A full translation of the Holy Father's homily has been posted in
HOMILIES, DISCOURSES, MESSAGES; and of his Angelus message in AUDIENCE AND ANGELUS TEXTS.






VATICAN
Pope: Adhere to Peter's confession,
know Christ not just 'from the outside'

Vatican, June 29 (AsiaNews) - Benedict XVI today imposed the pallium on 46 metropolitan archbishops in a sign of their communion with the Apostolic See during mass in St Peter's basilica.

The pallium is a stole made of lamb's wool, symbolizing the bishop's vocation as pastors to care for Christ's flock and his lost sheep. It bears five embroidered crosses, a sign of Christ's wounds and was blessed by the pope after having been placed on the Confessional, the tomb of the apostle Peter, underlining unity with the pontiff and the See of Peter.

Among those who received the pallium, there were Indian and Philippine bishops. A further 5 prelates not present in the basilica will receive it in their own diocese.

As has become tradition, there was also a delegation from the ecumenical patriarchate of Constantinople present at the ceremony. This year the delegation was composed of Emmanuel Adamidis, Greek orthodox archbishop of France, director of the Orthodox Church office at the European Union; Gennadios Limouris, metropolitan of Sassima, Co-president of the mixed international commission for dialogue between the Catholic and Orthodox Church, and deacon Andreas Sofianopoulos, from the Patriarchal seat of Fanar.

For years now the Church of Rome and Constantinople send delegations to celebrations marking the feast of the apostles, patrons of the two Churches, Peter (June 29) and Andrew (November 30). Last November 30th, the Pope himself, took part in the feast of St Andrew in Constantinople, at the invitation of Patriarch Bartholomew I.

This ecumenical dimension, linked to the ministry of Peter and the primate, was the theme of the pontiff's homily.

"Peter's confession," said the pope,"cannot be separated from his pastoral duty to Christ's flock", the so-called 'power of the keys' (Mt 16, 17-19).

Benedict XVI explained that Peter's confession was "rooted in the personal relationship between the historic Jesus and Simon the fisherman, starting from their very first encounter, when Christ says to him : 'You are Simon & you will be called Cefa (which means Peter)' (Jn 1,42)."

"Christ entrusted Peter with a very particular task, recognising in him a special gift of faith from the heavenly Father", he said.

Referring to some Protestant interpretations which place Peter and Paul's vocation on the same level, the Pontiff clarified: "Parallels between Peter and Paul are suggestive, but they cannot diminish the weight of Simon's historic journey with his Master and Lord, who from the very beginning characterised him as the 'rock' upon which the new community, the Church, would be built."

The ministry of Peter, the pontiff underlined, is to insure the fullness of the Christian faith. Christ had asked his disciples: "Who do people say that the Son of Man is - But who do you say that I am?" (Mt 16,13-20).

"People think that Jesus is a prophet", said the Pope. "Great scholars recognise his spiritual and moral stature and his influence on the history of humanity, comparing him to Buddha, Confucius, Socrates and other great thinkers and figures in history" but "they fail to recognise his uniqueness".

Faced with such fruit of an 'external' consciousness of the figure of Jesus, the Pope continued: "We want to make Peter's response our own. According to Mark's Gospel he says: 'You are the Messiah' (8, 29); in Luke the affirmation is 'The Messiah of God' (9, 20); in Matthew: 'You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God' (16, 16); and finally in John: 'you are the Holy One of God' (6, 69). They were all the right answers, also valid for us".

But Peter's confession needed to be 'corrected' by Jesus: "In the synoptic Gospels, Peter's confession is always closely followed by Christ's announcement of his imminent passion. An announcement which provokes a reaction from Peter, who is as yet unable to comprehend.

"Today as in Christ's time, it is not enough to possess the right confession of faith: it is always necessary to learn from the Lord the way in which he is the Saviour and the path we must take to follow him. We must recognise that, even for the believer, the Cross is always hard to accept. Our instincts push us to avoid it, and the tempter leads us to believe that it is wiser to save ourselves than lose our lives for our faith in the love of the Son of God made man".

Concluding, Benedict XVI thanked the delegation from the ecumenical patriarchate of Constantinople and the metropolitans who received the pallium.

Following Mass, the Pope, accompanied by the Patriarchate delegation, the pope visited the tomb of St Peter where he remained for a moment of silent prayer.






Benedict XVI returned to the theme of ecumenism in his message before the noonday Angelus to pilgrims gathered in St Peter's square, acknowledging the visit of the delegation from the Istanbul patriarchate.



"The feast of the Apostles Peter and Paul invites us in a very particular way, to intense prayer and firm action for the cause of unity between Christ's disciples. The Christian East and West are very close and can already count on an almost complete communion, as is remembered in the Second Vatican Council; I will see that it guides our ecumenical journey.

"Our encounters, visits and the dialogue which is underway are not mere courtesy or attempts to reach compromises, but signs of our shred will to do all that is possible to achieve full communion implored by Christ in his prayer to the Father after the Last Supper: 'ut unum sint'".

The pontiff then spoke about the dedication of the Pauline Jubilee Year which will begin 28 June 2008 and end 29 June 2009, to mark 2000 years since the birth of the apostle Paul.

"I hope that the various initiatives organised will contribute to a renewed missionary enthusiasm and intensify our relations with our brothers in the East and with other Christians who like us venerate the Apostle to the gentiles," he said.


POPE TO VISIT NAPLES ON OCTOBER 21

---

For some reason, AsiaNews omitted this in its report -
The Pope announced after the Angelus that, at the invitation of the Archbishop of Naples, Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe, he will be making a pastoral visit to Naples on Sunday, October 21.

---

Also, this brief sidebar from Apcom, translated:

Pope apologizes for
being late to Angelus


VATICAN CITY,June 29 (APCOM) - "We have just concluded the Mass at St. Peter's and so I am a bit late. I beg your pardon."

An impromptu remark by the Pope as he appeared at his study window today for the holiday Angelus.

He usually appears for the noonday prayer promptly at 12 noon, but today, he was seven minutes late.

Vatican to release pope's letter
to Chinese Catholics tomorrow


VATICAN CITY, June 29 (AP): Pope Benedict XVI's eagerly awaited letter to Roman Catholics in China will be released tomorrow, the Vatican said, the pontiff's latest effort to reach out to Beijing and bring all of China's faithful into the Vatican's fold.

A Vatican statement issued today said the pope's letter - addressed to bishops, priests and lay faithful in China - would be released at noon Saturday (1000 GMT).

China forced its Roman Catholics to cut ties with the Vatican in 1951, shortly after the officially atheist Communist Party took power. Worship is allowed only in the government-controlled churches, which recognize the pope as a spiritual leader but appoint their own priests and bishops.

Millions of Chinese, however, belong to unofficial congregations loyal to Rome.

Benedict has been reaching out to Beijing in an effort to restore diplomatic ties and unite China's estimated 12 million faithful. The government and the Vatican have been at loggerheads over the Vatican's insistence on naming bishops.

Benedict's decision to address Chinese Catholics in a letter came out of high-level talks on China at the Vatican in January. The general outlines of the pope's letter could be seen in the Vatican statement following the meeting.

It spoke of its interest in pursuing "respectful and constructive dialogue" with the government while paying tribute to those Catholics who have suffered for their loyalty to the pope.

The Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association has welcomed the Vatican's diplomatic initiative and said earlier this year that the letter from the pope to Chinese Catholics could be helpful.

"I hope and I also believe that the pope's letter will show his love of China's churches," the head of the Patriotic Association, Liu Bainian said in January.

Vatican watchers have said they expect the pope will stress the unity of the Catholic Church in the document, which Italian news reports said would be about 28 pages long and read like a mini-encyclical.

The reaction of the Beijing government and the underground faithful will be vitally important. Some underground priests have already expressed resentment about the pope's outreach to the government and the official church, according to the official bishop of Shanghai, Bishop Aloysius Jin Luxian.

"There will be two different reactions," said Agostino Giovagnoli, a professor of contemporary history at the Catholic University in Milan, who has written about Vatican-China relations.

The underground bishops may resent the pope's recognition of the fact that many "official" bishops who were consecrated without Rome's consent have since reconciled with the Holy See, he said.

"Maybe the reaction of the official bishops will be better," he said.

Benedict made clear from the outset of his papacy two years ago that improving relations with China was a key priority.

He has sent envoys to Beijing to sound out the government on the possibility of restoring ties, and he invited four Chinese bishops - from the official and underground churches - to a meeting of the world's bishops in 2005. Beijing did not let any of the four attend.

Some nominations of bishops have been tacitly agreed upon, but the state-sanctioned Chinese Patriotic Church unilaterally went ahead and appointed three bishops on its own last year, raising Vatican anger.

The Vatican has said it would concede to another key demand of Beijing to downgrade relations with Taiwan in exchange for restoring ties with Beijing.

Die Welt's Paul Badde has another exclusive, following his scoop on the Wednesday convocation of cardinals at the Vatican to hear about the Mass MP directly from the Pope. Item taken from Kathnet's service, translated here:


KATH.NET/DIE.WELT-ECKLUSIVE:
THE NEXT 'SENSATION' IN ROME
By Paul Badde / Die Welt

Rom (kath.net/DieWelt) - Reliable sources say Pope Benedict XVI has given the green light for an examination of the interior of St. Paul's sarcophagus in the Basilica of St. Paul outside the Walls. The stone sarcophagus has lain in the same position since 390.


A transparent panel on the floor in front of the altar allows the visitor to look down and see the sarcophagus.

Vatican archeologists will soon take out a out a 'plug' from the lid of the sarcophagus which has sealed it since late antiquity.

An endoscopic probe [a lens-and-camera set-up similar to the narrow scopes used medically to investigate internal body organs] will then be passed through the opening to take pictures of the interior. No one has an idea what this will show.

The Pope's 'spectacular' decision comes on the occasion of the Pauline Jubilee Year which Benedict XVI announced yesterday to take place from June 28, 2008 to June 29, 2009.

Giorgio Filippi, the archeologist who has over the past several years gradually uncovered the subterranean sarcophagus, would not talk about it, except that he will not say anything about the matter at least 'till September.' A lot can happen till then.

Yesterday, June 29, Andrea Tornielli of Il Giornale, one of the more reliable Vaticanistas in the Italian media, wrote this article, translated here, which anticipates some of the major points to be made in the papal Motu Proprio about the Mass.





Benedict's liturgy:
One rite, two forms
By Andrea Tornielli


Last Wednesday, Benedict XV convoked in Rome the leaders of the bishops' conferences in the countries with the most significant presence of traditionalist groups in order to present to them the Motu Proprio with which he will liberalize the use of the pre-Conciliar Latin Mass.

It is now expected that the public release will take place by July 7, without the usual press conference that accompanies release of a major Vatican document. [No press conference accompanied the release of the Letter to Chinese Catholics, either.]

As we now know, the 3-page Motu Proprio will be accompanied by a 4-page explanatory letter from the Pope explaining to the bishops of the world the reasons for his decision.

The letter will make clear that the traditional Roman rite was never abolished, as formally concluded by a commission of Cardinals asked by John Paul II in 1982 to review post-conciliar liturgical reforms. [Tornielli wrote about this meeting earlier this week in a translated item posted on this thread.]

Therefore, there is no impediment to using the Roman Missal promulgated by John XXIII in 1962. This was the latest version of the 1570 Mass of Pius V (or Tridentine Mass) and no longer contained the Good Friday prayer for the conversion of 'perfidious Jews.'

After the 1969 Mass reform by Paul VI [which unceremoniously put the old Mass into deep freeze], John Paul II issued an indult in 1984, under which traditionalists wishing to attend a traditional Mass were required to seek authorization from their bishop, who could approve it or not.

With Benedict XVI's Motu Proprio, a 'stable group' of parishioners may ask their parish priest directly. A bishop would intervene only to settle any disputes. But as far as authorizing celebration of the Mass, it will no longer be discretionary.

The traditionalists may keep the old liturgical calendar and choice of Scriptural readings. Beyond just the Mass, they may also celebrate all other sacraments in the pre-1969 way.

Very importantly, the two types of celebration will be considered as two forms of the Roman rite - the Paul VI Mass, which will presumably continue to be the dominant form in the foreseeable future, as the ordinary form; and the traditional rite as the extraordinary form.

The Pope will also make clear that:
1. This move does not in any way represent a step back, because the liturgical reform intended by Vatican-II was not a complete break with tradition.
2. It is equally important to celebrate the liturgy properly whichever form is used.

Sources said there were actually very few changes made in the Pope's draft as he presented it to an assembly of bishops in December 2006, and that these changes were minor.

Several weeks ago, Cardinal Karl Lehmann, head of the German bishops' conference, relayed concerns by Jewish communities in Germany about anti-Semitic prayers in the old Missal - but that has been cleared up. [How strange that Lehmann did not know the 1962 changes already took care of that! When the news about his objection was reported several weeks ago, he was said to have told the Jewish representatives, "I'll have to check what is being done about that." At the time, I wondered - it would have taken just one phone call to find out; or even a look at the 1962 Missal (surely Archdiocese of Mainz has one) would have given him the answer, and he could have reassured them without further drama. Maybe he has his own personal objections, who knows?]

[As late as two weeks ago, the bishops of England and Wales issued a statement saying they did not see the need for a Motu Proprio inasmuch as arrangements for the celebration of the traditional Mass, if requested, were already 'adequate'. Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor of Westminster turned up a few days later at the Vatican, joining Tony Blair for the tail-end of his private visit to the Pope.]

The earliest, most sustained objections were from the French bishops who expressed fears for the 'liturgical unity' of the Church - a real concern for them, but one they have never expressed through all the abuses, liberties or frequent excesses that have characterized the post-Conciliar Mass.

Finally, the Pope's letter to Chinese Catholics will be making suggestions on how to overcome the division between the 'underground' Catholics and the 'official Catholics', recognizing to begin with the full validity of sacraments performed by priests on both sides.

====================================================================

I've been trying to imagine how the Holy Father broke the ice at that Wednesday meeting. The bishops had already been given copies of the MP and the Pope's letter, and some dicussion had already taken place with Cardinals Bertone, Castrillon and Arinze representing the Curia.
,
So the Pope comes in. What did he say? "Well, my venerated brothers, there it is! I hope you understand my reasons and that you will show your communion with the Successor of Peter. If you have any more questions, I will gladly answer you."

What would Cardinals Barbarin and Ricard of France have said? Or Cardinal Murphy-O'Connor? "Holy Father, we still object, but we will obey"? Or "Your Holiness, it's all right. We understand. We will do it your way"? Or, "Frankly, Holiness, this is not going to turn out well at all. But you're the boss"?

And Cardinal Lehmann, who is one of the few cardinals expressly told by the Pope, "Of course you can go on addressing me 'Du'" (second- person familiar form of the personal pronoun)?

Do you think any of them will take the pulpit at all to explain the MP to their flock? Probably not. Most of them will say, "But no one's really interested in this, so why bother?"

If no one's really interested, then why did they all make such a fuss about it then?

A short declaration from the Vatican Press Office summarizing its gist, and a longer explanatory note. The letter itself, dated May 27, 2007, Feast of the Pentecost, is 24 pages long in English (including 6 pages of bibliographical footnotes, though - so effectively, 18 pages) may be read on
www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/letters/2007/documents/hf_ben-xvi_let_20070527_china...





Declaration: Letter of the Holy Father Benedict XVI
to the Bishops, priests, consecrated men and women,
and lay faithful of the Catholic Church
in the People's Republic of China

By means of his Letter, which is made public today, Pope Benedict XVI wishes to express his love for the Catholic community in China and his closeness to it.

From the text of the Papal document two basic attitudes are clear: on the one hand, deep spiritual affection for all Catholics in China and cordial esteem for the Chinese people, and, on the other, an earnest appeal to the perennial principles of the Catholic tradition and the Second Vatican Council in the ecclesiological sphere. It is, therefore, a pressing invitation to charity, unity and truth.

The Letter is directed to the Church in China and deals with eminently religious questions, responding to precise queries which have been addressed for some time to the Holy See by Chinese Bishops and priests. It is not, therefore, a political document, nor, much less, an indictment of the government authorities, although it does not ignore the well-known difficulties which the Church in China must daily tackle.

