CARDINAL ZUPPI BRINGS PRESIDENT BIDEN A LETTER FROM POPE FRANCIS

CARDINAL ZUPPI BRINGS PRESIDENT BIDEN A LETTER FROM POPE FRANCIS

The Holy See Press Office offers details of Cardinal Zuppi’s 3-day visit to Washington, DC as Pope Francis’ special envoy, including a meeting with US President Joe Biden, as well as talks with the Helsinki Commission and with several members of Congress.

By Linda Bordoni (Vatican news)

On 17-19 July, Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, special envoy of Pope Francis to seek peace in Ukraine, visited Washington DC, marking the latest step in his mission to alleviate the suffering of the war-torn Ukrainian people and favour a path to peace. (ANSA photo)

The visit came in the wake of a visit to Kyiv, during which the Cardinal met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, and to Moscow, where he engaged in talks with the Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill, and other government officials.

The Holy See Press Office said in a press release on Wednesday that Cardinal Zuppi was accompanied during the visit to the US Capitol by an Official of the Vatican Secretariat of State, “in order to continue the mission entrusted to him by Pope Francis and in that capacity meet with the President of the United States, Joseph R. Biden.”

Diplomatic flurry
Upon his arrival at the Apostolic Nunciature, on the evening of 17 July, the statement said the Cardinal had a conversation with Archbishop Timothy Broglio, President of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops. During that meeting, the prelates exchanged reflections on the war in Ukraine and on the Holy See’s initiatives in favour of the victims and of peace.The following morning, the Vatican Delegation, including the Apostolic Nuncio, Cardinal-elect Christophe Pierre, and Mgsr. Séamus Patrick Horgan, first Councillor of the Apostolic Nunciature to the US, met with members of the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (Helsinki Commission) of the United States Government.In the course of that meeting, the Cardinal illustrated the nature and developments of the mission entrusted to him by the Pope, and those present discussed ways on how it could be rendered more effective.On the afternoon of the same day, the papal envoy and the other members of the Delegation were received by President Joseph R. Biden at the White House. The statement said the Cardinal handed a letter from the Holy Father to President Biden, emphasising the Pope’s sorrow for the suffering caused by the war.“The meeting, which began shortly after 5 pm and lasted over an hour, took place in an atmosphere of great cordiality and mutual listening,” the statement said, adding that “during the meeting, readiness was assured to support humanitarian initiatives, in particular for children and for those who are most fragile, aiming both to respond to this urgency and to foster paths of peace.”The statement concluded saying that on the morning of 19 July, the Vatican Delegation attended a Prayer Breakfast at Congress, during which Cardinal Zuppi had the opportunity to “brief participants on the meetings he had during the various stages of his peace mission.”During that occasion, it said, “appreciation was expressed for the efforts of the Holy See and the responsibility of every individual to work for peace was underscored.”Apostolic Nuncio’s cautious optimism
In an interview with Vatican News, the Apostolic Nuncio in Washington expressed his hope that Cardinal Zuppi’s mission will lead to progress on the humanitarian front, particularly with regard to “the children who have been transported from Ukraine to Russia”.Cardinal-elect Christophe Pierre, who was present during the papal envoy’s meetings said: “The President listened a lot, and he expressed his satisfaction for the Pope’s initiative, and we had a long exchange about the view of the President and the view of the Holy Father on the issue.”“The Cardinal insisted on the fact that we want to contribute, even though we do not have the potential to resolve immediately all the problems. We know their complexity,” Cardinal-elect Pierre said.The Nuncio added that although there are no tangible results for the moment, it’s important to expend every effort on behalf of those who are suffering. “I think everywhere here, in the various encounters the Cardinal had today, showed that the people are very sensitive to that dimension and they are ready to help.”

The role of the Holy See
At a diplomatic level, the soon-to-be Cardinal, Christophe Pierre, said the contribution of the Church in the life of the world is crucial: “The Holy See is part of the world, and the consequences of the war are terrible for the people. I speak about the refugees, the people who have died, the trauma, especially in particular the question of the children.”

And as diplomats, he concluded, “We have to work step by step. We take the first step when it is possible, and one of these steps is precisely what the Cardinal is doing, without claiming to be able to resolve everything, and we have a lot of hope for the future.”

