During a festive procession in the Calabrian town of Oppido Mamertina, the route was diverted so that the statue of the Madonna would pass in front of the house of a notorious mobster, Peppe Mazzagatti, the leader of the Calabrian Mafia known as N’drangheta.
The statue of the Madonna was then made to bow before the mafia leader who was found guilty of murder, but since he is 82 he serves his prison sentence from home. The gesture was seen as a challenge to Pope Francis who, during his recent visit to Calabria, said mafia members are “not in communion with God” and “are excommunicated”.
Bishop Nunzio Galantino of Cassano all’Jonio told Ansa news agency that it was not the Madonna doing the bowing to the mob boss, but rather the wrongdoers carrying her, trying to make a point.
President plans to legalise abortions
By the end of 2014 abortion will be legal in Chile if President Michelle Bachelet has her way.
On several occasions Bachelet had said there should be a public debate about the nation’s ban on abortion. It now seems that the time for the debate is over, as she told the daily La Nacion that later this year she will propose legislation to legalise abortion, at least in some cases. She said the only thing still left for discussion is ‘how’ this action will be taken.
Ban landmines – Pope
Pope Francis said landmines wound innocent civilians, “prolong war and nurture fear”, which keeps on existing long after a war is over.
“Reduce the stockpile of weapons! Ban weapons that have no reason for existing in human society and instead invest in education, healthcare, saving our planet and building societies marked by more solidarity and brotherhood,” the Pope said in a written message to delegates attending a conference in Mozambique discussing the international treaty on landmines.
The Pope’s message said the victims of landmines “carry – on their bodies and in their lives – signs of an inhumane weapon, an irresponsible weapon, a weapon of cowards”.
Alcohol in Ireland is a national emergency
According to Auxiliary Bishop Éamonn Walsh of Dublin, alcohol drinking in Ireland “is fast heading towards a national emergency”.
Mgr Walsh quoted a recent Health Research Board study on alcohol consumption which revealed that one in three Irish is a harmful drinker. The research also found that three-quarters of alcohol is consumed as binge drinking and two-thirds of people in the 18 to 24 age bracket binge drink.
Yet another first for Franciscan Sister
Sister Mary Melone is in the habit of doing several firsts. Her latest historic ‘first’ is that she became the first woman to be nominated rector of one of Rome’s pontifical universities, the Antonianum, which is run by the Franciscans.
Her previous firsts include that she was the first women to be a tenured professor at the Pontifical University Antonianum. Her second ‘first’ was when she was appointed as the first woman to serve as dean in the same university.
The Italian nun was born in 1964 and became a Franciscan in 1986.
When Sister Melone was appointed dean she had told L’Osservatore Romano that women may have a distinctive approach to theological reflection, but she rejected the use of the term ‘female theology’, saying that “all that exists is theology”.
(Compiled by Fr Joe Borg)