Inside the Vatican magazine May 2020

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INSIDE THE

MAY 2020 $5 / EUR 5 / £3.30

VATICAN

“SUDDENLY A VIOLENT STORM AROSE” (MATTHEW 8:4)

“WAKE UP, LORD!” “WHY ARE YOU AFRAID? HAVE YOU NO FAITH?” LORD, YOU ARE CALLING TO US, CALLING US TO FAITH

CARDINAL GEORGE PELL Acquitted on all charges, Pell is set free

DR. WILLIAM MOYNIHAN A tribute to a Catholic, scholar, mentor and friend

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INSPIRING NOVELS TO

“Ignite our Adventurous Hearts”

X Charis in the World of Wonders

X Bartolomé de las Casas

Marly Youmans

José Luis Olaizola

leeing flaming arrows and a massacre, Charis escapes into the wilderness and searches for another place to call home. She must struggle for survival: to scour the forest for shelter, to seek a new family and setting where she can belong. Her unmarked way is costly and hard.

Streams of darkness run through the 17th century villages of the Salem Massachusetts Colony, and occult fears can creep into the mind. Much will oppose Charis’ longings for renewal and peace; the young woman must pursue the hero’s path to a larger, more vivid life.

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T

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X Silent Angel

“Youmans' prose is fluid, graceful, sharply witty, and deeply rich in symbolism—the work of a master.”

—J. Augustine Wetta, O.S.B., Author, The Eighth Arrow and Humility Rules “A prismatic grace journey that awakens our dulled senses and ignites our adventurous hearts. An incomparable gift of faith and art for generations of readers to come.”

— Makoto Fujimura, Artist; Author, Culture Care and Silence and Beauty

X The Innocents and Other Stories Gertrud von le Fort

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hese four beautifully written novellas by the acclaimed German writer are from her later works of historical fiction. Ominous and mysterious, these page-turning stories bring to life momentous chapters from the past.

he fiery figure of de las Casas comes to life in this novel by acclaimed Spanish author Olaizola.

The most polemical person involved with the discovery of America, this powerful work tells the dramatic story of his life from his dissolute youth to a rich landowner in Cuba, his conversion and ordination as a Dominican priest, and strong influence with bishops and kings on behalf of the rights of the native Indians.

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Antonia Arslan

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ased on a true story involving miraculous grace, this is a powerful account of human resilience and heroic faith amidst the massacre of Christians during the Armenian Genocide. It follows the journey of five survivors who become guardians of a work of inestimable value, the Book of Moush, an ancient illuminated manuscript they vow to defend with their lives to bring to safety.

SAP . . . Sewn Softcover, $14.95

X See No Evil Fiorella De Maria

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n this third title in the popular Father Gabriel Mystery series, what starts as a possible domestic murder quickly propels the detective priest into a dangerous criminal underworld where Nazi loot is bought, sold—and perhaps killed for.

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“Rarely does a writer reveal depths of understanding of the human heart as von le Fort does. She writes with such subtlety, irony, gentleness and inevitable surprise.”

—Peter Kreeft, Philosophy Professor and Best-selling Author

“Once again De Maria presents a world worthily reminiscent of the post-war golden age of mystery fiction but illuminates it with her own special flair.”

— Eleanor Nicholson, Author, A Bloody Habit: A Novel

www.ignatius.com P.O. Box 1339, Ft. Collins, CO 80522

1-800-651-1531

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EDITORIAL

by Robert Moynihan

Remembering My Father

My father, William T. Moynihan, passed away at his home in Connecticut, just before dawn on March 28, after a brief illness. He was 93. I was not able to be with him due to travel restrictions connected with the coronavirus

“Like a flower he comes forth and withers. He flees like a shadow and does not remain.” —Job 14:2 “Behold, I tell you a mystery. We shall all indeed rise again.”

—St. Paul, First Epistle to the Corinthians, Chapter 15:51 “For He will transform the body of our humiliation into the image of His glorious body.” —Philippians 3:21

March 30, 2020—My father, William T. Moynihan, passed away on Saturday morning, March 28, two days ago, just before dawn, peacefully, at his home in Connecticut. I do not know if the coronavirus had any role in his death. He was not tested. Toward the end, he did have a spiking fever which reflected a painful internal infection. But I did not expect his death so soon.

Due to quarantines and restrictions on travel, I was not able to be with him (I left Italy before travel restrictions locked the country down, but did not go to see him at my childhood home in Connecticut to avoid any chance that I might carry the virus with me and infect him). Our parish priest, Fr. John Antonelle, of St. Thomas Aquinas Church in Storrs, Connecticut, was not afraid of the virus, and came to our house, to my father’s bedside, and anointed him and gave him the last rites. My father saw and understood, and nodded, and fell into his last deep sleep. I will not be present tomorrow for the Rite of Christian Burial when my father is buried next to my mother. Only five people are allowed to gather at one time and place in Connecticut today. So Father John, together with someone from the local funeral home, two of my brothers, and one of my sisters, will commend my father to God. This editorial, then, must become my farewell to him.

My father was the grandson of an Irish immigrant who came to Haverhill, Massachusetts in about 1870. For such Irish immigrants, the Catholic parish was a second home — and sometimes, a first home. The Church meant so much to them. It indicated to them that “higher road” my father urged me to walk in life.

When I was four or five, my father handed me an old Catholic missal he had thumbed through in minor seminary (yes, he studied to become a priest; if he had continued, I would not be here). “This is the most important book you will ever own,” he said, to my wideeyed wonder. The missal’s pages were fine as gossamer, transparent, so thin that turning them was a marvel — the paper was so thin I thought it might tear, but so strong it never tore. In that thick missal, with its various colored threads to mark places, were the prayers of the Church: the Mass, the daily office, and all of it both in Latin and in English. So I felt from earliest childhood that I was poised between a culture of “now” and a culture of “always.” Between a way of using words (in English) that my playground friends and I could share with ease, and a way of using words none of us could use with ease, but which rolled down the centuries like a sonorous tolling bell, telling me each week, each day, “we are one people, one tradition, from the apostles until today, via a cloud of witnesses whose names we chant: Linus, Cletus, Clement, Sixtus, Cornelius,

Cyprian, Lawrence, Chrysogonus, John and Paul, Cosmas and Damian.” That I felt from the age of five. That my father gave me.

There would be a time to say much more. He helped me when I started the magazine in 1993, writing many beautiful, thoughtful articles, and without him perhaps the magazine would not have survived — he also helped me financially. He thought and wrote clearly. He urged me to think and write clearly. I owe him so much, beyond what can be written.

But for this day, I want to remember one thing he wrote for me that I never read until a few weeks ago, when my sister found the passage in my father’s diary. It was the entry for the day of my birth.“Thursday, November 12, Robert Barnes Moynihan born 4 a.m. this day at Meriden hospital. Dr. Pennington delivering. Mother fine. Dear Robert, welcome to existence. I fear you will be exposed to the eternal struggle for eternal life in much the way your father was. Instead of learning from my mistakes, I hope you learn from my virtues. Don’t question for an instant the nature of this existence — it is struggle — a testing.

For what purpose? No man knows for sure, but if you look closely and sympathetically you will see that a meter and rhyme so closely intermingles both the human (animal) and divine that you know eternity is a phase of life yet to be had.

God love, protect and bless you. Maria, ora pro nobis.”

I did not know my father had written such words to me. I did not know that he had invoked God’s protection and blessing and Mary’s prayer on my life and on his life and my mother’s life — “Mary, pray for us,” for us, not “Mary, pray for him,” but “for us,” for me in communion with them, my parents, and with the six brothers and sisters who were to follow. And so I write these poor words in his memory, two days after his passing.

My father was a man who lived “in the light of God” and “under the aspect of eternity.” He told me that, from the perspective of the world, the faith is folly, while from the perspective of the disciples, it is God’s surpassing glory, beyond what we can imagine with our rational minds.

This world tests us, even — I dare to say — enslaves us, in many ways, many different ways. In fact, we enslave ourselves. So our freedom must come from an infusion of power, of grace, which surpasses us, and heals us, and sets us free. This my father taught me.

I recall, as a boy, seeing him kneel or sit with his head in his hands after Communion. “Why does he sit with his head in his hands?” I wondered. He sat with his head in his hands to be a witness to being a man, so that I, and others, could see. And in that gesture, I understood that he was in relation with some principle, some reality, some ground of being, some holy and hidden God, who drew him toward Himself. That was the lesson my father gave to me. Not to tick off the boxes of a pre-fabricated life, but to get up and walk on a journey toward the infinite, even after falling down, especially after falling down, and continuing to the end, for in our end is... our beginning.

Dad, may eternal light shine upon you, and may you rest in peace.m MAY 2020 INSIDE THE VATICAN

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MAY 2020

CONTENTS

Year 28, #5

LEAD STORY Acquitted! Australia’s highest court sets Cardinal Pell free

by Christina Deardurff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 NEWS China-Vatican/Cardinal Zen is not backing down

by Christina Deardurff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13 MAY 2020 Year 28, #5

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EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: Robert Moynihan ASSOCIATE EDITOR: George “Pat” Morse (+ 2013) ASSISTANT EDITOR: Christina Deardurff CULTURE EDITOR: Lucy Gordan CONTRIBUTING EDITORS: Giuseppe Rusconi WRITERS: Anna Artymiak, Alberto Carosa, William D. Doino, Jr., David Quinn, Andrew Rabel, Vladimiro Redzioch, Serena Sartini, Father Vincent Twomey PHOTOS: Grzegorz Galazka LAYOUT: Giuseppe Sabatelli ILLUSTRATIONS: Stefano Navarrini CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER: Deborah B. Tomlinson ADVERTISING: Katie Carr Tel: 202-536-4555, ext.303 kcarr@insidethevatican.com

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EDITORIAL OFFICES FOR MAIL: US: 14 West Main St. Front Royal, VA 22630 USA Rome: Inside the Vatican via delle Mura Aurelie 7c, Rome 00165, Italy Tel: 39-06-3938-7471 Fax: 39-06-638-1316 POSTMASTER: send address changes to Inside the Vatican c/o St. Martin de Porres Lay Dominican Community PO Box 57 New Hope, KY 40052 USA Tel: 800-789-9494 Fax: 270-325-3091 Subscriptions (USA): Inside the Vatican PO Box 57 New Hope, KY 40052 USA www.insidethevatican.com Tel: 800-789-9494

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INSIDE THE VATICAN (ISSN 1068-8579, 1 yr subscription: $ 49.95; 2 yrs, $94.95; 3 yrs, $129.95), provides a comprehensive, independent report on Vatican affairs published monthly except July and September with occasional special supplements.

Inside the Vatican is published by Urbi et Orbi Communications, PO Box 57, New Hope, Kentucky, 40052, USA, pursuant to a License Agreement with Robert Moynihan, the owner of the Copyright. Inside the Vatican, Inc., maintains editorial offices in Rome, Italy.

Periodicals Postage PAID at New Haven, Kentucky and additional mailing offices.

Copyright 2020 Robert Moynihan

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INSIDE THE VATICAN

MAY 2020

DOSSIER Empty Easter: Rome in a time of virus, everything closed...

by Christina Deardurff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14 St. Corona, pray for us

by Christina Deardurff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15 The Lord is with us in this storm

by Christina Deardurff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15 Public Mass resumes in first US diocese

by Christina Deardurff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15 Tending to the soul first, then the body

by Philip C. L. Gray, JCL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16 The virus between faith and medicine

by Thomas W. McGovern, M.D. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18 Rome — Coronavirus diary

by Dr. Giuseppe Rusconi, Swiss Vaticanist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20 PHOTO ESSAY A Lonely Prayer in Time of Pandemic REFLECTION/”When evening had come” (Mark 4:35)

by Pope Francis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22 IN MEMORIAM: PROF. WILLIAM T. MOYNIHAN, HUSBAND, FATHER, COUNSELOR, WRITER, FRIEND (JUNE 23, 1926-MARCH 28, 2020) — “SEMPER FI” MAY ETERNAL LIGHT SHINE UPON HIM/

by William A. Doino, Jr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32 CULTURE INTERVIEW/

by Dr. Jan Bentz, Ph.D. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36 SCRIPTURE/

by Prof. Anthony Esolen, Ph.D. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .40 INTERIOR CASTLE/ by a Hermitess . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42 FOOTSTEPS ON THE WAY/

by Christina Deardurff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .44

URBI ET ORBI: CATHOLICISM AND ORTHODOXY Icon/Who are the violent?

by Robert Wiesner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .46 Spirituality/The Greatness of Prayer

By Father El Meskeen (1919-2006) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47 East-West Watch/Underground Church marks discovery of Kazan icon

by Peter Anderson, eminent student of all things Orthodox . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .48 News from the East: Mt. Athos to hold vigils for coronavirus victims

by Becky Derks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .49 Initiative/Let us “accompany” the elderly during the pandemic...

by Kyle Hayes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .51 FEATURES LATIN/The Plague of St. Cyprian (c. 200-258 A.D.)

by John Byron Kuhner, Paideia Institute, Rome . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .52 Art/Pope Francis prays before the Marian icon Salus Populi Romani, to end pandemic

by Lucy Gordan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .54 BOOK/Selection from Lord of the World (originally published in 1907)

by Monsignor Robert Hugh Benson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .56 Vatican Watch/A day-by-day chronicle of Vatican events: March and April

by Becky Derks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .58 People/

by Becky Derks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .60 Food for Thought/Restaurants in monuments, one in Trastevere

by Mother Martha . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .62 Cover: Altar of the Navicella (Altar of the Little Barque of St. Peter), St. Peter’s Basilica,mosaic from 1727 based on a fresco by Italian Baroque painter Giovanni Lanfranco (1582-1647)

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Brilliant Insights into DEEPER PRAYER & HOLINESS X CONTEMPLATIVE ENIGMAS Fr. Donald Haggerty Written by an acclaimed expert on contemplative prayer, this book focuses on the interior hardships experienced by souls who strive to give themselves wholly to God. These poignant observations are the fruit of the author's many years in retreat work. Personal experience, not just knowledge of the spiritual tradition, informs his carefully crafted comments. He invites you to ponder the subject of spiritual darkness, perplexity, and other struggles in the spiritual life, always in the light of the loving God who draws souls into greater surrender to Himself.

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“Penetrating yet accessible guide that leaves us more consoled, competent, and conversant in the noble art of prayer."

— Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Archbishop of New York “A great aid to understanding the enigma of darkness in prayer. A unique enticement to richer prayer and greater love for the One we hope to see face to face."

—Fr. Sebastian White, O.P., Editor-in-Chief, Magnificat

Other Inspiring Works by Fr. Donald Haggerty

X The Contemplative Hunger

X Conversion

Short and effective meditations on prayer and contemplative spirituality that address the heart of a soul's interior response to God. His desire to draw souls to a deeper gift of themselves is inseparable from His desire to draw them into a deeper encounter with the sacred mystery of His presence.

Penetrating observations of the phenomenon of Christian conversion. He discusses the essential elements of a soul's return to God, and explores the fruits of conversion that make the difference between a mediocre relationship with God and a truly holy life. The invitation to embrace a deeper passion for God is the thematic undercurrent of this inspiring work.

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X Contemplative Provocations This book provokes us to persevere in the ultimate adventure in life - the more complete discovery of the living God. It offers a rich profusion of insights on the life of prayer and the pursuit of God, showing that a key to spiritual growth is understanding that the hiddenness of God is a paradox for a soul seeking him wholeheartedly.

COPRP . . . Sewn Softcover, $17.95

www.ignatius.com P.O. Box 1339, Ft. Collins, CO 80522

1-800-651-1531

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PLAN FO R 2021!

Visi h eVa t i c a t nPi lg r im a g es.com for a com p l e t e list of our 20 21 pilg rim a g e s.

I n s i d eT

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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

INSIDE THE VATICAN welcomes letters but cannot reply to all. Each is read and considered carefully. Printed letters may be edited for clarity. You may email us at editor@insidethevatican.com

FROM A PRISONER

We get requests like these everyday.

Help us, help them.

Many prisoners—as well as religious—have requested, but are unable to afford, subscriptions. Please donate to the ITV Scholarship Fund and provide 10 issues of Inside the Vatican magazine for only $39.95/year.

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INSIDE THE VATICAN MAY 2020

May the Lord give you peace! I am happy and excited to be writing to you once again. I pray that God is blessing your efforts to keep the faithful well informed of what is happening in the Holy See and throughout the Church. I pray for you and your staff weekly. In these turbulent times your publication is a lighthouse that guides us to the safe harbor that is the true Church of Christ. Thank you for your truthful reporting, dedication, and determination.

I did not renew my request last year for a donor subscription in order to allow someone else this opportunity. This year, however, I do humbly ask for a subscription. Your wonderful magazine is a helpful tool in my enjoyable job of catechizing the growing number of Catholics in my prison. It helps answer difficult questions that arise. I thank you in advance. You are greatly appreciated and help all to have the faith in the Scripture that “the gates of hell will not prevail against her” (the Church). May Jesus Christ be praised!

Joseph Moscaritolo, DC#V27703 Avon Park Corr. Inst.

Avon Park, Florida, USA

“THE BEST SENTENCE” The best sentence in your April 2020 issue is on page 59: “The next ordinary Synod of Bishops will be a synod on synodality, the Vatican announced March 7.” I can’t tell if the redundancy is an oversight or editorial whimsy. But that sentence is especially appropriate located in the same pages as Professor Esolen’s eye-rolling towards Confidence-Men and committees.

“Industrial committees” have already taken over health care, education, and government, and Esolen shows us the results of poetry by committee. A committee on committees, or a synodal synod on synod synodality, perpetuates self-justified bureaucrats ad infinitum, but Rome is nice in October.

Thad Whiting Wisconsin, USA

AN ERROR ON A TOMB I don’t want to be too critical, but there is an error in your March print edition con-

@

cerning a famous monument in St. Peter’s

by Bernini. The tomb, “Death with an hourglass,” is that of Pope Alexander VII (16551667), not Alexander VI (1492-1503). The tomb of Alexander VI, Borgia, is, if I am not mistaken, in the Church of Santa Maria di Monserrato, just off the Piazza Farnese.

Bruce Hacker Front Royal, Virginia, USA The Editor replies: Thank you, Bruce, for this needed correction. I am happy to have comments and corrections from all readers. Errare humanum est, perseverare autem diabolicum (“To err is human, but to persist in error is diabolical”), and we are certainly human here, and need help from readers to correct our errors.—RM

“LORD, HAVE MERCY” It seems the old foundations of our Church, at least since it became overbuilt clerically, are being restructured to conform more closely to the vision of Jesus when he called fishermen and named Peter first among them and sent the Holy Spirit to guide and empower them. I don’t think it is right to scapegoat Francis for the clerical failings of the past 100 years. Francis inherited a terrible mess! My approach: let God be God and pray for our beloved Church.

It seems to me that all the “Francis haters,” Viganò and Burke among them, are jumping on this opportunity to “get him” because of his pastoral approach to marriage and divorce. It challenges the clerical authoritarian and legalistic mindset which enabled the present scandals. Lord have mercy on Pope Francis, and them, and us all.

Carol Marquardt Clearwater, Florida, USA mamacackie@aol.com

VIGANÒ ON FATIMA I want you to stop sending your “Letters” to me. Your Letter #7, giving the thoughts of Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò on the Third Secret of Fatima, is very heretical, and so is Viganò. How dare you or he refer to Pope Francis as “Bergoglio”? Mr. Moynihan, I will not even waste my time pointing out that you and the archbishop are

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the heretics. You are the living “Pharisees” of our day. May God protect His Church from people like you.

Kathleen Hopkins, RN khopkins1952@gmail.com I read with special interest both your son Christopher’s translation of Archbishop Viganò’s text on Fatima, and the letter from a subscriber. Both astonishing.

Needless to say, both were devastating concerning the current subversion and destruction of the traditional One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic faith by the current hierarchy. We the faithful of the traditional Church, are without any advocates, albeit, other than a few cardinals with no influence in Bergoglio’s Vatican. Our only hope for a restoration of the traditional Church is for a future Pope with the zeal to return to the authentic Apostolic faith. I remain a Catholic today, not because of the clergy or the hierarchy, but only because of my catechesis in the faith many decades ago now.

Thank you for your courageous and important writings, Bob. Victor Cameron vcamco@comcast.net I respected Archbishop Viganò’s original calls for clarity and action on Cardinal McCarrick and the whole clerical abuse scandal, and his call for a cleanup at the Vatican, but I find he is getting off on too many tangents of late and claiming things beyond his competence (like this on Fatima). God bless.

Christ is Risen, truly He is Risen, Alleluia!

Fr. Lindsay Harrison Ottawa, Canada Thanks for the latest teaching of “Papa Carlo.” (Sarcasm off.)

Father Jack Feehily fatherjack@StAndrewmoore.com

American food American owner

Via di Porta Cavalleggeri, 25 338 13 71 344 home baked

homebakedrome

You have recovered your speech. Your father’s passing has given you renewed courage. We need it. Thank you for being courageous. Praise God. P.S. The Order of Malta is in another crisis. The Grand Master is very ill in Rome at the Grand Magistry on Via Condotti.

Tom Greerty tgreerty@aol.com Two things at this late hour in Mobile, Alabama.

