Tuesday, January 11, 2022

Von der Leyen on Sassoli: "A man of deep faith and strong convictions"

Statement by President von der Leyen on the passing of David Sassoli, President of the European Parliament

È un giorno triste per l’Europa. Oggi la nostra Unione perde un convinto europeista, un sincero democratico, e un uomo buono.

Today is a sad day for Europe. Our Union loses a passionate European, a sincere democrat and a good man. David Sassoli was a man of deep faith and strong convictions. Everyone loved his smile and his kindness, yet he knew how to fight for what he believed in. In 1989, he was in Berlin, among the young Europeans when the Wall came down. And ever since, he has stood on the side of democracy and of a united Europe. In over a decade of service in the European Parliament, he constantly defended our Union and its values. But he also believed that Europe had to strive for more. He wanted Europe to be more united, closer to its people, more faithful to our values. That is his legacy.

And that is how I will remember him. As a champion of justice and solidarity, and a dear friend. My thoughts are with his wife, Alessandra, his children, Giulio and Livia, and all his friends.

Un uomo che ha lottato per la giustizia e la solidarietà, e un buon amico. I miei pensieri vanno alla moglie, Alessandra, ai figli Giulio e Livia, e a tutti i suoi amici.

Monday, January 10, 2022

The abuse of psych drugs for emotional problems forces a response from Catalan Health department

The pandemic has increased the demand for mental health care by between 20% and 30%, according to data cited by Óscar Pino, coordinator of the Benito Menni adult mental health centre (l’Hospitalet) and member of the Col-legi de Psicologia de Catalunya. The indicators report increases in the number of suicides, in the number of emergencies linked to infant-juvenile mental pathologies, in eating disorders… The rates of emotional distress tend to worsen and, with them, one of the problems that alarms the health authorities: the excessive use of psychotropic drugs.

Original article in Spanish at LA VANGUARDIA by Antoni López Tovar

“We have a problem as a society, which is that we always look for the easy answer first: ‘I don’t feel well, go to a psychologist or psychiatrist, and take a pill’. We are a pill-popping society,” said the Catalan Minister of Health, Josep Maria Argimon. Spain is the country in the world with the highest consumption of benzodiazepines (psychotropic drugs used for mild cases of insomnia, anxiety or emotional disorders) per 1,000 inhabitants, according to the latest report of the International Narcotics Control Board, with data from 2019. The Spanish Medicines Association indicates that 91.07 doses of sedatives, anxiolytics and hypnotics were consumed per 1,000 inhabitants in 2020, an increase of 4.5% over the previous year, and the latest Alcohol and Drugs Survey by the Ministry of Health reveals that 31.1% of Spaniards aged 75 or over have consumed hypnosedatives, with or without prescription, in the last year.

“We have a problem as a society”, says Catalan health councillor Argimon with regard to the use of psychotropic drugs.

One of the objectives of the reinforcement of emotional health in the Catalan Generalitat’s 2021-2025 health plan is to “de-medicalise a large part of this malaise that the pandemic has exacerbated, but which we must not confuse with mental illness”, according to Minister Argimon.

“We live in a society in which everything has to be resolved quickly, but there are circumstances in life that are inherent to the fact that we are alive. Situations of conflict, work, professional and family difficulties cause certain emotional discomforts, but we should not psychologise or psychiatrisise what is not necessary,” explains Joan Vegué, president of the Generalitat’s advisory council on mental health and addictions.

Where is the boundary between discomfort and pathology? “Sometimes it is blurred. We professionals have the tools to understand that something is an adaptive reaction that involves a certain sadness, fear, uncertainty, but that is not pathology. Exacerbated anxiety, sleeping badly for many days… this is already a symptom, a malaise that generates dysfunctionality and must be treated”, explains Vegué.

The shortest way

A few minutes to see a depressed patient, who even requires medication, and the prospect of a waiting queue for a specialist. The circumstances are ripe for the family doctor to prescribe psychotropic drugs. The incorporation of psychologists into primary care aims to avoid this. Along the same lines are programmes to improve coping strategies. But there is a lack of psychiatrists and clinical psychologists. “I am much more concerned about the lack of accessibility to adequate mental health care than the overuse of drugs,” says Narcís Cardoner.

