Asian cardinal asks for prayers to discern what kind of pope the Church needs

Vatican City, Mar 9, 2020 / 05:18 am (CNA).- Pope Francis’ daily morning Mass, offered in the chapel of Casa Santa Marta, the Vatican guesthouse where he lives, is being livestreamed this week so people from around the world may join in prayer for those sick with coronavirus.

The livestream this week is “to allow those who wish to follow the celebrations in union of prayer with the Bishop of Rome,” Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said.

Video recordings of the pope’s 7:30 am Masses are usually made available for use by broadcasters, but not livestreamed. The livestreams can be found on the Vatican Media website and on YouTube.

At the start of Mass March 9, Pope Francis said he was offering Mass this week “for those who are sick from the coronavirus epidemic, for the doctors, nurses, volunteers who are helping them, for their families, for the elderly in nursing homes, for prisoners.”

He also asked everyone to pray together the entrance antiphon: “Redeem me, O Lord, and have mercy on me. My foot stands on level ground; I will bless the Lord in the assembly.”

Pope Francis was suffering from a cold last week, but from the video stream appears to be doing better. He carried out a normal schedule Monday, including an ad limina meeting with bishops of France.

The Vatican has taken measures to avoid large gatherings of people to help slow the spread of coronavirus in Rome, including the closing of the Vatican Museums.

As well, the pope’s weekly general audience will be conducted by video livestreamed to discourage people from gathering in St. Peter’s Square.

In his homily March 9, Pope Francis reflected on the day’s first reading, which is from the Book of Daniel.

The prophet’s letter is a “confession of sins,” the pope said. “The people recognized that they had sinned.”

They recognize that the Lord is faithful with them, “but we have sinned, been wicked and done evil; we have rebelled and departed from your commandments and your laws. We have not obeyed your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes, our fathers, and all the people of the land,” Francis read.

“This is a confession of sin,” he said, adding that Catholics should do this, an examination of conscience, when preparing to receive the sacrament of reconciliation. “Understand what we have done before God: I sinned.”

Francis warned Catholics that to acknowledge one’s sins is not just making a mental list, however.

He compared making a list of one’s sins to writing a to-do list or a shopping list, things which remain “in the head.”

“A true confession should remain in the heart,” be felt in the heart, he urged.

Recognizing the sins we have committed, that we have not prayed well, “we get this feeling of shame. I am ashamed that I did this,” he said. “Shame for our sins is a grace. We have to ask for it.”

He advised people, when they go to confession, not only to name their sins, but to acknowledge also their feelings of confusion and shame about what they “have done to a God who is so good, so compassionate, so righteous.”

“Today, let us ask for the grace of feeling ashamed, of feeling ashamed for our sins. May the Lord grant this grace to all of us,” he prayed.
 

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Vatican City, Dec 15, 2019 / 10:00 am (CNA).- On Gaudete Sunday, Pope Francis celebrated a Filipino Christmas tradition in St. Peter’s Basilica — the Simbang Gabi Christmas novena.

“In the Philippines, for centuries, there has been a novena in preparation for Christmas called Simbang Gabi, ‘Mass of the night’. During nine days the Filipino faithful gather at dawn in their parishes for a special Eucharistic celebration,” Pope Francis said Dec. 15.

“Through this celebration we want to prepare ourselves for Christmas according to the spirit of the Word of God that we have listened to, remaining constant until the Lord’s definitive coming,” he said in his homily for the Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica.

Pope Francis invited Rome’s Filipino community to celebrate Gaudete Sunday Mass at the Vatican in honor of the first day of the traditional novena. It is the first time that a pope has celebrated Simbang Gabi at the Vatican.

The Simbang Gabi tradition in the Philippines dates back to the 17th century. Filipinos hang a star outside their homes, and attend early morning Masses on each of the nine days before Christmas.

“In recent decades, thanks to Filipino migrants, this devotion has crossed national borders and has arrived in many other countries. Simbang-Gabi has also been celebrated in the diocese of Rome for years, and today we celebrate it together here, in St. Peter’s Basilica,” Pope Francis said.

