Aid to the Church in Need
The world needs god’s word AnnUAl rePorT 2014
Aid to the Church in Need
GO REBUILD MY CHURCH
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AnnUAl rePorT 2014 cOntents
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The World needs God’s Word................... J F Declan Quinn .............................................. 2 Let us give thanks to the Lord .................. Johannes Freiherr Heereman ......................4 Overview of 2014 Projects ......................... Regina Lynch .................................................. 10 Eastern Europe I ............................................... Magda Kaczmarek ....................................... 14 Eastern Europe II .............................................. Peter Humeniuk ............................................ 20 Eastern Europe III ............................................ Peter Rettig ..................................................... 22 Latin-America I .................................................. Marco Mencaglia/ Rafael D’Aqui ........... 26 Latin-America II ................................................. Ulrich Kny ........................................................ 32 Africa I .................................................................... Christine du Coudray Wiehe..................... 40 Africa II................................................................... Toni W. Zender ............................................... 46 Asia-Africa ............................................................ Fr. Andrzej Halemba .................................... 50 Asia I........................................................................ Irene Eschmann ............................................ 56 Asia II ..................................................................... Véronique Vogel............................................ 62 Western Europe/ Refugees ........................ Peter Humeniuk ............................................ 70 Scholarships Section ...................................... Peter Rettig ..................................................... 72 Mass Stipends.................................................... Fr. Andrzej Halemba .................................... 78 Communications Department .................. Mark von Riedemann ................................. 82
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the WORld needs gOd’s WORd
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his web version of our Annual Report provides the reader with some of the background insight and analysis which was undertaken during 2014 by ACN’s Project Department. As ever in presenting this report I do so with great pride in the professionalism of my ACN colleagues all of whom bring their faith and their individuality to the charity’s work. Notable in all their individual reports is the tone: quiet, positive, appreciative, respectful and faith-filled. Now lest you think my colleagues are only writing this way because they know that what they have written will eventually be published I can assure you otherwise.
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y Project Department colleagues have written in the way that they have because that is the way they are. Here the simple truth is that in its Project Department staff ACN is blessed with wonderful ambassadors who are quiet, positive, appreciative, respectful and faith-filled and who joyously represent the many thousands of ACN benefactors around the world who through their prayers and financial donations support the mission and work of the Charity. In many respects ACN’s Project Managers are its front-line troops, the ones who directly deal with our beneficiaries, the majority of whom serve the Church heroically in some of the toughest conditions and during the toughest of times.
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ne can get a sense of this if one reads deeply enough and should one do so, one will get the distinct sense that very often it is the case that the projects which ACN fund are being championed by humble folk who are in fact ‘living saints’: ordinary folk who for the love of God are doing extraordinary things for their brothers and sisters in need.
Weeping and desperate girl in Syria.
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Perhaps there is such a thing as a ‘Halo effect’ and if so perhaps it is as a direct result of dealing with such ‘living saints’ who day-by-day away from any camera testify to the mercy of God which has
The world needs god’s word
helped all of our project managers to become such great spokespersons for the pastoral mission of the Church in need.
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t is truly my great privilege to work alongside such great colleagues who each in their own individual way endeavour to do great things for Christ’s suffering and persecuted Church around the world. This said it is my even-greater privilege to serve ACN’s Irish benefactors who lovingly participate in the Church’s great vocation to bringing Joy to the world. All of ACN’s benefactors in Ireland and throughout the world are MissioNAries of Joy.
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et us share our Joy, for our warring world needs God’s loving Word.
Your brother in Christ
J F Declan Quinn Director, Aid to the Church in Need (Ireland)
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let us giv e thanks tO the lORd
- A YeAr of Persecution And exodus - JohAnnes freiherr heeremAn
Dear friends,
We have offered consolation.
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n 2014 ACN benefactors entrusted more than one hundred million Euros to our care. This in itself is reason enough for us to fall on our knees and thank God. Not because we have passed the one hundred million euros mark for the first time in our history. Nor because of the money itself, but because of the grace that God has bestowed on us all by moving your hearts to such generosity. ou, the benefactors of ACN by your generous giving, have made possible all the projects we undertook during 2014 and which are outlined in this Annual Report. Deo gratias for God’s grace and your gifts.
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our gifts were and are urgently needed – as the needs of our suffering Christian brethren are crying out to heaven. 2014 was a year of persecution and exodus. Rarely was the Cross more visible than in the fate of the refugees from Syria and Iraq. We have provided emergency aid for their survival. We have built schools so that they can stay.
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We have strengthened the priests and religious in their self-sacrificing lives and work on behalf of the poorest of the poor – and all by your help.
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unlike Cain, thanks to you we have been able to say ‘We are our brother’s keeper’. Sadly, there is no likelihood that the murder and persecution of Christians in Africa and the Middle East will cease any time this year. The cries of the refugees are not growing any quieter; nor is the number of the projects any smaller. God’s grace and your gifts will continue to be needed. We can count on God – for he will not abandon his children. The rest is down to us.
Johannes Freiherr Heereman, Executive President of ACN International
AnnUAl rePorT 2014
2014 RepORt incOMe Individual donations Mass Offerings Legacies Sales and tax relief Other donations/income Subtotal Net financial income Total income
€
%
expenses
€
72,042,332 10,752,857 19,007,727 3,576,804 280,727
67.9 % 10.1 % 17.9 % 3.4 % 0.3 %
Expenses in fulfilment of the Church’s mission - Projects in 145 countries 68,159,941 64.2 % - Project follow-up 2,178,992 2.1 % - Information, media and pastoral support 13,783,405 13.0 %
105,660,447
99.6 %
Total mission related expenses 84,122,338 79.3 %
427,817
0.4 %
Fundraising Administration
10,826,135 6,754,739
10.2 % 6.4 %
106,088,264
100 %
Total expenses
17,580,874
16.6 %
4,385,052
4.1 %
Taken from reserves
Income from donations in 2014 Country
%
The 10 countries that received most aid
2014
2013
Australia
€
2,419,614
2,561,914
Austria
€
3,062,598
2,474,666
Belgium & Luxembourg
€
3,933,681
3,732,680
Brazil
€
3,845,039
3,553,370
Canada
€
1,372,331
1,325,536
Chile
€
1,234,731
1,202,889
Columbia
€
31,225,200
0
France
€
11,760
Fr Werenfried Foundation
€
Ireland
€
Italy Mexico
2014
2013
1
Ukraine
5,124,211
4,187,838
2
India
4,949,670
4,261,204
3
Iraq
4,664,145
206,929
4
D.R. Congo
2,874,460
2,591,628
5
Brazil
2,445,697
3,077,027
6
Syria
1,942,451
1,577,956
22,131,037
7
Philippines
1,891,284
614,615
8
Madagascar
1,270,409
1,176,767
11,276,439
9,219,251
9
Tanzania
1,226,537
1,497,660
2,929,449
2,560,362
10 Ethiopia
1,202,149
1,143,138
€
2,108,788
2,424,923
€
34,094
0
Netherlands
€
3,799,923
4,719,832
Poland
€
8,338,259
5,762,458
Portugal
€
2,217,943
1,885,313
Spain
€
9,509,671
7,938,195
Switzerland
€
9,658,896
9,400,957
UK
€
10,744,007
8,939,741
USA
€
4,691,309
2,350,905
International Secretariat
€
2,230,441
601,947
Germany
Total worldwide income in € 105,660,447 € 88,396,513
Our aid by region 2014 13% 18%
Africa 13%
Africa
29% 29%
18%
24%
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Latin LatinAmerica America
5
Asia Asia 24%
16% 16%
Eastern Europe Eastern Europe The Middle East
The Middle East
5
WheRe yOu helped - countries/regions
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nce again, the largest proportion of our budget went to Africa. Most of our requests also come from here – over one third, in fact, or 2,648 in total. This was likewise where most of our Mass offerings were sent, helping to support 10,694 priests.
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n Eastern Europe some countries still have priority status, in particular Ukraine. We are helping every single seminarian here. Latin America remains the most populous Catholic continent. It is the source of numerous new Catholic communities, but at the same time the sects and the crisis of drug addiction are a growing menace. A great deal of investment is needed here, above all in catechesis. •
he crisis in the Middle East was a major focus of our aid in 2014. Hundreds of thousands of Christians were forced to flee in Syria and Iraq. The cost of our emergency aid response increased by 5% and accounted for over 13% of the total budget in 2014. he percentage of aid for Asia also increased (18.7%), principally owing to the help for Church reconstruction projects in the Philippines, following the devastating Typhoon Haiyan, one of the most powerful such storms ever recorded. Outside the Philippines, Christians in this region also suffer everything from religious oppression to outright persecution.
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Saved from a terrible plight, now they can smile again: Iraqi refugee children in a school funded by you.
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The world needs god’s word
Iraqi Christians refugees preparing for Easter.
St. Mary Assyrian Church in the village of Tal Nasri damaged by ISIS, Syria.
Latin Patriarch Fuad Twal celebrating Holy Mass, Palestine
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WheRe yOu helped - ProJects
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total of 5,614 projects were supported during 2014 in 145 different countries. This was almost 200 projects more than in the previous year. But sadly 1,223 projects had to be turned down.
Formation of priests and religious 11%
Religious formation of the laity 9%
Mass Oerings 15%
Pastoral Transport 8% Refugee and Emergency Aid 7% Media Apostolate 4% Support for religious sisters 3%
Construction 43%
construction
Formation of priests and Religious
Church under construction,Rutana, Burundi
Over 1,500 construction projects (churches, chapels, cathedrals and seminaries) were part-funded, mostly in regions where the number of believers is rapidly increasing. Mass Offerings
Formation for 14 seminarians from the diocese Telsiai , Lithuania
Worldwide one seminarian in twelve (1:12) is supported in whole or in part by ACN benefactors. Religious formation of the laity
Holy Mass, San Lorenzo, Peru
Lay youth training, Lebanon
Over 1.2 million Mass intentions supporting one in every nine priests (1:9) in ministry worldwide. 8
AnnUAl rePorT 2014
Daughters of Our Lady Queen of the Holy Rosary, Indonesia
pastoral transport
Media apostolate
Toyota vehicle for pastoral work, Kasama, Zambia
Distribution of the Childs Bible, Ukraine
Nearly 500 cars and over 300 motorcycles provided to missionaries on the front line.
ACN’s Child’s Bible now available in 178 different languages with well over 50 Million copies produced since its introduction in 1979.
Refugee and emergency aid
support for Religious sisters
Support of Syrian refugees, Lebanon
A discalced Carmelite in the convent garden, Kiev, Ukraine
Over €6 million of support provided in emergency relief to persecuted Christians in the greater Middle East
Almost 10,000 religious sisters supported in their apostolate and in their formation.
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OveRvieW OF 2014 pROjects regina Lynch, director of Project department
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he daily work in the Project Department consists of helping to the best of our ability our brothers and sisters in the persecuted and suffering Church to meet the challenges that assail them. When we see the suffering of the Catholic Church in China or the persecution of Christians in Pakistan we can say that some of these threats are not new but while others take us by surprise. This was the case of the sudden displacement and exodus of the Christians in northern Iraq following the brutal annexation of Mosul and the Christian villages by the Islamic State (I.S.). In some regions of the world, there is one crisis after another. Sometimes we even find ourselves dealing with several grave situations simultaneously in one region.
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he immensity of the suffering is so great that often at the time it is difficult to take it in and it is only now at the end of one year and at the beginning of the next that we have the time to take stock of all this suffering and to see what we have been able to do and what lies ahead in the coming year. It is very sobering and could be overwhelming if we did not have the knowledge that it is thanks to God’s love and the consequential generosity of our benefactors that we have managed to do so much and will continue to serve the persecuted and suffering Church throughout the world. In 1 This and following statistics are not the final audited figures
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the following annual reports, you will see, as one colleague writes, ‘light and darkness’. As Christians, we believe that there is always hope, no matter how hopeless the situation can seem to be and when we may have difficulty maintaining this hope, it is so often the Christians, who are at the frontline of persecution, who show us that it is indeed possible.
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n the last few years, I have noted in my report that the annual budget for project support exceeded the one of the previous year but 2014 passed all records, sadly mainly due to the crises in the Middle East, in particular in Iraq and Syria. Out of a total project budget of €68,1 Million1, some 13.1% went to support the Christians in the Middle East. This is an increase of 5,1% on what we gave in 2013. There was also a slight increase in
Pope Francis at a General Audience in St. Peter’s Square
The world needs god’s word
Asia (18.7% vs 17.4%) largely due to our help to rebuild churches in the Philippines in the regions affected by the earthquake and typhoon at the end of 2013. frica remained the strongest recipient of our aid with 29.1% and this largely young Church continues to send us the largest percentage of applications annually: of the 7,357 projects received in total from all the continents in 2014 (6,656 in 2013), 2,648 or 35.9% came from Africa. In order to keep pace with this growth in projects, we have a third project section for Africa as of January 2014. We have also added a third project section for Asia, because even though the number of projects received are fewer than for Africa (1,648), the Church in this part of the world often suffers political or religious adversity – China, Vietnam, Laos, Pakistan to name just a few – and the project work needs special attention. In 2014 15.4% of the budget went to projects in Latin America while for Eastern Europe it was 21.2 %, a slight decrease on the previous year. As always we dedicated a small percentage of the budget – 2.4% - to projects of the Church in developed countries.
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ecause of the very healthy budget, we were able to fund in total 5,671 projects in 2014 (5,420 in 2013). On average we spent €12,200 per project. Our ‘classic’ projects for constructions (churches, convents etc.) had an average expenditure of €19,570; for formation (training of seminarians or novices, higher education for priests and sisters), we spent on aver-
age €6,700. But the highest average expenditure was for the humanitarian projects mainly represented by emergency relief programmes for refugees and disdis placed Christians in the Middle East or for schools in majority Muslim countries such as Sudan. Here the average was €36,510.
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he emergency help for the Christians in northern Iraq represented two of the most expensive projects of 2014. i.e. two pre-fabricated schools projects in Erbil and Dohuk at One Million Euro each. But we also had small projects such as the €700 for the summer retreat for children, youths and adults led by the Sisters Servants of the Virgin Mary in Karaganda, Kazakhstan. €1,600 as maintenance for four Sisters Servants of Mary Minsters to the Sick in Cuba, who dedicate their lives to accompanying the sick and the dying in the last months or years of their life. €6,000 for a car for Fr. Oleg, who serves his scattered flock in a parish in an isolated region of Belorussia near to the border with Russia. €8,000 for the Sisters of the Servants of the Lord and the Virgin Mary of Matara, who left their native Latin America to serve the faithful of the Greek-Catholic Eparchy of Ivano-Frankivsk. €9,000 to help train the dedicated and selfless catechists of Gambella, Ethiopia and provide them with bicycles to cover huge distances
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for just a little over €50,000 we could answer the cry of the parishioners of Kathar Kovil parish in Jaffna, Sri Lanka, who more than five years after a bloody civil war, could finally start to rebuild their church hopefully help them overcome the trauma of the past. Thanks to generous donations we were able to help: 35,214 priests worldwide with Mass stipends, i.e. one in nine priests were celebrating Mass for the intentions of our donors. Almost 10,000 sisters were assisted for their formation or upkeep 1,330 religious communities received a grant to build a convent or become more mobile or to teach catechism in far-flung communities, who would otherwise be without any spiritual support for years on end. These are just a few examples of the thousands of projects that we managed to support last year.
During a recent visit of Bishop William Kyrillos of the Diocese of Assiut in Upper Egypt, he told us how he thanked God that so many young men continued to follow this call of God and that this year six of them from his diocese would be ordained.