In Pino’s opinion, the threshold of the illness varies: “It depends on the person, not everything works for everyone, but the frequency and intensity of the symptoms and the fact that they affect your daily life is fundamental. You may not be able to go to work, you may have stopped doing activities that were pleasurable for you.

“If the system were really optimal, we could address many things,” explains Narcís Cardoner, president of the Catalan Society of Psychiatry of the Academy of Medical Sciences of Catalonia. “In a public health system, there are always many attitudes of users that could be corrected: just because you have a fever, you don’t have to go to the emergency room. But the risk of not being able to respond to all needs is currently more important than the percentage of people who make a demand that is not entirely justified”.

Friday, January 7, 2022

Xi Jinping’s sinicization of religions, the new Cultural Revolution dear to Mao Zedong

On the eve of the Winter Olympic Games to be held in China, this conference and the protest demonstrations simultaneously held in Geneva, Berlin, Brussels and Antwerp are welcome to raise awareness about the egregious human rights violations for which China has been responsible for years and decades, especially under the rule of Xi Jinping.

Under the guise of Sinicization, Xi Jinping has reinforced the full control of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) over all sectors of society. This is what we would call totalitarianism.

What is sinicization?

Sinicization is a word used at least since the 17th century that indicated the assimilation of minorities in the Chinese empire into Chinese culture and language.

The same term was adopted by Nationalist China to signify the effort to replace the foreigners who managed business, religions and civil society organizations by Chinese citizens.

The CCP, however, gives a different meaning to the word “sinicization”. It is not sufficient that organizations operating in China, including religions and churches, have Chinese leaders. In order to be accepted as “sinicized,” they should have leaders selected by the CCP and operate within a framework of strategies and objectives indicated by the CCP.

In Tibet and Xinjiang, however, the CCP pursues a policy of “sinicization” in the traditional sense of the word, trying to assimilate Uyghurs Muslims and Tibetan Buddhists into the Chinese Communist culture.

On 3-4 December last, Xi Jinping personally presided on the first National Conference on Work Related to Religious Affairs that the CCP had held since 2016. He spoke at the Conference and asked for a more in-depth study of Karl Marx’s texts on religion by all those involved in the management of religious activities in China.

He also reiterated that Sinicization” of religion means its alignment with the CCP’s principles, goals, and directions, and lamented that the process he started with the 2016 conference is not advancing quickly enough.

In the name of “sinicization”, millions of Uyghur Muslims are deprived of their freedom to be politically educated or reeducated in camps against their will, women are massively sterilized, hundreds of thousands of Han people are introduced in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region to make the Uyghur community a minority on its own historical lands and young Uyghur students are schooled in other regions far away from their cultural, linguistic and religious roots.

In the name of “sinicization”, Tibetan Buddhists are also deprived of their culture, their traditions, their language, their religion and any access to their spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama.

Their monasteries and numerous statues of Buddha have been and continue to be destroyed. The objective is to make Buddhism and any religion invisible in the public space.

“Sinicization” is a form of resurgence of the Cultural Revolution carried out by Mao Zedong from 1966 until his death in 1976 which devastated the then Chinese society.

The common objective of Mao Zedong and Xi Jinping is the reinforcement of Communism by eradicating the historical cultural and religious roots of their ethno-religious minorities and by purging the country of Western elements. And Christianity is one of those “foreign agents” perceived by the CCP as a threat to its leadership.

The sinicization of Christians

As long as Christianity cannot disappear from China, its churches are to be “sinicized,” which means to “adapt to the socialist society” and to be placed under the authority of state organs controlled by the CCP, such as the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association and the Protestant Three-Self Patriotic Movement. 

Concretely, it is the CCP who appoints the leaders and pastors of Protestant Churches. Concerning the Catholic Church, it is the Chinese government who proposes candidates to be appointed as bishops who are then to be confirmed by the Vatican.

