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Category: Vatican City

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Press Conference to present the “Vatican Longevity Summit: Challenging the Clock of Time”

    Source: The Holy See

    Press Conference to present the “Vatican Longevity Summit: Challenging the Clock of Time”, 24.03.2025
    At 12.15 today, a press conference was held at the Holy See Press Office, Via della Conciliazione 54, to present the “Vatican Longevity Summit: Challenging the Clock of Time”, taking place this afternoon at the Augustinianum Conference Centre, Via Paolo VI 25, Rome.
    The speakers were: Archbishop Vincenzo Paglia, president of the Pontifical Academy for Life; Professor Fr. Alberto Carrara, LC, president of the Organizing Committee; Professor Giulio Maira, neurosurgeon and founder of the Atena Foundation; Professor Venkatraman Ramakrishnan, Noble Prize Winner for Chemistry, 2009; Professor Juan Carlos Izpisúa Belmonte, scientist specializing in stem cell biology and regenerative medicine.
    The following are their interventions:

    Intervention of Archbishop Vincenzo Paglia
    Good morning to all of you. The Pontifical Academy for Life has decided to sponsor this important international event. As you know, the topic of aging and aging well is at the center of my interest. It is at the center of my interest, not only for personal reasons, but because the quality of old age is the litmus test of the degree of civilization of a nation.
    Longevity should not be seen simply as a biological goal but as an opportunity to enhance the elderly in the social context. The elderly are not a burden on society but a valuable resource: their experience and wisdom represent an irreplaceable cultural and human heritage. Pope Francis often reminds us that “a people that does not cherish the elderly is a people without a future,” emphasizing the need to promote a culture that recognizes the value of old age and counteracts the marginalization of the elderly.
    In this context, equitable access to scientific discoveries becomes a central issue. Biomedical innovations should not be the privilege of the few but tools to improve quality of life for everyone, regardless of socioeconomic status. The goal is not just to live longer but to live better, preventing degenerative diseases and ensuring that everyone has the opportunity for healthy and dignified aging. Longevity, then, is not just a matter of science but of justice, solidarity, and collective responsibility.

    Intervention of Professor Fr. Alberto Carrara, LC
    Good morning to all the journalists present. Today we understand the importance of preserving cognitive function through an integrated approach involving neuroscience, psychology, nutrition, and the environment.
    Fundamental to this is the six-pillar model of Brain Health, which includes nutrition, movement, sleep, cognitive stimulation, stress management, and social relationships, demonstrating how brain wellness is the true driver of healthy longevity.
    It is not enough to extend life; we need to improve the way we live it, and a systematic approach to longevity is important. In my talk at the Congress, I also explore the role of music, art, and sensory experiences in maintaining cognitive health, demonstrating how the brain can be constantly nourished and stimulated. This is a call to reflection and action to invest in our brain health, building a future in which longevity and quality of life go hand in hand.
    This unique event brings together Nobel laureates, internationally renowned scientists, and world leaders at the Vatican to discuss issues related to healthy, sustainable, and integral aging. It takes place the afternoon of Monday, March 24, starting at 4 p.m. at the Augustinianum Congress Center Auditorium in the Vatican. Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin will speak for an opening greeting.

    Intervention of Professor Venkatraman Ramakrishnan
    Ribosomes, are the “molecular factories” that produce the proteins essential for life. Without healthy ribosomes, our cells age and deteriorate. But what if we could preserve their functionality to prolong health?
    The ribosome translates genetic instructions into proteins, ensuring proper cellular functioning. However, as we age, ribosomes suffer accumulative damage that impairs their efficiency, leading to errors in protein production and contributing to cellular decline. Recent studies have shown that ribosomal malfunction is closely linked to disease processes such as neurodegeneration, cancer, and premature aging, paving the way for new therapeutic strategies to preserve ribosomal integrity and improve longevity.
    Preserving ribosome function could be a key to slowing aging at the molecular level. Most advanced research is focusing on two main strategies: first, reducing ribosomal stress through nutritional and pharmacological interventions that modulate protein metabolism and increase ribosomal efficiency. Second, the possibility of reprogramming the ribosomes themselves to optimize protein synthesis and prevent the accumulation of misfolded proteins, a major cause of neurodegenerative diseases and aging-associated muscle decline.
    The implications of these findings are revolutionary: if we could directly intervene in ribosomes, we could not only combat aging but also prevent chronic diseases and improve quality of life in old age.

    Intervention of Professor Giulio Maira
    My research aims to better understand human development and regenerative potential. Aging is not an inescapable fate, but a scientific frontier to be explored. In my talk at the Conference, I will show how the cellular reprogramming factors discovered by Nobel Laureate Yamanaka can revolutionize the length and quality of human life. Age-related diseases result from the progressive decline of our tissues and organs. However, groundbreaking studies show that manipulating epigenetic mechanisms could reverse this process, offering new opportunities to prevent and treat the diseases of aging. What can we learn from the longest-lived organisms on the planet? We have some animal species on our planet that manage to live long and healthy lives, opening up new perspectives for innovative cellular rejuvenation strategies. The goal is not just to extend life but to improve our biological resilience by reversing age-related degeneration.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: VATICAN – Jubilee of the Missionary World: “Paths of Hope” in the Mission “ad gentes”

    Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

    Monday, 24 March 2025

    Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) – They want to be signs of hope by proclaiming Christ, who consoles humanity, frees it from slavery, and restores divine dignity. These aspects are at the heart of the experiences and reflections of the missionaries that are part of the “Paths of Hope” in the Mission “ad gentes” initiative, which opens on Tuesday, March 25, the Feast of the Annunciation of the Lord.The Pontifical Missionary Union (PUM) and the Secretariat for Missionary Animation of the Lazio Region (SUAM LAZIO) have launched this initiative of missionary spirituality during the Jubilee Year, which will culminate in October with the Jubilee of the Missionary World (October 4-5). The Basilica of the Holy Apostles in Rome will host this missionary “journey,” which can also be followed online (see Zoom link in the event program). The events, held in Italian at 4:30 p.m., will include an introduction to the theme, testimonies, and concluding reflections. They will run from March to November, including the preparatory vigil for the Jubilee of the Missionary World on October 1, the liturgical feast of Saint Therese of the Child Jesus, patroness of the missions. The events will focus on the Pope’s message for World Mission Sunday 2025, and in the months leading up to the Jubilee of the Missionary World, testimonies from members of various missionary institutes will be featured as participants in the meetings. Their stories will provide insight into the realities in which they work daily. Contributions to “hope” – the key word of the Jubilee – based on everyday life, often complex and difficult situations, will characterize the events, which will open on March 25 with reports from missionaries of the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions (PIME) and the testimony of Sister Marilena Boracchi who will reflect on “Father Paolo Manna: The missionary is nothing if he does not embody Jesus Christ.” The first event, entitled “Missionary Spirituality in the Jubilee of Hope,” will also address the message of World Mission Day 2025 and the Jubilee’s opening bull, “Spes Non Confundit.” The “Path of consolation among Peoples” will be the focus of the second meeting, scheduled for Tuesday, April 29, where the Consolata Missionaries will bear witness in the presence of Father Antonio Rovelli. Three further meetings are planned for May 15, September 16, and November 11, respectively. (EG) (Agenzia Fides, 24/3/2025)

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  • MIL-OSI Europe: ASIA/CHINA – New church in Yiwu named after Saint Joseph: Home to the world’s largest wholesale market

    Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

    by Marta ZhaoBeijing (Agenzia Fides) – The new church, recently inaugurated in Yiwu, in the diocese of Hangzhou, capital of Zhejiang Province, is named after Saint Joseph, Patron Saint of missions in China. And the mission entrusted to the local parish is unique, considering the location of the new parish. Indeed, Yiwu is home to the world’s largest wholesale market for small goods. It is also the starting point for many of the devotional objects sold in churches, parishes, and religious shops around the world, including those around the Vatican. Chinese merchants and businessmen from all over the world can now also visit the new church to pray, receive the sacraments, or perhaps experience the Christian proclamation for the first time. The new church was consecrated by Bishop Joseph Yang Yongqiang of Hangzhou on March 18, the eve of St. Joseph’s Day. The following day, the Feast of the Spouse of the Virgin Mary, the bishop administered the sacrament of Confirmation to approximately 40 adults of the new parish. More than 2,000 faithful participated in the ordination liturgy, celebrated by 23 priests from Hangzhou, the Diocese of Wenzhou, and Ningbo, together with the bishop.Retracing the parish’s history, Bishop Joseph Yang recalled that “the church is a home, a place of love and affection,” and thanked St. Joseph, who intercedes for the local Church as Patron of the mission in China. The city of Yiwu is located 300 kilometers from Shanghai. According to local statistics, there are more than 1,000 Catholics and nearly 20,000 Christians of other denominations. In addition, baptized businessmen, both from China and abroad, come to the city to work.Until 2001, there was no Catholic place of worship in this international hub. With the region’s economic growth, Chinese and foreign Catholics who do business, run factories, study, and work in Yiwu began to gather for prayer in private homes. In 2007, 500 Catholics gathered to celebrate Christmas together. On June 14, 2008, a Catholic church was opened in Yiwu that could accommodate approximately 200 people. Gradually, a faithful and vibrant community has emerged in this center of global trade, welcoming those who come from far away to work in the city. The diocese has sent three priests to oversee the pastoral care of the local community, which can now also count on the new St. Joseph’s Church to fulfill its mission of proclaiming the Gospel to the merchants at the Yiwu wholesale market.Masses are already being celebrated in Chinese, English, and Korean in the new church. Yiwu is a county-level city in Zhejiang Province and belongs to the Diocese of Hangzhou. In 2005, the United Nations, the World Bank, Morgan Stanley, and other international financial agencies jointly published the report “Shocking the World of China’s Numbers,” which described the Yiwu market as “the world’s largest wholesale market for small goods.” (Agenzia Fides, 21/3/2025)
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  • MIL-OSI Europe: VATICAN – Cardinal Tagle consecrates Bishops Sangalli and Sarrió Cucarella: Like Saint Joseph, be ‘silent’ heralds of the Word of God

    Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

    Wednesday, 19 March 2025

    Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) – Bishops are called to be “silent” heralds of the Word of God. They do their work well when, without being protagonists, they become humble “guardians of the active presence of God in his Church”. And if their projects do not progress, it is better to “sleep” like Saint Joseph and “dream the dreams of God,” said Cardinal Luis Antonio Gokim Tagle in an address to Samuele Sangalli and Diego Ramón Sarrió Cucarella during the liturgy of their episcopal ordination in the Vatican Basilica on the afternoon of March 19, the Solemnity of Saint Joseph.Samuele Sangalli, Adjunct Secretary and Head of the Administration of the Dicastery for Evangelization (Section for First Evangelization and the New Particular Churches), was appointed Archbishop and Titular Bishop of Zella by Pope Francis on February 6 (see Fides, 6/2/2025). Diego Ramn Sarrió Cucarella, former President of the Pontifical Institute for Arabic and Islamic Studies (PISAI), of the Missionaries of Africa, was appointed by the Pope as the new Bishop of Laghouat, Algeria, on January 25.More than 30 bishops and Cardinals participated in the solemn ordination liturgy at the main Altar in St. Peter’s Basilica. Cardinal Tagle, Pro-Prefect of the Dicastery for Missions and Principal Consecrator, had as co-consecrators Cardinal Francesco Coccopalmerio of Lombardy and Archbishop Fortunatus Nwachukwu, Secretary of the Dicastery for Evangelization (Department for First Evangelization and the New Particular Churches).On the Solemnity of Saint Joseph and exactly 12 years after the solemn inauguration of Pope Francis’s Petrine Ministry (“for whose complete recovery we pray”), Cardinal Tagle turned his attention to the Spouse of Mary in his homily to offer the two new bishops valuable inspiration for their new journey as Successors of the Apostles. According to the Second Vatican Council, they are called “to care for the flock of which they are shepherds in God’s place, as teachers of doctrine, priests of worship, and ministers of the government of the Church”, and “to be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with the blood of his own Son,” as Saint Paul says. “Beautiful teachings,” remarked the Filipino Cardinal, “which make even bishops tremble. How can a bishop live up to such a great responsibility? Surely only by the grace of God.””Saint Joseph too,” Cardinal Tagle emphasized, “accepted God’s call in faith.” Faith “is the source of Joseph’s courage and creativity, who always subordinates his project to God’s, even when it is incomprehensible and uncomfortable.” Similarly, the ordained ministry of priests and bishops must be “rooted in a response of faith in God and exercised as a response of faith.” Often, Cardinal Tagle noted, “we plan and expect God to carry out our plans.” In reality, however, “we are not the planners, and God is not the executor of our plans.” And “if your vision and your plans do not seem to be moving forward,” he added, addressing the new Bishops, “sleep like Saint Joseph.” For “when we sleep, we are vulnerable, have less control, and are therefore more receptive and open. Sleep and dream the dreams of God. Wake up to realize the dreams of God with obedience and zeal.”Saint Joseph, according to the Pro-Prefect of the Missionary Dicastery, is also considered a “silent saint.” Not a single word of his is recorded in the Gospels. Nevertheless, “he accompanies, nurtures, and preserves the Word of God, made flesh in Mary’s womb, the most important Word.” And “every thought, every heartbeat, and every action of Joseph speaks of one Word: Jesus. It is the only thing that matters. His own words pale before the greatest Word. He can remain silent.” Following in the footsteps of Saint Joseph, “deacons, priests, and bishops must also remain ‘silent’ when proclaiming the Word of God.” For “it is not our word that counts and must be preserved for posterity, but the Word of God.” And “if our thoughts, plans, decisions, and actions do not speak of Jesus, we could be “like resounding brass or a clanging cymbal.”Furthermore, Saint Joseph is “a reliable guardian of Jesus.” And while carrying out his mission to guard the Son of God, “Joseph knows that Jesus belongs to his Father’s house. Joseph’s house in Nazareth has value only if it remains a shadow of the Father’s house, from which he must draw light.” Along these same lines, Cardinal Tagle noted: “Deacons, priests, and bishops are also called to be guardians of God’s active presence in his Church.” Because “bishops are not substitutes for the eternally living God nor competitors of the Redeemer.” And like Saint Joseph, they are called to be “authentic signs of God’s presence in the Church” with a “discreet visibility of the shadow that depends on the light.”Precisely, imitating the “sober and essential style of Saint Joseph,” at the end of the solemn liturgy, Archbishop Sangalli read a few simple “words of thanks.” They were addressed primarily to the “Providence of God, which has granted this afternoon full of grace” and to Pope Francis, “who has called us to be bishops and to whom we renew our affection and our prayers for a complete recovery as Head of the Church.”The new bishop’s thanks were also directed to the three consecrators, “who truly express the universality of the Church, and to all the other concelebrating cardinals and bishops, for whose service we were admitted to the College of Bishops through the gift of the ‘Spiritus principalis,’ the Spirit who governs and guides the Church.” This Spirit, Archbishop Sangalli added, “I received from the Church” and “from the good example of my dear parents, who today are already in eternal Life.” Finally, the new Archbishop’s thanks also went to the “brothers and family members who have accompanied, supported, and encouraged my journey,” as well as to the clergy and “the Ambrosian people of Lecco and the Seminary of Milan, with my former companions.”Archbishop Sangalli also thanked “the communities and associations I served, not least the Sinderesi Foundation,” as well as the academic communities of the Pontifical Gregorian University and the various universities where Sangalli was a student and professor.The gratitude of the new Archbishop was also expressed towards the Dicastery of Bishops, where Sangalli served for 20 years and lived “in contact with the vibrant heartbeat of the building of the local Churches and the election of their pastors.” The new Archbishop’s final words of thanks went to “the great family of the Dicastery for Evangelization, which opens the whole world to the richness of different traditions and cultures, each capable of sharing and transmitting the Gospel in its own singular way.” (F.B.) (Agenzia Fides, 19/3/2025)
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  • MIL-OSI Africa: Islamic State in Somalia: the terrorist group’s origins, rise and recent battlefield defeats

