Prime Minister Dr. Joseph Muscat has given permission for a major historic landmark, Portes des Bombes monument, to be lit up in red tomorrow from 7.00 – 11.00pm in memory of all those who were killed for their religious beliefs.
This illumination is taking place on the day of the launch in Malta with keynote speaker Syrian priest Fr Ziad Hilal SJ, of a major Report published by international Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need warning that religious freedom is under threat in one in five countries around the world.
The Religious Freedom in the World 2016 report describes the current situation in 196 countries and highlights 38 countries in which there have been significant violations of religious freedom in the last two years.
The 13th edition of the Religious Freedom in the World report, produced by Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) will be launched in Malta tomorrow.
The official launch will take place in St Anthony Chapel (Russian Chapel) at San Anton Palace under the distinguished patronage of President Marie Louise Coleiro Preca. Mons. Charles Cordina, Episcopal Vicar for Diaconia, will attend on behalf of the Archbishop.
The Keynote Speaker, Syrian priest Fr Ziad Hilal SJ, is coming to Malta to speak at the launch. Fr Hilal was a former Project director in Homs from 2012 – 2015 of Jesuit Refugee Services, which was awarded the Pax Christi International Peace Award in 2014 for its emergency relief work in Syria. Fr Hilal is the current coordinator of Aid to the Church in Need’s humanitarian projects in Syria and Lebanon.
The former head of 2014 Peace Award aid organisation will then visit Gozo after speaking at launch of ACN’s Religious Freedom report
Fr Hilal will head to Gozo where he will attend a Mass at Ta’ Pinu at 6.30pm. Everyone in Gozo is invited to attend and meet Fr Hilal.
ACN Malta is appealing to administrators of all Band Clubs, Local Councils and other public buildings in Gozo to illuminate the facade tomorrow, Friday, the 25th of November between 7.00pm – 10.00pm, as a gesture of solidarity with all the Christian martyrs who died for their faith in Jesus Christ.
The Porte des Bombes illumination is part of a major campaign conceived by Aid to the Church in Need to honour the victims of religious hatred worldwide and raise awareness of religious persecution.
On Wednesday Westminster Abbey, the Roman Catholic Westminster Cathedral, the Coptic Orthodox Church Centre in Stevenage, the Houses of Parliament and a string of other landmarks around Britain turned red to draw attention to the plight of people around the world being killed or persecuted for their faith. Churches, mosques and synagogues were among buildings illuminated.
Previously, Italy’s famous Trevi fountain and Brazil’s famous statue of Christ Redeemer were also lit up in red as a symbolic gesture to the martyrs who shed their blood for their beliefs.
John Pontifex, editor of the Report, spoke about the illumination campaign: “The idea is that people of all faiths come together, united around this one colour which commemorates all those of whatever faith who have suffered because of their religious beliefs.
“It is an opportunity for us to remember that there are many thousands of people, not least Christians but also people of other faiths, being killed or persecuted because of the faith that they profess.”
The Report highlights a phenomenon it calls “hyper-extremism,” embodied by groups such as Islamic State which not only preach a hardline creed but systematically seek to annihilate everyone else who does not conform to their ideas, including members of their own faith. This is creating major instability, record numbers of refugees and poses a serious threat to world peace.
The biannual ACN report, which assesses the situation regarding religious freedom in each of the world’s 196 countries, draws on research by journalists, academics and clergy.
The 2016 edition warns of the global impact of “a new phenomenon of religiously-motivated violence,” particularly Islamic. Countering the popular view that governments are mostly to blame for persecution, the report puts the blame on non-state militants in 12 of the 23 worst-offending countries.
The ACN Report said that however, not all problems regarding religious freedom are to do with militant Islam. A “renewed crackdown” on religious groups was reported in China and Turkmenistan and an ongoing denial of human rights for people of faith in worst-offending countries North Korea and Eritrea. “Nor is the outlook universally bleak – looking at Bhutan, Egypt and Qatar, countries notorious for religious freedom violations,” the report found that the situation had improved for faith minorities during the period under review.
The other problem highlighted in the report is that Western policy makers frequently just disregard religion and need to rethink their whole outlook. “It’s no longer compatible to say that traditional faith practice belongs to the past when the evidence shows that for millions and millions of people – a new generation – religion is at the centre of their lives, driving everything they do.”
ACN Malta is the local office of Aid to the Church in Need (ACN ), an international Catholic organisation which primarily strives to help nurture the faith and well-being of persecuted and suffering Christians worldwide. Founded in 1947 by Fr Werenfried van Straaten, whom St John Paul II named “An outstanding Apostle of Charity.”
ACN supports important projects undertaken by the local Church (bishops, priests, Sisters and lay people) in over 140 countries including Iraq and Syria. These range from giving aid to refugees and building churches to providing essential transport for our field workers and even distributing copies of our Child’s Bible.
Fr Ziad Hila, S.J.is a Syrian priest who was born on 20 June 1973. He has worked tirelessly in Syria to help his country’s most vulnerable citizens, its children, during a period of devastating war and upheaval. For six years he worked in the heart of Syria’s “Valley of the Christians” where he witnessed some of the worst horrors of the country’s civil war.
He was a former Project director of Jesuit Refugee Services in Homs from 2012 – 2015, providing humanitarian aid to displaced people by distributing food, sanitary items ad medicines and providing accommodation.
The organisation was awarded the Pax Christi International Peace Award in 2014 for its work in providing emergency relief to Syrians since the war began in 2011. Fr Hilal is now overseeing Aid to the Church in Need humanitarian projects in Syria and Lebanon.
The Religious Freedom in the World report 2016 can be seen on www.religious-freedom-report.org [1]
Photographs ACN: Fr Ziad Hila, S.J.and Porte des Bombes turns red