Querida Amazonia

Querida Amazonia
Author: Pope Francis
Publisher: Our Sunday Visitor
Total Pages: 51
Release: 2020-02-19
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 168192689X

“Everything that the Church has to offer must become incarnate in a distinctive way in each part of the world, so that the Bride of Christ can take on a variety of faces that better manifest the inexhaustible riches of God’s grace.” — Pope Francis, Querida Amazonia: Post-Synodal Exhortation Concerning the Synod of Bishops for the Amazon In this apostolic exhortation, Querida Amazonia (“The Beloved Amazon”), Pope Francis offers a response to the Synod of Bishops for the Amazon held in Rome in October 2019 and its final document The Amazon: New Paths for the Church and for an Integral Ecology. The pope writes this exhortation to all the faithful calling us to the task of addressing the serious social, environmental, and spiritual issues facing the region, sharing his four dreams for the people of the Amazon: A social dream — in which we fight for the dignity of the poor in the region A cultural dream — in which the riches and beauty of the Amazonian culture is preserved An ecological dream — in which we all strive to preserve the natural beauty of the Amazon An ecclesial dream — in which the faithful boldly create paths of inculturation, so that the goodness of the Amazonian culture is brought to fulfillment in light of the Gospel Pope Francis asks: “How can we not struggle together? How can we not pray and work together, side by side, to defend the poor of the Amazon region, to show the sacred countenance of the Lord, and to care for his work of creation?”

The Heart of ‘Querida Amazonia’

The Heart of ‘Querida Amazonia’
Author: La Civiltà Cattolica
Publisher: ucanews
Total Pages: 139
Release: 2022-01-26
Genre: Religion
ISBN:

A collection of 12 articles from the May 2020 edition of La Civiltà Cattolica, the highly respected and oldest Catholic journal published from Rome. Amazon is a wonder of nature teeming with the mystery of creation. ‘Desborde’ or ‘overflowing’ appears repeatedly in Pope Francis’ Apostolic Exhortation Querida Amazonia. Francis says that solutions for the regions many problems will be found in this overflow. The figure of the Crucified One is the most powerful sign of God’s revelation in the world. The ‘Weakness’ of Christ. An argument for His truth by José M. Millás shows how this moment of greatest weakness becomes the strongest argument for the truth of Christ and his message. In an interview with Antonio Spadaro, SJ, Pope Francis spoke about how he is living and contemplating the coronavirus crisis. He invites humanity to convert to a better way of being as he sees a possibility of transformation even in these difficult times. February 2020, the Italian Bishops’ Conference convened a gathering attended by the patriarchs and bishops of countries bordering the Mediterranean. The conference discussed the riches and vulnerabilities of their Churches and ways to enhance the lives of the Mediterranean peoples. The migration of young Africans to Europe has become a structural phenomenon andit will continue to be a reality for a long time. Giovanni Sale, SJ explains the three stages of this migratory phenomenon in Africa: A continent on the move. For French writer Daniel Pennac and Italian film director Federico Fellini, the strength of a dream is generative and imaginative. It opens windows of creativity, through which it is possible to describe, understand and transform reality. Claudio Zonta SJ narrates their work in Daniel Pennac and Federico Fellini: Life is Dream. The pandemic is forcing us to rethink the way we produce and consume. Gaël Giraud, director of Georgetown University’s Environmental Justice Program, and former chief economist at Agence France de Developpement, invites us to radically transform our social relations. He also details some possible ways to save the economy and to rebuild democracy.

Revelation in the Vernacular

Revelation in the Vernacular
Author: Jean-Pierre Ruiz
Publisher: Fordham Univ Press
Total Pages: 106
Release: 2023-12-05
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1531505864

Association of Catholic Publishers 2022 Excellence in Publishing Awards: First Place, Theology Catholic Media Association, Honorable Mention in Theology: Morality, Ethics, Christology, Mariology, and Redemption Unveiling divine mysteries across continents and centuries. Revelation in the Vernacular retrieves a hermeneutics of the vernacular that is rooted en lo cotidiano, in everyday life and experience. Traversing time and geography, Ruiz remaps a theology of revelation done latinamente, beginning with sixteenth-century encounters of Spanish colonizers with Indigenous peoples in the Caribbean. Drawing on the theology of the Incarnation articulated by Fray Luis de León (1527–91), he offers rich resources for interreligious engagement by believers in today’s religiously diverse world. Through an analysis of the documents of the 2019 Amazonian Synod, including Querida Amazonia, the Postsynodal Exhortation by Pope Francis, he explores a culture of encounter and dialogue that has been a hallmark of this pontificate. From the inscriptions in the caves of la Isla de Mona through the writings of the Latin American Bishops (CELAM), this book establishes a solid basis on which to discern the “Seeds of the Word” in our times.

