EU provides additional €400,000 humanitarian aid to help Nagorno Karabakh civilians
Oct 31 2020
EU provides additional €400,000 humanitarian aid to help Nagorno Karabakh civilians

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 31, ARMENPRESS. The European Union provided an additional €400,000 in humanitarian aid to support the civilians in Nagorno Karabakh, EU Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarčič announced.

This funding brings EU emergency humanitarian aid to €900,000 since the hostilities started.

“The EU calls for an immediate end to the hostilities that have already claimed civilian lives. We are extremely concerned about the deterioration of the humanitarian situation, given the upcoming winter and the aggravating coronavirus pandemic,” Lenarčič said.

Editing by Stepan Kocharyan

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Islamic leader says Lalmonirhat lynching goes against religion
Oct 31 2020
Islamic leader says Lalmonirhat lynching goes against religion

The man, Abu Yunus Md Shahidunnabi Jewel, was beaten and burnt to death in public although everyone has the right to trial under the law of the land if he or she commits a crime, Matin said at a protest programme in Dhaka’s Shahbagh on Saturday.

“The burning of a man to death in Lalmonirhat was completely against Islam and humanity. I condemn such an incident,” he said at the programme organised by the Muktijuddho Mancha.     

The leader of the Islamist party believes there were ill-intentions behind the killing of Jewel.

“Islam is a religion of peace. No religion supports violence and killing. An extremist quarter is trying to create anarchy in Bangladesh in the name of religion. Their main target is to tarnish Bangladesh’s image globally,” Matin said. 

The speakers at the programme also demanded punishment to those who spread rumours over religion on social media and at religious gatherings.

A mob killed Jewel and injured another in Lalmonirhat on allegations that he showed disrespect to the Quran at a mosque last Thursday.

Jewel, a resident of Rangpur, is a former student of Dhaka University. Thet father of two lost his job as a school librarian last year. Relatives said he was undergoing treatment for “mental illness”.

FIVE ARRESTED

The police have arrested five people over the killing of Jewel.

“We are conducting an operation to arrest the others,” said Abida Sultana, superintendent of police in the district.

The police, the family of Jewel and Burimari Union Parishad filed three cases with Patgram Police Station over the incident.

The mob also torched Jewel’s motorcycle and the UP office, where the local UP member Hafizul Islam took Jewel and the injured, Sultan Zubayer Abbas, to save them from the angry locals.

Sumon Kumar Mohanta, the OC of Patgram Police Station, rescued Abbas and fled the Burimari Union Parishad office through the rooftop, locals said.

The mob stormed the office and dragged Jewel out before beating and burning him to death on the Lalmonirhat-Burimari Highway near Burimari Land Port.

UP Chairman Abu Sayeed Newaz Nishat said the union council decided to take action after watching videos of the incident.

Additional District Magistrate TMA Momin is leading a three-strong committee formed the district administration to investigate the incident. Md Rabiul Islam, additional superintendent of police in the district, and Patgram Upazila Executive Officer Kamrun Nahar are members of the committee.

Rabiul said the police did arrive at the scene but could not take control of the situation. As many as 10 policemen were injured, he said.

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Macron gets a request from NGOs around the world to have his anti-separatism bill reviewed by Venice Commission
Oct 31 2020
Macron gets a request from NGOs around the world to have his anti-separatism bill reviewed by Venice Commission

On October 28, a letter has been sent to Emmanuel Macron, President of the French Republic, asking for review of the future French “law on separatism” by the Venice Commission and the Office for Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of the OSCE.

The letter was signed by several NGOs and individuals from all over the world, including the well-known Ligue des Droits de l’Homme, after it had been circulated by the Freedom of Religion or Belief Roundtable Brussels-EU, an informal group of individuals and organizations from civil society who gather regularly to discuss FoRB (Freedom of Religion or Belief ) issues. Writers raise several concerns about the law after the announcements made by Macron and members of his government.

See full letter here:

To:Mr Emmanuel Macron

President of the French Republic

Brussels, the 28th October 2020

Copies to:

  • Kishan Manocha, Head, Tolerance and Non-Discrimination Department, OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights
  • Ahmed Shaheed, UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief
  • Mr Gianni Buquicchio, President of the Venice Commission
  • Mr Eric Dupont-Moretti, French Minister of Justice

Re: The announcements on the “Law on separatism”

Dear Mr President,

We write as an informal group of organizations and individuals who are scholars, religious leaders and human rights advocates. We are from many faiths or acting in a secular capacity, representing a high degree of diversity. While there is very little we agree on theologically, or politically, we all agree on the importance of religious freedom for all faiths and none.

We write to you following the announcements that you and members of your government have made regarding the bill on “separatism” that you plan to approve in the Council of Ministers meeting on December 9. While no draft of the bill has yet been circulated, to our knowledge, we have some concerns which have been highlighted by the announcements that have been made.

We acknowledge the cautious approach that you have taken during your official speech. We have noted your insistence on the fact that you are targeting radical Islam, and not Muslims, as well as the fact that you intend to respect freedom of religion or belief. We agree that terrorism is a real issue that needs to be tackled and that a strong response needs to be taken with regards to the dangers that are posed to the French Republic, and we deeply share the traumatisms that result from the recent tragic terrorist events which hit France.

Nevertheless, we are concerned that some of the proposals may lead to the opposite of what you intend. Furthermore, taking into account the statements made by members of your government after your speech, those statements reinforce the conviction that the measures being proposed will violate France’s international commitments towards freedom of religion or belief.

For example, you announced that you plan to ban home-schooling in order to protect children from illegal schools “often administered by religious extremists”. While we understand that these schools pose a threat, a global ban on home-schooling will affect the majority of parents that for many different reasons are using this freedom with satisfying results, regardless of their faith, or none. There is certainly sufficient provision in French law to organize controls and make sure that the children are effectively educated according to established educational programmes.

