"Our hearts break at the death and destruction we are seeing on our television screens and in our newspapers," they wrote last week during the assembly of the Federation of Catholic Bishops Conferences of Oceania in Fiji.

"We know that God is close to those that suffer. We pray that your people sense the love and care of their brothers and sisters around the world, including from Oceania.

"One of the key themes of our Federation ... is the connectedness of human suffering and the suffering of our world. We have seen in your countries how natural disasters can wreak such pain and anguish, with thousands of lives lost.

"The Catholic Church has established appeals to raise funds to support the ongoing efforts for rescue and recovery, and we will encourage the faithful in our region to respond generously.

"The Church is also providing human resources on the ground to respond to immediate needs through our aid agencies.

"Be assured of our ongoing prayers and our attention as your people recover from this tragedy."

The huge earthquakes have killed tens of thousands, and destroyed homes, businesses and infrastructure throughout Turkey and Syria. Urgent and ongoing humanitarian aid is needed.

One minute worse than 12 years of war

"Less than one minute was worse than 12 years of war," says a survivor from Syria.

Even though Syria has been at war for almost 12 years, for many people in Aleppo and in other cities that were affected, the devastating earthquake of 6 February was more traumatic.

"If you ask the people of Aleppo about the war they lived through, they express their feelings of pain, fear, despair about the future, loss of safety, etc. They use many different expressions to express the 12-year war.

"But if you ask them about the earthquake that they were exposed to, the answer is just one word: horror", says a Catholic religious sister who lives and works in Aleppo.

Catholic aid

• The main Catholic hospital of St Louis in Aleppo withstood the quakes and has been helping survivors.
• Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) says it will be providing at least half a million Euros of immediate aid to Christians in Syria.
• Among the Catholic organisations working on the ground in Syria providing relief are Franciscans in Lattakia, the Armenian Orthodox in Aleppo, the Institute of the Incarnate Word and the St Vincent de Paul Society.
• Many Catholic churches are providing shelter for the homeless.
• The Syrian Synod of Catholic bishops has assembled a team of engineers to assess and price the damage to Christian families' houses. ACN says it hopes to be able to help with this.

Source

• Catholic Weekly
• ACN International
• ACN International

The Federation of Catholic Bishops Conferences of Oceania gather together every four years to reflect on and pray about their shared mission in the region.

Among those present are representatives from bishops conferences in Australia, Papua New Guinea/Solomon Islands and the Pacific Islands, as well as New Zealand.

Completing their joint response to the working document for the continental stage for the global Synod of Bishops is an important part of the week's work.

So is the theme "Save the Ocean to Save Mother Earth"; it is included in the Continental phase of the Synod on Synodality.

The work programme

Cardinal Michael Czerny, SJ, gave the conference's opening address on Sunday, highlighting the its twin themes: climate change and synodality.

"Climate change falls under ‘care for our common home,' which here also means care for the ocean," he said.

He recognised the many tensions that affect the region - including unsustainable exploitation of ocean resources, human trafficking, migration and geo-political rivalries.

In response, the Church proposes "integral human development," he said.

The Church must "enrich the present with good" by accompanying people. This must begin with listening to them, he stressed.

The synodal process must begin with "real conversion," including admitting "our personal and collective complicity in the degradation of our environment, and the dire consequences of such on poor and marginalised communities."

But the work being done in Oceania is not being done in isolation, he added.

"In this voyage of discovery and transformation, you are not out on the ocean alone. Pope Francis, the Roman Curia, the Synod Secretariat, the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development are with you."

First and foremost, their work involves "recognising and supporting the work that the Bishops do for the Gospel and the Church", plus helping ensure "peoples may have abundant life in Christ", he explained.

During the week, each of the four Episcopal Conferences has shown a video focusing on the synodal journey undertaken in their territories and have seen an additional video expressing the ocean's voice. They have also seen firsthand the effects of changes to the climate and environment.

Dunedin's Bishop Michael Dooley is adamant action from the Church and its leaders on climate issues is necessary.

"I think, as a Church, we need to speak on behalf of those people, the vulnerable people who often don't have an opportunity to have their voices heard.

Auckland's Bishop Steve Lowe echoed this view when he celebrated Mass on Wednesday. In his homily he asked the bishops to advocate for the poor, and the Earth, to be a breath of life.

Becoming more synodal

To help the bishops in their quest for synodality, Vatican speaker, Sr Nathalie Becquart provided a presentation. She compared synodality to a person who develops over time, but remains the person he or she is.

Synodality can only be learned together, she explained. It is inherent in the Church's identity - therefore the topic of the current synod is actually the Church's identity.

Source

• Australian Catholic Bishops Conference
• New Zealand Catholic Bishops Conference
• New Zealand Catholic Bishops Conference
• Australian Catholic Bishops Conference

The recent massacre at the mosques in Christchurch has brought deep grief to all of us. As church leaders of Oceania, we condemn this evil attack and are shocked and horrified that such an atrocity should take place against innocent people. We are equally horrified that it should be perpetrated in a place of prayer and worship, when freedom to worship is cherished in our countries.