The Eucharistic Vision of Laudato Si

The Eucharistic Vision of Laudato Si
Author: Lucas Briola
Publisher: CUA Press
Total Pages: 288
Release: 2022-12-28
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0813235812

No other encyclical has generated as much conversation—both Catholic and non-Catholic—as Laudato si’. Often forgotten in these conversations is the theological heart and eucharistic vision of the encyclical and its integral ecology. Even the title of Laudato si’—“Praised be!”—signals the centrality of right praise in caring for our common home. Using Bernard Lonergan’s theology of history, this book unearths the doxological, eucharistic vision that shapes the encyclical’s integral presentation of social and ecological conversion. It offers the first book-length study that recovers the eucharistic nature of Laudato si’. In drawing out the eucharistic vision of Laudato si’, the book accomplishes several feats for the reader. It roots the eucharistic dimensions of the encyclical in the writings of Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI, showing how Pope Francis develops their thought in notable ways. It introduces Bernard Lonergan’s theology of history, showing how his framework can capture the eucharistic contours of caring for our common home; so too, in light of Laudato si’, does the book expand his theology of history to incorporate both ecological concern and the doxological, eucharistic essence of the church. The book assembles a liturgically shaped, systematic account of the church’s social mission. It joins poles otherwise sundered in a polarized church and world: between worship and justice, between concerns for human life and concerns for the natural world. Realizing the eucharistic vision of Laudato si’ promises much for our contemporary moment. Pope Francis recently observed that the integral ecology of Laudato si’ holds the key for the world’s recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. The U.S. Catholic Bishops recently launched a Eucharistic Revival that aims to rekindle eucharistic devotion and praxis. The Eucharistic Vision of Laudato Si’: Praise, Conversion, and Integral Ecology supplies a timely study that helps fulfill these intertwined calls.

WHEN--Questions for Catholicism

WHEN--Questions for Catholicism
Author: Michael J. Tkacik
Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers
Total Pages: 152
Release: 2022-07-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1666738514

Jesus calls the church to be a sacrament to the world. Sadly, many women, LGBTQ persons, people of other faiths, and lay persons experience suffering due to certain words and actions of the Catholic Church. At times, the language and practices of the church leave some people feeling as if their voices have been silenced, their roles limited, and their vocations impeded. Some often feel underappreciated and disrespected. This work explores a vision for the future church which faces these challenges and illuminates possible solutions. Every person has gifts given by God for the building up of the church. Through a thorough exploration of biblical and church teachings, alternative views of these issues provide a path to inclusion for all. This book is intended to bring comfort, hope, and healing to those who have been marginalized. It also offers a map for the church as it journeys to be more of what Christ calls it to be. In a manner faithful to the gospel, reforms for the church are considered that open it to what the Spirit might be saying. When is the time for all persons to be valued, welcomed, empowered, and respected? Now.

The Synodal Church

The Synodal Church
Author: Diego Fares SJ
Publisher: ucanews
Total Pages: 138
Release: 2022-09-26
Genre: Religion
ISBN:

The synodal Church we often hear is one seeking fraternal communion. This involves mutual listening, in which everyone has something to learn. The author of these enlightening commentaries is Fr. Diego Fares, an Argentinian Jesuit, who has known and worked with Jorge Mario Bergoglio (Pope Francis) for many years. The articles in this eBook: Evangelical Imbalances: Francis Writes to the People of God in Germany Pope Francis and his Messages to Latin America Pope Francis and Fraternity Poetry is a Planet of Living Trees: An interview with Ana Varela Tafu The Heart of ‘Querida Amazonia’: ‘overflowing en route’ Spiritual Discernment in ‘Christus Vivit’: Between Ulysses and Orpheus ‘I am a Mission’: Toward the Synod on Young People Young People, Faith and Discernment: The 2018 Synod and indications of an incomplete document

Fratelli Tutti

Fratelli Tutti
Author: William T. Cavanaugh
Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers
Total Pages: 320
Release: 2024-01-19
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1666719994

This volume is the first truly global commentary on a papal encyclical. Pope Francis published Fratelli Tutti in October 2020 in the midst of interrelated global crises: climate catastrophe, ongoing racial injustice, a widening gap between the rich and the desperately poor, battles over human migration, the rise of authoritarian politics, and the erosion of democracy, all exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. The encyclical provided a sobering assessment of the devastation but also a hopeful vision of solidarity and healing. The responses in this book not only reflect on Fratelli Tutti from a great diversity of locations and perspectives but also attempt to model Francis’s call to fraternity and sorority within this volume. In these pages, scholars from around the world create a conversation meant to embody one of the virtues that Francis elicits in the encyclical: creative openness to the reciprocal gifts of others. This book takes up Pope Francis’s invitation to continue talking, thinking, and acting, always in a climate of both confidence and audacity, to promote social friendship among the people of the world.

