The Southern Cross - 100721

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Parish of the Month from KZN

Camino for the homeless

Who’s who in the gospels

4th century pics of Jesus, apostles

www.scross.co.za

July 21 to July 27, 2010 Reg No. 1920/002058/06

No 4685

R5,00 (incl VAT RSA)

SOUTHERN AFRICA’S NATIONAL CATHOLIC WEEKLY SINCE 1920

Inside Church tackles xenophobia The Church in South Africa has taken action on violence against foreign nationals through education and solidarity programmes, while Archbishop Buti Tlhagale of Johannesburg said that foreigners “are more likely to create employment opportunities than take away employment”.—Page 3

Zim ‘not ready’ for 2011 poll Zimbabwe might not be ready for elections in 2011, but the Catholic Church has begun work on the first step in preparation for elections: healing and reconciliation, said a Justice and Peace official.—Page 3

Base leadership in love In his final column for 2010, Emmanuel Ngara examines what true servant leadership involves.—Page 9

Join the pope in prayer Fr Chris Chatteris SJ looks at the pope’s prayer intentions for August, dealing with the homeless and unemployed, and with the situation of refugees.—Page 9

Parish volunteers from hell Parish volunteers can range from the truly humble to control freaks, writes Chris Moerdyk.—Page 12

What do you think?

In their Letters to the Editor this week, readers discuss coerced abortions, building plans in Johannesburg and Durban, the priesthood, the role of men and women, and support for a centre dedicated to Archbishop Denis Hurley.—Pages 8 & 11

This week’s editorial: Why xenophobia?

Church locks up unwanted media award

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HE German Catholic Church is the recipient of this year’s Locked Oyster, an annual award by an association of journalists to mark the most notable example of blockage of information.

Matthias Kopp, spokesman for the German bishops’ conference, accepted the undesirable award in Hamburg at the annual conference of the organisation Network Research.

The award was bestowed in connection with the Church’s information policy over the series of child abuse cases that have rocked the German Catholic Church this year.

The organisation’s chairman, Thomas Leif, said the German bishops “only admit what can’t be denied any longer”. The Church “does not respect the right of the public to early and complete information and thus contradicts its own values of truthfulness and honesty”.

In his speech, Mr Kopp admitted that the Church had made mistakes in its communication but said: “We are in the process of dealing with the failures of the past. We are doing that because we want to communicate—that’s my commitment today in Hamburg.”

He also called upon journalists to examine their own prejudices about the Church.—CNS

Left: Catholics, especially youths, from the Far East Rand Deanery of Johannesburg archdiocese spent a night with the relics of St Thérèse of Lisieux, which are currently touring South Africa.

Right: The relics, contained in a 130kg wood and silver reliquary, are carried in procession: (front right) Fr Duncan Tsoke, vicar-general of Johannesburg; Tony Mokheseng of the diocesan Justice and Peace Commission; (back right) Fr Shaun Von Lillienfeld; (back left) Archbishop Buti Tlhagale; (front left) Fr Petrus Shiya and Rev John Rahme.

Tears as St Thérèse’s relics left parish R

ECEIVING the relics of St Thérèse of Lisieux, also known as the “Little Flower”, at the Cathedral of Christ the King in Johannesburg, Archbishop Buti Tlhagale beseeched the saint’s intercession for the archdiocese and the country.

“Let South Africa be endowed with wise and caring leaders,” he said, expressing hope “for renewal in our faith and commitment, for inspiration, for healing in body and mind, for strength, for protection”.

The archbishop prayed: “Allow us to experience the change of heart, which has been experienced by the thousands of pilgrims who have made the journey to venerate you.”

The relics of the French saint are travelling throughout South Africa—from Tzaneen in the north to Cape Town in the south—until September.

Housed in an ornate 130kg reliquary, or casket, made in Brazil from jacaranda wood and silver, the relics have travelled to more than 50 countries around the world.

The veneration of St Thérèse’s relics started in France around 1947. In 1994 the ecclesiastical authorities of Lisieux agreed that they could travel the world.

In England last year, some 250 000 people venerated the relics, despite widespread cynicism before their arrival.

The relics came to South Africa at the initiative of Fr Vusi Sokhela CMM of Yeoville and Fr Shaun Von Lillienfeld, administrator of Christ the King cathedral.

In Johannesburg, the relics were carried in procession into the cathedral led by children from the parish of St Francis of Assisi in Yeoville, who were dressed as Carmelites, and were accompanied by Mother Teresa’s Missionaries of Charity, who serve the parish and minister to its children. They will host the relics in their hospice on August 23.

Surrounded by fresh flowers and rose petals—in tribute to St Thérèse’s lifelong fondness for nature—the relics were at the Johannesburg cathedral for veneration until they departed for Tzaneen diocese.

Before going to the cathedral, the relics visited the small parish of St Martin de Porres in Geluksdal in the East Rand.

Sacred Heart Father Joseph Wilson, parish

priest of St Martin de Porres, of loving Jesus in our lives at a saw the coming of the relics as time when it seems that the a good opportunity for youth. worship of false gods, the socHe said despite knowing very cer ball and sport have first little about St Thérèse before place in the lives of so many, ” she came, the youth seemed to Mr Lee said. be attracted to her instinctively.

“St Thérèse will surely “To be honest” said Fr Wilremind us of the first comson, “not a lot of parishioners mandment: ‘Thou shalt not knew very much about St have false gods before me’.”

Thérèse before she arrived. By the time she left, in the space he relics are due to leave of two short days, many parishTzaneen to arrive in Aliwal ioners were shedding floods of North on July 22, and then are tears—especially the youth.” scheduled to go to Kokstad (July He said preparation was 26-28), Port Shepstone in UmzSt Thérèse important. “In order to maximkulu diocese (July 30), the imise the spiritual impact of convent of the Capuchin Poor her coming, it is vital to prepare the parish Clare Sisters in Mariannhill (August 3), and for her visit. There is tons of information on Morningside parish in Durban (August 5-8).

YouTube which a parish can easily access.”

The relics will come to Cape Town on Fr Wilson said they made exhibitions of August 11 for two weeks. The Carmelite Sisher images and writings and had prayer ters of Retreat will host their fellow cards printed, activities that served to bring Carmelite’s relics on August 20, as will three them even closer to her. parishes—Welcome Estate (August 9-12), He said many of them and many adults Camps Bay (August 13-15) and Bergvliet were moved to tears by a film show on her (August 16-19 and 21)—before they return life by filmmaker Leonardo Defilippis, Ordi- to Johannesburg. nary Girl, Extraordinary Soul.

In Johannesburg archdiocese the relics “We found a great spiritual pay-off for will be displayed at Christ the King cathethe efforts outlaid. Many people who had dral (August 25), Regina Mundi in Moroka been afraid to make Confession in years, (August 26), Alberton (August 27-29), were moved by [St Thérèse’s] holiness and Nazareth House in Yeoville (August 30), came forward to experience the love and Northriding (September 1-2), Kathlehong mercy of Jesus; some ‘lapsed’ Catholics, (September 3-5), Victory Park (September 9came out to see her and she won grace for 13), Sebokeng (September 17-20), Craighall them.”

Park (September 24-27), and Yeoville (SepThe priest said the church was packed, tember 20-23) attributing the turn-out to “her magnetism In Pretoria, the relics will be hosted by and drawing power of people of all ages”. Queenswood parish (September 6-9). They He believed that all who came to venerate will be in Queenstown, Eastern Cape from the saint’s relics drew something from the September 13-16. experience.

They will leave South Africa on October 5 “It is true, she is showering down the after returning to Yeoville parish, which will graces. All you have to do is turn up and celebrate its patronal feast, that of St Francis bend down,” Fr Wilson said. of Assisi, in a special way with St Thérèse’s Johannesburg Catholic John Lee of relics.

Yeoville also welcomed the saint’s relics, calling their exposition in South Africa a  For more information, visit the website www.sttheresesouthafrica2010.com or “singular grace”.

“It is fitting that South Africa should be contact Fr Sokhela on 072 149 8703 or blessed by the Little Flower’s relics, to vsokza@telkomsa.net, or Fr Von Lillienfeld remind us of the necessity of the centrality at 083 763 0807.

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LOCAL

The Southern Cross, July 21 to July 27, 2010

Dr Regan Arendse submitted this photograph of the original Marian Shrine chapel at Ngome, north of Ulundi, in KwaZulu-Natal, after a family visit to Mr Arendse’s brother-in-law, Fr Wayne Weldschidt OMI, director of the shrine, and his co-director, Fr Nkululeko Meyiwa OMI. The old chapel is framed by the arches of the new facebrick chapel.

Scalabrinians take stock at founder’s anniversary

BY MICHAIL RASSOOL

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HEN Bl Giovanni Battista Scalabrini saw his fellow Italian countrymen standing on the quay with suitcases in their hands bound for better lives in America or Brazil, he recognised that their material, spiritual and emotional vacuum, would have to be filled.

Addressing a congregation at a special Mass commemorating the founder of the Scalabrinian missionaries at Holy Cross church in Cape Town, Scalabrinian Father Gerardo Garcia said he responded accordingly, founding his Missionaries of St Charles (or Scalabrinians, as they're known) and their “Work for the Protection of the Emigrants” in 1887.

Bl Scalabrini, who was bishop of Piacenza and described by chroniclers as “a man of God and a man of his times”, set out to serve the “stranger” in his new environment and re-establish the Gospel in their lives. Fr Garcia said this fundamental concern to help and look after the immigrant in need has never been altered since.

More than 120 years after the foundation of the Scalabrinian congregation, human migration

Fr Mario Tessarotto CS, who heads the Scalabrinian mission in Cape Town, addresses the congregation at the commemoration Mass for the order’s founder, Blessed Giovanni Battista Scalabrini.

PHOTO: MICHAIL RASSOOL

continues to be what the late Pope John Paul II described as “one of the most complex and dramatic events of history”.

The Scalabrinian missionaries, who work in the Americas, Europe, Asia and Africa, have just under 800 members, with 275 apostolic

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positions in 31 countries, continuing the tradition set by their founder according to “the signs of the times”.

