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BAGHDAD (AP) -- The retaking of the small western town of Rutba from two years of Islamic State occupation was an important morale booster for Iraqi security forces, the top U.S. commander in Baghdad said Friday....
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CAIRO (AP) -- Search crews found human remains, luggage and passenger seats Friday from the EgyptAir jetliner that fell out of the sky over the Mediterranean Sea, as investigators tried to determine whether the disaster was the work of terrorists....
Prv 8:22-31; Rom 5:1-5; Jn 16:12-15A wonderful story is told of a missionary from in a tropical country, who on his home-leave, came across a beautiful sundial. He thought to himself, “That sundial would be ideal for my villagers in the mission. I could use it to teach them to tell the time of the day.” The missionary bought the sundial, crated it and took it along when he returned to his mission. When the village chief saw it, he insisted that it be set up in the centre of the village. The villagers were thrilled with the sundial. They had never seen something so beautiful in their lives. They were even more thrilled when they learned how it worked. The missionary was delighted by everyone’s response to his sundial. He was totally unprepared for what happened a few days later. The people of the village got together and built a roof over the sundial to protect it from the rain and the sun! Well, I think the sundial is a lot like the Holy Trinity, and we Christian...
Prv 8:22-31; Rom 5:1-5; Jn 16:12-15
A wonderful story is told of a missionary from in a tropical country, who on his home-leave, came across a beautiful sundial. He thought to himself, “That sundial would be ideal for my villagers in the mission. I could use it to teach them to tell the time of the day.” The missionary bought the sundial, crated it and took it along when he returned to his mission. When the village chief saw it, he insisted that it be set up in the centre of the village. The villagers were thrilled with the sundial. They had never seen something so beautiful in their lives. They were even more thrilled when they learned how it worked. The missionary was delighted by everyone’s response to his sundial. He was totally unprepared for what happened a few days later. The people of the village got together and built a roof over the sundial to protect it from the rain and the sun! Well, I think the sundial is a lot like the Holy Trinity, and we Christians are a lot like the villagers in the story. The most beautiful revelation of our faith is the teaching about the Holy Trinity, namely, the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. But instead of putting the teaching to work in our daily lives, we have built a roof over it, just as the villagers did over their sundial. For many of us the Trinity seems of little practical value, when it comes to our daily lives. We treat it more like an ornament of our faith.
Introduction: Today’s feast invites us to live in the awareness of the presence of the Triune God within us: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. The mystery of the Holy Trinity, a doctrine enunciated by the ecumenical councils of Nicaea and Constantinople, is one of the fundamental doctrines of Christianity and the greatest mystery of our Faith, namely, that there are Three Divine Persons, sharing the same Divine nature in one God. “There is one God, Who has three Persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Each Person is God, yet there is still only one God” (C.C.C. #234, #253-256). We have Father Who is the Creator, Son the Redeemer and Holy Spirit the Sanctifier and the Counselor. The doctrine of Three Persons in one God, equal in Divinity yet distinct in Person, is not explicitly spelt out in the Bible. Even the very word “Trinity” is not found in the Bible. But the doctrine of the Trinity underlies all major Christian feasts, including Christmas, the Epiphany, Good Friday, Easter, the Ascension and Pentecost. All the official prayers of the Church, including the Holy Mass and the Sacraments, begin with an address to the Holy Trinity: “In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” We are baptized, absolved of our sins and anointed in the name of the Blessed Trinity. Throughout the world, church bells can ring three times a day inviting Christians to pray to God the Father (the Provider); God the Son (the Savior); and God the Holy Spirit (the Sanctifier). We bless ourselves with the Sign of the Cross invoking the Name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit and we conclude our prayers glorifying the Holy Trinity, saying “Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.” Today’s readings convey the fundamental mystery that the Triune God reaches out to people in love, seeking the deepest communion with them.
