Work to Protect the Dignity of the Mentally Ill

THE AGE, Feb. 8 — A papal emissary says the Vatican is deeply concerned over the plight of the world’s mentally ill who often are left to beg in the streets, according to the Australian daily.

Cardinal Javier Lozano Barragan, in Adelaide as the Pope’s representative at the World Day of the Sick convention which closed Feb. 11, said in many countries the mentally ill became virtual outcasts.

It was a major problem world-wide because so many were afflicted.

“Our most important task is to protect their dignity,” Cardinal Barragan said.

“The Pope says I must underline the dignity of the mentally ill in order to take care of them all over the world, not only in Australia.

“But in many nations, they are banishing the mentally ill from hospitals. They are wandering in the streets, many of them are beggars,” he said. “We must take care of them, we must provide for them.”

 

Vatican Appoints First Israeli Citizen Bishop of Israel

HA’ARETZ, Feb. 8 — The Vatican and the Catholic Bishops’ Synod appointed for the first time an Israeli citizen to preside over Israel’s Catholic community, the Israel daily reported.

Bishop Elias Shakur, 66, a Palestinian, is also the first Palestinian in 200 years to be appointed bishop of Israel. Bishop Shakur will serve as bishop for the entire Catholic population of Israel. The Catholic Patriarch in Lebanon will appoint a separate bishop to preside over the Catholic population in East Jerusalem, the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.

Bishop Shakur told Ha’aretz that he was accepting his appointment at a “fairly difficult time for relations between Jews, Arabs and Muslims.”

He said part of his job would be to strengthen tolerance, coexistence and cooperation between all citizens of Israel. He added that as the first Hebrew speaking bishop he would be able to accurately pass messages between the members of the Catholic community in Israel.

Pope: African Bishops Must Be Prophets of Peace

AGI, Feb. 6 — Pope Benedict exhorted all bishops of Africa, saying they must be “prophets of justice and peace,” in a Feb. 6 meeting with the bishops from Congo, the Italian news service reported.

The Pope also called on all politicians and everybody who governs a nation to act in a concerted and responsible way to get to a durable peace. Speaking about the difficult situation of Congo, the Holy Father said that he was particularly near to a people that have been especially hit hard by war, poverty and AIDS.

“The conflicts of the past and the hotbeds of insecurity left deep wounds in the local population causing fatigue and discomfort,” the Pope said, inviting the bishops to follow the example of Blessed Anuarite Nengapeta, who is the patron of the Church in Congo.

Archbishop Monsengwo Pasinya of Kisangani and chairman of the Congolese Bishops Conference told Pope Benedict the country’s challenges are the full return to peace after the long years of civil war, the training of laypeople, bishops’ attention to the youth, the defense of women’s dignity and vocation and the economic and social promotion of the country.

New St. Rose’s Gate Eases Traffic Congestion

REUTERS, Feb. 7 — The Vatican is opening a new gate in its centuries-old walls to be used only by cars and pedestrians leaving the country, Reuters reported.

Surrounded by Rome, the Vatican currently has only four main entrances — St Anne’s Gate, Perugino Gate, Arch of the Bells Gate and Petriano Gate. The new gate at its north end will be known unofficially as St. Rose’s Gate after the area of Vatican City where it is situated.

It has taken Vatican workmen months to complete the one-way gate, offering an alternative exit for cars and people who entered at other gates. The statement said the gate, a little over 12 feet wide and closed at night by huge bronze doors, had become necessary to “ease traffic at certain times of the day.”