Mirror 0218 by Aid to the Church in Need

MIRROR

TRUTH AND THE ART OF LIVING

MIRROR GIVE JOY, GIVE HOPE

CONTENTS PAGE Telling the Truth. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . J F Declan Quinn.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 The Truth: Our Merits Endure Eternally. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cardinal Mauro Piacenza.. . . . . . . . . . . . 2 The Truth: The Bible changes People. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 The Truth: Those who believe, see. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pope Francis.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 The Truth: The Law of Life is the Freedom.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pope John Paul II. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Conscience and the Common Good.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pope Benedict XVI. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Faith and Truth. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pope Francis.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Showing God’s Love and Mercy.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Prayers from Nineveh.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Bringing the Truth on the Road. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 The Truth about Prayer: Light from Light. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Co-workers in the Kingdom of Love.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Faith and the Common Good. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pope Francis.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Lent and the Art of Living.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tony Agnesi. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

‘In the absence of light everything becomes confused.’ POPE FRANCIS Editor: Jürgen Liminski. Publisher: ACN International, Postfach 1209, 61452 Königstein, Germany. De licentia competentis auctoritatis ecclesiasticae. Printed in Ireland - ISSN 0252-2535. www.acninternational.org

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AND YOU SHALL BE MY WITNESS

TELLING THE TRUTH A chairde,

world without the Truth is a world in chaos, a world at war, a world en route to self-destruction. So if anyone wants to save the world, to make the world a safer and better place for humanity then they must seek the Truth, tell the Truth and do so in Charity. With this in mind then, here are some fundamental truths: In this world suffering and death are inevitable, but our sufferings can be transformed so we need neither fear life or death. Everyone of us, without exceptions, has been made unique, original and unrepeatable in the image and likeness of God. The Gospel Truth saves lives, saves humanity from itself and saves the world. Every Catholic, again no exceptions, is required to proclaim by their words and their works the Gospel Truth that every human life is sacred: ‘Thou shalt NOT kill’. Today in every corner of the world Religious and Lay missionaries are carrying this great message of Hope to all those who are in despair: ‘Life is worth living’, indeed every life is worth living.

Teaching the world the truth about the inestimable value of every human life is foundational to teaching the world the authentic Art of Living. This is what Catholic Missionaries are doing the world over and this is what Catholic Parents are required to do with their Children and within their families: teach by word and example the Truth about the inviolable Godgiven dignity of everyone of us. At this time when our world is so confused by lies and so threatened by evil, there is no greater Charity than reminding the world that we are all God’s Children and that He loves each of us individually, personally and infinitely. This is the pastoral mission of the Catholic Church and supporting the Universal Church in its pastoral activities defines the mission and work of Aid to the Church in Need. Thank you for your continued prayers and support.

Beir Beannacht

J F Declan Quinn Director, Aid to the Church in Need (Ire)

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TRUTH AND THE ART OF LIVING

THE TRUTH: OUR MERITS ENDURE ETERNALLY Dear Friends,

In eternity we will be able to enjoy what we have merited in time.

The season of Lent is marked by the important symbol of ashes and by the call to conversion. What do these ashes mean? They point to the reality of death. Whether we like it or not, we all have to face up to this reality, and it is a healthy thing to do so. Contemplating death is not morbid, it is a reminder for us to live our day-to-day lives in a good and fruitful way. Death is simply the end of the time of trial. It is the moment when our freedom of action ceases, and with it the time when we can gain merit by our actions. After this comes eternity, and nothing more can be added and nothing taken away.

Many people think of death as a frightening, as something not to be spoken about, but it is a reality which illuminates our earthly lives. Time brings about change, and it is so precious precisely because it does come to an end: itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s now or never! Only during our earthly life can we gain merit for eternal life, there are no second chances after death! And so every moment can be lived as an act of love for God! Everything can be offered to Him. The smallest merit, gained in the briefest time imaginable, endures for all eternity. And if we lose these merits through sin, then provided we repent, everything can be regained. Our sins do not return, if we have confessed and gained absolution, but our merits do. This is what makes the difference between justice and the triumph of Divine Mercy. Our merits are like a tiny point: but when God stretches that tiny point it becomes a line stretching into infinity.

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It is the same even with our smallest good deeds. They may be small, but they are not forgotten; they earn the reward of eternal happiness and they endure for ever. That is also why we call on the saints, even if they have found their way to God twenty centuries before us â&#x20AC;&#x201C; as their merits endure eternally. And our merits also endure eternally! Of course, we cannot compare ourselves with the saints and martyrs, yet nevertheless our own small merits will last for ever, just like theirs. When a good deed has been done, time does not claim it for itself but passes it on into eternity. How wonderful and moving is the Mercy of God! The season of Lent is a call to us to reflect on our use of time. Do you see how the thought of death can serve life? I wish you all a fruitful Lenten season, a time filled with divine love and good deeds of charity. That is how we can prepare ourselves for our own eternal life! May God bless you and the Blessed Virgin protect you!

Cardinal Mauro Piacenza, President of ACN

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TRUTH AND THE ART OF LIVING

THE TRUTH: THE BIBLE CHANGES PEOPLE

wetha belongs to the lowest caste in society. She cannot even tell us her age – as Dalits seldom have any papers. She is largely excluded from Indian society – this is the first discrimination. But when the Dalits become Christians they lose even the support the state provides to the poorest in society – this is the second discrimination. Swetha looks as though she is in her mid-30s, but poverty and years of discord with her husband have worn her down. Is the source of their problems a customary disregard for women? Or jealousy about Swetha’s faith, which has become so important to her? Swetha cannot or will not say. But this much is true: women are less valued than men. This is the third discrimination. Her most treasured possession: the Bible changed Swetha’s life.

