HELPING CHRISTIANS IN THE HOLY LAND

VATICAN CITY, 25 MAR 2009 (VIS) - Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, prefect of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches, has sent a letter to the bishops of the world encouraging them to participate in the collection for the Holy Land, which traditionally takes place on Good Friday.

  In the letter, which also bears the signature of Archbishop Antonio Maria Veglio, then secretary of the same congregation, now president of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant Peoples, the two prelates express the Church's "profound concern" for the position of Christians, particularly following the conflict in Gaza.

  They also underline how Benedict XVI "constantly comforts Christians, and all the inhabitants of the Holy Land, with special words and gestures, coupled with his desire to make a pilgrimage in the historical footsteps of Jesus".

  "The wounds opened by violence make the problem of emigration more acute, inexorably depriving the Christian minority of its best resources for the future. The Land that was the cradle of Christianity risks ending up without Christians".

  Cardinal Sandri and Archbishop Veglio make an appeal to help "our Christian brothers and sisters of the Holy Land who, along with other inhabitants of vast areas of the Middle East, have long aspired after that peace and tranquillity which are still so much under threat".

  The Congregation for the Oriental Churches interprets the Pope's "loving solicitude" for the ecclesial community in the Holy Land, "again exhorting all Catholics to contribute, also with material resources, to the upkeep of the Holy Sites".

  The prefect and secretary of the dicastery give assurances that "Churches of the Latin rite and of the various Eastern rites, which benefit from this vital aid, express their recognition with constant prayers for the particular Churches of the whole world".

  A document drawn up by the Custody of the Holy Land and a note from the Congregation for the Oriental Churches, details the projects undertaken using the 2008 collection.

  Apart from providing study grants for priests and seminarians from the Holy Land to study in pontifical universities, various restoration projects were carried out in, among other places: Jerusalem, Bethany, Bethlehem, Haifa, Magdala, Nazareth and Nablus (the Shechem of antiquity). Funds were also distributed to support parishes, families, schools and universities, and - through the Custody of the Holy Land - to various cultural projects, such as the faculty of biblical sciences and archaeology of the "Studium Biblicum Franciscanum" in Jerusalem.

  The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem has published a special prayer for Benedict XVI's forthcoming pilgrimage to the Holy Land from 8 to 15 May, in the hope that "this visit will be for the Holy Land a moment of renewal and a time of particular grace".
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OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

VATICAN CITY, 25 MAR 2009 (VIS) - The Holy Father:

 - Appointed Archbishop Luigi Bonazzi, apostolic nuncio to Lithuania and Estonia, as apostolic nuncio to Latvia.

 - Appointed Fr. Francois Kalist of the clergy of Bourges, France, episcopal vicar for the formation of adults and diocesan delegate for ecumenism, as bishop of Limoges (area 11,085, population 481,000, Catholics 398,000, priests 106, permanent deacons 6, religious 179), France. The bishop-elect was born in Bourges in 1958 and ordained a priest in 1986.

 - Elevated the territorial prelature of Libmanan (area 1,862, population 530,000, Catholics 488,000, priests 35, religious 15), Philippines, to the rank of diocese, with the same territorial configuration as before, making it a suffragan of the metropolitan church of Caceres. He appointed Bishop Jose Rojas Rojas, prelate of Libmanan, as the first bishop of the new diocese.

 - Accepted the resignation from the pastoral care of the territorial prelature of Aiquile, Brazil, presented by Bishop Adalberto Rosat O.F.M., upon having reached the age limit. He is succeeded by Coadjutor Bishop Jorge Herbas Balderrama O.F.M.

 - Appointed Fr. Walter Jehova Hera Segarra O.F.M., minister provincial and vice president of the Ecuadorian Conference of Religious, as apostolic vicar of the apostolic vicariate of Zamora en Ecuador (area 10,556, population 126,900, Catholics 121,000, priests 24, religious 66), Ecuador. The bishop-elect was born in Bulan, Ecuador in 1964 and ordained a priest in 1992.
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POPE IMPRESSED BY SENSE OF THE SACRED IN AFRICA

VATICAN CITY, 24 MAR 2009 (VIS) - During his return to Rome, following his apostolic visit to Cameroon and Angola, Benedict XVI again made remarks to journalists accompanying him on the flight.

  The Holy Father said that during the course of his visit he had been particularly impressed by "this almost exuberant cordiality, this delight, of a rejoicing Africa. I felt they saw in the Pope ... the personification of the fact that we are the children and the family of God. This family exists and we, with all our limitations, are part of it, and God is with us. ... I was also moved by the spirit of meditative absorption in liturgy, the powerful sense of the sacred; in the liturgies there was no self-presentation of groups, no self-animation, but the presence of the sacred, of God Himself; even the movements were always movements of respect and awareness of the divine presence".

