FIRST AMBASSADOR OF U.A.E. PRESENTS LETTERS OF CREDENCE

Vatican City (The Holy See) has Diplomatic Ties with members of the United Nations. As the an independent state, Vatican City is considered a country which enjoys the same full privilege just as every member of the United Nation has (see HERE the complete list of countries having diplomatic ties with the Holy See). Thanks to the openness of the United Arab Emirates and its government by this good-will intention of having a Diplomatic Ties with the Sovereign State of Vatican.

VATICAN CITY, 20 MAY 2010 (VIS) - The Pope today received the Letters of Credence of Hissa Abdulla Ahmed Al-Otaiba, the first ambassador of the United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.) to the Holy See.

Speaking English to the diplomat the Holy Father highlighted how "love of God and respect for the dignity of one's neighbour motivates the Holy See's diplomacy and shapes the Catholic Church's mission of service to the international community. The Church's action in the field of diplomatic relations promotes peace, human rights and integral development, and thus strives for the authentic progress of all, without regard for race, colour or creed".

He went on: "The Holy See and the Catholic Church take care to highlight the dignity of man in order to maintain a clear and authentic vision of humanity on the international stage and in order to muster new energy in the service of what is best for the development of peoples and nations".

The U.A.E., the Holy Father noted, "notwithstanding difficulties, has experienced notable economic growth in recent years. In this context, your country has welcomed many hundreds of thousands of foreigners coming to seek work and a more secure financial future for themselves and for their families".

"The openness of the United Arab Emirates towards those foreign workers requires constant efforts to strengthen the conditions necessary for peaceful coexistence and social progress, and is to be commended", said the Pope, expressing his satisfaction "that there are several Catholic churches built on lands donated by the public authorities.

"It is the Holy See's earnest wish", he added, "that this co-operation may continue and indeed flourish, according to the growing pastoral necessities of the Catholic population living there. Freedom of worship contributes significantly to the common good and brings social harmony to all those societies where it is practised. I assure you of the desire of the Catholic Christians present in your country to contribute to the wellbeing of your society, to live God-fearing lives and to respect the dignity of all peoples and religions".

Why a Catholic becomes an ex-Catholic?

There are many reasons why Catholics abandon their faith and become ex-Catholics. Here are some of the things I knew.

When I was just a little boy growing up in a 100% Catholic environment, I was very much familiar with Catholic traditions such as the Holy Mass, going to Confession, feasts, procession, etc. I was a Sacristan then so I was familiar with almost everything.

A lot of stuffs I knew about Catholicism was given by-default. I was born in it and I imitated its practices. Without any effort I became a Catholic.

Just like any (uninformed) Catholic, I knew nothing why I have to hear Mass on Sundays and Holy Days of obligation, receive Holy Communion, proclaim the Creed, go to Confession, join the procession, attend Novena prayers, say my Rosary etc. I just wouldn’t bother.

It was a pity seeing Catholics in churches bodily present but spiritually lacking in knowledge about their faith. They were just there filling our pews looking for people, criticize and talk about them, easily irritated when a priest’s sermon doesn’t go along the way they wanted it to be delivered. Some would waste their time gossiping instead of praying before the Mass starts. And NO ONE even dared stopping them from annoying those who wanted to pray in solemnity. Our Churches should be a place for meditation and prayer, not for chatting or fashion show. These kinds of Catholics are the best candidates for becoming ex-Catholics. They are potentially the best anti-Catholics if left un-catechized.

We can learn from the past. The cases of known ex-Catholics in the world such as Martin Luther (who is the Father of Protestants) and Felix Manalo (the founder of an anti-Christ cult in the Philippines) are some of the many cases in point we can extract from history for our wisdom. The fruit of their malice and arrogance scattered the seeds of division, discord and narrow-mindedness against the Catholic Church for the past 500 years and to some 95 years.

Today, members of the church of Felix Manalo are among the fiercest anti-Catholics we have in the Philippines. Using its radio and TV stations, their official magazine called "Pasugo" and "God's Message" , all have one thing in common:  They attack Catholic doctrines and practices to their own selfish advantage. They explain their doctrine by demonizing the Catholic Church which is Christ's true Church according to Pasugo publication April 1966. p. 46.

The lack of knowledgeable and zealous volunteer catechists in our parishes is a reality in the Catholic Church today. Catholic children in public schools depended so much on the availability of seminarians, nuns and parish pastoral catechists on a given hour in a week. The catechists shifting schedules and the availability of Religion Classes schedule in the present educational curriculum in public schools prevented them on catechizing Catholic children. The lack of time, manpower, financial resources makes it even harsher for our dedicated catechists to carry on their mission in spreading the Word of God.

The loss of sense of the holy and divine in our Churches in our liturgy; the lack of modesty in our dressing, our collective unsympathetic coldness to the sensitivities of other Catholics in our churches; our self-righteousness attitude all contributed to the decline of our brethren’s faith.

At home, parents who are supposed to be the best catechists do not seem to be bothered at all. They themselves give little attention to the spiritual formation of their children. Coupled with parents’ appalling role modeling eventually drifts Catholic children away from the Catholic Church and eventually lost their conviction.

On the part of the individual, the lack of motivation and interest makes it impossible for him/her in studying more concerning the Catholic faith. The fact that most nominal Catholics do not normally open their Bibles makes it impossible for God to communicate his Word. Relying only on what they hear in churches on Sundays (if they know it was actually the Bible that was being read) would make them less interested on anything spiritual.

Catholics encountering Protestants

A nominal Catholic encountering a Bible Christian is a shocking experience. His lack of knowledge of the Catholic faith and his total ignorance of the Word of God could easily put him in a defenseless situation. The convincing power of these Protestant preachers, the dishonesty of some preacher slicing Bible verses to suit their purpose; those ministers demonizing our doctrines in explaining their man-made teachings—Two things that may likely happen to a nominal Catholic. Challenge himself or allows himself be drifted away. The latter possible turn of event would make him a staunch anti-Catholic aggressor.

What a Catholic Should Do

Love the Word of God written in the Sacred Scripture. This is OUR book. Our forefathers spent most of their life defending and studying this book. They called up Synods by Synods, Councils by Councils in an unceasing prayer just because of this book. Our Catholic Scholars devoted their life and time writing with their hands copies of this book. They carefully divided book by book with Chapters and verses which no single Protestant Scholar had ever shed a sweat.

Read and meditate on the Holy Scripture. It doesn’t cost you a thing. As a matter of fact, it will make you richer—in faith and knowledge.

Do not interpret the Scripture as if it was your own. When in doubt, ask the Church, search for Catholic commentaries and understand the Holy Word in the MIND OF THE CHURCH, not by individuals. Individual interpretation has the higher risk of misinterpretation that what was interpreted by the whole Body of Christ, the Catholic Church.

Discover the richness of our Catholic faith found in the Scripture holy Tradition. Read history and understand. Believe in Cardinal Newman’s saying that to be deep in history is to cease to be a Protestant. (Cardinal Newman was an Anglican Bishop converted to Catholicism).

Be active in your parishes. Ask your pastor what you can do to share in this great commissioning. If you feel unprepared, use the internet to blog your faith.

