By Vatican News

Speaking to reporters, Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said, “[We] respectfully request our spiritual leaders to bring this much-needed message of hope to our suffering countrymen in order to stave off more incidents of self-destruction.”

The Justice Secretary, who is also a member of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF), said they had asked the  Catholic Church and other denominations for their assistance to provide counseling and guidance to those suffering from depression and distress as the pandemic continues.

Minister Guevarra said he had spoken with Secretary Carlito Galvez, chief implementer of the IATF national task force, about “the alarming increase in the number of suicides during these pandemic times.”

Challenging times

The rise in suicides and depression is being blamed on the economic fallout due to the pandemic.  The period of lockdown has also led to feelings of isolation and anxiety.

The World Health Organisation describes mental health as “a state of well-being in which an individual realizes his or her abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and can make a contribution to his or her community.”

According to the WHO, there has been a drastic increase in mental health disorders in the country since the start of the outbreak.

In a recent study, the health body said, “Thinking of whether life will ever return to normal, and how one will survive amid the pandemic, are some of the questions making ordinary Filipinos very anxious.”

“Likewise, questions like how will one survive economically and financially amid a pandemic; the sudden changes in everyday life and how to cope with them; the unremitting fear of being infected, the fear of dying from the virus, or the fear that a family member or relative might be infected with COVID-19 and die, and the fear of not being able to receive medical treatment in time are also playing on the minds of many Filipinos.”

As part of its public health response, WHO says it “has worked with partners to develop a set of new materials on the mental health and psychosocial support aspects of COVID-19.”

Covid Hopeline already in place

One diocese that is already providing assistance to those struggling with anxiety and depression in these uncertain times is the Diocese of Kaloohan in Metro Manila which has set up a phone in counseling service known as “Covid Hopeline”.

During the months of lockdown in the Philippines, the National Centre for Mental Health reported a significant increase in the number of people experiencing mental health issues as a result of the pandemic.

By Vatican News

One of the shortest pontificates in history could bring to the honour of the altars another pope of the 20th century.  John Paul I lived only 34 days on the Chair of Peter, but his testimony – not only in that short period of time, but more so in the previous decades as bishop and pastor, esteemed even outside the Italian borders – remains very tangible in the Church even today.

It was 42 years ago that Albino Luciani, the Patriarch of Venice, was elected pope on the fourth ballot on August 26, 1978, and assumed the double name “John Paul”, in homage to his immediate predecessors, John XXIII and Paul VI.  The former appointed him Bishop of Vittorio Veneto, thus including him among the Fathers of the Council; while the latter transferred him to Venice and created him cardinal.

The “Smiling Pope”

The month-long pontificate of John Paul I earned for him from the media the title, “the Smiling Pope”. The world came to learn that the mild character that his expression revealed was never an indication of a lack of spiritual clarity and pastoral energy.  Proof of this was his attitude and the work he did at the Second Vatican Council.  

Breath of the Universal Church

During the working sessions of the Council, the future pope lived an intense experience of the Universal Church. “In the Council hall,” he wrote to the faithful of his diocese in 1963, “it is enough for me to raise my eyes to the steps in front of me.”  “There they are, the beards of missionary bishops, the black faces of Africans, the protruding cheekbones of Asians.”  “And it’s enough for me to exchange a few words with them, and visions and needs open up, of which we have no idea”.  In other words, one feels the breath of “Christian optimism”, which promises to be the fruit of the Council, against the “widespread pessimism” of relativistic culture.

Towards beatification

The cause of the sainthood of John Paul I has been underway since 2003. After three years of the diocesan phase, the documents arrived in Rome in 2006, and the “positio” (formal argument for sainthood) of Pope Luciani began to be examined by experts at the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. A meticulous investigation of the testimonies and documents led to the conclusion of the case in November 2017. A miracle that will clear him for beatification is currently being examined. It concerns a presumed extraordinary healing through the intercession of John Paul I that took place in 2011 in Argentina, in the Diocese of Buenos Aires. 

By Vatican News

In his greetings to Polish-speaking faithful during the weekly General Audience, Pope Francis took note of the feast of Our Lady of Czestochowa, honoured as the Queen and Protectress of Poland.

Recalling his own visit to the Shrine of Jasna Gora during his visit to Poland for World Youth Day in 2016, the Holy Father said, “I unite myself today to the thousands upon thousands of pilgrims who are gathered there, together with the Polish episcopate, to entrust themselves, their families, the nation, and all of humanity to her maternal protection.”

