Posted on 05/05/2010 10:48:55 AM PDT by markomalley
"Fatima is a particularly significant place for this Pope," said Vatican spokesman Fr. Federico Lombardi on Tuesday, noting that it was also a destination for two former Popes. The Holy Father has a thorough knowledge of the history of the Marian sanctuary, he added.
Fr. Lombardi held a press conference at the Vatican to prepare the media for the Pope's next trip out of the Vatican. He will be visiting Portugal from May 11-14.
The spokesman referred to the Pope's stop in Fatima on May 13 as the highlight and "heart" of the upcoming four-day trip to Portugal, according to Vatican Radio. But, he pointed out, Benedict XVI will not be the first Pope to visit the Marian shrine.
Two other Pontiffs have been to Fatima. In 1967, the sanctuary hosted Paul VI, and John Paul II visited in 1982, 1991 and 2000, at which time the visionaries Jacinta and Francesco were beatified.
The Portuguese shrine is not unfamiliar to Pope Benedict, since as head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger extensively studied the message of Fatima. Fr. Lombardi said on Tuesday that the Pope has been involved with history of the Marian sanctuary in a "very deep, personal way."
It was him, for example, who was called upon to give a theological perspective when the third secret of Fatima was made public in 2000.
The Vatican spokesman said that the Holy Father will also deliver an intense message during his Fatima visit. Upon his arrival at the sanctuary on May 12, he will remember John Paul II and the 29th anniversary of the assassination attempt that nearly took his life on May 13, 1981.
This visit marks the Holy Father's 15th Apostolic Journey abroad in his five years and is his first to Portugal as Pope.
During today's general audience, the Holy Father greeted the people of Portugal in their language, telling them that he will be there this coming weekend at the invitation of the president of the nation and the episcopal conference.
He said he was "happy to be able to visit the 'land of Holy Mary'" on the 10th anniversary of the beatification of the shepherd children.
According to Portuguese press reports, local police are planning for a cumulative total of 450,000 people at the celebrations in Lisbon, Fatima and Portugal during the four-day visit.
But they do have the authority to pull threads because they are offensive. That you choose to not exercise that authority in relation to the Catholic Church is extremely disappointing.
And Jesus The Christ was
soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
fond and lauditory
about !!!!TRADITIONS!!!!
of RELIGIOUS LEADERS.
What brilliant understanding of The Gospels, y’all display!
/sar
Maybe if y’all pulled on Mary’s apron strings a
LITTLE HARDER
she’d override the RM
in favor of turning FR into a sub-office of the Vatican.
/s
Not in the state it's in now! That would be a clear sign I was in thee other place.
Seriously, I think it not insignificant that sometimes the risen Lord was recognizable and sometimes not. In the upper room "He showed them his hands and His side," but there's no explicit indication that the disciples in Emmaus saw any wounds.
However, coming at it from the other side, it was Jesus and not a new person. What we can say about a seed of wheat or any grain and the stalk which arises after it dies.
In any event, the Church is the "mystical" Body of Christ, so Mary is our Mother "mystically," whatever that means.
Here's more food for thought: why are there no post-resurrection mentions of scars/wounds from the crown of thorns, the scourging, the blows to his head and body, and the plucking out of his beard? Why are the wounds in His hands, feet, and side the only ones that remain(ed) visible?
None of the above.
Uh huh. There are documents about alien abductions, yet there are no documents of alien abductions. If they are that commonplace, then where are the aliens? Where are the ships? Show us the evidence. People say the darndest things and all without proofs.
Where is the smoking gun - or the smoking aliens?
Nice!
Personally, I yam diply offended,diply, that my suggested re-write of the headline has been completely ignored.
But only involving menopausal hystericals and alcoholic hill billies with advanced DTs.
1 in 40 people say they have been abducted by aliens or have seen UFOs, that’s a lot of people to tell “you’re wrong” to. Everyone worldwide who has ever encountered one of these “beings” have described the same scenario, the same look to the “beings”, that being oval shaped heads, huge dark eyes, and most say they have had an extreme sense of unease, evil, torment, suffering. How can you just stamp wrong or crazy on thousands of people that have never met, who have all described in detail the same scenario, the world over? I’d say that is some pretty hard evidence, whatever the cause, aliens/demons, these beings are malignant to mankind.
Listen to some of Guy Malone’s thoughts on aliens and bible prophecy, it’s very interesting and up until last night I had heard of him but never listened. He is a Christian man, who has encountered these beings ever since he was a child, author of several books, and done extensive research on UFOs and the Bible. I’m not saying he’s right, I’m just saying check it out, it’s really not kooky. I promise.
Oh, Thanks Quix for the linky.
That is simply mass confabulation. The clinical term is false memory syndrome and the incident rate is a fraction of your statistics.
It would have been more precise for me to say, “I see no arguments. All I see is counter-assertions.”
Ah well . . .
lack of precision strikes all sides sooner or later, it seems.
“But look at the men who have those perverted notions about the grace of Jesus Christ which has come down to us, and see how contrary to the mind of God they are. . . . They even abstain from the Eucharist and from the public prayers, because they will not admit that the Eucharist is the self-same body of our Savior Jesus Christ which flesh suffered for our sins, and which the Father of His goodness raised up again.“ St. Ignatius of Antioch (d. AD 106; disciple of Peter and Paul) Epistle to the Smyrnaeans
All kinds of folks put all manner of stock in a variety of extra-Biblical writings . . . some with little justification and some with a little more justification.
The collection of all such seems to be quite a mishmash . . . with folks picking and choosing much as they do with Scripture verses . . . according to their sensibilities, biases, goals.
Not overly impressive.
disciple of Peter and Paul
Nope.
Just doesn’t guarantee anything.
Paul had problems with some of his disciples as he clearly mentioned such in the NT.
Oh, you bet. Exactly ike UFO stories.
As I’ve noted all along.
Nice you finally agree with me.
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