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Photo: Pope Francis and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I embrace.
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VATICAN CITY, JUNE 4, 2007 (Zenit.org).- According to the Vatican secretary of state, U.S. President George Bush's upcoming visit to Benedict XVI will include a range of topics for discussion, including Iraq.
Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone said this in an interview with the Italian bishops' newspaper Avvenire on Sunday.
He said that the Pope and the president will discuss Latin America. "They will also speak about the Middle East and the great ethical and social questions that regard the peoples of the world," the cardinal added.
Cardianal Bertone recognized that Bush has done some positive things in defending life.
"The United States is a great country and the current president has particularly distinguished himself in regard to some positive initiatives in defense of life from conception," he contended.
However, the secretary of state also pointed to problems: "There remain, however, some problems, already made manifest by that great prophet who was the Servant of God John Paul II, for example, the Iraq war and the dramatic situation of Iraqi Christians, which is always getting worse."
Code: ZE07060402
Date: 2007-06-04
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Also Consider Drug Trafficking and Indigenous Peoples
VATICAN CITY, JUNE 4, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI received in audience the president of Mexico and discussed emigration, indigenous peoples, and the battle against violence and drug trafficking.
The Pope and the Mexican leader spoke of these issues today during Calderon's first visit to the Vatican as president. The president renewed an invitation to the Holy Father to visit Mexico.
Alter speaking in Spanish privately with the Pontiff in his library for 22 minutes, Felipe Calderón met with Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, Vatican secretary of state, and Archbishop Dominique Mamberti, secretary for Relations with States.
According to a communiqué released by the Vatican press office: "The position of the Catholic Church was also examined, above all in light of the important steps forward -- already taken or yet to be taken -- in its relations with the state.
"In this context, special mention was made of the fact that this year marks the happy occasion of the 15th anniversary of the re-establishment of diplomatic relations between Mexico and the Holy See."
The Mexican president and Benedict XVI also discussed the upcoming Group of Eight summit to be held in Germany.
"The cordial discussions provided an occasion for an exchange of views on questions concerning the current international situation, also with a view to the forthcoming G-8 summit meeting, in which President Calderón will participate as a special guest," the communiqué said.
The president came with his wife Margarita Zavala and their three children.
Code: ZE07060413
Date: 2007-06-04
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VATICAN CITY, JUNE 4, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Human rights were one of the central themes that Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo and Benedict XVI touched on when they met in audience.
Arroyo, whose country has the largest number of Catholics in Asia, met with the Pope today.
After the papal audience, she met with Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone and the secretary for relations with states, Archbishop Dominique Mamberti.
"During the discussions reference was made to the cordial relations that exist between the Holy See and the Republic of the Philippines, and to the understanding and cooperation between Church and State," said a communiqué released by the Vatican press office.
It added: "Attention also turned to the political and social situation in Southeast Asia, and especially to the respect and promotion of human rights and of democratic institutions in that region."
Arroyo attended the Sunday ceremony where Blessed Marie-Eugénie of Jesus (1817-1898) was canonized. The miracle that allowed her canonization was the healing of a Filipino girl, Risa Bondoc, who is now 12.
Arroyo previously visited Benedict XVI last June 26.
Code: ZE07060412
Date: 2007-06-04
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New Ambassador to the Holy See Meets Pontiff
VATICAN CITY, JUNE 4, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI says that Estonia has much to offer the European community, especially because the country values freedom and the sacrifices freedom entails.
The Pope said that on Friday when he received in audience Juri Seilenthal, the new Estonian ambassador to the Holy See.
The Holy Father said: "The great revolution which swept Eastern Europe in the final decade of the last century testified, in fact, to the innate and irrepressible yearning for freedom present within individuals and peoples, as well as the inseparability of authentic freedom from the pursuit of truth, respect for the transcendent dignity of each human person, and a commitment to mutual respect and solidarity.
"These values, a precious legacy of Estonia's millennial history, must be constantly reappropriated and given practical expression in every sphere of political and social life."
The Pontiff said that Europe needs Estonia's witness, given that it is a society that has faced the "challenge of fashioning a society which is genuinely free yet at the same time faithful to its defining traditions."
"Europe needs this witness, which will surely help the continent as a whole to 'recognize and reclaim with creative fidelity' its fundamental values, values which were decisively shaped by the Christian message and constitute an inalienable element of its true identity," the Pope affirmed.
Church teachings
Benedict XVI mentioned the Church's role in Estonia, saying that "the truth of the Gospel sheds light on the reality of the human situation and provides the wisdom needed for individuals and communities to discern and embrace the demands of the moral law which provide the necessary and enduring foundation for just and harmonious relations within society."
He particularly defended the role of the family and respect for life.
"In a special way, the Church is committed to the promotion of the sanctity of marriage, the basic role and mission of the family, the education of children and respect for God's gift of life from conception to natural death," the Holy Father said. "Since the health of any society depends in no small measure on the health of its families, I trust that this witness will contribute to the consolidation of family and community life and, together with wise and far-sighted social policies, will help to revitalize Estonia's long history of strong and united families."
