Decree of the Congregation for Bishops

From RORATE CÆLI:

CONGREGATIO PRO EPISCOPIS

By way of a letter of December 15, 2008 addressed to His Eminence Cardinal Dario Castrillón Hoyos, President of the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei, Mons. Bernard Fellay, also in the name of the other three Bishops consecrated on June 30, 1988, requested anew the removal of the latae sententiae excommunication formally declared with the Decree of the Prefect of this Congregation on July 1, 1988. In the aforementioned letter, Mons. Fellay affirms, among other things: "We are always firmly determined in our will to remain Catholic and to place all our efforts at the service of the Church of Our Lord Jesus Christ, which is the Roman Catholic Church. We accept its teachings with filial disposition. We believe firmly in the Primacy of Peter and in its prerogatives, and for this the current situation makes us suffer so much."

His Holiness Benedict XVI - paternally sensitive to the spiritual unease manifested by the interested party due to the sanction of excommunication and trusting in the effort expressed by them in the aforementioned letter of not sparing any effort to deepen the necessary discussions with the Authority of the Holy See in the still open matters, so as to achieve shortly a full and satisfactory solution of the problem posed in the origin - decided to reconsider the canonical situation of Bishops Bernard Fellay, Bernard Tissier de Mallerais, Richard Williamson, and Alfonso de Galarreta, arisen with their episcopal consecration.

With this act, it is desired to consolidate the reciprocal relations of confidence and to intensify and grant stability to the relationship of the Fraternity of Saint Pius X with this Apostolic See. This gift of peace, at the end of the Christmas celebrations, is also intended to be a sign to promote unity in the charity of the universal Church and to try to vanquish the scandal of division.

It is hoped that this step be followed by the prompt accomplishment of full communion with the Church of the entire Fraternity of Saint Pius X, thus testifying true fidelity and true recognition of the Magisterium and of the authority of the Pope with the proof of visible unity.

Based on the faculty expressly granted to me by the Holy Father Benedict XVI, in virtue of the present Decree, I remit from Bishops Bernard Fellay, Bernard Tissier de Mallerais, Richard Williamson, and Alfonso de Galarreta the censure of latae sententiae excommunication declared by this Congregation on July 1, 1988, while I declare deprived of any juridical effect, from the present date, the Decree emanated at that time.

Rome, from the Congregation for Bishops, January 21, 2009.

Card. Giovanni Battista Re
Prefect of the Congregation for Bishops

Sources:

1.Available Vatican publication (in Italian)

2.Text of the 1988 Decree (in English)

____________________

Reactions:

1. Press release of the Superior General of the Priestly Society of Saint Pius X

The excommunication of the bishops consecrated by His Grace Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, on June 30, 1988, which had been declared by the Congregation for Bishops in a decree dated July 1, 1988, and which we had always contested, has been withdrawn by another decree mandated by Benedict XVI and issued by the same Congregation on January 21, 2009.

We express our filial gratitude to the Holy Father for this gesture which, beyond the Priestly Society of Saint Pius X, will benefit the whole Church. Our Society wishes to be always more able to help the pope to remedy the unprecedented crisis which presently shakes the Catholic world, and which Pope John Paul II had designated as a state of “silent apostasy.”

Besides our gratitude towards the Holy Father and towards all those who helped him to make this courageous act, we are pleased that the decree of January 21 considers as necessary “talks” with the Holy See, talks which will enable the Priestly Society of Saint Pius X to explain the fundamental doctrinal reasons which it believes to be at the origin of the present difficulties of the Church.

In this new atmosphere, we have the firm hope to obtain soon the recognition of the rights of Catholic Tradition

Menzingen, January 24, 2009

+Bernard Fellay

2. Letter of the Superior General of the SSPX to the faithful (PDF)

3. Statement of the German Episcopal Conference (in German)

4.Interview of Card. Vingt-Trois, President of the French Ep. Conference (in French)

Pope: Shrine Is Key to Europe's Christian Identity

Mary's Greatness Is in Her Availability to All

VATICAN CITY, JAN. 22, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI gave an improvised discourse on the Virgin Mary, in gratitude for receiving honorary citizenship of Mariazell, home of one of the most important Marian shrines in Europe.

This distinction was conferred on the Pope after Wednesday's general audience. Mariazell is the site of the Basilica of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary, which houses a statue of Our Lady believed to be miraculous. For centuries, the town has been one of Europe's principal pilgrimage sites. Today, some 1 million pilgrims visit it annually.

The Holy Father spoke in German about being joyful "at being a citizen of Mariazell and at being able to live so close to the Mother of God," and he spoke to the others about Mary's role as "promoter of unity" between men.

The Pontiff last visited the shrine in September 2007, and he noted that "according to human foresight, in this life I will not be able to return to making a pilgrimage there physically, but now I live there truly and in this sense I am always present."

He recalled two previous visits to the shrine, and he told some stories that he lived through with the bishop and the rector, especially during his last visit in which they were surprised by a torrential rain.

European identity

Benedict XVI also affirmed the importance that this shrine has had on European history.

"Mariazell is much more than a 'place,'" he said. It also represents "the living history of a pilgrimage of faith and prayer down the centuries."

Yet, he added: "It is not only the prayers and invocations of men that are present, but rather a real answer is also present.

"We feel that the answer exists, that we do not extend a hand toward something unknown, that God exists, and that, through his mother, he wants to remain particularly close to us.

"For this reason I am happy to be at home in my heart and now, so to say, also by law, in Mariazell."

