Blessed are the la
Notre Dame Deputy Vice Chancellor HAYDEN RAMSEY on why Catholic universities place such a high premium on justice.
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"Be indefatigable in your purpose and with undaunted spirit resist iniquity and try to conquer evil with good, having before your eyes the reward of those who combat for Christ." -BISHOP MATTHEW GIBNEY 1874
THE PARISH. THE NATION. THE WORLD. www.therecordcom.au
Happiness allround as two more deacons ordained
Western Australia's award-winning Catholic newspaper since 1874 - Wednesday, November 25, 2009
In parish speech, Archbishop sketches crisis of Europe's increasing attacks on children, families, parents, Church and urges Christians here to become...
BY ANFHONY BARICH National Reporter
Archbishop Barry Hickey blesses a meal prepared by parishioners at Good Shepherd Parish in Kelmscott in early November during a three-day pastoral visit to the parish. Standing next to the Archbishop is Good Shepherd Catholic School Chair, Loreto Bennetts. During a talk before the meal Archbishop Hickey described the deeply troubling rise in secularism and hostility to Christianity he had encountered during a recent trip to Europe. PHOTO: PETER ROSENGREN
BY ANTHONY BARICH National Reporter SPENDING a year as deacons will give Rodrigo Tomala and Benny Calanza a solid foundation for the life of service that is the priesthood, Perth Auxiliary Bishop Donald Sproxton said at the pair's ordination to the diaconate at St Lawrence Church, Balcatta on November 22. Rodrigo, 39, from Ecuador and Benny, 38, from the Philippines, are members of the Neocatechumenal Way and undertook their training at the Archdiocesan Redemptoris Mater Seminary, run under the auspices of the Way in Morley. During the Mass, the first time he has ordained deacons, Bishop Sproxton said the diaconate sometimes loses standing when compared with priestly and episcopal (bishop) ordinations, but is in fact foundational for the priestly ministry. "To experience the deacon's ministry of service sets the foundation for these men to have learned that the priesthood is also a ministry of being there - especially for the poor and marginalised. It's the reason why the diaconate was Please turn to Page 3
Bishops to reclaim Valentine's Day focus Parishes, schools urged to focus on centrality of lifelong marriage and real meaning of love
Latest ordinations see future shepherds of Perth continue to roll out, both for needs of the Church and for those seeking meaning in their lives
Newly ordained deacons Rodrigo Tomala, at left, and Benny Calanza enjoy the moment with Bishop Donald Sproxton after last Friday's ordination. PHOTO ANTHONY BARICH
Perth, Western Australia $2
AUSTRALIA'S Bishops have launched a "bold initiative" to reclaim the sacred from the secular in St Valentine's Day, urging every parish and school in the country to promote a new resource that strengthens life-long marriage and romantic love. Bishop Eugene Hurley of Darwin, Chairman of the Bishops' Commission for Pastoral Life, launched Celebrating St Valentine: Honouring life-long marriage and romantic love on November 19.
.. THE LEAVEN .OF PUBLIC LIFE The Church, he said, confronts a crisis in Europe where hostility to the Catholic faith is growing. At least one government has begun issuing y any standard, it was a sobering, if guidelines for such unpalatable practices as parents informal, talk given by Archbishop sexually stimulating their children from the earliest Barry Hickey to parishioners at Good age to determine whether they are 'straight' or 'gay.' Shepherd Parish in Kelmscott on the For the time being, he said, such practices are evening of November 8. still considered in Australia to constitute sexual The occasion was a common meal organised abuse of children. by parish priest Fr Francis Recent decisions such as the Sundararajan for parish volunteers I one on crucifixes in Italian public The main problem] is the in the parish hall at the conclusion schools indicated national soverinstability and breakdown of a three-day pastoral visit by the eignty is now seriously under attack of family life. It goes with Archbishop. from larger political organisations attacks on the family, the While Archbishop Hickey began such as the European Union. undermining of parental his comments setting out the parOther measures include removrights, and the work of ish as a school for growth in love of ing the rights of parents to be the international agencies and others and in faith, his comments educators of their children in such secular governments to quickly moved to the global dimendelicate and vital life matters as sex sions of the rise of secularism and hasten the disappearance education. hostility to religious faith most, but While there are numerous public of the Christian family and not exclusively, visible in Europe. calls for action in areas from global to take over the role of parOn a recent visit to the continent warming to swine flu, the main ents. This is serious stuff, on Church business he had encounthe breakdown of marproblem, but lam not tered numerous reports of measures riages and family life, is ignored exaggerating." initiated by various national or panalmost everywhere, he said. - Archbishop Hickey speaking at European governments. Among the measures needed Kelmscott on November 8 The scale and extent of the grownow in Australia, it was critical for ing hostility to marriage, the famChristians, especially young people, ily, children and the Church had left him "shak- to consider entering politics and public life to help en and a little stunnecr he told his audience at rebuild a humane society, he said. the parish. ARCHBISHOP'S SPEECH - VISTA 2-3
BY PETER ROSENGREN Editor
B
Australia's Bishops are seeking to reclaim the true dignity of marital love and marriage with their new initiative for St Valentine's Day next year.
"In recent years, St Valentine's Day has become increasingly secularised," Bishop Hurley said. -Saint' has been dropped from the title and the emphasis has shifted from romantic love in the context of life-long marriage, to romantic relationships of any persuasion. "This parish initiative is a bold attempt to reclaim the sacred from the secular and use the innate joyfulness of the feast to promote and affirm marriage and life-long romantic love." Few would question the gift that a loving, stable marriage brings to the family and wider commuPlease turn to Page 6
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November 25 2009, The Record
THE PARISH
SAINT OF THE WEEK Blessed Anuarite Nengapeta
BY ANTHONY BARICH National Reporter
1939-1964 1)ccember Marie Clementine Nengapeta was born in the Belgian Congo and martyred in Zaire, now the Democratic Republic of Congo. Even before she became a Holy Family sister, she had made a vow of chastity. Guerrillas calling themselves Simbas, Swahili for lion, roamed the Congo following its 1960 independence from Belgium. In 1964 they took Sister Anuarite and 45 other sisters from their compound and drove for two days to their camp. The armed Simbas on the truck got drunk and threatened the sisters' chastity. At the camp, when Anuarite and another sister resisted the commandant's order, she was stabbed at least five times. Her last words forgave her attackers.
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ON November 8, the parish believed to house the first church in the world to be consecrated in honour of the Jesuit St Joseph Pignatelli celebrated its feast day. To this parish, it was no ordinary feast day in the life of the Church. In celebrating the feast day of the Jesuit - who played a large role in the re-founding of the Society of Jesus after its suppression and who, after his ordination, served as chaplain to a prison and worked especially with those condemned to die - the Attadale parish school campus of Mel Maria and the parish council worked hard to make the day an unforgettable one. The children formed a choir for the Mass and the school helped decorate the church. The parish council looked after the post-Mass festivities, with a bouncy castle, face painting, an animal petting zoo, sausage sizzle and ice cream. The boarders of Santa Maria College pitched in as well, serving food, painting faces and consuming sausages. Lots of sausages. During the Mass the congregation learned more about St Joseph Pignatelli. He was an asylum-seeker, forced to take to ship with his brother Jesuits when they were expelled from Spain. Among the symbols in front of the altar pride of place went to an ornate reliquary with a fragment of bone from the remains of St Joseph. The congregation gathered on the oval where the celebrations continued for the rest of the morning.
Above, children enjoy the company of some animals at the St Joseph Pignatelli feast day; right, children participate in the liturgy, where they learned more about their parish patron saint, a famous Jesuit; bottom, Rev Dr Sean Fernandez enthralls the parish children with tales of St Joseph Pignatelli Si. PHOTOS. KARESS DIAS
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A priest who looks a picture of health is a role model for diabetics, having had type 1 diabetes for 40 of his 79 years. Parish Priest of Our Lady Help of Christians Church, East Victoria Park, for 25 years, Fr Brian Harris received his Papal Cross Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice (for the Church and the Pontiff) on 12 November, the day before our interview. Pope Benedict XVI awarded him the special recognition for his 56 years service to the Church as a priest. Fr Brian was diagnosed as an adult with diabetes
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and told The Record: "You have to look after it, control it, live with it." "Mum's mother died of it, so it is heavy in the genes - the genetic factor," Fr Brian said. "I was president of the Diabetes Association of WA. "Admit your condition and live by its restraints - you cannot just eat anything or drink anything and never forget your medicine - I have four needles a day." A 'dinky-di' West Australian, he was 33 when he was ordained on 25 July, 1953, at St Mary's Cathedral, Perth, by Bishop Launcelot Goody with Archbishop Prendiville in attendance. He trained for the priesthood at St Charles Seminary, Guildford, from 1944-49, entering at the age of 14, and at St Patrick's College, Manly, from 195053. After stints at St Mary's Cathedral, being Chaplain to nurses for six years, with three years at Shenton Park, assistant priest at Kalgoorlie, Osborne Park, South Perth, he became Parish Priest at Armadale in 1970 for six years. Then he spent 12 years at St Jerome's, Spearwood, came to East Victoria Park in 1984 as Parish Priest, and will celebrate his silver anniversary at the parish on 8 December.
Contributors Debbie Warner Karen and Derek Boylen Anthony Paganoni CS Parish Fr John Flader
John Heard Christopher West Catherine Bronia Karniewicz Guy Crouchback
The Record PO Box 75 Leederville WA 6902 587 Newcastle Street, West Perth Tel: (08) 9227 7080, Fax: (08) 9227 7087 Website: www.therecord.com.au The Record is a weekly publication distributed throughout the parishes of the dioceses of Western Australia and by subscription. The Record is printed by Rural Press Printing Mandurah and distributed via Australia Post and CTI Couriers.
"God is very good; the highlight is the people I was given to serve - it was a delight to serve the people of God," Fr Brian said. The closeness with other priests as an altar server and the influence of curates of the day, helped him decide on his vocation to the priesthood. "I lived close to the church and used to go up there every day to St Mary's, Leederville," he said. "We lived in Anzac Road - I was 7, 8, 9 - and the lovely young priests helped me on the way. "Fr Michael Delahunty and Fr Jim Boylen influenced me - they are dead now. Dr Launcelot John Goody said I was ready for it:' Fr Brian went to school at St Mary's Convent of Mercy, Leederville, then CBC, Leederville, before entering the seminary. He is the eldest and has one brother and three sisters and plenty of nieces and nephews, some of whom he baptised. Fr Brian said he has officiated at thousands of weddings and baptisms, which he enjoys, with his extroverted nature, wonderful sense of humour and powerful baritone singing voice.
OFFICIAL ENGAGEMENTS - 2009 December 1
3 4 5 6
Catholic Pastoral Centre Annual Mass of Thanksgiving Archbishop Hickey Mass to celebrate Fr Francis Ly's 25th Anniversary of Ordination to Priesthood, Lockridge - Archbishop Hickey, Bishop Sproxton Maranatha Thanksgiving Eucharist - Bishop Sproxton Pregnancy Assistance Annual Mass, Como - Archbishop Hickey Liturgy of Reinterment and Blessing of Vestments and Crypt, St Mary's Cathedral - Archbishop Hickey Mass to celebrate Fr Terry Raj's 25th Anniversary of Ordination to
6
7 8 10 11
Priesthood, Lynwood - Archbishop Hickey, Bishop Sproxton San Nicola Feast Day Procession, Northbridge Archbishop Hickey Seniors' Christmas Dinner, Italian Club Mgr Brian O'Loughlin VG Emmanuel Centre Christmas Party - Archbishop Hickey Opening and Rededication of St Mary's Cathedral Archbishop Hickey, Bishop Sproxton Blessing of Organ and Choir Rooms, St Mary's Cathedral Bishop Sproxton Staff Mass, Mercedes College - Archbishop Hickey
November 25 2009, The Record
Page 3
THE PARISH
Two more deacons for Church in Perth
- Continuedfrom Page I established," he said, referring to the 12 Apostles appointing seven men to serve the poor so they could focus on preaching. It was later that deacons were given the role of preaching, he said, which only had authority in them through their ministry of service. "It's a sacrament where they receive the strength they need for the ministry of love - sometimes against their pleasure. They are called by Christ to give of their time especially when it's inconvenient to them, but that's when they'll give the most powerful sign of the diaconate and of the love of Christ." As Rodrigo and Benny will be "transitional deacons" on their way to the priesthood, Bishop Sproxton said that the time the pair will be given is precious, adding that they should accept the ordination to the diaconate as a gift. Some saints, he said, did not make it to the priesthood and spent their lives serving Christ and His people as deacons, showing the love of Christ in the way they carry out their function both in the community and in the liturgy. In the early Church, Bishop Sproxton said, deacons were the Church's answer to the need to care for the poor, widows and those on the fringes of society. The part of the Ordination Mass where Redemptoris Mater Rector
Fr Michael Moore SM said he deemed them worthy of this ministry of service is an important part of the ceremony, Bishop Sproxton said, as it was a concept that caused many people angst in the past as people thought they were unworthy to even approach the altar. "But they are worthy as they have responded to the call of Christ to serve and love," Bishop Sproxton said. Benny arrived in Perth in 2004, having completed three years at the Dominican University of St Thomas Aquinas in Manila; Rodrigo arrived in Perth in the Jubilee Year of 2000. The Ordination Mass was concelebrated by about 40 priests, including St Charles Seminary Rector Mgr Kevin Long; and was attended by his seminarians and Dean of Studies, Christian Brother John Carrigg. Missionaries of Charity Sisters and Little Sisters of the Poor also attended the ordination to support the two men, along with a packed congregation. Professors from the University of Notre Dame Australia's Fremantle campus who taught the two new deacons during their studies also attended the ordination at Balcatta. The pair will be placed in parishes for the next year until they are ordained to the priesthood possibly, Bishop Sproxton said, as the first to be ordained in the newly completed and restored St Mary's Cathedral.
