News from the General Procura of the Oratory of St. Philip Neri March 2009 Visit to the Oratorian Community in Formation in Strasbourg 2 March 2009 From 2-5 March the Procurator General visited the priests of the Oratorian community in formation in the Archdiocese of Strasbourg, and met the Archbishop, His Excellence Jean- Pierre Grallet, as well as the Auxiliary Bishop, His Excellence Christian Kratz. Celebration in Avignon 7 March 2009 The Procurator General sent his good wishes to the Archdiocese of Avignon, France, which has announced its celebrations marking the seventh anniversary of the beginning of the residence of the Popes in that city (1309-1377). Pope Benedict XVI, in his letter ‘Septingentesimus iam appetit annus’ has nominated as his special delegate to the celebrations His Eminence Cardinal Paul Poupard. The Oratorian Family will naturally remember in connection with these celebrations the episcopal ministry in Avignon of two of the first disciples of S. Philip Neri, Francesco Maria Tarugi and Giovan Francesco Bordini. We can happily recall the words spoken of Tarugi by a contemporary: ‘To our land of Gaul Tarugi brought such a clear light of virtue that bishops came to him frequently from the most remote parts, and indeed from every corner of France, as to a model of – and therefore an inspiration for – ecclesiastical discipline. Nomination of New Bishop of Alcalá de Henares 8 March 2009 On hearing that his Holiness Pope Benedict XVI had nominated as the new Bishop of Alcalá de Henares (Spain) his Excellence Juan Antonio Reig Plá, until now Bishop of Cartagena, the Procurator General expressed to his Excellence the congratulations of the Confederation, uniting his sentiments with those of the Congregation of the Oratory in that diocese. Musical Oratory 9 March 2009 The Procurator General participated at the Chiesa Nuova, Rome, in a ‘Musical Oratory’ entitled ‘I will lead you into the desert and speak to your heart ... on a journey with Christ amidst trials and inner darkness’. The theme was a reflection on the arduous desert experience of the Jewish people in the Exodus, recounted in the Old Testament. It also drew on the tradition of the Christian mystics. They followed a path lit up by God, but one which also could be dark, arid and full of trials – in fact, features which typify any truly transforming relationship between persons. And indeed for them this was a personal pilgrimage which led to the most profound encounter possible with the Lord. Franca Salerno and Stefano Mondini read texts from the Scriptures and various spiritual authors. The Musical Academy of S. Peter’s Basilica in Rome played parts of works from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Visit of the Holy Father to the Campidoglio, Rome 9 March 2009 The Procurator General thanked the Honourable Marco Pomarici, President of Rome’s city 1 Council, for having highlighted the importance of S. Philip Neri in his speech addressed to Pope Benedict XVI on the occasion of the latter’s official visit on that same day to the Campidoglio [the centre of Rome’s local government]. The Holy Father himself, speaking to those who had assembled in the Piazza del Campidoglio, had mentioned S. Philip Neri in the context of naming a number of important Roman saints. Seventy-Fifth Anniversary of Foundation of the Oratory of Rock Hill 10 March 2009 On the occasion of the forthcoming celebrations of the seventy-fifth anniversary of their foundation, the Procurator General sent a letter to the Provost of the Oratory of Rock Hill, South Carolina (U.S.A.), also transmitting the Papal Blessing which his Holiness had imparted for this important occasion. http://www.oratoriosanfilippo.org/lettera-rockhill.pdf Visit to Casarano, Lecce (South Italy) 12 March 2009 The Procurator General, who had been meeting with his Excellence Domenico Caliandro, Bishop of Nardò-Gallipoli, was also able to visit the parish Church of Saints Joseph [of Cupertino] and Saint [Padre] Pio in Casarano (Province of Lecce), where he blessed a bell dedicated to St Philip Neri. With Father Francesco Daniele he gave a presentation to the young people of the parish on S. Philip, ‘Prophet of Christian Joy’. Day dedicated to Monsignor Arista 14 March 2009 The Procurator General participated in the annual day for the Beatification of Giovanni Battista Arista at Acireale (Province of Catania, Sicily). He presided at the evening Mass in the Church of the Oratory and chaired a symposium on the Servant of God. His Excellence Ignazio Cannavò, Archbishop Emeritus of Messina, gave a paper on the work of Monsignor Arista in the aftermath of the earthquake of 1908, and the Orionine Father Giuseppe Risceglie talked about the friendship of Arista with Saint Luigi Orione. Representing the diocesan Bishop His Excellence Pio Vittorio Vigo, Bishop Giuseppe Malandrino presided at the Sunday Mass. In greeting the participants, the Procurator General