You can evangelize far and wide. Use your Catholic knowledge and your faith in strengthening our brethren. Be a WITNESS. Tell the world that you have finally found the truth in Christ through his bride—the Church.

Proclaiming your faith against those who have turned against Christ and his Church will give you more reward in the life next for this is why we are called Christians— Catholics to be specific, to love, love and love.

And mostly, pray.

Pray for the whole Church, our present spiritual leader, the Pope.

Pray for our Bishops and our clergy and religious who are serving our communities. Pray for holy priests and religious.

Pray for those brethren who were led astray and pray for those who led them astray.

Pray for those who persecute us just because of our faith in Christ—the Son of God. Pray for his Church which he has redeemed by his blood.

Pray for the entire Church, united with the prayers of those righteous souls who have gone ahead of us, who are now serving the Lamb on the Throne, the saints who have washed their robes by the blood of the sacrificial unblemished perfect Lamb offering our prayers before the Throne.

Pray for those souls who are still awaiting for their purification. And mostly pray for the pilgrim Church on earth whose earthly battles still far ahead.

And may God give each and every Catholic the grace to live a holy life as we witness to the splendor of His Truth for He alone is the only Way, the Truth and the Life.

In this way, our witnessing may bring wandering souls back to Christ’s true fold—the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church of Christ.

Amen! Amen!

Iglesia ni Cristo®: Keeping Them Honest!

While the Iglesia ni Cristo®’s Central Office in the Philippines keeps secret its current number of believers, the partial result of this year’s general election drastically discloses an appalling figure regarding their accurate quantity of affiliates.

Partial Party List Results as of 15th of May, 2010 confirms that the cult’s ALAGAD Party List has only 214,808 votes GMANews (4.3% of the 5 million (?) they expected to vote this year) nearly anchoring them to the 34th place.

Didn’t Eduardo Manalo and his elders vigorously compel their members to vote first its own party list before anyone else for the sake of their man-made doctrine of pagkakaisa?

This year’s general elections figure reveals the truth. The Iglesia ni Cristo® so-called “Block-Voting” is just a show-off—a MYTH!

What is the ALAGAD Party List?

Unheard of to many Filipinos, ALAGAD is an Iglesia ni Cristo® Party List which has one seat in the House. It is represented by Rep. Rodante D. Marcoleta, an Iglesia ni Cristo® member.

The 1987 Constitution says that 20% of the membership in the House of Representative should constitute members of the party-list. Among the party-list systems, they should represent the MARGINALIZED sectors of our society.

In its resolution, COMELEC can remove or cancel the registration of any party list after due notice and hearing according to Comelec Chairman Lao. One of the grounds for cancelling or removal of any party-list is when it is a religious sect or denomination, organization or association organized for religious purposes according to our Constitution.

The ALAGAD Party-List, is directly affiliated to the Iglesia ni Cristo® cult but its affiliation was never mentioned in their website. (And the Iglesia ni Cristo® has NO WEBSITE to this age when all information can be read through the internet).

The Iglesia ni Cristo® is political church in the Philippines founded by Felix M. Ysagun but it is actually a cult more than a religion. Later he changed his name to Felix Y. Manalo, a baptized Catholic, ex-Protestant Minister who lost to many debates until he founded his own. It’s July 27 annual festive celebration wasn’t accurate. Prior to that date, Felix already had started preaching about his church. It’s only in July 27, 1914 that he formally registered his church at the Securities and Exchange Commission as a Corporation Sole.

Alagad Party List Housing projects was praised by ex-President Arroyo but unknown to many the project is geared to alleviate ONLY poor members of the Iglesia ni Cristo® spending the money of the Filipino people through its allotted Pork Barrel.

Alagad Party List objective is to foster “family values” patterned according to the teachings of the Iglesia ni Cristo®. Among it’s said “Family Values” vaguely, they are teaching couples to have sex uncontrollably by using condoms—and thus prevents women from conceiving. There was no mentioning of issues such as young adults who may wish to have sex as long as they use contraceptive method such as condoms.

All unnatural contraceptive methods including the usage of condoms and pills etc. are considered morally evil by the Catholic Church—the Church Christ built in Jerusalem (Pasugo April 1966, p. 46). Condoms may prevent pregnancy but it’s not a guarantee from acquiring sexually transmitted diseases. Condom usage promotes sexual promiscuity rather than sexual abstinence.

Since May 2005, they proudly announced that they distributed 97,488 condoms “mostly to married men” ages 20 to 40 years old, which is very much against the Social and Moral Teachings of the true Church of Christ founded in Jerusalem (Pasugo April 1966, p. 46).

Half a Million Pilgrims to Portugal with Pope Benedict XVI

Swedish Muslims Attacked a Cartoonist

It's Religious sensitivities vs. Freedom of Speech.

This is just a few example of clash between Democracy and Intolerance. In Sweden, a cartoonist was attacked by Muslims.

But who's overly sensitive to such issues? Christians do not have to fear about those who insult Jesus Christ. Two thousand years ago, he was not only disrespected but humiliated, falsely accused, condemned and put to death but after three days, he rose again.

And because of that humiliation he received, he was esteemed by more than 2/3 of the entire population on earth and has changed the entire history of mankind. God is God. His power alone can humiliate those who humiliate him, he can cause death to anyone, NOT US!

Thanks to JihadWatch.org. We can determine how much freedom is left in Europe for such insult to Islam's prophet could provoke violence. If no one steps up, soon Europe's freedom will be gone.

Prayer for the New Elected Philippine President

Dear Lord,

I implore you to look upon our new elected President Benigno Aquino III whose parents have been blessings to our people. Shield him from the influence of ravenous people and bestow him the iron will to wipe up corrupt officials still serving our communities. Bless him with wisdom that he may judge rightfully between the interests of the Filipino people from the interest selfish elites.

Look after his hearts from egotism that he may live not for himself but for the marginalize Filipinos. May the spirit of his virtuous parents keep him from falling into dishonesty. May he defend his Christian faith and live it according to the moral teachings of the Church that he may uphold the dignity of every human being including the unborn.

May he lead us just as Moses led a stubborn people while searching for the promise land you always wanted our country to have. Fill every Filipino with sincerity to support him and his government, not so much on what he could do for us but what we can do for our country.

May all Filipinos unite behind him remembering the legacy his parents had always wished for Filipinos.

May God bless the Philippines.

Amen.

America is a Christian Nation! So as the Islands of Phillip!

Sarah Palin's honest uncensored commentaries on political correctness more trustworthy than those politicians who always says things out of political correctness. We must uphold your Christian roots.

Thanks to Creative Minority Report

The Iglesia ni Cristo® Block-Voting is just a myth!

How much do we know about the "Block-Voting" doctrine of the Iglesia ni Cristo® Unipersonal Corporation? How many adherents do the INC® has today that their supposed number could ensure a winner when their actual number is being held from the public?

Iglesia ni Cristo® Logo

How many elligible Iglesia® voters are going to the polls tomorrow to actually vote and how many would be following their doctrine of pagkakaisa? And how many would be defying their elders instead?

We do not know. Unless someone would be monitoring them within the polling stations who'd be turning against their own leader's choice.

Relying on rumors the Iglesia ni Cristo® is bragging an an estimated 5 million votes from its members. For me, that's presumptuous!

