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Saint for a good life
A servant of the people and the Word
Forget ‘distant’ when it comes to the Angelic Doctor - Pages 12-13
A Perth teacher, one of Australia’s leading icon painters, is ordained a Deacon in Maylands - Pages 10-11
St Patrick still a drawcard keeping Perth’s Irish heritage alive
A family affair: Emilia and her grandmother Sandra wearing their metaphorical hearts on their sleeves at the St Parick’s Day Mass at St Mary’s Cathedral on Monday, March 17.
PHOTO: JUANITA SHEPHERD
WA mining magnate ‘Twiggy’ Forrest brings Catholics, Anglicans, Muslims together
Faiths unite in anti-slavery fight
By Carol Glatz THE INITIATIVE of West Australian mining magnate Andrew Forrest has resulted in the signing of an historic agreement to fight human trafficking by the Vatican, the Anglican Communion and a leading Muslim institution. The new accord, which is aimed at ending human trafficking by 2020, was signed during a Vatican news conference on March 17 and launched the beginning of the Global Freedom Network. It is hoped the accord will
expand to include all the world’s major faiths. The global initiative aims to prevent modern forms of slavery; to protect, rescue and rehabilitate victims; and to promote concrete measures that condemn or criminalise human trafficking. In a joint statement, the accord’s signatories called human trafficking and modern forms of slavery “crimes against humanity” and called for urgent action by all faith communities to join the effort to “set free the most oppressed of our brothers and sisters.”
“Only by activating, all over the world, the ideals of faith and of shared human values can we marshal the spiritual power, the joint effort and the liberating vision
will and human effort,” it said. Aims of the agreement included: - Getting faith communities to ensure their “supply chains” and investments are free from using or
The terror and disfigurement seen in the children convinced Andrew Forrest to join the fight. to eradicate modern slavery and human trafficking from our world and for all time,” the joint statement said. “This evil is manmade and can be overcome by faith-inspired human
profiting from slave labour. - Getting governments and business worldwide also to “slavery proof ” the goods and services they procure, produce or sell. - Educating families, schools, wor-
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shippers and groups about how to detect and report possible instances of human slavery and trafficking. - Convincing the world’s 20 most developed nations to condemn modern slavery and trafficking, and support a global fund to help poorer countries enact and enforce anti-trafficking measures. Mr Forrest said the initiative was being funded by himself and his wife through the Global Fund to End Slavery. He said he began the Walk Free Foundation after his daughter Continued page 3
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Caritas gives apathy a battering
Round-Up
Readers looking for organ concert details
JUANITA SHEPHERD
The Symphonique, Pipe Organ Plus concert mentioned in last week’s Record will take place at the Basilica of St Patrick in Fremantle at 2.30pm on March 23, 2014. Electronic tickets are available at www.trybooking. com/DWSI.
Willetton a paragon of collaboration The Parish Religious Education Program (PREP) at Saints John and Paul Willetton has enrolled 145 students from years one to seven to help prepare them for the Sacraments. Held at the parish centre, the program runs for an hour every Tuesday thanks to the generosity of the time from the 12 parish volunteers. “This wonderful work of catechises can continue because of the volunteers,” Mildred Rego the Catechist Coordinator told The Record. “ What is amazing though is that most of the Catechist also do work and rush to share their time at four o’clock.” Most of the team are accredited and commissioned catechists who teach the students about the Sacraments in the parish that are celebrated jointly with the Catholic School Orana. “We have the best collaboration going between parish and school,” Mrs Rego said. “The parish is truly blessed to have such a wonderful group of committed people.” The PREP Program commenced on February 18 with an opening Mass on Shrove Tuesday, the same day that Project Compassion was launched. “It was a great community celebration of all the families, parents, grandparents and children who stayed back and joined in the pancake fundraiser for Caritas,” Mrs Rego said.
New Norcia pilgrimage places still available A total of 24 places remain on the pilgrim walk from St Joseph’s Church
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Faiths unite: anti-slavery initiative Continued from page 1
Caritas Perth volunteers dish up the good stuff on Shrove Tuesday, March 4, at the Catholic Pastoral Centre in Highgate. It marked an opportunity to feast before the start of Lent, a time of fasting and alms giving. PHOTO: JUANITA SHEPHERD plan is to have a complaint free zone,” Mr Bell said. “That involves having a plan of action about how you will deal with issues if you do voice your complaint.” The trail wanders along the Sawn River to St Charles Seminary in Guildford up the Sawn Valley in Walyunga to the junction of the Avon River and Wooraloo Brook. After that the trail heads north along the Echidna Trail to Shady Hills, Chittering Valley and Julimar Forest.“Fr Joseph Walsh led the first walk to St Charles Seminary,” Mr Bell said. “We’ve had the most extraordinary soaring spirits; if you
Subiaco to New Norcia. The first pilgrimage commences on August 17 and the second on September 7. The pilgrimage has been going since 2008 and John Bell has been on every single one of them. “I walked the first one leaving Subiaco on September 1, the day before I ran the HBF inaugural 42km marathon so I was pretty sore.” Mr Bell told The Record. Despite the soreness Mr Bell found the pilgrim walk to be a meditative experience which saw him go back every year. He is now involved on the committee and is the coach driver. “Part of our
READINGS OF THE WEEK
SAINT OF THE WEEK
Dismas (the Good Thief )
Acting Editor Robert Hiini
editor@therecord.com.au
Accounts accounts@therecord.com.au Journalists Mark Reidy m.reidy@therecord.com.au Matthew Biddle m.biddle@therecord.com.au Juanita Shepherd j.shepherd@therecord.com.au
Two thieves were crucified with Christ; Dismas is the “good thief” who rebuked the other thief for reviling Jesus. In Luke’s Gospel, he accepts his guilt and proclaims Christ’s innocence. He asks Jesus to remember him, and Jesus promises, “Today you will be with me in paradise.” This feast date was assigned because by tradition Jesus died on March 25. But how an unnamed thief came to be called Dismas is less clear. One explanation is that early Syrian representations of the Crucifixion showed a sun and moon over the thieves’ heads; Syrian coins also showed a sun and moon with the words “east” and “west.” And “dismas” is similar to the Greek word for east. Dismas is a patron of funeral directors, prisoners and repentent thieves.
Saints
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Monday 24th - Violet 1st Reading: 2 Kings 5:1-15 Am I a god? Responsorial Ps 41:2-3, 42:3-4 Psalm: Thirsting for God Gospel Reading: Lk 4:24-30 Everyone enraged
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were to watch Geraldine Doouge’s SBS Compass program you might start to understand that, or The Way a 2011 movie by the Sheens.” Mr Bell said that there were a number of reasons to embark on the pilgrim walk, including the stunning views and unexpected events that occur along the way. “Last year someone started up on bagpipes as we were walking,” Mr Bell said. “This sent a huge flock of black cockatoos crazy and they sent the horses racing, it was quite a scene.” The pilgrim walk covers 25 km per day for seven days. More information - 9386 6975.
volunteered to work at an orphanage in Nepal and discovered the institution was, in essence, a marketplace for selling Nepalese children to countries “in India, the Middle East and beyond. The only children who were left had been severely disfigured or mentally handicapped so, therefore, were difficult to sell, to be blunt,” he said. Later when he visited child victims in Nepal receiving care after their abduction, he said the “terror and the disfigurement and the great and long term mental harm was raw” and evident in the children. “The revulsion and the fear that just an approaching man gave them -- the terror and the bloodcurdling scream when you just tried to comfort them,” he said, those were the moments that convinced him “to spend a part of my life eliminating and extinguishing slavery.”
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Tuesday 25th - Violet THE ANNUNCIATION OF THE LORD (SOLEMNITY) 1st Reading: Isa 7:10-14; 8-10 God is with us Responsorial Ps 39:7-11 Psalm: An open ear 2nd Reading: Heb 10:4-10 To obey your will Gospel Reading: Lk 1:26-38 Do not be afraid Wednesday 26th - Violet 1st Reading: Deut 4:1, 5-9 God is near to us Responsorial Ps 147:12-16, 19-20 Psalm: Praise your God! Gospel Reading: Mt 5:17-19 Observe the law Thursday 27th - Violet 1st Reading: Jer 7:23-28 They will not listen Responsorial Ps 94:1-2, 6-9
Psalm: Hear God’s voice Gospel Reading: Lk 11:14-23 Division equals ruin Friday 28th - Violet 1st Reading: Hos 14:2-10 Return to your God Responsorial Ps 80:8-11, 14, 17 Psalm: Heed my warning Gospel Reading: Mk 12:28-34 Two commandments Saturday 29th - Violet 1st Reading: Hos 5:15-6:6 Love, not sacrifice Responsorial Ps 50:3-4, 18-21 Psalm: A contrite heart Gospel Reading: Lk 18:9-14 Be merciful to me Sunday 30th - White 4TH SUNDAY OF LENT 1st Reading: 1 Sam 16:1, 6-7, 10-13 David anointed Responsorial Ps 22:1-6 Psalm: Anointed with oil 2nd Reading: Eph 5:8-14 Darkness to light Gospel Reading: Jn 9:1-41 I am the light
Contributors Debbie Warrier Barbara Harris Bernard Toutounji
Mariette Ulrich Fr John Flader
The Record PO Box 3075 Adelaide Terrace PERTH WA 6832 21 Victoria Square, Perth 6000 Tel: (08) 9220 5900 Fax: (08) 9325 4580 Website: www.therecord.com.au The Record is a weekly publication distributed throughout the parishes of the dioceses of Western Australia and by subscription. The Record is printed by Rural Press Printing Mandurah and distributed via Australia Post and CTI Couriers.
