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 WASHINGTON-Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan of New York called on everyone "concerned about the tragedy of abortion" to recommit to a "vision of life and love, a vision that excludes no one" on January 14. His statement marks the 43rd anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion. Cardinal Dolan chairs the Committee on Pro-Life Activities of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

"Most Americans oppose a policy allowing legal abortion for virtually any reason - though many still do not realize that this is what the Supreme Court gave us," wrote Cardinal Dolan. "Most want to protect unborn children at later stages of pregnancy, to regulate or limit the practice of abortion, and to stop the use of taxpayer dollars for the destruction of unborn children. Yet many who support important goals of the pro-life movement do not identify as 'pro-life,' a fact which should lead us to examine how we present our pro-life vision to others."

"Even as Americans remain troubled by abortion," wrote Cardinal Dolan, a powerful and well-funded lobby holds "that abortion must be celebrated as a positive good for women and society, and those who cannot in conscience provide it are to be condemned for practicing substandard medicine and waging a 'war on women'." He said this trend was seen recently when President Obama and other Democratic leaders prevented passage of the Abortion Non-Discrimination Act, "a modest measure to provide for effective enforcement" of conscience laws.

"While this is disturbing," said Cardinal Dolan, "it is also an opportunity." Pro-life Americans should reach out to "the great majority of Americans" who are "open to hearing a message of reverence for life." He added that "we who present the pro-life message must always strive to be better messengers. A cause that teaches the inexpressibly great value of each and every human being cannot show disdain or disrespect for any fellow human being." He encouraged Catholics to take part, through prayer and action, in the upcoming "9 Days for Life" campaign, January 16-24. More information on the campaign is available online: www.youtube.com/watch?v=gxJwfcefUiU

He also cited the Year of Mercy called by Pope Francis as a time for women and men to find healing through the Church's Project Rachel post-abortion ministry.

The full text of Cardinal Dolan's message is available online.
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Keywords: Roe v. Wade, anniversary, Pro-Life, Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan, 9 Days for Life, USCCB, U.S. bishops, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Year of Mercy, Project Rachel, Pope Francis
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MEDIA CONTACT
Don Clemmer
O: 202-541-3206

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NEW YORK-On the occasion of the 43rd anniversary of Roe v. Wade, Orthodox and Catholic Christians will join in prayer and public gathering to express their long-standing belief that all life is sacred.

An official delegation of the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of the United States will participate in choir in the Opening Mass of the National Prayer Vigil for Life at the Roman Catholic Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, January 21. The following day, January 22, Catholic and Orthodox bishops will jointly offer prayer to begin the March for Life at 12 noon on the National Mall.

As he reflected upon the importance of this year's sanctity of life events, His Eminence Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan, Archbishop of New York and chairman of the Committee on Pro-Life Activities of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), said: "While we lament the tragedy of abortion in our land, our Lord continues to show us how good can come from evil. Our collaborative and prayerful efforts with our Orthodox brothers and sisters have certainly been a sign of hope in our combined efforts to build a culture of life."

Highlighting the importance of prayer when addressing the issue of abortion, His Eminence Metropolitan Savas of Pittsburgh, chairman of the Committee for Church and Society of the Assembly of Orthodox Bishops in the U.S., stressed the need to "pray not only for those who are currently considering an abortion, but also those who have already undergone the procedure and may despair of God's love and mercy."

The faithful and all people of good will are invited to attend both the Prayer Vigil and the March for Life Rally. For more information, please visit: www.usccb.org/prayer-and-worship/resources/index.cfm and http://marchforlife.org/mfl-2016/

The following statement was signed by Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz of Louisville, Kentucky, president of the USCCB; His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios of America, chairman of the Assembly of Orthodox Bishops; Cardinal Dolan; and Metropolitan Savas:

Seeking Life, Mercy, and Healing
A Common Statement by Orthodox and Catholic Bishops
on the 43rd Anniversary of Roe v. Wade

On January 22, Catholic and Orthodox Christians will once again stand in solidarity on the occasion of the 43rd anniversary of Roe v. Wade. As our communities firmly believe in the sanctity of life, the faithful-along with many people of other traditions and good will-lament the legal circumstances that facilitate abortion and the cultural phenomena that present abortion as the only choice for expectant mothers experiencing difficult conditions.

