_WORLD WATCH______________________________
____________________ The Vatican ________________

Prayer and fasting
The Pope’s peace offensive
At his regular public audience on Sunday, November 18, Pope John Paul II announced that he was inviting representatives of all the world’s religions to gather in Assisi on January 24 for a day of prayer for peace. The Pope also asked all Catholics to observe a day of fasting and prayer for peace on December 14.

Noting that prayer is especially powerful when it is accompanied by fasting and almsgiving, the Holy Father asked Catholics “to live December 14 as a day of fasting, and to fervently pray to God to give the world a stable peace, founded on justice, and to allow suitable solutions to be found for the many conflicts which torment the world.”

“What people deprive themselves of by fasting,” the Holy Father said, “can be given to the poor, especially those who are suffering at this moment as a result of terrorism and war.” The Pontifical Council Cor Unum responded by setting up a special bank account to receive donations from fasting Catholics. (Contributions to this account can be made to the Banca di Roma, C/C Number 101010 “PRO DIGIUNO 14 DICEMBRE.”)

Pope John Paul first invited religious leaders from different traditions to pray at Assisi on October 27, 1986. That day of prayer drew 63 religious leaders, from 12 different faiths. A similar event —organized especially to pray for peace in the Balkans—was held January 9-10, 1993.

Three weeks later, at another Sunday audience, the Pontiff offered a further explanation for the fast day. “Faced with the complexity of the international situation today, mankind needs to mobilize all of our energies, so that love will prevail over hatred, peace over war, truth over falsehood, and pardon over vengeance,” the Pope said.

The Pope observed that the date he chose for the fast, December 14, “coincides with the end of Ramadan,” the month of fasting for the world of Islam. He offered his prayer that “the shared action of faithful mortification will cause an increase in mutual understanding between Christians and Muslims—who are called, now more than ever, to come together as builders of justice and peace.”

Vatican eyes disciplinary measures
Policies for “grave offenses”
Pope John Paul II will soon issue a motu proprio regarding the discipline of priests who commit “grave offenses” against the sacraments.

The motu proprio—a legislative act by the Pope—will set up procedures under which priests who are accused of causing scandal will have their cases judged by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. The “grave offenses” for which priests could face such disciplinary tribunals would include sacrileges against the Eucharist, Penance, or Holy Orders. The sexual abuse of children would also be included.

Archbishop Tarcisio Bertone disclosed that the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith—of which he is the secretary—has studied “all the norms concerning the most serious offenses against the sanctity of the sacraments and the priestly ministry.” The congregation’s study will form the basis for the motu proprio.

Peace day message
Firm condemnation of terrorism
With journalists in Rome carefully parsing every statement by Pope John Paul II, looking for hints of the Pontiff’s attitude toward the US military campaign in Afghanistan, the Vatican took extra care to discourage speculative interpretation of the Pope’s annual message for the World Day of Peace.

Although the World Day of Peace is observed on January 1, the Vatican customarily releases the papal message well in advance of the actual observation. This year, as the statement was presented to the media at a December 11 press conference, officials of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace emphasized that the Holy Father was not seeking either to endorse or to condemn the American campaign. Rather, he was asking all political and religious leaders to join in a condemnation of terrorism in all its forms.

The Pope’s message exhorts believers of every faith to take action on behalf of peace, arguing that “genuine religious belief . . . is the chief antidote to violence and conflict.” In the aftermath of September 11, when “a terrible crime was committed,” the world cries out for reconciliation based upon forgiveness, the Pope wrote.

However, the Pope did not endorse a pacifist response to terror and aggression. On the contrary, he followed his call to forgiveness with an important qualification:

Forgiveness is in no way opposed to justice as if to forgive meant to overlook the need to right the wrong done. It is rather the fullness of justice, leading to that tranquility of order which is much more than a fragile and temporary cessation of hostilities, involving as it does the deepest healing of the wounds which fester in human hearts. Justice and forgiveness are both essential to such healing.

The Pope’s condemnation of terrorism was abundantly clear; he characterized it as “a true crime against humanity,” “built on contempt for human life.” And he affirmed the “right to defend oneself against terrorism.” The Pope did caution, however, that a military response to terror must be directed at the individuals responsible, avoiding any actions that would harm innocent civilians.

