| - |
- |
- |
| ZENIT |
- |
|
| - |
- |
- |
| Daily
dispatch |
- |
April
08, 2005
|
DOCUMENTS
"Rogito": the Document Placed in Pope's
Coffin
Cardinal Ratzinger's Homily at John Paul II's Funeral
Mass
DOCUMENTS
"Rogito": the
Document Placed in Pope's Coffin
Tells of His Life and Works
VATICAN CITY, APRIL 8, 2005 (Zenit.org).-
Here is a translation of the "Rogito," the record of the
life and works of John Paul II, read by Archbishop Piero Marini,
master of pontifical liturgical celebrations.
After being signed by all those present, the document was placed in
John Paul II's coffin.
* * *
OBITUS, DEPOSITO ET TUMULATO
IOANNIS PAULI PP II SANCTAE MEMORIAE
In the light of Christ risen from the dead, on April 2 of the year of
the Lord 2005, at 9:37 p.m., as Saturday was coming to an end, and we
had already entered the day of the Lord, octave of Easter and Sunday
of Divine Mercy, the beloved pastor of the Church, John Paul II,
passed from this world to the Father. The whole Church, in prayer,
accompanied him in his passing.
John Paul II was the 264th Pope. His memory remains in the heart of
the Church and of the whole of humanity.
Karol Wojtyla, elected Pope on Oct. 16, 1978, was born in Wadowice, a
city 50 kilometers from Krakow, on May 18, 1920, and was baptized two
days later in the parish Church of the priest Francis Zak.
He received his first Communion when he was 9 years old, and the
sacrament of confirmation when he was 18. His studies interrupted,
because the Nazi occupation forces had closed the university, he
worked in a quarry and, later, in the Solvay chemical factory.
In 1942, aware of his call to the priesthood, he began courses of
formation in the clandestine seminary of Krakow. He received his
priestly ordination on Nov. 1, 1946, from the hands of Cardinal Adam
Sapieha. Then he was sent to Rome where he obtained a licentiate and
doctorate in theology, with a thesis entitled "Doctrina de fide
apud Sanctum Ioannem a Cruce."
He returned to Poland where he had several pastoral duties and taught
the sacred disciplines. On July 4, 1958, Pope Pius XII named him
auxiliary bishop of Krakow. He was nominated archbishop of the same
see by Paul VI in 1964. In this capacity, he took part in Vatican
Council II. Paul VI created him cardinal on June 26, 1967.
He was elected Pope by the cardinals in the conclave on Oct. 16, 1978
and took the name John Paul II. On Oct. 22, the day of the Lord, he
solemnly began his Petrine ministry.
John Paul II's pontificate was one of the longest in the history of
the Church. In that period, under several aspects, many changes were
witnessed. Counted among them was the fall of some regimes, to which
he himself contributed. He undertook many trips to various nations for
the purpose of proclaiming the Gospel.
John Paul II exercised the Petrine ministry with untiring missionary
spirit, dedicating all his energies driven by "sollicitudo omnium
ecclesiarum" and by open charity to the whole of humanity. More
than any predecessor, he met with the people of God and leaders of
nations, in celebrations, general and special audiences and pastoral
visits.
His love of young people led him to initiate World Youth Day,
convoking millions of youths in several parts of the world.
He successfully promoted dialogue with the Jews and with
representatives of the other religions, convoking them at times to
prayer meetings for peace, especially in Assisi.
He notably enlarged the College of Cardinals, creating 231 (plus one
"in pectore"). He convoked some 15 assemblies of the Synod
of Bishops, 7 ordinary general and 8 special. He erected numerous
dioceses and circumscriptions, in particular in Eastern Europe.
He reformed the Western and Eastern Code of Canon Law, and created
nine institutions and reorganized the Roman Curia.
As "sacerdos magnus" he exercised the liturgical ministry in
the Diocese of Rome and in the whole world, in total fidelity to
Vatican Council II. He promoted, in an exemplary way, the liturgical
and spiritual life and contemplative prayer, especially Eucharistic
adoration and the prayer of the Holy Rosary (Cf. apostolic letter
"Rosarium Virginis Mariae").
