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Wednesday, February 18, 2015

Lenten Announcement

The NCW received a lot of good news last night at the Lenten Announcement.  First of all, Pope Francis plans to see Kiko Arguello very soon because he would like to send more mission families out into the world in places where the Church would be built. 

Secondly, the Bishop of Osaka, Japan has asked for two mission families in the Neocatechumenal Way!  Imagine that!!! Japan is asking for two mission families from the NCW.  This only goes to show that the NCW is actively evangelizing despite that some of the Bishops in Japan would not allow them to have the Eucharist on Saturday night.  I was actually surprised to hear this news about Japan. 

In the third place, after Easter, there will be a convivience for all Bishops.  And for the first time in history, there will also be a convivience for Rabbis.  Many Jewish Rabbis have asked Kiko assistance in transmitting the faith to their children who are have strongly been influenced by the secular world.  Some good news were also given about Carmen who had been ill for some time.  The surgery she went through was a success, and she is slowly recuperating.  God still wants her to continue the work with Kiko Arguello. 

In the fourth place, it was great to see the huge number of people that filled up the cathedral last night.  All the communities were presented.  Agana and Barrigada has the largest number of communities as usual.  I think it is worth noting that despite that Agana is the smallest Church on Guam, it has one of the largest communities. 

Finally, the catechesis occurring in some of our parishes are doing well.  The catechests have reported that about 10-30 people have been attending the on-going catechesis.  

26 comments:

  1. Which faith are the Rabbis supposedly asking Kiko help to transmit to their children.? This is absurd.

    Secondly, how many of the "10-30" people are children/family members of current NCW adherents?

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    1. Dear Anonymous at 11:46 am,

      To answer your first question, it would be Judaism, of course. The Rabbis did not ask Kiko to teach them Judaism because they already know their religion. It is how to TRANSMIT the faith to their children who have been greatly influenced by the secular world.

      As for your second question, I really do not know how many children or family members of the current NCW are in the 10-30 people. From what I know invitations were sent to a lot of people, not just family members but also to neighbors, friends, and co-workers. If I am not mistaken, some have gone around the village area distributing the cards and others who have made testimonies in the parish have also distributed the invitations in the parish.

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  2. This supposed "Rabbis asking Kiko" sounds like absolute rubbish to me. I think this is another case of "we have been told", rather than anything substantial - just to keep you excited and loyal. A bit like how Kiko was supposedly asked by the Russian Orthodox Church to teach the "way" to its priests - http://www.zenit.org/en/articles/neocatechumenate-to-coach-russian-orthodox-priests

    I'm sure that was given at an announcement too. The only problem was - it wasn't true. Well that was a bit embarrassing wasn't it?

    Was it also announced that Cardinal Pell and Cardinal Wilfrid Fox Napier, of the Vatican Council for the Economy, have recently given a report to the cardinals (and the pope) in relation to the finances at the Vatican?

    Curiously, Cardinal Pell and Cardinal Napier both spoke about "resistance" to the efforts for greater financial transparency. The only name given by them in regard to the "resistance" was the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples (Propaganda Fide), headed by NCW sympathiser Card Filoni. Makes sense.

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    1. Dear Anonymous at 12:49 pm,

      Where is your evidence showing that what was reported in the news report was not true? The Orthodox Church did ask Kiko for his help, and now the Jewish Rabbis are doing the same.

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    2. DIANA, cite your reference...about all the hoopbala that you posted...Kiko to meet pope, Japan asking, etc.

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    3. Dear Anonymous at 1:27 pm,

      All that information was announced last night at the Lenten announcement. I'm sure the Archbishop and Father Pius have the information. After all, how else did they know about Carmen's surgery.

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    4. words are useless these days....citation and reference are needed.

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    5. Dear Anonymous at 1:39 pm,

      In Christianity, the oral word came first before the Bible. The Holy Bible existed at the end of the fourth century. Besides, what good is the written word if you are not willing to believe it. A news report shows that the Russian Orthodox Church asked Kiko to help them evangelize, and already the anonymous poster does not believe the news report.

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    6. Dear Diana at 1.22pm. You want evidence - that's ironic, considering you give none yourself. But ok here's the evidence:

      Oct 22 2006 an article in Zenit that says " Kiko Argüello and Father Mario Pezzi, initiators and leaders of the Neocatechumenal Way, told ZENIT of the plan"

      24 October 2006 - "Moscow Patriarchate dispels rumors of agreement with Neo-Catechumenate on evangelization training of Orthodox priests" (http://www.interfax-religion.com/?act=news&div=2176)

      "The Russian Orthodox Patriarchate of Moscow has denied reports that it has reached an agreement with the Neocatechumenate movement to train Orthodox clerics for evangelization efforts.

      In an interview last week with the Zenit new agency, Kiko Arguello, the founder and head of the Catholic lay organization, said that leaders of the Neocatechumenate had come to an arrangement with Orthodox clerics. But a spokesman for the Moscow patriarchate, has told the Interfax news service that Arguello's statement was inaccurate.

