John Banville: “La Iglesia está agazapada esperando una catástrofe para que la gente vuelva”

(Carmen Naranjo. EFE)

El escritor irlandés John Banville asegura que la Iglesia en su país es eterna y que, después de haber perdido el poder que tuvo en el pasado, está “agazapada” esperando a que ocurra alguna “catástrofe terrorífica” y que todo el mundo vuelva otra vez a ella.

John Banville (Wexford, Irlanda, 1945), Premio Príncipe de Asturias de las Letras 2014, acaba de publicar en español ‘La alquimia del tiempo. Un memoir dublinés’(Alfaguara), un relato cercano a la autobiografía en la que retrata el Dublín que conoció de niño y la ciudad que es en la actualidad, su historia y los escritores que la habitaron.

Banville, nacido y criado en un pequeño pueblo cerca de la capital irlandesa, explica en una entrevista con EFE cómo para él hay dos “dublines” diferentes: aquel en el que la Iglesia tenía “un poder absoluto”, hasta los años 90, y el posterior, cuando lo perdió. Y asegura que la Irlanda en la que creció no tiene nada que ver con la actual.

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United Church of Christ (NY) condemns violence against Indian religious minorities

(RNS Press Releases).

At its June 1, 2024 meeting in Binghampton, NY, the New York Conference of the United Church of Christ unanimously passed a resolution condemning violence against religious minorities in India, which include Christian organizations and individuals as well as other religious minorities, including Muslims. 

The New York Conference of the United Church of Christ (UCCNY) resolution begins by addressing the plight of over 40,000 people, 250 churches, 1,700 homes, and 120 people who have been killed as a result of Hindu nationalist policies propagated by India’s ruling BJP in the state of Manipur. The New York Conference is the first in the UCC denomination to pass such a resolution, following soon after the United 

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Insights from a radical Muslim who converted to Judaism

(Michael Brown. The Christian Post).

On June 12, the Jerusalem Post ran an article by Ohad Merlin titled, “Gaza mosques to Jerusalem synagogues: A radical Islamist’s journey to Judaism.” It tells the story of Yaron Avraham, raised as a radical Muslim in Gaza but now a religious Jew who runs a restaurant in Israel.

The “12th child in a household of 18,” Avraham would wake up at 5:30 AM to begin his Islamic devotions, memorizing the Quran by the age of 12. Still, he was horrified at the treatment of his sister Sarah, who was savagely beaten to death by her brothers for daring to take a walk through a mall. In the eyes of her brothers, she had dishonored the family and disobeyed their orders. To murder her was the right thing to do.

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United Kingdom: election on 4th July, the Bishops call to say no to abortion and assisted suicide

(Sir)

“Ask the candidates you intend to vote for whether they will oppose the legalisation of assisted suicide and euthanasia, whether they will support a reduction in the number of weeks by which abortion is legal and will take measures to stop do-it-yourself abortion, done with one’s own means, a practice that is currently allowed in the United Kingdom, and whether they will ask to stop abortion until the time of birth for foetuses with disabilities”. It is the English Catholic Bishops, in a section on the websiteof the Bishops’ Conference about the forthcoming political election of 4thJuly, that suggest the 4.5 million devotees to ask such questions. 

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Migrazioni: Unhcr, Oim e Unicef, “più ampio accesso a percorsi sicuri e regolari nell’Ue per migranti e rifugiati”

(Agensir)

L’Unhcr, l’Agenzia Onu per i rifugiati, l’Oim, Organizzazione internazionale per le migrazioni, e l’Unicef, il Fondo delle Nazioni Unite per l’infanzia, esprimono “profondo cordoglio” per le decine di vittime di due nuovi incidenti nel Mediterraneo, la cui notizia è arrivata oggi con il salvataggio dei sopravvissuti.
In un primo naufragio le vittime accertate sono 10 e avrebbero perso la vita per soffocamento sul ponte inferiore dell’imbarcazione su cui viaggiavano, mentre 51 sopravvissuti sono stati portati in salvo a Lampedusa dalla nave Nadir dell’Ong Resqship, che ha soccorso la barca di legno partita dalla Libia. I loro paesi di origine sono Siria, Egitto, Pakistan, Bangladesh.

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¿Y si dejáramos entrar “aire fresco” a la Iglesia?

(Consuelo Vélez. RD).

Muchas veces hemos dicho que el pontificado de Francisco ha significado un aire “fresco” para la Iglesia. Sin embargo, no parece que lo fuera para todos y, lamentablemente, menos para aquellos que se dicen más practicantes o más cercanos a la vida parroquial, diocesana o de determinados grupos apostólicos, especialmente, algunos que han surgido últimamente. ¿Por qué sucede esto?