Swetha has put up with a great deal – blows, suffering, helplessness. And yet she is determined to remain Catholic – and remain with her husband. ‘When he hit me on the head with a heavy object, I was knocked unconscious’. But she did not leave her husband. ‘My faith gave me strength. I went back to the church again, as soon as possible; not only on Sundays, but as often as possible.’ This, and the lack of sons were the sources of tension in her marriage. Both of them are Dalits, who used to be called the untouchables. Dalits are disregarded, jobless, without a future. And treated accordingly. Commonly they are seen more as beasts than as human beings. Swetha’s three daughters blink suspiciously; they rarely smile. Even for children each day is a burden. According to the UN, one in every two or three of India’s approximately 1.3 billion is so poor they have to get by on less than US$1 a day – for Swetha and her family it is a constant struggle for survival. One day, when an unknown woman told her about the Bible, Swetha really pricked up her ears. ‘My father bought my brothers schoolbooks. But I had to go out to work. I learned to read only later; I wanted to know more about this Bible.’ The Good News of a King who goes out to the least and the lowest, who addresses them personally, who even gives his life for their redemption – this was something unheard of for the Dalits.

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It is the Bible that changes people, transforms and heals them. That was Swetha’s experience. ‘After the quarrels with my husband, I became ill, again and again, very ill. Nobody helped me. But then he himself began to come with me to church. He could see the good that the Church and the Mass was doing to me.’ Soon both of them were attending a Catholic marriage seminar. The SCCs, or ‘Small Christian Communities’ organise Bible courses, prayer meetings and other forms of pastoral outreach. Today there are some 85,000 of them in India.

The Dalits are welcome, there is no discrimination. Here in the SCC for the first time they have experienced a sense of community and dignity as human beings, as children of God. ACN is supporting these communities, along with many other projects in India. In 2017 alone the charity invested some almost 6.0 million Euros in the future of the Catholics here. •

We are all God’s Children.

Swetha and her daughters: Dalit Christian women face discrimination because of their birth, gender and religion.

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TRUTH AND THE ART OF LIVING

THE TRUTH: THOSE WHO BELIEVE, SEE1

he light of Faith is how the Church’s tradition speaks of the great gift brought by Jesus. In John’s Gospel, Christ says of himself: ‘I have come as light into the world, that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness’ (Jn 12:46). Saint Paul uses the same image: ‘God who said ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ has shone in our hearts’ (2 Cor 4:6). The pagan world, which hungered for light, had seen the growth of the cult of the sun god, Sol Invictus, invoked each day at sunrise. The

sun however does not illumine all reality; its rays cannot penetrate to the shadow of death, the place where men’s eyes are closed to its light. ‘No one — Saint Justin Martyr writes — has ever been ready to die for his faith in the sun’. Conscious of the immense horizon which their faith opened before them, Christians invoked Jesus as the true sun ‘whose rays bestow life’. To Martha, weeping for the death of her brother Lazarus, Jesus said: ‘Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?’ (Jn 11:40). Those who believe, see; they see with a light that illumines their entire journey, for it comes from the risen Christ, the morning star which never sets. In today’s world faith has become associated with darkness and humanity has renounced the search for a great light, Truth itself, in order to be content with smaller lights which illumine the fleeting moment yet prove incapable of showing the way.

‘Once the flame of faith dies out, all other lights begin to dim’ POPE FRANCIS

Yet in the absence of light everything becomes confused; it is impossible to tell good from evil, or the road to our destination from other roads which take us in endless circles, going nowhere. There is an urgent need, then, to see once again that faith is a light, for once the flame of 1 Adapted from Pope Francis’ Encyclical Letter Lumen Fidei, 29 June 2013 Paragraphs 1, 3 and 4

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faith dies out, all other lights begin to dim. The light of faith is unique, since it is capable of illuminating every aspect of human existence. A light this powerful cannot come from ourselves but from a more primordial source: in a word, it must come from God. Faith is born of an encounter with the living God who calls us and reveals his love, a love which precedes us and upon which we can lean for security and for building our lives. Transformed by this love, we gain fresh vision, new eyes to see; we realise that it contains a great promise of fulfilment, and that a vision of the future opens up before us.

‘Faith is a light for our darkness’ POPE FRANCIS

Faith, received from God as a supernatural gift, becomes a light for our way, guiding our journey through time. On the one hand, it is a light coming from the past, the light of the foundational memory of the life of Jesus which revealed his perfectly trustworthy love, a love capable of triumphing over death. Yet since Christ has risen and draws us beyond death, faith is also a light coming from the future and opening before us vast horizons which guide us beyond our isolated selves towards the breadth of communion. We come to see that faith does not dwell in shadow and gloom; it is a light for our darkness… at a time when mankind is particularly in need of light. •

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TRUTH AND THE ART OF LIVING

THE TRUTH: THE LAW OF LIFE AND FREEDOM2

t Mount Sinai, God shows Himself in mysterious ways. He is the God who is at once close at hand and far-away; He is in the world but not of it. He is the God who comes to meet us, but who will not be possessed.

The Ten Commandments are not an arbitrary imposition of a tyrannical Lord. They were written in stone; but before that, they were written on the human heart as the universal moral law, valid in every time and place.

On Mount Sinai, the truth of ‘who God is’ became the foundation and guarantee of the Covenant. Moses is given the Law.

