Pope Urges War-Torn Mozambique to Cultivate ‘Delicate Flower’ of Peace

By Inés San Martín

MAPUTO, Mozambique (Crux) – On his first full day in Mozambique, a country torn apart by a civil war from 1977 to 1992 and still struggling with violence, Pope Francis said lasting peace is not the mere absence of armed conflict but a tireless commitment to secure equal opportunities for all, because if some “are left on the fringes,” aggression will eventually explode.

“The pursuit of lasting peace,” the pontiff said Sept. 5, “calls for strenuous, constant and unremitting effort, for peace is like a delicate flower, struggling to blossom on the stony ground of violence.”

Peace, he argued, demands that humanity continue “with determination but without fanaticism, with courage but without exaltation, with tenacity but in an intelligent way, to promote peace and reconciliation, not the violence that brings only destruction.”

His words came in an address to local authorities, civil society and the diplomatic corps at the Ponta Vermelha Palace, the official residence of the Mozambican president, after a private meeting with President Filipe Nyusi.

Among those present during the pontiff’s remarks was Ossufo Nomade, president of the opposition party RENAMO, a former militia group that represented one of the factions in the civil war opposed to Nyusi’s FRELIMO front.

During his remarks, Nyusi noted the presence of “my brother” Nomade, who stood in a sign of gratitude and received strong applause.

Quoting Pope Francis, who said “the first to apologize is the bravest; the first to forgive is the strongest,” Nyusi said the dialogue established among all the forces of Mozambican society goals to recognize those who are different and “make this diversity a part of the richness that characterizes us as a multicolored nation in its varied dimensions.”

In his own address, the Holy Father said he wanted to express “personal gratitude” for efforts to ensure peace, saying that reconciliation is the best path to confront the difficulties and challenges Mozambique faces as a nation.

He highlighted a new cease-fire signed Aug. 1, decades after a peace agreement in 1992 which brought an end to the civil war. The Church played a key role in the original negotiations, with the deal being signed in Rome at the headquarters of the Community of Sant’Egidio, one of the “new movements” in Catholicism.

As he was headed to the palace, Pope Francis was greeted by thousands of people who waited to see him along the 1.5-mile route he travelled in a small gray car.

“You are all brothers and sisters, sons and daughters of a single land, stewards with a shared destiny,” he told the Mozambicans.

He urged leaders to “recognize, protect and concretely restore the dignity, so often overlooked or ignored, of our brothers and sisters, so that they can see themselves as the principal protagonists of the destiny of their nation.”

“When a society- whether local, national or global- is willing to leave part of itself on the fringes, no political programs or resources spent on law enforcement or surveillance systems can indefinitely guarantee tranquility,” Pope Francis said, speaking in Portuguese.

The pontiff encouraged Mozambique to ensure that no one, particularly the young, feel excluded. Those under 25 represent 60 percent of the nation’s total population of 30 million.

Peace, an intergenerational process, must also “cherish memory” as a path that opens towards the future, leading to the “attainment of common goals, shared values and ideas that can help to overcome narrow corporate or partisan interests.”

“You have a courageous historical mission to undertake,” Pope Francis said. “May you not desist as long as there are children and young people without schooling, families that are homeless, unemployed workers, farmers without land to cultivate … These are the weapons of peace.”

Pope Francis offered a few thoughts for those struck by cyclones Idai and Kenneth that hit the country some six months ago, the devastating effects of which, he said, “continue to be felt by so many families, especially in those places where it is not yet possible to rebuild.”

As he noted, he won’t be able to go to the region most affected by these two storms that left some 1,000 people dead, but he wanted them to know that he participates “in your anguish and suffering.”

“Amid the catastrophe and desolation, I pray that, in God’s providence, constant concern will be shown by all those civil and social groups who make people their priority and are in a position to promote the necessary rebuilding,” he said.

Toward the end of his speech, Francis added an environmental note. Pope Francis said peace “invites us to look to the earth,” saying that Mozambique is blessed and is responsible for caring for this blessing.

“The protection of the land is also protection of life, which demands particular attention whenever we see a tendency towards pillaging and exfoliation driven by a greed generally not cultivated even by the inhabitants of these lands, nor motivated for the common good of your people,” he said. “A culture of peace implies a productive, sustainable and inclusive development.”

Myrta Kaulard, United Nations Resident Coordinator in Mozambique, said that “it’s definitely a good day for peace and reconciliation.”

“For good elections you need peace. For development you need peace,” she told reporters traveling with Pope Francis.

