Vatican Cardinal Burke: ‘We’re well on the way’ to Christian persecution in the U.S.

BY JOHN-HENRY WESTEN
Mon Nov 28, 2011

VATICAN, November 28, 2011 (LifeSiteNews.com) – One of the highest ranking cardinals in the Vatican has said that the United States is “well on the way” to the persecution of Christians.

Cardinal Raymond Burke, former Archbishop of St. Louis and now the head of the Vatican’s highest court, told Catholic News Agency that he could envision a time when the Catholic Church in the U.S., “even by announcing her own teaching,” is accused of “engaging in illegal activity, for instance, in its teaching on human sexuality.”

Asked if the cardinal could even see American Catholics being arrested for their faith he replied, “I can see it happening, yes.”

In his remarks to several U.S. Bishops meeting with him Saturday, Pope Benedict XVI made similarly emphatic warnings about the U.S. The pope told the bishops that “the seriousness of the challenges which the Church in America, under your leadership, is called to confront in the near future cannot be underestimated.”

He added: “The obstacles to Christian faith and practice raised by a secularized culture also affect the lives of believers.”

In the interview published today, Cardinal Burke declared that “it is a war” and “critical at this time that Christians stand up for the natural moral law.” Should they not, he warned, “secularization will in fact predominate and it will destroy us.”

Pope Benedict too urged the bishops of the United States to speak out in defense of morality. “The present moment can thus be seen, in positive terms, as a summons to exercise the prophetic dimension of your episcopal ministry by speaking out, humbly yet insistently, in defense of moral truth, and offering a word of hope, capable of opening hearts and minds to the truth that sets us free,” he said.

Catholic League President Bill Donohue told LifeSiteNews that Cardinal Burke’s remarks were accurate and not exaggerations. “Secularism has become militant,” he said. “Many elites are taking an aggressive secular approach. They have lined up against the Catholic Church and other Christian churches particularly for their stand on moral values.”

Donohue pointed to New York where gay ‘marriage’ was passed without debate or exemptions for clerks who objected to having to grant such licenses. He also noted the closing of Catholic adoption and foster care agencies since they were unable to comply with laws forcing homosexual adoptions.

“The real big one,” he added, “is the HHS of the Obama Administration.” The forcing of abortifacient and contraceptive coverage in private health care plans under penalty of fines was described by the Catholic League President as the Obama Administration “on a full court press to shove its values down the throats of the Catholic Church.”

See the full interview with Cardinal Burke with Catholic News Agency

Link to story: http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/vatican-cardinal-burke-were-well-on-the-way-to-christian-persecution-in-the

Christian Churches, Schools Burned in India

17 Killed in Police-Protestors Clash

SRINAGAR, India, SEPT. 14, 2010 (Zenit.org).- Various schools and churches were burned in another wave of anti-Christian violence in India and Pakistan.

Vatican Radio reported that these attacks, as well as other demonstrations in Indonesia and Afghanistan over the weekend, were a reaction to a U.S. man's proposal to hold a "Qur'an Burning Day" on Saturday.

Terry Jones, pastor of the Dove World Outreach Center in Gainesville, Florida, proposed publicly burning a Qur'an, the holy book of Islam, on Saturday's anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks by Muslim fundamentalists.

Church and political leaders worldwide vehemently denounced the plan. Thus, Jones backed off from his proposal and decided not to burn the book.

Muslim extremists have nonetheless commenced their attacks on Christian buildings and communities.

Not enough

Iran's foreign ministry spokesman, Ramin Mehmanparast, said Monday that "stopping the Qur'an burning plan […] is not enough and the American government should be responsible and take pre-emptive measures," Reuters reported.

Ayatollah Lotfollah Safi, an Iranian Islamic leader, said that Muslims would not be satisfied "with only condemnations" of the plan, Isna news agency reported.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that the "incident had nothing to do with Church and Christianity." He added, "We Muslims will never act this same way with the sanctities of other religions."

However, AsiaNews reported today that a Catholic school near Srinagar, India was burned Monday evening, and two other Protestant schools were attacked. That morning, another Protestant school and a church were burned.