  He went on: "I was also profoundly affected by the death of two girls during the stampede of people entering the Stadio dos Coqueiros, on Saturday. I prayed, and continue to pray, for them. ... All of us pray and hope that in the future things may be organised in such a way that this does not happen again".

  "I conserve a special memory", the Holy Father continued, "of the Cardinal Leger Centre. It touched my heart to see a world of so much suffering, all the suffering, sadness and poverty of human existence; but also to see how State and Church work together to help those who suffer. ... It is, I believe, evident that by helping the suffering man becomes more human, the world becomes more human".

  Finally Benedict XVI mentioned the publication of the "Instrumentum laboris" for the forthcoming Synod for Africa. "On the afternoon of St. Joseph's Day", he said, "I met with members of the Special Council for Africa, twelve bishops who spoke to me of the situation in their local Churches, their proposals, their expectations. Thus there emerged a detailed picture of the situation of the Church in Africa, how she moves, how she suffers, what she does, what are her hopes, her problems. There is much I could say, for example the Church in South Africa, which has gone through a difficult but substantially successful experience of reconciliation, now uses her experiences in an attempt at reconciliation in Burundi, and she seeks to do something similar, though facing enormous difficulties, in Zimbabwe".
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YOUNG PEOPLE: DO NOT BE AFRAID TO MAKE DEFINITIVE DECISIONS

VATICAN CITY, 21 MAR 2009 (VIS) - At 4.20 p.m. today, the Holy Father went to Stadio dos Coquieros in the Angolan capital city of Luanda. On arrival he toured the stadium - which has a capacity of 30,000 - by popemobile greeting the crowds of young people he had come to meet.

  Commenting on the theme of the meeting, taken from the Book of Revelation, "Behold the dwelling of God is with men", the Pope assured the young people that "God makes all the difference, ... and more! God changes us; He makes us new!".

  "God is the future of a new humanity, which is anticipated in His Church. When you have a chance, take time to read the Church's history. You will find that the Church does not grow old with the passing of the years. Rather, she grows younger, for she is journeying towards her Lord, day by day drawing nearer to the one true fountain overflowing with youthfulness, rebirth, the power of life".

  He then addressed some remarks to young Angolans who have been maimed or disabled as a result of the war or landmines. "I think of the countless tears that have been shed for the loss of your relatives and friends", he said. "It is not hard to imagine the dark clouds that still veil the horizon of your fondest hopes and dreams".

  "See how Jesus does not leave us without an answer; He tells us one thing very clearly: renewal starts from within; you will receive a power from on high. The power to shape the future is within you.

  "It is within you", he added, "but how? Just as life exists within a seed. That is how Jesus explained it at a critical juncture in His ministry. ... Jesus spoke about the sower who sows in the field of the world, and He explained that the seed is His word and His miracles of healing. These are so few in comparison to the immense needs and demands of everyday life. And yet, deep within the seed, the future is already present, since the seed contains tomorrow's bread, tomorrow's life. The seed seems almost nothing. But it is the presence of the future, the promise already present. When it falls on good soil, it produces fruit, thirty, sixty and even a hundredfold".

  "In your midst", he told the young people, "you have the new Bread, the Bread of future life, the Blessed Eucharist, which nourishes us and pours out the life of the Trinity into the hearts of all people".

  "He gives Himself to us and we respond by giving ourselves to others, for love of Him. This is the way that leads to life; it can be followed only by maintaining a constant dialogue with the Lord and among yourselves". Yet "the dominant societal culture is not helping you to live by Jesus' word or to practise the self-giving to which He calls you in accordance with the Father's plan".

  After encouraging his young audience not to be "afraid to make definitive decisions", the Pope added: "You do not lack generosity - that I know! But the idea of risking a lifelong commitment, whether in marriage or in a life of special consecration, can be daunting. You might think: ...'Can I make a life-long commitment now, without knowing what unforeseen events lie in store for me? By making a definitive decision, would I not be risking my freedom and tying my own hands?' These are the doubts you feel, and today's individualistic and hedonist culture aggravates them. Yet when young people avoid decisions, there is a risk of never attaining full maturity".

  "Take courage!", he cried. "Dare to make definitive decisions, because in reality these are the only decisions which do not destroy your freedom, but guide it in the right direction, enabling you to move forward and attain something worthwhile in life. There is no doubt about it: life is worthwhile only if you take courage and are ready for adventure, if you trust in the Lord Who will never abandon you. Young people of Angola, unleash the power of the Holy Spirit within you, the power from on high!

  "Trusting in this power, like Jesus, risk taking a leap and making a definitive decision. Give life a chance", the Holy Father concluded. "This is the life worthy of being lived, and I commend it to you from my heart. May God bless the young people of Angola!".

