Pope names six new non-European cardinals

Pope Benedict XVI on Saturday consecrated six non-European prelates as new members of the College of Cardinals in a development welcomed by critics concerned that the body which will elect the future pope is too Euro-centric.

The elite body "presents a variety of faces, because it expresses the face of the universal Church," the 85-year-old pontiff said during the ceremony -- called a consistory -- in St Peter's Basilica.

"In this consistory, I want to highlight ... that the Church is the Church of all peoples," he said.

The solemn ceremony saw the new "princes of the Church" receive gold rings and birettas -- their scarlet colour signifying the blood of martyrs, or those willing to die for their faith -- while kneeling before the pontiff.

The pope drew criticism in February, at the height of the "Vatileaks" scandal, when he created 22 new cardinals of whom 16 hailed from Europe.

Benedict, who was elected pope in 2005, is a respected theologian often seen as hewing closely to a traditionalist line who has championed Christianity's European roots on countless occasions.

Saturday's new cardinals come from Colombia, India, Lebanon, Nigeria, the Philippines and the United States and join the elite body that advises the pope and elects his successor upon his death.

They are American James Michael Harvey, Lebanon's Bechara Boutros al-Rahi, India's Baselios Cleemis Thottunkal, John Onaiyekan of Nigeria, Colombian Ruben Salazar Gomez and Luis Antonio Tagle of the Philippines.

Announcing the names of the new cardinals last month, Benedict told bishops that he wanted to show that "the Church belongs to all peoples, speaks all languages."

Saturday's consistory, Benedict's fifth, follows the death of several cardinals in recent months and will bring the number of those eligible to vote back up to the maximum of 120.

Cardinals must be under 80 years old to take part in a papal election although they can stay on as non-voting cardinals after they reach that threshold.

There are now 62 European cardinals eligible to vote compared with 67 in February, as well as 14 North Americans, 21 South Americans, 11 Africans and 11 Asians.

Harvey, 63, who hails from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, has been the prefect of the pontifical household since 1998. The best known of the new cardinals has been made the archpriest of the Basilica of St Paul's Outside the Walls, one of Rome's most prominent basilicas.

Another of the new cardinals, Manila Archbishop Tagle, at age 55 is viewed as a possible candidate to succeed Benedict.

The last to receive his biretta on Saturday, Tagle was visibly moved, wiping away tears after a long tete-a-tete with the pope, to applause from the congregants.

Rahi, 72, became the second Maronite cardinal alongside Monsignor Nasrallah Sfeir, also of Lebanon. Rahi has frequently warned over the rise of Islamism, and his elevation is seen as a gesture towards a multi-faith Lebanon at a time when the country is threatened by the conflict in neighbouring Syria.

Trivandrum Archbishop Thottunkal of India became the youngest member of the College of Cardinals at age 53. His elevation was seen as a bid to encourage India's old but dynamic Church, little known in the West.

As for the 68-year-old Onaiyekan of Nigeria, archbishop of Abuja, he is another "papabile", or potential pope, who has shown courage in the face of inter-faith hatred at a time when his country faces attacks against Christians by the Islamist sect Boko Haram.

Another man of peace is 70-year-old Gomez of Bogota, who has fought tirelessly for national reconciliation with Colombia's FARC rebels.

Source: http://ph.news.yahoo.com/vatican-looks-beyond-europe-cardinal-nominees-012535739.html

100 DAYS TO GO, WE WILL HAVE OUR SECOND FILIPINO SAINT!

Philstar.com 

Last Saturday, the Catholic Church hierarchy launched the 100-day countdown or “the 100 days of Grace” at the Fuente Osmeña for the beatification of Blessed Pedro Calungsod, which will be done in official ceremonies in St. Peter’s Square in Rome on October 21. Already, tour agencies are getting airline seats for Rome in those days… which at this time is already fully booked. Blessed Pedro Calungsod will be the second Filipino Saint.

