Pope Francis on Wednesday named three women to the Dicastery of Bishops, the Vatican office responsible for evaluating new members of the Catholic Church’s hierarchy.
The two religious sisters and one consecrated virgin are the first women to ever be named members of the dicastery.
Sister Raffaella Petrini, a Franciscan, has been secretary general of the Vatican’s governorate, the second-ranking position in the government of the Vatican City State, since November 2021.
Sister Yvonne Reungoat, is superior general of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians, a branch of the Salesians. In 2019, the French sister was one of the first seven women to be named members of the Vatican department for religious orders.
Maria Lia Zervino, a member of the Association of Consecrated Virgins “Servidoras,” is president of the World Union of Catholic Women’s Organizations. She is also a consultant to the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue.
Pope Francis also named four current cardinals, four cardinals-elect, and two archbishops to the dicastery July 13.
Benedictine Abbot Donato Ogliari, recently named abbot of Saint Paul Outside the Walls after eight years leading the abbey of Montecassino, was also appointed to the Dicastery for Bishops.
The members of the dicastery assist in choosing bishops for the dioceses. They analyze position papers, called ponenze, providing an opinion on candidates.
The ultimate decision in appointing bishops rests with the pope, and he is free to select anyone he chooses. Usually, the pope’s representative in a country, the apostolic nuncio, passes on recommendations and documentation to the Vatican. The Dicastery of Bishops then discusses the appointment in a further process and takes a vote. On being presented with the recommendations, the pope makes the final decision.
The Congregation of Bishops, a department of the Roman Curia, recently changed its name to the Dicastery for Bishops, in line with the new constitution that underpins the reform of the Vatican by Pope Francis.
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Pope Francis waves during his Angelus address at the Vatican, Aug. 8, 2021. / Vatican Media.
Milan, Italy, Aug 9, 2021 / 17:44 pm (CNA).
Italian police announced Monday that the sender of the letter addressed to Pope Francis containing three bul… […]
Pope Francis takes a figure of the Christ child in his arms at the end of the Vatican’s Mass for the Nativity of the Lord on Dec. 24, 2023. / Vatican Media
CNA Staff, Dec 24, 2023 / 16:31 pm (CNA).
In his Christmas homily, Pope Francis shared a message for anyone who may be feeling sad or discouraged with a reminder that the Lord was born to save the world and to give us a hope that is greater than all of our problems.
“Dear brother, dear sister, to God who changed history … you are not a number but a face. Your name is written on his heart,” Pope Francis said on Dec. 24.
“Leave behind the prison of your sorrows and embrace the tender love of the God who became a child. … Cast your cares on him and he will care for you (cf. Ps 55:22). He became flesh; he is not looking for your achievements, but for your open and trusting heart. In Him, you will rediscover who you truly are: a beloved son or daughter of God.”
Pope Francis presided over Mass for the Nativity of the Lord in St. Peter’s Basilica on Christmas Eve
The Mass began with a cantor chanting the traditional Kalenda Proclamation of the Birth of Christ from the Roman Martyrology. Children from Mexico, India, South Korea, the Ivory Coast, and Italy then placed flowers before a figure of the Christ child enthroned in front of the altar.
“Tonight, our hearts are in Bethlehem, where the Prince of Peace is once more rejected by the futile logic of war, by the clash of arms that even today prevents him from finding room in the world,” Pope Francis said, calling to mind the war in the Holy Land and the ongoing violence in the place of Jesus’ birth.
The pope underlined that God “revolutionizes history by becoming a part of history.” The Lord “does not eliminate pain, but transforms it,” he said. “He does not remove problems from our lives, but grants us a hope that is greater than all our problems.”
“God so greatly desires to embrace our lives that, infinite though he is, he becomes finite for our sake. In his greatness, he chooses to become small; in his righteousness, he submits to our injustice,” Pope Francis said in his homily.
“Brothers and sisters, this is the wonder of Christmas: not a mixture of sappy emotions and worldly contentment, but the unprecedented tenderness of a God who saves the world by becoming incarnate.”
The pope urged people to “rediscover worship” by learning from the Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint Joseph, the shepherds, and the Magi who “stood gazing upon Jesus with their hearts set on him.”
In his homily, Pope Francis quoted a letter J.R.R. Tolkien wrote to his son in 1941: “‘I put before you the one great thing to love on earth: the Blessed Sacrament. … There you will find romance, glory, honor, fidelity, and the true way of all your loves on earth.’”
The pope underlined that worship in adoration is never a waste of time, but makes “our time a dwelling place for God.”
“[To worship] is to let the seed of the Incarnation bloom within us; it is to cooperate in the work of the Lord, who, like leaven, changes the world. To worship is to intercede, to make reparation, to allow God to realign history.”