The authorities attempted to intervene, but the clashes between police and demonstrators turned violent, killing at least 17 and wounding 80 more.

Peace

Bishop Peter Celestine of Jammu-Srinagar said: "I am deeply saddened by this mob-incited violence. We are a micro minority community [0.0014% of the population], which is peaceful and tolerant.

"Additionally, we give good witness through our schools. And this school was targeted last night, yesterday the Christian Mission Society School, in Tangmarg, was completely burnt down, and the resulting violence led to many deaths."

"Peace must be restored," the prelate said. "We religious leaders have a responsibility to lead peace and tolerance and coexistence."

The bishop said that the small Catholic community has always had "cordial relations with our Muslim brothers and with the authorities."

He called on all Muslims, therefore, "to protect members of minorities and their religious sites."

"We must maintain at all costs the ancient brotherhood and harmony between communities, for which Kashmir is known throughout the world," Bishop Celestine said.

Pakistan

In neighboring Pakistan, a grenade was exploded in a Lutheran church. Two policemen and a watchman were injured, UCA News reported.

Father Amir Yaqub, the pastor of Holy Name Catholic Church in Nowshera, Pakistan, said: "Christians in the vicinity have fled the area. The protest diminished at midnight.

"Police has also warned us to be careful, [saying] 'We can stop people, but can't stop a possible rocket attack.'"

The priest added, "People here don't calm down only until there is a loss of life and property."

ZE10091405 - 2010-09-14
Permalink: http://www.zenit.org/article-30342?l=english

Iraqi Christians Attacked Over Christmas Holidays

Prelate Says it May Speed Up Exodus

KIRKUK, Iraq, JAN. 7, 2010 (Zenit.org).- An Iraqi prelate is decrying the situation of Christians in his country who have been experiencing a new wave of attacks over Christmas and the first days of 2010.

Archbishop Louis Sako of the Kirkuk Archdiocese in Northern Iraq told Aid to the Church in Need that these "miserable" conditions are forcing Christians to flee to the north.

He voiced his concern that this crisis will lead to another mass exodus of Christians determined to "leave the country for good."

On Christmas morning, a church was attacked in Bartilla, 30 miles north of Mosul, where the majority of the population is Christian.

A car bomb exploded in the marketplace of that same town on Monday, damaging many homes and shops and injuring a dozen people.

The report stated that three Christians have also been murdered in Mosul, and a Christian student was kidnapped from her university in that city.

The archbishop stated: "Who is behind the attacks? There is no proof."

Seeking peace

He guessed that the motive may be political, and that "some attacks are intended to postpone the elections or to cancel them or even determine what happens in them."

Aid to the Church in Need stated that this situation is motivating many Christians to move north to the "relative peace" in the region that is controlled by the Kurdish Regional Government.

However, Archbishop Sako pointed out that the Christians are encountering other problems when they arrive to the northern towns, including poor living conditions and a lack of opportunities.

"In Kurdistan," he said, "the security is quite good, but there are no jobs, no services and facilities in the new villages built by the Kurdish government."

"Therefore many families are leaving the country for good," the prelate added.

He underlined his concern over the rapid emigration of Christians from Iraq and the diminishing community there.

Power struggle

The archbishop stated: "In years gone by, Christians left their houses and property and reached a secure area in the hope of being back soon. But now six years have passed.

"They want to be settled. They have no jobs, no schools and they have big problems with the language.

"There are no services -- electricity, portable water, infrastructure are their problems."

He appealed to politicians in his region to attend to the humanitarian crisis rather than the political scene of the upcoming elections.

The archbishop affirmed: "The local and central government should protect the citizens. Now all the political groups are busy with the elections. There is a real struggle for power."

The aid agency noted that the Vatican directly requested prioritising help for the Middle East. It responded by sending some $72,000 in emergency assistance to the displaced Christians there.

In Benedict XVI's Christmas message, he stated: "How can we forget the troubled situation in Iraq and the 'little flock' of Christians which lives in the region?

"At times it is subject to violence and injustice, but it remains determined to make its own contribution to the building of a society opposed to the logic of conflict and the rejection of one's neighbor."

