(Vatican Radio) “The Year of Mercy has touched people very deeply with their hearts and I’m not only talking about Catholics, I’m talking about other Christian denominations and even people of other faiths.” That’s according to Archbishop Stephen Brislin of Cape Town, South Africa whose Archdiocese has been promoting a number of events to celebrate the Holy Year of Mercy.Listen to Lydia O'Kane's interview with Archbishop Stephen Brislin Ecumenism and MercyHe says, “It’s quite amazing that when I attend ecumenical meetings, so many speakers whether protestant or whether Muslim or Hindu often refer to the Year of Mercy and many of them quote Pope Francis…”Archbishop Brislin says that in his Archdiocese they have put their emphasis on getting parishes to get involved in doing acts of mercy in various different ways. This year in particular, he adds, the focus has been on “giving space to people who are involved in p...
(Vatican Radio) “The Year of Mercy has touched people very deeply with their hearts and I’m not only talking about Catholics, I’m talking about other Christian denominations and even people of other faiths.” That’s according to Archbishop Stephen Brislin of Cape Town, South Africa whose Archdiocese has been promoting a number of events to celebrate the Holy Year of Mercy.
Listen to Lydia O'Kane's interview with Archbishop Stephen Brislin
Ecumenism and Mercy
He says, “It’s quite amazing that when I attend ecumenical meetings, so many speakers whether protestant or whether Muslim or Hindu often refer to the Year of Mercy and many of them quote Pope Francis…”
Archbishop Brislin says that in his Archdiocese they have put their emphasis on getting parishes to get involved in doing acts of mercy in various different ways. This year in particular, he adds, the focus has been on “giving space to people who are involved in prison ministry and the work that they do…”
Racism and Dialogue
For many years people in South Africa suffered under the system of Apartheid and although racial discrimination has been taken off the statute book, the country continues to battle with racism. Asked if the Year of Mercy and the Church has been able to help with this problem, the Archbishop says that a number of organizations and the Bishops’ conference has taken up the issue adding, “we’re looking at different programmes that can be practically implemented in parishes to try and get people together to talk and to share their stories; their experiences if you like in the non-threatening environment, in a safe environment.”
As this Jubilee year draws to a close, Archbishop Brislin stresses that “the Year of Mercy shouldn’t just be about certain actions that we do, then we forget about them in the future, but it should really try to transform our communities into being close knit communities where people really take responsibility to reach out to those who are suffering in whatever way.”
Pope Francis waves while traveling by boat in Venice, Italy, for a meeting with young people at the Basilica della Madonna della Salute on April 28, 2024. Earlier in the day he met with inmates at a women's prison. / Credit: Daniel Ibañez/CNARome Newsroom, Apr 28, 2024 / 08:00 am (CNA).Pope Francis opened his one-day visit to Venice on Sunday morning with a meeting with female inmates where he reaffirmed the importance of fraternity and human dignity, noting that prison can be a place of new beginnings. "A stay in prison can mark the beginning of something new, through the rediscovery of the unsuspected beauty in us and in others, as symbolized by the artistic event you are hosting and the project to which you actively contribute," the pope said to the female inmates gathered in the intimate courtyard of the Women's Prison on the Island of Giudecca. Pope Francis left the Vatican by helicopter at approximately 6:30 in the mo...
Pope Francis prays in front of the tomb of St. Mark the Evangelist inside St. Mark's Basilica in Venice on April 28, 2024. / Credit: Daniel Ibañez/CNARome Newsroom, Apr 28, 2024 / 09:35 am (CNA).Pope Francis had a full slate of events Sunday during his day trip to Venice, a trip that tied together a message of unity and fraternity with the artistic patrimony of a city that has been a privileged place of encounter across the centuries. "Faith in Jesus, the bond with him, does not imprison our freedom. On the contrary, it opens us to receive the sap of God's love, which multiplies our joy, takes care of us like a skilled vintner, and brings forth shoots even when the soil of our life becomes arid," the pope said to over 10,000 pilgrims gathered in St. Mark's Square. Framing his homily during the Mass on the theme of unity, one of the central points articulated throughout several audiences spread across the morning, Pope Francis reminded Christians: "Remaining ...
Prayer house at San Simeone, Italy, September 2012. / Credit: Courtesy of Ricostruttori nella preghieraRome, Italy, Apr 28, 2024 / 06:00 am (CNA).Across Italy there are houses of prayer run by the Ricostruttori (Reconstructors) community, a Catholic movement dedicated to people who are far from the Church but attracted to spirituality, particularly Eastern meditation and Buddhist practices. The Reconstructors was founded in 1978 by Jesuit Father Gian Vittorio Cappelletto. "During the postconciliar period, the Church was faced with the need for new forms of evangelization and apostolate, to reach out to people who were drifting away," Don Roberto Rondanina, priest and superior of the Ricostruttori, explained to CNA. "It was a time when Eastern meditation, Hinduism, Buddhism, the New Age ... were beginning to spread in Europe." "Father Cappelletto, who lived in Turin, sought to understand the meaning of this 'flight to the East' and felt the need to find new forms of sp...