ARCHBISHOP MAMBERTI PROPOSES WORLD DAY AGAINST PERSECUTION OF CHRISTIANS

VATICAN CITY, 7 DEC 2011 (VIS) - Archbishop Dominique Mamberti, the Holy See's secretary for Relations with States, addressed the Eighteenth Ministerial Council of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) held this 6–7 December in Vilnius, Lithuania.

  In his address, the archbishop discussed, among other themes, the topic of migration, which for the Holy See constitutes an argument of constant interest, above all in the actual circumstances of economic and financial crisis. Msgr. Mamberti noted that there is a growing consensus in the international community on the necessity of paying greater attention to migrants. In this context he emphasized that it is necessary to support migrants reunification with their families since "the family plays a fundamental role in the integration process, in giving stability to the presence of the immigrants in the new social environment ... Migrants, aware of their rights, can be more secure in offering their services and talents and the receiving community, well-informed and respectful of these rights, will feel freer in extending its solidarity in order to build together a common future".

  The Secretary for Relations with States also addressed the Organization's commitments in defence of fundamental freedoms and human rights, one of which is the right to freedom of religion. "The right to religious freedom, despite being repeatedly proclaimed by the international community, as well as in the constitutions of most States, continues to be widely violated today". Pope Benedict XVI himself recalled, in his message from this year's World Day of Peace, that Christians "are the religious group which suffers most from persecution on account of its faith". According to Archbishop Mamberti, "there may be more than two hundred million Christians, of different confessions, who are in difficulty because of legal and cultural structures that lead to their discrimination". For this reason, he proposed the institution of an International Day against persecution and discrimination of Christians as "an important sign that governments are willing to deal with this serious issue".

Against Trafficking in Human Beings

  The archbishop also addressed the problem of trafficking in human beings, especially of women and minors, for sexual exploitation as well as for labor exploitation and domestic servitude, which has become a "powerful global business involving many countries of origin, transit, and destination. To counteract the scourge of trafficking in human beings with greater determination and more concrete results, a convergence of efforts is necessary: a mentality that is centered on the unique dignity of every person, a sure punishment of traffickers, the fight against corruption, ... and the fairness of mass media in reporting the damages created by trafficking".
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DO NOT DEPRIVE YOUR PEOPLES OF HOPE!

VATICAN CITY, 19 NOV 2011 (VIS) - Shortly before 9 a.m. today Benedict XVI arrived at the presidential palace in Cotonou, a building constructed in 1960 to mark the proclamation of Benin's independence from France. There he met with members of the government, representatives of State institutions, the diplomatic corps and representatives of the principal religions. Thomas Yayi Boni, president of Benin, welcomed the Holy Father who, having greeted those present, pronounced an address extracts of which are given below.

  "When I say that Africa is a continent of hope, I am not indulging in mere rhetoric, but simply expressing a personal conviction which is also that of the Church. Too often, our mind is blocked by prejudices or by images which give a negative impression of the realities of Africa, the fruit of a bleak analysis. It is tempting to point to what does not work; it is easy to assume the judgemental tone of the moraliser or of the expert who imposes his conclusions and proposes, at the end of the day, few useful solutions. It is also tempting to analyse the realities of Africa like a curious ethnologist or like someone who sees the vast resources only in terms of energy, minerals, agriculture and humanity easily exploited for often dubious ends. These are reductionist and disrespectful points of view which lead to the unhelpful 'objectification' of Africa and her inhabitants.

  "To talk of hope is to talk of the future and hence of God. ... It is upon this mixture of many contradictory and complementary elements that we must build with the help of God. ... In the light of this experience which ought to encourage us, I would like to mention two current African realities. The first relates in a general way to the socio-political and economic life of the continent, the second to inter-religious dialogue".

  "During recent months, many peoples have manifested their desire for liberty, their need for material security, and their wish to live in harmony according to their different ethnic groups and religions. Indeed, a new State has been born on your continent. Many conflicts have originated in man's blindness, in his will to power and in political and economic interests which mock the dignity of people and of nature. ... These ills certainly afflict your continent, but they also afflict the rest of the world. Every people wishes to understand the political and economic choices which are made in its name. They perceive manipulation and their revenge is sometimes violent. They wish to participate in good governance. We know that no political regime is ideal and that no economic choice is neutral. But these must always serve the common good. Hence we are faced with legitimate demands, present in all countries, for greater dignity and above all for greater humanity. Man demands that his humanity be respected and promoted. Political and economic leaders of countries find themselves placed before important decisions and choices which they can no longer avoid".

Ethical aspect of political and economic responsibilities
  "From this place, I launch an appeal to all political and economic leaders of African countries and the rest of the world. Do not deprive your peoples of hope! Do not cut them off from their future by mutilating their present! Adopt a courageous ethical approach to your responsibilities and, if you are believers, ask God to grant you wisdom! ... Power, such as it is, easily blinds, above all when private, family, ethnic or religious interests are at stake. God alone purifies hearts and intentions.

  "The Church does not propose any technical solution and does not impose any political solution. She repeats: do not be afraid! Humanity is not alone before the challenges of the world. God is present. There is a message of hope, hope which generates energy, which stimulates the intellect and gives the will all its dynamism. ... Hope is communion. Is not this a wonderful path that is placed before us? I ask all political and economic leaders, as well those of the university and cultural realms to join it. May you also be sowers of hope!"

Inter-religious dialogue

  "I do not think it is necessary to recall the recent conflicts born in the name of God, or deaths brought about in the name of Him Who is life. Everyone of good sense understands that a serene and respectful dialogue about cultural and religious differences must be promoted. True inter-religious dialogue rejects humanly self-centred truth, because the one and only truth is in God. ... Hence, no religion, and no culture may justify appeal or recourse to intolerance and violence. Aggression is an outmoded relational form which appeals to superficial and ignoble instincts. To use the revealed word, the Sacred Scriptures or the name of God to justify our interests, our easy and convenient policies or our violence, is a very grave fault.