We recognize that the choice to abort an unborn child ultimately reflects the broken condition of humanity.

We remind the world of our common teaching that life begins at the earliest moments of conception and that life, at all stages of its development, is sacred. We denounce the termination of a life as a response to unwanted pregnancies or as a method of overcoming social and economic challenges. We embrace the mothers and the couples who, in spite of difficulties, choose to bring their pregnancy to term. At the same time, however, we invite those who may have undergone or facilitated an abortion to turn to Christ with contrite hearts, seeking to overcome their grief through His forgiveness, mercy and healing.

His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios
of America, Chairman
Assembly of Canonical
Orthodox Bishops of the USA

Metropolitan Savas of Pittsburgh
Chairman,
Committee for Church and Society
Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of the USA

Most Reverend Joseph E. Kurtz
Archbishop of Louisville
President
U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops

Timothy Michael Cardinal Dolan
Archbishop of New York
Chairman,            
Committee on Pro-Life Activities
U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops
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Keywords: Catholic, Orthodox, human life, Roe v. Wade, anniversary, abortion, March for Life, Archbishop Demetrios of America, Assembly of Canonical, Orthodox Bishops of the USA, Metropolitan Savas, Pittsburgh, Committee for Church and Society, Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz, Louisville, Kentucky, president, USCCB, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan, New York, Committee on Pro-Life Activities
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MEDIA CONTACTS
Don Clemmer
O: 202-541-3206

Chrysanthe Loizos
communications@assemblyofbishops.org
M: 202-415-1255

Stavros Papagermanos
pressoffice@goarch.org
O: 212-570-3530
F: 212-774-0237

 

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(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis has issued a decree that changes the way that the Holy Thursday Rite of the Washing of the Feet is celebrated

The decree, that says the rite should  include all members of God’s people, was published on Thursday by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments and signed by the prefect, Cardinal Robert Sarah.

Pope Francis also wrote a letter to Cardinal Sarah in which he says that “after careful consideration” he has decided to make the change to the Roman Missal.

Specifically he says the part that must be modified is the rubric which limits the Holy Thursday rite only to men.

So, according to the decree, the rubric will now read “Those chosen from among the People of God” instead of “The men who have been chosen”.

"Pastors - the modified decree reads - may choose a group of faithful representing the variety and unity of every part of the People of God. This group may consist of men and women, and ideally of the young and the old, healthy and sick, clerics, consecrated persons and lay people".

In the letter Pope Francis says he made the changes “so that it might express more fully the meaning of Jesus’ gesture in the Cenacle, His giving of Himself unto the end for the salvation of the world, His limitless charity”.

Please find below the Vatican Information Service' translation of the decree:

    “The reform of the Holy Week, by the decree Maxima Redemptionis nostrae mysteria of November 1955, provides the faculty, where counselled by pastoral motives, to perform the washing of the feet of twelve men during the Mass of the Lord’s Supper, after the reading of the Gospel according to John, as if almost to represent Christ’s humility and love for His disciples.

   “In the Roman liturgy this rite was handed down with the name of the Mandatum of the Lord on brotherly charity in accordance with Jesus’ words, sung in the Antiphon during the celebration.

   “In performing this rite, bishops and priests are invited to conform intimately to Christ who ‘came not to be served but to serve’ and, driven by a love ‘to the end’, to give His life for the salvation of all humankind.

   “To manifest the full meaning of the rite to those who participate in it, the Holy Father Francis has seen fit to change the rule by in the Roman Missal (p.300, No. 11) according to which the chosen men are accompanied by the ministers, which must therefore be modified as follows: ‘Those chosen from among the People of God are accompanied by the ministers’ (and consequently in the Caeremoniale Episcoporum No. 301 and No. 299 b referring to the seats for the chosen men, so that pastors may choose a group of faithful representing the variety and unity of every part of the People of God. This group may consist of men and women, and ideally of the young and the old, healthy and sick, clerics, consecrated persons and lay people.

   “This Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, by means of the faculties granted by the Supreme Pontiff, introduces this innovation in the liturgical books of the Roman Rite, recalling pastors of their duty to instruct adequately both the chosen faithful and others, so that they may participate in the rite consciously, actively and fruitfully.”

