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5 tips for evangelizing on social media

Based on his extensive apostolate on the internet, Dominican friar Nelson Medina offers several tips. / Credit: Shutterstock

ACI Prensa Staff, Mar 28, 2024 / 08:00 am (CNA).

Friar Nelson Medina, a Dominican known for his extensive apostolate on the internet, offered five tips for Catholics to do a better job evangelizing on social media.

The Colombian priest, who holds a doctorate in fundamental theology, shared the following recommendations with ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner.

Dominican friar Nelson Medina uses social media as part of his apostolate.
Dominican friar Nelson Medina uses social media as part of his apostolate.

1. Practice gratitude.

“Consider it a privilege and a great opportunity to use these new means of communication to bear witness and reach many people,” Medina said, encouraging the faithful to be grateful.

2. God doesn’t need a perfect façade.

The Dominican also encouraged internet evangelists to avoid “the temptation to present your life or person as if you never had problems, because the people you are addressing certainly do.”

3. Be aware of your responsibility.

Medina also pointed out that anyone presenting himself or herself as a Catholic evangelizing on social media “somehow represents the body of Christ.”

“Consequently, the immense price of his blood is at stake in everything we do with our social media,” he emphasized.

Consequently,  the Colombian priest stressed: “Stay faithful to the sound doctrine and morality of the Church.”

4. Don’t give too much importance to haters or trolls.

“You may encounter ridicule or attacks. In such cases we must remember that Christ told us that this was going to happen,” Medina noted.

So, “we shouldn’t give it utmost importance but rather handle the situation with the tools that social media itself gives us and move on,” he said.

5. Always nourish your personal life as a Catholic.

“Remember that nothing can replace the life of prayer, the sacraments, and belonging to a real community of people like yourself who are on their journey to the Lord,” he concluded.

This story was first publishedby ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

Singing this song on Holy Thursday can purify your soul

Adoration. / Thoom / Shutterstock.

CNA Staff, Mar 28, 2024 / 07:00 am (CNA).

Did you know that it is possible to sing a special song of adoration on Holy Thursday and have your soul purified?

It’s true, and the song is “Tantum Ergo.”

First, some background...

A plenary indulgence is a grace granted by the Catholic Church through the merits of Jesus Christ to remove all temporal punishment due to sin.

What does this mean?

“An indulgence does not confer grace. An indulgence is not a remission of the guilt due to sin. The guilt due to sin is ordinarily taken away by the sacraments of baptism and penance (confession), in which we receive forgiveness for sins through Jesus Christ,” the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) explains in this helpful Q&A.

“Although guilt is taken away, and with it the eternal penalty that is due to sin, namely, damnation, the eternal loss of the presence of God, there remain consequences for sins that those who have committed them must bear. There is what is traditionally called the temporal punishment for sin.”

What is temporal punishment?

As the USCCB explains: “Every sinful act creates a disorder within the soul of the human person; it distorts our desires and affections, leaving us with ‘an unhealthy attachment to creatures, which must be purified either here on earth or after death in the state called purgatory.’”

For this reason, the USCCB continues: “Those who have received forgiveness for their sins still have an obligation to undergo a difficult and painful process (the temporal penalty for sin) to be purified of the consequences of their sins and to restore the disrupted relationships.”

Through a plenary indulgence, we can be spared this purification process. As the USCCB explains it: “By God’s grace, participation in a prayer or action that has an indulgence attached to it brings about the necessary restoration and reparation without the suffering that would normally accompany it.”

On Holy Thursday, you can receive this special gift, resulting in the purification of your soul, by singing the “Tantum Ergo.” If you aren’t familiar with this beautiful hymn, watch this short video.

The “Tantum Ergo” is the last two verses of “Pange Lingua,” a Latin hymn written by St. Thomas Aquinas. “Tantum Ergo” is short for the first words of the hymn’s second-to-last verse, “Tantum ergo Sacramentum,” which in Latin simply means “Therefore, so greatly the Sacrament.”

These magnificent verses are an expression of adoration of Our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament. For this reason, it is usually sung before the benediction when the priest blesses those gathered with the monstrance. 

After Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday, the faithful are invited to participate in adoration of the Blessed Sacrament throughout the night. This represents the disciples who were invited to stay up throughout the night with the Lord during his agony in the garden before his betrayal by Judas. Singing the “Tantum Ergo” at this time is how you obtain the plenary indulgence.

As always the case with plenary indulgences, certain conditions must be satisfied to receive the grace. According to the USCCB, these conditions are: sacramental confession, reception of holy Communion; prayer for the intentions of the Holy Father; and complete detachment from all sin, even venial sin.

The first three conditions (confession, Communion, and prayers for the pope’s intentions) can be fulfilled a few days before or after performing the works to gain the indulgence (in this case, singing the “Tantum Ergo” during adoration), but it is appropriate that Communion and the prayer take place on the same day that the work is completed.

Here are words to the “Tantum Ergo”:

Tantum ergo Sacramentum

Veneremur cernui:

Et antiquum documentum

Novo cedat ritui:

Praestet fides supplementum

Sensuum defectui.

