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Friday, April 15, 2011

CATHOLIC NEWS WORLD: FRI. APR. 15, 2011











CATHOLIC NEWS WORLD: FRI. APR. 15, 2011: Headlines-

AMERICA: PARAGUAY: PRIEST MURDERED IN HOME

ASIA: INDONESIA: CHRISTIAN LEADERS CONDEMN SUICIDE BOMBING

AFRICA: ANGOLA: CATHOLIC PRIEST DIES OF ILLNESS

EUROPE: ENGLAND: NEW AMBASSADOR TO THE HOLY SEE

TODAY'S GOSPEL: APR. 15: JOHN 10: 31- 42

TODAY'S SAINTS: ST. BASILISSA AND ST. ANASTASIA

2011

AUDIENCES

VATICAN CITY, 15 APR 2011 (VIS) - This afternoon the Holy Father will receive in audience Cardinal William Joseph Levada, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. (IMAGE SOURCE: RADIO VATICANA)

AP/ VIS 20110415 (30)

OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

VATICAN CITY, 15 APR 2011 (VIS) - The Holy Father appointed Msgr. Charles Henry Dufour, bishop of Montego Bay, Jamaica as Archbishop of Kingston in Jamaica (area 3,267, population 1,448,000, Catholics 58,000, priests 63, permanent deacons 29, religious 313), Jamaica. He succeeds Msgr. Donald James Reece, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same archdiocese the Holy Father accepted, upon having reached the age limit.

AMERICA: PARAGUAY: PRIEST MURDERED IN HOME

Agenzia Fides REPORT - Bishop Julio César Alvarez, had been pastor of the parish "Sagrado Corazón de Jesús" for two years in Villarrica, 150 km from Asunción, he was murdered at his home in the early hours of April 14. His lifeless body was in his room in the morning, he had been strangled and there were traces of a fight. His hands and feet were tied. There were several shots in the head , injuries and scratches. While authorities are conducting investigations to identify the reasons of the crime and the guilty, it is possible that the priest was the victim of a series of thefts that had occurred in the parishes of Villarrica in recent months, as the Bishop pointed out in an interview on the local radio. The day before the priest had withdrawn a sum of money to buy a car.
In the statement issued by the Episcopal Conference, which was received by Fides, reads: "The Paraguayan Episcopal Conference expresses its deepest condolences to the Bishop of the Diocese of Villarrica del Espiritu Santo, Bishop Ricardo Valenzuela Rios, to the clergy, religious, and the faithful for Father Julio Cesar Alvarez`s death, pastor of the parish of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Villarrica and at the same time elevates prayers so that the merciful Lord welcomes him into his holy habitation. It also requests that the competent authorities look into the case for the immediate clarification of the circumstances of his death".
Bishop Julio César Alvarez, 47, was ordained priest in 1989. He held various positions including: Trainer at the Major Seminary, Chancellor, Head of the team of diocesan vocations, professor of theology at the Catholic University. From 1994 to 2005 he was Secretary of Nunziatura in Korea, Syria and Cuba. He then was Parish Priest, Assistant to the Christian Family Movement, and from 2009, parish priest of the "Sagrado Corazón de Jesús" in Villarrica.

ASIA: INDONESIA: CHRISTIAN LEADERS CONDEMN SUICIDE BOMBING

UCAN REPORT: Device explodes as Muslims hold Friday prayers in the mosque, injuring many
Konradus Epa, Jakarta
Indonesia
April 15, 2011

Catholic and Protestant leaders condemned a suicide bomb that exploded today in a mosque located in the compound of a police station in Cirebon, West Java, injuring dozens.

The bomber was reportedly killed on the spot.

The bomb exploded while Muslims were holding Friday prayers in the mosque. The bomb blast injured more than 20 people, including Police Grand Commissioner Adjutant Herukoco, the chief of Cirebon regional police. The victims were rushed to local hospitals.

“We condemn the violent act, because it happened in a place of worship where Muslims were praying,” said Father Antonius Benny Susetyo, executive secretary of the Indonesian bishops’ Commission for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs.

He said the suicide bomber had targeted police. “This shows that terrorists still exist,” he said.

He also hoped police will investigate the incident. “It is an old group, and the police must know it,” he continued.