Today as always, the Ten Words of the Law provide the only true basis for the lives of individuals, societies and nations.

But what is this Law? It is the Law of life and freedom. At the Red Sea, the people had experienced a great liberation. They had seen the power and fidelity of God; they had discovered that He is the God who does indeed set His people free as He had promised. But now on the heights of Sinai, this same God seals His love by making the Covenant that He will never renounce. If the people obey His Law, they will know freedom for ever.

Today as always, they are the only future of the human family.

The Exodus and the Covenant are not just events of the past; they are for ever the destiny of all God’s people. The encounter of God and Moses on this Mountain enshrines at the heart of our religion the mystery of liberating obedience, which finds its fulfilment in the perfect obedience of Christ in the Incarnation and on the Cross.3 We too shall be truly free if we learn to obey as Jesus did.4 2 Adapted and edited from a Homily given by Pope Saint John Paul II at St Catherine’s Monastery, Mount Sinai, 26 February 2000. 3 cf. Phil 2:8; Heb 5:8-9 4 cf. Heb 5:8 5 Saint Gregory of Nyssa, The Life of Moses, II, 230

They save man from the destructive force of egoism, hatred and falsehood. They point out all the false gods that draw him into slavery: The love of self to the exclusion of God, The greed for power and pleasure that overturns the order of justice and degrades our human dignity and that of our neighbour. If we turn from these false idols and follow the God who sets His people free and remains always with them, then we shall emerge like Moses, after forty days on the mountain, ‘shining with glory’5, ablaze with the light of God! To keep the Commandments is be faithful to God, but it is also to be faithful to ourselves, to our true nature and our deepest aspirations. Sinai finds its fulfilment on another mountain, the Mountain of the Transfiguration, where

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Jesus appears to His Apostles shining with the glory of God. Moses and Elijah stand with Him to testify that the fullness of God’s revelation is found in the glorified Christ. On the Mountain of the Transfiguration, God speaks from the cloud, as He had done on Sinai. But there He says: ‘This is my beloved Son; listen to Him’ (Mk 9:7). On the Mountain of the Transfiguration, God commands us to listen to His Son, because ‘no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him’ (Mt 11:27). And so we learn that the true name of God is FATHER. The name which is beyond all other names: ABBA!6 And in Jesus we learn that our true name is SON, DAUGHTER. We learn that the God of the Exodus and the Covenant sets His people free because they are His sons and daughters, created not for slavery but for ‘the glorious liberty of the children of God’.7

The person delivered by Jesus Christ into true freedom is aware of being bound not externally by a multitude of prescriptions, but internally by the love which has taken hold in the deepest recesses of his heart. The Ten Commandments are the law of freedom: not the freedom to follow our blind passions, but the freedom to love, to choose what is good in every situation, even when to do so is a burden. It is not an impersonal law that we obey; what is required is loving surrender to the Father through Christ Jesus in the Holy Spirit (cf. Rom 6:14; Gal 5:18). In revealing Himself on the Mountain and giving His Law, God revealed man to man himself. Sinai stands at the very heart of the truth about man and his destiny. •

6 cf. Gal 4:6 7 Rom 8:21

‘The Ten Commandments are written on the human heart, they are valid in every time and place.’ POPE SAINT JOHN PAUL II

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TRUTH AND THE ART OF LIVING

CONSCIENCE AND THE COMMON GOOD8

he theme of conscience is fundamental for a free and just society.

The great achievements of the modern age – the recognition and guarantee of freedom of conscience, of human rights, of the freedom of science and hence of a free society – should be confirmed and developed while keeping reason and freedom open to their transcendent foundation, so as to ensure that these achievements are not undone. The quality of social and civil life and the quality of democracy depend in large measure on this ‘critical’ point – conscience, on the way it is understood and the way it is informed. 8 National Croatian Theatre - Zagreb. Saturday, 4 June 2011.

If, in keeping with the prevailing modern idea, conscience is reduced to the subjective field to which religion and morality have been banished, then the crisis of the West has no remedy and Europe is destined to collapse in on itself. If, on the other hand, conscience is rediscovered as the place in which to listen to truth and good, the place of responsibility before God and before fellow human beings – in other words, the bulwark against all forms of tyranny – then there is hope for the future. This brings us back to conscience as the keystone on which to base a culture and build up the common good.

‘It is by forming consciences that the Church makes her most specific and valuable contribution to society’ POPE BENEDICT XVI

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It is by forming consciences that the Church makes her most specific and valuable contribution to society. It is a contribution that begins in the family and is strongly reinforced in the parish, where infants, children and young people learn to deepen their knowledge of the sacred Scriptures, the ‘great codex’ of European culture; at the same time they learn what it means for a community to be built upon gift, not upon economic interests or ideology, but upon love, ‘the principal driving force behind the authentic development of every person and of all humanity’ (Caritas in Veritate, 1).

been assimilated it can be applied to the most complex areas of political and economic life so as to build up a polis that is welcoming and hospitable, but at the same time not empty, not falsely neutral, but rich in humanity, with a strongly ethical dimension. It is here that the lay faithful are called to give generously of the formation they have received, guided by the principles of the Church’s Social Doctrine, for the sake of authentic secularism, social justice, the defence of life and of the family, freedom of religion and education. •

This logic of gratuitousness, learnt in infancy and adolescence, is then lived out in every area of life, in games, in sport, in interpersonal relations, in art, in voluntary service to the poor and the suffering, and once it has

‘Every Catholic Parliamentarian must vote according to a well informed conscience’ POPE FRANCIS

