themselves to being victims of abuse. These are situations in which it is  
  not  
  enough to safeguard the law to defend the basic rights of the person, and in  
  which the rules, without pity and mercy, do not respond to justice. Within  
  every  
  country, at times, scandalous and offensive differences are created,  
  especially  
  between indigent peoples, in rural areas or in the peripheries of large  
  cities.  
  If it fails to genuinely defend these people against racism, xenophobia and  
  intolerance, the rule of law loses its very legitimacy".  
   "Efforts to build bridges, to establish channels of communication, to build  
  relationships and to seek agreement are never in vain. The geographical  
  situation of Panama, in the centre of the American continent, making it a  
  point  
  of encounter between north and south, between the Pacific and Atlantic  
  Oceans,  
  is certainly a call, pro mundi beneficio, to generate a new order of peace  
  and  
  justice, and to promote solidarity and collaboration, respecting the just  
  autonomy of every nation", writes the Pope, who concludes by expressing his  
  hope  
  that the Church "may also be an instrument of peace and reconciliation  
  between  
  peoples".  
    
  ___________________________________________________________  
    
   To formators of consecrated persons: not only teachers, but also witnesses  
  of  
  following Christ  
   Vatican City, 11 April 2015 (VIS) - "To live in Christ according to the  
  form  
  of  
  life of the Gospel" is the title of an international conference for  
  formators  
  of  
  consecrated persons, held in Rome from 7 to 11 April. This morning around 1,  
  400  
  participants were received in audience by the Pope, who exclaimed, "Seeing  
  so  
  many of you, you would not believe that there is a crisis of vocations!",  
  and  
  went on to highlight the beauty and importance of consecrated life for the  
  world  
  and for the Church.  
   However, he noted that the decreasing number of new vocations is an  
  undeniable  
  fact, and "this make the task of formation even more urgent". He expressed  
  his  
  conviction that "there is not a vocational crisis where there are  
  consecrated  
  persons able to transmit, by their own witness, the beauty of consecration.  
  And  
  it is a fruitful witness. If there is not witness, there is no coherence,  
  and  
  if  
  there is no coherence, there will be no vocations". He added, they are "not  
  only  
  teachers, but above all witnesses of following Christ in their own  
  charism", as  
  the mission and task of formators is to "truly mould the heart of Jesus in  
  the  
  heart of the young, so that they have the same sentiments".  
   "In these days of the Resurrection, the word that frequently resounded to  
  me  
  in  
  prayers was 'Galilee', where it all began, as Peter tells us in his first  
  discourse. Events occurred in Jerusalem, but they began in Galilee. Our  
  life,  
  too, began in a 'Galilee': each one of us has had the experience ... of  
  encountering the Lord, that encounter that cannot be forgotten, but that  
  many  
  times ends up obscured by things, by work, by worries, and also by sins and  
  worldliness. To offer witness it is often necessary to make a pilgrimage to  
  one's own Galilee, to revive the memory of that encounter, that wonder, and  
  to  
  start again from there. But if you do not follow the road of memory there is  
  the  
  risk of remaining stuck where you are, and also the danger of not knowing  
  why  
  you are there".  
   "Consecrated life is beautiful: it is one of the most valuable treasures of  
  the  
  Church, rooted in the baptismal vocation. Therefore, it is beautiful to be  
  its  
  formators, as it is a privilege to participate in the work of the Father,  
  which  
  forms the heart of the Son in those to whom the Spirit calls. At times, this  
  service may be felt as a weight, as if it draws us away from something more  
  important", the Pontiff observed. "But this is a deception, a temptation.  
  The  
  mission is important, but it is equally important to educate in the  
  mission, in  
  the passion of proclamation, of going everywhere, to every periphery, to  
  say to  
  all that the love of Jesus Christ, especially for those who are most  
  distant,  
  to  
  tell this to the small and the poor, and also to allow oneself to be  
  evangelised  
  by them. All this requires a solid foundation, a Christian structure of  
  personality that families themselves are rarely able to give. And this  
  increases  
  your responsibility".  
   "It is not true that today's young people are mediocre or not generous; but  
  they need to experience that 'It is more blessed to give than to receive',  
  that  
  there is great freedom in a life of obedience, great fruitfulness in a  
  virgin  
  heart, great wealth in possessing nothing. From this there arises the need  
  to  
  be  
  lovingly attentive to the path of each person and evangelically demanding in  
  every phase of the formative journey, beginning with vocational  
  discernment, so  
  that the eventual crisis in terms of quantity does not lead to a far more  
  serious crisis of quality. And this is the danger. Vocational discernment is  
  important: all those who understand the human personality - be they  
  psychologists, spiritual fathers, spiritual mothers - tell us that young  
  people  
  who at a subconscious level feel they ... have some problem of balance or  
  deviation subconsciously seek out strong structures to protect them, and to  
  protect them against themselves. And here lies discernment: knowing how to  
  say  
  no. Without driving them away - this, no. "I will accompany you, go, go ...  
  and  
  just as you accompany them as they enter, accompany them to the exit, so  
  that  
  they may find their path in life, with the necessary help".  
   He continued, "Initial formation, this discernment, is only the first step  
  in  
  a  
  process destined to last a lifetime, and the young people must develop with  
  the  
  humble and intelligent freedom of allowing himself to be educated by God the  
  Father every day of his life, at every age, in the mission as in  
  fraternity, in  
  action as in contemplation".  
   "In this mission, neither time nor energy must be spared. And we must not  
  be  
  discouraged when results do not fulfil our expectations. It is painful,  
  when a  
  boy or a girl says after three or four years: 'I cannot continue; I have  
  found  
  another love that is not against God, but I cannot continue, I am leaving'.  
  This  
  is hard. But it is also your martyrdom. Even missteps, these missteps from  
  the  
  formator's point of view, can contribute to your journey of continual  
  formation.  
  And if at times you may have the feeling that your work is not sufficiently  
  appreciated, know that Jesus is following you with love, and the entire  
  Church  
  is grateful to you".  
    