We all know that they don't have such a huge number. Or if they have, a solid vote from the INC® is impossible. Well, all we know is that the Iglesia ni Cristo® is playing its political trick again making us believe a myth that their number is powerful enough to determine who would win the elections.

Among the Philippine presidential candidates, the council of elders of the cult founded by Felix Manalo in 1914 finally decided to throw their support to Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III whose popularity is credited, not to the Iglesia ni Cristo® myth but thanks to his devout Catholic parents who are members of Christ's ONLY TRUE CHURCH.

Unlike the Iglesia ni Cristo®, Christ's true Church-- the Catholic Church do not endorse any candidate. Instead the choice is left to individuals according to the dictates of their consciences [Catholic Info]. The Catholic Church respects the individual freedom everyone has however what the Church can do is to ensure there's a peaceful and orderly elections.

The block-voting of the Iglesia ni Cristo® has sparked much controversy both in political and spiritual forums in the internet. Some would argue that this doctrine of the cult directly violates that of our Constitution which prohibits the meddling of spiritual leaders into the affairs of the government. For it's 95 years, the Iglesia ni Cristo® has contributed nothing to the development of the entire nation. Their housing projects are directed only to its members, something not to be proud of.

But why is the Iglesia ni Cristo®’s doctrine attracted so much attention to politicians? Why are they dictating its members like robots? Because they're politicians. And Iglesia ni Cristo® is never a religion but a disguising one. In other words, it's a cult more than a religion.

So how many member do the Iglesia ni Cristo® has today? No one knows. It's one of the Iglesia ni Cristo's many hidden SECRETS.

Significantly, we can refer to how much the ALAGAD PARTY LIST (an Iglesia ni Cristo Party List). From it's vote, we can estimate how many are its members. According to this blog, the actual votes the ALAGAD PARTY LIST got was ONLY 340,977 that is Three Hundred Forty Thousand Nine Hundred Seventy-Seven only. That means they've got just only that much. Although the Philippine Inquirer says their number reaches only 1.8 million according to National Statistic Office 2000 census.

"In the 2000 census, the National Statistics Office put the INC membership in the country at 1.8 million or around 2.3 percent of the total population [emphasis mine]."

How much? It's just 2.3 percent of the total population of the entire country. But here is the most damaging part. The late Erano Manalo admitted that fact! "...dinadaya ang numero.."[they (their Ministers) are cheating their numbers...](Watch YouTube)

Just don't get the credit Iglesia ni Cristo®. Before its central administration even throw their support to Noynoy he was already leading in poll surveys rivaling Villar and Erap (whom they supported in 1998 but now they junked him). Thanks to the support of strong business groups, democracy advocates, die-hard Cory-Ninoy fans and Catholic religious communities including priests who are indebted to his parents-- that helped him most likely to win -- not the Iglesia ni Cristo® myth.

A CHALLENGE TO THE IGLESIA NI CRISTO® ADMINISTRATION!

Let's test their power instead. Its central administration should endorse one of its members to run for Presidency. Let's see if their block-voting could help him/her win. Then we can be sure that they have the the magic number to make a candidate win.

But so far, the Iglesia ni Cristo®'s doctrine of pagkakaisa in block-voting IS JUST A MYTH!

Manila Bulletin: FYI Felix Manalo founded the Iglesia ni Cristo

Felix Manalo did found the Iglesia ni Cristo and his grandson Eduardo actually inherited his seat from his grandfather. So, who really owns the Iglesia ni Cristo? Here's something we should know:

"Did you know that the immediate family members of the current Chief Minister of the Iglesia ni Cristo (INC), Bro. Eduardo, his siblings and children do not own their own houses or assets or receive salaries?

"Everything is literally owned by the Iglesia ni Cristo, run and managed by a Council of Elders, and subsidiary committees and firms for specific activities by boards of trustees… The family members marry only INC members of the Church, and serve as ministers, teachers or administrators … They are given comfortable “subsidies” adequate for a modest lifestyle, and definitely nothing ostentatious … The Philippine Postal Corporation recently issued a special commemorative stamp in honor of Bro. Eduardo’s father, Bro. Eraño G. Manalo, or Ka Erdy, who was mainly responsible, after inheriting the seat from his father and founder, Bro. Felix Manalo, for the phenomenal expansion and influence of the Iglesia ni Cristo here and all over the world wherever there are Filipino workers, devotees and immigrants … Today, the Council of Elders of the Iglesia ni Cristo will meet to decide on crucial matters of national interest of which one of them is the coming May, 2010 elections … The Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) was founded by Bro. Felix Manalo in 1914 …" [emphasis mine]

Source: Manila Bulletin by By HECTOR R.R. VILLANUEVA Former Press Secretary

PASUGO publication dated July 1952, p. 4 said:
"Kung ang babalingan ng pag-uusapan ay ang nagtatag, dapat na siya ang may-ari ng itinatag, at sa kanya rin manggagaling ang mga aral at turo na ipinatutupad." [If the shift of discussion is who founded (something), the founder should own what he has founded and that all lectures and teachings being implemented should come from him.]

Therefore, INC (Iglesia ni Cristo® is a business firm, more than a church.  It's a Filipino organization by the mere fact that it's registered name is in FILIPINO (tagalog). And it was founded by Felix Y. Manalo (not Jesus Christ) in 1914.

So which is the original (true) One and Only Church of Christ Jesus himself established? Read History!

USA: A Supreme Court without Protestants?

It's ironic but it's true. The present United States Supreme Court Justices has no protestant  majority  member amidst its strong Protestant roots. Why so? Read the news below. Thanks to CNN.

The current Supreme Court has six Catholics,
two Jews and one Protestant.

A Supreme Court without Protestants?

(CNN) -- For most of American history, a Supreme Court with no Protestant Christian judges would have been unthinkable. Nearly three quarters of all justices who've ever served on the nation's high court have been Protestant. And roughly half of all Americans identify themselves as Protestant today.

But since John Paul Stevens announced his retirement last month, legal and religious scholars have begun entertaining the unprecedented prospect of a Supreme Court without a single Protestant justice.

Besides Stevens, who is Protestant, the current Supreme Court counts six Catholics and two Jews.

"It's an amazing irony given how central Protestantism has been to American culture," said Stephen Prothero, a religion scholar at Boston University. "For most of the 19th century, Protestants were trying to turn America into their own heaven on Earth, which included keeping Jews and Catholics from virtually all positions of power."

Many religion scholars attribute the decline of Protestants on the high court to the breakdown of a mainline Protestant identity and to the absence of a strong tradition of lawyering among evangelical Protestants.

"Mainline Protestantism isn't a pressure group," said Prothero, "It's not like the National Council of Churches is lobbying Obama to get a Lutheran appointed to the Supreme Court."

And while Judaism and Catholicism have their own sets of religious laws that date back millennia, many branches of Protestant Christianity do not. For much of the last 150 years, evangelical Christianity has stressed an emotional theology of "heart" over "head" -- not a recipe for producing legal scholars with eyes fixed on the Supreme Court.

"Evangelicals have put more effort into getting elected than in getting onto the bench," said Michael Lindsay, a Rice University professor who has studied evangelical elites. "Electoral politics is more similar to the style of rallying of around revival campaign than it is to the arduous journey of producing intellectual giants that could be eligible for the Supreme Court."

