News Briefs

Pope Francis joins in Corpus Christi celebration in Rome for first time in years

June 2, 2024 Catholic News Agency 2
This year Pope Francis did not walk in the Eucharistic procession, but joined at the end for adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and to offer the Eucharistic blessing. / Credit: Elizabeth Alva/EWTN News

Rome, Italy, Jun 2, 2024 / 16:44 pm (CNA).

Pope Francis gave a solemn blessing with the Blessed Sacrament from the steps of the Basilica of Saint Mary Major on Sunday in the culmination of a Eucharistic procession through the streets of Rome.

Holding the monstrance in his hands, the pope offered the blessing on the Solemnity of Corpus Christi on June 2 following prayers of adoration in front of the Blessed Sacrament. 

Crowds lined the streets as the Eucharist was carried under a canopy from the Archbasilica of St. John Lateran to the Basilica of St. Mary Major along the Via Merulana, following the historic route Pope Gregory XIII created for religious processions between the two basilicas during the Jubilee of 1575.

Cardinals, bishops, priests, religious sisters, and families walked together in the one-hour procession singing hymns and reciting prayers. Curious tourists stopped to ask what was happening and onlookers leaned out their windows to watch as the real presence of Christ passed by.

“Beginning from the altar, we will carry the Consecrated Host among the homes of our city,” Pope Francis told the congregation in his homily for the Corpus Christi Mass before the procession. 

“We are not doing this to show off, or to flaunt our faith but to invite everyone to participate, in the Bread of the Eucharist, in the new life that Jesus has given us,” he said. 

“We are not doing this to show off, or to flaunt our faith," said Pope Francis in his homily before the procession, "but to invite everyone to participate in the Bread of the Eucharist, in the new life that Jesus has given us.". Credit: Elizabeth Alva/EWTN News
“We are not doing this to show off, or to flaunt our faith,” said Pope Francis in his homily before the procession, “but to invite everyone to participate in the Bread of the Eucharist, in the new life that Jesus has given us.”. Credit: Elizabeth Alva/EWTN News

It was the first time that Pope Francis participated in Corpus Christi celebrations in Rome in years. 

Health issues prevented the pope from participating in a public Corpus Christi Mass in Rome in 2023 and 2022 and COVID-19 restrictions limited his celebration to Vatican City in 2021 and 2020.

This year Pope Francis did not walk in the Eucharistic procession, but joined at the end for adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and to offer the Eucharistic blessing to the crowd.

Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, the prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of Faith, served as the primary celebrant at the altar for the Mass at the Lateran basilica. Bishop Baldassare Reina, the vicegerent of the diocese of Rome, carried the Eucharist in the procession. 

Cardinals, bishops, priests, religious sisters, and families walked together in the one-hour procession singing hymns and reciting prayers. Credit: Courtney Mares / Catholic News Agency
Cardinals, bishops, priests, religious sisters, and families walked together in the one-hour procession singing hymns and reciting prayers. Credit: Courtney Mares / Catholic News Agency

The last time that the pope led the Corpus Christi procession along the traditional Roman route from the Lateran basilica to St. Mary Major was seven years ago in 2017. 

“The Eucharistic bread is the real presence,” Pope Francis said in his homily. “This speaks to us of a God who is not distant and jealous, but close and in solidarity with humanity; a God who does not abandon us but always seeks, waits for, and accompanies us, even to the point of placing himself, helpless, into our hands, subjecting himself to our acceptance or rejection.”

“Dear brothers and sisters, how much need there is in our world for this bread,” Francis said. 

“It is urgent to bring back to the world the good and fresh aroma of the bread of love, to continue to hope and rebuild without ever growing weary of what hatred destroys.”

[…]

Puerto Rico bishops conference issues 2024 election reflection

June 2, 2024 Catholic News Agency 1
Scene of the walled city of Old San Juan, Puerto Rico. The oldest Governor’s Mansion under the American flag, La Fortaleza, is top right. / Credit: Wikimedia Commons

ACI Prensa Staff, Jun 2, 2024 / 05:50 am (CNA).

The bishops of Puerto Rico have published a pastoral message ahead of this year’s Nov. 5 elections, in which they call on the citizens of the U.S. territory to “decide correctly” through “discernment, contemplating in depth the reality and the history” of the island.

This year, Puerto Rico’s voters will choose their governor, resident commissioner (sole non-voting member of the U.S. Congress), all members of the Puerto Rico Senate and House of Representatives, as well as all 78 mayors of the island’s municipalities. 

