By Robin Gomes

The Catholic bishops of Bangladesh have launched a campaign to plant 400,000 trees across the country during the current the Special “Laudato Si’” Anniversary Year, in commemoration of the 5th anniversary of Pope Francis’ encyclical “Laudato Si’” – On Care for our Common Home.

The bishops led by Cardinal Patrick D’Rozario, Archbishop of Dhaka, inaugurated the tree-planting drive on the premises of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Bangladesh (CBCB) centre in the capital Dhaka on Aug. 14.  In keeping with Covid-19 health protocols, only a limited number of clergy, religious and lay representatives attended the ceremony. 

The bishops who planted 3 fruit trees, called on Catholics in the country’s eight dioceses and their parishes to do so during the 2020-2021 period. 

“Laudato Si” Anniversary Year and beyond

It was on May 24, 2015, that Pope Francis signed his landmark encyclical.  The 5th anniversary of the document was marked with a “Laudato Si’” Week, May 17 to 24 this year, which kicked off the year-long Special “Laudato Si’” Anniversary Year, May 24, 2020, to May 24, 2021.

The Vatican Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development that is organizing and promoting the celebrations said that the end of the “Laudato Si” Anniversary Year will see a 7-year period of projects, activities and initiatives by Catholic communities and institutions across the world, to spread the spirit of the encyclical.

Ecological balance

At the inaugural ceremony, Cardinal D’Rozario, CBCB president said that trees play a vital role in maintaining the ecological balance.  However, with population growth and the many needs of people, forests and green covers are gradually depleting.  As a result, various natural disasters are affecting the world. In such a situation, the Archbishop of Dhaka said, the community needs to be aware of and emphasize maintaining the natural balance.

The cardinal hoped that by uniting with the world community and the country, Bangladesh’s Catholic Church will be able to contribute at least a little bit to the ecological balance and sustained development of the country by planting the trees.

Celebrating Bangladesh’s independence and founding leader

With the tree-planting drive, Bangladesh’s bishops also intend to mark 50 years of the country’s independence next year, as well as the birth centenary this year of the founding father of the nation, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

Bangladesh which attained freedom from Pakistan on March 26, 1971, will be marking a year-long celebration, March 26, 2021, to March 26, 2022.  The nation that marked the birth centenary of Mujibur Rahman on March 17, 2020, also launched a year of centenary celebrations, which will conclude on March 17, 2021. 

Cardinal D’Rozario is the head of the 50-member national committee, formed last year to plan both celebrations. 

“We love the nation and we hold the father of the nation in high respect,” said the cardinal.  “Every Catholic in the country,” he said, “needs to plant a tree to express love for the country and honour for our founding leader.”  “We will mostly plant fruit trees, but also trees that can produce wood in the future.”

CBCB-Caritas partnership

The tree-planting initiative is being sponsored by the CBCB and Caritas Bangladesh, the social service arm of Bangladesh’s Church.

Bishop Gervas Rozario of Rajshahi, the president of Caritas Bangladesh said they been organizing various programmes in the dioceses to sensitize people about climate change and the environment.   Tree planting, he explained, is a symbolic activity of the Church for national awareness in safeguarding the environment.

The initiative connects grassroots communities with global efforts for environmental conservation, said Benedict Alo D’Rozario, president of Caritas Asia, the continental body of Catholic charities.

Speaking to UCA News, he said Christians can make more environmental conservation efforts without spending a penny.  He encouraged practices such as abandoning plastic bags for jute bags, utilizing waste to produce compound fertilizer and preventing wastage of drinking water. 

By Sr Bernadette Mary Reis, fsp

On 31 July, Lahore’s Archbishop Sebastian Shaw announced churches would reopen in the diocese in mid-August. He cited important occurrences in August as the motive for his decision: Independence Day, 14 August and the Solemnity of the Assumption, 15 August.

