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World Day of Peace message
Pope calls for dialogue between cultures
In his 20-page message for the World Day of Peace, Pope John Paul II said that patriotism and love of one’s own culture should not be confused with nationalism, racism, or xenophobia.
The World Day of Peace is celebrated on January 1. But the Holy Father’s statement—entitled “Dialogue among Cultures for a Civilization of Love and Peace”—was released by the Vatican on December 14.
The Pope affirmed that “love of one’s country is a value that should be cultivated,” but he tempered that statement by adding that patriotic fervor should not divide “the whole human family.” He said that “pathological manifestations” arise out of “exaltation of self and exclusion of diversity.” And he condemned “hostile and racist attitudes or behavior.”
“The radicalization of cultural identities, which makes them resistant to any beneficial outside influence, is a matter for concern,” the Pope wrote. He called for educational efforts to help make people aware of “the values that are common to all cultures.” These include justice, solidarity, the love of peace, and respect for the dignity of life, he said.
The treatment of refugees and immigrants was another particular theme of the Pope’s message. He urged all societies to treat immigrants with “the respect and dignity due to every human person.” Immigrants should be welcomed and assisted, he said. Still, the Pope acknowledged that every society has the right to ensure a form of “cultural equilibrium,” and to a steady continuation of its own traditions. Thus immigrants should be welcomed, and the cultural heritage they bring should be respected, while the nation that greets them still holds to its own patrimony.
The Pope deplored the steady accumulation of weapons, especially by “paramilitary groups and terrorist organizations.” And he lamented the “tragic spiral of death” that is evident in the rise of suicide, abortion, euthanasia, torture, slavery, prostitution, and the use of the death penalty. He also denounced “irresponsible practices” of genetic research, such as human cloning, and “the use of human embryos for research.” The Pope concluded these thoughts with the reflection: “A culture that refuses to refer to God loses its soul and its orientation, becoming a culture of death.”
Returning to his general theme of the interplay between different cultures, the Pope voiced his severe misgivings about the “monopoly” exerted by the “industrial cultures.” The “fascination” with Western civilization, encouraged by “powerful media campaigns,” can undermine older and stronger cultures with “forms of radical individualism,” he warned. While the Western industrial societies have enormous technological advantages, he remarked, their preoccupation with material goods can lead to “a progressive impoverishment in the human, spiritual, and moral realms.”
Catechists called to examine consciences
Working with bishops, magisterium
At the Jubilee for catechists, celebrated at the Vatican on December 10, Pope John Paul II urged everyone involved in the teaching of the faith to make a careful examination of conscience.
About 7,500 catechists assembled in St. Peter’s Square for a Mass at which the Holy Father presided. They represented the 2.5 million people who are teaching the Catholic faith around the world, in an observance organized by the Congregation for the Clergy.
The Pope urged catechists to work closely with their bishops, to ensure that the faith is taught with “accuracy and continuity.” Those who are learning the faith have the right to receive not mere “subjective responses” to their questions, but the actual teachings of the Catholic Church, he said. For this reason the Pontiff asked catechists to examine themselves, and guard against “the dangerous tendency to reconstruct, along psychological and sociological lines, a Christianity that is foreign to the constant tradition that flows from the apostles.”
On the Saturday night preceding that liturgical ceremony, the participants in the Jubilee for catechists had heard Cardinal Dario Castrillón Hoyos, the prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy, say that “catechesis cannot be reduced to a sort of Biblical exegesis for specialists, which does not take the Church into account.” It is through the Church, the cardinal observed, that believers come into contact with Christ, and avoid “a partial and subjective vision of the Christian mystery.”
Cardinal Castrillón Hoyos said that catechetical programs should be “profoundly liturgical” in their approach. In other words, he explained, they should provide a constant “invitation to prayer,” and encourage believers especially to take part in the communal prayer that makes up the liturgy.
Keeping focus on Jesus
“New evangelization” seeks individual conversions
Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger cautioned against expecting “immediate great success” in the “new evangelization,” observing that “that is not God’s way.”
Speaking at the close of the Jubilee for catechists, the prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith said that the key to understanding the new evangelization is this: “We are not seeking to increase the power and scope of our institutions, but to contribute to the welfare of individuals and of mankind,” by spreading the message of Jesus Christ.
The goal of the new evangelization is personal conversion, the cardinal stressed. That conversion means that the individual will examine his own life from the perspective of his relationship with God, rather than being guided by popular opinion. The natural consequence of personal conversion, he noted, will be “a search for a new way of life,” as well as action to benefit others. “A purely individual conversion does not have staying power,” he said.
At the same time, the cardinal said that it is a mistake to “reduce Christianity to morality,” and thus to slip into the error of thinking that catechesis consists only in encouraging people to live a moral life. Christian life is not a question of morality alone, he said; it is a personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ.
Similarly, in announcing the coming of the Kingdom of God, evangelists should be careful not to suggest that this Kingdom is a matter of “social or political structures,” Cardinal Ratzinger continued. Still less is God’s kingdom a “utopia.” “The Kingdom of God signifies that God is, that God lives, that he is present, and that he is at work in the world and in our lives,” he said.
