St. Francis of Assisi - Icon of Muslim-Christian Fellpowship

St. Francis of Assisi – Icon of Muslim-Christian Fellowship

1.     It is enough to utter his name and everyone knows who he is.  St. Francis was a man of God.  And because he was a man of God, he always lived what was essential.  So he was a simple, courteous and gentle to everyone, like God in his mercy.

2.     The Phenomenological Manifestations of our epoch…

·      Emptiness.  It is born of a feeling of impotence.  There is very little we can do to change our life, our community and society. Finally there is really nothing important…

·      Loneliness. It is an experience of lass of contact with nature and others in terms of friendship and gentleness. There is the lack of courage to commit oneself.

·      Fear.  It is the fruit of objective threats to life, to employment, to collective survival of humanity in general.

·      Anxiety. It has its origin in imagined fear, ignorance as to what one ought to do, in whom to trust, and what to expect.  When anxiety grips an entire society it means that the whole society feels threatened and senses its approaching end.

·      Aggressiveness without objectives.  It reveals a rupture with the norms of relationship without which a society cannot be built or defended.  What results is anonymity and the loss of the meaning of the self, that is, the worth and sacredness of human person.

From the above, two consequences ensue: first is Emptiness and second is Loss. It is the loss of language of everyday communication, the loss of meaningful relationship and the lack of vital relationship with nature and habitat.

3.     The New Ethos…  It is a new way of life with many and varied relationship to nature, to others, to religion and to God.  In St. Francis, it was through Pathos – Sympathy and Eros – fraternal communication and tenderness.  Manifestations are:

·      His Innocence

·      His enthusiasm for nature

·      His gentleness to all beings

·      His capacity for compassion with the poor and “confraternization” with all elements and even death itself.

4.     To Be Saint … in the case of Francis…

·      To be Saint, it is necessary to be human.

·      To be human, it is necessary to be sensitive and gentle.

“Man knows as much as he does.” Francis’s gentleness was demonstrated, especially in his human relationship.  He broke the rigidity of the feudal hierarchy and called all persons as brothers and sisters.  He himself was called “little brother” (fratello). He wanted to unite great and small, to treat the wise and simple with brotherly affection, to bind with tie of love those who were held at a distance.  He treated everyone with outmost courtesy, even Saracens, Infidels and thieves.

5.     Peace…  One of the global values lived by Francis was Peace.

·      The World is the “regio dissimilitudinis” and behind these dissimilarities are camouflaged injustices and violence.

·      Every time Francis began his preaching, he invoked Peace… saying: “the Lord gives you peace.”  It is Peace and all good.  His group carries out a true mission of peace – “Legatio Pacis”.

·      The peace that is proclaimed in word ought always to be present in the heart.  Let no one be provoked by us to anger or scandal, but rather let all through your gentleness, be led to Peace, Tranquility and agreement.  “BE KINDER WITH YOUR NEIGHBORS.”

6.     The Role of Mediation…  During the Crusades, Francis had a profound impact on the Sultan and owing to his sympathy, tolerance and respect and love foe peace.  Francis gave a vote of confidence to the liberating capacity of kindness, gentleness, patience and understanding.  Peace in his own PERSON manifested in his words, poetry and song. 

PEACE IS NOT ONLY A GOAL THAT MUST BE REACHED, IT IS ALSO A METHOD.

Bapa Jun Mercado, OMI

27th Sunday in Ordinary Time (B)

Short Reflection for the 27^th Sunday in the Ordinary Time (B)

Readings: Genesis 2: 18-24; Hebrew 2: 9-11; Mark 10: 2-16

Selected Passage: "But Jesus told them, "Because of the hardness of your hearts he wrote you this commandment." (Mark 10: 5)

Meditation:  We, too, are often afflicted with a certain hardness of heart. We make all kinds of excuses or we point fingers to others to be at fault.  Yet, the real wrong is in us!  Find this “hardness” in our heart and allow God to melt it .  Only then can GRACE flow into us. 

