c. 1996 Religion News Service
Pope returns to Vatican from hospital amid reports of Parkinson’s
(RNS) Pope John Paul II returned to the Vatican on Tuesday (Oct. 15), one week after having his appendix removed at a Rome hospital, amid persistent reports that he is suffering from Parkinson’s disease.
The 76-year-old pontiff moved haltingly as he stepped into his black convertible Mercedes at the Gemelli Polyclinic and waved stiffly to hundreds of people who had gathered in the rain. The pope visited briefly with ill children before leaving the hospital, seven days after doctors performed an appendectomy.
Vatican officials canceled the pope’s Wednesday weekly public audience and said that he would convalesce for several days. He is unlikely to publicly celebrate Mass next Sunday but is expected to greet pilgrims in St. Peter’s Square from his apartment window, as he routinely does on Sundays.
On Nov. 1, John Paul will mark half a century as a priest. He has invited clergy who are also passing the 50-year milestone to celebrate with him at the Vatican.
On Sunday, (Oct. 13) the pope appeared relaxed as he spoke publicly for the first time since the operation, and joked that the hospital, which he has frequented in recent years, has become his third home, after the Vatican and the papal summer residence south of Rome.
On Tuesday morning doctors removed stitches from the pope’s abdomen, the final medical step before his release.
The physicians are clearly relieved and elated over the pope’s rapid recuperation from surgery. After the operation they said that medical tests showed no recurrence of a tumor removed from the pope’s colon in 1992 that was on the verge of turning malignant.
But they have refused to confirm or deny reports that the violent trembling in the pope’s left hand is a result of Parkinson’s disease, a progressive neurological disorder which afflicts millions of elderly and can eventually result in full incapacitation. While symptoms of the illness can be treated through medication, there is no known cure.
A Vatican spokesman suggested last month that the trembling was due to”extrapyramidal”causes. Parkinson’s is a form of extrapyramidal disease.
The disability was visible again on Tuesday, as the pope shuffled about a hospital ward of ailing children, some suffering from incurable disease, as he gave them rosaries from his trembling hand.
Supreme Court will hear religious freedom law case
(RNS) The Supreme Court agreed Tuesday (Oct. 15) to hear a case that could lead to a ruling on the constitutionality of the landmark 1993 Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) designed to limit government interference with religious practices.
The court signaled its readiness to review the constitutionality of RFRA by taking a dispute between a Roman Catholic parish and the city of Boerne, Texas, over the city’s use of a landmark-preservation ordinance from building an addition to the church.
The Texas church invoked RFRA after being blocked in its effort to build the addition, arguing that the city’s action violated its religious freedom.
RFRA, which has won widespread support among the religious community, was passed after the Supreme Court’s 1990 ruling denying unemployment benefits to two workers fired for using peyote in Native American religious ceremonies. The ruling eased the tests a government must meet before it can restrict government practices.
Under the 1993 law, any action by government that imposes a”substantial burden”on religious beliefs and practices must serve a”compelling”government interest and be carried out in the least intrusive manner.
Critics contend that Congress exceeded its authority in passing RFRA, which restored the stricter tests governments must meet before they can restrict or interfere with religious practices. They argue that in passing the law, Congress usurped authority from state and local governments and from the Supreme Court itself.
Prison officials have been especially critical of the law, arguing that its use by inmates makes security and discipline in the nation’s jails much more difficult. Sixteen states joined the city of Boerne in asking the Supreme Court to hear the case.
The specific case involves St. Peter Catholic Church in Boerne, which applied for a permit in 1993 to enlarge its 70-year-old building. Church officials say the congregation’s membership is more than 2,000 people but its sanctuary holds only 250 people at any one time.
In 1991, the church’s facade had been placed in the city’s historic district and in 1993 the landmark commission turned down the church’s request to enlarge the building even though the proposed addition would not affect the facade.
Lilly gives $5.3 million for practical problem solving for congregations
(RNS) The Lilly Endowment, the Indianapolis-based private family foundation, has given a $5.3 million grant to the Alban Institute to establish the Indianapolis Center for Congregations.
The new center will seek to connect decades of national research efforts with the practical needs of the 2,000 religious congregations in the Indianapolis areas on such issues as stewardship, worship and music, finances, staff management, long-range planning and pastoral transitions.”Over the years, the (Lilly) Endowment’s national grantmaking in religion has produced considerable knowledge and valuable connections across the country with people who have acknowledged expertise about congregational matters,”said Craig Dykstra, vice president of the Endowment’s Religion Division.”This is a chance to see if this knowledge can be brought to bear in helping the congregations in our own hometown,”he added.
The Alban Institute, based in Bethesda, Md., is one of the nation’s leading organizations in developing resources and services for local congregations.
The Indianapolis Center will both gather information about what makes congregations function well and provide ways to improve the quality of the churches’ ministry, according to James P. Wind, president of the Alban Institute.”This is an experimental proposition,”Wind said.”It has not been tried anywhere else in the nation. We expect to learn a lot, and what we learn can only strengthen Indianapolis congregations _ and perhaps provide a model for similar efforts in other parts of the country.”
Quote of the day: The Dalai Lama on preserving Tibetan Buddhist culture
The Dalai Lama, the exiled spiritual and political leader of Tibet, was interviewed in the November issue of Shambala Sun, a bimonthly Buddhist magazine. He was asked about his”realistic”hopes for Tibet, which has been under Chinese domination since being invaded in 1949.
The Dalai Lama responded in part:”Today Tibet, with its unique cultural heritage which incorporates Buddhist spirituality, is truly facing the threat of extinction. … I believe my responsibility is to save Tibet’s unique cultural heritage. The best way to save this nation with its heritage is through dialogue, dialogue with the Chinese government. That’s the only way. We need some kind of political solution, which can only come through dialogue in the spirit of compromise, in the spirit of reconciliation.”Therefore, I’m speaking for genuine self-rule, not for independence. It is certain that historically Tibet was an independent nation. However, the world is always changing. Politically speaking, Tibet is a landlocked country, materially backward. So in order to develop Tibet materially, it is possible that if we join with another big nation we may get greater benefit.”
MJP END RNS