Scripture lessons: Today’s readings from Proverbs, Romans, and John are all about "pouring out." God pours Self out in Word; God and Word pour out the Spirit to help us pour ourselves out; and the Spirit pours forth Faith and strength and character. Instead of spelling out the doctrine of Holy Trinity, today’s readings summarize the effects of the Trinity in our daily lives. The Book of Proverbs reflects on Wisdom, a quality which that book identifies with God. St. Paul, in his Letter to the Romans, teaches us that we have peace with God the Father through Jesus Christ, and that the love of God has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit. In today's Gospel, Jesus, the Son of God, mentions the role of the Holy Spirit, His close relationship with God the Father and what the Holy Spirit is going to do for us as we go about our daily tasks. God has revealed to us three separate functions that are carried out by the three Persons. He has told us that it is proper to attribute to God the Father the work of creation; to God the Son, the work of Redemption, of reconciliation and of healing, and to the Holy Spirit, the work of guidance in truth, in the work of teaching and in the work of sanctification. As the Father, God has brought forth the created universe and even our very selves. As God’s Son and our Brother, Jesus, He has made known a God Who hears our cries, Who cares, Who counts the hairs on our head and Who loves us so passionately that He became one of us, to suffer for our sins, to die that we may live. As Spirit, God remains with and within us as Paraclete: Guide, Advocate and Consoler.
Exegetical notes
1) The development of the Trinitarian doctrine in the Church. The oldest doctrinal formulation of the Church’s belief in the Trinity is found in the Apostles’ Creed which has served both as the basis of instruction for catechumens and as the Baptismal confession of Faith since the second century. Later, the Nicene Creed, originating at the Council of Nicaea (AD 325), stated the doctrine more explicitly. This creed was introduced into our Western liturgy by the regional council of Toledo in AD 589. God has revealed to us three separate functions that are carried out by the Three Persons. He has told us that it is proper to attribute to God the Father the work of Creation, to God the Son the work of Redemption and to God the Holy Spirit the work of Sanctification. Our knowledge of God as Trinity is made possible by God, Who has chosen to reveal Himself as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. As Father, God has brought forth the created universe, including our own being. As Son, Jesus has made known a God who hears our cries, who cares, who counts the hairs on our head and who loves us so passionately that He became one of us in order to suffer for our sins, and even to die for us. As Spirit, God remains with us and within us.
2) The Triune God as seen in the Old Testament: Since Yahweh, the God of Israel, was careful to protect His Chosen People from the pagan practice of worshipping several gods, the Old Testament books give only indirect and passing references to the Trinity, and the Jewish rabbis never understood them as references to the Holy Trinity. Genesis 1:26 presents God speaking to Himself: "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness." Genesis 18:2 describes how Yahweh visited Abraham under the appearance of three men, an event that the Russian Orthodox Church celebrates as the “Trinitarian Experience of Abraham.” In Genesis 11:7, before punishing the proud builders of the Tower of Babel, God says, “Come, let Us go down among them and confuse their language. “These passages imply, rather than state, the doctrine of the Trinity.
3) Clear doctrine of the Trinity in the New Testament.
a) The Annunciation (Luke 1: 26-38), describes how God the Father sent the angel Gabriel to Mary to announce to her that God the Holy Spirit, would "overshadow" her, and that God the Son would be made flesh in her womb.
b) During the baptism of Jesus (Matthew 3: 16-17), the Holy Spirit was shown descending on Jesus in the form of a Dove, while the Voice of God the Father was heard from the clouds.
c) John (Chapters 15 through 18), presents the detailed teaching of Jesus on the Persons of the Holy Trinity.
d) In the preaching mission given by the risen Lord to the disciples, Jesus commanded them to baptize people “in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” (Confer also Matthew 28:19; John 10:30).
Life messages: 1) We need to respect ourselves and respect others. Our conviction of the presence of the Triune God within us should help us to esteem ourselves as God’s holy dwelling place, to behave well in His holy presence, and to lead purer and holier lives, practicing acts of justice and charity. This Triune Presence should also encourage us to respect and honor others as "Temples of the Holy Spirit."
