Pope appoints new decision-makers

adminonJanuary 14, 2022January 5, 2022Leave a Comment

Pope Francis at the altar during the Corpus Christi Mass © Cristian Gennari (KNA)

Pope Francis has appointed new members to the Appeals Commission for Serious Criminal Cases at the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. This was announced by the Vatican on Monday.

This was a normal staffing refreshment following the departure of several members, the congregation said when asked about the matter. The panel decides on appeals against ecclesiastical convictions of clergy for sexual abuse, heresy, defilement of the Eucharist and other offenses reserved for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Chairman is the Pope's special representative for abuse clarification, Malta's Archbishop Charles Scicluna.

Specifically, the pope appointed Curia Archbishop Filippo Iannone, president of the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts; the bishop of San Miniato, Andrea Migliavacca; the bishop of Mondovi, Egidio Miragoli; the Archbishop of Gorizia, Carlo Roberto Maria Redaelli; Curia Archbishop Arthur Roche, Secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship; the Bishop of Adria-Rovigo, Pierantonio Pavanello; and Curia Archbishop Cyril Vasil', Secretary of the Congregation for the Eastern Church. Argentine Archbishop Emeritus Jose Luis Mollaghan, previously a full member of the commission, was given the rank of alternate member.

Cuba's church and the hunger strikers of havana

Passersby walk the streets in masks in Cuba © Ramon Espinosa Cuba is rumbling. Not only low wages, lack of medicine and food burden the people. Meanwhile, church officials visit hunger-striking dissidents. This is also a signal.

In its letter to the Cuban government, the "Cuban Conference of Religious Men and Women" (Concur) openly criticizes conditions in the country. "The people can't take it anymore," the signatories write, enumerating: Low wages, lack of medicines and food, and lack of freedom of expression burden Cubans.

For many, Concur is seen as a covert mouthpiece of the Catholic Church, so as not to have to expose itself as the Cuban Bishops' Conference. The portal "ABC" wrote therefore a few days ago: "The Church in Cuba demands reforms."

The government blames the U.S. embargo, which has lasted for decades, for the supply shortages. Opposition circles report far too high prices for far too little food. Recently, however, Cuba initiated another "Anpang" of the system with free-market reforms to expand the private sector. In the all-important tourism sector, on the other hand, there is no shortage of foreign guests.

Activists and artists caught in crossfire

The situation in Cuba is tense. Recently, security forces have cracked down on activists and artists who openly criticize the one-party system. The most prominent of them, homosexual Afro-Cuban action artist Luis Manuel Otero Alcantara, has been on hunger strike for days, refusing to take in food and water. According to his own statements, he is protesting against the theft of his artwork and massive repression by the police.

Human rights organizations such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch drew attention to the fate of Otero Alcantara. Meanwhile, the artist was apparently transferred to a hospital against his will. His death the government apparently wants to avoid at all costs.

Last week, Otero Alcantara received a visit from a church representative. The Archdiocese of Havana sent its chancellor, Ramon Suarez Polcari, to check on the artist's condition before security forces picked him up. Unlike activists or journalists critical of the government, the churchman was allowed access to the hunger striker.

Church as mediator

For the Cuban government, the church has always also been a mediator, making possible an exchange with the dissidents, without there having to be direct talks that could be understood as recognition.

Cuba's ruling communist party makes a point of defining for itself who can and cannot be part of civil society. Otero Alcantara and other journalists, artists, intellectuals and musicians organized in the rebellious artists' movement "San Isidro" do not belong to this group, according to the official interpretation.

It is the second time in a short time that the church has made contact with government opponents. Havana Archbishop Dionisio Garcia recently visited dissidents of the officially banned opposition party Patriotic Union of Cuba (UNPACU), who are also on hunger strike.

Its spokesman, Jose Daniel Ferrer, thanked the archbishop for his visit on Twitter. Garcia had inquired about the health of hunger strikers at the UNPACU headquarters, which also serves as a soup kitchen. Earlier, police cordons around the building had been reduced, Ferrer said. With the hunger strike, opposition politicians are demanding the allowance of political parties, access to state media, and freedom of expression in Cuba.

If you temporarily rent out your private car via a car sharing platform, you not only earn money, but also protect the environment

Maybe you are like many other private car owners: the car is only used for short periods of time, such as the way to work, and sits around for the majority of the day, blocking a parking space. is it really practical to have your own car under these circumstances?

To make the existence of your car more meaningful and to reduce the burden on the environment, you can share it with others! ÜWith platforms for private car sharing, this is very easy and possible without risk. At the same time you earn money!

Share your car instead of using it alone

Sharing has also proven to be inexpensive and resource-saving, for example when renting rooms or apartments on airbnb or 9flats, as well as when borrowing books as an alternative to buying them on amazon. Why not also lend the car?

Sharing a car: this is how it works

The most popular platforms snappcar, drivy, turo and since 2017 also GETAWAY in germany as well as carsharing247.Com inAustria essentially work very similarly: if you have a vehicle that is temporarily unused, you can register and post it with one or more providers. For this, a few details such as vehicle type, age and condition, a photo of the vehicle registration document and one or more photos of the car are usually sufficient. As a rule, the renter determines the rental price himself. Especially economical cars, small cars but also vans are in high demand.

Who rents his private car üvia a car sharing platform temporarily, not only earns money, but also protects the environment

Interested parties contact us if they want to rent the car. On most platforms there are minimum requirements for renters, such as driving experience and ratings from other renters. If you like the profile, you can confirm the request. How the contract is concluded and the car is handed over varies depending on the platform. With GETAWAY, specially installed technology and an app make it possible to open the car without first having to hand over the key.

At the end of the rental period, the vehicle is returned or parked and the rental price is settled via the platform, which retains a share of around 15 to 30 percent of the rental price as a charge. among other things, the commission usually pays for fully comprehensive insurance during the rental period. You can read more details and conditions on the pages of each provider.

The advantages of private carsharing

Besides the financial incentive of sharing the running costs of your car among several users, there are other reasons to rent out your private car.

A dense supply of rental cars, also through commercial car sharing, allows more people to do without their own car. This saves space and improves the parking situation in urban areas. In addition, the production of a car ties up a lot of resources and releases an average of six tons of CO2 that you can save. Sharing is therefore also good for the environment.

If you temporarily rent out your private car üvia a car-sharing platform, you not only earn money, but also protect the environment

last but not least, private car sharing offers the opportunity to build a strong neighborhood. Perhaps you will find other useful exchange and help opportunities that will simplify your everyday life. Possibly also simply nice friendships develop!

Check conditions and insurance

Although private car sharing is a great way to earn extra money, save resources and get to know people in your neighborhood, there are a few things to consider.

probably the most important question is how the car is insured while it is being rented out. All providers have special insurance options, yet the devil is often in the details. Read the terms and conditions carefully and also check if your own insurance allows or excludes this use. If you enjoy a no-claims bonus, it is advisable to check how a possible accident caused by a tenant will affect you.

Apart from that, each platform has slightly different conditions. To find the cheapest provider for you, a comparison is useful.

Sharing the car permanently

If you have met a renter who wants to use your car regularly, you can also sign a private rental agreement. This way you save the commissions of the platforms and enter into a longer-term agreement with someone you trust. For this purpose, the verkehrsclub deutschland provides a sample contract.

Have you ever rented or loaned your car before? We will be glad if you tell us about your experience in a comment!

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