Papal Appeals For Iraqi Christians

Iraqi faithful hold a banner prior to the start of Pope Benedict XVI's Angelus prayer in St. Peter's square, at the Vatican, Sunday, Feb. 28, 2010. The Pontiff appealed to the Iraqi authorities to provide security to Christians minority following the recent spate of killings against Christians in Iraq. (Daylife Photos-AP, Reuters, Getty)








Papal Intentions for March:



Calls on Iraqi Government to Protect Vulnerable Minorities:

VATICAN CITY, FEB. 28, 2010 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI is calling on the Iraqi government to do all they can to stop the recent killing spree of Christians in the northern city of Mosul.

Before praying the midday Angelus with those gathered in St. Peter's Square, the Pope called the recent killings of Christians as "tragic news," and that it filled him with "deep sadness."

At least eight Christians have been killed in the last two weeks. The last murder occurred Tuesday, when an armed commando entered the home of an Assyrian Christian family, killing the father and two sons in front of his wife and daughter, whose lives were spared by the criminals.

Some 15,000 Christians remain in the Muslim-majority city of Mosul, where their families have lived for 2,000 years.

The Holy Father said that during his weeklong spiritual exercises, which ended Saturday, he "followed with much concern the other episodes of violence, perpetrated in the martyred land of Iraq, which have harmed defenseless persons of various religious affiliations."

"I often prayed for all the victims of those attacks and today I would like to join myself spiritually in prayer for peace and the restoration of security promoted by the council of bishops at Nineveh," he added.

"I am affectionately near to the Christians communities of the whole country," said Benedict XVI. "Do not weary of being a ferment for good for the homeland to which, for centuries, you have rightfully belonged!"

Protest

Some 1,000 Christians gathered today in Mosul to protest the almost-daily killings. In Kirkuk, a similar march will take place Monday.

In 2000, as many as 5,000 Christian families lived in Mosul. They have endured multiple attacks, particularly in September 2008, after which about half the Christian population fled the city. Many of those subsequently returned.

The murders come just ahead of March 7 parliamentary elections in the country, which many see to be decisive for determining the future direction of the country.

"In the delicate political phase that Iraq is passing through I call upon the civil authorities that they do everything possible to restore security to the population and, especially to the most vulnerable religious minorities," urged Benedict XVI.

"It is my wish that they do not given in to the temptation to allow the temporary and special interests prevail over the safety and the fundamental rights of every citizen," he continued.

"Finally," the Pope added, "as I greet the Iraqis present here in the piazza, I exhort the international community to do its best to give the Iraqis a future of reconciliation and justice...

Reuters:

MOSUL, Iraq (Reuters) - At least 1,000 minority Christians, many holding olive branches, marched in protest near the restive city of Mosul on Sunday to urge the Iraqi government to act decisively after a series of killings.

World

At least eight Christians have been killed in the last two weeks in the turbulent northern city, 390 km (250 miles) north of Baghdad, prompting Pope Benedict to appeal on Sunday for Iraq's Christians to be better protected.

Two of those attacked had gone missing, their bodies later found dumped in the street with gunshot wounds. Others were shot dead in the street, near their homes, or at their place of work.

Some 683 Christian families, or 4,098 people, fled Mosul between February 20 and 27 following the attacks, a United Nations report said on Sunday.

The murders came just weeks before Iraq's March 7 parliamentary election, which has the potential to help cement an end to seven years of war or plunge a still-divided country into a new cycle of violence.

"I appeal to the civil authorities to complete every effort to give security again to the population, and in particular, to the most vulnerable religious minorities," the Pope said in his weekly blessing from Vatican City.

Priests in religious vestments led the protest procession in the Christian town of Hamdaniya, 40 km (25 miles) east of Mosul.

"The blood of innocents screams for terrorism and violence to be stopped," read one banner.

Sunni Islamist insurgents such as al Qaeda have long targeted Christians, Yazidis, Shabaks, and other Iraqi minorities, as well as majority Shi'ites, whom they consider heretics. Christians number an estimated 750,000 in Iraq, a small minority in a country of 28 million.

Al Qaeda has vowed to use "military means" to derail the national ballot next month, which it sees as a farce to ensure Shi'ite domination of Sunnis.

Targeting Christians is an effective way to highlight the shortcomings of Iraq's security forces, given the media attention that attacks against Christians attract. Iraqi Muslims are killed in much greater numbers.

