Word: vaticans
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...momentous visit--in 1870, when the papal states were overthrown and Italy abolished the ghetto. But the Pope did not flinch from obliquely recalling the church's harsh treatment of Jews. He decried the "gravely deplorable manifestations" of the past and, quoting from a declaration of the Second Vatican Council, stated that the church "deplores the hatred, persecutions and displays of anti- Semitism directed against the Jews at any time and by anyone." Then the Pope added, to ringing applause, "I repeat: by anyone." John Paul also expressed "abhorrence" at the "genocide" of millions by the Nazis...
...vintner guilty of adulterating wine could have his winemaking license revoked and his profits and equipment + confiscated in addition to facing criminal charges. Agriculture Minister Filippo Pandolfi flew to Brussels, where he convinced leaders of the European Community that no ban on Italian imports was necessary. In the Vatican, authorities announced that the purity required of sacramental wine made it safe to consume for both priests and communicants...
Last week, with John Paul's endorsement, the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, headed by Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, issued a major new pronouncement on liberation theology. The 17,000-word Instruction on Christian Freedom and Liberation reaffirms the earlier document but knits its warning about false, atheistic schemes into a positive discussion of human liberation as the work of God. The document affirms social justice as an essential responsibility of the church and even offers a carefully couched allowance for political revolution. The obvious aim: to position Rome as the leader of "authentic" liberation, as distinguished...
...related development, the Vatican unexpectedly dropped the sanctions that had been imposed on Franciscan Father Leonardo Boff, the leading liberation theologian of Brazil, who had been forbidden to speak publicly for nearly a year. "The decision on my case cleansed the atmosphere before publication of the document," said Boff, who teaches at a seminary in Petropolis. He believes that the lifting of sanctions demonstrated a new Vatican attitude of openness and "confidence in the (Brazilian) bishops," two-thirds of whom side with some form of liberation theology. Nonetheless, Rome's action has not eliminated the rift between Boff and conservatives...
According to Vatican sources, it was the Pope's idea to issue the documents on liberation theology, a negative warning followed by a more positive evocation of freedom. Ratzinger's opponents, fearing his hard-line reputation, lobbied to have John Paul take over the second document and write it as an encyclical. Instead, the Pope and Ratzinger agreed to incorporate advice on the contents of the second text from 35 national conferences of bishops, and as a result the Instruction has a moderate tone. The general drift of the new Instruction became known at an extraordinary meeting at the Vatican...