President Obama is expected to nominate Stevens' replacement early this month. Of the three candidates who are reported to lead Obama's short list, two -- Solicitor General Elena Kagan and federal appeals judge Merrick Garland -- are Jewish, while one, federal appeals judge Diane Wood, is a Protestant.

Obama's first Supreme Court appointee, Sonia Sotomayor, is Catholic.

One explanation of Catholics' and Jews' high court hegemony is that members of both traditions have long pursued legal degrees as a way to assimilate into a majority Protestant country.

"Most American Catholic law schools were not formed to be elite institutions of lofty legal scholarship, but as way to respond to the fact that other law schools were excluding Catholics," said Richard Garnett, a professor at the University of Notre Dame Law School. "It was a vehicle to get Catholics into the middle class."

"Early on, those schools admitted a lot of Jewish students who were being discriminated against," Garnett said.

Today, Catholic law schools at Georgetown University, Fordham University, and Notre Dame are considered among the best in the country.

Evangelical Protestant colleges, meanwhile -- including Regent University and Liberty University, founded by Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell, respectively -- have opened law schools only since the 1980s.

And law schools with Protestant roots -- like Harvard and Yale -- shed their religious identities a long time ago, part of the broader fading of a distinct mainline Protestant identity in the U.S..

Some legal and religious scholars say the dearth of qualified evangelical candidates for the Supreme Court came into sharp relief in 2005, when President George W. Bush nominated White House counsel Harriet Miers to the high court.

An evangelical Christian who the White House promoted strenuously among evangelicals, Miers' nomination was brought down largely by conservatives -- nonevangelicals, mostly -- who said she was not qualified for the position.

In the last couple of decades, however, more evangelicals have begun pursuing legal degrees, including at elite colleges. "There are now vibrant Christian fellowships at Harvard and Yale," said Lindsay. "Ten years from now, it will be entirely possible to see an evangelical Protestant on the Supreme Court."

Rachel Heflin, a senior at Patrick Henry College -- a Virginia school whose students are mostly evangelicals from homeschooling backgrounds -- said many of her friends are heading to law school next year.

"When your circle of friends is comprised of aspiring lawyers, the joke is about who's going to make it to the high court first," said Heflin, an evangelical Christian who will be attending George Washington University Law School on scholarship.

Which means that a Protestant Supreme Court resurgence may not be too far off.

Catholic Converts en Masse

Anglican bishops in secret Vatican summit
Source: Telegraph.co.uk

Pope Benedict XVI    Photo: AFP/GETTY 

In a move likely to raise tensions between the two Churches, a group of Church of England bishops met last week with advisers of Pope Benedict XVI to set in motion steps that would allow priests to convert to Catholicism en masse.

They are set to resign their orders in opposition to the introduction of women bishops and to lead an exodus of Anglican clerics to the Catholic Church despite Dr Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, urging them not to leave.

It would be the first time for nearly 20 years that large numbers of priests have crossed from the Church of England to Rome, and comes only weeks ahead of a crucial General Synod debate on making women bishops.

The Sunday Telegraph has learnt that bishops travelled to the Holy See last week to hold face to face discussions with senior members of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the most powerful of the Vatican's departments.

The Rt Rev John Broadhurst, the Rt Rev Keith Newton and the Rt Rev Andrew Burnham, the bishops of Fulham, Richborough and Ebbsfleet respectively, are understood to have informed senior Catholic officials that Church of England clergy are keen to defect to Rome.

It is the first significant response to the Papal offer made last year, which opened the doors for Anglicans to convert while retaining key elements of their tradition.

The Most Rev Vincent Nichols, the Archbishop of Westminster, was unaware of the summit, which is likely to prove embarrassing to the Catholic Church ahead of the Pope's visit to Britain later this year as it will rekindle fears that it is trying to poach Anglican clergy.

One source close to last week's discussions said that the Anglican bishops raised concerns with the Vatican officials that there is opposition to them defecting from Catholic bishops in England.

Nevertheless, they made clear they have become so disillusioned with the Church's liberal direction that they are keen to accept the Pope's offer if they can finalise plans to implement it.

The Vatican summit will raise the stakes at the General Synod in July when the Church of England's parliament will vote on how to treat traditionalist clergy opposed to the introduction of women bishops.

Although the number of priests who have openly said that they plan to defect has been small so far, the group is likely to grow if they are not given adequate provisions.

A leading Anglican cleric said: "This will seriously embarrass the Pope.

"It's a plot within the Vatican that they are desperate to keep quiet until they are ready to go public.

"Many will see this as proof that the Catholic Church is intent on poaching clergy from the Church of England despite its reassurances to the contrary."

Iglesia ni Cristo: The Catholic Church Apostatized through Constantine?

As they always use to blackmail poorly catechized Catholics, members of the cult of Felix Manalo, his Iglesia use this argument often that surprise Catholics. Having little time to research and poorly catechized, a Catholic usually ends up an anti-Catholic. Here's a very concise explanation about the myth on Constantine.

THE PAGANIZATION OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH THROUGH CONSTANTINE

Thanks to Blackie

The Historic Facts:

Is it true that Constantine was a pagan and used his influence to corrupt the Catholic Church?

Raise Up A Child...

Constantine was raised with Christian beliefs by his mother St. Helena although he delayed his baptism until he was on his deathbed. It seems clear that he had enough faith to seek salvation in Christ, knowing that he was facing eternity and his soul was in the balance

Your Young Men Will See Visions...

After seeing a vision in which he was told that he would conquer under the sign of the Christian cross, he adopted it as his standard and his entire army carried it into battle against the pagan general Maxentius and he won control of the empire in 312 AD.

Freedom At Last...

The following year Constantine signed the Edict of Milan (sometimes known as the Edict of Tolerance) that officially ended the persecution of the Church. It's hard to understand how anyone can believe that Constantine, (who died a Christian despite his delay) would have paganized the early Catholic Church.

Julian Doesn't Keep The Faith.

Forty-eight years later, in 361 AD, the emperor Julian the Apostate launched a persecution of the Church in an attempt to bring back paganism. Why would that have been necessary if Constantine had already corrupted the Catholic Church?

History Tells All

Some careful research and study of the first 300 years of Christianity will reveal that Catholic doctrines such as the Eucharist, Apostolic authority, and the pope as the successor of Peter were believed from the very beginning of Christianity and certainly were not the result of any pagan influence under Constantine.

In Fact

Christianity has been called Catholic in Acts 9:31 (Greek: "ekklesia katholos") and at least from 107AD when Ignatius, the Bishop of the Church in Antioch, used it in one of his letters to another church which indicates that by that time the original Christian Church was already well known as the Catholic Church in order to distinguish Christ's Church from heretical groups. Keep in mind that that same church in Antioch was where we were all first called Christians as recorded in Acts 11:26. (The Faith of the Early Fathers, William A. Jurgens, Collegeville, Minn.; Liturgical Press, 1970. p.25, #65)

Get The Facts: Make Your Own Decision

Other readings that might interest you:


1. 5 Myths about the 7 Books
2. Biblical Evidence for Catholicism

A Letter to Pasugo and the Iglesia ni Cristo's response

As a cult, we all know that the the Iglesia ni Cristo® hates anything Catholic. In its Pasugo publication Vol. 62, Issue No. 1, January 2010, something is so odd to see.