In South Africa, they minister to largely French, Italian and Portuguese-speaking people, many of whom are refugees and asylum seekers, and have also established the beginnings of a Scalabrinian seminary.

Scalabrini Day, Fr Garcia said, gives the missionaries and their myriad helpers an opportunity to take stock of the founder's special mission and the values of service that speak directly to Gospel teaching, and how the Scalabrinian service is continued.

“This is so vital in order for us to be a better and more engaged Church,” he said.

The Scalabrinian said his order’s charism is understood as “a mission in reverse”, acknowledging the two-way reconciliatory element involved in ministering to others, learning each other's languages and the proximity of souls which edify each other.

He explained that it is the missionaries who receive from the people they serve “the gift of accompanying them in their situations”.

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Durban priest to do Camino for homeless

BY MICHAIL RASSOOL

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HE administrator of Emmanuel cathedral, Durban, Fr Stephen Tully, will walk the Camino de Santiago (the Way of St James) to raise money to develop the new Denis Hurley Centre.

The centre forms part of the cathedral precinct and will provide care for the homeless and those in need in the archdiocese.

The priest, however, is calling on individuals and companies to help him raise funds for his pilgrimage “So many homeless people walk from all over Africa to Emmanuel cathedral seeking refuge, help and love. I believe our Lord wants me to follow their heroic example by raising awareness of their pain, suffering and the many injustices they have endured. The funds raised will go towards building the Denis Hurley Centre as a new home for existing projects seeing to their needs,” said Fr Tully The Camino is a large network of ancient pilgrim routes stretching across Europe and coming together at the tomb of St James (or Santiago in Spanish) in Santiago de Compostela in north-west Spain.

The most popular route, which Fr Tully will take, is the Camino Francés, which stretches 780km from St Jean-Pied-du-Port near Biarritz in France to Santiago. It has had large numbers of pilgrims travelling to St James’ tomb for at least 800 years.

Fr Tully will commence his walk on August 17 and reach Santiago de Compostela on September 19.

He explained that some people do the Camino for spiritual reasons, while others find spiritual reasons along the way while meeting other pilgrims, attending pilgrim Masses in churches, monasteries and cathedrals, and seeing the large infrastructure of buildings built over many centuries.

Regarding his own “Camino for the Homeless”, the cathedral

Fr Stephen Tully PHOTO COURTESY OF THE SUNDAY TRIBUNE

administrator said: “I hope my walking will help us all not only to pray for our brothers and sisters who are less fortunate than ourselves, but to be part of righting the wrongs suffered by the innocent victims in a world of greed and injustice.”

He said Emmanuel cathedral parish believes God is calling it to develop the Hurley centre, named after the late Archbishop Denis Hurley, long-time fighter for justice and human rights, and who founded some of the projects already operating in the existing centre, which will be demolished to make way for a new, more serviceable one.

Those interested in contributing can do so via the centre’s bank account: First National Bank; account holder, Denis Hurley Centre; account number, 6220 4261 002; account type, cheque; branch name, Durban; branch code, 221426; swift code, FIRN ZAJJ 659.

Contributions can also be handed in personally at the parish office in clearly marked envelopes at the parish centre office or in the Sunday collection, or parishioners may drop their donations in the box on the left hand side at the back of the church as they leave.

LOCAL Remember: SA was also a ‘refugee-producing’ country

BY STAFF REPORTER

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ITH refugees in South Africa living in fear of more attacks, youth from the central deanery at the Cathedral of Christ the King in Johannesburg, gathered to show their support to refugees and asylum seekers through prayer.

With the theme, “We are one in Christ, praying for refugees and the end of human trafficking”, the youth and refugee community prepared various activities, including testimonial, presentations on refugees and xenophobia, music, dances and poetry, which they showcased after Mass.

Fr Rampe Hlobo of the Jesuit Refugees Service and the former dean of central deanery youth, delivered the keynote address.

He told the youth that while South Africa had hosted “the most prestigious tournament of all”, the Fifa World Cup, his memory took him back to an afternoon in London where “I was studying when a fellow Jesuit from Zambia came to me and said, ‘Rampe, are we still welcome in South Africa?’”

“When he asked me this question I hadn’t yet read the newspaper. But what was in the newspapers on the front page? A gruesome picture of somebody somewhere in Johannesburg who was necklaced. Newspapers were saying that this is what South Africans are doing, ‘killing foreigners!’

“Needless to say, I was so embarrassed knowing that for two years I lived with the same man in Zambia and he took very good care of me. He showed me all the hospitality I needed, and there they were, my own black South Africans killing other blacks from other African countries,” said Fr Hlobo.

“My worry is, we as South Africans, especially the young people, have to remember that South Africa was once a refugee

 J.M.J

producing country since after the Sharpeville massacre. Our leaders who are in parliament and cabinet today were once refugees in African countries.

These countries even made sure that our leaders got the necessary education.

“Look at many of our ministers in cabinet today, those who were in exile, their university degrees are not university degrees from South African universities. They are degrees from University of Dar-es-Salam, the University of Nairobi, the University of Zimbabwe and the University of Botswana. They were given the opportunity to develop themselves while they were in exile, so that when they come back to South Africa they would be able to rule and lead the people of South Africa. This is the hospitality and treatment that any refugee would expect from a host country,” he said.

Fr Hlobo said that as South Africans we have received so much support from other African countries and “I think it is only fair that we reciprocate what our leaders received from these African nations”.

These African nations were much poorer than South Africa, but even so they did accord us or our leaders the hospitality they needed, he said.

He said that as Christians we cannot continue to allow this kind of horrible, horrific and barbaric attack to continue.

“As the youth of South Africa we are faced with this challenge together, to face this xenophobia monster and to teach others that refugees are human beings like you and me, who also possess the human dignity that we all possess and that they should be treated as such. We cannot allow xenophobia to continue.

Remember evil will always flourish when good people do nothing,” he added.

The Southern Cross, July 21 to July 27, 2010

Church acts to educate people ‘on how to respond to xenophobia’

BY BRONWEN DACHS

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HE Catholic Church is taking action to address violence against foreign nationals in South Africa.

Archbishop Buti Tlhagale of Johannesburg, president of the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference (SACBC), has issued a statement in which he said those tempted to commit violence must find other means of expressing their grievances.

He said the previous attacks had been against foreigners living legally in South Africa.

“It is commonly said that these people take away the jobs of South Africans and that they bring criminal behaviour into the country,” the archbishop said.

“However, “current evidence suggests that the foreign-born are no more likely to be involved in crime as any other part of the population and that they are generally more likely to create employment opportunities rather than take away employment”.

The archbishop said it was important that the South African

government manage the flow of people in and out of the country.

“It is equally proper that our government, as part of its international responsibilities, open our borders to those who are fleeing persecution and the breakdown of the economy of their own countries through no fault of their own.

South Africa’s own recent history clearly demonstrates how such movement can be of long-term benefit to all the countries and people involved.”

Dominican Father Mike Deeb, director of the bishops’ Justice and Peace Department, said his department would run training workshops in dioceses around the country “on how to respond to xenophobia”.

He said he hoped the Peace Cup, a Catholic-inspired tournament that gives football players from different social classes, ethnicities and national origins the chance to play together, would help prevent xenophobia as people get to know each other.

Earlier this month, a delegation of religious leaders, led by Archbishop Tlhagale, raised concerns

Reaping the benefits of mentoring young people

BY MICHAIL RASSOOL

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lairissa Arendse is leaving the Church-based Rural Education Access Programme (REAP), after two years as its director. An associate body of the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference, REAP was formed when the conference’s Educational Assistance Scheme amalgamated with the archdiocese of Cape Town’s Catholic Educational Access Programme. By 2001 a national vision was realised to provide tertiary education to South Africa's most disadvantaged students, most of them from rural areas.

Ms Arendse said since 2008, the

year her term as director began, REAP has implemented a formal peer mentorship programme.

“Through formalising the mentorship programme,” she explained, “we have been able to broker relationships with the institutions for training REAP mentors in the qualities of good mentors, facilitation and presentation skills, how to refer challenging cases and how to debrief.”

Students also do community service, and last year almost 80% of students undertook at least three days of community service.

“As with any volunteer system performance varies, but we firmly believe that REAP’s recruitment and selection process.”

about the possibility of a resurgence in violence against foreign nationals in a meeting with President Jacob Zuma.

“We are confident that the security services will act very swiftly if there are outbreaks of violence,” Fr Chris Townsend, SACBC conference communications officer, said.

The National Religious Leaders’ Forum, which includes Muslim, Jewish, Buddhist, Hindu and Ba’hai leaders as well as officials of Christian churches, met with Mr Zuma, Deputy-President Kgalema Motlanthe and other government officials in Pretoria to discuss the possibility of xenophobic attacks after the World Cup. The leaders also discussed sustaining the spirit of unity generated by the tournament, moral regeneration, relationships between religious leaders and the government, and other issues.

More than 60 people were killed and more than 30 000 people were displaced in attacks on foreigners around South Africa in May 2008.—CNS

Cardinal salutes World Cup players

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ARDINAL Wilfrid Napier, archbishop of Durban, spokesman for the Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference, has congratulated the government, and all stakeholders involved in making Football World Cup in South Africa a successful. It has given South Africans a wonderful opportunity to work together and to prove that “we are a nation full of very capable people”.

“South Africa has shown the capacity to work, to build, to coordinate, to manage and to protect. We must use our considerable skill and learning to tackle the most pressing issues in our country—education, healthcare, criminality and service delivery. It’s time. We have proven that we can do it!”

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The Southern Cross, July 21 to July 27, 2010

INTERNATIONAL

Women bishops may spark Anglican exodus

BY SIMON CALDWELL

“We explained what would enable us to stay in the Church of England, but the General Synod has decided to get rid of us by giving us a provision that does not meet our needs. They are saying either put up or shut up and accept innovations, however unscriptural or heretical, or get out.”

