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After a train accident killed at least 39 people in a southern Indian state Saturday night, an Indian archbishop has demanded that both the Indian federal and state governments focus on the safety of travelers.   "It is high time that the governments put the safety and security of its citizens above short-term political and other gains," Archbishop Anil Couto of Delhi said in a statement following the Jan. 22 derailment of the Hirakhand Express in Vizianagram district of Andhra Pradesh state.  The train plying from Jagdalpur to Bhubaneswar derailed at about 11:20 pm near Kuneri station, about 30 km from the town of Rayagada.

Expressing anguish at the frequent rail accidents, Archbishop Couto of the Indian capital, said that the government and railway officials seem to ignore and brush aside safety recommendations for train passengers.  The Indian government is pushing hard to introduce high-speed bullet trains spending millions of rupees but "is reluctant to strengthen the existing railway tracks and failing to implement the recommendations on safety and security of passengers," the prelate said.

Since last year, the country has witnessed several big and small train accidents. In November, in northern Uttar Pradesh state, 147 people died when an express train derailed. In December in the same state, another 63 people died when 14 coaches of another express train derailed.  (Source: UCAN) 

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(Vatican Radio) "The Mafia is an expression of the culture of death that is opposed to the Gospel." Those were Pope Francis' words to members of the Italian National Antimafia and Antiterrorism Directorate who he received on Monday in the Vatican.

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Meeting with the Italian National Antimafia and Antiterrorism directorate in the Vatican on Monday, Pope Francis expressed his appreciation for the difficult and risky work they do in the fight against organized crime and terrorism.

He told those gathered that society needed to be healed from corruption, extortion, the illegal trafficking of drugs and arms, and the trafficking in human beings, including children.

The Pope also commended both groups for their law enforcement activities in collaboration with other states saying that, this work carried out in synergy was important for a secure society.

During his address, the Holy Father urged them in particular  “to devote every effort especially in combating trafficking in persons and the smuggling of migrants:” these, he stressed, “are serious crimes that affect the very weakest.”

Those, he said, “who flee their countries because of war, violence and persecution are entitled to find suitable welcome and suitable protection in countries that call themselves civil.”

Pope Francis also spoke about the importance of educational initiatives aimed at the younger generation in a bid to, as he put it, “foster a consciousness of morality”, that wins over evil and promotes a social fabric that is open to the hope of a better world.

Concluding his address, the Holy Father, noting again the directorates’ hazardous work to combat corruption, the Mafia and violence, prayed that the Lord would always give them the strength to continue, and not be discouraged.

The Pope described the Mafia, “as an expression of a culture of death, which is radically opposed to faith and to the Gospel which always promotes life and he prayed that God would touch the hearts of the men and women of the various mafias, so that their lives would be converted and they would cease to do evil.

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Zambia Conference of Catholic Bishops (ZCCB) president Archbishop Telesphore Mpundu has called for the protection of children and minors.

Speaking on behalf of other Catholic Bishops of Zambia during the opening of a one-day workshop on Child Protection held at Lusaka’s Kapingila House Monday, Lusaka Archdiocese's Archbishop Mpundu described the statistics on reported cases of abused children as a tragedy.

Archbishop Mpundu further called for the reversal of the situation and announced that that the Church stands in a singular position to spearhead the campaign.

“[I am informed that] every single month at the University Teaching Hospital 120 children below the age of 8 admitted to the hospital as a result of abuse. And these are numbers of children whom we know about. These are cases reported to the police and followed up. But a greater number is not even known. This is a tragedy which must be reversed, and the Church stands ready in a singular position to spearhead this campaign,” he said.

The ZCCB president further said that the cry of the Church is to mobilise everyone in the Church to fight the abuse of children.

“Let us put together whatever we have in terms of resources so that we can move ahead. Our cry is to mobilise everyone in the Church beginning with the family. Children are most abused by people who know them,” he said.

“We have to mobilise Small Christian Communities, Lay Apostolic Movements, the Clergy, the Religious, just everyone to fight child abuse,” he added.

The ZCCB president also spoke against a conspiracy silence on child abuse.

“There is a conspiracy of silence in our society. Anything that elders do cannot go wrong. And if it goes wrong people try all ways to dismiss it. But in other parts of the world people are a lot more open about these things, but here in Zambia and Africa, in general, we are silent,” he noted.

