Papal retirement

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Silver Wedding Anniversary (25 years) of my parents : May God bless their marriage and grant them happiness!

Today, Thursday, 28 February 2013, will indeed forever be a memorable day to me. Since, as you all know, that today, is the day when our beloved Pope Benedict XVI will no longer be our Pope as he is stepping down to make way for his successor, whom he thinks will be more capable of handling the duties of the Papacy than him in his old age.

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Indeed, today in fact, will be memorable to me, because it is also the day of the silver wedding anniversary of my parents, who were married on 28 February 1988. Since then, their marriage, although has had its share of troubles, had been mostly happy and filled with grace. I hope that through me, God will always bless my parents.

It has not always been easy for my mother in particular, and for me to an extent, as my mother and my father were not bound by a Christian marriage solemnised with the Sacrament of Marriage, because my father is not yet a Catholic, until the moment I write this post. My mother had been fearful of going to the Church again since her marriage, as she was afraid of what my father would say or act. Thankfully, recently she had been more courageous to go to Church again after my continuous insistence and encouragement. Deo gratias!

Nevertheless, would it not be for my mother, who passed to me her old Catholic Bible when I was young, I may not be here today, and this blog would not have existed. I have to give thanks to her for bringing me up tirelessly despite the problems that I caused her from time to time. I do pray that my whole family will be brought together in Christ soon, that my father will finally be receptive to the Word of God and want to be baptised into the Church.

It has always been my wish that my entire family can one day pray together as one family, and sharing meals together, giving thanks to God for all the blessings He had given me and my family, and for all these 25 years my parents had been together. I cannot thank God enough for that, but that He keeps them safe while I am away overseas, is already great enough a blessing for me.

My mother does have her reservations, especially coming from a rather traditional Chinese family, but indeed gradually she is becoming much more receptive to my calling to be a priest. Mother, if God is willing, and if God calls, it is not for us to reject is it not? For if Mary obediently answer the Lord and gave herself fully to Him, that through her the salvation of this world came, so too even a Pope or Cardinal or bishop would not have been a Pope, Cardinal, or bishop had God not called him first, and had the family not been supportive, especially in prayers.

I do not deny that I do have the desire to be higher in the hierarchy of the Church, as human as I am, but all this is because, I love God’s people, and I want to be able to give myself more to them, to reach out ever more to them, but again, with greater mission, comes greater responsibility. First, is to be a simple priest, what next is for the Lord to decide for me. I am all yours, o Lord.

Therefore, I ask all of you, to pray for me, and my family, that first my parents’ marriage will ever be happy, blessed, and filled with love that is of God. And that God will care for them and bless them as they have blessed me all these while. Pray for me too in my journey, that I will be ever stronger in faith, stronger in love, and stronger in hope, and stronger ever in my dedication to serve God and His people, my brothers and sisters.

That when the time comes, my parents will be the one who will present to me my first chasuble, and hopefully then, my whole family will be able to receive Communion from me, and hence have been united with me in Christ. Pray too for our Church, that in these turbulent times, we will be able to receive a wonderful new Shepherd, filled with God’s Spirit and strength to lead the Church as Pope Benedict XVI had.

We pray for him too that in his prayerful retirement, he will help the Church to become ever holier and ever more powerful in its resolve to fight against evil and all the corruption it has wrought on this world. God bless us all, and God bless my parents and our Pope! Amen!

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Pope Benedict XVI’s last day as our Pope : Thursday, 28 February 2013

Today marks Pope Benedict XVI’s last day as our Pope, and the last day before the sede vacante begins, or the period when there is no successor of St. Peter the Apostle as the leader of the Universal Church. This period will last until a new Pope is elected by the College of Cardinals in the papal conclave.