(1) Viganò’s testimonies and subsequent commentaries have been and continue to be chilling. He has the perspective, as you do, of seeing the Church’s underbelly. I agree totally with his assessment that the majority of the faithful, including many parish clerics, have little or no idea of the immense dangers to the Church over the past 60 years, although Viganò’s testimonies have exposed much for those who are listening.

I am 82, and my faith was formed during the agonies of World War II and the recovery decade of the 1950s. I still remember the peace and reverent silence of the Latin Masses. I’ve often told my wife that as reverent as parish Masses are, I deeply miss that old peace.

As just a guy in the back pew somewhere, I know Viganò is the Jonah of this age. He is a voice in opposition to the destruction Satan is working inside our Church. I’m waiting for your book with anticipation and a sense that I wish it wasn’t needed.

I did not know that your Dad followed your Mom in March until this letter arrived earlier tonight. I had the same experiences back in the 1970s and 1980s, my friend. Mom went first in 1979; Dad in 1985. I don’t think that losing parents is something we ever really get over. The only way I can describe those losses is that two holes were ripped into my existence, never to be filled again. Without their love, discipline, guidance over my life and formation of Faith that ultimately saved me (a hellion), God only knows where I would have ended up.

Family is the paramount building block of life, civilization and culture.

Without family we are lost, and so many are in this time. You and your parents are in our prayers, Bob. Joe Murray Mobile, Alabama, USA

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“What earlier generations held as sacred, remains sacred....” Pope Benedict XVI

www.thevintagecatholic.com MAY 2020 INSIDE THE VATICAN

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CONVICTION OVERTURNED: Australian Cardinal George Pell has been released from prison after his conviction on charges that he abused two boys was overturned by Australia’s highest court. Pell here relaxes on the grounds of the Seminary of the Good Shepherd in Sydney April 9, 2020.

(CNS photo/courtesy Archdiocese of Sydney)

Opposite page: Australian Justice Mark Weinberg and Canadian writer Fr. Raymond de Souza

ACQUITTED! Cardinal Pell’s Conviction Overturned AFTER 409 DAYS IN SOLITARY CONFINEMENT, THE FORMER HEAD OF THE VATICAN’S SECRETARIAT FOR THE ECONOMY IS ACQUITTED OF “HISTORIC” SEXUAL ABUSE CHARGES

n BY CHRISTINA DEARDURFF

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cardinal of the Catholic Church, convicted in Australia last year of disgraceful crimes of sexual abuse, spent 409 days in solitary confinement in two different prisons. He underwent two trials and a failed appeal and then, finally, a last appeal before the country’s highest court, which resulted in his being set free.

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Cardinal George Pell, 78, archbishop of Melbourne, Australia and the Vatican’s former Prefect of the Secretariat for the Economy, on April 6, was cleared in one of the highest-profile clergy sexual abuse cases in the world when the High Court of Australia ordered his release from prison and his complete exoneration on all charges.

Pope Francis, the next day, tweeted, “Let us #PrayTogether today for all those persons who suffer due to an unjust sentence because someone had it in for them.”

And it indeed appeared that “someone had it in for” the cardinal.

Commentators on both sides of the deep divide over Australia’s

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“FREE EVEN WHEN INCARCERATED”

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atholic writer George Weigel, longtime defender and friend of Cardinal Pell, on the cardinal’s “priestly character” — and whether Australia will learn from his ordeal Throughout this ordeal, Cardinal George Pell has been a model of patience, and indeed a model of priestly character. Knowing that he is innocent, he was free even when incarcerated. And he put that time to good use—“an extended retreat,” as he called it—cheering his many friends throughout the world and intensifying an already-vigorous life of prayer, study, and writing. Now that he can, at last, celebrate the Mass again, I’ve no doubt that he will make, among his intentions, the conversion of his

Catholic Church in general agree that the cardinal’s conviction was, from the start, a miscarriage of justice. The Church is unpopular in progressive circles of Australian society, including the secular media and some sectors of government, and many believe that the police who first brought charges against the cardinal did so at the behest of others in positions of authority.

In fact, the police used unorthodox techniques in what has been described as a “fishing expedition” against the cardinal, including advertising in the newspaper for people to come forward with accusations against him — all before there were even any charges against the cardinal.

The actual charges on which the cardinal was eventually tried — twice, as the first trial resulted in a hung jury — involved two adults who, the prosecution claimed, had been sexually abused by the cardinal when they were 13year-old choir boys at the Melbourne cathedral where the cardinal said Mass.

One of the complainants died of a drug overdose before the trial even began, but not before telling

persecutors and the renewal of justice in the country he loves.

As a citizen of the Vatican, Pell did not have to abandon his work in Rome to return to Australia for trial. The thought of appealing to his diplomatic immunity never occurred to him, though. He was determined to defend his honor and that of the Australian Church, which he had led in addressing the crimes of sexual abuse (and in many other ways) for years. Pell bet on the essential fairness of his countrymen. The High Court’s decision vindicated that wager, finally. The reception of the court’s decision will tell whether the Australian media and people have learned anything from all of this.n

his own mother that the accusations being brought against Pell were actually not true.

The second complainant has a history of mental illness — a fact that was not allowed to enter into the cardinal’s legal defense.

The defense called several wit-

nesses who all testified that circumstances surrounding the supposed crimes, which were said to have taken place immediately after a Sunday Mass, while the cardinal was still vested, and seemingly while he was still greeting parishioners leaving Mass outside the cathedral’s front doors, made the actions alleged impossible.

The court, however, concerned itself almost exclusively with judg-

ment of the reliability of the sole living accuser’s word, and not with circumstantial or eyewitness evidence, and the jury voted to convict.

In the cardinal’s subsequent first appeal of the decision, Justice Mark Weinberg, the one dissenting judge of a three-judge Court of Appeal panel, expressed grave concern over the number of questionable elements of the case and concluded the conviction could “not be permitted to stand,” as it did not sufficiently withstand the burden of proof.

But the other two appeal judges, one of whom had no previous criminal jurisprudence experience, voted to uphold the conviction. So Pell was condemned and sent to prison while awaiting a final appeal to the highest court of Australia.

That High Court, after examining the arguments of the two judges, chose to side with Weinberg in support of Pell.

“The [Court of Appeal’s] analysis failed to engage with whether, against this body of evidence, it was reasonably possible that [the alleged victim’s] account was not correct, such that there was a reasonable doubt as to the applicant’s MAY 2020 INSIDE THE VATICAN 11

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ACQUITTED! ONE YEAR AGO: Australian Cardinal George Pell arrives at the County Court in Melbourne February 27, 2019. Cardinal Pell was jailed after being found guilty of child sexual abuse; the Vatican announced his case would be investigated by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Now that Pell has been acquitted, it is unclear whether a Vatican investigation will still take place (CNS photo/Daniel Pockett, AAP images via Reuters)

guilt,” the unanimous High Court wrote.

Or, as Fr. Raymond de Souza explained in the National Catholic Register, “Which is to say, in plain English, that the Court of Appeal did not bother to ask whether the evidence was sufficient for conviction. ‘It failed to engage’ the critical question: Did the mountain of evidence against the sole, uncorroborated account of the alleged victim require an acquittal on the grounds of reasonable doubt?”

As Cardinal Pell’s longtime defender, writer George Weigel, pointed out: “Pell vs. The Queen was also prosecuted in a way that raised grave doubts about the commitment of the Victoria authorities to such elementary tenets of Anglosphere criminal law as the presumption of innocence and the duty of the state to prove its case ‘beyond a reasonable doubt.’ In this regard, Justice Weinberg, the dissenting judge in last summer’s appellate case, made a crucial jurisprudential point while eviscerating his colleagues’ decision to uphold Cardinal Pell’s conviction in August 12 INSIDE THE VATICAN MAY 2020

2019: By making the complainant’s credibility the crux of the matter, both the prosecution and Weinberg’s colleagues on the appellate panel rendered it impossible for any defense to be mounted.

“Under this credibility criterion, no evidence of an actual crime was required, nor was any corroboration of the charges; what counted was that the complainant seemed sincere. But this was not serious judicial reasoning according to centuries of the common law tradition.

It was an exercise in sentiment, even sentimentality, and it had no business being the decisive factor in convicting a man of a vile crime and depriving him of his reputation and his freedom.”

The Vatican’s official reaction to Pell’s acquittal was measured: “The Holy See, which has always expressed confidence in the Australian judicial authority,” its Press Office said in an April 7 statement, “welcomes the High Court’s unanimous decision concerning Cardinal George Pell, acquitting him of the accusations of abuse of minors and overturning his sentence.”

“Entrusting his case to the court’s justice,” it continued, “Cardinal Pell has always maintained his innocence, and has waited for the truth to be ascertained.

“At the same time,” it underscored, “the Holy See reaffirms its commitment to preventing and pursuing all cases of abuse against minors.”

That same day, the Holy Father prayed in his daily Mass intentions “for all those persons who suffer an unjust sentence because of persecution.”

It is unclear at this time whether the Vatican’s own canonical proceedings investigating the accusations against Cardinal Pell, which were on hold pending the outcome of civil proceedings, will still go forward.

Cardinal Pell, certainly numbered among those the Pope was praying for at Mass, said in a statement that he “holds no ill will” for his accuser.

“The only basis for long term healing is truth and the only basis for justice is truth, because justice means truth for all,” he said.m

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NEWS VATICAN

ZEN NOT BACKING DOWN Hong Kong’s archbishop emeritus (photo) battles Vatican over accord

n BY CHRISTINA DEARDURFF

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On March 1, Cardinal Zen s the situation for Catholics persecution on the mainland, but in China continues to deteri- also his willingness to engage the responded by asking that Re “show me the text of the agreement, which orate in the wake of a Sep- power structures at the Vatican.

After telling CNA in a February I have been barred from seeing up to tember 22, 2018 Vatican-China accord, Cardinal Joseph Zen, arch- 11 interview that “the situation is this point” and explain “why it was bishop emeritus of Hong Kong, con- very bad” in China, and criticizing not signed at that time.” tinues to sound the alarm for anyone Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican Then on March 10, Cardinal Zen willing to listen — but Vatican offi- Secretary of State, who engineered issued a “Supplement to My the accord, another cardinal, Gio- Answer to Cardinal G.B. Re,” in cials are turning a deaf ear.

As the first anniversary of the vanni Battista Re, recently- which he said, “The most serious accord signed by the Vatican and the appointed Dean of the College of problem is not the secret Agreement Communist Chinese government Cardinals, sent all the members of of September 2018... The Pastoral approached last fall, Cardinal Zen the College a February 26 letter in Guidance of 28 June [2019] is more sent a letter to all his brother cardi- which he took Cardinal Zen to task. blatantly evil, immoral, because it nals on September 17, 2019, reiterRe claimed that the accord, thus far legitimizes a schismatic Church! ating his objections.

“There is much confusion and secret, is consistent with a draft The agreement included Vatican approved by Pope Benedict XVI of the contradiction in that document. recognition of seven state-appointed agreement signed ultimately in 2018. “(a) Here and elsewhere, bishops, as well as a plan for Parolin has repeatedly future bishops to be chosen by affirmed that the word ‘indeChinese Goal: local Catholic communities pendent’ should today no more together with authorities, and be understood as ‘absolutely To “Sever Ties” Between then approved by the Pope. independent,’ because in the Chinese Catholics And Rome Agreement the Pope is recogThe Vatican also issued A priest from the Diocese of Mindong told Bitnized as the Head of the “Pastoral Guidance” in 2019 Catholic Church (I cannot for Catholic clergy being pres- ter Winter that the central government is conbelieve this, until they show me sured to join the government- ducting a systematic campaign against Catholic conscientious objectors.

According to him, the the Chinese text of the agreerun Chinese Patriotic Catholic ment).

Association (CPCA), which first step is to summon all Catholic clergy mem“Then, if we take the words calls itself “independent.” In bers for talks, indoctrination, and transformation, of Parolin, he should see nothan effort to relieve any crisis of forcing them to sign applications to join the conscience, the guidelines pro- CPCA. ing wrong in signing a docuTaking the hierarchy of the Catholic Church as vide for a declaration in writment where you promise to ing, or at least orally, denying a model, the CCP will then establish a similar sysjoin an independent Church. any repudiation of one’s tem of management: congregation members – “(b) but contradicting himpriests – bishops – the leadership of the Bishops’ Catholic faith or identity. self he sees something wrong in doing so, and so he says: Despite the guidelines, Conference – CPCA – the Central Committee of you must, at the same time, many refuse to join, even at the CCP (Chinese Communist Party).

“Gradually, the regime will be able to commake some protest (written or the peril of their personal pletely sever the ties of the Catholic churches in well-being. verbal, with or without a witThis is the situation into China from their counterparts overseas, Vatican ness!?). which Cardinal Zen has and the Pope in particular,” the priest said. (Bit“How do you reconcile the entered, with not only his terWinter.org is a website devoted to religious signing of a document and the unique experience with exiles freedom and human rights in China). protesting that you don’t mean —Ye Ling (BitterWinter.org) in his flock who fled religious what you sign?”m INSIDE THE VATICAN MAY 2020

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Pope Francis looks out the window of the papal library in the Apostolic Palace onto an empty St. Peter's Square on April 13, 2020, Easter Monday, after reciting the Regina Coeli prayer via livestream.

(CNS photo/Vatican Media)

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he Catholic Church during her 2,000 years of history has seen every conceivable human event, from the glorious to the tragic. We can take comfort in this fact, as the entire world faces a pandemic caused by the Novel Coronavirus of 2019 — novel for us in our lifetimes, for many reasons beyond the newness of the virus itself — and yet, an experience of fear, isolation, even illness and death, that is as old as humanity itself.

The face of COVID 19 itself keeps changing: opinions about its infection and mortality rates, methods of transmission and how to retard them, social restraints 14 INSIDE THE VATICAN MAY 2020

and their true effectiveness, even protocols for treatment as medical professionals gain more experience — these are all evolving almost by the day.

Yet the Church, as Mater and Magistra, continues to care for her children in every way possible, adapting, as is part of her genius, to every circumstance of life.

Some might occasionally add, “clumsily,” but that is because she has a human element.

Still, the Church, being in the world but not of the world, continues to attend to “the one thing necessary”: our life in Christ.

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St. Corona, by the Master of Palazzo Venezia.

Bottom, The Barque of Peter, mosaic in St. Peter’s Basilica from a painting by Giovanni Lanfranco

St. Corona, pray for us T

he pandemic caused by the coronavirus has boosted interest in St. Corona, who is widely venerated as the saint to turn to in times of pestilence and violent storms in northern Italy, Austria and southern Germany, where St. Corona churches and chapels abound and there are several St. Corona pilgrimages.

St. Corona was a 16-year-old Christian who was martyred for her faith in Syria in the second century. It is told that she stood up publicly for a Roman soldier who was being tortured because he had converted to Christianity. She was tied to two palm trunks that had been bent to the ground and when they whipped back up her body was torn to pieces. Her feast day is May 14.

St. Corona’s main relics are in the Basilica of Sts. Victor and Corona in Feltre, a hill town in the province of Belluno in the Veneto region in northern Italy, one of the first regions to be cordoned off due to the coronavirus pandemic.

St. Corona is the patron saint of Belluno-Feltre.

The Holy Roman Emperor Otto III (996-1002) took her relics to Aachen in 997, where they were kept in a lead coffin close to the altar. In 1910, the coffin was replaced by a golden reliquary and moved to the cathedral treasury.

The reliquary has now been brought out of the treasury to be cleaned so that it can be exhibited. The relics are in a special sealed and tamper-proof container in the shrine. Christa Pongratz-Lippitt

The Lord Is With Us In This Storm

mani – usually housed in the Basilica of St. Mary Major – and the miraculous crucifix kept in the Church of San Marcello on the city’s Via del Corso.

Most importantly, the Pope exposed the Blessed Sacrament for adoration and imparted his Apostolic Blessing, offering everyone the opportunity to receive a plenary indulgence.

The Apostolic Penitentiary loosened the usual requirements to go to confession and receive the Eucharist, due to impossibility for people who are on lockdowns and quarantines.

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ope Francis imparted a special Urbi et Orbi (“To the city and the world”) blessing to all of humanity on Friday, March 27, from the steps of St. Peter’s Basilica.

Usually reserved for Christmas Day and Easter Sunday, this extraordinary blessing was given in keeping with the gravity of the current global situation caused by the spread of COVID-19.

Standing in a deserted St. Peter’s Square with a steady rain falling, the Pope prayed for the world at this critical juncture in the presence of two ancient images: the icon of Mary Salus Populi Ro-

PUBLIC MASS RESUMES IN FIRST US DIOCESE “We are overlooking those who are dead interiorly”

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he bishop of Las Cruces, New Mexico, became the first U.S. bishop known to have lifted a diocesan ban on the public celebration of Mass and sacramental ministry as long as priests follow state-ordered health precautions.

“In the events of these days and weeks the Lord is calling us out of our comfort zone, he is calling us to seek new ways to reach the people. In addition to this mission with which we are entrusted, we also have the mission to keep people safe. The two must be equally pursued,” Bishop Peter Baldacchino said in an April 15 letter.

Baldacchino said he disagreed with New Mexico’s recent ex-

cluding of churches as “essential services.”

“It seems to me that while we run a daily count of the physical deaths we are overlooking those who are dead interiorly,” he said.

Guidelines limit Mass in church buildings to 5 people, including the celebrant, with six feet between worshippers and all seating sanitized after Mass ends.

Baldacchino also authorized priests to celebrate Mass outdoors, recommending setting up an altar in the parish parking lot with parishioners remaining in their cars, and using face masks, gloves and hand sanitizer for Communion distribution.

Ed Condon (CNA) MAY 2020 INSIDE THE VATICAN 15

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Tending to the Soul First, Then the Body THE SACRAMENTS IN A TIME OF CRISIS: A CANON LAWYER CRITIQUES CURRENT PROHIBITIONS

n BY PHILIP C.L. GRAY, JCL

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aith is a free gift from God (Eph. 2:8; Catechism, Art. 153). But like any gift, if we do not use the Faith we are given, it simply collects dust on a shelf in our soul. If we use it, then we seek the Truth and respond to that Truth with generous acts of Love. So, here’s the first principle I think is important to understand: People of Faith will understand spiritual matters; people who have the gift but leave it unused will not. That’s a harsh reality, but Jesus Himself pointed this out to Peter and the apostles (our first bishops) several times (“Get behind me, Satan”). Let us strive to be people who see through the eyes of Faith what God wants for us.

HE WANTS OUR SPIRITUAL HEALTH Although God’s original plan was for human beings to be healthy and our bodies functioning according to His design, it is clear from Sacred Scripture that fear, bodily illness, and death arose from sin.

In James 5:14-16, we find the scriptural reference for anointing of the sick.

It is clear in this passage that sickness is connected to sin, and the first remedy for sickness is to heal the soul; the second remedy is for the body. It is only after prayers have been prayed and the soul attended to, that you call the physician.

This is also explained in Sirach 38:9-12: My son, when you are sick do not be negligent, but pray to the Lord, and he will heal you. Give up your faults and direct your hands aright, and cleanse your heart from all sin. Offer a sweet-smelling sacrifice, and a memorial portion of fine flour, and pour oil on your offering, as much as you can afford. And give the physician his place, for the Lord created him; let him not leave you, for there is need of him.

16 INSIDE THE VATICAN MAY 2020

Christ Heals the Sick, a woodcut from a Bible illustrated by Gustave Dorè

When Jesus healed, He sometimes would use the words, “Your sins are forgiven you….” (Mt. 9:25; Mk 2:2-5; Lk 5:20-23). He healed the soul; He healed the body.

But sometimes He let sickness kill the body first, and His raising of the body — like Lazarus’ — became a cause of glorifying God. More importantly, Jesus accepted suffering and death as a remedy for sin and death.

He transformed the experience into a redemptive power; but He did not take it away.

SUFFERING REDEMPTIVE IF WE UNITE IT TO CHRIST Humans have both a soul and a body; both must be cared for. But, a temporal effect of sin is that the body will suffer and die.

However, the soul does not have to suffer and die. In fact, the grace of salvation is aimed first at saving the soul so when it is finally reunited with the body, it will happen in heaven. Thus, the Scripture passages above about tending to the soul first, then the body.

A significant principle of the Moral Law is that curses are to be restricted and blessings multiplied. Because of this principle, the Church supplies necessary faculties to priests so the sacraments can be administered in danger of death.

Note that this does not mean “at the point of death”; “danger of death” refers to a change of circumstances in which the possibility of death has become a legitimate concern. Undoubtedly, plagues and pandemics can and do create a danger of death for the general population.

So important is this principle to the Church’s mission of salvation, that priests who are in bad moral situations, laicized, or even outside the Church are still given these faculties to absolve and anoint so the souls of the faithful may be cared for.

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A third principle key to this discussion is not so much a principle but a Divine Law Right. Because of Baptism, the faithful have a right to the sacraments. They are not to be denied if the person asking is suitably disposed and they ask at proper times (Canons 213, 843§1), and thus those who can provide the sacraments have an obligation to provide them.

My Opinion If we logically apply the disciplines of the Church as they relate to the Sacred Scriptures and Church doctrines, then I cannot fathom how any bishop or priest could legitimately refuse to hear a confession or anoint a sick person, even with COVID-19. The Church in fact expands the faculties to provide these sacraments in danger of death. The law itself identifies situations like COVID-19 as “suitable times” for asking for the sacrament, because there is a danger of death.

