Istanbul: Hagia Sophia to Have a Permanent Imam -- De Facto Transformation Into a Mosque

(Istanbul) Since 2003 when the Islamic Party for Justice and Development (AKP) took control of the government in Turkey under  Recep Tayyip Erdogan, a re-Islamization of the country has taken place.

Since mid-19th century  the expulsion and oppression of Christians had begun. In the decade 1910-1920 the coup de grace against the Christians took place by a cruel and bloody genocide.  Armenians, Greeks and Chaldeans were killed, expelled or forced to convert to Islam. One hundred years ago  in Istanbul, then still Constantinople, it was said that it was half Christians and Muslims. About 25 percent of the residents in the  area of what is now ​​present-day Turkey were still Christians. Today there are only 0.2 percent.

Prestige

The "Prestige" items of Re-Islamization is fulfilled by the conversion of famous ancient Byzantine churches. After the Turkish conquest of the country, they were made into mosques. Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, a representative of a national Turkish secularism, made them museums. For years,  ACP Islamic circles have again called to make them mosques.

Magnificent frescoes in the Hagi Sophia of Trebizond: the four Evangelists surrounded by angels. Mosque since 2012.

In some cases, Erdogan's government is already putting the various proposals into practice.

• The Hagia Sophia of Nicea which was built in the 6th century by Emperor Justinian I.  again became a mosque in 2011.  In 787 it had witnessed the Second Council of Nicaea. In 1337 Nicaea was conquered by the Muslims and made into a mosque. However, the Turks forfeited it and gave it up at  the end of the 19th century. Under Atatürk it became a museum in 1935.
• 2012  Hagia Sophia of Trebizond followed.  It had been built in 1250 by Emperor Manuel I Comnenus on the site of an earlier church. In 1204 the Byzantine Empire had been conquered during the Fourth Crusade. The noble family of Comnenus established the Empire of Trebizond as a successor state. In the new capital, the Hagia Sophia was inspired by the famous model of Constantinople. Trebizond would even last a few more years than Constantinople. In 1461 the small empire on the Black Sea was conquered by the Muslims as well. Since the Basilica was a few kilometers outside the city walls, it was only desecrated in 1511 by the Turks and  converted into a mosque only in 1584. The monastery which was attached to the Basilica was inhabited until the early 18th century by Greek Orthodox monks. The use as a mosque ended in the 50s of the 20th century. In the spirit of Ataturk it was then made into a museum. At the same the church frescoes whitewashed by the Muslims were uncovered again.

Hagia Sophia of Constantinople, the magnificent Basilica of the East

The most significant and magnificent Basilica of the Byzantine Empire, Hagia Sophia of Constantinople is still a museum. The question is: for how long?

The Hagia Sophia was begun under the Emperor Constantine the Great  in 325. Under Emperor Justinian I it took its present form and was consecrated in 537. It is one of the outstanding monuments of late antiquity. The great dome which rests only on four pillars, represents an architectural masterpiece. It was the cathedral of the Patriarch of Constantinople and the coronation church of the Byzantine emperors. For 1128 years,  the Divine Liturgy was celebrated there, of which 916 years was in its form visible today.

After the conquest of Constantinople in 1453 by the Turks, it was desecrated and converted into a mosque in the same year.

The Hagia Sophia, the largest and most splendid Basilica of the East, the imperial church of East Rome was desecrated by the Turks and converted into a mosque after the conquest of Constantinople in 1453. The Christian basilica can be seen today. In the Muslim period, four minarets were built and the cross was replaced on the main dome with the crescent to mark the Islamic conquest. In 1931 it was converted into a museum and is the biggest tourist attraction of Istanbul.

Since 2010 Demand for Renewed Conversion Into a Mosque

Its conversion into a mosque was called for at the political level in 2010. In 2012 an unknown Muslim Turk named Talip Bozkurt from Kahramanmaras in Anatolia, made a proposal in the Turkish Parliament to transform the Hagia Sophia back into a mosque. The suggestion was taken up and entered into parliamentary debate in January 2013.

Hagia Sophia of Nicaea, in 787 meeting  place of a council. Mosque since 2011

The Orthodox Patriarch of Moscow and Constantinople demand its the return to the Christians. If the Hagia Sophia is to be reopened for prayer, then it should be a church again, says Patriarch Bartholomew

Due to its  formative significance on the cityscape of Istanbul, neither Muslims nor Turkish nationalists are ready to return it to the Christians. For the AKP government, the issue of re-Islamization of the monument has a special symbolic meaning. This also applies to the  Prime Minister Binali Yildirim, who was relected in  May. In order to understand the reasoning behind this, the words of the then Deputy Prime Minister of Turkey, Bulent Arinc, on the conversion of Hagia Sophia of Nicaea (Iznik Turkish) in 2011, are useful:

"With this act we have recovered the recognition of our ancestors. The Hagia Sophia of Iznik is the booty of our conquest and as such we have a right to it. A church can be converted into a mosque. "

From a Ramadan Mosque to a Permanent Imam

Last June, the Hagia Sophia was converted to a mosque during Ramadan for a month. This is only a first step, say observers. Since then, imams who entered the Basilica, were there to do two of the five Islamic daily prayers. Now the next step will take place. As the Turkish news agency Anadolu reported, a proposal was made jointly in Constantinople between the State Office for Religious Affairs and the Mufti of Fathi to nominate a permanent imam for the Hagia Sophia who will perform the five-day prayers daily.

With the appointment of Imam, conversion into a mosque is consummated fact, regardless of any  expressed decision.

