Some people think that such an accomplished person, with such a busy agenda, will not have time for an intense spiritual life – to the point that this relationship with God can be classified as heroic. The Church’s conclusion is that just the opposite happened: it was because he worked so hard that he became a saint.
The pain and shock caused by the terrorist attack that hit the Catholic community on December 3 in a predominantly Muslim province on the island of Mindanao will not impede the path of dialogue and the construction of peaceful coexistence in the south of the Philippines, say Catholic leaders in the region.
Between the 10th and 15th of November last, the 5th National Missionary Congress took place in Manaus, in the heart of the Brazilian Amazon, an event that brought together 1,200 religious people from all over the country.
Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith told Fides news agency that the chapter on the victims of the Easter 2019 terrorist attacks remains open, ensuring that the Catholic Church – which does not accept the version of events presented by the government – will not give up searching for the truth about this tragedy and will always demand justice for the victims.
In December 2019, the Lao government reversed the situation by passing a law that guarantees the rights of Christians to practice their faith without being disturbed, after decades of persecution. However, this law has been little publicized and is practically not applied in the interior of the country where Christians continue to face discrimination from some provincial officials.
With the opening of the Holy Year in all parishes on the 24th of last month, the Catholic Church in the Arabian Peninsula marked the martyrdom of Saint Arethas and his other companions who are venerated today in all Catholic and Orthodox churches in the region.
Around 1,100 Christians live in Gaza today. Like the Muslims, these Christians – whose historical roots go back two millennia – are isolated from the rest of the world, including holy sites in the West Bank.
Over the years, CORR Jute Works has won national and international awards for the quality of its craftsmanship. Today, it employs thousands of artisans, mostly women from rural areas. As a result of CJW’s activities, there are over 200 artisan cooperatives in Bangladesh, spread across 30 provinces, involving a total of almost 6,000 people.
Amidst the rampant violence that devastates the country of Mexico, the Catholic Church is trying its utmost to spread the message of peace through education and prayer while extending love and comfort to those who have been victimized and their families.
The recently-appointed Apostolic Vicar of Aleppo for Catholics of the Latin rite, the Syrian Hanna Jallouf, Friar Minor of the Custody of the Holy Land, knows better than anyone the reality of that troubled region.
He was one of the few priests who continued to serve and comfort small Christian communities in the territories of Idlib province, controlled during the war by jihadist militias.
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