150225

The

S outhern C ross

February 25 to March 3, 2015

Reg No. 1920/002058/06

Church marches to fight human trafficking

No 4913

www.scross.co.za

Priest: I sensed evil after Daswa murder

How can youth be led to a Christian life?

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R7,00 (incl VAT RSA)

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SA bishops to Zuma: answer the questions STAFF REPORTERS

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Among the cast of 120 actors who have been rehearsing since September for this year’s Durban Passion Play is the Vera family, which has been involved in the play since 1982. The family’s association with the play is now in its third generation. Seen here are (from left) Karen Reinecke, Margaret Vera, Darren Reinecke and Frans Vera.

“We have many families participating and it is wonderful to see grandparents, children and grandchildren all involved together,” said director Dawn Haynes. She called the Vera family “a shining example of a family that prays together...an inspiration to us all”.

There will be 23 performance of the 14th production of the Passion Play in the Playhouse Drama Theatre from April 1-19. The run includes a special performance for the hearing impaired on April 12 at 14:30, with two people signing the entire show.

For details contact Dawn Haynes at dmhaynes@webmail.co.za

SA national Youth Day in 2016

BY STUART GRAHAM

A

SOUTH African Youth Day will be staged in 2016 to coincide with the World Youth Day in Krakow, Poland.

The bishops of Southern Africa “want to have a ‘mini’ World Youth event in Bethlehem, Free State, for all the youth of South Africa”, said Archbishop William Slattery of Pretoria, spokesman of the bishops’ conference.

The event, due to be held at a farm in the area, will parallel the world youth meetings and will include liturgies, ceremonies, processions, catecheses, celebrations of joy and meetings between the youth.

“Many of the bishops will be there giving catechism,” Archbishop Slattery said.

Bethlehem is located fairly centrally. It is 275km from Johannesburg, 250km from Bloemfontein, 390km from Durban, 400km from Kimberley, 425km from Mahikeng, and 580km from Polokwane. From Port Elizabeth it is 910km and from Cape Town 1,200km.

World Youth Day 2016 will be celebrated from July 25–31. It will be the second World Youth Day to be held in Poland; in 1991 WYD was held in Czestochowa. The 2016 event will serve as a tribute to Pope St John Paul II, who was born near the city and served as its archbishop before his 1978 election to the papacy.

HE bishops of Southern Africa have warned that until President Jacob Zuma answers “fully and openly the many questions that remain about the expenditure of public money on Nkandla”, there will be repeated disturbances such as those that disrupted the president’s State of the Nation address this month.

The Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference, as well as other Catholic bodies, expressed alarm at the circumstances of the ejection of Economic Freedom Front (EFF) parliamentarians, the use of cellphone jamming devices and the “apartheid era” firing of a water canon on peaceful protestors, some of whom were arrested, before the State of the Nation address.

“To witness the disruption of our chief democratic institution, followed by the needlessly aggressive actions of the security forces called in to remove EFF MPs, leaves us deeply perturbed,” the bishops said. “We call on the leaders of all parties represented in Parliament, together with the presiding officers, to commit themselves to uphold and respect the dignity of the institution.”

In a statement, the Jesuit Institute of South Africa noted that the ejection of the EFF members and subsequent walk-out of the Democratic Alliance faction “led to the president having little more than a conversation with the ruling party and its allies. These events violated the dignity of all concerned and that of Parliament as an institution.”

The Jesuit Institute said that “the problems have their root in the lack of accountability, transparency and the openness to debate that the Constitution requires of Parliament”.

Prof Nicholas Rowe, acting president of St Augustine College in Johannesburg, South Africa’s Catholic university, said the events before Zuma’s speech reveal “the challenging state of leadership in South Africa”.

“There was a marked absence of leadership,” Prof Rowe said. “There was a failure to understand that Parliament as a body has a specific function and mission, and it appeared that nobody was taking up that responsibility.”

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He said “the need is urgent for these matters to be addressed as rapidly as possible before things worsen”.

Mike Pothier of the Catholic Parliamentary Liaison Office said that “from the employment of jamming devices, the deployment of police in the chamber, the apartheid-era use of a water canon on peaceful protesters, to the simpering endorsement by the public broadcaster of the governing party, what we experienced was the subjection of the rights of the nation to the might of the state.”

Mr Pothier said the cutting of the television feed from inside the National Assembly did not allow the public to see how their representatives were being manhandled, noting that this “is further evidence of the subversion of the rights and interests of the nation”.

If neither the speaker nor the secretary of Parliament knew about the cell jamming device then it could only have been an arm of the state that was responsible, Mr Pothier said.

“That utterly violates the separation of powers and makes Parliament representing the nation subject to the executive,” he said.

The bishops called on Baleka Mbete, the speaker of Parliament, to “conduct an urgent, thorough and transparent investigation into this matter”.

While the SACBC questioned “whether it was appropriate for the EFF to use the State of the Nation address” to question President Zuma on the Nkandla Report, it also notes that as long as he “declines to answer fully and openly the many questions that remain about the expenditure of public money on Nkandla, such disturbances are likely to be repeated”.

“The president has a duty to Parliament and to the nation to put this matter to rest by providing adequate answers,” the bishops said.

“The unfortunate scenes on the floor of the House overshadowed the speech itself, and detracted attention from the programme set out by the President. This was in itself a disservice to democracy and to the citizens of South Africa,” the bishops said.

“Twenty years after the achievement of democracy, we deserve better than this.”

Rome, Assisi, Florence, Siena, Padua, Milan, Venice and more 6 - 18 September 2015

2

The Southern Cross, February 25 to March 3, 2015

LOCAL

Troubled refugee centre needs rights office: CPLO STAFF REPORTER

T Fr Bram Martijn, assisted by Ian Howse, blesses trees in a garden of remembrance for children who have died.

Garden recalls kids who have died

BY YOlANDE TRAINOR

A

PARISH in Cape Town has dedicated a garden of remembrance, for children who have died, to Mary, the mother of Our Lord.

Ss Simon and Jude parish in Simon’s Town, the last village before Cape Point, is home to one of the oldest Catholic churches in South Africa. The area is also home to many parents whose children have died.

With that in mind, parishioners established a garden to remember these children, and in solidarity with Mary, who also experienced the death of her child, called it “Miriam’s Garden”.

There is a bench to sit on in the garden and an old cross. Bereaved parents and friends are invited to write the name of a child to be remembered on a small stone, and place it at the base of the cross.

Goedgedacht farm donated two of its olive trees grown from branches of an olive tree in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jerusalem.

Parishioners planted these and other trees in Miriam’s Garden, and the trees were blessed by the parish priest, Fr Bram Martijn.

Archbishop Slattery is giving a mandate to Esther Etsane, coordinator of catechists at St Joseph the Worker parish in Pretoria West. More than 300 catechists attended the annual Mandate of Catechists. (Photo: Mathibela Sebothoma)

CONGREGATION OF OUR LADY OF CHARITY OF THE GOOD SHEPHERD “ONE PERSON IS OF MORE VALUE THAN A WHOLE WORLD”

HE SA Human Rights Commission must “seriously” consider placing an office at the “deeply troubled” Lindela repatriation centre for foreign detainees, the Catholic Parliamentary Liaison Office has urged.

The call comes after reports by detainees last October that they were beaten with batons and shot with rubber bullets at the centre on Johannesburg’s West Rand in order to force them to end a hunger strike.

“It is safe to say that Lindela is a deeply troubled institution with a history of serious human rights abuses,” the CPLO said in a research paper.

“The minister of home affairs, Malusi Gigaba, offered to provide office space at the Lindela centre for the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) to engage in ongoing monitoring.

“The SAHRC should seriously consider taking up the offer of office space at Lindela, or explain why it is not possible for it to do so.”

The Mail&Guardian newspaper reported that 25 Nigerians being held at Lindela had

ended their two-week hunger strike in October only after a “brutal” attack on them, allegedly by security guards who were apparently trying to force them to eat.

The guards work for Bosasa Operations, the company contracted with running the centre.

Five members of the group told the newspaper that ten guards shot at them with rubber bullets and beat them with batons.

A September 2014 report by the SAHRC confirms Lindela “falls short” of the standards that should be maintained.

A worrying problem noted by the SAHRC was that “the vast majority” of detainees were not aware of their rights.

Some 75% of detainees claimed that they had not been informed of their rights upon detention, while 26 out of the 109 detainees surveyed claimed that they had “legitimate asylum seeker status”.

The investigation leading to the SAHRC’s 2014 report was triggered by a letter written to it by four NGOs which had been involved in advocacy and legal cases surrounding Lindela.

Justice & Peace called ‘out of sacristy’

BY DYlAN APPOlIS

F

ORTY-FIVE chaplains and coordinators of the Justice & Peace committees from various dioceses in South Africa and Botswana met in Johannesburg to discuss ways of strengthening the prophetic ministry of the Church.

Bishop Abel Gabuza of Kimberley, chairman of the Justice & Peace Department, noted that after South Africa became a democracy in 1994, Justice & Peace groups retreated “into the sacristy”.

He challenged the participants to develop projects in their dioceses that challenge structural roots of poverty and injustice.

Justice & Peace groups have an important responsibility to remind parishes and sodalities that the ministry is an integral part of evangelisation, the bishop said. Referring to Matthew 25:31-46, Bishop Gabuza reminded the participants that “to be able to enter heaven, every Christian will need a letter of recommendation from the poor”.

The Justice & Peace groups shared their respective action plans for 2015.

Some of the activities that diocesan Justice & Peace groups will undertake in 2015 include standing in prayer and solidarity with the victims of oppression in Swaziland, working to end rape and domestic violence in families and communities, engaging the health system and ensuring service delivery problems in clinics are eradicated, challenging the service providers on social grants who are involved in illegal deductions

Forty-five chaplains and coordinators of Justice & Peace committees in Botswana and South Africa participated in a Johannesburg meeting. on pension grants, working with rural communities in engaging the land commission to fast track land claims, and monitoring corruption and service delivery.

“During the meeting, the chaplains and coordinators from the dioceses that are located in the mining areas made a commitment to work together to ensure that the extraction of mines benefits the common good, and not only the profit-interests of multinational companies and their domestic elites,” said Fr Stan Muyebe OP, director of the

bishops’ Justice & Peace Department.

“Several delegates from the mining areas shared stories of how their communities are adversely affected by the mines,” Fr Muyebe said. “These included stories of air and water pollution, unrehabilitated mines, company policies to employ migrant labour, and broken promises as the companies fail to implement their social labour plans.”

