BY LISE ALVES CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE
SAO PAULO (CNS) - The draft of a letter signed by Brazilian bishops and scheduled to be presented to the executive committee of the bishops' conference is causing an uproar in the Brazilian media and church. In the letter, more than 150 bishops ac- cuse the federal government of "inaction and omission" in combating the coronavi- rus pandemic and of "inability and inca- pacity" to face the crisis. Closing its eyes to the appeals of nation- al and international entities, the federal government demonstrates omission, apa- thy and rejection of the poorest and most vulnerable of society, namely: indigenous, quilombolas (communities of former Afro Brazilian slaves), riverside communities, the populations of the urban peripheries, and the people who live on the streets, by the thousands, all over Brazil," said one part of the letter obtained by Catholic News Service. In the document, dubbed "Letter to People of God," the bishops compare the difficult moment faced currently by Brazil to a "perfect storm." The cause of this storm is the combina- tion of an unprecedented health crisis, with an overwhelming collapse of the economy and the tension that befell the foundations of the republic, caused in large measure by the president of the re- public and other sectors of society, result- ing in a profound political and governance crisis," states the letter. It says that "the political choices that have brought us here and the narrative (that) it proposes complacency in the face of the federal government's excesses do not justify inaction and omission in combating the ills that have befallen the Brazilian people. Analyzing the political scenario, objectively, we clearly perceive the federal government's inability to face these crises." According to the signatories, the con- tempt shown by the government of President Jair Bolsonaro for the sectors of education, culture, health and diplomacy is "appalling." Bishops contacted by CNS said the draft would be presented to the executive com- mittee of the bishops' conference in a meeting this week. The letter was leaked to the media July 26. On July 30, more than 1,500 priests released to the media a letter supporting the bishops' letter. The priests said govern- ment officials have a duty to act in favor of the entire population, especially of the most vulnerable, but that "this has not been the project of the current govern- ment." The priest said they consider the bish- ops' letter "a prophetic document of a significant portion of the bishops of the Catholic Church in Brazil."
BY CAROL GLATZ
CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE
VATICAN CITY (CNS) - Let Mary inspire and guide young people today, Pope Francis told participants at the annual International Youth Festival at the Mar- ian shrine in Medjugorje. Mary will always be "the great model of the church" because she is ready to fol- low Christ with vitality and docility, he said in a mes- sage to those attending the festival Aug. 1-6 in Bosnia- Herzegovina. He said, "her 'yes' means getting involved and tak- ing a risk, without any guarantee besides the cer- tainty of being the bearer of a promise," and her example continues to show the beauty in freely en- trusting oneself completely to the hands of God. May her example cap- tivate and guide you!" he said. The pope's message, re- leased to journalists Aug. 2, was read at the festival Aug. 1. Though it was the 31st edition of the annual festival, it was the first time a papal message was sent to the event after it became an officially ap- proved church festival in 2019. That approval came three months after Catho- lic pilgrimages to the site in Bosnia-Herzegovina were authorized by the pope. While an estimated 40,000 to 45,000 people attended the festival last year, including senior Vati- can representatives for the first time, organizers were unsure how many people to expect in 2020 because of travel restrictions and safety measures in place due to the COVID-19 pan- demic. In mid-July Bosnia-Herze- govina opened its borders to citizens of the European Union and Switzerland on the condition that they present a health certificate certifying they tested nega- tive for the coronavirus not more than 48 hours before entry into the country. Citizens of neighboring Croatia were exempt from taking the test. Before the pandemic, the shrine annually attracted up to 3 million people - with foreign visitors mak- ing up the bulk of those numbers. Pope Francis said in his message that Mary is the mother watching over her children who are journey- ing through life, often tired and in need, but yearning for that light of hope that never goes out. He said the festival was an "opportunity to encoun- ter Jesus Christ," especially in the Eucharist and in the sacrament of reconcilia- tion. Young people can dis- cover "a new way to live, different from the one of- fered by a culture" where everything is temporary, nothing is definitive "and the only thing that matters is enjoying the present mo- ment." Do not be afraid!" he said. "Christ is alive and desires that each of you live." Keep one's gaze fixed on Christ, he told young peo- ple, and take the time to be with the Lord in prayer. The festival, he said, was an occasion to "come and see" the Lord, to ex-
German author: Pope Benedict 'extremely frail'
VATICAN CITY (CNS) - An author with a long and close relationship to retired Pope Benedict XVI told a German newspaper that the 93-year-old retired pope is "extremely frail." Peter Seewald, the author who has published four wide-ranging book-length interviews with the retired pope, was quoted in the Aug. 3 edition of the Bavarian newspaper Passauer Neue Presse. Seewald said he visited with Pope Benedict Aug. 1 to present him with a copy of the authorized biography, Benedict XVI: A Life." The retired pope lives in the Mater Ecclesia monas- tery in the Vatican Gardens. Seewald said he visited with the former pontiff there in the company of Arch- bishop Georg Ganswein, Pope Benedict's personal secretary.
