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Sister Marie Simon Pierre's Full Testimony

Here is the full testimony of Sister Marie Simon Pierre and the miracle which Pope Benedict XVI last week decreed was performed at John Paul II's intercession.

"I had Parkinson’s disease. I was diagnosed in June 2001. The disease struck the left side of my body, causing very serious difficulties for me, given that I was left-handed. After three years, the initial stage of the illness that was slowly progressive, the symptoms began to get worse: an increase in tremors, rigidity, pain, sleeplessness.   Starting on April 2, 2005, I began to worsen from week to week, I was wasting away, day by day. I was no longer able to write (being left-handed, as I said), or, if I tried to, what I wrote was barely legible. I was no longer able to drive a car, except for very short distances, because my left leg sometimes got blocked, even for long periods and rigidity made driving difficult. In addition, to do my work in the hospital, I always needed more time. I was totally exhausted.   After the diagnosis it was difficult for me to follow John Paul II on television. However, I felt very close to him in prayer and I knew that he could understand what I was living through. I admired his strength and courage and they stimulated me to not give up and to love this suffering. Only love would give meaning to all of this. It was a daily struggle but my only wish was to live it in faith and to adhere with love to the Father’s will.   It was Easter 2005 and I wanted to see our Holy Father in television because I knew, deep within me, that it would be the last time I would have been able to do so. All morning long I prepared myself for that “encounter” (he reminded me of what I would be in three years). It was hard for me, being so young. However, an unexpected occurrence in work did not allow me to see him.   The evening of April 2, 2005 the entire community had gathered to participate in the prayer vigil in St. Peter’s Square, live on French television from the diocese of Paris (KTO). At the announcement of John Paul’s death, my entire world fell apart, I had lost the only friend who could understand me and give me strength to go forward. In those days I felt a great emptiness, but I also had the certainty of his living presence.   On May 13, feast of Our Lady of Fatima, Pope Benedict XVI officially announced the special dispensation for the start of the cause of beatification and canonization of servant of God John Paul II. Starting on May 14, my fellow sisters from all the French and African communities started asking John Paul II to intercede for my healing. They prayed incessantly, tirelessly, right up to the news of my healing.   I was on vacation at the time. On May 26. having ended a period of rest, I returned to the community, totally exhausted because of my disease. “If you believe, you will see the Glory of God,” this was the verse from the Gospel of St. John that, since May 14, had kept me company. But on June 1, I could not take it any longer! I had to struggle just to stay on my feet and walk. On June 2, in the afternoon, I went to find my superior to ask her to release me from my work. She asked me to try and resist a while longer, until the return from Lourdes in August and added: “John Paul II has not yet said his final word.” He was surely present at that encounter that took place in such peace and serenity. Then, my superior held out a pen and asked me to write “John Paul II.” It was 5 p.m.   With difficulty I wrote “John Paul II.” As I looked at the illegible writing, I remained some time in silence. And the day passed as it usually did.   At 9 p.m., after evening prayer, I left my office to go to my room. I felt the need to take a pen and write, as if someone had ordered me, “Take your pen and write.” It was 9:30/9:45 p.m.   And my handwriting was perfectly legible! Astonishing! I laid on my bed, amazed.   Exactly two months has passed since John Paul II returned to the House of the Father. I awoke at 4:30, amazed at having been able to sleep. I suddenly got out of bed: my body was no longer painful, there was no rigidity and inside, I was no longer the same. Then, an inner call and a strong desire to go and pray before the Blessed Sacrament. I went into the oratory and stayed in adoration. I felt a profound sense of peace and well-being; an experience that was too great, a mystery, difficult to explain with words.   Still in front of the Blessed Sacrament, I mediated on the Mysteries of Light composed by John Paul II. At 6 in the morning I left to join my fellow sisters in chapel for a moment of prayer followed by Eucharistic celebration. I had to walk about 50 meters and at that moment I became aware that, as I was walking, my left arm was swinging by my side, it was no longer immobile. I also felt a lightness and a physical agility that I had not experienced for quite some time. During the Eucharistic celebration, I was filled with joy and peace. It was June 3, feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. As we left Mass, I was sure that I was healed. My hand no longer trembled. I went again to write and at noon I suddenly stopped taking my medicine.   On June 7th, as scheduled, I went to see the neurologist who had been caring for me for four years. He too was very surprised as he noted the sudden disappearance of all the symptoms of the disease, notwithstanding the interruption of treatment for five days prior to the visit. A day later, our superior general asked all of our communities to give thanks. Every community then began a novena to John Paul II.   It has now been 10 months since any kind of treatment has been given. I have resumed working normally, I have no difficulty in writing and I even drive the car for long distances. I feel as if I have been reborn: It is a new life because it is not like before.   Today I can say that the friend who left our earth is now closer to my heart. He made grow within me the desire for adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and love for the Eucharist, that have a priority place in my daily life.   What the Lord has allowed me to live through the intercession of John Paul II is a great mystery, difficult to explain in words ... but nothing is impossible for God.   And it is indeed true: “If you believe, you will see the glory of God.”

