Christian Perspectives

‘Christian presence in Holy Land vital’

The survival of Christian communities in the Middle East is of “vital importance,” Pope Benedict XVI told a gathering of Catholic bishops in Jerusalem on Tuesday.

“Catholic communities in the Holy Land... in their faith and devotion, are like lighted candles illuminating the holy places that were graced by the presence of Jesus our living Lord,” he said.

“This presence is of vital importance for the good of society as a whole,” the pontiff told an assembly of bishops from several Catholic denominations in the room in the Old City where Jesus is believed to have held the Last Supper. Concern over the fate of the region’s rapidly dwindling Christian communities has been at the heart of Benedict’s week-long visit to Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian territories, his first since becoming pope.

“Christians in the Middle East, together with other people of good will, are contributing as loyal and responsible citizens, in spite of difficulties and restrictions, to the promotion and consolidation of a climate of peace in diversity,” he said.

“I express with affection my personal closeness in this situation of human insecurity, daily suffering, fear and hope (in) which you are living.”

The Palestinian Christian population in the occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip has shrunk rapidly in recent decades as economic stagnation and political unrest have fuelled emigration.

The second Palestinian uprising in 2000 saw Israeli forces sweep through the West Bank in fierce battles with Palestinian militants who unleashed a wave of suicide bombings inside Israel.

And the construction of Israel’s controversial separation barrier beginning in 2004 has cut off large parts of the West Bank from Israel and from neighbouring Palestinian areas, severely restricting commerce.

Church officials estimate that since 2000 some 4,000 Christians, most of them educated professionals, have left the occupied West Bank, where the Christian community is about 40,000-strong.

The Christian population in Gaza, with a mere 2,500 living among 1.5 million Muslims, is particularly vulnerable, as the territory has been shut off from all but vital aid since the Islamist Hamas movement seized power in June 2007.

JERUSALEM, AFP

Weekly devotions:

Bread of Life

Luke 10: 38-42

As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made.

She came to him and asked “Lord don’t you care that my sister had left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!” “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “You are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”

How many of us are guilty of choosing incorrectly. It seems perfectly legitimate that Martha should worry about serving people with food and drink and catering to the crowd.

She comes out as a responsible person in our eyes and Mary a lazy, easy-going one who goes and sits down not caring about the guests and not worrying about giving her sister a hand and yet the Lord indicates that she made the right choice. What was so right about her choice?

Mary chose to feed her spirit rather than her body. She felt to miss out on what Christ was about to say would be to starve her spiritual mind.

This applied to everyone - food and drink was not the important issue here, The Bread of life was present amongst people to minister there - to realize this and not to miss out on the spiritual food that was to be served by our Master certainly was much more important than anything our physical body required.

Martha was so concerned with her guests - she was complaining that Mary chose to ignore helping her. Martha was agitated as her eyes were on other things. She was distracted from listening to Jesus and her mind was on pleasing the crowd to their physical needs.

What the Lord was going to share with the crowd were deep, life changing words which had eternal value whereas the food that Martha was catering to the crowd was of temporal value and the Lord’s instructions were irreplaceable and Martha could not see it! Mary on the other hand was the one who made the right choice here.

We will be amazed at the things that the Holy Spirit points out that are wrong choices. Are we ready to open our hearts to Jesus to allow him to discard certain things we think are important in order to fix our eyes on Him?

Prayer:

Father, help me to see the wrong choices I make - they seem reasonable and legitimate but what are your thoughts about this Lord - am I getting distracted by service to others and catering to the wrong needs when my eyes should be fixed on you? Father, make me understand that whatever I place before you, barricading giving you my first preference, is hurting you because I am not doing your will by this, and therefore Holy Spirit help me to get my priorities right and please you in my walk with you. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Sunitha Sahayam

New church of Our Lady of Sorrows

The new church of Our Lady of Sorrows, also known as Mater Dolorosa will be blessed and dedicated by Archbishop Oswald Gomis on Saturday, May 16 at 5.00 p.m.

The Parish Priest Rev. Fr. Newman Muthuthamby (OMI) realised the necessity and the potential for the formation of the faithful and took steps in 2004 to acquire a property adjoining the church and annexed it. Although it started as a renovation project, it became an entirely larger church and was designed and built on a fast track.

The main contractor, Lal Fernando, the Chairman of Uni-Eff (Pvt) Ltd. accomplished the task on schedule.