Genitori, Genitoque

Laus et iubilatio,

Salus, honor, virtus quoque

Sit et benedictio

Procedenti ab utroque

Compar sit laudatio.

Amen.

And here’s the English version:

Down in adoration falling,
Lo! the sacred Host we hail,
Lo! oe’r ancient forms departing
Newer rites of grace prevail;
Faith for all defects supplying,
Where the feeble senses fail.

To the everlasting Father,
And the Son Who reigns on high
With the Holy Spirit proceeding
Forth from each eternally,
Be salvation, honor, blessing,
Might and endless majesty.
Amen.

This story was originally posted on CNA on April 13, 2022, and has been updated.

What is the ‘sacred triduum’? A CNA explainer

A stripped altar on Holy Thursday 2015 at Mater Dei Parish in Irving, Texas. / Credit: Mater Dei Latin Mass parish via Flickr (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

Denver, Colo., Mar 28, 2024 / 04:00 am (CNA).

At the end of the season of Lent — and right before Easter — the Catholic Church observes the “sacred triduum.” Many Catholics have questions about what happens during the Triduum and how they should observe this time.

What is the triduum?

The triduum is a period that begins on Holy Thursday and ends at the conclusion of Easter Sunday.

It encompasses the evening of Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday, and Easter Sunday.

The term “triduum” means “three days” and refers to any three-day observance. Technically, the triduum during Holy Week is known as the “paschal triduum” or “Easter triduum.”

The word “paschal,” which is used to refer to Easter, comes from the Greek word “pascha,” which comes from the Hebrew word “pesach,” which means Passover. Jesus’ passion, death, and resurrection, which is connected theologically to the Passover feast, is referred to as the paschal mystery.

What happens on Holy Thursday?

On the evening of Holy Thursday, the Church celebrates the Mass of the Lord’s Supper, which commemorates Christ’s Passover meal with his apostles the night before he died. The Mass of the Lord’s Supper most especially remembers the institution of the Eucharist — the sacramental gift to the Church of Christ’s body and blood, given in the transformation of bread and wine.

Often, at the Mass of the Lord’s Supper, the priest washes the feet of some members of the congregation, recalling Christ’s washing of feet at the Last Supper. “If I, therefore, the master and teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash one another’s feet. I have given you a model to follow, so that as I have done for you, you should also do,” Christ told his apostles.

Why is it called ‘Maundy Thursday?’

Holy Thursday is sometimes called “Maundy Thursday.” The word “maundy” comes from the Latin word “mandatum,” which means mandate.

On Maundy Thursday, Christ gave us a mandate: “I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have loved you, so you also should love one another.”

Is Holy Thursday a holy day of obligation?

No. And people may not be able to attend the Mass of the Lord’s Supper for a variety of reasons: their family needs, work schedule, or health. But it’s a beautiful Mass. You should go if you can!

Is there Mass on Good Friday?

No, there’s no Mass on Good Friday.

In fact, after Mass on Holy Thursday, the altar is stripped of its cloth. Crosses are removed from the Church or covered. No candles burn in the church.

The Blessed Sacrament is not reposed in the church’s tabernacle but in another small chapel.

On Good Friday, the church is empty of many of its symbols. It is adorned like a church in mourning. And, at 3 p.m., the Church offers the Celebration of the Lord’s Passion.

At this celebration, Scripture is read that recounts the prophetic anticipation of Christ’s passion and recounts the passion narrative itself. Communion is distributed. Believers are invited to venerate the cross — to come forward and kiss or reverence a cross.

“Behold the wood of the cross,” the priest proclaims.

I know that Good Friday is a solemn day, but what should we do all day?

Good Friday is a day of fasting and abstaining from meat. You can read more about that here.

On Good Friday, families should try to observe a quiet day of simplicity in addition to attending the Celebration of the Lord’s Passion.

This might mean praying the rosary together or reading Scripture together. It might mean keeping the TV off or going for a family hike. The idea is that it should be a day of reflection and should be noticeably different from other days of the year.

If you haven’t yet gone to confession during Lent, Good Friday is also an excellent day to go to confession — and take your family.

What does one do on Holy Saturday?

The culmination of Holy Saturday is the Easter Vigil. But it’s a long day, and people often ask what they should do with the rest of it.

Many families use Holy Saturday as a day for spring cleaning or garden planting. Some spend the day outdoors, and some spend the day preparing for an Easter feast. All the better if Holy Saturday is a day of prayer.

And some people dye Easter eggs!

And the Easter Vigil?

The Easter Vigil is one of the most beautiful liturgies in the Church’s calendar. It is spectacular and full of beautiful Catholic symbolism.

The vigil begins at night. It starts with a fire, which is blessed, and from which is lit the paschal candle. The whole of salvation history is proclaimed during the readings.

A beautiful Easter proclamation, called the Exsultet, is sung, usually by a deacon. (Done well, this is, in my humble opinion, one of the most beautiful things the Church does in a liturgy.) Men and women are welcomed into the Church: Some will be baptized and confirmed, and others, already baptized, will receive confirmation.

