Suva, Fiji, Jan 23, 2019 / 12:21 am (CNA/EWTN News).- The Catholic Church in Fiji is prepared to shut down all of its 44 primary and 19 secondary schools if the government continues to elect non-Catholics as the head of those schools.
Fiji’s education ministry recently named two non-Catholics as principals of Saint Thomas High in Lautoka and Xavier College in Ba. Education Minister Rosy Akbar said the decisions were part of the country’s merit-based recruitment system, and that the Church can privatize its schools if it disagrees with the move, the London-based Christian radio station Premier reported.
The Church is now calling for greater autonomy in the governance of its schools.
After a meeting held last Thursday, Archbishop Peter Loy Chong of Suva said he is prepared to close the local schools, but will only do so if Catholic leaders and government authorities cannot arrive at a solution, according to Premier.
At the meeting, four possible courses of action were identified: initiating a “critical self-reflection and an organisational review of Catholic education in the areas of identity, character, quality of teachers and planning”; working toward partnership with the government; demanding that the government take faith into account when appointing heads of schools; and engaging in civil disobedience, which would include closing the nation’s 63 Catholic schools.
The Fiji Sun reported that Permanent Secretary for Education Alison Burchell has said the government is open to more discussions and is dedicated to finding the most appropriate person for the job.
If you value the news and views Catholic World Report provides, please consider donating to support our efforts. Your contribution will help us continue to make CWR available to all readers worldwide for free, without a subscription. Thank you for your generosity!
Click here for more information on donating to CWR. Click here to sign up for our newsletter.
The faithful gather at the site of Father Arul Das’ death in the Jamboni jungle on Sept. 2, 2024. / Credit: Anto Akkara
Bangalore, India, Sep 10, 2024 / 11:15 am (CNA).
More than 4,000 Catholics on Sept. 2 assembled in the remote Jamboni jungle to mark the 25-year observance of the death of 33-year-old Father Arul Das of the Balasore Diocese, who was shot and pierced with arrows in his thatched chapel-house during the early hours of Sept. 2, 1999.
“Father Arul very closely followed the life of Jesus. Like Jesus as a good shepherd, Father Arul too tried to be a good shepherd for the people of this locality,” said Balasore Bishop Varghese Thottamkara in his sermon at the jubilee Mass.
Along with the bishop, over 50 priests and hundreds of nuns from different parts of the sprawling diocese and beyond were present at the celebration at which the clergyman was hailed as a martyr.
Thousands gather at the site of Father Arul Das’s death in the Jamboni jungle on Sept. 2, 2024. Credit: Anto Akkara
“Father Arul was a priest of Christ. He came to serve the faithful of Balasore, especially of the Ho tribe people,” Thottamkara said.
“Through his life-giving witness he gives the best example for us. The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church,” the prelate added.
“While only 18 Ho families had embraced Christian faith in Jamboni at the death of Father Arul in 1999, the number has swelled to over 400 in Jamboni mission area now,” Father Varghese Puthumattam, who has compiled the biography of the missionary, told CNA.
Arul became involved with the Ho tribals in the jungle region when he was assigned as a deacon for pastoral duty at the challenging mission. Even a quarter-century later, the outpost lacks electricity and proper roads.
After his ordination in 1993, he was posted in the area and went to neighboring Jharkhand to learn the Ho language. The priest launched full-fledged work among the tribe, walking through the jungles without motorable roads to reach out to locals, many of them illiterate.
“We had to carry even bicycles on the shoulders to cross rocky and slushy terrains and streams,” Puthumattam remembered, recounting the challenging mission work undertaken with Arul.
While camping in his hut church at the remote Jamboni village, Arul was killed by a gang led by Hindu fundamentalist Dara Singh when the latter was on the run after having committed a triple murder in January 1999.
“Christian faith has taken deep roots among our people because of the martyrdom of Father Arul,” Durga Singh Godsara told CNA. Godsara is a catechist and was one of the first converts that Arul helped lead to the Church.
After Arul was killed, Godsara recounted what one of his fellow converts told him: “I will give up as it is dangerous and they would kill us too.”
