In the first half of 2024 the leading global provider of foreign exchange and international payments for businesses, iBanFirst, processed 275 million euros in FX transactions for Bulgarian trading companies. In comparison to the same period last year this is an increase of 90% that was driven by the dynamic business activities of existing clients and the surge in import-export operations.
These results position Bulgaria as one of the markets with the highest trading volume growth for the iBanFirst Group, while it remains the market with the highest average volume per trade in the first half of 2024.
„Our remarkable performance in Bulgaria highlights the highest average volume per trade among our European markets, despite being one of the smallest countries. This exceptional growth emphasizes the robust demand for innovative financial solutions and is a testament to the trust our clients have placed in us. We are dedicated to supporting Bulgarian companies in their international endeavors and remain committed to delivering unparalleled service and value”, said Johan Gabriels, Regional Director for South-East Europe at iBanFirst.
The press release and more information below:
PRESS RELEASE
iBanFirst Bulgaria registered a 90% increase in FX transactions volumes in the first half of 2024, reaching 275 million euros
● The substantial growth in FX transactions volumes was driven by the dynamic business activities of existing clients and the surge in import-export operations. iBanFirst’s client base includes 1,300 companies across the region.
● These results position Bulgaria as one of the markets with the highest trading volume growth for the iBanFirst Group, while it remains the market with the highest average volume per trade in the first half of 2024.
● The increase in trading volume has also led to revenue growth, CEE generating now 40% of iBanFirst’s overall revenue growth rate.
Sofia, 10.07.2024: iBanFirst, a leading global provider of foreign exchange and international payments for businesses, has processed 275 million euros in FX transactions for Bulgarian trading companies in the first half of 2024, marking a substantial 90% increase compared to the same period last year. These results position Bulgaria as one of the markets with the highest trading volume growth for the iBanFirst Group in the first half of 2024.
The substantial growth in FX transactions volumes during the first six months of 2024 was driven by the dynamic business activities of existing clients and the surge in import-export operations. The increase in trading volume has also driven revenue growth of 106%, with the CEE market now contributing to 40% of iBanFirst’s overall revenue growth rate. iBanFirst’s client base includes 1,300 companies across the region.
„Our remarkable performance in Bulgaria highlights the highest average volume per trade among our European markets, despite being one of the smallest countries. This exceptional growth emphasizes the robust demand for innovative financial solutions and is a testament to the trust our clients have placed in us. We are dedicated to supporting Bulgarian companies in their international endeavors and remain committed to delivering unparalleled service and value”, said Johan Gabriels, Regional Director for South-East Europe at iBanFirst.
iBanFirst’s mission is to help Bulgarian companies expand beyond borders by providing them with access to fast, transparent, and cost-effective cross-border payments and foreign exchange services, as well as the support of a boutique team of FX experts. The fintech’s client base is diverse, including import-export companies across various sectors such as agriculture, automotive, IT and telecommunications, wholesale and retail, construction, and energy.
The value of cross-border transactions carried out through the iBanFirst platform ranges from a few thousand euros to millions of euros. Moreover, the uncertain economic and geopolitical climate in recent years has led more companies to seek risk management solutions to protect against currency volatility. This shift has resulted in a significant increase in demand for hedging services, which have recorded a 94% year-over-year growth and now account for 77% of iBanFirst’s revenues in the local market.
iBanFirst plans to further invest in the Bulgarian market by expanding its team in Sofia, enhancing its technological capabilities, and launching new products tailored to the needs of local businesses.
iBanFirst has been listed for 5 consecutive years (2018 – 2023) in the Financial Times’ top 1,000 Europe’s Fastest Growing Companies. iBanFirst Group currently has 13 offices in 10 European countries (France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Italy, Spain, and the UK) as well as a white label business in Greece. The group processes transactions worth over €1.4 billion monthly.
About iBanFirst
Founded in 2016, iBanFirst offers a next-generation cross-border payment experience that combines a powerful platform and the support of FX experts. With more than 350 employees in 10 European countries, processing a volume of transactions worth more than €1.4 billion each month, and listed by the Financial Times as one of Europe’s fastest-growing companies, iBanFirst became in less than 10 years a trusted partner for SMEs across borders.
iBanFirst has the financial backing of the French public investment bank (bpiFrance), European venture capital leaders (Elaia, Xavier Niel), and the American investment fund Marlin Equity Partners (more than 8 billion dollars of capital under management). Regulated by the National Bank of Belgium as a payment institution, iBanFirst is authorized to operate throughout the European Union. Member of the SWIFT network and SEPA certified, iBanFirst holds AISP and PISP accreditations under PSD2.
Photo: Johan Gabriels, Regional Director for South-East Europe at iBanFirst
In a remarkable achievement, .lumen, the startup dedicated to enhancing the mobility of the blind and visually impaired, has raised €1 million from private investors in one day. This milestone follows an extraordinary pitch event of the Glasses for the Blind held on July 16 where over 600 investors gathered to hear Cornel Amariei, CEO and founder of .lumen, present the company’s vision and innovative technology.
The success of this funding round was facilitated by SeedBlink, the all-in-one equity management and investment platform. SeedBlink’s robust European infrastructure and comprehensive suite of services provided the ideal environment for .lumen to attract and secure investments efficiently.