The “general concept” of the law was unveiled by your Minister of Interior, Gérald Darmanin, on Twitter. It explained that places of worship will be placed under increasing surveillance and “preserved […] from the diffusion of ideas and statements hostile to the laws of the Republic.” However, how will that apply to a priest or pastor criticizing abortion or same-sex marriage, which are part of the laws of the French Republic. What action will be taken against others who may speak out against certain “laws of the Republic” that penalize the poor and the immigrants? Or even if they criticize a law against blasphemy, as it existed still recently for Alsace-Moselle in France? Is anyone now criticising the law an enemy of the state?

Another announced provision that poses a problem is your statement and that of the Minister of Interior, where it is said that the law will allow religious and other associations to be dissolved directly by the Council of Ministers in the case of  an “affront on personal dignity” and “use of psychological or physical pressures.” These concepts are vague enough to allow the arbitrary targeting of groups that are acting quite legally and without any violent intent but are in ‘disfavour’ by the administrating body. Furthermore there is no guarantee of judicial process or oversight. 

The Minister of Citizenship, Marlène Schiappa, also stated in an interview that, “We will use the same measures against the cults and against radical Islam.” This shows that there is already a clear intent to deviate from the fight against terrorism and enter the realm of prohibiting religious associations on the basis that they do not please someone, simply because they are categorised as “cults” (sectes, in French). 

Legislation aimed at terrorism is not surprising. It is a challenge that many countries face. However, States that have chosen to draft laws with such vague concepts as those cited above are States that have totalitarian tendencies (or are in fact totalitarian). Russia, for example, has passed an anti-extremism law that is now used to prosecute and jail political dissidents as well as members of peaceful religious movements such as the Jehovah Witnesses or followers of Said Nursi on the basis of their definition of “extremism”. 

When the Venice Commission gave its opinion on law of the Russian Federation on Combatting Extremist Activity, adopted at its 91st Plenary Session, it stated: 

7.  The broad interpretation of the notion of ‘extremism’ by the enforcement authorities, the increasing application of the Law in recent years and the pressure it exerts on various circles within civil society, as well as alleged human rights violations reported in this connection have raised concerns and drawn criticism both in Russia and on the international level

(…)

28.  The only definition of ‘extremism’ contained in an international treaty binding on the Russian Federation is to be found in the Shanghai Convention [on Combating Terrorism, Separatism and Extremism of 15 June 2001, ratified by Russia on 10 January 2003]. In Article 1.1.1.3) of the Extremism Law, ‘extremism’ is defined as ‘an act aimed at seizing or keeping power through the use of violence or changing violently the constitutional regime of a State, as well as a violent encroachment upon public security, including organization, for the above purposes, of illegal armed formations and participation in them, criminally prosecuted in conformity with the national laws of the Parties’. The latter clause allows signatory states to prosecute such ‘extremist’ actions according to their national laws.

It made clear that the only definitions of ‘terrorism’ and ‘separatism’ that could be used to take action against individuals or organizations require that violence is an essential element (incitement to, or encouragement of, violence or actual violence). 

The European Court of Human Rights has already applied this approach to Russia, regarding a case that involved the prosecution of followers of Said Nursi accused of extremist activities, in IBRAGIM IBRAGIMOV AND OTHERS v. RUSSIA, which became a final judgment on April 2, 2019.

The UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion of Belief, in the unedited version of his last report on the Elimination of all Forms of Religious Intolerance (October 12, 2020), stated: 

17.    A concerning number of mandate communications highlight the use of inchoate terrorist offenses that are disproportionately applied to religious or belief minorities. Harassment measures broadly linked to countering terrorism and protecting national security illustrate that in almost every region of the world religious minorities appear to be at particular risk of being designated “terrorist groups” and of having members arrested under “extremism” or “illegal activity” charges. A number of communications addressed the use of national security imperatives as the stated objective by some governments in criminalizing membership in and/or activities of certain religious or belief groups.  Such an approach amounts to targeting, and ultimately criminalizing, the peaceful expression of a person’s identity. 

19.    Numerous State authorities have arrested, detained (sometimes incommunicado) and sentenced members of religious and belief minorities for undefined charges such as intent to ‘disturb political, economic or social structures’ , to ‘disrupt state sovereignty’   or to  ‘overthrow the Government’.  Such vague provisions fail to fulfil the principle of legality as enshrined in article 15 of ICCPR and give worrying leeway to States to arbitrarily limit the exercise of freedom of religion or belief of certain groups.

The OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) recently released a new document called “Freedom of Religion or Belief and Security: Policy Guidance”. It states in its introduction: 

While OSCE participating States have adopted different strategies to ensure that their own security measures are fully compliant with their international obligations and commitments pertaining to freedom of religion or belief, certain laws, security policies and practices have placed freedom of religion or belief and other universal human rights under significant pressure. Such measures, especially those that are very broad or applied arbitrarily, are often enacted in the name of “national”, “state” or “public” security, or in the interests of preserving or maintaining “peaceful coexistence”, “social stability” or “social harmony”. Experience shows that such limitations can worsen rather than improve security.

There are many more international human rights documents that deal with this delicate issue, but for reasons of brevity we are unable to carry out a full review in this letter.

We are at your disposal to meet and discuss this issue further. In any case, we respectfully but strongly recommend that you submit to both the Venice Commission and ODIHR the draft of the law when it is ready, in order to get considered international legal expertise as to how the law meets established human rights principles. 

We feel that there is a real risk that contrary to your intention, the proposed measures that have been announced will lead to the targeting of Muslims in general as well as other minority faiths, and that it may well lead to a series of human rights violations.

