c. 2006 Religion News Service
Turkish Court: Man Who Shot Pope John Paul II Must Go Back to Jail
(RNS) Mehmet Ali Agca, the gunman who shot John Paul II in 1981, was back in custody Friday after a Turkish appeals court ruled that his controversial release from prison for the murder of a journalist had “no legal basis.”
The decision to return Agca came amid a torrent of public outrage that followed his Jan. 12 release from prison for the slaying of a well-known Turkish journalist in 1979.
Agca was extradited to Turkey in 2000 after serving nearly 20 years in an Italian prison for repeatedly shooting John Paul as he rode through St. Peter’s Square in an open-air jeep.
Upon his arrival in Turkey, Agca was initially sentenced to serve 10 years in prison for the Ipekci slaying. But a November 2004 court ruling drastically reduced Agca’s term by taking into account the time he served in Italy and a national amnesty passed in 2000.
According to the Friday ruling, Agca only qualified for the amnesty.
Turkish media reported that Agca was arrested after the ruling without incident in Istanbul. Turkish broadcaster NTV quoted Agca’s lawyer Mustafa Demirbag as saying he was “respectful of all decisions by Turkish courts.”
The public outcry that followed Agca’s release a week ago prompted Turkey’s Justice Minister Cemil Cicek to immediately call for further judicial review of the controversial court ruling.
On Friday, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan appeared to endorse the move, saying the Justice Ministry had “fulfilled its responsibility.”
Agca has been linked to the Gray Wolves, an ultra-nationalist group that clashed with leftist groups during the 1970s violence that roiled Turkey.
He killed Abdi Ipekci, the liberal editor-in-chief of Turkey’s Milliyet daily newspaper, for writing editorials that criticized rightist groups.
Agca’s motives for attacking John Paul have never been clear. But media speculation has alleged he was acting on behalf of the Bulgarian secret services and the Soviet KGB, which considered the Polish pontiff antagonistic to communism.
_ Stacy Meichtry
Canadian Religious Leaders Urge Government Focus on Darfur
TORONTO (RNS) With Canada’s federal election set for Monday (Jan. 23), leaders from 15 faith communities have urged the country’s main political parties to make the humanitarian crisis in Darfur, Sudan, a top priority.
In a Monday (Jan. 16) letter to the leaders of the Liberal, Conservative, New Democratic and Bloc Quebecois parties, the faith leaders “commend the government of Canada for the significant contributions made to support humanitarian and relief efforts in Darfur.”
In May, Prime Minister Paul Martin announced a pledge of up to $171 million for more humanitarian aid and increased support for the African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS), as well as the creation of an advisory team to coordinate and promote Canadian initiatives on the ground in Darfur _ where an estimated 400,000 people have been killed in the conflict.
But as the crisis continues into a fourth year, “we urge the government to include Darfur at the top of its international policy agenda, and take actions that would be effective in bringing peace and security to the people there. Thus we issue a call of deep concern to develop action to assist the suffering and vulnerable people in Darfur.”
Canadians look to their political leaders “to continue taking steps, unilaterally, bilaterally and multilaterally, to protect communities under threat, boldly work with others to resolve the conflict, and restore peace and safety to the people of Darfur,” the letter states.
It was signed by the United Church of Canada, the Canadian Jewish Congress, the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, leaders of several Christian denominations and representatives of the Sikh and Hindu faiths.
No matter which party forms the next government, “all our political leaders have an obligation to share with voters information about how they plan to further increase Canada’s already significant contributions to supporting humanitarian and relief efforts in Darfur,” said Wendy Gichuru, the United Church of Canada’s program coordinator for East and Central Africa.
The latest Canadian polls suggest that Conservative Party leader Stephen Harper will unseat the Liberals and win at least a minority government. His party’s 46-page election platform makes no mention of Darfur.
_ Ron Csillag
U.S. Muslim Group Pleads for Release of Journalist in Iraq
(RNS) An organization known for its civil rights work on behalf of North American Muslims is treading into the world of hostage negotiations.
Two officials from the Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations left Jordan Friday (Jan. 20), bound for Baghdad, to plead for the release of free-lance journalist Jill Carroll, who was abducted by Islamic militants Jan. 7 while on assignment for The Christian Science Monitor newspaper in Baghdad.
Nihad Awad, CAIR’s executive director, and Corey Saylor, the group’s government affairs director, would not try to meet with Carroll’s captors but hold a press conference in which they would send a message that “No cause can be advanced by such tactics and targeting innocent people,” according to Ibrahim Hooper, CAIR’s spokesman. “All the hostages should be released.”
CAIR has condemned terrorist attacks and last year coordinated the release of a fatwa, or Islamic religious ruling, against terrorism and religious extremism issued by North American Islamic scholars. In December, the group held a press conference calling for the release of four men from Christian Peacemakers Teams who were also taken hostage in Iraq.
But CAIR’s critics have said the group often qualifies its condemnations, and doesn’t condemn specific acts of terrorism.
This is the first time CAIR has sent officials to a trouble spot. “We just try and come up with new ways to do our work in the best possible manner,” Hooper said.
In May, Sheikh Taj el-Din al-Hilali, the leader of Australia’s Muslim community, traveled to Iraq to negotiate the release of kidnapped engineer Douglas Wood, and at one point offered himself to captors in place of the Australian hostage. Iraqi soldiers eventually freed Wood in a shootout the following month but many Australians credited Hilali, who managed to meet with the kidnappers, with keeping Wood alive.
Many American Muslims complain that while they are urged to condemn terrorism, it’s unrealistic to expect their condemnations to influence the terrorists. “It’s about time we put our words into action,” said Shahed Amanullah, editor of altMuslim.com, a Muslim webzine. By putting themselves in harm’s way, the CAIR officials are showing they are serious about fighting terrorism, Amanullah said.
