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(Vatican Radio) The Irish embassy to the Holy See and the Teutonic (German) College in the Vatican come together this weekend to honour the memory of an Irish priest who saved thousands of Jewish lives during the Second World War.

Until quite recently, the name of Monsignor Hugh O’Flaherty was not well known in his native Ireland, though a film was made in the 1980s about his adventurous life, entitled ‘The Scarlet and the Black’. On Sunday however, members of the Hugh O’Flaherty memorial society join Irish ambassador Emma Madigan in the church of the German College for the unveiling of a plaque recalling his diplomatic skills and his vital contribution to the resistance movement.

The Vatican ceremony will follow on from a seminar on Saturday with two contemporary Irish missionaries celebrating O’Flaherty’s lasting legacy of charity, courage and compassion. Ahead of these events, Ambassador Madigan talked to Philippa Hitchen about the significance of celebrating his memory in this Jubilee year of mercy….

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Ambassador Madigan notes that before she took up her post she did not know much about Mgr O'Flaherty but shortly after coming to Rome she met members of the memoral society who were visiting the sights connected with his life. This group, she says, has done much to keep his legacy alive, putting up a statue in Kilarney, where he spent much of his time and instituting an annual humanitarian award in his name.

The Irish ambassador says it is "so important" to be celebrating this legacy in the year of mercy because he showed those characteristics of charity, compassion and generosity of spirit.

She says she wanted to give this commemoration "contemporary relevance" by inviting two modern missionaries to talk about their experiences of helping vulnerable people in times of conflict. In this way, she says, we are also "celebrating the Irish missionary tradition which we're rightly proud of" in Ireland today.  

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The killing of Hindu leader Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati in eastern India’s Odisha state in 2008 ‎was carried out not by Christians but by forces who had envisaged subsequent collateral damage, a new ‎book released on Thursday said.  The book entitled, “Who Killed Swami Laxmanananda?” authored by ‎Anto Akkara, a rights advocate and journalist with international media‎, was released on Thursday by ‎veteran journalist and former high commissioner to the UK, Kuldip Nayar, at a function at New Delhi’s ‎Constitution Club.  The investigative book gives details about sequence of events demolishing the ‎theory of Christian conspiracy in the killing of the 81-year-old swami in Kandhamal District on Aug. 23, ‎‎2008.   In the rioting that followed nearly 50 Christians were officially confirmed killed. 

The book said that since Saraswati had said the Pope and Sonia Gandhi were people who considered him a threat to the ‎Christianization of Kandhamal, it was easy to spread rumours that Christians killed him.  The ‎book says that after the murder, ?a list of names of about 25 Christians were distributed ?in Kandhamal, accusing ‎them of the murder.  ?Four Christians from the area were picked up by the ?Hindu fundamentalists - two of them brutally tortured by the mob - before they were presented to the  police  as the swami's killers.  They were illegally detained by the police for 40 days until their release on October 3?.  The four Christians ‎also narrated their story at the May 5th release of Akkara’s book.  Seven Christians have been sentenced to life for killing Saraswati. ‎

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(Vatican Radio) On Saturday, the Holy Father Francis received in audience His Excellency Mr. Johann Schneider Ammann, president of the Swiss Confederation, who subsequently met with His Excellency Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, secretary for Relations with States.

The cordial discussions offered the opportunity to affirm the good relations between the Holy See and Switzerland, with particular acknowledgement of the faithful and professional service rendered by the Pontifical Swiss Guard. Appreciation was expressed for the positive contribution the Church makes in different fields in the country, in an atmosphere of serene collaboration. Mention was made of the professional education of young people, which plays an effective role in access to the world of work.

Special attention was reserved to the theme of migration and policies of reception and integration, in the current European context. The parties then discussed the conflicts in the Middle East and the situation of sub-Saharan countries, revealing the need to strengthen efforts in favour of security and peace.

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(Vatican Radio) The Director of the Holy See Press Office, Father Federico Lombardi, SJ, on Saturday issued a statement on the most recent meeting of the court hearing the case concerning the leaking of confidential news and documents – the so-called “Vatileaks 2” trial.

All five defendants, with their respective attorneys, were present at Saturday’s hearing.

In his statement, Fr Lombardi said the morning session involved continued witness testimony. Five external witnesses – that is, persons not employed by the Vatican – were called to testify. Three of those witnesses, requested by the defence team of journalist Gianluigi Nuzzi, were present on Saturday. The two other witnesses, who were not present, received a second summons to a successive hearing.

After each of the witnesses, their testimony was read back and approved.

The dates for subsequent hearings were announced, with the next hearing set for Saturday 14 May. 

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(Vatican Radio) “Beginning the pilgrimmage this year with the Eucharistic celebration in the Basilica of Saint Peter, presided at by His Eminence Cardinal Angelo Comastri, should be for all of you the occasion of desiring to respond ever more generously to the needs of the little ones, the sick, and those who have hearts broken by moral and physical illnesses.”

