RICHARD BURRIDGE AND CHRISTIAN SCHALLER, RECIPIENTS OF RATZINGER PRIZE 2013

Vatican City, 21 June 2013 (VIS) – At 11:30 this morning in the John Paul II Hall of the Holy See Press Office, a press conference was held to present the activities of the "Vatican Foundation: Joseph Ratzinger - Benedict XVI", in particular, its symposium “The Gospels: History and Christology. The Research of Joseph Ratzinger”, which will be held at the Pontifical Lateran University from 24 to 26 October of this year. The names of the candidates selected by its academic committee for the Foundation's annual prize, which will be conferred on 26 October, were also announced.

Benedict XVI instituted the Foundation on 1 March, 2010, in response to the desire expressed by many scholars over the years. One of the areas of competency of the academic committee is precisely to establish the criteria of excellence for the creation and assignment of prizes to scholars who have distinguished themselves in the areas of publication and/or academic research. The Foundation's aim is to place the question of God at the heart of academic reflection. With the Ratzinger Prize, one of the Foundation's three main activities, it hopes to call attention to this subject. Its two principal activities are awarding scholarships to those pursuing doctorates in Theology and organizing conferences of high academic standard.

Speakers at the conference included: Cardinal Camillo Ruini, president of the Foundation's academic committee; Archbishop Jean-Louis Brugues, O.P., president of the symposium's organizing committee; Msgr. Luis Romera, vice president of the symposium's organizing committee; and Msgr. Giuseppe Scotti, the Foundation's president.

The recipients of this year's Ratzinger Prize are the English Biblical scholar Richard A. Burridge, dean of King's College London and minister in the Anglican Communion—the first non-Catholic to receive the award—and the German lay theologian Christian Schaller, professor of Dogmatic Theology and deputy director of the Pope Benedict XVI Institute of Regensburg, Germany, which is publishing the complete works of Joseph Ratzinger.

“Richard Burridge today,” said Cardinal Ruini, “is definitely an eminent figure in the field of Biblical studies and not only of the English language. In particular, he has made a great contribution in that decisive area of the historical and theological recognition of the Gospels' inseparable connection to Jesus of Nazareth.” Christian Schaller will also be awarded the Ratzinger Prize, “not only for his contribution to theological studies but also in recognition of the role he is carrying out in the publication of Joseph Ratzinger's complete works. This publication is of primary importance for the future of studies inspired by the thought of Joseph Ratzinger-Benedict XVI, which is the main purpose of our Foundation.”

Msgr. Giuseppe Scotti, the Foundation's president, outlined some details regarding the upcoming symposium to be held at Rome's Pontifical Lateran University. It will be the Foundation's third conference. The first—“Pilgrims of Truth, Pilgrims of Peace”—was held in Bydgoszcz, Poland, in 2011. The second—“What Makes Man Man”—was held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, last year.

This year's symposium, “The Gospels: History and Christology”, starting from Joseph Ratzinger's research, will focus on the major themes of his trilogy on Jesus of Nazareth and will last three days. The first day will address the issue of the Jesus of the Gospels, considering them as texts. After a summary of the historical research on the Jesus of the New Testament over the last centuries, the contribution of papyrology to the study of those texts will be analysed along with the definition of the literary genre of the Gospels in comparison to Greco-Roman biographies and their historical significance. Professors participating in the first day include: Dr. Bernardo Estrada (Pontifical University of the Holy Cross, Rome); Dr. Juan Chapa (University of Navarra, Spain); Dr. Richard Burridge (King's College, London); and Dr. Yves Simoens (Pontifical Biblical Institute and Gregorian University, Rome).

