Tomorrow, December 8th, is the feast of the Immaculate Conception, a holiday and holy day in the Vatican and a holiday in Italy. In late afternoon, continuing a time-honored tradition, Pope Benedict will go to Rome’s Spanish Steps where he will offer a floral wreath to the statue of Mary Immaculate in the square and then recite a prayer he has written. (EWTN will cover this, starting at 10 am, ET)The North American College will celebrate its patronal feast day with Mass in late morning, followed by a splendid lunch for faculty, staff, seminarians, guests and benefactors. The celebrant tomorrow is Archbishop Samuel Aquila of Denver.
This celebration at NAC is always one of my favorite annual events, as is tonight’s vigil of the Immaculata, celebrated by vespers and dinner at the Rome headquarters of the Marian Fathers. I have been the invited guest for the last several years of Fr. Joseph Roesch, whom all of you know from EWTN presentations at the Shrine of Divine Mercy in Massachusetts.
Christmas decorations are going up all over Rome, in store windows, in city squares, at churches and across the streets and alleys and major thoroughfares of the Eternal City as miles and miles of lights are strung up and across buildings.
What I LOVE about Rome (all of Italy, in fact) at Christmas is that nativity scenes are everywhere – they are large, they are small, they are all magnificent and they are in public places and on public land and that is just fine with everyone. And you know what, if it is not fine, people don’t say anything. Nor do they sue, as far as I know!
Tomorrow night at 7 in Rome’s central Pza. Venezia, the lights on the capital’s Christmas tree – a 100-foot tall fir donated from the town of Andalo in northern Italy - will be switched on. Almost simultaneously a half million environmentally-friendly LED lights will be lit as a glittering ceiling over Via del Corso.
Also starting tomorrow, Rome will also offer its first ever “Babbo Natale” (Father Christmas or Santa Claus) tour for children. Until December 22, a special bus bearing some 30 Santas (or Santa’s helpers, as you may want to tell your children) will tour the city.
The Vatican's Christmas tree arrived yesterday from the Molise region and will be illuminated on December 14. I have read that after Christmas the tree will be turned into toys for needy children.
I hope your December 8th is as special as mine always is!
POPE NAMES SECRETARY AS NEW PREFECT OF PAPAL HOUSEHOLD
When Pope Benedict made Archbishop James Harvey a cardinal on November 24, assigning him as archpriest of St. Paul’s Outside-the-Walls Basilica, the big question on everyone’s mind in, around or near the Roman Curia, was: who will succeed him as prefect of the Papal Household?
Now, we know.
The Holy Father today appointed his personal secretary, Msgr. Georg Gänswein as prefect of the Papal Household and at the same time announced he would elevate him to the dignity of archbishop.
Msgr. Gänswein (also Gaenswein) was born in Waldshutt, Germany in 1956 and was ordained a priest in 1984. The archbishop-elect previously served in the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments and in the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, where he had the role of personal secretary to then-prefect, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger. He has served as personal secretary to Pope Benedict XVI since his election to the pontificate in April 2005. He speaks German, Italian, Latin, French, English and Spanish.
The 1988 Apostolic Constitution “Pastor Bonus” states: "The Prefecture of the Papal Household looks after the internal organization of the papal household, and supervises everything concerning the conduct and service of all clerics and laypersons who make up the papal family. It is at the service of the Supreme Pontiff, both in the Apostolic Palace and when he travels in Rome or in Italy."The Prefecture runs the Apostolic Palace, including the papal apartments, as well as the summer papal residence in Castelgandolfo. The prefect is responsible for all audiences, be they to groups or individuals such as a head of State or government.
The Vatican today did not announce a new papal secretary so it is believed Msgr. Georg will continue in that role.
Because of Msgr. Gänswein’s daily duties as the Holy Father’s personal secretary, it is believed that the Pope will also appoint an adjunct prefect. Pope John Paul did this in 1998 when he named his then-secretary, Msgr. Stanisaw Dziwisz as adjunct prefect to Prefect Janes Harvey, making both of them archbishops. Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz is now the archbishop of Krakow, Poland.
Observers commented in 1998 that the elevation of both Harvey and Dziwisz to archbishop assured their future in the Church.
BISHOP BADEJO OF NIGERIA GUESTS ON “VATICAN INSIDER”
My guest this week on the interview segment of “Vatican Insider” is the dynamic, articulate and enthusiastic Bishop Emmanuel Badejo of Oyo, Nigeria. We met during the October synod on evangelization and spent a delightful half hour talking about the situation in Nigeria, the plight of Christians and Muslims in that country, his amazing work with young people, and the importance of inter-religious dialogue, among other topics.
You will not want to miss a minute of Part One of this riveting conversation as Bishop Badejo talks about the topics I just mentioned AND how he helped bring EWTN back to the airwaves!
Here is a link to the diocesan website: http://www.catholicdioceseoyo.org/
Listen to Vatican Insider on a Catholic radio station near you (there is a list of U.S. stations at www.ewtn.com) or on Sirius satellite radio. If you live outside the U.S. you can listen to EWTN radio on our web page: click on the right side where you see “LISTEN TO EWTN.” Vatican Insider airs Saturday mornings at 9:30 am (Eastern time) and re-airs Sundays at 4:30 pm (ET). To go to Vatican Insider archives: http://www.ewtn.com/vondemand/audio/file_index.asp?SeriesId=7096&pgnu
SYNOD ON EVANGELIZATION: FINAL PROPOSITION 26
3) Pastoral Responses to the Circumstances of Our Day
Proposition 26 : PARISHES AND OTHER ECCLESIAL REALITIES
The bishops gathered in Synod affirm that the parish continues to be the primary presence of the Church in neighborhoods, the place and instrument of Christian life, which is able to offer opportunities for dialogue among men, for listening to and announcing the Word of God, for organic catechesis, for training in charity, for prayer, adoration and joyous eucharistic celebrations. In addition the Synod Fathers would like to encourage parishes to find ways to orient themselves to a greater emphasis on evangelization which could include parish missions, parish renewal programs and parish retreats. The presence and evangelizing action of associations, movements and of other ecclesial realities are useful stimuli for the realization of this pastoral conversion. Parishes as well as traditional and new ecclesial realities are called to make visible together the communion of the particular Church united around the Bishop.
In order to bring to all people the Good News of Jesus, as required by a New Evangelization, all the parishes and their small communities should be living cells, places to promote the personal and communitarian encounter with Christ, experience the richness of liturgy, to give initial and permanent Christian formation, and to educate all the faithful in fraternity and charity especially towards the poor.
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