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Stig Jarle Hansen, Professor of International Relations, Norwegian University of Life Sciences

    The Islamic State in Somalia is an affiliate of the transnational jihadist group Islamic State, known in short as ISIS. Based in the semi-autonomous northern Somalia territory of Puntland, the terrorist group was the target of the first foreign combat operation of the Trump administration in February 2025. Previously, the group has been linked to planned terror attacks on the Vatican and on the Israeli embassy in Stockholm. Stig Jarle Hansen, a researcher and author of several books on jihadism in Africa, examines its origins, rise and recent battlefield defeats in the mountains of Puntland.

    1. The rise of the Islamic State

    Before the establishment of the Islamic State in Somalia in 2015, the Somali jihadist group al-Shabaab had established itself in the north. The small group had extensive connections to smuggling networks. It later split into two and the future leader of the Islamic State in Somalia, Sheikh Abdulqader Muumin, emerged from one of the splinter groups.

    In Somalia, clans define the relationship between people and all actors in the society. The connections of the new group to the Ali Suleiban sub-clan enabled it to profit from the clan’s links to smuggling and maritime piracy groups.

    Puntland is the hub of communication and maritime trade between Somalia and Yemen, as well as the wider Middle East. Smuggling has gone on in the region for centuries. The rugged terrain is ideal for piracy, illegal smuggling and insurgents.

    Puntland has been more or less autonomous from the rest of Somalia for more than three decades, and the Somali government has little influence there today.

    2. The jihadist behind the Islamic State in Somalia

    Muumin lived in Sweden through the 1990s and early 2000s and later moved to the UK. Back in Somalia, he joined al-Shabaab and became a prominent figure in the group’s jihadist videos. Such videos aim to maintain morals, attract new recruits and create sympathy for the group.

    In 2015, Muumin defected to lead the Islamic State in Somalia. His second-in-command was another Ali Suleiban clansman, Mahad Moalim. In 2016, the first video of the group was circulated through Islamic State media outlets.

    A milestone for the group followed its 2017 suicide bombing of the Juba Hotel in Bosaso, Puntland’s commercial capital and sea port. This enabled the Islamic State in Somalia to pressure Bossaso-based businesses to pay it protection money, the single most important source of income. In 2017-2018, the group is believed to have been behind as many as 50 assassinations in central Somalia. The killings were a forceful tool to generate protection money.

    On 27 July 2018, the Somali group was officially designated as a full province by the Islamic State, also known as ISIS. The Maktab al-Karrar regional office was based in the small Puntland chapter, giving it global responsibilities.

    The Somali group was made responsible for the central African and the Mozambique provinces of the Islamic State. Money flowed to the group from the Islamic State, as did extortion money from Bossaso, other northern Puntland cities and more infrequently from Mogadishu.

    In the first half of 2022, the US Treasury claimed that the organisation generated US$2.3 million from extortion payments, related imports, livestock and agriculture. The regional office and Muumin emerged as key financial players in east Africa, and even outside it, from their base in Buur Dexhtaal in Bari Puntland. Indeed, unnamed US officials claimed in 2023 that Muumim had been made the transnational leader of the Islamic State.

    3. An overblown reputation

    The Islamic State’s reputation in Somalia is often overstated. The group has never captured or held large territories. Its numbers in 2024 were estimated to be between 600 and 1,600. That pales in comparison to al-Shabaab in the south of Somalia.

    Its links to a planned attack on the Israeli embassy in Stockholm 2024 were probably weak and failed to hold up in court. And the jihadist linked to a planned attack in the Vatican 2018 seems to have left Islamic State prior to the planning.

    It is also doubtful that Muumin is the global leader of the Islamic State as claimed by some. That’s for two main reasons. First, an Islamic State leader has to be drawn from a tribe related to the prophet (Qureshi). Muumin is not. Second, the Islamic State in Somalia is the smallest of the Islamic State provinces in Africa. It is likely that a leader of a stronger province would have ranked higher.

    Although the income-gathering capacities of the Puntland-based group give it prominence in the Islamic State media, the Islamic State in Somalia does not rank higher than the Islamic State in the Sahara and Mozambique.

    4. Down but not out

    The Puntland authorities launched a relatively successful counter-offensive against the Islamic State in January 2025. This was combined with air support by the US and the United Arab Emirates.

    Puntland won important battles in January and February, including an attack in which it killed 70 Islamic State fighters.

    By late February, the morale of the Islamic State fighters seemed to break. With the fall of Buur Dexhtaal, the main base, in March, all the larger known bases had fallen. Many of the fleeing foreign fighters were captured.

    But the Islamic State is not defeated. The terrain enabled some of the fighters to hide. Neither Muumin, who is in his 70s, nor his second-in-command Abdirahman Fahiye have been reported killed. There are at least several hundred fighters left.

    If the Islamic State is still able to extort money from the northern business community, it could recruit from the large numbers of Oromo Ethiopian refugees in and around Bosaso, as well as locals who need jobs.

    – Islamic State in Somalia: the terrorist group’s origins, rise and recent battlefield defeats
    – https://theconversation.com/islamic-state-in-somalia-the-terrorist-groups-origins-rise-and-recent-battlefield-defeats-252303

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Islamic State in Somalia: the terrorist group’s origins, rise and recent battlefield defeats

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Stig Jarle Hansen, Professor of International Relations, Norwegian University of Life Sciences

    The Islamic State in Somalia is an affiliate of the transnational jihadist group Islamic State, known in short as ISIS. Based in the semi-autonomous northern Somalia territory of Puntland, the terrorist group was the target of the first foreign combat operation of the Trump administration in February 2025. Previously, the group has been linked to planned terror attacks on the Vatican and on the Israeli embassy in Stockholm. Stig Jarle Hansen, a researcher and author of several books on jihadism in Africa, examines its origins, rise and recent battlefield defeats in the mountains of Puntland.

    1. The rise of the Islamic State

    Before the establishment of the Islamic State in Somalia in 2015, the Somali jihadist group al-Shabaab had established itself in the north. The small group had extensive connections to smuggling networks. It later split into two and the future leader of the Islamic State in Somalia, Sheikh Abdulqader Muumin, emerged from one of the splinter groups.

    In Somalia, clans define the relationship between people and all actors in the society. The connections of the new group to the Ali Suleiban sub-clan enabled it to profit from the clan’s links to smuggling and maritime piracy groups.

    Puntland is the hub of communication and maritime trade between Somalia and Yemen, as well as the wider Middle East. Smuggling has gone on in the region for centuries. The rugged terrain is ideal for piracy, illegal smuggling and insurgents.

    Puntland has been more or less autonomous from the rest of Somalia for more than three decades, and the Somali government has little influence there today.

    2. The jihadist behind the Islamic State in Somalia

    Muumin lived in Sweden through the 1990s and early 2000s and later moved to the UK. Back in Somalia, he joined al-Shabaab and became a prominent figure in the group’s jihadist videos. Such videos aim to maintain morals, attract new recruits and create sympathy for the group.

    In 2015, Muumin defected to lead the Islamic State in Somalia. His second-in-command was another Ali Suleiban clansman, Mahad Moalim. In 2016, the first video of the group was circulated through Islamic State media outlets.

    A milestone for the group followed its 2017 suicide bombing of the Juba Hotel in Bosaso, Puntland’s commercial capital and sea port. This enabled the Islamic State in Somalia to pressure Bossaso-based businesses to pay it protection money, the single most important source of income. In 2017-2018, the group is believed to have been behind as many as 50 assassinations in central Somalia. The killings were a forceful tool to generate protection money.

    On 27 July 2018, the Somali group was officially designated as a full province by the Islamic State, also known as ISIS. The Maktab al-Karrar regional office was based in the small Puntland chapter, giving it global responsibilities.

    The Somali group was made responsible for the central African and the Mozambique provinces of the Islamic State. Money flowed to the group from the Islamic State, as did extortion money from Bossaso, other northern Puntland cities and more infrequently from Mogadishu.

    In the first half of 2022, the US Treasury claimed that the organisation generated US$2.3 million from extortion payments, related imports, livestock and agriculture. The regional office and Muumin emerged as key financial players in east Africa, and even outside it, from their base in Buur Dexhtaal in Bari Puntland. Indeed, unnamed US officials claimed in 2023 that Muumim had been made the transnational leader of the Islamic State.

    3. An overblown reputation

    The Islamic State’s reputation in Somalia is often overstated. The group has never captured or held large territories. Its numbers in 2024 were estimated to be between 600 and 1,600. That pales in comparison to al-Shabaab in the south of Somalia.

    Its links to a planned attack on the Israeli embassy in Stockholm 2024 were probably weak and failed to hold up in court. And the jihadist linked to a planned attack in the Vatican 2018 seems to have left Islamic State prior to the planning.

    It is also doubtful that Muumin is the global leader of the Islamic State as claimed by some. That’s for two main reasons. First, an Islamic State leader has to be drawn from a tribe related to the prophet (Qureshi). Muumin is not. Second, the Islamic State in Somalia is the smallest of the Islamic State provinces in Africa. It is likely that a leader of a stronger province would have ranked higher.

    Although the income-gathering capacities of the Puntland-based group give it prominence in the Islamic State media, the Islamic State in Somalia does not rank higher than the Islamic State in the Sahara and Mozambique.

    4. Down but not out

    The Puntland authorities launched a relatively successful counter-offensive against the Islamic State in January 2025. This was combined with air support by the US and the United Arab Emirates.

    Puntland won important battles in January and February, including an attack in which it killed 70 Islamic State fighters.

    By late February, the morale of the Islamic State fighters seemed to break. With the fall of Buur Dexhtaal, the main base, in March, all the larger known bases had fallen. Many of the fleeing foreign fighters were captured.

    But the Islamic State is not defeated. The terrain enabled some of the fighters to hide. Neither Muumin, who is in his 70s, nor his second-in-command Abdirahman Fahiye have been reported killed. There are at least several hundred fighters left.

    If the Islamic State is still able to extort money from the northern business community, it could recruit from the large numbers of Oromo Ethiopian refugees in and around Bosaso, as well as locals who need jobs.

    Stig Jarle Hansen does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Islamic State in Somalia: the terrorist group’s origins, rise and recent battlefield defeats – https://theconversation.com/islamic-state-in-somalia-the-terrorist-groups-origins-rise-and-recent-battlefield-defeats-252303

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: ASIA/INDONESIA – A ‘common vision’ for humanity and peace: Interview with the Indonesian Ambassador to the Holy See on the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations

    Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

    Agenzi Fides

    by Paolo AffatatoRome (Agenzia Fides) – “Pope Francis’ visit to Indonesia and the signing of the Istiqlal Declaration last September were a crowning achievement of diplomatic relations between Indonesia and the Holy See,” says Michael Trias Kuncahyono, Ambassador of the Republic of Indonesia to the Holy See, on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the official establishment of diplomatic relations between Indonesia and the Holy See on March 13, 1950. Fides Agency asked him some questions- Ambassador, can you recall the historical and political context in which the establishment of diplomatic relations between the Holy See and Indonesia took place, 75 years ago?Indonesia had recently completed the journey to gain independence from the Dutch colonizers: Indonesia proclaimed itself independent in 1945. But at that time, however, there were still colonial pressures from European powers, in the specific case of the Dutch. It was then the first native Indonesian bishop, Monsignor Albertus Sugiyopranoto who called on the Vatican to recognize Indonesian independence. Not only because of the assertion of the independence of the State but also because many missionaries were still imprisoned by colonial forces. This fact could have been a good push to get Indonesia’s recognition.- Was the personality of Albertus Sugiyopranoto therefore decisive?A bishop since 1940, he also made an important contribution during the occupation by Japanese forces in 1942, who had arrested priests and nuns. Bishop Sugiyopranoto took a very clear position. When Dutch forces attacked the Indonesians in 1947, he made an impassioned radio address urging Catholics to defend the homeland. He was an advocate for the involvement of Catholics in the independence movement. Meanwhile, he made contact with the Holy See, which sent one of its delegates in December 1947 and initiated direct relations with President Sukarno. Then the Apostolic Delegate, in agreement with Indonesian Vice President Mohamed Atta, dialogued to establish formal relations. Thus on March 13, 1950, the Holy See began diplomatic relations with Indonesia with the status of Apostolic Internunciature, which later became Apostolic Nunciature on December 6, 1966.- What were the respective goals on the two sides in establishing such relations?We know that the Holy See’s diplomacy is different from all other diplomacies in the world. The Vatican ambassador, today the Apostolic Nuncio, is sent to a State not only with the role of an intermediary between states but also to keep in connection and relationship the Church of Rome with the local Church, in the country in which it is located. At that time in Indonesia there was a great growth of the Catholic community, a phenomenon that aroused interest in the Holy See. So there was a need to facilitate the pastoral work and the life of the local Church. There was a need to follow and deepen the apostolic work in Indonesia. The goal of the Holy See is always to take care of the Catholic Church, and the Delegate was the Pope’s representative in this process.Indonesia, for its part, wanted to establish diplomatic relations because, as a very young country, it needed to be recognized in the international community. The international recognition by the Holy See was of immense value: the Holy See was the first European entity to recognize the Indonesian State. This then led other European States to follow the example. It was a decisive step.- Was the Catholic Church then already established in Indonesia? In what forms and with what configuration?The Catholic religion in Indonesia was already a well-established community, mainly thanks to some missionaries and “spiritual fathers” of the community, such as the Jesuit Franciscus Van Lith, who had been very involved in the apostolate of education, opening schools in Java, a work that was highly appreciated by Indonesian society at the time. The first Indonesian Bishop Sugiyopranoto was one of Father Van Lith’s students. Further east in the Flores area, then, a Catholic presence was already established thanks to the Portuguese. Let us remember that Christianity had arrived as early as the 7th century, and then in the 16th century several missionaries from Portugal had landed in Indonesia including Francis Xavier, passing through the Moluccas on his way to China.In addition, the fact that Indonesia, at its birth in 1945, was founded on the “Pancasila” the charter of five principles, one of which was faith in God; and that it adopted the principle of “diverse but one”: this made the Holy See realize that there was fertile ground in which all religions had a chance to flourish.- Was the “unity in diversity” approach a crucial point?That principle was the catalyst in diplomatic relations. But others, such as equality and brotherhood, are also in harmony with Christian values. The founding fathers were quite far-sighted in considering that a nation so rich in different cultures, ethnicities and religions could only survive by staying true to the motto “unity in diversity.” Pope Pius XII already appreciated this and Pope Francis also reiterated it, saying that the model should be taken as an example, especially in countries where there is great pluralism and it is difficult to remain united: we are different but we are brothers.- In Indonesian history, in designing the architecture of the Republic, the choice was made not to build a mono-religious state…It was: the first of the five founding principles was “faith in one God,” then that phrase should have continued by saying “in the Islamic way.” There was a great debate about it, then it was decided to leave only “faith in one God.” Mohammad Atta, the vice president, who was a Muslim and came from Padang a strongly Islamic city, pointed it out clearly because, he said, “we have to remain united.” It was a forward-looking vision.- What common points do you see between Indonesia and the Holy See today in their respective political and cultural approaches?Politically, Indonesia and the Holy See find themselves in a policy that is always in favor of humanity. The Holy See does not work for the maintenance of temporal power but for the development of man, his dignity and rights. I think Indonesia also has the same approach, as the Pancasila and our Constitution say, promoting equality, freedom, democracy as well as peace. These are points that Indonesia and the Holy See have in common.- Is there a common vision also in the use of the instrument of diplomacy?In the instrument of diplomacy, the aspect we have in common can be seen in the founding principles, such as freedom from colonialism and the promotion of peace: we see this in scenarios such as the Middle East, Ukraine, Myanmar. The “diplomacy of hope,” mentioned by Pope Francis in his recent address to the Diplomatic Corps, we understood it as diplomacy that wants to improve the world in a harmonious and comprehensive way. Hope must start from trust, which is the basis of relations between states. Hope for peace in the various conflict scenarios is generated on the basis of trust between the interlocutors.- What did Pope Francis’ trip to Indonesia in 2024 mean?Pope Francis’ visit to Indonesia and the signing of the Istiqlal Declaration last September was a crowning achievement of diplomatic relations between Indonesia and the Holy See. Not all countries with which the Holy See has relations are visited by the pontiff. And three Popes have visited Indonesia – Pope St. Paul VI (1970), Pope St. John Paul II (1989) and Pope Francis (2024).The trip was not perceived as a trip reserved for the Catholic community, but was perceived as a visit to all Indonesians, who welcomed the Pope with great warmth. The Pope became a model of a leader to follow: he was easy-going, showed himself in a non-luxury car, was always very humble, and stopped to greet everyone. Indonesia showed its true face, a plural face, composed of people of different cultures and religions who welcomed the Pope warmly and enthusiastically. Today, at the time of his illness, so many write to me, not only Catholics but also Muslims, saying: let us pray for him.- What do you hope for the future?We want to strengthen more and more the relations between Indonesia and the Holy See: and, since there is no political and economic aspect, to do it through culture. We intend to make the pluralism of Indonesian culture and its peaceful face better known. The Holy See is, for us, also a gateway to the rest of the world. Another field of fruitful cooperation is that of interreligious dialogue, according to the vision of Pope Francis. These are the paths for future relations. (Agenzia Fides, 18/3/2025)
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  • MIL-OSI Europe: OCEANIA/PAPUA NEW GUINEA – Resignation and succession of metropolitan archbishop of Mount Hagen

    Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

    Tuesday, 18 March 2025

    Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) – The Holy Father has accepted the resignation from the pastoral care of the metropolitan archdiocese of Mount Hagen, Papua New Guinea, presented by Archbishop Douglas William Young, S.V.D.He is succeeded by Archbishop Clement Papa, until now Coadjutor Archbishop of the same See.His Exc. Msgr. Clement Papa was born on 22 February 1971 in Mount Hagen, Western Highlands, (Papua New Guinea).He studied philosophy at the Good Shepherd Seminary in Maiwara, Madang, and, after a pastoral and spiritual experience, he studied theology at the Holy Spirit Seminary and the Catholic Theological Institute in Bomana, National Capital District. He was ordained a priest on 3 December 1999 for the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Mount Hagen.He has held the following positions and continued his studies: Assistant Parish Priest of Fatima (2000-2001); Parish Priest of Kol-Ambulua (2002-2003); Licentiate in Dogmatic Theology at the Pontifical Urbaniana University in Rome (2006); Chaplain at Holy Trinity Teachers College (2007); Dean of Studies at Good Shepherd Seminary in Mt. Hagen (2008); Doctorate in Theology at Melbourne College of Divinity (2021); Lecturer at Good Shepherd Seminary (2021); Rector of Good Shepherd Seminary (2011-2014; 2022); Member of the Finance Committee and Member of the Board of Trustees of the Archdiocese (2011-2014; 2023); since 2023 he has been the interim Director of the Spiritual Year at the Good Shepherd Seminary. (Agenzia Fides, 18/3/2025)
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  • MIL-Evening Report: Long before debates over ‘wokeness’, Epicurus built a philosophy that welcomed slaves, women and outsiders

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Thomas Moran, Lecturer in the Department of English, Creative Writing and Film, University of Adelaide

    German Vizulis/Shutterstock

    If you peruse the philosophy section of your local bookshop, you’ll probably find a number of books on Stoicism – an ancient philosophy enjoying a renaissance today. But where are the Epicureans?

    Both philosophical schools were popular in the ancient world. However, while stoic works such as Meditations by Marcus Aurelius and Seneca’s letters still fill the shelves, alongside contemporary takes such as The Daily Stoic (2016), Epicureanism largely remains a historical curiosity.

    Today, the Greek thinker Epicurus (341–270 BCE) is mostly remembered as the originator of the term “epicurean”, which describes someone devoted to sensual enjoyment, particularly of fine food and drink.

    And while it’s true Epicurus argued pleasure is the highest human good, there’s a lot more to Epicureanism than merely savouring a glass of Shiraz with haute cuisine.

    Philosophers in the garden

    Epicurus was born on the island of Samos to Athenian parents. He studied philosophy in Athens before travelling to the island of Lesbos to establish a philosophical academy.

    Epicurus was born on the island Samos, a birthplace he shares with the famous polymath Pythagoras.
    Wikimedia

    Upon returning to Athens in 306 BCE, he bought a tract of land and began a philosophical community known as the Garden.

    The Garden was radically different from other philosophical communities at the time. While Plato’s Academy generally trained the children of the Athenian elite, and Aristotle tutored nobles such as Alexander the Great, Epicurus’ Garden was far more inclusive. Women and slaves were welcome to join the dialogue.

    The community led a frugal life and practised total equality between men and women, which was uncommon at the time. In this atmosphere, noblewomen and courtesans, senators and slaves, all engaged in philosophical debate.

    While many early Epicureans have disappeared from the annals of history, we know of some women, such as Leontion and Nikidion, who were early proponents of Epicurean thought.

    Away from the main city of Athens, Epicurus’ Garden became a space for his followers to seek relief.
    gka photo/Shutterstock

    Philosophy as a way of life

    It isn’t just the Garden’s inclusivity that gives it contemporary appeal, but its entirely unique notion of what constitutes a philosophical life.

    According to Epicurus, a philosopher wasn’t someone who taught or wrote philosophical tracts. A philosopher was someone who practised what the French philosopher Pierre Hadot describes, in his work on Epicureanism, as “a certain style of life”.

    Epicureanism was a daily practice, rather than an academic discipline. Anyone who strove to live a philosophical life was part of the Epicurean community and was considered a philosopher.

    The concept of philosophy Epicurus promoted was more egalitarian and all-encompassing than the narrow definition we often see used today.

    The pursuit of pleasure

    But what did it mean to be a practising Epicurean? Epicurus conceived of philosophy as a therapeutic practice. “We must concern ourselves with the healing of our own lives,” he wrote.

    This process of healing involves developing an inner attitude of relaxation and tranquillity known as anesis in Ancient Greek. To do this, Epicureans sought to turn their minds away from the worries of life and focus instead on the simple joy of existence.

    Epicurus distinguished between different types of pleasure and advocated for a life of moderate pleasure, rather than excessive indulgence.
    Wikimedia

    According to Epicurus, unhappiness comes because we are afraid of things which should not be feared, and desire things which are not necessary and are beyond our control.

    Most notably, he rejected the idea of an afterlife, arguing the soul did not continue to exist after death. He also argued it was wrong to fear death as it

    gives no trouble when it comes [and] is but an empty pain in anticipation.

    Instead of fearing punishment in the beyond, he said we should focus on the possibilities for pleasure in the here and now. But that doesn’t mean chasing every pleasure which comes our way; the task of the Epicurean is to understand which pleasures are worth pursuing.

    The highest pleasures are not those which yield the highest intensity or last the longest, but those which are the least mixed with worry and the most likely to ensure peace of mind. In this vein, Epicurus sought to cultivate feelings of gratitude and appreciation for even the simplest everyday experiences.

    While his critics cast him and his followers as unrestrained hedonists, he wrote in one letter that a single piece of cheese was as pleasurable as an entire feast.

    For Epicureans, it is precisely the brevity of life that gives us such an exquisite capacity for pleasure. As one Epicurean Philodemus wrote:

    Receive each additional moment of time in a manner appropriate to its value; as if one were having an incredible stroke of luck.

    A philosophy for outsiders

    Epicurus’ perennial appeal resides in how his philosophy gave strength and inspiration to outsiders. In the late 19th century, aesthetes such as critic Walter Pater and playwright Oscar Wilde praised Epicureanism as a way of life.

    In Wilde’s letter De Profundis (From the depths) – written in 1897 while imprisoned in Reading Gaol on charges of indecency – he wrote that Pater’s novel Marius the Epicurean (1885) had given him both intellectual and spiritual solace during his trial.

    Pater, too, had faced discrimination at Oxford for having homosexual relationships. His novel is an evocative celebration of the possibilities of a life lived in the pursuit of sensual and spiritual beauty.

    In one of his earlier texts, The Renaissance (1873), Pater paraphrases Victor Hugo, writing

    we are all under a sentence of death but with a sort of indefinite reprieve […] we have an interval, and then our place knows us no more. […] Our one chance lies in expanding that interval, in getting as many pulsations as possible into the given time.

    This profoundly Epicurean sentiment, of a life lived in the interval, remains appealing to those who seek to turn their lives into a work of art.

    Thomas Moran does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Long before debates over ‘wokeness’, Epicurus built a philosophy that welcomed slaves, women and outsiders – https://theconversation.com/long-before-debates-over-wokeness-epicurus-built-a-philosophy-that-welcomed-slaves-women-and-outsiders-250772

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  • MIL-OSI Europe: ASIA/VIETNAM – Appointment of auxiliary bishop of Hung Hoá

    Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

    Saturday, 15 March 2025

    Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) – The Holy Father has appointed the Reverend Paul Nguyen Quang Dinh, until now vicar general of the diocese of Hung Hoá, Vietnam, responsible for Son Loc Cathedral and the diocesan liturgical Commission, as auxiliary bishop of the same diocese, assigning him the titular see of Voncaria.Msgr. Paul Nguyen Quang Dinh was born on 18 May 1973 in Son Thuy, in the diocese of Hung Hoá. He studied philosophy and theology at Saint Joseph Major Seminary in Hanoi.He was ordained a priest on 29 November 2005 for the diocese of Hung Hoá.After ordination, he first served as parish vicar of Du Ba in Hung Hoá (2006) and parish priest of Ngo Xa in Hung Hoá (2006-2009). He studied for a master’s degree in liturgy and sacramental theology at the Institut Catholique de Paris, France (2009-2016), and went on to hold the offices of parish priest of Yen Tap in Hung Hoá (2016-2019), and parish priest of Tuyên Quang in Hung Hoá (2019-2022).Since 2022 he has been vicar general and responsible for the Son Loc Cathedral and the liturgical Commission of the diocese of Hung Hoá. (Agenzia Fides, 15/3/2025)
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  • MIL-OSI Europe: Angelus – Pope Francis from the Gemelli Hospital: “I join with so many brothers and sisters who are sick: Our bodies are weak but, even like this, nothing can prevent us from loving and praying”

    Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

    Sunday, 16 March 2025

    Vatican Media

    Rome (Agenzia Fides) – In the Transfiguration, “Jesus shows the disciples what is hidden behind the gestures He performs in their midst: the light of His infinite love,” reads Pope Francis’s text for the Angelus prayer, published by the Vatican this Sunday, referring to the Gospel for the second Sunday of Lent.”I am sharing these thoughts with you,” the Pope writes, “while I am facing a period of trial, and I join with so many brothers and sisters who are sick: fragile, at this time, like me. Our bodies are weak but, even like this, nothing can prevent us from loving, praying, giving ourselves, being for each other, in faith, shining signs of hope.””How much light shines,” the Bishop of Rome continues in his reflections, “in this sense, in hospitals and places of care! How much loving care illuminates the rooms, the corridors, the clinics, the places where the humblest services are performed! That is why I would like to invite you, today, to join me in praising the Lord, who never abandons us and who, in times of sorrow, places people beside us who reflect a ray of His love.”The Pope, whose condition is slowly but steadily improving according to medical reports, thanks “everyone for your prayers” and, he writes, “those who assist me with such dedication. I know that many children are praying for me; some of them came here today to “Gemelli” as a sign of closeness. Thank you, dearest children! The Pope loves you and is always waiting to meet you.”In the morning, around 500 children gathered in the square forecourt of the Gemelli Hospital, where the statue of John Paul II stands. This was a delegation of children of many nationalities, supported by UNICEF and the Caritas office of the Diocese of Aversa, who expressed their affection for the Pope in this way.From the hospital, Pope Francis asked again to continue “to pray for peace, especially in the countries wounded by war: tormented Ukraine, Palestine, Israel, Lebanon, Myanmar, Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo”. (F.B.) (Agenzia Fides, 16/3/2025)
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  • MIL-OSI Europe: Press Release of the General Secretariat of the Synod and Letter on the Accompaniment Process of the Implementation Phase of the Synod

    Source: The Holy See

    Press Release of the General Secretariat of the Synod and Letter on the Accompaniment Process of the Implementation Phase of the Synod, 15.03.2025
    Press Release from the General Secretariat of the Synod
    (Saturday 15 March 2025)
    The General Secretariat of the Synod has sent to all Bishops and Eparchs and, through them, to the entire “Holy People of God” entrusted to their care, a Letter on the accompaniment process of the implementation phase of the Synod «For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation, Mission».
    This process of accompaniment and evaluation of the implementation phase, coordinated by the General Secretariat of the Synod, was approved by Pope Francis. The Holy Father requested its dissemination to the local Churches and groupings of Churches.
    Several significant meetings for evaluating the progress made in the implementation phase will conclude in 2028 with an ecclesial Assembly in Rome.
    ***
    Letter on the Accompaniment Process of the Implementation Phase of the Synod
    (Vatican, 15 March 2025)
    To the Patriarchs and Major Archbishops of the Eastern Catholic Churches
    To all Bishops and Eparchs
    To the Presidents of the Episcopal Conferences
    To the Presidents of the International Meetings of Episcopal Conferences
    Your Beatitude, Eminence, Excellency,
    Dear Brother in Christ,
    in a spirit of communion and co-responsibility, I write to you and to the holy People of God entrusted to your care regarding the implementation phase of the Synod «For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation, Mission». The Holy Father hopes that this phase, as outlined in the Apostolic Constitution Episcopalis Communio (n. 7, arts. 19-21), receives particular attention so that synodality is increasingly understood and lived as an essential dimension of the ordinary life of local Churches and the entire Church.
    On 11 March, the Holy Father definitively approved the start of a process of accompaniment and evaluation of the implementation phase by the General Secretariat of the Synod. This process calls upon Dioceses and Eparchies, Episcopal Conferences, and the hierarchical structures of the Eastern Catholic Churches, as well as their continental groupings. They will be responsible for engaging institutes of consecrated life, societies of apostolic life, lay associations, ecclesial movements, and new communities present in their territories. It will ultimately culminate in the celebration of an ecclesial assembly in the Vatican in October 2028. For now, therefore, a new Synod will not be convened; instead, the focus will be on consolidating the path taken so far.
    In the Accompanying Note to the Final Document of the XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, the Holy Father had already specified that it «is part of the ordinary magisterium of the Successor of Peter» and and, as such, must be received accordingly. He went on to explain that it is not strictly normative but nonetheless calls on the Churches to make consistent choices. In particular, «the local Churches and groupings of Churches are now called upon to implement, in their different contexts, the authoritative proposals contained in the Document through the processes of discernment and decision-making provided for by law and by the Document itself».
    In light of these indications, therefore, the implementation phase of the Synod should be understood not as merely the “application” of directives from above, but rather as a process of “reception” of the orientations expressed in the Final Document, adapted appropriately to local cultures and the needs of communities. At the same time, it is essential to move forward together as the whole Church, harmonizing this reception across different ecclesial contexts. This is the reason for the process of accompaniment and evaluation, which in no way diminishes the responsibility of each Church.
    In line with the indications of the Final Document, the aim is to concretely realize the perspective of the exchange of gifts between Churches and within the whole Church concrete (cf. nn. 120-121). Along the way, everyone will be able to benefit from the richness and creativity of the paths taken by local Churches, gathering the fruits in their territorial groupings (Provinces, Episcopal Conferences, International Meetings of Episcopal Conferences, etc.). The process will also be an opportunity to evaluate together the choices made at the local level and recognize the progress made in terms of synodality (cf. n. 9). Thanks to this process, the Holy Father will be able to listen to and confirm the orientations deemed valid for the whole Church (cf. nn. 12 and 131). Finally, this process provides the framework within which to place the many and diverse initiatives for implementing the orientations of the Synod, particularly the results of the work of the Study Groups and the contributions of the Canonical Commission.
    It is of fundamental importance to ensure that the implementation phase serves as an opportunity to re-engage the people who have contributed and to present the fruits gathered from listening to all the Churches and the discernment of the Pastors in the Synodal Assembly: thus, the dialogue already initiated in the listening phase will continue. The process will rely on the work of synodal teams composed of priests, deacons, consecrated men and women, laymen and laywomen, accompanied by their bishop: these are fundamental tools for accompanying the ordinary synodal life of local Churches. For this reason, existing teams should be valued and possibly renewed, idle teams should be reactivated and appropriately integrated. This process will also offer Dioceses that have invested less in the synodal path an opportunity to recover the steps not yet taken and to form their own synodal teams. I invite you to communicate to the Secretariat of the Synod the composition and references of the synodal team of your Diocese or Eparchy, using the form available in the attachment.
    In this context, the announcement of the Jubilee of synodal teams and participatory bodies to be held on 24-26 October 2025, takes on particular significance. thus placing the commitment to building a Church that is increasingly synodal within the horizon of the hope that does not disappoint, which we celebrate in the Jubilee.
    The journey that will lead the whole Church to the celebration of the ecclesial assembly in October 2028 will be structured in such a way as to offer adequate and sustainable times for the implementation of the Synod’s indications, while also providing for some significant moments of evaluation:
    · March 2025: announcement of the accompaniment and evaluation process;
    · May 2025: publication of the Support Document for the implementation phase, with guidelines for its conduct;
    · June 2025 – December 2026: implementation paths in local Churches and their groupings;
    · 24-26 October 2025: Jubilee of synodal teams and participatory bodies;
    · first half of 2027: evaluation Assemblies in Dioceses and Eparchies;
    · second half of 2027: evaluation Assemblies in national and international Episcopal Conferences, Eastern hierarchical structures, and other groupings of Churches;
    · first half of 2028: continental evaluation Assemblies;
    · June 2028: publication of the Instrumentum laboris for the works of the ecclesial Assembly in October 2028;
    · October 2028: celebration of the ecclesial Assembly in the Vatican.
    As of now, the General Secretariat of the Synod is committed to accompanying and supporting the Churches on this journey.
    Your Beatitude, Eminence, Excellency,
    with this letter, I am informing you of the start of this journey before it is made public. Until then, the information contained in this letter should be considered confidential. By the end of May, we will send further communications to the Churches with more details regarding the methodology and operational procedures of the journey.
    Without the impetus of diocesan and eparchial bishops, a process like the one outlined here would not even be imaginable. As of now, I would like to express my sincere thanks to you, your collaborators, and your synodal team for your commitment to advancing a journey that is particularly close to the Holy Father’s heart, for whose health we are all praying together in these weeks.
    I greet you fraternally in the Lord, wishing you and the Church of which you are Pastor a fruitful journey toward the upcoming Easter.
    Mario Card. Grech
    Secretary General of the General Secretariat of the Synod

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  • MIL-OSI Europe: Notice of Press Conference (updated)

    Source: The Holy See

    Notice of Press Conference (updated), 14.03.2025

    Tomorrow, Saturday, 15 March 2025, at 12.15, at the Theological University of Northern Italy – Turin Campus, Via X Settembre 83, Turin, and in live connection with the Holy See Press Office, a press conference will be held to present the initiatives associated with the liturgical feast of the Shroud during the Jubilee year.
    The speakers will be:
    – Archbishop Roberto Repole of Turin, bishop of Susa, pontifical Custodian of the Shroud;
    – Marco Bonatti, head of communication of the diocesan Commission for the Shroud.
    The experts of the diocesan Commission, in particular Professors Bruno Barberis and Gian Maria Zaccone, will be present and available to answer any questions.
    The press conference will be livestreamed in the original language on the Vatican News YouTube channel, at https://www.youtube.com/c/VaticanNews.

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  • MIL-OSI Europe: Message of the Holy Father, read by Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, to participants in the pilgrimage of the Movement for Life

    Source: The Holy See

    Message of the Holy Father, read by Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, to participants in the pilgrimage of the Movement for Life, 08.03.2025
    The following is the Message of the Holy Father to the participants in the pilgrimage of the Movement for Life, read out by Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin during Holy Mass in the Vatican Basilica:

    Message of the Holy Father
    Dear sisters and dear brothers of the Movement for Life!
    Thank you for your remembrance in prayer. Thank you from the bottom of my heart! I greet you all, in particular the President, Ms. Marina Casini, and the members of the Directorate.
    I know the value of the service you provide to the Church and society. Together with concrete solidarity, lived with the approach of closeness and proximity to mothers in difficulty due to a difficult and unexpected pregnancy, you promote the culture of life in a broad sense. And you aim to do so with frankness, love and tenacity, keeping truth closely united to charity towards everyone. You are guided in this by the examples and teachings of Carlo Casini, who had made service to life the centre of his lay apostolate and his political commitment.
    The occasion that has brought you to Rome is important: the fiftieth anniversary of the Movement for Life, whose first seed was the Centre for Help for Life, established in Florence in 1975. Since then, throughout Italy, the Centres for Help for Life have multiplied. They have been joined by the Reception Centres, the SOS Vita services, the Gemma Project and the Culle per la Vita, Cradles for Life. Countless initiatives have been undertaken to promote the culture of welcome and human rights at all levels of society. Therefore, I encourage you to pursue the social protection of motherhood and the acceptance of human life at every stage.
    In this half-century, while some ideological prejudices have diminished and sensitivity for the care of creation has grown among young people, unfortunately the culture of rejection has spread. Therefore, there is still, and more than ever, a need for people of all ages to concretely devote themselves to the service of human life, especially when it is at its most fragile and vulnerable; because it is sacred, created by God for a great and beautiful destiny; and because a just society is not built by eliminating unwanted unborn children, the elderly who are no longer independent, or the incurably ill.
    Dear sisters and dear brothers, you have come from many parts of Italy to renew once again your “yes” to the civilization of love, aware that freeing women from the conditioning that drives them not to give birth to their own child is a principle for the renewal of civil society. Indeed, it is before everyone’s eyes how society today is structured on the categories of possessing, doing, producing, and appearing. Your commitment, in harmony with that of the entire Church, points to a different approach, one that places the dignity of the person at the centre and prioritizes those who are weaker. The unborn child represents, par excellence, every man and woman who does not count, who has no voice. To place oneself on his or her side means standing in solidarity with all the world’s discarded. And the gaze of the heart that recognizes him or her as one of us is the lever that moves this project.
    Continue to be committed to women, on their capacity for acceptance, generosity and courage. Women must be able to count on the support of the entire civil and ecclesial community, and the Centres for Help for Life can become a point of reference for all. Thank you for the pages of hope and tenderness you help to write in the history book, and which remain indelible; they bear, and will bear, much fruit.
    May the Lord bless you and the Holy Virgin keep you. I entrust every one of you, your groups and your efforts to the intercession of Mother Teresa of Calcutta, spiritual president of the Movements for Life throughout the world. And do not forget to pray for me. Thank you.
    Rome, Gemelli Hospital, 5 March 2025
    FRANCIS

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  • MIL-OSI Europe: AFRICA/TANZANIA – Erection of the diocese of Bagamoyo, Tanzania, and appointment of first bishop

    Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

    Friday, 7 March 2025

    Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) – The Holy Father has erected the new diocese of Bagamoyo, Tanzania, with territory taken from the metropolitan archdiocese of Dar-es-Salaam and the diocese of Morogoro, making it a suffragan of the metropolitan see of Dar-es-Salaam.The Holy Father has appointed Bishop Stephano Lameck Musomba, O.S.A., until now titular bishop of Perdices and auxiliary of Dar-es-Salaam, as first bishop of the newly-erected diocese.Bishop Stephano Lameck Musomba, O.S.A., was born on 25 September 1969 in the village of Malonji, metropolitan archdiocese of Mbeya. He studied philosophy and theology at the Jordan University of Morogoro and was awarded a licentiate in patrology from the Augustinianum Patristic Institute in Rome.He entered the Order of Saint Augustine and received priestly ordination on 24 July 2003.He has held the following offices: parish assistant (2003-2004 and 2014-2016) and parish priest (2018-2021) of Immaculate Conception in Mavurunza in Dar-es-Salaam; formator in the House of Formation of the Order in Morogoro (2008-2009 and 2016-2018); lecturer in the Faculty of Theology of Jordan University in Morogoro (2008-2009); parish priest of Saint Augustine in Ternboni in Dar-es-Salaam (2009-2014); and prior of the Community of Saint Monica (2018-2021).He was appointed titular bishop of Perdices and auxiliary of Dar-es-Salaam on 7 July 2021, and received episcopal consecration the following 21 September.The Diocese of Bagamoyo [nom. lat. Bagamoyensis] was dismembered from the Archdiocese of Dar-es-Salaam and the Diocese of Morogoro and made suffragan of the Metropolitan See of Dar-es-Salaam. The See of the Diocese is in the city of Bagamoyo. The Cathedral church of the new ecclesiastical circumscription will be the church of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, in Bagamoyo. (Agenzia Fides, 7/3/2025)

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  • MIL-Evening Report: Meet Maria Clementina Sobieska, the defiant queen who pulled off a jailbreak to secure the Jacobite legacy

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Darius von Guttner Sporzynski, Historian, Australian Catholic University

    Wikimedia

    Maria Clementina Sobieski is one of only three women buried in the famous St Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City, alongside an estimated 100 or so popes. She lived a life of extraordinary defiance and determination.