Newly-ordained Deacon Benny Calanza assists Bishop Sproxton during the Ordination Mass last Friday evening, top, left. Earlier, Bishop Sproxton prayed over the two deacons during the ceremony. Following the evening's main event there was plenty of time for the new deacons to meet the hundreds of well-wishers and friends, many of whom travelled from abroad to be with Benny, who hails from the Philippines and Rodrigo, who is from Ecuador. PHOTOS: TOP, LEFT: ANTHONY BARICH; ALL OTHERS. ROBERT HINi
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November 25 2009, The Record
Christ is King, in the world, in our lives BY ROBERT HIINI Parish Reporter ON a feast day that used to see thousands of Catholics take to the streets in procession, two communities are keeping the flame alive into the 21st century, proclaiming Christ as king in Eucharistic processions in Bullsbrook and Gosnells last Sunday. The Voice of the Voiceless group founded by Gosnells' priest, Fr Nicholas Nweke, to pray and raise funds for neglected people in the developing world, set off from Our Lady of the Most Blessed Sacrament Church, walking around the block and down a main thoroughfare while praying the Rosary and the Divine Mercy Chaplet. A Mass followed when Fr Nweke was joined by the recently incardinated Fr Anandarao Reddy, Assistant Priest of Willetton, formerly of Andhra Pradesh in Southern India, and his friend Fr Bonaventure Echeta, his fellow Nigerian and friend of 16 years. Don't be ashamed of your faith," Fr Echeta told a congregation of around 80 people. "When you make the sign of the cross you are claiming the kingship of Christ. You are saying reign in my life." The day, which included the Anointing of the Sick, finished with the burning of petitions that were offered up at Mass and some hard earned food and refreshment after three hours of prayer and worship. Earlier at the Shrine of the Virgin of the Revelation Church in Bullsbrook, over 130 people turned out for the lay association SACRI's celebration of the Feast of Christ the King, including a significant cohort of Knights and Ladies of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre. The Blessed Sacrament was held aloft under a canopy by SACRI chaplain, Fr M C Arulraj of Wanneroo Parish, as the congregation processed around the property, followed by Mass and afternoon tea. Founded in 1948 after what were reported to be apparitions of the Virgin Mary at Tre Fontane, Italy, and with its headquarters in Rome, the association has prayer groups which meet every Tuesday night in Joondana and North Beach. Organiser Michael Siciliano, who, like all members of the association, has taken the Biblical name of (Br) Aaron, told The Record that the Feast of Christ the King was one of the most important feasts for their association, describing it as an opportunity for the faithful to show some fervour and zeal and to bring that to their everyday lives. Below, preparing for Benediction and for the Mass that was to follow in which Fr Echeta urged Catholics to be forthright in their faith.
Left, SACRI 's Michael Sicilian° leads the Eucharistic Procession in Bullsbrook. Women throwing flowers and Ladies of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre preceded Knights holding aloft a canopy (above) for the Blessed Sacrament, carried by SACRI chaplain Fr Arulraj. The crowd walked from the church, past the Shrine of the Virgin of the Revelation (below left) and around the property. PHOTOS: ROBERT HIINI
Fr Nicholas Nweke and Jesus Christ in sacramental form, above, lead members of the Voice of the Voiceless ministry in procession from the undercover area at St Munchen's Catholic School (left). Around 80 people prayed the Rosary and the Divine Mercy Chaplet, singing hymns as they walked around the block, through local streets. Below centre, prayers of petition that were offered during Mass are burnt as congregants sing a song of entreaty, praying for the sick and the dead.
ART EXHIBITION "The art of the Christian Icon" by Ana Poznanovic November 28 to December 24 The University Club of Western Australia, 1 Hackett Drive Crawley WA 6009 Phone 6488 4284
November 25 2009, The Record
THE PARISH
Bishops welcome PM's extra $42.8m for chaplaincies BY ANTHONY BARICH National Reporter AUSTRALIA'S Catholic Bishops have welcomed the Federal Government's decision to provide an additional $42.8 million to extend the National School Chaplaincy Program (NSCP) for all participating schools until December 2011. During 2010 the Government will also be examining options for the future through a 'broad and detailed" consultation process, including with the National Catholic Education Commission who will dialogue with the Government on behalf of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference. Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, raised a Catholic and reportedly a "big fan" of school chaplains in providing support to children, announced the decision on November 21 at the annual Australian Christian Lobby (ACL) national conference in Canberra. While the previous Federal Government, led by a LiberalNational Party Coalition, initiated funding of the NSCP, making AUS$165 million available over three years to Australian schools to assist with chaplaincy services, local chaplaincy bodies were unsure as to whether the Labor-led Government, elected in May 2007, would renew it. Under the 2007 deal, school communities were eligible to apply for up to $20,000 a year to establish school chaplaincy services, or to expand existing chaplaincy services. This was available to both State and private schools, including Catholic institutions. Port Pine Bishop Greg O'Kelly SJ, Chairman of the Bishops' Commission for Catholic Education, said he was "particularly pleased" that the Federal Government had appeared to change its mind on the value of school chaplaincy. "The Federal Government was obviously impressed by the positive accounts given to them, especially by State schools; so clearly the government, which perhaps previously has not been supportive of the program, has modified its view and wants to develop chaplaincy programs, and has in the meantime decided to continue funding them," Bishop O'Kelly said. "It's very positive, as young people in both State and Catholic schools have issues that they're clarifying and coming to terms with. "They have conflicts that they need to talk to someone about who's not a teacher - somebody who's compassionate and objective, supportive and not judgemen-
Reports say Pope John PaulII closer to being declared venerable VATICAN CITY (CNS) - The Cardinal and Bishop members of the Congregation for Saints' Causes voted unanimously on
November 16 to recommend that Pope Benedict XVI formally recognise that Pope John Paul II heroically lived the Christian virtues, Italian newspapers reported. The Vatican did not deny or
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Cathedral lawn goes down
0 Stanley Jayaraj
tal. Bishop O'Kelly said that "if a child is concerned about being pressured by peers into taking drugs, has conflict in the home or with bullies, those issues transcend denominations". ACL managing director Jim Wallace urged the government's inquiry to reinforce the need for funding of the school chaplaincy program to be continued and extended and to consider whether there would be merit in developing a chaplaincy program to assist groups at high risk of suicide in the wider community. Bishop O'Kelly said that there is confusion over the terminology of the word 'chaplains'. "The word 'chaplain' is really the wrong title for such a job, as a chaplain is a senior spiritual person, he said. "These are more like counsellors or youth ministers. There is a confusion of terminology" Stanley Jayaraj, National School Chaplaincy Association convenor and YouthCARE chief executive, said the greater funding gives certainty to over 2,500 government and non-government schools across the country which presently access the service. "By extending funding for the program, the Prime Minister recognises the long term value and contribution of this program where school chaplains offer pastoral care to school communities across the country," Mr Jayaraj said. Prime Minister Kevin Rudd recently stated in Parliament that "chaplains do a fantastic job and in many school communities ... they are actually providing the glue which keeps school communities going", an NSCA statement said. Mr Jeyaraj said that the NSCA member organisations were looking forward to a constructive dialogue with the Australian Government over the next two years as the Prime Minister expressed a desire to see the program expanded to meet the greater
needs of the disadvantaged and those in rural and regional communities. Since 2007, State Schools Chaplaincy services provided by the NSCA has expanded from 650 schools to over 1,650 schools throughout the country. The National School Chaplaincy Association (NSCA) is represented by ACCESS Ministries (Victoria), Schools Ministry Group (SA), GenR8 Ministries (NSW), Scripture Union (ACT, Queensland, Tasmania) and YouthCARE (WA).
confirm that the vote took place because the process is supposed to be secret until Pope Benedict signs the decree recognising the heroic virtue of his predecessor and declares him venerable. Members of the Saints' Congregation meet regularly to study the life stories, eyewitness testimony and other documentation promoting the causes of proposed saints. The information is contained in a positio, or position paper, prepared by the promoter of the individual's cause. When the Cardinals and Bishops are satisfied that the "positio" is complete and demonstrates that
the sainthood candidate lived an extraordinarily holy life, they recommend the Pope sign the first decree. Once the promoter of a cause identifies a potential miracle attributed to the candidate's intercession, the documentation is turned over to the Saints' Congregation. A panel of physicians, a panel of theologians and the members of the congregation all must recommend the Pope sign a second decree recognising the miracle. When the decrees recognising the heroic virtues and the miracle are signed, a date is fixed for the candidate's beatification.
The lawns have gone down at St Mary's Cathedral as the December 8 opening and consecration draw near. The laying of the turf at the front of the Cathedral, one of the last major works to be carried out before December 8, has begun to give a clearer idea of how the historic project will look when completed. Hundreds will attend the official opening which may also see Prime Minister Kevin Rudd in attendance. Almost every Bishop from around Australia, and the Pope's representative Apostolic Nuncio Archbishop Giuseppe Lazzarotto, will attend. PHOTO- FR ROBERT CROSS
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a Meanwhile, the Cathedral's new Hobday (Chancel) Organ is now complete. Pictured at left are members of the South Island Organ Company team who have been working on the installation: rear, from left, William Walford, Colin van der Lecq, Zach Bennett, Bryan Jones, Scott Luky, Christian Schleintitz and Gerald Green. Pictured seated are Jacinta Jakovcevic , Director of Cathedral Music, and John Hargraves, Director of the South Island Organ Company. After two years of restoration, Miss Jakovcevic gave the Cathedral's historic Dodd organ (also known as the Grand Organ) its PHOTOS: COURTESY JACINTA JAKOVCEVIC first test drive.
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November 25 2009, The Record
THE NATION
SAS chief to marshall Perth youth BY ANTHONY BARICH
National Reporter
A FORMER SAS Commanding Officer who now directs the West Coast Eagles' Core Values Committee will seek to empower leaders in the Catholic faith when he headlines a Young Christian Workers' conference on November 28. James McMahon, a parishioner of St Joseph's in Subiaco, will speak on 'empowering and motivating leaders in the Catholic faith' at St Joseph's Church, Subiaco. The conference starts at 9am and will conclude with a 6pm Mass. Redemptorist Fr Dominic Savio, who recently finished a six month post as chaplain to Perth's Catholic Youth Ministry office and is currently chaplain of St Thomas More College in Crawley, will also speak on 'answering Christ's call to evangelise our youth as leaders'. Fr Savio, 44, who was ordained in Bangalore in 2000 and worked mainly in Africa in health care with HIV orphans, will speak on Christ's model of leadership as being relational. Christine Moro, an active Baptist and former high school chaplain who facilitated five workshops for the 'All About Jesus' Christian publicity campaign, will speak on connecting youth with opportunities for faith development. Fitness instructor Michael Sandrini, leader of the Discik)les of Jesus Covenant Community s 24:7 youth group, will address the conference on recruiting and retaining Catholic youth into youth groups, while his Disciples of Jesus confrere will speak on coordinating youth events. For more information contact Tristan Kolay on tjkolay@iprimus. com.au or 0412 732 329.
Prelates bat for beauty of Natural BY ANTHONY BARICII
National Reporter
AUSTRALIA'S Bishops have attacked the contraceptive mentality that is eroding Catholic marriages and has infected Catholic communities. In launching God's gift of life and love: A pastoral letter to Catholics on natural fertility methods on November 19, Australia's Bishops admitted "poor communication, hurt and confusion" on Church teaching regarding human sexuality in the past. In the resource, aimed at all Australian parishes and schools, the Bishops call "all the people in the Church in Australia - married, single, clergy, Religious to a renewed appreciation of the sacredness of married love and of the great sign of love and life which our couples witness to us". The Bishops said that children are viewed in the Christian way of life first and foremost as a gift, not a burden; and that Christians are under siege from a society and government policies that do not support family. "A prejudice has developed today, even in some Catholic circles, whereby large families are made to feel peculiar or unnatural," the Bishops said. "A fourth or fifth pregnancy is treated with sympathy from wellmeaning friends instead of joy and encouragement. "Such attitudes can cause parents to lose heart and consider that something is wrong with their being pregnant or wanting more children." Quoting Pope John Paul II's 1996 Encyclical Evangelium Vitae, Australia's Bishops said all Catholics are responsible to be faithful to Church teaching in what the late pontiff termed the Gospel of Life - the sacred value of
Bishop Eugene Hurley blesses the congregation during his installation Mass a s Bishop of Darwin. As chair of the Australian Bishops' Commission for Pastoral Life, he said the Church's teaching on sexuality can reduce divorce.
all human life from beginning to natural end. "Often in our modern society parents feel as though public institutions and policies oppose an openness to children: the Bishops said. "All too often communities adopt a materialistic ethic whereby things and objects are placed above people. "Sexual expression is reduced to the pursuit of pleasure and the possibility of conceiving a child is seen as interference rather than as a gift of married love." Widespread promotion of contraception, they say, has led to an acceptance of a mentality which separates procreative responsibility from the marital love union. "Through this separation we are experiencing a loss of appreciation of children who are sometimes portrayed as being an intrusion into one's lifestyle," they said. Darwin Bishop Eugene Hurley, Chairman of the Bishops
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COLLEGE AUSTRALIA FOR THE WONDER OF TRUTH
Commission for Pastoral Life which issued the resource, told The Record that the Church's teaching has the capacity to reduce divorce among Catholics and strengthen marriages. "It demands of couples the kind of communication and care that fosters a loving relationship: he said. "I also think it recognises that women are treated badly when usually men expect them to take medication to treat what is a perfectly proper and healthy and wonderful process, and that this puts women at risk. "I think many women are tired of being chemically treated for what is a sign of perfectly good health, and they're looking for a method that treats them with dignity, identifies their fertility and enhances their relationship: Australia's Bishops explain in the document the difference between avoiding conception through natural means and
through contraception, by highlighting the "contraceptive mindset" that is an intrinsic denial ot the marriage vows themselves. "Contraception alters the meaning of the sexual act itself," the Bishops say. To deliberately and wilfully cut off one's fertility in the very moment that life could begin, the Bishops say, creates an intrinsic contradiction. "On the one hand, a spouse is surrendering his/her whole self. "Yet in the midst of that surrender there is a denial experience by the couple who, in effect, say to each other: 'No, I will not offer you all of me. No, I will not accept all of you: In this way an implicit falsehood becomes embedded in an activity which opposes its intrinsic value as a source and expression of total self-giving." By its stance, the Catholic Church is protecting the "precious meaning" of the marital covenant and the promotion of life, the Bishops said, and explain that the Church's teaching is counter-cultural, as the concept of waiting is anathema to a society "where we have grown to expect instant gratification". Abstinence, they say, calls for the husband to be attentive to the wife's fertility, thus appreciating her womanhood in a deeper way. "To patiently endure is a feature of many aspects of the Christian life and is always aimed at bringing about an even deeper joy and love," they said. Natural family planning also gives hope to childless couples struggling to conceive, the Bishops say, as modern methods of natural fertility in achieving pregnancy have proved highly effective. "By education in natural fertility regulation, diagnosis and correction of reproductive abnormalities by competent doctors can be facilitated: they say.
New Valentine's focus chosen to help reclaim meaning of marriage continued from page 1 nity, he said, adding that research findings confirm that marriage provides benefits to both the couple and their children. "And yet, loving, stable marriages don't attract a lot of attention from church and community organisations until they become unstable: the prelate said. "It is thus vitally important that we make frequent use of opportunities to affirm marriage and highlight the value of a loving marriage to the community:' Bishop Hurley told The Record that Australia's Bishops are passionate about having happy marriages and good families, and "strive in every way to look for opportunities to support families and promote genuine life-giving love". The document, published on the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference website on November 19, was approved at their May Plenary meeting. While Valentine's Day is not until February 14, Bishop Hurley said the resource was released three months in advance so people understand how crucial the Church's teachings are and are able to prepare and celebrate the feast. "It's important they don't just celebrate it as a one-off event with-
out taking full opportunity of it," he told The Record. The resource provides practical suggestions for parishes and schools to celebrate World Marriage Day on February 14, 2010 and contains a reproducible leaflet 'Be My Valen-time!' to be distributed to parishioners on or around St Valentine's Day. It also contains notes for the liturgies for around St Valentine's Day, including prayers of the faithful, offertory prayers, readings, blessings for couples and homily notes for parish Masses and school paraliturgies; newsletter inserts and tips for building a marriagefriendly community. "Catholic education is organically part of the Catholic Church, and the responsibility of the school is to work with families and enhance good health and happiness, and this is an excellent way of doing it," he said. It also lists websites of organisations that seek to strengthen marriage, including Retrouvaille, Focolare, Schoenstatt, Couples for Christ and For Your Marriage (www.foryourmarriage.org), a US Bishops' initiative. The resource can be downloaded from the Australian Catholic Bishops' website, www.catholic. org.au.
