Catholic News 2

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The Ethiopian Catholic University of Saint Thomas Aquinas (ECUSTA) is constructing a university campus on a 600,000 sq.m land in Addis Ababa. The University will initially accommodate science faculties such as medicine and different fields of engineering in accordance with the national developmental goals of the Ethiopia.

Cardinal Berhaneyesus, C.M., the Metropolitan Archbishop of Addis Ababa and Chancellor of ECUSTA recently blessed the completed buildings at the construction site. The Cardinal recalled the role played by the Catholic Church in Ethiopia in founding the first universities and in contributing to the growth of modern education.

“The Addis Ababa University and the Holy Family University in Asmara were the first steps taken towards accessing higher education locally, and they were both founded by the Catholic Church, we have been providing quality education to our society for years and now through ECUSTA we will continue to provide the service of quality education to our people,” he said.

Cardinal Berhaneyesus stressed that the success of ECUSTA would depend on the quality of its teaching staff and competitive students. He said that the Church is already preparing for the task while construction is going on.

 “We have many schools throughout the country who are giving primary and secondary education and the students are well prepared to attend tertiary education in a high standard university such as ECUSTA, moreover, we are also preparing local professors who are now at different institutions studying for their doctoral degrees,” Cardinal Berhaneyesus informed the gathering in attendance.

Fr. Tekle Meconnen, President of ECUSTA for his part said that the university was planning to begin accepting students in the new campus in the field of Prenatal Medicine starting February 2017. According to Fr. Tekle the construction of the ECUSTA campus will be completed in different phases while the learning-teaching process is going on. ECUSTA plans to begin with 5000 students per year and increase the number as they go on.

ECUSTA is founded by the Catholic Bishops Conference of Ethiopia following the request of the late Ethiopian Prime Minister, Meles Zenawi to Pope Saint John Paul II, to establish a Catholic University in Ethiopia.

Currently, ECUSTA is offering courses in Laboratory Science, Social Work and IT at two different campuses

(Makeda Yohannes, Ethiopian Catholic Secretariat)

Email: engafrica@vatiradio.va

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St. Anthony’s College in Kandy is one of the most prestigious Catholic schools in Sri Lanka.  The ‎government-assisted private school, which has a rich history of over 150 years, belongs to the Order ‎of St. Benedict of the Sylvestrian Congregation (OSB).  Its management is under the Provincial Council of ‎Central Province, one of the nine provinces of Sri Lanka.  Among several eminent personalities that ‎have passed through the portals of St. Anthony's College, are William Gopallawa, the first President ‎of Sri Lanka, and legendary cricket spin bowler, Muttiah Muralitharan. ‎

Well to talk about St Anthony's College is Fr. Clement Gnanaprakasam, the Rector of St. ‎Benedict’s College, Kandy, a private school that the Sylvestrian Benedictines started some ten years ‎ago.   Fr. Gnanaprakasam was recently in Rome on a visit, during which he spoke to us about St. ‎Benedict’s as well as St. Anthony’s Colleges.  He began by giving us a background to the presence ‎of the Sylvestrian Benedictine Congregation in Sri Lanka. ‎

Listen: 

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"The government must take notice of Shia killings. Nobody has the right to force their beliefs upon others," Father Emmanuel Yousaf Mani national director of the Pakistani Catholic bishops’ National Commission for Justice and Peace, told ucanews.com.

"The state must protect all religious minorities," he said.

Father Mani urged the majority Sunni Muslim clerics to highlight the true teachings of Islam and condemn violence in the name of religion.

Roadside camps with Shias undertaking a protest hunger strike have been erected in major Pakistani cities since May 11 when paramilitary police opened fire on protesting Shias in Parachinar, a Pakistani city bordering Afghanistan. Four Shia Muslims were killed.

Those killings were in addition to nine Shias killed in various sectarian attacks in Pakistan in May.

The Majlis-e-Wahdatul Muslimeen, a party representing Shia Muslims, claims more than 80,000 community members have been killed in the country since 1986.

"We always blamed terrorists for the bloodshed but now a state institution has proven to be biased against us," Syed Muhammad Raza, a spokesman for the party’s Lahore unit told ucanews.com.

Despite the temperature going past 40 degrees Celsius, Shias at the camps pray, listen to sermons and abstain from food and water for 12 hours.