The Holy Father noted that Mariazell expresses all that Europe has been able to build. He affirmed that Mariazell is that "from which proceeds all that today forms [Europe's] identity, and through which Europe would always be able to return anew to be what it is: through the encounter with the Lord, to whom his mother guides us."

True greatness

The Pope recalled that the Virgin of Mariazell has received important titles throughout history, like "great mother" of Austria and of the Slavic towns, in this sanctuary visited by thousands of people during the centuries, until Mariazell was even considered the spiritual center of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

However, he added, the Virgin shows us that greatness does not arise from the quality of being unattainable.

He explained that Mary's "greatness is evident precisely in the fact that she addresses herself to the smallest, that she is present for them, that we can turn to her at any moment without having to pay an entrance fee, just with our hearts."

This greatness has nothing to do with "exterior majesty," the Pontiff continued, but rather with "goodness of heart that offers to all the experience of what it means to be together."

"In the trips that I make through the fields of memory," he said, "I always make a stop in Mariazell, precisely because I feel that there the Mother goes out to meet us and reunites us to all."

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SSPX Bishop Fellay's Letter to Swedish Television Station

From The Remnant:

Click image to enlarge

The Vatican YouTube Channel

http://www.youtube.com/vatican

"This channel offers news coverage of the main activities of the Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI and of relevant Vatican events.
It is updated daily.
Video images are produced by Centro Televisio Vaticano (CTV), texts by Vatican Radio (RV) and CTV.
This video-news presents the Catholic Churchs position regarding the principal issues of the world today.
Links give access to the full and official texts of cited documents." Country: Holy See (Vatican City State)

h/t NLM

Excommunications of SSPX bishops lifted (rumour)

From RORATE CÆLI:

UPDATE 2 (Jan. 22, 0730 GMT): Paolo Luigi Rodari also confirms the news in his report for Il Riformista this morning, adding the information that:

"It [the decree] will come out in the next few days, probably by Sunday. The President of the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts, Archbishop Francesco Coccopalmerio wrote and signed it [the decree], by the Pope's will."

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Kyl disappointed with Obama inaugural address

January 21st, 2009 @ 9:50am

by Jon Zimney/KTAR

Arizona Sen. Jon Kyl, second-ranking Republican in the Senate, was not impressed with President Barack Obama's inaugural address.

"His speech was not high-brow, it was more low-brow and a bit surprising in that regard," said the Senate Minority Whip.

Kyl said he felt that Obama took an unfair shot at the Bush Administration and that he suggested that anyone who does not agree with his policies is unpatriotic.

"It's fine to say you're going to do your best to be a leader, you're going to do your best to deal with the problems at home, but you don't have to contrast with the previous administration," Kyl said.

He took exception to Obama's call for "an end to petty grievances" and a political truce in Washington.

"If the idea is we have to avoid controversy by getting in line behind his proposals, that's not patriotism," Kyl said. "If he is asking that everybody agree with him and thereby have a truce, that's not going to work."

Kyl said Obama's proposed economic stimulus package "is, in my view, awful."

"It's very expensive, it will do very little to stimulate the economy. It's essentially just making good on an awful lot of Democrat political promises over the years that they haven't had a vehicle to attach to."

Kyl said he has every right to question and debate the issue, and cast a "no" vote if he wants, without being considered "unpatriotic."

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Message from Archbishop Raymond L Burke

From Archbishop Burke via WDTPRS:

Dear Members of the Marian Catechist Apostolate,

Today is the 36th Anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s infamous decision in the cases Roe v. Wade and Doe v. Bolton, by which the highest court of our nation took away the safeguard of the most fundamental of all rights, the right to life, from the most vulnerable members of the human family, the unborn. Rightly, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has, for some time, designated this day as a Day of Penance for Violations to the Dignity of the Human Person, and of Prayer for the Full Restoration of the Legal Guarantee of the Right to Life. January 22nd is to be observed “as a particular day of penance for violations to the dignity of the human person committed through acts of abortion, and of prayer for the full restoration of the legal guarantee of the right to life” (General Instruction of the Roman Missal, no. 373).

The legacy of the just-mentioned decisions has been an unconscionable decline in the respect for all human life. By now, you are familiar with the latest and most heinous anti-life legislation the people of the United States of America are facing: the Freedom of Choice Act (FOCA). The passage of FOCA would lift all restrictions on procured abortion, force taxpayers to participate in the funding of procured abortions; revoke all informed consent, parental notification and conscience protection laws; and force even Catholic hospitals to perform abortions, which clearly would necessitate the closing of Catholic hospitals. I ask you to pray for the defeat of FOCA and to do all you can to work against its passage, while also working to protect existing pro-life legislation. For more information on how to become involved, please visit the USCCB website at www.usccb.org.prolife.

In a special way, I address you, the members of the Marian Catechist Apostolate, on this Day of Penance. Reflecting on the circumstances in society which give rise to the necessity of a Day of Penance for Violations to the Dignity of the Human Person, I am deeply conscious of the much needed service of the Marian Catechist Apostolate in the renewal of society. I take the occasion of this most sad anniversary for our nation, to encourage you to redouble your efforts to grow in personal holiness and knowledge of the Catholic Faith, that you may always be equipped to share generously and courageously the richness of the Faith with others, for the transformation of society.

...
Please join me today and always in calling upon the intercession of Our Lady of Guadalupe for the transformation of the culture death into a civilization of divine love and life.