The issue of the current energy crisis in South Africa and service delivery protests were also discussed.

Fr Muyebe told The Southern Cross that the meeting also explored the possibility of setting up a pro bono platform involving Catholics who are lawyers.

“Several Justice & Peace groups indicated that legal assistance by Catholic lawyers would make a big difference in their ministry,” Fr Muyebe said.

“The participants challenged Catholic lawyers, nurses and other professionals to use their skills to strengthen the ministry of the Church as an agent of hope to the poor and the oppressed.”

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The data collection that informed the report included a site visit to and inspection of Lindela, questionnaires being administered to seven of the detainees, and interviews with management and employees.

The CPLO said detention processes at Lindela have clearly been in violation of the Immigration Act. Lengthy detentions have resulted in numerous court cases, with detainees being held for far longer than the maximum permitted 120 days.

When questioned about the excessive length of some of the detentions, officials claimed that it was due to a lack of cooperation from either the relevant embassies or from the detainees themselves.

Detainees, officials said, allegedly refused to identify their home countries or present any documentation, so that they could wait out the 120-day limit in hopes of being released instead of deported.

“There is compelling evidence that human rights, as protected by the Constitution and the Act, have been violated both at Lindela and at similar institutions,” the CPLO said.

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LOCAL

Soweto marchers step out against human trafficking STAFF REPORTER

T People marched from Regina Mundi to Moroka police station to protest against human trafficking.

“At the end of Mass, the minister challenged all present to play an active role in eradicating this evil from our society,” Sr O’Connor said.

Martha Ntuli, one of the organisers of the march, described the day as “awesome”.

“People were expressing shock as the stories of some survivors were read out to them,” Ms Ntuli said.

One congregant said: “Our eyes were opened today... things are horrible and we just keep quiet.”

HE bishop of Mariannhill has issued a statement to clarify the circumstances surrounding a donation of R500 000 by the JG Zuma Foundation towards the translation of a Zulu Bible.

“Early in January 2015 some interest was shown in the media concerning the fundraising efforts for the translation of the new Zulu Bible,” said Bishop Mlungisi Pius Dlungwane in a statement.

“This came as a reaction to President Jacob Zuma’s visit to St Joseph’s cathedral in Mariannhill on January 4, 2015, and his fulfilment of the commitment of the JG Zuma Foundation that was made a year earlier, on January 5, 2014, that the foundation would make a financial contribution towards the expenses incurred in the translation work.

“Although the project itself started in 2006 and belongs to the Catholic bishops of the Durban metropolitan (Zulu Regional Pastoral Council), at a particular time the bishops made a decision to halt the

Loss of WIN after 18 years

BY DYlAN APPOlIS

A

FTER 18 years, the WIN Playhouse centre is closing its doors.

WIN Playhouse is an Early Childhood Development centre that has been run by Catholic Welfare and Development in Salt River, Cape Town. Their specific aim was to uplift the lives of children of the Bo Kaap, Schotsche Kloof, Die Kraal informal settlement, Woodstock, Salt River and the CBD. At WIN Playhouse, the focus has always been to ensure children have access to a safe haven, where they receive regular nutritional meals, are able to sleep, and receive a pre-school education that aims to prepare them for formal school years.

“The aim is to ensure that each child is able to feel secure and

loved, in order for them to grow and play as children should and we hope to continue this work in this area of great need,” said Rhonda Qually, early childhood development programme manager.

“Sadly, funding is a great issue, particularly now as we have had to depart from our premises in Salt River where we were housed for 18 years.

“Unfortunately, we were unable to get the house rezoned as an ECD centre and so we closed our doors,” she said.

“We appeal to those ‘in the know’ with regard to suitable and affordable property availability within this area as it would be a godsend to these indigent families if we were able to continue with this extremely worthwhile project,” Ms Qually said.

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Bishop clarifies Zuma Zulu Bible donation STAFF REPORTER

M

ORE than a 1 000 people marched from Regina Mundi church in Moroka, Soweto, to the Moroka police station where a memorandum was handed over to express the community’s outrage over the scourge of human trafficking.

The march, organised by Sr Melanie O’Connor, head of the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference’s Counter Trafficking Office, marked the launch of St Bakhita Day as Human Trafficking Awareness Day for South Africa.

“It was inspiring to see how many young people were involved in this event, leading us in song and actively involved in the liturgy,” Sr O’Connor said.

Susan Shabangu, minister in the Presidency for Women and Children, was among those leading the march.

Many religious sisters also attended the event. The Counter Trafficking Office is a joint venture between the SACBC and the Leadership Conference of Consecrated Life.

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translation due to a funds shortage.

“However, the bishop of the diocese of Mariannhill, who is responsible for the coordination of the translation work, made a special request to the bishops that the project continue, in order to keep the same group of full-time translators working, and in that way to keep, in fact, the flow of language and the integrity of the translated text,” the statement said.

“The bishops agreed, provided the diocese of Mariannhill shoulder the expenses of the translation, which included the salaries, stationery and equipment, and transportation costs of the review translators who meet four times a year,” the bishop said.

“Among the fundraising efforts that the diocese of Mariannhill pursued I may mention here the Tutu Foundation, the JG Zuma Foundation, and some local businesses. The gala dinner that was planned towards the end of 2014 has not yet materialised.

“In these efforts, neither the bishops of the Zulu pastoral region nor

Cardinal Wilfrid Napier was informed. So they did not know anything about it. It was merely the responsibility of the bishop of the diocese of Mariannhill,” the statement said.

“It is also regrettable that in one or the other article in the media it was stated that the translation of the Zulu Bible in progress was due to a perception that the South African Bible Society version was not translated from the original biblical languages of Hebrew and Greek. This has never been our position. In fact, we have respect for the integrity of the Bible Society’s Zulu Bible, as we requested their permission to use their present version as one of the references, to which they agreed,” Bishop Dlungwane said.

“At the beginning we worked together with the South African Bible Society, and they sent their experienced translator to participate regularly in our review sessions. This cooperation stopped when the Bible Society decided to start their own new Zulu Bible translation,” the statement concluded. learners and staff at Brescia House School in Johannesburg gathered on the school’s field in support of the leadSA One Billion Rising Campaign. This year the One Billion Rising Revolution is about demanding changes, to make the world a better place for women and children globally. This year the girls were prepared by participating in lessons and discussions about what sort of changes we need to help bring about a better life for women and children.

This could be by learning more about children’s rights and responsibilities, keeping safe, speaking out when people are hurt, learning to stand up against bullies and so on. A video of the event is available at www.bit.ly/ 17ghTlP

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The Southern Cross, February 25 to March 3, 2015

INTERNATIONAL

21 Coptic martyrs last words: Jesus BY lAURA IERACI

T Cardinal Joseph Zen Ze-kiun, retired bishop of Hong Kong, wears a protective mask and holds a picture of Bishop Cosmas Shi Enxiang of Yixian outside a government building in Hong Kong. Bishop Shi is said to have died in detention. (Photo: Francis Wong/CNS)

Hong Kong cardinal seeks missing bishops

BY FRANCIS WONG

C

ARDINAL Joseph Zen Zekiun, retired bishop of Hong Kong, protested at the Chinese liaison office in the city and asked the whereabouts of Bishop Cosmas Shi Enxiang of Yixian, who was said to have died in detention.

The 83-year-old cardinal and members of the diocesan Justice and Peace Commission submitted a petition asking the Chinese government to disclose the situation of Bishop Shi. The bishop’s great-niece was told that the bishop had died, but the government released no more details.

They also sought information on Bishop James Su Zhimin of Baoding, who was arrested in 1997.

The group prayed for disappeared Church figures and sang songs for them in front of the liaison office.

Cardinal Zen and the commission members also urged the Chinese government to stop suppressing the Church and to respect religious freedom. China requires Catholic leaders to register with the government-controlled Catholic Patriotic Association, which has ordained bishops without the approval of the pope, and Chinese authorities have frequently arrested Catholics who reject government control.

Meanwhile, in a blog post, Cardinal Zen wrote: “It looks like someone is trying to shut us down.”

He added: “We do not see any sign that would encourage the hope that Chinese communists are about to change their religious policy,” although both the Vatican secretary of state and a pro-Beijing newspaper in Hong Kong recently expressed optimism over Sino-Vatican relations.

In the blog, he also doubted the accuracy of a recent interview with Chinese Bishop Joseph Wei Jingyi of Qiqihar, who was quoted as saying that the Holy See needs to take the first step on Sino-Vatican talks.

Cardinal Zen, a member of the Vatican Commission for the Church in China, said he has not been told if there were Sino-Vatican talks, or the progress of such talks if there were any.

He listed a number of thorny issues in the normalisation of Church life in China and said that having no agreement between the Vatican and China could be better than having a bad agreement.

The cardinal said, “It is difficult for us to imagine that the representatives of the Holy See can sit down and talk to their communist counterparts without chagrin” when two old Chinese bishops lost their freedom for upholding their faith.— CNS

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HE 21 Coptic Christians who were beheaded by Islamic State militants died as martyrs, invoking the name of Jesus, said an Egyptian Catholic bishop.

In line with Pope Francis’ assertion of what he termed “our 21 brother Copts” whose throats had been slit “for the sole reason of being Christians”, Bishop Antonios Aziz Mina of Giza said that the “diabolical” video of the Christians’ massacre, intended to “spread terror”, was a testament to their martyrdom in the faith.

The video of their beheading shows that “in the moment of their barbaric execution”, some of the Christians were repeating the words “Lord, Jesus Christ”, he said.

“The name of Jesus was the last word on their lips,” said Bishop Mina. And like the early Church martyrs, “they entrusted themselves to the one who would receive them soon after. That name, whispered in the last moments, was like the seal of their martyrdom”.

Pope Francis called on people to pray for the victims’ families and for Egypt’s Orthodox leader, Pope Tawadros II, “who is suffering so much”.

Egypt, meanwhile, mourned its 21 nationals, who had been working in Libya when the extremist group kidnapped them.

Following the news of their assas-

sination in Libya, Christians in the various dioceses of Egypt began praying and fasting, as the government called for seven days of national mourning. Several Egyptian bishops have spoken about constructing churches, dedicated to the 21 martyrs, in their dioceses.

Egyptian Prime Minister Ibrahim Mahlab announced President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi would arrange state funds for the construction of a church dedicated to the 21 martyrs in the Egyptian city of Minya, from which many of the victims hailed.