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Ucraina: card. Parolin, “si rafforzino gli sforzi diplomatici per la pace”

(Sir).

“Di fronte alla guerra e alle sue tragiche conseguenze, è importante non rinunciare mai, ma continuare a cercare modi per porre fine al conflitto con buone intenzioni, fiducia e creatività”. Lo ha dichiarato il card. Pietro Parolin, segretario di Stato vaticano, intervenendo nei giorni scorsi come osservatore alla Conferenza di alto livello per la pace in Ucraina, tenutasi in Svizzera. “Questo è il messaggio che Papa Francesco invia, particolarmente ai governanti delle nazioni, con i suoi incessanti appelli per la pace in Ucraina”, ha proseguito il cardinale, ribadendo che “gli unici mezzi capaci di raggiungere un pace autentica, stabile e duratura è il dialogo tra tutte le parti coinvolte”. “La Santa Sede – ha affermato il cardinale – esprime il suo auspicio che gli attuali sforzi diplomatici promossi dall’Ucraina e sostenuti da molti Paesi si rafforzino, in modo da raggiungere i risultati che meritano le vittime e nei quali tutto il mondo spera”. 

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More than half of Christians in UK experience ‘hostility and ridicule’ for faith: study

(Jon Brown. Christian Post).

More than half of Christians in the United Kingdom claim to have experienced hostility and ridicule for their faith, according to a study released Thursday.

The report, titled “The Costs of Keeping the Faith,” was compiled by the nonprofit Voice for Justice UK (VfJUK) and found that of the more than 1,500 respondents from different Christian denominations and age groups, 56% reported negative pushback for sharing their beliefs in some capacity.

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César García Magán: «La minoría cristiana en Europa tendrá que apuntar a la calidad»

(Franco Otero. Ecclesia).

Madrid acoge del 16 al 19 de junio la reunión de secretarios generales de los episcopados que integran el Consejo de Conferencias Episcopales de Europa (CCEE). Hablamos con el anfitrión, el secretario general de la CEE

La reunión anual de secretarios generales de los episcopados integrados en el Consejo de Conferencias Episcopales de Europa (CCEE) vuelve a España. Lo hace 16 años después de la última ocasión, cuando estuvieron reunidos en Covadonga, de la mano del entonces secretario general de la Conferencia Episcopal Española (CEE), Juan Antonio Martínez Camino. Ahora será en Madrid, del 16 al 19 de junio, después de la propuesta del actual secretario general, Francisco César García Magán, en la reunión del año pasado en Tirana.

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Un matrimonio gay denuncia al cura de su pueblo que les negó la comunión

(RD/Efe)

Un matrimonio homosexual ha denunciado a un sacerdote de Dos Hermanas (Sevilla) por negarse a darles la comunión durante una eucaristía en la sede de una hermandad, según ha informado este jueves la asociación Andalucía Diversidad.

En un comunicado en sus redes sociales, esta asociación explica que los hechos ocurrieron el pasado 25 de mayo durante una misa en la Hermandad de la Vera Cruz de la localidad sevillana, a la que asistió la pareja homosexual, pero cuando llegó el momento de comulgar, el párroco se negó a darles la comunión por estar casados entre ellos.

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Why is it wrong to say ‘love is love’?: Christian apologist explains

(Nicole VanDyke. CP).

What’s wrong with the mantra “love is love,” and why does it go against God’s design for relationships? 

Jason Jimenez, a pastor and Christian apologist, used scriptural insights to address concerns with the popular phrase during a recent episode of his “Challenging Conversations” podcast, noting that it suggests all forms of romance, sexual orientations and gender identities should be affirmed.  

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German church tax is funding a ‘Marxist’ religion of heretics and schismatics

(Fr. Joachim Heimerl. LifeSite).

Anyone who is baptized and confirmed and who professes the faith of the Church is Catholic. In Germany, as is so often the case, things are quite different. Here, you are only Catholic through the church tax, at least if you are a taxpayer.

This tax is by no means voluntary but a compulsory levy which – thanks to Adolf Hitler – is collected by the state and paid directly to the Church; even back payments and advance payments are mandatory.

It is clear that the church tax is an imposition: membership in the Church should not be dependent on monetary payments.

Nevertheless, German practice is rigorous: anyone who does not want to pay can only declare their “withdrawal from the Church” (“Kirchenaustritt”) at the registry office, even though this “withdrawal” does not exist under canon law.

