Papa-Catholicos lays wreath at US Tomb of Unknown Soldier

WASHINGTON 18 June 2022 (NRom) -- His Holiness Rutherford I, Papa-Catholicos of Rome-Ruthenia laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the Arlington National Cemetery in the USA today. The ceremony was conducted with the tomb guards, the 3rd Infantry Regiment of the US Army, known as the "Old Guard." The Archfather commented: "Caring for the dead is an important act of mercy for all Christians. I enjoy visiting military cemeteries around the world, including the poignant monuments to unknown fallen soldiers, such as the one in Rome and the one at Arlington. Human life transcends borders and flags. As world events unfold, vast fields of tombstones commemorating military dead should stand as a stark admonition to world nations to cease taking interfering actions that inflame, escalate, expand, prolong, and worsen the ongoing conflict."  The Papa-Catholicos also complimented the highest ceremonial standards and military bearing exhibited by the Tomb Sentinels and expressed his appreciation for their kind hospitality. 

Wreath Laying Ceremony

See video of the ceremony below:

Inspection of the sentinel by the Relief Commander

Ceremonial bugler

Sentinel saluting the tomb.

Cardinal Sodano, Supporter of the Catholicate Dies at Age 94

By A. DiNardo

VATICAN CITY 28 May 2022 (NRom)

His Eminence Angelo Raffaele Cardinal Sodano, retired Secretary of State of the Vatican City and Dean Emeritus of the Sacred College of Cardinals of the Roman Communion died yesterday at age 94. His Eminence was godfather of His Holiness and Eminence the Papa-Catholicos and His Eminence Cardinal Duke v.u.z. Westphalia. Papa Rutherford I said, "Although I am saddened by this news, I am even more thankful that such a devoted servant of Christ left such lasting, positive, tradutional influence on the Holy Church. His Eminence's kindness and support of me will never be forgotten. Indeed, the Imperial Roman Church, Gallo-Russo-Byzantine Catholicate, and the Anglican Patriarchate are all his lasting legacy."

Statement of the Chief of the General Staff on Current Violence

By Msgr. Daniel Coberly 

FIRENZE-NUOVA ROMA 28 May 2022 (NRom)

The terribly sad events of recent days grieve all of us greatly, none more so than parents and relatives who lost a loved one. Our prayers are with them, for them, and for the children and adults who died senselessly. We all react normally to that abnormal situation...shocked, angry, aghast, seeking to assign blame, demanding what we think are simple solutions to a complex craziness. We seek to make sense out of nonsense, to rationalize the irrational. Yet we know in our hearts that the world has always been a violent place. There have been and may always be defective acts by defective people that seem senseless to the sensible and defenseless. Oh, we are indeed powerfully angry. Yet, there is a huge difference between our anger and the so-called "angry shooter". For we do not react to this major pain and insult with violence of our own; not even those millions among us who own "guns". Ponder that difference for a moment before over-simplified political polarizations kick in. For, we cannot imagine a more powerful rage than among a parent who lost an innocent child in such a terrible way....

The world is full of angry whackadoodles who learn from childhood, from entertainment that violence is ok and there is no reality to consequence. Our nation has encouraged whiners, not winners, sports stars not hard work, differences, not similarities. There are more “guns” than people, yes. There are also laws that people ignore, numbering in tens of thousands of laws still on books exceeding the populations of some major cities - and as a result, they are difficult to monitor and enforce. Few people with gun safety education-which should be everyone-harm anyone. There are those who would suppose there are more abortions that are not murders than there are such senseless acts of shooting children. When you change the way you look at things the things you look at change. A zillion laws will not stop one crazed person with a rock, a stick, a bat, a knife, a gun, a car….no amount of legislation will regulate morality nor common sense nor peace. No one is instantly ready at all times to stop one nut. We maintain military might to stop world-class bullies, but many die and legally murder to justly do so. It is the unjust that we each define that moves us, extremely evident in this cowardly and yes-crazy act. Some mental health care people say these shooters are “just angry, not crazy, not sociopaths, psychopaths, etc. others say spend more $$ on mental health care; certainly. That won’t stop a sane angry person though, will it? And not every looney toon. Consider also that many of these “sane and angry” are killed without us being able to accurately state their true mental health condition. We can read their manifestos, that to reasonable person sound rather unreasoned, unhinged with insane results. Personal example, a worldly education, a culture of compassion, of standards, of learning from failures and how to cope with life, those are things that our parents, churches used to actually teach, not just preach. We are what we think we are. Teach how to think. Have realistic expectations. Guns don’t kill people, people kill people. Guns make it easier to kill people—but also to stop someone from doing so. It would take total dictatorship to attempt to confiscate guns, ammo or weapons; there will always be someone who has them.

Maybe it is time to return to the simple notion that it takes a village to raise a child.  Each of us has a personal responsibility -- a duty -- to children, to ourselves, and to each other, not only to protect, but to set a positive example.  

