The Record Newspaper 01 December 2005

‘Trade can aid migrants’

Comments “brave”

Better government can solve migration woes: Vatican leader

■ by Paul Gray

The rising worldwide tide of mass immigration can be reversed through fairer international trade and better national and international government, a top Vatican leader told a national conference for pastoral care of migrants and refugees in Sydney.

Cardinal Stephen Hamao’s comments came during the conference which was conducted over two days, November 17-18.

But at an earlier gathering for migrant chaplains on November 16 at Sacred Heart convent in Kensington, Bishop Joe Grech of Sandhurst, who also chairs the Australian Catholic Bishops’ Committee for Migrants and Refugees, told approximately 80 chaplains that there is an unfulfilled need for a strategic plan for the pastoral care of migrants in Australia.

An effort needs to be undertaken to insert courses into seminaries, Catholic universities and colleges courses aimed at enlightening people about the multicultural composition and needs of communities in the Church in Australia, he said.

Perth’s Episcopal Vicar for Migrants and Refugees, Fr Anthony Paganoni Cs, described Bishop Grech’s statements as “courageous.”

The conference did not produce a final statement but resolutons and recommendations from its deliberations will be further pursued in Sydney on December 19 when the organising committee meets again.

Cardinal Stephen Fumio Hamao, President of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People, highlighted the words of the late Pope John Paul II who stressed “the right not to emigrate” as a key policy principle of our times.

“The right not to emigrate is the right to live in peace and dignity in one’s own country,” Cardinal Hamao said.

“By means of a farsighted local and national

Continued - Page 4

Letter - Page 7 Vatican document’s lack of focus? Opinion, Fr Paganoni - VISTA 4

With the Parish Priests of Notre Dame Cloverdale and Holy Name Carlisle due to be transferred at the end of the year, Archbishop Barry Hickey has invited priests to express their interest in these parishes. Applications are to be sent to Archbishop Barry Hickey or Bishop Donald Sproxton.

Diaconate, opening of Centre

Meanwhile, priests are invited to be present at the Diaconate of Huong Quang Pham of St Charles’ Seminary at the new Vietnamese Centre, 3 Victoria Rd, Westminster, on December 4 at 5pm. The new Centre will also be officially opened on the same occasion.

Ordinations to priesthood Priests are reminded of the forthcoming ordination of nine new priests at St Mary’s Cathedral on Friday December 9 at 7pm.

Freedom needed

WARSAW, Poland (CNS) - A month after Turkey began talks to join the European Union, the European Commission said the country denies religious freedom to Catholics and other Christian minorities. “The current legal framework (in Turkey) still does not recognise the right of religious communities to establish legal associations to promote and practise their religions,” the commission said in a 2005 progress report. “NonMuslim religious communities continue to encounter significant problems: They face restricted property rights and interference in managing their foundations, and they are not allowed to train clergy.” - CNS

Embrace the Grace offers youth Church that is a living reality

“After the success of last year’s Embrace the Grace Youth Conference, this year promises to be just as life changing” says Clare Pike of the Respect Life Office.

Organisers of the forthcoming conference to be held at New Norcia from December 7-10 have been surprised by the number of registrations coming from

youth who are Catholic but not attending Mass regularly, or not Catholic at all.

The conference has also attracted youth from interstate and overseas.

“This shows us that all young people regardless of their background are interested in learning about who they are, their dignity and the meaning of their exist-

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ence”, said Ms Pike. “It represents a remarkable opportunity for us to help them understand their own worth and God’s plan for their lives”.

Talks will focus on issues of significance to young people such as love, relationships, sexuality, the value of life and the greatness of masculinity and femininity.

Young people are still able to register for the conference by contacting Anita on (08) 9375 2029.

Organisers have also asked Catholics to consider helping young people with few financial resources to attend by making a donation or offering to sponsor or part-sponsor a young person.

Embracing the grace: past conferences have deeply impressed large numbers of young people who are searching for the meaning of their lives.

Proud

Honour goes to tireless Perth priest

Fr Brian Morrison honoured for aid efforts

Well-known Perth Catholic priest Fr Brian Morrison has been named as the WA Australian Senior Citizen of the Year.

Historian Emeritus Professor Geoffrey Bolton AO was announced as the WA Australian of the Year 2006 by David Malcom AC at a ceremony in Perth last Saturday. Fr Morrison, Prof. Bolton and several other recipients will go on to represent Western Australia as finalists for the national Australian of the Year Awards.

Father Morrison, from West

■ With Derek Boylen

Perth, was honoured for a lifetime of humanitarian work.

Since the 1950s, Father Morrison has been providing crisis care for suffering children in areas ravaged by war, upheaval and displacement.

He has personally delivered medical supplies, food and clothing to the sick and dying children of Chernobyl, suffering a dose of radiation sickness himself.

He has provided aid to around 30 international disaster areas, including Bangladeshi floods, Cambodian killing fields and Iraqi earthquakes.

At home, Brian helped after

Darwin’s Cyclone Tracy and provided material aid for the victims of Canberra’s disastrous 2003 bushfires.

Fr Brian has been operating his crisis care centre for over 35 years, from soon after his arrival in WA, while continuing his pastoral vocation of serving society’s disadvantaged. His crisis response skills were highly effective after the Asian tsunami – Fr Brian collected and distributed 320 tonnes of humanitarian aid for the worst affected areas, probably Western Australia’s biggest humanitarian effort ever.

Advent and Christmas Celebrating Family

sign of the reason we celebrate Christmas. Many families like to have one under the Christmas tree but it could go anywhere.

I n the second week of advent we hear the words:

“Prepare in the wilderness a way for the Lord.” We listen this week to the story of the mission of John the Baptist. His mission was to share with the world the coming of Christ. It’s a mission that we all share.

For the family, this week is a good time to start telling the story of the coming of Christ, the nativity. The challenge is to make time, in the wilderness of our busy lives, to share with each other and our children the real reason for the season. We are preparing to celebrate Jesus’ birth on Christmas day.

Take time this week to reflect, as a family, on the Christmas story (Luke 2). If you have small children then look around for a well-illustrated copy of the real Christmas story from your local bookshop. Read it occasionally before bedtime; if they are very young let them take it to church on Sunday to look at during Mass.

Make a nativity scene for your home as a visual

We have put a big picture of a manger made with butcher’s paper on the wall. Each day the boys make a new part of the Christmas story and attach it to the picture: shepherds, animals, star, Mary, Joseph, wise men, baby Jesus and so on.

Recognised: Fr Brian Morrison holds the WA Australian Senior Citizen of the Year Award which was presented to him last weekend. The well-known Perth priest has dedicated much of his life to helping the victims of disasters.

IVF complications

After IVF treatment one woman in seven is hospitalised with serious complications, Finnish researchers have found.

The London Telegraph newspaper reported that this is almost twice the number for natural pregnancies, says Dr Reija Klemetti, of the National Research and Development Centre for Welfare and Health in Helsinki.

“Though there was a low risk of complications after each IVF treatment cycle, repeated attempts resulted in serious complications for many women,” she says.

The research was based on a survey of 20,000 women. Complications included miscarriages, bleeding, ectopic pregnancies and ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome. The study was originally reported in the journal Human Reproduction

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Conversion green, too

Bishop

Spiritual enlightenment means switching the lights off,

tells Catholics

■ By Paul Gray

The problem of global climate change caused by human activity “calls for changes in our way of life,” Bishop Chris Toohey has told a Catholic Earthcare conference in Canberra.

The comments by the bishop, who chairs Catholic Earthcare Australia, align the Church strongly with international debate on curbing human production of “greenhouse gases.”

Bishop Toohey told the Canberra Earthcare conference that accelerated climate change “raises serious moral and spiritual questions, not just for Catholics but for all Australian citizens and leaders.”

The Bishop said scientific research has proved that humans have caused rapid global climate change by causing higher concentration of greenhouse gases, 80 per cent of which comes from burning fossil fuels.

The Canberra conference drew together both Catholic and nonCatholic theologians, with scientists interested in climate change. More than 300 people attended. The conference was held shortly before the United Nations’ international climate change conference in Montreal, Canada.

A position paper from the Bishops Committee for Justice, Development, Ecology and Peace was launched at the Earthcare conference.

Questioned on the precise changes Catholics should be making in their lives, Bishop Toohey told The Record that though he is not a scientist, there is “an emerging consensus” in the scientific community that “we cannot continue to put carbon back into the air at the rate we are.”

“That’s bottom line stuff,” he said. “The greatest producer of carbon is production of electricity for domestic and industrial use. In other words, our power stations.”

“Obviously we’re going to have to find other ways to produce electricity, and in the meantime we’re going to have to use less of it if we can.

“That means implications for the way we run our homes.”

Bishop Toohey said everyone must become more conscious of their use of domestic lighting and household appliances. Industry must also find ways to consume less electricity.

“Up till now we just haven’t bothered. We’ve just shoved electricity out like there’s no tomorrow.”

Bishop Toohey said that in his own house he now keeps a light on only in the room he is in at any time. He said parents with families could similarly encourage their children to ensure they don’t leave lights on unnecessarily.

Government and industry must also play a role in finding new ways to produce electricity, he said.

The Bishop said Catholic Earthcare Australia has devised an “environmental audit” which is available on CD-ROM, to encourage people to find new ways of using energy. “Everyone who has saved money,” Bishop Toohey said.

Catholic Earthcare Australia was established by the Australian Catholic Bishops in 2003. Its foundation was inspired by the environmental teachings of Pope John Paul II.

Bishop Toohey said he is inspired by John Paul II’s call to Catholics to engage in “ecological conversion.”

“It’s not just a matter of being careful about how we use electricity or drive our cars. It’s a spiritual question, given that the earth is part of God’s creation, given to us on trust. What are we going to hand on to our next generation?

“He (John Paul II) said this is a spiritual question as much as a scientific and an economic one. There is also a social justice dimension to it: poorer countries will be less able to defend themselves against climate change than rich ones.”

“John Paul called for a conversion of heart and mind, to see the world through different eyes, to become sensitized to the fact it’s God’s creation, and we need to respect that.”

No-one a stranger says Vatican man

Cardinal Stephen Fumio Hamao is President of the Pontifical Council for Pastoral Care for Migrants and Itinerant People. During the National Conference on Pastoral Care in a Culturally Diverse Australia, sponsored by the Australian Catholic Bishops and held at Sydney’s Randwick Racecourse on 17-18 November, Cardinal Hamao spoke to The Record’s Paul Gray:

What is your message at this conference?

The title of this conference is One in Christ Jesus. We are Catholics and we believe in Jesus Christ and we follow his teachings - especially when he said “I was a stranger and you took me in,” and “Inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me.”.

The message is that nobody is a stranger. That is the strength of the real community. That is a sign of the kingdom of God.

What do you think is the cause of world tensions over immigration today?

I think that at the root, the profound root of the human heart, we have a kind of racism and exaggerated nationalism, a kind of xeno-

phobia. We all have this kind of discrimination within us.

Pope John Paul II introduced many migrants to the Vatican?

Yes, I am a migrant too!

Has there been a big change in the Vatican under John Paul II?

There are still very few Asians, and very few Africans. I am the only one Asian, and Cardinal Arinze is the only African, working as heads of dicasteries in the Vatican.

There are too few of us!

Does the new Pope want to have more Asians and Africans in the Vatican?

I hope so. I haven’t heard anything about this. But I hope so, for the future.

Africa and Asia are very important places for the universal Church today.

Of course. Yes. Within the Catholic population of the world, there are more Africans and Asians than Europeans.

What is the big challenge for the Church in Asia?

Secularism and materialism are a very big challenge for the Church in Asia. Talking about Japan where I come from, we were a developing country, then we became a very developed country, but we became very materialistic and pragmatic. This is very different to any kind of religion. So we are losing the religious tradition in Asia. That is a big problem.

You mean here not just the loss of Christian tradition, but loss of other Asian religious traditions as well?

Yes, they are also losing their faithful.

So the rise of economic development is the big problem?

A big problem, yes. It is a thing that is very good, but at the same time it is very dangerous.

What do you think of Australia’s treatment of migrants and refugees?

I just arrived, so I’m not completely informed about the situation, but I find that Australia is one of the good examples, a good model of a multicultural continent. I think it’s a multicultural and multi-ethnic community in Australia.

Australians, you are also migrants - all of you!

It is very difficult to live together with other religions and other cultures. That is not easy.