November 25 2009, The Record
Page 7
THE NATION
Bishops should open up to SSPX: Elliott BY ANTHONY BARICH National Reporter BISHOPS with a St Pius X Society community in their dioceses should reach out with the hand of friendship if unity is to be achieved, a senior Catholic prelate said. Melbourne Auxiliary Bishop Peter Elliott, who has a Lefebvrist parish in his region and attended a Rosary and dinner with Pius X Society priests at St Agatha's Church, Cranboune, Victoria on October 29, said socialisation with the traditionalist group is the key to unity. The prelate, who spent 10 years as an official of the Pontifical Council for the Family in the Roman Curia and as chaplain of Pope John Paul II, told The Record that the intention of the Rosary was that talks recently commenced between the Vatican and the Pius X Society will be successful. The Rosary and dinner was also attended by Roman Catholic priests from the Archdiocese of Melbourne and the Diocese of Sale. "Every Bishop who has a Lefebvre community in their diocese or region should reach out with the hand of friendship, which is much easier now that the excommunication of the Bishops has been lifted," said Bishop Elliott, a consulter to the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments. "If we practise ecumenism with separated Christians, we are surely bound to bring that same spirit into our relations with our own brothers and sisters in the Church, no matter what problems have arisen in the recent past. "It's time to reach out and break the isolation. "They've always been Catholics; the unity effort seeks to regularise their position according to Canon Law in the Church and hopefully to integrate them in the life of the Church with their own structure In January, Pope Benedict XVI lifted the excommunications of four Bishop members of the Society, who were ordained against papal orders in 1988, and said he hoped the
Sale Bishop Christopher Prowse, second from right, front row, and Melbourne Auxiliary Bishop Peter PHOTO: CATHOLIC LIFE NEWSPAPER Elliott, second from left, front row, with Society of St Pius X priests.
move would open the way for a serious dialogue about doctrinal differences between the Church and the traditionalist group. Bishop Christopher Prowse of Sale, Victoria, whose diocese hosts the largest Pius X Society community in Australia, said the Rosary and dinner was organised to follow the lead of Pope Benedict. "We saw that the Pope was encouraging openness towards the Society and we realised we have the biggest community in Australia here, so we need to offer hospitality; said Bishop Prowse, who was also appointed as a chaplain to the Pope in 2001. "I hadn't met most of them before, so it shows you the importance of getting to know each other so we can see what the Holy Spirit might be doing in the Church
and in helping us understand how we can get through these roadblocks. "There was a great openness and respectfulness of each other's opinions. "In Scripture, division among Christians is a scandal of the Gospel. Christ in the Last Supper prayed that we all be one, so we must work at it globally. "We get encouragement from the present Pope's initiatives and dialogue with other Christian denominations; and on local levels we must resonate that openness as best as we can." Bishop Elliott, who had a private meeting with Society of St Pius X superior general Bishop Bernard Fellay in August, said the key to unity with Levebvrists is for the entire Church to "reflect on understanding tradi-
tion as a living dynamic process, but always based on the foundations of the past teachings of Popes and councils". At the private meeting, held at the Society's base at Tynong, Victoria, Bishop Elliott said he pointed out to Bishop Fellay that "the hermeneutic of continuity - which Pope Benedict has mentioned and which he certainly presented before he became Pope - is probably the best key to a sound understanding of the Second Vatican Council. "By contrast, the hermeneutic of rupture presents the Council and any changes that followed it as a radical break with the past and the beginning of more breaks with the past:' said Bishop Elliott, who is also director of the John Paul II Institute for Marriage and Family Studies in Melbourne. "But Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger argued that this is a false interpretation of the Council; and I think that this interpretation has to go. It's important that we see the Council in the context of the whole history of the Church, and not as some revolutionary break with the past." Bishop Elliott, a former Anglican, said there is a parallel situation with Anglicans who seek reunion with the Holy See, as "they are pulling out of the Anglican communion precisely because it is largely dominated by the hermeneutic of rupture, which they see is not compatible with classical Christianity". "Some people have argued that this should also apply to situations like South Brisbane, but there is no comparison at all, as the Lefebvrists have maintained full Catholic faith and practice, as distinct from extremists in other directions; Bishop Elliott said. Fr Peter Kennedy, parish administrator of St Mary's in South Brisbane, left the Church and brought his own congregation with him to form another group in the local hall after Archbishop John Bathersby said they excommunicated themselves by not conforming to liturgical standards in Mass or Baptisms nor respecting his authority. In Australia, the Pius X Society has communities in Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Brisbane and Goulburn, New South Wales.
Church issues warning after SA euthanasia defeat BY ANTHONY BARICH National Reporter THE Archdiocese of Adelaide has warned Catholics to be vigilant leading up to the State's March 20, 2010 election after a Greenssponsored euthanasia bill was narrowly defeated in the early hours of November 19. Adelaide Archdiocesan Family and Life Officer Paul Russell told The Record that with two staunch pro-life Liberal MPs Robert Lawson QC and Michelle Schaeffer about to retire, the movement is set to lose control of the Upper House.
"People need to remember the closeness of this vote in the future, vote below the line in the next election and give priority to those identified as pro-life; Mr Russell said. A euthanasia bill is almost certain to be introduced after the March election, as Independent MP Bob Such has repeatedly introduced his own 'dying with dignity' bill into the Lower House, which until now has given it scant attention and is unlikely to reach resolution. MP Ann Independent Bressington, whose vote was
expected to be the deciding one on November 19, abstained after three of her amendments were rejected during third-reading debate. "As a society, we're not ready for this yet. I don't believe we are responsible enough; Ms Bressington said. While pro-lifers expected her abstention to give the bill successful passage, atheist David Ridgway, a passionate supporter of euthanasia throughout the debate, stunned both sides of parliament when he changed his mind on the last day after his mother died during the week.
The bill was defeated 11 votes to nine. "I don't come to here with any great religious disposition as some members who are opposed to the bill or any other real position; he said. "I just, at this point in time, don't feel comfortable supporting the bill. There are some parts of it that ... my conscience just won't allow me to support, so with those few words I indicate I won't be supporting the bill; Mr Ridgeway said. Mr Russell said that this was the miracle pro-lifers were praying for. Australian Family Association State Secretary Damian Wyld said
that "common sense has prevailed. The public might sometimes question our democratic institutions, but I think this vote should restore their faith for the moment. The failed bill was a shocker". "It didn't restrict itself to terminal illness, but would have been available to anyone suffering an 'intolerable' condition, which would include all manner of disabilities; he said. "Heaven knows where we could have ended up with such a scheme. We might have truly become 'New Holland', complete with the Netherlands' euthanasia horror stories;
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Page 8
LETTERS
Angel-post beats email every time
0
ne of the truly gratifying and encouraging facts of our faith is the Communion of the Saints and any time of the year is excuse enough to think upon them and rejoice and to editorialise (extemporaneously and at considerable lenph if one feels so inclined) on why they manifest so astonishingly Gods great goodness and love for us. A fortnight ago this paper reflected on the occasions of All Saints and All Souls, wonderful and encouraging feasts in the Christian year. However all too often, as someone once said, we Catholics call ourselves a Church of the Resurrection but don't actually behave very often as though we believe in its truth. And yet we are, as St Paul wrote in his letter to the Hebrews, constantly surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses. Paul's words are a wonderful metaphor and his metaphor is one of great precision. He was writing about the Saints, not only those alive in this life now but those great men and women of faith, some of whose names we know but who, for the greater part, remain largely unknown. The Saints certainly are very much like tiny droplets of water, billions of which form a cloud surrounding us wherever we go. But we know they are there. And they surround us in any direction we care to look, interceding, reassuring and beckoning us onwards to what so often seems impossible in the ordinariness, the challenges, anxieties and sufferings of our daily lives: the sainthood they now experience forever is the normality we are called to become as well. This is what the Church is for. Meanwhile, Advent is very nearly upon us and in this wonPO Box 75 derful time of preparation and Leederville WA 6902 expectation we can reflect that cathrec@iinet.net.au the Saints are also very near. As we enter Advent, we can Tel: (08) 9227 7080 also do well to begin to steel Fax: (08) 9227 7087 ourselves against the onslaught that is coming against our joy when so much of our nation enters into the season of Christmas apparently devoid in any detectable sense of anything to do with Christ. We will see everywhere Christmas advertising and post-Christmas sales, we will be exposed to a blizzard of junk mail in our letterboxes and in our email inboxes, all seeking with something that sounds very much like desperation or fanaticism to persuade us to spend up big for those we love and for ourselves. We will certainly witness yet again the ongoing efforts to marginalise Christianity as media, companies, government leaders, local authorities and the like awkwardly try to wish us the compliments of the season without actually referring to its reason or its meaning, wishing us all the sentiment but without any of the substance. These lunacies are annoying, but should not deter us from looking forward to the birth of the Christ Child who is also the child king, an event which can truthfully be described as the explosion into this world of the reality of the spiritual and the world of the spirit - of God. Meanwhile, it is the Saints whose own lives express and testify so eloquently and remarkably to the truth of the spiritual and the kingdom of God; they gave adequate time in their lives to prayer and reflection and self-denial and it was to the spiritual world that they gave the highest priority in their own daily existence. Among the most remarkable of the modern Saints is a young woman of extraordinary attractiveness and beauty that very few Catholics know about today, but about whom we should know much more. St Gemma Galgani was born in 1878 near the Italian town of Lucca and died in 1903. In her 25 short years she became one of the great mystics of modern times, comparable in many ways to St Padre Pio. Two things are important to know about St Gemma: she loved Christ totally, and she beat the Devil. She bore the stigmata and reached such a degree of union with Christ that she was regularly attacked by none other than Satan himself. She knew and could see her guardian angel, spoke with him daily, even getting, him to run errands for her such as delivering letters to her spiritual director in other towns and cities. On one occasion the Devil appeared to her as her confessor, on another as an angel. When temptation failed he beat her violently on numerous occasions, doing things such as dragging her out of bed, dislocating her joints and hitting her head against the wall. On some occasions he appeared as a giant black dog who would attack her in bed. In everything she trusted completely in God. Her spiritual director, a Passionist Priest, got so used to angelic deliveries of her letters and replies that he eventually gave up testing their reality. One such test was to go to another city that St Gemma would have no idea of - Corneto. While there, he later wrote in her biography, there was a knock at the door and, when he answered it, a small boy presented him with a letter and then walked off. It was, of course, a letter from St Gemma, hand-delivered angelically. "I always received the angelic letters faithfully. The fact is unusual ... I confess I do not understand it at all ... To how many tests didI not submit this singular phenomenon in order to convince myself that it took place through a supernatural intervention! And yet none of my tests ever failed; and thusIwas convinced again and again..." he wrote. Once, when the Devil appeared to St Gemma disguising himself as an angel of God, she was so angry when she discovered the trick that she spat in his face. Plucky girl. It is no surprise that in modern times, as recorded in the recently published The Rite: the making of a modern exorcist by journalist Matt Baglio, exorcists know that deliverance is near when demons howl in dismay and fear because St Gemma has appeared to assist the exorcist to deliver the poor souls whose bodies they have possessed. Go, Gemma.
