Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
The month of July opened with the publication of an important document: the Motu proprio Summorum Pontificum with which the Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, granted the faithful who so desire, on the condition that they are gathered in a stable group and have the permission of the parish priest, to celebrate the Holy Eucharist using the Missal of St Pius V revised in 1962 by Pope John XXIII. Pope Benedict XVI writes that he decided to issue this new Motu Proprio to update that of 1988 in view of “coming to an interior reconciliation in the heart of the Church”. A glance at the past imposes an obligation today: “to make every effort to unable for all those who truly desire unity to remain in that unity or to attain it anew… There is no contradiction between the two editions of the Roman Missal”.
Important too was a Document issued by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, approved by Pope Benedict XVI, with the title "Responses to some questions regarding certain aspects of the Doctrine on the Church" which bears the date 29 June 2007 and was made public on 10 July. The Document intends to clarify "the authentic meaning of some ecclesiological expressions used by the Magisterium which are open to misunderstanding in the theological debate”, responding to five questions.
On 9 July the Holy Father departed for a short period of rest in the northern Italian mountain resort of Lorenzago di Cadore. “The mountain air will do me good - the Pope said at the Angelus on Sunday 8 July - and I will be free to dedicate more time to reflection and prayer. I hope everyone, especially those in greatest need, will be able to take a bit of vacation to restore their physical and spiritual energy and recover a healthy contact with nature. The mountains call to mind in particular the spirit's ascent towards the heavens, its uplifting towards the "high standard" of our humanity, which daily life unfortunately tends to debase”.
