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(Vatican Radio) The Head of the Delegation of the Holy See to the Preparatory Committee for the 2020 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, taking place in Vienna from May 2-12, Msgr. Janusz S. Urbanczyk, has released his prepared address to the body. Below, please find the full text of his prepared remarks in English...

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STATEMENT BY MONSIGNOR JANUSZ S. URBANCZYK
HEAD OF THE DELEGATION OF THE HOLY SEE
FIRST PREPARATORY COMMITTEE FOR THE 2020 REVIEW
CONFERENCE OF THE PARTIES TO THE TREATY ON THE NONPROLIFERATION OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS
Vienna, 2-12 May 2017

Mr. Chairman,

The Holy See is pleased to participate at this First Preparatory Committee of the 2020 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). Furthermore, my Delegation congratulates you, Mr. Chairman on your appointment, and thanks you for your able stewardship of this important gathering.

The Holy See and the NPT

When the Holy See acceded to the NPT in 1971, it declared that it did so “inspired by its constant desire, illuminated by the teaching of universal brotherhood and of justice and peace between men and peoples contained in the Gospel message to make its contribution to undertakings which, through disarmament as well as by other means, promote security, mutual trust and peaceful co-operation in relations between peoples”.1 The presence of the Holy See at this Preparatory Committee seeks the very same: to lend its moral authority to the efforts “to work for a world free of nuclear weapons, in full application of the Non-Proliferation Treaty, in letter and spirit, with the goal of a complete prohibition of these weapons”.

The foundation of the NPT was the recognition by States Parties that “the devastation that would be visited upon all mankind by a nuclear war” would be so great that “every effort to avert the danger of such a war” and “measures to safeguard the security of peoples” were needed without delay. The Holy See cannot but lament the fact that the potential devastation caused by the use of nuclear weapons so clearly identified over 40 years ago has not been relegated to history. In other words, the efforts of the international community to utilize the NPT to make the world safer have not been sufficient.

The Holy See would, therefore, urge the States Parties to utilise the opportunity granted us by the 10th NPT Review Conference and its Preparatory Committee meetings and to make concrete and consensus-based progress towards nuclear nonproliferation, and towards the ultimate goal of abolishing all nuclear weapons.

Although reaching consensus is seldom without challenges, this city of Vienna has shown time and time again, that serious dialogue, the will to compromise and the full range of the diplomatic toolbox may achieve also that which is characterized as impossible. All States Parties may be assured that the Holy See stands ready to engage constructively in this process.

The search for peace

Mr. Chairman,

Pope Francis, following in the footsteps of his venerable predecessors, has repeatedly called on the international community, not only to seek the end of war, conflict and strife, but to embrace forcefully and advance peace. The value of peace must be recognized as an ‘active virtue’, calling for the engagement and cooperation of each individual and society as a whole. As the Pope wrote in his latest World Peace Day Message, an “ethics of fraternity and peaceful coexistence between individuals and among peoples cannot be based on the logic of fear, violence and closed-mindedness, but [must be based] on responsibility, respect and sincere dialogue”. He accompanied these words with the following appeal: “I plead for disarmament and for the prohibition and abolition of nuclear weapons: nuclear deterrence and the threat of mutual assured destruction are incapable of grounding such an ethics”.

Nuclear weapons provide a false sense of security, as do efforts to secure a negative peace through a balance of power. Nations have a right and an obligation to protect their own security, which is strongly linked to the promotion of collective security, the common good and peace. In this perspective, a positive conception of peace is required. Peace must be built on justice, on integral human development, on respect for fundamental human rights, on the protection of creation, on the participation of all in public life, on trust between peoples, on the support of institutions devoted to building peace, and on dialogue and solidarity.

Ultimately, peace must be grounded in those human values that are present in all individuals, peoples, cultures, religions and philosophies.