While it is true a bishop may use his power to restrict faculties or demand a suspension of public Masses, I also believe that such acts are contrary to his role as a bishop.

A bishop should recognize that each parish has unique differences and needs, even during the COVID-19 crisis. He should be collaborating with all his pastors, to provide guidelines and give them broad discretion in determining whether and when public Masses should be celebrated, and what that will look like.

And, he should be encouraging them to hear confessions, confirm those not confirmed, and anoint those in need. In fact, the Church teaches that to confirm someone who has not been confirmed before anointing them will enliven and increase the graces of the anointing (Catechism 1302-1305).

If a bishop were to order his priests not to anoint or hear confessions during this COVID-19 crisis, it would be an illegitimate use of his power as a bishop. Because the Church, based on Divine Law, supplies the faculties for any man validly ordained to confer sacraments in these circumstances, such a directive would also lack any force. In my mind, the suspension of confession and anointing during a medical crisis is opposed to the very purpose of those sacraments.

If a bishop were to order the suspension of all public celebrations of the Mass, as most have done in the U.S., I believe such an order would be a valid act — but a wrong use of authority. Each pastor should have the flexibility to make that decision based on the specific circumstances of his parish and the needs of his parishioners.

What should priests do? This will be difficult for some and easier for others.

Each priest must prayerfully consider his vocation before God and the obligations he accepted to the Church, the faithful and his bishop. He should not take lightly any directive from the bishop, and should approach his bishop

with any concerns. He should also discuss these concerns with brother priests. They are a presbyterate, and they should learn to discuss concerns that involve their obligations to the faithful. If a particular priest still cannot find solutions to his dilemmas, he must trust the primacy of conscience and act accordingly.

As for the Catholic faithful, participation in the Mass is an ordinary means of salvation. The Mass is Jesus making Himself available to His people. Removing a significant source of hope and consolation during such an isolating time will have a significantly damaging effect on the spiritual lives of the faithful. In many cases, it will be more damaging to the soul than the coronavirus would be to the body.

To conclude, I am happy to defend any priest who suffers disciplinary action from his bishop for celebrating public Mass, hearing confessions, confirming those in danger of death, or anointing the sick during this crisis. Throughout the Gospels, Jesus walked among those with fevers and those with leprosy, making Himself present to all.

Let us walk with Him, and with the saints who gave their lives, in imitation of their Master, in care of the sick and suffering.m

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La Crosse, Wisconsin Wisconsin

MAY 2020 INSIDE THE VATICAN 17

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The Virus Between Faith and Medicine

REFLECTIONS BY A MEMBER OF THE AMERICAN CATHOLIC MEDICAL ASSOCIATION, PART ONE

n BY THOMAS W. MCGOVERN, M.D.

“INSPIRING PHYSICIANS TO IMITATE JESUS CHRIST” — CMA VISION STATEMENT “There are many patients dying in the hospital today... There are no visitors allowed.

Limited visitation when death is imminent… It is a brutal human tragedy. When we get through with this, I am haunted with the fear that we may be less human rather than more human. Pray for His Mercy and consolation.” —Text message from a CMA doctor caring for ICU COVID-19 patients

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fter more than 25 interviews with health care professionals around the world for the Doctor, Doctor podcast and EWTN radio program, and through my own medical practice, I have gained a multi-faceted view of the COVID-19 pandemic. My guests have included Catholic physicians from many different specialties, an economist, an epidemiologist, an aerospace engineer, and a Harvard MBA student.

After a brief introduction to the virus and the disease it causes, I’ll show you how Catholic physicians and other professionals are putting the four pillars of Catholic social teaching into action during this pandemic.

THE VIRUS To the novel coronavirus (SARSCoV-2) responsible for COVID-19, the earth is one planet without boundaries.

While other coronaviruses are the second most likely cause of the common cold, this new virus causes much more severe disease. SARS-CoV-2 attaches to receptors deep in the lungs where it can cause life-threatening pneumonia and respiratory distress.

Fortunately, fatality rates are extremely low in children, and one theory is that the receptors in children are not as “sticky” as in adults.

Additionally, and thankfully, the new virus mutates much more slowly than the influenza virus.

18 INSIDE THE VATICAN MAY 2020

Therefore, future vaccines are unlikely to need annual reformulations like the influenza vaccine. Early in the pandemic, many were lulled into a false sense of security by comparisons of COVID-19 with influenza.

But COVID is clearly more serious than influenza.

are (1) respect for human life; (2) the common good; (3) subsidiarity; and (4) solidarity.

The Christian physician has a special calling—different from the secular world—in that he or she sees the human person as an invaluable creation of God whose individual

*The CFR for COVID-19 will not be accurately known until the vast majority of resulting deaths have occurred, and there is a good estimate of the number of people infected, including with no symptoms (through population studies of blood antibodies). ** The mathematical model overestimates influenza deaths and current data may underestimate the CFR for COVID-19. The numbers of deaths due to the two diseases are not comparable since they are determined by different methods.

CATHOLIC SOCIAL TEACHING Catholic Social Teaching (CST) posits that society exists for the good of the person; the person does not exist for the good of society, and therefore the four pillars of CST should guide healthcare professionals during a pandemic. These pillars

worth should never be sacrificed— even in the midst of a pandemic.

Therefore, Catholic physicians have an obligation in times of crisis to lead in upholding human dignity and safeguarding public health. Our belief in evidence-based clinical care and public health measures should be

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A booklet by Children of God for Life aimed at combatting the use of unborn babies in medical research

translated through the lens of Catholic medical ethics and social teaching. Following are reflections on what I have learned in this pandemic as they apply to each of those four pillars.

1. RESPECT FOR THE DIGNITY OF THE HUMAN PERSON

The inalienable dignity of each human life, made in the image and likeness of God (CCC 369), is the overarching principle of all care for the sick, in time of crisis or not. No choice should be made that sacrifices the innate dignity of the individual, even when questions about scarce resources arise.

Many health care professionals of all faiths — and no faith — around the world have literally given their lives for their patients. “No greater love has a man than to lay down his life for his friend.” A page on medscape.com tracks health care workers who contracted COVID-19 while caring for patients — and then died from it: over 300 by Holy Saturday.

Hospitals have set strict visitation policies to protect patients and staff, but in many cases, these policies ignore the need to provide sacraments to patients desiring them. Usually, this is not due to religious animus, but rather simple oversight in the rush to provide physical protection of staff and patients.

When some CMA physicians have brought this to the attention of their hospitals, administrators have accepted help to develop protocols that mitigate risk while providing the sacraments. Young, healthy priests have stepped into the breach, donning personal protective equipment and safely administering sacraments.

2. THE COMMON GOOD “The common good comprises the sum total of social conditions which allow people, either as groups or as individuals, to reach their fulfillment more fully and more easily” (CCC 1906). This does not mean “doing the

Some vaccine developers are using aborted fetal cell lines though there are safer, effective options

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he organization Children of God for Life has exposed the fact that Moderna Therapeutics, which is working to develop a new vaccine to combat COVID-19, uses HEK 293 aborted fetal cell lines. Now Janssen Pharmaceutical, owned by Johnson and Johnson, is using their PER C6 Ad5 technology, derived from an aborted baby’s retinal tissue, for this purpose. There moral problems with using aborted fetal cells, but the PER C6 Ad5 technology also has safety concerns raised with the FDA. Another pharmaceutical company, Sanofi Pasteur, is using the morallyproduced Sf9 platform for their newly developing COVID-19 vaccine; the Sf9 cell line comes from fall armyworms and is highly effective as a rapid growth medium.

“This is great news for millions of people world-wide who are concerned with the use of aborted fetal material in life-saving treatments or vaccines,” stated Debi Vinnedge, Executive Director of Children of God for Life. “There are many moral options that are safer and quite frankly, utilize a more modern technology.”

—ITV Staff

most good for the largest number of people.” It does mean that each member of society is called to work cooperatively to attain the good of others as if their good were his own.

Another aspect of the common good we’ve noted is the life-affirming irony that many government leaders who are fighting for the health of COVID patients are the same ones who fight for the “right” to physician-assisted suicide (PAS) or euthanasia. Yet, those most vulnerable to COVID-19 are also those most vulnerable to be targeted for PAS or euthanasia.

This reveals that most people do harbor a life-affirming instinct that serves the common good, and we hope that this pandemic awakens that instinct in many.

The common good requires that each man have the opportunity to have his spiritual needs met.

Arguments are currently polarized about the availability of sacraments during government social distancing rules and limitations on public gatherings, but I have found the wisdom of the Church to typically be a “both/and,” not an “either/or.” Christ is both God and man; grace saves us through both faith and works; and there may be ways to ensure safe practices and still provide sacraments to the faithful.

Part two of Dr. McGovern’s reflections will appear in our JuneJuly issue.

Thomas W. McGovern, MD is a Fort Wayne, Indiana Mohs Surgeon who serves on the national board of the CMA and co-hosts Doctor, Doctor, the official podcast and radio program of the CMA. Doctor, Doctor is found on many podcast platforms and on EWTN radio and Sirius XM 130 at 11 a.m. ET on Saturdays. More than 25 COVID-related shows are available.m MAY 2020 INSIDE THE VATICAN 19

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ROME — Coronavirus Diary

ONE CITIZEN OF ROME TELLS HOW THE PANDEMIC HAS CHANGED THE ETERNAL CITY, AND, PERHAPS, THE CHURCH

n BY GIUSEPPE RUSCONI

Grzegorz Galazka photo

I

t’s something with which no one was acquainted. Or perhaps, for the elderly, it was an echo of the sad times of the Second World War. For everyone here in Italy — in Rome, in any case — an upheaval of the quiet (because predictable) swing of everyday life.

Nobody had foreseen it, except perhaps some writer of science fiction thrillers. The coronavirus has landed in our lives and forced us — along with our government — to profoundly change the way we live. For the psyche of the Romans, who at first had taken the coronavirus a little lightly (and mocked it in countless cartoons), the turning point occurred when (due to the power of images) TVs showed the rows of military trucks transporting the overflow of coffins from Bergamo to other parts of northern Italy, to cremate the bod20 INSIDE THE VATICAN MAY 2020

ies of elderly people cut down by the disease. At that moment, in Romans, jocularity became fear — and fear of contagion prevailed over accustomed, free behavior.

There is very little traffic on the streets now; the buses carry two or three people at most. On abandoned squares -— like in Piazza Navona — grass begins to sprout among the cobblestones for the first time. Towards St. Peter’s or the Colosseum, it is impossible not to notice the disappearance of tourist groups and students.

Most of the shops have been closed for a month, and production is partially blocked. One fears that the start of the recovery (whenever it happens) will be long and tormented: the economic situation is very grave.

Around Piazza Bologna, in a bourgeois neighborhood not far from Porta Pia, you can see the queues, long,

yes, because everyone is spaced at least one meter away from the other.

When you go to the supermarket, you must enter one at a time. In the early morning or late afternoon, bipeds appear, walking at a brisk pace with quadrupeds on leashes, or jogging.

Most passers-by wear protective masks: some look like astronauts or Martians, others liven up their masks with decoration. With this beautiful spring, we begin to see bare shoulders and bellies again… .but sometimes only the eyes are visible in the faces!

Greetings are reduced to a “hello” suffocated by the masks, the hands covered with gloves, handshakes and hugs abolished. It is not possible to meet and chat in threes, since it is considered a “gathering” which must be dissolved.

The bags of food hung along the streets have also entered the land-

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scape and are available to those who now experience great difficulty in regularly feeding their families. Solidarity with the needy is not lacking in any part of Italy.

From all television screens, radios and newspapers is repeated almost obsessively: “Stay at home.” And a large majority at the moment — though the first signs of restlessness are showing — still manages to follow the invitation/threat. This has created a sort of psychosis that transforms some into a sort of “guard” with the finger pointed at those who go down the street without a mask (though not mandatory), whether walking their dog, jogging, or taking a child for a walk. These “guards” especially love to scold the unfortunate.

And sometimes they turn into police informers if they just glimpse three or four faithful who are wandering around the churches.

The noises and lights of the city have also changed. The cheerful and confused hubbub characteristic of Rome, the cappuccinos at the bar, the evenings at the cinema, or the theater, or the restaurants — all gone. It is true that we are spared the horns of impatient motorists and the quarrels over double-parked cars. But in their place are the sirens of ambulances and flashing lights of the police, placed to monitor compliance with the restrictive rules decreed by the government.

Starting from the early closing of the shops, around seven in the evening, Rome falls into a curfew silence, unprecedented except in wartime. Here ... the incredible silence of Rome.

THE ITALIAN CHURCH AND ELECTRONIC CHRISTIANITY We live as prisoners, under a sort of “house arrest” — how long, we don’t know. Many fundamental freedoms have been taken away from us: that of movement, of aggregation, of seeing our loved ones if they do not live with us, and of community expression of our faith through the rite of the Holy Mass in churches.

The government’s regulations about church attendance, many suspect, are unconstitutional, but the Italian Bishops’ Conference has suffered them passively. Public Masses have been prohibited, and, subsequently, churches closed in Trent and, for one night, in the diocese of Rome (here the Pope changed his opinion in a few hours, in the face of strong protests, and decided — through the Cardinal Vicar De Donatis — to reopen the parish churches). The interpretation of government regulations on the right to pray individually in churches is uncertain: in several places in Italy, access to the sacred places has been blocked.

Then on March 27 came a notice, bizarre to say the least (and in any case offensive to Catholics), from the Ministry of the Interior, stating that churches could remain open, but the faithful could only enter them to pray (with security measures) if the building was already on their way to the grocery store or the tobacconist’s!

The right to pray in church that is worth less than buying a pack of cigarettes ...

Though acquiescent to a government it considers a friend, the Italian Church has shown its own vitality through many of its parish priests, who now broadcast via the internet the H oly Masses celebrated in church — or even on parish terraces, amplified by speakers. Some priests went out on the streets alone to bless the city, even with the crucifix (and some were also fined). The Episcopal Conference organized television rosaries which attracted large audiences: for example, over four million gathered in front of the screen for the rosary from the Brescia sanctuary of the Madonna delle Grazie.

The aid given by the Italian Episcopal Conference (CEI) for the needs of families in daily struggle now to eat is substantial. Two hundred million euros (one fifth of the entire annual income of the nation’s clergy-

men) were donated to the dioceses; over 22 million euros had already been allocated for urgent interventions, while various charities have helped the needy with about 285 million euros.

And in the Vatican, one wonders, how are conditions? The virus knows no borders: as of this writing, there were eight infected persons (two or three of them prelates). The Pope himself eats in his apartment and celebrates the morning Mass (broadcast on TV) in the chapel of his residence without the usual faithful. The general audiences, as well as the Angelus, are broadcast, with the Pope accompanied by few people.

For those in need, the Pope has donated tens of millions. The pontifical almsgiver, Polish Cardinal Krajewski, works ceaselessly to help the poor materially and now — at the behest of Francis, perhaps inspired by the bishop of Bergamo who asked his priests to donate three months’ salary for a solidarity fund for coronavirus victims — he also has beaten cash out of his cardinal confreres and the other members of the papal household for pontifical charity.

The faith of many is shaken, as always happens in great tragedies.

Why? The official Church has apparently adjusted without too much trouble to the ban on Masses coram populo and their replacement with video streaming. The faithful are invited to pray at home, to internalize one’s relationship with God (without the mediation of the Church, as represented by the priests) ... all this risks having profound consequences. More than one might ask: But is it really so necessary to go to Mass, considering how this apparently did not seem a priority to the Italian Bishops’ Conference?

But “immaterial Christianity” is not Christianity, because Christianity is embodied in physical reality. When the recovery starts, will the failures of such a compliant attitude towards the “virtual” be seen? We hope not; we fear so.m MAY 2020 INSIDE THE VATICAN 21

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A LONELY PRAYER

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On Friday, March 27, at 6 p.m. in a light rain, Pope Francis presided over “An Extraordinary Moment of Prayer in a Time of Epidemic.” The event was live-streamed worldwide. There was no one else present in St. Peter’s Square due to restrictions on people gathering while the coronavirus is spreading.

“

hen evening had come” (Mk 4:35). The Gospel passage we have just heard begins like this. For weeks now it has been evening. Thick darkness has gathered over our squares, our streets and our cities; it has taken over our lives, filling everything with a deafening silence and a distressing void, that stops everything as it passes by; we feel it in the air, we notice in people’s gestures, their glances give them away. We find ourselves afraid and lost. Like the disciples in the Gospel we were caught off guard by an unexpected, turbulent storm. We have realized that we are on the same boat, all of us fragile and disoriented, but at the same time important and needed, all of us called to row together, each of us in need of comforting the other. On this boat… are all of us. Just like those disciples, who spoke anxiously with one voice, saying “We are perishing” (v. 38), so we too have realized that we cannot go on thinking of ourselves, but only together can

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IN TIME OF PANDEMIC THE ATRIUM OF ST. PETER’S BASILICA FRIDAY, MARCH 27, 2020

Pope Francis prays in the atrium of St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican, March 27, 2020. The Pope led a prayer service for the world suffering from the coronavirus pandemic, and gave his blessing “urbi et orbi” (to the city and the world). The service was live-streamed because of COVID-19 quarantines. (CNS photo/Yara Nardi, pool via Reuters) MAY 2020 INSIDE THE VATICAN 23

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PHOTO ESSAY A LONELY PRAYER IN TIME OF PANDEMIC we do this. (Continued next page) It is easy to recognize ourselves in this story.

What is harder to understand is Jesus’ attitude.

While his disciples are quite naturally alarmed and desperate, he stands in the stern, in the part of the boat that sinks first. And what does he do? In spite of the tempest, he sleeps on soundly, trusting in the Father; this is the only time in the Gospels we see Jesus sleeping. When he wakes up, after calming the wind and the waters, he turns to the disciples in a reproaching voice: “Why are you afraid? Have you no faith?” (v. 40).

Let us try to understand. In what does the lack of the disciples’ faith consist, as contrasted with Jesus’ trust? They had not stopped believing in him; in fact, they called on him. But we see how they call on him: “Teacher, do you not care if we perish?” (v. 38). Do you not care: they think that Jesus is not interested in them, does not care about them. One of the things that hurts us and our families most when we hear it said is: “Do you not care about me?”

It is a phrase that wounds and unleashes storms in our hearts. It would have shaken Jesus too.

Because he, more than anyone, cares about us.

Indeed, once they have called on him, he saves his disciples from their discouragement.

The storm exposes our vulnerability and uncovers those false and superfluous certainties around which we have constructed our daily schedules, our projects, our habits and priorities. It shows us how we have allowed to become dull and feeble the very things that nourish, sustain and strengthen our lives and our communities. The tempest lays bare all our prepackaged ideas and forgetfulness of what nourishes our people’s souls; all those attempts that anesthetize us with ways of thinking and acting that supposedly “save” us, but instead prove incapable of putting us in touch with our roots and keeping alive the memory of those who have gone before us. We deprive ourselves of the antibodies we need to confront adversity.

In this storm, the façade of those stereotypes with which we camouflaged our egos, always worrying about our image, has fallen away, uncovering once more that (blessed) common belonging, of which we cannot be deprived: our belonging as brothers and sisters.

“Why are you afraid? Have you no faith?”

Lord, your word this evening strikes us and regards us, all of us. In this world, that you love 24 INSIDE THE VATICAN MAY 2020

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Pope Francis arrives for a prayer service in an empty St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)

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26 INSIDE THE VATICAN MAY 2020

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March 27, 2020: An extraordinary moment of prayer presided over by Pope Francis on the entrance to St. Peter’s Basilica to invoke the end of the pandemic. Left, Pope Francis kisses the miraculous crucifix which in 1522 was carried in procession through the streets of Rome to pray for the end of the plague. Below, Francis pays homage to the image of the Virgin Mary Salus Populi Romani. (Vatican/Pool/Galazka)

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more than we do, we have gone ahead at breakneck speed, feeling powerful and able to do anything.

Greedy for profit, we let ourselves get caught up in things, and lured away by haste. We did not stop at your reproach to us, we were not shaken awake by wars or injustice across the world, nor did we listen to the cry of the poor or of our ailing planet. We carried on regardless, thinking we would stay healthy in a world that was sick. Now that we are in a stormy sea, we implore you: “Wake up, Lord!”

“Why are you afraid? Have you no faith?” Lord, you are calling to us, calling us to faith. Which is not so much believing that you exist, but coming to you and trusting in you. This Lent your call reverberates urgently: “Be converted!”, “Return to me with all your heart” (Joel 2:12). You are calling on us to seize this time of trial as a time of choosing. It is not the time of your judgment, but of our judgment: a time to choose what matters and what passes away, a time to separate what is necessary from what is not. It is a time to get our lives back on track with regard to you, Lord, and to others. We can look to so many exemplary companions for the journey, who, even though fearful, have reacted by giving their lives. This is the force of the Spirit poured out and fashioned in courageous and generous self-denial. It is the life in the Spirit that can redeem, value and demonstrate how our lives are woven together and sustained by ordinary people – often 28 INSIDE THE VATICAN MAY 2020

forgotten people – who do not appear in newspaper and magazine headlines nor on the grand catwalks of the latest show, but who without any doubt are in these very days writing the decisive events of our time: doctors, nurses, supermarket employees, cleaners, caregivers, providers of transport, law and order forces, volunteers, priests, religious men and women and so very many others who have understood that no one reaches salvation by themselves. In the face of so much suffering, where the authentic development of our peoples is assessed, we experience the priestly prayer of Jesus: “That they may all be one” (Jn 17:21). How many people every day are exercising patience and offering hope, taking care to sow not panic but a shared responsibility. How many fathers, mothers, grandparents and teachers are showing our children, in small everyday gestures, how to face up to and navigate a crisis by adjusting their routines, lifting their gaze and fostering prayer. How many are praying, offering and interceding for the good of all. Prayer and quiet service: these are our victorious weapons.

