Aid to the Church in Need
MIRROR GIVE JOY, GIVE HOPE
Christian Persecution and Forgiveness
CHRISTIAN PERSECUTION AND FORGIVENESS
Aid to the Church in Need
MIRROR GIVE JOY, GIVE HOPE
CONTENTS PAGE Persecution and Forgiveness................................. J F Declan Quinn...............................1 Feast of Feasts........................................................... Fr. Martin Barta..................................2 We have to forgive..................................................... Oliver Maksan....................................4 A Reflection on Christian Persecution................. Cardinal Robert Sarah......................6 The Heroic Witness of Fr Jacques....................................................................................8 Bearing the seeds of reconciliation................................................................................ 12 Building an Oasis of Mercy and Love............................................................................ 14 More than Tolerance........................................................................................................... 16 On Mercy and Forgiveness..................................... Cardinal Robert Sarah................... 18 A Repentant Mother........................................................................................................... 19 The Fastest Nun in the West.................................. Mary Rezac..................................... 22 Trampling on the freedom of Christians........................................................................ 26 God’s Mercy and God’s Work.......................................................................................... 28 For the Mission in China.................................................................................................... 30 The Angelus for the Holy Land.............................. Johannes Freiherr Heereman........ 32
Editor: Jürgen Liminski. Publisher: Kirche in Not / Ostpriesterhilfe, Postfach 1209, 61452 Königstein, Germany. De licentia competentis auctoritatis ecclesiasticae. Printed in Ireland - ISSN 0252-2535. www.acn-intl.org
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YEAR OF MERCY
PERSECUTION AND FORGIVENESS A chairde,
We are always in need of for-
einhold Niebuhr (1892-1971) was a well-known and highly-regarded American public intellectual, Seminary professor and influential Protestant pastor during the first half of the 20th century. It was Reinhold who wrote the wellknown ‘Serenity Prayer’ (see page 9) and declared that ‘Forgiveness is the final form of Love.’
Forgiveness is inextricably linked to
For any Christian attentive to the dying words of Christ on the Cross, ‘Father forgive them for they know not what they do’ there should be little dispute, Christ’s final act of love on Calvary, the final form of His love for Man was to beseech His father for forgiveness.
Let us therefore always avail of the graces and gifts which are present in Christ’s mystical body the Church and help others realise that God has given us the sacraments precisely because we need them. We need them if we are to enjoy eternal happiness in the next life and if we are to be able to live fully human lives in this world, our common home.
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Seen more broadly however, all of Christ’s life, from the moment of conception to the moment of His brutal Passion and death on the Cross was about His self-sacrifice in loving atonement for the sins of mankind. Christ lived and died so that the doors to the Father’s Divine Mercy could be opened and our sins could be forgiven. A young Alexander Pope (1688-1744) in his much-celebrated ‘Essay on Criticism’ pointed out that ‘to err is human, to forgive is divine’. Now if we were to ally the great insights of the poet Pope and the pastor Niebuhr with the timely teachings of our Holy Father Pope Francis it would perhaps not be wrong to say that:
giveness since we are all sinful.
Divine Mercy. Out of love for sinful man God our Father always wants to forgive us, His children. Through the sacrament of reconciliation God mercifully forgives sins and makes available to us the grace we need to overcome the sinful temptations and persecutions of this world.
It is Aid to the Church in Need’s great privilege to be called to help bring the Word of God to souls in need the world over and especially to those poor souls who are most in need of God’s Mercy and Forgiveness.
Beir Beannacht
J F Declan Quinn Director, Aid to the Church in Need (Ire) PS. Thank you for your prayers in support of our joint mission to share God’s Love with the world. 1
CHRISTIAN PERSECUTION AND FORGIVENESS
THE FEAST OF FEASTS Dear Friends, aster is sometimes called ‘the Feast of Feasts’, since without the Resurrection our preaching would be in vain and our faith in vain (cf 1 Cor 15:14). If the Redeemer were not living, there could be no redemption either, no Christian life. As Nietzsche once said mockingly, ‘His disciples would have to look more redeemed to me, in order for me to believe in their Redeemer.’
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But that is precisely the reason why we celebrate Easter, so that we can live as Christians ‘more redeemed’. And that is also why Pope Francis has given us this Year of Mercy, so that this redemption can fill our hearts and faces with light. This also points to a profound underlying meaning of the Jubilee indulgence, which we can gain by passing through the ‘Holy Door’ in the designated churches of the Jubilee in our own diocese, or by performing some work of mercy.
Sacrament of Confession all our sins are forgiven us; yet there still remain the consequences and effects of these sins. These negative consequences, for which we ourselves are to blame, are known, perhaps somewhat confusingly, as ‘temporal punishment’. This mostly involves the bad habits and selfish tendencies we have acquired.
May Divine Mercy Sunday be a feast of feasts for us!
Yet many people have little time for indulgences. As a result of the many unfortunate abuses that have occurred over the course of history, this wonderful gift has acquired something of a tarnished name. Yet how are we to understand the profound and beautiful truth about indulgences? In the 2
In order to heal these also, or to overcome them, the Church helps us, from the Treasury of Graces – the infinite merits of Jesus Christ – and the merits of all the saints, by granting us a partial, or in this case, a plenary indulgence. To receive it we must fulfil certain conditions, notably Confession and Holy Communion, prayer for the intentions of the Pope and some specified act of charity towards God or neighbour, such as a visit to a Jubilee church. But there is a further and sadly often forgotten condition in order for this grace to be effective; and that is the firm resolve, the inner determination to turn away from sin
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and become a better person. We cannot acquire such indulgences through money, nor indeed in any sense ‘automatically’, by means of particular religious practices. Only if we have the right inward spirit of conversion – and the genuine desire to please God – can our souls experience this healing and sanctifying grace. ear Friends, we conclude the Easter octave with the celebration of Divine Mercy Sunday, a feast that is also connected to a special kind of plenary indulgence. In fact Jesus Himself said to Saint Faustina,
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‘On this day the very depths of my tender Mercy are open. I pour out a whole ocean of graces upon those souls who approach the fount of my Mercy. The soul that will go to Confession and receive Holy Communion shall obtain complete forgiveness of sins and punishment.’ During this Jubilee year may Divine Mercy Sunday be for us likewise a ‘feast of feasts’, so that with burning hearts we can carry forth the joy of the Resurrection into the world.
