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TUESDAY February 22, 2000 vol. 11, no. 37 SECTION ONESee why so many consider the Daily CATHOLIC as the "USA Today for CATHOLICS!"
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In today's editorial, we look forward to the historic Papal Pilgrimage in which His Holiness John Paul II will retrace the footsteps of biblical giants Abraham tomorrow in spirit at Paul VI before embarking for Egypt the next day and the start of a grueling "Jubilee Journey" that will take him high up Mount Sinai where he will walk and pray in the footsteps of Moses. Next month the Holy Father will set foot in the Holy Land where Our Lord Jesus Christ and His apostles and disciples walked. For today's editorial The Papal Path of the Pentateuch , click on CATHOLIC PewPOINT
Thus he has chosen, as he announced in his Papal Audience last Wednesday that he would begin this Wednesday by walking in Abraham's footsteps in spirit in a special ceremony in Paul VI Hall, a spacious auditorium that seats thousands just off to the left of St. Peter's Square. He is doing so to keep the chronological order intact as he traces Salvation History from Abraham to the Apostle Paul as part of the most ambitious Papal trip ever. He is making a point that this is not just for Catholics but for all God's children. He is also making a point that he will not dwell, delve or bring up local political differences between various factions including Catholics as he reasserts his spiritual intent of this biblical tour.
The day after he leaves for the "second leg" of his journey, landing in Cairo where he will go from there to Mount Sinai in emphasizing the importance of the Decalogue - the Ten Commandments which still hold as true now as then for they are the basis for all human moral judgments and much of the world has forgotten this. While the Pope will not get political, he will get ecumenical with many denominations throughout his Papal Excursion this Jubilee Year. He will conclude his visit to Mount Sinai at the Greek Orthodox Monastery of Saint Catherine where he will participate in a "celebration of the Word." Before that the Bishop of Rome is expected to meet with the spiritual leader of the Sunni branch of Islam Sheikh Sayed Tantawi at the world-famous Al-Azhar University. On Friday there will be a fantastic array of Eastern Rite Catholic dignitaries when the Pope concelebrates a Papal Mass in the Latin Rite with Patriarch Stephanos II Ghattos of the Coptic Church representing over 200,000 faithful in Egypt. Also assisting will be representative bishops from the Armenian, Byzantine, Chaldean, Coptic, Maronite and Syrian rites in full vestments of their respective rite. The Vicar of Christ will follow Mass with another ecumenical celebration later that day at the Coptic Catholic Cathedral of Notre Dame with other Christian leaders from the Coptic and Greek Orthodox Churches, Anglican and Protestant denominations. He won't leave for Mount Sinai until his third and final day in Egypt - Saturday.
The Monastery of St. Catherine is situated at an elevation of 5000 feet and traces its own origins to 527. There the Holy Father will pray at the precise spot where it is believed Moses knelt before the burning bush. The monastery of St. Catherine was for nearly a millennium in union with Rome but sadly after the Council of Florence in 1439 sided with the Greek Orthodox Church. It is hoped reconciliation can begin and a reunion possibly initiated with the goodwill of the Holy Father's visit. The Pope will return to Rome Saturday evening with the Pentatueuch part of his journey completed.
Though the Pope has expressed that no political intentions or aspirations be placed on his travels, he realizes many leaders will take advantage of his arrivals, but in the case of national leaders it transcends politics and becomes diplomatic. Thus it will be only proper for Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak to welcome the Sovereign Pontiff when his plane touches down on Cairo's runway Thursday afternoon. The same holds true when he travels to the Holy Land and leaders of Israel, Jordan and Palestine welcome the Vicar of Christ to the holiest of lands that today is wrought with peril, mistrust and hate. Into this scenario the international Ambassador of Faith, Hope and Charity will descend and we can only hope and pray that the angels will guide, guard and protect him as he ventures into the valley of intrigue in the shadow of the great pyramids and echoes of the pharoahs who were intolerant of God's chosen peoples. Today that intolerance continues, not just in Egypt but all over the world and the Pope brings to the masses the tolerant message of trust and truth in Jesus Christ Who descended from Abraham and because of the Pope there is universal hope. Because of this millions will warmly welcome His Holiness on this "Jubilee Journey" that leads from the Genesis of God's generosity to the Exodus of Exact Laws on the Papal Path of the Pentateuch.
