Congo’s bishops welcome cease-fire but warn about country’s future

KINSHASA, Congo (CNS) — The Congolese bishops’ conference welcomed a fragile cease-fire in northeastern Congo but warned that the future of the country still hangs in the balance. In a mid-February message titled “Be Vigilant,” the bishops’ permanent council called on the Congolese to “watch out for” and “uncover” any plan to divide the country [...]

Iraq Troop Withdrawal or Occupation-Lite?

Foreign Policy in Focus
by Phyllis Bennis
President Barack Obama said directly that he would be announcing “a way forward in Iraq that leaves Iraq to its people and responsibly ends this war.” As far as it goes, that sounds good. This is an indication that President Obama is largely keeping to his campaign promises, and that’s [...]

Drip, drip, drip (Resource for First Week of Lent)

Seven Weeks for Water
Do justice, love kindness and walk humbly with your God. (Micah 6.8b)
As a deer longs for flowing streams, so my soul longs for you, O God. (Psalm 42.1)
Like the ticking of a clock marking out time, water drips noisily. Maybe it drips off the edge of a stone or roof in times [...]

No Quick Fix for Malnutrition and Hunger

Common Dreams
by Kristin Palitza
ROME – Almost five million children under the age of five die of malnutrition every year in the developing world. Food aid – which mainly contains nutrient-poor carbohydrates – does little to address the absence of a diverse diet that would prevent the condition.
Humanitarian relief organisation Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is therefore [...]