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Vatican City, Jan 21, 2016 / 10:14 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Pope Francis has changed the rules for the Church’s traditional foot-washing ceremony on Holy Thursday, issuing a decree allowing women to participate in what has until now been a ritual officially open only to men.

In a letter addressed to Cardinal Robert Sarah, Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, the Pope said that from now on the 12 persons chosen to participate in the ritual of the washing of the feet will be selected “from among all members of the People of God.”

“For some time I have been reflecting on the rite of the washing of the feet, which forms part of the Liturgy of the Mass of the Lord’s Supper, with the intention of improving the ways in which it is put into practice, so that we fully express the meaning of the gesture made by Jesus in the Upper Room, his gift of self until the end for the salvation of the world, his boundless charity.”

Francis also stressed that “an adequate explanation of the meaning of the rite itself” ought to be provided for those chosen to participate.

The official decree was signed by Cardinal Sarah Jan. 6. In it, the cardinal specified that the previous text of the Roman Missal, which says that “the men chosen are accompanied by the ministers,” has now been changed to read “those chosen from among the People of God are accompanied by the ministers.”

Pastors can freely choose a group of faithful “that represents the variety and unity of every part of the people of God,” he said, explaining that this group may now consist of “men and women, and suitably of young and elderly, healthy and sick, clerics, consecrated and laity.”

Many parishes around the world had already been including women in the ritual for years; the decree of the Congregation for Divine Worship makes the practice licit.

Francis himself had a habit of including women and non-Catholics in the ritual during his own Holy Thursday liturgies, which have taken place in both a juvenile detention center and a center for the elderly and disabled.

Just after his election as Bishop of Rome in 2013, Pope Francis said Mass at Rome’s Casal del Marmo juvenile detention center, where washed the feet of 12 youth, including two women and two Muslims.

A year later, he said Holy Thursday Mass at the Don Gnocchi center for the elderly and disabled, where he washed the feet of both young people and elderly, four of whom were women.

Although the Pope has previously chosen to wash the feet of both non-Catholics and non-Christians, Archbishop Arthur Roche, secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship, cautioned that the new change does not necessarily include them.

In Jan. 21 comments to CNA, the archbishop said that the changes are meant for “the local community,” and members of “the local parish.”

He said that reading the decree as an invitation for non-Catholics to participate would be a “selective interpretation” of the text, and that while this could be something that happens “in the future,” it’s probably not what the Pope’s decision intended.

However, Archbishop Roche did say that although the decree is meant for the local community, it’s possible that a non-Catholic spouse of a parishioner who regularly attends the Catholic liturgy could be chosen to participate.

The archbishop also touched on the topic of whether non-Christians could be chosen. He pointed to Pope Francis’ decision to wash the feel of Muslim youth in 2013, distinguishing between papal liturgies from the everyday liturgy in “normal” situations.

He explained that when Pope Francis chose to wash the feet of Muslim youth, it was under “special circumstances” and took place in an “unusual setting,” whereas the current decree is intended for the “normal, everyday liturgy in the parish.”

So when reading the decree’s emphasis on the “People of God,” Archbishop Roche said the phrase can be interpreted from its use in Lumen gentium, the Second Vatican Council's dogmatic constitution on the Church, in which the term refers “specifically to the Church.”

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Vatican City, Jan 21, 2016 / 10:42 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Pope Francis observed the feast of St. Agnes on Thursday with the time-honored custom of the blessing of lambs, whose wool will be used to make palliums, a vestment worn by metropolitan archbishops which signify their unity with the Church of Rome.

A video posted by Catholic News Agency (@catholicnewsagency) on Jan 21, 2016 at 10:28am PST

The two small lambs, traditionally less than a year old, were placed in baskets and carried to the Urban VIII Chapel in the Vatican's Apostolic Palace Jan. 21, where they received the Holy Father’s blessing.

St. Agnes, whose name means “lamb” in Latin, was a young girl when she consecrated her virginity to God. Although stories of her martyrdom vary, tradition holds that the beautiful young girl was pursued by various men, whom she refused because of her promise to God.