2) We need to be aware of God as the Source of our strength and courage. The awareness and conviction of the presence of God within us, gives us the strength to face the manifold problems of life with Christian courage. It was such a conviction that prompted the early Christian martyrs, when taken to their execution, to shout the heroic prayer of Faith from the Psalms: "The Lord of might is with us, our God is within us, and the God of Jacob is our helper" (Psalm 46).
3) We need to see the Trinity as the model for our Christian families: We are created in love to be a community of loving persons, just as the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are united in love. From the day of our Baptism, we have belonged to the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. How privileged we are to grow up in such a beautiful Family! Hence, let us turn to the Father, Son and Holy Spirit in prayer every day. We belong to the Family of the Triune God. The love, unity and joy in the relationship among the Father, Son and Holy Spirit should be the supreme model of our relationships within our Christian families. Our families become truly Christian when we live in a relationship of love with God and with others.
4) We are called to become more like the Triune God through all our relationships. We are made in God’s image and likeness. Just as God is God only in a Trinitarian relationship, so we can be fully human only as one member of a relationship of three partners. The self needs to be in a horizontal relationship with all other people and in a vertical relationship with God. In that way our life becomes Trinitarian like that of God. Modern society follows the so-called “I-and-I” principle of unbridled individualism and the resulting consumerism. But the doctrine of the Blessed Trinity challenges us to adopt an "I-and-God-and-neighbor" principle: “I am a Christian insofar as I live in a relationship of love with God and other people.” Like God the Father, we are called upon to be productive and creative persons by contributing to the building up of the fabric of our family, our Church, our community and our nation. Like God the Son, we are called upon to reconcile, to be peacemakers, to put back together that which has been broken, to restore what has been shattered. Like God the Holy Spirit, it is our task to uncover and teach truth and to dispel ignorance. (Trinitarian spirituality: “The doctrine of the Trinity affirms that it belongs to God’s very Nature to be committed to humanity and its history, that God’s Covenant with us is irrevocable, that God’s face is immutably turned toward us in love, that God’s presence to us is utterly reliable and constant.... Trinitarian spirituality is one of solidarity between and among persons. It is a way of living the Gospel attentive to the requirements of justice, understood as rightly ordered relationships between and among persons.” Dictionary of Spirituality)
St. Francis Xavier’s favorite prayer was: “Most Holy Trinity, Who live in me, I praise You, I worship You, I adore You and I love You.” Let the Son lead us to the Father through the Spirit, to live with the Triune God forever and ever. Amen.
A teacher of a high school class once put a small chalk dot on the blackboard. He then asked the class what it was. A few seconds passed and then someone said, "That is a chalk dot on the blackboard." The rest of the class seemed relieved that the obvious had been stated, and no one else had anything to say. "I'm surprised at you," the teacher told the class. "I did the same exercise yesterday with a group of kindergartners and they thought of 50 different things the chalk mark could be: an owl's eye, a cigar butt, the top of a telephone pole, a star, a pebble, a squashed bug, a rotten egg, a bird's eye, and so on." The older students had learned how to find a right answer, but had lost the ability to look for more than one right answer. The Holy Spirit helps us, in his wonderful Wisdom, to see more than we might have seen by ourselves. The Spirit's vision allows us wonderful options for expansion and new possibilities. It is the Spirit's Wisdom that reveals the Word to us. It is the Wisdom of the Spirit which shows us our sin, which guides us, which instructs us, which leads us in the way everlasting.
Source: Homilies of Fr. Anthony. Kadavil.
(Vatican Radio) Announcing the word of God should never be dissociated from the understanding of human weakness. That was Pope Francis’ message during the daily Mass at the Casa Santa Marta. Commenting on the Gospel passage in which Christ speaks with the Pharisees about adultery, he said the Lord overcomes the human vision which would reduce the vision of God to a casuistic equation.The Gospel, the Pope said, is full of examples of the Pharisees and the doctors of the law attempting to trap Jesus by catching Him off guard, seeking to undermine the authority and favour he enjoys with the people. One of those attempts is related in the day’s Gospel, in which the Pharisees tempt Him by asking if it is licit for a man to put away his wife.Truth, not casuistryPope Francis speaks of the “trap” of “casuistry,” concocted by “a small group of enlightened theologians,” convinced that they “have all the knowledge and wisdom of the people...
