AFRICA/SUDAFRICA - "Siamo sconvolti per la mancanza di morale dei nostri leader” affermano i Vescovi sudafricani
Feb 24, 2010
Johannesburg (Agenzia Fides)- I Vescovi sudafricani si dichiarano “profondamente preoccupati per lo scandaloso comportamento dei leader che vergognosamente si fanno beffa delle norme della morale e della decenza, accettate e richieste dalla grande maggioranza della popolazione” in un comunicato firmato a nome della Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference (SACBC) da Sua Eminenza il Cardinale Wilfrid Napier, Arcivescovo di Durban. “In particolare - continua il documento inviato a Fides - deploriamo i tentativi di scusare o di difendere il cattivo comportamento morale nel nome della ‘cultura’. Basandoci sul chiaro insegnamento di Nostro Signore Gesù Cristo sui rapporti tra uomini e donne, sposati e non, facciamo appello ai nostri leader di impegnarsi ad essere un modello positivo per i giovani e i bambini della nazione”.
Il comunicato è stato pubblicato a seguito della rivelazione che il Presidente sudafricano Jacob Zuma, poligamo e fedele alle tradizioni zulu, ha avuto un figlio al di fuori del matrimonio. Zuma, 67 anni, si è sposato il mese scorso per la quinta volta ed ha al momento tre mogli legittime. Il suo ultimo figlio è nato dalla relazione con la figlia di Irvin Khoza, Presidente del Comitato organizzatore dei mondiali di calcio del prossimo giugno. Il presidente sudafricano, gia' padre di 19 figli legittimi, ha riconosciuto il suo ventesimo figlio pagando l'Inhlawulo, il tradizionale risarcimento alla famiglia Khoza. Zuma ha presentato le sue scuse, affermando di essere “dispiaciuto profondamente per le sofferenze causate alla mia famiglia, al mio partito, l'African National Congress, e ai sudafricani in generale” e ha ribadito “l’importanza della famiglia come istituzione”. Di recente, dalla platea del forum internazionale di Davos, in Svizzera, Zuma ha difeso la poligamia dicendo che “è un problema solo per quelle culture che si ritengono superiori”.
Le scuse del Presidente non appaiono sufficienti per i Vescovi cattolici: “Mentre prendiamo nota dell’espressione di rammarico del Presidente Zuma per praticare 'sesso non protetto' siamo sconvolti dal fatto che, per la seconda volta in diversi anni, non abbia espresso rimorso e pentimento per il suo adulterio. Siamo ugualmente sconvolti per il danno irreparabile inflitto agli sforzi della nazione per ridurre o invertire la dilagante diffusione dell’AIDS”.
“Pertanto chiediamo a tutta la comunità ecclesiale di realizzare la sua vocazione e la missione di testimoniare la vita e l'insegnamento di Cristo, respingendo tutti i comportamenti immorali, in particolare l'immoralità sessuale, impegnandosi a mantenere gli insegnamenti del Creatore per costruire una società solida e sana” conclude il comunicato. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides 15/2/2010)
AFRICA/SUDAFRICA - “L’Africa ha bisogno di acqua e non di OGM” dice a Fides il Cardinale Napier, Arcivescovo di Durba
Nov 22, 2009
Roma (Agenzia Fides)- “Dalle prime informazioni che ho potuto leggere questa mattina sul Vertice della FAO ho l’impressione che questa organizzazione non conosca quelli che sono i veri problemi dell’alimentazione in Africa. Agli africani non servono gli OGM (Organismi Geneticamente Modificati) ma l’acqua. Abbiamo le nostre colture che crescono benissimo senza bisogno di modifiche genetiche, a patto che si dia loro l’acqua sufficiente. Insomma aiutateci a costruire pozzi, dighe e acquedotti; degli OGM non ne abbiamo bisogno”. Così Sua Eminenza il Cardinale Wilfrid Fox Napier, Arcivescovo di Durban (Sudafrica), commenta in una dichiarazione all’Agenzia Fides il Vertice della FAO che si è aperto oggi, 16 novembre, a Roma.
Il Cardinale Napier che si trova a Roma per l’Assemblea Plenaria della Congregazione per l’Evangelizzazione dei Popoli, esprime anche qualche preoccupazione per i prossimi Mondiali di calcio che si terranno in Sudafrica il prossimo anno: “La preoccupazione più grande deriva da una possibile esplosione del fenomeno della prostituzione. Mi sembra che la FIFA (Federazione Internazionale del Calcio, che organizza la World Cup 2010) stia facendo pressioni sul governo sudafricano per decriminalizzare la prostituzione. Se questo dovesse avvenire c’è da aspettarsi un forte aumento della diffusione del virus HIV e dell’AIDS”. La Chiesa sudafricana ha già avviato un programma di sensibilizzazione sulla prostituzione e sulla tratta degli esseri umani in relazione alla World Cup 2010 (vedi Fides 3/11/2009).
“Stiamo coordinano gli sforzi della Chiesa cattolica con quelli del governo e di altre organizzazioni in vista dei Mondiali 2010. Abbiamo varato una compagna di sensibilizzazione e di prevenzione del crimine rivolta in particolare alle famiglie. Purtroppo vi sono troppi genitori che fanno finta di non vedere che i loro figli si dedicano ad attività illecite. Cerchiamo di collaborare con le famiglie e con le autorità per recuperare i giovani che hanno intrapreso la strada del crimine” conclude il Cardinale Napier. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides 16/11/2009)
Un cardinal sud-africain évoque le combat contre la faim en Afrique
Nov 22, 2009
Wilfrid Fox Napier, archevêque de Durban
ROME, Jeudi 19 Novembre 2009 (ZENIT.org) - Le cardinal Wilfrid Fox Napier, archevêque de Durban, a invité la communauté internationale à fournir de l'eau à l'Afrique et lutter contre la déforestation pour combattre le drame de la faim.
Le cardinal sud-africain s'est exprimé sur les ondes de Radio Vatican, le 18 novembre, à l'issue du sommet mondial de la FAO (Food and agriculture organization) qui s'est déroulé du 16 au 18 novembre sur la sécurité alimentaire.
« Pour vraiment aider l'Afrique, la communauté internationale doit lui fournir de l'eau : donner des OGM, des cultures génétiquement modifiées, et des choses semblables peut être une solution, mais si l'on avait de l'eau et que l'on en avait régulièrement, alors on pourrait développer une agriculture adaptée aux conditions africaines », a estimé le cardinal Napier.
A ses yeux, « il s'agit aussi de bloquer la déforestation, parce que nous avons perdu beaucoup d'humidité et de précipitations à cause de la déforestation croissante et donc de la désertification qui avance ».
Face à des « situations d'urgence », il n'y a pas d'autres choix « que d'exercer, dans l'immédiat, la charité en distribuant ce qui est nécessaire ». Mais pour combattre la faim, ce sont des « solutions à longs termes qui doivent être trouvées ». « Et si l'on regarde les pays qui sont les plus touchés par la faim, on voit que la plupart d'entre eux est politiquement instable ».
Par exemple, « la région orientale de la République démocratique du Congo est une zone très riche, très fertile, mais beaucoup meurent de faim et cela principalement à cause d'un conflit qui semble ne jamais finir », a-t-il regretté. Ainsi, « les ressources minières de cette partie de l'Afrique peuvent être exploitées sans que les populations locales n'en tirent avantage ».
Delusione al Vertice sull’alimentazione. Il cardinale Napier: fame e guerre da chi sfrutta l'Africa
Nov 22, 2009
Giornata conclusiva, oggi, alla sede Fao di Roma, del Vertice mondiale sull’alimentazione. Un incontro che si sperava decisivo per stilare i prossimi impegni della comunità internazionale nella lotta alla fame nel mondo. Per gli aggiornamenti, sentiamo la nostra inviata alla Fao, Roberta Gisotti:
Chiuso il Vertice, in un clima dimesso per le aspettative deluse sulla Dichiarazione finale – stranamente approvata lunedì in apertura dei lavori – in cui tutti i leader del mondo si sono impegnati genericamente a cancellare al più presto la fame nel mondo. Ben altro ci si aspettava come aveva auspicato il segretario generale dell’Onu Ban Ki-moon di dare risposte reali ad oltre un miliardo di persone che non hanno da mangiare, tanto che ogni 6 secondi muore un bambino cui è negato il cibo per vivere. Di questo ha parlato stamane il relatore speciale Onu sul diritto all’alimentazione, Olivier De Schutter, deluso anch’egli dal documento che non affronta questioni vitali per l’economia alimentare, dominata – ha detto - da concentrazioni private e speculazioni fuori da ogni controllo sul mercato agricolo. In generale poche idee in questo Vertice, a parte la dettagliata ed approfondita analisi offerta dal Papa, dove originali argomentazioni socio-economiche sono state supportate da basi etiche da cui non si può prescindere se si vuole uscire dalla retorica delle promesse disattese. Stamane è stato fatto il punto in una conferenza stampa sulla crisi alimentare nel Corno d’Africa, dove 23 milioni di persone versano in situazione di grave bisogno, in gran parte 12 milioni in Etiopia e 6 milioni in Somalia. Non abbiamo bisogno di parole altisonanti ha detto il responsabile Fao ma di fatti per sostenere questi Paesi afflitti da siccità, conflitti, instabilità politiche. Ma per ora solo il 50 per cento dei finanziamenti per lo sviluppo richiesti dalla Fao è stato stanziato. Per una valutazione finale si aspetta ora la conferenza stampa di chiusura annunciata per le 14.30. A tirare le fila del Vertice sarà il direttore generale della Fao, Jacques Diouf, che si è già detto profondamente rammaricato per la mancanza di impegni finanziari e limiti temporali nella Dichiarazione.
Ma cosa si può fare per sconfiggere la fame, in particolare in Africa? Tracey McClure lo ha chiesto al cardinale sudafricano Wilfrid Fox Napier, arcivescovo di Durban:
R. – I think there are some emergency situations...
Penso ci siano delle situazioni di emergenza dove non c’è altra scelta se non quella di esercitare, nell’immediato, la carità nel distribuire ciò che è necessario. Ovviamente ci sono soluzioni a lungo termine che devono essere attuate. E se si guarda ai Paesi che sono maggiormente colpiti dalla fame, si vede che la maggior parte di essi è politicamente instabile. Domandiamoci: perché è permessa questa instabilità politica? Per esempio, la regione orientale della Repubblica Democratica del Congo è un’area molto ricca, molto fertile, ma c’è gente che muore di fame e questo principalmente a causa di un conflitto che sembra non finire mai! La risposta alla nostra domanda è che in questo modo le risorse minerarie di questa parte dell’Africa possono essere sfruttate senza che ne traggano vantaggio le popolazioni locali. Altre zone colpite dalla fame sono per esempio alcune regioni del Kenya e della Tanzania che passano da una siccità all’altra e hanno bisogno di un intervento di emergenza. Per aiutare davvero l’Africa allora la comunità internazionale deve rifornirla di acqua: dare gli Ogm, le colture geneticamente modificate, e cose simili, può essere una soluzione, ma se avessero l’acqua e se l’avessero regolarmente, allora sì che potrebbero sviluppare un’agricoltura adatta alle condizioni africane: e con l’acqua la gente sarebbe in grado di nutrirsi meglio di come lo faccia ora.
D. – Quindi è anche una questione idrica?
R. – Well, it’s also about not deforesting ...
Beh, si tratta anche di bloccare la deforestazione, perché molto dell’umidità e delle precipitazioni che abbiamo perso è a causa della crescente deforestazione e quindi della desertificazione che avanza: anche questo è un problema importante. E penso che questo sia uno degli ambiti in cui potrebbero convergere i finanziamenti: per cercare di arrestare l’avanzamento del deserto e in questo modo riconquistare molte delle terre fertili che adesso si stanno perdendo.
Kardinal Napier übt scharfe Kritik an Afrikas Einparteien-Regimen
Oct 14, 2009
Vatikanstadt, 12.10.2009 (KAP) Vor der Gefahr von Einparteiendiktaturen in Afrika hat der südafrikanische Kardinal Wilfrid Fox Napier gewarnt. Jene "Monster", die gesetzeswidrig und undemokratisch die politische Macht an sich rissen, seien noch nicht verschwunden, mahnte der Erzbischof der Hafenstadt Durban am Montag im Vatikan vor der Afrikasynode. Die Parteien seien mittlerweile an die Stelle der früheren Diktatoren getreten, kritisierte der Kardinal.
Als Beispiel nannte Napier die Staaten Botswana, Angola, Zimbabwe und Mocambique. Er wies daraufhin, dass in diesen Ländern seit dem Ende der Kolonialzeit jeweils eine Partei das politische Leben dominiere.
Auch wenn die jeweilige Regierung durch Wahlen an die Macht gelangt sei, habe sie sich immer mehr von demokratischen Grundlagen entfernt, hob Napier hervor. Wer Kritik an ihrer Politik äußere werde als "Konterrevolutionär" oder "Rassist" diffamiert. Außerdem würden Versprechungen an die arme Bevölkerungsmehrheit nicht eingehalten, führte der Kardinal aus. Politisches Gehör fänden nur noch die ideologischen Verbündeten.
Wenn sich eine Partei so stark mit dem Staat identifiziere, dass ein Präsident wie selbstverständlich äußere, "Unsere Partei regiert bis zur Wiederkunft Jesu Christi", könne man sogar von einem "Staatsstreich im umfassenden Sinne" sprechen.
Kardinal Napier rief die Katholiken auf, um ein "Wunder" zu beten und dafür zu arbeiten, damit es zu einer umfassenden und dauerhaften Befreiung von allen übermächtigen Parteien komme, die ihre Macht durch einen "hinterhältigen Staatsstreich" erlangt hätten.
AIDS: Afrikanische Kardinäle setzen auf Verhaltensänderung
Jul 24, 2009
Propagierung von Kondomen ist nicht der Weg
Pretoria-Dakar, 20.07.2009 (KAP) Der Erzbischof von Durban (Südafrika), Kardinal Wilfrid Napier, hat die Haltung vieler südafrikanischer Politiker kritisiert, die im Gebrauch von Kondomen die ausschließliche Lösung des AIDS-Problems sehen. Im Gespräch mit "Radio Vatikan" sagte Kardinal Napier: "Wer ein Problem behandeln will, muss an die Ursache gehen. Und die Ursache ist vor allem sexuelle Promiskuität. Deshalb weist die Kirche auf die Notwendigkeit einer Verhaltensänderung hin". In diese Richtung gehe zum Beispiel auch die Politik der ugandischen Regierung. Diese Politik habe Erfolg gebracht, so der Erzbischof von Durban: Die Rate der Neuinfizierten sei in Uganda deutlich zurückgegangen, "im Gegensatz zu Südafrika, das mit Kondomen überflutet wird und trotzdem die höchste Neuinfektionsrate hat".
