Author: Eric Deabill

VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Pope Francis was among those showing their support for retired Pope Benedict XVI, sending his predecessor “a beautiful letter,” according to the former pope’s secretary.

In the letter, Pope Francis “speaks as a shepherd, as a brother” and “expressed once again his complete trust, his full support and also his prayers,” said the secretary, Archbishop Georg Gänswein.

The archbishop spoke to the Italian news program TG1 Feb. 9 about the retired pope’s letter in response to a report on sexual abuse cases in the German Archdiocese of Munich and Freising, which the former pope headed as Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger from 1977 to 1982.

Pope Benedict, who has denied allegations of mishandling four cases of clerical sexual abuse put forth by the report, emphasized in a letter Feb. 8 his feelings of great shame and sorrow for the abuse of minors and made a request for forgiveness to all victims of sexual abuse.

Archbishop Gänswein was asked to respond to criticisms by some victims’ advocates and media in Germany that Pope Benedict’s apology was insufficient.

“Whoever reads the letter in a sincere way, the way in which the letter was written, cannot agree with these criticisms or these accusations. He asks all victims of abuse for forgiveness,” he said.

The archbishop, who started working with the former pope in 1996 at the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and became his personal secretary in 2003, was asked how he saw the pope react to the growing abuse scandals during his tenure.

A clear indication of how the pope felt, the archbishop said, can be seen in the meditations he wrote as cardinal for the Good Friday Way of the Cross in 2005, writing forcefully about how much “filth there is in the church,” even among those in the priesthood.

There are measures, documents and evidence that show how much he, first as Cardinal Ratzinger, then as Pope Benedict, did “in order to make progress in a cleanup from within in a suitable way,” Archbishop Gänswein said.

Asked about the allegations of mishandling of abuse cases when the pope was archbishop of Munich, the aide said no evidence of his guilt was presented in the report.

“The accused does not have to prove his innocence,” he said. “If they have proof, then they must say, ‘This is the proof you are guilty.'”

VATICAN CITY (CNS) – At the age of 94, retired Pope Benedict XVI said he knows he will soon stand before God’s judgment and he prayed that he would be forgiven for his shortcomings, including in handling allegations of clerical sexual abuse.

“Even though, as I look back on my long life, I can have great reason for fear and trembling, I am nonetheless of good cheer, for I trust firmly that the Lord is not only the just judge, but also the friend and brother who himself has already suffered for my shortcomings, and is thus also my advocate,” he said.

In response Feb. 8 to a recent report on sexual abuse cases in the German Archdiocese of Munich and Freising, Pope Benedict also confirmed that an error in the testimony written on his behalf had been an oversight and “was not intentionally willed and I hope may be excused.”

“To me it proved deeply hurtful that this oversight was used to cast doubt on my truthfulness, and even to label me a liar,” he said in a letter released Feb. 8 by the Vatican.

However, the retired pope, who headed the Munich Archdiocese from 1977 to 1982, emphasized his feelings of great shame and sorrow for the abuse of minors and made a request for forgiveness to all victims of sexual abuse.

“I have had great responsibilities in the Catholic Church. All the greater is my pain for the abuses and the errors that occurred in those different places during the time of my mandate,” Pope Benedict wrote.

“Each individual case of sexual abuse is appalling and irreparable,” he said. “The victims of sexual abuse have my deepest sympathy, and I feel great sorrow for each individual case.”

The letter comes after a German law firm released a report in late January on how abuse cases were handled in the Archdiocese of Munich and Freising.

The report, compiled at the request of the archdiocese, incriminated retired Pope Benedict, with lawyers accusing him of misconduct in four cases during his tenure in Munich. Lawyer Martin Pusch of the law firm Westpfahl Spilker Wastl said the retired pope had denied wrongdoing in all cases.

The Munich investigation followed two years of research and covered the period from 1945 to 2019, centering on who knew what about sexual abuse and when, and what action they took, if any. The report — made up of four volumes with almost 1,900 pages — identified at least 497 victims and 235 abusers.

Pope Benedict had submitted an 82-page written statement to the panel conducting the investigation, and, in it, the former pope had said he did not take part in a meeting in 1980 on the case of the repeat offender Peter H., who came to Munich from Essen.

The retired pope amended that statement after the report came out, saying he was present at the 1980 meeting, but the meeting focused only on finding housing for Peter H. while he underwent therapy; the priest’s abusive history was not discussed, he said.