She said that the Holy Father’s message would provide the country with “a positive boost,” but so would his simply being here.

“When was the last time Mozambique was in the spotlight?” Kaulard asked, saying it was for the disastrous cyclones that battered the country and killed more than a thousand people in March. Pope Francis would bring a strong message on climate change, she said, but more than anything show that it was a place that mattered. “This after all is a quite remote country.”

After his remarks in Ponta Vermelha Palace, the pontiff was scheduled to lead an interreligious meeting with the youth at the Mazaquene Pavillon, and during the afternoon met with bishops, priests, religious, consecrated and seminarians and catechists at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception.

His visit to Mozambique is part of Pope Francis’s Sept. 4-10 trip to Africa, the fourth to this continent, that will also take him to Madagascar and Mauritius.

Earlier in the day, upon learning “with sadness” of the passing of French Cardinal Roger Etchegaray, a close collaborator of John Paul II, Pope Francis remembered him in a Mass celebrated in the papal embassy.

Catholic Academy Focuses on Inclusion

By Emily Drooby

Students at Our Lady Of Grace Catholic Academy started their day by simply saying hello to their fellow classmates, teachers, parents as the NYPD police band put on a concert to kick off the new school year.

The school’s principal, Kelly Wolf, says this year students will focus on the greeting as a way to spread kindness.

“You turn to your left and you say hello to a friend, you turn to your right and you say hello to a friend, and hopefully then throughout the day it just turns into a conversation and by the end of the day it becomes a friendship. If we could build upon that and have that every single day, wow what a better world we might have for our children, Principal Wolf explained.

The exercise comes from a national movement called ‘Start With Hello,’ which seeks to create a culture of inclusion at schools. It was started by family members of those killed during the Newtown, Connecticut mass shooting in 2012.

“Anything we can do to help the kids feel welcomed and to feel like they belong,” is important, said Angela Donnelly, a first grade teacher at Our Lady Of Grace Catholic Academy.

Teachers are hoping that if students just say ‘hello’ to each other it will make everyone more comfortable, especially the school’s 20 new students.

“There’s a lot of people, friendly people and they’re nice and the teachers are awesome,” said Charles, a new student at the school this year.

“It warms my heart because there are so many new students, and it will make them feel welcome and it’s easier to make friends that way,” added Kendra, a student who has been at the academy since she was in nursery school.

The school’s population has steadily increased over the past three years, which Principal Wolf credits to the positive and welcoming community they’ve built within the school and neighborhood.

“When they come here at OLGCA they’re joining a family, I am opening our doors and welcoming them into our family,” she said.

The initiative comes naturally to Our Lady Of Grace. Each, day students learn basic Catholic values that focus on loving your neighbor as yourself.

Principal Wolf further explained, “We are supposed to be more like Jesus so starting your day with hello to so many new faces that are there it’s just what I think Jesus would want us to do.”

The new initiative is a small but powerful action that the academy hopes will go a very long way.

Catholics Protest Separation of Migrant Families in Act of Civil Disobedience

By Emily Drooby

Catholics laid out on the ground, forming a cross and blocking traffic in one of Newark, New Jersey’s busiest intersections, refusing to move until they were arrested.

The peaceful act of civil disobedience, which started with prayer and a march, was done in support of migrant children. Protestors were condemning the Trump administration’s treatment of these children, specifically policies that separate children from their families.

Fellow protesters gathered around them in solidarity as Cardinal Joseph Tobin of Newark prayed.

The demonstration is part of national campaign created by a coalition of Catholic organizations who are mobilizing the faithful and asking politicians to find and implement ways of keeping undocumented children safe. Many of the participants mentioned poor facility conditions and even child deaths as inspiration for their activism.

“I’m not a lifelong person who is used to participating in civil disobedience. But i really do feel passionately that these kids need every advantage in life, and there has to be some symbolic way of saying, ‘I stand with you,'” said Sister Mary Kay Dobrovolny, who was part of that symbolic cross.

She traveled all the way from Detroit, Michigan, to participate in the protest. Others, like Father Edward Mason, came from the Diocese of Brooklyn.

“Our values are better than this. Our country was built on the strength of families, and this type of behavior towards families, separation of families, goes against everything we have preached, lived, since the beginning,” the pastor of Mary, Mother of the Church parish explained.

Cardinal Tobin also explained that this issue is important to all religions – especially Catholicism.

“It’s not simply a benevolent action, it’s recognized in the face of the God we worship in these suffering people, that’s why it’s important to us.,” he said.