The Holy See and nuclear disarmament

In this regard, the Holy See was also supportive of the negotiations held in March, to be continued in June/July, on a legally binding instrument to prohibit nuclear weapons. In his letter to Her Excellency Elayne Whyte Gómez, President of the UN conference on a nuclear ban, Pope Francis urged the international community to “go beyond nuclear deterrence… [and] to adopt forward-looking strategies to promote the goal of peace and stability and to avoid short-sighted approaches to the problems surrounding national and international security.” Growing interdependence requires a collective response based on mutual trust, a trust built through dialogue directed to the common good, not the protection of narrow interests. Such dialogue, as far as possible, should include both nuclear and non-nuclear states working together in international bodies such as this one, but should also include the private sector, religious communities, and civil society.

While having no illusions about the challenges involved in achieving a world free of nuclear weapons, the Holy See urges all parties to make progress in relation to the many international instruments and processes: not only the NPT, but also the CTBT, NEW START, the FMCT, as well as unilateral initiatives and other measures. But these steps are in themselves limited, especially in light of growing tensions, continuing proliferation, and the major modernization programs of some nuclear powers. It is, therefore vital that the nuclear-weapon State Parties renew arms control and disarmament processes, in conformity with Article VI of the NPT. In this regard, a very important sign would be to make real efforts towards facilitating the entry into force of the CTBT, which the Holy See considers as the best hope of stemming nuclear proliferation and which could be a key to progress on nuclear disarmament.

The Holy See views the situation on the Korean peninsula with concern and supports the continued efforts by the international community to revive negotiations over denuclearization and peace. In conclusion, the Holy See reiterates its gratitude for the efforts already undertaken by the Parties to the Treaty on the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons in maintaining peace and of advancing multilateral and cooperative security. Moreover, it lends its voice in exhorting political authorities not to limit themselves to ensuring the security of their own citizens but also work actively for the global growth of peace, which humanity very much needs today.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

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(Vatican Radio) Look through any tourist guide and you’ll find the Basilica of San Clemente high up on the list of places to visit in Rome.

Situated just a stone’s throw away from the Colosseum, this archaeological treasure trove which is famous the world over, is a three-tiered complex of buildings which features spectacular mosaics and frescos.

But this Basilica is not just a place of art and history, it’s also a living breathing church where locals and pilgrims alike can come for the celebration of Holy Mass, and avail of the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

The Basilica of San Clemente has been under the care of the Irish Dominican Order since 1667 and over the centuries the community has continued with excavation and restoration projects.

The current Rector of this ancient Basilica is Fr Thomas McCarthy and in this the first in a series of three programmes, he talks to Lydia O’Kane about this very special place in the heart of Rome.

Listen: 

In the next edition Fr Thomas McCarthy takes Lydia O’Kane on a tour of the 12th century level of San Clemente exploring the magnificent mosaics and frescos it contains. 

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Fatima, Portugal, May 3, 2017 / 03:10 am (CNA/EWTN News).- After a whirlwind trip to Egypt last week, Pope Francis in just 10 days will head to Portugal for the centenary celebration of the Marian apparitions of Fatima, where anticipation is building for the visit of the “bishop in white.”

“The centenary is a memorable, unforgettable date to give thanks to God for all the gifts that the message of Fatima has scattered throughout Portugal, but also in the whole world,” Bishop Antonio dos Santos Marto of Leiria-Fatima told CNA in an interview.

And the centenary celebrations “wouldn’t be complete without the presence of the Pope,” he said, explaining that the Pope “is part of the message of Fatima.”

Pointing to the third “secret” of Our Lady of Fatima, which presents a pilgrim Church that is persecuted and led by a “bishop in white,” Marto said this figure can be understood to be the Pope, who is present in Our Lady’s message.

In her apparitions, Mary also asked for people to pray for the Pope, “so the Pope is part of the message of Fatima,” he said, adding that the fact that several Popes have visited Fatima shows the “catholicity,” or “universality” of Our Lady’s message.

“It’s not only for Portugal, it’s not only for the Church in Portugal, it’s for the entire Church and, I would say, the entire world,” he said. “So people who work here preparing for the Pope’s visit are working with a lot of commitment and a lot of enthusiasm.”

