Bulletins, Newsletters, and Flocknotes

Appointment of members of the Pontifical Committee for Historical Sciences

The Holy Father has appointed the following distinguished professors as members of the Pontifical Committee for Historical Sciences: Umberto Longo , director of the Italian Historical Institute for the Middle Ages in Rome, Italy; Francesco Cesareo , president emeritus of the Assumption University in Worcester, United States of America; and Anna Barańska , associate professor at the Faculty of Humanistic Sciences of the Katolicki Uniwerytet Lubelski Jana Pawła II , Poland.

REPUBLIC OF SAN MARINO

 

8.00                Departure from Vatican heliport

9.00                Arrival at the Torraccia Airfield (Republic of San Marino)

                       Transfer to Piazza della Libertà

9.45                 Piazza della Libertà: military honours, with the national Anthems

                       The Holy Father and Their Excellencies the Captains Regent will enter the Palazzo Pubblico                                       (City Hall)

10.00               In the Atrium, the Secretaries of State will be introduced to the Holy Father

                       The Holy Father and Their Excellencies the Captains Regent will proceed to the Sala Consiglio dei                             XII for the private meeting and the signing of the Book of Distinguished Guests

10.40                Meeting in the Great and General Council Chamber

11.15              At the end, the Holy Father, accompanied by Their Excellencies the Captains Regent, will appear                               on the central balcony of the Palazzo Pubblico to greet and bless the faithful in the Square

                      Transfer to the Basilica of San Marino

11.45               At the entrance to the Basilica, the Holy Father will be welcomed by Bishop Domenico Beneventi                              of San Marino-Montefeltro, and by Don Marco Mazzanti, rector of the Basilica

                        Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and veneration of the Relics of Saint Marinus with priests,                                  consecrated men and women, and representatives of the ecclesial life of the diocese

12.15               The Holy Father will leave the Basilica and greet the faithful in the Square

                      Transfer to the Torraccia Airfield

12.45               The Holy Father will take leave of Their Excellencies the Captains Regent and the authorities

                      Departure from the Republic of San Marino

 

The Holy Father will pay a strictly private visit to the community of the Monastery of Saint Anthony of Padua of the Augustinian Nuns at Pennabilli

 

MEETING FOR FRIENDSHIP AMONG PEOPLES

 

14.45               Arrival at the Rimini Exhibition Centre heliport

15.00               Visit to the exhibition on Saint Augustine

15.15               Visit to the exhibition on Leon Harmel

15.30               Villaggio Ragazzi (Kids’ Village): greeting of the Holy Father to the participants in the Meeting

16.00               Great Auditorium: meeting with participants in the Meeting

                       Transfer to the Cathedral of Rimini

 

RIMINI

17.30               In the Cathedral: Meeting with the sick, disabled and poor assisted by Caritas

                       Transfer to Piazzale del Porto

18.30               Rimini Port: Eucharistic Concelebration

20.00               The Holy Father will take leave of the authorities

                       Departure from Rimini Port

21.00               Arrival at the Vatican heliport

This morning’s General Audience took place at 10.00 in the Vatican Basilica, where the Holy Father Leo XIV met with groups of pilgrims and faithful from Italy and all over the world.

In his address in Italian, the Pope resumed his cycle of catechesis on “The Documents of the Second Vatican Council”, focusing on the theme: Constitution Sacrosanctum Concilium. The liturgical year (Reading: Rev 1:5-8).

After summarizing his catechesis in various languages, the Holy Father addressed special greetings to the faithful present.

The General Audience concluded with the recitation of the Pater Noster and the Apostolic Blessing.

 

Catechesis. The Documents of the Second Vatican Council. III. Constitution Sacrosanctum Concilium. 6. The liturgical year

Dear brothers and sisters,

The fifth chapter of the Conciliar Constitution Sacrosanctum Concilium ( SC ) is dedicated to the liturgical year, a theme we would like to look at today, to explain its value in the life of every believer.

First of all, it is important to note that this way of referring to the cycle of Christian feasts as the ‘liturgical year’ became widespread in ecclesiastical language thanks to the work of the Servant of God, Abbot Prosper Guéranger (1805–1875).

