Faith, Relativism and Human Rights

The article written by Marco Ventura in Corriere Della Sera, has brought a issue that UTET has recently published a Dictionary on the Human Rights and has totally neglected purposely or negligently, which I don’t know, the stand point of Human Rights of the Church, which always in all its teachings, traditions, documents and activities gives much importance and thrust on this point.

 

The another important point to be noticed would be UTET being an Italian publication from a catholic country, Turin has failed to include the standpoint of the Church, with regard to Human Rights, in its Dictionary of “Human Rights.

 

By the way, Marco Ventura has not clearly expressed either the standpoint of the Church or the standpoint of the dictionary published by UTET in his article. Actually Pope Benedict XVI while he was addressing the international body of the catholic NGOs has denounced the logic of “moral relativism” which now dominates the United Nations and other international agencies.  He also added that there is a refusal to recognize the centrality of the “natural moral law” and the “defense of human dignity” and the same kind of explanations have been found in this dictionary.

 

He has mentioned that the Church is very traditional and very strict in its doctrines and tries to measure human rights and justice in its same traditional measure and other then this he has not clearly explained why the Catholic Church tries to be strict in its point of view about the Human Rights and Justice. Therefore this article is very weak in its formation and failed to make it clear in its standpoint.   

“We cannot rob our children of their future”

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon had urged the 10,000 delegates gathered in Bali from 190 countries to act fast. "This is the moral challenge of our generation," he noted. "Not only are the eyes of the world upon us. More important, succeeding generations depend on us. We cannot rob our children of their future." Ban said an agreement limiting emissions should be comprehensive, and should enlist the participation of both poor and wealthy nations. "Our atmosphere can't tell the difference between emissions from an Asian factory, the exhaust from a North American SUV, or deforestation in South America or Africa," he said.

Discussions over the aims and timing of a new global climate change treaty have wrapped up in Bali after two weeks of often turbulent bargaining. The next step will be two years of negotiations over the new treaty itself, which will become a successor to the Kyoto Protocol on climate change.

The so-called "road map" that came out of the Bali conference was deliberately vague on both questions, leaving hard work ahead for the negotiators. In order to reach that goal, countries and environmentalists led by the European Union wanted the road map to specify sharp reductions in emissions: by the year 2020, they wanted emissions to be 25 to 40 percent lower than they were in 1990. The road map does call for global man-made emissions to peak in the next 15 years, and for emission levels recorded in 2000 to be cut in half by 2050. It also promotes a plan enabling wealthy countries to pay poor countries to keep remaining forests intact.

At last what can we say whether the two-week long United Nations Climate Change Conference at Bali, was a success or a failure? There is no easy answer. To the extent that after years of squabbling and finger-pointing, there is now a global consensus on, one, the reality of global warming and, two, the need to do something about it. 

Pluripotent stem cells can be produced in ethical way – Shinya Yamanaka

“Science can contribute greatly to making the world and mankind more human. Yet it can also destroy mankind and the world unless it is steered by forces that lie outside it,” insists the Holy Father in his new encyclical “Spe Salvi”

In the name of scientific researches and experiments in creating pluripotent stem cells hundreds and thousands of human embryos and oocytes  have been destroyed in the laboratories.

The debate over stem cells derived from human embryos has been made to appear as a conflict between science and ethics, with science arguing for the funding of stem cell research to cure currently incurable diseases and ethics arguing against it.  But ethically it may be more problematic not to fund human embryo stem cell research than to fund it, and scientifically no one can guarantee that cures for the currently incurable will soon be at hand.

The division between the moral opponents of human embryo stem cell research and its moral and scientific proponents is not of a sort that can be compromised.  If a fully human life exists the moment sperm fuses with egg, whether within a woman or in a Petri dish, there is no way of doing human embryo stem cell research cannot demand that people who believe a fully human life exists at conception give up this belief, nor can they claim that this belief, ad the case against stem cell research that follows from them, is unreasonable.

