Pope Benedict XVI in English - Weekly General Audience
Dear Brothers and Sisters, In our catechesis on the Christian culture of the Middle Ages, we return to the teaching of Saint Bonaventure, the great Franciscan theologian of the thirteenth century. Bonaventure refuted the idea, based on the doctrine of Joachim of Fiore and associated with the “spiritual” Franciscans, that Saint Francis had inaugurated a new and final age of the Holy Spirit, to replace the age of Christ and the Church. In his defence of the newness of the Franciscan charism, he developed a remarkable theology of history and progress, based on the definitiveness of the Christ event and its enduring fruitfulness in the history of the Church. He insisted that Christian revelation will not be surpassed in history, and that the future fulfilment of God’s plan remains the object of our Christian hope. Bonaventure was influenced by the writings of Pseudo-Dionysius, which present God as the origin and goal of a goodness which pervades the cosmos. In his work, The Journey of the Mind to God, he guides the soul from created realities to the mystic contemplation of the Triune God. Bonaventure made Christ the centre of his theology; his writings invite us to welcome Christ’s word into our hearts and thus to experience the joy of God’s eternal love. * * * I offer a warm welcome to the many school groups present, including the Bruderhof group from England and the students of Saint Michael’s Holy Cross Secondary School in Dublin, Ireland. The developments taking place in Northern Ireland in these days are a promising sign of hope, and I pray that they will help to consolidate the future of peace desired by all. Upon the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors I invoke God’s abundant blessings. 00:02:04:06

Indian Catholics Finish Month-Long March Demanding Equal Rights
(09 Mar 10 - RV) An 800 km march across Tamil Nadu India, concluded last week with the arrest and subsequent release of the Bishops of Tamil Nadu. We spoke to the Secretary of the CBCI Commission for Scheduled Castes, Fr Cosmon Arokiaraj, who was also one of the Organisers of the Long March… 00:02:05:23

Nigeria Called to Find Solutions to Violence
(09 Mar 10 - RV) The U.S. government and international human rights groups called today for Nigeria to investigate and prosecute those responsible for the deaths of more than 200 unarmed people in renewed violence in the central Plateau State of Jos. We spoke to the Archbishop of Jos, Ignatius Kaigama, who says the attack on villagers last Sunday was a revenge attack and that both religious and political leaders have been working to find solutions to the violence… 00:02:11:54

Holy See Releases Statement on Allegations of Clerical Sexual Abuse of Minors
(09 Mar 10 - RV) The Director of the Press office of the Holy See, Jesuit Fr. Federico Lombardi issued a statement today addressing recent allegations of clerical sexual abuse of minors by persons with roles of responsibility in several European countries. We have this report... 00:01:46:32

Violence in Nigeria Leaves 200 Dead
(08 Mar 10 - RV) Violence in three mostly Christian villages, has left an estimated 200 people dead, in what appears to be reprisal attacks following the January unrest in Jos city, when most of the victims were Muslims. But the Archbishop of Abuja, John Onaiyekan, says that the root of the violence is tribal clashes over economic resources and says they are not religious... 00:01:59:38

Bishops of Sudan Begin Ad Limina Visit to Rome
(08 Mar 10 - RV) The Bishops of Sudan began a series of meetings with Pope Benedict XVI and curia prefects today, the first day of their Ad Limina Visit. Mgr. Roko Taban Mousa is Apostolic Administrator of the diocese of Malakal. He spoke to us to tell us why this visit is of particular importance to the bishops of the country... 00:01:17:74

Franciscan Custody of the Holy Land Issues 2009 Report
(08 Mar 10 - RV) The Franciscan Custody of the Holy Land has issued a report of their work over the two years ending in 2009. Every Good Friday, a collection is taken up in every Catholic Church to support Holy Land. The Delegate for the Custody in Rome, Franciscan Father David Jaeger says these collections are indispensible for the Church in the region... 00:02:01:54

Spanish Protest New Abortion Law
(08 Mar 10 - RV) Tens of thousands of people took to the streets of at least four Spanish cities yesterday to protest a new law that allows abortions without restrictions up to 14 weeks. The executive director of Human Life international in Rome, Msgr. Ignacio Barreiro, says that the majority of Spaniards are opposed to the law... 00:01:29:66

"EDGE OF DARKNESS"
Film critic Peter Malone talks about a film with a strong conspiracy plot which sees the return of Mel Gibson in front of the camera… 00:04:42:41

MISSIONARY OF THE STREETS
We celebrate International Women’s Day highlighting the desperate plight of hundreds and thousands of enslaved and exploited women who walk the very streets we live in… 00:21:33:00