The families are asking that the remains of their loved ones be returned to Egypt for burial.

President Al-Sisi, who also has referred to the 21 Christians as “martyrs”, paid a personal visit to Coptic Orthodox Pope Tawadros II to ex-

tend his condolences.

Back in Libya, members of the Catholic community resolved to stay put, despite the killings and the emphatic calls from various authorities to evacuate the country.

“Few of us remain,” said Latinrite Bishop Giovanni Martinelli of Tripoli, Libya. He said that many of those who remain are female Philippine nurses, who have decided to stay because of the dire medical needs in the city after the evacuation of the medical staff at the private St James Hospital.

“It is for them that I remain,” the bishop said. “At this time, the situation is calm, but we do not know how things will evolve. Anyway, as I have said many times, so long as there is one Christian here, I will remain.”—CNS

Pope to youth: Faith is a life project

BY CINDY WOODEN

C

HRISTIANITY is not a set of prohibitions, but a “project for life” that can lead to true happiness in building better relationships and a better world, Pope Francis told Catholic young people.

“Do you realise how much you are worth in the eyes of God?” the pope asked youths in his annual message for local celebrations of World Youth Day. The 2015 theme for WYD chosen

by Pope Francis is the beatitude, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God”.

The “beatitude” or blessedness for which God created human beings and which was disrupted by the sin of Adam and Eve “consists in perfect communion with God, with others, with nature and with ourselves”, the pope wrote. God’s “divine light was meant to illuminate every human relationship with truth and trans-

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parency”.

But with sin, he said, Adam and Eve’s relationship with each other, with God and with creation changed. “The inner compass which had guided them in their quest for happiness lost its point of reference and the attractions of power, wealth, possessions and a desire for pleasure at all costs led them to the abyss of sorrow and anguish.”

God still loved the human creatures he created and still wanted them to find happiness, the pope said, so he send his son to become one of them and to redeem them.

Jesus taught that impurity or defilement was not something that happened because of what someone ate or who they touched, but was something that came from inside the person. Jesus listed “evil thoughts, fornication, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, foolishness”, the pope said, pointing out

that most of the things on the list have to do with a person’s relationship with others.

Pope Francis said he knows “your desire for a love which is genuine, beautiful and expansive” is beginning to blossom. “Do not let this precious treasure be debased, destroyed or spoiled,” he said. “That is what happens when we start to use our neighbours for our own selfish ends, even as objects of pleasure. Hearts are broken and sadness follows upon these negative experiences.

“Rebel against the widespread tendency to reduce love to something banal, reducing it to its sexual aspect alone, deprived of its essential characteristics of beauty, communion, fidelity and responsibility,” the pope said.

Through prayer, speaking to Jesus “as you speak to a friend,” and reading the Bible, he said, people can draw closer to God and allow him to purify their hearts. —CNS

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INTERNATIONAL

The Southern Cross, February 25 to March 3, 2015

5

Pope: Cardinals must search for the lost

BY CINDY WOODEN

T Ezo owl chicks sit in a tree just after leaving their nest on Hokkaido Island, Japan. Pope Francis plans to issue a widely anticipated encyclical on the environment later this year. (Photo: Kimimasa Mayama, EPA/CNS)

Kenyan bishops decry ‘laced vaccines’

BY FRANCIS NJUGUNA

A

KENYAN government vaccination campaign, sponsored and funded by the World Health Organisation and UNICEF, amounted to a huge human rights violation, said the Kenyan bishops.

They said the government owes women and children an apology after tests found that the vaccine used during the nationwide tetanus campaign in 2014 was laced with beta human chorionic gonadotropin, or beta hCG, which can lead to miscarriages or sterility.

The report also said that “no further vaccination campaign should be undertaken in this country without an all-inclusive sampling and testing exercise done before, during and after the vaccination campaign”.

It said the Kenyan ministry of health must stop trusting foreign agencies, including the World Health Organisation and UNICEF, to secure the safely of Kenyans.

During the vaccination campaign, the Kenyan bishops questioned why it was aimed at women between the ages of 14-59 and also why the government was conducting this campaign when the bishops

were not aware of a nationwide tetanus crisis. They said they became suspicious because tetanus campaigns in places like Mexico, Nicaragua and Philippines also had been found to contain beta hCG. The bishops noted that beta hCG occurs naturally during pregnancy but, when injected with a vaccine like tetanus, it becomes an antigen and stimulates antibodies, which can lead to miscarriages or sterility.

“When sterility is induced in any woman, without her knowledge and/or consent, it amounts to a monumental human rights abuse,” said a statement signed by Bishop Paul Kariuki Njiru of Embu, head of the Catholic Health Commission of Kenya. “This is the highest violation of the sovereignty of any country, as it is a direct attack on the survival of a people and, therefore, national security.”

Kenyan doctors who conducted tests on vials of the vaccine were at the news conference at which the bishops released their reports, which the government has refused to acknowledge. The tests showed that 30% of the vials collected during the tetanus vaccination campaign contained beta hCG.—CNS

HE Catholic Church cannot call itself Church if it is a “closed caste” where the sick, the wounded and sinners are shunned, Pope Francis told the 20 new cardinals he created.

“The way of the Church is precisely to leave her four walls behind and to go out in search of those who are distant, those essentially on the outskirts of life,” the pope said as he celebrated Mass in St Peter’s basilica with 19 of the churchmen who received their red hats the day before and with about 140 other members of the College of Cardinals.

“Total openness to serving others is our hallmark; it alone is our title of honour,” he told the men often referred to as “princes of the Church”.

The Mass capped a four-day gathering of the cardinals. They met with Pope Francis to review ideas for the reform of the Roman Curia and Vatican finances as well as the progress made in the work of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors.

The pope’s homily at Mass with the cardinals, the meditation on love and charity he offered when he created the new cardinals and his exhortation that the Curia reform emphasise its role of service, echo remarks he had made as Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Buenos Aires at the meetings immediately preceding his election [as pope] in March 2013.

Even Pope Francis’ choice of new cardinals emphasised his focus on geographical peripheries and outreach to those often excluded from society. The 20 new cardinals came from 18 countries, including the first-ever cardinals from Tonga, Myanmar and Cape Verde. In his second round of naming cardinals, he once again skipped large Italian dioceses usually headed by cardinals— notably Venice and Turin—and tapped Ancona and Agrigento, which is led by Cardinal Francesco Montenegro, a dedicated defender of the thousands of immigrants who risk their lives crossing the Mediter-

Archbishop: child protection delays appalling

BY MICHAEl KEllY

A

RCHBISHOP Diarmuid Martin of Dublin has said he would seek assurances from religious congregations operating in his diocese that they are rigidly following child protection guidelines after a fresh round of audits raised serious concerns.

In a statement Archbishop Martin said it was “appalling” that some major religious congregations had delayed fully implementing the Church’s child protection guidelines and that, in some cases, this process only really got underway in 2013.

Archbishop Martin said the delays left him “seriously concerned”.

The Irish Church’s monitoring watchdog, the National Board for Safeguarding Children in the Catholic Church, published 16 reviews on the implementation of policies in religious congrega-

tions—eight male, eight female.

Teresa Devlin, the board’s chief executive, said she was “disappointed that for the majority of orders, the whole area of safeguarding is only being embraced in the last couple of years”.

She also said that, concerning seven of the male congregations, “there is considerable work to be done”. She was referring to the Franciscan Friars, Franciscan Brothers, the Servites, Passionists, Augustinians, Discalced Carmelites and the Marist Fathers.

The safeguarding board was established in a bid to restore public confidence in the Church’s handling of allegations of abuse against priests and religious after a series of judicial reports uncovered serious failings.

Four Irish bishops have resigned following severe criticism of their failures in relation to handling allegations of abuse.

Archbishop Martin said that

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while improvements have been made, especially by the current leadership of the congregations concerned, the failures and delays that have emerged point to “the need to ensure greater systems of accountability of Church authorities in the area of child safeguarding”.

He said the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors “noted clearly [that] part of ensuring accountability is raising awareness and understanding at all levels of the Church regarding the seriousness and urgency in implementing correct safeguarding procedures”.

The archbishop warned that “survivors trying to regain their confidence in the Church will be disillusioned once again” and “the many laymen and women who work voluntarily in church safeguarding structures in our parishes must feel disheartened.”—CNS

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New Cardinals Francis Xavier Kriengsak Kovithavanij of Bangkok, Thailand, Charles Bo of Yangon, Myanmar, and Francesco Montenegro of Agrigento, Italy, pray during Pope Francis’ Mass with new cardinals in St Peter’s basilica at the Vatican. (Photo: Paul Haring/CNS) ranean Sea to Europe.

In the almost two years since his election, Pope Francis repeatedly has called Catholics to reach out to people on the margins of both the Church and society. He also frequently cautions against the temptation of being modern-day scribes and Pharisees, who can allow obedience to the letter of the law to prevent them from reaching out to others with compassion.

The Sunday Gospel reading was St Mark’s version of Jesus touching a leper—which was forbidden by Jewish law—healing him and, in that way, allowing him back into the community.

The purpose of the law against touching someone with leprosy and forcing them to live outside the community “was to safeguard the healthy, to protect the righteous”, the pope said.

“Jesus, the new Moses, wanted to heal the leper,” the pope said. “He wanted to touch him and restore him to the community without being ‘hemmed in’ by prejudice, conformity to the prevailing mindset or worry about becoming infected.”

What is more, the pope said, “Jesus responds immediately to the leper’s plea, without waiting to study the situation and all its possible

consequences.”

“For Jesus, what matters above all is reaching out to save those far off, healing the wounds of the sick, restoring everyone to God’s family,” he said. “This is scandalous to some people.”

But Jesus, he said, “does not think of the closed-minded who are scandalised even by a work of healing, scandalised before any kind of openness, by any action outside of their mental and spiritual boxes, by any caress or sign of tenderness which does not fit into their usual thinking and their ritual purity.”

Pope Francis said there are two basic tendencies in the life of faith: being afraid of losing the saved, or wanting to save the lost. The Church’s way, he said, “has always been the way of Jesus, the way of mercy and reinstatement”.

Going out in search of the lost, he told the cardinals, “does not mean underestimating the dangers of letting wolves into the fold”, but it does mean “rolling up our sleeves and not standing by and watching passively the suffering of the world”.

