|
| CJNM - Vol.2. No.9 - News |
| THE NEWS OF THE MONTH » |
Liberation theology is only possible on the condition of starting and ending on the horizon of faith |
 Pope Francis’ words and gestures created the illusion that certain practices and theology on social action positions are taking new directions. For instance, the case of Father Miguel d'Escoto who, though excommunicated by Pope John Paul II, has been now reinstated into the priesthood. However, even Pope Francis can’t escape from declining ecclesiastical realities that have been overtaken by the historical path of the ecclesiastical community. This is the case of Liberation Theology (LT) that for quite some time is in crisis. This theological movement has been characterized by a preferential option for the poor and for the struggle for social justice. Fray Clodovis Boff, who with his brother Leonardo Boff was one of the LT theologians, in an interview argues that this way of doing theology "has no more future within the church." He already had reservations about LT because of its lack of theoretical rigor and its prioritization "of politics at the expense of faith." Over time, this priority has not changed and LT "had already given what he had to give" -awareness to the Church regarding the preferential option for the poor; today disappearing into the flow of Christian theology LT would fulfill his historic mission. Read the entire interview . . .
|
| THE GOOD NEWS » |
Neve Shalom-Wahat al-Salam: oasis of peace in a desert of violence. |
 In Israel the village of Neve Shalom Wahat al-Salam (NSWAS) is something unique. Located between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, near the West Bank border, it is a pacifist enclave in a region marked by the Israeli-Palestinian eternal conflict. It is a cooperative village, whose name means in Hebrew and Arabic "oasis of peace"; since 1977 it includes both Jewish families and Palestinian Arab families (Muslims and Christians). Founded in 1970 by the Dominican brother Bruno Hussar, of Jewish origin and Israeli citizenship, since then it provides an example of a balanced and smooth coexistence between two supposedly irreconcilable peoples. This achievement, awarded in 1993 by the Niwano prize of peace, should remind us that the exchange of rockets between Israel and Gaza are all but inevitable.
Read the article . . .
|
| THE WORST NEWS » |
The bad news: Dualism and "ideological" nepotism |
Of ugly news in these last weeks we have had so much that it’s difficult to choose: wars, violence and death; in Iraq, Syria, Ukraine, Central African Republic; and then Isis, the death boats in the Mediterranean, thousands of children at the US frontiers. The truly "bad news" however is the dependence, in the extremist reading of these facts, of a radical dualism and an ideological nepotism. Forgetting the past, the present is ideologically interpreted, and so it prevents any available future solutions. Image symbol could be the opposition among Israel -Peace with a disarmed Hamas- and Hamas -arms as guarantee of peace agreement-. Israel forgets how it became a state and Hamas refuses to see that states were born from wars. Does Israel really think it can dominate the region without any dialogue with Hamas and does Hamas indeed think it’s able to reverse the course of the history by eliminating Israel? In this case, Isis would be right searching a return to the Islamic caliphate, the Ottoman imperialist dream that the battle of Lepanto and storming of Vienna only would have delayed. Dualism is the key of this vision: good, correct that have reason on one side and, on the other, bad, unfair that deserves blame; not only the people and the structures are so visualized but also the ideas and the historical events. What if both sides were wrong and, what if both sides were partly right? The ideological nepotism of Isis with its "intention of genocide" (Patriarch of Syria), its denial in name of the fanatical Islam that "all men are equal" (Emil Shimoun, archbishop of Mosul interview), cannot make us forget the western ideology headed nowadays by US, ready to defend "national affairs." The theory of “each one in his/her country” is seen worthy only for people but not for the enterprises and the capitals; the gesture of the good Samaritan who defends Yezidi children and women and brings food and help to Turkmens cannot allow us to forget who has sold weapons to the jihadists or who is behind the exodus of so many children from the Central America and Africa. Pope Francis strives uselessly to nuance the discourse: Stopping the genocide however not bombing and killing; but when you enter a tunnel you cannot stop in the middle, or return back or you go further. Even if the tunnel does end nowhere, we are pretending to go on: behind the evil, before the good, are we told. And what if it wasn’t true? A key, rather ugly, to understand the whole hidden mind can be found in an article: "Other beheaded Christian. 'Il Giornale' collects funds to report the martyrdom.” Can’t be true! But it is: money got also and above all exploiting other people's misfortunes; they do not care if the recoil of history will bring war, violence and death also in their house. Read “Western military intervention is what ISIS wants” |
