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While I respect and love the Church in Poland, I find the prospect of opening JP’s tomb and removing his heart to be just plain wrong.  I pray that our leaders in Rome see the sinful nature of desecrating JP’s tomb and prevent anything like this from happening.

Peace be with you all…. John Paul pray for us.

Scott

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VATICAN CITY, 2 APR 2008 (VIS) - In St. Peter’s Square at 10.30 a.m. today, Benedict XVI presided at a Eucharistic celebration to mark the third anniversary of the death of Servant of God John Paul II. Members of the College of Cardinals concelebrated with the Holy Father.

  Addressing the more than 40,000 people present, the Pope in his homily returned to the hours following the news of John Paul II’s death on 2 April 2005, recalling the innumerable faithful who prayed before his body and participated in the funeral.

  “Among the many human and supernatural qualities” of the late Pontiff, Benedict XVI mentioned “that of an exceptional spiritual and mystical sensibility. It sufficed to watch him as he prayed: he literally immersed himself in God and, during those moments, it seemed as if everything else was foreign to him. … The Mass - as he often said - was for him the focal point of every day and of his entire life. The ‘living and holy’ reality of the Eucharist gave him the spiritual energy to guide the People of God along the path of history”.

  After recalling how John Paul II died on the eve of the second Sunday of Easter, the Holy Father highlighted how the late Pope’s pontificate, “both as a whole and in many specific moments, appears to us as a sign and testimony of Christ’s resurrection. The paschal dynamism which rendered John Paul II’s existence a complete response to the call of the Lord, could not be expressed without his participation in the suffering and death of the divine Master and Redeemer”.

  Pope Benedict pointed out that the words from the Gospel that figured in today’s Mass - the “do not be afraid” addressed by the angel to the women at the empty tomb - “became, from the solemn beginnings of his Petrine ministry, a kind of motto on the lips of Pope John Paul II”.

  He always pronounced these words “with unbending firmness, at first while carrying his bishop’s staff with its cross and later, when his physical strength was waning, almost while supporting himself on it, until that final Good Friday in which he participated in the Way of the Cross from his private chapel, holding the cross in his arms. … That eloquent scene of human suffering and faith … revealed to believers and to the whole world the secret of an entire Christian life”.

  As little by little the late Polish Pontiff “lost everything, in the end even the power of speech, his trust in Christ became increasingly evident. As it was with Jesus, so with John Paul II, in the end words gave way to the extreme sacrifice, to the gift of self. Death was the seal of an existence entirely donated to Christ, conformed to Him even in physical terms, in his suffering and faithful abandonment in the arms of the heavenly Father”.

  The Holy Father also reminded those present that today marks the opening of the First World Apostolic Congress on Divine Mercy, which aims to study Pope John Paul’s “rich Magisterium on this subject.

  “God’s mercy”, Pope Benedict explained, “is a good key to understanding John Paul II’s pontificate. He wanted the message of God’s merciful love to reach all mankind and exhorted the faithful to bear witness to it”.

  “Servant of God John Paul II personally knew and experienced the immense tragedies of the 20th century, and for a long time he asked himself what could stem the tide of evil. The answer could not but be in the love of God. In fact, only Divine Mercy is capable of limiting evil; only God’s all-powerful love can overcome the arrogance of the wicked, and the destructive power of selfishness and hatred”.

  The Holy Father gave thanks to the Lord “for having given the Church this faithful and courageous servant” and to the Virgin Mary “for having incessantly watched over his person and his ministry”. He also asked John Paul II “to continue to intercede from heaven for each of us, and particularly for me whom Providence has called to take up his priceless spiritual legacy.

  “May the Church”, Pope Benedict added in conclusion, “following his teaching and example, continue in her evangelising mission faithfully and without compromise, tirelessly spreading Christ’s merciful love, source of true peace for the whole world”.

V.I.S. -Vatican Information Service.
Copyright © Vatican Information Service 00120 Vatican City

“The church official spearheading the work to declare the late Pope a saint, Monsignor Slawomir Oder, said that the report contained the complete documentation of the Pope’s heroic virtues, explaining that it is needed to the beatification process.”