So you think Australia is a model of tolerance towards migrants?

I heard today in a workshop that

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the second and third generations of migrants are completely assimilated or integrated. They are Australians. But the most recent generation remain very separated. They have a tendency to form ghettoes. This is a very big difficulty. I’m told they also have gaps between the generations within in the family.

But this is not only happening in Australia, it’s everywhere. In Japan also, we have many migrants from the Philippines, Brazil, Argentina, Peru, and they get married with Japanese, then the second and third generation become completely Japanese. But the most recent generation have big difficulties integrating with Japanese people. Everywhere this happens.

Our Holy Father, the late Pope John Paul, and now the new Pope, Benedict XVI, have insisted that Catholics and Christians shouldn’t think only of ourselves, of other Catholics, but we must consider the good of humankind. We must have more open minds.

Do you have any comment on Australia’s policy of detention of asylum-seekers who come here on boats?

Morally I think your government should consider improving the conditions of the detention centres, and respect the need for human rights, respect the need for freedom, and the food and health care of these people. That should be improved.

Because they are not criminals. Irregular migrants are not criminals. So we must treat them as friends.

What of detention itself: is that wrong?

I don’t think so. I think Governments have the right to control immigration. Any state cannot receive all kinds of immigrants unconditionally. But they should

treat them with more respect towards human dignity. That is very important.

Does Islam represent a threat or a problem for the Catholic Church?

No. It is not a problem. But they have their own culture, quite different from Christian culture, and so it is not so easy to live together. But not all Islam is fundamentalist. It is only a very small number who are terrorists. The majority are very good persons.

What message would you give to Catholics in relation to Islam?

We should regard ourselves as their good friends.

Because they share the belief in one God?

Of course. Muslims and Jews and Christians, we are all of us monotheistic. We are brothers and sisters.

Can we collaborate with Jews and Muslims against secularism?

Of course yes. And for the improvement of education, the building up of peace within society, gender equality: these are very important.

In summary, why are migrants important today to the mission of the Church?

Migration is very important because it is a very general phenomenon all over the world. Everywhere all over the world, every continent, there are many migrants. No continent is monocultural. Every one is multicultural. And so we must live together with other races and other nationalities, and peacefully. That is not easy, but it is very important. We must try to overcome prejudice, try to become friends with other races, and other nationalities. To do this we must meet people.

truth: may they encounter the Lord Jesus.”

Push for drug legalisation hits moral wall

Bishops

hit out against RU 486 legalisation push

Moves within Federal Cabinet to facilitate a lifting of the ban on the abortion drug RU 486 have been slammed by the Australian Catholic Bishops, who say it will increase the nation’s abortion rate and “further erode respect for human life.”

The Prime Minister granted a parliamentary conscience vote on the issue to Coalition MPs, the Bishops reiterated the Church’s stern opposition to all abortion, whether it be surgical or drug-induced.

The Government should continue the ban on the importation and prescription of the drug, the Bishops said in an official statement.

Prime Minister John Howard

and Opposition Leader Kim Beazley have declared conscience votes when federal parliament considers an amendment to the Therapeutic Goods Act.

The amendment is being sponsored by the Australian Democrats. If passed, it will authorise the Therapeutic Goods Administration to assess the safety of the abortion pill.

“RU 486 is a powerful drug designed to do nothing except end the life of a human being soon after it has begun,” the Bishops said in an official statement.

“The introduction of chemical abortion will do nothing to reduce the incidence of abortion in Australia. Research suggests that more women will be damaged physically, psychologically and spiritually.”

Secular media debate has

identified the issue of women’s safety as central to the debate over RU 486.

Some members of the medical profession want to see the ban lifted, with one gynaecologist arguing on the ABC’s AM program this week that the deaths of four women in California in the past two years after taking the drug in fact represents “an extremely low mortality rate.”

The bishops stated that there are serious safety concerns for women who will take the drug and expect to miscarry at home.

Quoting Pope John Paul II, the Australian bishops said it is time for the whole community to become “radically prowoman” and address the circumstances which give rise to the dilemma of women choosing abortion.

Eastern Catholics honour Dominican

■ By Paul Gray

An Australian Dominican priest has been honoured by the eastern rite Ukrainian Catholic church for a lifetime’s service to the cause of closer relations between the eastern and Roman rite churches.

Rt Rev Peter Knowles OP was made arch-priest of the Ukrainian Catholic Church in a ceremony at the Protection of the Mother of God Church in Adelaide last month.

“Fr Knowles has helped us a lot over the years,” said Rt Rev Olexander Kenez, chancellor of the Eparchy of Saints Peter and Paul, the archdiocese for Ukrainian rite Catholics in Australia and New Zealand.

“He was helping us in the Sixties when it was quite frankly unfashionable to be helping people like us.”

Fr Kenez told The Record that the honour was the equivalent of an Order of Australia award. “It’s recognition for being such a great support to the Church and to Ukrainian and eastern Christians over the years.”

A university chaplain on Australian and New Zealand cam-

puses for three decades from the 1960s, Fr Knowles took on the task of simultaneously serving the Ukrainian and Russian Catholic church communities of Australia as a celebrant and pastor.

Through his ministry he has developed an international reputation, studying and teaching eastern rite theology in European and North American monasteries.

“He has brought it up on to an

Historic chalice under repair

The beautiful jewelled chalice used in St Mary’s Cathedral for almost 100 years is currently under repair to restore it to its former appearance.

Known as the Archbishop’s Chalice, it was given by the Redemptorists of Ireland to Archbishop Patrick Joseph Clune when he was named as Perth’s first Archbishop on August 28, 1913.

He had been elected Bishop of Perth on December 21, 1910 and consecrated in Perth by Cardinal Moran, of Sydney, Archbishop Redwood SM, of Wellington NZ, and Archbishop Delaney, of Hobart, on St Patrick’s Day, March 17, 1911.

Archbishop Clune made a significant contribution to the development of the Church in Western Australia. He inherited a debt-ridden diocese, but showed outstanding skills in reorganising the finances and clearing the debt before beginning an impressive building program.

During the 1914-18 war he was appointed Lt Colonel (Chaplain) Archbishop P.J. Clune, in charge of Catholic padres and men in the AIF. In 1916 he sailed for England and visited the troops on the western front.

In 1920 after an ad limina visit to the Pope in Rome he returned to Ireland where had been born in County

Continued, with picture, on Page 10

academic and an intellectual level, that it is possible to transcend faith and to transcend culture,” he said. The eastern and Roman Churches were described by the late Pope John Paul II, in the pastoral letter Orientale Lumen, as the two lungs with which Christianity breathes. Pope Benedict XVI has made it an early priority of his papacy to advance the cause of unity between the two traditions.

The drug mifepristone, or RU-486, as it is packaged in France, where it has been available for 12 years.

Photo: CNS

Fr Peter Knowles is raised to arch-priest by Mitrat Olexander Kenez

Confirming what we knew

In the absence of virtues

The Book of Genesis is always enlightening for those who seek to understand it rather than to deform it. In its account of the original sin, Genesis describes the responses of Adam and Eve to their preference for “good and bad” instead of accepting the goodness of God’s creation.

It tells us in metaphorical language that when God came strolling in the garden in the cool of the evening, Adam and Eve hid from Him. Apart from the almost hilarious absurdity of trying to hide from God, the story is a brilliant illustration that when we do wrong we have a strong tendency to hide from the return of goodness to our life. Our sins are not merely isolated events; they tend to create the miasma in which we become lost.

The Church offers the Sacrament of Reconciliation and the Gospel evidence of an endlessly forgiving God to help us out of the fog, but when God is ignored by individuals and by whole societies the fog becomes extremely dense.

One of the consequences in our own society is the virtues are never presented as the guiding principles for private or public life. They do not appear as the measuring stick by which we can assess personal or political behaviour. This is not to say that nobody remembers the virtues or that nobody lives by them. Many do.

Unfortunately, the virtues are rarely mentioned in the public square, rarely canvassed in the marketplace of ideas. We have been preoccupied for decades in the denial of responsibility to live up to any standard and in claiming that we can do whatever we choose. The result is that in place of reliable standards, we have very erratic and subjective judgements about what can be said and done in various circumstances. We also find ourselves forever trying to write and re-write legalistic codes of conduct and disclosure for public officials that have been utterly unsuccessful in improving standards, while simultaneously lowering standards in some respects.

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For example, in Wednesday’s morning newspaper we were told that Health Minister and Attorney-General Jim McGinty, had been “dragged into” the drink-driving case involving the wife of a top bureaucrat. We were not told by whom or why the “dragging” was done, but it should be noted that the case does not enter Mr McGinty’s responsibility in either of his portfolios.

Mr McGinty said that Mrs Fong had not been found guilty of anything and the public should not rush to judgement. This is sound and honourable advice.

But for several days the same Attorney-General appeared in the same newspaper with a wide range of speculation and innuendo about the behaviour of Opposition Leader Matt Birney in his correction of his assets disclosure form in Parliament.

The Church offers the Sacrament of Reconciliation and the Gospel evidence of an endlessly forgiving God to help us out of the fog, but when God is ignored by individuals and by whole societies the fog becomes extremely dense.

On Monday, he was reported as saying he was “considering” referring the matter to the CCC or a parliamentary privileges committee. He had “preliminary legal advice” that the behaviour “could constitute misconduct” but he couldn’t say whether it was a matter to be investigated by a law-enforcement body (the Criminal Code was mentioned) or a parliamentary privileges committee. Despite this vagueness, he insisted on telling the public, “This is not just about a procedural shortcoming, there are substantive issues of trust and honesty that are involved here.” By Wednesday, he had not progressed any further than saying his legal advice was that the behaviour “could constitute misconduct under the CCC Act”.

If there is an issue about Mr Birney’s behaviour, it should be dealt with by the appropriate body (if there is one). In the meantime, the AttorneyGeneral should apply to citizen Birney the same principle he applied to citizen Fong. He has not been charged with anything and the Attorney-General should not rush to judgement.

We have seen the same problem of rational inconsistency in the behaviour of Australian politicians (State and Federal) about the Singapore Government’s adherence to its policy of capital punishment. They claim that life is sacred, but every State Parliament allows the killing of babies in their mother’s womb, and the Commonwealth pays for it.

The Commonwealth and every State have also approved destructive medical experimentation on human embryos – that is, on human life at its earliest stages of development.

If human life is only sacred until somebody says it is inconvenient, or until somebody else says there may be profits to be made from taking it, then it is not sacred at all. Once, a conscience vote meant that Party discipline would not be used to force people to do what they thought was wrong. Now, it is merely an opportunity for people to do whatever they like.

The virtues are the means by which we train ourselves to have the strength of character to do the right thing even in difficult situations. Our Parliaments have abandoned the concept.

Anti-Liberal

I t is appropriate that your latest copy of The Record (November 17 2005) contained an article pondering why students leaving Catholic schools were indifferent to Catholicism, when the same issue contained yet another of the regular party political pieces attacking the Liberal Party and its philosophies.

Could it be that the schoolies are able to see that those claiming to speak for the Church are more interested in politics than religion, noting how they supported the ACTU’s campaign against the current IR legislation before it was even written.

These school leavers probably realise, where Church spokesmen don’t, that far from the unions helping “the average worker,” they can only claim around 15 per cent of the workforce as members, a number that illustrates that the big threat to unionism is not the Liberals, but arrogant and indifferent unions.

More than 2000 years ago Christ told those who were trying to trap him that some things belonged to God and some to Caesar, a message that is still relevant today, even if our church spokesmen have forgotten it.

Maybe the kids leaving Catholic schools are indifferent to the Catholic Church because they are interested in Jesus, not party politics.

Peter Lee Applecross

Don’t be alarmed

In regards to the articles in last week’s Record surrounding Dr Saker’s sobering statistics and shocking findings about students’ responses to Religious Education in Catholic Schools, my advice is to be alert but not alarmed.

Though Dr Saker does present some interesting research, it is difficult to credit his work as presented in the article, when it is riddled with seemingly non-existent correlations between his research and key findings.

For example, Dr Saker claims “the RE classes are not effective and the majority of students were not happy with their religion class”. Yet his research shows that the majority (52.7 per cent) of Year 11 and 12 students agreed that they gained a lot from their RE classes, and

Your feature article ‘Catholic Any Longer?’ (The Record Nov. 17) provided an excellent and lucid coverage of statistics.

It confirmed what those at the coalface have been aware of for many years – the patent failure of our Catholic education system in effectively conveying the truths of faith.

