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Saturday, April 14, 2018

Vatican, 8th April 2018 - Pope Francis' letter to Chilean bishops - L-ittra tal-Papa Franġisku lill-Isqfijiet taċ-Ċilì




http://thechurchinmalta.org/en/posts/76238/pope-francis-letter-to-chilean-bishops


Pope Francis' letter to Chilean bishops

The letter by Pope Francis to the Bishops of Chile, following the submission of the report by Mgr Charles J. Scicluna, Archbishop of Malta. This unofficial translation to English has been provided by Catholic News Agency http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/
 
Dear brothers in the episcopate,
The reception last week of the final documents which complete the report delivered to me by my two special envoys to Chile on March 20, 2018, with a total of more than 2,300 pages, moves me to write this letter. I assure you of my prayers and I want to share with you the conviction that the present difficulties are also an occasion to re-establish trust in the Church, a trust broken by our errors and sins and in order to heal the wounds that do not cease to bleed in the whole of Chilean society.
Without faith and without prayer, fraternity is impossible. Thus, on this second Sunday of Easter, on the day of mercy, I offer you this reflection with the desire that each one of you accompany me on the inner journey that I have been traveling in recent weeks, so that it would be the Spirit who would guide us with his gift, and not our interests, or even worse, our wounded pride.
Sometimes when so many evils frighten the soul and throw us listlessly into the world buttoned up in our comfortable “winter palaces,” the love of God comes out to meet us and purifies our intentions in order to love as free, mature, and judicious men. When the media shames us, presenting a Church almost always in the darkness of the new moon, deprived of the Sun of justice, we have the temptation of doubting the Paschal victory of the Risen One. I believe that like Saint Thomas the Apostle we must not fear doubt but rather fear the pretension of wanting to see without trusting the testimony of those who heard from the lips of the Lord the most beautiful promise.
Today I want to speak to you not of assurances, but rather of the one thing that the Lord offers us to experience every day: the joy, the peace of forgiveness of our sins and the action of his grace.
In that regard I wish to express my gratitude to His Excellency Charles Scicluna, the Archbishop of Malta and to Rev. Jordi Bertomeu Farnós, official of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, for his prodigious work in considerately and empathetically listening to the 64 testimonies he recently gathered both in New York and Santiago de Chile. I sent them to listen from the heart and with humility. Later on, when they delivered to me the report and, in particular, its juridical and pastoral assessment of the gathered information, they acknowledged before me of having felt overwhelmed with the pain of so many victims of grave abuses of conscience and power and, in particular, of the acts of sexual abuse committed by various consecrated men of your country against minors, those who were not taken seriously then and were even robbed of their innocence.
The most heartfelt and cordial gratitude we must express as pastors to those who with honesty, courage and the sense of the Church requested a meeting with my envoys and showed them the wounds of their souls. Bishop Scicluna and Rev. Bertomeu have told me how some bishops, priests and deacons, lay men and women of Santiago and Osorno came to Holy Name parish in New York or to the office of Sotero Sanz, in Providencia, with a maturity, respect and kindness that was overwhelming.
In addition, the days following that special mission, have witnessed another meritorious fact that we should keep very much in mind for other occasions, because not only has the climate of confidentiality achieved during the visit been maintained, but at no time has the temptation been yielded to to turn this delicate mission into a media circus. In that regard, I wish to thank the different organizations and media for their professionalism in treating such a delicate case, respecting the right of citizens to the information and the good reputation of the declarants.  
Now, after a careful reading of the proceedings of this “special mission,” I believe I can affirm that the collected testimonies speak in a stark way, without additives or sweeteners, of many crucified lives and I confess to you that that causes me pain and shame.
Taking all this into account, I am writing to you, meeting together in the 115th Plenary Assembly, to humbly request your collaboration and assistance in discerning the short, mid and long term measures that must be adopted to re-establish ecclesial communion in Chile, with the goal of repairing as much as possible the scandal and re-establishing justice.
I plan to call you to Rome to discuss the conclusions and the aforementioned visit and my conclusions. I have thought of that meeting has a fraternal moment, without prejudices or preconceived ideas, with the only goal of making the truth shine forth in our lives. Regarding the date, I entrust it to the Secretary of the Bishops' Conference to show me the possibilities.
As for my own responsibility, I acknowledge, and I want you to faithfully convey it that way, that I have made serious mistakes in the assessment and perception of the situation, especially because of the lack of truthful and balanced information. Right now I ask forgiveness from all those I offended and I hope to be able to do so personally, in the coming weeks, in the meetings I will have with representatives of the people who were interviewed.
Abide in me: these words of the Lord resound again and again in these day. They speak of personal relationships, of communion, of fraternity which attracts and summons. United to Christ as the branches are to the vine, I invite you graft into your prayers in the coming days a magnanimity that prepares us for the aforementioned meeting and will then allow what we will have reflected on to be translated into concrete actions.
It maybe even be opportune to have the Church in Chile be in ongoing prayer. Now more than ever we cannot fall back into the temptation of verbiage or dwell in “generalities.” These days, let us look at Christ. Let us look at his life and his gestures, especially when he shows compassion and mercy to those who have erred. Let us love in truth, let us ask for wisdom of heart and let us be converted.
Waiting for news from you and asking His Excellency Santiago Silva Retamales, President of the Chilean Conference of Bishops, to publish this letter as quickly as possible, I impart my blessing and ask you to please keep praying for me.
 
