In a homily in Singapore, Cardinal Pietro Parolin said: “Today’s Gospel invites the Christian community to look with some urgency at new and creative ways of carrying forward the proclamation of the Gospel of salvation in a changing society. This includes addressing the new challenges that emerge in a ‘globalised’ and more connected world, offering practical assistance to an emerging reality in need of guidance.
“It is important for the Church to be a partner with all people of good will in recognising the place of religious faiths, virtue and morality as essential foundations of a society. In the face of aggressive secularism, the Church needs to present a rational and patient witness.”
Call for greater press freedom in Venezuela
Venezuelan Archbishop Roberto Lückert León of Coro has called for greater freedom of the press in his country. He said that according to the government, Venezuela is an ideal country without any shortages, unemployment or insecurity. He is of a different opinion and looks at the media as the means of voicing disagreements or what is really happening in Venezuela. This is why he says press freedom is essential.
León added: “Without social communications there can be no democracy, which is the system that teaches us how to be free, to communicate without restrictions and be able to express our opinions and criteria on matters regarding our country.”
Colombian bishops call for referendum
According to a report in the Fides news agency the bishops of the Colombian provinces of Antioquia and Choco have issued a statement saying that “in certain cases when the result of mining activity is devastating, despite the fact that it meets the requirements of the law, the people should decide about the economic vocation of their area and, by way of a referendum, reject mining activity within their territory”.
The bishops said this would be a way of enabling citizens to actively and consciously participate in decisional processes on matters affecting quality of life or activities which destroy the environment.
‘Church teachings should be adapted’
Cardinal Berhaneyesus Souraphiel of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, said the synod of bishops should encourage episcopal conferences to adapt Church moral teachings to the circumstances of their own societies.
He said the Church is not European, Canadian or US but a universal institution, both human and divine. So “the issues families are facing in some parts of the world would be different than in other parts of the world”. He added that the big issue for the Church in Ethiopia is poverty, not divorce and remarriage of homosexual unions. Souraphiel clarified that he is not pushing for a change in Church doctrine but for adaptation to the particular situations of countries.
Priests ordained by excommunicated bishops in China
Two excommunicated Chinese bishops have ordained priests in defiance of the Vatican. Fr Joseph Yue Fusheng, the excommunicated bishop of Harbin, ordained three priests in a ceremony with 31 concelebrants. Fr Lei Shiyin, another illicitly ordained bishop, also ordained a priest.
Church leaders in communion with Rome said the ordinations show the government wants to change the Catholic Church in China into a tool of the State to fulfil its political agenda. Besides, the ordination are causing great tensions in the Catholic community.
(Compiled by Fr Joe Borg)