The second day will be dedicated to the figure of Jesus presented in the Gospels and the theology they contain, also in relation to other New Testament writings. First the reliability of the Gospel text will be analysed, with the purpose of discovering who Jesus really was. Then the historical figure that emerges from the Gospels and Pauline witness will be outlined. Finally, the impact of the Gospels in Early Christianity and the theology of the Fathers will be examined. Speakers on the second day will include: Dr. Klaus Berger (University of Heidelberg, Germany); Dr. John P. Meier (University of Notre Dame, USA); Dr. Antonio Pitta (Pontifical Lateran University, Rome); and Cardinal Prosper Grech (Pontifical Lateran University and Augustinianum, Rome).

Joseph Ratzinger's proposal of “Jesus of Nazareth” will be the key theme of the third day. Professor Thomas Soding (University of Bochum, Germany) and Cardinal Angelo Amato, S.D.B., prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, will discuss the importance of Ratzinger's research on exegesis, theology, and methodology. The symposium will also address two specific areas: the figure of Jesus in the Gospel passages relating his infancy and the Last Supper. Professors Dr. Armand Puig I Tarrech (dean of the Theological Faculty of Catalonia, Barcelona) and Dr. Ermenegildo Manicardi (Pontifical Gregorian University, Rome) will coordinate the presentations of the various experts in these areas.

AUDIENCE

Vatican City, 21 June 2013 (VIS) – This afternoon, the Holy Father is scheduled to receive Archbishop Gerhard Ludwig Muller, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

FRANCIS: HUNGER WILL NOT BE ERADICATED WITH UNKEPT PROMISES

Vatican City, 20 June 2013 (VIS) – At 11:00 this morning, in the Clementine Hall of the Vatican Apostolic palace, the Holy Father Francis received the participants in the 38th Session of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). The Pope began by speaking of the particular difficulty of the current worldwide situation caused not only by the economic crisis “but also due to problems associated with security, the great number of continuing conflicts, climate change and the preservation of biological diversity. All these situations demand of FAO a renewed commitment to tackling the many problems of the agricultural sector and of all those living and working in rural areas.”

The Pope noted that there are many possible initiatives and solutions and that they don't only have to do with increasing production seeing that current levels of production are sufficient, in spite of which “millions of people are still suffering and dying of starvation. This is truly scandalous. A way has to be found to enable everyone to benefit from the fruits of the earth ... to satisfy the demands of justice, fairness, and respect for every human being.”

Francis repeated that the goal of meeting with the participants in the FAO conference was “to share the idea that something more can and must be done in order to provide a new stimulus to international activity on behalf of the poor, inspired by something more than mere goodwill or, worse, promises which all too often have not been kept.” If current situations and living conditions aren't examined in terms of the human person and human dignity, the Pope said, then they run the risk of “risk turning into vague abstractions in the face of issues like the use of force, war, malnutrition, marginalization, the violation of basic liberties, and financial speculation, which presently affects the price of food, treating it like any other merchandise and overlooking its primary function.”

The Holy Father declared that the present situation, “while directly linked to financial and economic factors, is also a consequence of a crisis of convictions and values, including those which are the basis of international life.” He, therefore, asked the FAO, its member States, and the entire international community to open their hearts. “There is a need to move beyond indifference and a tendency to look the other way, and urgently to attend to immediate needs … leaving behind the temptations of power, wealth, or self-interest and instead serving the human family, especially the needy and those suffering from hunger and malnutrition.”

Likewise, the Pope mentioned that dedicating the coming year to the rural family was a very expressive decision that, beyond a mere commemoration, will be an occasion to “reaffirm the conviction that every family is the principal setting for the growth of each individual, since it is through the family that human beings become open to life and the natural need for relationships with others.”

Pope Francis noted that “the Catholic Church, with all her structures and institutions, is at your side in this effort, which is aimed at building concrete solidarity, and the Holy See follows with interest and encourages the initiatives and activities undertaken by the FAO.”

