Pope Francis

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http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-overcome-spiritual-desolation-through-prayer

Pope: overcome spiritual desolation through prayer, not pills or drink
2016-09-27 Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis said silence and prayer is the way to overcome our darkest moments, rather than resorting to pills or alcoholic drinks to escape from our woes. His comments came during his homily at the morning Mass celebrated on Tuesday at the Santa Marta residence.

Taking his cue from the day’s first reading where Job was living through a spiritual desolation and was giving vent to his sorrows before God, the Pope’s homily focused on these dark moments of spiritual desolation that all of us experience at some point and explained how we can overcome them. He said although Job was in deep trouble and had lost everything he did not curse God and his outburst was that of “a son in front of his father.”

All of us sooner or later experience a spiritual darkness

“Spiritual desolation is something that happens to all of us: it can be stronger or weaker … but that feeling of spiritual darkness, of hopelessness, mistrust, lacking the desire to live, without seeing the end of the tunnel, with so much agitation in one’s heart and in one’s ideas…  Spiritual desolation makes us feel as though our souls are crushed, we can’t succeed, we can’t succeed and we also don’t want to live: ‘Death is better!’ This was Job’s outburst. It was better to die than live like this. We need to understand that when our soul is in this state of generalized sadness we can barely breathe: This happens to all of us… whether strong or not ….. to all of us. (We need to) understand what goes on in our hearts.”
 

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http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-francis-meets-with-world-jewish-congress

Pope Francis meets with World Jewish Congress
2016-09-27 Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis met with members of the World Jewish Congress on Monday evening.

An article published on Tuesday by the Vatican newspaper, the 'Osservatore Romano', highlighted how the Holy Father spoke about a series of issues pertaining to inter faith relations and the current migration crisis on the European continent.

“Europe often forgets that it has been enriched by migrants,” – Pope Francis said – “Europe is closing itself up. Europe is lacking creativity. Europe has a falling birth rate, and problems of high unemployment.”

Pope Francis also spoke about migrants integrating into their new surroundings, which he called “important.”

“The people who committed the terrorist attacks in Belgium were not properly integrated,” he said.

Pope Francis also reiterated  a good Christian could not be an anti-Semite, and said Christians and Jews must speak out against brutality in the world.
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2016/09/27/pope_names_new_bishop_for_lubbock,_texas,_usa/1260941

Pope names new Bishop for Lubbock, Texas, USA
27/09/2016 12:00

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Tuesday named Msgr Robert Milner Coerver, of the clergy of the Diocese of Dallas, as Bishop of the Diocese of Lubbock, Texas, USA. Monsignor Coerver has been serving as Pastor of Saint Rita Parish in Dallas.

He succeeds Bishop Plácido Rodríguez of Lubbock, whose resignation was accepted by the Holy Father, also on Tuesday.

Biography of Bishop-elect Robert M. Coerver

Monsignor Robert Coerver is a priest of the Diocese of Dallas, raised in St Thomas Aquinas Parish.
 

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http://www.news.va/en/news/holy-see-peace-of-nuclear-deterrence-a-tragic-illu

Holy See: Peace of nuclear deterrence "a tragic illusion"
2016-09-27 Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio) The Vatican told the United Nations on Monday “nuclear arms offer a false sense of security, and that the uneasy peace promised by nuclear deterrence is a tragic illusion.”

“Nuclear weapons cannot create for us a stable and secure world,” said Archbishop Bernardito Auza, the Permanent ******* of the Holy See to the United Nations.

He was speaking at an event marking the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons.

“Peace and international stability cannot be founded on mutually assured destruction or on the threat of total annihilation,” the Vatican diplomat said.

The full statement of Archbishop Auza can be found below
 
Let me conclude by reaffirming the conviction that Pope Francis expressed in his December 2014 message to  the  President  of  the  Vienna  Conference on the Humanitarian Impact of Nuclear Weapons: “I am convinced that the desire for peace and fraternity planted deep in the human heart will bear fruit in concrete ways to ensure that nuclear weapons are banned once and for all, to the benefit of our common home.”

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https://zenit.org/articles/report-shows-how-amoris-laetitia-has-been-received/

Report Shows How Amoris Laetitia Has Been Received
September 27, 2016

Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz of Louisville, Kentucky, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, issued a statement today about the ongoing, fruitful reception and implementation in the United States of Pope Francis’ Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation, Amoris Laetitia.

