Catholic News 2
BEDMINSTER, N.J. (AP) -- President-elect Donald Trump and Mitt Romney met Saturday at the billionaire's golf club in New Jersey, putting a year of conflict aside for a smiling handshake - though they did not indicate what, if any, role the 2012 GOP hopeful might play in the new administration....
LIMA, Peru (AP) -- Trying to tie up loose ends of his foreign policy agenda, President Barack Obama on Saturday instead found world leaders more focused on someone else: President-elect Donald Trump....
CHICAGO (AP) -- A dispute over shoes led to the fatal shooting of the grandson of Illinois U.S. Rep. Danny Davis, Chicago police said Saturday....
BEIRUT (AP) -- Government bombardment of besieged rebel-held neighborhoods in Aleppo killed at least 20 people Saturday, the worst since airstrikes resumed earlier this week, said Syrian opposition activists, as the U.S. called for an end to the bombings....
BEDMINSTER, N.J. (AP) -- President-elect Donald Trump and Mitt Romney met Saturday at the billionaire's golf club in New Jersey, both emerging with smiles and a public handshake but no word on what, if any, role the 2012 GOP hopeful might play in the new administration....
LIMA, Peru (AP) -- Warning against a rush to judgment, President Barack Obama sought Saturday to ease concerns in Latin America that President-elect Donald Trump will wipe out trade deals and create other international problems. "Don't just assume the worst," he said. "Wait until the administration's in place" before drawing conclusions....
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis created 17 new Cardinals on Saturday in St. Peter’s Basilica, during an Ordinary Public Consistory he had convoked for that purpose: 13 Cardinal-electors, and four Cardinals above the age of 80, who received the “Red Hat” in recognition of their exemplary service to the Church and witness to the Gospel.Listen to Chris Altieri's report: The 13 Cardinal-electors are: Mario Zenari, who remains the Apostolic Nuncio of the beloved and martyred Syria (Italy) Dieudonné Nzapalainga, cssp., of Bangui (Central African Republic) Carlos Osoro Sierra of Madrid (Spain) Sérgio da Rocha of Brasilia (Brazil) Blase J. Cupich of Chicago (USA) Patrick D’Rozario, csc, of Dhaka (Bangladesh) Baltazar Enrique Porras Cardozo of Mérida (Venezuela) Jozef De Kesel of Malines-Bruxelles (Belgium) Bishop Maurice Piat, cssp., of Port Louis (Mauritius) Kevin Joseph Farrell, Prefect of the Dicastery for Laity, Family, and Life (USA) Carl...
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis created 17 new Cardinals on Saturday in St. Peter’s Basilica, during an Ordinary Public Consistory he had convoked for that purpose: 13 Cardinal-electors, and four Cardinals above the age of 80, who received the “Red Hat” in recognition of their exemplary service to the Church and witness to the Gospel.
Listen to Chris Altieri's report:
The 13 Cardinal-electors are:
- Mario Zenari, who remains the Apostolic Nuncio of the beloved and martyred Syria (Italy)
- Dieudonné Nzapalainga, cssp., of Bangui (Central African Republic)
- Carlos Osoro Sierra of Madrid (Spain)
- Sérgio da Rocha of Brasilia (Brazil)
- Blase J. Cupich of Chicago (USA)
- Patrick D’Rozario, csc, of Dhaka (Bangladesh)
- Baltazar Enrique Porras Cardozo of Mérida (Venezuela)
- Jozef De Kesel of Malines-Bruxelles (Belgium)
- Bishop Maurice Piat, cssp., of Port Louis (Mauritius)
- Kevin Joseph Farrell, Prefect of the Dicastery for Laity, Family, and Life (USA)
- Carlos Aguiar Retes, Archbishop of Tlalnepantla (Mexico)
- John Ribat, msc, Archbishop of Port Moresby (Papua New Guinea)
- Joseph William Tobin, cssr, Archbishop of Indianapolis (USA). [On November 7h, 2016 the Holy Father Francis appointed him as Archbishop of Newark, USA]
The four Cardinals above the age of 80 years are:
- Anthony Soter Fernandez, Archbishop emeritus of Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia)
- Renato Corti, Bishop emeritus of Novara (Italy)
- Sebastian Koto Khoarai, OMI, Bishop emeritus of Mohale’s Hoek (Lesotho) – who did not make the trip to Rome due to his advanced age and infirmity, and who shall receive the insignia of his new office by Papal emissary
- Ernest Simoni, Presbyter of the Archdiocese of Shkodrë-Pult (Shkodër – Albania)
The Holy Father’s allocution took the form of a homily on the reading proclaimed from the Holy Gospel according to St. Luke (6:27-36), which is often referred to as the “Sermon on the Plain” since it recounts the sending of The Twelve “down” from the mountain into the plain to minister to the gathered faithful in their need.
“The Passage,” explained Pope Francis, “also contains four commands or exhortations, which the Lord gives as a way of moulding the Apostles’ vocation through real, everyday situations.” The four commands are: love your enemies; do good to those who hate you; bless those who curse you; pray for those who mistreat you.