The title of this year’s first publication was: Brother Eraño G. Manalo IN MEMORIAM. Highlighted words/phrase and added numbers in each paragraph are mine for an easier reference.

Take note of the following:

The date: January 2010 Anno Domini (A.D.--Year of the Lord) – our present Calendar is called the GREGORIAN CALENDAR, named after Pope Gregory XIII which is used as the International Standard Calendar to measure a month and a year.

The words “IN MEMORIAM” are LATIN words which literally means “In Memory of” in English. Latin is the ancient language of Rome and the Roman Empire but it's now considered a dead language. Only the Catholic Church uses it in all official pronouncements of the Church.

But that’s not what I am mostly interested. I am interested on how an Iglesia ni Cristo Minister answer a question by a certain reader from India (if it was true). Let me copy verbatim the question and how the editor answered.

THE LETTER:

Not in the New Testament

1. I’ve been reading Bible commentaries and other related literature since last year. I find it odd that what many Christians know about Jesus Christ mostly come from the New Testament, when in fact Christ himself said that things were written about Him in the Law of Moses and the Prophets (Luke 24:44). Does your church take account of the Old Testament passages about Christ? Are there such passages saying that Jesus is tasked to establish a church – your church for that matter?

Salman Singh
Maharashtra, India

Let me assume that Mr. Salman Singh is a real person from India. If that's the case, Mr. Singh (by his name) should be a decent from the state of Punjab where Singh is a not just a family name but it has some religious resemblance (Sikhism). I would like to believe that this Mr. Singh is not a Christian and so the response of the Iglesia ni Cristo should be particularly sensitive to who Mr. Singh is. Anyway, let's read the Editor's response:

Editor’s reply:

2. The books that have become what is now known as the New Testament were written by contemporaries of our Lord Jesus Christ or those who lived to witness His mission on earth and its continuance to the time of the apostles. Hence, while we do acknowledge that there are also things written about Christ “in the Law of Moses and the Prophets,” or in the Old Testament, this does not in any way preclude the importance of the New Testament, especially in so far as the chronicling of Christ’s life and ministry is concerned.

3. Quite surely, the things written about Christ in the Old Testament are never contradictory to what is recorded in the New Testament. In fact, the New Testament gives testimonies to the prophecies written about Christ in the Old Testament as having been fulfilled in Him—and these include pronouncements presaging Christ’s establishment of the Church He would build and will save.

4. For instance, in Deuteronomy 18: 18-19, Moses recorded God’s prophecy, thus:

5. “I will send them a prophet like you from among their own people; I will tell him what to say, and he will tell the people everything I command. He will speak in my name, and I will punish anyone who refuse to obey him.” (Deut. 18: 18-19, Today’s English Version)

6. This is pronouncement would later be interpreted in the New Testament as a prophecy concerning our Lord Jesus Christ, as given in Acts 3:20-23:

7. “And that He may send Jesus Christ, who was preached to you before, whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began. For Moses truly said to the fathers, ‘The LORD YOUR God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your brethren. Him you shall hear in all things, whatever He says to you. And it shall be that every soul who will not hear that Prophet shall be utterly destroyed from among the people.” (NKJV)

8. Note that one of the messages spoken by Christ concerns His Church and its significance for man’s salvation. In Matthew 16:18, He pronounced that He would build His Church so that the power of death shall not prevail against it. In John 10:9, He specifies that anyone who wants to be saved must enter “into the fold through [Him]” (John 10:9 , Revised English Bible). The fold He refers to is the Church of Christ (Acts 20:28, Lamsa Translation). Clearly, these teachings of Christ as chronicled in the gospels affirm that He is the Prophet being referred to in Deuteronomy, whose teaching people should hear, lest they be utterly destroyed or unsaved on the day of Judgement (1 Cor. 5:12-13; Rev. 21:8).

9. A prophecy recorded in the book of the prophet Isaiah also foretold about the election of Christ and the members of His Church. In Isaiah 60:1, God declared:

10. “Also your people shall all be righteous They shall inherit the land forever, The branch of My planting, The work of My hands, That I may be glorified.” (NKJV)

11. Take note that God here prophesied about His “planting and the “branch of [His] planting” who would have the right and privilege to glorify Him and would be appointed to become His heirs. The New Testament informs us that Christ identified Himself as “God’s planting” by pronouncing, “I am the Real Vine and my Father is the Farmer” (John 15:1, The Message). He further clarified that “His branches” are the people who belong to Him:

12. “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.

13. “You did not choose Me,, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you.” (John 15:5, 16, NKJV)

15. Christ being “the vine” and those who belong to Him being “the branches” were equated by Apostle Paul to Christ being “the head” and His Church being “the body”, thereby ascertaining that the people who belong to Christ—those mentioned in Isaiah 60:21 as “the branch of [God’s] planting”—are the members of the Church that Christ established:

16. “And He is the head of the body, the church…” (Col. 1:18, NKJV)

17. “For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function, so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.” (Rom 12:4-5, NKJV)

18. What we have presented here are just a few of the many things written about Christ in the Old Testament that are attested to by pronouncements recorded in the New Testament, particularly those concerning His establishing of His Church—the true Church of Christ.

There is a lot of confusion in the part of Mr. Richard J. Rodas' as its Editor-In-Chief. Paragraph 8, quoted Mt. 16:18 which he wrote "the power of death" shall not prevail.

New American Bible: ".. the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it"

Douay-Rheims Bible: "..and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it."

Jerusalem Bible: "...the gates of the underworld can never overpower it."

New King James Version: "...the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it."

New International Version: "... the gates of Hades will not overcome it.

In all five different versions of the Bible, they preclude that Christ's Church WILL not be overcome by the powers of death, hades, hell, netherworld. It is always in the future tense "WILL" because His Church would NEVER apostatized yesterday, today and forever for this is the promise of Christ to Simon Peter, the first Pope.

Now, let's compare paragraphs 7 to the rest of the paragraphs.

In Paragraph 7, the pronoun He refers to God who spoke to the prophets about Jesus Christ. Irrespective of its position in the sentence, the editor kept the pronoun He in big letter "H" and "e" in reference to God (not god).

Now, open your eyes and read the rest of the editor's response in the other paragraphs, the He (God) and He (Christ) has no distinction. God (He) and Jesus Christ (He) are given the same emphassis irrespective of its position in the sentence. And as a reader, I would interpret this according to Christian understanding of the Holy Trinity. And as a Catholic, those same emphasis given to He (for God) and He (for Christ) mean one and the same. That God and Jesus are One and that there is really ONE GOD-- in three divine person.

The confusion of PASUGO's Editor-In-Chief only highlights that of the truth in the Catholic Church that God and Jesus are ONE.

I hope Mr. Singh has opened his eyes and see the confusion of the Iglesia ni Cristo Minister as a guiding truth to his quest toward the right path to Jesus Christ, through His True One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church affirmed by the same PASUGO in its publication dated April l 1966, p. 46: "Ang Iglesia Katolika na sa pasimula ay siyang Iglesia ni Cristo. [The Catholic Church in the beginning was the true Church of Christ.]"

