Horrible news out of Turkey today:
The president of the Turkish Catholic bishops’ conference has been murdered.
Bishop Luigi Padovese of Anatolia was stabbed to death on Thursday, June 3. The crime occurred in the port city of Iskenderun, where the bishop was preparing to leave for Cyprus to join Pope Benedict XVI on his visit there this weekend.
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Turkish reports indicated that Bishop Padovese was attacked after he opened the door– indicating that the assailant was someone he knew. The bishop’s driver reportedly confessed to the killing. That development stunned Church officials who said that the driver, identified only as Murat, had shown every evidence of loyalty to the prelate.
There is an even sadder irony to the timing: Bishop Padovese recently gave an interview with Vatican Radio on the fourth anniversary of the murder of another Turkish priest, Don Andrea Santoro. The bishop’s words then seem especially poignant now:
I would like to point out that he was killed as a symbol, because he was the reality of what it means to be a Catholic priest. Not only was the person killed, but they wanted to target the symbol that the person represented: remembering him at this time, within the framework of the Year for Priests, is most significant, because it reminds us that being a follower of Christ can lead to laying down your life.
The Year for Priests may be closing next week, but this is a sad reminder that priests always and everywhere need our prayers. May Bishop Padovese rest in peace.
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