  "I can only come to a knowledge of the other if I know myself. ... Knowledge, deeper understanding and practice of one's religion, are therefore essential to true inter-religious dialogue. ... Everyone ought therefore to place himself in truth before God and before the other. This truth does not exclude and it is not confusion. Inter-religious dialogue when badly understood leads to muddled thinking or to syncretism. This is not the dialogue which is sought".

  "We know that sometimes inter-religious dialogue is not easy or that it is impeded for various reasons. This does not necessarily indicate failure. There are many forms of inter-religious dialogue. Cooperation in social or cultural areas can help people to understand each other better and to live together serenely. It is also useful to know that dialogue does not take place through weakness but because of belief in God. Dialogue is another way of loving God and our neighbour without abdicating what we are".

Promoting a pedagogy of dialogue

  "Having hope does not mean being ingenuous but making an act of faith in a better future. Thus the Catholic Church puts into action one of the intuitions of the Second Vatican Council, that of promoting friendly relations between herself and the members of non-Christian religions. ... I greet all religious leaders who have kindly come here to meet me. I would like to assure them, as well as those from other African countries, that the dialogue offered by the Catholic Church comes from the heart. I encourage them to promote, above all among the young people, a pedagogy of dialogue, so that they may discover that our conscience is a sanctuary to be respected and that our spiritual dimension builds fraternity".

  "To finish, I would like to use the image of a hand. There are five fingers on it and each one is quite different. Each one is also essential and their unity makes a hand. A good understanding between cultures, consideration for each other which is not condescending, and the respect of the rights of each one are a vital duty. This must be taught to all the faithful of the various religions. Hatred is a failure, indifference is an impasse, and dialogue is an openness! Is this not good ground in which seeds of hope may be sown? To offer someone your hand means to hope, later, to love. ... Together with our heart and our intelligence, our hand too can become an instrument of dialogue. It can make hope flourish, above all when our intelligence stammers and our heart stumbles".

  "To be afraid, to doubt and to fear, to live in the present without God, or to have nothing to hope for, these are all attitudes which are foreign to the Christian faith and, I am convinced, to all other forms of belief in God. ... Following Peter, of whom I am a successor, I hope that your faith and hope will be in God. This is my wish for the whole of Africa, which is so dear to me! Africa, be confident and rise up! The Lord is calling you".

  Having concluded his address, the Pope held a brief meeting with the president of the Republic in the latter's private study, during which the two men exchanged gifts. Benedict XVI then signed the visitor's book and greeted members of Thomas Yayi Boni's family.
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COMMUNIQUE ISSUED BY THE HOLY SEE PRESS OFFICE

VATICAN CITY, 23 SEP 2011 (VIS) - The Holy See Press Office has released the following communique on the meeting between the Holy Father and a group of victims of sexual abuse.

  "This evening, in the seminary at Erfurt, Pope Benedict XVI met with a group of victims of sexual abuse committed by priests and church personnel. Subsequently he greeted some people who care for those injured by these crimes.

  "Moved and deeply shaken by the sufferings of the victims, the Holy Father expressed his deep compassion and regret over all that was done to them and their families. He assured the people present that those in positions of responsibility in the Church are seriously concerned to deal with all crimes of abuse and are committed to the promotion of effective measures for the protection of children and young people. Pope Benedict XVI is close to the victims and he expresses the hope that the merciful God, Creator and Redeemer of all mankind, may heal the wounds of the victims and grant them inner peace".

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BROADER HORIZONS FOR THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN GERMANY

VATICAN CITY, 24 SEP 2011 (VIS) - At 9 a.m. today, Benedict XVI celebrated Mass in the Domplatz (Cathedral Square) of Erfurt. More than 50,000 people participated in the liturgy which used texts specific to the diocese of Erfurt for the veneration of the local patron, St. Elizabeth of Thuringia.

  "If we think back thirty years to the Elizabeth Year 1981, when this city formed part of the German Democratic Republic", said the Pope at the beginning of his homily, "who would have thought that a few years later, the wall and the barbed wire at the border would have come down? And if we think even further back, some seventy years, to the year 1941, in the days of National Socialism, who could have predicted that the so-called 'thousand-year Reich' would turn to dust and ashes just four years later?"

  "Here in Thuringia and in the former German Democratic Republic, you have had to endure first a brown and then a red dictatorship, which acted on the Christian faith like acid rain. Many late consequences of that period are still having to be worked through, above all in the intellectual and religious fields. Most people in this country since that time have spent their lives far removed from faith in Christ and from the communion of the Church. Yet the last two decades have also brought good experiences: a broader horizon, an exchange that reaches beyond borders, a faithful confidence that God does not abandon us and that He leads us along new paths".

  This "new freedom has helped bring about greater dignity and a great many new possibilities for people's lives. On the part of the Church, we can point gratefully to many things that have become easier, whether it be new opportunities for parish activities, renovation and enlargement of churches and community centres, or diocesan initiatives of a pastoral or cultural nature. But have these opportunities led to an increase in faith? Are not the deep roots of faith and Christian life to be sought in something very different from social freedom? It was actually amid the hardships of pressure from without that many committed Catholics remained faithful to Christ and to the Church. They accepted personal disadvantages in order to live their faith".

  Among those people, the Holy Father made special mention of the many priests and laypersons who provided pastoral care to refugees in the years following World War II, and of the parents who brought up their children in the Catholic faith "in the midst of the diaspora and in an anticlerical political environment".

  Referring then to the patrons of the diocese of Erfurt - St. Elizabeth of Thuringia, St. Boniface and St. Kilian - and to St. Severus to whom the "Severikirche" in the Domplatz is dedicated, the Pope said: "God's presence is seen especially clearly in His saints. Their witness to the faith can also give us the courage to begin afresh today", because they "show us that it is truly possible and good to live our relationship with God in a radical way, to put Him in first place, not as one concern among others. The saints help us to see that God first reached out to us, He revealed and continues to reveal Himself to us in Jesus Christ. Christ comes towards us, He speaks to every individual with an invitation to follow Him".

