CNA Daily News

New academic post aims to renew Africa's political culture

Thu, 23 May 2013 08:31:00 -0600

Vatican City, May 23, 2013 / 08:31 am (CNA).- Cardinal Robert Sarah, the president of Benin and officials from the Pontifical Lateran University presented a new chair whose goal will be to study African politics and form new generations of leaders in the Church’s social doctrine.

The new position, which is named after the late Beninese Cardinal Bernard Gantin, was dedicated May 23, “to recall what his life meant for the people of Benin, for the Church in Africa, and for the universal Church,” explained Cardinal Sarah, president of the Pontifical Council Cor Unum.

“I hope that this chair in his name – on ‘Socialization Policy in Africa’ – will initiate reflection on politics in the African context and prepare future leaders of African society who are guided by the Church's Social Doctrine,” the cardinal told the press.

President Thomas Yayi Boni was also present at the May 23 press conference to unveil the effort, and he spoke in French about the need for a renewal of the political culture in Africa. Making this a reality will require transforming the system and the individual, he added.

Professor Martin Nkafu Nkemnkia, who heads the university’s Department of Social and Human Science – African Studies, explained that the chair will be responsible for holding courses and seminars, promoting conferences and workshops, and seeking collaboration with institutions to increase and give value to Africa’s political culture.

“The contribution of the chair will be a renewal, but above all a formation of leaders, motivated by deep-rooted ethical principles, to overcome the difficult situation of crisis and corruption, both in politicians as well as in civil society itself, through a just economic vision and a more balanced form of the service that politics should offer,” Nkafu said.

Nigerian bishops lament disunity among local Catholics

Thu, 23 May 2013 04:06:00 -0600

Abuja, Nigeria, May 23, 2013 / 04:06 am (CNA).- As the Catholics of the Diocese of Ahiara protested the appointment of a bishop from a nearby diocese as their shepherd, local bishops expressed sadness at the disunity in the Church of Nigeria.

Bishop Peter Ebere Okpaleke – formerly a priest of the Awka diocese – was consecrated bishop of the Diocese of Ahiara in Nigeria May 21, while many residents of the diocese rallied against the move.

Due to the strong opposition among the local Mbaise community, Bishop Okpaleke was installed outside his new diocese, at Seat of Wisdom Seminary in Ulakwo, in the Archdiocese of Owerri.

Bishop Okpaleke was consecrated by Archbishop Anthony J. V. Obinna of Owerri, Ahiara's metropolitan archbishop, with a cardinal and several bishops in attendance, as well as heightened security.

The homily was given by Bishop Lucius I. Ugorji of Umuahia, who said that “acceptance of the papal appointment is a respect for the Pope, while the outright rejection and inflammatory statements and protests are spiteful and disrespectful of papal authority,” according to The Sun of Lagos.

According to the Vanguard of Lagos, Archbishop Obinna said May 19 that “we decided to organize the ordination away from Mbaise so as to give peace a chance...it is sad that what we are experiencing is a war between Catholics and Catholics.”

Bishop Okpaleke comes from the Awka diocese, 62 miles from Ahiara, and is not an ethnic Mbaise. The Catholics of the diocese wanted one of their own to be appointed bishop over them.

“The Mbaise people wanted their own bishop, who knows what's going on within the community,” George Awuzie, an Mbaise emigrant to California and a representative of Mbaise USA, told CNA May 20.

“They're sending someone from a different community, a different village, that doesn't know what we do within our area.”

The Mbaise are the most Catholic among Nigerian people – 77 percent of the population of 620,000 are Catholic. Surrounding diocese range between 4 and 64 percent Catholic.

Families in the rural diocese foster priestly and religious vocations, with at least 167 priestly ordinations for the diocese since its establishment in 1987.

The diocese is currently served by 127 priests and 113 religious, according to Vatican Radio. The Ahiara diocese covers 164 square miles – roughly one sixth the size of Rhode Island.

With such a wealth of priests, the Ahiara diocese sends many as missionaries to Western countries, and many Mbaise hoped that one of its own would become their bishop.

Ahiara's first ordinary, Bishop Victor A. Chikwe, served from 1987 until his death in Sept., 2010. The diocese was vacant for 26 months until Pope Benedict appointed Father Okpaleke last December.

Bishop Okpaleke was born in 1963, and was ordained a priest in 1992. He has served a pastor, university chaplain, and diocesan chancellor. After his ordination he studied canon law at Holy Cross Pontifical University in Rome, and has served on the tribunal for the Onitsha ecclesiastical province.

Both priests and faithful have made vocal, public protests against Bishop Okpaleke's appointment, blocking access to Ahiara's cathedral and disrupting both automobile and foot traffic in the area.

On May 16, some 400 Mbaise protested the appointment in the streets of the diocese, carrying signs with slogans such as “Awka has 5 bishops, Mbaise has 0 bishops” and asking for an “Mbaise son as Mbaise bishop.”

Conflict over the episcopal appointment highlights tribal tensions in Nigeria. Opposition to Bishop Okpaleke has not suggested any poor administration on his part, but focuses solely on his not being a member of the people whom he is to shepherd.

“They ended up going over (the priests of Ahiara) to get someone from another village; appointed a bishop from another village to be bishop of the Mbaise people,” Awuzie told CNA.