The Islamic Society of North America also issued a statement Thursday calling for Carroll’s release.
_ Omar Sacirbey
Angry Boston Parishioners Threaten Lawsuit Over Church Closings
(RNS) Having heard the Vatican reject their pleas to keep 10 Boston area churches open, parishioners have announced plans to file more appeals and to sue the archbishop of Boston in state courts.
Representatives of seven parishes that had appealed to the Vatican to save them from a fate mandated by Archbishop Sean P. O’Malley said Thursday (Jan. 19) they intend to proceed through a Vatican appeal process. At least one has already hired an advocate to make its case in Rome.
Meanwhile, a new strategy emerged from the Council of Parishes, a group representing 15 of the 82 parishes originally marked for closure as part of a cost-reducing overhaul of the nation’s fourth largest Roman Catholic diocese.
“As prospects within the Vatican’s legal system become bleaker _ more expensive, more time-consuming and more doubtful _ it is time to pursue remedies under the civil statutes,” said Council of Parishes co-chairman Peter Borre in a statement.
In state courts, parish plaintiffs plan to argue that Catholic bishops are trustees who have violated their fiduciary duties by selling parish real estate. What’s more, the group asserted that “taking parish assets to finance the diocesan operating deficit is a misappropriation of funds,” punishable in its view under state law.
In prepared statements at a press conference held at St. James the Great Church in Wellesley, parish representatives voiced frustration in feeling victimized after months of waiting for rescue from Rome.
These Vatican decisions “try to correct the mistakes of the Archdiocese in the flawed reconfiguration process, but actually only compound the errors,” said a statement from members of St. Jeremiah’s Church in Framingham. “This entire process was unfair, and we will continue to seek an appropriate remedy.”
The archdiocese now counts 303 parishes, down from 357 when the closure process began in 2004. A review of the process in 2005 led to altered decisions on about 25 percent of the previously doomed parishes, as some would be kept open and others maintained as chapels. Six parishes continue to keep “vigils,” in which parishioners take turns maintaining a round-the-clock occupation of their buildings. Three of the vigils have entered their 15th month.
_ G. Jeffrey MacDonald
Pastor Says Ex-HealthSouth CEO Paid Him to Rally African-American Support
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (RNS) A minister says former HealthSouth chief executive Richard Scrushy paid him thousands of dollars for efforts to build support in Birmingham’s black community during Scrushy’s fraud trial _ a claim Scrushy denies.
The Rev. Herman Henderson, pastor of Believers Temple Church, said he helped other ministers whip up sympathy for Scrushy, arranged appearances for him in black churches, and ferried supporters to the federal courthouse during the six-month trial.
Henderson said an associate, Audrey Lewis, produced articles printed in the Birmingham Times, a black-owned weekly newspaper, that were approved by Scrushy.
Henderson said Scrushy pledged to pay him $5,000 a month over two years for public relations work he was to perform during the trial and after Scrushy’s June 28 acquittal, by a jury of seven blacks and five whites. He says Scrushy owes him $150,000.
Those payments were to be in addition to the $25,000 the Richard M. Scrushy Charitable Foundation gave Believers Temple during the trial and in following months, Henderson said. Henderson produced copies of checks totaling $25,000 signed by Scrushy.
Scrushy said he has taped conversations with Henderson that demonstrate he never hired the activist. The $25,000, he said, was for a building project at the church and Hurricane Katrina relief efforts. Scrushy said he has talked to his attorneys about legal action.
“That guy is a shyster,” Scrushy said. “You need to know that I’m about ready to sue him for extortion and he’s harassed my family, my wife and I, ever since that trial began. … He has stalked us. He has harassed us. He has tried to con us.”
Scrushy’s profile in Birmingham’s black community rose in the months before his trial on fraud charges. He left his Vestavia Hills church and joined Guiding Light, one of the city’s largest predominantly black churches. He hosted a television Bible show that often featured black religious leaders, some of whom showed up in the courtroom. He also began preaching at many black churches, including Henderson’s.
_ Michael Tomberlin and Russell Hubbard
Swiss Guard Celebrates 500 Years of Papal Protection
VATICAN CITY (RNS) Sunday will mark 500 years of the most iconic unit of bodyguards protecting the popes of Rome.
Famous for their ceremonial yellow, blue and orange uniforms, the Swiss Guard arrived in Rome from Switzerland on Jan. 22, 1506 as an elite mercenary force hired to shore up papal security.
The first major test of their mettle came during the 1527 sack of Rome. Troops sent by Holy Roman Emperor Charles V slaughtered more than three-fourths of their ranks in a battle outside of St. Peter’s Basilica. The few survivors managed to escort Pope Clement VII to safety in the Castel Sant’Angelo, the papal stronghold.
On May 6, the anniversary of the sack, the Vatican plans to swear in the Swiss Guard’s latest recruits. A veterans’ march from Bellinzona, Switzerland, to the Vatican is also being planned.
Although Italy currently guarantees the Vatican’s military defenses, the guardsmen are still in charge of protecting the pope himself. Plainclothes guardsmen are often seen pacing alongside the “pope-mobile” or restraining overzealous crowds whenever Pope Benedict XVI makes public appearances.
_ Stacy Meichtry
Quote of the Day: Filmmakers of `End of the Spear’
(RNS) “We cast Chad Allen because he had the best audition of anyone else by far. We know that the character in the film and the actor are not the same. If as a film company we could only work with people who were completely sanctified, then the film would never have been made.”
_ Filmmakers of “End of the Spear,” a new movie about American missionaries and tribesmen of Ecuador, responding to concerns that the actor portraying the lead character is gay. They were quoted in Baptist Press, the news service of the Southern Baptist Convention.
MO/JL END RNS