Respectfully yours,

Organizations

Advocates International, Advocates France, All Faiths Network, CAP Freedom of Conscience, CESNUR – Center for Studies on New Religions, EIFRF – European Interreligious Forum for Religious Freedom, FOREF – Forum for Religious Freedom Europe, HRWF – Human Rights Without Frontiers, International Christian Concern, Law and Liberty International, LDH – Ligue des Droits de l’Homme, LIREC – Center for Studies on Freedom of Religion, Belief and Conscience, ORLIR – International Observatory of Religious Liberty of Refugees, United Sikhs, UPF The Netherlands

Individuals

  • Régis Dericquebourg, Président, Observatoire Européen des Religions et de la Laïcité
  • Michael P. Donnelly, J.D., LL.M., Senior Counsel, Global Outreach
  • The Most Reverend Joseph K. Grieboski, Senior Fellow, The Dietrich Bonhoeffer Institute
  • Rimon Kasher, Prof. Emeritus of Biblical Studies, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, Israel
  • Nancy Lefèvre, Chairwoman, Advocates France
  • Brent McBurney, President & CEO, Advocate International
  • Kareem P.A. McDonald, Program Associate, Religious Freedom Institute
  • Greg Mitchell, Chair, International Religious Freedom Roundtable 
  • Scott Morgan, President, Red Eagle Enterprise
  • Matias Perttula, Director of Advocacy, International Christian Concern
  • Malik Salemkour, President, Ligue des droits de l’Homme (LDH)
  • Frans de Wolff, Secretary, Dutch Network for Interfaith Dialogue

[you can read more about the initiative at https://www.forbroundtable.org/post/letter-in-support-of-having-the-french-anti-separatism-bill-reviewed-by-the-venice-commission]

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France has no problem with any religion – Macron
Oct 31 2020
France has no problem with any religion – Macron

The 21-year-old Tunisian suspect arrived in the city the night before the attack, his brother had told the BBC.

But Macron, in a tweet on Saturday said contrary to what he had heard and seen on social media in recent days, France had no problem with any religion.

He said all religious bodies practice freely without stigmatization.

Macron added that France is attached to peace and living together.

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COMECE Assembly - Cardinal Parolin on the Covid-19 recovery: “the Church in the frontline for a fairer and more solidary Europe”
Oct 31 2020
COMECE Assembly – Cardinal Parolin on the Covid-19 recovery: “the Church in the frontline for a fairer and more solidary Europe”

COMECE Autumn Assembly 2020

Cardinal Parolin on the Covid-19 recovery: “the Church in the frontline for a fairer and more solidary Europe”

 

“The Church will be in the frontline during the long and difficult process of recovery from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic”, stated Cardinal Parolin addressing the Bishops of the European Union at the COMECE Autumn Assembly held on 28-29 October 2020. Cardinal Hollerich on the EU: “a unifying presence of coordination and support for the Member States, but work must continue”.




In the context of the 40th anniversary of the Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the European Union (COMECE), the Assembly of EU Bishops, chaired by H. Em. Card. Jean-Claude Hollerich SJ, welcomed H. Em. Pietro Parolin, Secretary of State of His Holiness Pope Francis, to exchange on some of EU’s most pressing challenges mentioned by the Holy Father in his recent comprehensive message on Europe.

Among the topics discussed were the role of the Catholic Church in the EU for a just, fair and ecological recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic, and for the promotion of the Common Good through person-centred policies, in particular in the fields of sustainable human development, migration and environment.

Cardinal Parolin highlighted that the Catholic Church has closely accompanied the European integration process since its beginning and that “the establishment of COMECE in 1980 was a tangible sign of the importance attributed by the Holy See to the activities promoted by the European institutions”.

In light of Pope Francis’ encouragement to the EU to be “healthy secular”, the Secretary of State recalled that the Church, while respecting the autonomy of political life, does not restrict her mission to the private sphere. “On the contrary – quoting the Holy Father’s Encyclical Letter ‘Fratelli tutti’ – she cannot and must not remain on the sidelines in the building of a better world”.

 

While calling on all of us, including the EU institutions, to “rediscover the path of fraternity that inspired and guided the founders of modern Europe”, the Cardinal assured that the Church would be in the frontline of the long and arduous recovery process from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. “This is an occasion to build a fairer and more solidary Europe that shares scientific research and investments for the production of vaccines and the care for the most vulnerable”, he said.

 

In their exchange, the Bishops and the Secretary of State also referred to the Conference on the Future of Europe, as “a significant occasion to rethink the European identity and its values, as well as to reduce the distance between the EU institutions and the citizens”.

The Cardinal stressed the importance for the Catholic Church to participate in such conference as partner in the context of the open, transparent and regular EU-Churches dialogue mentioned by the Article 17 TFEU.

The Assembly of COMECE was also an opportunity to assess various EU initiatives. According to the Bishops, the Next Generation EU and the Green Deal seem to be going in the right direction, promoting solidarity among the Member States and an ecological conversion that could benefit Europe and the entire world.

 

Caution was expressed with regard to the new EU Pact on Migration and Asylum, which “marks a step ahead, but also raises many doubts”. Cardinal Parolin supported the idea of reviewing the Dublin Regulation towards policies that welcome, protect, promote and integrate migrants, refugees and asylum seekers.

To put an end to the demographic winter characterising Europe since various decades, the Bishop Delegates highlighted the need for policies specifically supporting the family, “the basic texture of our society”.

Regarding the ongoing digital transformation of our societies, they expressed the will to be vigilant and ensure that it follows the integral development of each person and of all peoples, not at the expenses of human dignity.

After welcoming Pope Francis’ message on Europe “as an encouragement to keep working with the EU institutions”, the President of COMECE, H. Em. Card. Jean-Claude Hollerich SJ, expressed appreciation for the participation and contribution of Cardinal Parolin.

“It confirms the Holy See’s strong appreciation for the mission of dialogue with the European Union carried out by COMECE” – he stated.