Reverend Jeffry Sumampouw from the Communion of Churches in Indonesia asserted that the incident was against human rights.

“Police must be serious in finding the perpetrator and masterminds,” he said, adding that the incident might relate to efforts taken by police in combating terrorism.

http://www.ucanews.com/2011/04/15/clergy-condemn-suicide-bomb-attack/

AFRICA: ANGOLA: CATHOLIC PRIEST DIES OF ILLNESS

ALL AFRICA REPORT: The Catholic priest Muanamosi Matumona, recently nominated director of Ecclésia Radio Station, died on Wednesday in Luanda's Military Hospital, victim of an illness, ANGOP has learnt.

ANGOP learnt from a religious source that the priest was seriously ill, having been admitted to the mentioned hospital last Friday.

He was nominated three weeks ago as director of the above mentioned radio station.

Muanamosi Matunoma was born in Uije Province, in 1965, and worked as journalist as well as university lecturer at the state-run Agostinho Neto University.

He studied philosophy, theology, social communication and sociology in Oporto City, Portugal, and in Rome (Italy).

The Priest wrote a few books on journalism and religion.

http://allafrica.com/stories/201104150195.html

EUROPE: ENGLAND: NEW AMBASSADOR TO THE HOLY SEE

IND. CATH NEWS REPORT:
New Ambassador to Holy See

NIgel Baker OBE MVO
Mr Nigel Marcus Baker OBE MVO has been appointed Her Majesty's Ambassador to the Holy See.

He will succeed Mr Francis Campbell who has transferred to another Diplomatic Service appointment. Mr Baker will take up his appointment during August 2011.

Mr Baker is a career member of HM Diplomatic Service. He joined the FCO in 1989, since when his career has taken him principally to Central Europe and Latin America, most recently as HM Ambassador to Bolivia. Mr Baker also worked in the Private Office of HRH The Prince of Wales from 2003 to 2006. Between 1996 and 1998 he lived and worked in Italy on an academic sabbatical.

On his appointment as Her Majesty’s Ambassador to the Holy See, Mr Baker said: "I am delighted and honoured to be taking up this posting. The last few years have seen the development of a strong and fruitful global partnership between the United Kingdom and the Holy See.

"The historic visit of Pope Benedict XVI in September 2010 reinforced that relationship and opened new avenues for bilateral and multilateral collaboration. I look forward to the challenge of deepening our engagement across the many issues on which we work together."

Nigel Marcus Baker OBE MVO is married to Alexandra (Sasha) Baker. They have one son.

Mr Baker worked at the British Embassy in La Paz, Her Majesty’s Ambassador from Oct 2003 - Nov 2006. Before that he he was Deputy Head of Mission at the British Embassy in Havana. From Jun 2000 - Apr 2003 he was Assistant Private Secretary to HRH The Prince of Wales. From Jun 1998 - Jun 2000 he was FCO, Head of European Defence Section, Security Policy Department,Mar 1998 - Jun 1998; FCO, UK EU Presidency; Aug 1993 - Jan 1996 British Embassy Bratislava, Deputy Head of Mission Feb 1992 - Aug 1993 British Embassy Prague, Second Secretary (Economic), Jun 1990 - Jun 1991 FCO, Desk Officer, Near East and North Africa Department. He joined the Foreign & Commonwealth Office in September 1989.

For more information see: http://ukinholysee.fco.gov.uk/en/
http://www.indcatholicnews.com/news.php?viewStory=18073

AUSTRALIA: BISHOP'S LENTEN REFLECTION ON SUFFERING

Today’s gospel is not only about Jesus, it is also about you and me, writes Michael McKenna, the Bishop of Bathurst.

Our knowledge of the arrest, interrogation, torture and execution of Jesus of Nazareth comes primarily from the accounts of the four Gospel writers. For many people, this knowledge has been enhanced by the imaginative representations of artists and mystics, as well as by stories handed down in the Church, though not found in Scripture.

As Christians, we receive this knowledge, not as mere record of the unjust punishment of a good man, but with faith in the identity of Jesus as truly divine and truly human. We understand his death as the perfect sacrifice which heals the division between God and humankind: through which death will be defeated and creation made new.

