The Commandments and the restoration of civilization
“Do not think that I have come to bring peace on earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword” (Mt. 10:34). The bloodshed and pain of a sword – metaphorical or literal […]
“Do not think that I have come to bring peace on earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword” (Mt. 10:34). The bloodshed and pain of a sword – metaphorical or literal […]
On May 15 the Catholic Church will canonize Père Charles de Foucauld, a missionary priest active in French Algeria just over a century ago. But his rank of sainthood comes with rancor. Critics of France’s […]
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Madrid, Spain, May 2, 2022 / 14:57 pm (CNA).
The Observatory for Religious Freedom in Spain has reported that during Holy Week this year there were 19 attacks against Christians.There were eight incidents of belligerent secu… […]
Totalitarian ideas are now out in the open: “Quick: what do you think when someone tries to convince you of something by prefacing their remarks with the phase ‘Experts say’” ? A plague of phony experts […]
Comprehensive ideological systems, which determine the prevailing world view in societies and cultures, are based on so-called “grand narratives”.1 Such grand narratives are mostly of a religious nature. In earlier phases of human cultural development, […]
The then-remaining section of the World Trade Center surrounded by rubble, Sept. 27, 2001. / Bri Rodriguez/FEMA News Photo
Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Sep 14, 2021 / 16:19 pm (CNA).
Twenty years ago, Father John A. Perricone sat down at his desk … […]
GUNDAM_Ai/Shutterstock
Dublin, Ireland, Aug 11, 2021 / 10:02 am (CNA).
A report on a survey of 214 religious education teachers in Ireland is raising alarm that students who practice a religion, particularly Catholicism, are being bullied for th… […]
“The culture of relativism is the same disorder which drives one person to take advantage of another, to treat others as mere objects, imposing forced labour on them or enslaving them to pay their debts. […]
Monaco, Jul 20, 2021 / 07:35 am (CNA).
Cardinal Pietro Parolin said on Sunday that the tiny Mediterranean principality of Monaco shows that “a positive relationship can exist between the Church and the state.”
The Vatican Secretary of State made the remark during a July 18 meeting with clergy in the world’s second-smallest sovereign state after Vatican City.
In his address, Parolin noted that Catholicism is Monaco’s official state religion, a special status that he said was now “unique” in Europe.
“A certain kind of secularism has undoubtedly strengthened in Europe since the French Revolution, which has favored the development of a social confrontation,” he said at the meeting in Monaco Cathedral.
“Indeed, secularism claims to exclude religion from the domain of civil life, relegating it to a mere personal fact. However, where the religious factor is denied a place in society, certain points of reference, which allow for harmonious social development, disappear.”
“The Monégasque model, on the other hand, highlights the fact that a positive relationship can exist between the Church and the state, and more generally between the civil authorities and the religious authorities.”
The Secretary of State was visiting Monaco, which has a population of almost 39,000 people, to mark the 40th anniversary of the elevation of the Diocese of Monaco, which is directly subject to the Holy See, to the rank of an archdiocese.
The trip was the latest in a series of European journeys undertaken by Parolin. At the end of June, he traveled to Germany to mark the 100th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the country and the Holy See, followed by a trip to Strasbourg, France.
Parolin told Vatican News: “In fact, the visits I make are above all an encouragement to continue on the path of the Gospel, despite the difficulties. These are challenges I think the Church in Monaco also experiences.”
“Even though there is a special relationship with the state, it is true that society is tending more and more to become de-Christianized, to move away from the principles of faith.”
“So being here, on behalf of the pope, is a way of saying go forward and try to fulfill your mission, in a reality that is different from others, perhaps richer and more affluent in ways, but that, precisely for this reason, needs the values of the Gospel.”
In his speech to clergy, Parolin underlined that Monaco’s law guarantees religious freedom.
“It is a positive synergy between the state and the Church which is born of history and which, at the same time, becomes a guarantee for religious freedom of everyone, in a modern context dictated by an ever more marked religious and cultural pluralism,” he commented.
“It is clear, therefore, that in Monaco it is clearly stated that the contribution of religion to the development of society is useful, even necessary, well beyond the religion that each person professes.”
He concluded: “At the same time, it is worth noting that in light of Article 9 of the 1962 Constitution (‘The Catholic, Apostolic, and Roman religion is the religion of the State,’) the Church does not seek privileges.”
“On the contrary, she sees in it the possibility of fulfilling her evangelizing mission in the best possible way, which, as Pope Francis has repeatedly emphasized, echoing Benedict XVI, is not proselytizing.”
Strasbourg, France, Jul 5, 2021 / 05:45 am Cardinal Pietro Parolin said on Sunday that Europe needs faith in God as it struggles with a “demographic winter.” Preaching at Mass in Strasbourg Cathedral in France […]
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