My grateful blessing on you all,
Father Martin M. Barta, Spiritual Assistant 3
CHRISTIAN PERSECUTION AND FORGIVENESS
WE HAVE TO FORGIVE - OLIVER MAKSAN
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ather Dankha Issa is a Chaldean monk in Alqosh. In the summer of 2015, hundreds of Christian refugees found refuge in the city after their villages were seized by jihadists. The ancient, exclusively Christian city is situated in the northern part of Iraq. As the crow flies, only about 10 miles separate the monastery of the Virgin in the Corn Field from the front line ISIS-held territory. ‘We are very thankful to Our Holy Father that he has proclaimed a Holy Year of Mercy. It is a time of grace for us,’ the priest told ACN. He himself had been forced to flee Mosul in June of 2014 after it fell to ISIS, or Daesh, as the terrorist organization is known in Arabic. Father Issa said: 1 In the Year of Mercy, Catholics in Middle East ‘will pray for Daesh’ Friday, December 18, 2015.
‘This Jubilee gives us new hope. Let us hope that this year will extinguish the fires of hate and bring peace. In this year our attention is particularly drawn to how merciful God is with us sinners. God forgives us. But this also means that we have to forgive each other. Even the people of Daesh, who have done so many evil things to us. After all, as a Christian you also have to love your enemies. This is almost humanly impossible. But it is easier through faith. God is capable of everything.’ In Egypt, Father Beshoi has been the priest in Azareia, a Christian town in Upper Egypt near Asyut. The Coptic Catholic cleric wants to make the sacrament of penance more accessible to his parishioners again, saying:
Father Dankha Issa (centre) who fled the violence of IS in 2014 with an ACN International delegation.
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‘We need the forgiveness of God. Here, there are a lot of cases of revenge because of insults to family honor. These are often caused by something trivial. But the situations often escalate until there are casualties. And that happens here—even though only Christians live in our town. But they have assimilated to the Islamic culture that surrounds us. In Islam, God is only seen as a lawmaker who metes out punishment when His commandments are not heeded. However, I want to change this mentality. I want to show God to my brothers and sisters as a merciful Father who forgives us. However, this is also why we have to forgive each other. Thus, the Year of Mercy has come at just the right moment for me.’
The Holy Year is also being celebrated at the outermost Western edge of the Arab world. Admittedly, there are hardly any Catholics living in Morocco and the vast majority of these are foreigners. However, the small local Catholic community takes an active part in the life of the World Church. A good example are the Sisters of the Carmelite convent of Tangiers from where Sister Maria Virtudes told ACN:
‘We embrace the Holy Year with pleasure and gratitude. It is a great grace that we want to experience together with the entire church. With all of our poverty and weakness and in recognising our sinfulness, we are on our way to the Father, of whose embrace we have great need.’ •
Carmelite nuns in Tangiers, Morocco.
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CHRISTIAN PERSECUTION AND FORGIVENESS
A REFLECTION ON CHRISTIAN PERSECUTION - CARDINAL ROBERT SARAH
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iolence against Christians is a reality that runs through the whole history of Christianity, starting with Christ Himself, from His birth until the day of His crucifixion. The apostles were the victims of serious violence. The Son of God had announced to His disciples that they would never be at peace on this earth. The only way to win this great combat is union with God. Christians will never succeed in overcoming the challenges of the world by appealing to political tools, human rights, or respect for religious liberty. The only true rock for the baptised is prayer and the encounter with Jesus Christ. Men whose strength is in prayer are unsinkable. Jesus began His public ministry with forty days of prayer in the desert, and He finished His life with a cry that is a final prayer: ‘Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do’ (Lk 23:34). The violence against Christians is not just physical; it is also political, ideological, and cultural:
‘Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell’ (Mt 10:28). Many Christians, in Nigeria, in Pakistan, in the Middle East, and else6
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where, courageously undergo this physical martyrdom daily, in order to be faithful to Christ, without ever giving up their freedom of soul. The persecution is more refined when it does not destroy physically but demolishes the teaching of Jesus and of the Church and therefore, the foundations of the faith by leading souls astray. By this violence, some people try to neutralise and depersonalise the Christians, so as to dissolve them in a fluid society without religion and without God. There is no greater disdain than indifference. This insidious war springs from a diabolical hatred of Jesus Christ and of His true witnesses. I can still hear the powerful echo of John Paul II in Lyon (October 4, 1986), warning us about the danger of an environment that may imprison us in forgetfulness, turn us away from the faith, and leave us defenceless against the fumes of rampant idolatry: ‘Of course, today you are not thrown to the beasts; no one tries to put you to death because of Christ. But is it not necessary to acknowledge that another sort of trial surreptitiously affects Christians? 2 Adapted and edited from Cardinal Robert Sarah ‘God or Nothing – A Conversation on Faith’ Ignatius Press 2015 Pp. 194-196.
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Currents of thoughts, life-styles, and sometimes even laws opposed to the true meaning of man and of God undermine the Christian faith in the lives of individuals, families, and society.
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n the West, this violence is increasingly insidious, especially since it is careful to hide its true face. In the Gospel of John, Christ’s words are plain:
Christians are not mistreated, they even enjoy all sorts of freedoms, but is there not a real risk that their faith will be, so to speak, imprisoned by an environment that tends to relegate it to the domain of an individual’s private life?
‘If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.
Nowadays there is a massive indifference among many people with regard to the Gospel and the moral behaviour and its demands; is this not a way of sacrificing little by little to the idols of selfishness, luxury, consumption, and pleasure, which are sought without limits and at any price? This form of pressure or seduction could kill the soul without attacking the body.
Remember the word that I said to you, “A servant is not greater than his master.” If they persecuted me, they will persecute you; if they kept my world, they will keep yours also. But all this they will do to you on my account, because they do not know him who sent me.
The spirit of evil that opposed our martyrs is still at work. With other means, it continues to seek to turn people away from the faith.’