In ähnlichem Sinn wie Napier äußerte sich der auch der Erzbischof der senegalesischen Hauptstadt Dakar, Kardinal Theodore-Adrien Sarr. Im Gespräch mit "Radio Vatikan" berichtete er vom gemeinsamen Einsatz von Christen und Muslimen gegen AIDS im Senegal. Die Erfahrung zeige, dass das Kondom nicht die einzige Waffe gegen die Immunschwächekrankheit sein könne. Wörtlich meinte Kardinal Sarr: "Wir haben uns im Auftrag des Präsidenten engagiert und gemeinsam Abstinenz und Treue gepredigt. Wenn heute die Ansteckungsrate im Senegal niedrig ist, dann bestimmt auch, weil die Religionsgemeinschaften auf moralische Verhaltensweisen gepocht haben. In einigen Ländern Afrikas mag diese Position schwierig sein, weil die Gewohnheiten anders sind. Doch Afrika ist in sich verschieden, und es gibt sehr wohl Gesellschaften, die den Begriff von Abstinenz und Treue kennen und ihn auch fördern".
Sudafrica: soddisfazione del cardinale Napier per lo svolgimento pacifico delle elezioni
May 05, 2009
Una vittoria della democrazia in Sudafrica. Così, in una nota, il cardinale Wilfried Napier, arcivescovo di Durban e portavoce della Conferenza episcopale sudafricana (SACBC), commenta lo svolgimento delle elezioni politiche del 22 aprile, vinte dall’African National Congress (Anc). “La vera vittoria – scrive il porporato - appartiene a tutti i sudafricani che hanno partecipato al voto”, il cui svolgimento “ordinato e pacifico” merita di essere festeggiato, perché “è un segno importante che la cultura democratica ha attecchito nella coscienza della Nazione”. Un Paese che dalla fine dell’apartheid ha raggiunto molti obiettivi, ma in cui “resta ancora molto da fare”, evidenzia la nota che esorta “l’ANC a restare fedele ai suoi principi fondativi e a raddoppiare gli sforzi per costruire una nazione libera, unita e prospera”. Segue quindi l’invito al nuovo governo ad impegnarsi in modo particolare per “i poveri, gli emarginati e i malati” e a “tutti gli eletti ad essere legislatori efficaci, rispettosi della legge e custodi del Bene Comune e della Costituzione”, perché, afferma il card. Napier, “un’elezione non è la strada per arrivare al potere, ma la chiamata ad un servizio”. Infine, un’esortazione ai cattolici a pregare per i nuovi leader e a contribuire a “consolidare la cultura del rispetto e della responsabilità perché tutti possano godere dei diritti umani”. La netta vittoria dell’African National Congress porterà alla presidenza del Sudafrica Jacob Zuma, suo leader carismatico (ma anche figura controversa) che sarà eletto per un mandato di cinque anni nel corso di una seduta straordinaria del Parlamento, il prossimo 6 maggio.
www.oecumene.radiovaticana.org
Cardinale Napier: il potere politico, una chiamata al servizio
May 05, 2009
Commenta le recenti elezioni legislative in Sudafrica
DURBAN, martedì, 28 aprile 2009 (ZENIT.org).- “Molto è stato fatto, molto resta ancora da fare”, ha scritto il Cardinale Wilfrid Napier, Arcivescovo di Durban e portavoce della Conferenza dei Vescovi Cattolici Sudafricani, in un messaggio diffuso dopo le elezioni legislative svoltesi lo scorso fine settimana nel Paese.
Nel confronto elettorale, ha sottolineato, “la vera vittoria appartiene a tutti i sudafricani che hanno votato”. “E' un segnale importante di come la cultura democratica abbia fatto breccia nella nostra consapevolezza nazionale. Congratulazioni Sudafrica!”.
Secondo il porporato, gli ultimi 15 anni hanno visto “un continuo miracolo” nel Paese, ma ora restano ancora molti passi da compiere, considerando che “il successo di ogni democrazia dipende dall'inclusione di tutti i cittadini e dal riconoscimento del fatto che abbiamo tutti doveri da compiere e diritti da difendere”.
Il porporato si è congratulato anche con l'African National Congress (ANC) per la sua vittoria. Il ritorno al potere del partito “esprime la volontà della popolazione del Sudafrica”, ha rilevato, invitando l'ANC a “mettere in pratica i suoi principi di base e a raddoppiare gli sforzi per costruire una Nazione libera, unita e prospera”.
“Il modo regolare, ben organizzato e pacifico in cui si sono svolte le elezioni testimonia la nostra crescente democrazia e il duro lavoro compiuto dalla Commissione Elettorale Indipendente – ha osservato –. I problemi logistici che si sono verificati in alcuni luoghi non devono essere ignorati nella pianificazione delle elezioni future”.
Il Cardinale Napier ha esortato i rappresentanti eletti “ad essere legislatori efficaci, seguaci della legge e custodi del bene comune e della nostra Costituzione per un'elezione che non sia una via per il potere, ma una chiamata al servizio”.
Allo stesso modo, ha esortato il nuovo Governo “a mostrare un impegno sempre maggiore al servizio e alla responsabilità, soprattutto per quanto riguarda i poveri, gli emarginati e i malati”.
“Chiediamo a tutti coloro che sono tornati al potere di vedere questa elezione non come un trionfo personale o partitico, ma un'opportunità per costruire un Governo più responsabile e inclusivo”.
Il Cardinale ha quindi esortato la comunità cattolica a pregare per tutti i leader e a fare tutto il possibile per promuovere “una cultura di rispetto e responsabilità, così che i diritti umani possano essere estesi a tutti”, e ha affidato il Paese e il suo futuro all'intercessione di Maria Assunta in Cielo, Patrona del Sudafrica.
Le cardinal Napier commente les élections en Afrique du sud
May 05, 2009
Il se félicite du résultat et lance un appel au service
ROME, Jeudi 30 avril 2009 (ZENIT.org) - « Beaucoup a été fait, mais il reste encore beaucoup à faire », écrit le cardinal Wilfrid Napier, archevêque de Durban et porte-parole de la Conférence des évêques catholiques d'Afrique du sud, dans un message diffusé au lendemain des élections législatives de la semaine dernière dans le pays.
Se félicitant du résultat des élections, qui marque le retour au pouvoir de l'ANC, l'Africain National Congress, le cardinal Napier estime que « la vraie victoire revient à tous ceux qui ont voté ».
Cette victoire « est un signe important », car elle montre que « la culture démocratique a ouvert une brèche dans notre conscience nationale », souligne-t-il.
Selon le cardinal Napier, le pays connaît depuis ces 15 dernières années « un miracle continu », mais beaucoup de pas restent encore à faire, dans la mesure où « le succès de toute démocratie dépend de l'intégration de tous les citoyens et de la reconnaissance du fait que nous avons tous des devoirs à assumer et des droits à défendre ».
Le cardinal félicite l'ANC pour sa victoire, soulignant que son retour au pouvoir « exprime la volonté de la population sud-africaine », et invite le parti à « mettre en pratique ses principes de base et à redoubler d'efforts pour bâtir une nation libre, unie et prospère ».
« La façon régulière, bien organisée et pacifique dont se sont déroulées les élections montrent que notre démocratie est en train d'évoluer et révèle le dur travail accompli par la commission électorale indépendante, poursuit-il. Les problèmes logistiques qui se sont vérifiés dans certains lieux ne sauraient être ignorés dans la planification des élections futures ».
Le cardinal Napier appelle les représentants élus « à être des législateurs efficaces, à suivre la loi et à être les gardiens du bien commun et de la constitution pour une élection qui ne soit pas une voie pour arriver au pouvoir, mais un appel au service ».
Il appelle également le nouveau gouvernement « à faire preuve d'un engagement et d'une responsabilité plus grands au service surtout des pauvres, des laissés pour compte et des malades ».
« Nous demandons à tous ceux qui sont revenus au pouvoir de voir cette élection non comme un triomphe personnel ou de partis, mais comme une occasion pour édifier un gouvernement plus responsable et d'intégration ».
Le cardinal Napier invite enfin la communauté catholique à prier pour tous les représentants et à faire le possible pour promouvoir « une culture du respect et de la responsabilité, de manière à ce que les droits humains puissent s'étendre à tous ».
Il confie le pays et son avenir à l'intercession de la Vierge de l'Assomption, Patronne de l'Afrique du sud.
Südafrika: Kardinal spricht von "wahrhaft demokratischer Wahl"
Apr 25, 2009
Der Urnengang in Südafrika ist erstmals eine „Wahl des Gewissens“. Das meint eine der wichtigsten kirchlichen Autoritäten des Landes, Kardinal Wilfried Fox Napier, unmittelbar nach der Parlamentswahl in seinem Land, die voraussichtlich die Regierungspartei ANC an der Macht bestätigt. Im Gespräch mit uns sagte der Vorsitzende der Südafrikanischen Bischofskonferenz:
„Diese Wahl ist deshalb bemerkenswert, weil zum ersten Mal die Leute dazu aufgefordert wurden, innezuhalten und nachzudenken, bevor sie wählen. Sie sollten auf die Qualität der Politiker achten, auf die Partei und darauf, wofür sie steht. Von welcher Partei sagt dir dein Gewissen, dass du sie wählen kannst? Außerdem wurde den Südafrikanern klargemacht: Andere brauchen nicht mit dir übereinzustimmen über den Weg, auf dem das Land in die Zukunft gehen soll. Aber respektiere die Meinung deines Gegners. Denn das ist das Wesen der Demokratie: Das Respektieren abweichender Meinungen und die Redefreiheit auch für sie.“
Nach ersten Auszählungen liegt die Regierungspartei ANC mit ihren Spitzenkandidaten Jacob Zuma erwartungsgemäß vorne und erreicht knapp eine Zweidrittelmehrheit. Der „Volkskongress“ (COPE), der erst vor einem halben Jahr von enttäuschten ANC-Anhängern gegründet worden war, scheint weit hinter den Erwartungen zurück zu bleiben. Als zweitstärkste Kraft hinter dem ANC etablierte sich – nach vorläufigen Zahlen – die „Demokratische Allianz“ der deutschstämmigen Kapstädter Bürgermeisterin Helen Zille. Sie konnte diesmal mehr farbige Wähler hinter sich bringen. Das offizielle Ergebnis wird frühestens am Freitagabend erwartet.
(rv/ap 23.04.2009 gs)
South African cardinal expresses shock after Dalai Lama denied visa
Apr 01, 2009
DURBAN, South Africa (CNS) -- Durban Cardinal Wilfrid Napier expressed "shock and regret" that the Dalai Lama, Tibet's exiled spiritual leader and head of its self-proclaimed government-in-exile, was denied a visa to attend a meeting in South Africa.
"I am concerned that this man of peace is not allowed into our country at this time when we need people of peace to inspire us," Cardinal Napier said in a statement. "I'm very concerned that our rights to association, freedom of religion and freedom of expression have been sold out to economic and political expedience once again."
The Dalai Lama, winner of the 1989 Nobel Peace Prize, was scheduled to attend a peace conference sponsored by the 2010 FIFA World Cup in Johannesburg March 27. However, Irvin Khoza, chairman of the World Cup organizing committee, announced March 24 that the conference had been postponed indefinitely "to ensure it is held under conducive conditions."
The conference schedule had included other Nobel peace laureates who were to discuss topics such as using soccer to fight racism and xenophobia.
The South African government said it refused the Dalai Lama a visa because it wanted the meeting to stay focused on South Africa, which is hosting next year's soccer World Cup, and not on Tibet.
Retired Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu, winner of the 1984 Nobel Peace Prize, criticized his government's decision and said March 23 that he would not attend the conference. He called the decision "disgraceful, in line with our country's abysmal record at the United Nations Security Council."
"We are shamelessly succumbing to Chinese pressure. I feel deeply distressed and ashamed," he was quoted as saying.
China, a major trade partner for South Africa, claims sovereignty over Tibet. Many Tibetans, including those loyal to the Dalai Lama, want a return to autonomy for the region.
Former South African President F.W. de Klerk also had said he would not participate in the conference but expressed hope that the government would rescind its decision.
Südafrika: Kardinal, „Schock und Bedauern" über Visaverweigerung für Dalai Lama
Mar 25, 2009
Der Kardinal von Durban, Wilfrid Napier, hat „Schock und Bedauern“ anlässlich der Verweigerung eines Visums für den Dalai Lama von Südafrika bekundet. Das Oberhaupt der Tibetischen Exilregierung wollte dort an einer Konferenz zur Bekämpfung von Rassismus und Ausländerfeindlichkeit teilnehmen. Kardinal Napier befürchtet, dass hinter dem Einreiseverbot für den Dalai Lama „wirtschaftliche und politische Interessen“ steckten. Denn China ist einer der wichtigsten Handelspartner Südafrikas. Auch der pensionierte anglikanische Erzbischof von Kapstadt, Desmond Tutu, kritisierte die Verweigerung des Visums. Wörtlich sagte Tutu: „Ohne Scham beugen wir uns dem chinesischen Druck“. - Die anlässlich der Fußballweltmeisterschaft 2010 geplante Konferenz wurde auf unbestimmte Zeit verschoben. Einige Vertreter, unter ihnen der frühere Präsident von Südafrika, Frederik Willem de Klerk, hatten ihre Teilnahme aus Protest gegen die Ablehnung des Dalai Lama abgesagt.
Le card. Napier met la réconciliation au centre du synode pour l’Afrique
Mar 11, 2009
Interview à L’Osservatore Romano
ROME, Jeudi 5 mars 2009 (ZENIT.org) - Le cardinal Wilfrid Fox Napier a suggéré que le modèle de réconciliation adopté dans son pays puisse être exporté, même avec ses limites, pour contribuer à donner naissance à d'autres tentatives d'obtenir justice et paix dans le continent.
C'est ce qu'a rapporté L'Osservatore Romano en diffusant, le 4 mars, une interview de l'archevêque de Durban (Afrique du Sud) qui sera l'un des trois présidents délégués nommés par le pape pour le synode pour l'Afrique qui se déroulera du 4 au 25 octobre prochain au Vatican.
L'Eglise en Afrique du Sud « a déjà un rôle de médiation dans le continent, maintenant, il s'agit de faire encore plus », a estimé l'archevêque de Durban en soulignant l'importance de la « réconciliation, de la justice, de la paix » sur le continent.
Le haut prélat a évoqué le travail de la commission justice et paix de la Conférence épiscopale d'Afrique du Sud. « Elle a contribué à introduire des organisations analogues au sein d'autres conférences épiscopales africaines », a-t-il salué. « C'est justement en partant de notre expérience de réconciliation nationale comme Eglise que nous sommes en première ligne dans les médiations difficiles de tant de conflits sur le continent ». « Ainsi, malgré tout, les signes d'espérance ne manquent pas », a-t-il ajouté.
« Nous sommes encore une démocratie jeune, mais qui doit apprendre rapidement à résoudre des problèmes urgents, en trouvant les modalités pour affirmer une plus grande justice sociale et prêter plus d'attention aux valeurs morales », a-t-il encore estimé. « En effet, le respect des droits de l'homme comme fondement de la démocratie ne suffit pas ». « Il faut aussi soutenir les valeurs morales pour un progrès social correct ».
