Overheard in the Sacristy

Archaeologists Uncover John the Baptist Relics in Bulgaria’s Sozopol – Report

Parts of St. John the Baptist’s relics might have been discovered during archaeological excavations in Bulgaria’s southern Black Sea town of Sozopol, report Bulgarian media.

Archaeologists investigating the Sv. Ivan (St. John) island off Sozopol have found an exquisite reliquary – a relic urn – built in the altar of an ancient church bearing the name of St. John the Baptist

The reliquary has the shape of a sarcophagus and is dated end of 4th – beginning of 5th c. AD. It was discovered by the team of Prof. Kazimir Popkonstantinov.

The church’s name, as well as the fact that it had a special emperor’s statute issued, has hinted to archeologists that it might actually contain St. John’s relics. The urn is expected to be opened Sunday.

St. John the Baptist - called also the Forerunner - is an imposing figure in the Christian New Testament. He was the last to prophecize the coming of Jesus Christ - and the one to baptize the young Jesus in the river Jordan. The great prophet died a martyr’s death beheaded by king Herod at the request of his daughter Salome.

According to the Bible, St. John the Forerunner prophesized about Christ thus: “I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and fire” (Matthew 3:11).

St. John the Baptist is especially venerated by the Eastern Orthodox Christian Church. Over the centuries, there have been controversies about where his relics are located.

The town of Sozopol is one of the most ancient on the Bulgarian Black Sea coast, dating from the Bronze age. It was colonized by Greeks, headed by philosopher Anaximander, around 610 BC. Sozopol became an early Christian centre with its own bishop. For most of the Middle Ages, it was part of the Byzantine empire.

BENEDICT XVI’S PRAYER INTENTIONS FOR AUGUST

VATICAN CITY, 30 JUL 2010 (VIS) – Pope Benedict’s general prayer intention for August is: “That those who are without work or homes or who are otherwise in serious need may find understanding and welcome, as well as concrete help in overcoming their difficulties”.

His mission intention is: “That the Church may be a ‘home’ for all people, ready to open her doors to any who are suffering from racial or religious discrimination, hunger or wars forcing them to emigrate to other countries”.

Is it judgmental to call a person judgmental?

Vatican City bars scantily clad

Swiss Guards turn away visitors in revealing clothing

(ANSA) – Vatican City, July 27 – Tourists and Romans clad in scanty summer clothing were being told to cover up before entering the Vatican City on Tuesday. Long-standing rules on modest dress, previously applicable only to those visiting St Peter’s Basilica, appear to have been extended throughout the tiny walled state. Swiss Guard officers manning the official customs point between Rome and the Vatican City began pulling aside members of the public dressed in ‘inappropriate’ clothing early in the morning. Men in shorts and women with exposed knees or uncovered shoulders were all stopped by the officers, who asked them if they knew “how things worked here”. Bewildered locals, accustomed to treating the Vatican much like any other part of Rome, initially assumed a new bureaucratic procedure was in force. Prescriptions, letters and shopping permits were hastily produced as evidence of plans to use the Vatican’s pharmacy, post office and shop.

Only to be told the real reason was their clothing. “This is the Vatican City and for reasons of respect, you are not allowed in with uncovered shoulders or wearing shorts,” was the standard explanation. Some retreated without protest, while a number of the women made impromptu purchases from one of the many stands selling shawls and scarves near the Vatican gates. A cheap, quick solution to cover the bare legs of men in shorts was harder to come by, although some duly trudged off to the nearby shopping district of Cola di Rienzo to buy a pair of trousers. However, a number of visitors, especially the more elderly, refused to budge.

The Vatican pharmacy tends to draw older Romans from across the city, as it is slightly cheaper and offers a different range of medication than its Italian counterparts.

Maria, in her late 70s, was one visitor to the Vatican who refused to be cowed by the Swiss Guards. After travelling from the Centocelle neighbourhood on the other side of Rome in 30-degree heat, she was advised that her calf-length flowered dress was “inappropriate” because it showed her shoulders. “I’ve come all the way here from Centocelle and you want to send me back?” she complained.

The Swiss Guards eventually relented and allowed her through, quietly advising her to dress more appropriately next time. But Maria was unimpressed. “Given all the scandals the Church has been involved in, what possible right can it have to be preaching about the morality of sleeveless dresses?” she declared loudly, marching past indignantly.

Modest clothing for visitors to St Peter’s has been the rule for decades. While most tourists are aware of this beforehand and dress appropriately, the sheer number of pilgrims visiting the basilica in the Jubilee year of 2000 prompted street vendors to expand their long running trade in cheap shawls to include long, lightweight cloaks as well. These later vanished from stalls once demand dropped but are likely to reappear for some months to come, at least until word of the new rules gets around.

Slippers made by master shoemaker Adriano Stefanelli from Novara. Pope Benedict XVI wears these soft, comfortable shoes around his apartment.

THE FRIENDS OF JESUS: A NEW BOOK FOR CHILDREN BY THE POPE

VATICAN CITY, 22 JUL 2010 (VIS) – “The Friends of Jesus” is the title of a new book for children by Benedict XVI in which he recounts the story of the twelve Apostles and St. Paul.

