar to that in which we find ourselves today".

  The Pope concludes his Letter by expressing the wish to add his voice "to those of the adherents of various religions and cultures who share the conviction that the elimination of extreme poverty by 2015, to which leaders at the UN Millennium Summit committed themselves, remains one of the most important tasks of our time".

  Gordon Brown has replied, expressing agreement with the Pope's ideas and indicating the paths to follow in order to implement them.
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