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TRUTH AND THE ART OF LIVING

FAITH AND TRUTH9

aith without truth does not save, it does not provide a sure footing. It remains a beautiful story, the projection of our deep yearning for happiness, something capable of satisfying us to the extent that we are willing to deceive ourselves. Either that, or it is reduced to a lofty sentiment which brings consolation and cheer, yet remains prey to the vagaries of our spirit and the changing seasons, incapable of sustaining a steady journey through life. But precisely because of its intrinsic link to truth, faith is instead able to offer a new light, for it sees further into the distance and takes into account the hand of God, who remains faithful to His covenant and His promises.

which consist in fidelity to his or her deepest convictions, yet these are truths valid only for that individual and not capable of being proposed to others in an effort to serve the common good. But Truth itself, the truth which would comprehensively explain our life as individuals and in society, is regarded with suspicion. Surely this kind of truth is what was claimed by the great totalitarian movements of the last century, a truth that imposed its own world view in order to crush the actual lives of individuals. In the end, what we are left with is Relativism, in which the question of universal truth — and ultimately this means the question of God — is no longer relevant.

Today more than ever, we need to be reminded of this bond between faith and truth, given the crisis of truth in our age. In contemporary culture, we often tend to consider the only real truth to be that of technology: truth is what we succeed in building and measuring by our scientific know-how, truth is what works and what makes life easier and more comfortable. Nowadays this appears as the only truth that is certain, the only truth that can be shared, the only truth that can serve as a basis for discussion or for common undertakings.

It would be logical, from this point of view, to attempt to sever the bond between Religion and Truth, because it seems to lie at the root of fanaticism, which proves oppressive for anyone who does not share the same beliefs. In this regard, though, we can speak of a massive amnesia in our contemporary world.

Yet at the other end of the scale we are willing to allow for subjective truths of the individual,

It is a question about the origin of all that is, in whose light we can glimpse the goal and thus the meaning of our common path. •

9 Adapted from Pope Francis’ Encyclical Letter Lumen Fidei, 29 June 2013 Paragraphs 24 and 25.

The question of truth is really a question of memory, deep memory, for it deals with something prior to ourselves and can succeed in uniting us in a way that transcends our petty and limited individual consciousness.

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LENTEN APPEAL

OUR DIGNITY IS GOD-GIVEN ‘The woman’s face was marked by suffering and devoid of expression as we spoke about her life, then suddenly, at the mention of Jesus a radiant smile spread across her face; as if the mere thought of him would ignite her soul’, recounts Maria Lozano after her trip to North East India with Aid to the Church in Need (ACN). During their visit, ACN’s representatives encountered witness upon witness testifying to the power of the Word of God. This Dalit woman, considered an outcast and discriminated against as such and as a woman, told of how she was introduced to the teachings of the Bible and became so eager to learn more about it, that she decided to visit a local school with her infant child on Thank you for your ongoing support for suffering and Persecuted Christians. Your prayers, your fastings and your alms giving are doing great good.

‘Your merits will endure eternally’. Cardinal Mauro Piacenza, President of Aid to the Church in Need.

her arm in order to learn how to read so that she could herself read the Bible. ‘Today even if they threaten to kill me, I will not allow the Bible to be removed from my house’, concluded the woman who at times had been reduced to begging to feed her children. When Dalits become Christians they add another plight to their already punishing lives, since as Christians they will face further exclusion and harassments. Still, it is estimated that roughly 60% of all Christians are Dalits who have had a true experience of the living God, a God of love and compassion who confirms their true nature as dignified human beings. Please continue to pray for all who are suffering and being persecuted for their faith in Jesus and perhaps you might consider remembering the work of Aid to the Church in Need when making your will. For more information please visit www. acnireland.org

TRUTH AND THE ART OF LIVING

SHOWING GOD’S LOVE AND MERCY

n the city of Homs the Daughters of the Mother of Mercy are really living up to their name. The fighting has ceased in the city. But the town still looks like a battle site. The Syriac Catholic Sisters’ convent was among the destroyed buildings. So they have moved to Zaidal, a suburb of Homs where there is a large Christian community. And their presence is desperately needed here. They care for everyone, giving catechetical instruction, helping in the hospital, visiting the elderly and lonely, caring for the families. They want Zaidal to be a place of mercy, a place where in showing God’s love and mercy in Homs Christians no longer need to live in fear. But who will care for the Sisters themselves? Where will they live and pray in peace? The three Syriac Sisters found a flat to live in, and took a loan so that they could buy it. But now they need our help, as what they really need is a house so they can expand their activities. The flat was just a first step to develop their work. We have promised them help, and we must respond to the merciful love they are showing to others. •

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There for everyone: Sister Mirjam at work.

LENTEN APPEAL

THE CHURCH UNDER ATTACK

he people of Nigeria, particularly in the Diocese of Maiduguri have endured great atrocities. Their churches have been desecrated; their loved ones slaughtered – and the women, girls and young men have been kidnapped. The Islamic fundamentalist (BOKO HARAM) Campaign of Terror has: Destroyed 200 Churches and Mass stations destroyed Displaced 1.8 million people in Borno State and Created 5,000 widows and 25,000 orphans in Maiduguri alone Over 100 Chibok schoolgirls kidnapped in April 2014 are still being held in captivity by Boko Haram and their whereabouts are unknown.

Thank you for your ongoing support for suffering and Persecuted Christians. Your prayers, your fastings and your alms giving are doing great good.