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n Latin America we see an increase in missionary spirit in the Church, in particular among the new ecclesial movements and renewed parish communities, whose members go out to bring Christ and the Gospel message to those, who have no faith or have left the Catholic faith for Pentecostal churches. It was John Paul II who saw in these new movements ‘the signs of a new spring of the Church’2. On the darker side, there is the continuing suffering of the Christians in the Middle East, in particular in Syria, who at the beginning of the conflict in 2011 found themselves caught between the govern-
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ooking ahead to the coming year, we can see that a lot of that ‘light and darkness’ that we experienced in 2014, will continue. On the positive side, there is the continued growth in priestly vocations in particular in Africa, where again in 2015 we have requests to build new or extend existing major seminaries in order to meet the increase in vocations. 2
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Bishop William Kyrillos, Diocese of Assiut, Egypt.
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AnnUAl rePorT 2014
ment and opposition groups and today are the target of the Jihadists. We do all we can to help these Christians through prayer, material support and by trying to be a voice for them in a world that quickly grows tired of earing about conflicts.
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n many countries our project partners are witnesses to the growth of a more and more radical form of Islam or, as in the case of India, Hinduism. Here the success in 2014 in national and local elections of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has coincided with increased attacks on Christian churches and the introduction in one state of a law banning the sale and consumption of beef.
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n Eastern Europe, where we thought the era of the Cold War had ended, we see a return to violence and fear. In the Ukraine, the effects of the war in Eastern Ukraine is devastating for the Ukrainians and the Greek-Catholic Church and the Latin Church are doing their best to help the refugees materially and spiritually. Alone they cannot manage and are counting on Aid to the Church in Need for help. In the neighboring countries fear is growing in the Catholic Church of what the repercussions of this war might mean for her. In the course of this year we would like to review our priorities with regards the type of help we give and if need be readjust them to meet the needs of the Church in an ever-changing world.
The growth in secularization is not limited to the First World. After Vatican II, some dioceses in the Third World closed their minor seminaries and now find that they need to reopen them if they want to have better prepared candidates for the major seminary. It is also a world that is on the move.
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t the end of 2013 the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNCHR) reported some 51.2 million refugees, asylum seekers and internally displaced persons. Those in the Middle East have our particular attention. But there is also the phenomenon in all continents of the exodus from the countryside to urban areas and the Church has to keep pace with this. More and more we are being asked to help build parish structures in the outskirts of cities. In Latin America often Pentecostal churches are there already and if the Catholic Church does not have a physical presence, she will lose more of her flock. In Eastern Europe the challenge is even greater, where thanks to more than seven decades of Communist rule, there are now two or three generation that have never known God but are searching for Him.
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s one year closes and another begins we thank all who in one way or another have made this help possible, be it through their prayer or their work or their material support. •
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easteRn euROpe i - magda Kaczmarek ukRaine
A divided land. The fight for justice and freedom is still far from over
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ast year our interest and concern were for Ukraine overshadowed everything else. Since the beginning of the war in Ukraine appeals for help have been reaching us from our friends and project partners there. Bishops, priests, sisters and laity have been asking us to respond, to knock on the doors of the politicians and governments in order to put an end to the humanitarian catastrophe which has meanwhile cost many thousands of human lives. Unofficially, people are speaking of anything up to 50,000 victims as a result of the war in East Ukraine.
Father Dariusz wrote to tell us: ‘We are living in constant fear and tension’. Father Leonard, in Mariupol, expressed the hope that the bombs and the shooting would soon come to an end. He came here many years ago from Poland and he could never have imagined that he would experience a war in Ukraine. ‘There was hardly a night we could sleep through peacefully’, he writes.
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he Paulist Fathers paid regular visits to the soldiers, who asked them for counsel, holy pictures and crucifixes. The daily life on the Maidan was filled with faith and prayer; the priests were always with the people, whether in the tented chapels or during the official prayers on the podium. Every tent had its own altar, with crosses, candles, icons and holy pictures. The people asked for Confession and Holy Communion, and priests often heard the words, ‘When God is there, I feel safer.’
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An Orthodox priest and police with gas masks behind him, Maidan Square in Kiev, Ukraine
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he Catholic Church distributed over 450,000 rosaries on the Maidan, and both Catholic and Orthodox churches were turned into first aid posts (the Latin Catholic Cathedral of Saint Alexander in Kiev) and overnight accommodation (the Greek Catholic Cathedral of the Resurrection in Kiev). Whether they were Orthodox, Catholics or members of other religions, everybody shared the same conviction, namely that without God there can be no free and secure State.
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great challenge, once the war is over, will be the pastoral care of those who have rediscovered, or discovered for the first time, their faith within one of these Church communities. Young men who volunteered to go and fight and who left their families, parents and children behind, are now coming back traumatised, crippled, or in body bags. Half a million people from East Ukraine have fled the war zone. In consequence we have to a large extent suspended our active pastoral aid in the Donbass region (the Donets basin) and instead helped with repeated emergency grants for medicines, foodstuffs and articles of hygiene – to a value of over €130,000. One bishop from East Ukraine told us, ‘Without God we would not be able to hold out!’ A number of factories and larger companies in East Ukraine have shut down,
and the loss of employment has raised fears about how people are going to survive. Daily life is overshadowed by price increases for gas, electricity, petrol, coal and food. Sister Teresa wrote to us from Borislav to tell us that, ‘The children in our parish had no school for the whole of December, since we could not afford to heat the building.’ n Donetsk, the separatists have commandeered the house and car of a Greek Catholic bishop and also the convent of a community of sisters. For the time being there is no prospect of a return. In March Russia began its open aggression and invasion of the Crimean peninsula, which resulted in its annexation. Since then the situation there has been bad. There are 10 priests and one bishop still holding out, since they fear that if they leave they will not be allowed to return. The status of the Catholic Church is uncertain, since it belongs neither to Ukraine nor to Russia.
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A Church Dome damaged by shelling in Donetsk.
ather Edwin wrote to us in March, in an appeal for help, saying that people were getting no salaries and no pensions and that everyday life in Crimea was now filled with a sense of great crisis and uncertainty. ‘I love my parish and my parishioners, and so I am staying with them in Crimea in order to share their fate with them’, he wrote. A few months later he was forced to emigrate.
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ishop Jacek Pyl (of Odessa) speaks of a survival policy by the local church. Since the humanitarian aid supplies are more often than not turned back at the border between Ukraine and the Crimea, it was thanks to our financial aid that they were able to buy food, candles, electric hobs and other essential household items. The precarious situation in Ukraine has also had a direct influence on life in other countries of Southeast Europe. The ever-rising gas and oil prices have obliged many of our friends, not only in Ukraine but also in Serbia, Bosnia and Belarus, to switch their heating to firewood or geothermal sources of heating. We have been able to help on a number of occasions in these instances. Despite the difficult situation in Ukraine, the Catholic Church in the country has not allowed herself to be intimidated. The role of the Catholic media has been extremely
important. These media need to raise their profile, particularly in those countries where the Catholic Church is a minority. n 2014 we were again able to help in Ukraine for the publication of religious literature and for radio and TV projects. Supporting the future priests and religious likewise continues to be one of the highest priorities for us. Fortunately, there is no lack of vocations in Ukraine, especially in the Greek Catholic Church. We also gave increasing help for projects of the Greek Catholic Church in relation to the lay pastoral apostolate, including the basic and ongoing formation of catechists and lay pastoral workers, since the Church needs professionally trained and qualified teaching personnel, but also pastoral support for children, young people, married couples and families. Regular seminars, training courses and retreats were among the more important diocesan activities supported year round by us.
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Women attending mass on the First of November on a cementery in the city of Lahishim, Belarus.
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he Mass intentions given by our benefactors provided vital support for the priests in their everyday lives, given the many expenses such as food, fuel and all the other costs relating to their pastoral work. Archbishop Malchuk of Kiev reports sadly on the often difficult financial situation of the priests in many small and remote parishes, serving ordinary people who can barely afford to support themselves. Often it is the priests who help the faithful, and especially in the current situation the solidarity shown is astonishingly strong.
AnnUAl rePorT 2014
BelaRus
A country where people seemingly lack for nothing.
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uring our trip to Belarus in November 2014 we were able to share in the feast of All Saints and take part in the processions to the cemeteries and the prayers for the dead. The piety of the people is astonishingly strong, and in particular the participation of so many children and young people in the liturgical worship. The foreign priests and religious in the country are a blessing for the local church. People have work and food. Outwardly, they appear to live in peace and security.
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owever, the appearance is deceptive, for in reality they are still living in the old Soviet times and the attitude of great passivity these times engendered is still very much in evidence. Grey, abandoned village landscapes and nothing to do even in the towns epitomise the everyday life of this homo sovieticus. Shortly before Christmas, and thanks to our good income, we were able to help with various construction projects for churches and chapels and also for a large retreat centre. And while our friends often have to wait for years to gain building permits and approvals, they are then obliged by the authorities to complete the buildings within two years.
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here are praiseworthy initiatives by the Church, for example soup kitchens for the poor, and kinder-
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gartens, since the hidden poverty and the hidden suffering are nonetheless still there beneath the surface. The spread of the sects and the rate of abortions – which is the second highest in Europe – are a challenge for the Church. Hence the marriage and family apostolate require immense attention.
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s Dominican Father Roman says, ‘In this country it is people‘s souls that are being wrecked.’ And as Father Sergey comments, in Fanipol, where he is helping to build up the Church, ‘We are working here because we sense that we are needed here.’ We were also able to help him once again before Christmas. There is hope – the people are hungry for God.
seRBia, kOsOvO, MacedOnia and MOntenegRO
Small diaspora churches which to a greater or lesser extent are struggling to survive.
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fter our project trip to Serbia, Kosovo, Macedonia and Montenegro in the spring, we were once again reminded how the local churches there could not survive without outside help.
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ishop Stojanov in Macedonia is responsible for both rites and greatly regrets the fact that there have been scarcely any vocations for the Latin dioceses.
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ishop Nemet, in Serbia, makes it clear that the small diaspora churches in the country need to open up more to the laity in order to encourage them to give support to their handful of priests. And indeed there are people who would like to become more actively involved in the life and work of the churches.
Dominican Father Roman
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Work on the Mother Teresa Cathedral in Pristina is now coming to an end. Every Tuesday some 700 students come here to participate in Holy Mass. The Catholic Church here is young and dynamic. ‘Our Cathedral is the church of all the Albanians’, says Bishop Gjergji. Once again, at Easter and Pentecost 2014, a number of Muslim families were baptised.
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60,000 of the Catholic faithful were affected.
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As a result of this flooding a number of newly built or newly renovated buildings were simply flattened, and the wave of suffering brought back memories of the recent war. As a result we had to provide urgent aid in both dioceses, Banja Luka and Sarajevo. Apart from this, we were able to support a number of construction and renovation projects as well as motorisation projects in Bosnia. Much hope resides in the seminarians in Sarajevo, who will be serving pastorally not only in Bosnia but also in Montenegro, Macedonia and Kosovo.
Source of vocations – Islamic influence. nce again the Church feels she has been abandoned both by the EU and by her neighbours. The internal pressure and the fear of the future – both bound up with the influence of radical Islam – are growing. The political stagnation is extremely noticeable, and the country has become one of the poorest in Europe. While it is true that both old and young people have become an established part of the Church, nonetheless the Church must see to it that her activities encourage the younger Catholics to remain in the country. Like Serbia and Croatia, Bosnia was struck by major flooding in 2014, in which a number of parishes and family homes were totally destroyed. In the archdiocese of Sarajevo alone some
Flood disaster in Bosnia-Herzegovina
In summary 2014 was a year filled with sadness, but also with hope in a better future. It was a year during which we were grateful to be able to pass on the donations entrusted to us to our friends in need. ‘You, ACN were the first to contact us in those difficult moments when the flood of refugees from Donetsk and Luhansk reached us. Thanks to your financial help we were able to help women and children, the elderly and the handicapped to endure their difficult plight’, writes Bishop Sobilo from East Ukraine. The words of Mother Teresa now seem more important than ever: ‘Christ will not ask us how much we have achieved, but with how much love we have performed our actions, for the only thing that can overcome poverty is to share with one another.’ •
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easteRn euROpe ii - Peter humeniuk
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he year 2014 was overshadowed by the conflict between Russia and the West, recalling memories of the years of the Cold War. Last year, with the general strategy discussion for the administration of projects, various internal processes were initiated which are still in a phase of development and will probably not yield any results until the summer. This applies above all to the issue of Russia, which is being approached separately in this context. By way of preparatory work for an informed discussion and decision regarding our future commitment for the Orthodox Churches and the interfaith initiatives, various working papers have been drawn up, which reflect upon more than 20 years of ACN’s commitment in Russia. Additionally, various trips and meetings will also accompany this decision-making process accordingly.
Saint Petersburg has now been able to open a branch in the Moscow area, and we have been asked to support it again for the year 2015. The interfaith initiatives continue to play a successful role in the field of the Christian media and are maintaining their good position within the media landscape. he news agency Blagovest Info in Moscow is among other things following the pontificate of Pope Francis very closely and in detail. Blagovest Media has produced a film in Russian on the topic of the Second Vatican Council, which was widely welcomed by the dioceses and parishes in the context of the 50th anniversary of the Council. Another very promising
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n addition to the usual projects for Russia, it is worth mentioning that the Catholic seminary in Saint Petersburg has now been fully returned to the private ownership of the Catholic Church. Both the buildings and the land are now the property of the archdiocese, and additionally their previous temporary teaching license has now been made permanent. The seminary building is a strategically important element; now there is time to reflect on its future use. The Church-run hospice in 20
Holy communion during mass at rehabilitation center for drug addicts in Sapernoe Saint-Petersburg, Russia.
AnnUAl rePorT 2014
film entitled ‘From Francis to Francis’ is nearing completion. It draws a connection between Saint Francis of Assisi, his contemporary, the Russian Saint Sergius of Radonezh, and finally Pope Francis.
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his section has embraced the challenge of administering several other countries of Central and Eastern Europe and was able to cope during 2014, though the workload is clearly apparent. Apart from Russia, it is above all the countries of Central Asia that need priority treatment. In this context we travelled to Kazakhstan in October 2014, visiting the archdiocese of Astana, the diocese of Karaganda, the diocese of Almaty and the apostolic administration of Atyrau. We also visited interdiocesan establishments, such as the editorial team for the newspaper, Credo, and the seminary in Karaganda.
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ith regard to this seminary, it is particularly important that the Catholic formation institutes should be based in the country itself. In this way the Church, while remaining a minority, is nonetheless one that is rooted in the country itself. The parishes are lively, and we were able to visit a number of projects on the ground. The meetings with bishops and priests also made clear to us the needs, as well as the fruits of the generosity our benefactors have shown towards the faithful in Kazakhstan. The Church in Kazakhstan remains dependent on their solidarity.
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cumenical relations in Kazakhstan are exemplary, thanks also to the person of Metropolitan Alexander on the Orthodox side. Here the Catholic and Orthodox churches are fraternally united in one boat. The apostolic Nuncio in Kazakhstan, Archbishop Miguel Maury Buendia, who is also responsible for Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, spoke to us personally and urged us to pay particular attention to these two countries. The same applies to Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan. Perhaps it would be possible this year to organise a trip in the region. The withdrawal of the Western forces from Afghanistan and the critical situation in the Middle East are grounds for concern for the entire Central Asian region – where there is a strengthening of radical Islamic forces and an increase in drugs and arms trafficking.
