muslim – NZ Catholic Newspaper

Muslim pressure blocks building of seminary?

Michael Otto — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 02:50:20 +0000

JAKARTA (Zenit) — Construction of the first minor seminary planned for Pangkalpinang diocese in the capital of Bangka-Belitung province has been halted. Local leaders say that pressure from the region’s Muslim population has led to the delay.
Following a standoff with authorities that has already seen the proposed site of the building move to a neighbouring village, a member of the construction committee, Fr Fenansius Marianus Manse, said there was no legal basis for the delay.
“We submitted all necessary requirements to the district administration in early March, but we haven’t obtained a building permit yet,” he said.
Authorities have since asked the committee for the Mario John Boen Minor Seminary to submit a recommendation from the district’s Interfaith Harmony Forum (FKUB) and an environmental review of plans for the two-hectare plot in Mangkol Village.
“That is ridiculous,” said Fr Manse, explaining that an FKUB recommendation is only necessary for a place of worship, while an environmental review does not apply on a plot of less than five hectares.
“Indonesian law states a building application for a seminary must meet 10 requirements, including recommendations from the village head and residents, all of which are in place,” said the priest. The seminary building, which would be the first of its kind in the diocese, has faced problems ever since a building committee was formed in March 2010.
Fr Manse said residents in Air Mesu and Cambai villages, central Bangka district, joined the district administration in rejecting their proposal, events that prompted the decision to move the site to Mangkol Village. Muslims from other villages have also protested against the new plan since April, he said, claiming they had been influenced by several Islamic organisations in the region.
Islam is the dominant religion in Indonesia, which has an 86.1 per cent Muslim population; only 3 per cent are Catholic.

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Muslim MP upholds Pope’s example for Europe

Michael Otto — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 02:46:11 +0000

VATICAN CITY — Calls by a British minister who is a Muslim to follow the Pope’s example and reject intolerant secularisation in Europe have made the Vatican happy, a spokesman said. Lady Warsi, the Conservative Party chairwoman, made her comments in a speech at the Vatican on February 14 as she led a delegation of

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High court rules Malaysian Catholic weekly can use the word “Allah”

Michael Otto — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 12:00:00 +0000

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (CNS) The High Court in Kuala Lumpur has ruled that a national Catholic weekly can use the word "Allah" to refer to God and that the Home Ministry’s order banning certain uses of the word was illegal. echo $variable;

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Vatican media welcome Obama’s speech in Cairo as step toward peace

Vatican City (CNS) — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 12:00:00 +0000

VATICAN CITY (CNS) United States President Barack Obama’s speech in Cairo, Egypt, was welcomed by Vatican media as a step toward peace and a new beginning in American relations with Muslims. The Vatican newspaper, L’Osservatore Romano, ran a front-page story June 4 on Obama’s speech earlier that day. The newspaper called it an effort to

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Christians, Muslims release statement calling for religious freedom

Vatican City (CNS) — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 12:00:00 +0000

VATICAN CITY (CNS) Christians and Muslims must work together to protect religious freedom, they must learn more about each other and they must witness to the world the reality of God, said members of the Catholic-Muslim Forum. echo $variable;

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Vatican diplomat tells WYD pilgrims Spirit guides them to God

Michael Otto — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 12:00:00 +0000

SYDNEY (CNS) The Vatican’s ambassador to Egypt told World Youth Day pilgrims that the Holy Spirit will guide them in their relationship with God and stick with them when they leave the international youth festival. Archbishop Michael Fitzgerald told New Zealand and Pakistani youths gathered in St. Aloysius Gonzaga Church in southern Sydney July 16

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Vatican spokesman: Muslim convert has right to express his own ideas

Vatican City (CNS) — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 12:00:00 +0000

VATICAN CITY (CNS) When Pope Benedict XVI welcomed into the Catholic Church a Muslim-born journalist often critical of Islam, it was not a sign that the Pope accepts everything the journalist believes, said the Vatican spokesman. echo $variable;

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First Catholic church building in Qatar is sign of hope, says pastor

Michael Otto — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 12:00:00 +0000

ROME (CNS) The March 14 inauguration of the first Catholic church built in predominantly Muslim Qatar "is a sign of great hope for the Church" in the region, said the new church’s pastor. echo $variable;

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Pope to gather with 200 religious leaders at interfaith meeting

Washington (CNS) — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 12:00:00 +0000

WASHINGTON (CNS) When Pope Benedict XVI comes to the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center in Washington for an early-evening interfaith meeting April 17 with Buddhists, Hindus, Jews, Muslims and representatives of other religions, space will be at a premium. echo $variable;

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Vatican, Muslim representatives establish Catholic-Muslim Forum

Vatican City (CNS) — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 12:00:00 +0000

VATICAN CITY (CNS) Representatives of the Vatican and of the 138 Muslim scholars who wrote to Pope Benedict XVI last October proposing a new dialogue have established the Catholic-Muslim Forum. The forum will sponsor a seminar in Rome Nov. 4-6 with 24 scholars from each side, according to a statement released at the end of

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