If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have sinned; but now they have no excuse for their sin. He who hates me hates my Father also. If I had not done among them the works which no one else did, they would not have sin; but now they have seen and hated both Me and my Father. It is to fulfil the word that is written in the their law, “They hated me without a cause”‘ (Jn 15:18-25). Now the refinements of evil are becoming ever more insidious. A man who falls asleep for a moment must take care not to fall into a trap that is so pleasant that it is all the more formidable. • 7
CHRISTIAN PERSECUTION AND FORGIVENESS
THE HEROIC WITNESS OF FR. JACQUES3 s head of Mar Élian monastery and of Qaryatayn parish, near Palmyra, Father Jacques Mourad was abducted by members of the Islamic State on May 21, 2015. He remained in captivity for four months and 20 days, more than 140 days, before being able to return, on October 10, to ‘the free world.’ Threatened with beheading several times if he did not convert to Islam, whipped and subjected to a mock execution, Father Mourad’s prison experience was a true way of the cross. In an interview with L’Orient, Le jour, he recounts in detail the ordeal he went through.
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‘The first week was the hardest: After being held for several days in a car, I was taken, on Pentecost Sunday, to Raqqa. I lived those first days in captivity torn between fear, anger and shame,’ he says. 3 Translated from the French by Liliane Stevenson.
Father Jacques Mourad.
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On the eighth day, an individual dressed in black entered his cell. While the priest believed his end was near, the man struck up a conversation. Father Mourad asked why he had been abducted. ‘Consider it a spiritual retreat,’ replied his jailer. ‘From then on, my prayer, my days took on a meaning, says the Syrian priest. How can I explain? I felt that through him, it was the Lord who sent me these words. That moment was a great comfort to me. Through prayer, I was able to regain my peace, said the priest. It was May, the month of Mary. We began to recite the rosary, which I did not pray much before. My relationship with the Virgin was renewed by it. St. Teresa of Avila’s prayer, “Let nothing disturb you, nothing frighten you…” also sustained me. One night I made up a melody for it, which I started to hum. Bl. Charles de Foucauld’s prayer helped me abandon myself into the hands of the Lord, well aware that I had no choice. For I had every indication that either I converted to Islam, or I would be decapitated.’
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SERENITY PRAYER give me grace to accept G od, with serenity
the things that cannot be changed, Courage to change the things which should be changed, and the Wisdom to distinguish the one from the other. Living one day at a time, Enjoying one moment at a time, Accepting hardship as a pathway to peace, Taking, as Jesus did, This sinful world as it is, Not as I would have it, Trusting that You will make all things right, If I surrender to Your will, So that I may be reasonably happy in this life, And supremely happy with You forever in the next.
AMEN
‘Almost every day someone entered my cell and asked me about my faith. I lived every day as if it were my last. But I did not give in. God gave me two things, silence and friendliness. I knew some answers could provoke them, that just one word can condemn you. Thus, I was questioned about the presence of wine in the convent. The man cut me off when I started to answer. He found my words unbearable. I was an ‘infidel.’ Through prayer, the Psalms, I found a sense of peace that never left me. I also remembered Christ’s words in the Gospel of St. Matthew: “Bless those who curse you, pray for those who persecute you.” I was happy to be able to live out these words. It is no small thing to be able to live the gospel, especially those difficult verses, which were previously only theoretical. I started to feel compassion for my captors. Occasionally, poetic songs by Feyrouz also came back to me, especially one of them that spoke of dusk, which I sang when the long nights of June fell on Raqqa and we were left in the dark. Even these words and their music became a prayer. They spoke of the suffering “inscribed in the twilight.”’
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CHRISTIAN PERSECUTION AND FORGIVENESS
Suddenly, on the 23rd day, his captors reappeared: ‘It was a kind of staging. The flagellation lasted some 30 minutes. The whip was made of a piece of garden hose and ropes. I was in physical pain, but deep down inside I was at peace. I had great comfort in knowing that I was sharing something of Christ’s suffering. I was also extremely ashamed, as I felt unworthy to have even a small share in our Lord’s suffering. I forgave my tormentor even as he was whipping me. From time to time, I gave a comforting smile to the deacon, Boutros, my fellow prisoner, who could hardly bear to see me being whipped so.
“I experienced the greatest fear a little later,” said Father Mourad, “when a man armed with a knife entered our cell. I felt the blade of the knife on my neck, and I had the feeling that the countdown for my execution had begun. In my fear, I recommended myself to God’s Mercy. But it was only a horrifying sham.”’
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n August 4, the Islamic State seized Qaryatayn. The next day at dawn, the population is taken hostage and brought to Palmyra. A few days later a Saudi sheikh entered the priest’s cell: ‘Are you Baba Jacques?’ he asked. ‘Come! Some Christians from Qaryatayn have been bothering us about you!’
Later, I remembered the verse where the Lord says that it is in our weakness that his strength is manifested. I was continually amazed because I knew that I was weak, both spiritually and physically. You see, I suffer from a bad back since childhood and the prison conditions were such that the pain should have grown greater. At the monastery, I had a special mattress, an ergonomic chair. In prison, I slept on the floor, and there was no way to do any walking.
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The Monastery of Mar Élian before destruction.
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‘I thought that I was being taken away to be executed. Sitting in a van, we drove for four hours straight. Beyond Palmyra we took a mountain path that led to a building secured by a large iron door. When it was opened, and what did I see? The whole population of Qaryatayn, amazed to see me. It was a moment of unspeakable suffering for me. For them, an extraordinary moment of joy. Twenty days later, on September 1, we were brought back to Qaryatayn, free, but we were forbidden to leave the village. A collective religious contract was signed: we were now under their protection (ahl zemmé) upon payment of a special fee (jezyé), which non-Muslims have to pay.
A few days later Father Mourad defied the ban of leaving the city to return to the free world. ‘Today,’ he says, ‘I still feel for my captors the same feeling I had for them when I was their prisoner: compassion. This feeling comes from my contemplation of God’s gaze on them, despite their violence, which is the same one that he has for every man: a gaze of pure Mercy, without any desire for revenge. I know that prayer is the way of salvation. We must continue to pray for the bishops and priests who are still missing and about whom we know nothing. We also need to pray for a political solution in Syria.’ •
We could even practice our rites, provided that it not offend any Muslims. A few days later, after the death of one of my parishioners, who died of cancer, we went to the cemetery, near the Monastery of Mar Elian. Only then did I notice that it had been razed to the ground. Curiously, I did not react. Inwardly, I seemed to understand that Mar Élian had sacrificed his convent and his cemetery in order to save us.’