In addition, for the first time, this Nov. 5 Puerto Rico’s voters will cast a symbolic vote for President and Vice President of the United States. Those ballots will not be tabulated in the official U.S. presidential election, however, which is limited to U.S. citizen voters who are residents of the 50 states and the District of Columbia.

“Knowing how to discern in order to decide well, requires the utmost respect for people. The debate should be about ideas that arise from reality and not about liking a particular person. Prioritizing the essential dignity of each human being will impose on us a sacred respect for others,” the Puerto Rican Bishops’ Conference (CEP) counseled voters, adding that this will elevate the level of dialogue and the debates and foster an atmosphere of respect during the process.

Citing 1 Thessalonians 5:21 “Test everything; hold fast what is good,” the bishops exhorted Puerto Ricans to elect representatives who know how to “become servants of the people” in addressing urgent needs. “We must not lose our sense of urgency towards those who are suffering, and it is a duty to identify those who will work together with each other beyond partisan lines, to find authentic and far-reaching solutions,” the bishops emphasized.

"Benedictus qui venit in nomine Domini" ("Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord") are the first words seen as one enters Old San Juan, Puerto Rico, through the ancient city's main entrance gate. Credit: Wikimedia Commons
“Benedictus qui venit in nomine Domini” (“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord”) are the first words seen as one enters Old San Juan, Puerto Rico, through the ancient city’s main entrance gate. Credit: Wikimedia Commons

In this regard, the CEP also identified more than a dozen top priorities on which candidates and elected officials should focus to improve the situation on the island. These include the protection of children at every stage of life, including the unborn, the protection of vulnerable adults, the protection of the family, the problem of violence and drugs, poverty and the healthcare system. 

The “demographic situation” in reference to the aging of the population and low birth rate as well as the “definitive solution of the political status of Puerto Rico” rounded out the priorities.

In conclusion, the bishops emphasized “the importance and nobility” of political activity and the political vocation, which is designed to serve everyone equally, with a special predilection for those who are suffering the most.

The “world of politics,” the bishops observed, demands a level of solidarity “where we are all co-responsible for everyone.” 

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

[…]

Pope Francis: Building peace requires ‘taking a risk’

June 1, 2024 Catholic News Agency 2
Members of ACLI (Italian Christian Workers’ Associations) hold a sign with the word “peace” in Italian, in St. Peter’s Square on June 1, 2024. / Credit: Vatican Media

Vatican City, Jun 1, 2024 / 12:00 pm (CNA).

Being peacemakers in the style of Jesus Christ, while necessary and valuable, can also be risky, Pope Francis said on Saturday, as multiple conflicts continue to rage around the world.

Speaking to members of Italian Christian Workers’ Associations (ACLI) at the Vatican on June 1, the pontiff said, “interceding for peace is something that goes far beyond mere political compromise because it requires putting oneself on the line and taking a risk.”

“Our world, we know, is marked by conflict and division, and your witness as peacemakers, as intercessors for peace, is as necessary and valuable as ever,” he underlined.

Pope Francis spoke to members of Italian Christian Workers’ Associations at the Vatican on June 1, 2024, about "interceding for peace.". Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/EWTN News
Pope Francis spoke to members of Italian Christian Workers’ Associations at the Vatican on June 1, 2024, about “interceding for peace.”. Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/EWTN News

Pope Francis’ remarks about a world “bloodied by many wars” came as Israel and Hamas consider proposals for an exchange of hostages and a ceasefire.

“This is truly a decisive moment,” U.S. President Joe Biden said at the White House on Friday, as he unveiled Israel’s three-phase proposal for ending the war. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel will not end the war in Gaza until its aims have been achieved.

The Israeli military also confirmed Friday it is carrying out an operation in the center of the southern Gazan city of Rafah, which the United Nations said has been reduced to “apocalyptic conditions.”

Last month, Russia began a surprise offensive on Ukraine’s northern border, in the northeastern region of Kharkiv. The assault has forced Ukraine to move already thinly spread resources away from other front lines as it attempts to prevent Russia’s capture of Kharkiv city, Ukraine’s second largest.

In Sudan, millions of people are fleeing the conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces as civil war continues to bring devastation over one year later.

The UN has called the conflict “a humanitarian nightmare,” as the country experiences a massive hunger crisis and other human rights atrocities, with the dead numbering around 15,000.

