New Cardinals to be Created in Rome

VATICAN CITY 2 November 2013 (ORCNS) - The Press Office of the Holy See announced that a public Consistory will be held February 2014 during which new Cardinals of the Roman Communion will be appointed. According to Rev. Federico Lombardi, SJ, head of the Press Office, Pope Francis indicated his intention to create new Cardinals earlier this month, The Consistory will take place on the Feast of the Chair of St. Peter, 22 February 2014.

The Holy Father has not yet announced who the new Cardinals will be. Father Lombardi also did not comment on this subject in his official statement. In previous Consistories, the names of the new Cardinals typically were made public a few weeks prior to the event.

In Memoriam Count Robert Clark

October 2013 (ORCNS) - The Patriarchal See is sad to report the death of one of its most distinguished friends and supporters, Count Robert L. Clark, in October of 2013. A resident of Albuquerque, New Mexico, he was reported missing from his cabin in the Apache Springs Ranch area in late September. After an intense search and rescue effort, he was found in the wilderness on 3 October.

Robert Clark's life was one of accomplishment and adventure. He was known for his inquisitive mind, his sense of loyalty, and great personal honor. Clark graduate in 1968 from Virginia Institute of Technology and served in the Vietnam War as a Captain in U.S. Army Explosive Ordinance Disposal. He flew private aerobatic aircraft for some years. In civilian life, he worked as a CPA and wrote a book, Crossing Wall Street - The Road to Independent Financial Security, in which he hoped to help people gain financial independence and not to be manipulated by the corporate system and financial marketplace. Clark was also a man of very high intelligence. He was a long-time member of the International Society for Philosophical Enquiry and served as its ninth President. Clark was a hereditary Companion of the Most Honorable Legion of the Eagle and an Italian Count.

The coat of arms of Count Robert L. Clark.

Friends of Clark knew him to be dedicated, loyal, and always up for a good intellectual discussion. He was someone who always loved to learn something new and from whom others could learn a great deal. He was not one to stand by idly as others behaved dishonorably. He was always quick to rise to the defense of the falsely maligned. His words carried great weight wherever he went, and many people followed his excellent example.

Shortly before his death, Clark came to Catholicism and believed in the benefits of the rosary. He had begun the initial stages of discerning a possible vocation to the priesthood. As a scientist himself, he was particularly interested in the Saints and clergy who were involved in making scientific contributions.

Two of Clark's quotes were "War is hell" and "Man is a fragile commodity." He was equally qualified to comment on both accounts.

Fr. Anthony Giunta continues animal blessing tradition

COLUMBIA S.C. 4 October 2013 (ORCNS) - The Very Rev. Anthony Giunta, TOR Mar., a priest of the Anglican Rite Roman Catholic Church, continued the centuries-old tradition of blessing animals on the Feast of Saint Francis of Assisi. (Who does't know and love the images of St. Francis surrounded by animals?)

Fr. Giunta is a former police officer and now a police chaplain, so it is no surprise that the blessing was held at the Columbia Police Department. After all the animals were blessed, a reception was held at police headquarters. This is a particularly special blessing for Fr. Giunta, because he is a Franciscan, the order founded by Saint Francis of Assisi himself.

Video of the Blessing (WISTV Columbia, SC)

THE CHURCH IS HOLY, AND OPEN TO ALL, NOT ONLY THE PURE

Vatican City, 2 October 2013 (VIS) – The holiness of the Church was the theme chosen by Francis for his catechesis during today's general audience, which took place in St. Peter's Square and was attended by more than 50,000 people.

In the Creed, after professing that the Church is “one”, the Pope said, “we also confess that she is 'holy'; we thus affirm the holiness of the Church, and this is a characteristic that has been present ever since the beginning in the conscience of the first Christians, who called themselves simply 'the holy', as they were certain of the action of God, of the Holy Spirit who sanctifies the Church”.

“But”, he asked, “How can we say that the Church is holy, if we see that the Church throughout history, during her long journey through the centuries, has experienced many moments of darkness? How can a Church be holy if she is made up of human beings, of sinners? Of men who are sinners, women who are sinners, priests who are sinners, nuns who are sinners, bishops who are sinners, cardinals who are sinners, popes who are sinners? Everyone. How can a Church like this be holy?”

The Church is holy because “she comes from God Who is holy, Who is faithful to her and never abandons her to the power of death and evil. She is holy because Jesus Christ, Saint of God, is indissolubly united to her; she is holy because she is guided by the Holy Spirit which purifies, transforms, and renews. She is not holy by our merits, but because God makes her holy”.

“You could say to me: but the Church is made up of sinners, we see this every day. And this is true: we are a Church of sinners, and we sinners are called to let ourselves be transformed … by God. Throughout history there has been the temptation to say: the Church is just the Church of the pure, of those who are entirely coherent, and the rest are to be cast aside. No! It's true! This is heresy... The Church is holy, she does not refuse sinners; on the contrary, she welcomes them, she is open even to those who are most distant, she calls to all to allow themselves to be surrounded by the mercy, tenderness, and forgiveness of the Father, Who offers to all the opportunity to encounter Him and to walk the path to holiness. … Is there anyone here who brings no sin with them? No, we all carry our sins with us.”

In the Church, the God we encounter “is not a ruthless judge, but is like the Father in the Gospel parable. … The Lord wants us to be part of a Church who knows how to extend her arms to welcome all, who is not the house of few, but the home of all, where everyone can be renewed, transformed and sanctified by His love; the strongest and the weakest, sinners, the indifferent, the discouraged and the lost. The Church offers to all the possibility of embarking on the road of holiness, which is the road of the Christian”.

