Multiple challenges determine Catholic agencies’ response in Africa
A humanitarian official who works in Southern Africa said Churches must offer a unified regional response to the problems crippling development in the region.
Mwila Mulumbi, the Zambian country representative of CAFOD, spoke to the assembly of the Interregional Meeting of Bishops of Southern Africa, IMBISA, in the Namibian capital, Windhoek, in late September.
Ms Mulumbi said the effects of globalisation, violent extremism, migration, disease, politically driven conflict and tension, corruption, climate change and exploitation of natural resources continued to cripple development in Southern Africa.
“All these challenges have underscored for CAFOD that state-centric or country-specific approaches alone do not suffice and that there is a need for cohesive regional responses by the Church,” said Ms Mulumbi.
CAFOD is the official development organisation of the Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales and is part of the Caritas Internationalis network.
Pope to visit Kingdom of Bahrain in November
The Vatican has confirmed that Pope Francis will travel to the Kingdom of Bahrain, a Muslim island nation in the Persian Gulf, from November 3–6.
The possibility of a papal trip to the Islamic monarchy was mentioned on the Pope’s return flight from Kazakhstan on September 15.
The director of the Holy See Press Office, Matteo Bruni, confirmed September 28 that Pope Francis will visit Awali and the capital city of Manama for the “Bahrain Forum for Dialogue: East and West for Human Coexistence”.
Further details and the full trip schedule will be published at a later date.
Catholics worldwide pray Divine Mercy Chaplet to end war
Catholics recited the Divine Mercy Chaplet September 28 in the streets of 173 cities in Poland and 44 localities worldwide, according to organisers of the prayer event.
At 3 pm local time, street intersections and public squares in towns and villages throughout Poland turned into places of prayer for peace and for those affected by war.
With rosaries in hand, the Faithful asked God for mercy for all humanity.
“We believe that 10 minutes of supplication to God can change our families, cities, and the whole world,” the organisers said.
The event was held under the auspices of the Polish community Spark of Divine Mercy Team.
The Chaplet of Divine Mercy was recited on six continents for families, priests, and those holding any power in the world.
Pope tried to help Ukraine-Russia prisoner swap
Pope Francis has said that he was involved in a prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine.
Speaking to Jesuits during his trip to Kazakhstan earlier this month, the Pope said a Ukrainian military chief and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s religious adviser came to him with a request for help.
“This time they brought me a list of more than 300 prisoners. They asked me to do something to make an exchange,” Pope Francis said, according to a transcript published by the Jesuit periodical La Civiltà Cattolica on September 29.
“I immediately called the Russian ambassador to see if something could be done, if an exchange of prisoners could be speeded up.”