“Why are you afraid? Have you no faith?” Faith begins when we realize we are in need of salvation. We are not self-sufficient; by ourselves we founder: we need the Lord, like ancient navigators needed the stars.

Let us invite Jesus into the boats of our lives. Let us hand over our fears to him so that he can conquer them.

Like the disciples, we will experience that with him on

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Benediction in an empty St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican, March 27, 2020 (Photo Galazka)

board there will be no shipwreck. Because this is God’s strength: turning to the good everything that happens to us, even the bad things. He brings serenity into our storms, because with God life never dies.

The Lord asks us and, in the midst of our tempest, invites us to reawaken and put into practice that solidarity and hope capable of giving strength, support and meaning to these hours when everything seems to be floundering. The Lord awakens so as to reawaken and revive our Easter faith. We have an anchor: by his cross we have been saved. We have a rudder: by his cross we have been redeemed. We have a hope: by his cross we have been healed and embraced so that nothing and no one can separate us from his redeeming love. In the midst of isolation when we are suffering from a lack of tenderness and chances to meet up, and we experience the loss of so many things, let us once again listen to the proclamation that saves us: he is risen and is living by our side.

The Lord asks us from his cross to rediscover the life that awaits us, to look towards those who look to us, to strengthen, recognize and foster the grace that lives within us.

Let us not quench the wavering flame (cf. Is 42:3) that never falters, and let us allow hope to be rekindled.

Embracing his cross means finding the courage to embrace all the hardships of the present time, abandoning for a moment our eagerness for power and pos-

sessions in order to make room for the creativity that only the Spirit is capable of inspiring.

It means finding the courage to create spaces where everyone can recognize that they are called, and to allow new forms of hospitality, fraternity and solidarity.

By his cross we have been saved in order to embrace hope and let it strengthen and sustain all measures and all possible avenues for helping us protect ourselves and others. Embracing the Lord in order to embrace hope: that is the strength of faith, which frees us from fear and gives us hope.

“Why are you afraid? Have you no faith?”

Dear brothers and sisters, from this place that tells of Peter’s rock-solid faith, I would like this evening to entrust all of you to the Lord, through the intercession of Mary, Health of the People and Star of the Stormy Sea. From this colonnade that embraces Rome and the whole world, may God’s blessing come down upon you as a consoling embrace.

Lord, may you bless the world, give health to our bodies and comfort our hearts.

You ask us not to be afraid. Yet our faith is weak and we are fearful.

But you, Lord, will not leave us at the mercy of the storm. Tell us again: “Do not be afraid” (Mt 28:5).

And we, together with Peter, “cast all our anxieties onto you, for you care about us” (cf. 1 Pet 5:7).m MAY 2020 INSIDE THE VATICAN 29

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(CNS photo/Vatican Media)

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“MAJESTIC DAY, MAJESTIC HILL”

IN MEMORIAM

n BY WILLIAM DOINO JR.

“Majestic Hill”: William and Ruth Moynihan walking together on Horsebarn Hill in Storrs, Connecticut, in 2016. William was 89 and Ruth was 82.

“When my children were little I used to bring them here to look up at the stars,” Ruth said. Bill said he and his wife had been taking walks around the hill for 40 years. “Winter and summer, rain and shine. It really is a majestic hill.” Ruth passed away on October 1, 2018, at age 85, and Bill on March 28 this year at age 93 (Mark Mirko, Hartford Courant)

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hen news came that William T. Moynihan, father of Robert Moynihan, the founder of this magazine, had died on March 28 at age 93, it hit those who had known him hard, especially his family and longtime friends.

I was among the latter, having first met Bill in 1999, the same year, as it happened, that my own father died suddenly and prematurely.

Although I didn’t realize it at the time, my new friendship with Bill was an unexpected gift, God’s way of sending me an intellectual and spiritual foster father at the very moment I needed one most. It was a role that came naturally to Bill, having already raised seven children with his wonderful wife, Ruth (who went to the Lord two years before Bill, but before that would also become a dear friend).

Much of this had to do with Bill’s bedrock Catholic values, which he learned as a child and which grew stronger as he matured. Born in Haverhill, Massachusetts, in 1926, 32

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to Richard and Harriet Moynihan, Bill, the youngest of four siblings, attended St. James School in Haverhill.

When World War II broke out, Bill eagerly tried to enlist as his brothers had. But he was too young to fight, so he opted instead to explore the religious life, entering St. Joseph’s Seminary in Callicoon, New York, with the idea of becoming a Franciscan friar.

As grateful as he was for this spiritual training—which fortified his soul, preparing him for the vicissitudes of life — Bill still longed to be a soldier. So, after deep consideration, and before taking any vows, he changed course again, joining the U.S. Marine Corps in 1946. After completing his Basic Training on Paris Island—with flying colors— he was assigned to the Marine Headquarters in Washington, DC. There, he quickly rose to an influential position, and learned a great deal about strategy, diplomacy, peace and war.

Bill’s time in the Marines strengthened him in three invaluable

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“He was assigned to report from Meriden, ways: it taught him the importance of perCT, and on a fateful New Year’s Eve of sonal discipline; gave him a deep appre1952, he experienced a life-changing comciation for the rich diversity of American bination of bad luck and extraordinary culture, symbolized by the many solgood fortune. He skidded and crashed his diers he met, from every different backcar in an ice storm on the Merritt Parkway, ground; and made him far more, not then encountered his future wife, the brilless, sensitive to the perils of war. The liant Ruth MacKenzie Barnes of Wallinglatter insight tempered Bill’s early and ford, CT. They were both intensely literate, somewhat romantic ideas about military principled, and passionate, so only a few months life, but aligned well with his Catholic faith later they wed, beginning an extraordinary 65-year and increasing concern for world peace. marriage that lasted until Ruth’s death in 2018.”

“Anyone who thinks most soldiers and their families Desiring a large family, but knowing he would have to are itching to get into a major conflict have got it completely find a more stable job to provide for them, Bill obtained his wrong,” he once told me, reflecting on his time in the PhD in literature from Brown University and was hired as an Marines. “The vast majority of soldiers are among English professor at the University of Connecticut, where he those least likely to want war, precisely because they’ve flourished. Ruth anchored the Moynihans’ growing family at studied or directly experienced it, and know its enormous home, but she too would later obtain a PhD—in American cost.” Moreover, he stressed, during a geopolitical crisis, history—and become a highly-regarded teacher and writer pursuing a just peace—if one can be obtained through conherself. certed diplomacy—“should always be the first option After just six years of teaching at UConn, Bill, esteemed before any kind of military action is considered—and even by his colleagues, was elected chairthen only as a last resort, in strict man of the university’s English accordance with the Church’s just department, which he led for an war criteria.” unprecedented 20 years. During that I’ve never forgotten those sobertime, he wrote textbooks on writing, ing words, and still think about them was awarded a Fulbright Fellowship today whenever I hear voices clamorto teach abroad, wrote an acclaimed ing for military action as a “solution” study on the Welsh poet Dylan to a global conflict, even if it’s likely Thomas, and led many academic to produce worse evils, and long exchanges—“all while leading the before it has become a last resort. department with charm, wit, and the Though he was too humble to steady hand of an ex-Marine,” as admit it, Bill was also a champion of the Courant aptly noted. the faith, rounding up a large number After stepping down as departof Marines in his barracks to attend ment chair, Bill began a second career Sunday Mass. “He was a leader of as a playwright, writing celebrated men,” said fellow Marine James plays involving faith, culture and polO’Connor, who along with the late George C. Scott (who would later win Opposite, Bill and a friend in 1943 in minor seminary at itics, which garnered national praise Callicoon, New York. Above, Bill in his Marine Corps and attention. Everything he touched an Oscar for his lead role in Patton) uniform, Father Kennedy, and, right, Bill’s older brother seemed to turn to gold. was in the Marine Corps with Bill in Bob, who entered the Franciscan Order That remained true after he those years. “The greatest man I have retired. Bill provided expert advice and elegant ever known. He and George used to have debates writing for Inside the Vatican, his son Bob’s magabout the faith, and Bill always won. He was so azine, founded in 1993. Bill’s indispensable assiswell-educated in the faith, no one could best him tance extended to ITV’s crop of new writers, in debate.” including myself.

After his honorable discharge, and with the I can vividly recall my first assignment assistance of the GI bill, Bill attended St. for Inside the Vatican—a forceful response to Bonaventure University, obtaining a degree in John Cornwell’s sensational anti-Pius XII English literature. A talented writer, Bill soon tract, Hitler’s Pope. After I handed in my article became a freelance journalist, and it was then that to Bob, he brought his father in to assess it. Bill his life took an unexpected turn—literally and figtold me it was “excellent, but”—there was uratively. As the Hartford Courant put it, in its always a “but”—it wasn’t sufficient. “Your obituary of Bill: MAY 2020 INSIDE THE VATICAN

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IN MEMORIAM “MAJESTIC DAY, MAJESTIC HILL”

That was classic Bill Moynihan: for him, time was of article powerfully answers Cornwell’s central thesis, but we the essence. It was a precious gift, never to be squandered need more,” he told me. “We need to chronicle the history of on frivolous things. Long before “quality time” became modern anti-Catholicism, and explain how and why such a part of our lexicon, Bill lived it, apart from his work— scurrilous book could have been published in the first place. devoting his quality time to the Mass and sacraments, his Then we have to incorporate the findings of the world’s leadfamily and friends, and helping others, especially by pracing historians on Pius XII, comparing their scholarship with ticing the spiritual and corporal works of mercy with Cornwell’s tract, and pinpoint Cornwell’s most inexcusable Ruth. errors. Finally, we have to find, interview and quote those who worked with Pius XII to combat Nazi barbarism and rescue persecuted Jews from the death camps— and contrast their firsthand testimonies with Cornwell’s baseless and uniformed charges….”

In Bill’s view, ITV needed to turn our response into “a major cover story and special edition—with at least a dozen high quality articles and interviews, which will demolish this poor excuse for a book.”

We did exactly that, and our special issue was hailed throughout the world as among the best rebuttals to Cornwell’s (now-discredited) polemic.

That was just one of many articles and special issues, covering a wide array of topics, which Bill helped ITV’s team to craft, edit and sharpen. the Moynihans in 1971. Top row from left: Ruth, Ted, Elaine, Bill, Bob; bottom row, Susan, Richard, Over and above his editorial genius, Above, Ben and Neil. Below, a Thanksgiving photo from four years ago of Ruth and Bill (in the center) with which I profited so much from as a young children, children’s spouses, and grandchildren. Opposite, Bill in Schull, Ireland, in the summer of 2012, though he had already found the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, in his family and friends writer, Bill became a mentor to me—not like Bill Doino. Opposite below, Bill and Ruth in 2016 just on Church-related issues, but on almost any topic. His knowledge was vast, and he had an uncanny ability to answer any question I asked in the most patient, learned and convincing manner. He was my super tutor—and he did it all so graciously, never asking anything in return. I once asked him what his secret was at becoming such a special mentor to so many students and writers, and he replied, “Prayer and God’s grace.”

Humility was a hallmark of Bill’s sterling character.

So was perseverance in the face of adversity.

Early on in our friendship, Bill took a sudden fall during an ice-storm and hit his head badly, plunging him into unconsciousness. It was a terrifying experience Bill was a prolific and tireless worker, but never a for his family and friends, and for a while, we thought we “workaholic.” He took periodic breaks from his teaching might lose him. But God, in his infinite mercy, answering all and writing, and expressed joy in the natural, God-given our prayers, brought Bill back from the brink and—miracupleasures of life—walking, tending his garden, watching a lously to me—he returned to full health rapidly. When I first terrific baseball game, and listening to classical music. He spoke to him after his ordeal, he hadn’t missed a beat, and cracked, “Doino, I hope you weren’t taking it easy while I avoided modern vices, but always welcomed what he called was away!” “appropriate fun.”

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For over 20 years, I spoke to Bill at least once a week, more, sometimes and what I learned from him over that time has never left me. I believe he made me a better writer, and, I hope, a better human being and Catholic. I can never repay the debt I owe Bill, but I do have the consolation of having been able to say a last, moving goodbye.

During the final year of his life, I knew Bill had been ill, so I limited my calls to his home. But just a week before he died, something told me I should call, and when I did, was gently told that he was extremely ill, and almost certainly wouldn’t recognize my voice. But I asked his caretaker if she could put the telephone up to his ear, so I could try and briefly communicate with him, however distant the possibility. After a brief internal prayer, I tried to make my last words to him simple but heartfelt. I said, “Dr. Moynihan, this is Bill Doino. I know you are very sick right now, but I have asked God to allow you to recognize my voice and understand what I say…and I just wanted to tell you how much our friendship has meant to me, how much I have learned from you, what a privilege it’s been to know you, and tell you that I have no doubt God is going to reward you and welcome you with open arms because of all the great and unforgettable things you’ve done for your family and for so many people, like me.”

There was a moment of silence, as I anxiously waited for a reply, and then I heard Bill say, in a struggling but discernable voice, “Thank you, Bill,”—he recognized it was me!—“I can’t talk because I am not well. But you have been a great friend, too.”

And that was it.

His caretaker then came back on the phone and said, emotionally, “Thank you. That was very beautiful.”

“Oh, but thank you!” I said, with immense gratitude.

Just a week later I was told by a close mutual friend that

Bill had died peacefully, after receiving the last rites from his local pastor. He leaves behind his seven children, their spouses and 19 grandchildren—an incredible legacy, and one that leaves me in awe.

The Courant reported that in their retirement, Bill and Ruth made their home “a cheerful gathering spot for three generations of Moynihans and their numerous dogs. Each year he and Ruth hosted a Thanksgiving feast, where after the blessing Bill would always sing his solemn sustained ‘Amen’ as all joined in. Bill often said, ‘I have the greatest family. It couldn’t have worked out more perfectly if I had tried to plan it. I am so thankful.’”

Bill lived a spiritually rich and extraordinary life, spanning almost a century, but he was such a towering figure that his family and friends will miss him dearly. His passing is like a fresh wound in my heart, for after the piercing loss of my own father, Bill had become his moral and spiritual successor, and an irreplaceable part of my life.

A short time after my final conversation with Bill, my mind kept wandering back to a long conversation we had about Dylan Thomas, the brilliant but mercurial poet who tragically died young because of a troubled personal life. Thomas was not a Catholic, but he was a seeker after the truth, and his poems are imbued with Christian overtones, as Bill noted in his book on the great poet. Never was that truer than in Thomas’ poem, “And Death Shall Have No Dominion,” which Bill thought among his very best. The poem draws upon Romans 6:9, “We know that Christ raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has power over him,” and on Revelations, Chapter 17, which promises that Christians on rising shall receive new bodies as well.

My prayer is that God has not only reunited Bill with his beloved Ruth in Heaven—of that I have full trust—but, just possibly, I hope—introduced Bill to his favorite poet, now at last having found the truth in Jesus Christ, with all of them sharing in His eternal glory.m MAY 2020 INSIDE THE VATICAN

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INTERVIEW

“HITLER’S POPE” OR “RIGHTEOUS AMONG GENTILES”?

AN INTERVIEW WITH HISTORIAN MICHAEL HESEMANN ON THE MARCH 2 OPENING OF THE ARCHIVES OF PIUS XII

n BY JAN BENTZ

Pope Pius XII, who led the Catholic Church from 1939 to 1958, is pictured in this undated photo.

(CNS photo/Vatican Media)

Below, two books by Hesemann: The Pope and the Holocaust and The Pope Who Defied Hitler.

Opposite page, St. Peter’s Square during the Nazi occupation of Rome (1943-1944)

W

ill the documents shed new light on the pontificate of Pius XII? This question can be answered by industrious historians henceforth: on March 2, the Vatican opened, for the first time, the archives of documents regarding Pius XII and his actions during World War II. The archivists have already said that they do not expect great surprises.

Specialist on the topic is German historian Michael Hesemann, who argued in his books (The Pope and the Holocaust and The Pope Who Defied Hitler) that Pius XII deserves beatification and canonization for his personal responsibility in saving hundred of thousands of Jews and more.

Inside the Vatican special correspondent Jan Bentz had a chance to interview him about the opening of the archives.

Inside the Vatican: Dr. Hesemann, you have already done extensive research on Pius XII. What are you most looking forward to researching in the newly-opened archives?

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DR. MICHAEL HESEMANN: Indeed, we had a pretty good idea about the extent of the Pope’s and the Vatican’s humanitarian help during the Holocaust because many of the most important documents were already published. In 1963, as a reaction to Rolf Hochhuth’s scandalous play, The Deputy, Pope Paul VI ordered a team of four renowned historians of the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits) to go through the undisclosed files from Pius XII’s pontificate and publish everything relevant in a scientific edition. They did so, with about 5500 documents in eleven volumes of about 7300 pages. Also, Paul VI opened the beatification process of Pius XII and gave the postulator, another Jesuit Father, permission to go through all those files.

When the process was over and Pope Benedict XVI was presented with the verdict of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, he sent another historian into the archives to verify their conclusion before he signed the decree on the heroic virtues of Pius XII. Also, our independent research as historians of the Pave the Way Foundation

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(PTWF.org), based in New York, forwarded thousands of hitherto-unknown documents demonstrating that Pius XII indeed did everything humanly possible to save as many Jewish lives as he could.

On March 2, 2020, I was one of the 25 first historians who got access to the newly-released archive documents which were made available for qualified experts. Personally, I doubt that there will be any dramatic, big surprises, but for sure many interesting, small surprises. There are, of course, several aspects I look for. For example, I am trying to find any written order or at least a document confirming that such an order came directly from the Pope to open the Roman monasteries for the Roman Jews after the razzia (Nazi round-up) of October 16, 1943. Last week, I found the evidence that the Vatican requested 550 placards signed by the German Army’s town commander, General Stahel, declaring those monasteries “Property of the Holy See” and forbidding German soldiers and SStroops to enter them. Believe it or not, they all followed this order and indeed all those places remained untouched during the nine months of German occupation. In 235 of those monasteries, about 4400 Roman Jews were hidden and survived.

The historical myths (of Hochhuth and others) that Pius was a collaborator of Hitler’s have been widely refuted by your previous books. Have you had any new insights from your most recent studies? What remains to prove and to demonstrate?

For sure, Pius XII was neither “Hitler’s Pope” nor did he consider the Nazis helpful in the fight against Communism. That’s a black legend which had its origin in Moscow (where it was already claimed in early 1945 and considered “rather comical” by Goebbels who commented on it in his diaries) and was brought on stage in Berlin/Germany by Erwin Piscator, a Communist director, who had just returned from Moscow to Berlin, bought the “Freie Volksbühne” with Soviet money, and edited Hochhuth’s amateurish play which was commissioned by the KGB. Indeed, already by 1925, Pius XII considered National Socialism “the most dangerous heresy of our times.” He called Hitler “an untrustworthy scoundrel” and “a fundamentally wicked person” in 1937, and supported the German military opposition’s plan to overthrow or even kill Hitler as early as October 1939. When the Nazis hoped he would bless their invasion into Russia

as a “crusade against Bolshevism,” he replied that it was rather “one devil hunting the other and the one is worse than the other.”

In fact, he openly protested against the Holocaust thrice, in a way everyone understood, although without naming the persecutors and their victims. He did so because he knew that any open provocation of the Nazis would only be counterproductive; it would help nobody, increase the speed of killing, and destroy all possibilities to help the persecuted Jews.

Instead of buying the applause of the civilized world with the blood of innocent Jews, his motto was “help and save as many Jewish lives as possible for any price.”

And the numbers are impressive.

More than 960,000 Jews owe their lives to the diplomatic interventions and the humanitarian actions of Pius XII. It was impressive to see the sheer numbers of pleas for help, often enough from individuals or families, which were all answered with great care. In nearly all cases, Rome was contacted, countries which could potentially supply visas were contacted, and so much was done.

In 1943, Catholic institutions in the south of France had hidden away about 3,000 Jewish orphans whose parents were already deported to the death camps.

When the Germans took over control of this area, the bishops decided it would be safer for both the Jewish orphans and the Catholic institutions to bring those orphans into secure countries. And indeed, with the help of the nuncio in Bern, Switzerland, and the bishop of Grenoble, several embassies were contacted, and eventually the US, Canada, and the Dominican Republic were willing to accept one thousand each.

In another case, in the winter of 1943/44, the nuncio in Bern learned that about 250 Jews who had already gotten South American passports from the Vatican were being held in a concentration camp in Vittel, France, with the danger of being deported to the death camps. The nuncio tried everything, wrote to every South American country, without success. Only Brazil was willing to accept one Jewish family; all the others said no. He then wrote to the US Embassy and got a shocking reply: “The U.S. government has advised Latin American countries that they are not expected” to admit those individuals. A few weeks later they were all deported to Auschwitz.