Curia Responds to Requests for Spiritual Guidance on World Military Events

By Jean DuBois

FIRENZE-NUOVA ROMA 18 May 2022 (NRom)

In response to various enquiries, the Patriarchal Curia of the Imperial Roman Church issued a statement earlier today on behalf of the Papa-Catholicos. The statement pertained to three key areas in military action around the world. The first regards trials for alleged war crimes. The second centered on legitimacy of large-scale contributions of war materiel and military-related financial contributions. The third pertained to large-scale military treaty alliance organizations and their potential threat to global security. As always, the Curia provided a concise statement consistent with the traditional doctrine of the Christian faith.  The Curia also urged national leaders to follow the precepts of Christian heritage and doctrine. 

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Response 1

War can bring out both the best and worst traits in humanity. Many fall as victims of man's inhumanity to man. Yet, while some acts do indeed exceed legitimacy under the Just Warfare Doctrine of the Christian faith, the mere existence of an unfortunate or terrible occurrence does not automatically render it a war crime. Soldiers who are carrying out orders for a stated legitimate military purpose cannot be legitimately held criminally or civilly responsible, tried, or punished for alleged war crimes. The exceptions to that are extremely rare and centre on the legitimate, reasonable possibility of such a soldier to be able to know that an act is inherently illegal and be able to prevent it in the inherently chaotic circumstances of warfare. Such greatly exceeds the authority of soldiers in general and would result in a break-down of discipline and hierarchy essential to military operations. Similarly, the question of intent, both on the part of commanders and soldiers, is absolutely essential in determining legitimacy of criminal and civil responsibility for alleged war crimes.  To hold anyone criminally or civilly responsible, to try them, or to inflict punishment of any kind in violation of these precepts for an alleged war crime is itself a grave moral offense and an affront against human dignity, rendering the perpetrators of such trials themselves potentially criminally and civilly responsible.

Response 2 

Nations that engage in large-scale transfer of weapons and other war materiel, as well as significant military funding and other support, no matter the stated purpose, become moral participants in a particular war. Thus they have moral responsibility for the results of their contributions. Such transfers often prolonged killing, suffering, and destruction. Therefore blood stains the hands of nations engaged in such transfers. Furthermore, such transfers, given their scale, if at the detriment of the population of the countries making the transfers, violate a higher objective of a nation to serve and care for the people within their borders who have therefore been placed within their care. 

     The Curia, consistent with the doctrine of the Christian faith, calls upon all nations to be prudent in their support of military actions of other nations that they may choose to do through contributions of weapons, war materiel, and money. Such support should be minimal, if it is even done at all, for their actions tend merely to prolong combat, expand killing, and increase destruction and human suffering.

Response 3

The lessons of the Great War demonstrate the problems of large-scale military assistance treaty organisations. In the Great War, the situation was one of overlapping smaller military alliances that led in short order to a simple regional conflict exploding into the entirety of Europe, even drawing in troops from other parts of the world. Similarly, large-scale military assistance treaty organisations, particularly when they treat an attack on one as an attack on all in all circumstances, have the tremendous potential to allow regional conflict to explode quickly into large-scale warfare. Nations have a responsibility to de-escalate conflicts to which they are a party as much as possible, and to act in ways that are neutral or to de-escalate conflicts not directly involving them and not instead to add fuel to the fire. 

    Also, such treaty organisations have demonstrated their continued willingness to engage in warfare with other nations outside their organisation. The existence of a large-scale treaty organisation may make it very difficult for a nation involved in a conflict with even a single country within that treaty organisation to engage in defensive or retaliatory combat for fear of drawing the entire body of nations within the treaty organisation into the conflict. Therefore, such organisations have the potential to enable one or more of their members to become international military oppressors with relative impunity. 

   Nations have a right to establish their own such organisations in response to other treaty organisations as a matter of legitimate security and self-defense. However, such alliances overall should be avoided and preferably disbanded.

New Gallican Priest Ordained

BUENOS AIRES 15 May 2022 (NRom)

His Most Excellent Reverence Monsignor Rodrigues, Archbishop of Lyons and Primate of the Gallican Rite ordains a new priest for the Holy Church.

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New Website for the Gallo-Russo-Byzantine Catholicate

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Concordat Strengthens Religious, Historical Work

By Jean DuBois 

FIRENZE-NUOVA ROMA 27 April 2022 (NRom)

The Pontifical Household of the Imperial Roman Church (Gallo-Russo-Byzantine Catholicate and Anglican Patriarchate of Rome) and the Pontifical Roman State recently signed a concordat with the Royal Merovingian Dynasty. Once the rulers of France before Charlemagne, the Merovingian household is one of the most ancient royal and noble families in the world today. The Merovingian dynasty is also the temporal head of the Gallican Rite of the Catholic Church, which, in addition to having its own Primate, is under the spiritual leadership of the Gallo-Russo-Byzantine Catholicate. This concordat, signed by Rutherford I and Don Rubén de Gévaudan, builds on an established and long-lasting partnership for religious service, humanitarian work, and the preservation of the traditions and history of our common ethnic heritage.