“The way of the Church is not to condemn anyone for eternity,” he said, but “to pour out the balm of God’s mercy on all those who ask for it with a sincere heart”.—CNS

6

The Southern Cross, February 25 to March 3, 2015

LEADER PAGE LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Editor: Günther Simmermacher

Discipline and dignity

P

OPE Francis got himself into some hot water this month when he seemed to endorse some forms of physical punishment for children.

The Western media criticised the pope strongly for his perceived advocacy for what many commentators regarded as unacceptable parental discipline.

The discussion of whether any form of corporal punishment can be permissible is valid.

It must go beyond the clichés of “spare the rod, spoil the child”, but also past the exaggeration that even the mildest act of corporal punishment is tantamount to criminal assault.

At a general audience, Pope Francis referred to a father who had said: “I sometimes have to smack my children a bit, but never in the face so as to not humiliate them.”

The pope commended the father for not hitting his children in the face and thereby respecting their “dignity”. “He knows the sense of dignity,” the pope said. “He has to punish them but does it justly and moves on.”

It is easy to see how in the liberal West such a comment could be read as an endorsement of corporal punishment, especially in absence of a qualifier which also might have urged non-physical means of enforcing discipline.

In most of the world, however, corporal punishment is still seen as socially acceptable, and the pope’s comment was consequently uncontroversial.

If anything, its effect might be to counsel parents to review their methods of punishment, placing the dignity of the child above that of the impulse to react without regard for the child’s emotional wellbeing. The pope’s admonishing words might therefore help to moderate the actions of parents who give corporal punishment.

The pope did not in fact advocate corporal punishment, as the Western media would have it, but proposed to reduce the effects of it in places where it exists—and that includes many Western homes.

Indeed, Pope Francis’ address at that general audience focused on fatherly love, saying that it must not control but be firm yet gentle. It must be patient, forgiving and merciful.

This is not the picture of a father who brutalises his children.

Clearly the Holy Father—a man who berates mothers for not dressing their children in sufficiently warm clothes—rejects acts that cause physical injury.

The pope’s insistence that disciplinary punishment leave intact the child’s dignity suggests that he disapproves of any act which causes the child emotional harm.

This is not limited only to corporal punishment. Non-physical forms of discipline can also cause grave emotional damage.

Is a light smack on the fingers more harmful than passive-aggressive punishment such as excluding a child from activity or withholding parental affection, never mind more sustained forms of emotional cruelty? Is a parent who screams at a child preferable to one who gives the child a smack on a clothed backside?

The pope’s remark is not about the forms of parental discipline (or, more often, reaction), but about the preservation of the child’s dignity.

Alas, the widely outraged response to the pope’s comment lost sight of that very important point, one which is at the centre of the commentators’ concern: the wellbeing of children.

How much more good the commentators might have accomplished had they framed their musings around the question of preserving the dignity of children, instead of projecting their Western bias on the Argentine pope speaking to the world, in most of which physical means of punishment are the norm.

How fruitful it might have been had those commentators, while stating their reasonable opposition to hitting children, also reflected on how aggressive verbal and passive-aggressive parental behaviours injure the dignity of the child.

The media have missed that golden opportunity. In our church communities, however, the pope’s words on good parenting—for what he said about fathers applies no less to mothers—must be taken to heart.

His wise words must reach the parents who beat their children, those who scream at them, marginalise them, or belittle them.

Pope Francis is saying there need not be a trade-off between the child’s dignity and discipline—and he is challenging parents to try to locate that balance.

ST JOSEPH’S PASTORAL CENTRE, MAHIKENG Catholic Spiritual Centre

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.

Use words of empathy, not spite

W

E often are blinded into thinking that people holding up signs at traffic lights are the only ones battling. However, around us, at all times, there are people who are battling due to unemployment, rising costs and many other challenges. They are people whom we see every day at work, sit next to every week in church.

How much do we really know about those people? Do we know whether helping them with dinner for their family once a week might help greatly? Have we talked to them—the kind of talking where we hear what they say?

Help begins in a community and

Racism in church

I

WAS sad to read in a letter to the Cape Times of February 10 of an alleged racist incident at St Bernard’s church in Newlands.

It is customary there to hold hands when singing the Lord’s Prayer. However, when a young black woman reached out to the person beside her, that person responded by folding her arms instead.

Some years ago the very same thing happened to friends of mine, who were housesitting in Newlands, when they attended Mass at St Bernard’s—the vast majority of whose congregation I am certain is not racist.

I felt mortified for them, but they said they were “used to it”.

How could that be when they were Catholics and this is completely against the teachings of Christ?

After 2 000 years of Christianity—and more than 20 years of the “new South Africa”—how is it that white people still believe they are superior to everyone else ?

How about praying at Mass, in all our churches, for the end to racism and that we not only reach out our hands in friendship but follow the example of Blessed Mother Teresa and do it with a smile. South Africa would then be a much better place for all of us to live in.

Pat Flesch, Cape Town

Boy altar servers

W

ITH regard to your front page article of January 28 reporting Sr Judith Coyle's views on various matters, you might—in service of a balanced treatment—care to inform readers that the view expressed by Cardinal Raymond Burke of a link between altar boys and priestly vocations (a view Sr Coyle disparaged) was advanced by the Congregation for Divine Worship in a letter to presidents of episcopal conferences dated March 15, 1994, confirmed by them in a letter dated July 27,

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very often people are too shy to ask for help, too shy to reach out, too afraid of stigma or gossip, and so we need to take it upon ourselves to try to listen more or find out if such people are around us. Maybe Lent is a good time to start that.

This year I find myself wondering if during this time of reflection and sacrifice, we should not consider giving up some other things, rather than the tangible Lenten sacrifices, such as sweets or alcohol.

How about we give up some of the things that come out of our mouths?

Words. Not the good ones—the kind, truthful, real words that build

2001 (published in Notitiae 37 [2001] 397-399), and repeated in their instruction Redemptionis Sacramentum (2004, n.47).

The 1994 letter was the one which first set out the norms under which female altar service was permitted.

The Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate, based at the Jesuit Georgetown University in Washington DC, reports that of those ordained to the priesthood in 2014 in the United States, 50% attended Catholic primary school, and 41% Catholic high school. But 83% had been altar boys at some point before entering the seminary.

This does not prove a causal link, but it substantiates Cardinal Burke's point. He also said (in the same interview, published online on January 5, in which he deplored the prioritising in the Church of women’s issues over men’s) that the rate of male altar service has declined.

The correlation between altar service and vocations to the female consecrated life in the US is far less: of those who professed perpetual vows in 2014, only 29% had ever been altar servers. The percentage of US Catholic millennials (born 1982 or later) who had ever been altar servers is estimated at 14% for males and 13% for females.

Nor is preaching tied to the ordained ministry (as Sr Coyle appears to think) although it is proper to it. She must surely know of canon 766.

Martin Keenan, Paarl

Burke cartoon demeans paper

T

HE Southern Cross demeans itself by printing Conrad’s crude cartoon ridiculing Cardinal Raymond Burke and crowing over his “sacking” by Pope Francis (January 14).

During the October 2014 Extraordinary Synod on the Family, Cardinal Burke resolutely defended the teachings of the Church regarding the worthy reception of Holy Eucharist, and about adultery, divorce and homosexuality.

He, together with others, such as our own Cardinal Wilfrid Napier, objected to the hijacking, manipulation and distortion by Cardinal Lorenzo Baldisseri and Archbishop Bruno Forte of reports from the synod. This information is now widely published, with Cardinal Baldisseri astonishingly admitting that he was simply obeying Pope Francis in this.

Your cartoon also reveals much about the current state of the Church when Cardinal Burke, in upholding and promoting Catholic teaching, is punished and ostracised by other Church leaders and is subjected to bully-boy treatment and ridicule in The Southern Cross.

Led by Fr Stefan Hippler 9 to 21 August 2015

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A reader has objected to Conrad’s cartoon of January 14.

people up; words that show sympathy, empathy, gentleness and love— but those that are mean and spiteful.

The things we say that harm and hurt others: the untruths, gossip and mean things; the impatient, demeaning words that do nothing but break other human beings down and cause unnecessary heartache.

How about we try and give up some of those?

Let’s greet people with kindness and warmth: at home, at work, among friends. Let’s smile more, acknowledge a good deed, say please and thank you, tell someone they matter. Words of wonder as opposed to words of wounding.

Karin Human, Pretoria 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.

Letters can be sent to PO Box 2372, Cape Town 8000 or editor@scross.co.za or faxed to 021 465-3850

Perhaps The Southern Cross, to level the playing field, will now print a cartoon showing Cardinal Walter Kasper giving Holy Communion to King Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn, after his divorce from Catherine, with the beheaded St Thomas More, St John Fisher and the “beautiful ruins” of some of the 800 abbeys and monasteries destroyed by Henry in the background? Could such a cartoon be offensive?

I hardly think so as this is in effect what Cardinal Kasper is proposing, not “dogmatically” but “pastorally” of course! Could sauce for the goose also be sauce for the gander?

GB Elisio, Johannesburg

Who’s ‘Father’?

M

ICHAEL Shackleton (December 31) says of Christ’s command not to call “any man Father, for you have one Father in heaven” (Mt 23:9) that this was because we might be hypocritical in so doing.

However, I feel that this is a gloss, an interpretation that would allow the use of the term “Father”, whereas Christ’s words are unambiguous.

I recall a story that might be of interest.

Three boys are playing marbles and a man with a clerical collar passes by. One of them says: “Good morning, Father”. After the cleric has passed, his friend turns to the speaker and says: “He’s no Father!

He has three children!”

Peter Onesta, Johannesburg

Hymns with heart

J

OHN Michael Talbot, in Joanne Fox’s article “Better music at Mass means a closer encounter with God” (January 7), says Catholics are notoriously known for having the worst music anywhere.

I disagree. Having been a Catholic for 49 years, I know that no matter what music you put before anyone, it is that person’s gusto that makes the music fantastic, otherwise we would not have Elvis Presley (the King of Rock ‘n Roll) to talk about.

I love our hymns and would like to learn some more. It is nice to hum them when walking down the road on a normal day.

I know I don’t have the best voice but I believe if each person loves our Lord, they will sing from their heart and it will come out alright.

J Jansen van Rensburg, Cape Town

PERSPECTIVES

How to lead youth to Christian life?

Emmanuel Ngara T HIS article is the first in a mini series that is going to examine the challenges of leading a Christian community in our time, with special reference to the Christian family.

