VATICAN INFORMATION SERVICE
YEAR XXII - # 228
DATE 22-12-2014

Summary:
- Francis: a Curia that is outdated, sclerotic or indifferent to others is an
ailing body
- To employees of the Holy See: "Transform this Holy Nativity into an
opportunity to heal"
- Angelus: at Christmas, Jesus calls out again to the heart of every Christian
- The Pope receives the Community of Pope John XXIII and praises its
generosity in helping people rise above material and moral degradation
- Audiences
- Other Pontifical Acts

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 Francis: a Curia that is outdated, sclerotic or indifferent to others is an
ailing body
 Vatican City, 22 December 2014 (VIS) - This morning in the Clementine Hall
the Holy Father held his annual meeting with the Roman Curia to exchange
Christmas greetings with the members of its component dicasteries, councils,
offices, tribunals and commissions. "It is good to think of the Roman Curia as
a small model of the Church, that is, a body that seeks, seriously and on a
daily basis, to be more alive, healthier, more harmonious and more united in
itself and with Christ".
 "The Curia is always required to better itself and to grow in communion,
sanctity and wisdom to fully accomplish its mission. However, like any body,
it is exposed to sickness, malfunction and infirmity. ... I would like to
mention some of these illnesses that we encounter most frequently in our life
in the Curia. They are illnesses and temptations that weaken our service to
the Lord", continued the Pontiff, who after inviting all those present to an
examination of conscience to prepare themselves for Christmas, listed the most
common Curial ailments:
 The first is "the sickness of considering oneself 'immortal', 'immune' or
'indispensable', neglecting the necessary and habitual controls. A Curia that
is not self-critical, that does not stay up-to-date, that does not seek to
better itself, is an ailing body. ... It is the sickness of the rich fool who
thinks he will live for all eternity, and of those who transform themselves
into masters and believe themselves superior to others, rather than at their
service".
 The second is "'Martha-ism', or excessive industriousness; the sickness of
those who immerse themselves in work, inevitably neglecting 'the better part'
of sitting at Jesus' feet. Therefore, Jesus required his disciples to rest a
little, as neglecting the necessary rest leads to stress and agitation. Rest,
once one who has brought his or her mission to a close, is a necessary duty
and must be taken seriously: in spending a little time with relatives and
respecting the holidays as a time for spiritual and physical replenishment, it
is necessary to learn the teaching of Ecclesiastes, that 'there is a time for
everything'".
 Then there is "the sickness of mental and spiritual hardening: that of those
who, along the way, lose their inner serenity, vivacity and boldness and
conceal themselves behind paper, becoming working machines rather than men of
God. ... It is dangerous to lose the human sensibility necessary to be able to
weep with those who weep and to rejoice with those who rejoice! It is the
sickness of those who lose those sentiments that were present in Jesus Christ".
 "The ailment of excessive planning and functionalism: this is when the
apostle plans everything in detail and believes that, by perfect planning
things effectively progress, thus becoming a sort of accountant. ... One falls
prey to this sickness because it is easier and more convenient to settle into
static and unchanging positions. Indeed, the Church shows herself to be
faithful to the Holy Spirit to the extent that she does not seek to regulate
or domesticate it. The Spirit is freshness, imagination and innovation".
 The "sickness of poor coordination develops when the communion between
members is lost, and the body loses its harmonious functionality and its
temperance, becoming an orchestra of cacophony because the members do not
collaborate and do not work with a spirit of communion or as a team".
 "Spiritual Alzheimer's disease, or rather forgetfulness of the history of
Salvation, of the personal history with the Lord, of the 'first love': this is
a progressive decline of spiritual faculties, that over a period of time
causes serious handicaps, making one incapable of carrying out certain
activities autonomously, living in a state of absolute dependence on one's own
often imaginary views. We see this is those who have lost their recollection
of their encounter with the Lord ... in those who build walls around
themselves and who increasingly transform into slaves to the idols they have
sculpted with their own hands".
 "The ailment of rivalry and vainglory: when appearances, the colour of one's
robes, insignia and honours become the most important aim in life. ... It is
the disorder that leads us to become false men and women, living a false
'mysticism' and a false 'quietism'".
 Then there is "existential schizophrenia: the sickness of those who live a
double life, fruit of the hypocrisy typical of the mediocre and the
progressive spiritual emptiness that cannot be filled by degrees or academic
honours. This ailment particularly afflicts those who, abandoning pastoral
service, limit themselves to bureaucratic matters, thus losing contact with
reality and with real people. They create a parallel world of their own, where
they set aside everything they teach with severity to others and live a
hidden, often dissolute life".
 The sickness of "chatter, grumbling and gossip: this is a serious illness
that begins simply, often just in the form of having a chat, and takes people
over, turning them into sowers of discord, like Satan, and in many cases
cold-blooded murderers of the reputations of their colleagues and brethren. It
is the sickness of the cowardly who, not having the courage to speak directly
to the people involved, instead speak behind their backs".
 "The sickness of deifying leaders is typical of those who court their
superiors, with the hope of receiving their benevolence. They are victims of
careerism and opportunism, honouring people rather than God. They are people
who experience service thinking only of what they might obtain and not of what
they should give. They are mean, unhappy and inspired only by their fatal
selfishness".
 "The disease of indifference towards others arises when each person thinks
only of himself, and loses the sincerity and warmth of personal relationships.
When the most expert does not put his knowledge to the service of less expert
colleagues; when out of jealousy ... one experiences joy in seeing another
person instead of lifting him up or encouraging him".
 "The illness of the funereal face: or rather, that of the gruff and the grim,
those who believe that in order to be serious it is necessary to paint their
faces with melancholy and severity, and to treat others - especially those
they consider inferior - with rigidity, hardness and arrogance. In reality,
theatrical severity and sterile pessimism are often symptoms of fear and
insecurity".
 "The disease of accumulation: when the apostle seeks to fill an existential
emptiness of the heart by accumulating material goods, not out of necessity
but simply to feel secure. ... Accumulation only burdens and inexorably slows
down our progress".
 "The ailment of closed circles: when belonging to a group becomes stronger
than belonging to the Body and, in some situations, to Christ Himself. This
sickness too may start from good intentions but, as time passes, enslaves
members and becomes a 'cancer' that threatens the harmony of the Body and
causes a great deal of harm - scandals - especially to our littlest brothers".
 Then, there is the "disease of worldly profit and exhibitionism: when the
apostle transforms his service into power, and his power into goods to obtain
worldly profits or more power. This is the disease of those who seek
insatiably to multiply their power and are therefore capable of slandering,
defaming and discrediting others, even in newspapers and magazines, naturally
in order to brag and to show they are more capable than others".
 After listing these ailments, Pope Francis continued, "We are therefore
required, at this Christmas time and in all the time of our service and our
existence - to live 'speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every
way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined
and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is
working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love'".
 "I once read that priests are like aeroplanes: they only make the news when
they crash, but there are many that fly. Many criticise them and few pray for
them", he concluded. "It is a very nice phrase, but also very true, as it
expresses the importance and the delicacy of our priestly service, and how
much harm just one priest who falls may cause to the whole body of the Church".

