Brothers and sisters good evening.
You all know that the duty of the Conclave was to give a bishop to Rome. It seems that my brother Cardinals have gone almost to the ends of the earth to get him… but here we are. I thank you for the welcome that has come from the diocesan community of Rome.
First of all I would like to say a prayer pray for our Bishop Emeritus Benedict XVI. Let us all pray together for him, that the Lord will bless him and that our Lady will protect him.
Our Father…
Hail Mary…
Glory to the Father…
And now let us begin this journey, the Bishop and the people, this journey of the Church of Rome which presides in charity over all the Churches, a journey of brotherhood in love, of mutual trust. Let us always pray for one another. Let us pray for the whole world that there might be a great sense of brotherhood. My hope is that this journey of the Church that we begin today, together with the help of my Cardinal Vicar, may be fruitful for the evangelization of this beautiful city.
And now I would like to give the blessing. But first I want to ask you a favour. Before the Bishop blesses the people I ask that you would pray to the Lord to bless me – the prayer of the people for their Bishop. Let us say this prayer – your prayer for me – in silence.
[The Protodeacon announced that all those who received the blessing, either in person or by radio, television or by the new means of communication receive the plenary indulgence in the form established by the Church. He prayed that Almighty God protect and guard the Pope so that he may lead the Church for many years to come, and that he would grant peace to the Church throughout the world.]
[Immediately afterwards Pope Francis gave his first blessing Urbi et Orbi – To the City and to the World.]
(Source: Rome Reports)
The Pope has approved for the beatification to take place on May 1 of this year. FLASH On the Sunday of Divine Mercy, an important date in his life and his encounter with the Lord.
VATICAN CITY, 24 NOV 2010 (VIS) – The Holy See Press Office today released the following English-language communique concerning an episcopal ordination at Chengde in the province of Hebei, Mainland China:
“With regard to the episcopal ordination of Fr. Joseph Guo Jincai, which took place last Saturday 20 November, information has been gathered about what happened and it is now possible to state clearly the following.
“(1) The Holy Father received the news with deep regret, because the abovementioned episcopal ordination was conferred without the apostolic mandate and, therefore, constitutes a painful wound upon ecclesial communion and a grave violation of Catholic discipline (cf. Letter of Benedict XVI to the Church in China, 2007, n. 9).
“(2) It is known that, in recent days, various bishops were subjected to pressures and restrictions on their freedom of movement, with the aim of forcing them to participate and confer the episcopal ordination. Such constraints, carried out by Chinese government and security authorities, constitute a grave violation of freedom of religion and conscience. The Holy See intends to carry out a detailed evaluation of what has happened, including consideration of the aspect of validity and the canonical position of the bishops involved.
“(3) In any case, this has painful repercussions, in the first case, for Fr. Joseph Guo Jincai who, because of this episcopal ordination, finds himself in a most serious canonical condition before the Church in China and the universal Church, exposing himself also to the severe sanctions envisaged, in particular, by canon 1382 of the Code of Canon Law.
“(4) This ordination not only does not contribute to the good of the Catholics of Chengde, but places them in a very delicate and difficult condition, also from the canonical point of view, and humiliates them, because the Chinese civil authorities wish to impose on them a pastor who is not in full communion, either with the Holy Father or with the other bishops throughout the world.
“(5) Several times, during this current year, the Holy See has communicated clearly to the Chinese authorities its opposition to the episcopal ordination of Fr. Joseph Guo Jincai. In spite of this, the said authorities decided to proceed unilaterally, to the detriment of the atmosphere of respect that had been created with great effort with the Holy See and with the Catholic Church through the recent episcopal ordinations. This claim to place themselves above the bishops and to guide the life of the ecclesial community does not correspond to Catholic doctrine; it offends the Holy Father, the Church in China and the universal Church, and further complicates the present pastoral difficulties.
“(6) Pope Benedict XVI, in the above-mentioned Letter of 2007, expressed the Holy See’s willingness to engage in a respectful and constructive dialogue with the authorities of the People’s Republic of China, with the aim of overcoming the difficulties and normalising relations. In reaffirming this willingness, the Holy See notes with regret that the authorities allow the leadership of the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association, under the influence of Mr. Liu Bainian, to adopt attitudes that gravely damage the Catholic Church and hamper the aforesaid dialogue.
“(7) The Catholics of the entire world are following with particular attention the troubled journey of the Church in China: the spiritual solidarity with which they accompany the vicissitudes of their Chinese brothers and sisters becomes a fervent prayer to the Lord of history, so that He may be close to them, increase their hope and fortitude, and give them consolation in moments of trial”.
October 20, 2010. Benedict XVI announced he will appoint 24 new cardinals on November 20th. Among them are two Americans Archbishops: Donald William Wuerl of Washington, D.C., and Raymond Leo Burke, prefect of the Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura.
Other noteworthy appointees are the Archbishop of Aparecida, Brazil, Raymundo Damasceno Assis, Archbishop José Manuel Estepa Llaurens of Spain, Archbishop Emeritus of Quito, Ecuador, Raúl Eduardo Vela Chiriboga, and the Pope’s current delegate to the Legionaries of Christ, Velasio De Paolis.
In total there are 15 Europeans, ten from Italy alone, four Africans, two Americans, two from Latin America and one from Asia.
Among the new cardinals is the Egyptian Antonios Naguib, Patriarch of Alexandria of the Copts, and the Archbishop of Warsaw, Poland, Kazimierz Nycz.
The Pope has also appointed senior Vatican officials such as the prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints Angelo Amato and the prefect of the Pontifical Council for Culture, Archbishop Gianfranco Ravasi.
From the nominees, four are over 80 years old and therefore can not participate in a conclave. They include the Italians Elio Sgreccia and Domenico Bartolucci, the German Walter Brandmuller and Spaniard José Manuel Estepa Llaurens.
After the consistory, set for November 20th, the college of cardinals will hold 122 electors. Today there are 60 cardinals that have been named by Benedict XVI, 50 with voting powers and ten without.
This is the third consistory that Benedict XVI has celebrated in his papacy. The last was held in November 2007 when he named 23 new cardinals.
The new cardinals will receive the red biretta from the Pope on the 20th of November. The next day they will receive the cardinal’s ring in a solemn ceremony in St. Peter’s Basilica.
Only after completing these ceremonial rites can one enter a conclave.
When a conclave is called to elect a new Pope it is made up of a maximum of 120 cardinals. When a cardinal turns 80 he may retain his title but can no longer participate in a conclave.
Cardinals are identifiable by their red clothing—including their clerical robes the cassock and mozzetta, as well as their hats, the biretta and zucchetto. The color is meant to symbolize the cardinals’ willingness “to shed blood for the increase of the Christian faith.”
Cardinals are generally appointed to be members of specific Vatican agencies. They participate in consistories for important Church discussions, in addition to conclaves when selecting a new pope.
The pope is generally chosen from members of the College of Cardinals, though technically any unmarried Catholic male could be chosen.
(Source: Youtube – Romereports’ Channel)
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