Estonia, a country of some 1.3 million people, is 13.6% Lutheran and 12.8% Orthodox. Other Christians, including Catholics, make up about 1.4% of the population.
Code: ZE07060411
Date: 2007-06-04
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Addresses Future Holy See Representatives
VATICAN CITY, JUNE 4, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI told future Holy See diplomats that their main priority is forming an intimate relationship with Christ.
The Pope said this on Saturday when he received in audience students and educators from the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy.
"In effect, dear alumni, the more you seek the face of Christ the better you will be able to serve the Church and people -- Christians and non-Christians -- whom you will meet along the way as pontifical representatives throughout the world," the Holy Father said.
The Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy was founded in 1701 and trains the priests who will serve as diplomats for the Holy See.
Benedict XVI told the students: "The witness to the Gospel is asked to be faithful in every circumstance to the mission with which he has been entrusted.
"For you this means, in the first place, a personal and profound experience of the incarnate God, an intimate friendship with Jesus, in whose name the Church sends you for a singular apostolic task."
Atypical
The Pope referred to the address delivered by the academy president, which mentioned the students' desire to be "shepherds alongside the other shepherds of the Church."
"Cultivate this, your ardent desire," the Holy Father said, "so that those who draw near to you will always be able to discover the priest that is in you."
"In this way," Benedict XVI added, "all will clearly see the atypical character of pontifical diplomacy, a diplomacy that, as the numerous accredited diplomatic missions to the Apostolic See can testify, far from defending material interests or partial visions of man, promotes the values that flow from the Gospel, as the expression of the high ideals proclaimed by Jesus, sole and universal savior."
The Holy Father reiterated the future diplomats' need to have a strong relationship with Christ.
He told them: "The more deeply you know him, the more strongly will you be united to him and the more faithful you will be to your priestly commitments, all the more and better will you be able to serve people, the more fruitful will be your dialogue with them, the more accessible will appear the peace that you will propose in situations of tension and conflict, the more consoling will be the comfort that, in the name of Christ and his Church, you offer to those persons who undergo trial and are without defense."
Code: ZE07060414
Date: 2007-06-04
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Chaldean Patriarch Denounces "Shameful Crime"
VATICAN CITY, JUNE 4, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone sent a telegram of condolence in Benedict XVI's name, remembering the priest and three deacons murdered Sunday in Iraq.
The priest was killed in front of the Church of the Holy Spirit after saying Sunday Mass.
According to Reuters, police said that gunmen stopped the priest's car, dragged him and the deacons out and shot them. Iraqi sources said militants related to al-Qaida are responsible for the increasing persecution of Christians in Mosul.
The papal telegram was sent to Chaldean Archbishop Paulos Faraj Rahho of Mosul.
The telegram said: "The Holy Father was deeply saddened to learn of the senseless killing of Father Ragheed Aziz Ganni and subdeacons Basman Yousef Daoud, Ghasan Bidawid and Wadid Hanna, and he asks you kindly to convey to their families his heartfelt condolences."
It continued: "He willingly joins the Christian community in Mosul in commending their souls to the infinite mercy of God, our loving Father, and in giving thanks for their selfless witness to the Gospel.
"At the same time he prays that their costly sacrifice will inspire in the hearts of all men and women of good will a renewed resolve to reject the ways of hatred and violence, to conquer evil with good and to cooperate in hastening the dawn of reconciliation, justice and peace in Iraq."
The telegram concluded: "To the families and to all who mourn their dead in faith and in the hope which draws its certainty from the resurrection, His Holiness cordially imparts his apostolic blessing as a pledge of consolation and strength in the Lord."
Bitterness
Meanwhile, the Chaldean patriarch of Babylon, Emmanuel III Delly, published a declaration regarding the killings.
"With hearts full of bitterness the patriarch of Babylon for the Chaldeans, His Beatitude Mar Emmanuel III Delly, and all the Chaldean bishops raise a disdainful protest and denounce the martyrdom" of the four clerics, the declaration said.
It continued: "This is a shameful crime that any person of conscience rejects. Those who committed it did a horrendous thing against God and humanity, against their brothers who were faithful and peaceful citizens besides being men of religion who always offered their prayers and their supplications up to Almighty God that he would bring peace, security, and stability to all of Iraq."
The note said that the Chaldean bishops of Iraq, who are meeting in a synod in al Qosh, offered their condolences and prayers.
"The bishops ask everyone for unity and solidarity in these difficult moments, and on this sad occasion, they repeat what they have already declared before about the persecution of Iraqi Christians, their forced emigration, and their being pushed to deny their faith," the declaration concluded. "They ask the Iraqi leaders and the international organizations to intervene and take the necessary steps to put an end to these criminal acts."
Code: ZE07060410
Date: 2007-06-04