Bishop Marto has overseen the diocese of Leiria-Fatima since 2006, and is in charge of preparing not only for the 100th anniversary of the apparitions of Our Lady of Fatima, but also for the May 12-13 visit of Pope Francis to Fatima for the celebrations.

On May 13, 1917, three shepherd children named Lucia, Jacinta, and Francisco saw a vision of Our Lady of Fatima who was dressed in white and holding a rosary. These apparitions lasted through October of the same year, and brought messages of prayer, repentance, and reparation.

The apparitions were declared of “supernatural character” by the Catholic Church in 1930, and a shrine was erected near the original apparition site in Fatima. Since then, thousands of pilgrims have made their prayerful journeys to Fatima, including three popes: Pope Paul VI, Pope John Paul II, and Pope Benedict XVI.  

The bishop said that the diocese has been preparing for the centenary for almost 10 years, since the visit of Pope Benedict XVI in 2010.

Since that visit, the diocese has dedicated each year to one of Our Lady’s apparitions as a lead-in to the centenary, beginning with one year dedicated the message of the angel who appeared to Lucia, Francisco and Jacinta before Mary herself appeared to them.

An angel appeared to the shepherd children three times the year before the Marian apparitions, at one point giving them the Eucharist.

“So it was the theme of the mystery of the trinitarian love of God for the first year,” Bishop Marto said, explaining that each year after that had its own theme based on Mary’s apparitions, complete with a theological points developed through congresses, catechetical studies and a different pilgrim itinerary for each year.

In addition to this, the Fatima shrine has also offered special catechetical themes for parishes focused on the visit of Pope Francis.  

The staff of the diocese is currently divided into different working groups that focus on practical preparations such as protocol and logistics, including the details of the papal delegation and the swath of journalists who will travel with the Pope.

Ultimately, the Pope’s visit to Fatima for the centenary of the apparitions will help “to rediscover the richness and beauty of this message for our time,” the bishop said.

The message of Fatima, he said, refers to “the greatest, most tragic events of the 20th century.” Namely, the two World Wars, “with their genocides, millions of innocent victims,” and the persecution at the hands of atheist and totalitarian regimes, which threatened to destroy the Church from view.  

“So it was a message of grace, to say that God is with us, he doesn’t abandon us, the mercy of God has a higher limit than the power of evil, and a message of peace,” Marto said. “These three words are the gift Our Lady brings: grace, mercy and peace.”

Our Lady’s appeals for conversion, prayer and reparation are also very timely, he said, noting that even in contemporary society, at times we forget “to make reparation for what was spoiled.”

Using new technologies as an example, he said that today if something we own breaks, we toss it and get a new one, “but you can’t repair the heart like this, throwing it out of the chest.”

“The heart, relationships with others and among people, need reparation, need renewal in the sense of rebuilding, renewing; of re-making even the relationships with God and others,” he said, warning that “sometimes in front of evil, we feel powerless, and there’s a sense of resignation.”

Mary, the bishop said, came “to look for collaborators in the merciful design of God before the power of evil,” which makes her message extremally relevant today, because while there might not be as much persecution from atheist regimes, “there’s the danger of something, in my view, that’s worse: religious indifference.”

“To live as if God didn’t exist. To live with your back to God. The sense of God is lost, and when one loses the sense of God, they also lose the sense of humanity,” he said, explaining that because of this, “the message (of Fatima) is always relevant.”

Bishop Marto also spoke on the coming canonization of Francisco and Jacinta Marto, who will be canonized May 13 during Pope Francis’ Mass at the Fatima shrine, marking the first time in the history of the Church that a child who is not a martyr has been declared a Saint.

“The canonization of the shepherds is a gift,” the bishop said, explaining that the holiness of children is “one of the most beautiful fruits of the apparitions.”

With her initial invitation to the children to “offer yourselves to God in reparation for the sins of the world” and her promise later to Lucia, who became a nun, that “I will never leave you, my Immaculate Heart will be your refuge,” Mary accompanied the children on their entire path to holiness, he said.