Vatican official supports German abbess
DUBLIN (CNS) - Cardinal Michael Czerny, Pope Fran- cis' point man on migrants, has voiced support for a German abbess facing trial for sheltering refugees. The cardinal linked Mother Mechthild Thurmer, a Benedictine nun, with "a long tradition of Christians living their faith to the final consequence." Asked how far people in the church should go and whether they should be willing to take that risk the German abbess is taking, which potentially could lead to a jail term, Cardinal Czerny responded, "God bless her!" He added there was no reason for this Christian tra- dition to be "refuted or broken." The cardinal was addressing a webinar. "Overcoming Indifference to Migrants and Refugees," organized by the international Catholic weekly, The Tablet, on World Day Against Trafficking in Persons July 30. Mother Mechthild is facing trial in Bamberg, Ger- many, for offering refuge on 30 occasions to women seeking asylum at her monastery, the Abbey of Maria Frieden in the Bavarian town of Kirchschletten.
Nearly one-third of Brazilian bishops sign letter critical of government Pope tells young people at Medjugorje to let Mary inspire, guide them
BRIEFSI 2 AROUND THE WORLD
THE CATHOLIC FREE PRESS AUGUST 7, 2020
John Hume helped bring peace to N. Ireland
DUBLIN (CNS) - Archbishop Eamon Martin of Arma- gh, Northern Ireland, has hailed political leader John Hume as a "paragon of peace" for his key role in bring- ing an end to the conflict in Northern Ireland. Hume, 83, died early Aug. 3, his family said in a statement. As a young man Hume trained for the priesthood, before becoming a com- munity activist and later a politician highlighting the plight of the Catholic community in Northern Ireland in the 1960s and 1970s, when discrimination in employment and housing was rife. Archbishop Martin - who, like Hume, was born in Londonderry, Northern Ire- land, said, "Today we are remembering a paragon of peace, a giant of a statesman whose legacy of unstinting service to the common good is interna- tionally acclaimed, even though it is still perhaps only unfolding," the archbishop said. Hume is credited with convincing the Provisional IRA to declare a cease-fire in their conflict with the British in 1994 and with being the key architect of the Good Friday peace agreement four years later.
Nicaraguan bishops denounce cathedral attack
MEXICO CITY (CNS) - The Nicaraguan bishops' con- ference has called an arson attack on the Managua cathedral "an act of terrorism," but vowed not to be intimidated as a government campaign of intolerance targeting the Catholic Church turns increasingly cruel and involves acts of sacrilege. A still-unidentified assailant entered the cathedral's Blood of Christ chapel July 31 and threw an explosive device, according to Cardinal Leopoldo Brenes of Ma- nagua. Flames engulfed the chapel, severely charring a 382-year old image of the crucified Christ. We condemn and reject such a violent and extrem- ist act, typical of an act of terrorism, premeditated and planned to seriously offend our faith in Christ the re- deemer and our Nicaraguan history and identity," the bishops said in an Aug. 1 statement.
Pope rotates in new personal secretary
VATICAN CITY (CNS) - While recent popes have kept the same personal secretary throughout their pon- tificates, Pope Francis has chosen to rotate the priests serving in that capacity. The Vatican press office confirmed Aug. 1 that "in the context of the normal rotation of personnel desired by Pope Francis for his collaborators in the Roman Curia, Msgr. Yoannis Lahzi Gaid, personal secretary of the Holy Father since April 2014, has concluded his service." The 45-year-old Coptic Catholic priest will continue, however, to serve on the board of the Higher Commit- tee of Human Fraternity, an interreligious body pro- moting the principles of dialogue and cooperation con- tained in a document signed in 2019 by Pope Francis and Sheikh Ahmad el-Tayeb, grand imam of al-Azhar. Pope Francis has chosen Italian Father Fabio Salerno, an official in the Secretariat of State, to succeed the Egypt-born priest. perience his presence and become real witnesses of Christ. More than 40,000 appari- tions have been claimed over 38 years at Medju- gorje, where six teenagers reported first seeing an apparition of Mary June 24, 1981. Some of the visionaries say Mary still appears to them daily with messages. In May 2018, Pope Fran- cis named Archbishop Henryk Hoser as apostolic visitor to Medjugorje af- ter a papal commission recommended that Medju- gorje be designated a pon- tifical shrine with Vatican oversight. A ban on pilgrimages organized by Catholic dio- ceses and parishes was lifted under a papal decree in May 2019. Archbishop Hoser said in August 2019 that the pope had "opened a great door to enter Medjugorje" with the decree, adding that he was "personally and inti- mately convinced" the Mar- ian center offered "a model for new evangelization." He said Medjugorje should be seen as "a liv- ing, dynamic reality," with more than 700 vocations so far recorded there, and the numbers of people praying there, being trans- formed and returning to their countries.
CNS PHOTO ADRIANO MACHADO, REUTERS
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, wearing a protective mask, begins a ceremony of lowering the national flag for the night at the Alvorada Palace in Brasilia July 24, during the pandemic.
CNS PHOTO MATKO BILJAK, REUTERS
Pilgrims are pictured in a file photo surrounding a statue of Mary on Apparition Hill in Medjugorje, Bosnia-Herzegovina.
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