Awka, whence Bishop Okpaleke comes, is located in the state of Anambra. Ahiara, meanwhile, is located to the south in Imo state. Mbaise assert that the Nigerian hierarchy favors Anambra.

Mbaise note the appointment of bishops from the Onitsha province – based in Anambra – while few if any episcopal appointments are made of priests from the Owerri province, in Imo and Abia states.

The Mbaise, who are proud of their identity and strong Catholicism, resent what they call the “Anambranization” of the Church in southeast Nigeria, believing there to be corruption within the Church in Nigeria and a “recolonization” of the Mbaise.

The Mbaise are a tribe of the Igbo, one of the three major ethnic groups of Nigeria. Most Christians in Nigeria are Igbo, and reside in the south-east of the country. Soon after Nigeria gained independence from British colonialism, the government, led by the Yoruba and Hausa peoples, began to persecute the Igbo.

In 1967, the Igbo rebelled, forming the Republic of Biafra, resulting in the Nigerian Civil War. The rebellion was put down by 1970, and the region has yet to recover, having lost as many as one million of its population to war and famine.

Overall, Nigerian society is perceived as struggling with corruption, ranking at 139 among 176 countries considered by Transparency International's 2012 Corruption Perception Index. It is just ahead of Bangladesh, and in the company of Pakistan and Kenya.

In the face of division among the Igbo, brought to light by the controversy over Bishop Okpaleke, there have been calls for greater Igbo unity and identity.

Father Stan Chu Ilo, who is Igbo and teaches theology at the University of St. Michael's College in Toronto, wrote Jan. 11 at “Sahara Reporters” that the crisis has caused him to note that “after the Civil War and the ongoing marginalization of Ndigbo in Nigeria, I believe that the Igbo people should unite and work together as brothers and sisters for the good of the ethnic nation and the wider Nigerian, African and international community.”

“Igbo Catholicism should be the veritable instrument for bringing unity in our communities, parishes, dioceses and states in Igbo land,” he concluded.

Health care includes spiritual needs, archbishop tells World Assembly

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:03:00 -0600

Geneva, Switzerland, May 23, 2013 / 12:03 am (CNA).- The head of a Vatican delegation to the World Health Assembly on Wednesday called for universal health care coverage and an “integral” approach to health care that responds to a person’s spiritual needs.

Archbishop Zygmunt Zimowski, head of the Pontifical Council for Pastoral Assistance to Health Care Workers, stressed the need for “integral development.” This approach, he said, does not focus only on health care or economic growth, but also attends to “the spiritual state of the person.”

“Health and development ought to be integral if they are to respond fully to the needs of every human person. What we hold important is the human person - each person, each group of people, and humanity as a whole,” he said May 22 to the 66th World Health Assembly.

The assembly is meeting from May 20-28 in Geneva. It is the decision-making body of the World Health Organization, the public health arm of the United Nations.

The archbishop said that health care contributes to the development of nations “and benefits from it.” He said that the Holy See “strongly believes” that universal health care coverage as a goal of government policy is a more certain way to achieve “the wide range of health concerns,” including preserving present advances.

Archbishop Zimowski then turned to efforts to save the lives of millions of people who die each year “from conditions that can easily be prevented.” He praised a resolution before the assembly to improve the quality, supply and use of 13 “life-saving commodities.”

“The Holy See strongly agrees with the need to achieve further reductions in the loss of life and prevention of illness through increased access to inexpensive interventions that are respectful of the life and dignity of all mothers and children at all stages of life, from conception to natural death,” he said.

However, he voiced “serious concerns” about the assembly’s secretariat report and its executive board-recommended resolution that includes “emergency contraception.” He said some of these drugs have an abortifacient effect.

“For my delegation, it is totally unacceptable to refer to a medical product that constitutes a direct attack on the life of the child in utero as a ‘life-saving commodity’ and, much worse, to encourage ‘increasing use of such substances in all parts of the world’,” he said.

The archbishop welcomed the assembly’s proposed global action plan to control non-communicable diseases. He said his delegation was “especially pleased” that the plan recognizes the “key role” of civil society institutions including faith-based organizations in encouraging the prevention and treatment of these diseases.

“Our delegation is aware that Catholic Church-inspired organizations and institutions throughout the world already have committed themselves to pursue such actions at global, regional, and local community levels,” he said.

Archbishop Zimowski also voiced interest in aspects of preventing and controlling diseases in older age, noting faith-based institutions’ long tradition of care for the aged and the rapid growth of the elderly population. He noted that the Vatican will host an international conference Nov. 21-23 about caring for the elderly with neurodegenerative diseases.

US bishops ask government to reassess drone policy

Wed, 22 May 2013 17:03:00 -0600

Washington D.C., May 22, 2013 / 05:03 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- In letters to top government officials, the U.S. bishops' conference urged a public discussion on the use of unmanned targeted killings, also known as drones, and their moral implications.

“Targeted killing should, by definition, be highly discriminatory,” wrote Bishop Bishop Richard E. Pates of Des Moines, Iowa, in the May 17 letter.

“The Administration’s policy appears to extend the use of deadly force to alleged 'signature' attacks and reportedly classifies all males of a certain age as combatants,” he asked.

“Are these policies morally defensible? They seem to violate the law of war, international human rights law, and moral norms,” the bishop said.

Bishop Pates is the chair of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on International Justice and Peace.

