Pope condemns Brussels attackers, arms makers at Holy Thursday rite
He made his comments at a traditional pre-Easter ritual.
This year 11 of the 12 people whose feet he washed and kissed were refugees.
The ceremony commemorates Jesus' gesture of humility towards his apostles on the night before he died.
"All of us together, Muslims, Hindus, Catholics, Copts, Evangelicals, but brothers, children of the same God, who want to live in peace, integrated," he said in unscripted comments at a shelter north of Rome that houses refugees seeking political asylum.
"Three days ago, there was a gesture of war, of destruction, in a city of Europe by people who don't want to live in peace," he said.
"Behind that gesture there were arms manufacturers, arms traffickers, who want blood, not peace, who want war, not brotherhood," he said.
In a reference to the Brussels attackers, Francis condemned "those poor creatures who buy weapons in order to destroy brotherhood," comparing them to Judas Iscariot, the apostle who the Bible says betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of silver.
Before Francis became pope, the ceremony was held in St. Peter's or another Rome basilica and only included Catholic men, usually priests.
But after his election in 2013, he continued the tradition he started as archbishop of Buenos Aires, enabling women and non-Catholics to participate.
Catholic conservatives have criticised him for breaking with tradition.
The refugees came from Mali, Nigeria, Eritrea, India, Syria and Pakistan.
Brussels we mourn for you and with you.... and amazed by your real, raw and righteous bravery, courage, dignity, honour and grace- u inspire the world - so many cultures and languages blended as one- God bless u- God loves u and He has a plan
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WW 1
Canadians in Belgium 1944 - The Second World War...
http://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/remembrance/history/second-world-war/canada-belgium
More than 800 Canadian soldiers died in battle in Belgium. ... The Allied forces, including the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division and the 2nd Canadian ..... with the exception of: Adegem Canadian War Cemetery, Veterans Affairs Canada photo.
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Canadians pay respects to victims of attack on Brussels
Meghan Hurley
, Last Updated: 12:35 AM ET
About 20 people gathered outside the embassy on Albert Street for the vigil organized by the European Students Association at Carleton University.
“It felt very close to home, and now it feels closer,” said Denis, holding a bouquet of flowers. “All of our friends are still there, so to wake up in the morning to see all of your friends checking in to say they are still alive, it’s kind of gut-wrenching.”
Denis, 30, just moved back to Ottawa a year ago, around the same time the Jan. 7 Charlie Hebdo attack was carried out in Paris, where her fiancé’s family lives.
The association’s president, Fidan Karimli, 23, said her sister had flown to London from the Brussels airport the day before the attacks.
“It’s terrible and shocking what happening. It’s the heart of Europe,” she said. “This terrorist attack was a message, and it’s hard to believe that it actually happened.”
Several Brussels residents in Ottawa on an exchange program with Carleton University described the stress of trying to reach friends and family back home.
Marie El Khoury, a Belgian law student studying for a semester at Carleton, said she awoke to dozens of messages from friends and family about the attack. “I feel all my family is getting together in Belgium, so I think (joining the Ottawa vigil is) the right thing to do because I’m far away,”
Earlier in the day, Ottawa residents showed their support by signing a book of condolence for the victims of the attacks and their families set up outside the Belgian embassy.
Gerry Harrington was among the first to sign the book and said Tuesday’s attacks in Brussels won’t stop him from visiting the nearby Belgian city of Liège next month.
“I’m definitely not reconsidering,” he said. “And I think that’s important.”
http://cnews.canoe.com/CNEWS/Canada/2016/03/23/22616566.html?cid=rssnewscanada
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Pope Francis: To kill in the name of God is an absurdity-
peace, love, healing, redemption,rejuvenation,
renewal and a good life for each and all humanity and environment –
that’s what we need in our world ....
UNCOMMON COURAGE- Brussels and France- see real, raw and righteous bravery, courage,
dignity and honour and grace..... u inspire the world – in the face of mindless
cowardly cruelty (God’s keeping His Wall of Shame and waiting for them- He made
a deal with the devil). Look at the
faces, the bravery- of course we weep, scream, cry and pray holding each and
all close.... because we are nations of many cultures, languages, education,
love, friendship and the best of humanity.... helping those in need and
appreciating our lives and God’s grace.... Am Christian... and this Easter
Week... our Lord and Saviour Jesus (who was born a Jew) is crucified by the
Romans... and on the 3rd day rises from the dead to grace us and
save us forever.... God’s only son.... imagine...
