PAPAL TWEETS GARNER 1 MILLION NEW FOLLOWERS

Pope Benedict is approaching 2 million followers a mere 24 hours after his first papal tweet, followed over a period of six hours by three tweeted answers to three questions sent to the pontiff. The English language handle - @pontifex – is still the most popular and has, as I write, at 5:30 p.m. Rome time, 1,055,237 followers.\

Here is a look at the first tweet (which I like to call a miniature “urbi et orbi” message and blessing) and those three questions and answers.

“Dear friends, I am pleased to get in touch with you through Twitter. Thank you for your generous response. I bless all of you from my heart. Benedict XVI @Pontifex”

How can we celebrate the Year of Faith better in our daily lives?

By speaking with Jesus in prayer, listening to what he tells you in the Gospel and looking for him in those in need.

How can faith in Jesus be lived in a world without hope?

We can be certain that a believer is never alone. God is the solid rock upon which we build our lives and his love is always faithful.

Any suggestions on how to be more prayerful when we are so busy with the demands of work, families and the world?

Offer everything you do to the Lord, ask his help in all the circumstances of daily life and remember that he is always beside you.

BENEDICT XVI WELCOMES SIX NEW AMBASSADORS TO HOLY SEE

Benedict XVI today welcomed six new ambassadors accredited to the Holy See from Zambia, Thailand, Sri Lanka, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Niger and Guinea. He received from each a Letter of Credence and gave to each new ambassador a message tailored for the specific country he or she represents. The Pope then addressed the ambassadors as a group in French, focusing his remarks on education, saying this is one of the principal challenges of our times which today is located "in a context in which the evolution of ways of life and forms of knowledge create human, cultural, social and spiritual ruptures hitherto unknown in the history of humanity."

The Pope mentioned that social networks "tend to substitute natural social and communicative spaces, often becoming the only point of reference for information and knowledge. The family and schools no longer appear to be the primary or most natural fertile ground where younger generations receive the lifeblood of their existence.

He asked whether the dysfunction of certain institutions and services, both public and private, might be explained "by an inadequately provided and received education," and invited the governments of the nations represented by the ambassadors "to contribute courageously to the advancement of humanity, favoring the education of the new generations through the promotion of a healthy anthropology, the essential basis for all true education, and consonant with our common natural heritage.

“This task,” he continued, “must take as its starting point a sober review of the various problems that exist within your respective countries, where certain political and economic policies may risk a gradual erosion of your anthropological and spiritual heritages, which have been refined through the centuries and patiently constructed on foundations that respect the essence of the human person in all its variety and in perfect harmony with the cosmos … I again urge your governments to have the courage to strengthen and consolidate the moral authority - the call to a coherent way of life - necessary for a genuine and healthy education for the younger generations."

BASILICATA REGION DONATES VATICAN NATIVITY SCENE

As I mentioned in my December 5 column, the nativity scene now under construction in St. Peter's Square has been offered to the Holy Father by the southern Italian region of Basilicata. The “presepio” or nativity scene, which includes 100 terracotta figures, is the work of Francesco Artese, one of the most famous exponents of the southern school of traditional nativity sculpture. The most striking characteristic of Artese's work is his recreation of landscapes of the Stones of Matera and his reproduction of scenes of rural life. Indeed, the nativity of St. Peter's Square is reminiscent of locations in the Holy Land.

The Vatican held a press conference today with officials from Basilicata and representatives from the companies who have helped underwrite the 90,000 Euro cost for this small region, one of the poorest in Italy. Archbishop Giuseppe Sciacca, secretary general of the Governorate of Vatican City, said the region had offered to donate this year’s nativity scene “at considerable savings to the Vatican,” specifying the city-state would save 180,000 Euros. It will, however, pay almost 22,000 Euros in labor costs for Vatican workers.

He said the Governorate has already received an offer from another Italian regions for a future year and, responding to a question, said he would be delighted if other countries offered to build a nativity scene.

When the Vatileaks scandal broke a year ago, one of the things that emerged in the now-famous purloined letters from Vatican officials was the high cost of nativity scenes in St. Peter’s Square which came in at one point at 550,000 Euros, reduced by order of the Governorate the following year (2010) to 300,000 Euros.

The nativity scene will be unveiled December 24. Media will be allowed by special permission to take photos before that date but will be under a December 24 embargo for publishing them.

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