Fraternity and Social Friendship

Fraternity and Social Friendship
Author: La Civiltà Cattolica
Publisher: ucanews
Total Pages: 150
Release: 2022-01-27
Genre: Religion
ISBN:

A collection of 09 articles from the October 2020 edition of La Civiltà Cattolica, the highly respected and oldest Catholic journal published from Rome. Signing the historic Document on Human Fraternity in 2019, Pope Francis and Aḥmad al-Tayyeb declared that the only alternative to destructive geopolitics is fraternity. On October 3rd, 2020 the pope signed the encyclical Fratelli Tutti (Brothers and Sisters All). Antonio Spadaro decodes the pope’s third encyclical – that was inspired by the 2019 Document. David Neuhaus, SJ says the Catholic Church has always proceeded cautiously while dealing with the political reality that is the State of Israel. Even though Jews and Catholics share a common set of concepts derived from Scripture, they do not share a common theological understanding of these concepts. In Ritual or Ritualism: The spirit of Confucianism, Benoit Vermander, SJ tries to assimilate what Confucius and his disciples found in the observance of ritualism. The same ritual event can have different meanings. He asks whether these themes are completely outdated today or not. Media ecology approaches communication as an ecosystem. From the mid-19th century, the Catholic Church faced a slow revolution in the communication ecosystem. By 2020, the incursion of the pandemic forced the Church to fully engage with digital media, especially in celebrating the liturgy. Paul A. Soukup, SJ explains the different models of the Church as an ecosystem. In Hagia Sophia: From museum to mosque, Giancarlo Pani SJ elaborates the historical importance of Hagia Sophia as a unique ecumenical space: from basilica to mosque and finally a museum, and now a mosque again.

Church, Interrupted

Church, Interrupted
Author: John Cornwell
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Total Pages: 306
Release: 2021-03-09
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1797202022

Church, Interrupted: Havoc & Hope: The Tender Revolt of Pope Francis is a revealing portrait of Pope Francis's hopeful yet controversial efforts to recreate the Catholic Church to become, once again, a welcoming place of empathy, love, and inclusiveness. Bestselling author, Vanity Fair contributor, and papal biographer John Cornwell tells the gripping insider story of Pope Francis's bid to bring renewal and hope to a crisis-plagued Church and the world at large. With unique insights and original reporting, Cornwell reveals how Francis has persistently provoked and disrupted his stubbornly unchanging Church, purging clerical corruption and reforming entrenched institutions, while calling for action against global poverty, climate change, and racism. Cornwell argues that despite fierce opposition from traditionalist clergy and right-wing media, the pope has radically widened Catholic moral priorities, calling for mercy and compassion over rigid dogmatism. Francis, according to Cornwell, has transformed the Vatican from being a top-down centralized authority to being a spiritual service for a global Church. He has welcomed the rejected, abused, and disheartened; reached out to people of other faiths and those of none; and proved a providential spiritual leader for future generations. Highly acclaimed author John Cornwell's riveting account of the hopeful—and contentious—efforts undertaken by Pope Francis to rebuild the Catholic Church. • Well researched and brilliantly written, readers, scholars, and fans of John Cornwell will want to read his most controversial and compelling work yet. • More than a third of America's 74 million Catholics said they were contemplating departure in 2018. It is estimated that over the past twenty years, the Catholic Church has been losing $2.5 billion dollars annually in revenues, legal fees, and damages due to clerical abuse cases. The decline in church attendance, marriages, and vocations to the priesthood and sisterhood tell a story of major decline and disillusion. Cornwell showcases Pope Francis's way forward, a hopeful message that gives reinvigorated reasons to stay with the church and help be the change the new generation would like to see. • For readers within and outside Catholicism fascinated by the future and restructuring of the church, this will be a book they want to read again and again as the church continues to change and grow.

The Concept of Environment in Judaism, Christianity and Islam

The Concept of Environment in Judaism, Christianity and Islam
Author: Christoph Böttigheimer
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG
Total Pages: 162
Release: 2023-03-06
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 3110782693

On the seventh day, God rested and thus completed his creation. Likewise, man should rest on the seventh day and every seven years leave the fields fallow to rest. If you like, a divine economic and environmental programme is encountered here. "Subdue the earth" is not to be misunderstood as a mandate to subjugate and exploit, but on the contrary as a call to preserve God's "very good" creation. Its current explosiveness illustrates precisely this fundamental relationship. Even secular circles now speak of the "integrity of creation" as a matter of course. And in Muslim countries, scholars and activists are preparing to launch a "green Islam", based of course on Quranic principles. At the same time, faith communities and churches with their commitment to nature and to a just world of work are moving into the concrete focus of public attention and are serious players in the current discourse. Reason enough, then, to get to the bottom of the concept of "environment" in the world religions. How do religions position themselves on the ecological question? What are the foundations of their decisions? And can they make a significant contribution to the current problem and to the enquiries of many people?