    Born in 1701 in Oława, Poland, Maria Clementina was the granddaughter of King John III Sobieski of Poland, who was famous for his victory in the 1683 Battle of Vienna against the forces of the Ottoman Empire.

    While this ancestry provided Maria Clementina her status as a princess, it also came with significant challenges, by placing her at the centre of 18th century European dynastic politics.

    At just 17 years old, she was betrothed to James Stuart, the Jacobite claimant to the British throne. This match, which held immense political and religious significance, was agreed to by her father, Jakub, after negotiations with Stuart.

    But her journey to marriage wouldn’t simple. It required a daring escape from imprisonment in Innsbruck, where she was held by Emperor Charles VI in a bid to prevent her union with Stuart.

    Francesco Bertosi’s painting, ‘Princess Maria Clementina Sobieska, 1701–1735. Wife of Prince James Francis Edward Stuart’, 1719.
    National Galleries of Scotland

    A high-stakes abduction

    The marriage between Maria Clementina and James Stuart was a direct challenge to the Protestant king George I of Great Britain.

    James Stuart, also known as the Old Pretender, was living in exile and sought to reclaim the British throne that was his by birthright. His marriage to Maria Clementina, which was endorsed by Pope Clement XI, would symbolise Catholic unity against growing Protestant dominance.

    Recognising this political threat, George I asked Emperor Charles VI, his ally, to order Maria Clementina’s detention in Innsbruck while she was en route to her wedding.

    Her confinement was intended to coerce her family into annulling the engagement. However, Maria Clementina, bolstered by her unwavering faith and determination, refused to capitulate.

    Anton Raphael Mengs’s painting, ‘Prince James Francis Edward Stuart’, circa 1740s.
    Wikimedia

    The perilous escape

    Maria Clementina’s imprisonment at the hands of Charles VI lasted six months. During this time, she kept her spirits high through correspondence with James Stuart and her father, Jakub. Meanwhile, plans for her escape were set in motion by Charles Wogan, an Irish Jacobite loyal to Stuart.

    The princess disguised herself by switching clothes with the servant of one of her rescuers, Eleanor Misset. She then slipped past imperial guards with a small group posing as a travelling family.

    The escape involved avoiding imperial agents and enduring significant physical hardship, including traversing the harsh and mountainous Brenner Pass in the Alps.

    In one instance, after a carriage axle broke, Maria Clementina and Eleanor Misset were forced to walk a considerable distance to find shelter. Despite the gruelling journey, Maria Clementina demonstrated remarkable resolve, earning the admiration of her companions.

    Reaching safety and marriage

    After crossing into Italy, the group arrived in Bologna, where Maria Clementina rested and prepared for her new role as James Stuart’s wife. Her wedding took place on May 9 1719 in a modest ceremony.

    Although James Stuart was absent (not unusual for high-profile dynastic alliances at the time), the marriage formalised their union and reinforced the Jacobite claim to the British throne.

    Maria Clementina wore a white dress to symbolise mourning for James Stuart’s late mother, Maria Beatrice d’Este. The ceremony was attended by Jacobite activist Charles Wogan and other members of the escape team, including Eleanor Misset.

    And so Maria Clementina became the titular Catholic queen of England, Scotland and Ireland.

    Agostino Masucci’s ‘The Solemnisation of the Marriage of James III and Maria Clementina Sobieska’, circa 1735.
    National Galleries of Scotland

    Motherhood and family challenges

    Maria Clementina’s bold actions ensured the continuity of the Jacobite line. On December 31 1720 she gave birth to her first son, Charles Edward Stuart, later known as Bonnie Prince Charlie.

    He was baptised within the hour by Father Lawrence Mayes, the same bishop who officiated his parents’ wedding, and his birth was widely celebrated by Jacobite supporters.

    Maria Clementina’s second son, Henry Benedict Stuart, was born on March 6 1725 and was later made Duke of York.

    A monument in St Peter’s Basilica dedicated to the royal Stuarts, James and his sons, Charles and Henry.
    Wikimedia, CC BY-SA

    While the birth of her sons brought joy and hope to the Jacobite cause, Maria Clementina’s relationship with James Stuart grew strained.

    As one household observer remarked:

    their tempers are so very different that though in the greatest trifles they are never of the same opinion, the one won’t yield an inch to the other.

    James neglected Maria Clementina. The pair also clashed over their sons’ education, further straining the marriage.

    The later years

    By the end of 1725, Maria Clementina’s frustrations with her marriage reached a breaking point. She left James and took up residence at the convent of St Cecilia in Trastevere, Rome, leaving her young sons behind.

    For two years she embraced a devout lifestyle, focusing on her own welfare. Her return to James in 1728 was marked by a withdrawal from court life, and she spent much of her time in seclusion at Rome’s Palazzo Muti.

    John Pettie (1834-93), ‘Bonnie Prince Charlie Entering the Ballroom at Holyroodhouse’, before April 1892.
    Royal Collection Trust, CC BY-NC-SA

    Despite her struggles, Maria Clementina’s legacy as a mother was significant. Charles Edward Stuart and Henry Benedict Stuart carried the Jacobite cause forward, their lives shaped by the resilience and determination demonstrated by their mother. Her commitment to their futures ensured the Jacobite line endured, even as political realities shifted.

    Maria Clementina died on January 18 1735 at the age of 32. She was given a royal funeral in St Peter’s Basilica, where she was interred with honours befitting her status as queen. Her heart was enshrined separately in the church of the Twelve Holy Apostles in Rome.

    The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Meet Maria Clementina Sobieska, the defiant queen who pulled off a jailbreak to secure the Jacobite legacy – https://theconversation.com/meet-maria-clementina-sobieska-the-defiant-queen-who-pulled-off-a-jailbreak-to-secure-the-jacobite-legacy-247211

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: GENERAL AUDIENCE – Pope Francis’ Catechesis on the Childhood of Jesus: “Mary and Joseph felt the pain of parents with a missing child”

    Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

    Wednesday, 5 March 2025

    Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) – The Virgin is a pilgrim of hope, in the strong sense that she becomes the “daughter of her Son”, the first of His disciples. Mary brought into the world Jesus, Hope of humanity; she nourished Him, made Him grow, followed Him, letting herself be the first to be shaped by the Word of God”. This is what can be read in the text of the catechesis that Pope Francis, hospitalized at the Gemelli Hospital in Rome since February 14 for bilateral pneumonia, should have delivered today in the Paul VI Hall for the traditional Wednesday general audience.The Pope, continuing the cycle of catecheses dedicated to the life of Jesus read in the light of the themes of the Ordinary Jubilee that the Church is experiencing, focuses on the last of the stories of Jesus’ childhood narrated in the Gospel of Luke, namely the discovery of Jesus in the Temple, when “at twelve years old, he stayed in the Temple without telling His parents, who were anxiously looking for Him and found Him three days later”. A text – underlines the catechesis of Pope Francis – which presents us “with a very interesting dialogue between Mary and Jesus, which helps us to reflect on the path of the mother of Jesus, a journey that was certainly not easy. Indeed, Mary set out on a spiritual itinerary during which she advanced in her understanding of the mystery of her Son”.The catechesis of Pope Francis retraces all the stages, from the Annunciation to the tears shed under the Cross, up to Mary’s choice to remain in Jerusalem after the Resurrection “as Mother of the disciples, sustaining their faith while awaiting the outpouring of the Holy Spirit”.In the episode of the discovery of Jesus in the Temple – we read in the papal text released today – “The experience of twelve-year-old Jesus going missing during the annual pilgrimage to Jerusalem frightens Mary to the point that she also speaks for Joseph as they take their son back: “Son, why have you done this to us? Your father and I have been looking for you with great anxiety” (Lk 2:48). Mary and Joseph felt the pain of parents with a missing child: they both thought that Jesus was in the caravan with their relatives, but after not seeing Him for an entire day, they began the search that would lead them to retrace their steps. Upon returning to the Temple, they discover that He who, in their eyes, until a short time before, was still a child to protect, suddenly seems grown up, capable now of getting involved in discussions on the Scriptures, of holding His own with the teachers of the Law”.Faced with His mother’s rebuke – Pope Francis continues in his catechesis – “Jesus answers with disarming simplicity: “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” (Lk 2:49). Mary and Joseph do not understand: the mystery of God made child exceeds their intelligence. The parents want to protect that precious son under the wings of their love; instead, Jesus wants to live His vocation as the Son of the Father who is at His service and lives immersed in His Word”.The Pope defines Mary as a “pilgrim of hope.” And in this regard, he quotes what Benedict XVI wrote in the Encyclical Deus caritas est, 41: “We see how completely at home Mary is with the Word of God … we see how her thoughts are attuned to the thoughts of God, how her will is one with the will of God. Since Mary is completely imbued with the Word of God, she is able to become the Mother of the Word Incarnate”.However, the Pontiff points out, “this unique communion with the Word of God does not however save her the effort of a demanding ‘apprenticeship’”, such as the rebuke that Mary and Joseph address to the twelve-year-old Jesus. The response that reaches them, however, is not understood: “the mystery of God made child exceeds their intelligence”.Luke’s infancy narratives thus close “with Mary’s final words, which recall Joseph’s paternity towards Jesus, and with Jesus’ first words, which recognize that this paternity traces His origins from that of His heavenly Father, whose undisputed primacy He acknowledges”. (FB) (Agenzia Fides, 5/3/2025)
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  • MIL-OSI Europe: Notice from the Office of Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff

    Source: The Holy See

    Notice from the Office of Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff, 06.03.2025

    INDICATIONS
    9 MARCH 2025
    EUCHARISTIC CELEBRATION
    On 9 March 2025, First Sunday of Lent, on the occasion of the Jubilee of the World of Volunteering, at 10.30, on the parvis of Saint Peter’s Basilica, the Eucharistic Celebration will take place, presided over by His Eminence Cardinal Michael Czerny, S.J., prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, and delegate of the Holy Father Francis.
    For the circumstance, the Office of Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff announces the following:

    The following may concelebrate:
    – the Patriarchs and Cardinals, who are requested to be present by 9.45 in the Chapel of Saint Sebastian, bringing with them the white damask mitre;
    – the Archbishops and Bishops, bringing with them their amice, surplice, cincture and white mitre;
    – the Presbyters, bringing with them the ticket requested from this office via the procedure indicated at https://biglietti.liturgiepontificie.va, subject to availability. They must be present by 9.30 in the Braccio di Costantino, bringing with them their amice, surplice, cincture and purple stole.
    Vatican City, 6 March 2025
    ✠ Diego RavelliTitular Archbishop of RecanatiMaster of Pontifical Liturgical Celebrations

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  • MIL-OSI Global: Who’s who at the Vatican?

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Daniel Speed Thompson, Associate Professor of Religious Studies, University of Dayton

    Deacons take part in a mass in St. Peter’s Basilica that was supposed to be presided over by Pope Francis. AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino

    For more than two weeks, eyes have been on the Vatican, awaiting news about Pope Francis’ health. The pope has been at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital since Feb. 14, 2025, being treated for double pneumonia and other complications.

    When a pope is ill, resigns or passes away, who steps in? And who else helps lead the Holy See? The Conversation U.S. asked Daniel Speed Thompson, a theologian at the University of Dayton, for some insight into Vatican City.

    Who are the most powerful people at the Vatican, besides the pope?

    The Vatican houses the central government of the Catholic Church and is also an independent city-state. The pope is both the head of the Catholic Church and head of state.

    In order to govern both, he has the Roman Curia, meaning “court.” In modern terms, the Curia is the papal bureaucracy. It is an extension of the pope’s authority.

    In Catholic doctrine, the pope has the highest authority in the church. He can exercise it alone or with the College of Bishops, made up of all the bishops in the world. Bishops named by the pope to the office of “cardinal” can, if under 80 years old, vote to elect a new pope. Some cardinals, but by no means all, serve in the papal Curia in Rome.

    Besides the pope, curial officials who oversee important aspects of the church’s political and religious life are often powerful figures. For example, the secretariat of state, headed by Cardinal Pietro Parolin, oversees relations with other countries and international organizations. It also oversees the Vatican’s diplomatic corps.

    Pope Francis smiles as he walks alongside Vatican Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, left, and Cardinal Giuseppe Versaldi at the Vatican in 2014.
    AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia

    The Dicastery – “department” – for the Doctrine of the Faith, led by Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, addresses questions about correct Catholic teaching on faith and morals. The Dicastery of Bishops, headed by Cardinal Robert Prevost, coordinates the nominations of new bishops around the world.

    All these officials work under the authority of the pope, advocating for and implementing his agenda. For example, Prevost has suggested that all Catholics should be involved in the selection of bishops. This idea is linked with Francis’ call for a more “synodal” church: one that is less hierarchical and shaped by lay Catholics’ concerns and challenges.

    If a pope can’t fulfill his duties, who steps in?

    When a pope dies – or resigns, like Benedict XVI did in 2013 – the governance of the Catholic Church formally falls to the College of Cardinals. However, the authority of the college is very limited. On their own, cardinals cannot make any significant decisions concerning faith, morals and worship. Nor can they undo previous papal decisions or change church laws about electing a new pope.

    All the heads of the dicasteries lose their office upon the death or resignation of a pope. The College of Cardinals serves as a caretaker government whose primary purpose is to prepare for the election of the new pope and oversee day-to-day workings of the Vatican.

    One cardinal, known as the “camerlengo,” is responsible for confirming the pope’s death or resignation. He then assumes control over the pope’s residence and coordinates the funeral, if needed. The camerlengo also takes custody of the Vatican’s property in Rome and supervises details for the upcoming conclave.

    Cardinal Camerlengo Kevin Farrell talks with The Associated Press in his office in Rome in 2018.
    AP Photo/Paolo Santalucia

    The day-to-day business of the Catholic Church continues, but no big decisions can be made in the absence of a pope. The church cannot appoint new bishops, and the Vatican cannot start new diplomatic efforts.

    Are officials at the Vatican often nominated to be pope?