Archbishop Mpundu also said that the situation of child abuse must be reversed, for the future of children in Zambia depends on them.

 “The future of this country is not our children of tomorrow, [but] our children of today. Because what happens to children today remains with them for the rest of their lives. And this is contagious and goes from one generation to another. So protect the children,” Archbishop Telesphore Mpundu said.

Secretary of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors Monsignor Robert Oliver commended the Catholic Church in Zambia on its stance regarding the protection of children and minors.

The one-day Child Protection workshop has drawn 46 participants from all the 11 dioceses of Zambia. It was organised by Pope Francis’ 2014 Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors.

The Pontifical Commission goes around the world to promote local responsibility by assisting Bishops, religious superiors and episcopal conferences to develop guidelines, norms, and establish safe environments for children through mutual sharing of best practices.

(Mwenya Mukuka, Communications Officer, Zambia Conference of Catholic Bishops in Lusaka)

Email: engafrica@vatiradio.va

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Vatican City, Jan 23, 2017 / 07:41 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Frequently an outspoken critic against organized crime, Pope Francis again came out with harsh words for those involved in the mafia and other criminal activities, which he said are “stained with blood” and go directly against the faith.

“The phenomena of the mafia, which is an expression of a culture of death, is (something) to oppose and to fight,” the Pope said Jan. 23.

Mafia activity “is radically opposed to the faith and to the Gospel, which are important for life,” he said, adding that true followers of Christ “have thoughts of peace, fraternity, justice, welcome and forgiveness.”

Pope Francis spoke to members of the National Anti-Mafia and Anti-terrorism Bureau during an audience with the organization in the Vatican’s Apostolic Palace.

He initially made headlines regarding the mafia in June 2014 during his visit to the southern Diocese of Cassano all'Jonio, during which he slammed mafia members for being “adorers of evil” and declaring that because they follow a path contrary to the Gospel, they are “excommunicated.”

While the Pope’s words didn’t necessarily imply an official canonical excommunication, they shocked many, especially given the fact that many “mafiosi” claim to be devout Christians and even go to Mass, while at the same time carrying out their crimes.

In his speech to the Anti-Mafia Bureau, Francis pointed to the three main criminal organizations that operate in Italy, mostly in the south: the Mafia, who operate mainly Sicily; the Camorra, who run criminal activities largely in Italy’s Campagna region, particularly in Naples, and the ‘Ndrangheta, who mostly work in Calabria.

In addition to these three main criminal circles in Italy, another more specific organization, the Sacra Corona Unita, operates largely in Puglia, also in the southern half of the country.

These criminal groups are “increasingly assuming a cosmopolitan and devastating aspect” by exploiting economic, social and political weaknesses, which Francis said are “fertile ground to achieve their deplorable projects.”

Now more than ever increased effort is needed in order to combat the activity and power of these groups, “which are responsible for violence and oppression stained by human blood.”

Society needs to be healed from corruption and exploitation, he said, naming human trafficking and the drug and arms trade as examples. Francis pointed specifically to the impact these have on children, who are often “reduced to slavery.”

Calling organized crime a “social wound,” the Pope said these groups also constitute global challenges that the international community must face “with determination,” and urged greater collaboration among States.

He also turned to the plight of migrants, many of whom fall victim to traffickers, and exhorted leaders “to dedicate every effort especially in combating the trafficking of persons and of the smuggling of migrants.”

“These are very serious crimes that affect the weakest of the weak,” he said, and called for an increase in initiatives aimed at both protecting victims of trafficking and providing assistance to incoming migrants.

“Those who leave their own countries due to war, violence and the persecutions have a right to find adequate welcome and appropriate protection in the countries that call themselves civil,” he said.

All sectors of society, particularly educational programs, families, schools, Christian communities and sporting and cultural activities, ought to promote an honest and fraternal lifestyles, he said, adding that these will “little by little overcome evil and pave the way for good.”

Pope Francis closed his speech pointing to the work many parishes already do in these areas, and prayed that the Lord would give them the strength to continue going forward in their fight against mafia, violence and terrorism.

He assured of his prayers and support, asking that “the just and merciful Lord touch the hearts of the men and women of the various mafias in order to stop, to cease doing evil, to convert and to change their lives”

“The money of dirty affairs and mafia crimes is blood money and produces an unequal power,” he said, noting that “we all know that the devil ‘enters the pockets:’ the first corruption is here.”