In the context of the current pandemic, the Cardinal Hollerich recognised to the EU “a unifying presence of coordination and support for the Member States” and, in this framework, announced a message with a strong call for solidarity and hope elaborated by the Presidents of all EU Episcopates to be published in the coming weeks.

Special greetings were offered to H. E. Mgr. Alain Paul Lebeaupin, Apostolic Nuncio to the European Union since 2012, who will soon end his 41-year-long mission at the diplomatic service of the Holy See.

At the end of the Assembly, the Bishops condemned the terrorist attack that occurred on Thursday 29 October 2020 at the Notre-Dame Basilica in Nice. H. E. Mgr. Antoine Hérouard, Bishop Delegate of the French Bishops’ Conference to COMECE, led a prayer for the victims, “people who have been killed only because they wanted to pray to the Lord in a church”.

To comply with the sanitary measures established by the authorities of the Brussels Region, the COMECE Assembly was held exclusively in a digital format.




Speeches

Pope Francis’ new message on Europe: EN

Speech of H. Em. Cardinal Pietro Parolin: EN – IT

Speech of H. Em. Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich: IT

Speech of H. E. Mgr. Alain Paul Lebeaupin: IT

 

Videos

Cardinal Parolin addresses the EU Bishops

Nice attack: The Assembly of COMECE prays for Peace

 

Press Release

FR – DE – IT – ES

 

COMECE Communication Officer

Alessandro Di Maio

press@comece.eu

+32 (0) 2 235 05 15

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Brunei Bishop thanks Pope for “choosing someone from the peripheries
Oct 31 2020
Brunei Bishop thanks Pope for “choosing someone from the peripheries” – Vatican News

By Vatican News staff writer

The Apostolic Vicar of Brunei, thanks Pope Francis for “choosing someone from the peripheries” to be counted among his cardinals.  Expressed his sentiments in an interview to Vatican News, Bishop Cornelius Sim described his Church as “periphery within a periphery”.  He said the Pope understands that the Church exists in little places where there is not much publicity but where faith is very much alive.

Unexpected

Like other cardinals-designate, Bishop Cornelius Sim too was unaware of and could not believe he was among the 13 new cardinals, but later came to terms with the truth.

“For me, it was bit of a shock and unexpected” he told Vatican News.  The 69-year old native of Brunei spoke about the challenges of the one of the youngest and smallest Churches in Southeast Asia and probably also in the world. 

At his priestly ordination on November 26, 1989, Bishop Sim became the first native priest of Brunei.  In 1995 he was appointed the Vicar General of what was then Miri-Brunei Diocese, and in 1998 he was appointed Prefect of Brunei.   When Saint Pope John Paul II elevated Brunei to Vicariate Apostolic on October 20, 2004, he appointed Father Sim Vicar Apostolic. Thus, he became the first local bishop of Brunei.  He was consecrated bishop on January 21, 2005. 

Largely migrant Catholic community

Bishop Sim, along with 3 other priests, leads the Church of Brunei that is mostly made up of some 20,000 expatriate workers.   The wealthy oil- and gas-rich nation has a population of some 500,000 people, more than 70% percent of whom are Muslim.

In this context, Bishop Sim said the challenge of the Bruneian Church is to “provide a home away from home” for the Catholic community that is largely migrant.  The Church tries its best to support them, especially in times of trouble such as illness or death.   It also helps them financially and with feeding programmes. 

He pointed out that native Catholics, who are well off, need to build up their faith levels so that they can be “more conscious and more willing to be engaged” in many ways in supporting the Church.

Youth

The Church is particularly concerned about young people, many of whose ideas do not come through traditional channels but from their counterparts in their “own world” of social media. Hence their relationship with authority is not always like what it was once upon a time. 

Listen to the interview with Bishop Cornelius Sim

Peace and harmony

His commitments in his new role as cardinal, Bishop Sim said, would be the same, which to contribute to creating peace, harmony and goodwill in cooperation with citizens of different persuasions and religions. As Christians they need to contribute to build a better and more peaceful Brunei.  For Bruneians, he explained, the commitment to peace has a very special significance as the name of their country means the “abode of peace”. 

In this regard, the Church that has been in Brunei for more than 90 years, the bishop said, has contributed to the nation especially through its schools.  Some 60 percent to 70 percent of students in the three Catholic schools of the country are Muslims. 

Priorities

Speaking about enriching the faith based on the sense of the community, Bishop Sim said he has outlined several priorities for the Church in Brunei, such as Bible and faith information, youth and family pastoral care, promotion of priestly and religious vocations, evangelization and social welfare.

The Church, he explained, is not just the liturgy, which is very important, but it also needs to build relationship, first of all within the community, starting with the family and moving out to society, such as the place of work and study. 

Currently, the Bruneian Church is in the last year of its 3-year focus on the family. 

“Periphery within a periphery”

Regarding his sentiments for Pope Francis for choosing him as cardinal, Bishop Sim said he would like to thank him for “choosing someone from the peripheries”.  Describing his Church as “periphery within a periphery”, he expressed admiration for the sacrifice and hard work of Catholics to build the Church by strengthening links within the community for over 90 years.  Even though there are many thing that need to be change, he said, his Catholics have been very faithful and loyal to the Church. 

He said the “Pope is understanding that the Church exists in those little places where there is not much publicity” but where the faith is very much alive. Hence he thanked the Holy Father for making this clear about Brunei.

Not “in our little bubble” world

He further explained that “as a Church we are not one little group of people, all isolated on our own in our little bubble”.  Rather, the Church is much bigger and as a community, it cuts across all boundaries of race, colour, social status, migrant or with permanent residence, because “all of us are children, sons and daughters of Jesus Christ”.  He said, all of us are called to understand and live by this, stressing “you cannot have God as your Father unless you have the Church as your Mother”.