Le cardinal Napier a enfin évoqué l'urgence de la « réconciliation ». « C'est un domaine à affronter de manière globale », a-t-il poursuivi. « Beaucoup a déjà été fait mais il faut aussi admettre qu'il y a des questions et des situations du passé sur lesquelles nous ne pouvons pas nous dire pleinement réconciliés ». « Mais le synode ouvre de grandes espérances », a-t-il affirmé.
Cardinale Napier: la parola chiave per l'Africa è "riconciliazione"
Mar 11, 2009
CITTA' DEL VATICANO, martedì, 3 marzo 2009 (ZENIT.org).- La riconciliazione è il concetto chiave per il futuro del continente africano, sostiene il Cardinale sudafricano Wilfrid Fox Napier, uno dei tre presidenti delegati nominati da Benedetto XVI per il secondo Sinodo sull'Africa, che si svolgerà dal 4 al 25 ottobre prossimi.
Il porporato suggerisce in un'intervista a "L'Osservatore Romano" di esportare il modello di riconciliazione adottato nel suo Paese per favorire altri tentativi di ottenere giustizia e pace nel continente.
La riconciliazione, osserva, "è un ambito ancora da affrontare in modo pieno. È stato fatto tanto ma si deve pure ammettere che ci sono questioni e situazioni del passato sulle quali non possiamo dirci pienamente riconciliati".
La commissione per la verità e la riconciliazione in Sudafrica, ha spiegato, "ha fatto comunque un buon lavoro per far emergere la verità sulle violenze del passato e disinnescare il desiderio di vendetta" e "ha persino contribuito a istituire organizzazioni analoghe in seno ad altre Conferenze Episcopali africane".
"Quindici anni sono pochi per curare tutte le ferite lasciate dall'apartheid. Non si può dire che sia stata fatta giustizia fino in fondo. Ma ora è tempo di lavorare per una migliore equità sociale. E il prossimo Sinodo continentale viene a proposito", "induce a grandi speranze".
Per il Cardinale Napier, Arcivescovo di Durban dal 1992, in Africa "niente viene prima di riconciliazione, giustizia e pace. Dunque, riconciliati tra noi come Chiesa siamo chiamati a essere promotori di riconciliazione ovunque".
"Anche nel Sinodo del 1994 si è parlato di pace, giustizia e riconciliazione - riconosce -. Ma il secondo Sinodo intende andare ancora più avanti per rispondere alle pressanti domande di pace e di giustizia che l'Africa pone a se stessa e al mondo".
Per "un corretto progresso sociale" dell'Africa, prosegue il Cardinale, non basta il rispetto dei diritti umani, ma "bisogna sostenere anche i valori morali".
Il Sudafrica, ammette portando ad esempio il proprio Paese, è "ancora una democrazia giovane che deve però imparare rapidamente a risolvere problemi urgenti, trovando le modalità per affermare una maggiore giustizia sociale e prestare più attenzione ai valori morali".
In questo contesto, la Chiesa cattolica è "un punto di riferimento che risponde alla forte domanda di spiritualità, facendo così argine pure alle sette".
"Dal punto di vista pastorale, cerchiamo di rispondere alle domande della gente con la catechesi e con un'opera educativa che coinvolge anche gli adulti. Dal punto di vista sociale, le priorità sono poveri, ammalati, donne che subiscono violenze e rifugiati che vengono dalla regione dei Grandi Laghi", ha commentato.
"In una parola, solo rispettando il valore e il dono della vita, in ogni condizione, possiamo trovare le soluzioni ai problemi".
Il 2009 sarà l'anno dell'Africa non solo per il Sinodo di ottobre, ma anche per la prima visita di Benedetto XVI come Pontefice nel continente, dal 17 al 20 marzo in Camerun e dal 20 al 23 in Angola.
In Camerun il Papa consegnerà ai Vescovi africani l'Instrumentum laboris del Sinodo dei Vescovi, che avrà per tema "La Chiesa in Africa a servizio della riconciliazione, della giustizia e della pace. Voi siete il sale della terra... Voi siete la luce del mondo (Mt 5, 13.14)".
Il cardinale sudafricano Napier chiede alla prossima assemblea di rispondere alle pressanti attese del continente: la parola chiave è riconciliazione.
Mar 04, 2009
> Per l'Africa di oggi la parola chiave è riconciliazione. Il cardinale sudafricano Wilfrid Fox Napier - uno dei tre presidenti delegati nominati dal Papa per il sinodo di ottobre - suggerisce che il modello di riconciliazione adottato nel suo Paese possa essere esportato, pur con tutti i suoi limiti, per contribuire a dar vita ad altri tentativi di ottenere giustizia e pace nel continente. "La commissione per la verità e la riconciliazione - afferma il cardinale - ha fatto comunque un buon lavoro per far emergere la verità sulle violenze del passato e disinnescare il desiderio di vendetta. Quindici anni sono pochi per curare tutte le ferite lasciate dall'apartheid. Non si può dire che sia stata fatta giustizia fino in fondo. Ma ora è tempo di lavorare per una migliore equità sociale. E il prossimo sinodo continentale viene a proposito".
> Il cardinale Napier, arcivescovo di Durban dal 1992, sta seguendo in prima persona la preparazione dell'assemblea di ottobre come membro del consiglio speciale per l'Africa della segreteria generale del Sinodo dei vescovi. Nell'intervista a "L'Osservatore Romano" presenta contenuti e speranze, soprattutto alla luce dell'esperienza del suo Paese.
>
> Un sinodo sulla riconciliazione interpella il Sud Africa in modo tutto particolare.
>
> Sì, conosciamo bene la questione della riconciliazione per via delle ferite del passato. Nell'idea stessa del secondo sinodo c'è una evidente continuità con la prima assemblea del 1994. Ci attende un approfondimento riguardo la pace, la giustizia, la riconciliazione. Sono parole scottanti in molte parti dell'Africa. La Chiesa ha già un ruolo di mediazione nel continente, ora si tratta di fare ancora di più. Personalmente posso testimoniare positivamente per il caso specifico del Sud Africa, ma non solo.
>
> Che cosa ci si deve aspettare dal secondo sinodo espressamente africano?
>
> Sicuramente un contributo importante per affrontare in concreto questi problemi, che sono vere e proprie tragedie, anche nel particolare. C'è bisogno di focalizzare, dopo l'ampia consultazione che è stata fatta, quelle tematiche che il primo sinodo e la quotidianità hanno indicato come più urgenti: e niente viene prima di riconciliazione, giustizia e pace. Dunque, riconciliati tra noi come Chiesa siamo chiamati a essere promotori di riconciliazione ovunque. Anche nel sinodo del 1994 si è parlato di pace, giustizia e riconciliazione. Ma il secondo sinodo intende andare ancora più avanti per rispondere alle pressanti domande di pace e di giustizia che l'Africa pone a se stessa e al mondo.
>
> Lei ha avuto un ruolo di primo piano anche nel sinodo del 1994. Che cosa ricorda di quell'assemblea?
>
> Il 1994 è stato un anno determinante per l'Africa: da una parte la tragedia del Rwanda e dall'altra la transizione democratica nel mio Sud Africa. Di quel primo sinodo ricordo innanzitutto l'entusiasmo e la determinazione di tutti i pastori per rendere la Chiesa una componente sempre più rilevante nella vita del continente, stando accanto alle popolazioni e dando voce agli oppressi. Ma non erano orizzonti nuovi per gli africani. Già Paolo VI li aveva indicati con chiarezza nel 1969, in Uganda, quando ci chiese di essere missionari di noi stessi. Così la prima sfida è stata quella di far crescere la fiducia al nostro interno. È anche grazie al sinodo del 1994 che la Chiesa sudafricana ha avuto un ruolo centrale nel rompere le catene dell'apartheid e nel contribuire al superamento delle violenze.
>
> Qual è oggi la realtà del Sud Africa?
>
> Siamo ancora una democrazia giovane che deve però imparare rapidamente a risolvere problemi urgenti, trovando le modalità per affermare una maggiore giustizia sociale e prestare più attenzione ai valori morali. Non basta, infatti, il rispetto dei diritti umani come fondamento della democrazia. Bisogna sostenere anche i valori morali per un corretto progresso sociale. Nel 1994, con la fine dell'apartheid e l'avvento della democrazia, ci si aspettava anche un miglioramento delle condizioni di vita della fascia più povera. La gente avverte un disagio: chiede lavoro, una casa, un efficiente sistema sanitario e scolastico.
>
> Com'è considerata la Chiesa nel Paese?
>
> Come un punto di riferimento che risponde alla forte domanda di spiritualità, facendo così argine pure alle sette. Dal punto di vista pastorale, cerchiamo di rispondere alle domande della gente con la catechesi e con un'opera educativa che coinvolge anche gli adulti. Dal punto di vista sociale, le priorità sono poveri, ammalati, donne che subiscono violenze e rifugiati che vengono dalla regione dei Grandi Laghi. In una parola, solo rispettando il valore e il dono della vita, in ogni condizione, possiamo trovare le soluzioni ai problemi.
>
> Qual è l'urgenza più avvertita?
>
> La riconciliazione. È un ambito ancora da affrontare in modo pieno. È stato fatto tanto ma si deve pure ammettere che ci sono questioni e situazioni del passato sulle quali non possiamo dirci pienamente riconciliati. Ma il sinodo induce a grandi speranze. Faccio il caso del Sud Africa: dobbiamo essere molto grati alla commissione giustizia e pace della nostra conferenza episcopale per tutto ciò che ha realizzato, proprio come Chiesa. Ha persino contribuito a istituire organizzazioni analoghe in seno ad altre conferenze episcopali africane. Proprio partendo dalla nostra esperienza di riconciliazione nazionale come Chiesa siamo in prima fila nelle difficili mediazioni dei tanti conflitti nel continente. Quindi, nonostante tutto, i segni di speranza non mancano. Starà al sinodo valorizzarli.
Zimbabwe Crisis Described as Worse than Desperate
Jan 30, 2009
Southern Africa Catholic bishops have declared February 15th “Zimbabwe Sunday” - an effort to show solidarity with the Zimbabwe people, who are in the midst of a humanitarian, political and economic crisis. The Southern African Catholic Church Has been critical of the Mugabe government, calling it "illegitimate" and describing mediation efforts as "flawed."
South African Cardinal Wilfrid Napier spoke about the reasons for declaring a Zimbabwe Sunday.
“One of the things we heard from the Zimbabweans some years ago was that we should keep them in mind, sending messages, and especially keeping them in our prayers. And this is a logical thing to do at this because the situation is just getting so much worse,” he says.
Asked about the need to take action now, Cardinal Napier says, “There was a delegation of two bishops that came to address the bishop’s conference and one of them put it, I think, in the most graphic way anyone could put it. He said it was ‘passive genocide’ for the world to be standing by and watching what’s going on in Zimbabwe. I think one could say the situation is worse than desperate.”
Cardinal Napier says he hopes to accomplish two things on February 15th. “The first one is simply to express our Christian solidarity with our brothers and sisters, who are suffering. And secondly…to do something towards alleviating some of their suffering by collecting funds, food, clothing and medicines and things of that nature,” he says.
Collections will be made at Catholic churches across southern Africa February 15th.
Commenting on what might be done to help solve the problems in Zimbabwe, Cardinal Napier says, “I think a bit of honesty would help as a start. The MDC (opposition party) won the parliamentary elections. They’ve been denied the opportunity to form a government. And (Morgan) Tsvangirai won the first round of the presidential election and I’m sure would have won the second thing (runoff) outright had he not been forced to withdraw because of the intimidation and violence that was let loose on his supporters.”
Caritas, the international coordinating body for Catholic charities, is expected to help distribute the charity items through Zimbabwe catholic churches.
„Es ist an der Zeit, dass Südafrika Mugabe isoliert“
Dec 22, 2008
Simbabwe steht vor dem Scherbenhaufen einer Diktatur
JOHANNESBURG, 22. Dezember 2008(FIDES.org/ZENIT.org).- „Es ist an der Zeit, dass man Mugabe total isoliert und jede Art von materieller und moralischer Unterstützung, auch stillschweigender Art, einstellt“, so der Erzbischof von Durban und Sprecher der Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference (SACBC), Kardinal Wilfried Napier, in einer Erklärung zur Situation in Simbabwe mit dem Titel „Südafrika muss Mugabe isolieren“. Der Staatspräsident von Simbabwe, Robert Mugabe, gilt zusammen mit seinen engsten Mitarbeitern als für den verheerenden Zustand seines Landes verantwortlich
Mugabe genießt in verschiednen afrikanischen Kreisen großes Ansehen, weil man in insbesondere als Kämpfer gegen den Kolonialismus erinnert. „Ohne darauf zu achten, ob er ein ‚ehemaliger Freiheitskämpfer’ oder ein ‚afrikanischer Staatsmann’ ist, muss Mugabe sich zurückziehen“, so Kardinal Napier in der Erklärung, die dem Fidesdienst vorliegt. „Kein wahrer Befreier oder Staatsmann klebt an der Macht, wie Mugabe dies tut, während sein Folg in Armut und Elend lebt und stirbt. Es gibt in Simbabwe keine Krisenlösung, so lange er an der Macht bleibt. Einige führende afrikanische Politiker fühlten sich genötigt, sich mit Mugabe solidarisch zu zeigen, gegen die angeblichen Machenschaften der ehemaligen Kolonialmacht und anderer heutiger Mächte; es ist nun an der Zeit, dass diese Politiker ihre Solidarität auf die Bedürfnisse der Not leidenden Bevölkerung dieses Landes umlenken, in dem einst Wohlstand herrschte“.
Indem er an die Rolle Südafrikas bei der Vermittlung in der Krise in Simbabwe erinnerte, appelliert der Kardinal an die Südafrikanische Regierung mit der Bitte, Mugabe zum Rücktritt zu bewegen. „Die Regierung Südafrikas besitzt die Macht, Mugabe zum Rücktritt zu zwingen. Was fehlt ist der politische Wille. Wir bitten den Präsidenten Motlanthe um eine umgehende Einstellung jeder Art von Zusammenarbeit mit Mugabe und die Einstellung der von Südafrika geleisteten Hilfe, die die sein Regime am Leben erhalten. In Absprache mit der größten Partei des Parlaments im Simbabwe, der Oppositionspartei Mouvement for the Democratic Change (MDC) und mit den Organisationen der zivilen Gesellschaft muss auch in Betracht gezogen werden, dass die Versorgung mit Elektrizität und Treibstoff aus Südafrika unterbrochen wird. Außerdem müssen alle Güter, die Mugabe und seine Verbündeten in Südafrika besitzen, umgehend eingefroren werden.“
„Wir bringen unseres Solidarität mit den Menschen in Simbabwe in diesem Moment der Verzweiflung zum Ausdruck. Und wir beten dafür, dass sie vereint belieben und den Mut und die Kraft finden, um die Übel zu beseitigen, die Mugabe mit seiner Diktatur verursacht hat.“
Self-control, not condoms, is best HIV preventer, South African cardinal says
Jul 17, 2008
Cardinal Wilifrid Fox Napier, the Archbishop of Durban, South Africa, told an Australian news program that a change in Catholic teaching on condoms would not change the rate of HIV infection in Africa. Rather, he argued, positive change would result from trusting people to take control of their lives.
