Portugal, Ireland, Austria

Portugal: solidarity for Cap-VertThe Patriarchate of Lisbon decided to devolve all the offerings collected by Catholic congregations in their “Lenten renunciations” to the diocese of Mindelo, in the island of Cap-Vert. In the message for Lent 2011, published by the weekly “Voz da Verdade”, cardinal Policarpo explained, “A priest from Lisbon, father Ildo Augusto dos Santos, was nominated bishop of the diocese of Mindelo. Thus this year the needs of the Church of Cap-Vert will enjoy privileged support”. The Patriarch’s communication, “We follow the Lord, on the path of New Jerusalem”, refers to the publication of the second volume of the book “Jesus of Nazareth” by Benedict XVI, which contains reference to his visit to Portugal, in May 2010. “The Pontiff – writes cardinal José Policarpo – presents us with the path undertaken by Jesus on earth from his entry to Jerusalem until his Resurrection, acclaimed as Messiah by the pilgrims”. “As our pilgrimage began with the Resurrection, that we share in baptism, just like the first group of faithful we are called to experience the harshness of the Cross, the sadness of refusal and abandonment, the difficulty of continuing to be His disciples: fasting, charity and prayer must be the salient moments of our Lenten period”, underlined the Patriarch of Lisbon. Ireland: end to wartime violence on womenOn March 8, International Women’s Day, the Irish Bishops’ Council for Justice and Peace called for “renewed efforts” by the new government and by the international community to protect women from sexual violence in war”. “We call on the new Government to make the protection of women from sexual violence in war a priority issue”. For the bishops “The work of agencies such as Trócaire in the area of gender equality needs to be adequately supported”. “It is vital that we meet our target of 0.7% of our national income on Overseas Development Assistance by 2015″. The prelates said the new Government should give sustained financial, political and moral support to ‘UN Women'” – the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women, which was established in February 2011, and call for a “National Action Plan for Ireland on UN Security Council Resolution 1325”. Bishop Raymond Field, Chair of the Council for Justice and Peace, said: “As we mark the centenary of International Women’s Day (1911-2011) today, we celebrate the progress that has been made in terms of women’s rights and the economic, social and political achievements of women. The vital contribution that women make to society must be adequately valued and protected”.Austria: the Pope’s reflections available on mobile-phonesA text message with the Pope’s words: it is the initiative of the Austrian Catholic Church, offering the free service during the Lenten period. Every day, starting on March 9, after having registered a request by dialling 0664/6606651, the thoughts of Benedict XVI will be sent on the mobile phone. The messages “provide further impetus for insights into Catholic faith”, underlined on March 8 Paul Wuthe, referent for relations with the media of the Austrian Bishops’ Conference. These text messages are different, as they invite us to slow down our pace and “focus on fundamentals”, namely, on “God and man”, “faith, hope and love”, “prayer”, and “salvation”. The words of the Pope have been drawn from speeches and homilies of the past years. The initiative was inaugurated in 2007 in the framework of the visit of Benedict XVI to Austria four years ago, it was repeated during Lent 2008 and this year it has reached its third edition. “Antenne Wien” network proposes another initiative for Lent, with daily ecumenical reflections in preparation for Easter. Cardinal card. Christoph Schönborn, Archbishop of Vienna was the first guest. Contributions will be given, among others, by Evangelical-Lutheran bishop Michael Bünker, by Caritas director Michael Landau, by the director of the Austrian Biblical Society Jutta Henner, and by Fr. Gottfried Wegleitner, from the Franciscan convent in Vienna. Austria’s Catholic Women movement dedicates this year’s Lenten period to disadvantaged women in the South of the world. The campaign, launched on Ash Wednesday, envisages funding for over 100 projects in Asia and Latin America, literacy programs in India and health prevention programs in the Philippines.