Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelisation
Encyclopedia
The Pontifical Council for Promoting the New Evangelization is a dicastery of the Roman Curia
whose creation was announced by Pope Benedict XVI
at vespers on 28 June 2010, eve of the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul. The Pope said that "the process of secularisation has produced a serious crisis of the sense of the Christian faith and role of the Church", and the new pontifical council would "promote a renewed evangelisation" in countries where the Church has long existed "but which are living a progressive secularisation of society and a sort of 'eclipse of the sense of God'." On 30 June 2010, Pope Benedict XVI appointed as its first President Archbishop Salvatore Fisichella
, until then President of the Pontifical Academy for Life
. On May 13, 2011, His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI named Archbishop Jose Octavio Ruiz Arenas as the first Secretary of the Pontifical Council. Archbishop Ruiz Arenas had been serving as the Vice President of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America
. The 66-year-old prelate is a native of Colombia. That same day, Monsignor Graham Bell, formerly the Secretary Coordinator of the Pontifical Academy for Life
, was named the Undersecretary of the Pontifical Council.
movement, in the early 1980s, but was not taken up by Pope John Paul II
. More recently, Cardinal Angelo Scola of Venice presented the idea to Benedict XVI.
The term "new evangelisation" was popularised by Pope John Paul II with reference to efforts to reawaken the faith in traditionally Christian parts of the world, particularly Europe, first "evangelised", or converted to Christianity, many centuries earlier, but then standing in need of a "new evangelisation".
Pope Benedict XVI established the Council with Art. 1 §1 of the motu proprio
Ubicumque et semper, given from Castel Gandolfo
21 September 2010 and published in the L'Osservatore Romano
12 October 2010.
The incipit
of the document is part of the phrase: "The Church has a duty everywhere and at all times to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ". Pope Benedict quoted Pope Paul VI
who stated that the work of evangelisation "proves equally increasingly necessary because of the frequent situations of de-Christianization of our days, for multitudes of people who have been baptized but who live quite outside of Christian life, for simple people who have a certain faith, but he knows the basics wrong, for intellectuals who feel the need to know Jesus Christ in a different light from the teaching they received as children, and for many others ".
The document lists the specific tasks of the Council which include:
Presenting the new Council to the press, Archbishop Fisichella said: "The Gospel is not a myth, but the living witness of an historical event that changed the face of history." He added: “The new evangelization first and foremost makes known the historical person of Jesus, and his teachings as they have been faithfully transmitted by the original community, teachings that find in the Gospels and in the writings of the New Testament their normative expression."
Secretary:
Undersecretary:
Roman Curia
The Roman Curia is the administrative apparatus of the Holy See and the central governing body of the entire Catholic Church, together with the Pope...
whose creation was announced by Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI
Benedict XVI is the 265th and current Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the Sovereign of the Vatican City State and the leader of the Catholic Church as well as the other 22 sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with the Holy See...
at vespers on 28 June 2010, eve of the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul. The Pope said that "the process of secularisation has produced a serious crisis of the sense of the Christian faith and role of the Church", and the new pontifical council would "promote a renewed evangelisation" in countries where the Church has long existed "but which are living a progressive secularisation of society and a sort of 'eclipse of the sense of God'." On 30 June 2010, Pope Benedict XVI appointed as its first President Archbishop Salvatore Fisichella
Rino Fisichella
Salvatore Rino Fisichella is an Italian titular archbishop of the Roman Catholic Church. He is the current and first President of the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelisation...
, until then President of the Pontifical Academy for Life
Pontifical Academy for Life
The Pontifical Academy for Life or Pontificia Accademia Pro Vita is a Pontifical Academy of the Roman Catholic Church dedicated to promoting the Church's consistent life ethic...
. On May 13, 2011, His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI named Archbishop Jose Octavio Ruiz Arenas as the first Secretary of the Pontifical Council. Archbishop Ruiz Arenas had been serving as the Vice President of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America
Pontifical Commission for Latin America
The Pontifical Commission for Latin America is a department of the Roman Curia. Established by Pope Pius XII on 19 April, 1958, it is charged with providing assistance to and examining matters pertaining to the Church in Latin America...
