1971—1997—2020

In the years above the Vatican published a catechetical directory. Today the Pontifical Council for Promoting the New Evangelization published the long awaited, updated Directory for Catechesis. 

“The new Directory seeks to highlight the close link between evangelization and catechesis. It underlines that every baptized person is a missionary called to find new ways of communicating the faith… [and] proposes three major principles of action: Witnessing, Mercy and Dialogue.”

In addition to formation of catechists, the Directory includes family, the poor, migrating people, prisoners, parishes, Catholic schools, ecumenism.

The Vatican releases a new Directory for Catechesis, providing guidelines for the Church’s mission of proclaiming the Gospel through catechesis and evangelization.https://t.co/GOovfUNWui

— Vatican News (@VaticanNews) June 25, 2020

World Youth Day Memories Online

2019 WYD was held in Panama. The Vatican has made available free and online a book of memories of the event.

The Vatican announces that the World Youth Day Magazine, highlighting the memories of World Youth Day 2019 in Panama, is now available free online.https://t.co/2DYzahIKdI

— Vatican News (@VaticanNews) June 20, 2020

World Refugee Day

The “global confederation of Catholic charities is appealing to the world’s political leaders to accept refugees in a dignified and safe way, ensuring their basic needs are met and providing them with safe living conditions, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic.”

Caritas Internationalis fosters solidarity, its Secretary-General said, “through the expression of care and love for the most vulnerable, and the refugees are among them.”

Caritas Internationalis releases a message on the occasion of #WorldRefugeeDay, June 20.https://t.co/vgMvovo7nH

— Vatican News (@VaticanNews) June 19, 2020

Medieval, 17th and 20th Centuries

Today’s moveable Memorial of the Immaculate Heart of Mary seems to have medieval roots. Yet isn’t old because Mary’s heart was thematic in the 20^th-Century experience of Fatima. Read more at Saint of the Day.

___________________

Wiki-image stained glass window of the Immaculate Heart of Virgin Mary by “Jebulon | PD-self"

First the Launch; Then Five Years Later

A press conference at the Vatican heralded Francis’ Laudato Si! five years ago. Another press conference (video below) marked the encyclical’s anniversary.

The Vatican also released a book on the occasion. America Magazine’s Vatican correspondent Gerald O’Connell noted the just-released book “contains incisive and challenging proposals for the practical implementation of Pope Francis’ encyclical throughout the church and in the wider world.”

___________________

Wiki-image Air pollution by brick factories by “Janak Bhatta - Own work | CC BY-SA 4.0"

Finding God Now

Ignatian spirituality seeks God in everything. Everything includes pandemics. At America Magazine Jesuit Richard G. Malloy noted the new experience of pandemic means new ways to find God and to trust God. “To trust in God today, we need to think anew. Too many of us conceive of God with medieval notions of reality.”

God is at work in this coronavirus time. From these days of hunkering down, we can learn much about life and death, meaning and meaninglessness, courage and fear, hope and despair; community and isolated individualism, good and evil.https://t.co/XAGjEYiSCb

— America Magazine (@americamag) June 19, 2020

Path Opened

"Catholicism’s approach toward non-Christian religions…significantly changed” with the Second Vatican Council. Many continue to oppose the Council and its fruits. Andrea Tornielli, Vatican News Editorial Director, considered the declaration that changed the Church’s trajectory, Nostrae aetate. Mr. Tornielli also considered papal involvement from St. Paul VI to Francis.

Our Editorial Director looks back at the Second Vatican Council's declaration, Nostrae aetate, and how it has left its mark on the history of the Church. https://t.co/YkTXlMjqSw

— Vatican News (@VaticanNews) June 19, 2020

Sacred Heart: Entering the Solemnity

T hinking Faith just posted an archived item by Jesuit James Hanvey. In it he “explains why this devotion will always be central to the life of the Church and why it is the foundation of our intimacy with Christ.”