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26th Sunday in Ordinary Time (B)

Short Reflection for the 26^th Sunday in the Ordinary Time (B)

Readings: Numbers 11: 25-29; James 5: 1-6; Mark 9: 38-43, 45, 47-48

Gospel passage: "No one who performs mighty deeds in my name  who can act, at the same time, speak ill of me…  and anyone who gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong to Christ, amen, I say to you, will surely not lose his reward." (Mark 9: 39 & 41)

 Meditation:  Belongingness does NOT solely measure by registration or words… Deeds would tell whether we belong to Christ or not.  And the act of sharing whatever we have with people in need is closest to God’s heart.  Tradition has it that almsgiving is “prayer in action”…

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DHIKR SIMPLE METHOD...

Dhikr is an Arabic word for remembrance. In the “tariqa” (the way) movement, dhikr developed into a form of prayer… It is a prayer of the heart… following three simple steps:

1. Write in one’s heart a certain passage of the Holy Writ…

2. Make the same passage ever present in one’s lips.  

3. Then wait for God’s disclosure on the meaning of the passage…that interprets one’s life NOW…! 

It takes a week of remembering (dhikr)…or even more days to relish the beauty of this method…

South Sudan

“The next two weeks are a crucial period to see whether the agreement [signed by warring South Sudanese parties three weeks ago] will stick. The parties are establishing the mechanisms for a permanent ceasefire and if they agree and implement the agreement we can feel more confident the agreement will hold. If not, then the agreement will be in crisis”. (Casie Copeland, South Sudan Analyst, Ventures Africa, 14 September)

25th Sunday in Ordinary Time (B)

Short Reflection for the 25th Sunday in the Ordinary Time (B)

Readings: Wisdom 2: 12. 17-19; James 3: 16 – 4: 3; Mark 9: 30-37

Gospel Passage: "If anyone wishes to be first, he shall be the last of all and the servant of all." (Mark 9: 35b)

 Meditation:  Aren’t we like the disciples who often argue who is the greatest among ourselves?  Yet, the call we receive is to become servant of all. Yes, the greatest in the fellowship of Jesus is NOT the one in purple and being served. It is he who serves and the last that shall be the first in the Kingdom. Beware of the yeast of the Pharisee!

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The Need to Make Distinction in Islamic Movements

The Need to Make the Distinction in the Islamic Revival Movements…

By Fr. Eliseo Mercado, OMI

1.     Islamic Revival.  For many Muslims, Islamic Revivalism is a social (rather than political) movement whose goal is a more “Islamically” molded and oriented society but NOT necessarily the creation of an Islamic State.  Many legitimate Islamic movements, (for pragmatic reasons and in recognition of the power of the authoritarian rulers or out of disillusionment with the excesses of Islamic Republics like Sudan, Iran and Afghanistan) focus on the Islamization of society rather than politics.

2.     For others, the establishment of an Islamic order requires the creation of an Islamic state.  Although some advocate violent revolution, others do not.  Islam and most Islamic movements are not necessarily anti-western, anti American, or anti democratic.  Although they challenge the outdated assumptions of the established order and autocratic regime, they do not necessarily threaten US interests.

3.     The challenge is to better understand the history and realities of the Muslim “world” and to recognize the diversities and the many faces of Islam.

4.     This approach lessens the risk of the West against Islam or a clash of civilizations.  Guided by its stated ideals and goals of freedom and self-determination, the west has an ideal vantage point of appreciating the aspiration of many in the Muslim world as they seek to define and forge new paths in their future.

5.     Cases in point are Southeast Asian countries, especially Indonesia and Malaysia…

·       There is a little prospect of Indonesia adopting increasingly Islamic State policies.  Only in Malaysia… competition between the UMNO and the PAS might lead to more seriously Islamic State policies and these are certain to be tempered by the large non-Muslim population and the ambivalence of many Malay Muslims about the role of Islam in politics and society.

·       In Indonesia, the potential for Islam… to make a positive contribution to Indonesian society, specifically to the growth of civil society and democracy, greatly outweigh its potential to make a negative contribution.