The letters were sent to National Security Adviser Thomas Donilon and to leaders of the Committees on Armed Services, Foreign Affairs, Foreign Relations, Homeland Security and Government Affairs, Judiciary, Oversight and Government Reform and the Select and Permanent Select Committees on Intelligence in both the House of Representatives and the Senate.

The bishop requested that these organizations reassess the use of drones, or unmanned aerial vehicles, in carrying out targeted killings.

The policy has come under public scrutiny for its use in civilian areas against non-military targets, low cost to the United States, and thus risk for overuse, increased risk of civilian casualties, and for whether or not it is a proportional response to a risk of terrorist attacks.

Bishop Pates noted that the United States and other countries have a right to defend themselves, but stated that the success of “a counter-terrorism campaign cannot be simply measured in terms of “combatants killed.”

He urged the organizations to consider the “serious moral questions” raised by drone use and requested that the administration open a “broader discussion” with the public about the morality and consequences of the drone policy.

The bishop also warned that unjust policies and high civilian casualties related to drone use “are likely to exacerbate anti-American sentiment, encourage recruitment by extremists, and undermine the international collaboration necessary to combat terrorism.”

Instead, the United states “should employ non-military assets to build peace through respect for human rights and addressing underlying injustices that terrorists unscrupulously exploit,” and help to advance “international norms, standards and restrictions” for the use of drones.

Bishop Pates challenged the government officials to create “a more comprehensive, moral and effective policy to resist terrorism,” and hoped that expressing the bishops’ concerns “will contribute to the formulation of a more comprehensive, moral and effective policy to resist terrorism.”

Pope says everyone can do good, regardless of belief

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:03:00 -0600

Vatican City, May 22, 2013 / 04:03 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Every human person despite his or her beliefs can do good, and a sharing in good works is the prime place for encounter among those who disagree, Pope Francis said at his Mass today.

“The Lord created us in his image and likeness, and we are the image of the Lord, and he does good and all of us have this commandment at heart: do good and avoid evil. All of us,” the Pope taught in his homily May 22 at St. Martha's residence in the Vatican.

“We must meet one another doing good. ‘But I don’t believe, Father, I am an atheist!’ But do good: we will meet one another there.”

The Mass was concelebrated by Cardinal Bechara Boutros Rai, the Maronite Patriarch of Antioch, and attended by employees of the Vatican's governorate, or executive branch.

During his homily, the Bishop of Rome reflected on Christ's response to his disciples, who thought that anyone outside their group could not do good.

“If he is not one of us, he cannot do good. If he is not of our party, he cannot do good.” This viewpoint, Pope Francis said, “was wrong...Jesus broadens the horizon.”

He went on to explain that all human persons are created in the image of God, who is goodness himself and the source of goodness.

“But, Father, this is not Catholic! He cannot do good.' Yes, he can. He must. Not can: must! Because he has this commandment within him.”

The pontiff called this view, that only Catholics can do good, an intolerance and a “closing off” that can lead to war and blasphemy. Blasphemy, he explained, includes “killing in the name of God.”

He emphasized the universality of Christ's saving act on the cross as a compliment to the universal call to holiness, regardless of religious belief.

“The Lord has redeemed all of us, all of us, with the Blood of Christ: all of us, not just Catholics. Everyone.”

“Even the atheists. Everyone,” Pope Francis stressed.

He said that the saving blood of Christ “makes us children of God of the first class. We are created children in the likeness of God and the blood of Christ has redeemed us all. And we all have a duty to do good.”

The Pope said that because to do good is inscribed on the human heart and does not derive from creeds, “it is an identity card that our Father has given to all of us, because he has made us in his image and likeness. And he does good, always.”

Similarly, doing good “is a duty” for all people. The universal commandment to do good, he said, “is a beautiful path towards peace.”

“If we, each doing our own part, if we do good to others, if we meet there, doing good, and we go slowly, gently, little by little, we will make that culture of encounter: we need that so much.”

Noting the memorial of Saint Rita of Cascia, he concluded saying, “let us ask of her this grace, this grace that all, all, all people would do good and that we would encounter one another in this work.”

Pope praises Missionaries of Charity's 'beautiful' Vatican ministry

Wed, 22 May 2013 12:04:00 -0600

Vatican City, May 22, 2013 / 12:04 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Pope Francis thanked the Missionaries of Charity for their work and described one of their houses located inside the Vatican “a beautiful reality” and “a school of charity.”

“I thank all those who in various ways support this beautiful reality of the Vatican,” said Pope Francis during a May 21 evening visit to celebrate the residence’s 25th anniversary.

“This house is a place that teaches charity, a school of charity, that teaches us to go out to every person, not for profit, but out of love,” he stated at the Gift of Mary House.

He noted that “at the border between the Vatican and Italy, it is a powerful reminder to all of us, to the Church, to the city of Rome, to always be more of a family, a home in which we are open to welcome, to attention, and to fraternity.”

Blessed John Paul II placed the house under the care of the sisters on May 21, 1998.

“How many people have you fed in these years, how many wounded, above all wounded spiritually, have you cared for!” he emphasized.

“My presence here tonight is to give first of all my heartfelt thanks to the Missionaries of Charity, founded by Blessed Teresa of Calcutta, working here for 25 years, with many volunteers, in favor of so many people in need of help, thank you!” he told them.