  At the end of the meeting, the Holy Father went back to the apostolic nunciature, where he dined and spent the night.
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GOSPEL AFFIRMS AND ENNOBLES AFRICAN CULTURAL VALUES

VATICAN CITY, 22 MAR 2009 (VIS) - At 9.30 a.m. today Benedict XVI arrived at Cimangola Square, 14 km from the Angolan capital Luanda. Having toured the site by popemobile greeting the thousands of people present, at 10 a.m. he presided at Mass with bishops of the Inter-Regional Meeting of the Bishops of Southern Africa (IMBISA), which brings together the episcopal conferences of Angola and Sao Tome, Botswana, South Africa and Swaziland, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia and Zimbabwe.

  At the beginning of the Eucharistic celebration, the Pope expressed his condolences for the death of two young people, crushed by the crowds entering the Stadio dos Coquieros for his meeting with Angolan youth yesterday afternoon.

  "We entrust these two young people to Jesus", he said," that He may welcome them into His kingdom. I express my solidarity and my most heartfelt condolences to their families and friends because they had come to see me". The Holy Father also gave assurances of his prayers for the 89 people injured in the same incident, "in the hope of their speedy recovery".

  In his homily, the Pope commented on the first reading of the Mass, and its summons to the Israelites to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the Temple. "Its vivid description of the destruction and ruin caused by war echoes the personal experience of so many people in this country amid the terrible ravages of the civil war. How true it is that war can 'destroy everything of value'", he said.

  "The call to return and rebuild God's Temple has a particular meaning for each of us", he went on. "God is calling us to acknowledge the power of His presence within us, to reappropriate the gift of His love and forgiveness, and to become messengers of that merciful love ... in every sector of social and political life".

  Going on to point out that today in Angola is a day of prayer and sacrifice for national reconciliation, the Holy Father said: "The Gospel teaches us that reconciliation ... can only be the fruit of conversion, ... a new way of thinking. It teaches us that only the power of God's love can change our hearts and make us triumph over the power of sin and division".

  "It is to preach this message of forgiveness, hope and new life in Christ that I have come to Africa", Pope Benedict explained. Referring then to the forthcoming Second Special Assembly for Africa of the Synod of Bishops, he asked people "to pray for this intention: that every Christian on this great continent will experience the healing touch of God's merciful love, and that the Church in Africa will become 'for all, through the witness borne by her sons and daughters, a place of true reconciliation'".

  "This is the message that the Pope is bringing to you and your children. You have received power from the Holy Spirit to be the builders of a better tomorrow for your beloved country. In Baptism you were given the Spirit in order to be heralds of God's Kingdom of truth and life, of holiness and grace, of justice, love and peace. ... Be faithful to that gift! Be confident that the Gospel can affirm, purify and ennoble the profound human values present in your native culture and traditions: your strong families, your deep religious sense, your joyful celebration of the gift of life, your appreciation of the wisdom of the elderly and the aspirations of the young. Be grateful, then, for the light of Christ! Be grateful for those who brought it, the generations of missionaries who contributed - and continue to contribute - so much to this country's human and spiritual development".

  Benedict XVI then considered today's Gospel which explains how the light of God came into the world but people preferred the darkness to the light. "Tragically, the clouds of evil have also overshadowed Africa. ... We think of the evil of war, the murderous fruits of tribalism and ethnic rivalry, the greed which corrupts men's hearts, enslaves the poor, and robs future generations of the resources they need to create a more equitable and just society - a society truly and authentically African in its genius and values.

  "And what", he added, "of that insidious spirit of selfishness which closes individuals in upon themselves, breaks up families, and, by supplanting the great ideals of generosity and self-sacrifice, inevitably leads to hedonism, the escape into false utopias through drug use, sexual irresponsibility, the weakening of the marriage bond and the break-up of families, and the pressure to destroy innocent human life through abortion?

  "Yet the word of God is a word of unbounded hope. ... God does not give up on us! He continues to lift our eyes to a future of hope, and He promises us the strength to accomplish it. ... He gave us His commandments, not as a burden, but as a source of freedom: the freedom to become men and women of wisdom, teachers of justice and peace, people who believe in others and seek their authentic good. God created us to live in the light, and to be light for the world around us!"

  "Radiate the light of faith, hope and love in your families and communities! Be witnesses of the holy truth that sets men and women free! You know from bitter experience that, in comparison with the sudden, destructive fury of evil, the work of rebuilding is painfully slow and arduous. Living by the truth takes time, effort and perseverance: it has to begin in our own hearts, ... in the little acts by which we demonstrate that we love our neighbours, all our neighbours, regardless of race, ethnicity or language, and by our readiness to work with them to build together on foundations that will endure".

  The Pope concluded his homily by addressing young people: "You are the hope of your country's future, the promise of a better tomorrow", he told them. "The Church needs your witness! Do not be afraid to respond generously to God's call, whether it be to serve Him as a priest or a religious, as a Christian parent, or in the many forms of service to others which the Church sets before you".

  Trust in God's promises, and live in His truth", the Holy Father concluded. "In this way, you will build something destined to endure, and leave to future generations a lasting inheritance of reconciliation, justice and peace".
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