Vatican, 8th April 2018

FRANCIS


https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/full-text-of-pope-francis-letter-to-chilean-bishops-29914











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Wednesday, April 11, 2018

Divine Mercy Sunday, April 8th, 2018 - 'The greatest mercy is to forgive your enemies' - The Archbishop on the feast of the Divine Mercy


"The greatest mercy is to forgive your enemies" - The Archbishop on the feast of the Divine Mercy

https://thechurchinmalta.org/en/posts/76212/the-greatest-mercy-is-to-forgive-your-enemies---the-archbishop-on-the-feast-of-the-divine-mercy

The Archbishop celebrating Mass organised by the Pope John Paul II Foundation, on the occasion of the 18th anniversary of the institution of the Divine Mercy Feast



L-omelija tal-Arċisqof Charles J. Scicluna


 
Il-Katidral ta' San Pawl, l-Imdina
8 ta’ April 2018
 
L-Evanġelju li għadna kemm smajna jgħaqqad il-Ħadd tal-Għid ma’ dak li ġara tmint ijiem wara bħal-lum. Qegħdin niċċelebraw dan il-Ħadd bħala l-Ħadd tal-Ħniena Divina għaliex Ħadd fuq l-Għid, fit-tieni Ħadd tal-Għid, meta l-imgħammdin il-ġodda għall-ewwel darba jmorru għall-Ewkaristija tal-Ħadd bħala membri sħaħ tal-komunità, minn dejjem jinqara l-Evanġelju fejn il-Mulej jagħti l-aqwa don lid-dixxipli tiegħu: “Il-paċi magħkom, is-sliem għalikom” (Ġw 20, 19).

Jekk hemm rigal li l-Mulej jagħti u li huwa verament tiegħu, kif jgħid hu stess, huwa din il-paċi “mhux bħalma tagħtihielna d-dinja imma kif jagħtihielna hu” (ara Ġw 14, 27). Hija paċi li għandha prezz għażiż u għoli: il-pjagi tiegħu. Fil-fatt, it-tislima tiegħu tagħtina l-paċi imma hu jurina wkoll idejh u ġenbu biex aħna u nħarsu lejn il-pjagi qaddisa tiegħu, nifhmu kemm hu għażiż dan ir-rigal, beix nifhmu l-prezz għoli li l-Mulej kellu jħallas għar-rikonċiljazzjoni tagħna għax din il-paċi hija frott tal-maħfra li jagħtina.

Hu qalgħalna l-maħfra; seta’ jsejjaħ lil Alla tiegħu, Alla tagħna, seta’ jsejjaħ lill-Missieru tas-sema, Missierna. Aħna nistgħu nitolbu t-talba tal-Missierna għaliex aħna tassew ulied il-Missier u fl-istess talba l-Mulej jgħallimna nitolbu maħfra ta’ dnubietna u jgħallimna wkoll naħfru lil min hu ħati għalina “Aħfrilna dnubnietna bħalma naħfru lil min hu ħati għalina” (Lq 11, 3).  
It-triq tal-fidi hija t-triq li ma tibżax mill-pjagi tal-Mulej, li qegħdin fostna fit-tbatija ta’ min hu magħkus.
Tmint ijiem wara, Tumas, li ma kienx hemm fl-ewwel Ħadd filgħaxija, jiltaqa’ mal-Mulej u jkollu l-opportunità jmiss il-pjagi ta’ Ġesù. Il-Mulej stess jgħidlu: “Ġib sebgħek hawn u ara jdejja, ressaq idek u qegħedha fuq ġenbi”. Aħna u mmissu l-pjagi ta’ Ġesù, il-Mulej ukoll ifejjaqna min-nuqqas ta’ fidi. “Tkunx bniedem bla fidi, iżda emmen” (ara Ġw 20, 27-29).  