Around 25 homeless women are allowed to live in the residence, and the sisters feed around 60 people each day at the house.

“A home represents the most precious human wealth, that of encounter, that of the relationships between persons of different ages, cultures, and histories who live together and who, together, help one another to grow, and that is what this house has sought to be for 25 years,” said Pope Francis.

Archbishop Georg Gänswein, Prefect of the Papal Household, and Monsignor Alfred Xuereb, the Pope’s personal secretary, accompanied the pontiff on his 5:30 p.m. visit.

The meeting was held in the courtyard located between the Gift of Mary House, the Palace of the Holy Office and the Atrium of the Paul VI Hall.

Cardinal Angelo Comastri and the Mother General of the Missionaries of Charity, Sister Mary Prema Pierick, welcomed Pope Francis.

The sisters then placed a garland of flowers around the Pope’s neck, following Indian tradition.

Over 100 people were also at the house, including its patrons, employees, friends and guests as well as Missionaries of Charity from other different communities around Rome.

The Pope described the homeless women living at the house as its “gift” and “a gift to the Church.”

“You tell us that loving God and our neighbor is not something abstract but profoundly concrete,” he stated.

“It means seeing in every person the face of the Lord to serve and serving him concretely,” he added.

According to the Pope, people everywhere must recover the entire sense of gift, gratuity and solidarity.

“A savage capitalism has taught the logic of profit at any cost, give in order to get, exploitation without looking at persons, and we see the results in the crisis we are living through!” said the pontiff.

Pope Francis noted that another feature of the house is that it is “qualified as a gift of Mary” and she is an example of living charity towards our neighbor, “not out of social duty, but starting from God's love.”

Vatican's financial intelligence unit nets suspicious activity

Wed, 22 May 2013 09:59:00 -0600

Vatican City, May 22, 2013 / 09:59 am (CNA/EWTN News).- The Vatican revealed that its enhanced procedures have enabled it to flag more suspicious transactions in 2012 than it did in 2011.

“I’m not saying that everything is great and perfect, but that a lot of progress has been made in the last two years,” said Rene Brülhart, director of the Financial Information Authority, at the Vatican’s press office.

“It’s important that we’re setting a system here to protect the Holy See,” he added.

The Vatican’s Financial Information Authority made the statistics public at a May 22 press conference, where it made its first-ever annual report available.

The report shows that in 2012 there were six reports of suspicious activity, versus one in 2011.

Brülhart said this proves that his department and its system, which became operational in April 2011, are working well.

The director explained that the six suspicious transactions involved sums of money greater than 10,000 Euros ($13,000) but would not provide additional details.

He also revealed that the Financial Authority asked the Promoter of Justice’s office within the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith to study two of the cases and said that they could be related to money laundering.

He stressed that international cooperation to help combat money laundering was “absolutely key and crucial” and that the Vatican is “a key player in global fight of money laundering.”

The Financial Information Authority was set up to help combat money laundering and the financing of terrorism and hired Brülhart as its director just a few months ago.

According to the Swiss native, combating money laundering in the Vatican began back in 2010 after Pope Benedict XVI released a “motu proprio” that laid out the procedures.

“There’s no financial sector in the Vatican, no stock exchange, so it’s a completely different environment,” Brülhart said.

He noted that his office has two functions: to work as an intelligence unit and to supervise the so-called Vatican bank, which is officially called the Institute for Works of Religion.

The Vatican bank also recently received a new president, Ernst von Freyberg, who announced May 13 that it will make its annual report public and launch a website to better inform the public about its mission.

Pope: Ask if your life promotes unity or division

Wed, 22 May 2013 06:44:00 -0600

Vatican City, May 22, 2013 / 06:44 am (CNA/EWTN News).- The Holy Spirit made it possible for everyone to hear the apostles in their own language on Pentecost, uniting people who were divided, Pope Francis said, calling on Christians to witness to the faith in a way that reconciles and is forgiving.

“We should all ask ourselves: ‘how do I let myself be guided by the Holy Spirit so that my witness of faith is one of unity and communion? Do I bring the message of reconciliation and love that is the Gospel to the places where I live?’” the Pope said in his May 22 message for the general audience.

The descent of the Holy Spirit undid “the dispersion of peoples and the confusion of tongues” that began with the Tower of Babel, the Pope noted, explaining that the men of the time acted with “arrogance and pride” in wanting to build the tower on their “own strength, and without God.”

Pope Francis address to the crowd of around 50,000 pilgrims in St. Peter’s Square was dedicated to examining the phrase from the Creed, “We believe in One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church.” The talk was part of an ongoing series of reflections during the Year of Faith on the Creed that was started by Benedict XVI.

The pontiff stated that the previous line of the Creed on the Holy Spirit has “a deep connection” to the mission and characteristics of the Church that he dwelt on today.

The Holy Spirit “gives life to the Church, guides her steps. Without the presence and the incessant action of the Holy Spirit, the Church could not live and could not accomplish the task that the Risen Jesus has entrusted her: to go and make disciples of all nations,” the Pope explained.

For that reason, he focused his reflection on three ways that the anointing of the Holy Spirit changes people, marks the Church and prepares it to evangelize.

“Sometimes it seems that what happened at Babel is repeated today; divisions, the inability to understand each other, rivalry, envy, selfishness,” the Holy Father observed.