The Easter Vigil is awesome. Fair warning: It’s also long. And a lot of readings take place with the lights off. Some parents decide it is too much for children, while others bring their kids in pajamas and let them sleep in the pews. At the Easter Vigil, that’s perfectly understandable. A scan of your local parish church suggests that kids aren’t the only ones who sometimes fall asleep during the readings. It’s all part of the experience.

So, after that ends, is it Easter?

It sure is. If you go to the Easter Vigil, you may want to stay up and celebrate. The Lord’s resurrection is what Easter is all about. Some people will, of course, go to Easter Sunday Mass and then spend the day feasting with family and friends.

One piece of advice for celebrating Easter: Remember the poor, the lonely, the outcasts. If you really want to celebrate Easter, invite someone to your table who might have nowhere else to go. You’ll be glad you did.

And then Easter is over?

The triduum ends on the evening of Easter Sunday. But the “octave” of Easter lasts for eight days. And the liturgical season of Easter lasts for 50 days, all the way to Pentecost.

What does this mean? It means it’ll soon be time to celebrate Christ’s resurrection. Get ready for it!

This article was first published in April 2016 and has been updated.

Faithful line the streets of Seville, Spain, for Holy Week processions 

The Brotherhood of the Holy Supper processes through Seville, Spain, on Holy Monday, March 25, 2024. / Credit: Joaquín Carmona

Seville, Spain, Mar 27, 2024 / 18:15 pm (CNA).

Holy Week in Seville is one of Spain’s most impressive, picturesque Catholic traditions. 

The faithful and members of some 70 community-based brotherhoods and confraternities prepare each year to be part of a grand display, an expression of the piety of the people of southern Spain that every year attracts visitors from around the world.

During the processions, floats featuring sacred images traverse the city, accompanied by songs of the Lenten season, marching bands, and penitents.

The Christ of Charity and the Virgin of Sorrows of the Brotherhood of Santa Marta processes through the streets of Seville, Spain, on Holy Monday, March 25, 2024. Credit: Joaquín Carmona
The Christ of Charity and the Virgin of Sorrows of the Brotherhood of Santa Marta processes through the streets of Seville, Spain, on Holy Monday, March 25, 2024. Credit: Joaquín Carmona

Most brotherhoods have two floats — one of Christ representing one of the scenes of the Passion and one of the Virgin — although they may have only one, or even three.

Each brotherhood has its own procession that leaves from the church where the floats are kept throughout the year and arrives at the cathedral, where the Blessed Sacrament is exposed.

Thousands of people throng the winding streets of the city every day of Holy Week to witness a spectacle in which art and devotion come together.

Faithful fill the streets of Seville despite the rain

Due to persistent rain, on Palm Sunday 2024 most of the brotherhoods were unable to leave their churches, and many of them were forced to take refuge in the cathedral and other churches.

“It hasn’t rained on Palm Sunday for a long time” was the comment often heard in the streets of the Sevillian neighborhood of Porvenir on a wet but warm morning in which the faithful gathered around St. Sebastian Church not yet knowing if they would see the statue of the Virgin brought out in procession.

Finally, the penitents were able to accompany the Our Father Jesus of Victory and Our Lady and Mother of Peace floats, although they were forced to shorten their route due to the rain.

The pallium of María Santísima del Rocío processes through the streets of Seville, Spain, on Holy Monday, March 25, 2024. Credit: Joaquín Carmona
The pallium of María Santísima del Rocío processes through the streets of Seville, Spain, on Holy Monday, March 25, 2024. Credit: Joaquín Carmona

Carlos Molina Llorente, a Nazarene (penitent) of the Brotherhood of Peace, expressed to ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner, his regret due to the bad weather conditions: “We have been waiting for this day for a year and it’s a shame that the float can’t come out after so much preparation.”

“We must also give thanks because at least our brotherhood was able to go out. There are many that have not even done so, such as the brotherhoods of Hiniesta, San Roque, Amargura, Estrella, and Amor.”

On Monday morning of Holy Week, hundreds of the faithful waited for hours at the doors of the churches. Finally, the rain let up and many of the brotherhoods were able to complete their route.

‘Zorro’ actor: ‘Sometimes life gives you tears’

The Spanish actor Antonio Banderas, known for his starring role in the film “The Mask of Zorro,” belongs to the Brotherhood of the Virgin of Tears and Favors of the Andalusian city of Malaga.

Due to the rain, he was also unable to process on Palm Sunday with his brotherhood, something he has been doing for decades.

On his social media, the well-known actor noted that “sometimes life gives you favors and other times tears.”

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

Archdiocese of Baltimore ministers to victims’ families, stranded crew of bridge collapse

Workers continue to investigate and search for victims after the cargo ship Dali collided with the Francis Scott Key Bridge causing it to collapse yesterday, on March 27, 2024, in Baltimore. / Credit: Scott Olson/Getty Images

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Mar 27, 2024 / 17:50 pm (CNA).

In the wake of the Francis Scott Key Bridge’s collapse on Tuesday, the Archdiocese of Baltimore has been at the forefront of efforts to help the victims.