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St Mary’s goes green for Eire’s saint By Juanita Shepherd FOR many, St Patrick’s Day conjures up images of drinking, partying and the colour green. But as Fr Laurence Murphy SDS said last Monday, the festive occasion was also a hallmark of Christianity. The Father delivered a moving homily to hundreds of people dressed in varying shades of green, who gathered together at St Mary’s Cathedral on March 17 to celebrate St Patrick’s Day with a Mass hosted by the Archdiocese of Perth and the Irish Community of WA. “We have a heritage that we must cherish and foster as the years go by,” Fr Murphy said. “But why are we here today? I am here because it is St Patrick’s Day,” he said. “I thank God for friends and family and my Irishness; I’m a Dubliner and an Irishman and I am also a dinky die Aussie.” Born in 1932, Fr Murphy is originally from Dublin and has been in Australia for the past 48 years. Fr Murphy went on to explain what he meant by stating the various places he belongs to; he acknowledged the importance of St Patrick’s Day to the Irish but he also stressed the importance of the Catholic faith to everyone. “St Patrick’s Day is a celebration of our Irishness but it is also the faith that you cling on to and value,” he said. “It’s not just simply about our green but it has a message and that is if we can show love and respect for each other in the way we greet and speak to each other; if we do this every day it would be exactly what St Patrick’s is all about.” Tradition has it that Ireland’s patron saint was born into a wealthy Roman-Britain family in the fourth century. At the age of 16 he was kidnapped and taken to Gaelic Ireland where he spent six years as a shepherd and found solace in his Christianity. Eventually he found his way back home and became a priest. Following his ordination he returned to Ireland and set about converting the pagan Irish to
Many an emerald jersey: Young families pass on their culture at the St Patrick’s Day Mass at St Mary’s Cathedral, March 17.
Christianity. Elizabeth Few, a member of the congregation spoke to
St Patrick means faith to me. I survived cancer because of my faith and my love for Ireland’s great patron. The Record about what St Patrick meant to her. “He means faith to
PHOTOS: JUANITA SHEPHERD
me,” she said. “I survived cancer because of my faith and my love for St Patrick.” Sandra Took, another member of the congregation also shared her thoughts on the great saint with The Record. “St Patrick brings all the Irish people together,” she said. “He reminds me of home.” The celebrations included a reel from the WA Academy of Irish Dancing and a message from the President of Ireland read out by Alan Kelly, Minister for Public and Commuter Transport.
Catholic Charismatic Renewal
Perth, West Australia
CCR Together An evening of powerful praise and teaching with dynamic Brisbane evangelist
Fr Jack Soulsby SM th
Above, dancers from the WA Academy of Irish Dancing performing at St Mary’s on March 17. PHOTOS: J SHEPHERD
m
Fri, 28 March at the Como Parish hall, (cnr Canning Hwy/ Thelma St). Rosary 7pm; Prayer & Praise 7.30. Bring your bible, notepad and a heart open to the Spirit. Spirit. Admission is free,though a collection will be taken up.
Giving life to Jesus! – An insightful teaching by Fr Jack Soulsby SM -Come, and discover Jesus alive in the Scriptures and the Eucharist. Sat, 29th March - 1.30 – 4.30pm All Saints parish, 7 Liwara pl, Greenwood. … invite family and friends and see what the Holy Spirit can do for you! Cost: $15 Tea & Coffee provided; BYO bible. Queries to Frank: 0400 885 635 or 0417 852 977
Two lines of photo caption goes here. Please seek to avoid a flat description of pictured scene. PHOTO: ATTRIBUTION HERE
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Trinity go the whole hog for blood cancer cause YEAR 11 students Sheldon Dias, Mason Anderson, Liam Fernandes, Jesse Vivante and Rory Kendell raised over $4000 for the Leukaemia Foundation’s World’s Greatest Shave. The students had their hair shaved off during lunchtime in front of all of their peers and teachers on Thursday, 13 March 2014. The students surpassed their goal amount of raising $2000. Another important goal of theirs was to raise further awareness of the Leukaemia Foundation and their efforts in supporting families dealing with cancer in addition to the important research they are conducting. Teacher, Mr John Overton also took part by having his year-long beard shaved off by student, Jesse Vivante. Tony and Christian from North Perth salon, Trenz Hair Beauty and Tanning volunteered their services for the haircuts. The World’s Greatest Shave raises about half the money the Leukaemia Foundation needs to fund its important work – providing practical and emotional support to people with blood cancer, as well as investing millions in research. Western Australia has raised more than $1.5M so far, with nine individuals raising more than $10,000 (the highest figure being more than $29,500).
The students surpassed their goal amount of raising $2000.
Left and top: Young men from Trinity College pre and post-shave, raising more than $2000 for The World’s Greatest Shave. Above, Trinity teacher says goodbye to his year-long beard for the cause. PHOTO: SUPPLIED
Help Religious Sisters - the unsung heroines in the Church!
T
hey smile, they heal, they teach, they comfort. Around the globe Catholic religious sisters quietly perform their dedicated and heroic service without remuneration and barely even noticed by the wider world. But in order to help others, they themselves also need to be helped, for although they are ministering angels to so many, they themselves still need their daily bread and a roof over their heads.
Sr Lucia a religious sister from Italy rendering assistance to the poor in Ethiopia
Each year the Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) supports over 9,000 religious sisters in every corner of the globe. Many religious congregations turn to the charity for help, not least for the formation of their precious new vocations. While many congregations in the Western world have few or no new vocations and even seem to be dying out, in other parts of the world the religious communities are filled with young and smiling faces.
Christ provides shepherds in the making for Perth
ACN also helps those sisters active in the charitable apostolate, relieving them of the daily burden of supporting themselves while they also care for the poorest of the poor, whether in the slum quarters of the great cities, in the vast expanses of the Amazon rainforest, or in the remotest regions of the African Savannah. It is vital that the indispensable work of religious sisters in Christ’s Holy Catholic Church and throughout the missions worldwide continues. Religious sisters are the unsung heroines in the Church. ACN is therefore proud to help them in their efforts to make the world a better place, even just a little. The average grant ACN gives to support a religious sister or novice is $300 – but whatever you can afford will be enormously appreciated. ACN forwards the donations directly to the religious superiors in charge of the religious communities and congregations.
Fr Jean-Noel Marie, St Charles’ Seminary’s vice-rector, with the newest additions to the St Charles’ community. PHOTO: SUPPLIED
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To send your donation please fill in the coupon below. Anyone able to help this cause and who ticks the box below will also be sent a complimentary Vatican Rosary blessed by Pope Francis.
Some of the young and vibrant Dominican Sisters from Ho Chi Minh City that ACN supports The Papal rosary designed by the Vatican rosary makers will be sent out to all those who assist this cause and tick this box.
AID TO THE CHURCH IN NEED...a Catholic charity dependent on the Holy See, providing pastoral relief to needy and oppressed Churches
THE FUTURE of the Catholic Church in Western Australia looks bright with a number of impressive new seminarians beginning their formation at St Charles’ Borromeo Seminary this year. Nicholas Diedler, Gerard Nemorin, Joseph Hoang and Dominic Sandon, all from Perth, are settling in quickly as the new year of formation gets well underway. Fr Jean-Noel Marie, the seminary’s new Vice Rector and First Year Formator, also continues in his role as Vocations Director. “It is a great source of encouragement for me and others to see Our Lord continue to faithfully fulfil His promise to always provide shepherds for his flock.” He remarks, “It is reassuring that today, as in every age of history, Christ continues to call young men to courageously take up the invitation to ‘Come follow me’.”
Though new to join St Charles Borromeo Seminary, Abraham Chuckwu of the Bunbury Diocese and Jhee Baguinat and Jeffey Casabuena of the Perth Archdiocese, join the community with previous seminary formation and experience already from abroad.The total number of seminarians and deacons preparing for ordination as diocesan priests, in each of the four dioceses in Western Australia, now number 29, including 5 deacons. “We must persevere in our prayer for vocations to the priesthood,” continues Fr Jean-Noel. “Identifying and encouraging vocations in our own community and families is absolutely necessary.” “Those discerning should know that they need not work out this calling alone. Most often it is in sharing these promptings with someone like a priest that such a calling becomes clearer.”
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Student puts funds where her heart is By Juanita Shepherd TOUCHED by her visit to the Ronald McDonald House, Year Seven student from Sacred Heart College, Mia Agostino arrived at school recently with in a tin weighing 4.5kg, which held her pocket money from the last 12 months. Following the trip with The Sacred Heart Young Vinnies, Miss Agostino collected the money to donate towards the Ronald McDonald House, where she went to prepare and serve the evening meal for the families. “My experience at the Ronald McDonald House was life changing,” Miss Agostino wrote in a note to accompany her tin. The rest of the note stated that Miss Agostino loved cooking for the people of the house and enjoyed caring for others. She went on to thank God for allowing her to be able to help those in need and she prays that He keeps them in His care. “Our core values are to go beyond ourselves with compassion, courage and respect and Mia has responded to Jesus with these core values at the heart of her actions.” Peter Bothe, Principal of Sacred Heart College told The Record. As a new Year 7 student at Sacred Heart College, Miss Agostino is an example to others of faith giving life direction. She has been described by people at the college as a wonderful role model, living out the spirit of the Young Vinnies group, Sacred Heart College and of the founding sisters, the Sisters of Our Lady of the Missions.
Year 7 Sacred Heart College student, Mia Agostino with the tin full of her pocket money for the past 12 months. Miss Agostino decided to donate the money to Ronald McDonald House after visiting the facility with the college’s Young Vinnies group. PHOTO: SUPPLIED.
Sacred Heart College Young Vinnies’ Coordinator, Rossana Hywood also spoke to The Record. “It truly warmed my heart that
someone so young could be so in touch with their faith that they could act in this way,” she said. The tin is currently placed in the Technology
and Enterprise Learning Area being pried open before the coins will be added up. The money will be used to
buy food for the Young Vinnies projects, including Shopfront, Manna Industries and the Ronald McDonald House.
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Year Sevens have a rip-roaring time By Gabbi Williams and Claudia Schicker OUR recent Year Seven camp holds lots of memories that we hope to share with Kolbe’s current and future students. These were made so easily through the friendships, team sports and the challenges we met. For example, the screams of terror of the girls who found the huge spiders which kept us awake at night; the first time we jumped in the pool, which was like jumping into arctic waters; and the delicious feasts that created full bellies for all campers. The highlights of the camp were Joe’s Suitcase Circus, the frosty waters of the pool, the visit from [our Principal], Ms [Robbyn] Miller and her skip rope and finally, the Year Ten Peer Support Leaders who contributed to our camp activities. Pat Branson, Celeste Chalk (Liturgy Captain) and Alana Kursar travelled out to the camp on Thursday night to help the Year 7 students prepare and celebrate their camp liturgy. They divided the students into small groups and provided each group with a part of the liturgy to prepare. When they were ready, Celeste and Alana called the groups together and they celebrated their liturgy prayerfully. We also loved the sleepless nights that consisted of sweets being eaten, scary stories being told and front row tickets to [teacher] Mr [Adam] Iriks’ rendition of Hey Ya. The atmosphere or our ‘Friends Together’ camp was just buzzing with excitement along with the insects living in our dorms! Towards the end of this fantastic experience, we all enjoyed reading the heart warming notes that our fellow classmates left for us. Most importantly, the thing all of the Year Sevens will remember and keep are the memories and friendships we took home. We would like to thank Mr [Pat] McNulty and all the Year Seven Teachers for making this a wonderful camp where we really were able to ‘Create Something Awesome’. The response from all students was that, all-in-all, it was a wonderful camp and the weather was just right. Gabbi and Claudia are Year 7 students at Kolbe Catholic College.