For now there is still no response from the Greek Government and the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople. Athens has criticized attempts at Islamicization in the past as an "insult to the religious sensibility of millions of Christians", which is all the more serious because these have been "undertaken by a country that wants to join the European Union."

In the European and overall in the international press it is difficult to find mention of these initiatives toward Islamicization. "Not a good sign," writes  Corrispondenza Romana.

Text: Andreas Becker
Image: Wikicommons / MiL
Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com
Link to Katholisches...
AMDG

Cardinal Canizares: "They Will Never Bring Me to Silence"

Valencia's Cardinal Antonio Canizares Llovera has once again criticized gender ideology. This ideology has been destroying the family, so he should not be silent, the Archbishop said.

Family | Valencia - 18/06/2016

[katolisch.de] Valencia's Cardinal Antonio Canizares Llovera has once again criticized gender teaching. "They will not silence me," the clergyman said according to Spanish media reports (Friday). "If I were to be silent, I would be a bad bishop."

He would continue to tell the truth "even if they crucify me". "We need the family, and this ideology destroys it, so we must not be silent, but must react."

Already a few weeks ago, Canizares had spoken in a sermon against "the gender ideology" and the influence "of the gay empire". Homosexual groups and other political groups subsequently filed a criminal complaint against the Cardinal; His words were "full of hatred, homophobic and macho." However, Valencia's archbishop is not willing to withdraw his remarks. "Is it homophobic to defend the family?" he replied.

As early as October 2015, Canizares had made a name for himself when he spoke of an "invasion of immigrants", which could prove to be a "Trojan horse" in the face of the refugee crisis. This gave him harsh criticism and withdrawal demands from several politicians. He then suggested a more moderate tone and called in a message to treat the immigrants with "true charity". (Luk / KNA)

Communist Government of Venezuela Rocked by Massive Protests -- Possible Coup

All the Pope's horses and all the Pope's men, couldn't put poor Maduro together again!

 Edit: Maduro has been globetrotting lately, attempting to gather support for his oppressive regime in various quarters, including fellow traveller, Pope Bergoglio. He may have to go into exile. See the mass demonstrations live, here.

Caracas (AFP) - Opponents of Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro rallied in the streets Wednesday and he convened a crisis security meeting as the leftist leader resisted their efforts to drive him from power.

Thousands of opposition supporters began to gather at seven points around Caracas in the morning and said they planned to march and join up in the east of the capital.

It is a key test of strength in a mounting political and economic crisis that is destabilizing the South American oil producer.

The socialist president and center-right-dominated opposition accuse each other of mounting a "coup" in a volatile country rich in oil but short of food.

Continue... AMDG

Abbott of Mariawald Resigns -- War on Catholicism Continues

Edit: the Trappist Monastery of Mariawald is located in the vicinity of the of Heimbach with 4,400 inhabitants - it lies fifty kilometers southeast of Aachen. This monastery, which has seen some decent growth in the past, has changed over to the Immemorial Rite. The war against Catholicism internally continues.

We're extremely skeptical about any supposed continuation of tradition.  The irony is, this monastery was all but dead before they embraced tradition. The intention now appears to be they are going to make sure it goes back to being dead.

 Reported by Rorate:

In a letter to friends of the Abbey of Mariawald, O.C.S.O. published by Gloria.tv, Abbot Josef Vollberg has announced that he is resigning as abbot. As his reason Dom Vollberg states that he takes this step in order to avoid "the risk... that the abbey could be closed against the will of the community." The abbey will now be ruled by its pater immediatus, Abbot Bernardus Peeters of the Abbey of Koningshoeven in the Netherlands. Abbot Bernardus has appointed Dom Josef to serve as prior of the community after his resignation as abbot comes into effect on the first Sunday of Advent.

There are a lot of other communities that have far more serious problems that aren't being given these sorts of attentions.

Venezuela's President Makes Surprise Visit in the Vatican -- PopeReceives "Oppressors Instead of the Oppressed"

Venezuelan "Bolivian" President Nicolas Maduro at his first audience with Pope Francis in 2013. Maduro gave the pope a picture of the Venezuelan nationalist Simon Bolivar.

(Rome) Yesterday evening, the "Bolivian" President of Venezuela was received in audience in a surprising way by Pope Francis. The Venezuelan opposition accuses the Pope of having received the "oppressor instead of the oppressed."

Nicolas Maduro took over the presidency in 2013 after the death of his predecessor and party boss, Hugo Chavez. Maduro and Chavez belong, by  self-definition, to an "anti-imperialist, anti-capitalist, internationalist, chavist, socialist" Bolivarian revolutionary movement. In 2007 they founded the Venezuelan Socialist Unity Party (PSUV), whose president is Maduro today.

In the past few days, Venezuela's head of state has been touring several countries. He visited Azerbaijan, Iran and Saudi Arabia, where he was received in Riyadh by King Salman ibn Abd al-Aziz. Venezuela has the largest oil deposits in the world and yet the population lives in bitter poverty.

Maduro's parents, his Venezuelan father was Jewish, the Colombian mother Catholic, were already active in the Venezuelan left-wing movement. Nicolas Maduro was baptized and educated Catholic. For a time-long Maduro was the supporter of the Indian guru Sathya Sai Baba, who died in 2011. He describes himself as a Christian.

