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“Looking at the joys, sufferings and challenges of the church in the different countries, there emerged a picture of the great movement of peoples: asylum-seekers, refugees, migrants. The anguish knows no bounds.”
| In a statement released on the last day of their meeting in Jerusalem Sept. 16, leaders of the European bishops’ conferences expressed solidarity with people of the Middle East, especially those being forced from their homes, and called on European states to act generously, justly and respectfully toward the influx of migrants and refugees now reaching their shores. (Catholic News Service)
In the news
‘Miracle’ events call for wary eye
MANILA — Philippine church leaders have warned the faithful against making money out of reported “miracles” and “apparitions” of Mary.
Father Melvin Castro, director general of the Confraternity of Mary Mediatrix of All Grace, noted that stories of weeping images of Jesus’ mother had surfaced in the media.
The stories followed a church declaration that a reported apparition of the Mary in the province of Batangas in 1948 has a “supernatural character.”
On Sept. 12, Archbishop Ramon Arguelles of Lipa, Philippines, issued a decree declaring “with moral certainty” that the events of 1948 were “worthy of belief,” ucanews.com reported.
“It’s possible that some people think that this is some sort of fad that they should join in, but people should also be discerning,” Father Castro said. (CNS)
Saints under 40
In the face of danger
Born in 1550, Blessed Rudolf Aquaviva was a Jesuit priest who toiled as a missionary in India in the 16th century — work that ultimately led to his martyrdom.
When the Muslim emperor Akbar sought missionaries for his court in Agra, Father Rudolf leaped at the opportunity to present his faith to the ruler himself and to the people in Agra. However, the emperor did not seem interested in conversion, and in just a few years the mission was deemed a failure.
Father Rudolf, who subsequently was named superior of outreach in an area north of Bombay, and several associates struck out to build a church in a village where resistance to the missionaries was fierce. Shortly after the Jesuits arrived, they were massacred in 1583 by the Hindu residents and killed. (www.loyolapress.com)