“They are four actions that will shape, embody and make tangible the path of discipleship,” said Pope Francis. “We could say that they represent four stages of a mystagogy of mercy,” he continued.
“These are not things we spontaneously do in dealing with people we consider our opponents or enemies. Our first instinctive reaction in such cases is to dismiss, discredit or curse them,” Pope Francis said. “Often we try to ‘demonize’ them, so as to have a ‘sacred’ justification for dismissing them,” he went on to say. “Jesus,” continued Pope Francis, “tells us to do exactly the opposite with our enemies, those who hate us, those who curse us or slander us: we are to love them, to do good to them, to bless them and to pray for them.”
The Holy Father also decried the increasing polarization of the contemporary world, noting how polarization and exclusion are often considered the only way to resolve conflicts, and citing by way of example those among us with the status of a stranger, an immigrant, or a refugee, who too often are considered a threat, or take on the status of an enemy, owing to their provenance from a distant country or their different customs, or the colour of their skin, their language, their social class, their different way of thinking or even their different faith.
“Without our realizing it,” he said, “this way of thinking becomes part of the way we live and act. Everything and everyone then begins to savour of animosity. Little by little, our differences turn into symptoms of hostility, threats and violence.”
Addressing himself directly to the men created Cardinals on the occasion, Pope Francis said, “Today each of you, dear brothers, is asked to cherish in your own heart, and in the heart of the Church, this summons to be merciful like the Father – and to realize that ‘if something should rightly disturb us and trouble our consciences, it is the fact that so many of our brothers and sisters are living without the strength, light and consolation born of friendship with Jesus Christ, without a community of faith to support them, without meaning and a goal in life’ (Evangelii Gaudium, 49).”
Challenges posed by the Pentecostal phenomenon both within the Catholic Church and outside deserve the response of the Catholic Church in the context of the present day world. This is the conclusion of participants at the recently concluded International Colloquium on the Catholic Church and Pentecostalism.The colloquium, attended by over 150 academics and religion experts from the Catholic Church and other Christian denominations, from within and outside Nigeria focused on the theme: The Catholic Church and Pentecostalism: Challenges in the Nigerian Context.The four-day programme took place at the Daughters of Divine Love Retreat and Conference Centre (DRACC); Durumi, Abuja. It was organised by the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) in collaboration with the German Bishops Conference Research Group on International Church Affairs and sponsored by Mission Aachen of Germany.Speakers at the colloquium included: Archbishop Ignatius Kaigama of Jos, who is also President of ...
Challenges posed by the Pentecostal phenomenon both within the Catholic Church and outside deserve the response of the Catholic Church in the context of the present day world. This is the conclusion of participants at the recently concluded International Colloquium on the Catholic Church and Pentecostalism.
The colloquium, attended by over 150 academics and religion experts from the Catholic Church and other Christian denominations, from within and outside Nigeria focused on the theme: The Catholic Church and Pentecostalism: Challenges in the Nigerian Context.
The four-day programme took place at the Daughters of Divine Love Retreat and Conference Centre (DRACC); Durumi, Abuja. It was organised by the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) in collaboration with the German Bishops Conference Research Group on International Church Affairs and sponsored by Mission Aachen of Germany.
Speakers at the colloquium included: Archbishop Ignatius Kaigama of Jos, who is also President of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN). Archbishop Kaigama spoke on The Role of the Catholic Church in the multi-religious context of Nigeria; Mr Richard Burgess of the University of Roehampton, United Kingdom spoke on, The position of the Pentecostal movement in Nigerian society and politics; Mr Afe Adogame of United States of America made a presentation premised on Evangelizing the world, evangelizing Nigeria – Pentecostal perspective.
Other speakers included: Pastor Opoku Onyinah of Ghana who spoke on Deliverance and Liturgies; Professor Adenike Emeke of the University of Ibadan who spoke onPentecostalism: Children and Women Vulnerability; Mr. Andreas of Switzerland spoke on Divine money – Prosperity theology’s material economy of Blessing and Rev. Fr. J Obi Oguejiofor on Pentecostal Movement before the Challenges of Socio-economic Problems in Nigeria. Bishop Anselm Umoren, the Auxiliary Bishop of Abuja’s paper was centred on The lasting challenge of mission and dialogue in Nigeria.
The participants acknowledged that while Pentecostalism has become a reality with its impacts on the Catholic Church, there is the need for a proper streamlining of the practice in consonance with the doctrine of the Catholic Church. The group also called for dialogue with the Pentecostals in the spirit of ecumenism; further deliberations on the subject matter between the Churches of the two countries (Germany and Nigeria), and the setting up of a group to study the perspectives of Pentecostalism in the country in all ramifications, with a view of having an organised mode of service in the Church.
Present at the programme were: Archbishops Augustine Akubeze of Benin City, Vice-President of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria; Anthony J.V. Obinna of Owerri; Matthew Ndagoso of Kaduna; Joseph Ekuwem of Calabar; Gabriel Abegunrin of Ibadan and Felix Alaba Job, the Archbishop Emeritus of Ibadan. Also in attendance were: Bishops Lucius Ugorji of Umuahia, Emmanuel Ade Badejo of Oyo; Peter Adoboh of Katsina-Ala; Godfrey Onah of Nsukka, Michael Gokum of Pankshin and Alfred Anagbe CMF of Makurdi.