Getting creative: Above, Kolbe Catholic College Year 7 students during a moment in their liturgy at their ‘Friends togther camp. PHOTOS: SUPPLIED
Fun and friendship galore: Moments from Koble Catholic College’s recent Year 7 camp. PHOTOS: LEANNE JOYCE, TANIA CROWDY AND STEVE WHEELER
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Above, Greenwood parishioner Jessamy Wellfare, right, and orphan Lien Nguyen, 14, who has an intellectual disability and receives care from Dominican nuns at Phu Quoc Island. PHOTOS: FR VINH DONG
All Saints’ great love at the coal face By Matthew Biddle FATHER Vinh Dong and a group of parishioners from All Saints Parish in Greenwood spent three weeks in Vietnam recently, where they distributed 300kg of donations to some of the country’s estimated 1.5 million orphans. Fr Vinh, Fr Peter Nguyen OP and 28 parishioners were in Vietnam from January 20 to February 12, where they combined sightseeing with charity work. The latter revolved around a Dominican-run orphanage on Phu Quoc Island, where 15 nuns care for about 80 children, most of whom are disabled. “We visited two orphanages and one ethnic community where the nuns work,” Fr Vinh explained. Clothing and toys, which the parish had collected in the lead-up to the trip, were given to the nuns to distribute among the children. The parish also raised an incredible $16,301.90 from various fundraisers, which was donated to the orphanages and the ethnic community, and donated 14 laptops to the Dominican nuns. Fr Vinh said the donations would make a significant difference to the lives of the orphans. “In Vietnam the government is very strict, they don’t look after the orphans at all,” he said. “The religious community looks after the orphans but they don’t receive any funding from the government.” The mission trip was the first time Francis and Daryl Barr Kumarakulasinghe had been to Vietnam, and the couple said they were struck by the plight of the nation’s poor. “We come from Sri Lanka originally so we know what poverty is,” Mr Barr Kumarakulasinghe said. “But the difference in Vietnam is it’s still ruled by a Communist government, so the sympathy is absent. “We were surprised to see that there is no assistance, no help, and they purely live on providence, and yet they are so content, and so happy with their lot.” Mr Barr Kumarakulasinghe said the immense joy visible in the orphanages was deeply touching.
Maria and Vincent Costanzo, above right, who volunteered to be godparents to orphan Vincent Pham (b Nov 23, 2013), pictured in pink, baptised by Fr Vinh Dong.
“It is not a morbid place where they’re left to rot. They live a full life... which is thanks to the nuns and the work they do,” he said. “These are young women in their mid-20s, not older nuns, and they’re doing this work and there’s so much joy.” Having seen the orphanage and meeting some of the orphans, the Barr Kumarakulasinghes decided they would commit to being the godparents for one of three orphans who Fr Vinh baptised during the group’s visit. “We know it’s a lifelong commitment,” Mr Barr Kumarakulasinghe said. “It was not an emotional decision, we saw the need and we thought this was our way of giving back.”
Mrs Kumarakulasinghe said she was amazed at how the nuns functioned from day-to-day and were grateful for even the smallest of donations. “[Visiting the orphanages] was definitely the highlight for me, it
Sr Theresa My Nguyen, who is one of the nuns in charge of the orphanage, told The Record via a translator there are orphanages set up all over Vietnam to deal with the rising number of children without parents.
“It is not a morbid place where they’re left to rot. They live a full life... which is thanks to the nuns and the work they do”. put a whole different sphere on my trip,” she said. “It has left an indelible mark, I think, on us. “We all had the same highlights, visiting the orphanages and seeing the happiness on those children’s faces, and even the nuns’.”
She said the Dominican nuns often convince young, pregnant women who are unable to provide for their baby or ashamed of having a child outside of marriage not to abort their baby by offering to care for the child at the orphanage.
“We try our best to give [the orphans] an education like any other child... and we try our best to raise them up as if they were raised in a home,” Sr Theresa said. She added that the orphanage is in continual need of benefactors, without which they have no means of caring for the children. “The government always harass us because they often come to our place and they say that our place is too small and we have too many children,” Sr Theresa said. “So the most urgent need now is for more space... because there are orphans coming in all the time but we don’t have enough space for them.” Fr Vinh plans to take a youth group on a mission trip to Vietnam in October.
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Pope meets with Ukrainian Patriarch POPE FRANCIS met privately at the Vatican with the head of the Ukrainian Catholic Church March 17, the day after pro-Russian voters on the Crimean peninsula voted to secede from Ukraine in a referendum the United States and European Union called illegal. While Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk of Kiev-Halych, head of the Eastern-rite church in Ukraine, declined requests for interviews, it was assumed his talk with the pope would include a discussion about the fate of the Ukrainian Catholic priests ministering in Crimea. Ukrainian Bishop Borys Gudziak of Paris, head of the Ukrainian church’s external relations department, issued a statement March 15 saying Father Mykola Kvych, pastor of the Dormition of the Mother of God Parish in Sevastopol, was taken from his church that morning, “seized by two men in uniform and four men in civilian clothing.” Earlier in the week, Bishop Gudziak said, the church’s leadership had urged Father Kvych and the other priests in Crimea to evacuate their wives and children to mainland Ukraine. “The priests themselves returned to their parishes to be with their faithful in a time of crisis and moral and physical danger,” he said. Several hours after Father Kvych was taken from the church, the Ukrainian Catholic Church’s information service reported he had been freed after questioning, which apparently focused on accusations that he had been organizing anti-Russian riots. The next day, however, parishioners helped him leave Crimea. He told the church
People watch fireworks during celebrations after the preliminary results of the Crimean referendum are announced on March 16 in Lenin Square in Simferopol, Ukraine. PHOTO: CNS/THOMAS PETER, REUTERS
information service that “several unknown individuals” continually rang the doorbell of his apartment,
left the city. Father Kvych also said that he spoke to the priests in Yalta and Yevpatoria, who were “now
The church’s leadership had urged Father Kvych and the other priests in Crimea to evacuate their wives and children to mainland Ukraine then tried to break in. When they left, he took the chalice and paten he uses for Divine Liturgies and some important documents and
in a safe place. He didn’t mention where exactly,” the information service said. Ukrainian Catholics make up about 10 percent of Crimea’s 2
million inhabitants; the majority of the people on the peninsula are ethnic Russians and speak Russian. Ousted Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych fled to Russia in late February and, in early March, Russian forces entered Crimea. Crimean politicians said more than 96 percent of voters participating in the referendum March 16 voted to secede from Ukraine. Members of the Crimean Parliament March 17 formally asked to join the Russian Federation. - CNS
Pope lauded at one year mark POPE FRANCIS “has taken the world by storm” in the year since his election, Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz of Louisville, Ky., the president of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, said March 13. “The eyes of the world are on the church. There’s a real call (by the pope) to make us more pastoral, to be able to reach out and accompany people,” he said. “The pope does it the way Jesus said: ‘Don’t just tell people to do something but do it yourself.’” Archbishop Kurtz and Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York appeared on “CBS This Morning” to talk about the pope as the Catholic Church around the globe marked the first anniversary of his election. Later, Archbishop Kurtz and Cardinal Dolan, immediate past president of the USCCB, concelebrated Mass at St. Patrick’s Cathedral to mark the pope’s anniversary. It was one of many Masses said around the United States in honour of Pope Francis’ first year as the 265th successor of Peter. In Washington, Cardinal Donald Wuerl was the main celebrant at a Mass where he encouraged the congregation to, like Pope Francis, “walk in the footsteps of St. Francis of Assisi as disciples of Jesus who seek to bring his love and hope to others, particularly the poor and neglected in our world.” “The invitation of Pope Francis to a fresh way of living the Gospel is a bright beacon of hope in our world. Let us simply offer thanks to God for this pastor of souls,” he said. In New York, the hosts of “CBS This Morning” asked Cardinal Dolan and Archbishop Kurtz if the Catholic Church had gotten the spiritual leader the cardinals expected in electing then-Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio to be pope. “I think we knew what we were
Pope Francis smiles as he leaves his general audience on March 5 in St Peter’s Square at the Vatican. PHOTO: CNS/PAUL HARING
getting because we elected him,” Cardinal Dolan said, but the surprise might be how in just one year he has led the church “so successfully, so effectively, so expeditiously,” he added. “He’s just been a great role model,” Archbishop Kurtz added.
One of the CBS hosts noted that Pope Francis has tried to deflect the media attention being paid to him as some kind of superstar and that he just wants to be seen as “a normal person.” In response, Cardinal Dolan said: “I think the more simple he wants
to be, the more sincere he wants to be, the more natural he wants to be, the more himself he wants to be -and all of that is as genuine as can be -- the more his popularity and esteem goes up.” “Now that shouldn’t surprise us, because that’s the Gospel. Jesus told us when get rid of pomp and prestige, power and clout, people are going to love you and accept you more and that’s happening with him,” the cardinal continued, “so his very ability to put the attention and the spotlight somewhere else, has only intensified” it on him. Archbishop Kurtz added: “In many ways he puts the attention on the person in front of him, and people love that. Don’t we all love to be noticed?” Asked if church doctrine is going to change under Pope Francis, Cardinal Dolan and Archbishop Kurtz both replied that it cannot change, but also urged people to understand there will be a change in pastoral strategy. “(Pope Francis) ... says over and over again, ‘I’m a son of the church,’ and his responsibility is to preserve and hand on timeless teachings of the church,” the archbishop said. “Sometimes people make a mistake and think nothing new is going to happen,” he added, but “you can see already the difference he has made in his own pastoral strategy and that’s really what we’re talking about, not (changing) the timeless teachings of the church.” Cardinal Dolan added: “Doctrine itself can’t be (changed) ... the substance of what God has revealed to us in the Bible, in natural law, in and through his church, that’s a pretty that’s a small nugget of timeless immutable truth. He can’t change that. The way it’s presented and the discipline of the church -- our style, strategy, pastoral methodology, that he can and will change.” - CNS
HONG KONG
Underground bishop of Shanghai dies at 96 BISHOP Joseph Fan Zhongliang of Shanghai, a prominent leader of China’s underground Catholic Community, died after a brief illness March 16 at his home. He was 96. Bishop Fan, like many other Catholic leaders, served in prison after he and other priests were arrested in 1955 during a government crackdown. From 1958 to 1978, Bishop Fan was imprisoned in Qinghai province, where his job was to carry corpses in a cemetery, reported the Asian church news portal ucanews.com. China’s estimated 10 million-12 million Catholics are divided between two communities: one that, for decades, remained underground because it did not accept compromises and political control after the Chinese communist takeover in the 1950s, and one that the Vatican has acknowledged accepted some compromises and political control in order to continue its existence. Both are faithful to the pope, and both have faced persecution from Chinese authorities. Anthony Lam Sui-ki, senior researcher at the Holy Spirit Study Center in Hong Kong, said Shanghai has lost a “steadfast and persevering” leader in Bishop Fan.