The Vatican Press Office published the following statement yesterday evening:

"The meeting took place against the backdrop of the worrying situation of the political, social and economic crisis that has permeated the country and which has a strong impact on the daily life of the entire population. In this way, the Pope, who is concerned with the well-being of all the Venezuelans, would continue to offer his contribution to the country's institutionality and to every step that would help solve the open questions and create greater trust between the various sides. He has implores the courage to take the path of honest and constructive dialogue in order to alleviate the suffering of the people, especially the poor, and to foster a climate of renewed social cohesion, which allows us to hope with the hope of the future Nation. "

Maduro and the Vatican "disinformation"

In Venezuela, regime critics have claimed that Maduro was trying to stay abroad as long as possible in order not to face the dramatic problems in the country and the opposition.

Maduro was received by the Saudi king Salman ibn Abd al-Aziz before his surprising stopover in Rome.

On Saturday, when Maduro had already traveled abroad, Pope Francis sent the Apostolic Nuncio for Argentina, Monsignor Emil Paul Tscherrig, to Venezuela to mediate between the government and the opposition. The opposition calls the government a "dictatorship".

Criticism is also loud at the Vatican. The former Allende Minister,  Luis Badilla, who heads the semi-official Vatican press service, Il Sismografo, is said to have ideological sympathies for the Latin American leftist movements and leftist governments. Badilla described the Maduro visit as a "bold gesture" to "meet Pope Francis and talk about the drama of his country."

"Quasi incognito," said Madilla, he arrived in Santa Marta yesterday afternoon, where "he spent a long time talking to the Holy Father and some of his closest collaborators about the dramatic situation in his country." The country is at the "edge of the abyss", according to Badilla. There should be "neither victors nor vanquished", says the former Allende collaborator.

According to circles close to the maduro-critical Archbishop of Caracas, Pope Francis, wants to prevent the foreseeable overthrow of the "Bolivarian" rulers. In Venezuela, the fear is currently being raised that the "Bolivarists" would not accept the now inevitable end of their rule nonviolently.

In any case, Badilla had succeeded in distorting the events by "disinformation" so that the papal reception for the "oppressor" appeared as a "courageous step." The fact is that the "Francis has received the oppressor, but never the oppressed," already twice in audience.

On 9 October, Pope Francis had announced the appointment of a second Venezuelan as a cardinal. On 19 November, Baltazar Enrique Porras Cardozo, the Archbishop of Merida, was elevated to the rank of Cardinal by the Pope. Observers also see in it a papal attempt to support the "Bolivarian" national front. Cardinal Urosa Savino, Archbishop of Caracas and Primate of Venezuela, is the only cardinal in the country, who is known for his critical attitude towards the socialist regime.

Cardinal Urosa Savino had opposed the papal plans for a softening of the marriage Sacrament in the bishop's synod in 2015. The cardinalisation of Archbishop Porras Cardozo has served toward the neutralization of Cardinal Urosa Savino, while the government has received a high-ranking Catholic contact. Critics say that, in support of the Socialist Unity Party PSUV, Pope Francis even seemed to accept the division of the Venezuelan Church in a favorable way.

Text: Giuseppe Nardi

Image: vatican.va/SPA (Screenshots)

Trans: Tancred Vekron99@hotmail.com

AMDG

New Bishop of Ablerga-Imperia to Turn Altars to People -- "I don't like to celebrate Mass on a false altar"

(Rome) The small diocese of Albenga-Imperia on the Italian Riviera was led by Mario Oliveri, one of the most traditional bishops in Italy. In the priestly seminary the seminarians were trained in both forms of the Roman rite. Numerous priests also celebrated in the traditional form of the Roman rite. The bishop promoted the establishment of traditional communities. It's an attitude that brought him some enemies.

A handful of diocesan priests had been opposing the "too conservative" diocesan bishop since Oliveris's appointment by Pope John Paul II. Several times, with the help of a local daily newspaper, the liberal Secolo XIX, they unsuccessfully intrigued against the bishop.

With the election of Pope Francis, the bishops found an ear in Rome

The situation in the internal Church dispute changed suddenly with the election of Pope Francis. The opponents of the bishop suddenly found themselves an ear Rome about the bishop "di stampo tradizionalista" (traditionalist inclination), as he was called. Bishop Oliveri was a member of the Roman Congregation for Divine Worship and the Order of the Sacraments, as well as a member of the Congregation of Clergy.

The beginning of the end of Msgr. Oliveri as diocesan bishop of Albenga-Imperia was the provisional administration by the Congregation of Religious of the Franciscans of the Immaculata, which was imposed in July 2013 with the approval of Pope Francis. Under Bishop Oliveri, the Order had set up three branches in the diocese, as well as the Marian pilgrimage site and Mass locations  in the traditional rite.

Bishop Oliveri was the only bishop to turn to the Holy See in the second half of the year, defending the traditional Father Stefano Maria Manelli. It was a gesture that did not sit well with either the Apostolic Commissioner or the Holy See. The reaction to the episcopal defenses was not long in coming. The Commissioner closed all three religious branches in the diocese shortly before Christmas 2013.

Campaign against Bishop Oliveri

A short time later, the daily Il Secolo XIX, which had already initiated a campaign against the bishop in the previous years, opened a large-scale campaign against Monsignor Oliveri. The newspaper eagerly reported what had been given to it by Church leaders. When the campaign was launched, these insiders apparently had already done some work in Rome, because the newspaper already suggested a possible removal of the bishop.

"Is this the poor church that Pope Francis wishes?"

"Is this the poor church that Pope Francis wishes?" The Secolo XIX revolted by the sight of seminarians in this image with Bishop Oliveri.