Archbishop William Lori called for prayer and held a special Mass for the victims Tuesday evening at Baltimore’s Cathedral of Mary, Our Queen. Among the victims are two injured and six missing construction workers, who are presumed dead, and 22 who were stranded aboard the Singaporean ship that crashed into the bridge.

Father Ako Walker, pastor of Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish in Highlandtown, Maryland, has been visiting with the missing victims’ families, offering spiritual and emotional comfort. He told CNA that the six missing men have families who are now heartbroken and in shock over the loss of their loved ones.

“They were fathers, they were breadwinners, they were sons,” he said.

As authorities have yet to recover six of the victims, Walker said he has been ministering to their families by simply giving them his “accompaniment and presence.”

“It’s very, very difficult to receive the news of the possibility that you may not see your loved one alive again,” Walker said. “They have been struggling to come to terms. They have been asking questions and of course, it being very early on, it’s difficult to give very definite responses to the questions that they have.”  

“For many of them, it’s been a waiting game. My role is to wait with them, to journey with them until they get some definitive news as regards to their loved ones,” he explained.

Andrew Middleton, who leads the archdiocese’s Apostleship of the Sea ministry, was one of the first people to communicate with the crew of the ship, called the “Dali,” just hours after its catastrophic electrical failure and collision with the Key Bridge.

After losing power on Tuesday morning, the Dali hit one of the bridge’s beams, causing much of the 1.6-mile-long bridge to collapse into the Patapsco River by downtown Baltimore.  

Middleton had been with the ship’s captain and some of the crew members days before to help them shop for supplies. After hearing the news, he quickly messaged a crew member who responded confirming that everyone onboard had survived and was safe.

For now, the 22 crew members of the ship, who are from India, remain stranded aboard the Dali amid the wreckage in the Patapsco.

Middleton explained that as foreign nationals, the crew may face legal complications if they try to return to land, as U.S. Customs and Border Patrol would have to grant them special permission. Middleton said the crew is currently communicating with crew members via WhatsApp. He said he has offered to help them with supplies and assured them of his ministry’s prayer.

“Throughout the day yesterday I would just periodically check in, make sure everybody was still doing okay, remind them that we were available for them and that we were praying for them and to not hesitate to reach out to me if they needed anything,” he explained.

Middleton said that when the Dali is eventually allowed to dock, Apostleship of Sea will be ready with food and basic necessities for the crew.

As part of the archdiocese’s ministry to seafarers, Middleton explained that he and other ministry members focus their efforts on the corporal works of mercy: feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, visiting the sick and the poor.

Middleton said he wants to ensure “we’re reminding seafarers of their God-given human dignity.”

According to Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, crew members were able to send a distress signal after losing power so that police officers were able to close the bridge in time to prevent further casualties.

However, eight construction workers, immigrants from Latin America, were unable to escape and were on the impacted portion of the bridge. They had been working to fill potholes on the bridge when the Dali collided with it, sending the men into the icy river below. 

Two were rescued and survived but after searching much of Tuesday, the U.S. Coast Guard ended its active rescue efforts and the six remaining victims are now presumed dead, according to local news station WBAL-TV

Watch “EWTN News Nightly’”s coverage of the Key Bridge collapse. 

One missing victim has been identified by the migrant aid group CASA as Miguel Luna, an El Salvadoran immigrant, husband, and father of three. According to CASA, Luna had been a resident of Maryland for the last 19 years.

Another missing victim has been identified as Maynor Yassir Suazo Sandoval, a Honduran national, husband, and father of two who had been in the U.S. for 18 years, according to CNN.

The governments of Mexico and Guatemala have also confirmed some of their nationals were victims of the bridge’s collapse, per CNN.

Father Walker told CNA that the families of the missing, among them some who have small children, are in “immediate need.”

The Archdiocese of Baltimore’s Esperanza Center is working to coordinate aid for the victims’ families in the wake of their loss, he said.

Besides considering financial contributions to help the victims’ families, Walker also asked for the faithful across the country to pray.

“While this is an earthly thing and it’s physical, it’s also spiritual,” he said. “Some of them are having a difficult time and they are outwardly expressing their grief, tears, and so on, and others are just quiet, so I don’t know if the quietness is acceptance or just numbness.”

“My suggestion,” he went on, “is that we entrust all of this to Mary, Our Mother of Perpetual Help, she who accompanied Jesus on the journey and she who observed that her son was maligned, was not treated properly, that suffered.”

“As the victims themselves go through their own suffering and as all of us look on, because all of us are suffering, too, whether indirectly or directly, we [should] remember that we have our Mother Mary who knows very well how to journey with us and who knows how to comfort us in this very, very difficult situation,” he said.

“I commend and entrust all this entire situation to our Mother Mary, who knows fully well that with God, all things are possible.”

‘Everything is yours!’: Ecuador renews its consecration to the Sacred Heart of Jesus

Archbishop Alfredo José Espinoza Mateus of Quito presided over a solemn Mass in the Basilica of the National Vow in the Ecuadorian capital to renew the country's consecration to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. / Credit: International Eucharistic Congress 2024

ACI Prensa Staff, Mar 27, 2024 / 16:00 pm (CNA).