I congratulate Dr Luke Saker on his research and findings.

One might dismiss his findings, but not his statistics. The statistics are alarming… whatever their cause; it is these that need to be addressed.

In my parish, the one bright and sustaining hope for me is my day to day contact with wonderful faith-filled families and the joy of working with teachers whose dedication to education and whose faith is second to none.

Many of our Catholic teachers have the capacity to bring out the best in our children, even those from families which do not practise the faith. However, it is an increasingly up-hill slog when little or no support comes from the home. This is exacerbated if teachers do not practise.

I welcome the news that the Archbishop is introducing important changes to the religious education curriculum. However, as the Archbishop recognises, it’s not the message that appears to have failed but the messenger. You can’t share something you don’t possess.

Not long ago a woman approached a friend of mine to baptise her child. Asked to find a sponsor who was a practising Catholic, the mother replied that her only Catholic friends were her colleagues at work, and she couldn’t think of any who were practising. She worked in Catholic education.

Another friend of mine, a very pastoral and caring priest, has no less than 11 parishioners who teach in Catholic schools, both primary and secondary. Only three of them are known to attend Sunday Mass regularly.

Of the last 25 baptisms celebrated in this parish, 13 of the candidates’ parents were not married; of the 12 who were, seven were married outside the Church. And these are the ones seeking baptism for their children!

What of the growing number of Catholic parents who now no longer even seek baptism for their children?

This crisis in the Catholic Church will not disappear by assurances that the Bishops recognise that the Education Commission is fulfilling its mandate. Cooperative and honest soul searching across the board is needed here. The Catholic education system in Australia is our greatest investment. Its gold must not be permitted to turn to rust.

The boat that has sailed is white-anted from within, and rudderless. It needs a lifeline.

The Pope is said to have observed we might have a smaller and more committed Church in the future.

I think he has no choice.

Bryan Rosling Parish Priest, Mater Christi

that the majority (55.6 per cent) of Catholic-schooled university students agreed that their overall religious education program influenced their faith development.

Dr Saker suggests that teachers in our Catholic schools have insufficient knowledge of the Catholic Church and its teachings. As a recent student of Dr Saker’s and of other RE lecturers at tertiary level, I found a great range in lecturers’ knowledge of the Church’s teach-

Perspectives

ings, and in particular its relevance and interpretation in today’s world.

I feel very fortunate that I was well educated about the faith and practices of the Church through my family, parish, and schools, and I worry for my graduating colleagues whose knowledge is primarily based on their tertiary study.

The aim of WA’s Catholic schools is not catechetical, but knowledge based, as it has been for many years. The purpose of our Catholic

schools’ RE program is to provide students with a knowledge and understanding of the Catholic faith and way of life, and an opportunity to experience it.

The Perth Archdiocesan RE Curriculum has recently (2003 & 2004) been reviewed and reformed with this purpose in mind. One has to wonder if Dr Saker was ignorant of this information when he recommended that “we have to look at the WA Curriculum Guidelines for RE

and question the present method of relying primarily on catechesis”?

Unlike Dr Saker’s admitted surprise, The Catholic Education Office (CEO) was well aware of the trend in students’ responses to RE and the Church, which is common across all Australian states and developed countries. The review of the RE curriculum is one of many strategies being implemented in the hope of reversing this trend.

I’m not sure what last week’s arti-

cles about Dr Saker’s paper were trying to achieve, but at no level was I satisfied.

As a young person who lives out their faith and is involved in the Church community I feel disheartened and unappreciated, as a product of 12 years of Catholic schooling I feel mis-represented, as a scholar I feel outraged at the lack of correlation between Dr Saker’s research and his key findings and

Go, Guy, go!

GThe spirals of the The of the Nautilus shell reflec t reflect the progression of the the of the Fibonacci sequence. A Fibonacci sequence. A miracle of creation or a or a produc t of evolution? product of evolution?

erhood and peace, that Christ wants to establish on earth, really reach every person and community involved in the phenomenon of migration and itinerancy, so as to transform the world of human mobility and penetrate it with the love of Christ and communion of all who seek God with a sincere heart, which awaits us at the end of our earthly pilgrimage.

Another interesting session was the one given by Maurizio Pattena Cs, the Italian community chaplain of Archdiocese of Brisbane.

cipal tasks of migrant chaplains and pastoral workers among migrants. First, they must help safeguard migrants’ ethnic, cultural, linguistic and ritual identity. Effective pastoral work is otherwise impossible. However, this special identity must also be united with the local Church and culture.

Second, they should be guiding migrants to authentic integration by avoiding a cultural ghetto, at the same time opposing total assimilation into local culture.

uy Crouchbak in his regular column recently referred to the much publicized book on science and evolution by author Bill Bryson, ‘A Short History of Nearly Everything”. I recommend anyone trying to grasp what is entailed in the evolutionary processes get a copy of this clever, witty and very easy to read publication which, I observe has now been put out as a hard-back with pictures and illustrations. The huge advance in scientific knowledge and understanding about the make-up and origins of our planet, our solar system and certainly the mind boggling universe of ours since the birth of Einstein 125 years ago, even the last several decades, is both enthralling and compelling.

To associate input from an Intelligent Design at various critical events in the evolving history of our universe because there is no immediate scientific explanation is, in my opinion, to suggest that God has needed to intervene so as to put the finishing touches to His work, give it a tweak here and there like a mechanic might when fine-tuning a racing car or an artist to a painting.

Not so for me. The more we accept that this creation is likely to be the result of a single event at the beginning of time and matter (perhaps over and over again – an eternity of creation!), the closer we move to some understanding of the incomprehensibility of the Creator. Evolution continues as the universe expands. New stars are born, new galaxies form. All this over billions of years. Intelligent Design as a concept of God interrupting his initial work, constricts His greatness, takes the ‘Almighty’ out of our limited understanding and reduces Him to something less than perfect. Science and religious belief will continue to draw closer together. Let’s consider the acronym ID as more of a need for intelligent dialogue!

John Angus Scarborough

Migrant meeting inspired

At the national conference in Sydney on pastoral care of migrants a number of perspectives touched me due to the fact that they were offered with such clarity and passion.

One of the most interesting was the session presented over by the President of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People, Cardinal Stephen Fumio Hamao.

He listed eight challenges for the Church today, particularly in Australia, in dealing with pastoral care of people on the move:

● the right to remain in one’s homeland

● finding an equilibrium between a state’s right to protect its borders and the right to migrate

● asylum seekers, refugees and internally displaced people

● irregular migration

● mobility of women and families

● welcome and solidarity

● migration and its resulting mix of tradition

● extending pastoral care to the members of the household faith and beyond.

Cardinal Hamao summed up these challenges as how to let the kingdom of God, love, communion, universal broth-

Fr Pattena highlighted the fact that 40 per cent of Catholics in Australia were either born overseas or have one or both parents born in a country other than Australia.

This being the fact, he argued, it follows that pastoral care of migrants must be a non-negotiable in the pastoral project of the Church in Australia in the new millenium.

If the Church of the new millennium in Australia fails to adequately provide specific care for migrants by neglecting their peculiar needs, by not listening to their voice, or by not allowing their experience of the sacred to become a part of the worshipping and liturgical life of the local Church, it would be abdicating responsibility to ensure that all be one in Christ. Father John Murphy, the director of the Australian Catholic Migrants and Refugees Office underlined the prin-

Third, they can create a missionary and evangelising spirit by sharing the situation and condition of migrants, adapting and making pastoral contacts in an atmosphere of a clear witness of life.

Finally, he noted, they must act in union with the local bishop, the diocesan clergy, and especially with parish priests. Participation in priests’ meetings and other diocesan/parish meetings and gatherings will be helpful. As a conference participant I gained some valuable ideas regarding the pastoral care of migrants. It is not an easy area of work but we need to look forward, seeking meaning and hope as the challenges evolve. Such work doesn’t just happen by itself. It’s something that is built and grows by our own effort and struggle to change. Then, we leave the rest to God.

Fr Ardus, Indonesian Chaplain in Perth

School community receives award

The St Simon Peter Catholic Primary School community in Ocean Reef has been presented with the Archbishop’s Spirit Award in recognition of its contribution to the 2005 LifeLink Appeal.

At a special assembly held at the school, Mr Jim Thomas presented Principal Richard Cavanagh with the commemorative plaque on behalf of LifeLink and Archbishop Hickey.

Sharing some stories with the students in relation to the difference that their money can make to the lives of needy people, Mr Thomas said LifeLink represents 13 agencies operated by the Catholic Church in Perth.

“While, individually, it may be difficult to help people, by working together we certainly can make a difference,” he added. story, photo - Phil Bayne, CEO Media

Students recognised: Principal, Richard Cavanagh, left, Jim Thomas, Parish Priest, Fr Bronek, Assistant Principal (RE) Stephen Harris, Head Boy, Thomas Mooney and Head Girl, Li-Ann Koh with the Archbishop’s award.

They’re about to turn 500 years old. Known the world over, they have one of the most important jobs in the world...

The Pope’s Bodyguards

Celebrations underway: Left, a view of the Swiss Guard belt buckle. A book on the history of the Swiss Guard released on November 9 (to coincide with the anniversary) dispels the legend that Michelangelo designed the Swiss Guard’s colourful uniform. The Vatican also released a series of special stamps, above, on November 22 marking the 500th anniversary. The stamps, designed by a former member of the corps, were also released in Switzerland.

■ By Cindy Wooden

One of the Vatican’s most popular tourist attractions is about to celebrate its 500th anniversary with a special series of stamps, concerts, Masses and a 450mile march.

The Swiss Guard officially turns 500 on January 22, the anniversary of the arrival in Rome of 150 Swiss soldiers recruited to serve and protect Pope Julius II.

The Vatican’s commemorative stamps, featuring artwork by former guard Rudolf Mirer, went on sale on November 22 at the Vatican and in Switzerland, marking the first Vatican-Swiss stamp package.

Also in anticipation of the anniversary, a history of the Guard written by Sgt. Christian-Roland Marcel Richard was released on November 9.

Col. Elmar Mader, commander of the Guard, said Richard’s work marked the first time that an active guard published a book describing life in the corps.

Precise as the watches of his homeland, Richard said it took him 2,962 hours to write the book when he was not guarding the entrances to the Vatican, protecting the pope, working crowd control, continuing his training or performing ceremonial duties at Masses and visits from heads of state.

In addition to the history of the Swiss Guard, the book includes a chapter on the rules governing the recruitment, training and discipline of the corps.

The current Guard has 110 male Swiss citizens, all of whom are Catholic and at least 5 feet 8 inches tall. They must have an impeccable reputation, be under age 30, unmarried when they begin their service and have served in the Swiss Army.

Richard’s history mentions the 1998 murders of the Swiss Guard commander and his wife by a guardsman who then committed suicide.

“It is part of our history, so we had to face it,” Richard told CNS.

“But on the other hand, it should not be the only thing people talk about. It is one day in 500 years.”

Unveiling plans for the anniversary celebration during a November 22 press conference, Mader - flanked by two guards in their traditional tri-coloured uniforms -

said Pope Julius chose the Swiss mercenaries because of the Swiss “passion for war and, especially, for their respect for the Church.”

“The pontiff wanted to be able to count on a well-prepared corps of guards which would safeguard him at critical moments and which could become the permanent nucleus of a larger army to be formed in case of necessity,” Mader said.

Between April 7 and May 4, more than 100 former guards will march from Switzerland to Rome, following the route taken by their predecessors in 1506.

The march was timed to allow the former guards to participate in the key moment of the anniversary celebration - a memorial Mass and swearing in of new members on the May 6 anniversary of the fall of 147 guards, killed in action in 1527 while protecting Pope Clement VII during the sack of Rome.

Mader was asked if any thought had been given to changing the uniform of the guards, particularly after Richard’s book definitively laid to rest the legend that Michelangelo designed the costume.

“It is not up to me to change the uniform of the Swiss Guard, which dates from the Renaissance and which the whole world recognises,” he said.

The commander also was asked - and not for the first time - whether the Guard ever would include women.

“I cannot imagine that we ever would have women in service,” he said. “We live in a very small barracks, and there would not be room for women.”

“The men are young,” he said, “and I would not want to recruit problems” for discipline.

“Obviously, women are capable of providing security services. That is not the point. It is a matter of discipline,” he said.

Mader said his men have a variety of reasons for seeking a place in the corps.