But wait. Have you notice something else? How many different versions of the Bible did they used Those highlighted in blue shows how they shifted from one translation to the other but never they quoted any Catholic version Bible.

Specifically, Iglesia ni Cristo loves the Lamsa Translation when they quote Acts 20:28.

Why?

It's because only in Lamsa Translation, Acts 20:28 was interpreted as "Church of Christ "instead of "Church of God" which originally written in Greek, "the church of God" (tan ekklasian tou Theou) not "the church of Christ" (tan ekklasian tou Christou)" [read more HERE and in YouTube]

Who is George Lamsa? Why the Iglesia ni Cristo loves his translation very much? Read LetUsReason. However, let's understand that George Lamsa belongs to the Nestorian church which his theological position on Christology was condemned by the Council of Chalsedon in 8 October to 1 November 451 A.D. Iglesia ni Cristo found an ally.

Thanks to Pasugo's Editor, it reveals the truth we all wanted. Praise God no one can hide the blinding light of truth in Jesus Christ and God.

To HIM, be the glory forever!

British Party Leaders Bash Pope Benedict in Televised Debate

By Hilary White

April 27, 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com) – In a televised debate last week, all three leaders of the major British political parties accused Pope Benedict XVI of failing sufficiently to recognize and deal with the sex abuse scandals in the Catholic Church.

With Britain’s next general election looming and the country gearing up for an official papal visit, the televised debate featured the leaders of Britain’s political class scolding Pope Benedict for upholding Catholic teaching on homosexuality, contraception and abortion, and for what was alleged to be his inaction on the sexual abuse of minors by priests.

The three leaders were responding to a question from an audience member, Michael Jeans, who asked, “If you win the election, will you disassociate your party from the pope’s protection over many years of Catholic priests who were ultimately tried and convicted of child abuse, and from his fierce opposition to all contraception, embryonic stem cell research, treatment for childless couples, gay equality and the routine use of condoms when HIV is at an all-time high?”

In their responses, none of the party leaders challenged the questioner’s presumption that Pope Benedict has been guilty of mishandling the sex abuse scandal. Instead, each answered in a way that implied that neither the pope nor the Catholic Church has in any way responded to it.

David Cameron, the leader of the Conservative party that is likely to form the next government, said, “I think the Catholic Church has got some very, very serious work to do to unearth and come to terms with some of the appalling things that have happened, and they need to do that.”

He added that he does not agree with the Catholic Church on contraception or homosexuality. “A country where faith is welcome, yes, a visit from the Pope, yes, but does that mean we have to agree with everything he says? No.”

Nick Clegg, head of the rising Liberal Democrat party, whose wife is a Catholic, said he knows about the “immense feelings of anguish” Catholics are experiencing.

“I think they do want to see the Catholic Church express greater openness and repentance. You can't keep a lid on sin, and of course you need to move with the times,” he said.

“I do welcome the pope's visit,” Clegg added, “but I hope by the time he does visit, there is a greater recognition that there has been terrible, terrible suffering, there have been abusive relationships which have left immeasurable scars on individual people's lives and we need a process of openness and then healing. You can't undo the tragedies of the past, but you can be open about them so people can start to move on.”

The prime minister and head of the Labour Party, Gordon Brown, said, “[T]he church has got to deal with these problems, and it's got to make sure that there is an open and clean confession about what has happened, and that we help those people who have been put into difficulty by this abuse.”

Brown added, “Secondly, we must break down the barriers of religion that exist in our world. The faiths must come together and recognize they have common values and common interests.”

None of the leaders mentioned the apologies for the sexual abuse scandals already repeatedly offered by Pope Benedict during his visit to the U.S., in his letter to the Irish people and most recently during his recent visit to Malta.

The debate moderator, Adam Boulton, moved on to ask for the leaders’ responses to concerns about the Church and “science and gender” issues.

Cameron told Michael Jeans, “I would be agreeing with you, and against the pope in terms of, for instance, the need to make advances in... er... in science.” Cameron added that he disagrees with the pope on abortion, but said that this disagreement should not prevent the papal visit.

“We must try and build an open and tolerant country where we respect people for their different faiths, we bring faiths closer together with each other and we are prepared to have an open and frank discussion about these things.”

Clegg said that on these matters there is cross-party agreement: “I’ve made it publicly clear in the past, that I don't agree with the formal doctrine on homosexuality of the Catholic Church.”

Brown also expressed his agreement with his political opponents, adding, “I think we know that in Africa, we know round the world, that it is important to give women access and choice so that they can make their own decisions, and I regret the fact that the Catholic Church does not do that.”

Last week’s leadership debate was quickly followed by a revelation that junior Foreign Office officials had circulated a memo which suggested that Pope Benedict be invited to officially open an abortion facility and preside over a “gay marriage” ceremony during his visit to the U.K. The document was hastily withdrawn and official apologies were offered to Vatican officials and to Catholics, but critics said it was indicative of a deep hostility towards Christianity and religious belief among Britain’s political class.

John Smeaton, director of the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children said the comments from the recent debate are an indication of the moral corruption that is rife to the highest levels of British society. Citing the 1968 encyclical by Pope Paul VI condemning modern methods of artificial contraception, Smeaton wrote, “Britain is witnessing the fulfillment of the prophetic message of Humanae Vitae…[Pope Paul] warned about ‘public authorities who care little for the precepts of the moral law’.”

Writing on the Foreign Office memo, Spectator and Daily Mail columnist Melanie Philips, who is Jewish, said such attitudes as were found in the memo are simply part of the new “orthodoxy” among the ruling elites.

“It shows how flippancy and shallowness coexist with a brutalised arrogance. Among those who purport to be the most liberal, educated and enlightened, minds are actually closed and display a vicious illiberalism and gross absence of respect for other points of view, particularly mainstream European religious faiths.”

Smeaton added that “it is clear that Pope Benedict is being defamed by opponents of the sanctity of human life and the dignity of the human person.”

In the light of the comments from the leaders of each party, SPUC is asking British voters to bypass their traditional party loyalties. “The unanimity of the three party leaders makes it all the more important that voters base their choice on how their local candidates promise to vote if elected to parliament,” Smeaton said.

“Whichever party forms the next government, the defence of human life in parliament will rely on individual MPs voting pro-life and resisting pressure from party managers.”

To contact SPUC for candidate information:

3 Whitacre Mews, Stannary Street
London, SE11 4AB, United Kingdom
Phone: (020) 7091 7091
Fax: (020) 7820 3131
Email: information@spuc.org.uk

Read related LSN coverage:
Sex Abuse Victims in Malta 'Impressed' and 'At Peace' After Meeting Pope
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2010/apr/10041910.html

Benedict “Has Done More than Any other Pope or Bishop” to Confront Sex Abuse
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2010/mar/10033013.html

Media Attacks Mounting against Pope over Irish Abuse Letter
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2010/mar/10032209.html

Revealed, the papal visit chief who wrote memo mocking Pope

(Source: DailyMail): Hands in his pockets in a casual pose, this is the Foreign Office diplomat who wrote the memo mocking the Pope.

Anjoum Noorani, British Diplomat
who mocked the Pope

Anjoum Noorani was in charge of a team who came up with 'seriously offensive' proposals for Benedict XVI to open an abortion clinic and launch a brand of his own condoms.

