In the ‘favourable’ climate created by the war, the Israeli authorities yesterday demolished the Al Bustan Centre, in the neighbourhood close to the Suleiman Walls. An area that for years they have wanted to clear of Arab families in order to expand the infrastructure of the tourist park that is bringing to light all the remains of ancient Jewish Jerusalem.
A former Israeli prime minister and a former Palestinian ambassador to the UN recently issued a joint appeal to resume negotiations for the two states and a political solution for Gaza. The pope received them in audience at the Vatican together with Gershon Baskin (Israeli negotiator with Hamas) and Samer Sinijlawi (a Palestinian very close to Mohammad Dahlan) just as the Israeli government claims to have killed Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar.
Fr Alberto Berra, a PIME missionary in the city of the first atomic bomb in 1945, speaks about the decision to award the prize to the association that gives voice to the victims who still bear the signs of the explosion from almost eighty years ago. “They feel they have received a mission: to be a voice for the world” because, as Pope Francis said in Hiroshima in 2019, “it is not only the use of atomic weapons that is immoral, but also their possession.”
The Jesuit, a well-known member of the Indonesian Church, speaks about what Francis will say tomorrow in Jakarta to the authorities and the local Catholic community. The most important issues today are “friendship between religions and care for the environment.” This trip is different from the John Paul II's in 1989, when Suharto was still in power. For Fr Magnis-Suseno, “The danger today is called oligarchy,” but he has faith in the future.
By the end of the year, two priests and three nuns from Italy, India and Myanmar will set up a new outpost in the Diocese of Tanjung Selor, Indonesian Borneo, together with other congregations established elsewhere in the world inspired by PIME’s charism. For the Institute’s Superior General, Fr Brambillasca, this is “a project to renew in everyone the desire to leave for the mission.”
The bishop of Shanghai is in Rome for the conference marking the centennial of the first meeting of all Chinese bishops. The Church is one, but its development in China must "be in line" with the "great rebirth of the Chinese nation”. Communion with the pontiff is “the best guarantee of a faith freed from external political interests,” said Card Parolin. “There may be misunderstandings, but [they are] never half-hearted with respect to the Church's journey in China.”
The day that marks the birth of the modern State of Israel falls this year against the backdrop of the tragedy of 7 October and the war in Gaza. The risk of a political defeat is even greater than a military debacle. As Israel’s Declaration of Independence says, the challenge is "playing one's part in a common effort for the progress of the Middle East.”
The texts of the meditations personally written by the pontiff for this year's Good Friday evening celebration. In the Year of Prayer he has proclaimed in view of the Jubilee, a path full of indications on this fundamental dimension of Christian life. Persecuted Christians and all those who suffer the tragedy of war entrusted to the name of Jesus.
In a place where 1,832 people are already in prison on political grounds, the new law implementing Article 23 only “cloak[s] injustice with a veil of institutional legitimacy,” wrote a few months ago Chow Hang-tung, jailed for remembering the dead in Tiananmen Square. The real answer is not to forget this China behind bars, in Hong Kong and in the People's Republic.
Archbishop Louis Nguyễn Anh Tuấn of Ha Tinh, who participated in the recent synod, offers his testimony. He speaks about the joy of the faithful for Pope Francis's letter, their expectation about his visit, the solidarity Christians showed during COID-19, all of which boosted their confidence. Can Vietnam be a model for relations between the Vatican and China? This “will not be easy for China because of the different context.” Vietnam wants to open up to the world. The Vietnamese can be “good citizens” as well as “bear witness to the Gospel.”
The Franciscan Custos of the Holy Land talks about the situation between Israelis and Palestinians. Mistrust is growing between the two communities even in daily life. He fears a new Christian exodus when the war ends. Those in the international community who want to help should not take sides, but ought to “understand the suffering of both” in a war in which “we have all already lost.”
The president of the Focolare Movement, an Arab Christian who hails from Haifa, spoke at this tragic moment for Israel and Palestine. “I asked myself what am I doing here?" she said. “Should I not do something else to promote peace at this time?” But praying and learning to walk together even with different ideas is a sign of peace for the world too. “Jewish friends I know in Israel have called me [. . .] saying that they are worried about those who live in Gaza.” We should not stop at the horror. “We have collective images of these two peoples that do not correspond to the reality.”
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