"Leaders of religious minorities and opposition parties have visited our camps because they believe our demands are genuine," Raza said "but the federal government is still silent.”

Julius Salik, founder of the World Minority Alliance party and a Christian and former minister, has also expressed solidarity with the Shia community.

Neither the Pakistani constitution nor Islam allows for persecution, he said. "It is about time leaders speak out and say that the country is meant for all sects. Targeting any religious faction is against the dignity of the state,” he said.

Reverend Majid Abel of the Naulakha Presbyterian Church in Lahore said he understands the challenges Shias face as Christians in Pakistan are also vulnerable to such attacks as are Hindus and Ahmadis, he said. "There is a history of conflict,” he said.

Christians are the most persecuted religious minority in Pakistan. In recent years, Christians faced a series of deadly terrorist attacks leaving hundreds dead.

Almost all Muslims belong either to the majority Sunni or minority Shia branches of Islam. Muslims form about 95 percent of Pakistan's 180 million people, with the Shia community accounting for about 20 percent of the Muslim population. Less than 2 percent are Christians, Hindus and other religious minorities. Many Sunni Muslim groups view the Shia community as heretics.

(Source: ucanews.com)

 

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(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis has received in audience the first Resident Ambassador of Malaysia to the Holy See, Tan Sri Bernard Giluk Dompok.

During a private audience in the Vatican on Thursday morning, Ambassador Dompok presented his Credentials.

The Ambassador is the former minister of Plantation Industries and Commodities in Malaysia and prior to that he was Chief Minister of the State of Sabah. 

Born in 1949 in what was then British North Borneo, Dompok received his education at the mission schools of St. Michael and La Salle Secondary School before graduating at the University of East London.

His appointment as the country’s first resident ambassador to the Holy See was announced on 22 March 2016; however he has been credited with being instrumental in laying the groundwork for the establishment of diplomatic ties with the Vatican in 2011.

In a conversation with Vatican Radio’s Linda Bordoni, Ambassador Dompok speaks of the how the establishment of formal ties between Malaysia and the Holy See came about and what he hopes his contribution will be in his new role.

Listen:

Ambassador Dompok explains that the establishment of formal relations between his country and the Holy See goes back some time. He says he had the privilege to be present during discussions held with the former Apostolic Nuncio who was resident in Bangkok , and who had been coming to Malaysia and meeting with politicians and his counterparts in the hope of setting up diplomatic ties during the Papacy Saint John Paul II, and he speaks of the general feeling that “the people he met were very keen to do so”.

However, he says, the opportune moment arose only some years later when Prime Minister Najib took a serious stand regarding the issue and together with Dompok, which whom he had served on the Federal Cabinet for more than a decade, came to visit Pope Benedict XVI at his summer residence in Castel Gandolfo in 2011 where it all came to a “happy ending” with the formal establishment of diplomatic ties.

The Ambassador explains that the process has taken a long time because Malaysia is a diverse and complex nation with a vast multi-cultural, multi-racial and multi-religious reality.

“We have 60% Muslims, 30% Buddhists, Hindus and so on, and only about 10% - and a bit – Christians, and of that 10% about half of them are Catholics” he says.

He says time was needed to understand that having diplomatic ties with the Vatican will actually “convey to the world a nation that is confident of itself and is willing to take part in the world conversation”.

In fact he points out that Malaysia has much to contribute in experience to the development of inter-religious dialogue.

He speaks of how Malaysia and its ‘bigger’ neighbor, Indonesia, which both have a majority Muslim population, have much to teach the world in this sense and that, although there may be challenges and problems “we are still able to overcome most of them in order to make it possible for all races to live together”.

Dompok speaks of the current Prime Minister’s campaign to encourage “a movement of moderates” trying to rally people together to understand that communities cannot live in isolation and that those with more moderate views have a responsibility to work for peaceful dialogue.

The Ambassador says that extremism is a problem throughout the world and expresses his belief that the only way to overcome the fanaticism that leads to terrorism is to engage in reasoning and dialogue.

One of Ambassador Dompok’s core concerns is the promotion of education. “I wouldn’t be here today, speaking to you” he says “if I hadn’t the opportunity to go to a Mission school”.

And so important has Catholic education been in Malaysia, he says, that it has impacted society and empowered the people like nothing else.