·       Despite the fact that Malaysian Islam is often perceived as “anti-liberal”, “anti-western” and even intolerant… the prospects for social and political change in Malaysia depends very much on Islam, in particular upon Liberal Islamic Leaders and a fresh alternative vision of the way in which Islam contributes to Malaysian society.

·       In the Southern Philippines, the short and the long-term future of Islamic separatist groups appear questionable.  The threats posed by Islamic Moro groups such as the MILF, ICC, the MNLF and even the Abu Sayyaf increase or decrease proportionately to economic and political conditions.  There is now hope of successfully resolving the present separatist groups in the Southern Philippines in the short and medium term given the seeming ‘pragmatism’ shown by both the MILF present leadership and the GPH Aquino administration in the country and coupled by the national and local election agenda for 2016.

·       No doubt, strong and commercial links within Asia, but more specifically within ASEAN would have the effect of neutralizing and controlling radicalism in SEA.

(Research done by Fr. Eliseo Mercado, OMI - Fulbright Senior Fellow)

18th Sunday in Ordinary Time (B)

Short Reflection for the 18^th Sunday in the Ordinary Time (B)

Readings: Exodus 16: 2-4. 12-15; Ephesians 4: 17. 20-24; John 6: 24-35

Selected Passage: “Do not work for food that perishes but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him the Father, God, has set his seal.”  (John 6: 27)

Reflection: Do we toil for the food that endures? God is the ONLY one that can fulfill our longings. He gives us Jesus Christ - the Bread of Life - on whom God has set his seal.   And now what is God’s seal on our work and life…?  Visit: www.badaliyya.blogspot.com

South Sudan: Keeping Faith with the IGAD Peace Process

Africa Report N°22827 Jul 2015

Photo courtesy of IGAD

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

For more than eighteen months, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), the regional body mediating peace negotiations to end South Sudan’s civil war, has struggled to secure a deal in the face of deep regional divisions and the parties’ truculence. To overcome these challenges, it announced a revised, expanded mediation – “IGAD-PLUS” – including the African Union (AU), UN, China, U.S., UK, European Union (EU), Norway and the IGAD Partners Forum (IPF). The initiative is designed to present a united international front behind IGAD to the warring sides but so far it has failed to gain necessary backing from the wider international community, much of which is disillusioned with both IGAD and the South Sudanese. Rather than distance itself from IGAD, the international community needs to support a realistic, regionally-centred strategy to end the war, underpinned by coordinated threats and inducements. Supporting IGAD-PLUS’ efforts to get the parties’ agreement on a final peace deal in the coming weeks is the best – if imperfect – chance to end the conflict and prevent further regionalisation.

South Sudan’s war has brought underlying regional tensions to the fore. It is part of yet another chapter of the historic enmity between Uganda and Sudan, while rivalry between Uganda and Ethiopia over their respective influence on regional security has coloured the mediation process. Ethiopia, Kenya and Sudan have dedicated envoys mediating the process while Uganda is only involved at the IGAD heads of state (HoS) level. Kampala’s military deployment in support of Juba creates facts on the ground and precluded it sending an envoy to the talks, while Addis Ababa seeks to control the mediation and eventual balance of power in the region. One of IGAD’s achievements has been to manage these tensions, thus contain the conflict, but rivalries prevented the HoS from agreeing on final aspects of power-sharing and security arrangements, enabling the warring parties to continue without agreeing.

Three major factors limited IGAD’s mediation and remain a challenge: 1) regional rivalries and power struggles; 2) centralisation of decision-making at the HoS level and related lack of institutionalisation within IGAD; and 3) challenges in expanding the peace process beyond South Sudan’s political elites. Following the oft-violated January 2014 Cessation of Hostilities agreement, the HoS mediation strategy focused on deploying a regional force to create conditions for peace negotiations. When the wider international community stymied the prospective regional force and the situation stabilised by June 2014, leaders could not overcome their divisions to agree on an effective alternate strategy. This undermined the IGAD special envoys, and the warring parties opted instead to engage directly with individual HoS in a series of initiatives in Kampala, Khartoum and Nairobi. IGAD itself had little leverage. For example, despite public threats, the warring parties understood some member states were reluctant to support sanctions, repeatedly called IGAD’s bluff and refused to compromise.