That statement, issued Jan. 24 on Pope Benedict’s behalf by his secretary, Archbishop Georg Ganswein, said the error of incorrectly stating the retired pope had not been at the meeting “was not done out of bad faith but was the result of an oversight in the editing of his statement.”

In his Feb. 8 response, the retired pope said there was a “small group of friends who selflessly compiled on my behalf my 82-page testimony for the Munich law firm, which I would have been unable to write by myself.”

“In addition to responding to the questions posed by the law firm, this also demanded reading and analyzing almost 8,000 pages of documents in digital format. These assistants then helped me to study and analyze the almost 2,000 pages of expert opinions,” he wrote, adding that those results were published as an appendix to his letter.

He said that during this “massive” amount of work in establishing his position, “an oversight occurred regarding my participation in the chancery meeting of 15 January 1980. This error, which regrettably was verified, was not intentionally willed and I hope may be excused.”

This error should not “detract from the care and diligence” with which his friends helped formulate his response, he said.

And while it was “deeply hurtful” for the oversight to have been used to cast doubt on him, Pope Benedict wrote, “I have been greatly moved by the varied expressions of trust, the heartfelt testimonies and the moving letters of encouragement sent to me by so many persons.”

He dedicated the rest of his two-page letter to the importance of “confession,” noting that each day at the beginning of Mass “we publicly implore the living God to forgive” the sins committed through “our fault, through our most grievous fault.”

“It is clear to me that the words ‘most grievous’ do not apply each day and to every person in the same way,” he wrote. “They tell me with consolation that, however great my fault may be today, the Lord forgives me, if I sincerely allow myself to be examined by him and am really prepared to change.”

He said that he has “come to understand that we ourselves are drawn into this grievous fault whenever we neglect it or fail to confront it with the necessary decisiveness and responsibility, as too often happened and continues to happen.”

“Once again I can only express to all the victims of sexual abuse my profound shame, my deep sorrow and my heartfelt request for forgiveness,” he said.

Together with the pope’s letter, the Vatican published an “analysis” of the Munich report’s assessment that then-Cardinal Ratzinger allegedly mishandled abuse allegations on four occasions when he led the German archdiocese. The analysis was compiled by a small team of canon lawyers and other experts who had helped craft the original 82-page response during the initial phase of the investigation.

This team’s response focused primarily on the case of “priest X,” the serial abuser also known as Peter H. It said the Munich report’s assessment did “not correspond to the truth” because the now-retired pontiff “was neither aware that priest X was an abuser, nor that he was included in pastoral activity.”

According to the Munich report, then-Cardinal Ratzinger “employed this priest in pastoral activity, even though he was aware of the abuses committed by him, and thus would have covered up his sexual abuses.”

However, records of the key 1980 meeting indicated that sexual abuse committed by the priest was not discussed, the team said, and the reason for accommodating priest X in Munich for therapy there “was not mentioned.”

Pope Benedict did not knowingly perjure himself, as the Munich report claimed, when he initially denied being present at the 1980 meeting, the team said.

It had been a “transcription error” and Pope Benedict “did not notice” it given the time constraints, it said. The minutes of the 1980 meeting were included in statements made by then-Cardinal Ratzinger, so it would make no sense “for him to intentionally deny his presence at the meeting.”

There is also no evidence behind the report’s “allegation of misconduct or conspiracy in any cover-up,” the team said. “As an archbishop, Cardinal Ratzinger was not involved in any cover-up of acts of abuse.”

VATICAN CITY (CNS) – People have a right to life, not to death, which must be welcomed but never provoked, Pope Francis said.

“The right to care and treatment for all must always be prioritized, so that the weakest, especially the elderly and the sick, are never discarded,” he said Feb. 9 during his weekly general audience.

The pope also criticized a problem he said is real for older people “in a certain social class” of not being given all of the medicine or care they need since they lack the money.

“This is inhumane. This is not helping them, this is pushing them more quickly toward death,” he said. They must be cared for and not marginalized.

The pope’s remarks were part of his series of audience talks about St. Joseph and his role as the patron saint of a “happy” death, a term used to describe a last stage of life that is peaceful and full of faith and hope.

Pope Francis praised a recent comment by retired Pope Benedict XVI, who, at nearly 95 years of age, recognizes his own presence before “the dark door of death.”

It is “good advice” for everyone, Pope Francis said, because today’s “so-called ‘feel-good’ culture tries to remove the reality of death.” People seek to ignore “our finite existence, deluding ourselves into believing we can remove the power of death and dispel fear.”