. The 66-year-old prelate is a native of Colombia. That same day, Monsignor Graham Bell, formerly the Secretary Coordinator of the Pontifical Academy for Life
Pontifical Academy for Life
The Pontifical Academy for Life or Pontificia Accademia Pro Vita is a Pontifical Academy of the Roman Catholic Church dedicated to promoting the Church's consistent life ethic...
, was named the Undersecretary of the Pontifical Council.
Origin
The idea for a Council for the New Evangelisation was first floated by Father Luigi Giussani, founder of the Communion and LiberationCommunion and Liberation
Communion and Liberation, or CL, is a lay ecclesial movement within the Catholic Church.-Overview:CL grew out of the educational and catechetical methods of Msgr. Luigi Giussani, who founded the movement...
movement, in the early 1980s, but was not taken up by Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II
Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...
. More recently, Cardinal Angelo Scola of Venice presented the idea to Benedict XVI.
The term "new evangelisation" was popularised by Pope John Paul II with reference to efforts to reawaken the faith in traditionally Christian parts of the world, particularly Europe, first "evangelised", or converted to Christianity, many centuries earlier, but then standing in need of a "new evangelisation".
Establishment
Motu proprio
A motu proprio is a document issued by the Pope on his own initiative and personally signed by him....
Ubicumque et semper, given from Castel Gandolfo
Castel Gandolfo
Castel Gandolfo is a small Italian town or comune in Lazio that occupies a height overlooking Lake Albano about 15 miles south-east of Rome, on the Alban Hills. It is best known as the summer residence of the Pope. It is an Italian town with the population of 8834...
21 September 2010 and published in the L'Osservatore Romano
L'Osservatore Romano
L'Osservatore Romano is the "semi-official" newspaper of the Holy See. It covers all the Pope's public activities, publishes editorials by important churchmen, and runs official documents after being released...
12 October 2010.
The incipit
Incipit
Incipit is a Latin word meaning "it begins". The incipit of a text, such as a poem, song, or book, is the first few words of its opening line. In music, it can also refer to the opening notes of a composition. Before the development of titles, texts were often referred to by their incipits...
of the document is part of the phrase: "The Church has a duty everywhere and at all times to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ". Pope Benedict quoted Pope Paul VI
Pope Paul VI
Paul VI , born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding Pope John XXIII, who had convened the Second Vatican Council, he decided to continue it...
who stated that the work of evangelisation "proves equally increasingly necessary because of the frequent situations of de-Christianization of our days, for multitudes of people who have been baptized but who live quite outside of Christian life, for simple people who have a certain faith, but he knows the basics wrong, for intellectuals who feel the need to know Jesus Christ in a different light from the teaching they received as children, and for many others ".
The document lists the specific tasks of the Council which include:
- deepen the theological and pastoral significance of the new evangelisation;
- promote and encourage, in close collaboration with the Episcopal Conferences concerned, that can have an ad hoc body, study, dissemination and implementation of the papal magisterium on matters related to the new evangelisation;
- raise awareness and support activities related to the new evangelisation which are being applied in various particular Churches and to promote the realisation of new, actively involving the resources of the Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, as well as in associations of the faithful and new community;
- study and promote the use of modern forms of communication, as tools for the new evangelisation;
- promote the use of the Catechism of the Catholic Church as an essential and comprehensive formulation of the content of faith to the people of our time.
Presenting the new Council to the press, Archbishop Fisichella said: "The Gospel is not a myth, but the living witness of an historical event that changed the face of history." He added: “The new evangelization first and foremost makes known the historical person of Jesus, and his teachings as they have been faithfully transmitted by the original community, teachings that find in the Gospels and in the writings of the New Testament their normative expression."
Hierarchy of the Council
President:- Salvatore FisichellaRino FisichellaSalvatore Rino Fisichella is an Italian titular archbishop of the Roman Catholic Church. He is the current and first President of the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelisation...
(30 June 2010 – present)
Secretary:
- José Ruiz ArenasJosé Ruiz ArenasJosé Octavio Ruiz Arenas is a Colombian prelate of the Roman Catholic Church, who currently serves as Vice-President of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America.-Biography:...
(13 May 2011 – present)
Undersecretary:
- Mgsr. Graham Bell (13 May 2011 - present)
Members of the Council
Council members participate in the discussions of the council and attend yearly plenary meetings in Rome. They serve five year terms renewable until their 80th birthday.- Gianfranco Cardinal RavasiGianfranco RavasiGianfranco Ravasi is an Italian prelate, a cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He currently serves in the Roman Curia as President of the Pontifical Council for Culture. On 20 November 2010 Ravasi was created cardinal by Pope Benedict XVI.-Early life:The eldest of three children, Gianfranco...
