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(Vatican Radio) Eight Turkish officers who landed in Greece in a helicopter Saturday have been charged with illegal entry. 

As John Carr in Athens reports, the eight officers have applied for political asylum and Athens is examining their demand.

Listen: 

The Greek government today indicated it would speed up procedures to hear an asylum request by eight Turkish servicemen who fled in their helicopter to Greek territory two days ago in the wake of the failed Turkish coup.

   The helicopter has been returned, but the eight Turks, detained in the northern Greek town of Alexandroupolis, went before a court on charges of illegally entering the country.  They denied knowing anything of the coup attempt, saying they were merely following orders, and when they found out what was going on, fled to Greece.

   Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has demanded the extradition of the eight men, and claimed today that Greek prime minister Alexis Tsipras promised to send themback within a couple of weeks.  But Greek officials said the process could take days, if not weeks, adding that the men’s human rights would be respected. 

   Decoded, that statement appears to mean that the government here in Athens is not sure how to act, and could well face a strong public backlash if the eight men are sent back to face Erdogan’s vengeance.

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(Vatican Radio) The European Union and the United States have expressed alarm with Turkey's response to a failed coup after thousands of people, including opponents of the government and members of the judiciary, were detained and thousands of police officers removed from their post. And the EU expressed concerns over plans by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to re-instate the death penalty.  

Listen to the report by Stefan Bos:

Speaking in Brussels, EU Foreign Policy Chief Federica Mogherini said this weekend's coup attempt was in her words "no excuse to take the country away from fundamental rights and the rule of law" and explained that the 28-nation bloc would be extremely vigilant on that. 

She also made clear that plans by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to reinstate the death penalty would harm Turkey's efforts to become an EU member. "Let me be very clear...No country can become an EU member state if it introduces the death penalty,” she said. "This is for sure....Turkey is an important part of the Council of Europe and as such is bound by the European Convention on Human Rights, which is very clear on the death penalty.”
  
She spoke at a news conference with US secretary of State John Kerry after Turkey's government said more than 7,500 people were detained, including hundreds of judges and prosecutors and other perceived opponents of Turkey's leadership.  

THOUSANDS DISMISSED

Up to 8000 police officers, dozens of governors and more than 50 high-ranking civil servants were dismissed for allegedly supporting the coup.

Secretary Kerry echoed the EU's concerns about these developments."Now, obviously, a lot of people have been arrested and arrested very quickly, and so as Federica has said, I think the level of vigilance and scrutiny is obviously going to be significant in the days ahead. And we’ll work very closely, and hopefully we can work in a constructive way that prevents a backsliding, and that is our hope," he said.

Kerry added that Washington would consider an extradition request for the US-based cleric that Turkey's president is blaming for a failed coup attempt. But he said Turkey's government would have to prove Fethullah Gulen's wrongdoing.

The cleric, a former ally-turned-rival of Turkey's president has denied involvement in the coup and said it appeared a "staged or hoax coup" as part of an apparent attempt to silence opponents of President Erdogan. "First of all the important political leaders who are supposed to be taken into custody in the military coup, they were not touched. They were not pursued. Empty buildings were bombed, people fired on innocent civilians, tanks were positioned in places and did nothing. When you look at this big picture, this is not the picture of an authentic coup," he told reporters.   

The tensions come while the situation in Turkey remains volatile: In the latest violence, an unidentified assailant burst into the office of the deputy mayor of a district in Istanbul and shot him in the head. The coup itself left more than 200 people dead and more than 1,500 wounded. 
 

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Munich, Germany, Jul 18, 2016 / 09:55 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Archbishop Georg Ganswein has criticized the German Church Tax process, calling its handling of people opting out of the controversial system “a serious problem.”

In a wide-ranging interview published Monday in Schwäbische Zeitung, the Prefect of the Papal Household and secretary to both Pope Francis and Pope emeritus Benedict also spoke candidly about the papal propensity for “flippant” remarks and the media's handling of them.

Figures released Friday show that Catholicism in Germany continues to be in decline, with almost 190,000 Catholics leaving the Church in 2015.

With a view to the situation in his native country, Ganswein, who is the son of a blacksmith from the Black Forest region, criticized how the Church Tax System in the country handles Church membership.

Echoing concerns voiced repeatedly by Pope Benedict, Archbishop Ganswein was particularly critical of how the system ties payment of the tax to membership in the Church.

The Catholic Church in Germany received a record windfall of 6 billion Euros in 2015 — about 6.64 billion U.S. Dollars — despite dwindling membership numbers, thanks largely to the strength of the German economy, which translated to more income for Catholic taxpayers.

When Germans register as Catholic, Protestant, or Jewish on their tax forms, the government automatically collects an income tax from them which amounts to 8 or 9 percent of their total income tax, or 3-4 percent of their salary.

The “church tax” is given to the religious communities, rather than those communities collecting a tithe. The Church uses its funds to help run its parishes, schools, hospitals, and welfare projects.

