By Vatican News and L’Osservatore Romano

An article appeared in the Italian edition of L’Osservatore Romano on Wednesday regarding Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher’s visit to Belarus.

On Friday, 11 September, Archbishop Gallagher traveled to Belarus. A statement released by the Holy See Press Office that evening said that he had gone there “to show the attention and closeness of the Holy Father to the Catholic Church and the whole country”.

The Archbishop was accompanied by Archbishiop Antonio Mennini, Apostolic Nuncio, and Archbishop Paul Butnaru, Secretary of Nunciature in service at the Section for Relations with States. When they arrived in Minsk, they were welcomed at the airport by the Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Sergei Aleinik, and by the temporary Attaché of the Apostolic Nunciature in Belarus, Rev. Maher Chammas. 

From there, the Delegation went directly to the headquarters of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, where a meeting with Minister Vladimir Makei took place. During the meeting, which lasted about an hour and a half, some of the most important moments of the collaboration between Belarus and the Holy See in the international sphere were recalled, as well as the important contribution of the local Catholic Church to the spiritual growth of the Belarusian people, to their social assistance, to the good inter-religious national coexistence and to the promotion of the cultural identity of the country. Particular attention paid to the best way in which the Catholic Church can continue to carry out its spiritual mission for the benefit of all citizens.

On Saturday, September 12, Archbishop Gallagher met with the Catholic Bishops of Belarus at the Apostolic Nunciature. The meeting allowed, on the one hand, to know more deeply the challenges that Catholic communities and their Pastors are facing and, on the other hand, to show them the concrete closeness and support of the Holy Father. The dialogue was very useful in evaluating together the path that the local Church needs to follow in order to remain faithful to its identity and its evangelical mission, while also making itself an effective instrument of social unity. 

In the afternoon, the Delegation made a private visit to the Orthodox Cathedral in Minsk, the adjacent Chapel of the Faculty of Orthodox Theology, and the nearby Catholic Cathedral. The visit gave them the opportunity to discover some details of Belarus’ religious history and, above all, of its capacity for spiritual rebirth after the difficult period it lived under atheism.

That evening Archbishop Gallagher met the Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs and Ambassador to the Holy See, Mr. Sergei Aleinik in the Apostolic Nunciature. This dialogue allowed them to once again exchange points of view on various themes of national and international importance as well as to to deepen other reflections on some aspects of greater relevance and importance.

On Sunday, 13 September, Archbishop Gallagher celebrated Holy Mass in the chapel of the Apostolic Nunciature. Some Catholic Ambassadors also participated in the celebration. At the end of the liturgy, he briefly greeted those present.

On Sunday afternoon, the Delegation made a private visit to the Memorial Shrine in honor of all the Saints, meeting the Rector of the Shrine, the Most Reverend Archpriest Fyodor Povny. This time the Delegation was able to learn more about the history of the Belarusian people and the richness of their Orthodox Christian tradition.

On Monday, September 14, the Secretary for Relations with States returned to the Vatican.

By Nathan Morley

The agreements signed at the White House on Monday formalize the normalization of Israel’s relations with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.

Now the countries will exchange embassies and ambassadors and to cooperate on a broad array of issues, including banking, education, trade and health issues.

Mr Trump said it was an incredible day for the world: “Today, the world sees that they are choosing cooperation over conflict, friendship over enmity, prosperity over poverty and hope over despair,” Trump said. “They are choosing a future in which Arabs and Israelis, Muslims, Jews and Christians can live together, pray together and dream together, side by side, in harmony, community and peace.”

Speaking at the signing, the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu heralded “a new dawn of peace.”

Meanwhile, following the signing of normalization deals, there was a fresh round of violence between Palestinian militants in Gaza and Israel.

According to Israel Radio, militants fired two rockets into Israel on Tuesday night. One hit the coastal city of Ashdod, wounding two men.

In response, the Israeli military bombed sites in Gaza including a weapons factory, and a military compound used for rocket launching experiments by Hamas.

Leaders in the Palestinian territories accuse U.S. President Donald Trump of being biased in favour of Israel, and condemned the deals.