Sydney, Jul 17, 2008 / 04:18 am (CNA).- "You expect that because people are hearing from bishops, `You must use a condom', that they will do what the bishops say? the cardinal asked his interviewer.
"We have already been preaching all our lives, don't have sex outside of marriage," Cardinal Napier told the SBS Dateline program, according to the Australian Associated Press.
The cardinal, who is visiting Sydney for World Youth Day, said South Africa has the highest rate of condom distribution, but still has one of the highest HIV infection rates in the world.
He cited the Uganda program against HIV infection as a successful model. There, he said, the HIV prevalence rate was reduced from 29 to 6 percent in ten years with a program that promoted abstinence for unmarried Ugandans and monogamy for couples. The program also issued condoms only to married people.
Cardinal Napier said the Church trusted in people’s ability to control their own lives.
"At the moment, if you go on a policy of condom distribution as the only solution to HIV and AIDS, you are telling people that they cannot take control of their own lives," he said.
"And, therefore, I think you are doing them an injustice by saying: `You are so stupid. Even though this disease is a killer, you cannot take control of your own lives'."
Durissima condanna
Jun 26, 2008
"Le azioni di Mugabe e dei suoi sostenitori sono un'offesa agli occhi di Dio": durissima condanna del Cardinale Napier, Arcivescovo di Durban.
Harare (Agenzia Fides 25/6/2008)-"Il popolo dello Zimbabwe ha il diritto di scegliere il proprio Presidente in una elezione che sia libera ed equa. La Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference (SACBC) sostiene con passione questa legittima aspirazione della popolazione dello Zimbabwe". Così il Cardinale Wilfrid Napier, Arcivescovo di Durban e Portavoce della SACBC (la Conferenza Episcopale che riunisce i Vescovi di Botswana, Sudafrica e Swaziland), in un comunicato inviato all'Agenzia Fides, esprime la preoccupazione della Chiesa cattolica per la grave situazione creatasi nello Zimbabwe a seguito delle violenze e delle intimidazioni che contrassegnano la campagna elettorale per l'elezione del Presidente (vedi Fides 24/6/2008).
"Purtroppo, la violenza a sfondo politico, l'intimidazione e la tortura hanno di fatto reso impossibile un giusto ed equo svolgimento del ballottaggio per le elezioni presidenziali . I candidati dell'opposizione non possono presentare i loro programmi agli elettori, né hanno un accesso imparziale ai mezzi di informazione" afferma il Cardinale Napier.
Il Cardinale appoggia in pieno la decisione del leader del Movimento per il Cambiamento Democratico di ritirare la propria candidatura al ballottaggio del 27 giugno: "la violenza si è intensificata nelle ultime settimane, fino al punto che il Movimento per il Cambiamento Democratico ha preso la difficile decisione di non partecipare al ballottaggio che è degenerato in una farsa. E' comprensibile la scelta da parte del MDC di cercare di proteggere la vita dei propri sostenitori e di altri che sono stati presi di mira. L'alternativa sarebbe stata una guerra civile non dichiarata".
Per far uscire lo Zimbabwe dalla crisi, il Cardinale Napier chiede di cercare "un modello di governo fondato sul consenso che coinvolge tutti i cittadini dello Zimbabwe. La comunità internazionale deve collaborare con la Comunità di sviluppo dell'Africa australe per giungere ad una giusta soluzione".
Il Cardinale Napier avverte inoltre che "le atrocità e la barbarie di Zanu-PF (il partito del Presidente Mugabe) sono documentate. Le azioni Mugabe e quelle dei suoi generali, delle loro mogli, dei loro sostenitori teppisti e dei cosiddetti veterani di guerra, sono un'offesa agli occhi di Dio. Il giudizio li attende".
La condanna del regime di Mugabe è totale: "tutti devono chiedersi chi può beneficiare dell'attuale crisi nello Zimbabwe. Noi, Vescovi cattolici del Sud Africa, crediamo che le azioni dell'élite al potere meritano una rigorosa censura. Sono una sventura per ogni africano. Chiediamo agli Stati membri dell'Unione africana di dichiarare il loro impegno a favore della democrazia nello Zimbabwe, respingendo la finzione giuridica che questa elezione è diventata e di non riconoscere Robert Mugabe e il suo partito come il legittimo governo".
"Siamo profondamente preoccupati per questa situazione e se non vi è uno sforzo unitario da parte della comunità internazionale, sotto la guida dei Paesi dell'Africa australe, la situazione disperata di violenza, di carestia e di incertezza si tradurrà in una vasta crisi umanitaria che travolgerà l'intera regione dell'Africa meridionale" conclude il Cardinale Napier.
Difendere la dignità umana
Feb 07, 2008
Sudafrica: la Chiesa cattolica condanna il raid compiuto dalla polizia in una chiesa metodista contro rifugiati dello Zimbabwe.
(Radio Vaticana, 06/02/2008) I vescovi sudafricani condannano il blitz compiuto nei giorni scorsi dalla polizia sudafricana in un centro metodista di Johannesburg che accoglieva dei rifugiati provenienti dallo Zimbabwe. In una dichiarazione inviata all’Agenzia Fides, l’arcivescovo di Durban e presidente della Conferenza dei vescovi dell’Africa del Sud, cardinale Wilfrid Napier, condanna l’operazione degli agenti. “Ci uniamo al vescovo Paul Verryn della Chiesa metodista – si legge nel testo - nel denunciare la violazione dello status della Chiesa come luogo di culto”. “Dando un rifugio ai senzatetto agli stranieri e ai rifugiati - scrive il cardinale - la Chiesa stava eseguendo il comando di Gesù Cristo”. Secondo i termini della Convenzione sui rifugiati dell’organizzazione dell’Unione Africana, i cittadini dello Zimbabwe devono essere visti come rifugiati. Non è questo – conclude il cardinale Wilfrid Napier – il modo con cui “esseri umani devono essere trattati da ufficiali di uno Stato che si è assunto l’impegno di difendere la dignità umana”.
Bukavu : visite des évêques sud-africains
Sept 12, 2007
Une forte délégation des prélats catholiques sud-africains, membres de l’Institut de paix sud-africain, séjourne à Bukavu, au Sud-Kivu. Pour le cardinal Wilfrid Napier, chef de cette délégation, le but principal de leur mission est de partager l’expérience en matière de paix avec leurs homologues congolais, rapporte radiookapi.net.
(radiookapi.net, 12 Septembre 2007) Le cardinal Wilfrid Napier relève une différence entre l’Afrique du Sud et la République Démocratique du Congo. Pour lui, l’Afrique du Sud n’a jamais été attaquée de l’extérieur alors que les ennemis de la RDC proviennent des pays limitrophes.
Le cardinal propose que l’on améliore la situation dans les pays voisins avant de pouvoir reconstruire le Congo. Le prélat catholique estime que le travail accompli par le Président Thabo Mbeki avec le Dialogue Inter Congolais, pourrait servir d’exemples aux peuples et aux différents groupes des pays voisins qui sèment des troubles au Congo.
Un cardenal de Sudáfrica pide al presidente Mbeki que condene el régimen que ha impuesto Mugabe en Zimbabue
Mar 17, 2007
El jefe de la Iglesia Católica de Sudáfrica, cardenal Wilfrid Napier, ha pedido al Gobierno de Thabo Mbeki que deje de andar "pisando huevos" en sus relaciones con Zimbabue y adopte posiciones más críticas hacia el régimen de Robert Mugabe.
(EFE, 05-09-05) Napier, en una entrevista publicada este lunes por el diario sudafricano "The Mercury", ha declarado que Mbeki debería condenar las injusticias de Zimbabue y considerar la posibilidad de aplicar sanciones para evitar que Mugabe "lleve el país a la ruina".
L D (EFE) El Gobierno de Pretoria está considerado como el que mayor poder de influencia puede tener con Zimbabue, donde Mugabe, en el poder desde hace 25 años, ha sido acusado de violar los derechos humanos y políticos y de restringir la libertad de prensa. El presidente de la Conferencia Episcopal de Africa del Sur dijo sentirse frustrado porque Mbeki, en vez de meterse a fondo con los problemas de la vecina Zimbabue, "se fija en las situaciones parecidas o distintas en el pasado".
Napier, que realiza una gira académica en Austria, comparó la situación con la posición que tenían con el régimen segregacionista de Pretoria el Gobierno británico encabezado por Margaret Thatcher y estadounidense presidido por Ronald Reagan.
"Hablaban sobre compromisos constructivos con Sudáfrica y no condenaban al Gobierno porque decían que los movimientos de liberación también cometían atrocidades", agregó el prelado.
Mbeki defiende una política de "diplomacia discreta" con Zimbabue, una postura que mantiene a pesar de las críticas que recibe desde sectores de la alianza gobernante y también de los partidos de la oposición.
Cardinale sudafricano illustra in India la risposta della Chiesa all’Aids
Jan 15, 2007
“Siamo chiamati a testimoniare Cristo andando incontro ai nostri fratelli e alle nostre sorelle che convivono con l’Hiv/Aids nelle nostre comunità o in altre zone”, ha affermato il Cardinale sudafricano Napier nella sede della Conferenza dei Vescovi Cattolici dell’India (CBCI).
NUOVA DELHI, domenica, 14 gennaio 2007 (ZENIT.org).- La Commissione per la salute dell’episcopato cattolico indiano ha organizzato il 10 gennaio un incontro per riflettere su una risposta concertata della Chiesa all’Hiv/Aids.
Hanno partecipato alla giornata a Nuova Delhi medici, rappresentanti di organizzazioni non governative, leader ecclesiali e persone che svolgono il loro lavoro nell’opera di contenimento della pandemia.
“Il nostro essere riuniti qui non è una coincidenza, ma parte del piano di Dio su come rendere visibile Gesù attraverso il nostro servizio compassionevole nei confronti della gente affetta da Hiv/Aids”, ha detto il porporato sudafricano secondo quanto raccolto dalla CBCI.
“Può essere che non siamo capaci di compiere miracoli come Gesù, ma lì dove l’amore di Cristo appare in modo tangibile i miracoli avvengono”, ha ammesso.
L’India e il Sudafrica affrontano lo stesso problema relativamente alla pandemia; anche il numero delle vittime è simile: 5.7 milioni nel primo caso, 5.4 milioni nel secondo, ha detto il Cardinal Napier.
Il porporato ha avvertito che, nonostante le cifre, la cosa più importante è l’impatto della malattia sulla gente e la stigmatizzazione sociale ad essa associata.
”C’è speranza tra quanti sono affetti da Hiv che qualcuno verrà e mostrerà loro che Dio non li ha abbandonati”, ha sottolineato.
Napier ha condiviso l’esperienza della risposta della Chiesa cattolica all’Aids in Sudafrica.
“All’inizio la Chiesa non comprendeva la gravità della situazione e pensava che si trattasse solo di una malattia locale”, ha ricordato, aggiungendo che è stato attraverso il gesuita Ted Rogers che i presuli sudafricani hanno saputo di cosa si trattava, della sua diffusione e della necessità di contenerla e di aiutare le vittime.
La Conferenza Episcopale del Sudafrica ha istituito un ufficio specializzato per l’Aids al fine di coordinare gli sforzi di ogni diocesi in questo senso.
“Il successo è stato notevole, considerando che i cattolici rappresentano solo l’8% della popolazione sudafricana”, ha osservato il Cardinal Napier.
L’ufficio per l’Aids svolge varie funzioni, come coordinare le attività di vari gruppi, raccogliere fondi, migliorare programmi già esistenti, fornire sostegno economico e condividere le esperienze di successo.
Il Cardinale, Arcivescovo di Durban, ha sottolineato anche il lavoro encomiabile che si svolge attraverso i programmi di assistenza ai malati di Aids in casa.
“In ogni caso, i passi compiuti non sono sufficienti; è necessario prendersi cura in modo particolare degli orfani e dei bambini vulnerabili, perché sono potenziali vittime”, ha ammesso.
Cardinal Urges Respect, Restraint At Christmas
Dec 23, 2006
The Christmas season should be for families and communities to spend time in peace, joy and relaxation together.
Catholic Information Service for Africa (Nairobi, December 22, 2006) - But in South Africa, it is also a season of high road accident fatalities, family violence and drunkenness, said Cardinal Wilfrid Napier of Durban and outgoing President of the Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference.
In a message for the Day of Reconciliation, Cardinal Napier urged respect and restraint during the holiday season.
"In this time of recalling the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ, we should be celebrating in our families and communities in such a way that our celebrations do not include the pain of domestic violence or violent crime or unnecessary and avoidable deaths," he said.
Christmas is a season when we celebrate the fact that God chose to be part of our lives and history in the Lord Jesus Christ, he went on.
"It is thus a time for sharing and celebrating our human nobility and dignity - expressing how in ourselves we are gifts for others and how they are gifts to us. It's not about how much hurt we can cause or damage we can do, even inadvertently."
South African cardinal says churches forced to focus on crime
Dec 20, 2006
South Africa's religious leaders must focus on crime because "not enough is being done or seen to be done" by the government and police, said Cardinal Wilfrid F. Napier of Durban.
CAPE TOWN, South Africa (CNS, Dec-19-2006) -- South Africa is among the most crime-ridden countries in the world, according to the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime.
Violent crime is of particular concern, Cardinal Napier said in a Dec. 17 telephone interview from Durban, noting that he "very rarely meets anyone whose family has not been affected by crime."
As president of the Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference, Cardinal Napier is among Catholic representatives on the National Religious Leaders Forum that meets with President Thabo Mbeki and other government leaders to find ways of reducing crime.
At a Dec. 7 meeting in Pretoria with Minister of Safety and Security Charles Nqakula and top officials of the police force, the religious leaders discussed problems local police stations are facing.
In December and January religious leaders will visit about 170 police stations in an effort to strengthen "the relationship between community-based organizations and the police," said a statement issued after the meeting. Analysts say mistrust of police has led to an increase in vigilantism in the country.
Members of the religious leaders' forum also will visit police roadblocks across the country to observe government efforts to curb traffic violations.
Noting that the Christmas season in South Africa is "often marked by increased deaths from road accidents, family violence and drunkenness," Cardinal Napier urged respect and restraint in a Dec. 13 statement from the Pretoria headquarters of the bishops' conference.
"We should be celebrating in our families and communities in such a way that our celebrations do not include the pain of domestic violence or violent crime or unnecessary and avoidable deaths," the statement said.
South Africans "cannot just sit back and expect the government to solve the problem of crime," Cardinal Napier said, noting that "each one of us has a part to play."
Priests and nuns are among many religious who have been victims of crime, he said.
"Criminals know we are soft targets because we are not going to be carrying guns," he said.
