The
S outhern C ross
August 6 to August 12, 2014
Reg No. 1920/002058/06
No 4885
www.scross.co.za
God answered weaver artist’s desperate prayer
R7,00 (incl VAT RSA)
Jazz in a chapel: The Church and the arts
Page 2
Page 7
Anti-mafia fight: Church takes on the godfathers
Page 10
Cardinal in mosque calls for peace STAFF REPORTER
T
HE conflict between Israel and Palestinians has been inaccurately framed as being about faith, Cardinal Wilfrid Napier told a Friday Prayers meeting in a Durban mosque. Cardinal Wilfrid Napier, chairman of the KwaZulu-Natal Interreligious Council, presented a message of peace in the Juma Masjid mosque. He was supported by a delegation of interfaith representatives. “We are challenged to hold before us those who are enduring unspeakable hardship and suffering in Gaza and Israel,” the cardinal said in his address. “This is a very sensitive situation and one that has been incorrectly presented as a conflict of faith rather than a political dispute between two nations,” he said. “As people of faith, we reject the use of religion as a mechanism for perpetrating violence. Violence in any form is abhorrent and we urge a speedy and immediate end to the human suffering being experienced in Gaza and Israel,” Cardinal Napier said. AV Mahomed from the mosque reminded those present that “the mosque and [Durban’s Catholic Emmanuel] cathedral enjoy a good, active and mutually-supportive relationship and have done for the past 100 years—and, God willing, this will continue well into the future”. It is believed that this was the first time that a cardinal had been invited to share a
Cardinal Wilfrid Napier addresses the Friday afternoon prayers in Juma Masjid mosque in Durban to call for peace. (Photo: Jean-Marie Ntamubano) message during the Friday prayer service at the mosque. The mosque was the starting point for a Palestine Day Solidarity Protest March organised by the KZN Palestine Solidarity Forum. Meanwhile, Archbishop Stephen Brislin of Cape Town has issued a statement condemning Israel’s attack on Gaza. Echoing his words in an interview with The
Southern Cross in July, the archbishop described Israel’s bombing of Gaza as “disproportionate”. Israel claims its bombing campaign, which has killed more than a thousand civilians, was a response to rocket fire by Hamas, which had killed three Israeli civilians. “Gaza is nothing less than an open-air prison and the population is trapped as a re-
sult of the Israeli embargo of land and sea and an almost similar embargo by the new Egyptian regime,” said Archbishop Brislin, who visited Gaza earlier this year. “The people have nowhere to go to escape the violence and continue to be terrorised and traumatised by the ongoing shelling of the area. They have little access to food and medical supplies,” he noted. Archbishop Brislin condemned all violence, by Israelis and Palestinians, noting that it can never be a solution to the problems. He also condemned anti-semitism that has accompanied some protests against Israel as well as anti-Jewish attacks in some European countries. The onus on creating the conditions for peace rests with Israel. “It is also true that as long structural forms of violence, such as the illegal settlements, the wall, the checkpoints, the restriction of movement of Palestinians which even divides families, continue, there can be little hope for peace,” Archbishop Brislin said. “The only way to embark on a path to peace is first and foremost to stop the offensive against Gaza, to open its borders and to engage with peace talks that include the international community,” the statement said. “We call on the leaders of Palestine and Israel to stop the violence and to commit themselves to genuine negotiations. As was once said of apartheid South Africa, the consequences of not doing so are ‘too ghastly to contemplate’,” the archbishop said.
Catholic Media Expo a big success BY DYLAN APPOLIS & STAFF REPORTER
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ARTICIPANTS in the first Catholic Media Expo, held in Johannesburg, have called for the event to be held on a regular basis. The expo comprised workshops in all fields of media, from setting out a parish newsletter to writing news reports for The Southern Cross, and from how to use social media to presenting a radio programme on Radio Veritas. Presenters for the expo, held at Holy Rosary School in Edenvale and timed to coincide with the 80th anniversary of Trefoil magazine, came from as far as Cape Town and Durban to share their skills with participants, including many young Catholics. “The aim was to celebrate and share the richness, diversity and vibrancy of Catholic communication in South Africa and to draw in a new generation of people to get involved in, and take to a high level, what they are
doing,” said Raymond Perrier, director of the Jesuit Institute, which convened the expo. The keynote address was delivered by Bishop José Luis Ponce de León of Manzini, Swaziland, himself a keen blogger. He explained how the sharing of media expertise can make a difference. When he first entered Facebook, he did so under the name of the vicariate of Ingvavuma, which he then headed (and still administers). He recalled being told that his page would make more of an impact if it was in his own name, rather than that of a faceless structure. A running theme of the expo was the challenge to have a selfie taken with Archbishop William Slattery of Pretoria and posting it on social media. “The expo showed that every Catholic has a privilege of taking others by the hand and leading them to Christ,” Archbishop Slattery told The Southern Cross. “Through media we dialogue with people, Continued on page 3
Participants in the Catholic Media Expo in Johannesburg. (Photo: Bishop José Ponce de León)
Southern Cross Pilgrimage Fatima • Lourdes • Avila Led by Bishop João Rodrigues 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 Sept to 6 Oct 2014
For info or to book phone Gail at 076 352 3809 or 021 551 3923 info@fowlertours.co.za or visit fowlertours.co.za
Fatima | Lourdes | Nevers (tomb of St Bernadette) | Tours | Lisieux (St Thérèse) | Paris with Notre Dame and Rue de Bac (Miraculous Medal) | Avila & Alba de Tormes (St Teresa) | Madrid | Zaragossa (Our Lady of the Pillar) | and more...