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Vatican City, Aug 7, 2017 / 11:51 am (CNA/EWTN News).- On Sunday morning Pope Francis descended to the grotto beneath St Peter's Basilica, where many past Popes are buried, to pray at the tomb of Bl. Paul VI.

According to a Vatican communique, the Pope spent about half an hour in “a moment of recollection” and prayer before the tomb Aug. 6, the 39th anniversary of the late Roman Pontiff's 1978 death.

Best known for his encyclical Humanae vitae, on the regulation of birth, and his role in the Second Vatican Council, Paul VI was beatified by Pope Francis in 2014.

Not only has Francis acknowledged the important contribution of Bl. Paul VI to the universal Church, he has also followed closely in the late Roman Pontiff's steps, particularly in his travels abroad, going to several of the places where his predecessor had become the first Pope ever to step foot.

This year also marks the 50th anniversary of Bl. Paul VI's encyclicals Populorum Progressio, on the development of peoples, and Sacerdotalis caelibatus, on the celibacy of the priest. Populorum Progressio was a key point of reference in Pope Francis' establishment this year of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development.

Bl. Paul VI was born Giovanni Montini in 1897 in the town of Concesio in the Lombardy region of Italy. Ordained a priest in 1920 and consecrated as a bishop in 1954, he was appointed to the college of cardinals in 1958.

At the age of 66 he was elected Bishop of Rome and chose the name Paul VI, in reference to the missionary spirit of the Apostle Paul.

He re-convoked the Second Vatican Council, which had automatically closed with the death of his predecessor, St. John XXIII, and improved ecumenical relations with the Eastern Orthodox Churches.

In a historic move in December 1965, Bl. Paul VI and Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras I of Constantinople mutually lifted the excommunications that had been leveled against the leaders of both Churches in 1054.

Montini's cause for canonization was opened in 1993. In December 2012, Benedict XVI recognized the heroic virtue of Paul VI, giving him the title Venerable. In 2014, the Vatican approved a miracle attributed to his intercession, allowing for his beatification.

In his Oct. 19, 2014 homily for the beatification, Francis hailed Paul VI as “the great helmsman of the [Second Vatican] Council.”

He cited Bl. Paul VI’s words at the closing of Vatican II's final session: “Perhaps the Lord has called me and preserved me for this service not because I am particularly fit for it, or so that I can govern and rescue the Church from her present difficulties, but so that I can suffer something for the Church, and in that way it will be clear that he, and no other, is her guide and saviour.”

“In this humility,” Pope Francis continued, “the grandeur of Blessed Paul VI shines forth: before the advent of a secularized and hostile society, he could hold fast, with farsightedness and wisdom – and at times alone – to the helm of the barque of Peter, while never losing his joy and his trust in the Lord.”

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Vatican City, Aug 7, 2017 / 12:32 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Pope Francis has sent a special message to Peruvians ahead of his visit to their country next year, telling them to look to the great saints of the nation as they prepare, and pointing to hope and unity as key areas of reflection.

Standing beside a statue of St. Martin de Porres, the Pope told Peruvians in his native Spanish that he will be with them in just a short time, and that “I have a great desire to go.”

“You are a people with a large legacy, (and) the most beautiful legacy that a people can have is the legacy of the saints,” he said, noting that Peru has “many saints, and great saints that mark Latin America.”

Among the best-known of these are St. Martin de Porres, St. Rose of Lima, St. Francis Solano, and St. Turibius of Mogrovejo, in addition to the widespread devotion to the image of Our Lord of the Miracles.

In his message, Pope Francis said it is the saints who built the Church in Peru, “from scattering to unity,” referring to the divisions present in the Viceroyalty of Peru, the Spanish colony during the existence of which many of Peru's canonized saints lived.

“A saint always works along this line: from what is scattered to unity, which is what Jesus did. A Christian has to follow this path,” Pope Francis said in his message, adding that “whoever works for unity looks forward.”

While some look ahead with scepticism or bitterness, “a Christian cannot,” he said. “A Christian looks ahead with hope, because he hopes to achieve that which the Lord has promised him.”

Pope Francis closed the video telling Peruvians that he would see them soon, and that in the meantime, they have homework: “unity and hope, work on this. I'll pray for you, you pray for me.”

The video message was published Aug. 5 by Cardinal Juan Luis Cipriani of Lima.

Francis' greeting comes just five months before his Jan. 15-21, 2018, visit to Chile and Peru. In Peru, he is slated to visit Lima, Puerto Maldonado, and Trujillo.

If his message is any indication, the saints and their role in evangelizing Peru will likely be a focus in his speeches, with a special emphasis on hope and unity – themes he is already known to speak about frequently.

As far as Peruvian saints, Rose of Lima is likely the most well-known. She was born in Lima to Spanish parents in 1586. At a very young age, she chose to consecrate her life to God.

As part of her commitment, she practiced very intense prayer and penance each day, at times depriving herself of food and sleep. She eventually joined the Third Order of St. Dominic, continuing her tough penances. After three years of illness, she died at the age of 31 in 1617.

Her feast day is celebrated Aug. 23 in many parts of the world, while in Peru and several other places it is observed Aug. 30.

Also among the more widely known saints is Martin de Porres, who was the son of a Spanish nobleman and a black slave woman.

Born in Lima in 1579, he was a talented medical apprentice and sought to enter the Dominican Order, but was initially prevented from becoming a brother due to a Peruvian law at the time that prevented people of mixed race from joining religious orders.

Instead, he lived with the community and did manual work, earning the nickname “the saint of the broom” for his diligence and care in cleaning the Dominicans’ quarters. Eventually, he was permitted to join the order despite the Peruvian law, and he worked with the sick in the infirmary.