A much-admired stem cell researcher Shinya Yamanaka, MD, PhD, has reported that he and his Kyoto University colleagues have successfully reprogrammed human adult cells to function like pluripotent embryonic stem cells. Because it circumvents much of the controversy and restrictions regarding generation of embryonic stem cells from human embryos, this breakthrough, reported in the journal Cell, should accelerate the pace of stem cell research.

These induced pluripotent stem cells, an invention of the Japanese biological scientist Yamanaka is an outstanding testimony for the other scientists, that is, any scientific research must not destroy the moral and ethical values and they must also remember “end can not justify the means”.

The untold Story of Indian Film Industry

The Indian film industry is the oldest and the largest in the world with over 1200 movies released annually. The majority of films are made in the South Indian languages mostly Telugu, Tamil and Malayalam, but Hindi films take the largest box office share. Mumbai (Bombay), Chennai (Madras), Kolkata (Calcutta), Bangalore and Hyderabad are the main film production centers. With more than12000 cinema halls, the Indian film industry turns out more than 1000 films a year to hugely appreciative audiences around the world. 

The history of Indian Cinema can be traced back to 1896 when the famous Lumiere Brothers' of France demonstrated six soundless short films in Bombay. By 1899, Harishchandra Bhatvadekar made India's first short film. This was one of the major milestones in Indian Cinema. Throughout the first two decades, the trend continued with filmmakers.  

Dhundiraj Govind Phalke produced India's first full-length silent film, 'Raja Harishchandra', in 1913. He laid the foundation for the beginning of a regular feature film industry in India. By 1920 there was a regular industry bringing out films starting with 27 per year and reaching 207 films in 1931. Many new companies and filmmakers came up during that period.  The 1930s saw sweeping changes to the industry, technically and stylistically. The most remarkable thing that happened in Indian film industry was in 1931, when India's first talkie, 'Alam Ara', directed by Ardeshir Irani was released. Dubbed into Hindi and Urdu, the film was a smash hit and a new revolution began in the Indian film industry. It's phenomenal success all over India lead to other 'Talking, Singing and Dancing' productions to be hurriedly put into production. At the same time, it marked the beginning of the Talkie era in South Indian film industries also. The first talkie films in Bengali (Jumai Shasthi), Telugu (Bhakta Prahlad) and Tamil (Kalidass) were released in the same year 1931. 

The 30's is recognized as the decade of social protest in the history of India films. In the 30's three major film centres developed which were based in Bombay (Mumbai), Calcutta (Kolkata) and Madras (Chennai). Of these centres, Bombay was known for the making of films geared for national distribution, while Madras and Calcutta were known for their regional films. 

From the 1940's to the late 1950's, the films with their concentration on vibrant song and dance were for many, the most memorable in Indian film history. Another factor that encouraged truly good Indian cinema was the establishment of National Film Awards, the Film Finance Corporations, the National Film Archives of India and the Film and Television Institute of India. The first International Film Festival in 1952 held at Bombay, Chennai, Delhi and Calcutta had great impact on Indian Cinema. 

“God is Hope”

The new encyclical “Spe Salvi” – saved by hope, by our beloved Holy Father Benedict the 16^th imparts an important message “Hope is God”. “Hope, in fact, is a key word in Biblical faith”.  Jesus Christ, who died on the cross and rose to life, brought this “Hope” to us. This trustworthy hope is stronger then any sufferings and slavery “ a hope which therefore transformed life and the world from with in”.

As our Supreme Pontiff correctly points it out neither the radical ideologies like Marxism nor the political structures or the modern scientific developments can bring the true hope to this world but instead they bring “greatest forms of cruelty” and science can contribute greatly to making the world and mankind more human.

The Christian message is not “informative” but also “performative” that is, “the Gospel is not merely a communication of things that can be know, but it is one that makes things happen and is life-changing”.

Moreover, our Holy Father insists that we must get rid of the individualistic understanding of salvation that is, “hope for myself alone, which is not true hope since it, forgets and over looks others”.

The Holy Father instructs us “the first essential setting for learning Hope is Prayers”.  When we pray properly we undergo a process of inner purification which opens us up to God and thus to our neighbors”.