Pope on Thought for the Day: Part of the New Evangelization

Welcome news today that Pope Benedict is to speak on Thought for the Day.

It comes at a time when coverage of the Church on the BBC has generally improved in recent months. The broadcaster's programming during the papal visit was by and large a tribute to its professionalism and balanced reporting. Radio 4 is also planning on setting aside scheduled programming to make way for a marathon reading of the King James Bible.

It could also be argued that having the Holy Father speak for himself on Radio 4 kind of makes up for all those times when orthodox-thinking Catholics have been overlooked by the broadcaster, usually in its news coverage.

Not everyone will be happy with this decision of course - and not just secularists. Some traditionalists will argue that the Pope is not just another religious talking head - a rabbi, Anglican bishop, imam, or even Catholic priest - but the Vicar of Christ. He should, therefore, not put himself on the same level as it emits a kind of "relativist mood music."

They have a point and I have a lot of sympathy with that, but like "Light of the World", I see this as the Pope getting down from his throne (only momentarily of course) to talk to people through another means and in a language they can understand.

It's part of the New Evangelization and for this reason I think, overall, it's a good idea.

Full details of the broadcast on my Register blog page.

Taking Apart the Science vs Religion Myth

A good atheist friend said to me the other day: “Religious belief does not allow for serious inquiry into the nature of the world.”

A sweeping statement and a common assumption: religion is contrary to science, the two are incompatible, one is against the other. But it’s an enormous myth as any quick search of the web will verify.

Few know it, but Nicolaus Copernicus was a priest. Gregor Mendel, the discoverer of genetics, was a monk. Monsignor Georges Henri Joseph Édouard Lemaître, a Belgian priest, proposed what became known as no less than the Big Bang theory of the origin of the Universe. And perhaps most famously, Einstein believed in God.

Catholic Answers has a more detailed list of great scientific achievements by Catholics, which I reproduce below. You might also be interested in this article I wrote earlier this year on the Benedictine monk and physicist, Stanley Jaki, who argued that were it not for Christianity, the great scientific progress we enjoy today would not exist.

Saint Luke (c.72) - Catholic patron saint of physicians and surgeons (himself being a physician, iconographer and evangelist)

Bede, the Venerable (c.672–735) - Catholic monk who wrote a work On the Nature of Things, and several books on the mathematical / astronomical subject of computus, the most influential entitled On the Reckoning of Time. He made original discoveries concerning the nature of the tides and his works on computus became required elements of the training of clergy, and thus greatly influenced early medieval knowledge of the natural world.

Pope Silvester II (c.950–1003) - A scientist and book collector, he influenced the teaching of math and astronomy in church-run schools, and raised the cathedral school at Rheims to the height of prosperity.

Hermannus Contractus (1013–1054) - Wrote on geometry, mathematics, and the astrolabe. He was also a monk who composed Marian antiphons and was essentially beatified.