Invoking God’s blessing upon you and your home, I am

Yours devotedly in Christ,

(Most Rev.) Raymond L Burke
Archbishop Emeritus of Saint Louis
Prefect, Apostolic Signatura of the Supreme Tribunal

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Pope moves 10 closer to sainthood

Vatican City, Jan 19, 2009 / 06:46 pm (CNA).- On Saturday, the Holy Father authorized the Congregation for the Causes of Saints to announce the approval of the miracles and heroic virtues of several Servants of God.

In order for Servants of God to move onto beatification, the next “step” toward sainthood, the congregation must recognize their heroic virtue and certify that one posthumous miracle took place through the Servant of God’s intercession.

Canonization, the next “step” requires an additional miracle unless waived by the Pope.

Those who were recognized with a miracle are:

- Servant of God Ciriaco Maria Sancha y Hervas, Spanish cardinal archbishop of Toledo, founder of the Congregation of the Sisters of Charity of Cardinal Sancha (1833-1909).

- Servant of God Carlo Gnocchi, Italian diocesan priest and founder of the "Pro Juventute" Foundation (1902-1956).

- Servant of God Bernardo Francisco de Hoyos, Spanish professed priest of the Company of Jesus (1711-1735).

- Servant of God Raphael Rafiringa (ne Louis), Madagascan professed religious of the Institute of Brothers of Christian Schools (1856-1919).

- Servant of God Eustachio Kugler, (ne Joseph), German professed religious of the Hospitaller Order of St. John of God (1867-1946).

Those Servants of God acknowledged as having heroic virtue are:

- Servant of God Juan de Palafox y Mendoza, Spanish bishop of Osma (1600-1659).

- Servant of God Robert Spiske, diocesan priest and founder of the Congregation of Sisters of St. Hedwig (1821-1888).

- Servant of God Carolina Beltrami, Italian foundress of the Institute of "Immaculatine" Sisters of Alessandria (1869-1932).

- Servant of God Mary of the Immaculate e Conception Salvat y Romerio (nee Maria Isabella), Spanish superior general of the Institute of Sisters of the Company of the Cross (1926-1998).

- Servant of God Liberata Ferrarons y Vives, Spanish laywoman of the Third Order of Carmelites (1803-1842).

Additionally, during a private audience on December 22, 2008, the Holy Father authorized the Congregation for the Causes of Saints to recognize the heroic virtues of Servant of God Jose Tous y Soler, a Spanish priest of the Order of Friars Minor Capuchins and founder of the Capuchin sisters of the Mother of the Divine Shepherd (1811-1871).

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God bless Fr. R.

From Orthometer:

Another Visit From The Truth Squad.

This came via email from the Northwest:

Dear Father Richtsteig,

My husband and I were in town from Seattle Wa. the day your comments appeared in the paper. Needless to say we were embarrassed as catholics.

No one cares who you voted for or who you wanted in office.

It appears you are the one who needs enlightenment. You are in your appointed position to serve the faithful. Being the only negative contributor did not sit well with any of our friends to whom we shown your "piece". A little graciousness and support would have been the appropriate response. Your behavior only gives credience to those people leaving the church. You are not speaking for the faithful Father, you are speaking for yourself. That was not the intent of The Tribune. Your bad manners reflect badly on those of us who know better. I

I will pray for your humility.

Here is my response,

Dear _____,
I do not claim to speak for the faithful. That is not the job of a priest. When the Tribune called, they knew that I, like many, have grave reservations about the President's policies as reflected in his campaign promises and statements, which have only been substantiated by the records of his cabinet appointees so far. They did not ask for congratulations, etc....
I would call you attention to the fact that I said I will support him, I any way that I am morally able. However, I cannot and will not support him on his stated policies which are contrary to the teaching of the Church--policies which will affect the most innocent and vulnerable among us. Further, I will not keep silent on this for fear I might offend someone whose political sensibilities may be stronger than their faith.
I appreciate your prayers for my humility be assured on mine in return,

Posted by Fr. Erik Richtsteig

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Father Z - Mass Live (9:02 AM)

Vatican to get own YouTube channel

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - The Vatican will soon have its own channel on the video sharing site YouTube where the Catholic faithful or the curious will be able to see Pope Benedict or Church events, a Vatican source said on Saturday.

The details of the accord are due to be presented on Friday at a news conference attended by Vatican officials as well as Henrique de Castro, managing director of media solutions for Google, which owns YouTube.

The initiative will involve Google, the Vatican Television Center and Vatican Radio.

It will mark the Vatican's deepest plunge into new media. The Vatican opened up its website, www.vatican.va, in 1995.

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Benedict XVI Calls Families to Unite

Says They Must Mobilize to Influence Culture

By Karna Swanson

MEXICO CITY, JAN. 18, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI encouraged thousands of families in Mexico and around the world to mobilize themselves to promote a culture and politics of the family.

The Pope said this in a video message he sent to those participating in the closing Mass of the VI World Meeting of Families, which ended today in Mexico City. The five-day international event was held under the theme "The Family as Educator in Human and Christian Values."

The video message was scheduled to be shown Saturday during the celebration of the family held at the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe, but due to rain it was postponed and shown today before the closing Mass.

Attendance to the two weekend events at the Marian shrine was well below original predictions, due in part to the sudden cold front that brought rain and a significant dip in temperatures to the mountain capital since last Monday.