    Sometimes. Francis was a cardinal from Argentina before his election as pope and had not served in the Roman Curia. However, Benedict XVI, Francis’ predecessor, did serve as the prefect of the Congregation – now called Dicastery – for the Doctrine of the Faith. Some recent popes served in the Curia earlier in their career but not immediately before their election.

    What do you wish more people understood about the Vatican?

    Three things. First, the Vatican is unlike any organization in the world. Its religious mission and political status rest on nearly 2,000 years of history. This complicated story provides a unique tradition that anchors the institution of the Catholic Church, but can also block the church from critical self-examination and renewal.

    Second, the Vatican is like every organization in the world. Vatican officials can be faithful to the highest standards of their religion, truly wishing to serve the church and the common good of humanity. But they can also be flagrantly immoral, even criminals, and careerist seekers of status or luxury. Francis has consistently called out priests and bishops who see themselves as somehow superior by virtue of their office or their ordination.

    Finally, compared with the massive bureaucracies of modern governments and corporations, the Vatican is relatively small and not as wealthy as it is often portrayed.

    Although the Curia manages a vast international organization, its resources are far closer to my own midsize Catholic university than to the U.S. government or Apple. Vatican City and the Holy See employ about 2,000 people, with an operating budget of about US$835 million.

    Yes, the Catholic Church has wealth – and the ongoing problem of deficits and financial corruption. But the Vatican’s resources pale in comparison with what a modern state or large company can muster.

    Daniel Speed Thompson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Who’s who at the Vatican? – https://theconversation.com/whos-who-at-the-vatican-250874

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: ANGELUS – Pope Francis from Gemelli Hospital: I am learning even more to trust in the Lord, from here, war appears even more absurd

    Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

    Sunday, 2 March 2025

    Rome (Agenzia Fides) – “Sisters and brothers, I am still sending you these thoughts from the hospital, where as you know I have been for several days, accompanied by doctors and healthcare professionals, whom I thank for the attention with which they are taking care of me. I feel in my heart the “blessing” that is hidden within frailty, because it is precisely in these moments that we learn even more to trust in the Lord; at the same time, I thank God for giving me the opportunity to share in body and spirit the condition of so many sick and suffering people”.This is the text message that Pope Francis sends from the Gemelli Hospital in Rome, written on the occasion of the Angelus, for the third consecutive time released without having been pronounced by the Pontiff, hospitalized since February 14 at the Roman hospital for bilateral pneumonia. Commenting on today’s Gospel, where we read about the famous passage of the beam and the splinter in the eye (see Luke 6:39-45), the Pontiff points out that Jesus “asks us to train our eyes to observe the world well and to judge our neighbour with charity. Only with this gaze of care, not condemnation, can fraternal correction be a virtue. Because if it is not fraternal, it is not correction!”.The Bishop of Rome, who this morning – as reported by the director of the Vatican Press Office – received a visit from the Cardinal Secretary of State, Pietro Parolin, and the Substitute for General Affairs of the Secretariat of State of the Holy See, Archbishop Edgar Pena Parra, then thanks “the many faithful” who “from many parts of the world” are showing him affection: “I would like to thank you for the prayers, which rise up to the Lord from the heart: I feel all your affection and closeness and, at this particular time, I feel as if I am “carried” and supported by all God’s people. Thank you all!””I pray for you too. And I pray above all for peace. From here, war appears even more absurd. Let us pray for tormented Ukraine, Palestine, Israel, Lebanon, Myanmar, Sudan and Kivu”, concludes the Pope, relaunching the appeal for peace in the world. (F.B.) (Agenzia Fides, 2/3/2025)
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  • MIL-OSI Europe: ASIA/LESOTHO – Resignation and appointment of bishop of Leribe

    Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

    Friday, 28 February 2025

    Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) – The Holy Father has accepted the resignation from the pastoral care of the diocese of Leribe, Lesotho, presented by Bishop Augustinus Tumaole Bane, O.M.I.The Holy Father has appointed the Reverend Vitalis Sekhonyana Marole, O.M.I., until now parish priest of Moya and Saint Matthew in the metropolitan archdiocese of Pretoria, as well as consultor in the same archdiocese and provincial consultor of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate in South Africa, as bishop of the diocese of Leribe, Lesotho.Bishop Vitalis Sekhonyana Marole, O.M.I., was born on 10 December 1954 in Semonkong, in Lesotho, in the metropolitan archdiocese of Maseru. He studied philosophy at the Oblate Scholasticate in Lesotho and theology at the Saint John Vianney National Major Seminary in Pretoria, South Africa.He was ordained a priest on 3 December 1988, and gave his perpetual vows on 9 December 1996.He has held the following offices: parish priest of Saint Elizabeth’s in Mamaneng, Pretoria (1988-1992), parish priest of Saint Peter in Kagiso 1, Johannesburg (1993-1994), member of the formative team for the prenovitiate of Rayton, Pretoria (1994-1998), parish priest of Saint Raphael in Mamelodi, Pretoria (1994-2000), vicar forane of the Eastern Deanery (1999-2000), master of novices at the International Oblate Novitiate, Johannesburg (2002-2009 and 2015-2016), parish priest of Saint Anne in Atteridgeville and chaplain of Holy Trinity High School, Pretoria (2011-2013), chaplain of Saint Benedict’s College in Bedfordview (2013-2014), parish priest of Saint Peter’s in Cullinan and Saint Eugene of Mazenod in Refilwe.Since 2018 he has served as parish priest of Moya and Saint Matthew in the metropolitan archdiocese of Pretoria and consultor of the same archdiocese, as well as provincial consultor of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate in South Africa. (Agenzia Fides, 28/2/2025)
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  • MIL-OSI Europe: Message of the Holy Father Francis to participants in the course for those responsible for episcopal liturgical celebrations of the Pontifical Athenaeum of Saint Anselm (24 to 28 February 2025)

    Source: The Holy See

    Message of the Holy Father Francis to participants in the course for those responsible for episcopal liturgical celebrations of the Pontifical Athenaeum of Saint Anselm (24 to 28 February 2025), 28.02.2025
    The following is the Message sent by the Holy Father Francis to participants in the course for those responsible for episcopal liturgical celebrations of the Pontifical Athenaeum of Saint Anselm (24 to 28 February 2025):

    Message of the Holy Father
    Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
    I greet the Father Abbot Primate and the Dean of the Pontifical Liturgical Institute, with the professors and students who have attended this second edition of the course for those responsible for episcopal liturgical celebrations. I am pleased to note that you have once again accepted the invitation formulated in the Apostolic Letter Desiderio desideravi, continuing to study the liturgy, not only from a theological perspective, but also in the area of celebratory praxis.
    This dimension touches the life of the people of God and reveals its true spiritual nature (cf. Dogmatic Constitution Lumen gentium, 9). Therefore, the person responsible for liturgical celebrations is not just a teacher of theology; he is not a scribe, who applies the norms; he is not a sacristan, who prepares what is needed for the celebration. He is a teacher placed at the service of the prayer of the community. While humbly teaching the liturgical art, he must guide all those who celebrate, keeping the ritual rhythm and accompanying the faithful in the sacramental event.
    As a mystagogue, he prepares every celebration wisely, for the good of the assembly; he translates into celebratory praxis the theological principles expressed in the liturgical books (Caeremoniale Episcoporum, 9). Thus assisted, the pastor can gently lead the entire diocesan community in the offering of self to the Father, in imitation of Christ the Lord.
    Dear brothers and sisters, every diocese looks to the Bishop and the Cathedral as celebratory models to be imitated. I urge you, therefore, to propose and foster a liturgical style that expresses the following of Jesus, avoiding unnecessary pageantry or prominence. I invite you to carry out your ministry in discretion, without boasting about the results of your service. And I encourage you to transmit these attitudes to the ministers, lectors and cantors, according to the words of Psalm 115 quoted in the Prologue of the Benedictine Rule: “Not to us, Lord, not to us give the glory, but to your name alone” (cf. nos. 29-30).
    In all of your tasks, do not forget that care for the liturgy is first and foremost care for prayer, that is, for the encounter with the Lord. When he proclaimed Saint Teresa of Ávila as doctor of the Church, Saint Paul VI defined the mystical experience as a love that becomes light and wisdom: the wisdom of the divine and the human (cf. Homily, 27 September 1970). May this great master of spiritual life be an example to you: indeed, to prepare and guide liturgical celebrations means bringing together divine and human wisdom. The first is acquired through prayer, meditation and contemplation; the second comes from study, the commitment to deepen, the ability to listen.
    To succeed in these tasks, I advise you to keep your eyes on the people, of whom the Bishop is pastor and father: this will help you to understand the needs of the faithful, as well as the forms and ways to promote their participation in liturgical action.
    Since worship is the work of the whole assembly, the encounter between doctrine and pastoral care is not an optional technique, but a constitutive aspect of the liturgy, which must always be incarnated, inculturated, expressing the faith of the Church. Consequently, the joys and sufferings, the dreams and concerns of the people of God possess a hermeneutical value that we cannot ignore (cf. Videomessage to the International Congress of Theology at the U.C.A., Buenos Aires, 1-3 September 2015). I like to recall, in this regard, what the first dean of the Pontifical Liturgical Institute, Benedictine Abbot Salvatore Marsili, wrote. It was in 1964: with foresight he invited us to become aware of the message of the Second Vatican Council, in the light of which no true pastoral work is possible without liturgy, because the liturgy is the peak to which all the action of the Church (cf. S. Marsili, Riforma Liturgica dall’alto, Rivista Liturgica 51 [1964] 77-78).
    As I invite you to make these words the fundamental perspective of your ministry, I hope that every one of you will always have at heart the people of God, whom you accompany in worship with wisdom and love. And do not forget to pray for me.
    From “Gemelli” Hospital, 26 February 2025
                                                                                                            FRANCIS

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  • MIL-Evening Report: Oscars 2025: who will likely win, who should win, and who barely deserves to be there

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ari Mattes, Lecturer in Communications and Media, University of Notre Dame Australia

    We’ve probably all had a moment when we stopped taking the Oscars too seriously. For me, it was when Denzel Washington won best actor for Training Day (2001), a crime film in which he displays virtually none of his acting chops.

    And as popular cinema becomes uglier (it’s mostly shot on digital video now, which almost never looks as good as film) and streamers (or logistics companies such as Amazon) take over film production, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to appreciate the point of the ceremony.

    From this year’s ten nominees for best picture, The Brutalist, Conclave and I’m Still Here are good – while (most of) the other nominees are only okay.

    Some well-made films, but nothing outstanding

    Writer-director Sean Baker’s Anora is nominated for best picture this year, after already winning the Palme d’Or. It’s a moderately sweet film in the tradition of Pretty Woman – having more nudity and sex, and a disappointing ending, doesn’t automatically make it edgier. It’s too long by at least half an hour, with some okay performances.

    It’s certainly not bad, but the idea that this is one of the “best pictures” of 2024 is alarming – or would be, if I wasn’t already so cynical. Most importantly, there’s nothing formally or aesthetically compelling about it, in which case I might have forgiven the silly (anti) Cinderella story.

    Another nominee, A Complete Unknown, is similarly well-made. Timothée Chalamet gives a predictably moody performance as Bob Dylan, and it’s fun to learn something about the relationships between Dylan and musical legends Joan Baez and Pete Seeger.

    But there’s also something fundamentally weird about watching a memoir about a person as iconic as Dylan. It veers too often into the terrain of impersonation, and this is even more off-putting given Dylan is still alive. Throw in Chalamet’s (certainly accomplished) singing of Dylan’s songs, and it feels like we’re watching someone do karaoke really well.

    The Substance tries to shock and titillate the viewer with its caricature of celebrity in an era of body modification and mega-media corporations. Demi Moore, Margaret Qualley and Dennis Quaid try hard to be funny, but the whole thing plays like an undergraduate essay that makes the same point ad nauseam. Though the actors surely had fun, there’s nothing compelling about their guffawing.

    This is also the problem with messy hybrid musical-thriller Emilia Pérez, the other over-the-top genre film tipped by some to win the award.

    The film, following a cartel leader who disappears and transitions into a woman, is overly dependent on making a point about the world outside of itself. This point is so obvious that it rapidly becomes tedious, with insufficient attention given to the formal and narrative tensions and ambiguities that compel an audience to engage with a film on a serious, visceral level.

    Dune: Part Two sounds and looks good, but is more meandering than Part One in developing Herbert’s unwieldy epic. If you liked Part One, you’ll probably like Part Two, but it’s not exactly cutting-edge material.

    Nickel Boys is a low-key, sentimental rendition of Colson Whitehead’s novel about two African American boys sent to a reform school in Florida in the early 1960s, and their coming of age as they survive myriad abuses. It’s watchable, if not particularly memorable.

    Finally, Wicked is, well … Wicked. If you like the musical you may like the film (although the live aspect of musicals makes this one play better on the stage than on the screen, unlike The Wizard of Oz, which was made for the screen). In any case, it’s not ridiculously bad, even though it is too long.

    A few top contenders

    Walter Salles’ I’m Still Here – which traces the struggle of an activist in Brazil after the forced disappearance of her husband in 1970 – works well in its evocation of place and time, and should soften the heart of even the most cynical viewer.

    Based on Marcelo Rubens Paiva’s 2015 memoir, the entire film is washed over with a faint scent of nostalgia that complements the idea of failing to find, and then remembering, that which is missing.

    Conclave, adapted from Robert Harris’ novel, is another solidly made affair. It follows the political machinations of the Vatican as the Dean of Cardinals sets up a conclave to elect a new pope after the previous one dies of a heart attack.

    Ralph Fiennes is as effective and sombre as usual in the lead role as Cardinal Lawrence and various twists and turns keep us watching throughout. But one suspects the primary pleasure of the film is that it seems to offer an insider’s view of the Vatican, including all the fetishistic processes and rituals.

    Despite its serious tone, Conclave is a fun romp. And what a pleasure it is to watch Isabella Rossellini on the big screen once again.

    The strongest nominee

    The film that is most classically like a best picture nominee is The Brutalist – an epic, visually-magnificent study of the struggles of (fictional) architect László Toth, a Hungarian Jew who moves to America following the Holocaust.

    Testament to the technical accomplishments of the film, and its superb creation of a coherent world, The Brutalist runs close to four hours (thankfully with an intermission) without becoming tedious. It chugs along with the relentless momentum of a steam engine.