He presided over the disastrous 'brainstorming' meeting at which he and other Whitehall officials cooked up the outlandish list of things the Pope could do when he visits Britain in September.

The extraordinary memo was written on March 5 and leaked last week, triggering a diplomatic storm and Vatican fury at 'dark forces' within the Government.

Mr Noorani, 31, is far more senior than the Foreign Office has made out. Officials desperate to limit the damage have tried to play down his role, insisting he was merely a junior worker who acted without any authority.

But in fact Mr Noorani's title is 'Head of Papal Visit Team' and he is in charge of the staff preparing for the visit.

Until 2007, he was the press secretary at the British embassy in Moscow, trusted to handle delicate relations during the crisis over the poisoning of dissident Alexanda Litvinenko.

None of the Foreign Office's Pope memo team is understood to be Catholic, according to senior sources within the Church.

They have privately expressed dismay that they were having to arrange the papal visit with officials who 'seem to know next to nothing about Catholicism'.

Mr Noorani is understood to be British Pakistani - but colleagues say he is not a Muslim.

The Church source said: 'It was obvious that none of them were much in tune with Catholic sensibilities, and that was disappointing.'

Another Church insider who met Mr Noorani when he was in Rome on a reconnaissance trip, claimed: 'He struck me as being ineffectual and quite useless. He just shuffled about and made no contribution at all.'

Instead of drawing up sensible plans for the papal trip, Mr Noorani's team ridiculed the Pope by putting forward an 'ideal visit' itinerary which included blessing a gay marriage and singing a duet with the Queen.

Vatican aides are particularly outraged the Foreign Office does not consider the memo serious enough to warrant anyone being sacked. Only Mr Noorani was disciplined and moved to 'other duties'.

Mr Noorani attended Windsor Boys' School, a comprehensive in Berkshire, and then Oxford University, graduating from Balliol College in 2000.

His Pope memo was emailed to Downing Street and three Whitehall departments by junior colleague Steven Mulvain, a 23-year-old Oxford graduate with wild spiky hair who once listed 'drinking a lot' as a hobby.

He posted a picture of himself on the internet unshaven and wearing a Chelsea football shirt.

Steven Mulvain who posted the mockings of Mr. Noorani

Mr Mulvain escaped punishment because he had been given authorisation to send the memo, which had a covering letter in which he warned recipients the contents 'should not be shared externally' because they included 'even the most far-fetched of ideas'.

Mr Mulvain, who also attended Balliol, graduating in 2008, was remembered by former students as a 'prankster' who drank with a small clique of friends and 'enjoyed being in the limelight'.

Yesterday his father Kevin Mulvain, speaking at the family's home in South Shields, said: 'He's still in London. He won't be saying anything. He's keeping his head down and hoping that this whole storm just blows over.'

The Foreign Office insists none of the offensive ideas came from Mr Mulvain himself, and that he was a mere admin assistant.

An FO source said: 'This was three or four people having a 'brainstorming' session - where their brains stormed out.

'As soon as it came to the attention of more senior officials it was withdrawn and the person in charge was disciplined.'

Yesterday, although officials in Rome were trying to draw a line under the affair, privately there was still astonishment the visit had been handled with such insensitivity by Foreign Office employees.

Some fear the 83-year-old leader of the world's one billion Catholics is regarded in certain Whitehall quarters as no more than a figure of fun.

Last night a senior Roman Catholic source said: 'It does make you wonder what the Foreign Office is thinking, putting such young and inexperienced staff on the papal visit team.'

Last night Mr Noorani could not be reached. His mother in Windsor refused to comment, and the Foreign Office said it had nothing to say.

It has described the memo as 'a foolish document that does not in any way reflect UK Government or Foreign Office policy or views'.

Read more: Daily Mail UK

NEW EDITION OF THE STATISTICAL YEARBOOK OF THE CHURCH

VATICAN CITY, 27 APR 2010 (VIS) - The Vatican Publishing House has recently released a new edition of the Statistical Yearbook of the Church, comprising information on the main aspects of Catholic Church activity in various countries for the period 2000-2008.

Over these nine years, the Catholic presence in the world has grown from 1,045 million in 2000 to 1,166 million in 2008, an increase of 11.54 percent. Considering the statistics in detail, numbers in Africa grew by 33 percent, in Europe they remained generally stable (an increase of 1.17 percent), while in Asia they increased by 15.61 percent, in Oceania by 11.39 percent and in America by 10.93 percent. As a percentage of the total population, European Catholics represented 26.8 percent in 2000 and 24.31 percent in 2008. In America and Oceania they have remained stable, and increased slightly in Asia.

The number of bishops in the world went up from 4541 in 2000 to 5002 in 2008, an increase of 10.15 percent.

The number of priests also increased slightly over this nine-year period, passing from 405,178 in 2000 to 409,166 in 2008, an overall rise of 0.98 percent. In Africa and Asia their numbers increased (respectively, by 33.1 percent and 23.8 percent), in the Americas they remained stable, while they fell by 7 percent in Europe and 4 percent in Oceania.

The number of diocesan priests increased by 3.1 percent, going from 265,781 in 2000 to 274,007 in 2008. By contrast, the number of regular priests showed a constant decline, down by 3.04 percent to 135,159 in 2008. Of the continents, only Europe showed a clear reduction in priests: in 2000 they represented 51 percent of the world total, in 2008 just 47 percent. On the other hand, Asia and Africa together represented 17.5 percent of the world total in 2000 and 21.9 percent in 2008. The Americas slightly increased its percentage to around 30 percent of the total.

Non-ordained religious numbered 55.057 in the year 2000 and 54,641 in 2008. Comparing this data by continent, Europe showed a strong decline (down by 16.57 percent), as did Oceania (22.06 percent), the Americas remained stable, while Asia and Africa grew (respectively, by 32 percent and 10.47 percent).

Female religious are almost double the number of priests, and 14 times that of non-ordained male religious, but their numbers are falling, from 800,000 in 2000 to 740,000 in 2008. As for their geographical distribution, 41 percent reside in Europe, 27.47 percent in America, 21.77 percent in Asia and 1.28 percent in Oceania. The number of female religious has increased in the most dynamic continents: Africa (up by 21 percent) and Asia (up by 16 percent).

The Statistical Yearbook of the Church also includes information on the number of students of philosophy and theology in diocesan and religious seminaries. In global terms, their numbers increased from 110.583 in 2000 to more than 117.024 in 2008. In Africa and Asia their numbers went up, whereas Europe saw a reduction.

Gregorian music led me to Christ, says Gaurav

Mumbai (AsiaNews) – Towering at 6 ft 3 in (191 cm), Gaurav literally looks down on people. This young Gujarati convert was captivated by Christian music of the Renaissance era, and choral music awakened in him a quest for beauty.

Gregorian Chant CD of the Monks of Sto. Domingo de Silos

Gaurav Shroff was born on 30 December 1972 at Holy Family Hospital, New Delhi (“I joke with my parents that ‘Holy Family’ should have been a clue to my future!”). His early childhood was spent in Bethesda, MD (a suburb of Washington DC), when his father was working for the World Bank. The family returned to India when he was around 6 years old, and he attended St Xavier’s Loyola Hall, a school in Ahmedabad where he joined the school choir. His only knowledge of Christians was that they did not speak Gujarati or Hindi fluently and that they buried the dead, something that intrigued him.