(29 December 2010 -) - Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan (5 January 2011-)
- George Cardinal Pell (5 January 2011-)
- Marc Cardinal OuelletMarc Cardinal OuelletMarc Ouellet, PSS is a Canadian Cardinal of the Catholic Church. He is the present prefect of the Congregation for Bishops and concurrently president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America since his appointment by Pope Benedict XVI on 30 June 2010. Previously, he was archbishop of Quebec,...
(5 January 2011-) - William Cardinal Levada (5 January 2011-)
- Archbishop Andre-Joseph LeonardAndré-Joseph LéonardAndré-Joseph Léonard is a Belgian prelate, the current archbishop of Mechelen-Brussels and thus Primate of Belgium since his appointment by Pope Benedict XVI on 18 January 2010. He had previously served as bishop of Namur from 1991 until 2010 as André-Mutien Léonard.- Early life :Léonard was born...
(5 January 2011-) - Archbishop Claudio CelliClaudio Maria CelliClaudio Maria Celli , Titular Archbishop of Cluentum, is an Italian prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He currently serves as President of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications.-Biography:...
(5 January 2011-) - Archbishop Nikola Eterovic (5 January 2011-)
- Archbishop Bernard LongleyBernard LongleyBernard Longley is an English prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He was named the Archbishop of Birmingham on 1 October 2009, and installed by Bishop David McGough and presented with his crozier by Archbishop Vincent Nichols, his predecessor, in St Chad's Cathedral at a Solemn Mass on 8...
(5 January 2011-) - Christoph Cardinal SchönbornChristoph Cardinal SchönbornChristoph Maria Michael Hugo Damian Peter Adalbert Schönborn, OP is an Austrian Cardinal of the Catholic Church and theologian. He currently serves as the Archbishop of Vienna and President of the Austrian Bishops Conference...
(5 January 2011-) - Angelo Cardinal Scola (5 January 2011-)
- Josip BozanicJosip BozanicJosip Bozanić is a Croatian Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He is the eighth and current Archbishop of Zagreb, having previously served as Bishop of Krk from 1989 to 1997. He was elevated to the cardinalate in 2003....
(5 January 2011-) - Francisco Cardinal Robles OrtegaFrancisco Robles OrtegaFrancisco Robles Ortega is a Mexican Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church, having been elevated to the cardinalate in 2007...
(5 January 2011-) - Odilo Pedro Cardinal Scherer (5 January 2011-)
- Stanisław Cardinal Ryłko (5 January 2011-)
- Archbishop Claudio Maria CelliClaudio Maria CelliClaudio Maria Celli , Titular Archbishop of Cluentum, is an Italian prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He currently serves as President of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications.-Biography:...
(5 January 2011-) - Nikola Eterovic (5 January 2011-)
- Pierre-Marie CarréPierre-Marie CarréPierre-Marie Carré is a French Bishop of the Catholic Church.He was ordained to the priesthood on September 7, 1974. On 8 Oct 2000, he was ordained Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Albi by Pope John Paul II. On May 14, 2010 he was appointed coadjutor Archbishop to the Archdiocese of Montpellier by...
(5 January 2011-) - Robert ZollitschRobert ZollitschRobert Zollitsch is a German prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He currently serves as Archbishop of Freiburg im Breisgau and Chairman of the German Episcopal Conference.-Life and work:...
(5 January 2011-) - Bruno ForteBruno ForteBruno Forte is an Italian theologian and ecclesiastic, currently Archbishop of Chieti-Vasto.-Biography:Archbishop Forte was born in Naples. He was ordained a priest on 18 April 1973. He was called "the most famous Italian theologian in Italy" and is seen as more progressive than Cardinal Joseph...
(5 January 2011-) - Adolfo González Montes (5 January 2011-)
- Vincenzo PagliaVincenzo PagliaVincenzo Paglia is the Roman Catholic bishop of the diocese of Terni-Narni-Amelia in Italy. He is one of the founders of the Community of Sant'Egidio....
(5 January 2011-)