Those who try to evade the Communist sinicization and to operate outside this framework, in so-called house churches for example, are arrested and sentenced to heavy prison terms, as we regularly report in our newsletters. Examples:

·       From October 14 to November 23 last year, the CCP authorities carried out a wanton crackdown against meetings of Church of Almighty God members in several cities and arrested over two hundred of them in 40 days.

·     On 25 October last, a Chinese Catholic bishop, Peter Shao Zhumin, who had been arrested five times since 2016 for refusing to cut ties with the Vatican was taken away by authorities.

The official reason for his arrest and his whereabouts remain unknown but the real reason is his allegiance to the Vatican.

·     In November last, a Christian couple have each been sentenced to seven years in prison and a heavy fine of RMB 250,000 (approximately £29,240) for allegedly “illegal business operations.” In reality, the couple’s registered printing company had produced a large number of Christian books before being seized by the local authorities.

·     In a Protestant Three-Self Patriotic Church in northeast China’s Liaoning Province, there is a library to promote the education of believers. Its shelves have been filled with all kinds of secular books, including biographies of Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai, and other Chinese communist leaders, a series of books on the battles of World War II and the “red revolution.” 

·     In several parts of China, limitations and prohibitions are introduced for the celebration of Christmas, including in places of worship of the government-controlled Catholic and Protestant churches, in the framework of the implementation of directives on “Sinicization” of Christianity, which forbid “Western” celebrations. Hotels are also penalized for hosting Christmas events.

A previous panelist, Ben Rogers from Hong Kong Watch, has shown us how Beijing is currently putting an end to the “One country, two systems” status enjoyed by Hong Kong and replacing it by “One country one system”.

The absorption of Christianity, Buddhism and Islam under the pretext of “sinicization” follows the same logic: to engulf religions into Communism with so-called Chinese characteristics, to neutralize them, to catch and to revel in their souls. The next target on the agenda of Xi Jinping is certainly Taiwan.

The diplomatic boycott of the Winter Olympic Games in China will show which countries, which heads of states, which political parties and which politicians are on the side of democracy and human rights or on the side of totalitarianism and join the Axis of Shame.

Thursday, January 6, 2022

Past lives: should we look at it from religion, science, or both?

Past lives is a question that sounds mystical. Have we ever lived before? My dear grandmother has always told me that there is no evidence that we have lived before. 

I asked him if there was any evidence that no previous life existed. Of course not. At least 19% of humanity, or 1.4 billion people, according to a report, believe in reincarnation.

Have we lived before? Are past lives real?

More than 18,000 people in 23 countries participated in the survey conducted by the Global Research Society and the Institute for Social Research (Ipsos).

The survey also found that 7% of the people believe in reincarnation, while 23 percent believe that we only will “cease to exist”. About a quarter (26 percent) said they do not know what will happen after death.

Bobby Duffy, managing director of Ipsos, told Reuters (as reported in ReincarnationandDeath website) that “it may seem to many that we live in a secular world, but this study shows that spiritual life is important to the citizens of the world since half of them said they believed in a supreme being”.

“Also a large proportion of the remaining population is sure that there is a spiritual explanation to either how we got here or what happens after death.”

According to the survey, “definitive belief in a God or a Supreme Being” is highest in Indonesia (93 percent) and Turkey (91 percent), followed by Brazil (84 percent), South Africa (83 percent) and Mexico (78 percent).

Those most likely to believe in “many Gods or Supreme Beings” are in India (24 percent), China (14 percent) and Russia (10 percent). People who do not believe in God or a Supreme Being are most likely to live in France (39 percent), Sweden (37 percent), Belgium (36 percent), Britain (34 percent), Japan (33 percent) and Germany (31 percent).

So… do you actually think they are not real?

This is a fascinating question. Let’s walk around it a bit. Have you ever met people you didn’t know before but still know? Have you been particularly attracted or repelled by a city or place? Why is it that young children, who are supposed to have no experience of a certain thing, are always afraid of it? Many questions of this kind could be asked.