MAY 2020 INSIDE THE VATICAN

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INTERVIEW “HITLER’S POPE” OR “RIGHTEOUS AMONG THE NATIONS”?

about the mass killings, phase one of the Holocaust.

But maybe the key document which surfaced durHe also heard rumors about the death camps, but only ing this first week was a handwritten note by Pius XII had evidence about them rather late — probably in himself. After the razzia on October 16, 1943, the VatJune 1944, when he protested the deportation of the ican Information Service wanted to report: “On the Hungarian Jews in a telegram to the Hungarian head night of 15-16 October a considerable number of Jews of state, Horthy, and, indeed, moved him to stop the were arrested in various parts of Rome (stop) after trains to Auschwitz — one even returned right from being held 24 hours in the military college were transthe border. That’s why he did so much to save as many ported to an unknown destination (stop) it is said here Jews as possible. But he also knew that any open that the Holy See was concerned that similar events protest, any provocation of the should not be repeated and in Nazis, would have been counterfavor of particular cases.” This productive and just cost an ended up on the desk of the Pope, immense number of both Jewish who commented: “Is it prudent and Catholic lives. for the press service to send this Rumors have it that Pius XII news?” Pius XII then added that tried to exorcise Hitler and he was “well aware that it would identified the Nazi ideology as not help to wake sleeping dogs, “satanic”; are these beliefs especially not Nazis, to humanisubstantiated? tarian actions originating from Absolutely, yes. Several eyethe Apostolic Palace.” He did witnesses of the inner circle everything to help Jews — but around Pius XII confirmed those prudently, in secrecy!

The front page of a Fascist paper that accused the Church of exorcisms under oath; you find More than 150 people have hiding Jews in the convents of Milan.

Below, Jewish mothers and children found refuge on the their testimonies in the Positio of applied for access to the grounds of the papal residence at Castel Gandolfo the beatification process. Pius archives; do you think that XII called National Socialism a there will be contrary or even “satanic” doctrine several times, contradictory results in the for example, in his homily on research?

June 2, 1945, right after the war.

Of course the interpretation of How will the new research documents varies. For example, impact the eagerly-awaited we found three horrible photos in beatification process of Pius the files of the nunciature in XII – do you have any insights Bern, sent there by an anonyor information? mous eyewitness, showing a Until now, critical voices used mass execution of Jews: first six to say: “We have to wait for the or seven naked men in a row, beatification of Pius XII until the Archives are open — starved and bowed, then a pile of human bodies in a who knows what will come up there.” Even in Yad trench, eventually the naked body of a man, according Vashem, the Holocaust memorial in Jerusalem, the to the eyewitness still alive, thrown on top of that pile. placard on Pius XII says: “Until all relevant material They arrived there on April 6, 1943 and reached the is available to scholars, this topic will remain open to Vatican three weeks later. My German colleague, further inquiry.”

Prof. Wolf, a Pius-debunker, commented in a German Now all material is available to scholars and all magazine: “The Pope knew about the Holocaust — American, Israeli, and European experts are welcome and remained silent.” I commented two days later in to go through it personally. If they come with an open the same magazine: “The Pope knew about the Holomind, they will be overwhelmed by the evidence of caust — and tried to help.” humanitarian help. But of course there are also those Indeed, Pius XII learned about those horrible mass who will keep on saying: “Don’t bother me with the executions in the summer of 1941. To verify the facts, I already made up my mind.” Nothing, not the reports, he sent a long-time friend, the Roman priest best evidence, will convert them. But, for sure, they Fr. Pirro Scacvizzi, an army chaplain of the Knights of will soon be a minority. The truth about Pius XII will Malta, to the Eastern front. In November, Fr. Pirro make us grateful – grateful to see true charity in returned to Rome, was received by the Pope, told him action, to see there was still a light even in the darkest what he learned, “and saw him crying like a child and hour of human history.m praying like a saint,” as he noted later. Yes, he knew 38

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SCRIPTURE

“HE KNEW ALL MEN”

Jesus knows the evil in every heart, yet He will defend each of us

n BY ANTHONY ESOLEN

The Crucifixion and The Resurrection, painted by Andrea Mantegna.

The first for the altar of San Zeno in Verona (Italy). The second is a panel now in the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Tours (France)

O

because of His miracles. ne of the saddest verses in Scrip...

J ESUS DOES HAND The real trouble comes in the final verse, ture comes to us from Saint John, who says that Jesus performed HIMSELF OVER TO MEN, after “all” or “all men.” Let us imagine a many wonders in Jerusalem after He had TO BE CONDEMNED AND scene. You are charged with being man: weak, cowardly, selfish, treacherous man. gone there for the Passover, and many PUT TO DEATH UPON Someone comes forth as a witness against began to believe in His name. “But Jesus did not trust Himself to them,” says John, GOLGOTHA... HE RISES you. He accuses you of looking the other “because He knew all men and needed no THAT THEY TOO MIGHT way when your friend is treated unjustly. He accuses you of listening to the shouts of the one to bear witness of man, for He HimRISE TO ETERNAL LIFE mob and not to the admonitory voice of God self knew what was in man.” (Jn. 2:24-25) in your conscience. He accuses you of forThe version that Catholics in the Unitgetting your benefactor when it is convenient for you to ed States will hear blunts the power and the personal chalforget. He accuses you of pretense in the service of your lenge that Jesus implicitly makes to us in those words. own gain. You are in the dock. How do you reply?

Here is how the translators of our lectionary render them: This is a great deal more than, and something other “But Jesus would not trust Himself to them because He than, the “human nature” that the timid translators have knew them all, and did not need anyone to testify about used for the Greek anthropos, man. It is other than “human human nature. He himself understood it well.” nature” because although we are fallen and can say with We too understand it well — I mean that we understand the Psalmist, “In sin did my mother conceive me” (Ps. why the translators have done what they have done. They 51:5), this fallen nature is and is not really ours. It is ours, are prompted by a childish desire to avoid using the word just as a hunched back or a club foot belongs to someone “man” in its universal, personal, singular sense. Since born a cripple. It is not ours, because we were not meant there is no substitute for it in English, no word that does to be so. We were not meant to be hunched over in sin — that same work, they are content to flail about and let the incurvatus, to use Augustine’s fine term. Our redemption Scripture be muffled. and sanctification will make us more human, not less, givLet me explain. The Revised Standard Version above ing us a more profound share in the human nature that God says that Jesus “knew all men,” not just that He “knew intended for us to enjoy. them all.” The Greek could be taken either way, but most It is more than “human nature,” because we are not translations follow the sense of the whole statement and talking about general tendencies, spread across a large interpret John as saying that Jesus knew all men, and not population. We are talking about man, and that means just the hapless people who for a time believed in Him 40

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John, Peter, Nicodemus, Mary and her sister Martha, Judas, Caiaphas, Pilate, Saul of Tarsus, you, me, and the barber down the street. It means each one of us, with painful singularity. There is nothing comfortably and vaguely general about it. Jesus did not need the witness for the prosecution. He knew already—He knows already— what is in man.

There is a play on words in the Greek that does not come across in either translation, because English will not allow it. Jerome’s Latin did allow it: “Multi crediderunt in nomine ejus,” “many believed in His name,” but “Iesus non credebat semetipsum eis.” Maybe we could think of the parallelism in this way: “Many trusted in his name, but Jesus did not entrust himself to them.” That would preserve the ironic reversal, though we would lose a fuller sense of “believing” than “trusting” implies. In any case, we see here what I might call the fundamental dramatic irony of the Gospel.

Jesus does not “believe in” man. Nowhere in his words do we find any sentimental approbation of natural human goodness. On a human level, His expectations are low, and most of the time the people to whom He preaches fail to meet even those. “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, killing the prophets and stoning those who are sent to you!” He cries.

“How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would

not!” (Mt. 23:37) Yet this same Jesus does hand Himself over to men, to be condemned and put to death upon Golgotha. He does it with full knowledge of what will happen.

But that is not the end. He rises; and in the Sacrament of the Altar He hands Himself over to men again and again, that they too might rise to eternal life. He does not believe in us, as the humanist pretends to do, and the humanist is ever one genuine encounter with man away from misanthropy. Jesus knows very well what is in each of us, and that makes His entrusting Himself to us all the more telling an act of love. And those who entrust themselves to Him in return arise with Him, and take on His nature, becoming holy even as He is holy, and saying, justly, “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.” (Gal. 2:20) Then we sinners shall have someone to intercede for us, to be our defense attorney, bearing witness: “Christ has entered, not into a sanctuary made with hands, a copy of the true one, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf.” (Heb. 9:24) Anthony Esolen, Ph.D., is a faculty member and Writer-inResidence at Magdalen College of the Liberal Arts in New Hampshire. Dr. Esolen is a renowned scholar and translator of literature, and an author of multiple books and hundreds of articles in both Catholic and secular periodicals.m

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THE INTERIOR CASTLE

MARY’S DEVOTION TO THE EUCHARIST FROM THE BOOK MOTHER OF OUR SAVIOR AND THE INTERIOR LIFE,

BY REV. REGINALD GARRIGOU-LAGRANGE, O.P.

CONTEMPLATIVE RICHES OF THE MASS, PART IV

n BY A HERMITESS

I

t is most becoming to insist here a little on what Holy Mass and Holy Communion, received from the hands of St. John, must have meant for Our Blessed Lady.

Why had Mary been committed to St. John on Calvary rather than to the holy women who were also at the foot of the Cross? The reason was that St. John was a priest and had a treasure which they could not give her, the treasure of the Eucharist.

Why among the Apostles was John chosen rather than Peter? One reason is that John alone remained at the Cross, drawn and held there by a strong sweet grace. Another is that he is, as St. Augustine remarks, the model of the contemplative life, of the interior and hidden life which had always been that of Mary and which would be hers till death. Mary’s life will be cast in a very different mould from that of Peter, for she will have no share in ruling the Church. Her vocation will be to contemplate and to love Our Saviour in His sacramental presence, and to obtain by her unceasing prayer the spread of the faith and the salvation of souls. She will be thus in a very real sense the heart of the infant Church, for none other will enter as she into the depths and the strength of the love of Jesus.

Let us consider her in this hidden life, especially at the hour when John celebrated Holy Mass in her presence.

Mary has not the priestly character; she cannot perform the priestly functions. But she has received, in the words of M. Olier, “the plenitude of the priestly spirit,” which is the spirit of Christ the Redeemer. Thus she is able to penetrate deeper than St. John himself into the meaning of the mysteries he celebrates. Besides, her dignity of Mother of God is greater than that of ordained priest; she has given us both the Priest and the Victim of the sacrifice of the Cross and she has offered herself with Him. Holy Mass was for her, in a degree we can only suspect, the memorial and the continuation of the sacrifice of the Cross. A sword of sorrow had pierced her heart on Calvary, the strength and tenderness of her love for Jesus making her suffer a true martyrdom. She suffered so much that the memory of Calvary could never grow dim, and each Holy 42

INSIDE THE VATICAN MAY 2020

Madonna of the Host, painted by Jean-Auguste Ingres, now in the Museum d'Orsay, Paris

Mass was a fresh renewal of all she lived through there. Mary found the same Victim on the altar when John said Mass. She found the same Jesus, really present; not present in image only, but in the substance of His Body with His Soul and Divinity.

True, there was no immolation in blood, but there was a sacramental immolation, realised through the separate consecration of the bread and the wine: Jesus’ blood is shed sacramentally on the altar. How expressive is that figure of His death for her who cannot forget, for her who bears always in the depths of her soul the image of her Son, outraged and wounded, for her who hears yet the insults and the blasphemies offered Him. St. John’s Mass, with Mary present at it, was the most striking memorial of the Cross as it is perpetuated in its substance on our altars.

POINT OF CONTACT BETWEEN HEAVEN AND EARTH It is the same Victim who is offered at Holy Mass and who, in Heaven, offers His glorious wounds to the Heavenly Father. The Body of Christ never ceases to be in Heaven, it is true. It does not come down from Heaven, in the strict sense of the term, on to the altar. But, without being multiplied, it is made really present by the transubstantiation of the substance of the bread and the wine into Itself.

There is the same principal priest, or offerer, in Heaven and on earth also, “always living to make intercession for us.” (Heb. 7:25) The celebrant of the Mass is but a minister who speaks in Jesus’ name.

When he says “This is my body” it is Jesus who speaks by him. It is Jesus who, as God, gives to the words their power of transubstantiation. It is Jesus as Man who, by an act of His holy soul, transmits the divine power and who continues to offer Himself thus for us as principal priest. If the human minister ever happens to be slightly distracted, the principal Offerer is not distracted, and Jesus as Man, continuing to offer Himself sacramentally for us, sees all that we miss—sees all the spiritual influence exercised by each Mass on the faithful present and absent, and on the souls in Purgatory. Jesus continues to offer Himself in each Mass, the actual offering being made through the hands of

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His minister. The soul of the sacrifice of our altars is the interior oblation which is always a living reality in His Sacred Heart; through that oblation He applies to us continually the merits and satisfaction of Calvary.

The saints have sometimes seen Jesus in the priest’s place at the moment of consecration. Mary knew the full truth better than any of the saints. Better than any of them she knew that the soul of every Mass was the oblation that lived in her Son’s Heart. She understood too that when, this world having reached its term, the last Mass would have been said, Jesus’ interior oblation would continue for ever, not now as supplication but as adoration and thanksgiving—as the eternal cult expressed even now at Mass by the Sanctus in honor of the thrice-holy God. How did Mary unite herself to the oblation of Jesus, the principal priest? She united herself to it, as we shall explain later, as universal Mediatrix and Co-Redemptrix. She continued to unite herself to it as at the foot of the Cross—in a spirit of adoring reparation, in petition and thanksgiving.

Model of victim-souls, she offered up the anguish she suffered at those denials of the divinity of Jesus which prompted St. John to write his Gospel. She offered thanks for the institution of the Blessed Eucharist and for all the benefits of which It is the source. She prayed for the conversion of sinners, for the progress of the good, for the help the Apostles needed in their work and their sufferings.

In all that Mary is our model, teaching us how to become adorers in spirit and in truth.

What shall we say of Mary’s Communions? The principal condition for a fervent Communion is to hunger for the Eucharist. The saints hungered for It. When Holy Communion was denied St. Catherine of Siena, her desires obtained that a portion of the large Host broke off, unknown to the celebrant, and was carried miraculously to the saint.

But Mary’s hunger for the Eucharist was incomparably greater and more intense than that of the saints. Let us contemplate reverently the strong loving desire which drew Mary to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament.

Every soul is drawn towards God, for He is the Sovereign Good for whom we have been made. But the consequences of sin—original and actual—and of innumerable imperfections make God appear unattractive in our eyes and weaken our inborn desire for union with Him. Mary’s soul, however, knew nothing of the consequences of sins and imperfections; nothing ever checked the Godwards tendency of her wonderful charity. Forgetting herself, Mary turned firmly towards God, with a firmness that grew daily as did her merits. The Holy Ghost dwelling in her moved her to give herself to God and to be united to Him. Her love of God, like an intense thirst, was accompanied by a sweet suffering which ceased only when she died of love and entered on the union of eternity. Such was her desire for the Eucharist.m

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FOOTSTEPS ON THE WAY

THE VIRGIN OF REVELATION AT TRE FONTANE (THREE FOUNTAINS)

n BY ITV STAFF

“YOU PERSECUTE ME…ENOUGH OF IT NOW! ENTER INTO THE TRUE FOLD, GOD’S KINGDOM ON EARTH.”

Left, Grotto of the Three Fountains in Rome, and, below, Bruno Cornacchiola and his family

cross the road from Rome’s San Paolo alle Tre Fontane (“St. Paul at the Three Fountains”) abbey and church, there is the Grotto of the Three Fountains in Rome, where St. Paul’s head was reputed to have bounced three times when he was beheaded.

It is now a shrine dedicated to the Virgin of Revelation, the site of an apparition which, though not formally approved by the Church, was acknowledged by Pope John Paul II in 1997, when he approved the renaming of the place as “Holy Mary of the Third Millennium at Three Fountains.”

April 12, 1947 It was a sunny Saturday after Easter in 1947. Bruno Cornacchiola, a railway worker, decided to take his three children— Isola, aged 10, Carlo, aged 7, and Gianfranco, aged 4—on a picnic. That afternoon he providentially missed a train going to Ostia and decided to go to the parkline Tre Fontane shrine area instead.

It was also, alas, notorious as a place of sin in which even the bodies of dead preborn babies were found.

There, in the shade of the eucalyptus, while his children played, Bruno pored over his Bible. He was preparing a speech which he intended to deliver in a public square the following day, attacking the Church’s teaching on the

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Immaculate Conception.

Although Bruno had been baptized a Catholic and received his First Holy Communion, he did not practice his Faith. A few months after he was married, he deserted his wife and volunteered to fight in the Spanish Civil War. It was there that he embraced Protestantism, eventually becoming a militant Seventh Day Adventist. In 1939 he returned to Rome and to his wife, who remained a practicing Catholic. Prone to uncontrollable rages, he often beat her up. He forbade church attendance for the children and refused to have the youngest son baptized.

Besides being a wife-beater, Bruno Cornacchiola’s language was punctuated frequently with obscenities and blasphemy, and he had affairs with other women. The very morning of the picnic he passed a statue of Our Lady which read on its base, “Virgin Mother.” Bruno wrote in pencil, “You are neither virgin nor mother.”

In his great hatred of the Church, he was even devising a plot to assassinate Pope Pius XII on September 8, the feast of the birthday of the Blessed Virgin Mary. But on the afternoon of April 12, in the middle of his preparation for his verbal attack on Mary’s great prerogative, one of his children interrupted him. Would he help them find their ball?

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two profound truths. The first was Bruno put aside his notes and “MIRACLES OF MERCY” of a general nature: “I am the one joined in the search, only to find IN V ATICAN P ILGRIMAGES 2021 that is of the Divine Trinity.” his youngest son, Gianfranco, Because of her relationship to kneeling at the entrance to a dark oin Inside the Vatican Pilgrimages in 2021 for each person in the Blessed Trinicave. The boy’s hands were folded our unique and faith-filled “Miracles of in the attitude of prayer, as though Mercy” pilgrimage to Rome, Assisi and other ty—daughter of the Eternal in ecstasy, and he repeated, destinations in Italy where miracles like the Father, spouse of the Holy Spirit “Beautiful lady! Beautiful lady!” apparition of the Virgin of Revelation took and mother of the Divine Son— she is altogether unique among all as though he were addressing a place. of God’s creation. In the second living person.

You’ll see the astounding Eucharistic Miracle Bruno was surprised, then of Lanciano — a consecrated Host that turned identification she chose to reveal uneasy, and finally seized by ter- into human flesh and has remained so for cen- herself in relation to Bruno’s ror. He could see nothing in the turies — and visit the church where Our Lady of activity of Bible reading: “I am cave; what was he to make of his the Miraculous Medal appeared to another the Virgin of the Revelation.” man who disdained the Catholic faith, a vision By this second title she corson’s strange behavior?

Excitedly he turned to Isola and which transformed his life and spread devotion rects the error of those who would Carlo for an explanation. Initially to her throughout an entire country. And all of deny her privileges as unfounded, curious and fearful, within sec- this surrounding the feast of Divine Mercy, the unnecessary inventions of the onds they also—first Isola and feast of God’s mercy toward sinners, given in Catholic Church, not found in then Carlo—fell to their knees and modern times as a sign of hope to this fallen Divine Revelation in the Bible.

Then the Virgin of the Revelajoined their hands in prayer, world. tion addressed herself directly to enraptured with the same vision.

TO LEARN MORE, VISIT: Bruno, “You persecute me— Bruno was dumbfounded. Then pilgrimages@insidethevatican.com enough of it now! Enter into the he heard all three of his children OR CALL 202-536-4555 true fold, God’s Kingdom on cry out together: “Beautiful lady!” earth. The Nine First Fridays of He tried to move each child, but the Sacred Heart have saved you. You must be like the they were as if glued to the ground. He was terrified. flowers which Isola picked; they make no protest, they Suddenly, Bruno was also overcome by the strange are silent and do not rebel. . . With this dirt of sin, I shall mystical experience. His eyes were filled with intense perform powerful miracles for the conversion of unbelight for a moment, then everything disappeared: his chillievers.” dren and the cave. He felt himself becoming weightless, She revealed to Bruno the sad condition of his soul. At ethereal, as if his spirit had been freed of his body. When once all his pat arguments and prejudices against the he regained his sight, Bruno saw in the cave a woman of Church fell apart and he saw before him the way to salindescribable beauty, and clothed in radiant white. Her vation—the Roman Catholic Church. black hair was surrounded by a halo of brilliant golden At that point, the Virgin of the Revelation taught him light. Her dress was gathered by a rose-colored sash, and the sure means of salvation, for him and for all mankind, over her shoulders she wore a striking green mantle. which is prayer, and in particular the daily recitation of The three colors of the dress (white), sash (rose-colthe Holy Rosary. “Pray much and recite the Rosary for ored) and mantel (green), Bruno explained in later years, the conversion of sinners, of unbelievers and of all Chrissignify Mary’s relationship to the Three Divine Persons tians.” and the three apparitions of Lourdes, Fatima and Rome.

