VATICAN INFORMATION SERVICE
YEAR XXII - # 038
DATE 23-02-2015

Summary:
- St. Gregory of Narek, Doctor of the Church
- Lent, time for spiritual battle against evil
- Spiritual exercises of the Pope and the Roman Curia
- Audience with the German Chancellor Angela Merkel
- The Pope again urges affiliates of organised crime to convert
- Audiences
- Other Pontifical Acts

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 St. Gregory of Narek, Doctor of the Church
 Vatican City, 23 February 2015 (VIS) - On Saturday, 21 February the Holy
Father received in audience Cardinal Angelo Amato, S.D.B., prefect of the
Congregation for the Causes of Saints. During the audience he confirmed the
proposal by the cardinals and bishops, members of the Plenary Session of the
Congregation, to concede the title of Doctor of the Universal Church to St.
Gregory of Narek, priest and monk, who was born in Andzevatsij (then Armenia,
present-day Turkey) in 1005 and died in Narek (then Armenia, present-day
Turkey) around 1005.

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 Lent, time for spiritual battle against evil
 Vatican City, 22 February 2015 (VIS) - Lent, the liturgical time that refers
to the forty days Jesus spent in the desert after his baptism in the river
Jordan, was the subject of the Pope's reflection before this Sunday's Angelus
prayer with the faithful gathered in St. Peter's Square.
 On the first Sunday of Lent, Francis explained that during these forty days
of solitude in which Jesus prepared himself to announce the Gospel of the
Kingdom of God, he "faces Satan 'body to body', he unmasks his temptations and
is victorious. And in Him we all win, but it is up to us to protect this
victory in our daily life".
 "The Church reminds us of this mystery at the beginning of every Lenten
period", he continued, "because it gives us the prospect and the meaning of
this time, which is a time of combat - during Lent one must fight - a time of
spiritual combat against the spirit of evil. And while we cross the Lenten
'desert', we keep our gaze fixed upon Easter, the definitive victory of Jesus
against the Evil One, against sin and against death. This, then, is the
meaning of this first Sunday of Lent: placing ourselves on the path of Christ,
the road that leads to life".
 "And this, Jesus' path, passes through the desert, ... the place where both
the voice of God and the voice of the Tempter can be heard. Amid noise and
confusion; only superficial voices can be heard. Instead, in the desert we are
able to descend to the depths, where our destiny is truly played out, life or
death. And how do we hear the voice of God? We hear it in His Word. This is
why it is important to know the Scripture, as otherwise we do not know how to
respond to the deceptions of the Evil One. ... Always keep a copy of the
Gospel to hand. The Lenten desert helps us to say no to worldliness, to
'idols'; it helps us to make courageous decisions consistent with the Gospel
and to strengthen solidarity with our brothers".
 "Therefore, let us enter into the desert without fear, because we are not
alone; we are with Jesus, with the Father and with the Holy Spirit", added the
Holy Father. "Lent is an auspicious time to lead us to be increasingly aware
of how much the Holy Spirit, received in baptism, has worked and can work in
us. At the end of the Lenten itinerary, on the Easter Vigil, we are able to
renew the baptismal alliance and the duties that derive from this with greater
awareness".
 The Pope completed his reflection by entrusting to the Virgin the week of
Spiritual Exercises that began yesterday afternoon, and in which his
collaborators in the Roman Curia will also participate. He asked those present
to pray, "so that in this 'desert' of the Spiritual Exercises, we can hear the
voice of Jesus and also correct many flaws that we all have, and also to face
up to the temptations that assail us every day. I therefore ask you to
accompany us with your prayer".
 Following the Angelus prayer, the Pope referred again to Lent, "a path of
conversion whose centre is the heart", and gave the faithful present in the
square a small booklet entitled "Custodisci il cuore", "Safeguard your heart".
Distributed by a group of volunteers, including various homeless persons, it
brings together a number of Jesus' teachings and the essential content of the
faith, such as for instance the seven Sacraments, the gifts of the Holy
Spirit, the ten commandments, the virtues, the works of mercy, and so on.
 "As is always the case, today in the square the needy give us a great wealth:
the wealth of our doctrine to safeguard the heart", he remarked, referring to
the work of the homeless volunteers. "Take a booklet and carry it with you, to
help in spiritual conversion and growth, which always starts from the heart:
there, where the daily choices between good and evil are made, between
worldliness and the Gospel, between indifference and sharing. Humanity needs
justice, peace and love, and will obtain this only by returning wholeheartedly
to God, the source".

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 Spiritual exercises of the Pope and the Roman Curia
 Vatican City, 22 February 2015 (VIS) - At 6 p.m. today, the first Sunday of
Lent, at the House of the Divine Master in Ariccia, a few kilometres from
Rome, the Roman Curia began its Spiritual Exercises, in which the Holy Father
participates.
 The meditations will be proposed by Fr. Bruno Secondin, O. Carm., and the
theme will be "Servants and prophets of the living God", a pastoral reading of
the prophet Elijah.
 The Exercises will be concluded on the morning of Friday, 27 February.
 During the week of the Spiritual Exercises all audiences will be suspended,
including the General Audience on Wednesday, 25 February.

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 Audience with the German Chancellor Angela Merkel
 Vatican City, 21 February 2015 (VIS) - This morning, 21 February 2015, the
Holy Father Francis received in Audience in the Vatican Apostolic Palace the
Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany, Her Excellency Angela Merkel,
who subsequently met with His Eminence Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro
Parolin, accompanied by His Excellency Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher,
Secretary for Relations with States.
 During the cordial discussions, and in view of the upcoming G7 Summit to be
held in Bavaria, special attention was paid to various questions of an
International nature, with particular reference to the struggle against
poverty and hunger; the exploitation of human beings and the rights of women;
and the challenges of promoting world health and the protection of Creation.
The themes of human rights and religious freedom in various parts of the world
were also considered, emphasising the importance of spiritual values to social
cohesion.
 Finally, the Parties considered the situation in Europe, underlining in
particular the commitment to reaching a peaceful solution to the conflict in
Ukraine.

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 The Pope again urges affiliates of organised crime to convert
 Vatican City, 21 February 2015 (VIS) - This morning in the Paul VI Hall the
Pope received in audience more than seven thousand people from the Italian
diocese of Cassano all'Jonio, in the region of Calabria, which Francis visited
last June, and whose church welcomes different rites and traditions that
express "the variety of gifts that enrich Christ's Church".

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