Rebuilding a Post-War Church in Ethiopia

Msgr. Peter I. Vaccari, CNEWA president, visited Ethiopia in mid-October, along with Thomas Varghese, director of programs. Msgr. Vaccari said his primary objective on such trips is to “show solidarity and support for our staff.”

The trip included visits to CNEWA-funded projects situated southwest of the capital, Addis Ababa, such as Kidane Mehret Catholic School in Woliso, and in the north, such as Blessed Gebremichael Catholic School in Bahir Dar, the monastery of the Bethany Fathers in Goro, and the newly constructed Bata Lemariam Church in Arekit. The church’s construction was funded by a generous donation from the Pollock family.

“It’s a small church, but it was absolutely packed. Aisles were filled with people,” said Msgr. Vaccari of the inaugural liturgy with the local bishop of Emdibir, Abune Lukas Teshome Fikre Woldetensae. 

“It was a beautiful ceremony,” he said. “You get the sense of the whole liturgy, the whole congregation participating in chant and song.”

While in Mekele, situated in the northern Tigray region, Msgr. Vaccari met with Abune Tesfaselassie Medhin, bishop of Adigrat, whose priests, parishes and faithful were severely impacted by the 2020-2022 war and who are in a process of healing and rebuilding. 

Webinars on Mideast Conflict 

CNEWA held two briefings on the escalating conflict in the Middle East, involving Israel, Hamas and Hezbollah. CNEWA’s team in Ottawa held an online seminar on 16 October with Michel Constantin in Beirut, regional director for Lebanon, Syria and Egypt, and Joseph Hazboun in Jerusalem, regional director for Palestine and Israel.

Both directors updated CNEWA donors again from their respective regions during a live briefing at Dillon Hall in New York City on 4 November.

Mr. Hazboun recalled the bombing of the Orthodox Church of St. Porphyrios in Gaza on 19 October 2023, which killed 21 people sheltering there, including the parents of Sami Tarazi, a project assistant with CNEWA-Pontifical Mission. St. Porphyrios and the Latin parish of the Holy Family continue to host the displaced in need of basic provisions, he said.

That the people in Gaza “have survived so far and remain    steadfast … really is a sign of encouragement and hope for all of us,” he said.

Mr. Constantin said the war, which now engulfs Lebanon, has displaced more than 1 million people. The 20,000 Christian families who lived near Lebanon’s border with Israel have declined to less than 5,000.

“They are completely besieged. They cannot go out of their village,” he said. “We have seen people killed not only in their homes in the south, but in their shelters, in safer areas.”

He added that this war is “the worst” he has seen “in terms of brutality” in his 35 years with CNEWA. 

In Memoriam 

Brother Austin David Paul Carroll, F.S.C., who served as special assistant to the president of CNEWA-Pontifical Mission, from 1985 to 2009, died on 21 September. Born 22 November 1935, the De La Salle Brother of the Christian Schools was known for his good humor and passion for justice and peace.

Brother David entered religious life in 1953, received his habit and religious name, Austin, the same year, and pronounced perpetual vows in 1960. His career included assignments in the schools of his religious community, data system services in the dioceses of Brooklyn and New York, and a variety of roles with CNEWA-Pontifical Mission, which included serving as an adviser to the permanent observer of the Holy See to the United Nations, helping to establish the Path to Peace Foundation of the Holy See Mission.

50 Years of ONE

With this edition, ONE wraps up    its 50th anniversary, marked by highlighting the Eastern churches, their work and their challenges at the annual Catholic Media Conference in June, where CNEWA hosted an international panel on the theme, “Conflict, Crisis and Hope: Eastern Christians in the World’s Hotspots.” Before the panel, CNEWA presented Metropolitan Borys Gudziak of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Archeparchy of Philadelphia with its Faith & Culture Award for his work toward the promotion of the dignity of the human person. 

Throughout the year, a weekly blog feature included past ONE articles, highlighting the wealth of material from the world of the Eastern churches over five decades. Go to cnewa.org/blog, choose the category, “ONE @ 50: From the Vault,” to read this treasure trove of content. As well, a handful of exceptional landmark articles from the past 50 years were reprinted within these pages. Read the final article in this special anniversary series on page 12.

Congratulations to the team at ONE, past and present, and thank you to our readers for your ongoing interest in critical and compelling reporting from the world CNEWA is humbled and privileged to serve.

Healing & Hope Honorees

At its third annual Healing & Hope Gala on 9 December in New York City, CNEWA will recognize two individuals who have made outstanding contributions in the areas of justice, peace and the promotion of human dignity around the world.

Archbishop Gabriele G. Caccia, permanent observer of the Holy See to the United Nations since November 2019, will be CNEWA’s guest of honor, and Gayle M. Benson, owner of the N.F.L.’s 

Saints and the N.B.A.’s Pelicans, and prominent advocate for the presence of faith in culture, will receive the Faith & Culture Award.

CNEWA Jubilee Pilgrimage

To mark the Jubilee Year 2025, CNEWA will host a Pilgrimage of Hope to Rome, 26 April to 3 May 2025. Led by Msgr. Peter I. Vaccari, the eight-day itinerary features a papal Mass in St. Peter’s Square, visits to the major basilicas and historic sites, and special CNEWA events at the Vatican. Email info@cnewa.org or go to petersway.com/1265.html to learn more and sign up for this specially created jubilee experience.

Read this article in our digital print format here.