Cornel Amariei, CEO & Founder of .lumen, stated: “This record round on SeedBlink is a testament to the potential for innovation in Romania. Despite being ranked as the least innovative country in the EU by the official Innovation Scoreboard, we believe Romania can deliver life-changing innovations to the world. Thank you for sharing this belief!”
Ionut Patrahau, Managing Partner at SeedBlink, emphasized the significance of this achievement, stating, “Supporting startups like .lumen is a powerful act of faith in innovation and the entrepreneurial spirit. Entrepreneurs are the lifeblood of our modern economy. They challenge the status quo, push technological boundaries, and create solutions that improve lives. In the case of .lumen, their work goes beyond business; it touches the very essence of human dignity by empowering blind individuals with mobility and independence. Their impact is clear and immediate, transforming the lives of the blind. But let’s also look beyond the obvious. Your investment helps to build a legacy of progress and inclusivity that will benefit generations to come.”
The press release and more information below:
Press Release
.lumen raises €1 million in one day from European private investors via SeedBlink
Bucharest, Romania – July 18, 2024 – In a remarkable achievement, .lumen, the startup dedicated to enhancing the mobility of the blind and visually impaired, has raised €1 million from private investors in one day. This milestone follows an extraordinary pitch event held on July 16 where over 600 investors gathered to hear Cornel Amariei, CEO and founder of .lumen, present the company’s vision and innovative technology.
The high level of interest in .lumen’s investment opportunity was evident from the pitch event. With more than 600 investors attending, Cornel Amariei’s compelling presentation highlighted the transformative potential of .lumen’s Glasses for the Blind, which leverage Pedestrian Autonomous Driving (PAD AI) technology to replicate the functionalities of a guide dog. This groundbreaking approach to assistive technology has captivated the attention of investors, leading to the rapid achievement of the €1 million target.
The success of this funding round was facilitated by SeedBlink, the all-in-one equity management and investment platform. SeedBlink’s robust European infrastructure and comprehensive suite of services provided the ideal environment for .lumen to attract and secure investments efficiently. SeedBlink’s platform enables European tech companies to access, manage, and trade equity at all growth stages, streamlining the investment process and supporting companies like .lumen through each phase of their journey.
Cornel Amariei, CEO & Founder of .lumen, stated: “This record round on SeedBlink is a testament to the potential for innovation in Romania. Despite being ranked as the least innovative country in the EU by the official Innovation Scoreboard, we believe Romania can deliver life-changing innovations to the world. Thank you for sharing this belief!”
Ionut Patrahau, Managing Partner at SeedBlink, emphasized the significance of this achievement, stating, “Supporting startups like .lumen is a powerful act of faith in innovation and the entrepreneurial spirit. Entrepreneurs are the lifeblood of our modern economy. They challenge the status quo, push technological boundaries, and create solutions that improve lives. In the case of .lumen, their work goes beyond business; it touches the very essence of human dignity by empowering blind individuals with mobility and independence. Their impact is clear and immediate, transforming the lives of the blind. But let’s also look beyond the obvious. Your investment helps to build a legacy of progress and inclusivity that will benefit generations to come.”
.lumen’s journey is supported by key co-investors, including the European Innovation Council and Venture to Future Fund, which have contributed €4 million to the €5 million funding round. The funds raised will support .lumen’s strategic roadmap, including the limited-series launch in Q4 2024 and the entry into the USA market in Q4 2025. The company aims to sell 10,000 units by the end of 2026, bringing independence and safety to visually impaired individuals worldwide.
About .lumen
.lumen is a pioneering Romanian startup dedicated to enhancing pedestrian mobility through innovative technology. Their flagship product, .lumen Glasses, and the underlying PAD AI technology are designed to provide visually impaired individuals with unprecedented levels of independence and safety. Founded by Cornel Amariei, .lumen is committed to creating technology that changes lives. Learn more at www.dotlumen.com.
About SeedBlink
SeedBlink is the all-in-one equity and investment platform that provides the infrastructure, financial services, and network coverage for European tech companies and their stakeholders to access, manage, and trade equity at every stage of growth. With a comprehensive suite of products and services, SeedBlink streamlines investment processes and provides robust support throughout the equity lifecycle, from initial funding rounds to mature investment opportunities and secondary markets. More information at www.seedblink.com.
Youth for Human Rights at the United Nations, 2024
KingNewsWire. 52 young representatives from 35 nations joined by over 400 government officials, educators, and human rights advocates from around the world convened at the United Nations Headquarters in New York for the 18th International Human Rights Summit. They came together with a shared goal of promoting human rights education and advocacy. The event hosted by Timor-Leste’s Permanent Mission to the UN was designed to address issues of injustice and work, towards fostering peace, through education and activism.
With the motto Empower-Unite-Transform, the 18th International Human Rights Summit kicked off with a display of youthful passion and advocacy as 52 young delegates and ambassadors from 35 nations, joined by over 400 government officials, educators, and human rights advocates from around the world, gathered in Conference Room 4 at the United Nations Headquarters in New York. Their arrival was met with a standing ovation from the attendees, reflecting the collective respect for their commitment to human rights.
These exceptional delegates, selected from a large pool of applicants based on their stellar track records in advocating for human rights, didn’t just come for praise. Their main goal was to expand their knowledge and skills to advance their goals.
Dr. Mary Shuttleworth, the president and founder of Youth for Human Rights International has been leading the organization of these summits since they began in 2004. She praised the delegates for their accomplishments and future potential underscoring the significance of their ongoing work.