“It is a mix of motivations, although you will find in all of them a certain religious sensitivity” and a desire to serve the Church, he said. Many of the young men say they want to learn another language and culture and meet people from all over the world.

While there is a sense of prestige and honour in being a guard, Mader said, “it is not like it was 30 years ago, when a guard would return home and be seen as one of the pope’s men.” CNS

recommendations as presented in the articles, and as a teacher I feel disappointed that this is the image of Catholic schooling and Religious Education being portrayed to the public.

M Graves East Perth

Attention at last

The response of serious minded Catholics to the Special Report can only be one of gratitude that this distressing subject is receiving attention.

A survey has been beneficial in bringing the serious state of affairs to the fore, although it is something of which we have long been painfully aware. The Record and Dr Saker, and especially our Archbishop, are to be congratulated. It is indeed reassuring that changes in the RE curriculum are to be implemented in the near future.

The problem seems to be deeper than at first may appear. It is not the fault only of educators and/or parents. The question is not where to assign the blame, but what to do about it. The maxim ‘No one gives what he or she does not have,’ is applicable.

We have witnessed at least two generations during which secularism has been allowed to dominate every aspect of our lives, and not

only to eclipse our Catholic Faith, but to erase every trace of a sense of the sacred and a sense of sin.

It is common knowledge that an all-pervasive moral relativism denies the very existence of objective truth. Religion is viewed as a branch of sociology rather than a transcendent and eternal reality.

The total environment – home, school, parish and the culture –need to be considered as an integral unit. We all have a part to play, and none of us can smugly assume that it ‘has nothing to do with us.’

Courage is needed, and a perseverance which can come only from trust in God, rather than our own strategic planning.

Prayer, fasting and, in particular, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, are very powerful if they are put into practice.

In June 2001 Archbishop Hickey offered a 10-point plan as a basis for implementing his priorities:

Personal Holiness, Lay Formation, Family Life, Sacramental Life of the Church, Catholic Education, Evangelisation, Vocations, Fidelity to the Truth, Witness to Love, and Solidarity with the Poor. One may question how many Catholics in the Archdiocese (lay, religious, parent or teacher) have even heard of these priorities, much less resolved to make them part of daily life.

Contemporary culture would appear to have no comprehension of the meaning of such terms. How many school leavers who abandon the Church know what they are leaving behind?

How many are aware of the miracle that takes place at every socalled “boring” Mass?

Few, if any, have ever been told about the early Church Fathers, many of whom suffered martyrdom in witness to the truth, and whose writings clearly demonstrate that our Faith is indeed that of the Apostles.

From the point of view of Catholic education, which is here under discussion, the goal is surely to remodel itself as a remedial agency, designed to counteract the damaging influence to which youth are constantly exposed. Why not start with addressing the 10-point plan within schools?

The Church has given us a wonderful resource in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, which would appear to be sedulously ignored, or consigned to the too hard basket!

True it is a large book, but there are many authentic abridgements available, and other valuable resources based on the Catechism.

It is welcome news that full-time teachers of Religious Education are to be appointed. It seems essential that they be not only familiar with and personally believe what the Church teaches, but that they be imbued with allegiance to the Magisterium.

Sadly, in many parts of the world, not excluding Australia, it is possible to discern an agenda that runs counter to its precepts.

Much confusion still exists regarding what the Second Vatican Council actually said, as distinct from a so-called “spirit of Vatican

II”. It is all too true that the more the Faith is watered down to be made “attractive” to modern youth, the less they want to know about it!

Anne M. Kirkwood Attadale

Dismayed

Iread the article on Dr Saker’s studies with interested dismay. I am a traditional Catholic with a great interest in keeping the real torch burning. The fact that caught my attention most was that youngsters weren’t so much rejecting the Church’s teachings as being ignorant of them. Not surprising since the formative years of a great number of today’s teachers and parents were during and after the hijacking of the agenda by the post Vatican II reformists.

Two points:

1. Catholic schools/colleges aren’t imparting the true message in RE classes, and principals either seem to connive or ignore. The CEO, particularly the curriculum section, appears to be mimicking the wishy washy State Govt program, perhaps for fear of loss of funding. They focus a lot on teaching that homosexuals are a special case that need special treatment. I did something I’ve never done with the 6 of my children who preceded a son who this year was doing Year 12 at one

of Perth’s best Catholic Colleges – I told him to switch off and ignore the teacher’s discourse on homosexuality, and to do something worthwhile, like homework for other subjects. Teachers are ignoring the Archbishop’s directive on RE.

2. I see merit in a paper that might be made available to parents, a digest of the Church’s authentic teaching. I go back to the 50s, and am a bit rusty and perhaps selective on what I regard as core beliefs. Such a paper might briefly (bullet point) outline the core beliefs, then allow the reader to drill down for more detail further on in the paper. Perhaps such a paper already exists. Can anything be done in this regard?

name and adress supplied

Dianella

The Church is responsible, too

Iam a young, practicing Catholic teacher and thus feel moved to respond to the arguments and analysis relating to Dr Saker’s research into Catholic education and the dwindling role of post-school leavers in the Church. It is clear, as Dr Saker points out, that young people are increasingly apathetic towards the Church, with a vast majority ceasing to practise their faith once their compulsory schooling is complete. Various explanations

for this trend were expressed in The Record (17/11/05), including a society and media, “saturated in counter-Catholic rhetoric” (Derek Boylen) and a lack of support and spiritual guidance by parents, many of whom are themselves non-practising Catholics (Mark Reidy).

Yet I believe that, valid though these arguments may be, the Church itself must be prepared to accept more responsibility for the alienation and disenchantment many young people feel within the Church. In many instances, the needs of Catholic youth are not adequately met by the Church at a parish level, nor their gifts and talents celebrated or nurtured to their full potential. I believe that part of the problem lies in the disproportionate significance placed on issues relating to sexual morality, notably premarital sex, contraception and homosexuality, which has positioned the Church detrimentally as one defined by negatives - what is forbidden rather than what is extolled. This can only hinder its ultimate goal of being embraced and strengthened by the youth of the 21st century.

No, the Church should not alter its principles according to the whims of the present day, but surely sexual morality is only one part of the Catholic vision. The Risen Christ has the power to inspire the dynamism and passion of youth and it is the Church’s role to facilitate opportunities for active, positive and Christ-centred contributions by young people. In this way, the youth of the Church can and

will become the leaders and visionaries of a vibrant, living faith that is far more than a set of rules and prohibitions. It is meant, after all, to be the Good News.

Esther Douglas Suburb

Glasnost welcome

Too often the public hears of the Church attempting to cover up some controversy or another. The sex crimes in the US springs to mind.

I am heartened by the liftout on the failings of the education system. Whilst this is terrible news for the Church, perhaps this will help foster real discourse about the solutions to this problem, a problem many suspected for a long time. Perhaps this new found glasnost will liberate us in other areas.

Terence Boylen. Westminster

Belling the cat

Congratulations on your report ‘Catholic any longer? As a teacher in Catholic Education WA for 25 years I believe that Dr Saker has finally ‘belled the Cat’. Archbishop Hickey’s comment on ‘a situation that we all know

something about’ (page 3) is also revealing. While Dr Saker’s research has clarified deep weaknesses in the transmission of Catholic moral teaching to our students in recent time, it is interesting to note that this has occurred at the same time that the CEO in WA has been unpacking its teacher-accreditation system. Accreditation B has been in place for at least eighteen years (1987). If there is a connection here, then Dr Saker’s creditable claim that Catholic schools are not carrying out the Mandate reaches truly tragic proportions.

Further to this, how has our system in WA managed, at the same time, to overshadow the contribution of those ‘teachers of faith’ of whom the Archbishop talks? Is there a ‘hidden curriculum’ or have these teachers been disempowered by ‘the way things are done’ in the Catholic system in WA? Could Dr Saker’s future research interests help here?

Dr Les Fabre Aranmore Catholic College

Thanks for report

Icongratulate you on the courage to publish your Vista report last weekend ‘Catholic any Longer?

It is not at all surprising to read the outcomes from the Dr Luke Saker’s study and the corresponding

comment in your article. Being the father of three children who have gone through the Catholic education system in WA from 1990 to 2004 I concur with the findings in every aspect.

We are also not surprised at the response from the Catholic Education Office rejecting Dr Saker’s claims.

This is where the main problem lies and has for decades. Cries from numerous people over this period have fallen on deaf ears. It is about time the CEO looked ‘outside the box’ in which it resides. If it did it would see that Catholic schools have fallen behind in nearly every area of education. In particular, the teaching of the catholic education and ethos.

Catholic education needs to be conducted by trained and practising Catholics who are passionate about their faith and teaching. Furthermore our Catholic schools need to reinforce RE by incorporating the Catholic ethos into every aspect of other subjects.

I agree with the Archbishop that the influence of the family and secular society has to be taken into account. However, the foundation for education lies with our Catholic schools. If this fails, as it has, then there is no hope for our younger generation. Even many of the parents are lacking in faith education which they hope the schools should provide. Unfortunately, this is not the case and we are all left wondering who will ever resolve this hopeless situation.

I implore the Bishops of WA to

remove the CEO and start again. For if we continue doing what we have always done then we will always get the same result.

Craig A. Scarfe Thornlie

Bring back the best

There is very little new data in Dr Saker’s finding about Catholic Education (The Record, 17 Nov.)

Br Marcellin Flynn came to very similar conclusions in two books based on much larger samples of students.

Over 20 or so years various school parents organisations have been warning of the dismal outcomes achieved in religious education but instead of being asked to help solve the problem affecting the whole Church they were marginalised and ignored. Let us hope and pray that this time things will be different in Perth.

Melbourne and Sydney have shown the way by producing text books based on the Catechism of the Catholic Church which parents can also use to reinforce what the school teaches. These text-books have not been available for over 40 years unlike the 50’s and 60’s when the Christian Brothers published the excellent texts – Fortifying Youth and Christian Politeness.

Continued from Vista 1

Col. Elmar Mader, commander of the Swiss Guard, stands in his dress uniform on the hill above St Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican.

Photos: CNS

Forgotten genius is worth rediscovering

■ With Guy Crouchback

Iam delighted to see that some of the books of W. W. Jacobs are being re-published. Many Cargoes, Light Freights, At Sunwich Port, The Skipper’s Wooing - the list of his books is long and all of them are good. Look them up on the Internet and place your orders!

Jacobs was born in 1863 and died in 1943. His stories, like P. G. Wodehouses’s, seem set almost outside time and remain not only charming period pieces - many are set in English villages or about the wharves and little harbours and coasting ships of London and the Thames Estuary a century or so ago - but also perennial comedy.

He is one of those writers who has never quite been forgotten by a small band of devotees, but whose work deserves a return to a much greater popularity.

Today his books - both novels

diversity matters

and collections of short stories - are as fresh and funny as ever, set off by marvellous little touches, like the habitué of the “Cauliflower” pub so startled when a piece of shocking news bursts upon the bar that, as the Oldest Inhabitant recounts it, he “drank his own beer, thinking it was Joe’s.” Then there is the ship’s mate, jealous of the captain who, as a second chance, has been appointed to the command he fancied for himself, very considerately reminding his new skipper that they are passing his old ship and if he is interested he will be able to see the tops of her masts at low tide ...

G. K. Chesterton was one of Jacobs’s many admirers and devoted a long essay to his work, pointing out the poetry of his language - his yokels and sailors say the things real people might but say them better and more vividly. Chesterton also pointed out that Jacobs’s horror-stories, such as “The Monkey’s Paw”, were different to so many other modern horror-stories in that they were dignified and noble.

His “Dixon’s Return” has one of the most perfect comic plots. The hero, a meek innkeeper, is so bullied by his loutish brothers-in-law who have moved in with him that he runs away to sea, spending four years before the mast on sailing ships. When he returns they try to bully him again.

In Claybury, the English village beside whose ancient green stands the “Cauliflower,” is the home of

one of Jacob’s favourite characters, Bob Pretty, the local poacher, who generally manages to pull a fast one over his bucolic neighbours. Jacobs can, in these stories, often evoke, almost by-the-way, a spirit of the best of rural England far more effectively than can many a speech by nationalist politicians.

Other stories, often recounted

by the old night-watchman on a London wharf, tell of the misadventures of sailors ashore, in the late 19Century London of music-halls and temperance marches, or of things like the disruption of life aboard a coaster when the captain brings a pretty girl passenger aboard.

