WHO TRUSTS IN GOD ACCEPTS JESUS THROUGH THE HOLY SPIRIT

VATICAN CITY, 18 DEC 2011 (VIS) - Following his visit to the Roman prison of Rebbiba this morning, the Holy Father returned to the Vatican Apostolic Palace where he appeared at the window of his private study to pray the Angelus with faithful gathered in St. Peter's Square.

  The Pope introduced the Marian prayer with a reflection on the importance of Mary's virginity. Recalling the words of the Prophet Isaiah: "The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Emmanuel", he explained how "this ancient promise was abundantly fulfilled in the incarnation of the Son of God. Not only did the Virgin Mary conceive, but she did so by the Holy Spirit; that is, by God Himself. The human being Who began life in her womb took Mary's flesh, but His existence derived entirely from God".

  "The fact that Mary conceived while remaining a virgin is, then, essential for an understanding of Jesus and of our faith. It is a testament to the fact that the initiative was God's and, above all, it reveals Who the person conceived is. As the Gospel says, 'the child to be born will be holy; he will be called the son of God'. In this perspective, Mary's virginity and Jesus' divinity are warranties of one another".

  The Holy Father continued: "God awaited the 'yes' of this young girl in order to achieve His plan. He respected her dignity and her freedom. ... Mary's virginity is unique and unrepeatable, but its spiritual significance concerns all Christians, ... because those who have profound trust in the love of God welcome Jesus and His divine life into their own lives, by the action of the Holy Spirit. This is the mystery of Christmas".

  Following the Angelus, Benedict XVI expressed his concern for people in the southern Philippines where a tropical storm has caused great loss of human life and material damage. "I pray for the victims, of whom so many are children, for the homeless and the missing", he said.

  Finally he delivered greetings in a number of languages. Addressing Spanish pilgrims, her recalled the fact that twenty-two Oblates of Mary Immaculate, killed in 1936, were beatified in Madrid yesterday. "Joy at their beatification is linked to the hope that their sacrifice may yet bring great fruits of conversion and reconciliation", he concluded.
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JESUS WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN

VATICAN CITY, 19 DEC 2011 (VIS) - This morning in the Vatican, Benedict XVI received a delegation of children from Italian Catholic Action, with whom he exchanged Christmas greetings.

  The Holy Father thanked the group for their visit, then went on to remark on a theme they have been studying this year, the invitation made to Bartimaeus in the Bible: "Arise, He is calling". This call, the Pope explained, "has already been repeated often in your lives, and it is repeated again today. The first call was in the gift of life. Always be attentive to this great gift, appreciate it and be grateful to the Lord. Ask Him to give a joyful life to all the boys and girls of the world, that they may all be respected and none may lack what they need to live".

  "Another important call was Baptism. ... At that moment you became brothers and sisters of Jesus Who loves you more than anyone else and wants to help you to grow. Another call was First Communion. On that day your friendship with Jesus became closer and more intimate. ... Respond generously to the Lord Who calls you to be friends with Him. He will never let you down".

  "Dear friends", Pope Benedict concluded, "I would like to ask you for one thing. Take this beautiful invitation - "Arise, He is calling" - to your own friends and tell them: Look, I have responded to Jesus' call and I am happy because I have found a great Friend in Him, a Friend I meet in prayer, Who I see among my Friends, to Whom I listen in the Gospel. My Christmas wish for you is that, when you make your nativity scenes, you imagine you are saying to Jesus: come into my life and I will listen to you always".
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DECREES OF THE CONGREGATION FOR THE CAUSES OF SAINTS

VATICAN CITY, 19 DEC 2011 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in audience Cardinal Angelo Amato S.D.B., prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, and authorised the promulgation of decrees concerning the following causes:

MIRACLES

 - Blessed Giovanni Battista Piamarta, Italian priest and founder of the Congregation of the Holy Family of Nazareth and of the Congregation of the Humble Sister Servants of the Lord (1841-1913).

 - Blessed Jacques Berthieu, French martyr and priest of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) (1838-1896).

 - Blessed Maria del Carmen (born Maria Salles y Barangueras), Spanish foundress of the Conceptionist Missionary Sisters of Teaching (1848-1911).

 - Blessed Maria Anna Cope, nee Barbara, German religious of the Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis in Syracuse U.S.A. (1838-1918).

 - Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha, American laywoman (1656-1680).

 - Blessed Pedro Calungsod, Filipino lay catechist and martyr (1654-1672).

 - Blessed Anna Schaffer, German laywoman (1882-1925).

 - Servant of God Louis Brisson, French priest and founder of the Oblates of St. Francis of Sales (1817-1908).

 - Servant of God Luigi Novarese, Italian diocesan priest and founder of the Silent Workers of the Cross (1914-1984).

 - Servant of God Maria Luisa (nee Gertrude Prosperi), Italian abbess of the convent of the Order of St. Benedict of Trevi (1799-1847).

 - Servant of God Mother St. Louis (nee Maria Luisa Elisabeth de Lamoignon, widow of Mole de Champlatreux), French foundress of the Sisters of St. Louis (1763-1825).

 - Servant of God Maria Crescencia (nee Maria Angelica Perez), Argentinean professed religious of the Congregation of the Daughters of Our Lady of the Orchard (1897-1932).

MARTYRDOM

 - Servant of God Nicola Rusca, Swiss diocesan priest, killed in hatred of the faith (1563-1618).

 - Servants of God Luis Orencio (ne Antonio Sola Garriga) and eighteen companions of the Institute of Brothers of Christian Schools; Antonio Mateo Salamero, diocesan priest, and Jose Gorostazu Labayen, layman, all killed in hatred of the faith in Spain in 1936.