Mr Parkinson said he expected thousands of members of Forward in Faith to consider accepting Pope Benedict’s offer of a personal ordinariate, issued last November in the apostolic constitution Anglicanorum coetibus, in which a group of Anglicans can be received into the Catholic Church while retaining their distinctive patrimony and liturgical practices.

“Many, I expect, will be exploring the provisions of Pope Benedict’s apostolic constitution. We have got 10 000 members, so clearly we are talking about thousands,” he added.

A number of breakaway national Anglican churches, in communion with the Traditional Anglican Communion rather than the much larger Worldwide Anglican Communion, have already written

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HE largest Anglo-Catholic group in the Church of England is expecting an exodus of thousands of Anglicans to Catholicism after a decision to ordain women as bishops without sufficient concessions to traditionalists.

Stephen Parkinson, director of Forward in Faith—a group that has about 10 000 members, including more than 1 000 clergy—said that a large number of Anglo-Catholics are considering conversion to the Catholic faith.

His comments came after the General Synod, the national assembly of the Church of England, voted at a meeting in York to approve the creation of women bishops by 2014 without meeting the demands of objectors.

A statement from Forward in Faith advised members against hasty action, saying now was “not the time for precipitate action”.

“This draft measure does nothing for us at all,” said Mr Parkinson. “We explained very carefully why we could not accept women bishops theologically.

to the Vatican to accept the pope’s offer.

The defection of thousands of mainstream Anglican traditionalists from the Church of England would represent the largest single block.

Mr Parkinson said developments were unlikely within the next six months, however, adding that until women bishops are ordained, Anglican traditionalists had a “couple of years” to think about what to do.

The Forward in Faith statement said the proposals must be considered by provincial synods in September and the outcomes could be debated a month later when Forward in Faith holds its annual meeting.

The decision by the General Synod came after nearly 12 hours of debate on a compromise proposed by the Archbishop Rowan Williams of Canterbury and Archbishop John Sentamu of York was narrowly defeated.

The diocesan synods have now been asked to scrutinise a scheme where women bishops would have the authority to make alternative arrangements for objectors through

A nun watches a charity tennis match between veteran stars Goran Ivanisevic (who has family in South Africa) and John McEnroe in the main square of Dubrovnik, Croatia. Money raised during the match was donated to a local children’s hospital.

PHOTO: NIKOLA SOLIC, CNS/REUTERS

a statutory code of practice. The Anglo-Catholic group of the synod had wanted episcopal visitors, or “flying bishops”, to minister to their members instead, but their requests were rejected.

If the resolution is supported by a majority of the diocesan synods, it will be returned to the General Synod for ratification in 2012.

Archbishop Williams told the General Synod that its vote illustrated that the Church of England

was “committed by a majority to the desirability of seeing women as bishops for the health and flourishing of the work of God’s kingdom, of this church and this nation”.

He added: “We are also profoundly committed by a majority in the synod to a maximum generosity that can be consistently and coherently exercised toward the consciences of minorities and we have not yet cracked how to do that.”—CNS

Zim ‘not ready for 2011 poll’

BY BRONWEN DACHS

Z

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IMBABWE might not be ready for elections in 2011, but the Catholic Church has begun work on the first step in preparation for elections: healing and reconciliation, said a justice and peace official.

“A call for a new election will open old wounds” among the electorate, said Alouis Chaumba, who heads the Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace (J&P) in Zimbabwe.

“The country is not sufficiently healed for elections to take place” in 2011, as mandated by a 2009 agreement that formed a coalition government, he said.

“To create the conditions for free and fair elections, we need an end to violence and a full return to the rule of law.”

Harare’s Justice and Peace Commission said it has started this work by holding workshops in its parishes and has joined counselling organisations to help traumatised people.

“We do not want to wait for a national process that might never happen,” the commission said in its July newsletter.

The nationwide collection of public submissions for a new constitution has brought “a new wave of intimidation and harassment, largely because the constitution-making process is linked to elections, which in Zimbabwe are times of violence”, Mr Chaumba said.

Brutal state-sponsored violence targeting the opposition after disputed March 2008 elections left more than 80 people dead and 200 000 displaced, human rights groups said.

The long-delayed programme to amend a constitution adopt-

Victims of violence during Zimbabw’es 2008 election campaign.

A Church observer has said that the country is “not sufficiently healed” for the mandated elections next year. PHOTO FROM CNS ed after independence in 1980 is behind schedule under an agreement that formed a coalition government between President Robert Mugabe and his former opposition leader, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai. The agreement calls for a new constitution ahead of a foreign-monitored election planned for 2011.

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lmost all elections in Zimbabwe have been marred by violence, Fr Kenneth Makamure of Chishawasha major seminary wrote in the J&P newsletter.

“This violence has left people polarised and in need of reconciliation,” he said. While “efforts are being made by the inclusive government to get people reconciled”, it has become apparent that the link between reconciliation and justice “has been forgotten or ignored”.

Fr Makamure said “the first thing is to establish the truth of what actually happened…who died, who disappeared, who was maimed, who ordered the deaths and disappearances, who carried out the orders”.

Also, “justice demands that structural iniquities which were the cause of injustice and conflict be addressed”, such as the rule of law and the use of state agents, including the army and police, to inflict harm on citizens, he said.

Zimbabweans must have safe zones where victims can tell their stories and call perpetrators to account, Fr Makamure said, noting that “if perpetrators are not called to account for their evil actions” they are likely to continue being violent.

Mr Chaumba said that besides pushing for presidential term limits and strengthening parliament in a new constitution, the Church in Zimbabwe advocates that the constitution allow local people “to have a say in how the country’s mineral and other natural resources are utilised”.

The Church has “presented its position through its outreach programmes. We need to build confidence in the electoral process so that people believe that their vote does count.”

In efforts to help Zimbabweans overcome their fear of involvement in politics, the national Justice and Peace Commission has held countrywide “meet your leader” discussion forums, aimed at increasing engagement between citizens and their elected representatives, such as members of parliament and local councillors, member Vitalis Gutu said in the commission’s newsletter.

The idea “is to make the electorate realise that they are an important stakeholder in development of their areas” and that “their active participation is indispensable”, Mr Gutu said.— CNS

China frees bishop after 15 months detention

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HINESE Bishop Julius Jia Zhiguo of Zhengding was released on July 7 after 15 months in detention.

The bishop celebrated an evening Mass for his flock immediately on his return to Christ the King cathedral in Wuqiu village, near Shijiazhuang, the capital of Hebei province.

He also made a point of stating that he had not accepted the

Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association, nor the authority of the Bishops’ Conference of the Catholic Church in China, which are government-approved Church bodies.

In a press release issued by the US-based Cardinal Kung Foundation, Bishop Jia emphasised that “he was and always would be firmly adhered to the leadership of the Holy Father”.

Bishop Jia was removed by government officials on March

30, 2009, the day the Vatican’s China Commission began its plenary meeting in Rome.

Throughout his detention, his family had campaigned vigorously for his release.

Two other Hebei prelates— Bishops James Su Zhemin of Baoding and Cosmas Shi Enxiang of Yixian—have been held in detention since 1997 and 2001, respectively. Their whereabouts have been unknown for years.—CNS

INTERNATIONAL

Vatican budget in red again

BY CAROL GLATZ

M

AJOR renovations, infrastructure upgrades and a sluggish global economy left the Vatican City State budget in the red; however, donations to the pope were up from recent years.

The 2009 fiscal period marked the third year in a row that Vatican expenses outpaced revenues.

The budget of Vatican City State, which includes the Vatican Museums and post office, ended 2009 with a deficit of $9,8 million (about R75 million), the Vatican said in notes on the budgets.

The separate budget of the Holy See, which includes the offices of the Roman Curia, finished 2009 with a registered deficit of more than $5.15 million (R40 million).

The figures were released this month after a three-day meeting of a council of cardinals charged with reviewing the Vatican budgets.

In explaining the city-state’s deficit, the council’s press statement mentioned that the Vatican Museums had opened new exhibition spaces and had

extended visiting hours, which means the payroll grew. Vatican City is also launching a major overhaul of its telecommunications infrastructure in which a high-speed fibre optic network will be installed over 400km.

Building, maintenance and restoration work on the colonnade in St Peter’s Square and on the basilicas of St John Lateran, St Paul Outside the Walls and St Mary Major required substantial expenditures, the release said. In addition, “the costs sustained for security inside Vatican City State” and for the major renovation of the Vatican Library, which should open in September, added to the deficit.

The budget of the Holy See saw $319,6 million in outlays and $314,4 million in revenues including $62,8 million from the Institute for the Works of Religion, otherwise known as the Vatican bank.

Fr Federico Lombardi SJ, head of the Vatican Press office, told journalists that the institute was just one of a number of foundations that donates money to fund religious activity of the Holy See. It was the first time the bud-

getary council publicly listed the institute as a contributor, even though it is a regular donor. It was the highest donor among foundations last year.

The budget of the Holy See includes the Vatican Secretariat of State and its diplomatic missions around the world, Vatican congregations and pontifical councils, the Holy See’s investment portfolio and properties as well as the Vatican’s newspaper, radio, publishing house and television production centre.

Among expenditures for the Holy See, the most substantial item is the wages of its 2 762 employees. Vatican City State covered the payroll of 1 891 people last year and about 4 587 former employees received pensions from the Vatican.

The Vatican statement included a report on two special sources of income: the Peter’s Pence collection, which is used by the pope for charity and emergency assistance; and the contributions of dioceses around the world made to support Vatican operations.

In 2009, Peter’s Pence collected $82,5 million, nearly $7 million more than 2008.—CNS

The Southern Cross, July 21 to July 27, 2010

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Religious freedom a force of peace

BY CAROL GLATZ

P

OPE Benedict will focus on religious freedom’s contribution to peace in his World Peace Day message for 2011.

The theme the pope has chosen for the January 1 celebration is “Religious Freedom, the Path to Peace”, the Vatican announced in a statement.

The pope intends to discuss how the fundamental human right to believe in God is a prerequisite for full human development and “a condition for the realisation of the common good and the promotion of peace in the world”, the Vatican said.