The Holy Father recalls the "original plan" which Christ had for his Church and which he entrusted to the Apostles and their successors, the Bishops. In this light, he takes into consideration various problems of the Church in China which emerged during the past fifty years. From this "plan" he also draws inspiration and formulates guidelines to tackle and resolve, in a spirit of communion and truth, the said problems.

In the Letter, Benedict XVI declares himself fully available and open to a serene and constructive dialogue with the civic authorities in order to find a solution to the various problems concerning the Catholic community, and to reach the desired normalization of relations between the Holy See and the Government of the Peoples Republic of China, in the certainty that Catholics, by freely professing their faith and by giving generous witness of life, contribute also, as good citizens, to the good of the Chinese people.

Saturday, 30 June 2007


EXPLANATORY NOTE

By his "Letter to Bishops, Priests, Consecrated Persons and Lay Faithful of the Catholic Church in the People's Republic of China", which bears the date of Pentecost Sunday, Pope Benedict XVI wishes to express his love for and his closeness to the Catholics who live in China. He does so, obviously, as Successor of Peter and Universal Pastor of the Church.

From the text two basic thoughts are clear: on the one hand, the Pope's deep affection for the entire Catholic community in China and, on the other, his passionate fidelity to the great values of the Catholic tradition in the ecclesiological field; hence, a passion for charity and a passion for the truth.

The Pope recalls the great ecclesiological principles of the Second Vatican Council and the Catholic tradition, but at the same time takes into consideration particular aspects of the life of the Church in China, setting them in an ample theological perspective.

A - The Church in China in the last fifty years

The Catholic community in China has lived the past fifty years in an intense way, undertaking a difficult and painful journey, which not only has deeply marked it but has also caused it to take on particular characteristics which continue to mark it today.

The Catholic community suffered an initial persecution in the 1950s, which witnessed the expulsion of foreign Bishops and missionaries, the imprisonment of almost all Chinese clerics and the leaders of the various lay movements, the closing of churches and the isolation of the faithful.

Then, at the end of the 1950s, various state bodies were established, such as the Office for Religious Affairs and the Patriotic Association of Chinese Catholics, with the aim of directing and "controlling" all religious activity.

In 1958 the first two episcopal ordinations without papal mandate took place, initiating a long series of actions which deeply damaged ecclesial communion.

In the decade 1966-1976, the Cultural Revolution, which took place throughout the country, violently affected the Catholic community, striking even those Bishops, priests and lay faithful who had shown themselves more amenable to the new orientations imposed by government authorities.

In the 1980s, with the gestures of openness promoted by Deng Xiaoping, there began a period of religious tolerance with some possibility of movement and dialogue, which led to the reopening of churches, seminaries and religious houses, and to a certain revival of community life.

The information coming from communities of the Catholic Church in China confirmed that the blood of the martyrs had once again been the seed of new Christians: the faith had remained alive in the communities; the majority of Catholics had given fervent witness of fidelity to Christ and the Church; families had become the key to the transmission of the faith to their members. The new climate, however, provoked different reactions within the Catholic community.

In this regard, the Pope notes that some Pastors, "not wishing to be subjected to undue control exercised over the life of the Church, and eager to maintain total fidelity to the Successor of Peter and to Catholic doctrine, have felt themselves constrained to opt for clandestine consecration" to ensure a pastoral service to their own communities (No. 8).

In fact, as the Holy Father makes clear, "the clandestine condition is not a normal feature of the Church's life, and history shows that Pastors and faithful have recourse to it only amid suffering, in the desire to maintain the integrity of their faith and to resist interference from State agencies in matters pertaining intimately to the Church's life" (ibid.).

Others, who were especially concerned with the good of the faithful and with an eye to the future "have consented to receive episcopal ordination without the pontifical mandate, but have subsequently asked to be received into communion with the Successor of Peter and with their other brothers in the episcopate" (ibid.).

The Pope, in consideration of the complexity of the situation and being deeply desirous of promoting the re-establishment of full communion, granted many of them "full and legitimate exercise of episcopal jurisdiction".

Attentively analyzing the situation of the Church in China, Benedict XVI is aware of the fact that the community is suffering internally from a situation of conflict in which both faithful and Pastors are involved. He emphasizes, however, that this painful situation was not brought about by different doctrinal positions but is the result of the "the significant part played by entities that have been imposed as the principal determinants of the life of the Catholic community" (No. 7).

These are entities, whose declared purposes - in particular, the aim of implementing the principles of independence, self-government and self-management of the Church - are not reconcilable with Catholic doctrine. This interference has given rise to seriously troubling situations. What is more, Bishops and priests have been subjected to considerable surveillance and coercion in the exercise of their pastoral office.

In the 1990s, from many quarters and with increasing frequency, Bishops and priests turned to the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples and the Secretariat of State in order to obtain from the Holy See precise instructions as to how they should conduct themselves with regard to some problems of ecclesial life in China.

Many asked what attitude should be adopted towards the government and towards state agencies in charge of Church life. Other queries concerned strictly sacramental problems, such as the possibility of concelebrating with Bishops who had been ordained without papal mandate or of receiving the sacraments from priests ordained by these Bishops. Finally, the legitimizing of numerous Bishops who had been illicitly consecrated confused some sectors of the Catholic community.

In addition, the law on registering places of worship and the state requirement of a certificate of membership in the Patriotic Association gave rise to fresh tensions and further questions.

During these years, Pope John Paul II on several occasions addressed messages and appeals to the Church in China, calling all Catholics to unity and reconciliation. The interventions of the Holy Father were well received, creating a desire for unity, but sadly the tensions with the authorities and within the Catholic community did not diminish.

For its part, the Holy See has provided directives regarding the various problems, but the passage of time and the rise of new situations of increasing complexity required a reconsideration of the overall question in order to provide the clearest answer possible to the queries and to issue sure guidance for pastoral activity in years to come.

B - The history of the Papal Letter

The various problems which seem to have most seriously affected the life of the Church in China in recent years were amply and carefully analyzed by a special select Commission made up of some experts on China and members of the Roman Curia who follow the situation of that community.

When Pope Benedict XVI decided to call a meeting from 19-20 January 2007 durring which various ecclesiastics, including some from China, took part, the aforementioned Commission worked to produce a document aimed at ensuring broad discussion on the various points, gathering practical recommendations made by the participants and proposing some possible theological and pastoral guidelines for the Catholic community in China.

His Holiness, who graciously took part in the final session of the meeting, decided, among other things, to address a Letter to the Bishops, priests, consecrated persons and lay faithful.

C - Content of the Letter

"Without claiming to deal with every detail of the complex matters well known to you", writes Benedict XVI to the Catholics of China, "I wish through this letter to offer some guidelines concerning the life of the Church and the task of evangelization in China, in order to help you discover what the Lord and Master Jesus Christ wants from you" (No. 2).

The Pope reiterates some fundamental principles of Catholic ecclesiology in order to clarify the more important problems, aware that the light shed by these principles will provide assistance in dealing with the various questions and the more concrete aspects of the life of the Catholic community.

While expressing great joy for the fidelity demonstrated by the faithful in China over the past fifty years, Benedict XVI reaffirms the inestimable value of their sufferings and of the persecution endured for the Gospel, and he directs to all an earnest appeal for unity and reconciliation.

Since he is aware of the fact that full reconciliation "cannot be accomplished overnight", he recalls that this path "of reconciliation is supported by the example and the prayer of so many 'witnesses of faith' who have suffered and have forgiven, offering their lives for the future of the Catholic Church in China" (No. 6).

In this context, the words of Jesus, "Duc in altum" (Lk 5:4), continue to ring true. This is an expression which invites "us to remember the past with gratitude, to live the present with enthusiasm and to look forward to the future with confidence". In China, as indeed in the rest of the world, "the Church is called to be a witness of Christ, to look forward with hope, and - in proclaiming the Gospel - to measure up to the new challenges that the Chinese people must face" (No. 3).

"In your country too," the Pope states, "the proclamation of Christ crucified and risen will be possible to the extent that, with fidelity to the Gospel, in communion with the Successor of the Apostle Peter and with the universal Church, you are able to put into practice the signs of love and unity" (ibid.).

In dealing with some of the more urgent problems which emerge from the queries which have reached the Holy See from Bishops and priests, Benedict XVI offers guidance regarding the recognition of ecclesiastics of the clandestine community by the government authorities (cf. No. 7) and he gives much prominence to the subject of the Chinese Episcopate (cf. No. 8), with particular reference to matters surrounding the appointment of Bishops (cf. No. 9).

Of special significance are the pastoral directives which the Holy Father gives to the community, which emphasize in the first place the figure and mission of the Bishop in the diocesan community: "nothing without the Bishop". In addition, he provides guidance for Eucharistic concelebration and he encourages the creation of diocesan bodies laid down by canonical norms. He does not fail to give directions for the training of priests and family life.

As for the relationship of the Catholic community to the State, Benedict XVI in a serene and respectful way recalls Catholic doctrine, formulated anew by the Second Vatican Council. He then expresses the sincere hope that the dialogue between the Holy See and the Chinese government will make progress so as to be able to reach agreement on the appointment of Bishops, obtain the full exercise of the faith by Catholics as a result of respect for genuine religious freedom and arrive at the normalization of relations between the Holy See and the Beijing Government.

Finally, the Pope revokes all the earlier and more recent faculties and directives of a pastoral nature which had been granted by the Holy See to the Church in China.

The changed circumstances of the overall situation of the Church in China and the greater possibilities of communication now enable Catholics to follow the general canonical norms and, where necessary, to have recourse to the Apostolic See. In any event, the doctrinal principles which inspired the above-mentioned faculties and directives now find fresh application in the directives contained in the present Letter (cf. No. 18).

D - Tone and outlook of the Letter

With spiritual concern and using an eminently pastoral language, Benedict XVI addresses the entire Church in China. His intention is not to create situations of harsh confrontation with particular persons or groups: even though he expresses judgments on certain critical situations, he does so with great understanding for the contingent aspects and the persons involved, while upholding the theological principles with great clarity.

The Pope wishes to invite the Church to a deeper fidelity to Jesus Christ and he reminds all Chinese Catholics of their mission to be evangelizers in the present specific context of their country.

The Holy Father views with respect and deep sympathy the ancient and recent history of the great Chinese people and once again declares himself ready to engage in dialogue with the Chinese authorities in the awareness that normalization of the life of the Church in China presupposes frank, open and constructive dialogue with these authorities.

Furthermore, Benedict XVI, like his Predecessor John Paul II before him, is firmly convinced that this normalization will make an incomparable contribution to peace in the world, thus adding an irreplaceable piece to the great mosaic of peaceful coexistence among peoples.

---

BASIC FACTS ABOUT THE CHURCH IN CHINA
(From APcom)

In 2007-
Total number of Catholics: 8-12 million
Total population of China: 1 billion, 300 million
Ecclesiastical districts: 145
Bishops: More than 200 (60% are 80 years or older)
Priests: 3,200
Religious communities: 156
Religious men and women: Around 6,000
Seminaries: 30
Seminarians : 2.300

---

Here are the first wire-service stories. Reuters filed first - a 2-paragraph bulletin 20 minutes after the embargo expired, and since completed; AP followed with this story 6 minutes later; AFP had an hourlong delay.


Pope urges Catholics in China to unify



VATICAN CITY, June 30 (AP) - Pope Benedict XVI invited all Roman Catholics in China to unite under his jurisdiction Saturday and urged Beijing to restore diplomatic ties and permit religious freedom.

He called the state-run Catholic Church "incompatible" with Catholic doctrine but nevertheless made unprecedented overtures toward it.

China forced its Roman Catholics to cut ties with the Vatican in 1951, shortly after the officially atheist Communist Party took power. Worship is allowed only in the government-controlled churches, which recognize the pope as a spiritual leader but appoint their own priests and bishops.

Millions of Chinese, however, belong to unofficial congregations that remained loyal to Rome.

In an eagerly awaited 55-page letter to the faithful in China, Benedict insisted Saturday on his right to appoint bishops, but said he trusted that an agreement could be reached with the Beijing authorities on nominations.

Significantly, Benedict revoked previous Vatican-issued restrictions on contacts with the clergy of the official church, and in fact recognized that some Chinese faithful have no choice but to attend officially recognized Masses.

The Vatican said in a note that accompanied the letter that it was prepared to move its diplomatic representation from Taiwan to Beijing "at any time" as soon as an agreement with the government was reached.

The letter - translated - marked the most significant effort by Benedict to balance his pastoral concerns for the up to 12 million Roman Catholics in China who are divided between an official church, the Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association, and an underground church that is not registered with the authorities.

Benedict praised those Catholics who resisted pressure to join the official church and paid a price for it "with the shedding of their blood." But he urged them to forgive and reconcile with others for the sake of unifying the church.

"Indeed, the purification of memory, the pardoning of wrongdoers, the forgetting of injustices suffered and the loving restoration to serenity of troubled hearts ... can require moving beyond personal positions or viewpoints, born of painful or difficult experiences," he wrote.

Tellingly, Benedict referred repeatedly to the "Catholic Church in China," without distinguishing between the divisions - an indication of his aim to see the two united and in communion with Rome.

But on several occasions, he also called the Patriotic Association "incompatible with Catholic doctrine" because it named its own bishops and sought to guide the life of the church.

At the same time, however, Benedict made an unprecedented gesture: He revoked 1988 guidelines issued by the Vatican's evangelization office that sought to limit contacts with the official church and declared that any bishop ordained by the official church would incur an automatic excommunication.

Vatican analysts have said that a revocation of the 1988 guidelines would represent a clear indication of the pope's desire to move beyond the conflicts of the past in a bid to bring all Chinese Catholics under Rome's wing.

The letter does cite the canon law which provides for excommunication for an illicitly ordained bishop, but Benedict also welcomed the fact that most bishops in the official church had now reconciled with the Holy See and that only a few remain "illegitimate."

The Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, said the revocation of the 1988 norms was "significant."

"It means, that today the Church in China can and must follow the norms that are common in the universal church," he said.

In a message directed to the Beijing authorities, Benedict insisted that the Church had no political aims in China. At the same time, however, he said the state cannot interfere "in matters regarding the faith and discipline of the church."

"It is likewise clear that she (the church) asks the state to guarantee to those same Catholic citizens the full exercise of their faith, with respect for authentic religious freedom," he wrote.

Benedict stressed that he alone must appoint bishops to ensure apostolic succession. But he said he was willing to compromise.

"I trust that an accord can be reached with the government so as to resolve certain questions regarding the choice of candidates for the episcopate," he wrote.

The Vatican would like to have a formula as they have with Vietnam, another communist country, whereby the Vatican proposes a few names and the government selects one.


At 12:20 Rome time, Reuters filed the first two paragraphs of a story that is now complete:

Pope says China 'suffocates' faith,
urges dialogue
By Phil Stewart


VATICAN CITY, June 30 (Reuters) - In his most significant address on China to date, Pope Benedict on Saturday decried state restrictions on religious freedom that 'suffocate' the Church and sow division among the country's Catholics.

But the Pontiff also extended an olive branch to Beijing, saying he hoped to strike an agreement with officially atheist China, where millions of Catholics worship under a state-controlled church that does not recognize his authority.

Others worship in "underground" churches loyal to the Holy See.

"It is true that in recent years the Church has enjoyed greater religious freedom than in the past," the Pope said.

"Nevertheless, it cannot be denied that grave limitations remain that touch the heart of the faith and that, to a certain degree, suffocate pastoral activity."

China has had no diplomatic ties with the Vatican since 1951, two years after the Communist takeover, something the Pope said he wanted to change.

"The Holy See remains open to negotiations, so necessary if the difficulties of the present time are to be overcome," the Pope wrote.

Although the Vatican estimated there are only between 8 million and 12 million Catholics in China, the Pope expressed hope that it would prove fertile ground for evangelization in the future.

"During the first Christian millennium the Cross was planted in Europe and during the second in the American continent and in Africa," the German-born Pope wrote, in a letter addressed to China's bishops, priests and faithful.

