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(Vatican Radio)  Pope Francis has sent a message to the National Youth Meeting at the Sanctuary of Aparecida in Brazil, inviting young people to turn their lives into leaven for a better Brazilian society.

His message came at the conclusion of the “Rota” (Way) 300 project, which closed on July 29 with a large celebration at the sanctuary. The initiative celebrated 300 years since the discovery of the statue of Our Lady of Aparecida in the Paraiba do Sul River.

Listen to our report:

Pope Francis told the young people that Mary is a sign of hope and that she knows the difficulties awaiting young people. He also encouraged them to live with a missionary spirit.

“Dear friends, in the midst of daily uncertainties and insecurities and in the midst of the precariousness created by unjust situations, you have one certainty. Mary is a sign of hope who will impel you with a great missionary drive. She knows the difficulties with which you live. Her attention and motherly care help you know that you are not alone.”

The Holy Father also recalled the Brazilian story of the poor fishermen, who, after an unfruitful fishing expedition in the Paraiba do Sul River, cast their nets one more time and discovered to their surprise a broken statue of Our Lady, encrusted with mud. They first found the statue's body and then its head.

“As I told the Brazilian bishops in 2013, this story holds an important symbolism. What was divided has been reunited, just like the heart of those fishermen and colonial Brazil once divided by slavery, realities which found unity in the faith, which the black statue of Our Lady has inspired.”

Pope Francis then invited the young people to let their hearts be transformed by the encounter with the Mother of Aparecida.

“May she transform the ‘nets’ of your lives – nets of friendship, social networks, material and virtual nets – realities which are often divided, into something more meaningful. May they become communities! Missionary communities ‘going out into the world’! Communities which are light and leaven for a more just and fraternal society.”

The Pope also recalled his message to the CELAM Meeting earlier this year, asking young people “not to be afraid to take risks and to work to build a new society, imbuing social, political, economic, and university environs with the force of the Gospel!”

“Do not be afraid to fight corruption, and do not let yourselves be seduced by it! Trusting in the Lord, whose presence is the source of abundant life, and under Mary’s mantle, you can rediscover the creativity and strength of being protagonists for a culture of unity and, therefore, create new paradigms to guide the life of Brazil.”

Pope Francis concluded his message with a prayer.

“May Our Lady – who in her youth knew how to courageously embrace the call of God for her life and go forth to those most in need – walk ahead of you, guiding you in all her ways!”

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The social arm of the Archdiocese of Colombo has launched an initiative to promote interreligious coexistence among Sri Lanka's various religious groups.   In the initiative organized by Caritas Colombo, Buddhist, Hindu, Muslim and Catholic religious leaders led a float starting from Negombo, July 29.  Led by people belonging to the four main religions in Sri Lanka, the float commenced its journey at Agurukaramulla Temple.  It stopped at main religious places and requested devotees to place their signature on a billboard which depicted the Sri Lankan map.  It received over 2,000 signatures.  

Peaceful country, one family

Father Lawrance Ramanayake, director of Seth Sarana-Caritas Colombo, said the initiative was a need in Sri Lanka.  "Our effort is only to build a peaceful country with interreligious coexistence. Religious leaders can take leadership of this matter," said Father Ramanayake who organized the float.

"We hear of various conflicts occurring in various parts of Sri Lanka in the name of ethnicity and religiosity mainly. It is very important to set an example for the country that all can live as one family," said Venerable Yatawatte Ganarama Thero, chief Buddhist monk of Bodirajarama Maha Viharaya in Negombo.

Attacks against Muslims, Christians

The inter-faith event came in the wake of recent wave of attacks on minority groups, mainly Muslims and Christians, by hard-lines Buddhist groups such as Bodu Bala Sena and Rawana Blakaya. A mong the attacks was a petrol-bomb attack on Mallawapitiya mosque on May 21 and several attacks on Muslim-owned businesses.

Caritas Colombo has established five interreligious fora in Negombo with participation from different ‎religious leaders. They include various activities such as the joint celebration of main religious festivals. ‎ (Source: UCANEWS)

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(Vatican Radio)  Cardinal Peter Turkson, Prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, has released a message for World Tourism Day 2017, which will be held on 27 September.

The theme chosen for this year is: “Sustainable tourism: a tool for development”.

We bring you the official English-language version below:

“Sustainable Tourism – a tool for development”

1. On the annual occasion of World Tourism Day, celebrated every 27 September 2017, the Church joins civil society in addressing this phenomenon, in the conviction that every genuinely human activity must find its place in the hearts of Christ’s disciples [1].

For the first time, this message is issued by the new Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, as part of its mission.