 

The important events to take note of today includes (live from the Vatican from http://www.vatican.va/video/) :

 

1. Last meeting and farewell to the College of Cardinals at Clementine Hall (Sala Clementina) : Thursday, 28 February 2013 at 11.00 am CET (UTC+1) 

(10.00 am UTC, 5.00 am EST, 2.00 am PST, 5.00 pm WIB (West Indonesian Time) or UTC+7, 6.00 pm SG time (UTC+8)

 

2. Pope Benedict XVI leaves Vatican City for Castel Gandolfo on Thursday, 28 February 2013 at 5.00 pm CET (UTC+1)

(4.00 pm UTC, 11.00 am EST, 8.00 am PST, 11.00 pm WIB/UTC+7, and Friday, 1 March 2013 at 0.00 am SG time/UTC+8)

 

3. Sede Vacante begins on Thursday, 28 February 2013 at 8.00 pm CET (UTC+1)

(7.00 pm UTC, 2.00 pm EST, 11.00 am PST, Friday, 1 March 2013 at 2.00 am WIB/UTC+7, and Friday, 1 March 2013 at 3.00 am SG time/UTC+8)

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Wednesday, 27 February 2013 : 2nd Week of Lent (Scripture Reflection)

Today we again hear about the virtues of humility, and that humility is indeed not the symbol of humiliation, but rather, the symbol of internal strength and justification before God. We also listen today that as the ones who are faithful to the Lord and to His message, life will not be easy for many of us, as the world who hates Christ and His truth, the evil one who hates Him, will definitely also hate all of us, who believe in Him.

Then, through humility, we learn the value of service, to serve one another, following the example of Christ who led by example, the very example of His own life, that ended with His sacrifice on the cross, His ultimate service to all of us. He taught us that to be a leader, we have to render service to others, and ultimately to be responsible for the people entrusted to us. Such is Christ as the Good Shepherd showed His example to us, as a good shepherd lay down his life for his sheep. So too a leader must lay down his ego, and strive to work for the good of the people that he is the leader of.

It is always difficult to do good, to do charitable and loving acts in this world, as there will be many who will not be pleased at such acts, and there will be many who are against the Lord and His ways. But we have to persevere to do so, for the good of the people around us, and for the world itself, even if it hates us so.

Today, in his speech at his last General Audience with the public, our beloved Pope Benedict XVI has mentioned that although he will no longer be Pope, he will never abandon the Church, but rather he will continue in prayer and therefore, as we all should know, lead us in the spiritual battle against the evil one and his mischievous ways, through prayer. For indeed, a praying retired Pope is more powerful than even when he was still active as Pope and leader of our Church. Our Pope too, imitating Christ, in his great humility, has decided to step down, and therefore allow others who are more capable to continue the good works he had started for the good of everyone, especially that of the faithful in Christ.

Our Pope mentioned that although he stepped down from the cross that he has undertaken as our leader, he remains at the foot of the cross in prayer, to support the new Pope who will bear the cross of Christ, together with all the faithful. It is a symbol indeed of great humility, which we too can follow. Remember too, Christ who is divine, but yet lowered Himself such that He was willing to die on the shameful cross, only for the symbol of that shame to be transformed into the victorious cross. We, who are to bear our own crosses with the Lord, should therefore follow in our Lord’s footsteps, to carry our crosses in humility, in order for the burdens of our crosses to be transformed too, into the victorious cross.

But, we are not in this alone, for God walks with us, He who suffered through mockery, humiliation, and death for us. And remember too that all of us, brothers and sisters in Christ, walk together this path of faith, towards the Lord. The path will not be easy, and many challenges would await us, but if we stay faithful in Christ, and believe in one another, and most importantly help one another in our journey, and keep love at the centre of our being, we will prevail. The Lord too would not have prevailed, had He not, out of His infinite love for all of us, willing to continue, bearing the weight of all of our sins, through falling and rising, and through curses and lashes, towards Calvary, and from there towards salvation of all mankind.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, today, let us pray for ourselves, pray for one another, and also pray for our Pope, that together, despite all the sufferings and the obstacles laid in our path towards God, that we can stay together, help one another, and shoulder our crosses, that when the time comes, our burden and our shame will be transformed to that of the victorious cross of Christ, the symbol of salvation. Let us pray too that all of us will be able to embark on missions to reach out to others around us, to alleviate suffering from all, and to show love to all those whom we meet, even to those who hates us and wish for our destruction.

God bless us all, God bless His Holy Church, and God bless our Pope, Benedict XVI. Amen!

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Full video of the last General Audience of Pope Benedict XVI by EWTN

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=saKWsdNUwbo

The full video coverage of the last General Audience of Pope Benedict XVI by EWTN, on Wednesday, 27 February 2013, 10.30 am Rome time at St. Peter’s Square.

