Victory over the devil

In last Sunday’s Angelus, Pope Francis spoke on the Gospel reading about Jesus’s temptation in the desert:

“At the beginning of Lent, this gospel reminds us that the life of the Christian, in the footsteps of the Lord, is a battle against the spirit of evil. It shows us that Jesus willingly faced the Tempter, and defeated him; it reminds us that the devil is granted the possibility of acting on us too, with his temptations. We must be aware of the presence of this astute enemy, who seeks our eternal condemnation, our failure, and prepare to defend ourselves against him and to combat him. The grace of God assures us, with faith, prayer and penance, of our victory over the enemy.”

Basis of all rights

Bishop Richard Moth described as immoral the decision that people with learning disabilities in England have been given ‘Do Not Attempt Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (DNACPR)’ orders during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“All human life is endowed with equal God-given dignity from the moment of conception until natural death. Our worth as humans should never be determined by the status of our mental health or capacity. Pope Francis recently said, ‘If we deprive the weakest among us of the right to life, how can we effectively guarantee respect for every other right?’”

EU mimics Pilate

Fr Tomo Knezevic, head of Caritas in Bosnia-Herzegovina, accused the European Union of behaving like Pontius Pilate as it is ignoring the difficulties refugees are living in. “Most people here are hospitable to refugees – only a quarter-century has passed since war ravaged our country, so we know what it’s like to be homeless, hungry and afraid. But there’s also tension, especially in the cities, where migrants are living in parks or ruins, making residents uncomfortable. There’s also some criminal behaviour, while populist politicians exploit anxieties to incite a mood against them.”

(Compiled by Fr Joe Borg)