THE RECORD
November 25 2009, The Record
Letters to the editor
Great TV spots
/
am very impressed with Archbishop Hickey's spots on prime-time television. It is a good thing to see the shepherd teach this way, and it makes you feel good to be a Catholic when the message pops up during the news breaks; the visual impact is striking. The current Kingdom of God message is particularly strong and timely, and I think that message will appeal to a much broader audience. People do want to know about these things, and the good influence of these short teachings cannot be overestimated. As a full time lay Catholic Evangelist,I am very much encouraged by the Archbishop's example. Eddie Russell FMI Flame Ministries International
Crucifixes in Italian schools
T
hose Italian officials who have defied the European Human Rights Court's order to remove crucifixes from schools are to be commended. However, I cannot agree with some who have apparently defended the crucifix on the somewhat patronising ground that "it is one of our cultural references." Crucifixion, when the symbol first appeared in the early days of the Church, was not a cultural reference at all. It signified a grotesque method of execution for rebellious slaves and others who got ideas above their station. We should not defend the symbol of the Cross because it is a cultural reference like the Mona Lisa or the Venus de Milo but because it symbolises the saving of the world. Guy Crouchback, Nedlands, WA
Sharper focus needed on women in the Church
W
ithin a certain group within the Church there is a persistent call for women to prove their equality to men. Women have already demanded their right to be accepted as priests and that has not been allowed. The Council for Australian Catholic Women has now stated their wish to be accepted as deacons. But why? One must examine why there is this call for women to be admitted to offices that have been the traditional role of men. This is not a secular world that one is writing about. This world of religion encompasses a deep spiritual belief in which humility is a guiding light to lead us. Jesus Christ, born of a woman and of God (a dimension far above all other births) chose men as his followers, to do the work that He
was doing, to give the message that He was giving, and to leave family and "go out and teach all nations". Why then do women say that they are entitled to these important positions within the Church? Why change the basic structure of Christianity given by Jesus Christ? Why did Christ pick men to leave everything and show us how we should live on this earth? Although we are all human people, men and women are different in their nature. Women are the bearers of the next generation. For one thing, women often cannot leave everything if there are children or older dependents in the household who still need them. Women nurture by nature - like St Monica who held her son Augustine close to her heart all her life and won him over before she died, to change his lifestyle and become a very saintly person. Hasn't the time been reached when women's groups recognise that they have a special talent to fulfil important roles within the Church conveying the message of Jesus Christ to the world? Women are not, in any way, inferior, within the Church. Patricia Malone Scarborough WA
Warming not the Number One issue
/
have read both sides of the debate on global warming and believe sin and the diversity of opinions within the Catholic Church are a threat to our world. Holy Scripture is the word of God. Relativism, Pope Benedict said at World Youth Day 2008, "detached from any consideration of what is good or true can lead not to genuine freedom but to moral or intellectual confusion, to a lowering of standards, to a loss of self and even to despair. Dear friends, life is not governed by chance, it is not random, your very existence has been willed by God." Mother Teresa said there would never be peace in the world while we have the evil of abortion. The 10 commandments are long forgotten and evil and sin are spreading more and more; we see things such as Catholic venues used for speakers who vote and help pass laws for the evil of abortion, same sex marriages and so on. The list is long and continues, but, at the same time, Catholics who speak the truth are denied their say. Listen to all our Holy Father, says. He is our shepherd, leader and guide towards our salvation. Pray, go to Mass, receive the Holy Eucharist in the state of Grace, use the Sacramentals as a protection against the evils of the world. Don't doubt the existence of the Devil. Margaret Thomas Mullewa WA
Thank you, Guy
I
welcome the generally excellent "contra-atheism" article by Guy Crouchback in The Record of November 4: "Without good, as countless philosophers ... have pointed out, evil is simply meaningless. ...... if there is good, there must be a God. Under whatever name that God may go." Philosophically, well said. Faith must be underpinned by solid rational foundations. It is, nonetheless, strange to thus read of a "God of any name" in any religiously specific publication. The very fact of that could cause con-
fusion to some, perhaps implyin that "all religions are the same,' according to the currently popular notion. I address myself to that concern in light of John 3:16 ("For God so loved the world that He sent His only begotten Son ..."). As an adult convert to Faith in Jesus Christ from precisely Richard Dawkins' type of Darwinian Atheism,Ipoint out from non-edifying experience that the mere rational-philosophical acknowledgement of "a God out there somewhere" is only the rawest beginning of crawling out of the spiritual-moral "primeval slime." It is necessary for fallen and sinridden humanity - especially with a 40 million per year global abortion holocaust - that all due witness be given to the truths of supernatural divine revelation, referring in the first instance to the Bible, from Genesis to the Apocalypse. "The Lord is the God of my Salvation." We only lay foundations in order to build on them and God has already revealed his holy name (and 'scientifically' proven Himself over and over and over). The God of Abraham cannot be separated into pieces so that we can pick what we like and reject what doesn't suit us. "We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth; of all that is, seen and unseen ..." Science is but man's study of God's creation. Trevor Boardman Maylands WA
Marriage is the foundation
M
arriage of a man and a woman is a totally natural relationship to which most people are naturally drawn and in which most people find happiness and fulfilment. It is also nature's way to provide for the preservation of the species, both in reproduction and in the fully human nurture and development of children. Marriage is also the foundation of the common good of the community. The collapse of so many marriages under the assaults of the self-centred modern world is the cause of the destruction of so much of the common good that should be the cohesive social capital of society. There have been many large and long-term studies of children from birth to adulthood which show that children of stable marriages are far better off by every measure in their own well-being and in social relationships at all stages, than children of cohabitation or broken marriages. Early missionaries in England wrote to the Pope at the time of the terrible state of society there - of the levels of aggression, lawlessness, random sexuality, broken families and neglect of children, which made their efforts futile. Pope Gregory told them to concentrate on teaching them about marriage and its many benefits; which they did and England recovered eventually. It is high time we Australians acknowledge the truth of what is going on in our society by the persistent pounding of the media and the pandering to the young and weak of easy access to the false pleasure of porn, booze, drugs, bonking, speed, greed and violence - all in the name of the toxic "freedom of choice" to do what we feel like - really to become slaves to passion and destroy stable marriages and healthy family life. John Carty Goornong Victoria
al
November 25 2009, The Record
THE RECORD VISTA
We have an Altar
An altar is prepared for celebration of the Mass in St Peter's Basilica in Rome, late in 2008. The altar where the sacrifice of Christ is re-presented is the most sacred object in a Church, says Auxiliary Bishop Peter Elliott of Melbourne, in a special series on the significance of the Christian altar appearing in The Record in the lead-up to the official opening and consecration of St Mary's Cathedral.
PHOTO: PETER ROSENGREN
As the official opening of St Mary's Cathedral draws closer, one of Australia's leading liturgists begins a new series for The Record on the significance of an altar - the very reason why any church or Cathedral exists BY BISHOP PETER J ELLIOTT
1
n every Catholic church we find an altar. In a remote mission station the altar may be the only object in a simple church. This reminds us that a church is constructed primarily to cover an altar. A church can be defined as a covered space where the community is gathered by God to do what Jesus Christ commanded at the Last Supper, to celebrate his Eucharistic sacrifice. The essential object in the church, the central focus for worship, is the sacred table set aside for the Mass. Most of the other furnishings of a church are derived from the altar or relate to it: first the ambo or lectern for the proclamation of the word, then the chair for the presiding priest, the places for the people, servers and choir, the tabernacle for reserving the Eucharist, and particularly the baptismal font where the first sacrament of Christian Initiation is celebrated, for Baptism always leads to the Eucharist. Most religions have "altars", but the word is often used loosely to describe what are really shrines, or places for sacred images.
Strictly speaking, the word "altar" refers to a specific table or structure where sacrifices are offered to God or to the gods. The Old Testament includes many references to altars, where sacrifices of animals, wheat etc were offered and usually burnt. A rather complex system of sacrifices developed, first in the tabernacle tent of the desert, then in various sacred sites such as Shiloh and finally in the Temple established on Mount Zion in Jerusalem. The Passover required the annual sacrifice of an unblemished lamb for a sacred meal, a domestic rite celebrating and reliving the liberation and covenant of Israel. Jesus Christ abolished the Temple sacrifices when he changed the Passover into his own sacrificial meal for his new Israel, the Church. He gave himself as the "Lamb of God" in a true sacrifice and sacred meal at the Last Supper, and a domestic table became an altar. He revealed his atoning and reconciling work for us, accomplished the next day, once and for all, when a criminal's cross became an altar. That cross was later understood as pointing to another "altar" beyond this world, an altar which is a symbolic way of describing the eternal self-giving love within God the Trinity. In the Letter to the Hebrews, the self-giving of Christ, beloved Son and High Priest in eternity, is described. Jesus himself is Priest, Victim and Altar. Therefore, the Christian place of sacrifice or the "holy table" of the Lord, is the "great sign of Christ" in each church. This is why the altar is placed in a central position, where we can all see it. It is meant to be an object of beauty and splendour, worthy of the real presence of the Lord himself. Nothing is to be placed on it except what pertains to the
Eucharistic sacrifice and banquet. It is also a permanent object, one reason why most Catholic altars are fixed into the floor and made of stone or marble. Christ is the Rock of his People, true God and true Man, with us forever, always among us.
"On December 8, Archbishop Hickey will dedicate the new altar of the restored and completed St Mary's Cathedral." The symbolism of the altar as the great sign of Christ is revealed when it is dedicated by the Bishop. On December 8, Archbishop Hickey will dedicate the new altar of the restored and completed St Mary's Cathedral. He will first sprinkle the altar with holy water, then he will anoint it with the most sacred oil, Holy Chrism. Then it will be crowned with a blazing fire of fragrant incense and it will be dedicated (or set apart) with a solemn prayer. These are all signs of the work and presence of the Holy Spirit, who is one with Our Lord, "the Christ", the "anointed One". Henceforth, this anointed table can only be used for one purpose - the celebration of the holy Eucharist. After it has been dedicated, the great sign of Christ will be dressed with the cloths and candles that we use at every celebration of the Eucharist. But finally something greater than symbolism will take place and this is the real dedication of this altar. Archbishop Hickey will celebrate Mass on it. Here we pass beyond symbolism, for Christ himself becomes really, truly and substantially present among us in the celebration of His Sacrifice. His Body and Blood are offered up for us, and then given to us and received by
us at this sacred table at the heart of a noble cathedral, the mother church of the Church in Perth. The earliest Christian altars were made of wood, obviously because Mass was first celebrated in people's homes. But the stone table in a Roman villa was also used for Mass. Once public churches could be built, altars were made of stone or marble. Today, we follow ancient tradition in constructing our altars from stone, fine marble or solid wood. A stone altar is a sign of a permanent place of sacrifice linking us with our Jewish heritage, because the altars described in the Hebrew Scriptures were made of stones. However, the Christian altar is not only a holy place of sacrifice. As the beautiful prayers of dedicating an altar remind us, it is at the same time the holy table of the Last Supper, where the faithful come to receive the Body and Blood of Christ, to be nourished in the eucharistic feast. Indeed the Lord's table on earth is a foretaste of the heavenly banquet - "blessed are those who are called to the supper of the Lamb". The altar itself draws together the two complementary dimensions of the Mass the holy sacrifice and the holy meal. It is not a matter of "either" "or". The Mass is both a saving sacrifice and a sacred meal. Jesus offers His Body and Blood for the living and the dead and then gives us His offered Body and Blood to be our food of eternal life. How wonderful is the Lord's sacred table where these mysteries are accomplished. This is the most sacred object in the church, the great sign of Christ Himself, centrally located at the heart of the sacred space where God gathers His people to worship. Bishop Elliott is an Auxiliary Bishop of Melbourne and author of numerous works, especially in the field of liturgy.
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111V hile here in your parish of the group. I said that I had read the report the Good Shepherd I have of the Synod of Bishops on the state of been talking about your Europe some ten years ago. It contained particular mission. It is a many parallels with Australia when it spoke noble one. It is to form a of secularism and the instability of family Christian community com- life. The report finished up on a positive posed of followers of Jesus Christ. This note, but as far as I could see it did not say community is built up by the desire of the how bad things were, nor give any realisCatholics in this area to come together to tic proposals about how to combat these worship God, to know Jesus better and to malign forces. live his way. The Rectors told me some of the disThe parish is to draw them together as turbing things that were happening in the one family of brothers and sisters under Church. In some areas of France, Germany, the fatherhood of God. It does so under Holland and Belgium parishes which had the spiritual leadership of your two priests. been under lay control because of the lack In this Year of the Priest I ask you to of priests simply refused to accept priests pray for them and support them as they when they became available. They were give their lives to you as Good Shepherds, not wanted except to consecrate hosts from preachers of the Word and ministers of the time to time. Lay control had become Sacraments of Salvation. entrenched and not even the Bishops knew The parish is at one and the same time a what to do. preparatory school and a finishing school. One Diocese refused to accept a conIt offers children and those servative Bishop appointed by new to the faith the elements Rome and barred him from his of the Christian life and the Cathedral. Rome had finally experience of being united to make other arrangements. to Christ as members of his In another Diocese many body. In this learning school of the priests in parishes had the members of the parish look wives and families. Their peoafter each other to make sure ple saw nothing wrong in this. no-one is without friends or Again, the Bishop was powerloving brothers and sisters in less to do anything. whatever circumstances they Vocal and active groups find themselves. were lobbying to change the It is also a finishing school. Church's doctrines on homoThe parish prepares you to fulsexuality, gay marriages, confil your vocation in the world, traception, divorce and remarto develop the essential thinkriage, abortion and, of course, ing and critique that MUST Archbishop Hickey speaks Church authority structures. go on about the role of the to Kelmscott parishioners Little was being done to silence Christian in the world today. on November 8. them. Here is the rub. What are Other disturbing trends the priorities of the committed Christian were identified in national policies. in today's world? Christians are not only Governments and international organisacalled to a personal life of holiness, they tions were imposing a completely secular are also called to bring the world to Christ. agenda on countries with some success. The Church, through its members, is to be Recently the European Court of Human a leaven that penetrates the world with the Rights found that crucifixes in Italian presence and action of God. schools constituted a violation of secular If we watch the media we will be told and religious freedom. our priorities - global warming, economic It is clear this is a preparatory step to instability, the exhaustion of oil supplies, their actual banning, probably across all of refugees, poverty, denial of human rights, Europe. How is it that an external power can AIDS and Swine Flu. control the affairs of a nation? This gives us All of these are matters of great concern, a word of warning about ceding to the UN but for me there is one massive problem or other world bodies our independence in which is more destructive of human dignity legislation and policy. and health than all the others. "In one country the State Health It is the instability and breakdown of family life. It goes with attacks on the family, programmes suggest that parents the undermining of parental rights, and the sexually stimulate their children work of international agencies and secular governments to hasten the disappearance to discover whether they are of the Christian family and to take over the straight or gay. This would be role of parents. This is serious stuff, but I am not exagconsidered child abuse here." gerating. My recent trip to Europe left me a little stunned and shaken. Let me explain. UNESCO, set up to advance education In Italy I attended a meeting of 72 Rectors and culture, has drawn up guidelines for of seminaries from around the world. Many countries on sex education in order to comcame from Europe, Western and Eastern. bat HIV infections. They gave me an insight into problems These Guidelines endorse masturbation within the Catholic Church and within soci- and homosexual activity. They recommend ety. At the end of the meeting I addressed that teachers begin discussions on mas-
turbation for children aged five to eight, becoming more explicit for nine to twelve year olds. This also includes condom use and legal abortion. If the powers of the UN over national curricula become stronger, will Australia fall in line? In one country the State Health programs suggest that parents sexually stimulate their children to discover whether they are straight or gay. This would be considered child abuse here. I can still remember vividly a Missionary of Charity in Finland telling me of the aim of the Government to take sex education away from parents. These educators go to schools with the full secular agenda of sexuality. Among other things they advocate passionately that girls should be sexually active as soon as they reach puberty or they will grow up with mental health and psychological problems and have hang-ups about sex for life. The problem here is not just the appalling agenda, but the attempt of governments to impose this on children against the parents' wishes and even take over from them their primary role of education. Unfortunately they have some justification for what they do as the numbers of people who marry is very low, cohabitation rapidly becoming the norm. 'Mum and Dad' is a fading reality. Who can say that Australian governments will not follow suit? How do we prevent or overcome this? We might call on the voice of the people to protest but there is no guarantee that these voices will be heard. If parishes are finishing schools for the development of faith and vocation, we want more people with an interest in public life to stand for parliament. Voting in controversial legislation only takes a majority of parliamentarians to pass it. Recent atrocious laws about abortion and embryonic stem cell research only passed by one or two votes. Will the same happen with euthanasia, assisted suicide and cloning? Why wouldn't it? If we do not encourage people with strong Christian values about life, marriage and family to enter parliament, nothing will change. The Church cannot be involved in politics but it can encourage Catholics and other Christian people to enter parliament, bringing with them their own personal convictions formed by their Church upbringing. Is anyone listening? I sincerely hope so. How can we protect newly weds from the dangers to their future family, and their relationships in a society that is increasingly devaluing marriage, accepting cohabitation as the norm and promoting contraception to limit the number of children as a threat to the environment? This, too, is part of the vocation of the Church which includes me, the priests and, most of all, you. We must value marriage, promote Christian marriage and nurture those marriages in our faith communities and parishes. Taken from notes for talk given to parish volunteers on November 8
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n a talk given to parishioners of Good Shepherd Parish in Kelmscott in early November, ARCHBISHOP BARRY HICKEY set out a disturbing vision of growing campaigns by secular authorities in Europe to eradicate Christianity. A recent visit to the continent, he said, had left him "a little stunned and shaken." Governments are marshalling legislation aimed at undermining parents and the Christian family. Meanwhile, in some parts of Europe the conflict has entered the Church where laity openly treat priests and bishops as if they are irrelevant. A key battleground, says Archbishop Hickey, is marriage. PHOTO: JUSTINE STEVENS
Children light candles as they offer prayers for departed loved ones to mark All Souls' Day at the cemetery of Holy Rosary Church in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on November 2. However, it is the campaign precisely against the transmission of religious faith to children and the traditional family unit that political and bureaucratic leaders in Europe and many other countries are willingly endorsing or initiating. Key aspects of this, says Archbishop Barry Hickey, include laws removing parents' rights to educate their chi1dren in areas such as relationships and human sexuality. PHOTO: CNS/ANDREW BIRAJ, REUTERS
Atheist Bus Campaign creator Ariane Sherine poses in front of a bus bearing an atheist message during the launch of the campaign in London on January 6 this year. The atheist advertisements were to appear on 800 buses and 1,000 subway trains in Britain. The professional advertising campaign is one expression of an increasingly confident face of hostility to Christianity, often aimed at the Catholic Church for its moral voice and stance, which is most notable in places such as Europe. PHOTO: CNS/ANDREW WINNING, REUTERS
Faces secular Europe's increasingly antiChristian politicians want to forget Here are just a few recent examples of the kind of patrimony and values that secularised Eurogovernments and bureaucrats want to see eliminated from memory in that continent today. Blessed Franz Jagerstatter: Born in Austria in 1907 he was reputed to have led something of a wild life as a youth and fathered a child out of wedlock in 1933. He married Franziska Schwaninger, a girl from a nearby village, in 1936 and they went to Rome on their honeymoon. A Catholic by birth, he experienced a religious awakening - apparently about the time of his marriage - and later served as sexton of his parish church. When German troops moved into Austria in 1938, Jagerstatter was the only person in the village to vote against the Anschluss. He
remained openly anti-Nazi, and publicly declared he would not fight in the war. After many delays, Jagerstatter was called to active duty in February 1943. By this time, he had three daughters with his wife, the eldest not quite six. He maintained his position against fighting for the Third Reich, and was imprisoned, first at Linz, then at Berlin. After a military trial, he was sentenced to death and subsequently executed by guillotine on August 9, 1943, aged 36. He was beatified by Pope Benedict in June 2007.