“But I told him we have to die for the faith our guru [master] has taught us. Later I prayed with him; he got healed and he went to live 20 more years,” Godsara said.
“Our people have deep faith in the healing power of Father Arul that they bring the sick to this spot and get instant healing,” he added.
“We routinely hear ‘the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church.’ It has been literally fulfilled in Jamboni,” Sister Elizabeth Rani told CNA.
“I came here for the first anniversary in 2000. What an amazing development has taken place over the years with the thousands of Ho people embracing the Christian faith,” said Rani, who belongs to the Congregation of St Anne.
“‘Arul’ in our language [Tamil] means ‘blessing,’ and I am happy — he has indeed become a blessing to the Ho tribals,” the nun added.
“Our people were enthusiastic about the historic occasion,” Father Francis Xavier Singh, vicar of Holy Rosary Parish of Bagdapha that comprises the Jamboni area, told CNA.
“They worked voluntarily through the night to prepare the lunch for more than 4,000 people,” he added.
Thottamkara told CNA that there “is indeed a growing popular devotion to Father Arul.” The bishop noted that several miraculous healings have been reported by the Ho tribe.
“The diocese will set up committees to document and scrutinize these to decide how to take these up further,” Thottamkara said.
Jolo, Philippines, Jul 23, 2019 / 06:58 pm (CNA).- Despite the fresh memory of a deadly terrorist attack in January, the rededication Mass of the Cathedral of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Jolo, an island in the Philippines, was packed with Catholics, an aid worker said.
“Security was really tight – police and soldiers locked down an entire block of the city…Yet the cathedral was packed. The dedication was attended by hundreds. It was inspiring to see the families of the victims and the survivors of the blasts there,” Jonathan Luciano, national director of the Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) in the Philippines, said in a report from the group.
The cathedral rededication was celebrated by Archbishop Gabrielle Caccia, Apostolic Nuncio to the Philippines, along with Cardinal Orlando Quevedo, Archbishop Emeritus of Cotabato, which, like Jola, is a Muslim-majority area in the country.
On January 27 of this year, two bombs exploded during Sunday Mass at the cathedral, killing at least 20 people and injuring at least 111 others. The Philippines bishops’ conference condemned the attack as an “act of terrorism.” ISIS, which has ties to the local Muslim insurgent group Abu Sayyaf, claimed responsibility for the attack. Attacks by Abu Sayyaf against Catholics in the region are not uncommon.
Jolo is a part of a group of islands called Mindanao. According to the New York Times, the attack happened just days after a referendum was held in Mindanao to establish a “Muslim autonomous region” in the area, an attempt at creating peace that was ratified by voters everywhere except in Jolo.
At the rededication Mass, Cardinal Orlando “described how inspiring the people of Jolo were because of their faith and resilience despite constant persecution,” Luciano said.
“At the end of the Mass, Archbishop Caccia assured people that the Church of Christ and the Christian community [are] with them…They are not forgotten or neglected. This is not only manifested with financial assistance, but through the solidarity of prayer all over the world,” he added. In the ACN report, Luciano said that ACN was the first aid group to offer the cathedral their assistance after the bombings, which included financial assistance for the “costly repairs.”
He said the goal of their response was to “rebuild the Christian community first then rebuild the actual church.”
The Governor of Jolo, Benjamin Loong, a Muslim, also spoke at the rededication ceremony. Luciano said he “spoke of the partnership between Christians and Muslims. With this rebuilding and this re-consecration, dialogue can restart.”
Luciano said he hopes that ACN’s mission partners and benefactors will be interested in helping persecuted Christians in the Philippines after hearing about what happened in Jolo.
“We have to reinforce the relationship between Christians and Muslims,” he said. “We can live harmoniously together.”
Melbourne, Australia, Feb 25, 2019 / 06:21 pm (CNA).- Prosecutors have abandoned a planned second trial against Australian Cardinal George Pell, who was convicted in December 2018 on five charges of the sexual abuse of minors.
Leave a Reply