Those who believe in past lives have the answer: ‘these things come from past life experiences’.

But those who believe they don’t exist can answer just as strongly. DNA is often referred to as inheriting different traits from our parents. But what if you have skills and knowledge that no one else in your family has? How can DNA pass on knowledge or experience? I have seen very smart parents with children who had learning difficulties.

I have also experienced where in a poor family, where both parents and siblings had below-average knowledge, one of their children was still among the best learners.

He had his own difficulties because of his family background, but he was a very bright and clever boy and despite all the difficulties he came out at the top.

Of course, there are arguments for and against. But there is a lot of randomness about it. And this makes me doubt the materialistic explanations. We have all experienced feelings of being very attracted to something or very afraid of something. They all come from past life experiences.

Newer understandings and approaches

You may have read here and there about this or the other religion and how they deal with past lives. But how about newer religions? What does Scientology for example say about past lives?

Scientology, which was developed by L. Ron Hubbard, says we don’t live only once. We have lived before, and after death we are born again into another family. This is usually called reincarnation. Today’s general definition of reincarnation is “being reborn into different life forms”.

Its original meaning is slightly different. Originally it meant “to be born again into the flesh or into another body“. The Scientology faith is close to the latter. In Scientology, belief in past lives is not a dogma that everyone must believe. But in spiritual counseling (which they call auditing), past lives can be experienced.

According to accounts from Scientologists, auditing helps them to uncover and deal with painful memories and regain their abilities. The purpose is not to explore past lives, but to release people’s fears, bad feelings, weaknesses and restore their abilities, sometimes taking them to past lives, but not necessarily. In Scientology, they do not talk about past lives found during spiritual counseling because deal with it as “a very personal matter“. But many people state that they have experienced them, and that it has helped them get rid of their fears.

Scientologist, believe that the real roots of the problems of people did not begin in this life, but have been brought with us from the past, which is why it is necessary to examine our past lives. The idea of past lives is not unique to Scientology. Many other sciences and religions also say to recognize the existence of past lives. Spiritual counseling, or auditing (from the Latin audire, meaning “to listen or hear”), in Scientology is not the same or similar to procedures found in other sciences or religions. For example, unlike hypnosis, during auditing the parishioners are conscious all the time and can control events themselves with the help of a trained minister, called an auditor and because of that, unlike some other mental/spiritual practices, Scientology’s “auditing” is completely safe and easy for anyone to do.

[1] Reincarnation after death ?: How Many People In The World Believe In Reincarnation?

Thursday, December 30, 2021

Explaining NextGenerationEU

NextGenerationEU is a more than €800 billion temporary recovery instrument to help repair the immediate economic and social damage brought about by the coronavirus pandemic. Post-COVID-19 Europe will be greener, more digital, more resilient and better fit for the current and forthcoming challenges.
  • The Recovery and Resilience Facility: the centrepiece of NextGenerationEU with €723.8 billion in loans and grants available to support reforms and investments undertaken by EU countries. The aim is to mitigate the economic and social impact of the coronavirus pandemic and make European economies and societies more sustainable, resilient and better prepared for the challenges and opportunities of the green and digital transitions. Member States are working on their recovery and resilience plans to access the funds under the Recovery and Resilience Facility.
  • Recovery Assistance for Cohesion and the Territories of Europe (REACT-EU): NextGenerationEU also includes €50.6 billion for REACT-EU. It is a new initiative that continues and extends the crisis response and crisis repair measures delivered through the Coronavirus Response Investment Initiative and the Coronavirus Response Investment Initiative Plus. It will contribute to a green, digital and resilient recovery of the economy. The funds will be made available to
    – the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF)
    – the European Social Fund (ESF)
    – the European Fund for Aid to the Most Deprived (FEAD)
    These additional funds will be provided in 2021-2022.
  • NextGenerationEU will also bring additional money to other European programmes or funds such as Horizon2020, InvestEU, rural development or the Just Transition Fund (JTF).