Permalink: http://www.zenit.org/article-27977?l=english

Augustinian Bishop Dies in China

Began Mission Before Communism

ROME, SEPT. 17, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Bishop Nicholas Shi Jin Xian, 88, died Wednesday in Shangqui, the last of the Augustinian Recollects to have worked in China before the take-over of Communism.

According to a statement from his order, it was Bishop Shi who "after decades of persecution and isolation, restored religious life in his diocese, and the Catholic Church's relations with the civil authorities."

Nicholas Shi was born in 1921, just three years before the Order of Augustinian Recollects arrived at the Henan Mission (present-day Shangqiu).

He entered the Augustinian minor seminary in his native municipality, and made his profession Jan. 16, 1940. After studying philosophy and theology, he was ordained a priest on July 29, 1948.

Shortly after Father Shi's ordination, Spanish religious were expelled from China and native religious were dispersed or sent to concentration camps. His mission was thus closed.

Father Shi was soon after appointed episcopal vicar, until he was finally prohibited from exercising any pastoral action.

He first became an oculist, but later was consigned for three years to a brick factory to be "re-educated." He was imprisoned for two years and lived in miserable conditions suffering the public contempt of the authorities.

However, behind closed doors, he did not cease his pastoral work, undertaking constant visits to Christian homes and leading underground liturgical celebrations. His human qualities were appreciated even by those who guarded him.

Deng Xiao Ping's coming to power and the 1979 Cultural Revolution enabled the priest to get a "rehabilitation letter." He was assigned to teach English, a job he held until his retirement.

Soon after, he managed to contact the Augustinian Recollects through letters written to addresses in Manila he had memorized as a young man. The contact was unexpected on both sides: Father Shi was not sure if the order still existed, having been told during his psychological torture that it was gone; the Augustinians themselves did not know if any Chinese religious were still alive.

Re-building

Retired from his teaching tasks, he returned to Shangqui in 1980 to dedicate himself solely to pastoral work. He succeeded in having the civil authorities return to the Church all the goods they had confiscated since 1948. He re-opened the parish and contacted some of the Augustinian religious who were still in China after the dispersion. He also began to receive visits from foreign religious, once permission was granted for travel within China.

For years he engaged in negotiations with civil authorities, eventually gaining permission to have communities of religious in his diocese. In 1991, he was made bishop.

"Nicholas Shi deserves a place of honor in the history of the Order and in the Catholic Church in China," the Augustinian statement affirmed. "His humility, discretion, ability to react and prudence led him to maintain a tense but respectful relationship with the authorities. His figure attracted many of his compatriots to Catholicism and the religious life.

"He was a person of profound spiritual life, deep faith and uncommon intelligence. Never having lived outside of China, he wrote in Latin, English and Spanish, and was able to translate official texts. When he made contact with the first Spanish religious, after almost 40 years without speaking, hearing or reading a word of Spanish, he had no problem writing letters and reports in this language with an astounding perfection."

"His love for the Order of Augustinian Recollects in which he was formed, to which he belonged and which he re-established in his diocese, with a great vocational flowering, was a feature that all Augustinians recognize and thank him for."

Permalink: http://www.zenit.org/article-26896?l=english

Vietnam Prelate Dies a Witness of Persecution

Communists Mark Life of 100-Year-Old Bishop

LONG XUYEN, Vietnam, JUNE 11, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Vietnamese Catholics are mourning the death of their oldest bishop, as they continue to witness the destruction of what the late prelate strove to build.

Bishop Michael Nguyen Khac Ngu died Wednesday, less than a month after celebrating his 100th birthday. He served as a priest for 75 years, having been ordained in France in 1934.

Among the buildings that the late bishop built, all except the cathedral have been seized by the Communist government. Vietnamese Catholics continue in an ongoing battle with the government over properties that have been confiscated and buildings that have been demolished.

The most recent to be taken was the monastery of the Congregation of the Brothers of The Holy Family of Banam in Long Xuyen, which was demolished last week.

Michael Nguyen Khac Ngu was born in northern Vietnam in 1909. He entered St. Therese Minor Seminary in Lang Son Diocese in 1922, and later traveled to France for further study and was ordained there as a priest in 1934.