So he asked the crowd to think about the questions, “What do I do with my life? Do I bring unity? Or do I divide with gossip and envy?”

“Bringing the Gospel means we in the first place must live reconciliation, forgiveness, peace, unity, love that the Holy Spirit gives us. Let us remember the words of Jesus: ‘By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another,’” the Pope said, quoting John 4.

The second way the Spirit prepares believers to share the Gospel is by instilling courage in them, he told the crowd.

“Here is another effect of the Holy Spirit: Courage! – the courage to proclaim the newness of the Gospel of Jesus to all, with self-confidence (parrhesia), in a loud voice, in every time and in every place,” he said.

“And this happens even today for the Church and for each of us,” Pope Francis insisted, urging people, “never be closed to this action!”

“Because evangelizing, announcing Jesus, evangelizing brings us joy! It energizes us. Being closed up within ourselves brings bitterness. Proclaiming the joy and hope that the Lord brings to world lifts us up!” the Pope proclaimed.

But all of this is not possible without a “faithful and intense relationship with God,” the pontiff said as he moved into his third point.

“I will only mention a third element, but it is particularly important: a new evangelization, a Church that evangelizes must always start from prayer, from asking, like the Apostles in the Upper Room, for the fire of the Holy Spirit.

“Without prayer our actions become empty and our proclamation soulless; it is not animated by the Spirit,” he stressed.

Pope Francis encouraged Christians to entrust themselves to the Holy Spirit because he “enables us to live and bear witness to our faith, and enlighten the hearts of those we meet.”

He finished his thoughts on the connection between the Church and the Holy Spirit by recalling Benedict XVI’s statement that the Church today “especially feels the wind of the Holy Spirit that helps us, shows us the right path, and so, with new enthusiasm, we are on our journey and we thank the Lord.”

At the end of the audience the Pope also offered a special message the Catholic in China, who will celebrate the feast of Our Lady Help of Christians on May 24.

May they proclaim Christ “dead and risen, with humility and joy; be faithful to his Church and the Successor of Peter; and live their everyday lives in service to their country and their fellow citizens in a manner consistent with the faith they profess,” he said.

Author finds Catholic themes in Shakespeare's 'Romeo and Juliet'

Wed, 22 May 2013 04:03:00 -0600

Greenville, S.C., May 22, 2013 / 04:03 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Editor and author Joseph Pearce's new work, “Shakespeare on Love,” sees the Catholic presence in “Romeo and Juliet” and corrects popular interpretations of the play, which see the pair only as victims.

“If we're not prepared to treat it as a cautionary tale, with Romeo and Juliet being in the wrong, the play is unsettling, because somehow they're the good guys and yet they finish so badly, and surely it's not fair,” Pearce, Thomas More College of Liberal Arts' writer-in-residence, told CNA May 20.

“But once you understand that actually the outcome is the consequence of their own actions, decisions, and choices, and also sins of omission of the lack of parental guidance – parental bad influence actually – all of a sudden it is seen as a profoundly Christian, cautionary tale.”

Pearce explained that his motivation for writing “Shakespeare on Love,” released in March by Ignatius Press, was to “correct the misreading of 'Romeo and Juliet' by the modern academy.” Some interpret the lovers as victims of fate, with no one at fault in their death because fortune and fate eradicate free will.

Since the 19th century and the Romantic era, when emotion was exalted over reason, the play has been read overwhelmingly through that lens, seeing Romeo and Juliet as heros for love and victims of their families' hatred for each other.

The Romantic reading of “Romeo and Juliet” distorts the meaning of love, Pearce said, making it “really about feelings, and that feeling usurps reason where romance and love is concerned, and it's become the norm for critics to read 'Romeo and Juliet' in that way.”

“But of course 'Romeo and Juliet' was not written in the light of Romanticism...but in the light of a profoundly Christian understanding of morality and love, with love being something that is connected to reason and will, and the necessity of laying down one's life for the beloved.”

“Shakespeare on Love” is meant to “rectify the non-Christian understanding” of “Romeo and Juliet,” analyzing the play's text to demonstrate how Shakespeare portrays the pair as culpable for their outcome, stuck in a self-indulgent passion that ultimately harms them both.

Pearce shows that Shakespeare portrays both Romeo and Juliet as lacking prudence and temperance, but that their elders, who ought to guide them in the virtues are similarly lacking. Pearce then sees the play as a tool for teaching morality and the nature of true love.

Since “Romeo and Juliet,” together with “Julius Caesar” is one of the most widely taught texts of Shakespeare in high schools, Pearce considered it important to correct its interpretation, saying it is “almost invariably taught badly.”

“Shakespeare is a powerful voice, a voice that's been distorted by the secular academy, and that's something that needs to be rectified,” Pearce concluded.

His reading of the the text of “Romeo and Juliet” is meant “to have Shakespeare understood as Shakespeare understood himself.”

Pope makes fourth appeal for Oklahoma tornado victims

Wed, 22 May 2013 03:52:00 -0600

Vatican City, May 22, 2013 / 03:52 am (CNA/EWTN News).- As he hosted his weekly Wednesday audience in St. Peter’s Square, Pope Francis made his fourth appeal for prayer for the victims of the tornado that killed 24 people in Oklahoma.

