Another tidbit of evidence of this rising tide of hostility to voices of faith. PLEASE NOTE: I am NOT claiming that this is the situation for all Christians. What I am saying is that there is a growth in the number of such incidents within Europe and now beginning in North America. Pope B16 recently said that Christians were the single most persecuted group in the world these days. Given the slaughter that has been occurring in the Middle East, Asia and Africa at the hands of Muslim extremists and the intimidation proffered believers in Europe, it would seem that he stands on solid ground with this assertion. JPII called the 20th century the century of martyrs. B16 is right to point out that the beginning of the 21st has not seen any improvement - if anything, the times are worse now than even a few years ago. "Father, forgive them" Should Christians be worried? Should we be surprised at this ominous trend? If we believe the Bible, the answer is clearly 'no...
Reflections from the pastoral ministry of an Evangelical Catholic Priest.