Making life especially difficult for minorities in Iraq's north is their precarious position among the region's larger Arab and Kurd communities, which are feuding over land and oil.

The dispute has left a security vacuum in some areas which al Qaeda has exploited, even as its influence has waned elsewhere in Iraq.

"We blame the federal and local governments and the head of security operations in Nineveh (province) for the killing of our Christian sons," said Saad Qanyous, one of the Christian protesters.

Pope's Christmas Curia Speech

Pictures courtesy of Daylife

Guiding Africa to Development via the RCC

The Church in Africa

St. Augustine of Hippo

St. Augustine of Hippo:

Feastday: August 28

Patron of brewers430

St. Augustine of Hippo is the patron of brewers because of his conversion from a former life of loose living, which included parties, entertainment, and worldly ambitions. His complete turnaround and conversion has been an inspiration to many who struggle with a particular vice or habit they long to break.

This famous son of St. Monica was born in Africa and spent many years of his life in wicked living and in false beliefs. Though he was one of the most intelligent men who ever lived and though he had been brought up a Christian, his sins of impurity and his pride darkened his mind so much, that he could not see or understand the Divine Truth anymore. Through the prayers of his holy mother and the marvelous preaching of St. Ambrose, Augustine finally became convinced that Christianity was the one true religion. Yet he did not become a Christian then, because he thought he could never live a pure life.

One day, however, he heard about two men who had suddenly been converted on reading the life of St. Antony, and he felt terrible ashamed of himself. "What are we doing?" he cried to his friend Alipius. "Unlearned people are taking Heaven by force, while we, with all our knowledge, are so cowardly that we keep rolling around in the mud of our sins!"

Full of bitter sorrow, Augustine flung himself out into the garden and cried out to God, "How long more, O Lord? Why does not this hour put an end to my sins?" Just then he heard a child singing, "Take up and read!" Thinking that God intended him to hear those words, he picked up the book of the Letters of St. Paul, and read the first passage his gaze fell on. It was just what Augustine needed, for in it, St. Paul says to put away all impurity and to live in imitation of Jesus. That did it! From then on, Augustine began a new life.

He was baptized, became a priest, a bishop, a famous Catholic writer, Founder of religious priests, and one of the greatest saints that ever lived. He became very devout and charitable, too. On the wall of his room he had the following sentence written in large letters: "Here we do not speak evil of anyone."

St. Augustine overcame strong heresies, practiced great poverty and supported the poor, preached very often and prayed with great fervor right up until his death. "Too late have I loved You!" he once cried to God, but with his holy life he certainly made up for the sins he committed before his conversion.

His feast day is August 28th.

Hat Tip: Da Mihi Animas



St. Augustine:

A Christian at 33, a priest at 36, a bishop at 41: many people are familiar with the biographical sketch of Augustine of Hippo, sinner turned saint. But really to get to know the man is a rewarding experience.

There quickly surfaces the intensity with which he lived his life, whether his path led away from or toward God. The tears of his mother, the instructions of Ambrose and, most of all, God himself speaking to him in the Scriptures redirected Augustine’s love of life to a life of love.

Having been so deeply immersed in creature-pride of life in his early days and having drunk deeply of its bitter dregs, it is not surprising that Augustine should have turned, with a holy fierceness, against the many demon-thrusts rampant in his day. His times were truly decadent—politically, socially, morally. He was both feared and loved, like the Master. The perennial criticism leveled against him: a fundamental rigorism.

In his day, he providentially fulfilled the office of prophet. Like Jeremiah and other greats, he was hard-pressed but could not keep quiet. “I say to myself, I will not mention him,/I will speak in his name no more./But then it becomes like fire burning in my heart,/imprisoned in my bones;/I grow weary holding it in,/I cannot endure it” (Jeremiah 20:9).

Comment:Augustine is still acclaimed and condemned in our day. He is a prophet for today, trumpeting the need to scrap escapisms and stand face-to-face with personal responsibility and dignity.

Quote:

“Too late have I loved you, O Beauty of ancient days, yet ever new! Too late I loved you! And behold, you were within, and I abroad, and there I searched for you; I was deformed, plunging amid those fair forms, which you had made. You were with me, but I was not with you. Things held me far from you—things which, if they were not in you, were not at all. You called, and shouted, and burst my deafness. You flashed and shone, and scattered my blindness. You breathed odors and I drew in breath—and I pant for you. I tasted, and I hunger and thirst. You touched me, and I burned for your peace” (St. Augustine, Confessions).

