Mauritius oil spill: Catholic cardinal says local villages are suffering

Antananarivo, Madagascar, Jun 5, 2018 / 04:01 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- During a meeting last month between representatives of the bishops of Africa and Germany discussing integral human development, both groups affirmed their need to continue the work of evangelization.

“As Church, both in Africa and in Germany, the Holy Spirit is opening our eyes to the fact that we still have a lot to do in our mission of evangelization,” read a May 27 statement signed by Archbishop Gabriel Mbilingi of Lubango and Cardinal Reinhard Marx of Munich and Freising.

The communique was released following a May 22-27 seminar in Antananarivo, Madagascar, between the German bishops’ conference and the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar, which are chaired by Cardinal Marx and Archbishop Mbilingi, respectively.

The bishops pointed to poverty, misery, disease, and despair in Africa “caused by human greed and corruption, injustices of all kinds and violence and fratricidal wars,” and in Europe, a “dearth of spiritual values, excessive materialism and consumerism, individualism, little or no of respect for the life and rights of the unborn, of the aged and the infirm.”

“All of these evils .. point to the fact that as Church we still have a lot to do in our evangelization mission,” they affirmed.

In addition to proclaiming the gospel, the bishops said evangelization is “the work of deepening our Christian formation and the formation of consciences of our political and socio-economic leaders, as well as the offering of true witness of our faith in Christ.”

“Evangelization should lead all to understand and develop their lives of relationships with God, with their fellow women and men, and with creation,” they wrote. “This work of building relationship demands that we work with all women and men of good will in order to create a new and better world for all to have the chance to develop their talents to the best of their capabilities, and to bring these to serve every body, living and even yet unborn.”

The May seminar was the eighth such meeting between German and African bishops. The tradition began in 1982, and they occur every four to five years. A statement ahead of the event said that they discuss “mutually agreed issues as part of an effort to promote pastoral solidarity between Germany and the African continent, and also to discuss issues relevant to promoting the growth of the church in the two Conferences. The meetings have contributed to the deepening and intensification of the relationship between the local Churches in Africa and the Church in Germany.”

This year’s theme of integral human development was needed because of secularization and globalization, and was inspired by Catholic social teaching of the last 50 years, said the concluding document. It cited the importance of Bl. Paul VI’s Populorum Progressio, Benedict XVI’s Caritas in veritate, and Pope Francis’ Laudato si’.

They reflected that integral human development “must ensure the total well-being of the person, of every person and of every human society,” and said, “we must renew our missionary zeal working for integral human development as an indispensable part of our mandate.”

The seminar resulted in seven resolutions: a renewed commitment to working for a more just world; the need for development “to respect the ecological limitations of our planet earth”; speaking up “for a more just global order especially regarding international trade”; that “the empowerment of all women worldwide and in all fields of society is a necessary pre-condition for the development of every single person”; that evangelization will be tied to integral human development; to advocate development both domestically aind internationally; and to continue “this dialogue and cooperation and communion between the Church in Africa and in Germany”.

The statement concluded, “We are thankful for the fraternal communion and greater understanding with each other and as representatives of our local Churches.”

“At this meeting in Antananarivo, we have become more aware of the unique wealth and unique opportunities that characterize our Church, universal and global. We are a global community and communion of learning, prayer and solidarity, sent to be witnesses of faith, hope and love to the whole world. By so doing, we are serving the integral development of every person and of the whole human person.”

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CNA Staff, Nov 27, 2020 / 08:20 am (CNA).- A Nigerian archbishop has asked for prayers for the safe release of a priest kidnapped in Abuja earlier this week.

Fr. Matthew Dajo was kidnapped on Sunday night. Police are currently working to negotiate his… […]

CNA Staff, Jun 11, 2020 / 03:00 pm (CNA).- The militant group Boko Haram is believed to be behind a recent attack on a Nigerian village that left at least 81 people dead on Tuesday, June 9. 

A survivor of the attack on the village of Faduma Kolomdi, located in the northeastern Nigerian state of Borno, according to local news outlets, said that militants requested that the village residents turn over their weapons, and offered to preach a sermon to them before the attack.

“They gathered us and said they wanted to deliver a religious sermon to us. They asked us to submit whatever arms we had. Some villagers gave up their dane guns, bow and arrows,” said the survivor, who was speaking to a government official about the attack. 

“Suddenly, they started shooting at will. Even children and women were not spared, many were shot at close range,” said the survivor.  

In addition to those killed, an additional 13 were injured and seven more, including the leader of the village, were abducted, along with several hundred cattle. The attack lasted approximately six hours, from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. The attackers fled after the Nigerian Air Force fired shots at them from a fighter jet. 

The governor of Borno state, Babagana Zulum, called for the country’s military to step up its efforts against extremists groups. Zulum visited Faduma Kolomdi on Wednesday and met with survivors of the attack.

Zulum cited the repeated attacks by the Isalmist group Boko Haram and its splinter organizations and demanded the military take more aggressive action. 

“Last year, about the same number of people were killed in Gajiram like it happened again” said Zulum. 

“This is barbaric. It is very unfortunate. The only solution to end this massacre is by dislodging the insurgents in the shores of Lake Chad. Doing so will require collaborative regional efforts,” he added.  

A spokesman for the Nigerian military said in a statement on Wednesday that the attack was committed by Boko Haram and Islamic State West African Province (ISWAP), and that action would be taken to “track and apprehend or neutralize the perpetrators.” 

“We further wish to reiterate that the Nigerian Army is committed to investigate the circumstances of these callous attacks by desperate Boko Haram criminals and the bandits on innocent civilians,” said the statement from Col. Sagir Musa, the acting director of public relations for the Nigerian Army. 

“We would ensure that appropriate action is taken to mitigate against any future incidents. While thanking Nigerians for their understanding, we implore all to continue to support and cooperate with the troops as they carry out their duties,” he said. 

The attack is the latest in an ongoing series of killings and kidnappings in Nigeria, often carried out by Islamist group against the country’s Christian population. Last week a Christian pastor and his pregnant wife were killed on their farm in northeastern region of the country.

More than 600 Christians have been killed so far in 2020, according to a report on May 15 by the International Society for Civil Liberties and the Rule of Law (Intersociety). Christians have been beheaded and set on fire, farms set ablaze, and priests and seminarians have been targeted for kidnapping and ransom.

In January, militants kidnapped four Catholic seminarians from Good Shepherd Seminary in Kaduna and eventually killed one of them, Michael Nnadi. On March 1, Nigerian priest Fr. David Echioda was kidnapped by gunmen after offering Sunday Mass, but was released days afterward.

Speaking to CNA in February, Ambassador at Large for Religious Freedom Sam Brownback said he was concerned the situation in Nigeria will spread to nearby countries if nothing is done to crack down on religious persecution. 

“There’s a lot of people getting killed in Nigeria, and we’re afraid it is going to spread a great deal in that region,” he told CNA. “It is one that’s really popped up on my radar screens — in the last couple of years, but particularly this past year.” 

“I think we’ve got to prod the [Nigerian President Muhammadu] Buhari government more. They can do more,” he said. “They’re not bringing these people to justice that are killing religious adherents. They don’t seem to have the sense of urgency to act.” 

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