"After a long series of scandals involving numerous priests of his diocese," Pope Francis had initiated an investigation.  This is what you can read on the Italian Wikipedia page, which is certainly not a guarantor of neutrality. The reality, however, looks different: big headlines, little content.

Pope Francis had been disturbed the "preference" for baroque chasubles and surpluses with lace, according to Secolo XIX. A reproach, which was supposed to suggest "pomposity", actually meant the rejection of the traditional liturgy.

"Is this the poor church that Pope Francis wants?" The daily newspaper Secolo XIX asked with artificial indignation under the picture here, which shows Bishop Oliveri with seminarians.

"Prayed For Benedict XVI"

Priests were also accused of "inappropriate" behavior, and in cleverly formulated sentences they suggested sexual misconceptions of all kinds. On closer examination of the sentences, no concrete accusations were raised, which would be capable of defending successfully if they were prosecuted for defamation.

Priests would "continue" to pray  for Benedict XVI. raged Secolo XIX, scandalized that  Masses in the traditional rite were close to secret societies ( "semicarbonare", in reference to the Masonic Carbonari in Italy in the first half of the 19th century). In short: the usual ingredients with which secular media nowadays expose a Catholic bishop and Catholic priest to public mockery and leads to social ostracism. Actions of this kind usually take place from antagonistic circles in the Church, who use the help of willing media to carry out their intrigues.

Transitional period 2015: Bishop-Koadjutor Borghetti (front), Bishop Oliveri (behind). 

In his little diocese, Bishop Oliveri had more seminarians than some large dioceses. But even that had to be bad since he was "conservative." In the meantime, seminarians are quite undesired in some "modern" and laity-oriented dioceses. The more seminarians, the more "suspect" is a bishop, he is "Conservative" or - even worse - "traditional." Pope Francis "does not like it", said the Secolo XIX 2014, reporting that the seminarians were  "wearing the most precious surplices" and in the majority coming from "other dioceses". The first accusation is simply silly, as the picture published in the accusation shows (see above). The second is that young men who are called to the priesthood who seek a seminary in which the sacramental priesthood is not questioned and the formation of a priestly self-consciousness is not hampered. Liberal dioceses are not at the same time reproached for the fact that they have more seminarians from Africa than native ones. It is still problematic that in the dioceses of the German-speaking world, a quarter to one third of the total clergy, whether lent or incardinated, come from Poland and Nigeria.

"Excessive attachment to the traditional liturgy"

The accusation collection of the Secolo XIX, which for a whole year was the driving force against Bishop Oliveri, contained in the same paragraph the accusation of having ordained "gay" priests  and ordaining "anti-gays." Both were charged by the newspaper accusingly, whereby - hardly surprisingly - only the allegedly "anti-gay" priests were actually named. The bishop was also accused of having ordained priests who actually take seriously the existence of the devil and hell.

The main assertion can be found only in the last paragraph of a long indictment and slander of the Secolo XIX of October 31, 2014:

"The exaggerated attachment to the traditional liturgy - almost all the altars of the diocese were turned around as a tribute to the Motu proprio [Summorum Pontificum] granted by Ratzinger - will be examined in future by Francis."

With "turned altars" the daily newspaper said that again ad Deum or ad orientem was celebrated and no longer turned to the people according to the Protestant example. This was the real, unheard-of "scandal" of Bishop Oliveri. Bishop Oliveri had been the first diocesan bishop of the world in 2008, according to the motu proprio Summorum Pontificum by Pope Benedict XVI. a pontifical High Mass from the throne. Seven Franciscan nuns of the Immaculata, at that time, made their solemn profession in the Convent of Imperia before the bishop. Someone in the church had been present to observe this unfavorably.

The new bishop: "I do not like to celebrate the Mass on a false altar"

After a year of stiring the pot, Bishop Oliveri was defacto disempowered by Francis on January 10, 2015,  without mentioning reasons, by appointing to him a Bishop Coadjutor. On September 1, 2016 Bishop Oliveri became emeritus, and the Coadjutor, Guglielmo Borghetti became the new diocesan bishop of Albenga-Imperia. In the official language  it was suddenly said that everything would remain the same, with which, after successful settlements, even the believing Catholics would be reassured.

A year and a half later, things are quite different.  Secolo XIX reported on 22 October with satisfaction at the first measures of the new bishop:

"The new course of Borghetti: altar facing the faithful. Stopping the nostalgic priests from celebrating Mass with their backs turned to the people."

Bishop Borghetti is quoted in the Saturday edition with the sentence:

"I do not like to come to parishes and celebrate mass on a false altar: all the churches must have beautiful altars facing the people."

The bishop used the word "posticcio", which means "artificial", "false", "ambiguous".

The Secolo XIX said in the usual aggressive tone:

"No more celebrations with the priest, who turns his back on the people of God, except in small chapels (...) In short, the opening of Benedict XVI. For the Latin Mass has to refer to exceptions, not to a general tendency."

"Little notion of the poor Church of Pope Francis, open to the people of God"

In order to avoid any doubt, Bishop Borghetti promised a drawing that would show the "ideal altar space" according to which the priests would have to address themselves, according to the newspaper.

Of the "sex scandals" drummed up for a whole year, the newspaper knows nothing more than at the appointment of Borghetti as the Coadjutor. A mocking page, however, was also missing in the article of October 22nd. It once again reveals the real, ideologically motivated background:

"Who knows how those priests who have replaced the 'counciliar altar' with the traditional one and who have little idea of ​​the poor Church of Pope Francis and Bishop Borghetti, who have been open to the people of God, have ever anticipated by the Council?"