“In many parts of the world there exist various forms of restrictions or denials of religious freedom, from discrimination and marginalisation based on religion to acts of violence against religious minorities,” the statement said.

The papal message will expand on comments the pope made in his address to the United Nations General Assembly in 2008 when he said it was “inconceivable that believers should have to suppress a part of themselves—their faith—in order to be active citizens” and to enjoy their human rights.

In that speech, the pope said:

Pope Benedict waves as he leads his Angelus prayer at his summer residence in Castel Gandolfo. In his message for World Peace Day, on January 1, the pope will argue that religious freedom is essential for peace.

PHOTO: MAX ROSSI, REUTERS/CNS

“The rights associated with religion are all the more in need of protection if they are considered to clash with a prevailing secular ideology or with majority religious positions of an exclusive nature.”

Pope Benedict also will distinguish between authentic religious freedom, “which broadens the horizons of humanity and freedom of man” as well as respects human dignity and life,

and religious fundamentalism, in which the truth is manipulated or exploited to the detriment of people, the Vatican statement said.

People cannot be divorced from their beliefs, because those beliefs affect their lives and themselves, it said.

Authentic religious beliefs unite people and can have a positive impact on society, it said.— CNS

FRANCISCAN NARDINI SISTERS

Priest: Belfast rioters ‘were bussed in’

BY CIAN MOLLOY

F

RESH intercommunity dialogue is needed to resolve the difficulties surrounding controversial parades in Northern Ireland, said a Catholic priest in Belfast, Northern Ireland, following the most serious outbreak of sectarian rioting in many years.

Dozens of police officers were injured during rioting as nationalists, mainly Catholics, protested against a decision by the Independent Parades Commission to allow Protestants to march through the Catholic enclave of Ardoyne on their way back to North Belfast from parades in the city centre.

Police, political and community leaders claimed that the violence was organised by dissident Republicans, members of the chiefly Catholic nationalist community, who are unhappy with the provisions of the 1998 Good Friday Peace Agreement.

Police video footage showed that the rioting was well organised: Youths had stones, bricks and bottles stored in rolling garbage bins and were armed with petrol bombs.

“There were people here yesterday and the day before whom I had never seen in Ardoyne before, and I have been living here for ten years—they must have been bussed in,” said Passionist Father Gary Donegan of Holy Cross Catholic church in Ardoyne.

“No matter who started it, it quickly developed into recreational rioting,” said Fr Donegan. “There were dozens of kids here texting their friends to come on up to North Belfast for a bit of fun; they were using Twitter and posting pictures on Bebo pages. Once the decision had been made to allow the Orange Order to march through Ardoyne, we were all in a loselose situation.”

The priest said: “Trouble was

started by both sides. This can’t continue; we need dialogue to ensure that this kind of trouble does not happen again.”

For decades, parades organised through Catholic areas by two Protestant fraternities, the Orange Order and the Royal Black Institution, have been a cause of intercommunity tension in Northern Ireland.

As part of the Good Friday Peace Agreement, an Independent Parades Commission was established, and its decision to ban or reroute the most controversial parades has reduced the level of public disturbances during the so-called Protestant marching season, when hundreds of parades take place between Easter and September.

The parades commission ruled that the Orange Order could march through Ardoyne this year because the level of intercommunity violence had decreased significantly in recent years.—CNS

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5

6

COMMUNITY

The Southern Cross, July 21 to July 27, 2010

Over 25 members of St Matthew’s parish in Bonteheuwel, Cape Town, received their First Communion. Pictured with the candidates are (front) Glenda Hendricks, Rev Andrew Siljeur, Fr Gavin Butler, Cathy Collins, Magda Meiring and (back) Monica Barnett.

PHOTO: MICHAEL BROWN

Religious formators gathered at St Mary's Pastoral Centre in Pietermaritzburg, KwaZuluNatal.

Deacon Isaac Thomas, who has been working at San Salvador parish in Leondale, Boksburg, celebrated his silver jubilee this year after being ordained in 1985.

Pictured with Deacon Thomas is Johannesburg Archbishop Buti Tlhagale.

SUBMITTED BY JAMES MINNAAR

Christ the King parish in Heidedal, Bloemfontein, launched a branch of the Catholic Women’s League. Starting with 11 members, the League will be recruiting new members in the coming months. The members are (back from left): Judith Cornellissen, Magaret de Beer, Melody Plaatjies, Olivia Pretorius, Elizabeth Swartz, Peace Morgan, Theresa Scott, Thandi Bruintjies, (front) Sharon McKenzie, Fr Patrick Towe and Jacinta Watson. Absent is Marlize van Wyk. SUBMITTED BY CLIVE SOLOMON

IN FOCUS

edited by Nadine Christians

Send photographs, with sender’s name and address on the back, and a SASE to: The Southern Cross, Community Pics, Box 2372, Cape Town, 8000 or email them to: pics@scross.co.za

Renato Acquisto (right), Alpha for Catholics advisor in Johannesburg archdiocese and Lola de Abreu (centre), his counterpart in Cape Town archdiocese, met with Archbishop Stephen Brislin of Cape Town.

Sharon van der Sandt (left) and Yvonne Mthembu (right) hand over money that was collected by the Little Flower School in Eshowe, to Bishop Xolele Kumalo.

PHOTO: L VAN DER SANDT

PHOTO: GARTH CANFIELD

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Colin Northmore, principal of Sacred Heart College, Johannesburg at Soccer City, Soweto, with 86 pupils of the Three2Six School, which he had founded for children of refugees whose education was disrupted by family displacement.

Thanks to sponsorship by motor vehicle company Hyundai, they were able to attend the FIFA Football World Cup match in which Argentina beat Korea 4-1.

SUBMITTED BY MARK POTTERTON

Fr Titus Gamede, priest at Blessed Teresa of Calcutta parish in Gingindlovu, Eshowe, received his masters degree in Canon Law; Specialisation: Income Tax Law. SUBMITTED BY DR CLOTILDA ZONDO

CHURCH LIFE

The Southern Cross, July 21 to July 27, 2010

7

St Francis, Richards Bay

Spreading the news for 24 years

F

OR 24 years St Francis parish in Richards Bay in Eshowe diocese, KwaZulu-Natal, has been dedicated to selling The Southern Cross.

The sale of the newspaper has fallen on the shoulders of parishioner Barbara Walters who has made it her mission to market and sell the newspaper for all of these 24 years.

Mrs Walters, also fondly known to parishioners as Aunty Barbara and Mrs Southern Cross, is also the coordinator of the Thursday catechism.

“We are ever so grateful to The Southern Cross business manager Pamela Davids who supplies us with the upcoming week’s edition highlights, which we put into our bulletin every week to encourage the people to buy their copies. We have a set number of people who pay monthly for their copies of The Southern Cross. More than that we have both Barbara and her husband Grant, who actively encourage all who walk out of our parish doors to ‘buy your copy of The Southern Cross today, one copy for the family’.”

“All credit goes to her for her time and effort. As the parish priest I am not sure if I must call her ‘Mrs Southern Cross or Mrs catechism’,” said Fr Bheki Thungo.

St Francis of Assisi started around 1977 as a community. At that time the church was sharing

its priest, Fr Godfrey Siebert OSB, with St Patrick’s church in Empangeni. At that stage the paris had no building “and they were using one of the schools in Richards Bay and then they moved on to the chapel of St Francis convent,” said Fr Thungo.

A church was later built in the Veld en Vlei in Richards Bay, and was officially opened by the late Bishop Mansuet Dela Biyase. Even though the church is only 24 years old, the parish community is more than 30 years old, the priest added.

Fr Thungo told The Southern Cross that the parish has a large multicultural dynamic congregation, with approximately 198 registered families and more than 500 parishioners.

The parish, he said, has grown tremendously over the years and continues to grow year by year.

“We have a proud history of priests who have been instrumental in the growth of our wonderful congregation, namely Abbot Godfrey Sieber, Fathers Pius Paul, Peter Blue and Maximilian Kolbe Jacobs, to name but a few. Fr Jacobs worked very hard to put the parish where it is today. Bringing changes to any parish is not easy, but Fr Jacobs worked very hard and may God bless him in his new parish and his ministry,” said Fr Thungo.

Fr Thungo said that one of the things that have brought growth in the parish is the openness of all

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the parishioners.

“They are open to change and without them the parish wouldn’t be what it is today. The Sisters under the leadership of Sr Carmelina Zinkl contribute tremendously to the growth of both young and old, with their pastoral duties. The contribution of the members of the parish council also helps a lot in bringing growth in the parish.”

As a parish, St Francis has various sodalities, including the Knights of da Gama, the Catholic Women's League, Sacred Heart of Jesus and Couples for Christ, who contribute to the way of life within the parish.

“We also have a Junior Youth group which meets every Thursday before catechism for Grades 1-6.

On Fridays we have our youth group, which starts with Mass at 6pm and then their meeting that ends at 20:30pm. During these meetings they discuss issues which cover spirituality, personal growth, skills developments and not forgetting the social part of evening.”

The parish presently has only 20 active youth members, a challenge, said Fr Thungo, they will overcome.

The parish can also boast taking second place in Eshowe’s diocesan fundraising event, but “we are now aiming to take the first place in this year’s event”.

But the parish still faces many challenges, said Fr Thungo.

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Selling The Southern Cross every week is St Francis parishioner Barbara Walters. With her is Fr Bheki Thungo.

The St Francis parish youth group.

“At this point in time there is more pressure on the parish priest and the parish council as people are growing in numbers, on how are we to meet their spiritual needs more than anything else. At the same time we keep the parish united as a rainbow parish and meet their needs during the Sunday Mass,” said Fr Thungo.

Meanwhile, the parish is preparing for “our biggest activity”: Thanksgiving Sunday, which will take place on the Sunday before

the parish’s patronal feast on October 4.

“On that day we plan to add and announce how much we have put into our Thanksgiving collection for all our big projects such as needed renovations. Our target is R150 000 and I trust that parishioners will reach and exceed this target,” Fr Thungo said.