Pope Francis invited the faithful gathered at the Shrine to “pray to the Blessed Mother to intercede for us all, especially for those who in different ways are suffering from the [Covid-19] pandemic, and bring them relief.”

The Polish Episcopal Conference met together at Poland’s national shrine ahead of their 386^th Plenary Assembly, which formally opens on Thursday in Jasna Gora. It is the first plenary meeting held this year, as earlier gatherings scheduled for March and June were cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

A sign of God’s grace in dark times

Devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary goes back to the earliest days of Christianity in Poland, says Father Michal Legan, spokesman for the Jasna Gora Sanctuary. “It was the most important sign of the Lord’s grace during the very, very difficult history, even in the darkest moments of our national history,” he said in an interview with Vatican Media’s Emanuela Campanile. “Even in the darkest hours of the personal story of each of us, she was present, and she was the point of the hope and of the faith,” he said.

“She’s the most important way to Jesus” for each of us, he added.

Entrusted to Our Lady of Czestochowa

Father Legan said that throughout the pandemic, the people of Poland “are looking to Our Lady with faith and prayer, with all our hopes.” That, he said, “is why the Polish episcopate is gathered here during the feast of Our Lady of Czestochowa, to proclaim the act of devotion an act of love and hope,” to express to the Madonna “that we of the nation are her children and we want her as our queen.”

Father Legan noted that, during his visit to Jasna Gora four years ago, Pope Francis said Poland had a great privilege, “because we have our mother as the queen, and our queen as the mother.”

Prayer to the Blessed Mother during the pandemic

Poles have felt the protection of the Blessed Virgin Mary and have turned to her in prayer throughout the coronavirus crisis. Father Legan noted that the sanctuary has seen far fewer pilgrims since the beginning of the pandemic. But even if the faithful are not able to come to Jasna Gora, he said, there is still a special, spiritual bond, “with the sanctuary, with the holy icon, and this is something we know deeply in our hearts.”

That is why “we pray every day to our Black Madonna for all the people who are sick, and for all who work” in the field of medicine.

And, he said, “we can assure you that here in the Sanctuary of Our Lady, this prayer, will be continued.”

By Vatican News

On the second day of the Republican party convention, First Lady Melania Trump took to the podium against the backdrop of the White House Rose Garden, making a plea for racial harmony.

Her speech came amid racial unrest that has engulfed the country since the death of black man, George Floyd, who was pinned under the knee of a white police officer in Minnesota.

Only this week there were more protests after another black man was shot and left paralyzed by police in Wisconsin.

Racial Unity

“I urge people to come together in a civil manner so we can work and live up to our standard American ideals,” Mrs Trump said.

She also called on people to stop the “violence and looting being done in the name of justice and never make assumptions based on the colour of a person’s skin.”

“Like all of you”, the First Lady said, “I have reflected on the racial unrest in our country.”

“It is a harsh reality that we are not proud of parts of our history. I encourage you to focus on the future while still learning from the past.”

Coronavirus

In her speech, Melania Trump also expressed her sympathy for victims of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“My deepest sympathy”, she said, “goes out to everyone who has lost a loved one.”

“And my prayers are with those who are ill or suffering. I know many people are anxious and some feel helpless. I want you to know: You’re not alone.”

The novel coronavirus has killed more than 178,000 people in the U.S. and the President’s wife acknowledged that since March “our lives have changed drastically.”

Of her husband, Mrs Trump said, “you have a president who will not stop fighting for you and your families.” 

In her role as First Lady over the last four years, Melania Trump has promoted a number of causes including the “Be Best” public awareness campaign, which focuses on well-being for youth, and advocating against cyberbullying and drug (particularly opioid) use.

This second day of the convention also featured President Trump’s children Eric and Tiffany as well as a pre-recorded appearance by US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo.

The Prefecture of the Pontifical Household announced on Wednesday that as of Wednesday, 2 September, Pope Francis’s General Audience will once again take place “with the participation of the faithful.”

Following the hygiene directives issued by the competent authorities, the audiences for the month of September will be held in the Apostolic Palace’s San Damaso courtyard.

The statement says that attendance at these General Audiences “is open to anyone who wishes” to participate. It also notes that no ticket is necessary and that it begins at 9:30 am.

The Bronze Door under the right colonnade of St Peter’s Square will serve as the entrance to the Courtyard. People wishing to attend will be allowed to enter beginning at  at 7:30 am.

By James Blears

Colombia’s President Ivan Duque has announced the imminent end of the blanket quarantine, at the beginning of the coming month.