Robert Grosseteste (c.1175–1253) - Bishop of Lincoln, he was the central character of the English intellectual movement in the first half of the 13th century and is considered the founder of scientific thought in Oxford. He had a great interest in the natural world and wrote texts on the mathematical sciences of optics, astronomy and geometry. He affirmed that experiments should be used in order to verify a theory, testing its consequences.

Pope John XXI (1215–1277) - He wrote the widely used medical text Thesaurus pauperum before becoming Pope.

Albertus Magnus (c.1193–1280) - Patron saint of scientists in Catholicism who may have been the first to isolate arsenic. He wrote that: "Natural science does not consist in ratifying what others have said, but in seeking the causes of phenomena."

Roger Bacon (c.1214–1294) - He was an English philosopher who emphasized empiricism and has been presented as one of the earliest advocates of the modern scientific method. He joined the Franciscan Order around 1240, where he was influenced by Grosseteste. Bacon was responsible for making the concept of "laws of nature" widespread, and contributed in such areas as mechanics, geography and, most of all, optics.

Theodoric of Freiberg (c.1250–c.1310) - Dominican who is believed to have given the first correct explanation for the rainbow in De iride et radialibus impressionibus or On the Rainbow.

Thomas Bradwardine (c.1290–1349) - He was an English archbishop, often called "the Profound Doctor". He developed studies as one of the Oxford Calculators of Merton College, Oxford University. These studies would lead to important developments in mechanics.

Jean Buridan (1300–1358) - Catholic priest and one of the most influential philosophers of the later Middle Ages. He developed the theory of impetus, which was an important step toward the modern concept of inertia.

Nicole Oresme (c.1323–1382) - Theologian and Bishop of Lisieux, he was one of the early founders and popularizers of modern sciences. One of his many scientific contributions is the discovery of the curvature of light through atmospheric refraction, he also showed that the reasons proposed by the physics of Aristotle against the movement of the Earth were not valid. Oresme strongly opposed astrology and speculated about the possibility of extraterrestrial life.

Nicholas of Cusa (1401–1464) - Cardinal and theologian who made contributions to the field of mathematics by developing the concepts of the infinitesimal and of relative motion. His philosophical speculations also anticipated Copernicus’ heliocentric world-view.

Ignazio Danti (1536–1586) - Bishop of Alatri who convoked a diocesan synod to deal with abuses. He was also a mathematician who wrote on Euclid, an astronomer, and a designer of mechanical devices.

René Descartes (1596–1650) - Descartes was one of the key thinkers of the Scientific Revolution in the Western World. He is also honoured by having the Cartesian coordinate system used in plane geometry and algebra named after him. He did important work on invariants and geometry.

Giovanni Battista Riccioli (1598-1671) - Italian astronomer. He was a Jesuit who entered the order in 1614. He was also the first person to measure the rate of acceleration of a freely falling body.

Athanasius Kircher (1602-1680) - German Jesuit scholar who published around 40 works, most notably in the fields of oriental studies, geology and medicine. He made an early study of Egyptian hieroglyphs. One of the first people to observe microbes through a microscope, he was thus ahead of his time in proposing that the plague was caused by an infectious microorganism and in suggesting effective measures to prevent the spread of the disease. Kircher has been compared to Leonardo da Vinci for his inventiveness and the breadth and depth of his work.

Nicolas Steno (1638-1686) - Contributions to paleontology and geology

Roger Joseph (1711-1787) - Physicist, astronomer, mathematician, philosopher, diplomat, poet, and Jesuit. He is famous for his atomic theory, given as a clear, precisely-formulated system utilizing principles of Newtonian mechanics. This work inspired Michael Faraday to develop field theory for electromagnetic interaction, and was even a basis for Albert Einstein's attempts for a unified field theory, according to Einstein's coworker Lancelot Law Whyte. Boscovich also gave many important contributions to astronomy, including the first geometric procedure for determining the equator of a rotating planet from three observations of a surface feature and for computing the orbit of a planet from three observations of its position.