The topic is one of several ongoing debates in Germany, and has been for years. One particularly controversial aspect is how Catholics are dealt with who decide to no longer pay the tax – for whatever reason. “They are effectively excommunicated,” the interviewer suggests to Archbishop Ganswein, and the German prelate agrees, saying:

“Yes, that is a serious problem. How does the Catholic Church in Germany react to someone leaving? By automatic expulsion from the community, in other words, excommunication! That is excessive, quite incomprehensible. You can question dogma, no one is concerned about that, no one gets kicked out. Is the non-payment of the Church tax a bigger offense against the Faith than violations of the tenets of Faith?”

The Prefect of the Papal Household warned that the impression the current system gives, “is this: As long as the Faith is on the line, that is quite acceptable, however when money enters the equation, things get serious.”

The interviewer, Hendrik Groth, also asked Archbishop Ganswein whether he still stands by remarks he publicly made shortly after the election of Pope Francis that theologically, you could not fit a sheet of paper between the new Pope and his predecessor.
 
“I have asked myself the same question; and judging by everything I hear and perceive, I still positively perceive this to be the case. Considering the base lines of their theological convictions, there is definitely a continuity there.”

Given the external differences between the two Popes, Archbishop Ganswein said: “Obviously I am also aware that occasionally doubt might be cast on this, given the differences in representation and expression. But when a Pope wants to change an aspect of the doctrine, then he has to do so clearly, so as to make it binding.”

“Important magisterial tenets cannot be changed by half sentences or somewhat ambiguous footnotes,” the German archbishop said, alluding to the controversy over the post-synodal apostolic exhortation Amoris Laetitia. He further warned, “Statements that can be interpreted in different ways are a risky thing.”

Acknowledging the cultural and personal differences between Pope Francis and his predecessor, Archbishop Ganswein reflected that “one has to simply accept the fact that his [Francis'] way of speaking can at times be somewhat imprecise, indeed flippant. Every Pope has their own personal style.”

The archbishop said he is sure that Pope Francis will not change his way of talking, even if that sometimes “leads to bizarre interpretations.”

However, Archbishop Ganswein also reflected on what role the media plays in the perception that the Pope is no longer “as solid as a rock, no longer a final anchor.”

"Uncertainties, occasionally even confusion and mayhem, have certainly increased," he said, adding that the “Francis Effect” some German bishops predicted after the election, expecting it would lead to fuller pews and a boost to Catholic life in the nation, “appears not to have transpired.”

 

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IMAGE: CNS/Nancy Wiechec

By Carol Zimmermann

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- The threat of being pulled over by police and arrested for something that even "hinted of going beyond the status quo," was very real to retired Bishop John H. Ricard of Pensacola-Tallahassee, Florida, when he was growing up in segregated Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

The African-American bishop, president of the National Black Catholic Congress, said he and his friends "lived under constant threat of being arrested" during his teenage years.

Now decades later, he said that "like everyone else, I was very dismayed" by the recent fatal shootings of Alton Sterling in Baton Rouge July 5 and Philando Castile a day later in suburban St. Paul, Minnesota, by police officers, followed by the sniper shooting July 7 in Dallas which killed five police officers.

After this surge of shootings, he said, many people have been asking: "Where do we go from here and what does all this mean?"

And Catholics are no exception. He said black Catholic leaders in particular are looking for ways to address the violence, racism and mistrust that were on full display during the early July shootings.

"They're asking the church: 'Give us some direction; show us some leadership. Show us our concerns are your concerns and that you are with us because we see ourselves under siege in many ways,'" Bishop Ricard told Catholic News Service.

The violent actions served as a "wake-up call for all of us, a jolt," he added.

But he also thinks the Catholic Church has a lot to "bring to the table" to bridge racial divides, pointing out that it has a long history of speaking up for civil rights. "We just have to recapture that," he said July 15 in an interview at the Josephites' St. Joseph's Seminary in Washington, where he is rector. The order, formally known as the Society of St. Joseph of the Sacred Heart, was founded to serve newly freed slaves in the United States and now ministers in African-American communities.

"We've got a lot of work to do" to combat racism, he said.

For starters, people need to acknowledge that it exists. The bishop said black people see racism everywhere but white people often deny it exists.

Louisiana Bishop Shelton J. Fabre of Houma-Thibodaux similarly said the first step is recognizing there is a problem and a lot of "understandable fear, anger and hurt out there."

The African-American bishop, who is chairman of the Subcommittee on African-American Affairs for the U.S. bishops, noted realistically that it is "going to take a lot of time to restore trust and bring healing."

"As Catholics we know, reconciliation is a process, there are no magic pills, as much as we might want them."

But he also said the Catholic Church, with its diversity, can play a unique role in bringing about healing because it can "remind all that racism is a sin."

Moving on from that, he said, requires basic steps of listening to one another and changing hearts and minds or perceived attitudes.