Organizers told ZENIT that an estimated 20,000 attended the celebration of the family Saturday, and on Sunday more than 30,000 were present in the basilica and atrium. Thousands more were watching the closing Mass on giant television screens situated on the street in front of the shrine.

More than 10,000 turned out for each day of the theological-pastoral congress held Wednesday through Friday, exceeding all participation records of any other international family meetings.

In Benedict XVI's video message, he noted the necessity "to develop a culture and a politics of the family, that are driven in an organized manner by the families themselves."

Incisive action

With his words, the Pope urged families "to unite yourselves to the associations that promote the identity and rights of the family, according to an anthropologic vision that is coherent with the Gospel." He then invited "these associations to coordinate themselves and collaborate with each other so that their actions be more incisive."

The Bishop of Rome called the family the "vital cell of society, the first and decisive resource for its development, and many times the last refuge for those whose needs aren't meet by the established social structures."

"For it's essential social function," he added, "the family has the right to be recognized in it proper identity and to not be confused with other forms of living together."

The Holy Father said the family should also be able to count on "deserved cultural, legal, economic, social and medical protection," and that the state should offer families school choice.

The Holy Father said the Christian family, "living with confidence and in filial obedience to God, with fidelity and in generously accepting children, caring for the weakest and ready to forgive, becomes a living Gospel that all can read."

In this context, the Pope gave the family the work of presenting "its testimony of life and its explicit profession of faith in the various spheres of its environment, such as the school and various associations"

Likewise, he asked that families commit themselves "to the catechetical formation of their children, and the pastoral activities of their parochial community, especially those related to marriage preparation or directly related to family life."

"To work for the family is to work for the dignified and luminous future of humanity and for the building of the Kingdom of God." The family, he concluded, is called "to be evangelized and evangelizer, humane and humanizing."

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ACLU files lawsuit against conscience protection rules

Bristol, CT, Jan 17, 2009 / 02:15 am (CNA).- New conscience protection regulations from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) have been challenged in a new federal lawsuit filed on Friday by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).

The HHS announced the rule change on December 18. The new rule reportedly clarifies the rights of health care providers to decline to participate in services to which they object in conscience. The rule will help protect those individuals and institutions in the medical field who object to abortion.

Acting on behalf of the National Family Planning & Reproductive Health Association (NFPRHA), the ACLU filed a lawsuit in federal district court in the District of Connecticut. According to the ACLU, the suit argues that the rule significantly undermines access to essential family planning, reproductive and other health care services and information...

More

Pope explores St. Paul's teaching on the Church as Bride of Christ

Vatican City, Jan 14, 2009 / 11:05 am (CNA).- More than 4,000 people gathered in the Vatican’s Paul VI Hall to hear Pope Benedict XVI deliver his continuing series of teachings on St. Paul, which today focused on the Apostle’s teaching about Christ as the head of the Church and the Church as his Bride.

As he began his Wednesday general audience, Pope Benedict explained that his reflections would focus on St. Paul’s “twin” letters of Colossians and Ephesians, which are “very close in their manner of expression, vocabulary, and exposition."

Similar in language, they are unique in developing the theme of Christ as "head" or kephalé of the Church. The Pope said that Christ “guides and is responsible for the Christian community as its leader and its Lord… The Church is subject to Him, both to follow His superior guidance and to receive all of the life that emanates from Him.”

Pope Benedict explained that Christ is considered as head of the heavenly powers and of the entire cosmos. Paul, he expounded, “says that God places Christ above every principality and power. His words assure us that Christ is above every hostile power, so that if we are close to him we have nothing to fear."

In the context of the entire cosmos being subject to Christ, the Holy Father referred to the depiction of Christ as "Pantocrator," shown enthroned over the world, on a rainbow. This depiction, the Pope said, "indicates His equality with God at Whose right hand He sits, and hence also His unrivalled role as the guide of human destinies.”

"Such a vision," he added, "can only be conceived by the Church, not in the sense that she wishes unduly to appropriate that which is not hers, but in another, dual, sense: both in that the Church recognizes that in any case Christ is greater than herself, because His lordship extends beyond her confines, and in that only the Church, and not the cosmos, is defined as the Body of Christ. This means we must give positive consideration to worldly things, because Christ recapitulates them in Himself, and at the same time we must fully live our specific ecclesial identity, which is the closest to the identity of Christ Himself."

Another aspect of the Apostle‘s two Letters is "the concept of mystery," "the inscrutable divine plan for the destiny of mankind, of peoples and of the world,” he said. It is for this reason that one “finds fulfillment in Christ,” the Holy Father noted.

Finally, the Holy Father touched on the recurring theme of "the Church as the bride of Christ.” According to St. Paul, the Pope said, Christ has "won" his bride, the Church, by giving his life for her, “the greatest possible demonstration of love."

“What greater sign of love could there be than this,” he remarked. Christ “is concerned for her beauty; not just the beauty acquired through Baptism, but also the beauty that must grow every day through a life of irreproachable moral behavior, without spot or blemish.”

"From here to the shared experience of Christian marriage is but a short step," he observed. “And in fact it is not clear what the initial point of reference was for the author of the Letter: whether the Christ-Church relationship provided a light in which to consider the union of man and woman; or whether experience of conjugal union was the light in which to examine the relations between Christ and the Church.”

"These two Letters are a great catechesis, from them we can learn how to be good Christians," Pope Benedict concluded.

