News

• 14 January 2004
  AFRICA/IVORY COAST - MACHETE SLAUGHTER CONTINUES: AT LEAST 18 PEOPLE MURDERED IN RECENT WEEKS. 40-60,000 ARMED YOUNG MILITARY RUN WILD Abidjan (Fides Service)-“Violence in the north west of Ivory Coast will not stop the peace process between government and rebels” local Church sources in Abidjan told Fides Service. “Sad to say these episodes come ...
• 14 January 2004
  EUROPE/ITALY - WITH A HISTORY OF 500 YEARS THE ORDER OF ST JOHN OF GOD HOSPITALLER BROTHERS FOR THE FUTURE OF HEALTH CARE: RELIGIOUS AND LAY PEOPLE COMPARE NOTES Rome (Fides Service) – Heal, care for, rehabilitate. This is the main mission of St John of God Hospitaller Brothers looking to the future of health care work with a proposal and a challenge: promote globalisation of h ...
• 13 January 2004
  ASIA/THAILAND - “POLITICAL MOTIVES BEHIND MUSLIM PROTEST IN THAILAND”, APOSTOLIC ADMINISTRATOR IN THE SOUTH TELLS FIDES Surat Thani (Fides Service ) – A political protest reawakened old religious separatism, Reverend Peter Nichon Sarathit, Administrator Apostolic of Surat Thani diocese which covers southern Thailand, told Fides with ref ...
• 13 January 2004
  ASIA/INDIA - SYRO-MALABAR CATHOLIC CHURCH GRANTED FULL AUTONOMY FOR ELECTING BISHOPS IN ITS TERRITORY Trichur (Fides Service ) – The Synod of Syro-Malabar Bishops now has full autonomy for appointing bishops and creating Eparchies. This was granted by the Holy See with a decree which the Prefect of the Congregation for ...
• 13 January 2004
  VATICAN - THE POPE’S ANNUAL NEW YEAR ADDRESS TO DIPLOMATIC CORPS: “IT IS MORE THAN EVER NECESSARY TO LEARN FROM THE PAST, REMOTE AND RECENT. IN ANY CASE ONE THING IS CERTAIN: WAR DOES NOT SOLVE CONFLICTS BETWEEN PEOPLES!” Vatican City (Fides) – Pope John Paul II gave his annual new year audience to Ambassadors on 12 January in the Vatican. Today a total of 174 individual countries have diplomatic ties with the Holy See, as well as commu ...
• 13 January 2004
  ASIA/HOLY LAND - CATHOLIC BISHOPS FROM EUROPE AND THE AMERICAS MEET IN THE HOLY LAND TO SUPPORT HOLY LAND CHRISTIANS Jerusalem (Agenzia Fides) – Catholic Bishops from Europe and the Americas are meeting Bethlehem and Jerusalem on 12-15 January 2004 for a conference entitled "The Universal Church in solidarity with the Church of the ...
• 12 January 2004
  ASIA/INDONESIA: TIMIKA NEW DIOCESE, REV. JOHN PHILIP SAKLIL FIRST BISHOP Vatican City (Fides Service) – The Holy Father, Pope John Paul II, has (19 December 2003) established the diocese of Timika dismembering it from the diocese of Jayapura, rendering it suffragan of the Metropolitan See o ...
• 12 January 2004
  ASIA/SOUTH KOREA - WITH REGULAR EVENING PRAYER IN THE CATHEDRAL 100 LAY PEOPLE PREPARE FOR MISSION TO BEAR WITNESS TO FAITH IN SOCIETY Seul (Fides Service ) – More than 100 lay people gather every evening for vespers at Myongdong cathedral in Seul. Regular participation in the Church’s Liturgy of the Hours is the fruit of a successful initiative lau ...
• 12 January 2004
  ASIA/LAOS – CHRISTIAN MINORITY GROUPS IN REMOTE AREAS KEEP FAITH ALIVE THANKS TO RADIO VERITAS AND THE MISSIONARY OBLATES OF MARY IMMACULATE Vientiane (Fides Service) –Hmong peoples living in remote mountain areas of Laos, mostly Catholics, listen to the Gospel and pray the Rosary thanks to Asia’s furthest reaching Catholic Radio service Radio Veritas, br ...
• 12 January 2004
  VATICAN - THE POPE’S ANGELUS REFLECTION: “WITH THE BAPTISM AT THE JORDAN THE MESSIANIC STYLE OF JESUS IS CLEARLY MANIFESTED… AFTER CELEBRATING AT CHRISTMAS THE GREAT EVENT OF THE INCARNATION WE ARE INVITED TO KEEP OUR GAZE ON JESUS, THE HUMAN FACE OF GOD AND THE DIVINE FACE OF MAN Vatican City (Fides Service) – “In the baptism at the Jordan the messianic style of Jesus is clearly revealed: He comes as the "Lamb of God", to take upon himself and wash away the sin of the world. This is how the B ...
• 12 January 2004
  VATICAN - THE POPE ADDRESSES PLENARY ASSEMBLY OF THE CONGREGATION FOR THE CLERGY: “THE STRUCTURE OF THE CHURCH CANNOT BE CONCEIVED ACCORDING TO PURELY HUMAN POLITICAL MODELS. HER HIERARCHICAL CONSTITUTION IS FOUNDED ON THE WILL OF CHRIST AND AS SUCH IS PART OF THE "DEPOSITUM FIDEI", WHICH MUST BE INTEGRALLY PRESERVED AND HANDED ON THROUGH THE CENTURIES.” Vatican City (Fides) – “The task of the clergy is to form, govern and sanctify the people of God, and with them the laity take an active part in the Church’s mission in a constant synergy of efforts and with respec ...
• 12 January 2004
  ASIA/IRAN – EARTHQUAKE EMERGENCY: FIRST CARITAS CONVOY LEAVES TEHERAN TODAY, MAIN CHALLENGE NOW IS REBUILDING. Rome (Fides Service) – The violent earthquake which struck the Iranian city of Bam on 26 December killed 35.000 people, many died because of inadequate material used for building. Mud used in construction pulverised ca ...
• 12 January 2004
  EUROPE/GERMANY - PROMOTING PENAL ACTION AGAINST CHILD ABUSE IN SEX TOURISM: SYMPOSIUM PROMOTED BY MISSIO ON OBSTACLES AND POSSIBILITIES Aachen (Fides Service) “Bringing Paedophiles to Court ” is the theme of a Symposium promoted by the National Office of the Pontifical Mission Societies in Germany missio Aachen scheduled for 14 and 15 January in Berl ...
• 12 January 2004
  EUROPE/GERMANY - WORLD YOUTH DAY IS A WONDERFUL OPPORTUNITY TO RECOGNISE THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES AND OUR RESPONSIBILITY TO GROW IN THE FAITH AND BECOME A MISSIONARY CHURCH: GERMAN BISHOPS SAY IN PASTORAL LETTER IN VIEW OF WORLD YOUTH DAY WJT 2005 Berlin (Agenzia Fides) – On Sunday 11 January a Letter from the German Bishops in view of World Youth Day 2005, was read out in every parish in the country. “We have come to adore him” (Mt 2,2) is the theme of the ...
• 12 January 2004
  AFRICA/SENEGAL - ARCHBISHOP OF DAKAR THREATENED. ALL SENEGAL EXPRESSES SOLIDARITY. PRESIDENT WADE DEFENDS RELIGIOUS FREEDOM ON TELEVISION Dakar (Fides Service)- In Dakar, in the news for the international car rally, signs of religious intolerance were immediately quashed by the majority of people. “Newspapers and political and religious leaders, Muslims ...