You are of the line of heroes and saints

Cardinal Franc Rodé addressed warm words to Msgr. João Scognamiglio Clá Dias, on the occasion of the presentation of the Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice medal.

In presenting you with the medal with which the Holy Father wants to reward your merits, the words of St. Bernard, from the beginning of his treatise De laude novae militiae, come to my mind: “We hear that a new kind of chivalry has recently appeared on the earth.” These words could also apply to the present moment. Indeed, thanks to Your Excellency, a new order of chivalry, not secular, but religious, has arisen with a new ideal of sanctity and a heroic commitment to the Church.

In this undertaking, born in your noble heart, we cannot  but see a special grace given to the Church, an act of Divine Providence in view of the needs of today’s world. The ideal you propose to your own is to follow Christ in the great movement of the Heralds of the Gospel, with evangelical zeal, “fighting without respite—as  St. Bernard says—a twofold battle, both against flesh and blood, and against the evil spirits of the invisible world.”

Thank you, Monsignor, for your noble commitment, thank you for your holy audacity, thank you for your passionate love for the Church, and thank you for the magnificent example of your life. You are of the stock of heroes and the saints!

Excerpts from the thanksgiving speech of

Msgr. João Scognamiglio Clá Dias, EP

Historic Moment for the Heralds

In expressing his gratitude for the medal of honour received from Pope Benedict XVI, as well as for the kind words and paternal dedication of Cardinal Franc Rodé, Msgr. João Scognamiglio Clá Dias shows how deeply these happenings will mark the history of the Heralds of the Gospel.

The Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice medal has been bestowed on me, and the Societies of Apostolic Life which I have the honour of guiding, at a very opportune time. The sermon of Your Eminence clearly emphasized a key aspect of our charism, which is devotion to Our Lady, and this fills us with joy.

We ardently desire to give ourselves entirely to her. And the sermon of Your Eminence could not have been more logical and filled with wisdom regarding this fundamental point.

A heroic Archbishop

The Cardinal has spoken of the heroism of others gathered here today. Yet, he himself was a great hero, having been born and raised under a Communist regime, and having suffered many persecutions in Slovenia. He has a brother, Andrej Rodé, who was a martyr of Communism.

The Cardinal had to leave the country, and when he returned, it was as Archbishop of Ljubljana. There he overcame all obstacles, not only keeping the banner of the Roman Catholic and Apostolic Church aloft, but giving it a glory that it had not known before his governance of this Archdiocese.

The charism to understand and guide souls

He is gifted with a charism to understand and guide souls, namely the discernment of spirits. This charism is a gift gratis data by God with the objective of helping others. And I have noticed how our dear Cardinal is aided by the Holy Spirit in his responsibility as Prefect of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, and how well he examines and weighs matters.

He has the perfect approach. He is a man who steps firmly yet gently. His hand is energetic get gracious. He knows how to solve problems with a singular ability.

A word regarding our devotion to the Pope

In addition to what has been said about the Cardinal, it is essential to say something with regard to the Chair of Peter, from whom I received this medal of honour.

I was formed by a Brazilian Catholic leader, Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira, who, among many other virtues, taught me to love the Pope. In an article in Legionário—at the time, the official organ of the Archdiocese of São Paulo—he beautifully expressed what is in my heart and in the heart all the Heralds with relation to the Pope:

“Everything there is within the Catholic Church of sanctity, of authority, of supernatural virtue, all of this, but absolutely everything without exception, or conditions, or restrictions, is subordinated, conditioned, and dependent upon union with the Chair of Saint Peter. The most sacred institutions, the most venerable works, the most holy traditions, the most illustrious personages, absolutely everything that can most genuinely and sublimely manifest Catholicism and adorn the Church of God, all of this would be become  null,  fruitless, worthy of eternal fire and the wrath of God, if detached from the Supreme Pontiff. We all know the parable of the vine and the branches. In this parable, the vine is Our Lord Jesus Christ, and the branches are the faithful. However, in view of how Our Lord bound Himself  inseparably to the See of Rome, it can affirmed with total certainty that the parable would be equally true with the Holy See as with the vine, and the various dioceses, parishes, religious orders, private institutions, families, peoples and persons that constitute the Church and Christianity as the branches. All of these will only be truly fruitful to the degree that they cultivate an intimate, fervent and unconditional union with the Chair of St. Peter.”1

Love of Christ and the Pope become inseparable

He continues:  “‘Unconditional’, we were careful to say. In morals, there are no legitimate conditions. Everything is subordinate to the great and essential condition of serving God. Nevertheless, since the Holy Father is infallible, union with his infallible magisterium can only be unconditional.