“Catholics came to Borneo Island on the back of education. It was education first and then the spreading of the good news!” he says.

He explains that back home, at this moment in time, the Government has had to take over the running of the Mission schools as they have no funding and it is his concern that the Mission fathers be empowered once again.

“The Church, and the related organizations of the Church, have a vast amount of resources – not fixed assets – but expertise: people in the Church have been in education for a long time (…) and some of this can be transported to the rest of the world” he says.

Education – Ambassador Dompok believes – is the most precious tool for people in developing nations to overcome poverty, and he says one of his main appeals to people in the Vatican would certainly be to support this belief and to engage in the commitment to promote education for peace and development.

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The world's richest couple, Bill and Melinda Gates, and U.S. President Barack Obama are giving financial backing to global plans to eliminate malaria.

The Gateses aim to eradicate malaria by 2040 by doubling funding over the next decade to support the roll out of new products to tackle rising drug resistance to the disease.

Their goal of permanently ending transmission of the disease between humans and mosquitoes is more ambitious than the Sustainable Development Goal of ending epidemic levels of malaria by 2030.

They are also supporting a push to create the world's first vaccine against a parasite. Here are four of their arguments for pouring money into the ssue:

It promises almost a 20-fold return on investment:

Eradication could save 11 million lives and unlock $2 trillion in economic benefits by 2040 from a healthy, more productive workforce and health systems that are less burdened by the disease, Gates and the United Nations say. They estimate eradication would cost a fraction of this -$90 billion to $120 billion, making it one of the "best buys" in global development.

It's the only way to deal with drug-resistance:

If malaria is not eliminated from drug resistant "hot spots" in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam, multi-drug resistant malaria is likely to spread worldwide, increasing the cost and reducing the efficacy of malaria control programmes everywhere.

Donors have set a goal of eliminating malaria in this Greater Mekong region by 2020.

Tanzania's health ministry acting permanent secretary, Nkundwe Mwakyusa, said the emergence and spread of resistance to artemisinin, the most commonly used drug against malaria, in Asia was "a major concern".

In parts of Tanzania, mosquitoes can survive up to 20 times the normal dose of permethrin, the insecticide used in nets, according to Sophie Weston, a researcher with the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

More children in school, less in hospital:

Trials of the Mosquirix vaccine showed that young children in countries like Kenya fall sick with malaria up to five times in one year. Malaria is one of the main reasons why Africans miss school or work, entrenching poverty as time and money are spent in hospital, rather than learning or earning.

More than half of the deaths of children under five in Tanzanian health facilities are due to malaria, according to the United States' President's Malaria Initiative (PMI).

Malaria in pregnancy also causes about a quarter of all underweight births in Africa, according to campaign group, Malaria No More. This translates to about 100,000 neonatal deaths a year, and underweight children tend to suffer poor health.

"There's so much talk about zika and the terrifying effects during pregnancy but just in sheer scale, malaria outstrips it many times over," said Martin Edlund, chief executive of Malaria No More.

It frees up money for "the next epidemic:"

Malaria is no longer the leading cause of death among children under five in Africa, having been overtaken by acute respiratory infections, according to PMI.

It still accounts for a third of outpatient visits on mainland Tanzania, 7.3 million cases a year, it says.

"The next step is ... to focus also on non-communicable diseases," said Mohamed Alwani, medical director of Ithani-Asheri Hospital in the Tanzanian town of Arusha, referring to heart disease, diabetes and cancer.

"The way I can see it for the last five years or so now, it's going to be the next epidemic."

(Thomson Reuters Foundation, http://news.trust.org)

       

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(Vatican Radio)  The Vatican on Thursday released the programme for Pope Francis’ 27-31 July visit to Poland for the 31^st World Youth Day celebrations. 

The Pope will depart from Rome's Fiumicino airport at 2 p.m. and will arrive at the John Paul II airport of Balice-Krakow two hours later. After the welcome ceremony he will transfer to the Castle of Wawel, where he will address the civil authorities and diplomatic corps, followed by a courtesy visit to the president of the Republic. The Pope's first day in Poland will conclude with a meeting with bishops in Krakow Cathedral.