The Church entered the third millennium under his leadership and
celebrated the Great Jubilee of 2000, according to the guidelines
indicated in the apostolic letter "Tertio Millennio Adveniente."
She then faced the new age, receiving guidelines in the apostolic
letter "Novo Millennio Ineunte," in which the faithful were
shown the path of the future time.
With the Year of the Redemption, Marian Year and Year of the
Eucharist, he promoted the spiritual renewal of the Church. He gave an
extraordinary impulse to canonizations and beatifications, to show
innumerable examples of holiness today, which would give an incentive
to the men of our time. He proclaimed St. Therese of the Child Jesus
Doctor of the Church.
John Paul II's doctrinal magisterium is very rich. Guardian of the
deposit of faith, with wisdom and courage he did his utmost to promote
Catholic, theological, moral and spiritual doctrine, and to oppose
during the whole of his pontificate tendencies contrary to the genuine
tradition of the Church.
Among his principal documents are numbered 14 encyclicals, 15
apostolic exhortations, 11 apostolic constitutions, 45 apostolic
letters, in addition to the catecheses proposed in the general
audiences and the talks given all over the world. With his teaching,
John Paul II confirmed and enlightened the people of God on
theological doctrine (especially in the first three important
encyclicals -- "Redemptor Hominis," "Dives in
Misericordia" and "Dominum et Vivificantem"),
anthropology and social issues ("Laborem Exercens," "Sollicitudo
Rei Socialis" and "Centesimus Annus"), morals ("Veritatis
Splendor" and "Evangelium Vitae"), ecumenicism ("Ut
Unum Sint"), missiology ("Redemptoris Mission") and
Mariology ("Redemptoris Mater").
He promulgated the Catechism of the Catholic Church, in the light of
tradition, authoritatively interpreted by Vatican Council II. He also
published some volumes as a Ph.D.
His magisterium culminated, during the Year of the Eucharist, in the
Encyclical "Ecclesia de Eucharistia" and in the Apostolic
Letter "Mane Nobiscum Domine."
John Paul II left all an admirable testimony of piety, sanctity and
universal paternity.
(Signatures of the witnesses of the burial ceremonies …)
CORPUS IOANNIS PAULI II P.M.
VIXIT ANNOS LXXXIV, MENSES X DIES XV
ECCLESIAE UNIVERSAE PRAEFUIT
ANNOS XXVI MENSES V DIES XVII
Semper in Christo vivas, Pater Sancte!
[Original text in Italian; ZENIT translation]
* * *
OBITUS, DEPOSITIO ET TUMULATIO
IOANNIS PAULI II SANCTAE MEMORIAE
In lumine Christi a mortuis Resurgentis, die II mensis Aprilis anno
Domini MMV, hora vicesima prima, triginta septem momentis elapsis,
vesperi, cum dies sabbati ad finem vergeret atque ingressi essemus
diem Domini, Octavam scilicet Paschalem necnon Dominicam Divinae
Misericordiae, Ecclesiae dilectus Pastor, Ioannes Paulus II de hoc
mundo ad Patrem demigravit. Eius transitum tota orans Ecclesia est
comitata, Iuvenes potissimum.
Ioannes Paulus II ducentesimus sexagesimus quartus fuit Pontifex. Eius
memoria in totius Ecclesiae omniumque hominum cordibus manet.
Carolus Wojty³a, qui die XVI Octobris anno MCMLXXVIII Summus Pontifex
electus est, Wadowice, in urbe scilicet quae quinquaginta kiliometra
abest a Cracovia, die XVIII mensis Maii anno MCMXX natus est atque
duobus post diebus in paroeciali Templo a presbytero Francisco Zak
baptizatus est.
Novem annos natus Primam Communionem recepit atque duodevicesimum
agens annum confirmatus est.