South Africa's high rate of unemployment is partly responsible for crime, Cardinal Napier said.
South Africa's official unemployment rate is 26 percent, but it is unofficially estimated at about 40 percent, according to the U.N. news agency IRIN. The agency reported survey results that show one in five South Africans does not have enough to eat.
"When people feel that the government is taking poverty and unemployment seriously, fewer people will turn to crime in desperation," Cardinal Napier said, noting that "there is no hope when there are no jobs."
Il Cardinale Napier esorta tutti a onorare la propria dignità nel periodo natalizio
Dec 14, 2006
E invita al rispetto e alla moderazione durante le feste.
DURBAN, mercoledì, 13 dicembre 2006 (ZENIT.org).- Il periodo delle feste natalizie dovrebbe essere un momento in cui le famiglie e le comunità trascorrono del tempo in pace, gioia e relax insieme. In Sudafrica, purtroppo, è anche un periodo di numerosi incidenti automobilistici, violenza familiare ed ebbrezza.
In un messaggio per la Giornata della Riconciliazione, il Cardinale Wilfrid Napier, Arcivescovo di Durban e Presidente uscente della Conferenza dei Vescovi Cattolici del Sudafrica, ha esortato al rispetto e alla moderazione durante le feste.
“In questo momento di ricordo della nascita di nostro Signore Gesù Cristo, dovremmo festeggiare nelle nostre famiglie e nelle nostre comunità in modo che le nostre celebrazioni non includano il dolore della violenza domestica o del crimine violento o di morti superflue ed evitabili”, ha detto il Cardinale.
Alla fine dei “16 giorni di attivismo per porre fine alla violenza contro le donne e i bambini” e alla luce di un temuto alto tasso di morti sulle strade, le osservazioni del Cardinale hanno rafforzato le preoccupazioni espresse dal Forum dei Leader Religiosi Nazionali circa i livelli di crimini violenti e la mancanza di rispetto per la vita e la proprietà nel Paese.
“Il Natale è un periodo in cui celebriamo il fatto che Dio ha scelto di far parte della nostra vita e della nostra storia nel Signore Gesù Cristo. E’ dunque un periodo per condividere e celebrare la nostra nobiltà e dignità umana – esprimendo come siamo dono per gli altri e come gli altri sono doni per noi. Non riguarda quanto dolore possiamo provocare o quanti danni possiamo fare, anche inavvertitamente”, ha detto il porporato.
Il Cardinal Napier ha approfittato dell’occasione per esprimere sostegno e apprezzamento ai Servizi d’Emergenza, alle agenzie di rafforzamento della legge e alle molte persone che sono rimaste al lavoro di modo che altre possano avere del tempo da trascorrere con la famiglia e gli amici.
SA Cardinal Remembers PW Botha's Psychological War with Catholic Church
Nov 08, 2006
Former South African President PW Botha, who has died at the age of 90, “created enormous difficulties for the church” when he led South Africa from 1978 to 1989, according to Cardinal Wilfrid F. Napier of Durban.
(The Universe, November 08, 2006) “I have so many memories of his harshness and hard-headedness,” Cardinal Napier said.
Pieter Willem Botha, commonly known as PW or the Groot Krokodil (Big Crocodile) for his uncompromising stance on white rule, wagged his finger in warning at the late Cardinal Owen McCann of Cape Town in 1986, Cardinal Napier said.
In a meeting with representatives of the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference, Botha “told Cardinal McCann, who was questioning him, to get out of the room if he didn’t like what he was hearing,” Cardinal Napier said.
“I think he (Botha) felt that he had the whole Afrikaner nation behind him so he could take on anyone,” he said, noting that Botha was “notoriously difficult to talk to.”
Earlier that year, Cardinal Napier, Fr Smangaliso Mkhatshwa, then general secretary of the bishops’ conference, the late Archbishop Denis Hurley of Durban and Bishop Mansuet Biyase of Eshowe had been to Zambia to visit leaders of the banned African National Congress, which was waging an armed struggle against apartheid, South Africa’s strict system of racial segregation.
The clandestine visit, forbidden in terms of emergency rule imposed by Botha in 1985, was made “to discuss our concerns about the armed struggle’s impact on civilians,” Cardinal Napier said.
Botha remained defiant in his retirement and refused to recognise the authority of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which probed human rights abuses during the apartheid era, from 1948 when the National Party came into power until the country’s first all-race elections in April 1994.
At commission hearings in Johannesburg in 1996, police applying for amnesty said they tried to kill Fr Mkhatshwa while he was general secretary of the bishops’ conference because of his involvement in the liberation struggle and “incitement of the youth.”
Fr Mkhatshwa, now an African National Congress mayor of Tshwane, was imprisoned and tortured during Botha’s rule. Many other priests were harassed by apartheid-era police, some were deported, and many were imprisoned without trial or placed under house arrest.
A 1984 document handed to the truth commission identified the Catholic Church as a target of the security apparatus of the apartheid regime.
The Report on Covert Strategic Communications Projects gave details of efforts to discredit and undermine opponents of the apartheid government, including a “psychological operation” to counter the “revolutionary and political theology of the Roman Catholic Church.”
UK and SA Governments Suffer Cardinal's Ire
Oct 05, 2006
South African Cardinal Wilfred Napier believes that the South African Government has got its strategy wrong for combating AIDS by focusing mainly on the use of condoms.
(The Universe, September 27, 2006) Visiting the UK as part of a Pontifical Mission Society initiative, Cardinal Napier accused the South African Government of only looking to treat symptoms of the AIDS problem rather than the causes.
The Cardinal suggested that South Africa would do better to look to the excellent example offered by the Ugandan Government.
"In Uganda, everyone from the President down gave out the message: if you are not married abstain from sex, if you are married be faithful and if one partner in a marriage has been unfaithful a condom can be used," said Cardinal Napier.
In the case of the third instance the Cardinal was at pains to stress that the decision on condom use was up to the couple.
"South Africa has just taken the condom as the answer," said Cardinal Napier, who stressed that the spread of AIDS whether through sex, use of dirty syringes or accidents was due to human beings.
He also stressed the importance of poverty alleviation policy in the fight against AIDS and paid tribute to the funding received from President George Bush for this purpose.
The Cardinal also called on the UK Government and European Union to take more robust action to confront the situation in Zimbabwe.
"We need to examine our consciences about what is happening in Zimbabwe and Darfur. The attitude of indifference gives over the view that African life is cheap," said Cardinal Napier.
The Cardinal accused the South African Government of double standards by employing arguments against using international sanctions against Zimbabwe that had previously been deployed by those seeking to oppose their use against the apartheid government of South Africa.
Cardinal Napier said the biggest problems in South Africa today were poverty, unemployment, AIDS and crime. He criticised an unwillingness on the part of government to deal with these problems which could in the long-term lead to the disengagement of people from the political process.
South African Cardinal to visit England
Sept 16, 2006
Cardinal Wilfrid Napier, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Durban, South Africa, is visiting England from the 18th to the 21st September for a pastoral visit to celebrate the strong links that exist between the two countries. He has been invited by the National Director of the Association for the Propagation of the Faith (APF) in England and Wales, Fr John Dale.
(Independent Catholic News, 15 September 2006) This year the APF in England and Wales is supporting Catholic Church projects in South Africa with $1,414,742. The funds collected in each diocese in England and Wales are sent directly to local bishops in our sister churches according to the specific needs they themselves have identified.
The APF collects money through donations and through the well-known 'Red Boxes' which can be found in more than 200,000 homes across England and Wales. This year a significant amount of the money raised by the APF will go to South Africa to support this growing, vibrant Church. Projects include leadership and catechist training, welfare programmes for Aids orphans including schools, and building programmes in rural areas. The Catholic Church in South Africa has about 4 million members.
Cardinal Napier said: "I am very happy to visit the Church in England and Wales, because a personal visit is a much better way of expressing and celebrating the strong links that exist between our Churches. During my stay I hope to convey our South African Church's gratitude and appreciation for the encouragement and support we received from our Sisters and Brothers in the UK and Ireland, during the struggle against apartheid, as well as in our struggle now against poverty, unemployment and AIDS.
"With St Paul, I hope to say and even to sing: "I thank my God each time I think of you, and when I pray for you, I pray with joy"."
Fr John Dale said: "We are very privileged to be able to welcome Cardinal Napier, the partnership of friendship and mutual support that exist between our two churches is extremely important.
"It is an important opportunity for us to find out more about the lives of the people our members and donors make sacrifices to support and pray for. We hope that through his visit Catholics in England and Wales will gain a deeper understanding of the unity and 'universal bond' which links all local Catholic Churches to each other.
South African cardinal says Zuma trial is setback to AIDS battle
Jun 15, 2006
Attitudes revealed in former Deputy President Jacob Zuma's rape trial are a serious setback to the country's battle against the spread of AIDS, church leaders said.
CAPE TOWN, South Africa (Catholic News Service, May-23-2006) -- In early May Zuma was acquitted of charges of raping an HIV-positive family friend at his Johannesburg home last November.
Zuma is the former head of South Africa's AIDS council, and his "behavior was not caused by ignorance" of how HIV is contracted, said Cardinal Wilfrid F. Napier of Durban, president of the Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference.
"This has very serious implications," he said in a May 18 telephone interview from Durban.
"Here we are thinking our AIDS rate is so high because of ignorance -- and running extensive education campaigns to inform people -- but it seems it is not ignorance but an unwillingness to change behavior" that is driving the epidemic.
Zuma, 64, told the Johannesburg High Court judge that he and his 31-year-old accuser, whom he knew to be HIV-positive, had consensual sex.
South Africa has one of the world's highest HIV infection rates. A national HIV/AIDS study confirmed last year that about 11 percent of the country's 45 million people are HIV-positive.
"There is no indication that there has been a change of behavior in individuals," Cardinal Napier said, noting that Zuma's statement in court that he took a shower after intercourse to lessen the likelihood of contracting the disease was "ridiculous."
Zuma's attitudes and behavior are "no different from those of the general public. They understand how HIV is transmitted, know the risks, yet go ahead" with risky sexual behavior, said Dominican Sister Alison Munro, who heads the bishops' AIDS office.
"It seems that the heat of the moment takes precedence over common sense and knowledge," she said in a May 19 telephone interview from Pretoria.
The implications of Zuma's "shower comment" at the trial are "a setback for us all in that we now have to debunk the myth in education programs," she said.
Because of this trial, South African rape victims are far less likely to report the crime to police, Cardinal Napier said. The case revealed a "frightening way of thinking," he said, notably "that the way a woman is dressed can invite rape."
Zuma told the court that he knew his accuser wanted sex because she came to his house wearing a skirt and then wished him good night wearing nothing but a traditional, full-length wrap called a "kanga."
"Here's a high-profile figure saying that -- what are young kids going to think?" Cardinal Napier said.
South Africa has one of the highest incidents of rape in the world, with statistics showing a conviction rate of only 1 in 9.
Zuma "made no apology for his infidelity and the harm caused to his family through his behavior," Cardinal Napier said, noting that "the apology he made was for not using a condom, which reveals his concern for political correctness."
Despite the trial, Zuma continues to draw widespread popular support in South Africa.
After his acquittal, Zuma was handed back his duties of deputy president of the ruling African National Congress. He faces a corruption trial in July. He denies the graft charges and has called them a plot by his enemies to slash his presidential hopes.
Before South African President Thabo Mbeki fired him as his deputy last June amid a corruption scandal involving Zuma's former financial adviser, Zuma was seen as a strong candidate to succeed the president when he steps down in 2009.
"If he does eventually become president in spite of his moral qualities, I worry about the image of political leadership in the country and the impact of that," Cardinal Napier said.
Sister Munro said South Africa's political leaders "play down the seriousness of the epidemic and a lot of people are fooled by that."
"We will not win the battle against AIDS unless leaders in the country throw their weight behind it and take it seriously," she said, noting that "ultimately it is prevention that is the key to stopping the spread of the epidemic."
Prevention, care and treatment are the focus of the church's AIDS work in South Africa, she added.
Archbishop Ncube answers his critics at the Herald
Mar 12, 2006
The state controlled Herald launched a blistering attack on Bulawayo Catholic Archbishop Pius Ncube last week and called for his excommunication from the Church. The cleric has for years been on the receiving end of threats, both verbal and physical, because of his outspoken condemnation of the ZANU PF regime.
(SW Radio Africa, 7 March 2006) A lengthy opinion piece by Tichaendepi Chuma read; “The recent utterances through Short Wave Radio Africa by Roman Catholic Church Archbishop for Bulawayo Diocese, Pius Ncube, urging the international community, South Africa in particular, to exert more pressure on Zimbabwe to carry out political reforms, should be seen as views from a demented clergyman who has not only become dangerous to himself but to the institution of the Church as well.”
The Archbishop responded to these comments by saying, “If they think I am demented I am ready to go with them to a psychiatrist and they should be careful because it is they themselves who are demented with the way they are treating Zimbabwe.”
The Herald article went further to say “the notorious Roman Catholic clergyman” had a terrible neurotic resentment of ZANU PF and urged the Roman Catholic Church to realise that by continuing to keep Ncube within its ranks it is destroying its credibility at least in the country, if not in the region.
The head of the Catholic Church in South Africa, Cardinal Wilfred Napier, said there is very little sanity in the Herald report and merely shows the angry thoughts of a journalist who does not understand what kind of penalty excommunication is. Napier explained, “It is an ecclesiastical sanction and it’s imposed for serious breaches of church law and as far as I know Archbishop Pius Ncube hasn’t broken any church law and in June last year he was in Rome visiting the Pope and never received any negative comments from that end.”
Speaking on the programme Hot Seat, Ncube said there is no way he can be excommunicated. He said the Mugabe regime has caused untold suffering and he has the backing of the Pope in his condemnation of the lawlessness going on in Zimbabwe. He said, “The Catholic Church, world over, knows that I am standing up for human rights to defend the lives of the people.”
According to the Herald, the cleric committed “the gravest sins coming from a man of collar by praying for President Mugabe to die,” and then added, “The Roman Catholic Church did not say a word to tame this theological demagogue and megalomaniac! Surely the Church must stand ashamed.”
When asked about this issue Ncube said he believes there is nothing wrong with what he said because more people are suffering and dying because of Robert Mugabe’s oppression. Mugabe has in the past refused to talk to the opposition and international community about the crisis in the country. Ncube said, “I am saying that in view of this the people have a right to pray to God to relieve us of this man, just in the same way the Israelites were praying for God to conquer Pharaoh. So we pray that God may conquer this evil man who is causing so much suffering to our people here. We don’t force God. It’s up to Him.”
He spoke passionately on how people swamp his church looking for help. He asks, “How many children and how many old people are dying from starvation? How many people are crying in my office here saying father we haven’t eaten for 3 days, for 4 days?”
Parishioners come and ask him, “Father can you pay for our school fees? Father can you pay rent for us…?”
The cleric says, “I am at the end of my wits. I just don’t know how to help these people. I just don’t have the money. How much suffering is there in this country? Only God knows. Therefore if we say that we pray that he may go in peace it’s not wrong.”
