Terrorism
“I cry out to God, with all people of good will. And I would invite non-believers, too, to join in the cry”. This message of pain was issued by the Archbishop of Rouen, Monsignor Dominique Lebrun, a few hours after the massacre perpetrated this morning in his diocese, in the small church of Saint-Etienne du Rouvray. The 84-year-old parish priest, Fr. Jacques Hamel, had his throat slit by two attackers who were then neutralised by the police. Mgr. Lebrun, who was in Krakow to attend World Youth Day, is now travelling back to his diocese where he is scheduled to arrive tonight. “Let us pray with the WYD youth – the Bishop wrote – as we have also prayed at the tomb of Fr. Popiulusko in Warsaw, who was murdered under the Communist regime”. The Vicar General, Fr. Philippe Maheut, went to the scene shortly after this tragedy began to unfold. The Bishop stated: “Tonight I will be in my diocese with the families and the parish community who are under shock”. And he went on to say: “The Catholic Church cannot take weapons other than those of prayer and brotherhood among men. I leave here hundreds of young people who are the future of humanity, the true humanity. I ask them not to give in to violence and to become apostles of the civilization of love”.