In conclusion, Bishop Sim expressed his gratitude to those working in the media at Vatican News for updating and keeping in touch with the worldwide Church.  

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Bill Maher Pans Amy Coney Barrett’s Religion: ‘I Believe The Spanish Inquisition Had Fine People On Both Sides’
Oct 31 2020
Bill Maher Pans Amy Coney Barrett’s Religion: ‘I Believe The Spanish Inquisition Had Fine People On Both Sides’

HBO host Bill Maher panned Justice Amy Coney Barrett’s religion during a Friday night segment on “Real Time with Bill Maher.”

Maher made the jokes about Barrett, who is Catholic, during a segment titled “24 Things You Don’t Know.”

“She is making it almost a completely Catholic court,” Maher told his guests before diving into the segment. “And she’s not just Catholic, she’s a Mel Gibson’s dad Catholic … This is a court that looks like ‘The Da Vinci Code’ now.”

WATCH:

Maher’s jokes included:

When my family plays Scrabble, we take out the letters l, g, b, t, and q.

I won’t eat Chinese food because fortune cookies look like vaginas.

When I’m stressed out I’ll eat a whole box of Eucharist.

I’m a classically trained liar.

My volleyball team was 10 and 3 against the other cults in our division.

I believe the Spanish Inquisition had fine people on both sides.

Barrett was confirmed Monday night by a 52-48 mostly partisan-line vote and immediately sworn in during a White House ceremony by Justice Clarence Thomas, who is also Catholic. (RELATED: Girl Scouts Delete Tweets Congratulating Amy Coney Barrett)

Currently, six of the nine Supreme Court justices are Roman Catholic. Stephen Breyer and Elena Kagan are Jewish, while Neil Gorsuch is Episcopalian.

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Cardinal Parolin to EU bishops: ‘May Christians be the soul of Europe' - Vatican News
Oct 31 2020
Cardinal Parolin to EU bishops: ‘May Christians be the soul of Europe’ – Vatican News

By Vatican Radio staff writer

Cardinal Pietro Parolin addressed COMECE’s 2020 Autumn Assembly inviting the European Bishops to put the Church in the frontline for a fairer and more solidary Europe during the long and difficult process of recovery from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Speaking to the gathering on Wednesday, the first day of the Assembly, the Vatican Secretary of State also focused on the promotion of the common good through person-centred policies in the fields of sustainable human development, migration and environment.

Pope’s ‘Letter on Europe’

The Cardinal’s discourse came in the wake of Pope Francis’ “Letter on Europe” in which he encourages the Church in the EU not to restrict her mission to the private sphere while respecting the autonomy of political life.

Quoting the Pope’s encyclical letter Fratelli tutti, he said “[the Church] cannot and must not remain on the sidelines in the building of a better world.”

Inviting all EU institutions, to “rediscover the path of fraternity that inspired and guided the founders of modern Europe”, Cardinal Parolin said the Church would be in the frontline of the long and arduous recovery process from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.

He described the effort as “an occasion to build a fairer and more solidary Europe that shares scientific research and investments for the production of vaccines and the care for the most vulnerable.”

Care for creation and migration policies

Cardinal Parolin also participated in a dialogue with the EU bishops during which they touched on a series of topics including the need to rethink the European identity and its values, the ongoing EU environmental initiatives such as the “Green Deal” and the “Next Generation EU”, both of which aim to promote solidarity among member states and foster an ecological conversion.

Another crucial topic that was discussed regards the new EU Pact on Migration and Asylum that Parolin said: “marks a step forward, but also raises many doubts”. He also supported the idea of reviewing the “Dublin Regulation” for asylum seekers that, he said, needs to be honed towards policies that “welcome, protect, promote and integrate” migrants, refugees and asylum seekers.

In compliance with the health protocol established by the authorities of the Brussels Region, the COMECE Assembly was held exclusively in a digital format.

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Scores dead and injured in powerful quake in western Turkey - Vatican News
Oct 31 2020
Scores dead and injured in powerful quake in western Turkey – Vatican News

By Nathan Morley

Video footage from the region posted online showed collapsed buildings and vehicles destroyed by falling debris.

In a statement, the US Geological Survey said the shallow tremor measured 7.0 on the Richter Scale. Turkey lies on several of fault lines and is prone to earthquakes.

Search and rescue operations are ongoing in the ruins of eight buildings, despite a total of 470 aftershocks having occurred since the main tremor.

According to the Disaster and Emergency Management Authority of Turkey, the death toll in the western province of Izmir increased to 25.

A total of 804 people were wounded by the tremor. Some 100 survivors have been pulled out alive from the debris so far.

Up to 5,000 emergency service workers and 20 search and rescue dogs have been taking part in the rescue effort.

The quake also shook Greece’s Island of Samos where two high school students died and at least eight people were injured.

Listen to the report by Nathan Morley

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Cardinal-elect Gregory: a pastor shaped by a “wonderful legacy of faith
Oct 31 2020
Cardinal-elect Gregory: a pastor shaped by a “wonderful legacy of faith” – Vatican News

By Sr Bernadette Mary Reis, fsp

October 25 will forever be etched in Archbishop Wilton D. Gregory’s personal history as well as that of 13 other clerics, prelates and other local Churches.

It would have been just past 7 am in Washington, D.C., when the Holy Father announced his intention to elevate that city’s Archbishop to the College of Cardinals.

Cardinal-designate Gregory spoke with Vatican News about how he heard the news, what his first thoughts were, how he hopes to represent his fellow African-Americans and how the various places in which he has lived and work have shaped his pastoral ministry.

Life-changing telephone call

Archbishop Gregory told us it was one of his close friends who first broke the news to him that Pope Francis had chosen him to be a cardinal.

“About five minutes after the Angelus concluded, I got a telephone call from Cardinal Kevin Farrell who said, ‘I want to be the first to congratulate you on being named to the College of Cardinals’.”

