News Briefing: The Church in the World

At least five people have died and thousands more have been rescued but left homeless after “historic” flooding in the US state of Louisiana.

In a cemetery at Greenwell Springs (pictured), only the tops of the gravestones could be seen following torrential rain at the weekend.

The Catholic Church in the heavily Catholic state has drawn up plans to assist the victims. “While the exact role and activities will vary and be unique to each disaster, we focus on filling gaps in existing services, primarily for the most vulnerable populations and those with the greatest needs,” said David Aquillard, executive director of Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Baton Rouge.

In the Diocese of Lafayette dozens of Masses were  cancelled as well as the Eucharistic procession by boat through the bayou that is part of the annual Fete-Dieu du Teche celebrations.

President Barack Obama has declared the state a disaster area, meaning Federal aid can be sent to agencies such as Catholic charities in the affected areas.

Three young men who were forced to flee their homes in Iraq when the so-called Islamic State attacked Qaraqosh in 2014 have been ordained priests in an Erbil refugee camp. Fr Roni Salim Momika, one of the new priests, said the event had turned the dreary mood of displaced Christians into one of joy, which he hopes will give them the strength to stay in their homeland. Fr Momika was ordained a priest of the Syriac-Catholic Church alongside two friends and fellow deacons in Erbil’s Aishty 2 camp, which is home to some 5,500 displaced people who escaped as IS militants advanced into northern Iraq.

In Zimbabwe, thousands of people in the country living with HIV have abandoned their treatment with anti-retroviral drugs due to a lack of food, following a devastating drought. Medical experts say the success of the anti-retroviral programme hinges on a good diet, as poor nutrition can affect the immune system.

According to the UN, Zimbabwe is one of the five countries worldwide hardest hit by HIV and Aids, with more than 1.1 million people affected. Silindiwe Moyana, an HIV-positive mother of five, told The Tablet: “We have no food and we are calling on donors to assist.” The Secretary General of the Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops’ Conference, Fr Frederick Chiromba, said they had initiated various food aid programmes to fight hunger in drought-stricken areas.

Hunger strike case offer
The Catholic Church has offered to mediate between the veteran Cuban dissident Guillermo Fariñas (above) and the country’s Government, after he received emergency medical attention in hospital as a result of his latest hunger strike, which he began on 20 July.

Mr Fariñas, 54, stopped eating after what he said was a police beating in his home city of Santa Clara in central Cuba. He has staged more than 20 similar actions over the years.

Awarded the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought by the European Parliament in 2010, Mr Fariñas is demanding a meeting between dissidents and the Government to negotiate an end to their repression.

The First Secretary of the Papal Nuncio in Cuba has visited Mr Fariñas at his home, appealing to him to end the hunger strike, while offering the Church’s help to both sides to reach a solution.

Priest hangs himself in jail
A Brazilian priest was found dead in a prison cell after he was arrested again for suspected paedophilia, according to authorities in Brazil. Fr Bonifacio Buzzi, 57, who was mentioned in the film Spotlight, which documented the cover-up of sexual abuse cases in the Archdiocese of Boston, hanged himself in a jail in the state of Minas Gerais.

Ten years ago, Fr Buzzi was convicted of abusing a 10-year-old boy and jailed from 2007 to 2015. He was arrested earlier this month, following accusations that he had abused two boys, aged nine and 13 years.

Eight years after the murder of up to 100 Christians and the destruction of large amounts of their property in the remote Kandhamal district of Odisha in western India, the country’s Supreme Court has doubled the compensation for victims and ordered the state government to review a number of cases.

The violent anti-Christian campaign was triggered by the murder in August 2008 of the Hindu spiritual leader Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati. More than 55,000 people were forced to flee the region after their homes were burned.

The court pointed out that 315 out of 827 cases registered for compensation have not been pursued. It is these that Odisha must now review.

Fr Ajaya Kumar Singh, director of Odisha Forum for Social Action, welcomed the judgement but said that justice is only possible if the Government protects witnesses and selects “a good team of prosecutors” for the review.

Meanwhile, the death has been announced of Archbishop emeritus Raphael Cheenath, who launched the court action in 2008 after leading protests against the attack.

A bankruptcy court judge handling the case of the American Archdiocese of St Paul-Minneapolis has ruled that the assets of local parishes and other Church-related agencies cannot be considered assets of the Archdiocese.

The ruling is an enormous boost to the scandal-ridden Archdiocese as it seeks a settlement with the victims of clerical sex abuse.

Bankruptcy Judge Robert Kessell held that the 187 parishes, as well as schools and charitable agencies, with assets of $1.7 billion, were not to be considered archdiocesan assets.

Archbishop Bernard Hebda (pictured above), who was catapulted into the Archdiocese as administrator last year and installed as ordinary in May, welcomed the decision as critical to his effort to rebuild the Archdiocese since the forced retirement of his predecessor, John Nienstedt.

Jeff Anderson, a lawyer representing the victims of clerical sex abuse, told the Minneapolis Star Tribune that he would appeal against the judge’s ruling.

Pope’s  beach treat for homeless
Pope Francis is treating some of Rome’s homeless to a day at the sea and pizza this summer. Archbishop Konrad Krajewski, the Papal Almoner, told La Stampa newspaper that he has regularly been driving a van with groups of 10 people to a beach near Rome. The Vatican supplies swimsuits and towels.