VATICAN INFORMATION SERVICE
YEAR XXII - # 218
DATE 09-12-2014

Summary:
- Telegram for the death of Cardinal Jorge Maria Mejia
- The Pope at the Conference on the Humanitarian Impact of Nuclear Weapons:
"Now is the time to counter the logic of fear with the ethic of responsibility"
- Publication of the Lineamenta of the next Synod on the Family
- Presentation of the International Campaign "Stop Threats on the Internet"
- Pope Francis pays homage to the Immaculate Conception in Piazza di Spagna
- Angelus: like Mary, welcome grace and correspond with faith
- The Pope lights the tallest Christmas tree in the world
- Angelus: be messengers of God's consolation
- Decrees of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints
- Director of the Holy See Press Office on the inquiry on two ex-executives of
the IOR
- Telegram for the death of Queen Fabiola of Belgium
- Pope's video message for the Christians and people of Iraq
- Audiences
- Other Pontifical Acts

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 Telegram for the death of Cardinal Jorge Maria Mejia
 Vatican City, 9 December 2014 (VIS) - Pope Francis has sent a telegram of
condolences to Alejandro Jaime Mejia for the death of his brother, Cardinal
Jorge Maria Mejia, archivist and librarian emeritus of the Holy Roman Church,
at the age of 91. The Pontiff comments that the cardinal dedicated "long years
of service with fidelity and competence to various organs of the Holy See",
and assures his prayers for the deceased, to whom he was joined in "a long
friendship", so that the Lord may grant peace to the Cardinal, who
demonstrated "such intense and generous commitment to the Church".
 "With faith in the Paschal mystery of Christ, that illuminates and fills
Christian life with hope, and the memory of a Pastor devoted to the
evangelising mission, I beg for divine consolation in these moments of
suffering, for you and for those loved ones who mourn his passing, to whom I
impart the comfort of my heartfelt apostolic blessing", he concluded.

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 The Pope at the Conference on the Humanitarian Impact of Nuclear Weapons:
"Now is the time to counter the logic of fear with the ethic of responsibility"
 Vatican City, 9 December 2014 (VIS) - Pope Francis' message to Sebastian
Kurz, Austrian federal minister for Foreign Affairs and Integration was read
today during the Conference on the Humanitarian Impact of Nuclear Weapons held
in Vienna, Austria on 8 and 9 December.
 "The humanitarian consequences of nuclear weapons are predictable and
planetary. While the focus is often placed on nuclear weapons' potential for
mass-killing, more attention must be given to the 'unnecessary suffering'
brought on by their use. Military codes and international law, among others,
have long banned peoples from inflicting unnecessary suffering. If such
suffering is banned in the waging of conventional war, then it should all the
more be banned in nuclear conflict. There are those among us who are victims
of these weapons; they warn us not to commit the same irreparable mistakes
which have devastated populations and creation".
 He continued, "Nuclear deterrence and the threat of mutually assured
destruction cannot be the basis for an ethics of fraternity and peaceful
coexistence among peoples and states. ... Now is the time to counter the logic
of fear with the ethic of responsibility, and so foster a climate of trust and
sincere dialogue. Spending on nuclear weapons squanders the wealth of nations.
To prioritise such spending is a mistake and a misallocation of resources
which would be far better invested in the areas of integral human development,
education, health and the fight against extreme poverty. When these resources
are squandered, the poor and the weak living on the margins of society pay the
price".
 "The desire for peace, security and stability is one of the deepest longings
of the human heart. It is rooted in the Creator who makes all people members
of the one human family. This desire can never be satisfied by military means
alone, much less the possession of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass
destruction. ... Peace must be built on justice, socio-economic development,
freedom, respect for fundamental human rights, the participation of all in
public affairs and the building of trust between peoples. Pope Paul VI stated
this succinctly in his Encyclical Populorum Progressio: 'Development is the
new name for peace'. It is incumbent on us to adopt concrete actions which
promote peace and security, while remaining always aware of the limitation of
short-sighted approaches to problems of national and international security".
 "In the context of this Conference, I wish to encourage sincere and open
dialogue between parties internal to each nuclear state, between various
nuclear states, and between nuclear states and non-nuclear states". He
emphasised, "This dialogue must be inclusive, involving international
organisations, religious communities and civil society, and oriented towards
the common good and not the protection of vested interests. 'A world without
nuclear weapons' is a goal shared by all nations and echoed by world leaders,
as well as the aspiration of millions of men and women. The future and the
survival of the human family hinges on moving beyond this ideal and ensuring
that it becomes a reality".

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 Publication of the Lineamenta of the next Synod on the Family
 Vatican City, 9 December 2014 (VIS) - The General Secretariat of the Synod of
Bishops has today issued a press release regarding the publication of the
Lineamenta of the next Ordinary General Synod of Bishops, to take place from 4
to 25 October, on the theme "The vocation and the mission of the family in the
Church and in the contemporary world".
 The Lineamenta, or rather the first document for this Assembly, as indicated
by Pope Francis in the concluding discourse of the Third Extraordinary
Assembly, are constituted essentially by the Relatio Synodi, drafted by the
same Assembly. However, to facilitate the reception of the synodal document
and to allow its themes to be considered in depth, the Relatio is accompanied
by a series of questions that help to further the Synod's progress on the path
it has undertaken, and to assist in the preparation of the subsequent
Instrumentum laboris for the next Ordinary Synod.
 The document, thus composed - the Italian-language original of which is
published today - is sent to the Episcopal Conferences, the Synods of the sui
iuris Oriental Catholic Churches, the Union of Religious Superiors and the
dicasteries of the Roman Curia.
 The aforementioned ecclesial organisms, who will receive the document
translated into the most commonly-used languages, will be able to select the
most appropriate methods for confirming the reception and further examination
of the Relatio Synodi, involving the different components of the particular
Churches and academic organisations, lay associations and other ecclesial
bodies with the aim of promoting wide consultation on the family in accordance
with the spirit of the synodal process.
 The results of this consultation shall be sent to the General Secretariat of
the Synod of Bishops by 15 April 2015, to allow them to be examined and taken
into consideration in the preparation of the Instrumentum laboris, to be
published before the summer.
 The Episcopal Conferences and the various ecclesial bodies are invited to
accompany the synodal process with timely moments of prayer and celebration
for the family and in preparation for the next Assembly. This should take
place in particular on the occasion of the upcoming liturgical feast of the
Holy Family on 28 December. In addition, the faithful are invited to recite
the Holy Father's prayer for the Synod on the Family. The full text in Italian
can be found at
http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/it The text of the Lineamenta in
Italian may be consulted on the Vatican website:
http://www.vatican.va
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 Presentation of the International Campaign "Stop Threats on the Internet"
 Vatican City, 9 December 2014 (VIS) - This morning a press conference was
held in the Holy See Press Office during which Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appiah
Turkson, president of the Pontifical Council "Justice and Peace", presented
the international online bullying awareness campaign "Stop Threats on the
Internet", in the context of the 25th anniversary of the Convention on the
Rights of the Child. Other speakers at the conference were Don Fortunato Di
Noto, president of the Associazione Meter; Olivier Duval, president of the
BICE (Bureau International Catholique de l'Enfance), Laetitia Chanut, a former
victim of cyber-bullying and witness for the campaign, and Flaminia
Giovanelli, under secretary of the Pontifical Council "Justice and Peace".

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