Wednesday, December 29, 2021

The mythical temple of Melkart discovered

Researchers from the University of Seville may have managed to locate the long-sought ruins of the temple of the Phoenician god Melkart, whom locals call Hercules Gaditano.

It is a monumental structure in the Gulf of Cadiz off the southwest coast of the Iberian Peninsula, which served as a place of worship in ancient times and was later lost for centuries. The discovery was made thanks to a system of laser rangefinders – leaders – and digital modeling of the area, writes the Spanish newspaper El País.

Melkart is one of the most revered gods in Phoenician mythology as the patron saint of navigation and the city of Tire and the kingdom of Tire. From the ancient Greeks he was identified with Heracles. It is believed that Heracles of Tire, as Herodotus called him, was buried in Spain, and the temple in his honor was built by King Hiram. In other chronicles one can find references to the visit to this temple by Julius Caesar, who wept bitterly at the image of Alexander the Great, and by the Carthaginian conqueror Hannibal, who came to celebrate the success of his military campaign. Ricardo Belison of the University of Seville believes that the ruins of this monumental structure should be sought at the mouth of the shallow Sancti Petri Canal, located between the cities of Chiclana de la Frontera and San Fernando in Andalusia. A small island now rises above the swampy canal, and for more than two centuries divers have made important archeological finds that can now be seen in the Cadiz Museum, such as marble and bronze sculptures of Roman emperors and various Phoenician statuettes. The temple was to be sought somewhere nearby. Thanks to free software that allows digital modeling of the area, Belison was able to identify the exact rectangular area measuring 300 x 150 m, where he believes the ruins of the temple itself should be located.

This rectangular structure, as well as the island on which it once stood, correspond to ancient descriptions, but now they are 3-5 meters underwater. According to the chronicles, this complex could be reached by passing two columns, the frontispiece of the building itself depicted the exploits of Hercules, and inside burned eternal fire. The temple area was separated from the current Cape Boqueron by a small canal, and there was also an inland port and dock south of the temple, which were also identified by modeling the ancient coast of Cadiz. The new hypothesis about the location of the temple is in line with various findings and assumptions made in the twentieth century, but there are several alternative hypotheses indicating other possible locations. In the course of the forthcoming archeological researches and underwater researches it is envisaged that these conclusions will be confirmed or refuted.

Tuesday, December 28, 2021

South Africa: Archbishop Tutu became a ‘political leader’ by default, says Archbishop Buti. - Vatican News

Paul Samasumo – Vatican City.

“I was once a student of Desmond Tutu at the university in Lesotho. I then worked briefly with him at the South African Council of Churches … I was always present when, for over a decade, he spoke each year at the Regina Mundi (Catholic parish in Soweto) on June 16 … So, I have observed him closely,” reminisces the Catholic Archbishop of Johannesburg, Buti Joseph Tlhagale, O.M.I.

Archbishop Buti was speaking in an interview with Vatican News collaborator Sheila Pires, on Monday -the day South Africans began a week of mourning Tutu, the anti-Apartheid icon and first Black Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town.

Took on the leadership mantle

According to Buti, Archbishop Desmond Tutu emerged as a leader when he was General Secretary of the South African Council of Churches between the years 1978 to 1985.

“Desmond Tutu describes himself as a leader by default when most political organisations had been banned, (Black) leaders thrown in prison. There was a huge political vacuum in the country and that’s when Archbishop Tutu emerged … From then onwards, he put on the mantle of being a ‘political leader,’ as it were: Very visible in the country, opposing the Apartheid regime,” said Archbishop Buti.

Calling for sanctions

Archbishop Tutu was not only confrontational with the regime. He constantly engaged government officials directly to talk to them about the suffering of the ordinary people, especially those in the Bantustans.

The Bantustans, also known as Bantu homelands for Africans, were “native reserves” organised, by the Apartheid government, based on ethnic and linguistic groupings. In effect, they were impoverished and overpopulated rural areas put together for purposes of segregation.

“He (Archbishop Tutu) was different. I have actually not been able to figure this out. He confronted Apartheid government officials directly even when they, no doubt, looked down on him,” said Archbishop Buti. Buti explained that Apartheid leaders condescendingly looked down on almost all non white persons. 