In the early morning of Thursday 28 July he will visit the Convent of the Sisters of the Presentation on the way to the airport, and at 8.30 a.m. he will transfer by helicopter to Czestochowa where, in the monastery of Jasna Gora, he will pray in the chapel of the Black Virgin before celebrating Holy Mass in the Shrine of Czestochowa on the occasion of the 1,050th anniversary of the baptism of Poland. At 12.45 p.m. he will return to Krakow where he will address the young people gathered in Jordan Park.

On Friday 29 July he will transfer by helicopter to Oswiecim. At 9.30 he will visit Auschwitz and at 10.30 the camp of Birkenau, returning to Krakow where at 4.30 p.m. he will meet patients at the university paediatric hospital, and at 6 p.m. he will preside at the Via Crucis with young people in Jordan Park.

On Saturday he will visit the Shrine of Divine Mercy in Krakow, where he will pass through the Door of Divine Mercy and confess several young people. After, at 10.30, he will celebrate Holy Mass for Polish priests, men and women religious, consecrated persons and seminarians in the St. John Paul II Shrine of Krakow. The Pope will lunch with several young people in the archiepiscopal residence and then in the evening will pass through the Holy Door in the Campus Misericordiae with various young people. There, at 7.30 p.m., he will give the opening address of the prayer vigil.

On Sunday 31 July, Francis will celebrate Mass for World Youth Day in the Campus Misericordiae, after which, at 5 p.m., he will greet the WYD volunteers, organising committee and benefactors in the Tauron Arena in Krakow. He will depart by air at 6.30 p.m., destined for Rome's Ciampino airport, where he is expected to arrive at 8.25 p.m.

 

 

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(Vatican Radio)  Pope Francis has decided to set up a committee to oversee the distribution of money to Ukrainians who are affected by the conflict in the east of the nation. The money was collected by Catholic churches across Europe on Sunday 24th April in response to a personal appeal by the Pope. The setting up of the committee came just days before a scheduled visit to Ukraine by the (Vatican) Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin.

Speaking to journalists, the Director of the Holy See’s Press Office, Father Federico Lombardi, said the money would be distributed to all those impacted by Ukraine’s conflict, regardless of their religion or ethnic group.  He said the committee will consist of a President, Jan Sobilo, auxiliary Bishop of Kharkiv-Zaporizhia, and four other members and its mandate will run for one year and will be renewed if deemed necessary. 

Experts say there are more than 1.7 million displaced people in Ukraine as a result of the conflict in the east between government troops and Russian-backed separatist forces.   

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(Vatican Radio)  The Holy See’s Permanent Representative to UN offices in Vienna, Msgr. Janusz Urbanczyk, has urged the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and the Council of Europe to pay greater attention to discrimination against Europe’s Christians and to work in unison to promote tolerance and the integration of hundreds of thousands of refugees and migrants arriving on Europe’s shores.

Msgr. Urbanczyk, who also represents the Holy See at the International Atomic Energy Agency, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization, and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization, offered his observations in a statement 9 June at the 1104th Meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council.

Below, please find the text of Msgr. Urbanczyk’s statement:

Statement re:  Address by Mr. Thorbjørn Jagland, Secretary General of the Council of Europe.

Mr. Chairman,

The  Delegation  of  the  Holy  See  joins  the  previous  speakers  in  warmly welcoming H. E. Mr. Thorbjørn Jagland, Secretary General of the Council of Europe,  to the  Permanent  Council  and thanks  him  for his  intervention.  His presence  at  this  Permanent Council reminds us once more of the great European project, inspired  -  as  Pope Francis said in his address upon receiving the Charlemagne Award last month  -by that  “ardent hope and the quest  for  solidarity” that after the Second World War  guided the founders and promoters of this project.

The  Holy  See  has  maintained  official  relations  with  the  Council  of  Europe  since 1962, having Observer status  since 1970.  In its  capacity as Observer, the Holy  See provides positive input to the Council of Europe’s work  and participates in  many  Steering and  ad hoc  Committees.  It has  ratified several Council of Europe Treaties.

During his November 2014 address to the Council of Europe, Pope Francis explained  the participation of the Holy See, saying that the Church “seeks nothing other than to  serve  and  to  bear  witness  to  the  truth”  and  “in  this  spirit,  the  Holy  See  intends  to  continue  its  cooperation  with  the  Council  of  Europe,  which  today  plays  a  fundamental role in shaping the mentality of future generations of Europeans” .

