By Ralph E. Moore Jr.
Let’s see, we went from one war in Europe (Russia invading Ukraine) to another major war in the Middle East (Israel and Hamas) – twice the horror. Pope Francis and Rev. William Barber have been very clear moral leaders in opposition to these outbreaks of violence.
On Christmas Day, Pope Francis harshly criticized the weapons industry and its “instruments of death” that feed the wars. He recently turned 87 years old and he made a call for peace in the world and in particular between Israel and the Palestinians.
Speaking from St. Peter’s Basilica to a throng of roughly 6,000 folks, Francis said he grieved the “abominable attack” of Hamas against southern Israel on Oct. 7 and called for the release of hostages. He pleaded for an end to Israel’s military campaign in Gaza and the “appalling harvest of innocent civilians” as he called for “humanitarian aid to reach those in need.” The Pope has declared that war has never solved anything. And he is so right.
Reverend William Barber joined forces with religious leaders of various faiths in a vigil at the White House last month on Nov. 20, 2023.
“We must join forces with Jews and Christians and Muslims around the world who are calling for a cease-fire in Gaza, and the safe return of all hostages and civilian prisoners — and to stop the killing,” said Barber, acting with the voice of moral authority for which he is known.
Wars are ugly, cruel, unfair and awful in every way. This is not an attack on veterans, they serve honorably, they sacrifice their time away from family and friends and they risk their lives oftentimes doing their duty. They deserve our honor and respect.
In better news this year, the dreadful Rudy Guiliani (once called “America’s mayor” by some) was smacked with a $148 million judgment by a court on Dec. 20, 2023. On Nov. 8, I wrote in the Moore Report about the two poll workers from Georgia, Ruby Freeman and Wandrea ArShaye “Shaye” Moss, whom Guiliana accused many times over and publicly of stealing election results from Trump and crediting them to Biden. There was no basis whatsoever for his very hateful and harmful claim, but he was very effective in thoroughly ruining the lives of the two innocent women.
The two women were vindicated by the judgment, even though it is questionable at best what Guiliana’s wealth is (he has continuously refused to disclose to the courts). Freeman and Moss are sheroes for enduring what they have–and then seeking justice. The court proclaimed their innocence 148,000,000 times in judgment dollars. Sometimes justice surprisingly comes along.
On another note, as we look back on 2023, the St. Ann Church initiative for the expedited canonizations of the first six African-American candidates took a big step forward. A subcommittee of the church’s Social Justice Committee (Delores Moore, Mary Sewell and I) traveled to Rome to advocate with the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints for sainthood for Mother Mary Lange, Father Augustus Tolton, Mother Henrietta DeLille, Mr. Pierre Toussaint, Ms. Julia Greeley and Sister Thea Bowman. The Dicastery vets the lives of the candidates to determine if they are suitable to be considered for sainthood and they vet the proposed miracles required as proof of their sanctitude. It is hard to believe there are no Black Saints from the United States in 2023. Black Catholics have had to fight for first class membership in the Catholic Church since the enslavement origins of 1619.
We determined in 2022 that we would be in Rome on All Saints Day 2023, so we got our passports, raised the money for travel and accommodations and sought an audience with the Pope and/or the Dicastery. We were informed on Oct. 13 of our audience on Oct.31, and off we went. None of us had ever been to Rome before.
We visited St. Peter’s Basilica (perhaps the largest church building in the world) and the Plaza where thousands gather weekly to see the Pope from a window high above the ground. We didn’t get a chance to have an audience with Pope Francis, we did leave gifts with the faces and names of the “Saintly Six.” The package also included an anchor paper weight (a symbol of St. Ann’s original construction by a ship’s captain) and a wall coat rack also in the shape of an anchor. I wrote about the Rome trip on Oct. 6 and Nov. 21 in the Moore Report. We are making progress.
I continue to be saddened by the high rate of crimes (murders, shootings, car thefts and car jackings) in our city, but I am heartened to hear that under Mayor Brandon M. Scott’s leadership, Baltimore will end this year with fewer than 300 murders for the first time since 2014. That’s some 2023 progress, I guess.
The Orioles and the Ravens are performing at a high level to the delight of baseball and football fans. And we could be on our way to the Superbowl.
“Ain’t that good news?”
Here’s to 2023- the good, and the bad- and the great memories to come in 2024.
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