When asked if he thought Archbishop Pius Ncube had gone too far by praying for the end of Robert Mugabe, Cardinal Napier said he believed what the archbishop prayed for was Mugabe’s downfall. The Cardinal said, “And so did we here in South Africa pray for the downfall of those who were perpetrating apartheid and I think we have the scripture, we have the church teachings on our side, that we must pray for relief. That the poor are treated justly and those who are committing the injustice should be removed.”
He emphasised that it’s up to God to deal with Mugabe in the way His justice dictates.
Cardinal Napier, who visited Zimbabwe after the so called clean up exercise, said then the victims of Operation Murambatsvina were living in sub-human conditions. The South African Churches had set up meetings with President Thabo Mbeki to urge him to intervene. He said the church raised issues of targeted sanctions that would affect the individuals in Mugabe’s government more than they’d affect the masses.
He said the main problem is that in Zimbabwe, the churches and civil society are not united enough to actually make a stand and make the world take notice. He also observed that one of the major problems with civil society in Zimbabwe is that they have little room to manoeuvre because of state sponsored repression.
Cardinal Napier said, “If we didn’t have people like Archbishop Pius Ncube we wouldn’t know what is happening in Zimbabwe.”
But the Herald said, “Bishop Ncube should now remove his religious cloak and put on a political jacket. At the moment, he is wearing both with the Church garment inside.”
Bishop Ncube responded to this jibe by saying, “I am a priest and I am using the card of the Bible in criticising an evil government that has no respect for it’s people. They can go jump in the Zambezi as far as I am concerned. They have no authority to say I must remove my chest clothes and be a politician.”
Clergy: Mbeki lacks will to tackle Zim
Mar 11, 2006
The head of Southern African Catholics says he and other church leaders have told President Thabo Mbeki to impose sanctions against President Robert Mugabe’s government but the South African leader will not do it because he lacks the political will.
(Mail & Guardian, 08 March 2006) Durban, South Africa - Cardinal Wilfred Napier told ZimOnline that South African church leaders and himself had met Mbeki over Zimbabwe’s deteriorating political and economic crisis on a number of occasions during which Southern Africa’s most powerful president explained his attempts to mediate a solution.
But the clergymen advised Mbeki to adopt a more robust and tougher stance against Mugabe including imposing sanctions against the Zimbabwe leader, his wife and top officials in much the same way the European Union (EU) and the United States (US) have done.
The Cardinal said: “We had a couple of meetings with President Mbeki, who explained the negotiating role he has played. We raised the point that we thought that targeted sanctions should be considered by the South African government.
“They have the intelligence services to point out the weaknesses and where they could be applied. They know what will affect Mugabe. However, Mbeki doesn’t have the political will to do this.”
The US, EU, Switzerland, Australia and New Zealand have imposed visa and financial sanctions against Mugabe and his lieutenants over their failure for allegedly stealing elections, failure to uphold human rights, rule of law and seizure of white farms without paying compensation.
Zimbabwe is grappling its worst economic crisis, worsened by Mugabe’s controversial seizure of white-owned farms for redistribution to landless black farmers which knocked down food production by 60% to leave the once food-exporting country dependent on food handouts from international aid agencies.
Inflation is above 600% and unemployment is above 80%, while fuel, electricity, essential medicines and nearly every basic commodity is in short supply.
But Mbeki, regarded by the US and its allies as the point-man on Zimbabwe, has refused to publicly condemn Mugabe or change his “quiet diplomacy” policy under which he has regularly consulted with the Harare administration behind close doors but with little movement to resolve the worsening crisis. - ZimOnline
Cardinal quashes gay priesthood protests
Jan 07, 2006
South African men with "deep-seated" homosexual tendencies, who were barred from becoming priests in the Catholic church, had no reason to take the issue to the Constitutional Court, according to Catholic leader Cardinal Wilfred Napier.
(Saturday Star, December 31 2005) "Nobody has a right to be a priest. You can't claim the right. On what basis would they take it to the constitutional court if they don't have a right?" he questioned.
Napier said religious freedom gave any institution the right to set its own standards.
His comments follow a recent instruction from Rome that only men with "transitory" homosexual tendencies who had overcome it three years previously could enter the priesthood. Practising homosexuals and those who supported "gay culture" were banned.
Napier said "transitory" homosexual tendencies referred to someone who had "flirted" or "experimented" or had "been in a relationship and maybe not wanting one."
"My interpretation of this is that it was a passing phase." He said the instruction only had bearing on those who wanted to enter the priesthood not those already ordained.
According to Napier the suitability of all prospective priests was evaluated through interviews and a psychological assessment as well as seven years of "training and formation" before they could put in an application for ordination.
This assessment also gave an indication how the candidate would function in the four "focal points" required of a priest which included the human, spiritual, intellectual and pastoral levels.
The candidates were also screened to determine if they needed help in dealing with homosexuality, celibacy or even past personal trauma.
"Clearly if a heterosexual man thinks its okay to sleep around with girls and he has not stopped, he will not be a good priest."
The church appealed to the sense of integrity and honesty of potential candidates, said Napier.
"If a person has a major defect in his personality how will he function as a priest?" Napier asked.
"Homosexuality is seen as a defect. Both homosexual and heterosexual men must practice celibacy if they want to become priests. Engaging in sexual activity is not allowed."
Napier stressed that the instruction did not say "very much that is new" and that those who wanted to enter the priesthood should remember that there were rules to becoming a priest.
He said society lived in a time when "objective moral norms" were rejected in favour of "subjective personal preferences".
The latest "instruction" by the Catholic church resonated strongly with openly gay Anglican clergyman, Dean Rowan Smith.
Smith who is in charge of St George's cathedral in Cape Town believed those who were gay brought another sort of experience to the ministry and there must be respect for the integrity of the individual.
His message to other homosexual priests: "The calling comes from God and sometimes it comes despite our sense of unworthiness. God says I'm calling you because of that."
Although he was hesitant to comment on the rules of another church he believed the Catholic "instruction" was intrusive and would create a "nightmare" for those gay men who wanted to enter the priesthood.
"It may cause people to be dishonest with themselves and to others with whom they discuss their convocation," he said.
The Anglican Church requires gay and lesbian priests to remain celibate.
Cardenal pide fin de andar 'pisando huevos' con Zimbabue
Sept 28, 2005
El jefe de la Iglesia Católica de Sudáfrica, cardenal Wilfrid Napier, pidió al Gobierno de Thabo Mbeki que deje de andar 'pisando huevos' en sus relaciones con Zimbabue y adopte posiciones más críticas hacia el régimen de Robert Mugabe.
(Terra Actualidad – EFE, 05-09-2005) El Gobierno de Pretoria está considerado como el que mayor poder de influencia puede tener con Zimbabue, donde Mugabe, en el poder desde hace 25 años, ha sido acusado de violar los derechos humanos y políticos y de restringir la libertad de prensa.
Napier, en una entrevista publicada hoy por el diario sudafricano 'The Mercury', dijo que Mbeki debería condenar las injusticias de Zimbabue y considerar la posibilidad de aplicar sanciones para evitar que Mugabe 'lleve el país a la ruina'.
El presidente de la Conferencia Episcopal de Africa del Sur dijo sentirse frustrado porque Mbeki, en vez de meterse a fondo con los problemas de la vecina Zimbabue, 'se fija en las situaciones parecidas o distintas en el pasado'.
Napier, que realiza una gira académica en Austria, comparó la situación con la posición que tenían con el régimen segregacionista de Pretoria el Gobierno británico encabezado por Margaret Thatcher y estadounidense presidido por Ronald Reagan.
'Hablaban sobre compromisos constructivos con Sudáfrica y no condenaban al Gobierno porque decían que los movimientos de liberación también cometían atrocidades', agregó el prelado.
Mbeki defiende una política de 'diplomacia discreta' con Zimbabue, una postura que mantiene a pesar de las críticas que recibe desde sectores de la alianza gobernante y también de los partidos de la oposición.
“Proclamando la vita per tutti- testimoniate, liberate, insegnate e celebrate”
Sept 28, 2005
Un incontro all’insegna dell’universalità della missione della Chiesa e una dimostrazione che non esiste più un nord e un sud all’interno del mondo cattolico. È quanto rappresenta la visita del Cardinale Wilfrid Napier, Arcivescovo di Durban in Sudafrica, nella diocesi di Wollongong in Australia. Il Cardinale sudafricano ha preso parte alla cerimonia di presentazione del mese missionario che si è svolta nella diocesi australiana il 4 settembre.
Wollongong (Agenzia Fides 16/9/2005)- All’incontro hanno preso parte centinaia di persone. Tra questi vi era diversi bambini ai quali il Cardinale Napier ha raccontato la sua giovinezza nel Sudafrica del regime dell’apartheid e dei maltrattamenti delle popolazioni nere e meticcie da parte della polizia, dando un significato profondamente personale al tema dell’anno missionario 2005: “Proclamando la vita per tutti- testimoniate, liberate, insegnate e celebrate”.
Nella sua testimonianza il Cardinale ha ricordato la determinazione con la quale diversi leader della Chiesa, dopo il Sinodo africano di Roma del 1994, si sono impegnati per rendere la Chiesa cattolica in Africa una componente rilevante della vita del continente, operando accanto alle popolazioni e dando voce degli oppressi. La Chiesa sudafricana, grazie anche alla sua storia missionaria e ai suoi valori, ha continuato ad avere un ruolo cruciale nel rompere le catene dell’apartheid e nel preparare i Sudafricani a superare il passato violento e razzista.
“La cosa interessante” ha affermato il Cardinale “è che quegli stessi valori non sono nuovi…essi erano stati affermati con chiarezza da Papa Paolo VI nel 1969, nel suo messaggio alla Conferenza dei Vescovi africani in Uganda: “Voi africani”- disse il Santo Padre - “ dovete essere missionari di voi stessi”. Per la Chiesa sudafricana la sfida è stata quella di fare crescere la fiducia. Per questo ha riconosciuto le aspirazioni e le necessità delle popolazioni oppresse, incarnandosi sempre di più nella cultura africana.
“Abbiamo compreso che il sistema dell’apartheid funzionava perché le vittime obbedivano alle leggi dell’apartheid” ha ricordato il Cardinale Napier. “Se essi rifiutavano di obbedire, l’apartheid non avrebbe più funzionato”.
Il Cardinale Napier ha già visitato l’Australia nel 1986 e allora fece appello perché la comunità internazionale esercitasse una forte pressione attraverso le sanzioni economiche sul regime sudafricano. Nel 1990 i leader cristiani sudafricani dichiararono che l’apartheid era un peccato e non poteva essere giustificato dalla Bibbia, Grazie anche a queste forme di pressione nel 1994 il Sudafrica ha ritrovato la democrazia con Nelson Mandela che divenne primo Presidente nero del Paese.
Mons. Peter Ingham, Vescovo di Wollongong, nel ringraziare il Cardinale della sua testimonianza ha affermato che le sue parole ci ricordano che “solo la riconciliazione e l’amore possono stimolare cambiamenti positivi”. Il Vescovo ha quindi concluso riaffermando l’impegno della diocesi a collaborare per l’affermazione dei valori e degli obbiettivi delle Pontificie Opere Missionarie e in particolare della Missione in Australia.
Kardinal für klare Aids-Kampagne
Sept 28, 2005
In vielen Ländern Afrikas ist Aids das größte Problem - und das größte Tabu. Südafrika zum Beispiel. Dort starb selbst Nelson Mandelas ältester Sohn an Aids - aber eine klare Aufklärungskampagne über die Krankheit gibt es im Land nicht. Zum Ärger von Kardinal Wilfrid Fox Napier aus Durban.
(Radio Vatikan, 14/09/2005) "Wir können das nicht verstehen. Vielleicht hat die Regierung Angst, dass die Kirche - die sich ja im Gesundheitsbereich sehr engagiert - ihr dabei dreinreden würde. Aber es ist völlig unmöglich, diese Zurückhaltung zu verstehen. Das sind Südafrikaner, die an Aids sterben, das sind ihre Wähler, oft Mitglieder ihrer Partei! Warum soll man denen nicht klar sagen: Ändert euer Sexualverhalten!? Es ist ein Teil des Problems, dass Präsident Thabo Mbeki immer noch nicht glauben mag, dass das HIV-Virus Aids auslöst. Er sagt: Es ist wegen der Armut, wegen der schlechten Ernährung - mag ja auch alles sein. Aber das Virus ist nun mal da - nur arm, aber ohne Virus, daran würden die Leute nicht sterben. Hier liegt das wahre Problem."
El cardenal de Sudáfrica ilustra la fe de los africanos
Sept 24, 2005
El cardenal Wilfrid Fox Napier OFM, arzobispo de Durban (Sudáfrica) y vicepresidente de la Conferencia Episcopal Sudafricana, ilustra en esta entrevista concedida a Zenit (21 septiembre 2005) la situación de la Iglesia en Sudáfrica y la compara con la fe en el mundo occidental.
--¿Cuál es la situación de la Iglesia en Sudáfrica?
--Napier: En algunas zonas, la Iglesia ha crecido, en otras en cambio no tanto. En algunas comunidades, debe combatir mientras que en otras va muy bien. En general, se puede decir que la Iglesia esta creciendo en las comunidades de la gente de color. La Iglesia allí esta llena de vida y está dotada de gran vigor. También muchas comunidades de gente blanca anglófona son muy vivas, aunque allí no se da un crecimiento significativo porque entre ellos las familias son mucho más reducidas.
--¿Habría que buscar la razón en la influencia de Occidente?
--Napier: Europa y Estados Unidos ejercen una fuerte influencia pero no sólo en los sudafricanos blancos anglófonos, sino en todos. Esto se nota en los filmes que se proyectan en los cines o en la televisión, en el arte, en el modo de vestir... tiene enormes efectos en el estilo de vida de los habitantes de Sudáfrica.
--En su opinión, ¿cuáles son las influencias positivas de Europa?
--Napier: Creo que entre los mayores influjos positivos provenientes hoy de Europa es el de ver cómo tierras tan diversas, y antes separadas por las fronteras, se han desarrollado en una Unión, con el proceso que ha creado la Unión Europea. No persevera el nacionalismo como en el pasado, y al mismo tiempo el patriotismo no ha dejado de ser un valor.
Para África es muy bueno el poder ver esto, pues en África el nacionalismo, la pertenencia a la tribu y la identidad étnica, desempeñan todavía un papel decisivo. Y a menudo llevan a la gente de una misma tierra a separarse en pequeños grupos. Ésta es a menudo la razón de los conflictos. En este sentido, hay también otro aspecto positivo que Europa nos muestra: a través de largas negociaciones y compromisos es posible que tierras muy diversas entre ellas lleguen a colaborar de cerca.
--¿Cuáles son los puntos fuertes y los puntos débiles de la Iglesia en África?
