News

• 7 March 2005
  ASIA/HONG KONG - Over 2.300 catechumens will be baptised at Easter: a happy occasion for Bishops and faithful Hong Kong (Fides Service) - A great effort for mission undertaken by the diocese of Hong Kong is bearing fruit. According to the diocesan bulletin Kong Ko Bao about 2,300 people will be baptised during Easter vigil Masse ...
• 7 March 2005
  VATICAN - Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe, Prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples Card. Crescenzio Sepe on pastoral visit to the diocese of Tarahumara the only territory in Mexico still under the care of the missionary Congregation. Vatican City (Fides Service) - Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe, Prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples will be in Mexico 8-10 March for a pastoral visit. On Tuesday 8 March he will preside Mass in the Ba ...
• 7 March 2005
  EUROPE/BULGARIA - “Poor Catholic families suffer but they are certain the Pope’s suffering is worse than their own and they pray for him”, Capuchin friar in Sofia tells Fides Sofia (Fides Service) - “We visit poor families regularly and lately all of them have been inquiring about the Pope, assuring us of their prayers for him. They say life their is difficult but they also say that the Ho ...
• 7 March 2005
  AFRICA/ETHIOPIA - Catholic refugees from Sudan pray for Pope John Paul II with happy memories of his visit in 1993 Gambella (Fides Service)- “Catholics among the refugees from Sudan living in camps in Ethiopia around Gambella are praying intensely for the Pope” Archbishop Angelo Moreschi, Apostolic Prefect of Gambella, in west Et ...
• 7 March 2005
  OCEANIA/SOLOMON ISLANDS - New Catholic radio broadcasts over the Pacific: Salesians fathers launch Radio Bosco to spread Good News Honiara (Fides) - A new Catholic broadcaster is sending the Word of God across the Pacific. Radio Bosco is the name of a Catholic radio station launched by the Salesian Fathers in Solomon Islands. The radio commenced it ...
• 7 March 2005
  AMERICA/ECUADOR - “The country is precipitating in a situation of illegality, confusion mistrust and fear”: concerned Catholic Bishops appeal for more democracy and justice Quito (Fides Service) - “In our Ecuador rich in enormous potential, we note with deep concern and anxiety an accumulation of errors and irresponsibility. The country is precipitating into a dark chasm of illegality, co ...
• 7 March 2005
  ASIA/NORTH KOREA - Ten years of aid for the most vulnerable, children, pregnant and nursing mothers, the elderly in the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea: Caritas feeds the hungry and strives to guarantee food security Pyongyang (Fides Service) - Kathi Zellweger, in charge of international cooperation for Caritas Hong Kong made her first visit to North Korea in 1995 on a humanitarian mission with the permission of the N. Korean author ...
• 7 March 2005
  AFRICA - 500,000 illegal arms in eastern Africa: Catholic Church commitment with regard to small arms misuse five years after Nairobi Declaration Nairobi (Fides Service )- “The proliferation of small arms is a serious problem which the Church cannot ignore” the Office for Justice and Peace of the Association of Member Episcopal Conferences of Eastern Africa AM ...
• 5 March 2005
  AFRICA/BENIN - Archbishop of Cotonou resigns, the Pope appoints new Archbishop Vatican City (Fides) - The Holy Father, Pope John Paul II, on 5 March 2005 accepted the renunciation of the pastoral government of the archdiocese of Cotonou (Benin) presented by Archbishop Nestor Assogha, in conformity ...
• 5 March 2005
  AMERICA/ECUADOR - “Dear Pope, we hope you will be better soon because we boys and girls in Chone want you to be well and hope you will never be ill again. We children of Chone love you and pray for you always": young school children in Ecuador offer simple, spontaneous prayers for the Pope Chone (Fides Service) - “Dear Pope, we hope you will be better soon because we boys and girls in Chone, want you to be well and hope you will never be ill again because it makes us sad. May God protect you always. Dear ...
• 5 March 2005
  ASIA/CHINA - “We always pray for the Pope but now that he is in hospital we are praying even harder”: Chinese speaking Catholics in Toronto Canada pray for the Pope Toronto (Fides Service) - “Since we heard the Pope had been admitted to Gemelli hospital we have been praying even more intensely for his intentions and his health and speedy recovery. Special prayers for the Pope’s ...
• 5 March 2005
  EUROPE/AZERBAIJAN - “The Pope is close to the elderly, and in our community there are many of them. They all love him and are concerned about his health”, Father Jan Kapla Superior of the Baku Catholic Mission told Fides Baku (Fides Service) - “Azerbaijanis show great interest for the Pope. They remember his landmark visit to the country with affection and emotion. Local and Russian media channels are giving regular reports on news fro ...
• 5 March 2005
  EUROPE/SPAIN - Javierada Pilgrimage this year anticipates celebrations for 5th hundredth anniversary of the birth of the Patron saint of missions: " Our young pilgrims to Javier must be courageous like Francis Xavier, filled with enthusiasm for Jesus " Pamplona (Fides Service) - "Javier, adoration and donation" is the slogan for the annual Javierada pilgrimage which take place in Spain 6 to 12 March, organised by the Delegation for Missions and the SCAM (Missionary Ani ...
• 5 March 2005
  VATICAN - Contemplation of beauty helps penetration of the mystery and prompts conversion of life: The Immaculate Conception in Art, exhibition in the Vatican, interview with Archbishop Mauro Piacenza Vatican City (Fides Service) - “A woman clothed in the sun” - The Immaculate Conception in words of the Great Masters- is the title of an exhibition organised by the Pontifical Commission for Cultural Heritage of the ...
• 5 March 2005
  ASIA/BANGLADESH - “People in one of the world’s poorest countries are praying for the Holy Father, Muslims too voice sympathy and solidarity”, head of Caritas Bangladesh tells Fides Dacca (Fides Service) - With 70% of its people living below the poverty line Bangladesh is one of the world’s poorest countries: but the poor, the lowly, people living on less than a dollar a day and only a handful of ...