In this regard, we all know that all those in leadership positions are urged to lead by example. This applies as much to Christian parents as it does to priests, pastors, teachers and others who lead Christian communities.

In the past it was relatively easy for parents to impose their religious views on their children, even adult children. In our time there are challenges for parents.

One reason for this is that the modern parent can claim to be a leader only in relative terms. There are areas of life in which children know better than their parents.

Among these is the area of information communication technology (ICT). Young people are generally more skilled in operating computers, cellular phones and other gadgets than their parents.

Another challenge facing parents is that children are exposed to many influences through television, Internet, computers, cellphones, peers and so on.

It may be easy to impose our views on our children when they are very young, but once they are at high school, college or in the workplace, our influence as parents begins to wane and children may begin to view religious practice differently.

One area in which many adult children in our time seem to view religion differently is the area of sacraments.

To traditional Catholic parents, obeying the teaching of the Church in regard to sacraments is a given. For example, one must go to Mass every Sunday, and if one misses Mass deliberately without cause or commits a mortal sin, one must go to confession before receiving Holy Communion.

But some young adult Catholics tend to view these things differently. You see a young woman and a young man cohabiting, but the next time they find themselves in church, they go to receive Holy Communion with everybody else. A young woman may miss Mass without sufficient cause, but the next time she is in church she stands up and goes to receive. There are other areas in which younger Christians may behave differently from traditional Christians.

T

he question that comes to mind is: Why do young Christians of our time behave the way they do?

Is it only because of the influences they are exposed to, or is there more to it? Is it perhaps partly because they do not have the same sense of “sin” as we the older generation of Christians have? In other words, is sin one of those things that do not prick the consciences of young Christians of today?

This should lead us to ask the question: how well are the young people of our time prepared for the Christian life?

In his column Emmanuel Ngara asks how we can prepare the next generations for the Christian life. (Photo: Bishop José luis Ponce de león)

Xenophobia: It’s real L AST month we watched as foreigners again became targets of violence. For a week the media focused on horrific scenes showing South Africans looting shops owned by immigrants.

The police were unable to keep the violence from spreading but the authorities once again shut the door on a very real problem, saying this was just “criminal activity” and not a consequence of xenophobic sentiment.

A week later, the media moved on to other stories. We, too, forget and move on to other concerns such as the ongoing load shedding and what we’re giving up for Lent.

But for people who come here from other parts of the continent to escape genocide, war, starvation, poverty, economic exclusion or to find educational opportunities for their children, xenophobia is real.

Let’s stop for a minute and really listen to their stories. Some of them have been victims of unspeakable horrors. They come here looking for a new start and their vulnerability makes them victims over and over again.

In an eNCA report, a Somali woman asked: “Where must I go?” She explained how she and her husband had run away from the terror group Al-Shabaab back home, but in the few years they’ve been in South Africa, they’ve been robbed, attacked or experienced some or other form of harassment 26 times.

I had a Kenyan friend who moved to Europe and said that she has finally stopped feeling afraid of walking on the street, and she no longer received taunting comments that she was a kwerekwere, a derogatory term used to refer to foreigners.

For the decade she lived in South Africa,

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Icon of the Flight into Egypt by South African iconographer Br Richard Maidwell CSsR. she studied and used her skills to assist small South African spaza shop owners to access technology that enables them to have goods delivered to their rural shops without having to spend a fortune in taxi money to buy their supplies in town.

She came from somewhere else and wanted to be a part of South African society and contributed to it in a far more meaningful way than I perhaps do. But she finally left because Home Affairs made it impossibly difficult to remain here legally.

X

enophobia is real. It sometimes captures the attention of the media, but research shows that since the large-scale xenophobic attacks in 2008, violence against our other African brothers and sisters has remained an undercurrent of many South African communities, particularly in large townships that are already riddled with other poverty-related problems.

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Furthermore, is the kind of preparation we used to have when the world was less complex still adequate as a basis for preparing our children for the full Christian life, or do we need to rethink the whole approach to christening in the context of a complex world?

Whatever the case, it seems to me there is a major challenge to developing Christians of tomorrow that cannot be solved by merely looking at parental responsibility.

The Church needs to come in and ask fundamental questions: Is it perhaps necessary to reconsider whether infant baptism is a sound basis for developing the Church of tomorrow? Is it perhaps necessary to put more emphasis on spiritual formation before baptism so that young people can be challenged to reflect more seriously on what Christian life is and how it differs from secular life? This presupposes that people are baptised when they are mature enough to understand what it really means to be a Christian.

If the approach suggested above is to be considered, there is a challenge for both the Church and parents.

The Church must come up with a more challenging and effective way of developing Christians.

On their part, Christian parents have a major task in not only assisting the Church in this regard, but also in being authentic role models of what it means to be a Christian parent in the modern complex world.

Sarah-Leah Pimentel

The Mustard Seeds

Xenophobia is real and we need to acknowledge the different forms it takes in our society. We need to speak about it and understand its causes.

I’ve heard South Africans say that foreigners take our jobs or that the number of immigrants has increased crime in South Africa. While these statements may contain fragments of truth, they are not the whole truth. Are foreigners prepared to work for less? Yes—but they need to be to survive in a foreign and hostile environment and chase after opportunities that will allow them to start a new life. This sometimes makes them the victims of exploitation or participants in criminal activity.

In the face of the government’s refusal to speak about xenophobia, what can we do about it? As Christians, how can we fail to respond to the needs of refugees when we think that Jesus spent the first part of his life on earth as a refugee in Egypt with Mary and Joseph?

Let us contemplate the icon, depicting the Holy Family’s Flight into Egypt, that illustrates this text, written by Br Richard Maidwell, a Redemptorist brother based at Holy Redeemer in Bergvliet, Cape Town.

Br Richard reflects on the icon, saying that the Holy Family had to leave behind their home and “travel to a strange country, a different culture and way of life. Suddenly they become a minority with all the loneliness and prejudice that comes with being a foreign people in a strange land”.

He adds that “people have always been fleeing for their lives and unfortunately will continue to do so”.

We might not be able to put an end to Continued on page 11

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The Southern Cross, February 25 to March 3, 2015

7

Chris Chatteris SJ

Pray with the Pope

Science must do good General Intention: That those involved in scientific research may serve the wellbeing of the whole human person.

T

HE problem with scientific research is that because you never know for certain in advance what you will discover; you cannot predict whether it will be beneficial or detrimental to humanity.

Normally the underlying intention of the scientist will make a difference. If researchers are positively looking for helpful new medicines, then they will most probably find them. If the search is for something destructive, like new toxins for biological weapons, the results are likely to be destructive.

There is a third possible category—scientific research, which is fascinating in itself but unlikely to have any direct benefit to anyone. I think of the spacecraft Phylae, which last year landed on a comet after travelling for millions of kilometres through space. This was a truly astonishing achievement. It is hoped that it will help us gain new understanding about how the earth was formed.

One could argue that knowledge of comets, if popularised, could serve our wellbeing. Clearly ignorance is bad for us and new knowledge is good.

However the Judas argument seems to me to have a point: “Could not this money have been given to the poor?”

The fact is that our resources are limited and we cannot do scientific research into everything, and therefore, if possible, we should opt for areas which have a reasonable hope of making a difference in people’s lives, particularly those of the most needy.

It seems quite legitimate to ask serious questions about developing countries which fund space programmes while millions of their citizens lack basic housing, sanitary amenities or unemployment.

By contrast, I recently heard of a young man who is doing research on street people: where they sleep, where they go during the day, how they survive, how they can be best helped. It’s heartening to hear of such work in a world where so much research goes into things like military hardware and mathematical systems for maximising share profit.

Women in the Church Missionary Intention: That the unique contribution of women to the life of the Church may be recognised always.

EN and women are obviously different physiologically, but both are made in the image and likeness of God. We are therefore equal in our capacity to be an icon of the Creator and reflect the loving creativity of our God. Some women would say, therefore, that the Church’s terminology of “feminine uniqueness” is a loaded phrase which is charged with unspoken meaning.

They suspect that the unspoken idea in the phrase “unique contribution” is that if women have their “unique contribution”—bringing up the children and cooking for the family—then men too, must have theirs which, surprise surprise, often means being in charge!

That being as it may, as I look around the Church it seems to me that in practice the “unique contribution” of women is nothing less than to be at the cutting edge of the passing on of the message of the Gospel. I mean “unique” in the sense that the preaching of the Gospel through catechesis of children and youth is almost exclusively done by women, religious and lay.

Not that men are incapable of fulfilling this role, but it has to be said that in many places, de facto it is women who man(!) this vital ministry. Here in South Africa, if we were suddenly to lose all our women catechists, we would be in a very bad way indeed.

It’s true that the clergy fulfil their “unique” vocation by preaching the Gospel in church, but let’s face it, the congregation tends to comprise mostly the converted. Women who preach the Gospel as catechists, and indeed as mothers to their questioning adolescent children, take on a much tougher constituency.

We pray for them and their work and that it may always be acknowledged and supported.

M

8

The Southern Cross, February 25 to March 3, 2015

COMMUNITY

St Clare’s parish in Elsie’s River, Cape Town, held a thanksgiving Mass and braai for all ministries and bazaar stallholders hosted by FrJob Kaleekarampil. Seminarian Theo April of the parish joined in the celebration.

Youth at Immaculate Conception parish in Parow, Cape Town were confirmed by Fr Peter-John Pearson. Mass was concelebrated by Capuchin Fathers Sonny Gadai and Donal Sweeney.

(Photo: Sarah Fouche)

Freshly Ground lead singer Zolani Mahola, a past pupil of St Dominic’s Priory in Port Elizabeth, visited pupils, sang songs and answered questions. Her final message was encouraging pupils to find out what their talent in life is and to share it.

Catechists from St Peter Claver parish in Maokeng, Kroonstad, and hosts St Thomas Aquinas parish in Ngwathe, Edenville, held a weekend workshop facilitated by the Kroonstad diocesan catechism coordinator, Ntate Mgomezulu (seated left). Four new catechists were installed.

The children of Most Holy Redeemer parish in Rustenburg received their First Holy Communion from parish priest Fr Cecil Dowling CSsR (centre back).

Salesian Father Eddie O Neill, celebrated his 40th year of ordination at the Salesian parish of Our lady Help of Christians in Cape Town.

Taelia Burkett and Dino liquito were married by Fr Russell Pollitt SJ in Pretoria on December 12, 2014.