‘Your merits will endure eternally’. Cardinal Mauro Piacenza, President of Aid to the Church in Need.

But it is not just the Islamic militants who are causing misery for Nigeria’s Christians – nomadic Fulani tribesmen are attacking towns and villages. Problems such as these along with extreme poverty and widespread corruption confront the African Church throughout the continent and this largely goes to explain why in 2017 almost 30% of Aid to the Church in Need’s help went to support the Church in Africa. Speaking to Aid to the Church in Need, Archbishop Matthew Man-Oso Ndgoso of Kaduna, Nigeria said: ‘Aid to the Church in Need’s solidarity visit gives us hope and courage. We are immensely indebted to all of you. Please be assured of our continued spiritual support and cooperation in your commitment to help the Church in need wherever she exists.’ Please continue to pray for all who are suffering and being persecuted for their faith in Jesus and perhaps you might consider remembering the work of Aid to the Church in Need when making your will. For more information please visit www. acnireland.org

TRUTH AND THE ART OF LIVING

PRAYERS FROM NINEVEH

or many of the children from the Niniveh plains in Iraq Christmas 2017 was different. Because many of them were able to celebrate the feast in their own homes for the first time in years. For the past three years they were uprooted, homeless in their own land, or waiting in refugee camps unable to return. But last Christmas you made it possible for them to do so. And there was also a Christmas parcel for them from you.

‘These presents bear the mark of God’s love’, says Sister Ni’am of the congregation of the Daughters of Mary, who coordinated this gift campaign for thousands of children. It is a gesture of love at Christmas and has given them new courage for the future. ‘They are praying for you’, Sister Ni’am assures • us.

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LENTEN APPEAL

‘BECAUSE OF YOUR HELP, WE STILL HAVE CHRISTIANS IN IRAQ’ ARCHBISHOP BASHAR WARDA OF ERBIL

hree years after being forced out of their towns and villages by extremist group Daesh (ISIS) – many thousand of Iraqi Christian families have the opportunity to return to their homes in the Nineveh Plains. The very fact that they have this chance to return home is due to Aid to the Church in Need and our benefactors who have sustained them, materially and spiritually, while living as a displaced community in Kurdish northern Iraq. These persecuted Christians continue to need our prayers and commitment as the road back home while filled with Hope and Joy remains fraught with difficulties, very real and often life-threatening difficulties. Thank you for your ongoing support for suffering and Persecuted Christians. Your prayers, your fastings and your alms giving are doing great good.

‘Your merits will endure eternally’. Cardinal Mauro Piacenza, President of Aid to the Church in Need.

Difficulties notwithstanding real progress has been made and in being made and for this reason Archbishop Bashar Warda of Erbil writes to thank Aid to the Church in Need and its benefactors ‘for the help you have given us, to our brothers and sisters in Mosul and the Nineveh Plains. Because of your help, we still have Christians in Iraq…’ Aid to the Church in Need’s Middle East expert Fr. Andrzej Halemba is in no doubt about the importance of what we what we are doing to retain a Christian presence in this the cradle of Christianity. ‘This is a decisive historical moment. If we miss this opportunity to help the Christians return to their homes on the Plains of Nineveh.’

Please continue to pray for all who are suffering and being persecuted for their faith in Jesus and perhaps you might consider remembering the work of Aid to the Church in Need when making your will. For more information please visit www. acnireland.org

TRUTH AND THE ART OF LIVING

BRINGING THE TRUTH ON THE ROAD

here are many different forms of mission, but all involve service to others, all are expressions of love. As Father Werenfried wrote, this pastoral outreach is more than mere humanitarianism, ‘with money you can comfort people, but with love you can redeem them’. This is precisely the spirit in which Sister Franziska and Sister Helena of the Missionary Dominican Sisters of Jesus and Mary are working in the towns of Oryol and Bryansk, in Russia. In these towns, which are over 80 miles (130 km) apart: They give catechetical instruction to children, young people and adults. They also visit the sick and take Holy Communion to them; for the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass They prepare the altar and play the organ; They clean the presbytery and cook for the clergy; they conduct Liturgies of the Word and organise retreats; They visit the elderly and laugh and pray with them.

Always on the go, always joyful in the service of others: the Dominican Sisters Franziska (right) and Helena (left).

For all this pastoral work they need a reliable car. They would also love to be able to visit the Sisters from their congregation in other parts of the country. But just recently it has been as though they are driving with the handbrake on. Their car comes from Poland, which causes complications as it does not meet Russian environmental standards and can’t therefore be registered in Russia. So it has to be registered in Poland and, for legal reasons, return there every six months. Border crossings are expensive. To cut a long story short the Sisters need to buy a Russian car. They need our help and we will help them. •

Bringing the Good News to young and old.

Aid to the Church in Need

LENTEN APPEAL

OVERCOMING THE DARKNESS

n May 2017, Marawi a city of over 200,000 people in the South of the Philippines was overtaken by jihadists. They attacked the cathedral on May 23rd and kidnapped the parish priest who finally escaped 4 months later. The city was under siege for nearly five months and was destroyed. In January 2017, under a heavy military escort, a small delegation including Aid to the Church in Need personnel was able to enter the perimeter originally named Ground zero. This was the first delegation to enter the area since the war and it included the Bishop of Marawi, Edwin de la Peña.

Thank you for your ongoing support for suffering and Persecuted Christians. Your prayers, your fastings and your alms giving are doing great good.

‘Your merits will endure eternally’. Cardinal Mauro Piacenza, President of Aid to the Church in Need.