The devotion to the #SacredHeart is the foundation of our intimacy with Christ. ‘Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh, has a heart… With him it is always personal.’ https://t.co/Jr4WlJPpn2

— Thinking Faith (@ThinkingFaith) June 19, 2020

Safeguarding Children

Jesuit Fr. Hans Zollner offered the second webinar in the series organized by the International Union of Superiors General in collaboration with others. Fr. Zollner’s focus was online safeguarding. The Vatican News summarized yesterday’s webinar and included the dates of the next two webinars. Download the slides of Fr. Zollner's presentation here.  

During a safeguarding webinar, Fr Hans Zollner explores online risks for children and offers tips to help parents improve their online safety.https://t.co/gZrjfVKahh

— Vatican News (@VaticanNews) June 19, 2020

Not at War

The Second Vatican Council developed “the doctrine of recent popes on the inviolable rights of the human person and the constitutional order of society”(Declaration on Religious Freedom, 1). This week the U.S. Supreme Court defended L.G.B.T. people and their right to work: they  cannot be fired for belonging to that community.

A reasoned America Magazine editorial noted: “The vocation of Catholics is to exercise moral suasion to influence the opinion of the citizens of the United States.” Persuasion is not force; “suasion” respects human dignity and freedom.

Editorial: L.G.B.T. discrimination protections are not a catastrophe for Catholicism. https://t.co/blF7fIP9jW

— America Magazine (@americamag) June 18, 2020

Lamb and Francis

On the “Inside the Vatican” podcast Colleen Dulle conversed with Christopher Lamb. Mr. Lamb’s recent book explores the opposition Pope Francis receives as he reforms the church. On the podcast: Neither liberal nor conservative, the pope is radical, said Mr. Lamb.

___________________

Wiki-image Coat of Arms of Francis by “SajoR | CC BY-SA 2.5"

To Remain Silent Is a Choice

Podcast

This week on @jesuiticalshow, we ask @OlgaMSegura how she approaches conversations about racism with her family, the role of the Catholic Church in the fight for racial justice and what white Catholics can do to become allies in that fight. Listen now 🎧https://t.co/IXYlNskCt2

— America Magazine (@americamag) June 16, 2020

Attitudes Shifted with Laudato Si!

Two “Princeton University doctoral candidates in political science…recently released a paper studying the impact of “Laudato Si’.” On the America Magazine podcast, Inside the Vatican, Colleen Dulle conversed with authors Sam Winter-Levy and Bryan Schonfeld. They found a “significant shift” in opinion after the publication of Francis’ encyclical: “churchgoing Catholics [believe] that climate change is real and caused by humans, and that there is a moral imperative to take action on it.”

In addition to the link to their conversation, the article contains links to read more, including the full paper.

___________________

Wiki-image Lynn Canyon Suspension Bridge by “Diego Delso | CC BY-SA 4.0"

Responding to an Urgent Question

Fr. Alvan I. Amadi serves in Green Bay, Wisconsin. He wanted 2^nd graders ”to know another truth…’we are more alike than unalike.’”

How can I explain the color of my skin—and racism—to young white students? https://t.co/l2XWAs5HEV

— America Magazine (@americamag) June 13, 2020

Cosmos and the Body of Christ

Early in his tenure as pope Francis called attention to contemporary gnosticism, “a purely subjective faith whose only interest is a certain experience or a set of ideas and bits of information which are meant to console and enlighten, but which ultimately keep one imprisoned in his or her own thoughts and feelings” (Joy of the Gospel, 94). Early in its life the church faced gnosticism. St. Irenaeus of Lyons was confronted by it and responded to it.

Jesuit John Moffatt noted that the ancient bishop “a story affirming God’s relation to the cosmos that binds the Eucharist into the goodness of the created order and the practice of social justice and care of creation.” Most fitting as contemporary Catholics celebrate the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ.

___________________

Wiki-image Procissão de Corpus Christi (Goiânia, Brasil) 2019 by “Eugenio Hansen, OFS | CC BY-SA 4.0"

Upcoming World Day of the Poor

Pope Francis released today his 4^th annual message for the World Day of the Poor on the feast of the Patron of the Poor, St. Anthony of Padua. The day will be celebrated in November. In his message Francis noted that the “pandemic…has made us all the more aware of the presence of the poor in our midst and their need for help.”