And behold, the curtain of the Temple was torn in two, from top to bottom; and the earth shook, and the rocks were split; and the tombs were opened… (Mt 27: 51-52)


CATH NEWS REPORT: However, as we gather in our churches to hear this story told again, we are invited to move from being just listeners and spectators. We are offered a chance to discover that we are part of the story and the story is part of us. It is possible, even with that understanding, to look on the events of the Passion as a spectacle. It is certainly an engrossing drama, capable of stirring deep emotions and intense intellectual engagement.

Although art and interpretive writings can be helpful, there is no substitute for direct encounter with the inspired Word of the Gospel. If we read it and listen to it with open and expectant hearts, it can be a real meeting with the Christ himself. When it is proclaimed in the congregation, he is really present.

This year, we have Matthew’s gospel. Each gospel tells the same story, but its own way. Let’s begin at the end: with the words of Jesus from the Cross.

In John’s gospel, Jesus speaks to Mary and the beloved disciple before crying out “I thirst!” and then “It is accomplished!” In Luke, Jesus speaks with the penitent thief, forgives his killers and says “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.”

The scene described by Matthew and Mark is far bleaker. All we hear are the mutterings and insults of a hostile crowd. And, alone on the Cross, Jesus cries out “Eli, eli lama sabachthani? My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

Those words are the beginning of the twenty second psalm. For faithful Jews like Jesus, to quote the first line of a psalm was to quote the whole of it. And, if we read through this psalm, it describes vividly the suffering of the man on the Cross:

O my God, I cry…but you do not answer…

I am scorned by men, despised by the people…

My heart is like wax melted in my breast…

They have pierced my hands and feet – I can count all my bones

If we read to the end, we reach a shout of hope as the psalmist proclaims the deliverance of God’s servant “to a people yet unborn.”

With his cry, Jesus is saying all that, but it takes nothing away from the reality of the pain of separation he expresses in the opening line. The sinless one has taken on all human sin, is bleeding with the wound of the rift between God and humankind.

My own sins, my own crosses sometimes weigh me down. Suffering is not always sin, but sin is always a suffering. The cross in my life is whatever mocks me with my powerlessness, whatever threatens to destroy me.

For some, it may be a chronic physical or mental condition, for others, troubled relationships, or the struggles and anxieties of daily life. It is fear of the Cross that leads me into sin, as I look for relief or forgetfulness that I wrongly believe will let me avoid it.

To follow Christ to Calvary can be, as it was for many of the onlookers, an engrossing drama about someone else. Becoming Christian, though, I can begin to realize that the weight of the Cross he carries includes mine, includes ours.

And that to join him on it is to lay down that weight and find that it does not mean my destruction, but the destruction of the sins that afflict me and the death that I fear.

http://www.cathnews.com/article.aspx?aeid=25778

TODAY'S SAINTS: ST. BASILISSA AND ST. ANASTASIA

Sts. Basilissa and Anastasia

MARTYRS AND DISCIPLES OF STS. PETER AND PAUL

Feast: April 15

According to tradition, Basilissa and Anastasia were noble Roman women who recovered the remains of Peter and Paul for burial. As a result, they were arrested and beheaded by order of Emperor Nero.



source: http://www.ewtn.com/saintsHoly/saints/B/stbasilissa_anastasia.asp#ixzz1JdeUKkux

TODAY'S GOSPEL: APR. 15: JOHN 10: 31- 42

John 10: 31 - 42
31The Jews took up stones again to stone him.
32Jesus answered them, "I have shown you many good works from the Father; for which of these do you stone me?"
33The Jews answered him, "It is not for a good work that we stone you but for blasphemy; because you, being a man, make yourself God."
34Jesus answered them, "Is it not written in your law, `I said, you are gods'?
35If he called them gods to whom the word of God came (and scripture cannot be broken),
36do you say of him whom the Father consecrated and sent into the world, `You are blaspheming,' because I said, `I am the Son of God'?
37If I am not doing the works of my Father, then do not believe me;
38but if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father."
39Again they tried to arrest him, but he escaped from their hands.
40He went away again across the Jordan to the place where John at first baptized, and there he remained.
41And many came to him; and they said, "John did no sign, but everything that John said about this man was true."
42And many believed in him there.