Displaying items by tag: Europe

In 2016 one in three Europeans thought their governments and political leaders were mostly or entirely corrupt. When the survey was published, work began on a project with civil society and individuals in governments across the EU to demonstrate that ‘corruption is not inevitable’. The focus is public procurement, a sector which sees corruption-related losses of almost €5 billion per year in the EU. The Integrity Pact is a signed commitment by contractors and bidders in public contracts to act with integrity and transparency. An independent organisation monitors compliance with the commitment. Local government, civil society and private companies are using it to ensure that 17 big public contracts in 11 EU countries are being run efficiently, accountably and in the public interest, so that taxpayers’ money goes where it is intended.

A 15-year-old girl from a Jewish school had her face slashed in an anti-Semitic attack, just days after two kosher shops were torched. The shops had been painted with swastikas in December. Many believe France is seeing a return of anti-Semitic currents. Anti-Semitic speech is heard more and more, and warning bells are ringing all over Europe. Simply to admit the problem is not enough; it is time to act and identify the sources of anti-Semitism in France. Hostile opinions towards Jews are more prevalent among the extreme right, the radical left, and the Muslim community - itself the object of considerable animosity in France.

Mount Mayon, in the Philippines, is erupting like a fountain. By 18 January, forty thousand villagers had been evacuated. People expect volcanic mudslides and roofs collapsing from accumulated ash and rainwater. Pray for those living in fear. In North America thousands are still engaged in search and clean-up efforts from last year’s wildfires, followed by huge mudslides. Pray for those who have lost everything. In Africa humanitarian aid takes months to reach people. 15 million people need aid in Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia; pray for better aid agency networking. Europe has experienced devastating floods. Pray for the 80,000+ who were evacuated and are still receiving relief efforts. In Australia temperatures of 47.3 degrees necessitate a total fire ban. See and also

President Macron said he wanted refugees ‘off the streets’ by 2018, but there are still a thousand of them sleeping rough on Paris streets. Solidarithé provide them with coffee, blankets, and information. A Solidarithé volunteer said that Macron wanted to make the problem invisible, but refugees are just hiding in smaller groups throughout north Paris and Calais. The police order them to move on, and even spray them with tear gas. Refugees’ tents are slashed and sleeping bags and blankets are stolen - anything to stop people sleeping on the streets. It is winter, and health problems are getting worse. Macron has said France is a terre d’accueil (land of welcome), but refugees have no toilets or blankets. If they sleep on the pavement they have to do so standing up. Also 700 migrants are living rough in Calais. See

In general, Europe respects democratic standards and human rights, and has generally continued to do so in recent years despite serious economic turmoil. Nevertheless, many countries are developing problems related to their treatment of immigrants and minorities, and press freedom faces threats in a number of countries. Some governments are working to take control of the flow of information. Recently in Moldova an accredited journalist was prevented from attending a series of public events, despite court rulings affirming the right of access to public information. Such an action, alongside favouring other journalists, raises serious concerns about Moldova president Dodon's commitment to government transparency and freedom of expression as core democratic values.

Research commissioned by the government suggests that migrants may be responsible for most of Germany's rise in violent crime. Researchers say the findings are not surprising because many migrants are single males aged 14-30. This group is most likely to commit crime, irrespective of nationality. Migrants are twice as likely to be reported to police for alleged violent crimes as German nationals, and a third of all victims of violent crimes by migrants are other migrants. The report comes as Chancellor Angela Merkel's centre-right CDU/CSU, after its poor showing in the recent election, prepares for coalition talks with the centre-left SPD. Over a million migrants and refugees, fleeing war and abuses, have entered Germany through the open-door policy, which has led to tensions at home.

The Eurosceptic German right claims that the Alternative for Germany party is the only really Christian political group in Germany, as the ruling CDU has failed to defend the nation’s religious and cultural heritage. In England Malcolm Pearson of UKIP has denounced the political establishment for giving in to politically correct definitions of equality and hate speech, saying he fears it could soon become illegal to assert Jesus’ divinity. Italy’s Northern League are objecting to a prime location in the Florence region being made available for the construction of a mosque. Across Europe, parties on the political right and far-right are talking the language of Christian heritage. In many cases their strongest adversaries include the clergy and bishops of Europe’s Christian churches, with political pronouncements on welfare and migration.

There is a story of Martin Luther walking in the woods in Latvia and creating the first Christmas tree in 1510. Whether or not it is true, the first Christmas tree recorded was in the town square of Riga, Latvia - not Germany. In Argentina Christmas trees are decorated on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception (8 December). Globos are lightweight paper decorations with a light inside that many Europeans release into the sky after midnight on Christmas Eve - hundreds of tiny God-lights in the sky. The Nativity crib scene was first made popular in Italy by St Francis of Assisi in 1223, a year after he had visited Bethlehem and seen where it is believed that Jesus was born. Many Italian families have Nativity cribs in their homes. Croatian Christmas preparations begin on St Catherine's day (25 November) with an Advent wreath of straw and evergreen twigs holding four candles representing hope, peace, joy, and love.

Pope Francis has sparked a debate after saying he wants to make a change to the Lord's Prayer, arguing that the current form wrongly implies that God can lead humans into temptation. The Pontiff said the Roman Catholic Church should adopt a better translation, as the current phrasing is theologically incorrect. It speaks of a God who induces temptation. The French have changed the text to 'do not let me fall into temptation’. The Pontiff said, ‘I am the one who falls, it isn't God who throws me into temptation and then looks on to see how I fell. A father does not do this; a father helps us get up immediately. The one who leads you into temptation is Satan, that's Satan's role. The prayer should say, “When Satan leads me into temptation, give me a hand”’.

EU officials supervise and fund the Palestinian Authority (PA) education system. A series of Helsinki talks examined the new PA curriculum and agreed that the new textbooks stir up further radicalisation and hatred. They concluded that radicalisation is persistent throughout the curriculum, grooming children for martyrdom and jihad war, with a fundamentalist worldview. ‘This curriculum is not only a catastrophe for Palestinian youth but also for the reputation of the Finnish education system, as the curriculum was reviewed under the supervision of Finnish experts and officials,’ said the spokesperson for the EU consultations. An elementary mathematics book asks, ‘If the number of martyrs from the first intifada is X and the number of martyrs from the second intifada is Y, what is the total number of martyrs?’ In basic physics, Newton’s law of gravity is explained by a picture of a young Palestinian aiming a slingshot at an Israeli officer. See