The Archbishop continued saying he had no prior knowledge of Pope Francis’s decision. On hearing the news, the first thought that went through his head was:

“I thought that God is good and how grateful I was to the Holy Father for this appointment and how I look forward to working closely with him in his ministry to the universal Church.”

Bearer of the African-American legacy

With this appointment, Archbishop Gregory will become the first Cardinal in the Church in the United States of African-American descent. He hopes his appointment is received, not only by his fellow African-Americans but also by all U.S. Catholics, as a “sign of the love and the respect that the Church universal has for us in our culture, our language, our traditions.”

Specifically, regarding his fellow African-Americans, his hope is that they see in his appointment a call for them to “be more deeply invested in their local parishes and their local dioceses.”

Legacy of faith a “proven treasure”

The Cardinal-elect describes the “wonderful legacy of faith” to which he belongs as one that “stretches back from the earliest days of our arrival on these shores – in chains,” but also a legacy containing “some bright and wonderful examples of faith and holiness in the lives of a number of people whose causes for canonization are already at the Holy See.”

Archbishop Gregory mentioned three of these people in particular: Pierre Toussaint, a slave who, after gaining his freedom in New York, performed numerous works of charity for those less fortunate than he; Father Augustus Tolton, a former slave and convert to Catholicism who, after his ordination, served in the Chicago area as well; Sr Thea Bowman, whom Archbishop describes as a “wonderful, wonderful, woman religious, whose presence and enthusiasm and whose vibrancy still resonate throughout the Church in the United States.”

“We’ve produced holy, generous, zealous Catholics from our cultural and racial tradition. And I hope they get more attention in many respects than I do because their contribution to the life of the church is already a proven treasure.”

Listen to our interview with Cardinal-elect Wilton D. Gregory, Archbishop of Washington, D.C.

Formed by people and places

Cardinal-elect Gregory’s pastoral ministry has been honed in varied places: the sprawling Midwest metropolis of Chicago; the rural diocese of Belleville, Illinois; the southern Archdiocese of Atlanta, home to one of the fastest-growing centers of Catholicism in the U.S.; and the nation’s capital.

He has “been blessed”, he says, “in each of those environments”. He is proud of his Chicago heritage that blessed him with his “entrance into the Church.” Serving in Southern Illinois for almost eleven years introduced him “into the wonderful world and faith traditions of rural Catholics, small-town Catholic communities.” In Atlanta, he “learned much about the heritage of the Church in the South and the great contributions that the people in Atlanta and the environs made to the Civil Rights Movement, the wonderful heritage of Dr King and so many of his colleagues whose lives enriched the Church in Atlanta.”

Since his appointment to the nation’s capital in April 2019, Archbishop Gregory is “finding out more about the wonderful legacy of faith of the people who have made Washington and its territory rich with their fidelity, their love, their generosity, and their endurance.”

Cardinal-elect Gregory wholeheartedly states that in all these places in which has had the “privilege” of serving, he has “found wonderful, loving people.”

Notwithstanding all the positive aspects each place with its people has presented, he has also been exposed and shaped by what he calls “the unseemly issues of racism and exclusion and inequity that are also a part of the legacy that I found in those variety of pastoral services.”

Looking forward to the new ministry

“I’m looking forward to finding out how the Holy Father intends to celebrate this consistory,” given the current health crisis, the Cardinal-delegate said in concluding his interview. “And I will do whatever the Holy Father asks not only at this moment but throughout my ministry as one of his cardinals.” 

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Beatification of Fr. Michael McGivney: Example for post-pandemic parish renewal - Vatican News
Oct 31 2020
Beatification of Fr. Michael McGivney: Example for post-pandemic parish renewal – Vatican News

By Devin Watkins

Father Michael J. McGivney is set to be beatified in a special Mass celebrated by Cardinal Joseph Tobin, Archbishop of Newark, on Saturday.

The celebration takes place at St. Joseph’s Cathedral in Hartford, in the US state of Connecticut.

Though the beatification occurs on American soil, Catholics around the world have reason to be grateful for the life and witness of Fr. McGivney.

He founded the Knights of Columbus in 1882, at his parish in New Haven, Connecticut. The fraternal charitable organization now counts over two million members organized into some 16,000 local chapters spread throughout the world.

Timely event for US Church

In an interview with Vatican News, Supreme Knight Sir Carl Anderson expressed Catholics’ gratitude to Pope Francis for recognizing the Christian witness of Fr. McGivney.

“I think this is precisely the type of event that’s so important to happen in America today,” he said, adding that during Fr. McGivney’s time, the US was missionary territory.

“Fr. McGivney founded the Knights of Columbus because he was very concerned that Catholics were leaving the faith. Men were leaving to join secret societies, which often in the US were anti-Catholic, and families were being broken up on the death of the bread-winner—the father—because of poverty.”

Fraternity and mutual support

So, he set up the organization to provide fraternal support for men and financial aid to their families in case of their death, through life-insurance policies. This provided a life-line for working class and immigrant Catholics, who had weak support networks.

“Fr. McGivney wanted to keep his parishioners and parish families strong in the faith.”

In 19th century America, added Mr. Anderson, anti-Catholic sentiment was very strong, so there was a risk that Catholics would withdraw from society and form ghettos.

“But instead, Fr. McGivney’s idea was, ‘No, we’re going to go into society. We’re going to make a difference. And we’re going to do it in terms of charity and unity, under the idea of brotherhood.’”

Similar circumstances

Mr. Anderson drew a parallel between the challenges facing the American Church today and back then.

“The crisis now,” he pointed out, “is the lockdown of parishes, the reduced number of parishioners who attend Mass. Church services are drastically reduced. When those restrictions are lifted, we’re going to have to bring people back.”

