Jesuit Fr Lambertus Martinus van den Heuvel Sugiri Catholic charity to send Brazil aid
Brazil is to receive emergency aid from a leading Catholic charity as the coronavirus crisis worsens in the country.
Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) has announced 11 new projects in response to this, supporting the work of priests, religious and lay missionaries.
In total, the projects will aid 169 priests, 141 sisters, 31 seminarians and 56 lay missionaries.
Most of these projects involve the collection and distribution of food and other essential supplies to those most needy.
Fr Francisco Silva, treasurer for the diocese of Itapipoca, said few people had money to spare and welcomed help from overseas charities.
Bishops in Philippines issue Independence Day rally cry
Catholic bishops in the Philippines issued an Independence Day rally cry calling on Filipinos to unite and fight for freedom against the “anti-people” policies of President Rodrigo Duterte’s government.
“People’s quest for freedom and liberty should never end even if curtailed by a government due to pandemic restrictions”, said Manila’s apostolic administrator Bishop Broderick Pabillo last week.
The prelate said the faithful should fight against policies that further oppress people, including the recent anti-terrorism bill passed by lawmakers.
The Philippines celebrated its liberation on June 12 to mark the end of 333 years of Spanish rule in 1898. Spain introduced Catholicism to the archipelago.
British bishops express solidarity with Black Lives Matter
The Catholic bishops of England and Wales have released a statement of solidarity with campaigners for racial justice in the USA. The bishops conference also condemned systemic racism in Britain and said that Catholics have a responsibility to promote racial justice.
“We cannot turn a blind eye to these atrocities and yet still try to profess to respect every human life,” their statement said. “We serve a God of love, mercy and justice.”
Last week the Catholic Association for Racial Justice (CARJ) called for anti-racist training to be part of every profession and to be on school curriculum.
Painting priest in Indonesia dies aged 89
Jesuit Fr Lambertus Martinus van den Heuvel Sugiri, who co-pioneered Catholic Charismatic Renewal in Indonesia and used art to evangelise, has died following a short illness.
The Dutch-born priest, 89, used painting influenced by Ignatian spirituality and the work of Jeronimo Nadal, a 16th-Century Jesuit priest, to communicate the Gospels to those he served.
He produced almost 300 paintings at St Theresa Church in Menteng and the Catholic-run Sanggar Prathivi Arts Studio.
“He was a man filled with spirit,” said Fr Fransiskus Xaverius Dedomau Djatmiko da Gomez.
New education approach for Africa say Catholic experts
The International Catholic Movement for Intellectual and Cultural Affairs (ICMICA-PaxRomana) has called for more functional and responsive education systems to assist African communities.
Importance of the household, positive parenting and values taught by the Church were highlighted as key areas for child development.
“The situation of Covid-19 has not created a new situation; it has dramatised what has been there all the time, the inequalities in education,” said Fr Joseph Arimoso, Education Co-odinator for the Jesuit conference of Africa and Madagascar, in Kenya last week.
“Education plays a different role in Africa and so we need to look at a different approach to education.”