In the summer of 2018, President Trump signed an executive order to end his controversial policy that resulted in family separations. Since then, the president has said that his administration will keep families together, but that the White House will remain tough on illegal immigration.

Currents News for Wednesday, September 4, 2019

On the newscast: Pope Francis has touched down in Africa. The city of Maputo greeting him with arms wide open; But the Holy Father’s prayers are a continent away. Tonight, he’s remembering the people pummeled by Hurricane Dorian; A pro-immigration march on the streets of Newark– a top cardinal is leading the way; Plus, a parade of students through the Diocese of Brooklyn. It’s the first day of school.

Watch weeknights at 7:00 pm EST on NET-TV in the New York City area on Spectrum, Optimum, and Fios. Subscribe to our YouTube channel to receive notifications about new content.

New School Year Brings New Students to Brooklyn Catholic Academy

By Tim Harfmann

Enrollment is up at St. Brigid-St. Frances Cabrini Catholic Academy in Bushwick, Brooklyn. There are now 270 students, up from 150 last year.

As pastor of the Bushwick parish, Father Jorge Ortiz-Garay welcomes students.

“I really wish for them to enjoy the first day of class and also to see, to think that this is home for them,” said. Fr. Ortiz

For some children, this is a new home, after St. Frances Cabrini Catholic Academy closed last year due to declining enrollment, which forced serious budget cuts. The school then merged with St. Brigid.

“I feel weird and nervous because I’m going back to school in a different school,” said Javier Hernandes, a sixth grader who is new to the merged academy.

Though he’s nervous, Javier is happy to know his friends have also transferred. “I feel excited, because at least I’ll have some friends to talk to,” he said.

Mayra and Rafael Diaz are parents who sent their two kids to St. Frances Cabrini as well. After attending public school as children, they wanted their kids to remain in Catholic school.

“I’ve actually seen public schools get progressively worse since I went through,” said Rafael.

“It’s the balance between the academics, that spiritual life and that important relationship to have with God,” Mayra explained.

Fr. Jorge says that is the drive behind the school’s commitment to being a strong, Catholic presence in the neighborhood.

“It’s an investment of life. Also, if we keep these kids here, they are happy, they understand that the school is such a home. You know what? At the end, they will stay in the Church.”

The Diocese of Brooklyn offers special scholarships to students. Last year, 4, 700 kids earned over $7 million.

Hurricane Dorian Approaches East Coast, Prompting Advisories and Evacuations

Currents News Staff

It’s been a long, slow wait for Hurricane Dorian, a storm that is taking its time and keeping everyone guessing where and when it will strike again.

As some Florida communities lift evacuation orders, officials elsewhere are initiating new evacuations as Hurricane Dorian is finally rumbles up the east coast, staring down Georgia and the Carolinas.

Dorian is now a category 2 hurricane that may thrust record breaking storm surge and flooding into low-lying parts of South Carolina, with hurricane warning extending from north of the Savannah River to the Carolinas and into Virginia.

“North Carolina faces deadly storm surge and inland flooding,” said Georgia Governor Roy Cooper.

“Starting late this afternoon, for 36-hours, I want Charleston to be a ghost town,” said Mayor John Tecklenburg of Charleston. “I want everybody out of sight, and if they’re not out of town: inside, hunkered down and safe.”

Images from the Bahamas showed Dorian’s wrath. Some islands were almost wiped away after the storm parked overhead for two straight days as a category five hurricane.

The U.S. Coast Guard is assisting in rescues and evacuations. President Donald Trump is also committing assets towards the damage at the request of the Bahamian prime minister.

“We’re sending some people to give them a hand, they need a big hand, what’s going on there is incredible. Few people have seen anything like that,” Trump said.

Mozambique Begins Pope Francis’s Three-Nation Trip to Africa

By Inés San Martín

ROME (Crux) – Pope Francis lands today in Mozambique, the first of the 3 Ms of the Indian Ocean he will visit Sept. 4-10 during the 31^st international trip of his pontificate.

He’s going to deliver a total of 15 speeches during his tour: Five in Mozambique, eight in Madagascar and two in Mauritius.

The Mauritius leg will be only 8 hours, but the pontiff will still have time to celebrate Mass; have lunch with members of the bishops’ conference of the Indian Ocean; visit the Shrine of Blessed Jacques-Desire Laval, the “apostle of Mauritius”; and visit the presidential palace, meet with government authorities and deliver a speech to the diplomatic corps.

