On Tuesday morning in the Vatican, at 11:30am local time in the John Paul II Hall at the Vatican Press Office, there was a press conference held, during which some further events marking the Year of Faith were outlined, including the Solemn Adoration of the Eucharist in the contemporary world, which will take place in Saint Peter's Basilica on Sunday, June 2; and World Evangelium Vitae Day, which will be observed in Saint Peter's Square two weeks later, on June 15 and 16.
Details of these two celebrations were presented by His Excellency, Rino Fisichella, President of the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelization and by His Excellency, José Octavio Ruiz Arenas, Secretary of the same Pontifical Council.
The Year of Faith continues to unfold and to bear witness to rich and fruitful experiences, including initiatives put forward by various dioceses and encounters with the Holy Father. The success of events planned thus far is a special comfort, but even more than the numbers, which are themselves significant - which to date demonstrate the presence of 4,300,000 pilgrims who have come to the Vatican - we must also take into account the active participation in prayer, reflection and spiritual involvement which has demonstrated the maturity with which various ecclesial groups and pilgrims have participated in these ecclesial experiences.
Today we present two more events that mark the continuing path of the Year of Faith.
First is the Eucharistic Adoration which will take place in St Peter's Basilica on Sunday, June 2 from 5:00pm to 6:00pm. We chose as a theme to give meaning to this event: One Lord, one faith, in order to bear witness to the sense of profound unity that characterizes this time. This is the first time that such an event has taken place in the history of the Church and we have reason to call it "historic." For one hour, the cathedrals of the world will be synchronized with Roman time and be in communion with the Pope in Eucharistic Adoration. We have had massive involvement in this initiative that has extended beyond the cathedrals and involved entire Conferences of Bishops, parishes, religious Congregations - especially the cloistered monasteries - and associations. It is difficult to provide exact numbers, but there are certainly thousands and thousands of participants. This moment proclaims the profound piety which the Church has when we are centred on the mystery of the Eucharist which is the source and summit of the Church's life. As we read in Porta fidei: We must rediscover the pleasure of feasting on the Word of God transmitted by the Church faithfully, and the Bread of life, offered in support of those who are his disciples (cf. Jn 6:51). The teaching of Jesus, in fact, still resounds in our time with the same effect: Do not labor for the food that perishes but for the food that remains in an everlasting way (Jn 6:27). It is from this perspective that the organizational team for the Year of Faith has also conceived of this event. Of course, it is the celebration of the Eucharistic mystery in the Holy Mass which marks the climax, but as you know, since 1246 - the year in which it was instituted for the first time in Liège on the Feast of Corpus Christi - the worship of the Most Holy Eucharist has been progressively tested and found solid in the life of the Church.
The Holy Father has asked that as the faithful gather for this period of prayer, they keep before them two special intentions:
A verification of answers that have come from different parts of the world is particularly interesting. With real emotion we read the letters of support received from several pastors. From Carpi (directly affected by the earthquake a year ago), the bishop wrote to us that in the church which replaces the cathedral, in the very few viable parish churches which are still standing and in all the tents where the faithful continue to gather, worship will take place. The Cook Islands, Samoa and Honolulu will join us when it is 5:00am, while the highest point in the north - in Reykiavik, Iceland, it will be 3:00pm. These particular Churches match the Southern dioceses in countries such as South Africa, Chile and New Zealand. All the dioceses of Vietnam will join us at 10:00pm local time, while all the churches in Korea will be at midnight. From Oceania those who join the Adoration will gather when it is already June 3, from one to two in the morning. Among them there will be Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, the Diocese of Agaña in Guam and Wewak. For these churches, it will not be just a problem of a night vigil, but to overcome these and many difficulties due to the lack of electricity and climate, leaving them thirsting in their desire to participate. As the bishop tells us: Our people in the villages do not have electricity and in many parishes it is dangerous to walk in the dark ... this is also the rainy season and to make matters worse many of our parishes and villages in the past four months have been invaded by water from overflowing rivers ... Despite this, they will be united in the same hour of Adoration. Even dioceses in the Galapagos Islands or in the heart of the Amazon rainforest, as the Vicariate of San José del Amazonas, as well as many churches where the presence of Catholics in strong minority as in Norway, Bangladesh, Iraq, Burkina Faso , Russia, Japan ... will be synchronized with the St. Peter's. There will be dioceses in the United States and Canada as well as others from Latin America from Peru to Argentina through Nicaragua, Colombia, Honduras, Ecuador and Mexico. All the dioceses of Asia, from India to Taiwan, from Singapore to the Philippines ... even in Israel. All of them, in different time zones, will be united to Rome. We can not forget, of course, the full participation of the Church in Europe that extends to Lithuania, Ukraine, Belarus, and the Italian dioceses, almost all of which, according to the different local traditions, will participate in prayer. Adoration therefore extends the traditional procession of Corpus Christi. In short, it will be full hour of prayer, fraternal communion in the faith and support of all.
