“The joy of the Gospel springs from the encounter with Jesus,” Francis said. “It is when we meet the Lord that we are inundated by that love of which he alone is capable. [. . .] Because, at that point, the need to proclaim it arises spontaneously and becomes irrepressible. This is how evangelisation began, on Easter morning, with a woman, Mary Magdalene who, after meeting the Risen Jesus, the Living One, evangelised the Apostles.”

The prelate has repeatedly said that the charges against him are groundless and fabricated. The former bishop of Jalandhar risks imprisonment if found guilty. The court extended his bail until the next hearing on 6 January.

Today’s rally in Chater Garden follows the sweeping victory of the pro-democracy camp in last Sunday’s district elections. “As Hongkongers, we need to continue using different methods to raise our demands with the government,” said one young participant. In six months of protests, about 5,890 people have been arrested, including 910 minors.

Growing demand for timber is the main cause with unsustainable development causing degradation for ecosystem and people. The country has about 8.7 million hectares of evergreen, semi-evergreen, deciduous and dry dipterocarp forests, and flooded forests. The UN offers some recommendations to change course.

In Sunday’s Mass, the Iraqi Church will express its closeness to Sunni and Shia protesters who have died recently. The Patriarch hopes the bloodshed will be the “seed of a sound and radical solution to build a homeland of justice and independence.” Although Iraq’s Prime Minister announced his resignation, a solution to the crisis remains elusive. Meanwhile, more protesters die.

The service took place at the church in Raikia, one of the villages that suffered the most at the hands of Hindu radicals in 2008. For the Bishop of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar, Christians are “ready for sacrifice, even death, to bear witness to the King of peace and justice.”