Feeling slighted, these men then turned her over to Roman authorities, outing her as a Christian. She was then put to death by the sword after refusing to give up her virginity or denounce her faith, at the young age of 12 or 13.

The young saint is buried in the basilica named for her, located on Rome’s Via Nomentana. Since she is mentioned in the Roman Canon, her association with the pallium is an important symbol of unity with the successor of Saint Peter.

During the blessing of the lambs, one lamb wears a white crown symbolizing the saint’s purity, and the other lamb to wear a red crown, emblematic of her martyrdom.

St. Agnes is usually depicted as carrying a lamb in her arms, and she is the patron saint of young girls, engaged couples, and victims of sexual assault.

When the sheep are shorn in the summer, religious sisters will collect the wool and use it to weave the palliums, which are white stoles with six black crosses worn by archbishops to show their unity with the Pope and their apostolic authority. The vestment dates back to at least the fifth century.

After the palliums are woven, they are kept in an urn at the tomb of St. Peter until the feast of Sts. Peter and Paul, when they are presented to the archbishops who were newly appointed in the last year.

 

The #Pope blessing lambs today, the feast day of the young #saint and #martyr #Agnes - whose name means "lamb" in Latin. Their wool will be used to make the white palliums worn by archbishops. #catholics #catholicchurch#catholic #catholicism #popefrancis Photo : Osservatore Romano

A photo posted by Catholic News Agency (@catholicnewsagency) on Jan 21, 2016 at 7:08am PST

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IMAGE: CNS photo/Victor Aleman, Vida Nueva

By Junno Arocho Esteves

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Following a request by Pope Francis, the Vatican issued a decree specifying that the Holy Thursday foot-washing ritual can include "all members of the people of God," including women -- a practice already observed by the pope and many priests around the world.

In a letter dated December 2014 and addressed to Cardinal Robert Sarah, the head of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments, the pope said the rubric of the Roman Missal, which mentions only men as participants in the foot-washing rite, should be changed so that priests can choose from all members of the church.

The pope said the change would help express the full meaning of Jesus' gesture at the Last Supper, his "giving himself 'to the end' for the salvation of the world" and his endless charity. However, the pope insisted those chosen be given "an adequate explanation of the meaning of the rite itself."

The pope's letter and the congregation's decree were released by the Vatican Jan. 21.

The decree, issued by Cardinal Sarah and dated Jan. 6, states that pastors can choose "a small group of the faithful to represent the variety and the unity of each part of the people of God. Such small groups can be made up of men and women, and it is appropriate that they consist of people young and old, healthy and sick, clerics, consecrated men and women and laity."

Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, Vatican spokesman, told journalists that although traditionally 12 men were selected to represent the 12 apostles, the meaning of the rite signifies Jesus' unconditional love. With the pope's decree, he said, the pope wished "this dimension of the gesture of Christ's love for all" be the focus rather than just a portrayal of the biblical scene during the Last Supper.

Archbishop Arthur Roche, secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments, explained the history of the foot-washing rite in an article published in the Vatican newspaper Jan. 21.

He said the rite has endured various changes and modifications throughout the church's history. For example, the "mandatum" from 1600 said the custom was for bishops to wash, dry and kiss "the feet of 'thirteen' poor people after having dressed them, fed them and given them a charitable donation."

Changes made by Pope Pius XII were reformed again in 1970, further simplifying the rite and omitting the requirement that the number participating be 12. The significance of the current modifications, the archbishop added, "does not now relate so much to the exterior imitation of what Jesus did, but rather the meaning of what he accomplished, which has a universal importance."

"The washing of feet is not obligatory" during the Holy Thursday Mass of the Lord's Supper, Archbishop Roche said. "It is for pastors to evaluate its desirability, according to the pastoral considerations and circumstances which exist, in such a way that it does not become something automatic or artificial, deprived of meaning and reduced to a staged event."

In 1987, the then-Committee on the Liturgy of the U.S. bishops' conference explained, "The element of humble service has accentuated the celebration of the foot washing rite in the United States over the last decade or more. In this regard, it has become customary in many places to invite both men and women to be participants in this rite in recognition of the service that should be given by all the faithful to the church and to the world. Thus, in the United States, a variation in the rite developed in which not only charity is signified but also humble service."

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