Memorial of St. Augustine, bishop, confessor and doctor:

St. Augustine (354-430) was born at Tagaste, Africa, and died in Hippo. His father, Patricius, was a pagan; his mother, Monica, a devout Christian. He received a good Christian education. As a law student in Carthage, however, he gave himself to all kinds of excesses and finally joined the Manichean sect. He then taught rhetoric at Milan where he was converted by St. Ambrose. Returning to Tagaste, he distributed his goods to the poor, and was ordained a priest. He was made bishop of Hippo at the age of 41 and became a great luminary of the African Church, one of the four great founders of religious orders, and a Doctor of the universal Church.

St. Augustine of Hippo

Augustine Aurelius was born on November 13, 354, in Tagaste, North Africa. His father was a pagan, his mother, St. Monica. Still unbaptized and burning for knowledge, he came under the influence of the Manicheans, which caused his mother intense sorrow. He left Africa for Rome, deceiving his mother, who was ever anxious to be near him. She prayed and wept. A bishop consoled her by observing that a son of so many tears would never be lost. Yet the evil spirit drove him constantly deeper into moral degeneracy, capitalizing on his leaning toward pride and stubbornness. Grace was playing a waiting game; there still was time, and the greater the depths into which the evil spirit plunged its fledgling, the stronger would be the reaction.

Augustine recognized this vacuum; he saw how the human heart is created with a great abyss; the earthly satisfactions that can be thrown into it are no more than a handful of stones that hardly cover the bottom. And in that moment grace was able to break through: Restless is the heart until it rests in God.

The tears of his mother, the sanctity of Milan's Bishop Ambrose, the book of St. Anthony the hermit, and the sacred Scriptures wrought his conversion, which was sealed by baptism on Easter night 387. Augustine's mother went to Milan with joy and witnessed her son's baptism. It was what it should have been, the greatest event of his life, his conversion — metanoia. Grace had conquered. Augustine accompanied his mother to Ostia, where she died. She was eager to die, for now she had given birth to her son for the second time.

In 388 he returned to Tagaste, where he lived a common life with his friends. In 391 he was ordained priest at Hippo, in 394 made coadjutor to bishop Valerius, and then from 396 to 430 bishop of Hippo.

Augustine, numbered among the four great Doctors of the Western Church, possessed one of the most penetrating minds of ancient Christendom. He was the most important Platonist of patristic times, the Church's most influential theologian, especially with regard to clarifying the dogmas of the Trinity, grace, and the Church. He was a great speaker, a prolific writer, a saint with an inexhaustible spirituality.

His Confessions, a book appreciated in every age, describes a notable portion of his life (until 400), his errors, his battles, his profound religious observations. Famous too is his work The City of God, a worthy memorial to his genius, a philosophy of history. Most edifying are his homilies, especially those on the psalms and on the Gospel of St. John.

Augustine's episcopal life was filled with mighty battles against heretics, over all of whom he triumphed. His most illustrious victory was that over Pelagius, who denied the necessity of grace; from this encounter he earned the surname "Doctor of grace." As an emblem Christian art accords him a burning heart to symbolize the ardent love of God which permeates all his writings. He is the founder of canonical life in common; therefore Augustinian monks and the Hermits of St. Augustine honor him as their spiritual father.

Excerpted from The Church's Year of Grace, Pius Parsch.

Patron: Brewers; diocese of Bridgeport, Connecticut; Cagayan de Oro, Philippines; diocese of Kalamazoo, Michigan; printers; city of Saint Augustine, Florida; diocese of Saint Augustine, Florida; sore eyes; diocese of Superior, Wisconsin; theologians; diocese of Tucson, Arizona.

Symbols: flaming heart pierced by two arrows; eagle; child with shell and spoon; word Veritas with rays of light from Heaven; chalice; dove; pen and book; scroll; scourge; model of a church; Bible opened to Romans XIII; child; shell.

The Scriptural Roots of St. Augustine's Spirituality:

Perhaps of all the Church Fathers, none shone so brightly as St. Augustine (351-430). Augustine's spirituality has deeply pervaded the Church right up to this very day. Two great Orders in the Church (just to cite a few), the Benedictines and the Franciscans took their spirituality directly from St. Augustine. St. Augustine's spirituality came into the Benedictine Order primarily through St. Anselm (1033-1109) and into the Franciscans primarily through St. Bonaventure (1221-1274). Both these men were in themselves, also great lights in the Church.