He explained that Colombia will carefully start up a new phase, during which isolation will be specifically selective, with an emphasis on individual responsibility involving common sense.

Each region’s situation and plight will be individually monitored and assessed. This could lead to a graduated resumption of economic activity, while health measures will continue to be applied.

National air transport will be re-established, but the worst affected places will remain closed down.

Balancing lives and livelihoods

It’s a bold and controversial calculated risk.

So far, Colombia has over 540,000 confirmed cases of Covid-19 and more than 17,000 have already died from it.

Latin America remains the epicenter of the pandemic.

All of this must be balanced against the corrosive and rapidly worsening impact on economies.

The considerable gamble involves lives and livelihoods. 

Vatican News English Africa Service – Vatican City

“We stand with the truth that the Catholic Bishops so ably articulated,” reads a statement issued by the Evangelical Fellowship of Zimbabwe President, Bishop Never Muparutsa -the Presiding Bishop of the Pentecostal Assembly of Zimbabwe. Bishop Muparutsa referred to a “multi-layered crisis of … economic collapse, deepening poverty, food insecurity, corruption, and human rights abuses” in Zimbabwe. With all these happening, EFZ stands with the Catholic Bishops, Muparutsa explained. 

“We stand with the truth that the Government is focused on things other than national democratic priorities,” said the EFZ head. 

We pledged not to allow politicians to divide us

Speaking in an interview with Jayson Casper, of Christianity Today, Bishop Never Muparutsa said the Evangelical Fellowship of Zimbabwe had decided to side with the Catholic Bishops because Churches in Zimbabwe have in the past discussed ecumenical cooperation and unity. The Churches have pledged not to allow themselves be divided by politicians.

“We realised that when we are divided, politicians take advantage. We have not eradicated this completely; politicians still divide us for particular agendas. But we have all agreed that in national matters we must be united, in order to move society in a positive direction. The Church must be nonpartisan, but at the same time, be concerned about the well-being of the general population. We must be the voice of the weak and the voiceless. We must hold our government accountable when it comes to looking after the vulnerable. Sometimes this makes us look like we are pro-Opposition. But we have nothing to do with the Opposition because they are not in power. Our interactions instead are with those in power, because they bear the responsibility,” Bishop Muparutsa told Christianity Today.

Pastoral Letter condemned Government crackdown on dissent

The Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops’ Conference (ZCBC) on 15 August issued a strong Pastoral Letter that criticised the country’s heavy-handed clampdown on dissent. Many activists, political actors and journalists are still being held in prison after the 31 July protests. The Pastoral Letter also condemned corruption, widespread human rights abuses, and the Government’s handling of an economy in free fall.

Government’s attacks on Catholic Bishops

Zimbabwe’s Minister of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services, Senator Monica Mutsvangwa, responded to the Pastoral Letter with a personal attack on the Archbishop of Harare, Robert Christopher Ndlovu. The Government called the Archbishop “evil minded” and went on to cast aspersions on his integrity and that of the country’s Catholic Bishops as a whole.

While it comes naturally for Catholics and some civil society organisations to come to the defence of the Catholic Bishops, the voice of Zimbabwe’s Evangelical Churches speaks to a history of ecumenical unity.

We stand with Catholics because an insult to one is an insult to all

Bishop Muparutsa explained that the Catholic Bishops’ Pastoral Letter meant well.

“The Catholic (Bishops’ Pastoral) Letter was trying to provoke discussion, not give an insult. It pointed out problems like all of us were doing. But it received such a strong (Government) backlash. We felt that given the situation in the country if we just stand by and watch, we don’t know what will happen. We have journalists and activists in prison. There have been abductions with perpetrators unidentified, making us all vulnerable. So, this prompted us to stand with the Catholics, because an insult to one is an insult to all,” said Muparutsa.

Widespread disillusionment in Zimbabwe

Muparutsa also spoke of the disillusionment many Zimbabweans now find themselves in. When President Emmerson Mnangagwa assumed office in 2017, many were encouraged by his talk of the dawn of a new era.

“The former President (Rober Mugabe) left us with a system of mis-governance, human rights issues, and international sanctions. We were all very happy when (President Mnangagwa) was elected, hearing that he would turn over a new leaf. There was so much hope. Having been part of the system, we expected he would learn the lessons of the past and bring us back into the family of nations. But with the COVID-19 pandemic, problems began to multiply. We were already suffering, and our health situation became dire. The majority of our people live hand-to-mouth. But as workplaces closed due to the lockdown, there was civic upheaval because people were hungry,” said Bishop Muparutsa.