Diplomats and representatives from countries permanent missions to the UN, like Australia, the Bahamas, Bolivia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Sri Lanka, Timor Leste and United States of America also conveyed their greetings and best wishes.
The summit for this year was organized once again by the Permanent Mission of Timor Leste at the United Nations. It was also broadcast live via UN Web TV.
During the event, Beth Akiyama from the Church of Scientology National Affairs Office in Washington, D.C., and who spoke on behalf of Church of Scientology International, emphasized the significance of starting the summit on July 18th, which coincides with Nelson Mandela Day as designated by the United Nations. Mandela’s legacy as a champion of rights is remarkable, especially his belief that “education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world.” Akiyama pointed out how this aligns with Youth for Human Rights mission, which focuses on global transformation through education, about the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
As the summit progresses a group of young advocates united by their shared dedication and backed by various international missions and organizations aims to advance human rights education and spark a movement to eliminate injustice and promote peace worldwide.
The first two days of the Summit feature panels on human rights topics:
YOUTH ON HUMAN RIGHTS: A discussion on the critical role of young people in promoting human rights and setting an example for their peers.
HUMAN RIGHTS EDUCATION: The importance of integrating human rights into educational curricula to instill values of dignity and unity among future leaders.
HUMAN RIGHTS APPLIED THROUGH LAW: A discussion of the integration of human rights in legal frameworks and the role of institutions such as courts, law enforcement and legislatures in upholding these rights.
UPHOLDING HUMAN RIGHTS IN THE ARTS & MEDIA: The role of journalists, filmmakers, artists, and influencers, and the need for freedom of expression and the support of creative initiatives that champion human rights.
HUMAN RIGHTS IN ACTION: The importance of nonprofit human rights organizations, the vital role of active participation in forwarding human rights, and creative ways to do so.
The last day of the Summit concludes with a celebration at the Church of Scientology Harlem Community Center followed by community outreach in Times Square, New York. During this outreach participants apply their knowledge by educating individuals about the 30 human rights.
The annual International Human Rights Summit serves as a platform for human rights advocates, officials, dignitaries and young people to exchange ideas and collaborate on implementing initiatives.
The primary objective of the Summit is to advocate for the inclusion of education on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in school curricula and ensure that these rights are legally protected.
The Church of Scientology and its members firmly believe, as inspired by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard, knowledge is the key to freedom, and therefore actively support United for Human Rights and its Youth for Human Rights program by offering their resources and programs free of charge.
For information, please visit the United, for Human Rights website:
On the eve of a critical European summit, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen delivered a pivotal speech addressing the continent’s pressing challenges and future direction. Speaking to an audience of policymakers, diplomats, and industry leaders, von der Leyen laid out the European Union’s strategic priorities, ranging from economic recovery post-pandemic to the urgent need for a unified stance on climate change and digital transformation. Her remarks, coming at a time of significant geopolitical upheaval, underscore the EU’s commitment to solidarity, innovation, and resilience in an increasingly complex global landscape.
Here it is:
Thank you very much, dear Roberta,
Good afternoon to everyone,
I guess you have heard my speech, and you might have read the Political Guidelines. So you can imagine that this is a very emotional and special moment for me now. I just want to make three very short remarks before moving on to your questions.
The first one is a more personal remark. I cannot begin without expressing how grateful I am for the trust and the confidence of the majority of the European Parliament. 401 votes in favour – you will recall that last time, it was 8 votes above the necessary majority. This time it is 41, so this is much better. This sends a strong message of confidence. I think it is also recognition for the hard work that we carried out together in the last five years in the last mandate. We have spared no effort. We have navigated the most troubled waters that our Union has ever faced. And we have kept the course on our long-term European goals. I also want to thank you, Roberta, the Group leaders of the democratic forces in the Parliament and all the MEPs for the excellent cooperation including during the last mandate but also for the very substantial exchanges we have had over the past two weeks – after the elections and over the past two weeks. I think this is a very good foundation for the next five years. And I think this was tangible in the debate today.
Second, I want to highlight that I was very happy to have the opportunity to carry out a real, pan-European electoral campaign. As you know, it brought me from Helsinki to Lisbon, from Bucharest to Rome and many different places. I engaged with people from all walks of life. And I enjoyed taking part in the series of TV debates that we had with the other candidates. I think this makes our European democracy much more vibrant.
And finally, let me walk you briefly through the next steps. I will now focus on building my team of Commissioners for the next five years. In the coming weeks, I will ask Leaders to put forward their candidates. I will – as I did last time – write a letter and ask for the proposal of a man and a woman as candidate. The only exception is, like last time, when there is an incumbent Commissioner who stays. And then, I will interview the candidates as of mid-August, and I want to pick the best-prepared candidates who share the European commitment. Once again, I will aim for an equal share of men and women at the College table. The new team will get ready to successfully pass the Parliament hearings. And then I will again seek the confirmation of this House.
But does not the dignity of the Holy Spirit be degraded when it is said that the Spirit announces only what he hears from God the Father and God the Son? “Hearing the speech” of the other Persons of the Holy Trinity does not exclude the Spirit’s own participation in the Divine Council. Moreover, the fact that the Spirit will reveal all truth warrants the conclusion that He is one in essence with the Father and the Son.