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Vatican City, Jan 23, 2017 / 08:24 am (CNA/EWTN News).- On Monday the Vatican announced that Msgr. Michael J. Boulette, founder of an organization dedicated entirely to giving spiritual direction and training spiritual directors, will now be an Auxiliary Bishop for the Archdiocese of San Antonio.

Headed by Archbishop Gustavo Garcia-Siller, the Archdiocese of San Antonio hasn’t had an auxiliary bishop since 2013 when their previous auxiliary, Oscar Cantu, was named as the Bishop of Las Cruces.

Bishop-elect Boulette, 66, and a member of the clergy of San Antonio, is the founder and director of the “Saint Peter upon the Water” center for spiritual direction and formation.

He launched the center in 2004 as place offering formation programs for priests who give spiritual direction, as well as opportunities for individuals to receive spiritual direction themselves. The center also publishes texts on spiritual topics and hosts speakers for parish retreats and missions.

Born June 4, 1950, in Hudson Falls, New York, Boulette and his family moved to Fredericksburg, Texas nine years later.

After getting his bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the Saint Mary University in 1971, he went on to get his masters in the subject from Trinity University in San Antonio a year later.

In 1972 began his ecclesiastical studies at the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, finishing in 1975. Boulette then pursued a Doctorate of Ministry from the Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary, which he obtained in 1993.

The bishop-elect was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of San Antonio March 19, 1976, after which he carried out several assignments, including parochial vicar of St. James Parish in Gonzales and St. Ann Parish in San Antonio.

In 1983 he was named Director of Spiritual Formation at San Antonio’s Assumption Seminary, a role he would hold for nine years, until he re-entered parish life in 1992, serving as a parish priest until 2004.

Boulette went on to serve as parochial administrator of Notre Dame Parish in Kerrville from 2010-2016.

Other roles he has held include “Vicar Forane,” meaning regional vicar, of San Antonio’s Fredericksburg Deanery since 1994; a member of the diocese’s College of Consultors since 1997; Chairman of San Antonio’s Council of Priests since 2009; and his role as founder and director of the Saint Peter upon the Water center since 2004.

He was given the title “Monsignor” in 2005, and speaks Spanish in addition to his native English.

Details regarding the new bishop-elect’s ordination have yet to be announced.

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IMAGE: CNS/Paul Haring

By Carol Glatz

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- In an effort to share its masterpieces with even more people around the world, the Vatican Museums has established a YouTube channel and revamped its website to offer high-resolution images and mobile-friendly information.

The "Musei Vaticani" YouTube channel lists short visual "tours" of some of its collections along with a handful of promotional videos highlighting specially tailored tours and services offered on-site, including signing guides for the deaf or hard-of-hearing.

Its website, museivaticani.va, has been completely revamped to be compatible with all platforms and devices in order to extend its reach to even "remote corners of the earth," said Barbara Jatta, the museums' new director, said at a Vatican news conference Jan. 23.

The site, offered in five languages, features a sleeker design, simpler texts and faster navigation, Jatta said. Links to pages can also be shared via Twitter, Facebook or email.

The website provides information about booking visits and purchasing tickets to the museums, the Vatican Gardens, the "Via Triumphalis" necropolis under the Vatican hill and the pontifical villas at Castel Gandolfo, south of Rome.

For now, the site showcases a little more than 3,000 high-resolution photographs of masterpieces in its collections. The "ideal" plan, Jatta said, is to complete within one year the addition of photographs of all 20,000 objects currently on public display and then begin working on adding images of all art objects in storage, for a total of more than 200,000 works of art.

The site also allows the public to consult and search an online catalogue of some of the museums' paintings, sculptures and other art objects. While the museums already had a registry of their entire inventory, migrating everything to the public-accessible database is still a work-in-progress, Jatta said.

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Copyright © 2017 Catholic News Service/U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. www.catholicnews.com. All rights reserved. Republishing or redistributing of CNS content, including by framing or similar means without prior permission, is prohibited. You may link to stories on our public site. This copy is for your personal, non-commercial use only. To request permission for republishing or redistributing of CNS content, please contact permissions at cns@catholicnews.com.