It-triq tal-fidi hija t-triq li ma tibżax mill-pjagi tal-Mulej, li qegħdin ukoll fostna fit-tbatija ta’ min hu magħkus. Fl-inġustizzji ta’ madwarna hemm il-pjagi ta’ Ġesù u l-Mulej ikompli jgħidilna biex inressqu jdejna u npoġġuhom fuq il-pjagi ta’ madwarna għaliex jekk aħna ma nħarsux lejn il-proxxmu kif jilmħu hu, ma nistgħux ngħidu li l-fidi tagħna hija vera. Għax il-fidi tagħna, li titqanqal bl-immaġini ta’ Ġesù fl-istatwi, fil-purċissjonijiet tagħna, fid-devozzjonijiet kollha tagħna li għaddejna minnhom fil-ġranet qaddisa tal-Ġimgħa Mqaddsa, trid tkun ukoll fidi, li meta tiltaqa’ mal-pjagi ħajja ta’ Ġesù fis-sofferenza tal-bnedmin tal-lum, titqanqal ukoll fl-istess sentimenti ta’ ħniena, il-ħniena mhux biss biex nitolbu l-maħfra ta’ dnubietna, imma l-ħniena hija wkoll espressjoni tal-imħabba lejn il-proxxmu. U l-ikbar ħniena hija li taħfer lill-għedewwa u ta’ dan nitolbu l-grazzja speċjali mingħand il-Mulej.    

Jekk inħarsu lejn il-figura straordinarja ta’ San Ġwann Pawlu II, naraw eżempji qawwija u ħajjin ta’ dawn il-virtujiet. Min jista’ jinsa dik ix-xena tal-Papa Ġwanni Pawlu II jiltaqa’ ma’ Ali Agca fil-ħabs? Meta waqt li jitkellem miegħu jurih li fil-konfront ta’ min ried joqtlu għandu sentimenti ta’ ħniena u ta’ maħfra? Kemm-il darba talab maħfra tal-inġustizzji li aħna l-Insara stess nagħmlu lil xulxin u lill-proxxmu tagħna? Kemm-il darba l-kliem tiegħu qawwihom bl-eżempju?! U l-qdusija tiegħu hija kewkba kbira fil-firmament tal-Knisja.      

Illum nitolbu l-interċessjoni ta’ San Ġwann Pawlu II, li miet propju lejlet il-Ħadd tal-Ħniena Divina fl-2005, biex jieqaf mal-Knisja tiegħu u nimxu fuq il-passi li fihom jindikalna u li qiegħed jindikalna l-Papa Franġisku li sejjaħ is-Sena tal-Ħniena biex jagħti t-togħma, mhux biss lill-Pontifikat tiegħu, imma lill-missjoni imġedda tal-Knisja li twassal il-ħniena lil kulħadd u li tkun ukoll eżempju ta’ maħfra u ta’ rikonċiljazzjoni. 

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I would like to share a few thoughts about the feast we are celebrating today after the Second Sunday in Easter and it is a very special Sunday. It is the Sunday when the catechumens that were baptized at the Easter Vigil, return to their communities wearing the white shawl or white dress of Baptism and are welcomed by the community as fully fletched Christians, members of the community participating at the Word of God and the Eucharist for the first time as full members of the Catholic Church. And we pray for them. 
 
All around the world we have hundreds of new Christians. In Malta, I had the blessing of baptizing seven adults who are now being received in their communities this morning as we speak.

But today is also Divine Mercy Sunday, a feast instituted by St John Paul II and it reminds us that Jesus in the Gospel today breathes his Spirit on the apostles and gives them his own divine power, the divine power to forgive sins. And this is something we really need to be grateful for, this divine power which is in the Church for the reconciliation of human kind.