The book, forty-eight pages long and illustrated by the Italian artist Franco Vignazia, has been published by the publishing house San Giuliano Milanese. It brings together a number of passages from the Pope’s catecheses in his Wednesday general audiences, according to the “Osservatore Romano” newspaper.

The prologue is by the Spanish priest Fr. Julian Carron, president of the Fraternity of Communion and Liberation.

“Once upon a time there was a small group of men who, one day two thousand years ago, met a young man who walked the roads of Galilee. Each had his own job and family but, in an instant, their lives changed. They were called Andrew and John, Peter, Matthew, Thomas, etc. They were twelve and we know them today as the ‘Apostles’. … In Jerusalem at that time everyone knew that they were Jesus’ ‘friends’. … Later they were joined by St. Paul … who from being a persecutor of Christians became the greatest witness to Jesus”, writes Fr. Carron.

Fr. Carron likewise explains that in this work Benedict XVI “takes us by the hand and accompanies us as we discover who Jesus’ first companions were, how they met Him and were conquered by Him to the point that they never abandoned Him”.

Health Benefits of Avocado

Here are the most well-known health benefits of avocado for both adults and kids.

1. It protects cholesterol related heart diseases. It reduces the risk of cardiovascular diseases.
2. It is used both in prevention and treatment of prostate and breast cancers. Scientists have proved that a toxin in avocado kills the cancer cells. So-called toxin has a great effect on the tissues, particularly heart muscle tissues.
3. Avocado includes necessary minerals like potassium, calcium, vitamin C and K, folic acid, copper, sodium and dietary fibers. These are used to provide the mineral necessity of the body. People who live in hot climates have great mineral and water loss. So, avocado is suggested strongly by the medicals.
4. Oleic acid in avocado can be used to lower cholesterol level in the blood.
5. Potassium in avocado regulates pressure of blood.
6. Sodium reduces the risk of high blood pressure and stoke.
7. It improves the ability of the body to absorb carotenoids.
8. Avocado is used to help people who have sexual problems.
9. It is a good antioxidant.
10. It can be used in the treatment of skin disorders.
11. It is used to heal people who suffer from digestive and circulatory problems.

I needed a change in my daily routine, and bit of a break from the net. I’ve spent some time in the pool, actually enjoying the 110 desert heat. I’ve done a bit of reading, writing, praying, and chilling, so I’m feeling rested and renewed.

The desert fathers understood how difficult it would be to uphold the faith in our later times. Once, a desert father was asked by a young monk about the devil. The monk inquired if people in later times would be able to persevere in the fasting and all night prayer vigils that the desert monks subjected themselves to. The desert father said, “No. People in later times will be weak and they will barely be able to fast a day without feeling faint. They will not be able to stay awake and pray all night, for they will be too weak.”

When the young monk asked why they would be so weak, the desert father replied,”It is easy for us to do these things. We are fighting Satan chained. In later times, people will fight him unchained.”

– from Salve Regina

Pope heads to Castel Gandolfo to write new encyclical, book

Vatican City, Jul 7, 2010 / 01:40 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- The Holy Father retired on Wednesday afternoon to his residence at Castel Gandolfo where he will be spending the greater part of the next few months. He asked for prayers as he retires for a time of rest, work, study and writing.

Today, Pope Benedict broke with the tradition of his first five summers as Pope, which entailed heading to the mountains in the north of Italy. This year he will stay in the papal villa just minutes from Rome by helicopter.

The director of the Pontifical Villas, Saverio Petrillo, told Vatican Radio on Tuesday that there was great anticipation surrounding the Pope’s arrival and that staff there has been working hard, but with “joy and enthusiasm,” to prepare for the occasion.

Petrillo explained that Castel Gandolfo has been used for the last 400 years as the “stable See” for Popes in summer. He added also that the Holy Father took to the villa—from which one can observe Rome and the Mediterranean on one side and a lake and surrounding hills on the other—immediately upon arriving there for his first visit in May of 2005.

According to a report from Marco Ansaldo in La Repubblica, the Pope’s days will begin with 7:30 a.m. Mass and then continue with time divided between study, meditation, prayer, music and writing.

Ansaldo said that the Pope has a twofold “ambitious objective” this summer: “beginning a new book on the Gospels of the infancy of Jesus and giving form to the first draft of his new encyclical, the fourth of his Pontificate.”

The encyclical, he reported, will likely be on “Faith.”

Looking forward to his time at the hilltop retreat, the Holy Father asked during the Polish greeting after the catechesis at Wednesday morning’s general audience for “prayers in the days of my sojourn at Castel Gandolfo.”

The relics of St. Celestine V is displayed prior to the Mass celebrated by Pope Benedict XVI in Sulmona on July 4, 2010. Pope Benedict XVI marked the 800th anniversary of the birth of one of his predecessors, St Celestine V, with a Mass and meeting with young people.

Pope Saint Celestine V, born Pietro Angelerio, also known as Pietro da Morrone (c. 1209 – 19 May, 1296) was elected pope in the year 1294, by the Papal election, 1292–1294, the last non-conclave in the history of the Roman Catholic Church. Celestine V is recognized by the Church as a saint. No subsequent Pope has taken the name “Celestine”.