The parish will also be “putting together a parish magazine and our website will be up and running in the very near future”.

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8

The Southern Cross, July 21 to 27, 2010

LEADER PAGE LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

The Editor reserves the right to shorten or edit published letters. Letters below 300 words receive preference. Pseudonyms are acceptable only under special circumstances and at the Editor’s discretion. Name and address of the writer must be supplied. No anonymous letter will be considered.

Editor: Günther Simmermacher

Why xenophobia?

I

T is encouraging that the South African Police Services and government are taking appropriate action on violence against foreign nationals, even deploying the military to trouble hotspots. While no amount of engagement will preclude isolated attacks, the threat of violence spreading countrywide as it did in May 2008 seems to be containable.

Likewise, the response of many South Africans in protecting foreigners from attacks, even at the risk of sustaining personal harm themselves, must be highlighted and commended.

We must expect the threat to remain ever-present. Indeed, violence against foreigners— what we commonly label “xenophobia”—has been a feature of South African life since the 1990s. It will not disappear until living conditions in areas where such attacks occur are markedly improved.

It serves no purpose for politicians to downplay threats of violence with references to rumours, never mind making paranoid statements about these being spread to “discredit” the government. Attacks against foreigners did not dissipate with the end of the 2008 pogroms; indeed, isolated incidents were being perpetrated even during the World Cup. The attacks are rooted in poverty, not invariably hatred of foreigners. Seen this way, the terminology of xenophobia—the fear or hatred of foreigners—is deceptive. Foreign nationals are targeted because they are the weakest link in a contest for scarce resources, such as jobs, housing and services.

It also seems evident that criminal elements are leeching off that discontent, fuelling and exploiting the fires of discontent directed at foreigners.

Yet, when random strangers of foreign extraction are being abused at taxi ranks or are thrown off moving trains, it is difficult to exclude prejudice and bigotry as motivating factors.

We may debate to what extent the manifestation of violence against foreigners is attributable to poverty or genuine xenophobia—but whatever the reasons, there can be no

justification. There is no legitimate cause for breaking the law. Nothing can excuse murdering or injuring others, violating their dignity and dispossessing them of home and livelihood. Indeed, most impoverished South Africans do not participate in mob violence.

Still, the causes for the violence must be studied, examined and understood if we want to address them. How do the competition for jobs and housing, inadequate access to services, lack of transformation and the prejudiced demagogy interrelate? Who or what is providing the terms of reference for bigotry and targeted violence? We need a better analysis than the convenient but imprecise shorthand of “xenophobia”.

Moreover, the excess of violence in the displacement of foreign nationals (and in the commission of other crimes, including vigilantism) needs to be better understood and addressed.

In the meantime, government and civil society must be forthright in their condemnation of mob violence against foreigners, and proactive in preventing them. The Catholic Church has done admirable work in that field.

Aside from appealing to the maintenance of the law and Gospel values, those inclined to target foreign nationals must be persuaded that their pretexts for doing so are invalid.

Archbishop Buti Tlhagale of Johannesburg has rightly pointed out: “Current evidence suggests that the foreign-born are no more likely to be involved in crime as any other part of the population, and that they are generally more likely to create employment opportunities rather than take away employment.”

There can be no justification or tolerance for mob violence, whatever the context. Our solidarity must be with the victims of xenophobic violence and those who stand with them.

We may be spared a reprise of the 2008 pogroms, but every individual attack on a foreigner represents an indelible stain on our nation.

What choice?

I

WAS recently given an article that was fascinating, enlightening and horrific. It is about published findings based on research conducted by the Elliot Institute in the United States which links violent attacks on women, and other coercive tactics to forced abortions.

Research indicates that of women who have aborted, 64% said they felt pressurised to abort; nearly 80% said they did not receive the counselling needed to make the decision; more than half said they felt rushed and uncertain about the abortion.

New chancery an indulgence

T

HE headline of the front page of The Southern Cross of June 30 to July 6 reads: “New Chancery for Johannesburg”. On the backpage is Chrs Moerdyk’s interesting article “Deeds rather than rhetoric”.

As I work for one of the world’s largest humanitarian organisation and travel the world, I am fully aware of the sufferings of millions of people as a result of hunger and poverty, people suffering/dying from HIV/Aids.

Mr Moerdyk writes: “If today the Catholic Church somewhere decided to build a cathedral similar in size to St Peter’s in Rome, there is no doubt that the world would not see this as a monument to the glory of God, but rather a demonstration of self-indulgent excess of denying millions of poor people a roof over their heads or survival from starvation.”

The R30 million projected to be spent on the chancery could be put to better use, either to bail out the hungry, or provide skills training for unemployed youths, or provide a hot meal for children who attend school on a hungry stomach, or provide a roof over heads of thousands of people who are homeless in South Africa.

Let the Catholic Church do good deeds, show good stewardship of its resources and demonstrate humility to serve the people.

Walter Middleton, Johannesburg

Money to burn?

I

FIND it impossible to appreciate the justifications, whatever they may be, for both the building of the new Johannesburg chancery and the demolition and re-building of Durban’s cathedral parish centre when we are fully aware of

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Abortion is also cited as the leading cause of death among pregnant women (so much for the idea that abortion may be for the health of mothers). There are even cases of men feeding abortifacients secretly to the pregnant mothers, with a whole lot of other health hazards.

In short, intense pressure is being brought to bear on these women, in a difficult situation to compel them to abort. This is the reality behind the myth of it being a woman’s right—now some men feel it is their right to demand. And because it is legal, such men apparently feel justified in their horrendous abuses.

Shouldn’t we see that it is all

linked into the “culture of death”, of which Pope John Paul II warned, in which people are relegated to the status of objects, merely for pleasure or financial gain and not linked to responsibility (as they are in human trafficking).

The dignity and value of the person is being lost. We end up with a not insignificant mentality, of might being right and the rule of truly savage thinking and acts being justified.

For the full article I would encourage people to contact the Culture of Life directly or me on sgc.southafrica@gmail.com.

Edward Urban, Johannesburg

the plight of millions of our fellow South Africans.

I find the announcement embarrassing. It seems that the Catholic Church in South Africa has money to burn. What about some of the poor parishes? Their need for new or upgraded buildings must be greater than these projects.

I and my friends will certainly not make any contributions to these funds in the face of the greater need of the poor, when I know we can make-do with what we have got, with minor embellishments. We must just find a way.

Andre Duchenne, Johannesburg

mighty have fallen.

The priest must not forget that he is chosen to serve, not to be served. Perhaps the media has served as an eye-opener, revealing chinks in the metal, the mettle of hierarchy.

Recently, Zulu newspapers and laity have reported some abuses: financially, sexually and spiritually, overcharging for blessings, quasi-exorcisms and simony. Some clergy, in spite of warnings, still have children and strangers living in their presbyteries. I say some, not all, for I know many good priests who are an example and inspiration to my vocation.

Cardinal Cormac MurphyO’Connor said in an interview with Zenit: “It does not matter that the great majority of priests and bishops are good servants and pastors of their people. The scandal of abuse casts its shadow over everything.”

Ideally, the answer in this instance, is for the hierarchy to be like Christ, a wounded healer.

Christ, however, faced the sins that crucified him. Local Church leaders know how to make their presence felt in issues of fundraising and pre-empting liturgical changes, such as when to sit, stand or kneel and debatable translations.

It seems for them it is better for the laity to be silent in the name of loyalty.

In the last African Synod, how much did the bishops, who are the successors of the apostles, exercise their authority and leadership, in facing issues at hand, or was it held in Rome to be vetted by the curia or the pope?

Has the magisterium become the curia and nothing more?

Allan Moss OMI, Durban

Keep façade

T

HE demolition of Durban’s cathedral centre seems a severe move.(June 30) As it is of historical value, retain the façade, as is done in Europe, and rebuild from within.

I have a mental picture of a modern monstrosity going up in its place.

Adrian Kettle, Cape Town

Details please

W

HILE I am not at all opposed to the new chancery in Johannesburg, I am concerned about what seems to be an excessive projected cost for it, namely, R30m.

A simple calculation translates this to R15 000 per square metre, given that it will be a 2 000m 2 building. By any standards this money would buy fairly “luxurious” finishes. Not having any detailed information at my disposal, the question is whether this is the intention?

It would be very helpful to know how this money is going to be spent and whether or not it is fully justified.

It would be interesting to get Chris Moerdyk’s take on this issue, given his article in the same edition about, inter alia, the displays of pomp and ceremony by the Vatican. He does, however, mention that our clergy in high office have become humble in their service to the people.

While there seems to be an air of acceptance in our parish about this development, it would be of interest I am sure to those who are going to foot the bill (all parishioners) to know more. Is this new chancery in keeping with the humility aforementioned?

Mike Fullerton, Johannesburg

Far-reaching shadows

M

ANY of the faithful consider their priests to be the most spiritually-gifted; mightily empowered in the mysteries of God and look up to them to share what God has given.

On the other hand, the clerical scandals in the Church and coverups make one aware of how the

Book on roles of men and women

R

ECENTLY I bought a book called Theology of Her/His Body

by Jason Evert, based on Pope John Paul II’s Theology of the Body. It is an absolutely wonderful book, aimed mostly at young adults. I strongly encourage catechists and parents to read and share it with our young generation.

This book reveals the true role of men and women and their dignity, as well as how to restore broken relationships. It will change how we will look at ourselves, our bodies and others around us.

I am also greatly pleased to see how men’s spirituality is making a comeback. The Church has become far too feminised in recent decades. Men need to return to their place of leadership in the Church and family.

Dolores S Steenhuis, Cape Town Opinions expressed in The Southern Cross, especially in Letters to the Editor, do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editor or staff of the newspaper, or of the Catholic hierarchy. The letters page in particular is a forum in which readers may exchange opinions on matters of debate.

Letters must not be understood to necessarily reflect the teachings, disciplines or policies of the Church accurately.

