Mourning in Bethlehem

Brother Patrick White, F.S.C., department chair of English at Bethlehem University, has written a second book entitled, Mourning in Bethlehem.

Subtitled, “The Impact of the Gulf War on Palestine Society,” this 200-page book poignantly describes the lives of those Palestinians under the occupation and the effects of the Gulf War on their society.

“This is not a book about the complex political situation here,” Brother Patrick writes in the introduction. “It is a book about people.”

Major Gift Is Left to the Association

The generosity of our donors knows no limits. Mr. Harold L. Rosini, a retired engineer and a resident of New York City, left his entire estate, totalling more than $830,000, to Catholic Near East Welfare Association.

An occasional benefactor of the Association, Mr. Rosini gave his unrestricted gift for the works of the Association in memory of his parents and sister.

Please join us in remembering Mr. Rosini and his family and friends in our prayers.

Indian Archbishop Visits New York

Archbishop Joseph Powathil, Archbishop of Changanacherry, Kerala, India, visited our New York offices in July.

The Syro-Malabar archbishop was in the United States to visit those Syro-Malabar Catholics who have emigrated to this country from India.

The archbishop updated Msgr. Stern and other members of the staff on the work of the church in Changanacherry.

Pope Requests Syro-Malabar Missionaries to Open Communities in China

At the request of Pope John Paul II, the Congregation of the Mother of Carmel, a Syro-Malabar congregation for women, will open communities in China and Asiatic Russia where missionaries from the Assyrian Church of the East once trod. The Syro-Malabar Catholic Church is of the same tradition as the Assyrian Church of the East, but is in union with Rome.

Sister Benecasia, C.M.C., superior general of the congregation, visited our New York offices in July. This community numbers some 5,500 sisters and more than 400 novices.

The superior general was accompanied by Sister Catherine, C.M.C., the superior of the Gary, Indiana, community.

Holy See and Israel Discuss Relations

After years of “unofficial” contact, a “permanent bilateral working commission” has been formed between the Holy See and the State of Israel.

“This is the first official step toward a clear objective: the establishment of diplomatic relations,” stated Joaquin Navarro-Valls, spokesman for the Holy See, in a July 29 press conference.

The commission will be directed by Msgr. Claudio Celli of the Holy See’s Secretariat of State and Yosef Hadass, director general of the Israeli Foreign Ministry.

Thus the Holy See will be able to address the concerns of the church in Israel and the Occupied Territories, especially during the favorable climate created by the Arab-Israeli peace talks.

Tragedy in Beirut

Four members of the Little Sisters of Jesus congregation were hit by a car on May 30 at 4 A.M. while on their way to morning prayer in the Beirut neighborhood of Harissa.

Three immediately died, Sisters Jeanne d’Arc, Amira and Naima. Sister Naima worked with our Beirut office’s Iraqi refugee project in Turkey (See CNE, April & July 1992).

Mr. Issam Bishara, director of the Pontifical Mission in Beirut, reported that the fourth, Sister Mariam, was badly injured and remained in the hospital for two months.

Mr. Bishara reported in September that she had passed the critical stage.