(Vatican Radio) Announcing the word of God should never be dissociated from the understanding of human weakness. That was Pope Francis’ message during the daily Mass at the Casa Santa Marta. Commenting on the Gospel passage in which Christ speaks with the Pharisees about adultery, he said the Lord overcomes the human vision which would reduce the vision of God to a casuistic equation.
The Gospel, the Pope said, is full of examples of the Pharisees and the doctors of the law attempting to trap Jesus by catching Him off guard, seeking to undermine the authority and favour he enjoys with the people. One of those attempts is related in the day’s Gospel, in which the Pharisees tempt Him by asking if it is licit for a man to put away his wife.
Truth, not casuistry
Pope Francis speaks of the “trap” of “casuistry,” concocted by “a small group of enlightened theologians,” convinced that they “have all the knowledge and wisdom of the people of God.” It is a snare from which Jesus escapes, he says, by going “beyond,” “to the fullness of matrimony.” The Lord had already done so with the Sadducees, the Pope recalled, when they had questioned Him about the woman who had had seven husbands. At the resurrection, Jesus affirmed, she would not be the wife of any of them, because in heaven “they neither marry nor are given in marriage.”
In that case, the Pope said, Christ looked to the “eschatological fullness” of marriage. With the Pharisees, on the other hand, He referred to “the fullness of the harmony of creation.” “God created them male and female,” and “the two became one flesh.”
“They are no longer two, but one flesh,” and so “no human must separate what God has joined. Both in the case of the levirate marriage and in this case, Jesus responds with the overwhelming truth, with the blunt truth: This is the truth! Always from the fullness. And Jesus never negotiates with the truth. And these people, this small group of enlightened theologians, always negotiate with the truth, reducing it to casuistry. And Jesus never negotiates with the truth. And this is the truth about marriage, there is no other.
Truth and understanding
“But Jesus,” Pope Francis continued, “so merciful, He is so great, that he never, never, never, closes the door to sinners.” And so He does not limit Himself to proclaiming the truth of God, but goes on to ask the Pharisees what Moses had established in the Law. And when the Pharisees responded that Moses permitted a husband to write a bill of divorce, Jesus replied that this was permitted “because of the hardness of your hearts.” That is, the Pope explained, Jesus always distinguished between the truth and “human weakness” without “twisting words.”
In the world in which we live, with this culture of the provisional, this reality of sin is so strong. But Jesus, recalling Moses, tells us: “But there is hardness of heart, there is sin, something can be done: forgiveness, understanding, accompaniment, integration, discernment of these cases… But always… But the truth is never sold. And Jesus is capable of stating this very great truth, and at the same time being so understanding with sinners, with the weak.
Forgiveness is not an equation
And so, Pope Francis emphasized, these are “the two things that Jesus teaches us: truth and understanding.” This is what the “enlightened theologians” fail to do, because they are closed in the trap of “a mathematical equation” of “Can it be done? Can it not be done?” and so they are “incapable both of great horizons, and of love” for human weakness. It is enough to see, the Pope concluded, the “delicacy” with which Jesus treated the adulteress woman who was about to be stoned: “Neither do I condemn you: Go forth, and sin no more.”
May Jesus teach us to have at heart a great adhesion to the truth, and also at heart a great understanding and accompaniment for all our brothers who are in difficulty. And this is a gift, this is what the Holy Spirit teaches us, not these enlightened doctors, who to teach us need to reduce the fullness of God to a casuistic equation. May the Lord give us this grace.
