(ZENIT News / Roma, 05.06.2024).- One of the Pope’s most insistent appeals in this last period of his pontificate, has been for Adoration of the Eucharistic Christ. Two recent decisions must be read in this context: the calling of the Year dedicated to Prayer, before the Jubilee 2025, and the announcement of the taking up again in 2024 of the Corpus Chrisiti procession in the diocese of Rome, of which the Pope is Bishop.
In fact, three years after not doing so, Pope Francis will preside over the Holy Mass on Sunday, June 2, in the Cathedral of Saint John Lateran. Subsequently, he will lead the Corpus Christi procession to the Basilica of Saint Mary Major, where the Adoration will end with the Eucharistic Blessing. Also in the ambit of prayer is the request that the Pope entrusted to Catholics worldwide for the month of May: to pray for the formation of men and women religious and for seminarians.
Another important announcement in the Holy Father’s short-term agenda is the historic participation of a Pope in a G7 summit.
The G7 is an economic and political association of seven of the world’s most industrialized economies: the United Kingdom, Japan, Italy, France, the United States, Canada and Germany, to which is added the European Union. Together they concentrate 58% of the planet’s global wealth. Their 50th Summit will be held in the Italian city of Fasano, in Apulia, during which they will address topics, such as Artificial Intelligence (AI). It was Italy’s Prime Minister (and current President of the G7) who announced that Pope Francis will take part in that Summit and give his input on the subject of Artificial Intelligence. In fact, the Pontiff has dedicated two magisterial documents to AI: the Message for the World Day of Peace 2024 and the Message for the World Day of Social Communications 2024. Several Holy See Dicasteries and organizations have been addressing specifically and reflecting furthe on this subject. Such is the case of the Academy for Life and the initiative of the RenAIssance Foundation.
The Pope’s agenda was saturated this past week. He was present at the meeting of some 200 parish priests from around the world. Those priests were in Rome to attend a congress that sought to gather their experience in face of the forthcoming Synod on Synodality, to be held in October 2024 (the second part). The fact is no secret that priests in general have been the least involved in that process. Hence the Dicastery for the Clergy and the General Secretariat of the Synod of Bishops hopes to foster their interaction. On the last day of the parish priests’ gathering, the Pope received them in the Vatican. He talked with them in the Synod’s New Hall and signed a letter addressed to the parish priests, requesting them to be “missionaries of synodality,” and he also left them three instructions “to inspire the lifestyle and action of Pastors.” A few days later, the Pontiff met in Rome with a numerous group of priests of his own diocese.
The theme oof the Synod was also addressed during the audience granted to leaders of the Anglican Church who, for the first time, held their World Meeting in Rome. First of all, Pope Francis was sincere with them and acknowledged that the subject of the Pope’s primacy is something unacceptable to them (let us not forget that the Anglicans separated from communion with the Pope when Pope Clement VII would not agree to recognize the marriage annulment between Henry VIII of England and Catherine of Aragon, daughter of the Catholic Kings. Henry VIII proclaimed himself head of the Church of England and, subsequently, had many other wives). In his address, Pope Francis opened the possibility of the Anglicans enriching the Synod on Synodality, in the context of a better understanding of the Pope’s primacy.
Days earlier, the loquacious Prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith announced that the Dicastery he heads is working on a new document that will serve as a compass to discern on Marian apparitions. Ecclesial news at the international level was the decision of Brazil’s Supreme Court to permit nuns to appear with a veil in official documents; the fact that only a few months before the elections, Biden enjoys only 35% of approval among American Catholics; and that the Archdiocese of Mexico City requested its priests not to pronounce themselves on political topics that can imply inducing votes. The measure is understood as a few years ago, several priests, a Bishop and a Cardinal were pursued for speaking clearly about MORENA, the Party of Mexico’s current President.
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