Archbishop Tutu was not deterred. He continued to speak out about the plight of the majority and “increasingly became a spokesperson of the Black people, oppressed people, overseas -especially in North America,” said the prelate of Johannesburg.

Tutu’s call and support for sanctions against South Africa was heavily criticised in the country. It was seen by the Apartheid government as a betrayal and treason.

An inconvenient peacemaker

Apart from his forthright voice against Apartheid, Archbishop Tutu was never afraid to take on unpopular positions such as against necklacing, a gruesome form of mob justice used by Black communities during Apartheid, to punish suspected spies and perceived collaborators of the government.

“Archbishop Tutu intervened and calmed local Black communities when they wanted to necklace those who were considered collaborators. Some in the communities did not like that peacemaking role of Archbishop Tutu,” remarked Archbishop Buti.

Forgiveness as the way forward

As chairperson of South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission, Archbishop Tutu was tasked with reviewing crimes committed during Apartheid.

The Commission is an emotive and controversial topic to this day in South Africa. Some in South Africa think that the Commission fell short of expectations. By the end of the Commission’s mandate, many in the former Apartheid regime received amnesty. Yet some Apartheid generals and commanders are said to have avoided the Commission and have never been made accountable. Some blame Archbishop Tutu for this.

“Many criticise the Commission saying perpetrators got off scot-free. But that was the nature of the deal. That if you came forward, you would be forgiven but if you didn’t, you would be pursued and imprisoned … so there is a lot of unhappiness about the Truth and Reconciliation Commission,” stated Archbishop Buti.

A deeply contented person

In a nutshell, Archbishop Buti describes Archbishop Tutu “as someone who followed his thought. A convincing leader. A deeply contented person even in the midst of so much pain. He was jolly. An emotional person who was not afraid to cry in public. A very noble person … someone who lived for the purpose of giving hope to others,” concluded Archbishop Buti.

New Year’s Day funeral

Archbishop Desmond Tutu’s funeral is set for 10am on Saturday, New Year’s Day, in Cape Town’s Anglican Cathedral Church of St George the Martyr.

Due to covid-19 restrictions, the Funeral Mass will be limited to 100 persons only. The Archbishop’s remains will be cremated, and his ashes interred at the Cathedral.

Saturday, December 25, 2021

Merry Christmas to you all from The European Times

The whole team of The European Times News wishes you the very best Christmas ever. Enjoy with family, loved ones, friends or on your own. No matter how you celebrate it, remember that the future is for you to create.

Sunday, December 12, 2021

The beautiful love story of Tsar Boris III and the lovely Joanna of Savoy

She is 20 years old, beautiful, smart, with a delicate narrow face and spirited green-brown eyes. He is 33 – very wise for his age, a man in every sense of the word. She captivates him not only with her charm, but with her sense of humor and the great audacity she has for a princess. He makes her fall in love with him with his masculine radiance and balanced look.

She is Joanna of Savoy – the daughter of the Italian King Victor Emmanuel III (of the Savoy dynasty) and the Montenegrin Princess Elena Petrovich Nagos, born in Rome between gilded pots and satin ribbons. He is Tsar Boris III – the respected son of Tsar Ferdinand I. Their love – pure and true, not dictated by political or personal interests.

And this is what shocks the society and provokes the drama, but also the beauty in their relationship.

On September 25, 1927, the fateful meeting between Tsar Boris III and the Italian beauty took place. Boris was invited to lunch at the royal mansion of San Rossore near Pisa by her parents. There is also “Joe”, as she is called at home – light brown, fragile, with a white face, fine features and a keen eye. She has a solid education – literature, history, Latin, art. He also speaks French and English, paints, sings, plays piano, cello and harmony.

However, this is not what impressed the then 33-year-old Boris. He falls in love with Joe because of the sunny Italian woman’s sense of humor and because of her free discussion of secular topics, which in modern translation means that the princess has not been ashamed to talk peppery and without detours about what is in her heart.