Listen:
The Kenya Government’s cabinet secretary for East African Affairs, Commerce and Tourism, Phyllis Kandie has said that the family is the fundamental unit of society.“If we get it right at the family level, then we are assured of a stable well-structured society,” Kandie affirmed. She was speaking, this week, during the National Family Conference to commemorate The United Nations International day of the family at Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD) in Nairobi.Kandie revealed that the government of Kenya was focusing on youth empowerment and involvement by developing specific programs targeting the young people to mitigate challenges that they face.Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB) – Commission for Pastoral and Lay Apostolate National Executive Secretary Fr. Charles Odira told the same conference that diminishing family values and poor leadership had immensely contributed to challenges that families face. He called on Kenyan political l...
The Kenya Government’s cabinet secretary for East African Affairs, Commerce and Tourism, Phyllis Kandie has said that the family is the fundamental unit of society.
“If we get it right at the family level, then we are assured of a stable well-structured society,” Kandie affirmed. She was speaking, this week, during the National Family Conference to commemorate The United Nations International day of the family at Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD) in Nairobi.
Kandie revealed that the government of Kenya was focusing on youth empowerment and involvement by developing specific programs targeting the young people to mitigate challenges that they face.
Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB) – Commission for Pastoral and Lay Apostolate National Executive Secretary Fr. Charles Odira told the same conference that diminishing family values and poor leadership had immensely contributed to challenges that families face. He called on Kenyan political leaders to fulfil promises that they make to the youth and parents.
Fr. Odira emphasised that the Church cannot take up the role of the family but can only capacity-build families to take up their role in a more responsible manner.
“If ensuring healthy family is the objective of Church then the youth who happen to learn more through practical instances need role models that are more attractive.” He said
The theme of this year’s National Family Conference was Nurturing and Strengthening the Youth as Crucial Members of the Family. The conference brought together about 300 delegates from the Government of Kenya, Non-Governmental Organisations (NGO’s), World Youth Alliance, KCCB and the Kenya Christian Professional Forum (KCPF).
The United Nations International day of the family was set aside 20 years ago by the United Nations General Assembly to celebrate the family institution and create awareness on the need to promote strong family ties in society.
(By Rose Achiego, Wauminin news, Nairobi)
email:engafrica@vatiradio.va
(Vatican Radio) Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle of Manila, President of Caritas Internationalis, says the way we help people caught in emergencies can be more efficient and effective by engaging local organisations, including faith-based institutions.Cardinal Tagle will speak at the Special Session on the Religious Engagement on the first day of the World Humanitarian Summit, which takes place on 23-24 May in Istanbul.In a press release ahead of the summit, Cardinal Tagle said, “We know that growing inequality, climate change, water scarcity, urbanisation, conflict for resources and the spread of extremism will put millions more in peril. We need a humanitarian system fit for purpose to address these growing needs.”“Despite local organisations, including faith-based institutions, offering extensive networks of infrastructure serving as a source of shelter, care and education, the current humanitarian system of donors too often fails to recognise them....
(Vatican Radio) Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle of Manila, President of Caritas Internationalis, says the way we help people caught in emergencies can be more efficient and effective by engaging local organisations, including faith-based institutions.
Cardinal Tagle will speak at the Special Session on the Religious Engagement on the first day of the World Humanitarian Summit, which takes place on 23-24 May in Istanbul.
In a press release ahead of the summit, Cardinal Tagle said, “We know that growing inequality, climate change, water scarcity, urbanisation, conflict for resources and the spread of extremism will put millions more in peril. We need a humanitarian system fit for purpose to address these growing needs.”
“Despite local organisations, including faith-based institutions, offering extensive networks of infrastructure serving as a source of shelter, care and education, the current humanitarian system of donors too often fails to recognise them.
“As resources are stretched, if donors want to reach more people with better quality help then they must utilise better the readymade tools that they have at their disposal. The World Humanitarian Summit offers us the chance to transform the current humanitarian system by giving local organisations their rightful seat at the table.”
Caritas Internationalis says the current top-down approach to humanitarian response must be replaced by an investment in local action, strengthening grassroots capacity, and improving partnership and coordination.