  "Faith always includes as an essential element the fact that it is shared with others. ... This 'with', without which there can be no personal faith, is the Church. And this Church does not stop at national borders, as we can see from the nationalities of the saints I mentioned earlier: Hungary, England, Ireland and Italy. ... If we open ourselves up to the whole of the faith in all of history and the testimony given to it in the whole Church, then the Catholic faith also has a future as a public force in Germany. ... Saints, even if there are only a few of them, change the world.

  "Thus", the Holy Father added, "the political changes that swept through your country in 1989 were motivated not just by the demand for prosperity and freedom of movement, but also decisively by the longing for truthfulness. This longing was kept awake partly through people completely dedicated to serving God and neighbour and ready to sacrifice their lives. They and the saints I mentioned before give us courage to make good use of this new situation. We have no wish to hide in a purely private faith, but we want to shape this hard-won freedom responsibly".

  Following Mass, Benedict XVI travelled to the airport of Erfurt. At 11.50 a.m. he departed for the city of Freiburg im Breisgau where he landed at Lahr airport shortly before 1 p.m.
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THE SHARED FOUNDATIONS OF LAW

VATICAN CITY, 22 SEP 2011 (VIS) - At 4.15 p.m. today the Holy Father travelled from the apostolic nunciature in Berlin to the Reichstag where he was welcomed by the president of the German Federal Parliament. He held a brief meeting with the five chief office holders of the German State: the president, the chancellor and the presidents of the Bundestag, the Bundesrat and of the Federal Constitutional Court. He also greeted the leaders of the various parliamentary groups. He was then accompanied to the hall of the Reichstag where he listened to a speech by Norbert Lammert, president of the Bundestag.

In his own address to the Parliament, Benedict XVI affirmed that politics "must be a striving for justice, and hence it has to establish the fundamental preconditions for peace. Naturally a politician will seek success, as this is what opens up for him the possibility of effective political action. Yet success is subordinated to the criterion of justice, to the will to do what is right". Without this, "success can be seductive and thus can open up the path towards the falsification of what is right, towards the destruction of justice".

"We Germans know from our own experience that these words are no empty spectre", said the Holy Father. "We have seen how power became divorced from right, how power opposed right and crushed it, so that the State became an instrument for destroying right - a highly organised band of robbers, capable of threatening the whole world and driving it to the edge of the abyss".

For this reason, "to serve right and to fight against the dominion of wrong is and remains the fundamental task of the politician", especially today. But, "how do we recognise what is right?" asked Pope Benedict. He explained that "for the fundamental issues of law, in which the dignity of man and of humanity is at stake, the majority principle is not enough. ... This conviction was what motivated resistance movements to act against the Nazi regime and other totalitarian regimes, thereby doing a great service to justice and to humanity as a whole. For these people, it was indisputably evident that the law in force was actually unlawful".

Restoring the cultural heritage of Europe

"In terms of the underlying anthropological issues, what is right and may be given the force of law is in no way simply self-evident today", said the Holy Father, recalling how, throughout history, "systems of law have almost always been based on religion". However, "unlike other great religions, Christianity has never proposed a revealed body of law to the State and to society, that is to say a juridical order derived from revelation. Instead, it has pointed to nature and reason as the true sources of law. ... For the development of law and for the development of humanity, it was highly significant that Christian theologians aligned themselves against the religious law associated with polytheism and on the side of philosophy, and that they acknowledged reason and nature in their inter-relation as the universally valid source of law".

"This seemed to offer a clear explanation of the foundations of legislation up to the time of the Enlightenment, up to the time of the Declaration on Human Rights after World War II", however "there has been a dramatic shift in the situation in the last half-century". Due to the predominance of a positivist conception of nature and reason, "the idea of natural law is today viewed as a specifically Catholic doctrine, not worth bringing into discussion in a non-Catholic environment".

"A positivist conception of nature as purely functional ... is incapable of producing any bridge to ethics and law. ... The same also applies to reason, according to the positivist understanding which is widely held to be the only genuinely scientific one. Anything that is not verifiable or falsifiable, according to this understanding, does not belong to the realm of reason. ... Hence ethics and religion must be assigned to the subjective field. ... This is a dramatic situation which affects everyone, and on which a public debate is necessary.

"The positivist approach to nature and reason", Pope Benedict added, "is a most important dimension of human knowledge and capacity that we may in no way dispense with". But, "where positivist reason considers itself the only sufficient culture, ... it diminishes man, indeed it threatens his humanity. I say this with Europe specifically in mind, where there are concerted efforts to recognise only positivism as a common culture and a common basis for law-making, so that all the other insights and values of our culture are reduced to the level of subculture, with the result that Europe vis-a-vis other world cultures is left in a state of 'culturelessness' and at the same time extremist and radical movements emerge to fill the vacuum".

This is why it is so important for reason and nature to rediscover their true greatness, and reassert themselves in their "true depth, with all its demands, with all its directives", said the Pope. We must "listen to the language of nature and we must answer accordingly", bearing in mind that "man too has a nature that he must respect and that he cannot manipulate at will. Man is not merely self-creating freedom. Man does not create himself. He is intellect and will, but he is also nature, and his will is rightly ordered if he listens to his nature, respects it and accepts himself for who he is, as one who did not create himself. In this way, and in no other, is true human freedom fulfilled".

"At this point Europe's cultural heritage ought to come to our assistance. The conviction that there is a Creator God is what gave rise to the idea of human rights, the idea of the equality of all people before the law, the recognition of the inviolability of human dignity in every single person and the awareness of people's responsibility for their actions.

"Our cultural memory is shaped by these rational insights. ... The culture of Europe arose from the encounter between ... Israel's monotheism, the philosophical reason of the Greeks and Roman law. ... In the awareness of man's responsibility before God and in the acknowledgment of the inviolable dignity of every single human person, it has established criteria of law: it is these criteria that we are called to defend at this moment in our history".

Having completed his address, Benedict XVI withdrew for a few moments before meeting with members of the Jewish community.
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POPE UNDERLINES CHURCH'S CLOSENESS TO THE JEWISH PEOPLE

VATICAN CITY, 22 SEP 2011 (VIS) - At 5.15 p.m. today Benedict XVI met with fifteen representatives of the German Jewish community, led by their president, Dieter Graumann. In his remarks to them, the Pope recalled his visit to the synagogue of Cologne on 19 August 2005, when Rabbi Teitelbaum had spoken of memory "as one of the supporting pillars that are needed if a future of peace is to be built".