"During the third millennium a great harvest of faith will be reaped in the vast and vibrant Asian continent."

Tensions have repeatedly flared over the appointment of bishops. China refuses to allow the Vatican to appoint them, saying this would be interference in its internal affairs.

But the Pope said the ability to appoint bishops is a fundamental part of the ability to fully "exercise ... the right of religious freedom."

He also said bishops appointed without Church approval were "illegitimate."

Despite China's actions, the Pope said that all but "a very small number" of the bishops in China had sought the Pope's blessing. Many, he said, had secretly received a "clandestine consecration."

Significantly, the Pope reached out to those bishops who were not yet in communion with the Roman Catholic Church.

He said that as long as they were ordained by other bishops who had Vatican approval, they could exercise their ministry validly, even if they were "illegitimate." He expressed hope they would come into full communion with the Church.

As for the faithful, he urged them to seek out clergy who were in communion with the Pope. But, if that were not viable, the Pope said they should attend Church regardless.

The Pontiff steered clear of one long-time sticking point in relations - the Holy See's recognition of Beijing's diplomatic rival Taiwan.

Beijing has insisted that diplomatic ties cannot be resumed unless Rome first severs links with Taiwan, which Beijing considers a renegade province.



AFP filed last, and briefly:


'Respect religious freedom',
Pope tells China


VATICAN CITY, June 30 (AFP) - Pope Benedict XVI called on Beijing to respect "authentic religious freedom" in a letter to China's Catholics on Saturday, warning that China's official Church was incompatible with Catholic doctrine.

In a strongly worded letter published by the Vatican, the German pontiff also insisted on the freedom to appoint bishops loyal only to Rome, adding that bishops of the state-sponsored church "cannot be recognized" by the Holy See.

Benedict said he realised that normalising relations with China - a key aim of his pontificate - required time and goodwill from both sides.

However, he wrote: "The Holy See would require to be completely free to appoint bishops, therefore considering the recent particular developments of the Church in China, I trust that an accord can be reached with the government so as to resolve certain questions regarding the choice of candidates for the episcopate."

"For its part, the Holy See remains open to negotiations, so necessary if the difficulties of the present time are to be overcome."

The Vatican announced on January 20 that it wanted to normalise relations at various levels with China where the official Catholic Church, which has five million members, exists alongside an underground Church which counts about 10 million faithful who remain loyal to Rome.

=====================================================================



The English text of the letter is now on
www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/letters/2007/documents/hf_ben-xvi_let_20070527_china...
It is actually only 24 pages long, including 6 pages of bibliographical footnotes. The only other translations available at the moment are Italian and French.

I have excerpted below the Greeting and the Conclusion from the Holy Father's Letter to Chinese Catholics, with the Index of its Contents:



Joseph Zen, Archbishop of Hongkong, was made a Cardinal
by Pope Benedict XVI last year.


Greeting

1. Dear Brother Bishops, dear priests, consecrated persons and all the faithful of the Catholic Church in China: "We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love which you have for all the saints, because of the hope laid up for you in heaven ... We have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, to lead a life worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy" (Col 1:3-5, 9-11).

These words of the Apostle Paul are highly appropriate for expressing the sentiments that I, as the Successor of Peter and universal Pastor of the Church, feel towards you. You know well how much you are present in my heart and in my daily prayer and how deep is the relationship of communion that unites us spiritually.

--------------------------------------------------------------------


CONTENTS

Greeting [1]
Purpose of the Letter [2]

PART ONE

THE SITUATION OF THE CHURCH
THEOLOGICAL ASPECTS

Globalization, modernity and atheism [3]
Willingness to engage in respectful and constructive dialogue [4]
Communion between particular Churches in the universal Church [5]
Tensions and divisions within the Church: pardon and reconciliation [6]
Ecclesial communities and State agencies: relationships to be lived in truth and charity [7]
The Chinese Episcopate [8]
Appointment of Bishops [9]

PART TWO

GUIDELINES
FOR PASTORAL LIFE

Sacraments, governance of dioceses, parishes [10]
Ecclesiastical provinces [11]
Catholic communities [12]
Priests [13]
Vocations and religious formation [14]
The Lay Faithful and the Family [15]
Christian initiation of adults [16]
The missionary vocation [17]

CONCLUSION

Revocation of faculties and of pastoral directives [18]
A day of prayer for the Church in China [19]
Farewell [20]

------------------------------------------------------------------


CONCLUSION

Revocation of faculties and of pastoral directives

18. Considering in the first place some positive developments of the situation of the Church in China, and in the second place the increased opportunities and greater ease in communication, and finally the requests sent to Rome by various Bishops and priests, I hereby revoke all the faculties previously granted in order to address particular pastoral necessities that emerged in truly difficult times.

Let the same be applied to all directives of a pastoral nature, past and recent. The doctrinal principles that inspired them now find a new application in the directives contained herein.

A day of prayer for the Church in China

19. Dear Pastors and all the faithful, the date 24 May could in the future become an occasion for the Catholics of the whole world to be united in prayer with the Church which is in China. This day is dedicated to the liturgical memorial of Our Lady, Help of Christians, who is venerated with great devotion at the Marian Shrine of Sheshan in Shanghai.

I would like that date to be kept by you as a day of prayer for the Church in China. I encourage you to celebrate it by renewing your communion of faith in Jesus our Lord and of faithfulness to the Pope, and by praying that the unity among you may become ever deeper and more visible.

I remind you, moreover, of the commandment that Jesus gave us, to love our enemies and to pray for those who persecute us, as well as the invitation of the Apostle Saint Paul: "First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all men, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life, godly and respectful in every way. This is good, and it is acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth" (1 Tim 2:1-4).

On that same day, the Catholics of the whole world - in particular those who are of Chinese origin - will demonstrate their fraternal solidarity and solicitude for you, asking the Lord of history for the gift of perseverance in witness, in the certainty that your sufferings past and present for the Holy Name of Jesus and your intrepid loyalty to his Vicar on earth will be rewarded, even if at times everything can seem a failure.

Farewell

20. At the conclusion of this Letter I pray that you, dear Pastors of the Catholic Church which is in China, priests, consecrated persons and lay faithful, may "rejoice, though now for a little while you may have to suffer various trials, so that the genuineness of your faith, more precious than gold which though perishable is tested by fire, may redound to praise and glory and honour at the revelation of Jesus Christ" (1 Pet 1:6-7).

May Mary Most Holy, Mother of the Church and Queen of China, who at the hour of the Cross patiently awaited the morning of the Resurrection in the silence of hope, accompany you with maternal solicitude and intercede for all of you, together with Saint Joseph and the countless Holy Martyrs of China.

I assure you of my constant prayers and, with affectionate remembrance of the elderly, the sick, the children and young people of your noble Nation, I bless you from my heart.

Given in Rome, at Saint Peter's, on 27 May, the Solemnity of Pentecost, in the year 2007, the third of my Pontificate.

BENEDICTUS PP XVI

Thanks to Lella's blog, here is an item from ADNkronos, a German-Italian news agency, translated here.

VATICAN CITY, June 29 (ADNkronos) - In the next few weeks, Benedict VXI will send a cardinal as special envoy to China, with the delicate mission of opening a dialog with Chinese authorities, according to sources in the German Church hierarchy.

It will be a reconnaissance visit, during which the Pope's envoy is expected to have various meetings with responsible Chinese officials as a follow-up to the Pope's letter to Chinese Catholics to be made public tomorrow. [This report was from yesterday.]

The Vatican wants to establish a stable and private channel of communications with Beijing towards an ongoing discussion of issues that need resolution.

[The rest of the story is about yesterday's Mass and Angelus message.]

Boston's Cardinal Sean O'Malley blogged yesterday about the Wednesday meeting at which the Holy Father spoke to some key cardinals about the coming Motu Proprio on the traditional Mass. He also provided pictures:


The Pope with the attending Cardinals;
Cardinal O'Malley greets the Pope at the Wednesday audience.

June 29, 2007

...I flew to Rome at the request of Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone to participate in a meeting discussing the Holy Father's Motu Proprio about the use of the older form of the Latin Mass.

There were about 25 bishops there, including the president of Ecclesia Dei Cardinal Darío Castrillón Hoyos, the prefect of Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments Cardinal Francis Arinze, several heads of bishops' conferences as well as some cardinals and other residential bishops.

They shared with us the Motu Proprio and the Holy Father's letter explaining it. We also had an opportunity to read the Latin document. We each commented on that, and then the Holy Father came in and shared some of his thoughts with us.

The Holy Father is obviously most concerned about trying to bring about reconciliation in the Church. There are about 600,000 Catholics who are participating in the liturgies of the Society of St. Pius X, along with about 400 priest.

The Holy Father was very clear that the ordinary form of celebrating the Mass will be the new rite, the Novus Ordo. But by making the Latin Mass more available, the Holy Father is hoping to convince those disaffected Catholics that it is time for them to return to full union with the Catholic Church.

So the Holy Father's motivation for this decision is pastoral. He does not want this to be seen as establishing two different Roman Rites, but rather one Roman Rite celebrated with different forms.The Motu Proprio is his latest attempt at reconciliation.

In my comments at the meeting, I told my brother bishops that in the United States the number of people who participate in the Latin Mass even with permission is very low. Additionally, according to the research that I did, there are only 18 priories of the Society of St. Pius X in the entire country. Therefore this document will not result in a great deal of change for the Catholics in the U.S. Indeed, interest in the Latin Mass is particularly low here in New England.

In our archdiocese, the permission to celebrate the Latin Mass has been in place for several years, and I granted permission when I was in Fall River for a Mass down on the Cape. The archdiocesan Mass is now at Immaculate Mary of Lourdes Parish in Newton. It is well attended, and if the need arises for an extension of that we would, of course, address it.

This issue of the Latin Mass is not urgent for our country, however I think they wanted us to be part of the conversation so that we would be able to understand what the situation is in countries where the numbers are very significant. For example, in Brazil there is an entire diocese of 30,000 people that has already been reconciled to the Church.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Well, let's see how US Catholics will react once the traditional Mass is liberalized! I think exposure to the rite will inevitably arouse more interest.


DISPUTING CARDINAL O'MALLEY
ON 'U.S. DEMAND' FOR THE OLD MASS

Father Z has sort of fisked Cardinal O'Malley's blog, notably for the statements in the latter part, but here's a blunter dissent from Rorate caeli, which I must note, is a traditionalist site. As it does cite facts and figures to back what it says, I think it deserves to be read:


Motu Proprio notes:
Stopping the Spin Cycle


How amusing it is to watch a Cardinal spin and downplay the greatest move of a pontificate. "This issue of the Latin Mass is not urgent for our country," says Cardinal O'Malley.

This is quite at odds with what the Cardinal responsible for the matter in the Roman Curia, Darío Castrillón Hoyos, said just last month in Aparecida: "The interest of the young curiously increases in France, the United States, Brazil, Italy, Scandinavia, Australia, and China".

Any study of the "Traditionalist Question" around the world would confirm that: the number of Traditionalists in America is probably smaller only than that of France. And no other nation has such great potential for the Traditional Mass in the near future as the United States: the motu proprio will almost certainly have a greater numerical impact in America than in any other country.

Cardinal O'Malley does not stop there in this rhetorical tour de force: he dives deep into his own personal experience to say that "in the United States the number of people who participate in the Latin Mass even with permission is very low"; he adds that in his "archdiocese, the permission to celebrate the Latin Mass has been in place for several years".

Very true, but Catholics in Boston are well aware of the humiliating and persistent denials of the Archbishop for the establishment of a more stable community, despite the "rightful aspirations" (Ecclesia Dei, 5) of the faithful attached to the Traditional Mass. We go to our archives to find this letter from an Archbishop and Chancery officials who believe they are being generous enough with the faithful:

---

First I wish to express my regrets that your 21 August 2005 is being acknowledged in such a tardy manner; however, I only recently have received it from the Office of the Archbishop with a request to respond to it. I note that your letter regards Holy Trinity Parish in Boston and specifically your request that the Archbishop invite either the Fraternity of Saints Peter and Paul [sic] or the Institute of Christ the King to come to the Archdiocese of Boston to service the Tridentine Community.

Please know that the Archbishop has received requests similar to yours in the past and has consistently responded that in accord with the request of Ecclesia Dei the Archdiocese of Boston provides the celebration of Mass in the Tridentine Rite and has the qualified priests to celebrate this Mass. It is not the intention of the Archbishop to begin a Tridentine Rite parish, thus at this time he does not envision the necessity nor the advantage of inviting priests from either of the two groups that you mention to the Archdiocese as we can provide for the celebration of the Mass on a weekly basis.

---

So, while the Cardinal spins and downplays the significance of the motu proprio now ("this document will not result in a great deal of change for the Catholics in the U.S. Indeed, interest in the Latin Mass is particularly low here in New England"), what was actually acknowledged by the Archbishop in the quite candid letter sent by the Archdiocese to a Catholic in Boston was that: (1) there had been repeated requests for the establishment of Ecclesia Dei* orders in Boston (so much for "particularly low interest"); (2) it was enough to provide for the celebration of the Traditional Mass in one venue on a weekly basis in one of the largest archdioceses in the country.
[*Ecclesia Dei is the Pontifical Commission in charge of Vatican relations with traditionalist groups, including the Lefebvrians.]

This venue was recently relocated, as is often the case with Ecclesia Dei Masses, distinguished around the world by their great instability, including all kinds of incidents (such as the arrival of a new bishop, or the death of an old priest, or the closing of a church) which prevent most of the Ecclesia Dei faithful from establishing any long-term plans for their spiritual welfare and that of their families, as almost all Catholics are able to do in their parishes.

Unfortunately, Cardinal O'Malley's spin operation does not end in his own backyard. Considering the great relevance of the current position of the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X (FSSPX/SSPX) for the papal decision, SSPX activities in America were nonetheless presented as a minor operation:

"In my comments at the meeting I told my brother bishops that in the United States ... , according to the research that I did, there are only 18 priories of the Society of St. Pius X in the entire country."

This must come as quite a surprise for the SSPX superiors, for whom the District of the United States is their second largest operation worldwide. Since we must charitably presume that the Cardinal is not intentionally presenting a skewed view of the SSPX numbers in America, we have to assume that his aides are not much of a help prepping him for important meetings. Had the Cardinal taken the trouble to merely checking the SSPX website in the United States, he would have been able to give a more accurate picture of the "SSPX Question" in the country.

For instance, according to the SSPX website, the numbers are more like this, similar to those of a small diocese: besides the "only" 18 priories, which are not only "parishes", but "priest distribution centers", there are regular Masses in 38 states, 104 Chapels (not counting SSPX-friendly chapels), 24 schools, 4 retreat houses, 4 Summer camps, 1 College, 1 Seminary, 64 priests, and 63 seminarians .

The time is up: it is time to stop giving the wrong picture to the "brothers". The age of mere generosity is coming to an end. It is time to face facts and to end the spin.

In Il Giornale today, Massimo Introvigne cuts through all the distracting commentary to point out that the Holy Father's MP on the Mass formally institutes the interpretation of Vatican-II as a continuity with the Church's tradition and Magisterium, and not a rupture with the past. Here is a translation.


Restoring the traditional Mass
is not a counter-reform
By Massimo Introvigne



Benedict XVI has presented the Motu Proprio that liberalizes the celebration of the Mass with the so-called rite of Puis V, in Latin, and according to the 1962 version of the traditional Roman Missal.

The document had been awaited for months, and it is no secret that it was opposed by some bishops' conferences, especially the French, who feel it 'justifies' the followers of Mons. Marcel Lefebvfre's schism.

In fact, contrary to what one reads these days, it is unlikely that the Motu Proprio will bring back the hardline Lefebvrists to the Roman fold. Their problems with Rome do not just have to do with liturgy. They reject ecumenism and the teaching of the Second Vatican Council on religious freedom - themes very dear to Benedict XVI and on which he will never yield.

So, if the MP is not a means to repair the insidious Lefebvrian schism, why is Benedict XVI liberalizing the traditional Mass? The issue is a theme that is crucial to Joseph Ratzinger's Pontificate: the proper interpretation of Vatican-II.