The Daughters of St Francis of Assisi in Port Shepstone celebrated 25, 50 and 60 years in religious life. Bishop Pius Dlungwane of Mariannhill was the main celebrant.

Our bedrooms accommodate up to 58 - Small, medium & large conference facilities - Dining rooms with full kitchen facilities - Full catering service available or self cater - Very competitive rates - Situated in the suburb of Cambridge Visit Michael Coleman’s Interdenomenational Chapel.

Nicholin and Nikita Sydney were married at Our lady of Vailankanni parish in Chatsworth, Durban, on November 29, 2014.

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FAITH

The Southern Cross, February 25 to March 3, 2015

9

Priest: This is the Benedict Daswa I knew FR JOHN FINN MSC worked with Benedict Daswa in the Venda area in the late 1980s. He recalls South Africa’s first recognised martyr and the fall-out from his murder by a mob on a Friday evening 25 years ago.

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HE mood in Mbahe village was dark after the violent death of Benedict Daswa on February 2, 1990. It was the first and only time I have ever sensed evil.

I had come to South Africa five years earlier, in January of 1985. At first I lived in the mission at Levubu, where we were three fellow Sacred Heart priests and five Holy Rosary Sisters. At this stage I was working in the Shangaan area of

Malamulele and Guyani.

In January 1986 I was appointed parish priest of Sibasa parish and moved to live in Thohoyandou.

Before then, during my first year at Levubu, I met Benedict Daswa off and on when he would come to the mission to visit us or call to see the Sisters. He would now and again bring people to the clinic which was run by the Sisters.

At the time, Benedict always struck me as being a very ordinary man who cared for his family and others.

It wasn’t until later, when I moved to Thohoyandou, that I learnt that he was the principal of a school. He was involved in the parish council and various other committees in the church, such as care for the poor, education of children in catechesis, adult catechesis and of course the practical reality of all that goes into running a parish.

The Sibasa parish was divided

Benedict Daswa with children at Nweli Primary School.

into areas and Benedict was one of the leaders in the Nweli district. In the absence of a priest, catechist or Sister, he would sometimes lead Sunday service.

His contribution was always based on his own experience and on his tradition, coming from the Lemba and Venda people. I remember him as a determined man, who had a stubborn way of getting what he wanted. He had a great capacity to reason things out, so you could not say “no” to him. He was also a man with a very gentle soul, who was never harsh or abrasive.

Benedict certainly had a close connection with the Church, and he lived his faith out in his everyday life. He would often say that he had a great appreciation for the Church and for the opportunity the Church gave him, both in his education and in his involvement in reaching out to others. He would always try to see what this faith meant to his own people and teach it in a way that made life better for others.

In the area there was a strong prevalence of witchcraft and witch hunts, with the subsequent murders that went with this. Benedict did not see this as a healthy way for people to behave and exist, nor for society as a whole. While he had a strong connection to his own traditions as a Lemba man, he would not have seen witchcraft as part of this.

I remember very well the day he died, as he was in my house in Thohoyandou only a few hours earlier, bringing me some vegetables from his garden. I cannot say much of what happened that night as I was not there, but I do remember the hostility and fear which ensued

Fr John Finn MSC with priests and deacons at the funeral Mass for Benedict Daswa on February 10, 1990. The red vestments signify the belief that Benedict died a martyr. Almost exactly 25 years later, in January this year, Pope Francis formally declared Benedict a martyr. after his murder.

It was common practice that when someone died, prayers would be said in the family home each night until the funeral. This was attended by people from the local area.

However, in the instance of Benedict, nobody from the local village or surrounding areas came to the prayers.

The Holy Rosary Sisters and I went out each night to join the family. As we approached the village we’d be met with hostility.

Sometimes the road would be blocked with stones or trees, and we would be told go home; other times stronger language was used. I have a very distinct memory that it was the first and only time I have ever sensed evil.

It is sad that this reality of ritual murder, witchcraft, continues in society today, and that no one is held accountable for it. Such reality can serve only to instil fear into people and to create suspicion. This makes it very difficult to build trust and only divides people.

Benedict Daswa, I believe, stood for the truth and paid the ultimate price of his life.

I can still remember being the main celebrant at his funeral Mass in the church in Nweli. The thought that we were burying a saint was not the most prevenient one, but the sense of sadness at the loss of a father, a father figure, a leader, a man who offered so much to others and who had so much still to give. A man who had been brutally murdered by the ignorance of others.

Perhaps a saint's life is not so much defined by his death but by his life, and martyrdom happens when the goodness of one soul makes others feel threatened, because of the lack of goodness in their soul. If this be the case then Benedict is certainly a martyr, a saint and a role-model for others.

It was a privilege to have known him, to have worked alongside him, to celebrate his life, even in his death, and I certainly look forward to attending his beatification.

• As told to Stuart Graham.

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The Southern Cross, February 25 to March 3, 2015

TRAVEL

Personal reflections, pope guide the Lenten journey PILGRIMS IN THE MODERN WORLD: Daily Reflections for Lent, by Frances Correia & Raymond Perrier. Published by the Jesuit Institute, Johannesburg. R65.

Reviewed by Grant Tungay SJ ENT, a period of preparation and waiting, can help us so much in entering into a deep and transformative experience of Easter. Christians are of course “Easter People”, and this is our feast.

So often though, Easter comes upon us too soon and we realise we have not used our time of preparation well. Another year, and another rushed Easter celebration.

Frances Correia and Raymond Perrier have written a superb book of daily Lenten reflections that can

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help us get the most out of this Lenten period. They have succeeded in combining reflections on Vatican II, Pope Francis and the challenges of contemporary life into one accessible volume.

Every reflection includes a quote, a challenging thought for the day and a prayer that focuses the reader’s attention on the grace that is needed for that part of the Lenten journey.

At the back of the book, the reader can find pictures taken by Sithembiso Shoba, a talented photographer from Soweto, with thought-provoking questions that can be used in conjunction with the reflections of the day.

Pilgrims in the Modern World is immersed in Ignatian spirituality and

presents a loving God walking with us during Lent. The footprints of this loving God are powerfully present on the pages, leading the reader gently into at times difficult reflections about contemporary life in South Africa.

So often books of Lenten reflection can unhelpfully lead us into a self-referential space that is somehow abstract and disconnected from our everyday reality—Lent becomes about personal sanctity without reference to our wider context. Correia and Perrier include a wealth of personal reflections on both local and global contemporary challenges.

The book deals with such diverse topics such as religious fundamentalism, climate change, leadership, challenges of poverty, inter-faith di-

Southern Cross BOOKS Günther Simmermacher

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MOERDYK FILES

A collection of the best Southern Cross columns by one of South Africa’s most popular writers. Read about the day Nelson Mandela was sentenced, what the great thurible swinger did at Mass, why a 400km detour was made to save the parents’ blushes, and much more... Only R150 (plus p&p)

Owen Williams

ANY GIVEN SUNDAY

An anthology of the best columns written by the late Owen Williams, The Southern Cross’ long-time contributor. First published in 2004, Any Given Sunday is a wonderful way to spend time with a first-class raconteur and man of deep faith. Only R80 (plus p&p)

Order from books@scross.co.za or www.books.scross.co.za or call 021 465-5007 or buy at 10 Tuin Plein, Cape Town

alogue and reconciliation. With input from the wisdom of Vatican II and Pope Francis, these reflections help us to approach these challenges from a fresh perspective, in the context of our relationship with a God who deeply cares about us and our growth.

The reader is not preached to, but is drawn into how contemporary issues have impacted on the authors themselves. This personal approach means that the reflections on the topic of the day remain with you long after your reflection time.

During Lent we have an opportunity to prayerfully prepare for a lifetransforming encounter with God at Easter. This little book of Lenten reflections is an excellent companion along the way.

Two Tutus on forgiveness THE BOOK OF FORGIVING: The Fourfold Path for Healing Ourselves and Our World, by Desmond Tutu & Mpho Tutu.

Jonathan Ball (2014). 240pp.

Reviewed by Jan Kilby ORGIVENESS is essential for maintaining peaceful relationships and harmony in society.

This is the message of The Book of Forgiving, written by retired Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu of Cape Town and the Rev Mpho Tutu, his daughter and an Anglican minister.

The Tutus write from their experience with forgiveness after living through apartheid. They first help readers understand the nature of forgiveness and why it is important. They then describe their theory of four steps in forgiving.

These include telling the story of harm, naming the hurt, granting forgiveness, and renewing or releasing a relationship.

In their final chapters, the Tutus focus on needing forgiveness, forgiving oneself and creating a world of forgiveness. They

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illustrate their points through dramatic stories from their lives and those of others.

The writers convey some important truths about forgiveness. One is that, as they write, “we can’t create a world without pain or loss or conflict or hurt feelings, but we can create a world of forgiveness”. They are optimistic about this occurring because, as they say, “we are hard-wired to forgive and connect”.

Another truth is that both those seeking forgiveness and offering it can benefit. “It is how we become whole again,” they state. To illustrate this, they cite ubuntu: “A person is only a person through other people,” they write, and “any tear in the fabric of connection between us must be repaired for us all to be made whole.”

They show, in addition, how those harmed can use suffering creatively. They can become more empathetic with others

who suffer, as well as work to prevent future tragedies, they state.

The authors emphasise the value of practising forgiveness so that it becomes a “quality of character”.

“When I cultivate forgiveness in my small everyday encounters, I am preparing for a time when a much larger act of forgiveness will be asked of me, as it most certainly will,” they write.

They discuss, too, why those forgiving others can be justified in releasing relationships. The need for self-forgiveness is addressed, as well. “It is how we make meaning out of our suffering, restore our self-esteem and tell a new story of who we are,” they write.

The Book of Forgiving is a remarkable psychology and spirituality of forgiveness. The book reflects the authors’ humanity and high quality of thinking and writing and offers an inspiring, hopeful message.

Christianity: The first 40 years FROM JESUS TO THE CHURCH: The First Christian Generation,

by Craig A Evans. Westminster John Knox Press (2014). 176 pp.

Reviewed by Mona Castelazo CSJ N From Jesus to the Church, Craig Evans (whose Jesus and His World was positively reviewed in The Southern Cross in 2012) explores the Jesus movement that developed within the Jewish religion after Christ’s death.

The author raises the question of whether Jesus intended to begin a new religion and shows through extensive historical and scriptural sources how the Church evolved during the first Christian generation.