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Phoenix, Ariz., Aug 7, 2017 / 12:37 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Bishop Thomas O’Brien, the former bishop of the Diocese of Phoenix, has denied allegations he sexually molested a young boy in the late 1970s and early '80s.

“Bishop O’Brien categorically denies the allegations,” the diocese said Aug. 3. “According to Diocese of Phoenix records, Bishop O’Brien was never assigned to any of the parishes or schools identified in the lawsuit, and no specific information has been presented which connects Bishop O’Brien to the plaintiff.

Bishop O’Brien, 81, is accused in a lawsuit of sexually abusing the alleged victim several times at parishes in Phoenix and Goodyear, Ariz. from 1977-1982.

His accuser, now 47 and living near Tucson, has said he started having flashbacks of the abuse in September 2014 as he prepared for his son’s baptism, his lawyer Tim Hale told the Associated Press.

“It has turned his life upside down,” Hale said.

The Phoenix police department is investigating the allegation.

The diocese said it contacted the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office “immediately” upon learning of the allegations in September 2016.

Because the matter is pending litigation, the diocese said it would not share additional information. It expressed commitment to protecting all young people.

“We are dedicated to providing a safe environment in which every individual is valued and honored as created in the image and likeness of God. Anyone who has been a victim of abuse or who may have information concerning these crimes is encouraged to call a local law enforcement agency.”

The diocese promised continued prayers for victims of childhood abuse and pledged continued vigilance to protection efforts.

Bishop O’Brien’s handling of sex abuse charges against church employees resulted in a 2003 immunity deal. He acknowledged that he allowed employees accused of sex abuse to continue to have contact with children.

That deal said a grand jury investigating sex abuse allegations against the Church did not find evidence that the bishop engaged in sexual misconduct. But the deal did not prevent bringing charges against the bishop if there were evidence he committed sexual abuse.

After 21 years as Bishop of Phoenix, Bishop O’Brien resigned in June 2003, after being accused of striking and killing a 43-year-old man with his car in a hit-and-run accident. The bishop did not stop to help the man or to report the accident. He told investigators he didn’t realize he had hit a person, thinking the collision was with a dog, a cat, or a rock thrown at his window.

He was convicted of leaving the scene of a fatal accident, then sentenced to probation and 1,000 hours of community service.

 

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IMAGE: CNS photo/Junno Arocho Esteves

By Junno Arocho Esteves

ROME (CNS) -- After years in exile from the church they had called home for the past 95 years, the American Catholic community in Rome moved to a new church they can finally call their own.

Located just a few steps away from the U.S. Embassy to Italy, St. Patrick's Church is the new official "mission for the care of souls for U.S. faithful residing in Rome," said Paulist Father Greg Apparcel, rector of St. Patrick's.

U.S. Catholics in Rome, guided by the Paulist Fathers, had called the Church of Santa Susanna their parish since 1922. But the cloistered Cistercian nuns, who have had a presence at the historic parish since 1587, found the American presence distracting and made various attempts over the years to evict them.

"I tried to understand their position," Father Apparcel told Catholic News Service Aug. 7. "It was their home, and they felt we invaded their home. We felt it was our home, (but) they didn't agree with that."

While there was no dispute regarding the ownership of Santa Susanna, the pastoral responsibility of the church had belonged to the Paulist priests for decades. In 2012, however, tensions rose when several large signs were placed in the church that stated the Cistercians owned the church.

Father Apparcel told CNS that he appealed to Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, who in turn asked Pope Francis to intervene in the matter and allow the American community to return to the parish.

However, the Paulist priest said, "we were discouraged from coming back there because the Cistercian community owns the church, and they felt that they just wanted it to be them."

Instead, the Vatican encouraged Father Apparcel to move to St. Patrick's Church, a parish run by Augustinian priests from Ireland who decided in 2012 to leave their ministry in Rome due to "a lack of priests."

Several meetings between the Paulist Fathers and the Augustinian community led to an agreement that the church would become the new parish for American Catholics residing in Rome. The Augustinian community, Father Apparcel added, leased to the U.S. community the church and a hall currently being renovated to house offices, a library and classrooms "rent-free."

"They have been incredibly generous and hospitable to us. No question about it," the Paulist priest told CNS.

While the disagreement with the Cistercian nuns at Santa Susanna left relations at times strained, Father Apparcel said there are no hard feelings between the two communities.

"We had a very nice, very friendly conversation," he told CNS. "They said they had nothing but good feelings for the Paulist Fathers and the American community. And (they) offered their prayers and asked us to pray for them. They were sincere."

The nearly 400 families that make up the American parish in Rome, Father Apparcel added, are also "relieved" that they finally have their own church rather than attending in Mass in different parishes.

Despite the odds, Father Apparcel cared for the spiritual needs for the flock during that five-year period, often racing from one parish to another to celebrate Mass in English while Santa Susanna remained closed to the American community.

"I've gone through all the emotions from A-Z. The first year was really rough because I felt like, 'How much worse can it get?' I mean, basically, you're kicked out of your church!" he said. "In the beginning, I felt like I was a failure, that it was my fault."

However, with the support of his parishioners and Paulist Father Steve Bossi, his good friend and vice rector of the parish, Father Apparcel said he realized that "even though we weren't altogether in one place, we were still an identifiable Catholic community in Rome."

"This is a really visible example of the fact that the church is not a building, that the people are the church, that the community existed and even thrived during this period," Father Apparcel told CNS. "It doesn't matter that we didn't have a church. Though I'm glad we do now!"

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Follow Arocho on Twitter: @arochoju.

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