Vincent Pallotti, Apostle of Faith and Charity
Frank Donio, SAC*
On 20 January 1963 Pope John XXIII declared him a Saint
On 20 January 1963, just over a month after the close of the first session of the Second Vatican Council, the rows of tiered seating on either side of the main aisle of St Peter's Basilica meant to accommodate over 2000 Council Fathers filled to capacity again. The faithful came on that day for the canonization of one person, Vincent Pallotti (21 April 1795 -22 January I850), a priest of Rome and founder of the Union of Catholic Apostolate. Blessed John XXIII, who canonized him that day, called Pallotti "an innovator of new ways whereby people could come to know and love God". For Pallotti this was the way of an apostle, one who is sent on mission, urged on by the love of Christ. As Blessed John XXIII explained, "the apostle does not nourish his personal concerns, nor seek his own glory, but he works for a reward far and eternal, happy to please God alone, and to bring souls, possibly all souls to his merciful love".
The Rome of Pallotti's day was not a place of peace and tranquility. His lifetime was punctuated by revolution and his witnessing three times over the forced absence of a pope. He experienced Catholics throwing off their faith and, therefore, saw a great need to "revive faith and rekindle charity" among Catholics and also serve the growing needs of the Church in the missions. On 9 January 1835, he was inspired to found the Union of Catholic Apostolate as a response to these needs of the Church. Pallotti called the Union an "evangelical trumpet, calling all, inviting all, rekindling zeal and charity in all the faithful of every state, situation and condition" that "would effectively cooperate in all evangelical undertakings, and in the growth, defense, and propagation of charity and of the Catholic faith" (OO CC I, 4-5). His Eminence Tarcisio Cardinal Bertone, Secretary of State, summarized the elements and effect of this inspiration in a recent letter to the Pallottine family:
"Living faith and active charity were the two pillars on which St. Vincent Pallotti rested firmly his whole luminous life and generous work, two inner forces that spurred and supported the many apostolic initiatives that filled his life. 'Caritas Christi urget nos' (2 Cor 5:14) was his motto, which also motivated his followers. The ripe fruit of his zeal was the foundation of the Union of Catholic Apostolate, that even at that time, valued the collaboration of all categories of the faithful of the Church — laity, priests, and religious — vivifying the faith of each to become an authentic apostle, carrying the fire of God's love!"
In our time there is still an urgent need to revive faith, rekindle charity, and call all the baptized to live as apostles. As in Pallotti's day, so today, faith is being thrown off, not by revolution, but by indifference, lack of engagement, disinterest. The work of the New Evangelization as articulated by Blessed John Paul IIand Pope Benedict XVI and recently reflected upon at the Synod on the New Evangelization emphasizes the intrinsic connection between faith and charity for authentic Christian living, a deepening by Catholics of their baptismal commitment through active evangelizing of self and others, and support of the missionary efforts of the Church throughout the world. These priorities of the New Evangelization were the priorities of St Vincent Pallotti as well. They are the priorities of the Union of Catholic Apostolate today. According to Fr Jacob Nampudakam, SAC, Rector General of the Society of the Catholic Apostolate and Ecclesiastical Assistant of the Union of Catholic Apostolate, "the Pallottine response to the challenge of the New Evangelization is, therefore, to revive faith and rekindle charity as apostles of Jesus in a changing world, sinking roots into a passion, the passion of St Vincent Pallotti for Christ!"
This passion for Christ in the spirit of St Vincent Pallotti is manifesting itself for the 21st century in the response of the Union of Catholic Apostolate to the needs of the New Evangelization. The Union "promotes collaboration among all the faithful in openness to new forms of evangelization" (General Statutes, n. 12). The Catholic Apostolate Center in the United States of America is one of those responses. The Center is collaborating with various Church entities at the international, national, diocesan, and local levels to provide in-person and online formation programs for the New Evangelization and assists in fostering deeper collaboration and greater co-responsibility among all the baptized.
In this jubilee year of the 50th anniversary of the canonization of St. Vincent Pallotti, the Union of Catholic Apostolate actively pursues what Blessed John Paul II called it to do over 25 years ago: "Continue to multiply your efforts so that what was prophetically announced by Vincent Pallotti, and the Second Vatican Council authoritatively confirmed, may become a happy reality, that all Christians are authentic apostles of Christ in the Church and in the world".
*Director of The Catholic Apostolate Center, Washington, D.C.
Taken from:
L'Osservatore Romano
Weekly Edition in English
23 January 2013, page 12
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