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f the other countries within the section, Slovakia is to some extent a priority, above all in the poorer regions of the country and in regard to the pastoral apostolate with the Roma peoples – which in fact is an remarkable issue in Eastern Europe, and indeed in all of Europe. It is important here to support the efforts by the Church to reach the young people, through education and formation, and so offer them a way out of the seemingly inevitable poverty and destitution. Often the Church institutions are the only ones these groups are ready to listen and respond to. •
Aid to the Church in Need
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easteRn euROpe iii - Peter rettig
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n Southeast Europe there are many communities of mainly elderly people, bled dry by economic migration. These people, abandoned by the politicians – regardless of whether they live in Mirdita, in northern Moldova, Transnistria, or in the Carpathian mountains – need our help in order to be able to live a dignified Christian life and have access to pastoral care. The exodus from the countryside, the bleeding dry of the villages and the small and medium-sized towns by the employment migration of the young, or young at heart, continues to be the greatest pastoral challenge. A young and dynamic parish is also more attractive for the priest. But who then is to care for the poor, the elderly, the sick, the widows?
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t is not the larger projects in Albania, Moldova or Romania where aid makes such a difference.
For the elderly faithful in a small village in the Carpathians, abandoned by their children and grandchildren and also forgotten by the world at large, 10,000 Euros make the difference between a dignified celebration of worship and a shabby. 5,000 Euros for a car for the parish priest may be the difference between Holy Mass and none at all for a handful of the faithful in a remote sub-parish in the Banat region. For the religious sisters in northern Moldova 12,000 Euros can mean the difference between an insulated roof and gas prices they can afford, or a bitter cold house in the winter. For two communities of religious sisters and brothers in Moldova 3,000 Euros can mean the difference between vital medication and none. Our aid complements the efforts of those on the spot, bringing encouragement or indeed sowing the seed that makes their ministry possible in the first place.
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Seminarians at the seminary in Shkoder.
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s for the larger projects, the truth is best reflected in the words of one of our Romanian project partners: ‘Before, we had the people and no buildings; now we have the buildings and no people.’ In Southeast Europe out of sheer enthusiasm a number of things were too optimistically planned.
The world needs god’s word
alBania
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lbania is a country with massive problems and in which progress and future prospects are scarcely visible. Only a few requests reached us in 2014. Seven of these we were able to support; for another three projects we are still waiting for further information, and just one single project was turned down. Decisions as to the successors of two departing bishops have still not been made. atholics make up a minority of around 10%, while a majority of approximately 58% are Muslims. Prior to the Second World War this figure was still 70%. These figures, taken from the Census of 2011, have been published in fits and starts and amid fierce controversy. Albania is seen by Turkey and Saudi Arabia as a bridgehead into Europe. Within the Islamic community there are fierce discussions between the young radical imams, trained abroad, along with their supporters, and the traditional believers still associated with the popular Albanian culture. In the middle of it, in the south of the country, it is the Christians who are caught between the millstones.
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The two fundamental evils in Albania are the corruption and the lack of legal security in relation to property matters. As a result, some already approved construction projects have had to be cancelled. In Elbasan it is the church of Pius X that is currently under threat. 20 years ago Aid to the Church in Need
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ACN helped for this church with 20,000 US dollars. However, in February 2015 a former owner was granted legal ownership of the site by the highest court in Albania. ow the Catholic Church is faced with a demand to demolish the church, the pastoral centre and all the associated buildings as quickly as possible, since the site is to be returned empty. Our project partners speak openly of profiteering in the highest political circles. We are praying that the protests on the spot (joined in also by Muslims) and the political negotiations can finally avert this catastrophe for the Catholic faithful.
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ne of the most important projects for the coming years, the seminary in Shkoder, has now finally passed from the Jesuits into the hands of the Albanian bishops (Albania and Kosovo). As a result the problems have not grown smaller, but greater. Given their own poverty, the dioceses are now faced with the enormous challenge of funding the seminary.
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Rapidly and unbureaucratically, we have given the rector our usual annual help for the upkeep of the seminarians, plus a small grant so that the gas tank used for the heating can be protected against damage from the adverse weather. The wider prospects for the seminary are a matter for future discussions. The fall in vocations that is currently observable further complicates the situation. It is to be hoped that requests for the support of the vocations apostolate will soon arrive. 24
MOldOva
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he diaspora Church in Moldova was also somewhat unforthcoming in terms of requests. Our most important aid was for the support of the religious sisters and brothers who do not belong to any international religious community. Without this support many of the scattered faithful in their small communities would be deprived of pastoral care and social support in a Christian spirit. We have reason to be concerned about Transnistria, the breakaway, and de facto independent, region of Moldova, recognised only by Russia. In 2014, following the example of Crimea, the government of this region applied to join the Russian Federation. In the course of the current conflict in Ukraine, Transnistria continues to be something of a sideshow. This is having an impact on the Catholic Church. Given the lack of any future, many of the Catholic faithful who are able to do so are emigrating, either to Western Europe or to Russia.
AnnUAl rePorT 2014
Moldovan Church prior to renovation
ROMania
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ince 2014 Romania has a president who is of German extraction. In a country that has been marked by Romanian nationalism and which has shown some ugly features, not only in the conflict with the Hungarian minority, his election is seen as something of an opening. Our project partners have expressed both hope and scepticism. The situation of the Hungarian and the ethnic German faithful remains unchanged. However, there is a sign of hope in the new diocesan pastoral programme in the the Hungarian-speaking diocese of Satu Mare. Within the context of the recently ended Year of Self-giving, an educational programme was jointly carried out for priests and laity alike. We supported this course financially, and
during his last visit to us, Bishop SchĂśnberger told us enthusiastically of its success. Both priests and faithful began to study together as communio, and to mutually enrich one another.
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he Greek Catholic Church continues to work at full pace to try and newly root and strengthen a Greek Catholic identity among her faithful. One challenge is the (low) number of vocations and hence the number of students. The faculty in Cluj and its associated branches in Oradea and Blaj have all passed the state scrutiny, but must now attract more students. Otherwise the Greek Catholic faculty risks losing its state recognition. This would represent the loss of a cornerstone of the Greek Catholic identity. •
Greek-Catholic Seminarians from the diocese Oradea, Romania.
Aid to the Church in Need
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latin aMeRica i - marco mencaglia/rafael d’Aqui
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uring the year 2014, in the countries within our section, ACN supported the Church in need in over 170 ecclesial jurisdictions and with a growing number of projects – logistical aid (construction and vehicles), support for formation (both pastoral and religious), basic subsistence, media apostolate and for the distribution and purchase of Bibles, catechetical books and educational religious literature. Peru, Haiti, Bolivia and Colombia (for religious formation) remain the countries within the region which benefited most from our aid over the years; however during 2014 we also devoted increased attention to the needs of the local churches in Ecuador, Nicaragua and El Salvador.
the needs OF the chuRch
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pROMOtiOn and suppORt FOR the cOnsecRated liFe
‘So I trust that, rather than living in some utopia, you will find ways to create “alternative spaces”, where the Gospel approach of self-giving, fraternity, embracing differences, and love of one another can thrive. Monasteries, communities, centres of spirituality, schools, hospitals, family shelters – all these are places which the charity and creativity born of your charisms have brought into being, and with constant creativity must continue to bring into being. They should increasingly be the leaven for a society inspired by the Gospel, a “city on a hill”, which testifies to the truth and the power of Jesus’ words’ - Pope Francis† ACN’s support for the training of seminarians, and likewise its support for the life and ministry of so many religious congregations, is of vital importance for the Church in Latin America, above all in a context where the number of priestly vocations is not sufficient to meet the basic spiritual needs of the People of God. In the remote mountain areas of Bolivia and Peru, as well as between the rivers of the many rainforest regions and also
Children with the Child’s Bible, Peru
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† Apostolic Letter to all Consecrated persons on the occasion of the Year of Consecrated Life. 21.11.2014)
The world needs god’s word
in the new barrios on the margins of the great urban centres, the Church reaches out to meet the faithful, living in hundreds of small local communities, and in doing so makes many daily and at the same time extraordinary sacrifices.
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he protagonists of this quiet, yet constant work of evangelisation are the missionaries, both men and women, belonging to the various religious institutes, which are increasingly of home-grown, local origin. Thanks to the ministry of these missionaries and to the formation they are giving to the lay pastoral workers, millions of Catholics are today able to live their faith on a regular basis within their own community – within the prayer groups, by their participation in the Sacraments, through courses of spiritual formation and other pastoral initiatives which the faithful themselves ask for. he support for the communities of the contemplative life is likewise of particular importance, in order that it may continue to enrich the spirituality of the Catholic faithful in Latin America. The historically established communities, who form a part of the popular tradition, are being joined by new foundations in places where this form of religious consecration represent a novelty. Responding to the call to renew the primacy of prayer in the life of every Christian, ACN is providing aid to numerous monasteries throughout Latin America.
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2
evangelisatiOn in the gReat suBuRBan aReas
‘Go out to encounter God who lives in the city and in the poor. Go out to meet, to listen, to bless, to walk with the people. And facilitate the encounter with the Lord. ...Be a Samaritan Church… with a ‘concrete testimony of mercy and kindness that seeks to be present in the existential and poor peripheries, acts directly on the imagination of society, creating direction and meaning for life and for the city’ - Pope Francis††
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he growth of the world’s population, even though regarded as a phenomenon more generally pertaining to the countries of Africa and Asia, is also one of great significance for a large part of Latin America. Since 1962, when ACN began supporting projects on this continent, the population of the countries of the Latin America I section has increased on average by over 200%. To gain a better understanding of this phenomenon, during the same period the population growth in most countries of Europe has remained at around 10%. It is not difficult to imagine the challenges that this growth brings with it, not only for society but also for the Church, especially in countries whose economies are still developing and in which there are great economic imbalances between rich and poor.
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n this context the population growth primarily and without exception affects the conurbations around the principal cities of the region. The same process that happened in the past century in many parts of Europe is thus happening again today in the great conurbations of Latin America, where the number of inhabitants has grown unbelievably in the past 30 years. The population in these major cities is also being swelled by millions of internal migrants from the rural areas, who have poured into the outlying suburbs, once uninhabited, and where now there is absolutely no kind of infrastructure nor any basic social services. The pastoral care and the evangelisation of these suburban peripheries are an absolute priority, which ACN took into account during the year 2014 through support for newly founded parishes and mission institutes, for example in Guayaquil (Ecuador), Santa Cruz de la Sierra ( Bolivia), Lima (Peru), El Alto (a suburb of La Paz, Bolivia). Enlargement of the chapel Notre Dame du Rosaire, Dominican Fathers, PortAu-Prince, Haiti.
†† Address to the International Pastoral Congress on the World’s Big Cities, 27.11.2014
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AnnUAl rePorT 2014
3
RecOnciliatiOn
‘For this reason, I appeal forcefully to all those who sow violence and death by force of arms: in the person you today see simply as an enemy to be beaten, discover rather your brother or sister, and hold back your hand! Give up the way of arms and go out to meet the other in dialogue, pardon and reconciliation, in order to rebuild justice, trust, and hope around you! ‘From this standpoint, it is clear that, for the world’s peoples, armed conflicts are always a deliberate negation of international harmony, and create profound divisions and deep wounds which require many years to heal. Wars are a concrete refusal to pursue the great economic and social goals that the international community has set itself’. - Pope Francis†††
the past. During 2014 we supported projects for the printing of various publications and the construction of sanctuaries dedicated to the victims of the civil wars in El Salvador and Colombia. We intend to continue our involvement along this path with educational and informational initiatives in order to promote a culture of dialogue and reconciliation, conscious that a true peace requires dealing with the past, rather than the simple option of just forgetting and continued violence.
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he task of dealing with the violence of the past to achieve reconciliation within society is one that unites many countries of Latin America, where millions of innocent people have been victims of savage civil wars. In situations of sharp social division and absence of reciprocal comprehension, ACN is drawing attention to projects that might open paths of dialogue and reconciliation, through initiatives aimed at preserving, in a positive sense, the memory of the victims as a way of healing the grave wounds of ††† Message of Pope Francis for the World Day of Peace, 01.01.2014
Aid to the Church in Need
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OuR aid FOR the lOcal chuRches
peRu
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ith approximately 100 projects approved in 2014, Peru was the country in this region where the aid of ACN was most consistent and extensive. There were two principal areas where we helped, namely the pastoral outreach in the large urban suburbs (construction of new churches, chapels and pastoral centres, pastoral aid for evangelisation, with particular attention to the young); and the aid in the mission field, both in the north-east Amazon region and in the southern mountain regions (aid for the religious congregations and pastoral workers visiting the most isolated communities; support for evangelisation projects, purchase of vehicles for the regions where there is the greatest difficulty of access).
haiti
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ive years on from the terrible earthquake, aid for the Church in Haiti remains a priority for ACN, not only for the areas most affected by this natural disaster but in all 10 dioceses of the country.– In Haiti we support the development of ordinary pastoral life, which continues to be obstructed by the aggressive activities of numerous religious sects. In the past five years ACN has approved projects valued at over 5 million Euros thank to the donations made in response to the special appeals in the wake of the earthquake. In addition to projects of national importance, such as significant support for the national seminary in Port-au-Prince, where all the future priests of the country pursue their studies, there were also many smaller projects at the parish level.
Enlargement of the chapel Notre Dame du Rosaire, Dominican Fathers, PortAu-Prince, Haiti.
Existencial aid for 56 sisters working in the Vicariate, Peru. 30
The world needs god’s word
veneZuela
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enezuela remains one of our priority countries. The policy of the government, which is highly ideological and closed to international commerce, has prompted a consequent and constant deterioration in the living standards of many of its citizens. This is reflected, among other, in the extreme difficulties people facein obtaining quite basic daily items. The recent sharp fall in the price of petroleum has also brought grave consequences for an economy that is dependent on the sale of primary materials. In this situation, political and economic obstacles (such as the lack of building materials) make it even more difficult for us to render aid.
BOlivia
ACN is profoundly involved in helping the Church in Bolivia, above all for the support of the priests in a country where the number of vocations is inadequate to meet the innumerable demands of the local church, and where relations between State and Church have faced difficult moments in recent years. ACN is helping with initiatives to promote vocations among young people, with support for the training of seminarians and help for the missionary sisters of various different religious communities, whose role is fundamental in the case of parishes without a resident priest.
nicaRagua
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he visit to this country in 2013 by representatives of ACN has borne much fruit in the form of closer links between ACN in the local Church.. In Nicaragua, poverty goes hand in hand with a deeply rooted popular religiosity. In 2014 our aid did indeed reach reach every single diocese. It was directed above all to construction and formation projects.
el salvadOR
l Salvador was also the object of a visit by representatives of ACN in February 2014. Thanks to the stronger contacts that have resulted with the local Church, our involvement here has increased, particularly for pastoral projects relating to the preservation of the memory of the victims of the horrors of the civil war in the 1980s, the aim being to promote prayer and encounter and thus bring about a difficult and necessary process of reconciliation. •
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Children reading the Child’s Bible Venezuela.
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latin aMeRica ii - ulrich Kny
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ast year, as before, the Latin America II Section administered the projects of the local churches in Brazil, the Spanish speaking countries of the Southern Cone (Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, Uruguay), and Cuba. Since various news reports have recently raised hopes for a lasting improvement of the situation in Cuba and since in August 2014 I was able to meet representatives of the Cuban bishops‘ conference (COCC) in Rome and in November 2014 to attend a plenary assembly of this body in Cuba, at the same time visiting a number of dioceses, this report will centre mainly on Cuba. However, in light of the Bishops‘ Synod on the Family, I would also like to describe some of the efforts undertaken by local churches to promote the family. I will conclude this brief report with a summary of some further pastoral challenges, but also mention some signs of hope.