"Today", said the Holy Father, "I find myself in a central place of remembrance, the appalling remembrance that it was from here that the Shoah, the annihilation of our Jewish fellow citizens in Europe, was planned and organised. Before the Nazi terror, there were about half a million Jews living in Germany, and they formed a stable component of German society. After World War II, Germany was considered the 'Land of the Shoah', where it had become virtually impossible to live. Initially there were hardly any efforts to re-establish the old Jewish communities, even though Jewish individuals and families were constantly arriving from the East. Many of them wanted to emigrate and build a new life, especially in the United States or Israel".

The Pope went on: "In this place, remembrance must also be made of the 'Kristallnacht' that took place from 9 to 10 November 1938. Only a few could see the full extent of this act of contempt for humanity, like the Berlin Cathedral Provost, Bernhard Lichtenberg, who cried out from the pulpit of St. Hedwig's Cathedral: 'Outside, the Temple is burning - that too is the house of God'. The Nazi reign of terror was based on a racist myth, part of which was the rejection of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of Jesus Christ and of all who believe in Him. The supposedly 'almighty' Adolf Hitler was a pagan idol, who wanted to take the place of the biblical God, the Creator and Father of all men. Refusal to heed this one God always makes people heedless of human dignity as well. What man is capable of when he rejects God, and what the face of a people can look like when it denies this God, the terrible images from the concentration camps at the end of the war showed".

The Holy Father went on to express his joy at the fact that, despite past history, Jewish life is now blossoming in Germany and the community has made great efforts to integrate Eastern European immigrants.

"The Church feels a great closeness to the Jewish people", he said. "With the Vatican Council II Declaration 'Nostra Aetate', an 'irrevocable commitment to pursue the path of dialogue, fraternity and friendship' was made. This is true of the Catholic Church as a whole. ... Naturally it is also true of the Catholic Church in Germany, which is conscious of its particular responsibility in this regard". In this context the Pope mentioned a number of initiatives to strengthen Jewish-Christian relations, such as the "Week of Fraternity", the "Jews and Christians Forum" and the "historic meeting for Jewish-Christian dialogue that took place in March 2006 with the participation of Cardinal Walter Kasper".

"We Christians must also become increasingly aware of our own inner affinity with Judaism. For Christians, there can be no rupture in salvation history. Salvation comes from the Jews. When Jesus' conflict with the Judaism of His time is superficially interpreted as a breach with the Old Covenant, it tends to be reduced to the idea of a liberation that views the Torah merely as a slavish enactment of rituals and outward observances. In fact, the Sermon on the Mount does not abolish the Mosaic Law, but reveals its hidden possibilities and allows more radical demands to emerge. It points us towards the deepest source of human action, the heart, where choices are made between what is pure and what is impure, where faith, hope and love blossom forth.

"The message of hope contained in the books of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament has been appropriated and continued in different ways by Jews and Christians. 'After centuries of antagonism, we now see it as our task to bring these two ways of rereading the biblical texts - the Christian way and the Jewish way - into dialogue with one another, if we are to understand God's will and His word aright'. This dialogue should serve to strengthen our common hope in God in the midst of an increasingly secularised society. Without this hope, society loses its humanity", the Pope concluded.

Following his meeting with the Jewish community, the Pope travelled by car to Berlin's Olympic stadium for the celebration of Mass.
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FRUITFUL COLLABORATION BETWEEN CHRISTIANS AND MUSLIMS

VATICAN CITY, 23 SEP 2011 (VIS) - At the apostolic nunciature in Berlin at 9 a.m. today, the Holy Father met with representatives of the Muslim community in Germany. Muslims in Germany number around 4.5 million; 70 percent of them are of Turkish of origin while others come from Arab countries, the Balkans and Iran.

In his remarks to the group the Pope recalled how "from the 1970s onwards, the presence of numerous Muslim families has increasingly become a distinguishing mark of this country". In this context he highlighted the importance of constant effort, not only "for peaceful coexistence, but also for the contribution that each can make towards building up the common good in this society.

"Many Muslims attribute great importance to the religious dimension of life", he added. "At times this is thought provocative in a society that tends to marginalise religion or at most to assign it a place among the individual's personal choices. The Catholic Church firmly advocates that due recognition be given to the public dimension of religious adherence. In an overwhelmingly pluralist society, this demand is not unimportant. Care must be taken to guarantee that others are always treated with respect. Mutual respect grows only on the basis of agreement on certain inalienable values that are proper to human nature, in particular the inviolable dignity of every single person".

The Holy Father went on: "In Germany - as in many other countries, not only Western ones - this common frame of reference is articulated by the Constitution, whose juridical content is binding on every citizen, whether he belong to a faith community or not. Naturally, discussion over the best formulation of principles like freedom of public worship is vast and open-ended, yet it is significant that the Basic Law expresses them in a way that is still valid today at a distance of over sixty years".

"The reason for this seems to me to lie in the fact that the fathers of the Basic Law at that important moment were fully conscious of the need to find particularly solid ground with which all citizens would be able to identify. In seeking this, they did not prescind from their own religious beliefs. ... But they knew they had to engage with the followers of other religions and none: common ground was found in the recognition of some inalienable rights that are proper to human nature and precede every positive formulation. In this way, an essentially homogeneous society laid the foundations that we today consider valid for a markedly pluralistic world, foundations that actually point out the evident limits of pluralism: it is inconceivable, in fact, that a society could survive in the long term without consensus on fundamental ethical values".

At the end of his address, Benedict XVI underlined the importance of fruitful collaboration between Christians and Muslims as part of the process of building "a society that differs in many respects from what we brought with us from the past. As believers, setting out from our respective convictions, we can offer an important witness in many key areas of life in society", such as "the protection of the family based on marriage, respect for life in every phase of its natural course or the promotion of greater social justice".

