The Pope appoints pontifical commissioner for the Heralds of the Gospel

Huanchaco, Peru, Jan 20, 2018 / 07:55 am (CNA/EWTN News).- In a homily Saturday, Pope Francis spoke about the natural disasters Peru experienced over the last year, praising the way in which Peruvians joined together to help one another during these difficult moments.

“I know that, in the time of darkness, when you felt the brunt of the [storm], these lands kept moving forward,” the Pope said during Mass near Trujillo, Peru Jan. 20.

Like the five wise virgins in the parable in the day’s Gospel, the people of Peru were prepared with “the oil needed to go out to help one another like true brothers and sisters,” he continued. “You had the oil of solidarity and generosity that stirred you to action, and you went out to meet the Lord with countless concrete gestures of support.”

The Mass, which took place in Huanchaco, a beach town outside the city of Trujillo, was part of Pope Francis’ Jan. 18-21 visit to Peru.

In his homily he referred to the “Niño,” or “Coastal El Niño,” the name given to a weather phenomenon off the coast of Peru and Ecuador, which began in December 2016.

The pattern caused warmer-than-usual water temperatures off the coasts of the two countries, which in turn triggered heavy rainfalls in the mountains.

The excess run-off from the rains caused severe flooding and mudslides, devastating parts of Peru, particularly in the north. Trujillo, Peru’s third most populated city, was one of the worst hit after a period of heavy rains last March caused mudslides and flooding directly affecting around 800,000 people and killing almost 100.

Francis encouraged Peruvians not to lose heart during these times of trials, but to use this Eucharistic celebration as an opportunity to unite their suffering to Christ’s suffering on the cross.

“These times of being ‘buffeted,’” he said, “call into question and challenge our strength of spirit and our deepest convictions. They make us realize how important it is to stand united, not alone, and to be filled with that unity which is a fruit of the Holy Spirit.”

Many people are still suffering from the damage caused by “Coastal El Niño,” the Pope noted. And it’s possible these difficulties have caused their faith to waver.

If this is the case, “we want to unite ourselves to Jesus,” he said, because “[Jesus] knows our pain and our trials; he endured the greatest of sufferings in order to accompany us in our own trials. The crucified Jesus wants to be close to us in every painful situation, to give us a hand and to help lift us up.”

Like the story of the ten virgins in the Gospel reading, who were surprised by the bridegroom’s arrival in the middle of the night, the storms of life – both the physical storms as well as other difficulties – can catch us off-guard.

In the passage, we learn that five of the virgins were prepared with oil for their lamps and five were not. “At the appointed time, each of them showed what they had filled their life with,” Francis noted, and “the same thing happens to us.”

“There are times when we realize what we have filled our lives with. How important it is to fill our lives with the oil that lets us light our lamps in situations of darkness and to find the paths to move forward!”

He commended the Peruvians for being well-prepared with the grace of the Holy Spirit, so that “in the midst of darkness, you, together with so many others, were like living candles that lighted up the path with open hands, ready to help soothe the pain and share what you had, from your poverty, with others.”

“Fill your lives always with the Gospel,” he concluded. “I want to encourage you to be a community that lets itself be anointed by the Lord with the oil of the Spirit. He transforms, renews and strengthens everything.”
 

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Colombian influencer Erika "Kika" Nieto / Screenshot from ADF International tweet

Mexico City Newsroom, Nov 25, 2021 / 00:00 am (CNA).
The Constitutional Court of Colombia has overturned a lower court’s decision that forced Colombian … […]

Caracas, Venezuela, Feb 5, 2019 / 01:55 pm (CNA).- In a joint statement Monday, the Venezuelan bishops’ conference, the Confederation of Religious Men and Women of Venezuela and the National Council of the Laity demanded the state agencies call “free and legitimate elections to retake the path to democracy,” allow the entry of humanitarian aid into the country and stop the repression against citizens.

The Feb. 4 statement said Venezuelan Catholics, facing a “painful situation of injustice and suffering,” are in search of a “peaceful and transparent” transition that will lead to “free and legitimate elections to retake the path to democracy, restoring the rule of law, and fostering the reconstruction of the social fabric, economic productivity, morality in the country and reconciliation among all Venezuelans.”

The statement called for a transition toward elections undertaken “in a peaceful manner in accordance with the National Constitution” to avoid more suffering.

“In this crucial moment in our country’s history, we invite the entire Venezuelan people to give their best, everyone in their sphere of work and action, so that working from unity, solidarity and ethical responsibility, in a calm spirit, we may seek the common good and tirelessly work for the reconstruction of democracy and of our entire homeland, avoiding bloodshed,” they added.

In addition to the call for new elections, the statement demanded that the “necessary permits be granted to make available humanitarian aid, to mitigate the impact of the crisis on the nation’s most vulnerable.”

“Caritas Venezuela and other national Catholic aid organizations commit ourselves to continue the service that we have been providing with equity, inclusion, transparency and effectiveness,” the text said.

Stopping the repression

Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro was sworn in for a second term as president Jan. 10, after winning a contested election in which opposition candidates were barred from running or imprisoned. Venezuela’s bishops have called his new term illegitimate, and Guaidó, head of the National Assembly, declared himself interim president Jan. 23.

Guaidó has been recognized as Venezuelan president by the US, Canada, much of the European Union, and several Latin American nations.

Since Jan. 21, at least 40 people have died and hundreds have been arrested amid protests against Maduro.

Since Maduro succeeded Hugo Chávez as president of Venezuela in 2013, Venezuela has been marred by violence and social upheaval. Under the socialist government, the country has seen severe shortages and hyperinflation, and millions have emigrated.

The Feb. 4 statement said that amid the crisis, “the growing repression for political motives, the violation of human rights, and the arbitrary and selective arrests are morally unacceptable.”

The Church leaders demanded that “the state security forces no longer repress their Venezuelan brothers, and instead assume their true responsibility to protect the people in all circumstances, particularly when exercising their right to peaceful protest.”

They likewise reminded the Public Prosecutor’s Office  and the People’s Ombudsman’s Office that they must fulfill their duties by putting an end to human rights abuses, “particularly with regard to the detention of minors.”

Finally, the joint statement invited Venezuelans to participate in the Sunday Eucharist on Feb. 10 and “to pray in all the churches, homes and communities, asking the Lord to grant us peace, reconciliation, freedom and spiritual and corporal well being.”  

“Let us trust in the God of history. He is the God of salvation in Jesus the liberator, who tells us ‘don’t be afraid, I will be with you always until the end of the world.’ May Our Lady of Coromoto, our national patroness, always accompany us as a people.”

This report was originally published by our Spanish-language sister agency, ACI Prensa. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

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