    Adrien Brody is charming as Toth, endowing the character with a roguish and playful quality, and the supporting cast are solid. Akin to one of Toth’s constructions (as we hear in the epilogue section), the film neither indicates nor tells us anything beyond itself.

    There may be conclusions to be drawn regarding the relationship between art, power and capitalism, but the film gives you the space to devise these yourself. The film is, in a sense, beautifully mute.

    Out of all the nominations, The Brutalist is the only one that feels like a genuine best picture contender (with something of the grandeur of classical Hollywood cinema about it). Although many critics are predicting Anora will win, The Brutalist is the strongest of the nominees.

    That said, my pick for the best film of 2024 goes to a production that didn’t get a best picture nomination (as usual). Magnus von Horn’s The Girl With the Needle is a stunning Danish expressionistic nightmare that seamlessly integrates formal experimentation with a thrilling and horrific true crime narrative.

    It is absolutely sensational – the kind of thing you never forget. Thankfully, it has been recognised through its nomination for best international feature film.

    Ari Mattes does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Oscars 2025: who will likely win, who should win, and who barely deserves to be there – https://theconversation.com/oscars-2025-who-will-likely-win-who-should-win-and-who-barely-deserves-to-be-there-250783

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Pope Francis: why his papacy matters for Africa – and for the world’s poor and marginalised

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Stan Chu Ilo, Research Professor, World Christianity and African Studies, DePaul University

    Pope Francis remains in a critical condition and hospitalised as he battles pneumonia in both lungs. The first pope from the Americas and also the first to come from outside the west in the modern era, the Argentinian was elected leader of the Catholic church on 13 March 2013. At the time, the church was beset by crises, from corruption to clerical sexual abuse. Stan Chu Ilo, a Catholic priest and a research professor of African studies and world Catholicism, examines the milestones in the life, work and legacy of Pope Francis.

    What did Pope Francis inherit when he took over in 2013?

    By the time the Argentinian Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio was elected pope in 2013 there was a general feeling that the Catholic church was reaching the end of an era.

    By the end of 2012 what was in the news about the church included the revelation of papal secrets by the papal butler. These details were published in a book by the Italian journalist Gianluigi Nuzzi, titled His Holiness: The Secret Files of Pope Benedict. The book portrayed the Vatican as a corrupt hotbed of jealousy, intrigue and underhanded factional fighting.

    The revelations caused the church a great deal of embarrassment.

    Some of the challenges facing the church which the ageing Pope Benedict XVI could no longer handle included:

    Cardinal Bergoglio was elected by the Catholic cardinals with a mandate to clean up the church and reform the Vatican and its bureaucracy. He was to institute processes and procedures for transparency, accountability and renewal of the church and its structures, and address the lingering scandals of clerical abuse.

    What is his global papal role and legacy?

    Three key things have defined his papal role and legacy.

    First is concentrating on the core competence of the church: serving the poor and the marginalised. This is what the founder of the Christian religion, Jesus Christ, did.

    Francis has focused the Catholic church and the entire world on one mission: helping the poor, addressing global inequalities, speaking for the voiceless, and placing the attention of the world on those on the periphery.

    He also chose to live simply, forsaking the pomp and pageantry of the papacy.

    Secondly, he changed the way the Catholic church’s message is communicated. In his programmatic document, Evangelii Gaudium, he called the church to what he calls “missionary conversion”. His thinking is that everything that is done in the church must be about proclaiming the good news to a wounded and broken world.

    His central message has been that of mercy towards all, an end to wars, our common humanity and the closeness of God to those who suffer. The suffering in the world continues to grow because of injustice, greed, selfishness and pride. He has also focused on symbols and simple style to press home his message, like celebrating mass at a wall that divides the United States and Mexico.



    Read more:
    Pope Francis: the first post-colonial papacy to deliver messages that resonate with Africans

    In 2015 he made a risky trip to Bangui, the capital of Central African Republic, during a time of war and tension between the fighting factions of the Muslim Seleka and the Christian anti-balaka. He drove on the Popemobile with both the highest ranking Muslim cleric in the country and his Christian counterpart and visited both a Christian church and a mosque to press home the message of peace.

    The third strategy is restructuring the church and reforming the Vatican bank.

    He created the G8 (a representative council of cardinals from every part of the world) to advise him, calling the Catholic church to a synod for dialogue on every aspect of the life of the church. This effort was unprecedented.

    He also overhauled the procedures for the synod of bishops, making it more participatory, and gave women and the non-ordained voting rights. He has also shaken up the membership of the Vatican department that picks bishops to include women. He appointed the first woman (Sr Simone Brambilla) to lead a major Vatican department and to have a cardinal as her deputy. Another woman (Sr Raffaella Petrini) was named the first woman governor of the Vatican City State.

    What has he done to strengthen the Catholic church in Africa?

    Three things stand out.

    First, he reflected the concerns of people on the continent with his message against imperialism, colonialism, exploitation of the poor by the rich, global inequality, neo-liberal capitalism and ecological injustice. Pope Francis became a voice for Africa. When he visited Kenya in 2015, he chose to visit the slums of Nairobi to proclaim the gospel of liberation to the forsaken of society. He called on African governments to guarantee for the poor and all citizens access to land, lodging and labour.

    In a sense, Pope Francis embodies the message of decolonisation and is driven in part by the liberation theology that developed in Latin America. This theology tied religious faith with liberation of the people from structures of injustice and structural violence.

    Secondly, he has encouraged African Catholics to develop Africa’s own unique approach to pastoral life and addressing social issues in Africa. Particularly, Pope Francis believes in decentralisation and local processes in meeting local challenges. He has said many times that it is not necessary that all problems in the church be solved by the pope at the Roman centre of the church.

    In this way, he has encouraged the growth and development of African priorities and cultural adaptation to the Catholic faith. He has also encouraged greater transparency and accountability among African bishops and given African Catholic universities and seminaries greater autonomy to develop their own educational priorities and programmes.

    Thirdly, Pope Francis has a very deep connection to Africa’s young people. He has encouraged and supported initiatives and programmes to strengthen the agency of young people, to give them hope and support their personal, spiritual and professional development. For the first time in history, on 1 November 2022, Pope Francis met virtually with more than 1,000 young Africans for an hour. I helped organise this meeting. He answered their questions and encouraged them to fight for what they believe.

    What’s gone wrong, what’s gone well under his watch?

    Pope Francis’s reform could be termed a movement from a church of a few where priests and bishops and the pope call the shots to a church of the people of God where everyone’s voice matters and where everyone’s concerns and needs are catered to.

    He has quietly changed the tone of the message and the style of the leadership at the Vatican.

    Granted, he has not substantially altered the content of that message, which is often seen as conservative, Eurocentric, and resistant to cultural pluralism and social change. But he is chipping away at its foundations through inclusion and an openness to hearing the voices of everyone, including those who do not agree with the church’s position. In doing this, he has shifted the priorities and practices of the Catholic church regarding such core issues as power and authority.

    He has opened the doors to the voices of the marginalised in the church — women, the poor, the LGBTQi+ community, and those who have disaffiliated from the church. Many African Catholics would love to see more African representation at the Vatican, and many of them also worry about the widening division in the church, particularly driven by cultural and ideological battles in the west that have nothing to do with the social and ecclesial context of Africa.

    Why does his papacy matter?

    Pope Francis is the first pope from the Americas, the first Jesuit pope, the first to choose the name Francis and the first to come from outside the west in the modern era. He chose the name Francis because he wanted to focus his papacy on the poor, emulating St Francis of Assisi.

    In a sense, Pope Francis has redefined what religion and spirituality mean for Catholicism. It’s not laying down and enforcing the law without mercy, it is caring for our neighbours and the Earth. This is the kind of religion the world needs today.

    Stan Chu Ilo does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Pope Francis: why his papacy matters for Africa – and for the world’s poor and marginalised – https://theconversation.com/pope-francis-why-his-papacy-matters-for-africa-and-for-the-worlds-poor-and-marginalised-251059

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Pope Francis: why his papacy matters for Africa – and for the world’s poor and marginalised

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Stan Chu Ilo, Research Professor, World Christianity and African Studies, DePaul University

    Pope Francis remains in a critical condition and hospitalised as he battles pneumonia in both lungs. The first pope from the Americas and also the first to come from outside the west in the modern era, the Argentinian was elected leader of the Catholic church on 13 March 2013. At the time, the church was beset by crises, from corruption to clerical sexual abuse. Stan Chu Ilo, a Catholic priest and a research professor of African studies and world Catholicism, examines the milestones in the life, work and legacy of Pope Francis.

    What did Pope Francis inherit when he took over in 2013?

    By the time the Argentinian Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio was elected pope in 2013 there was a general feeling that the Catholic church was reaching the end of an era.

    By the end of 2012 what was in the news about the church included the revelation of papal secrets by the papal butler. These details were published in a book by the Italian journalist Gianluigi Nuzzi, titled His Holiness: The Secret Files of Pope Benedict. The book portrayed the Vatican as a corrupt hotbed of jealousy, intrigue and underhanded factional fighting.

    The revelations caused the church a great deal of embarrassment.

    Some of the challenges facing the church which the ageing Pope Benedict XVI could no longer handle included:

    Cardinal Bergoglio was elected by the Catholic cardinals with a mandate to clean up the church and reform the Vatican and its bureaucracy. He was to institute processes and procedures for transparency, accountability and renewal of the church and its structures, and address the lingering scandals of clerical abuse.

    What is his global papal role and legacy?

    Three key things have defined his papal role and legacy.

    First is concentrating on the core competence of the church: serving the poor and the marginalised. This is what the founder of the Christian religion, Jesus Christ, did.

    Francis has focused the Catholic church and the entire world on one mission: helping the poor, addressing global inequalities, speaking for the voiceless, and placing the attention of the world on those on the periphery.

    He also chose to live simply, forsaking the pomp and pageantry of the papacy.

    Secondly, he changed the way the Catholic church’s message is communicated. In his programmatic document, Evangelii Gaudium, he called the church to what he calls “missionary conversion”. His thinking is that everything that is done in the church must be about proclaiming the good news to a wounded and broken world.

    His central message has been that of mercy towards all, an end to wars, our common humanity and the closeness of God to those who suffer. The suffering in the world continues to grow because of injustice, greed, selfishness and pride. He has also focused on symbols and simple style to press home his message, like celebrating mass at a wall that divides the United States and Mexico.

    Read more: Pope Francis: the first post-colonial papacy to deliver messages that resonate with Africans

    In 2015 he made a risky trip to Bangui, the capital of Central African Republic, during a time of war and tension between the fighting factions of the Muslim Seleka and the Christian anti-balaka. He drove on the Popemobile with both the highest ranking Muslim cleric in the country and his Christian counterpart and visited both a Christian church and a mosque to press home the message of peace.

    The third strategy is restructuring the church and reforming the Vatican bank.

    He created the G8 (a representative council of cardinals from every part of the world) to advise him, calling the Catholic church to a synod for dialogue on every aspect of the life of the church. This effort was unprecedented.

    He also overhauled the procedures for the synod of bishops, making it more participatory, and gave women and the non-ordained voting rights. He has also shaken up the membership of the Vatican department that picks bishops to include women. He appointed the first woman (Sr Simone Brambilla) to lead a major Vatican department and to have a cardinal as her deputy. Another woman (Sr Raffaella Petrini) was named the first woman governor of the Vatican City State.

    What has he done to strengthen the Catholic church in Africa?

    Three things stand out.

    First, he reflected the concerns of people on the continent with his message against imperialism, colonialism, exploitation of the poor by the rich, global inequality, neo-liberal capitalism and ecological injustice. Pope Francis became a voice for Africa. When he visited Kenya in 2015, he chose to visit the slums of Nairobi to proclaim the gospel of liberation to the forsaken of society. He called on African governments to guarantee for the poor and all citizens access to land, lodging and labour.

    In a sense, Pope Francis embodies the message of decolonisation and is driven in part by the liberation theology that developed in Latin America. This theology tied religious faith with liberation of the people from structures of injustice and structural violence.

    Secondly, he has encouraged African Catholics to develop Africa’s own unique approach to pastoral life and addressing social issues in Africa. Particularly, Pope Francis believes in decentralisation and local processes in meeting local challenges. He has said many times that it is not necessary that all problems in the church be solved by the pope at the Roman centre of the church.

    In this way, he has encouraged the growth and development of African priorities and cultural adaptation to the Catholic faith. He has also encouraged greater transparency and accountability among African bishops and given African Catholic universities and seminaries greater autonomy to develop their own educational priorities and programmes.

    Thirdly, Pope Francis has a very deep connection to Africa’s young people. He has encouraged and supported initiatives and programmes to strengthen the agency of young people, to give them hope and support their personal, spiritual and professional development. For the first time in history, on 1 November 2022, Pope Francis met virtually with more than 1,000 young Africans for an hour. I helped organise this meeting. He answered their questions and encouraged them to fight for what they believe.

    What’s gone wrong, what’s gone well under his watch?

    Pope Francis’s reform could be termed a movement from a church of a few where priests and bishops and the pope call the shots to a church of the people of God where everyone’s voice matters and where everyone’s concerns and needs are catered to.

    He has quietly changed the tone of the message and the style of the leadership at the Vatican.

    Granted, he has not substantially altered the content of that message, which is often seen as conservative, Eurocentric, and resistant to cultural pluralism and social change. But he is chipping away at its foundations through inclusion and an openness to hearing the voices of everyone, including those who do not agree with the church’s position. In doing this, he has shifted the priorities and practices of the Catholic church regarding such core issues as power and authority.

    He has opened the doors to the voices of the marginalised in the church — women, the poor, the LGBTQi+ community, and those who have disaffiliated from the church. Many African Catholics would love to see more African representation at the Vatican, and many of them also worry about the widening division in the church, particularly driven by cultural and ideological battles in the west that have nothing to do with the social and ecclesial context of Africa.

    Why does his papacy matter?

    Pope Francis is the first pope from the Americas, the first Jesuit pope, the first to choose the name Francis and the first to come from outside the west in the modern era. He chose the name Francis because he wanted to focus his papacy on the poor, emulating St Francis of Assisi.

    In a sense, Pope Francis has redefined what religion and spirituality mean for Catholicism. It’s not laying down and enforcing the law without mercy, it is caring for our neighbours and the Earth. This is the kind of religion the world needs today.