EL SALVADOR
Govern with ‘attitude of dialogue’, bishops plea EL SALVADOR’S Catholic bishops called for the incoming president to govern with an “attitude of dialogue and consultation” after a former guerrilla commander was pronounced the winner of a bitterly contested election. The guerrilla-turned-presidentialcandidate Salvador Sanchez Ceren was declared victorious March 13 by the slimmest of margins -- some 6,300 of more than 3 million votes cast -- marking another victory for the ruling Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front. The hotly contested election, the winner of which was unclear for days, divided the Central American country of 6 million. In their March 15 letter, the Catholic bishops were quick to remind politicians that their responsibility was to the people. “The winner of the elections should be the Salvadoran people,” the conference said. The incoming president should seek accords so that “together we can solve major national problems.” The tiny Central American country has been beset by violence and drastic social inequality. Drug trafficking, gang violence and the aftermath of the 12-year civil war, which ended in 1992, has left the country with the world’s second-highest murder rate, behind neighboring Honduras. Crime and the economy were major factors in the presidential election.
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Read the Bible on the bus, pope recommends If you get a seat on a crowded bus, you should use your travel time to read a few lines from the Bible, Pope Francis told members of a suburban parish filled with people who commute to Rome for work. “A Christian’s first task is to listen to the word of God, to listen to Jesus, because he speaks to us and saves us with his word,” the pope said March 16 during a homily at the parish of Santa Maria dell’Orazione on the northeast outskirts of Rome. Everyone should carry a small Bible or pocket edition of the Gospels and should find at least a few minutes every day to read the word of God, Pope Francis said. The pope suggested “... when you have a seat” on the bus or a minute or so free somewhere else, “pick up the Gospel and read a few words.” - CNS
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“If you have a large heart, you will receive more” JUDGING someone is always easier than to being merciful and understanding, Pope Francis said. The difficulty is why it is so important to keep reminding oneself, “Who am I to judge?” the pope said March 17 at his early morning Mass in the Domus Sanctae Marthae, where he resides. The day’s Gospel reading was from St Luke: “Jesus said to his disciples: ‘Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. Stop judging and you will not be judged. Stop condemning and you will not be condemned.’” According to Vatican Radio’s report on the homily, Pope Francis told those gathered in the chapel that to fight the natural inclination to judge others, one must recognise that “we are sinners,” be ashamed of
Smartphone apps, new life to Lent This is not your parents’ Lent. That’s pretty clear when smartphone alarms - sounding like police whistles - ring at mealtimes on Fridays along with text messages from the “meat police” offering reminders such as: “Hey, it’s Friday, drop the cheeseburger!” The Friday no-meat reminder comes through the Lentsanity app produced by the Fellowship of Catholic University Students. By the third day of Lent, the app - which also offers plenty of Lenten resources - already had more than 10,000 downloads. Jonathan Teixeira and Kevin Cotter, the brains behind the program, work at the group’s headquarters just outside Denver. They told Catholic News Service on March 7 that they began working on the project a few months ago. “Lent is a great opportunity for people to get into their faith, to try something for 40 days, and we wanted to provide something for people and how to do it,” said Teixeira. He said the app has “taken on life of its own from (promotion) online and word of mouth.” Cotter likened the app’s appeal to the popularity of the pope alarm app they developed last year that sent more than 135,000 notifications after the Sistine Chapel released white smoke indicating that the cardinals had elected a new pope. “People are proud to be Catholic,” Cotter said, and if technology can bring people together around their faith, “it’s even better” because people love to show their friends what’s on their phones, he added. - CNS
one’s sins and ask the grace of God’s mercy and forgiveness. In the face of repentance, he said, “the justice of God is transformed into mercy and forgiveness.” Pope Francis told his small congregation, “It’s true that none of us
“Always remember, ‘Who am I to judge?’ feel shame and enlarge your heart...” has killed anyone, but we have done many little things, many daily sins every day,” and when one realizes that every sin is a sin against God, it’s a cause for shame.
“It is simple,” he said, “but very difficult to say, ‘I have sinned.’” Yet once someone admits their sinfulness and asks God’s forgiveness, the pope said, they become more capable of showing mercy to others. It takes exercise and discipline, he said, but as a Christian one must “enlarge your heart.” “The Lord says, ‘stop judging and you will not be judged. Stop condemning and you will not be condemned. Forgive and you will be forgiven. Give and you will receive.’ This is generosity of heart,” the pope said. “If you have a big, large heart, you will receive more.” “Who am I to judge?” is a question that should come naturally to anyone who recognizes that he or she has sinned and been forgiven by God’s mercy, he said. - CNS
Pope Francis kisses a disabled child during a visit on March 16 to the parish of Santa Maria dell’Orazione on the outskirts of Rome. PHOTO: CNS/STEFANO RELLANDINI
Frustration grows as immigration reform stalls
An activist leads a chant as people prepare to enter US Customs during a protest at the US-Mexico border in Tijuana, Mexico, March 16. Frustration is growing over the lack of progress on immigration reform and protests about the rise in deportations have become more widespread. PHOTO: CNS/ SANDY HUFFAKER, REUTERS
Buddhists donate to rebuild damaged church ON a recent Sunday morning, the congregation at Santo Nino Parish in Tacloban crammed into a space one-third the true size of the Church. The crowd spilled out onto the courtyard, which had two big gray tents bearing the logo of a Buddhist foundation. Mgr Alex Opiniano celebrated the Mass at an altar whose back wall consisted of plywood boards. Behind the boards the nave was bare of pews and had no real roof, just a metal frame and some ripped shingles. The top of the bell tower was the same, and the cross on its steeple hung down from the tip. The Church known as the centre of life in this city of 97 percent Catholics still bore the ravages of November’s Typhoon Haiyan, which crushed the central
Philippines with 195-mile-per-hour winds that brought a 15-foot storm surge. But the Church was finally under rehabilitation thanks to a donation that could reach $280,000 from a Taiwan-based Buddhist foundation called Tzu Chi. After Mass, Mgr Opiniano told Catholic News Service he was heartened that people were “identifying, empathizing with our situation, knowing that we are in a situation of want, and helpless with regard to fund generation, considering the fact that people have lost almost everything.” Tzu Chi’s Philippine country head, Alfred Li, said the group’s founder, Dharma Master Cheng Yen, wanted to help the Church. “She said ... Filipinos are Catholic and, especially at this time, they
need spiritual guidance. They need spiritual support, and the Church is the best that can do that,” Li told CNS in a phone interview. Since the typhoon, Li said, Tzu Chi has pumped $22.7 million into the typhoon-stricken swath of the country to help provide shelter, build new schools and get people back on their feet. “I was so impressed with Tzu Chi,” said William Diaz, a 51-year old driver who was born and raised in Tacloban. “They helped clear these roads with their ‘cash for work’ program.” Diaz, a Catholic, told CNS the foundation was a big motivator for residents like himself who lost their houses. Tzu Chi gave them $11.35 per day to help clear the debris of their obliterated homes. That’s
nearly double the minimum wage of about $6 per day in this part of the country. Li said Santo Nino let Tzu Chi set up its cash-for-work station on Church grounds until the daily crowds swelled to nearly 35,000 and it had to find another location. He said the foundation wanted to give back to the Church for helping it carry out its mission of service to those in dire need. After a chance meeting on a plane from Manila en route to Tacloban, Li learned from Mgr Opiniano that the Church needed $280,000 to be completely rehabilitated. Li ran this by Tzu Chi’s founder, who gave him the go-ahead to give the money, with one condition: The Church had to be amenable to the donation. But Church officials also wanted parishioners to do their part, which
was why the Tzu Chi foundation was not obligated to donate the entire $280,000. At the end of every Mass, Santo Nino has a second collection, and celebrants deliver this message each time, said Mgr Opiniano: “Give your share (to the rehabilitation), small or big for as long as this comes straight from the heart. That would really be a great thing.” “We are so happy that practically the whole world have come to our rescue to (help) rebuild the lives of the families, the communities in the typhoon-stricken area,” said Mgr Opiniano. “But we in the Church, while working also in the same relief operations ... we have to focus on the greatest relief that we can give to our people, God himself.” - CNS
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Richard pitches tent with Christ March 9 saw a momentous event for the Ukrainian Catholic community of St John the Baptist Church in Maylands as the head of the Ukrainian Catholic Church in Australia, Bishop Peter Stasiuk CSsR ordained Perth teacher and icon painter, Richard Charlwood to the Diaconate in a liturgical celebration of great colour, prayerfulness and dignity, writes Robert Hiini.