During the Mass, the choir sang traditional Christmas carols, including “The First Noel,” “Silent Night,” and “O Come All Ye Faithful.”
About 6,500 people were present inside of the basilica for the Mass, according to the Vatican.
“While those who exercise power seek to take their place with the great ones of history, the King of history chooses the way of littleness. None of the powerful take notice of him: only a few shepherds, relegated to the margins of social life,” Pope Francis said.
Pope Francis explained that the Lord saves us, not by waving a “magic wand” or “pushing a button,” but by drawing near to us, in order to change our world from within.
“If you look to your own heart, and think of your own inadequacies and this world that is so judgmental and unforgiving, you may feel it difficult to celebrate this Christmas. You may think things are going badly, or feel dissatisfied with your limitations, your failings, your problems, and your sins,” he said.
“Today, though, please, let Jesus take the initiative. He says to you, ‘For your sake, I became flesh; for your sake, I became just like you.’”
“Tonight the Lord was born to light up your life; his eyes are alight with love for you,” he added.
Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, the dean of the College of Cardinals, served as the main celebrant at the altar for the Christmas Mass.
At the end of Mass, the 87-year-old pope was brought up in a wheelchair to the front of the altar, where he kissed a figure of the Christ child and brought it over to the nativity scene inside St. Peter’s Basilica.
“Brothers and sisters, tonight love changes history,” Pope Francis said. “Make us believe, Lord, in the power of your love, so different from the power of the world. Lord, make us, like Mary, Joseph, the shepherds, and the Magi, gather around you and worship you. As you conform us ever more to yourself, we shall bear witness before the world to the beauty of your countenance.”
No canon of the 1983 Code bans parents from sacramental celebrations involving their children and no canon authorizes priests to exclude parents from such sacred […]
10 Comments
Wishing Sister Raffaella Petrini, Sister Yvonne Reungoat, and Maria Lia Zervino divine blessings.
The pontificate of Francis is over. Few, if any, listen to him. The Catholic Church continues without him because we are Christ’s and the Church is led by the Holy Spirit.
Bergoglio has utterly destroyed his own credibility.
His pontificating about things he knows nothing about — e.g., global warming — his “pachymama” fiasco, his advancement of Cupich, Martin and others who support the gay lifestyle, how he excoriates those who wish to praise and worship the Lord through the centuries-old Latin liturgy while at the same time posturing self-righteously about dialogue and synodality — it all takes a toll.
Sorry, Mal. There’s no getting around it. I think you are one of the aforesaid “few.”
Pontiff Francis is an expert about everything save what he ought to be an expert about: being a unifying force in the Church, pastoring the people of God in charity, the Eucharist, the Sacrament of Matrimony, the natural human order, etc. I have a sense that at the time of judgment, Christ won’t be inquiring of him, “How’d ya make out with all that global warming stuff?”
Just demonstrate how Joe Average Catholic pays any attention whatsoever to anything this guy says or writes. Ain’t on anybody radar screen except the sycophants.
I find it disappointing that two are religious women and one a consecrated virgin, none are lay women. Similarly one has to ask why lay men are excluded from the mix. There is something very wrong with the decision and the choices.
Wishing Sister Raffaella Petrini, Sister Yvonne Reungoat, and Maria Lia Zervino divine blessings.
Amen to that.
The pontificate of Francis is over. Few, if any, listen to him. The Catholic Church continues without him because we are Christ’s and the Church is led by the Holy Spirit.
Few, if any, listen to him.
Enjoy your own fibs.
Bergoglio has utterly destroyed his own credibility.
His pontificating about things he knows nothing about — e.g., global warming — his “pachymama” fiasco, his advancement of Cupich, Martin and others who support the gay lifestyle, how he excoriates those who wish to praise and worship the Lord through the centuries-old Latin liturgy while at the same time posturing self-righteously about dialogue and synodality — it all takes a toll.
Sorry, Mal. There’s no getting around it. I think you are one of the aforesaid “few.”
Pontiff Francis is an expert about everything save what he ought to be an expert about: being a unifying force in the Church, pastoring the people of God in charity, the Eucharist, the Sacrament of Matrimony, the natural human order, etc. I have a sense that at the time of judgment, Christ won’t be inquiring of him, “How’d ya make out with all that global warming stuff?”
Just demonstrate how Joe Average Catholic pays any attention whatsoever to anything this guy says or writes. Ain’t on anybody radar screen except the sycophants.
If anyone knows about fibs and agitprop, it’s certainly you. Amen to that.
Amen to that.
I find it disappointing that two are religious women and one a consecrated virgin, none are lay women. Similarly one has to ask why lay men are excluded from the mix. There is something very wrong with the decision and the choices.