To those souls who would heed her message, the VirAt her bare feet lay a black cloth which had a smashed gin promised great favors from Heaven. “In this place of crucifix on it. sin I shall perform wonderful miracles for the conversion Her expression was one of motherly kindness, of unbelievers.” although clouded by sadness at times. In her right hand True to Mary’s promise, the dirt from the Grotto of Tre she held, resting on her breast, a small gray book. Her Fontane, which formerly had seen great immorality, has hands were crossed at her breast, but she unfolded them proven to be miraculous. Like the waters at Lourdes, it once to point to the broken pieces of the crucifix. continues to work wonders for the welfare of both bodies What message did Mary have for the wayward Bruno and souls—so many that no one disputes that these Cornacchiola—and our times? We know only part of it; graces have been received through the intercession of the the remainder was to be delivered to Pope Pius XII, who Virgin of Revelation. later was to bless the statue of the Virgin that stands in the (From Marian Shrines of Italy, by the Franciscan grotto where she appeared. When the Blessed Virgin Friars of the Immaculate)m identified herself to Bruno Cornacchiola, she did so with

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C AT H O L I C I S M A N D O R T H O D O X Y E D I T E D B Y: C H R I S T I N A D E A R D U R F F

The Message of the Icon

BY ROBERT WIESNER

WHO ARE THE VIOLENT?

ne of the most puzzling verses in Scripture is from St. Matthew’s Gospel: “...the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force.” (Matthew 11:12) There are a great many interpretations available to the curious Christian; disagreements even among the Fathers are distressingly easy to find!

First, clearly sheep, sheepfolds and shepherds play a large part in the imagery of the Bible, both Old Testament and New. Perhaps most tellingly, the continuity of the sheep-herding days of King David and the advent of the Good Shepherd hints that there is something rather special about our ovine friends. They appear in a number of parables, so it behooves us to examine a bit of natural history in their regard.

Sheep are notoriously stupid. They pay scant attention to their surroundings, making them easy prey for any half-way enterprising wolf. They panic easily, scattering to the four winds at the least provocation. They will blindly follow any of their fellows even into perilous situations. In short, they are in desperate need of a leader, a shepherd, for protection and the finding of good pasture.

What is it that a good, attentive shepherd does?

Among other things, each evening he will provide for his charges a safe enclosure. They will congregate in a sheepfold with an easily-guarded gate. The gate will be closed and the sheep will rest without fear of wolves. Our icon this month depicts precisely that: a shepherd who rose to the occasion and became also a bishop-shepherd to his flock in Cyprus. St. Spiridon was not known for his intellectual gifts, but he did indeed lay down his life in martyrdom for his charges, in imitation of his Master, the Good Shepherd.

An interesting bit of Scripture from the Old Testament is Micah 2:12-13. The verse speaks of sheep in

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trouble: they are in their fold, but a breach appears in the wall and the sheep rush out, breaking through the gate of their captivity, led by their king. The passage ends, “And the Lord shall lead them.”

In commentaries the word most often used for those breaking out is not “violent,” but rather, “forceful,” a rather more irenic term. The interesting point is that the sheep are in trouble in the sheepfold; the danger lies within, not with wandering wolves in the outside world!

With the benefit of New Testament scholarship, it is rather easy to see where theology will take the attentive reader. Israel was in trouble more often than not. The prophets warned them time and again that horrible things would happen unless they gave up their idolatry, their greed, their mistreatment of neighbors. They never listened, and of course disaster was always the result.

Clearly Israel was a sheepfold in deep trouble, but with the advent of Christ, they finally had a chance to break out of their miserable self-destructive habits and find a new and healthier mode of being. Unfortunately, far too many refused to follow the lead of those bold, forceful and insightful fellow sheep, the Apostles.

Led by the greatest Shepherd in history, they did break down the barriers, they pioneered a path to new and distinctly greener pastures. They boldly carried the Gospel from its Israelite cradle to the entire world.

Their severely circumscribed world gave way to a vast panorama of theological discovery and a new appreciation of creation itself.

Alas, the world’s sheep largely yet cower in any number of unhealthy sheepfolds, bound by laws promulgated by the wolf of wolves, the Prince of this World, Satan himself! The “forceful” unfortunately seem in short supply. m

INSIDE THE VATICAN PILGRIMAGES has had to cancel all of our spring pilgrimages for 2020.

We hope it may be possible to start making pilgrimages again in the summer or fall.

Please contact us at insidethevaticanpilgrimages.com for information about joining us for upcoming special pilgrimages, or virtual pilgrimages from your home.

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Spirituality

BY FATHER EL MESKEEN*

THE GREATNESS OF PRAYER

ORTHODOX PRAYER, PART 4.

EXCERPTS FROM CHAPTER 2 OF THE BOOK ORTHODOX PRAYER, BY MATTA EL-MESKEEN, COPTIC MONASTIC REFORMER AND SPIRITUAL FATHER OF THE MONASTERY OF ST. MACARIUS. MAN’S MODERN TENDENCY TO MAKE PRAYER SELF-REFERENTIAL FLIES IN THE FACE OF TRUE PRAYER…

oly, Holy Holy” (Is 6:3) is the transcendent essence of prayer that the Seraphim declared in a vision to the prophet Isaiah. In its true essence, prayer is a communion with the heavenly host in praising their Creator. It will surely end up as such when all things are put in subjection to God the Father. Prayer, originally, is not the work of man alone.

Neither is it performed for his comfort or for the fulfillment of his needs or demands. The greatness of prayer lies in its being the work of spiritual beings in general. It is neither of this age, nor for this age.

Thus, if we restrict prayer to the satisfaction of man’s needs and demands or to responding to his pleas in this life, it loses its essential greatness. Through hallowing the name of God, paying homage to Him, thanking and honoring Him with pure praise, man is transformed into a spiritual being. He thus joins the heavenly host in their transcendent ministry. However, we ask God for temporal things because we have fallen from our original spiritual status in which we lacked nothing. Although this is alien to the original concept of prayer, God in His graciousness has come down to our level and promised to listen to our prayers when we bring Him our needs and complaints, which He knows only too well. He thus assures us that He will never abandon us for our sins and that our tribulations are a matter of concern to Him. But when we delve deeply into the life of prayer, we end up with the conviction that it is an act of glorifying God, a divine ministry of transcendent honor. This was the conclusion reached by all the saints at the end of their understanding

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and practical experience of prayer. The foundation of prayer is paying absolute honor to God’s will: “Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” For this reason, prayer inevitably demands that man relinquish his own will: “Not my own will, but thine be done” (Lk 22:42). The glorifying and hallowing of God implied in doing so resemble the office of the Seraphim. (It should be borne in mind that the glory of the Seraphim springs from their office and not from their nature.) So the corruption of our nature does not hamper the glory of our office, as long as this office is prompted by the power of love and is pure and clear from the blemishes of egotism and selfishness.

Total surrender to the will of God is an entry into a covenant with Him. This is done in preparation for our final union with His will. As for the corruption of our nature, God has taken upon himself the task of lifting this curtain between him and man by the blood of his Son: “By his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many be accounted righteous” (Is 53:11). For this reason, prayer, as a glorifying of the Creator, transcends the limits of our shortcomings and unworthiness. It is a perfect action by itself able to make up for every imperfection and to heal every disability.

When faithfully performed for hallowing the name of God, prayer takes upon itself, with grace as a mediator, to turn us into saints: “For he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified have all one origin” (Heb 2:11). So when we stand in God’s presence to glorify Him, the angels hover around us with great joy, although the weight of our sins still sticks to us.m

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C AT H O L I C I S M A N D O R T H O D O X Y

East-West Watch

BY PETER ANDERSON

I

UNDERGROUND CHURCH MARKS DISCOVERY OF KAZAN ICON

n 1579 in Kazan, Russia, a 10-year-old girl named Matrona had a vision of an icon of the Mother of God which spoke to her and told her to dig in a certain spot to discover this icon. Matrona subsequently did so and found the icon at a depth of approximately one meter. It was wrapped in a red cloth and was completely undamaged by the earth. The icon was taken in a procession to a neighboring church, and two blind men near the procession had their sight restored. Many other miracles were later attributed to the icon, and it became perhaps the most revered icon in Russia. Tsar Ivan IV directed that a monastery and cathedral be established at the site of the discovery.

In 1808 a new and much larger cathedral was erected at the Kazan monastery. The cathedral was located over the spot where Matrona had discovered the icon. The original icon itself was placed in the new cathedral. However, on June 29, 1904, tragedy struck. Thieves stole the original icon for its jewels and destroyed the icon itself. In spite of the loss, the cathedral remained an important pilgrimage location, because it was the site of the discovery of the original icon.

Elizabeth Federovna, the sister of Tsarina Alexandra, visited the Kazan cathedral. After the assassination of her husband, she had become an Orthodox nun and had become famous for her charitable work.

She suggested that a “cave church” be built under the floor of the cathedral so that the cave church would occupy the exact space where the original icon was buried. This was done, and Elizabeth was present for the consecration of the cave church in 1913. Five years later, Elizabeth and her assistant Sister Barbara were taken by the Bolsheviks with certain other members of the Romanov family and page 48

thrown down a mine shaft.

The bodies of Elizabeth and Barbara were later discovered by the White Army and taken to the Russian Orthodox church in the Garden of Gethsemane in Jerusalem. Both women were later canonized.

In the early 1930s the Communists completely destroyed the cathedral at the Kazan monastery, and a tobacco factory was subsequently built on the location. However, in 2005, there was an important event which marked the beginning of the resurrection of this famous Marian shrine. The Orthodox Church in Kazan was given the beautiful copy of the Kazan icon which had been in the possession of Pope John Paul II for eleven years and to which he had become greatly devoted.

The Pope’s icon became the replacement for the original icon destroyed in 1904.

This gift provided the impetus for the reconstruction of the destroyed cathedral. The reconstruction is being financed largely by a fund established by the Tatarstan government. In excavating for the new cathedral, the walls of the original cave church were discovered under the surface of the ground. Patriarch Kirill laid the cornerstone for the new cathedral in July 2016.

The exterior work on the beautiful cathedral has now been completed. On February 25, 2020, Orthodox Metropolitan Feofan of Kazan consecrated the subterranean cave church. Appropriately, fragments of the relics of St. Elizabeth and St. Barbara were brought from Jerusalem for the consecration and will remain permanently in the cave church for pilgrims to venerate. It is anticipated that the entire cathedral will be consecrated by Patriarch Kirill in 2021. It is hoped that the cathedral with St. John Paul II’s beautiful Kazan icon will be a major pilgrimage destination for both Orthodox and Catholics.m

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NEWS from the EAST

SUNDAY OF ORTHODOXY AT THE ECUMENICAL PATRIARCHATE

BY BECKY DERKS

He also holds American citizenship and ended up spending several months in California. He later filed a lawsuit against the Migration Service in the Volyn Oblast, demanding that the decision to cancel his citizenship be overturned and declared illegal.

The District Administrative Court of Kiev began proceedings in the case on April 23, and on September 19, the court ruled in Bishop Gideon’s favor, deciding not only to return his citizenship, but also to reimburse him for his court fees.

Despite the Administrative Court’s September decision, the matter continued in the Appeals Court, which ordered the State Migration Service of Ukraine in the Volyn Province to return Bishop Gideon’s citizenship on January 22. (OrthoChristian)

On March 8, 2020, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew and Archbishop Chrysostomos II of Cyprus (Primate of the Church of Cyprus), together with many hierarchs, celebrated the Sunday of Orthodoxy at the Ecumenical Patriarchate at the Patriarchal Church of Saint George.

In his address, the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew welcomed at the Center of Orthodoxy the Primate of the Church of Cyprus, Archbishop Chrysostomos.

“Any opposition to the matter of the autocephaly of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine is not canonical. However, there are some who intend to harm the newly established Orthodox Church of Ukraine with the aim of creating a secular institution, which, on the one hand, will be operating in conMT. ATHOS TO HOLD trast with ecclesial principles VIGILS AND and tradition and, on the other PROCESSIONS FOR hand, will be serving foreign CORONAVIRUS interests in clear contradiction While the Holy Mountain to Orthodox ecclesiology and Athos has closed its port to pilthe synodical character of the grims until the end of March, Orthodox Church,” EcumeniMARCH 9, 2020. His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch cal Patriarch Bartholomew said Bartholomew and Archbishop Chrysostomos of Cyprus, celebrated the monastics continue to upOrthodoxy at the Ecumenical Patriarchate at the hold the faithful through their in his speech at the end of the the Sunday ofPatriarchal Church of Saint George prayers.

Divine Liturgy.

In this vein, the Sacred Community of Mount Athos, “The recognition of the autocephaly of the Orthodox the governing body for the 20 ruling monasteries and their Church of Ukraine from the other Orthodox Churches is associated sketes and cells, has called on all the monasthe basic precondition for achieving unity within the Orteries to hold All-Night Vigils to the Mother of God and thodox world,” he concluded. (Ecupatria) to hold cross processions, entreating God’s mercy and grace as the world continues to suffer from the coronBISHOP PREVIOUSLY DEPRIVED OF avirus epidemic, reports the Greek Orthodoxia News CITIZENSHIP RETURNS TO UKRAINE Agency.

After a year of forced stay abroad after his passport At its March 19 session, the Sacred Community, conand citizenship were revoked by the previous Poroshenko sisting of one representative from each of the 20 ruling administration, Bishop Gideon of Makarov, who is also monasteries, decided to announce to each of the monasabbot of the historic Tithes Monastery in Kiev, has reteries its decisions regarding the fight against the spread turned home to Ukraine, Bishop Viktor of Baryshevka reof the virus through active prayers, processions, and ported on his Telegram Channel on March 8. vigils.

Bishop Gideon was unexpectedly detained in Kiev in “The representatives and abbots of the 20 monasteries February of last year upon returning from America, where of Mt. Athos thus express their love for suffering mankind, he had spoken with Congressmen about his view of perfor whom they pray with agony to the Most Holy Virgin, secution the Ukrainian Church was facing under Poroentreating her protection in such a difficult time,” the shenko. The bishop was deported, his passport was Orthodoxia report reads. In conclusion, the Sacred confiscated, and his citizenship was canceled. www.InsideTheVatican.com t Urbi et Orbi Foundation is a project of Urbi et Orbi Communications t 202-536-4555

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C AT H O L I C I S M A N D O R T H O D O X Y

Community expresses the need to strengthen prayers and the celebration of the sacraments during Great Lent and calls on all to repent “with all the power of the spirit of the Lord, the Lifegiving Source overcoming death.” (OrthoChristian)

FROM HELICOPTER, METROPOLITAN SPRINKLES MINSK WITH HOLY WATER

While pious priests in Georgia, Ukraine, and elsewhere have begun blessing their churches and surrounding streets in processions throughout their cities, Metropolitan Pavel of Minsk and Zaslavl took to the skies to bless the capital GREEK METROPOLIS OF KYTHIRA CLOSES of Belarus.

CHURCHES TO FAITHFUL AFTER BEING March 22, Metropolitan Pavel held a “moleben [prayer ARRESTED FOR CELEBRATING SERVICES service] in times of devastating plague” and the Small Metropolitan Seraphim of Kythira of the Greek OrthoBlessing of Waters at the Church of All Saints in Minsk, todox Church was arrested on March 20 for defying the govgether with parish clergy. The service was held at the reernment’s order and continuing to celebrate the Divine quest of the faithful, reports the site of the Belarusian services.

Orthodox Church.

The Holy Synod of the Greek Minsk, March 23, 2020. His Eminence Metropolitan The moleben was celebrated bePavel of Minsk and Zaslavl took to the skies Church earlier announced that it fore the parish’s Cross-reliquary, in to bless the capital of Belarus would reduce its parishes’ schedules which is embedded a particle of the to just one-hour Liturgies on SunLifegiving Tree of the Cross and the day, though the state then overruled relics of several saints, and a venerthe hierarchs and ordered that all ated copy of the Reigning Icon of the services be canceled until March 30 Mother of God. in an effort to contain the coronMetropolitan Pavel offered the avirus. faithful a word of edification on the The Metropolitan was arrested afSunday of the Cross, stressing the ter celebrating the Divine Liturgy in theological significance and life-givthe Holy Cross Cathedral in defiance ing power of the veneration of the of the state’s order. The doors of the Cross of the Lord.

Holy Transfiguration Church on Kizhi Island cathedral were open and the bells in the Republic of Karelia, also recognized Thanks to the sufferings of Christ, as a UNESCO World Heritage site were rung, calling the faithful to the Cross became a symbol of the worship. Met. Seraphim’s decision victory of life over death, he said. to serve angered Mayor Stratos While the ongoing coronavirus epiHarhalakis, who stated that “no one demic has plunged many into confucan be above the law.” sion and even despair, true believers The Greek hierarch was taken to are called upon not to give in to the police station and a case was fears, but to place their trust in God opened against him. He was later reand behave responsibly towards their leased by the order of the Prosecutor neighbors, the Belarusian primate General after it was explained to him said. (OrthoChristian) that next time he would have to appear before a special court for considering the cases of those ICONIC WOODEN CHURCH OF RUSSIAN NORTH detained at the scene of a crime.

TO REOPEN AFTER 30 YEARS According to a statement published on the Metropolis’ The large-scale restoration of one of the most iconic of website the next day, all the services in the Metropolis are the famed wooden churches of the Russian north, with 22 now closed to the public. domes, has been completed, and the church is slated to open “Taking into account the unjustified, unfair, and artificial for the first time in 30 years this summer. hype that arose both in the media and online at the expense Holy Transfiguration Church on Kizhi Island in the Reof the clergy of our Metropolis, and mainly our bishop, with public of Karelia, part of the Kizhi State Open-Air Museum deep regret we inform the residents of Kythira that from toof History, Architecture, and Ethnography, is also recogday all services in our churches are discontinued,” the statenized as a UNESCO World Heritage site. ment reads.

The church is currently scheduled to reopen on June 1, The statement also specifies that this is in stark contrast and museum representatives hope the church will be conto the centuries-old tradition of the Orthodox Church. secrated on its feast, August 19, by Patriarch Kirill, with The Divine Liturgy will be served with the doors open, Russian President Vladimir Putin possibly in attendance. but only with the priest present. (OrthoChristian) (OrthoChristian) page 50

www.InsideTheVatican.com t Urbi et Orbi Foundation is a project of Urbi et Orbi Communications t 202-536-4555

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INITIATIVE

TO “ACCOMPANY” THE ELDERLY DURING THE PANDEMIC THE URBI ET ORBI FOUNDATION ANNOUNCES A NEW “OLD TO YOUNG, HEART TO HEART” INITIATIVE. PLEASE JOIN WITH US IN THIS VERY SPECIAL INITIATIVE

n BY ITV STAFF

“As the coronavirus has spread and entire countries he Urbi et Orbi Foundation, a project of the parhave gone on ‘ lockdown,’ could there be an opportuent organization which publishes Inside the nity for charitable Christian witness, especially with Vatican magazine, Urbi et Orbi Communicaregard to unity? As we have recalled conversations tions, has announced plans for a new initiative uniting with Orthodox leaders who have received us with Catholics and Orthodox globally in both prayer and great warmth over the years, we think the answer is charitable works in this time of the pandemic crisis.

‘Yes.’” The new initiative will be two-pronged: First, the The Urbi et Orbi Foundation, explains Hayes, is Foundation plans to publish, via electronic media, a asking both Catholic and Orthodox parishes to enlist series of spiritual reflections by both Catholic and families with children to pray for and contact those Orthodox Church leaders to help sustain all Christians among their flocks who are at highest risk, in order to in this time of fear and isolation, when many of our “stay close” to these often neglected parishioners and churches are locked and our shepherds are separated neighbors. from their flocks.

He hastens to add, however, that at this time there Second, the Foundation proposes a “program of are no plans to encourage direct visits because of the accompaniment” aimed especially at the elderly and danger of spreading infection. isolated in this time of pandemic crisis.

“The elderly,” says Hayes, “in this way become the Called “Old to Young, Heart to Heart,” the “comcommon ‘grandparents’ of the Church community, mon global Christian initiative” the Foundation enviand the young, the community’s common ‘grandchilsions would organize both Catholics and Orthodox dren.’ The elderly have passed the Faith on to each of faithful — especially the young — to contact the us; we must respect them and hold their hands when elderly, talk with them, and communicate any need for they are afraid, showing our gratitude for their witassistance, in order to “accompany” them, as Pope ness.”

Francis so often urges, through this difficult time.

The Catholic Bishop of Assisi, Italy (the home of The Urbi et Orbi Foundation was launched in 2012 St. Francis), Domenico Sorrentino, has written a book

by Inside the Vatican founder and editor Robert that calls on the Church to heal the current societal isoMoynihan, and Urbi et Orbi Communications CEO lation of elderly persons by truly becoming a Deborah Tomlinson, to promote unity between the “Church-family.”

Catholic and Orthodox “The unusual circumChurches and peoples, with Join Us! stances we now find ouran eye to eventual reunificaThe Urbi et Orbi Foundation is dedicated to selves in may in fact be a tion. “building bridges” between Catholics and the Explaining the genesis of Orthodox so that a united Church can once again, as perfect opportunity to bring the new initiative, Kyle St. John Paul II proclaimed, “breathe with its two our children up more profoundly nourished by the Hayes, Urbi et Orbi Founda- lungs.”