Another question that may arise: Does not the words, “All that the Father hath are Mine,” imply that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Son, as He proceeds from the Father? No, the proceeding of the Spirit from the Father could not be meant by Christ here, for in this whole section from verse 7 onwards He speaks of the activity of the Spirit, and not of His personal attributes as a divine Hypostasis, He does not mean the relations of the Persons of the Holy Trinity between them, and their relation to the work of the salvation of mankind.
16:16. A little while, and you will not see Me, and again a little while, and you will see Me, because I am going to the Father.
The Lord returns to the question of His going to the Father, which had so frightened the apostles, and comforts them that they will soon see Him again. As in John. 14:18 – 19, here we are talking about the appearance of the Lord to the apostles at the resurrection.
16:17. Then some of His disciples said to one another: what is this that says to us: a little while, and you will not see Me, and again: after a little while, and you will see Me, and that I am going to the Father?
“some more”. The disciples could not put together in their mind all that Christ had said about His future meeting with them. He then declared that it would be a long time before he saw them, that they would have to go through a path of suffering (John 16:2), then he said that he would come to them soon, as soon as he had prepared for them a dwelling in heaven (John 14:3), so they could assume that the separation would last only a few hours. The apostles were already confused by this expression “yet a little while.”
“I go to the Father.” In addition, His words: “I am going to the Father” also disturbed them. Some of them were probably inclined to see in them a hint of Christ’s coming glorious ascension into heaven, similar to that which was conferred upon the prophet Elijah, who was taken from the earth in a “chariot of fire and horses of fire” (2 Kings 2: 11). But then it seemed incomprehensible what His recent return Christ was talking about. Will His stay in heaven be short? But this contradicted what the Lord said to the apostles earlier (John 13:36 – 14:3). They may also have thought that Christ would appear to them at His last coming when He would come to judge the world (Matt. 19:28). But this “a little more” confused all their ideas.
16:18. And they said to themselves: what is this that says: a little while? We don’t know what he’s talking about.
16:19. Jesus understood, therefore, that they wanted to ask Him, and said to them: is this why you ask one another, when I said: a little while, and you will not see Me, and again: in a little while, and you will see Me?
16:20. Verily, verily, I say unto you, that ye shall weep and wail, and the world shall rejoice; you will be grieved, but your sorrow will turn to joy.
“your sorrow shall be turned into joy.” Christ answers the disciples’ bewilderment about the meaning of His words: “a little while longer, and you will not see Me, and again after a little while, and you will see Me.” The Lord repeats again that sorrow and weeping for His death (in verse 20 the verb θρηνεῖν means weeping for the dead, cf. Matt. 2:18) will quickly be replaced among the disciples by joy – of course, because of Christ’s resurrection from the dead. The world will rejoice, thinking that it has conquered Christ, and this joy of the world will sadden even more the disciples of Christ, already crushed by the death of the Master. But both joys will be very short-lived. The turnaround will come quickly and unexpectedly.
16:21. A woman, when she gives birth, is in pain, because her hour has come; but, after she has given birth to the child, for joy she no longer remembers the pain, because a man has been born into the world.
“a woman when she gives birth.” The disciples’ grief will be sudden, like a woman who unexpectedly feels the onset of painful labor pains while in the middle of a holiday or work! But Christ wants to present not only the unexpectedness of His resurrection to the disciples, but also its especially joyful character. The joy of the disciples when they see the resurrected Christ can be compared to the fullness of joy experienced by a woman who has just given birth. She immediately forgets the pains of childbirth and is filled with joy when she sees her child. Some interpreters continue the comparison begun by the Savior. They compare Him to a newborn child who has entered into a new life at the resurrection, as a new Adam (1 Cor. 15:45).
16:22. So you are now grieved; but I will see you again, and your heart will rejoice, and your joy no one will take away from you;
The Lord describes the consequences of His new coming to the disciples after the resurrection – their joy at meeting Him will be permanent.
16:23. and on that day you will not ask Me anything. Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in my name, he will give it to you.
“him day”. (cf. John 14:20), i.e. during the conversations with the resurrected Lord.
“you shall ask Me nothing.” We know that even after the resurrection, the disciples asked the Lord about things that particularly concerned them (for example, about how the kingdom of Israel would be organized; Acts 1:6). Therefore, the expression οὐκ ἐρωτήσεις is rather understood in the sense of “you shall not continually ask questions about every word of mine which you do not understand, and even continually repeat the same questions, as in this conversation of ours” (verse 18). The state of the apostles, which was then like inexperienced children, questioning the elders about everything, will change after they see the resurrected Christ – they will mature and become adults.
“Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you.” Here is another indication of the new position of the apostles in relation to God after the resurrection of Christ. Before that, the weight of the thought of the fate of the Son of God filled them with fear before the Lord’s right hand, which so terribly punishes the innocent Christ for the sins of humanity. And after the resurrection, they will begin to look at this right hand as containing all the mercies for those redeemed by Christ’s sufferings.
16:24. Until now you have asked nothing in My name; ask, and you shall receive, that your joy may be full.
“Until now”, i.e. before Christ ascended to the Father and received eternal glory and in His humanity, the apostles did not ask anything in His name (cf. John 14:13), i.e. in their prayers they they turned directly to the God of their fathers, without relying on the name of their Master and Lord Jesus Christ. After Christ’s glorification, it will be especially joyful for them that in their prayers they will invoke the name of Christ, who is so close to them, and in this His closeness they will find a guarantee that their prayers will not remain unfulfilled.
16:25. These things I spoke to you in parables; but the hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in parables, but will openly make known to you about the Father.