My Delegation devotes great attention to the co-operation between the OSCE  and the Council of Europe and wishes to underline that it should take place with   due  respect for the different nature and membership of the two Organizations, avoiding  duplication of efforts on matters of direct concern  to  both of them. In this regard, a  delimitation of the respective areas of competence and of differing  priorities seems  preferable to the overlapping and replication of activities.

At the same time, we all acknowledge that there are issues that are common to  both  Organizations,  where  a  well-planned  and  structured  co-operation  –  respecting  the differences  between  the  CoE  and  the  OSCE  –  could  contribute  to  the  common  good. Here I would like briefly to draw your attention to two such common concerns,  of particular relevance today: integration of migrants and promotion of tolerance.

We are witnessing an extraordinary migration of people fleeing from wars and  persecutions,  as  well  as  from  poverty  and  exclusion,  from  different  areas  close  to  Europe. According to the Holy See: “It is important to view migrants not only on the  basis of their status as regular or irregular, but above all as people whose dignity is to  be protected and who are capable of contributing to progress and the general welfare.

This  is  especially  the  case  when  they  responsibly  assume  their  obligations  towards  those  who  receive  them, gratefully  respecting the  material  and  spiritual heritage  of  the host country, obeying its laws and helping with its needs” .

With regard to the promotion of tolerance, my Delegation notes with regret that  a general rise in racism and intolerance (including anti-Semitism and discrimination  against  Muslims)  is  being  observed  in  Europe.  Furthermore,  Christians  also  suffer  intolerance and discrimination, whether they are  in the  majority or  in the  minority,  often in ways that go unnoticed.

Anti-Christian sentiment  appears to be the last acceptable prejudice and seems  to  receive  less  attention  than  other  forms  of  intolerance  because  of  Christianity’s  position  as  the  principal  religion  in  Europe.  Marginalization  and  social  hostility  against religions and  committed  believers seem to be among the main root causes of  intolerance  and  discrimination,  while  public  discourse  plays  a  fundamental  role  in  creating  and  reinforcing  patterns  of  religious  intolerance  and  discrimination.

Therefore, the Holy See encourages both the OSCE and the Council of Europe to pay  due  attention  also  to  the  discrimination  and  intolerance  against  Christians  inside  Europe, without applying any improper selectivity or hierarchical distinction. These  concerns  should  represent  a  common  concern  for  our  Organizations  since  ignoring  them  would  leave  unchecked  a  direct  threat  to  the  stability  of  the  international community or may even trigger violence and conflict on a wider-scale.

The Holy See considers  interreligious dialogue and dialogue between religious  communities and States  to be powerful tools at our disposal,  both  to promote greater  tolerance, respect and understanding,  and  to ensure the stability and security  of  our  societies.  My  Delegation  encourages  every  initiative  to  this  end,  while  inviting  all  stakeholders to keep in mind the important  differences between these two forms of  dialogue.

In  conclusion,  I  would  like  to  assure  Secretary  General  Jagland  of  the  Holy  See’s continued cooperation with  the  Council of Europe  in  its  desire to achieve what  has  become  known  as  Pope  Francis’  “dream  for  Europe”.  Also  in  his  speech  last  month, His  Holiness  said  he  “dream[s]  of  a  Europe that  promotes  and protects  the  rights of everyone, without neglecting its duties towards all  (...)  a Europe that cares  for  children,  that  offers  fraternal  help  to  the  poor  and  those  newcomers  seeking  acceptance because they have lost everything and need shelter  (…)  a Europe that is  attentive to and concerned for the infirm and the elderly, lest they be simply set aside  as  useless  (…)  a  Europe  of  families,  with  truly  effective  policies  concentrated  on  faces rather than numbers, on birth rates  more than rates of consumption” .

Lastly,  my Delegation would like to assure Secretary General Jagland of its very best wishes  for his future work.  Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

 

(Vatican Radio)  The Holy See’s Permanent Representative to UN offices in Vienna, Msgr. Janusz Urbanczyk, has urged the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and the Council of Europe to pay greater attention to discrimination against Europe’s Christians and to work in unison to promote tolerance and the integration of hundreds of thousands of refugees and migrants arriving on Europe’s shores.