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought the reality of death back into focus, he added, and so many people “have lost loved ones without being able to be near them, and this has made death even harder to accept and process.”

The Christian faith is not about removing the fear of death; “rather, it helps us to face it” with trust in Christ’s promises, he said. Christians know for certain, he said, that Christ is risen and “awaits us behind that dark door of death.”

“We cannot avoid death, and precisely for this reason, after having done everything that is humanly possible to cure the sick, it is immoral to engage in futile treatment,” the pope said, referring to the Catechism of the Catholic Church’s teachings on the legitimacy of refusing “overzealous” treatment not to cause death but to accept it (paragraph 2278).

When it comes to the experience of death itself, of pain or of suffering, he said, “we must be grateful for all the help that medicine endeavors to give, so that through so-called ‘palliative care,’ every person who is preparing to live the last stage of their life can do so in the most human way possible.”

However, the pope warned against confusing such care with unacceptable interventions that lead to killing people. “We must accompany people toward death, but not provoke death or facilitate assisted suicide.”

This ethical principle, he said, applies to everyone, “not just Christians or believers.”

At the end of his main audience talk, the pope reminded people of the church’s celebration of the World Day of the Sick Feb. 11. He asked that all people experiencing illness be guaranteed health care and spiritual accompaniment.

He urged people to pray for those who are ill, their families, health care and pastoral workers, and everyone who helps care for their needs.

LOS ANGELES (CNS) – Archbishop José H. Gomez of Los Angeles and Archbishop Dennis M. Schnurr of Cincinnati are rooting for their home team in Super Bowl LVI, but they also have placed a friendly wager on the outcome of the Feb. 13 showdown between the Rams and the Bengals.

The prelates announced the wager in a joint video posted online Feb. 9.

For his part, Archbishop Gomez offered baked treats from the City of Angels beloved Porto’s Bakery. On his end, Archbishop Schnurr offered a case of Cincinnati’s own Graeter’s ice cream.

“I look forward to celebrating the Rams’ victory with the delicious Graeter’s ice cream that Archbishop Schnurr will be sending my way,” commented Archbishop Gomez.

“One of the best parts of the Bengals’ triumph will be digging into the famous Porto’s pasteles and cookies provided by my friend Archbishop Gomez,” responded Archbishop Schnurr.

The prelates also are encouraging Catholics to get involved in this friendly exchange by donating to each archdiocese’s Catholic Education Foundation, or CEF, in the spirit of the big game by going to www.bishopsbiggame.com.

“Or follow #BishopsBigGame on social media to see how you can be a part of the excitement and donate to support Catholic school students in the name of your favorite team,” said a news release about the episcopal wager.

“The CEF of the ‘winning’ archdiocese will receive 60% of the total fund and the CEF of the other archdiocese will receive 40% of the total fund,” it said. “All proceeds collected will go directly to the respective CEFs, which provide needs-based tuition assistance for students attending Catholic schools.”

To get things started, each archbishop has made of a donation of $1,000 to the joint fund set up to receive all donations.

“I am so proud of the Catholic schools of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati and the work of the Catholic Education Foundation. Through the generosity of the faithful, the CEF is providing millions of dollars of financial assistance each school year,” Archbishop Schnurr said.

“We may disagree on the winning team, but on Catholic education, our bet is on our Catholic schools in both archdioceses all the way,” added Archbishop Gomez.

“I’m proud of the great work of our students, teachers, staff, families and parish communities that make our Catholic Schools great,” he said, “and for the generous support of the faithful through CEF so that our students have the opportunity to learn and grow to become the leaders of tomorrow.”

SCRANTON – All people, including those with special abilities, have gifts to contribute to the life of the Church. The Diocese of Scranton embraces and welcomes the talents of all individuals in building up the Kingdom of God.

Most Reverend Joseph C. Bambera, Bishop of Scranton, will serve as principal celebrant for a Mass for Developmental and Intellectual Disabilities Awareness on Sunday, Feb. 13, 2022, at 10 a.m. at the Cathedral of Saint Peter in Scranton.

The Mass is open to everyone. It will be broadcast live on CTV: Catholic Television of the Diocese of Scranton. A livestream will also be made available on the Diocese of Scranton’s website and YouTube channel and a link provided on all Diocesan social media platforms.

Partners in the annual Developmental and Intellectual Disabilities Awareness Mass include Saint Joseph’s Center in Scranton, the Diocesan SPRED community (Special Religious Education), The Arc of Northeastern Pennsylvania, Order of the Alhambra and the Catholic Deaf Community of the Diocese of Scranton.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, some people who would have traditionally attended the Mass may not be able to participate in person, but are encouraged to take part in the televised broadcasts.

