IMITATING THE APOSTLES, SPREADING THE GOSPEL WITH COURAGE
Pope Francis this morning continued his weekly general audience series of catecheses on the Acts of the Apostles, telling the faithful in St. Peter’s Square, “we now reflect on how Saint Peter and the Apostles respond with courage to those who wanted to stop the spread of the Gospel.” He said that, “strengthened by the experience of Pentecost, the Apostles become the ‘megaphone’ of the Holy Spirit, proclaiming the saving word of God that cannot be silenced.” (photo Vatican media)
The Holy Father explained that, “in the midst of the Sanhedrin, which feels threatened by the Apostolic preaching, a different voice is heard. The highly regarded doctor of the Law, Gamaliel, demonstrates the ‘art of discernment’. Filled with prophetic wisdom, he invites the leaders of the people not to give in to haste, but to wait for developments over time. This kind of discernment is valuable for the Church because it invites us to be farsighted, to contemplate events and not to make hasty judgments.”
“Discernment,” emphasized the Pope, “is an art that does not provide standardized solutions. It is an exercise of spiritual intelligence carried out by the children of God who learn to see traces of the Father’s presence within history. Let us ask the Holy Spirit to help us acquire the habit of discernment in order to learn that both time and the faces of our brothers and sisters are messengers of the living God.”
At one point in his talk, the Pope recalled the 21 Coptic Orthodox Christians – Egyptian construction workers – who were martyred for their faith in 2015 on a beach in Libya at the hands of the so-called Islamic State. “Their last word was ‘Jesus, Jesus’. They did not deny their faith, because the Holy Spirit was with them. Modern martyrs,” he said.
After the various language greetings at the end of the audience, Francis remembered those affected by Alzheimer’s disease, urging prayers for them, especially with the approach of World Alzheimer’s Day on Saturday, September 21. The Pope noted that Alzheimer’s “is a disease that affects many men and women who often become victims of violence, maltreatment and abuse that trample their dignity. We pray for the conversion of hearts and for those affected by Alzheimer’s, their families and those who care for them with love,”
PRIESTS ALLEGED TO HAVE ABUSED ALTAR BOYS TO STAND TRIAL
Late yesterday afternoon the Vatican released the following communiqué: “The Promoter of Justice of the Vatican City Tribunal, following provisions of September 16 and 17, requested the indictments of, respectively Fr. Gabriele Martinelli on charges of sexual abuse that would have taken place in the Saint Pio X pre-seminary in years before 2012 , and Fr. Enrico Radice, rector of the pre-seminary at the time of the facts, on charges of aiding and abetting (the abuse).
“The investigations were started in November 2017 following news released by the press. Although the reported facts date back to years in which the law in force at the time prevented the trial in the absence of a complaint by the injured person to appear within a year of the disputed facts, the postponement was made possible by virtue of a special provision of the Holy Father of July 29 (2019), which removed the ban on proceeding.”
POPE FRANCIS WELCOMES PATRIARCH BARTHOLOMEW
(Tuesday, September 17, late afternoon) From Holy See Press Office Director Matteo Bruni: “As scheduled, the Holy Father met Patriarch Bartholomew. The meeting took place in a fraternal atmosphere and was followed by lunch together with the respective delegations at Santa Marta residence. Before the meeting, at the invitation of Bishop Marcel Semeraro, Secretary of the Council of Cardinals, the Patriarch briefly greeted the Cardinals members of the Council and emphasized the value of synodality in the Church and assurances of his prayer.”
You will recall that, on the June 29th feast of Sts. Peter and Paul, Apostles, Pope Francis gave the Orthodox delegation that was in Rome to attend the June 29 events honoring the Apostles, a reliquary containing 9 fragments of bones of St. Peter that had been found in the Vatican scavi leading to his tomb. The 9 fragments were chosen from among many fragments by Paul VI to be put in a container to rest of the chapel of the private apartments of the Pope in the Apostolic Palace.
The Vatican wrote at the time: “Of those bones now preserved in the necropolis under St. Peter, Paul VI had nine fragments handed over to keep them in the private chapel of the papal apartment, inside a bronze box bearing this inscription: “Ex ossibus quae in Arcibasilicae Vaticanae hypogeo invents Beati Petri Apostoli esse putantur “(From the bones found in the hypogeum of the Vatican Basilica, which are believed to be of Blessed Peter the Apostle).”
The Vatican note on Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I’s visit to Francis never gave a reason for the visit but it can be presumed that it was to thank the Holy Father for his remarkable and historical gift.
Joan's Rome 