Today this church stands as proof of continuous prayer of the faithful. Every member of this parish and former parishioners who reside elsewhere and those overseas have contributed their mite towards this endeavour.

The new church can accommodate 1,400 persons. It is rectangular in shape with an elevated platform on which the altar stands. A dome in Sri Lankan architectural style adorns the church.

This church which was originally built in 1820 is one of the few of its period still existing with its original name and fame. The new church retains much of its original appearance, including its entrancing facade.

Bearing the name “Mater Dolorosa”, the church art depicts Mary as a sorrowful mother at the foot of the cross, and in some instances, bearing the life-less body of her son Jesus.

Due to the increased needs of the faithful of this part of the city, this church was raised to the position of a parish church in 1990 by the then Archbishop Nicholas Marcus Fernando, thus becoming the 105th parish in the Archdiocese.

DJ

Contemplative life

Some Christians believe that the contemplative life belongs to priests, nuns and so on. Absolutely that is a wrong belief. In fact the contemplative life belongs to every Christian. God had sent into this world to share His love. Therefore we as His children have a great right to communicate with God. Eventhough we are unable to accept it and we neglect His relationship.

We as human beings have many mistakes. Keeping these mistakes we are unable to reach God. So we should dispel our sinfulness in toto. After wards we can assure the real friendship with God, our Father. he likes to see our spotless life after receiving his forgiveness.

We should carry the responsibility for our own sins. Moreover we must combat and refuse our sinful situation in our hearts and minds. The Holy spirit always touch our lives.

Because of the contemplative life our freedom never vanishes at all. But some Christians do not like contemplative life because of their ignorance. God never condemn the free will of his sons and daughters. We always remember that, Holy Spirit drench us our feelings, emotions, minds and hearts.

As Christians, all of us are priests. Officially we can’t act as priests. But as lay people we can be active priests. Which comes from God. According to second Vatican Council every Christian is a priest. Jesus commenced priesthood on Maundy Thursday.

We as impure persons, have to obtain the sacrament of reconciliation (confession). Through the confession we assertain the power of God of refusing the sin. That is why God likes to see his children as pure persons. -

Malintha Bopearatchy.

Jordan site said to be Jesus’ baptism place

Bethany beyond the Jordan, a site on the east bank of the Jordan River that Pope Benedict visited on Sunday, claims to be the exact spot where Jesus was baptised.

Extensive excavations since the mid-1990s have unearthed ruins of churches, baptismal pools and caves that show it was a Christian pilgrimage site as early as the fourth century.

Here are a few facts about Bethany beyond the Jordan:

John’s Gospel (1:28) says John the Baptist baptised Jesus in “Bethany beyond the Jordan,” a name distinguishing it from Bethany village near Jerusalem where Jesus was said to raise Lazarus from the dead. That situated the site on the east bank of the Jordan but the exact spot was not known.

Over the centuries, churches for pilgrims were eventually built on both sides of the Jordan. One west bank site, now called Qasr al Yahud, was assumed to be the baptism site. Both banks were closed military zones between 1967 and an Israel-Jordan peace treaty in 1994. Two years later, Jordanian archaeologists following John’s Gospel and accounts by ancient pilgrims began digging at the Bethany site.

On his Holy Land pilgrimage in 2000, Pope John Paul said Mass at Bethany beyond the Jordan but also made a quick visit to Qasr al Yahud while touring the Palestinian territories. Pope Benedict plans to visit only the Jordanian site, indirectly bolstering its claim to be the true location.

The site stands on a wooded flood plain several metres higher than the present-day Jordan River, which is much lower than it was in biblical times because dams upstream divert water for industrial and agricultural use.

At the site where a stream meets the Jordan, a marble stairway leads down to the baptismal pool. Accounts from ancient pilgrims said the faithful would descend the stairs to bathe in the water.

The baptism site itself has ruins of five churches. The area also has ruins of two monasteries, a cave church and cells for monks, two other churches and baptismal pools.

Reuters

Pope wades into the heart of Mideast conflict

Pope Benedict XVI waded into the heart of the Middle East conflict on Tuesday, calling for the faithful to overcome past discord and reiterating the Church’s commitment to reconciliation with Jews.

“Here the path of the world’s three great monotheistic religions meet, reminding us what they share in common,” he said as he became the first pope to visit the Dome of the Rock shrine inside the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, a site holy to Jews and Muslims.

“This sacred place serves as a stimulus, and also challenges men and women of goodwill to work to overcome misunderstandings and conflicts of the past and set out on the path of a sincere dialogue,” he said.