#PopeFrancis releases his message for the 4th World Day of the Poor, and calls on people to keep their gaze fixed on the poor, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic.#coronavirus #WorldDayOfThePoorhttps://t.co/qqcXzXVMdH

— Vatican News (@VaticanNews) June 13, 2020

Conversation: Racial Injustice and Space Exploration

Former astronaut Leland Melvin conversed with Bill Nye about personal experiences—one could have changed his life so that he would not be an astronaut; about Amy Cooper, Breonna Taylor and George Floyd; as well as space exploration.

Bill Nye and former astronaut Leland Melvin talk racial injustice and space exploration (video) https://t.co/MAHjtoFe9F pic.twitter.com/9jPPB2CeK1

— SPACE.com (@SPACEdotcom) June 13, 2020

Racism Can Affect Anyone

Sean Cardinal O’Malley spoke personally as well as pastorally in a call to end racism. “Racism can be explicit, but it also can be unrecognized and unacknowledged. Yet, all of its manifestations are deadly and corrosive to civil society. …Racism is a social and spiritual disease that kills people."

“Joyful, but…more quiet”

Donna M. Cox reported Christian singing has Judaic roots and that “choral singing…brings individuals into oneness in Christ.” However, the pandemic and efforts to prevent infections has “hit church music programs hard — some more than others.”

The importance of song in Christian worship can be traced to its Judaic beginnings. Throughout the biblical canon, the Apocrypha, there are hundreds of references to Christians singing.https://t.co/6zLDWkP3TY

— NCR (@NCRonline) June 12, 2020

Theology of Joy

The Yale Center of Faith and Culture explored the Theology of Joy and the Good Life according to a variety of topics. It recorded several video interviews with those who participated. Ellen Charry, emerita professor at Princeton Theological Seminary, conversed about the “Theology of Joy.” These days, especially, people of faith benefit from holding on to a virtue embedded in religious tradition.

Pope Celebrates Solemnity on Sunday

#PopeFrancis will celebrate the feast of #CorpusChristi in St Peter’s Basilica on Sunday, with a Mass followed by solemn Adoration and Benediction.https://t.co/6uvgl5PP4Z

— Vatican News (@VaticanNews) June 8, 2020

Brief Conversation on Tracing

Contact tracing seeks to identify an infected person’s contacts. It is one way to curb the spread of a virus. Some countries have used it to great effect—South Korea is one example. Others countries are beginning to use it more—the United States.

CNN’s Dr. Sanja Gupta converses with a contact tracer and with an epidemiologist who work in New York City. Within the transcript is a link to the audio of the conversation.

Across the country, local officials are hiring people to track down anyone who may have been exposed to Covid-19. @drsanjaygupta talks to Dr. Syra Madad, an epidemiologist and special pathogens expert, about the importance and process of contact tracing. https://t.co/zkAOt1p1e8

— CNN (@CNN) June 11, 2020

Trial for Assassination Killings

The defendant is the former Vice-Minister of Public Security in El Salvador where six Jesuits and their housekeeper and her daughter were killed. On 8-10 June the Spanish court completed its first “block” of the trial. The second block will begin on 08 July. In addition to securing justice for 8 people murdered, “demonstrates the need to reinstitute rules that will allow the effective exercise of Universal Jurisdiction.”

The trial for the killings of Ignacio Ellacuría, Ignacio Martín-Baró, Amando López, Joaquín López y López, Juan Ramón Moreno, Segundo Montes, their housekeeper and her daughter, Elba Julia Ramos and Celina Maricet Ramos, began in Spain on Monday 8 June. https://t.co/jRDGny5NOu pic.twitter.com/i5cwStXJSO

— Thinking Faith (@ThinkingFaith) June 11, 2020

Mayor’s Action

The mayor of Buffalo, New York, ordered that a new police unit without military gear and trained in civil rights handle peaceful demonstrations after a riot unit was involved in the injury of a 75-year-old protester https://t.co/nx9AxT1g5P

— Reuters (@Reuters) June 11, 2020

Improving Quality of Health Care

In addition to basic care a “decade-long project led by…a distinguished research professor at York University looked at long-term care in four Canadian provinces…and five countries.” It noted that art and space significantly “influence the way that residents interact among themselves and with the staff.” 