The Monastery of Mar Élian after destruction.
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CHRISTIAN PERSECUTION AND FORGIVENESS
BEARING THE SEEDS OF RECONCILIATION owhere in Syria is safe today. But there are some towns in which there are fewer car bomb attacks and where suicide bombings in crowded market places or outside public buildings are not so frequent.
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There is no such thing as normal life in Syria. But there are at least some places where, occasionally, water runs from the taps and the electricity supply is switched on for a few hours, where some food and medicines are still obtainable and where teachers can still teach the children about the world. Today, Homs is such a place once more. There are many Christians living here also, and they want to stay.
Jesuit Father Sammour Nawras is caring for them. In fact he is their pastor, their master builder, teacher, nurse, driver, electrician, delivery man – and so much more besides. In fact he is the one who organises their survival. ‘They just want a little normality’, he says, ‘a little bit of peace, here in Homs, their home town.’ This little fragment of peace and normality is something they can also savour in the monthly basket of food supplies which – thanks to your help – Father Sammour is able to distribute to 400 of the most needy of these families. For the cans of tuna, the packs of spaghetti, the sugar, cheese, flour and tea bring a little warmth and love from the outside world back into their bombed-out homes. An additional 450 families find a little bit of fresh
Soup kitchen in Homs – for “the least of these little ones”.
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home town of Homs. All in all, the hope you are giving Father Sammour and his people helps them hold out and withstand persecution, the hatred of the fanatics and the calculating indifference of the mighty ones.
Father Sammour, with some of the youngsters: “Here in Homs we feel at home.”
hope in the help you provide towards their rent, without which they would be forced to leave their homes. Again, for around 500 individual Christians, your love is present in the medication without which many of them could not even survive. For the cost of food and medicines is still beyond the reach of most of them.
So often it is the Christians who find themselves trapped between government troops and rebel fighters, and permanently in danger of being ground down, or even driven out. But at the same time they are the ones who bear the seed of reconciliation in their hearts. Their faith in Jesus Christ is their faith in love and forgiveness. Your gestures of solidarity help to keep alive the hope of peace in these Christians of Homs. And there is nothing this ravaged country needs more than • such heralds of hope and love.
Of the 16 hospitals that once served Homs and its district, ten no longer function, while the rest are overfilled. For the past five years even attempting to get to school or university meant daily risking one’s life. Now, thanks to your help, around 600 students can at least benefit from the comparative safety of school transport, without which they could not get to their schools and other educational institutions. ll these small, practical forms of help are organised by Father Sammour, and the sum total of them is what gives the Christian communities here the courage to stay on in their
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“Look on me, a little child...”
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CHRISTIAN PERSECUTION AND FORGIVENESS
BUILDING AN OASIS OF MERCY AND LOVE hristianity is by far the most persecuted religion worldwide. Over 100 million Christians today suffer violent oppression and expulsion. In the international league tables of the persecution and extermination of Christians, Sudan is one of the worst offenders.
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According to Article 5 of the Constitution the Islamic sharia law is the source of all legislation and jurisprudence in Sudan. All religious minorities, and in particular Christians, are at the mercy of the arbitrary rule of this Islamist regime. Any church buildings or other properties deemed to be not in use can at any time be expropriated by the state.
And at the same time no permits are being granted for new church buildings. Christian communities and their priests are under constant surveillance by the secret police. Even the teaching of religion and the catechism is overshadowed by the arbitrary actions of the authorities, and for the Catholic priests a sense of vulnerability and fear are constant companions. In such a climate it is essential for these Christians to be able to feel the solidarity of other Christians worldwide – and still more a sense of communion among themselves. The priests of the 27 parishes in the Archdiocese of Khartoum also need a place where they can meet together safely, speak openly and share their thoughts and feelings about their work, their pastoral hopes, successes and problems. hey need a place where they can seek counsel, an open welcome, sympathy and understanding. A house where they can pray, reflect and plan, deepen their theological understanding and discuss their pastoral practice. In short, they need a house of prayer, a house of spiritual and psychological repose and recovery.
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Before the Cross: the bishops are true pastors and leaders of the flock in Sudan.
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The centre for priests near Khartoum: a house of prayer, of trust, of rest and refreshment.
This house exists in fact. Priests come here both from Sudan and from the now independent South Sudan. It is a house of unity. But it is also old and derelict, with cracks in the walls, a leaking roof and ill-fitting doors that testify to its constant use and its need for urgent repair. Fortunately, a permit is not required for this work, only money. We have promised to help so that this oasis of love, unity and recuperation in a hostile environment can continue to do its work. •
THE POOR SHOWING MERCY TO THOSE POORER
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n Israel too, Christians do not always have an easy time of it. Not infrequently viewed with mistrust by Jews and often despised by Muslims, here in the Holy Land they nevertheless endeavour, by the example of their lives, to preach the Good News to all people of goodwill. Archbishop Georges Bacouni of the Melchite Catholic diocese of Akka, Haifa, Nazareth and all Galilee (with the Pope, in the photo) has now called on the faithful of his diocese to come to the aid of other Christians in the Middle East. He has organised a collection in the parishes of his diocese. He wants to help his suffering fellow Christians in the region, and he wants to do so
together with ACN, so as to be sure that their help actually gets to those in need. It is a case of the poor helping the still poorer, of giving, from the little they have – rather like the widow in the Gospels. We are grateful to him for his trust – yet we see it as an appeal to us as well: to multiply these gifts by imitating their generosity. •
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CHRISTIAN PERSECUTION AND FORGIVENESS
MORE THAN MERE TOLERANCE ope Francis asks: ‘How much do you love? What is your faith like?’ He answers: ‘My faith is as my love is”, for “Love is the measure of faith’.
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Love is the defining measure for Christians, even for those who are persecuted and oppressed. That is why they are, or should be, always prepared to forgive. And when this seems humanly speaking almost impossible to do, then we need people who can remind us that for God nothing is impossible. In Burundi, a small country in the heart of Africa that was also caught up in the terrible genocide between the rival Hutu and Tutsi
Builders of reconciliation in Burundi: the novices at work on their future novitiate.