At the end of the meeting the Pope travelled to Berlin airport where, at 10 a.m., he boarded a plane to travel to Erfurt".
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POPE HIGHLIGHTS IMPORTANCE OF FREEDOM AND RESPONSIBILITY

VATICAN CITY, 22 SEP 2011 (VIS) - At 8.15 a.m. today the Holy Father departed from Ciampino airport in Rome. Following a two-hour flight, his place landed at Berlin-Tegel airport, thus beginning the twenty-first international apostolic trip of his pontificate and his first State visit to Germany.

On arriving in Berlin the Holy Father was greeted by a twenty-one gun salute, as per the protocol for State visits, while Christian Wulff and Angela Merkel, respectively president and chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany, waited on the runway to greet him. Also present were Archbishop Rainer Maria Woelki of Berlin, and Archbishop Robert Zollitsch of Freiburg im Breisgau, president of the German Bishops' Conference.

From the airport the Pope travelled by car to Bellevue Castle, official residence of the president, where the welcome ceremony took place in the palace gardens.

"Even though this journey is an official visit which will reinforce the good relations existing between the Federal Republic of Germany and the Holy See, I have not come here primarily to pursue particular political or economic goals, as other statesmen rightly do, but rather to meet people and to speak about God", said the Pope in his address. "We are witnessing a growing indifference to religion in society, which considers the issue of truth as something of an obstacle in its decision-making, and instead gives priority to utilitarian considerations.

"All the same", he added, "a binding basis for our coexistence is needed; otherwise people live in a purely individualistic way. Religion is one of these foundations for a successful social life. 'Just as religion has need of freedom, so also freedom has need of religion'. These words of the great bishop and social reformer Wilhelm von Ketteler, the second centenary of whose birth is being celebrated this year, remain timely.

"Freedom requires a primordial link to a higher instance. The fact that there are values which are not absolutely open to manipulation is the true guarantee of our freedom", which "develops only in responsibility to a greater good. Such a good exists only for all of us together. ... In human coexistence, freedom is impossible without solidarity. ... This holds true not only in private matters but also for society as a whole. In accordance with the principle of subsidiarity, society must give sufficient space for smaller structures to develop and, at the same time, must support them so that one day they will stand on their own".

The Holy Father went on: "Bellevue Castle, ... with its dramatic history (like many buildings of this city) is a testimony to the history of Germany. A clear look at the past, even at its dark pages, enables us to learn from it and to receive an impetus for the present. The Federal Republic of Germany has become what it is today thanks to the power of freedom shaped by responsibility before God and before one another. It needs this dynamism, which engages every human sector in order to continue developing now. It needs this in a world which requires a profound cultural renewal and the rediscovery of fundamental values upon which to build a better future".

Having completed his address the Pope held a private meeting with President Wulff and his family, after which he travelled to the headquarters of the German Episcopal Conference (DBK) where he was received by its president Archbishop Robert Zollitsch. He then held a private meeting which Chancellor Merkel in the DBK library, where they were later joined by her husband and members of her entourage. At the end of the meeting the Holy Father went by foot to the refectory of the nearby Catholic Academy where he had lunch.

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COMMENT OF FR. LOMBARDI ON RESPONSE TO CLOYNE REPORT

VATICAN CITY, 3 SEP 2011 (VIS) - Speaking on Vatican Radio today, Holy See Press Office Director Fr. Federico Lombardi S.J. commented on the Holy See's Response to the Irish Government concerning the Cloyne Report, which was issued this morning. "The document", he said, "is clearly structured and seeks to give detailed and documented answers to all the questions raised, inserting them into a broader perspective".

"The text of the document shows how the Holy See has given very serious and respectful consideration to the queries and criticism it has received, and has undertaken to answer them serenely and exhaustively, avoiding polemics even when giving clear answers to the accusations made".

The Holy See hopes that its response "will achieve the fundamental shared goal of contributing to rebuilding a climate of trust and co-operation with the Irish authorities, which is essential for an effective commitment on the part of the Church and society to guarantee the primary goal: protecting children and young people".
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HOLY SEE WILL RESPOND TO THE REPORT ON IRISH DIOCESE

VATICAN CITY, 22 JUL 2011 (VIS) - Replying to journalists' questions concerning the current debate in Ireland about a report on abuse in the diocese of Cloyne, Holy See Press Office Director Federico Lombardi S.J. declared:

  "I can confirm that the Holy See will respond appropriately to the questions raised by the Irish government about the report on the diocese of Cloyne. In any case, it is to be hoped that debate about such dramatic matters may continue with the necessary objectivity, so as to contribute to the cause which must be closest to everyone's heart: the protection of children and young people and, to that end, the restoration of an atmosphere of trust and collaboration in the Church and in society, as the Pope himself said in his Pastoral Letter to the Catholics of Ireland".

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AID FOR THE PEOPLE OF THE HORN OF AFRICA

VATICAN CITY, 19 JUL 2011 (VIS) - The Pontifical Council "Cor Unum" today released the following communique:

  "As the Holy Father Benedict XVI recalled in an appeal he made following the Angelus on Sunday 17 July, the famine caused by a drought in the Horn of Africa is provoking a critical humanitarian emergency. Around ten million people are suffering, and hundreds of thousands of refugees risk dying because of a lack of basic necessities. Somalia and northern Kenya are the worst struck areas.

  "As a sign of his closeness and concern the Pope has, via the Pontifical Council 'Cor Unum', sent the sum of euro 50,000 to Bishop Giorgio Bertin O.F.M., apostolic administrator of Mogadishu, who is directly involved in bringing assistance to the people affected".
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DECLARATION CONCERNING ILLEGITIMATE ORDINATION IN CHINA

VATICAN CITY, 16 JUL 2011 (VIS) - At midday today the Holy See released an English-language declaration regarding the episcopal ordination of Fr. Joseph Huang Bingzhang, which took place on Thursday 14 July in the diocese of Shantou (Province of Guangdong, Mainland China).

