Daily Briefing: Pope’s Visit to North Korea? – Beatification of a Tour de France Winner? & More

1Efforts being made to create conditions for papal visit to North Korea

Crux, English.

Archbishop Lazarus You Heung-sik, prefect for the Vatican Congregation for Clergy and who is originally from Daejeon, South Korea, told reporters that the Vatican “makes efforts to foster conditions for the pope to visit North Korea through various channels.” This comes after South Korean President, Moon Jae-in, invited Pope Francis to visit North Korea during their meeting last week at the Vatican. The Pope said he would go if he received an invitation from North Korea, which Mgr You reiterated.

2“Why I stay in the Church”, despite sex abuse

La Croix, French. 

Two French priests explain why they stayed in the Church despite both being sexually abused by members of the clergy during their childhood. They share their experience and reflect on the Church’s situation today, especially in light of the CIASE report on sexual abuse in the Church in France, published on October 5, 2021. They also share their hopes for the future.

3For Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, there is no longer any great atheist thought in the world today

Corriere della Sera, Italian.  
In a conversation with theologian Vito Mancuso, cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, President of the Pontifical Council for Culture, reflect on important spiritual themes and what they mean in the world today. They talk about the general spiritual situation of the world, the relation between culture and spirituality, what the “prophecy” and “atheism” means, and the culture of Jesus.

4COVID-19 spirals out of control on Mount Athos

Orthodox Times, English.
A spike of COVID-19 cases has been troubling the Autonomous Monastic Republic of Mount Athos. Perched on a peninsula in northeastern Greece this autonomous area is under the jurisdiction of Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople and is a religious enclave with 20 monasteries who house a couple thousand monks. Measures against COVID-19 seem to not be enforced properly and there seem to be many anti-vaccinators amongst the monks, the article explains.

5The project for the beatification of a winner of the Tour de France

ACI Stampa, Italian.

In light of Athletica Vaticana becoming a member of the World Cycling Federation (Union Cycliste Internationale, UCI) in late October, the figure of Gino Bartali, winner of the Tour de France in ’38 and ’48 has resurfaced. This Italian tertiary Carmelite was a champion cyclist but also a man of great faith. The project for his beatification is underway.

6Holy Land: “Eucharistic hospitality” of the Catholic Churches to the baptized of the Orthodox Churches

Fides, English

A priest belonging to one of the Catholic communities present in the Holy Land can administer the sacraments of Penance, the Eucharist and the Anointing of the sick even to Christians belonging to Orthodox and Eastern non-Catholic Churches, if they request it spontaneously, on their own initiative, “and are adequately prepared”. This is the most exemplary provision contained in the text of the “Ecumenical Pastoral Directives” for the Catholic Churches, just issued in Arabic by the Assembly of Catholic Ordinary Bishops of the Holy Land.