"If we begin to understand that the cosmos is the mark of Christ, we understand what our relationship with the cosmos is, what problems are involved in its conservation. We learn to see it using reason, but a reason moved by love, respect and humility. If we remember that the Church is the Body of Christ, that Christ gave Himself for her, then we learn to live with Christ in mutual love, a love that unites us to God and brings us to see the image of Christ in others. Let us ask the Lord to help us meditate well on Sacred Scripture, his Word, and to really learn to live well.”

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Life on Mars

By PAUL SUTHERLAND
Sun Spaceman

Published: Today

ALIEN microbes living just below the Martian soil are responsible for a haze of methane around the Red Planet, Nasa scientists believe.

The gas, belched in vast quantities in our world by cows, was detected by orbiting spacecraft and from Earth using giant telescopes.

Discovery ... gas around Mars

Nasa are today expected to confirm its presence during a briefing at their Washington HQ.

And the find is seen as exciting new evidence that Martian microbes are still alive today.

Some scientists reckon methane is also produced by volcanic processes. But there are NO known active volcanoes on Mars.

Furthermore, Nasa has found the gas in the same regions as clouds of water vapour, the vital �drink� needed to support life.

Mission ... probe on the surface of Mars

Experts speculate that the methane is being emitted as a waste product by organisms called methanogens living in water beneath underground ice.

And they would have to be alive today because the methane would otherwise have been lost from the Martian atmosphere.

What a scoop ... Phoenix lander dug up chunks of ice last year

John Murray — a member of the Mars Express European space probe team — believes the mini-Martians may be in a form of suspended animation and could even be REVIVED.

He has found overwhelming evidence of a vast frozen ocean beneath the dust near the Martian equator where simple life could have thrived as microbes.

Today’s briefing will feature a star panel of Mars experts headed by Michael Meyer, chief scientist for Nasa’s Mars programme.

UK Mars expert Professor Colin Pillinger believes the methane can only point to the presence of life on the planet.

Space neighbours ... Earth and Venus rise over Mars in mock-up

His ill-fated Beagle 2 probe was carrying a laboratory that would have looked directly for such signs of life when it crashed on Christmas Day 2003.

Prof Pillinger, below, told The Sun last night: �Methane is a product of biology. For methane to be in Mars’ atmosphere, there has to be a replenishable source.

�The most obvious source of methane is organisms. So if you find methane in an atmosphere, you can suspect there is life.

�It’s not proof, but it makes it worth a much closer look.�

Nasa’s findings confirm studies by Europe’s Mars Express probe, which has been orbiting the planet for five years and also reported signs of methane in 2004.

Britain’s top space expert Nick Pope last night hailed the new evidence of life as �the most important discovery of all time�.

He said: �What could be more profound than to know it’s not just us out there?

Expert ... Colin Pillinger

"We’ve really only scratched the surface — it’s an absolute certainty that there is life out there and we are not alone.

�If there is life on Mars then the logical conclusion is that there must be life elsewhere too.

�If it’s happened here on Earth, then why shouldn’t it happen anywhere? The implication is this is a universal law.

�Mars is very similar to Earth. It’s about the same size, it’s a rocky inner planet.

�Most scientists believe it probably has liquid water which is almost universally agreed as the pre-requisite for life. I am certain there is other life in the Universe and, most likely, intelligent life.�

The Red Planet has gripped the public imagination for more than a century as a possible home for aliens.

But life could not survive on its surface because, unlike the Earth, Mars has no magnetic shield to protect it against deadly sun radiation.

The planet resembles our own in many ways. It is made of rock, it has an atmosphere and weather systems.

Although much smaller with a diameter of around 4,222 miles, Mars’ day is just 40 minutes longer than ours and its tilted axis gives it seasons.

Water has been found in the form of buried ice and scientists believe that two billion years ago, Mars was covered with liquid oceans.

Proof that water is still on Mars came in 2007 when Mars Express used ground-piercing radar to study the region around the planet’s South Pole.

Nasa’s latest lander Phoenix dug up chunks of Martian ice last year. It swiftly evaporated into the thin atmosphere.

Nasa have controversially hit the headlines before for claiming evidence for Martians.

In 1996, they said they had discovered fossilised organisms in a meteorite from the planet.

But other scientists were sceptical.

Today’s conference will be broadcast live online by NASA TV (www.nasa.gov/ntv ) at 7pm.

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First Lady Laura Bush praises Catholic education in school visit

Washington DC, Jan 14, 2009 / 08:11 am (CNA).- Mrs. Laura Bush on Tuesday visited Little Flower School in Bethesda, Maryland in her last school visit as First Lady. Noting the upcoming celebration of National Catholic Schools Week, she praised the history of Catholic schools in the United States and congratulated Little Flower for being chosen as a Blue Ribbon School.

Her audience included school faculty, students, and the Archbishop of Washington Donald Wuerl.

“This is my last school visit as First Lady of the United States, and I wanted to end my school visit with a terrific school like Little Flower,” Mrs. Bush said during her 10 a.m. remarks, in which she also referenced her career as a teacher and school librarian.

The First Lady said that National Schools Week, observed from Jan. 25 – 31, is “the week that everybody in the United States can thank our Catholic schools for the great work that you do all over our country and all over the world, really.”

“It's also a time for us to talk to our leaders about the importance of Catholic education,” she continued.

“Catholic schools have a very long history in the United States,” Mrs. Bush continued. “Many of the very first schools in our country for the first little boys and girls that lived in the United States were Catholic schools.

“You have a long history of both academics and also of making sure American children in Catholic schools learn the values that are important to all of us and that are important to the people of the United States.”