The opening ceremony was addressed by John Cardinal Onaiyekan of Abuja on behalf of the CBCN while Bishop Stefan Zekorn spoke in the name of the German Bishops Conference.
(Catholic News Service of Nigeria)
Email: engafrica@vatiradio.va
(Vatican Radio) At the conclusion of the Consistory celebration on Saturday, Pope Francis made a visit to Pope-Emeritus Benedict XVI along with 16 of the 17 new cardinals he had just created.The 16 red-hatted men, led by white-hatted Pope Francis, boarded two buses and made the short journey from St. Peter’s Basilica to the Chapel of the Mater Ecclesiae Monastery in the Vatican.There they were greeted by Pope-Emeritus Benedict XVI.The one new Cardinal missing from the group was the 87-year-old bishop from Lesotho, Africa - Sebastian Koto Khoarai, OMI.Cardinal Khoarai did not make the trip to Rome due to his advanced age and infirmity and shall receive the insignia of his new office by Papal emissary.
(Vatican Radio) At the conclusion of the Consistory celebration on Saturday, Pope Francis made a visit to Pope-Emeritus Benedict XVI along with 16 of the 17 new cardinals he had just created.
The 16 red-hatted men, led by white-hatted Pope Francis, boarded two buses and made the short journey from St. Peter’s Basilica to the Chapel of the Mater Ecclesiae Monastery in the Vatican.
There they were greeted by Pope-Emeritus Benedict XVI.
The one new Cardinal missing from the group was the 87-year-old bishop from Lesotho, Africa - Sebastian Koto Khoarai, OMI.
Cardinal Khoarai did not make the trip to Rome due to his advanced age and infirmity and shall receive the insignia of his new office by Papal emissary.
On the occasion of the closing of the Jubilee of mercy, 69 inmates of the central prison in Faisalabad were released and many more will be released, in the next few days, in other Pakistani prisons, in response to a gesture of clemency, as requested by Pope Francis, on the occasion of the Jubilee of mercy.The act took place on the occasion of the recent visit to the prison made by the Federal Minister for Human Rights, the Christian Senator, Kamran Michael, along with the Bishop of Faisalabad, Joseph Arshad, other Christian leaders and representatives of the government of Punjab and the judiciary.For the occasion, the judge of the court of first instance Abid Hussain Qureshi ordered the release of 69 prisoners involved in minor offenses, who were still in prison because, despite having served their sentence, were not able to pay the sanctions in cash provided for by the convictions. In a note sent to Fides, Minister Kamran Michael confirmed that "it was decided to release pri...
On the occasion of the closing of the Jubilee of mercy, 69 inmates of the central prison in Faisalabad were released and many more will be released, in the next few days, in other Pakistani prisons, in response to a gesture of clemency, as requested by Pope Francis, on the occasion of the Jubilee of mercy.
The act took place on the occasion of the recent visit to the prison made by the Federal Minister for Human Rights, the Christian Senator, Kamran Michael, along with the Bishop of Faisalabad, Joseph Arshad, other Christian leaders and representatives of the government of Punjab and the judiciary.
For the occasion, the judge of the court of first instance Abid Hussain Qureshi ordered the release of 69 prisoners involved in minor offenses, who were still in prison because, despite having served their sentence, were not able to pay the sanctions in cash provided for by the convictions. In a note sent to Fides, Minister Kamran Michael confirmed that "it was decided to release prisoners involved in minor crimes who are still in prisons just because unable to pay the sanctions. These sanctions will be paid through a special government fund, he added. The minister reported that the Government has started the process of releasing these prisoners across the country, adding that this process started in the central prison of Faisalabad will be extended to other prisons.
As part of a rehabilitation path, "the government has started special training courses in order to make former detainees responsible citizens and help them reintegrate into society". The initiative, he said, reflects the spirit "announced by Pope Francis in this year named as the Year of Mercy, to assign the fundamental right to freedom of these prisoners". "This policy also aims to reduce the number of prisoners in Pakistani jails, to ensure them a better accommodation in the structures", he concluded.
Minister Michael inspected various sections of the prison and met with some of the detainees to inquire about their conditions, ensuring to take the necessary measures to solve their problems.
In Pakistan there are 88 detention facilities that house a total prison population that exceeds 80 thousand prisoners, of whom 70% are awaiting trial. The official capacity of the prison system is approximately 46 thousand units, and the problem of overcrowding of prisons is felt everywhere. In its 2015 Report, the "Human Rights Commission of Pakistan", Ong widespread across the nation, recalls that "ill-treatment and torture are widespread", while "prisons are home to twice as many people than their capacity, and in some cells, prisoners do not even have a bed. "Overcrowding, does not allow the separation of inmates according to categories (under trial or already convicted), nor between minors and adults. In the Pakistani Penal system there are alternative punishments such as sanctions and fines, ordered sometimes by the courts for the sentencing of offenders considered non-violent. (Fides)