We wish to express our deepest sympathies to the victims and those who grieve because of the consequences of the terrorist attacks in Christchurch, New Zealand.

To all our Muslim brothers and sisters in New Zealand, Australia and around the world, we stand in solidarity with you in your horror, grief and distress.

We offer our prayers on behalf of the Catholic Bishops of Oceania to the deceased, the injured and to all the individuals and communities who have been affected by this senseless violence. We also wish to pray for Bishop Paul Martin who was supposed to join us in Townsville this week for our meeting.

In times like this we should take the time to reflect on the way we treat one another as children of God.

Source

Supplied

Executive Committee of FCBCO

Archbishop Peter Loy Chong, Archbishop of Suva, Fiji - President of FCBCO

Bishop Charles Drennan, Bishop of Palmerston North - Vice President of FCBCO

Bishop Tim Harris, Bishop of Townsville

Bishop Michael McCarthy, Bishop Rockhampton

Archbishop Christopher Cardone, Bishop of Honiara

Bishop Peter Brown, Bishop of American Samoa, Pago Pago

Bishop Anton Bal, Bishop of Kundiawa

The Executive of FCBCO is currently meeting in Townsville for their annual Executive meeting and commencing preparations for their Plenary Council Meeting in Fiji in 2022.

He will be at the Federation of Catholic Bishops Conferences of Oceania(FCBCO) Plenary Assembly in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, in April.

"We are delighted that Cardinal Parolin, the Secretary of State at the Vatican, will be with us," said FCBCO Executive Member, Bishop Charles Drennan.

"His voice will echo Pope Francis' voice and gestures for justice and care of our planet home."

The Federation is made up of Bishops from Australia, Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands, New Zealand and other Pacific nations.

They hold a plenary assembly every four years.

The assembly's theme this year is ‘Care of our common home of Oceania: a sea of possibilities'.

Human rights and environmental care and protection will underlie the Assembly's discussions.

There will be a particular focus on:

• Displacement
• Social unrest
• Climate change
• Harmful environmental practices such as deep-seabed mining
• Over-fishing

Drennan said "We discuss these matters from the perspective of faith, which sees all creation and human life as a gift from God to be respected and treasured.

"We are very mindful of ongoing unrest and questionable military presence in West Papua as well as the growing influence of unsavoury business and political interests buying influence in the Pacific.

"I am hopeful of a renewed resolve for integrity in governance and sustainable and participatory economic development to arise from our discussions together and with local leaders."

Keynote speakers at the Assembly include:
Cardinal Pietro Parolin, who has been Secretary of State since 2013 and has worked in the diplomatic service of the Holy See for thirty years.

The cardinal will speak on Pope Francis' encyclical, Laudato Si' , which underlies the theme of the Assembly.

Governor Powes Parkop, a representative of the Government's Foreign Affairs and Trade Ministry.

He will deliver a keynote on the ongoing conflict between the Indonesian government and portions of the indigenous populations in the Indonesian provinces of Papua and West Papua.

Professor Ottmar Edenhofer, one of the world's leading experts on climate change policy and environmental and energy policy, speaking to the Assembly on Catholic Social Teachings.

Father Clement Taulam of PNG, who will discuss the current situation about Manus Refugees and his work in this area.

Last year, Father Clement and retired army major Michael Kuweh made headlines in defying the PNG and Australian governments in calling for assistance for the refugees and asylum seekers on Manus, and for a peaceable solution to the standoff inside the condemned Australian-run detention centre.

Other sessions during the Assembly include an update on progress about the region preparing for Young People, the Faith, and Vocational Discernment.

New Zealand priest, Monsignor Gerard Burns, President of Caritas Oceania will update the bishops on the important work the NZCBC agency is undertaking across the region and their work with communities, government and aid agencies on climate change, sustainability, education and advocacy.

New Zealand also will report on its national youth festival in December last year, its survey of young people and its participation in the Pre-Synodal Meeting to take place in Rome from 19 to 24 March 2018.

Towards to end of the assembly, attendees will take part in a mass with local communities and a formal dinner with the PNG Prime Minister, Peter O'Neill.

Source

• Supplied: Amanda Gregan Communications Advisor - NZ Catholic Bishops/ Te Huinga o nga Pihopa Katorika o Aotearoa
• Image: catholicismpure.wordpress.com

The situation in West Papua was one of the main focuses in a statement issued at the end of their recent meeting in Auckland by the Executive Committee of the Federation of Catholic Bishops.

They called for:

• Quality education
• Fair and transparent access to jobs, training programmes and employment
• Respect of land titles
• Clear boundaries between the role of defence and police forces and the role of commerce

The bishops did not have a view on the question of independence for West Papua. "Indeed we believe that where this question becomes a single focus, care to uphold and strengthen local institutions of democracy may be overlooked."