Heart of a Lioness, Sophie Magdalena Scholl: (May 9, 1921 - February 22, 1943) An astonishingly courageous young woman active within the White R ose non-violent resistance group of six Christian youth at the University of Munich in Nazi Germany. Like the White Rose's other members, her firm Christian belief in God and in every human being's essential dignity formed her basis for resisting Nazi ideology. A Lutheran, she was convicted of high treason after having been found distributing anti-war leaflets at the University of Munich with her brother Hans. As a result, they were both executed by guillotine. In the People's Court before Judge Roland Freisler on February 21, 1943, Scholl was recorded as
saying "Somebody, after all, had to make a start. What we wrote and said is also believed by many others. They just do not dare express themselves as we did:' On February 22, 1943, Sophie Scholl, her brother Hans and
their friend Christoph Probst were found guilty of treason and condemned to death. They were all beheaded by executioner Johann Reichhart in Munich's Stadelheim Prison only a few hours later at 5pm. The execution was supervised by Dr Walter Roemer, the enforcement chief of the Munich district court. Prison officials, in later describing the scene, emphasised the courage with which she walked to her execution. Her last words were "How can we expect righteousness to prevail when there is hardly anyone willing to give himself up individually to a righteous cause. Such a fine, sunny day, and I have to go, but what does my death matter, if through us thousands of people are awakened and stirred to action?"
The Philosopher: Jacques Maritain (1882-1973), a French convert to the Catholic faith, was the most important figure in the renewal of Thomist philosophy in the 20th century and was a profound influence on the course of modern Catholicism. In 1948 he authored almost all of the United
Nations' Universal Declaration of Human Rights, still in effect today. His more than 60 books spanned philosophy, aesthetics, political theory, the philosophy of science, metaphysics, education, liturgy and ecclesiology. Recommended reading: The Peasant of the Garonne.
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Gone to God after life well lived
Joy Cully BY GLYNNIS GFtAINGER
Record Contributor
A TIRELESS community worker, mother and grandmother, Joy Cully was a devout Catholic who was unable to cook as a new bride after settling in Manjimup, where she lived the rest of her life. She passed away, aged 80, on October 5 in the Warren District Hospital, seven years and two days after her husband Stan died. It was the same hospital where she had been a member of the 'Auxiliary, enjoying many chats with patients. Baptised Lena Joy, she was the firstborn of Selena, nee Martens, and Herbert Stephenson in Narrogin on April 22, 1929, followed by Bill and Mary. The family lived in Harrismith, where her father ran the local Co-op, then moved to Perth, to Palmerston Street, Leederville. When she was 10 years old, her father passed away, and the family moved numerous times throughout the Perth suburbs, before they finally settled in Orchid Street, Joondanna, with her maiden aunt, Nora. Shortly after moving to Orchid Street, Joy turned 21 and her party was held there. About this time, Joy was being escorted to a friend's wedding by another male friend, when she met Stan. Joy married Stanley James Cully on September 12, 1953, at St Denis' Church, Tuart Hill and after honeymooning in Geraldton, settled on the Cully family farm at East Manjimup. Thirteen months later, their first child Peter arrived, followed by Anne, Margaret, Michael and Julie. On moving to the farm, the art of regulating the Metters wood stove took years of persistence but she soon became known for her lemon marshmallow slice and other delights such as butter biscuits, mulberry and apple pies and marmalade and chutney. Joy always found time to open her home to passers-by and invited guests, with the wood stove in use until they left in the 1990s to live in the town. Joy had a strong belief that the community would be so much better if people were aware of the achievements of others around them. This she shared for many years through her Manjimup personal column in The Warren Times, now named Manjimup-Bridgetown Times, typing out her stories on marriages, parties, graduations and community events. Joy maintained her strong faith throughout her life and Stan would drive her to church, or she would catch a lift to church from the farm gate on a Sunday. She was also founding president of the local Catholic Women's League; always a willing helper and organiser for every fundraising venture of the Red Cross, especially during Red Cross Month in March; was a member of St Joseph's P&F as secretary and worked at the tuckshop; a member of the local St Vincent de Paul charity group, and took part in any other worthy charity fundraiser. She was buried after a packed Requiem Mass with Stan's ashes close to her heart at the Manjimup Lawn Cemetery on October 9. More than 200 people attended the afternoon tea at the Parish Centre after the burial. She is survived by Peter, Anne, Margaret and Michael and their spouses and her 11 grandchildren.
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- THE PARISH
Taize gift to parish keeps on giving BY ROBERT HIINI Parish Reporter WHEN a brother from the ecumenical Taize community in France visited the Parish of Our Lady of Grace, North Beach in February, he came bearing a gift that has further united local worshippers, Catholic and Protestant, throughout the world. The parish's Taize prayer group received a cross that was immediately incorporated into the prayer services they have been conducting for the past four years on the first Thursday of every month. Their prayer is based on the same prayers, hymns and ethos that emerged from the Taize Christian monastic community in Burgundy, founded by the Swiss, Roger Louis SchatzMarsauche, later known as Frere Roger, in the 1940s. Every summer, around 8,000 people - mostly youth and young adults - attend Taize every
Deacon Paul Stacy and North Beach Taize group attendees.
week to discuss, reflect and pray. Taize services were offered at World Youth Day in Sydney last year after which Taize's Br
Matthew returned to Australia and conducted services at various churches, schools and parishes, including Our Lady of Grace, North Beach. Organiser
Beth O'Neil told The Record that the monthly prayer group uses the cross he gave them to replicate what happens at Taize each Friday evening when everyone gathers for prayers around the cross - "a moment to lay down at the cross of Christ our own burdens and those of others". Deacon Paul blessed the cross at the group's September service with candles and live music provided by parishioners. Mrs O'Neil said that their services incorporate Taize's trademark emphasis on light, periods of silence and prayer through simple, mellifluous chants. Echoing the words of a Taize brother, she said that the effects of the meditation extend past the monthly hour of prayer. "Nothing is more conducive to communion with the Living God than a meditative common prayer with singing that never ends, but continues in the silence of one's heart, when one is alone again."
Local group remembers the forgotten BY ROBERT HIINI FR NWEKE is characteristically humble about a recent visit to a Nigerian leprosy colony. He says it is just a start and that, eventually, the Voice of the Voiceless of Pope John Paul II group he founded want to help leprosy sufferers throughout the world. He visited the Oji River Leprosy Colony with his friend, compatriot and colleague, Fr Bonaventure Echeta to present medicines, toilet paper, five sacks of rice and 50,000 Naira ($365 AUD). Both men, who have known each other since meeting at the country's Seat of Wisdom Major Seminary in 1993, were in the country at the same time on separate business - Fr Nweke to visit family and the leper colony and Fr Echeta to say his first Mass in Nigeria after his ordination in June. The trip and donation were made possible the association's 200 members and by a non-Catholic Cottesloe man who decided to make a substantial donation after meeting Fr Nweke during a sick visit he had made to a hospital. The "inmates" of the colony, as they are known officially, are not supplied with medicines by the government who officially abandoned the settlement many years ago. As a consequence, the residents do not have access to multidrug therapy and all adults at the colony have active leprosy as well as having to sleep on a dirt floor. Fr Nweke described the buildings at the site as "ramshackle" and said that many of the children had contracted leprosy from adults in the colony and none have access to schooling. Staving off starvation, he said, is a constant challenge. Fr Nweke knew of the colony from his father, Sunday Nweke, whose own father had worked at the colony. He wants Australia and the world to see what is still happening to ostracised leprosy victims throughout Africa and Asia. Chaplain Fr Cyprian Chiekezie, who lives with the lepers, was thankful for the donation. Speaking with Nigeria's Flame newspaper, Fr Chiekezie said he had petitioned the government for assistance on many occasions but none had been forthcoming. An elder resident was reported in the same newspaper as saying that he remember Fr Nweke's grandfather who had worked at the colony with another man reported as thanking the priest for remembering the residents of Oji River Leprosy Colony.
Above and right, residents at the Oji River Leprosy Colony in Nigeria. The site receives no assistance from the local government and is reliant on funds from organisations such at the German Leprosy Foundation. Perth group, Voice of the Voiceless and a Cottesloe man provided funds for a donation presented to the communtiy by Fr Bonaventure Echeta (below, far left) and the group's founder, Fr Nicholas Nweke, (far right), pictured with a local nun and health worker, the site's chaplain, Fr Cyprian Chiekezie and a journalist from Nigeria's Flame newspaper.
November 25 2009, The Record
CHILDREN
Kids bitz
MRS LYNCH'S KINDY CLASS HOLY ROSARY SCHOOL DOUBLEVIEW
ARTISTS WEEK Thank you Rosie for your beautiful picture
By Joe Sarnicola
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Holly Buchanan, Scarlett Connelly, Chanel Nieuwendaal, Timothy Gardner
BIBLE ACCENT: The last Sunday of the Church year honours Jesus as Christ the King. There are several references about Jesus as a king in the New Testament: The king of ages 1(1 Tm 1); the king of Israel an 1); and the king of kings (Rv 19). he feast of Christ the King was established by Pope Pius XI in 1925. According to Matthew 2, when the magi reached Bethlehem they asked, "Where is the newborn king of the Jews?" Let us remember Christ as king as we prepare for Advent and Christmas, the celebration of the birth of Jesus.
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Rosie Jaques, Mercy Pre-Primary, Mirrabooka
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Silvester Gozzolini (1177-1267) was sent to law school by his wealthy parents, but he decided to study theology and the Bible instead. He became a member of a canonry, but he argued with the Bishop there. When he was 50, he left in order to live in a place of solitude, even though it meant giving up his money and comfort. Eventually he decided to establish a monastery, building it where a pagan temple once stood. He adopted the Rule of St Benedict as the code of conduct for the new monks. Here Silvester lived until his death, earning the respect of monks from 11 other monasteries. We remember him on November 26
AFTER he had been betrayed by Judas, one of his closest friends and disciples, Jesus was arrested and brought in front of Annas. When Annas asked Jesus what he had been teaching, Jesus answered, "I have spoken publicly to the world. I have always taught in a synagogue or in the Temple area where all the Jews gather, and in secret I have said nothing." So Annas sent Jesus to meet Caiaphas, the high priest. Caiaphas, in turn, had Jesus sent to face Pilate. Before speaking to Jesus, Pilate asked the people who had brought Jesus, "What charge do you bring against this man?" Trying not to answer the question too directly, they said, "If he were not a criminal, we would not have handed him over to you." Pilate tried to put the responsibility back onto the people, so he told them, "Take him yourselves, and judge him according to your law." The people gave a very direct answer that showed they wanted to put an end to the ministry of Jesus: "We do not have the right to execute anyone." This happened so that the Scripture would be fulfilled. Pilate ordered that Jesus be brought to him immediately. When Jesus stood in front of Pilate, his hands were still tied. Pilate looked him over and asked, "Are you the king of the Jews?" Jesus replied, "Do you say this on your own or have others told you about me?" Pilate said, "I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests handed you over to me. What have you done?" Jesus looked directly at Pilate and said, "My kingdom does not belong to this world. If my kingdom did belong to this world, my attendants [would] be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not here." Giving thought to the answer Jesus had given, Pilate asked, "Then you are a king?" Jesus answered, "You say I am a king. For this I was born and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice." So Pilate asked, "What is truth?" Not waiting for an answer, Pilate went out to address the Jews. He said to them, "I find no guilt in him."
