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African Heritage Mass in Philadelphia draws Catholics from 21 countries

October 10, 2019 CNA Daily News 0

Philadelphia, Pa., Oct 10, 2019 / 03:10 am (CNA).- Hundreds of African Catholics gathered last Sunday for an annual Mass in Philadelphia, blending cultures, languages, and attire from across the African continent.

The sixth annual African Family Heritage Mass was hosted by the Archdiocese of Philadelphia Oct. 6. Mass and a celebratory banquet were held at St. Raymond of Penafort Church in northwest Philadelphia.

Sister Florence Enechukwu, a Missionary Sister of the Holy Rosary, founded the event in 2014. Father Christopher Walsh, the pastor at St. Raymond, was the main celebrant and homilist this year.

Fr. Walsh told CNA that the event gathered people representing 21 African countries.

“This is an opportunity for them to get together to worship…Different communities take different parts of the Mass and many different languages are used,” he said.

The scripture readings at the Mass were proclaimed in Swahili and English; the prayers of the faithful were read by representatives of Malawi, Tanzania, Eritrea, and Democratic Republic of the Congo, Catholic Philly reported.

Prior to the Mass, a Liberian choir sang “Let Us Come to Jesus My Friend.” During Mass, songs were sung by Kenyan, Francophone, and Nigerian Igbo choirs.

While some participants are part of vibrant communities in their hometowns, Walsh said, “there were also people there who drove down from areas further away in Pennsylvania who don’t get to connect. They’re from Africa, but they don’t get a chance to connect with the larger African community.”

The priest noted that cultural practices are often tied closely to the dissemination of faith.

“The Church has always had an appreciation for culture, and in many cases, the African culture in which these folks grew up is the culture that passed on the faith to them,” he said. “Being able to celebrate in their own liturgical style with their own liturgical music, praying to God in their own language, is important.”

The event, which is hosted at a different parish every year, was held at St. Raymond’s this year because of the parish’s refugee ministry. The parish has sponsored 10 African refugees, hailing from Sierra Leone, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Tanzania.

Walsh told CNA that the parish works with several agencies to support the refugees. The parish is able to provide clothes and pay a portion of their rent for a few months, in addition to helping them find work and obtain documentation and diplomas.

Participants at the Mass came from Togo, Nigeria, Ghana, Benin, Kenya, Sierra Leone, Cameroon, Liberia, Congo, and the Ivory Coast, among other countries. They wore traditional African clothing from their respective countries.

Many attendees wore clothing featuring black and white images of their favorite saint atop their clothing. Emmanuel Okoro, coordinator for the Igbo Catholic Community at St. Cyprian Parish, said the event is joyfully anticipated by the African communities in the area.

“Many of us are wearing a patron saint,” Okoro told Catholic Philly. “I chose to wear the outfit with St. John Paul II. I have a special devotion to him. Many of those here are from throughout the Philadelphia Archdiocese and Camden. You will see that many of us are wearing different saints,” she told the Catholic Philly.

After Mass, a buffet was offered with a variety of traditional African dishes from different regions.

“It is part of the culture to make sure everyone comes together. Many of these groups worship together as a group,” said Samuel Abu, coordinator for the archdiocese’s Refugee Resettlement Program.

“Under Archbishop Charles Chaput we have the opportunity to pray together and gather to serve God,” he told Catholic Philly. “We have apostolates throughout the archdiocese. The African Catholic community is always increasing because now we have first, second and third generations of families. This Mass made it possible to bring them together.”

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Holy See to UN: More must be done to end violence against women

October 9, 2019 CNA Daily News 0

New York City, N.Y., Oct 10, 2019 / 12:35 am (CNA).- Violence against women remains a global concern for the Vatican, an official told members of the United Nations this week, stressing that society must “advance and defend all the rights derived from the inalienable human dignity of every woman and girl.”

Archbishop Bernardito Auza, the Holy See’s Permanent Observer to the UN, on Monday sent an address to the UN General Assembly’s third committee that highlighted the “unique and irreplaceable” role of women in the world.

“While significant progress has been made in increasing the participation of women in social, political, economic and cultural life, and in ending violence against women and girls, much remains to be achieved,” Auza said.