Full statement follows:

A statement from Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz of Louisville,
 President of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

The Church in the United States, together with the Church throughout the world, has found in Pope Francis’ Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation Amoris Laetitia (The Joy of Love) a wealth of encouragement, guidance, and wisdom about the beautiful gift and vocation of marriage and family life. Since its release date on April 8, 2016, bishops, lay leaders, and families in the United States have proactively sought to receive Pope Francis’s teachings joyfully and to implement them in our shared task of caring for marriages and families.

A request from the Office of the Synod of Bishops for a report on the reception and implementation of Amoris Laetitia in the United States has provided an opportunity to reflect on the good work that is already underway, as well as envisioned future plans to continue absorbing and unpacking this foundational document. As noted in the report, the Church in the United States has already eagerly begun to implement the teaching of Amoris Laetitia in numerous ways.
 
The report presented to the Office of the Synod of Bishops, is available at: www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/marriage-and-family/upload/Report-on-Reception-and-Implementation-of-Amoris-Laetitia-in-the-United-States.pdf.
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2016/09/28/pope_francis_good_thief_a_model_of_penitence/1261226

Pope Francis: Good Thief a model of penitence
28/09/2016 13:34

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis offered his catechesis at the Wednesday General Audience on the topic of “The Forgiveness of the Cross.”

The Holy Father focused on the last moments of the Crucifixion, and especially on the two thieves who were crucified alongside the Lord. One of the thieves insulted the Lord, calling on Him to save Himself, and them. “They did not understand the mystery of the sacrifice of Jesus,” the Pope said. Jesus is able to save precisely because He remained on the Cross. By remaining on the Cross, Christ showed His omnipotence and forgave us.

By dying on the Cross, between two criminals, Jesus shows that “the salvation of God” is offered “for everybody, no one is excluded. It is offered for all.”

To those who suffer, to those suffering in a hospital bed, or living in a prison, those caught up in a war, Pope Francis said, “Look to the Cross: God is with you, He remains with you upon the Cross, He is offered to all as a Saviour.”

The Good Thief, on the other hand, offers to us a model of penance, beginning with a filial fear of the Lord – the fundamental attitude that opens up confidence in God, the understanding of His omnipotence and mercy.
 

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http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-francis-turns-his-thoughts-to-mexico-during-a

Pope Francis turns his thoughts to Mexico during Audience
2016-09-28 Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Wednesday invited the people of Mexico to sing the ‘Guadalupana,’ a traditional hymn to Our Lady of Guadalupe, for the suffering of the nation’s people.

The Holy Father’s remarks came during his greetings to Spanish-speaking pilgrims at the weekly General Audience.

“Pray for all those who suffer for any reason or who feel abandoned, so that looking at the Crucified, they are able to discover and feel the comfort and forgiveness of Christ, the Face of the Father’s Mercy,” Pope Francis said.
 

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http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-renews-appeal-for-aleppo

Pope renews appeal for Aleppo
2016-09-28 Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis has once again appealed for peace in Syria. At his General Audience on Wednesday, the Pope said, “dramatic news continues to reach me concerning the fate of the people of Aleppo, with whom, through prayer and spiritual closeness, I feel united in suffering.”

The Holy Father continued, “In expressing my deep sorrow and lively concern for what is happening in that already battered city – where children, the elderly, the sick, young and old, all are dying – I renew my appeal to everyone to commit themselves with all their strength to the protection of civilians as an imperative and urgent obligation.”

Departing from his prepared text, Pope Francis appealed directly to those responsible for the bombing, warning them that they will be “accountable to God” for their actions.
 

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http://www.news.va/en/news/remembering-pope-john-paul-i

Remembering Pope John Paul I
2016-09-28 Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio) During his weekly general audience of September 28th 2016 Pope Francis welcomed the faithful from 'Pieve di Soligno' who'd come to Rome to mark the anniversary of the death of their beloved fellow countryman, the late Pope John Paul I. Veronica Scarisbrick places this pontificate into context and brings you echoes of that era.

Listen to echoes of the pontificate of Pope John Paul I, Albino Luciani, who died on the 28th of September 1978:
 

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http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-francis-offers-condolences-after-death-of-shi

Pope Francis offers condolences after death of Shimon Peres
2016-09-28 Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis has sent a telegram expressing his “heartfelt condolences” to the people of Israel upon learning of the death of their former President, Shimon Peres. He died on Wednesday at the age of 93.

“I fondly recall my time with Mr Peres at the Vatican and renew my great appreciation for the late President's tireless efforts in favour of peace,” Pope Francis said.