Today in his probing, in-depth column, Michael Vincent Boyer, a well-respected Catholic insider expert on what's happening in the entertainment industry, brings the reader a heart-rending story on Celine Dion and how her dedication and Catholicity have rewritten the term "superstar" in many people's hearts. For his column, "Showbiz is not a life" - Celine Dion takes charge, see HOW HOLY WOULD HELP HOLLYWOOD
What Hollywood doesn't want you to know
To the shock of the entertainment industry, the multi-award-winning singer Celine Dion announced
recently she is putting all her professional commitments aside in order to concentrate her full attention to
her family and husband Rene Angel'lil, her personal manager and later
producer for the music industry's most prolific and beautiful voice.
Starting at age 14, Ange'lil carefully guided the young singer through a
rapidly rising period of fame and worldwide recognition. By the age of 20,
Dion and Ange'lil took a new step by falling in love. "It just took us by
storm," remembers Dion. The couple would eventually marry in 1994.
Celine was born the youngest of 14 children into a good Catholic family on March 30, 1968 in Charlemagne,
Quebec which is a suburb roughly thirty miles east of Montreal, Canada. From the age of five
she realized a special God-given talent to sing and this translated to her brother submitting a recording to a man who ran a studio in Canada in 1980. Because she was only twelve at the time and because entertainment producers receive hundreds, if not thousands of demo tapes, Rene had not gotten around to listening. But in the persistence of "the squeaky wheel gets the grease," Celine's brother Michael followed up and pestered Rene into listening to it. Rene was so impressed and convinced of her talent and potential that he did something unheard of: he mortgaged his own home to finance her first record. The rest, as they say, is history.
Like another foreign-born Catholic singer Dana Scallon, Celine was entered in various contests and won the Eurovision song contest in Dublin in 1988 at the age of 20. Also like Dana, Celine sung for Pope John Paul II in 1985. By the time she was in her late teens Celine had become the most successful singer in Canadian history but still had not cracked the United States market chiefly because of her limited English and French only lyrics. In order to crack this barrier, Rene arranged for her to take a year off in order to both change her image and allow her to take a crash course in English. This accomplished she reentered the scene as a big hit in the US with her first album "Where Does My Heart Beat Now." That heart was beating for her devoted and giving manager Rene and would blossom into full love in 1993. Her heart was also beating for her niece Karine who died in Celine's arms from Cystic Fibrosis after sixteen years of battling the disease. Since that time Celine has been an active and generous supporter of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.
When God closes one door, He opens another and such was the case with Celine after losing her niece. She found her true love who had been there with her for over a decade. Fearing public reaction because of the age difference between Rene, 26 years her elder and best friend, the couple kept it a secret and also were chaste in their courtship. Finally, she could hold it in no longer and on her album "The Color of My Love" it was revealed in the lyrics, "Rene, for so many years I've kept our special dream locked away inside my heart...but now it's getting too powerful to keep inside of me...so after all these years, let me paint the truth, show how I feel, try to make you completely rea...Rene, you're the color of my love." This love was evident during the beautiful wedding at Notre Dame Cathedral on December 14, 1994 with 500 "close friends" in attendance.
A refreshing change in the industry was the fact that her career and life were above reproach and almost all her songs touched of love. She became famous throughout the world and her hit song "My Heart Will Go On" as the love theme for the titanic hit "Titanic" put her on top of the world. For a lesser person, greed and other vices would set in with this kind of fame and fortune. But Celine was brought up with good solid Catholic virtues and family values, and because of that she went against the grain of what so many in Hollywood would do: divorce. To Celine her wedding vows were sacred and when "in sickness and in health" came into play she was ready to show her true colors for the color of her love was true.
