Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Kevin McCarthy / Shutterstock
Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Oct 4, 2023 / 19:00 pm (CNA).
After California Republican Rep. Kevin McCarthy was ousted from his role as speaker of the House in a surprise v… […]
Church of the Society of Jesus in Cochabamba, Bolivia. / Credit: Archdiocese of Cochabamba
ACI Prensa Staff, Oct 4, 2023 / 18:30 pm (CNA).
The Society of Jesus (Jesuits) described as “senseless” a lawsuit filed on Oct. 2 by a group of former st… […]
Collapse of the Parish of the Holy Cross in Tamaulipas, Mexico, Oct. 1, 2023. / Credit: Civil Protection Tamaulipas
ACI Prensa Staff, Oct 4, 2023 / 18:00 pm (CNA).
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Synod on Synodality delegates in small groups listen to Pope Francis’ guidance for the upcoming weeks on Oct. 4, 2023. / Credit: Daniel Ibañez/CNA
Vatican City, Oct 4, 2023 / 17:25 pm (CNA).
Pope Francis in his opening remarks for the Synod on Synodality on Wednesday offered guidance to participants on how the monthlong assembly will proceed.
Pointing synod delegates to texts by St. Basil on the Holy Spirit, the pope emphasized the importance of listening over speaking.
He said the Church is “paused” just like the apostles were when together in the upper room before Pentecost, except they were hiding in fear and “we are not.”
“It’s a pause of the listening Church. And that’s the most important message,” he said Oct. 4 in the Vatican’s Paul VI Hall.
The opening session of the Synod on Synodality took place on Wednesday afternoon. Unlike past synods, which took place in an auditorium-style room called the “new synod hall,” in the 2023 synod, participants are sitting at round tables in the large hall where Pope Francis often holds audiences with members of the public.
The Oct. 4–29 synodal assembly is also utilizing new technology, including tablets for participants. Video cameras and microphones at every table allow speakers’ contributions to be shared on screens at the tables of other members. Simultaneous translations are also available in the principal languages.
The 364 delegates are seated at tables of about 12 people, divided by language: English, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, or French.
In the first general congregation, or meeting of all the participants, Pope Francis said a synod on the topic of synodality “is not easy but it is beautiful.”
He said after the Amazon synod in 2019, a survey was sent to the world’s bishops to get their opinions on important topics to discuss as a Church. Synodality, Francis said, was the first most popular answer, followed by the priesthood, and an unspecified social issue.
“Most of the bishops of the world saw the need to reflect on synodality,” he stressed.
Repeating his frequent appeals that the synod is not a parliament or a Church meeting on pastoral care, Pope Francis underlined the priority of listening to the Holy Spirit over speaking.
He said “empty words” are one of the things that sadden the Holy Spirit the most, and that gossip is one of the most common sins in the Church.
“I insist on this: do not sadden the Holy Spirit,” the pope said.
Francis also told participants there should be “a certain fasting from the public word” during the synod.
Addressing the media, he recalled “pressure” at the 2019 Amazon Synod for the ordination of married men to the priesthood, so-called “viri probati,” and the “public opinion” at the two synods on the family about allowing divorced and remarried Catholics to receive holy Communion.
“Now, there are hypotheses about this synod,” he added. “What will they do … women priests. These are things they say outside.”
The session opened with the praying of the Liturgy of the Hours, which included a reading from the Gospel of St. Matthew for the memorial of St. Francis of Assisi.
Coptic Catholic Patriarch Ibrahim Isaac Sedrak, one of 10 delegate presidents, gave the first speech of the day. Pope Francis’ remarks were followed by speeches from synod Secretary General Cardinal Mario Grech and synod Relator General Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich.
In the morning, Pope Francis celebrated the opening Mass of the synod in St. Peter’s Square.
On Oct. 5, the synod will proceed with small-group discussions, called “conversation in the Spirit.”
Reading a quote from St. Basil included in a collection of patristic texts he chose to share with synod participants, the pope recalled the importance of harmony.