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tribes in neighbouring Rwanda, there is a young religious community that seeks to embody this yardstick of our faith. It is called ‘New Life for Reconciliation’ and it is attracting many young people in particular. ‘Reconciliation springs from forgiveness’, says Archbishop Simon Ntamwana of Gitega, who founded this apostolic movement. It is a community open to Catholics from every state and walk of life, both religious and lay. At present it has three priests, four brothers and a dozen novices. Until recently these novices did not even have a roof over their heads but, together with other helpers, they have now built a house, with small individual rooms and a chapel. So far so good. But the rooms are still empty; there is no money left for beds, mattresses, chairs, tables, cupboards, bookshelves… And now they have asked us for assistance, so that they can buy at least the most basic furniture for these rooms. These young men need a place to study and also to withdraw to from time to time, so that they can reflect on the many projects and duties in the work of reconciliation in their country and pray about them. We have said yes, of course. For the measure of their need should also be the measure of our love.
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nother major project for reconciliation is the youth centre in Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina. This project is now in its third and final phase, though in fact the centre is already up and running.
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Shortly before it was opened, Pope Francis met there with thousands of young people and asked them – indeed entrusted to them this mission: ‘Work for peace, all of you together. Muslims, Jews, Orthodox, Catholics and those of other religions too. We are all brothers; make peace, do not allow anything to destroy our unity and brotherly friendship!’ Indeed, this mission so to speak constitutes the very DNA of this centre. The Catholic Church could have timidly accepted the fact of being a minority church in the
country and simply herself to herself.
kept
But timidity is not the measure of the Christian. Instead, Cardinal Vinko Puljic is looking to the future and striving, through these young people, to build bridges across the religious and ethnic divides. The John Paul II Youth Centre is one of the great pillars of this project. In this place young people are learning not merely tolerance, but reconciliation. And they are helping wherever they can. But for this third and final phase they also need professional tradesmen, for the plastering, wiring, stairs etc. We have promised them a contribution for the present and future work of recon• ciliation.
“We are all brothers!” – Pope Francis during the visit to the youth centre.
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ON MERCY AND FORGIVENESS CARDINAL ROBERT SARAH4
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ercy, Misericordia, is casting one’s heart upon someone else’s misery, loving the other in the midst of his misery. But before flooding us with its benevolence, mercy demands truth, justice and repentance. In God, mercy will become ‘forgiveness’. Thus we are at the centre of the Gospel message. Forgiveness is the most striking face of God’s love for mankind. Thus Saint Peter asked Jesus: ‘“Lord how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven”’ (Mt 18:21-22). In other words, tirelessly. Indeed, we must love as God loves. God knows man’s failures and great weaknesses, but He casts His Heart upon our misery. God rejoices to forgive us, Forgiveness is beginning again to love with more gratuitousness and generosity when love has been badly hurt.
Without God’s grace, unless we fix our eyes on the crucifix, from which we hear the voice of Jesus praying for His executioners, and unless we open our flawed hearts to graft them onto the pierced Heart of the One who comes to consume our sins with the fire of His overflowing Love, it will be difficult for us to forgive, because this act requires us to give in abundance. It is necessary to be overflowing with love, it is necessary to have superabundant love in order to attain the truth of forgiveness. The best imitation of Jesus is forgiveness. In the Gospel, the prodigal son, the adulterous woman, Mary Magdalene, are marvellous examples of forgiveness given to us by Christ to imitate. God is forgiveness, love and mercy; the radical newness of Christianity is found here and nowhere else. Men must forgive as God himself forgives, tirelessly. We were made by God, and it is enough for us to remember our divine origins in order to comply easily with His will, which asks us to be perfect as our heavenly Father is perfect in His mercy. Forgiveness always allows man to be recreated, for this is an opportunity that • has come from heaven. 4 Adapted and edited from Cardinal Robert Sarah ‘God or Nothing – A Conversation on Faith’ Ignatius Press 2015 Pp. 203-204.
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A REPENTANT MOTHER5 ara Fernanda Giromini first made herself known to Brazil and to the world under the alias ‘Sara Winter’ in 2012, when she became the founding member of Femen Brazil, and led a trio of girls in a number of topless protests that garnered much media attention. However, only three years later, the young activist has done an about-face and has declared war on feminism and abortion, and is apologising to Christians for her offensive behaviour. She has also published a short book detailing the abuse and disappointment she suffered at the hands of fellow feminists.
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Giromini’s changing attitudes were first revealed in October 2015 when she expressed her repentance for an abortion that took the life of her first child, and acknowledged that the recent birth of her second child had changed her attitudes regarding the right to life.
‘I have repented of having had an abortion and today I ask for forgiveness,’ wrote Giromini. ‘Yesterday marked one month after the birth of my baby and my life has taken on a new meaning. I’m writing this while he sleeps serenely on my lap. It is the greatest sensation in the world.’ ‘Please, women who are desperate to abort, think carefully about it. I was very sorry I did it. I don’t want the same for you,’ she added. In the months that have followed, Giromini has revealed to her readership her disillusionment with feminism and gender ideology, and has repudiated her ‘bi-sexual’ orientation. She has also 5 Adapted and editied from LifeSiteNew.com, December 28, 2015
‘To be a Christian means to forgive the inexcusable because God has forgiven the inexcusable in you’ C.S. Lewis
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expressed remorse for having offended Christians in January of 2014, when she engaged in a well-publicised same-sex kiss with another semi-nude girl with a cross in the background, in front of the Church of Our Lady of Candelária in Rio de Janeiro. The photo of the two had become iconic in Brazil of homosexual contempt for Christianity. ‘Asking for forgiveness is certainly not an easy thing to do,’ said Giromini in a YouTube video entitled ‘I ask Christians for forgiveness for feminist protest. We went way too far and ended up offending many religious and non-religious people,’ she added, recognising the stunt as a form of ‘blasphemy.’ She adds that she is making progress in her own spiritual life, although the exact nature of her current beliefs remains unclear. Although she left Femen in 2013 after denouncing it as a ‘business,’ she had continued her bare-chested protests as the leader of a new feminist group comprised of both men and women, called ‘Bastards.’ She has now made it clear that she regards herself as having no affiliation with feminism at all, repudiating the movement as a religious ‘sect’ that uses women as objects, promotes lesbianism, and covers up pedophilia in its ranks.