At the height of her career, a sudden turn of events would change Celine and Rene's
lives forever. In the midst of a hectic concert tour in April of 1999,
Ange'lil discovered a large lump in his throat. Doctors shortly discovered
it was cancer. Dion was scheduled for a concert the night he was taken to
the hospital and wanted to cancel, but her husband insisted she go on. "The
rest of that night is still a blur," recalls Dion.
But after the concert she immediately cleared her schedule from April 13th
to May 7th. "I was there for him and I felt great about it," recalls Dion.
According to Ange'lil, "I had 38 treatments of radiation and she came with
me to every one. There is not a word that exists that can express how much I
love her."
Celine Dion decided late last year to leave behind the singing career that
has resulted in 100 million records sold worldwide to be with her husband
and lead "a normal life." Dion felt that God was sending her a message,
"It's about time you do something else. It's time that you are there for
each other, that you get back into reality, be with your family and
friends." And she continued, "For everything he has given me, now I can do
something for him."
Celine Dion, a true hero who made the courageous decision to say goodbye to
Hollywood. But, the voice lives on in the numerous recordings that made
music in the 1990's not only beautiful, but uplifting and timeless. Because of her
commitment and loyalty, her heart will go on and touch millions in a way few in the
industry can. Thank God for people like Celine Dion. If only Hollywood had more
of this strong character, the industry and the world would be much better off.
The Chair of Peter is actually three chairs; one a ceremonial portable wood chair in St. Peter's Basilica that many believe was first used by the Apostle Saint Peter to declare the Divinity of Jesus after he had arrived in Rome. That chair is located behind the main altar below the great circular window depicting the Holy Spirit. Another is built into the wall in the marble apse which is not usable but symbolic of the apostolic succession, hierarchy and authority of the Church. The third is a bronze replica by the sculptor Bernini of Peter sitting in the chair. This is located jutting out from one of the four great pillars supporting the dome and is to the right of the main altar near the entrance to the crypt below. The feast was first established by Pope Saint Mark who also instituted the Pallium and published the first Roman calendar of religious feastdays. As early as 394 there were two feasts commemorating the Chair of Peter, one celebrated on January 18 which was celebrated in France until the eight century, and the February 22nd feast focused on Peter founding the See of Antioch. In the 11th century it was extended to the universal Church, some say by Pope Saint Leo IX who transferred the feast to February 22nd, eliminating the Antioch reference because of the Eastern Schism.
"Blessed art thou, Simon Bar Jona, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to thee, but My Father in Heaven. And I say to thee, thou art Peter, and upon this Rock I will build My Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give thee the keys of the kingdom of Heaven; and whatever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in Heaven, and whatever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in Heaven."
Today we continue with our new series in the search to uncover the wonderful treasures of the Church contained in the great Deposit of Faith. Today we present the second part of our catechesis on Revelation and Science in showing the compatibility between the two as God intended. For the 115th installment, see APPRECIATING THE PRECIOUS GIFT OF OUR FAITH
As Marconi, one of the greatest scientists of our time, delcared: "Science alone is unable to explain many things, and most of all, the greatest of mysteries-the mystery of our existence. I believe, not only as a Catholic, but also as scientist. "We do not include here the names of Catholics preeminent in navigatio, architecture, art, music or literature, limiting ourselves to natural and physical science.
Some of the great Catholic scientists throughout history: Agricola, Albertus Magnus, Algue, Ampere, Bacon, Bartholomeus, Bayma, Beccaria, Becquerel, Behalm, Bernard, Binet, Biondo, Biot, Bolzano, Borrus, Boscovitch, Bosio, Bourgeois, Braille, and Branly.
