SPC Synod starts regular May session. The meeting will focus on „the life of the Church in recent months”

B92 / 16 may 2011

BELGRADE – The regular May session of the Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC) Holy Synod of Bishops started Monday in Belgrade.

The meeting will focus will be on „the life of the Church in recent months”, Tanjug was told at the Serbian Patriarchate.

The agenda is still unknown, but according to earlier announcements, the bishops will elect two new Synod members, and continue arondation i.e. division of eparchies which was started during the fall session.

The highest church legislative body will also tackle the issue of former Bishop of Ras-Prizren Artemije, who has been demoted to the rank of simple monk, but is still refusing to accept the decision, and his possible excommunication.

The patriarch has said that if the former bishop does not repent, the Synod will debate his excommunication at the May session, as well as that of his followers.

The Serb National Council in northern Kosovo recently asked the Synod to reinstate Artemije to the position of Bishop of Ras-Prizren, and offered to act as a mediator in talks with the Church.

The Patriarch said earlier that the Synod could also discuss the possible visit of Pope Benedict XVI to Serbia, as part of the celebration of 1700 years of the Edict of Milan.

Two new members will be elected to the Synod, and the Metropolitan of Montenegro and the Littoral Amfilohije is expected to leave the Synod as his mandate expires.

The Synod will continue the arondation process – creating new eparchies and setting their boundaries, as well as appointing new bishops, it has been announced.

The Holy Synod of Bishops convenes twice a year – in the spring and fall, with the spring session usually lasting longer.

source>
http://www.b92.net/eng/news/politics-article.php?yyyy=2011&mm=05&dd=16&nav_id=74356 

 

Patriarhia moscovita este de acord cu pozitia ferma a Papei Benedict al XVI-lea referitoare la etici

Patriarhia moscovita este de acord cu pozitia ferma a

Papei Benedict al XVI-lea referitoare la etici

Moscova, 6 aprilie, Interfax –  Refuzul Papei Benedict al XVI-lea de a folosi limbajul „corectitudinii politice” si de a oferi compromis in privinta problemelor traditionale ale moralei crestine, a atras sprijin din partea Bisericii Ortodoxe Rusesti.

„Diferenta la acest Papa fata de predecesorul lui este aceea ca acest Papa nu cauta niciodata „corectitudinea politica” in declaratiile sale. Acesta este motivul pentru care declaratiile sale uneori produc soc asupra societatii Vestice: oamenii de acolo nu sunt obisnuiti cand Capul Bisericii afirma un punct de vedere traditional Bisericii” – a spus Episcopul Ilarion de Volokolamsk, noul sef al Departamentului pentru relatii externe din cadrul Patriarhiei Moscovei, sambata, la o emisie live de interes national din cadrul canalului Rossiya TV.

Aceasta a fost declaratia episcopului referitoare la valul de critici care-l vizau pe Papa, dar si a Ministrului francez al afacerilor externe, referitor la opozitia sa fata de contraceptie.

Episcopul Ilarion a continuat spunand ca: „noi vedem acest lucru ca o schimbare pozitiva in atitudinea Bisericii Romano-Catolice, deoarece capul celei mai mari Bisericii Crestine, nu trebuie sa se adapteze dupa tiparul limabjului de PC, el ar trebui sa spuna oamenilor ceea ce Biserica sa il invata sa le zica lor”.

trad.dan.camen.

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The Moscow Patriarchate approves of Pope’s uncompromising position on ethics

Moscow, April 6, Interfax – Refusal of Pope Benedict XVI to use politically correct language and offer compromise on traditional issues of Christian ethics has gained support of the Russian Orthodox Church.

„The difference of this current Pope from his predecessor is that this Pope never watches for political correctness in his statements. This is the reason why his statements sometimes produce shocking effect on the Western society: people there are not used when the Church’s Head voices a traditional standpoint of the Church,” Bishop Hilarion of Volokolamsk, a new head of the Moscow Patriarchate Department for External Church Relations said at a live broadcast of National Interest program shown Saturday on Rossiya TV Channel.

That was Bishop’s comment of criticisms aimed at the Pope, also by the French Ministry for Foreign Affairs, for his opposition to contraception.

Bishop Hilarion continued that „we view this as a positive shift in the Catholic Church’s position, because head of the Church, in particular, head of the largest Christian Church, should not adapt himself to any PC language, he should tell people what his Church teaches him to tell them.”

source>

http://www.interfax-religion.com/?act=news&div=5886

photos>

http://communio.stblogs.org/Pope%20and%20Gospel.jpg

http://z.about.com/d/catholicism/1/0/j/-/-/-/Pope_Benedict_Prays_at_Ground_Zero.jpg

 

Papa Benedict al XVI-lea promite sa ia mai mult in seama internetul

Papa Benedict al XVI-lea promite

sa ia mai mult in seama internetul

Intr-o scrisoare in care isi cerea iertare pentru felul cum Vaticanul a abordat problema episcopului ce nega Holocaustul, Papa Benedict al XVI-lea a promis ca o sa fie mai atent la ce se scrie pe internet.

El a scris episcopilor sai catolici din toata lumea, discutand despre decizia ridicarii excomunicarii episcopului englez Richard Williamson.

Pontiful a primit numeroase critici la adresa sa in legatura cu aceasta problema, care au venit mai ales dupa ce episcopul Williamson a negat, intr-un interviu acordat unei televiziuni sudeze, ca la Auschwitz ar fi fost camere de gazare, acest lucru fiind mediatizat excesiv pe internet. Vaticanul a pretins ca in acel moment nu avea la cunostinta comentariile episcopului.