      Arguello met on October 19 with Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk, the top ecumenical-affairs official for the Moscow patriarchate. "No final agreement waas concluded at the meeting," according to Father Igor Vyzhanov, the Orthodox spokesman. He added that Metropolitan Kirill said that the patriarchate and the Neocatechumenate should take "a closer look at each other's spiritual traditions" before undertaking any joint effort. " http://www.catholicculture.org/news/features/index.cfm?recnum=47281

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    7. Dear Anonymous at 1:50 pm,

      That was in 2006. Your information needs to be updated. According to the weblink below:

      "In June 2007, Archbishop Elias Chacour proposed the establishment of a new "branch" of the Neocatechumenal Way "to work specifically in the Eastern-rite Church." Archbp. Chacour stated in his message that he has searched for "someone or some community to preach the Good News to my parishioners" as an answer to proselytism of the sects, and that the Neocatechumenal Way is an answer. A spokesman for the Way reported the letter to ZENIT, saying that "We share the sense of urgency expressed by Archbishop Chacour to evangelize 'the living stones' in the land of the Lord."[21] "

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neocatechumenal_Way

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    8. Also, according to the weblink below. The weblink is provided below so anyone can read the rest of the article:

      VATICAN CITY — In line with Pope Benedict XVI’s desire for the Catholic and Orthodox Churches to work together to confront the problems of Western secularism, leaders of the Neocatechumenal Way met with a key Russian Orthodox leader to discuss how the movement could teach methods of evangelization to Orthodox priests.

      Kiko Argüello, Carmen Hernández and Father Mario Pezzi, founding leaders of the Neocatechumenal Way, met in Moscow Oct. 19 with Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad, president of the Russian Orthodox Patriarchate’s Foreign Relations Department.

      Argüello said that they presented a proposal in which Orthodox priests would be taught the movement’s principles of evangelization, and have the opportunity to undergo training.

      “We explained to him that the Way hopes that the people’s faith will grow, so that a change will take place in them and they will be able to love,” said Argüello. “We have come to Russia to show our love.”

      Father Pezzi stressed the Way’s intention is not “to engage in proselytism.” He said that they were received “very cordially,” and that Metropolitan Kirill had been informed that Cardinal Walter Kasper, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, was aware of their visit.

      The initiative, which has taken the Neocatechumenal Way several years to develop, grew out of a shared Catholic-Orthodox concern for growing secularism in Europe. The continent, Argüello said, is “abandoning Christ, and society is increasingly penetrated by individualism where what is important is the satisfaction of the ‘ego,’ the delight of our ‘I.’”

      ‘Caution’

      Said Argüello, “Few people come to church; that is why God is preparing a new evangelization. And the Russian Orthodox Church knows that there must be a different way of catechizing.”

      In a statement Oct. 25, Metropolitan Kirill’s spokesman, Father Igor Vyzhanov, said the Russian Orthodox Church treated the Way’s proposals “with great caution.”

      Speaking the same day to the Register, Father Vyzhanov said that the Neocatechumenal Way and the Orthodox must take time to become better acquainted, and that it is “still very early and premature to speak about agreements.”

      But, he added, “We share the same position on these issues, and we’re absolutely open and ready for cooperation in this area.”

      The Oct. 19 meeting was the first with Metropolitan Kirill and, contrary to some reports, no agreement was reached between the two parties regarding the training of Orthodox priests. The encounter was arranged when the movement’s leaders and Orthodox representatives met at a Vienna conference in May.

      “They contacted us, said they wanted to come and see us, so we thought, ‘Why not?’” Father Vyzhanov said. “We wanted to find out more and speak with the people — we’re open to Catholics here and have had meetings with other Catholic groups, such as members of the Focolare movement and the Jesuit order.”

      Vatican officials have cautiously welcomed the initiative and are waiting to see what methods the Neocatechumenal Way will propose. The officials stressed that dealing with the Orthodox is always a delicate issue, as Moscow is naturally conservative and is often suspicious of much that originates from the West.

      Orthodox leaders also look negatively upon the reforms made by the Second Vatican Council, seeing them largely as external changes to the liturgy to which they have expressed disapproval.

      “Moscow is very proud of its tradition and any help can be viewed with suspicion, especially if they don’t have enough knowledge of each other,” said one Vatican official.

      http://www.ncregister.com/site/article/728/

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    9. Dear Diana, Good try but fail. Once again - allow me to correct you. The original Zenit article linked above quite clearly speaks about the "Russian Orthodox" Church, which as you should know is not in communion with the Holy See.

      You refer to the Archbishop Chacour, a Bishop of the Melkite Church, which everyone knows is in full communion with Rome. Why you bring this up, I do not know, as it is irrelevant to the initial point of the discussion.