The Archdiocese of Quito and the communications office of the 53rd International Eucharistic Congress Quito 2024 reported that on March 25, Monday of Holy Week, Ecuador renewed its historic consecration to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, first carried out 150 years ago.

Archbishop Alfredo José Espinoza Mateus of Quito offered the solemn Mass in the Basilica of the National Vow in the Ecuadorian capital, where the original painting showing the consecration of Ecuador to the Sacred Heart of Jesus is kept.

The ceremony, concelebrated by various bishops and priests, was also attended by civil and ecclesial authorities.

According an article posted on the archdiocesan website, Espinoza explained that the renewal is “a gift that makes us raise our hearts grateful to the Lord of life.”

“Today let us renew our trust in the Lord. We know that the final victory does not belong to those who kill, nor will our lives be safe by allying ourselves with the powerful of this world. Given what we are experiencing today, let us not despair,” Espinoza said.

In his homily, the archbishop condemned the violence, corruption, and drug trafficking that has plagued the country. Given the current situation, the archbishop emphasized, it is necessary “to renew our consecration, to say once and for all: Everything is yours; save Ecuador!”

The historic consecration

“The history of devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus began in the 16th century, and it did not take long to reach Ecuador,” explained the communications office of the 53rd International Eucharistic Congress Quito 2024 (IEC 2024).

This eventually led to the historic consecration of Ecuador on March 25, 1874, carried out by order of the country’s president at the time, Gabriel García Moreno, with the support of the Vatican along with that of the then-archbishop of Quito, José Ignacio Checa y Barba.

Ecuador thus became the first country consecrated to the Sacred Heart. In 1884, it also became the first country where a national Eucharistic congress was held, according to the IEC 2024 article.

The International Eucharistic Congress that will be held Sept. 8–15 in Quito has as its theme “Fraternity to Heal the World.”

It is possible, although it has yet to be confirmed, that Pope Francis will attend the closing Mass.

Registration for the International Eucharistic Congress, both for the symposium to be held from Sept. 4–7 and for the congress itself from Sept. 8–15, opened on Jan. 31 on the event’s website. 

Prayer to renew the consecration of Ecuador to the Sacred Heart of Jesus

The Archdiocese of Quito published the prayer promulgated by the Ecuadorian Bishops’ Conference that was used for renewing the country’s consecration to the Sacred Heart:

Lord Jesus,

with a grateful spirit,

we come to renew our consecration to your Sacred Heart.

We are yours, and we want to walk with you.

Give us a meek and humble heart to be obedient to the will of the Father;

worshippers in spirit and in truth,

and joyful missionaries of your kingdom.

Heart of Jesus that unites us in the holy home of Nazareth,

With the same sentiment as Mary and Joseph, protect our Ecuadorian families,

Grant them a wise heart

to hear your words of life,

a heart grateful for daily bread,

a generous heart with those most in need,

and a merciful heart toward our brothers.

Heart of Jesus,

beacon of light and truth,

make us strong in love and hope,

to grow in respect for life, to be wise custodians of the common home and to live an authentic fraternity.

May it heal the wounds of the world

and drive away every shadow of division from our country.

Heart of Jesus

pierced with love on the cross,

from whose wounded side

the water of life and the blood of love sprang forth,

grant us wisdom and strength,

to break down every wall of selfishness and exclusion,

all forms of violence and injustice,

and all acts of corruption and impunity.

Heart of Jesus,

May your peace reign among us again. Teach us to listen, like Mary,

to the cry of the poor,

to commit ourselves to them.

God of loves, Holy Eucharist,

look at the people of your heart.

Save Ecuador!

Amen.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

Holy Wednesday in Jerusalem: Venerating the pillar of Christ’s flagellation

On Holy Wednesday, the friars of the Custody of the Holy Land venerated the column to which, according to tradition, Jesus was bound to be scourged. They prayed the station dedicated to the column during the daily procession that the Franciscans perform inside the Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher. At the end, they intoned the hymn “Columna Nobilis” and then, one by one, they performed an act of veneration. March 27, 2024. / Credit: Marinella Bandini

Jerusalem, Mar 27, 2024 / 15:00 pm (CNA).

In Jerusalem on Holy Wednesday, the friars of the Custody of the Holy Land venerate the two stones that, according to the Gospel of Luke, were stained with the blood of Jesus during his passion.

The first stone is venerated at the Basilica of the Agony, which stands at the place where Jesus withdrew to pray after the Last Supper in an orchard known as Gethsemane at the foot of the Mount of Olives.

Father Alessandro Coniglio, who presided over the Holy Wednesday Mass at the Basilica of the Agony (Gethsemane), incenses the stone of agony at the beginning of the Eucharistic celebration.  This is the very place where Jesus withdrew to pray after the Last Supper, in an orchard known as Gethsemane at the foot of the Mount of Olives. March 27, 2024. Credit: Courtesy of the Custody of the Holy Land
Father Alessandro Coniglio, who presided over the Holy Wednesday Mass at the Basilica of the Agony (Gethsemane), incenses the stone of agony at the beginning of the Eucharistic celebration. This is the very place where Jesus withdrew to pray after the Last Supper, in an orchard known as Gethsemane at the foot of the Mount of Olives. March 27, 2024. Credit: Courtesy of the Custody of the Holy Land

Right here, on the morning of Holy Wednesday, the Passion according to Luke (Luke 22:14–23:56) is chanted, which narrates the transformation of Jesus’ sweat into “drops of blood falling to the ground” as he was praying. At the moment this event is described, the chronicler and the reader of the Passion venerate the “stone of agony” at the center of the presbytery.