  "1. Fr. Joseph Huang Bingzhang, having been ordained without papal mandate and hence illicitly, has incurred the sanctions laid down by canon 1382 of the Code of Canon Law. Consequently, the Holy See does not recognise him as bishop of the diocese of Shantou, and he lacks authority to govern the Catholic community of the diocese.

  "Fr. Huang Bingzhang had been informed some time ago that he could not be approved by the Holy See as an episcopal candidate, inasmuch as the diocese of Shantou already has a legitimate bishop; Fr. Huang had been asked on numerous occasions not to accept episcopal ordination.

  "2. From various sources the Holy See had knowledge of the fact that some bishops, contacted by the civil authorities, had expressed their unwillingness to take part in an illicit ordination and also offered various forms of resistance, yet were reportedly obliged to take part in the ordination.

  "With regard to this resistance, it should be noted that it is meritorious before God and calls for appreciation on the part of the whole Church. Equal appreciation is also due to those priests, consecrated persons and members of the faithful who have defended their pastors, accompanying them by their prayers at this difficult time and sharing in their deep suffering.

  "3. The Holy See reaffirms the right of Chinese Catholics to be able to act freely, following their consciences and remaining faithful to the Successor of Peter and in communion with the universal Church.

  "The Holy Father, having learned of these events, once again deplores the manner in which the Church in China is being treated and hopes that the present difficulties can be overcome as soon as possible".
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THE HOLY FATHER CALLS FOR AID TO SOMALIA

VATICAN CITY, 17 JUL 2011 (VIS) - After praying the Angelus today in the inner courtyard of the Apostolic Palace at Castelgandolfo, the Pope spoke of the "deep concern with which I am following news from the Horn of Africa, especially Somalia, where a serious drought followed, in some areas, by torrential rains, has led to a humanitarian catastrophe. Countless people are fleeing terrible famine in search of food and assistance.

  "I hope", he added, "that international mobilisation will increase and much-needed aid will continue to reach these our sorely tried brothers and sisters, among whom are many children. May those who suffer not lack our solidarity and the concrete support of all people of good will".

  Turning then to address French-speaking pilgrims the Holy Father remarked that "the holidays are certainly a good time for cultural and spiritual enrichment. Through the many sites and monuments you visit", he told them, "you may discover the beauty of the universal heritage which binds us to our roots. Allow yourselves to be drawn by the beautiful ideal which animated the builders of cathedrals and abbeys when they created those vibrant signs of God's presence in our land. May their ideal become your own and may the Holy Spirit, which looks into the depths of the human heart, inspire you to pray in those places, giving thanks and interceding for humankind in the third millennium".

  The Holy Father then greeted Polish pilgrims in Castelgandolfo, recalling how "yesterday we celebrated Our Lady of the Scapular (Our Lady of Mount Carmel). The scapular", he explained, "is a special sign of union with Jesus and Mary. For those who wear it, it is a sign of filial reliance on the protection of the Immaculate Virgin. In our battle against evil, may Mary our Mother swathe us in her mantle".
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CONCERN OVER ILLEGITIMATE EPISCOPAL ORDINATION IN CHINA

VATICAN CITY, 15 JUL 2011 (VIS) - Holy See Press Office Director Fr. Federico Lombardi S.J. spoke yesterday of the Pope's sadness and concern at the latest illegitimate episcopal ordination in China which, he said, damages "the unity of the universal Church".

  Yesterday at Shantou in the region of Guandong Fr. Joseph Huang Bingzhang was ordained a bishop without pontifical mandate. A similar episode took place on 29 June when Fr. Paul Lei Shiyin was ordained as bishop of Leshan. A number of bishops who are in communion with the Pope were obliged to attend yesterday's ceremony.

  Following the Leshan ordination, the Holy See released a declaration highlighting how a bishop ordained "without the papal mandate, and hence illegitimately, has no authority to govern the diocesan Catholic community, and the Holy See does not recognise him as the bishop of that diocese".
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POPULORUM PROGRESSIO: FOCUS ON INDIGENOUS COMMUNITIES

VATICAN CITY, 15 JUL 2011 (VIS) - The administrative council of the Populorum Progressio Foundation is due to meet from 19 to 22 July at the monastery of the Transfiguration at Castanhal, near the Brazilian city of Belem do Para, to deliberate on the financing of projects in support of poor indigenous, mixed race and African-American communities of Latin America and the Caribbean. Populorum Progressio was founded in 1992 and is part of the Pontifical Council "Cor Unum".

  The administrative council is composed of the following members: Cardinal Robert Sarah, president of the foundation and of the Pontifical Council "Cor Unum"; Cardinal Juan Sandoval Iniguez, archbishop of Guadalajara, Mexico and president of the administrative council; Archbishop Edmundo Luis Abastoflor Montero of La Paz, Bolivia; Archbishop Alberto Taveira Correa of Belem do Para, Brazil; Archbishop Antonio Arregui Yarza of Guayaquil, Ecuador; Bishop Jose Luis Astigarraga Lizarralde C.P., apostolic vicar of Yurimaguas, Peru; and Msgr. Segundo Tejado Munoz, representative of the Pontifical Council "Cor Unum". The Foundation receives it principal financial support from the Italian Episcopal Conference's committee for charitable initiatives in favour of the Third World.

  A communique made public today notes that, since this year's meeting is being held in Brazil, "interest will focus particularly on indigenous peoples, ... and on the poorest strata of the population. Special attention will also be given to the pastoral guidelines that emerged from the Fifth General Conference of the Episcopate of Latin America and the Caribbean, guidelines which the Foundation has already sought to put into effect".

  On 19 July the meeting will examine the socio-political and ecclesial situation in the various countries of Latin America in order to seek a better understandings of the needs which the projects financed by the Foundation are called to meet. On the same day, at the invitation of Bishop Carlo Verzeletti, a solemn celebration will be held in the new cathedral of Castanhal. On 20 and 21 July the projects presented by bishops in the various countries will be examined in detail.

