NEWS

Ghanian church aims to keep the peace

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WINDSOR, Ont. - Ghana’s first cardinal said the church will be playing a role in upcoming elections in his country, seeking to maintain stability in what generally has been one of West Africa’s most peaceful and economically developed countries.

Cardinal Peter (Kodwo Appiah) Turkson told a news conference here that despite recent years of good governance under a parliamentary system “we have in the back of our minds what happened in Kenya” last December and January when rioting broke out and people died over disputed presidential election results.

“The tribal differences and the possibility of political groups making use of the tribal differences among us, that’s also there,” he said. “We want to ensure that nothing like that happens.”

He said the church will be contributing monitors to ensure the elections “are free and fair.” The country’s first election was held in 1992 and the subsequent political evolution has shown the country has “made some headway.” He said “it’s that hope that we can transfer some of these experiences to our neighbouring countries.”

Otherwise, Turkson said, the country is “peaceful politically (and) economically very viable.” Catholics make up about 18 per cent of Ghana’s Christian population. The overall population is 23 million.

Turkson was in Windsor after participating in the 49th International Eucharistic Congress in Quebec City in mid-June. He came after pledging to visit local Rotarians because of their help in rebuilding schools and medical clinics in his region.

A group called RELAY (Rotarians Enhancing Learning of African Youth) has made three trips to the area since 2005. It also has done similar work in Kenya and is headed to northern Ethiopia next year. Since starting with a $10,000 project it has raised more than $250,000.

Turkson, 59, was proclaimed cardinal by Pope John Paul II in 2003. He was ordained in 1975 and has a doctorate in sacred Scripture from the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome.

Turkson has spoken out strongly in Ghana in favour of political cohesion, stressing the importance for Catholics to read and understand the Koran, for example. Muslims make up 16 per cent of the population. He also called on his nation’s government to fulfill a promise to provide identity cards to all citizens as a “basic instrument for democracy” that would assist in planning for the country’s welfare.

Turkson said that while Ghana is moving forward on several fronts the country still requires substantial assistance. Commenting on the amount of technology he saw in Windsor’s hospitals, he said cases that would probably lead to death in Ghana may not necessarily do so here, “so the difference is huge.”

The RELAY group was formed by husband and wife Michael and Shelly Duben. Michael’s mother was from the Ghanian town of Anomabo. After her death he wanted to visit the town “to just have a look at what her community was like. And because we’re Rotarians we decided to do a project there.”

Duben suggested Turkson is someone to watch in the church.

“There’s been a lot of discussion about the next pope potentially coming out of Africa,” he said. “He is fairly young and he’s one of those individuals who’s just an engaging speaker. Whether young or old he gets the message across. And that’s what we really like about him.”

(Stang is a freelance writer in Windsor, Ont.)

Petition supports war resisters

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{mosimage}TORONTO - More than 60 religious organizations, many of them ecumenical and many of them Catholic, have backed a petition asking Ottawa to halt deportations of U.S. soldiers who have come to Canada to avoid serving in Iraq.

The online petition sponsored by the Quakers asks Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Citizenship and Immigration Minister Diane Finley to create a policy to allow conscientious objectors to stay in Canada. The petition cites the June 3 advisory vote of Parliament which would have allowed American soldiers to stay in Canada as permanent residents.

Peace Garden proponents wary of new redesign

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{mosimage}TORONTO - Though nobody’s exactly sure what it will look like after it has been shifted about 200 metres west, redesigned and reconceived, the defenders of the old Peace Garden in Nathan Phillips Square are cautiously optimistic they will still recognize their beloved landmark after the square in front of city hall has been revamped.

“It started off that they were going to tear everything down, you know? And then we started to scream and holler,” Fr. Massey Lombardi told The Catholic Register.

Red tape slows Iraqi refugees’ entry to Canada

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{mosimage}TORONTO - Toronto’s Catholics are on pace to double the number of refugees they sponsor in 2008, but they face increasing frustration over Iraqi refugees tangled in red tape in Damascus.

It now takes the better part of two years for privately sponsored Iraqi refugees to be processed through the Canadian consulate in Damascus.

Change comes slowly in Chinese Catholic Church

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HONG KONG - A year after Pope Benedict XVI’s letter to mainland Chinese Catholics, and on the eve of Beijing hosting the Olympic Games, Chinese church leaders said some positive developments have resulted but more work needs to be done to achieve the letter’s objectives.

Canadian opposition to Morgentaler Order of Canada grows

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{mosimage}OTTAWA - A scientific poll commissioned by Campaign Life Coalition shows a majority of Canadians do not think abortionist Henry Morgentaler should have been appointed to the Order of Canada.

Coalition President Jim Hughes said the poll’s results challenge the pervasive “lie” that Canada has “social peace” over the issue of abortion.

Pope tells Australians of God's plan for creation

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SYDNEY, Australia - In the longest-lasting and longest-distance trip of his pontificate, Pope Benedict XVI spoke to Australians and to young people from around the world about God's plan for all creation, but especially for people.

Co-operation needed in native healing process

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{mosimage}OTTAWA - Healing and reconciliation formed the agenda for a meeting of Catholic bishops with Assembly of First Nations National Chief Phil Fontaine in Quebec City July 16.

“I recognize that thousands of Catholic men and women religious worked during the Indian residential schools era in what they sincerely believed to be in the best interest of Indian residential school students,” Fontaine said, according to an AFN news release. “However, it is important for these religious entities to both openly acknowledge their role in Indian residential schools and to hear directly from First Nations regarding their experiences.”

Shareholders' motions sway policy 

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{mosimage}TORONTO - Shareholders trying to nudge corporate boardrooms in a more ethical direction had one of their most successful springs ever.

Spring is when most companies hold annual general meetings, reporting their accomplishments and future plans directly to shareholders, electing new boards of directors and voting on shareholder proposals. This year the Vancouver-based Shareholder Association for Research and Education (SHARE) tracked 171 shareholder proposals.

Australia welcomes Pope at WYD08

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{mosimage}SYDNEY, Australia - Pope Benedict XVI formally was welcomed to Australia with a 21-gun salute and bright sunshine that had only just begun drying the dew in the grassy garden of Sydney's Government House.

Although he arrived in Australia July 13 and in Sydney July 16, the first days of his stay were dedicated to relaxation.

D&P lays blame for food crisis on agribusiness 

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{mosimage}OTTAWA - The Canadian Catholic Organization for Development and Peace has released a 22-page booklet blaming the roots of the current worldwide food crisis on the rise of for-profit agribusiness.

Entitled Food System in Crisis: Hunger and the Pursuit of Profit, the booklet calls for a return of decision-making power to the people who grow and consume food, promoting “food sovereignty.”

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