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Reminder : Pope Benedict XVI’s last General Audience and farewell to public throughout the world

Pope Benedict XVI will preside over his last General Audience today, Wednesday, 27 February 2013, which will be held at St. Peter’s Square due to expected massive crowds that will come to say their farewell and thanks to our Pope who will be stepping down tomorrow at 8.00 pm. This will be his last public event as our Pope. So, do follow the event live and pray for him!

The event will begin at 10.25 am CET (Central European Time or UTC+1), and therefore accordingly here are the times for some areas in the world :

1. PST (Western USA) (UTC-8) : Wednesday, 27 February 2013 at 1.25 am

2. EST (Eastern USA) (UTC-5) : Wednesday, 27 February 2013 at 4.25 am

3. UTC (GMT) : Wednesday, 27 February 2013 at 9.25 am

4. WIB (Western Indonesia) (UTC+7) : Wednesday, 27 February 2013 at 4.25 pm

5. SG time (UTC+8) : Wednesday, 27 February 2013 at 5.25 pm (also for HK, China, Philippines, and Malaysia)

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What will happen at the last days of the Pope and the day when he retires (28 February 2013) by Salt and Light TV

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yhS7huS3un0

 

Wednesday, 27 February 2013

10.30 am – Pope Benedict XVI’s last General Audience at St. Peter’s Square (Pope’s farewell to the faithful around the world)

 

Thursday, 28 February 2013

11.00 am – Pope Benedict XVI’s last private meeting with the College of Cardinals in Sala Clementina

5.30 pm – Pope Benedict XVI leaves for Castel Gandolfo by the helicopter

8.00 pm – Pope Benedict XVI’s Papacy ends, sede vacante begins (no Pope present in the Church)

 

All time listed above are in CET (Central European Time) or UTC+1 hour

 

Conclave may begin between 9 March 2013 and 11 March 2013 as announced by the Vatican officials.

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Explanation on the changes brought by Motu Proprio Normas Nonnullas on the Conclave

http://vaticaninsider.lastampa.it/en/the-vatican/detail/articolo/motu-proprio-benedetto-xvi-benedict-xvi-benedecto-xvi-conclave-22655/

Modifications to the Apostolic Constitution Universi Dominici Gregis that regulates the Papal Conclave, as explained in English by Vatican Insider, with three main changes highlighted :

 

1. Conclave can begin earlier than 15 days after the vacancy of the See of Rome, but the exact date depends entirely on the College of Cardinals.

2. Cardinal-electors can opt not to attend the Conclave based on health and other valid reasons, but otherwise, all electors should attend, and those with the rights should not be impeded attendance at the Conclave.

3. All people locked inside the Conclave, including even the laity must take the oath of secrecy, the same as that of the Cardinals. More specific latae sententiae excommunication is given immediately to those who broke the oath during and even after the Conclave, unless permission given by the new Pope.

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English version of the Pope’s latest Motu Proprio : Normas Nonnullas

http://www.zenit.org/en/articles/motu-propio-apostolic-letter-regarding-the-election-of-the-roman-pontiff

Here is the English version of the Motu Proprio Normas Nonnullas on the election of the Supreme Pontiff (Pope) by Zenit. Happy reading and God bless!

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Pope Benedict XVI’s latest and last Motu Proprio : Normas Nonnullas on the Papal Conclave (Updated)

http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/motu_proprio/documents/hf_ben-xvi_motu-proprio_20130222_normas-nonnullas_lt.html

Pope Benedict XVI has published his last Motu Proprio concerning the rules of the Conclave as laid out in the Apostolic Constitution Universi Dominici Gregis, by Blessed Pope John Paul II, to clarify and modify some portions of the rules to suit the developments in the current time, and to affirm the rules as written in the Universi Dominici Gregis.

 

1. Cardinal-electors that had been given the right to elect the new Pope and had been rightfully granted that right must not be deprived of his right to join the Conclave and elect the new Pope.

 

2. It grants the College of Cardinals more liberty in the date of the commencement of the Conclave, providing all the Cardinals rightfully given the voting rights and intending to attend the Conclave has been gathered in Rome, as opposed to the previous rule of compulsory 15 days between the vacancy of the See of Rome to the beginning of the Conclave. 15 days here should still be observed, but if the College deems it right for the Conclave to begin, they can do so. Thus, the Conclave can begin earlier than 15 March 2013 for this year’s Conclave.