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Keep terrorism in perspective
by Gwynne Dyer
LONDON – Belgium may be a boring country, but it still seems extreme for a Belgian politician to say that the country is now living through its darkest days since the end of World War II. Can any country really be so lucky that the worst thing that has happened to it in the past 70 years is a couple of bombs that killed 34 people?That may sound a bit uncharitable, but respect for the innocent people killed by terrorists does not require us to take leave of our senses. What is happening now is the media feeding frenzy that has become almost a statutory requirement after every terrorist attack in the West
And people do let themelves get wound up by the media-generated panic. Last night at dinner a young man, staying with us overnight in London before taking a morning flight to the United States, openly debated with himself about whether he should cancel his (non-refundable) ticket or not. It was a ticket from London to Chicago that went nowhere near mainland Europe at all.
The airlines are just as prone to panic, canceling flights into Belgium as if the country had suddenly become a seriously dangerous place. This story will dominate the Belgian media for weeks, and the rest of the Western media for the remainder of this week. Even non-Western media will play it for a day or two. Almost nothing new or useful will be said, and then the frenzy will die down — until next time.
This is a very stupid way of behaving, but you will notice that I am a part of it. No matter what I say about the bombs in Brussels, the fact that I am writing at length about them in a column that appears all over the world contributes to the delusion that they are not only a nasty event but also an important one.
It is the sheer volume of coverage that determines an event’s perceived importance, not what is actually said about it. But if we in the media are compelled to write about an event like the Belgian bombs, what can we truthfully say about it that will not feed the panic?
The first thing, after every terrorist attack, is to stress that the media coverage of the attack is its primary purpose — indeed, almost its only purpose. Like the health warning on cigarette packets, it should be part of every story on terrorism.
Second, we have to put the alleged “threat” of such terrorist attacks into perspective. People rarely do this for themselves, because once events are beyond the range of their daily experience most people cannot distinguish between what is truly dangerous and what is only dramatic and frightening.
It really does help to remind people that terrorism is a statistically insignificant risk — that they are in much greater danger of dying from a fall in the bath than of dying in a terrorist attack — even if that approach conflicts with the journalists’ natural urge to emphasise the importance of whatever they are writing about.
And finally, a little dispassionate analysis quickly deflates the notion that terrorism is “an existential threat” (as British Prime Minister David Cameron once said). For example, the recent terrorist attacks in Europe have been largely confined to French-speaking countries.
Muslim immigrants in France and Belgium mostly come from Arab countries, and especially from North Africa, where French is the second laguage. And the Arab world is where radical Islamism is strongest. Germany (whose Muslims are mostly Turkish) and Britain (where they are mostly of South Asian origin) generate fewer Islamist extremists than the Francophone countries, and face fewer terrorist attacks.
France’s and Belgium’s Muslim citizens are also less integrated into the wider community. French housing policy has dumped most of the immigrants in high-rise, low-income developments at the edge of the cities, often beyond the end of the metro lines. Unemployed, poorly educated and culturally isolated, their young men are more easily recruited into extremist groups.
There is no terrorist army in Belgium, just a bunch of young men making it up as they go along. For example, the Brussels attacks happened four days after the arrest of Salah Abdeslam, the sole survivor of the gang who carried out the attacks on the Bataclan arena and the Stade de France in Paris last November.
Back in Brussels after failing to use his suicide vest in the Paris attack, Abdeslam was a psychological wreck, and his Islamist colleagues undoubtedly expected that once in police custody he would sing like a canary. So they decided to launch another attack and go to glory before the police kicked in their doors.
Prime Minister Charles Michel issued the usual ritual incantation about Belgians being “determined to defend our freedom,” but Belgium’s freedom is not at risk. Terrorists are not an existential threat. They are a lethal nuisance, but no more than a nuisance.
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/opinion/2016/03/24/commentary/world-commentary/keep-terrorism-perspective/#.VvRW1DFcrxJ
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Strength of democratic societies is in overcoming pain and fear; our values are much stronger: President
24 March 2016 | 16:40 | FOCUS News Agency"We are proud that we are worthy member of the EU, we are solidarity this difficult time for Europe. We have to show that the strength of democratic societies is in our ability to overcome pain and fear,” said the President, when offered his condolences to the Ambassador of Belgium to Bulgaria, Anick Van Calster.
"When attacked, united Europe can give only one answer - to continue to do what we've done and do it even better. We will not succumb to pain and fear and will not change our values ", President Rosen Plevneliev was adamant.