“Because of this, an extreme sensitivity, a delicate and lively feeling of the faithful for all that touches upon the security, glory and tranquillity of the Roman Pontiff is a sign of a state of spiritual vigour. After the love of God, this is the noblest of loves that Religion teaches us. One and the other love are even interchangeable.  When St. Joan of Arc was interrogated by the persecutors who sought her death by attempting to make her fall into a theological error through insidious questioning, she replied: ‘As for Christ and the Church, for me they are one and the same.’ And we can say: ‘for us, between the Pope and Jesus Christ, there is no difference.’ Everything that involves the Pope, directly, intimately and indissolubly involves JesusChrist.’”2

The Cardinal’s presence unites us more closely with the Pope

Indeed, we are entirely united with the Pope. This medal is a symbol of this union, and for me it has great value.

However, more than through this medal, I feel united with the Holy Father through the person of this Cardinal whom Providence has placed along our path. We know that the word cardinal comes from the Latin cardo, cardinis, meaning hinge. The door opens, closes, and moves on hinges, and the term “cardinal” has its origin in this metaphor: the cardinals are the “hinges” which unite the world with the Pope.

Therefore, the words of Your Eminence and all of the kindness you have shown on this occasion, this ceremony and the medal Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice, will profoundly mark the history of the Heralds of the Gospel, the Societies Virgo Flos Carmeli and Regina Virginum and other institutions which will come in the future.

Behind all of this is the figure of our dearly beloved Cardinal. The name of Franc Rodé is indelibly engraved upon our heart! ²

1 OLIVEIRA, Plinio Corrêa de. A Guerra e o Corpo Místico [War and the Mystical Body]. In O Legionário, 16/4/1944.

2 Ibidem.

My Testimony on the Heralds

In a statement to Heralds TV, Cardinal Franc Rodé referred to this Association as “a great new religious family that has been born in the Church, thanks to the talent of Msgr. João, and which surely has a great destiny in the Church.”

I first met the Heralds of the Gospel in Slovenia, when I was Archbishop of Ljubljana, and afterwards, evidently, I came to know them when I arrived in Rome, as Prefect of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life.

What truly impressed me, to start with, was the personality of the founder and superior general, Msgr. João Scognamiglio Clá Dias. He is an extraordinary person, with an obvious charism, and above all, I believe he is a great organiser and a man capable of attracting so many young people.

Yesterday we were at the centre of formation for the young women. I have spent these last few days here in Tabor, where hundreds of young men live, and in both places I have seen the enthusiasm and joy of being Christians, the joy of belonging to the Church and of serving the Kingdom of Christ. All of this is part of the charism of the Heralds of the Gospel.

In Rome, approximately 15 Heralds students are preparing to be future professors in the Faculty of Theology here in Tabor.

For me, the Heralds of the Gospel represent a newness that has appeared in the Church in recent years: a great apostolic dynamism, a great love for the Church and a great fidelity to the Pope and the Holy See.

Here there is no equivocation, here there is not the least temptation to deviate from the true and sound doctrine of the Church, and the Heralds of the Gospel are proving this every day. What also impresses me is their discipline. Here there is order, discipline, and the desire to work and do something for Christ and for the Church.

Furthermore, and what is rare in today’s world, there is the cult of beauty in the most sublime and noble sense of the word: the Liturgy, the hymns, the orchestra—the whole conduct of the Heralds of the Gospel is extremely noble, distinct, sublime and beautiful!

I feel happy to be able to offer my testimony today on the Heralds of the Gospel, with much optimism for the future. It is a great new religious family that has been born in the Church, thanks to the talent of Msgr. João, and it surely has a great destiny in the Church, for the good of the Kingdom of God.