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Above: Bishop Peter Stasiuk CSsR and the soon-to-beordained sub deacon Richard Charlwood. PHOTO: ATTRIBUTION HERE
ICHARD Charlwood, a Perth teacher and one of Australia’s leading icon painters, was ordained a Deacon for the Ukrainian Catholic Church in Perth on March 9 before a full church of confreres and friends. Bishop Peter Stasiuk CSsR, the head of the Ukrainian Church in Australia, joined the community at St John the Baptist Church in Maylands as the ordaining prelate. The solemn liturgy was sung in both Ukrainian and English. No musical instruments were used but the parish choir led the people in responses to the Bishop’s and parish priest Fr Wolodymyr Kalinecki’s petitions using beautiful four part harmonies. Speaking with The Record, earlier this week, Deacon Richard said it was difficult to pinpoint the precise moment at which a man became a deacon during the rite of ordination. At the start he was a sub deacon. By the time the Greek “Axios” (He is worthy!) was proclaimed he was a deacon. Whereas Roman Catholic tradition has tended to treat the sacraments as tightly defined and specific acts, Eastern Catholic tradition prefers to speak of the sacraments as mysteries and the ineffable conference of God’s grace. Serving as a sub deacon for most of the liturgy, having been elevated to the office on June 23 last year, Richard entered through the royal doors of the Icon screen demarking the sanctuary, the holy of holies, after the consecration. In one of the most moving parts of the ceremony, he was then led around the altar three times, kissing its corners as he went, before kneeling on one knee before the Eucharist on the altar. The bishop then recited a number of prayers as he laid his Omophorion (episcopal stole) and hand on Richard’s head. Formerly a Roman Catholic and a religious, Deacon Richard began attending the parish for a time circa 1993-94, returning in 2007 before formally becoming a Ukrainian Catholic in 2008. “A priest some time ago said to me, “well, you can’t help who you fall in love with,” Deacon Richard said of his joining the Ukrainian Catholic
Above: Bishop Peter Stasiuk CSsR enters St John the Baptist Church in Maylands. R HIINI
Left and below: During the ordination celebration, Mr Charlwood processed around altar three times, kissing each of its corners before kneeling before the Eucharist on the altar. PHOTOS: ROBERT HIINI
Above: Bishop Peter Stasiuk CSsR, left, and Richard Charlwood, 3rd from left, with priests from the Ukrainian and Roman Catholic Churches, and the Greek Orthodox Church.
Church. “My vocation goes way back. Once I had left the religious life, the call didn’t really go. The call remained and it was really a matter of finding where to pitch my tent.” The Deacon said he had been “flat out” since his ordination, serving the Liturgy of the Pre-Sanctified, a Lenten service incorporating Vespers and Holy Communion, every Wednesday and Friday at the parish. He also delivered his first homily during last Sunday’s Liturgy. He has been learning the parts of the liturgy he has to sing in Ukrainian but said he was “not there yet”.
The role of the deacon in the Ukrainian Catholic Church’s liturgy was perhaps more pronounced in than it was in the Roman Church, he said. “The deacon receives a unique charism of service in the celebration of the
In his homily, Bishop Stasiuk pointed to the importance and dignity of the office of deacon in the early Church and in the contemporary Ukrainian Catholic Church. Although the ministry of a dea-
My vocation goes way back... The call remained and it was really a matter of finding where to pitch my tent. Divine Liturgy. He moves between the Nave and the Altar area, exhorting both the people and the priest to continue praying, but does not directly address prayers to God himself. This is the priest’s role.”
con in the Eastern Churches includes teaching and preaching, his most visible and obvious role was reciting litanies during the Holy Liturgy. This role is to call people to prayer; to elevate their thoughts and hearts to God, just
as he elevates the Book of the Holy Gospels and the Holy Gifts. Bishop Stasiuk said the community might be surprised at how much of the liturgy the newly ordained deacon would facilitate, with the priest speaking around only 10-15 per cent of the prayers, often initiated by the deacon. “You have a deacon, and thank God that you do,” Bishop Stasiuk said. “Now you have a priest. You have a deacon. You have a Sister, and you have all of the baptized people, fellow Christians, Ukrainian Catholics who have many obligations towards rebuilding the Church of God, and fostering the faith.”
Above: The newly-ordained Deacon Richard Charlwood is greated by friends and loved ones.
PHOTOS: ROBERT HIINI
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COMMON SENSE Lighten up. Find some pleasure. Don’t be such a wetblanket. In whose writings will you find these timeless tidbits of advice? Those attentive to his actual work, will find that Thomas Aquinas wanted to help people live a considered, holy life, writes Dr Andrew Kania, not a miserable one.
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HE FRENCH philosopher, Michel de Montaigne, once wrote about an unfortunate incident that occurred to a young noble woman – she broke wind in public. Whereas I am sure incidences of public flatulence, have affected most human beings, through out the ages – this young lady was so embarrassed, she committed suicide. Montaigne’s point in recalling this anecdote, was that we shouldn’t be so myopic on the human condition. What should have been laughed off quickly as a mere accident, or brief loss of bodily control, became the trigger of fatal shame. In his discussion of the virtue of ‘Moderation’ in Summa Theologiae, St. Thomas Aquinas provides a number of refreshing insights and reminders for we ‘moderns’. Moderation, according to Aquinas is the search for balance in the way we live. If we are too strict in how we approach life and living, we run the risk of becoming scrupulous, in religion this is best seen in superstition, what Aquinas terms as ‘religious overdrive’. Conversely, if we are lax in our behaviour, we can easily dupe ourselves, that nothing is sinful. Balance and common sense are required if one is to live a truly holy life, or as Aristotle would write – the good life. Being a good follower of Aristotle, Aquinas always stresses the ‘golden mean’. Aquinas is the patron Saint of common sense; he is sublime enough to be ethereal, but simultaneously human enough to remain earthed. So, as an example, let us unpack a passage from Aquinas, in which he deals with ‘Moderation’. Aquinas writes: “Our outward gestures betray our inward disposition: ‘the apparel on our bodies, the smile on our face, the way we walk, all show what we are.” Insofar as such gestures are directed towards others they must be controlled by friendliness and affability; insofar as they express our inward dispositions they must be controlled by truthfulness.” (Saint Thomas Aquinas, ST, III, q 168, a1). Look carefully at the importance that Aquinas places on the inner man and woman, and how what is churning away on the inside determines what the world sees on the outside. The clothing we wear, (our ability to afford the garments we most desire, aside), indicate so much about us. As I write
Above: A stack of 5 volumes of “The Summa Theological of St Thomas Aquinas” in which lies his discussion of the virtue of ‘Moderation’. Right: St. Thomas Aquinas is depicted in a painting hanging at the Dominican House of Studies in Washington. The Dominican philosopher and theologian. PHOTOS: ONLINE/CNS
this piece, I am wearing a non-iron white business shirt, and non-iron grey trousers. Why? First and foremost, my workplace requires that I wear a certain type of clothing, and I, making the best of the situation, don’t wish to iron. Second, what does this say about me? Not only that I am happy to conform on things that to me matter little, but that I don’t wish to spend a minute more than I need too, in order to iron. I would rather spend more money, to spend less time at the ironing board. I also wear white shirts, because this cuts back on doing too many coloured washes. All this could mean that I am inherently lazy, but it may also mean that my time priorities lie elsewhere. I do know people who iron their bed-linen, as well as those who iron their underwear; I also know others who pay others to do this for them, something I could not do. In any event, what Aquinas wishes to stress is that our outward gestures should not find us out as liars. The American philosopher, Henry
David Thoreau would put it simply, that we should never take up a new occupation, that required from us that we change our wardrobe – for by doing so we run the risk of becoming on the outside, some-
to their child’s school, and seeing all the mothers arriving in expensive four wheel drives. Aquinas and Thoreau would concur, that a new car may be in order if the car one is driving is on its last gasp, but to
Look carefully at the importance that Aquinas places on the inner man and woman, and how ... the inside determines what the world sees on the outside. - Dr Andrew Kania thing quite distinct from our inner being. Most of us I feel can relate to what Thoreau is saying. I can recall one parent at an expensive school telling me that they bought a new car, as they felt inadequate driving
change vehicles in order to look like the others, is similar to dying one’s hair a darker shade in the hope of restoring the health of one’s youth. Yet people do both, go into debt in order to look wealthy, and dye
their hair to appear youthful. I also remember a student telling me that the reason that their mother had chosen to send them to the school that I was then teaching at, was because she wanted to place the school’s name on her curriculum vitae, and that this would enhance her employability; that is, my children are educated at ‘X College’. Appearances, is what Aquinas condemns. Life is too short to just ‘appear’ – one must strive to be genuine, to be real, to be both inwardly and outwardly truthful. There are constraints of course on the degree to which we can be open and frank with our neighbour, for civility sometimes requires of us, at least a modicum of restraint; but we cannot succeed in altering our outward self without running the risk of losing who we are on the inside, and vice versa. Aquinas continues his passage on moderation: “Just as we relieve bodily tiredness by bodily rest, so we relieve tiredness of soul by pleasure, which is rest to the soul.
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Honouring the name above all other names When I was growing up I was taught to bow my head whenever I said or heard the name “Jesus”. I have noticed that some priests still bow their heads in Mass but no one else seems to do it anymore except for some of us oldies. How has this come about?
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We take a break from serious intent and take refuge in words and deeds which are playful and humorous, giving us the pleasure we seek … What we actually do in play has no other goal; but the accompanying pleasure serves the soul’s recreation and rest.” (Saint Thomas Aquinas, ST, III, q 168, a2). So here is one of history’s most serious thinkers and contemplatives telling us that going to parties and telling jokes, is in fact a Godgiven necessity, for good living. How can we deal with so much of the seriousness of life, if we cannot take time to see the lighter side of living? Again, Thomas teaches us about balance. As with all things Thomistic, there is the counter side of the teaching. Aquinas continues: “Play can go over the top if it becomes obscene or harmful to our fellowmen, or if the circumstances are wrong.” (Saint Thomas Aquinas, ST, III, q 168, a2). Thomas condemns as did St Ambrose jocularity with regard sacred matters. But Thomas
Aquinas is certainly no kill-joy, for he clearly emphasises that: “it is also unreasonable to be a burden to others, never agreeable but always a wet blanket, never saying anything nonsensical and reacting grumpily when others do. Aristotle calls such people rough boors.” (Saint Thomas Aquinas, ST, III, q 168, a4). We have all met those people who are suffocated by their desire to appear ‘intellectual’. To some extent I can understand them. When I first received my Doctoral degree, I felt a very heavy weight around my neck; a weight similar to Coleridge’s albatross, I felt as if I always had to appear intelligent, and as Aquinas said, that I could never say anything nonsensical. In fact, others also expected this ‘perfection’ from me. When I arrived for a casual, impromptu visit to my new workplace, dressed comfortably in teeshirt, shorts and thongs, the secretary looked at me in disbelief, asking me whether I really was ‘Dr Kania’. Perhaps I disappointed
them, but I recalled Aquinas soon enough. There is time and place and moderation in all things. It wasn’t a work-day, I was on holidays, and just wished to take a small visit. There are many people who wish to ‘appear’ intelligent, but few who wish to ‘be’ intelligent, and the latter are those who, as Aquinas teaches, are willing to risk saying a few silly things if the time and place allow. As Desiderius Erasmus once wrote about his friend, St Thomas More, he could not determine whether More was a wise foolish man, or whether he was a foolish wise man; he only knew he loved him dearly. Life is too short, so we must read the best books first, as Thoreau taught us – similarly life is too short to be anything other than oneself, and Aquinas gives us ample enough instruction and encouragement to live reality, rather than a dream (or for that matter, a nightmare), in order to appear, like a shadow in moonlight.