Quibus incumbebat, studiis intermissis, quia nationalis socialismi
obsidentes potestates studiorum universitatem clauserant, in
lapidicinis ab anno MCMXL ad annum MCMXLIV, et postea in fabrica
chemica Solvay opus fecit.
Ab anno MCMXLII, cum se ad sacerdotium vocari sentiret, seminarium
clandestinum adiit Cracoviense. Die I mensis Novembris anno MCMXLVI
per Cardinalis Adami Sapieha manuum impositionem sacerdotalem
ordinationem Cracoviae recepit. Romam posthac missus est, ubi primum
licentiam, exinde doctoratum in sacra theologia est consecutus, thesim
scribens, cuius titulus Doctrina de fide apud Sanctum Ioannem a Cruce.
Poloniam postea repetiit, ubi quaedam sustinuit officia pastoralia et
quasdam disciplinas sacras docuit. Die IV mensis Iulii anno MCMLVIII a
Pio XII Episcopus Auxiliaris Cracoviensis constitutus est atque eidem
Sedi a Paulo VI Archiepiscopus anno MCMLXIV est destinatus. Ut
Archiepiscopus Cracoviensis Concilio Oecumenico Vaticano II interfuit.
Paulus VI die XXVI mensis Iunii anno MCMLXVII in Patrum Cardinalium
Collegium eum rettulit.
In Conclavi die XVI mensis Octobris anno MCMLXXVIII Summus Pontifex a
Patribus Cardinalibus electus est atque ipse sibi nomen imposuit
Ioannem Paulum II. Subsequenti die XXII, Dominico die, sollemniter
suum Petrinum ministerium incohavit.
Pontificatus Ioannis Pauli II unus ex longissimis in Ecclesiae
historia exstitit. Hoc temporis spatio multa sunt commutata variis in
provinciis. In his communistarum quarundam nationum regiminum
dissolutiones annumerantur, ad quam rem multum contulit ipse Summus
Pontifex. Evangelii nuntiandi causa innumera quoque itinera varias in
nationes suscepit.
Ministerium Petrinum strenuo suo missionali animo gessit, omnes
impendens suas vires, cum sollicitudo omnium Ecclesiarum itemque in
cunctos homines caritas eum tenerent. Magis quam antea unquam Dei
Populum ac Nationum Potestates, in Celebrationibus, in generalibus
peculiaribusque Audientiis atque pastoralibus Visitationibus ipse
convenit.
In iuvenes dilectio eum compulit ut Dies Mundiales Iuventutis ediceret,
innumeris undique gentium convocatis iuvenibus.
Dialogum cum Hebraeis multisque ceterarum religionum sectatoribus
promovit atque earum asseclas nonnumquam convocavit causa pro pace
precandi, Asisii potissimum.
Cardinalium Collegium valde auxit, cum eligerentur ab eo ducenti
triginta et unus cardinales (et unus in pectore). Quindecim
Congressiones Synodorum Episcoporum, scilicet septem generales
ordinarias et octo speciales convocavit. Complures Dioeceses
ecclesiasticasque Circumscriptiones, praesertim in Europa orientali,
constituit. Codicem Iuris Canonici et Codicem Canonum Ecclesiarum
Orientalium reformavit Romanamque Curiam denuo composuit.
Sicut "sacerdos magnus" in Romana Dioecesi totoque terrarum
orbe sacrae liturgiae ministerium exercuit, erga Concilium Vaticanum
II plena servata fidelitate. Peculiarem in modum vitam
spiritalitatemque liturgicam necnon comtemplativam orationem,
eucharisticam potissimum adorationem sanctique Rosarii precationem
promovit (cfr Ep. ap. Rosarium Virginis Mariae).
Summi Pontificis ductu Ecclesia tertio millennio se appropinquavit ac
Magnum Iubilaeum anni bismillesimi celebravit, secundum normas ab ipso
latas Litterarum apostolicarum Tertio millennio adveniente. Exinde
novum aevum eadem est ingressa consilia propositaque recipiens in
Litteris apostolicis Novo millennio ineunte significata, quibus futuri
temporis iter fidelibus ille demonstrabat.
