Following is the homily given by Cardinal Vincent Nichols of Westminster.Given for the Solemnity of Corpus Christi, June 14, 2020, in Westminster Cathedral:
These last three months have been a very testing time. Whatever words we use: ‘lockdown’, ‘social distancing’, ‘self-isolation’, they all point to pressure on our relationships. This is a time in which all our relationships are being tested.
Most Holy Body and Blood of the Lord - 'Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in them'.
When we speak of our home, we do not think of the four walls of the house, but of the people who live there: our mother, father, brothers and sisters. Have you ever entered the house where no one is waiting for you now? Does it make sense to live in the cold emptiness of those walls? Does it make sense to live in the void of a faith? The Trinitarian faith belongs to us through the baptismal sacrament and places us in a family: ‘I believe in God the Father, in Jesus Christ the Lord and in the Holy Spirit, the Comforter’. We do not speak of a theory, but of Persons.
Following is the letter that Pope Francis sent to the President of the Republic of Colombia, H.E. Iván Duque Márquez, ON 5 June 2020 to mark the World Environment Day:
To His Excellency Iván DUQUE MÁRQUEZ
President of the Republic of Colombia
We live in the third millennium, in what is supposed to be a very advanced world on all levels; in times that should bring people closer to their inner selves, bringing out the best in each. Nonetheless, we witness the complete opposite; the start and persist of times exposing the collective failure of humanity to be able to survive without revealing its dark side, intriguing the worst feeling: FEAR.
This year the solemnity of Pentecost coincides with the conclusion of the month of May dedicated to the Madonna. The Holy Spirit descends on Mary, on the Apostles and immediately afterwards on about three thousand people from many countries. An icon that highlights how Mary is the mother and model of the Church, the symbol that concretely illuminates its nature and its path, in the great effort of discernment it has been making in these years. Pentecost is central for the creation of the Church as a charism and as an institution.
During times of great uncertainty, small moments of meaning inevitably emerge that invite us to think differently about our present situation.
Following is a reflection by Cardinal Blase Cupich and Metropolitan Nathanael Symeonides, published in L'Osservatore Romano:
During times of great uncertainty, small moments of meaning inevitably emerge that invite us to think differently about our present situation.
All of Blessed Mary’s greatness can be traced to the fact that the Holy Spirit came upon her, and that she lived in the presence of God, continuously aware of His presence in her life.
Ut Unum Sint, issued 25 years ago, was the most courageous papal ecumenical proposal since the schism with the Orthodox in 1054 and the Protestant Reformation in 1517.
The centenary of the birth of Pope St. John Paul II on May 18 is not the only anniversary of note connected with him this month. On May 25, the Church marks the 25th anniversary of his landmark encyclical on Church unity entitled Ut Unum Sint, taken from Jesus’ prayer to the Father on Holy Thursday, “May they all be one” (John 17:11, 21).
What does Ascension of the Lord mean? The event is narrated to us by the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 1:9-11), but also Mark (Mk 16:19) speaks briefly about it at the conclusion of his Gospel, and then Luke (Lk 24:50), who resumes the narration precisely in the Acts, as if to connect the time of Jesus with that of the Church. The two evangelists, after speaking of the Lord’s life, of his death and resurrection, however, limit themselves to a few notes relating to his departure.