Closing of the Year of Faith, Cathedral of Ciego of Avila), Cuba
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cuBa – a diFFicult pilgRiM path FOR the chuRch
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n earlier annual reports I have reported several times on the tender shoots of a ‘springtime of faith’ that is observable in Cuba, an example of which is found in the increase in adult baptisms and the rising attendance at Sunday Mass and other Church ceremonies. More and more people are daring to live their faith publicly, and it is not such a rare event for presidents of the so-called ‘Committees for the Defence of the Revolution’ to actually make their own private homes available for the celebration of Holy Mass. Even though some individual representatives of the government still view the Church with suspicion, reacting very touchily to anything that looks like criticism and immediately punishing it with little sanctions (‘castiguitos’), relations between Church and State have improved overall, as the understanding of the government for the theological mission of the Church has grown. At the highest level, the State now respects the Church as an important institution and on many topics not only listens to her but even asks her cooperation. For example, in its concern over the ageing population, the State is increasingly returning buildings to the Church to be
AnnUAl rePorT 2014
used as Church-run retirement homes. And many other social services provided by the Church – such as care given to children with Down‘s Syndrome or autism by Caritas Church-run kindergartens and social care services – are increasingly respected, or at least tolerated.
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lthough at the local level the Church in Cuba shows considerable creativity in opening up new spaces for evangelisation, the Cuban bishops are all agreed that the Catholic Church is ‘still very far from a normal environment for the fulfilment of her pastoral mission’. In addition to the constant surveillance and the requirement, viewed by many Church representatives as demeaning, to obtain official approval for all exceptional Church activities, the Catholic Church also suffered last year from certain circumstances that considerably restricted her room for movement. Particularly hard-hit were the delicate sector of educational work, the pastoral ministry in prisons and the media apostolate.
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ne difficulty that makes it hard to provide comprehensive proclamation of the Gospel and pastoral ministry to the faithful is the fact that the carpools of most dioceses are completely old and outdated. For the pastoral care of the many and often widely scattered and inaccessible sub-parishes and outstations the priests and religious only have vehicles with several hundred thousand Aid to the Church in Need
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kilometres on the clock and in constant need of repair. Quite apart from the frequent breakdowns, the recurring repair costs and the high fuel consumption also put a heavy financial burden on parishes and dioceses.
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hereas hitherto the Church was able to import cars from Panama without problems, provided the Cuban authorities were informed of the gift of the vehicle from abroad, the year 2014 brought a dramatic break, because hand in hand with a new law opening up the vehicle market, which caused car prices in Cuba to outstrip Europeans prices several fold, the import permits already granted to the bishops were rescinded. However, thanks to the lifting of the US trade embargo announced for the year’s end and which has been greeted with great jubilation by many Cubans, new doors might open. At the same time we are currently working to see if – as a way of marking the 65th anniversary of Father Werenfried’s Chapel Truck campaign – the Church in Cuba can be granted a special permit for the import of new vehicles, which would be donated by ACN. he Church in Cuba is also urgently dependent on our help in her efforts to meet the need for new churches. In the past very few permits were granted to build new churches, making it necessary either to set up chapels in the homes of private individuals, or to engage in costly renovation work on
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buildings that were confiscated following the revolution in the early 1960s and which the government has begun to return of late. To this day it has proved impossible to rebuild some of the churches in the archdiocese of Santiago de Cuba and the diocese of Holguín that were destroyed by hurricane Sandy in October 2012. The challenge lies not only in the very high costs, but also in the lack of availability of the necessary building materials.
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iven the lack of prospects, the chronic state of the economy, the extreme poverty and the daily challenge of feeding themselves and their families, many thousands of Cubans tend to see emigration (especially to the USA, Spain and Ecuador) as the only way out. Emigration is also hitting the Church hard, because it is thereby losing many vocations and many committed laity. Even some priests are turning their backs on their country. The shortage of priests – along with the shortage of religious sisters and the poor level of formation of the laity – is a major headache for the bishops. In many dioceses many priests have to minister to several parishes at the same time – together with their outlying communities and mission stations. However, since the running of both major seminaries (in La Habana and Santiago de Cuba) was taken over by the Operarios Diocesanos – a congregation that specialises in priestly formation – there has in fact been an increase in priestly vocations.
The world needs god’s word
Moreover, the local churches are increasingly receiving personnel support from foreign missionaries and communities of religious sisters. One can summarise the situation of the Church in Cuba by quoting Archbishop Adolfo Rodríguez Herrera, formerly of Camagüey: ‘The present situation is not the same as the past. But we certainly hope that the future will look better than the present.’ Through our prayers and through our generous support for the projects of the Cuban Church, we can help to make this wish a reality.
The facade of the temple after restauration, Ciego De Avila, Cuba.
the FaMily – thReats and signs OF hOpe
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uring the extraordinary general assembly of the Synod of Bishops, from 5 – 19 October 2014, which was devoted to the theme of ‘The pastoral challenges for the family in the context of evangelisation’, the assembled bishops identified a whole series of factors which threaten Christian marriage and family life around the world.
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n Cuba, for example, due to decades of officially proclaimed atheism, emigration and widespread promiscuity, traditional, intact families are relatively few and far between. Consequently, a number of bishops and the family commission of the Cuban Bishops‘ Conference have solicited our help for a range of different initiatives. Thus, among other things, we have supported numerous couples participating in workshops on ‘Successful married life’ (‘Vida exitosa en pareja’), training sessions for family counsellors, meetings of the ‘World Family Encounters’ initiated by Colombian Catholic couples, retreat days and meetings for married couples and/or families. We also helped with scholarships for students on a twoyear diploma course in ‘Marriage and the Family’ that was offered in conjunction with universities in Mexico, and we likewise cofounded a family congress in March 2014 in Havana.
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I
n Uruguay the negative consequences for the family stemming from the secularism that has been enshrined in the constitution for almost 100 years are clearly evident: already there are more civil divorces than marriages. Roughly 60% of the families who have their children baptised are not even civilly married. Domestic violence is widespread. Consequently we have supported meetings for married couples, in the diocese of Melo for example, in which both theological and family related topics are addressed – such as the family as the domestic church and as the primary educator in the faith.
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n Brazil too the bishops with whom I was able to speak during my project trip in March 2014 – belonging to the Regional Bishops‘ Conference Nordeste III, which represents the 25
ecclesiastical jurisdictions of the north-east Brazilian states of Bahia and Sergipe – lamented the disastrous state of the family in their regions. There is one sign of hope, however, in the spread of the so-called ‘family schools’ (‘Escolas Família’), a joint initiative of the very active Pontifical John Paul II Institute for Studies in Marriage and the Family and various other institutions in Salvador da Bahia that began shortly after the beginning of the new millennium. These ‘family schools’ involve a series of talks on topics relevant to the family, which are then followed up with discussions at home, in which the participants can further explore every topic with the help of a working manual. ACN has supported the compilation of a set of materials including posters, a DVD with the talks, and the corresponding manuals. The idea is to offer them across Renovation of the parish church of ‘Nuestra Señora del Carmen’ (Our Lady of the Carmelite Monastery, Uruguay.
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AnnUAl rePorT 2014
OtheR pastORal challenges
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hen families fall apart or when children are forced to grow up outside the security of the family or in a climate of domestic violence, people easily fall into a life of drugs and criminality, especially when poverty, lack of educational opportunities and poor employment prospects further add to the psychological wounds. Meeting of the Committee for the Holy Popular Missions of the Regional Conference Nordeste II, Recife, Brazil.
the country to individual parishes, schools or movements willing to independently organise a family school and provide the instruction, either via a DVD presentation or through their own teaching staff. In this way it is hoped to establish 5,000 of these family schools which would bring direct benefit to around 100,000 families. nother approach to strengthening the family, involving introducing families to the living Christ through shared Bible reading sessions, and shared prayer and family catechesis, is being employed, for example, in the Uruguayan diocese of Florida and in Salesian-run pastoral outreach program in Paraguay. In this case we were asked to fund several thousand copies of the Catholic family Bible.
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Many bishops are deeply worried about the rise in drug addiction and violence, above all in the suburban slum areas. No fewer than 47 of the 50 major cities around the world with the highest murder rates.
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or people wanting to break free of drugs and addiction, the Fazenda da Esperanรงa (Farm of Hope) and other similar Church initiatives, whose therapy is based on the implementation of the Gospel in everyday life, a spirit of living charity and a philosophy of work and the embracing of responsibility within the community, have proved to be quite an outstanding model for the treatment of drug addiction. Since demand for recuperation places continues to grow and many local Church communities make efforts to establish a Fazenda, the year 2014 saw the founding of the hundredth Fazenda da Esperanรงa.
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pproximately 70 percent of these Fazendas are to be found in Brazil. There are 15 spread over seven other Latin American countries, ranging from Argentina to Mexico, and a further 16 or more have already been established in eight European, Asian and African countries. Various documentary films are being produced in a studio in GuaratinguetĂĄ, that was equipped with our help, about the lives of people recovering from addiction and which are being broadcast over various TV channels, thereby giving testimony to the tangible saving power of God and with it consolation and hope to so many affected families.
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nother major challenge for the Church is the shortage of pastoral workers. A study conducted by
the Brazilian Institute of statistics CERIS has indicated that the number of priests in Brazil rose from 14,198 in 1992 to 16,772 in the year 2002 and to 22,190 in the year 2010.
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et despite the immense increase of 31.8% in the first decade of the new millennium, there is still a glaring shortage of priests, above all in the vast regions of Amazonia and in the rapidly growing suburban areas around the major conurbations – as indeed in the other countries of the subcontinent. This shortage is preventing the urgently needed establishment of new parishes. Given that the local churches can also not keep pace, in terms of the building of Church infrastructure, with the rapid growth of these new suburban areas,
The young of the Fazenda da Esperanza in Brazil.
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The world needs god’s word
Renovation of the church of the parish ‘Nossa Senhora da Conceição’ in Tapiramutá, Ruy Barbosa, brazil
there is a vacuum arising as to the presence of the Church that is being exploited by evangelical sects of all imaginable dominations peddling their theology of prosperity in a countless number of temples and luring new adherents with promises of miracles.
the funds coming from the solidarity campaign initiated in 2012 by the Brazilian Bishops‘ Conference, entitled ‘Comunhão e Partilha – Igreja Solidária’ (Communion and Sharing – a Church of Solidarity) under which every diocese contributes 1% of its income to a common fund, from which regular help is then given to the poorest ecclesiastical jurisdictions in the country for the training of their seminarians.
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adly, although the incomes of dioceses in the macroeconomically more successful Latin American countries are on the rise, this increase is immediately offset by the sharp increases in living and staff costs as well as a significant rise in construction costs, with the result that a number of these dioceses still count on our aid. •
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n order for the Church to demonstrate a more visible presence we will need not only to provide help for construction projects and vehicles for missionaries in their pastoral work, but also to continue helping our project partners with support for religious sisters and for the training of priests, deacons, catechists and other lay pastoral workers – above all where the local churches themselves are still not in a position to cover the running costs from local resources. In Brazil, for example, such resources include the so-called ‘tithing system’ with its encouraging increase in income and
Restauration of the parish church of the parish Saint Angelo in Menaus, Brazil.
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aFRica i (Francophone + sudan) christine du coudray Wiehe the FaMily – at the heaRt OF the deBate
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he Extraordinary Synod on the family highlighted the remarkable unity of the Church in Africa in this crucial debate. Without doubt she will prove to be a decisive element in the structure of the general synod, planned for October 2015. And perhaps – at a time when some prominent figures in the Western Church are giving voice to more than one discordant opinion – we will see the confirmation of the fact that the vocation of Africa is ‘to tell the world of the family, the future of humanity’ as was stated in the magisterial teaching of Pope John Paul II. The organisation COLEA – a movement of the laity in Eastern Africa – has similarly taken seriously the issue of the family within society by organising, with our support, a six-day meeting in November in Dar es Salaam in order to reflect on the topic of Marriage and Family Life, the Future of the Church and Society.
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t present, while the English language branch of the John Paul II Institute for the Family in Africa has been delayed in its opening, one particular episcopal conference – that of Malawi – has decided, with our support, to send seven of its priests to India in Sep40
tember 2015 in order to gain a crucially important formation there. While still on the good news, we cannot fail to mention the surprising developments in Tunisia. This was the country that saw the birth of the Arab Spring and now, after having been considerably at risk of tipping in an Islamist direction, the country has taken a clear stand against the Ennahdha party, which had won the elections in 2011. It is clear that education played a not insignificant part in this.
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lthough Mauritania, as an Islamic Republic, will not tolerate any Christians other than foreigners, Mgr Martin Happe does not fail, each year, to share with us some of the astonishing signs of the presence of the Lord in this isolated island. ‘Many of you will have experienced this – a time of wandering in the desert, a time of accumulating difficulties and misfortunes, a time when one cannot see any hope or any future…’, he writes. ‘The diocese of Nouakchott and its bishop have for several years had to endure the experience of such a desert crossing. For we have seen priests, who had in some cases been working for many years in the diocese, being obliged to leave us for reasons of old age or illness. Others, younger and more dynamic, have been
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recalled by their superiors. This has caused such a shortage of priests that we have been compelled to close the parish of Zouérate in the north of the coun country. And things have scarcely been any better with the religious sisters… ‘If you had faith like a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, “Be uprooted and planted in the sea,” and it would obey you.…’ (Lk 17:6). With the help of Father Bernard and some religious sisters, I was able to enlist the support of benefactors in Italy and Germany (including ACN) and we invested 50,000 Euros in the restoration of the church in Rosso, which is in fact the oldest church in the country – and that at a time when it was impossible to say who would be able to go there and pray…’ Now, throughout the year, the Lord has been sending Fidei Donum priests, missionaries, religious… 14 of them have recently arrived, while on 6 December Abbé Raymond was the first priest to be ordained in the diocese of Nouakchott.
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ut there are also countries, like Libya, which are sliding into anarchy. According to the scenario outlined at the time, repeated endlessly on all the televisions of the world, the stated objective was the physical elimination of Kadhafi – an objective that was achieved. But one can only remain dumbfounded at the reckless negligence of Western politicians who at no time seem to have thought about what would Aid to the Church in Need
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happen after the end of the dictatorship (no more in Libya than they did in Iraq).
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oday, with two governments (Islamist and anti-), each with its own institutions, parliament, central bank, oil ministry and army, the country is at the mercy of a clan-based anarchy that nothing seems to be able to keep in check, given the massive reserves of weapons and munitions. The man had gambled on the progressive islamisation of the entire African continent. The destabilisation of Mali, Niger and Chad are due in considerable part to his fall, which then filled the roads with thousands of mercenaries whose sole purpose in life was to fight with weapons. There are many African heads of state who have received financial support in
return – a hospital, with the keys in their hand, or a prestigious hotel. Our presence among the Christians is non-existent. ‘We continue to live in fear and insecurity. Let us hope that better times will come soon’, says Bishop Sylvester Carmel Magro, the vicar apostolic of Benghazi. ‘Now is the time for prayer and patience.’
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hree countries in West Africa that normally gain little notice in the media have now become the focus of attention for the past year, as a result of the deadly Ebola virus currently threatening the people there – many of whom still prefer to believe that it is a new stratagem by the West. Guinea, and still more Liberia and Sierra Leone, are facing this new trial just as their society is still struggling to recover from a period of exceptionally cruel civil war.
Palm Sunday in Juba, South Sudan
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The world needs god’s word
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he Community of St John, which has been established in Conakry, has reported back to us on the benefits of the extension of their guesthouse, at the heart of the pandemic.
