CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC – ACN helps to sustain the “miracle of Pope Francis” “The tension may have eased, but it still remains beneath the surface”, said Father Aurelio Gazzera to the international Catholic pastoral charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN). He was describing the present situation in the Central African Republic, following the recent...
SYRIA – Vacation Bible School is a light in darkness for Syrian children For children growing up in Aleppo, Syria, life is anything but easy. In a city devastated by war, bombings are common and death is never far away. But for some 350 Christian children in the city, there is a light amid the...
Pope Francis’ visit – another step toward Christian unity? Pope Francis’ visit to Armenia is widely viewed as a chance to promote unity. It builds on decades of productive ecumenical dialogue since the Second Vatican Council between Rome and the Armenian Apostolic Church, part of the Oriental family of Orthodox churches. Catholicos Vasken I,...
“Offenses against God and humanity” – Pope prays for victims of recent terrorist attacks Pope Francis expressed his sadness on hearing about more “barbarous” terrorist attacks that took place over a short period in three countries. On hearing of the first incident in Istanbul, which the Pope described as a “heinous terror attack,” he...
Important victory for Freedom of Expression – ‘Hate crime’ cases against Valencia archbishop thrown out A judge in Valencia has thrown out two “hate crime” cases against Cardinal Antonio Cañizares of Valencia, Spain, on the grounds that that what the cardinal said in his homily is protected by freedom of speech. The judge also...
Highlights of Pope’s visit to Armenia Pope Francis’ visit to Armenia was a huge success as werehis previous visits to other countries, generating large amounts of strongly positive media coverage and drawing warm reactions from locals, despite the fact that Catholics are only a small minority here. FRIDAY When the Pope arrived, the first thing...
INDIA – “Mother Teresa was the best missionary of the millennium” Bishop Salvadore Lobo of Baruipur described the Blessed Teresa of Calcutta, who will be canonised by Pope Francis on 4 September, as the “best missionary of the millennium”. Lobo, who headed the canonisation committee, reported that Christ had said to Mother Teresa in a...
Muslim mob sets fire to 80 Christian homes as attacks on Christians intensify The homes of 80 Christian families in the Al-Beida village in Egypt were set on fire and ransacked as a “punishment” by an angry Muslim mob who thought that a Christian-owned building being constructed was going to be used as a...
Hope in the midst of hopelessness – a Tale of Mercy in Rwanda In just 100 days in 1994, approximately 800 000 people were slaughtered in Rwanda. The genocide counts as one of the greatest human tragedies in African history. Fr. Stanislaw Filipek SAC, a Polish missionary in Rwanda for over 30 years, has...
SYRIA – Christians in Aleppo offer food to poor Muslims during Ramadan Despite the intensive battles going on all around them, Syriac Orthodox Christians in Aleppo are providing food to poor Muslim families during Ramadan. Ramadan is a Muslim month of fasting and intense prayer and which commemorates the revelation of the Quran to Islam’s Prophet...
