MORE THAN HALF-MILLION CHILDREN RECEIVE DAILY MEAL IN HUNGER-STRICKEN AFRICA

Magnus MacFarlane Barrow, chief
executive of Mary's Meals

 

Mary's Meals steps in to help drought stricken Kenya 

 

Rome, Italy, August 4 (CNA/EWTN News)
.- Over 6,000 children in drought-stricken east Africa will receive a
daily meal from this week onward. It is all thanks a charity founded by a
Catholic aid worker who was recently declared a "CNN Hero" and awarded
the Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth for his work.

"The
situation in east Africa has become increasingly desperate, with failed
rains leading to dire food and water shortages. What was already a
crisis has become an emergency," Magnus MacFarlane Barrow, chief
executive of Mary's Meals, told CNA from the charity's headquarters in
Argyll, Scotland.  

The
initiative will focus upon the Turkana area of northern Kenya. It is
just one of four countries in east Africa that have declared drought
areas by the United Nations. The others are Ethiopia, Djibouti and
Somalia.

The present drought is thought to be the worst in 60 years.

Mary's
Meals already works in Turkana providing children with a daily school
meal. The idea is to give them the essential nutrition which then
enables them to go to classes. Now, though, the charity will continue to
provide that crucial meal during the school holidays as other food
sources, such as crops and livestock, begin to perish due in the
drought.



"Hunger is widespread and animals have started to die," said Tim Flynn,
administrator for the Catholic Diocese of Lodwar which delivers Mary's
Meals in the region.



"We know that things are going to get worse because there is no expectation of any rain, if it comes at all, before October."

The
Mary's Meals assistance will primarily target nursery-aged children,
the most at risk age group for hunger-related diseases. The new program
will bring the total number of children that Mary's Meals reaches in
Kenya to more than 24,000.

"We
are considering how we can respond to further urgent requests for more
help from our friends and partners in Northern Kenya," said Magnus.

Inspired
by his Catholic faith, Magnus founded Mary's Meals in 2002 after
meeting a 14-year-old Malawian boy whose mother was dying of AIDS. When
Magnus asked the boy what he wanted from life, his reply was: "To have
enough food to eat and to go to school one day."

Today
Mary's Meals works in 16 of the world's poorest countries, including
Sudan, Malawi, Haiti and Liberia, and feeds over 532,000 children.

CATHOLIC NUN SERVING THE LEPROUS IN BANGALORE FOR ABOUT 3 DECADES ALLOWED TO STAY

Sis. Jean McEwan greeting a Leprous by shake hands... She served them with love for more than 30 years...

Bangalore's own 'Mother Teresa' can remain after visa extension

 

Bangalore, India, July 29 (CNA)
.- A British Catholic religious sister, compared to Mother Teresa for
her three decades of work with leprosy victims, says she'll remain in
India indefinitely now that her visa troubles are resolved.

On
July 27, Indian Home Affairs Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram announced
that 63-year-old Sister Jacqueline Jean McEwan, known as "Sister Jean,"
can "stay as long as she likes." He said the government's previous
order, which would have forced her to leave on one week's notice, was "a
mistake, presumably based on the grounds that complete documents had
not been submitted."

"There
is no meaning in going back to U.K. when my people are here," Sr. Jean
told the Times of India on July 25, declaring her intention to remain in
Bangalore among her "own kith and kin … those inflicted with leprosy."

On
July 26 she told Britain's Daily Mail that she felt "overjoyed and very
confident that I would live here forever," after receiving an initial
one-month reprieve that was extended indefinitely the next day.

Sr.
Jean, a member of the Montfort Missionaries, had previously received a
government order denying her December 2010 request for an extension of
her resident status. The order would have ended her work at Bangalore's
Sumanahalli Society, where she has helped leprosy sufferers since her
arrival as a volunteer in 1982.

The
unexplained order came as a shock to Sr. Jean – for whom the visa
renewal had been an annual formality – and brought sadness to the
community.

"Even people on the streets told me they were praying for the extension of my visa," she told Calcutta's Telegraph newspaper.

The
British-born sister came within hours of boarding a flight back to
England, where she was planning to continue the visa application process
in order to return.

"Nobody
would look after leprosy patients like her," said Mastan Saab, Sr.
Jean's field coordinator. "Without her, we are in the dark."

He
told the Times of India that the British-born sister was instrumental
not only in caring for the immediate physical needs of those with
leprosy, but also in helping them find education and

employment.

Sr.
Jean lives and works at the Sumanahalli Society, a facility with four
clinics and a rehabilitation center for people with HIV/AIDS and other
disabilities as well as leprosy. Although India's government claims to
have "eliminated" leprosy by World Health Organization standards,
130,000 Indians still develop the disease each year.

The
purported "elimination" of the disease in 2005 allowed the government
to end funding for services many leprosy sufferers relied on.