As we work to fix problems in long-term care in Canada, research suggests we should pay attention to laundry, food, art and space — and to the people in charge of those things. https://t.co/34e5j2AhKZ

— McMaster University (@McMasterU) June 9, 2020

“No More Than You Have”

A single “community of Cistercians of the Strict Observance, also known as Trappists,” exists in Britain. Nick Hamer made a documentary that “shows the everyday life of” the monks. The monks switched from working their dairy farm to “a state-of-the-art brewery.” A trailer follows Jesuit Paul Nicholson’s review.

‘Do you ever think that you’ve wasted your life?’ https://t.co/63N7plqgPG #OutsidetheCity #Film

— Thinking Faith (@ThinkingFaith) June 9, 2020

Christian Hope Is Practical

Jesuit James Hanvey noted that witnesses of hope are open, and they are empowered by the Spirit to “realise new possibilities.” The gospel paves the way for new possibilities because it “opens up paths of encounter.” Fr. Hanvey offered a video-prayer to help us encounter Christ.

‘All of us who live from the gift of faith are witnesses of hope – a real, practical hope, which is not trapped in the old patterns but can realise new possibilities.’ https://t.co/t4S0PW4OQo

— Thinking Faith (@ThinkingFaith) June 9, 2020

Listening: Conversation Essential

Matt Malone is a Jesuit and the President & Editor in Chief of America Media. In his first-person essay he noted that all Americans are judged by the colour of their skin. “The difference is that this judgment created an advantage for [those who are white] and a disadvantage for [those who are black].”

I wrote this essay for @americamag over the weekend. You are welcome to join the conversation. “I have walked into the lobby of more than a dozen hotels in Manhattan and used the men’s room. I have been stopped exactly once.” https://t.co/AH4AszE9un via @americamag

— Matt Malone, S.J. (@Americaeditor) June 9, 2020

First of Four

Today began a series of 4 webinars on topics related to safeguarding children and vulnerable adults. Today’s webinar may be view at this link.

Vatican News announced this series earlier today. Its report includes background of the series, the dates and presenters of the webinars and an audio report.

Several organizations team up to present a series of webinars directed toward raising awareness about the ongoing need to safeguard children and vulnerable adults.https://t.co/9koXVKDKNu

— Vatican News (@VaticanNews) June 8, 2020

Advanced Notice

An excellent online @Caabu briefing coming up with @samdagher: Is there a common thread to mass protests in the Middle East and the United States?

Join us on 25 June at 2pm UK time (BST) https://t.co/R9DjgqnL7u pic.twitter.com/SHCKSYbtX0

— Joseph Willits (@josephwillits) June 8, 2020

Noncooperation

Early commentators drew parallels between U.S. U.S. today and its demonstrations of 1968. However, The Atlantic Staff writer Franklin Foer noted a difference.

"What the United States is witnessing is less like the chaos of 1968, which further divided a nation, and more like the nonviolent movements that earned broad societal support in places such as Serbia, Ukraine, and Tunisia," @FranklinFoer writes: https://t.co/KymoI11lSs

— The Atlantic (@TheAtlantic) June 6, 2020

Sesame Street Contributed to Understanding

Sesame Street offered a town hall to help kids and families understand racism. In the tweeted segment below Elmo learns about protest.

Elmo’s dad just provided the most concise explanation of protest that I’ve ever heard pic.twitter.com/YDfykC9GeF

— Wesley (@WesleyLowery) June 6, 2020

Relationship

The relations of the Persons of the Trinity form nothing abstract. In an archival post at Thinking Faith Jesuit John Moffatt noted: “if the single origin of all things is in essence relationship, we can begin to see why the deepest truth in the universe around us is not the laws of physics, but the law of love.”