FROM the cOMMunity OF st jOhn in cOnakRy, guinea ‘Together with our brothers we welcomed the Bible study sessions, which this year included 550 young people. The girls were housed 9 to a room, while makeshift dormitories were set up on the verandahs – at the height of the rainy season! There were 10 days of courses, with young people of high calibre – a thirst for the Word of God, listening attentively during the courses, tireless in their questions, spending a great deal of time in the chapel, a wonderful spirit – that is what gives us great joy and a great deal of hope for the Church here in Guinea… So now the work will be able to continue in January – if the Ebola will only leave us a little peace… Just at the moment we are concerned about our village; there were 13 deaths in Kendoumayah, two last week and the other 11 in three days during this week. They all belonged to the same family, except for the male nurse in Kendoumayah, who died yesterday. But here things are going okay, well. Although we are deeply affected by this suffering among our people, we are still in good spirits… the pontifical missions (PMA) had sent many sacks of rice for distribution to
the poorest families, those hit by Ebola. But everything was stolen in the night from Sunday to Monday. The soldiers posted to guard the supplies were no doubt involved. They took their cut. The violence is constantly on the point of erupting in Coyah, between the Ebola sceptics who continue to deny the existence of the disease, and the opportunists, who can think of nothing but their stomachs and whose appetite for rice transforms them into vultures. And so in this atmosphere we still cannot think of reopening classrooms… the schools are well and truly closed. At least this will give us a little more time with our building work; but nonetheless it is sad for our pupils.’
The smiling face of street boy from Salesians Fambul - orphanage in Freetown, Sierra Leone
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sOMe MajOR pROjects FOR the gROWth OF the chuRch in 2014
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he financial means at our disposal have exceeded expectations, and in Africa it is better to ask first about the possibilities of ACN before committing to a major project. From one end of the continent to the other we are being asked to help for a growing number of construction, extension and renovation projects – cathedrals, churches, major seminaries, monasteries, presbyteries, catechetical centres, convents for sisters who do not hesitate to tackle difficult conditions in remote countries...
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rom the Church in Madagascar this rate has been maintained. A growing area of expenditure is the support for the formation of future priests in the major seminaries, since the ordinary subsidies from Rome are now no longer sufficient and there is otherwise the danger they will have to break off their studies in the middle of the academic year. Also significant is the number of requests for diocesan spiritual centres, where priests and other pastoral workers can meet together during the course of the year. It is likewise the price to be paid for a spirit of unity within the diocese. •
Vehicle Ford Ranger pick-up in favour of St Thomas’ Aquinas church, Kalembe, Our Lady of Hope parish Chiphaso, Malawi.
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AnnUAl rePorT 2014
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aFRica ii - toni W. Zender pROject tRips
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f particular importance last year were two 2-week project trips to Africa. Both journeys provided an opportunity to become better acquainted – at least in some areas – with the Church in the countries of sub-Saharan Africa.
MalaWi
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n June 2014 we undertook a 2 ½ week project trip to Malawi. During this time it was possible to visit all eight dioceses, the representatives of the bishops‘ conference and the apostolic nuncio. Malawi is a predominantly agricultural and traditional country, and it is also one of the poorest in Africa. The Church in the country is currently faced with a threat from a radical form of Islam. Although only a small percentage of the Malawian people actually profess the Muslim faith, this minority manages to be Roofing of an outstation church at Lemero in favour of St Anne’s parish, Chilumba, Malawi
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extremely articulate. By means of an extensive programme of mosque building, the establishment of nationwide radio stations, and efforts to attract young school leavers with offers of scholarships, attempts are being made to achieve a rapid increase in the proportion of Muslims in the country. Another aspect that plays an important role in this context is the forging of mixed marriages – between Muslim men and Christian women.
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ithin Malawi the diocese of Mangochi, in the East of the country on the southern shore of Lake Malawi, represents an exception. Here, within the territory of the diocese, the percentage of Muslims is over 85%. In the past this has led to political unrest and has made relations more difficult between Catholics and Muslims.
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uring 2014 ACN rendered support to the Church in Malawi for the construction of churches and parish houses, and to purchase motor vehicles. In a number of dioceses catechetical youth meetings were also supported – for example one in the diocese of Mzuzu – raising the awareness of young people against the advance of Pentecostalist sects. We also supported the diocesan and religious clergy with Mass stipends, and supported the formation of seminarians.
The world needs god’s word
tanZania
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ur second project trip during 2014 took place in November. In the space of two weeks we visited the Archdiocese of Dar es Salaam, the dioceses in the south of Tanzania and the island of Zanzibar. First, the situation of the church in dar es salaam
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t the beginning of our trip our delegation met with Cardinal Polycarp Pengo, the Archbishop of Dar es Salaam. The Cardinal outlined the problems of his diocese, which serves a very large city of over 4.3 million inhabitants. These include the rapid growth of the city, which in the past few years has swollen by over 1 million new inhabitants. This makes a coherent planning with regard to the parish structures and the allocation of pastoral personnel almost impossible. the situation of the dioceses in the south of the country
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any parts of the south of Tanzania are strongly Muslim in character. Thus, for example, within the territory of the three dioceses of Tunduru-Masasi, Lindi and Mtwara, the proportion of Muslims ranges between 80% and 95%. The local Muslim population are overwhelmingly moderate in the Aid to the Church in Need
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way they live their faith, or else they see it purely as a cultural inheritance, and consequently the relationship between Catholics and Muslims is generally good. Given these particular circumstances, the Catholic Church endeavours on the one hand to strengthen the local Catholics as much as possible in their faith and on the other to build up and maintain good relations with the Muslim majority. the situation of the church on the island of Zanzibar
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he situation is very different however on the island of Zanzibar. The island is strongly Arab and Muslim in character and the percentage of Muslims is 98% or more. In recent years Church representatives have been the target of attacks. Thus, for example, there have been
three attacks on Catholic priests in the past few years, two of them with firearms and the third an acid attack. One priest died as a result of his injuries, while the other two are still in need of medical treatment and are either unable, or only able to a limited extent, to continue their work. There have likewise been a number of arson attacks against Church properties.
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n 2014 ACN supported a number of projects in Tanzania. The favourable dollar exchange rate and advantageous import tariffs made it possible to support a significant number of vehicle projects. We also supported the dioceses with construction projects, for the formation of seminarians and with Mass stipends for their priests. In those areas of high Muslim population help was also given for projects aimed at promoting Christian – Muslim dialogue. •
Closing Mass of the Jubilee of 150 years of Catholic Faith in Zanzibar
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AnnUAl rePorT 2014
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asia-aFRica - fr Andrzej halemba
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ormally, ACN supports above all the pastoral work of the Church where she faces persecution or is too poor to fulfil her mission from her own resources. One might ask why, in the case of the Middle East, we also provide humanitarian aid. The reason lies in the fact that this aid helps to encourage the Christians here simply to remain in the Middle East and not to emigrate. For otherwise, in the very near future, here in the cradle of Christianity, there will be no Church left for us to support in her pastoral work. It is necessary to carefully analyse the developments that have taken place within the last hundred years. Prior to the First World War the number of Christians in the Middle East still stood at around 20%, whereas today it is no more than just 4% – and still declining. In fact the situation is worsening at an alarming rate. Thus, every single day, between eight and 10 Christian families are currently leaving Iraq. Official figures claim that of the previous 1.5 million Christians in the country there are now 450,000 remaining; however, in reality there are now perhaps 250,000 at the most.
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he situation is no better in Syria. Here the wealthier Christians have already long since left the country; the others only remain because they do not have the money to establish a 50
new life elsewhere. Similarly, in the Holy Land, the number of Christians continues to sink rapidly, further and further. In the most famous places of our salvation history – such as Bethlehem, for example – Christians now make up no more than an ever-dwindling minority. Even in Lebanon, the only country of the Middle East where in recent history there was still a Christian majority – and where official statistics even today still speak of almost 50% Christians – the real percentage now lies somewhere between 25% and 35%, and here too the trend is a downward one. nly in the Arabian peninsular is the number of Christians rising, a fact attributable to the influx of cheap labour from India, the Philippines, etc. These are people who for the most part are obliged to live and work there in conditions of semi-slavery. Regrettably, it is not altogether an exaggeration to speak here of the largest example of slavery of Christians in history. No fewer than 1.5 million Catholics now live in the Arabian Peninsula in such conditions, of whom barely 10,000 have the opportunity (secretly) to attend Holy Mass once a week. The remaining 1.49 million have no opportunity at all of practising their faith.
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syRia
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he civil war in Syria still drags on. The year 2014 marked a bloody milestone, with over 76,000 deaths. Particularly sad for the Catholic Church was the death of the 75-year-old Dutch Jesuit Father Frans van der Lugt, who was brutally murdered by a masked gunman. He had worked 50 years in the Middle East, 48 of them in Syria, and had bravely stayed on, despite the heavy fighting, together with the Christians and others in the cut-off Old City of Homs. He continued to help the needy right up to his death. Many people consider him to be a saint, and his grave is increasingly becoming a place of pilgrimage.
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he people who have stayed behind in Syria are more and more in need of help. Prices are soaring and many things can only be obtained on the black market. More and more people are without work and cannot even afford to pay the rent and other basic necessities. There is an urgent need for food, heating oil, medicines and financial help for operations and other forms of medical treatment. Over half the hospitals in Syria have been either destroyed or severely damaged, and today only an estimated 43% of the hospitals in the country are still open. In Homs the situation is still more critical, since this city was the scene of bitter fighting and the hospitals became targets for both sides in the conflict.
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he pharmaceutical factories in Syria have been destroyed or forced to cease operating, and consequently medicines are hard to come by and extremely expensive. On top of this, many people are suffering from acute psychological problems and need extensive care and psychiatric treatment. ACN is working closely together with the Jesuits. Similarly, there is an ever greater need to help with schooling and the education of Christian children, who would otherwise have no future. Generally speaking, no help can be expected from other organisations in this area. With our support, a number of traumatised Syrian refugees are being cared for and given therapeutic treatment by the Good Shepherd Sisters in Lebanon, close to the frontier in the Bekaa Valley and in Baalbek.
iRaq
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or Iraq also the year 2014 was a bloody year, with another sad record. According to the government, over 15,000 people died as a result of acts of violence and another 22,000 were wounded. These were the highest figures since the violence last peaked in 2007. A decisive and dramatic event was the invasion by the Jihadist ISIS militias (who now call themselves IS). This was and still is accompanied by mass murder, torture, beheadings and other unscrupulous and appalling atrocities against ethnic and religious minorities. Virtually all the Christians have fled from Mosul and other nearby towns, and with this exodus an age old tradition of Christianity has come to an end. In Mosul, for the first time in 1600 years, Holy Mass is now no longer being celebrated.
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hese fundamentalist rebels are proud of their cruelty towards the ‘unbelievers’ and quite brazenly force them to choose between converting to Islam, paying the jiziya tax, or death by the sword. They no longer even pretend to be fighting for freedom or liberation. Their only objective is to kill their enemies, wipe out the unbelievers and establish the Umma of the Islamic state, consisting exclusively of Sunni Muslim believers. A grandfather and his granddaughter, at the St. Elia shrine, a centre for the IDPs from Qaraqosh, Mosul, Iraq.
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After that, as one of the IS leaders has declared, they will turn their attention to the countries of the West and establish
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their new order, even if they have to kill 50, 100 or 150 million people. This genocidal campaign of mass murder is very successful, since people are so afraid of them that they already flee from their homes before the IS fighters even arrive.
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any Christians here harbour the suspicion that the Western nations are planning on seeing the Christians completely expelled from the Middle East and a form of Muslim rule established. They point out, for example, that French troops were sent to Mali to fight against the terrorists there, but that France was willing only to take in the Christians from Syria without directly helping to get rid of the fanatical jihadists. It is of course hard to prove such accusations, but they do make clear the fact that these Christians feel trapped, abandoned and betrayed by many people.
the philippines
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n 2013 the Philippines were struck first by a severe earthquake in October and then by the devastating Typhoon Haiyan in November. This latter disaster claimed at least 6,268 lives and was one of the most devastating in recorded history. The Church likewise suffered severe damage to her infrastructure, with 15 parish churches having to be completely rebuilt and another 50 severely damaged and needing extensive repairs – and similarly another 500 small village chapels. Last year we funded 21 aid projects with a total value of over 1 million Euros, all directly relating to the reconstruction following this devastating typhoon. We also gave 100,000 Euros for the rebuilding of a church and a convent on the island of Bohol, following the earthquake.
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e have helped the people who have fled from these extremists by sending portable buildings – prefabricated sections for creating eight schools – which are now being attended by some 7,500 children, taught in shifts. We also gave foodstuffs, money for schooling, financial aid for rented accommodation for refugee families, Mass Stipends for priests, and paid for the preparation of 15,000 Christmas gift parcels for the refugee children. Our total aid given came to €3,970,082.
2,5 year old Magdalena eating on the floor. The family ran away from Qaraqosh, Iraq.
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ethiOpia
n Ethiopia the Church faces two major challenges in particular, which both require our help: the extreme poverty of the priests, and the large areas of primary evangelisation in which the people have still never had contact with Christianity. Two areas particularly noteworthy in this context are the eparchy of Adigrat, on the frontier with Eritrea, and the Omo region in southwest Ethiopia.
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n Adigrat, during our project journey there, we came across a priest who did not even have the money for a donkey, since he could not afford to feed it.
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hen he has to buy something, he has to walk for five or six hours through the mountains and then bring back the things he has purchased on his back. He also has no electricity supply. The eparchy as a whole has an area of over 130,000 km², yet has only very few cars for its pastoral work. A further challenge facing the eparchy is the high number of refugees from Eritrea and Somalia. By now in fact there are more Catholics to be ministered to in the refugee camps than in the whole of the rest of the eparchy. In general terms it can be said that Ethiopia, with a total of some 870,000 refugees, has now passed Kenya as the country on the African continent that has taken in the highest number of refugees.
A church on the east coast of Leyte island following Tyhoon Yolanda, Philippines.
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The world needs god’s word
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n addition to the refugees, the Catholic Church also devotes herself to working with certain tribes which in Ethiopian society are regarded as inferior and ‘unclean’ – rather like the ‘untouchables’ of the Indian caste system. The members of some of these tribes have to drag a branch behind them when they walk along a path in order to wipe away the traces of their footsteps, which in the belief of other ethnic groups make the earth unclean.
people. In one village where a chapel has been built, it was one of the village elders who gave the plot of land to the Church.
Equally, they are not allowed to enter the homes of the other tribes. The Catholic Church is reaching out to them with respect and helping them to rediscover their own human dignity. We have helped for the construction of several village chapels for such tribes.
t is for this truth that the Christians in the countries of the Asia-Africa section are today bearing witness – in many cases with their own blood. More than ever now they need our support, our prayers and our solidarity. •
When we visited, he gave witness to his new faith, saying, ‘I am so sad that I have only so late in life come to learn about this beautiful faith of the Catholic Church. All my life I have lived for so many years in hatred and fear. Now I know the truth.’
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n the Omo region of southwest Ethiopia the Church is facing another challenge in the fact that there are various tribal peoples living here who have so far had no contact with civilisation – but who have now had this contact forced upon them by the construction of the Trans African Highway. The Church is endeavouring to help these people to take this leap into the modern age without coming to harm. The situation is made more difficult by the fact that this is a region partly mountainous and partly lying in an extremely hot plain.
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There is no infrastructure, and living conditions are primitive. And yet the gospel is being embraced with great joy by many
A priest with one of ten new motorcycles for someparishes and outstations of the Vicariate, Ethiopia.
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asia i - irene eschmann The Catholic Church in China is alive and active. She strives to be faithful to the Gospel and goes through obstacles and difficulties.’
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his is how Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican Secretary of State, described the situation of the local church in China in an interview with the Italian journal Famiglia Cristiana last August. And indeed, for the Catholic Church in China light and shadow were once again closely interlaced during 2014.