Suffering is a part of our human existence. What heals man, the Holy Father teaches, is not “sidestepping or fleeing from suffering, but rather by our capacity for accepting it, maturing through it and finding meaning through union with Christ, who suffered with infinite love for us.

Finally The Holy Father goes on encouraging us to live with others, he says, “our lives are involved with one another, through innumerable interactions they are linked together. No one lives alone. No one sins alone. No one is saved alone. The lives of others continually spill over into mine: in what I think, say, do and achieve”.

I just would like to raise the same question, which the Holy Father himself left for our personal reflection “what can I do in order that others may be saved and that for them too the star of hope may rise?”  

Canonization and Controversies – Padre Pio

If we take glance over the history of the Catholic Church always there have been controversies especially when ever a new issue of a particular person’s extraordinary saintly life has been exposed or miracles occurring in the particular place, church, statue or holy image and apparitions. Not mostly atheists or those who are against the church have raised these controversies against the Church but those are inside the church, most of the times by the hierarchies. It is always due to jealousy, pride, power crisis and most of the time due to the money that pours in, but of course these things will not be mentioned in public, on the other hand the question of genuineness and faith will be always raised against these issues.
In the case of St. Padre Pio the accusations with regard to the stigmata, which were brought to the knowledge of the Holy See by the local bishop and the other accusations with regard to his misbehaviour towards young women in the confessionals have been authentically disproved after a careful, thorough and detailed inquiry and examination both while he was alive and after his death and has been declared that he was innocent.
After many years the recent reappearance of the controversies on the “CORRIERE DELLA SERA” is more surprising. How common people able to get access to the secret documents that have been protected in the archives of Vatican is also surprising. In his article Sergio Luzzatto has tried to narrate the story of Padre Pio getting phenol secretly from Miss. Maria De Vito to strengthen his argument against the saint but he has completely black out that it was invalidated that phenol was not the cause for his stigmata.
The most common polemical elements against the Church or against the Faith will be of supernatural occurrences. Mostly these events become controversies due to the careless or prejudice way of dealing with the issue. A proper and careful examination and analysis of these happenings can prevent controversies and safeguard the common peoples simple faith.

“Dire senza Dire” in Mark Antony’s funeral speech

The Communicative effect of “Dire senza Dire” in Mark Antony’s funeral speech in Julies Caesar by W. Shakespeare


The entire speech delivered by Mark Antony during the funeral of Julies Caesar has been constructed on the formal of “Dire Senza Dire” which had an enormous communicative impact on the audience and changed the entire situation of the Roman Empire.
In the very beginning of his speech Mark Antony said, “ Friends, Romans, country men lend me your ears; I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him” which was not true because he came to praise Caesar and to proclaim his magnanimity which he revealed as he unfold the secret will, that which was written by Caesar himself for his fellow citizens.
During his speech he said, “Brutus is an honourable man” he repeated the same phrase for four times and he also called the conspirators as “honourable men” for four times during his speech but he actually meant the opposite. He made the public to say that “ they were traitors, they were villains, murderers”.
The most powerful technique used by Mark Antony to instigate the public against the conspirators was he showed each and every point of the stabbing on Caesar’s body “look, in this place ran Cassius’ dagger through: see what a rent the envious Casca made: though this the well beloved Brutus stabbed …” thus he created sympathy and pity for Caesar among the crowd.
At the end before revealing the will written by Caesar he said, “ Good friends, sweet friends, let me not stir you up. To such a sudden flood of mutiny” but actually he made this speech to stir the public against the conspirators. He humbled himself before the public saying “ I have neither wit, nor words, nor worth, action, nor utterance, nor the power of speech” but he made the public to say that he was a powerful and honouable man and leader.
Thus as we read the funeral speech of Mark Antony from the very beginning till the end the whole speech is formed on “Dire senza Dire” and had an powerful communicative impact on the public.

