Receiving a group of faithful from El Salvador, Francis said that the memory of the slain bishop is "an exceptional opportunity to send a message of peace and reconciliation to all the peoples of Latin America".
"Please be brave, because when we pray for a need, a necessity it sis normal. God is our friend: He is a rich friend who has bread, he has what we need. As if Jesus said: In prayer be intrusive. Do not get tired ". But do not get tired of what? Of asking. “Ask and it will be given to you”.
Some auditors highlighted the inadequacy of an ecclesial proposal centred on ethical theism against the profound thirst for the spirit among the young. The names of the three members picked by the pope were made public today; they will join the Commission tasked with drafting the final document.
Today is World Day against the Death Penalty. China, Iran, Iraq, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia rank first in terms of executions. Compared to 2016, the number of executions dropped by 4 per cent. Worldwide, 142 countries have abolished the death penalty in law or practice.
Speaking of the commandment "do not kill", Francis asked, "how can an act that does away with innocent and defenseless life in its origin be therapeutic, civil or simply human ".I ask you: is it right to “take out” a human life to resolve a problem? Is it right to hire an assassin to resolve a problem?"
“In order to know which side we are on, or whether we are exaggerating because we are getting into an overly abstract, even gnostic, contemplation; or whether we are too busy; we must ask ourselves the question: ‘Am I in love with the Lord? Am I certain, certain that He has chosen me? Or do I live my Christianity like this, doing things… Yes, I do this, I do that; But what does my heart do? Does it contemplate?”
"Lay people and pastors", we must ask ourselves if we are open to what the Lord gives us "every day", often putting us in difficulty, or we are "official" Christians, doing what we owe, feeling "in order" and chained to the same rules.
The Prefect of the Congregation for Bishops writes an open letter to the former nuncio to Washington. In it, he describes the former nuncio’s accusations as a baseless “political manoeuvre”. “I cannot understand how you could have allowed yourself to be convinced of this monstrous accusation which has no standing,” he writes.
Chinese faithful, official and underground communities, express their feelings about the present and the future of the Sino-Vatican provisional agreement. Many ask for the publication of the agreement document; others that bishops held in prison are freed and that the unofficial bishops are recognized by the government. The fear that China will belittle the Vatican. Fidelity to the Pope and to the unity of the Church, but concern for the rise in "collaborator" bishops.
For the optimists the provisional agreement is "historic"; for the pessimists it is the beginning of the total sell out of the Church to the Party. The Pope is involved in naming bishops. But we know nothing of a right of veto. The lifting of excommunications is good, but the faithful expect a public request for forgiveness. China has not asked for a break with Taiwan as a prior condition. Praise for Lithuanian martyrs, amid silence on the Chinese ones.
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