The great work of the Holy Spirit is harmony, he said, adding that “if there’s no harmony, there’s no Holy Spirit.”
Assisi | Oct. 4, 2023: The faithful gather to celebrate the feast of St. Francis of Assisi in Assisi, Italy. / Sala Stampa Sacro Convento Assisi
CNA Staff, Oct 4, 2023 / 17:06 pm (CNA).
On the feast of St. Francis of Assisi, the faithful gather… […]
Pope Francis at the Synod on Synodality, Oct. 4, 2023. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez
Vatican City, Oct 4, 2023 / 17:03 pm (CNA).
On the opening day of the Synod on Synodality, a leading official of the process urged participants to read “the signs of… […]
Mother Teresa around the year 1994. / L’Osservatore Romano.
Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Oct 4, 2023 / 16:36 pm (CNA).
The chief promoter of St. Teresa of Calcutta’s cause for canonization says a new film about the beloved saint is hampered by “grave errors” in how its producers approached the life of the celebrated nun.
Father Brian Kolodiejchuk, the director of the Mother Teresa Center and the postulator of the cause of beatification and canonization of Mother Teresa, said in a Sept. 28 statement before the release of “Mother Teresa and Me” that its creators committed “several crucial errors” in adopting how the film approaches the doubts St. Teresa experience in her life even as she devoted herself to living out the Gospel in her care for the sick and poor.
“Mother Teresa and Me” tells the story of Kavita, a young woman who finds herself with an unexpected pregnancy. Battling whether or not to get an abortion, she returns to her hometown in India where her now very old nanny shares the story of Mother Teresa’s first days working in the streets of Calcutta. Learning how Mother Teresa faced many doubts after no longer being able to hear the voice of Jesus, Kavita is inspired.
The film’s writer and director, Kamal Musale, claimed on the film’s website, before it was revised, that the film’s portrayal of Teresa is “more true to life” because of its treatment of how she “lost her faith” and apparently “never recovered from it.”
“During [an] approximately 12-year period, Teresa goes through a complete change, from the intensity of her epiphany to the disillusionment and the realization that her connection with God is lost,” Musale said.
Yet, Kolodiejchuk has criticized this characterization of St. Teresa as inaccurate.
“Unfortunately, the producers of the film appear unaware of Mother Teresa’s own interpretation of her darkness, or the significance it had for her life and vocation,” Kolodiejchuk said.
“As her own writings attest, one of the most profound things about Mother Teresa is that she never ‘lost her faith,’ even amid desolation and uncertainty. Her personal letters speak of her ’unbroken union [with God]’ during her darkness and observe that ‘my mind and heart is habitually with God,’”
“She describes the ‘doubt’ in which she lived ‘for the rest of her life’ as, instead, a trial of faith — an experience well-known in the Catholic mystical tradition,” Kolodiejchuk said.
The priest argued that, rather than demonstrate a loss of her faith, St. Teresa’s doubts “illustrated the depth of that faith, and her confidence that Christ would not abandon her.”
“She even states that, ‘I will hear his voice’, and ‘I know this is only feelings — for my will is steadfast bound to Jesus.’”
Citing his own personal experience with the saint, Kolodiejchuk said the film “does not accurately capture the woman who captured the world with her steadfast, joyful love of God and neighbor; one of the most loved and admired women of the 20th century.”
“We still must wait for a nondocumentary film that adequately portrays the ‘real and relatable’ St. Mother Teresa,” he said, “since a misrepresentation is unjust to her and to those who wish to know her in all her beauty and fullness.”
The film is set to premiere for a one-night-only release on Oct. 5 in 800 theaters around the United States. It was produced by Curry Western Movies out of India along with Switzerland’s Les Films du Lotus.
Musale, the film’s director, has also directed the films “Millions Can Walk” and “Bumbai Bird,” among others.
India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi waves to the his supporters during a political event organised by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at the GMIT College Grounds on March 25, 2023, in Davangere, India. / Credit: Abhishek Chinnappa/Getty Images
Thrissur, India, Oct 4, 2023 / 13:45 pm (CNA).