As he approached his church for the first time since 22nd May 2017, he later confessed that he felt his heart break. The first thing he did was to kneel in silence and in prayer in front of the devastated altar. The bishop’s residence, just in front of the cathedral and where he had been living for the past 16 years, was also totally destroyed. Bringing the Christian population back home and re-building peace in this land which has been so tortured by militant Islamic fundamentalists is now the Bishop’s top priority. This good shepherd and his flock need our help. Helping him fulfil his mission is the mission of Aid to the Church in Need. Please continue to pray for all who are suffering and being persecuted for their faith in Jesus and perhaps you might consider remembering the work of Aid to the Church in Need when making your will. For more information please visit www. acnireland.org

TRUTH AND THE ART OF LIVING

THE TRUTH ABOUT PRAYER: LIGHT FROM LIGHT

n the book that he considered his most important work, the Doctor of the Church Saint Alphonsus Liguori wrote something many people today might find hard to hear: ‘The person who prays will most certainly gain Heaven. But the person who does not pray will likewise certainly be eternally lost.’

here cannot be resolved by work alone. ‘We want to fulfil the wonderful dream of saving many souls through the offering of our lives’, says Sister Laura. She is one of six Sisters living in the newest convent, which has just been founded.

The book has the challenging title, ‘Is Prayer Necessary?’ The contemplative Sisters answer the question with their lives. For some Sisters their work is to pray for the Church, others serve God in a more active life. Prayer always has a social dimension – but social work without prayer redeems no one.

Like three of the Sisters there – Chiara, Gloria and Celeste – Sister Laura comes from Sicily, the other two – Agnes and Francesca – are from Madagascar. From their convent they hope to light up the Diocese of Ambanja. It is called ‘Kintana Manazava’, which means something like the ‘Convent of Light from Light’.

For the Poor Clares in Madagascar this is self-evident. They have five convents on the island, knowing that the social problems

They want this light to light up the darkness of people’s lives here, especially the lives of the women, who often find themselves left

Loving and affectionate: the Carmelite Sisters of Barquisimeto.

Aid to the Church in Need

AND YOU SHALL BE MY WITNESS

alone with their children – as there is little sense of family cohesion in Madagascar. There are only a few schools, the illiteracy rate is high and even the religious life suffers from a lack of education, while across the island superstitious practices are widespread. Poverty and unemployment, prostitution and drugs are a bitter truth of daily life. Electricity and running water are a luxury, and many people have never even seen a car. In order to light up this darkness, the Sisters begin with the light of faith, with prayer. One of the major concerns of their foundress was always to keep this balance between work and prayer, in which prayer must always take priority. Rule No. 7 of the Rule of the Poor Clares says, ‘The Sisters must work with fidelity and dedication – but without suffocating the spirit

of prayer and devotion. All other temporal things must serve HIM alone.’ For the Sisters it was a sign from heaven when one of the parishes gave them a statue of Our Lady to mark the opening of the convent. During the Marian months of May and October the statue of the Virgin of La Salette travels from house to house so that people can pray the Rosary before it. As well as the six professed Sisters there are four novices and four young postulants living in the new convent. They devote themselves to prayer and religious formation. The land is paid for, but they do not have the funds to extend the house or build the chapel, which will also serve the Christians of the local community – especially the women. They want everyone to be able to draw strength from prayer. We have promised the sisters part-funding. The Sisters’ dream is a selfless • and godly one; it will find fulfilment.

Keeping the balance right: prayer first, then work in the fields.

Bringing the light of faith: the six Sisters of the new convent. GIVE JOY, GIVE HOPE

TRUTH AND THE ART OF LIVING

CO-WORKERS IN THE KINGDOM OF LOVE

n her ‘Prayer on growing older’ Saint Teresa of Avila says: ‘Lord protect me from gloomy saints. Keep me reasonably sweet, for a sour old person is one of the crowning works of the devil’.

The worst thing for them is the lack of medical supplies, which two of the Sisters depend on for their lives. Many foodstuffs are largely unobtainable and even water is in short supply.

The discalced Carmelite Sisters of Barquisimeto in Venezuela are not necessarily all saints, but old and sour they certainly are not – rather they are all loving and affectionate.

Moreover, they have no running water, and they cannot afford to bore a well in the convent grounds. Meanwhile, there is a growing climate of superstition and idolatry in the country, involving the theft of human organs and bones obtained through the desecration of graves.

And yet these daughters of Saint Teresa do not have an easy life. Barquisimeto’s eleven Sisters also suffer from the poverty afflicting their once oil-rich country, which has been brought to its knees by political and economic mismanagement – and a social crisis bordering on civil war.

To avoid this danger, the Sisters have had to remove the mortal remains of their deceased foundress and fellow Sisters from the public cemetery and laid them in a place of safety. ‘Through our prayers we are co-workers in the Kingdom of Love, even in this world’, writes their 37-year-old abbess, Mother Isabel. Five

Loving and affectionate: the Carmelite Sisters of Barquisimeto.

Aid to the Church in Need

AND YOU SHALL BE MY WITNESS

of the 11 Sisters are younger than her. Without outside aid they could not fulfil their vocation and mission of devoting their whole lives to God in prayer. It is a similar story for the 32 Trappist nuns in Barquisimeto. Sister Lilian has already had two strokes and Sister Bernarda suffers from muscular dystrophy and high blood pressure. The others go without in order to pay for their medication, yet as Mother Paola writes, ‘This will still not be enough. Nevertheless, we continue to pray and work, with joy and hope in our hearts.’ Archbishop Antonio Lopez Castillo of Barquisimeto adds his own plea: ‘Please help. The Sisters are indispensable to the archdiocese. We need the prayers of these Sisters.’ ACN is determined to provide the Carmelite and Trappist Sisters in Barquisimeto the little they need to survive.

