Quotes and news

Pope Benedict XVI made a strong appeal to the international community to urgently help the drought-stricken Horn of Africa. In this region, especially Somalia, tens of thousands have fled drought and famine.

“Innumerable people are fleeing from that tremendous famine in search of food and assistance. I hope the international community will increase its efforts to quickly send aid to our sorely tested brothers and sisters, among them many children,” the Pope said.

“Our solidarity and the concrete assistance of all people of good will should not be lacking,” he said.

‘Put faith at centre of your lives’ – Sudanese bishops

The best strategy Christians can adopt to face social pressures and political forces is to put Christ at the centre of their lives. Sudan’s Catholic bishops made this appeal to Christians on the occasion of the partition of their country into two different states.

“Ours is a call to respond to new prospects, to strengthen and accompany our faithful in their spiritual activities,” the bishops said.

“But this call can only be fulfilled collectively, through the involvement and cooperation with our sister churches and in dialogue with the other religions.”

‘Chavez planned my kidnapping’ – Cardinal

Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga of Tegucigalpa, Honduras, revealed that Venezuela’s President Hugo Chavez once plotted to kidnap him. Mgr Maradiaga said Chavez was angry because he supported the coup that ousted President Manuel Zelaya, a Chavez ally, in 2009.

Cardinal Rodriguez said: “My bulletproof jacket? It’s the crucifix on my chest. While the rosary is my loaded pistol, containing 50 shots.”

‘This is war’ – Mgr Zen

Within one month the Vatican has officially excommunicated two Chinese Catholics ordained as bishops in defiance of the Holy See.

The increasing struggle between Rome and Beijing made Cardinal Joseph Zen, the former bishop of Hong Kong say: “This is war.”

A statement by the Vatican said Pope Benedict XVI “deplores the manner in which the Church in China is being treated”.

Against becoming Russia’s state religion

Moscow’s Patriarchate has announced that the patriarchate would oppose efforts to name Russian Orthodoxy the state religion.

“We do not want (the Church) to become part of the state machinery, to assume secular functions,” said Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin, who leads the Synodal Department for Church and Society Relations.

The Orthodox spokesman was reacting to the result of a poll which found that 30 per cent want the Orthodox Church to became the religion of the state.

Pagan emperor venerated Christ

Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, the president of the Pontifical Council for Culture, wrote in L’Osservatore Romano, that pagan Roman emperor Alexander Severus (222-35) venerated an image of Christ.

Although several saints were martyred during Severus’ reign, the era is viewed as a relatively tolerant time that preceded the brutal persecutions of Decius (249-51), Valerianus (253-58), and Diocletian (286-305).

(Compiled by Fr Joe Borg)