Faith,” remarks the Urbi et tion’s Vice President for ProJoin our new, parish-by-parish global initiative of jects and Communication, charitable action for the elderly and isolated, “Young Orbi Foundation Vice President, “connecting them to said, “The difficulties of the to Old, Heart to Heart!” their elders and to the time seem to cry out for bold Here’s how: whole parish community, new initiatives to help the Find us online at our new website! planting in them the seeds poor, the sick and the weak, UrbiEtOrbiFoundation.org that can become the true and to do this in the context Email khayes@insidethevatican.com unity of our Church in time of greater Christian collaboCall us at 202.536.4555 to come.”m ration and unity.

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LATIN

THE PLAGUE OF SAINT CYPRIAN CYPRIAN’S PERFECT BLEND OF HOLINESS AND WORLDLY WISDOM CHALLENGED CHRISTIANS IN HIS TIME — AND STILL DOES TODAY

n BY JOHN BYRON KUHNER*

ast month I wrote about the Latin word pestis, which is usually translated plague, but really should be thought of in a broad sense: not just bubonic plague but any sudden-onset, highly contagious, potentially fatal disease. Coronavirus certainly would count.

This month I’d like to take a look at the one Church Father who has a plague named after him: St. Cyprian (200?-258), Carthage’s formidable bishop.

We don’t know a great deal about the 3rd century, in general — we have very few good historical documents from the era — but historians generally agree that between 249 and 262, the Mediterranean basin was ravaged by a terrible unknown disease, called today The Plague of Cyprian. Based on Cyprian’s description, which mentions intense vomiting, fevers, and bloodied eyes, Kyle Harper, a University of Oklahoma Classics professor who studies plague events, has suggested the plague was a hemorrhagic fever like Ebola. No one knows for sure. Scholars have estimated that between 1 and 20 percent of the population of the Roman Empire died; even the low estimate means hundreds of thousands of dead, as the Roman Empire probably had a population of around 50 million at the time. By comparison, we’ve had COVID-19 around for only a few months, and the Mediterranean basin has seen fewer than 10,000 deaths; imagine what has happened recently going on for more than a decade.

There are multiple literary sources mentioning the disease, but the most important come from the pen of Cyprian. Cyprian isn’t well known today. He generally isn’t read in any schools or universities; the only time I encountered even his name was in the classes of the legendary Vatican Latinist Fr. Reginald Foster. Reginaldus would read with students every Latin author he could get his hands on. His was a wonderful

L

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St. Cyprian, in an illuminated manuscript from the Library of Federico da Montefeltro, now acquired by the Apostolic Library in Rome.

Below, The Triumph of Death, a 15th century fresco held in Palermo, Museo Nazionale

way to approach the Church tradition: to become familiar with other fellow Christians of every era simply by reading them. It gave an appreciation for the Church, made up of so many, enduring so much, for so long.

The most important document about the plague is a sermon of Cyprian’s entitled De Mortalitate, “On Mortality.”

He frequently uses the term mortalitas as a synonym for “the plague,” or “the disease.”

In certain ways this anticipates Albert Camus’s The Plague, where the possibility of sudden death is described as really the normal human condition; most people simply live in denial of it.

Cyprian talks about how some Christians want to be “above” the disease, as if their faith will grant them an exemption from the encumbrances of the flesh: At enim quosdam movet quod aequaliter cum gentilibus nostros morbi istius valetudo corripiat; quasi ad hoc crediderit Christianus, ut, immunis a contactu malorum, mundo et saeculo feliciter perfruatur... Quoadusque istic in mundo sumus, cum genere humano carnis aequalitate coniungimur.

Translated: “The fact that the strength of this disease overpowers our people just as it does the Gentiles disturbs some people, as if Christians believed only to enjoy the world all the more, safe from the touch of evils.... But as long as we are there, in the world, we are joined with the human race in the equality of the flesh.” (7) The only way to really understand the theology of these Church Fathers, I’m afraid, is to read their Latin.

Look at that unusual phrase, “as long as we are there, in the world.” There is a (generally excellent) translation of this sermon on the EWTN website, and the translator translates istic in mundo as “here in the

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world.” But that would be hic in mundo or hoc in mundo; Cyprian says istic, “there.” The idea is that the Church, the assembled faithful, were not in the world anymore; they had left the world. When Mass ended, they would go back to the world, as messengers trying to save it. As Fr. Richard Rohr puts it, the modern, secular idea is that you are in the world, and go to church; the old idea is that you are in the Church, and go to the world. People reading in English will miss these old notions because translators often cut them right out.

And since we are here in the world with a mission, Cyprian looks at the plague as an opportunity for transforming one’s life, and breaking from one’s old ways.

Pestis ista et lues, quae horribilis et feralis videtur, explorat iustitiam singulorum, et mentes humani generis examinat, an infirmis serviant sani, an propinqui cognatos pie diligant, an misereantur servorum languentium domini, an deprecantes aegros non deserant medici.

“That plague and disease, which seems horrible and bestial, puts each man’s righteousness on trial, and examines the minds of the human race, to find out if the healthy will serve the sick; if relatives will dutifully love their family members; if masters will have mercy on their languishing slaves; if doctors will not desert their pleading patients.” (16) We cannot turn our backs on doing good things for each other. Cyprian acknowledges that martyrdom may come from this course of action, and that such a thing is more to be celebrated than feared.

But he also firmly taught that one must never seek martyrdom. In fact, during a period of persecution, Cyprian himself went into hiding to continue running the diocese of Carthage.

The point was to continue the life of faith and works, and have death find you doing those things.

If you read enough Cyprian, you’ll find a theme running through his work: he believes in toughness, in integrity under duress, in discipline, and in duty. It looks a bit like Roman ideas of manliness, and in fact it does have some of the sexist flavor found in Roman sources.

Among the things Cyprian declares might weaken a person’s faith in time of plague, he mentions “softness of sex” (mollitie sexus). But Cyprian’s ideal really isn’t the same as Roman manliness, and it’s not a sexist idea, either: courage, for Cyprian, wasn’t killing others on the field of battle, but tending to the sick in their beds, the kind of thing that everyone can do. In this sermon he also mentions turning away from greed and helping the poor.

As Christians look for models in these very unusual times, St. Cyprian might just offer the perfect blend of holiness and worldliness: knowledge that our lives are not ended at death, but awareness that we are all equally subject to the sufferings of the flesh; resolution in the face of death, but without foolhardiness, and not for its own sake. “Be cunning as serpents, but innocent as doves.” For St. Cyprian, what really counts before the Judge who will ultimately judge us is how we have treated the sick, the suffering, and the poor.m

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Of Books, Art and People

POPE FRANCIS PRAYS PANDEMIC WILL END

I

n BY LUCY GORDAN

Newly-elected Pope Francis, Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina, prays in front of the Salus Populi Romani (Salvation of the People of Rome), a Marian icon in a chapel at St. Mary Major in Rome, March 14, 2013 (CNS photo/L'Osservatore Romano)

nside the Vatican readers for certain know of Pope Francis’ two unprecedented acts to pray for the end to the cornonavirus pandemic. The first was his unannounced pilgrimage on the afternoon of Sunday, March 15th, to the Basilica of St. Mary Major and to the Church of San Marcello al Corso; the second the moving prayer service at sundown on March 27 in an eerily empty St. Peter’s Square. Both times he prayed before two religious artifacts, particularly important to Romans and to himself: the icon of Salus Populi Romani and the “miraculous crucifix.” Here’s why...

Pope Francis’ special devotion to the Salus Populi Romani (Salvation of the People of Rome) is well documented. Barely 12 hours after his election (the next morning even before he’d collected his personal belongings from the House of Hospitality Paul VI), he slipped out of Vatican City and headed to the Basilica of St. Mary Major. Here the new Pope prayed to Our Lady asking for her support on how to guide the Roman Catholic Church.

Since then he has continued to visit this icon on major Marian feast days. He also has made a point to stop in for a prayer both before and again after his, as of now, 32 apostolic trips abroad. The first one was to Rio de Janeiro from July 2229, 2013 for World Youth Day. He brought with him a of copy of Our Lady’s icon to be carried in procession, a tradition started by Saint John Paul II during World Youth Day celebrated in Rome in 2000.

In her article “Pope’s Love Affair with Mary Hits a New High with 67th Roman Visit,” published in Crux in January 2019, 54 INSIDE THE VATICAN MAY 2020

senior correspondent Elise Harris reported that Pope Francis had visited his beloved icon roughly 10 to 15 times a year since his election on March 13, 2013. But since her article you have to add several visits due to several more apostolic trips in 2019: Panama, 23-27 January; United Arab Emirates, 3-5 March; Morocco, 30-31 March; Bulgaria and North Macedonia, 5-7 May; Romania, 31 May-June 2; Mozambique, Madagascar and Mauritius, 4-10 September; and Thailand and Japan from 20-26 November.

However, Pope Francis’ most recent prayer at the altar below the icon reflects not only his personal spirituality, but also how seriously he takes his role as “shepherd” of the Roman diocese. On Sunday March 15, the Third Sunday of Lent, at approximately 4 p.m., unannounced, he slipped out of Vatican City again to visit the Salus Populi Romani. This time his objective was to show his closeness to all those suffering because of coronavirus and to implore Mary’s special protection so as to end the pandemic.

According to legend, the icon of Salus Populi Romani (c. 46 inches tall by 31 inches wide) was painted by St. Luke himself and brought from Jerusalem to Rome

by St. Helena during the fourth century. It’s also said that it was Pope Gregory the Great who brought this icon to St. Mary Major in 590 as part of a procession during Eastertime, praying for an end to one of the deadliest plagues in Rome’s history. Nearly 1,000 years later another plague in Rome is said to have ended when Pope Pius V carried the Salus in procession to St. Peter’s Basilica. In 1571 the same Pope prayed to

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to the beginning of the 11th for the her for a victory in the Battle of central section, and from the end of Lepanto. the 10th and the beginning of the In 1605 Pope Paul V Borghese 11th for the frame, so that its hiscommissioned the chapel in St. Mary torical origins are still shrouded in Major, the icon’s home since 1613, mystery. and in 1837 Pope Gregory XVI invoked her to put an end to a cholera When the icon returned from the epidemic. But after Pius V, the next Workmen taking down the crucifix in San Marcello Vatican Museums to St. Mary Mapope to visit the icon in situ was Pius jor, Pope Francis officiated at a Ponto install it in St. Peter's Square for March 27's unprecedented Urbi et Orbi blessing.

XII in 1950 after he’d proclaimed the tifical Mass in her honor on January Below, St. John Paul II celebrating the dogma of the Assumption of Mary 28, 2018, the 405th anniversary of "Day of Forgiveness" into heaven. As cardinal he’d celeher translation to the Basilica. After brated his first Holy Mass with the its 2017/18 restoration the Salus icon on April 1, 1899. He paid Populi Romani is not allowed to homage to the icon again in 1954 leave St. Mary Major; the icon on when he crowned it in St. Peter’s the steps of St. Peter’s during Pope Square for the centenary of the dogFrancis’s unique prayer service to ma of the Immaculate Conception. end the coronavirus pandemic on March 27th was a copy.

In 1931, at the wishes of Cardinal Like the Salus Populi Romani, Bonaventura Cerretti, the then-archthe crucifix’s origin is not known priest of St. Peter’s Basilica, and of except that it’s probably Tuscan and Bartolomeo Nogara, the then-direcmay date to the 15th century. As tor of the Vatican Museums, the with the icon, the Romans are paricon underwent its first restoration. ticularly devoted to it. For on the The principal intervention was the night of May 22, 1519 an earlier removal of a silver covering of the church dedicated to San Marcello entire icon except for the faces and was almost completely destroyed by head and shoulder of the Madonna fire; only this crucifix remained and baby Jesus. Gregory XVI had providentially intact. Then three added the silver foil in 1838 to be years later, a terrible plague raged in able to attach two new crowns. After Rome. The then-Cardinal Titular, to this restoration, besides the two new implore divine clemency, promoted a solemn penitential crowns, a new cross was added to the Madonna’s neckprocession. The procession, which lasted 16 days, from lace of three amethysts, four topazes, and two aquaAugust 4 to 20, passed through many Roman neighbormarines. The missing diamonds of the 12-pointed star hoods, and ended at St. Peter’s. Shortly thereafter, the were added and the star was attached to the Madonna’s plague ceased. shoulder. (All the icon’s jewels were removed in 1988 Since then the crucifix has been carried in procession and are on display in the Treasury of St. Mary Major.) to St. Peter’s Square every Roman Holy Year, normally In 2017 the icon underwent a second state-of-the-art every 50 years. Engraved on its back is the name of each restoration and conservation in the Vatican Museums. pope who has witnessed these processions. The last The procedures used included infrared and ultraviolet name to be engraved is that of Pope St. John Paul II, spectroscopy and reflectography as well as x-rays, pigment studies using Raman and xrf analysis, and radiowho embraced the crucifix on the “Day of Forgiveness” carbon dating. These examinations were followed by during the Jubilee Year 2000. refilling holes caused by insects; restoration of its Epilogue: Let’s hope that, in spite of rain damage to golden halo damaged by corrosion; restoration, reits paint and wood on March 27, the crucifix remains highlighting and repainting various parts of the image; “miraculous” and that Our Lady answers Pope Francis’ varnishing its back; and strengthening its frame. Morprayer so he can go on his next two already-planned phological studies revealed that the central panels were trips: to Indonesia, East Timor and Papua New Guinea made of lime wood and the frame of ash. in September of this year, and in 2022 to Portugal, The radiocarbon exams dated the wood, with more where he already went in 2017, this time for World than 80% certainty, to from the end of the 9th century Youth Day.m MAY 2020 INSIDE THE VATICAN 55

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THE END EXCERPTS FROM LORD OF THE WORLD

“It was very dark...”

OVER A CENTURY AGO, THE PRIEST AND WRITER ROBERT HUGH BENSON FORESAW THE TREMENDOUS RISE OF SECULAR HUMANISM… AND THE CONTRACTION OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH

n BY ITV STAFF

Editor’s Note: The passage below is from the novel Lord of the World, written by the English Catholic convert Monsignor Robert Hugh Benson (the son of the Anglican Archbishop of Canterbury) in 1907. He attempts a vision of the world more than a century in the future — in the early 21st century… our own time… predicting the

LORD OF THE WORLD

BY ROBERT HUGH BENSON (1907) Chapter IV (continued) Part III It was not until nearly two hours later that Percy was standing at the house beyond the Junction.

He had argued, expostulated, threatened, but the officials were like men possessed. Half of them had disappeared in the rush to the City, for it had leaked out, in spite of the Government’s precautions, that Paul’s House, known once as St. Paul’s Cathedral, was to be the scene of Felsenburgh’s reception. The others seemed demented; one man on the platform had dropped dead from nervous exhaustion, but no one appeared to care; and the body lay huddled beneath a seat. Again and again Percy had been swept away by a rush, as he struggled from platform to platform in his search for a car that would take him to Croydon. It seemed that there was none to be had, and the useless carriages collected like drift-wood between the platforms, as others whirled up from the country bringing loads of frantic, delirious men, who vanished like smoke from the white rubber-boards. The platforms were continually crowded, and as continually emptied, and it was not until half-an-hour before midnight that the block began to move outwards again.

Well, he was here at last, dishevelled, hatless and exhausted, looking up at the dark windows.

He scarcely knew what he thought of the whole matter. War, of course, was terrible. And such a war as this would have been too terrible for the imagination to visualize; but to the priest’s mind there were other things even worse. What of universal peace— peace, that is to say, established by others than Christ’s method?

Or was God behind even this? The questions were hopeless.

Felsenburgh—it was he then who had done this thing—this thing undoubtedly greater than any secular event hitherto known in civilisation. What manner of man was he? What was his character, his motive, his method? How would he use his success?…

So the points flew before him like a stream of sparks, each, it

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rise of Communism, the fall of faith in many places, the advance of technology (he foresees helicopters) and so forth, up until... the Second Coming of the Lord, with which his vision ends. For this reason, and also because Pope Benedict and Pope Francis have repeatedly cited Benson’s book, saying its clarification of the danger of a type of humanitarianism without God is a true danger that we do face, we are printing selections from it in ITV, now and in the months ahead.

might be, harmless; each, equally, capable of setting a world on fire. Meanwhile here was an old woman who desired to be reconciled with God before she died…. ***** He touched the button again, three or four times, and waited.

Then a light sprang out overhead, and he knew that he was heard.

“I was sent for,” he exclaimed to the bewildered maid. “I should have been here at twenty-two: I was prevented by the rush.”

She babbled out a question at him.

“Yes, it is true, I believe,” he said. “It is peace, not war. Kindly take me upstairs.”

He went through the hall with a curious sense of guilt. This was Brand’s house then—that vivid orator, so bitterly eloquent against God; and here was he, a priest, slinking in under cover of night.

Well, well, it was not of his appointment.

At the door of an upstairs room the maid turned to him.

“A doctor, sir?” she said.

“That is my affair,” said Percy briefly, and opened the door. ***** A little wailing cry broke from the corner, before he had time to close the door again.

“Oh! thank God! I thought He had forgotten me. You are a priest, father?”

“I am a priest. Do you not remember seeing me in the Cathedral?”

“Yes, yes, sir; I saw you praying, father. Oh! thank God, thank God!” Percy stood looking down at her a moment, seeing her flushed old face in the nightcap, her bright sunken eyes and her tremulous hands. Yes; this was genuine enough.

“Now, my child,” he said, “tell me.”

“My confession, father.”

Percy drew out the purple thread, slipped it over his shoulders, and sat down by the bed. ***** But she would not let him go for a while after that.

“Tell me, father. When will you bring me Holy Communion?”

He hesitated.

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God as seen by William Blake as the Architect of the world, in Ancient of Days, held in the British Museum, London

“I understand that Mr. Brand and his wife know nothing of all this?”

“No, father.”

“Tell me, are you very ill?”

“I don’t know, father. They will not tell me. I thought I was gone last night.”

“When would you wish me to bring you Holy Communion? I will do as you say.”

“Shall I send to you in a day or two? Father, ought I to tell him?”

“You are not obliged.”

“I will if I ought.”

“Well, think about it, and let me know…. You have heard what has happened?”

She nodded, but almost uninterestedly; and Percy was conscious of a tiny prick of compunction at his own heart. After all, the reconciling of a soul to God was a greater thing than the reconciling of East to West.

“It may make a difference to Mr. Brand,” he said. “He will be a great man, now, you know.”

She still looked at him in silence, smiling a little. Percy was astonished at the youthfulness of that old face. Then her face changed.

“Father, I must not keep you; but tell me this—Who is this man?”

“Felsenburgh?”

“Yes.” “No one knows. We shall know more tomorrow. He is in town to-night.”

She looked so strange that Percy for an instant thought it was a seizure. Her face seemed to fall away in a kind of emotion, half cunning, half fear.

“Well, my child?”

“Father, I am a little afraid when I think of that man. He cannot harm me, can he? I am safe now? I am a Catholic—?”

“My child, of course you are safe. What is the matter? How can this man injure you?”

But the look of terror was still there, and Percy came a step nearer.

“You must not give way to fancies,” he said. “Just commit yourself to our Blessed Lord. This man can do you no harm.”

He was speaking now as to a child; but it was of no use. Her old mouth was still sucked in, and her eyes wandered past him into the gloom of the room behind.

“My child, tell me what is the matter. What do you know of Felsenburgh? You have been dreaming.”

She nodded suddenly and energetically, and Percy for the first time felt his heart give a little leap of apprehension. Was this old woman out of her mind, then? Or why was it that that name seemed to him sinister? Then he remembered that Father Blackmore had once talked like this. He made an effort, and sat down once more.

“Now tell me plainly,” he said. “You have been dreaming. What have you dreamt?”

She raised herself a little in bed, again glancing round the room;

then she put out her old ringed hand for one of his, and he gave it, wondering.

“The door is shut, father? There is no one listening?”

“No, no, my child. Why are you trembling? You must not be superstitious.”

“Father, I will tell you. Dreams are nonsense, are they not?

Well, at least, this is what I dreamt.

“I was somewhere in a great house; I do not know where it was.

It was a house I have never seen. It was one of the old houses, and it was very dark. I was a child, I thought, and I was … I was afraid of something. The passages were all dark, and I went crying in the dark, looking for a light, and there was none. Then I heard a voice talking, a great way off. Father—-” Her hand gripped his more tightly, and again her eyes went round the room.

With great difficulty Percy repressed a sigh. Yet he dared not leave her just now. The house was very still; only from outside now and again sounded the clang of the cars, as they sped countrywards again from the congested town, and once the sound of great shouting. He wondered what time it was.

“Had you better tell me now?” he asked, still talking with a patient simplicity. “What time will they be back?”

“Not yet,” she whispered. “Mabel said not till two o’clock. What time is it now, father?”

He pulled out his watch with his disengaged hand.

“It is not yet one,” he said.

“Very well, listen, father…. I was in this house; and I heard that talking; and I ran along the passages, till I saw light below a door; and then I stopped…. Nearer, father.”

Percy was a little awed in spite of himself. Her voice had suddenly dropped to a whisper, and her old eyes seemed to hold him strangely.

“I stopped, father; I dared not go in. I could hear the talking, and I could see the light; and I dared not go in. Father, it was Felsenburgh in that room.”