A Jeremiad Press Release by Cardinal Caffarra

Cardinal Caffarra as a more responsible pastor, leader, teacher and head of the local Church of Bologna has expressed with full vitality like prophet Jeremiah, the great prophet of the Old Testament, the pathetic conditions of the city and it’s citizens.
He has made a through study about the city, it’s historical authenticity and back-ground, the present life conditions of the local people, namely, the moral, ethical, educational, economical and social problems, and with out ay dilemma or hesitation like the great prophet Jeremiah has exposed to the light the existing problems and woeful conditions of Bologna.
As a responsible pastor he has taken a bold step to indicate the social and spiritual needs of the people, at the same time, he also tried to remind the civil leaders about their responsibilities and duties to be fulfilled for a smooth running of the society and to eradicate the existing problems from the city. As I read his intervention I am very sure; he much has been dam sure about the negative reactions of the Mayor and other heads of the city. I think this may be his strategy to provoke both the people and the local leaders to work for the betterment of the city.
But still I have some problem with regard to this intervention made my Cardinal Caffarra against the woeful conditions of the city. He has directly attacked the Mayor of the city Mr.Cofferati as if it was his mistake for the present condition of the city today. He has mentioned about the praise worthy steps taken by the Bologna Church to eliminate the poverty in the city but still there are other serious ethical, moral and educational problems present, which he himself has mentioned, and what steps the local church has taken to reduce this problems? Therefore, according to me instead of sending into air the existing problems by blaming the civil and political leaders he could have invited all for a joined venture to eliminate these problems and to safeguard the citizens.
Because, there is no use of sending press releases and interviews in blaming each other, which will never improve the life of the people or solve the existing problems, but simply justifying each ones arguments and proving oneself as if just and honest.

“We don’t have problems but challenges” Dr. Joseph Calstas, the Secretary General UCIP

The International Catholic Union of the Press functions like a guardian angel for the journalists and media professional and promotes justice and peace for the humanity at large like the Archangel St. Michael.
The sharing of Dr. Joseph Calstas, the Secretary General of UCIP was a kind of eye opening and very much interesting for me personally, to know the involvement of the Christian and non Christian lay journalists and media professional in promoting justice and peace. As he was explaining the historical background, the birth and development of the UCIP all over the world was really very much surprising for me. In his dialogue I was able to understand the main emphasis of this union is to promote justice, peace and social development in all the parts of the world. At the same time this union gives an extraordinary importance to encourage and to give a world wide out look and experience for the young journalists especially from Africa, Asia and South American countries, by sending them to other countries to get involved in various exposure programme and field experience.
All through the dialogue one thing very much impressed me was at the end of the session Dr. Joseph Calstas said, “we don’t have problems but challenges”. The challenges to promote the liberty of expression; Justice and equal development in the socially and economically under developed countries; giving awareness to the commoners not to be trapped by sweet coated pills of neo-colonization techniques of the so called super powers of the world and above all giving importance and highlighting the ethical and moral values of human life.
UCIP has created a floor where journalists and media professionals both from the Church side and secular side can come together to share and discusses about these about challenges, thus they enrich and empower themselves with clear vision of the world situation with first hand information and get themselves involved in their media mission to proclaim the Good News of Justice, Peace and Love.

“Thirukkural” The cream of the Tamil ancient literature

Thirukkural is a well-known work on ethical and moral codes of human life, in Tamil literature written by Thiruvalluvar, the most celebrated Tamil Poet, who lived between the second century BCE and the eight-century CE. Both the Tamils who practice Hinduism and the Tamils who follow Jainism and Buddhism claim him. The utter simplicity of his language his crystal clear utterances, precise and forceful, his brevity, his choice diction, no less his inwardness, his learning, culture and wisdom, his catholicity and eclecticism, his gentle humour and wholesome counsel have made him an object of veneration for all time and Thirukkuarl is considered the Veda of the Tamils.

Thirukkural proved to be the cream of the Tamil ancient literature. Today among the most translated books into various languages the Holy Bible stands the first. Next to the Holy Bible Thirukkural has been translated into most of the world languages.

The book Thirukkural contains 3 main Parts, the first on ARAM means the way or dharma; the second on PORUL means material or artha and third on INBAM means joy or kama. There are 133 chapters in this book and each chapter contains 10 distichs in the meter know as Kural and there are 1330 kurals in total. Each Kural [couplet] consists of four seers in the first line and three seers in the second line. A seer is a single or a combination of more than one Tamil word.

