ROME (UCAN) -- The Pontifical Council Cor Unum (one heart), which coordinates the Church's charitable efforts, will hold a spiritual renewal program this September for leaders of Church charities in Asia. Sister Nirmala Joshi, former head of the Missionaries of Charity, is expected to direct the weeklong spiritual program in Taiwan together with some well-known Asian Church leaders. They include Cardinal Paul Shan Kuo-hsi, retired bishop of Kaohsiung, Taiwan; and Cardinal Telesphore Toppo of Ranchi, India.
The event is scheduled for Sept. 6-11 at Fu Jen Catholic University in Taipei.
Cor Unum sources said more than 350 leaders from various Catholic charities throughout Asia, including 60 bishops, have signed up for the program, and many more are expected to do so.
Cardinal Paul Cordes, Cor Unum president, said one of Pope Benedict XVI's concerns is for all Church charities to maintain their "faith roots" and Christian identity, while still remaining professional in their work.
The Pope had elaborated on this concern in his first encyclical, "Deus Caritas Est" (God is love). Like the Pope, the cardinal sees a danger in Catholic charities losing their specific Christian identity and becoming mere philanthropic operations.
The German-born cardinal said he encourages bishops' conferences whenever he visits them -- as he did for the Philippines' earlier this year -- to ensure that the Catholic charities in their dioceses take to heart their Christian identity and not hide it.
Moreover, the cardinal has set Cor Unum the task of "formation of hearts" of all who are involved in Church charities by helping them experience "a personal encounter with God in Christ."
The council broke new ground last year when it organized the first "continental" week of spiritual exercises in Guadalajara, Mexico, for leaders of Church charities in the Americas. About 500 leaders of Catholic charities in North and South America as well as the Caribbean participated. Capuchin Father Raniero Cantalamessa, preacher and confessor to the papal household, directed that program.
When Cardinal Cordes reported to the Pope on the positive outcome of the Mexico gathering, the Pope asked, "Where next?" When the cardinal said he planned to hold the next continental spiritual exercises week in Asia, the Pope enthusiastically endorsed the plan and remarked that charitable work is a very important part of the Church's mission throughout Asia.
Pope Paul VI founded Cor Unum in 1971. According to its website (www.corunum.va), it assists the Pope in carrying out and coordinating initiatives for humanitarian action during disasters, for "integral human promotion" and for fostering the "catechesis of charity."
Pope Benedict in "Deus Caritas Est" described Cor Unum as the "agency of the Holy See responsible for orienting and coordinating the organizations and charitable activities promoted by the Catholic Church" worldwide.
Source: http://www.ucanews.com
.::. All my articles can be view here: MELTED HEARTS .::.
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The event is scheduled for Sept. 6-11 at Fu Jen Catholic University in Taipei.
Cor Unum sources said more than 350 leaders from various Catholic charities throughout Asia, including 60 bishops, have signed up for the program, and many more are expected to do so.
Cardinal Paul Cordes, Cor Unum president, said one of Pope Benedict XVI's concerns is for all Church charities to maintain their "faith roots" and Christian identity, while still remaining professional in their work.
The Pope had elaborated on this concern in his first encyclical, "Deus Caritas Est" (God is love). Like the Pope, the cardinal sees a danger in Catholic charities losing their specific Christian identity and becoming mere philanthropic operations.
The German-born cardinal said he encourages bishops' conferences whenever he visits them -- as he did for the Philippines' earlier this year -- to ensure that the Catholic charities in their dioceses take to heart their Christian identity and not hide it.
Moreover, the cardinal has set Cor Unum the task of "formation of hearts" of all who are involved in Church charities by helping them experience "a personal encounter with God in Christ."
The council broke new ground last year when it organized the first "continental" week of spiritual exercises in Guadalajara, Mexico, for leaders of Church charities in the Americas. About 500 leaders of Catholic charities in North and South America as well as the Caribbean participated. Capuchin Father Raniero Cantalamessa, preacher and confessor to the papal household, directed that program.
When Cardinal Cordes reported to the Pope on the positive outcome of the Mexico gathering, the Pope asked, "Where next?" When the cardinal said he planned to hold the next continental spiritual exercises week in Asia, the Pope enthusiastically endorsed the plan and remarked that charitable work is a very important part of the Church's mission throughout Asia.
Pope Paul VI founded Cor Unum in 1971. According to its website (www.corunum.va), it assists the Pope in carrying out and coordinating initiatives for humanitarian action during disasters, for "integral human promotion" and for fostering the "catechesis of charity."
Pope Benedict in "Deus Caritas Est" described Cor Unum as the "agency of the Holy See responsible for orienting and coordinating the organizations and charitable activities promoted by the Catholic Church" worldwide.
Source: http://www.ucanews.com
.::. All my articles can be view here: MELTED HEARTS .::.
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