“Do not be afraid of holiness”, concluded Francis, “of letting yourself be loved and purified by God. … Let us allow God's holiness be transmitted to us. Every Christian is called to holiness; and holiness does not consist, first and foremost, in doing extraordinary things, but rather in letting God act. It is the encounter between our weakness and the strength of His grace”.

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FRANCIS: NO HUMAN LIFE IS MORE VALUABLE THAN ANOTHER

Vatican City, 20 September 2013 (VIS) – Today the Pope met with members of the International Federation of Catholic Medical Associations and Catholic gynaecologists, and spoke of the current paradoxical situation of the medical profession. “On the one hand we see progress in the field of medicine, thanks to the work of scientists who passionately and unreservedly dedicate themselves to the search for new cures. On the other hand, however, we also encounter the risk that doctors lose sight of their identity in the service of life”. He referred to the Encyclical Caritas in Veritate to explain that this paradoxical situation is seen also in the fact that, “while new rights are attributed to or indeed almost presumed by the individual, life is not always protected as the primary value and the primordial right of every human being. The ultimate aim of medicine remains the defence and promotion of life”. Faced with this contradictory situation, the Pope renewed the Church's appeal to the conscience of all healthcare professionals and volunteers, especially gynaecologists. “Yours is a singular vocation and mission, which necessitates study, conscience and humanity”, he said.

Again, Francis spoke of the “throwaway culture” that leads to the elimination of human beings, especially those who are physically and socially weakest. “Our response to this mentality is a 'yes' to life, decisive and without hesitation. 'The first right of the human person is his life. He has other goods and some are precious, but this one is fundamental – the condition for all the others'”.

Reiterating that in recent times, human life in its entirety has become a priority for the Magisterium of the Church, the Pope emphasised that “goods have a price and can be sold, but people have dignity, they are worth more than goods and have no price”.

Francis asked those present to “bear witness to and disseminate this 'culture of life' … remind all, through actions and words, that in all its phases and at any age, life is always sacred and always of quality. And not as a matter of faith, but of reason and science! There is no human life more sacred than another, just as there exists no human life qualitatively more meaningful than another”.

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HONDURAS: CONTINUED EFFORTS FOR RECONCILATION AND THE COMMON GOOD

Vatican City, 20 September 2013 (VIS) – This morning in the Vatican Apostolic Palace, Pope Francis received in audience Porfirio Lobo Sosa, president of the Republic of Honduras, who subsequently went on to meet with Cardinal Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone, S.D.B., accompanied by Archbishop Dominique Mamberti, secretary for Relations with States.

During the course of the cordial discussions, satisfaction was expressed for the good relations between Honduras and the Holy See, and for the gift of a statue of Nuestra Senora de Suyapa, national patron, offered to the Pontiff by the Head of State and displayed in the Vatican Gardens. Emphasis was given to the Church's valuable contribution within the country, especially in the fields of education and healthcare, as well as in charitable works to combat poverty and organised crime.

The discussions then turned to themes of an ethical nature such as the defence of human life and the family, and the importance of continuing efforts in favour of reconciliation and the common good.

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FRANCIS: AVOID THE SCANDAL OF BEING “AIRPORT BISHOPS”

Vatican City, 19 September 2013 (VIS) – At midday, in the Sala Clementina of the Vatican Apostolic Palace, the Holy Father received in audience the recently appointed bishops who will participate in the congress organised by the Congregation for Bishops and the Congregation for the Eastern Churches.

Francis encouraged the bishops, in the words of St. Peter, to “tend the flock of God that is in your charge”, and reminded them that “we are called and made Shepherds not by ourselves, but by the Lord, and not to serve ourselves, but rather to serve the flock entrusted to our care, to serve to the extent of offering our lives, like Christ, the Good Shepherd”.

The Pope asked what it means to “tend”, to have “ habitual and daily care” of the flock.

“Three thoughts arise from this”, he explained. First, the importance of welcoming with generosity: “Your heart must be large enough to be able to welcome all the men and women you meet during your days and whom you will seek out as you walk your parishes and your communities”.

Secondly, to accompany the flock: “to walk alongside the faithful and all those who turn to you, sharing joys and hopes, difficulties and suffering, as brothers and friends, but even more so as fathers, who are able to listen, to understand, to help and to orientate”. Francis urged the bishops not to forget the affection they hold for their priests, who are those “closest to the bishop”, who mix with the faithful, who have the “smell of their sheep”, and reminded them to be humble, austere and essential in the service of their flock. “We shepherds are not men with the psychology of princes – ambitious men, who espouse this Church while awaiting another, more beautiful and richer. But this is a scandal! Imagine that a man confesses, saying, 'I am married and I live with my wife, but I continually look at a woman who is more beautiful than her; is this a sin, Father?' The Gospel tells us that this is the sin of adultery. Is there such thing as 'spiritual adultery'? I don't know, think about it yourselves. Do not await another more beautiful, more important, richer Church. Do not fall into the trap of careerism! It is a form of cancer!”

Finally, Francis referred to the importance of staying with the flock: the stability of remaining in the diocese without seeking change or promotion. He urged the bishops as far as possible to avoid being absent from their diocese, and if unavoidable, to do so for the shortest period possible and not on a regular basis. “Espouse your community, be profoundly bonded to it! I beg you, please, to stay among your people. … Avoid the scandal of being 'airport bishops'!” Francis urged the bishops to welcome their people “with affection, with mercy, with fatherly gentleness and firmness, with humility and with discretion; know how to recognise your limits, and have a good dose of humour”.

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