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Polonia: Hace 40 Años Los Estudiantes Protestaron Contra La Retirada De Las Cruces De Las Escuelas

(Exaudi. Catholic New).

A principios de mayo, Rafal Trzaskowski, alcalde de Varsovia y destacado político, vicepresidente del partido Plataforma Cívica del primer ministro Donald Tusk: el 8 de mayo declaró la guerra a la cruz y a la libertad religiosa en Polonia, firmando una orden exigiendo la eliminación de cruces, imágenes de santos y otros símbolos religiosos. Los símbolos religiosos deberán desaparecer de todos los espacios públicos de las oficinas de Varsovia, y todos los eventos organizados por las oficinas de la capital deberán ser «de carácter secular, es decir, no contendrán elementos religiosos, por ejemplo, oraciones…». Desafortunadamente, la lucha de Trzaskowski contra la cruz recuerda los tiempos del régimen comunista que luchaba contra la religión y la Iglesia. Y este año recordamos el 40º aniversario de la lucha de los estudiantes polacos contra la retirada de las cruces.

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Alarma entre los misioneros españoles: su número desciende, por primera vez, de los diez mil (y solo 6.042 en activo)

( RD/EFE).

La Iglesia católica en España es la que cuenta con más misioneros, 9.932 en la actualidad, de los que 6.042 están en activo y 3.890 a la espera de un destino. Son en su mayoría mujeres (el 53 %) y su edad media se sitúa en los 75 años.

Así lo ha explicado este miércoles el director de Obras Misionales Pontificias (OMP), José María Calderón, que ha avanzado los datos de la memoria de actividades de la institución que ofrece acompañamiento y colaboración económica a los misioneros y a los territorios de misión en todo el mundo.

Calderón se ha mostrado satisfecho por la cantidad de misioneros con los que cuenta la Iglesia en la España católica, aunque ha reconocido su preocupación por su elevada media de edad. Sin embargo, ha asegurado que siguen saliendo misioneros actualmente y ha puesto el ejemplo de dos laicas de 26 y 29 años que el pasado mes de mayo salieron de misioneras a Perú.

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Christian mother, children ordered by court to convert to Islam

(Anugrah Kumar. CP).

In a controversial ruling, an Iraqi court has decreed that a Christian mother, Elvin Joseph, along with her three children, convert to Islam. The decision was based on the interpretation of Iraq’s Personal Status Law which mandates that children must adopt Islam if one of their parents converts.

Joseph, a resident of Duhok in the Kurdistan Region, found herself entangled in this legal predicament following the revelation of her mother’s conversion to Islam after her divorce and subsequent remarriage to a Muslim man

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‘The world’s on fire’: How the Catholic Church is responding to global warfare

(Kevin Clarke. America).

​This essay is a Cover Story selection, a weekly feature highlighting the top picks from the editors of America Media.

Years of a so-called shadow war between Israel and Iran erupted into a hot conflict in April after an Israeli strike in Damascus killed senior members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Iranian forces retaliated days later with an armada of over 300 drones and missiles across Israel.

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Protestant Christians in Turkey facing violence, attacks at worship services

(Christian Daily International).

Protestant Christians in Turkey continued to face opposition for practicing their faith in 2023, according to a rights report. 

Both written and oral hate speech incidents, along with some violence, were reported, according to the Human Rights Violation Report 2023 issued on June 4 by the Protestan Kiliseler Derneği (Association of Protestant Churches).

Some of the 205 Protestant churches, all independent or in fellowship clusters, saw opposition to their church buildings. The report also cited the denial of legal rights in training ministry leaders. 

“No progress was made in 2023 with regard to the rights of Christians to train their own religious workers,” the association reported. “Many foreign church leaders were deported, were denied entry into Turkey or faced problems with getting their residence permits renewed.”

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Nearly 300 ACNA clergy and a Texas diocese call for male-only priesthood

(Kathryn Post. RNS).

At an Anglican theological conference in January, UK priest and political commentator The Rev. Calvin Robinson stirred up a long-simmering controversy when he called women’s ordination a “slippery slope” akin to a “Trojan horse” and to “cancer.”

“This is how the liberal infestation of the church began,” Robinson insisted. “The doors were left open for the Marxist ideologies to gain a foothold, gender theory, queer theory, critical race theory — it all began with feminism.”

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Islamic State executes three Christians in Nigeria

(Christian Today).

Images are circulating on social media showing the execution of three Christian men in Nigeria.

International Christian Concern (ICC) reports that the images were shared by Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP).

ICC said that one photo showed the men kneeling with their arms tied behind their backs in front of machine-gun wielding executioners while another showed them being shot dead.

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