60 YEARS AGO TODAY – SUMMER OLYMPICS OPEN IN ROME

Another quiet day at the Vatican and another day without a press office bulletin but, as I wrote yesterday, that’s not unusual in August. My favorite story of the day follows!

60 YEARS AGO TODAY – SUMMER OLYMPICS OPEN IN ROME

I found this fascinating 7-minute video on the wantedinrome.com website as it marked the 60^th anniversary today of the opening of the summer Olympics games in Rome in 1960. It is in both English and Italian but you can understand most just by the images. The film starts on August 24 when the organizers and over 5,000 athletes gathered in St. Peter’s Square to be blessed by Pope John XXIII. You hear the pontiff’s words and see an amazing pomp and splendor in the square.

Later that evening, at 9 pm, the Olympic flame was brought to Capitoline Hill where remained until the following afternoon, August 25, when it was brought to the stadium for the opening ceremony. You’ll see parts of the opening ceremony procession into the stadium by athletes and learn that both East Germany and West Germany participated under one flag, that of the Olympic Games.

Enjoy! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4PB7VjMW4&feature=emb_err_woyt

(wantedinrome) – Rome held 1960 Olympic Games at Stadio Olimpico and at ancient sites around the city.

The 1960 Olympic Games kicked off in Rome on this day, 25 August, 60 years ago, lasting until 11 September.

There were 83 nations involved in the games, with 5,338 participating athletes (4,727 men, 611 women) and 150 events in 17 sports (23 disciplines).

The opening and closing ceremonies took place in the newly-renovated Stadio Olimpico, which also hosted athletics and equestrian sports, while the football finals were held in the brand new (but now dilapidated) Stadio Flaminio.

However the city also made good use of its majestic sites, with gymnastics taking place at the Baths of Caracalla, wrestling at the Basilica of Maxentius, and rowing and canoeing held at Lake Albano in Castel Gandolfo.

Highlights of the Rome games included Abebe Bikila of Ethiopia winning the marathon barefoot to become the first black African Olympic champion; Cassius Clay (later known as Muhammad Ali), winning boxing’s light-heavyweight gold medal, and Wilma Rudolph, a former polio patient, winning three gold medals in sprint events on the track to be acclaimed as “the fastest woman in the world”.

The Soviet Union dominated the games, winning a total of 103 medals, followed by the US which won 71 medals and the United Team of Germany (East and West) with 42.

1960 was the last time that South Africa participated in the Olympics under its apartheid regime, which saw it banned until 1992, while Singapore competed for the first time under its own flag after the British granted it self-government a year earlier.

***** I found another video – 2 hours, 20 minutes – and was riveted as I fast forwarded through it, stopping at some interesting moments about track and field, swimming and diving, yachting, water polo and, of course the marathon, run through the historic streets of Rome and ending near the Colosseum at the Arch of Constantine.

I have watched as much as I could of every Olympic Game ever played since they were first televised, especially when they were in time zones in which I lived. I attended part of the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin in person and did radio reports and a blog for EWTN! I felt sad for organizers and athletes that the Summer Olympics could not take place this year in Japan as planned.

I was riveted by the competition and also by the commentary that was sometimes hilarious in this video of The Great Olympics. It is fascinating to see how far technology has come in several sports and how far fashion has come as well! Especially for referees and judges who did their work then in full suits and often wearing hats. Commentary is in both English and Italian. If you have a bit of time to go back a bit in history, I think you’ll be riveted by certain moments.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kx8mGG7KYBk&feature=emb_rel_err

 

POPE FRANCIS: A GOOD HOMILY NEED BE ONLY 10 MINUTES LONG – POPE FRANCIS APPEALS FOR END TO HUMAN TRAFFICKING – “MAY OLYMPICS BE A FESTIVAL OF FRIENDSHIP AND SPORT,” SAYS POPE – PAPAL TELEGRAM FOR EARTHQUAKE IN TAIWAN – TWO FORMER VATICAN BANK OFFICIALS GUILTY OF MISMANAGEMENT

I read the papal telegram for the earthquake in Hualien, Taiwan and immediately thought of the beauty of the region and its people which I had the privilege to visit in 2001. I hope the numbers of victims does not grow and that re-building comes speedily.

POPE FRANCIS: A GOOD HOMILY NEED BE ONLY 10 MINUTES LONG

At today’s general audience, the Holy Father continued his catechesis on the Eucharist, turn to the culmination of the Liturgy of the Word in the Gospel and in the homily.

He said, “The Gospel sheds the light of the mystery of Christ on the scriptural readings that precede it. By our acclamations and the rites that accompany its proclamation, we venerate the Gospel as the living and saving word of God, who speaks to us in the midst of the liturgical assembly and awaits our response.”