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By Rhina Guidos

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- After being removed from a list of partner organizations for the Women's March on Washington, members of a pro-life group based in Texas decided they still would take to the streets Jan. 21 to take part in the historic and massive event. And they said it was a good decision.

"Overall, it was an amazing experience," said Destiny Herndon-De La Rosa, of New Wave Feminists, one of the groups removed as a march sponsor.

"We were prepared for confrontation and instead were supported by so many women," said Herndon-De La Rosa told Catholic News Service.

The group posted photos on their Facebook and Instagram accounts of their participation, holding signs that read, "I'm a pro-life feminist."

"They kept coming up and telling us how glad they were that we were there and how, even though they didn't necessarily agree on the abortion issue, they thought it wrong that we were removed as partners," said Herndon-De La Rosa. "It was very cool."

Women like Herndon-De La Rosa marched for a cause. In her group's case, they are concerned about President Donald J. Trump's changing position on abortion and say they wanted him to know they'd be watching what he does on pro-life issues such as abortion, the death penalty and violence.

Others marched to voice disapproval of the new president. Many came from places near and far and after filing past the streets near Washington's most important institutions, they filled the area near the White House where its newest residents have a direct line of view toward the Washington Monument.

They were hoping the newly minted president would hear or see them and consider what they had to say.

Margie Legowski, a parishioner at Washington's Holy Trinity Catholic Church, said she took to the streets "in support of values that I don't see in this administration." Those values include equality for women and also caring about immigrants who need help.

"I want to take a stand. I don't want to be passive about it," she said. "In our faith we're called to solidarity."

That means standing up against wealth inequality and defending the vulnerable, she said. It's a means of building the kingdom of God on earth and she doesn't see that as a priority for the new president.

Like a lot of women attending the march, she hosted other female friends, nieces and a sister-in-law who lives in Germany, all of whom felt enough conviction to travel to Washington and lend their presence to the numbers of participants.

Jean Johnson, another Holy Trinity parishioner, attended the march with 11 nieces and four grandnieces. They arrived in Washington from around the country, some driving long distances and picking up other family members along the way. She said she felt pride in her large group, particularly because they adopted the values of her Irish Catholic immigrant parents and are concerned about the common good, for women and for others.

She wasn't marching against a cause or person, but rather marching for women's dignity, she said.

"I went to a Catholic school where the nuns told me I'm a temple," she told CNS. "The march is for that dignity."

And she was excited to share that moment with a new generation in her family, she said.

Some women who attended said they didn't feel president Trump valued that dignity, particularly after a leaked recording was aired during the campaign in which he was heard making lewd comments about women to an entertainment reporter.

Jack Hogan, who once worked for the Catholic Campaign for Human Development, the U.S. bishops' domestic anti-poverty program, said he was attending the march with neighbors and friends because he feels that what Trump has said goes against Catholic social teaching. He said he was hoping other Catholics, as organizations and groups, as well as church leaders, would speak up more forcefully for the poor and vulnerable at this time.

He said worries about the new president's stance on climate change, on the poor and other issues that seem to go against what Pope Francis, as the leader of the Catholic Church, says are important. He said he feels Trump lives and espouses the opposite of what the church values, including family.

As a citizen, "what (Trump) stands for is not what our participatory democracy stands for," Hogan said, adding that he could not celebrate his inauguration. Ever since Trump was elected, Hogan said he has participated in various protests and prayer events with other organizations because he worries about what will happen to the vulnerable in society. The Women's March was one of those instances, he said.

While organizers said the event was to "promote women's equality and defend other marginalized groups," some pro-life groups that wanted to be partners in the march were either removed as official sponsors days before the march -- or their application to be a sponsor was ignored.

In an interview before the march, Herndon-De La Rosa told CNS no one contacted her group to give them the news they were taken off a roster of sponsors, but they found out after a flurry of stories about it. The groups And Then There Were None and Students for Life of America also were denied or taken off the Women's March roster.

However, many members of those organizations attended the march.

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Follow Guidos on Twitter: @CNS_Rhina.

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Copyright © 2017 Catholic News Service/U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. www.catholicnews.com. All rights reserved. Republishing or redistributing of CNS content, including by framing or similar means without prior permission, is prohibited. You may link to stories on our public site. This copy is for your personal, non-commercial use only. To request permission for republishing or redistributing of CNS content, please contact permissions at cns@catholicnews.com.

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