PERSPECTIVES

Who’s who in the gospels

Emmanuel Ngara

Leadership in the Church

True leadership must be rooted in love

I

am going to take a break from writing articles for The Southern Cross and will be back again in the new year.

Before I take my columnist’s sabbatical, I thought I should leave those who read the “Leadership in the Church” column with some food for thought about the importance of the Bible to the Christian view of leadership.

We live in a world that is so dominated by secular laws and practices that we Christians take these as the norm. We can even go to the extent of believing that there are no Christian alternatives to the laws and practices we know.

It is because we do not read the Bible that we remain ignorant of what our own faith expects us to practise.

A classic example I have referred to in previous articles is the Christian philosophy of servant leadership. When Robert Greenleaf, author of Servant Leadership: A Journey Into the Nature of Legitimate Power & Greatness, came up with the concept of servant leadership, this approach to leadership—which has been described by some as the highest form of leadership—appeared to be a new phenomenon.

A careful reading of the Bible reveals that Jesus did not want to leave his followers without a clear understanding of his teaching on leadership, and that the cornerstone of that teaching is “towel leadership” or servant leadership. A look at a number of passages from the Gospels, including John 13, in which we see Jesus wiping his disciples’ feet with a towel, will show the truth of this.

For our purposes in this article I will cite Jesus’ response to the sons of Zebedee and the rest of the apostles: “Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mk 10:43-45).

Because Jesus’ teaching in these and other passages has not been followed down the ages, the leadership of domination is prevalent in most Christian denominations.

Instead of being guided by our manual—the Bible—Christian leaders have followed the teachings of theorists like Niccolo Machiavelli who advised leaders that if one is to choose between being loved and being feared, one should rather choose to be feared. This flies in the face of the Christian law of love.

An important concept in current teaching about leadership is systems theory.

Authorities like Peter Senge, author of The Fifth Discipline, have correctly pointed out that in searching for solutions to national or organisational problems we should think systemically and see the connectedness of things instead of only looking at discrete entities, as the whole can exceed the sum of its parts.

This very useful principle is clearly articulated in St Paul’s teaching about the Body of Christ.

In considering the roles of different groups in the Church such as priests, sisters, lay people and so on, we often do not see how these complement one another.

We might think, for instance, that the work of religious people is more important than the work of lay people. However, in 1 Corinthians 12, Paul reminds us that no part of the body can work effectively on its own, nor can the body work efficiently if one part is not doing its work properly.

The same is true of our ministries. The parents who raise Christian children are as important as the theologians who train priests in seminaries. The building of the Body of Christ entails a concerted effort: parents bringing up children who are firmly grounded in the faith; schools and parishes training the leaders of tomorrow; seminaries and convents developing religious leaders who are thoroughly trained in Christian leadership, pastoral care and spirituality.

The last issue I will look at is about how the Church and Christian institutions deal with employer/employee conflicts and other labour issues.

These days it seems to make sense to employ a lawyer or legal firm to deal with all such issues in terms of the labour laws of the state.

An examination of the teaching of Jesus (Mt 18) and Paul (1 Cor 6) will show that before we take brothers and sisters to the secular courts, we are expected to follow a process in the community of believers first. continued on page 11

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USSIAN novels by Tolstoy, Dostoevsky and others can be a great but very long read. They are filled with so many characters that it is sometimes difficult for readers to tell them apart, or to remember who is who in the story.

For someone who has not been a real student of the gospels, they too can pose a challenge. Who and what are the disciples? Are they the same as the apostles? What about these scribes and Pharisees, and who are the Sadducees?

Jesus was very controversial. He attracted ardent followers, but there were many who opposed him. His opponents are often identified only by their association with a certain group or party. Except for key political and religious opponents, most individuals named in the gospels tend to be followers of Jesus.

Jesus’ earliest followers are called disciples, a name that we hopefully have kept alive and own for ourselves as Christians. A select group of Jesus’ disciples were named by him as apostles.

An apostle is someone (one of only 12) Jesus personally chose and sent out with a special message, the good news of God’s coming reign over human affairs being very close at hand (Mt10:1-11). While only disciples were chosen to be apostles, whether every disciple was also one of the 12 apostles depends on the gospel you are reading.

In Matthew 11:1, the apostles are called the 12 disciples. Matthew also limits the term “disciple” to these apostles, who Matthew only calls apostles once (10:2). In Luke, however, there are at least 70 others who are considered disciples (Lk 10:1), and by the time of his triumphal entry into Jerusalem, he is said to have a multitude of disciples (19:37).

If Christians consider themselves disciples without fear of being confused with being an apostle, we owe it to Luke.

Among the religious leaders of Jesus’ time, the most frequently mentioned are scribes, Pharisees and Sadducees.

The scribes were the Bible scholars of their time. They were responsible for interpreting the Law of Moses (see Mt 23:2) and they often did so by recording the valued opinions of predecessors and carefully weighing and balancing their opinions on any disputed matter of the Law. It might be that their reputation for giving careful, nuanced interpretations led to the amazement at the straightforward authority with which Jesus taught (Mk 1:22).

While scribes are often depicted as opponents of Jesus, there were exceptions. At some point some scribes must have brought their expertise with Scripture with them as they became followers of Christ. Jesus pro-

Hearing the Good News claims in Matthew that, “every scribe who has been instructed in the kingdom of heaven is like the head of a household who brings from his storeroom both the new and the old” (Mt 13:52). A scribe who believed in Christ would find many “new” things in Scripture that a scribe who rejected Jesus would not.

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he scribes often tended to be associated with another party, the Pharisees, but not all Pharisees were scribes and not all scribes would have been Pharisees. The Pharisees were Jews who were striving for personal holiness by careful observance of Mosaic Law. The scribes had serious problems with Jesus forgiving sins (Mt 9:2-6) and the Pharisees were shocked at his willingness to associate with known sinners (Mt 9:9-13).

The priests of the Temple, their families and supporters had their own religious party, the Sadducees, and they had their own problems with Jesus. The Pharisees and scribes interpreted the Law of Moses for daily life in human society, and struggled with how to respond to the Roman occupation of Israel. The Sadducees, however, had compromised with the Roman authorities in order to be left free to conduct their priestly duties in the Temple.

The Sadducees, unlike the scribes and the Pharisees, did not accept as Scripture any of the prophets or the Psalms. It was from these writings that many Jews drew their expectation of a political liberator, a messiah.

The Sadducees apparently feared the followers of Jesus might eventually draw the attention of the Roman authorities if they started hailing him as the Messiah—especially if the Romans understood the desire for a Messiah as a clamouring for revolution.

The Sadducees knew the Roman response would be brutal and their fragile compromise with them might be torn asunder.

The gospels indicate that all these groups, including one of Jesus’ disciples, conspired together to expose Jesus as a serious threat to Rome, and it was the Roman governor Pontius Pilate that sentenced him to death by crucifixion.

 Clifford M Yeary is an associate director of Little Rock Scripture Study in Arkansas.

This article was originally published in the Arkansas Catholic, newspaper of the diocese of Little Rock. It is the third in a series of 13 articles which will explore the four gospels.

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Chris Chatteris SJ

Pray with the Pope

Plight of the homeless

Clifford M Yeary

KRUGER PARK

Reservations:

The Southern Cross, July 21 to 27, 2010

General Intention: That those who are unemployed, homeless, or in any serious need may find welcome, understanding, and help in overcoming their difficulties CCORDING to Gandhi, a society in which there is wealth without work is in trouble.

Unfortunately, some economic theorists believe that a certain level of unemployment is inevitable and even acceptable in the modern economy.

Someone once said in reply to this position: “An ‘acceptable’ level of unemployment means that the government economist to whom it is acceptable still has a job.”

Shakespeare went to the heart of the matter in The Merchant of Venice when he said: “You take my life when you do take the means whereby I live.” It’s a line to ponder when we see those lifeless-looking unemployed men sitting at the side of the road hoping against hope for a day’s piecework.

Homelessness merely compounds the awfulness of being unemployed. The American poet Ogden Nash graphically expresses the desperation of a homeless man with a family in these poignant lines: “You scour the Bowery, ransack the Bronx / Through funeral parlors and honkytonks. / From river to river you comb the town, / For a place to lay your family down.”

Shakespeare again puts it powerfully, describing how we view the homeless as a kind of alien species. “What are these, so withered and so wild in their attire, that look not like the inhabitants of the earth?”

Have we become to believe that the plight of the unemployed and the homeless is “acceptable”? I suggest that our prayer should be directed at ourselves to ask the Lord for a proper sense of how outrageous it is that in our relatively wealthy society there are people who can find neither a roof over their heads nor the employment to pay for one.

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Desperate refugees Missionary Intention: That the Church may be a home for all people in need, opening its doors to any who suffer from racial or religious discrimination, hunger, or wars forcing their emigration.

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’M always amazed and appalled when I read those stories in the media about the armies of young African men who brave the Atlantic or the Mediterranean in open boats in order to land illegally in Europe.

How can people be so desperate as to risk their young lives so recklessly? What are these terrible forces of desperation which drive them from their homes to risk their lives only to face unemployment or the most menial of jobs in an often unwelcoming western society? There are, apparently, small informal settlements created by illegal African immigrants on the fringes of some European cities, Apart from the lack of prospects at home, one driving force appears to be a powerful sense of responsibility for their relatives. They feel they have to do something for their impoverished families, and for their kin they are willing to risk all.

That this noble but foolish path seems to be their only hope is an indictment on an economic system of extreme inequality and ruthless exclusion.

Globalism and the free movement of goods and services are fine, it seems, but a line is drawn when it comes to the free movement of labour.

Thankfully, European countries are beginning to think beyond just tightening up their porous borders, knowing that in the long run this is futile. Poor and unemployed people will always move inexorably to where there is work and hence to encourage them to remain at home it is necessary that they find sustaining work at home.

We pray for a deeper understanding of the phenomenon of refugees and forced migration in the 21st century and that the rich and the rooted might be moved to share not just with migrants but also with the poor societies from which they originate.

