“If Nigeria falls to Islamic extremists, all Africa will be at risk” was the stern warning given by Bishop Hyacinth Egbebo, administrator of Bomadi, during an interview with the agency Aid to the Church in Need. He added that the terrorist group Boko Haram wants to impose the Islamic Sharia law on all Nigerians.
The bishop said a victory by Boko Haram in Nigeria would provide the terrorist with an invaluable stepping stone to other African countries. The 80-million-strong Christian community in Nigeria is often targeted by Boko Haram’s terror campaign of. Around 2,000 Christians have been killed in the past two years.
By threatening the traditionally peaceful relationship between Christians and Muslims in Nigeria, Boko Haram is threatening the country’s stability, Mgr Egbedo said.
“Don’t sit by while Nigeria disintegrates! Make sure Boko Haram is defeated” was the bishop’s final appeal to the West.
Media helps campaign to redefine marriage
Archbishop of Bologna, Cardinal Carlo Caffarra, has criticised the campaign being waged in his country to redefine marriage. While delivering a homily on the occasion of the feast of the Holy Family, Caffarra said the laws regarding marriage should not be revised “on the basis of fashionable trends”.
Caffarra opined that “powerful lobbies” that control the mass media, which he described as “the means of producing consensus” are strongly supporting the campaign to redefine marriage. The propaganda campaign, he said, has managed to “distract men and women from listening to the voice of God speaking in their consciences”.
Believers imprisoned
Human Rights Without Frontiers International recently published a report stating that religious believers are imprisoned in 24 countries.
“The list comprises hundreds of prisoners behind bars in 2013 on the ground of laws forbidding or restricting their basic rights to freedom of religion or belief,” the report said. The nations cited include Armenia, Azerbaijan, China, Eritrea, India, Indonesia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Libya, Morocco, Nagorno-Karabakh (a region of Azerbaijan), North Korea, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Korea (over its imprisonment of some Jehovah’s Witnesses), Sudan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam.
Call for laity to wake up
Archbishop Socrates Villegas, president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, recently said: “There is a remarkable interest among our lay faithful to be ministers at the altar but hesitation to speak about the Catholic faith as catechists, or work among the poor of the parish as social action ministers.
“The lay faithful are primarily called for social engagement outside the church building. Our laity is staying too long doing work inside the church. This must be corrected. There must be more laity working for God in society than at the altar.
“We pray that our laity will wake up from passivity, be fired by the Spirit and dare to change the world for Christ.”
New monsignors must be aged over 65
The Vatican’s Secretariat of State has just informed the world’s bishops that the title of monsignor will only be conferred upon “worthy priests” who are over the age of 65. This is in line with the Pope’s decision immediately after his election to severely cut back on the use of the honorary title of monsignor.
Up till recently, the title of monsignor, which is purely honorary, was conferred by the Holy See after a recommendation of diocesan bishops.
(Compiled by Fr Joe Borg)