She added that National Schools Week is an opportunity for her to thank everybody involved in Catholic education in the Archdiocese of Washington, and also an opportunity to convey thanks on behalf of President Bush.

“Catholic schools have a special commitment in inner cities,” the First Lady remarked. “Many Catholic schools in the United States are taking as a special mission their responsibility to educate disadvantaged students, and I want to give you my special thanks for that and my encouragement to continue that important mission in our inner cities.”

Mrs. Bush then congratulated the school for being awarded the Blue Ribbon last year.

“Have you all seen that great big blue ribbon right here in your hallway? Did you know that only 50 non-public schools in all of the United States were chosen as Blue Ribbon Schools? So that's a really wonderful accomplishment,” she commented.

The award, she said, means that students at Little Flower are really learning and succeeding “in every way.”

“I want to give you special congratulations to the teachers, to the administration, to the faculty, but especially to the students at Little Flower School. I want to applaud you,” she said.

“Congratulations on being such smart kids.”

The First Lady reported that in the Archdiocese of Washington about 97 percent of children who go to Catholic schools go on to higher education.

“And that's a very, very good record and very good statistic,” she said.

Mrs. Bush closed her remarks by thanking Archbishop Wuerl, school principal Sister Rosemaron Rynn, and the students in her audience.

Since Little Flower School opened in 1953, it has been staffed by members of the Congregation of the Sisters of Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Their motherhouse is in Scranton, Pennsylvania.

Today there are six IHM sisters on the faculty of Little Flower. According to the school’s web site, it offers an “excellent” academic program that is “imbued and enlivened by the gospel message which inspires all to live the values of our Catholic faith.

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Saying Yes to Life -- 19 Times (Part 1)

Interview on Parenting a Large Catholic Family

By Kathleen Naab

CHICAGO, Illinois, JAN. 12, 2009 (Zenit.org).- God the Father subjects to human free will his desire to pour out new life -- and the rewards of responding to this desire are countless, says a couple that has parented 19 children.

James and Kathleen Littleton wrote about their experience of responding to God's creative love in a book about raising their 14 living children, "Better by the Dozen, Plus Two."

The Littletons also spoke with ZENIT about their decision to have such a large family, and why it required separating themselves from prevailing cultural opinions, even perhaps among Catholics.

Part 2 of this interview will be published Tuesday.

Q: What do you suggest for couples seeking to discern what God asks of them through the Church's call to responsible parenthood?

James: Here I believe we are discussing openness to life within marriage. The answer to this question lies in the law of love, and also, of course, in hope and trust as opposed to fear, which so infects the world today. Kathleen and I made the regretful mistake of beginning our marriage succumbing to the lie of artificial contraception. By the sublime grace of God we converted from this error, and have been showered with the undeserved grace of having thus far 19 children, 14 living on earth and five in heaven.

The Church teaches that it is necessary that each and every marriage act remain ordered per se to the procreation of human life -- Catechism No. 2366. The Church does allow for couples to space the births of their children for just reasons via natural family planning. So we must deal with the subjective question of couples discovering the will of God each month regarding their openness and readiness to embrace and be open to co-creating new life in partnership with him, of bringing a beautiful new person into existence in time and eternity, an unrepeatable, unique human person with an irreplaceable and necessary mission for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

This possibility is not an imposition, but rather a transcendent gift of the very creative power of God himself. It is humbling and awe-inspiring to think that our Heavenly Father chooses to subject his ache to pour out new life to the choice and generosity of human beings on whom he has bestowed yet another awesome power, that of free will. He will never interfere with our free will, yet ultimately we are called to respond to this and all his gifts in love.

The key virtue of hope, which our beloved Pope Benedict is attempting to turn the world toward, is vital with regard to openness to life in marriage. Kathleen and I have met so many people who only needed one word of encouragement or one example to find the hope and courage to do what they already knew they wanted in their hearts, what God wanted, to be open, if so blessed, to having another child in their marriage. Their sense of joy, relief, and peace was evident when they shared or implied their decision to be open to bring another life into time and eternity.

No, we are not saying that everyone needs to have as many children as physically possible without regard for their circumstances. But we are encouraging couples to be generous and re-evaluate the possibility of having another child if God grants this gift, to examine this in a prayerful way open to God's will, with a supernatural, faith-filled perspective.

When we pray and contemplate Jesus Christ and his love, and the magnificence of each human person in comparison with inferior things such as our fears, and yes, our tendency often toward selfishness and materialism, when most importantly we live the Eucharistic and sacramental life, when we seek the guidance of the sweet Guest of our souls, the Holy Spirit, and when we humble ourselves to seek the counsel of wise and holy people, our response to our merciful Father's gift of life will take on a new, deeper, and true perspective.

We suggest couples not apply their reason and intellect alone, or what the dominant culture attempts to impose, but also faith -- and even with a higher regard for faith -- so as not to try to make God small, not to put him in a tiny box. Our heavenly Father has the power and ability to provide all we need, and he will. He is never outdone in generosity. There is a great feeling of freedom and peace that one experiences when one takes a bit of a risk and puts out into the deep in love and trust in our infinitely loving God.

Kathleen: God is the one who creates, we are only cooperators. The creation of a new human life lies in God's will for us. It is up to God to bless us or not with a new child. This calls for great generosity, faith and trust in his plan for our marriage and our lives. But it is also very freeing -- to know that God is with us at every moment -- and if he created us, he will sustain us.

