The Record Newspaper 17 October 1991

Page 1

PERTH, WA: October 17, 1991

Registered by Australia Post Publication No. WAR 0202

Number 2760

POST ADDRESS: PO Box 50, Northbridge, 6000 W.A. LOCATION: 587 Newcastle Street, Cnr Douglas St (near Loftus St)

TELEPHONE: (09) 22 77 080

FAX (09) 22 77 087

PRICE 60C

Highs and lows of 1990s Free adherence to the Church, and with a new enthusiasm, along with greater participation of the laity are the good things he sees in the 1990s, Archbishop Hickey said last Sunday.

... AND WORRY OVER LACK OF LOYALTY TO HOLY FATHER

Addressing a 50th anniversary conference of the Legion of Mary, Archbishop Hickey said he was heartened when people spoke of the riches they find in going to Mass.

"Gone is the fear of eternal punishment if they don't.

parishes throngs of families filling churches to overflowing".

"They do not belong through fear but because of the love of the Lord, which is the best motive." had he Earlier expressed concern at the small Mass attendances and a fall off in the numbers going to confession.

"They are enthusiastic about belonging because they find there what they need — community and loving support of others, forgiveness and acceptance, the Bread of Life that nourishes and strengthens them as they struggle to raise families."

Despite constant public criticisms of the Church, he said, "you will find in the newer

Among trends that worried him, Archbishop Hickey said, were large numbers of young

people who do not participate in the life of the Church and the loss of respect for the importance of the Blessed Eucharist. Greater participation by laity in prayer and bible discussion groups, in liturgy and parish life was not the same as a democratic Church, he warned. "The Church is hierarchical and will remain so. What is happening is that people are bringing their gifts and talents to every aspect of its life from prayer to decisions. "So strong is this movement that priests have had to learn different ways of operating, drawing people in. This has not been easy for priests used to a more centralised model of Church authority." Archbishop Hickey said he was worried about a lack of loyalty to the Holy Father, the erosion of authority attached to holy orders and theological speculation being accepted as current Catholic thinking and teaching.

The Legion of Mary conference got a helping hand from Scarborough parish choir members Ron and Mary Warby (left) pictured with Scarborough Legionary Eileen McKenna who is currently secretary to Senatus.

Inspirational The Legion of Mary's method was one of its sources of inspiration and Legionaries should be called Catholic Methodists, Archbishop Hickey told the conference. Other inspirational sources were its evangelisation and Marian theology. Noting that John and Charles Wesley were called Methodists because they insisted on a method of spiritual formation, the archbishop said: "You have a tried and tested method of formation: prayer, spiritual

reading, group discussion and apostolic activity. "Retain that method because it forms members in a sound spiritual outlook." He noted that evangelisation had also been a characteristic of the Legion of Mary, and that it had already accepted the call of Pope John Paul for a decade of evangelisation. "Your Marian theology, too, is soundly based. You see Mary as your exemplar in prayer and in fidelity to God's will. "You also see her as the one

who prays for you and one who leads you to her son.

The archbishop also cited the "erosion of Catholic values as we become indistinguishable from the rest of society in our values of respect for life, divorce, personal goals, material and goods individualism".

Family prayer in focus

"These three aspects will hold you in good stead in the 1990s," he said.

Archbishop Hickey's first pastoral letter is likely to be on the subject of prayer and family prayer in particular.

"Family prayer is to be promoted as part of the vocation of parents to form their children in the ways of faith."

"You may feel a little crowded by new groups and movements in the Church. It should not really worry you. It is wonderful that many flowers bloom in the Church. The Legion has flowered marvellously. Now it stands with other blooms, all loving signs of God's loving care of the Church."

Calling on the Legion of Mary to find ways of distributing booklets and otherwise helping parents with prayers for children the archbishop said: "We cannot leave the formation of our children in prayer to our schools alone. They will and do help as much as they can, but they cannot take the place of the family.

Archbishop Hickey said the parents would need good simple resources and ideas to help them. "Iwill be asking my priests to co-operate fully in this venture and our religious education teachers to see that the success of their efforts depends very much on what happens at home."


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.
The Record Newspaper 17 October 1991 by The Record - Issuu