An elderly Catholic priest in India’s Kerala state was suspended from priestly duties for joining India’s ruling BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party or Indian People’s Party), which is known for pursuing a Hindu nationalist agenda.
The BJP is the party of Prime Minister Narendra Damodardas Modi. The priest’s action took place at a time of rising persecution of Christians in India. According to the United Christians Forum (UCF), in the first eight months of 2023, 525 incidents of violence against Christians have been reported in 23 states of India.
“There was no option but to act, as it has become a scandal to the faithful,” Bishop John Nellikunnel of the Diocese of Idukki told CNA about the Oct. 2 suspension of Father Kuriakose Mattam, vicar of St. Thomas Parish of Mankua.
“His action violated the canon law, which prohibits priests from joining political parties without permission,” Nellikunnel said.
Elaborating further, Nellikunnel noted: “It seems that Father Kuriakose, who is close to retirement [he will be 75 in six months], was misled into joining the BJP. As the news spread, the priest was also disturbed. So, he was moved out.”
Father Jins Karackattu, spokesperson for the diocese, told CNA that a couple of local Catholics who are actively associated with the BJP had “lured” the elderly priest into joining the BJP two weeks ago, promising him a quick repair of roads in the area.
When Idukki district BJP leaders made public on Oct. 2 the photos and videos of the elderly vicar of the remote parish “taking BJP membership” on the church premises, parishioners rushed to the church.
“As the news spread, Father Kuriakose was agitated and locked himself up. Diocesan officials rushed and shifted him to the retirement home for priests,” a local Catholic said.
“We welcome the action by the diocese. The BJP propaganda is embarrassing for the Christian community,” Father Jacob Palackappilly, deputy secretary general of Kerala Catholic Bishops’ Council, told CNA.
“Their statement about the ‘entry of the Catholic priest to BJP’ is very funny. The party is trying to fool the Christians with such gimmicks. There should be no confusion as to the agenda of the BJP with Christians being harassed and persecuted under their rule in several states,” Palackappilly said.
BJP leaders have of late made a push to reach out to Christians in Kerala. While Modi visited the Sacred Heart Cathedral in New Delhi on Easter, BJP leaders claimed to have visited 10,000 churches and Christian homes in Kerala offering “Easter greetings.”
Kerala is home to nearly 7 million Christians who trace their faith to St. Thomas the Apostle, who landed on the Kerala coast in 52 A.D.
The BJP is not represented among Kerala’s 20 seats in the national Parliament, nor in the 140-member Assembly of Kerala.
KS Aji, of the BJP, based in Idukki, posted on Facebook that the elderly priest joined the BJP after “observing the current situation in the country.”
Aji also shared the Indian Express report that included photos of himself with Father Mattam as he was joining the BJP wearing a party shawl on his neck.
News of the Catholic priest joining the BJP has gone national, with leading pro-BJP news outlets including the national TimesNow channel carrying the story “Catholic Priest in Kerala Suspended After Joining BJP.”
“This incident shows how the BJP is trying desperately to get a foothold among the Christians,” KM Francis, president of Kerala Catholic Federation, told CNA.
“With the bloodshed in Manipur exposing their anti-Christian agenda, BJP is exploring new tricks as the [national] election is forthcoming,” Francis noted.
The BJP heads both the federal government and state government in Manipur where ethnic Kuki Christians have been targeted in ethnic clashes with majority ethnic Meiteis. Nearly 200 have been killed, and over 60,000 Kukis refugees have fled, along with 10,000 Meiteis.
The priest’s public act is similar to one that took place in eastern West Bengal state in March 2021, when the BJP announced that a senior priest of the Kolkata Archdiocese, Father Rodney Borneo, would join its ranks publicly, shocking the minuscule Christian community in the state.
St. Peter’s Square was illuminated by candlelight the night of Saturday, May 20, 2023, as pilgrims prayed the rosary in a procession in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary. / Credit: Daniel Ibañez/CNA
Vatican City, Oct 4, 2023 / 13:15 pm (CNA).
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