World Touch Archives - Page 35 of 71

Oslo

Nobel Upsets Chinese Diplomacy

The announcement of the Norwegian Nobel Committee provided an upset ending for a week of public diplomacy by China in Europe. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao had toured European capitals showering goodwill and lucrative investment deals for cash-strapped European economies. But if there was ever any speculation that the allure of China’s burgeoning market and its development model can make the West forego universal values such as freedom and democracy, it evaporated with the award given to one of China’s most courageous dissidents, Liu Xiaobo.

Antoaneta Becker

Vatican

New Saint Champions Women and the Youth

Blessed Candida Maria de Jesus Cipitria y Barriola (1845-1912), the Spanish founder of the congregation of the Daughters of Jesus, was canonized by Pope Benedict XVI on October 17. She was an educator who never went to school; a teacher who never had the chance to be a student. Yet, because of her childlike faith, Blessed Candida Maria de Jesus made it possible for tens of thousands of women and children around the world to enjoy quality Christian education, especially in countries where opportunities are limited. Not only did she establish schools for higher learning, she also worked for the betterment of societies afflicted by many ills, such as poverty, ignorance, war and discrimination.

Angela Blardony Ureta

South Korea

Old Mobile Phones Provide Gold for Africa

A Catholic organization in Korea is raising funds for African children by collecting used mobile phones to recover valuable parts for sale. The Korean Catholic Solidarity for the Integrity of Creation, on Oct. 2, donated 44 million won (about US$40,000) to the Sisters of Christian Doctrine in Andong. It discovered that dilapidated cell phones, mostly discarded as waste, contain valuable parts that can be turned into money for supporting children in central Africa affected by civil war and environmental problems.

Stephen Hong

Christians are the “Most Persecuted”

Christianity is the most persecuted religion in the world, European bishops have told a Brussels conference. A report issued this week by the Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the European Community (COMECE) said that at least three-quarters of all religious persecution was directed at Christians, the Catholic Herald reports. In the report, the bishops urged the European Union to apply more pressure to countries around the world that failed to protect the religious freedom of their citizens. They called on the EU’s foreign ministry, headed by the Labor peer Lady Ashton, to set up a “religion unit” to promote the cause of religious freedom more effectively.

CMMA

Hall of Fame for World Mission

After having been distinguished as the Best Local Community/Parish Newspaper for the last three consecutive years, World Mission was awarded a Hall of Fame trophy at the 32nd Catholic Mass Media Awards (CMMA).

World Mission

Malaysia

Say “Yahweh” instead of “Allah”?

Several representatives from the Malaysian government, such as Minister Idris Jala, a Christian, are visiting the Christian communities in Malaysia, trying to convince Christian citizens to abandon the term “Allah” and use “Yahweh” in the texts in the liturgy and in publications.

www.fides.org

Unemployment Triggers Social Unrest

According to the International Labor Organization (ILO), the high levels of unemployment caused by the financial and economic crisis have already caused social unrest in at least 25 countries. And the situation can deteriorate worldwide because this United Nations work agency foresees a long labor market recession that will affect even some recovering emerging economies.

Julia Kollewe

World

Climate Change and Extreme Weather

Extreme weather is one of the clearest signals that climate change is happening. During the first part of August 2010, news of extreme weather in various parts of the world was seldom off the headlines. Pakistan suffered its worst monsoon-related floods in 80 years. More than 1,600 people were reported dead, though the real number is probably a multiple of that figure. Rivers burst their banks sweeping away houses, food crops, roads and bridges, leaving areas, such as Gilgit Baltistan, cut off from the rest of the country. The extreme flooding in the Swat valley was partly due to the fact that, since the Taliban took over, the area’s forests had been chopped down at an alarming rate. By the end of the first week of August, it was estimated that around 12 million people have been affected.

Fr. Seán McDonagh, SSC

Taizé

Ecumenism of Holiness

World Christian leaders are paying tribute to the ecumenical community of Taizé in eastern France, which is marking its foundation in 1940 by Brother Roger Schütz (see photos), who died in 2005. In a message to Brother Alois, who now heads the community, the Pope described Schütz as a “pioneer in the difficult paths toward unity among the disciples of Christ.” And considered the founder’s “ecumenism of holiness” as an inspiration in “our march toward unity.”

Stephen Brown

Non-Catholics Influenced Council’s Liberalization

A new analysis of voting patterns among bishops at the Second Vatican Council points to the indirect influence of non-Catholic Churches in the Council’s liberalization of the Catholic Church.

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