The United Nations General Assembly has proclaimed 2017 the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development. Opportunely, the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) has followed in the same vein by choosing Sustainable Tourism: a tool for development as the theme for this year’s Day.

2. When we say tourism, we are talking about a phenomenon of major importance, both in light of the number of people involved (travellers and workers) and for the many benefits that it can bring to society (economic, cultural and social), but also given the risks and dangers that it can create in many areas.

According to the World Tourism Organization’s latest Barometer, for the year 2016, the number of international tourist arrivals is around 1.2 billion. Worldwide, the sector accounts for 10% of GDP and 7% of total exports, also considering that 1 out of 11 jobs are in tourism. It therefore occupies an important place in the economies of individual states and in policies that focus on inclusive development and environmental sustainability globally.

3. Tourism can be an important tool for growth and the fight against poverty. Nevertheless, according to the Church’s social doctrine, true development “cannot be restricted to economic growth alone”. In fact, “to be authentic, it must be well rounded”; that is, “it must foster the development of each man and of the whole man”, as the Encyclical Populorum progressio [2] notes. In this regard, Paul VI stressed the need to promote a “full-bodied humanism”, including the material and spiritual needs for the full development of each person in dignity [3]. Twenty years later, in 1987, the UN introduced the concept of sustainable development as a development that “meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” [4]. For the Church, the concept of integrality, when connected to the expression human development, also includes the United Nations’ idea of sustainability, and embraces all aspects of life: social, economic, political, cultural, and spiritual, making them elements in a single synthesis, the human person.

The UNWTO has applied these ideas to promoting sustainable tourism [5]. This means that it must be responsible, and not destructive or detrimental to the environment nor to the socio-cultural context of the locality. Moreover, it must be particularly respectful of the population and their heritage, with a view to safeguarding personal dignity and labour rights, especially those of the most disadvantaged and vulnerable people. Holiday time cannot be a pretext either for irresponsibility or for exploitation: in fact, it is a noble time in which everyone can add value to one’s own life and that of others. Sustainable tourism is also a development tool for economies in difficulty if it becomes a vehicle of new opportunities and not a source of problems.

In its 2017 Resolution, the United Nations recognizes “the important role of sustainable tourism as a positive instrument towards the eradication of poverty, the protection of the environment, the improvement of quality of life and the economic empowerment of women and youth and its contribution to the three dimensions of sustainable development, especially in developing countries” [6]. In this sense, three dimensions of sustainability are promoted: the ecological, aiming for the maintenance of ecosystems; the social, which develops in harmony with the host community; and the economic, which stimulates inclusive growth. In the context of Agenda 2030, this International Year is therefore an opportunity to encourage governments to adopt appropriate policies, the industry to embrace good practice, and to raise awareness among consumers and local people, highlighting how an integral conception of tourism can contribute to sustainable development.

4. Conscious that “in all her being and actions, the Church is called to promote the integral development of the human person in the light of the Gospel” [7], we Christians want to offer our contribution so that tourism can assist in the development of peoples, especially the most disadvantaged. We therefore propose our reflection. We recognize God as the creator of the universe and father of all human beings, and He who makes us brothers. We must put the human person as the focus of our attention; we recognize the dignity of each person and the relationships among persons; we must share the principle of the common destiny of the human family and the universal destination of earthly goods. The human being acts not as a master, but as a “responsible steward” [8]. In acknowledging each other as brothers, we will understand “the principle of gratuitousness and the logic of gift” [9] and our duties of solidarity, justice and universal charity [10].

We now ask ourselves: how can these principles be practically applied to the development of tourism? What are the consequences for tourists, entrepreneurs, workers, governors, and local communities? It is an open reflection. We invite all those involved in the sector to engage in serious discernment and to promote practices towards attaining this, accompanying behaviours and lifestyle changes towards a new way of relating to each other.

The Church is making its own contribution, launching initiatives that really place tourism in the service of the integral development of the person. This is why we talk about tourism with a human touch, which is based on projects of community tourism, cooperation, solidarity, and an appreciation of the great artistic heritage which is an authentic way of beauty [11].

In his address to the United Nations, Pope Francis stated: “The common home of all men and women must continue to rise on the foundations of a right understanding of universal fraternity and respect for the sacredness of every human life, of every man and every woman [...]. This common home of all men and women must also be built on the understanding of a certain sacredness of created nature”[12]. May we live out our commitment in the light of these words and these intentions!

Vatican City, 29 June 2017

Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson
Prefect

________________________________________

[1] Council II, Pastoral Constitution Gaudium et spes, 7 December 1965, no. 1.