16:26. That day you will ask in My name, and I do not tell you that I will ask the Father for you; 16:27. for the Father Himself loves you, because you loved Me and believed that I came forth from God.
“These things I have spoken unto you in parables.” The farewell speech of the Lord is drawing to a close. The Lord says that everything He has said so far in this discourse (for example, John 13:32; 14:2, etc.) is in the form of parables, and His disciples, after hearing them, turned to Christ with questions and perplexities. (cf. Matt. 13:36). However, the time will soon come when the Lord will “directly” communicate to the apostles what they need to know, so that Christ does not need to accompany His speech with special explanations. But what time is Christ referring to here? Is it the relatively short period from His resurrection to His ascension into heaven, or the entire time of His Church’s existence on earth? Since this speech refers primarily to the apostles (who at this stage knew everything vaguely, as if under a veil), it is better to see in Christ’s promise an indication only of His personal treatment of the apostles after His resurrection, when He will ” open their minds to understand the Scriptures” (Luke 24:45).
“I do not say to you that I will ask the Father for you.” This does not mean that the intercession of Christ for the apostles will cease: love, as the apostle says, never ceases (1 Corinthians 13:8) and always continues to intercede for the beloved. But the Lord wants to say that the apostles themselves will find themselves in a new close relationship with God, because because of their love for Christ and their faith in Him, they will be honored with the Father’s love.
16:28. I proceeded from the Father and came into the world; again I leave the world and go to the Father.
16:29. His disciples said to him: behold, now you speak openly, and you do not tell any parable.
16:30. Now we understand that you know everything, and you don’t need anyone to ask you. Therefore we believe that you came from God.
“I came from the Father…and I go to the Father.” In order to explain to the disciples the purpose of His departure from them, the Lord once again repeats that as He came forth from the Father, so He must return to Him. But now he says it short and clear. The disciples are satisfied with the clarity of these words of their Master, such clarity as they needed. This ability of Christ to penetrate into the innermost corners of the human heart prompts the disciples to confess once more their faith that He really came forth from God and therefore has divine knowledge. He does not need to wait for their questions to find out who needs to know what from Him.
16:31. Jesus answered them: do you believe now?
“do you believe now?”. In response to this confession, the Lord accepted their faith as a fact (instead of: “Do you now believe?” it is better to translate: “yes, now you believe”).
16:32. Behold, the hour is coming, and it has already come, for you to run away, everyone to your homes, and leave Me alone; but I am not alone, because the Father is with Me.
you “run away”. The Lord says that this faith in the apostles will soon weaken to such an extent that they will abandon their Master (cf. Mark 14:27 and 50).
“The Father is with Me.” “However – Christ notes, as if to reassure the apostles for the coming time, when they will consider all Christ’s work lost, – I will not be alone, the Father is always with Me”.
16:33. I have told you this so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have sorrows; but take heart: I have overcome the world.
This is the conclusion of the discourses of chapters 15 and 16 (chapter 14 has its own special conclusion in verse 31). For this reason, the Lord spoke the additional speeches in chapters 15 – 16, so that the apostles would have “peace in Him”, i.e. the peace that He has and with which He goes to suffering (cf. John 14:27). And this peace must be based on the same thing with the apostles as it was with Christ, namely that Christ is certain of His victory over the world hostile to Him, which already, one might say, lies at His feet as defeated (cf. John 13:31). In the same way, the disciples must draw strength from the thought of their Master’s victory to endure the trials ahead (cf. verse 21).
Some modern exegetes consider chapters 15 and 16 to have been inserted by a later author. The main basis for this opinion is that in John 14:31 the Lord invites the apostles to “get up and go” from the upper room, thus recognizing the farewell discourse as finished. But critics are in vain embarrassed by this circumstance. As it was said above (see the interpretation of John 14:31), the Lord was able to continue His conversation with the disciples, seeing that they were not able to follow His invitation, could not, because of their great sorrow, get up from their seats.
Likewise, the other ground relied upon by the critics for not recognizing the authenticity of these chapters is of little force. Namely, they say that these chapters partly repeat what is already known from John 13:31 – 14:31 (Heitmuller). But what wonder is there in the fact that the Lord, comforting His disciples, sometimes repeats the same thoughts? It is obvious that they needed such a repetition because they did not get things clear enough the first time.
Source in Russian: Explanatory Bible, or Commentaries on all the books of the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments: In 7 volumes / Ed. prof. A. P. Lopukhin. – Ed. 4th. – Moscow: Dar, 2009, 1232 pp.
In 1996, I was publishing a report entitled AP, a disease for the 21st century. I was working as a press officer in an office for an addiction clinic when, doing a television series called Group Therapy, I interviewed a nurse who was Addicted to people. She could not understand her long-lasting or troubled relationships without the attachment she got from being psychologically and physically attached to a person. On that occasion we talked about the phenomenon of Gender Violence and the recurrent abuse she had been subjected to all her life, with an abusive father and life partners with identical characteristics.
At that time I was involved, nothing has changed, in the study of new beliefs and new religious movements, and it was clear to me that this attachment or addiction to people, which to a greater extent we could all suffer at some point in our lives, would be a question, not so much of the manipulation to which we could be subjected by people belonging to a particular credential group, but rather to our emotional deficiencies or self-esteem. That made me wonder if we ourselves are to a large extent to blame or partly to blame for falling into the jaws of certain modern predators who are only trying to manipulate us for their own benefit.