| Celebrating! | Take Action! | |
September 5th, International Day of Charity.Poverty persists in all countries of the world, regardless of their economic, social and cultural situation, particularly in developing countries. In recognition of the role of charity in alleviating humanitarian crises and human suffering, as well as of the efforts of charitable organizations and individuals, the General Assembly of the United Nations in its resolution A/RES/67/105 designated the 5th of September, the anniversary of the death of Mother Teresa, as the International Day of Charity. On this International Day, the United Nations invites all Member States and all international and regional organizations, as well as civil society, including non-governmental organizations and individuals, to commemorate the Day in an appropriate manner, by encouraging charity, including through education and public awareness-raising activities. |
 Christians in Iraq live persecution.This video shows the brutal killings of Christians in Iraq at the hands of radical Islam. They put them on trucks; they force then to lie down and empty their magazine on them. One by one. Then hang images on the internet to "boost the troops’ morale". What our brothers are suffering in Iraq has no name. Either conversion or death by the sword: no choice but to leave Mosul. The few who became Muslims are obliged to be at the mosque daily. They are watched over. Those who flee are plundered of everything: water, blankets, even crucifixes. France has mobilized. Pope Francis asked to stop killing and to pray for peace. Harassment of Christians in Iraq is not new, but now the situation has become unbearable. The UN has made statements without doing anything: all seem to look the other way. To know more click here. It is time to move from words to action. Watch the video. To sign up, click on here |
|
| Time to rethink | Keep smiling | |
 Climate Change 1st Series"Climate change is a topic that captivates me and keeps me reading for long hours. It's a shame that there are still those who are not aware of all the work that remains to be done to leave a fairly healthy world to our children. This series of cartoons was born as a result of my participation in an institutional campaign on climate change, but little by little I felt committed and I ended up drawing over a hundred: a small selection of them is shown here. If they make someone realize that climate change is a real problem, we will have achieved something." Comment from the author. To watch the PowerPoint click here. |
 No comment.In our current world as indifferent to life and death as Israel's wars with the Palestinians, Isis in Iraq, Syrian and Central African Republic are proving, the attitude of Self Help Practice seems a utopia... But we live in hope thanks to people whose work well done with an amount of kindness and optimism is contagious: it is an invitation to stop "navel gazing", only thinking of ourselves. To view the presentation, click here and enjoy your thinking . . . |
|
| Must Watch. | Resources. | |
 SUR: documentarySUR is a documentary project about a Mapuche family reclaiming the right to live on their ancestral land in Patagonia, Argentina, in a major case of post-colonial landgrabbing. In Argentinian Patagonia, a group of native Mapuche families, namely the one formed by Atílio, Rosa and Franco Curiñanco, are resisting and peacefully battling against the Italian Benetton Group, for the right to live in their ancestral land, where they were born and which belongs to them by oral tradition. The extension of the lands acquired by Benetton in the 90’s is said to be approximately 900.000 hectares, nearly the size of a country like Cyprus (more than 10 times the area of New York city). In Spanish with subtitles in English. To see the video click on here. |
 The Seeds of Discontent shows reality of land grabs worldwideThe strength of Seeds of Discontent is that it shows what land grabbing means to the affected communities, and how difficult it is for them to resist. Cases like this one are happening every day, all over the globe. Communities are confronted with investors who arrive and promise a lot to them: jobs, “development”, money, a bright future. And the investors have a lot of money and are usually supported by the authorities. What should communities do in this situation? Give away their lands to investors? Or at least some land? Can they refuse anyway? What happens if they don’t agree? And what happens if the investors then take more and the promises turn out to be empty? See the trailer . . . |
|
| This is a News Service of the www.jpic-jp.org |
 |
|
Office P.O. Box 138 - Montclair NJ 07042 0138 US Please share your suggestions, opinions, doubts and ideas writing to pezzijp@jpic-jp.org You can subscribe also by writing to webmaster@jpic-jp.org for all back issues www.combonimissionaries.org - www.comboni.org Copyright © www.jpic-jp.org |