Second day of the meeting on the presence of Christians in the Middle East

Vatican City, 3 October 2014 (VIS) – The meeting of various Papal Representatives and Superiors of the competent dicasteries, convoked in the Vatican at the behest of the Holy Father to analyse “The presence of Christians in the Middle East”, continued today. During this morning’s meeting, the Secretary for Relations with States gave a general presentation on the political situation in the Middle East and on the principles guiding the action of the Holy See, demonstrating the global repercussions of what happens in the Region. Peace is to be sought by means of a “regional” and comprehensive solution that does not overlook the interests of any of the parties, through dialogue and not through unilateral decisions imposed by force. With reference to the phenomenon of terrorism, the Secretary for Relations with States emphasised the importance of combating the fundamentalism at its base. An important role should be played by religious leaders, favouring interreligious dialogue and in particular the collaboration of all for the good of society. The Holy See, in following the political situation in the Middle East, and more generally in its relations with countries with a Muslim majority, considers to be fundamental issues the protection and respect for Christians and other religious minorities as fully-entitled citizens, and human rights, especially that of religious freedom.

The apostolic nuncio in Israel and the apostolic delegate for Jerusalem and Palestine presented reports n the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and on the presence of Christians in the Holy Land. A solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is crucial for the stabilisation of the Middle East and for peace in the region. Indeed, after many years it remains unresolved, with the very grave regional and global consequences this implies. In this regard, the Holy Father’s pilgrimage to the Holy Land and the subsequent prayer meeting in the Vatican opened up hopes for peace. The recent conflict in Gaza recalls that the situation is serious and difficult, but it is necessary to renew diplomatic efforts for a just and lasting solution that respects the rights of both parties to the conflict.

After a moment of dialogue, the Secretary of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity provided information on the relationship between the Catholic Church and other Churches and Christian confessions in the Middle East.

In the afternoon, two reports will be heard on the role of the Church in relation to the refugee crisis and in the promotion of justice and peace, presented by the Secretary of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant Peoples and the Prefect of the Pontifical Council “Justice and Peace”. After a lengthy dialogue, the afternoon session will conclude with Vespers and a fraternal dinner at the Domus Sanctae Marthae.

Tomorrow, the final day of the meeting, Holy Mass will be celebrated in the Pauline Chapel of the Apostolic Palace, presided by the Cardinal Secretary of State, followed by an exchange of ideas in relation to the conclusions and working guidelines emerging from these days of study and reflection.

Cardinal Baldisseri on the Synod on the Family

Vatican City, 3 October 2014 (VIS) – A press conference was held this morning in the Holy See Press Office during which Cardinal Lorenzo Baldisseri, secretary general of the Synod of Bishops, outlined the structure of the Extraordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops on the Family, to be inaugurated by the Pope during a solemn mass in St. Peter's Basilica next Sunday.

The Cardinal explained that among the 191 Synod Fathers there will be 61 Cardinals, one Cardinal Patriarch, 7 Patriarchs, one major archbishop, 67 metropolitan archbishops, 47 bishops, one auxiliary bishop, 1 priest and 6 religious. There will also be 16 experts, 38 auditors and 8 fraternal delegates. He also remarked that since this assembly will consider the theme of the family, special emphasis has been given to married couples, parents and family heads, a total of 12 persons; there is also one married couple within the group of experts.

He went on to speak about the characteristics of the upcoming Synod, which show the Holy Father's wish to “undertake an innovative and original Synodal path, structured in two phases: the current Extraordinary Assembly, on the theme 'Pastoral challenges to the family in the context of evangelisation', and next year's Ordinary Assembly, which will take as its theme 'The vocation and the mission of the family in the Church and in the contemporary world'”. Cardinal Baldisseri noted that during the preparatory phase, “there resounded the voice of all of the People of God”, from bishops to lay faithful who were able to express their opinions through the questionnaire linked to the preparatory document distributed by the Episcopal Conferences. “The large number of responses is due on the one hand to the theme of the Synod, which regards the life of the community, families and people and reflects the pastoral care that the bishops have always had in relation to the family. On the other hand, the breadth of the material that was submitted is without doubt an indication of the frankness and freeness with which the consultation was carried out. This broad-ranging freedom of expression will also characterise the Synod Assembly, which will certainly take place in an atmosphere of respect for every position, with mutual charity and with a genuinely constructive approach”.