Whoever defends faith and liturgy in the traditional form has therefore "little knowledge of the poor Church" of Pope Francis and is against the "people of God."

Officially, Bishop Borghetti emphasized several times, not to distinguish between "progressive" and "traditionalists". Such "categories" do not exist for him, but "only Church ecclesiastics. What also applies in the Church is also true in Albenga-Imperia," the bishop said. The rest is a matter of interpretation.

Text: Giuseppe Nardi

Image: Secolo XIX / MiL (Screenshots)

Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com

AMDG

Blasphemous Display Modified in Estonia After Protests

A controversial exhibit altered after protests. It shows a picture of the Virgin on a screen that breaks and is replaced by the lettering 'Reformation'. The change is triggered by a foot pedal.

Tartu (kath.net/LSN/jg) The Estonian National Museum in Tartu has modified a controversial exhibit, which deals with the Reformation. Even Urmas Viilma, the Evangelical-Lutheran Archbishop of Estonia, had previously criticized the work.

In the recently opened museum, a holographic image of the Virgin Mary was displayed on a screen. The base on which the screen was mounted contained a plate. When the visitors put their foot on this plate, the hologram would "break", the screen turned white and the word "Reformation" appeared. After a while the hologram appeared again. On its Facebook presentation, the museum explained that the exhibit was an "artistic representation of the Bildersturm (breaking of images).

The work makes religion ridiculous and offends the religious feelings of believers, criticized Archbishop Viilma, also on Facebook. For many believers, the Virgin Mary is far more than a historical figure. She is still revered and begged for help. She deserves respect.

After protests the plate was removed at the base. The hologram of the Virgin Mary "breaks" and disappears at regular intervals, and the word "Reformation" appears on the screen.

Most Estonians are non-confessional, less than 30 per cent belong to a religious community. The largest community is the Evangelical Lutheran Church, which accounts for 13.6 per cent of the population, followed by the Orthodox Church with 12.8 percent.

Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail

AMDG.

Cardinal Dolan Calls Upon Clinton to Apologize

Clinton's election director Podesta has offended Catholics in internal -- Cardinal Dolan: These utterances are "condescending and offensive"

United States (kath.net)

The New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan (archive photo) has asked the US presidential candidate Hillary Clinton to apologize to Catholics for comments by their campaign director, which were revealed by Wikileaks. John Podesta had expressed the opinion in internal emails that the Catholic religion was a "falsification of faith" and that it was interesting for conservatives, among other things, because it represented "completely outdated gender relations." In order to overcome the resistance of the Church to the "ban on contraception," John Podesta 2012 supported organizations that were to change the Church from within. 

According to Cardinal Dolan, these statements are "condescending and offensive" to Catholics.

The Cardinal added that "within ten minutes" an apology would have come if Podesta's comments  had been referring to the Jewish or the Muslim community.

743 Christian Refugees Have Been the Victims of Assaults in German Asylum Centers -- Open Doors Report

Open Doors makes refugee report.  Within 743 attacks are
reported against Christian refugees in German asylum centers.
The majority have been victims of Muslim "fellow refugees".

(Berlin) The Fund for persecuted Christians Open Doors Germany put together with other aid and human rights organizations report the refugee " Lack of protection of religious minorities in Germany " before. This religiously motivated attacks on 743 Christian refugees are documented and analyzed in German refugee centers.

The report quoted German Interior Minister Thomas de Maizière with the words: "We have underestimated the importance of religion." The Minister was moved to these words in retrospect on the events of recent months.

The  consequences of these findings is reflected "especially in the German refugee centers,"  says Open Doors.  Through the concealment of these facts, has led to many "wrong conclusions" about the reasons there are many attacks directed especially against Christians, which has led to the "neglect in refugee centers" which fails in the  protection of non-Muslim religious minorities from Muslims.

Last May, various aid and human rights organizations have come together, "to draw attention to the clustering of attacks against Christians and other religious minorities in German refugee camps and to demand effective protection measures for them."  The aid and human rights organizations include the Action for Persecuted Christians and Needy (AVC), the International Society for Human Rights (IGFM), Kirche in Not , Open Doors and the Central Committee for Oriental Christians in Germany .

At a press conference on May 9 in Berlin, reports of 231 refugees were submitted reporting "of the massive discrimination,  death threats and violent attacks, which refugees in Germany suffer because of their Christian faith."

This first collection was continued by the participating organizations. The result has now been submitted to "significantly extended data base". "The documented cases demonstrate the continuing unacceptable situation of Christian refugees who are discriminated against, beaten and threatened with death in the German refugee centers as a minority, by Muslim refugees and partly Muslim employees (security guards, interpreters, assistants). Even ten refugees of the Yezidi faith participated in the survey. Their information has been evaluated separately in this report."

Among the 231 Christian refugees whose negative experiences were documented, 512 more cases were added in the months from May to September. In 743 cases there were religiously motivated attacks against Christians, in ten cases against Yazidis. All attacks were carried out in asylum facilities in the Federal Republic of Germany.

The distribution of those affected  shows Berlin with 146 assaults at the top of the negative scale, while in Saxony no assault was revealed.

Of those, there were 314 reported death threats, 44 of sexual assault, 416 of bodily injury. In addition, 615 cases of "other persecution". 83 percent of these affected indicated that "several times" there were assaults.

The Christian refugees  are  "used to being treated as second-class citizens" in majority Muslim homelands. Now they see that they too can find in Germany no effective protection and reporting the violence and death threats to the police have no consequences for the perpetrators, since the Muslim perpetrators are in the majority, and often make counter charges."