In his first Christmas address to the Roman Curia, on December 22, 2005, the Pope said one of the major problems of the Church has been a correct understanding of what Vatican-II decreed.

He makes a distinction between the actual documents of Vatican-II - which he considers fundamental to define the role of the Church in the contemporary world, especially its relationship to other religions and to civilian governments - and their 'post-Conciliar' interpretation.

Therefore, there is virtually no margin of discussion with those like the Lefebvrians who reject all of Vatican-II outright.

The question is totally different with the interpretation of Vatican-II. The Pope described the two lines of ensuing interpretation (hermeneutics) thus: "Two contrary hermeneutics emerged and have been in dispute. One has caused confusion, the other has borne fruit."

That which has sown confusion, in his opinion, is 'the hermeneutic of discontinuity or rupture' which sees Vatican-II as having been a revolution in the history of the Church, a revolution that has made everything that preceded it 'outmoded, reactionary and useless.'

On the contrary, the Pope [who participated in Vatican II as a theology consultant] maintains that Vatican-II comes to fruition only if it is interpreted not as a rupture but a continuity with preceding Magisterium and tradition. He painted a dark picture of the post-Conciliar interpretative chaos - comparing it a naval battle on a stormy night.

The battle standard of those who interpret the Council as a rupture had been liturgical reform - which was not effected by the Council itself, but a post-Conciliar interpretation [outright misreading and even non-compliance with the guidelines set by the Council], especially the suppression that virtually prohibited or made it very difficult to celebrate the traditional Mass after 1969.

Since, in the view of the 'progressives', Vatican-II had discarded everything that preceded it, those who remained attached to the traditional Mass were no longer with the Church and should be isolated and denounced.

But since Vatican-II is, in fact, a continuity with the past, then there is no reason why the traditional Mass cannot coexist with the new one.

Thus, Benedict XVI's Motu Proprio takes away the battle-standard of the progressives and opens an era in which - without conceding anything to those who would reject all of Vatican II - the interpretation of the Council as a continuity with the past now becomes the norm.

Il Giornale, 30 giugno 2007


Paolo Rodari in Il Riformista draws the same conclusion.


DEO GRATIAS (Thanks be to God),
the Latin Mass returns
By Paolo Rodari


«In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti».
«Amen».
«Dominus vobiscum».
«Et cum spiritu tuo».


The Latin Mass returns and it may be celebrated two ways: according to the Missal of Paul VI that has been the universal practice since 1969 [it can be said in Latin], or according to the Pius V Missal slightly modified by John XXIII in 1962.

Benedict XVI, in the explanatory letter that will accompany the enacting Motu Proprio when it is released next week, tells the bishops of the world why: The liturgical reform advocated by the Second Vatican Council is not a rupture with the past but rather, a novelty in continuity with tradition.

This has been a leitmotiv in the Pontificate so far of John Paul II's successor: a correct intepretation of Vatican-II decrees.

The Pope's decision on the Mass is not simply addressed to traditionalists but above all, to all Catholics who consider a respect for tradition as an aid to faith itself.

The gestation of the Motu Proprio has been rather troubled. Since the Pope first presented a draft to the bishops at a meeting last December, some cardinals have tried to block its issuance totally, but having failed to do so after months of trying, they apparently asked for and got certain modifications, not substantial, to the text.

The most opposed were some French cardinals who fear that the liberalization will cause a proliferation of traditionalist communities - which have been most militant in France. [And what would be wrong with that, if all they wanted to use the traditional Mass?]

Also opposed were the bishops of England and Wales, who claim an MP is not necessary since present rules for authorizing the traditional rite are 'adequate'.

Then, there was the German cardinal who relayed objections by the Jewish community that the traditional Mass includes anti-Semitic prayers. [This refers to a Good Friday prayer during which one of a series of 'intentions' is a prayer for 'infidel Jews'. But it seems this is no longer in the 1962 Missal modification by John XXIII.]

Early on, several Curial prelates met at a theological faculty on the Aventine in Rome to discuss an organized campaign to prevent the Pope from carrying out his intention. For example, through a concerted blitz of protest letters.

None of this dissuaded Benedict XVI. He had informed all concerned about what he planned to do, he listened to everything the opponents said, he let enough time pass, and has now decided to proceed.

As a cardinal, Joseph Ratzinger had expressed himself several times in favor of a complete liberalization of the traditional Mass. Particularly so in two books, Introduction to the Spirit of Liturgy and God is near us, in which he shows the unique value of a tradition that goes back five centuries.

Sp, Wednesday afternoon, the Pope himself dropped in on a briefing by the Cardinal Secretary of State with some 25 bishops and cardinals specially invited to see the Motu Proprio and its explanatory letter from the Pope. [The texts have been simultaneously sent to all the bishops of the world, and its public release is timed so that the bishops will have received their copies and not read about it in the media.]

What exactly does the Motu Proprio say? The following appear to be the main points:

1. It confirms the unity of the Roman Mass rite, but that it can be celebrated in two ways - according to the Missal of Paul VI, or according to the Missal of Pius V as modified by John XXIII.

2. To celebrate the traditional Mass, explicit permission by the local bishop is no longer necessary. Rather, any 'stable' group of parishioners [i.e., people known in the parish] can request the Mass from their parish priest, who should authorize it without necessarily informing the bishop. However, in case of any dispute, the bishop would have the authority to intervene.

3. Those who follow the traditional Mass may follow its yearly cycle of Scriptural readings rather than the triennial cycle prescribed for the Paul VI Mass.

Benedict reportedly makes clear in his explanatory letter that his decision is consistent with the fact that the traditional Mass was never 'abolished'. In this context, John Paul II issued three decrees governing its use - in 1984, the circular letter Quattuor abhinc annos; in 1988, the Motu Proprio Ecclesia Dei; and in 1998, an allocution on the tenth anniversary of Ecclesia Dei.

And so, not long hereafter, the faithful 'in stable groups' who have asked to hear the traditional Mass, may finally leave their Churches again saying "Deo gratias' after the final "Ite missa est.'

Copyright Il Riformista, 29 giugno 2007

The Holy Father today held a special audience at the Aula Paolo VI for the Metropolitan Archbishops on whom he conferred the Pallium yesterday, and their families and friends. He addressed them in Italian (for translation).

VATICAN - CHINA
Pope's letter: for truth and
love of the Church and China
By Fr. Bernardo Cervellera


Rome, June 30 (AsiaNews) - With the 'Letter to Chinese Catholics' published today, Benedict XVI launches the Church and society in China into the third millennium. Putting together 'truth and love' the Pope accurately identifies the problems Christians and the Chinese state have to face, and moves towards a solution that guarantees a fruitful future for China and the world.

Only the head of the Catholic Church could have written this kind of letter, touching every aspect of the Church's life in China and its society, with sympathy and understanding even for its political leaders. But also with great clarity about what is necessary and indispensable for the Church - claiming independence in spiritual matters vis-à-vis the system, asking Chinese bishops, priests and faithful to preserve and pass on to the next generations the great treasure which the Catholic faith.

Thoughtfully and in cordial participation, Benedict XVI shares the cries and dismay of Christians "at God's silence in the face of the persecutions," praising the fidelity of so many 'witnesses of the faith', 'the hope of the Church for the future'!

At the same time he looks mercifully even upon those bishops and priests who are illegitimate and in ambiguous situations, urging everyone to live in open unity with the pontiff, to forgive one another, to pastorally work together for mission and the good of Chinese society.

In a loving and open attitude he demands in the name of the Catholic faith the right for the Holy See to appoint its bishops. He calls on underground bishops to seek official government recognition, and on official bishops to overcome their fear and publicly acknowledge their ties with the Pope so that bishops and the faithful alike can become reconciled.

He especially urges the Chinese Church as a whole to go beyond the defensive mode persecution imposed on it, and try instead to evangelize Chinese society, Asia and the whole world by giving itself the necessary means - bishops' conference, pastoral councils and diocesan administrations - that the task entails. This will mark as it were the end of the time of emergency, and allow the Church of China to become an integral and active part of the universal communion.

Similarly Benedict XVI speaks with 'particular interest' and 'sincere admiration' about the Chinese people, its culture and socio-economic achievements. With great 'respect' for its political leaders, he is reassuring about the Church's mission - which is not to "change the structure or administration of the State'(n.4) - and is eager and open to normalising diplomatic relations.

But with equal determination and clarity, he wants a place for the Church in Chinese society 'for the good of Chinese Catholics' and 'all the inhabitants of the country', to reawaken its 'spiritual energy' and make justice prosper.

For this reason he wants an end to improper interference "in matters regarding the faith and discipline of the Church" and calls on the state to guarantee 'authentic religious freedom'. When all is said and done, all the Pope wants is for China to become a truly modern state, subject to United Nations conventions to which it is a signatory.

Because he wants to uphold the 'irrenunciable principles' of separation between state and Church and protect the Catholic doctrine, Benedict XVI states that the Patriotic Association (PA) is unacceptable. With its attempts at "independence and autonomy, self-management and democratic administration of the Church", the PA runs the risk of distorting the life of the catholic communion itself.

Episcopal appointments by the Pope are an essential part of Catholic doctrine and essential to religious freedom. With his typical openness though, Benedict XVI admits that is always possible to find 'an accord' about how to appoint them since recognising the bishops has also 'civil effects' (n.9).

Thus spiritual, not political, needs have led Benedict XVI to condemn the activities of the PA and demand freedom in matters of appointments. From this point of view the letter does not even touch upon the Taiwan question, so often seen as 'important' by the more Stalinist factions of the party and the PA.

The letter is clearly a spiritual message and for this reason will have a greater impact on China than any political row.

The spiritual nature is best illustrated by the Day of Prayer for the Church in China which the Pope opens every year on May 24, Feast Day of Mary, Help of the Christians, a day in which the National Marian Shrine in Sheshan (Shanghai) is also celebrated. On this day, prayers are said for Catholics and their union with the Pope, and also for their persecutors, waiting for 'the morning of the Resurrection' for the Church and Chinese society.


====================================================================

It was reported last month that the Vatican had allowed the Beijing government to have a preview of the letter. A few days ago, the Patriotic Association summoned 'its' bishops to Beijing and reportedly told them to 'keep calm' whatever the Pope's letter would say. [See reports in NEWS ABOUT THE CHURCH]. There should be an official reaction of some sort now that the letter has been made public.

Pope Makes Plea to China's Catholics


Pope Benedict XVI acknowledged the faithful Saturday at the Vatican, on a day when he released an open letter to Chinese Catholics.

By Elisabeth Rosenthal
Published: July 1, 2007

ROME, June 30 - In an extraordinary open letter directed to Chinese Catholics and released Saturday, Pope Benedict XVI acknowledged the suffering experienced by Catholics under Communist rule but also concluded that it was time to forgive past wrongdoings and for the underground and state-sponsored Catholic churches in China to reconcile.

Openly hoping for a renewal of relations between China and the Vatican, which were suspended in the late 1950s, Pope Benedict reassured the Chinese government that the Vatican offered no political challenge to its authority, while urging the state-sponsored Catholic Church to acknowledge the Vatican's control on religious matters.

"The misunderstanding and incomprehension weighs heavily, serving neither the Chinese authorities nor the Catholic Church in China," the letter said.

It was the pope's long-awaited first official and explicit statement on China's estimated 12 million Catholics, the majority of whom worship in underground churches to avoid having to register with the government and swear loyalty to it.

Months in preparation, and dated May 27, the 28-page letter was issued in multiple languages, including Chinese, along with an unusual accompanying "Explanatory Note" highlighting main points.

The pope praised China for "the splendor of its ancient civilization" and noted with approval that it had greater religious freedoms and decisive movement toward socio-economic progress. He underlined that the Roman Catholic Church "does not have a mission to change the structure or administration of the State."

Gerolamo Fazzini, editor of Mondo e Missione, a magazine for the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions, said: "This is a step forward because it states the Vatican position clearly and holds out a hand to civil authorities. It says the church and authorities can be allied in dialogue. That you can be good Chinese citizens and Catholics at the same time. That the church is not looking for political legitimacy."

But the pope's message to the Patriotic Church Association, the central government body that oversees the state churches, was that no Catholic Church should operate independently of the Vatican, and he said Catholics should seek to worship with priests who accepted the guidance of Rome. He criticized "grave limitations" in religious practice that "touch the heart of faith." Still, he said, sacraments administered in state churches were holy.

He officially revoked a set of 1988 directives, promulgated by the previous pope, John Paul II, that gave bishops and priests in China special powers that allowed them to operate without the mandate of the Vatican. The directives were intended to allow underground clerics to operate secretly and independently to avoid persecution; the Vatican says it sees that as no longer necessary.

The letter included a reaffirmation of the Vatican's right to appoint bishops, a point of deep contention between Rome and the Chinese Patriotic Church. In 2006, the Chinese church enraged the Vatican by appointing three new bishops without consultation.

The Chinese government offered no immediate reaction, and the Patriotic Church Association had been meeting in the past few days, probably to discuss the content of the letter, Mr. Fazzini said.

Cardinal Joseph Zen Zi-kiun, the bishop of Hong Kong and a passionate advocate for the underground church on the mainland, issued a written statement late Saturday evening. "The voice of our bishops and priests in China is often prevented from reaching our leaders; now that the letter of the pope is in the hands of our leaders, our bishops and priests can thus refer to it directly as a common starting point for dialogue," he said.

Beginning in the 1950s, China expelled missionaries, closed churches, confiscated church property and imprisoned almost all clerics. Tremendous persecution continued until the 1980s when Deng Xiaoping, then the Chinese leader, allowed worship to resume slowly - though within limits set by government. Underground churches held fast in their loyalty to the pope, but their secret meetings have been violently dispersed by the police, and practitioners arrested.

Still, over the last 10 years, the practices of the official states churches and underground churches have converged to some extent, depending in part upon the tolerance of local authorities. And in the countryside, it is not unusual to find official state "patriotic" churches where the pope is openly revered and that hang pictures of him near the altar. An increasing number also get money from Catholic charities abroad to pay for church-building, schools and hospitals.

"The first and by far most important aspect is that for the pope, the church in China is one - definitely one," Bernardo Cervellera, editor of Asia News, a Catholic missionary news service based in Rome, said of the letter. "He stresses it is time to consider the church one church. To reconcile the bishops from the two churches and the faithful as well."

Others remained skeptical that the overture would improve relations between the Vatican and the Chinese.

"I doubt that this will help overcome the impasse with the Chinese authorities, because the letter says that it's up to China to recognize the church should operate in China as it does in 173 countries, even places like Cuba, which is Communist, or Japan, which has strong nationalism - in all of which the pope nominates bishops," said a priest from Hong Kong, who asked not to be named.

He and others noted that the reaction to the papal letter could be complex among Catholics in China, and some could even feel betrayed by the pope's message.

"I think that this will have strong repercussions, within the church," Mr. Fazzini, the magazine editor, said. "Imagine a priest who spent 30 years in jail and now you are told that you have to dialogue with people that have been nominated by authorities. Asking them to reread history with charitable eyes, that won't be easy."

The pope's letter said firmly that cooperating with Chinese Communist state requirements did not constitute a betrayal of Catholicism. The practice of Catholicism and the "safeguarding of the faith," he said, is "not itself opposed to dialogue with authorities."

Still, he noted that Catholics in China walked a delicate line between faith and political expedience, and he urged the bishops and priests in Catholic dioceses in China to make the decision about whether to register their churches with Chinese authorities, based on "local conditions and circumstances."

The pope acknowledged the suffering of Chinese clerics - their persecution and "shedding of blood" - but urged them to show charity toward those "who think different from us in social, political and religious matters."

"The purification of memory, the pardoning of wrongdoers, the forgetting of injustices suffered and the loving restoration to serenity of troubled hearts, all to be accomplished in the name of Jesus crucified and risen, can require moving beyond personal positions or viewpoints, born of painful or difficult experiences," he wrote. "These are urgent steps that must be taken."

Keith Bradsher contributed reporting from Hong Kong, and Elisabetta Povoledo from Rome.

