World Media Watch
New Church Opens Its Doors to More Worshippers
GULF TIMES, April 23 — The Catholic
community in Ras Al Khaimah,
Catholics in
Masses are held in a variety of
languages, including Latin, English, Malayalam and Arabic and attract
worshippers from a number of different countries including
“At our last three Masses, we had a total of about 3,600 people, which is excellent,” said Baby Mathew. “The whole community is very much pleased that we are using our own church now.”
Cardinal Issues Plea for the Environment
DAILY INQUIRER, April 23 — Speaking from one of the world’s most infamous symbols of environmental destruction, Cardinal Gaudencio Rosales urged a greater respect for nature, the Philippine daily reported.
“Give the earth back its primal
strength by respecting the laws of nature instead of abusing its bounty for
greed and profit,” he said in his homily during Mass at
Cardinal Rosales said, “God has shown humans, through tragic experience, that nature has a way of fighting back, if only to protect them and their future.”
Croatian Bishop Seeks ‘Decency Zone’
ASSOCIATED PRESS, April 25 — Bishop Ivan Kordic of the northwestern Croatian
In a letter, Bishop Kordic said “scarcely dressed” summer tourists wearing nothing but swimsuits “harm the morale, the spirit and the soul” of other people in the city. The Church has already successfully fought against sex education that promoted use of contraceptives and for the longtime practice of keeping retailers closed on Sunday. But this task may prove harder to accomplish.
Tourist officials and many residents have already rejected the idea, arguing that in Krk, as most other Croatian tourist resorts, city centers are adjacent to beaches and it is therefore normal for people to walk around, have a drink or do some shopping in their swimsuits. Besides, a dress code could put off tourists, who are responsible for most of the island’s — and the country’s — hard currency income, they said.
“It’s quite logical that one should be dressed decently when entering a holy place,” Majda Sale, a local tourist worker, told a local newspaper. “But walking in public places is a question of personal freedoms and a good taste.”
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- May 7-13, 2006