hello

Greetings to each and everyone of you.


This section for English-speaking viewers –
and all those enjoying the culture –

has developed over the months and is now offering materials of all kinds:

texts, images, poems, videos, etc.

It will continue to provide you with rich contents week after week.

 

World Radio Day – 13 February

February 13 is World Radio Day, which celebrates the radio as a way of educating people, providing information, and promoting freedom of expression across cultures.

Despite being over 100 years old, the radio is one of the most popular ways to exchange information, provide social interchange, and educate people all over the world. It has been used to help people, including youth, to engage in discussions on topics that affect them. It can save lives during natural or human-made disasters, and it gives journalists a platform to report facts and tell their stories. The first World Radio Day was officially celebrated in 2012.

Source: Text: timeanddate.com Image: ebu.ch

 

International Day against the Use of Child soldiers – 12 February

Thousands of children are serving as soldiers in armed conflicts around the world. These boys and girls, some as young as 8 years old, serve in government forces and armed opposition groups. They may fight on the front lines, participate in suicide missions, and act as spies, messengers, or lookouts. Girls may be forced into sexual slavery. Many are abducted or recruited by force, while others join out of desperation, believing that armed groups offer their best chance for survival. We are working to prevent the use of child soldiers and to hold accountable the people who send children to fight.

Source: Text: www.hrw.org

About child soldiers
In many countries around the world – from Democratic Republic of Congo to Myanmar to Syria – children are being recruited by adults to fight their wars for them. Some child soldiers are used for fighting – they’re forced to take part in wars and conflicts, forced to kill, and commit other acts of violence. Some join ‘voluntarily’, driven by poverty, sense of duty, or circumstance. Children are also used as cooks, porters, messengers, informants or spies.

The law is meant to protect children from this abuse. There is even an international treaty devoted to ending the use of child soldiers. But not all countries in the world have signed on to it – and even those that have don’t always follow its rules. In February 2018, it will have been 18 years since this treaty was adopted. We are going to be marking this 18th anniversary with a big event in New York. In the lead-up to this event, we are asking for students all around the world to show that they stand with us in saying ‘children should be children, not soldiers’.

Source: Text Child-soldiers.org  Image: 123RF Stock Photos
 

World Day of the Sick – 11 February

About World Day of the Sick
Pope John Paul II initiated the day in 1992 to encourage people to pray for those who suffer from illness and for their caregivers. The Pope himself had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s a year before, in 1991, and it is considered that his own illness was impetus for his designation of the day.

World Day of the Sick was first observed on February 11, 1993. February 11 is also the Catholic Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes, which a name is given to the Virgin Mary in honor of the apparitions that were said to have been seen in and around Lourdes, France, by a young girl called Bernadette Soubirous. The Church canonized Bernadette as a saint several years later.

Did You Know?
Pope Benedict XVI declared his decision to resign from his post as the Pope on this day in 2013. He cited his failing health as the reason behind his decision.

Source: Text: timeanddate.com   Image: abc.net.au

 

6th Sunday of Year B

It happens that we find ourselves in a situation of need.
It may be for a service, we may wish to ask for a lift, or we may want to borrow an item of some kind.
More urgently we may require some information, or we may need advice.

We then wonder to whom we will go to present our request.
A neighbour, a colleague, a friend, a relative?
Usually, before addressing ourselves to the person, we remind ourselves of his, or her, character.
We may also recall such occasions, in the past, when we asked for help and… what kind of response we received.

The fact is that we may be afraid that our request will not be granted.
The assistance we need may not be forthcoming.
We may be told that the person is too busy, is not able, has too many commitments already, etc.

Has it happened to you very often that when you asked someone for any kind of help, the person replied: “Of course, I will help you!”
In my own experience, this is not the usual reply…

But with God, things are different.
His ‘reply’ is somehow the ‘matter of fact’ type!
As if he could not refuse, as if it goes without saying that we will receive what we need!…

This is the message that today’s gospel text gives us (6th Sunday of Year B – Mk.1:14-20).
A man comes to Jesus suffering from a shameful disease: leprosy.
As the 1st reading told us (Lev.13:1-2,45-46), such people were to remain far from others, they were somehow outcasts in the Jewish society.
The fear of contracting and spreading the disease was paramount.

The leper tells Jesus: If you want to, you can cure me.”
The reply of Jesus comes spontaneously and without delay: “Of course, I want to!”
And the man is cured there and then.

