Dublin, Ireland, Aug 23, 2018 / 10:38 am (CNA/EWTN News).- To couples seeking marriage, the Church needs both to be welcoming and to present a “clear vision” of the sacrament, Cardinal Vincent Nichols of Westminster said Thursday at the Wor… […]
Portsmouth, England, Aug 22, 2018 / 02:44 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Bishop Philip Egan of the Diocese of Portsmouth, in southern England, has written to the pope asking him to convene an extraordinary meeting of the Synod of Bishops in the wake of recent sc… […]
Dublin, Ireland, Aug 22, 2018 / 12:27 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- In the face of attacks on the family, the Church should strive to imitate the Holy Family, which shines through the darkness, said Cardinal Oswald Gracias of Bombay.
“In the midst of the… […]
Dublin, Ireland, Aug 22, 2018 / 11:30 am (CNA).- Participants in the World Meeting of Families have been invited to walk the “Dublin Camino,” a seven-church “Pilgrim Walk” throughout the city, sponsored by the Archdiocese of Dublin.
The event, which is running from Aug. 18-25, is aimed at making the themes of the World Meeting of Families accessible to everyone, even those not attending the pastoral congress or other large events.
Pilgrims can pick up a free “Pilgrim Walk Passport” at any of the seven churches along the route, each marked with a banner identifying them as an official stop along the way, and they can be visited any order.
Like those making the ancient Camino de Santiago de Compostela through Spain, pilgrims in Dublin receive a stamp at each of the different churches, and a final seal on the certificate page of their pilgrim passport, marking the completion of the journey.
“Your fully-stamped passport will serve as a life-long reminder of your participation in the IXth World Meeting of Families in Dublin,” said Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin in a letter printed in the passports.
“It will also record your pilgrim journey of prayer and reflection through the themes associated with each church for this event,” he said. An interactive map of the pilgrim walk is available on the official World Meeting of Families mobile app.
At each church, pilgrims are instructed to pray for a specific intention relating to the family, such as grandparents, parents, and children. Volunteers are present at each church to greet pilgrims, stamp passports, and provide information about the history of that particular church. Some of the parishes have items for sale in addition to pamphlets about upcoming events happening at the parish.
Six of the churches on the route are Roman Catholic, but one, St. Michan’s, located on Church Street, is a Church of Ireland parish – part of the Anglican Communion. A nearby Roman Catholic church on Halston Street, also named after St. Michan, is another stop on the pilgrimage.
Rev. Ross Styles, an Anglican minister on hand to welcome pilgrims, explained to CNA that the Anglican parish had been included on the pilgrim route because of its strong ecumenical ties with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Dublin. The building had been a Catholic Church until the time of the Protestant Reformation.
The route was officially opened Saturday, August 18, by Archbishop Martin walking with the Anglican archbishop of Dublin, Dr. Michael Jackson, between the Anglican and Catholic churches of St. Michan’s.
When Dublin hosted the International Eucharistic Congress in 2012, a Church of Ireland parish was also involved in a similar event.
The inclusion of the Anglican St. Michan’s church is meant to signify the “family” of Christian communities, Styles said, adding that it “reinforces our close ecumenical links.” He said that the theme of St. Michan’s was “fostering the gift of forgiveness among families,” and pilgrims were asked to “pray for the family of Christian Churches,” and “our mutual need for forgiveness.”
Volunteers told CNA that the crowds visiting the churches was “very multicultural” and not limited to local parishioners and residents, though Dubliners have been visiting too, with many taking to social media to praise the city’s hidden gems.
“Just did the #WMOF2018 #Pilgrimwalk of seven churches and I didn’t realize how lovely some of them are….and I’m from Dublin!” tweeted Mary Kirk, a local resident.