In the Encyclical Mediator Dei , Pope Pius XII states that it “is not a cold and lifeless representation of the events of the past, or a simple … record of a former age. [The liturgical year] is rather Christ Himself who is ever living in His Church. Here He continues that journey of immense mercy which He lovingly began in His mortal life … with the design of bringing men to know His mysteries and in a way live by them. These mysteries are ever present and active” (III Divinum Officium et Annus Liturgicus, II Cyclus Mysteriorum). The liturgical year should thus be understood as a constant renewal of the work of salvation which Christ accomplishes in history. As she journeys through this temporal cycle, the Church remains in contact with the Lord’s redemptive action, so that all the faithful may be filled with His grace (cf. SC , 102c).

The encounter with Jesus, who died and rose again for us, is the purpose that the Church always pursues, placing the celebration of the Paschal event at the centre of every moment.

Hence the Council Fathers considered “the foundation and kernel of the whole liturgical year” to be Sunday, “the original feast day” (cf. SC , 106). In various modern languages, its name indicates that it is the “ dies Domini ”, “the Lord’s day”. Even in those languages where the reference to the “day of the sun” ( Sunday , Sonntag ) has prevailed, the link with Christ can be discerned: Christ is the true “sun of righteousness” who enlightens every person!

Saint John Paul II , in the Apostolic Letter Dies Domini (31 May 1998) teaches that Sunday is the day of the Lord, the day of the Church, the day of man and, finally, the “day of days”. “Since Sunday is the weekly Easter, recalling and making present the day upon which Christ rose from the dead, it is also the day which reveals the meaning of time. … Springing from the Resurrection, it cuts through human time, the months, the years, the centuries, like a directional arrow which points them towards their target: Christ’s Second Coming. Sunday foreshadows the last day, the day of the Parousia ” (75), when we shall all rise again.

To sanctify Sunday, it is fundamental to celebrate the Eucharist. Listening to the Word and partaking of the Body of Christ entail, according to the Council Fathers, the coming together in unum (cf. SC , 106), that is, the joyful gathering of the faithful. In this assembly, the Christian community makes visible its communion with the Lord and bears witness to its belonging to Christ and its fidelity to the Church. This assembly cannot be substituted by a solely virtual presence, nor can it be reduced to a merely passive gathering. The liturgical assembly is in fact fulfilled through the active participation of brothers and sisters, called together to “thank God who ‘has begotten them again, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, unto a living hope’” ( 1 Pet 1:3) ( ibid. ).

In this regard, I urge everyone to seek the best possible conditions so that even those who are unable to take time off work on Sundays may take part in Holy Mass.

Dear friends, the liturgical year, punctuated by Sundays, has an interesting history, in which the faith and devotion of the Church are interwoven. Indeed, from as early as the second century AD, the celebration of the weekly Easter was joined by that of the annual Easter, the “most solemn festival” ( SC , 102), extending over the most joyful period of fifty days, culminating in Pentecost, and prepared for by the season of Lent with its penitential character (cf. SC , 109). The development of the Christmas cycle, which took place later and was modelled on the Paschal cycle, has made it possible to relive the mysteries of the Incarnation of the Word of God, of His birth and of His manifestation to the world. The Church then incorporated into the various times the veneration of the Blessed Virgin Mary, “joined by an inseparable bond to the saving work of her Son” ( SC , 103), and “the memory of the martyrs and the other saints” who “sing God’s perfect praise in heaven and offer prayers for us” ( SC , 104).

The liturgical year thus repeats, in sacramental form, the teaching of the history of salvation, guiding the faithful from the expectation of the Messiah to the fullness of the Paschal Mystery and to the anticipation of future glory. In it, the Church celebrates the salvific relevance of the mystery of Christ, enabling believers to participate in it ever more deeply. For this reason, the liturgical year constitutes the guiding principle and the essential framework for all pastoral action.

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Greeting in English

I greet all the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, particularly the groups from Malta and Zimbabwe.  Upon you and your families, I invoke the joy and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ. God bless you all!

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Summary of the Holy Father's words

Dear brothers and sisters, in our continuing series of catecheses on the Second Vatican Council ’s Constitution on the liturgy, Sacrosanctum Concilium , we reflect today on the liturgical year and its relevance for the faithful. The liturgical year is not a static representation of past events, but an encounter with Christ himself, who desires to immerse his people in the mysteries of the history of salvation. The day on which Christ rose from the dead is the core of the liturgical year, and foreshadows Christ’s second coming, when we will all rise again. For this reason, it is essential for the faithful to sanctify the Lord’s Day by gathering to celebrate the Eucharist. May our active participation and steadfast witness help us to enter ever more deeply into the reality of belonging to Christ, and may we anticipate with hope his coming in glory.

