FAITH ALIVE issue 5 by ACN Malta

The Interactive Magazine

ISSUE No 5

FAITH ALIVE

YOUR DONATION IS SAVING LIVES Helping the suffering Church today www.acnmalta.org

SYRIA: Please DON’T FORGET US

LEBANON: DON’T Let Children go to bed HUNGRY

This LENT do a WORK OF MERCY

HOW TO use this magazine

A word from the National Director

Read Inspiring stories

…of faith-strong men and women around the world who are shining the light of Christ even in the darkest parts of the world.

PLAY VIDEO Catch a quick glimpse

Click on “play video” to catch a quick glimpse of the reach and impact of ACN’s work around the world.

I am delighted to present to you another edition of Faith Alive, the first for this year 2021. The theme of this edition “Your donation is saving lives” expresses how your wonderful support is making a real difference to many Christians around the world who are living through very challenging circumstances. You will read how Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) is rescuing children and young people from the streets of Brazil, as well as providing urgent aid to needy Christian families in Lebanon and Syria.

Help us support those in need

We invite you to consider making a donation to help us fund key projects which provide essential aid to Christians in need around the world.

In the words of Brazilian Priest, Fr Francisco Danízio Silva, “You, supporters of ACN, have helped us greatly. Your support is directly linked to the help we can give to these brothers and sisters of ours who need so much…our compassion, our attention and our loving support.” As we begin the time of Lent, I invite you to take concrete steps to nurture your Faith through the three pillars of Lent: prayer, fasting and charity. With your charitable support, this Lent, we can continue helping Christians who practically rely on our compassion to survive. Do read through and please donate what you can, as it is only through your kindness that we are able to show the love of Christ and support those in need. With prayers for a holy Lent and a joyful Easter.

39b, Mdina Road, Attard, ATD 9038 Call 00356 2148 7818 Email info@acnmalta.org Twitter @acn_malta Facebook Aid to the Church in Need Malta Instagram acn_malta

www.acnmalta.org Aid to the Church in Need is a Pontifical Foundation of the Catholic Church and registered in Malta Reg. No. LPF-212, as a Foundation regulated by the second schedule of the Civil Code Chapter (16) of the Laws of Malta.

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Stephen Axisa National Director Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) Malta PS: As an international Catholic charitable foundation, which primarily strives to help nurture the Faith and well-being of persecuted and suffering Christians worldwide, ACN (Malta) supports important projects undertaken by the respective Christian dioceses (Bishops, Priests, Sisters and lay people) in 148 countries. While ACN gives full permission for the media to freely make use of the charity’s publications, please acknowledge ACN as the source of stories when using the material.

SUCCESS STORY

YOUR DONATION IS SAVING LIVES

Fr Renato with one of the children living in the Children home

“The lives of babies, children, adolescents and now also young people and adults, are being saved daily through your donations. These persons were living in a state of abandonment, without hope and without the basic means of living. The thousands of children and young people whom we have rescued in the course of 34 years are the fruit of the little and large gestures of love by unknown and generous individuals, such as yourselves. Without you, we could do nothing. You are the arms of God’s providence, who loves them through us. You make a material donation, and God gives you the joy of knowing that it is useful, today and in the future.” These words, addressed to Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) come from Fr Renato Chiera, an Italian priest who has spent 42 years in Brazil, dedicating his life to rescuing children and young people from the streets. Thanks to donations from ACN, the St Michael the Archangel Children Home (Casa do Menor São Miguel Arcanjo), in Nova Iguaçu, Río de Janeiro, finally has a 4

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Fr Renato dedicates his life to the recovery of children and young people living on the street