Source:http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/01/world/asia/01pope.html?_r=2&ref=world&oref=slogin&oref=slogin

An AFP wrap-up story on the China letter includes the first reaction from the Chinese government.

Pope confronts China
over religious freedom, bishops
by Martine Nouaille



VATICAN CITY, June 30 (AFP) - Pope Benedict XVI pressed China on Saturday to respect religious freedom and the Vatican's right to appoint its own bishops, dismissing Beijing's nominees as "illegitimate."

In a strongly-worded letter addressed to an estimated 10 million Chinese Catholics loyal to Rome, the pontiff called on the communist regime to respect their "authentic religious freedom" and warned that China's official church was "incompatible with Catholic doctrine."

Benedict also insisted on the freedom to appoint bishops loyal only to Rome, adding that bishops of the rival state-sponsored church "cannot be recognised" by the Holy See.

China immediately rebuffed the appeal, urging the Vatican to refrain from creating new barriers to the improvement of relations.

Beijing "hopes the Vatican can take a realistic attitude and not create new obstacles," said Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Qin Gang in a statement.

Benedict said he realised that normalising relations with China - one of the priorities of his pontificate - required time and goodwill from both sides.

"For its part, the Holy See remains open to negotiations, so necessary if the difficulties of the present time are to be overcome."

But the foreign ministry statement reiterated China's long-standing conditions for the normalisation of relations - the Vatican must break off ties with Taiwan, which China claims as part of its territory, and surrender the authority to appoint members of the clergy.

The Vatican "should not interfere in the affairs of China in the name of Catholicism," said the text.

In the much-anticipated letter published Saturday, the German pope sought to reassure Beijing by saying the Roman Catholic Church "does not have a mission to change the structure or administration of the state."

It asked its followers in China to be good and respectful citizens and "active contributors to the common good in their country".

"But it is likewise clear that she asks the state to guarantee to those same Catholic citizens the full exercise of their faith, with respect for authentic religious freedom," he said.

Beijing and the Vatican have repeatedly clashed over the appointments of bishops ever since China severed ties with the Holy See in 1951, setting up its own Catholic church administered by the atheist communist government.

The official Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association, which has five million members, has existed alongside a so-called underground, or illegal, church which counts some 10 million faithful who remain loyal to Rome.

"Communion and unity - let me repeat - are essential and integral elements of the Catholic Church: therefore the proposal for a Church that is 'independent' of the Holy See, in the religious sphere, is incompatible with Catholic doctrine," Benedict protested.

"In the light of the principles expounded above, the present College of Catholic Bishops of China cannot be recognized as an Episcopal Conference by the Apostolic See.

"The 'clandestine' bishops, those not recognised by the government but in communion with the pope, are not part of it; it includes bishops who are still illegitimate, and it is governed by elements incompatible with Catholic doctrine."

"The Holy See would require to be completely free to appoint bishops, therefore considering the recent particular developments of the Church in China, I trust that an accord can be reached with the government so as to resolve certain questions regarding the choice of candidates for the episcopate."

The Vatican announced on January 20 that it wanted to normalise relations at various levels with China.

Catholic media reported earlier this week that bishops serving China's official church had been summoned to Beijing to discuss the letter on Thursday and Friday.

An unnamed bishop from northern China said that he had been told church leaders would discuss "how to receive" the letter.

The communist state had already warned in advance of the letter that it was not prepared to waver from well-established policy.

"China will stick to the two principles to improve and develop our relations with the Vatican. Our position has not changed," said ministry spokesman Qin Gang, referring to the demand that the Vatican cut ties with Taiwan and not use religion to interfere in Beijing's internal affairs.


On the other hand, AP, reporting from Beijing, strangely enough did not consider the Foreign Ministry statement - which apparently came online - a direct comment. Because it was not delivered in person? Consider that it was late Saturday in China when the letter was officially released. I don't think any government official would have gone out of his way to deliver a personal statement at that time!

China says dialogue necessary
to mend rift with Vatican

BEIJING, June 30 (AP)- China said Saturday that frank dialogue with the Vatican was needed to resolve differences between the two sides, and acknowledged an open letter from Pope Benedict XVI to the country's faithful but did not comment on it directly.

The 55-page letter - addressed to bishops, priests and lay faithful in China - was released Saturday on the Vatican's Web site in English and Chinese. It urged Beijing to restore diplomatic ties and permit religious freedom and called the state-run Catholic Church "incompatible" with Catholic doctrine.

China's Foreign Ministry said it had "taken note" of the pope's letter but did not directly respond to its contents.

Spokesman Qin Gang said in a statement posted on the ministry's Web site that China "has always advocated the improvement of Sino-Vatican relations and made positive efforts to this end."

Qin said China would "continue to have a frank, constructive dialogue with the Vatican in order to resolve differences between the two sides."

The statement called on the Vatican to sever ties with rival Taiwan and not interfere in Beijing's internal affairs in the name of religion.

"We hope that the Vatican takes practical action and does not create new barriers," Qin said, without elaborating.

An official with China's state-backed Catholic Church said his organization had yet to receive a copy of the letter.

"We haven't received a copy of it so it's hard for us to comment," said Liu Bainian, vice chairman of the Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association. [He's being so ingenuous, isn't he?]

Asked whether he or his colleagues would view the letter on the Internet, Liu refused to answer, and reiterated that the association had not received a copy of the letter.

China forced its Roman Catholics to cut ties with the Vatican in 1951, shortly after the officially atheist Communist Party took power. Worship is allowed only in the government-controlled churches, which recognize the pope as a spiritual leader but appoint their own priests and bishops.

Benedict's letter said the Vatican was ready to move its diplomatic representation from Taiwan to Beijing "at any time" and announced it had dropped the 1988 guideline that said any bishop ordained by the state-backed Chinese church would incur an automatic excommunication.

However, it also called the Patriotic Association "incompatible with Catholic doctrine" because it named its own bishops and sought to guide the life of the church.

Liu said earlier that it would be up to individual dioceses across the country to decide whether they read or distribute Benedict's letter during services. However, several church officials reached by The Associated Press said they had no idea about the letter and so had no plans to read it out.

Staff from the Ningde Catholic Church in south China's Fujian province and the Xishiku and Dongguantou churches in Beijing said they had not heard anything about a letter. They all refused to give their names, citing the sensitivity of the matter.

Zhang Shijiang, director of the Hebei Faith Press Newspaper, an officially approved weekly with a circulation of 50,000, said he knew about the letter and wanted to read it when it was convenient.

"I haven't seen it yet because it's the weekend and I am out of the office. I have no access to the Internet," Zhang said. "What I can say is that I pray for the peaceful reconciliation between Beijing and the Vatican."


This is how ZENIT reported the Foreign Ministry statement:

Beijing Responds to Papal Letter

BEIJING, JULY 1, 2007 (Zenit.org).- The Chinese government expressed a desire to promote "constructive dialogue" with the Vatican in a statement released after the publication of Benedict XVI's letter to Catholics in that country.

In an official declaration issued Saturday, the same day the Vatican published the Pope's letter, Foreign Ministry Spokesman Qin Gang said that China had "taken note of the letter released by the Pope."

The statement said: "China has always stood for the improvement of the China-Vatican relationship, and made positive efforts for that. China is willing to continue candid and constructive dialogue with the Vatican so as to resolve our differences.

"China's stance on improving China-Vatican ties is consistent, that is, the Vatican must sever its so-called diplomatic ties with Taiwan and recognize the People's Republic of China as the sole legitimate government representing the whole of China."

Vatican representatives have explained in the past that there are no problems in principle with accepting this condition in view of diplomatic relations with Beijing.

The Chinese government, the declaration continues, asks that the Vatican "never interfere in China's internal affairs, including in the name of religion."

Qin added: "We hope the Vatican side takes concrete actions and does not create new barriers."

CHINA - VATICAN
Cardinal Zen:
Pope's letter represents
love for truth and his children'




Chinese Catholics pray at the government-sanctioned North Cathedral of the National Patriotic Church in Beijing July 1, 2007.
(Photos by Reuters)

Hong Kong, July 1 (AsiaNews) - Benedict XVI's letter to the bishops, priests, religious and faithful of China represents a "precious balance achieved by the Holy Father between his passion for the truth and his love for his children" and should be "a common starting point for dialogue' between the Chinese clergy and political leaders.

These are the 'impression and ... hope' expressed by the bishop of Hong Kong, Cardinal Joseph Zen, after reading the letter published yesterday by the Holy See and addressed to the Chinese Church.

In commenting on the letter, the prelate underscores how the letter had more of a religious than a political tone and expressed hope that they "would read the Pope's letter from this perspective."

Here is the full text:

---

The long awaited letter from the Holy Father has finally seen the light of the day. His Holiness Pope Benedict has addressed a letter to the Bishops, priests, religious and faithful in China as he had promised to do last January.

Indeed, it is a historical 'first' that the Pope has written a letter to the Catholic community in a particular region. The motive is, obviously, that that community has experienced so much tribulation in the last decades, that the Holy Father wants to show special concern for those his children and give them some guidelines in this seemingly crucial moment, so that they might free themselves from their unfortunate predicament.

At the beginning of June the Vatican Secretary of State announced that "the Pope's letter has been definitively approved", a rather strange way of saying things: "the Pope's letter approved" by the Pope?

The fact, probably, is that even the finished text of the Pope's letter, according to the Vatican way of doing things, would still pass through further checks or even corrections. Obviously, the finally approved letter is the Pope's letter, with his signature.

After a cursory vision of the rather long letter, I would like to share with the media my one impression and two hopes.

The impression: I admire the precious balance achieved by the Holy Father between his passion for the truth and his love for his children. Only an outstanding theologian and a tender father could satisfy at the same time the demands of the truth and the kindness towards people. Blessed be God for having given us such a leader!

On hope: The doctrine painstakingly explained by Benedict XVI, is nothing but the most traditional and universally accepted Catholic principles, belonging to the religious field, with no secret political agenda, even less with an intention of attacking anybody. My hope is that the leaders of our Country would read the Pope's letter from this perspective and understand the true unchangeable nature of the Catholic Church.

A second hope: The voice of our Bishops and priests in China is often prevented from reaching our leaders; now that the letter of the Pope is in the hands of our leaders, our Bishops and priests can thus refer to it directly as a common starting point for dialogue.

The Pope insists that Bishops are the leaders of the Church and they are not to be separated from the Roman Pontiff. My hope is that our Bishops and priests stand united with the Holy Father. Let our Church in China be truly the Catholic Church recognized and respected by the rest of the World, and let it bring honour and glory to our Country on the stage of the Universal Church.

---

CHINA - VATICAN
Pope's letter is key to China's development,
says Mgr Li Jingfeng
by Joseph Wang

In an interview with AsiaNews, the bishop of Fengxiang, who is recognised by the government without being a member of the Patriotic Association, says that the papal letter makes the right call for unity and is hopeful that Beijing might try a sincere dialogue with the Holy See, a key element to China's development.


Mons. Jingfeng, left, with Cardinal Zen.


Fengxiang, CHINA, July 1 (AsiaNews) - Benedict XVI's letter to the Chinese Church "is a great message for the whole of China, a message that is very profound about the principles of the Catholic Church, based on the ecclesiology of the Catholic tradition. Its publication came just in time to save the Chinese Church."

This is what 87-year-old Mgr Luke Li Jingfeng, bishop of Fengxiang (central province of Shaanxi), told AsiaNews with regard to the Letter of the Pope to the bishops, priests, consecrated persons and lay faithful of the Catholic Church in the People's Republic of China that was published yesterday by the Holy See.

Mgr Li is one of the four bishops Benedict XVI had invited for the Synod of the Eucharist in October 2005 whom the government banned from travelling.

The letter and its appeal to all Chinese priests "go in the right direction," the bishop said. "Those who follow the Catholic tradition are reassured, whilst those who do not will feel the great call from the successor of Peter to God's flock."

The call for unity between the two halves, official and underground, of the Chinese Church is therefore 'very important'. They want to 'find the right way to get closer to one another and join together to become one even though the 'more underground' Church will have a hard time trying to back away from the issue of the communion with the Pope."

According to the bishop it is also important to stress the political side of the letter. "From that point of view, it is fundamental because it addresses everyone. If the government accepts the Pope's words we would all be happy, leaders included. Otherwise things might get worse. We know that it won't be easy to reach a compromise because both the Church and the government have their own principles. Let us hope that Beijing starts a dialogue with the Holy See and reaches an agreement that accepts ecclesiastic principles."

"I pray the Lord that the Chinese government may understand the Pope's message and I hope that it does so for the good of China," the bishop added. "I always tell our rulers: Look at China. It is really developing and joining the rest of the world but has remained backward as far as the Church is concerned. If China wants to open up to the world, it must open itself to the Church. If this problem is solved, everything else will be solved. Otherwise we shall always be a step behind other countries. I pray for this and that the Popes letter might reawaken the Chinese Catholic Church."

Till 2003 Fengxiang was perhaps the only diocese in the Peoples Republic where only the 'underground' or non-government-recognised Church existed.

In 2004 Mgr Li was recognised by the government as bishop of the Church without having to join the Patriotic Association (PA), the agency in charge of the Catholic Church that was set up by Mao and is managed by members of the Communist Party, many of whom are atheist.

The year after Benedict XVI invited Mgr Li to Rome for the Synod of the bishops on the Eucharist but the government prevented him from leaving.

A translation of the Pope's homily and message has been posted in AUDIENCE AND ANGELUS TEXTS.


Vatican City, June 30 (AsiaNews) - "The truth shall set you free", John Paul II's most evangelical and dearest sentence, sounded again today in the words Benedict XVI spoke when he addressed 40,000 or so faithful who had gathered for the Angelus to remember all those who whilst suffering persecution remain free, because "whoever abides in truth shall never be slave to any power".

A day after the publication of his Letter to the Church of China, the Pope made no direct reference to it, but those who heard him speak knew what he meant when he mentioned those who suffer or have suffered for their faithfulness to Jesus.

Taking off from today's Gospel, the Pope spoke about about the true meaning of freedom as Christ exercised it and as his followers should.



[

After the recital of the Angelus, the Holy Father made this statement:

---

From Colombia comes the sad news of the barbaric assassination of 11 regional deputies in the Valle del Cauca department, which has been in the hands of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia for more than five years.

As I offer prayers in their memory, I join the profound sorrow of their families and of the beloved nation of Colombia, which is once more aggrieved by fratricidal hate.

I renew my heartfelt appeal that kidnappings may cease and that the victims of such unacceptable violence may be sent back to their loved ones immediately.

---

VATICAN - CHINA
Too much atheism and
interference from the state,
says Mgr Jia Zhiguo
by Lin Deshi


Zhengding, July 1 (AsiaNews) - Mgr Julius Jia Zhiguo, a 73-year-old who spent more than 20 years in prison, is the underground bishop of Zhengding (Hebei), the Chinese province where anti-Catholic persecution is strongest.

He lives in isolation and is constantly detained by the police for political (brainwashing) sessions designed to force him to submit to the Patriotic Association, the government agency whose ultimate goals is to set up a Church independent of the Holy See. The last time Mgr Jia was seized was June 5 but was let go on June 22.

AsiaNews was able to ask him some questions about the Pope's letter which he was actually reading when he was contacted.

Your Excellency, what influence will the Pope's letter have on Church-state relations?
I fear we should not expect too much from it. China's politicians have not changed at all. The government uses the same strategy as during Mao's times and just instigates and creates conflicts within the Church.

This has been going on for 50 years (since the creation of the Patriotic Association or PA) and I am afraid that the Pope's letter won't change much to the situation.

Of course the letter clearly states what the Church's teachings are and for those who seek the truth it is greatly encouraging. But for the many atheists among the politicians, this does not mean anything. They won't change their ideas because of any statement. What is necessary is for the government to make a profound change in mentality and allow for greater openness and religious freedom.

What do you think about the relationship between the Church and the Patriotic Association after the Pope condemned it in his letter?
The Patriotic Association is a tool in the government's hands. Its interference won't stop until the government says so. The problem is that the PA cannot decide for itself. It is not independent but is at the service of the government, under its control. It is not easy to break those chains. I think that without the Lord's intervention the situation cannot improve. We don't believe that the Lord always works within His Church.

