Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido is calling for more street protests today, while President Nicolas Maduro says an attempted coup has failed
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By James Blears
In a television address to the nation, President Nicolas Maduro insisted that a coup has failed and that most of his military remain loyal to him and his Government. Defence Minister General Vladimir Padrino pledges his support. Maduro denies he`s ready to flee Venezuela.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, said a plane is standing ready to take Maduro to Cuba, but he`s staying put for the time being on Russian instructions. Maduro also denies this, while accusing Washington of orchestrating the coup. He vows that those responsible for all of this will certainly be punished.
The Trump Administration supports Guadio`s call for a military uprising leading to peaceful transition. Guaido was flanked by Leopoldo Lopez. Lopez who`s his mentor, was jailed in 2014, but later transferred to house arrest, from which Guaido`s supporters released him. Lopez and his family are now being given refuge by the Spanish Embassy.
Ugly clashes between rival factions of supporters, which troops which are still loyal to Maduro firing tear gas, rubber bullets and in some cases live rounds. The collapse of civil law and order, is following near total economic collapse. The situation has now developed into a full blown crisis and the coming hours of this day, will show which way it`ll go, and if it`s already gone beyond the point of no return.
He briefly recalled an ongoing discussion and proposal regarding a possible change in translation in which that invocation could become “abandon us not when in temptation”.
Translation issues
Explaining that “It is with this penultimate invocation that our dialogue with our heavenly Father enters, so to speak, in the midst of the drama of the battle between our freedom and the snares of the evil one” the Pope noted that it is not easy to accurately capture the exact meaning of the original Greek version of the prayer, and that “all modern translations are a little lame”.
However, he said, we can certainly all agree on the fact that God does not seek to put temptations in our way.
A father never sets traps for his children
“Let’s not forget, a father does not set traps for his children”. he said.
He noted that tribulation amd temptation are mysteriously present even in the life of Jesus and said that “this experience of the Son of God makes him completely our brother”.
The Pope said that there are so many Gospel passages that show us that God never leaves his son alone and he cited the episodes in the desert and in the garden of Gethsemane in which Jesus overcomes many temptations to abandon the Father’s will.
A father does not abandon his children
And the same goes for us: “He is with us when he gives us life, during our lives, in moments of joy and of trouble, he is with us in sadness and in defeat, when we sin. He is always with us because a Father cannot abandon us”, the Pope said.
He also reflected on the fact that not only God is not the author of evil, but when evil appears in the life of one of his children, He fights at his side so that he may be freed from it.
He is a Father, Pope Francis continued “who always fights for us, and not against us”.
In this sense, he concluded, we pray to our Father “lead us from times of temptation”, but when this time comes, he said “show us we are not alone, show us that Christ has already taken upon himself the weight of our cross, show us that Christ is calling on us to carry it with him, and help us to abandon ourselves to Your fatherly love”.