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It seems that our prayers may be answered soon… with the submission of the preliminary report to the Vatican, I do believe the day where we can officially honor JPII in a public mass in the universal Church is coming soon!  Keep up your prayers!!! God bless.

www.saintcast.org

If you are looking for great information about Saints honored by the Catholic Church then look no further than the SaintCast!  A podcast on the growing SQPN  family of shows and hosted by Dr. Paul Camarata, the show contains interviews, sound-seeing tours, news, and information that help bring the Saints alive into your daily life.  Well researched and presented in a fun and faithful manner, the show offers chat about Saints’ lives, histories, art, Patron Saints, Saints of the Day, current saint news, upcoming feast days, and much more!

Look for the March 4th show (SaintCast #89)featuring some great comments about my other site dedicated to JPII group formation: www.benotafraid.faithweb.com!

Peace be with you.

Adam

  Cardinal Saraiva was accompanied by Archbishop Michele Di Ruberto and Msgr. Marcello Bartolucci, respectively secretary and under-secretary of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints.

  In his remarks, the cardinal affirmed that the aim of the document “is to contribute to ensuring that current norms for the diocesan inquiry of a cause of beatification and canonisation are applied with ever greater care”.

  The Instruction is divided into six sections, said Cardinal Saraiva, going on to explain: “The first draws attention to the need for a true reputation of holiness before beginning a process, and explains the duties and roles of the petitioner, the postulator and the competent bishop. The second part describes the preliminary phase of the cause which extends as far as the ‘Nihil Obstat’ of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. The third section concerns the instruction of the cause. The fourth part concentrates on the gathering of documentary proof and the fifth on the gathering of proof from witnesses. Finally, the sixth section of the document outlines the procedures for the closing of the inquiry”.

  The cardinal then went on to consider the reasons for the publication of the document, pointing out that 25 years have passed since the promulgation by John Paul II of the Apostolic Constitution ‘Divinus Perfectionis Magister’, and of the ‘Normae servandae’ by the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. Since then, he said, “in some dioceses, certain provisions of the law have not always been understood and, consequently, not been put into practice with the necessary meticulousness, the which has sometimes made it necessary for the congregation to supply clarifications or to ask diocesan curias to correct errors”.

  Furthermore, he added, “dioceses do not always have access to specialised individuals with practical experience of the various procedures involved in a cause of canonisation”. For this reason, “it is evident that a practical document, such as this Instruction, was useful, indeed necessary”.

  “When the current legislation on causes of saints came into force”, said the cardinal outlining another reason for the publication of the present document, “an unfounded idea became widespread that the traditional methodology … had been substituted by some kind of historical-critical investigation”. And he identified the reason for this confusion in “the fact that the term ‘inquisitio’ used in Latin (the only official text) to designate the procedure of the diocesan phase of a cause of canonisation was translated in Italian as ‘inchiesta’ (inquiry)”. This Instruction, then, highlights “the importance of procedure” in causes of beatification and canonisation, “and accurately highlights the norms that must be observed”.

  Turning to the last reason for which the document was published, Cardinal Saraiva noted how, “in the move from the earlier legislation to that in force today, it was unclear to some people that a serious and rigorous verification of the fame of sanctity or martyrdom, undertaken in dioceses, is a prior requirement of absolute importance. Hence, a procedure must not be begin without irrefutable proof that the Servant of God … is held to be a saint or martyr by a considerable number of faithful, who invoke him or her in their prayers and attribute graces and favours to his or her intercession”.

  Thus far during the pontificate of Benedict XVI, there have been 20 beatification ceremonies during which 563 Servants of God were beatified (36 confessors and 527 martyrs), including 48 diocesan priests, 485 male and female religious, and 30 lay people, for a total of 509 men and 54 women.

  The prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints has presided at 31 ceremonies, 18 in Italy and 13 in other countries (Mexico, Portugal, Brazil, Spain, France, Poland and Austria).