Will the letter improve relations between the official and underground Church?
For those who live in truth and justice and are faithful to their faith, this letter will be the right push towards unity. The real problem is how to overcome the pressures that come from the state.

Various official bishops are afraid to actively communicate with underground bishops. Courage is often found wanting because they too are under strict control. Their phones are always tapped by the government for example. Even if they are government-approved, there is not much they can do - they can't do what they want.

But for us underground bishops, who are not recognised by the government, communications are a problem. It is almost impossible to do it directly. I live under constant controls. But for them controls are even greater. We might get in touch indirectly, through intermediaries. But we know that no one 'wants to create difficulties' for the government.

The Pope's letter urges Catholics to live the mission in China with courage...
I have not yet finished reading the letter, but I think for the more resolute Catholics, it offers a clear-cut path. On this issue, Benedict XVI's teachings are aligned with those of John Paul II. We shall have to carry out our ministry and mission from within the communion.

With the Lord's encouragement and the Pope's guidance, I shall continue my mission without fear. The journey we have undertaken so far is the right one. And we shall continue. The Pope's support helps us go as far as we have to, even if it might mean sacrificing our lives.

=====================================================================

AsiaNews, because it is an agency of the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions, is best situated right now to get reactions within China to the Pope's letter. It has also been providing situationer stories on the Church in China that I will post in NEWS ABOUT THE CHURCH.

I don't think anybody is so naive as to think that the Pope's Letter to the Catholics of China will show immediate concrete results. China's first official reaction was perhaps more than predictable: a boilerplate reiteration of its two 'pre-conditions' for diplomatic relations.

The Vatican has long made it known that the pre-condition about Taiwan is not an issue. So there remains the problem of the Chinese government's arrogation of the Papal authority to name bishops - on which the Vatican appears willing to agree to a Vietnam-style compromise.

The Pope has conceded what he can, except the non-negotiable elements fundamental to the Church in any dialog that it must undertake. One can certainly see the Letter as a new beginning for constructive and meaningful dialog, beyond mere formalities.

Some observers have pointed out that how China will react in private may depend on how much it wants to show its best face to the world by the time of the Olmypics next year - which means making nice with the Vatican.

In today's Il Giornale, Massimo Introvigne again gets to the point about where the Pope stands vis-a-vis the regime in Beijing. Here is a translation.


The Pope holds out
a hand to Beijing
by Massimo Introvigne


Whoever thought that Benedict XVI's Letter to the Catholics of China would be submissive to the Chinese government thought wrong.

Of course, the letter was preceded by diplomatic 'discussions' with Beijing which got three concessions:
- The Pope has revoked all pastoral directives, public or otherwise, that authorized forms of civil disobedience against the State.
- He expresses a willingness to discuss the issue of ecclesiastical provinces, which is a reference to the Taiwan question.
- He does not exclude an 'agreement with the government' on the future nomination of bishops, even while making clear that this right and the final word properly belong to the Pope alone.

So he does shiow a willingness to adopt the Vietnam solution which has famous historical precedents in Europe, in which the Church submits to the state a list of candidates so the latter can indicate its preferences.

But, in return for such concessions, the Pope adds the non-negotiable, irrenunciable principles that he has often cited to European governments.

First about human life and the family. The Church cannot yield or keep silent on these issues, particularly not in China which holds the world record for abortions and places a legal limit on the number of children a family may have.

And there can be no authentic religious freedom if the Church may freely preach about the faith but will be unable to denounce 'forcefully and firmly' the 'forces in China which influence negatively on the family'.

The second non-negotiable principle is the structure of the Church itself, as 'Petrine' and 'apostolic.' Since 1957, China has had a 'patriotic Church' controlled by the government. This has kept the apostolic succession - in the sense that its line of apostolic succession is recognized by Rome - but is not in communion with Rome and is objectively schismatic.

Now, the Pope makes it clear that Rome considers the patriotic Church's ordinations and rites valid but illegitimate.

The letter highlights the presence in China today of three types of bishops: clandestine bishops faithful to Rome; those who belong to the patriotic church but have secretly received communion from Rome (even if they have not always disclosed this to their congregation - which Benedict XVI is now asking them to do); and the 'very reduced number' of 'patriotic' bishops who have not been reconciled to Rome.

The Pope's letter says the faithful may participate validly in the Masses said by the first two types, and by the priests they have ordained. The rites performed by the third type are valid but illegitimate, and the faithful may attend them only when they are unable to easily avail of legitimate rites.

The Pope also clearly says that the state-controlled College of Catholic Bishops of China composed of 'patriotic' bishops is not a true episcopal conference, especially since it has "elements that are irreconcilable with Catholic dostrine."

For the first time, the Pope makes a public statement on a fact that the Beijing government and expert observers have always known: that the experiment of the 'patriotic' Church is a failure, because except for that 'very reduced number' left faithful to the PA, most of its bishops have become secretaly reconciled with Rome.

And so the Pope invites Beijing to acknowledge this, and to recognize a united Church guided by a true episcopal conference that would be open to dialog with the government.

As for the 'irrenunciable principles', communion with the Pope means being able to speak clearly on the values of life and the family that the Church advocates.


Il Giornale, 1° luglio 2007

China's official Catholic church
welcomes pope's letter


BEIJING, July 2 (AFP)- China's state-controlled Catholic church on Monday praised a letter from Pope Benedict XVI and voiced hope that the Vatican and Beijing would soon be able to establish formal relations.

"The pope, through his papal letter has expressed his love and concern for China's believers.... This is different from earlier papal letters," Liu Bainian, deputy head of the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association, told AFP.

"Earlier papal letters were opposed to communism and the socialist system. They wanted to (punish) members of China's patriotic church. Now the situation is not the same. The pope wants to better understand China's Church."

The papal letter, published Saturday, expressed "good intentions," Liu said, adding that he hoped Beijing and the Vatican could improve ties and soon establish diplomatic relations.

The Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association's comments appeared to offer a warmer response to the letter than that of the Chinese government, which urged the Vatican on Saturday not to create new barriers to the improvement of relations.

The government statement reiterated China's long-standing conditions for the normalisation of relations - the Vatican must break off ties with Taiwan, which China claims as part of its territory, and surrender the authority to appoint members of the clergy.

In the letter, the pope said the Roman Catholic Church "does not have a mission to change the structure or administration of the state."

He asked Catholics in China to be good and respectful citizens and "active contributors to the common good in their country."

However, the pope also pressed China to respect religious freedom and the Vatican's right to appoint its own bishops, dismissing Beijing's nominees as "illegitimate."

He also warned that China's official church was "incompatible with Catholic doctrine."


===================================================================


Here's an AFP dispatch yesterday that I missed seeing:

Pope not seeking confrontation with China


VATICAN CITY , July 1 (AFP) - Pope Benedict XVI is not seeking a confrontation with China and made no accusations against Beijing in his letter to Chinese Catholics this weekend, the Vatican said Sunday.

Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi insisted Benedict XVI "was not seeking a confrontation with anyone" and "did not pronounce any accusations neither against the inside nor the outside of the Church."

The pope "always uses a serene and respectful tone, even when he is speaking of attacks on liberty, unacceptable attitudes and internal tensions in the Church," Lombardi told the ANSA news agency.

He added that the head of the Roman Catholic Church "still considers (the Church) as one," even if it appears to be divided.

In a strongly-worded letter addressed to an estimated 10 million Chinese Catholics loyal to Rome, the pope on Saturday called on the communist regime to respect their "authentic religious freedom" and warned that China's official church was "incompatible with Catholic doctrine".

Benedict also insisted on the freedom to appoint bishops loyal only to Rome, adding that bishops of the rival state-sponsored church "cannot be recognised" by the Holy See.

China immediately rebuffed the appeal and urged the Vatican to refrain from creating new barriers to the improvement of relations.

Lombardi meanwhile insisted "the road towards normalising relations between the Holy See and China was not the topic of the letter," but added that "a positive development through dialogue on the concrete problems is clearly hoped for."

Beijing and the Vatican have been at loggerheads since China severed ties with the Holy See in 1951 after the Vatican recognised Taiwan, where the papal envoy had fled a year earlier.

The atmosphere between the two sides worsened when in 1957 China set up its own Catholic church administered by the atheist communist government.

The official Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association, which has an estimated five million members, has existed ever since alongside an underground or illegal church which counts some 10 million faithful and remains loyal to Rome.

In his much-anticipated letter, the pope sought to reassure Beijing by saying the Roman Catholic Church "does not have a mission to change the structure or administration of the state," asking Chinese Catholics to be good and respectful citizens and "active contributors to the common good in their country".

The letter went on however to call on the state "to guarantee to those same Catholic citizens the full exercise of their faith, with respect for authentic religious freedom."

CHINA - VATICAN
Subdued but predictable reactions
in China to Pope's letter


Rome, July 2 (AsiaNews) - The Chinese government is embarrassed and unhappy about the Pope's letter to Chinese Catholics. Among the faithful in both the official and underground Church the letter caused a great deal of enthusiasm. Official bishops have not yet made any comment however.

In China, reactions among Catholics and non-Catholics to Benedict XVI's letter to the clergy and the faithful have varied but were more or less as expected.

There was much enthusiasm and a renewed sense of fidelity to the Holy See among official and underground Catholics. But official bishops have been careful because of the tight controls under which they operate.

A few hours after the publication of the Pope's letter about 'truth and love', Church unity and the need for religious freedom protection, the Foreign Affairs Ministry in Beijing released a terse communiqué that, without taking into account what is, for many, one of the most beautiful letters ever sent by a Pope to the faithful in China, expressed hope that the letter would not create any more obstacles in the Sino-Vatican dialogue.

The statement reiterated China's two pre-conditions to the restoration of diplomatic relations, namely the "Vatican must sever its so-called diplomatic ties with Taiwan and recognize the People's Republic of China as the sole legitimate government representing the whole of China", and that it will "never interfere in China's internal affairs, not even in the name of religion."

This in itself for some experts is a sign of modest progress. In the past Chinese reactions to Vatican initiatives were much harsher.

The canonisation in 2000 of Chinese martyrs is one example. At that time Beijing launched a violent campaign against the Vatican, including personal attacks against the Pope, arrests of underground bishops and forcing official bishops to toe the line.

The subdued albeit predictable response (the two pre-conditions have been repeated for the past 20 years) shows at least a certain government embarrassment vis-à-vis the Pontiff's inalienable demands on Episcopal appointments and real religious freedom.

As a token of courtesy, the Holy See provided the Chinese government with a copy of the letter ten days before its publication.

For some observers a subdued reaction is evidence that the country's leadership is divided between those who want to modernise it and those who want to maintain a Stalinist hold, including over the Church. In fact, China's Foreign Affairs and Religious Affairs Ministries have already expressed different points of view in the past.

Whilst the government responded last Thursday and Friday to the publication of the papal letter in mild tones, the United Front Work Department of the Communist Party of China met most official bishops in Huairou, near Beijing, instructing them to keep calm about what the letter said.

Ye Xiaowen, director of the state council's State Administration for Religious Affairs, was there. He supposedly addressed the participants telling them that "we have served you with maotai, the best liquor in China. After drinking it, you no longer need foreign wine", which is one way of reasserting the plan to set up an independent Chinese Catholic Church, something that the Pope cannot countenance since it is contrary to Catholic doctrine.

By contrast, there is a lot of rejoicing among believers in both the official and underground Church.

"They don't want us to show our enthusiasm and our unity with the Pope," a Beijing Catholic told AsiaNews, "but we are happy about the letter and the Pope's condemnation of the Patriotic Association."

Formally known as the Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association (CPCA), this entity was created by Mao Tse-tung with the explicit goal of controlling China's Catholic community. Many of its officials are not even Catholic.

Among the faithful, issues like the family are important. Removing special prerogatives from (underground) bishops and priests is another, and so is the suggestion to all bishops that they set up all the necessary diocesan structures that are typical of the Catholic Church, like diocesan administrations and pastoral councils, etc.

Conversely, Liu Bainian, CPCA deputy chairman, said that his organisation would not distribute the letter. This would make it difficult for the Church to do it on its own because religious publications need government authorisation. Liu noted that Catholics can download the text from the Internet but in recent days the Vatican website has not been easily accessible in China.

So far official bishops have not made any public comments about the letter, fearful perhaps of what the Popes categorical refusal to accept CPCA's control of the Church might do.

Here's a translation of an AsiaNews story in its Italian service that has not yet appeared on their English service.


Beijing eliminates the Pope's letter
from the Internet

BEIJING, July 3 (AsiaNews) - Pope Benedict XVI's letter to the clergy and faithful of the People's Republic of China has disappeared from the Catholic sites on which it had been posted since its publication.

At the same time, it is impossible to open the Vatican site from inside China.

Chinese priests and faithful who administer the sites have protested. Some who had posted the letter in the simplified text version as soon as it was published were reportedly visited by government representatives who 'convinced' them to take the post offline.

One priest said the prohibition "proves the truth of what the Pope wrote about government influence in religious affairs" and "it shows that the Church in China does not in fact enjoy full religious freedom."

And yet in an interview prior to the text publication, the vice president of the Patriotic Association of Chinese Catholics, Liu Bainian had said that the PA "will not be distributing the letter to the faithful, which they can easily download from the Internet."

AsiaNews sources say nevertheless that the papal text is reaching Catholics by fax or hand-delivered, and that it may still be downloaded from the Internet from 'wildcat' sites that have managed to elude government notice.


There was an earlier story, actually, in ZENIT, which I missed, as they were late posting their Monday stories, and I didn't get back to their site after 5 pm. New York time (11 pm in Rome):


Beijing Suppresses Pope's China Letter:
Web Sites Told to Remove Full Text



HONG KONG, JULY 2, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Here is a news report published today by the Union of Asian Catholic News on China's suppression of Benedict XVI's letter written to the Catholics in that country.

* * *

Mainland Catholic Websites Told To Remove Full Text Of Papal Letter

HONG KONG (UCAN) -- Some Catholic websites in mainland China that uploaded Pope Benedict XVI's letter to Catholics in the mainland shortly after it was released were ordered hours later to remove it.

UCA News observed that a few hours after the Vatican issued the letter on June 30 at 6:00 p.m. Beijing time (12:00 noon in Rome), several mainland Catholic websites uploaded the simplified Chinese version of the letter.

However, most of those websites, which usually carry news on the Universal Church, the China Church and the pope, had removed the text by the next day.

A priest in charge of such a website registered with the government told UCA News on July 2 he felt helpless because he strongly believes that "China Church websites should publish the pope's letter."

The priest, who asked not to be named, said some government officials who came to his office on June 29 asked about the letter but did not explicitly say he could not carry it. The next evening, he uploaded the letter to his site, but he was told on July 1 morning he was not allowed to upload the text.

By July 2, UCA News found five such websites, mostly run by "underground" Catholics, still had the full text, 19,763 Chinese characters, including the footnotes.

"Actually, this is not the first time we were told not to put certain news reports and articles on the Internet, particularly concerning China-Vatican relations and what Cardinal Joseph Zen Ze-kiun of Hong Kong says," the priest pointed out. He added that since he had no choice, he removed the pope's letter, lest his website face forced closure or other possible troubles.

As Pope Benedict mentioned in the letter, there are "increased opportunities and facilities in communications" in the mainland (No. 18), so the priest said he thinks China's Catholics can get the papal letter through other channels.

The priest also said that forbidding Catholic websites in China from carrying the letter proves what the pope said about governmental interference in religious affairs and that the Church cannot enjoy full religious freedom.

Other popular Catholic websites in China were warned to remove or not upload the letter. Some of them informed their readers on June 29 that the long-awaited papal letter would be released the next evening, and they urged their readers to watch for it and related reports. But since then, such websites have carried Vatican news but not about the papal letter.

A Catholic layman told UCA News on July 2 that after browsing the Internet, very few Catholic websites in mainland seem to have the papal letter, so he concluded that government authorities have acted against the webmasters.

Even so, most mainland Catholic news websites did carry a June 30 news report from China's Foreign Ministry. In it, Qin Gang, a Foreign Ministry official, responded to a question about the papal letter.