The Pope also repeated his condemnation of those who use religious sentiment to justify terror campaigns. “Terrorism exploits not only people, it exploits God,” he wrote; “ it ends by making God an idol to be used for one’s own purposes.”

Ecclesia in Oceania
A papal first: promulgation by email
Setting a historical precedent, the Holy Father issued the first official copy of Ecclesia in Oceania—his apostolic exhortation concluding the work of the Synod for the Pacific region—through the Internet.

In the past, the Pope has followed up each of the special synods devoted to geographical regions—the Synods for Europe, the Americas, Africa, and Asia —by promulgating his apostolic exhortation during a trip to the region. But the long voyage to the Pacific was seen as too taxing for the Pontiff’s health.

So on November 22, at a unique ceremony held in the Clementine Hall of the apostolic palace, Cardinal Jan Schotte —the secretary of the Synod of Bishops—escorted the Pope to a waiting laptop computer. After making the few keystrokes necessary to send the message, the Pope remarked that he had hoped he would be able to visit Oceania, “but it was not to be.”

The papal exhortation reflects on the history of evangelization in the Pacific, and the enormous diversity of the people there. In it, the Holy Father calls the people of that region to a bolder effort at evangelization in the years ahead. He also asks forgiveness for the sins of Christians who exploited aboriginal tribes, and for clerical sex abuse. The Pope’s exhortation recognizes the need for the Church to recognize the strengths of local cultures, but also acknowledges that some cultural traditions—such as polygamy—cannot be reconciled with Christianity.

Appeal to Muslims
An annual gesture becomes delicate
For several years Cardinal Francis Arinze, the president of the Pontifical Council for Inter-religious Dialogue, has issued greetings from the Holy See to the world’s Muslims at the close of the Islamic feast of Ramadan. This year, in light of tensions throughout the Islamic world, the cardinal’s message took on added importance.

After opening with an allusion to “dramatic events that our world is experiencing today,” Cardinal Arinze wrote that “the faithful worshippers of the One God” should work together for peace. But he then shifted his focus, choosing to emphasize topics on which Muslims and Christians might be more inclined to agree. The Nigerian-born cardinal concentrated on the challenges posed by a “technological era,” and the need to keep in mind “the ethical dimensions of new technologies.” The cardinal’s statement stressed the need for proper ethical guidance in the field of genetics—”the most exciting and at the same time controversial” of the fields opened by new scientific research.

Invitation to the Orthodox
New urgency in annual message
In a message to Ecumenical Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople—delivered on the Feast of St. Andrew, the patriarchate’s patron saint—Pope John Paul said: “The Catholic Church is ready to do all that is in her power to promote the development of relations with the Orthodox churches.” The papal message was carried to Istanbul by Cardinal Walter Kasper, president of the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity.

“The difficulties met this last year by the international joint committee for theological dialogue must be analyzed and overcome,” the Pope said. The last session of that joint Catholic-Orthodox committee was held in 2000 in Baltimore, and the discussions foundered on a disagreement about the status of the Eastern Catholic churches.

Canonizations soon?
Padre Pio, Msgr. Escriva, Juan Diego?
A miracle attributed to Padre Pio has been approved by the Vatican, and the way is now clear for the canonization of the famed stigmatist, an Italian newspaper reported in November. The accuracy of the story would be put to the test just before Christmas, when the Congregation for the Causes of Saints was scheduled to publish a series of decrees regarding beatifications and canonizations.

Il Messaggero reported that a panel of five doctors, appointed by the Vatican Congregation, has found that there is no natural explanation for the sudden and complete cure of an 8-year-old Italian boy. Matteo Pio Colella was suffering from terminal meningitis when he was admitted in January 2000 to the hospital founded by Padre Pio himself. After a prayer vigil in Padre Pio’s old monastery cell, the young boy—who had lapsed into a coma—inexplicably recovered his health. According to Il Messaggero, the canonization ceremony for Padre Pio was scheduled for September 22 or 23.

The newspaper added that two other eagerly awaited canonizations will take place in 2002: that of Blessed Josemaria Escriva, the founder of Opus Dei; and that of Blessed Juan Diego, to whom the Virgin Mary appeared at Guadalupe, Mexico, in 1531.