In homes and refugee centers in many cases it is not the perpetrators but the victims who are perceived and accused of being "troublemakers". "Lately we are seeing it more and more that Christian asylum seekers are concerned with house bans, because they interfere with the supposedly good coexistence in the homes."

A majority of the surveyed Christian and Yezidi refugees, therefore, are hoping for  "separate accommodation".  Several also asked for  "no Muslim security personnel".

The overall impression:  Muslims are more welcome than Christians or members of other religious minorities in the "Refugee Welcome"-- apparatus.

Text: Andreas Becker
Image: Open Doors (Screenshot)
Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com
Link to Katholisches...
AMDG

Diocese of Fargo Forbids Mass Said Facing Liturgical East

Update: in the last few hours we've got one denial, but we've heard from a very reliable source that this is very much in the works.

A Mass said the way it's supposed to be.

[Fargo, North Dakota] At least four priests of the Diocese of Fargo, North Dakota have been forbidden by edict [at least a letter] from saying Mass the way Catholics have been praying it since the times of the Apostles. It's not difficult to look for the source of such a diabolical animus against the traditions of the Church and the desire to confuse the laity.

The Diocese of Fargo was established in 1889 and includes 30 counties of approximately 35,786 square miles in eastern North Dakota. It has a population of 71,211 Catholics out of a total population of 408,101 (17.5%). There are 132 priests (including active, retired and those serving outside the diocesan area), 42 permanent deacons, 89 religious sisters and 131 parishes in the diocese. (The Official Catholic Directory 2015).

It is headed by Bishop John Thomas Folda, who was ordained for the diocese of Lincoln Nebraska and consecrated bishop on 19 June, 2013. He attended St. Charles Borromeo in Philadephia, which might be the source of his problem. One wouldn't think a protege of Bishop Flavin wouldn't be this bad.

We've gone through the motions and contacted the chancery, but they have not contacted us.

Feel free to contact the diocese about their deplorable ignorance of the traditions of the Church, if you can get through their menu maze. Diocese of Fargo: Liturgy "Expert" 5201 Bishops Blvd. S., Suite AFargo, ND 58104-7605 Phone: (701) 356-7900

Hit List Against "Anti-Bergoglians"? -- Misericordina for Pope Critics

(Rome) In yesterday's Sunday edition of the Turin daily La Stampa that also operates the news site Vatican Insider, two Vaticanists, Giacomo Galeazzi and Andrea Tornielli, published a list of alleged "Francis opponents" in the Catholic Church with great ceremony.  Just as meticulous as arbitrary, the formation resembles a proscription list for future purges. In coming to an end of the Holy Year of mercy a healthy portion of Misericordina will again be leveled against alleged enemies of Pope Francis.

The Progressives and the Conservatives 

The learned political scientist Giacomo Galeazzi (born 1972) worked for six years for the newsroom TG1 of the public service broadcaster RAI 1 (departments abroad and religion). Since 2001 he is an editor of the daily newspaper La Stampa, for which he was described as Vaticanist in 2008. Galeazzi never made a secret of his progressive sympathies.

The learned classical scholar, Andrea Tornielli (born in 1964), began his journalistic career with the publications for  Communion and Liberation (CL) community. From 1992-1996 he was one of the editors of the monthly magazine 30Giorni (English Edition: 30days). This was followed for 15 years as Vatican expert at the rightwing daily newspaper Il Giornale . Since 2011 he is, next to Galeazzi, Vaticanist at the liberal daily La Stampa and coordinator of Vatican Insider .

Giacomo Galeazzi and Andrea Tornielli

In 2005 or 2010 had observers would have said that Galeazzi and Tornielli represented very different positions. Since 2013 they have both been partisans of Pope Francis. While the progressive Galeazzi personally keeps his distance from  the "progressive" Pope, the conservative Tornielli was promoted under Francis even as the house vaticanist  with direct access to the Pope.

In January 2015 Galeazzi and Tornielli submitted their first joint book: "Pope Francis. This economy kills."

Proscription list in the style communist publications of the 70s

Both jointly published yesterday, in the style of communist and neo-Marxist newspapers of the 70s, in two whole newspaper pages,  a list of Catholic publications, organizations and initiatives, which are "dangerous to the unity of the Church and the Pope's health." The headline read: "The anti-Francis-Catholics who are attracted to Putin's power."  "Their aversion to Francis keeps them together," say the authors in the first sentence.

It is "especially shabby," remarked Messa in Latino, that the item appeared at the same time on the Internet site La Nuova Europa (New Europe), published by the Christian Russia Foundation (Christian Russia), a media initiative which was first established, to give the Christians persecuted by communists a voice in Russia.

Ubi solitudinem faciunt, pacem appellant, wrote Tacitus. In this specific context, freely translated, you might say. You make a desert and call it peace. Messa in Latino speaks of a "grotesque and slanderous attack".

There has been an assertion of an "assinational plot" made several times as criticism against conservative Catholics in the past three years. The prelude was made by the Austrian pastoral theologian and former dean of the Catholic Theological Faculty of the University of Vienna. In September 2013 Paul Zulehner was on camera as the inventor of a rumor . The pastoral theologian showed up in an ORF interview,  impressed by the "reforming zeal" of the pope and also "worried" that Francis could be killed. Zulehner knew at once to name the potential offenders, namely "conservative Catholics," for whom the reforms would be "too much". He is still guilty of the malicious, politically motivated insinuation.