--Napier: Creo que, entre los puntos fuertes, está el sentido de lo social. Cuando la gente se reúne, se convierte verdaderamente en una sociedad. Cantan y rezan juntos, sin ningún esfuerzo. Y colaboran también con mucha presteza. Entre los puntos débiles, está probablemente el hecho de que exista sin embargo la tendencia a perseguir la ventaja personal, o de la propia familia, en lugar del bien de toda la comunidad.
Los otros lados positivos de la Iglesia sudafricana, y esto explica también probablemente por qué la fe cristiana se está difundiendo tanto en África, es que a nivel general los africanos reconocen, como lo hacían en el pasado, que tienen necesidad de Dios. Para vivir, tienen necesidad de Dios, y no pueden apoyarse en otro fundamento. Por lo tanto, tienden a ser mucho más religiosos y a dirigir su mirada a Dios para que resuelva muchos de sus problemas, o les ayude, mientras que los occidentales, en esas ocasiones, miran a otra parte y no ven en Dios o en la religión una solución.
--¿Cuál es su consejo para los cristianos de Occidente?
--Napier: A usted le haría mucho bien observar a sus hermanos y hermanas africanos, y comprender la diferencia que hay en la vida de una persona, cuando la fe desempeña un papel central, algo que en Europa ya no sucede desde hace mucho tiempo.
También antes en Europa las personas tenían una profunda conciencia de la presencia de Dios en sus vidas. Pero considero que, por primera vez, con esta moderna globalización, con el secularismo y el relativismo, hemos llegado a una situación en la que la gente no toma en consideración la religión y los valores religiosos.
Creo que en este sentido África puede transmitir un mensaje lleno de fuerza para Europa: tenemos necesidad de Dios y Dios está aquí por nosotros, para que nosotros lo invoquemos y le pidamos ayuda cuando tenemos necesidad.
South African aid to Zimbabwe gets 'no' vote from Cardinal Napier
Aug 06, 2005
South Africa would be "most reckless" to send aid to Zimbabwe, which is "in absolute chaos," said the president of the Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference.
CAPE TOWN, South Africa (CNS, Jul-27-2005) -- "Giving money to (Zimbabwe President Robert) Mugabe can be compared to giving money to an alcoholic beggar who tells you he has given up drink and will spend the money on food," Cardinal Wilfrid F. Napier of Durban said in a mid-July telephone interview from Durban.
The cardinal had returned from a two-day trip to Zimbabwe as part of a delegation with the ecumenical South African Council of Churches.
Mugabe is reportedly seeking a loan from South Africa to pay for electricity, fuel and food to offset chronic shortages.
South Africa is in talks with the Zimbabwean government and may end up aiding its neighbor financially, South African President Thabo Mbeki told reporters July 24.
Cardinal Napier said Zimbabweans would be better served through donations to churches and humanitarian aid agencies because Mugabe probably would squander the funding.
"Mugabe has never respected conditions attached to money lent to his government before, so there is no reason to think that he would do so this time," the cardinal said.
An ongoing campaign of government-ordered shantytown demolitions has left hundreds of thousands homeless. The campaign, Operation Drive Out Trash, has been condemned by the United Nations, numerous countries and church leaders.
"Mugabe wants to destroy all semblance of opposition and aims to achieve this by bringing people to their knees with himself as the only person who can help them," the cardinal said.
Zimbabwe's government said the demolitions were carried out to eliminate illegal settlements that had contributed to a rise in crime in Zimbabwe's deteriorating cities. The demolitions, which began in May, have left 700,000 Zimbabweans without homes or jobs, according to a mid-July U.N. report.
The South African Council of Churches said in its report that the "deliberate destruction of the informal economy, which is meant to cater to economically vulnerable groups, is unparalleled in modern-day Africa."
Near Harare, Zimbabwe's capital, the council delegation visited a refugee camp where some 5,000 people were living in "inhuman conditions."
"These people are removed from opportunities to earn a living and driven to the periphery of society," it said.
"A shocking sight greeted the delegation" when it entered Mbare township, 25 miles southeast of Harare, the report said. "Almost every yard was filled with rubble from the demolition of structures."
At a Catholic church in the township, the delegation saw long lines of people waiting to collect monthly food rations, the report said.
Cardinal Napier told Catholic News Service that Mbare "was so full of rubble it looked like it had been bombed."
Mugabe's conduct in Zimbabwe undermining the whole of Africa
Jul 23, 2005
The head of the Roman Catholic Church in South Africa, Cardinal Wilfred Napier, has said Robert Mugabe's conduct in Zimbabwe is undermining every reason why the West should help Africa.
(swradioafrica.com, 15 July 2005) Cardinal Napier who was part of the SA church delegation that went on a 2 day pastoral visit to Zimbabwe has expressed outrage at the plight of those made homeless by the Mugabe regime.
He said the pastoral visit was to walk among the victims and offer prayers for them. The Cardinal saw confused and very traumatised people living in sub-human conditions. So shocked were the Church leaders with what confronted them in Zimbabwe that they are going to approach the South African political leadership and its foreign office to express concern over the lack of response from the continent's leaders. He said, "It's hard to understand how African leaders who committed themselves just recently at the G8 summit, can remain silent." Cardinal Napier joins the growing list of influential leaders calling for a much stronger and open reaction from the Southern Africa Development Community and the African Union. He said, "Much has been said about NEPAD and the peer review mechanism but its not happening in the case of Zimbabwe."
The president of the South African Council of Churches Russell Botman and the Anglican Archbishop for Cape Town Njongonkulu Ndungane, were part of the church delegation that met church leaders, civic society and some victims of Operation Murambatsvina. The head of the Catholic Church said the delegation had asked for a meeting with Mugabe to coincide with this visit but the request was not granted.
He dismissed reports in the state controlled media saying the bishops' trip was masterminded by British intelligence services as part of a campaign to push a regime change agenda.
The Cardinal said the church leaders have no connection with British intelligence but they "went as leaders of our churches to express pastoral solidarity with the people of Zimbabwe."
They visited the Caledonia transit camp where thousands of people whose homes were demolished are staying. Another delegate Reverend Mathew Esau, recently said that the clerics could find no words to describe the shocking situation that confronted them. He said they were outraged by the plight of more than 4 000 people at Caledonian Farm, adding that South Africa squatters under apartheid could not have faced a worse experience. He said: "What we saw was a diabolical situation."
Cardinal Napier said the church leaders want Thabo Mbeki to pressure Mugabe to stop the evictions. He said it's illogical for Mbeki to talk about quiet diplomacy when people are dying.
Kard. Napier o wizycie "Ad limina" i Kościele w RPA
Jun 17, 2005
Najważniejszą rzeczą dla nas podczas tej wizyty "Ad limina" jest spotkanie z Benedyktem XVI i poznanie jego wizji Kościoła oraz praktycznych możliwości więzi między Konferencjami Biskupów a Watykanem – stwierdził arcybiskup Durbanu w RPA. Kardynała Wilfrida Foxa Napiera zapytaliśmy, co jest największym wyzwaniem stojącym przed afrykańskim Kościołem?
(Radio Vaticana, 10.06.2005) Kard. Napier: Prawdziwym wyzwaniem dla nas jest nowa ewangelizacja, coś, co pozwoli ludziom zrozumieć, że wraz z nowym papieżem przyszła i nowa wizja, która po części jest kontynuacją wizji Jana Pawła II. Chodzi o nową ewangelizację nie tylko w sensie katechezy i zdobywania wiedzy o wierze, ale także rzeczywistego życia Ewangelią. (...) Jestem przekonany, że przykład, jaki dał nam Jan Paweł II w dniach cierpienia, agonii i pogrzebu – to był przykład jak ważną rzeczą jest wyraźne przewodnictwo w Kościele. Ludzie mają wówczas jasną świadomość najważniejszych wartości, które należy zachować w społeczeństwie. Myślę, że jedną z najważniejszych wartości podkreślanych przez Jana Pawła II była świętość ludzkiego życia i jego absolutny priorytet we wszystkim co robimy. Podczas gdy opracowujemy nowe prawa i konstytucje musimy to robić w oparciu o podstawową wartość życia.
RV: Jakie znaczenie w Południowej Afryce ma obecnie sprawa pojednania?
Kard. Napier: Dla nas w Południowej Afryce zawsze było ono bardzo ważne i to od samych początków nowego ustroju, od 1994 roku. Kwestia pojednania, czyli łączenia ludzi podzielonych wcześniej przesądami, a jeszcze wcześniej przez ustrój czy ustawodawstwo. Dla Episkopatu ważne było, aby Komisja Prawdy i Pojednania nie została ograniczona do wydarzenia jednorazowego, ale by stanowiła wyraz duchowego pojednania. Przewidywaliśmy również, że Kościół w dziele pojednania odegra bardzo ważną rolę. Dlatego przygotowaliśmy plan duszpasterski, który miał dwa istotne cele: budowanie jedności i wspólnoty wszystkich członków Kościoła, to znaczy znoszenie istniejących w przeszłości podziałów. Drugim celem było wnoszenie tego doświadczenia w życie społeczne, by ukazać całemu narodowi, że zjednoczony Kościół naśladuje Chrystusa.
Jakie dostrzega ksiądz kardynał nadzieje na trzecie tysiąclecie?
Kard. Napier: Że Kościół będzie wzrastał w poznaniu ewangelii, a zwłaszcza sposobów jej wyrażania poprzez wartości i dzieła kultury, które sprawiają, że nasza relacja z Bogiem nabiera znaczenia. Na przykład dla Afryki bardzo ważny jest śpiew i taniec. Istotne są też żywe celebracje. Dlatego ważna jest refleksja nad tym jak zapewnić by sprawowanie Eucharystii i innych sakramentów płynęło z głębi serca i wyrażało radość, czy smutek, kiedy wymagają tego okoliczności. Chodzi o większą ekspresję, również przez gesty, a nie tylko słowa.
Developing countries have a lot to do
Apr 28, 2005
Wilfred Napier, South Africa's cardinal, says churches from the developing world have to work hard to produce someone who can assume the papacy when the next conclave meets.
(sabcnews.com, April 27, 2005) Cardinal Napier was speaking on his arrival from the Vatican, where he was part of the 115 cardinals who elected Pope Benedict XVI after the death of John Paul II. Back from the historic trip to the home of Roman Catholic Church, cardinal Napier says he is pleased with the choice they made by electing Pope Benedict XVI.
Leaders needed
While some people see the choice as flying in the face of the Third World which has most Catholics, the Durban based cardinal says emerging world has still a long way to go. Napier says people have to work hard to produce the leaders who will be ready when the next conclave meets.
Napier says while filling the late pontiff's shoes was always going to be difficult, Benedict XVI will fill them easily.
The Vatican lacks a "sufficient sensitivity to African Churches”
Apr 17, 2005
Also on Oct. 21, I was asked to sit in on a CNN interview with Cardinal Wilfrid Fox Napier of Durban, South Africa. It was perhaps the third or fourth time I've had an extended talk with him. A Franciscan, Napier comes across as a quiet, moderate man with impressive pastoral instincts.
(National Catholic Reporter, Oct 23 2003) Napier said bluntly that to some extent, the Vatican lacks a "sufficient sensitivity to African churches." He said the pope's trips to Africa have helped in that regard, since every time he comes, Vatican officials are forced to learn something about Africa. Still, Napier said, some understand African realities primarily through "regulations and documents."
He offered the example of Liturgiam Authenticam, which in his view "seemed to ignore that not long before, at the African Synod, inculturation was seen as a positive project." Napier said this is true "not just for Africa, but everywhere."
In Liturgicam Authenticam, he said, "that awareness isn't quite there." He called for "some development along these lines."
Napier made the interesting observation that the way the aging pope has passed on some of his responsibilities to others may be "an education in collegiality," the idea that other officials too could allow lower levels of authority to make decisions on their own.
As for a future pontificate, Napier said he felt it should be a synthesis of Paul VI and John Paul II, focused on evangelization - especially getting those who already believe to live their faith at a much deeper level. The key indicators of how to go about this, he said, were given in the continental synods such as those on Africa and Asia.
What about a Third World pope?
"I think it's possible," he said.
As far as Africa is concerned, however, Napier noted that the African Church is very young, and its leaders do not have some of the diplomatic and international expertise that has traditionally been considered a prerequisite to be pope.
He didn't dismiss the idea of a pope from the Roman Curia, but said it would probably need to be a man with significant pastoral experience.
Napier was asked whether the HIV/AIDS crisis in Africa was beckoning the church to reconsider its position on condoms.
"I don't think so, quite honestly," he said. "We don't change our message because there's a particular crisis at the present time."
Napier argued that the real root of the AIDS crisis is irresponsible sexual behavior, which will not be solved by the wider availability of condoms. He noted that Uganda has achieved a massive drop in its rate of new infections, from 39 percent to 6 percent, based on the message that behavior must change.
Napier said pushing condoms to address AIDS would be analogous to a mother telling her little boy not to eat the cookies that are on the kitchen counter, but then telling him to use a stepladder if he plans to swipe them anyway.
"A mother who said that would be ridiculous," Napier said.
On celibacy, Napier said he wasn't sure it would help the priest shortage, since other Christian churches with a married clergy are sometimes "worse off than we are." Moreover, he said, in the developing world it can be hard enough for churches to financially support a celibate minister, let alone a man with a family.
At the same time, however, Napier said that some married deacons are "wonderful guys, terrific resources for the church," and suggested that he would be open to a conversation about ordination of such men.
Napier rejected the idea of women priests.
"It's very difficult to argue for a break in tradition that's 2,000 years old," he said.
What about the idea of another council like Vatican II?
"It's hard to imagine with the number of bishops we have today," he said. "But nothing is impossible if the will is there."
If such a meeting were to take place, he said, it should not be structured like synods and other Vatican gatherings today, which tend to feature "input, input, input," without much reaction or debate.
Brother Wilfrid Fox Napier, OFM
Apr 14, 2005
The Holy Father, at the Angelus on Sunday 28th January 2001, announced seven more Cardinals, among them the Franciscan Archbishop of Durban (Republic of South Africa).
(ofm.org) Wilfrid Fox Napier was born in Matatiele in Transkei, in the Diocese of Kokstad South Africa, on March 8, 1941, the son of of Thomas Dominic and Mary Davey. He grew up on the family farm with his seven brothers and sisters, amid the injustices brought about by the apartheid regime of the country at that time. The family knew the Franciscans from Ireland who ministered in the area, and Wilfrid's older brother Peter was encouraged by the friars to travel to Ireland to discern whether he had a Franciscan vocation in the Irish Province's novitiate in Killarney. Peter decided that his calling was not to the Franciscans, but he was followed to Ireland by Wilfrid. On his receiving the habit on September 7, 1960, Wilfrid did not - as was customary at that time - take a new religious name.
After first profession on September 8, 1961, Wilfrid studied in the Faculty of Arts in the National University of Ireland, Galway. He took a B.A. degree in Latin and English, graduating in 1964. He excelled at sports - and is still prone to using sporting metaphors when preaching. As a distinguished alumnus of the University, Wilfrid was conferred with an honorary degree of Doctor of Laws on June 26th 1995.