I do not always respect the commercial wisdom of publishers but if

it has been decided that it is a commercial proposition to issue Jacobs’s stories again - and it appears it has - that says something good. Like P. G. Wodehouse, Jacobs can transport us back to a more innocent age. If his stories are escapism, well, the only people opposed to tales of escapism are those with the mental outlook of jailers.

(contemporary human mobility and the stand of the Church)

Erga migrantes charitas Christi

■ With Fr Anthony Paganoni, CS

Or, ‘the love of Christ towards migrants’ (most statements issued by Rome are titled with the initial words of the document itself).

The above headline is the title of the latest Instruction issued by the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People and signed by its President (the Japanese Stephen Fumio Cardinal Hamao) and its Secretary (the Italian Archbishop Agostino Marchetto). As with any other document issued by the Vatican this too was approved by the Pope on May 1, 2004. These are not insignificant details as we shall see later.

The document states at the very end, …the Holy Father approved the present Instruction of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant people and authorized its publication.

These may appear non-essential details, but in actual fact they are indicative of the complexities of the Roman Curia’s lengthy processes in dealing with public statements.

Conceived as a review of existing written Church policies on the care of migrants and refugees, the Instruction came under close scrutiny during a symposium organised by the Urbaniana Catholic University in Rome. According to a sizeable number of reputable Canon lawyers, the document lacks cohesion between its first and main part and the final short section on “juridical pastoral regulations”. Dr George Nedungatt, a professor at the Gregorian University, goes so far as to state: The Instruction reads like the work of a committee usually notable for lack of focus and linear progression of thought.

Accordingly, the same author, along with many other Canon lawyers, believes that the present Instruction does not add to or subtract anything from the existing laws regarding the care of migrants. This does not mean that it has no juridical force.

Its force lies precisely in the fact that it recalls, interprets and applies existing laws and it urges their implementation.

Velasio De Paolis, a consultor to several offices of the Roman Curia, queries the juridical nature of the Instruction. The language of Church documents is not always consistent.

But in the case of this document, it refers the reader to canon 3, par.2, section 2 which deals with the sources which are empowered to produce documents, according to their competence. And the same author goes on to affirm that within the Roman Curia, the Pontifical Council holds very limited jurisdictional authority or executive force. Perhaps its best shot is at the level of local churches, where the Pontifical Council can suggest, initiate, recommend measures and strategies to local churches for the pastoral care of migrants.

One would be tempted to question the validity of the sheer length of the document (25,914 words in the English version and 24,132 in the Italian original), a mediumsized book, 95 pages in the Australian pocket-size edition published by St Paul.

One is, or becomes, a little bit more aware of the complexity surrounding intra-curial relationships in Rome. The document covers pastoral problems with Catholic immigrants, with the Orthodox Churches and with Muslim immigrants. Is the care of foreigners and strangers purely a matter of jurisdiction?

Indian quake survivors: Are these children purely a matter of jurisdiction?

Photo:

Catholic Media in Perth

Archbishop on air Free to Air

For those who missed Archbishop Hickey’s address on Channel Nine the text is below:

Welcome.

This week marks the beginning of the Christian season of Advent – a period of preparation for the great feast of the birth of Jesus Christ at Christmas.

It is a busy time with school year

ending, work piling up, things to be finished in time, presents to be bought, and endless pressures to spend, spend and spend.

Don’t get drawn into this too much. The birth of Jesus was simple; keep Christmas simple. Set aside some time to pray and reflect. Enjoy Christmas for the real reason that God so loved us that his Son Jesus became one of us at Bethlehem two thousand years ago.

God’s peace be with you.

I’m Barry Hickey, Catholic Archbishop of Perth.

Next: RU486. For current and past talks visit www.perthcatholic.org.au.

Broadcast TV

Sunday, December 4

Archbishop Barry Hickey

Channel 9, first commercial break in 6pm evening news

Sunday, December 4

Eternal Word Television Network

1-2pm on Access 31

Mortal sin and its consequences; followed by, Answering common objections to the Sacrament of Confession / Scott Hahn and Mike Aquilina [Lord Have Mercy]. Remember that Advent is a time of penance and spiritual preparation. You too could receive programs free to air, 24 hours a day, seven days a week! Contact us for information. The Rosary Christian Tutorial

Catholic Church TV Australia

Program guide: 1 - 31 November

Aurora Community Television is available on Foxtel Digital and Austar Digital. Channel 183

Thursday 1 December 2005

5.00am Mass for You At Home 5.30am Octava Dies 10.00am Mass for You At

Friday 2 December 2005

5.00am Mass for You At Home 5.30am Octava Dies 10.00am Mass for You At

Saturday 3 December 2005 5.00am Mass for You

Sunday 4 December 2005

Mass for You At Home

Octava Dies

Monday 5 December 2005 5.00am Mass for You At Home

The Hazaribag Jesuits

Tuesday 6 December 2005

Wednesday 7 December 2005

Mass

Program Notes

Octava Dies (Eight Days)

Made by Vatican Television, Octava Dies (Eight Days) is a weekly half hour round up of the activities of the Pope and the Vatican.

Hazaribag Jesuits

This week we celebrate the feast of the great Jesuit missionary, St Francis Xavier. In this film we look at the story of how in 1951 Australian Jesuits went to a desperately poor and remote corner of India and through education and pastoral care have turned their lives around and given them hope.

God In Tibet

This week in Australia we mark Human Rights Week. One important factor within human rights is religious freedom, and one country that has received

a lot of attention in regard to human rights is Tibet. This film looks at the Southwest corner of Tibet, known as the ‘roof-of-theworld’. Geographically isolated, a unique culture and tradition of Catholicism has survived, exceptional to Buddhist Tibet, and the present communist rule.

Search for Christmas

As we celebrate the great Christian feast of Christmas, we join Madga Szubanski as she talks with her comic mates about their Christmas stories, and what the birth of Jesus in our lives can mean at any time of year.

Tsunami – One Year On

This week we mark the first anniversary of the Tsunami which hit so many of our northern neighbours. In this film we look at how our support of the Catholic Aid agency, Caritas, reached out immediately to help our friends in the affected countries.

Thursday 8 December 2005

5.00am Mass for You At Home 5.30am

Friday 9 December 2005

Saturday 10 December 2005

Sunday 11 December 2005

Monday 12 December 2005

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Sunday

Association, PO Box 1270, Booragoon 6954. Enquiries: 9330 1170.

FM Radio

Sunday December 4

Gate of Heaven: 7.30pm

Radio Fremantle 107.9 FM

(1) Catholic Morality and The Catechism with Monsignor William Smith “The Ten Commandments (segment)#4”. (2) Last Things: In Time And Eternity with Colin Donovan and Desmond Birch “Back ground of Eschatology.” (3) Holy Spirit At Work In The Church with Fr. Andrew Apostoli “Holy Spirit was Revealed in Scripture.” Donations toward the program may be sent to Gate of Heaven, PO Box 845, Claremont, WA 6910.

All times are WA time.

Monday 26 December 2005

Sunday

Tuesday 27 December 2005

Wednesday 28 December 2005

Mass for You At Home

5.30am Octava Dies

10.00am Mass for You At Home

10.30am Octava Dies

Thursday 29 December 2005

5.00am Mass for You At Home

5.30am Octava Dies

10.00am Mass for You At Home

Friday 30th December 2005

5.00am Mass for You At Home

5.30am Octava Dies

10.00am Mass for You At Home

10.30am Octava Dies

Saturday 31st December 2005

5.00am Mass for You At Home

5.30am Octava Dies

10.00am Mass for You At Home

2.00pm Tsunami – One Year On

The World

Clowns bring laughter to Bethlehem

After snafu at border, clowns perform for Bethlehem families

■ By Judith Sudilovsky

As mothers with their young children lined up outside the auditorium door, two clowns inside rehearsed a show planned for 14 performers.

Originally 14 clowns from the Swedish branch of Clowns Without Borders were to be part of a performance at the Bethlehem Peace Centre, but only two made it through the Jordanian-Israeli border checkpoint.

“The Israeli (border guards) didn’t let (the others) go through when they told them they were going to Bethlehem. We were first and told them we were on our honeymoon,” explained Pnalle Laanela, 33, a former Canadian now living in Sweden.

Luckily, he said, he had come through with his fiance, Angela Wand, 34, who is originally from California and now lives in Sweden. The two, both Catholics, have a joint routine and improvised for the Bethlehem show. They had to leave most of their props behind in Amman, Jordan, Laanela said.

Kenneth Holtz, Swedish Clowns Without Borders producer, also got through the checkpoint. He was able to help the two clowns set up for the show on November 22. They also performed in Hebron, West Bank, the following day.

Clowns Without Borders is a nongovernmental organisation of the arts based in Barcelona, Spain, with branches in France, Sweden, Belgium, the US and Canada.

Each year the groups, who include volunteer professional clowns, take the show on the road to places “where laughter has been silenced,” said Wand, who normally performs with the Cirkor modern circus in Stockholm, Sweden.

“Not that people don’t laugh here, but they are in a difficult situation, and it always helps to laugh,” she said, wearing a bright red wig and red tights.

The couple performed with the rest of the troupe in Algeria and refugee camps in Lebanon and Jordan. Normally the clowns visit the children at hospitals or schools, but in Bethlehem the performance was held at the centre. At first Wand and Laanela were concerned that few children would arrive. But, by the end of the performance, more than 150 children with their parents - including children from a school for the

blind and another from a school for mentally handicapped children - crowded into the auditorium, cheering the clowns and bursting into laughter despite the language barrier. “It feels really magical to be here at Christmas time,” Wand said, noting that having arrived just a few hours before their performance she and Laanela had yet to visit the Church of the Nativity, just a few hundred yards away from the Bethlehem Peace Centre on Manger Square.

“Our mission is just to spread laughter, to make a change in children’s lives even for ... a day,” said Laanela, who was wearing a black oversized jacket and pants. “We also want people here to know that people from Sweden know they are in a poor situation here and have a difficult life.”

“It’s very important for kids to see something different than what they are used to seeing daily,” said Rana Awad, 29, a Catholic resident of Bethlehem who brought her 3year-old daughter, Layaar, to see clowns for the first time. Johnny Elias, 5, was waiting anxiously for the doors to open. He wanted to see the clown’s big hair and painted faces. “I just want to see them happy,” said his mother, Grace Elias, 31, a Catholic from Beit Jalla, West Bank, who also brought her 2-year-old daughter, Julie. “There aren’t so many things here for children to do. They just stay home and watch television. It is very important for them to have activities.”

As the doors opened and the children and parents streamed in, Ruba Khalil, 32, of Bethlehem, sat in the middle of the auditorium with her children, Najib, 2, and Shahd, 4. It was their first time seeing clowns in person, though they have pictures of clowns hanging in their room, she said. CNS

Sex in marriage the answer to AIDS A small step in history

■ By John Thavis

The Vatican said the continued increase in AIDS and HIV is fuelled in part by a “pansexual culture” that reduces sexual activity to mere pleasure.

The safe way to prevent sexual transmission of the disease is to practice sexuality within the context of marriage, said the Vatican’s annual message for the December 1 World AIDS Day.

The message did not mention condoms in AIDS prevention. In the past, the Vatican has opposed condom campaigns, saying they do not truly protect against transmission of the disease and may end up encouraging promiscuous sexual activity.

The Vatican message strongly urged legal reforms to give more equitable health care to AIDS patients in developing countries and asked pharmaceutical companies to make anti-AIDS drugs more accessible to the poor.

The text was signed by Cardinal Javier Lozano Barragan, president of the Pontifical Council for Health Care Workers.

Cardinal Barragan noted that in 2005 more than 40 million people around the world were infected with HIV, which causes AIDS.

During 2005, it was estimated

‘Pansexual culture’ fuels increase in AIDS/HIV, says Vatican message

that 4.9 million people contracted the virus and that 3.1 million died of AIDS.

“HIV and AIDS continue to spread death in every country of the world,” the message said.

It noted the reduction of HIV/ AIDS transmission through contaminated blood transfusions or from mother to child in pregnancy, but said sexual transmission remained significant.

“It is greatly favoured by a type of pansexual culture that devalues sexuality, reducing it to a mere pleasure without further significance,” it said.

The message cited the Church’s teaching that sexual activity outside marriage is wrong and said that teaching formed the core of truly “safe prevention” against AIDS.

The sixth commandment against adultery constitutes “the fulcrum of authentic prevention of AIDS in the area of sexual activity,” it said.

The message called for greater resources for AIDS patients in poor countries, saying that basic medical assistance is still denied to a large part of the world’s pop-

ulation. Everyone has an equal right to good health, it said.

At the same time those seeking health care have “the duty to conduct themselves and lead lifestyles harmonious with the protection of health, and to reject (lifestyles) that compromise health,” it said.

The Vatican message underlined the Church’s contributions to the AIDS response.

It noted that 26.7 percent of the centres caring for AIDS patients worldwide are Catholicrun.

In addition, it said, local churches and institutes carry out a multitude of pastoral programs for patients, their families and orphans of AIDS victims.

Last year, Pope John Paul II instituted the Good Samaritan Foundation to provide assistance to AIDS/HIV sufferers around the world.

In its first year of activity, the foundation has provided significant amounts of economic aid for the purchase of medicines, Cardinal Barragan said. He did not provide specific figures.

Britain names first Catholic ambassador to Vatican since Reformation

Britain has appointed its first Catholic ambassador to the Vatican since the Protestant Reformation.

The Foreign Office announced in mid-November that it had chosen Francis Campbell, 35, as a replacement for Kathryn Colvin, who retired in September. Campbell will take up his position in December.

Diplomatic relations between the United Kingdom and the Vatican were restored in 1914 after a break of 350 years, but in 1917 the Foreign Office issued a memorandum saying that Britain’s representative “should not be filled with unreasoning awe of the Pope,” and since then the post has always been filled by a non-Catholic.

Campbell, a farmer’s son from Newry, Northern Ireland, was one of 120 applicants for the position when it was advertised in the British press in July.

Campbell’s appointment was welcomed by Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor, president of the Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, as “imaginative” because it had “broken with the unspoken assumption that the British representative to the Holy See should not be a Catholic.”

The cardinal said Campbell was an “experienced diplomat” who had

not only worked closely with Prime Minister Tony Blair, but also was “familiar with the language and the workings of the Catholic Church.”

In an interview with The Tablet, a British Catholic weekly, Campbell said he entered the Foreign Office in 1997 after first contemplating a vocation to the priesthood. He became a specialist in European affairs. Within two years he was assigned to No. 10 Downing St as a policy adviser to the prime minister. In 2003 he became the first secretary to the British Embassy in Italy. Campbell said he has been devoted to interfaith dialogue since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States.

In 2002 he helped plan the Building Bridges Seminar, a Christian-Muslim initiative, and he organised a Downing Street reception for 220 religious leaders from around the world.

He said interfaith dialogue will be a major theme of his time as ambassador and central to the address he will deliver to Pope Benedict XVI when he presents his credentials.

“In my background there is that ecumenical dimension in terms of the Northern Irish conflict,” he told The Tablet on November 15.

“I am very aware personally and privately as to what happens when faith communities collide and the importance of dialogue, the importance of moderation and the importance of genuine faith,” he said.

Angela Wand and Pnalle Laanela are joined onstage by Palestinian Sara Musa during a Clowns Without Borders show in the Peace Centre in Bethlehem, West Bank, on November 22 Photo: CNS

The World

Available drugs give AIDS hope

In rural Rwanda, antiretroviral drugs give hope, life to HIV patients

■ By Evan Weinberger

Xavier Mdengo’s body was racked with repeated bouts of malaria, and lesions covered his face. His illnesses seemed abnormal even in this destitute corner of northern Rwanda. So in March, Mdengo made his way to the Muhura health centre, where he received an HIV test and bad news.

If there are better times than others for a person to hear he or she has contracted the virus that causes AIDS, then last March in Muhura was one of them. That is when the Muhura health centre, which is staffed by Oblate Sisters of the Holy Spirit and is one of 80 clinics affiliated with the Rwandan branch of Caritas Internationalis, received its stock of antiretroviral drugs.

The drugs, which delay the onset of full-blown AIDS, are a rarity in rural Rwanda, far from city and district hospitals. The Muhura health centre is one of only two rural health centres in Byumba province capable of distributing the medications. In the past, the Muhura health centre was only able to treat the infectious diseases - like tuberculosis and malaria - that preyed on the weakened immune systems of people living with HIV, said Oblate Sister Laurence Niyireba, the centre’s pharmacist.

Mdengo, who is 50 and the father of six, began his daily regimen of two pills in April after taking part in a training course. He said he does not enjoy thinking about what his test result would have meant without the medicines.

“I would already be dead,” Mdengo told Catholic News Service, as he sat in a small, dark room receiving a month’s supply of his medicine. Before distribution of antiretroviral medicines began in Muhura, there were few opportunities for poor rural Rwandans to get the drugs.

Andre Gihanza, coordinator of AIDS relief for the US bishops’ Catholic Relief Services in Rwanda, said some people with resources have gone to Kigali, Rwanda’s capi-

the world in brief

tal, for the medication that CRS is also distributing. He noted that few people can afford to make the trip.

Muhura’s distribution of antiAIDS medicines is part of a government effort to increase the number of Rwandans receiving the drug therapy. Over the last year, the number of recipients has jumped from 1,000 people to 13,000, while 250,000 Rwandans were tested voluntarily, said Dr. Louis Munyakazi, director of Rwanda’s Treatment and Research AIDS Centre. In addition, the number of pregnant women who undergo tests has also increased.

But the number of people getting the antiretroviral medications in rural areas is still low; the vast majority of people receiving the drug cocktail live in a city or near a district health centre, Munyakazi said. Rural Rwanda is rugged terrain. Muhura, at the top of one of the rolling mountains, is nearly two-and-a-half hours north of Kigali. Most of the people in the area are subsistence farmers living in dusty shacks with corrugated metal roofs. Banana trees line the winding red dirt roads. Travel is

Homosexual seminarians

Even if they have never had a gay sexual experience and are fully committed to celibacy, homosexual men are not suitable candidates for the priesthood, said a long article in the Vatican newspaper. Titled “Reflections on the Document,” the article was published on November 29 with the text of the Congregation for Catholic Education’s new instruction on accepting homosexuals as candidates for the priesthood. The article - the only explanatory text the Vatican published with the document - was written by French Mgr Tony Anatrella, a psychoanalyst and consultant to the Pontifical Council for the Family. “Candidates who have ‘deep-seated homosexual tendencies,’ that is, an exclu-

difficult in the summer dry season, and during Rwanda’s seemingly endless rains it is even worse, said Oblate Sister Eugenie Mukankwiro, Muhura health centre’s director.

“We cannot jump into the community without having the supporting structure that is sustainable,” Munyakazi said. “So that is the reason why it has been a little bit slow.” But Muhura seems to have found a model that works. Here, all pregnant women are tested for HIV, and people of all ages and both sexes come in for voluntary testing. If a person tests positive, the patient and a noninfected partner come in for training on how to take the drugs and prevent the disease’s spread. They also receive counselling from a social worker. A doctor visits once a week, and patients come for a checkup and drug refill monthly.

Since distribution started in March, more than 70 people, including seven children, have received prescriptions for the drugs. Four of the original antiretroviral recipients have died.

Along with the doctor’s visits

sive attraction to persons of the same sex - independently of whether or not they have had erotic experiences - cannot be admitted to the seminary or to holy orders,” he wrote in the newspaper, L’Osservatore Romano. Mgr Anatrella said the Vatican felt it “necessary to recall once again that homosexuality always has been one of the difficulties that impedes access to holy orders.” The Vatican’s document is sensitive to the scandals which rocked the Church in the US and elsewhere. Approximately 80 per cent of these cases involved homosexual priests predating on boys and teenagers.

Advent reawakens

The joy that marks Christians’ preparation for Christmas and the hope with which they look toward the establishment of God’s

and drug distribution, community health volunteers visit patients once a week to make sure they are taking their drugs every day. One of the volunteers is Denys Nkurunziza. A mix of fatigue, a persistent abscess in his mouth and the loss of both his parents to AIDS sent him to the centre about a year ago. When Nkurunziza first found out he had contracted HIV, his white blood cell count was 16. A noninfected person would normally have a count in the hundreds, and a count below 350 calls for the immediate use of antiretrovirals. He was in the first group to go on the drugs in March. Nkurunziza, 27, is now chairman of an association of people living with HIV/AIDS. The 50-member group is called Mpore, which in Kinyarwanda - the chief spoken language in Rwanda - means to bring hope. Nkurunziza takes care of his four younger brothers and sisters, ages 12, 14, 16 and 18. He also visits 15 families a week, pedaling his bicycle down the ragged roads, through the mud when it rains and brutal sun when it does not.

kingdom of peace and justice are attitudes that must be communicated to others, Pope Benedict XVI said.

“Advent is the time when Christians must reawaken in their hearts the hope of being able to renew the world with the help of God,” the Pope said on November 27 during his midday Angelus address. While Christians know that “the new heavens and new earth” promised for the end of time will be created by God, they also know they must cooperate today in building the kingdom of justice and peace, the Pope said.

The Gospel for the first Sunday of Advent “invites us to remain vigilant in the expectation of the final coming of Christ,” he said. Advent is not only a time for preparing for Christmas, but is a reminder that the salvation that began with Christ’s birth will be brought to completion when he comes again.

Indulgences granted

To mark the 40th anniversary of the close of the Second Vatican Council, Catholics can receive a plenary indulgence for taking part in any public or private devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. Pope Benedict XVI authorised the special December 8 indulgences to encourage the faithful to carry out the council’s teachings on peace, justice and charity, said US Cardinal J. Francis Stafford, head of the Apostolic Penitentiary, a Vatican court dealing with indulgences and matters of conscience.

The Pope expressed his hopes that all the Church would be united with him and their “common mother,” Mary, on December 8, so that the faithful “may be strengthened in their faith, follow Christ with greater dedication, and love their brothers and sisters with more ardent charity,” said the cardinal.

The Vatican published the cardinal’s statement announcing the indulgences and outlining the requirements for receiving them on November 29. December 8 is the feast of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. An indulgence is a remission of the temporal punishment due for sins committed. A plenary indulgence is the remission of all punishment. Cardinal Stafford said that to obtain the special December 8 feast day indulgences one must fulfill the normal requirements set by the Church for all plenary indulgences, which include that within a reasonably short period of time the person goes to confession, receives the Eucharist and prays for the intentions of the Pope, all in a spirit of total detachment from the attraction of sin. The faithful must also participate in a formal prayer service in honour of Mary “or at least openly demonstrate their devotion to Mary” by praying before an image of the Immaculate Conception on display for public veneration. The faithful should also recite the Lord’s Prayer, the creed and a prayer to Mary. Cardinal Stafford said the special indulgence was being offered to mark the 40th anniversary of the formal close of the Second Vatican Council by Pope Paul VI. CNS

Small farms need support

Pope Benedict XVI encouraged the international community to support small family farms and make sure they have access to the increasingly globalised market. The Pope made his remarks on November 24 in a meeting with representatives of the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation, based in Rome. The Pope praised the organisation for its efforts to liberate humanity from hunger and make sure poorer countries receive their fair share of development assistance.

“Humanity is presently experiencing a worrisome paradox - side by side with ever new and positive advances in the areas of the economy, science and technology, we are witnessing a continuing increase of poverty,” the Pope said. Among those most vulnerable to economic changes today are family farmers, he said.

The availability of antiretroviral drugs is giving African AIDS patients hope.

Photo:CNS

Book from a master enchants

Read John The Fourth Gospel

By Max Barrett CSSR Available

Remember the good old days when at the end of Mass we recited with the priest the last Gospel, in Latin: `In principio erat Verbum…….” In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God,’ right through to the end when we declared that ‘The Word became flesh, and dwelt amongst us’? These were, indeed, awesome words.

Now, Father Barrett, a wellknown Catholic writer, has written this little book that brings back

those days. We have a full story of St John and a full explanation of his marvellous Gospel.

And this is also a very literary book, for Father Barrett is a fine writer, who in the past has given us many interesting books.

He uses literary devices to bring his subject alive, and nourish our understanding, contending rightly “that some imagination is essential for receiving the message of the Bible.”

It is as if he is engaged in teaching English literature – something he does very well - using all the literary devices of the classic writer. Irony has a high place in his exposition, as do other literary techniques. And in John, he has an inspired source, for his many ironies, declaring “the truth of Jesus in a more startling fashion.”

But, adds Fr Barrett, “If we miss the irony, we are in danger of missing the beauty of the inspired message.” Who then is this John whom

we are to read with such enthusiasm? John came early into Our Lord’s chosen company, and lived such a long time after all his companions, the other Apostles. We meet him in youth and in old age.

He was “the disciple whom Jesus loved,” who lay on his breast, and who received His Holy Mother from Him when he was on the cross. St John was a visionary: he saw the wonders which were to come to pass in the world to the end of time. He was constantly referred to as `the beloved disciple’.

It is almost impossible to conceive the hardships and sanctity of this great Apostle, and his life and death are difficult to imagine. We know of his seclusion from the world, his tranquility, and his goodness – this saint whom Jesus loved. All these things belong in the realm of the imagination to help us bring him back to life. Father Barrett gives us some inkling in this brief, brilliant account of his

Restoration will bring alive old glory

Continued from page 5

Clare in 1864. He was ordained at All Hallows College in Dublin in 1887 before joining the Redemptorists in 1893.

While in London on his way home to Australia in 1920 he was asked by British Prime Minister Lloyd George to act as a peace negotiator with Sinn Fein in Ireland. Having seen the sufferings of the Irish people, he willingly accepted, but was unable to achieve a ceasefire because the British wouldn’t agree to one until the Irish surrendered their arms.

On his return to Perth, Archbishop Clune continued his Church development program and was responsible for 56 new buildings, including a foundling home in Subiaco, a home for the aged at Glendalough, and a school for mentally handicapped boys at Castledare.

However, he will probably be best remembered for beautiful sanctuary and transept of St Mary’s Cathedral, opened on May 4, 1930. He would no doubt be pleased that the cathedral is finally about to be completed.

One of his last and favourite achievements was to persuade the Carmelite nuns to come to Perth to establish the contemplative life at the Carmel in Nedlands. They had left Sydney and were on the water when he died on May 24, 1935, and arrived in Perth on the day of his funeral.

To have been consecrated bishop on the feast of St Patrick, patron of Ireland, and to have died on the feast of Our Lady Help of Christians, patron of Australia, aptly encompass his life as bishop and archbishop in Western Australia.

■ Anyone wishing to contribute to the cost of the delicate work of restoring the Archbishop’s Chalice, or other historical items, could contact the archdiocesan archivist Sr Frances Stibi on (08) 9223 1358.

life. St John’s gospel is a book of signs. For example, the Samaritan woman at the well, the second sign given by Jesus in the fourth chapter. The Samaritans were declared enemies of the Jews. Jesus meets the Samaritan woman at the well and immediately speaks to her.

John uses “the technique of misunderstanding” for a deeper understanding of his meaning.

The author portrays this event in three telling verses with the headings: The Setting, The Samaritan Woman, The Message, and The Sequel. All tell the story of the meeting, the dialogue, the woman and the message, with the sequel of her returning home to tell her unlawful husband what happened.

As Fr Barrett says “John had introduced the foreigner, Jesus: there had been the well and the water and the woman hurrying homewards.”

She had had six husbands. The seventh husband, Jesus, is the bridegroom - “the bride of the divine

bridegroom to be found in all parts of the world.”

There is much like this in every chapter with Fr Barrett analysing every one, with particular attention to the parables and miracles.

All Catholics and non-Catholics whatever their circumstances will get so much from this book. And those whose faith transcends the appalling irreligion of our times will be proud to have a copy of this little book. For what is religion without goodness of life, something so well understood in St John’s Gospel? Be sure you get a copy.

Trade can aid migrants

Continued from page 1 administration, more equitable trade and supportive international cooperation, it is possible for every country to guarantee its own population, in addition to freedom of expression and movement, the possibility to satisfy basic needs such as food, health care, work, housing and education.

The frustration of these basic needs forces many people into a position where their “only option” today is to emigrate, he said.

The conference, an initiative of the Australian Catholic Bishops, brought together church workers and people involved in the pastoral care of migrants and other “people on the move.”

This is an emerging area of work for the Church, with an estimated 40 per cent of Catholics in Australia either having been born overseas, or having a parent who immigrated.

The conference program was intertwined with prayer and reflection on the Church’s teachings on care for the stranger, including last year’s Pastoral instruction on migrants and refugees, Erga Migrantes Caritas Christi People on the move, whether they be itinerant workers seeking temporary employment or travellers seeking permanent residence in another country, should always be treated with respect due to every

human person, Cardinal Hamao told the conference. However the Church also recognises the right of states to control their own borders.

“The challenge is to combine the welcome that every human being deserves, especially when in need, with a reckoning of what is necessary for both the local inhabitants and the new arrivals to live a dignified and peaceful life.”

A number of national civic and political leaders addressed the two-day conference, including the Chairman of the Council for a Multicultural Australia, Mr Benjamin Chow, the Federal Minister for Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, Mr John Cobb, and his Federal Opposition counterpart, Senator Annette Hurley. Fr Anthony Paganoni, Episcopal Vicar for Migrants and Refugees for the Perth Archdiocese, led a conference workshop on immigrants, the liturgy and popular devotion.

Other workshop topics included interaction between eastern and Latin rite Catholics led by Fr Laurence Foote OP, immigrants in rural and provincial dioceses, led by Bishop Joseph Grech of Sandhurst, and the changing role of ethnic chaplains, led by Mons John Murphy, Director of the Australian Catholic Migrant and Refugee Office.

PANORAMA a roundup of events in the archdiocese

Sunday December 4

ETERNAL WORD TELEVISION NETWORK

1  2 PM ON ACCESS 31:

Mortal sin and its consequences; followed by, Answering common objections to the Sacrament of Confession / Scott Hahn and Mike Aquilina [Lord Have Mercy]. Remember that Advent is a time of penance and spiritual preparation. Let us keep Christ in Christmas! All programs are recorded in Perth by satellite dish. You too could receive them free to air, 24 hours a day, seven days a week! Contact us for information. The Rosary Christian Tutorial Association, PO Box 1270, Booragoon 6954. Enquiries: 9330 1170.

Sunday December 4

ANNUAL ROSARY PROCESSION

In honour of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception at St Joseph’s Parish church, Hamilton

Street, Bassendean. Followed by Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. In preparation for this event a tridium of Rosaries will be held on Wednesday November 30 @ 7pm, Thursday December 1 @ 7pm,

Friday December 2 @ 7pm. For further enquiries contact Fr Jim Shelton on 9279 1549, Colin Caputo on 9279 9750, Vince Carbone on 9279 4812, Renato

Passamani on 9279 2163.

Thursday December 8

MONTHLY MASS IN HONOUR OF BLESSED MARY

MACKILLOP Sisters of St Joseph Chapel, 16 York St, South Perth. Everyone welcome. Also available JOSEPHITE/MARY MACKILLOP 2006 CALENDAR with inspirations from the writings of BLESSED MARY MACKILLOP, for more information contact: 9334 0999.

Thursday December 8 LATIN MASS: FEAST OF THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

Holy Hour for the Hour of Grace at St John’s ProCathedral 12pm – 1pm includes triple recitation of Ps. 50 Miserere, Benediction. Then Low Mass at 1.10p,

a picnic lunch in the grounds. Enquiries SACRI: 9447 3292.

Thursday December 8

FEAST OF THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION

Please join us in the hour of grace, between 12noon and 1pm on Thursday at Holy Spirit Church, Keaney Place, City Beach. Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament during the hour with Rosary and quiet time.Sunday December 11

GOLDEN JUBILEE MASS

9.30am at St Augustine’s Church, Gladstone Road, Rivervale, invites all Parishioners, ex-parishioners, religious and those who have been associated with the Parish over the past 50 years, to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of the Blessing of the Church and Presbytery. The Mass will be celebrated by his Grace Archbishop Hickey with Fr McKenna and will be

The Archbishop’s Chalice as it stood, prior to preparation for its full restoration.

BUILDING TRADES

■ BRICK REPOINTING

Phone Nigel 9242 2952.

■ PERROTT PAINTING PTY LTD

For all your residential, commercial painting requirements. Phone Tom Perrott 9444 1200.

■ PICASSO PAINTING

Top service. Phone 9345 0557, fax 9345 0505.

CATHOLICS CORNER

■ RETAILER OF CATHOLIC PRODUCTS

Specialising in gifts, cards and apparel for baptism, communion and confirmation. Ph: 9456 1777. Shop 12, 64-66 Bannister Road, Canning Vale. Open Mon-Sat.

Classifieds Phone Carole 9227 7080 or A/h: 9227 7778 (Deadline 12pm Tuesdays)

DECEMBER

CHANGE YOUR LIFE FOREVER

■ WORK FROM HOME

Around your children & family commitments. My business is expanding and I need people to open new areas all over Australia. Training given. Highly lucrative. www.cyber-success-4u.org

ENTERTAINMENT

■ FIRE ENGINE PARTIES

Children of all ages. Child care, kindy and Santa visits includes rides and squirting. Discount to readers. Call fire Chief David 0431 869 455.

FUNERALS

■ FUNERAL PRESENTATIONS

Celebrating life with a collection of photos/video set to music and projected on a big screen. An ideal complement to reflection time. Call Paul on 9244 9719 for more details.

USFOROZ

■ MEMORIAM CARDS AND BOOKLETS Urgent jobs in 24hrs. W/E and A/H 0410 651 900.

FURNITURE REMOVAL

■ ALL AREAS

Mike Murphy 0416 226 434.

HOLIDAY ACCOMMODATION

■ BUSSELTON

Geog Bay, Park Home sleeps UP TO 6, winter rates apply. Ph Elizabeth 0408 959 671.

■ DENMARK

Holiday House 3bdr x 2bath, sleeps up to 8. BOOK NOW. Ph: Maria 0412 083 377.

■ SHOALWATER

Holiday apartments, self contained, sleep up to 6, walk to the beach, near Penguin Island, very affordable rates.

Bookings Ph: 0414 204 638

OFFICIAL DIARY

3 Ordination to Diaconate followed by Opening and Blessing of Vietnamese Catholic Centre - Archbishop Hickey, Bishop Sproxton

4 Mass at Bandyup Prison - Archbishop Hickey

Presentation Night for Disciples of Jesus, Osborne Park - Bishop Sproxton

5 Reception for Emperor of Japan - Fr Brian O’Loughlin VG

6 End-of-Year LifeLink Meeting - Archbishop Hickey

Mass for Catholic Pastoral Centre, Highgate - Archbishop Hickey

Emmanuel Centre Christmas Party - Archbishop Hickey

Annual Thanksgiving Mass for Pregnancy Assistance, Subiaco - Archbishop Hickey Mass and Graduation for Maranatha - Bishop Sproxton

8 Council of Priests’ Meeting, Glendalough - Archbishop Hickey, Bishop Sproxton

followed by the Blessing of the School Prayer Wall. Refreshments and a display of memorabilia will be provided in the school grounds.

Sunday December 11

HEALING MASS AND RECONCILIATION BULLSBROOK

SHRINE

The Sacrament of the Sick is administered for the spiritual and physical healing of pilgrims during Holy Mass on every second Sunday of the month at the Shrine of Virgin of the Revelation, 36 Chittering Rd, Bullsbrook. The next ceremony is on December 11. Reconciliation in Italian or English at 1.30pm precedes devotions. At 2pm there is Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, Holy rosary and Benediction. Holy Mass follows. Al are most welcome to come to the Pilgrim’s Mass and devotions celebrated at the Shrine on every Sunday at 2pm. Enq: SACRI : 9447 3 3292.

Monday December 12

FULTON J SHEEN SOCIETY CHRISTMAS CONCERT

Celebrate Christmas with the MOST REV BARRY J

HICKEY AS VOCAL SOLOIST and other artists including Paul Wright (Kashtney Duo) as violin soloist and much more at Trinity College Trinity Ave East Perth starting at 7.30pm. Tickets are available and (discount for seniors and students) include refreshments. Bookings and further details by ringing Daniel on 92918224. Credit card facilities available.

Sunday December 18

50TH ANNIVERSARY OF CHURCH OF THE IMMACUILATE

CONCEPTION  KWOLYIN

Friends and ex parishioners are invited to celebrate the occasion at Kwolyin on Sunday. Mass will commence at 11.30am followed by a bring and share lunch. Further information: Joan Cosgrove 9064 1173, Pat Coakley 9064 1176.

Sunday December 18

50TH ANNIVERSARY  BROOKTON

Our Lady of the Rosary Brookton parish is celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Church. Mass will be at 10am with a bring and share lunch to follow. All past and present parishioners are most welcome.

Phone Talma: 9887 1316.

CROSS ROADS COMMUNITY

Term 4 until 16th December for: Family & Friends Support Groups of Substance Abusers are on Wednesdays 7–9pm, Substance Abusers Support Groups are on Tuesdays 5.30 to 7.30pm & Fridays All

day Group for Substance Abusers is from 9.30am to 2pm including Healing Mass on Fridays @ 12.30pm during term. Ladies Groups are on Tuesdays 11am to 1.30pm. Rosary is from Tuesday to Thursday at 12.30 to 1pm.

TUESDAYS WEEKLY PRAYER MEETING

7pm at St. Mary’s Cathedral Parish Centre, 450 Hay Street, Perth, WA. Take time to pray and be united with Our Lord and Our Lady in prayer with others. Appreciate more deeply the heritage of the Faith. Overcome the burdens in life with the Rosary, Meditation, Scripture, praise in song, and friendship over refreshments. Come! Join us! Mary’s Companion Wayfarers of Jesus the Way Prayer Group. Experience personal healing in prayer.

BULLSBROOK SHRINE SUNDAY PROGRAM

Shrine of Virgin of the Revelation, 36 Chittering Rd. Bullsbrook. 2pm Holy Mass, Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament and Holy Rosary. Reconciliation available in Italian and English. A monthly pilgrimage is held on the last Sunday of the month in honour of the Virgin of the Revelation. Anointing of the sick is administered for spiritual and physical healing during Holy Mass every second Sunday of the month. All enq SACRI 9447 3292.

SCHOENSTATT FAMILY MOVEMENT: MONTHLY DEVOTIONS

An international group focussed on family faith development through dedication to our Blessed Mother. Monthly devotions at the Armadale shrine on the first Sunday at or after the 18th day of the month at 3pm. Next event: December 8. 9 Talus Drive Armadale. Enq Sisters of Mary 9399 2349 or Peter de San Miguel 0407 242 707 www.schoenstatt.org.au

ST CLARE’S SCHOOL, SISTERS OF THE GOOD SHEPHERD

A short history of St Clare’s School is being prepared to celebrate 50 years of its work in WA. Any past students, staff, families or others associated with the school - from its time at Leederville, at North Perth, at East Perth or at Wembley - are invited to contact us with photographs, or memories. Privacy will be protected, in accordance with your wishes. Please contact Nancy Paterson on 0417 927 126, (email npaters@yahoo.com.au) or St Clare’s School, PO Box 21 & 23 Carlisle North 6161. Tel: 9470 5711.

ALL SAINTS CHAPEL

CONFESSIONS: 10.30 to 11.45am and two lunchtime

MASSES: 12.10 and 1.10pm Monday through Friday. Easy to find in the heart of Perth, ALLENDALE

REAL ESTATE

■ LUMEN CHRISTI HOMES

Augusta Life Time Lease. Enquiries Catholic Diocese of Bunbury 9721 0500.

RELIGIOUS PRODUCTS

■ HUMBLE MESSENGER

Shop 16/80 Barrack St (Inside Bon Marche Arcade) Perth WA 6000.

Trading Hours: Monday-Closed,TuesFri-10am-5pm, Sat-10am-3pm, Ph/Fax 9225 7199, 0421 131 716.

■ REPAIR YOUR LITURGICAL BOOKS

Tydewi Bindery offer a reliable service to repair your Liturgical books, missals, bibles and fine bindings.

Ph. 9293 3092.

■ RICH HARVEST  YOUR CHRISTIAN SHOP

Looking for Bibles, CDs, books, cards, gifts, statues, baptism/communion apparel, religious vestments, etc? Visit us at, 39 Hulme Court (off McCoy St), Myaree, 9329 9889 (after 10.30am, Mon-Sat). We are here to serve.

REPAIRS

■ WATCH REPAIRS

A Swiss watch specialist with 38 yrs exp on Omega, Rolex, Longines and Rado also Seiko and Citizen. Ph: Jim 9250 6545.

WANTED

■ CARER

P/T Mt Lawley. Mature woman reqd to provide companionship and prepare meals for elderly Italian lady. Ph: 9444 2929.

■ CARETAKER/HANDYMAN

For Catholic Church, Bindoon. Accom provided. Suit pensioner. For details tel 9571 1839 or 9576 0006.

■ HOUSESITTER

Elderly pet loving Hertfordshire golfing couple seek house sit in Bicton/ Fremantle area for all of January 2006. Ph: 9293 3906.

8 Mass to celebrate 25th Anniversary of Goan Community in Perth, Riverton - Archbishop Hickey Mass for conclusion of Novena, St Mary’s Cathedral - Bishop Sproxton

9 Mercedes Staff Mass - Archbishop Hickey Ordination to Priesthood, St Mary’s Cathedral - Archbishop Hickey, Bishop Sproxton

10 Embrace the Grace Conference, New Norcia - Archbishop Hickey

11 Mass to celebrate 50th Anniversary of St Augustine’s Church, Rivervale - Archbishop Hickey

12 Fulton Sheen Concert - Archbishop Hickey

13 St Lazarus’ Day Service and Dinner - Bishop Sproxton

14 Reconciliation, Willetton - Bishop Sproxton Discernment Retreat, Toodyay - Archbishop Hickey

15 Farewell for Ann O’Donnell - Archbishop Hickey Board Meeting of The Living Centre - Archbishop Hickey

SQUARE, 77 St. George’s Terrace. Exposition: 8am - 4pm. Morning Prayer: 8am (Liturgical hours). Holy Rosary daily: 12.40pm. Divine Mercy Prayers and Benediction: Mondays and Fridays 1.35pm. St Pio of Pietrelcina Novena to the Sacred Heart and Benediction: Wednesdays 1.35pm. Lending Library of a thousand books, videos, cassettes at your service. Tel: 9325 2009. www.allsaintschapel.com

INDONESIAN MASS

Every Sunday at 11.30am at St Benedict’s church Alness St, Applecross. Further info www.waicc.org. au.

PERPETUAL ADORATION

Christ the King, Lefroy Rd, Beaconsfield. Enq Joe Migro 9430 7937, A/H 0419 403 100. Adoration also at Sacred Heart, 64 Mary St Highgate, St Anne’s, 77 Hehir St Belmont. Bassendean, 19 Hamilton St and Mirrabooka, 37 Changton Wy.

PERPETUAL ADORATION AT ST BERNADETTE’S

Adoration: Chapel open all day and all night. All welcome, 49 Jugan St, Glendalough, just north of the city. Masses every night at 5.45pm Monday to Friday, 6.30pm, Saturday and the last Sunday Mass in Perth is at 7pm.

BLESSED SACRAMENT ADORATION

Holy Family Church, Alcock Street, Maddington.

Every Friday 8.30 am Holy Mass followed by Blessed Sacrament Adoration till 12 noon. Every first Friday of the month, anointing of the sick during Mass. Enq. 9398 6350.

SUNDAY CHINESE MASS

The Perth Chinese Catholic Community invite you to join in at St Brigid’s Church, 211 Aberdeen St (Cnr of Aberdeen and Fitzgerald) Northbridge. Celebrant Rev Fr Dominic Su SDS. Mass starts 4.30pm every Sunday. Enq Augustine 9310 4532, Mr Lee 9310 9197, Peter 9310 1789.

CONFRATERNITY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

The Confraternity of the Holy Spirit has been sanctioned in the Perth Archdiocese, our aim is to make the Holy Spirit known and loved, and to develop awareness of His presence in our lives. If you would like more information please call WA Coordinator Frank Pimm on 9304 5190.

First Sunday of each month

DEVOTIONS IN HONOUR OF THE DIVINE MERCY

Fr Douglas Hoare and Santa Clara Parish Community

welcome anyone from surrounding Parishes and beyond to the Santa Clara Church, Bentley. The afternoon commences with the 3 o’clock prayer, followed by the Divine Mercy Chaplet, Reflection, and concludes with Benediction.

THE DIVINE MERCY APOSTOLATE

St Mary’s Cathedral, Victoria Square, Perth – each first Sunday of the month from 1.30pm to 3.15pm with a different priest each month. All Saints Chapel, Allendale Square, 77 St George’s Tce, Perth - each Monday and Friday at 1.35pm. Main Celebrant Fr James Shelton. St Francis Xavier Church, 25 Windsor Street, East Perth - each Saturday from 2.30pm to 3.30pm, main celebrant Fr Marcellinus Meilak, OFM. Saints John and Paul Church, Pinetree Gully Drive, Willeton - each Wednesday from 4pm to 5pm. All Enq John 9457 7771.

Please Note

The Record reserves the right to decline or modify any advertisment it considers improper or not in unison with the general display of the paper.

Love on a grand scale

A92-year-old Jesuit priest, Fr Luis Ruiz, is responsible for the care of some 13,000 lepers and orphans on the island of Macau and in other parts of China.

Whitfords parishioner Colin Pike, of Padbury, recently visited Fr Ruiz in Macau in what he described as “a profound personal experience that will stay with me for life”.

Mr Pike said that Fr Ruiz and his faithful co-workers, including a small group of nuns, had supported local authorities and helped to maintain 145 centres to care for 10,000 sufferers of leprosy and their children, together with 3000 orphans of parents who had died from HIV/AIDS.

Fr Ruiz knew them all by name and greeted them with affection. He conducted his extensive charitable activities through an organisation called Casa Ricci Social Services (CRSS). Fr Matteo Ricci, also a Jesuit, was one of the first and to this day the foremost Christian missionary to live in China, dying there in 1610.

Fr Ruiz was ordained in China

in 1945 and at a recent anniversary Mass described his 60 years of priesthood as “sixty glorious years serving and loving the Lord in the poor”.

Other comments he made to Mr Pike included: “There is nothing happier than to make people happy.”

“Food, warm clothing and stud-

Love conquers all: Fr Ruiz shares a beautiful moment with a three-year-old orphan boy who on average life expectancy will die sometime in the next three years from HIV/AIDS. Fr Ruiz and those who help him, either in China or from Australia, are family to thousands of China’s marginalised and abandoned. Can you help?

ies are essential, but the most essential thing is love.”

“One lady who has no hands or legs cooks for herself and fetches water for herself; the next time I saw her she was cooking and washing for another woman who is paralysed and could not move. Amazing.”

“The charity service is not supported by the multi-millionaires, but by the “widow’s mite” – the small offerings of millions of people.”

Colin Pike himself has been contributing his “mite” ($50) to Fr Ruiz for about 30 years. As a member of the Catholic Social Club for single people over 21, he was asked by another member, Theresa Naisbitt, if he would join a group of people contributing $50 each to Fr Ruiz’ work. She has been collecting his (and others’) $50 annually ever since. When he mentioned this to Fr Ruiz, he said, “Theresa Naisbitt is incredible, incredible!”

Anyone wishing to contribute their “mite” today should do so by sending it to Fr Stephen Curtin SJ, Australian Jesuit Missions, PO Box 193, North Sydney, 2059, stipulating that it is for Fr Ruiz’ children in China. Receipts can be issued for taxation purposes.

Fr Ruiz also asks people to include the birth dates of family members “so I can pray for you in my Mass on that special day”.

Mr Pike concluded by saying he felt “blessed by a visit to this extraordinary man of God. When I first saw him I was so overcome I felt like genuflecting before him.”

either perpetrators or victims of crime.

Overall, single and divorced women are four to five times more likely to be victims of violent crime in any given year than are married women. Single and divorced women are almost ten times more likely than are wives to be raped, and about three times more likely to be the victims of aggravated assault. Similarly, compared to husbands, unmarried men are about four times as likely to become victims of violent crime.

A study of 500 chronic juvenile offenders found that those who married and stayed married reduced their offence rate by two-thirds, compared to criminals who did not marry or who did not establish good marriages. Married men spend more time with their wives, who discourage criminal behaviour, and less time with peers, who often do not.

As one leading family expert has summarised the findings: “Australian studies with adequate samples have shown parental divorce to be a risk factor for a wide range of social and psychological problems in adolescence and adulthood, including poor academic achievement, low selfesteem, psychological distress, delinquency and recidivism, substance use and abuse, sexual precocity, adult criminal offending, depression, and suicidal behaviour.” He concludes: “There is no scientific justification for disregarding the public health significance of marital dissolution in Australia, especially with respect to mental heath.”

To be human is to love: Fr Ruiz meets with an elderly patient who is suffering the effects of leprosy.