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YOUR DONATION IS SAVING LIVES

chapel of its own. The young people there will now for the first time be able to encounter God in this place of prayer. ACN is already supporting Casa do Menor with spiritual and religious literature, such as the ACN Child’s Bible, and with improvements in its basic infrastructure. The story of Casa do Menor goes back to 1978, when Fr Renato first arrived in Brazil and began to explore some of the poorest and most deprived areas of Rio de Janeiro. He found an atmosphere of latent violence, even among children, forcing them into a world of drugs and drug dealing. In one single month, in fact, 36 young people were murdered within his parish. Fr Renato was already profoundly troubled by everything he saw there when, in 1982, a cry for help reached his presbytery. “The first cry for help that reached us was from young Pirata, an orphaned boy who was living on the streets almost like a dog, taking drugs in an effort to kill the hunger in his heart,” he recalls. The boy told Fr Renato, ‘Father, I don’t want to die. They’ve shot me; they’re going to kill me.’ The blood was gushing from his neck. I took him in, and as soon as he began to feel loved, he no longer wanted to take drugs or rob people. He started to learn about the Christian Faith and began to work.” Tragically, this boy was murdered one day by a death squad. It was then that Fr Renato began to think that he must create something new for these youngsters. That was

when the idea of the Saint Michael the Archangel boys’ home was born. “I began to take in these boys, first of all in my own rectory, then on the verandah and then in the garage. It was okay for my little car to spend the night on the road and ‘sleep’ outside, but not for Jesus, who was living in those boys. So that’s how my story began.” As of today, more than 100,000 children and young people have passed through the doors of Casa do Menor, which welcomes them as members of the family, helps them to continue their studies, and enables them to spend some time with God, thereby helping towards their reintegration into society. “We are not simply a refuge, we are a home, a family. Today these youngsters have ‘fathers’ and ‘mothers,’ thanks to whom they can live the experience of being beloved sons and daughters.” Fr Renato is most grateful to the donors of ACN for enabling him to continue offering a decent home to these youngsters and now also build a chapel for Casa do Menor. “We thank ACN for the important help they’ve given us, both for the infrastructure and for the spiritual formation and growth. I would like the donors to be able to rejoice with us at the miracles of transformation and the rescuing of these lives, which were once under a death sentence.”

Please “Help us support those in Need” thank you 7

SYRIA

PLEASE DON’T FORGET US Coronavirus is causing the West to forget the people of Syria who are still in desperate need of healing after almost ten years of conflict – according to a Nun who has risked her life to provide urgent aid.

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Sister Annie Demerjian told Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) that Covid-19 has brought Syria’s recovery to a halt. She said: “Syria is like someone who has had a serious operation and s/he needs to heal, s/he needs to recover and s/he suddenly doesn’t have time to recover. The world has begun to forget about Syria, and that’s painful.” Sister Annie, a longstanding project partner for ACN, explained that just as people were beginning to piece their lives back together, the pandemic came as a cruel blow. She said: “Everybody knows we are coming out of a very difficult situation, the civil war. People were beginning to breathe again, the remaining Christians were beginning to rise and stand again on their feet. “Then, the pandemic came and people collapsed. It’s a big burden – no work, no jobs.” Sister Annie stressed that the combination of the civil war, the pandemic and fresh economic sanctions against the government of Syria have left many people in abject poverty. She said: “Life without electricity and gas is very hard and that’s because of the sanctions. Only every couple of hours, we get one hour of electricity. That is not enough to heat a house. “There is not enough gas even to cook food.” Highlighting the rampant poverty, she said: “Many times we receive calls, people are hungry, they have nothing to eat.” ACN has

helped Sister Annie provide jackets for more than 26,000 children for the winter months when temperatures can drop below zero. She said: “A father cannot buy his child a jacket because one jacket is equal to his salary, or more. Our campaign was for families who find it impossible to help their children. It has helped thousands of children. “You cannot imagine the joy on the faces and in the eyes of children when they received these jackets”. Emphasising that the jacket campaign provided jobs, Sister Annie added: “We are trying to help the economy, 40 shops and small factories made these jackets which, in turn, also created jobs. We had two goals: creating jobs and distributing jackets to our children in this harsh winter.” Sister Annie thanks ACN’s supporters. She said: “Even in this difficult time, the benefactors of ACN didn’t stop supporting us. I always pray for the benefactors and the workers of ACN – you are doing amazing, amazing work. Through ACN, we are helping 270 families with their daily costs of living. We are also supporting 84 families in Aleppo and Damascus with their rent.”

Please “Help us support those in Need” thank you 9

THIS LENT, DO A WORK OF MERCY In this Season of Lent, the Holy Father calls us to help spread God’s mercy to our brothers and sisters in Christ around the world. In the video below, he says: “I invite you all, together with ACN, to do everywhere in the world, a work of mercy”.