The
Sumanahalli Society's in-patient facilities provide care for 340
patients, while Sr. Jean's mobile clinic gives additional assistance to
almost 1,000 people with leprosy in the slums of Bangalore.

Father
George Kannanthanam, the society's director, told the Guardian
newspaper that she "knows every leprosy patient by name, even though
Indian names are difficult."

The priest says there is no one else available to take care of the clinics "who is as trained and committed as Sister Jean."

HONGKONG GOVERNMENT HONORS CATHOLIC NUN FOR GENEROSITY IN DONATING BLOOD

The Roman Catholic Cathedral of Hongkong

 

Hong Kong: Precious Blood Sister Honored for Donating Blood

HONG KONG, JUNE 24, 2011 (Zenit.org).-
A Precious Blood nun in Hong Kong has been honored by the Red Cross for
having donated her blood 53 times over the last 29 years.

The
local Red Cross honored Sister Anna Chin, a member of the Congregation
of the Sisters of the Precious Blood, on June 19, according to this
Sunday's edition of the diocesan newspaper "Kung Kao Po." This Sunday is
the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ.

Some 1,600 people were honored for having donated blood over 25 times over the years.  



Sister Chin told the diocesan weekly that donating her blood was an
act of charity, and that being healthy enough to donate blood is also a
blessing.



"I will pray for those who get my blood, wish that he or she may have
a chance to know the love of God and have his blessings," she said.



She recalled that she first donated her blood in 1977, when an
Italian missionary priest Enea Tapella was in a car accident. She, with a
number of Catholics, went to the hospital to donate blood for the
priest. Although her blood type did not match with that of the priest,
she was happy that her blood had helped some other people in need.



The Precious Blood Sisters is the first local women religious congregation in Hong Kong.

Church operating 117,000 centers for AIDS patients worldwide

Mother Teresa of Calcutta, taking good care of the poor

 

 

Vatican City, May 27 (CNA/EWTN News)
.- The president of the Pontifical Council for Health Care reported
that the Catholic Church is currently running 117,000 centers to care
for AIDS patients throughout the world.

Archbishop
Zygmunt Zimowski told L'Osservatore Romano that in the past 30 years,
more than 60 million people have contracted HIV, mostly in Africa. He
spoke to the Vatican paper on the eve of a congress on the treatment and
prevention of HIV and AIDS.

The
conference is taking place May 27-28. It was organized by the Good
Samaritan Foundation, instituted by Blessed John Paul II in 2004 and
entrusted to the Pontifical Council for Health Care.

He
underscored the testimony of "numerous health care workers and
volunteers who, in their courageous care for the sick … have themselves
contracted the infection."

 

He also highlighted the work by Blessed Teresa of Calcutta and the late
Cardinal John Joseph O'Connor of New York, "who promoted numerous heath
care centers for AIDS victims" and "many treatment and assistance
programs in the United States and in other poor countries."

 

The congress is intended to respond to the questions of "many bishops
who contact our dicastery in order to receive constant help, with
material assistance but above all with information on the latest
advances in science in the fight against this disease," Archbishop
Zimowski said.

 

The objectives of the congress include the improvement of pastoral and
health care for AIDS victims and the encouragement of the developed
world  to show solidarity with poor countries, "as too many people die
without access to the treatment they need, especially antiretrovirals"
currently available only in developed countries.

 

In 2008, then-president of the Pontifical Council for Health Care,
Cardinal Javier Lozano Barragan, reported that 27 percent of
institutions around the world caringfor AIDS patients are Catholic; 44
percent are governmental; 11 percent are operated by NGOs; and 8 percent
are run by other religious confessions.

POPE SENT USD1.2M AID TO THEPEOPLE OF HAITI

Pope Benedict XVI received a special motorbike as a gift. The Pope sold the machine and gave the money to Catholic Charities.

Benedict XVI's Envoy Takes $1.2M to Haiti

Cor Unum President to Mark Quake Anniversary With Mass

VATICAN CITY, JAN. 10, 2011 (Zenit.org).- The president of the dicastery that oversees the Vatican's charitable work is in Haiti today, delivering to the Haitian people the assurance of Benedict XVI's closeness and concern, as well as $1.2 million to be used for the reconstruction of schools and churches.

Cardinal Robert Sarah is in Haiti as a papal envoy for a four-day trip that will include the one-year anniversary of the Jan. 12, 2010, quake that killed as many as 250,000, left 1 million homeless, and completely destroyed Port-au-Prince.

"The president of Cor Unum will take the Pope's message and economic aid to the people so gravely hit a year ago," explained a communiqué of the Pontifical Council Cor Unum, published today.

Cardinal Sarah's itinerary included a visit today to the religious communities of the Sisters of Christ the King in Leogane, whose hospital was destroyed by the quake, and the Little Sisters of St. Therese of the Child Jesus, who run a hospital for AIDS and tuberculosis patients.

He also visited a community of the Companions of Jesus, who had a center for the elderly and a school that were destroyed by the earthquake.