Derry, Northern Ireland, Aug 21, 2018 / 05:22 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Faced with daunting cultural challenges, the Church must engage in difficult discussions rather than seeking quick answers, said Bishop Donal McKeown of Derry at one of the local openin… […]
Dublin, Ireland, Aug 21, 2018 / 11:00 am (CNA).- Several Irish bishops, as well as victims of clerical sexual abuse in the country, have offered responses to a letter Pope Francis’ issued Monday on sexual abuse in the Church. The pope’s let… […]
Rimini, Italy, Aug 20, 2018 / 05:01 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Many have forgotten that authentic Christianity has a positive influence on history and brings about greater human fulfillment, Archbishop Christophe Pierre said Sunday at a cultural event organized by the lay movement Communion and Liberation.
“When faced with change, conflict, relativism, and bleak prospects for the future, people are beginning to despair under the burden of daily life and have forgotten how to be protagonists in history,” the apostolic nuncio to the US said Aug. 19 at the Rimini Meeting.
“Meeting Christ and being changed by Him – the revolution of the heart – this is what turns the wheel of history! This is the true revolution!”
This year’s Rimini Meeting, held Aug. 19-25, explores the theme “The forces that move history are the same that make man happy”.
Archbishop Pierre addressed the encounter beginning with a discussion of the meeting of the Samaritan woman with Christ at the well.
He emphasized that the woman experienced an event which offered happines, and this experience caused her to evangelize her community.
He said the woman at the well, who eased her suffering with unsatisfactory desires, is a person who is similar to many people in the culture. Some people, he said, attempt to cope with pain and weakness with drugs, pornography, wealth, or power.
“We will take anything we can to help us feel better, but in the end, it doesn’t satisfy. Just as when Jesus was approached by the disciples of John and asked, ‘What do you seek?’ Jesus is now asking the woman to identify her real thirst.”
Archbishop Pierre said Christ encounters the woman with the truth that he is fulfilling, and her previous idolatry lacked the ability to accomplish her hopes and dreams. Rather, he said the encounter with this truth and the presence of Christ leads “her to discover her own humanity and the possibilities for her future.”
Similarly, he said Christ gives people the ability to make proper judgements of the world, distinguishing between temporary pleasures and lasting happiness, as well as good and evil.
“A humanity reawakened by Christ can generate new protagonists in the history of the world – new witnesses able to make judgments, able to discern right from wrong, good from evil, true good from passing pleasure.”
This new ability is a powerful event, he said, which verifies the faith to others. However, he said this must extend beyond a knowledge of doctrine and become an example of a joyful Christian witness.
“A reawakened humanity has an ability to see – not only with the eye but also with the heart – and can verify the truth of the faith and propose it in this time of epochal change. A joyful Christian witness shows forth the attractiveness of Christ that makes others say, ‘What makes that person tick? What moves that person to act?’”
Madrid, Spain, Aug 19, 2018 / 01:00 pm (CNA).- A young woman whose cause for sainthood is being considered by the Church demonstrated by her life that “you can be holy living your daily life,” according to one of her closest friends.
Alexia González-Barros was recently declared “venerable” by Pope Francis, a step in the Church process that could lead to canonization. González-Barros died in 1985 at the age of 14, after a ten-month battle with cancer.
Begoña Hernandez, Alexia’s classmate and one of her best friends, recalled that the youth lived out her illness “with joy” and trust in God. Hernandez said that she had the “conviction that [González-Barros] was a saint” from the moment that she died in 1985.
Alexia González-Barros was born in Madrid, Spain, in 1971 and was the youngest of seven siblings, two of whom died before they were born. Her parents, Francisco and Moncha, were supernumeraries in Opus Dei.
In February 1985, she was diagnosed with a malignant spinal tumor that quickly led to paralysis. She died in December that same year, just ten months after her diagnosis, in the University of Navarre Clinic in Pamplona, Spain.
During her sickness, the young girl offered her suffering for the Church and for the pope. Several biographies highlight her fortitude, peace and joy despite the severe pain she suffered.
