RNSbriefs_01_25

RNS NEWS BRIEFS

Christians report lowest growth rate in Israel

By JUDITH SUDILOVSKY

JERUSALEM (RNS/ENInews) Christians have the lowest growth rate among the Israeli population, according to a recent report from the Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics.

According to the Jan. 6 report, the Christian growth rate of 0.9 per cent lags behind the Jewish rate of 1.7 per cent and the 2.7 per cent growth rate among Muslims. Christian Arabs have a growth rate of 1 per cent, while the rate among non-Arab Christians is 0.7 per cent.

About 154,000 Christians live in Israel, representing about 2 per cent of the population, according to the bureau.

The percentage of Christians in Israel has remained relatively stable since the mid-1980s, noted Wadie Abunassar, director of the International centre for Consultations and a consultant for the Jerusalem centre for Jewish-Christian Relations.

About 80 per cent of Christians living in Israel are Arabs, with the remainder mainly Christians who immigrated to Israel with Jewish members of their families under the Law of Return, which allows any proven Jewish person to immigrate to Israel.

The estimated birthrate for Christian women is also the lowest among the religious groups. The average number of children expected to be born to a Christian woman is 2.1, compared to a Muslim woman (3.8), a Jewish woman (3.0) and a Druze woman (2.5).

But though their relative numbers in Israeli society are low, Christian
Arab students consistently have the highest success rates on college-entry examinations compared to other sectors of Israeli society.

Pope warns U.S. bishops on threat of ‘radical secularism’

By ALESSANDRO SPECIALE

(RNS) — “Radical secularism” is gaining ground in American society and poses a “grave threat” to the Catholic Church’s freedom of expression in the public square, Pope Benedict XVI told a group of U.S. bishops on Jan. 19.

The delegation of bishops from the mid-Atlantic region, led by Washington Cardinal Donald Wuerl, is in Rome for a series of regular “ad limina” visit that occur once every five years.

Benedict said bishops must help Catholic politicians understand that it is “their personal responsibility to offer public witness to their faith,” especially regarding the respect for human life.

Catholics must be on guard to confront a “reductive secularism,” Benedict said, which tries to “delegitimize the church’s participation in public debate.”

The pontiff warned that America’s “cherished” tradition of “religious freedom” is under threat as the nation’s moral consensus has been “eroded” by “powerful new cultural currents” that not only run counter to “Judaeo-Christian tradition, but (are) increasingly hostile to Christianity as such.”

Benedict’s message echoed a recent campaign by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, which has warned of a “national conflict between church and state of enormous proportions” over same-sex marriage, contraception mandates and other issues.

Benedict warned that the separation of church and state must not be invoked to force the church to “be silent on certain issues,” or to sideline believers in “determining the values which will shape the future of the nation.”

New York Archbishop Timothy Dolan, president of the bishops’ conference, was not in Rome but thanked the pope in a statement for speaking “eloquently and powerfully on the threats to the church’s moral witness in public life.”

Pope gives final approval to controversial lay group

By ALESSANDRO SPECIALE

VATICAN CITY (RNS) — After a 15-year process, the Holy See on Friday (Jan. 20) gave its final approval to the Neocatechumenal Way, a lay movement that has been criticized for its unorthodox liturgical practices but that has been successful in attracting followers.

The movement relies on tightly knit small groups, modelled on early Christian communities, that share a decade-long spiritual growth path under the guidance of a priest.

Pope Benedict XVI told around 7,000 members of the movement that Neocatechumenal communities could continue in their tradition of celebrating a special Saturday evening Mass, as long as the local bishop approved and the celebrations remained open to the public.
Nevertheless, he encouraged the movement’s members not to remain “separate” from their parish community.

The pope praised the Neocatechumenal Way as a “special gift” of the Holy Spirit for modern times, especially as secularism “has eclipsed the sense of God and obscured Christian values.” The movement, he said, can help Christians rediscover the “beauty” of their faith.

The Way’s founder, Kiko Arguello, said Friday’s approval was a “historic moment” after the “many troubles” the movement had faced in the process of receiving the Vatican’s approval.

The movement’s focus on preaching in secular contexts resonates with Benedict’s recent focus on “re-evangelizing” Western countries where the faith has grown weak.

At the end of the audience, Benedict sent out 17 new teams of Neocatechumenal missionaries, who will work mostly in Europe and in the U.S. Each team is made up of three or four families accompanied by a priest.

Muslim men convicted of advocating death for gays

By AL WEBB

LONDON (RNS) — In the first case of its kind, a British court has convicted three Muslim men -- who claimed they were acting under teachings of their religion -- of openly advocating the execution of gays.

Jurors in Derby, England, on Friday (Jan. 20) found Ihjaz Ali, Kabir Ahmed and Razwan Javed guilty of trying to stir up hatred by handing out provocative pamphlets calling for homosexuals to be put to death.

They were convicted under new legislation in Britain that imposes penalties for distributing written material designed to incite tensions because of sexual orientation -- the first such case since the law went into effect 22 months ago.

During their two-week trial, Ahmed denied the charge, claiming instead that "my intention was to do my duty as a Muslim, to inform people of God's word and to give the message on what God says about homosexuality."

The 28-year-old married father added that "we believe we cannot just stand by and watch somebody commit a sin."

The three were charged with handing out leaflets, entitled "The Death Penalty?" which showed a mannequin hanging from a noose around its throat.

The pamphlet carried quotations from Islamic texts saying that only through capital punishment could society be cleansed of homosexuality, "this immoral crime."

Prosecutors claimed the leaflets were "frightening and threatening," but the defendants denied they were meant to threaten anyone.

Conviction carries a maximum prison term of seven years; sentencing is scheduled for February. Two other Muslim men charged with the same offense were found not guilty and were freed.

Catholics warn Gingrich, Santorum on race baiting

By DAVID GIBSON

(RNS) — More than 40 Catholic leaders and theologians have issued an open letter to Catholic candidates Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum, warning them “to stop perpetuating ugly racial stereotypes on the campaign trail.”

The signers of the open letter, which was released Jan. 20, cited Gingrich’s repeated criticisms of Barack Obama as a “food stamp president” who encourages government dependency for the poor, especially for African-Americans.

They also criticized Santorum’s statement that he does not want “to make black people’s lives better by giving them somebody else’s money.” Santorum later said he intended to use a word other than “black” but did not say what that word would have been.

At the Jan. 19 debate in South Carolina, both Santorum and Gingrich continued to blast the Obama administration for allegedly encouraging the use of food stamps.

Those statements have been criticized for encouraging racially charged associations between blacks and government welfare, and have drawn sharp denunciations from civil rights groups and many pundits.

In their open letter, the Catholic leaders — many of them associated with progressive and Democratic causes — say that raising “racist caricatures is irresponsible, immoral and unworthy of political leaders.”

“Some presidential candidates now courting ‘values voters’ seem to have forgotten that defending human life and dignity does not stop with protecting the unborn,” the authors write.

“We remind Mr. Gingrich and Mr. Santorum that Catholic bishops describe racism as an ‘intrinsic evil’ and consistently defend vital government programs such as food stamps and unemployment benefits that help struggling Americans.”

Since December 2008, a month before Obama took office, food-stamp use has increased 46 per cent, The Associated Press reported. Even though the economy has begun to recover, total spending has more than doubled in four years to an all-time high of $75.3 billion.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, about one-third of food-stamp recipients are white, while 22 per cent are African-American and 16 per cent Hispanic. Some 41 per cent of all recipients live in households where family members are employed. Surveys show that strong majorities of Americans say they do not want food stamp programs cut.