c. 1996 Religion News Service

Church agencies ask Cypriot leaders to exercise restraint

(RNS) The World Council of Churches (WCC) and the Conference of European Churches (CEC) have urged Turkish and Greek leaders on the divided island nation of Cyprus to restrain their followers in the wake of deadly intra-communal clashes.”It is imperative that the parties to the conflict ensure the sanctity of the buffer zone established by the United Nations,”the WCC said in a statement issued Monday (Aug. 12).”This is necessary if a just and peaceful solution to the conflict is to be achieved within an inter-communal framework.” The WCC statement, and a similar appeal by the CEC, came in the wake of clashes between Turkish police and Greek demonstrators over the weekend. The clashes were continuing on Wednesday (Aug. 14) and a second Greek Cypriot protester was killed.

Cyprus has been divided between Turkish and Greek enclaves since 1974 when Turkey occupied the northern third of the island. The Turkish Cypriots, who make up 18 percent of the island’s population, are predominantly Muslim. Greeks, who comprise 77 percent of the population, are predominantly Orthodox Christian.

The clashes were set off on Sunday (Aug. 11) when a Greek Cypriot was beaten to death by men from the Turkish Cypriot side of the so-called”green line”that divides the two areas.

The violence flared again Wednesday after the young Greek’s funeral, when more than 250 Greek Cypriots breached police lines and rushed the United Nations-policed buffer zone.

In its statement, the CEC called the present division of Cyprus”unacceptable”and said the Turkish occupation of the island is a violation of human rights and basic freedoms.

It called on the United Nations and other international players to develop new initiatives to”intensify and expedite the search, in a coordinated way, for a negotiated political settlement which will restore the unity of the island, grant freedom of movement for all its inhabitants and facilitate the return of the displaced people.”

Hong Kong church leader calls for hope, not fear in China takeover

(RNS) General Secretary Tso Man-king, head of the Hong Kong Christian Council, has called on Christians to remain optimistic rather than anxious about the future of the territory after it is returned to China on July 1, 1997.

In an interview with Ecumenical News International, the Geneva-based religious news agency, Tso Man-king said he welcomed the end of British colonial rule in Hong Kong and praised China’s announced policy toward the city _”one country, two systems”_ as”creative and intelligent.””After more than 150 years under the colonial system which cannot be justified in the 20th century, it is time the system was ended,”he said of British rule.

However, the return of Hong Kong to China has generated a great deal of anxiety among the city’s business and religious groups. Some Western religious groups, fearing an end to religious freedom and the possible imposition of China’s version of communism on the city, have said they plan to aid Hong Kong Christians in evacuating the city if necessary when it is returned to China.

But Tso Man-king said the future could be exciting.”I don’t know of any socialist country allowing a capitalist entity to retain its identity,”he said.”It will not be easy, but it could be innovative and exciting. We (China and Hong Kong) can become partners and establish trust in each other.” Hong Kong has 525,000 Christians, he said, about 8.5 percent of the population. About half a million people _ many of them Christian _ have left Hong Kong in recent months as the Chinese takeover has neared, he added.

Update: Church of Scientology asks U.N. monitoring of Germany

(RNS) The Church of Scientology International said Wednesday (Aug. 14) it has asked the United Nations and the Office of Security and Cooperation in Europe (the Helsinki Commission) to investigate alleged religious discrimination against the sect.

The call for monitoring possible German religious discrimination comes in the wake of a string of attacks on Scientology in Germany from leaders in Helmut Kohl’s ruling Christian Democratic Party.

In recent weeks, the party’s youth wing called for a boycott of the movie”Mission Impossible”because Tom Cruise, the film’s star, is a Scientologist. On Aug. 7, the head of the Christian Democrats in Rhineland-Palatinate, said that Scientologists should be banned from holding government jobs and the church’s non-profit status should be reconsidered.

Jazz musician Chick Corea, also a Scientologist, has been the target of criticism and boycotts in Germany as well.

In filing more than 1,000 pages of documents with the United Nations, the church asked the international agency to”take effective action to restore their (Scientologists) rights and the rights of other religious minorities.” Bishop Adriano Hypolito of Brazil dies at 78

(RNS) Bishop Adriano Mandarion Hypolito, the retired Brazilian bishop who was known as an outspoken advocate of the poor and who was persecuted during Brazil’s 21-year military dictatorship, died August 12 at a hospital on the outskirts of Rio de Janiero, Brazilian newspapers reported. He was 78.

Hypolito, who retired last year from the hierarchy, died of a heart attack.

The bishop served for 28 years as head of the diocese of Nova Iguacu, a sprawling slum outside Rio with a population of 1 million, and he continued to live there, serving the poor, after his retirement.

An ardent advocate of liberation theology, Hypolito argued that he could not minister to people’s souls without addressing their physical needs _ a belief that inevitably led to confrontation with the nation’s right-wing military dictatorship that ruled Brazil between 1964 and 1985.

In 1976, the bishop was kidnapped by a group of men he later said he believed belonged to the military. He was beaten, kicked and sprayed with red paint because he had publicly stated his agreement with some Marxist ideas. In 1979, his automobile, parked in front of the headquarters of the National Conference of Bishops of Brazil was fire-bombed.

Quote of the day: the Rev. Elias Chacour of Galilee on God and tribalism.

(RNS) The Rev. Elias Chacour, a Roman Catholic priest and prominent Palestinian Christian leader, spoke this week at the World Methodist Conference, an international gathering of Methodists being held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Chacour told the delegates that”the Holy Land is being emptied of Christians”and criticized Christian tourists who visit”sand and stones, but don’t want to share their faith”with their brother and sister Palestinians. He said God should break down barriers between people:”God is not a tribal God. Not being tribal, God can no more be the God of Israel or the church or even of Christianity. To become God-like, that is our vocation, our responsibility. We do not have a monopoly over God or the Holy Spirit.”

MJP END