LAFLIN – As a new mother, Rosemary LaBar of Dallas feels it is important to share her belief that all human life, including that of the unborn, is sacred.

That is why she bundled-up her four-month-old daughter, Josie, putting the infant in a baby stroller to join more than 100 other people at the Diocese of Scranton’s Vigil Mass for Life on Jan. 20, 2022, at Saint Maria Goretti Parish in Laflin.

“It was important for me to come because I think that being pro-life isn’t just about changing the law, you have to show up and be there for mothers and I wanted to show up and be here,” LaBar said.

Born and raised Catholic, LaBar is hopeful the U.S. Supreme Court might reverse its 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion by upholding a Mississippi law banning most abortions after 15 weeks. A decision in the case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization is expected this summer.

“I’m definitely hopeful. I’m part of a couple pro-life groups online. It’s not just a religious thing anymore. I see a larger number of secular people who just understand that human life begins at conception and it should be protected,” she added.

Most Reverend Joseph C. Bambera, Bishop of Scranton, served as principal celebrant and homilist at the Vigil Mass for Life. He was just a junior in high school when the Roe v. Wade decision was handed down.

Even though the battle to end abortion has been challenging and long – almost 50 years – Bishop Bambera agreed this past year has given people a reason to be hopeful.

“While the battle is far from won, with states like our neighbor to the east in New Jersey that recently codified into state law an individual’s right to an abortion, including late-term abortions, the United States Supreme Court has engaged the question of abortion rights more intensely than ever before,” the bishop said. “As we wait for a determination by the Court, we would do well to keep ourselves focused on the goal of our journey and the example of Jesus. Otherwise, we risk losing our way by engaging perspectives that distract from, rather than serve, the noble ends of our efforts to preserve the sanctity of human life.”

The Vigil Mass for Life was scheduled on the eve of the annual March for Life in Washington, D.C. Recognizing that some people might not want to travel because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the diocese organized the Mass as a special prayer opportunity for all those who believe that every life has value, dignity and worth.

“The theme for this year’s march, ‘Equality Begins in the Womb,’ emerged in response to the national dialogue about the nature of equality that our country has continued to engage, particularly in the last few years. Citing the tragic reality of inequality that has impacted our land as a result of race, country of origin, disability status, age and economic background, organizers of the event sought to build upon the vital need for our country and people to finally put to rest divisions among us. They stated, ‘What matters is the fact that each of us is a human being. What matters is that life is precious, and that because it has inherent human dignity, it should be protected from the moment of conception,’” Bishop Bambera said.

Reflecting on all three readings from the Mass, the bishop noted that the sacred scriptures are filled with words that command us to reverence every life that comes into our world.

“What they expect from us as Christians is clear and unambiguous … Our welcome into God’s eternity will be determined by nothing short of our willingness to reverence, respect and serve the poorest and most vulnerable among us in whom Christ is present,” he explained.

During his homily, Bishop Bambera also shared the personal story of his grandmother who refused the advice of doctors to have an abortion after becoming sick during the pregnancy of her sixth child in the 1920s.

The bishop recounted the words that his grandmother said, words the bishop said have always spoken powerfully to him about life, faith, trust and God: “Any mother would give her life for her child. How can I chose who lives and who dies. I’ll leave that choice to God.”

While her baby was born healthy, the bishop’s grandmother continued to get sicker following childbirth. She died one month later.

“If we have learned nothing else during the past two years in which we have had to confront the deadly coronavirus pandemic, I hope we have come to appreciate the value of human life as never before. I hope we’ve also come to understand that so much of life is beyond our ability to control and, on our own, we are helpless to address the challenges that confront us,” the bishop added. “Only by handing ourselves over to the power of God – by trusting in his wisdom, grace and mercy – and only by working together to care for the lives that have been given to us will we ever discover a way forward filled with peace and hope for all.”

The bishop ended his homily by thanking those in attendance for their witness to the sanctity of human life – God’s greatest gift to the world.

“On this day in which we recall a tragic moment in our history that legalized the taking of innocent, unborn lives, may we resolve through our prayers and actions to set aside the divisive behavior that has plagued us as a people, a nation and a Church. In so doing, may we begin to carve a way forward together first as brothers and sisters who believe in and treat every human being with equality and reverence, from the moment of conception in the womb until God, in his providence, takes us home at the end of our journey of life,” Bishop Bambera said.