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ne of the four bishops who died at an advanced age last year, was Fan Zhongliang SJ the underground Bishop of Shanghai. Having been coadjutor bishop to the renowned Cardinal Ignatius Gong Pinmei SJ since 1985, he succeeded him in the year 2000 as Ordinary of Shanghai. During his life he had spent approximately a quarter of a century in prison or in labour camps and remained subject to strict surveillance or even house arrest right up to his death. He was greatly admired even among the priests and faithful who belonged to the ‘official’ Catholic community in Shanghai. His requiem drew priests and around 5,000 Catholic faithful from both the underground and the ‘official’ Church. The Eucharistic Prayer during this Mass also included mention of ‘our Bishop Thaddeus’ – the former official auxiliary 56
bishop of Shanghai, Bishop Ma Daqin. Not only the Vatican but also, quite evidently, the majority of the Catholic faithful now regard him as the Pastor of both Catholic communities in the diocese of Shanghai. Since announcing his resignation from the Patriotic Association, shortly after his ordination at the beginning of July 2012, Bishop Ma has been under house arrest. His blogs and brief news items are read by Catholics from all over China, while his example inspires people around the world.
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ver the course of the year a mixture of the particularly unpleasant along with the more familiar types of measures in China’s policy towards religion was in evidence. For example, a training session for Catholic Church personnel organised by the state’s Religious Affairs office concluded with a compulsory concelebration by legitimate and non-legitimate bishops. Following his consecration in April 2014 as bishop of Yujiang in the province of Jiangxi, Bishop Johannes Peng Weizhao was forced to spend almost six months in detention. Several times over the past year, official or semi-official state bodies, such as the Patriotic Association, have insisted on the autonomy of the Church in China and also claimed the right to make independent episcopal appointments. When Pope Francis came to Seoul last August, the authorities tried to keep
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the participation of young Chinese Catholics as low as possible. The campaign by the provincial government in Zhejiang of demolishing crosses and churches belonging primarily to Protestant communities, also occasionally impacted on the Catholic Church and caused concern.
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he officially recognised bishop and clergy of the diocese of Wenzhou protested openly against this campaign. The annual report on China’s national security by an institute close to the government also gives reason for concern. The so-called ‘blue book’, registers what it sees as a growing religious infiltration by hostile Western forces. The authors view this as ‘a grave danger to China’s national security’.
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he growth and vitality of the Church in China remain a source of joy. As every year, the Christmas liturgies were again exceptionally well attended, and the Catholic faithful used the festive season to evangelise and do charitable works. Even though the published statistics point to a somewhat moderate but steady growth, we conclude from the reports by our project partners that their communities are growing, in some areas even quite significantly. The reasons why the Chinese are interested in the Catholic faith remain the same: life and living conditions are changing rapidly in modern China, leaving people with a Aid to the Church in Need
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feeling of insecurity and lack of meaning. Stress, together with marriage and family problems, are pushing people to look for a firm hold. Especially in the big cities, the parishes are attracting lonely individuals. The witness given by Catholic friends and the Catholic spouses in mixed marriages also draws people to the Church. Parishes and dioceses are making every effort to form, strengthen and renew old and new Catholics in their faith. For some years now initiatives to provide religious instruction to individuals and to build up community in the individual dioceses have been growing in number and variety.
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t the same time these programmes are adapting to new issues, such as the growing number of divorces. The people are embracing these programmes with great enthusiasm. They are building their churches not only with considerable material sacrifice, but equally with a great deal of prayer. Everywhere, we are told, the sense of spirituality is growing and, so far, the rising affluence in China does not seem to be weakening this phenomenon. From 14 to 18 August 2014 Pope Francis visited South Korea. It was the first trip by a Pope to Eastern Asia since 1995. Most people tend to associate South Korea above all with impressive economic development, the latest technology, pop music and perhaps also with a worldview unfamiliar to us like Confucianism. Yet, as the world was able to see last August, this country is in fact home to the third largest Catholic community in Asia, in population 58
percentage terms, after East Timor and the Philippines. Some 10.4% of Koreans profess the Catholic faith. What Western media found particularly remarkable, was the fact that the Catholic Church in South Korea enjoys great moral authority and has remained free from scandals.
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n addition to the original reason for his trip – the participation of the Pope in the sixth Asian Youth Day – the planned programme also included a Beatification Mass for 124 Korean martyrs and a whole series of other meetings. Pope Francis met with the Korean Bishops‘ Conference and with religious and lay leaders. He spoke with the leaders of other religions, with women forced into prostitution during the Second World War, and with survivors as well as the relatives of victims of the ferry disaster in April 2014.
Pope Francis, South Korea, Seoul August 2014
The world needs god’s word
His visit to a centre for the handicapped aroused great interest. He also prayed in a garden dedicated to the memory of aborted children. And his trip concluded with a Mass of reconciliation for this country, now divided in two for almost 70 years. Characteristically, one of his central messages to the prosperous Korean society and its local Catholic Church was the urgent plea not to be overtaken by materialism, but to devote herself instead to the poor, the weak and the excluded. His personal example of simplicity, modesty and human charity moved Catholics and non-Catholics alike.
spirit of the Church in Korea spring from this seed sown by the martyrs in their time. Speaking to the young people of Asia, the Pope explained that God wanted his glory to shine forth in just the same way in their lives, in order to enlighten the life of their continent, just as he had allowed his glory to shine forth in the witness of the martyrs. He called on everyone to take to heart the fact that ‘the martyrs are calling us to put Christ in first place… They are calling us to consider what we ourselves – if at all – would be willing to die for.’
‘Pope Francis has succeeded in embodying the Christian message of love and forgiveness, the most beautiful testimony that the Church in Asia can give’, commented one priest of the Paris Foreign Missions Society .
very 2 to 3 years since 1999 several thousand young people – often youth leaders – have come together from all over Asia for this meeting, in order to deepen their faith and spirituality. Hitherto, these for the
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n the Korean capital Seoul, on 16 August 2014, in the presence of a crowd of around 1 million people – which means over one fifth of all Catholics in the country – the Holy Father beatified Paul Yun Ji-Chung and 123 companion martyrs. They belonged overwhelmingly to the founding generation of the Church in Korea and gave their lives for the faith between 1791 and 1888. The theme of the martyrs continued right through the papal visit, and also set its mark on the programme of the Asian Youth Day. Once again Pope Francis highlighted that the impressive growth and missionary
Pope Francis, South Korea, Seoul August 2014
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most part internal Church events have not aroused any widespread attention. Now, in Korea, for the first time the Pope has taken part in an Asian Youth Day. As already mentioned, the programme for the meeting focused very intensively on the example of the martyrs.
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ut Pope Francis also offered other recommendations to the new workers in God‘s vineyard – to entrust their lives to God‘s will; never to despair at their own weaknesses in the face of God‘s Mercy; to bear witness to the Gospel against the intellectual and material evils of the time; to help bring the many and varied and often time-honoured cultures of Asia to completion in the Christian Faith; to build up, together with their pastors, ‘a more holy, missionary and humble Church’. He urged them to ‘go out into the world, strengthened by God‘s love…’. Within five months the Holy Father twice travelled the long journey to Asia. He considers this most populous yet at the same time least Christian continent, as a priority of his pontificate. In the Korean shrine of Haemi he described the Asian continent as a ‘great frontier land’ that was waiting for the witness of young people for Christ. Since an estimated 52% of Asia‘s population are under 30 , these young people already have a broad field of activity among their own age group.
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mong those attending the meeting with the Holy Father in August were 80 bishops from the many
different countries of Asia. In their presence Pope Francis renewed his call to the Church to engage in dialogue with all and to promote a culture of encounter on the basis of a firmly grounded identity, namely rootedness in Christ. At the same time he stressed that the Christian communities in Asia were a little flock, ‘truly a grain of mustard’, which was thereby called all the more to missionary work. For a section of this minority, discrimination, oppression and persecution are still a reality today. However, the hope and joy experienced by the pilgrims in Korea, in meeting with one another and with the head of the Church, continue to have their impact.
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his hope and joy were in evidence once again a few weeks ago during the papal visit to Sri Lanka and the Philippines. Here what had already been touched on in the visit to Korea became even more evident, namely the dialogue between the Church and the cultures, religions and the poor of the Asian continent. This dialogue is likewise a heartfelt concern of the Federation of Asian Bishops‘ Conferences, as also of the post-synodal apostolic letter Ecclesia in Asia.
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ince the beginning of the 20th century the little mustard seed of the Church presence in Asia has grown from 1.2% to almost 3.2% of the population – which amounts to at least 132 million Catholic faithful . Latterly, the Church has been baptising more people in Asia than it
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has in Europe. In Asia the number of priests is likewise growing fastest. And so the words of Saint John Paul II, which he addressed in 1995 to the sixth plenary assembly of the Federation of Asian Bishops‘ Conferences, remain as relevant as ever today: ‘… just as in the first millennium, the Cross was planted on the soil of Europe and in the second on that of America and Africa, so we may pray that in the third millennium a great harvest of faith may ripen on this vast and so living continent.’ glance at the statistics for the projects of the Asia I section in 2014 enables us to conclude that the priorities have not changed this time either. They focused on the basic and ongoing formation of priests, religious and laity, and all kinds of construction and renovation work on Church buildings.
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However, behind this observation there are numerous other facets of life for the Catholic communities in Asia. Thus, for example, ACN supported a media training week for young people in one Indonesian diocese, where one priest tellingly lamented that mobile telephones had become modern rosaries for today’s young people. A whole series of building projects for mission stations in remote regions of Burma show clearly how the Catholic Church is carrying the faith across new boundaries, there in the jungle and in the mountain regions.
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ur projects for the basic and ongoing formation of a sometimes almost dizzying number of catechists in the various dioceses of Vietnam – another local church in Asia with numerous martyrs – are a testimony, not only to the politically conditioned shortage of priests, but also to the enormous and joyful commitment of the laity. So whether one looks at the overall annual picture or at the individual cases, the donations of our benefactors are contributing substantially to resolving the individual problems of particular parishes and dioceses. Furthermore, God‘s blessing is turning them into vital elements on the path towards the hoped-for harvest of faith in Asia. •
Little boy praying to baby Jesus, Philippines.
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asia ii - Véronique Vogel ‘The church asks nothing more than the freedom to fulfil her mission … and to offer the truth and beauty of the gospel in a context of religious pluralism, with respect, devotion, perseverance and humility.’ - Pope Francis hese words of Pope Francis, uttered during the canonisation ceremony of Father Joseph Vaz in Sri Lanka in January 2015, aptly summarise the worrying situation that the Church has had to confront during the past year in many parts of the world, in order to remain faithful to the mission given by Jesus of Nazareth to his apostles and first disciples.
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Internally displaced persons camp, Mannar, Sri Lanka
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sRi lanka
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uring 2013 we witnessed the attempts by the Catholic Church, in her pastoral letter, to persuade the government of the island to finally take practical and effective measures to promote national reconciliation. We also witnessed the obstacles placed in the way of the implementation of these measures by the government itself, and the tensions within the heart of the Catholic community.
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n 2014 the path of reconciliation was in practice more a Way of the Cross for all the Christian communities, and for the Catholics specifically, as a religious minority in the country. For the first time Sri Lanka has appeared (in 29th position) on the list published by one Christian NGO of the 50 countries where Christians are most at threat. There have been hundreds of attacks recorded (some of them online) against Christian churches, most of them by the Bodu Bala Sena, a Buddhist ultranationalist and violent movement allied to those in power. We must add to this the establishment by the government of a religious police force, the arbitrary arrest and detention for three days of two Catholics on false accusations of terrorism – one of them a human rights activist and the other a priest – last March.
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t was in the midst of this climate of fear and oppression against Christians that the Pope confirmed his visit to the country. During their Ad Limina visit to Rome on 3 May 2014 the Sri Lankan bishops had urged the Holy Father to honour the country with his presence for a few days. Despite all the difficulties of these recent years, the Church in this country can indeed claim to be the bridge between the different communities, because she has as members both Tamil Catholics from the North and Sinhalese Catholics from the South. The island of Ceylon also shared the heartfelt desire to see the Pope canonise the first ever Sri Lankan saint, Blessed Joseph Vaz, an Indian from Goa who, at the end of the 17th century, came to evangelise and support the Faith among the tiny Catholic community on the island – which was at that time being persecuted by the Dutch Calvinist colonialists of the time.
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e paid a short visit to the country in October, in order to make some short films commemorating the 10th anniversary of the tsunami and to record the rebuilding work carried out thanks to the support of our benefactors. These films are available on YouTube. The bishops expressed to us the gratitude of Sri Lankan Catholics for the enormous wave of generosity that enabled them to rebuild the life of the Church following this disaster – from churches, to presbyAid to the Church in Need
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teries, to motor vehicles for the priests to help them fulfil their mission.
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e were also able to register the changes in the country since the end of the war. Most of the road infrastructure has been rebuilt, and the clearing of land mines is almost finished, but there is a deep sadness of heart, above all in the North. And the economic development is visible and very evident above all in the South. We funded 60 projects for Sri Lanka in 2014. Our efforts were once again directed towards post-war rebuilding in the dioceses of the northern province,
be it for churches, religious houses or presbyteries. We were able to help for the renovation and extension of pastoral and catechetical centres in the East, South and centre of the island. A particular effort was made in the case of the major seminary in Jaffna. uring the academic year 2014 there were 61 seminarians studying philosophy and theology there. The seminary does not have enough room to accommodate them all and so some of the students are housed in a large hall, with nothing but curtains between each bed in order to preserve a minimum of privacy and quiet for their studies. The rector has asked us to help build 12 separate rooms for students in their last year of theology – those who are soon to be ordained as deacons and later as priests.
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e agreed, so that this last year of their studies could be spent in a more studious and recollected atmosphere. At the national level we also co-funded a programme in support of the basic ecclesial communities for all the dioceses and supported requests for the basic and continuing formation of seminarians, priests and laity. We were happy to help the dioceses with their requests for the formation of the laity and for projects directed towards the family.
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Catholic fishermen, Diocese of Anuradhapura , Sri Lanka
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AnnUAl rePorT 2014
india
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n India, unfortunately, her mission each year represents yet more of a challenge, even to the risk of her life. May 2014 saw the overwhelming victory in the presidential elections of Narendra Modi, representing the Hindu nationalist BJP party, who stood against the representative of the detested Congress Party, now utterly tainted by corruption. This massive victory was not viewed with euphoria everywhere in India, however. The Indian bishops’ conference immediately congratulated the new president, recognising his democratically won victory, while at the same time maintaining a prudent reserve with regard to the political and social future of the country under a government tied to the Hinduva ideology.
was organised by Hindu militants with swords and axes which left a dozen or so Christians in intensive care in the hospital of Jagdalpur. Their alleged motive – ‘forced conversions by the Church of the native peoples’. One now risks one’s life in opposing the BJP – which controls the state of Chhattisgarh in which the diocese of Jagdalpur is situated. The police continue to be quite unresponsive and sometimes even refuse to register people’s complaints if come from Christians.
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t the other end of the year, on 9 December 2014 there was a ‘spontaneous mass conversion’ of 350 (very poor) Muslim families in Uttar Pradesh. Organised by a Hindu nationalist party, these ceremonies are supposed
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nd sadly, the facts have borne out this reserve. Two outstanding examples will illustrate what I mean: the national victory of the BJP was on 17 May, and already by June the village assemblies in 50 villages of the Bastar district (in the diocese of Jagdalpur) approved a resolution banning every non-Hindu priest, religious ceremony, religious presence or religious speech within their precinct. This district has a very high percentage of tribal peoples among the population, peoples who are very open to the Catholic faith and the Catholic Church. A plea was lodged by Christians at the State High Court. In response, an ambush
God speaks to His Children in India.
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to ‘ratify’ the ‘return home’ (to the Hindu family) of peoples ‘deceived’ by other religions. Between the 10th and 31st December 2014 several hundred Catholic families were forced to relinquish their adherence to the Church, in various parts of India.
