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The Southern Cross, Page 4 Thursday, September 7, 2000 Blessed John XXIII and Blessed Pius IX T he beatification of two modem- era popes would have been a noteworthy event even if the two new beati (“blesseds”) had not been so well known. Very few popes have been beatified or canonized in the past 500 years and and only one other pope in recent memory has been so honored: Saint Pius X (reigned from 1903-1914), who was beatified in 1951 and canon ized in 1954. Blessed John XXIII (pope from 1958-1963), universally known as “Good Pope John”, was and remains so beloved that there has been virtually no criticism of his beatification. Indeed, since his death, it has simply been taken for granted that Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli would be beatified in a relatively short time and canonized in due course. Already an old man when he was elected at 77, Pope John occupied the chair of Peter for a very short (four and a half years). Yet his pon tificate was extraordinarily fruitful for the Church. Not only did this peasant-bom pope summon the Second Vatican Council (1962-65) and initiate the revision of the Code of Canon Law (completed in 1983), but by his own consistent example of faith and charity won increased respect for the Catholic Church throughout the world. The German Jewish philosopher Hannah Arendt wrote a touching memorial to Pope John, in which she mused on what seemed to her to be the extraordi nary phenomenon of “a Christian on the throne of Saint Peter.” It is often forgotten that Pope John often expressed the desire to be the pope who might be found worthy to celebrate the beatifica tion of Pope Pius IX. Pio Nono (“Pius Nine” in Italian) had sum moned the First Vatican Council in 1869, the first ecumenical council to meet since Trent, three hundred years before. The council dealt with two issues: the relationship between faith and reason and the Church. The decree on faith and reason was a powerful statement on the respective roles of two God- given ways of knowing that has as much relevance today as it did in the nineteenth century. The decree on the Church was only partially complete when the outbreak of the Franco-Pmssian War in 1870 caused the council to adjourn sine die, that is, without specifying a date for reconvening. Because another result of that war was the withdrawal of French troops from the Papal States, which left Rome and its outskirts vulnera ble to conquest by the new King dom of Italy, the council never reconvened. As a result, Vatican I’s discussion of the Church was limit ed to what had been debated before the council’s adjournment: the role of the Bishop of Rome as successor to Saint Peter. It was to correct this incomplete treatment of the Church that Pope John would later sum mon Vatican II. Unlike John XXIII, Pius IX was relatively young (54) when elected pope in 1846. During his reign of 32 years—the longest in history— Europe and much of the world underwent a profound sea change, politically, economically and spiri tually. At first, the noble-bom Giovanni Maria Mastai Ferretti seemed to be an unthinkable thing: a liberal pope. Compared with his reactionary predecessor, Gregory XVI, who refused to allow rail roads in his domains, lest they bring in radical ideas, or street- lamps, lest they encourage night time conspiracies, Pio Nono was a breath of fresh air. He quickly built a papal railroad and seemed for a time to favor the growing move ment for Italian unification rather that Austria’s continued domination of northern Italy and the political fragmentation of the peninsula. In the revolutionary ferment of the late 1840s, Pius granted consti tutional government to the Papal States for the first time in a thou sand years. But the outbreak of rev olution in Rome in 1848 quickly led to the murder of his new prime minister and the pope’s own flight from the Eternal City in fear for his life. When he returned some three years later, thanks to the interven tion of French troops, Pius was no longer friendly towards the liberal ism of the time, which had be trayed him. His denunciations of modem liberalism in such docu ments as the Syllabus of Errors (1864) need to be interpreted in terms of this historical background and not in terms of today’s much- changed world. In spiritual terms, Pius’ pontifi cate was extremely fruitful. This pope actively encouraged popular piety and missionary zeal. He defined the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary and promul gated Vatican I’s definitions of the primacy of the Roman Pontiff and his infallibility. Pio Nono reestablished the Ca tholic hierarchies of England and Holland, which had lapsed at the Reformation and supported the Catholics of Germany in the face of state-sponsored persecution. Given the supposed tolerance of these countries, the official protests of their governments at the provision of shepherds for their Catholic citi zens revealed an hypocrisy on their part that remains astonishing. In the face of the vimlent anti-Catholi cism that raged in the United States at that time, Pope Pius indefatiga- bly promoted the growth of the Church here, establishing a large number of dioceses, including Savannah, founding the North American College in Rome for the training of priests and arranging for religious orders to undertake mis sionary work here. American Catholics were especially devoted to Pio Nono, as the Macon street named after him continues to bear witness. There has much criticism of Pio Nono’s beatification from the secu lar media, to whom Pius IX’s staunch Catholic faith and overt piety are simply incomprehensible, and from prominent Jewish repre sentatives, who have objected to certain of his statements and actions that appear to be interpreted out of context and by the standards of another time. Pope John Paul has shown great courage in beatifying two of his predecessors who dif fered from each other in many ways, yet shared the distinction of calling the two Vatican Councils. Both occupied the chair of Peter in difficult times and radiated the same deep and abiding faith to the world. —DKC Diocese—Celebrating Our Heritage The Savannah By Cathy Gilligan he people of the world have come together in a special way to make the Diocese of Savannah a unique place to be Catholic. People already inhabiting this area met an amazing array of people coming from Europe, Africa, South America and Asia. While history often focuses on the African, English, and Irish, the vast mixture of people in south Georgia speaks of an even richer cultural heritage. On Saturday, December 2, as a part of the celebra tion of the diocese’s 150th anniversary and the rededication of the Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist, the diocese is planning to focus on the cultural heritage of south Georgia. At 11:00 a.m. the day will begin with a Mass in the Cathedral which will spotlight the many ways Catholics celebrate faith in God. Follo- wing the Mass a block party will celebrate the Saturday, December 2, 2000 many cultures of the Catholic population. This celebration will focus on introducing the public to the restored Cathedral and the richness of the Catholic heritage in south Georgia. Each of us has an ethnic heritage. The diocese needs your help in celebrating that heritage. The committee planning the December 2 event would like any individuals or organizations who wish to represent a cultural heritage to contact them. The plan is to have food and entertain ment to spotlight as many cultural groups as possible. The committee must begin by deter mining which cultural groupings wish to be rep resented. Please consider this as your invitation to be a part of a very special event to celebrate the reopening of the Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist. For information, or to register to participate, please call according to your geographic or lan- guage grouping. —Spanish Speaking Cultures: Lydia Gonzalez at 912-898-1465 or gonzaly4@aol.com. —European Cultures (except Spanish Speaking): John Burke at 912-652-0299. —African and African-American Cultures: Charles W. Bell at 912-234-0611. —Asian Cultures: Cathy Gilligan at 912-238- 2320 or Gcatie@aol.com. —Native American Cultures: Cathy Gilligan at 912-238-2320 or GCatie@aol.com. —The Americas (except Spanish Speaking): Cathy Gilligan at 912-238-2320 or GCatie@aol.com. Anyone wishing to participate must make con tact with one of the above by September 25. Cathy Gilligan is a member of the Sesquicentennial Festival Committee.