Evans focuses on Jesus’ proclamation of the kingdom of God and of the failure of the ruling Jewish priesthood to establish God’s reign, oppressing the people through aristocratic rule and burdensome practices. Jesus announces himself as an “agent of redemption” for Israel, calling for reform and the establishment of a kingdom in which justice, mercy and love of others is the rule.

A major issue in the clash between Jesus and the priestly class had to do with the many prophecies concerning the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem. Jesus’ triumphal entry into the city as an influential and popular leader, combined with his open criticism of the temple establishment, put him on a collision course with the ruling priests.

The temple symbolised the leadership, but as Evans points

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out, the rulers had forgotten the true meaning of the building, found, for example, in Isaiah’s words that describe the temple on God’s mountain, the capital of the world where all peoples would be welcome: “a house of prayer for all people”.

Jesus calls the leadership a “den of robbers”, the unworthy caretakers of God’s vineyard and also refers to Jeremiah’s prophecy of the judgment and destruction of the temple. He is arrested on the charge of threatening to destroy the temple, the implication being that he is judging the priests and working towards their downfall.

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fter Jesus’ death Stephen also is accused, falsely, of “speaking words against this holy place and the law”. Stephen answers that accusation by quoting Scripture: “The Most High does not dwell in houses made with hands.”

At one point Paul is also charged with attempting to desecrate the temple by bringing gentile converts into it, thereby defiling the holy place. The author points out that Paul uses temple imagery in referring to James and Peter as “pillars” of the Jesus movement. This same symbolism was used by the community that left the Dead Sea Scrolls and by the Qumran group, which saw itself as a spiritual temple.

The book shows that during

the first 40 years, the Jesus movement, known as “the Way” was seen as a Jewish reform community that provided money, goods and healing to those in need.

After Peter, James, “the brother of Jesus”, became the leader, remaining in Jerusalem for 30 years, attempting to please both the Jewish church and Paul’s gentile converts.

For 15 years, Evans states, there was little distinction between the ecclesia of Christians and the Jewish synagogues. Even 80 years after Jesus’ death, Ignatius refers both to the church and the synagogue interchangeably. Although Paul spread the Gospel to growing numbers of gentiles, he wrote of Israel as the chosen people upon whom “a spiritual obduracy has come”, but only temporarily “until the full number of gentiles come in”.

Evans shows that the destruction of the temple in 70 AD ended the aristocratic Jewish priesthood, and that the Jesus movement remained within the Jewish religious world until the end of the first generation. The ultimate Jewish/Christian rift was the result of the spread of gentile membership, disagreement about Jesus’ divinity, the preference for Greek scriptural texts, and the failure of Jesus to bring liberation from Roman rule.

The book is well documented and provides insight into both the political and spiritual issues of the time.

The Southern Cross, February 25 to March 3, 2015

CLASSIFIEDS

The reality of xenophobia in SA Continued from page 7 the political and economic contexts that create the refugee problem, but we can respond in compassion and Christ-like love to the refugees in our midst.

How about offering them mustard seeds of hope by welcoming the stranger in our community, really listening to individual stories of real people, helping migrants become meaningful members of the community, encouraging other members of our communities and churches to overcome their mistrust and misperceptions about immigrants.

Or how about supporting or volunteering at established refugee centres around the country. Some of these are Catholicbased. The Jesuit Refugee Services

(JRS) operates in Gauteng and Limpopo, working to restore the human dignity of refugees who regularly find themselves vulnerable and at the mercy of unscrupulous employers.

Mercy House is a home for young refugees in Johannesburg that creates a home-like environment and works with local and international partners to help provide education to these youngsters, so that despite the tragic circumstances of their early lives, they can have a future and contribute meaningfully to society.

The Scalabrini Centre in Cape Town offers development and welfare programmes to the migrant and local communities, and works with government departments and communities to advo-

Liturgical Calendar Year B Weekdays Cycle Year 1 Sunday, March 1, Second Sunday of Lent Genesis 22:1-2, 9-13, 15-18, Psalms 116:10, 15-19, Romans 8:31-34, Mark 9:2-10 Monday, March 2 Daniel 9:4-10, Psalms 79:8-9, 11, 13, Luke 6:36-38 Tuesday, March 3, St Katharine Drexel Isaiah 1:10, 16-20, Psalms 50:8-9, 16-17, 21, 23, Matthew 23:1-12 Wednesday, March 4 Jeremiah 18:18-20, Psalms 31:5-6, 14-16, Matthew 20:17-28 Thursday, March 5 Jeremiah 17:5-10, Psalms 1:1-4, 6, Luke 16:1931 Friday, March 6 Genesis 37:3-4, 12-13, 17-28, Psalms 105:1621, Matthew 21:33-43, 45-46 Saturday, March 7, Ss Perpetua and Felicity Micah 7:1415, 18-20, Psalms 103:14, 9-12, Luke 15:1-3, 11-32 Sunday, March 8, Third Sunday of Lent Exodus 20:1-17, Psalms 19:8-11, 1 Corinthians 1:22-25, John 2:13-25

cate on behalf of refugees and protect their rights, assisting their integration into communities and responding to xenophobic violence.

When we are able to see the face of Christ in every refugee we encounter, we become able to look beyond the poverty, the despair and the choices that those who had to flee their homes have to make.

In our compassion and love, we hear the words of Christ in the Gospel: “Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me” (Mt 25:40). n See a video by Br Richard Maidwell on icon-writing at www.scross. co.za/2015/02/spirituality-oficons/

Southern CrossWord solutions SOLUTIONS TO 643. ACROSS: 1 Booths, 4 Agapes, 9 Baptismal robe 10 Enslave, 11 Loire, 12 Steal, 14 Bench, 18 Oasis, 19 Nirvana, 21 Indelible mark, 22 Hasten, 23 Assent. DOWN: 1 Bibles, 2 Opposite sides, 3 Haifa, 5 Galilee, 6 Provincialate, 7 Shekel, 8 Amber, 13 Absolve, 15 Moriah, 16 Snobs, 17 Market, 20 Reeds.

Community Calendar

To place your event, call Mary Leveson at 021 465 5007 or e-mail m.leveson@scross.co.za (publication subject to space) Pinelands.

CAPE TOWN: DURBAN: Presentation on the life of 19th-century Ecuadoran Holy Mass and Novena President Gabriel Garcia to St Anthony at St AnMoreno, the 1634 apparithony’s parish every Tuesday at 9am. Holy tion of Our lady of Good Mass and Divine Mercy Success, the “miraculous Devotion at 17:30pm on painting” of “la Dolorosa first Friday of every del Colegio de San month. Sunday Mass at Gabriel”, and “Our lady’s 9am. 031 309 3496 prophecies concerning the Overport rosary group. current dangers to the faith At Emakhosini Hotel, 73 within the Church and a East Street every successful outcome yet to Wednesday at 6.30 pm. come”. March 7 at 15:00 at Contact Keith at 083 372 the South African Centre 9018 or 031 209 2536 for the Netherlands in

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Births • First Communion • Confirmation • Engagement/Marriage • Wedding anniversary • Ordination jubilee • Congratulations • Deaths • In memoriam • Thanks • Prayers • Accommodation • Holiday Accommodation • Personal • Services • Employment • Property • Others Please include payment (R1,37 a word) with small advertisements for promptest publication.

DEATH

CIOLLI—Mary Anne (Dickie) née Dixon. In loving memory, the mother of my children, born June 15, 1941, passed away on January 18, 2015 after a long illness, loyal and faithful. Will be forever missed and remembered in our prayers by Remo, Catherine, Michael, David, Stephen and grandchildren. Rest in peace.

MARKEY—Mike, loving companion to Chrissy.

With thanks to family and friends for their prayers and support on the death of Mike, February 16, 2015.

and grant my petitions. In return I promise to make your name known and publish this prayer. Amen.

Riccarda.

ACCOMMODATION OFFERED

IN MEMORIAM

HENRY—Archbishop lawrence. March 4, 2014.

Remembered fondly by the staff of The Southern Cross.

HAYES—Sr Marie Odile OSFS. In loving memory of Sr Marie who passed away March 5, 2006. Remembered by the Congregation of St Francis de Sales in Namaqualand, also families and friends.

Rest in peace.

LOVATT—Terence John (Ted). In memory of a loving husband, father and grandfather, who passed away on March 2, 2002.

From his wife Eileen, daughter Patricia and sonin-law Kenneth and grandchildren.

PRAYERS

HOLY ST JUDE, apostle and martyr, great in virtue and rich in miracles, kinsman of Jesus Christ, faithful intercessor of all who invoke you, special patron in time of need. To you I have recourse from the depth of my heart and humbly beg you to come to my assistance. Help me now in my urgent need and grant my petitions. In return I promise to make your name known and publish this prayer. Amen.

Thanks giving to St Rita.

JR. HOLY ST JUDE, apostle and martyr, great in virtue and rich in miracles, kinsman of Jesus Christ, faithful intercessor of all who invoke you, special patron in time of need. To you I have recourse from the depth of my heart and humbly beg you to come to my assistance. Help me now in my urgent need

trip, April 8, 2015. Email: greebabullen@hotmail. com LEBANON TOUR—Two weeks at cost April 25.

2015, Ken 084 783 0726.

PROFESSOR Catherine Higgs, who lives in America, is writing a book about the activism of the Catholic Sisters who taught in South Africa during the apartheid era. She wishes to interview students who were at Springfield Convent in the integration period from 1976-1986.

Those willing to take part in her research please email her at chiggs@utk. edu

O MOST beautiful flower of Mount Carmel, fruitful vine, splendour of Heaven, blessed Mother of the Son of God, Immaculate Virgin, assist me in my necessity.

O Star of the Sea, help me and show me herein that you are my Mother, O Holy Mary Mother of God, Queen of heaven and earth, I humbly beseech you from the bottom of my heart to secure me in my necessity. There are none who can withstand your power, O show me that you are my mother. O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee. Thank you for your mercy towards me and mine. Amen.

THANKS

GRATEFUL thanks to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, Our Mother Mary and Ss Rita, Joseph, Anthony, Jude and Martin de Porres for prayers answered. Riccarda.

PERSONAL

ABORTION is murder – Silence on this issue is not golden, it’s yellow! Avoid ‘pro-abortion’ politicians.

CAN YOU be silent on abortion and walk with God? Matthew 7:21 See www.180movie.com www.abortioninstru ments.com is the graphic truth that will set you free.