TOO belong to the generation that learned to bow our heads at the name of Jesus, but, as you say, the custom seems to be falling into disuse. So important is respect for the divine name that God chose to give us a separate commandment regarding it: “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain” (Deut 5:11). Elsewhere in the Old Testament there are numerous passages that speak of the holiness of God’s name, among them: “O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!” (Ps 8:1; cf. Zach 2:13; Ps 29:2; 96:2; 113:1-2). In the New Testament St James denounces those “who blaspheme that honourable name by which you are called” (Jas 2:7). And St Paul, referring to Jesus emptying himself to take the form of a servant and then becoming obedient unto death, writes: “Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Phil 2:9-11). By way of concretising respect for the name of Jesus in a formal way the Second Council of Lyons in 1274 decreed that “at the name of Jesus every knee should bow; whenever that glorious name is recalled, especially during the sacred mysteries of the Mass, everyone should bow the knees of his heart, which he can do even by a bow of his head.” As regards what is to be done in Mass today, the General Instruction of the Roman Missal says: “A bow of the head is made when the three Divine Persons are named together and at the names of Jesus, of the Blessed Virgin Mary and of the saint in whose honor Mass is being celebrated” (GIRM 275). The importance of honouring the holy name of Jesus is seen too in the feast of that name, which has been celebrated, at least at the local level, since the end of the fifteenth century. The feast was inserted into the universal calendar by Pope Innocent XIII in 1721. Although it was removed when the calendar was revised in 1969 it was restored under Pope John Paul II in 2002 and is now celebrated on January 3. The Divine Praises we say in Benediction are another manifestation of respect for the divine name, with the words
Q&A FR JOHN FLADER
“Blessed be his Holy Name.” The Divine Praises were originally written in 1797 to make reparation for blasphemy and profanity against God. Another testimony to the importance of honouring the name of Jesus is the existence of the Holy Name Society in many countries. The Society has its origins in the Second Council of Lyons in 1274, which prescribed that the faithful should have special devotion to the holy name of Jesus and that reparation should be made for the insults against that name by the Albigenses and other heretics of the time. Pope Gregory X, in 1274, entrusted to the newly-founded Dominicans the task of preaching the devotion. The Holy Name Society today has as its
At the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. aim to promote respect for the name of God and Jesus and to make reparation for the many blasphemies and other sins against that name. Given the widespread misuse of the names of God and Jesus today in ordinary life, as well as on television, in films and in other forms of entertainment, it is especially important to do all we can to restore respect for the name of God. Bowing our head when we pronounce or hear the name of Jesus is a very good way to do this. Also important is to make an internal act of reparation whenever we hear the name of God or Jesus blasphemed. It should hurt us that the object of our love is mistreated in this way. It may very well be that the custom of bowing the head at the name of Jesus will pass out of general use, as have other laudable customs in recent times, but that does not prevent us personally from continuing to live it and passing on to our children this ancient custom. For more, go to fatherfladerblog.wordpress.com or contact Fr Flader on frjflader@gmail.com.
FUN FAITH With
MARCH 23, 2014 • JOHN 4: 5-42 • 3RD SUNDAY OF LENT
CROSSWORD
TODAY’S GOSPEL John 4: 5-42
JESUS LIVING WATER THIRSTY SAMARITAN Across 3. Jesus replied, “If you only knew the gift God has for you and who you are speaking to, you would ask me, and I would give you ____ water.” 5. She said to Jesus, “You are a Jew, and I am a ____ woman. Why are you asking me for a drink?” Down
soon become thirsty again. But those who drink the water I give will never be ____ again...” 2. Eventually ____ came to the Samaritan village of Sychar, tired from the long walk, sat wearily beside a well about noontime. 4. Soon a Samaritan woman came to draw ____, and Jesus said to her, “Please give me a drink.”
Eventually Jesus came to the Samaritan village of Sychar, tired from the long walk, sat wearily beside a well about noontime. Soon a Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, “Please give me a drink.” The woman was surprised, for Jews refuse to have anything to do with Samaritans.* She said to Jesus, “You are a Jew, and I am a Samaritan woman. Why are you asking me for a drink?” Jesus replied, “If you only knew the gift God has for you and who you are speaking to, you would ask me, and I would give you living water.” ”But sir, you don’t have a rope or a bucket,” she said, “and this well is very deep. Where would you get this living water? Jesus replied, “Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again. But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.” ”Please, sir,” the woman said, “give me this water! Then I’ll never be thirsty again, and I won’t have to come here to get water.” The time is coming—indeed it’s here now—when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for those who will worship him that way. For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.” The woman said, “I know the Messiah is coming—the one who is called Christ. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.” Then Jesus told her, “I AM the Messiah!”
1. “Anyone who drinks this water will
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But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.
VISTA
therecord.com.au March 19, 2014
A boy shows his soccer skills to journalists on July 23 visiting the Varginha section of the Manguinhos complex of slums in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
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PHOTO: CNS/PAUL HARING
Don’t let them take the little we have With the two bigest sporting events taking place in Brazil over the next two years, Caritas is calling on FIFA and the International Olympic Committee to protect the poor from being evicted from their homes in the slums of Rio de Janeiro.
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C R O S S Wester n Australia and the country, schools, parishes, community groups and Caritas Australia supporters have been coming together to raise money for this year’s Project Compassion, one of Australia’s largest humanitarian campaigns. As Brazil prepares to host the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympics, the Catholic Church’s International Aid and Development Agency, Caritas Australia and its supporters are calling on the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to stop the eviction of poor and marginalised families in the country’s favelas (slum districts). Caritas Australia has been working in partnership with the Movement for the Defence of Favela Residents (MDF) in Brazil for 29 years to support favela residents. Many of those residents do not have property rights or deeds for their homes. This partnership aims to assist them with protection of their legal rights, to build better lives and achieve dignity for their families despite the poverty in their communities. Maristely’s story is one of those highlighted during this year’s Project Compassion. Maristely, 18, lives in a favela (city slum) in São Paulo, Brazil. Caritas Australia’s partner Movement for the Defence of Favela Residents is working to improve living conditions within her community and other favelas in the city. André Delfino da Silva is an MDF Educator living in an area impacted
The final draw for the FIFA World Cup in Brazil was televised live worldwide on Dec. 7, 2013. FIFA, along with the International Olympic Committee, has been called on by Caritas to stop the eviction of the poor and marginalised in the favelas (slum district) during their respective events. PHOTO: ONLINE
by the World Cup developments. He is currently in Australia as part of Project Compassion, highlighting the adverse impact of these big sporting events on Brazil’s most vulnerable citizens. “In the lead up to the FIFA World Cup and the Olympics, Brazilian authorities deemed many favelas to be ‘irregular communities’.
They evicted hundreds of thousands of residents so that planned projects can go ahead,” said André. “When families suffer eviction, the impact on their lives is very great. They don’t just lose their homes, they lose places in the school for their kids, lose their work, and their relationships suffer.” André and Jessica da Silva have
been speaking about their work to more than 50 schools at various Project Compassion events across Melbourne. Caritas Australia has written to the heads of the IOC and FIFA urging them to ensure the protection of core human rights for the poorest of the poor in Brazil. “Australia is a great sporting nation; people here understand that
mega sporting events such as the FIFA World Cup and the Olympic Games can bring great benefits to host nations; but these rewards are not always shared and can have very negative impacts on the poorest communities,” André said. TO DONATE TO PROJECT COMPASSION VISIT CARITAS.ORG.AU/PROJECTCOMPASSION OR PHONE 1800 024 413.