JESUS, SON OF THE LIVING GOD, HAVE MERCY ON ME, A SINNER
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‘For the feminist sect women are not the inspiration, they are prime matter in the worst sense of the term. They are convenient objects useful for the purpose of inflaming hatred against the Christian religion, hatred against men, hatred against the beauty of women, hatred against the equilibrium of families. That’s what feminism is, and I can guarantee it is like that because I was on the inside!’ ‘I saw the feminist movement cover up for pedophiles,’ writes Giromini. ‘I saw the feminist movement persecute women ... I am a witness to the fact that today in the feminist movement women are not of any importance but serve as fuel for the fires of hatred that the feminist sect cannot allow to die.’ Giromini says that she felt pressured by the feminist movement to declare herself ‘bi-sexual’ so that she could receive maximum respect. ‘Lesbian and bi-sexual women have much more voice and respect within the movement, so in the search for recognition of my struggle, with each day that passed, I de-constructed my heterosexuality and was substituting it with an artificial bi-sexuality.’ Upon leaving feminism, Giromini ceased to regard herself as a ‘bi-sexual’ and has also
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rejected gender ideology, a sine qua non of social acceptance in the feminist movement.
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n her new book ‘Bitch, no! Seven times I was betrayed by Feminism’ (Vadia não! Sete vezes que fui traída pelo feminismo), Giromini writes that she was repeatedly pushed to do drugs, to engage in sex with strangers, and was even molested by a lesbian, all at the hands of feminists who claimed to be fighting for women’s equality. She also recounts that when she once confided in a feminist academic that she was involved in prostitution while still a teen, she was devastated to find that the woman affirmed her behaviour and did nothing to offer her a way out. She notes that one of the few times she received affection, kindness, and understanding from a female friend, it was from an older, conservative ‘anti-feminist,’ who treated her like a daughter. Giromini is donating a percentage of her book earnings to pro-life causes, and is now beginning to give talks against feminism, gender ideology and cultural Marxism.
Church of Our Lady of Candelária in Rio de Janeiro
‘I left that movement of which for four years I was one of the principal symbols in Brazil, and no one can say the contrary!’ writes Giromini. ‘The result? Today I’m much happier and am able to help women more.’ •
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THE FASTEST NUN IN THE WEST MARY REZAC6
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ccording to legend, and to Sr. Blandina Segale’s journal (1854-1941) and letters, one of Billy the Kid’s gang members had been shot and was on the brink of death when the doctors of Trinidad, Colorado, refused to treat him. Sister decided to take him in and cared for him for three months, nursing him back to health. But Billy the Kid (William Leroy) was still unhappy. Word got out that the outlaw was coming to town to scalp the four doctors of Trinidad in revenge. When he arrived, Sr. Blandina intervened, and convinced him to call off his mission on behalf of the man she had saved.
After that incident, Sr. Blandina and Billy the Kid became friends. She once visited him in jail, and he once called off a stage-coach robbery as soon as he realized Sister was one of the passengers. When she wasn’t calling off outlaws, Sr. Blandina was founding schools, building hospitals, teaching and caring for orphans and the poor, and advocating for the rights of Native Americans and other minorities. Her heroic virtue and enduring works of mercy have led to her cause for sainthood being opened in New Mexico during the summer of 2015 earning her the title ‘Servant of God.’ Since the opening of her cause various documents have come to light corroborating stories of her saintly life and the process of her beatification and eventual canonisation seems to be well on its way. ‘Sainthood isn’t about an award, it isn’t about honoring, it is about helping the faithful know that there is a source of God’s grace being worked on Earth,’ said Allen Sanchez, president and CEO for CHI St. Joseph’s Children in Albuquerque, which Sr. Blandina founded. Sanchez also serves as the petitioner for the cause of Sister’s sainthood and has studied her life extensively.
Sister Blandina Segale.
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6 Adapted and edited from an article was originally published on CNA Aug. 1, 2015.
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r. Blandina, born Maria Rosa Segale, was just four years old when she emigrated with her parents from the small town of Cicagna, Italy to Cincinnati, Ohio in 1854.
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At the age of 16, Maria Rosa joined the Sisters of Charity and took the name Sr. Blandina. In 1876, when she was just 22 years old, she was sent on her own to Trinidad in Colorado territory in order to teach in the public school there. A few years later, she was sent further south, first to Santa Fe and then to Albuquerque, New Mexico. Obviously it was quite an adjustment to migrate from Europe and the more settled parts of America to the still very rough-andtumble west. While in New Mexico, Sr. Blandina helped found the public health care system and the public school system by building the first hospitals and schools in Albuquerque, often asking for the temporary release of prisoners to help her with the labour.
Our Lady of Guadalupe.
Much of what is known about Sr. Blandina’s life comes from a series of letters she wrote her sister, Sr. Justina Segale, who was back in Ohio. The compiled correspondences, which span the years of 1872-1894, were published in 1931 ten years before Sr. Blandina’s death in 1941.
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o open a cause for sainthood, examples of heroic virtue of the person must be shown. The specific example of heroic virtue that her petitioners are using involves another story that could only take place in the Wild West; the story that earned her the title ‘The Fastest Nun in the West’ from a 1966 CBS feature on the incident.
because of Sister, was instead taken to the circuit court and was given life in prison. After nine months, he was released to go back home to care for his four children.
Sr. Blandina was teaching school in New Mexico when one of her pupils told her, ‘Pa’s shot a man, and they’re going to hang him.’
‘She must have been charming to them!’ he added. ‘I think they would fall in love with her and do what she would ask them to do, because she cared for them and she honestly was able to see the dignity of every human being from the innocent orphans to the guilty outlaws.’
That’s when Sr. Blandina went to work. She met with the shooter, and was able to convince him to write a confession. She then met with the dying man, and convinced him to forgive his shooter – in person – before he passed away. After the two men were reconciled, Sr. Blandina then had to face down the lynch mob that was coming to kill the shooter, who,
‘She disarms them from their guns, their hanging rope and their hate,’ Sanchez said of sister and the lynch mob.
Sr. Blandina also made several trips to Washington, D.C. to meet with legislators and to advocate on behalf of the Native Americans, whose reservation boundaries were being drawn at the time.
