Other Pontifical Acts

Vatican City, 16 February 2015 (VIS) – The Holy Father has appointed Bishop Ystinus Harjosusanto, M.S.F., of Tanjung Selor, Indonesia, as archbishop of Samarinda (area 114,810, population 2,774,246, Catholics 105,959, priests 44, religious 109), Indonesia.

The Pope to the new cardinals: “May the people of God always see in us a firm condemnation of injustice and joyful service to the truth”

Vatican City, 14 February 2015 (VIS) – At 11 a.m. today in the Vatican Basilica, Pope Francis celebrated an Ordinary Public Consistory during which he created twenty new cardinals, to whom he imposed the biretta, consigned the ring and assigned the title or diaconate church.

The celebration was also attended by Pope emeritus Benedict XVI, whom Pope Francis embraced upon entering the basilica. He was also greeted by Cardinal Dominique Mamberti, prefect of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura who, as first among the new cardinals, addressed some words of thanks to the Holy Father on behalf of all. “Becoming part of the College of Cardinals places us in a particular way in the history and life of the Church of Rome that – according to St. Ignatius of Antioch's beautiful phrase – presides in charity. We are invited to come out of ourselves, of our habits and comforts, in order to serve the mission of this Church, aware that this implies having a broader horizon”. Cardinal Jose de Jesus Pimiento was unable to attend on account of his advanced age, and so he will receive the biretta in Colombia.

In the homily he pronounced before the new cardinals, the Pope chose as a guide the hymn to charity from St. Paul's first Letter to the Corinthians, and emphasised that charity must always preside over their ministry.

“The cardinalate is certainly an honour, but it is not honorific”, he began. “This we already know from its name – 'cardinal' – from the word 'cardo', a hinge. As such it is not a kind of accessory, a decoration, like an honorary title. Rather, it is a pivot, a point of support and movement essential for the life of the community. You are 'hinges' and are 'incardinated' in the Church of Rome, which 'presides over the entire assembly of charity'”.

In the Church, “all 'presiding' flows from charity, must be exercised in charity, and is ordered towards charity. Here too the Church of Rome exercises an exemplary role. Just as she presides in charity, so too each particular Church is called, within its own sphere, to preside in charity. For this reason, I believe that the 'hymn to charity' in St. Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians can be taken as a guiding theme for this celebration and for your ministry, especially for those of you who today enter the College of Cardinals. All of us, myself first and each of you with me, would do well to let ourselves be guided by the inspired words of the apostle Paul, especially in the passage where he lists the marks of charity. May our Mother Mary help us to listen. She gave the world Jesus, charity incarnate, who is 'the more excellent Way'; may she help us to receive this Word and always to advance on this Way. May she assist us by her humility and maternal tenderness, because charity, as God’s gift, grows wherever humility and tenderness are found.

“St. Paul tells us that charity is, above all, 'patient' and 'kind'”, remarked the Holy Father. “The greater our responsibility in serving the Church, the more our hearts must expand according to the measure of the heart of Christ. 'Patience' – 'forbearance' – is in some sense synonymous with catholicity. It means being able to love without limits, but also to be faithful in particular situations and with practical gestures. It means loving what is great without neglecting what is small; loving the little things within the horizon of the great things, since 'non coerceri a maximo, contineri tamen a minimo divinum est'. To know how to love through acts of kindness. 'Kindness' – benevolence – means the firm and persevering intention to always will the good of others, even those unfriendly to us.

“The Apostle goes on to say that charity 'is not jealous or boastful, it is not puffed up with pride'. This is surely a miracle of love, since we humans – all of us, at every stage of our lives – are inclined to jealousy and pride, since our nature is wounded by sin. Nor are Church dignitaries immune from this temptation. But for this very reason, dear brothers, the divine power of love, which transforms hearts, can be all the more evident in us, so that it is no longer you who live, but rather Christ who lives in you. And Jesus is love to the fullest.

“St. Paul then tells us that charity 'is not arrogant or rude, it does not insist on its own way'”, continued Pope Francis. “These two characteristics show that those who abide in charity are not self-centred. The self-centred inevitably become disrespectful; very often they do not even notice this, since 'respect' is precisely the ability to acknowledge others, to acknowledge their dignity, their condition, their needs. The self-centred person inevitably seeks his own interests; he thinks this is normal, even necessary. Those 'interests' can even be cloaked in noble appearances, but underlying them all is always 'self-interest'. Charity, however, makes us draw back from the centre in order to set ourselves in the real centre, which is Christ alone. Then, and only then, can we be persons who are respectful and attentive to the good of others.