IGAD is important as a forum to regulate the regional balance of power, but it needs high-level support if the region is to reach a unified position on peace. IGAD-PLUS should become a unifying vehicle to engage the ever-shifting internal dynamics in South Sudan more effectively and address the divisions among IGAD members that enable the parties to prolong the war. In particular, the AU high representative might lead shuttle diplomacy within the region to gain consensus on the way forward. A dedicated UN envoy for South Sudan and Sudan should represent the UN in IGAD-PLUS and coordinate the various UN components’ support to the process.

IGAD-PLUS is the proposed bridge between an “African solution” approach and concerted high-level, wider international engagement. If it is to overcome the challenges that bedevilled IGAD, its efforts must be based upon regional agreement and directly engage the South Sudanese leaders with greatest influence through both pressure and inducements. To end this war, a process is needed that seeks common ground, firmly pushes the parties to reasonable compromises, builds on rather than is undermined by the Tanzanian and South African-led reunification process within the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM, the dominant political force in South Sudan), and whose outcome is guaranteed by IGAD, the AU, the U.S and China. The coming weeks will require concerted international action, coordinated with IGAD, to take the final, necessary steps to secure an agreement. Failure to do so will lead to further violence and fracturing in South Sudan and leave the region without an effective mechanism to mediate its own internal divisions, with devastating consequences for the people of South Sudan and the region.

RECOMMENDATIONS

To guide political strategy

To IGAD-PLUS:

1.  Recognise that while the IGAD mediation resolved many of the most contentious political and security issues, further mediation alone is unlikely to resolve the remaining issues, and coordinated pressure and inducements are necessary to reach an agreement.

2.  Keep the region central to the mediation process, because while divisions among IGAD members create an enabling environment for the conflict, sidelining neighbouring states could also.

3.  Agree on a combination of pressure and inducements to bring the warring parties to an agreement, which could include the use of force, UN sanctions and criminal accountability, as well as development and security assistance, an economic bail-out and political guarantees.

4.  Institute a 90-day ceasefire, if the IGAD-PLUS timetable cannot be adhered to, in order to prevent the parties from continuing to fight for additional leverage; and create a time-bound period to finalise an agreement.

5.  As a permitted exception to the UN sanctions regime, IGAD should directly engage with the military leaders of the warring parties.

To IGAD:

6.  Prioritise, at heads of state (HoS) level, agreement on a mutually acceptable transitional governance arrangement.

7.  Provide third-party security to protect the transitional government in such a way as to address the security interests of both Uganda and the Sudan while refraining from encroaching upon South Sudan's security interests and sovereignty.

To the AU:

8.  The AU high representative should directly engage the regional HoS to reduce regional tensions and support regional agreement on the way forward.

To the UN:

9.  A dedicated UN envoy for Sudan and South Sudan should represent the UN in IGAD-PLUS and undertake to coordinate the efforts of UN components and bring them to bear in support of the process.

10.  The UN, under the auspices of the Sudan/South Sudan envoy, should consider presenting IGAD with the tools the UN could offer in support of IGAD-PLUS, including sanctions and an arms embargo (on which the Security Council would need to reach consensus), mandating third-party security for a transitional government, and future development assistance and the timeframes and parameters necessary to mobilise such support.

11.  The meeting on South Sudan to be held by the UN Secretary-General in the margins of the General Assembly in September should be used to take stock of where the process stands and to ensure international support remains well-coordinated.