Drug-abuse suggestions
Vatican advice for pastors
The Vatican has published a new manual offering advice for pastors who must deal with the consequences of drug abuse among their parishioners.

The 200-page manual—entitled “Church, Drugs, and Drug Dependency”—was presented to the press by Archbishop Javier Lozano Barragán, the president of the Pontifical Council for Health Care. The product of a two-year study, it was published in Italian, French, English, and Spanish. Pope John Paul II had commissioned the manual from the Pontifical Council in 1997, saying that some such resource must be prepared to ease the “anguish” of bishops and priests who must counsel the victims of drug dependency. The manual is addressed to these pastors, and also to parents, educators, and political leaders who are called to join in the struggle against drug abuse.

Archbishop Barragán remarked to reporters that Pope John Paul has made at least 80 statements on the problem of drug abuse since the beginning of his pontificate. He said that the Vatican manual follows the Pope’s analysis in dividing the issue into three related questions: the treatment of drug addicts, the education that will discourage drug use, and the prevention of drug trafficking. However, the manual confines itself to the first two of these three questions, explaining that the suppression of drug traffic is a function of government.

The Vatican document does make a few pointed comments on legal issues surrounding drug abuse, however. The manual emphasizes that the Church will never cease to oppose the legalization of recreational drug use. And the Pontifical Council insists that political leaders have a grave responsibility to curb trade in illegal drugs.

Archbishop Barragán told reporters that the new manual “does not pretend to offer a definitive response,” and acknowledged that there are many different approaches to the treatment of drug addiction. He stressed that the manual is not offering a new approach, but encouraging pastors to take advantage of existing programs.

Caution for charismatics
Prudence sought in healing services
At a meeting held in Rome in November, officials of the Roman Curia and representatives of the Catholic charismatic renewal agreed that the gift of healing should never be regarded as the “private property” of any individual or movement, but as a gift of the Holy Spirit to the universal Church.

The meeting in Rome was designed to follow up on the release of a document from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, in November of last year, warning against “abuses” in healing services. Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, the prefect of that Congregation, told the participants that the recent “multiplication” of public services of healings—heretofore a rarity in the Church—raised the need for careful discernment regarding the phenomenon.

Archbishop Tarcisio Bertone, the secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, offered a more detailed explanation of the Vatican’s concerns. In any healing service, he said, the prayers should be respectful of regular liturgical guidelines; the services should avoid rousing emotions, and encouraging mob behavior. He voiced a special concern about “the phenomenon of crowds that, exasperated because they have not seen a miracle, end up putting excessive confidence in practices such as the imposition of hands.” Archbishop Bertone also reminded the group that the most serious illness in mankind is sin.

Cardinal J. Francis Stafford, the president of the Pontifical Council for the Laity, assured the charismatic leaders that the Vatican does not intend to discourage their movement. “The presence of the Holy See shows that we want to encourage those who are called to a particular responsibility in this field,” he said. The American-born cardinal also said that charismatic groups should be careful to work within the framework provided by Catholic parishes and dioceses.

Euthanasia undermines democracy
Human dignity compromised
Laws that allow euthanasia undermine the very basis of democracy, since they fail to recognize the intrinsic dignity of human life. That was the argument presented in an article published in the official Vatican newspaper.

Father Gino Concetti, the theologian who contributes regularly to L’Osservatore Romano, said: “The dignity of the human person, defended in international declarations and in the constitutions of democratic states, is today contradicted by new cultural trends that follow individualistic and hedonistic criteria,” he said.

Father Concetti argued that democratic regimes are calling their own basic laws into question when they “affirm the dignity and thus the inviolability of the person in general terms, but not absolute terms.” In particular, he pointed out, some such governments maintain a contradictory stance in which the “objective right” of each individual is juxtaposed to the “subjective interest” of those practicing euthanasia.

“The juridical and medical culture that defends the primacy of the person can not accept this macabre tendency,” the article in L’Osservatore Romano said. Pointing out that Holland and Belgium have already passed legislation allowing euthanasia—and thus undermined their own constitutions—Father Concetti asked, “Will other nations resist the trend?”

Back to Catholic World Report January 2002 Table of Contents