The Archbishop also reiterated the need to follow safety measures, reminding Churchgoers that they would follow procedures in place to protect against the virus. In addition, he said that services would be kept short, numbers to a minimum, and consecutive Masses would be offered to accommodate the faithful.

Last week, many coronavirus measures ordered by the government were then lifted.

Cathedral reopens

True to his word, the first Mass was celebrated in the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart on the Solemnity of the Assumption. The next day, a ceremony in which Archbishop Sebastian Shaw himself opened the doors of the Cathedral symbolized the reopening of every church door in Pakistan. Present for the ceremony were leaders of other faith traditions in Pakistan.

Inter-religious service

The Dean of the Anglican Church of Pakistan in Lahore, Pastor Shahid Meraj, prayed the opening prayer of thanksgiving.

Archbishop Shaw commended the faithful for having respected the government anti-Covid guidelines. He also requested that Christians continue to observe those guidelines for the purpose of saving lives. Although belonging to different religions, “we are all brothers”, Archbishop Shaw said. “We are indeed united even in the difficult time of Covid-19.”

Sadar Bishan Singh, Pakistan’s Sikh representative, expressed his gratitude to Archbishop Shaw for organizing the celebration. “People of all religions are glad to go back to their worship places and those who left the world because of the pandemic may rest in peace,” he said. He then prayed for love and unity between those following different religious traditions.

Those present were reminded by Asim Maqbool, a representative of the Muslim population, that everyone had been affected by the virus, regardless of religious persuasion or ethnicity. “We all had to put our trust in God,” he said.

Bishop Irfan Jamil of the Anglican Church observed that everyone had rallied together for the good of those who are poor.

A leader of the Shia community, Qasim Raza Naqwi had words of congratulations for everyone who played a role in saving the lives of the virus’s victims.

Quoting the Quran, Mufti Syed Ashiq Hussain said that respect is due to all religions and sacred places of worship.

Church closures

Churches initially closed in Pakistan on 15 March before the official lockdown began. Some churches of various denominations later chose to open only for Sunday worship. Public Masses began to be celebrated in churches in the Archdiocese of Karachi, Sindh Province, and Islamabad-Rawalpindi Diocese in July.

Covid in Pakistan

Pakistan has registered almost 290,000 Coronavirus cases, just over 6,000 people have died from it and a few more than 270,000 have recovered. The number of new cases has been declining dramatically. On 16 August, only six deaths were reported.

By Vatican News

Pope Francis continues to make his heartfelt appeal for generosity and solidarity for communities and countries hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic by personally leading the way through concrete acts of closeness and affection. 

This he carries out through the Office of Papal Charities, a department of the Holy See headed by the Apostolic Almoner, or papal almsgiver, Polish Cardinal Konrad Krajewski.

In the latest move, the Cardinal says in a Statement released by the Holy See Press Office on Monday, the Pope’s charity is being directed to Brazil.  Eight Draeger intensive care ventilators and 6 portable Fuji ultrasound scanners are being shipped to needy hospitals in Brazil.

Hope Association

This, Cardinal Krajewski says, has been made possible through the generous commitment of Hope Association, an Italy-based non-profit group that helps needy children and communities.  Highly specialized in humanitarian projects on health and education, Hope Association, he says, finds ways to obtain high-tech life-saving medical equipment through donors, and arranges for their shipping and installation in hospitals.

Helping the poorest and neediest 

These medical devices will be delivered to hospitals in Brazil chosen by the Apostolic Nunciature, so that “this gesture of Christian solidarity and charity can really help the poorest and neediest people”.

On several occasions, the Office of Papal Charities has mobilized medical material and equipment to be donated to many health facilities in situations of emergency and poverty around the world so that many human lives are treated and saved. 

After the United States, Brazil has the world’s worst coronavirus scenario, reporting more than 3.3 million cases and close to 108,000 deaths since the start of the pandemic.

By Vatican News

“Ultimately, the 17th of October … provides sufficient time for parties to plan around the range of circumstances we will be campaigning under.”