 - Servants of God Alberto Maria Marco y Aleman and eight companions of the Order of Carmelites of the Ancient Observance, and Agustin Maria Garcia Tribaldos and fifteen companions of the Institute of Brothers of Christian Schools; all killed in hatred of the faith in Spain between 1936 and 1937.

 - Servants of God Mariano Alcala Perez and eighteen companions of the Order of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mercy, killed in hatred of the faith in Spain between 1936 and 1937.

HEROIC VIRTUES

 - Servant of God Donato Giannotti, Italian diocesan priest and founder of the Congregation of Sisters Handmaidens of the Immaculate Conception (1828-1914).

 - Servant of God Marie-Eugene of the Child Jesus (ne Henri Grialou), French professed priest of the Order of Discalced Carmelites and founder of the Institute of Notre-Dame de Vie (1894-1967).

 - Servant of God Alphonse-Marie (nee Elisabeth Eppinger), French foundress of the Congregation of Sisters of the Blessed Saviour (1814-1867).

 - Servant of God Marguerite Lucia Szewczyk, Polish foundress of the Congregation of the Daughters of the Sorrowful Mother of God - Seraphic Sisters (1828-1905).

 - Servant of God Assunta Marchetti, Italian co-foundress of the Missionary Sisters of St. Charles (1871-1948).

 - Servant of God Maria Julitta (nee Teresa Eleonora Ritz), German professed sister of the Congregation of Sisters of the Redeemer (1882-1966).

 - Servant of God Maria Anna Amico Roxas, Italian laywoman and foundress of the Society of St. Ursula (1883-1947).
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AUDIENCES

VATICAN CITY, 19 DEC 2011 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in audience:

 - Esteban Kriskovic, the new ambassador of Paraguay to the Holy See for the presentation of his Letters of Credence.

 - Cardinal Angelo Amato S.D.B., prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints.

 On Saturday 17 December he received in audience:

 - Cardinal Marc Ouellet P.S.S., prefect of the Congregation for Bishops.

 - Five prelates from the Conferentia Episcopalis Pacifici, on their "ad limina" visit:

    - Fr. Olivier P. Aro, M.S.P., superior of the "sui iuris" mission of Tokelau.

    - Archbishop Petero Mataca of Suva.

    - Bishop Paul Donoghue S.M. of Rarotonga.

    - Bishop Paul Eusebius Mea Kaiuea M.S.C. of Tarawa and Nauru.

    - Bishop Soane Patita Paini Mafi of Tonga.
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CONSTRUCTING HISTORY BY UNITING FAITH AND CULTURE

VATICAN CITY, 16 DEC 2011 (VIS) - Yesterday evening, in keeping with a pre-Christmas tradition, the Holy Father presided at Vespers in the Vatican Basilica with students from Roman universities. Also present at the ceremony - which this year coincides with the twentieth anniversary of the Office for Pastoral Care in Universities, established by Blessed John Paul II - were representatives from a number of academic institutions, and Francesco Profumo, minister for education, universities and research.

  Benedict XVI's homily, extracts of which are given below, reflected on the Apostle James' call to "be patient until the coming of the Lord".

  "To you who live at the heart of the cultural and social environment of our time, who experience new and increasingly refined technologies, who are protagonists of historical changes which sometimes seem overwhelming, the Apostle's call may appear to be an anachronism. ... His exhortation to patient constancy, which in our time may leave us somewhat perplexed, is in fact the way to a deeper understanding of the question of God and its importance in life and history; because it is in patience, in faithfulness, in the constant search for and openness to God, that He reveals His Face".

  "St. James ... reminds us that ... we are not alone, and that we do not create history by ourselves. God is not distant from man, He has come close to him, He became flesh. ... Patience is the virtue of those people who entrust themselves to this presence in history, who do not let themselves be drawn by the temptation to place all their hope in the present moment, in a purely horizontal perspective, in projects that are technically perfect but far distant from the profound truth that gives human beings their greatest dignity: the transcendent dimension, the fact of being created in the image and likeness of God".

  "In the incarnation of the Son, ... God experienced man's temporality, his growth and development over time and history. The Child is a sign of the patience of God, Who was the first to be patient, constant and faithful in His love for us. ... How many times has mankind tried to construct the world alone, without God or against Him! The result is to be seen in ideologies which, in the end, revealed themselves as being against man and his profound dignity".

  "Being constant and patient means learning to construct history together with God, because only if built upon Him and with Him can it have solid foundations. ... Let us, then, stoke up hope in our hearts, because the Word of God reminds us that ... the Lord is with us and that we can build with Him. ... We can plan our entire history, the history of humanity not as a utopia but in the certainty that the God of Jesus Christ is present and accompanies us".

  "The Lord asks each of you to collaborate in constructing the city of man, uniting faith and culture with seriousness and passion. Therefore I invite each of you to seek the true Face of God with patient constancy. ... Announce to everyone that the true Face of God is in the Baby of Bethlehem, so close to each of us that no one can feel excluded, no one can doubt the possibility of meeting Him, because He is the patient and faithful God, Who waits and respects our freedom".

  At the end of the liturgy, a Spanish university delegation consigned the image of "Maria Sedes Sapientiae" to a delegation from the Roman University of "La Sapienza". The image will be taken on a "Peregrinatio Mariae" to various university chaplaincies in the Italian capital in preparation for an international symposium of university professors, due to be held in June 2012.
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