Maria Gaetana Agnesi (1718–1799) - Linguist, mathematician, and philosopher. Agnesi is credited with writing the first book discussing both differential and integral calculus. She was an honorary member of the faculty at the University of Bologna.

Augustin Louis Cauchy (1789–1857) - French mathematician. He started the project of formulating and proving the theorems of calculus in a rigorous manner and was thus an early pioneer of analysis. He also gave several important theorems in complex analysis and initiated the study of permutation groups. A profound mathematician, Cauchy exercised by his perspicuous and rigorous methods a great influence over his contemporaries and successors. His writings cover the entire range of mathematics and mathematical physics.

Gregor Mendel (1822–1884) - Augustinian priest and scientist often called the "father of modern genetics" for his study of the inheritance of traits in pea plants. Mendel showed that the inheritance of traits follows particular laws, which were later named after him. The significance of Mendel's work was not recognised until the turn of the 20th century. Its rediscovery prompted the foundation of genetics.

Louis Pasteur (1822-1895) - French chemist best known for his remarkable breakthroughs in microbiology. His experiments confirmed the germ theory of disease, and he created the first vaccine for rabies. He is best known to the general public for showing how to stop milk and wine from going sour - this process came to be called pasteurization. He is regarded as one of the three main founders of bacteriology, together with Ferdinand Cohn and Robert Koch. He also made many discoveries in the field of chemistry, most notably the asymmetry of crystals.

Francesco Faà di Bruno (1825—1888) - Italian mathematician most linked to Turin. He is known for Faà di Bruno's formula and being a spiritual writer beatified in 1988.

Armand David (1826–1900) - Catholic missionary to China and member of the Lazarists who considered his religious duties to be his principle concern. He was also a botanist with the author abbreviation David and as a zoologist he described several species new to the West.

Pierre Duhem (1861–1916) - He worked on Thermodynamic potentials and wrote histories advocating that the Roman Catholic Church helped advance science.

E. T. Whittaker (1873-1956) - Converted to Catholicism in 1930 and member of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences. His 1946 Donnellan Lecture was entitled on Space and Spirit. Theories of the Universe and the Arguments for the Existence of God. He also received the Copley Medal and had written on Mathematical physics before conversion.

Georges Lemaître (1894-1966) - Catholic priest, honorary prelate, professor of physics and astronomer. Lemaître proposed what became known as the Big Bang theory of the origin of the Universe, although he called it his 'hypothesis of the primeval atom'. He was a pioneer in applying Einstein's theory of general relativity to cosmology: suggesting a pre-cursor of Hubble's law in 1927, and publishing his primeval atom theory the pages of Nature in 1931.

Carlos Chagas Filho (1910-2000) - A neuroscientist from Rio de Janeiro who headed the Pontifical Academy of Sciences for 16 years. He studied the Shroud of Turin and his "the Origin of the Universe", "the Origin of Life", and "the Origin of Man" involved an understanding between Catholicism and Science.

Photo: The late Fr. Stanley Jaki OSB

Camino de Santiago - my memorable short pilgrimage

Pope Benedict XVI travels to Santiago de Compostela tomorrow.

A few years ago, I walked the last leg of the camino, something I'd been wanting to do for some years. I was at the time working on a piece on pilgrimages for a Newsweek article with Christopher Dickey, so it seemed a good opportunity. And it turned out to be a wonderful experience - as nearly all pilgrimages are.

Below is my account of that journey along the Camino de Santiago which appeared in the Register.

Your Feet May Falter But Your Soul Will Soar

The Long Walk to Santiago de Compostela Cathedral

Tuesday, Jul 17, 2007

Galicia, Spain

For some years, I’d been hearing people praise the Camino de Santiago de Compostela, the oldest Christian pilgrimage route in the world. In fact, so popular has "The Way" become that it's now bearing its heaviest foot traffic since medieval times.

So earlier this year I traveled to the region to sample the pilgrimage for myself. Like so many pilgrims who beat the path before me, I found it to be a richly rewarding experience and a great aid to spiritual growth.