Father Alessandro Coniglio, who presided over the Mass, emphasized to CNA that “the mystery of the blood of Christ is at the heart of Holy Week. In the Old Testament, blood is the sign of life: Jesus giving his blood signifies the gift of his life for us and our redemption.”

Three friars of the Custody of the Holy Land chant the Passion according to Luke (Lk 22:14-23:56) during the Holy Wednesday Mass on March 27, 2024. In Jerusalem on Holy Wednesday, the friars of the Custody of the Holy Land venerate the two stones that, according to the Gospel of Luke, were stained with the blood of Jesus during his Passion. Credit: Courtesy of the Custody of the Holy Land
Three friars of the Custody of the Holy Land chant the Passion according to Luke (Lk 22:14-23:56) during the Holy Wednesday Mass on March 27, 2024. In Jerusalem on Holy Wednesday, the friars of the Custody of the Holy Land venerate the two stones that, according to the Gospel of Luke, were stained with the blood of Jesus during his Passion. Credit: Courtesy of the Custody of the Holy Land

The other stone venerated is the column of the Flagellation, whose base is now preserved in the Chapel of the Apparition (of Jesus to his mother) at the Holy Sepulcher, belonging to the Franciscans. Tradition says that while Jesus was being struck by the scourge, the column to which he was bound became stained with his blood.

“During the Byzantine era, this column was kept in the basilica of Hagia Sion (Holy Mary in Zion) on Mount Zion in Jerusalem,” Franciscan friar Stéphane Milovitch, president of the Holy Sepulcher community and director of the Cultural Heritage Office of the Custody of the Holy Land, told CNA.

Already in the fourth century, the Spanish pilgrim Egeria in her diary spoke of this column and recounted that the veneration, at that time, took place at dawn on Good Friday at the Cenacle (upper room).

The column of the Flagellation, made of red porphyry, is kept in a niche within the Chapel of the Apparition inside the Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher, where it has been preserved since the 14th century. On Holy Wednesday, a day especially dedicated to its veneration, the friars of the Custody of the Holy Land prepare a special adornment with drapes and flowers for the column. March 27, 2024. Credit: Marinella Bandini
The column of the Flagellation, made of red porphyry, is kept in a niche within the Chapel of the Apparition inside the Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher, where it has been preserved since the 14th century. On Holy Wednesday, a day especially dedicated to its veneration, the friars of the Custody of the Holy Land prepare a special adornment with drapes and flowers for the column. March 27, 2024. Credit: Marinella Bandini

After the destruction of the Byzantine basilica, the traces of the column were lost, but it reappeared in the 14th century at the Holy Sepulcher, where it is still visible today in a niche next to the altar in the Chapel of the Apparition.

“The pilgrim Felix Fabri, a German Dominican who arrived here in the late 1400s, speaks of three columns of the Flagellation,” Milovitch recounted, “one at the Holy Sepulcher, one at Santa Prassede in Rome, and one in Lyon, France, of which the memory has been lost today. These are very ancient traditions.”

The friars of the Custody of the Holy Land venerated the column to which, according to tradition, Jesus was bound to be scourged. In Jerusalem, on Holy Wednesday, the friars of the Custody of the Holy Land venerate the two stones that, according to the Gospel of Luke, were stained with the blood of Jesus during his Passion, including the column of the Flagellation. Tradition says that while Jesus was being struck by the scourge, this column to which he was bound became stained with his blood. March 27, 2024. Credit: Marinella Bandini
The friars of the Custody of the Holy Land venerated the column to which, according to tradition, Jesus was bound to be scourged. In Jerusalem, on Holy Wednesday, the friars of the Custody of the Holy Land venerate the two stones that, according to the Gospel of Luke, were stained with the blood of Jesus during his Passion, including the column of the Flagellation. Tradition says that while Jesus was being struck by the scourge, this column to which he was bound became stained with his blood. March 27, 2024. Credit: Marinella Bandini

In front of the red porphyry column, surrounded by drapes and ornaments on this day of remembrance, the friars prayed the station dedicated to the column during the daily procession that the Franciscans undertake inside the Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher. At the end, they intoned the hymn “Columna Nobilis” and then, one by one, performed an act of veneration.

In the afternoon, members of other Christian churches — Greek Orthodox, Armenians, and Copts — also arrived to venerate the column of the Flagellation.