    – Pope Francis: why his papacy matters for Africa – and for the world’s poor and marginalised
    – https://theconversation.com/pope-francis-why-his-papacy-matters-for-africa-and-for-the-worlds-poor-and-marginalised-251059

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: AFRICA/TANZANIA – Appointment of auxiliary bishop of Tabora

    Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

    Wednesday, 26 February 2025

    Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) – The Holy Father has appointed the Reverend Josaphat Jackson Bududu, of the metropolitan archdiocese of Tabora, Tanzania, until now vicar for consecrated life and parish priest of Saint Joseph in Kipalapala, as auxiliary bishop of the same archdiocese, assigning him the titular see of Vegesela di Numidia.Msgr. Josaphat Jackson Bududu was born on 6 March 1977 in Kaliua, Tabora.He studied philosophy at the major seminary of Kibosho, Moshi, and theology at the major seminary of Kipalapala, Tabora. He was awarded a doctorate in spirituality at the Tamil Nadu Institute of Spirituality and Saint Peter’s Pontifical Institute in Bangalore, India.He has held the following offices: deputy parish priest (2009-2011) and parish priest (2015-2018) of Saint Therese in Tabora.Since 2019, he has served as formator at Archbishop Mario Mgulunde Propaedeutic Seminary in Kipalapala, professor at Saint Paul’s Senior Seminary in Kipalapala, parish priest of Saint Joseph in Kipalapala, spiritual director of the Religious Congregation of the Daughters of Mary Sisters in Tabora and vicar for consecrated life of the metropolitan archdiocese of Tabora. (Agenzia Fides, 26/2/2025)
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  • MIL-OSI Europe: VATICAN – Pope Francis: Let us learn to “detect” the presence of God in smallness

    Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

    Wednesday, 26 February 2025

    Vatican Media

    Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) – Learn to “detect” the presence of God in smallness, as did the two elders of the Temple, Simeon and Anna, who thanks to their “clear eyes” were “capable of seeing beyond appearances” and recognize in the child Jesus the salvation of the world.While waiting to know the results of the CT scan carried out in recent hours, from the tenth floor of the Gemelli Hospital in Rome, where he has been hospitalized for over ten days for bilateral pneumonia, Pope Francis released late this morning the text of the catechesis prepared for the General Audience that he was supposed to preside over this morning in the Paul VI Hall.Continuing the cycle of catecheses dedicated to the life of Jesus in the perspective of the Jubilee, the Pope, in the text of the catechesis released today, dwells again on the infancy of Jesus, in particular on the episode of the presentation at the Temple. In Israel, the Bishop of Rome explains in the text, ” there was no obligation to present the child at the Temple, but those who lived listening to the Word of the Lord and wished to conform to it, considered it a valuable practice”.In this way, ” Mary and Joseph do not simply embed Jesus in a history of the family, the people, of the covenant with the Lord God. They take care of His growth, and introduce Him into the atmosphere of faith and worship. And they too gradually grow in their comprehension of a vocation that far surpasses them “.And in the Temple they meet two elderly people. The first, Simeon, is a man to whom “the Holy Spirit speaks”, and he “perceives in the Temple the presence of the Lord’s Anointed One”. In embracing the child he finds “consolation and the fullness of his existence”. His joy is transformed in “a canticle full of heartfelt gratitude, which in the Church has become the prayer at the end of the day”, that is, the Nunc Dimittis (“Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace, according to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you prepared in sight of all the peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and glory for your people Israel”).In this canticle “Simeon sings the joy of those who have seen Him, who have recognized Him and are able to transmit to others the encounter with the Saviour of Israel and of the peoples. He is a witness of faith received as a gift and communicated to others”. Now, this elderly, “sees death not as the end, but as fulfilment, fullness; he awaits it like a “sister” that does not annihilate but introduces to the true life that he has already foretasted and in which he believes”. And the same also happens to Anna. Both become “pilgrims of hope” “who know how to welcome God’s visit with joy and rekindle hope in the heart of brothers and sisters”. (F.B.) (Agenzia Fides, 26/2/2025)
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  • MIL-OSI Europe: VATICAN – Appointment of secretaries-general of the Governorate of Vatican City State

    Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

    Tuesday, 25 February 2025

    Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) – The Holy Father, modifying the Fundamental Law of Vatican City State, of 13 May 2023, and Law no. CCLXXIV on the Governance of Vatican City State, of 25 November 2018, has appointed the following as secretaries-general of the Governorate of Vatican City State, with effect from 1 March 2025:- Archbishop Emilio Nappa, until now adjunct secretary of the Dicastery for Evangelization, in the Section for First Evangelization and the new particular Churches, and president of the Pontifical Mission Societies; and- the Distinguished Mr. Giuseppe Puglisi-Alibrandi, Esq., until now deputy secretary general of the Governorate of Vatican City State.At the same time, the Roman Pontiff has attributed to the Reverend Sr. Raffaella Petrini, F.S.E, from 1 March 2025 president of the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State and president of the Governorate of the same State, the authority to determine and confer, as appropriate, specific competences or particular tasks to the aforementioned secretaries-general. (Agenzia Fides, 25/2/2025)
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  • MIL-OSI Europe: VATICAN – Archbishop Nappa appointed Secretary General of the Governorate of the Vatican City State

    Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

    Tuesday, 25 February 2025

    Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) – Pope Francis has appointed Archbishop Emilio Nappa as the new Secretary General of the Governorate of the Vatican City State, with effect from 1 March 2025. This was announced today by the Holy See Press Office.Until now, Archbishop Nappa has been adjunct secretary of the Dicastery for Evangelization, in the Section for First Evangelization and the new particular Churches, and president of the Pontifical Mission Societies (PMS).Archbishop Nappa was born in Naples on August 9, 1972. He was ordained a priest for the diocese of Aversa on June 28, 1997. He received a doctorate in theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University in 2004 and has held various offices in the diocese, including that of Rector of the Church of San Rocco, Director and Permanent Professor of Fundamental Theology at the Interdiocesan High School of Religious Sciences “Ss. Apostles Peter and Paul” of the Caserta Region in Capua and Canon of the Cathedral. He was also a local collaborator of the Apostolic Nunciature in Italy and an official of the General Affairs Department of the Secretariat of State. In September 2022 he was appointed Official of the Secretariat for the Economy.On December 3, 2022, Pope Francis appointed him Adjunct Secretary of the Dicastery for Evangelization and President of the Pontifical Missionary Societies, conferring on him the title of Archbishop and assigning him the titular See of Satriano.The episcopal ordination was celebrated on Saturday, January 28, 2023, in St. Peter’s Basilica. The Archbishop was consecrated by Cardinal Luis Antonio Gokim Tagle, Pro-Prefect of the Missionary Dicastery.Archbishop Nappa’s motto is “Caritas diffusa est” and refers to a passage from St. Paul’s letter to the Romans. At the liturgy for the episcopal ordination at the papal altar in St. Peter’s Basilica, Archbishop Edgar Peña Parra, Deputy for General Affairs in the Secretariat of State, and Angelo Spinillo, Bishop of Aversa, were the co-consecrators.In the more than two years of Archbishop Nappa’s activity at the head of the Pontifical Mission Societies, a National Direction of the Pontifical Mission Societies in Albania was established and a representation of the Pontifical Mission Societies in the Apostolic Vicariate of Northern Arabia, called “Missio Avona”, was set up. Work is still underway to set up a National Direction of the Pontifical Mission Societies in Ukraine.During Archbishop Nappa’s presidency, synergies between the International Secretariats and National Directions were also intensified, with the aim of strengthening the network of assistance with which the Pontifical Mission Societies support the mission in the local Churches on a daily basis. (Agenzia Fides, 25/2/2025)
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  • MIL-OSI Global: Butchers, bakers, candlestick-makers − and prostitutes: The women working behind the scenes in papal Avignon

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Joelle Rollo-Koster, Professor of Medieval History, University of Rhode Island

    The papal palace in Avignon, where the pope’s court was based for much of the 14th century. Jean-Marc Rosier from http://www.rosier.pro/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA

    In the medieval church, women’s roles were limited – usually some form of enclosure and celibacy, such as becoming an anchoress walled up alone for life, or a nun in a classic convent. On the other extreme were a few dramatic examples of women who made history for the church while flying in the face of gender norms: heroes such as Joan of Arc.

    The full truth, though, is more complicated. Medieval women were there all along, even in priests’ own houses. In her book “The Manly Priest,” historian Jennifer Thibodeaux reminds us that while celibacy was always the church’s ideal, it was not truly enforced until later in the Middle Ages. At least until the 11th century, some priests had wives and children who were not considered illegitimate. Even after the 14th-century Black Death, clerical households with wives and children thrived in Italy.

    As the church’s notions of illicit sex and illegitimacy hardened, however, its attitudes toward women did, too. Medieval scholars – all men – defined women’s temperament in negative terms: Women were libidinous, frivolous, unfaithful, capricious, unpredictable and easily tempted. They required constant surveillance and were kept away from clerics, at least in theory. They certainly could not hold overt positions in the pope’s court unless they were his mother or sister.

    Still, another reality emerges. The church may not have seen women as equals, but nevertheless, their work was key to the workings and finances of the papal court and its surroundings. The fact is made obvious in the archives by simply following the money. It was hardly glamorous work but necessary for the functioning of the papal court.

    A page from a 15th-century edition of ‘The Decameron’ shows a laundress working on the beach.
    Bibliothèque de l’Arsenal via Wikimedia Commons

    Vatican payroll

    The Vatican Archives’ account registers make it possible to trace who was paid and for what at the medieval papal court in Avignon, where the papacy was based for most of the 14th century. Amid the tedious task of deciphering various medieval shorthand systems, which organize expenses into categories such as “extraordinary wages,” “liturgical ornaments,” “war expenses” or “wax account,” I encountered surprises: Women appear in the lists of salaried employees at the medieval papal court.

    Furthermore, they were involved in tasks that “touched” the leader of the church. Even a pope’s clothes need making, mending and washing. Women crafted an ornate style highly appreciated by the pontiffs – glorifying them with pure white linen and gold embroidery. The Vatican Apostolic Archives’ Introitus and Exitus, medieval financial records, provide substantial evidence that women made sacerdotal ornaments and garments.

    Between 1364-1374, the registers recorded the pope’s launderesses – women otherwise lost to history. Among them were Katherine, the wife of one Guillaume Bertrand; Bertrande of St. Spirit, who washed all the papal linens upon his election; and Alasacie de la Meynia, the wife of Peter Mathei, who did the pope’s laundry for the Christmas festivities of 1373 and is mentioned again in 1375.

    These women were all wives of officers at the papal court. Records identified them by their full name, which was not the case for everyone on the pope’s payroll. This is important: The records gave them real presence, unlike most female laborers.

    A woman doing laundry appears in the Codices Palatini germanici, a German medieval manuscript.
    Heidelberg University Library

    Later records were less clear. Between the 1380s and 1410s, liturgical garments were made and washed by various women, including the unnamed wife of Peter Bertrand, a doctor of law; Agnes, wife of Master Francis Ribalta, a physician of the pope; another Alasacie, wife of carpenter John Beulayga; and the unnamed wife of the pope’s head cook, Guido de Vallenbrugenti – alias Brucho.

    Only one woman, Marie Quigi Fernandi Sanci de Turre, appears without a male relative. As time progressed, women’s names were not systematically recorded.

    Most of these later women, too, were married to curial officers who maintained rank at court by working in trade, medicine or the military. Women were never paid directly; their husbands collected their salaries. Still, this was not “unseen” labor but a salaried occupation, explicitly recorded.

    A 15th-century painting of the papal palace in Avignon, from the artist workshop of Maître de Boucicaut.
    Bibliothèque Nationale via Wikimedia Commons

    Working day – and night

    Many other women immigrated to work in Avignon. According to a partial survey of the city’s heads of households in 1371, about 15% were women. Most had traveled far and wide – from elsewhere in present-day France, as well as Germany and Italy – to reach the papal court and a chance at employment.

    Of the total female heads of household, 20% declared an occupation. The range of these women’s trades is staggering. There were fruit-sellers, tailoresses, tavern-keepers, butchers, candlemakers, carpenters and stonecutters. Women in Avignon worked as fish-sellers, goldsmiths, glove-makers, pastry-bakers, spice merchants and chicken-sellers. They were sword-makers, furriers, booksellers, bread-resellers and bath-keepers.

    An illustration from ‘Theatrum sanitatis,’ a 13th-century Latin manuscript by Giovannino de Grassi.
    De Agostini Picture Library/Getty Images

    Bathhouses, the “stews,” were often brothels. Prostitution was considered a legal occupation in Avignon and controlled by the church. Marguerite de Porcelude, known as “the Huntress,” paid an annual tax to the diocese for her lodging. Several prostitutes rented tenements from the convent of St. Catherine, and Marguerite Busaffi, daughter of a prominent banker, owned a brothel in the city.

    In 1337, the marshal of the Roman court – the highest secular judicial officer – taxed prostitutes and procurers two sols per week. Pope Innocent VI, scandalized by the practice, annulled it in 1358.

    Still, because of the general taint associated with the sex trade, the church attempted to reform prostitutes and convert them into nuns. The Avignon popes locked them up in a special convent, the Repenties, set up far from the center of town.

    A brothel scene illustrated by Maïtre François in a 15th-century edition of St. Augustine’s book ‘City of God.’
    National Library of the Netherlands via Wikimedia Commons

    Eventually, the establishment became a form of prison for “unruly” women – those who were pregnant out of wedlock. But for some hundred years, groups of ladies of the night took vows and lived as nuns there, controlling the affairs of their own convent with an iron fist.

    In the 1370s, Pope Gregory XI offered the nuns and their donors a plenary indulgence, a forgiveness of sins. They followed a rule emphasizing that regardless of their pasts, abstinence and continence could make them spiritually “chaste.”

    The ladies of the convent left detailed records of the properties they acquired. In 1384, its leaders petitioned the papal treasury, demanding arrears they were owed from a priest’s donation – and received what was due. Few medieval women had the chutzpah to petition a court for past dues, much less the pope’s. The Repenties did.

    Joelle Rollo-Koster does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Butchers, bakers, candlestick-makers − and prostitutes: The women working behind the scenes in papal Avignon – https://theconversation.com/butchers-bakers-candlestick-makers-and-prostitutes-the-women-working-behind-the-scenes-in-papal-avignon-249345

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –