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By Mick Conway Joe had it all. His family enjoyed the comfort of being moderately affluent in their Midwestern community. He was cherished by his parents and their home rang with the joy of laughter and love, as well as with a fair amount of goodnatured rivalry. Joe was an excellent student, active in his church, an accomplished athlete and a popular figure among his peers. There was only one flaw in this otherwise perfect scenario. Joe had a life-threatening disease. He was an alcoholic. It started innocently enough. When Joe entered his teen-age years he fell into a pattern which was well established among his friends. Drinking beer was the thing to do. Everyone did it. If you didn't drink, you were cast out of the circles of popularity. . Although few of Joe's friends were old enough to buy alcohol, getting beer was easily accomplished. Older kids were always happy to oblige, returning the favor that was done for them in earlier years. Joe had no idea when he began drinking that his life would be irrevocably altered by this addiction called alcoholism. During high school Joe began turning to alcohol more and more. He hid alcohol in his room, in his school locker and in his car. He drank to get to sleep at night and to help him meet the beginning of each new day. He drank alone and with friends, always careful not to become conspicuously intoxicated. But as time went by, Joe could no longer conceal either the amount he was drinking or the consequences of his alcoholic behavior. He had to drink more and more in order to feel the relief that alcohol gave him.
and sports. His parents were extremely worried about Joe's behavior but did not recognize or fully understand that alcohol was taking over his life. In the spring of Joe's senior year in high school he disappeared for three days. His parents could not find him because Joe had wandered into an abandoned house in the country after having had too much to drink. When Joe a wakened in the basement of that house, shock, fear and remorse overwhelmed him as the full realization of his situation became painfully clear. Crying aloud to God for help, Joe knew that his life was out of control. Desperately ill, cold and wet he prayed as he had 'not prayed in a long time. Joe's return home was met with great relief and emotion. He asked forgiveness of his parents for causing them such anxiety. Gladly given, Joe's parents now knew the course that must be followed. Arrangements were made for Joe to enter an inpatient treatment program for chemical dependency. In that setting, Joe was able to deal with his disease and learn how to live his life without the use of chemicals. During the course of his treatment, Joe discovered that serenity comes from living each day as it comes, accepting those things that cannot be changed as an inevitable part of life. But the things that can be changed are the challenge that makes our time on this earth so interesting and rewarding. One of God's greatest gifts to us comes in the form ?f that discovery.
Failure "Failure should be our teacher, not our undertaker. Failure is delay, not defeat: It is a temporary detour, not a dead-end street." -'- William A. Ward
Symbols following film reviews indicate both general and Catholic Films Office ratings. which do not always coincide. General ratings: G-suitable for general viewing; PG-13-parental guidance strongly suggested for children under 13; PG-parentalguidance suggested; R-restricted. unsuitable for children or young teens. Catholic ratings: AI-approved for children and adults; A2-approved for adults and adolescents; A3-approved for adults only; 4-separate classification (given films not morally ottensive which, however, require some analysis and explanation); O-morally offensive. Catholic ratings for television movies are those of the movie house versions of the films.
NOTE Please check dates and times of television and radio programs against local listings, which may differ from the New York network ~hed颅 ules supplied to The Anchor. New Films "The Hunt for Red October" (Paramount): Cold War thriller based on Tom Clancy's best-selling novel tracks the near clash of Soviet and U.S. submarines in the Atlantic when a maverick Soviet submarine captain (Sean Connery) plots to defect. Captivates viewers with a suspenseful story, fine ensemble cast and masterful production design and does not depend . on gratuitous violence for thrills and chills. Intense menace and some climactic violence. A2,PG "Mountains of the Moon" (TriStar): Epic docudrama accurately recalls the expeditions of 19thcentury British explorers Richard Burton (Patrick Bergin) and John Hanning Speke (lain Glen) to find the source of the Nile. Ably imparts the drama of the period, the obsession of the protagonists and the beauty and savagery of Africa during the 19th century. Its masterful mix of entertainment, education and biography is suitable fo'r older adolescents and adults, but includes intense scenes of graphic tortUre, defilement and violent death that -may unsettle some. Hetero~exual scene with nudity and implications of homosexuality. A3,R
"~ightbreed" (20th Century Fox): Young man (Craig Sheffer) and girlfriend (Anne Bobby) race to save a legendary city of dead souls froin invading human maniacs, including a psycho psychoanalys~ (David Cronenberg); a fascist cop (Charle~. Haid) and a spineless priest (Malcolm Smith). Dire<;tor Clive Barker::adapts his best-selling horror novel to the screen in haphazard fashion as a cavalcade of gruesome freaks, nightmare imagery and make~up wizardry. Excessive images of grisly human slaughter: some profanity and 'nudity. O,R "Revenge" (Columbia): Newly retired Na vy pilot (Kevin Costner) . is implausibly lured路 into an affair with the young wife (Madeleine Stowe) of his best friend, a ruthless Mexican power broker (Anthony Quinn) who takes gruesome 'revenge for their betrayal. The'exotic Mexican locale takes precedence over character development in this HAVING A BALL: Msgr. Thomas Harrington, pastor of intriguing but ultimately muddled St. Joseph's parish, Taunton, demonstrates his mean dribble story of male friendship, betrayal and retribution. Some graphic to a pair of young parishioners during a February vacation rub-outs, beatings and slashings; a "open gym" for parish youngsters at Coyle-Cassidy High few scenes involving adultery and School. (Breen photo) rape; rough language. A3,R