A second event will take place on June 15 and 16 under the title: Believing, they might have life. We called it the Evangelium vitae gathering to attest to all people the great theme that revolves around the efforts of the Church for the promotion, respect and defense of the dignity of human life. In this gathering, we offer to all believers around the world the opportunity to be represented in this moment of communion between the many forces that are dedicated to the Gospel of life.
Pope Francis will preside at the Holy Eucharist on Sunday June 16 at 10.30am together with all people of life and will provide his and focus his attention on the many patients present at the celebration.
As for the other events, this course will follow the now traditional format established for the Year of Faith. First, the pilgrimage to the tomb of Peter, which will be held on Saturday afternoon from 2:00pm to 5:00pm, while at the same time anyone who may wish to take this opportunity to celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation and Eucharistic Adoration will have the opportunity to do so. In the morning of Saturday, June 15. different language groups will have a catechesis provided in various churches of Rome. The Italian language catechesis will be offered by Cardinal Camillo Ruini; the English-language catechesis by Cardinal Raymond Burke, Prefect of the Apostolic Signatura; the French-language catechesis by His Grace, Pierre d'Ornellas, Archbishop of Remes; in Polish by Archbishop Zygmunt Zimowski, President of the Pontifical Council for Pastoral Care of Health Workers, a department which has been particularly instrumental in the organization of this event, along with the Pontifical Academy for Life. The American group has also organized, on Saturday morning, a brief meeting led by Francis Beckwith, a professor at Baylor University in Texas and Robert Royal, President of Faith and Reason Institute in Washington DC.
In the evening of Saturday, June 15 at 8:30pm, there will be a silent candlelight vigil to call attention to the issue of human life and its intangible value. The vigil will move in procession to Saint Peter's Square where it will conclude with some important testimonies. To date we have received commitments to participation in this gathering from groups who will come from Italy, USA, Germany, Japan, Hungary, Romania, Spain, France, Canada, New Zealand, Argentina, Great Britain, Belgium, Slovakia, Costa Rica, Portugal and Australia. There will be families, episcopal conferences, dioceses, parishes, religious orders, seminarians, health and humanitarian organizations such as the Order of Malta, movements, universities, associations as well as the Red Cross, Pro-Life organizations and many groups and people who have at heart the promotion and defense of life even though they do not profess membership or participation in a particular faith tradition.
Details of these two celebrations were presented by His Excellency, Rino Fisichella, President of the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelization and by His Excellency, José Octavio Ruiz Arenas, Secretary of the same Pontifical Council.
Intervention prepared by His Excellency, Rino Fisichella
President of the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelization
The Year of Faith continues to unfold and to bear witness to rich and fruitful experiences, including initiatives put forward by various dioceses and encounters with the Holy Father. The success of events planned thus far is a special comfort, but even more than the numbers, which are themselves significant - which to date demonstrate the presence of 4,300,000 pilgrims who have come to the Vatican - we must also take into account the active participation in prayer, reflection and spiritual involvement which has demonstrated the maturity with which various ecclesial groups and pilgrims have participated in these ecclesial experiences.
Today we present two more events that mark the continuing path of the Year of Faith.
First is the Eucharistic Adoration which will take place in St Peter's Basilica on Sunday, June 2 from 5:00pm to 6:00pm. We chose as a theme to give meaning to this event: One Lord, one faith, in order to bear witness to the sense of profound unity that characterizes this time. This is the first time that such an event has taken place in the history of the Church and we have reason to call it "historic." For one hour, the cathedrals of the world will be synchronized with Roman time and be in communion with the Pope in Eucharistic Adoration. We have had massive involvement in this initiative that has extended beyond the cathedrals and involved entire Conferences of Bishops, parishes, religious Congregations - especially the cloistered monasteries - and associations. It is difficult to provide exact numbers, but there are certainly thousands and thousands of participants. This moment proclaims the profound piety which the Church has when we are centred on the mystery of the Eucharist which is the source and summit of the Church's life. As we read in Porta fidei: We must rediscover the pleasure of feasting on the Word of God transmitted by the Church faithfully, and the Bread of life, offered in support of those who are his disciples (cf. Jn 6:51). The teaching of Jesus, in fact, still resounds in our time with the same effect: Do not labor for the food that perishes but for the food that remains in an everlasting way (Jn 6:27). It is from this perspective that the organizational team for the Year of Faith has also conceived of this event. Of course, it is the celebration of the Eucharistic mystery in the Holy Mass which marks the climax, but as you know, since 1246 - the year in which it was instituted for the first time in Liège on the Feast of Corpus Christi - the worship of the Most Holy Eucharist has been progressively tested and found solid in the life of the Church.
The Holy Father has asked that as the faithful gather for this period of prayer, they keep before them two special intentions:
1. For the Church dispursed throughout the world and living as a sign of unity in Eucharistic adoration. May the Lord make the Church always more obedient to His Word, so that she may be known in the world as a radiant presence, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless (Eph 5:27). May the faithful proclamation of the Word bear fruit in mercy, and call all people to renew their commitment to love, making sense out of all pain and suffering, and responding with joy and peace.