Caritas organisations from the USA, Austria, the UK, Ireland, Netherlands, Lebanon, Luxembourg, Sierra Leone and Niger will be attending the meeting in Istanbul.
Caritas speakers include Sean Callahan of Catholic Relief Services and president of Caritas North America, Sabine Attama of CADEV-Caritas Niger on natural disasters and climate change, Chris Bain of CAFOD (Caritas England and Wales) on investing in humanity and Fr. Peter Konteh, executive director of Caritas Freetown in Sierra Leone on the Ebola epidemic.
The Caritas confederation is pledging to promote global leadership on conflict prevention, upholding humanitarian principles, strengthening local capacity, improving coordination and partnership and ensuring those affected by the emergencies are agents of their own destiny.
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis has issued a binding clarification of a question arising under Canon Law with regard to the proper procedure for the creation of new diocesan Institutes of Consecrated Life. Specifically, the Holy Father has, by way of Papal Rescript, established that prior consultation by the local Ordinary who desires to erect a new Institute of Consecrated Life within his jurisdiction and under his authority, must have prior consultation with the Holy See before deciding to erect any such new Institute.The Secretary of the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts, Bishop Juan Ignacio Arrieta, told Vatican Radio the Rescript does not require local Ordinaries to obtain permission, per se, but only to consult with and hear from the Holy See (through the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life) before proceeding.“The bishop is always responsible in his diocese – but he has to evaluate the answer, the opinion, of t...
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis has issued a binding clarification of a question arising under Canon Law with regard to the proper procedure for the creation of new diocesan Institutes of Consecrated Life. Specifically, the Holy Father has, by way of Papal Rescript, established that prior consultation by the local Ordinary who desires to erect a new Institute of Consecrated Life within his jurisdiction and under his authority, must have prior consultation with the Holy See before deciding to erect any such new Institute.
The Secretary of the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts, Bishop Juan Ignacio Arrieta, told Vatican Radio the Rescript does not require local Ordinaries to obtain permission, per se, but only to consult with and hear from the Holy See (through the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life) before proceeding.
“The bishop is always responsible in his diocese – but he has to evaluate the answer, the opinion, of the Congregation [for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life]: after [hearing] the opinion of the Congregation, he remains free to act in one sense or in the other; but he has to balance, to think about, the opinion – the very high[ly regarded] opinion – of the Congregation, and that is important – very important – even in diocesan governance.”
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The Rescript followed a request from the Congregation for Consecrated Life, and came from the Holy Father through the Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin. The operative sentences – which clarify the meaning of Canon 579 of the Code of Canon Law – read: In the Audience granted to the undersigned Secretary of State on April 4, 2016, the Holy Father ruled that the prior consultation of the Holy See is to be understood as being necessary ad validitatem for the erection of a diocesan Institute of consecrated life, on pain of nullity of the decree of erection of the same Institute. This rescript will be promulgated by publication in L'Osservatore Romano, entering into force on 1 June 2016, and then published in the Acta Apostolicae Sedis.
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Friday urged Italian football (soccer) players to not just be champions in their sport but above all champions in their lives, by displaying key moral values such as brotherhood, mutual respect, understanding and forgiveness. His remarks came during an audience at the Vatican with top representatives of Italy’s Seria A Football League as well as players from the Juventus and AC Milan teams. The two Seria A teams play each other at the weekend in the final of the Italian cup (Coppa Italia) in Rome’s Olympic Stadium.A keen football fan himself, Pope Francis reminded the players, that as role models for many fans, especially the young, their behaviour should always reflect “the authentic values of sport.” He said the success of a team depends on a fusion of human and moral virtues such as “harmony, loyalty, friendship, dialogue and solidarity.” By being a witness of those moral virtues, he continued, you can em...