"We have taken note of the letter released by the Pope. China has always stood for the improvement of China-Vatican relationship and made positive efforts for that. China is willing to continue candid and constructive dialogue with Vatican so as to resolve our differences," Qin said.

He also reiterated China's position that improving China-Vatican ties still has two conditions: the Vatican must sever its so-called diplomatic ties with Taiwan and recognize the People's Republic of China as the sole legitimate government representing all of China, and it shall never interfere in China's internal affairs, including in the name of religion. "We hope the Vatican side takes concrete actions and does not create new barriers," he added.

La Repubblica today has a mini-special on the traditional Mass, with a contribution from French philosopher Rene Girard. This is a translation of La Repubblica's Italian text.


'It was ridiculous to prohibit its use':
1960s changes fostered the illusion
of 'improving communication'
By RENÉ GIRARD


The news about the probable restoration of the Latin Mass by the Pope is not surprising at all: for quite some time, it had been expected that Ratzinger, who has always been a great admirer of Latin, would change the present situation by re-establishing a certain degree of liberty about the celebration of the Mass.

I always found it rather absurd and ridiculous - besides being totalitarian on the part of the Church - to have virtually prohibited the Latin Mass, an opposition to a rite that had been used for an extraordinarily long time.

There was a time when, thanks to the progressive clergy, it was very difficult to get permission to say the traditional Mass here in America, where I live. But all this started to change in the past few years. Now there are parts of the Mass which can be said always in Latin in non-obligatory Masses (therefore not at Sunday Mass).

Personally, I definitely prefer the Mass in Latin. It's a question of habit. Moreover, for French and Italians, translation has never been a problem.

I have also always regretted that some parts of the Mass, like the opening "Introibo ad altare Dei" [I shall enter the house of the Lord], were entirely suppressed in the new Mass.

There is something profoundly beautiful and evocative in the original language of the Mass, and in France, French writers like Francois Mauriac and Jacques Maritain were always nostalgic for the Latin prayer formulations, and in some ways helped to propagandize in favor of the traditional Mass.

The change in the 1960s was obviously carried out in the illusion that it would improve communicating - it was thought it was a way to promote the Mass, to spread it, to make it more accessible to all.

Now it is not a question of trying to understand if the changes resulted in bring in more faithful or not, but to understand that in such matters, there must be a freedom to follow what one believes [if it is not something that violates Church doctrine, obviously].

The idea that a Mass [that was the norm for centuries] could be prohibited at all not only does not make any sense, but it becomes counter-productive for the Church.

I believe Benedict XVI understood this very well and therefore he is seeking to minimize some senseless conflicts. Absolute rules will always generate conflict. But if the rules on the New Mass had not become so rigid to the virtual exclusion of the older rite, there would have been no conflicts because there would have been nothing to discuss. And the Mass is one of those matters that should not be subject to administrative rules!

Pope Benedict XVI has now acted quite calmly, showing wisdom and a conscious effort to placate the passions generated by insignificant quarrels which have been going on to the enjoyment of non-believers - who rejoice in seeing Catholics so worked up over 'details' which they believe are distractions from real problems which are much more important.

I think this is a general attitude by this Pope - to avoid controversies as much as possible by allowing a freedom of choice where this is possible. He knows things will work out better the less they are talked about in heat.

I see in his attitude a strong and clear political will, in the best sense of the term. A relatively minor problem can become unduly significant if the Church tries to control everything with fanatically minutious regulation, thereby adopting a totalitarian attitude in some way.

The same thing happens in any administration, including that of schools. People get polarized on significant details, making mountains out of molehills, and deflect attention from the truly important things.

Fortunately, this Pope understands that one must do away with such pettiness. For example - in the USA right now, much heated discussion is taking place about whether the priest should face the people or face the altar. They can do as they please, really - it's not a matter for debate. [Priests who celebrate the traditional Mass will simply face the altar, since that's the way it is. But will most priests used to the table-altar even think of using the Church's high altar instead for the Novus Ordo? Though I've had numerous occasions to hear the New Mass celebrated at side chapels without a table-altar!]

And the Pope's restoration of the traditional Mass should not be seen as evidence of his 'traditionalism.' His supposed 'conservatism' is an exaggeration [the Italian word used is 'forzatura', i.e., something 'forced'],a grotesque stereotype.

What has Ratzinger done that is 'conservative' since he became Pope? Nothing! All he has shown so far is lucidity, wisdom and mental agility in lightening up many of the problems that afflict the Church. [Er.... Mr. Girard, the dissidents consider sticking to Church doctrine on life, the family and sexuality as being objectionably 'conservative'!]

Finally, I wish to point out another perspective for my predilection in favor of the Latin Mass. We know that the idea of ritual implies stability, an absence of change. We must think about the positive creative aspect of habit! For instance, if one does work which is primarily intellectual, it is better - or even outright necessary - to stick to a routine because this facilitates concentration and more profound thought.

Ritual, which can sometimes be performed automatically, can be invaluably liberating, if it allows us to attend to more pressing concerns.

Finally, the idea of ritual cannot be separated from that of continuity, because if changes are continually made to it, then one ends up by destroying the ritual itself!


Repubblica, 3 luglio 2007


==================================================================

A biographical note on Girard (adapted from Wikipedia):

René Girard (born December 25, 1923, Avignon, France) is a world-renowned French historian, literary critic, and philosopher of social science. Girard is considered by many as one of the most important thinkers of our times. Yet, his work also tends to be very controversial due to his harsh criticisms of modern philosophy and his outspoken Christian views. He is considered among the foremost authorities on myth and mythology.

In 1947, Girard went to Indiana University on a one-year fellowship, and the majority of his career has been pursued in the United States. Moving back and forth between Byrn Mawr and Johns Hopkins, he finished his academic career at Stanford University where he taught between 1981 and his retirement in 1995.

He is Honorary Chair of the Colloquium on Violence and Religion and was elected to the Académie française, the highest rank for French intellectuals, on March 17, 2005. [NB: Cardinal Ratzinger was elected to the Academie in 1992.]

The Pope, China and Church Unity-
Interview With Religious Freedom Expert


ROME, JULY 2, 2007 (Zenit.org).- The reception of Benedict XVI's letter to Chinese Catholics will say as much about the status of the Church there as the letter itself, says an expert on China-Vatican relations.

In this interview with ZENIT, Raphaela Schmid spoke of the Pope's letter, what it means for the Church in China and for the Chinese government.

Schmid, director of the Becket Institute for Religious Liberty, recently wrote and directed the TV documentary "God in China. The Struggle for Religious Freedom."

What prompted Benedict XVI to write the letter to China in the first place?

The prime mover behind the letter was Joseph Cardinal Zen Ze-kiun: Since his elevation by Benedict XVI to the rank of cardinal, he has been a tireless advocate for Chinese Catholics before the Roman Curia.

When Beijing illegally ordained bishops in 2006, after a period of diplomatic rapprochement, the Vatican was caught off guard, and Cardinal Zen felt that there had to be a reconsideration and clear restatement of China policy in order not to be wrong-footed again.

So this is why a meeting was held in January 2007 in Rome to discuss matters and out of this discussion the Pope's letter came.

What is the most important element of the letter?

The most significant thing about this letter is that it exists at all - that there is a letter to Chinese Catholics from the Pope. And it will serve as a test case for the much-trumpeted new openness toward Rome of the official Church.

It is all very well for reconciled bishops - 90% of the illegitimately ordained bishops in China have subsequently reconciled with Rome - to encourage the faithful to pray for the Pope at Sunday Mass. But when the Holy Father writes an actual letter to them, what will they do?

Distribute it to the faithful and take it as a fundamental reference point for the future - or ignore it and carry on as if it had never been written?

To be sure, the reception of this letter will say as much as the text itself about the current situation of the Church in China.

Is there any indication of how the letter been received so far?

Already, before the letter appeared, government officials had summoned 'open Church' bishops to a meeting in order to coordinate the response - which appears to be: do nothing.

News reports today indicate that the letter was not mentioned at open Church Sunday Masses and the vice chairman of the Patriotic Association has indicated that there are no plans to distribute the letter.

He did, however, state that people were free to download it from the Internet if they wanted. And this seems to be happening: I've been in contact with underground Catholics who have already read it.

There is a strong grassroots movement in the open Church community in favor of communion with Rome, even to the extent that the open Church auxiliary bishop of Shanghai could admit: "Without mandate from Rome, the people will not accept a bishop."

I imagine that independent of the directives of the Church hierarchy, they are going online too.

It remains to be seen whether and to what extent the Chinese government will try to restrict access: There have been some reports that Catholic Web sites based in China had originally been allowed to upload the letter but were subsequently forced to take it down.

Does the Pope's letter represent a dramatic change in Vatican policy? What exactly has the letter changed?

There has been some confusion on this matter in the initial press reactions.

The letter revokes the special faculties granted in 1981 through a letter of Cardinal Agnelo Rossi, the then prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples.

At that time, the Holy See found it impossible to directly provide legitimate bishops loyal to the Holy See and therefore granted the loyal bishops within China the "very special faculties" to ordain bishops without previously informing the Holy See, because of the danger incurred in communicating with Rome.

Clearly in an age of e-mail and cell phones, communication with Rome no longer presents an insurmountable problem, and so these special faculties are no longer necessary.

The revocation of these faculties is not the same as the revocation of the Tomko points of 1988, which have been superseded by this letter. As the letter explicitly says, the fundamental principles remain the same: Illegitimate ordination still incurs excommunication latae sententiae according to canon 1382.

Bishops appointed by, or reconciled with, Rome are still fully valid and legitimate.

Bishops appointed without papal mandate and not reconciled with Rome are still illegitimate: They administer the sacraments validly, but not legitimately.

As has always been the case, Catholics may receive sacraments from them where they have no other option, just as they can from valid yet illegitimate Greek Orthodox clergy.

Does the letter criticize or condemn anyone?

In the letter, Benedict XVI shows extraordinary sympathy and understanding for difficult situations of individual priests or bishops - and that the lack of religious freedom in China is a mitigating factor in the decision-making process. So there are no blanket condemnations or criticism.

But, at the same time, the Pope is tough on the specific institutions such as the bishops' conference of the open Church which "cannot be recognized by the Holy See" because of its exclusion of underground bishops and inclusion of bishops not recognized by the Holy See, as well as the Catholic Patriotic Association whose statutes are 'incompatible with Church doctrine.'

What is the Catholic Patriotic Association?

The Patriotic Association is not the same as the open or official Church, although there is a good deal of overlap between the two; the Pope refers to it as an 'external entity' which sometimes 'interferes' in the running of the official Church.

The Patriotic Association is a collective that was set up by the government in 1957, with the stated purpose of implementing 'the principles of independence and autonomy, self-management, and democratic administration of the Church.'

These are the principles that the Pope's letter unequivocally calls 'incompatible with Catholic doctrine.'

Are Catholics in China required to join the Catholic Patriotic Association?

In the past, priests and bishops were required to join this organization if they wished to practice their faith in the open and with government approval.

This is no longer the case everywhere: Bishop Lucas Li of Fenxiang, for example, has received government approval without being a member of the Patriotic Association.

But still enormous pressure is sometimes brought to bear on bishops and clerics to join the Patriotic Association: In 2001, Bishop Li and his secretary were arrested by the police and disappeared for about a month, while 12 priests of his diocese were detained and forced to attend re-education courses in order to force them to join the Patriotic Association.

The campaign was unsuccessful, but the episode shows the enduring power of the Patriotic Association.

One of the reasons for this power is money: The Religious Affairs Bureau and the Patriotic Association are in charge of confiscated Church properties and investments across the country.

According to Anthony Lam of the Holy Spirit Study Center in Hong Kong, the total value of confiscated properties and goods amounts to at least 130 billion Yuan, that is about $17 billion. Only a fraction of the income of these properties is redirected to the government-approved official Church.

The document does not speak of a 'patriotic' or 'official Church', nor does it mention an 'underground Church' - what is the significance of this?

It is perfectly true that the document does this, and it is not a new departure. Rome has always avoided speaking of schism - of the 'official' or 'patriotic' Church in China having split off from the Roman Catholic Church.

The facts on the ground, however, had made it necessary to distinguish between two groups of Catholics - those whose collaboration with the government gained them the privilege of open exercise of their religion, though at the cost of accepting illegitimate bishops - and those whose refusal to compromise resulted in them being driven underground.

Ultimately, however, the future of this distinction depends on the Chinese government and the advancement of religious freedom in China.

Thanks to Lella's blog, this interview with a historian specializing in China affairs, published today in the Florence-based newspaper Toscana oggi, and translated here:


Pope's letter:
a historic first
By Gigliola Alfaro

"Historically, the Letter is a great novelty. It is the first Papal letter ever addressed specifically to the Catholics of the People's Republic of China. Moreover, the presentation - which is broad and detailed - does not refer to any positions taken by the Church before the Second Vatican Council.

"All this indicates how much the Pope wished to show that the Catholic Church is not looking to the past but at today and above all, the future, with great openness - which I think is the keynote of this Letter. It is very open to profound dialog, to looking at problems directly 'in the face', and shows a willingness to consider the position of others."

This was the judgment of historian Agostino Giovagnoli, a scholar on Chinese issues, whom Toscana Oggi interviewed about the Papal letter to China.

This was a very important letter, then....

Yes, because it closes a very long period [almost 50 years - since 1949, the year of the Chinese Communist takeover) during which the Catholics of China have lived in a state of emergency because of the grave difficulties placed in their way.

Related to this, as far as the Church and the Holy See are concerned, is the idea of China as a special case, unlike any other.

Both of those conditions are dealt with by the Pope, who calls on Chinese Catholics to face their problems as do Catholics elsewhere - that means emerging from conditions which resulted in a highly unusual canonical profile, with certain special privileges granted to the clergy.

The fact that the Pope, in effect, treats the Church in China 'normally' is truly a surprising and great novelty, something that could not absolutely be foreseen because since the Communists took power, things have been very bad.

Do you think it is possible to start a dialog?

The Pope has called on the Chinese Catholics to reconcile. We know they have been split for quite some time, and even among themselves, there are a lot of internal divisions. But the Pope is asking them to unite, in the Christian way, through love, forgiveness and reconciliation.

The Letter is quite clear on this point, very paternal and encouraging, trusting in the value of unity which is the value of love.

Then, there's the dialog with those who are not in the Church, including the government in Beijing, and here too, the Pope asks for a dialog that is respectful, above all, of each other's identity. His letter contains no prejudicial positions, and is open to the exigencies of others, as for example, that of the Chinese government - exigencies about which the Pope says some could be accepted but others must be rejected because they are against the fundamental doctrine of the Church and are therefore non-negotiable. But he says all this in a spirit of great cordiality, which is an important prerequisite for dialog.

How do you think the Letter will be received in China? Will they understand its spiritual character or will they see it as an interference by the Vatican in Chinese affairs?

I hope that Catholics will welcome the letter in its most profound essence which is spiritual. The government will have a political reaction, but that is to be expected because governments are not interested in religious matters. This is not in itself bad, provided it takes into account that its interlocutor in this case is a religious institution.

Benedict XVI has made a gesture of great sincerity and even of great sensitivity in writing this Letter. I can only hope that the Chinese government credits this and will respond in a diplomatic way, based on a climate of mutual trust. This is indispensable for dealing with such sensitive issues, but it has been lacking so far because there have never been satisfactory relations between the Vatican and the government in Beijing.

How do you interpret the revocation of all the concessions that were given to the Chinese clergy in order to face particular exigencies that may emerge in difficult times?

It's a sign that Benedict XVI wants to close the era of a clandestine or underground Church alongside an official or patriotic Catholicism. So he is revoking the extraordinary concessions that allowed, for example, archbishops to ordain bishops without the consensus of Rome - which presumed a total absence of relations.

But now, that situation has been overcome. Direct relations between Rome and Chinese Catholics is possible even if still somewhat difficult. But the underground Church should now emerge, do everything in the open, be united in a spirit of autonomy as well as respect for the government.

That seems to be Benedict's plan even if it's something that will take time. The sense is very clear: it no longer makes sense to have an underground Church in China.