2. For all those who, throughout the world, suffer from new slaveries, or who are victims of war, of personal betrayal, of drug trafficing and forced labour, for children and for mothers who endure violence. That their silent cry may find an echo in the Church, so that by gazing upon the crucified Christ, we may never forget our brothers and sisters who are imprisoned by violence. For all those who live in precarious economic situations, for the unemployed, the elderly, immigrants, the homeless, prisoners and those who are marginalized. May the Church's prayer, and her acts of charity and kindness bring comfort and support them in hope, strengthening and emboldening them to defend the dignity of all persons.
A verification of answers that have come from different parts of the world is particularly interesting. With real emotion we read the letters of support received from several pastors. From Carpi (directly affected by the earthquake a year ago), the bishop wrote to us that in the church which replaces the cathedral, in the very few viable parish churches which are still standing and in all the tents where the faithful continue to gather, worship will take place. The Cook Islands, Samoa and Honolulu will join us when it is 5:00am, while the highest point in the north - in Reykiavik, Iceland, it will be 3:00pm. These particular Churches match the Southern dioceses in countries such as South Africa, Chile and New Zealand. All the dioceses of Vietnam will join us at 10:00pm local time, while all the churches in Korea will be at midnight. From Oceania those who join the Adoration will gather when it is already June 3, from one to two in the morning. Among them there will be Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, the Diocese of Agaña in Guam and Wewak. For these churches, it will not be just a problem of a night vigil, but to overcome these and many difficulties due to the lack of electricity and climate, leaving them thirsting in their desire to participate. As the bishop tells us: Our people in the villages do not have electricity and in many parishes it is dangerous to walk in the dark ... this is also the rainy season and to make matters worse many of our parishes and villages in the past four months have been invaded by water from overflowing rivers ... Despite this, they will be united in the same hour of Adoration. Even dioceses in the Galapagos Islands or in the heart of the Amazon rainforest, as the Vicariate of San José del Amazonas, as well as many churches where the presence of Catholics in strong minority as in Norway, Bangladesh, Iraq, Burkina Faso , Russia, Japan ... will be synchronized with the St. Peter's. There will be dioceses in the United States and Canada as well as others from Latin America from Peru to Argentina through Nicaragua, Colombia, Honduras, Ecuador and Mexico. All the dioceses of Asia, from India to Taiwan, from Singapore to the Philippines ... even in Israel. All of them, in different time zones, will be united to Rome. We can not forget, of course, the full participation of the Church in Europe that extends to Lithuania, Ukraine, Belarus, and the Italian dioceses, almost all of which, according to the different local traditions, will participate in prayer. Adoration therefore extends the traditional procession of Corpus Christi. In short, it will be full hour of prayer, fraternal communion in the faith and support of all.
A second event will take place on June 15 and 16 under the title: Believing, they might have life. We called it the Evangelium vitae gathering to attest to all people the great theme that revolves around the efforts of the Church for the promotion, respect and defense of the dignity of human life. In this gathering, we offer to all believers around the world the opportunity to be represented in this moment of communion between the many forces that are dedicated to the Gospel of life.
Pope Francis will preside at the Holy Eucharist on Sunday June 16 at 10.30am together with all people of life and will provide his and focus his attention on the many patients present at the celebration.
As for the other events, this course will follow the now traditional format established for the Year of Faith. First, the pilgrimage to the tomb of Peter, which will be held on Saturday afternoon from 2:00pm to 5:00pm, while at the same time anyone who may wish to take this opportunity to celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation and Eucharistic Adoration will have the opportunity to do so. In the morning of Saturday, June 15. different language groups will have a catechesis provided in various churches of Rome. The Italian language catechesis will be offered by Cardinal Camillo Ruini; the English-language catechesis by Cardinal Raymond Burke, Prefect of the Apostolic Signatura; the French-language catechesis by His Grace, Pierre d'Ornellas, Archbishop of Remes; in Polish by Archbishop Zygmunt Zimowski, President of the Pontifical Council for Pastoral Care of Health Workers, a department which has been particularly instrumental in the organization of this event, along with the Pontifical Academy for Life. The American group has also organized, on Saturday morning, a brief meeting led by Francis Beckwith, a professor at Baylor University in Texas and Robert Royal, President of Faith and Reason Institute in Washington DC.
In the evening of Saturday, June 15 at 8:30pm, there will be a silent candlelight vigil to call attention to the issue of human life and its intangible value. The vigil will move in procession to Saint Peter's Square where it will conclude with some important testimonies. To date we have received commitments to participation in this gathering from groups who will come from Italy, USA, Germany, Japan, Hungary, Romania, Spain, France, Canada, New Zealand, Argentina, Great Britain, Belgium, Slovakia, Costa Rica, Portugal and Australia. There will be families, episcopal conferences, dioceses, parishes, religious orders, seminarians, health and humanitarian organizations such as the Order of Malta, movements, universities, associations as well as the Red Cross, Pro-Life organizations and many groups and people who have at heart the promotion and defense of life even though they do not profess membership or participation in a particular faith tradition.
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