It may be good to remind ourselves that when the ‘if, perhaps, maybe’ are spoken…” they always come from our side…
God’s vocabulary does not seem to include these words…
With him it is: “Of course, I want to…
To help, to cure, to comfort, to free, to guide, to answer you whatever be your need.

Really? You can but try!

Source: Images: manaogbasilica.org   Prayer for Special Help

 

World Cancer Day – 4 February

World Cancer Day is a global observance that helps raise people’s awareness of cancer and how to prevent, detect, or treat it. This event is held on February 4 each year.

Background
Cancer is a leading cause of death around the world, according to WHO, which estimates that 84 million people will die of cancer between 2005 and 2015 without intervention. Low-income and medium-income countries are harder hit by cancer than the high-resource countries. It is essential to address the world’s growing cancer burden and to work on effective control measures.

World Cancer Day is part of the World Cancer Campaign, which responds to the Charter of Paris adopted at the World Summit Against Cancer for the New Millennium on February 4, 2000. It called for a strong alliance between researchers, health-care professionals, patients, governments, industry partners, and the media to fight cancer.

The Charter of Paris designated February 4 each year as World Cancer Day. UICC is responsible for coordinating World Cancer Day globally. It receives support from various partners and organizations, including the World Health Organization, the International Atomic Energy Agency, and other international bodies. UICC organized the first World Cancer Day in 2006.

Symbols
There are different symbols that are used to help promote the fight against different types of cancers. For example, the pink ribbon is a global symbol of breast cancer awareness, while the orange ribbon is associated with child cancer awareness. Another example is the daffodil, which the American Cancer Society sees as a symbol of hope that people share for a future where cancer is no longer a life-threatening disease.

Source : Text : timeanddate.com Illutration : Freepik

5th Sunday of Year B

It is practically every day that we are told:
“Don’t forget – don’t forget to go there, to buy this, to call so-and-so.”
Or, more positively expressed: REMEMBER – remember to do this, to collect that, to pay the bills, etc.

Yes, people around us repeatedly call our attention to the things they want us to remember.
They want to make sure that certain things will be taken care of without fail!

Strangely enough, we have somehow transferred this attitude… to God!
Yes, as if HE could forget!
Well, could he not?…
All through history, this human attitude of calling on God to REMEMBER has been part of our… spiritual DNA!

We see it in Job whom we meet in today’s 1st reading (5th Sunday of Year B – Jb.7:1-4,6-7).
He tells God in no uncertain terms:
“REMEMBER that my life is but a breath
and that my eyes will never again see joy.”

Of course, Job is having more than his share of troubles and pain.
His suffering is continual and he is hard-pressed to keep on hoping.
His fellow-human beings have proved unable to help him or comfort him.
So, he turns to God as he is desperately in need of strength and consolation.

Many of us can easily sympathize with him for we know what he is going through.
Our own problems and suffering may be of a different kind.
Of different shades and intensity, yes, but just as real and trying.
And we, too, desperately need God’s help.

But will he remember US?
Can he remember ME?…
We need a personalized divine intervention, nothing less!

One day, with much conviction, a professor of theology was saying:
“If you remember anything at all in theology, remember that God loves you.”

After all… WE may be the ones who need to REMEMBER!

Source: Images: Clipart Library   loudcanvas.com   Deacons Wife

Note: Another reflection is available on a different theme at: https://image-i-nations.com/5e-dimanche-de-lannee-b/

 

 

 

World Leprosy Day – 28 January

World Leprosy Day is annually observed around the world on the last Sunday of January. The day was initiated in 1954 by French philanthropist and writer, Raoul Follereau, as a way to raise global awareness of this deadly ancient disease and call attention to the fact that it can be prevented, treated and cured.

About World Leprosy Day
Leprosy is one of the oldest diseases known to humankind. It is also known as Hansen’s disease, named after Norwegian physician, Gerhard Henrik Armauer Hansen, who debunked the prevailing notion of the time that leprosy was a hereditary disease. He showed that the disease had a bacterial cause instead. For thousands of years, people with leprosy have been stigmatized and considered to be at the extreme margins of the society. The aim of World Leprosy Day is to change this attitude and increase public awareness of the fact that leprosy can now be easily prevented and cured.

The date for World Leprosy Day was chosen to coincide with the anniversary of Indian freedom fighter, Mahatma Gandhi’s assassination on January 30, 1948. During his lifetime, Mahatma Gandhi worked tirelessly towards the betterment of people afflicted with leprosy.