  The communique notes that 216 projects have been presented this year, involving 19 countries and a total value of USD 2,980,470. The number of projects presented by country are: Colombia (50), Brazil (43), Peru (23), Ecuador (18), El Salvador (13), Haiti (12), Guatemala (10), Argentina (8), Bolivia (8), Paraguay (6), Chile (5), Cuba (5), Costa Rica (3), Venezuela (3), Mexico (3), Nicaragua (2), Dominican Republic (2), Honduras (1) and Uruguay (1). "It is to be hoped", the communique says, "that projects will also be forthcoming from countries with indigenous communities living in difficult situations of marginalisation, on the outskirts of large cities or in particularly isolated and inaccessible areas".

  The projects aim to tend to needs in various areas: production (agriculture, livestock, handcrafts, small businesses); communal infrastructure (potable water, latrines, community centres); education (training, school resources, publications); health (preventative campaigns, clinic resources); and construction (educational and health centres).

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DECLARATION CONCERNING INDEPENDENCE OF SOUTHERN SUDAN

VATICAN CITY, 8 JUL 2011 (VIS) - Holy See Press Office Director Fr. Federico Lombardi S.J. today released the following declaration:

  "Tomorrow 9 July, the new Republic of South Sudan will be proclaimed in the city of Juba. For this solemn occasion, the Holy Father has sent an official delegation headed by Cardinal John Njue, archbishop of Nairobi and president of the Kenya Episcopal Conference. The delegation, which will also include Archbishop Leo Boccardi, apostolic nuncio to Sudan, and Msgr. Javier Herrera Corona, secretary of the apostolic nunciature to Kenya, will bring the authorities of the new State, and all its citizens many of whom are Catholic, best wishes for peace and prosperity.

  "As Archbishop Dominique Mamberti, secretary for Relations with States, said yesterday when receiving a Sudanese parliamentary delegation led by Ahmed Ibrahim Elthair, president of the Sudanese National Assembly, peace, reconciliation and respect for universal rights (especially religious liberty) are the fundamental pillars upon which to construct the new socio-political circumstances of the region, and vital conditions in order to be able to look to a future of hope.

  "The Holy See, which has had stable diplomatic relations with the authorities of Khartoum since 1972 and will give due consideration to any request from the government of Southern Sudan, invites the international community to support Sudan and the new independent State so that, through frank, peaceful and constructive dialogue, they may find just and equitable solutions to outstanding questions; at the same time she expresses the hope that those peoples will enjoy a journey of peace, freedom and development".
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DECLARATION CONCERNING EPISCOPAL ORDINATIONS IN CHINA

VATICAN CITY, 4 JUL 2011 (VIS) - The Holy See Press Office today released the following English-language communique concerning the episcopal ordination of Fr. Paul Lei Shiyin, which took place on Wednesday 29 June and was conferred without the apostolic mandate.

  "Fr. Lei Shiyin, ordained without the papal mandate and hence illegitimately, has no authority to govern the diocesan Catholic community, and the Holy See does not recognise him as the bishop of the diocese of Leshan. The effects of the sanction which he has incurred through violation of the norm of canon 1382 of the Code of Canon Law remain in place.

  "Fr. Lei Shiyin had been informed, for some time, that he was unacceptable to the Holy See as an episcopal candidate for proven and very grave reasons.

  "The consecrating bishops have exposed themselves to the grave canonical sanctions laid down by the law of the Church (in particular, canon 1382 of the Code of Canon Law; cf. Declaration of the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts of 6 June 2011).

  "An episcopal ordination without papal mandate is directly opposed to the spiritual role of the Supreme Pontiff and damages the unity of the Church. The Leshan ordination was a unilateral act which sows division and unfortunately produces rifts and tensions in the Catholic community in China. The survival and development of the Church can only take place in union with him to whom the Church herself is entrusted in the first place, and not without his consent as, however, occurred in Leshan. If it is desired that the Church in China be Catholic, the Church's doctrine and discipline must be respected.

  "The Leshan episcopal ordination has deeply saddened the Holy Father, who wishes to send to the beloved faithful in China a word of encouragement and hope, inviting them to prayer and unity".

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BUILDING A MORE UNITED, JUST AND FRATERNAL SOCIETY

VATICAN CITY, 23 JUN 2011 (VIS) - At 7 p.m. today, Solemnity of the Blessed Body and Blood of Christ, Benedict XVI celebrated Mass in Rome's basilica of St. John Lateran, then presided at the Eucharistic procession to the basilica of St. Mary Major.

  In his homily the Pope recalled how today "the Blessed Sacrament is carried in procession along the streets of towns and villages to show that the risen Christ walks among us and guides us to the kingdom of heaven. What Jesus gave us in the Upper Room we openly display today, because the love of Christ is not reserved for the few but is intended for everyone".

  Referring to Eucharistic communion, the Holy Father said that "while bodily food is assimilated by and helps sustain our organism, the Eucharist is a different kind of bread. We do not assimilate it; rather, it assimilates us to itself so that we are conformed to Jesus Christ, become limbs of His Body, a single thing with Him. This is a decisive step: indeed, precisely because it is Christ Who transforms us to Himself in Eucharistic communion, so in this meeting our individuality is opened, freed from egocentrism and inserted into the Person of Jesus, Who in turn is immersed in the communion of the Trinity.

  "Thus the Eucharist, while uniting us to Christ, also opens us to others, makes us limbs of one another: no longer are we divided but a single being in Him", the Pope added. "Eucharistic communion unites me to my neighbour with whom perhaps I am not even on good terms, but it also unites me to my distant brothers and sisters all over the world".

  "Those who recognise Jesus in the consecrated Host recognise Him in their suffering brothers and sisters, in the hungry and thirsty, in the stranger, the naked, the sick, the imprisoned; they are attentive to everyone and take concrete steps to help those in need. From the gift of Christ's love arises our special responsibility as Christians to build a united, just and fraternal society. Particularly in our own time in which globalisation makes us increasingly dependent upon one another, Christianity can and must ensure that unity is not built without God - in other words, without real Love - which would only open the way to confusion and selfishness".

  Benedict XVI continued: "The Gospel has always sought the unity of the human family, a unity not imposed from above or by ideological or economic interests, but based on a sense of responsibility towards each other, because we recognise one another as members of the same body, the Body of Christ, because we have learned and continue to learn from the Sacrament of the Altar that sharing and love is the way to true justice".