They noted that a large majority of indigenous people of Papua seek peace. "The large majority of indigenous people of Papua seek peace and the various dialogue groups, advocating and witnessing to peaceful co-existence, are a source of hope for all."

New Zealand's Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Committee in New Zealand has turned down a call to push for a UN special rapporteur on freedom of expression to visit West Papua.

A human rights petition, organised by West Papua Action Auckland and supported by other human rights groups and Catholic and Anglican church leaders, had sought for New Zealand to condemn the arrest and intimidation of peaceful protestors.

The Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Tonga, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, Nauru, Tuvalu and Palau have all called for UN intervention in West Papua.

Read the bishops' statement

Source

• Scoop Federation of Catholic Bishops Media release
• Voxy
• RNZ
• Asia Pacific Report
• Image: greenbooks.org

"This was a humbling experience during which we felt deeply Christ's call to sit and walk alongside those who struggle or find themselves on the margins of society," they said in their statement issued at the conclusion of the meeting.

Chris Farrelly, Auckland City Missioner, said it was a "wonderful event having the Bishops at the Mission supporting the work of the Mission in this way."

"The Auckland City Mission relies on the generosity of such people to provide the food for the daily meals, served 365 days a year," he said.

The bishops were attending the annual week-long meeting of the Executive Committee of the Federation of Catholic Bishops Conferences of Oceania.

Previously the Bishops had visited to De La Salle College in South Auckland. They said the highlight of that visit was the Mass for the entire community. "The boys' enthusiastic participation in the liturgy uplifted our hearts."

The Federation of Catholic Bishops Conferences of Oceania is made up of the Bishop's Conferences in Australia, Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands, New Zealand, and the Pacific Island nations (CEPAC).

The bishops attending the meeting were:

Archbishop Sir John Cardinal Ribat MSC (President), Archbishop of Port Moresby, PNG.
Bishop Robert McGuckin (Deputy President) Bishop of Toowoomba, Australia.
Archbishop Michel Calvet SM, Archbishop of Noumea, New Caledonia.
Bishop Colin Campbell, Bishop of Dunedin, New Zealand.
Bishop Charles Drennan, Bishop of Palmerston North, New Zealand.
Bishop Vincent Long OFM Conv, Bishop of Parramatta, Australia.

There will be a plenary assembly of the Federation of Catholic Bishops Conferences of Oceania in Port Moresby in April 2019.

The theme will be ‘Care of our Common Home of Oceania: A sea of possibilities'.

Source

Supplied: NZCBC, Auckland City Mission

The Executive Committee of the Federation of Catholic Bishops Conferences of Oceania, Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands have issued a statement condemning what is happening to asylum seekers on Manus Island and Nauru.

"Callousness can never be the proper response to human tragedy."

"We applaud PNG's Supreme Court's decision that the Manus Island detention centre is unconstitutional and illegal and we trust the Australian and other authorities will act swiftly in implementing a humane plan of rehabilitation for the detainees."

The executive committee also:

• Congratulated and offered encouragement to the Governor of Port Moresby on the development of this city and his commitment to justice, integrity and service in civic leadership
• Expressed their satisfaction that The Papua New Guinea Government has recently passed a Bill agreeing to implement the strategies proposed by the Paris COP21 meeting about climate change and sustainable development.
• Expressed support for the West Papuan people's desire to participate fully in the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG)

The Executive Committee of the Federation of Catholic Bishops Conferences of Oceania ( Australia, New Zealand, PNG/SI, CEPAC) is currently meeting in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea.

Source

• Supplied
• Image: Supplied

"In some cases, entire regions and nations are under threat from the indisputable fact of rising sea levels," the statement says.

"Examples from this part of the world include the Carteret Islands, Fead Islands, Kiribati, the Marshall Islands, the Mortlock Islands, Nukumanu Islands, the Tokelau Islands, and Tuvalu."

Last week fourteen Pacific Island nations met in Jaipur, in India to discuss rising sea levels.

Their message was clear - world leaders meeting in Paris in December must deliver on expectations of a historic deal to combat global warming.

The prime minister of Tuvalu, Enele Sopoaga, says his country is having to consider buying land in New Zealand and Australia to grow food and prepare the population to migrate.

In their statement the Bishops say relocation is fraught with difficulty.

"While offers of relocation are generous in themselves, uplifting a people from one place and planting them in another is a 'solution' that is fraught with difficulty and at times even insensitivity, to cultural identity and traditions."

The Bishops' Executive Committee has been meeting in Noumea, New Caledonia.

It is made up of the representatives of the Catholic Bishops' Conferences of Australia, CEPAC (the Pacific Island nations), New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands.

Their statement has been prepared for the Conference of Peoples to be held in Paris in December.

Here is the full text of the Bishops' statement

• In English
• En Francais

Source

• Supplied
• radionz.co.nz
• abc.net.au
• Image: brookings.edu