The "Anti-Bergoglio-Catholics"

The "unity of the Church" and the "health of the Pope" have been threatened by the "Anti-Francis-Catholics". These are called "Anti-Bergoglio-Catholics" and "Para-Sedevacantists" referring to the characteristics of which they are a part, who "worship" Russia's President Putin and sympathize with the "Islamic and anti-European", "populist" Lega Nord.

The pattern of indictment that applies with respect to Italy by the two Vaticanists, can be transferred to other countries without much imagination.

 Galeazzi and Tornielli wrote:

"The galaxy of dissidence against Bergoglio, ranging from Lefebvrians who have decided to wait for a traditional Pope 'to return to the union with Rome, to the Lega-Catholics put Francis in contrast to his predecessor Ratzinger and have launched a campaign: 'My Pope Benedict.'"

Daring criticism of Pope Francis

The compilation is in reality a motley list of very different Catholic initiatives which, however, have two elements in common with  each other: they are not progressive and have publicly dared to criticize certain actions of Pope Francis.

Proscription?

The authors eagerly seek to throw all initiatives into the same pot, that they are more or less outside the Church. Who does not fit into your picture, must be put in the corner. They have designated the Society of St. Pius X., and this is followed by entities such as the Internet newspaper, La Nuova Bussola Quotidiana or estimable personalities like the editor Riccardo Cascioli, of the Lepanto Foundation and Corrispondenza Romana by the renowned historian Roberto de Mattei, the blog Settimo Cielo of veteran Vaticanist Sandro Magister, the Forum Libertá e Persona ( Freedom and Person).These are all initiatives who stay far away from any cheap polemics.

The list continues with tradition related news sites like Messa in Latino , Chiesa e Concilio post and Riscossa Cristiana and the monthly magazine Il Timone .

Galeazzi and Tornielli point fingers at Cardinals Raymond Burke and Carlo Caffarra, at Archbishop Luigi Negri and Bishop Athanasius Schneider, the liturgist Nicola Bux, Prof. Roberto de Mattei, Antonio Socci and many other more. The reason? They have all been guilty of defending the unchanging doctrine of the Church publicly and draw attention to pieces of evidence pointing in an opposite direction.

Politically Correct Gauntlet

The authors do not skimp on topics where those listed will be struck with clubs of political correctness before the audience: "Para-Sedevacantists", "Lefebvrian," "Islamophobic", "anti-European" and finally - they want to play it safe - even "Putin admirers". Already it is apparent in the title that the whole "galaxy" is assumed to be financed through murky channels issuing from Moscow.

The page Messa in Latino took it with humor: "We need to improve our internal secret service, because we have not even been noticed yet by the cash flows from Moscow. We will give you the account numbers and accept the benevolent euros and rubles."

At the same time they called upon Canon 212, paragraph 3 of the Code of Canon Law  that holds explicitly that each Catholic has the right, where it is necessary, to criticize the ecclesiastical authority, and the Pope.

Galeazzi and Tornielli see in the listed other hand, "revolutionaries", "coup plotters" and "Putin Cronies."

One should notice: If a close papal confidant like Tornielli swings into such a sweeping attack, it means that there is a rough wind coming to Rome from Pope Francis.

Text: Giuseppe Nardi
Image: MiL / La Stampa (Screenshots)
Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com
Link to Katholisches...
AMDG

"En Route" -- In January a New Interview Book by Andrea Tornielli with Pope Francis

Pope Pope Francis and the House Vaticanist

(Rome) On Sunday, he published together with his colleague Giacomo Galeazzi a kind of list of proscriptions for the Pope's critics. Yesterday, the publishing house Piemme announced that it will write a new book on Pope Francis.

We're talking about Andrea Tornielli, who holds the office of unofficial papal house Vaticanist since 2013. The new book, which will be released in January 2017 is entitled "In viaggio" (En Route). The book will be a "long, exclusive interview with Francis contained, as the publisher announced."

Andrea Tornielli and Pope Francis are to repeat the recipe which led to the worldwide success with the book at the beginning of 2016 "Il nome di Dio è Misericordia"  (The Name of God is Mercy), which has appeared in 100 countries and has been translated into 35 languages.

The year 2016 was marked by new releases into the book market by four ecclesiastical personalities of the highest order.  It all started in January, Pope Francis, followed in April by Prefect Gerhard Cardinal Müller with his Spanish language book "Informe sobre la Esperanza" (State of the Hope).

In September Benedict XVI followed with his interview book, "The Last Conversations" with Peter Seewald, and finally in October, Cardinal Prefect Robert Sarah with the book submitted in French "La Force du Silence" (The Power of Silence).

While the interview books  by Francis and Benedict XVI. were simultaneously published in several languages,  translations of the other two books are in preparation. All four are conceived to develop an international effect.

Pope Francis also wants  to release another interview book in  2017 that will explain from the pen of Andrea Tornielli what Pope Francis intends for the Catholic Church. According publishing information the book has caused quite an international stir among publishers even before tomorrow's opening of the Frankfurt Book Fair. "First offers" for translations into other languages have already been received, says Piemme .

Text: Giuseppe Nardi
Image: SMM / Piemme (screenshots)

Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com

Link to Katholisches...

AMDG

New Black Pope With Marxist Past -- New Jesuit General Superior Elected

Civilita Católica Editor, Antonio Spadaro taking selfie with new Jesuit
General after his election.

(Rome) The new "Black Pope" is a Venezuelan. The Society of Jesus (Societas Jesu), better known as the Jesuits, elected Fr. Arturo Marcelino Sosa Abascal on Friday, October 14th, as the new religious superior, which the Jesuits officially call the Father General. The Vaticanist, Sandro Magister, drew attention to the Marxist past of the new General, after learning of the election.