In this approach to the phenomenon of Codependence and the new religious movements, I have thought of delving into some cases that happened to me, how I acted and above all in what leads me, after years, to be clear that in the end we are the architects (guilty) of our own attachment to any type of group, rite or manipulative environment of those around us, whether religious, social, cultural or political. During this journey we will see how my way of observing groups and the perception of them evolved in the 80’s and 90’s and the one we have now.
I was fortunate to study in a fairly liberal religious seminary in the late 70’s and therefore I never maintained a fanatical attitude about concepts of truth, god or radical spiritual feelings and beliefs, which always helped me a lot to analyze with a certain rigor and totalitarian distance any belief that the other has.
One of my first contacts was in the late 70’s in an uncrowded train station. It was late at night and I was waiting to catch one of those slow and heavy night trains to go home. I had three days off after having been studying for almost a couple of months without a break. That’s what I was doing when a young man sat next to me, a little older than me, who from the first moment showed interest in establishing contact with me, and it was clear to me when he approached me and said: –Hello, can I sit here with you? I saw you alone and I thought, why not chat with him? That made annoyed me and made me be alert, it was, let’s remember, the end of the 80’s (1980) and I immediately thought he wanted to flirt with me. However, a small observation of his clothes, his attitude and above all the strangeness I felt when I saw him with a toupee, alerted me that I was being approached by a member of the then known as dangerous cult, Hare Krishna.
In those years, everything that distanced us from our Holy Mother Church was sinful and sectarian, we lived in a society still impregnated with confused ideas about the power of God and the malignities of the devil. Everything that moved away from the shadow of the angels’ wings moved closer to the redoubt of the most absolute darkness. Those were convulsive years for all the religious groups or movements that tried to advance. Without forgetting others that in times of Francoism, dragged the stigma of terrorists (Jehovah’s Witnesses) or communists (the Hermandades Obreras de Acción Católica, among other groups, including all evangelicals).
Of course I accepted to let him sit next to me, I talked to him and let myself be seduced while he was doing time. Perhaps I would have liked it better if he had worn his saffron robe, drums and bells, so that I could sing with him Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare. He tried to manipulate me into buying him a book about his faith, written by Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, a very exotic character for the time, although with thousands of followers all over the world. Let us not forget, from a distance, that in the 1990s, George Harrison himself, a member of the Beatles, embraced these beliefs after having been, in childhood, baptized as a Catholic or Protestant, and was the best representative of Prabhupada in the West. He never felt trapped or manipulated, based on his many public appearances in saffron robes and worshipping his religious leader.
Of course I let myself be seduced, and although my meager economy suffered a small setback, I bought the book. It was very late and that boy looked exhausted. Besides, I remembered things about the evils that were said about them, that if they trafficked in arms, that if white slave trade, that if child exploitation, etc. They were never prosecuted for any of this, although it is clear that when you remove the pipes from the toilets of the houses, you can always find a smell of shit.
However, that night I learned that for someone in need of affection, with affective deficiencies and even prone to addiction to people that situation would have been a good way to get hooked, first to the boy and then to the group. In the end, in my case, that young man shut me up well, and I even felt sorry for him (I empathized) and possibly I would have taken the contact further, always controlling the times, the forms and the spaces (at that time I did not let a moment pass to devour knowledge), if it had not been for his refusal to facilitate a form of contact outside the group.
As the years went by I was in some of their headquarters, and I saw that they had never danced with the devil, that they had no horns or weapons, and I understood that each one tries to live his religion as he can or as he wants. I loved that George Harrison became Hare Krishna and I recognize that I have hummed some of his mantras on drunken nights. Today they have headquarters located in every country where their followers are and from time to time they go out on the street with their saffron robes, drums and bells to collect a few coins, selling books or vegetables. Their carbon footprint is very small and today they are a very colorful group.
However, there are still some snooty investigators who still handle lists from the 80’s and 90’s that accuse them of being sectarian, arms dealers and a whole string of bickering from the past.
In the next article I will tell you some anecdotes about Jehovah’s Witnesses, also in those years. Oh, and let’s not forget to let people live in peace, as long as they do not want to impose their ideas by force.
STRASBOURG/BRUSSELS/BERLIN/DÜSSELDORF/BOCHUM. Yesterday, Wednesday (17 July 2024), Dennis Radtke MEP from North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) in Germany was confirmed as social policy spokesperson for the EPP Group in Strasbourg, where the European Parliament is being constituted this week.
“I am delighted to be able to continue to lead the EPP Group in the European Parliament’s Committee on Employment and Social Affairs (EMPL) and promote social policy issues,” said Dennis Radtke shortly after his election.
He also immediately formulated his clear ambition: “There is still a lot to do on the road to a more social Europe and we as the EPP Group want to play a leading role in this.”
According to the CDU politician, many projects have already been implemented: a European Minimum Wage, strengthening the rights of platform workers, social and climate funds and a European care strategy. “The great trust placed in me by my colleagues in the EPP Group motivates me strongly to continue actively working for a socially just Europe,” continued Radtke.
In his role as so-called coordinator of his political group, Dennis Radtke decides, for example, on the distribution of legislative and non-legislative reports and basically steers the work in the EMPL Committee.
One of Radtke’s next important projects for the new 10th parliamentary term of the European Parliament is to improve the protection of workers. “In its new mandate, the European Labour Authority (ELA) must be given every opportunity to enforce worker protection in the European Union, including across borders,” says the CDU politician.