“The Madonna guided the children, the shepherds, on this path of holiness. So I think it will be very beautiful for the people to be able to pray to these two saints.”

When asked what Francisco and Jacinta can teach the world today, Bishop Marto said their witness is one of “everyday holiness...they are an example of the holiness of the people, accessible to everyone, to all ages; children, adults, men, women, teenagers, etc.”

They also show us how this holiness is lived with different personalities, he said, noting that while Francisco was more contemplative and united to the suffering experienced by Jesus due to sin, Jacinta was more compassionate and concerned with the salvation of others.

“Francisco was fascinated with the mystery of God, the beauty of the mystery of God, the beauty of the goodness of the love of God that remained inside of him,” the bishop said, explaining that during his time in adoration, Francisco saw the sadness of God due to the sins of the world and chose to accompany him “for hours of praying, meditating, contemplating.”

“He put into action a very urgent dimension of the faith, which is mystic of the faith,” he said, adding that “if we don’t have a loving experience of God, we won’t have a faith that sustains us in the world today.”

“Faith today no longer goes through traditions, it no longer has the support of the traditions of the family, of school, of the culture,” he said, so “it has to be a personal conviction, a personal experience of the presence of God in us.”

Jacinta, on the other hand, was “full of compassion for those who suffered, (and) the poor, whom she prayed for. She had a strong tenderness.”

This tenderness was shown to all who came to her, whether it was by recommending prayers, giving food to those who didn’t have any, or sharing what she had with others, the bishop said.

“Today compassion is very important in the culture of indifference. Each day it’s stronger. What does that one matter to me? Each one makes do (for themselves),” he said. “So this compassion, this ability to suffer with others, to share in the suffering of the other and also to suffer for others,” is crucial.

 

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Vatican City, May 3, 2017 / 04:30 am (CNA/EWTN News).- On Wednesday Pope Francis recalled his recent visit to Egypt, saying that given its rich biblical and cultural history, the country is a sign of hope, and has a special role to play in brokering peace in the Middle East.

“Egypt for us was a sign of hope, of refuge and of help,” the Pope said during his May 3 general audience.

He noted how in scripture Jacob and his sons traveled to the region when it was in famine, and later Jesus himself also found refuge there from Herod.

“So recounting this trip enters on the path of recounting hope,” he said, adding that for Christians, “Egypt has the sense of speaking about hope, whether in history or today, and of this brotherhood that I am telling you about.”

Pope Francis spoke just days after returning from his April 28-29 visit to Egypt, which was made largely as the result of a recent thawing in relations between the Vatican and the prestigious al-Azhar University, one of the highest institutional authorities in Sunni Islam, which had been strained since 2011.

The visit also took place in wake of increasing attacks on Egypt’s Coptic community, and as such was meant to offer support for local Christians as well as cement Catholic-Muslim relations.

During his visit, Pope Francis met with the Great Imam of al-Azhar, Ahmed Mohamed al-Tayyeb, at the al-Azhar University, where he also spoke to the International Conference for Peace. He then met with Egypt's president, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, and civil authorities before sharing a moment of prayer with Coptic Orthodox Patriarch Tawadros II.

He also spent time with Egypt’s Christian community, celebrating Mass for Catholics on the second and final day of his trip, and meeting with the country’s priests, religious and seminarians.

In his general audience address, the Pope thanked Egypt for “the truly warm welcome” he was given, saying President el-Sisi and the Egyptian authorities made “an extraordinary commitment so this event could take place in the best of ways.”

The goal, he said, was for the visit to be “a sign of peace for Egypt and for that entire region, which unfortunately suffers from conflicts and terrorism.”

Francis told pilgrims that his visit to the al-Azhar University had the “double horizon” of promoting dialogue between Christians and Muslims, and of promoting peace on a global level.