'You have heard how it was said, You will love your neighbour and hate your enemy. 44 But I say this to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you; 45 so that you may be children of your Father in heaven, for he causes his sun to rise on the bad as well as the good, and sends down rain to fall on the upright and the wicked alike. 46 For if you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Do not even the tax collectors do as much? 47 And if you save your greetings for your brothers, are you doing anything exceptional? 48 Do not even the gentiles do as much? You must therefore be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.'
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Gospel, Matthew 5:43-48
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Read Pope Francis’
MISERICORDIAE VULTUS THE FACE OF MERCY on acnireland.org
MISERICORDIAE VULTUS
And although her own life is being evaluated for sainthood, Sr. Blandina herself knew all about the canonization process, she helped to petition to Rome for the cause of two different saints in her lifetime; St. Elizabeth Ann Seton and St. Kateri Tekakwitha. She also helped bring (now), St. Catherine Drexel and her sisters to the West to help serve the Native American populations. he example of her life on earth is also important for the faithful today. Sanchez said, ‘She wasn’t afraid to roll up her sleeves and get the work done. And she was always giving credit to the Gospel, to Jesus’ work.’ And the work of Jesus is Mercy and Forgiveness, it is the conversion of sinners, the bringing of light into the darkness and the spreading of Hope and • of Joy.
THE FACE OF MERCY
by Pope Francis
Aid to the Church in Need
Sister Blandina Segale.
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TRAMPLING ON THE FREEDOM OF THE CHRISTIANS
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rticle 18 of the UN Declaration of Human Rights defines religious freedom as the ‘freedom to change one’s religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest one’s religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance’. In most Islamic countries this declaration is in practice negated by the provisions of Sharia Law. There are frequent abuses of the right to religious freedom in fact. For many radical Islamic groups the only law they recognise is the sharia, plus certain warlike slogans from the Koran. One such group is the terrorist Boko Haram movement, in northeast Nigeria.
On average their terror campaign claims the lives of eight people a day, the great majority of them Christians. For two and a half years now Boko Haram has also been bringing death and devastation to northern Cameroon. Among the worst affected areas are the dioceses of Maroua-Mokolo and Yagoua where, given the climatic and economic conditions, the people already struggle to gain a meagre living from the soil. Theirs is a quiet martyrdom. ‘What happened with the attacks in Paris is what is happening to us almost every day, but nobody is talking about it’, says Bishop Bruno Ateba of Maroua-Mokolo. He and his priests are facing a superhuman task trying to encourage the people to stay
In the Cross is our redemption… Good Friday liturgy in northern Cameroon.
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in the country and supporting them, both spiritually and humanly. There are too few schools, and fear stalks everywhere. Hunger and unemployment drive many people to flee – or in some cases, into the arms of Boko Haram. Bishop Bruno is appealing for help. He has requested Mass stipends for his priests, and also financial support for his 30 seminarians and for the families of his 20 lay catechists. They are his frontline troops, troops of love and heralds of courage and new hope, of humanity and mercy. They are his only weapons against fear and terrorism. Another major problem he faces is transport. He needs a vehicle, and help with the cost of fuel, for transporting these priests and catechists. The distances between the parishes are considerable and often there are sick people in urgent need of medication. We have promised help for all his list of priorities. The loving, human face of these, his ‘troops’ makes it easier for his people to forget the uncaring forgetfulness of the outside world.
own life – that a still greater catastrophe was averted, with yet more bloodshed. Since then many of the victims’ families have been struggling to survive, some living in direst poverty, others still suffering terrible wounds. They too are among the forgotten victims of this anti-Christian persecution. And there is still real fear that something similar could happen again, possibly at Pentecost this time, or on any Sunday Mass. Security measures have been tightened, with video cameras at all the entrances to the church. We have promised to help, so that the Catholic faithful can pray without fear and with at least some peace of heart, and be able to reflect on the words of St John the Evangelist, patron of their church: ‘Grace and truth came through Jesus Christ’ (Jn 1:17). •
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n Pakistan too, Christians are living permanently under threat from the fanatics. Just a year ago two suicide bombers attacked the church of Saint John in Youhanabad, in the diocese of Lahore. Altogether, 17 people were killed and 80 others wounded. It was only thanks to the selfless courage of a young Christian security guard – who confronted the attackers at the cost of his
Praying for the victims of the violence, and for peace in Pakistan.
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GOD’S MERCY AND GOD’S WORK
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hanks to the commitment of generous faithful, Aid to the Church in Need is able to reach out to our suffering brothers and sisters through it’s eight practical programs of Corporal and Spiritual Mercy.
‘Only my readiness to encounter my neighbour and to show him love makes me sensitive to God as well. Only if I serve my neighbour can my eyes be opened to what God does for me and how much he loves me.’ Pope Benedict XVI, Deus Caritas Est.
FORMATION: Support of the formation of priests and nuns,
providing basic necessities such as food, clothing, and religious materials for poor seminarians and vocations so that they may walk their path to God, and we may rebuild the Church, one vocation at a time.
AID TO REFUGEES: Assist refugees and persecuted faithful,
providing material help and pastoral care to victims of civil war and religious persecution. From assisting orphans in Sudan, to helping Christians under siege in Iraq, we help keep Christianity alive in today’s troubled world.
SPIRITUAL LITERATURE: Place Bibles and religious materials into the hands of those in need of spiritual nourishment. Over 50 million copies of our Child’s Bible have been printed in more than 140 languages;
TRANSPORTATION: Offer transport to pastoral workers, — bicycles, cars, motorcycles, trucks and even mules — to help desperately poor priests, nuns and lay missionaries around the world reach remote parishes and minister to the needs of their communities.
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God’s Mercy can make even the driest land become a garden. God’s Mercy can restore life to dry bones. Let us be renewed by God’s Mercy. Let us be loved by Jesus. Let us enable the power of his love to transform our lives. Let us become agents of this Mercy, channels through which God Can water the earth, Protect all creation and Make Justice and Peace flourish. Pope Francis Urbi et Orbi Easter 2013
id to the Church in Need benefactors through their prayers, their works and their treasure make a positive difference in the lives of millions of people in need worldwide and have been doing so since 1947.
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Only God knows the full measure of the good they accomplish and the fullness of the measure they will receive. •
YEAR OF MERCY
CONSTRUCTION OF CHURCHES: Rebuild churches
and chapels, repairing buildings desecrated by war or hatred, and supporting new construction, giving believers new hope and a place to gather as a faith community.