Dennis Radtke is 45 years old, married and the father of two children. He comes from Wattenscheid (Bochum, Germany) and has been a member of the European Parliament since 2017. Radtke is a member of the Committees on Employment and Social Affairs (EMPL) and on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI).
The German CDU politician is President of the European Union of Christian Democratic Workers (EUCDW), Deputy Federal Chairman and North Rhine-Westphalian State Chairman of the Christian Democratic Workers’ Union (CDA), the CDU’s labour wing. At the CDA national conference on 14 and 15 September 2024 in Weimar (Thuringia), Dennis Radtke will run for the federal chairmanship of the CDA Germany in succession to Minister Karl-Josef Laumann MdL.
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Infomaniak // Companies handling sensitive data can now integrate a generative AI into their applications, hosted entirely in Switzerland and guaranteeing data control. More competitive than Mistral and OpenAI, Infomaniak’s AI as a Service is currently based on the Mixtral model, the most powerful open-source alternative to ChatGPT. Available on-demand as an API for developers, the AI interprets up to 32,000 tokens per prompt at launch, and can model, classify and analyze complex data, as well as synthesize, reformulate, correct, translate and generate complex texts.
Unlike ChatGPT, the language model marketed by Infomaniak is based on Mixtral 8x7B, an open-source technology whose algorithm and operation can be verified by engineers worldwide. This feature also makes it possible to make specific adaptations to design new services and restrict the use of AI for malicious actions such as spam generation.
The information processed and sent to the AI is not stored by Infomaniak and is used exclusively for the customer’s needs. Exclusively hosted in Switzerland on Infomaniak’s infrastructure, this generative AI guarantees companies total data control and full compliance with Swiss and European legislation.
As powerful as ChatGPT 3.5
The AI made available by Infomaniak is capable of processing texts in French, German, Spanish, Italian and English to rapidly execute complex programming and data analysis tasks.
“It’s only a matter of time before open source AI outperforms today’s best proprietary solutions for everyday use. It’s important to bear in mind that cloud computing today is essentially based on open technologies such as OpenStack, Kubernetes and Linux-based operating systems,” explains Marc Oehler, CEO of Infomaniak.
On the operational side, the documentation provided enables developers to easily integrate AI into corporate work environments to create virtual assistants, answer questions, summarize, classify, correct, generate, translate or perform content sentiment analysis, for example.
As eco-friendly as possible
Artificial intelligence consumes a lot of electricity. Infomaniak’s activities are powered exclusively by renewable energy. The energy efficiency ratio (PUE) of Infomaniak’s data centers in production is 1.09 on average, compared with 1.8 in Europe, because they are cooled exclusively with filtered natural air, without air conditioning. Currently undergoing intensive testing, Infomaniak’s new data center, where the most powerful GPUs will be installed, will fully recover the energy it consumes to heat up to 6,000 households in winter and over 100,000 in summer.
What’s more, Mixtral is more energy-efficient than its proprietary alternatives: its architecture manages a total of 45 billion parameters, but uses only 12 billion per token, considerably reducing energy consumption while delivering results superior to Llama 2 and ChatGPT 3.5, according to the French startup.
Low-cost pricing with 1 M free tokens
Users pay only for what they use, on a monthly basis. Billing for the service is based on a token system, which is a unit of measurement corresponding to around 4 characters.
At launch, Infomaniak’s AI as a service offers a total of 1 million tokens, and rates are lower than those of Mistral or OpenAI:
Incoming chips* (CHF) : 0.0013/1000 chips Outgoing chips* (CHF): 0.0018/1000 chips After creating an account, the service is available immediately, and a dashboard allows you to track your consumption in real time.
*Incoming tokens refer to requests made to the AI, and outgoing tokens refer to responses generated by the AI.
Constantly evolving
With its AI as a Service, Infomaniak is committed to constantly offering the best open-source AI technology. Initially launched with Falcon LLM, the service is now marketed with Mixtral 8x7B, and will continue to evolve in line with advances in this field.
Already implemented as an editorial assistant in its Mail Service and as a personal assistant in its kChat instant messaging, Infomaniak is actively deploying AI in its ecosystem.
“The next step is to enable users to connect our AI as a service with their data to provide 100% personalized responses. Our AI R&D team is currently running successful tests in this direction, and we look forward to offering this to businesses, with the same guarantees of confidentiality.” announces Boris Siegenthaler, strategic director at Infomaniak
Resources
Infomaniak is Switzerland’s leading developer of web technologies. With 2023 sales of over CHF 40 million and 21% growth in German-speaking Switzerland, the company employs over 220 people in Geneva and Winterthur.
Committed to privacy, the local economy and a more sustainable digital future, the company develops a suite of online collaborative tools and solutions for cloud hosting, streaming, marketing and events. As an independent company, it is partly owned by its employees and solely dependent on its customers.
Infomaniak uses only renewable energy, builds its own data centers and develops its solutions in Switzerland, without relocating. An ICANN-accredited registrar, Infomaniak’s solutions are used by millions of users. The company powers the Belgian Radio and Television (RTBF) website and provides streaming for over 3,000 radio and TV stations in Europe.
In 2023, Infomaniak won the Prix Suisse de l’Ethique and the Prix du développement durable du canton de Genève for its new data center, which will fully recover the energy it consumes to heat households.