  The canonisation ceremonies celebrated thus far during the pontificate of Benedict XVI number four (three in Rome and one in Brazil), during which 14 people were canonised (two bishops, four priests, five male religious and three female religious).

  The current total of saints and blesseds of this pontificate is 577.

Source: V.I.S. -Vatican Information Service.
Copyright © Vatican Information Service 00120 Vatican City

“The mark John Paul II left in Cuba is profound. Starting at that moment, things were different in the Church’s relations with society and the state,” the cardinal said after celebrating Mass at the Cathedral of Havana.

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WHEN I met Pope Benedict in October of 2006,  I presented him a copy of Song For Karol which I had written the night Pope John Paul II died.

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Hungarian artist creates life-size painting of John Paul II

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At this point, it is important to remember that the Eucharist is the source and summit of our Christian life and any form of daily devotion must never interfere or replace the role of the Sacraments of the Church. What devotion through being a Servant is meant to do is be a part of our Catholic life in addition to the normal precepts of the Church and give those who chose to become members a resource and community in which they can further enrich their faith. Keeping in mind the key role of the Eucharist, it is important to recognize that, in a purely chronological respect, we spend much more time just living our daily life than we are engaged in “formal” worship in the Mass. Because of this, we have a tremendous opportunity to draw close to God by developing an intense life of daily devotion, and this is what the Servants hopes to offer.

A daily devotion must have the spirit of the “new evangelization” mentioned by John Paul II and should strive to let “God be most fully present in prayer”(Easter Mass 2003) and not ourselves. Membership and support of the Servants are outward signs of our response to the daily call to conversion. It is a way for us to individually, and in communion with others as members of a group, to live the life of holiness which is our particular way to embrace the “liberating force of God’s love.”(Veritatis Splendor #107). To some people on the outside, some of the simple things that we do (for instance carrying the rosary everywhere we go) might seem trivial. But to us, from grabbing it first thing in the morning to setting it down right before bed, it is a constant, physical reminder - and more so a connection - of our fellow Servants and more importantly, John Paul, Mary, and the Lord. Those mundane everyday actions that we all experience possibly become spiritually significant. For instance: the other day when I reached into my pocket to grab some money to purchase a coffee, I felt the rosary in my pocket. Instead of just the simple act of buying a drink, feeling the rosary centered me and gave the moment a new dimension. It got me thinking about the Lord for just a moment… and allowed me to look at the world through the eyes of Mary. I become more patient. More forgiving. I look at the person who prepared my coffee as a fellow child of God no matter how rude or unprofessional this young man happened to be. I attempted to smile and connect in a positive manner with the people around me. Now, I’m sure that some of you out there live in a manner that we all would be proud of all the time, but for me, being a Servant and having these devotions as part of my life really helps me live a life worthy of Christ. Our devotion to John Paul II is more than a “pious fan club” rooting for him to become a Saint. No. At our core, the Servants live out the belief that the “Church is a communion of saints…” (Catechism of the Catholic Church #960) and it is our desire to live a life more fully in the one family of God.

The Catechism teaches that “All Christians in any state or walk of life are called to the fullness of Christian life and to the perfection of charity.” All are called to holiness: “Be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (CCC#2013) and so, as Servants, we strive to attain an ever increasing union with God through a life of charity and communion with our brothers and sisters in the faith. And we believe our daily devotions, our small acts of thanksgiving in the love of the Lord, assist us in our desire to nourish “the faith which works through love” (cf. Gal 5:6).

Being a Servant, as I live it, is more than following a set of rules. It is a total transformation of self based upon the Sacraments, prayer, and the group guidelines/principles in order to grow closer to God. It is my hope that my fellow members partake frequently in the Holy Sacraments of the Church, especially the Eucharist. I firmly believe in the old saying: “You are what you eat.” and we, as Catholic Christians have been given the incredible gift of the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist. This “strong food” as Saint Augustine called it actually consumes us. Every time we receive Communion we are transformed and strengthened in our life long journey to become “partakers of the divine nature”(2 Pet 1:4) and I ask for the intercession of John Paul to bring us all closer to our Merciful Lord and Savior.