Having made solemn profession in St Anthony's College, Galway, on October 4, 1964, Wilfrid went to the Irish Franciscan College at Leuven, Belgium, where in succession he took degrees in Philosophy and in Theology. He returned to his native South Africa and was ordained in Kokstad Cathedral on July 25, 1970, by local Bishop John Evangelist McBride, OFM, a former Provincial Minister of Ireland. Wilfrid worked in Kokstad diocese for ten years before succeeding Bishop McBride first as Apostolic Administrator in 1978 and then as bishop of the diocese on February 28, 1981, just before his fortieth birthday.
Mgr. Napier was elected President of the South African Catholic Bishops' Conference (SACBC) in 1987 and served for two terms, until 1994, when he became first Vice-President. After one term he was again elected President.
On June 22, 1992, Wilfrid was translated to the Archdiocese of Durban, and took possession of the See on the Feast of Saint Francis, October 4, of that year. In July 1998 he was appointed Consultor to the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples. He has attended various Synods of Bishops in Rome, and has been on the organizing commissions for some of them. He is a member of the Special Council for Africa of the General Secretariate of the Synod of Bishops and Consultant to the Pontifical Commission for the Cultural Heritage of the Church.
On 26th June 1995 the University of Galway, Ireland, conferred an Honorary Doctorate of Law on Archbishop Napier.
On January 28, 2001, Pope John Paul added seven names to the list of cardinals already announced for the Consistory of February 21, 2001. Among those names is that of Wilfrid Fox Napier, OFM.
With the nomination of Mons. Napier to the College of Cardinals, there will be six OFM Cardinals: Paolo Evaristo Arns, Archbishop emeritus of Saõ Paulo (Brazil); José Maria Alexandre dos Santos, Archbishop di Maputo (Mozambique); Aloisio Lorscheider, Archbishop de Aparecida (Brazil); László Paskai, Archbishop of Esztergom and Primate of Hungary; Cláudio Hummes, Archbishop of Saõ Paulo (Brazil) and Wilfrid Napier, Archbishop of Durban (South Africa).
Condoms 'clearly don't work'
Jan 28, 2005
The head of the Catholic Bishops' Conference in Southern Africa, Cardinal Wilfred Napier, criticised the government on Monday for promoting condoms in the fight against HIV/Aids "when it's clearly not working".
(Mail & Guardian online, 24 January 2005) Durban, South Africa – Cardinal Napier said only drastic change in sexual behaviour will stop the spread of the disease.
"Why can't we follow the example of the one country in Africa, Uganda, that has successfully reduced its infection rate from something like 29% to 5% in just 10 years?" Napier asked.
He said in Uganda everyone from the top down, starting with the president, has preached the same message: "Change your behaviour ... change your behaviour."
He said in Uganda condoms have never been a consideration because the country's entire campaign is focused on abstinence, which the South African government says is part of its campaign while still distributing condoms.
Napier said 10% of people living in South Africa are Catholics and the church is actively involved in home-based care and the administering of anti-retrovirals with the help of the government.
"There's no medical evidence to prove that condoms prevent the transmission of Aids and it's only 70% to 75% effective in preventing pregnancy," said Napier.
He believes women are the most vulnerable when it comes to HIV/Aids because there "are so many chaps who go from one person to another spreading the disease".
"Government speaks about moral regeneration but it does not think how the promotion of condoms affects human behaviour."
He said the church will never promote condoms because it is against birth control and pre-marital sex.
However, where one partner in a marriage has Aids and the other does not, it is up to that couple to decide whether to use condoms or to abstain from sex.
Interview with Cardinal Napier
Oct 21, 2004
A month after Cardinal Wilfrid Napier received the red hat from the pope, Southern Cross editor Gunther Simmermacher, spoke to the cardinal to learn more about the man behind the public persona (March 25 & April 1, 2001).
GS: Congratulations on behalf of the staff and readers of The Southern Cross on becoming a cardinal. How should one address you now? Your Eminence?
WN: I actually would prefer just to be called cardinal. That would be fine with me. The simpler the better.
How have things changed since you became a cardinal?
The first impression I have is that some people want to put me on a satellite around the earth rather than on the ground.
Many people are also terribly concerned about offending me by not using the right title. I’m quite happy with people calling me by the job I do. So if people call me archbishop instead of cardinal, I’ll be quite happy with that, because that’s the job I do.
You have many responsibilities. Apart from your duties as cardinal and archbishop of Durban, you are also the apostolic administrator of Umzimkulu, president of the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference, you serve on committees and so on.
Bishop [Dominic] Khumalo, even though he has retired as auxiliary bishop of Durban, still carries out a lot of the extra functions such as confirmations. But the burden is getting heavier, I must admit.
Will you cut back on your responsibilities?
I don’t know how I can do that. That would have to be done over a period of time. For example, I can’t just give up Umzimkulu overnight. I would have to discuss what can be done with the nuncio first.
Apart from Bishop Khumalo, who are the people you could not do without?
The deans in the diocese are very helpful, they take over a lot of the organisation of the Church in the local areas. That is a great help.
When your appointment to the College of Cardinals was announced, Nelson Mandela phoned you. What did he say?
That was quite interesting. First, he tried a number of times to reach me, but then one of his secretaries left a message on my cellphone, which I didn’t check until late in the evening–only to find that he had left a message that I should call him at 9pm. So I phoned the number that had been given to me and arranged that he would call next morning.
When he got on the line, he said: "Oh, is that Archbishop Napier?" and I said "Yes." And he said: "Oh, thank you, I didn’t think that you would speak to small people like myself anymore." He then offered me his congratulations and said he would phone His Holiness to congratulate him on the choice he had made and the honour he had given South Africa.
And did he phone the pope?
I’m sure he did. I haven’t had the courage to ask the pope, but I’m sure he would try to do so.
Was Mandela’s phone call an expression of a special relationship with you?
I think he was just extremely touched by the appointment, seeing it very much as an honour for South Africa.
Did President Mbeki contact you?
WN: I haven’t had any direct contact from him. I suspect though that there were problems getting hold of me, because I was in Pretoria [for the SACBC’s plenary session] at the time. I have received messages from many government offices and ministers as well as [KwaZulu-Natal premier] Lionel Mtshali, MEC health Zweli Mhhize and Chief Buthelezi. And I’m still going through congratulatory messages.
Do you think your new elevated position will lend you and the Church in Southern Africa greater influence on government and society, especially in moral and ethical questions?
I think a lot of people would put greater weight on what I say because they would believe that I have a much more direct line to the Vatican–which in a sense I have–than before.
So from that perspective people may pay more attention in the belief that what I say has been discussed with the pope, reflecting what the pope is saying. I don’t think it would necessarily mean that they accept what is being said, they may just pay more attention to it.
In years to come, what will stick most in your mind about the consistory at which you received the red hat?
The best thing about it was that my family was able to be there with me. My two sisters and four brothers, and my brothers’ wives were there, and then two of my nieces and my nephew and his wife. My secretary was there, [Durban’s vicar-general] Barry Wood OMI, the chairman of the archdiocesan pastoral council, the youth vicar and the youth worker of the archdiocese. It was a great boost that they were there.
Then the provincial of the Irish province of the Franciscan order, a chap I studied with, was there, and so was the former provincial, who is now an auxiliary bishop in Dublin. The people who were there, that will be what will be stuck in my mind.
The hospitality offered to our party by the Irish Franciscans at St Isidore was absolutely out of this world.
At the consistory itself, standing in front of St Peter’s basilica making the profession of faith and taking the oath of office, and then proceeding to the pope, having the biretta conferred, and the embrace from the pope, those are moments I will treasure forever.
Were you nervous?
Oh, very much so. I didn’t think I was, but the fact that I woke up at all hours of the night before, contrary to my normal practice, was a sign of a certain nervousness. In the morning I felt nervous. But once you get into the flow of things it becomes easier.
The papal masters of ceremony are very helpful. They put you at ease and double check everything. But the worry of making mistakes adds to the nervousness.
Did you have any interesting conversations with the pope?
No, not on this occasion. But in the past, especially when we were preparing the Synod for Africa [in the early-1990s], we would often have working sessions over lunch with the pope during which we made our presentations. Since I was in charge of one of the chapters, I would normally be the one to report on how that chapter was developing.
The pope always showed great interest. That’s the one thing about the pope: he has a way of making people feel that they’ve got all his attention, that he is genuinely interested in what’s going on in your part of the world.
Has he expressed any great interest in South Africa?
I think Africa has a special place in his heart, and South Africa probably even more so.
The pope has called a special consistory, a meeting of the cardinals, in Rome for May. Among the issues that might be discussed is the question of collegiality. What is your position?
What we have developed in the Southern African bishops’ conference region has been a collegiality that goes beyond a college of bishops, in the way we have always related to the priests and especially the laity, in terms of how the laity is included in so much of what the Church is doing. Especially so when the Church is reflecting on the needs and challenges that face us here.
That idea of co-responsibility, which I see as a defining quality of collegiality, has been strongly practised in our region. We may not have developed a strong theology around it, but certainly the practice is healthy. I think that’s the contribution we would like to make at such a consistory.
You and your fellow bishops in Southern Africa have a strong record of engagement in human rights issues, be it South Africa during apartheid or the Sudan today. Do you intend continuing your activities in that field?
Oh yes, maybe on an increased level. Our experience from the Sudan is that people pay attention to the position one occupies.
When we went to the Sudan in March last year, almost everywhere people commented that the bishops of Southern Africa had placed so much importance on what was happening in the Sudan that they did not send just any delegation of bishops, but the president of the bishops’ conference and the first vice-president, Bishop Michael Coleman, and the vice-president of Imbisa, Bishop Zithulule Mvemve. So people would see that in such interventions, the rank of the person sent indicates the level of concern.
Is the SACBC going to become engaged in Zimbabwe?
We usually wait for the bishops of an area to indicate that they would welcome a measure of intervention. That’s what happened in the Sudan. The bishops there turned to us and said they would like to meet with us. In Rwanda and Burundi there was a similar situation in that the bishops there asked us to intervene.
So, if the bishops of Zimbabwe were to express such a need, we would certainly respond to it.
Changing the subject, who has had a great influence on you?
I would place a great importance on the role my parents played in the development of my faith, life and myself as a person. There are a number of people during that early period in my life: my aunt, Lucy Green-Thompson, my mother’s elder sister with whom we boarded when we went to school in Mataliele, was a big factor in us growing up knowing what was right and what was wrong, and also how to regard the Church, live in the Church, and be active in the Church.
During my secondary schooling, the nuns at Little Flower school in Ixopo were a big influence. The boarding master and mistress at the time–the late Arthur Firmstone and his wife Betty, who is now working at a guesthouse, Trefontane, at Mariannhill–were good friends of the family and great influences. He was a very upright man with principles, very much like my father. They were like substitute parents.
Why did you choose to join the Franciscan order?
Because they were the only people I really knew very well. The Kokstad diocese was first run by the Mariannhillers, long before I had been thought of, and then by the Bavarian Franciscans. After the war, in about 1946/47, the Irish Franciscans took over from the Bavarian province. So, in my teenage years, the influence of the Irish friars was very strong, particularly the late Fr Jim O’Byrne, our parish priest for some time. He was a very "he-man" kind of guy that you’d really admire. He rode a motorbike and did all kinds of exploits which had us, as teenagers, look towards him as a model.
When the time came to make a decision about my future, going with the Franciscans was a natural way to go.
When The Southern Cross spoke to your sister Annette, she alluded to things not having gone smoothly when you entered religious life.
I’m not quite sure what she was referring to. It’s probably that my brother went to the Franciscan novitiate in Killarney in Ireland to study for the priesthood a year before me. He stayed there for six months before deciding that this was not the life for him. But that did cause me some difficulty. It made me wonder, if I should go and didn’t like it, would people say: "Hey, these chaps are just having a holiday at the expense of the Church."
I discussed that with the parish priest at the time, Fr Reginald Gunn, and he said: "Oh, we’ll put it in the paper that you have gone over to try your vocation." And if I came back, he’d put it in The Southern Cross again that I’ve gone and come back, and that it didn’t work out. That was very comforting.
You’re known to be a keen reader of this newspaper, and frequently contribute to the letters page. What does The Southern Cross mean to you?
The Southern Cross is a place where we, as a Church, can come together. That is one of the reasons why I do contribute to the readers’ page, because I feel we need to communicate right across the spectrum.
If lay people or religious or priests or bishops wish to communicate, we can do so through The Southern Cross. Of course, we have our meetings, but not everybody can attend these meetings.
I find The Southern Cross is where I can find out what’s happening, what people are thinking. It’s important to know what people are thinking on particular questions.
Has the injury you sustained while playing action cricket (a torn achilles tendon, in late 2000) healed?
Yes, that’s almost back to normal now.
So, have you retired from competitive cricket now?
[Laughs] That remains to be seen. But if I engage in such activities, I’ll try to be more careful in future. I’ll try to behave now like a 60-year-old, not a six-year-old.
Are you also a great cricket fan, like Archbishop Denis Hurley?
I take an interest in all sports. But soccer is my preferred game.
What do you do to relax?
Sometimes switching off just means sitting at the computer. Seeing how this or that programme works. That’s one way.
I go on the Internet from time to time, away from the working field, to look up how the football in England is going. I support Burnley, in the First Division. I started supporting them when I first went to Ireland. Burnley had just won the league [in 1960] on basis of their homegrown players. I’ve followed them ever since, right down to the bottom of the old Fourth Division when they had to win their last game of the season to avoid going out of the league altogether. So I often go to their website to see what the news is on the team and so on.
Another way of relaxing is gardening, both vegetable and flower gardening. In Kokstad that was my great outlet for tension. We had a big garden, and we grew some good vegetables there. In Durban, by comparison, I have a window box. The patch we have is very, very small. But the yard is nice. I’m fascinated by palm trees. I’m picking up seeds all over the place, plant them and then give them a away when they’re big enough to transplant.
And music?
I listen to classical music, and pop as well. One of my favourites is the Credence Clearwater Revival. In the year of my ordination they released a single called Have You Ever Seen The Rain, and the b-side was also very good, Hey Tonight. For a 7" single to have two good sides was very unusual in those days [the late 1960s]. So I took to CCR. Another of my favourites is Neil Diamond. Paul Simon I enjoy, too. Helmut Lotti is another one I like listening to. And going to the classicals, I enjoy Mozart and the Strauss waltzes.
And do you get any time to read books?
Computer books, yes. Books are too much work. But now and again I have a burst of reading novels. One I recently came across was a reconstruction of a detective story set in ancient Rome, the time of Caesar and Cicero. I really enjoy such novels. Wilbur Smith I enjoy, too. Ken Follett is another favourite, also a mystery-detective novelist.
Finally, if you could write your own epitaph, what would it be?
Quite simply the motto I chose as a bishop: Pax et Bonum, the motto of St Francis. I think that has been my driving force as a priest and bishop, working for peace and good will, being at the service of people.
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