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KNYSNA: Self-catering accommodation for 2 in Old Belvidere, with DSTV and wonderful lagoon views. 044 387 1052.

MARIANELLA Guest House, Simon’s Town: “Come experience the peace and beauty of God with us.” Fully equipped with amazing sea views.

Secure parking, ideal for rest and relaxation. Special rates for pensioners and clergy. Malcolm Salida 082 784 5675, mjsalida@ gmail.com

NOAH OLD AGE HOMES

We can use your old clothing, bric-a-brac, furniture and books for our 2nd hand shop.

Help us to create an avenue to generate much needed funds for our work with the elderly.

Contact Ian Veary on 021 447 6334 www.noah.org.za

The Southern Cross is a member of the Audit Bureau of Circulations of South Africa. Printed by Paarl Coldset (Pty) Ltd, 10 Freedom Way, Milnerton.

Published by the proprietors, The Catholic Newspaper & Publishing Co Ltd, at the company’s registered office, 10 Tuin Plein, Cape Town, 8001.

The Southern Cross is published independently by the Catholic Newspaper & Publishing Company Ltd. Address: PO Box 2372, Cape Town, 8000. Tel: (021) 465 5007 Fax: (021) 465 3850 www.scross.co.za Editor: Günther Simmermacher (editor@scross.co.za), Business Manager: Pamela Davids (admin@scross.co.za), Advisory Editor: Michael Shackleton, News Editor: Stuart Graham (s.graham@scross.co.za), Editorial: Claire Allen (c.allen@scross.co.za), Mary leveson (m.leveson@scross.co.za) Advertising: Elizabeth Hutton (advertising@scross.co.za), Subscriptions: Pamela Davids (subscriptions@scross.co.za), Dispatch: Joan King (dispatch@scross.co.za), Accounts: Desirée Chanquin (accounts@scross.co.za).

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3rd Sunday in Lent: March 8 Readings: Exodus 20: 1-17, Psalm 19:8-11, 1 Corinthians 1:22-25, John 2:13-25

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NE of the things that Lent teaches us to do is to put God at the centre of our lives. And this is not because we have an egoistic, narcissistic God; it is, rather, because that is what we were created for.

That is the message of the readings for next Sunday; the first reading has God delivering what we call the “Ten Commandments”. If you find yourself thinking that “God simply doesn’t want us to do all the things that we enjoy”, then just have a look at those Ten Commandments. The main thing to notice is that it all starts with God, “who brought you out of the land of Egypt, from the house of slavery”.

So our instinctive mood should be one of immense gratitude. Seen from that angle, it makes obvious sense that “there shall be no other gods before me” and that “you shall not make an idol for yourself…you shall not bow down to them or worship them, for I am the Lord your God”. It is true (and we discover it afresh during Lent) that God makes demands on us, but that is because our God is real, and not those silly idols, such as materialism and consumerism and pleasure and power, that we construct for ourselves.

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earth.

From Greenpeace, from various environmental groups, from various Christian and other religious groups, and from various individual voices, comes the challenge to be less blind, less unthinking, and less reckless in how we relate to the earth.

Every day our newscasts point out how we are polluting the planet, strip-mining its resources, creating mega-landfills, pouring carbon dangerously into the atmosphere, causing the disappearance of thousands of species, creating bad air and bad water, and thinning the ozone layer.

And so the cry goes out: live more simply, reduce your carbon footprint, and try to recycle as much as you can.

That challenge, of course, is very good and very important. The air we breathe out is the air we will eventually inhale and so we need to be very careful about what we exhale. This planet is our home and we need to ensure that, long-term, it can provide us with sustenance and comfort.

But, true as this is, there’s still another, very important reason, why we need to treat mother earth with respect: Christ himself is vitally bound up with nature and his reasons for coming to earth also include the intention of redeeming the physical universe. What’s implied here?

Conrad

We welcome prayers, volunteers and donations.

Put God at the centre of your life Fr Nicholas King SJ

Sunday Reflections

And for the same reason “you shall not make empty use of the name of the Lord your God”. And then (here is something that you might look at during Lent): “Remember the day of rest, to make it holy.” The Sabbath day is a precious gift of God to us, to remind us who we are, creatures of the loving God. Only after all this does the Lord turn to the things we are not to do, if God is to remain at the centre of our lives: “Honour your father and mother… in order to have a long time on the soil that the Lord your God is giving you… you are not to commit murder, adultery, theft, perjury, nor even desire what is not yours.” This is not oppression, but part of the

liberation that God offers us during this Lent.

In the psalm, God’s Law is also to be seen not as oppression but as setting us free to be who we could be: “The Law of the Lord is perfect—it restores the soul; the decrees of the Lord are reliable—they give wisdom to the simple; the precepts of the Lord are upright—they give joy to the heart.” God’s instructions are signposts to find meaning in focusing on the purpose for which we were created.

In the second reading, we listen to Paul, who always placed God and Jesus right at the centre of his life; here, in response to the feuding of his quarrelsome Corinthians, he reminds them how extraordinary is our God. And most extraordinary is that “we preach a Christ who has been crucified”. He admits this is both “scandal” and “folly” to others; but if you understand it properly (and Lent is a good time to start) it is the “power” and “wisdom” of God. Then, with astonishing daring, Paul puts God right at the centre, emphasising God’s “stupidity” and “weakness” (which is, he points out, wiser and stronger than anything human beings can manage).

Christ calls us to be green UMEROUS groups and individuals today are challenging us with regard to our relationship to mother

www.birthright.co.za

Fr Ron Rolheiser OMI

Final Reflection

L

et me begin with an anecdote which captures, in essence, what’s at stake. The scientist-theologian Fr Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, in conversation with a Vatican official who was confused by and doctrinally suspicious of his writings, was asked: “What are you trying to do in your writings?” Teilhard’s response: “I am trying to write a Christology that is wide enough to incorporate the full Christ because Christ is not just an anthropological event but he is also a cosmic phenomenon.”

Simply translated, he is saying that Christ didn’t just come to save people—he came for that, yes—but also to save the planet, of which people are only one part.

In saying that, Teilhard has solid scriptural backing. Looking at the scriptures we find that they affirm that Christ didn’t just come to save people, he came to save the world.

For example, the epistle to the Colossians (1:15-20) records an ancient Christian hymn which affirms both that Christ was already a vital force inside the original cre-

ation (“that all things were made through him”) and that Christ is also the end point of all history, human and cosmic.

The epistle to the Ephesians (1:3-10), also recording an ancient Christian hymn, makes the same point, while the epistle to the Romans (8:19-22) is even more explicit in affirming that physical creation, mother earth and our physical universe, are “groaning” as they too wait for redemption by Christ.

Among other things, these texts affirm that the physical world is part of God’s plan for eventual heavenly life.

What is contained in that, if we tease out its implications? A number of very clear principles: First, nature, not just humanity, is being redeemed by Christ. The world is not just a stage upon which human history plays out; it has intrinsic meaning and value beyond what it means for us as humans.

Physical nature is, in effect, brother and sister with us in the journey towards the divinely intended end of history. Christ also came to redeem the earth, not just those of us who are living on it. Physical creation too will enter in the final synthesis of history, that is, heaven.

Second, this means that nature has intrinsic rights, not just the rights we find convenient to accord it.

What this means is that defacing or abusing nature is not just a legal and environmental issue, it’s a moral issue. We are violating someone’s (something’s) intrinsic rights. Thus when we, mindlessly, throw a cooldrink can into a ditch we are not just breaking a law, but we are also, at some deep level, defacing Christ.

We need to respect nature, not, first of all, so that it doesn’t recoil on us and give us back our own asphyxiating pollution, but because it, akin to humanity, has its own rights. A teaching too rarely affirmed.

Finally, not least, what is implied in understanding the cosmic dimension of Christ and what that means in terms of our relationship to mother earth and the universe is the non-negotiable fact that the quest for community and consummation within God’s Kingdom is a quest that calls us not just to a proper relationship with God and with each other, but also to a proper relationship with physical creation.

We are humans with bodies living on the earth, not disembodied angels living in heaven, and Christ came to save our bodies along with our souls; and he came, as well, to save the physical ground upon which we walk since he was the very pattern upon which and through which the physical world was created.

In the Gospel, we see Jesus, the Galilean peasant, making a trip to the Temple.

He is evidently horrified on seeing the people who sell cattle and sheep and doves, he is so angry that he makes a rope whip, and expels them all from the Temple. But we need to see why he reacts in this extravagant way: “Don’t turn my Father’s house into a shopping mall!”

God, you see, is at the centre of Jesus’ life, and sometimes even our religious activities can fail to put God in the position of honour in our own lives.

His opponents ask for a sign for why he is behaving in this way; and the answer they get is: “Undo this Temple, and in three days I shall raise it up again.” We, of course, are looking ahead to the Easter mystery, and we know immediately what he means; but neither his opponents nor his disciples understand what is going on. Jesus does, “for he knew what went on in human beings”. What goes on is that we ache to have God at the centre of our lives; and then all will be well.

What are you doing for that, this Lenten season?

Southern Crossword #643

ACROSS 1. Temporary structures for the telephone? (6) 4. Christian love-feasts (6) 9. Formal dress for initiation ceremony (9,4) 10. Make one lose one’s freedom (7) 11. Hello, Ireland has a river in France! (5) 12. We are commanded not to do it (5) 14. Pew for a magistrate (5) 18. Fertile spot (5) 19. Buddha’s state of perfection (7) 21. Sacramental imprint that stays (9,4) 22. Holding a decade, be quick (6) 23. Agreement about New Testament seas (6)

DOWN 1. Volumes of Scriptures (6) 2. Teams face each other on them (8,5) 3. Port of Israel (5) 5. Region and lake of Christ’s time (7) 6. Area of religious jurisdiction over in capital (13) 7. Spending money in 3 down (6) 8. Traffic light (5) 13. Only a priest can do it (7) 15. Where God told Abraham to take his son (Gn 22) (6) 16. They think they’re your superiors (5) 17. Place of the vendors (6) 20. Moses was discovered among them (Ex 2) (5) Solutions on page 11

CHURCH CHUCKLE

A

PRIEST is driving down the road near Simon’s Town when he comes across a dead baboon, lying in the road.

He contacts the local police station to inform them of his find. The policeman, upon hearing that the caller is a Catholic priest, asks sarcastically: “Did you give it the last rites?”

“No,” the priest responds, “I thought I’d inform his next of kin first.”

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