Mujeres de las Villas Pope thanks Argentinian women’s network for pro-life commitment
Responding to a letter sent by the women’s network Mujeres de las Villas, the Pope offers his “sincere thanks” for their work.
Since 2018, the network has been fighting for the protection of the unborn, especially in the working-class neighbourhoods of Buenos Aires.
In particular, the signatories of the letter asked for Pope Francis’ support in their commitment against the legalisation of voluntary abortion, currently much debated in the country.
In his handwritten letter dated November 22 and addressed to the network’s intermediary and Argentine Congress member Victoria Morales Gorleri, the Pope expresses admiration “for their work and their testimony” and encourages them to “move forward”.
“The country is proud to have women like this”, he writes, stressing that “the problem of abortion is not primarily a question of religion, but of human ethics, first and foremost of any religious denomination”.
For this reason, the Pope reiterates that “it is good to ask two questions: Is it fair to eliminate a human life to solve a problem? Is it right to hire a killer to solve a problem?”. The Pope’s letter concludes with a blessing for the women and a request to pray for him.
Pope authorises eight decrees regarding candidates to sainthood
Pope Francis has authorised the Vatican Congregation for the Causes of Saints to promulgate eight decrees, including a decree on the martyrdom of 127 Spaniards. Bishop Marcello Semeraro, the Prefect of the Congregation, on November 23 presented the causes to the Pope, who approved them.
Among them is a decree on a miracle attributed to the intercession of Italian Venerable Servant of God Mario Ciceri, a diocesan priest of Milan Archdiocese. He was born on September 8, 1900 in Veduggio (Italy) and died on April 4, 1945 in Brentana di Sulbiate (Italy). This clears him for beatification with the title Blessed.
The decree on martyrdom concerns the Servants of God Father Juan Elia Medina, a diocesan priest and his 126 companions, priests, religious and lay persons of the Diocese of Cordoba, Spain. They were killed in “hatred of the Faith” during the Spanish Civil War between 1936 and 1939. These martyrs have now been cleared for beatification with the title Blessed.
‘Set Your Captives Free’: ACN report on kidnapped and jailed Christians
Entitled, ‘Set Your Captives Free’, the report by the Pontifical Foundation ACN, an international Catholic charity, lists specific cases of Christians detained mainly in Nigeria, Eritrea, Pakistan and China.
It speaks about imprisonment for reasons of conscience, arbitrary detention, unjust trials, inadequate prison conditions, cases of torture and pressure to induce people to abandon the Faith.
It was released on November 25 to mark Red Wednesday. During Red Wednesday, many church buildings and monuments are illuminated in red light, a colour associated with martyrdom, to remember those who cannot practice their faith freely throughout the world.
ACN regards the kidnapping of Christians in Nigeria as very serious. Every year more than 220 faithful are kidnapped and unjustly imprisoned by groups of jihadist militiamen. Kidnappings for ransom often result in the killing of Protestant and Catholic priests.
It is the same story in Egypt, where “young Coptic Christian women are kidnapped and forced to marry their non-Christian kidnappers”. In Eritrea, more than a thousand Christian faithful are feared to be unjustly detained.