During the recent ecumenical meeting of “Synaxe” in the monastery of Brâncoveanu, near Sibiu in Romania, on the theme “Blessed are the peacemakers”, a biblical journey on peace in the Bible was proposed. The Bible offers essential stories about peace. Reading it together in the spirit of “Lectio divina” also gives us a taste of peace.
Jean-Philippe Calame, chaplain at the Grandchamp community in Switzerland, gave a study on peace in the Bible, beginning with the words of the apostle Paul: “the peace of God surpasses all that can be conceived”. God is goodness, and he only wants to pass on the peace that he lives in himself, as the communion of the Father and the Son.
God has prepared peace for those he loves (1 Cor 2:9). This peace does not come to us without him. It is only through the restoration of our relationship with Him that we can experience it.
Peace is essentially a gift that comes from God. It is in history, but not of history. Jesus alone is God’s completed peace. Politics alone cannot create it. He alone can give it.
Stories of peace in the Bible
The quest for peace requires asceticism. The Bible provides us with essential, irreplaceable and alternative narratives to guide us.
In the story of Cain and Abel, God says to the elder brother: “Evil is at your door. It’s up to you to overcome it”. When a human being allows himself to be won over by violence, he sets in motion a process that is beyond him. This story teaches us that we must begin by listening to God, who is knocking at the door of our hearts, and putting aside the voice of seduction.
Remarkably, in 1 Samuel 24, David chooses to spare Saul, his persecutor, because he remembers that God has anointed him. Since Jesus gave his life for everyone, we can no longer lay hands on anyone. In Luke 12:13-14, Jesus refuses to get involved in a question of inheritance. He calls for each person to take responsibility.
Jesus also provoked his listeners by saying: “I have not come to bring peace”. Why does the relationship with him take precedence over all other relationships? Because it is “in Christ” that the true quality of human relationships can be deciphered. The peacemaker is prepared to recognize Jesus who brought peace by giving his very life on the cross. In the name of Christ, the peacemaker makes himself available to live peace with everyone.
He is a realist not only in the sense that he knows the real conditions of the situations he witnesses, but he is also a realist in the sense that he is aware of the reality of God’s reign and unceasing work. That’s why he engages in fervent intercession and looks on everyone with hope. With this vision and this mission, in the company of every human being, he offers his presence in the places where there is brokenness, to become “the repairer of the breaches” (see Isaiah 58, 6-14).
Peace and justice
Professor Pierre-Yves Brandt, from the Faculty of Theology in Lausanne, offered a meditation, emphasizing that peace is impossible where injustice reigns. He meditated on the prophet Amos, who denounces injustice in the name of the Word of God (8:4-12).
Shalom” – the peace given by God – creates order in the world. Abraham is an example of a gentle man who experiences the bliss of gentleness. He calmed a conflict between his shepherds and Lot’s shepherds. The gentle person is also a peacemaker. Between Christian denominations, we also need these peacemakers, men and women who do not occupy all the space but give others the opportunity to respond to the call they have received.
Lectio divina
At every Synaxe meeting, “lectio divina”, a spiritual approach to the Scriptures, is offered. Reference to the Word of God is central, because through it Christ speaks to us. The aim of lectio is to meet him and say “you” to him in prayer. And it is he who unites us. This year, a booklet on the first letter of John guided the meditation.
In this letter, the author wants to strengthen our communion with Jesus Christ, as well as our communion with one another. “God is light” (1:5), and the immediate consequence of this is that we must walk in his light, loving one another… and confessing our faults when we fail to do so.
The word “peace” does not appear in this letter. However, the life, communion and joy promised to those who receive Christ are signs of the biblical “Shalom”, the eschatological gift of peace already experienced by believers (cf. 1 John 1:1-5).
Peace in liturgical life
One of the places to receive the biblical message is the liturgy. Archimandrite Philadelphos Kafalis (Brussels, Ecumenical Patriarchate) discusses peace in liturgical life from an Orthodox perspective. The liturgy asks for peace from on high for the Church and the salvation of the world: “In peace, let us pray to the Lord”! True peace is lived in God and comes from him.
The sacraments are a window on the Kingdom of God that brings peace with its unifying power. In all the sacraments, we ask for peace of mind. In fact, it is Christ himself who is found in the sacraments and who gives peace. Transformed, believers bring this peace to the world after the liturgy.
On Tuesday, MEPs re-elected Roberta Metsola (EPP, MT) as President of the European Parliament until 2027, with 562 votes in the first round.
Roberta Metsola won the election in the first round of voting, where she received an absolute majority of 562 votes cast out of 699 by secret paper ballot, among two candidates. She will continue to lead Parliament for the first two and a half years of the 10th legislative term.
Born in Malta in 1979, Roberta Metsola has been an MEP since 2013. She was elected First Vice-President in November 2020, and was Parliament’s acting President after President Sassoli passed away on 11 January 2022. On 18 January 2022, she was elected President for the second half of the 9th legislative term. She is the third female President of the European Parliament, after Simone Veil (1979-1982) and Nicole Fontaine (1999-2002).
Addressing the House after she was elected, President Metsola said: “Together, we must stand up for the politics of hope, for the dream that is Europe. I want people to recapture a sense of belief and enthusiasm for our project. A belief to make our shared space safer, fairer, more just and more equal. A belief that together we are stronger and we are better. A belief that ours is a Europe for all.”
A full version of the President’s address will soon be available on Parliament’s website.