Everyone notices the sparks that pass between the two, but fate does not meet them again soon. They see each other again after a 3-year break, which is enough time to forget, but not … In January 1930, at their second meeting, where Boris and Joanna were at the home of her beloved sister Mafalda , he personally uttered the marriage proposal. The answer is yes, but not everything is arranged by notes.

During this two-year period, there have been many talks and debates over whether marriage between a Catholic and an Eastern Orthodox is possible, with discussions involving both the Vatican and the Italian and Bulgarian governments, as well as foreign diplomats.

Archbishop Angelo Roncali, the apostolic visitor to Bulgaria, comes to the rescue. According to the provisions of Roman canon law, Tsar Boris must give written consent for the children of this marriage to be baptized and brought up as Catholics.

The initial opinion of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church is that the male heirs should be baptized Orthodox and the girls – Catholics. Later, the Holy Synod agreed that only the heir to the throne would be Orthodox.

Desperate from all this, the king ordered the Bulgarian Minister Plenipotentiary in Italy Gen. Ivan Valkov to stop the preparations for the marriage. Even in an emotional outburst, he declares that he is ready to remain single if he does not marry Princess Giovanna. For his part, he also declared his readiness to retire to a monastery if he did not have a permit. She sent two letters to the pope.

In early September 1930, Boris finally arrived in San Rosore again. He brings the good news that he has managed to receive the blessing of the head of St. Synod, Metropolitan Neophyte, and Metropolitan Stephen of Sofia. And the Vatican is finally blessing the wedding.

Boris returns to Sofia to clarify the latest details. The saga “royal wedding” is coming to an end. The official response of the Italian royal family to the announcement of the engagement was received on October 4, 1930.

And then follows the spectacular wedding, a display of true, strong and great love. On October 25, 1930, the day of the wedding, government men and the color of European monarchical dynasties arrived in Assisi, and the streets were literally congested with thousands of people wanting to see the newlyweds. 10,000 cars came to the small town.

This forced the municipality to expand the station with several tracks so that it could meet all train compositions. Due to the royal wedding, the schools in Assisi were closed for ten days. The mayor had to set up an additional telephone line so that all foreign journalists who came to cover the event could perform their duties.

Joanna impresses guests by violating conservative etiquette and adding veils to her wedding attire. At her explicit request, the ladies wear dresses without a neckline, with long sleeves and a white veil, and their hairstyles are without jewelry. The men are in tailcoats or uniforms of the military rank to which they belong. All this is written in the wedding invitation that the guests received.

Joanna herself is in a dress of fine white velvet with a train, 15 m long, with a veil of antique lace and a small bouquet of orange flowers from Sicily. Tsar Boris is in the uniform of a general of the Bulgarian Army, on his chest shines the order “St. St. Cyril and Methodius ”. His sword has a golden hilt.

In the municipality of the town Boris and Joanna sign a civil marriage certificate. Witnesses were the then Prime Minister Benito Mussolini, in his capacity as state notary, and Andrey Lyapchev, Prime Minister of Bulgaria.

After the wedding, American publicist Markham will write: “One of the best things Tsar Boris has done for his people is to bring Italian Princess Joanna as queen to Sofia, one of the most charming princesses in Europe.”

Boris and Giovanna board a special royal train to Sofia. The young royal family enters the capital in front of a crowd of many thousands through a specially built triumphal arch on the Lion Bridge. An Orthodox wedding ceremony follows in the Sofia Cathedral “St. Alexander Nevsky”. At this sacred moment, Giovanna, Princess of Savoy, becomes Joanna, Queen of Bulgaria.

And although much later, after the appearance of the daughter Maria-Louise and the son Simeon and after a happy and peaceful life, the tragic circumstances around the death of Tsar Boris III at the age of 49, the Bulgarians truly love their queen Joanna and in their hearts she remains as the Queen of Mercy.

In 1946, during the communist regime, Joanna and her children were extradited from Bulgaria, but her enormous charitable work, her courageous behavior during the bombing of Sofia, and her absolute courage in many ways made Prime Minister Konstantin Muraviev sigh. :

“A woman, a mother had to show Bulgarian politicians what manhood means – the queen.”

