Amélie de la Hougue, Author at ZENIT - English https://zenit.org/author/aze-org/ The World Seen From Rome Mon, 13 Jan 2020 07:45:08 +0000 es hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.7.1 https://zenit.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/8049a698-cropped-dc1b6d35-favicon_1.png Amélie de la Hougue, Author at ZENIT - English https://zenit.org/author/aze-org/ 32 32 Message from CELAM: ‘Let us walk and pray together for peace in the world’ https://zenit.org/2020/01/13/message-from-celam-let-us-walk-and-pray-together-for-peace-in-the-world/ Mon, 13 Jan 2020 07:45:08 +0000 https://zenit.org/?p=130466 Join Pope's Appeal for Peace

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«We join together in prayer with the Pope, we reject all forms of violence and social division, and we ask the great nations of the world, in particular, their rulers, for mutual respect, harmony, and good understanding, and not to spare every effort to avoid a scenario of greater tension». With these words, the Presidency of CELAM, the Latin American Episcopal Council, addresses the people of God and the Episcopal Conferences of Latin America and the Caribbean, with a message entitled «Let us walk together for peace in the world». Fides News Agency reported the statement.

The message invites us to pray for peace in the world, so that the conflicts that make families and entire populations suffer end, and «in particular, for the serious tension that is being experienced between various countries: war brings only death and destruction». Joining the Pope’s appeal, the Presidency of CELAM invites all parties involved to «give priority to the path of dialogue, the peaceful resolution of disputes and the unconditional respect for international law».

«Let us walk and pray together – they urge – so that in our history we never have to be ashamed of the way in which one human being has eliminated the other because they were not able to dialogue and find the way to walk together». Finally, the Presidency of CELAM invites the Bishops’ Conferences of Latin America and the Caribbean and the entire world to promote days of prayer for peace, invoking «Most Holy Mary, Queen of Peace» to «grant us this gift».

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In Cameroon, ‘Everyone Is Afraid of Suicide Bombers’ https://zenit.org/2016/03/08/in-cameroon-everyone-is-afraid-of-suicide-bombers/ Tue, 08 Mar 2016 11:54:16 +0000 https://zenit.org/?p=81328 Bishop Bruno Ateba Edo of Diocese of Maroua-Mokolo Speaks About Terrorist Attacks in His Region, Boko Haram

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On Friday Feb. 19, 2016 a double suicide bombing in a marketplace in Mémé in northern Cameroon claimed the lives of at least 20 people and left several dozen injured. The attack, by two female suicide bombers, is thought to have been the work of Boko Haram. According to the government, more than 1200 people have been killed since 2013 in the extreme northern region of the country. Bishop Bruno Ateba Edo of the Diocese of Maroua-Mokolo, which covers this region, spoke with international Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need.
Q: Ware these attacks meant to be targeting?
Bishop Ateba Edo: It’s the entire population they are targeting! Whether they are Muslims, Christians, or animists, it’s the entire population you are attacking in a crowded marketplace!
Q: How are the people of Cameroon reacting?
Everybody is afraid of the suicide bombers. There is a kind of psychosis. Whenever people gather together, as they do at markets, people don’t know who is who, and it is impossible to keep tabs on everyone… In the villages they have set up community watch committees in an attempt to protect these places, but despite that, attackers are frequently able to infiltrate.
Q: Are you witnessing an exodus of the population in northern Cameroon?
The suicide bombers generally work along the frontier, except that occasionally there are attacks elsewhere—as in fact happened at Mémé, which is about 22 miles from the border with Nigeria. Many people are taking shelter in Maroua, which is the major town in the area and a little further inland. It is generally safer in the towns; the problem is nearer to the border, because it is very porous.. Here the same major ethnic group, the same family is often in different countries, with the uncle in Cameroon, the sister in Nigeria … Sometimes even part of one house is in Cameroon and another part in Nigeria.
Q: Have relations change between Muslims and Christians with the spread of Boko Haram?
There is a good dialogue between the Christians and the Muslims, and good collaboration. For example, the children of the village chief often attend our Catholic schools. We are all afraid of the suicide bombers, whether we are Muslims or Christians.
Q: Observers claim that Boko Haram seems to be weakening. What do you think about that?
Militarily speaking, they are already defeated. But there are still the suicide bombers. Previously there were armed attacks, but now there are these isolated bombing.
Q: What is the Church doing to reassure the faithful?
We are preaching hope and we are praying for peace. We have a prayer for peace which I myself composed, and we pray it every day after Holy Mass. We have also called upon our Catholic faithful to show acts of mercy towards the refugees—both the internally displaced and the refugees from Nigeria. We tell our people that despite the suicide bombers, and despite the war, our prayers will help us greatly.
 

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