[2] Pope Paul VI, Encyclical Populorum progressio, 26 March 1967, no. 14.

[3] Pope Paul VI, Encyclical Populorum progressio, 26 March 1967, no. 42.

[4] World Commission On Environment and Development, Our Common Future (also known as the Brundtland Report), August 1987. This Commission was created by the UN General Assembly in 1983.

[5] World Tourism Organisation, The Hague Declaration on Tourism, 10-14 April 1989, Principle III.

[6] United Nations Organization, Resolution A/RES/70/193 approved by the General Assembly on 22 December 2015.

[7] Pope Francis, Apostolic Letter Humanam progressionem in the form of a ‘Motu Proprio’, with which the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development was established, 17 August 2016.

[8] Pope Francis, Encyclical Laudato si’, 24 May 2015, no. 116.

[9] Pope Benedict XVI, Encyclical Caritas in veritate, 29 June 2009, no. 36.

[10] Pope Paul VI, Encyclical Populorum progressio, 26 March 1967, no. 44.

[11] Pope Francis, Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Gaudium, 24 November 2013, no. 167.

[12] Pope Francis, Address to the members of the General Assembly of the United Nations Organization, 25 September 2015.

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IMAGE: CNS photo/Andy Telli, Tennessee Register

By Andy Telli

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (CNS) -- Chris Shafer grew up as a "nominal Catholic," and she wasn't even sure she still believed in God in the mid-1970s when she moved to Fort Walton Beach, Florida, where her husband, Doug, was stationed in the U.S. Air Force.

"I found that fascinating that anybody believed in God. He was like Santa Claus you believed in childhood," said Shafer, a parishioner at St. Ignatius of Antioch Church in Nashville. "This was no longer relevant."

But that began to change after talking with friends from her husband's unit who had become involved in the charismatic movement through their Episcopal church. She decided, "For this God story to survive all these thousands of years, there had to be something more than I knew about God."

Shafer found a Catholic Charismatic Renewal prayer group and decided to attend one of their prayer meetings. "I went home thinking, 'I walked in not even believing in God, but now I'm on fire,'" she said. "I sang all the way home."

The Catholic Charismatic Renewal marks the 50th anniversary of its founding this year.

In 1967, a group of students and professors at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh were on a retreat when they felt engulfed by the fire of the Holy Spirit. Their experience ignited the renewal, which has touched the lives of Catholics around the world.

Shafer's been going to prayer meetings for 40 years, including the Glory of Zion prayer group at St. Ignatius, since it was formed in 1980. "Everything I learned about God I learned at charismatic prayer meetings," Shafer told the Tennessee Register, newspaper of the Diocese of Nashville.

The movement calls people to experience the same excitement and deep relationship with God that the first Christians experienced at Pentecost.

A charismatic gathering in some ways can resemble a Pentecostal service, with an exuberant style of worship including dancing and waving of arms, people praying over others for healing, people speaking in tongues, and others prophesying about God's love for his people and inviting people to be open to that love.

"It is definitely exuberant," Shafer said. "You do what the Lord's calling you to."

"We try to present to people first and foremost the idea of God's love and forgiveness," said Teresa Seibert, another charter member of the Glory of Zion prayer group. 

Although she is a cradle Catholic who grew up with the more traditional style of Catholic worship, Seibert wasn't fazed by the charismatic style.

"It didn't scare me," Seibert said. "The first experience of it was a real calming affect for me. I more or less saw this is what I've been looking for."

The Catholic Charismatic Renewal is really more about listening to the Holy Spirit, said Father Michael Baltrus, who first got involved in the movement in the 1970s and was a member of the Glory of Zion prayer group before he left for the seminary.

"It helped me listen to God," he said, which is "one of the best aspects" of the charismatic movement.

"You become more sensitive to what God is saying, what the Spirit is doing," said Father Baltrus, the new pastor at St Catherine Church in McMinnville and St. Gregory Church in Smithville. Listening to the Spirit "actually sets me free in my worship. That applies to the traditional form of worship and to people that are used to expressing themselves very much."

When people let down their defenses and open themselves to the will of the Spirit, Shafer said, they can let the Lord "break into our lives. That's what he wants."

That surrender to God's will helps people develop a personal relationship with God, Shafer said, "which we don't talk about much in the Catholic Church," Shafer said. "It was in the renewal I learned there was a God interested in my life ... who held my hand when I was in trouble."

Doug Shafer saw his wife changing after she started going to charismatic prayer group meetings. "After a while, I could see a difference with Chris, in her attitude and how she acted. She was happier and more focused on things," he said. "I decided I'd start going with her."