The first Filipino Saint is St. Lorenzo Ruiz and if there are any similarities between him and Blessed Pedro Calungsod, it is that, both were martyred in foreign lands evangelizing for the Catholic faith. Both were lay (San Lorenzo was a married laity, while Blessed Pedro was a single teenager) and both were Catechists. No, they were not priests or bishops… they were lay people who gave up their lives for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ. This should hopefully encourage more lay people to do more to spread the good news of the gospel. After all, we are the first Catholic nation in Asia.

Because there really is no baptismal record of Pedro Calungsod, no one really knows where exactly he came from. For sure, he came from the Visayas because in Cebu province for instance, there are many Calungsods living in the town of Ginatilan, in the southernmost part of Cebu. But there is still no record that Blessed Pedro Calungsod was born there.

While there are Calungsods living in Panay and in Bohol, But in truth, Msgr. Ildebrando Leyson, the Postulator for the cause and canonization of Blessed Pedro Calungsod, told me that the records in Guam where Calungsod was killed spelled his name as “Calungsor.” Upon his research, it turned out that there is no one with that name here. It could have been a misspelling of the last letter in his name.

While in Rome, Msgr. Leyson was assigned by his eminence Ricardo J. Cardinal Vidal to do a thorough research on the life of Pedro Calungsod, and he ended up writing a book about the up and coming saint who was martyred on April 2, 1672 in the shores of Guam together with the priest Blessed Luis de San Vitores. Blessed Pedro could have ran away to save his own life, but sensing that the Chamorro were going to kill the priest, he stayed with him… even unto death. Somehow by God’s grace, Blessed Pedro will be canonized ahead of Blessed San Vitores, yet their martyrdom is exactly the same. I guess it’s because of the documented miracle done by invoking the name of Blessed Pedro Calungsod.

The Catholic Church in Manila also came up with a similar activity launched by Manila Archbishop Antonio Luis Tagle, and former Ambassador to the Vatican Henrietta de Villa, who did the countdown during the first Catholic Social Media Summit in Marikina. Indeed, the Philippines is so blessed that lay people who were martyred hundreds of years ago are now being recognized by the Vatican as an example for other Filipinos to follow.

KABATAAN PARTYLIST RAYMOND PALATINO APOLOGIZES FOR HIS ANTI-GOD BILL

Kabataan Partylist representative Raymond Palatino

 CLICK HERE TO READ THIS NEWS FROM PHILIPPINE DAILY INQUIRER.

 MANILA, Philippines—After drawing strong condemnation from Catholic bishops and other lay leaders, Kabataan party-list Rep. Raymond Palatino apologized and meekly withdrew his bill seeking to prohibit religious rites and images in government buildings and offices in line with the Constitution’s separation of Church and State.

Palatino said he was withdrawing House Bill No. 6330, or An Act Empowering Heads of Offices and Departments to Strictly Implement the Constitutional Provisions on Religious Freedom in Government Offices, “in response to the appeal and clamor of some of our members, constituents and supporters, various groups, institutions and the general public.”

“Kabataan seeks to clarify that the bill has no intention to ‘ban God,’ suppress any religion or belief and prevent government employees from practicing their faith. The purpose of the bill is to ensure that government offices do not favor one religion over the other, or discriminate one against the other,” Palatino said in a statement.

According to Palatino, Kabataan sincerely apologizes for any offense the bill caused. “We are sad that we hurt the religious sentiments of many, when our desire was to uphold and promote religious sensitivity and harmony,” he added.

'Serpent-Handling' West Virginia Pastor Dies From Snake Bite

""Serpent-handling" West Virginia Pentecostal pastor Mark Wolford"

A "serpent-handling" West Virginia pastor died after his rattlesnake bit him during a church ritual, just as the man had apparently watched a snake kill his father years before.

Pentecostal pastor Mark Wolford, 44, hosted an outdoor service at the Panther Wildlife Management Area in West Virginia Sunday, which he touted on his Facebook page prior to the event.