Therefore, it has been said that the poet Thiruvalluvar has pierced the atom and has packed within it the seven seas of the world.

The first Kural:
Ahara Muthala Ezhuthellam Athi;
Pahavan Muthatrey Ulahu.

It means:
A as its first of letters, every speech maintains;The Primal Deity is first through all the world’s domains.

Pope Benedict XVI's Message on the Social Week has hit the nail on the head

The Church always stood for the total liberation of man, who is the image of God. The principles of justice and love are based on equality and formed on the light of the Gospel [Gaudium et spes 63]. Rerum Novarum, the first social Encyclical written by the pope Leone XIII on 15 May 1891, was the first social document, in which the Church clearly and authentically announced its stand on the political, social and economical issues of the world.

From ‘Rerum Novarum’ till ‘Deus Caritas est’ all the social encyclicals have been giving voice for the same problems. But few days before the letter written by his Holiness pope Benedict XVI on the occasion of the Social week celebrations by the Italian Catholics addressed to the president of the Italian Bishops Conference, hit the headlines of the Italian news boards. The explicit theme of the letter is the “Common Good”, the message begins with respect for life and the family, but he does not stop there, but continues to say openly that in the Italian society, one concrete situation where the family must be protected and promoted is job security. Therefore, lack of job-security does not allow young people to build their own family, the authentic and complete development of society is seriously compromised and he invites the Italian citizens and especially the Catholic laity to respond to these challenges, with renewed dynamism, opening themselves trustingly to new relationships and not neglecting any of the energies capable of contributing to cultural and moral growth.

The reason why this message hit the headlines is very apparent, today in the unemployment percentage is increasing women and youth have significantly higher rates of unemployment [http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/4033.htm]. The number of official marriages celebrated in Italy has declined steadily since the early 1970’s, with 404,464 registered in 1971 and 264,026 in 2001, according to the national statistics bureau, Istat. The number fell to just over 250,000 in 2005, Istat said [www.sacbee.com – Family Issues]. The Italian government instead of solving the basic problems to promote legal families by job security it tries to bring legislation that would give legal rights to unmarried couples, including gay and lesbian partners. In this situation pope Benedict XVI’s message on the social week has hit nail on the head.

"CREATIONISM" A Threat to Human Rights ? ? ?

Every religion, culture and tradition has got it’s own creation stories, beliefs and traditions which has been handed over from generations to generations through various sacred writings, literatures and oral traditions. It is very clear and obvious that there are not any specific and concrete scientific proofs for creationism, at the same time, as it has been reported by the European Centre for Law and Justice against the statement made by the European Council “The report does not respect the freedom of expression of teachers, researchers and students as manifest in academic freedom, because it seeks to eradicate an alternative to the Darwinian model of the origin of life, there by elevating the theory of evolution to scientific dogma, while the majority of scientists have concluded that evolution is the soundest theory concerning the origins of life, ‘scientific truth is not proven by consensus”

Therefore, it is very clear both Creationism and Evolution theory does not have sound scientific proofs, but both are based on certain convictions and beliefs about the origin and development of life on this earth and the settings of the cosmos.

This body is seriously concerned that creationism is not only a threat to their secularized educational systems, but to democracy itself. Human rights could be endangered, the Council claims, if the continent is "not careful." But at the same time, does the European Council has taken sufficient measures to face the burning issues of Iran and brutal killings of the Buddhist monks in Burma, in which human rights has been taken to the burial grounds. Along with these I would to add few other important problems mostly faced by Europe and USA in which, children’s rights have been neglected such as, the enormous number of abortions, child trafficking, child abuse, use of drugs in the schools, children ads and etc. More over UK parliament is pressured to permit the creation of half-human and half-animal embryos for scientific experiments and is it not a danger to the human rights and democracy? Therefore, it is highly illogical and ridiculous that the European Council is trying to say that Creationism is a danger to human rights and democracy.