WHITE HOUSE, VATICAN STATEMENTS ON BIDEN-CARDINAL ZUPPI MEETING

WHITE HOUSE, VATICAN STATEMENTS ON BIDEN-CARDINAL ZUPPI MEETING

(White House, July 18, 2023) –  “President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. met today with Cardinal Matteo Maria Zuppi, Archbishop of Bologna and President of the Italian Episcopal Conference.  President Biden shared his wishes for Pope Francis’s continued ministry and global leadership and welcomed the recent nomination of a U.S. archbishop as cardinal.  They also discussed the Holy See’s efforts providing humanitarian aid to address the widespread suffering caused by Russia’s continuing aggression in Ukraine, as well as the Vatican’s advocacy for the return of forcibly deported Ukrainian children.”

(Vatican News, July 19, 2023) – Vatican News added, “they went on to discuss the Vatican’s “advocacy” for the return of the estimated 19,000 Ukrainian children who have been brought to Russia since the renewed invasion on 24 February 2022.

Cardinal Zuppi travelled to Washington on 17 July, along with an official from the Vatican’s Secretariat of State, and his visit is due to conclude on Wednesday.

Vatican file photo Cardinal Zuppi –

Ahead of his meeting with President Biden, the cardinal met on Capitol Hill with several members of the US Congress.

The Holy See Press Office had announced on Monday that Cardinal Zuppi would visit Washington to “promote peace in Ukraine”.

His mission, according to a press statement, “seeks to facilitate the exchange of ideas and opinions regarding the current tragic situation, as well as to provide support for humanitarian initiatives aimed at alleviating the suffering of the most vulnerable people, particularly children.”

Nuncio’s comment on Zuppi’s mission
Speaking on Tuesday to several Italian media outlets, the Apostolic Nuncio to the United States said Cardinal Zuppi’s mission is to “open a dialogue: to listen and be listened to.”

Cardinal-elect Christophe Pierre said Pope Francis hopes to “contribute to peace, and more specifically to find inroads on humanitarian grounds, particularly with regard to children.”

“The idea is to consider peace, amid the complicated context,” he said. “The Cardinal is very realistic, and we try to do what we can.”  https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2023-07/cardinal-matteo-zuppi-us-president-biden-ukraine.html

 

BIDEN TO RECEIVE CARDINAL ZUPPI AT WHITE HOUSE TODAY – POPE FRANCIS TO WELCOME NEW PERSONAL SECRETARY – POPE FRANCIS CONFIRMS EPISCOPAL NOMINATION MADE BY CHINESE AUTHORITIES

BIDEN TO RECEIVE CARDINAL ZUPPI AT WHITE HOUSE TODAY

President Biden will welcome Cardinal Matteo Maria Zuppi, Archbishop of Bologna and President of the Italian Episcopal Conference, to the White House on July 18. Cardinal Zuppi is travelling to Washington at the request of Pope Francis. President Biden and Cardinal Zuppi will discuss the widespread suffering caused by Russia’s brutal war in Ukraine. They will also discuss efforts by the United States and Holy See to provide humanitarian aid to those affected, and the Papal See’s focus on repatriating Ukrainian children forcibly deported by Russian officials.  https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2023/07/17/statement-from-white-house-press-secretary-karine-jean-pierre-on-the-visit-of-cardinal-zuppi/

The Vatican published this yesterday: https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2023-07/pope-francis-sends-cardinal-zuppi-usa-peace-mission-ukraine.html

POPE FRANCIS TO WELCOME NEW PERSONAL SECRETARY

This morning, Msgr. Jorge García Cuerva, the new Archbishop of Buenos Aires, announced that Fr. Daniel Pellizon, a priest of the Archdiocese of Buenos Aires, has been summoned by Pope Francis to be his personal secretary.

“I share with joy that Father Daniel Pellizon, priest of this Archdiocese of Buenos Aires, has been summoned by Pope Francis to be his personal secretary, replacing Father Gonzalo Aemilius. At the beginning of August he will travel to Rome to begin the task entrusted to him. We pray for him in this new mission entrusted to the service of the Church.

Father Daniel Pellizon was born in this City of Buenos Aires on January 24, 1983. In 2011 and 2012 he collaborated with the then archbishop in the organization of his personal archive. He was ordained a priest on November 3, 2018. He developed his ministerial life first as a deacon and then as parochial vicar for five years accompanying pilgrims at the San Cayetano de Liniers Shrine. Last March he was assigned as vicar to the Parish of Our Lady of Mercy to date.