"I am looking for a great time this Sunday," Wolford wrote May 22, according to the Washington Post. "It is going to be a homecoming like the old days. Good 'ole raised in the holler or mountain ridge running, Holy Ghost-filled speaking-in-tongues sign believers."

Robin Vanover, Wolford's sister, told the Washington Post that 30 minutes into the outdoor service, Wolford passed around a poisonous timber rattlesnake, which eventually bit him.

"He laid it on the ground," Vanover said in the interview, "and he sat down next to the snake, and it bit him on the thigh."

Vanover said Wolford was then transported to a family member's home in Bluefield about 80 miles away to recover. But as the situation worsened, he was taken to a hospital where he later died.

Jim Shires, owner of the Cravens-Shires Funeral Home in Bluefield, told ABC News that Wolford died Monday. Wolford's church, the Apostolic House of the Lord Jesus in Matoaka, will host a viewing Friday and a funeral service Saturday morning. Wolford will be buried at the Hicks Family Plot in Phelps, Ky.

Officials at the Panther Wildlife Management Area had been unaware of Sunday's event until they were notified by callers after the service.

"We did not know that this event was happening, and if we had known about it or if we had been asked for permission, permission would not have been granted," Hoy Murphy, public information officer for the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, told ABC News.

Hoy said West Virginia state park rules prohibit animals other than dogs and cats on the property.

While snake-handling is legal in West Virginia, other Appalachian states, including Kentucky and Tennessee, have banned the practice in public spaces.

Snake-handlers point to scripture as evidence that God calls them to engage in such a practice to show their faith in him. Mark 16: 17-18 reads, "And these signs shall follow them that believe: In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues. They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover."

Wolford told the Washington Post magazine in 2011 that he is carrying on the tradition of his ancestors by engaging in snake handling.

"Anybody can do it that believes it," Wolford said. "Jesus said, 'These signs shall follow them which believe.' This is a sign to show people that God has the power."

Wolford said watched his own father die at the age of 39 after a rattlesnake bit him during a similar service.

"He lived 101/2 hours," Wolford told the Washington Post Magazine. "When he got bit, he said he wanted to die in the church. Three hours after he was bitten, his kidneys shut down. After a while, your heart stops. I hated to see him go, but he died for what he believed in.

"I know it's real; it is the power of God," Wolford told the Washington Post Magazine last year. "If I didn't do it, if I'd never gotten back involved, it'd be the same as denying the power and saying it was not real."

CBCP head: Impeachment over, it’s time to move on

Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines president, Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma.

Obama’s ‘gay marriage’ support undermines society, says US Cardinal

MANILA, May 12, 2012–New York Archbishop Timothy Cardinal Dolan charged US President Barack Obama with undermining the “very cornerstone of society” following the latter’s support for same-sex marriage.
In a May 9 statement, the cardinal, who also serves as the President of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), was quoted by Catholic News Agency as stating that they “cannot be silent in the face of words or actions that would undermine the institution of marriage, the very cornerstone of our society. The people of this country, especially our children, deserve better.”
Though the announcement was “not surprising” due to Obama’s previous actions, Dolan still finds his endorsement that “erode[s] or ignore[s] the unique meaning of marriage” as “deeply saddening.”
Last Wednesday, Obama announced his support for same-sex marriages in an interview with ABC News’ Robin Roberts.
“I’ve just concluded that for me personally it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same-sex couples should be able to get married,” was the President’s long-winded but hardly surprising affirmation of his stand regarding “gy marriage.”
Obama’s latest statement places him in firm disagreement with Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney, who has signed a pledge to uphold marriage as the union of one man and one woman.
“I have the same view on marriage that I had when I was governor and that I’ve expressed many times,” he said at a May 9 campaign event in Oklahoma. “I believe marriage is a relationship between a man and a woman.”
So far, 30 states have passed constitutional amendments banning “gay marriage,” including North Carolina, where voters approved such a measure by an overwhelming margin on May 8.
This latest development is expected to influence Americans’ choice for the ballot, as elections take place in November. Obama has established his anti-life principles, and this recent proclamation of support for “gay marriage” confirms his anti-marrige stand as well.
As the notion of “gay marriage” in the Philippines is unlikely to prosper, pundits and pop culture-watchers were abuzz recently with the controversy surrounding suggestions for natural-born males to be admitted into beauty pageants for women after undergoing physical alteration. (CBCP for Life)