Msgr. Urbanczyk, who also represents the Holy See at the International Atomic Energy Agency, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization, and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization, offered his observations in a statement 9 June at the 1104^th Meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council.

Below, please find the text of Msgr. Urbanczyk’s statement:

Statement re:  Address by Mr. Thorbjørn Jagland, Secretary General of the Council of Europe.

Mr. Chairman,

The  Delegation  of  the  Holy  See  joins  the  previous  speakers  in  warmly welcoming H. E. Mr. Thorbjørn Jagland, Secretary General of the Council of Europe,  to the  Permanent  Council  and thanks  him  for his  intervention.  His presence  at  this  Permanent Council reminds us once more of the great European project, inspired  -  as  Pope Francis said in his address upon receiving the Charlemagne Award last month  -by that  “ardent hope and the quest  for  solidarity” that after the Second World War  guided the founders and promoters of this project.

The  Holy  See  has  maintained  official  relations  with  the  Council  of  Europe  since 1962, having Observer status  since 1970.  In its  capacity as Observer, the Holy  See provides positive input to the Council of Europe’s work  and participates in  many  Steering and  ad hoc  Committees.  It has  ratified several Council of Europe Treaties.

During his November 2014 address to the Council of Europe, Pope Francis explained  the participation of the Holy See, saying that the Church “seeks nothing other than to  serve  and  to  bear  witness  to  the  truth”  and  “in  this  spirit,  the  Holy  See  intends  to  continue  its  cooperation  with  the  Council  of  Europe,  which  today  plays  a  fundamental role in shaping the mentality of future generations of Europeans” .

My Delegation devotes great attention to the co-operation between the OSCE  and the Council of Europe and wishes to underline that it should take place with   due  respect for the different nature and membership of the two Organizations, avoiding  duplication of efforts on matters of direct concern  to  both of them. In this regard, a  delimitation of the respective areas of competence and of differing  priorities seems  preferable to the overlapping and replication of activities.

At the same time, we all acknowledge that there are issues that are common to  both  Organizations,  where  a  well-planned  and  structured  co-operation  –  respecting  the differences  between  the  CoE  and  the  OSCE  –  could  contribute  to  the  common  good. Here I would like briefly to draw your attention to two such common concerns,  of particular relevance today: integration of migrants and promotion of tolerance.

We are witnessing an extraordinary migration of people fleeing from wars and  persecutions,  as  well  as  from  poverty  and  exclusion,  from  different  areas  close  to  Europe. According to the Holy See: “It is important to view migrants not only on the  basis of their status as regular or irregular, but above all as people whose dignity is to  be protected and who are capable of contributing to progress and the general welfare.

This  is  especially  the  case  when  they  responsibly  assume  their  obligations  towards  those  who  receive  them, gratefully  respecting the  material  and  spiritual heritage  of  the host country, obeying its laws and helping with its needs” .

With regard to the promotion of tolerance, my Delegation notes with regret that  a general rise in racism and intolerance (including anti-Semitism and discrimination  against  Muslims)  is  being  observed  in  Europe.  Furthermore,  Christians  also  suffer  intolerance and discrimination, whether they are  in the  majority or  in the  minority,  often in ways that go unnoticed.

Anti-Christian sentiment  appears to be the last acceptable prejudice and seems  to  receive  less  attention  than  other  forms  of  intolerance  because  of  Christianity’s  position  as  the  principal  religion  in  Europe.  Marginalization  and  social  hostility  against religions and  committed  believers seem to be among the main root causes of  intolerance  and  discrimination,  while  public  discourse  plays  a  fundamental  role  in  creating  and  reinforcing  patterns  of  religious  intolerance  and  discrimination.

Therefore, the Holy See encourages both the OSCE and the Council of Europe to pay  due  attention  also  to  the  discrimination  and  intolerance  against  Christians  inside  Europe, without applying any improper selectivity or hierarchical distinction. These  concerns  should  represent  a  common  concern  for  our  Organizations  since  ignoring  them  would  leave  unchecked  a  direct  threat  to  the  stability  of  the  international community or may even trigger violence and conflict on a wider-scale.