He continued, “other new elements will affect the organisation of the work of the Synod, and therefore relate to the internal methodology of the Assembly. First, the Relatio ante disceptationem will include various novelties, and the Secretariat General asked the Synod fathers to transmit their contributions in advance, indicating the issue on which they intended to speak during the Assembly, respecting the order of themes. These texts were taken into consideration during the drafting of the Relatio ante disceptationem, which proved useful in organising the thematic agenda. In this way, the so-called Relatio becomes reference point which may be worked upon during the interventions in the Assembly”.

Secondly, during the debate in the Synod Hall, which will take place during the first week, beginning with the Second General Congregation, the thematic order established following the Instrumentum laboris will be followed. Each general Congregation will open with the announcement of the theme by the president delegate, followed by an intervention by a married couple of Auditors, who will offer the Synod Fathers their testimony of family life, contributing to the enrichment of the debate on pastoral action.

Thirdly, during the “Relatio post disceptationem” issued at the end of the first week will provide the basis for the work of the second week by the so-called “small groups”, when the Fathers prepare the final document, the “Relatio Synodi”, to be submitted to the Holy Father.

“There will also be novelties regarding the means of communication”, continued Cardinal Baldisseri. “Each day there will be a Briefing in the Holy See Press Office, with the collaboration of the Press Secretaries and the participation of various Synod Fathers. The Press Office Bulletin will contain information regarding the day's work. Furthermore, there will be a Twitter service to transmit brief summaries of the most important news in real time.

“The work of the Synod Fathers will be accompanied by the prayer of the people of God”, concluded Cardinal Baldisseri. In Rome, in the Salus Populi Romani chapel in the Basilica of St. Mary Major, a bishop or a cardinal will celebrate a Holy Mass for the family. The presence of the relics of the Blessed couple Zelie and Louis Martin, and their daughter St. Therese of the Child Jesus, are significant, as are those of the Blessed couple Luigi and Maria Beltrame Quattrocchi. Throughout the world, prayers will be offered in shrines, especially those dedicated to the Holy Family, in monasteries, in communities of consecrated life, in dioceses and in parishes”.

Audiences

Vatican City, 2014 (VIS) – Today the Holy Father received in audience Cardinal Jaime Lucas Ortega y Alamino, archbishop of San Cristobal de La Habana, Cuba.

In the afternoon of Thursday, 2 October, the Holy Father received in audience:

- Cardinal Mauro Piacenza, apostolic penitentiary;

- Bishop Hugo Nicolas Barbaro of San Roque of Presidencia Roque Saenz Pena, Argentina; and

- Bishop Fernando Martin Croxatto, auxiliary of Comodoro Rivadavia, Argentina.

The Pope to the Catholicos Patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East: there is no religious, political or economic justification for the condition of thousands of Christians and other religious minorities in Iraq and Syria

Vatican City, 2014 (VIS) – “Our meeting is marked by the suffering we share on account of the wars that beset various regions of the Middle East and in particular for the violence suffered by Christians and members of other religious minorities, especially in Iraq and Syria”, said Pope Francis this morning, as he received in audience His Holiness Mar Dinka IV, Catholicos Patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East. “When we think of their suffering, it is natural to overcome the distinctions of rite or confession; in them there is the body of Christ that, still today, is injured, beaten and humiliated. There are no religious, political or economic factors that can justify what is happening to hundreds of thousands of innocent men, women, and children. We are deeply united in our prayers for intercession and in charity towards these suffering members of the body of Christ”.