Bishop Fabre said taking this next step involves what Pope Francis describes as encounters -- understanding the crosses others carry and the gifts they bring which enriches us.

The bishop doesn't see this as something complicated but as part of a process that begins with people talking and listening to each other about race.

As both bishops looked to a way forward from the recent string of violence, their words echoed parts of a pastoral letter on the racial divide in the United States, written last year by Bishop Edward K. Braxton of Belleville, Illinois.

The pastoral letter emphasized that "renewed efforts must be made to re-establish bonds of trust and respect between law enforcement, the judicial system, and local communities."

"We know that it is almost impossible for a family, a parish, or even a diocese to transform nationwide social structures that reinforce the racial divide," Bishop Braxton wrote, calling Catholics to pray about the race issue and to begin talking about it.

"We are living through a seminal moment that has the power to transform our nation," the African-American bishop wrote.

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Follow Zimmermann on Twitter: @carolmaczim.

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IMAGE: CNS photo/Jonathan Bachman, Reuters

By

BATON ROUGE, La. (CNS) -- Baton Rouge Bishop Robert W. Muench renewed a call for a diocesan-wide week of prayer, fasting and reflection after the latest fatal shootings in the city, which this time took the lives of three law enforcement officers.

He urged all to "work toward a lasting peace in our communities."

Early July 17, a former Marine fatally shot three police officers, and wounded three more, one critically, less than a mile from the city's police headquarters. The gunman, later identified as Gavin Long of Missouri, was killed at the scene, officials said.

Baton Rouge was still reeling from the fatal shooting of Alton Sterling, 37, by police during an altercation outside a convenience store July 5. The first week of July also saw the fatal shooting of Philando Castile, 32, in suburban St. Paul, Minnesota, by police officers July 6, followed by the sniper shooting in Dallas that killed five police officers July 7.

"Words cannot express the emotions we feel for those who have lost loved ones in the tragic events of this day," Bishop Muench said in a statement. "Their entire lives have been unexpectedly and terribly turned upside down."

He said he and the diocese's vicar general, Father Tom Ranzino, visited two of the families affected by the shootings later that afternoon to share "prayer and support in the midst of their shock, horror and grief."

"Prayer is a powerful path to follow when tragedy happens, but even the most devout of us sometime question: 'What good could come of this?'" the bishop said. "Only the word of God has the answer to the questions that shake our faith: The answer is our Lord Jesus Christ. In Jesus, hope ultimately triumphs over despair; love ultimately triumphs over hate; and resurrection ultimately triumphs over death."

In the neighboring Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux, Bishop Shelton J. Fabre said that "our tears are still falling and our fresh and fervent prayers are still ascending to God" over the earlier violence and loss of life in Louisiana when the law enforcement offers were ambushed in Baton Rouge, a diocese "very close to home for us."

"As a native of New Roads and a priest of the Diocese of Baton Rouge for 17 years, I feel a deep ache in my heart because of recent violence that has happened there," said Bishop Fabre in a reflection posted July 17 on his Facebook page.

"My sincere condolences to those who have lost loved ones today or in the past weeks in the violence that has occurred in Baton Rouge, Minneapolis, Dallas, Istanbul and Nice," he said. "Unfortunately, I fear that we as a nation and a world are becoming too accustomed to the tragic events of violence and loss of human life such as has occurred over the past few weeks."

He said in such times, he is drawn to the Lord's words to the prophet Isaiah: "Comfort my people." He said he also chose those words for his episcopal motto "because I feel that deep within the heart of God is a desire to comfort us in our pain.

"Each of us reacts differently to violent tragedy. Some of us may be angry. Violence pierces our hearts and leaves us in pain. Anger flows from pain," Bishop Fabre said. "For those of us who are angry, I simply remind us that underneath the anger, in the pain, there is God wanting to 'comfort his people.'

"Some of us may have questions like, 'Will the violence and killing stop? When will this end?' Those are great questions. There, in the questions and together genuinely seeking to find answers constructively, we will find God listening to us wanting to 'comfort his people.'"

He called on all people of Houma-Thibodaux, regardless of their religion or their history, to pray, whether in privacy at home or at a large church gathering.

Bishop Fabre urged people to consider three things in prayer: "First, to each personally pray daily for an end to violence. Violence is a complex evil; however, violence is often propelled by selfishness and self-centeredness. We as people must look 'outside of ourselves,' we must turn to God, for it is in him that our true peace lies."

Secondly, he said people should come together in prayer, and asked every Catholic church in the diocese over the next two weeks to offer a Holy Hour "to pray for an end to violence."

Thirdly, "let us continue to work together for justice and peace," Bishop Fabre said.

"As Pope Francis has indicated," he continued, "we must truly seek to 'encounter' those who are racially or ethnically different from us in a real effort to appreciate the countless gifts that unite us, and to seek to address and to solve the problems that challenge and seek to divide us, complicating our lives together. When we learn to 'see' people with the eyes of the Lord, we will then move forward in justice and peace."

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Copyright © 2016 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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