The Holy See considers  interreligious dialogue and dialogue between religious  communities and States  to be powerful tools at our disposal,  both  to promote greater  tolerance, respect and understanding,  and  to ensure the stability and security  of  our  societies.  My  Delegation  encourages  every  initiative  to  this  end,  while  inviting  all  stakeholders to keep in mind the important  differences between these two forms of  dialogue.

In  conclusion,  I  would  like  to  assure  Secretary  General  Jagland  of  the  Holy  See’s continued cooperation with  the  Council of Europe  in  its  desire to achieve what  has  become  known  as  Pope  Francis’  “dream  for  Europe”.  Also  in  his  speech  last  month, His  Holiness  said  he  “dream[s]  of  a  Europe that  promotes  and protects  the  rights of everyone, without neglecting its duties towards all  (...)  a Europe that cares  for  children,  that  offers  fraternal  help  to  the  poor  and  those  newcomers  seeking  acceptance because they have lost everything and need shelter  (…)  a Europe that is  attentive to and concerned for the infirm and the elderly, lest they be simply set aside  as  useless  (…)  a  Europe  of  families,  with  truly  effective  policies  concentrated  on  faces rather than numbers, on birth rates  more than rates of consumption” .

Lastly,  my Delegation would like to assure Secretary General Jagland of its very best wishes  for his future work.  Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

 

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By Carol Glatz

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- A "my way or the highway" attitude is not Catholic -- it's heretical, Pope Francis said.

"Jesus always walks with us, he gives us the ideal, he accompanies us toward the ideal, he frees us from this cage of rigidity of the law," the pope said June 9 during a morning Mass in the chapel of the Domus Sanctae Marthae.

Jesus teaches "a healthy realism," he said, one that endorses a peaceful resolution over a war of entrenched, opposing interests.

The pope's homily focused on the day's Gospel reading (Mt 5:20-26) in which Jesus tells his disciples to settle with their opponents and be reconciled with their brothers because they will be judged for harboring anger and lobbing insults.

"We are so used to (certain) adjectives and we have a very creative vocabulary for insulting others," the pope said, according to Vatican Radio. Swear words, he said, are often spoken "with much charity, but we say them to others."

Insulting others is "killing, because it is giving a slap to their soul" and dignity, he said.

In the reading, Jesus told his disciples that "unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter into the kingdom of heaven."

Holiness entails setting out and aiming high, liberating oneself from the "rigidity of laws and also from (forms of) idealism that aren't good for us," the pope said.

Jesus urges people to settle their disputes because he "knows us well" and "knows our nature," he said.

"Jesus also teaches us a healthy realism" because many times people are unable to "reach perfection," but at least they can settle their differences.

The Catholic Church also embodies this "healthy realism," he said, because it "never teaches 'either this or that.' That is not Catholic. The church says, 'This and this.'"

"'This or nothing' is not Catholic. That is heretical," he said.

Aim for the ideal and perfection, he said, but never insult others, always love and reconcile with them, he said. "If there is a problem, at least come to an agreement so that a war doesn't erupt."

The pope also said that hypocrites who do the opposite of what they preach are a "scandal, which harms the people."

Do not praise God with a mouth that insults others, the pope said.

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By Carol Glatz

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Francis will visit the Nazi death camps of Auschwitz and Birkenau during his visit to Poland for World Youth Day in Krakow.

He will also commemorate the 1,050th anniversary of Christianity in Poland, pray at the icon of the "Black Madonna" of Czestochowa, and hear confessions and have lunch with some of the young people attending the youth day gathering.

The pope's visit July 27-31 will be his 15th trip outside of Italy. He will visit three cities, give eight speeches and celebrate three Masses.

Pope Francis will be visiting Auschwitz the year that marks the 75th anniversary of the death of St. Maximilian Kolbe, who offered his life for another prisoner at the camp during World War II. The official WYD website, krakow2016.com, said the pope is expected to meet with camp survivors and pray alone in the bunker where Father Kolbe had been locked up.

While the pope will be meeting with Polish government authorities as well as bishops and religious from Poland, the focus of his visit will be the closing events of World Youth Day, which has the theme: "Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy."

Pope Francis will visit the Shrine of Divine Mercy in Krakow and walk through its Holy Door of Mercy. Local organizers said he may pray before the tomb of St. Faustina Kowalska, who is buried there.