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OPINION
GUEST EDITORIAL
Hear, hear to real ecological living IT is said that old heresies never die; they just keep coming back in different forms. There is truth to this and I find it revealed in the pervasive spirit of Gnosticism present in our culture and time - specifically, Gnosticism’s denial of nature and creation. Historically, Gnosticism was a blending of aspects of Christianity, philosophy, and Eastern mystery religions that challenged the orthodox faith in its first centuries. Gnosticism highlighted secret knowledge as key to salvation as well as denigrating what it saw as the shackle or prison of creation and the physical body. The early Church had to answer the distortions of Gnosticism and it did so by maintaining the continuity of the same God revealed in the Old and New Testaments and holding to the profound truth of the incarnation. Now, jump ahead to America in 2014. It seems a contradiction and an irony that in a time that prides itself on being increasingly “ecologically conscious” we find the re-emergence of the gnostic temptation of denigrating and fleeing creation but this, I would propose, is exactly what is happening. We find this temptation to flee the “confines” of creation all around us. For example, we see trends in body modification from large tattoos to the extremes of plastic surgery and body building (as noted by Jared Zimmerer in his piece “Desire and the Human Form”). There’s also the felt need for a plethora of distinctions in gender identification (apparently the biological stamp of “male” and “female” no longer suffices and gender can be determined distinct from biology and creation). In addition, we see the temptation to play God and use advances in technology and scientific understanding to craft babies to our liking. What is common in all of these (and many more) seeming disparate social trends? I would argue that one element held in common is the gnostic trend to seek to flee the confines of creation.In this context what then is the Christian to do? Be radical; make the choice to live within the reality of nature. Here is a point to reflect upon: for those who participate and pray the Liturgy of the Hours, look through your Breviary and notice how many of the opening songs of morning and evening prayer refer to creation and grace. You’ll discover that the two are not opposed. This is the genius of Christianity on display and the prayer of the Church is teaching us an essential truth. PO Box 3075 Grace does not abolish creaAdelaide Terrace tion nor does it overcome it; PERTH WA 6832 grace sustains creation, peacefully enters within it to heal and work with it. Creation is office@therecord.com.au not to be fled from but rather Tel: (08) 9220 5900 embraced because within the Fax: (08) 9325 4580 very “confines” of creation, God’s grace is at work and to be found. Any attempt to flee creation is based on error and confusion. With all that said, what does it mean to be radical and actually seek to live within the reality of creation? Here are some suggestions: Accept yourself for who you are and others for who they are. Throughout Scripture we are reminded again and again that God is the creator and that God loves his creation. That includes you, me, and every other person. Yes, there is the reality of sin and our need for a savior but the savior has come and his healing grace is offered. Allow God’s gentle grace to work in your life. Part of living with this gentle grace, I believe, is to not give in to the common temptation to affix a label to oneself or others. The human person is an ever-dynamic mystery; labels cut off mystery. Be willing to live in this mystery and trust that God is at work. Celebrate the sacraments. Sacraments reveal in an utterly unique way the reality of grace working through creation and not opposed to creation. Learn the wisdom of the sacraments not in an attempt to “figure it out” but rather to live in the mystery and through them to be brought to deeper understanding. Develop a mature understanding of Scripture, especially the Gospels. Gone are the days when Christians could get by on leaving the Scriptures to the “professionals”. A part of every day should be spent with the Scriptures, particularly the Gospels. Notice how creation plays a major part throughout the Gospel story, i.e. Jesus walking on water, the star of Bethlehem, Jesus teaching on the lilies of the field – the list could go on and on. Fast. Hunger has a way of clarifying priorities and through fasting we are quickly reminded that we are embodied beings. Develop healthy friendships. True and healthy friendships, though rare, are a gift from God. Friendship helps to anchor us in ourselves and in our world. Turn off the TV and social media. Entertainment and social media certainly have their place and can be beneficial tools in helping to enlighten and educate the human spirit, but my experience has shown when not used in a measured and balanced way they quickly lead to isolation, superficial relationships, and a chronic cynicism which stunts maturity and can become a besetting sin. Enjoy nature. Creation gives glory to the Creator. Not long ago I was out for a walk in the mountains, coming over a rise I was met by a herd of at least eight deer peacefully and calmly grazing in a field and drinking water from a stream. They noticed me but rather than seeming startled and bounding away they calmly moved off into the woods. It was a beautiful sight and a gift. Like the deer that yearns for running streams so my soul thirsts for you my God. Creation is not to be fled from. Be radical and choose to live within the context of creation. FR MICHAEL CUMMINS
We see a temptation to flee the “confines” of creation all around us. Be radical. Live within the reality of nature.
THE RECORD
therecord.com.au
March 19, 2014
LETTERS
Falling attendance is not the whole story The article about falling parish attendance could be very depressing and disheartening if there were not another perspective. We are told that there were “almost 200 people” at the PRO conference; that is not a very large number when you consider the number of parishes in Australia - probably not even one person per parish. One of the biggest “secrets” in the Catholic Church today is the growth of, and in, parishes which have a Latin Mass (Extraordinary Form). Here in Perth we have a Catholic Church which is full for 3 Masses every Sunday, where there are queues of people for Confession almost daily, where the church is full for Stations of the Cross, and Mass on the Fridays in Lent and where there is a regular attendance at daily Mass and the various devotions held there. Far from being a congregation of elderly nostalgics, there are large numbers of young people including young married people with an ever increasing number of beautiful children, many of whom are home schooled. Those of us who are older have had the joy of seeing young people whom we knew from their teens, now coming with their spouses and little children. We find that many young people come out of curiosity and then stay because they come to love the beauty of the Mass, the opportunity to be with God and His Son during the regular Holy Hours, and share in the richness of the Catholic community. We have something the Church could learn something from all
over the world, but the Church of today is so wedded to the belief that everything [that happened around] Vatican II was infallibly right and good, that, while some Bishops tolerate the existence of the Latin Mass (some welcome it), others are implacably opposed to it. I commend to you the blog site of Fr Tim Finnigan at The Hermeneutic of Continuity; he is parish priest of a bi ritual parish in the UK. He celebrates Holy Mass in both forms every Sunday, he offers the EF and has Missa Cantata on major Feast days, and all the other devotions so well known and loved pre Vatican II, and he has a growing “army” of altar servers and young people in his parish. It is noteworthy that there was no EF Mass community represented at the PRO conference; such communities are never “recognised” as part of the Church community and are therefore never included in such consultations. Dr Dixon hit the nail on the head with his comment “Reversing the decline of Mass attendance overnight would take something extraordinary.....” A greater availability of Mass in the Extraordinary Form, and the recognition that it has something to offer may well be the answer to the decline There is something to be said about the role of the priest, parish priest or not but that is for another day. Rosemary Lorrimar PALMYRA WA
Australian Christians not the only party
Record, March 12 2014, I would have hoped that this had instead read ‘Democratic Labour Party of Australia confident for Senate rerun’. The Democratic Labour Party (DLP) stands for a far more balanced and Christlike way of governing a state than does the likes of say, Troy Buswell/ Colin Barnett, in the Liberal Party. As it says on the Australian DLP website ‘Distributism is an economic and political philosophy that is an alternative to both capitalism and socialism’. This party is enjoying a resurgence, especially with the passionate and hard-working Victorian DLP Senator John Madigan as part of the Australian Federal Senate. This is why I am hoping and praying for a strong development of the DLP across Australia, but especially in WA. Amy Harry INNALOO WA
Editor’s note: Catholics are not bound to vote for any particular political party. The Record does not support any particular political party.
Something to say? LETTERS TO THE EDITOR office@therecord.com.au
IN REFERENCE to the letter ‘Australian Christians confident for Senate re-run’ on page 8 of The
Book review: Catholic values in the public square A new book by Dr Joe Santamaria benefits from the depth and bredth of the service its author has given for decades, writes Brian Peachey.
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HE TITLE of this book, Catholic Values in the Australian Public Square grabbed me. I read it knowing the author as a friend for past half century with knowledge of his intellect, his integrity and his discernment to be able to see what has beset Australian society and the Catholic Church. I strongly recommend this easily read work to all those concerned why Christian civilisation appears to be decaying and to those who feel constrained in our secular environment. In 2006 I was privileged to review his book The Education of Dr Joe, which was about his life growing up during the 1920s and 1930s in the Melbourne suburb of West Brunswick, where his migrant father had a grocery shop in Sydney Road. His Parents came from the Aeolian Islands north of Sicily. All in the large extended Santamaria family, to the present day, have an almost spiritual attachment to the Carlton football club, whose Princess Park ground was not far from Sydney Road. He was educated by the Christian Brother at St Kevin’s College and completed a Degree in Medicine at Melbourne University in 1948. He did post graduate study in haematology and oncology and worked as a specialist physician in private practice and at St Vincent’s Hospital. Dr Joseph Santamaria, had a long and distinguished medical career. At the same time he was deeply involved in the ‘Public Square’ on bioethical issues such as contracep-
tion, abortion, euthanasia, invitro fertilisation, alcohol and drug abuse. He also took the fight up to the philosophical sceptics who postulate that religious beliefs on the existence of God are irrational and unscientific. He fulfilled his mission in the public square in the most practical and time consuming way. He established The Family Council of Victoria in 1994 which has consistently lobbied the Victorian and Federal governments on marriage and family issues. It is a broad based family-values think tank. It has
Dr Joe confronts the issue of secular libertarians in the media and parliaments trying to marginalise religious values from the public square. brought together representatives of many diverse pro-family groups. It coordinated a number of very successful pro-family conferences. He was the inaugural chairman until 2008. His number of active roles is mind boggling. What follows is only a sample of his active participation He was national Chairman of the Australian Family Association and one of the patrons, Chairman of the World Congress of Families, President of The Australasian Professional Society on Alcohol
& other Drugs (APSAD). He was Foundation Chairman of the St Vincent’s Bioethics Centre. With the late Doctors John and Evelin Billings he helped develop the World Organisation or the Ovulation Method. Much of his work required international travel during his advanced years. He was still a member of the Pontifical Academy for Life when aged 87 and was a foundation board member of the International Ethics Group set up in Rome by Monsignor Caffarra. In 1986 he was appointed the physician responsible for the health of Pope John Paul II during the Papal visit to Australia. His book contains selections from his vast store of published articles and keynote addresses commenting on a wide range of contentious contemporary questions. He tackles controversial topics such as the corruption of science by a combination of ideology and vested interests as in the flawed approaches to the AIDS epidemic, so-called “reproductive health” and drug abuse. Secular libertarians in the media and parliaments attempt to marginalise religious values from the public square. He confronts these problems, in Australia and other Western nations. Dr Santamaria concludes with a series of reflections on religious topics. I especially enjoyed the attractive theological gems he used in the final chapters, Theology and the Catholic laymen, which he terms musing on the Godhead. REVIEWED BY BRIAN PEACHEY
OPINION
therecord.com.au March 19, 2014
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A little homer-phobia for men can go a long way Today’s men must look to Christ and not TV’s four-fingered father, Homer Simpson, for the true example of masculinity.
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T IS TIME for men to become more Homerphobic. What I mean, before you contact the Archbishop, is to fear becoming like popular cartoon figure Homer Simpson. Homer is the lazy, incompetent, irresponsible, unmotivated husband and father portrayed in “The Simpsons”, whose wife is constantly mopping up his mess. He is portrayed as a comical figure, but lying beneath the surface is an insidious and more widespread attack on the role of men in today’s society. It is not that “The Simpsons” franchise invented the degrading image of manhood Homer represents, however they have certainly added to the momentum that has been building over the past fifty or so years. It is a fascinating and tragic evolution. In the 1950’s the essence of manhood was depicted on the screen by square-jawed men such as John Wayne, Charles Bronson and Marlon Brando – courageous, strong, loyal, protectors of women and children, instigators of justice and never intimidated – the type of man you wanted fighting next to you in the trenches. Jump through the decades and these portrayals have been
I Say, I Say MARK REIDY
replaced by less rugged, smooth skinned, floppy haired individuals such as Johnny Depp, Hugh Grant and Brad Pitt or blundering fools such as those depicted on a growing number of animated and comedy based productions - watched largely by children and teenagers and contributing to the psychological shaping of future generations. This is not to say that men did not need a makeover from the machismo personas depicted over half a century ago. Indeed the feminist movement, which exploded in the sixties, was rightly founded on the need to correct male injustice and wrongful domination, however the end result has gone far beyond a cry for equality and is now undermining the God-given uniqueness of both men and women. Rather than encourage, nurture and prune positive male characteristics, society opted to completely strip men of their masculinity and attempt to rebuild them in an image moulded by wronged and wound-
ed women. When Betty Friedan launched “Feminine Mystique” in 1963 in the US, she tapped into a growing restlessness amongst western women. Friedan’s main concern was based on the inability of women to enter the workforce on an equal footing to men, but the discontent she revealed was soon harnessed by others and the push for gender equality became, for some, a push for gender sameness. In 1970 Kate Millett authored “Sexual Politics”, which is consid-
tum and continues to shape society today is because it was fuelled by the inability or refusal of men to adequately fulfil their intended purpose. Rather than becoming the God anointed leaders, protectors and providers within families and society, which had been foundational to Judeo/Christian nations, a growing number of men were increasingly allowing themselves to fall prey to selfish desires provided by a society flooded with sexual and material temptations.