He cited a report from the UN Secretary-General and said migrant women in particular, including many female migrant workers, are at risk of labor exploitation, human trafficking, and also face broader social exclusion. He said this remains a deep concern of the Holy See.

“These women deserve to be welcomed, protected, and integrated within our communities with dignity. They also deserve full and equal recognition before the law, including through access to the justice system,” Auza said.

“These women courageously leave their land and communities, often in the most difficult circumstances, to provide for their family and to assure their children of a better future. It is necessary, therefore, to adopt specific measures to protect and assist women migrant workers and to recognize their precious contribution to society.”

Auza also mentioned the “heinous” practice of trafficking of newborn babies, as well as forced surrogacy. He called for “effective legislation and enforcement to prevent trafficking in persons and limit impunity as much as possible.”

“While there have been various advances in formulating adequate legal instruments to investigate, prosecute and punish traffickers, in unlocking the financial chains, understanding the connection to other forms of organized crime and corruption, and fostering cooperation at and across borders, concrete measures and effective sanctions remain often limited,” he said.

September 2020 marks the 25th anniversary of the UN’s Fourth World Conference on Women and the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, parts of which the Vatican spoke out strongly against, including efforts to expand abortion as a means of population control.

Auza quoted Pope St. John Paul II, who wrote in 1995 to the Secretary-General of the Fourth World Conference on Women.

“There will never be justice, including equality, development and peace, for women or for men, unless there is an unfailing determination to respect, protect, love and serve life— every human life, at every stage and in every situation,” Pope John Paul II wrote.

“The Holy See insists on equality in dignity between men and women and on equal respect at all stages of their lives…This remains an utmost priority and focus of the Holy See,” Auza added.

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New cardinal: Church in Morocco is small, but very much alive

October 9, 2019 CNA Daily News 0

Vatican City, Oct 9, 2019 / 03:44 pm (CNA).- While the Catholic community in Morocco is small, it bears a strong witness to the Gospel as it proclaims the message of Christ and serves those in need, said one of the Church’s new cardinals this week.

Cristóbal López Romero, archbishop of Rabat, Morocco, was among the 13 prelates elevated to the rank of cardinal by Pope Francis on Oct. 5.

López Romero is a member of the Salesians. Born in Spain, he moved to Morocco in 2003 to head the Salesian community there. Pope Francis appointed him Archbishop of Rabat in December 2017.

The Church in Morocco is small, with only about 30,000 Christians among 37 million Muslims, the cardinal told ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language sister agency.

“Nevertheless, it’s a significant Church,” he said, adding that the Christian community is “significant because of the message we can convey to the Universal Church and the entire world.”

Although small, the cardinal said, the local Church is “young” and “lively.” In addition, he noted that Catholics living in the country “come from more than 100 nationalities, so we’re quite universal, which is what the word ‘catholic’ means.”

This protects the local Catholic community from becoming self-referential, he said. Rather, they recognize the need to build the Kingdom of God in all places and circumstances.

“We are an ecumenical Church,” López Romero continued. “We work closely with our Protestant, Anglican and Orthodox Christian brothers.”

“We are a Church that’s a bridge between Europe and Africa, between Muslims and Christians, between Spain and Morocco, between East and West, between poor and rich. A bridge. That’s what we try to be in this time in which so many to seek to raise up walls, barriers, borders, or even pits.”

The local Church is heavily engaged in inter-religious dialogue, particularly with Muslims, the cardinal added.

He also pointed to the Church’s strong tradition of service, following the example of the Good Samaritan in scripture. The Archdiocese of Rabat often cares for migrants from sub-Saharan Africa who pass through Morocco, he said. Some settle there, but most are traveling to Europe.

“We are…a Church that stoops down before the person in need, the person who’s really going through hard times, to help him. Whether he’s a Muslim Moroccan or an African Christian, it doesn’t matter. Like the Good Samaritan, we reach out to the person in need without asking him where he comes from, where he’s going, why he’s in that situation.”

Reflecting on his new role as cardinal, López Romero said that 98% of his daily life and responsibilities will remain the same as before his appointment.

“I’m still the archbishop of Rabat, that is my task, that is what the Church has asked of me. But in that remaining 2%, what will change is that I’ll have to travel a little more to Rome to take part in various meetings.”

