October 1 - 15 , 2017 PHILIPPINE ASIAN NEWS TODAY 25
Pope Francis dedicates October to praying for the unemployed
Having dignified work is a topic Pope Francis has continuously returned to since his election , and it surfaced again in his latest prayer video , which urges viewers to spend October praying that employees have just working conditions , and for the unemployed .
The video , published Oct . 3 , opens showing a young woman in an office searching through files and , when she can ’ t find the one she is looking for , an older colleague comes over and helps her .
As the scene plays out , Francis speaks in his native Spanish , saying “ we should always remember the dignity and rights of those who work , condemn situations in which that dignity and those rights are violated , and help to ensure authentic progress by man and society .”
The video depicts various scenes of people working in inhumane conditions , before switching to show an unemployed man walking around the city handing out resumes . As he stands on the corner , a pizza delivery man he bumps into sees the folder of resumes and writes down the phone number of his company .
In the next frame , the formerly-unemployed man is shown delivering a pizza to the woman who helped her younger colleague in the first scene , drawing a smiley face on her napkin when he sees that she is stressed out about her work .
Francis closes the video making an appeal to viewers , asking them to “ pray that all workers may receive respect and protection of their rights , and that the unemployed may receive the opportunity to contribute to the common good .”
Launched as a special project for the Jubilee of Mercy , the videos are part of a larger initiative of the Jesuitrun global prayer network Apostleship of Prayer , and are filmed in collaboration with the Vatican Television Center ( CTV ) and the Argentinian marketing association La Machi .
The Apostleship of Prayer , which produces the monthly
videos on the Pope ’ s intentions , was founded by Jesuit seminarians in France in 1884 to e n c o u r a g e Christians to serve God and others t h r o u g h p r a y e r , particularly for the needs of the Church .
Since the late 1800s , the organization has received a monthly , “ universal ” intention from the Pope . In 1929 , an additional missionary intention was added by the Holy Father , aimed at the faithful in particular .
However , as of January , rather than including a missionary intention , Pope Francis decided to have only one prepared prayer intention – the universal intention featured in the prayer video – adding a second intention for an urgent or immediate
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need if one arises .
The prayer intentions typically highlight issues of importance not only for Pope Francis , but for the world , such as families , parishes , the environment , the poor and homeless , Christians who are persecuted and youth .
Work is something that is especially important for Francis , and has been since his election . Not only has he highlighted the dignity of work and the need for humane working conditions regularly in his speeches , but in nearly every trip he ’ s taken within Italy he has met with the local
Pope wants Catholic opposition to death penalty increased
Pope Francis called Wednesday for categoric opposition to capital punishment to be written into an update of the most important guide to Catholic teaching .
His comments , which will be controversial with many fundamentalist Christians and some Catholics , came in a speech to clerics attending a conference in Rome to mark the 25th anniversary of the publication of the Catechism of the Catholic Church .
The catechism is a question and answer guide to what Catholics should think about a wide range of moral and social issues .
Acknowledging that the Vatican itself had historically had “ recourse to the extreme and inhuman remedy ” of judicial execution , Francis said past doctrinal errors should be put aside .
“ We have to restate that , however grave the crime that may be committed , the death penalty is inadmissible because it attacks the inviolability and the dignity of the person ,” he said .
The execution of a human being was fundamentally against the teachings of Christ because , by definition , it excluded the possibility of redemption , he argued .
The Catholic church has steadily increased the strength of its opposition to the use of capital punishment in recent years .
Pope John Paul II made an appeal for a global consensus on abolition in 1999 and
working force .
In his speeches , he typically advocates for a more just society with equal opportunity , for managers to be honest and to steer away from temptations
“ This is a task that belongs to the whole society ,” he said . “ At this stage in particular , the whole social body , in its various components , is called upon to make every effort , because work , which is the primary factor of dignity , is a central concern .” ( E . Harris , CNA )
Francis ’ s predecessor , Benedict XVI issued a similar call in 2011 .
The 1992 text of the catechism says authorities should take appropriate measures in the interest of the common good without excluding the use of the death penalty in extremely grave cases .
More recent updates say justifying circumstances are now rare if not practically inexistant . And a version of the catechism aimed at younger people now includes a question , “ Why is the Church opposed to the death penalty ?”
Francis has made clear his own personal opposition to the death penalty on numerous occasions .
“ It doesn ’ t give justice to victims , but it feeds vengeance ,” he said in June 2016 , arguing that the biblical commandment “ thou shall not kill ,” applied to the innocent as well as the guilty . ( abs-cbn , AP )