VATICAN INFORMATION SERVICE
YEAR XXII - # 091
DATE 18-05-2015

Summary:
- Meeting of the Holy Father with the Heads of the dicasteries of the Roman
Curia
- Pray for persecuted Christians, says Francis to the women religious in Rome
for the canonisation of the Palestinian saints
- The Pope canonises four new saints
- Regina Coeli: appeal for prayers for Burundi
- Francis receives the president of Palestine: the importance of interreligious
dialogue and the fight against terrorism
- "Never fail to listen to those who knock at your door", say the Pope to men
and women religious in Rome
- The Pontifical Council for the Family presents the initiative "The Great
Mystery: the Gospel of the family, school of humanity for our times"
- Audiences
- Other Pontifical Acts

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 Meeting of the Holy Father with the Heads of the dicasteries of the Roman
Curia
 Vatican City, 18 May 2015 (VIS) - This morning at 9 a.m., in the Sala Bologna
of the Vatican Apostolic Palace, the Holy Father met with the heads of the
dicasteries of the Roman Curia.

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 Pray for persecuted Christians, says Francis to the women religious in Rome
for
the canonisation of the Palestinian saints
 Vatican City, 18 May 2015 (VIS) - "I am giving you a mission: pray to the two
new saints for peace in your land, so that there may be an end to this
interminable war, and to bring peace among peoples", said Pope Francis this
morning as he received in audience the Carmelite Sisters of Bethlehem and the
Middle East and the Sisters of the Rosary, in Rome to attend the canonisation
of
Mary of Jesus Crucified and Marie-Alphonsine Danil Ghattas.
 "Pray too for Christians who are persecuted, driven away from their homes and
their land, and victims of 'white-gloved' persecution, hidden but present:
white-gloved persecution and terrorism. Keep praying for peace".
 The Holy Father, who greeted the women religious during an interval in his
meeting with the heads of the dicasteries of the Roman Curia, invited them all
to pray a Hail Mary, each in her own language.

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 The Pope canonises four new saints
 Vatican City, 17 May 2015 (VIS) - "Each one of Christ's followers is called to
become a witness to His resurrection, above all in those human settings where
forgetfulness of God and human disorientation are most evident", said the Pope
in the homily he pronounced during the Mass for the canonisation of four new
saints: Jeanne-Emilie de Villeneuve (1811-1854), French nun and founder of the
Congregation of the Sisters of the Immaculate Conception of Castres; Maria
Cristina of the Immaculate Conception (nee Maria Cristina Brando, 1856-1906),
Italian nun and founder of the Oblation Sisters of the Holy Sacrament;
Marie-Alphonsine Danil Ghattas (nee Maryam Sultanah, 1843-1927), Palestinian
co-founder of the Congregation of the Sisters of the Holy Rosary of Jerusalem;
and Mary of Jesus Crucified (nee Maryam Baouardy 1846-1878) Palestinian nun of
the Order of Discalced Carmelites. The solemn ceremony, which took place in a
packed St. Peter's Square, was attended by more than two thousand Christians
from the Middle East, the Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas, the Latin
Patriarch of Jerusalem Fouad Twal, and an Israeli delegation whom the Pope
greeted at the end of the celebration.
 In his homily, the Holy Father, citing the Acts of the Apostles, recalls that
their mission of announcing Jesus, of whose resurrection they were
eyewitnesses,
was a community rather than an individual undertaking. Thanks to the witness of
the Twelve, many people came to believe; from faith in the risen Lord,
Christian
communities were born and are born continually. "We too, today, base our faith
in the risen Lord on the witness of the Apostles, which has come down to us
through the mission of the Church", he said. "Our faith is firmly linked to
their testimony, as to an unbroken chain which spans the centuries, made up not
only by the successors of the Apostles, but also by succeeding generations of
Christians. Like the Apostles, each one of Christ's followers is called to
become a witness to His resurrection, above all in those human settings where
forgetfulness of God and human disorientation are most evident".
 For this to happen, "we need to abide in the risen Christ and in His love, ...
like Sister Jeanne Emilie de Villeneuve, who consecrated her life to God and to
the poor, the sick, the imprisoned and the exploited, becoming for them and for
all a concrete sign of the Lord's merciful love". This same love conquered
another of the new saints, Sister Maria Cristina Brando, who "from prayer and
her intimate encounter with the risen Jesus present in the Eucharist received
strength to endure suffering and to give herself, as bread which is broken, to
many people who had wandered far from God and yet hungered for authentic love".
 Another essential aspect of witness to the risen Lord is unity among His
disciples, in the image of His own unity with the Father. "From this eternal
love between the Father and the Son, poured into our hearts through the Holy
Spirit, our mission and our fraternal communion draw strength; this love is the
ever-flowing source of our joy in following the Lord along the path of His
poverty, His virginity and His obedience; and this same love calls us to
cultivate contemplative prayer". This was the love that Sister Mariam Baouardy
experienced: "poor and uneducated, she was able to counsel others and provide
theological explanations with extreme clarity, the fruit of her constant
dialogue with the Holy Spirit. Her docility to the Holy Spirit also made her a
means of encounter and fellowship with the Muslim world". So too, Sister
Marie-Alphonsine Danil Ghattas "came to understand clearly what it means to
radiate the love of God in the apostolate, and to be a witness to meekness and
unity. She shows us the importance of becoming responsible for one another, of
living lives of service one to another".
 The "luminous example" of the four new saints, who abide in God and in His
love, inspires us, in our lives as Christians, "to proclaim by our words and
our
lives the resurrection of Jesus, to live in unity with one another and with
charity towards all", concluded Pope Francis.