The #Trinity represents a truth, that the single origin of all things is in essence relationship. https://t.co/ciRTybYdZg

— Thinking Faith (@ThinkingFaith) June 6, 2020

Reflections on Scriptures for Sunday

This is the psalm of someone who has loved God all their lives. Theirs is a proven love, a long faithfulness. As we look back over our own lives in humility and gratitude, we might speak a similar prayer.  https://t.co/neLhXb5fIu

— Renee Yann, RSM (@ReneeYann) June 5, 2020

Asking Correct Questions

Relationship: relationship with God and relationships with others mutually illuminate. Can possessions hinder a relationship, even put it in jeopardy?  Meet Shannon Evans. She ponders these questions in central Iowa where she lives with her husband and their five children. As Shannon ponders she makes Ignatian spirituality more accessible.

___________________

Wiki-image circular shape created using light painting by “Subhrajyoti07 | CC BY-SA 4.0"

Window on Leading

Adults generally wear multiple “hats.” During the pandemic shouldering multiple roles has become more intense. At a New York City hospital one person whose “roles as a doctor, scientist, and administrator were all facing extraordinary demands simultaneously” tells his story of leading through the pandemic’s peak.

“Social distancing and sheltering in place moved the peak from 22,000 to 2,100. It saved more lives than any treatments we can provide patients.” https://t.co/qC5hsAJug1 #COVID19 via @YaleInsights

— Paul Panaretos (@PDPswim) June 6, 2020

In Memoriam

Jesuit Bishop George Murray died yesterday. He had battled leukaemia.

“American Catholics have shown a lack of moral consciousness on the issue of race. If we are to be true to the principles on which our country was founded and the principles on which our faith is based, we must do much more.” -Bishop George Murry, SJ. RIP.https://t.co/yJsA69K8HY pic.twitter.com/iCRAN4e30n

— Jesuit News (@jesuitnews) June 6, 2020

Healing Author

Healing is always accompanied by pain. Depending on its severity pain can be tolerated more easily. The long history of racism in North America causes its pain to be extremely severe. When whites refuse to admit their parts in racism they reject reconciliation. In part it may well be fear to endure the pain that the healing process entails. Author James Baldwin was convinced that “the political injustices brought on by racism began and can only be changed from the level of one’s inner self-awareness.”

Stephen Adubato contributed to America Magazine a window on author James Baldwin and his journey from hatred to healing. It is possible to see oneself in the same window.

As our country confronts yet again violent racism, James Baldwin’s words explore what hatred can do not only to society at large but to the individual who bears it.https://t.co/075PvRA00t

— America Magazine (@americamag) June 5, 2020

The Pope on World Environment Day 2020

On today's observance Pope Francis wrote, “We cannot pretend to be healthy in a world that is sick.” As members of the environment human efforts for its health go hand in hand to foster “a more humane society.“

#PopeFrancis calls for a change in attitudes, so that we may leave a better and healthier planet to later generations. #WorldEnvironmentDayhttps://t.co/Jm4HsWqavG

— Vatican News (@VaticanNews) June 5, 2020

World Environment Day 2020

Its theme is biodiversity. Many individuals issue a call to “wake up” and help the environment grow health again.

Known Since 1856

Women have been discounted. That caused some women to write with a nom-de-plume that suggested the author was a man. In some venues women could not lecture; scientific societies are examples.

In 1856 Eunice Foote could not offer her discovery that CO₂ exposed to sunlight warmed the surrounding air and the receptacle that contained it: a man offered her paper. The data was ignored. So begins a video description of Eunice Foote and two men who noticed early changes to climate.

Three pioneers who predicted climate change https://t.co/mJekvLDObD via @bbcideas

— Paul Panaretos (@PDPswim) June 5, 2020

Defending Human Rights in the Philippines

In addition to an explosion of child sexual exploitation, that Southeast Asian government threatens human rights with a proposed law.  Christian leaders voiced concern with others that a “proposed anti-terrorism law, …will erode respect for human rights and civil liberties.”

The bill broadly defines terrorism. It also “would allow life imprisonment without parole for those in any way connected with carrying out a terrorist act, and allow suspects to be detained without an arrest warrant for up to 24 days.” The Vatican News piece also contains a minute-and-a-half audio report.

