AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE HOLY SEE AND HUNGARY ON PUBLIC SERVICE AND RELIGIOUS ACTIVITY AND FINANCIAL MATTERS

Vatican City, 22 October 2013 (VIS) – On Monday, 21 October, at the Hungarian parliament in Budapest, the Holy See and Hungary signed an agreement modifying the 1997 Concordat on the financing of the public service and religious activity in Hungary of the Catholic Church, as well as on several issues of a financial nature.

On behalf of the Holy See, the agreement was signed by Archbishop Alberto Bottari de Castello, apostolic nuncio to Hungary. The deputy prime minister Zsolt Semjen signed on behalf of Hungary.

The agreement modifies and updates the existing concordat of 20 June 1997, in the context of new legislation linked to the Basic Law of Hungary, promulgated on 25 April 2011. It regulates various financial issues regarding the teaching of religion in schools, Catholic higher education institutions, the restoration and conservation of religious patrimony of monuments and works of art owned by ecclesiastical bodies, the destination of a portion of tax to the Catholic Church, and the income of ex-ecclesiastical real estate not recorded in the appendix to the 1997 agreement.

The Agreement, which consists of seven articles and three appendices, will come into force upon the filing of the instruments of ratification.

THIRTY-FIVE YEARS SINCE THE BEGINNING OF JOHN PAUL II'S PONTIFICATE

Vatican City, 22 October 2013 (VIS) – Today is the liturgical memory of Blessed John Paul II. This year it coincides with the thirty-fifth anniversary of the beginning of his pontificate, which began on Sunday 22 October 1978, when the young Cardinal Wojtyla, aged just 58, previously archbishop of Krakow, became the first Slavic Pope and went on to guide the Church for a further twenty-seven years. To commemorate this occasion, the book “Diritti e popoli in Giovanni Paolo II: principi fondamentali e prospettivi futuri” (“Rights and Peoples in John Paul II: fundamental principles and future perspectives) will be presented today at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross.

IN MEMORIAM

Vatican City, 22 October 2013 (VIS) - The following prelates died in recent weeks:

- Bishop Peter Paul Prabhu, apostolic nuncio emeritus to Zimbabwe, on 10 September at the age of 82.

- Bishop Pietro Farina, of Caserta, Italy, on 24 September at the age of 71.

- Bishop Timothy Joseph Lyne, auxiliary emeritus of Chicago, U.S.A., on 25 September at the age of 94.

- Bishop Ernst Gutting, auxiliary emeritus of Speyer, Germany, on 27 September at the age of 94.

- Bishop Silvano Montevecchi, emeritus of Ascoli Piceno, Italy, on 27 September at the age of 75.

- Bishop Antonio Baltasar Marcelino, emeritus of Aveiro, Portugal, on 9 October at the age of 83.

- Bishop Maximiano Tuazon Cruz, emeritus of Calbayog, Philippines, on 9 October at the age of 90.

- Bishop Georg Weinhold, auxiliary emeritus of Dresden-Meissen, Germany, on 10 October at the age of 78.

- Bishop James Joseph Daly, auxiliary emeritus of Rockville Centre, U.S.A., on 14 October at the age of 92.

- Bishop Eugene Georges Joseph Lecroisnier, emeritus of Belfort-Montbeliard, France, on 15 October at the age of 90.

- Bishop Alexander James Quinn, auxiliary emeritus of Cleveland, U.S.A., on 18 October at the age of 81.

- Bishop Bernardo Filipe Governo, O.F.M. Cap., emeritus of Quelimane, Mozambique, on 20 October at the age of 74.

LUTHERANS AND CATHOLICS: FROM CONFLICT TO COMMUNION

Vatican City, 21 October 2013 (VIS) - “I look with a sense of profound gratitude to Jesus Christ, at the many steps that have been taken in the relations between Lutherans and Catholics in recent decades, and not only through theological dialogue but also by means of brotherly collaboration in many pastoral fields and, above all, in commitment to progress in spiritual ecumenism” said the Pope, who this morning received in audience a delegation of the Lutheran World Federation and representatives from the Lutheran-Roman Catholic International Commission on Unity.

It is precisely this spiritual ecumenism that constitutes, in a certain sense, “the spirit of our journey towards full communion, and already allows us to reap certain fruit, even if it is still imperfect; insofar as, in approaching, with a humble spirit, Our Lord Jesus Christ, we are sure to move closer together, and insofar as by invoking the Lord's gift of unity, we are sure that He will take us by the hand and will be our guide”.

This year marks fifty years of theological dialogue, and the anniversary of the fifth centenary of the Reformation is approaching. The Lutheran-Roman Catholic International Commission on Unity has therefore published the text “From conflict to communion: the Lutheran-Catholic interpretation of the Reformation in 2017”. The Pope underlined the importance for all to “meet each other in dialogue on the historical reality of the Reformation, on its consequences and the responses that should be given to it. Catholics and Lutherans can ask forgiveness for the harm they have done to each other and for their guilt before God, and together rejoice for the nostalgia for unity that the Lord has reawakened in our hearts, and which makes us look ahead with hope”.

“In the light of the journey through these recent decades, and of the many examples of brotherly communion between Lutherans and Catholics to which we are witnesses, and comforted by trust in the grace that is bestowed upon us by the Lord Jesus Christ, I am sure that we will be able to continue along our path of dialogue and communion”, he continued, “also facing fundamental questions, as well as divergences that arise in the anthropological and ethical fields. Certainly, there are and there will be difficulties, which will require further patience, dialogue, and mutual comprehension, but let us not be afraid! We are well aware, as Benedict XVI reminded us many times, that unity is not primarily the result of our efforts, but of the action of the Holy Spirit, to which we must open our hearts with trust in order that it might lead us along the paths to reconciliation and communion”.

ANGELUS: THE NEED TO PRAY

Vatican City, 20 October 2013 (VIS) – At midday the Pope appeared at the window of his study to recite the Angelus with the faithful gathered in St. Peter's Square and, before the Marian prayer, he commented on today's Gospel reading in which Jesus tells a parable on the need to pray, always and incessantly. “The protagonist is a widow who, by pleading with a dishonest judge, manages to obtain justice from him. And Jesus concludes: if the widow manages to convince that judge, do you think that God does not listen to us, if we pray to him insistently? The expression Jesus uses is very powerful: 'And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night?'”

"This description of prayer is striking to us. But let us ask: why does God want this? Does He not already know our needs? What's the point of 'insisting' with God?” observed the Pope.

This question allows us to explore in depth an important aspect of faith: “God invites us to pray with insistence not because He does not know what we need, or does not listen to us. On the contrary, He always hears and knows everything about us, with love. In our daily journey, especially in difficulties in the fight against the evil inside and outside us, the Lord is on our side, we fight with Him by our side, and our weapon is prayer, which makes us aware of His presence, His mercy, and also His help. But the fight against evil is hard and long, it requires patience and endurance. … It is a daily battle, but God is our ally, faith in Him is our strength, and prayer is the expression of this faith. Therefore, Jesus assures us of victory, but asks: 'when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?'. If faith is dimmed, prayer is dimmed, and we walk in darkness; we lose our way in our journey through life."

"And so we learn from the widow of the Gospel to pray always and tirelessly. The widow was good! She knew how to fight for her children! And I think of many women who fight for their families, who pray, who never tire. I would like us to spare a thought today, all of us, for these women, whose attitude gives us a true witness of faith, of courage, a model of prayer. … Always pray! But not to convince the Lord with words ! He knows what we need better than us! Rather, perseverance in prayer is an expression of faith in a God who calls us to fight with him, every day, every moment, to overcome evil with good".