Per Redemptionis Annum, Marialem Annum et Eucharistiae Annum effecit
ut Ecclesia spiritaliter renovaretur. Multum dedit operae
beatificationibus et canonizationibus, ut innumera sanctitatis exempla
hodiernae aetatis ostenderet, quae incitamento essent qui nunc sunt
hominibus. Teresiam a Iesu Infante Ecclesiae Doctorem declaravit.
Doctrinae magisterium luculenter Ioannes Paulus II exercuit. Fidei
depositi custos, prudenter animoseque ad catholicam doctrinam,
theologicam, moralem spiritalemque provehendam operam navavit et ad
arcenda quae verae Ecclesiae traditioni sunt adversa toto Pontificatus
tempore sollicite incubuit.
Inter praecipua documenta quattuordecim Litterae encyclicae, quindecim
Adhortationes apostolicae, undecim Constitutiones apostolicae,
quadraginta quinque Litterae apostolicae, praeter catecheses in
generalibus Audientiis ac adlocutiones ubique terrarum habitas,
annumerantur. Suam per docendi operam Ioannes Paulus II Dei Populum
confirmavit eique theologicam doctrinam (tribus potissimum praecipuis
Litteris encyclicis, scilicet Redemptor hominis, Dives in misericordia,
Dominum et vivificantem), anthropologicam socialemque (Litteris
encyclicis Laborem exercens, Sollicitudo rei socialis, Centesimus
annus), moralem (Litteris encyclicis Veritatis splendor, Evangelium
vitae), oecumenicam (Litteris encyclicis Ut unum sint), missiologicam
(Litteris encyclicis Redemptoris missio), mariologicam (Litteris
encyclicis Redemptoris Mater) tradidit.
Catechismus Ecclesiae Catholicae, sub Revelationis lumine, quam
Concilium Vaticanum II insigniter collustravit, ab eo est promulgatus.
Quaedam etiam volumina uti privatus Doctor edidit.
Eius magisterium in Litteris encyclicis Ecclesia de Eucharistia et
Litteris apostolicis Mane nobiscum Domine, Eucharistiae Anno, attigit
fastigium.
Mirabiles pietatis, sanctitatis vitae universalisque paternitatis
cunctis hominibus testificationes reliquit Ioannes Paulus II.
…….
Celebrationum tumulationisque testes
CORPUS IOANNIS PAULI II P.M.
VIXIT ANNOS LXXXIV MENSES X DIES XV
ECCLESIAE UNIVERSAE PRAEFUIT
ANNOS XXVI MENSES V DIES XVII
Semper in Christo vivas, Pater Sancte!
ZE05040803
email
this article
TOP
Cardinal Ratzinger's Homily
at John Paul II's Funeral Mass
"He Roused Us From a Lethargic Faith"
VATICAN CITY, APRIL 8, 2005 (Zenit.org).-
Here is a translation of the homily Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger gave at
John Paul II's funeral Mass today in St. Peter's Square.
* * *
"Follow me." The Risen Lord says these words to Peter. They
are his last words to this disciple, chosen to shepherd his flock.
"Follow me" -- this lapidary saying of Christ can be taken
as the key to understanding the message which comes to us from the
life of our late beloved Pope John Paul II. Today we bury his remains
in the earth as a seed of immortality -- our hearts are full of
sadness, yet at the same time of joyful hope and profound gratitude.
These are the sentiments that inspire us, brothers and sisters in
Christ, present here in St. Peter's Square, in neighboring streets and
in various other locations within the city of Rome, where an immense
crowd, silently praying, has gathered over the last few days. I greet
all of you from my heart. In the name of the College of Cardinals, I
also wish to express my respects to heads of state, heads of
government and the delegations from various countries.
I greet the authorities and official representatives of other Churches
and Christian Communities, and likewise those of different religions.