ICG: Nairobi/Addis Ababa/Brussels, 27 July 2015

17th Sunday in Ordinary Time (B)

Short Reflection for the 17^th Sunday in the Ordinary Time (B)

Readings: 2 Kings 4: 42-44; Ephesians 4: 1-6; John 6: 1-15

Selected Passage: “A large crowd followed Jesus, because they saw the signs he was performing on the sick.”  (John 6: 2)

Reflection: Do people, likewise, see the signs we are performing in the name of Jesus on the poor, the migrants and the excluded in the way we live and minister? Jesus fed a large crowd with five barley loaves and two fish - all they can eat and with surplus.  We can perform the same signs if we share the bounty of God’s gifts with those in need. Visit: www.badaliyya.blogspot.com

16th Sunday in Ordinary Time (B)

Short Reflection for the 16^th Sunday in the Ordinary Time (B)

Readings: Jeremiah 23: 1-6; Ephesians 2: 13-18; Mark 6: 30-34

Selected Passage:  “When Jesus disembarked and saw the vast crowd, his heart was moved with pity for them, for they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things.”  (Mark 6: 34)

Meditation: Jesus’ challenge to us, today, is to do likewise, that is, to have compassion for the people we are sent to minister.  In the midst of uncertainties and and insecurities, the real pastors accompany the sheep and stay with them…

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15th Sunday in Ordinary Time (B)

Short Reflection for the 15^th Sunday of the Ordinary Time (B)

Readings: Amos 7: 12-15; Ephesians 1: 3-14; Mark 6: 7-13

Selected Gospel Passage: “He instructed them to take nothing for the journey but a walking stick - no food, no sack, no money in their belts. They were, however, to wear sandals but not a second tunic.”  (Mark 6: 8-9)

Reflection: Jesus’ instruction to his disciples continues to challenge us both in our life style and ministry. This is a call to a simple life-style! Yet, we have perfected the art of giving ourselves comfort, privileges and entitlements in carrying the mission entrusted to us. Beware!

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Photos from the Diocese of Torit, South Sudan

Dear friends,

Greetings.

Attached are some pictures take during the bishop of El Obeid visit to Torit.

Fr. Jacob
Secretary General

South Sudan: No Sanction without a Strategy

As South Sudan’s civil war continues unabated and multiple peace processes and initiatives create little tangible progress, members of the UN Security Council are seeking to adopt sanctions against six generals, three each from the government and the opposition sides. This would in effect punish past wrongdoing and risk compromising ongoing peace efforts. It would also undermine the renewed impetus for a coordinated international approach to peacemaking in South Sudan. That process remains under the auspices of the regional body, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), which has recently been augmented by a wider grouping, known as “IGAD-PLUS”. Imposing sanctions on these generals at this time would also turn individuals and communities in South Sudan who currently favour a peace agreement against the international community. The Security Council should hold off on this sanctions package and reframe its South Sudan sanctions strategy.

None of the six named generals are responsible for the failure to reach a viable agreement. They are not key political decision makers and do not play major roles in shaping positions at the Addis Ababa negotiations. Most favour a negotiated settlement and their support will be crucial for successful implementation of any peace agreement that is achieved.

The failure of the IGAD-sponsored talks to date has created frustration, but IGAD-PLUS, launched in South Africa earlier this month, seeks to coordinate a more effective and broadly-supported international strategy by bringing in additional important players, including the African Union (AU), the U.S., UK, European Union, Norway and China, among others. IGAD-PLUS can only succeed with coordinated and effective support from its members and the Council. While IGAD, the AU and UN agree that the road to peace undoubtedly requires a combination of pressure and incentives, these proposed sanctions would likely weaken, not reinforce a more strategic approach. A unity of approach is required, not uncoordinated, independent actions that may produce long-term negative consequences for peace prospects.

Sanctions as a means of pressure should:

1. be imposed only when clearly supporting a revitalised peace process;
2. make clear to those targeted what they would need to do to avoid the sanction or have it removed; and
3. provide clear timeframes and benchmarks for such action to be taken.

The sanctions that are being considered meet none of these tests. In seeking to demonstrate the credibility of the Council’s threats, the Council risks achieving the reverse with ill-timed and ill-conceived sanctions. They will not build greater support for an improved peace process, which is the present imperative, and should not be pursued.