In the afternoon of Holy Wednesday, the Armenian monks of the community of the Holy Sepulcher visit the Chapel of the Apparition of the Franciscans and venerate the column of the Flagellation preserved there. After taking turns kissing the column, they all pray together in front of it. March 27, 2024. Credit: Marinella Bandini
In the afternoon of Holy Wednesday, the Armenian monks of the community of the Holy Sepulcher visit the Chapel of the Apparition of the Franciscans and venerate the column of the Flagellation preserved there. After taking turns kissing the column, they all pray together in front of it. March 27, 2024. Credit: Marinella Bandini

Incidents of violence and persecution against Christians shoot up in India

Catholic faithful offer prayers during an Ash Wednesday Mass at St. Mary's Basilica in Secunderabad, the twin city of Hyderabad in India on Feb. 14, 2024. / Credit: NOAH SEELAM/AFP via Getty Images

Bangalore, India, Mar 27, 2024 / 14:00 pm (CNA).

A watchdog group that monitors violence committed against Christians in India has released a study documenting 161 such crimes in the first 75 days of 2024.

These numbers may underestimate the number of crimes and acts of persecution committed against Christians in India, according to A.C. Michael, a Catholic and coordinator of the United Christian Forum (UCF), which released the report. 

“These figures are based only on the complaints registered on our toll-free helpline number (1-800-208-4545) to report incidents of anti-Christian violence. The actual numbers will be certainly much more,” Michael told CNA on March 27.

“We feel frustrated that despite documenting and making public the shocking data regularly, there has been no response from the government nor any effort has been made to curb the steadily rising number of violent incidents,” he said.

Categorizing the 161 incidents, Michael listed 71 cases of detainment/arrest by the police, 18 incidents of social ostracization, 72 cases of physical violence, 15 cases of forced “reconversion,” one incident of a church being sealed, and another in which a church was torched, with mob violence being part of most of these incidents.

Violence and persecution against minority Christians, who account for only 2.3% of India’s 1.41 billion people (nearly 80% of whom are Hindu), have been on a steady rise since the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) rose to power under the stewardship of Prime Minister Narendra Modi after winning the 2014 national election. In May 2019, the BJP was reelected with an increased majority.

UCF had recorded only 147 incidents of violence against Christians in 2014, Michael said. The number of incidents went up to 177 in 2015, 208 in 2016, 240 in 2017, 292 in 2018, 328 in 2019, 279 in 2020, 505 in 2021, 599 in 2022, and 731 in 2023.

The UCF statement also highlighted the victimization of Christians in BJP-ruled Chhattisgarh state in central India, which reported “incidents with dignity of burial rights denied to Christian families.”

“Chhattisgarh, a state notoriously known for social ostracization of Christians, is the No. 1 leading state in assaults against Christians with 47 incidents of reported violence,” the UCF pointed out.

“Christians are being denied access to water from the community borewells of the village. Sadly, even dead Christians are not spared, as many were denied burial as per Christian rituals. Local [Hindu fundamentalist] villagers have been threatening to cremate the bodies as a final act of reconversion,” UCF decried.

Such blatant attacks on the Christians, Michael said, are rooted in BJP leaders’ anti-Christian rhetoric. He noted that Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai accused “Christian missionaries of carrying out religious conversion under the guise of providing education and health care facilities while warning to stop the practice.”

But, Michael pointed out, Christians in Chhattisgarh account for just 2% of the state’s 25 million people.

The UCF statement also highlighted the persecution of Christians in BJP-ruled northern Uttar Pradesh, which has a population of 231 million and “ranks second [among] states where Indian citizens are being persecuted for practicing Christianity.” 

“There is clear evidence of state-sponsored harassment of Christians in this state as the police file false allegations of conversion against the pastors even for praying in birthday parties and other social gatherings. UCF helpline has recorded over 30 incidents of arrests and detentions of pastors under the UP Freedom of Religion Act,” the Christian Forum noted.

CNA has reported in detail how Father Babu Francis, social service director of Allahabad Diocese in Uttar Pradesh state, was jailed for over 80 days after being arrested on charges of false conversion in early October. 

Similarly, CNA also reported about how Father Dominic Pinto, director of the Pastoral Centre of Lucknow Diocese, was arrested in February on a false conversion charge. Pinto was released on bail on March 13. 

Of the 161 incidents recorded in the first 75 days of 2024, UCF pointed out: “There are 122 Christians who have either been detained or arrested on the false allegation of conversions.”

The UCF data was released on the eve of the March 22 National Day of Prayer that the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI) called for in the wake of increasing atrocities against Christians and religious polarization in the country. 

Thousands of churches across the country held special prayers on the day with special holy hours, rosaries, and Stations of Cross in response to the CBCI appeal for “peace and harmony.”

Meanwhile, the 2023 year report of the Religious Liberty Commission of Evangelical Fellowship of India expressed anguish over “the alarmingly steep rise in the number of violent incidents against the Christian community.”

“The Indian political apparatus, its law enforcement agencies, and its justice system, specially at the level of villages and small towns, have been found wanting and slow in its responses despite urgent pleas for help from victims, church leaders, and civil society,” the report lamented.

Despite Church warnings, tigers and elephants threaten lives in Kerala, India

Asian elephant. / Credit: Filiz Elaerts / Unsplash (CC0)

CNA Newsroom, Mar 27, 2024 / 13:00 pm (CNA).

Despite repeated protests from Catholic bishops, wildlife attacks continue to pose a severe threat to the lives and properties of both Catholics and other residents in the Southern Indian state of Kerala. 

