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ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) -- In statehouses across the country, lawmakers with loved ones who fell victim to drugs are leading the fight against the nation's deadly opioid-abuse crisis, drawing on tragic personal experience to attack the problem....
SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) -- Rescuers chest-deep in water steered boats full of people, some with babies and pets, on Tuesday from a San Jose neighborhood inundated by water from an overflowing creek....
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Donald Trump on Tuesday condemned recent threats against Jewish community centers in the U.S. as "painful reminders" of lingering prejudice and evil, his first full-throated comments on the rise of anti-Semitic venom after pressure for him to speak out forcefully....
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Assertions from the White House that immigration-enforcement agents had their hands tied in the last administration are difficult to square with the massive deportations of Barack Obama's presidency....
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Millions of people living in the United States illegally could be targeted for deportation - including people simply arrested for traffic violations - under a sweeping rewrite of immigration enforcement policies announced Tuesday by the Trump administration....
The Justice and Peace Commission of the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference (SACBC) has called for calm and restraint amid fears that the planned march against foreigners in Pretoria on Friday could spark xenophobic attacks. Anti-immigrant violence has flared sporadically in South Africa blamed on high unemployment, with foreigners being accused of taking jobs from locals and getting involved in crime. In a 21 feb. statement, the chairperson of the commission, Bishop Abel Gabuza‚ said the planned march by the Mamelodi Concerned Residents against the foreigners in Pretoria is "cause for serious concern" and called for “calm and restraint.”Bishop Gabuza has also condemned the recent violence and destruction of property of foreigners in Pretoria West and in Rosettenville.He urged communities to look for other ways to raise their concerns against foreign nationals instead of resorting to violence. Below is the full statement: ...
The Justice and Peace Commission of the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference (SACBC) has called for calm and restraint amid fears that the planned march against foreigners in Pretoria on Friday could spark xenophobic attacks. Anti-immigrant violence has flared sporadically in South Africa blamed on high unemployment, with foreigners being accused of taking jobs from locals and getting involved in crime. In a 21 feb. statement, the chairperson of the commission, Bishop Abel Gabuza‚ said the planned march by the Mamelodi Concerned Residents against the foreigners in Pretoria is "cause for serious concern" and called for “calm and restraint.”
Bishop Gabuza has also condemned the recent violence and destruction of property of foreigners in Pretoria West and in Rosettenville.
He urged communities to look for other ways to raise their concerns against foreign nationals instead of resorting to violence.
Below is the full statement:
SACBC JUSTICE AND PEACE COMMISSION CALLS FOR CALM AHEAD OF THE PLANNED PRETORIA MARCH AGAINST FOREIGNERS ON FRIDAY
Bishop Gabuza, the chairperson of Justice and Peace Commission, has called for calm and restraint amid fears that the planned march against foreign presence in Pretoria on Friday could spark xenophobic attacks.
“The planned march against the foreigners in Pretoria is cause for serious concern. We call for calm and restraint.”
Mamelodi Concerned Residents spokesperson Makgoka Lekganyane said they organised the march because they were tired of being slaves in their own country.
Bishop Gabuza has also condemned the recent violence and destruction of property of foreigners in Pretoria West and in Rosettenville.
He has said communities should explore avenues to raise their concerns against foreign nationals instead of resorting to violence.
“We cannot stress it enough that, even in cases of extreme dissatisfaction with the law enforcement and alleged criminal elements perpetrated by some of foreign nationals, community members should not take the law into their hands.”
“No grievance justifies the violence against foreign nationals.”
Bishop Gabuza has at the same time urged African diaspora forum to work actively and closely with the police to root out the criminal elements among the foreign nationals, especially those involved in drugs and prostitution.
“We reiterate our call to the government to strengthen border controls.”
“We also call on the intelligence community to devise more effective ways to detect and counter xenophobic violence before it flares up. Detection mechanisms must be strengthened with respect to xenophobic attacks.”
According to Bishop Gabuza, in the context of slow economic growth and increased economic inequalities in South Africa, there is also a need to address the fierce competition for limited resources, public services and economic opportunities between foreigners and the unemployed poor in South Africa.
“If this is not comprehensively addressed, especially in townships and informal settlements, it will continue to generate an environment that increases the risk of xenophobic attacks.”
Bishop Abel Gabuza.
The members of the Managing Board of the John Paul II Foundation for the Sahel are meeting in the Senegalese capital Dakar to examine projects awaiting funding and those that received funding last year. The foundation’s board is made up of bishops representing the nine countries of the Sahel region: Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Chad, Gambia, Guinea Bissau, Mali, Mauritania, Niger and Senegal.It is currently chaired by Bishop Lucas Kalfa Sanou of Banfora in Burkina Faso. The foundation was established by Pope John Paul II in 1984 after his first trip to Africa four years earlier. The custody of the foundation’s funds, generated on behalf of the Holy Father by the bishops conferences of Italy and Germany, as well as the local churches, was entrusted until recently to the Pontifical Council “Cor Unum,” which is now part of the new Vatican Dicastery for the Promotion of Integral Human Development.Also attending the Feb. 21-25 meeting in Dakar are the secretary of ...