Next I greet the archbishops, bishops, priests, religious men and
women and the faithful who have come here from every continent;
especially the young, whom John Paul II liked to call the future and
the hope of the Church. My greeting is extended, moreover, to all
those throughout the world who are united with us through radio and
television in this solemn celebration of our beloved Holy Father's
funeral.
Follow me -- as a young student Karol Wojtyla was thrilled by
literature, the theater and poetry. Working in a chemical plant,
surrounded and threatened by the Nazi terror, he heard the voice of
the Lord: Follow me! In this extraordinary setting he began to read
books of philosophy and theology, and then entered the clandestine
seminary established by Cardinal Sapieha. After the war he was able to
complete his studies in the faculty of theology of the Jagiellonian
University of Krakow.
How often, in his letters to priests and in his autobiographical
books, has he spoken to us about his priesthood, to which he was
ordained on November 1, 1946. In these texts he interprets his
priesthood with particular reference to three sayings of the Lord.
First: "It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and
appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain" (John
15:16). The second saying is: "A good shepherd lays down his life
for the sheep" (John 10:11). And then: "As the Father loves
me, so I also love you. Remain in my love" (John 15:9). In these
three sayings we see the heart and soul of our Holy Father. He really
went everywhere, untiringly, in order to bear fruit, fruit that lasts.
"Rise, Let Us Be on Our Way!" is the title of his
next-to-last book. "Rise, let us be on our way!" -- with
these words he roused us from a lethargic faith, from the sleep of the
disciples of both yesterday and today. "Rise, let us be on our
way!" he continues to say to us even today. The Holy Father was a
priest to the last, for he offered his life to God for his flock and
for the entire human family, in a daily self-oblation for the service
of the Church, especially amid the sufferings of his final months. And
in this way he became one with Christ, the Good Shepherd who loves his
sheep.
Finally, "abide in my love": The Pope who tried to meet
everyone, who had an ability to forgive and to open his heart to all,
tells us once again today, with these words of the Lord, that by
abiding in the love of Christ we learn, at the school of Christ, the
art of true love.
Follow me! In July 1958, the young priest Karol Wojtyla began a new
stage in his journey with the Lord and in the footsteps of the Lord.
Karol had gone to the Masuri lakes for his usual vacation, along with
a group of young people who loved canoeing. But he brought with him a
letter inviting him to call on the primate of Poland, Cardinal
Wyszynski. He could guess the purpose of the meeting: He was to be
appointed as the auxiliary bishop of Krakow.
Leaving the academic world, leaving this challenging engagement with
young people, leaving the great intellectual endeavor of striving to
understand and interpret the mystery of that creature which is man and
of communicating to today's world the Christian interpretation of our
being -- all this must have seemed to him like losing his very self,
losing what had become the very human identity of this young priest.
Follow me -- Karol Wojtyla accepted the appointment, for he heard in
the Church's call the voice of Christ. And then he realized how true
are the Lord's words: "Whoever seeks to preserve his life will
lose it, but whoever loses it will save it" (Luke 17:33).
Our Pope -- and we all know this -- never wanted to make his own life
secure, to keep it for himself; he wanted to give of himself
unreservedly, to the very last moment, for Christ and thus also for
us. And thus he came to experience how everything which he had given
over into the Lord's hands, came back to him in a new way. His love of
words, of poetry, of literature, became an essential part of his
pastoral mission and gave new vitality, new urgency, new
attractiveness to the preaching of the Gospel, even when it is a sign
of contradiction.
Follow me! In October 1978, Cardinal Wojtyla once again heard the
voice of the Lord. Once more there took place that dialogue with Peter
reported in the Gospel of this Mass: "Simon, son of John, do you
love me? Feed my sheep!" To the Lord's question, "Karol, do
you love me?" the archbishop of Krakow answered from the depths
of his heart: "Lord you know everything; you know that I love
you." The love of Christ was the dominant force in the life of
our beloved Holy Father. Anyone who ever saw him pray, who ever heard
him preach, knows that. Thanks to his being profoundly rooted in
Christ, he was able to bear a burden which transcends merely human
abilities: that of being the shepherd of Christ's flock, his universal
Church.