The pontiff arrived at the Dome of the Rock early on Tuesday, taking off his red shoes before entering the shrine whose huge golden cupola has become Jerusalem’s main distinguishing landmark.

The compound in which it stands in the Old City is the holiest place in Judaism and third-holiest in Islam and has often been a flashpoint in the Middle East conflict, most recently when the second Palestinian uprising erupted there in 2000.

Snipers scanned the area from atop minarets and helicopters hovered above as Israeli security swarmed the plaza that overlooks the Wailing Wall, a sacred area that is a top pilgrimage site for Jews where the pope headed next.

“God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob ... send your peace upon this Holy Land, upon the Middle East, upon the entire human family,” the pope wrote on a piece of paper that he stuck in the cracks of the ancient wall.

The Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, Mohammed Hussein, urged the pontiff to work to end Israeli “aggression” against Palestinians. “We look forward for your holiness’s effective role in putting an end to the ongoing aggression against our people, our land, and our holy sites in Jerusalem, Gaza and the West Bank,” he said.

JERUSALEM, AFP

Jerusalem Mufti urges pope to work to end Israeli ‘aggression’

Jerusalem Grand Mufti Mohammed Hussein on Tuesday called on the pope to work to end Israeli “aggression” after Benedict XVI became the first pontiff to enter the Dome of the Rock.

“We look forward for your holiness’s effective role in putting an end to the ongoing aggression against our people, our land, and our holy sites in Jerusalem, Gaza and the West Bank,” the mufti said.

The highest Palestinian Muslim official spoke after giving Benedict a tour of the Dome of the Rock, the third holiest site in Islam. Benedict was the first pope to enter the building, which is usually closed to non-Muslims.

Jews consider the plaza on which the gold-domed mosque stands to be their holiest site, the location of the Second Temple which was destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD.

The mufti appealed for inter-faith dialogue “towards the best interest of humanity through the common principles and values that Islam embraces.”

“Indeed it urges adherence thereto far from the negative image that some people have of Islam, falsely accusing it of violence and terrorism,” he added.

He went on to recite a list of complaints about Israeli policies in annexed east Jerusalem, including the construction of settlements in and around the city and archaeological projects he said threatened Muslim holy sites.

“Our Palestinian people are deprived of the sense of safety and security and of its basic rights as a result of the Israeli occupation,” the mufti said.

The visit came one day after a prominent Palestinian sheikh lashed out at Israel during inter-faith talks with the pope, angering the Vatican.

Sheikh Taiseer al-Tamimi, who heads the Palestinian Authority’s Islamic courts, commandeered the microphone after the pope spoke, saying Christians and Muslims must work together against Israel.

“We struggle together and we suffer together from the injustice of the Israeli occupation and its oppressive practices,” said Tamimi, who is known for his vitriolic attacks on Israel and was not scheduled to speak at the meeting.

Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi sharply criticised the remarks in a statement, calling them “a direct negation of what dialogue should be.”

The pope was in Jerusalem as part of an eight-day tour of the Holy Land — his first since becoming pontiff — that is taking him to sites sacred to Jews, Christians and Muslims in Jordan, Israel and the occupied West Bank.

Following talks with the mufti, the pope headed to the Western Wall just below the mosque compound, the top pilgrimage destination for the world’s Jews.

Later in the day Benedict will celebrate mass in a valley located between the Mount of Olives and the walls of the Old City.

JERUSALEM, AFP

Habitat International Lanka commemorate founder

Dilwin Mendis Moratuwa special correspondent

A memorial service was held at the New Hope Church, Moratuwa to commemorate the life and service of Dr. Millard Fuller who is the founder and President of Habitat and Humanity International. He was also the Founder and President of Fuller Center for housing in Americus Georgia, United States until his demise.

Through this Ministry thousands of needy people all over the world including Sri Lanka have obtained a decent place to live.

Another thanks giving service was held in Ehenezer Baptist Church, Atlanta in United States.

Among the speakers were the former President of USA Jimmy Carter who was a close associate of Millard and having worked together with Habitat for Humanity International for many years. Both of them have visited many countries to serve needy people.

Rev. R.S. Fernando, Chairman of the United Christian Fellowship of Sri Lanka having a close relationship with Dr. Fuller since 1994 founded the Habitat for Humanity International, Moratuwa. He also helped Rev. Fernando to build several houses for the low income families in Moratuwa.