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FOCUS

The Southern Cross, July 21 to July 27, 2010

Ancient devotions in Roman catacombs Archaeologists have found what they believe to be the oldest depictions of Saints Peter, Paul, Andrew and John in a Roman catacomb which throws a light on the devotions of Rome’s early Christians. CINDY WOODEN reports.

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N the basement of an Italian insurance company’s modern office building, Vatican archaeologists—armed with lasers—discovered important historical evidence about the development of Christian devotion to the apostles.

At Rome’s Catacombs of St Thecla, in the burial chamber of a Roman noblewoman, they have discovered what they said are the oldest existing paintings of Ss Peter, Paul, Andrew and John.

Technicians working for the Pontifical Commission for Sacred Archaeology discovered the painting of St Paul in June 2009 just as the Year of St Paul was ending.

Barbara Mazzei, who was in charge of the restoration work, said that she and her team members knew there were more images under the crust of calcium carbonate, but excitement over the discovery of St Paul in the year dedicated to him led them to announce the discovery even before the rest of the work was completed.

Presenting the complete restoration of the burial chamber to reporters a year later, Mgr Giovanni Carru said that the catacombs “are an eloquent witness of Christianity in its origins”.

Into the 4th century, Christians in Italy tried to bury their dead near the tomb of a martyr.

The walls of the tombs of the

wealthy were decorated with Christian symbols, biblical scenes and references to the martyr.

At the Catacombs of St Thecla, the noblewoman’s burial chamber—now referred to as the Cubicle of the Apostles—dates from late 4th century. The arch over the vestibule features a fresco of a group of figures the Vatican experts described as “The College of the Apostles”.

The ceiling of the burial chamber itself features the most typical icon found in the catacombs— Christ the Good Shepherd—but the four corners of the ceiling are decorated with medallions featuring the four apostles, said Ms Mazzei.

Fabrizio Bisconti, the commission’s archaeological superintendent, said that in the decorations of the catacombs one can see “the genesis, the seeds of Christian iconography”, with designs from the very simple fish as a symbol of Christ to the resurrection image of Christ raising Lazarus from the dead.

The discovery of so much attention to the apostles in the Catacombs of St Thecla documents the fact that widespread devotion to the apostles began earlier than what most Church historians believed, he said.

“This is the time when the veneration of the apostles was just being born and developed,” he said, and the art in the catacombs no longer presented just the martyrs or biblical scenes.

The burial chamber also features frescoes of Daniel in the lion’s den, the Three Wise Men bringing gifts to Jesus, Abraham’s sacrifice of Isaac and a very large wall painting of the noblewoman herself—jewelled, veiled and with “an important hairstyle”, a symbol of status in ancient Rome.

Ms Mazzei said that when restorers first went into the burial chamber in 2008, all the walls

were white—completely covered under the crust of calcium carbonate that ranged from a millimetre thick to 4-5cm deep. The Vatican, however, had watercolours and diary descriptions from the 1800s testifying that there were paintings on the walls.

In the past, she said, restorers would use tiny scalpels and brushes to remove the white crust, but some of the paint always came away with it.

Restorers were left trying to find the right balance between removing enough to see a faint image of a catacomb fresco and destroying it.

Then along came the laser.

After attending an art restoration conference and listening to presentations on how lasers were being used on frescoes in buildings above ground, she said she suggested to the Vatican that they gather a team of experts to see how lasers would work in the extremely humid catacombs where almost no air circulates.

“We went slowly and basically set up an experimental laboratory” in the catacombs, she said.

The restoration project was just as painstaking as the scalpeland-brush method because it involved firing the laser pinpoint by pinpoint across the surface of the cubicle, “but the result is totally different”, Ms Mazzei said.

She said the two-year project to restore the tiny cubicle cost only about $72 000 (about R550 000) because many of the consultants donated their time and the laser company gave the Vatican a steep discount.

Mr Bisconti said the Vatican has no plans to open the Catacombs of St Thecla to the public, although the pontifical commission occasionally gives permission for groups to visit as long as they are willing to pay a licensed guide and escort.—CNS

Fabrizio Bisconti, the archaeological superintendent of the Pontifical Commission for Sacred Archaeology, explains artwork outside the burial chambers of a Roman noblewoman in the Catacombs of St Thecla in Rome. Above him is a 4th-century painting known as the “College of the Apostles” and at right is an image of Jesus.

PHOTO: PAUL HARING, CNS

Fourth-century paintings of (clockwise from top left) Ss Peter, John, Paul and Andrew on the ceiling in the burial chamber in the Catacombs of St Thecla. The paintings of the apostles on the ceiling of the chamber are believed to be the oldest of them in existence.

PHOTO: NICOLA FORENZA, PONTIFICAL COMMISSION FOR SACRED ARCHAEOLOGY

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A painting of Christ the Good Shepherd on the ceiling in the burial chamber in the Catacombs of St Thecla.

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The Southern Cross, July 21 to 27, 2010

Root LETTERS TO THE EDITOR leadership Religious orders: please support in love Durban’s Denis Hurley Centre continued from page 9

HE Marist Brothers in South did gesture of the Marist Brothers?

Africa have pledged to give For more information about the R15 000 to the Denis Hurley Denis Hurley Centre, Centre which is being established please visit the website at Emmanuel cathedral, Durban. www.denishurleycentre.co.za or The cathedral has about 4,000 phone me on 031 201 3832, beneficiaries already: refugees, 072 806 4417, or e-mail homeless and unemployed people pkearney@saol.com as well as people living with Paddy Kearney HIV/Aids.

Coordinator: Denis Hurley The help we are able to provide Centre Project will be much more substantial after the new Centre is built.

I wonder whether other religious orders and congregations with which Archbishop Hurley was closely associat Catch up with previous FAMILY CALENDAR Emmanuel Ngara columns at ed, would like to 2010 FAMILY THEME: “Families www.scross.co.za/category/N emulate this splenPlay the Game.” gara/ 25th 17th Sunday: Our Father in Heaven.

At Mass the Lord’s Prayer is always introduced with the words, “with confidence let us pray...” The father-figure is important and respected in all cultures, espeSundays year C, weekdays cycle 2 cially as they grow older. Sometimes he is Sun July 25, 17th Sunday of the Year: feared more that he is loved, but ideally Gn 18:20-32; Ps 138:1-3,6-8; Col 2:12-14; Lk 11:1-13 the way grandfathers have lived their Mon July 26, Ss Joachim and Anne, parents of Mary: lives should be a model for the young.

Jer 13:1-11; Ps: Dt 32:18-21; Mt 13:31-35 Teach children the true meaning and value of the Our Father as a family prayer Tue July 27, feria: and pray it often together at home.

Jer 14:17-22; Ps 79:8-9. 11,13; Mt 13:36-43 The point here is that by surrendering all our authority in matters of conflict to secular institutions we are abandoning the Christian principles of love, compassion and forgiveness.

I have been told about a case where a religious congregation has gone to the extent of being vicious in trying to justify its case against a group of employees.

May we know the Bible well so that all our decisions are informed by the faith we profess!

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Thoughts for the Week on the Family

Mass readings for the week

Wed July 28, St Victor I: Jer 15:10,16-21; Ps 59:2-5,10-11,17-18; Mt 13:44-46 Thur July 29, St Martha: 1 Jn 4:7-16; Ps 34:2-11; Jn 11:19-27,or Lk 10:38-42 Fri July 30, St Peter Chrysologus: Jer 26:1-9; Ps 69, 5:8-10,14; Mt 13:54-58 Sat July 31, St Ignatius Loyola: Jer 26:11-16,24; Ps 69:15-1,30-31,33-34; Mt 14:1-12 Sun August 1, 18th Sunday of the Year: Eccl 1:2, 2:21-23; Ps 90:3-6,12-14,17; Col 3:1-5,9-11; Lk 12:13-21

REMEMBERING OUR DEAD “It is a holy and wholesome thought to pray for the dead, that they may be loosed from their sins” (II Macc XII,46) Holy Mass will be celebrated on the first Sunday of each month in the All Souls’ chapel, Maitland, Cape Town at 2:30pm for all souls in purgatory and for all those buried in the Woltemade cemetery.

For further information, please contact St Jude Society, Box 22230, Fish Hoek, 7975 Telephone (021) 552 3850

COMMUNIT Y CALENDAR BETHLEHEM:  Shrine of Our Lady of Bethlehem at Tsheseng, Maluti mountains; Thursdays 09:30, Mass, then exposition of the Blessed Sacrament.  058 721 0532 JOHANNESBURG:  First Friday Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament 10:30.

First Saturday: Devotions: Our Lady’s Cenacle, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and Rosary, 15:00–16:00. Special devotion to Our Blessed Lady for her priests. Our Lady of the Angels, Little Eden, Edenvale,  011 609 7246  First Saturday of each month rosary prayed 10:30-12:00 outside Marie Stopes abortion clinic, Peter Place, Bryanston.  Joan Beyrooti, 011 782 4331 KRUGERSDORP:  Culture of Life / Anti-Abortion campaign fund raiser, Sun 22 August 15h00, AFM Church Noordheuwel Krugersdorp. Also Celtic Praise Sing along with “One Accord” singers and musicains. Tickets R80 (senior citizens R50), safe parking  021 672 3488 or 082 360 4813 PRETORIA:  First Saturday: Devotion to Divine Mercy. St Martin de Porres, Sunnyside, 16:30.  Shirley-Anne 012 361 4545.

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11

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ANNIVERSARIES BOONZAIER—Aubrey and Filly. Congratulations on your 56th Wedding Anniversary. God Bless you. From your family, friends and the Parishioners of Holy Family and Our Lady of Fatima Parish, Bellville.

STRETTON—50th Wedding Anniversary, July 23, 2010.

Ken and Martha giving thanks to God for a wonderful married life, blessed with our daughters Kim, Sherri, Pamela, sons-in-law Mike, Walter, Rob, grandchildren Dino, Kyle, Fabio, Nicole, Blaike, Sandi, Jonathan, Gary, Savannah, Nicholas, family and friends.

DEATH CASEY—Kevin. Died tragically in a fire at their home in East London, on June 26, 2010. We are mourning our loss and you will always be in our thoughts and hearts.