underlined how the theme of the meeting - ‘Caritas Christi urget nos’ - whilst expressing the spirit of both Saint Luigi Orione and of the Venerabile Giovanni Battista Arista, also encapsulates the core of the present ‘Year of St Paul [the Apostle]’: Charity is the fulness of life for the disciple of Christ, who is the God of love who was made man out of love for man, a truth that Benedict XVI has so strikingly drawn attention to in his encyclical Deus Caritas Est. Expression of fedelty to the Holy Father 14 March 2009 The Procurator General, visting Acireale [Sicily] for the annual commemoration in honour of the Venerable Giovanni Battista Arista [1862-1920, 2nd bishop of Acireale, Oratorian] concluded his speech with some words reaffirming the fedelity of the Oratory to the Holy Father: ‘To his Holiness Pope Benedict XVI I wish to express, here in his house sanctified by the presence of Monsignor Arista, champion of Christian charity and zealous testimony of love for the Pope, the devotion of the Oratory for the person of the Vicar of Christ. The Pope’s magisterium, expressed in words and deeds, with his profundity and breadth of teaching, and 2 the actions and decisions that spring from it, is welcomed by the sons of S. Philip Neri with the same adhesion of faith and love which our Holy Founder and his best disciples have shown over the centuries. I thank the Holy Father for the precious letter which he sent to the Bishops of the Church two days ago, and I express to him the fedelty of the Oratory to his wishes, and their filial sympathy after the suffering brought upon him by the attitude – even from some within the Church – of incomprehension and of superficialty. With Monsignor Arista, who was always firm in his love for the Church and the Pope, I say with strength and sincerity: long live the Pope!’ Commemoration of the Miracle of S. Philpi Neri 16 March 2009 The Procurator General was represented at the Palazzo Massimo in Rome by Father Ronald Creighton-Jobe, of the Oratory of London. The day saw the solemn annual celebrations of the anniversary of the miracle of S. Philip Neri. Father Creighton-Jobe presented to the Massimo family the respects of the Procurator. Beginning of the ‘Year of Priests’ 16 March 2009 The Procurator General transmitted the following note of the Press Office of the Holy See: ‘On the occasion of the one hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the death of the Curé d’Ars, S. John Mary Vianney, His Holiness has announced this morning that, from 19 June 2009 to the 19 June 2010, there will be a special Year for Priests, which will have as its theme: ‘Faithfulness of Christ, Faithfulness of Priests’. The Holy Father will open this year with the celebration of Vespers on 19 June this year, solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and Day for the sanctification of priests, in the presence of the relics of the Curé d’Ars brought to Rome by the Bishop of Belley-Ars. The Year will close on 19 June 2010 in context of a ‘world meeting of priests’ in S. Peter’s Square in Rome. During this Jubilee Year Benedict XVI will proclaim S. John Mary Vianney the “Patron of all the Priests of the World”. In addition, a ‘Directory for Confessors and Spiritual Directors’ will be published, along with a collection of the magisterium of Benedict XVI on the themes of the life and mission of priests at the present time. The Congregation for the Clergy, working with diocesan Ordinaries and the Superiors of religious institutes, will seek to promote and co-ordinate the various spiritual and pastoral initiatives undertaken during the year, in order to foster ever more an appreciation of the importance of the role and mission of priests in the Church and in contemporary society, as well as the necessity of strengthening their ongoing formation, connecting it with the formation of seminarians. Visit to the Oratory of Palermo 16 March 2009 On 16-17 March, the Procurator General visited the Oratory of Palermo in Italy, and met the Archbishop, His Excellence Paolo Romeo. Symposium ‘From the document to the monument’ 22 March 2009 The Procura General expressed satisfaction at the invitation sent by the Regional Government of Lazio to the Archive of the Congregation of the Oratory at Rome to participate in a symposium it has organised, in which Dr Alberto Bianco, the Director of the Archive, will give a 3 presentation on the refurbishment and reordering work on the Archive, begun in 2006 with public finance, and recognised by the authorities as the best recent work of its type. Recalling that the Archive of the Congregation of Rome is of fundmental importance for research into Oratorian history, and, as such, of great value for the whole Confederation, the Procura General draws attention to the official website of the Archive at www.aco-roma.org and also to an interview with Dr Bianco at http://www.oratoriosanfilippo.org/archivio- english.pdf.