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Tuesday, August 24, 2010

CATHOLIC WORLD NEWS: TUES. AUG. 24, 2010












CATHOLIC WORLD NEWS: TUES. AUG. 24, 2010: HEADLINES-
VATICAN- POPE APPOINTS BISHOP OF BILBAO SPAIN-
ASIA: PHILIPPINES: TOURISTS KILLED ON BUS-

AFRICA: DEM. REP. CONGO: MASS RAPE OF WOMEN-
EUROPE: ITALY: PRIEST MISTAKENLY SHOT AND KILLED BY HUNTER-

AMERICA: CHILE: BISHOPS PRAYING FOR TRAPPED MINERS-
AUSTRALIA: JESUIT EDUCATED RECEIVE INCREASE IN VOTES



VATICAN- POPE APPOINTS BISHOP OF BILBAO SPAIN


Pope Benedict XVI has appointed Bishop of Bilbao (Spain) h.e. Mons. Mario Iceta Gavicagogeascoa, so far, titular bishop of Alava and Auxiliary of the same diocese.
H.e. Mons. Mario Iceta Gavicagogeascoa

H.e. Mons. Mario Iceta Gavicagogeascoa was born on March 21, 1965 in Guernica (Biscay), Diocese of Bilbao. At the University of Navarra holds Licentiate in medicine and surgery (1984-1990) and has followed the PhD in Clinical Pathophysiology (1990-1992), obtaining his doctorate with a thesis on Bioethics and medical ethics (1995). He completed philosophical and theological studies at the Faculty of Theology of Navarre (1988-1992) and later the Seminary of Córdoba (1992-1994), earning the b.a. in Theology at the Pontifical University of Comillas, Madrid (1994). In Rome has licensed in moral theology (1999) and his PhD (2002) at the Institute "John Paul II for studies on Marriage and family.

Ordained on July 16, 1994 for the Diocese of Córdoba, where he held the following positions: Member of the group in solidum priestly ordination of Priego de Córdoba (1994-1997); parish priest of the Immaculate Concepción of Almodóvar del Río (2002-2004); the parish of Santo Domingo de Guzmán Lucena (2004-2007); Episcopal Vicar of la Campiña (2004-2007); Canonical major penitentiary (2005-2007); Professor of sacred liturgy, theology of the sacraments, and liturgical chant music (1994-1997) and then of moral theology and bioethics in the major Seminary San Pelagio (since 2002).
Appointed titular bishop of Alava and auxiliary of Bilbao on 5 February 2008, he received his episcopal consecration on 12 April next.
SOURCE http://www.vatican.va/
http://jceworld.blogspot.com/2010/08/vatican-pope-appoints-bishop-of-bilbao.html



ASIA: PHILIPPINES: TOURISTS KILLED ON BUS

UCAN report: The violent ending to yesterday’s hostage drama in Manila shows a failure of Catholic leaders, the director of an institute for religious life said today.
“The Church has failed, although it is trying its best, to cope with the situation of poverty and helplessness that led to desperation,” Claretian Father Samuel Canilang, director of the Institute for Consecrated Life in Asia, told ucanews.com.
It had also failed to inculcate “basic human and Christian values,” among Church members, he said.
Eight Hong Kong tourists were killed along with their attacker, a former senior police officer, Rolando Mendoza, who commandeered their tourist bus in downtown Manila.
Although Mendoza released 10 hostages, about 15 passengers, mostly Hong Kong tourists were on the bus during the final shoot-out.
Mendoza was dismissed from the force in the face of complaints of extortion but claimed he was unfairly judged and was demanding reinstatement.
Bishop Deogracias Iniguez of Kalookan, who heads the Public Affairs Committee of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference, noted the growing number of hostage-taking incidents in the country.
“This kind of violence is a little bit alarming,” he said.
One former hostage-taker said he understood Mendoza’s motivations. In 2007, engineer Armando Ducat, Jr. and a companion armed with a grenade and Uzi rifle seized 26 day-care children and four teachers demanding free education for children and housing for poor families in Manila’s Tondo district slum.
Interviewed on national television today, he said he understood Mendoza’s frustration in not having his grievances addressed.
Ducat, who had served jail time for his crime, said he did not regret his actions.
Augustinian Father Rommel Rubia of the Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage Parish in Tondo, does not remember Ducat’s appeal to the parish. The priest said the parish is in the same situation of poverty.
“We cannot give much help that will cost money because (the parish) cannot even pay for its own electric bills,” Father Rubia said.
Hong Kong Christians pray for victims
Christians and fellow citizens offered prayers to victims of the Manila hostage drama, a ucanews.com reporter writes from Hong Kong.
More than 220,000 Facebook users have supported a call for prayers and paid tribute to the victims.
Some Christians also appealed to “love the sinner and hate the sin” in response to some Internet postings attacking Filipinos.
Jackie Hung Ling-yu of the diocesan Justice and Peace Commission told ucanews.com she was concerned about growing anger against Filipinos in the wake of a travel warning for the country.
While condemning the violence, Hung said the incident showed the “incompetence and brutality” of the Philippines police.
“We can see how life is unworthy in this country. How can the Filipinos rely on these police to protect their lives and properties?” asked Hung, who has participated in a fact-finding mission on extrajudicial killings in the Philippines in 2007.