There are five main routes to the beautiful and ancient city of Santiago de Compostela, whose Romanesque cathedral — the final destination of the pilgrimage — contains the remains of St. James the Apostle. The Church celebrates his feast on July 25. (Camino de Santiago means the Way of St. James.)

Connections from five other routes allow a few especially ambitious and athletic pilgrims to walk all the way from Paris or Lisbon.

The oldest and most popular route is the Camino Francés (French Way). This starts in the small town of St. Jean Pied de Port, near Lourdes on the French border, and ends in Santiago some 543 miles — and not a few blisters — later. By foot the trip takes most pilgrims three to four weeks to complete.

For most of us, it's not practical to take so much time away from work and other commitments and so many pilgrims start nearer Santiago. Popular launching points include the beautiful cathedral towns of Burgos (a 316-mile walk), Leon (207 miles) and Astorga (169 miles).

Having only a few days to spare, I started in the town of Sarria. At about 80 miles from Santiago, it's the minimum span one must traverse to obtain a Compostela — a signed certificate proving you walked the Camino.

But although relatively short, it’s not wanting for variety. The terrain mixes hills, lakes and forests with Galician towns, hamlets and picturesque little churches. The region is rural and gets plenty of rain in the colder months, making the land very fertile. The people are also culturally rich and, being Celts, they’re proud of their heritage. Occasionally you’ll come across the sound of bagpipes or the sight of tartan kilts.

Yet, as interesting as these aspects of the Camino are, it is the journey itself that captures the heart.

Like Life Itself

It is said that the Camino, like life's “journey”, is different for each traveler. Even two people walking side by side won’t get the exact same things out of it.

Some make the trek to test themselves, others to grow spiritually. For most Catholics, the experience is an opportunity to simply get alone with God. Opportunities abound to pray, take stock of one’s life and renew one’s commitment to following Christ.

Many come away saying they have been changed by the walk. Perhaps that’s because the Camino is really one great metaphor for life. One moment you are strolling with ease along a straight and smooth tarmac road; the next, you find yourself carefully negotiating a meandering and rocky passage. There are literal ups and downs: steep hills to climb and, in the valleys, precarious rivers to cross.

The weather was entirely unpredictable when I walked in the spring - everything from sun to showers, and rainstorms to hail. But whatever the challenges to the journey, I found if you simply put one foot in front of the other — however much your feet are telling you to stop — and simply trust the signs, you will be guided to your destination.

And another thing I noticed was a palpable sense of divine Providence.

Along the Camino, large yellow arrows, usually impossible to miss, guide you along the way - but not always. On at least one occasion I got lost. I prayed and almost immediately a farmer came walking up the path and pointed me in the right direction.

Speak to other pilgrims and you will hear of similar experiences, usually involving a kind Spaniard or fellow pilgrim pointing the way back onto the Camino.

A strong camaraderie and sense of solidarity with other pilgrims are also important parts of the pilgrim experience here.

“The Camino allows everyone to give the best of themselves,” said Canadian pilgrim Peter Andreacchi, on his third month-long Camino walk. “The facades are removed as no one is out to exploit one another. And the emotions all come out. It builds bridges between people and cultures.”

Hard-Earned Mass

People of all ages walk the Camino. Vincent Estridge of Bradford, England, was on his second three-week pilgrimage on the Way of St. James — at the age of 79.

“The Camino is really a revelation, a personal revelation to each of us,” he said. “As long as I’m healthy enough, I’ll keep on doing it.”

And they come back, year after year, despite, or perhaps because of, the physical challenges.

“Something attracts you back to the Camino,” one fellow traveler told me. “After a while you get this irresistible pull.”

Paolo and Gabrielle De Ambrosis, a retired couple from Milan in their 60s, were on their sixth 500-mile Camino in as many years. They said they had made the trip out of gratitude to God for their blessings that first motivated them — and for other reasons, too.

“During this month you can avoid everything: news, soccer, television,” said Paolo. “You remember instead what is important in your life. ... It puts everything in perspective.”