COVID-19 effects on children – Joining the heads of the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), at a press conference on Tuesday, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus outlined that since the start of the COVID pandemic, understanding its effects on children has been a priority.  

“Nine months into the pandemic, many questions remain, but we are starting to have a clearer picture. We know that children and adolescents can be infected and can infect others”, he said. 

“We know that this virus can kill children, but that children tend to have a milder infection and there are very few severe cases and deaths from COVID-19 among children and adolescents.” 

According to WHO data, less than 10 per cent of reported cases and less than 0.2 per cent of deaths are in people under the age of 20. However, additional research is needed into the factors that put children and adolescents at an increased risk. 

In addition, the potential long-term health effects in those who have been infected remains unknown. 

Referring to closure of schools around the world, which has hit millions of children, impacting not only their education but also a range of other important services, the WHO Director-General said that the decision to close schools should be a last resort, temporary and only at a local level in areas with intense transmission. 

Keeping classrooms open, ‘a job for all of us’

The time during which schools are closed should be used for putting in place measures to prevent and respond to transmission when schools reopen. 

“Keeping children safe and at school is not a job for schools alone, or governments alone or families alone. It’s a job for all of us, working together,” added Mr. Tedros. 

“With the right combination of measures, we can keep our kids safe and teach them that health and education are two of the most precious commodities in life,” he added. 

Guidance on reopening schools, while keeping children and communities safe 

Although children have largely been spared many of the most severe health effects of the virus, they have suffered in other ways, said Director-General Tedros, adding that closure of schools hit millions of children globally. 

Given different situations among countries: some, where schools have opened and others, where they have not, UNESCO, UNICEF and WHO, issued updated guidance on school-related public health measures in the context of COVID-19.  

Based on latest scientific evidence, the guidance provides practical advice for schools in areas with no cases, sporadic cases, clusters of cases or community transmission.  They were developed with input from the Technical Advisory Group of Experts on Educational Institutions and COVID-19, established by the three UN agencies in June. 

Schools provide critical, diverse services 

Audrey Azoulay, UNESCO Director-General, also highlighted the importance of school, not only for teaching, but also for providing health, protection and – at times – nutrition services. 

“The longer schools remain closed, the more damaging the consequences, especially for children from more disadvantaged backgrounds … therefore, supporting safe reopening of schools must be a priority for us all”, she said. 

In addition to safely reopening schools, attention must focus on ensuring that no one is left behind, Ms. Azoulay added, cautioning that in some countries, children are missing from classes, amid fears that many – especially girls – may not ever return to schools. 

Alongside, ensuring flow of information and adequate communication between teachers, school administrators and families; and defining new rules and protocols, including on roles of and trainings for teachers, managing school schedules, revising learning content, and providing remedial support for learning losses are equally important, she said. 

“When we deal with education, the decisions we make today will impact tomorrow’s world,” said the UNESCO Director-General. 

A global education emergency 

However, with half the global student population still unable to return to schools, and almost a third of the world’s pupils unable to access remote learning, the situation is “nothing short of a global education emergency”, said Henrietta Fore, UNICEF Executive Director. 

“We know that closing schools for prolonged periods of time can have devastating consequences for children,” she added, outlining their increased exposure risk of physical, sexual, or emotional violence. 

The situation is even more concerning given the results from a recent UNICEF survey which found that almost a fourth of the 158 countries questioned, on their school reopening plans, had not set a date to allow schoolchildren back to the classrooms. 

“For the most marginalized, missing out on school – even if only for a few weeks – can lead to negative outcomes that last a lifetime,” warned Ms. Fore. 

She called on governments to prioritize reopening schools, when restrictions are lifted, and to focus on all the things that children need – learning, protection, and physical and mental health – and ensure the best interest of every child is put first. 

And when governments decide to keep schools closed, they must scale up remote learning opportunities for all children, especially the most marginalized.  

“Find innovative ways – including online, TV and radio – to keep children learning, no matter what”, stressed Ms. Fore.