READ MORE ABOUT IT: John 18:19-38
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November 25 2009, The Record
THE WORLD
a onriaolon is Kennedy just stirring pot: Tobin t vacuum'
Bishop says he asked congressman privately not to receive Communion BY CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE PROVIDENCE, Rhode Island - The Bishop of Providence said he was "disappointed and really surprised" that politician Patrick Kennedy made US public a letter he wrote to the congressman almost three years ago about his practice of the Catholic faith and reception of Communion. "This comes almost two weeks after the congressman indicated to local media that he would no longer comment publicly on his faith or his relationship with the Catholic Church. The congressman's public comments require me to reply," Bishop Thomas J Tobin said in a November 22 statement. His remarks came after Kennedy told The Providence Journal daily newspaper that Bishop Tobin "instructed me not to take Communion and said that he has instructed the diocesan priests not to give me Communion.' The newspaper said Kennedy declined to give details on when or how the Bishop issued such an instruction. Bishop Tobin said that in a February 2007 letter to Kennedy he stated: "In light of the Churchs clear teaching, and your consistent actions, therefore, I believe it is inappropriate for you to be receiving holy Communion and I now ask respectfully that you refrain from doing so." Kennedy supports keeping abortion legal. Bishop Tobin said he told the
Bishop Thomas Tobin
congressman he was writing to him "personally and confidentially as a pastor addressing a member of his flock" and had no intention of making the matter public. What prompted the letter, he said, was a statement approved by the US Bishops in late 2006 that outlined the preparation needed to receive Communion worthily and said serious sin is a bar to receiving the Eucharist. Titled Happy Are Those Who Are Called to His Supper: On Preparing to Receive Christ Worthily in the Eucharist, the document says that a Catholic who "knowingly and obstinately" rejects "the defined doctrines of the Church" or repudiates "her definitive teaching on moral issues" would not be in communion with the Church and therefore should not receive Communion. In his 2007 letter, Bishop Tobin said, he offered to meet with the congressman to discuss the situation. In a response at the time, Kennedy told the Bishop he had the "utmost respect for the work
US Congressman Patrick Kennedy on the campaign trail for Barack Obama.
you do on behalf of the Catholic community in Rhode Island. "I understand your pastoral advice was confidential in nature and given with the best intentions for my personal spiritual welfare," he said. In his November 22 statement, Bishop Tobin said he was disappointed Kennedy "would make public my pastoral and confidential request of nearly three years ago that sought to provide solely for his spiritual well-being" He said he did not want to continue public discussion on Kennedy's faith life but "will absolutely respond publicly and strongly whenever he attacks the Catholic Church, misrepresents the teachings of the Church or issues inaccurate statements about my pastoral ministry." Bishop Tobin said his door is always open to Kennedy to discuss such matters with him and he will "continue to pray - sincerely and fervently - for his conversion and repentance, and for his personal and spiritual well-being." The exchange of comments
'Koran the source of persecution' Archbishop traces persecution of Iraqi Christians to the Koran BY JESUS COLINA Zenit A SYRIAN Catholic Archbishop says that persecution and discrimination suffered by Iraqi Christians is ultimately rooted not in governmental actions but in a culture inspired by the Koran. Archbishop Jules Mikhael Al-Jamil, the Auxiliary Bishop of Antioch and procurator of the Syrian Catholic Patriarchate in Rome, told reporters in a press conference organised by the Italian Chambers of Deputies in Rome that he opposed the creation of a Christian enclave around Nineveh and that "the Church must be the presence of Christ in the country. "If we Christians flee when the situation is difficult, then we don't give that necessary witness. And if the generations are uprooted, then they will never return:' said the prelate, 71. He said that in Iraq's social system, Christians have no supports to defend themselves, thus becoming easy victims of common criminals or terrorist groups. He said their situation can be called a "religious persecution" caused by a social system that is inspired by a view of the Koran, according to which Islam and its followers must dominate and
regard believers of other religions as citizens with fewer rights. The Archbishop, expert in Arab culture and literature, explained that according to the Koran, Islam is a religion that is above all others. In the past in Iraq (and some still hold this view), "Christians who were under a Muslim regime or doctrine were free to believe in Islam, to leave their land, or to pay a tax to live in peace," he said. Nevertheless, Archbishop Al-Jamil noted, Christians used to be a quite influential minority. They made a decisive contribution to the country's culture in, for example, the creation and development of the first University of Baghdad. These contributions, the prelate explained, allowed them to "enjoy respect?" "But this doesn't mean that they
enjoy the same rights" according to certain interpretations of the Koran, he continued. "A Christian cannot rule over a Muslim" in a Muslim regime; while "a general of the army cannot be a Christian:' Now that Christians have lost their political weight and social influence, and many have abandoned their land, they suffer the persecution of a dominant social system that keeps them defenceless, Archbishop Al-Jamil said. The Archbishop later told Zenit he is not in favour of a proposal to protect the rights of Christians by creating a Christian enclave in Nineveh (where there is a Christian majority), since Christians are part of the social fabric of the whole country. Archbishop Al-Jamil is not in favour of emigration either, stating that "the Church must be the presence of Christ in the country. If we Christians flee when the situation is difficult, then we don't give that necessary witness. And if the generations are uprooted then they will never return." According to the prelate, in a democratic country, which Iraq says it is and wants to be, Christians should enjoy the same rights as the rest of the citizens. The meeting in the Mapamundi Hall of the Italian Chamber of Deputies was sponsored by the Save the Monasteries foundation, which aims to create awareness about the situation of the churches and monasteries that are being destroyed in Iraq, Pakistan and Kosovo.
between Bishop Tobin and Kennedy began when Kennedy criticised the US Bishops in October for threatening to oppose health care reform unless the legislation banned the use of federal funds to cover abortion. In an October 22 interview, Kennedy said their stance was "fanning the flames of dissent and discord. Bishop Tobin asked for an apology from Kennedy at the time and requested a meeting, which was eventually scheduled for November 12 but later postponed. In an October 29 letter Kennedy sent to the Bishop, he stated: 'The fact that I disagree with the hierarchy of the Church on some issues does not make me any less of a Catholic" In a column in The Rhode Island Catholic, his diocesan newspaper, Bishop Tobin asked if as a Catholic, Kennedy really understands what it means "to be a Catholic" and questions if he could describe himself as Catholic since his stance on abortion was "unacceptable to the Church" and "scandalous to many of our members:'
THE latest movie in the Twilight vampire saga is a 'deviant moral vacuum', a Vatican spokesman said on November 20. New Moon, which opened in Australia on November 19, is a "mixture of excesses aimed at young people and gives a heavy esoteric element", a spokesman added according to reports in London's Daily Mail. Mgr Franco Perazzolo of the Pontifical Council of Culture said that in the movie, "men and women are transformed with horrible masks and it is once again that age-old trick or ideal formula of using extremes to make an impact at the box office. This film is nothing more than a moral vacuum with a deviant message and as such should be of concern". The Twilight series, based on books by US author Stephanie Meyer, tells the story of a romance between vampire Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) and Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart). In a blog titled Twilight Parents 101: Why does my child relate to Twilight vampires?, Kimberly Sherman says: "Edward's constant pleas to Bella asking her to stay away from him give him a bad-boy quality and level of attractiveness to teenage girls, but parents can revel in the fact that his politeness, moral behaviour and old-fashioned ethics are all qualities that teenage girls should strive to find in a significant other."
African prelates blame abject poverty on bad governance African Bishops cite 'abject poverty' causes HARARE, Zimbabwe (CNS) - Church officials in southern Africa said many people in their region still "live in abject poverty" due to "bad governance, corruption and human irresponsibility:' General secretaries of Bishops' conferences who met in Harare, Zimbabwe, in mid-November expressed concern about excessive militarisation, bribery in the public and private sectors and poor delivery of services. Church officials representing Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, Sao Tome and Principe, South Africa, Swaziland and Zimbabwe discussed the role of Church leaders in eliminating corruption and promoting good governance for the common good. Those countries form the Inter-Regional Meeting of Bishops of Southern Africa. The Church officials expressed concern over nations' judicial systems and the awarding of bids to "political friends or family members:' They said political leaders should be "elected by the people, not to enrich themselves, but to work for the common good" and civil servants "are employed to serve the public. Nurses and doctors must combine efficiency and compassion, teachers have
to remember that the future of the next generation is in their hands" and the military and police should protect all citizens and defend the whole nation. Institutions such as electoral commissions and the judiciary "must jealously guard their independence and resist being dictated to by the political authorities?' it said, noting that political leaders "should challenge each other" and use mechanisms available such as the African Peer Review Mechanism, which encourages member states to hold each other's leaders accountable. "We urge governments in our region to secure the right of access to public information and participation in policy formulation, implementation and monitoring," they said, noting that "our region is not helpless. Its destiny is in the hands of those who live in it". Active collaboration is needed "to achieve the ideals of a corruption-free, peaceful and prosperous society"
November 25 2009, The Record
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THE WORLD
Deaf still live in 'grave situation': Pope Pope Benedict XVI urges support for deaf, including access to health care BY CAROL GLATZ Catholic News Service VATICAN CITY - Pope Benedict XVI lamented the serious lack of public programs and measures to address the needs of deaf people and a lack of even basic health care, which often can prevent hearing impairment. He spoke on November 20 to some 400 people attending a Vatican conference addressing the role of the deaf in the Church. A handful of interpreters signed the Pope's words to deaf participants during the audience in the Clementine Hall of the papal palace. The November 19-21conference was organised by the Pontifical Council for Health Care Ministry and was dedicated to The Deaf Person in the Life of the Church. The Pope said it is impossible to forget "the grave situation in which (the deaf) still live today in developing countries, both for the lack of adequate policies and legislation and for the difficulty in gaining access to basic health care:' Deafness "is often the consequence of easily preventable diseases," he added. "Therefore, I appeal to political and civil authorities, as well as international bodies, to offer the necessary support to promote, even in these (developing) countries, the needed respect for the dignity and rights of nonhearing people and to promote with adequate assistance their full integration into society; the Pope said in his address. The Pope lamented the ongoing prejudice and discrimination against the deaf, calling it "deplorable and unjustifiable." He praised those groups and individuals that promote the rights of the deaf, especially Catholic initiatives that offer education and assistance aimed at developing the full potential of deaf people. The Pope also spoke of another kind of deafness affecting the world - people who are unable to hear the voice of God and the cries of those who suffer. Humanity must be healed and saved from a "deafness of the spirit, which raises barriers ever higher against the voice of God and the other, especially the cries of the
weak and the suffering for help, and locks people into a deep and ruinous self-centredness," he said. Jesus wishes to save people from "the solitude and incommunicability created by selfishness and to give rise to a new humanity; which listens, communicates and enters into communion with God, he said. Archbishop Zygmunt Zimowski, president of the Health Care Ministry Council, said that of the more than 278 million people with a hearing impairment and 60 million deaf people in the world, 80 percent of them live in low and medium-income countries. That is a sign that more must be done to improve health care in developing nations so more people have access to care that will prevent and cure such disabilities, he said in an interview with the Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano on November 20. There are 1.3 million deaf Catholics in the world, he said, and the Church has much to do to improve the kind of pastoral care it offers them. He said deafness is "an invisible handicap" that is difficult for parishes to accommodate. Most handicaps require building modifications to ease accessibility, he said, but making the Mass and pastoral activities accessible to deaf people necessitates having someone on hand who can translate the spoken word into sign language. Without sign language, a deaf person risks being isolated behind "an invisible and impenetrable wall of silence; he said. The November conference brought together people from 65 countries who were involved in the pastoral, social, psychological and medical care of those who are hearing impaired to discuss ways the Church could provide proper support for the deaf. The Vatican invited numerous deaf and hearing Religious who are fluent in sign language. Individuals and families who have a deaf member talked about their experiences and ideas. Archbishop Zimowski said in order to allow the full participation of everyone, the Vatican used the simultaneous translation of speakers' addresses into four different sign languages: American, British, Spanish and Italian. Four large video screens high on the front wall of the Vatican's Synod hall projected the images of four different interpreters who were signing behind the main dais.
The Church must act now for deaf: prelate Vatican officials say Church must improve service to deaf community BY CINDY WOODEN Catholic News Service
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VATICAN CITY - While the Catholic Church no longer considers deafness an impediment to ordination, there are only 13 priests in the world who were ordained deaf, said officials of the Pontifical Council for Health 714 Care Ministry. Mgr Jean-Marie Mpendawatu, undersecretary of the Council, said eight of the 13 work in the United States, two minister in Great Britain and one each serve in Brazil, Congo and South Korea. Fr Savino Castiglione, a member of the Congregation of the Little Mission for the Deaf, said the problem is not one of barriers imposed by the Church, but is a result of practical educational difficulties. A deaf seminarian • needs a sign language interpreter or tutor for his six years of philosophy and theology classes, something which is expensive, Bishop Jose Redrado Marchite and Archbishop Zygmunt Zimowski use particularly because "it is difficult sign language to clap during a conference on The Deaf Person in the Life of to use sign language to translate the Church at the Vatican on November 20. PHOTO: CN5/PAUL HARING such abstract concepts" as those Mgr Mpendawatu said he found in philosophy and theolexpected the conference to launch ogy, Fr Castiglione said. The lack of deaf priests was a strong call for seminaries to at one of the topics discussed on least offer future priests trainNovember 17 when the Pontifical ing in sign language because the Council presented the program pastoral care of deaf Catholics for its annual international requires it. "Just think how hard it would conference. The theme of the November 19-21 gathering was be to go to confession" if one The Deaf Person in the Life of the could not find a priest who would understand, he said. Church. Zygmunt Luca Lamano, who was born Archbishop Zimowski, president of the deaf and teaches deaf children, Council, said there are more than attended a Catholic school for 278 million deaf people in the the deaf in Rome where Mass world, and at least 1.3 million of was celebrated each week and the them are Catholic. "That is a lot Sacrament of Penance was offered and the Church must act; he said. by a priest who knew sign lanWithout adequately prepared guage. But his local parish did not priests and other pastoral workers have interpreters. "My dad said it doesn't matand trained sign language interpreters, he said, the Church is ter if you don't understand, it is making it difficult, if not impos- important to participate, but I Fr Michael Depcik, a member of sible, for its deaf members to par- didn't like it; he said. the Oblates of St Francis de Sales, He stopped going to Mass until ticipate fully in parish life and uses American Sign Language liturgies, to learn about their faith he met his wife, a committed Mass at St Patrick during sign lanwho knows of the Catholic contribute to the life and to in Harrisburg. Cathedral guage. Church.