On June 8, 2014, Pope Francis hosted the historic prayer meeting in the Vatican Gardens with then-President Peres and the President of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas. The meeting came just weeks after Peres welcomed him to Israel during the Holy Father’s May 2014 trip to the Holy Land. The two men had previously met on April 30, 2013, at the Vatican.

Pope Francis met with Peres again at the Vatican in September of 2014, two months after he left office. The two men met for the last time on June 20, this year.

 “As the State of Israel mourns Mr Peres, I hope that his memory and many years of service will inspire us all to work with ever greater urgency for peace and reconciliation between peoples,” –  Pope Francis continued in his telegram – “In this way, his legacy will truly be honoured and the common good for which he so diligently laboured will find new expressions, as humanity strives to advance on the path towards enduring peace. With the assurance of my prayers for all who grieve, especially for the Peres family, I invoke the divine blessings of consolation and strength upon the nation.”

The full text of the telegram of Pope Francis is below
 

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http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-francis-to-syria-iraq-donors-christ-conquered

Pope Francis to Syria, Iraq donors: Christ conquered sin and death
2016-09-29 Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis received representatives from the various Catholic aid agencies and charitable organizations under the leadership of the Pontifical Council Cor unum working in Iraq, Syria, and other countries in the region affected by the ongoing conflicts in both Syria and Iraq.

The Pontifical Council Cor unum is the Pope’s special instrument for carrying out humanitarian initiatives, promoting integral human development, coordinatinge the initiatives of Catholic Organizations, and encouraging the faithful to give concrete witness to the Gospel through charitable activity.

In remarks prepared for the occasion and delivered to the roughly 100 people – including the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy to Syria, Staffan de Mistura – Pope Francis placed the work of Cor unum and partners in the key of mercy.

“The work of all who like you, represent so many workers in the field, who are committed to helping refugees and to safeguarding their dignity,” said Pope Francis, “is certainly a reflection of God’s mercy and, as such, a sign that evil has limits and does not have the last word.”
 

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http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-francis-set-to-depart-for-visit-georgia-azerb

Pope Francis set to depart for visit Georgia, Azerbaijan on Apostolic Journey
2016-09-29 Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio)  Pope Francis sets off on a three-day Apostolic Journey to Georgia and Azerbaijan on Friday, as a continuation of the pastoral visit he began to the Caucuses region with his trip to Armenia last June.

Ecumenical challenges will be at the heart of his encounters in Georgia, alongside the task of encouraging the small Catholic community in the predominantly Orthodox nation.
 
When Pope John Paul II visited this former Soviet nation, it was only the second time he had travelled to a majority Orthodox country. Just a decade on from the fall of the Berlin wall, he was pursuing his vision of reconciliation between the East and Western Churches so that Europe could, as he put it, breathe with both lungs again.

His trip to Romania earlier in the year had been hailed as a step in that direction, as he and Patriarch Teoctist made history by attending liturgies in Catholic and Orthodox churches.

Not so in Georgia though, where it was President Eduard Shevardnadze, the former Soviet foreign minister, who had to persuade Patriarch Elia to invite the pope, while Orthodox leaders warned worshippers to stay away from a papal Mass at the sports stadium in Tbilisi.

So what can Pope Francis expect and what progress has been made on the ecumenical scene in this country where Catholics, of 3 different rites, make up less than 2 percent of the population?
 

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http://www.news.va/en/news/georgias-ambassador-on-expectations-for-papal-visi

Georgia's ambassador on expectations for papal visit
2016-09-29 Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio)  Pope Francis takes off for the Georgian capital Tbilisi on Friday for a two-day visit to the majority Orthodox republic.

As well as meeting with religious and civil authorities in Tbilisi, the Pope will travel to the nearby ancient city of Mtskheta, founded in the 5th century BC and famed as one of UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites. The former capital contains many important monuments of early Christian architecture for the Caucuses region, including the 11th century Svetitskhoveli Patriarchal Cathedral.

The visit comes 17 years after Pope John Paul II made a landmark trip to the republic, struggling to rebuild as an independent nation following 70 years of Soviet domination.