  ___________________________________________________________  
    
   Audiences  
   Vatican City, 13 April 2015 (VIS) - Today, the Holy Father received in  
  audience:  
   - Archbishop Carlos Jose Nanez of Cordoba, Argentina.  
   On Saturday, 11 April, the Holy Father received in audience:  
   - Cardinal Marc Ouellet, P.S.S., prefect of the Congregation for Bishops;  
   - Daniele Mancini, new ambassador of Italy to the Holy See, presenting his  
  credential letters;  
   - Archbishop Antonio Guido Filipazzi, apostolic nuncio in Indonesia.  
    
  ___________________________________________________________  
    
   Other Pontifical Acts  
   Vatican City, 13 April 2015 (VIS) - The Holy Father has appointed:  
   - Msgr. Paolo Rocco Gualtieri, nunciature counsellor, as apostolic nuncio  
  in  
  Madagascar, elevating him to the dignity of archbishop;  
   - Bishop Francois Eid, emeritus of Cairo of the Maronites and procurator of  
  the  
  Maronite Patriarchate at the Holy See, as apostolic visitator for the  
  Maronite  
  faithful in Bulgaria, Greece and Romania:  
   - the following cardinals, created in the Consistory of 14 February 2015,  
  as  
  Members of the Dicasteries of the Roman Curia:  
   - in the Council of Cardinals and Bishops of the Section for Relations with  
  States of the Secretariat of State: Cardinal Dominique Mamberti, prefect of  
  the  
  Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura;  
   - in the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith: Cardinal Ricardo  
  Blazquez  
  Perez, archbishop of Valladolid, Spain;  
   - in the Congregation for the Oriental Churches: Cardinals Berhaneyesus  
  Demerew  
  Souraphiel, archbishop of Addis Abeba, Ethiopia, and Edoardo Menichelli,  
  archbishop of Ancona-Osimo, Italy;  
   - in the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the  
  Sacraments:  
  Cardinal Dominique Mamberti, prefect of the Supreme Tribunal of the  
  Apostolic  
  Signatura;  
   - in the Congregation for the Causes of Saints: Cardinal Dominique  
  Mamberti,  
  prefect of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura;  
   - in the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples: Cardinals John  
  Atcherley Dew, archbishop of Wellington, New Zealand; Pierre Nguyen Van  
  Nhon,  
  archbishop of Ha Noi, Viet Nam; Francis Xavier Kriengsak Kovithavanij,  
  archbishop of Bangkok, Thailand; Arlindo Gomes Furtado, bishop of Santiago  
  de  
  Cabo Verde, Cape Verde; and Soane Patita Paini Mafi, bishop of Tonga;  
   - in the Congregation for the Clergy: Cardinals Manuel Jose Macario do  
  Nascimento Clemente, patriarch of Lisbon, Portugal, and Alberto Suarez Inda,  
  archbishop of Morelia, Mexico;  
   - in the Congregation for the Institutes of Consecrated Life and the  
  Societies  
  of Apostolic Life: Cardinals Charles Maung Bo, archbishop of Yangon,  
  Myanmar,  
  and Daniel Fernando Sturla Berhouet, archbishop of Montevideo, Uruguay;  
   - in the Congregation for Catholic Education: Cardinal Jose Luis Lacunza  
  Maestrojuan, bishop of David, Panama;  
   - in the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity: Cardinal John  
  Atcherley Dew, archbishop of Wellington, New Zealand;  