POPE'S MOST RECENT APPEAL: AN END TO THE INTERMINABLE VIOLENCE AND INSECURITY IN MIDDLE EAST

Vatican City, 20 June 2013 (VIS) – At 11:30 this morning in the Consistory Hall of the Vatican Apostolic Palace, the Holy Father Francis received participants in the 86th Plenary Assembly of the Reunion of Organisations for Aid to the Oriental Churches (ROACO). This organisation, under the sponsorship of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches, is formed from various organizations around the world including: the Catholic Near East Welfare Association; Aid to the Church in Need; Renovabis; and Oeuvre d'Orient, which financially and spiritually assist members of the Church in the East.

Francis gave thanks to God for the “fidelity to Christ, the Gospel, and the Church that the Eastern Catholics have given proof of throughout the centuries, facing every struggle for the Christian name and 'keeping the faith'. … Like my predecessors, I wish to encourage and support you in your exercise of charity, which is the only reason for Jesus' disciples to brag. This charity springs from God's love in Christ. The Cross is its vertex, the luminous sign of God's mercy and love for all, which has been poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit. … I ask you to accompany me in the task of uniting faith and charity, which is inherent to the Petrine ministry.”

The Pope encouraged the members of ROACO to continue their labour of carrying out projects that give priority to formation, above all of the youth, without forgetting that such projects “should be a sign of God's profession of love that constitutes the Christian identity.”

“The presence of the patriarchs of Alexandria of the Copts and of Babylon of the Chaldeans as well as of the papal representatives in the Holy Land and in Syria, the auxiliary bishop of the Patriarch of Jerusalem, and the Custos of the Holy Land carries me to the holy places of our Redemption but also revives in me a deep ecclesial concern for the plight of our many brothers and sisters who are living a seemingly endless situation of insecurity and violence, which doesn't spare the innocent or the weakest.”

“We believers are asked to constantly and confidently pray that the Lord may grant the longed-for peace, together with a concrete solidarity and sharing. I would like to once again, from the bottom of my heart, appeal to the leaders of nations and international organisations, to believers of every religion, and to all men and women of good will to put an end to all the pain, all the violence, and all religious, cultural, and social discrimination. May the conflict that sows death leave space for the encounter and the reconciliation that bring life.”

“To all those who are suffering I strongly say: 'Never lose hope! The Church is with you, accompanies you, and supports you!' I ask you to do everything possible to alleviate the serious needs of the affected populations, especially in Syria, the people of beloved Syria, and the ever more numerous refugees and displaced persons. ... I repeat to you: remember in your prayers the Church of Syria … Jesus Christ will watch over it and your charity. I entrust the countless victims to the Lord of Life and implore the Most Holy Mother of God to console all of those in the 'time of great distress'. It is true; what's happening in Syria is a great distress!”

STATISTICS FOR CATHOLIC CHURCH IN BRAZIL

Vatican City, 20 June 2013 (VIS) – For the occasion of Francis' upcoming apostolic trip to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to preside at the 38th World Youth Day, statistics have been published concerning the Catholic Church in that country. The information, updated to 31 December 2011, comes from the Central Statistical Office of the Church. The Pope's journey is scheduled from 22 to 29 July.

Brazil covers a surface area of 8,514,215 square kilometres and has population of 195,041,000 of whom 164,780,000 (84.48%) are Catholic. There are 274 ecclesiastical circumscriptions, 10,802 parishes, and 37,827 pastoral centres. Currently there are 453 bishops, 20,701 priests, 33,230 religious, and 2,903 permanent deacons. There are also 1,985 lay members of secular Institutes, 144,910 lay missionaries, and 483,104 catechists. Minor seminarians number 2,671 and major seminarians 8,956.

A total of 1,940,299 students attend 6,882 centres of Catholic education ranging from kindergartens to universities. There are also 3,257 centres for special education. There are 5,340 institutions belonging to the Church or run by priests or religious in Brazil including: 369 hospitals, 884 clinics, 22 leper colonies, 718 homes for the elderly or disabled, 1,636 orphanages and nurseries, and 1,711 family counselling and other pro-life centres.