Before he greeted all of the English-speaking people at the May 22 general audience, Pope Francis invited everyone present to pray for those who were killed or injured by the May 20 tornado that ravaged the Oklahoma City suburb of Moore.

The death toll was originally reported as 91 people, including 20 children, but subsequent counts showed that some casualties were counted twice in the chaos. According to the state’s chief medical officer Doctor Eric Pfeifer, the correct number of dead stands at 24, with nine of those being children.

Besides his request at the general audience, the Pope also sent a May 21 message to Archbishop Paul S. Coakley of Oklahoma City, in which he asked the archbishop to “convey to the entire community the assurance of his solidarity and closeness in prayer.”

“Conscious of the tragic loss of life and the immensity of the work of rebuilding that lies ahead, he asks Almighty God to grant eternal rest to the departed, comfort to the afflicted, and strength and hope to the homeless and injured,” reads the message sent by Secretary of State Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone.

In his first two requests for prayer – during the prayer intentions for his daily Mass and then via Twitter – Pope Francis singled out for particular prayer the tragic death of the children who were killed by the storm.

He repeated that plea in his message to the Oklahoma City archbishop, saying, “in particular way he commends to the Father of Mercies the many young children among the victims and their grieving families.”

“Upon the local civil and religious leaders, and upon all involved in the relief efforts His Holiness invokes the Risen Lord's gifts of consolation, strength and perseverance in every good,” his telegram concluded.

American named deputy head of global Catholic knights group

Wed, 22 May 2013 02:03:00 -0600

New Orleans, La., May 22, 2013 / 02:03 am (CNA).- The International Alliance of Catholic Knights has named as its deputy president F. DeKarlos Blackmon, Supreme Knight of the Knights of Peter Claver.

Blackmon, 36, said he will use his new role to deepen the faith of alliance members and all Catholics while encouraging “active and generous participation in the life and mission of the Church,” the New Orleans-based Knights of Peter Claver reported May 16.

Gene A. Phillips, Sr., past Supreme Knight of the Knights of Peter Claver, said the organization is “extremely proud to have the United States represented in the leadership of this vital organization.”

The International Alliance of Catholic Knights has 15 member orders with a combined presence in 27 countries. It was founded in Glasgow, Scotland in October 1979 to advance mutual cooperation between member orders and to help expand Catholic knighthood, the alliance’s website says. It is a Vatican-recognized association of the Catholic faithful.

The coalition aims to help evangelize the world for Jesus Christ and to support the Pope and all bishops, priest and religious. It intends to fulfill the vision of Father Michael J. McGivney, the founder of the Knights of Columbus.

The Knights of Peter Claver and the Knights of Columbus represent the United States in the alliance.

Blackmon is a pastoral associate and director of liturgy and music at St. Joseph Parish in Huntsville, Ala. He is a Benedictine oblate and a former U.S. Army chaplain.

His election drew congratulations from Auxiliary Bishop Shelton J. Fabre of New Orleans and Auxiliary Bishop Martin D. Holley of the Archdiocese of Washington, chaplain of the Knights of Peter Claver.

He has headed the only historically black Catholic fraternal organization in the U.S. since 2010. The Knights of Peter Claver take as their model the seventeenth-century Jesuit priest who ministered to Colombian slaves. They are present in about 39 U.S. states and South America.

Blackmon will serve under the International Alliance of Catholic Knights’ new president, Brother David Huppatz, a past Supreme Knight of Australia’s Knights of the Southern Cross.

Both were elected to a two-year term. Their installation will take place at the end of the alliance’s September 2013 international council meeting in The Gambia, home of alliance member the Fraternal Order of Sts. Peter and Paul.

Other member orders include the Knights of St. Columba in the U.K. and the Knights of St. Columbanus in Ireland. The alliance’s website is www.iack.org.

Supreme Court could give landmark ruling on public prayer

Wed, 22 May 2013 00:05:00 -0600

Washington D.C., May 22, 2013 / 12:05 am (CNA/EWTN News).- In a move that could have national consequences for prayer in public life, the U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a federal case challenging the constitutionality of opening prayers at the town council meetings of Greece, New York.

“It is perfectly constitutional to allow community members to ask for God's blessing according to their conscience,” Brett Harvey, Senior Counsel with the Alliance Defending Freedom, told CNA May 21.

“A Supreme Court ruling reaffirming this historic tradition and making clear that prayer givers are permitted to pray consistent with the dictates of their own conscience would both uphold the original understanding of the Constitution and provide needed clarity to put an end to these attacks on our American heritage.”

Greece is a Rochester suburb with 90,000 people. The Alliance Defending Freedom is supporting the town’s defense against two plaintiffs, Susan Galloway and Linda Stephens.

The two claim that the public prayers which open local town council meetings unconstitutionally privilege Christianity. Since the prayers began in 1999, they objected, almost all of those who delivered prayers have been Christians.

Non-Christians who have delivered prayers include a Jewish layperson, a local Baha'i leader, a Wiccan priestess and an atheist.

The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled against the town. Judge Guido Calabresi, who authored the opinion, said that although the town allows anyone to volunteer it did not solicit volunteers or inform the general public that volunteers would be considered or accepted.

He emphasized that the court did not say that government bodies can never open a session with prayer, Reuters reports.

Rev. Barry Lynn, a United Church of Christ minister who heads the group Americans United for Separation of Church and State, opposed the prayers. He said that a town council meeting is not a church service and “shouldn’t seem like one.”