Dr Tamara Grdzelidze is an Orthodox theologian, now serving as Georgia’s ambassador to the Holy See. Ahead of the papal visit, she sat down with Philippa Hitchen to talk about expectations for the trip and about the historical difficulties between the Catholic and Orthodox Churches in her country…
 

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http://superiorcatholicherald.org/news/national-and-world-news/doctrinal-congregation-convokes-meeting-role-women-church/

Doctrinal congregation convokes meeting on role of women in the church
Catholic Herald |   September 29, 2016
Cindy Wooden
Catholic News Service

Cardinal Gerhard Muller, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, speaks during a news conference at the Vatican June 14, 2016. (CNS file photo/Paul Haring)

VATICAN CITY — Leaders of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith spent three days in late September listening to women theologians, canon lawyers, Scripture scholars and specialists in other academic fields talk about roles women have played in the Catholic Church and roles they could play in the future.

After the symposium Sept. 26-28 was over, the congregation issued a brief statement outlining the topics discussed and listing the women who made formal presentations. The congregation said the papers will be published at a later date.

Cardinal Gerhard Muller, prefect of the doctrinal congregation, opened the meeting, which involved about 50 people, mostly women, and officials and consultants to the congregation, the statement said.

The theme of “the role of women in the church” was explored first by looking at “the definition of the feminine vocation in Catholic tradition,” and proceeded to a discussion about concrete roles women have played and can play within the church.
 

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Friday, September 30, 2016 -- Pope's trip to Georgia and Azerbaijan

https://cruxnow.com/global-church/2016/09/12/vatican-releases-details-popes-trip-georgia-azerbaijan/

Vatican releases details of Pope’s trip to Georgia, Azerbaijan
Catholic News Service
September 12, 2016

VATICAN CITY - With a focus on relations with the Orthodox and with Muslims, Pope Francis will visit Georgia and Azerbaijan Sept. 30-Oct. 2.

The visit to the Caucasus nations will be Pope Francis’s 16th trip outside of Italy. In July, the Vatican had released a list of the pope’s scheduled activities during the trip, but without specific times for most events.

Here is the detailed schedule released by the Vatican Sept. 12. Times are local, with Eastern Daylight Time in parentheses:

Friday, Sept. 30 (Rome, Tbilisi)

- 9 a.m. (3 a.m.) Departure from Rome’s Fiumicino Airport.

- 3 p.m. (7 a.m.) Arrival at Tbilisi International Airport. Welcoming ceremony.

- 3:30 p.m. (7:30 a.m.) Courtesy visit to the president of the republic at the presidential palace.

- 4 p.m. (8 a.m.) Meeting with government authorities and members of civil society and the diplomatic corps in the courtyard of the presidential palace. Speech by pope.

- 4:40 p.m. (8:40 a.m.) Meeting with Orthodox Patriarch Ilia II of Georgia at the patriarchal palace. Speech by patriarch. Speech by pope.

- 6 p.m. (10 a.m.) Meeting with Chaldean Catholics at the Church of St. Simon the Tanner. Prayer by pope.
 

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Friday, September 30, 2016

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BhsNiwfqyzQ
Arrival of Pope Francis in Georgia - 2016.09.30
Scheduled for Sep 30, 2016
Pope Francis arrives by plane in Tbilisi where he begins his Apostolic Journey to Georgia with a brief welcome ceremony. (15.00 local time)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q5qX0Sa01mw
Francis in Georgia - Visit to the President, Meeting with Authorities and Patriarch Ilia II
Scheduled for Sep 30, 2016
Pope Francis Courtesy visit to the President of the Republic and meeting with Authorities, Civil Society, the Diplomatic Corps and Meeting with His Holiness and Beatitude Ilia II, Catholicos and Patriarch of All Georgia(15.45 local time)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PXsl_sKsPJE
Francis in Georgia - Visit to the President, Meeting with Authorities and Patriarch Ilia II
Scheduled for Sep 30, 2016
Pope Francis Courtesy visit to the President of the Republic and meeting with Authorities, Civil Society, the Diplomatic Corps and Meeting with His Holiness and Beatitude Ilia II, Catholicos and Patriarch of All Georgia(15.45 local time)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnxsUCojlGQ
Pope Francis in Georgia - Meeting with the Assyrian-Chaldean community
Scheduled for Sep 30, 2016
Pope Francis meets with the Assyrian-Chaldean community, upon being welcomed by the Patriarch of Babylon of the Chaldeans and the Synod. (18:00 local time)

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2016/09/30/pope_delivers_address_to_authorities,_diplomats_in_georgia/1261806

Pope delivers address to Authorities, diplomats in Georgia
30/09/2016 14:30

(Vatican Radio)  Meeting national authorities and members of the diplomatic corps in Tbilisi, Georgia Friday, Pope Francis described the Caucasus nation as a “blessed land, a place of encounter and vital exchange among cultures and civilizations” which, since the 4th century, “discovered in Christianity its deepest identity and the solid foundation of its values.”