Arturo Sosa is the 31st General since 1541. He represents about 16,500 Jesuits worldwide. In 1965, the order reached its historic peak with 36,000 members, followed by a rapid decline in the last half century. The Order was suppressed in 1773, and was not restored until 1814. The present order therefore corresponds to before abolition around 1630 and since the restoration of that around 1900. The first religious order was founded by St. Ignatius of Loyola, who directed the Order from 1541-1556.

The Jesuits do not have their own religious dress. For them, therefore, the black soutane of the world clergy is regarded as a religious habit. Because of the importance of the Order and the fourth vow of the Order, with which the Jesuits expressly pledge themselves to be loyal to the ruling Pope, and because they are dressed in black, while the Popes are dressed in white, the head of the  Order is often called the "Black Pope."

A Jesuit General is elected for life and has full decision-making power. The new election had become necessary, because the 30th General, the Spaniard elected in 2008, Adolfo Nicolás Pachón, had offered his resignation in 2014 to Pope Francis for 2016. The 35th General Chapter in the History of the Jesuit Order chose the Sosa, born in Caracas on November 12, 1948, to be the new religious order for life.

"Marxist mediation" of the Christian faith "necessary"

"The mediaeval marxista de la Fe cristiana" (the Marxist mediation of the Christian faith), was the unusual title of an essay, published by the contemporary Jesuit General, Arturo Sosa, in the journal SIC of the Centro Gumilla de Investigacion y Accion Social, as well as the Gumilla Jesuit Center  in Caracas, was headed by him from 1979-1996 before he became the Rector of the Catholic University of Táchira, one of the most western states of Venezuela, founded in 1962 in San Cristobal, the capital of the state. Father Sosa became Provincial of the Jesuit Order for Venezuela in 1996, an office he held until 2004 when he was sent to the USA.

Sosa's Marxist essay of 1978

"What is curious about this article," says Magister: "It was published in the internet archive of the magazine with the underlines and remarks of a confrere of Father Sosa, who radically differed on this topic from the current order.

Sosa's Marxist Essay

The article was published in 1978. "Since then much water" has flowed down the Tiber and also the Orinoco. "It is difficult to say how much of the theses then expressed would be signed by Father Sosa," said Magister. The 70s and early 80s were very restless. "Marxism was the duty of the rebel movements in the Third World, including the Catholic," the Vatican says.

The fact is that Father Sosa at that time declared a "Marxist mediation of the Christian faith" not only "legitimate", but "necessary". The Jesuit general has now went so far as to accept the criticism of atheist Marxism, since, according to Father Sosa in 1978, he did not criticize the "true God", but only a false god who was created by capitalist thought and bourgeois society.

 Father Sosa

Philomarxist dialectics of the "true" and "false" God

Sosa's language is that of Marxist liberation theologians. The logical consequence of this thought came from the Swiss Capucin, Walbert Bühlmann, who died in 2007, who, shortly before the collapse of the Communist Eastern bloc, defended Christian persecution by means of socialist dictatorships in Africa. According to Bühlmann, "only" those who were the "counterrevolutionary" Christians, who were not "real" Christians were persecuted, because the "true" Christians were on the side of the "revolution". Father Sosa's language of 1978 is in the same direction.

"Many things have happened in Latin America and Venezuela," says Magister. "In his last article, published by SIC in May 2014, Father Sosa condemned, without any ifs or buts, the "etatist revolution" imposed on his homeland by Hugo Chavez and his successors." In 2014 Sosa spoke of a "totalitarian dictatorship" By an instrumentalization of plebiscites, to establish a "tyranny of the majority" as a democracy.

A new Superior General was concerned only "with politics and social sciences"

In the election of October 14, 2016, however, it is astonishing that "the Jesuits, as the first Jesuit reigns as a pope, have chosen a confrere for Superior General, who has written and discussed all his life only on politics and social sciences," says Magister .

The new General (center) with Pope Francis and his predecessor
Adolfo Nicolas (right)

On the website of the Centro Gumilla, a CV of Father Sosa can be found. In the 40 lines, the word "politics" is found 19 times, while the word "theology" occurs only once, and only in connection with his earliest academic activity.

Politics has always been the subject of his teaching activity both at Georgetown University in Washington, where he was appointed in 2004, as well as for the Venezuelan General Staff and the Military Academy of the Venezuelan Air Force (Comando y Estado Mayor and Escuela Superior de la Fuerza Aérea Venezolana), where he taught from 1985-1994.

The Centro Gumilla was founded in 1968 on the initiative of the 28th Jesuit General Pedro Arrupe (1965-1983, in fact only until 1981) as the first Latin American project for political and social studies. The Center took over the publication of the magazine SIC, the oldest  publication still in circulation of Venezuela, dealing with political and social issues. The main focus has been on trade unions and cooperative societies, liberation theology and the implementation of ecclesiastical social doctrine in Latin America "under the banner of social justice."

Father Sosa was a religious monarch, like Pope Francis. It is not known whether Pope Francis, the first Jesuit on the throne of Peter, has influenced the election of the Order. However, the politicalization of the Order, embodied by Father Sosa, is reflected in a general politicization of the Catholic Church, launched by Pope Franziskus in 2013. This is a politicization with a strongly left-handed impact.

Text: Giuseppe Nardi

Image: Wikicommons / Settimo Cielo / Vprensa (screenshot) 

Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com

AMDG