Source: Text: timeanddate.com  Image: The Nation 60th World Leprosy Day

 

World Holocaust Remembrance Day – 27 January 2024

 2024 Theme: Recognizing the Extraordinary Courage of Victims and Survivors of the Holocaust   

During the Holocaust, the Nazis went to great lengths to dehumanize their victims. Defying the Nazis took extraordinary courage.

In 2024, the United Nations is paying tribute to the bravery of all those who stood up to the Nazis, despite the grave risks. We will honour their legacy with their remarkable stories and history. In the memory of all victims and survivors, we will step up our efforts to counter Holocaust denial, antisemitism and racism.

 

New Educational Product: Poster set “The Butterfly Project: Remembering the Children of the Holocaust”

The Holocaust and the United Nations Outreach Programme has partnered with the Houston Holocaust Museum to produce a set of 14 posters based on the Museum’s exhibition The Butterfly Project: Remembering the Children of the Holocaust for display by the global network of United Nations information centres. The exhibition outlines the impact of the Holocaust on children, and showcases an educational initiative called The Butterfly Project developed by Holocaust Museum Houston to teach this history to young people, encourage them to remember the 1.5 million children who perished and to stand up against hatred and prejudice.

 

Source: Text: UN Images: Pixabay Free Images    UN

4th Sunday of Year B

The word IMPRESSION is used in different ways and has different connotations.
Someone walking in the wet sand will leave a mark, a footprint, an impression.
Leaves pressed between two surfaces will also remain imprinted, or create an impression.

Political figures and business executives are very keen on making a good impression!
Actors and athletes are equally eager to please crowds of fans and create a favorable impression!

These reflections came to me as I read this Sunday’s gospel text (4th Sunday of Year B – Mk.1:21-28) where we are told:
“His (Jesus) teaching made a deep impression on them…”
 
A ‘deep impression’ – something that goes beyond the surface to reach the depths of a person.
Is that the way Jesus’ message touches us every time it is proclaimed?

Listening to Jesus preaching, the people in the synagogue of Caparnaum were hearing these words for the first time.
The message was new, the sound of it was original – not a repetition of past teaching.
It did not have a familiar ring to it, it was an unheard of speech, something creative.

They said it openly: “Here is a teaching that is new…”
And they added: “And with authority behind it.”
No wonder it made a deep impression on them – it answered their longing to hear God’s message in a way that we would qualify nowadays as ‘authentic’.

Our situation is very different from theirs: we know well the texts of the gospel, perhaps too well?
For years we have been reading them, listening to homilies, following retreats preached on this and that section of the gospel accounts.
Hearing the first words of a given text, we may say to ourselves: ‘Oh, I know this story,’ and our mind is soon carried away to other more pressing concerns!
Will the text leave a deep impression on us?
Can it really do so in the circumstances?… 

One day, I heard someone say that God is ‘the really REAL’ – an unusual theological statement, but how true!
It may be that for Jesus message to make ‘a deep impression’ on us – and a lasting one – Jesus would need to become ‘really REAL’…

Words spoken and written having become THE Word – a person encountered in the flesh of my daily life and experience…

Source: Images: University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee    whereisyvette.com    lds.org

Note: Another reflection on a different theme is available at: https://image-i-nations.com/4e-dimanche-de-lannee-b/

 

3rd Sunday of the Year B

Being interrupted in the midst of an activity can be frustrating.
Being disturbed from a task one is busy with can also be rather unpleasant.
The attention is suddenly taken to something else, the concentration is moved to another area.
And… many of us resent such an interference!

Yet, it happens that such an interference comes from… God!
The gospel text of today (3rd Sunday of Year B – Mk.1:14-20) is a typical example.
Jesus is walking on the lakeshore and, suddenly, calls away some fishermen from their daily activity.
He assures them that will be become ‘fishers of men’.

It is not certain that they understood what this call was about.
And, personally, I imagine that they could not foresee what their new life would be like.
Yet, amazingly, we are told that: “At once, they left their nets…”

It was indeed a major ‘disturbance’ to their way of life up to then.
What made them so eager to follow this stranger with an equally strange invitation?
We can never know for sure, only perhaps think that his whole person had something convincing about it, convincing as only God can be!

Some of us have experienced such a major disturbing encounter with God.
We may still be adjusting to it…
And yet, many, perhaps all those who have known such an intervention will agree that it can be very much of a liberation!
Yes, a liberation from the routine, the worn out motivation that carried them up to the moment when God interfered!

At the beginning of a new year, we may perhaps contemplate such a possibility…

Source: Images: LDS  iStock

NOTE: a reflection in French on another theme is available at: https://image-i-nations.com/3e-dimanche-de-lannee-b/