According to the head of state, Brussels is the heart of our common European project in which we believe and which we support and which is the only way for lasting peace in Europe.
http://www.focus-fen.net/news/2016/03/24/401504/strength-of-democratic-societies-is-in-overcoming-pain-and-fear-our-values-are-much-stronger-president.html
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After The Brussels Attacks, Let’s Be Brave
By |
Explosions rocked Belgium this morning, killing at least 30 people so far and injuring many more. As of the writing of this article, no person or group has taken responsibility, although with the arrest of suspected Paris conspirator Salah Abdeslam, a lot of people are putting two and two together and coming up with a radical Islamist plot.
Which it could very well be.
This is awful. First we had the Paris attacks and then San Bernardino and now Brussels, (along with what’s been going on in Turkey and the daily carnage in the Middle East).
On cue, Donald Trump says we have to be careful about letting in refugees, and Ted Cruz says Obama is not tough enough against Radical Islamists.
Late last year after the Paris and San Bernardino attacks, when Donald Trump was calling to profile immigrants and singled out Muslims, there was a sharp increase in hate crimes against Muslims. Mosques were vandalized, people were attacked.
This is the kind of thing we need to resist. We can’t be scared. We need to brave. We need to stop lashing out in panic moves that play right into the hands of the terrorists. After all, the goal of terror is to make us scared, to do things we wouldn’t do if we weren’t hiding behind the shades pushing our collective panic-buttons. It isn’t about winning military victories; it’s about terrorizing civilians and innocents. In other words, terrorists won’t win military victories, but they do win when we allow them to scare us.
So let’s talk to our Muslim neighbors and make sure they’re safe. Let’s resist the urge to “bomb the sh*t out of them,” or ban people fleeing violence and horror from getting to a safe place. If we shut down and lash out we’re doing what they want us to do, which is provoke a violent overreaction. Which of course leads to more death, more despair, and fertile recruiting grounds for future members of ISIS.
So make your Facebook profile a Belgian flag and send your prayers and thoughts for the Brussels attacks. But let’s also be brave, and remember our values, and show some compassion for the victims of the violence, and for our Muslim friends and neighbors who had nothing to do with this, but who are about to have a terrible day.
http://www.menstrait.com/article/after-the-brussels-attacks-lets-be-brave/
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Worldwide Outpouring Of Grief After Brussels Attacks
March 22, 2016
After Tuesday's deadly attacks in Brussels killed more than two dozen people, we're seeing an outpouring of grief and support from around the world.
Like we saw after the November attacks in Paris, many took to social media to express their condolences and solidarity with the people affected — and latched onto prominent symbols associated with the country.
After the violence in Paris, renditions of the Eiffel Tower and the French flag were widely shared.
Now people on social media are posting images of the beloved cartoon character Tintin mourning the attacks to show their support for Brussels.
The world-traveling reporter drawn by cartoonist Georges Remi is one of Belgium's best-known exports. As Time magazine reports, Tintin, his dog Snowy and other characters from the series "have long been national symbols of Belgium."
Here are a few of the widely shared Tintin images:
Another emerging symbol of solidarity is the image of the Manneken Pis, a bronze sculpture in Brussels showing a boy urinating. As The Independent reports, "It is an emblem of the rebellious spirit of Brussels, according to the city, and it is being shared by people as a symbol of defiance."
Here's one of the artistic renditions of the Manneken Pis:
Reaction has been particularly strong from France, where attackers killed 130 people in a string of deadly attacks in Paris last November.
The French newspaper Le Monde published this cartoon by Plantu, with the dates of the major attacks in their two cities:
And along with words of support from French President Francois Hollande, the French government tweeted its sympathies to Belgium:
The city of Paris said in a post on Twitter that it plans to light up the Eiffel Tower with Belgium's colors this evening.
In Brussels, as the city reeled from the violence, people took to the streets to draw colorful messages of solidarity on the sidewalk. These were captured in a video by the Ancienne Belgique concert hall:
One cartoon by Algerian cartoonist Ali Dilem, titled, "Terrorism strikes again," shows a badly battered man with a sign that reads, "I am Brussels." The man faces a group of people who are all carrying signs with the names of other cities hit by major attacks, and says, "Can you make me a little place?"
Another widely circulated image reads, "Thoughts for Brussels and all of Belgium."
https://news.wgbh.org/2016/03/22/news/worldwide-outpouring-grief-after-brussels-attacks
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