Caesalpinus, Caldani, Cambou, Camel, Cardan, Carnoy, Carrel, Cassini, Cassiodorus, Castelli, Cauchy, Cavaliere, Caxton, Champollion, Chevreul, Clavius, Columbo, Copernicus, Coulomb Da Vinci, De Chauliac, De Rossi, De Vico, Descartes, Divisch, Dulong, Dumas, Dwight, Echel, Endlicher, Eppe, and Eustachius.
Fabre, Fabri, Fabricius, Fallopius, Faye, Ferrari, Fizeau, Foucault, Fraunhofer, Fresnel, Galileo, Galvani, Gassendi, Gay-Lussac, Gioja, Gordon, Gramme, Grimaldi, Guttenberg. Hauy, Heis, Helmont, Hengler, Herzog, Heude, Hilgard, and Holland.
Jussieu, Kelly, Kircher, Laennec, Lamarck, Lancist, Laplace, Latreille, Lavoisier, LeVerrier, Linacre, Lully, Malpighi, Malus, Marconi, Mariotte, Mendel, Mersenne, Monge, Morgagni, Muller, Murphy, Murray, Nelaton, Nieuwaland, Nobili, Nollet, Ortelius, Ozaman, Pascal, Pasteur, Pelouze, Piazzi, Picard, Pitra, Plumier, Pouget, and Provancher.
Regiomontanus, Regnault, Riccoli, Sahagun, Santorini, Scheiner, Schwann, Schwarz, Secchi, Semmelweis, Spallanzani, Steensen. Takamine, Theodoric, Tieffentaller, Toscanelli, Torricelli, Tulasne, Valentine, Vernier, Vesalius, Vieta, Volta, Waldseemuller, Wincklemann, Windle, and a host of others, too many to mention.
Tomorrow: Angels part one
On this date one year ago His Holiness Pope John Paul II issued an impassioned plea for peace in Kosovo as the rumors of all-out war rumbled across the globe. The Holy Father reminded all that force ends up hurting everyone, especially innocent citizens caught in the crossfire. He called for an international forum to bring all sides together for compromise. From this time on, the Pope appointed his Secretary for Relations with States Archbishop Jean-Louis Tauran as his chief spokesman working on it day and night in an effort to stave off the inevitable. All the Holy See said came true and now Kosovo is in ruins just as is East Timor and countless other countries. For other time capsule events that happened in Church history on this date, see MILLENNIUM MILESTONES AND MEMORIES
273 A.D.
Death of Saints Castulus, Lucius, Magnus and Saturninius, martyrs who were followers of Saint Valentine. They were all put to death for their faith on this date.
530 A.D.
Death of Saint Severus of Androcca, a holy parish priest who is said to have brought back a man from death so that he could confer the last rites on him.
1040 A.D.
Death of three Benedictine monk martyrs - Saints Sunaman, Unaman and Winaman, all nephews of Saint Sigfrid of County Wexlow. These Irish monks received their martyrdom in Sweden when they were decapitated by by pagan tribes. Their heads were tossed into the river and retrieved by their uncle.
1045 A.D.
Death of Saint Sigfrid of Wexlow, missionary bishop who retrieved the severed heads of his three martyred nephews and used that as incentive to convert and baptize countless pagans in Sweden including King Saint Olaf. He traveled throughout Scandinavia bearing much fruit and is considered the "Apostle of Sweden."
1999 A.D.
Just prior to beginning his one week Lenten Retreat, Pope John Paul II made a final plea for peace in Kosovo, "convinced that recourse to armed force always brings ever greater risks and deep suffering for the civilian population." True to his words that's exactly what happened.
Historical Events in Church Annals for February 22:
121 A.D.
Death of the brothers Saint Faustinus and Saint Jovita, Martyred preachers from Brescia who had their heads severed from their bodies during the ruthless reign of the Roman emperor Hadrian. It was the emperor himself who ordered the decapitation when they steadfastly refused to become apostates.
