UK churches launch new initiative to welcome Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities
Norwich, UK A new initiative aimed at breaking down centuries of prejudice and fully welcoming Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities into the life of the church has been launched in the UK. James Newsome, the Bishop of Carlisle, and Stephen Cotterell, Archbishop of York, launching the GRT Friendly Churches Initiative. PICTURE: Courtesy of the Archbishop of York […]
Roma pilgrims seek just “one glimpse” of Pope Francis at Hungary Mass
Budapest, HungaryReuters When Pope Francis visited Hungary two years ago, Roma pilgrim Csaba Kovesi, accompanied by a cross blessed by Francis and Pope John Paul II, drove around the country calling on people to travel to Budapest to see him. Now Kovesi is on a repeat mission, driving a pick-up resembling a “popemobile” with the […]
Postcards: Hungarian pastor steps up to help large Roma refugee family
JUSTIN SPIKE and BELA SZANDELSZKY, of Associated Press, report from Hungary…
Roma pastor in Hungarian village takes in Roma fleeing Ukraine
Tiszabecs, HungaryReuters In the poorest street of Tiszabecs, a tiny village on the Hungarian-Ukrainian border, the local Roma community now gives shelter to 150-200 Roma who fled western Ukraine in the past few days, half of them children. Their local pastor, 44-year-old Attila Pater, who has been working for the Hungarian Pentecostal Church on both sides of the border, […]
Pope hopes charity match deals a “kick” to exclusion
Rome, ItalyAP Pope Francis is hoping that a charity soccer match that includes Swiss Guards, Vatican employees, priests, a player with Down syndrome, migrants and members of the Roma community will deal a significant “kick” to discrimination. The match takes place Sunday in Rome and will be refereed by Lazio team captain Ciro Immobile. The […]
Pope, in Slovakia, says don’t exploit religion for politics, calls out prejudice
Presov, Slovakia Reuters Pope Francis said on Tuesday that the cross should not be used as a political symbol and warned against Christians trying to be triumphalist, in an apparent criticism of the use of religion for partisan ends. Francis flew to the city of Presov, in eastern Slovakia, where he presided at a long […]
Papal tour: Questions on immigration, Communion loom over Pope’s trip to Hungary and Slovakia
CLAIRE GIANGRAVÉ looks at the itinerary for the Pope’s trip to Hungary and Slovakia…
Seeking change, Slovak Roma settlement puts faith in Pope visit
Kosice, SlovakiaReuters For factory worker Milan Turtak, the smoke-blackened buildings, sidewalks littered with garbage and extension cords hooked between apartment windows highlight the poverty and years of neglect in his Roma neighbourhood in eastern Slovakia. With little improving in the Lunik IX settlement over past decades, Turtak and others have pinned their hopes for change […]
Why Roma migrants from Europe are taking rafts from Mexico to enter the US
Roma, Texas/Bucharest, RomaniaReuters Among the hundreds of Central American migrants crossing the Rio Grande river daily on rafts from Mexico to Texas, dozens stood out on a recent day. They were generally taller and some wore skirts, stylish shoes and tracksuits, while many of the other migrants wore T-shirts, pants and jeans. US border patrol […]
“Falling like flies”: Hungary’s Roma community pleads for COVID help
Budapest, HungaryReuters Coronavirus infections are ravaging Hungary’s 700,000-strong Roma community, according to personal accounts that suggest multiple deaths in single families are common in an unchecked outbreak fuelled by deep distrust of authorities. Data on infections in the community is unavailable but interviews with about a dozen Roma, who often live in cramped and unsanitary conditions, reveal harrowing […]