On Wednesday, local media reported significant damage from two elephants in Kerala’s Idukki district, alongside a tiger’s attack on livestock. 

This year alone, elephant attacks have resulted in 27 fatalities in the region. Video footage of a Catholic man trampled to death on Feb. 10 made headlines and sparked protests, only to be followed by news of a potential mauling by a tiger of a Catholic woman on her way to Mass four days after the fatal attack. 

Further fatal elephant tramplings followed the incident.

The Catholic Church in Kerala has been leading the charge in urging the government to take decisive action to protect human lives. 

“The series of shocking elephant killings has terrorized the people. They are even scared to go out now,” Bishop Jose Porunnedam of Mananthavady, in the district of Wayanad, told the National Catholic Register, CNA’s sister news partner, on March 4.

Several major Catholic organizations, including the Kerala Catholic Bishops’ Council (KCBC) and the Kerala-based Syro-Malabar Catholic Church, have issued statements calling for the prioritization of protecting human beings from marauding wild animals.

On Palm Sunday, Major Archbishop Raphael Thattil, head of the Syro-Malabar Church, warned of a misconception “that wild animals are given more importance than human beings.” 

The bishops’ council urged the state government not to trivialize people’s concerns. 

“Over time, Kerala has seen a rise in the quantity and intensity of wildlife attacks. There has been a noticeable rise in wildlife attacks in Wayanad and neighboring districts in the past year,” noted the KCBC in its Feb. 18 statement.

The March 27 attacks in Idukki are part of a longer-term trend of increasing wildlife attacks. Government data for 2022-23 registered 8,873 wildlife attacks leading to 98 deaths. 

In response to the crisis, India’s federal government has announced plans to erect elephant-proof barriers across Kerala. This measure aims to prevent further tragic incidents and addresses the call from Church representatives for more effective protection strategies.

Kerala’s geography, bordering the Western Ghats — a mountain range known for its biodiversity, including approximately 25% of the world’s wild Asian elephants — complicates the situation. The onset of the dry season in February, which leads to a scarcity of forest resources, has driven wild animals to encroach more frequently on human habitats, thereby increasing the likelihood of conflict.

More than 30% of Wayanad district’s population of 800,000 are Catholics, alongside additional Christian denominations.

In letter to Holy Land Christians, Pope Francis deplores the war, expresses closeness 

Students and teachers from Jerusalem Christian schools walk the Way of the Cross on the Via Dolorosa in Jerusalem. The yearly event was organized by the Custody of the Holy Land on Friday, Feb. 23, 2024, on the occasion of Lent. / Credit: Marinella Bandini

Rome Newsroom, Mar 27, 2024 / 12:00 pm (CNA).

Pope Francis on Wednesday issued a letter to the Christians of the Holy Land in preparation for Good Friday, expressing his solidarity with a community that continues to suffer amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.

“Dear brothers and sisters, allow me to tell you once more that you are not alone. We will never leave you alone but will demonstrate our solidarity with you by prayer and practical charity,” the pope wrote in his Holy Wednesday letter.

“In these bleak times, when it seems that the dark clouds of Good Friday hover over your land, and all too many parts of our world are scarred by the pointless folly of war — which is always and for everyone a bitter defeat — you are lamps shining in the night, seeds of goodness in a land rent asunder by conflict,” the pope continued. 

Emphasizing his “paternal affection,” the pope joined the beleaguered population in sharing in their “sufferings” and “struggles.” 

“I embrace those most affected by the senseless tragedy of war: the children robbed of their future, those who grieve and are in pain, and all who find themselves prey to anguish and dismay,” the pope continued. 

Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem, called the situation “objectively intolerable” in an interview last week with Italian television station TV2000. 

Imploring upon the world’s leaders to find an end to the carnage, Pizzaballa noted that there have always been many economic hardships, “but there has never been hunger before.” According to the Gazan Health Ministry, 27 children have died from malnutrition and dehydration. 

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has pledged to press forward with the offensive to the densely populated city of Rafah in Southern Gaza, where more than 1.5 million people are sheltering. The United Nations Security Council voted on Monday for a resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire. 

In his letter the pope reflected on his own visit to the region in May 2014, marking the 50th anniversary of the historic meeting between Pope Paul VI and Patriarch Athenagoras I in Jerusalem, and again stressed the imperative for peace.  

Quoting from Paul VI’s 1964 apostolic exhortation Nobis in Animo, Francis wrote: “The continuing tensions in the Middle East, and the lack of concrete progress toward peace, represent a constant and dire threat not only to the peace and security of those peoples — and indeed of the entire world — but also to values supremely dear, for different reasons, to much of mankind.” 

The pope also highlighted the particular importance of Easter, “the heart of our faith,” for Holy Land Christians, given its geographic centrality in the story of revelation and the place where Christ’s passion and death occurred.  

“The history of salvation, and indeed its geography, would not exist apart from the land in which you have dwelt for centuries,” the pope wrote. “There you want to remain, and there it is good that you should remain. Thank you for your testimony of faith, thank you for the charity that exists among you, thank you for your ability to hope against all hope.”