Catechumens, with sponsors behind them, are prayed over at St. Joseph Church, Hawthorne Feb. 10 during the Rite of Sending that was celebrated on the First Sunday of lent in parishes throughout the archdiocese. That afternoon, the Rite of Election was celebrated at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels and in the Santa Barbara Region for 1,233 unbaptized adults and children, who now are known as the Elect. They will receive the sacraments of baptism, confirmation and Eucharist at the Easter Vigil March 22 in their parishes. Another 1,035 candidates (those who have been baptized) attended the Rites of Calling to Continuing Conversion celebrated Feb. 16 at the Cathedral, and Feb. 10 in the Santa Barbara Region. "Many parishes," noted Sandra Dooley, Office for Worship director, "are now celebrating the Rite of Calling locally and are not bringing their candidates to the Cathedral, so the number of baptized Christians coming into the Catholic Church in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles is much higher."
SR. NANCY MUNRO, CSJ
Congregation prays for shooting victims at annual Mass for students
CHICAGO (CNS) --- An annual Mass for college students living and studying at campuses in the Chicago Archdiocese and the Joliet Diocese offered a chance to pray for victims of the shooting at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb the day before. About 300 college students, faculty and staff gathered for the Mass Feb. 15 at Madonna della Strada Chapel at Jesuit-run Loyola University Chicago. On their way into the church, worshippers had the chance to sign a memorial book for the victims of the shooting. Five students were killed and 16 were injured before the shooter, Stephen Kazmierczak, took his own life. During the Mass, which was celebrated by Chicago Cardinal Francis E. George with Joliet Bishop J. Peter Sartain and priests who act as campus ministry chaplains, the cardinal spoke about the problem of evil.
Iraqi Christians set up council for political voice, says archbishop
LONDON (CNS) --- Christians in northern Iraq have been setting up a 30-member council to give them a political voice, said Chaldean Catholic Archbishop Louis Sako of Kirkuk, Iraq. Archbishop Sako said the plan for the council was in its final stages and that it had the backing of Iraqi President Jalal Talabani. "For too long, the Christians have struggled to get their views heard in the main debates of the day because so often they don't speak with one voice," the archbishop told Aid to the Church in Need, a Catholic charity helping persecuted Christians. "The main purpose is that Christians should have a united front," he said from Kirkuk in a Feb. 18 telephone interview with Aid to the Church in Need in London. "If we have demands, we should present them together. We should not be separated and thereby enfeebled."
Papal spokesman says Vatican hopes peace prevails in Kosovo
VATICAN CITY (CNS) --- The Vatican is following affairs in Kosovo "with the highest hope that in this delicate moment a sense of responsibility and a spirit of peace may prevail," said Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, papal spokesman. Kosovo declared its independence from Serbia Feb. 17, but Serbia has vowed to fight the move. On Feb. 19, angry Serbs set fire to two border crossings between the two nations. In a front-page commentary in the Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano, published in its Feb. 18-19 edition, Father Lombardi said that for years the Vatican had followed negotiations for the status of Kosovo, which has been administered by the United Nations since 1999 after NATO drove out Serbian forces accused of ethnic cleansing. He said Kosovo's unilateral declaration of independence creates a new situation. "The Holy See invites everyone, in particular the political leaders of Serbia and Kosovo, to show prudence and moderation and asks for a decisive and concrete commitment to avert extremist reactions and ensuing violence, so that the premise may be created for a future of respect, reconciliation and cooperation," Father Lombardi said.
Christians say conditions in Gaza worsen for them, moderate Muslims
JERUSALEM (CNS) --- Living conditions for Christians and moderate Muslims are becoming increasingly difficult in the Gaza Strip, Christians told Catholic News Service. "First there was the murder of (Christian bookstore owner) Rami (Ayyad), now the YMCA (bombing). We can feel it step by step," said one young Christian, who like other Christians interviewed by CNS spoke on the condition of anonymity. No one has been apprehended after the October kidnapping and killing of Ayyad, a member of the Gaza Baptist Church. Only one of more than a dozen gunmen who overpowered the two YMCA guards and destroyed the building's library with a bomb Feb. 15 has been caught, sources in Gaza said Feb. 18. Thousands of books were lost in the explosion but the gunmen failed in their attempt to damage an adjoining wedding hall. The YMCA is open to both Christians and Muslims.
Rabbinical group asks Vatican for clarification on Good Friday prayer
WASHINGTON (CNS) --- The Rabbinical Assembly of Conservative Judaism has asked for clarification from the Vatican as to whether a revised Good Friday prayer for the Jews in Latin calls for the conversion of Jews. The new prayer replaces the one contained in the 1962 Roman Missal, sometimes called the Tridentine rite, which is no longer generally used by Catholics but which may be used by some church communities under recently revised norms. Pope Benedict XVI has reformulated the Good Friday prayer for the Jews, removing language about the "blindness" of the Jews, but it asks for prayers for the Jews and that "all Israel may be saved." Some Jewish leaders criticized the phrasing as a call for Jews to accept Christianity. A Feb. 14 resolution by the Rabbinical Assembly said that it "is dismayed and deeply disturbed to learn of reports that Pope Benedict XVI has revised the 1962 text of the Latin liturgy."
Nuns demonstrate against U.S. military in southern Philippines
CAGAYAN DE ORO, Philippines (CNS) --- Catholic nuns led a demonstration through the streets of this southern Philippine city Feb. 18, denouncing the presence of U.S. soldiers in the conflict-plagued region. "The U.S. troops don't provide any benefit to our people or our country. Their presence here is destructive, and they should go away," said Sister Elsa Compuesto, a member of the Missionary Sisters of Mary. "They are opportunistic. They're really here to protect the economic interests of the United States, to exploit our natural resources in Mindanao. Our region is rich in natural resources, but the people are being deprived of them," said Sister Elsa, who is also executive secretary of the Sisters Association of Mindanao, a group of some 350 women religious which coordinates work on justice and peace issues. Sister Elsa and several other nuns marched at the head of a procession of some 4,000 protesters, carrying a sign stating: "We care for human dignity and national sovereignty. U.S. troops out now!" |