“Charity, Saint Paul says, 'is not irritable, it is not resentful'. Pastors close to their people have plenty of opportunities to be irritable, to feel anger. Perhaps we risk being all the more irritable in relationships with our confreres, since in effect we have less excuses. Even here, charity, and charity alone, frees us. It frees us from the risk of reacting impulsively, of saying or doing the wrong thing; above all it frees us from the mortal danger of pent-up anger, of that smouldering anger which makes us brood over wrongs we have received. No. This is unacceptable in a man of the Church. Even if a momentary outburst is forgiveable, this is not the case with rancour. God save us from that!

“Charity – St. Paul adds – 'does not rejoice at the wrong, but rejoices in the right'. Those called to the service of governance in the Church need to have a strong sense of justice, so that any form of injustice becomes unacceptable, even those which might bring gain to himself or to the Church. At the same time, he must 'rejoice in the right'. What a beautiful phrase! The man of God is someone captivated by truth, one who encounters it fully in the word and flesh of Jesus Christ, the inexhaustible source of our joy. May the people of God always see in us a firm condemnation of injustice and joyful service to the truth”.

Finally, the Pope concluded, “'love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things'. Here, in four words, is a spiritual and pastoral programme of life. The love of Christ, poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, enables us to live like this, to be like this: as persons always ready to forgive; always ready to trust, because we are full of faith in God; always ready to inspire hope, because we ourselves are full of hope in God; persons ready to bear patiently every situation and each of our brothers and sisters, in union with Christ, who bore with love the burden of our sins.

“Dear brothers, this comes to us not from ourselves, but from God. God is love and he accomplishes all this in us if only we prove docile to the working of his Holy Spirit. This, then, is how we are to be: 'incardinated' and docile. The more we are 'incardinated' in the Church of Rome, the more we should become docile to the Spirit, so that charity can give form and meaning to all that we are and all that we do. Incardinated in the Church which presides in charity, docile to the Holy Spirit who pours into our hearts the love of God. Amen”.

Following his allocution, the Pope pronounced the formula for the creation of the new cardinals, their name and the titular diaconate or church assigned to them. The new cardinals recited the Creed and their oath of fidelity and obedience to the Holy Father and his successors. They subsequently received the biretta and the ring from the Pope, who also assigned them their title or diaconate.

At the end of the rite, Cardinal Angelo Amato S.D.B., prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, addressed the Holy Father to request that three Blesseds be inscribed in the Book of Saints. The first, Jeanne-Emilie de Villeneuve, was born in France in 1811, and founded the Congregation of the Sisters of the Immaculate Conception of Castres for the education of poor girls and young women, for the sick, and for missions in distant lands. She died in 1854 and was beatified by Benedict XVI in 2009. The second, Marie-Alphonsine Danil Ghattas (nee Maryam Sultanah) was born in Jerusalem in 1843 and carried out an intense apostolate in favour of Christian mothers and the young. Co-foundress of the Congregation of the Sisters of the Holy Rosary of Jerusalem of the Latins, she died in 1927 and was beatified by Benedict XVI in 2009. Finally, Mary of Jesus Crucified (nee Maryam Baouardy), born in Abellin near Nazareth in 1946, was a professed nun of the Order of Discalced Carmelites, and was sent to found the new Carmelites first in India and later in Bethlehem, where she died in 1878. She was beatified by St. John Paul II in 1983.

Titular and diaconate churches of the new cardinals

Vatican City, 14 February 2015 (VIS) – Below is a list of the titular or diaconate churches assigned by Pope Francis to the new cardinals created during this morning's Ordinary Public Consistory:

Cardinal Dominique Mamberti, diaconate of Santo Spirito in Sassia

Cardinal Manuel Jose Macario Do Nascimento Clemente, title of Sant'Antonio in Campo Marzio

Cardinal Berhaneyesus Demerew Sourphiel, C.M., title of San Romano Martire

Cardinal John Atcherley Dew, title of Sant'Ippolito

Cardinal Edoardo Menichelli, title of Sacri Cuori di Gesu e Maria a Tor Fiorenza

Cardinal Pierre Nguyen Van Nhon, title of San Tommaso Apostolo

Cardinal Alberto Suarez Inda, title of San Policarpo

Cardinal Charles Maung Bo, S.D.B., title of Sant'Ireneo a Centocelle

Cardinal Francis Xavier Kriengsak Kovithavanij, title of Santa Maria Addolorata

Cardinal Francesco Montenegro, title of Santi Andrea e Gregorio al Monte Celio

Cardinal Daniel Fernando Sturla Berhouet, S.D.B., title of Santa Galla

Cardinal Ricardo Blasquez Perez, title of Santa Maria in Vallicella

Cardinal Jose Luis Lacunza Maestrojuan, O.A.R., title of San Giuseppe da Copertino

Cardinal Arlindo Gomes Furtado, title of San Timoteo

Cardinal Soane Patita Paini Mafi, title of Santa Paola Romana

Cardinal Jose de Jesus Pimiento Rodriguez, title of San Giovanni Crisostomo a Monte Sacro Alto

Cardinal Luigi De Magistris, diaconate of Santissimi Nomi di Gesu e Maria in Via Lata

Cardinal Karl-Josef Rauber, diaconate of Sant'Antonio di Padova a Circonvallazione Appia

Cardinal Luis Hector Villalba, title of San Girolamo a Corviale

Cardinal Julio Duarte Langa, title of San Gabriele dell'Addolorata.