For him, the experience was an awakening about God. "After I found God and Jesus and the Holy Spirit ... I changed."

The Catholic Charismatic Renewal is about "surrendering to the Spirit and what God wants for you," he said. "Everyone can see themselves in Peter. ... When he surrendered and repented the Holy Spirit came upon him and he could do all these things."

Through the Charismatic Renewal, Doug Shafer entered the Catholic Church in 1982. And years later, it led him into another role as a deacon. He was ordained in 1999.

"The charismatic renewal opened me up to the church first ... and it opened me up to service for the church and everybody in it," he said.

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Telli is managing editor of the Tennessee Register, newspaper of the Diocese of Nashville.

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IMAGE: CNS photo/Chris Wattie, Reuters

By Deborah Gyapong

OTTAWA, Ontario (CNS) -- The archbishop of Ottawa expressed regret that several Catholics were shocked at the sight of a giant robotic spider perched on Notre Dame Cathedral.

Archbishop Terrence Prendergast said he was surprised by the negative reaction to an artistic initiative after critics called the spider's placement "sacrilegious," "demonic," and "disrespectful" of a sacred space.

"My cathedral staff and I anticipated that some ... might object, but thought it would be minimal, as nothing demeaning was intended in the spider being near the church," said the archbishop in an email interview with Canadian Catholic News.

"I regret that we had not sufficiently understood that others would see this event so differently. I say to those who were shocked that I understand that this would have been upsetting for them and that I regret that a well-intentioned effort to cooperate in a celebration was anything but that for them."

The spider, named Kumo, is one of two giant robots created by a street theater company of artists, technicians and performers based in Nantes, France. The company, La Machine, was in Ottawa July 27-30 as part of celebrations marking Canada's 150th birthday.

The spectacle of robots, music and other special effects drew tens of thousands to Ottawa's downtown.

The show opened July 27 in the evening, with Kumo "waking up" to organ music from inside the cathedral. As the spider, suspended from cranes, climbed off its perch between the towers, "snow" fell from above as part of the event's special effects.

"I don't understand how allowing a mechanical spider to stand on the cathedral is anything but disturbing, disappointing and even shameful," wrote Diane Bartlett on the archbishop's Facebook wall.

Others defended the archbishop's decision.

"While the viewer may find the juxtaposition jarring, I gather it's supposed to be," wrote Kris Dmytrenko. "But sacrilegious? C'mon, give your archbishop a break. This civic engagement with art recalls the Vatican's Courtyard of the Gentiles project. Culture is a bridge."

The decision to participate in the show was motivated by a desire to engage with the wider Ottawa community, said Archbishop Prendergast.

"We make use of the city to obtain permits for our events, and they are most cooperative," he said. "The Good Friday Way of the Cross lets us have access to public venues (Supreme Court, Parliament Hill, the plaza in front of the National Gallery), and the police offer a security escort.

"We try to be good citizens, good neighbors and cooperative," he said.

"To the extent that we did see symbolism, it was that, afterward, Our Lady would continue to reign, something I mentioned in a tweet right after the Thursday performance, as people I respect began to make their objections known."

Organizers approached the cathedral staff last year. They wanted to position Kumo on the cathedral because it is across the street from the National Art Gallery, which features a large spider sculpture called Mama in its entrance courtyard, Archbishop Prendergast said. The idea was to make it seem as if Kumo was approaching Mama.

"Cathedral staff were shown other cathedrals and public buildings in Europe that had been involved," the archbishop said. "It seemed innocent enough.

"I guess we thought people would see this as a sign the church is involved in Ottawa's celebrations," he said. "Many people, both Catholic and others, English and Francophone, remarked how pleased they were that Notre Dame was involved in our celebration of Canada 150."

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Gyapong is Ottawa correspondent for Canadian Catholic News.

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NEW YORK (AP) -- An investigator who worked on the Seth Rich case claims Fox News fabricated quotes implicating the murdered Democratic National Committee staffer in the WikiLeaks scandal and that President Donald Trump pressured Fox to publish the story....

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PORT REPUBLIC, N.J. (AP) -- They're called "ghost forests" - dead trees along vast swaths of coastline invaded by rising seas, something scientists call one of the most visible markers of climate change....

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MOSCOW (AP) -- Five defendants at a Moscow courthouse attacked their guards in a bungled escape attempt, leading to a shootout that killed three people and wounded five others, officials said Tuesday....

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WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Donald Trump may be trying for a reset in the West Wing, but he is making clear that he is not changing his twitter habit....

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WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) -- It's just a few blocks from the house Earl Rice Jr. left behind as a teenager to the places he remembers. But after more than four decades in prison, he has ground to cover....

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