Harvey, however, said the case “defends a historic practice of opening public meetings by seeking divine guidance.” He added that the Supreme Court has ruled public prayer a part of the “history and tradition” of the United States.

“The founders prayed while drafting our constitution’s Bill of Rights,” he said. “America continues this cherished practice, and a few people should not be able to extinguish the traditions of our nation merely because they heard something they didn’t like.”

Harvey said there have been 20 different federal lawsuits filed against local governments asking that they abandon their traditions of prayer.

“A ruling against the Town of Greece would multiply the attacks on the historic practice of seeking divine guidance at public meetings and would suggest that the authors of the Bill of Rights were violating the Constitution, even as they were writing it,” he said.

A decision on the case will likely take place during the court’s next term, which lasts from October 2013 to June 2014.

Church, political leaders extend prayers to Oklahoma victims

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:05:00 -0600

Washington D.C., May 21, 2013 / 05:05 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Following a devastating tornado in Oklahoma on May 20, Church leaders and national figures from the offered their prayers and condolences for those affected by the disaster.

“The experience of loss of family members, homes, neighborhoods, and even the local hospital, shows a devastation that impels us to stand with you and all the good people of Moore both in prayer for comfort and in efforts for disaster relief to ease the suffering of those whose lives have been affected by this dreadful disaster,” Cardinal Timothy Dolan of the Archdiocese of New York said to Archbishop Paul Coakley of Oklahoma City in a May 21 letter.

“May the words of Jesus, 'Behold I am with you always,' and who calmed the storms, bring hope and comfort at this sensitive moment in the history of your diocese,” said the cardinal, who serves as president of the U.S. bishops' conference.

“May all those affected by such pain feel the strength God offers them and the compassion of all who stand with them, be it in their hometown or miles away.”

On the afternoon of May 20, a EF-5 tornado traveled through central Oklahoma. As of Tuesday afternoon, 24 individuals were confirmed to be dead, including nine children, and over 230 people have reported injuries.

The majority of the damage occurred in Moore, Okla., in the northwest suburbs of Oklahoma City. This is the fifth significant tornado to strike the town since 1998.

President Barack Obama also offered his condolences and prayers, and vowed that the American people would “back up those prayers with deeds for as long as it takes.”

“For all those who’ve been affected, we recognize that you face a long road ahead,” Mr. Obama said. “In some cases, there will be enormous grief that has to be absorbed. But you will not travel that path alone. Your country will travel it with you, fueled by our faith in the almighty and our faith in one another,” the president said.

Obama has also approved a Major Disaster Declaration, authorizing emergency funds for the state, and has sent the head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, W. Craig Fugate, to personally supervise the disaster response.

Speaker of the House, John Boehner (R- Ohio) also offered prayers for those affected by the tornado. “Our hearts and our prayers go out to those in Oklahoma who were victimized by this storm, especially our colleague Tom Cole,” said Boehner in a press conference. Rep. Tom Cole (R-Okla.) is from Moore, and is currently in his home state.

Boehner also ordered that flags be flown at half- mast “in honor of those who have suffered through terrible storm.”

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) took the floor to express her sympathy and condolences to those in Oklahoma, and offered prayers and words of support as well.

“We’ve seen natural disasters come and go,” she said, adding that in the face of disasters, “it’s very hard to see how people can be made whole, but we are always hopeful that they will be.” She noted that people can “have hope in the charity of others, that we can work together to come through this.”

The Knights of Columbus, a Catholic fraternal organization, promised that all donations collected would go towards relief efforts in Oklahoma.

“We are deeply saddened by the loss of life and the damage caused by the tornadoes in Oklahoma,” said Supreme Knight Carl Anderson in a May 21 statement.

“We will work with our state and local councils to help the people of Oklahoma recover from this disaster, and we ask all members of the Knights of Columbus to keep those affected in their prayers.”

Oklahoma bishop supports those grieving in Moore

Tue, 21 May 2013 15:15:00 -0600

Oklahoma City, Okla., May 21, 2013 / 03:15 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Archbishop Paul S. Coakley of Oklahoma City traveled to Moore today to give his support and concern to those devastated by the tornado that swept through the town yesterday, May 20.

“I feel, as the archbishop, as a shepherd, I need to be there,” Archbishop Coakley told CNA while on his way to the suburb of Oklahoma City on May 21.

“I'm not sure…there's anything very practical I can do when I arrive, other than to show my pastoral concern and support, and give the assurance of my prayers to those who are indeed suffering.”

He added that “people are in such shock right now, we just want to accompany them in their suffering at this point.”

The tornado, which was two miles wide at its greatest, touched down mid-afternoon yesterday, and lashed the area for 45 minutes with winds of up to 200 mph. It destroyed homes, businesses, the local hospital and other buildings, including Plaza Towers Elementary School.

Officials have reported 24 dead, including nine children. Earlier reports of as many as 91 deaths were attributed to the double-reporting of some corpses.

The archbishop said that he and Catholic Charities of Oklahoma City will be assessing the needs of the situation. “We're organizing to provide immediate relief as well as long-term assistance in terms of people beginning to rebuild their lives, their homes.”

“We want to be available to provide ordinary pastoral care under the extraordinary situations.” He reported that the city's parish was undamaged, “so as soon as they have power and water restored in the parish, they can continue providing pastoral care to those who are in the area.”

He called the situation in Moore “hectic” and “chaotic,” and said that “at this point we're still in the process of assessing needs, is probably the most honest thing I could say.”

The archdiocesan Catholic Charities will focus on long-term response to the tornado, offering case management and counseling, he said.

William Banowsky, the agency's development director, told CNA that they are setting up a plan, coordinating with state, federal and local agencies “to work together on a cohesive plan.”

He said Catholic Charities “works with those affected long-term, so we're there for their immediate needs, finding shelter and clothing and things like that, but we work with them for up to three, four years, however long it takes for them to get back on their feet.”

Archbishop Coakley said, “what I'm suggesting to people who are wanting to do something immediately, is to go to the Catholic Charities of Oklahoma City website (http://catholiccharitiesok.org/), and they can donate online for the tornado disaster relief, and that will go completely to assist the victims.”

“And pray, please…we urge them to pray, to be mindful of the suffering individuals and families, and community of central Oklahoma.”

Archbishop Coakley said he's been “overwhelmed” by the support and prayers of those from across the country and the world, and that Oklahomans are “mindful and very grateful for that.”

Tina Dzurisin, archdiocesan communications director, said that the prayers and warm wishes the community has received from the world-wide Church have been “really encouraging and uplifting, even in a time of tragedy.”

The archbishop also expressed gratitude to the first responders in Moore, many of whom have been there for 24 hours now, “who are really to be admired and appreciated. They are giving their all, and we want to remember them in our prayers, because they're dealing with some very difficult situations on the ground, there's terrible human suffering they're having to deal with, and they're doing it beautifully.”

Carson Krittenbrink, a seminarian of the Oklahoma City archdiocese who has been to Moore to assist those in need, said there are “police, firemen, and ambulance workers everywhere” in the city, and the National Guard is present.

He told CNA that there are injured people all over Moore. At least 200 were injured in the tornado.

Krittenbrink has family in Moore, and their home has “a big hole in the roof” and “it ripped brick off the side of house, broke every window in the house.”

That damage, however, was a “glancing blow” from the tornado. “The houses just across the street are clean to the foundation, nothing left.”

While going with his parents to help their relatives, Krittenbrink said, “we were running over powerlines, we were having to skirt chunks of roof in the road.”

A long-time resident of Oklahoma, Krittenbrink said this is “the worst tornado damage I've ever seen.”

The storm did damage proper to the strongest category of tornado, EF-5, and may be the areas worst tornado seen in some 30 years.

Former Newark priest arrested after breaking court agreement

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:03:00 -0600

Newark, N.J., May 21, 2013 / 02:03 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- After violating the terms of an understanding with local prosecutors, a priest who recently resigned from ministry with the Newark archdiocese was arrested May 20.

Father Michael Fugee was accused of sexually abusing a minor in 2001, and in 2007 made an agreement with local prosecutors that allowed him to remain in ministry so long as he was not around children unsupervised and did not engage in youth ministry.

In late April, it emerged that the priest had participated in youth retreats and pilgrimages, though without the knowledge of the Newark chancery.

The Bergen County Prosecutor's Office, with whom Fr. Fugee had come to the 2007 agreement, arrested him at Saint Antoninus parish in Newark, where he was living since his resignation from ministry. He was charged with seven count of contempt of a judicial order.

Conviction for the charge can carry a prison term of up to 18 months. Fr. Fugee's bail was set at $25,000.

Fr. Fugee submitted his resignation to Archbishop John J. Myers May 2, who promptly accepted it.

In 2001, Fr. Fugee told police he had twice groped a teenage boy's crotch while they were wrestling in the presence of the boy's family members. One instance took place while he was on vacation with the boy's family in Virginia in 2000, he said, and the other was about a year prior to that.

He was charged with criminal sexual contact and endangering a child's welfare. A jury convicted him of aggravated sexual contact in 2003, but in 2006 an appellate court reversed the conviction, saying the trial court had given inadequate guidance to the jury. During his trial, he had protested that his confession to the police was false and that he had lied.

The priest came to an agreement with the Bergen County Prosecutor and the Archdiocese of Newark's vicar general in 2007 requiring him to undergo two years of “sex-offender specific counseling/therapy.”

Fr. Fugee has attended two youth retreats, in 2010 and 2012, and has gone on pilgrimages which included youths.

The retreats were held by St. Mary's in Colts Neck, which is in the Trenton diocese. Fr. Fugee was called to assist at the retreats by the parish's youth ministers, with whom he is good friends.

He has heard the confessions of minors on these retreats, according to The Star-Ledger. The article included Facebook photos of Fr. Fugee with minors taken on the retreats.

Fr. Fugee's agreement with Bergen County prosecutors said he could remain in ministry so long as “he shall not have any unsupervised contact with or any duties that call for the supervision/ministry of any child or children under the age of 18...as long as he is a priest and/or employed/assigned within the Roman Catholic Church.”

“It is agreed and understood that Michael Fugee shall not accept any position...that allows him to have any unsupervised contact with or to supervise or minister to any child/minor under the age of 18 or work in any position in which children are involved,” the agreement adds.

“This includes, but is not limited to, presiding over a parish, involvement with a youth group, religious education/parochial school, CCD, confessions of children, youth choir, youth retreats and day care.”