This will be Francis’s fourth visit to Africa, and second visit to sub-Saharan Africa, and Francis will shine a light on the open wounds of this region: Wars, extreme poverty, the impact of the climate crisis, and economic exploitation. But he will also shine a light on a unique multicultural environment and the Church’s ongoing missionary efforts.

In Mozambique, he will be visiting a country still suffering the aftermath of the 17-years-long civil war that took the life of a million people and left four million living as refugees. When he addresses authorities in the Vermelha Palace on Thursday, he’s likely to remember the peace agreement signed Oct. 4, 1992 in Rome, thanks to the mediation of the Catholic lay movement Sant’Egidio.

With national elections scheduled for October, the situation is far from stable, and a final peace agreement, signed on August 1, is seen by many observers as needing reinforcement, and Francis is likely to call for reconciliation and dialogue during his visit.

Father Juan Gabriel Arias, an Argentine missionary who lives in Mozambique, about 120 miles from the capital Maputo, said that he believes Francis’s visit will help consolidate peace, strengthening the agreement signed last month.

According to the Human Development Index, Mozambique is the world’s tenth poorest country, with more than 70 percent of the 28 million inhabitants living in poverty; 43 percent of children under five suffer chronic malnutrition.

While in Mozambique, Francis will visit the Casa Mathew 25, a home operated by the Vatican embassy in the country and several Catholic religious congregations. Every day, approximately 100 people receive food, clothing and other assistance. The pope will also visit the medical center of Project DREAM, promoted by Sant’Egidio, that helps 3,800 people with HIV/AIDS.

Santos Pedro Gotine, secretary general of Caritas Mozambique, told Crux that the Catholic Church has a strong presence in the country: helping solve conflicts between the ruling party and the opposition, providing healthcare and education, and other charitable activities.

“The challenge the Church faces is to make people understand its evangelizing mission because many faithful are leaving and joining Evangelical churches that promise to solve their immediate problems,” he said.

The pontiff is also expected to talk about climate change and the devastating effect it’s had in the country, particularly in Beira, Mozambique’s second largest city that was heavily impacted by two back-to-back cyclones that killed more than 1,000 people in six months. The rapid deforestation of Mozambique – and that of Madagascar – due to slash-and-burn agriculture may also feature in the pope’s remarks.

According to the Global Forest Watch, a research platform from NASA, the country lost 3 million hectares of forest, 11 percent of its woodlands, between 2001-2018.

Arias, who has been permanently in Mozambique since 2014 after having made regular trips since 2000, said he believes that Francis will be surprised by the people he’ll encounter.

“The joy of the people will surprise him,” Arias told Crux. “And the faith, the deep and joyful way of expressing their faith.”

Arias’s mission in Mangunze is in a rural area, and he’s known by everyone in the region: Not only is he the one Catholic priest, but he’s also the only white person among 75,000 people.

This region of Mozambique has no access to electricity or TV. Arias is able to stay connected to the rest of the world thanks to solar panels and a satellite antenna.

The priest won’t be able to travel to Maputo during the pope’s visit, but that doesn’t mean his community won’t take part. He’s planning to use a television projector to show the papal events – a large white bedsheet will serve as a screen – and people from the 45 smaller communities he ministers to are expected to join.

He told Crux that if he could give a piece of advice to his compatriot, it would be that he “enjoys the people and the Masses, that are extremely jubilant.”

A former slum priest in Argentina, Arias is passionate about the ad gentes mission: Going there where the Catholic Church is not yet present. The pope is aware of his work in Mozambique, and Francis gave him a pickup truck to use.

He revealed in a 2018 interview that Francis, whom he knows well from Argentina, asked Arias to spend a week with him in the Vatican to talk about his missionary experience and soccer, the pope’s favorite sport.

A huge fan of the Argentine soccer club Racing, Arias has a small network of soccer fans from Argentina who help him. This includes the Messi Foundation, founded by FC Barcelona legand Lionel Messi, that donates enough to provide breakfast to 15,000 children a day.

Arias is not just a casual soccer fan either; he helped to establish Racing Club of Maputo, that is currently in the country’s second division and also receives help from its Argentinian namesake.

Mozambique became independent from Portugal in 1975, which led some 1,700 priests and nuns to leave the country, since the Catholic Church was seen as a collaborator of the Portuguese. This means the need for missionary priests such as Arias is high.

Perhaps, this too is one of the reasons for the pope’s trip to Mozambique, together with dialogue, peace, and the environment: October is, after all, an “extraordinary missionary month,” called for by Francis to mark the 100th anniversary of Pope Benedict XV’s missionary encyclical, Maximum illud.