   - in the Pontifical Council "Justice and Peace": Cardinals Pierre Nguyen  
  Van  
  Nhon, archbishop of Ha Noi, Viet Nam, and Alberto Suarez Inda, archbishop of  
  Morelia, Mexico;  
   - in the Pontifical Council "Cor Unum": Cardinals Francesco Montenegro,  
  archbishop of Agrigento, Italy; Arlindo Gomes Furtado, bishop of Santiago de  
  Cabo Verde, Cape Verde; and Soane Patita Paini Mafi, bishop of Tonga;  
   - in the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant  
  Peoples: Cardinals Berhaneyesus Demerew Souraphiel, archbishop of Addis  
  Abeba,  
  Ethiopia; and Francesco Montenegro, archbishop of Agrigento, Italy;  
   - in the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Health Care Workers:  
  Cardinal Edoardo Menichelli, archbishop of Ancona-Osimo, Italy;  
   - in the Pontifical Council for Culture: Cardinals Charles Maung Bo,  
  archbishop  
  of Yangon, Myanmar; Ricardo Blazquez Perez, archbishop of Valladolid, Spain;  
  and  
  Jose Luis Lacunza Maestrojuan, bishop of David, Panama;  
   - in the Pontifical Council for Social Communications: Cardinals Manuel  
  Jose  
  Macario do Nascimento Clemente, patriarch of Lisbon, Portugal, and Francis  
  Xavier Kriengsak Kovithavanij, archbishop of Bangkok, Thailand;  
   - in the Pontifical Council for Promoting New Evangelisation: Cardinal  
  Daniel  
  Fernando Sturla Berhouet, archbishop of Montevideo, Uruguay.  
   On Sunday, 12 April, the Holy Father accepted the resignation from the  
  pastoral  
  care of the archdiocese of Taunggyi, Myanmar, presented by Archbishop  
  Matthias  
  U. Shwe in accordance with canon 401 para. 2 of the Code of Canon Law, and  
  appointed Bishop Basilio Athai, auxiliary of the same archdiocese, as  
  apostolic  
  administrator "sede vacante et ad nutum Sanctae Sedis".  
   On Saturday, 11 April, the Holy Father appointed:  
   - appointed Bishop Jean de Dieu Raoelison, auxiliary of Antananarivo,  
  Madagascar, as bishop of Ambatondrazaka (area 21,000, population 1,536,000,  
  Catholics 277,000, priests 42, religious 208), Madagascar. He succeeds  
  Bishop  
  Antoine Scopelliti, O.SS.T., whose resignation upon reaching the age limit  
  was  
  accepted by the Holy Father.  
   - Rev. Fr. Dante Gustavo Braida as auxiliary of the archdiocese of Mendoza,  
  (area 63,839, population 1,250,000, Catholics 1,086,000, priests 157,  
  permanent  
  deacons 61, religious 258), Argentina. He bishop-elect was born in  
  Reconquista,  
  Argentina in 1968 and was ordained a priest in 1996. He has served as parish  
  vicar in Villa Ocampo, missionary ad gentes in Cuba, parish priest in  
  Calchaqui,  
  diocesan assessor for vocational pastoral ministry, formator of the "La  
  Encarnacion" interdiocesan seminary, and member of the presbyteral council  
  and  
  college of consultors. He is currently vicar general of the diocese of  
  Reconquista and parish priest of the "La Inmaculada" parish.  
    
  ___________________________________________________________  
    
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  www.visnews.org and www.vatican.va  
    
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  Information Service may be reproduced wholly or partially by quoting  
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