Pbro. Daniel Pellizon nuevo secretario personal del Papa Francisco

POPE FRANCIS CONFIRMS EPISCOPAL NOMINATION MADE BY CHINESE AUTHORITIES

The weekend here was a scorcher in several ways, one being the extremely high temperatures in Italy, triple-digit, historically high temps in some areas that are supposed to remain throughout the week.

The other was the hot-off-the-press Vatican announcement that Pope Francis, once again, made a stunning appointment on what should have been a quiet July weekend of his staycation at the Vatican. In fact, he approved the appointment of Bishop Joseph Shen Bin of Shanghai who, 3 months ago, was installed by Chinese communist authorities without the Vatican’s approval.

Many saw this as the Holy Father giving in to Chinese authorities.

What’s at stake here is the Provisional Agreement signed in September 2018 by the Holy See and China –  ratified in 2020 and 2022 – that regulates appointments and transfers of bishops in country.

That Agreement has never been made public. In fact, it has been routinely criticized over the years for, among other things, its lopsided character that so far has seemed to favor the Chinese.

Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, in a highly unusual explanatory note in Vatican media Saturday, said Pope Francis wanted to “remedy the canonical irregularity created in Shanghai, in view of the greater good of the diocese and the fruitful exercise of the bishop’s pastoral ministry….(His) “intention is fundamentally pastoral” and will allow the bishop to “work with greater serenity to promote evangelization and foster ecclesial communion.”

Bishop Shen’s installation in April by the CCP was in direct violation of the Holy See’s provisional agreement with Beijing on the appointment of bishops and the second such unauthorized appointment in the past year.

However, Cardinal Parolin did chide China when he said, it is “indispensable,” then, “that all episcopal appointments in China, including transfers, be made by consensus, as agreed, and to keep alive the spirit of dialogue between the Parties. Together we must prevent disharmonious situations that create disagreements and misunderstandings.”

The Catholic Herald had a headline that very neatly expresses the misgivings over the Holy See-China Provisional Agreement: “Just how much faith should Rome place in a deal which China routinely flouts?”

 

PRESIDENT BIDEN AT THE VATICAN

It was a long morning for hundreds of onlookers in and around Vatican City and St. Peter’s Square when they found out that U.S. President Biden was arriving for a meeting with Pope Francis. Visitors to the Vatican had to remain in the area of the right hand colonnade of St. Peter’s Square as the left hand colonnade area was reserved for the presidential motorcade as well as for several dozen of those cars that did not enter Vatican City. Curious visitors also lined Via della Conciliazione and streets adjacent to St. Peter’s Square.

I did not see the arrival at 11:50am but had walked down Via di Porta Cavalleggeri to the area of the left hand colonnade to wait for the departure. The visit with the Pope lasted for 75 minutes, after which Biden was set to meet Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin and Archbishop Paul Gallagher, secretary for Relations with States. As time went on and the Vatican meetings seemed to go beyond expectations, I stopped by Homebaked, just yards away from the transit site, for a sandwich and coffee.

By 2:40pm, I knew I had to come back to the office to work on my radio show, Vatican Insider and this column. Ten minutes later the motorcade left Vatican City! President Biden had other political appointments on his agenda in the afternoon, including of course the president and prime minister of Italy as well as French president Macron. He is in Rome for the weekend meeting of the G20 leaders. After that he will go to Glasgow for the United Nations COP26 meeting on climate change.

My take on the long and short of his visit: The long was the motorcade of over 50 cars and the short was the Vatican statement on the longest meeting ever between a Pope and a U.S. president: English-language Vatican statement on the visit by the president of Korea to the Vatican was 136 words long: the statement on Biden was 111 words.

Photos by EWTN’s Daniele Ibanez:

President and Pope spoke privately for 75 minutes, the longest a Pope has ever spoken to a US president. The Biden team spent a total of 3 hours in Vatican City. The motorcade arrived at 11:50am and left at 2:50 pm. Here is the brief, 111-word Vatican statement on that encounter:

This morning, Friday October 29, 2021, His Excellency Joseph R. Biden, President of the United States of America, was received in audience by the Holy Father Francis and subsequently met with His Eminence Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, accompanied by His Excellency Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, Secretary for Relations with States. During the course of the cordial discussions, the Parties focused on the joint commitment to the protection and care of the planet, the healthcare situation and the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic, as well as the theme of refugees and assistance to migrants. Reference was also made to the protection of human rights, including freedom of religion and conscience.