In scrisoarea ce a fost data publicitatii joi, Papa a spus ca ‘a invatat lectia’ si o sa foloseasca mai mult internetul. Biserica „isi va largi mai mult ochii asupra acestei surse de informatii” – a mentionat pontiful.

Papa a mai zis ca problema a dezlantuit o furtuna vehementa de critici, care l-a ranit profund, in mod special fiindca acestea au venit, in marea lor majoritate, de la catolici.

Este extrem de rar in istoria Bisericii ca un Papa sa-si justifice faptele sale episcopilor sai dupa ce acestea s-au intamplat si sa admita ca au mers prost.

Episcopul Williamson, membru al grupului ultraconservator catolic Societatea Sf. Pius al X-lea,  a plecat inapoi in Anglia dupa ce fusese izgonit din Argentina luna trecuta.

El a fost seful unui seminar de langa Buenos Aires timp de sase ani, dar guvernul l-a indemnat sa-si paraseasca functia, pentru ca a ofensat „societatea argentiniana, evreii si umanitatea in general”, refuzand sa accepte ca sase milioane de evrei au murit in Holocaust.

Papa a spus ca nu a putut sa anticipeze ca problema Williamson va umbri intentiile sale de a  readuce unitatea Bisericii, prin ridicarea excomunicarii, care se impunea, dupa ce el si alti trei membrii ai Societatii Sf. Pius al X-lea fusesrea consacrati episcopi fara consimtamantul papal in 1988.

Papa a mai afirmat ca Vaticanul nu a explicat suficient ce avea de gand sa faca. La momentul respectiv, mai multi oficiali de rang inalt din Vatican s-au plans in mod public de faptul ca Papa i-a tinut ‘legati’ deoparte.

trad. dan.camen.

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Pope pledges to take more notice of the internet

The Telegraph | Thursday 12 March 2009

The Pope has promised to pay more attention to the internet, in a letter apologising for the Vatican’s handling of a Holocaust-denying bishop.

Pope Benedict XVI has written to Roman Catholic bishops across the world discussing his decision to lift the excommunication of British-born Bishop Richard Williamson.

The pontiff received widespread criticism for the move, which came after Bishop Williamson denied there were gas chambers at Auschwitz in an interview on Swedish television that attracted attention across the web. The Vatican claimed at the time that it was not aware of his commentsIn the letter to be released on Thursday, the Pope pledged to „draw the lesson” of the affair and make better use of the internet. The church will „pay more attention to this source of information,” he said.

The Pope added that the affair unleashed a storm of „vehemence” and hurt him deeply, particularly because much of the criticism came from Catholics.

It is extremely rare in Church history for a pope to have to explain his actions to his bishops after the fact and to acknowledge that things went wrong.

Bishop Williamson, a member of the ultraconservative breakaway Catholic group the Society of St Pius X, flew back to Britain after being was expelled from Argentina last month.

He had served as head of a seminary near Buenos Aires for the last six years but the government instructed him to leave for offending „Argentine society, the Jewish people and humanity in general” by refusing to accept that six million Jews died in the Holocaust.

The Pope said he could not have foreseen that the Williamson affair would overshadow his intention of bringing unity back to the Church by lifting the excommunication, which was imposed after he and three others from the Society of St Pius X were consecrated as bishops without papal consent in 1988.

He also said that the Vatican did not sufficiently explain what it was trying to do. At the time, several senior Vatican officials complained publicly that he had kept them out of the loop.

source>

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/religion/4976109/Pope-pledges-to-take-more-notice-of-the-internet.html

photo> http://www.ocpinay.com/2009/01/benedict-xvi-internet-new-way-to-speak.html

 

Cleric whose Katrina comment caused stir promoted

Cleric whose Katrina comment caused stir promoted

VATICAN CITY (AP) – An Austrian pastor who has been quoted as calling Hurricane Katrina God’s punishment for sin in New Orleans is being promoted to the rank of bishop.

The Vatican announced Saturday that Pope Benedict XVI has tapped the Rev. Gerhard Wagner, 54, to be auxiliary bishop in Linz, Austria. It made no mention of the reported remarks about Hurricane Katrina.

Wagner has served since 1988 as pastor of a church in the Austrian town of Windischgarsten and received a doctorate in theology from the prestigious Gregorian Pontifical University in Rome, the Vatican said.

In 2005, Wagner was quoted in a parish newsletter as saying that he was convinced that the death and destruction of Hurricane Katrina earlier that year was „divine retribution” for New Orleans’ tolerance of homosexuals and laid-back sexual attitudes.

Kath.Net, a Catholic news agency in Austria, released in 2005 excerpts of what it said were comments Wagner made in a parish newsletter in Linz about Katrina.

It said the newsletter quoted Wagner as saying that Katrina destroyed not only nightclubs and brothels in New Orleans, but also abortion clinics.

„The conditions of immorality in this city are indescribable,” Wagner was quoted as saying

An interview with Rev. Gerhard Maria Wagner HERE

source>

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/E/EU_VATICAN_NEW_ORLEANS_BISHOP?SITE=SCAND&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

Referrer> http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/nationworld/sns-ap-eu-vatican-new-orleans-bishop,0,5090497.story

Photo> http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2005/images/katrina-new-orleans-la-08-31-2005.jpg

http://kath.net/detail.php?id=21993&&print=yes