On September 6, Francis will head to the second country of his international trip: Madagascar.

Cardinal-Elect Has Ties to Queens Parish

By Tim Harfmann

The historic, red-hat announcement by Pope Francis on September 1 hit home for Catholics in the Brooklyn diocese.

“I went through the list and I stopped when I saw Ramazzini. I said, ‘I know him!” said Father James Cunningham.

Bishop Alvaro Ramazzini Imeri of Guatemala is one of 13 newly elevated cardinals. He has a connection to the Brooklyn diocese, making visits here each year to St. Mary Star of the Sea and St. Gertrude parish.

Father Cunningham is the former pastor of that parish in Far Rockaway, Queens.

It’s a community with a large Guatemalan population.

“When he came here, it was like Guatemala was coming to them,” said Father Cunningham. “To let them know that they weren’t forgotten.”

“[We are] very happy because he is a wonderful person,” said Emma and Mario Chavarria, parishioners who are thrilled to hear the news

They are immigrants from Guatemala themselves and are close to Bishop Ramazzini.

Emma and Mario said the bishop’s message to the diocese of Brooklyn was always full of hope for migrants looking for better lives.

“A lot of people don’t have work, they don’t have food. That is why a lot of people come here,” said Emma. “The people cried because of how [Bishop Ramazzini] was speaking. The people felt him.”

The bishop would celebrate a special Mass every year in Queens. Though his visits were short, he felt close to the parish.

When Father Cunningham underwent a kidney transplant, Bishop Ramazzini sent his well wishes.

“I was taken back that the call came from Guatemala,” he said. “[Bishop Ramazzini] took the time to call and reach out because he said he never forgot the great times we had when he visited Far Rockaway.”

In his new position, the 72-year-old bishop will be eligible to vote for future popes in closed-door conclaves — since he is under the age of 80.

The new cardinals will be installed on October 5. Father Cunningham sent his congratulations.

“I wrote him a note and mailed it to Guatemala. I don’t know how long it will take to get there, but I told him that we were so happy and Rockaway was rejoicing!”

Currents News for Tuesday, September 3, 2019

On the newscast: Hurricane Dorian stalled over the Bahamas– but now it’s moving dangerously close to Florida’s coast; Pope Francis naming a new crop of cardinals–one of them has ties to Brooklyn; School bells ringing. How campus ministers can keep college students close to their faith; And there was a steady drumbeat throughout Crown Heights this weekend– a church coming alive with sounds of the Caribbean.

Watch weeknights at 7:00 pm EST on NET-TV in the New York City area on Spectrum, Optimum, and Fios. Subscribe to our YouTube channel to receive notifications about new content.

Pope Francis Prepares to Visit Sub-Saharan Catholic Community

Currents News Staff

Pope Francis will visit the Sub-Saharan countries of Mozambique, Madagascar and Mauritius from September 4 – 10, for his sixth foreign trip of the year.

This will be the fourth time during his pontificate that he will be traveling to the African continent.

Three days in Mozambique kicks off the trip. The pontiff’s arrival comes a month after Filipe Nyusi, Mozambique’s president, signed an agreement to end decades of armed hostility with the country’s RNEMAO rebel leader.

Pope Francis will meet with the president and government leaders just ahead of their October elections, and only months after Cyclone Idai killed thousands and affected millions.

“May the God and Father of all strengthen efforts toward reconciliation, fraternal reconciliation in Mozambique and the whole of Africa” the Holy Father prayed ahead of his papl trip.

Pope Francis will then go to Madagascar for two days where he will meet with Carmelite sisters and visit the tomb of Blessed Victoire Rasoamanarivo, a native who devoted her life to serving the poor and sick.

He will also meet with Argentinian Fr. Pedro Opeka in Akamasoa, also called the “apostle of garbage,” for his missionary work in the country.

Although one of Africa’s poorest nations, Madagascar is rich in natural beauty.

“Your country is famous for its natural beauty. For this I say, ‘Laudato si!’ It is our duty to look after it carefully,” Pope Francis said.

The Holy Father will conclude his trip by spending eight hours in the small island of Mauritius. He will visit a shrine dedicated to Blessed Jacques-Désiré Laval, who cared for former slaves on the island in the 1800s.

Nearly a quarter to a third of each nation’s population is Catholic. Both Mozambique and Mauritius have 28.1 percent, while 34.8 percent of Madagascar’s population is Catholic.

Pope Francis will continue the pastoral mission St. John Paul II started 30 years ago, when he visited these countries marked by conflict, poverty, and the devastating effects of natural disaster.