Forever missed by Val, Sean, Maureen, Donovan, Maryann, Jenny and his six grandchildren. Rest in Peace.

IN MEMORIAM DU PLESSIS—Dion 31/05/1975—27/07/2007. A thousand ages in Thy sight, are like an evening gone.

Short as the watch that ends the night, before the rising sun. Always loved and sorely missed by your loving family.

EDDIE—Doreen.

Four years today 27/07/2010.

We still miss you so much and we treasure all the memories of all the wonderful times we shared together. Rest in Peace. Love you forever. Remembered by your children and grandchildren Shirley, Charles, Sherilyn, Tim, Malvern, Cecilia and Quinten, Freda and families.

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18th Sunday – Year C (August 1) Qoheleth 1:2, 2:21-23; Psalm 90: 3-6, 1214, 17; Colossians 3:1-5, 9-11; Luke 12:1321

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HAT are the things that really matter in life? That is the uncomfortable question that the readings for next Sunday pose to us.

The first reading comes to us from Qoheleth, or Ecclesiastes (“the Preacher”) as his Greek nickname goes, with the wellknown refrain that goes “Vanity of vanities, all is vanity”. Then (leaping into his second chapter, for some reason), this deep and radical thinker offers an example of this “vanity”: “A person who has expended effort and wisdom and expertise and skill—and he leaves his portion to someone who has not put in the effort. This is also vanity and great wickedness.”

Some scholars point out that Qoheleth hardly ever mentions God; but you can do God’s work without speaking of the Almighty, and the task of the Preacher is to expose the foolishness of the pursuits to which we normally give our energies, in order that we may find our way to God. That is a point made more explicitly in the Psalm for next Sunday, setting the folly of human pursuits against God’s greater purposes (“You turn human beings back into

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Getting the important things right Fr Nicholas King SJ

Scriptural Reflections dust, and say, ‘Go back, sons of men’”.) and different perspective (“In your eyes a thousand years are like a single day, yesterday...a dream in the night”).

So for God, all our passionate human endeavours are “like grass that flourishes in the morning—in the evening it withers and fades”. So we need God’s perspective, to find out what really matters: “Teach us to number our days that we may gain a wise heart”, and then, in a prayer that comes from the heart, “fill us in the morning with your love”. It is God, and God alone, who can “prosper the work of our hands”.

The second reading likewise insists on our going for the things that really matter in life, arguing that if it is true about the Resurrection (“if you have been raised up with Christ”), then we should “look for the things

that are above”). So the irrelevant distractions on which we tend to waste ourselves must be rejected: “Sexual immorality, uncleanness, passion, evil lust, and greed (which is the worship of a false god).” We have to clothe ourselves in the livery of a “new humanity, to make known the image of the One who created us”, so that none of our artificial divisions (of religion, culture, race, social class and gender) are taken seriously.

What matters is to get the important things right; and the important things are those which God takes seriously.

The gospel is precisely on this issue; it starts with someone demanding that Jesus become an arbitrator in a family dispute about a will. Jesus warns against “all kinds of greed, because a person’s life (or “soul”) is not a matter of a healthy bank balance”.

To make the point, he tells the story of a well-to-do farmer, who has had a profitable season (this story will go well in this country), and decides that his storage space is not big enough, so he is going to pull it all down and build even more, “and I shall collect together there all my grain and all my property. And then I’ll say to my soul (or “life”),

Volunteers from hell HEN I was an altar server more than half a century ago, there were so many priests at my parish, I could hardly remember all their names.

Those were the days when parish priests were able to pop in every so often and have tea with parishioners, spend hours at sickbeds and generally have a pretty peaceful, unhurried life with oodles of time for prayer and contemplation.

It’s different now, of course. Any parish that can boast one permanent priest can count itself lucky. Priesthood today is a tough, all consuming job that carries with it all the stresses and strains of corporate life, with priests not only juggling parish finances to survive but inevitably also involved in regional and diocesan work along with serving on myriad other committees, advisory boards and charities.

Which is why the Southern African bishops have been calling on the laity to pitch in and help wherever they can to try and take some of the load off overburdened parish priests.

The problem here, of course, is that far too many lay Catholics seem to confuse simple helping out with staging a hostile takeover bid.

A few decades of serving on parish councils and committees has left me with the conclusion that in wealthy parishes particularly, there are three kinds of parishioners. There are those who are completely apathetic and simply go to Mass on Sunday and nothing more. There are those who genuinely

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The Last Word knuckle down and quietly get on with doing whatever they can to help. And then there are those who involve themselves in parish life with such intensity and fervour that is not far short of fullblown religious fanaticism.

These are the parishioners that give priests the biggest challenge of all. Not only because they are volunteers, who are by their very nature difficult to discipline, but also because a by-product of their often innocent over-enthusiasm is a combination of pettiness and oneupmanship.

Calling for volunteers among parishioners unfortunately also tends to draw out control freaks who usually end up going well beyond the original notion of fixing broken windows, tending gardens, doing the flowers and working in the soup kitchen or at the bring-and-buy tables.

These are the zealots who take the parish priest under their wings, sometimes pretty forcibly, and appoint themselves either his mother, father, sister, brother, spiritual adviser, financial counsellor, social secretary, moral guardian, scriptwriter or—worst of all—have delusions about becoming his concubine, mistress or even wife.

CONRAD “I’m sure the Holy Father will appreciate the tray of koeksusters, Granny.”

These are the same self-appointed custodians of Catholicism who act as uninvited policemen or secret service agents for the Vatican, making notes of what they consider to be breaches of the dress code, order of the Mass and any vaguely perceived hint of heresy that might be hidden away between the lines of a homily or sermon.

Then, of course, there are those few pillars of the Church who indulge in everything from rumour-mongering and frenetic gossip to seriously advocating changes to the Ten Commandments—or worse, adding a few of their own.

There is no question that being a Catholic priest in South Africa is a lot more challenging and stressful than it was when I was a kid who would ride past the church on my way to and from school, wondering at the serenity of all those priests who were pacing slowly about the parish rose garden in peaceful, prayerful contemplation.

There will be those who will accuse me of painting such a terrible picture of the modern priesthood that the vocations campaign will take a nosedive.

That is not at all my intention. I believe that one of the things that puts a lot of youngsters off the priesthood these days is the perception of a lonely, boring lifestyle bereft of any social interaction or secular challenges.

But the priesthood is not like that.

Today’s parish priest, along with those who work at diocesan level or in the seminaries or schools, has everything and more that the average corporate chief executive has—with the possible exception of a home filled with yelling kids and a wife to turn to for consolation and support.

While the priesthood is and always will be a vocation in the service of God, it has the same attributes, challenges and rewards nowadays of any secular career one wishes to mention. These include things like holidays, going to the movies and playing golf.

Today’s priests don’t have to be hermits in sackcloth, but it does help a lot if they have enough people skills to keep all those over-enthusiastic volunteers under control.

In an effort to avoid being lynched, may I mention that none of the above applies to my present parish where I regard everyone as a saint.

‘Soul (or “life”), you have many things stored up for a number of years: chill out, eat, drink, party’.”

But there is a chilling sequel to this apparently harmless tale of materialist consumerism, as Jesus continues, “And God said to him, ‘You Fool! This very night, your life (or “soul”) is being demanded of you. And all the stuff that you have got ready—who will it belong to?’” And, just in case we had not quite got it, Jesus draws the moral: “So it is with all those who build up their property portfolio and are not wealthy with regard to God.” The difficulty is that God never forces us to do what we know to be right, and so the voice of God can seem very muted indeed, while the various alternative gods that are on offer do appear extraordinarily attractive: the healthy bank-balance, the impressive house, that very smart car you have been longing for, the latest thing in electronic devices. All of these function as alternative gods; and none of them in fact leaves us with the happiness that we are looking for.

Only God can provide that. So, this week, what really matters in your life?

Southern Crossword #401

ACROSS 5. Its where the heart is said to be (4) 7. The Blessed Virgin spoke to her (10) 8. Leave the stage door out? (4) 10. Gran is to provide church musician (8) 11. Disturbance (6) 12. Assign a place in battle (6) 14. Papals? This causes dismay (6) 16. A strap around Persian governor (6) 17. Preserve traditionally (8) 19. Gives cash (4) 21. Senior cleric will chance road around (10) 22. Permanently injure (4)

DOWN 1. Sound of Cockney tramp with woodwind (4) 2. Man the AA will denounce for false doctrine (8) 3. Dexterous (6) 4.Put on play in church hall (6) 5. When shaped (4) 6. One sent to preach (10) 9. A phone box I find, having fear of foreigners (1) 13. Pharoahs commander (Gen 37) (8) 15. Kind of observance religious order (6) 16. The way a courting couple will go (6) 18. Not genuine (4) 20. Go underwater in the kitchen (4)

SOLUTIONS TO #400. ACROSS: 1 Siam, 3 Contacts, 9 Chaplet, 10 Koran, 11 Assignations, 13 Eighth, 15 Fatten, 17 Sacred writer, 20 Lotto, 21 Iranian, 22 Pedestal, 23 Edge. DOWN: 1 Socrates, 2 Amass, 4 Outlaw, 5 Take it as read, 6 Coronet, 7 Send, 8 Slight errors, 12 Entrance, 14 Granted, 16 Edwina, 18 Triad, 19 Slip.

CHURCH CHUCKLE Nine-year-old Joey was asked by his mother what he had learned in Sunday School. “Well, mom, our teacher told us how God sent Moses behind enemy lines on a rescue mission to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. When he got to the Red Sea, he had his army build a pontoon bridge and all the people walked across safely. Then he radioed headquarters for reinforcements. They sent bombers to blow up the bridge and all the Israelites were saved.”“Joey, is that really what your teacher taught you?” his Mother asked. “Well, no, mom... but, if I told it the way the teacher did, you’d never believe it!”

Send us your favourite Catholic joke, preferably clean and brief, to The Southern Cross, Church Chuckle, PO Box 2372, Cape Town, 8000.