Obama supports "same-sex-marriage"

Let us pray for U.S. President Barack Obama. He showed his support at the "same-sex-marriage". The Catholic Church opposed this kind of marriage because God made only man and woman. And the bible states that man and woman should be joined together and be in one flesh...

 For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother
and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh,
So then, they are no longer two but one flesh.
Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate."

Matthew 19:5-6

U.S. President Barack Obama

Washington D.C., (CNA/EWTN News).- President Barack Obama has become the first U.S. president to publicly support “gay marriage,” breaking silence on the issue and pointing to his Christian faith as a motivation for his position.

“I’ve just concluded that for me personally it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same sex couples should be able to get married,” Obama said in a May 9 interview with ABC News' Robin Roberts.

Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney responded by reaffirming his own commitment to defending marriage. According to the Associated Press, Romney said on May 9 that he believes marriage is a relationship between a man and a woman and has held this view “since running for office.”

In supporting a redefinition of marriage, Obama said on Wednesday that his wife, Michelle, “feels the same way that I do” and cited the couple's religious beliefs, saying, “we are both practicing Christians.”


The president acknowledged that “obviously this position may be considered to put us at odds with the views of others.”

However, he said, “when we think about our faith, the thing at root that we think about is, not only Christ sacrificing himself on our behalf, but it’s also the Golden Rule, you know, treat others the way you would want to be treated.”

He also pointed to discussions with gay individuals in “incredibly committed monogamous relationships” as a factor influencing his decision to support a redefinition of marriage.

The announcement marked a key shift in the president’s public stance on the controversial issue.

While Obama has said that he opposes efforts to discriminate against gay individuals, he had previously stopped short of endorsing “gay marriage,” instead saying in 2010 that his views on the subject were “evolving.”

However, his other actions as president had been praised by gay advocacy groups.

In Feb. 2011, his administration announced that it would no longer uphold the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act, which defines marriage as the union of one man and one woman for federal purposes.

Obama also signed a law repealing the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy, allowing homosexuals to serve openly in the military.

The president’s stance on the issue became a heated topic of discussion when U.S. Vice President Joe Biden suggested that he is “absolutely comfortable” with the idea of “gay marriage” in an interview with NBC's David Gregory, which aired on May 6.

Asked about the comments on May 7, White House press secretary Jay Carney insisted that Biden’s views were “completely consistent” with Obama’s, but would not say whether the president supported “gay marriage.”

Amid growing pressure to clarify his own position, Obama voiced his support for a redefinition of marriage on May 9. However, he said that his comments reflect his personal position and he supports the idea of states deciding the issue individually.

While the move drew support from gay advocacy groups, it could divide some of Obama’s key supporters, such as African-American voters, in the upcoming election.

According to a Pew Research Center survey in April 2012, only 39 percent of African Americans are in favor of redefining marriage to include gay couples.

In addition, Obama’s endorsement of “gay marriage” comes just one day after voters in North Carolina – a key swing state in 2008 – overwhelmingly approved a constitutional amendment banning a redefinition of marriage.

Marriage advocates believe the president is alienating himself from the views of Americans.

“Politically, we welcome this,” said Maggie Gallagher, co-founder of the National Organization for Marriage. “We think it’s a huge mistake.”

Pointing to the North Carolina vote in defense of marriage, she said that the president “is choosing the money over the voters.”

“We now have clear choice between Romney and Obama, and we look forward to demonstrating in November that it’s a bad idea for a national candidate to support gay marriage,” Gallagher said. “Marriage is a winning issue for the GOP.”