Francis then noted that, “this dialogue between the Lord and his people continues in the homily, which seeks to make God’s word incarnate in our hearts and in our lives. The homily draws us more deeply into the mystery of the communion in Christ that we celebrate in the Eucharist. The homily makes demands on both the homilist and the congregation; both must be disposed to consider how the word of God applies to the here and now of our lives, even when its summons to conversion proves challenging or painful.”

“The preacher must pay due attention, taking on the correct interior dispositions – without subjective pretexts – and knowing that every preacher has strengths and weaknesses. Sometimes the congregation has reason to be bored by a homily that is too long, irrelevant, or incomprehensible; at other times, it is prejudice that becomes an obstacle.”

He then spoke off the cuff, addressing deacons, priests and bishops who preach, telling them a good homily is well prepared and brief. The best way to prepare “is with prayer, study of the Word of God, and a clear, brief synthesis, which must not go over 10 minutes.”

POPE FRANCIS APPEALS FOR END TO HUMAN TRAFFICKING

At the end of today’s general audience, the Holy Father noted that tomorrow, February 8, marks the liturgical memory of St Josephine Bakhita, a Sudanese nun, who as a child had the traumatic experience of being a victim of human trafficking.

February 8 is also, he said, “the World Day of Prayer and Reflection on Human Trafficking. The theme this year is “Migration without Trafficking. Yes to Freedom! No to Trafficking!”

“Having few possibilities of regular channels, many migrants are forced to choose illegal channels of migration where they are submitted to abuses of every kind, exploitation and slavery. Criminal organizations that engage in the trafficking of persons make use of migratory routes to hide their victims among the migrants and refugees.

I therefore invite everyone, citizens and institutions, to join forces to prevent trafficking and to guarantee protection and assistance to the victims. Let us pray that the Lord may convert the hearts of traffickers and give hope to those who suffer because of this shameful scourge so they may regain their freedom.”

“MAY OLYMPICS BE A FESTIVAL OF FRIENDSHIP AND SPORT,” SAYS POPE

Speaking at the end of the weekly general audience, Francis noted that the XXIII Winter Olympics are being inaugurated in the South Korean city of Pyeongchang on Friday, February 9, with the participation of teams from 92 countries.

He said “the traditional Olympic truce takes on a particular significance since delegations from both North and South Korea will be marching together at the opening ceremony and competing together on the same team. This makes up hope for a world in which conflicts can be peacefully resolved through dialogue and mutual respect, reflecting the values which sport embodies.

I greet the International Olympic Committee, the athletes who will participate in the Pyeongchang games and the people of the Korean peninsula. I accompany everyone with my prayer and renew the commitment of the Holy See to support every initiative in favor of peace and meetings among peoples. May these Olympics be a great festival of friendship and sport! May God bless you and keep you!

A Vatican news story noted that the Pope’s words came as North Korea announced that the sister of North Kim Jong-un will attend Friday’s Olympic opening ceremony. Kim Yo-jong, a senior Workers’ Party official promoted to the politburo last year, will be the first member of the immediate Kim family to cross the border between North and South Korea.

The move is widely being seen as an effort to ease tensions between the two neighbours who never signed a peace treaty at the end of the Korean War in 1953. The border, or demilitarized zone between the two countries, remains one of the most heavily fortified borders in the world today.

PAPAL TELEGRAM FOR EARTHQUAKE IN TAIWAN

 

Cardinal Pietro Parolin, secretary of State, sent the following telegram in Pope Francis’ name to Bishop Philip Huang Chao-ming Bishop of Hualien.

“His Holiness Pope Francis wishes to express his solidarity with all those affected by the earthquakes in Taiwan these past days, and he offers the assurance of his prayers for those who have lost their lives and for those who have been injured. As he encourages the civil authorities and emergency personnel engaged in rescue efforts, His Holiness willingly invokes upon all the Taiwanese people the divine blessings of strength and peace.”

The magnitude 6.4 quake hit the island at 11:50 last evening, local time. As of 10 this morning Rome time (3 am Taiwan), there was notable damage, collapsed roads, bridges and buildings, 4 dead, 200 injured and140 missing.

TWO FORMER VATICAN BANK OFFICIALS GUILTY OF MISMANAGEMENT

The following was released by IOR, commonly called the Vatican bank, at 8:30 pm Rome time last night. Shortly afterwards I posted it on Facebook.

PRESS RELEASE
Vatican City State, February 6th, 2018 –
By a decision published today, the Civil Court of the Vatican City State found two former senior managers of IOR liable for mismanagement. The Court has ordered them to compensate IOR for the resulting damages.

The Court’s decision is the outcome of a civil liability action started by IOR in September 2014 supported by a comprehensive review of financial investments made by IOR before mid 2013.

This ruling is an important step illustrating the significant work of IOR senior management over the last 4 years to transform the Institute. It demonstrates IOR’s continuing commitment to strong governance, transparency to its operations and its determination to meet best international standards. It confirms IOR’s will to pursue by judicial proceedings any misconducts carried out to its detriment, no matter where and by whom.