Contemporary Icons of Threatened and Endangered Species
Artist Angela Manno has applied the traditional processes of icon painting to contemporary environmental concerns in this collection entitled ENDANGERED SPECIES. Manno says:
“Most of the fauna and flora depicted are threatened or critically endangered. The extinction rate is currently hundreds, perhaps thousands of times higher than the natural rate, causing what is considered to be the sixth mass extinction. Based on these statistics, biologist E.O. Wilson estimates that if current trends continue, half of Earth's animal and plant species will be extinct by the end of this century.
It is clear that the Western mind is divorced from Nature, the primary condition that has led to the current ecological catastrophe. I feel that the only way back - indeed our own survival - depends on nothing less than a re-enchantment with the Earth as a living reality. It is for this reason that I have chosen to depict non-human species in a traditionally religious form: the icon.
These contemporary icons represent the confluence of my search for a form of expression that merges my art, scientific understanding and mystical sensibilities with the current zeitgeist which is turning more and more towards ecology, given the concern over the biosphere and climate disruption.”
To read more about her approach and enjoy the full collection, visit https://angelamanno.com/iconography
Congratulations
Sister Francisca Ngozi Uti, HHCJ
the founder and executive director of the Centre for Women Studies and Intervention (CWSI) in Abuja, Nigeria, has been named the laureate of the 2024 Opus Prize — a $1.2 million award recognizing transformative humanitarian work.
The Opus Prize is given annually to recognize unsung heroes of any faith tradition, anywhere in the world, solving today’s most persistent social problems. This $1 million faith-based humanitarian award and two $100,000 awards are collectively one of the world’s largest faith-based, humanitarian awards for social innovation.
In her address during the Nov. 14 award ceremony at Santa Clara University, a Jesuit university in Silicon Valley, the Nigerian member of the Congregation of the Handmaids of the Holy Child Jesus (HHCJ) said that words could not express her joy.
VISIT the Centre for Women’s Studies & Intervention — https://cwsing.org/what-we-do/
to read more about their work in —
• human rights/gender equality training,
• addressing the under-representation of women in elected and appointed positions,
• making women economically self-reliant,
• addressing the growing trend in migration issues affecting women and girls such as trafficking, child labour, exploitation, and abuses, and more.
“UNBEARABLE”
Sister on Border: Silence from pulpit over immigration ‘unbearable’ — from Global Sisters Report, a project of National Catholic Reporter
Sr. Ann Durst, a member of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus, and an immigration lawyer, voiced disappointment with Catholic leaders who preach, yet maintain what she sees as an “unbearable” silence from the pulpit as candidates for public office painted an often-negative view of newcomers to the United States.
“I am saddened by the fact that church leadership controls who preaches the Gospel and then doesn’t preach it,” she told GSR. “And so, it makes the sound of silence resonate as a few other things have done. The silence is unbearable for me and has been. I cannot comprehend it.”
Durst founded Casa Cornelia Law Center, which has for more than 30 years helped migrants and refugees in the San Diego area .... She is worried about what will happen to them, given the incoming president’s campaign promises to implement harsh ... policies ....
President-elect Donald Trump promised mass deportations in his second term. He has also threatened to end the humanitarian parole immigration program, which has allowed refuge to people from places such as Nicaragua, Venezuela, Cuba, Ukraine and Haiti. He also has said he will eliminate Temporary Protected Status and the popular Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program ....
More than half of Catholic voters voted for Trump, according to The Associated Press’ VoteCast ....
Facing challenges to heed Gospel teachings that urge helping the stranger, there are some Catholics who will engage in civil disobedience because “it’s the right thing to do” ... It’s not about being faithful to a political party, but to a set of religious beliefs ...”