That was the message of Pope Francis in a letter sent to representatives of the Rome-Lazio section of UNITALSI (Unione Nazionale Italiana Trasporto Ammalati a Lourdes e Santuari Internazionali) on the occasion of the pilgrimage to Loretto of the whole UNITALSI family for the 80th anniversary of the first pilgrimage to the Marian sanctuary.

UNITALSI is an Italian organization that accompanies the sick and the disabled on pilgrimages to Lourdes and to other international Marian sanctuaries. In 2013, UNITALSI celebrated the 100th anniversary of its founding.

Pope Francis noted that, in the 80 years since the UNITALSIs first pilgrimage to Loretto, the group has accompanied thousands of people entrusted to their care and their Christian testimony – which, the Pope said, must always base itself “on the model of the Holy Family of Nazareth, in reciprocal care and tenderness and mercy.”

The Blessed Virgin Mary, the Holy Father said to the group, “who, in the Sanctuary of Loretto has always welcomed everyone, but above all so many people who live with difficulties of every kind, helps you so that all can find in you companions by the way to accompany, discern, and integrate every weakness, and to restore confidence and hope, as a beacon of light at a port, or a torch borne in the midst of the people to illuminate those who have lost the path and found themselves in the midst of the tempest. Your service,” he continued, “in our own times, should always become more like a field hospital.” 

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Gallup, N.M., May 7, 2016 / 06:04 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Merrick Kohn proudly recalls the day he had the idea to honor police officers and first responders with a special Mass.

Kohn is a student at St. Joseph School in San Fidel, which is located near the Laguna and Acoma pueblos in northwestern New Mexico. He is the son of two Catholic Laguna tribe members who also happen to be officers with the Laguna Police Department. He realized that his mom and dad signed up for the job in order to help people in their community, and wanted to recognize their efforts.

“My mom helped me come up with the idea of a Mass just for the police officers, to thank them for their service,” Kohn said. He presented the idea to Antonio Trujillo, his school principal at San Fidel. Trujillo heartily approved, but there was one problem – the school chapel was too small for the type of Mass they had in mind.

It was soon decided that the Mass would be held in the nearby village of Cubero, at Our Lady of Light mission. With the help of Sister Ellen Corcoran, the parish administrator, the plan to hold a “Blue Mass” was set in motion.

The tradition began in 2015, when police and first responders from Cibola County were invited to a Mass celebrated by Bishop James Wall of Gallup. Kohn says he wanted the bishop to be the main celebrant from the beginning, and he was excited when Bishop Wall agreed.

“I figured since law enforcement people are special, we needed a special priest!” he said.

This year, Bishop Wall asked Fr. Steve Davoren of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles to be the guest homilist for the Blue Mass. The two first met when they were in seminary together, where Fr. Davoren was pursuing a call to the priesthood after serving for eight years as a police officer with the Los Angeles Police Department.

“What does a former police officer turned priest say in a homily?” Fr. Davoren asked at the beginning of his homily. Then he joked, “I prayed about it, and I promise to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help me God.”

Fr. Davoren spoke at length about the similarities between experiences of priests and first responders, noting that both vocations require acting with love.

“My dear friends, the truth is, what you have been called to is such a special vocation and ministry in life. And as our readings are so beautiful today, about love, about laying down your life and sharing that love for others. Love is to will the good of another, and that’s exactly what your vocation is to do every single day. As first responders, you are instruments of God’s peace, much like a priest. And when we do it in love, it makes all the difference.”

He told the people in the church about one of his lowest points as a police officer. He and his partner were called to a scene where a female police officer, a mother of young children just out of the academy, was killed in the line of duty. Although he hadn’t known her personally, the loss of a fellow officer was a tough reminder that the vocation of a police officer sometimes required the ultimate sacrifice.

One of those attending the Blue Mass was Peter Tanzilli, an officer with the Laguna Pueblo Police who had been recently injured in a shooting while responding to a call. Fr. Davoren thanked Tanzilli for his willingness to lay his life on the line, and asked everyone in the congregation to act as a family in supporting their community and one another.

“It’s easy to just read the Gospel,” Fr. Davoren said, “but my dear friends, you live the Gospel, helping complete strangers.”

At the conclusion of the Mass, Bishop Wall blessed a collection of lapel pins of St. Michael the Archangel, the patron saint of law enforcement officers. Students from St. Joseph School handed the pins out to each member of the congregation as they left the church. Afterwards, at a lunch provided at the church’s community hall, a beaming Kohn posed for a photo with the Bishop, Fr. Davoren, his parents and officer Tanzilli.

“I loved [the Mass], because we thanked all the police officers,” Kohn said. “I just want to thank all the people praying for my mom and dad, and other police.”
 

This article is reprinted here courtesy of Voice of the Southwest, where it first appeared, May 3, 2016.

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