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 To employees of the Holy See: "Transform this Holy Nativity into an
opportunity to heal"
 Vatican City, 22 December 2014 (VIS) - This morning Pope Francis met with
employees of the Holy See, whom he thanked fervently for their work during the
last year. He dedicated some special words to the Italians present, as "during
all the history of the Church and the Roman Curia they have worked regularly
with a generous and faithful spirit, placing at the service of the Holy See
and Peter's Successor their unique laboriousness and filial devotion, offering
the Church great Saints, Popes, martyrs, missionaries and artists that no
passing cloud in history will be able to obscure". He also thanked workers
from other countries, "who generously work in the Curia, far from their
homelands and their families, representing for the Curia the face of the
Church's 'Catholicity'".
 The Pope encouraged those present to consider a text that he had mentioned in
his discourse to the Roman Curia shortly beforehand, treating it as a
"starting point for a fruitful examination of conscience in preparation for
the Holy Nativity and the New Year. He exhorted them to receive the Sacrament
of Confession "with a docile heart, to receive the mercy of the Lord, who
knocks on the door of our heart, in the joy of the family".
 Francis emphasised the word "care" and explained that "caring means
manifesting diligent and thoughtful interest, that directs our heart and our
activities towards someone or something; it means looking with attention to
those who are in need of care without thinking of anything else; it means
accepting to give or receive care". To "transform this Holy Nativity into a
true opportunity to heal every wound and every lack", he urged those present
to take care of their spiritual life, their relationship with God, and to look
after their family life and relationships with others. This means caring about
one's way of speaking, purifying language of offensive words; healing the
wounds of the heart with the oil of forgiveness; caring for one's work,
performing it with enthusiasm, humility and passion; curing oneself of envy,
lust, hatred and the negative feelings that devour our inner peace and
transform us into destroyed and destructive people; curing oneself of the
rancour that leads us to revenge and the idleness that leads to existential
euthanasia. Caring for the poorest, the elderly, the sick, the hungry, the
homeless and foreigners, and making sure that the Holy Nativity never becomes
a celebration of commercial consumerism, appearances and pointless gifts, or
superfluous waste, but rather of the joy of welcoming the Lord into the creche
of the heart".

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 * Origin: Sursum Corda! BBS=Huntsville AL=bbs.sursum-corda.com (1:396/45)