“We just have to be comfortable that we are being faithful to the Gospel. There’s going to be rough riding in some instances, and there’s going to be injustice. People won’t like us, some of us; that’s not new. But it’s hard ...” “The important thing is that we’re truthful and compassionate. I don’t think we have to be brash or offensive, but we certainly have to be truthful.” by Rhina Guidos
CLICK to read the full article: https:// www.globalsistersreport.org/migration/ sister-border-silence-pulpit-over-immigration-unbearable
“We must pay special attention to the strangers in our midst .... it is not only about foreigners; it is about all those in existential peripheries who, together with migrants and refugees, are victims of the throwaway culture. The Lord calls us to practice charity towards them. He calls us to restore their humanity, as well as our own, and to leave no one behind ....
Loving our neighbour as ourselves means being firmly committed to building a more just world, in which everyone has access to the goods of the earth, in which all can develop as individuals and as families, and in which fundamental rights and dignity are guaranteed to all.”
Homily, Pope Francis, 9-29-19
the Impossible Path to America Darién Gap, the jungle between Colombia & Panama
Can a portrait painting help to behold the Infinite in the face of the other? When I truly encounter another person, in that meeting of eyes I will see the humanity of this person. What does this require of me? And what do we refuse to see? How much truth can we bear to face? …. How different our world would be if we treated each individual as a reflection of the image of God and of equal value in God’s eyes.
The use of gold leaf in my portraits is symbolic of this sacredness regardless of what someone has suffered. The technique is intentionally reminiscent of icon paintings….
CLICK for video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3D391u2Si_I
Hannah Rose Thomas is a British artist …. named a Forbes 30 under 30 and a Vogue Future Visionary. Plough Publishing House published her art book Tears of Gold: Portraits of Yazidi, Rohingya, and Nigerian Women in February 2024. The artist says:
“... Tears of Gold gathers my portraits of Yazidi women who escaped ISIS slavery, Rohingya women who fled violence in Myanmar, and Nigerian women who survived Boko Haram captivity, as well as Afghan, Ukrainian, Palestinian, and Uyghur women....
These women are survivors, yet their lives cannot be reduced to a single violent experience. My paintings are an attempt to honor these ‘living icons’ and to convey their extraordinary resilience, resistance, and dignity.” Plough, Winter 2024, p.65
MEET A CHANGEMAKER – Yemi Alade
Yemi Alade, is a Nigerian singer, songwriter, actress and activist. Her music is a mixture of Afropop, highlife, dancehall, pop and R&B, and has been of influence in several countries across Africa. She sings in English, Igbo, Pidgin, Yoruba, French, Swahili and Portuguese.
During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Yemi Alade focused on the socio-economic impact of COVID-19 on people without any social protections such as unemployment benefits or healthcare.
On 8 November 2024, Alade was announced as a nominee of the 67th Annual Grammy Awards. She earned this nomination for her song “Tomorrow” on the category for Best African Music Performance. The Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in the music industry. The awards will be announced on February 2, 2025.
CLICK to view an interview with her, December 2024, on CNN’s African Voices: “Changemaker” series as she reflects on her career and recent Grammy nomination. https://www.cnn.com/2024/11/29/world/video/yemi-alade-grammy-tomorrow-african-voices-spc
On 23 September 2020 she was appointed a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). She is using that platform to gain support for the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, focusing on fighting inequality, promoting gender equality, and raising awareness of the disproportionate impact of climate change on women and girls.
Of climate change, she says,
“Women in developing countries, such as my homeland Nigeria, are particularly vulnerable to climate change because they are highly dependent on local natural resources for their livelihood.”
no poverty ... zero hunger ... good health & well-being ... quality education ... gender equality ... clean water & sanitation ... affordable and clean energy ... decent work & economic growth ... industry innovation & infrastruccture.. reduced inequalities ...sustainable cities & communities ... responsible consumption & production ... climate action ... life below water ... life on land ... peace, justice & strong institutions ... partnerships for the goals
THE RE- OPENING OF NOTRE DAME CATHEDRAL, Paris – an interview with Marguerite Bouteloup, SHCJ about the significance of the restoration of this much-treasured medieval cathedral after extensive fire damage five years ago.
Non-violent Communication – an interview with Callista Ahachi, SHCJ about her recent participation in an international certificate program on non-violent communication
