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1240 A.D.
Death of Saint Raymond Nonnatus whose last name is derived from the fact he was born via Caesarian operation rather than natural birth - "non natus". He made the most of his life, joining the Mercedarians and offered his own life in ransom. Having been imprisoned and tortured by the Moors, he suffered greatly but was rescued via ransom by Saint Peter Nola but he died shortly thereafter. St. Raymond is the patron saint of midwives.
1522 A.D.
The Netherlands' Cardinal Hadrian Florensz Dedal, Bishop of Utrecht is selected as the 218th successor of Peter. He took the name Pope Hadrian VI and served only a little over a year. His papacy was frought with not grasping the seriousness of the threat of Lutheranism until it was too late. Though he was engaged in a deep struggle against those who were harassing the Church - both Protestants and Turks, he was hampered by diminishing coffers and the immense dislike for a non-Italian pontiff. Interestingly, he was the last non-Italian Pope until John Paul II was elected in 1978.
1535 A.D.
Pope Paul III prepares the bull that would excommunicate King Henry VIII for his disobedience to the Holy See, but it would not be enacted on until December 17, 1538.
Cardinal Michele Giordano of Naples saw his official offices raided by police last Saturday as they sought evidence of corruption and the funneling of archdiocesan funds to his brother, Mario Giordano, who was arrested on August 20 on charges of money laundering and loan sharking. The Vatican then protested that the probe violated a concordat between Italy and the Vatican that prohibited the search and reported phone taps without first notifying the Vatican.
Vatican spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls said the Italian ambassador was summoned to a meeting with Vatican Foreign Minister Archbishop Jean-Louis Tauran in which the archbishop outlined the Holy See's position on the affair, which media outlets speculated included protests of violations of the concordat. Among other provisions, the treaty protects places of worship from outside interference, which the Vatican says includes chancery offices.
The Pontifical University of the Holy Cross includes schools of theology, canon law, and philosophy as well as Apollinare Institute of Religious Science. The students include priests and laity, men and women, religious and diocesan candidates for the priesthood. In the 1997-1998 academic year there were 1,326 students enrolled from 65 countries around the world.
The university is run by the Personal Prelature of Opus Dei, and its chancellor is Bishop Javier Echevarria, the Prelate of Opus Dei. The bishop has said the university is the fulfillment of the vision of the order's founder, Blessed Josemaria Escriva. The seat of the university is in the Apollinare Palace and the library is on the Via San Girolamo della Carita.
The news agency said it had obtained a draft copy of the response from the International Jewish Committee on Inter-religious Consultations, which apparently disputes the Vatican's defense of Pope Pius XII as someone who saved hundreds of thousands of Jewish lives during World War Two. The document also reportedly says the Catholic Church herself must bear some responsibility for Hitler's genocidal attack on Jews.
The report refers to the defense of Pope Pius, saying the Vatican cannot defend a pontiff who "never once explicitly mentioned the Jews in his public pronouncements during World War Two." Some prominent Jewish leaders have praised the Vatican document, "We Remember: A Reflection on the Shoah," as well as Pope Pius, while others have denounced both. The Jewish committee report also accuses the Church of complicity in the Holocaust because "Hitler, Himmler, and other Nazi leaders were all baptized Christians who were never excommunicated."
The committee includes representatives of the Reform, Conservative, and Orthodox branches of Judaism as well as the World Jewish Congress, the American Jewish Committee, the Anti-Defamation League, B'nai B'rith, and the Israel Interfaith Committee.
Victorious government soldiers prowled Kinshasa during the day, shooting, torturing, and even burning captured rebels. Scattered rebel groups continued to vow that they will capture the city. Congo has been embroiled in violence since August 2 when President Laurent Kabila ordered Rwandan soldiers who helped him come to power last year to leave the country. On Wednesday, Pope John Paul II denounced the massacres of civilians and prisoners, calling for all sides to respect life and honor negotiations.
The violence now threatens to turn into a witch hunt as Kabila exhorted the public, on television and radio, to turn in suspected traitors and to take up the fight themselves "with spears or arrows, hands, guns, and sticks." Voice of the People radio said, "All enemies must be denounced and arrested."