“Your visit is another step along the path of an increasing closeness and spiritual communion between us, after the bitter misunderstandings of previous centuries”, continued the bishop of Rome. Twenty years ago, the joint Christological declaration you signed along with my predecessor, the Pope St. John Paul II, was a milestone in our path to full communion. In this declaration we acknowledged that we confess the sole faith of the apostles, faith in the divinity and humanity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, united in a single person, without confusion or alteration, without division or separation.

Finally, the Pope referred to the work of the Joint Commission for Theological Dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Assyrian Church of the East, which he accompanies with prayer “so that the blessed day may come in which we are able to celebrate at the same altar the sacrifice of praise, that will make us one in Christ. … What unites us is far greater than what divides, and for this reason we feel urged by the Spirit to share from now the spiritual treasures of our ecclesial traditions, to live, like true brothers, sharing the gifts that the Lord does not cease to give to our Churches, as a sign of His goodness and mercy”.

To the prelates of Chad: the behaviour of the Church is a model for all society

Vatican City, 2014 (VIS) – The implementation of catechetical methods for inculturation, the defence of the family and the role of women, and the need for dialogue with other religions in a country where Catholics are a minority are the main themes of the discourse Pope Francis handed to the bishops of Chad this morning, at the end of their “ad Limina” visit. The Holy Father writes that the Catholic communities in this country “are growing, not only numerically, but also in terms of quality and the strength of their efforts”, and expressed his satisfaction for the work carried out in the spheres of education, health and development.

“The civil authorities are very grateful to the Catholic Church for her contribution to society as a whole in Chad. I encourage you to persevere along this path, as there is a strong bond between evangelisation and human development, a bond that must be expressed and developed in all the work of evangelisation. Service to the poor and the most disadvantaged constitutes a true testimony of Christ, Who made Himself poor in order to be close to us and to save us. Both the religious congregations and lay associations who work with them play an important role in this respect, and they are to be thanked for this”.

“However”, he observes, “it is certain that this commitment to social service does not constitute the entirety of evangelizing activity; the deepening and strengthening of faith in the hearts of the faithful, that translates into an authentic spiritual and sacramental life, are essential to enable them to withstand the many trials of contemporary life, and to ensure that the behaviour of the faithful is more coherent with the requirements of the Gospel. … This is especially necessary in a country where certain cultural traditions bear considerable weight, where less morally demanding religious possibilities are present everywhere, and where secularism begins to make headway”.

Therefore, “it is necessary for the faithful to receive a solid doctrinal and spiritual formation. And the first locus of formation is certainly catechesis. I invite you, with a renewed missionary spirit, to implement the catechetical methods used in your dioceses. First, the good aspects of their traditions must be considered and accorded their due value – because Christ did not come to destroy cultures, but rather to lead them to fulfilment – while that which is not Christian must be clearly denounced. At the same time, it is essential to ensure the accuracy and integrity of doctrinal content”.

The Pope goes on to refer to families, who are “the vital cell of society and the Church, and who are currently very vulnerable. … And within the family, it is important that the role and the dignity of the woman are recognised, to bear eloquent witness to the Gospel. Therefore, in this respect, “behaviour within the Church must be a model for the whole of society”.

After reiterating the need for the permanent formation of the clergy and the closeness of bishops and priests, Pope Francis observes that the Church in Chad, “despite her vitality and development, is a minority in a population in which there is a Muslim majority and which is still partly bound to its traditional religions”, and encouraged the prelates to ensure “that the Church, which is respected and listened to, occupies the space justly accorded to her in society in Chad, in which a significant element has converted, even though this remains a minority”. He continues, “in this context, I must urge you to foster interreligious dialogue, which was fortunately initiated by the late Archbishop of N'Djamena, Mathias M'Garteri Mayadi, who did much to promote the co-existence of different religious communities. I believe that it is necessary to continue with this type of initiative to prevent the violence to which Christians have fallen victim in neighbouring countries”.

The Holy Father concluded by reiterating the importance of maintaining the good relations established with the civil authorities, and highlighted the recent signing of a Framework Agreement between the Holy See and the Republic of Chad that, once ratified, will greatly help the mission of the Church.