The Pope was speaking at the Presidential palace shortly after his arrival in the Georgian capital.  In his address, he recalled his meeting in the Vatican last year with President Giorgi Margvelashvili and thanked him for the invitation to visit his country whose values, expressed “in culture, language and traditions,” he said, place it fully “within the bedrock of European civilization.”

Georgia, a bridge between Europe and Asia
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2016/09/30/pope_meets_with_georgian_orthodox_patriarch_/1261887

Pope meets with Georgian Orthodox Patriarch
30/09/2016 17:19

(Vatican Radio) One of the highlights of the Holy Father’s first day in Georgia was his meeting with the Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia, Ilia II, and with the Members of the Holy Synod of the Georgian Orthodox Church.

In his address during the meeting, Pope Francis focused on the love of Christ as a basis for building up the bonds of unity between the Catholic Church and the Georgian Orthodox Church.

In his address to the leaders of the Georgian Orthodox Church, Pope Francis recalled Patriarch Ilia’s visit to Rome in 1980, the first visit ever of a Georgian Patriarch to the Vatican. He also recalled the visit of Pope John Paul II to Georgia on the eve of the Jubilee Year of 2000.

Pope Francis’ visit to Georgia likewise comes during the celebration of a Jubilee, the Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy.

On the occasion of this new meeting, the Pope noted the ties that exist between the Georgian Church, founded on the preaching of St Andrew; and the Church of Rome, built on the foundation of the St Peter, Andrew’s brother. Addressing Ilia as “Dear Brother,” Pope Francis said, “let us allow the Lord Jesus to look upon us anew, let us once again experience the attraction of his call to leave everything that prevents us from proclaiming together his presence.”
 

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http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2016/09/30/pope_francis_in_georgia_prayer_for_peace__/1261764

Pope Francis in Georgia: prayer for peace
30/09/2016 16:30

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis is currently on an Apostolic journey to Georgia. He flew into the  nation's capital Tbilisi on Friday 30th of September and his third and last appointment of the day took place at  the Chaldean Catholic Church of Simon 'Bar Sabbae', dedicated to a tenth century Coptic Saint. There he met with representatives of the Assyrian Chaldean community.

Upon his arrival at the Church the Pope was greeted by the Patriarch of Babylon of the Chaldeans and the local parish priest. Together they entered the Church in procession, making their  way towards the Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament therein. .

Among those present were around three hundred faithful from the Assyrian Chaldean 'Diaspora'. Not just from the nation's capital but also from nearby towns and villages. For the record the Catholic Assyrian Chaldean mission in Georgia was instituted in 1995 under Vatican jurisdiction and from that year on the Chaldean rite was celebrated in the nation. But it was only in 2004 that the growing number of Chaldean parishioners prompted the construction of the Church of Saint Simon.

So it was in this Church on Friday that celebrations took place, beginning with sacred music and prayers in Aramaic. That's before Pope Francis himself prayed for peace in the world.
 

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Video at the link

http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2016/09/30/pope_says_he_cannot_visit_argentina_this_year_or_in_2017/1261832

Pope says he cannot visit Argentina this year or in 2017
30/09/2016 17:00

(Vatican Radio) In a video message to the people of Argentina, Pope Francis spoke of his regret at not being able to visit his homeland this year or in 2017, saying he already has planned trips to Asia and Africa next year.

The Pope assured his compatriots that he continues to be an Argentinian who feels close to his people and revealed that he "still travels with an Argentine passport." In the message which he described as a monologue but wished it were a chat, Pope Francis urged the people of Argentina to help promote "a culture of encounter" in which people can live “with dignity and express themselves peacefully without being insulted, condemned, attacked or cast to one side.”

Noting that this year there were two important events for the Church in Argentina, the beatification in August of Mama Antula (an 18th century Catholic laywoman)  and the canonization in October of Cura Brochero (the 19th century Gaucho priest), the Pope said he very much wished he could have attended these two events but it was not possible.  He said it was his love for his native Argentina that was prompting him to ask his fellow countrymen to place their nation on their shoulders – a nation that needs each of us to give of our best “to improve, grow and mature.” Only in this way, he went on, can we achieve “a culture of encounter” that is able to overcome “the throw-away culture” which is so prevalent in today’s world.