Describing his own religious upbringing, Gaurav said, “My father worked at the World Bank and later was the editor of the Economic Times. My mother was the first woman district collector of Gujarat. While there was an emphasis was on traditional Indian values, they espoused secular humanist ideals and values. However, it was from my grandmother that I learned the ancient stories of the Hindu religion—the epics of the Mahabharata, the Ramayana and the Bhagavad Gita.”

“It was aesthetics,” Gaurav said. “The beauty of sacred music held me spellbound at my first ever experience of the Eucharist at St Xavier’s College, Mumbai on 15 August, Indian Independence Day and the Feast of the Assumption. The sublime music of the Mass undoubtedly assured me of God's presence; the Gregorian chants elevated my spirits, creating in me a sense of awe for the Sacred. I was instinctively drawn by the aesthetic beauty of the Eucharist and this experience filled my heart with immense joy.”

This young man, an idealistic, Westernized 18-year-old upper caste Hindu, who was trained in Hindustani classical music, began studying Church history, in an attempt to understand “what could have inspired the genius of great musicians to compose some of the greatest classical works in honour of the Divine and place their art at the service of the liturgy.”

Gaurav spent hours poring over books at St Xavier’s Library, teaching himself Latin from the pre-Vatican II Missals to learn and understand the Latin Gregorian chants: the Credo, the Gloria, the other parts of the Mass.

So fascinated was he by the sacred music of the Eucharist, that he attended Midnight Mass the same year at Holy Name Cathedral, accompanied by his father. As he became increasingly interested in the solemn liturgies, his friends invited him to the Easter Triduum the following year, with the simple directive not to receive Holy Communion.

Therefore, in 1991, Gaurav went for the Mass of the Lord’s Supper at Holy Name Cathedral. “Nothing had prepared me for the ‘Washing of the Feet’. I watched with amazement as Archbishop Simon Pimenta disrobed and knelt down, washing the feet of 12 men. I had never witnessed such humility in a spiritual leader.” He began reflecting on the nature of these priests, this servant leadership, which was an alien concept.

At the Good Friday service, since his friends had only barred him from communion, he went for the Veneration of the Cross. “As I knelt down and kissed the Cross, I vividly remember the clear voice in my heart saying to me: ‘I died for you,’ and I began to weep unashamedly, and though I did not understand what it meant, I was certain, that the Crucified Christ loved me. Then it wasn’t about music anymore, I wanted to learn more about this Jesus. Either Jesus was completely crazy or he was God.”

He began reading everything about the Catholic faith, the Bible and regularly went for Sunday Mass. In 1993, Gaurav went to a Jesuit retreat praying alone at night before the Blessed Sacrament. “I strongly felt the presence of the Divine, the deep love of God for me, and in the darkness, I was illuminated: My life belonged to Jesus, to know him, to love him and to serve him. This was my mission and vocation. I felt called to be a priest.”

“I also had a very serious talk with my family about my decision to become Catholic and be baptised. ‘As long as you do not sever family ties and do not go aggressively proselytizing, you have our Blessings!’ was my father’s response.”

On August 15 1994, the Feast of the Assumption, Gaurav was baptised at St Peter’s Church, Bandra, surrounded by 20 friends, Hindus, Catholics, and Muslims.

Two weeks after his baptism, Gaurav arrived in the United States into an intellectual climate that bred suspicion of the Catholic Church. “God was always faithful, and under the protection of His Blessed Mother, I persevered in the Faith.”

“The next four years of my life were the time that God allowed me to see my reality; but even in crises, the calling to the priesthood hauntingly persisted. So, in order to attempt to discern God’s plan in my life, in 1998, I started a second Masters in Religious Studies, also at the University of South Carolina, and received an MA in Religious Studies, with a concentration in New Testament, in 2001.”

That same year, he started work full time at the St. Thomas More Catholic Student Center at the University of South Carolina as the Associate Campus Minister, where he was responsible for the faith formation of the small University parish. His zeal for evangelisation led him in 2006 to the novitiate of the Paulist Fathers (an American religious order), which took him to Washington, DC.

“In 2006, my father was diagnosed with late stage lung cancer. I always had a close relationship with him, and this was devastating. This was just before I entered the novitiate, and I got to spend a few months with him before I left for Washington. God's generosity knows no bounds and I was able to be in India for the last two weeks of his life.”

In 2007, he discerned that God was calling him to the diocesan priesthood and so he moved back to the South, and applied to the Archdiocese of Atlanta. After some pastoral work in the diocese, he was sent to Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, Maryland, in 2008.

Currently, he is finishing the first of four years of Theological Studies at the seminary, and “God willing, I will be ordained to the diaconate in 2012 and the priesthood in 2013, for the Archdiocese of Atlanta.”

“The intervention of God at the foot of the cross in 1991 changed the course of my life forever. Evangelisation and the vocation of the laity will be the central passion of my ministry as a diocesan priest. I see my future role as someone who leads, sanctifies, teaches the laity, not as passive recipients”, I shall be “someone who calls out their gifts, talents, charisms, so that the Christ's lay faithful can be equipped to bring the Gospel to the world, and share in the Church's mission.”

“I hope, through my calling, to proclaim the Love of Christ Crucified to the people and to bring our people to connect with Jesus Christ, to get to know Him in a deep, intimate relationship,” for “he is the source of all love and happiness.”

Abuse victim in Malta: Pope Benedict XVI is a 'saint'

(Source: EWTN/CNA) Vatican analyst Andrea Tornielli spoke with Joseph Magro, 38, one of eight victims of clerical abuse who met with Pope Benedict XVI during his recent visit to Malta. Magro said the meeting “was truly a most beautiful gift, after all this suffering, we all cried, even the Pope.”

In the interview published by the Italian daily Il Giornale, Magro, who proudly showed the rosary he was given by the Holy Father in Malta, shared details about his meeting with the Pope.

“I did not have any faith in priests. Now, after this moving experience, I have hope again. You people in Italy have a saint. Do you realize that? You have a saint,” he said, referring to Pope Benedict XVI.

Later, explaining his discussion with the Holy Father, Magro said, “When I told him my name was Joseph, the Pope’s eyes grew wide and he said, ‘Joseph, like me!’ Then I asked him: ‘Why did the priest do this to me, why did he abuse me?’ He replied that he prays for me and we then prayed together.”

Magro said he could see that the Pope “felt great sorrow. I could see he was suffering with me. I didn’t want to make him suffer, I didn’t tell him about the abuse that I suffered, but he wept with me, even though he had no fault in what happened.”

After admitting that he did not expect to have this emotional encounter with the Holy Father, Magro said, “This was a great gift for me, to be welcomed in this way and to be listened to by him. I heard his speech at the airport, on Saturday afternoon. He did not say anything about the problem of abuse. But this morning (Sunday, April 18), at 9:00 a.m., I received a call: I was to go to the bishop’s house because I was going to see the Pope.”

“I finally have a little bit of peace thanks to this encounter. He gave me a rosary which I now wear around my neck,” Magro said.