By Ann Schneible
ROME, SEPT. 13, 2012 (Zenit.org).- Journalists attending this year’s Church Up Close seminar had the opportunity to meet with a variety of key players working within the Church on Wednesday, from journalists working in the Holy See press office, to members of the Curia.
The bi-annually held «The Church Up Close» seminar, taking place this week in Rome, prepares journalists for covering Catholic news by giving them the opportunity to encounter the Church, both through its centuries of history, and its key players today.
The events of the day began with Pope Benedict’s weekly audience in Saint Peter’s Square, where the Holy Father greeted the «participants in the Communications seminar sponsored by the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross.» This was followed by the opportunity to meet with journalists in the field – including Francis Rocca, bureau chief of Catholic News Service
The day concluded with a meeting with the prefect of the Apostolic Signatura, Cardinal Raymond Burke, who explained the functions and purpose of the tribunal. The encounter took place at the Palazzo della Cancelleria – one of the most significant Renaissance buildings in Rome – which currently houses the Church’s three highest Tribunals.
«The work we do here is very humble,» Cardinal Burke explained, «in the sense that we aren’t about those very beautiful aspects of the Church’s life which have to do with teaching or the celebration of the sacraments, or active works of charity. But what we’re securing here is what we call that minimum requirement, but indispensible requirement, or journey which is justice.»
«If we aren’t acting justly in the Church, then it’s hypocritical to speak of the Church as a community of charity.»