From beneath came the sudden snap of a door; then the sound of footsteps. Percy turned his head abruptly, and at the same moment heard a swift indrawn breath from the old woman.

“Hush!” he said. “Who is that?”

Two voices were talking in the hall below now, and at the sound the old woman relaxed her hold.

“I—I thought it to be him,” she murmured.

Percy stood up; he could see that she did not understand the situation. “Yes, my child,” he said quietly, “but who is it?”

“My son and his wife,” she said; then her face changed once more. “Why—why, father—-” Her voice died in her throat, as a step vibrated outside. For a moment there was complete silence; then a whisper, plainly audible, in a girl’s voice.

“Why, her light is burning. Come in, Oliver, but softly.”

Then the handle turned.

(End Chapter IV, Part 3; next month, Chapter V)m MAY 2020 INSIDE THE VATICAN

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VATICAN WATCH

By Becky Derks with CNA Reports - Grzegorz Galazka and CNA photos

MARCH FRIDAY 13

POPE FRANCIS REFORMS VATICAN CITY COURTS WITH NEW LAW The Holy See announced a new law governing the judicial system of Vatican City State March 16. The motu proprio provides enhanced safeguards for the independence of judges and prosecutors in Vatican City to better address economic, financial and criminal cases in the sovereign territory.

Law CCCLI was signed by Pope Francis on Friday, March 13.

“Administering justice,” the Pope said in the preamble of the new law, “is not just a necessity of a temporal order.”

In the legal text, the Pope explained that the law is part of an ongoing process of legal renewal to replace the original 1929 laws of Vatican City, which began with the adoption of a new fundamental law for the city state in 2000.

ITALIAN PRESIDENT THANKS POPE FOR HIS SOLICITUDE IN THIS TIME OF TRIAL On March 13, the seventh anniversary of the beginning of Pope Francis’ pontificate, the president of the Italian Republic, Sergio Mattarella, expressed best wishes to the Pontiff on behalf of the nation.

In this “moment of trial,” when the country is confined because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Italians know that they can “always turn with confidence and gratitude” to the Pope’s “particular solicitude,” he stressed in his message reported by “Vatican News.”

In his greeting, President Mattarella also referred to the “demanding” message that Pope Francis proposed with “indefatigable determination” for “attention to the most vulnerable.” (Zenit) SUNDAY 15

POPE FRANCIS MAKES WALKING PRAYER PILGRIMAGE FOR CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC Pope Francis on March 15 took a brief walking pilgrimage in the city of Rome, and prayed for an end to the coronavirus pandemic during a surprise visit to both the Basilica of St. Mary Major and a cross that traversed Rome during a 16th century plague.

According to the Vatican, the Pope went to the basilica to visit the icon of Salus Populi Romani (Mary, Protection 58 INSIDE THE VATICAN MAY 2020

of the Roman People), to invoke her prayers against the coronavirus pandemic affecting Italy and the world.

A priest of the vicariate of Rome, Fr. Elio Lops, told CNA Pope Francis was accompanied during his visit by the archpriest of the basilica, Cardinal Stanislaw Rylko.

From the papal basilica, the Pope walked about half a mile on foot to the Church of San Marcello al Corso to pray before a miraculous crucifix, which was once carried in procession through the streets of Rome during the plague of 1522.

FRIDAY 20

HOLY SEE GRANTS INDULGENCE TO CORONAVIRUS PATIENTS AND CATHOLICS WHO PRAY FOR THEM The Vatican’s Apostolic Penitentiary has granted a plenary indulgence for people with COVID-19 and for those who care for them, including medical staff and family members, and for those who pray for them.

Announced March 20, a plenary indulgence is granted to Catholics who, infected with the coronavirus and quarantined at home or the hospital by order of health officials, participate spiritually in a devotion such as the rosary or the Way of the Cross.

Catholics around the world who pray for an end to the pandemic, healing for the sick, and the eternal repose of the dead are also granted the indulgence, according to the decree.

WEDNESDAY 25

POPE FRANCIS: THE CHURCH’S PRO-LIFE MESSAGE IS MORE RELEVANT THAN EVER “The attacks on the dignity and life of people unfortunately continue even in our era… We are faced with new threats and new slavery, and legislation is not always to protect the weakest and most vulnerable human life,” Pope Francis said March 25.

“The message of the encyclical Evangelium Vitae is therefore more relevant than ever,” the Pope said in his livestreamed Wednesday audience.

This year’s Solemnity of the Annunciation marks the 25th anniversary of the encyclical Evangelium Vitae, promulgated by St. John Paul II, on the value and inviolability of human life.

“Today, we find ourselves relaunching this teaching in the context of a pandemic that threatens human life and the world economy. A situation that makes the words with which the encyclical begins even more demanding,” the Pope said.

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Opposite page, Pope Francis walked on foot to the Church of San Marcello al Corso in the center of Rome on March 15 to pray before a miraculous crucifix. Below, streaming a Mass in Rome

MONDAY 30

VATICAN APPROVES SPECIAL “MASS IN THE TIME OF PANDEMIC” The Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments has approved a special “Mass in the Time of Pandemic” to plead for God’s mercy and gift of strength in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.

The Mass opens with a prayer that God would “look with compassion on the afflicted, grant eternal rest to the dead, comfort to mourners, healing to the sick, peace to the dying, strength to health care workers, wisdom to our leaders and the courage to reach out to all in love.”

In a letter dated March 30, Cardinal Robert Sarah, prefect of the congregation, and Archbishop Arthur Roche, congregation secretary, said, “In these days, during which the whole world has been gravely stricken by the COVID19 virus,” many bishops and priests have asked “to be able to celebrate a specific Mass to implore God to bring an end to this pandemic.”

VATICAN PUBLISHES DOCUMENT ON RIGHT TO WATER ACCESS Access to clean water is an essential human right that must be defended and protected, the Vatican Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development said in a new document.

Defending the right to clean water is part of the Catholic Church’s promotion of the common good, “not some particular national agenda,” the dicastery said, calling for “a management of water so as to ensure universal and sustainable access to it for the future of life, the planet and the human community.”

The 46-page document, titled “Aqua Fons Vitae: Orientations on Water, Symbol of the Cry of the Poor and the Cry of the Earth,” was released by the Vatican March 30.

The preface, signed by Cardinal Peter Turkson, dicastery prefect, and Msgr. Bruno Marie Duffe, secretary of the dicastery, stated that the current coronavirus pandemic has shed light on “the interconnectedness of everything, be it ecological, economic, political or social.”

APRIL THURSDAY 2

POPE MOVES GOOD FRIDAY COLLECTION FOR HOLY LAND TO SEPTEMBER With Holy Week celebrations closed to the public due to the coronavirus pandemic, Pope Francis postponed the tra-

ditional Good Friday collection for the Holy Land to September.

The Vatican announced April 2 that the Pope approved a proposal to hold the collection in churches worldwide September 13. “The Christian communities in the Holy Land, while exposed to the risk of contagion and often living in very trying circumstances, benefit every year from the generous solidarity of the faithful throughout the world, to be able to continue their evangelical presence, as well as to maintain schools and welfare structures open to all citizens for education, peaceful coexistence and care, especially for the smallest and poorest ones,” the Vatican said.

FRIDAY 3

PRISONS’ PASSION: VIA CRUCIS MEDITATIONS REFLECT ON AFTERMATH OF CRIME While Pope Francis’ Way of the Cross service on Good Friday had been transferred to the Vatican because of the coronavirus pandemic, the meditations focus, as always, on those who share the pain, suffering and heartbreak that characterized Christ’s passion and death.

In a letter published in an Italian newspaper in early March, Pope Francis said he chose the Catholic community of the Due Palazzi prison in Padua so that the meditations would reflect on the lives of those involved in the prison system to illustrate how “the resurrection of a person is never the work of an individual, but of a community walking together.” The result is a set of meditations on the traditional 14 stations written not only by prisoners, but also by people directly affected by crime, including prisoners’ families, victims and even a priest falsely accused of a crime.

SATURDAY 4

SIN STARTS WITH GIVING IN TO SMALL TEMPTATIONS, POPE FRANCIS WARNS Before we commit a sin, there were usually small temptations which we let grow in our soul, eventually making excuses for ourselves and our fall, Pope Francis said during Mass at his residence.

“That process which makes us change our hearts from good to bad, which takes us downhill,” he said April 4, is “something which grows, slowly grows, then infects others and ultimately excuses itself.”

“When we find ourselves in a sin, in a fall, yes, we must go to ask the Lord for forgiveness, it is the first [step] that we must take,” he urged. But then ask yourselves, he said: “How did I come to fall there? How did this process start in my soul? How did it grow? Whom have I infected? And how in the end did I justify myself for falling?”n MAY 2020 INSIDE THE VATICAN 59

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PEOPLE B

Y

BECKY DERKS with G. Galazka, CNA and CNS photos

n DOMINICAN PRIEST, MICROBIOLOGIST SEES HOPE FOR POSSIBLE CORONAVIRUS TREATMENT

In a recent blog post, Fr. Nicanor Austriaco, O.P., S.T.D, Ph.D., said he sees reason to hope that the drug hydroxychloroquine could be used to treat the coronavirus, or COVID-19.

Austriaco is a professor of biology and theology at Providence College in Providence, Rhode Island. He is currently on lockdown in the Philippines with his mother during the coronavirus pandemic.

“As a molecular biologist, what is so exciting for me about this claim is that the clinical trial in France was pretty good, given the extreme circumstances,” Austriaco wrote.

“Yes, it was a small trial, but if you read the paper, it was rigorous for what it wanted to do, which is to be a pilot study. And it showed that HCQ significantly shortened the time for the patient to clear (the) virus from his or her system.” (CNA) n FORMER USCCB PRESIDENT AND ARCHBISHOP OF CINCINNATI DIES AGE 85

The former head of the U.S. Catholic bishops’ conference and archbishop emeritus of Cincinnati, Daniel E. Pilarczyk, died March 22 at the age of 85.

A statement from the Archdiocese of Cincinnati said that Pilarczyk died “peacefully,” but did not offer further details. Public funerals are currently suspended in the archdiocese because of the coronavirus outbreak.

Archbishop José Gomez of Los Angeles, president of the U.S. Catholic bishops’ conference, led tributes to the archbishop on March 22.

“He was known as a shepherd close to his flock. The Archbishop led during challenging times but sought reconciliation and reform with humility,” Gomez said of Pilarczyk. (CNA) 60 INSIDE THE VATICAN MAY 2020

INDIAN BISHOP CONDEMNS “SHOCKING” DISINFECTANT SPRAY OF MIGRANT WORKERS

A bishop in India has condemned the spraying of migrant workers and their children with disinfectant, after a video posted to Twitter showed public health authorities doing exactly that.

The video was posted to Twitter March 29.

The Times of India reported that families at a bus stand in the northern Indian city of Bareilly were told to sit on the ground, and were then sprayed with a bleaching agent mixed with water.

In the video, parents and their children sit on the streets of Bareilly and are showered with a chemical solution of chlorine mixed with water. Men in hazmat suits can be heard telling the migrants to close their eyes and mouths.

Bishop Ignatius D’Souza of Bareilly said spraying migrant workers with disinfectant was inhumane.

“This is inhumane, because these people are poor and marginalized and desperate migrant laborers and their families. Their dignity cannot be violated in this inhuman and shocking manner,” the bishop said, according to Asia News. (CNA)

n WASHINGTON LT. GOV. CYRUS HABIB TO LEAVE OFFICE, JOIN THE JESUITS

The lieutenant governor of Washington State announced March 19 that he will not seek re-election and instead will enter the Society of Jesus this autumn.

Lt. Gov. Cyrus Habib (D), 38, will end his eight-year career in public office after what he described as “two years of careful and prayerful discernment” led him to apply to join the Jesuits.

Habib, who was elected lieutenant governor in 2016, is the highest-ranking IranianAmerican elected official in the United States.

As his discernment process was “almost entirely private,” Habib said that he expected many of his constituents and supporters would find his decision to be a “major surprise,” particularly because he was considered by many to have a bright political future. (CNA)

n NIGERIAN NUN DIED SAVING STUDENTS AT BOARDING SCHOOL AFTER GAS EXPLOSION

The principal and a security guard at Bethlehem Girls’ High School in Lagos died March 15 while helping students escape a burning building following the explosion of a gas pipeline.

At least 17 people died as a result of the March 15 explosion, which occurred after a truck hit stacked gas bottles at a processing plant near a pipeline.

“Sr. Henrietta Alokha SSH and other staff that died have paid the supreme price in their bid to lead all her students to safety. May their souls rest in peace,” Archbishop Alfred Martins of Lagos said March 16.

Sr. Henrietta reportedly rescued the students trapped in a building at the school before the roof caved in.

They were attending Mass at the time, and Archbishop Martins said the priest who was saying the Mass

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“helped in rescuing the students and he himself is safe.”

Some of the students are in hospital, while the others have been released to their parents.

“We want to state that all students of the school were reported safe,” the archbishop added. More than 250 girls attend the school. (CNA) n ScholAr hoPES VAtIcAn ArchIVES WIll gIVE “fullEr, trAnSPArEnt” PIcturE of PIuS XII

A researcher from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum told CNA that she hopes the recent opening of the Pius XII archives in the Vatican will give historians a fuller, more transparent image of the wartime pope.

Dr. Suzanne brown-fleming, the museum’s director of international academic programs, has been unable to travel to Rome to view the archives due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

The Vatican officially opened the archives, which cover Venerable Pius XII’s entire pontificate — March 1939 through October 1958 — on March 2. It is the first time scholars

have been granted access to the approximately 16 million documents they contain. (CNA) n “SoMEboDy IS KIllED EVEry DAy”: bIShoP PlEADS for chrIStIAnS to rEMEMbEr uKrAInE

A Ukrainian Catholic bishop has urged Christians not to forget their suffering brethren in Ukraine.

With global attention focused on the coronavirus outbreak, bishop Stepan Sus said Christians in Ukraine are still enduring a yearslong war with no end in sight.

“Very often Ukraine is presented to the world as a country which lives in corruption, but nobody is speaking about our suffering, our wounds,” said Bishop Sus, a curial bishop of the Ukranian GreekCatholic Church’s Major Archeparchy of Kyiv-Haly to CNA. “Somebody is killed every day” in the conflict, he said, and war has displaced more than 2 million people in east Ukraine.

Kent hill, co-founder and senior fellow for Eurasia, Middle East, and Islam at the Religious Freedom Insti-

KrAKoW ArchbIShoP oPEnS bEAtIfIcAtIon cAuSES of St. John PAul II’S PArEntS

Archbishop Marek Jędraszewski of Krakow announced that having obtained the approval of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, the archdiocese has opened beatification processes for the parents of Saint John Paul II. The Archdiocese of Krakow publicly made the announcement March 11, setting in motion the beatification causes of John Paul II’s father, Karol Wojtyła, and mother, Emilia Kaczorowska Wojtyła.

Edicts signed by Archbishop Jędraszewski opening the cause bear the date March 2.

The faithful are being asked to provide the Krakow curia with any documents, letters, or messages regarding Karol and Emilia by May 7.

The Polish bishops gave a positive opinion on the opening of the cause in October 2019. (CNA)

tute, told CNA in a joint interview with the bishop, “With the coronavirus, it’s very easy for the West, even committed Christians, to lose interest or knowledge about what’s going on there [in Ukraine]. And that’s very dangerous for the Christians there,” he said.

“Once it becomes obvious to the Russians that nobody’s paying attention, they have a freer hand.” (CNA) n John PAul II EMbrAcED hIS SuffErIng WIth loVE: cArDInAl rEflEctS 15 yEArS AftEr SAInt’S DEAth

Pope St. John Paul II embraced suffering with love, even during his illness, a cardinal and the archpriest of St. Peter’s Basilica said on the 15th anniversary of the saint’s death.

The spread of the coronavirus pandemic, and the growing number of infected and dying people “has fallen on an unprepared society, highlighting the spiritual emptiness of many people,” cardinal Angelo comastri told Vatican News April 1.

“Pain undoubtedly frightens everyone,” he stated. “But when it is enlightened by faith it becomes a way to cut back selfishness, banalities and frivolities.”

Pope St. John Paul II died at the Vatican on April 2, 2005, 15 years ago, after months of illness and a years-long battle with Parkinson’s disease. Comastri recalled one of the Pope’s final “appearances” before his death, when, unable to attend, he watched the Good Friday Stations of the Cross at the Colosseum via video from his private chapel.

“The image we saw on television is unforgettable,” Comastri said.

“The Pope, who had lost all his physical strength, holding the crucifix in his hands, gazing at it with pure love.

One could sense he was saying: ‘Jesus, I too am on the Cross like you. But together with you I await the Resurrection.’” (CNA) MAY 2020 INSIDE THE VATICAN 61

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FOOD FOR THOUGHT

n BY MOTHER MARTHA

S

Stefano Navarrini illustration

(1644-55), Terrazza Borromini offers breathtaking views of Piazza Navona. It’s a unique venue for an apertivo. Below it is the study center Centro Pro Unione. Established in 1969, this library’s collection of 22,500 volumes and 400 periodicals spans the disciplines of ecumenism and the theologies of all Christian confessions.

Hours: 9 AM-5 PM. Caffè Colbert. Started in 2016 by four young entrepreneurs on the roof of the 16th-century Villa Medici, the Caffè overlooks the Villa’s magnificent gardens and the Spanish Steps. Once the Roman residence of the Florentine Medici family, the Villa Medici has been the French Academy for artists and scholars who win the Rome Prize since 1803.

Among its famous borsisti (fellows) were Boucher, David, and Debussy. Besides the Caffè, the gardens are open to the public.

The French Academy, the oldest of all the many foreign academies in Rome, was established in 1666 by King Louis XIV. Before being transferred to the Villa Medici, it was housed near the Church of Sant’Onofrio on the Janiculum, then moved to the Palazzo Caffarelli, now part of the Capitoline Museums, in 1683; then to the Palazzo Capranica, now a cultural center, in 1684; and then to the Palazzo Mancini, now a bank, in 1725.

La Campana. Founded in 1518, this venue is Rome’s oldest restaurant(!). First a winery, then an inn, census records from 1526 show that a Pietro della Campana was the original owner, but its location on Vicolo della Campana probably gave the restaurant its name (and possibly the owner his surname, too). Today this home-style trattoria between the Pantheon and Piazza Navona is run by siblings Paolo and Marina Trancassini, members of the family who’ve managed it for more than 100 years(!). Not surprisingly, La Campana is known for its authentic cucina romana and was a favorite of Caravaggio, Picasso, Fellini, Guttoso, Anna Magnani, Alberto Sordi, Maria Callas and Pier Paolo Pasolini (1972-75), to name only a few of its illustrious habituées. Goethe even wrote about the place, referring to it as Osteria Campana in his Römische Elegien (Roman Elegies). Must-try dishes include tagliolini with anchovies and pecorino, puntarelle, and artichokes both alla romana and alla giudia. Buon appetito!m

MEALS IN MONUMENTS

ince taking over this column in January 2014 from Friar Tuck, whose style was as expansive as his appetite(!), I’ve written about many Roman restaurants. Though all of Rome’s restaurants are now closed due to the virus, we are still hoping they will reopen soon, and we will once again enjoy the city’s food and each other’s company, which is what this exploration of Rome’s wondrous food is really all about.

Ristorante Spirito di Vino. This beautiful medieval house in Trastevere once belonged to the Jewish Italian lexicographer Nathan ben Jechiel (1035-1106). He turned to scholarship and religion after four of his five sons died before adulthood.

(Yes, this world can be at times a vale of tears. Our faith allows us to hope for a better world to come, and the good things we do here often draw their inspiration from that hope.) The house’s basement, a cavernous wine cellar, counts 800 labels. It dates to 80 B.C. Trastevere was Rome’s first Jewish quarter — St. Peter may have lived here — and over the centuries the house has been a synagogue, a convent, a foundry, a private home, and a warehouse before becoming a restaurant.

Its chef/owner is Eliana Catalini, a devoted proponent of “Slow Food.” She was a researcher and lab technician to Nobel Prize winner Rita Montalcini Levi. Catalini’s motto is “fresh KM.0 products and ancient recipes.” A “KM.0” (zero kilometer) food is a fruit, vegetable, meat or drink raised near where it is eaten. These products can only be transported within a 100 km radius and there is no middle-man. The cost of traveling across oceans and continents disappears. Her famous dishes: chickpea crepes with codfish sauce, veal meatballs with ginger, artichoke clafoutis, and basil-scented ratatouille.

Caffetteria del Chiostro. With its large windows overlooking the Church of Santa Maria della Pace designed by Bramante (1444-1515), the cloister is the center of what originally was a monastery complex. Its menu is rigorously “homemade.” The Caffetteria also offers an interactive guide to the church and serves as a showroom for young artists.

Terrazza Borromini. Near Bramante’s cloister, on the top floor of Palazzo Doria Pamphili, designed by the Renaissance architect Borromini and home to Pope Innocent X

From left to right: a section of Raphael's fresco The Sybils; a view of Piazza Navona from La Terrazza; a portrait of Pope Innocent X Doria Pamphili; a view of Villa Medici; and Pier Paolo Pasolini with the opera diva Maria Callas

62 INSIDE THE VATICAN MAY 2020

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