Getting Catholics to return to Mass, he said, will likely prove somewhat difficult. “We’re going to need a way of renewing parish life.”

Missionary example of parish renewal

Mr. Anderson said Fr. McGivney has already laid out a path, by making every parish missionary, “evangelizing his parishioners, finding ways to keep his parishioners active in his parish.”

That’s why, said Supreme Knight Carl Anderson, Fr. McGivney’s idea of “Christian and missionary witness of the ordinary believer is so important today.”

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Sustainable urbanization critical to COVID-19 recovery, better quality of life
Oct 31 2020
Sustainable urbanization critical to COVID-19 recovery, better quality of life

The World Cities Report 2020, released on Saturday, showcases the value of sustainable urbanization and how it can contribute to global efforts to build back better after the crisis. 

“The World Cities Report 2020 convincingly affirms that well-planned, managed, and financed cities and towns create economic, social, environmental and other unquantifiable value that can vastly improve the quality of life of all”, said Maimunah Mohd Sharif, the UN-Habitat Executive Director. 

“Urbanization can be leveraged for the fight against poverty, inequality, unemployment, climate change and other pressing global challenges”, 

Cities drive transformative change 

Globally, around 55 per cent of all people live in urban areas: a figure that is expected to rise to nearly 70 per cent by 2050, according to the United Nations. 

Cities have been at the epicentre of the COVID-19 pandemic, UN-Habitat said, with 95 per cent of cases found in urban areas. 

The report emphasizes the role of the New Urban Agenda, the UN’s 20-year plan for sustainable urbanization, as a road map to achieving sustainable development and combating climate change. 

It analyzes the value of urbanization from an economic, social and environmental perspective, as well as what the authors called “the unquantifiable value” that gives cities their unique character. 

When combined, they can drive transformative change, the report argues. 

The value of urbanization 

UN-Habitat explained that cities generate economic value when they function efficiently, for example by providing transport options that reduce traffic congestion and shorten travel times, thus allowing for more productive employment. 

Environmental value is generated in the case of compact cities that have walkable urban centres, thus leading to a reduction in their overall carbon footprint, the agency added. 

Meanwhile, urban policies can reduce social inequalities.  Providing housing for low-income residents, or creating safe spaces for marginalized groups such as migrants and LGBTQ+ individuals (lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and queer), are just two examples. 

Furthermore, when cities are well-planned and managed, they also create intangible value by instilling civic pride and serving as centres of cultural traditions, the report added. 

Empowering the cities of the future 

The UN-Habitat report was launched on World Cities Day, commemorated annually on 31 October. 

In his message marking the day, UN Secretary-General António Guterres called for putting communities at the heart of the cities of the future. 

“When urban communities are engaged in policy and decision making, and empowered with financial resources, the results are more inclusive and durable”, he said. 

UN Habitat underscored that the value of sustainable urbanization can only be unlocked provided that various planning, finance and governance conditions are in place. 

The report calls on Governments to create an environment that empowers local authorities to raise revenue, regulate land use, plan for urban growth, limit urban sprawl and relieve overcrowded housing.

Similarly, local governments also should collect revenue to improve municipal services and public spaces. 


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Buhari Holds Virtual Meeting With European Council President over Okonjo-Iweala
Oct 31 2020
Buhari Holds Virtual Meeting With European Council President over Okonjo-Iweala

President Muhammadu Buhari says Nigeria will not relent until the goal of the country’s candidate emerging director-general of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) is achieved.

Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Nigeria’s candidate for WTO DG, was named the most preferred candidate on Wednesday.

In a tweet on Friday, Buhari said he had a video conference with Charles Michel, president of the European Council, during which he thanked the latter for the EU’s support for Okonjo-Iweala.

“Today, I held a video conference with the President of the European Council, Mr Charles Michel. I thanked the Council for its support for @NOIweala, Nigeria’s candidate for position of Director-General of the World Trade Organisation. We will not relent until the goal is achieved,” Buhari wrote.

Also, according to a statement signed by Femi Adesina, special adviser to the president on media and publicity, Michel assured Buhari of the EU’s support.

“Charles Michel reiterated Europe’s support for Nigeria’s Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala as the next director-general of the World Trade Organisation (WTO),” the statement read.

“Buhari is leading Nigeria’s charge for Okonjo-Iweala, the country’s former minister of finance, to emerge as the first black and female WTO DG.”

Meanwhile, the WTO general council will reconvene on November 9, 2020 for a final decision on who becomes the next DG of the organisation

Source: The Cable

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WTO: European Council insists on Okonjo-Iweala as DG
Oct 31 2020
WTO: European Council insists on Okonjo-Iweala as DG

The President of the European Council, Charles Michel, yesterday reiterated Europe’s support for the bid of Nigeria’s former Minister of Finance, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, to become the next Director-General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO).

On the same day, the Nigerian government announced that it was reaching out to the United States and other members of the WTO to clear all bottlenecks to the emergence of Okonjo-Iweala as DG.

The President of the European Council gave the re-assurance to ensure that the Nigerian candidate emerges DG during a video conference with President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday.

Buhari, who is leading Nigeria’s charge for Okonjo-Iweala to emerge the first black and female DG of the WTO, thanked the European Council for its support for Nigeria’s candidate.

According to the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, “Also discussed during the conference were issues bordering on debt relief for Africa, EU-African relations and recharge of the Lake Chad, which has currently shrunk to less than one-third of its usual size, and throwing about 130 million people who depend on the Lake into dire straits. Recharge of the Lake Chad is an issue the Nigerian President had vigorously canvassed at diverse global fora in recent time.

“President Buhari expressed appreciation to Mr. Michel for expected positive developments on the issues.”
Okonjo-Iweala was poised to become WTO’s first female leader by consensus on Wednesday after gaining the support of most WTO member states. But her nomination was moved forward after the U.S voiced opposition to her appointment.

