A new study published in the Journal of Medical Ethics shows that the number of foreigners traveling to Switzerland to kill themselves has doubled in a four year period.
According to the study, 172 foreigners traveled to the country to end their lives in 2012 compared to 2009’s total of 86. Citizens of Germany and Great Britain make up the majority, over two-thirds of the total.
Switzerland has very liberal assisted suicide laws. The only requirement is that whoever assists in the death has no direct interest in the ending of the life, such as being in the victim’s will.
The rise of foreigners entering the country to end their lives raised enough concern among residents that in 2011 a ban on the practice was placed on the ballot but voted down.
People from 31 nations came to Switzerland to die. The median age of the victims was 69.
France and Italy saw large rises in the number of citizens who traveled to Switzerland to die.
Before Monday, a Pope had never visited a Pentecostal church.
Pope Francis made an official visit to the Evangelical Church of Reconciliation in Caserta, Italy and delivered a talk apologizing for the persecution of Pentecostals in the past by members of the Roman Catholic Church.
“Among those who persecuted and denounced Pentecostals, almost as if they were crazy people trying to ruin the race, there were also Catholics,” Francis said, according to The Associated Press, referring to Italy’s fascist regime when the Pentecostal practice was forbidden. “I am the pastor of Catholics, and I ask your forgiveness for those Catholic brothers and sisters who didn’t know and were tempted by the devil.”
The Pope himself recognized the historical significance of the moment and took the time to make sure it was clear how he viewed those who follow Christ but are not Catholics.
“Someone will be surprised: ‘The pope went to visit the evangelicals?’ But he went to see his brothers,” the Pope said.
Pastor Giovanni Traettino told the Pope that he felt his election was the work of the Holy Spirit.
Sudanese Christian refugee Meriam Ibrahim and her family are due to arrive in the United States this week.
The family is reportedly going to be arriving in New Hampshire and will settle in the Manchester area according to her brother-in-law. Gabriel Wani lives in Manchester with his wife and three daughters.
Local officials in Manchester say there is a strong Sudanese community that is ready to welcome the family. The Sudanese Evangelical Covenant Church is planning a huge reception and celebration upon the family’s arrival.
Italian officials who flew her to Rome rescued Ibrahim and her family from Sudan last week. She and the family met with Pope Francis, who reportedly had been working behind the scenes to help Italian officials free Ibrahim.
The Pope praised Ibrahim’s “courageous witness to perseverance in the faith.”
The foreign ministers of Germany, France and Italy are joining together in an attempt to quell the rampant anti-Semitism raging in their countries.
“Anti-Semitic rhetoric and hostility against Jews, attacks on people of Jewish belief and synagogues have no place in our societies,” German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, France’s Laurent Fabius and Italy’s Federica Mogherini said in a joint statement.
The group made a point to say their citizens had freedom of speech and freedom to assemble but that those rights do not permit them to harass Jewish citizens or take actions that are clearly hostile to any group of citizens.
Protesters in Germany have been particularly hostile toward Jews, chanting slogans during their protests calling for Jews to be gassed.
Authorities in Berlin are taking steps to crack down on chants like that and other anti-Semitic slogans. They have threatened groups with arrest should they continue to harass Jewish residents.
Pope Francis made another bold step, holding an open-air mass in a town known to be the home of Italy’s most ruthless mafia organization and saying their members are now excommunicated from the Catholic Church.
“Those who in their lives follow this path of evil, as mafiosi do, are not in communion with God. They are excommunicated,” the Pope said. “This evil must be fought against, it must be pushed aside. We must say no to it.”
The Pope had traveled to the southern region of Calabria to comfort the family of a 3-year-old boy who along with his grandparents was gunned down by mafia members in a shootout. Pope Francis visited the boy’s father in prison and tried to help him find peace over his son’s death.
“May children never again have to suffer in this way,” the Pope told him.
The mafia is known to be very religious despite their criminal activities and have given large amounts of money to Catholic Church activities and charities in the past. Anti-mafia prosecutors in Italy say until Pope Francis, many of the mafia laundered money through Catholic organizations.