The United Filipinos in Hong Kong, an NGO for migrant workers, has called for a thorough investigation.

“The question of whether the crisis could have handled better and faster should be resolved. All actions taken by negotiators and police operatives must be examined to the last detail,” it said in a statement.

http://www.ucanews.com/2010/08/24/church-shares-blame-for-violence/
http://jceworld.blogspot.com/2010/08/asia-philippines-tourists-killed-on-bus.html
AFRICA: DEM. REP. CONGO: MASS RAPE OF WOMEN

Catholic Online-The United Nations reports that more than 200 women have been raped by the Democratic Republic of Congo during the seizure of a town by rebels. "There were no fighting and no deaths," Will Cragin of the International Medical Corps said. There was just "lots of pillaging and the systematic raping of women."

Catholic Online) - Cragin said that aid and U.N. workers knew fighters from Rwandan rebel FDLR group and Congolese Mai-Mai rebels had occupied Luvungi town and surrounding villages the day after the attack began on July 30. The U.N. says at least 5,400 women in the DRC are believed to have been raped in 2009 alone. The U.N. peacekeeping mission in Congo had issued no statement about the attacks and said that it was still investigating.

Cragin told the Associated Press that his organization was only able to get into the town, which he said is about 16 kilometers from a U.N. military camp, after rebels withdrew earlier this month.

Luvungi is a farming center on the main road between Goma, the eastern provincial capital, and the major mining town of Walikale.

Four young boys were also raped, according to Kasimbo Charles Kacha, the district medical chief.

U.N. spokesman Martin Nesirky said the peacekeeping mission has a military operating base in Kibua; about 30 kilometers east of the village, but villagers were prevented from reaching the nearest communication point as FDLR fighters blocked the road.

Civil society leader Charles Masudi Kisa said there were only about 25 peacekeepers against some 200 to 400 rebels who occupied the town of about 2,200 people and five nearby villages.

"When the peacekeepers approached a village, the rebels would run into the forest, but then the Blue Helmets had to move on to another area, and the rebels would just return," Masudi said.

"During the attack [the rebels] looted [the] population's houses and raped several women in Luvungi and the surrounding areas," Stefania Trassari, spokesperson for the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said.

"International Medical Corps (IMC) reported that FDLR systematically raped the population during its four-day stay in Luvungi and surrounding areas. A total of 179 cases of sexual violence were reported," Trassari said, adding all of the cases were of rape against women.
"Nearly all reported rapes were described as having been perpetrated by two-to-six armed men, often taking place in front of the women's children and husbands," a statement read.
http://www.catholic.org/international/international_story.php?id=37963
http://jceworld.blogspot.com/2010/08/africa-dem-rep-congo-mass-rape-of-women.html


AMERICA: CHILE: BISHOPS PRAYING FOR TRAPPED MINERS

CNA REPORT- Last Sunday, the Chilean bishops' conference rejoiced upon hearing that the 33 miners trapped in a collapsed copper mine since August 5 are alive and in good spirits. The president of the Bishops’ Conference of Chile, Bishop Alejandro Goic Karmelic, released a statement shortly after hearing the news. He noted that “the lives of the 33 miners in Atacama ... should fill us with hope. We share in the joy of so many brothers and sisters in Chile and throughout the world who rejoice at this triumph of life.” Bishop Goic added that “we thank God because his love is made present through creation in marvelous ways.”