In 1954, after the Communist takeover of the north and subsequent persecution of the Church, he led his parishioners southward and settled with them in Long Xuyen province, south of Saigon.

The region was established as a diocese in 1960 and he was named the first prelate. At that time, it had 20,000 Catholics; today it has 240,000 in 108 parishes and 45 sub-parishes, served by 240 priests.

Though Bishop Michael Nguyen ordained a coadjutor on the same day of the Communist takeover of the South -- April 30, 1975 -- he did not retire officially until 1997.

Talking about the late prelate, the diocese's current bishop, Joseph Tran Xuan Tieu, recalled how simply he had lived "in a 20-square-meter room with an old bed and without a television or personal computer."

Bishop Joseph Tran, 63, said the late bishop set a shining example to others by devoting much time each day to prayer, and never missing daily Mass even when ill: "He read books and newspapers daily, washed his own clothes and cleaned his own room, and made toothpicks for the people in the bishop's house."

CEDAW Committee Targets East Timor on Abortion

By Amy De Rosa

(NEW YORK – C-FAM) As pre-session working groups of the committee charged with overseeing compliance with the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) meet in advance of the committee's July session, the small Asian nation of East Timor has come under pressure for its continued criminalization of abortion. East Timor’s new penal code, which will take effect early next month, continues to penalize the practice, including abortion in cases of rape or incest, but with the added proviso that exceptions can be made in cases where the mother’s health is in jeopardy.

As East Timor, or Timor-Leste, states in its report to the Committee, "Abortion is still an extremely sensitive issue in Timor-Leste, especially given the traumatic events of recent years." The report goes on to explain some Timorese cultural practices which impact "reproductive health." Contraception is generally unpopular in the predominantly Catholic state, with both men and women seeing it as fueling promiscuity and sexually-transmitted diseases while decreasing the number of children.

A newly independent nation as of 2002, East Timor claims that it is still recovering from 24 years of Indonesian occupation, during which time the Indonesia allegedly imposed family planning programs that were widely resented by the Timorese population. Both men and women remain sensitive to suggestions of limiting family size and to abortion.

Despite general support in Timor for the continued criminalization of abortion, a number of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), such as the Alola Foundation and Rede Feto, have been agitating for reconsideration the legal status of abortion. The Alola Foundation has received support from certain United Nations agencies, namely the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). Though CEDAW is silent as to abortion, CEDAW committee members have also pushed it under the guise of promoting "gender equality."

East Timor notes that NGOs promoting gender equality are often seen as "meddling" and many Timorese (including women) feel that gender distinctions are important in protecting the integrity of the family, a valued institution in Timor, and that loss of these distinctions could be harmful to women. According to the report, many Timorese also express satisfaction with adat, their native system of justice, despite its failure to treat women as equal to men. Adat represents part of the Timorese adherence to deep-rooted traditions. "Foreign laws" are seen as irrelevant to tradition and therefore ineffective.

Timor’s repeated references to its long-standing customs, its distrust of foreign influence and its discussion of "reproductive rights" abuses suffered by Timorese women during Indonesia’s rule appear to have been met with opposition or indifference from the CEDAW committee. The committee has called upon the Timorese to engage in "modification of customs and practices" it regards as "discriminatory." It also is demanding clarification on how certain CEDAW provisions have been implemented in court cases.

The 44th session of CEDAW will be held in New York from July 20 to August 7. Japan and Tuvalu are also among the eleven nations up for CEDAW review in July.

from C-FAM

Belarus to Deport Foreign Priests

Belarus to Deport Foreign Priests

MINSK, Belarus, SEPT. 21, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Belarusian Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandr Kosinets said that all foreign Catholic priests would be banned from the country over the next few years.

Of the roughly 350 Catholic priests in the country, the majority are foreign and almost all of those are Polish. Belarus has been targeting foreign Catholics since last year, deporting all those without papers, reported the U.S.-based Stratfor intelligence firm.

Now the campaign is extended to all foreign Catholic priests.

Kosinets said Thursday that "foreign priests cannot conduct religious activities in Belarus because they do not understand the mentality and traditions of the Belarusian people."