Cardinal Ratzinger argued that Catholic liturgical practices today are sometimes “too rationalistic,” and discourage the sense of mystery that should help encourage believers to intensify their personal prayer. This approach to liturgy, he said, is “an error that is not only theological but also pastoral and psychological.” Lacking a direct experience of transcendence, too many Christians are being tempted by Eastern mysticism and “esoteric” religious trends. “Especially in today’s world, we need silence, mystery, and beauty that takes the individual beyond himself,” he said.
Cardinal Ratzinger concluded his remarks by saying that catechists themselves should have an “intense prayer life.” That, he said, is the basis for every successful campaign of evangelization, which even the power of modern means of communication cannot replace.
Euthanasia contrasted with accepting death
Vatican statement on end-of-life decisions
A clear distinction must be drawn between physician-assisted suicide and a patient’s choice to refuse special treatment, the Pontifical Academy for Life has argued.
In a statement published in the December 12 issue of L’Osservatore Romano, the Pontifical Academy explains that end-of-life decisions should be guided by “respect for the dignity of the dying person.” The statement is signed by Professor Juan de Dios Vial Correa and Bishop Elio Sgreccia—the president and vice-president, respectively, of the Academy. The statement makes a special reference to the legislation passed by the Dutch parliament on November 28, allowing euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide. That measure is “morally unacceptable,” the authors argue.
The Academy explains that it is morally defensible to “refuse treatments that only prolong a precarious and painful life.” But that situation is quite different from the one in which an individual decides purposefully to cause death, the article observes. “There is a huge difference between ‘procuring a death’ and ‘allowing a death,’” the statement observes. “The first attitude refuses and negates life, while the second accepts its natural end.”
Probing further into the ethical question, the article says that it is not morally obligatory to undertake risky or extraordinary treatments for people who are terminally ill. The statement does caution that patients should be provided with the “ordinary means” to sustain life, including food and water, and with “palliative means” to ease their suffering.
The authors also note that as medications designed to ease pain become “more and more developed,” those developments undercut the argument of euthanasia supporters, who claim that it is pointless to prolong a patient’s suffering. The more humane approach, the Vatican officials suggest, is to provide “spiritual and human help” for those who are dying, rather than accept the “defeat” that leads to hopelessness and to euthanasia. The latter, they argue, is “a crime against life and the human person” and “an abdication of medicine.”
Pope Pius XII saved thousands of Jews
German officer reports Pontiff’s efforts
A former German Army officer has stated that the concrete efforts by Pope Pius XII to save the lives of Jews from the Holocaust were more effective than any public condemnation of the Nazi regime would have been.
In an interview published by L’Osservatore Romano, Nikolaus Künkel observed that most of the Jews living in Rome during World War II escaped the Nazi death camps. Künkel was working in Rome in 1943, as a lieutenant in the German occupation force. He recalls that in October 1943, the German troops received the order to round up the Jews of Rome. But of the 8,000 to 9,000 Jews living in the city at that time, only 1,000 were actually arrested, he reports. Over 7,000 people took refuge in the Vatican— where German soldiers were not free to pursue them.
If Pope Pius XII had made any public protest about the treatment of Jews, it would have had negative consequences, Künkel insists. Hitler would not have been moved by public pressure to change his policies, but he might have chosen to take new steps against the Church. In fact, Künkel reveals, the German army had been ordered to draw up plans for the forcible occupation of the Vatican and the arrest of Pope Pius XII. Those plans might have been carried out if the Pontiff had issued any further public condemnation of the Nazis, he said.
Jubilee for entertainment observed
Colorful ceremony for street performers
On Sunday, December 17, the Vatican observed the Jubilee of entertainment, and Pope John Paul II encouraged performers to be mindful of how their work influences their audiences.
Dozens of clowns, singers, musicians, and other performers crowded into St. Peter’s Square for the day’s ceremonies. In his homily during the concluding Mass, the Holy Father urged them to be aware of factors beyond “simple economic or ideological interests.” They should do their best to send out “positive and coherent messages that can give rise to confidence, optimism, and hope,” he said.
The Pope added that it would be foolish to underestimate the extent to which various forms of entertainment influence the customs and cultures of the times. He also said it would be impossible to carry out the “new evangelization” without the help of entertainers committed to that task.
Pope’s Parkinson’s diagnosis confirmed?
Doctor says he was misquoted
An Italian magazine captured worldwide attention early in December when, for the first time, a physician who had personally treated Pope John Paul II was quoted as confirming that the Pope suffers from Parkinson’s disease.
In an interview with the Italian magazine Oggi, Dr. Gianfranco Fineschi—who operated on the Pontiff to repair a broken leg in 1994—was quoted as saying that the damages caused by Parkinson’s disease have made it difficult for the Pope to fulfill his busy schedule during the Jubilee year. Dr. Fineschi later claimed that Oggi had misquoted him, but the magazine stood by the interview.