He added that while much of his focus will remain on his archdiocese, “I will have to think a little bit more about the universal Church, because the task of a cardinal is to be beside the pope to support him, advise him, if he asks our opinion, or carry out the tasks that he entrusts to us on a temporary or long-term basis.”

“So I must keep in mind that, while being responsible for the Church in Rabat, my concern will have to go beyond those limits and out to the universal Church,” he said.

 

This article was originally published by our sister agency, ACI Prensa. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

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Candidates announced for next USCCB president

October 9, 2019 CNA Daily News 2

Washington D.C., Oct 9, 2019 / 12:00 pm (CNA).- The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has released the list of candidates ahead of its presidential and vice-presidential elections. The elections will be held during the conference’… […]

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‘Every page was an act of prayer’: New manuscript reveals devotion of future pope

October 9, 2019 CNA Daily News 1

Vatican City, Oct 9, 2019 / 08:05 am (CNA).- Newly published manuscripts belonging to Karol Wojtyła have offered a glimpse into the future pope and saint’s deep devotion and prayer throughout his writing process.

The 39 handwritten pages contain Wojtyła’s reflections on St. Paul’s Areopagus address to the Athenians described in the Acts of the Apostles. It is believed that these meditations and catecheses were written in or shortly after 1965, while Wojtya was Archbishop of Krakow. He was made a cardinal in 1967 and elected pope in 1978.

On each page, Wojtyła wrote a little prayer in Latin on the top right corner, such as “Veni, Sancte Spiritus” (Come Holy Spirit) and “Adoro te devote latens Deitas” (I devoutly adore you hidden God), a Eucharistic Hymn written by St. Thomas Aquinas. 

On the top of the first page he wrote, in Latin, the full quote of St. Louis de Montfort from which he had taken his episcopal motto, Totus Tuus: “I belong entirely to you, and all that I have is yours. I take you for my all. O Mary, give me your heart.”

The writings have been published in a book titled “Christ, the Church and the World: Catechesis of the Areopagus.”

Speaking at the launch of the publication, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re reflected that the inscription of a prayer on each page was a discipline Wojtyła continued as pope, even while drafting encyclicals.

“When he wrote Redemptoris Hominis, before every page, before the beginning, he wrote in Latin: ‘Totus Tuus Ego Sum,’ The second page: ‘Et omnia mea tua assunta,’ like this he continued,” Re said. 

Cardinal Re worked with St. John Paul II as sostituto, or deputy, at the Secretariat of State from 1989 – 2000 and later as the prefect of the Congregation of Bishops. He said that when the Polish pope wrote Redemptoris Mater about the Virgin Mary, he wrote out the Litany of Loreto with a different title of Mary on each subsequent page. 

“That’s why, in a certain sense, every page that he wrote it was an act of prayer,” Re said in Italian. “It reveals to us a little of  … the great spirituality, devotion that he had.”

Re said he was always impressed with the “intensity” of St. John Paul II’s prayer: “He had a great capacity for concentration. When he gathered himself for prayer whatever happened around him did not disturb him. He was so immersed in God, so concentrated on God.”

The retired cardinal remembered that when faced with a decision or problem, the pope would respond, “We need to pray more about this.”

The manuscripts were first published in Polish in 2018 to mark the 40th anniversary of Wojtyła’s election as Archbishop of Krakow. No decision has yet been made about publication in English or Spanish.

Wojtyla began writing the meditations on St. Paul’s speech at the Areopagus following two trips to Athens in the mid-1960’s. Within the text, he references documents from Vatican Council II, including Nostra Aetate, Dei Verbum, and Gaudium et Spes. 

Dr. Marta Burghardt, who conducted historical and philological analysis of the original manuscripts, concluded that the Wojtyla wrote several passages of conciliar texts and Scripture from memory. 

Burghardt said it is still unknown to whom, if anyone, Wojtyła was writing these reflections on St. Paul or whether they were intended for a series of speeches or publication. 

“The depth of these texts perfectly reflects his extraordinary conception of the world from the point of view of communion with the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit,” Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz wrote in the introduction to the book, published by the Vatican library. Dziwisz served as St. John Paul II’s personal secretary throught his time as a bishop and pope.

“In this particular historical moment we all feel again the need for a profound and general catechesis on the truths of the faith, of a catechesis that completely introduces us into the mystery of God’s work in our human history,” Dziwisz said.

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