Saint Jacob Melkite Byzantine Catholic Mission

Thousands of Protesters Call for Elections in Thailand
(RV - 12 Mar 10) In Thailand, thousands of anti-government protesters began gathering in Bangkok today for a march to force the government to call elections. The organisers have promised a peaceful demonstration on Sunday, though the government deployed soldiers and police throughout the city as supporters of deposed premier Thaksin Shinawat began gathering in one of the biggest challenges yet to Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva. The Vice Chancellor of St John’s University in Bangkok, Chainarong Monthienvichienchai told Lydia O’Kane that it’s unlikely the government will step down. 00:01:50:64

Pope to Spend Entire Summer at CastelGandolfo
(12 Mar 10 - RV) The natural beauty of the Pontifical Villas of Castel Gandolfo and not the mountainous areas of northern Italy will be the backdrop to Pope Benedict XVI’s summer vacation this year. 00:00:59:30 In a press release issued Friday it was announced that the Holy Father will travel directly from Rome to Castel Gandolfo, to spend the whole summer. The Pope, the statement read, “greatly appreciates the invitations received this year to spend a few weeks in the Alps and sincerely thanks the bishops for these invitations, but this year - concluded the press release - he prefers to start a summer of rest and study immediately without the commitment of additional travel”.

Pope: "Be Priests to the Very End"
(12 Mar 10 - RV) Pope Benedict XVI today addressed the participants in an international theological congress organized by the Congregation for Clergy to examine priestly identity. 00:02:00:00 Promoted by the curial dicastery responsible for Catholic Clergy throughout the world, the conference is titled: “Christ’s Fidelity and the fidelity of the Priest”. Over the course of two days at Rome’s Pontifical Lateran University, bishops and priests from all around the world examined the identity of the priest in his rapport with contemporary culture, the liturgy and the charism of priestly celibacy. Featured speakers were the Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Cardinal William Levada, the Prefect of the Congregation for Catholic Education, Cardinal Zenon Grocholewski, and Cardinal Claudio Hummes, who is Prefect of the Congregation for Clergy, which sponsored the Congress. In his remarks to the participants on Friday, Pope Benedict XVI spoke about the uniqueness and dignity of the priestly vocation. Dear priests, said Pope Benedict, the men and women of our time ask only that we be priests, and nothing else, to the very end. The lay faithful will always find in many other people, that, which they have need naturally, but only in the priest shall they be able to find the Word of God, which must ever be in his mouth.

VATICAN CENTURIES 32
Hear more about Michelangelo's story and his turbulent relationship with the papacy in the latest episode of our historical series that looks at the lives and legends of the people and places that went into the making of the Vatican..... 00:08:49:73

A GREENER LENT
An Irish Colomban priest and renowned ecologist and author reflects on how we can all make small sacrifices during this Lenten season to help protect the environment..... 00:05:09:70

A PROBLEM SHARED
We find out more about Men's Fellowship meetings, a little publicized but very popular initiative in many Catholic parishes in the U.S., where thousands of men meet regularly to share experiences in dealing with life's challenges and deepen their Christian faith...... 00:13:06:79

MARCH 13, 2010
A PROBLEM SHARED: We find out more about Men's Fellowship meetings, a little publicized but very popular initiative in many Catholic parishes in the U.S., where thousands of men meet regularly to share experiences in dealing with life's challenges and deepen their relationship with Christ.... A GREENER LENT: An Irish Colomban priest and renowned ecologist reflects on how we can all make small sacrifices during this Lenten season to help protect the environment...... VATICAN CENTURIES 32: Hear more about Michelangelo's story and his turbulent relationship with the papacy in the latest episode of our historical series that looks at the lives and legends of the people and places that went into the making of the Vatican.... 00:28:59:26

WFP Somalia Programme Under Scrutiny
(12 Mar 10 - RV) The UN World Food Program has said it will cooperate with any independent probe into its food operations in Somalia, after a report found that up to half the food aid intended for the nation's hungry people does not reach its destination. The report said food aid in Somalia is being diverted to corrupt contractors, radical Islamic militants and local U.N. workers. Bishop Giorgio Bertin is the Apostolic Administrator for Mogadishu. He told us that although corruption in distribution is unavoidable, the local church is successful in delivering aid to those in need: 00:01:48:10