CARE FOR RELIGIOUS: Assist contemplative sisters and
elderly religious, offering pastoral care and love to those who have devoted their lives to serving God. In return, these religious gladly keep their benefactors in their hearts and prayers.
MASS OFFERINGS: This program offers Masses in honour or
memory of loved ones (living and deceased), and at the same time helps sustain impoverished priests around the world. For more than 60 years, this program has been helping provide basic living needs to poor priests so that they may continue dedicate themselves fully to serving God.
MEDIA OUTREACH: Promote the Word of God through Christian media, developing and supporting Catholic broadcasting programs for radio and television that reach faithful across the world.
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FOR THE MISSION IN CHINA t first there were just a couple of them, then a dozen, now there are a few hundred. No other religion in China is growing faster than Christianity – despite the continuing oppression. By now there are over 100 million Christians among the 1.3 billion Chinese people.
For now they continue to meet in various different places, in family homes or in empty houses. But all these places have become far too small for this growing community and are restricting its growth. The secret yearning of the faithful is that their church should become a mission centre.
Somewhere in the vast reaches of China these friends of ours live and pray – friends we cannot name for the sake of their own safety. Their dearest wish is to have a larger chapel, and better still a proper church, where they can kneel, pray and sing before the Lord and celebrate Holy Mass together.
For despite all the subtle, and often less than subtle persecution, everybody knows that the Christians are a stabilising element within society – and as a result the authorities sometimes turn a blind eye, even in godless China. We have promised to support them so that they can build this church, the • future centre of the mission station.
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Faith and knowledge go together: Pallottine-Novices studying.
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ACN MIRROR APPLICATION FOR MOBILE DEVICES. SIMPLY SEARCH FOR ‘ACN MIRROR’. The MIRROR is now available on an app you can download directly to your phone or tablet.
Recorded live at Ballintubber Abbey, an original music composition based on the parable of The Prodigal Son performed by the group – Le Chéile. Available to view at acnireland.org
le McPeake
Kathleen Keane
The Kells
The
Prodigal
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ulatory prayer for our persecuted brothers and sisters in the cradle of Christianity, the Holy Land, and especially in Syria and Iraq: ‘Lord have mercy on the Holy Land and grant it Your peace!’
Today these church bells are often drowned out by the din of the modern world – but we can still keep up that tradition and pray the Angelus at the traditional times, and perhaps also add a short impromptu prayer for a particular need.
We can easily tack this prayer on to our Angelus, and indeed there is nothing to stop us adding still more prayers for our suffering fellow Christians – such as the Rosary for example. But knowing that we are part of a community of many, perhaps many thousands, of people who daily offer up this short prayer, strengthens our sense of solidarity and encourages us, knowing we will surely find an open ear with our Father in heaven.
Sadly, there is no shortage of such needs today. For example, I join in with a prayer group who, once or twice a day, or even more, offer up to heaven this short ejac-
Johannes Freiherr Heereman, Executive President of ACN International
THE ANGELUS FOR THE HOLY LAND Dear Friends, o doubt you are familiar with that ancient Catholic tradition – or have at least seen it in old films from time to time – when the bells of the village church ring out at midday, and all the people working in the fields down tools and pray the Angelus, wherever they happen to be.
WHERE TO SEND YOUR CONTRIBUTION FOR THE CHURCH IN NEED Please use the Freepost envelope. Aid to the Church in Need, 151 St. Mobhi Road, Glasnevin, Dublin 9. (01) 837 7516 info@acnireland.org www.acnireland.org
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IBAN IE32 BOFI 9005 7890 6993 28 BIC BOFI IE2D 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. Registered Charity Numbers: (RoI) 9492 (NI) XR96620.
Aid to the Church in Need
MAKING US MORE AWARE... Making us aware of the need Thank you to ACN for being so close to those who are suffering at this time in the Middle East. It makes us all more aware of the need and brings us together in prayer. A benefactor in Argentina A big fan of ACN The world is a better place, thanks to ACN. I am a big fan of yours. A benefactor in Brazil Quiet heroes of the Faith I came across the advertisement for ‘Aid to the Church in Need’ in the Catholic Newspaper of our Diocese. I was immediately drawn to the good work that priests, religious sisters and brothers do – on a 24 hour basis – year after year! Working in tremendously adverse … agonizing situations – fraught with danger and ongoing medical emergencies. God bless and encourage these selfless individuals! I enclose a postal note for 1000 Dollars. I was going to ask you to pray for a special intention that I have. But after seeing what dreadful conditions might befall one of these chosen by God – I have no right to even consider asking such a thing. These are extremely wicked times we live in – the slaughter of innocents and Christians is commonplace across the world. I pray to Jesus and His most Blessed Mother to protect, guide and bless each son and daughter who works so tirelessly doing God’s work. A benefactress in Australia
...THANK YOU AMDG Dear Friends, Because of your prayers we are able to console millions of poor souls who are suffering and being persecuted for their faith at the hands of temporal powers and cultural forces. Thank you for being a , and your contribution to spreading Christ’s Merciful Light throughout our broken world that seems hell-bent on following false Gods or forgetting about God. Be assured that God will bless you and all those who are near to you for the Mercy you show to His suffering and persecuted Children the world over. In Christ,
J F Declan Quinn Director, Aid to the Church in Need (Ire)
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my Jesus forgive us our sins. Save us from the fires of Hell.
Lead all souls to heaven, Especially those most in need of Your Mercy.
‘MAY DIVINE MERCY SUNDAY BE A FEAST OF FEASTS FOR US!’ ACN Spiritual Assistant
Passing through the Holy Door with the Pope. Christ’s healing mercy comes to us through the Church.
‘True revolution, the revolution that radically transforms life, was brought about by Jesus Christ through His Resurrection.’
Pope Francis, to the participants at the pastoral assembly of the diocese of Rome, 17 June 20, 2013.
THE MIRROR IS AVAILABLE TO READ AT ACNIRELAND.ORG
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MIRROR
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Christian Persecution and Forgiveness
The Ways of Mercy
Merciful like the Father Comfort the afflicted
God’s Name is Mercy
GIVE JOY, GIVE HOPE
GIVE JOY, GIVE HOPE
GIVE JOY, GIVE HOPE
GIVE JOY, GIVE HOPE