The Labor of Benedict

BY The Editors
July 8-14, 2007
National Catholic Register

The Holy Father has taken on a Herculean labor  and has called on Chinese Catholics to help.

For the sake of the Church worldwide, which looks to the millions of Chinese Catholics as a source of hope, we pray that they will answer his call.

If Pope Benedict XVIs letter to China is like any of the 12 Labors of Hercules, its most like the fifth one, the cleaning of King Augeas stables.

It was perhaps the most difficult challenge Hercules faced. The stables had never been cleaned even though they held an enormous number of cattle that had added for years to a mythically gigantic mess. Realizing he could never do the job in the conventional way, Hercules diverted a river that swept through channels he dug into the stables.

Pope Benedict has a similar challenge  and much the same answer. What happened to the Church in most communist countries was bad enough. In places like Albania, the government relentlessly persecuted Church leaders. In places such as Poland, they kept the hierarchy in a decades-long chokehold.

In China it was worse. The Catholic Church was first persecuted, then split. One group of Catholics was co-opted by the government in its Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association. Another was driven underground.

Now, a few decades later, many in the Patriotic Association have pledged allegiance to Rome  and those who stayed true in the underground Church are modern-day Christian heroes, martyrs in death or bloodless martyrs who have lived out a monumental sacrifice.

The mess that needs to be sorted out has many components. Chief among them:

" Ecclesial disputes. Most Patriotic bishops are legitimate. A few arent. Of those who are, some have made capitulations to the state that, while not ideal, are not illegitimate. Others capitulations were inappropriate.

" Two realities. On the one hand, there are many Catholics who are, by circumstance and history, part of the Patriotic Church, but whose hearts are with Rome. On the other is a whole group of Catholics whose heroic fidelity to Rome make them like a Church of Thomas Mores. How to properly honor the faith of the first group without slighting the witness of the second?

Pope Benedict has to define exactly where and when a violation of Petrine authority crossed the line and where it was simply an unfortunate capitulation in extreme circumstances. He has to honor the faith of two groups of Catholics who have arrived at the year 2007 from two different histories.

Pope Benedicts solution is to do what Hercules did: Carefully divert a river. He has to know where the Church can yield and where it must stand firm. And he has to do it in such a way that the whole point of the exercise  the flock  is preserved intact.

Then he has to marshal the only force strong enough to clean the mess: the river of divine love. As the Pope put it to Chinese Catholics, Christs love enables human beings to enter into a new dimension, where mercy and love shown even to enemies can bear witness to the victory of the Cross over all weakness and human wretchedness.

The bottom-line function of the Church is to deliver the sacraments to souls. Any other goal pales to insignificance if it contravenes that one.

The Church in China is entering a new era, one that can only begin with the painful choice Christians have faced after every wave of martyrdom in history. It can step forward only by leaving the painful past behind. And it can do that only through heroic love and mercy  toward both persecutors and those who buckled under pressure.

The effort will be worth it.

A missionary priest tells the story of asking a Chinese Catholic if he wishes his Church were more like Americas.

No, I wish Americas was more like ours, he said. In the West, Catholics have grown complacent  here, we know the value of the faith.

Hes right.

A united Catholic Church in China wont just change the history of the Church  it will change the history of the world. The Church can feed the spiritual hunger of the East, and start a revolution of love in one of the worlds largest and most powerful nations. But only if the Catholics of China follow Pope Benedict XVI with courage and generosity.

We can pray to the martyrs of Chinas underground Church for the grace to make that so. After all, they know what it takes to follow the Pope, no matter how hard it gets.

Has anyone seen anything by George Weigel lately? John Allen announced today he will not resume writing his daily column till August 1st as he finishes his new book for a September printing deadline - and he 'copped out' last Friday by running what is probably a sub-chapter in his book on mega-trends in the Church about the role of female lay ecclesial ministers in tne USA.

So the two most reliable and competent Vatican commentators in the English MSM have been 'missing in action' on a week that cannot have had quite a parallel in Papal history, at least in the past century.

Let me presume, then, to note down my comments for the record:

- On June 25, the Holy Father named one of the Vatican's most experienced diplomats, Cardinal Jean Tauran, who had been John Paul II's 'foreign minister' for 10 years, to head the Pontifical Council for Inter-Religious Dialog (CIRD.)

Until the Pope reassigned its former head, Archbishop Michael Fitzgerald last year, this Council had never been under a cardinal. He placed it temporarily under the presidency of Cardinal Paul Poupard, president of the Pontifical Council for Culture.

Instead of seeing this positively - Poupard, after all, has excellent credentials - all of MSM saw this as a 'demotion' of the CIRD, because they assumed it meant it was being incorporated into the Council of Culture. It was not.

The Pope's assignment of another cardinal to head it now clearly shows the importance he gives to the CIRD.

On June 26, Pope Benedict XVI issued a most unexpected Motu Proprio reversing a decision by John Paul II who allowed for the possibility of a Pope being elected with only a simple majority, instead of the millennium-old requirement for two-thirds of the cardinals voting in Conclave.

It's a measure of how, possibly, the late Pope had been ill-advised about the matter, that Benedict's decision was universally welcomed - so welcome that no one pointed out the obvious thing: Benedict, of his own accord - motu proprio, in the literal sense - had reversed a John Paul decree! If MSM had found Benedict's decision in any way objectionable, they would have raised a big fuss about - who knows, maybe his 'gross disrespect' for his predecessor, or something.

On June 27, the Pope himself, in person, unexpectedly presented his next Motu Proprio - this one long-awaited - to key cardinals and bishops representing the universal Church: he is restoring the pre-Conciliar Mass to the liturgy as an extraordinary eucharistic rite side by side with the Novus Ordo as the ordinary eucharistic rite of the Roman Church.

The MP itself will be made public this week as soon as all bishops around the world have received their copy, so they do not learn about it first from the media.

With this Motu Proprio, Benedict corrects a historic 'wrong' unwittingly inflicted by Paul VI's legislation of the Novus Ordo in 1967. Joseph Ratzinger was probably the only member of the Church hierarchy who consistently denounced the prohibition overnight of the old Missal which had been in use for centuries, the imposition of an artificial liturgy constructed by committee in its place, and the subsequent abuses that it gave rise to.

True, John Paul II lightened up the situation somehow by the special indults he granted in 1984 and 1988, but the indults were still a far cry from restoring a legitimacy that was arbitrarily denied the Old Mass overnight - unprecedented in the history of the Church, as Ratzinger would often say.

So with this MP, Benedict both corrects one predecessor (Paul VI) and goes way beyond what a second predecessor (JP-II) was prepared to do to make the correction, while at the same time illustrating concretely the proper interpretation of Vatican-II. The progressives who have co-opted the 'spirit of Vatican II' for their purposes will never forgive him for this - not that he is overruling two predecessors, but that he is singlehandedly depriving them of their battle-standard! [P.S. on 7/7/07 - And launching that much talked-about 'reform of the reform'!]

And so, by Motu Proprio, he is leaving his mark on two of the institutions most unique to the Church - the Papal Conclave and the Mass.

On June 28, Benedict presided at the traditional Vespers to mark the eve of the feast of saints Peter and Paul, at which he made the official announcement of a Pauline Jubilee Year on the bimillenial anniversary of the great Apostle's birth.

Unofficially, it was learned he has also authorized a scientific examination of the interior of Paul's sarcophagus - an event with the same potential historic impact as the discovery and authentication of Peter's bones beneath the Vatican basilica many years ago.

On June 29, the Pope conferred the pallium on 46 out of 51 metropolitan archbishops he had named in the past year - which is very likely a record number for a 12-month period.

On June 30, another historic first: the Pope's letter to the Catholics of China, a decision he had announced in January after he convened the College of Cardinals to discuss the China issue. The significance and the implications of what the Pope conveyed both to the Chinese faithful as well as to their government have been variously discussed in the preceding commentaries.

John Paul II saw in Asia the Church's hope for the Third Millennium, and in this context, Asia really means China, largest nation on earth and obvious object of evangelization. But it falls to his successor to actually lay the groundwork for that apostolate, and he is doing it by sweeping aside half a century of conventional wisdom to begin with a clean slate.

Just the simple recitation of the days and what marked each day is already mind-boggling because of the far-reaching nature of the events that happened.

What's even more stunning is the courage of Benedict XVI to make the hard but necessary decisions that had to do with the Conclave rule, the restoration of the traditional mass, and the letter to Chinese Catholics.

This is the Papacy that MSM thought would be nothing better than transitional, a Papacy that they thought would be dull and boring because Joseph Ratzinger is supposedly unendowed with all the gifts of charisma and mediagenicity that his predecessor had.

It must be partly wounded self-esteem that keeps them now from acknowledging the very obvious historicity and significance of the week that was for Pope Benedict XVI and the Church he leads. This is not at all the scenario they had in mind for God's Rottweiler.

But in many ways, the smiling Pope, the Pope of love and joy, the Pope of 'friendship with God' as the RAI tribute calls him, has shown he can be the Panzer-Pope, unafraid of forging ahead when he has to, because he is armored with 'truth and love', veritas et caritas.

The Holy Father is a most humble man, but let us render unto Benedict what is his due!


Addendum:

Let us review the highlights of Benedict's first two years.
By consensus, the most significant, historic and unforgettable Papal texts - true distillations of 'veritas et caritas' - have been:

2005 (as Cardinal Ratzinger and as Pope Benedict)-
- The Via Crucis meditations and prayers
- The pre-Conclave homily
- The brief but very emblematic Urbi et Orbi as the new Pope
- His inaugural homily
- His homily to the youth at the Mariensfeld Mass in Cologne
- His December 22, 2005, address to the Roman Curia on the correct interpretation of Vatican II

2006:
- The encyclical Deus caritas est
- The discourse at Auschwitz-Birkenau
- The homilies in Munich and Regensburg
- The Regensburg lecture
- The Verona address to the Italian church

2007:
- The apostolic exhortation Sacramentum caritatis
- JESUS OF NAZARETH
- Addresses to the youth of Latin America and the Brazilian clergy
- The homily on Augustine in Pavia
- The homily and the address to the youth in Assisi
- The Letter to Chinese Catholics

His apostolic voyages:
- WYD 2005 in Cologne
- Poland, his ultimate tribute to John Paul II and the visit to Auschwitz-Birkenau
- Valencia, his tribute to the family
- Bavaria, tribute to his homeland, appeal to his fellow Germans,
and the Regensburg lecture
- Turkey, the ecumenical visit to Bartholomew I
and the prayer at the Blue Mosque,a silence that spoke louder than words
- His pilgrimages to Mannopello, Pavia and Assisi

The Benedict Q&As, unprecedented in the history of the Papacy:
- With the children of the First Communion
- With the clergy of Aosta
- With the clergy of Rome (twice)
- With the youth of Rome
- With the seminarians of Rome

The Wednesday catecheses:
- Winding up John Paul's cycle on the Psalms
- The Apostles and outstanding figures of the early Church
- The current series on the Fathers of the Church

Collegiality:
He has convened the College of CArdinals at least 3 times to discuss Church issues, and introduced the daily open-discussion hour to the Bishops Synod.

The faithful:
He has attracted record-setting crowds at the audiences, Angelus and liturgical celebrations

His writings:
- The encyclical and JESUS OF NAZARETH are multi-million sellers in multiple languages
- The Vatican publishing house reports steady sales of booklets on the Pope's individual homilies and unprecedented demand for an apostolic exhortation

[It's 3 a.m., so if I missed anything, please forgive me!]

====================================================================

P.S. I found out from an item I posted in REMEMBERING JOHN PAUL II that George Weigel is currently in Krakow busy with the annual summer seminar for young people on the teachings of John Paul II.

This was a double post of the above.

VATICAN CITY, JULY 3, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI will make a pastoral visit to Naples as that city hosts an annual interreligious meeting to promote dialogue and peace.

The Pope announced June 29, the feast of Sts. Peter and Paul, that he will attend the annual International Encounters of Peoples and Religions, promoted by the Community of Sant'Egidio, to be held Oct. 21-23. [NB: Just for the sake of accuracy, he announced he was making a pastoral visit to Naples in response to the invitation of Cardinal Sepe, Archbishop of Naples. But he did not mention the inter-religious meeting in his announcement.]

During his address before praying the Angelus on Sunday, the Holy Father said: "I greet today, in advance, the dear Neapolitan community, who I invite to prepare for this meeting in prayer and with works of charity."

Naples will host some 300 people from over 70 countries who will take place in round table discussions and other activities.

The International Encounters of Peoples and Religions was inspired by the World Day of Prayer for Peace convoked by Pope John Paul II in 1986. The event was held in Assisi.

These meetings have progressed, year after year, across Italy's main cities and European capitals - and also Washington, D.C. - offering an opportunity for dialogue and for religious differences to be surmounted.

Cardinal Zen points out translation errors
in the Chinese version of the Letter and its Explanatory Note


Father Z shares this distressing information on his blog today:



Translations are the plague of the modern Church. We know that several documents have been delayed because of translation problems. Some have been amended. Many people study and quote documents without knowing what they really say because of the discontinuity between the original and the translation, and then when they emerge in the Acta Apostolica Sedis between Latin and... everything else.

Now Joseph Card. Zen Ze-kiun of Hong Kong says mistakes have been made in Chinese translations of two recently released documents, the Pope's Letter to Catholics in China and the Explanatory Note accompanying the letter.

The Hong Kong Catholic Diocese released the Cardinal's statement on July 3, The Cardinal's own Chinese version of the papal letter is available at: www.ucanews.com/

The English version of Cardinal Zen's release follows:



Some mistakes in the Chinese translation
of the Pope's letter and in the "explanatory notes"

(1) From a cursory reading of the Pope's letter some serious mistake has been found: in the last second section of paragraph 7 (Chinese translation) after the words "In not a few particular instances, however" the following words are missing "indeed almost always"

(2) In the "explanatory notes" (A) last fourth paragraph, last section, instead of the original "some sectors of the Catholic community were disorientated by the legitimizing of numerous Bishops who had been illicitly consecrated" the Chinese version reads: "disorientated by the numerous illicit ordinations of bishops.

(3) In the explanatory notes, which do not constitute part of the Pope's letter and which bear no signature of the author, some expression is found which is at considerable variance from what is said in the Pope's letter and is very inappropriate:

About the Bishops who, many years ago, accepted illicit ordination, the Pope's letter says (section 11 of paragraph 8): "other pastors, however, under the pressure of particular circumstances, have consented..." This is a neutral expression which avoids judgment. But the "explanatory notes" say (section 6 of A): "others, who were especially concerned with the good of the faithful and with an eye to the future, have consented ... "

Such expression, praising the bishops who accepted the illicit ordination, puts the others, who refused to surrender to pressure, in a very bad light, as if they neglected the good of the faithful and were short sighted!? I dare to protest in the name of the latter.

Cardinal Joseph ZEN

====================================================================

The 'judgment' interposed in the Explanatory Note by the translator into a clearly neutral statement in the Letter itself is truly outrageous! It is obviously not an error of translation but a deliberate misrepresentation of the original text. The worst thing is that the errors are in the Chinese translations!

Cardinal Zen notes rightly that the Explanatory Note does not carry a signature - one presumes it was prepared by the Secretariat of State and/or the Vatican Press Office. What will they do to correct this situation?

Remember the similar misrepresentations done in the English translation of Sacramentum caritatis, notably about the use of Latin! How easy it is for saboteurs at the Vatican to work in their personal views into Papal texts - and I mean saboteurs here in the sense of those who do not share the Pope's views and wish to project their own to his when they can.

It's scary enough as a mere possibility. The fact that it is actually happening is even scarier. Surely those responsible for having the translations done can trace back and find out who the culprits are - and not trust them again with translating a Papal text or its explanatory notes.

Imagine what a 'progressive' saboteur can do to the translations of the Mass MP - if only to sow unnecessary confusion and misplaced dissent!

There has to be some mechanism for checks-and-balances in the translation process at the Vatican. A simple matter like one translation must be checked by another one who knows the language just as well, and if they disagree, the opinion of a third translator should be sought.



===================================================================