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Friday urged Italian football (soccer) players to not just be champions in their sport but above all champions in their lives, by displaying key moral values such as brotherhood, mutual respect, understanding and forgiveness. His remarks came during an audience at the Vatican with top representatives of Italy’s Seria A Football League as well as players from the Juventus and AC Milan teams. The two Seria A teams play each other at the weekend in the final of the Italian cup (Coppa Italia) in Rome’s Olympic Stadium.
A keen football fan himself, Pope Francis reminded the players, that as role models for many fans, especially the young, their behaviour should always reflect “the authentic values of sport.” He said the success of a team depends on a fusion of human and moral virtues such as “harmony, loyalty, friendship, dialogue and solidarity.” By being a witness of those moral virtues, he continued, you can emphasize even more the real purpose of the world of sport that is “sometimes marred by negative episodes.”
The Pope reminded the players that they are not just footballers but first and foremost a human being, each with their own conscience, and urged them to always show “brotherhood, mutual respect, understanding and forgiveness.” “Be champions in sport but above all champions in your life,” he stressed.
Pope Francis concluded by encouraging the players to always highlight whatever is “truly good and beautiful” and to not be afraid to share and display with their fans “the moral and religious principles” on which they wish to base their life.
Cartagena, Colombia, May 20, 2016 / 03:02 am (CNA).- In what's been labeled an “absurd” move, a judge in Colombia has banned prayer and “fraternal hugs” at the start of Cartagena city council sessions as well as local educational institutions.The ban on civic prayer – as well as the baffling prohibition against “fraternal hugs” anywhere from businesses to private family life – has generated immense controversy and protests among Christians on the country's coast.Judge Alejandro Bonilla Aldana's May 10 ruling suspends the first article of a 2007 accord which established prayer at “the beginning of all daily activities in local government entities as a basic approach to recovering the religious principles of the city.”The daily El Colmbiano reported that a lawsuit against the accord was filed by Miguel Ángel Garcés who is connected with the Autonomous University of the Caribbean. Garcés took u...
Cartagena, Colombia, May 20, 2016 / 03:02 am (CNA).- In what's been labeled an “absurd” move, a judge in Colombia has banned prayer and “fraternal hugs” at the start of Cartagena city council sessions as well as local educational institutions.
The ban on civic prayer – as well as the baffling prohibition against “fraternal hugs” anywhere from businesses to private family life – has generated immense controversy and protests among Christians on the country's coast.
Judge Alejandro Bonilla Aldana's May 10 ruling suspends the first article of a 2007 accord which established prayer at “the beginning of all daily activities in local government entities as a basic approach to recovering the religious principles of the city.”
The daily El Colmbiano reported that a lawsuit against the accord was filed by Miguel Ángel Garcés who is connected with the Autonomous University of the Caribbean. Garcés took up the charge against the accord after a similar effort was rejected by the court in 2015.
The ruling by Judge Bonilla also eliminates “giving a fraternal hug at the beginning of activities” not just at the city council, but also in “public and private businesses, educational institutions, police command posts and stations, military battalions, assemblies, the boards of businesses, shopping centers, and taxi stations, trade organizations, associations and in the family.”
According to the magistrate,“the custom of prayer cannot be taken as a widespread cultural element and the civil authorities cannot impose its obligatory exercise, disregarding freedom of belief.”
Catholic and inter-denominational leaders have largely decried the ruling, with the Archdiocese of Cartagena issuing a statement saying it violates the human rights “of all the Catholics in Colombia.”
The daily El Tiempo reported that “massive prayers” are taking place in Cartagena by diverse Christian groups such as the one led by pastor Lida Arias. “No one can prohibit us from praying and giving hugs,” Arias said. “This city and this country need more prayer and less absurd laws.”
The Colombian coast daily El Heraldo indicated that a number of council members such as Duvina Torres, Jorge Useche, Erick Piña and Angélica Hodeg have publicly come out against Judge Bonilla's decision.
For their part, the Association of Evangelical Ministers in Bolivar said that “prayer and a fraternal hugs break down the barriers between people and allow us to forgive one another.” They encouraged “a peaceful protest of prayer and fraternal hugs be held in every area of Cartagena.”
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