Joe became. argumentative and violent, and lo~t interest in school
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Cardinal: some rock music contributes to devil's work NEW YORK (CNS) - Cardinal John J. O'Connor of New York said that some rock music was contributing to the work of the devil and that exorcisms were performed in his archdiocese within the past year. Acknowledging a lack of extensive familiarity with rock, he declined to cite specific bands or performers except for one example, "Suicide Solution" by heavy metal rocker Ozzy Osbourne. There were subsequent news reports that Osbourne had sent the cardinal a message protesting the criticism and offering to meet with him to explain the music. Cardinal O'Connor made his comments at St. Patrick's Cathedral March 4 in a homily on the Gospel lesson about Christ's temptation by the devil, and in talking with reporters afterward. He began by recounting the experience ofSt. Jean Baptiste Marie Mianney, who lived from 1786 to 1859 and was known as the Cure D'Ars and who, the cardinal said, was often disturbed by activity of the devil. As' evidence of a continuing problem of satanic assault, devil worship and demonic possession, Cardinal O'Connor cited a variety of cuH activities, particularly among young people, and said these sometimes led to suicide. The modern prevalence of abortion, he said, is further evidence of activity by the devil. Satanism as a modern cult phenomenon has become so serious, he said, that a gathering of sheriffs recently devoted a week to learning more about it. Cardinal O'Connor also said there were occasional celebrations of the "black Mass," in which a nude woman lies on the altar, as well as cult activity in cemeteries, with sexual orgies and sometimes suicide. . Cardinal O'Connor said demonic possession did not appear to be as common today as in some former times, and he believed that was because of the frequent celebration of the Eucharist: In the,New Testilllie'ni,he 'noted, demons fled from the presence of Christ. Ho~ever, the cardinal warned parents to make sure their children were not getting i'1volved in satanic cults. . Hesaid demonic possession did continue to occur, and he read an excerpt from "The. Exorcist;' by William Peter Blatty to indicate the. nat'ure of the phenomenon. Demonic possession, he said, is a diagnosis accepted only after any psychiatric, medical or other explanation tias been ruled out, Cardinal' O'Connor said that there had been'a couple of cases that required exorcism within the New. York Archdiocese during the past year. He said his. vicar general, Msgr. Patrick Sheridan, who concelebrated the March 4 Mass with the cardinal, had authorized a priest to do the exorcisms. Joseph Zwilling, spokesman for the archdiocese, said later that the name of the' priest who performed the 'exorcisms would not be disclosed. Cardinal O'Connor, pressed by reporters after the Ma'ss for further comment on the demonic dimension of rock music, referred them
to the book "Raising PG Kids in an X-Rated Society" by Tipper Gore, wife of Sen. Albert Gore, D-Tenn. In 1985, she and Susan Baker, wife of U.S. Secretary of State James Baker, who was then treasury secretary, formed the Parents Music Resource Center, andjoined with the National Parent-Teacher Association to oppose lyrics they contended would harm children. In 1987, Mrs. Gore published her book as a "call to arms" against "the shockingly explicit and brutally\violent media messages found in today's rock music, videos, movies and advertisements." The Osbourne song to which the cardinal referred in his homily was the subject of a lawsuit in 1986 when the rocker was sued by the parents of a 19-year-old who committed ~icide while listening to the song. The suit was later dismissed. Osbourne had said the song told the story of a friend who died of drug and alcohol abuse. A number of New York reporters routinely attend Cardinal O'Connor's Sunday Masses at SL Patrick's since he often makes comments of news interest in his homily or can be enticed to say something afterward that will make a story. So without any advance billing of anything unusual coming up, the cardinal's sermon on satan ism became a major media event. All three of the New York tabloids Daily News, Newsday and Postmade it the following day's cover story. The New York Times followed up March 6 with a report on the homily as a media phenomenon, with background about exorcism in the church. The Times quoted J. Gordon, Melton, head of the Institute for the study of American Religion, Santa BlI;rbara, Calif., as saying he had found no increase in satanic activity. Television news programs also included reports on the cardinal's homily in their Monday programs. Interest was so high that the archdioct:se designated a spokesman - Msgr~ William B. Smith of St. Joseph's archdiocesan seminary in Dunwoodie, N. Y. - to provide technical information on demonic possession and exorcism.
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'. Halfway mark WASHINGTON (CNS) Contributions for the observance of the 500th anniversary of Catholics arriving in the Americas have reached $150,000, about half the funds required for the fhree-year project of the National Conference of -Catholic Bishops, said observance coordinat'or' Maria Luisa Gaston. Besides marking (he anniversary in the United States, 'the project is coordinating NCCB participation in a 1992 convocation in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, observing' the bringing of Catholicism to America by Christopher Columbus in 1492..
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,Half the Trouble
"Half the trou ble about modern man is that he is educated to understand foreign languages and misunderstand foreigners."-G.K. Chesterton
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