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 Regina Coeli: appeal for prayers for Burundi
 Vatican City, 17 May 2015 (VIS) - Following the Mass for canonisation and
before praying the Regina Coeli, the Pope greeted all those present in St.
Peter's Square to pay homage to the four new saints, and in particular the
official delegations from Palestine, France, Italy, Israel and Jordan. "May
their intercession renew the missionary impulse in their countries of origin.
Inspired by their example of mercy, charity and reconciliation, may the
Christians of these lands look with hope to the future, continuing their path
of
solidarity and fraternal co-existence".
 He also addressed the faithful of the Czech Republic, gathered today in the
shrine of Svaty Kopecek to commemorate the twentieth anniversary of St. John
Paul II's visit. He also noted that yesterday in Venice, Italy, the priest
Luigi
Carburlotto was proclaimed blessed. Founder of the Daughters of St. Joseph,
this
"exemplary pastor ... led an intense spiritual and apostolic life, entirely
dedicated to the good of souls".
 He concluded by inviting those present "to pray for the dear people of
Burundi,
who are experiencing a delicate moment. May the Lord help all to flee from
violence and to act responsibly for the good of the country".

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 Francis receives the president of Palestine: the importance of interreligious
dialogue and the fight against terrorism
 Vatican City, 16 May 2015 (VIS) - Today the Holy Father Francis received in
audience Mahmoud Abbas, president of the State of Palestine, who subsequently
met with Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, accompanied by Archbishop
Paul Richard Gallagher, secretary for Relations with States. President Abbas
will attend tomorrow's canonisation of the two Palestinian nuns, for which he
thanked the Holy Father.
 During the cordial discussions, great satisfaction was expressed for the
accord
reached on the text of a comprehensive Agreement between the Parties on various
essential aspects of the life and the activity of the Catholic Church in
Palestine, to be signed in the near future.
 Attention then turned to the peace process with Israel, and the hope was
expressed that direct negotiations between the Parties be resumed in order to
find a just and lasting solution to the conflict. To this end the wish was
reiterated that, with the support of the international Community, Israelis and
Palestinians may take with determination courageous decisions to promote peace.
Finally, with reference to the conflicts that afflict the Middle East, and in

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