He also will give us the grace of state to be good parents and providers. And if he doesn't bless us with a child, that too is his will, and he intends only what is good for us. We only need to live each day with greater faith, love and generosity -- to ensure that God's will, not mine be done -- for this alone will make us happy and give us peace.

Q: You propose that the formation of a child starts with prayer while he or she is still in the womb. But does formation of character begin as early as infancy? And if so, how?

James: Yes, the formation and sanctification of children begins in the womb and certainly through infancy and beyond. Jesus is the one who sanctifies; we merely cooperate with his work. Consider Luke 1: 41, when John leaps in Elizabeth's womb at Mary's greeting -- this happens when we bring our babies in the womb and infants to Mass or for a visit to our Eucharistic Lord Jesus, where graces radiate from Christ into the souls of our children and of course into us.

There are many useful practical techniques available via various sources for formation of character at various ages, and we provide some of our ideas and experiences in our book. But suffice it to say that all techniques are fruitless unless connected to the vine of Jesus Christ. Here we see the primacy of grace, where in order to form our children in virtue we must first and foremost take them to Mass, as well as the other sacraments, especially the sacrament of penance, and pray with them.

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Ecclesia Dei to to be Attached to the Congregation for Divine Worship?

From Monde et Vie via RORATE CÆLI:

"The pope wishes to use the nomination of his right-hand man [Cardinal Cañizares Llovera] at the helm of the Congregation for Divine Worship [as a means] to profoundly reorganize the Ecclesia Dei Commission, where Cardinal Cañizares is already a member. According to the rumor, which seems to be just backstage gossip, Cardinal Castrillón Hoyos, who has surpassed the age limit for a long time, would cede his place to his current second, Mgr. Camille Perl, a personal friend to Pope Ratzinger, who would be consecrated a bishop for the event.

And the Commission would then be attached to the Congregation for Divine Worship, bearing responsibility, within a dicastery, for the Traditional form of the Roman rite, under the patronage of Cardinal Cañizares. [...] This means, at any rate, that the Ecclesia Dei Commission is placed within the ecclesial landscape..." - more

And NLM:

"Such an integration of the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei into the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments would indeed be excellent for several reasons. It would clearly and unmistakably demonstrate, as the article mentions, that the usus antiquior is now a normal and regular part of the life and liturgy of the Church, attended to by a regular discastery of the Curia, and one of the most important at that, and not by a Special Commission named after a now obsolete indult. It makes sense that the curial authority charged with the Sacred Liturgy should have competence over both forms of the Roman Rite, not only because, once again, the Extraordinary Form is a living and regular part of the Sacred Liturgy, and not some isolated special interest concern, but also because, as we have seen, there are many questions which concern both forms, and where a seperate treatment of the same question can cause frictions..." - more

• Reform at Ecclesia Dei? Pontifical Commission downgraded?
• Rumor Watch: Ecclesia Dei to Become Part of CDW?

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Benedict XVI Explains How to Truly Worship

Considers Pauline Concept of Praising God

VATICAN CITY, JAN. 7, 2009 (Zenit.org).- It is only in communion with Christ that Christians can offer God true worship, says Benedict XVI.

The Pope explained this today during the first general audience of 2009, in which he resumed his catechesis on St. Paul.

Speaking in a hoarsened voice after days of intense schedules during the holiday season, the Holy Father offered a lengthy explanation of the Pauline concept of "true worship," as it is explained in three passages of the Letter to the Romans.

Referring first to a reference Paul makes to a rite in the Old Testament, the Pontiff noted how the sacrifice of animals as expiation for human sins could never be sufficient.

"A more real contact between human fault and divine love was necessary," he said. "This contact has taken place with the cross of Christ. Christ, Son of God, who has become true man, has assumed in himself all our faults. He himself is the place of contact between human misery and divine mercy; in his heart, the sad multitude of evil carried out by humanity is undone, and life is renewed."

St. Paul speaks of this fundamental change in worship, explaining that "with the cross of Christ -- the supreme act of divine love, converted into human love -- the ancient worship with the sacrifice of animals in the temple of Jerusalem has ended," the Pope said. "This symbolic worship, worship of desire, has now been replaced by real worship: the love of God incarnated in Christ and taken to its fullness in the death on the cross.

"Therefore, this is not a spiritualization of the real worship, but on the contrary, this is the real worship, the true divine-human love, that replaces the symbolic and provisional worship."

Nevertheless, this spiritual worship has a prerequisite, the Bishop of Rome explained, and it is union with Christ.

"Paul," he said, "always supposes that we have come to be 'one in Christ Jesus,' that we have died in baptism and we live now with Christ, through Christ and in Christ. In this union -- and only in this way -- we can be in him and with him a 'living sacrifice,' to offer the 'true worship.'"

By taking on human nature, Christ is able to do for man what sacrificial animals could not, Benedict XVI affirmed.

"The sacrificed animals should have substituted man, the gift of self of man, and they could not," he said. "Jesus Christ, in his surrender to the Father and to us, is not a substitution, but rather really entails in himself the human being, our faults and our desires; he truly represents us, he assumes us in himself.

"In communion with Christ, accomplished in the faith and in the sacraments, we transform, despite our deficiencies, into living sacrifice: 'True worship' is fulfilled."

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Celebrations to mark 100th birthday of ‘Rosary priest’ Father Peyton

Fr. Peyton: "The family that prays together, stays together."

