The Varsitarian

“CHARITY is at the heart of Church’s social doctrine.”

This was Pope Benedict XVI’s reminder in his new Encyclical Caritas in Veritate (“Charity in Truth”) delivered last July 7 in Vatican City.

The document stressed the need for real human development, insisting on progress in the moral and spiritual realms.

“Charity with this close link of truth is the principal driving force behind the authentic development of every person and of all humanity,” the Pope said.

According to the Holy Father, charity had long been emptied and misconstrued, its meaning often misinterpreted, disconnected from ethical living, and undervaluated. With these alarming issues obscuring the true meaning of charity, he prescribed “truth” as a cure for these problems. read more »

THE HOUSE of Representatives Committee on Appropriations (COM-AP) junked the proposed Reproductive Health Care Act, also known as House Bill 4110, last Jan. 13. The COM-AP deferred the bill after Health Care Committee Chairman Rep. Antonio Yapha refused to endorse it due to unresolved issues in an executive session last Oct. 7, 2003.  read more »

Clarifying media reports that the Catholic Bishops’ Conferences of the Philippines (CBCP) is amenable to moves to amend the Constitution, CBCP President Archbishop Orlando B. Quevedo, O.M.I. issued a statement during the radio program “CBCP on the Air” broadcast over Radio Veritas last September 2.

In the interview, Archbishop Quevedo reiterated and upheld the Bishops’ Pastoral Exhortation in 1997 on Renewing Politics in the Philippines wherein the Bishops expressed strong opposition against Charter Change (Cha-Cha).  read more »

TERRORISM spares no one.

In the Philippines, Irish missionary Fr. Rufus Halley, MSSC, 57, was buried last Sept. 1 at the Columban Father’s plot in Cagayan de Oro City after he was killed Islamic militants.

Investigations showed that Fr. Halley, who spent 30 years of missionary work in the Philippines, was a victim of a foiled kidnapping by six suspected members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). Two suspects were arrested by local authorities.  read more »

POPE John Paul II celebrated his feast day last Nov. 4 by beatifying two women and six men, one of them a Dominican, and presenting them as examples of life in a world gripped by fear and violence.

The Pope celebrated the Holy Eucharist in St. Peter’s Square and beatified Pavol Peter Gojdic (1888-1960), Metod Dominik Trcka (1886-1959), Giovanni Antonio Farina (1803-1888), Bartolomeu Fernandes dos Martires (1514-1590), Luigi Tezza (1841-1923), Paolo Manna (1872-1952), Gaetana Sterni (1827-1889), and Maria Pilar Izquierdo Albero (1906-1945).  read more »

FOLLOWING the Holy Father’s call to conduct inter-religious dialogue, a Christian-Muslim conference, sponsored by the Sant’Egidio community, was held in Rome on Oct. 3 to 4.

Representatives of both faiths condemned terrorist acts and called for efforts to eliminate terrorism. They also discussed the problems that may have given rise to terrorism.  read more »

FOR THE past decades, the Roman Catholic Church has been shaken by scandals involving its priests in heterosexual and homosexual affairs and sexual abuses against children, teenagers, and even nuns.

In its struggle to respond firmly to the concerns, the Vatican has silently issued a new set of rules in dealing with priests and other members of the clergy accused of or involved in illicit affairs or any form of sexual abuse. The new rules make it clear that priests should stand trial in secret ecclesiastical courts that will be overseen by Rome.  read more »

POPE John Paul II begins the year 2002 with the same crowded agenda he has had for the most part of his 23-year pontificate, which include international trips, major documents, and canonizations.

To start the year, the 81-year-old Pope looks forward to a meeting of religious leaders for peace on Jan. 24 in Assisi.

The most-awaited event of 2002 in the Holy Father’s list of activities is the 17th World Youth Day, scheduled for July in Toronto, Canada. More than 500,000 youth participants from all over the world are expected to attend.  read more »

IN a world where change is the staple, the Holy Bible will not be left behind.

The International Bible Society (IBS), a Colorado-based Protestant Christian organization, will publish an updated version of the New Testament in April. A version that includes the Old Testament will come out in 2005.

Called Today’s New International Version (TNIV), it will differ from its earlier edition, the New International Version, by using less outdated terms and being more gender-sensitive.  read more »

THE STAGE is being set for a third Philippine visit of Pope John Paul II as Manila has been chosen to host the 4th World Meeting of Families next year.

The Holy Father came to the Philippines in 1981 for the beatification of Lorenzo Ruiz and in 1995 for the celebration of the 10th World Youth Day. He has chosen Manila as the venue for the next World Meeting of Families on Jan. 23 to 26, 2003.  read more »