In his speech June 1, Pope Francis recalled the words of the late Cardinal Carlo Maria Martini, spoken at a prayer vigil for peace on Jan. 29, 1991.

The cardinal “laid emphasis on the ability to ‘intercede,’ that is, to situate oneself between the contending parties, putting a hand on the shoulder of both and accepting the risk that this entails,” the pope said.

The person who builds peace is the one, he continued, “who knows how to take a clear position, but at the same time strives to build bridges, to listen, and to understand the different parties involved, promoting dialogue and reconciliation.”

Speaking to members of Italian Christian Workers’ Associations at the Vatican on June 1, 2024, Pope Francis said "interceding for peace is something that goes far beyond mere political compromise because it requires putting oneself on the line and taking a risk.". Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/EWTN News
Speaking to members of Italian Christian Workers’ Associations at the Vatican on June 1, 2024, Pope Francis said “interceding for peace is something that goes far beyond mere political compromise because it requires putting oneself on the line and taking a risk.”. Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/EWTN News

Francis also emphasized that the model par excellence of a peacemaker is Jesus Christ. “Where can we find inspiration and strength to welcome everyone if not in the life of Jesus?” he said.

It is good to take time for prayer at association meetings, he told the group, but living out the Christian life goes further.

“Assuming a Christian style means growing in familiarity with the Lord and in the spirit of the Gospel,” the pope said, “so that it may permeate everything we do and our action have the style of Christ and make him present in the world.”

“In the face of cultural visions that threaten to nullify the beauty of human dignity and tear society apart, I invite you to cultivate ‘a new dream of fraternity and social friendship that is not limited to words,’” he emphasized, quoting his 2020 encyclical Fratelli Tutti.

Pope Francis also praised the association for promoting democracy.

A democratic society, he said, is one “in which there really is a place for everyone, in factual reality and not just in declarations and on paper.”

[…]

Caribbean Cardinal Kelvin Felix dies at 91

June 1, 2024 Catholic News Agency 1
Pope Francis offers a Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica for the repose of the souls of cardinals and bishops who died the previous year. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

Rome Newsroom, Jun 1, 2024 / 07:08 am (CNA).

Cardinal Kelvin Edward Felix died in his home on the island nation of St. Lucia Thursday, the Solemnity of Corpus Christi, at the age of 91.

The Dominican cardinal led the Archdiocese of Castries in St. Lucia from 1981 until his retirement in 2008. In 2014, in his first-ever consistory, Pope Francis made Felix a cardinal, the first from the Antilles.

After his retirement, Felix lived on the island nation of Dominica, where he assisted the local Church.

The Archdiocese of Castries said the retired archbishop moved to the Benedictine Abbey of Our Lady of the Assumption on St. Lucia in 2023 to receive medical care for health problems which required him to withdraw from most public functions.

“Frail from age and medical complications he eventually succumbed after days of constant prayer for the Church and for vocations to the priesthood and religious life,” the archdiocese said in a May 31 press release.

Felix’s funeral will be held at the Minor Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, Castries, on June 12. According to the Archdiocese of Castries, the cardinal’s wish was to be buried on the grounds of the cathedral of Dominica.

Pope Francis sent his condolences to the Catholics of the West Indies on Saturday, recalling Felix’s dedication to the education of young people and his contribution to the Church throughout the Caribbean.

Felix studied for the priesthood at seminaries in Dominica and Trinidad before being ordained a priest on April 8, 1956 for the Diocese of Roseau.

He later continued his education, receiving a diploma in adult education from St. Francis Xavier University in Nova Scotia, and a master’s degree in sociology and anthropology from the University of Notre Dame in Indiana.

From 1967-1970, the priest studied sociology at the University of Bradford in England, while serving the Caribbean community of the West Yorkshire region. His experience with the difficult economic conditions of his flock in Bradford led him to start the Bradford Credit Union, which still serves Antillean immigrants in the United Kingdom today. He received the Order of the British Empire from Queen Elizabeth II.

In the Caribbean, Felix taught at the regional seminary and was principal of St. Mary’s Academy in Dominica. He served as associate general secretary of the Caribbean Conference of Church and later as its president.

He was appointed metropolitan archbishop of the province of Castries by Pope John Paul II in 1981, and was president of the Antilles bishops conference for six years from 1991-1997.

As archbishop, Felix promoted the formation of priests, religious, and lay leaders, and was in charge of the organization of Pope John Paul II’s visit to St. Lucia in 1986.

[…]