On the other hand, the American publicist Markham writes: “One of the best things Tsar Boris has done for his people is to bring the Italian Princess Joanna as queen in Sofia, one of the most charming princesses in Europe.”

Joanna Bulgarska died at the respectable age of 92. She was buried where she made a vow as a young woman – in the church “St. Francis ”in Assisi, where she was married. They say that until her last day she did not regret for a moment that she was devoted as an Italian and that she loved as a Bulgarian. More masculine. To the very end.

Saturday, December 11, 2021

World Soprano Svetlana Kasyan offers Album for Pope Francis’ Birthday

Interview: Russian Soprano Svetlana Kasyan offers an Album for Pope Francis’ Birthday

Russian world soprano opera singer Svetlana Kasyan is one of the most rising figures in the world of opera today. But she is also a close friend of Pope Francis, who blessed her voice and awarded her the star of the lyric of the Grand Cross of the Pontifical Order of Saint Sylvester for her 35th birthday. She is the first and only lady awarded with this honor. So it’s a fair return that she dedicates her new album Fratelli Tutti to the pontiff, and decides to release it the day of his 85th birthday, on 17 December.

Fratelli Tutti is made of 14 folk songs in 14 different languages and will be available here on the 17th of December, and you can have a short but powerful preview below the interview.

European Times met with the beautiful soprano for a few questions:

European Times: Your album is called Fratelli Tutti and you dedicated it to Pope Francis, what’s the story behind it?

Svetlana Kasyan: This album is the story of my life. I was born in Georgia, then during the war we moved to Kazakhstan, I studied in Moscow, won a competition in China and China opened an international career for me, 12 years of contracts in Italy, and so on… So that is what is behind the choice of having songs from many countries, in many languages. Then, my close relationship with Pope Francis has always been a blessing, and he has always been very kind to me.

Svetlana Kasyan: This album is the story of my life. I was born in Georgia, then during the war we moved to Kazakhstan, I studied in Moscow, won a competition in China and China opened an international career for me, 12 years of contracts in Italy, and so on… So that is what is behind the choice of having songs from many countries, in many languages. Then, my close relationship with Pope Francis has always been a blessing, and he has always been very kind to me.

ET: What do you think an artist is responsible for in our world? Does creating peace is amongst the responsibilities of a singer like you?

SK: Yes, for me, the main mission of music is to unite the whole world. With my creativity, I want to speak and create that there be no war, although it is very difficult. But music has tremendous power.

ET: You live in Russia, and became a real diva here and in Italy. Nevertheless, are you not afraid that dedicating an album to the head of the Catholic Church, while you are a Christian Orthodox, can trigger some strong reactions in your country?

SK: Well, I posted some excerpts from the album on social networks and already faced negative comments. I am very sad about it! People wrote that because of the wars I should not include so many different songs in one album. But I will continue to do this, and I believe that in the hearts of many people it will help settling the world!

ET: Are you planning to travel around the world to promote your album? Where will we be able to see you in the times to come?

SK: Yes, I would like to sing this beautiful repertoire all around the world. In addition, I have more songs with different languages in my repertoire than in my album. So it would be a very interesting program. But nothing is planned for the moment as regards playing these songs on stage.

ET: Any further plans for the future?

SK: I have a lot of interesting contracts in Italy, Germany and Russia with beautiful music and a new repertoire. So at least, you’ll see me in these countries. But 2022 is not yet started, so there could be many surprises.

Thursday, December 2, 2021

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The Rosa Parks Family Foundation Endorses DeWayne Harvey’s Gospel Hit, “What The Lord Allows” // The Rosa Parks Family Foundation endorsement of "What The Lord Allows" by DeWayne Harvey featuring Fred // View full article here: https://www.europeantimes.news/2021/12/the-rosa-parks-family-foundation-endorses-dewayne-harveys-gospel-hit-what-the-lord-allows/ https://www.europeantimes.news

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