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'Patients not imminently dying have a right to food' Bishops approve revised directives on withdrawal of food, water BY NANCY FRAZIER O'BRIEN Catholic News Service BALTIMORE - The US Bishops overwhelmingly approved a revision to the directives that guide Catholic health care facilities, clarifying that patients with chronic conditions who are not imminently dying should receive food and water by "medically assisted" means if they cannot take them normally. "As a general rule, there is an obligation to provide patients with food and water, including medi-
cally assisted nutrition and hydration for those who cannot take food orally," says the revised text of the Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services prepared by the US Bishops' Committee on Doctrine. "This obligation extends to patients in chronic conditions (% the 'persistent vegetative state) who can reasonably be expected to live indefinitely if given such care," the new text adds. Deleted from the directives was a reference to "the necessary distinctions between questions already resolved by the magisterium and those requiring further reflection, as, for example, the morality of withdrawing medically assisted hydration and nutrition from a person who is in the condition that is recognised by physi-
cians as the 'persistent vegetative state:" The only substantive debate on the revised directives was about whether to use the term "permanent vegetative state" or "persistent vegetative state" in the document. In presenting the revised text on November 16, Bishop William Lori of Bridgeport, Connecticut, chair of the Bishops' Committee on Doctrine, said the directives, last revised in 2001, "were written long before" Pope John Paul II's March 2004 address to an international conference on Life-Sustaining Treatments and the Vegetative State and the Vatican Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith's August 2007 reply to questions raised by the USCCB on artificial nutrition and hydration. The current directives based their teaching on documents by
"some state Catholic conferences, individual Bishops and the USCCB Committee on Pro-Life Activities; the Bishop noted. Bishop Lori said the changes were needed "particularly since the recent clarifications by the Holy See have rendered untenable certain positions that have been defended by some Catholic theologians and ethicists." Some Catholic ethicists had argued that, as doctors consider a persistent vegetative state irreversible, artificial nutrition and hydration can be withdrawn from those patients. "While medically assisted nutrition and hydration are not morally obligatory in certain cases, these forms of basic care should in principle be provided to all patients who need them, including patients
diagnosed as being in a 'persistent vegetative state: because even the most severely debilitated and helpless patient retains the full dignity of a human person; the revised directives read. "Medically assisted nutrition and hydration become morally optional when they cannot reasonably be expected to prolong life or when they would be 'excessively burdensome for the patient or (would) cause significant physical discomfort:" they add. "For instance, as a patient draws close to inevitable death from an underlying progressive and fatal condition, certain measures to provide nutrition and hydration may become excessively burdensome and therefore not obligatory in light of their very limited ability to prolong life or provide comfort:'
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PERSPECTIVES
Granddaughter's baptism a spark that led home
November 25 2009, The Record
Forgiveness central to real love with Catherine Parish
Diane Raftos
1
was brought up Anglican and was a regular 'churchgoer' in my teens and 20s. Then I married and my first husband didn't attend services so I stopped going as well. We drifted apart in later years and in the end I went through the process of annulment. It was amicable but one of my regrets is my son from that marriage was not brought up to go to church either. Then I met my husband Errol who kept saying, "We should get back to church?' I would say, "Yes" but it really wasn't until the Baptism of my granddaughters that we made the commitment. About two years ago both my granddaughters were baptised at Our Lady of the Mission Church, W hi tfords . My husband Errol became a Catholic 21 years ago but he had been away from the Church for a while. I also had with Debbie Warner not been to a church for several years. The day of the Baptism we went to Mass and it was like coming home. It was beautiful. We started going to Mass every week. I hadn't thought about converting until out of the blue Errol said, "How would you feel about becominr, Catholic?" I said, "Yes, I'd love to." We got the information, went through the journey with the RCIA and I became a Catholic at Easter. We enjoyed the weekly meetings so much we didn't want to stop going! The coordinators asked us if we would stay on as a support team which we did. Now we are sponsors for any of those attending the RCIA that need one. Recently we attended the RCIA State Conference in Geraldton. Just after I became Catholic, Fr Joseph Tran approached me and asked ifI would like to become a special minister. I felt so honoured yet unworthy and humbled. Now it gives me great joy. Errol and I are greeters at 8am Mass, welcoming members of the congregation and visitors to the Church at the beginning of Mass. We love it. It's great. People at our parish call us "God's garbos" because we put the bins out on Tuesdays! From time to time we assist a friend of ours who cleans the Presbytery. These are just little things that we enjoy doing. It means we can be part of the parish community. As part of our commitment to the Legion of Mary we do home visits. It's lovely to meet people. Usually they are elderly as most of the young people work. Some are lonely and it is nice to have a cuppa and a chat. It breaks up the day for them. We usually visit people in their homes although we sometimes visit nursing homes. We especially like to visit people who have lost their partner or have no family. Everybody we visit is like family to us. Now we wouldn't miss it for the world. It is just part of our life. I left England and Anglicanism behind in 1977. I have been in Perth ever since. I found the Anglican Church quite cold and never felt that I was part of the family. I appreciate the frequency of the Masses in the Catholic faith which is another difference. I am glad that I have become Catholic. Now I really feel that I belong.
WhyI became Catholic
If you have a story to tell please contact Debbie via dwarrier75@gmail.com
any a parent could echo the heart-rending cry we hear from God Himself every year on Good Friday: "My people, what have I done to you? How have I offended you? Answer me!" There is good reason why forgiveness is so strongly emphasised in the New Testament. Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive others; not just forgiving seven times, but seventy times seven; the powerful parable of the prodigal son, for example. Forgiveness and love; two of the most misunderstood things on the planet today, I think. We teach our children to esteem themselves highly, but sometimes are we inadvertently teaching them an overweening pride in themselves? Parents walk a fine line in this, as in everything. It requires humility, both to ask forgiveness and to grant it. We have to accept that we are far less than perfect ourselves, so cannot reasonably expect perfection in others. But still as parents we must teach our children to aim high and avoid complacency. To teach this lesson while still keeping your children's spirit intact is a tough one. But the ability to forgive others and to humbly accept that there is much we need to be forgiven for ourselves is central to authentic love. St Paul gets to the nub of the matter when he says love covers a multitude of sins; and elsewhere without love we are empty vessels making much noise. We are all called to the vocation in which we are most likely, and most challenged, to learn what real love is. That is why it
sometimes seems as though we end up in a vocation for which we may feel a little ill-suited. For example, marriage tends to quickly and humiliatingly show up all the weaknesses and selfishness in our own nature - but not as quickly as it shows us the weaknesses in our spouse's nature! The humility, courage and generosity - the love, in fact - that is required to accept and forgive what we can't change, change what we can, and learn to tell the difference (to borrow from St Augustine) - is what marriage is all about. You take up the challenge and renew that commitment of courageous, humble love every day, or you run away screaming. This is what family life is for. What we learn about love and forgiveness as spouses it is our duty as parents to attempt to pass on to our children by
example and by correction when necessary. In the same way we have to learn to listen to our spouses when they might tell us something we don't like about ourselves, we hope our children will learn to listen to us when we must undertake that task. It isn't a pleasant task - parents hate it - but it is one we have to take up. Listening to the Mass readings for the first Sunday of Advent, reminding us that we don't know when the end is coming so we must hold ourselves constantly ready, is a salutary reminder to all us parents. We have to keep on struggling to make ourselves better, to keep on working, loving and praying for our families, and not shirk our duty, that our children, with our help, may continue to develop into the fine young men and women they are on the way to becoming.
Redemption and Repression confused Body Language B Christo her West
Sexual Redemption About a month ago, I wrote a column that began to explore the difference between sexual "repression" and sexual "redemption?' It was in response to a former Catholic priest who had announced on the Oprah Winfrey show that "repression" of desire is the only choice for a person who remains celibate. Because the question 'What is the human person caFable of in light of our fallen nature? is so important, I wanted to expound on the issue of sexual redemption a bit more, especially in light of the insights of Pope John Paul II and his Theology of the Body. It is abundantly clear from both Catholic teaching and human experience that, so long as we are on earth, we will always have to battle with concupiscence - that disordering of our passions caused by original sin (see Catechism of the Catholic Church 405, 978, 1264, 1426) The interior battle we experience with our disordered desires is indeed fierce. Yet, as Pope John Paul II insisted, we "cannot stop at casting the 'heart' into a state of continual and irreversible suspicion due to the manifestations of the concupiscence of the flesh ... Redemption is a truth, a reality, in the
name of which man must feel himself called, and 'called with effectiveness" (TOB 46:4). This "effectiveness" means that we are not hopelessly bound by our fallen desires. The Catechism observes that the idea that concupiscence is insurmountable actually stems from the Reformation (see CCC 406). As Catholicism teaches, through the gift of redemption "the Spirit of the Lord gives new form to our desires, those inner movements that animate our lives" (CCC 2764). Summarising the teaching of John Paul II on the matter, as we surrender our lusts to Christ and allow "the Spirit of the Lord" to move in us, we discover the ability to orient our sensual and emotional reactions in the realm of sexuality "both as to their content and as to their character" (TOB 129:5). What once moved us to use other people for our own pleasure, can lead us to want to lay down our lives for them "as Christ loved the Church and gave himself up for her" (Eph 5:25). This is good news - very good news. Yet, for some reason, it seems many people are sceptical about it, and I'm speaking primarily of Christians here. Many of us grow up with the impression that all we can really hope for in the sexual realm is a more or less successful program of "sin management?' The idea of transforming our lusts, many believe, is simply beyond the realm of man's possibilities. It's something we can only hope for in heaven. From one perspective, those who think this way are correct. It is impossible for human beings to transform their own lustful desires and - to be sure - the fullness of redemption awaits
us only in heaven. But those who enter the "effectiveness" of Christ's redemption discover "another vision of man's possibilities" (TOB 46:6). Much is at stake in this question, as John Paul II makes clear: "What are the 'concrete possibilities of man'? And of which man are we speaking? Of man dominated by lust or of man redeemed by Christ. This is what is at stake, the reality of Christ's redemption. Christ has redeemed us. This means he has given us the possibility of realising the entire truth of our being; he has set our freedom free from the domination of concupiscence" ( Veritatis Splendor 103). What is the alternative to an effective sexual redemption? If man remains bound by his lusts, is he even capable of loving with a pure heart? Marriage, in this view, comes to be seen and lived as a "legitimate outlet" for indulging our disordered desires and the celibate life comes to be seen and lived as a life of hopeless repression. And we end up "holding the form of religion" while "denying the power of it" (2 Tim 3:5). "Ne evacuetur Crux!" - John Paul II exclaims, "Do not empty the Cross of its power!" (see 1 Cor 1:17). "This," he said, is the cry of the new evangelisation" (Orientale Lumen 3). How desperately our sexually broken world needs to hear this cry. There is another way to experience our sexuality than what our pornographic culture holds out to us, and it passes by way of the power of the Cross. There is a water that corresponds to our thirst for love, and it flows from the side of our crucified Bridegroom. Let all who are thirsty come - come and drink the water of life (see Rev 22:17).
November 25 2009, The Record
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PERSPECTIVES
Why Catholic universities seekJustice BY PROFESSOR HAYDEN RAMSEY Deputy Vice Chancellor UIVDA
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niversities, like most human societies, are communities. Communities are simply groups with a common good: a shared vision of the good life and shared needs for achieving that life. The key to the common good is developing justice inside the community. Of all the academic and human qualities, justice is probably the most popular in colleges and universities today. Young people work for justice; students are passionate about it; academics seek it for society. Yet justice is complex. There are perhaps a dozen different concepts of justice defended and applied today. Different thinkers and activists pursue justice as equality, as fairness, as liberty, as need, as entitlement, as obligation and so on. This means that when people speak of and seek justice there is the possibility of mis-communication, shouting across each other from different justice-perspectives. Catholics hold that justice is primarily a matter of relationships: do our relationships with family, friends, fellow Catholics, business associates etc always seek the true good of each person and the common good? Or do any of our social relationships place individual desires and preferences
"Many want from their early twenties or the first year of their marriage advantages for which their parents saved and workedfor many years." above human need, moral tradition and God's law? Students at Notre Dame are particularly keen on social justice. Fired Up! - our social justice group - is active in local voluntary work, indigenous awareness and participation in overseas projects. Meantime, students from other faculties, particularly
healthcare, have a range of initiatives for addressing social needs and implementing the Gospel. Helping to achieve a fairer balance of goods and opportunities is a terrific work of Catholic universities and other agencies. Real commitment to social justice, however, requires commitment first to personal jus-
tice: not just giving but living justly. This is rather less popular today. Some are more passionate about correcting external injustice than developing personal justice. The altruism here may be quite genuine. But as well as building altruism we also need to combat egoism. Egoists seek self-interest and only act for others when that actually serves their own self-image, needs, desires. The struggle against egoism is life-long and the quality that helps most here is personal justice. Personal justice means truly living and choosing as part of a group: removing yourself from the centre of the picture and building all of your choices around the welfare of the whole group. Many people rebel against this. Many want from their early twenties or the first year of their marriage advantages for which their parents saved and worked for many years. Increasingly, people expect what the glossies call "lifestyle", and if they do not get it, they feel cheated or failures. In fact, personal justice says 'don't seek your own health or education or family life or leisure at the expense of anyone else's: Paradoxically, even people working for (social) justice can be in serious need of (personal) justice. In affluent societies the "haves" may require to be corrected by justice just as much as the "have nots". The University continues to work for justice in its teaching of ethics, its Centre for Faith, Ethics and Society, and through its teaching and research priorities. But above all, the University seeks justice through its students who combine the passion of youth with the dawning awareness that justice is hard to achieve. For justice interrogates our individual lives just as much as it interrogates society. * Professor Hayden Ramsey, a Scot, is the Sydney-based Deputy Vice Chancellor of the University of Notre Dame Australia.