Pope : Crisis in Penance is Appeal to Priests
(11 Mar 10 - RV) At midday today, the Pope received participants in an annual course on the "internal forum" organised by the Apostolic Penitentiary. By participating in the course, he told them, "you have shown the pressing need to dedicate deeper study to a subject that is essential for the ministry and the life of priests". 00:02:09:22 Benedict XVI recalled how this year's course coincides with the current Year for Priests, dedicated to St. John Mary Vianney, "who heroically and fruitfully exercised the ministry of Reconciliation. ... From the saintly 'Cure of Ars' we priests can learn not only a limitless trust in the Sacrament of Penance which leads us to reinstate it as the focus of our pastoral concerns, but also the method of 'the dialogue of salvation' which must be part thereof", he said. "Awareness of one's own limits and the need to turn to Divine Mercy in order to ask forgiveness, to convert the heart and to find support on the path of saintliness, are fundamentals in the life of priests. Only someone who has himself experienced greatness can convincingly announce and administer the Mercy of God", the Holy Father explained. The current cultural context, characterised by "a hedonistic and relativist mentality which tends to remove God from the horizon of life, does not facilitate our acquisition of a clear picture of reference values, and does not help us to discern good from evil or to develop a correct sense of sin". This, the Pope noted, is not very different from the period in which St. John Mary Vianney lived, marked as it was by "a mentality hostile to the faith, as expressed by certain forces that even sought to prevent the exercise of the priestly ministry. "In these circumstances, the saintly 'Cure of Ars' made 'the church his home' in order to lead men and women to God", the Pope added, "and he appeared to his contemporaries to be an evident sign of God that he encouraged many penitents to come to his confessional". Thus, the Holy Father went on, "it is necessary for priests to live their own response to vocation 'exaltedly', because only someone who daily becomes living and clear presence of the Lord can arouse a sense of sin in the faithful, give them courage and stimulate their desire for forgiveness from God". "The 'crisis' in the Sacrament of Penance, which is often spoken of, is an appeal addressed first and foremost to priests and to their great responsibility to educate the people of God in the radical demands of the Gospel. In particular, it calls on them generously to dedicate themselves to hearing sacramental confessions, and courageously to guide their flock not to conform itself to this world, but to make choices that go against the tide, avoiding deals and compromises". Finally, Benedict XVI invited priests to open a "dialogue of salvation" with their penitents, as suggested by the "Cure of Ars". A dialogue that, "arising from the certainty of being loved by God, helps man to recognise his own sin and progressively to introduce himself into a stable process of conversion of heart, which leads to the radical rejection of evil and to a life lived in accordance with God's wishes".

Archbishop Tomasi: "No Excuse for Child Abuse"
(11 Mar 10 - RV)The Vatican’s representative to the United nations in Geneva, Archbishop Silvano M. Tomasi, toldthe 13th session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva yesterday that the Church is committed to addressing the issue of sexual violence against Children. Archbishop Tomasi was addressing the Council on the Rights of the Child. Observing that Catholic clergy, religious and lay workers in a number of countries have been accused, and several have been convicted, of child abuse, Archbishop Tomasi affirmed that there is no excuse for this behaviour describing it as a grave betrayal of trust. He told the session that protection from sexual aggression remains high on the agenda of all church institutions as they struggle to come to terms with this serious problem. He also said that concrete measures to ensure transparency and assistance to the victims and their families are the only way to alleviate the pain, grief, and bewilderment caused by the abuse that has occurred. Archbishop Tomasi went on to say that those who are found guilty of these crimes are immediately suspended from exercising their office and are dealt with according to the norms of civil and canon laws. Prevention is the best medicine, the Vatican representative concluded inviting panel to share some best practices that can help children to recognize and report the improper behaviour of educators and caregivers. 00:01:36:65