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https://youtu.be/oFCiXxHCvlE

God’s Mercy - Pope’s video message to the world

THE WORKS OF MERCY

CORPORAL

SPIRITUAL

FEED THE HUNGRY

INSTRUCT THE IGNORANT

GIVE DRINK TO THE THIRSTY

COUNSEL THE DOUBTFUL

SHELTER THE HOMELESS

ADMONISH SINNERS

CLOTHE THE NAKED

FORGIVE OFFENCES

VISIT THE SICK

COMFORT THE AFFLICTED

VISIT THE IMPRISONED

BEAR WRONGS PATIENTLY

BURY THE DEAD

PRAY FOR THE LIVING AND THE DEAD

LEBANON

DON’T LET CHILDREN GO TO BED HUNGRY

Charbel, the grandson of Georgette, is one of the beneficiaries of an ACN food package

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There was a time when Lebanon’s capital city, Beirut, was known as the ‘Paris of the Middle East’ and, given the profound crisis that Lebanon is currently experiencing, the memory of those glamorous times is all the more painful today. The financial crisis, with the banks on the brink of bankruptcy, the devastatingly high level of unemployment and the sheer lack of hope for the future are bringing this once prosperous Middle Eastern country to the edge of the abyss.

Georgette with one of her grandchildren, Charbel

For many people, the struggle for survival is a reality, especially for those with little children in their care – people like Georgette. She is a living image of the tragic situation that is afflicting Lebanon. Her cabinets were almost empty. Food was quickly running out. Georgette’s three grandchildren were hungry, but where do you go for necessities in a country where everyone is suffering? Where food is a scarcity you can only hope to afford? “I live in a poor quarter of the city and our situation is very bad, especially after last August’s explosion in Beirut. I live there with my three grandchildren. We are all alone in that house. I am responsible for them and I don’t have anybody to help me, except for God, and the benefactors of ACN,” she said. Georgette is a recipient of food packages made possible through the kindness of ACN donors, and they arrived just at the right time. These care parcels contain basic provisions which Georgette gratefully accepts. “I was so delighted to receive this help, because it means I can now feed my grandchildren for a month,” she explained. Though she struggles, Georgette is constantly comforted by her Christian Faith. “I know that I am not alone, and this is more important to me even more than the food aid… just knowing that there are people thinking about us. I give thanks to God every day. He has always guided me and my family and has sent us kind people to help us through these difficult times.” This is just one example - one woman, one mother, one grandmother - desperately trying to keep her family safe and healthy. Lebanon is filled with ‘Georgettes’, those consumed with worry and heartbreak that their children will go to bed hungry. Would you be the person that those in need, like Georgette, give thanks for when their burdens are lifted? Your kind donation will enable Aid to the Church in Need (Malta) reach out to many more Christians in distress this winter.

Please “Help us support those in Need” thank you 13

Kiddies Corner Question: 52

Colouring & Matching

Liturgical Colour If you walk into a Catholic church anywhere in the world, you will find certain things that are needed there. You may have also noticed that the robes of the priest and altar servers in the Mass change colours often. If you want to know the deeper meaning behind this, read the explanation given below for the meaning behind the colours. You can then colour in the individual robes.

Palm Sunday, Good Friday, Martyrs' Day, Pentecost

Christmastide, Holy Thursday, Easter season A symbol that Jesus defeated death. It is also worn at high Mass and subsequent festivities. Sometimes replaced by gold or silver robes.

Colour of blood, fire and symbol of the Holy Spirit. Indicates Jesus' death and the death of martyrs.

Green Robe

Violet Robe

All Souls' Day, Requiem Masses

Advent, Lent

Colour of sorrow and suffering. The pain is not suppressed, but taken seriously. The liturgy directs the mourners' gaze to eternal life. Can also be replaced by violet.

Black Robe

Rose Robe

Red Robe

Colour of the transition (red is the colour of the earth - blue the colour of the sky, red mixed with blue results in violet). For example, to remind us that Jesus became man (from heaven to earth) or urge conversion (from earth to heaven).

White Robe

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