to Investigate Scottish ‘Miracle’
THE UNIVERSE, July 12 — Cardinal Keith O’Brien of has asked the to investigate claims that a dying baby was healed after coming into contact with a relic of the Venerable Margaret Sinclair, the British news service reported.
The unnamed child weighed just 1 pound when it was born and doctors warned its parents there was little chance of it surviving. However, the parents asked permission to open an incubator in which their baby was kept to place the relic of the former factory worker next to it. Within days, the child astounded doctors by making a miraculous recovery and is now four months and “doing well.”
Speaking as he left for his annual pilgrimage to , Cardinal O’Brien said the news was wonderful.
“Pope John Paul II
told me when we were discussing the cause of Margaret Sinclair to ask the
people to pray for a miracle and this has been happening,” he said. “Although
it is exciting news we must tread cautiously, there is a lot of research and
investigation to take place by the Church authorities before any miracle claim
can be declared genuine.”
Pope Benedict to Visit His Homeland in September
REUTERS, July 12 — Pope Benedict will return to in September for a six-day pastoral visit, Reuters reported.
The 79-year-old pope will visit his home state of Sept. 9-14 and make stops in , where he was archbishop before going to work in the in 1981, and his birthplace Marktl am . He will also visit , where he once taught theology, Freising and the pilgrimage town of .
The Holy Father visited in last summer for World Youth Day but that trip had been planned by his predecessor, John Paul II. The September trip home will be the fourth foreign trip of his papacy.
Announces Positive Financial News
ASSOCIATED PRESS, July 12 — The head of the ’s office for economic affairs said the posted a surplus of $12.4 million in 2005, its best financial showing in eight years, reported the Associated Press.
Cardinal Sergio Sebastiani hailed “the good news” as he presented the Holy See’s annual financial statement. For years the has been struggling to contain costs, with much of its spending going for labor costs and its expanding diplomatic missions around the world. In 2004, the netted $3.8 million after four years in the red.
Cardinal Sebastiani disclosed that the costs of the transition period following the death of Pope John Paul in April 2005 and the election of Pope Benedict XVI amounted to $8.9 million. But much of that was covered by the huge influx into the Vatican museums when millions of pilgrims came to for the ceremonies, officials said.
The also confirmed that both Catholic dioceses and individuals in the remain the No. 1 donor to the Holy See, providing a third of Peter’s Pence, as donations to the Pope are known. Next come and .