It is likewise a matter of survival for the Carmelite Sisters in Sebikotane, in the Archdiocese of Dakar in Senegal. Again, as Archbishop Benjamin Ndiaye assures us, their prayer is ‘an enormous support for the diocese, and especially for the seminary where Senegalese priests have been trained for generations’. But the Sisters need a car, to transport the vegetables grown in their convent garden and the chickens they raise to the market in Dakar, 30 miles (50 km) away. This is the main way that the Sisters, who come from Ghana, Sierra Leone, Togo, the Cape Verde Islands and Senegal support themselves. The old car is now worn out by and costing them too much in repairs. We have promised them a new car. •

The Carmelites of Sebikotane. They have been serving the Church for almost 70 years in this convent.

GIVE JOY, GIVE HOPE

TRUTH AND THE ART OF LIVING

FAITH AND THE COMMON GOOD10

n presenting the story of the patriarchs and the righteous men and women of the Old Testament, the Letter to the Hebrews highlights an essential aspect of their faith. That faith is not only presented as a journey, but also as a process of building, the preparing of a place in which human beings can dwell together with one another.

the God who is Amen (cf. Is 65:16), and thus becomes firm himself, we can now also say that firmness of faith marks the city which God is preparing for mankind.

The first builder was Noah who saved his family in the ark (Heb 11:7). Then comes Abraham, of whom it is said that by faith he dwelt in tents, as he looked forward to the city with firm foundations (cf. Heb 11:9-10).

Faith does not merely grant interior firmness, a steadfast conviction on the part of the believer; it also sheds light on every human relationship because it is born of love and reflects God’s own love. The God who is himself reliable gives us a city which is reliable.

With faith comes a new reliability, a new firmness, which God alone can give. If the man of faith finds support in the God of fidelity,

Faith reveals just how firm the bonds between people can be when God is present in their midst.

Precisely because it is linked to love (cf. Gal 5:6), the light of faith is concretely placed at the service of justice, law and peace. Faith is born of an encounter with God’s primordial love, wherein the meaning and goodness of our life become evident; our life is illumined to the extent that it enters into the space opened by that love, to the extent that it becomes, in other words, a path and praxis leading to the fullness of love. The light of faith is capable of enhancing the richness of human relations, their ability to endure, to be trustworthy, to enrich our life together.

10 Adapted from Pope Francis’ Encyclical Letter Lumen Fidei, 29 June 2013 Paragraphs 50,51.

Aid to the Church in Need

AND YOU SHALL BE MY WITNESS

Faith does not draw us away from the world or prove irrelevant to the concrete concerns of the men and women of our time. Without a love which is trustworthy, nothing could truly keep men and women united. Human unity would be conceivable only on the basis of utility, on a calculus of conflicting interests or on fear, but not on the goodness of living together, not on the joy which the mere presence of others can give. Faith makes us appreciate the architecture of human relationships because it grasps their ultimate foundation and definitive destiny in God, in his love, and thus sheds light on the art of building; as such it becomes a service to the common good.

it serve solely to build an eternal city in the hereafter; it helps us build our societies in such a way that they can journey towards a future of hope. The Letter to the Hebrews offers an example in this regard when it names, among the men and women of faith, Samuel and David, whose faith enabled them to ‘administer justice’ (Heb 11:33). This expression refers to their justice in governance, to that wisdom which brings peace to the people (cf. 1 Sam 12:3-5; 2 Sam 8:15). The hands of faith are raised up to heaven, even as they go about building in charity a city based on relationships in which the love of God is laid as a foundation. •

Faith is truly a good for everyone; it is a common good. Its light does not simply brighten the interior of the Church, nor does

‘Faith is truly a good for everyone; it is a common good’ POPE FRANCIS

GIVE JOY, GIVE HOPE

TRUTH AND THE ART OF LIVING

LENT AND THE ART OF LIVING

TONY AGNESI11

n the book of Proverbs we are offered two ways to live our lives12. We can be

hurtful and selfish? If so, Proverbs warns us, we will have sad, painful, and troubled lives.

seekers of good or pursuers of evil.

Have you ever heard the saying ‘what goes around comes around?’ My dad used to tell me, ‘You become like the people you hang out with.’ It is said that you are the average of the seven people you spend the most time with.

We can have a positive attitude building people up, or a negative one tearing people down. Do you know someone who is always spreading the dirt about relatives, friends, or people at work? It seems that they never have a nice thing to say about anyone. Have you found that their negativity rubs off on you? Does it steal your energy? Or, are you the one spreading negative thoughts and don’t even know it? Are you willingly participating in the daily gossip to be accepted as part of the crowd?

If you associate with negative people, you will become negative. Hang out with complainers, you will be a complainer. Bitter, envious, selfish friends will make you a bitter envious and selfish person. You will never make positive changes in your life if you surround yourself with negative people. Pope Francis in an Ash Wednesday message said that if you want to give up something for Lent, make it indifference to our neighbour.

