Quotes and news
Papyrus is ‘a fake’
The Vatican’s semi-official newspaper L’Osservatore Romano has stated editorially that the Coptic papyrus fragment which seems to indicate that Jesus was married is “a fake”. The papyrus fragment was introduced by Karen King of Harvard University but L’Osservatore Romano editor Gian Maria Van said scholarly evidence pointed toward an “inept forgery”. But other scholars are of a different opinon.
However, even if this proves to be authentic the basic question is that the most one can say it that this document of unknown provenance says that Jesus was married and not that he was actually married.
The document, if authentic, was written a few centuries after the life of Christ.
Social networks a new way to evangelise
The theme of the 47th World Communications Day, usually held on Ascension Sunday, will be Social Networks: Portals of Truth and Faith; New Spaces for Evangelisation.
At a time in which technology has become part of the fabric of connectivity of human experiences, such as relationships and knowledge, the Church needs to ask: can it help men and women meet Christ in faith?
It is not enough to find an adequate language, but rather how to present the Gospel as the answer to that basic human yearning for meaning and faith, which has already found expression online.
Such an approach, which would serve to create a more dynamic and humane digital world, requires a new way of thinking.
It is not simply a question of how to use the internet as a means of evangelisation, but instead of how to evangelise in a context where the lives of people find expression also in the digital arena.
In particular, the Church needs to be attentive to the emergence and enormous popularity of social networks, which privilege dialogi-cal and interactive forms of communication and relationships.
‘Beautiful to be Catholic’
Archbishop Richard Smith of Edmonton, president of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops, recently said: “What the bishops want to say is that – and I don’t mean this to sound trite in any way, because really it’s the message at the heart of everything we do – it’s beautiful to be a Catholic. Our faith is a wondrous gift that has been handed down to us through the ages.
“For the Church to be fully vibrant, alive for the mission of new evangelisation, for the initiative of the Year of Faith to be fully engaged and embraced, we need the involvement of all,” Mgr Smith added.
“So our message is: receive the faith, love the faith, be engaged anew by the faith and find ever new ways to share that with others.”
Male-female marriage is best for children
“Marriage between one man and one woman in a stable relationship is the optimal situation for the healthy development of children,” states a resolution adopted by the Catholic Medical Association (CMA) of America.
It said “the best available published scientific evidence” shows that children are best raised in a household headed by one man and one woman.
The CMA considered it unjust when “children are deliberately deprived” of their best chance for healthy development by state laws giving legal recognition to same-sex unions and allowing homosexual couples to adopt children.
The CMA calls for state and federal governments to protect children by affirming male-female marriage.
(Compiled by Fr Joe Borg)