  "Without any illusions or belief in ideological utopias, we advance along the paths of the world, carrying the Body of the Lord with us like the Virgin Mary in the mystery of the Visitation", said Pope Benedict concluding his homily. "With the humility of knowing that we are simple grains of wheat, we remain firm in the conviction that the love of God incarnated in Christ is stronger than evil, violence and death. We know that God is preparing new heaven and new earth for all men, where peace and justice reign; and in the faith we see the new world which is our true homeland".

  After Mass, the Pope presided at the Eucharistic procession along Rome's Via Merulana to the basilica of St. Mary Major. Along the route, thousands of faithful prayed and sang accompanying the Blessed Sacrament. A covered vehicle transported the Sacrament in a monstrance, before which the Holy Father knelt in prayer.
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CHRISTIANS ARE CITIZENS NOT STRANGERS IN THE EAST

VATICAN CITY, 24 JUN 2011 (VIS) - This morning the Holy Father received participants in the annual general meeting of the Reunion of Organisations for Aid to the Oriental Churches (ROACO).

  In his remarks to the group, Benedict XVI recalled how yesterday's celebration of the Solemnity of Corpus Christi "was a call to the beloved city of Rome and to the entire Catholic community to continue their journey along the difficult paths history, among the great spiritual and material poverty of the world, in order to bring the charity of Christ and the Church, which arises from the Paschal Mystery, the mystery of love, the gift which generates life".

  "Never forget the Eucharistic dimension of your objective", the Pope went on, "so as to remain within the ambit of ecclesial charity, which particularly seeks to reach the Holy Land, but also the Middle East as a whole, in order to support the Christian presence there. I ask you to do everything possible - also be intervening with the public authorities with whom you have contacts at the international level - to ensure that the pastors and faithful of Christ can remain in the East where they were born, not as strangers but as citizens who bear witness to Jesus Christ as the saints of the Eastern Churches did before them. The East is their earthly homeland. It is there that they are called today to promote, without distinction, the good of all mankind. Everyone professing this faith must be recognised as having equal dignity and true freedom, thus favouring more fruitful ecumenical and inter-religious collaboration".

  The Holy Father then continued his remarks in English: "I thank you for your reflections on the changes that are taking place in the countries of North Africa and the Middle East, which are a source of anxiety throughout the world. Through the communications received at this time from the Coptic-Catholic Cardinal-Patriarch and from the Maronite Patriarch, as well as the pontifical representative in Jerusalem and the Franciscan Custos of the Holy Land, the Congregation and the agencies will be able to assess the situation on the ground for the Church and the peoples of that region, which is so important for world peace and stability. The Pope wishes to express his closeness, also through you, to those who are suffering and to those who are trying desperately to escape, thereby increasing the flow of migration that often remains without hope. I pray that the necessary emergency assistance will be forthcoming, but above all I pray that every possible form of mediation will be explored, so that violence may cease and social harmony and peaceful coexistence may everywhere be restored, with respect for the rights of individuals as well as communities".

  Switching to German, the Pope referred to the Special Assembly for the Middle East of the Synod of Bishops, which was held last October in the Vatican and which, he said, gave rise "to new signs for our age". Nonetheless, "shortly afterwards a number of defenceless people in the Syro-Catholic cathedral of Baghdad, Iraq, were victims of an act of senseless violence. ... This was followed by similar incidents some months later". The Pope expressed the hope that the suffering of so many people would be a seed to enrich the faith in those lands.

  Finally he thanked all those present for their prayers for the sixtieth anniversary of his ordination as a priest which falls this year on 29 June, Feast of Sts. Peter and Paul, Apostles.
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BENEDICT XVI TO GYPSY COMMUNITY: YOU ARE IN THE CHURCH!

VATICAN CITY, 11 JUN 2011 (VIS) - This afternoon the Holy Father received two thousand Gypsies from various European countries. They are participating in a pilgrimage to Rome, representing the 12 million Gypsies scattered across the continent.

  At the beginning of his address the Pope recalled Servant of God Paul VI's words to Gypsies in 1965: "'You are in the heart of the Church!' I repeat that today with affection: You are in the Church!".

  Noting that this year marks the 150th anniversary of the birth of the Gypsy Blessed Ceferino Gimenez Malla and the 75th anniversary of his martyrdom, Benedict XVI told the group that Blessed Malla "invites you to follow his example and he shows you the way: dedication to prayer, particularly the rosary - which he always carried in his pocket - love for the Eucharist and other Sacraments, keeping the Commandments, honesty, charity, and generosity towards others, especially the poor. This will make you strong to face the risks that sects and other groups place upon your communion with the Church".

  "Your history", he continued, "is complex and, in some periods, sorrowful. ... You have been left without a home and have come to consider the entire continent as your home. ... Unfortunately, down the ages you have known the bitter taste of rejection and, at times, persecution as happened during World War II: thousands of men, women, and children were brutally murdered in the concentration camps. It was ... an episode still largely unrecognised".

  The Pope stated that "the European conscience must not forget such pain. Your people must never again be the object of abuse, rejection, or disdain! For your part, always seek justice, legality, and reconciliation and try not to be the cause of others' suffering".

  "I invite you", he exclaimed, "to write together a new page of history for your people and for Europe. The search for worthy living conditions, jobs, and also education for your children are the basis upon which to build that integration from which you and society as a whole will benefit. Offer your active and sincere cooperation so that your families may be worthily established in the social fabric of Europe".

  Benedict XVI concluded by telling his audience that they are also "called to participate actively in the Church's mission of evangelisation, promoting pastoral outreach in communities". In this context he emphasised how "priests, deacons, and consecrated persons who pertain to your ethnic groups are a gift from God and a positive sign of the dialogue between the local Churches and your peoples, which must be supported and developed. Be confident and listen to these brothers and sisters. With them offer a coherent and joyful message of God's love for the Gypsy people and all peoples. The Church desires that all men and women recognise that they are children of the same Father and members of the same human family".
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