‘Who is the man who delights in life, who loves to see the good days? Keep your tongue from evil, your lips from speaking lies. Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.’ Psalm 34:13-15 Lent is a great time to ask ourselves if we are willingly or even unwillingly adding to the negativity in our lives. Are we critical and negative, bitter and envious of others, are we 11 Adapted and edited from Tony Agnesi https://tonyagnesi. com/2016/02/be-the-one/ 12 ‘Those who seek the good seek favour, but those who pursue evil will have evil come upon them.’ – Proverbs 11:27

Aid to the Church in Need

AND YOU SHALL BE MY WITNESS

Let’s try to seek the gold in others and spread positive energy. And, let’s do it not only during Lent, but every day. ‘Indifference to our neighbour and to God also represents a real temptation for us Christians. Each year during Lent we need to hear once more the voice of the prophets who cry out and trouble our conscience.’ Pope Francis What can we do to heighten the awareness of our surroundings and seek the gold in others rather than digging up the dirt? 1 Avoid negative people! Years ago, whenever I approached people who were gossiping or spreading negativity, I walked away. I didn’t want their negativity to rub off on my positive attitude. I joked that I was allergic to them.

‘That may be true, BUT when I was in the hospital, she was the first person to visit me.’ ‘Yes, BUT he really went out of his way to help get that project completed on time.’ You get the idea, right? Remember, if they are talking behind someone’s back when they aren’t there, they are probably also talking about you behind your back. Let’s start right now, during Lent, to find the gold in others, to be optimistic and positive. Let’s shed the negative behaviour and avoid letting negative people steal our joy. Let’s bring a new energy to all that we do and seek God’s favour not just during Lent but every day of our lives. •

2 Look for solutions! Negative people are never looking for solutions, never looking for ways to make things better. If they did they would have nothing to complain about and would have to find the next thing to complain about. 3 Optimism is a happiness magnet! Finding positive people to associate with, people looking to build people up, find solutions, and interested in personal growth, will add to your happiness. 4 Be the ‘Yes, but’…person. When people are spreading rumours about someone, I will often interrupt them with a ‘yes…but’, and then I will share a positive thought about the person being targeted.

‘Seek the gold in others’

GIVE JOY, GIVE HOPE

TONY AGNESI

TRUTH AND THE ART OF LIVING

YOUR GRACIOUS APPRECIATION... ALL HIS WORLDLY WEALTH

MY HEART ACHES

Enclosed, at his request, is a donation by Brother Joseph-Marie, a Carthusian, for the centre in Mutemwa, Zimbabwe. These are his life savings!

I just want to thank you for all the great work you do all over the world and particularly in the Middle East. My heart aches when I read about the hardship that those poor people are going through. Please use my donation for whatever purpose you see fit.

In a few weeks time Joseph-Marie will take his perpetual vows, so we ask your prayers and those of all the wonderful ACN family for him.

DEEPLY MOVED

Benefactors in France PROUD TO BE A PART OF ACN We follow your work for Christians in need and know you from the past, when you helped the people of Slovakia. Now we are proud to be a part of your good work ourselves, through our small regular donations. We will try to give still more, if our financial situation allows.

WHAT THE SAINTS SAY...

A family in Slovakia

A benefactress in Australia

I got to know about your work through a good friend of mine, who is already a benefactress. Enclosed is a small donation which I will certainly try and repeat whenever I am able. I was deeply moved by the plight of the victims of the war in Syria, as I lived there for four years myself and was able to help the Sisters of Mother Teresa as a volunteer. My warmest congratulations to you on your work for this blessed charity! A benefactress in Portugal

â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;If people obey Godâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Law, they will know freedom forever. Pope Saint John Paul II Quote selected by Eddie Cotter, founder

ead heologians ociety www.DeadTheologiansSociety.com Aid to the Church in Need

AND YOU SHALL BE MY WITNESS

...AND OUR HEARTFELT THANKS of service. We cannot and do not want to compete with the major humanitarian aid agencies; our service is above all a pastoral one.

Dear Friends,

his year we are starting a new campaign in our offices around the world. This time focusing on India, a subcontinent of much light and much darkness. It is the continent of Saint Thomas the Apostle, of Saint Mother Teresa and of so many other unknown saints, and indeed martyrs as well. The Catholic Church there is only small numerically, but plays an important role in proportion to her size. The campaign aims to focus on the life, the work and the needs of Christians in India. We want to help them in the same way that we always do – by providing practical and even material aid for the salvation of souls. This is how Mother Teresa also saw her work

Hence this campaign fits in with our other campaigns through which, for some time now, we have sought to ease the plight of Christians in Iraq, in Syria, and in Africa. In doing so we are always conscious of the fact that without you, and without your generous giving, our campaigns would be impossible. And likewise without your love. Caritas Christi Urget Nos – the love of Christ urges us on – and it also unites us together. In this spirit I want to express once more my joyful and heartfelt thanks to you all.

Johannes Freiherr Heereman, Executive President of ACN International

WHERE TO SEND YOUR CONTRIBUTION FOR THE CHURCH IN NEED Please use the Freepost envelope.

IBAN BIC

Aid to the Church in Need,

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If you give by standing order, or have sent a donation recently, please accept our sincere thanks. This MIRROR is for your interest and information.

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WE ARE CALLED TO BE MISSIONARIES OF

‘Every moment can be lived as an act of love for God!’ PRESIDENT OF ACN

‘‘It is Christ’s will that His bride, the Holy Church, should constantly renew herself. She must cleanse herself from the dust of the ages in order to remain equal to the challenges of the age. … And since we ourselves are the Church, the task of this renewal is laid upon each one of us.’ Life in the light of Eternity: Poor Clares from Latin America.

THE MIRROR IS AVAILABLE TO READ AT ACNIRELAND.ORG/MIRROR 18 - 2

Father Werenfried van Straaten (1913-2003)