“Disarming Technology, Serving Peace. Politics as Preventive Responsibility”

For the celebration of the sixtieth World Day of Peace, which will be observed on 1 January 2027, the Holy Father has chosen the theme: “Disarming Technology, Serving Peace. Politics as Preventive Responsibility.”

His Holiness wishes to draw attention to the moral responsibility of those called to serve in the public sphere, and he urges all people to uphold the dignity of the human person and to contribute to the building of peace, beginning by “disarming technology.”

Recalling that “no algorithm can make war morally acceptable” ( Magnifica Humanitas , 198), and warning of the risks involved in entrusting military decisions to artificial intelligence, Pope Leo XIV makes a fervent appeal to the international community to foster shared agreements capable of safeguarding human responsibility and humanitarian principles in situations in which human life and peaceful coexistence among peoples are at stake.

Appointment and confirmations of the Council for the Economy

The Holy Father has appointed the following as members of the Council for the Economy: His Eminence Cardinal Grzegorz Ryś , archbishop of Kraków, Poland; His Eminence Cardinal Ladislav Nemet , S.V.D., archbishop of Belgrade, Serbia; His Eminence Cardinal Jean-Paul Vesco , O.P., archbishop of Algiers, Algeria; His Eminence Cardinal Roberto Repole , archbishop of Turin and bishop of Susa, Italy; the distinguished Drs: Denis Duverne , chair of the Supervisory Board of the Fondation pour la Recherce Méedicale ; Gisela Liechtenstein , chief executive officer of Industrie und Finanzkontor Etablissement ; Paolo Nusiner , director general of the Directorate of General Affairs of the Dicastery for Communication; Elena Wettstein Principato , head of sales management of Europe International of UBS Group AG.

Furthermore, the Pope has confirmed the following appointments to the aforementioned economic body: coordinator, His Eminence Cardinal Reinhard Marx archbishop of München und Freising, Germany; deputy coordinatot, the distinguished Professor Charlotte Kreuter-Kirchhof , professor of German and Foreign Public Law, International Law and European Law at the Juristischen Fakultät of Heinrich-Heine Universität Düsseldorf , Germany; members, His Eminence Cardinal Odilo Pedro Scherer , archbishop of São Paulo, Brazil; His Eminence Cardinal Gérald Cyprien Lacroix , of the Pius X Secular Institute, archbishop of Québec, Canada; His Eminence Cardinal Joseph William Tobin , C.SS.R., archbishop of Newark, United States of America; the distinguished Drs: Leslie Jane Ferrar , trustee of the archdiocese of Westminster, Great Britain, and Alberto Minali , chief executive of REVO Insurance ; Secretary, the Most Reverend Monsignor Brian Edwin Ferme .

 

Brief biographical notes on the new lay members of the Council for the Economy

 

Dr Denis Duverne , born in Lyon, France, on 31 October 1953, graduated from the École des Hautes Études commerciales and the École Nationale d’Administration in Paris. From 2007 to 2009, he served as chair of the Europe Insurance CFO Forum , a group dedicated to promoting transparent financial reporting. Since 2016, he has held the role of chief executive officer of AXA and, since 2017, has also served as chair of the Supervisory Board of the Fondation pour la Recherche Médicale . 

 

Princess Gisela of Liechtenstein , born in Feldkirch, Austria, on 26 June 1990, graduated with a degree in environmental engineering from the Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule Zürich , Switzerland. She has worked in the fields of investment banking and engineering in London, Canada, Singapore and Switzerland, and is currently chief executive of Industrie und Finanzkontor Etablissement . 

 

Dr Paolo Nusiner , born in Bergamo, Italy, on 13 June 1963, graduated in economics and business from the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Milan. Throughout his career, he has held senior positions in various industrial sectors, working for multinational companies, in Catholic publishing, in academia and in the healthcare sector. Since June 2015, he has been director general of the Directorate for General Affairs of the Dicastery for Communication.

 

Dr Elena Wettstein Principato , born in Rome, Italy, in 1987, holds a master’s degree in economics from Roma Tre University, specializing in accounting and financial analysis. Following international experience in wealth management and financial services, gained in Italy, the United States of America and Switzerland, she currently holds the position of head of sales management for Europe International at UBS Group AG .