The 2016 WYD celebration will mark the 30th anniversary of when St. John Paul II, the former archbishop of Krakow, invited bishops all over the world to hold an annual event for youth in their dioceses. The first international gathering, now held every two or three years, was in 1987 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, where Pope Francis was born and ministered before becoming pope.

In Krakow, the pope will visit a pediatric hospital, lead a Way of the Cross with young people and hold a prayer vigil the evening before the closing Mass of World Youth Day, which is expected to draw more than 1 million people, according to some government officials.

Here is the detailed schedule released by the Vatican. All times are local, with Eastern Daylight Time in parentheses:

Wednesday, July 27 (Rome, Krakow)

-- 2 p.m. (8 a.m.) Departure from Rome's Fiumicino Airport.

-- 4 p.m. (10 a.m.) Arrival at John Paul II International Airport in Krakow-Balice. Welcoming ceremony.

-- 5 p.m. (11 a.m.) Meeting with government authorities and the diplomatic corps in the courtyard of Wawel Royal Castle in Krakow. Speech by pope.

-- 5:40 p.m. (11:40 p.m.) Courtesy visit with President Andrzej Duda of Poland at Wawel Castle.

-- 6:30 p.m. (12:30 p.m.) Meeting with Polish bishops in Krakow's cathedral. Speech by pope.

Thursday, July 28 (Krakow, Czestochowa, Krakow)

-- 7:40 a.m. (1:40 a.m.) Transfer by car to airport with a stop at the Convent of the Sisters of the Presentation.

-- 8:30 a.m. (2:30 a.m.) Transfer by helicopter to Czestochowa.

-- 9:45 a.m. (3:45 a.m.) Arrival at the Jasna Gora Monastery in Czestochowa and prayer in the chapel of the "Black Madonna."

-- 10:30 a.m. (4:30 a.m.) Mass near the shrine to mark the 1,050th anniversary of the baptism of Poland. Homily by pope.

-- 12:45 p.m. (6:45 a.m.) Transfer by helicopter to Krakow.

-- 5:30 p.m. (11:30 a.m.) Welcoming ceremony at gathering with young people in Blonia Park. Speech by pope.

Friday, July 29 (Krakow, Oswiecim, Krakow)

-- 8:45 a.m. (2:45 a.m.) Transfer by helicopter to Oswiecim.

-- 9:30 a.m. (3:30 a.m.) Visit to Auschwitz.

-- 10:30 a.m. (4:30 a.m.) Visit to Birkenau extermination camp. Speech by pope.

-- 11:30 a.m. (5:30 a.m.) Transfer by helicopter to Krakow.

-- 4:30 p.m. (10:30 a.m.) Visit to University Children's Hospital. Speech by pope.

-- 6 p.m. (noon) Way of the Cross with youth in Blonia Park. Speech by pope.

Saturday, July 30 (Krakow)

-- 8:30 a.m. (2:30 a.m.) Visit to the Divine Mercy Shrine.

-- 9 a.m. (3 a.m.) Walk through the Holy Door of Mercy.

-- 9:15 a.m. (3:15 a.m.) Hearing confessions of young people in the shrine.

-- 10:30 a.m. (4:30 a.m.) Mass with priests, men and women religious, consecrated persons and seminarians from Poland in the St. John Paul II Shrine. Homily by pope.

-- 12:45 p.m. (6:45 a.m.) Lunch with young people in the archbishop's residence.

-- 7 p.m. (1 p.m.) Arrival at "Campus Misericordiae" ("Field of Mercy") and walk through the Holy Door with a small group of young people.

-- 7:30 p.m. (1:30 p.m.) Prayer vigil with youth at the "Field of Mercy." Speech by pope.

Sunday, July 31 (Krakow, Rome)

-- 10 a.m. (4 a.m.) Mass at the "Field of Mercy" to mark World Youth Day. Homily and Angelus by pope.

-- 5 p.m. (11 a.m.) Meeting with WYD volunteers, the local organizing committee and benefactors at the Tauron Arena. Speech by pope.

-- 6:15 p.m. (12:15 p.m.) Farewell ceremony at the Krakow-Balice airport.

-- 6:30 p.m. (12:30 p.m.) Departure from the Krakow-Balice airport.

-- 8:25 p.m. (2:25 p.m.) Arrival at Rome's Ciampino Airport.

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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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