Ethiopian Catholic Church
holds Requiem Mass for Ethiopian Airlines crash victims
 |
| Requiem Mass in Ethiopia for victims of the plane crash |
A Requiem Mass presided over by the Metropolitan Archbishop
of Addis Ababa, Cardinal Berhaneyesus Souraphiel, CM and concelebrated by
several Bishops and priests in Ethiopia has been held for the 157 victims of
the Ethiopian Airlines Flight ET 302.
Makeda Yohannes – Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
The Boeing 737 Max 8 plane bound for Nairobi, Kenya went
down last Sunday morning near Bishoftu, southeast of Addis Ababa killing all
passengers and crew.
Thursday’s Requiem Mass was held at the Holy Saviour Parish
in Addis Ababa and was organised by the Ethiopian Catholic Church and the
International Catholic Community in Addis Ababa.
157 White Roses, 157 Candles for each life
On the occasion, a bouquet of 157 white roses was prepared,
and 157 candles were lit to represent every victim of the accident. The parents
and family of Mrs Ama Teklemariam, a Catholic who was a crew member on ET 302,
were also present at the Mass.
Apostolic Nuncio conveys Pope Francis’ divine blessings of
consolation
Archbishop Luigi Bianco, the Apostolic Nuncio to Ethiopia
and Djibouti and Special Delegate to Somalia, read out Pope Francis’ message of
condolences as well as assurances of prayers. In the message, the Holy Father
prayed for all the deceased and invoked divine blessings of consolation for all
bereaved families.
Tragedy has brought the world together in grief says
Ethiopian Airlines
Speaking at the end of the Requiem Mass, Mr Fikire Degef,
who attended the event on behalf of Ethiopian Airlines’ CEO Mr Tewolde
GebreMariam, noted that the victims had brought the world together in grief,
shock and above all in prayer. He assured that Ethiopian Airlines would do its
best to support the families of the victims get closure.
“We at Ethiopian Airlines pray that they may rest in peace.
We will work hard to accompany the families of the victims through this
difficult time,” he said.
UN Economic Commission for Africa prays for victims and for
families
Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Africa
(UNECA), Dr Vera Songwe for her part thanked the Catholic Church in bringing
together families, friends and colleagues of the victims and the international
community in Addis Ababa to pray together. She added that such a tragedy
reminds us of our mortality and that we have limited time on this earth to do
good in the world.
“A tragedy like this reminds us of our mortality and
encourages us to do better with our time on earth,” she said.
Kenya’s Ambassador to Ethiopia Ms Catherine Mwangi also
thanked the Church for gathering the congregation to pray for the departed. She
said that coming face to face with families of the departed underscored the
immensity of the tragedy.
“Let us pray that God may grant those who lost friends and
family the grace to make meaning of their lives without their loved ones,”
prayed the Ambassador.
Cardinal Berhaneyesus says we should make each day count
Before the final Blessing, Cardinal Berhaneyesus, CM, concluded
the Requiem Mass by saying such a tragedy should remind us that we should live
every day as though it was the last day of our lives.
“We should always be ready … always for the coming of our
Lord. We should decide to drop all that is bad in this world and chose only
what is good. We should ... live in harmony witnessing the Gospel in our
lives,” he said.
The Cardinal also called on all to unite in prayer for the
souls of the departed and for the consolation of the bereaved families. He
further prayed for Ethiopian Airlines management and staff that God would grant
them the grace to continue their services with the usual success.
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