– Tej Francis
Email: tejfrancis@gmail.com
ASMARA, ERITREA
ERITREAN BISHOPS SAY SEIZURE OF CATHOLIC SCHOOLS IS ‘HATRED AGAINST THE FAITH’
(CNA) Seven religious schools in Eritrea, four of them sponsored by the Catholic Church, have been seized by the country’s government this month. Catholic bishops in the country say the move was motivated by “hatred against the faith.”
“If this is not hatred against the faith and against religion what else can it be?” Eritrea’s bishops asked in a Sept. 4 letter addressed to the Minister of Public Education, Semere Re’esom. The seven schools seized by the government include three run Protestant and Muslim groups, according to Comboni Catholic missionaries serving in the area. The schools have been nationalized and will reportedly now be run by the country’s education ministry. The Eritrean government has also seized Church-run health facilities.
“The actions that are being taken against our educational and health institutions are contrary to the rights and to the legitimate freedom of the Church,” the bishops wrote in their Sept. 4 letter. The bishops also suggested that the government raise to them any objections to the way in which Catholic schools and hospitals are administered in Eritrea.
“If there are situations that need to be corrected or adjusted, not only is it good, but even the only viable way, in order for this to take place in a context of an open and constructive dialogue,” the bishops wrote. Eritrea is a one-party state whose human rights record has frequently been deplored. It is believed the seizures are retaliatory, after the Church in April called for reforms to reduce emigration. The bishops had also called for national reconciliation. Catholics make up 4 percent of Eritrea’s population.
VATICAN CITY
PRINCE CHARLES TO ATTEND NEWMAN’S CANONIZATION IN ROME
(CNA) Prince Charles will attend the canonization of Blessed Cardinal John Henry Newman next month. The heir to the British throne will travel to Rome to witness the canonization Mass of the first non-martyr English saint since the Reformation.
After the Mass in St. Peter’s Square Oct. 13, the Prince of Wales will attend a reception at the Pontifical Urban College, where Newman studied to become a Catholic priest, the prince’s office announced. Newman was a 19th century theologian, poet, Catholic priest and cardinal. Originally an Anglican priest, he converted to Catholicism in 1845 and his writings are considered among some of the most important Church-writings in recent centuries.
Tens of thousands of people attended Newman’s beatification in Birmingham, England in Sept. 2010. At the beatification Mass, Pope Benedict XVI said that Newman’s “insights into the relationship between faith and reason, into the vital place of revealed religion in civilized society, and into the need for a broadly-based and wide-ranging approach to education were not only of profound importance for Victorian England, but continue today to inspire and enlighten many all over the world.”
Prince Charles and his wife Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, met Pope Francis in April 2017 during a visit to the Vatican. The Prince of Wales previously met Pope Benedict XVI in 2009 and St. John Paul II in 1985 with his first wife, Princess Diana.
NIAMEY, NIGER
ITALIAN PRIEST KIDNAPPED IN NIGER NOW MISSING FOR ONE YEAR
(CNA) One year ago, Fr. Luigi Macalli was abducted in the middle of the night, from his parish Church in Niger. The priest remains missing, and his friends and family say they have no idea where he is.
“On Tuesday, 17 September 2019, we commemorate the first anniversary of the abduction of our Italian SMA confrere, Fr. Pier Luigi Maccalli,” the Society of African Missions, Macalli’s religious community, posted online Tuesday.
“It is a sad day for the Society of African Missions, for his missionary brothers, his family and especially for the people of Niger whom Fr. Luigi served with great faithfulness and love.” Macalli was kidnapped from his parish in remote Bomanga, near the border between Niger and Burkina Faso, in western Africa. The identity, affiliation, and motivation of the kidnappers is not clear.
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