Dozens of governments swiftly spoke out against the U.S, saying Washington was trying to obstruct and weaken the global-trade regulator.

Okonjo-Iweala, who is also a U.S. citizen, is running against South Korea’s first female trade minister, Yoo Myung-hee, who Washington is backing.

WTO spokesman, Keith Rockwell said the organisation would go ahead with a meeting November 9 to pick a new leader. If necessary, as a last resort, a vote could be held to pick a leader although that would break the precedent of selecting the WTO chief by consensus.

He said consultations with the U.S and other members would continue. South Korea declined to withdraw Yoo’s candidacy.

Okonjo-Iweala won the votes on Tuesday by a wide margin, Rockwell said.

At Wednesday’s meeting, the U.S was the first country to dial in, over a videoconference line, saying Okonjo-Iweala lacked the experience to do the job, according to a Western ambassador who was present.

The US complained that the WTO’s election rules were flawed because they did not allow governments to register a negative view of a particular candidate, the ambassador and another person briefed on the exchange said.

The American objection prompted an uproar from the delegates of more than two dozen governments and international organisations seated in the room, with European allies, China, Canada, Latin American and African states all rallying against the US.

An EU representative complained that if the U.S had issues with the process, it could and should have raised them far earlier.

Other countries with delegates in the chamber raised flags, including some that backed Yoo, to join the EU in its objections to the American objection.

Delegates accused the U.S. of trying to bully them and said that if the U.S. didn’t rescind its objections, they would force a vote next month on Okonjo-Iweala’s candidacy.

“Given that it will come down to a vote, the likelihood of Nigeria winning is 99 per cent,” the ambassador said.

Okonjo-Iweala had pitched herself as a champion of developing countries. She touted her managerial experience and work as a former senior World Bank official and board chair of the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation as ideal preparation to steer the WTO’s focus on the serious trade challenges of a global health crisis.

In a statement after the selection meeting on Wednesday, Okonjo-Iweala sounded a note of victory, saying she was “immensely humbled to receive the backing of the WTO’s selection committee today.

“A swift conclusion to the process will allow members to begin again to work together, on the urgent challenges and priorities,” she said.

The race for the job, in which eight candidates initially competed, was triggered when Brazil’s Roberto Azevedo said in May that he was stepping down a year early, partly to allow for new leadership ahead of important WTO meetings next year.

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WTO: Buhari calls up European Council boss for Okonjo-Iweala
Oct 31 2020
WTO: Buhari calls up European Council boss for Okonjo-Iweala

Bolaji Ogundele, Abuja

 

President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday reached out to the European Council as part of the diplomatic effort to get Nigeria’s  Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, confirmed as the next Director-General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO).

Okonjo-Iweala was  a step from emerging as  the WTO DG until the United States mounted an opposition to her bid on Wednesday.

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Washington said it could not support the consensus decision that had gone in  favour of  the Nigerian.

However, Buhari yesterday spoke with  the President of the European Council, Mr. Charles Michel, during a video conference to make a fresh case for the former minister of finance.

The virtual meeting also stretched to debt relief for African countries and others, according to Buhari’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina.

He said the European Council reiterated Europe’s support for Okonjo-Iweala .

He said: “The President is leading Nigeria’s charge for Okonjo-Iweala, the country’s former Minister of Finance, to emerge as the first black and female WTO DG.

“President Buhari thanked the European Council for its support for Nigeria’s candidate.

“Also discussed during the conference were issues bordering on debt relief for Africa, EU-African relations and recharge of the Lake Chad, which has currently shrunk to less than one-third of its usual size, and throwing about 130 million people who depend on the lake into dire straits.

“Recharge of the Lake Chad is an issue the Nigerian President had vigorously canvassed at diverse global fora in recent time.

“President Buhari expressed appreciation to Mr Michel for expected positive developments on the issues.”

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Buhari parleys European Council Chair on Okonjo-Iweala, others issues
Oct 31 2020
Buhari parleys European Council Chair on Okonjo-Iweala, others issues

President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday held a video conference with Mr. Charles Michel, President of the European Council, during which the latter reiterated Europe’s support for Nigeria’s Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala as the next Director-General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO). According to a statement made available to newsmen yesterday by his spokesman, Buhari was leading Nigeria’s charge for Okonjo-Iweala, the country’s former Minister of Finance, to emerge as the first Black and female WTO DG.

The President thanked the European Council for its support for Nigeria’s candidate. Buhari also discussed during the issues bordering on debt relief for Africa, EU-African relations and recharge of the Lake Chad, which has currently shrunk to less than one-third of its usual size, and throwing about 130 million people who depend on the Lake into dire straits.

Recharge of the Lake Chad was an issue the Nigerian President had vigorously canvassed at diverse global fora in recent time. The President expressed appreciation to Michel for expected positive developments on the issues.

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Okonjo Iweala: Buhari in video conference with President of European council
Oct 31 2020
Okonjo Iweala: Buhari in video conference with President of European council

President Muhammadu Buhari Friday held a video conference with Mr Charles Michel, President of the European Council, during which the latter reiterated Europe’s support for Nigeria’s Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala as the next Director-General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO).

The President is leading Nigeria’s charge for Okonjo-Iweala, the country’s former Minister of Finance, to emerge as the first Black and female WTO DG.

President Buhari thanked the European Council for its support for Nigeria’s candidate.

Also discussed during the conference were issues bordering on debt relief for Africa, EU-African relations and recharge of the Lake Chad, which has currently shrunk to less than one-third of its usual size, and throwing about 130 million people who depend on the Lake into dire straits.

Recharge of the Lake Chad is an issue the Nigerian President had vigorously canvassed at diverse global fora in recent time.

President Buhari expressed appreciation to Mr Michel for expected positive developments on the issues.

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