The bishop thanked the Chilean faithful for their prayers for the successful rescue of the miners. He noted that the incident should be used constructively to improve safety regulations for those who work under dangerous conditions.

Addressing the miners, who will be receiving food and water through plastic pipes that have been inserted into the chamber, Bishop Goic said Chileans offer them their “closeness and assurance of our prayers that the Divine Spirit strengthen them at this time.”

“And we ask all those who believe in Christ to continue praying to the Father of kindness in the coming days so that the rescue operations will end in success,” the bishop said.

According to the Associated Press, it will likely take four months for the miners to be rescued.
http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/bishops-of-chile-thank-the-lord-for-keeping-miners-safe/
http://jceworld.blogspot.com/2010/08/america-chile-bishops-praying-for.html


EUROPE: ITALY: PRIEST MISTAKENLY SHOT AND KILLED BY HUNTER

Rome (kath.net/KAP) A 55-year old priest was killed in the night on Sunday by a rifle. The priest had headed a hiking week with young people on the Apulian plateau of the Murgia and stayed in the open air. Apparently a hunter thought he was an animal in his sleeping bag. The ammunition used led investigators to believe that the offender had possibly looking for a wild boar. There is now a suspect. The alleged shooter told the police because he could not live "with this burden on the conscience", the Italian online service "libero news.it" reported on Monday. According to this he is a poacher. According to the Catholic newspaper "Avvenire" participants heard the shot and car noise at night. The next morning they found the priest dead in his sleeping bag.

The priest was a priest of a Catholic parish in the North Italian Diocese of Belluno. Belluno Bishop Giuseppe Andrich, dismayed responded to the incident.
SOURCE http://kath.net/detail.php?id=27851
http://jceworld.blogspot.com/2010/08/europe-italy-priest-mistakenly-shot-and.html


AUSTRALIA: JESUIT EDUCATED RECEIVE INCREASE IN VOTES

Cath News report: Jesuit-educated parliamentarians recorded increased voter across the country at last weekend's federal election.
The Catholic order prides itself on the rigorous education it provides in its elite schools around the country, says a report in The Australian.

Jesuit-educated alumni in the current parliament include:
Opposition leader Tony Abbott, who recorded a 4.57 per cent swing to him;
Treasury spokesman Joe Hockey, 8.57 per cent;
Education spokesman Christopher Pyne, 2.55 per cent against the trend in South Australia;
Rural spokesman Barnaby Joyce, who rose from third on the Queensland senate ticket to second and;
On the Labor side of the chamber, parliamentary secretary for disabilities Bill Shorten, who recorded a 2.44 per cent swing in his favour.
The only exception to the rule was Victorian Senator Julian McGauran, who failed to hold the third senate seat in that state - losing his seat to the Catholic-aligned Democratic Labor Party.
The Catholic order's place in Australian politics should not be overlooked. During the three-way Liberal leadership contest between Malcolm Turnbull, Joe Hockey and Tony Abbott, all three men consulted with Jesuit priests, said the report.
It also has a long history of producing MPs and Senators, including former deputy prime minister Tim Fischer and former Victoria deputy premier Pat McNamara.
http://www.cathnews.com/article.aspx?aeid=22961
IMAGE http://climatechange.thinkaboutit.eu/scripts/tinymce/jscripts/tiny_mce/plugins/imagemanager/files/Kremlik/abbot.jpg
http://jceworld.blogspot.com/2010/08/jesuit-educated-receive-increase-in.html

TODAY'S SAINT: ST. BARTHOLOMEW

St. Bartholomew
APOSTLE
Feast: August 24
Information: Feast Day: August 24
Born: 1st century AD, Iudaea Province (Palaestina)
Died: 1st century AD, Armenia
Major Shrine: Bartholomew-on-the-Tiber Church, Rome, the Canterbury Cathedral, cathedral in Frankfurt, and the San Bartolomeo Cathedral in Lipari
Patron of: Armenia; bookbinders; butchers; cobblers; Florentine cheese merchants; Florentine salt merchants; leather workers; nervous diseases; neurological diseases; plasterers; shoemakers; tanners; trappers; twitching; whiteners
One of the Twelve Apostles, mentioned sixth in the three Gospel lists (Matthew 10:3; Mark 3:18; Luke 6:14), and seventh in the list of Acts (1:13).