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etween these two dates there was a call in August 2014 from the president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference for a meeting with Narendra Modi, in order to inform him of the concern felt by the religious minorities and by the Catholic Church in particular. As though in response, there was a demand by representatives of the BJP in the lower house for an anti-conversion law (currently in force in six different states) to be extended to the national level… In March 2014 we met with Christians from East Bengal (the ecclesiastical province of
Kolkata), and with representatives of the Church in the Northeast, during our visit to the dioceses of Diphu (Assam), Kohima (Nagaland) and Jowai (Meghalaya). What a difference between these two regions in the same country! How many different pastoral challenges there are facing the local churches! West Bengal is 73% Hindu and 25% Muslim.
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here is a strong element of the Dalit (untouchable) population. The extreme poverty of these people deeply affected us – a poverty that is both economic and intellectual. How is one to wipe away the scars of millennia of alienation? The Church is nonetheless addressing the question with courage, fighting against discrimination, the ravages of superstition, alcohol and child labour; by educating spirits, minds and hearts.
Co-financing construction of a presbytery at Sagalee, Sagalee Parish, Arunachal Pradesh, India.
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ll the dioceses have placed a heavy emphasis on the formation of the basic ecclesial communities, which enable a thoroughgoing pastoral work among the laity, while at the same time reaching out to the non-Christians through practical aid in villages and urban areas. The diocesan clergy are themselves frequently materially poor, and we have been helping them with Mass intentions (a huge thank-you here for the solidarity expressed by our benefactors towards these local clergy). The training of the seminarians likewise needs to be supported and we are helping for the regional seminary. The ongoing formation of priests is vital – in a challenging political, sociological and material environment it is essential for them to recharge their spiritual resources at regular intervals. Of course we also supported the construction of churches and parish houses.
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he north-east is quite different again – with a tribal population (however it is not homogeneous: Nagaland is exclusively aboriginal, yet it has no fewer than 16 major different ethnic groups! ). Here too they are poor, above all in the diocese of Diphu. But they have a strong sense of identity, well anchored traditions and a strong sense of self-esteem. Depending on the particular tribes, the Church is more or less well-received (many Protestant groups were already active here long before the Catholics), but she continues to present her message,
with respect, devotion, perseverance and humility, the Word of Life, offered by Christ. With infinite respect for the tribal identity, and in protecting it, the Catholic Church, which is young given that the Catholic presence in Nagaland effectively dates back only around 50 years, has an absolute need to root her faithful in a profound spiritual life.
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he task of priests and religious is to proclaim and spread the Faith, but at the same time to allow it to grow in maturity. The basic ecclesial communities, although established, sometimes struggle to take off. The clergy have a crucial role in guiding the faithful here. We are helping for the construction of new churches, convents and presbyteries, and for village chapels deep in the jungle.
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mong of the more conspicuous projects I would note the construction of the minor seminary (and the intermediate seminary) in Jowai, in Meghalaya. If the Church is to continue her momentum, she will need local clergy, soundly trained – and as quickly as possible. Then there is the extension of the diocesan pastoral centre in Diphu. In 2015 we will receive a request for the construction of the pastoral centre in the diocese of Jowai, a major project, considering. Thanks to the generosity of our benefactors, we have been able to support 187 requests from India as a whole.
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Banglasdesh
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This task, to which the priests and religious of the country are tirelessly devoting themselves, was brutally trampled underfoot on the night of 6 July 2014 in the Catholic mission of Boldipuktur, in the diocese of Dinajpur. That night the convent belonging to the PIME Sisters was attacked. A group of 60 or so men, armed with machetes and iron bars, succeeded in forcing their way in. The convent was vandalised and the sisters beaten and attacked, only barely escaping being raped. The priests in the nearby presbytery were also attacked and brutally beaten. These attempts at intimidation, as Bishop Tudu confided to us, are the result of the attention paid by the Church to the poorest and to those with no voice.
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he Hindu dalits, the original inhabitants, are helpless against the extremist groups from the majority Bengali Muslim community, who are attempting by every possible means to steal their land. To own land in Bangladesh (or merely to occupy it for generations) is the most precious thing people can possess in this poor and densely populated country. And the attacks on the Christian (and aboriginal) communities are constantly growing in many of the dioceses. The response of the Church is, once again, to OFFER THE TRUTH AND BEAUTY OF THE GOSPEL. Of course, ACN immediately agreed to pay for the medical expenses and the psychological support of the priests and religious who had been attacked. We replaced the broken and stolen materials – but on top of this, at the request of Bishop Sebastian Tudu, we also helped the diocese financially to organise meetings for dialogue and reconciliation between the members of the Muslim community and the aboriginal Christians.
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National Youth Day, Khulna Diocese, Bangladesh.
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ne religious sister and one priest also took part. Nevertheless, Bangladesh is sliding into political turmoil, and the Catholic religious leaders are deeply worried for the future of the country. The national elections – the most bloody ever in Bangladesh – took place in January 2014 and resulted in a scarcely credible victory on the part of the Socialist Awami Party.
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he radical Muslim party had boycotted the elections and had « incited » the citizens to join in the boycott – terrorising the population by their violent actions. Throughout the country the attacks against the Christian minority are increasing, often against a background of financial litigation over property ownership, but one should also not forget the violence of small Islamist groups who want to seize control of the country. In this context the bishops have powerfully urged us to support the spiritual formation of the young people.
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ne major project at the national level and a number of smaller diocesan initiatives were undertaken thanks to funding from ACN. Here too the number of vocations to the priesthood depends greatly on the work of minor seminaries. We helped the diocese of Rajshahi to enlarge its minor seminary so that it can take in a larger number of young people with best possible conditions for study and discernment. The construction of churches and convents was likewise a sector where we helped.
nepal
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he definitive constitution, which was supposed to have been published in 2014, has still not seen the light of day. Nepal is witnessing a multiplication of Hindu nationalist parties, seeking the restoration of the monarchy and buoyed up by the victory of the BJP in India.
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he Christian community is again the target of discrimination. The Catholic Church numbers around 9,000 members and had the joy, in June last year, of welcoming Bishop Paul Simick, the new apostolic Vicar, who succeeded Bishop Sharma upon his retirement on grounds of age. We have already contacted the new bishop and he has submitted two requests to us for his vicariate – the construction of a parish house in a region of primary evangelisation, which two priests are charged with building up, and a new and stronger vehicle to enable him to visit the parishes of his diocese. •
The new Bishop of the Apostolic Vicariate of Nepal
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WesteRn euROpe/ReFugees - Peter humeniuk
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he requests submitted to the Western Europe /Refugees section were again comparable in 2014 with those of the previous year. Individual bishops’ conferences and bishops of the Western world continued to turn to us, as did some other project partners. Often requests for support are addressed to the directors of the national offices and subsequently forwarded to our section. Once again, the following aid was given:
1 For the contemplative life (in Western Europe, including Poland)
2 Support for seminaries (Haarlem in the Netherlands, Redemptoris Mater in Berlin and Denmark)
3 Pro Life projects (including the organisation pro Vita)
4 Media and publications (various radio stations, Kath.net and others)
5 The Greek Catholic Church (in France and Italy)
6 Organisations, congresses and other events in the interests of the New Evangelisation
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Fazenda, Germany
7 In France, as in Austria and Spain,
generous support was given to the Brothers and Sisters of the Lamb in Marseilles. In the case of these religious houses it is a question also of a Christian presence in the ‘Oriental’ quarters of the big cities.
8 The Fazendas in Germany 9 Various individual movements, such
as the Communaté Saint-Martin and the Emmanuel community
10 Finally, certain individual projects in
the donor countries, in close consultation and cooperation with the directors of the national offices.
The world needs god’s word
he main thrust of our support in Western Europe relates to the new evangelisation,, and many of the requests also showed just how difficult it is to reach the younger generation, for example, or to work with families. Another focus of the aid has been in connection with the movement of refugees from the Middle East.
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hen Archbishop Garmou, who is responsible for the Chaldean Catholics in Europe, visited KĂśnigstein in 2014, he provided us an overview of these different refugee groups. Numerically, Sweden is in first place, France in second and Germany in third place. Altogether 18 priests are involved in the pastoral care of the refugees, in 13 different countries of Western Europe for around 70,000 Chaldean Christians. Note should be taken of the situation in France, for example, where many refugees, including many Christians, have fled the barbarity of radical Islamist groups and are now ending up in majority Muslim suburbs of Paris or Marseille.
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s a result they need churches and centres where they can meet together and live their own identity. This is also very important for the many young refugees in Sweden, as the Bishop of Stockholm, Anders Arborelius, has emphasised. • Aid to the Church in Need
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schOlaRships sectiOn - Peter rettig
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t is not the fact that its project partners come from every part of the world that makes the scholarships section somewhat special. It is special because, in contrast to all the other project types, it depends exclusively on the project partner, the student, as to whether the project will yield one hundredfold or bear no fruit at all. It happens often enough that a parish priest may begin to build a church, his successor continues the work and only the third man actually gets to celebrate the first Holy Mass in it. But at all events, it still serves the community as initially planned.
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his also holds true for the car that is funded for a parish that is in difficulties, then moves, along with the parish priest to whom it was given, into a new parish – or else it remains in the original parish and the new priest uses it for his work. From the word go, it is clear what the car, the motorcycle, bicycle, church, presbytery or seminary building is intended for. It is of less consequence who is the actual worker in the vineyard of the Lord, who in fact uses it.
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n contrast to this, the student who receives a scholarship from us is of central importance for the wealth of the harvest that his home church may expect. Despite the best of preparation, in accordance with Luke 14:18, every scholarship funded is a calculated risk. In a similar way to the assessment of whether the means are sufficient, so too the student and his talents must be assessed. Many follow-up enquiries from us are necessary in order to clarify whether the proposed course of study actually fills a gap for the home church. Nonetheless, it is impossible to predict the success of the student‘s studies. Each student reacts in a different way to the culture shock in Europe and to the academic challenges.
Studies in theology at the Catholic University in Ruzomberok, Slovakia.
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If the student should be forced, through illness or poor examination results, to abandon his studies, if his Superior will not after
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all place him, as promised, at the disposal of a seminary, but instead transfers him to a parish – or if else the Church in Europe, with her many unfilled parishes, is too enticing the sacrifices of our benefactors bear little or indeed no fruit. ence it is all the more rewarding when we can see, even years later, how a former student is now passing on the fruits of his studies as a professor, head of a diocesan office, or even a bishop. We supported one Ukrainian female student in obtaining her Masters at the Kaslik University in Beirut, and in fact her work as a professor in Ukraine was so good that we have now also supported her for her doctorate.
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The great majority of our scholarship holders are training, at the request of their local churches, for duties as seminary professors. For one thing there is a shortage of professors at many seminaries, and in consequence there are gaps in the course of studies offered. For another, only very few such professors want to spend their entire career in the seminary.
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fter some years the enthusiasm wanes, or they long to be involved in pastoral work in a parish. When they first embarked on the path to the priesthood, most of them wanted to be pastors and not academic teachers. Hence the corpus of academic staff has to be refreshed at regular intervals. The requests to us will never come to an end. Aid to the Church in Need
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aFRica
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frica is dear to us all. We would gladly award more scholarships there but sadly, on this continent in particular, so many requests come to us in which it is not clear as to whether it is purely a matter of a personal wish by the student for an academic title or whether it does indeed relate to some definite need of the local church. Quite often the request for a scholarship is born solely of the wish to get out of the country. The decision is an easy one if, as a result of an affiliation request, the Pontifical University in Rome requires the local church to increase the number of professors with a doctoral title to the minimum number stipulated for affiliation (usually five). Owing to a lack of professional evaluation, the seminaries in Africa almost everywhere display deficiencies in the area of philosophy. Even when there are opportunities for
study in Africa, the pontifical universities in Rome nonetheless attach the greatest importance to ensuring that the doctorate is acquired at one of the pontifical universities – ideally in Rome itself.
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couple of examples will show where our help is indeed necessary and will bear rich fruit: a priest from Maiduguri in Northern Nigeria who is preparing to serve as a professor of philosophy at the Nigerian seminary in Jos; a priest from Biafra who will later teach at the new seminary in (when I visited there in 2013 the seminary consisted of a few unfinished buildings in the middle of the rainforest); a religious sister who, after completing her studies, is now a novice mistress, training the novices for their apostolate in Mali and a religious brother who, following his ‘année de resourcement spirituelle’, is now teaching at the ISSR (Institut Supérieur de Sciences Religieuses).
Missae ordinariae for the priests of the Congregation of the Sons of Mary Mother of Mercy, Umuahia
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The world needs god’s word
asia
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he largest proportion of our scholarships in 2013/14 went to Asia. Most of the students – it is no surprise – come from India. In second and third places are the students from China (Hebei) and Vietnam. One example out of many: The future responsibilities of one sister will take her to Northeast India as a formator of the novices and catechists.
latin aMeRica
he Latin American bishops are seeking and finding help from elsewhere. Most of the students, by a long way, come from Brazil. The poorer dioceses of Brazil will always find our door is open. The next largest group comes from Haiti. Haiti is in fact a priority for the scholarships section, but sadly the requests we receive present us with some quite special challenges.
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easteRn euROpe
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astern Europe is no longer a priority for the scholarships section. The scholarships for Polish students are currently expiring, while we scarcely receive any requests from the Czech Republic or Slovakia any more. We must however remain aware of Southeast Europe. The seminary in Shkoder, which is now in the hands of the Albanian bishops and no longer being run by the Jesuits, will need help to build up and maintain its academic staff. We have heard from Romania that the level of the academic staff in the seminaries leaves something to be desired. There is a lack of teaching staff with doctoral titles. Future visits or have to show why, despite this finding, no requests are coming in.
Our requests for more information meet with only very tardy responses, while our enquiries as to the actual duties of our former scholarship holders meet with unsatisfactory answers – and the students we are currently supporting in Europe, by their requests for extensions, show a regrettable tendency of not wishing to return home. Construction of a church in Xiduzhuang village, Hebei Province, China.
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Another aspect to be borne in mind is how the Churches in Romania will cope with the imminent generational change in a few years time.
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here are a couple of requests I would like to highlight here – both negative and positive. One student from Crimea was due to study Islamic studies in order to prepare to engage in Christian-Muslim dialogue. However it is questionable as to whether he will be able to make use of his knowledge, in light of the current events there. Nonetheless, we are not giving up hope. With the help of God he will undoubtedly be able to work somewhere for the good of his fellow men and of our Church. At the same time a religious sister from Bela-
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rus is studying pastoral psychology. Young people, trapped between post-communism and totalitarianism, are without prospects and often enough fall victim to drug abuse. he priests, religious sisters and laity working in the youth apostolate are reaching the limits of their capacities and at the same time their own inner limits. Many suffer burnout. Thanks to this sister, who was already offering in-service training courses during her academic holidays, and hence also thanks to our help, they are recovering new energy to enable them once again to work and bring blessings in the vineyard of the Lord. •
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Mass stipends - fr. Andrzej halemba
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n 2014, thanks to our benefactors, we were able to support 35,214 needy priests with a total of 1,219,063 Mass stipends. Thus, worldwide, we were able to support one in every nine priests with Mass stipends and every day Holy Mass was celebrated 3,340 times for the intentions of our benefactors. On average, one Holy Mass was therefore celebrated every 26 seconds for the intentions of our benefactors. The total of Mass Intentions and where these Masses were celebrated during 2014 were as follows: ‘Normal’ Masses (missae ordinariae) Triduum Masses Novenas Gregorian Masses Sung Masses Africa Asia Latin America Eastern Europe Western Europe
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994,961 5,297 9,361 4,048 2,522 39.5 % 24.4% 16.5% 17.8% 1.6%
he following gives some example of the help our Mass Stipends provide throughout the World.
kiRiBati
he Pacific island nation of Kiribati consists of numerous small islands scattered across a vast area. Many of the 63,000 Catholics who make up approximately half the population live on these small and very remote islands. The priests have to travel long distances between the islands in order to minister to the Catholic faithful. Bishop Paul Mea writes to tell us that, although the people are very generous, they themselves are extremely poor and are thus not in a position to financially support their priests.