(Source: ICG)

13th Sunday in Ordinary Time (B)

Short Reflection for the 13^th week of the Ordinary Time (B)

Readings: Wisdom 1: 13-15. 2: 23-24; 2 Corinthians 8: 7, 9, 13-15; Mark 5: 21-43

Selected Gospel Passage: “She had heard about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak.  She said, ‘If I but touch his clothes, I shall be cured.’  Immediately her flow of blood dried up. She felt in her body that she was healed of her affliction.” (Mark 5: 27-29)

Reflection: In our journey through life, we, too, have experiences of healing touches.  Like the woman in the gospel, we do say… ‘if but I touch his clothes, I shall be cured.’  We should have that faith of the woman, then our healing begins…!

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The Testimony of Paul

St. Paul's following of Christ was NOT an easy one... Here in the reading from 2 Cor 11:18, 21-30, we see his testimony amidst travails...

"Brothers and sisters:
Since many boast according to the flesh, I too will boast.
To my shame I say that we were too weak!

But what anyone dares to boast of
(I am speaking in foolishness)
I also dare.

Are they Hebrews? So am I.
Are they children of Israel? So am I.
Are they descendants of Abraham? So am I.
Are they ministers of Christ?
(I am talking like an insane person).
I am still more, with far greater labors,
far more imprisonments, far worse beatings,
and numerous brushes with death.
Five times at the hands of the Jews
I received forty lashes minus one.
Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned,
three times I was shipwrecked,

I passed a night and a day on the deep;
on frequent journeys, in dangers from rivers,
dangers from robbers, dangers from my own race,
dangers from Gentiles, dangers in the city,
dangers in the wilderness, dangers at sea,
dangers among false brothers;
in toil and hardship, through many sleepless nights,
through hunger and thirst, through frequent fastings,
through cold and exposure.

And apart from these things, there is the daily pressure upon me
of my anxiety for all the churches.
Who is weak, and I am not weak?
Who is led to sin, and I am not indignant?

If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness."

12th Sunday in Ordinary Time (B)

Short Reflection for the 12^th week of the Ordinary Time (B)

Readings: Job 38: 8-11; 2 Corinthians 5: 14-17; Mark 4: 35-41

Selected Gospel Passage: “He said to the sea, ‘Quiet! Be still!’ The wind ceased and there was great calm.” (Mark 4:39)

Reflection: We all experience turbulence and storms in life…  It is during these times that we need to hear, once again, Jesus’ words: “BE QUIET! BE STILL!” Trust in the Lord!

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11th Sunday in Ordinary Time (B)

Short Reflection for the 11^th week of the Ordinary year (B)

Readings: Ezekiel 17: 22-24; 2 Corinthians 5: 6-10; Mark 2_ 26-34

Selected Gospel Passage: “The kingdom of God is like a mustard seed which at the time of its sowing in the soil is the smallest of all the seeds on earth; yet once it is sown it grows into the biggest shrub of them all and puts out big branches so that the birds of the air can shelter in its shade.” (Mark 4: 31-32)

Reflection: The kingdom of God is planted to each one of us at Baptism. Like the mustard seed, the reign of God grows in us through listening to his Word, celebration of the sacraments and through good deeds.  What is important that we should ALWAYS pay attention is the ever increasing presence of God in our lives… both in our words and deeds.

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Feast of Corpus Christi

Short Reflection for the Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ (B)

Readings: Exodus 24: 3-8; Hebrew 9: 11-15; Mark 14: 12-14. 22-26

Gospel Passage: “While they were eating, he took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them, and said, ‘Take it; this is my body.’ Then he took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, and they all drank from it.  He said to them, ‘This is my blood of the covenant, which will be shed for many’.” Mark 14: 22-24)

Reflection: Corpus Christi Sunday reminds us that we are truly “partakers” of Jesus’ Body and Blood.  We are invited to take and eat, that is, his body and blood in the form of bread and wine. As Jesus is broken and shared for the life of many… so are we! Yes, we, too, are called to be ‘broken and shared’ for the life of others, especially those in need…