A Catholic nun has won the biggest singing competition in Italy.
Sister Cristina Scuccia launched into praise for God upon hearing the announcement she had won the voting for winner of “The Voice” in a landslide, capturing over 62 percent of the vote. The nun then recited the Lord’s Prayer during her acceptance speech.
The 25-year-old said she was living out Pope Francis’ advice to Catholic clergy members to be more outgoing in their life’s work and actions. In addition to winning a cash prize, the sister receives a recording contract from Universal Music.
However, the Sicily-born nun said that she likely will not pursue a performance career and will return to her convent for a life of prayer and reverence.
“I will go back to my priorities – prayer, waking up early in the morning, school service. That’s fundamental for me to be able to begin something new later on,” Sister Scuccia told reporters.
A magnitude 5.2 earthquake struck southern France Monday according to the French National Seismic Monitoring Network.
The quake was located near the resort city of Nice and was only 7 miles deep. A local seismic expert said that the quake should be seen as a “warning” to France.
“We don’t know when a big one will come, but it will and there will certainly be fatalities,” Remy Bossu of the European Mediterranean Seismological Center told a French newspaper. “In Italy or Greece everyone is fully aware of the risks simply because earthquakes happen more often. Everyone knows about them and it’s part of their culture, but not in France.”
Monday’s quake, which lasted 15 seconds, reportedly only caused minor damage to buildings throughout the region. Seismologists say a quake of this nature strikes France only one every 30 years.
The quake was the second surprise quake to strike France in the last six months. In November, a 4.5 magnitude quake struck in northwest France near Brittany.
A 4.9 magnitude earthquake rocked Southern Italy Sunday night.
Thousands of residents of Naples and surrounding villages rushed into the street as the quake struck around 6:08 p.m. local time.
Naples Mayor Luigi de Magistris said there were no reports of serious damage or injuries in the city. Towns closer to the epicenter, 35 miles northeast of Naples, reported damaged buildings but no serious injuries.
Italian news agencies said the quake could be felt all through the nation’s “bootheel” at the south tip.
Residents of Naples were reportedly so shaken up by the quake and the threat of aftershocks that they slept in their cars rather than going back inside their homes. Many buildings in the smaller towns are not constructed to withstand heavy quakes.
Residents of Sicily, Italy found themselves being covered by a rain of volcanic rock after Mount Etna erupted Tuesday.
The volcano sent molten lava thousands of feet into the air and sent thick ash clouds for miles in all directions. The eruption also appeared to cause a change in the mountain’s vents resulting in the production of perfect steam rings.
Residents of the city posted videos online showing a clear blue sky as rocks rained down on villages. The eruption caused so much ash to fly into the nearby water that the ocean has turned black.
‘The ash is not heavy but it’s extremely sharp. Many cars got scratched and windshields got chipped as the stones are quite big,” resident Turi Scandurra told the Daily Mail. ‘None of us were scared because Etna always reminds us of its presence. Sometimes you can hear it thundering and your windows vibrating – even the doors inside the house shudder.’
The volcano last had a major eruption in 1992 but regularly had a series of smaller events. The volcano had been in a quiet period over the summer.
Cyclone Cleopatra roared into the Italian island of Sardinia killing at least 17 people and leaving dozens missing.
The storm’s heavy rains led to flash flooding and many rivers to overflow their banks. The flooding destroyed several bridges and swept away cars and homes.
A mother and daughter died when they car was swept away in the flash flooding. A family of three died when a bridge collapsed onto their car.
Prime Minister Enrico Letta has declared a state of emergency for the island, calling the situation a “national tragedy.” He said that $27 million would be immediately allocated to emergency relief efforts and that soldiers are being sent to the island for search and rescue operations.
Reports say the flash flooding reached 10 feet high at times. The mayor of the told of Olbia told the BBC the storm was “apocalyptic.”
Officials say that citizens of the island are coming together. Many residents with homes left undamaged by the storm are using social media to contact those who have lost homes and are inviting them in for meals and shelter.