Vaticannews.va carried the story on many of its language pages. The Italian-language page had an excellent account of the president’s visit to the Vatican (presented and translated below). The photo is Vatican media. A small contingent of print and electronic media and photographers had been allowed to cover the president’s arrival and departure in the San Damaso courtyard but no live coverage was allowed by the Vatican afterwards. The Vatican released its own selection of photos and video images.

PRESIDENT BIDEN AT THE VATICAN

As his car pulled into the San Damaso courtyard, Biden waited for a few seconds in the car. At the last toll of the bell at 12 the car door was opened and he exited with his wife Jill, in a dark blue suit and with a black veil on her head. Both were welcomed by the regent of the Papal Household, Monsignor Leonardo Sapienza. “Thank you very much, it’s nice to be back,” said the head of the White House, also joking with some gentlemen of His Holiness, present for the official welcome.

The long presidential motorcade, which started from Villa Taverna, the president’s residence in Rome and home to the U.S. ambassador to Italy, was made up of over fifty cars, including armored vehicles and SUVs. Opened by an escort of ten motorcycles and the cars of the Italian State Police, while a helicopter guarded the area from above. It traveled along Via della Conciliazione following the route previously sealed off by the police. After the appointment at the Vatican, Biden is expected at the Quirinale for the meeting with the Italian President Sergio Mattarella and Prime Minister Mario Draghi.

The president – the second Catholic president after John Fitzgerald Kennedy – was accompanied to the Sala del Tronetto (Throne Room), where he first greeted Pope Francis. Francis then moved with the president to the Apostolic Library at 12.10 where, sitting across from each other at the papal desk, they started the private conversation that ended at 1:25pm. A dialogue therefore lasting about 75 minutes, probably the longest to date between a Pope and a US president, well beyond what happened in 2014 in the private meeting with the then President Barack Obama, which lasted 50 minutes.

The Pope gave the U.S. president a painting on a ceramic tile that portrays a pilgrim on the Tiber embankment that indicates St. Peter’s Basilica. In addition he gifted some documents, the same ones delivered a few hours earlier to South Korean President Moon: a signed Message for 2021 World Peace Day; the Document on Human Fraternity signed in Abu Dhabi with the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar; the volume on the Statio Orbis published by LEV which collects the most beautiful photos of the Pontiff’s prayer on March 27, 2020, in the midst of the pandemic.

Biden reciprocated with a hand-woven chasuble with flower and fruit embroidery. It dates back to 1930 when it was commissioned by the well-known Roman tailor Gamarelli and has since been used in the United States by the Jesuits. The chasuble comes from the historical archive of the Holy Trinity Catholic Church, an important Washington church that has played a significant role in supporting the causes of desegregation and civil rights from 1787 onwards. At the same time, the White House said that, on the occasion of the World Day of the Poor on November 14, it will provide a donation of winter clothes to charity organizations, in the name of Pope Francis, to thank him for this meeting,

Biden, according to U.S. media reports, also gave the Pope a military coin from the State of Delaware, from the unit in which his son Beau, struck down in 2015 by a brain tumor, had served. A dramatic event for which Francis had already expressed his closeness at the time, meeting in the Philadelphia airport where he was visiting Philadelphia for the World Meeting of Families, a part of the Biden family to offer their condolences and pray together. Today’s audience is the fourth direct contact between Pope Francis and Joe Biden. The first took place at the inaugural Mass of the pontificate on March 19, 2013; then the two met two years later, in 2015, during Francis’ visit to the United States, first to the White House and Congress, then to Philadelphia for the aforementioned Meeting of Families. In 2016, the third meeting on April 29 in the Vatican, where Biden participated in the World Summit dedicated to regenerative medicine. Added to this is the Pontiff’s phone call in November 2020 to the newly elected President of the United States for congratulations.

 

PRESIDENT BIDEN’S ARRIVAL IN VATICAN CITY

PRESIDENT BIDEN’S ARRIVAL IN VATICAN CITY

The Vatican portal vaticannews.va, in its live camera feature, was doing a countdown for the arrival of the Biden motorcade, scheduled to be in the courtyard at 11:45. When that time came and passed, the portal stopped the countdown but the camera was obviously still running. Biden entered the Apostolic Palace a minute or two after 12 noon.

AWAITING HIS ARRIVAL: St. Peter’s Square, Via della Conciliazione, San Damaso Courtyard

THE MOTORCADE ARRIVES: The motorcade entered St. Peter’s Square and Vatican City on Via della Conciliazione, travelled through part of the gardens and past St. Peter’s Basilica to San Damaso Courtyard where President Biden and the First Lady were welcomed by Gentlemen of His Holiness in the presence of the Swiss Guards and camera media.