In June, Pope Francis recognized her heroic virtues, the first step in the process of canonization.
The friendship between Begoña and Alexia began in nursery school. “We were in the same class since we were 4 or 5 years old until she died, and we were very close friends,” Hernandez recalled in an interview with ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language sister agency.
“Alexia was a lovely person, joyful, friendly, a normal girl. I remember when I was a teenager I had a diary and I wrote down ‘the people that especially help me’ and on that list was Alexia. They were very simple things, but she helped me be a better person, to share with others and to not be capricious,” she said.
Hernandez said that “when we learned she could not move, all of us girls in her class went to see her. During her convalescence I continued to visit her and I sincerely say she always exhibited joy. With her you found peace and that was very surprising.”
“You left the hospital with joy and not with anguish or suffering,” Hernandez recalled.
A great help in maintaining hope despite the difficulties was González-Barros’ mother, who “always trusted in God and reminded that we are in his hands,” Hernandez said.
During her illness, González-Barros used to repeat “Jesus I want to be healed, but if you don’t want that, I want what you want.”
Hernandez said that González-Barros’ fortitude was rooted in her faith, because “she took everything that happened to her from the point of view of faith and that’s is why she endured all the suffering so well.”
The process of canonization for González-Barros was opened in the Archdiocese of Madrid in 1993 and was sent on to Rome that same year.
“When Alexia died I had the conviction that my friend was a saint. Since then I have commended myself to her and I know that it has been through her intercession that she helped me on many occasions,” Hernandez said, and assured that that is a common feeling among her other classmates.
Alexia’s example shows the world that you can be holy living your daily life in a normal way. And she demonstrated that with her life,” she emphasized.
Limerick, Ireland, Aug 16, 2018 / 01:01 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- The Pope’s visit to Ireland is a time for the Church to reflect on her past failings and consider how to repair the Church for future generations, an Irish bishop has said.
Pope Franci… […]
Stockholm, Sweden, Aug 16, 2018 / 12:17 pm (CNA).- A labor court in Sweden has sided with a Muslim woman whose job interview was cut short when she refused a handshake for religious reasons.
The court, in a 3-2 vote, ordered the company to pay the woman 40,000 kronor – or $4,350 – on the grounds of discrimination against her, the BBC reports.
Farah Alhajeh was applying for a job with an interpreting company in Uppsala. During the interview, she would not shake her male interviewer’s hand. Instead, she placed her hand over her heart, later saying she was trying to avoid offending the interviewer.
The 24-year-old says her Muslim faith prohibits her from physical contact with members of the opposite sex, outside of her family.
The company argued that Alhejah’s refusal to shake hands could hamper her effectiveness as an interpreter. However, the court disagreed. According to The Local, Alhajeh was applying for a job doing video and phone interpretation, where she would not have to interact in-person with clients.
Company policy and anti-discrimination laws prohibit treating people differently because of sex, the employer said. It said it could not have staff members refusing a handshake because they are women. The company does allow staff members to decline handshakes due to germophobia and autism.
The Swedish labor court said the company could rightly demand equal treatment for men and women, but not by insisting upon a handshake. Doing so, it said, is discrimination against Muslims.
The court said that the European Convention on Human Rights protects the refusal to shake hands on religious grounds.
Sweden’s discrimination ombudsman’s office, which represented Alhajeh in the case, applauded the ruling, saying that it had balanced “the employer’s interests, the individual’s right to bodily integrity, and the importance of the state to maintain protection for religious freedom.”
“I believe in God, which is very rare in Sweden… and I should be able to do that and be accepted as long as I’m not hurting anyone,” Alhajah told the BBC.
Handshakes, a traditional greeting in some parts of Europe, have been the center of other controversies in recent years as well.
In both France and Switzerland, Muslim individuals who refused to shake hands with opposite-sex officials had their citizenship processes suspended or denied.
© Catholic World Report