Today, Thomas touches the wounds of Jesus and, touching the wounds of Jesus, he is healed of his unbelief. If we need to be strong in our faith, we need to touch the wounds of Jesus in people who suffer, where there is injustice, where there is war and so many wounds are there gaping at our own hearts asking to be approached to be healed in order to be strong in our faith. As Thomas, we need to touch the wounds of Jesus today and that is what we pray on this blessed Sunday.

 Charles J. Scicluna    Arċisqof ta’ Malta

 





Il-Qari tal-Quddiesa:


Qari I: Atti 4, 32-35

Salm: 117 (118), 2-4.16ab-18.22-24

Qari II: 1 Ġw 5, 1-6

Evanġelju: Ġw 20, 19-31







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GAUDETE ET EXSULTATE - April 9th, 2018 - Apostolic Exhorttion by Pope Francis - THE CALL TO HOLINESS IN TODAY’S WORLD

 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
Gaudete et Exsultate: Top 5 Takeaways from Pope Francis’ New Apostolic Exhortation

 
 
 

IN ITALIAN
http://www.laikos.org/GE_it.html


IN ENGLISH
http://www.laikos.org/GE_en.html


IN MALTESE
http://www.laikos.org/GEs_19032018.htm

"Il-qdusija tista’ tinkiseb permezz ta’ ġesti żgħar ta’ mħabba kuljum u minn kulħadd"

http://thechurchinmalta.org/mt/posts/76908/il-qdusija-tista-tinkiseb-permezz-ta-gesti-zghar-ta-mhabba-kuljum-u-minn-kulhadd






"Holiness can be achieved by everyone through daily small gestures of love"

http://thechurchinmalta.org/en/posts/76908/holiness-can-be-achieved-by-everyone-through-daily-small-gestures-of-love






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On April 9, which this year marks the transferred Solemnity of the Annunciation, the Vatican releases the latest Apostolic Exhortation from Pope Francis: Gaudete et exsultate: On the call to holiness in today’s world.






A guide to Christianity for the 21st Century: the new Apostolic Exhortation of Pope Francis
https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2018-04/pope-francis-apostolic-exhortation-gaudete-et-exsultate-summary.html

On April 9, which this year marks the transferred Solemnity of the Annunciation, the Vatican releases the latest Apostolic Exhortation from Pope Francis: Gaudete et exsultate: On the call to holiness in today’s world.
By Christopher Wells
“The Lord asks everything of us, and in return offers us true life, the happiness for which we were created.”
In his third Apostolic Exhortation (following Evangelii gaudium and Amoris laetitia) Pope Francis reflects on the call to holiness, and how we can respond to that call in the modern world. “My modest goal” in the Exhortation, Pope Francis says, “is to repropose the call to holiness in a practical way for our own time.”
The five chapters of Gaudete et exsultate follow a logical progression, beginning with a consideration of the call to holiness as it is in itself. The Holy Father than examines two “subtle enemies of holiness,” namely, contemporary gnosticism and contemporary pelagianism. [ Video Embed: Guide to living Christianity in the 21st century] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-zsx_kcwLM 

Holiness in living the Beatitudes
 

The heart of Gaudete et exsultate is dedicated to the idea that holiness means following Jesus. In this third chapter, Pope Francis considers each of the Beatitudes as embodying what it means to be holy. But if the Beatitudes show us what holiness means, the Gospel also shows us the criterion by which we will be judged: “I was hungry and you gave me food… thirsty and you gave me drink… a stranger and you welcomed me… naked and you clothed me… sick and you took care of me… in prison and you visited me.”
Pope Francis devotes the fourth chapter of Gaudete et exsultate to “certain aspects of the call to holiness” that he feels “will prove especially meaningful” in today’s world: perseverance, patience and meekness; joy and a sense of humour; boldness and passion; the communal dimension of holiness; constant prayer.

Spiritual combat and discernment
 

Finally, the Exhortation makes practical suggestions for living out the call to holiness. “The Christian life is a constant battle,” the Pope says. “We need strength and courage to withstand the temptations of the devil and to proclaim the Gospel.” In the fifth chapter, he speaks about the need for “combat” and vigilance, and calls us to exercise the gift of discernment, “which is all the more necessary today,” in a world with so many distractions that keep us from hearing the Lord’s voice.
“It is my hope,” Pope Francis concludes, “that these pages will prove helpful by enabling the whole Church to devote herself anew to promoting the desire for holiness.”
The full text of the Apostolic Exhortation Gaudete et exsultate can be found on the Holy See website.








