140122

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The

S outhern C ross

January 22 to January 28, 2014

Reg No. 1920/002058/06

How we drive: The road to heaven

No 4858

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www.scross.co.za

R7,00 (incl VAT RSA)

Unexpected boost for public breastfeeding

Moerdyk’s proof that the Easter Bunny is real

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Page 10

Catholic schools an education beacon BY CLAIRE MATHIESON

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The 2014 matrics of Holy Rosary School in Edenvale, Johannesburg, visited the Grade Rs on the first day of school. For the matrics, it is their “last first day”, and for the Grade Rs it is their “first first day”. Seen here with the Grade Rs are Akhona Mabasa, Courtney Knowles, Michela Agostinetto and Chantelle Smith.

Mugabe ‘not like Jesus’ STAFF REPORTER

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PRIEST has rejected a statement by a Zimbabwean commentator that compared President Robert Mugabe with Jesus Christ, saying that most politicians would need to “make a u-turn” in their conduct to act Christ-like. Psychology Maziwisa, a former critic of Mr Mugabe and now deputy director for information of the ruling Zanu-PF, has repeatedly compared the president to Christ. “{I}t is clear that President Mugabe comes closer than most people when it comes to applying Christ’s teachings,” Mr Maziwisa suggested. Harare-based Jesuit Father Oskar Wermter disagrees with Mr Maziwisa. “When rulers obsessed with power and addicted to lording it over us realise that organised religion represents another centre of power, they want a share of it—in fact a big bite of it—and want to invade it and take possession of it, control-freaks that they are,” he said. “Rulers and their henchmen, bodyguards and praise singers—disguised as press officers—like to appear at religious functions and present themselves to the faithful as belonging to them, even if they have to put on white gowns to make the point,” Fr Wermter told The Southern Cross. He said the politicians’ approach is “quite clever”.

“They try to pretend to be obedient followers of religion so that the religious people are obedient to them and their kingdom as well.” The Jesuit said the carrying of Bibles by dictators is a ploy to get the Bible-readers’ votes. He noted that attempts to give Mr Mugabe divine attributes have been on-going for the last 34 years. “Again and again sycophantic supporters of the regime have done this.” Fr Wermter compared the country’s government’s attitude to the story of King Herod whose paranoid suspicion causes a bloodbath as he tries to eliminate the baby who threatens his royal throne. In fact, he said, throughout the Bible, religion and politics clash. From Jesus’ act of not wanting to fight the Romans for political power to his followers in Jerusalem telling authorities that “we must obey God rather than man” (Acts 5:29). “Christians are no anarchists, but in a conflict situation they follow God’s laws,” Fr Wermter said. “God wants servant leadership, leaders who spend themselves in working for their people and the common good. As he did himself: he never lived in a palace, and he rode on a donkey, not a war horse.” If rulers want to be compared to Jesus they have to make a dramatic U-turn, the Jesuit told The Southern Cross. “They have to face the truth, past and Continued on page 3

HE Catholic Institute of Education (CIE) has released its statistics on the performance of Catholic schools in the 2013 matric examinations. Candidates at Catholic schools who wrote the Independent Examination Board (IEB) examination, mostly private schools, obtained a 99,4% pass, with a 57% overall Bachelor pass. In keeping with the increase in the National Senior Certificate pass—the state school exams—Catholic schools obtained a 91% pass, a 4,6% increase from 2012. The total number of candidates who wrote at Catholic schools was 8182, of whom 7408 passed. In 2012 Catholic schools which offered the State examination had an 83,5% pass. This increased in 2013 to 88,7%. It is in the Bachelor passes that the Catholic schools show the most marked advantage. Bachelor passes in Catholic schools writing the state exam amounted to 55,5%, a significant 25,2% above the overall state Bachelor pass. Notably, more learners in Catholic schools took the important subjects of mathematics and science than the national rate. In Catholic schools, 61% wrote mathematics compared to the national average of 43%, with 78,3% passing the subject, against the national average of 59%. In science 41% of children in Catholic schools wrote compared to the national average of 33%. Here 79,5% passed against the national average of 67,4%. “While these results are to be welcomed, and schools to be congratulated, schools must continue to explore the quality of the passes in order to afford young people the best opportunities for further study,” said CIE deputy-director Ann Baker. “At Catholic schools academic results must always be underpinned by the development of the whole child, a person who understands the Gospel values that build a better world and is willing to serve,” she said.

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enny Pasensie of the Catholic Parliamentary Liaison Office, an office of the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference, commended the Class of 2013 for finishing their schooling despite the many shortcomings of our educational system. He called on the government to improve the quality of education which South African children receive. “We need to see that the [education] minister is in charge of education, and not the unions; that teachers know their subjects;

that a Grade 9 learner can read with comprehension; that no leaner is left behind; and that tertiary institutions are confident that the 12 years spent within the schooling system have prepared young people well enough to cope with the demands of tertiary education,” Mr Pasensie said. Despite the congratulatory mood of improved national matric passes, the highest in 20 years, there is the “undeniable truth that the achievements of the 78,2% who passed are significantly devalued by an educational system that is geared towards quantity rather than quality”, Mr Pasensie said. “The nagging question...is whether the steady increase in the pass rate since 2009 is evidence of a system that is slowly beginning to improve, or whether it is merely the result of a politically expedient elevation of quantity over quality,” he said, referring to the minimum pass requirement of 30%. Mr Pasensie pointed to the warning signs of the Grade 9 annual national assessments results which revealed that most Grade 9 learners are very poor at literacy and numeracy. “So what happens to these learners?” Mr Pasensie asked. “Are they, as many argue, being ‘culled’ to make sure that the matric results look better?”

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vona Rebelo of the Catholic Schools Office in Cape Town said the act of culling had been noticed. “Many schools are savvy and manipulate the system to advantage their matric results— culling in Grade 11, forcing learners to choose ‘softer options’ that will not impact negatively on the final matric results,” she said. “I’m always impressed with those schools which take the risk of allowing their weaker learners to stick with their choices and try to support them through thick and thin—those schools which are now sitting with learners and helping them to access supplementary examinations,” Mrs Rebelo said. Fr Smangaliso Mkhatshwa of the Moral Regeneration Movement, a former deputyminister of education, praised Catholic schools whose track record stood out in their prioritisation of the poor and the predominantly black communities. Despite limited resources, their schools produced outstanding results. And today, while the number of these schools has declined, Catholic schools can be a “beacon of light in a society that is still plagued by social inequalities, class, poverty and unemployment”, he said. “It is an injustice to poor children to feed them with an inferior education even as the government pumps billions of rands into the education coffers,” Fr Mkhatshwa said.

FATIMA • LOURDES • AVILA with Bishop João Rodrigues & Günther Simmermacher Join The Southern Cross and the Diocese of Tzaneen on a Pilgrimage of Prayer for the Sainthood Cause of Benedict Daswa to places of Our Lady in France, Spain & Portugal!

25 September to 6 October 2014

Fatima | Avila & Alba de Tormes (St Teresa) | Madrid | Zaragossa (Our Lady of the Pillar) | Lourdes with torchlight procession | Nevers (St Bernadette) | Tours (Sr Marie of St Peter) | Lisieux (St Thérèse) | Paris with Notre Dame and Rue de Bac (Miraculous Medal) | and more...

For full itinerary or to book phone Gail at 076 352 3809 or 021 551 3923 info@fowlertours.co.za www.fowlertours.co.za


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