Death, kidnapping, extortion, and intimidation have become a daily reality for many priests and religious, particularly in Nigeria, Mexico and Haiti. Father John Mark Cheitnum was found dead after he was kidnapped with another priest, Donatus Cleopas, on the afternoon of July 15 as they were on their way to celebrate a mass in the…
Read moreDesigning the ‘Common House’. Overall pastoral care. The Synod: ‘Live the experience of the pilgrims of Emmaus’. We talk about it with Mons. Patrizio Bonilla, Bishop and Apostolic Vicar of the Galapagos. The archipelago of about 50 volcanic islands is located in the Pacific Ocean 1000 km from the west coast of South America. They…
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Suriname is a unitary Republic with executive power vested in the President of the Republic, who is elected by the members of parliament for a five-year term; while the Chamber, composed of 51 seats, has legislative power. The 51 members of the assembly are chosen from the ten electoral districts into which the country is…
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It is the smallest country in South America with a population of just over 600,000 inhabitants and a population rate that has been steadily decreasing since 1970. About 245,000 people live in Paramaribo, the capital. Located near the mouth of the 480 km long Suriname River that crosses the country from south to east, colonial…
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In the Central Latin-American tradition, devotion is strong to Our Lady with the child Jesus in her arms. The people have made it their duty in their daily life. The image of Our Lady among the people leads us to contemplate how motherhood is lived-in working-class quarters inhabited by people with indigenous cultures or other…
Read moreThe period of Dutch colonization made the country one of the main crossroads of both the slave trade and the migration of labour to be employed in plantations and mines, leaving as a legacy the multi-ethnicity dictated by the mixing of cultures, languages, and religions. This, however, has had little effect on the divisions between…
Read moreSuriname is a country rich in natural resources in terms of biodiversity, fresh water, raw materials, and cultural heritage. The mining sector is linked to the extraction of bauxite, gold (which is extracted from the alluvial deposits of Saramacca and Lawa), silver, nickel, and crude oil (which is extracted from an offshore field off the…
Read moreThe ‘Good Living’ is an integral way of perceiving and living life: everything is interconnected, and interdependence is the key to ensuring that everyone lives a full life. The mystique of good living is rooted in community myths that narrate the interdependence of all beings who are part of the common home. It invites us…
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The Asheninka live in the central forest of the Ucayali district in the Atalaya province, in eastern Peru. Their culture is characterised by their coexistence with nature where life develops in its integrity. The sorala, the Asheninka’s birth rites. The Asheninka future mothers follow a special diet during pregnancy. They do not eat some foods…
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She never once bought an ice cream. She never had a day off. She has always worked. But she wants to celebrate her birthday. A Guatemalan migrant struggles to live and survive. She looks at her fingers and hands chapped by 24 years spent cleaning restaurants and shopping malls with chemical cleaners. Originally from Camotán,…
Read moreThe people of the rain, Ñuu Savi, in the Nahuati language of the Mestizos, live in the states of Oaxaca, Puebla and Guerrero in central-southern Mexico. To the present day, they have persisted with their daily practices, their forms of social organisation, their language, health system, respect for nature and their religiosity in their view…
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Marriage is related to the continuation of the family and the community among the Asheninka, an indigenous population who lives in the central forest of the Ucayali district in the province of Atalaya in eastern Peru. Both types of marriage, the monogamous and the polygamous, are practiced among the Asheninka. If a man opts for…
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“What we would like to achieve when we talk about peace. Peace means self-determination. Peace means biological conservation. Peace means revitalization of our culture and…
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At that time Viracocha, the creator God, looked down upon the earth. He saw it was bare, shrouded in impenetrable darkness, for daylight did not yet…
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“Young Africans are playing an active role in bringing social change in the continent. They are contributing daily to the benefit of their communities and nations…
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