The $1.2 million collected by the Vatican for Haiti will be divided into $800,000 for the reconstruction of schools and $400,000 for the reconstruction of churches.

On Tuesday, Cardinal Sarah and the under-secretary of Cor Unum, Monsignor Segundo Tejado, will meet with Haitian President René Garcia Préval, and visit a camp for the displaced, where the cardinal will celebrate Mass.

"On Jan. 12, the cardinal will read the Pope's message during the Mass of commemoration, a year after the earthquake," explained the communiqué. Then he will meet with bishops and seminarians of the country and, finally, with directors of Caritas and international volunteer organizations.

His last event will take place on Thursday when the cardinal will celebrate Mass in the convent of the Daughters of Maria Parideans. The congregation lost 15 nuns under the rubble and 12 others were seriously wounded.

The communiqué added: "The visit will also have the objective to thank all those who collaborated in the huge work of the emergency phase and to renew the Church's commitment to the reconstruction, urging a new phase of charitable commitment."

Caritas Mobilized on 3 Fronts in Indonesia

Tsunami hit area in Indonesia

Aiding Flood, Volcano and Tsunami Victims

ROME, OCT. 27, 2010 (Zenit.org).- Caritas workers in Indonesia are working tirelessly to come to the aid of those affected by three different natural disasters: floods, a volcanic eruption and a tsunami.



"The emergencies succeed one another and accumulated," said Father Sigit Pramuji, a director of the Caritas agency in Indonesia, named Karina. "We were still in the midst of operations of reconstruction and rehabilitation in the aftermath of the floods that took place in Papua, when we were surprised by these two other events: the eruption of the Merapi volcano and the tsunami in western Sumatra."



"We mobilized immediately," he added, in comments to the Fides news agency. "We are close to the people who are suffering; it is our mission."



Earlier this month, flash floods in West Papua killed some 145 people, and destroyed dozens of homes and bridges.



On Monday, a 7.7 magnitude earthquake struck the island to the northwest of the capital Jakarta, which then caused a tsunami that killed nearly 300 people, and some 500 are still reported missing.



On Tuesday, Mount Merapi erupted in Java, leaving some 30 people dead and another 40,000 displaced.



"In Java, in the Diocese of Semarang, the situation is under control. The diocesan Caritas is very strong and well organized," said Father Pramuji. "A team of priests is working in close contact with indigenous populations that live on the slopes of the volcano.



"Thanks to them and to the Caritas volunteers -- given the information on an imminent eruption -- a vast work of prevention was carried out and we saved many lives."



In Sumatra where the earthquake and tsunami stuck, the priest reported that "priests and nuns are active in the first emergency, consoling the victims and helping to bury corpses."



"The population is being sorely tested," he added.



Father Pramuji said that during the next national assembly of the Indonesian Church -- which will be held in Bogor beginning Nov. 1 -- he hopes to make an appeal to all the Catholic communities of the country.



The meeting, which will bring together representatives of all the dioceses will be, according to the priest, an occasion to reflect on the identity and mission of the Catholic community in the country and "to launch a great appeal for solidarity and mobilize the whole community of the archipelago."



"Over the next few days, according to the unfolding of the emergencies, we will decide if we will also ask for foreign aid. The English Caritas (CAFOD), and Caritas-Germany have already spontaneously promised us support," he added.

IS IT TRUE THAT THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IS NOT HELPING THE POOR?

Anonymous(Catholic) said...

Hi Fr. Abe,

One of the criticisms of the proponents of the RH bill against the Church is that the Church is not helping the poor in when we go stand against the bill.

What would be our best response to this one Fr.?

Thanks po..

October 6, 2010 12:10 AM

Fr. Abe, CRS said...

SIMPLE.

FIRST, WHO ARE THE ONES GIVING MORE FREE EDUCATION TO THE POOR THE CONDOMISTS OR THE CATHOLIC CHURCH? THE CATHOLIC CHURCH. THE SCHOLARS OF THE GOVT. ARE NOT FOR FREE. THAT IS FROM THE TAXES OF GREAT MAJORITY CATHOLICS. THE COMMUNISTS, THE ATHEISTS, AND THE CONDOMIZERS DO NOT OPERATE HOUSES FOR STREET KIDS, SCHOOLARSHIP FUNDS, LEPROSARIUM, HOME FOR THE AGED, ETC. ALMOST ALL OF THE CHARITABLE INSTITUTIONS IN THE PHLIPPINES ARE CATHOLIC OWNED RUN AND ADMINISTERED BY PRIESTS, NUNS AND CATHOLIC LAY PEOPLE.

THE CONDOMIZERS LIKE THE BAYAN AND AKBAYAN ARE NOT FEEDING THE POOR. THEY ARE ONLY GOOD IN RALLIES AND RALLIES AND IN ATTACKING OTHERS.

October 6, 2010 9:06 AM