      So, actually, my information is not out of date as you suggest. And, in fact Kiko wasn't exactly honest about the Russian Orthodox, was he? But I'm sure you'll just ignore that and merrily believe more nonsense that you have been told.

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    10. Dear Anonymous at 3:05 pm,

      See my response above regarding the Russian Orthodox Church.

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    11. What does that even mean Diana?

      Your latest post on this says nothing other than that they met on the 19th of October. Yes, we know that from the other Zenit article linked above, in which Kiko says something that was not true. I fail to see your argument here. You just can't bring yourself to the truth even when its right in front of you

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    12. Dear Anonymous at 3:28 pm,

      Did you not read the article I provided other than the date? It stated:

      “Journalists like to push these events,” Father Vyzhanov said, “but we bureaucrats must be cautious.”

      It was not Kiko who said there was an agreement. It was the Zenit news that said that. Kiko was quoted as saying:

      "During our meeting with Metropolitan Kirill we explained to him that the Way hopes that the people's faith will grow, so that a change will take place in them and they will be able to love. We have come to Russia to show our love.

      "In Europe, people are abandoning Christ and society is increasingly penetrated by individualism where what is important is the satisfaction of the 'ego,' the delight of our 'I.' Few people come to church, that is why God is preparing a new evangelization. And the Russian Orthodox Church knows that there must be a different way of catechizing."

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    13. Yeah, and when this supposed "Kiko teaching the Rabbis how to teach their children" doesn't happen, you'll say that "kiko never said it".

      Although, it has a better chance of happening because Kiko is actually a Jew isn't he? I'm pretty sure the son of a Jewish woman is considered a Jew. I

      By the way, what has the NCW achieved with the Russian Orthodox Church in the nine years since these wonderful articles appeared?

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    14. Dear Anonymous at 4:09 pm,

      Pope Francis confirmed Kiko's appointment as Consultor of the Pontifical Council of the Laity. Do you honestly think that a Catholic Pope would appoint a Jewish person?????

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    15. No, Diana (at 8:02 PM), Anonymous at 4:09 pm means that Kiko is a Jew by maternal descent, not religion, of course. Thus he displays one of the typical anti-Semitic stereotypes, namely that you can achieve things easier with Jews if you have Jewish descent, implying that Jews, by virtue of being Jews, unfavorably discriminate against people of non-Jewish descent.

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  3. With all due respect to all commenters....it is a waste of time to comment of whether Kiko is a Jew, Rabbis teaching their children, Russian Orthodox Church, Archbishop Elias Chacour and the tooth fairy.

    Maybe....maybe the Holy Spirit is present and working with these people but how can we see anything unless we first see the Holy Spirit working in us.

    It this what they refer to as "lost in the world"? hhhhhhmmmmmm

    is it so hard to face our own realities and answer truthfully.....is the Holy Spirit working in my life?

    apologize if anyone is offended.......

    JSB

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  4. why is it that when ashes are imposed on NCW members the words are :Turn away from sin and believe in the goodnews and not "remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return'?
    are they following a different instruction.

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    1. There are 2 acceptable formulas for ashes. Each priest chooses what he wants to say. Nothing to do with the way. Why is it that you immediately jump to conclusions? I wish people would be better informed

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  5. because the formula for ashes "Remember you are dust and to dust you shall return." has never been used by the NCW...never...never. why is that?

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    1. Dear Anonymous at 12:49 pm,

      I have no idea what you are talking about. As far as I am aware, the NCW did not have Mass of their own on Ash Wednesday. All the communities went to the Ash Wednesday parish Mass.

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    2. Dear Diana
      Re "Secondly, the Bishop of Osaka, Japan has asked for two mission families in the Neocatechumenal Way! Imagine that!!! Japan is asking for two mission families from the NCW. This only goes to show that the NCW is actively evangelizing despite that some of the Bishops in Japan would not allow them to have the Eucharist on Saturday night. I was actually surprised to hear this news about Japan.

      For the record:
      Bishop Thomas Aquinas Manyo Maeda, who was assigned this position just this last August, was one of the bishops who had originally asked that the NCW be suspended in Japan for 5 years. The fact that he would be asking for two NCW families just shows that there is a great need for unity in Japan within the Catholic Church and the Pope is confident that Bishop Maeda with the help of the Holy Spirit will help in reconciliation between the Neos and the non-neos - for we are all One Body. May God's will be done. Jesus is the Truth, the Way, and the Life.

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    3. Dear Diana,
      I'm interested to hear the "Lenten Announcement" in its entirety. What website can that be found on?
      Or is that just a "lenten announcement" from the NCW to its members? Thank you

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  6. To Anonymous
    Are you catholic? Any catholic would be happy about the communion that begins to flourish between the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church and also with the Jews regardless of whom is the mediator. Our mission is to build the church not to destroy it or scandalize other people by useless arguments. Instead pray for the unity that we all need and be an instrument of Peace like St Francis use to pray.

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