CHURCHES IN BRIEF" "
Czech Republic: beatification of Fr. Josef ToufarThe Czech Bishops’ Conference approved the beginning of the diocesan phase of the beatification process of Fr. Josef Toufar during this week’s plenary session in Prague. “Fr. Toufar has been venerated by the faithful in Czech Republic since his death, which is very important in the process”, says Mons. Jan Vokál, bishop of Hradec Králové, explaining his proposal to examine the life and work of the priest thoroughly. Fr. Toufar was tortured to death by the communists when they tried to make him confess that he fraudulently arranged the unexplainable movement of the cross on the altar in his church in Cíhost, on the basis of instructions from the Vatican. When he refused to confess such lie, he was tortured for one month and died as a result of serious injuries. The communists then used his case to start start political trials against the Catholic clergy with aim to disintegrate the Church in former Czechoslovakia. “I am convinced that Fr. Toufar suffered for his faith and for the Church”, adds bishop Vokál.Ukraine: Latin Catholics ask for investigation on injured nunsUkrainian Roman Catholics addressed the police with a call to make all necessary steps to investigate properly the incident regarding the Church of St. Francis of Assisi in Kyiv. Ordinary Bishop of the Roman Catholic Church (RCC) in Ukraine, Petro Malchuk, Auxiliary Bishop of Kyiv Zhytomyr Diocese of RCC, Stanislav Shyrokoradiuk, Senior Priest of the Parish of St. Francis, Fr. Francis Botwin and Press-Secretary of the province of St. Archangel Michael of the Franciscan Order, Fr. Patrik Olikh held a press conference in this regard on April 19. The RCC reps of reminded that on April 16, during the evening prayer, at the site of construction of the Catholic Church of St. Francis in Kyiv unknown persons wounded two nuns with a pneumatic weapon. One was shot in the hand and another one in the nose. The police and an ambulance were called at once. One nun was operated on and a bullet was removed from her nose. However, the police reduced the incident to disorderly conduct. “On April 17, mass media spread a statement of the press service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs stating that nothing happened there in reality. The police said to journalists it was disorderly misconduct and that there were no shots fired near the church”, said Fr. Patrik Olikh. The Catholics were surprised at such a development. “How can one make a statement before the completion of the medical examination of the victim? For x-rays and other examinations detected metal objects in the soft tissues of the face. The bullets were removed only today, on April 19. One can see them in the photos”, commented the minister. The spokesman of the Franciscans reported that they suspended the construction of the church and offered the local residents to set up a special group for negotiations to relieve the tension and reach agreement in a lawful way.Slovakia: conference on gender issuesThe Bishops’ conference of Slovakia organized an international conference about the attitude of the Catholic Church towards gender ideology, entitled “Understanding of Human Dignity”. The event took place on 26 April in Bratislava and the list of guest speakers included also representatives of the Holy See. President of the Pontifical Academy for Life, Mons. Ignacio Carrasco de Paula, spoke about gender equality and its consequences. Mons. Jean Laffitte, secretary of the Pontifical Council for the Family, delivered a lecture on marriage and family in the culture of relativism. Participants of the conference were greeted by apostolic nuncio to Slovakia, Mons. Mario Giordana and president of the Bishops’ conference of Slovakia, Mons. Stanislav Zvolenský. “There are two factors influencing spreading of ideology of gender equality in our country. Secularization, which in its radical form tries to push the religion on the margin of the society. This process has caused that we can hardly find any big value that wouldn’t be questioned”, says Mons. Zvolenský, expressing his concern over the growth of number of people who “don’t believe in possibility of knowing the truth, who believe only in freedom”. Another factor is the membership of Slovakia in the European Union (EU). “On one side we appreciate the process of European integration. We realize that Slovakia can play a significant role in relations towards the countries of middle and eastern Europe, especially in these times of financial crises. But our membership has also disadvantages”, continues president of the Bishops’ conference, mentioning the pressure of European structures on adjustment of laws regarding cultural and ethical questions in Slovakia. Slovak MEP Anna Záborská, member of the Committee for Women’s Rights and Gender Equality within the European Parliament, focused her lecture on current European legislation in regard to the above issues. As she emphasized, “there are no women’s nor men’s rights, no special rights for the people with different sexual orientation. There are only natural rights for every human being and only in these rights we all are equal”. According to Záborská, people should voice their right to natural understanding of human identity, marriage, family and interpersonal relations. “Slovakia has no legal obligation towards EU in regard to acceptation of gender ideology. We have opportunity to directly influence and change the face of future European legislation, which means a deal of responsibility for us”, concluded MEP.
