News & Pics: Austine J Crasta
Daijiworld Media Network- Bangalore (RX)
Bangalore, Jan 22: A special Asian edition of the book ‘Light of the World’ was released by Cardinal Levada, at Paalanaa Bhavana, here on Thursday, January 20.
The volume titled ‘Light of the World, the Pope, the Church and the Signs of the Times. A conversation of Benedict XVI with Peter Seewald’ is a book-length interview granted by the Pope Benedict XVI to veteran German journalist Peter Seewald over a week-long series of interviews.
The book attempts to depict Pope’s view on wide-ranging and controversial issues such as clergy abuse, human sexuality, contraception, priestly celibacy, women priests, dialogue, Christian unity, papacy, and relativism with profound simplicity. The overall vision of the Church is also emphasized in the book.
Following the publication of a pre-release excerpt, the book became the subject of a worldwide controversy as a result of misinterpretations of a passage in which the Pontiff discussed condom use.
However, the congregation for the doctrine of the faith, clarified by means of a note published in the Vatican's newspaper ‘L'Osservatore Romano’ on December 22, 2010 that ‘the idea that anyone could deduce from the words of Benedict XVI that it is somehow legitimate, in certain situations, to use condoms to avoid an unwanted pregnancy is completely arbitrary and is in no way justified either by his words or in his thought.’
‘The Pope did not say as some people have claimed that prostitution with the use of a condom can be chosen as a lesser evil’, the note further said.
Asian Publisher
The Asian edition of ‘Light of the World’ has been published by the Asian Trading Corporation (ATC), a Bangalore based Christian Literature Distribution and Publishing house. The Paperback is priced at Rs 250 and the Hardcover at Rs 450 and is available at all Catholic bookstores in Asia. It can also be ordered online from www.alphamedia.co or www.atcbooks.in.
The 65 year old publisher is the only one to be granted an initial permission for a paperback edition by the Vatican Publishing House. In other continents, paperback editions will be made available only after a year.
Earlier, a personal letter from the Supreme Pontiff granted ATC rights to make available for Asia an affordable edition of Pope Benedict XVI's book ‘The Spirit of the Liturgy’ considered by many scholars to be the greatest work on the liturgy by the then Cardinal Ratzinger.
On February, 10 next month, ATC would also be part of the worldwide release of the Holy Father's forthcoming book ‘Jesus of Nazareth, Volume II’ and ‘Youcat’, the ‘Youth Catechism of the Catholic Church’ by Christoph Cardinal Schoenborn, which will be the official catechism for world youth day. The foreword for the latter is written by Pope Benedict XVI.
Felicitation
The book release was part of a felicitation programme organized at Paalanaa Bhavana, the Bangalore Archdiocesan Pastoral Centre, for William Joseph Cardinal Levada, Archbishop Salvatore Pennacchio, Apostolic Nuncio to India, Oswald Cardinal Gracias, president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of India
(CBCI), Telesphore Placidus Cardinal Toppo, president of the conference of Catholic Bishops of India (CCBI) and other visiting dignitaries.
William Joseph Cardinal Levada, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF), accompanied by a team of CDF officials, are in the garden city to participate in a colloquium with Indian bishops and theologians taking place from January 16 to 22.
Among the other CDF dignitaries accompanying Cardinal Levada to Bangalore are secretary, Archbishop Luis Francisco Ladaria Ferrer, promoter of justice, Msgr Charles J Scicluna, bureau chief, Fr. Hermann Geissler FSO, and staff members, Monsignors Charles Brown and Steven J Lopes.
Bishop Joseph Kallarangatt of Palai, chairman of the CBCI commission for doctrine, Bishop Thomas Dabre of Poona, former chairman of the CBCI commission for doctrine, Archbishop Felix Machado of Vasai and bishop Emeritus John Baptist Sequeira of Chikmagalur were also felicitated on the occasion.
Later, Archbishop Salvatore Pennacchio, presented Archbishop Bernard Blasius Moras of Bangalore with a beautiful medallion and statue of the servant of God, John Paul II in commemoration of the late Pontiff's Apostolic Pilgrimage to India twenty five years ago.