Christian leaders in the #Philippines join their voices to oppose a proposed anti-terrorism law, saying it will erode respect for human rights and civil liberties.https://t.co/o9N8HG38uT

— Vatican News (@VaticanNews) June 4, 2020

No “turning a blind eye to racism and exclusion”

So Pope Francis addressed the people of the United States at the Wednesday General Audience.

The tweet contains a video of the pope’s remark and an audio report from Vatican News.

#PopeFrancis comments on the protests in the United States following the killing of #GeorgeFloyd, saying we cannot claim to defend the sacredness of every human life while turning a blind eye to racism and exclusion.https://t.co/OcOubWRLF7

— Vatican News (@VaticanNews) June 3, 2020

Systemic Racism Killed George Floyd

On 31 May the President of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) included in his "Statement…on George Floyd and the Protests in American Cities,“ “Racism has been tolerated for far too long in our way of life.”

Today U.S. Bishop Shelton Fabre, Chairman of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Ad Hoc Committee Against Racism, was interviewed by Vatican News. He reiterated the the earlier presidential statement of the U.S. bishops: destruction of property and harm to others do not address the racism in a way that helps. Bishop Fabre noted that “the roots of the current situation do not lie only in the pandemic. They are deep, historical roots that are part of the disregard for life in this country and our inability or unwillingness to address the issue of race and racism.” Its tweet includes audio of that conversation.

Following the murder of #GeorgeFloyd, Bishop Shelton Fabre speaks denounces the systematic racism the US faces today.https://t.co/1RB8LaPA51

— Vatican News (@VaticanNews) June 2, 2020

Overhear Airmen Converse

The title of the tweet is “Message to Airmen” in the U.S. Air Force, yet it is a message for everyone.

Chief Kaleth Wright’s conversation partner is General Dave Goldfein. Twitter users may find the beginning of Chief Kaleth Wright’s series of tweets containing his reaction here.

Message to Airmen:
Join CSAF @GenDaveGoldfein and @cmsaf18 in a conversation about race, the Air Force, and acknowledging change that we must achieve. pic.twitter.com/C6OfmW3mZZ

— U.S. Air Force (@usairforce) June 2, 2020

Religious Props

Most sad that the memory of Pope St. John Paul II—who staunchly defended human dignity and human rights—has been abused for a photo-op.

UPDATED: After @realDonaldTrump and @FLOTUS visited @JP2Shrine the president signed an executive order expanding U.S. support for international religious freedom. But not everyone was happy with his visit. https://t.co/rC806YCjx7 (CNS photo/ @tylerorsburn) pic.twitter.com/q39S2os3Rz

— Catholic News Service (@CatholicNewsSvc) June 2, 2020

Keeping the LAMP Lit

In the 1970s two cardinals explored the charismatic phenomenon. Their book noted that Christians could “represent a more radical than any revolutionary group in existence” [the book cover]. The Holy Spirit prompts and empowers those who are open to it.

Pope Francis recalled the work of those cardinals. He challenged members of the Catholic Charismatic Movement to become that force for the good of the world.

The pope's message to the charismatic community tonight poses a sharp challenge to a movement known more for personal conversion and evangelization than practical mercy. https://t.co/lJt0eFI0mf

— America Magazine (@americamag) May 31, 2020

Memorial Recently Established

In 2018 Pope Francis decreed that a universal Memorial of Mary, Mother of the Church, be celebrated on the Monday after Pentecost. The Congregation for Divine Worship issued its decree soon after. America Magazine that year had reported more about today’s Memorial. Its scripture readings may be found here.

___________________

Wiki-image Virgin of Lourdes by “Fernando de Gorocica | CC BY-SA 4.0"

Frailty & Mission

Pope Francis released his message for World Mission Sunday. Daughters of St. Paul Sister Bernadette Mary Reis reported that “the call to mission emerges as an ‘invitation to step out of ourselves for love of God and neighbour’ through ‘service and intercessory prayer’,” the pope wrote.

#PopeFrancis releases his annual Message for #WorldMissionSunday, placing mission with the context of the current #coronavirus pandemic.https://t.co/FrYmIeCoud

— Vatican News (@VaticanNews) May 31, 2020