Saint Joseph Catholic Church

Cardinal George Jacob Koovakad, prefect of the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue, and Paolo Ruffini, prefect of the Dicastery for Communication, spoke at a press conference on Portraits in Faith, a traveling exhibition brought to the Vatican for the Jubilee. The exhibition includes photographs and stories of believers from different religious traditions.

Daniel Epstein, described by Vatican News as “a Jewish marketing expert and photographer who has traveled the world between work and faith,” compiled the stories over a 25-year period and also took part in the press conference.

Cardinal Koovakad said that the photographs “speak to us of a common humanity, because the ‘other’ is part of a brotherhood that unites us.” Ruffini said that the images “take us back to the origins of who we are, brothers and sisters created in the image of God. They remind us that in dialogue, in the rediscovery of others, we find the essence of our faith.”

Addressing questions from journalists, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Secretary of State of His Holiness, rued Israeli settlers’ treatment of Christians in the West Bank, particularly in Taybeh.

“This is certainly a very complex issue,” he said, “but we fail to understand why these Christians, who are simply living their normal lives, should be subjected to such hostility.”

Cardinal Parolin also lamented recent violence against journalists and said that the Holy See remained “full of hope” about the Gaza peace plan, despite recent violence.

Today is the Optional Memorial of St. John of Capistrano (1386-1456). John was a native of Capistrano, in Italy. He became a Franciscan and was one of the great organizers of the struggle against the Mohammedans in the 15th century, when they threatened to overrun the whole of Europe. Mohammed II had taken Constantinope and was already marching against Belgrade, when Pope Callixtus III called St. John to preach the crusade; assisted by the Hungarian John Hunyadi, he gathered a strong Christian army, which defeated the Turks in the great battle of Belgrade (1453). He died in 1456.

The Church celebrates the Optional Memorial of St. John Paul II (1920-2005). Karol Jozef Wojtyla was born in 1920 in Wadowice, Poland. After his ordination to the priesthood and theological studies in Rome, he returned to his homeland and resumed various pastoral and academic tasks. He became first auxiliary bishop and, in 1964, Archbishop of Krakow and took part in the Second Vatican Council. On October 16, 1978 he was elected pope and took the name John Paul II. His exceptional apostolic zeal, particularly for families, young people and the sick, led him to numerous pastoral visits throughout the world. Among the many fruits which he has left as a heritage to the Church are above all his rich Magisterium and the promulgation of the Catechism of the Catholic Church as well as the Code of Canon Law for the Latin Church and for the Eastern Churches. In Rome on April 2, 2005, the eve of the Second Sunday of Easter (or of Divine Mercy), he departed peacefully in the Lord.

Today the Roman Martyrology commemorates:

More than 5 billion people—two-thirds of the world’s population—live in countries that restrict religious freedom, according to an annual report from Aid to the Church in Need (ACN).

The ACN report finds serious violations of religious freedom in 62 countries (of 196 studied). Among these countries, ACN classified the restraints on religious freedom in 38 as “discrimination,” while 24 were severe enough to be called “persecution.” The countries where ACN found persecution are heavily clustered in Asia and northern Africa, with only one such country—Nicaragua—in the Western hemisphere.

The report finds that Islamic extremist continues to grow, constituting the main factor in outright persecution in 15 countries and discrimination in 10 more. Sub-Saharan Africa is now the area where jihadist violence is most intense.

However the Western world is not immune from anti-religious violence. ACN detailed almost 1,000 attacks on churches in France, for instance; vandalism of churches also spiked in Greece, Spain, Italy, and the US.

The ACN report noted that authoritarian governments—notably China, Iran, and Nicaragua—have employed high-tech means of restricting religious activities, including surveillance and digital censorship.

ACN found that in only two countries, Kazakhstan and Sri Lanka, had restrictions on religious freedom eased during the past year.

The US calendar celebrates the Optional Memorial of St. Paul of the Cross (1694-1775), who devoted himself to the service of the poor and the sick. He is best known for his apostolic zeal and his great penances. He founded the Congregation of the Passionists. (St. Paul's Optional Memorial on the General Roman Calendar is October 19, but USA particular calendar transfers it to the next day.)

Gospel Excerpt, Luke 18:1-8: Jesus told his disciples a parable about the necessity for them to pray always without becoming weary. He said, "There was a judge in a certain town who neither feared God nor respected any human being. And a widow in that town used to come to him and say, ‘Render a just decision for me against my adversary,' For a long time the judge was unwilling; but eventually he thought, ‘While it is true that I neither fear God nor respect any human being, because this widow keeps bothering me, I shall deliver a just decision for her lest she finally come and strike me.'" The Lord said, "Pay attention to what the dishonest judge says. Will not God then secure the rights of his chosen ones who call out to him day and night? Will he be slow to answer them? I tell you, he will see to it that justice is done for them speedily. But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?"

The Church celebrates the Feast of St. Luke, the inspired author of the third Gospel and of the Acts of the Apostles, was a native of Antioch in Syria and a physician, and one of the early converts from paganism. He accompanied St. Paul on a considerable part of his missionary journey. He was also his companion while in prison at Rome on two different occasions. His account of these events, contained in the Acts, is firsthand history.

The Church celebrates the Memorial of St. Ignatius of Antioch (50-107), who was one of the great bishops of the early Church. He was the successor of St. Peter as Bishop of Antioch. He was condemned to death by wild beasts during the Emperor Trajan's persecution. On his way to Rome, he wrote seven magnificent letters, which we still have today, concerning the Person of Christ, his love for Christ, his desire for martyrdom and on the constitution of the Church and Christian life. His sentiments before his approaching martyrdom are summed in his word in the Communion antiphon, "I am the wheat of Christ, ground by the teeth of beasts to become pure bread."