Of course, no discussion of Church giants can be complete without mentioning St. Thomas Aquinas, who is best described as 'following St. Augustine in Theology and Aristotle in Philosophy.' In sum, the Church gets her Dogmatic Theology primarily through St. Augustine. Since Spiritual Theology is based upon the correct Dogmatic Theology, it only makes sense that one of the Church's greatest Theologians, St. Augustine, is also responsible for a great deal of her Spiritual Theology.

And for St. Augustine, as it should be for all Catholics, this means a deep concentration and constant reflection on Sacred Scripture. The scriptural roots of St. Augustine's spirituality can be clearly seen by examining one of his greatest, yet lesser known works, De doctrina Christiana, literally "On Christian Doctrine," but actually "On how to read and interpret Sacred Scripture."

In De doctrina Christiana (henceforth "DDC"), St. Augustine lays the groundwork for a good, spiritual exegesis by elucidating on the virtue of charity, and all that means. Then, in order to begin the climb to spiritual perfection, he explains a scripturally based seven-step ladder. Lastly, he gives seven rules that are helpful in reading and understanding Sacred Scripture correctly.

10 Things You Probably Don’t Know About St. Augustine:

St. Augustine is one of the greatest and most influential Church Fathers. His writings have shaped both Catholic and Protestant theology and his greatest work The Confessions is one of the most widely translated, published and read book after the Bible.

Much is known about his life but here are ten facts you might not know about him. If you are interested in learning more about this great saint, please read Augustine: Major Writings by Fr. Benedict Groeschel or watch his DVD presentation St. Augustine.

1. Augusta, FL is named after St. Augustine and Santa Monica, CA is named after his mother.

2. Augustine was baptized by St. Ambrose in Milan at the Easter Vigil in 387.

3. His words are quoted in St. Thomas Aquinas’ writings on nearly every page.

4. His mother, Monica, is buried in the church of St. Augustine in Rome.

5. Augustine spent his life fighting the great heresies of the Manicheans, Pelagians, Arians, and Donatists.

6. Augustine did not want to be a bishop so he avoided going to towns where a bishop was needed. He founded his monastery in Hippo where Valerius was bishop, but was immediately made his auxiliary bishop.

7. He worked with St. Jerome on the New Testament Vulgate and is largely responsible for the inclusion of Hebrews and Revelations into the Bible.

8. He was the first theologian to say that men and women were both equal and made in the image of God.

9. Augustine taught in North Africa, Rome and Milan.

10. He published nearly 5 million words before the printing press.

Africa & Israel Papal Updates

UPDATE 1:

H/T Weasel Zippers

The Jerusalem Post is divulging Benedict XVI's travel arrangements from Israel:

El Al will be flying Pope Benedict XVI and his entourage from the Holy Land back to Rome on May 15, when his historic visit to Jordan, the Palestinian-controlled areas and Israel ends.

The special flight from Ben-Gurion Airport to Rome will be on a Boeing 777 that will bear the Vatican logo.

Benedict plans to visit the region from May 8-15, stopping first in Jordan. He will arrive in Israel on May 11.

The pontiff's trip will include visits to the Western Wall and the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem, as well as Jesus' birthplace in Bethlehem, Nazareth, and the site on the Jordan River where, according to tradition, Jesus was baptized. He will conduct a mass in the Galilee and spend his last day here praying at various holy sites in Jerusalem. (Read entire article)

Pope Benedict XVI speaks to Cameroon's President Paul Biya (L), as Biya's wife Chantal applauds, at the international airport in Yaounde. Pope Benedict arrived in Africa on Tuesday on his first trip to the continent as pontiff, seeking support for the continent during the world economic crisis and hoping to encourage peace and help tackle corruption. PHOTO/ REUTERS

Some have inquired about Cameroon First Lady Chantal Biya and I am providing the following links of background information and pictures here, here, here, and here.



Source: Vatican You Tube

Click here for a The Jerusalem Post video regarding the upcoming Papal visit to Israel.



