__________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________

Ethiopia

A changing Church
Missionaries leave as violence continues

During the month of October, at least 154 people were killed in Algeria, as the North African country’s internal crisis continued. Because of the violence, the Church in Algeria has changed: there are fewer European missionaries and more Catholics from Sub-Saharan Africa. “Sharing the troubles of the people,” a local religious says, “we have come to realize just how Algerian our little Church is.”

The spiral of massacres began in 1992, interrupted only temporarily by the country’s first free and open vote, in which the winner was the Islamic Salvation Front. The results were promptly nullified by the government, and the ensuing fighting between the army and Muslim activists has now left at least 100,000 dead.

The escalation of violence has also affected the presence of Catholics: two-thirds of the nuns who lived in Algiers as of 1992 have now left, and about 40 communities and service centers staffed by Catholic missionary personnel have been abandoned. In the Constantine diocese the number of Catholics dropped by 50 percent. Many European families departed. At the same time, however, there was a marked increase in the number of Catholics coming into the country from Sub-Saharan Africa, mostly students attending Algerian universities.

Despite the continued violence, among most of the people of Algeria there is a growing respect and openness towards non-Muslim religions, and toward Christianity in particular. Every month about 2,500 Algerians visit Notre Dame of Africa Cathedral in the capital. Archbishop Henry Teissier says, “A growing number of people are friendly towards Catholics: the presence of Christians in the city is now accepted, indeed many are in favor of it and cooperate with our activities. Friendship grows as more and more people are asking spiritual and human questions similar to our own, although at different levels.” Another positive note is the re-opening of the White Fathers’ monastery at Ghardaia Oasis, in the middle of the desert in Laghouat diocese; the monastery had been closed five years ago after a guerilla attack that left one monk wounded.

Since 1996 there have been no Catholic victims of terrorist violence. The last of the 19 Catholics who died in the country’s struggles were Bishop Claverie of Oran and his driver, the victims of a car bomb explosion on August 1, 1996.

Appraising Africa
Dean of Cardinals surveys scene

The Holy See has reached a new formal agreement with the Organization for African Unity, calling for “active collaboration” between the Church and the African governments on questions involving education, health care, and human rights.

The new agreement was signed on October 19 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Cardinal Bernardin Gantin, the former prefect of the Congregation for Bishops, remarked that the agreement set out the terms of a challenge for both the Catholic Church and the African governments.

Cardinal Gantin—a native of Benin, who is now the dean of the College of Cardinals—mentioned the spread of AIDS as one of the challenges the Church and government bodies could face together. AIDS, he said, is “a menace to the lives of scores of millions of Africans, and an obstacle to the development of all Africa.” At the same time, he cautioned against the adoption of “solutions that may seem effective at first glance,” adding that the only really effective solution would lie in “a truly responsible attitude.”

Making his point explicit, the cardinal said that “abstinence, as opposed to other approaches, is 100 percent effective, has no adverse side effects, and costs absolutely nothing.” He concluded: “We hope that the African economic summit this coming December will support action on a new, higher plane, in order to eradicate this plague.”

Cardinal Gantin then turned his attention to the civil warfare that is troubling many African countries, and said that economic development would contribute enormously to peacemaking efforts. He added that development efforts should not be dominated by family-planning programs. “The problem is not the number of people in Africa,” he said, “but the just distribution of resources, of which the African continent has a great deal.”

During his remarks, Cardinal Gantin observed that there are now more than 100 million Catholics in Africa, and the Church is now represented in every country across the continent. There are now over 400,000 priests, deacons, and religious, more than 5,000 Church-related hospitals and health clinics, 700 orphanages, and 5,000 other charitable centers. Finally, he noted that Catholic schools now educate about 13 million African children.

Abortion’s victims
Women die in illegal operations

A new study conducted in Ethiopia has claimed that abortion is a major cause of death for mothers under the age of 20 in the East African nation. The sponsors of the study see it as an argument in favor of legalized abortion.

The study, sponsored by the Ethiopian Women Lawyers Association, found that 54 percent of the deaths of young mothers was caused by illegal abortionists using unhygienic tools. Under a draft of a new penal code, abortion is illegal in Ethiopia except to save the life of the mother, and the lawyers’ group is pressuring the government to legalize the practice. The group claims that since the law is violated so often, it should be abolished.

Critics contend that just because a law is violated does not mean it should be cast aside, but that enforcement should become a priority—as should services to help women in unexpected or unwanted pregnancies. They also question whether abortionists who engage in unsafe practices today would suddenly be more careful if the procedure became legal. Appraising Africa Dean of Cardinals surveys scene The Holy See has reached a new formal agreement with the Organization for African Unity, calling for “active collaboration” between the Church and the African governments on questions involving education, health care, and human rights.

The new agreement was signed on October 19 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Cardinal Bernardin Gantin, the former prefect of the Congregation for Bishops, remarked that the agreement set out the terms of a challenge for both the Catholic Church and the African governments.

Cardinal Gantin—a native of Benin, who is now the dean of the College of Cardinals—mentioned the spread of AIDS as one of the challenges the Church and government bodies could face together. AIDS, he said, is “a menace to the lives of scores of millions of Africans, and an obstacle to the development of all Africa.” At the same time, he cautioned against the adoption of “solutions that may seem effective at first glance,” adding that the only really effective solution would lie in “a truly responsible attitude.”

Making his point explicit, the cardinal said that “abstinence, as opposed to other approaches, is 100 percent effective, has no adverse side effects, and costs absolutely nothing.” He concluded: “We hope that the African economic summit this coming December will support action on a new, higher plane, in order to eradicate this plague.”

Cardinal Gantin then turned his attention to the civil warfare that is troubling many African countries, and said that economic development would contribute enormously to peacemaking efforts. He added that development efforts should not be dominated by family-planning programs. “The problem is not the number of people in Africa,” he said, “but the just distribution of resources, of which the African continent has a great deal.”

During his remarks, Cardinal Gantin observed that there are now more than 100 million Catholics in Africa, and the Church is now represented in every country across the continent. There are now over 400,000 priests, deacons, and religious, more than 5,000 Church-related hospitals and health clinics, 700 orphanages, and 5,000 other charitable centers. Finally, he noted that Catholic schools now educate about 13 million African children.