GoodJesuit has asked the question wrong way round Being_ Heard In a short piece for America Magazine, Fr James Martin SJ asks: "What is a gay Catholic supposed to do in life?" He provides a list of those things same sex attracted men and women "are not to do": "enjoy romantic love", "marry", "adopt a child", "enter a seminary", and work for the Church and be open". "Nothing" about this list, he states, is "surprising or controversial: all of the above are Church teaching". Yet, he claims, "taken together, they raise an important pastoral question ... what kind of life remains for these brothers and sisters in Christ, those who wish to follow the teachings of the Church?" That is a provocative way to phrase the question; to set it up in terms of what is left for same sex attracted Catholics, after obedience. After all, one rarely writes: What is a faithful, married Catholic supposed to do in life? He cannot date women (something many would associate with romantic love), he cannot enter a seminary, he cannot work for the Church and be open (about wanting to date women), and many married men cannot adopt a child (because they would be turned down by the adoption agencies, for various reasons, or indeed simply because their wives and families demur). What can the good Jesuit
mean by phrasing the question in this negative and faintly histrionic way? Let us start with what Fr Martin cannot mean. He cannot mean, for instance, that same sex attracted men and women are set apart in terms of ontology, that we might somehow need or want something that other men and women do not, or cannot need or want in/from life. This sort of question is close to the sort one might ask if intelligent alien life were discovered elsewhere in the universe. The Church does not teach that same sex attracted individuals are a third sex, indeed, or another form of life (cf Ludwig Wittgenstein, Philosophical Investigations, 241). Fr Martin cannot mean, therefore, what some radical homoactiv-
ists mean when they ask of the Church: what kind of life do you offer for us? It is important to tease this out because those familiar with the debate about human sexuality, and Catholics committed to the culture of life enerally - will find that Fr Martins question sounds a bit like a secular, modernist complaint. That Fr Martin's Church is, indeed, she of the resounding "no". This is a testy, cruel vision of Catholic thinking - and it is a bleak view of the Church. However, such a vision only makes sense in a separatist context. If we cannot bring ourselves to think of same sex attracted men and women as human beings, we cannot see any life for them in Christian obedience. Their very assent appears to neuter them, to
cut them off from love and life. As Fr Martin suggests, and gently (he writes "pastoral", not ontological) - this sort of extreme self-abnegation would make for a "lonely, loveless, secretive life". I will go further: it would make for hell on earth. However, and as millions of same sex attracted men and women will attest, the Church offers same sex attracted individuals the same life she offers all men and women: eternal life via the Cross. Those who go about their daily lives, those who go to Mass, and struggle to model obedience, and fail, and try again - these are Christians. That is all, and miraculously. We understand, indeed, that a Christian is not to look for life beyond obedience, rather obedi-
ence - even obedience unto death on the Cross - is true life. The result is not the remains of a life; it is life. It is life in Christ, life with Christ. The Church does not then, if we are thinking right, really teach that a same sex attracted man cannot get married to another man, and she does not teach that a same sex attracted woman cannot adopt a child. She does not teach in this negative manner at all. She teaches, rather, what it is that men and women need to live good, true, and beautiful lives and in her mercy she shares this information with the world. That she points out, in detail in some cases, those ways of living that are contrary to human happiness only demonstrates the Church's special care for same sex attracted men and women. She stoops to the obvious, because men and women are weak, wilful, and sometimes plain lazy. I think Fr Martin knows this, and indeed his writing is marked by a certain solidity. He is obviously faithful. He does not mean to suggest an answer, then, that would contradict the Church's view of love and life in Christ. Rather, he shows a keen pastoral sense. By thinking through Fr Martin's question, by asking what he can be asking, and discounting what he cannot be, English-speaking Catholics can learn to think and read with the Church. Certainly, same sex attracted Catholics can discover their home in the Church - at the foot of the Cross, with everyone else. emaildreadnought@gmail.com
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PANORAMA
November 25 2009, The Record
A roundup of events in the Archdiocese
Panorama entries must be in by 12pm Monday. Contributions may be emailed to administration@therecord.com.au, faxed to 9227 7087, or mailed to PO Box 75, Leederville WA 6902. Submissions over 55 words will be edited. Inclusion is limited to 4 weeks. Events charging over $10 will be put into classifieds and charged accordingly. The Record reserves the right to decline or modify any advertisement. Thursday November 26 THE PURPOSE OF CHRISTMAS 7 to 9pm at Infant Jesus Parish Hall, 47 Wellington Road, Morley. Since Christmas was God's idea maybe we should find out what He had in mind. Barbara Harris will walk with us as we discover the purpose of Christmas. We will reflect on: Christmas is Celebration, Christmas is Salvation, Christmas is Reconciliation. Enq: Darren 9276 8500 or Barbara 9328 8113. Friday November 27 MEDJUGORJE - EVENING OF PRAYER 7 to 9pm at Holy Trinity Parish, 8 Burnett Street, Embleton. An evening of prayer with Our Lady Queen of Peace, Adoration, Rosary, Benediction concluding with Holy Mass. Free DVD on Fr Don Calloway's conversion story from drugs, alcohol, crime, living a total life of sin to the priesthood. Enq: Eileen 9402 2480. Sunday November 29 ADVENT DAY OF REFLECTION WITH THE SECULAR FRANCISCAN ORDER WA 10am at the Edel Quinn Centre, 36 Windsor Street, East Perth. You are invited to join members of the Secular Franciscan Order in WA for a day of prayer, reflection and Mass. BYO to share for lunch. Enq: Anne-Marie 9447 4252 after 6pm. Tuesday December 1 CATHOLIC CHARISMATIC RENEWAL - MASS AND CELEBRATIONS 7.30pm at Holy Family Church, Thelma Street and Canning Highway, Como. End-of-year Mass and fellowship, prayer teams available for personal prayer. A collection will be taken up. Please bring a plate for light supper. Enq: Pam 9381 2516 or Dan 9398 4973. Wednesday December 2 ADVENT TAIZE PRAYER SERVICE 7.30pm at St Simon Peter Parish, Prendiville Avenue and Constellation Drive, Ocean Reef. Wait upon the Lord, come join with us in prayer, reflection, meditation and song. Thursday December 3, 10 and 17 ST MARY'S CATHEDRAL CHARISMATIC PRAYER MEETING 7.45pm at 450 Hay Street, Perth. Present Our Victory in Christ, the secret of intercessory prayer for our troubled time. Speaker, Kaye Rollings, FMI; Ambassadors, Sword and Triumph. All welcome. Enq: Flame Ministries International 9382 3668 or fmi4ameministries.org. Friday December 4 PRO-LIFE WITNESS 9.30am at St Brigid's Church, Midland. Mass followed by Rosary procession and prayer vigil at abortion clinic, led by the Franciscan Friars of the Immaculate. Enq: Helen 9402 0349. Friday December 4 EUCHARISTIC HEALING MASS FOR THE SEASON OF ADVENT 7pm at St Peter's Church, 93 Wood Street, Inglewood. Praise and Worship followed with Reconciliation. Healing Mass followed by fellowship. Enq: Catherine 0433 923 083 or Priscilla 0433 457 352. Friday December 4 PREGNANCY ASSISTANCE ANNUAL THANKSGIVING FOR LIFE MASS 7pm at Holy Family Church, 45 Thelma Street, Como. Pregnant mothers and their families are invited to Mass celebrated by Most Rev Archbishop Hickey. If you or someone you know is pregnant, please join us to celebrate and give thanks to God for the 'gift of life RSVP essential by 30 November on 9328 2926. Saturday December 5 WITNESS FOR LIFE 8.30am at St Augustine's, Gladstone Road, Rivervale. Mass, followed by Rosary procession and prayer vigil at abortion clinic, led by Columban Missionary priest, Fr Paul Carey. Enq Helen 9402 0349.
Saturday December 5 DAY WITH MARY 9am to 5pm at Immaculate Conception Church, Canning Highway and Preston Point Road, East Fremantle. Day of prayer and instruction based on the Fatima message. 9am Video, 10.10am Holy Mass; Reconciliation, Procession of the Blessed Sacrament, Eucharistic Adoration, Sermons on Eucharist and Our Lady, Rosaries and Stations of the Cross. BYO lunch. Parking on Preston Point Road. Enq: Franciscan Sisters of the Immaculate 9250 8286. Sunday December 6 ANNUAL ROSARY PROCESSION 3pm at St Joseph's Parish Church, Hamilton Street Bassendean. Triduum of Rosaries will be held before from 2 December to 4 December at 7pm. Procession will be in honour of the Immaculate Conception, followed by Benediction and light refreshments later. Enq: Colin 9279 9750, Renato 0419 924 633, Michael 9279 7609. Sunday December 6 DIVINE MERCY 1.30pm at St Joachim's Pro-Cathedral, Shepperton Road and Harper Street, Victoria Park. Rosary and Reconciliation followed with Sermon on The Immaculate Conception with Fr Hugh Thomas CSSR. Later Divine Mercy Prayer and Benediction, refreshments will follow in the parish hall. Enq: John 9457 7771 or Linda 9275 6608. Monday December 7 CHRISTMAS PARTY 11.30am at Emmanuel Centre, 25 Windsor Street, Perth. Christmas Carols, come along to share with Archbishop BJ Hickey in preparation for Christmas. Join in the singing and meet other people of Emmanuel. Children welcome. 12 noon lunch; bring a small plate of finger food to share. Close 2pm. RSVP by 27 November.
Saturday December 12 ST PADRE PIO DAY OF PRAYER 8.30am at St Bernadette Parish, LJ Goody Bioethics Centre, 49 Jugan Street, Glendalough. St Padre Pio DVD, 10am Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, Rosary, Divine Mercy, Adoration and Benediction. Holy Mass 11am, celebrant Fr Tiziano Bogoni, using St Padre Pio Liturgy. Confessions available. BYO lunch shared. Enq: Des 6278 1540. 2010 JOSEPHITE - MARY MACKILLOP CALENDAR NOW ON SALE Be inspired by Mary MacKillop's inspirational quotes. Order your calendar by phone on 9334 0999 or mriddler ,isosjwa.org.au Every Sunday PILGRIM MASS - SHRINE OF THE VIRGIN OF THE REVELATION 2pm at Shrine, 36 Chittering Road, Bullsbrook. Commencing with Rosary followed by Benediction. Reconciliation is available before every celebration. Anointing of the sick administered during Mass every second Sunday of the month. Pilgrimage in honour of the Virgin of the Revelation, last Sunday of the month. Side entrance to the church and shrine open daily between 9am and 5pm. Enq: SACRI 9447 3292. Every Sunday LATIN MASS 2pm at the Good Shepherd Parish, 40-42 Streich Avenue, Kelmscott, according to the 1962 missal, with Rosary preceding. All welcome.
Thursday December 10 ST PEREGRINE HEALING MASS 7pm at Ss John and Paul Church, Pinetree Gully Road, Willetton. The Mass will be in honour of St Peregrine, Patron of Cancer sufferers and helper of all in need. The celebration will include Veneration of the Relic, and Anointing of the Sick. Enq: Noreen 9498 7727. Thursday December 10 THE PURPOSE OF CHRISTMAS 12 noon to 2pm at Good Shepherd Parish Hall, 40 Streich Avenue, Kelmscott. Since Christmas was God's idea maybe we should find out what He had in mind. Barbara Harris will walk with us as we discover the Purpose of Christmas. We will reflect on: Christmas is Celebration, Christmas is Salvation, Christmas is Reconciliation. Lunch will be served later. Enq: Barbara 9328 8113.
First Friday of the Month THE ALLIANCE, TRIUMPH AND REIGN OF THE TWO HEARTS 9pm at St Bernadette's Church, Glendalough. There will be Eucharistic Adoration, Rosaries, hymns and reflections etc. Concludes with midnight Mass in honour and thanksgiving of the coming reign of the United Hearts of Jesus and Mary. Enq: Father Doug Harris 9444 6131 or Dorothy 9342 5845. First Friday of the Month COMMUNION OF REPARATION ALL NIGHT VIGIL 7pm to lam at Corpus Christi Church, Lochee Street, Mosman Park. Vigil will have Mass, Rosary, Confession and Adoration with Fr Bogoni. Enq: Vicky 0400 282 357.
Saturday following the First Sunday of the Month DIVINE MERCY HEALING MASS 2.30 to 3.30pm at St Francis Xavier Church, Windsor Street, East Perth. Reconciliation available with Fr Marcellinus Meilak OFM. Refreshments will follow afterwards. Enq: John 9457 7771.
Tuesday December 8 HOUR OF GRACE 12 noon at St Jude's Church, 20 Prendiville Way, Langford. This is in honour of the Immaculate Conception, followed by Benediction. All welcome. Enq: 9458 1946.
Wednesday December 9 30TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION MASS SERVANT OF GOD ARCHBISHOP F J SHEEN'S DEATH 7pm at Trinity College Chapel, Trinity Avenue, East Perth. This Mass is part of a worldwide celebration being held on this day. Supper provided afterwards. RSVP: Daniel sheensocietyPglobaldial.com or 9291 8224.
Every Thursday TAIZE PRAYER 7.30 to 8.30pm at Our Lady of Grace Parish, 3 Kitchener Street, North Beach. All parishioners and friends are invited for prayer and meditation using songs from Taize. In stillness and candlelight we make our pilgrimage. Spend some quiet time with the Lord. There will be no meeting in January.
First Friday of the Month HOLY HOUR FOR VOCATIONS TO THE PRIESTHOOD AND RELIGIOUS LIFE 7pm at the Little Sisters of the Poor Chapel, 2 Rawlins Street, Glendalough. Mass celebrated by Fr Saminedi followed by Adoration with Fr Don Kettle. All welcome.
Tuesday December 8 FEAST OF THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION 12 noon to 1pm at Holy Spirit Church, Keaney Place, City Beach. Please join us in the hour of grace in honour of the Immaculate Conception. There will be Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament during the hour, Rosary and quiet time. Enq: Margaret 9341 8082.
Wednesday December 9 CHAPLETS OF THE DIVINE MERCY 7.30pm at St Thomas More Catholic Church, Dean Road, Bateman. A beautiful, prayerful, and sung devotion accompanied by Exposition followed by Benediction. Enq: George 9310 9493 home or 9325 2010 work.
Every 2nd Wednesday YEAR OF THE PRIEST HOLY HOUR 7 to 8pm at Holy Spirit Catholic Church, 2 Keaney Place, City Beach. Reflections on St John Vianney, Patron Saint of Priests. Light refreshments later in the Parish Centre.
Third Sunday of the Month OBLATES OF ST BENEDICT 2pm at St Joseph's Convent, York Street, South Perth. Oblates affiliated with the Benedictine Abbey, New Norcia welcome all who are interested in studying the rule of St Benedict and its relevance to the everyday life of today for lay people. Vespers and tea conclude the meeting. Enq: Secretary 9457 5758. Fourth Sunday of the Month HOLY HOUR FOR VOCATIONS TO THE PRIESTHOOD AND RELIGIOUS LIFE 2 to 3pm at Morley Parish Church, 47 Wellington Road, Morley. Includes Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament. Our prayers are powerful in assisting those called to the priesthood and Religious Life to hear with a disciple's ear the call of God for them. Come and pray. All welcome. Enq: 9276 8500. Every Monday LUNCHTIME MEDITATION Christian Meditation comes to the city. 12.15 to 12.45pm, Wesley Uniting Church, corner William and Hay Streets, Perth. Ecumenical Christian meditation, in the tradition of the desert fathers and mothers. All welcome. Enq: christianmeditation iinet.net.au, www.christianmeditationaustralia.org or 9444 5810.
ACTS 2 COLLEGE OF MISSION AND EVANGELISATION - 2010 ENROLMENTS/SCHOLARSHIPS Now open for full and part-time study at Acts 2 College for Semester 1. 16 week courses commence week of March 1, 2010. All courses may be taken towards a Certificate IV in Christian Ministry - national code 51881. Acts 2 College has available one full scholarship and three part scholarships for study at the College in 2010. The full scholarship is through an essay competition; the part-time are based on financial hardship. Enq: Jane 9202 6859. AL-ANON/ALATEEN FAMILY GROUPS If your home is unhappy because someone drinks too much, we can help you. For understanding and support to families and friends of problem drinkers. Enq: 9325 7528. SACRED HEART OF JESUS - PIONEERS Any Pioneers to the Sacred Heart of Jesus out there in society, we invite you to attend if you would like to meet other members in prayer and reflection. Enq: 9457 7771.
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PERSONAL SEEKING LADY Guy 40s tall, prof educa, smoker, social drinker, conservative, loyal, creative, likes reading, café, hty food styles, walking, swimming, DTE Reasonably ambitious. Dry SOH. Seeks lady friendship view to a long-term relationship, marriage if culturally compatible and complementary. Some or more Christian values. Ph: 0149 543 093 (afternoon). CHRISTIAN SINGLES Change your life now. Join up and join in. Social activities. Drinks and games nights. Dating. Ph: 9472 8218 www.figtrees.com.au.
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Walking with Him Daily Mass Readings
2W Vio Isa 25:6-10 Ps 22:1-6 Mt 15:29-37
Death destroyed The right path Sorry for people
295 1ST SUNDAY OF ADVENT (Year C) Vio Jer 33: 14-16 The days are coming Ps 24:5.8-91014 Walk in your truth 1Thess 3:12-4:2 Generous in love Lk 21:25-28.34-36 Stay awake
3 Th St Francis Xavier, priest (M) Wh Isa 26:1-6 The everlasting Rock 117:1.8-9.19-21.25-27 Love has no end Ps Mt 7:21.24-27 House on rock
30 M St Andrew, apostle feast Red Rom 10:9-18 Confess Jesus to be Lord Ps 18:2-5 Message to all earth Mt 4:18-22 Call of Andrew and others
4 F St John Damascene, priest, doctor of the church (0) Lowly will rejoice Vio Isa 29:17-24 My light and help Ps 26:1.4.13-14 Two blind men Mt 9:27-31
11 Vio Isa 11:1-10 The Spirit of the Lord Ps 71:2.7-8.12-13.17 Judge in justice Lk 10:21-24 I bless you, Father
55 Vio Isa 30:19-21.23-26 Ps 146:1-6 Mt 9:35-10:1.6-8
This is the way Our Lord is great Sorry for crowds
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