Cardinal De Magistris takes possession of his diaconate

Vatican City, 14 February 2015 (VIS) – The Office of Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff today announced that Cardinal Luigi De Magistris, pro-major penitentiary emeritus, will take possession of the diaconate of the Santissimi Nomi di Gesu e Maria in Via Lata (Via del Corso, 45) on Tuesday, 17 February at 5 p.m.

Extraordinary Consistory: reform will strengthen the credibility of the Church

Vatican City, 13 February 2015 (VIS) – The Extraordinary Consistory of the College of Cardinals with Pope Francis did not complete its work this morning as expected. The meeting will continue during the afternoon, with an update on the work of the Commission for the Protection of Minors by its president, Cardinal Sean O'Malley, explained the director of the Holy See Press Office, Fr. Federico Lombardi, S.J., during a press conference today.

Yesterday, Thursday, the meeting continued in a serene and constructive atmosphere, with interventions by a further 28 cardinals who offered different perspectives on the reform of the Curia, focusing on the relationship between the Curia and the local Churches, and underlining the importance of better serving the Church in the world. They spoke of “decentralisation”, and the theme of “subsidiarity” was recurrent. Further reflection was invited on what can be done better and where: or rather, in which cases it would be more useful for the Roman dicasteries to act, and when instead the involvement of the dioceses or the episcopal conferences would be more useful.

Other interventions were dedicated to the usefulness and importance of the central service of the Holy See, bearing in mind the experience in various countries where the local church is weak and may be subject to pressure, and is therefore supported by the work of the Vatican.

Coordination within the Curia was addressed not with a merely functional focus, but rather from the perspective of a sense of communion between the different dicasteries, of communication that creates union in the common mission. More specifically, the interministerial commissions were referred to as tools for achieving this objective and the importance of continuity in this dimension of coordination was noted.

Emphasis was placed on the competence of the Secretariat of State with regard to the Holy See's relations with international organisations and entities as a guarantee of coherence and the assumption of a common position. However, this does not mean that the Secretariat of State acts alone, but rather that it involves the dicasteries with specific competences, always with a guiding unity.

Simplification is a shared criterion. There were several considerations regarding the qualifications of people working in the Curia, from the point of view of professional competence and ecclesial spirit and dedication. Emphasis was placed on the need for professionals from different parts of the world and for the Church to better reflect her universality. In this respect, there was discussion on the role of the laity, women in particular, in the assumption of positions of responsibility in the Roman Curia.

Other interventions focused on the positive elements of the Apostolic Constitution “Pastor bonus”, which must not be lost from view; therefore, the reform process must ensure distinct continuity with this document, especially from an ecclesiological point of view.

This morning's meeting, attended by 164 cardinals, focused primarily on a long report with four interventions on themes of an economic nature, introduced by Cardinal George Pell, president of the Secretariat for the Economy. Joseph F.X. Zahra of the Commission for Reference on the Organisation of the Economic and Administrative Structure of the Holy See (COSEA) then spoke about the study the Commission carried out last year on the organisational issues faced by the Holy See, and gave information on the Commission's activity. It was the first time that the College of Cardinals has received such a detailed report in the presence of so many cardinals. The composition, role, work and competences of the Council for the Economy were then the subject of an intervention by Cardinal Reinhard Marx.

Cardinal Pell then gave further information regarding the recent activities of the Secretariat, focusing primarily on the balance for the year that has just commenced. Finally, Jean-Baptiste de Franssu, president of the Institute for the Works of Religion (IOR) spoke about the current situation of this body.

Following the interventions by the cardinals, several questions were raised to the speakers. As well as asking for more specific details, the cardinals expressed their appreciation for the reorganisation work that has taken place and their conviction that this constitutes a convincing reform that prioritises transparency, integrity and competence. The speed with which it has been put into affect was also praised, given that there are already entities working according to the new guidelines. The reforms, it was affirmed, strengthen the credibility of the Church.

Questions of a more technical nature were also posed, regarding the competences of various bodies and the relations between the Holy See and Vatican City State.