 

3. The whole area of the Vatican City and the areas around the Sistine Chapel will be restricted during the period of the Conclave, to prevent any leakage of secrecy of the Conclave to the outside world. Especially the area from Domus Sancta Marthae where the Cardinals reside during the Conclave and the Sistine Chapel, where they gather and vote. Anyone breaching this rule, will be given latae sententiae (automatic) excommunication, which is more precisely mentioned than the previous rule, which only mentioned severe punishment. Latae sententiae excommunication is specified in the new ruling.

 

4. The oaths prescribed in the Universi Dominici Gregis, to be taken by every Cardinal-electors at the start of the Conclave. In addition, in the new rule, all those involved in the Conclave, also have to take the oath, not just the Cardinal-electors :

Latin : ‘Ego N. N. promitto et iuro me inviolate servaturum esse secretum absolutum cum omnibus quotquot participes non sunt Collegii Cardinalium electorum, hoc quidem in perpetuum, nisi mihi datur expresse peculiaris facultas a novo Pontifice electo eiusve Successoribus, in omnibus quae directe vel indirecte respiciunt suffragia et scrutinia ad novum Pontificem eligendum.

Itemque promitto et iuro me nullo modo in Conclavi usurum esse instrumentis quibuslibet ad vocem transmittendam vel recipiendam aut ad imagines exprimendas quovis modo aptis de iis quae tempore electionis fiunt intra fines Civitatis Vaticanae, atque praecipue de iis quae quolibet modo directe vel indirecte attinent ad negotia coniuncta cum ipsa electione. Declaro me editurum esse ius iurandum utpote qui plane noverim quamlibet eius violationem adducturam esse excommunicationis mihi poenam latae sententiae Sedi Apostolicae reservatae.’

English (rough translation) : ‘I, NN., promise and swear to keep inviolate the absolute secret from all those who are not participants in the (election of the Pope) by the College of Cardinals, even in perpetuity, unless expressly given me special permission from the newly elected Pope and his successors, in all things which are directly or indirectly concern the votes and ballots to the choosing a new Pope.

So again, I promise and I swear I am in no way, whatsoever, to the sound of instruments in the Conclave of sending or receiving, or would make use of to  represent the images in any way suitable at the time of the election are to be done within the confines of Vatican City on those matters which, in any way, and especially on those matters which pertain to the business of directly or indirectly linked to with the election. It is well explained and clear to me, who so obviously should know that any violation of his oath will lead to excommunication to me, under the penalty of latae sententiae excommunication, reserved to the Apostolic See.

 

5. That the new Pope can only be elected with secret ballot or scrutiny. No acclamation, no compromise, and no absolute majority (or more than 50% of votes) in the event of long conclave. This has been earlier abrogated by Pope Benedict XVI who reiterated the absolute requirement of at least two-thirds of all Cardinals’ votes for one to be elected a new Pope.

 

6. If the Conclave failed to reach conclusion after a period of time, a day of prayer and reflection, and contemplation should be included before voting begins again. Then in the next round of voting, only the two names with the highest number of votes in the previous ballot would be included.

 

7. The formula of the question by the Cardinal Dean to the newly elected Pope is affirmed :

 

Latin : Acceptasne electionem de te canonice factam in Summum Pontificem?

English : Do you accept the Canonical election as the Supreme Pontiff?

 

Latin : Accepto

English : I accept

 

Latin : Quo nomine vis vocari?

English : What do you wish to be called?

 

Latin : Vocabor X

English : I wish to be called X.

(X will be the regnal name, for example, Benedict for our Pope Benedict XVI)

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Pope Benedict XVI will always be with us, in prayer : A praying Pope is an even stronger enemy of Satan than before!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3eKOW7GhNAM

Pope Benedict XVI, our Pope, who will retire from his position as our Pope effective this Thursday, 28 February 2013, will not leave us and will not abandon us. Rather, through life dedicated in prayer and good works through writing, our Pope will be a greater leader than he has ever been.

Even though we will no longer see him regularly as we could in the past 8 years, we know that he prays for us, and as our mediator with God. As the praying Pope in his retirement, he will be able to oppose Satan and his forces set to destroy God’s Church, even better. In prayer our Pope will give us strength and courage to rise up and crush Satan’s forces and his diabolical plans for this world.

Let us pray for our beloved Pope, Benedict XVI!