Along the way, the Camino has government-run albergue (inexpensive hostels that sleep 10 or more to a room). Some avoid these in order to get a good night’s rest, but others love them for their fraternal atmosphere. Spending the night in one of these facilities is like living out a scene from The Canterbury Tales with plenty of camaraderie and consumption of the odd ale or two.

But being immersed in the humanity of one’s brother pilgrims is all part of the enriching Camino pilgrimage experience.

I eventually arrived at Santiago cathedral after 3½ days of solid walking. My feet were in pain, but I felt greatly relieved to have made it.

And as Providence would have it, I’d arrived just in time for Mass.

Information

Santiago de Compostela Cathedral

Galicia, Spain

Website: catedraldesantiago.es

For pilgrimage routes, see santiago-compostela.net.

Planning Your Visit

Don’t book your trip until you’ve read a good guidebook. For the Camino Francés, try A Pilgrim’s Guide to the Camino de Santiago by John Brierley (Findhorn Press, 2006). It has all the info you need, including detailed maps and daily spiritual meditations, and it’s light enough to carry with you along the way.

Consistory Announced

At the end of his weekly General Audience this morning, Pope Benedict XVI announced the names of 24 new cardinals who will be raised to the cardinalate at a consistory next month.

The complete list, in the order announced by the Holy Father:

Archbishop Angelo Amato, prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints
Coptic Patriarch Antonios Naguib of Alexandria, Egypt (also General Relator of the current Synod on the Middle East)
Archbishop Robert Sarah, president of the Pontifical Council Cor Unum
Archbishop Francesco Monterisi, Archpriest of St. Paul's Outside the Walls
Archbishop Fortunato Baldelli, prefect of the Apostolic Penitentiary
Archbishop Raymond Burke, prefect of the Apostolic Signatura (his statement can be read here)
Archbishop Kurt Koch, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity
Archbishop Paolo Sardi, Pro-Patron of the Knights of Malta
Archbishop Mauro Piacenza, prefect of the Congregation for Clergy
Archbishop Velasio De Paolis, president of the Prefecture for the Economic Affairs
of the Holy See
Archbishop Gianfranco Ravasi, president of the Pontifical Council for Culture
Archbishop Medardo Joseph Mazombwe of Lusaka, Zambia
Archbishop Raúl Eduardo Vela Chiriboga, Emeritus of Quito, Ecuador
Archbishop Laurent Monsengwo Pasinya, of Kinshasa, DRC
Archbishop Paolo Romeo of Palermo, Italy
Archbishop Donald Wuerl of Washington DC
Archbishop Raymundo Damasceno Assis, Archbishop of Aparecida, Brazil
Archbishop Kazimierz Nycz of Warsaw, Poland
Archbishop Albert Malcolm Ranjith Patabendige Don of Colombo, Sri Lanka
Archbishop Reinhard Marx of Munich and Freising, Germany

Archbishop José Manuel Estepa Llaurens, Military Ordinary-emeritus of Spain
Bishop Elio Sgreccia, president emeritus of the Pontifical Academy for Life
Msgr. Walter Brandmueller, president emeritus of the Pontifical Committee for Historical Sciences
Msgr. Domenico Bartolucci, Maestro Emeritus of the Sistine Chapel Choir

Four of the twenty four named this morning are over 80 years of age, meaning they will not be able to vote in conclave. Ten are heads of various curial dicasteries, ten of them are Italian.

Currently there are 179 members of the College of Cardinals, 102 of whom are eligible to vote in conclave. The largest single group of electors is Europe with a total of 52 cardinals, followed by North America with 17 and South America with 11.

The 24 archbishops and monsignori will be elevated to the College of Cardinals on November 20th.

Pope's Gift - Symbolic of Reconciliation?

This is a nice story from the BBC today which to me at least symbolizes the reconciliation taking place between the British state and the Church of England (at least the Anglo-Catholic parts of it) with the Catholic Church:

Click image to enlarge.