The name (Bartholomaios) means "son of Talmai" (or Tholmai) which was an ancient Hebrew name, borne, e.g. by the King of Gessur whose daughter was a wife of David (2 Samuel 3:3). It shows, at least, that Bartholomew was of Hebrew descent; it may have been his genuine proper name or simply added to distinguish him as the son of Talmai. Outside the instances referred to, no other mention of the name occurs in the New Testament.

Nothing further is known of him for certain. Many scholars, however, identify him with Nathaniel (John 1:45-51; 21:2). The reasons for this are that Bartholomew is not the proper name of the Apostle; that the name never occurs in the Fourth Gospel, while Nathaniel is not mentioned in the synoptics; that Bartholomew's name is coupled with Philip's in the lists of Matthew and Luke, and found next to it in Mark, which agrees well with the fact shown by St. John that Philip was an old friend of Nathaniel's and brought him to Jesus; that the call of Nathaniel, mentioned with the call of several Apostles, seems to mark him for the apostolate, especially since the rather full and beautiful narrative leads one to expect some important development; that Nathaniel was of Galilee where Jesus found most, if not all, of the Twelve; finally, that on the occasion of the appearance of the risen Savior on the shore of the Sea of Tiberias, Nathaniel is found present, together with several Apostles who are named and two unnamed Disciples who were, almost certainly, likewise Apostles (the word "apostle" not occurring in the Fourth Gospel and "disciple" of Jesus ordinarily meaning Apostle) and so, presumably, was one of the Twelve. This chain of circumstantial evidence is ingenious and pretty strong; the weak link is that, after all, Nathaniel may have been another personage in whom, for some reason, the author of the Fourth Gospel may have been particularly interested, as he was in Nicodemus, who is likewise not named in the synoptics.

No mention of St. Bartholomew occurs in ecclesiastical literature before Eusebius, who mentions that Pantaenus, the master of Origen, while evangelizing India, was told that the Apostle had preached there before him and had given to his converts the Gospel of St. Matthew written in Hebrew, which was still treasured by the Church. "India" was a name covering a very wide area, including even Arabia Felix. Other traditions represent St. Bartholomew as preaching in Mesopotamia, Persia, Egypt, Armenia, Lycaonia, Phrygia, and on the shores of the Black Sea; one legend, it is interesting to note, identifies him with Nathaniel.

The manner of his death, said to have occurred at Albanopolis in Armenia, is equally uncertain; according to some, he was beheaded, according to others, flayed alive and crucified, head downward, by order of Astyages, for having converted his brother, Polymius, King of Armenia. On account of this latter legend, he is often represented in art (e.g. in Michelangelo's Last Judgment) as flayed and holding in his hand his own skin. His relics are thought by some to be preserved in the church of St. Bartholomew-in-the-Island, at Rome. His feast is celebrated on 24 August. An apocryphal gospel of Bartholomew existed in the early ages.
SOURCE http://www.ewtn.com/saintsHoly/saints/B/stbartholomew.asp
http://jceworld.blogspot.com/2010/08/todays-saint-st-bartholomew.html
TODAY'S GOSPEL: FEAST ST. BARTHOLOMEW: John 1: 45 - 51

John 1: 45 - 51
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45 Philip found Nathan'a-el, and said to him, "We have found him of whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph."
46 Nathan'a-el said to him, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" Philip said to him, "Come and see."
47 Jesus saw Nathan'a-el coming to him, and said of him, "Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile!"
48 Nathan'a-el said to him, "How do you know me?" Jesus answered him, "Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you."
49 Nathan'a-el answered him, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!"
50 Jesus answered him, "Because I said to you, I saw you under the fig tree, do you believe? You shall see greater things than these."
51 And he said to him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man."
http://jceworld.blogspot.com/2010/08/todays-gospel-feast-st-bartholomew-john.html