The Vatican has never officially acknowledged that the Pope is afflicted with Parkinson’s disease, although the symptoms of that ailment—notably a shaking hand and progressive stiffness in his face and limbs—have become increasingly obvious. In October 1996 papal spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls (who is a trained physician himself, although he has never treated the Pope) said that the Holy Father had an “extrapyramidal” disorder—a technical term that pointed toward Parkinson’s disease.
Parkinson’s disease, which attacks the nervous system, ordinarily progresses very slowly, and its victims can survive for years, although their physical capacities will gradually decline. Pope John Paul has maintained an extremely active work schedule—especially through the Jubilee year—although his physical condition is clearly deteriorating.
Mozarabic-rite celebration at St. Peter’s
Rare ceremony for Jubilee
Archbishop Francisco Alvarez Martinez of Toledo, Spain, presided at the celebration of the Eucharistic liturgy in the Mozarabic rite in St. Peter’s Basilica on Saturday, December 16. This was only the third time that the Mozarabic rite has been used in the Vatican basilica. During the Second Vatican Council the Archbishop of Toledo presided at a Mozarabic ceremony. And again on May 28, 1992, Pope John Paul himself presided at a Mozarabic liturgical celebration of the feast of the Ascension.
The Mozarabic rite arose in Spain during the 8th century, when the country was under Muslim domination. When Pope Gregory VII extended the Roman rite to what was then the known Christian world, there was some resistance in Spain—particularly among faithful Christians who lived in regions heavily influenced by the dominant Muslim culture. Those who resisted became known as “Mozarabs”—the term used to identify Christians who had submitted to Islam.
The city of Toledo soon became a center of the Mozarabic liturgy, and the Christian tradition was preserved there through the centuries, despite Islamic pressure. In fact the Mozarabic rite became a focal point of Christian unity in Spain during the years when the society was under Muslim control.
In the 11th century, when Alphonse VI of Castille arrived in Toledo to reassert Christian control, the fate of the Mozarabic rite again became a controversial issue. Eventually a compromise was reached, allowing the use of the Mozarabic liturgy in six parish churches of Toledo. The Mozarabic tradition endures today in Toledo and among perhaps 1,000 Christian families elsewhere in the world.
Violent protests against Haider visit
Controversial Austrian brought Christmas tree
A visit to the Vatican by Austrian political leader Jörg Haider prompted noisy and even occasionally violent protest by left-wing groups and Jewish organizations on Saturday, December 16.
The protests were staged a few hundred yards from St. Peter’s Square, near the Castel Sant’Angelo. Demonstrators —many wearing helmets, and some armed with their own tear-gas canisters—attempted to break through barricades set up by Italian police to keep them away from St. Peter’s Square. Roughly 1,000 police officers, manning two roadblocks, successfully held the line. But 35 people were injured in the melee.
The object of the demonstration was a controversial Austrian politician, who has been accused of harboring racist views. But Jörg Haider was appearing at the Vatican in a purely ceremonial role: as governor of the province from which the Vatican had received a Christmas tree this year. Haider was one of 250 people—including over 100 musicians —in the Austrian delegation that took part in a short ceremony in St. Peter’s Square as the tree was illuminated.
Haider and the remainder of the Austrian delegation met with Pope John Paul II before the ceremony, for about 10 minutes. The Pope made an apparent effort to defuse the potential political impact of Haider’s visit during brief public remarks, affirming the “the indispensable dialogue among cultures,” and firmly condemning “every form of racism.”
Vatican officials, when questioned about the demonstrations, pointed out that Haider’s visit was entirely apolitical. Papal spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls asked journalists to note that Haider was not received in a private audience with the Pontiff; he was not accorded the status of a head of state. For that matter, Haider was not the governor of Carinthia at the time when the Vatican decided to accept a Christmas tree from that region. So his appearance at the Vatican this week in effect was accidental, Navarro-Valls reasoned.
For his part, Haider told the Italian daily Corriere della Serra that his positions on issues such as immigration had been widely misrepresented. In fact, he said, his views were quite similar to those of Pope John Paul II. Navarro-Valls replied that this was “a simplification.”
US Congress honors Pope
Hailed for defense of life, peace
Pope John Paul II has been honored with a special gold medal by the US Congress, in recognition of his work in favor of human life and peace.
The Congressional medal has previously been given to important international figures since the end of the 18th century. Among the previous recipients is Mother Teresa of Calcutta.
Pope John Paul received the medal in a private ceremony in the Clementine room at the Vatican, at which about 50 American legislators represented their Congressional colleagues. The award was accompanied by a citation commending the Pontiff for his “message of hope” to the world, his defense of the unborn, his support for peace especially in the Middle East. The Speaker of the US House of Representatives, Dennis Hastert, made the presentation.
In accepting the award, Pope John Paul reflected that it was a recognition of his ministry as successor to Peter. He said that during the 23 years of his pontificate he had attempted to call attention to Jesus Christ, “who alone reveals man to himself and makes him acquainted with his sublime destiny.” The Pope also urged the American lawmakers to protect the dignity of human life “without compromise.”
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