The members of the Managing Board of the John Paul II Foundation for the Sahel are meeting in the Senegalese capital Dakar to examine projects awaiting funding and those that received funding last year. The foundation’s board is made up of bishops representing the nine countries of the Sahel region: Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Chad, Gambia, Guinea Bissau, Mali, Mauritania, Niger and Senegal.
It is currently chaired by Bishop Lucas Kalfa Sanou of Banfora in Burkina Faso. The foundation was established by Pope John Paul II in 1984 after his first trip to Africa four years earlier. The custody of the foundation’s funds, generated on behalf of the Holy Father by the bishops conferences of Italy and Germany, as well as the local churches, was entrusted until recently to the Pontifical Council “Cor Unum,” which is now part of the new Vatican Dicastery for the Promotion of Integral Human Development.
Also attending the Feb. 21-25 meeting in Dakar are the secretary of the new decastery Msgr. Giampietro Dal Toso, as observer of the Holy See and Archbishop Michael Wallace Banach, Apostolic nuncio in Senegal.
In 2016 alone, 43 projects in 6 countries received funding totaling around 550,000 US dollars. As of 2015, the John Paul II foundation for the Sahel had supported some 3.200 projects with funds totaling 37 million US dollars. The projects carried out in the name of the holy father are in the areas of reforestation and agriculture, access to water and renewable energy. In most of the countries, the priority is on technical formation of the young as well as adults in the fields of agriculture and health.
Over the years, the foundation has also promoted inter-religious dialogue as one of its components, since the majority of the beneficiaries are Muslims.
By Carol GlatzVATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Whenever one is tempted to use thechurch for pursuing personal ambitions or to be arrogant, pray to feel ashamed,Pope Francis said.When the competitive bug strikes, reflect whether one can"see my Lord on the cross" and still be capable of wanting "touse the Lord for moving up" the ladder of success, he said Feb. 21 duringhis early morning Mass in the chapel of the Domus Sanctae Marthae."May the Lord give us the grace of shame, that holyembarrassment -- when we find ourselves in that situation, with thattemptation," he said.In his homily, the pope looked at the day's Gospelreading (Mk 9:30-37) in which the disciples were arguing among themselves onthe way to Capernaum about "who was the greatest." When Jesus askedthem what they were arguing about, "they remained silent.""They became silent because they were embarrassedabout their discussion," the pope said.The disciples "were good people, they wanted tofollow the Lord, to serve the Lord. But they ...
By Carol Glatz
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Whenever one is tempted to use the church for pursuing personal ambitions or to be arrogant, pray to feel ashamed, Pope Francis said.
When the competitive bug strikes, reflect whether one can "see my Lord on the cross" and still be capable of wanting "to use the Lord for moving up" the ladder of success, he said Feb. 21 during his early morning Mass in the chapel of the Domus Sanctae Marthae.
"May the Lord give us the grace of shame, that holy embarrassment -- when we find ourselves in that situation, with that temptation," he said.
In his homily, the pope looked at the day's Gospel reading (Mk 9:30-37) in which the disciples were arguing among themselves on the way to Capernaum about "who was the greatest." When Jesus asked them what they were arguing about, "they remained silent."
"They became silent because they were embarrassed about their discussion," the pope said.
The disciples "were good people, they wanted to follow the Lord, to serve the Lord. But they didn't know that the path of service to the Lord wasn't so easy. It wasn't like joining a group, a charitable organization, to do good. No. It's something else and they were afraid of this," he said.
Laypeople, priests, bishops -- everyone is tempted, the pope said. It's part of being Christian, so whoever wants to serve the Lord had better be prepared to be tempted, he added.
Some of the many ways people may be tempted is to use the church to pursue their personal ambitions, like maneuvering, wrangling, pulling strings or backbiting to lead a church group or a particular parish or diocese, he said.
The desire to be a big shot pushes people along a path of wordiness, which is why people must ask God for "the grace of feeling ashamed when we find ourselves in these situations."
In the same Gospel account, Jesus is aware of what the disciples argued about and confronts them saying, "If anyone wishes to be first, he shall be the last of all and the servant of all."
May the Lord protect everyone from "ambition, the worldliness of feeling greater than others," the pope said, and may he "give us the grace of a child's simplicity" and see only the path of service.
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NEW YORK (AP) -- The cause and manner of death of Russia's ambassador to the United Nations needs to be studied further, the city medical examiner said Tuesday, a day after the diplomat fell ill at his office at Russia's U.N. mission and died at a hospital....
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Michael Schwarz is a self-employed business owner who buys his own health insurance. The subsidized coverage "Obamacare" offers protection from life's unpredictable changes and freedom to pursue his vocation, he says....