The pope told the Filipino community gathered in St. Peter’s Basilica that they are called to be “leaven” in their parish communities in Italy, and encouraged them to share their “cultural and spiritual wealth.”

There are over 167,000 Filipinos residing in Italy, according to the Italian Ministry of Labor. Fr. Ricky Gente, chaplain for the Filipino community in Rome, address Pope Francis following the Mass:

“Almost 500 years ago, European missionaries planted the seed of faith in our beloved Philippines. We are happy and blessed because after five centuries we are here in Europe and throughout the world transmitting the joy and beauty of the Gospel,” Fr. Gente said.

“Before the celebration of the last World Day of Migrants and Refugees, the Holy Father shared with me that Filipino women are ‘smugglers of the faith,’” the priest said.

“Yes, it is true, we carry with us everywhere we go the torch of faith and of the Gospel in the world, the same faith and Gospel that have been transmitted to us. This is why today, here in front of you, you find a happy and smiling people because the flame of faith continues to burn intensely in our hearts,” he added.

The Filipino community gave Pope Francis a traditional Marian statue as an early birthday gift. The pope will celebrate his 83rd birthday on Dec. 17. Pope Francis responded after receiving the gift: “Be smugglers of the faith.”

“We are all invited to build together that communion in diversity that constitutes a distinctive trait of the Kingdom of God, inaugurated by Jesus Christ, Son of God made man,” the pope said in his homily. “We are all called to proclaim the Gospel together, the Good News of salvation, in all languages, so as to reach as many people as possible.”

“To adequately prepare ourselves for this new outpouring of grace, the Church offers us the time of Advent, in which we are called to reawaken in our hearts the expectation and to intensify our prayer,” Francis said.

“May the Holy Child that we are preparing to worship, wrapped in poor swaddling clothes and lying in a manger, bless you and give you the strength to carry on your testimony with joy,” Pope Francis said.

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Vatican City, Aug 23, 2019 / 10:08 am (CNA).- A Holy See-Vietnam diplomacy working group, which met inside the Vatican this week, reached an agreement on establishing a permanent resident papal representative to the southeast Asian country.

A resident papal representative is considered an intermediary step in diplomatic relations, below an apostolic nuncio.

The Holy See and Vietnam have never had full diplomatic relations, but have been engaged in formal bilateral discussions since 2009. The Aug. 21-22 summit was the eighth meeting of the working group, which had previously met in Hanoi in December 2018.

Since 2011, the Holy See has had a non-resident pontifical representative to Vietnam. At the 2018 meeting in Hanoi, the delegations had agreed to upgrade this representative from a non-permanent, non-resident to a permanent, resident status.

According to a joint statement Aug. 23, the Holy See-Vietnam working group discussed the regulations to underly such an agreement “in view of the setting up of the Office at the earliest possible date.”

In the meeting, the Holy See also expressed appreciation for the State’s assistance to the Catholic community in Vietnam. The State gave its assurance of its continued commitment to improve consistent policy for respect of freedom of belief and religion.

“The two sides also expressed their commitment to continuing dialogue based on trust and respect for the mutually agreed principles governing the bilateral relations. They underscored the importance of further promoting contacts, including at high levels, between the two sides,” according to the statement.

The Vietnamese delegation also met with Pope Francis, Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, and Secretary for Relations with States Archbishop Paul Gallagher.

The delegations are headed by Mons. Antoine Camilleri, Vatican under-secretary for relations with states, and To anh Dung, Vietnam’s deputy minister of foreign affairs.

The position of non-resident papal representative to Vietnam is held by the nuncio to Singapore, who is currently Archbishop Marek Zalewski.

Catholics are estimated to make up about 7% of Vietnam’s population of 97 million. Predominant religious practice is of folk religions, followed by Buddhism.

Vietnam’s religious freedom law has been under discussion since 2013, when the Vietnamese constitution was revised. The law guaranteed freedom of belief to people, and formally guarantees religious freedom.

However, Catholic communities have experienced several limitations under the communist regime that took power in 1976.

According to the 2019 annual report of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, religious freedom conditions in the country regressed from 2018 to 2019, and despite small improvements, the government of Vietnam continues to persecute religious individuals and organizations.

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