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he islanders generally live by fishing and by the production of copra – dried coconut used for the production of oil. However, as a result of the changing climate, the coconut palms are producing fewer and fewer fruits, while on the smaller islands, where few people live, it is not possible to earn much by fishing either. Consequently the bishop asked us for Mass stipends for his 28 priests, and we sent him 2,800 Mass intentions, donated by our benefactors. He writes, ‘My priests and I cannot thank you enough for your great generosity, and so we pray to God that he may bless you and reward you for this wonderful gift, which is being shared out equally among all our priests.’
The world needs god’s word
yuRiMaguas (peRu)
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he apostolic vicariate of Yurimaguas is situated in the Amazon region of eastern Peru. With a total area of 70,000 km², it is considerably larger than many of the smaller European countries. For example, Switzerland and the Netherlands each have an area of no more than around 41,000 km². The great majority of the vicariate is covered in rainforest, and it is here that a variety of indigenous tribes live. There is immense poverty. Most live in huts roofed with palm branches and most of the small village settlements can only be reached by boat. There are no roads, and the medical care and education are provided almost exclusively by the missionaries. ll in all there are close on 2.2 million people living within the vicariate of Yurimaguas. Approximately 240,000 of them are Catholics. They are ministered to by just 23 priests. These priests have to travel vast distances in order to reach the Catholic faithful, in not only difficult but often also dangerous conditions.
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Every year our benefactors support the priests here in Yurimaguas through their Mass stipends. In 2014 they gave 8,100 Euros. Writing on behalf of all these priests, the administrator of the vicariate told us, ‘We are most grateful to you Aid to the Church in Need
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and to our brothers and sisters who are helping us for this sign of communion that you always show us, and I want to express to you the gratitude of all the priests of the vicariate. e pray to Almighty God that he may always support you with his grace and that the Blessed Virgin may shelter you beneath her protective mantle.’
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ZanZiBaR (tanZania)
anzibar, off the coast of East Africa, comprises two islands, Unguja und Pemba, which have formed part of Tanzania since 1964. In January 2014 the diocese of Zanzibar celebrated the 150th anniversary of the arrival of the Catholic faith, which was brought here by the Spiritan Fathers. Today there are approximately 13,600 Catholics living on
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the two islands, according to information from the pontifical yearbook. They thus represent roughly 1% of the population. Generally speaking, the Christians have always lived here in harmony alongside the Muslim majority of the population, and many Muslims today greatly appreciate the charitable services of the Catholic Church, which are open to them also. In recent years, however, there have been increasing problems with extremist Muslim groups. ishop Augustine Shao, himself a Spiritan priest, like the first missionaries here, is very concerned for his priests, especially since one of them was attacked with acid and set on fire on 13 September 2013. The priest survived the attack, but his face, chest and arms are still severely burned. In fact this was not the first direct attack of this kind but
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Mass in Kiribiti.
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AnnUAl rePorT 2014
already the fourth. Bishop Shao tells us, ‘This fourth incident has indeed sparked fears, in me, among the priests, the religious and the ordinary parishioners. We are living as though we were wanted criminals. It is sad enough that not one of the attackers has been arrested by the police, despite the fact that this criminal act took place in broad daylight on a crowded market square!’ t the same time, however, this experience of violence has also strengthened the people in their faith and many have decided to live more consciously in the spirit of the Gospel and to receive the Sacraments with still greater devotion. The year 2014, as a jubilee year for the Church in Zanzibar, offered them a special opportunity to strengthen and celebrate their Faith. And so the priests in the nine parishes of the diocese have a great deal to do. At the same time they are striving at every level to promote a harmonious coexistence between Christians and Muslims.
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Mass for his intentions. And we know from our experience that such Mass offerings also represent a great help for the needy Church and for the priests who carry out their ministry in the most difficult of conditions.
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t the same time they create a spiritual bridge between the one who receives the Mass stipend, the priest who celebrates the Holy Mass, and the person for whose intentions the Holy Mass is being offered. •
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ishop Shao has asked for Mass stipends for his 18 priests as a means of helping and supporting them. We have sent him 5,454 Euros, representing 1,000 Mass intentions donated by our benefactors. The Church never ceases to remind us that the most beautiful gift one can give either a living or an already deceased person consists in the offering of Holy
Bishop Augustine Ndeliakyama Shao diocese of Zanzibar in Tanzania
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cOMMunicatiOns depaRtMent mark von riedemann
recent edition of The Economist entitled ‘Planet of the Phones’ the authors predict a world in which 80% of adults will have a supercomputer in their pockets by 2020. The average mobile phone use today is two hours a day. This is also set to grow with the increasing reliance on this tool.
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The resulting demand for instant information is already now placing extraordinary communication burdens not only on industry but also on NGO’s and charitable organizations. Although ACN’s Communication Department is not a press agency, the almost instantaneous communication of issues like violence against Christians provokes ever-increasing requests to national offices from press, radio, TV and social media requiring rapid and yet accurate response. As the following report shows it is a challenge to which we are, and must continue to grow.
urch in Need
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* Not including the Mirror texts and projects) One request generates 1-10 descriptions (offers). In 2014 the team provided 212 project descriptions. 82
the MiRROR
he Mirror continues to be for many offices the most significant identity and income generator. In 2014, the team completed a record 8 publications in 10 languages in 31 versions (new Korea and Colombia) + Annual Reports and Christmas cards. Notwithstanding the continued success and gratitude to the Mirror team, it has become evident that a profound review was necessary as approximately 10 of the 17 offices have or are making local layout and or content changes to the international publication. A process is now ongoing to review the Mirror layout, content and workflow.
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seRvices
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erhaps one of the most uncelebrated and yet important corners of the department is the Services desk. Here daily requests from - now 20 - national offices demand creativity and diplomatic skills, negotiating between ‘I need this for tomorrow’ national office deadlines and information accessibility and head of section availability. In 2014, the Services team answered over 300 requests (including but not limited to): Project Descriptions*: Internet Projects: Mirror Projects:
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f particular note was the additional number of Project Descriptions prepared (22 for Iraq and 32 for ), which bundled together Syria), with the Press and Photo materials, served the approximately €4 million and €2 million global fundraising campaigns for Iraq and Syria respectively. The resounding success of these fundraising actions for the national offices offers a vision for similar global actions in the future.
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he Services section also includes the Adoptions desk which also witnessed – and will increasingly witness - growth as national offices sought specific projects for major donors. The desk responded to 115 requests providing 163 project descriptions for individual donors, parishes and other groups.
pRess
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he most meaningful recognition comes from professional peers and so too, for the Services, Press and Photo sections, gratitude for the work was expressed through an extended applause by the national office journalists at the November Communications Conference. In 2014 the Press team prepared 39 Features, 18 Interviews and 90 ACN News (approximately 4 pieces of news per week) as well as 6 Albums - a comprehensive selection of factsheets, news, features and photos bundled as packages in 4 languages anticipating media events related to national office press & fundraising needs. Aid to the Church in Need
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Themes included (but not limited to) topical events such as: the papal visit to the Holy Land, Turkey and the Philippines, events in Central Africa, Syria and Ukraine and the Canonization of JPII & John XXIII and multiple campaigns for Iraq. Of special mention, however, was the first ever Global Prayer Campaign for Iraq. ISIS daubed the Arabic letter ‘N’, denoting Nazarene (Christian) on the doors of Iraqi Christians to terrorize them furthering an already frantic flight to safety in the Kurdish held regions. The Communications Department coordinated an international prayer campaign to help Catholics identify with the plight of Christians in Iraq and the Middle East.
On August 6, 2014 on the Feast of the Transfiguration of Our Lord together with the Chaldean Patriarch Louis Raphael Sako - who formulated the prayer for this initiative - the charity called on all people of good will to ‘combine our voices and our hearts before the Lord in order to ask for peace’. The campaign was run by the majority of offices making this the first truly global prayer campaign initiative. phOtOs urs is an increasingly visual culture. The authority of a photo to combine emotion and truth places this medium at the heart of all ACN communications.
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This is reflected through the demands placed on the Photo Archives, which in 2014 totalled over 649 responses to national office requests. Over 6039 print files were also made available throughout the year and in addition the department continues to select, refine, credit and upload the (now) 42,255 photos to the iPIC.
text aRchive
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he cataloguing of the Text Archive continues apace - an in depth sorting of the historical files in preparation for the 2015 digitising of the most historically relevant documentation. Our Text Archive team has already started uploading the older Mirrors to iPIC - only the tip of the jewels that lie as yet buried in files to be made available for national office needs. 84
AnnUAl rePorT 2014
sOcial Media
2014 saw the planned re-launch of the Communications Department Social Media service with the following steps being implemented: A Strategic Plan including an assessment of needs and new media vision; the implementation of new media strategies (short and long term) as well as initiatives to improve efficiency and impact and finally a review of the necessary Social Media tools and content to achieve these goals.
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his section, in addition to support to the Global Prayer Campaign for Iraq, responded as well to the spiral of violence following the Boko Haram attacks and atrocities in Northern Nigeria, coordinating its first social media-specific prayer campaign for Nigeria on November 13-14, 2014 with the successful participation of a number of national offices.
ipic
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he iPIC has been in operation for a little more than one year. The success of this tool is best evidenced by the rapid growth of national office use. In 2014 there was a total of 16.953 downloads by the national offices. To this end, please find the breakdown by national office (texts, photos, video etc). Portrait of the warrior, traditional tribal culture in Papua New Guinea, ACN iPic.
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acn ReligiOus FReedOM RepORt
26 authors, 12 translators, 8 proof readers for 196 countries, over 500 pages including statistics, case studies, trend indicators, analysis, translated into German, French, Italian, Portuguese and Spanish. These are the core elements of the ACN Religious Freedom Report undertaken every two years (comparable to reports produced by the US State Department, Open Doors and the Pew Research Centre).
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nder Editorial Committee oversight and produced in cooperation with the UK office, the report covered events from autumn 2012 to summer 2014 considering all religious groups and concluding that, in the 196 countries analyzed, deteriorating conditions were noted in 55 countries (or 28%). In addition to the full report secondary publications were devel-
oped including an Executive Summary (with a foreword by Pakistan’s former Federal Minister for Harmony Dr. Paul Bhatti), At-a-Glance findings, Main Findings, Case Studies and a Map indicating countries of High, Medium, Of Concern and Low Persecution as well as an Overall State of Religious Freedom Table.
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o support the national office media needs the Communications Department created FAQ’s and a press release, and to support online needs the department prepared three 30-second spots and a landing page with the URL www.religion-freedom-report. org to encourage search engine optimisation. The world-wide launch took place on November 4, 2014 in seven capitals across Europe including the Houses of Parliament in London (with a direct appeal from HRH Prince Charles).
Religious Freedom in the World 2014 – Executive Summary
RELIGIOUS FREEDOM IN THE WORLD – 2014
Full RepORt availaBle in the ResOuRces sectiOn at acniReland.ORg 86
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
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acn-eu liaisOn
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he intent, through the presentation of Catholic delegations, is to enable the voice of the suffering Church to be heard, provide the necessary information for the political decision makers and to develop relationships with the different political families of the European Parliament, Commission and Council. All the participating Bishops and clergy have repeatedly expressed their gratitude in being able to communicate their message at this level. 2014 presented a unique challenge due to the campaigning and election of the heads to the main European Union institutions (European Parliament, Commission and Council Presidency) reducing the time available for ACN delegations. Notwithstanding this, ACN was able to coordinate programs for 9 delegations as well as witness the more frequent mention of the term ‘Christian’ as a persecuted people in EU official documents. he reluctance of EU policy-makers to name this particular faith group remains high, however, this change was reflected more clearly when, in October 2014, there were two Catholic candidates (out of seven) nominated to receive the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought, given by the European Parliament: Patriarch Louis Raphaël Sako and Aid to the Church in Need together with other 3 organizations promoting the protection of Christians in the Middle East.
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he reputation of the quality of the information provided by ACN led to several requests for complementary information and contacts by policy-makers preparing visits or reports about a number of countries. A prestigious EU-based media, The Parliament Magazine published an article about the persecuted Christians in the Middle East in early October written by ACN’s John Newton and Marcela Szymanski. ACN was also asked to help organize a large Seminar at the European Parliament, featuring the successful presentation of ACN’s Worldwide Religious Freedom Report.
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Fr. Andrzej Halemba of ACN and Patriarch Louis Raphaël I Sako, Head of the Chaldean Catholic Church.
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cathOlic RadiO and televisiOn netWORk
2014 was another strong year for CRTN with over 152 TV and Radio programs produced. Programs produced included: • 13 documentaries in 3 languages broadcast on 24 networks in 10 countries • 52 WGW TV & Radio (English) weekly broadcast on 11 TV’s in 7 countries and on over 120 Catholic radios. • 52 DDL TV & Radio (Spanish) weekly broadcast on 6 TV’s in 19 countries (USA/Latin America) and over 100 Catholic radios. Broadcast outlets in 2014 included: Brazil:
Rede Vida, TV XXI, Aparecida, Amazonsat, Nazaret, C. Nova;
Canada: Salt and Light TV; France: KTO; Germany: Bibel TV, EWTN, KTV; Ireland:
SKY (EWTN);
Poland:
TV Twam / TVP;
Portugal: RTP1/2, TVI, TVCN, Cancao Nova; Spain:
• 19 short productions + language versions = 46 • 16 x 30 second spots + language versions = 54
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he good cooperation with Canada’s Catholic TV network Salt + Light (S+L) and the Toronto Catholic District School Board with the support of ACN Canada and CRTN enabled the launch of the S+L Education Portal, a digital tool created to assist religion teachers in teaching the tenets of the Faith. The online portal provides unlimited on-demand access allowing high school teachers to set up virtual classrooms able to create and share video assignments for their students to complete.
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TVE;
United SKY (EWTN); USA: EWTN, Kingdom: NETV, Catholic TV, Telecare.
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ith the increasing use of CRTN products on ACN sites and the growing demand for Internetspecific production, a special focus was short format programming. In 2014 CRTN produced 100 such products for TV and national office websites including:
s you know, 2014 witnessed an extraordinarily generous response of the benefactors enabling the growth of the charity worldwide. This growth is, of course, due to the continued suffering, and in many cases martyrdom, of the persecuted Church. For this we continue to pray for an end. Within this suffering, however, it is our privilege to serve. Thank you. •
AnnUAl rePorT 2014
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GO REBUILD MY CHURCH
Wake up the World 15 - 2
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Commemorative Edition Aid to the Church in Need
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Farms of Hope, Brazil
Proclaiming the Joy of the Gospel to the Poor of the World 14 - 1
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Aid to the Church in Need Apostles of Hope helping the Church heal the world. Signs of Contradiction Signs of the Times
Good News for the Family
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CROSSING THE THRESHOLD OF HOPE
The Way to Peace
Radiating Joy to the World 14 - 5
23/06/2014 08:16
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25/03/2014 09:50
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CROSSING THE THRESHOLD OF HOPE
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Holy Priests, Holy People 14 - 3
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CROSSING THE THRESHOLD OF HOPE
Nourishing the Christian Life +e714ei_print.indd 2
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BEING MISSIONARIES OF JOY
Strangers in a Strange land 14 - 7
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