This is not the time to speak of the specific content of this rich
pontificate. I would like only to read two passages of today's liturgy
which reflect central elements of his message. In the first reading,
St. Peter says -- and with St. Peter, the Pope himself -- "In
truth, I see that God shows no partiality. Rather, in every nation
whoever fears him and acts uprightly is acceptable to him. You know
the word (that) he sent to the Israelites as he proclaimed peace
through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all" (Acts 10:34-36). And in
the second reading, St. Paul -- and with St. Paul, our late Pope --
exhorts us, crying out: "Therefore, my brothers, whom I love and
long for, my joy and crown, in this way stand firm in the Lord,
beloved" (Philippians 4:1).
Follow me! Together with the command to feed his flock, Christ
proclaimed to Peter that he would die a martyr's death. With those
words, which conclude and sum up the dialogue on love and on the
mandate of the universal shepherd, the Lord recalls another dialogue,
which took place during the Last Supper. There Jesus had said:
"Where I am going, you cannot come." Peter said to him,
"Lord, where are you going?" Jesus replied: "Where I am
going, you cannot follow me now; but you will follow me
afterward" (John 13:33,36). Jesus from the Supper went toward the
Cross, went toward his resurrection -- he entered into the paschal
mystery; and Peter could not yet follow him. Now -- after the
resurrection -- comes the time, comes this "afterward."
By shepherding the flock of Christ, Peter enters into the paschal
mystery, he goes toward the cross and the resurrection. The Lord says
this in these words: "when you were younger, you used to dress
yourself and go where you wanted; but when you grow old, you will
stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you
where you do not want to go" (John 21:18).
In the first years of his pontificate, still young and full of energy,
the Holy Father went to the very ends of the earth, guided by Christ.
But afterward, he increasingly entered into the communion of Christ's
sufferings; increasingly he understood the truth of the words:
"someone else will dress you." And in this very communion
with the suffering Lord, tirelessly and with renewed intensity, he
proclaimed the Gospel, the mystery of that love which goes to the end
(cf. John 13:1).
He interpreted for us the paschal mystery as a mystery of divine
mercy. In his last book, he wrote: The limit imposed upon evil
"is ultimately Divine Mercy" ("Memory and
Identity," pp. 60- 61). And reflecting on the assassination
attempt, he said: "In sacrificing himself for us all, Christ gave
a new meaning to suffering, opening up a new dimension, a new order:
the order of love. ... It is this suffering which burns and consumes
evil with the flame of love and draws forth even from sin a great
flowering of good" (pp. 189-190). Impelled by this vision, the
Pope suffered and loved in communion with Christ, and that is why the
message of his suffering and his silence proved so eloquent and so
fruitful.
Divine Mercy: the Holy Father found the purest reflection of God's
mercy in the Mother of God. He, who at an early age had lost his own
mother, loved his divine mother all the more. He heard the words of
the crucified Lord as addressed personally to him: "Behold your
Mother." And so he did as the beloved disciple did: "he took
her into his own home" (John 19:27) -- "Totus tuus."
And from the mother he learned to conform himself to Christ.
None of us can ever forget how in that last Easter Sunday of his life,
the Holy Father, marked by suffering, came once more to the window of
the Apostolic Palace and one last time gave his blessing "urbi et
orbi." We can be sure that our beloved Pope is standing today at
the window of the Father’s house, that he sees us and blesses us.
Yes, bless us, Holy Father. We entrust your dear soul to the Mother of
God, your Mother, who guided you each day and who will guide you now
to the eternal glory of her Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
[Original text in Italian; translation issued by Holy See]
ZE05040802
email
this article
TOP
ZENIT is an International News Agency.
For reprint permission, please contact infoenglish@zenit.org.
Visit our web page at http://www.zenit.org/
Copyright 2004, Innovative Media, Inc.
|