The lead car had a licence starting with CV, indicating that it was a Vatican car and driver. There are two presidential limousines and both have the same license number: 800 002

POPE FRANCIS TO RECEIVE U.S. PRESIDENT BIDEN FRIDAY: ROME’S MASSIVE SECURITY MEASURES

POPE FRANCIS TO RECEIVE U.S. PRESIDENT BIDEN FRIDAY: ROME’S MASSIVE SECURITY MEASURES

Tomorrow morning Pope Francis is scheduled to receive two of the leaders in Rome for the G20 summit, President Moon Jae-in of the Republic of Korea and U.S. President Joe Biden.

The Vatican announced today that there will be no live coverage of either president’s audience with Pope Francis. There has been reaction from correspondents, including this from the White House Correspondents Association president: Steven Portnoy on Twitter: “The @whca joins Vatican reporters in expressing our disappointment that the world won’t see live pictures of President Biden’s meeting with Pope Francis.” / Twitter   Also Joan Lewis (@joansrome) / Twitter

As interesting as any photos or footage provided of Biden’s meeting with the Holy Father, will be the Vatican statement that the press office releases after the Pope receives a head of State or government.

Pundits are wondering if Pope Francis will talk to Catholic U.S. President Biden about his pro-abortion stance. Just last month on a flight to Rome from Slovakia, the Pope told journalists “Abortion… is more than a problem, it is murder. Whoever has an abortion kills.”

Will Francis, they ask, have the courage to address a Catholic president whose position on abortion is totally at odds with Catholic teaching.

Biden is only the second Catholic president in the history of the United States. John F Kennedy, elected in 1960, was the first Catholic president.

The Vatican statement following Catholic Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s October 9 audience with Pope Francis never mentioned abortion, which she also wholeheartedly supports, as a topic of their meeting.

Many noted at the time the polar opposite reception given to Pelosi in 2009 when she was received by Pope Benedict: Pope Benedict strongly rebukes Pelosi over abortion (catholicnewsagency.com)

OSV, Our Sunday Visitor, published this editorial on October 19:

“President Joe Biden’s meeting with Pope Francis on Oct. 29 will be only the second audience between a pope and a Catholic president of the United States. In a statement to the media, the White House said that Biden and Pope Francis “will discuss working together on efforts grounded in respect for fundamental human dignity, including ending the COVID-19 pandemic, tackling the climate crisis, and caring for the poor.”

“In its latest editorial, the Our Sunday Visitor Editorial Board writes: “It is undeniable that those issues are important to the common good and to the future of humanity. They are, also, safe places of convergence between the Democratic Catholic president and the leader of his Church. We sincerely hope that discussion on ending the pandemic, addressing the effects of climate change and caring for the underserved bears great fruit. We also hope that the conversation doesn’t end there. While there are several major political and cultural points on which the U.S. president and the Church disagree, there is none bigger than abortion — an issue that goes to the very heart of respect for the fundamental dignity of every person. Is Biden’s radical position on abortion — a position he has not always espoused — something that might find its way into the conversation between head of state and head of Church?”

For full article: Editorial: Will abortion be discussed during President Biden’s meeting with Pope Francis? – Our Sunday Visitor (osvnews.com)

In the meantime, Rome has been preparing massive security measures as the city welcomes leaders from the around the world for the G20 summit this weekend. Thousands of agents will be positioned around the G20 venue in EUR, south of the center of Rome, as well as at and near embassies, major luxury hotels, etc. in Rome’s historic center. Security personnel from the nations whose leaders are in Rome will also be working around the clock.

Local media is reporting that Rome security chiefs are sealing off a 10-square kilometre area of the capital’s EUR district ahead of the Group of 20 Leaders’’ Summit taking place at a congress center on October 30-31. The heads of the world’s wealthiest nations are converging in Rome to discuss climate change, Covid-19and the post-pandemic global recovery.

The congress center and the media building will be inside a “red zone” and shuttles will provide transportation between the two. (Roma corriere photo)

Police snipers will be stationed on strategic rooftops throughout Rome and EUR. In addition, say local reports, Rome’s airspace will be monitored by the army and there will be maximum security around the Hotel Rome Cavalieri, a Waldorf Astoria hotel on Monte Mario.

Rome residents can also expect street closures and huge bottlenecks in the center of the city and around the Vatican for several days. Security presence has been visible around the Eternal City for many days already,