A British-Israeli mother and her two daughters were killed in a drive-by-shooting terrorist attack in the Jordan valley on April 7, during a week that, instead of seeing the holidays of Passover, Easter and Ramadan celebrated in parallel peacefully, spiraled the region into violence.
The Greek Orthodox Church March 19 denounced what it called a “heinous terrorist attack” on a church at the Tomb of the Virgin Mary in Jerusalem.
With rising tensions between Israelis and Palestinians reaching new heights over the past week amid a spate of fresh killings, Church leaders in the West Bank have condemned the violence and called for a lasting resolution that respects international law.
Pope Francis’ call for human fraternity is not just idle talk, as we are used to hearing from the leaders in the Arab world, but rather a comprehensive approach that includes dialogue with and working for the millions of poor and needy in the region, which is rippling with political and economic turmoil.
In a time when social networks can tend to divide people, Christian media must instead work to unite men and women, Pope Francis said.
After a day of prayer and reflection with Lebanon’s Christian leaders, Pope Francis urged political leaders in the country to set aside partisan interests that have devastated the country.
When Michael La Civita of the Catholic Near East Welfare Association considers how the agency prioritizes where to send aid, he says the best way to describe it is like a “triage,” given the crises so many countries face.
Pope Francis’s recent trip to Iraq will undoubtedly have a lasting impact on the country in ways that only time will tell. However, in the immediate aftermath, significant developments are already being seen.
From his experience in Iraq in 2018, Monsignor Kieran Harrington doesn’t look at one stop, or moment, from Pope Francis’ trip to Iraq as most significant. Rather, it’s the fact that the Holy Father was there in the first place.
March 8 marks the end of Pope Francis’ emblematic trip to Iraq — it’s been filled with many firsts for the only pontiff to visit the Land of Abraham. There were places to go, people to meet, stories to tell and, of course, lessons on human fraternity to learn. Here’s a look at some of the highlights.