“In this context, I offered a reflection that valued the history of Egypt as a land of civilization and alliance,” he said, explaining that Egypt is widely considered to be “synonymous with ancient civilization and with treasures of art and knowledge.”

This serves as a reminder “that peace is built through education, the formation of wisdom, of a humanism which includes as the religious dimension, the relationship with God, as an integral part,” he said, pointing to the speech given by al-Tayyeb.

“Peace is also built starting from the alliance between God and man, founded on the alliance between men,” he said, explaining that this is a law which can be summed up in the two commandments of love of God and neighbor.

Francis then said this same foundation is also the basis of building “the social and civic order, in which all citizens of every culture, origin and religion are called to participate.”

Because of “the great historic and religious patrimony” of Egypt and its role in the Middle East, the country has “a peculiar task on the path toward a stable and lasting peace, which does not rely on the law of force, but the force of the law.”

Turning to his encounter with Egypt’s Christian community, the Pope said that Christians in Egypt, as in every other nation, “are called to be the leaven of brotherhood,” which is only possible if they are in communion with Christ.

Recalling how he signed a joint-declaration with Patriarch Tawadros, Francis said the two renewed their commitment to finding a shared baptism, and prayed together for the “the martyrs” who have died in recent attacks on the Coptic community.

“Their blood fertilized that ecumenical encounter,” he said, noting that in addition to himself and Tawadros, Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople was also present.  

Francis then pointed to the Mass he celebrated with Egyptian Catholics, calling it a celebration of “faith and fraternity,” in which the presence of the Risen Lord was truly felt.

He also recalled his meeting with the priests, religious and seminarians of Egypt, saying he saw in them “the beauty of the Church in Egypt,” and could pray with them for all Christians in the Middle East, that “they be salt and light in that land, in the midst of that people.”

Speaking off-the-cuff, he noted that Egypt has “a lot of seminarians,” which he said is “a consolation.”

He closed by offering his thanks and praying that the Holy Family of Nazareth, who “emigrated on the banks of the Nile to avoid the violence of Herod,” would always bless and protect the Egyptian people, “and guide them on the path of prosperity, fraternity and peace.”

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Charlotte, N.C., May 3, 2017 / 06:02 am (CNA/EWTN News).- A breakaway Catholic group is in the news for attempting to ordain a woman as a Catholic priest at a non-denominational church in North Carolina.

Abigail Eltzroth, 64, went through the simulated ordination at the Jubilee! church in Asheville, N.C. under the aegis of the group Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests. She has said she intends to start a Catholic community in the area of Asheville.

The local diocese, however, reaffirmed Catholic teaching that such an ordination is null.

“I hope that Catholics in the diocese will understand that it would be sinful to receive a fake sacrament from a woman priest and that includes attending a fake Mass,” said David Hains, spokesperson for the Catholic Diocese of Charlotte.

Eltzroth converted to Catholicism from a Presbyterian background in her 50s, the Charlotte Observer reports. The simulated ordination was carried out by Bridget Mary Meehan, who presents herself as a Catholic bishop.

Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests traces itself back to the attempted ordination of seven women on a ship cruising the Danube River in 2002. Attempted ordination of a woman is automatic excommunication for both the person attempting the ordination and the person attempting to be ordained.

From the beginning of his papacy, Pope Francis has been clear on the issue of women priests, while still emphasizing the unique and important role of women in the Church.

On his return flight from Philadelphia for the World Meeting of Families Sept. 28, 2015, the Pope reiterated that women priests “cannot be done,” and called for a more comprehensive theology on women.

In an interview with Vatican Insider in December 2013, Francis responded to a question on whether or not he'd ever consider naming a woman a cardinal. The very question, he indicated, stemmed from an attitude of clericalism.

“I don't know where this idea sprang from. Women in the Church must be valued not 'clericalised,'” the Pope said. “Whoever thinks of women as cardinals suffers a bit from clericalism.”

Throughout the three years since, Francis has consistently called for a more “incisive” feminine presence in the Church, yet has refrained from limiting this presence to a mere position.

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