In a letter to Argentinian bishops to commemorate the bicentenary of Argentina’s independence from Spain, Pope Francis wrote: “With these 200 years behind us we are called to keep journeying and to keep on looking ahead.
“To achieve this, I think in a special way of the elderly and the young, and I feel the need to ask their help to continue in the pursuit of our destiny.
“I ask the elderly, who conserve the memory of history, to overcome this ‘throwaway culture’ that is imposed upon us globally, and to dare to dream. We need their dreams, which are a wellspring of inspiration.
“I ask the young not to settle for bureaucratic quietism, in which they are hemmed in by prospects lacking in enthusiasm or heroism. I am convinced that our motherland needs to bring alive the prophecy of Joel.
“Only if our grandparents dare to dream and our young people dare to prophesy great things, can the motherland be free.”
‘The police are not a faceless enemy’
In a statement, Archbishop Joseph Kurtz, president of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, said:
“The assassination of Dallas police officers was an act of unjustifiable evil. To all people of good will, let us beg for the strength to resist the hatred that blinds us to our common humanity.
“The police are not a faceless enemy. They are sons and daughters offering their lives to protect their brothers and sisters. Jesus reminds us: ‘no one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends’ (Jn 15:13). So too, the suspects in crimes or routine traffic stops are not just a faceless threat. They are members of our family in need of assistance, protection and fairness. When compassion does not drive our response to the suffering of either, we have failed one another.
“The need to place ever greater value on the life and dignity of all persons, regardless of their station in life, calls us to a moment of national reflection.”
Encourage Christians to stay in Middle East
At a recent talk at a Cincinnati parish, Maronite Catholic Patriarch Bechara Boutros al-Rahi, reflected on the present situation and future prospects of Christians in the Middle East. At the conclusion of the talk, he said:
“The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is at the origin of the Middle Eastern problems.
“The separation between religion and State for both Judaism and Islam is one of the basic conditions for a permanent political solution in the region.
“Instead of encouraging Christians to leave the Middle East, they should be helped to remain in their countries,” said Patriarch al-Rahi, 76, who has led the Lebanon-based Eastern Catholic Church since 2011.
More persecution of Church in Vietnam
The Vietnamese government has continued with its harassment and persecution of Christians.
Officials have moved to seize the property of a Catholic monastery in Hue province, in the latest in a series of steps to appropriate real estate from Church ownership.
Police raided the monastery of Thien An on June 26, drawing a formal protest from Abbot Nguyen Van Duc. The abbot said the government’s bid for control of the 100-acre property, based on a unilateral decree dating back to 1998, is illegal.
(Compiled by Fr Joe Borg)