 

Thursday, March 08, 2018

First rule for lectors: Remember that you’re not a public speaker




https://aleteia.org/2017/08/21/first-rule-for-lectors-remember-that-youre-not-a-public-speaker/

Public reading is not public speaking, and lectoring requires nothing less, not more, of the lector.

In the past I have taught college speech, many times. Along with requiring students to deliver the usual species of speeches conforming to the usual categories, I always included sections on poetry recitation and public reading before a group. Both are art forms, I think (I may exaggerate but at least I taught them that way). Certainly they are a craft, and lectoring is a craft by itself.
Done well, reading scripture publicly is more than just a Bible reading. It is the lector’s job to read a passage into life so we may hear God’s story for us, first hand, for ourselves.
So here’s the first thing. Public reading is not public speaking. That runs the other way, too: Public speaking is not public reading. Too many times the one is mistaken for the other. Nearly every lector’s manual I’ve read emphasizes eye-contact with worshipers, even to the point of providing scripted clues for when to leave the text and look up at people.
I could not disagree more. So let me say it again: public reading is not public speaking. Here’s why:
In public speaking, the speaker must visibly connect with the audience to establish rapport and create an authentic relationship. Public speaking require sustained eye-contact, and gesture, and an engaged and energetic body language with facial emphasis; all of that. The speaker puts these together with the words to draw the listener’s attention to himself, to gain an audience for what he says. It is the speaker’s presence in the moment that conveys as much of the speech to the hearer as the words themselves. We see the speaker and thereby learn something about his or her character, all to the point so we gain a better appreciation of his remarks.
But a lector reading in public should be invisible, hidden within the text being read. A public reading of scripture in worship is an appointment with a text from scripture, and often a text that is not unfamiliar to the listeners. It is the text―familiar though it may be―that must capture our attention, not the lector. Looking up from the text to catch somebody’s eye is a distraction from the text. The lector must stand aside, so to speak, from him or herself. Thus, the lector’s job is to speak the text in such a way that the text itself, and not the lector, may to speak to us.
Some of the usual rules for public speaking of course apply to lectors: Careful attention to enunciation, pronunciation, vocal quality, microphone use, word pacing (not too fast, not too slow). Nonetheless, the very features that in fact go into public speaking detract from a public reading. Reading scripture in worship is to bring our attention to the text, not to the lector. Public reading, I will say it again, is not public speaking.
There are only two occasions that actually require a lector to look at anybody the congregation, and neither happens during the reading itself. The first is the introductory proclamation line, “A reading from …”  Look those people straight in the eye when you do it, so they’ll know you’re up to something serious. Pause after saying the introduction and mentally count to three before launching into the text.
The last occasion is the concluding proclamation, “The Word of the Lord.” After the reading, pause again, same count to three, and then say the conclusion. Punctuated silence is the best attention-getter available. Use it well.
Otherwise, your eyes should be on the text you are proclaiming. Your attention to the text will draw our attention to what is being read.
Preparation? Practice aloud; reading the text 10 times is not too many. Out loud. That is after you have read the text silently to yourself perhaps an equal number of times. You must become familiar with the words, their flow, and learn where a pause or vocal emphasis will aid clarity.
Word emphasis? Explore the different ways the text might be illuminated by the tone of your voice. There is irony in scripture, humor, playfulness, somber warnings, heart-rending lament, conversational exchanges, snarky jokes (“Can anything good come from Nazareth?”), narration, and more. I cannot think of any verbal characterization that is not in scripture. Let the weight of the words indicate mood and tone and delivery for the reading.
Microphone? Do not depend on the microphone to project your voice. Find the right distance you need from it so your voice is neither lost nor overwhelming. And listen for your p’s and t’s; they sometimes explode out of a sound system like cap pistols. Move slightly back from the microphone if you hear the pops as you practice.
There you go. That’s some of the technical stuff.
Non-technical: Say a prayer, one of gratitude for the service you have been selected to perform. In fact, start there first, and then tackle the technique.
This is a revised version of a piece published online elsewhere.
 
 
 
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