Wave of violence against pro-life people as court prepares to rule on abortion
In a strongly-worded article in The Washington Post, columnist Kathleen Parker says the recent wave of violence in the USA aimed at pro-life people “should be investigated as terrorist acts.” The Supreme Court is due to rule on the 1973 Roe vs. Wade decision, which liberalized abortion at the federal level in the US. Since a draft showing several judges may be in favor of overturning this decision leaked on May 2, there has been a spike in unrest such as attacks on pregnancy counseling centers, disruption of church services, and an alleged assassination attempt of Supreme Court Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh. “It is a terrible irony that the people who want to protect life must put their own lives at risk,” denounces Parker. She criticizes the fact that these attacks are mostly reported only in religious or Catholic media outlets and that President Joe Biden hasn’t condemned these events. “Biden should have used a bullhorn to condemn all the above, presuming he was apprised of them,” the journalist says, concluding that “violence, after all, begets violence.”
Ukrainians meet Pope to bridge ‘ambiguous’ communication gap
Myroslav Marynovych, vice rector of the Ukrainian Catholic University, who met with Pope Francis at the Vatican on June 8, said the Pontiff has tasked a handful of cardinals to study the topic of “just war” in light of the current conflict with Russia. The meeting, apparently organized by a long-time Argentinian friend of the Pope and which included other Ukrainian experts on the topic, centered on the Ukrainians’ concerns over the Vatican and the Pope’s “ambiguous” rhetoric about the war. Marynovych explained that apparently Pope Francis said that he has received several letters from public institutions and religious and community leaders in Ukraine voicing concern and seeking clarity. Marynovych said the Pope was an “attentive listener” and allegedly told them he would back Ukraine’s EU membership in his meeting with Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, which took place at the Vatican on June 10. The Ukrainian academic said the small group left the meeting “feeling grateful to the Pope for the opportunity to share our thoughts and were truly inspired.”
Christians fight for a new government in Sri Lanka
For several months, Sri Lanka's Christians have been particularly active in the growing protests against the country's elites. Exasperated by the behavior of the previous government, due to the 2019 Easter attacks, and by the current one, guilty of pushing the island into bankruptcy, they are now pushing for new elections. Sri Lanka is experiencing severe shortages and the 51 billion debt is plunging the country into chaos, as the government is trying to negotiate with its Chinese creditor as well as the United States. Catholics criticized the government for concentrating all the power and wealth in the hands of a few families. Having already secured the resignation of the government on May 9, further demands for resignation are now being directed at President Gotabaya, as the request for fair elections grows.
Spain: "Only a few groups have proposed optional celibacy," says a bishop
The secretary of the Spanish Bishops' Conference, Bishop Luis Argüello, comments on the report summarizing the results of the national synodal journey undertaken by the 70 Spanish dioceses. Regarding the thorny issue of the priesthood, including optional celibacy and female priests, the auxiliary Bishop of Valladolid explained that only 18 dioceses raised this concern, but a desire to understand the current position of the Church was also expressed in the other territories. "It is complicated because today sexual difference has disappeared," he emphasizes, highlighting the theological but also anthropological challenge that he believes this position represents. Bishop Argüello recognizes that today there is a polarity between laity and priests in the Church in Spain, but that this must be resolved by constructing a Church that belongs to both groups, in a complementary way. It is necessary to give more space to the laity, he recognizes, insisting, however, that it is not a question of diminishing the "lay vocation," which consists, according to him, in "going out into the world and bearing witness to one's faith.” For him, the integration of the laity occurs through the promotion of the ministries of reader, acolyte, and catechist. Overall Bishop Argüello considers that this synodal journey, which has tackled also other issues such as abuse, has been fruitful and has made the Church in Spain grow.
99 years old, and still a missionary in Africa
As Sister Marcelle Marie-Josèphe Magnard's 99th birthday approaches, La Croix Africa publishes a profile of this French nun who has been a missionary in West Africa for 76 years. She has lived in Togo, Senegal, and Burkina Faso, where she currently resides, and has spent more than three quarters of her life in missions outside Europe. Born in Isère in 1923 into a religious family, she met the Franciscan Missionaries of Mary at the age of 17. She was delighted to see that it was possible to be both an adorer and a missionary. In 1942, she entered the novitiate and, four years later, she left for Africa at only 22 years old. What followed were years of mission, during which she was involved in the formation of novices. At 99 years of age, she has kept her joy of living and her love for God; the journalist writes that every morning she exclaims: "Another day to love and to live!"