Eaton, MA, Jan 5, 2009 / 11:45 pm (CNA).- Celebrations are being held to mark the 100^th anniversary of the birth of Servant of God Fr. Patrick Peyton, CSC, the “Rosary priest” who popularized the phrase “The family that prays together, stays together.”

Father Peyton was born in County Mayo, Ireland on January 9, 1909. Later, upon becoming a priest, he devoted 51 years of ministry to the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Rosary and to families. He conducted 40 Rosary rallies worldwide, drawing 28 million people, and produced more than 600 radio and television programs which featured hundreds of Hollywood stars.

Holy Cross Family Ministries, based in Easton, Massachusetts, has launched a year-long celebration of Father Peyton’s life based on the theme “Honor his memory. Continue his mission.”

The group encourages families to pray the family Rosary in their homes during a Novena from January 1 to January 9.

Holy Cross Family Ministries’ offices in more than 17 countries are observing the Novena and are conducting many public activities during 2009, including Holy Hours, Rosary rallies, Masses and gala celebrations. A statue of the priest will be erected in Ireland, while a Telethon in the Philippines will allow people to phone in their personal commitments to say the family Rosary.

In the United States, the Father Peyton Center in Easton, Massachusetts will hold an hour of prayer in its chapel at 9 a.m. on the ninth of every month during 2009. An outdoor Rosary prayer rally will be held on June 6 in the adjacent Stonehill College stadium.

The organization Family Rosary in Albany, New York will celebrate a Mass on January 9 at Christ the King Church. It will also hold a public Rosary in June at the grotto at the Vincentian Institute where Father Peyton was first assigned as a priest and where he began Family Rosary in 1942.

In Hollywood, Family Theater Productions will mark Father Moreau/Father Peyton Day on January 11, joining Father Peyton’s commemoration with the feast of Blessed Basil Moreau, CSC, founder of the Congregation of Holy Cross.

Family Theater Productions has offered biographical programs on Father Peyton and some programs created by the priest himself to Catholic television outlets in the U.S. and Canada. Several outlets, including Catholic TV in Boston; Catholic Television Network in Detroit; and Instructional Television in New York have committed to broadcast the programs in 2009.

Most of Holy Cross Family Ministries’ international offices will conduct the “Try Prayer! It Works!” contest for K-12 students, who may submit artwork poetry, and essays reflecting the theme “The family that prays together, stays together.”

"Father Peyton's most sacred insight, the goal toward which his whole fascinating life was directed, was to encourage families to come together daily to pray the Rosary. He saw so many benefits to this simple practice," Holy Cross Father John Phalen, CSC, president of Holy Cross Family Ministries, said in a press release. "Let 2009 be a year of strengthening the family through the family Rosary!"

Father Phalen has invited families to pray the novena of Rosaries for “world peace and any particular petitions dear to the hearts of your family members” and to pray for Father Peyton’s beatification at the end of their Rosary.

The beatification prayer reads:

“Dear Jesus, Father Peyton devoted his priestly life to strengthening the families of the world by calling them to pray together every day, especially the Rosary. His message is as important for us now as it was during his life on earth.

“We beg you, therefore, to hasten the day of his beatification so that your faithful people everywhere will remember his message that the family that prays together stays together, will imitate him in his devotion to your Mother and ours, and will be inspired by his holy life to draw ever closer to you with childlike confidence and love. Amen."

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Pope says Christians must resolve to help others in 2009

By Cindy Wooden
Catholic News Service

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Christians should not fear what the continuing financial crisis will bring in 2009, but they should trust in God and resolve to help one another in the new year, Pope Benedict XVI said.

Leading an evening prayer service in St. Peter's Basilica Dec. 31 to thank God for his blessings in 2008, the pope said people must be grateful first of all for the gift of time, which is a "precious opportunity for doing good."

The prayer service ended with adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and the singing of "Te Deum," a traditional hymn of praise and thanksgiving for the gift of salvation in Christ.

"In our days, marked by uncertainty and concern for the future, it is necessary to experience the living presence of Christ," the pope said.

"This year closes with the awareness of a growing social and economic crisis, which now involves the whole world; it is a crisis that requires of everyone more moderation and solidarity, especially to help people and families in greater difficulty," he said.

Catholic parishes, organizations and aid agencies already are preparing to help record numbers of people in the coming year, the pope said, "but the collaboration of everyone is necessary."

"Even if on the horizon more than a few clouds are gathering over our future, we must not be afraid," Pope Benedict said.

"Our greatest hope as believers is eternal life in the company of Christ and the entire family of God," he said. "This great hope gives us the strength to face and overcome the difficulties of life in this world."

Pope Benedict asked the young adults present to "respond quickly" if God calls them to church work and to live lives that witness to the values of the Gospel.

The world needs people who are not focused only on their own needs and desires, "because, as I said on Christmas Day, if people look only to their own interests, our world will certainly fall apart," he said.

On the eve of the feast honoring Mary, Mother of God, the pope said Catholics were placing in Mary's hands "the expectations and hopes as well as the fears and difficulties that dwell in our hearts as we bid farewell to 2008 and prepare to welcome 2009."

Before going to visit the Nativity scene in St. Peter's Square, the pope told people at the prayer service that, while "we stop to contemplate the baby Jesus, our gaze cannot help but turn with recognition toward his mother, who with her 'yes' made the gift of redemption possible."

Mary made it possible for the Word of God to be born on earth, to live among us and to show us that our final destiny is to be with God in heaven, the pope said.

"It is Mary, the star of hope, who leads us to him," the pope said.

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