Source: Apostleship of Prayer

Africa Papal Videos

Source: Vatican You Tube



Source: Catholic News Agency

Pope Lands in Africa

Hat Tip: American Papist

Hat Tip: Catholic Fire



Source: Vatican You Tube

Benedict XVI's African Visit

Source: Vatican You Tube

EWTN will have complete coverage of the Pope's trip to Africa:

Pope Benedict XVI travels to Cameroon and Angola

In preparation for the October 2009 Synod of Bishop’s meeting, which will focus on the Church in Africa. EWTN will be there to cover the Celebration of Vespers with local clergy and representatives of ecclesial movements. Then, the Holy Father marks Angola’s 500th anniversary of evangelization by meeting with the president of the Republic of Angola and making an address to political leaders and the diplomatic corps.

Full EWTN programming notes here.

Catholic News Agency provides further insight into this trip:

Benedict announced that he will visit Yaoundé, Cameroon and Luanda, Angola and asked for prayers from all to his patron saint, St. Joseph. During his visit to Africa from March 17-23, Benedict XVI will celebrate his name day on the Feast of St. Joseph, March 19.

“St. Joseph,” Pope Benedict said, “warned by an angel in a dream, had to flee with Mary to Egypt, in northeast Africa, in order to protect the newborn Jesus, whom Herod wanted to kill. This fulfilled the Scriptures: Jesus trod in the footsteps of the ancient patriarchs, and, like the people of Israel, he returned to the Promised Land after being in exile in Egypt.”

“I entrust to the heavenly intercession of this great Saint the upcoming pilgrimage and the populations of Africa as a whole, with the challenges that mark them and the hopes that animate them,” the Pope added. “In particular, I think of the victims of hunger, of disease, of injustice, of fratricidal conflicts and of every form of violence that continues to afflict adults and children, without sparing missionaries, priests, religious and volunteers."

In Yaoundé, Cameroon, the Holy Father will present to the bishops of Africa the working document of the Second Special Assembly for Africa of the Synod of Bishops, which will be held in October 2009 at the Vatican. In Angola, he said, he will visit a country that “after its long internal war has regained peace and is now called to rebuild itself in justice.” (Read entire article)

Instrumentum Laboris

Hat Tip: Vatican You Tube

Sunday Catholic Roundup

"I'm very happy because the pope has accepted by initiation to visit the Holy Land. The pope will be an honorable guest and is accepted by all parts of the nation. This is an exciting and important event, from which the spirit of peace and hope is blowing." Israeli President Shimon Peres

The Jerusalem Post reports:

Pope Benedict XVI will visit Israel between March 8 and 15, the leader of the Catholic church confirmed in Sunday's mass at St. Peter's in the Vatican.

In his Sunday Mass this afternoon, Pope Benedict said, "From May 8th-15th, I will make a pilgrimage to the Holy Land to ask the Lord, visiting the places sanctified by his passage on the earth, for his precious blessing of unity and peace for the Middle East and for all of mankind. I am counting on the spiritual support of all of you, and may God accompany me, support me, and bless with his Grace all those who I meet on my way."

President Peres has instructed the Director-General of the Office of the President, Ms. Efrat Duvdevani, to accelerate the preparations for the Pope's visit with all of the relevant government ministries.

Those ministries, together with the police, the IDF and the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) are gearing up for the visit and have drawn up a wide-ranging plan to prepare for the occasion, which is expected to cost the state NIS 43 million. (Read entire article)





Source: Apostleship of Prayer




Source: Vatican You Tube

Plus, EWTN has a press release regarding their TV coverage during the Holy Father's March visit to Angola and Cameroon:

Irondale, AL (EWTN) – EWTN Global Catholic Network will provide live coverage of the Pope’s visit to Cameroon and Angola March 17 to March 23.

“Catholicism in Africa remains strong, as evidenced by the many vocations from that continent,” said EWTN President and CEO Michael P. Warsaw. “However, a visit by the Holy Father can be expected to strengthen an already strong local Church, and to result in an increase in Catholic laity as well as in religious vocations.”

In addition to Masses and Vespers, the Pope’s schedule includes meetings with the bishops and the President of each country; a meeting with Cameroon’s large Muslim Community at the Apostolic Nunciature, a meeting with the sick at a local hospital, a meeting with Africa’s young people, a meeting with those who represent various ecclesial movements, and more.What follows is a schedule of the live events: (For the complete schedule, including encore times, please go to www.ewtn.com/papalAfrica09.)




Hat Tip: Da Mihi Animas

John Paul II in Africa

Source: Vatican You Tube



Source: Apostleship of Prayer

Papal African Trip

Source: Vatican You Tube



Source: Apostleship of Prayer



Hat Tip: A Catholic View