Men must step up from the extended adolescence many have opted to hide in and embrace life with the courage and intent that God has instilled. ered by some to be a cornerstone of feminist theory. Millett linked several movements together to promote the idea that the differences between men and women originated, not from biology, but from societal expectations and prejudices. In other words, other than physical anatomy males and females would, if raised accordingly, be emotionally, instinctively and psychologically identical. And the reason this movement was able to gather such momen-
This led to an increase of abuse toward women, through social domination, violence, abuse and abandonment. Inevitably, if men were not adequately fulfilling their anointing, then women had no choice but to take action. Tragically men’s failures and women’s responses have led to the chaos we find ourselves in today, where both sexes are becoming increasingly blended and distinctions are often viewed as anomalies rather than unique gifts.
It is why groups such as “Stepping Up”, a US Christian Men’s movement, is fighting to reclaim the Godly anointing of males. “It is time for men to wear the pants again”, is one of the ministry’s catchcries, as it attempts to distinguish and celebrate the gift of masculinity and to encourage it within a brotherhood of support. Men must step up from the extended adolescence many have opted to hide in and embrace life with the courage, intent and responsibility that God has instilled within them, the group proclaims. Rather than allowing oneself to be moulded by inadequate role models, they beseech men to recognise and strive to fulfil their masculinity - to embrace the understanding that they have been created as leaders, protectors and providers and must throw off the cloak of passivity and confusion that society has been smothering them with. The call, however, is not to return to the unjust domination that has defined men in the past, but rather to live out their intended masculinity by imitating Jesus’s example of self-sacrifice and to embrace women with a servant heart of love. “Husbands, love your wives as Christ loved the Church and gave himself up for her…” (Eph 5:25).
How to (not) destroy Catholic art
Great art is a worthwhile goal and an edifying project. “Catholic” art, is not, writes US philosopher Dr Sam Rocha.
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HE SURGING liturgical movement in the Roman Catholic Church over the past decade, often called “traditionalism,” is not so much evidence of the strength of Catholic liturgy today but, instead, of its remarkable weakness. We do not see “traditionalists” emerge unless (a) there is no tradition to begin with or (b) until a real tradition is in danger. Otherwise, traditions, real ones, are simply ordinary ways of being and living. To kill a tradition, in its most organic and natural state, make it a “tradition.” Find a place that is passionate about TRADITION and there you will find some amount of fear and insecurity. In the case of the Hebrew people, for example, there are very good historical reasons for this feeling. Same goes for indigenous peoples. Not all paranoia is unjustified. And just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean that they’re not out to get you. The general point is a simple one: whenever a special category is needed, that need reveals a lack of some kind. Depending on the motivations, context, and approach, these categories and movements can produce many good and bad fruits, revivals, and reminders — but the constitutive conditions remain, by and large, the same. Catholic art is destroyed at the exact point at which it becomes necessary to have something, just one thing, just one reliable thing, just one little thing that has an imprimatur of some kind, that can be trusted and relied on, labeled as “Catholic” art. I grew up hearing about how badly we need “Catholic” things. Merchandise. Music. Stuff to compete with the Protestants who were better at making stuff that looks just as “cool” as the secular stuff. Really good vegan bacon. I also kept hearing about how we need “Catholic” things that are more Catholic than the current Catholic stuff. Qualitative degrees of Catholicism. What I didn’t realize then was that, for me, a cradle Catholic,
Just because it “connects” with the zietgeist, doesn’t mean it’s worthwhile, writes Dr Sam Rocha.
a Mestizo Mexican Tejano Southwestern boy, Catholicism was not an option. This specialized community of Catholics, who worried about having “Catholic” things, could not erode or affect a deeper and more interior and genealogical, ancestral Catholicism that had seeped into me and informed my imagination and dispositions. Growing up in church offices and prayer meetings and weekday morning mass and lots ands lots of priests certainly helped. But there was a time when it seemed like it didn’t. I knew all the stuff, I had all the facts, I went to the right school, I could talk the talk and had walked more of the walk than most. I read the Catechism. But when certain things change and shift, founda-
tions get shaken, and all the right answers wear threadbare, there is nothing that can prevent a fallout. But I couldn’t, and still cannot, seem to fall out entirely. Grace, sure. Of course. But also the fact that being Catholic, for me, is not about a conference I went to or a t-shirt or a socio-cultural brand name — even a set of doctrines I understand and am willing to check off my belief list. Mine was, still is, and always will be, a no exit Catholicism. Catholic art is destroyed at the exact point when and where we become desperate and starving and will take anything, anything at all, so long as it is “Catholic,” and create special places for those books and CD’s at the store, so everyone can find it
PHOTO: ONLINE
there, regardless of its content, just so long as it is “Catholic.” Religious art is not what I am after here. But, in another sense, it is what I am after. What makes art religious? Its author, theme, use? I don’t know nor do I particularly care. What I do know is that we do not need “Catholic” art. We need art. That is hard and rare enough. Once the art is worthwhile, worthy of its class and peers and so on, then, perhaps, we might talk about its possible and present Catholicism. I once assumed that “Catholic” music was all about use value. It you could use it at Mass, or any other sort of liturgical use, then it was “Catholic.” If you could use it at a prayer meeting or a devotional
praise and worship setting, then it was “Catholic.” If it was not suitable for either of those uses, then, it was probably not “Catholic.” It always needed to have words. Sing-along music. These two uses were really the same, and were often interchangeable, because what made for “Catholic” music was its ministerial use, which was built for participation. The word ‘performance’ was pejorative in the context of music ministry. To perform was selfish and prideful and bad. As I improved on my instrument and my musical crafts, I began to hear the accusation of performing or of showing off. “But I’ve been playing guitar since I was five and am self-taught and these licks don’t come cheap and sound pretty good,” I would think. I would also think about how much better it would sound with a decent PA and more practice. I soon began to realize that there was something deeply wrong with the idea that what makes something “Catholic,” especially something like music, is its use value. In fact, I began to see that the liturgy itself and the sacraments are too often disenchanted into mere utilities. Art has no use. Liturgy is useless. Silence. God is not a life-coach. I’ve slowly built these experiences into a type of music that already exists, but may not exist in an intentional way. There is soul music, gospel music, all kinds of religious and spiritual kinds of music out there. American music is, at its root, religious. The blues. But there have been precious few artists who have made music that is faithful to both the religious roots of soul music, and intentionally avoid being labeled “Catholic” in a liturgical or devotional way, in order to be faithful to a deeper and more fundamental Catholicism. Add Augustine to that and I think the picture becomes clearer still. To restore Catholic art we need not restore anything but art itself. To restore art you just have to make it, and be very serious about it. WWW.PATHEOS.COM
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PANORAMA
SCHOENSTATT CELEBRATES 100 YEARS All welcome, 9 Talus Drive, Mt Richon. More information - 9399 2349. April 4 - 7.30pm The Covenant of Love in the Second Milestone 1942 May 2 - 7.30pm The Covenant of Love in the Third Milestone 1949 June 6 - 7.30pm The Covenant of Love in the Fourth Milestone 1965 July 4 - 7.30pm The Covenant of Love and the Place of Grace Bring a picture of your Home Shrine August 1 - 7.30pm The Covenant of Love in its Depth Renewal of Crowning ‘Queen of the Family’ September 5 - 7.30pm The Covenant of Love in its Width Bring your Pilgrim Mother Shrine October 3 - 8pm The Covenant of Love in the Everyday Bring your Group Symbol
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 5 TO SUNDAY, APRIL 13 40 Days for Life Daily Lenten Prayer Vigil 7am-5pm daily outside Midland abortion clinic, 8 Sayer St, Midland, for everyone affected by abortion. Come and join us. Enq: Tina 0415 382 541 or www.40daysforlife.com/perth. FRIDAY, MARCH 7 TO APRIL 11 Lenten Contemplative Prayer 5.30-6.30pm every Friday in Lent in the Upper Room, St Joseph’s Parish Centre, 3 Salvado Rd, Subiaco. Deepening our prayer life in Lent through the practice of Centering Prayer. Enq: 9381 0400, www.stjosephssubiaco.org.au. FRIDAY, MARCH 14 Anniversary Mass 7.30pm at The Little Sisters of the Poor Chapel, Leederville. Anniversary Mass for Chiara Lubich, founder of the Focolare Movement. Celebrant Bishop Don Sproxton. Anglican Bishop David Murray will be speaking on unity through love and sanctity. Followed by refreshments in the hall. Enq: Coris 9349 4052. SUNDAY, MARCH 16 Auslan Cafe 10.30am-12 noon at Emmanuel Centre, 25 Windsor St, East Perth. Come along and learn some new signs and practise familiar signs. It’s a fun way to learn how to communicate, followed by light lunch. All free. All welcome. Further information: contact Fr Paul 9328 8113, or SMS 0401 016 399. THURSDAY, MARCH 20 Healing Mass and Adoration 7-9pm at Infant Jesus Church, 47 Wellington Rd, Morley. Fr Varghese Parackal and the Vincentian priests will be the celebrants. Enq: Fr Sunny 9276 8500 or Mario and Selina 9275 0831. FRIDAY, MARCH 21 Medjugorje Evening of Prayer 7-9pm at All Saints Chapel, 77 St Georges Tce, Allendale Sq, Perth. All are invited to pray in thanksgiving for reported daily apparitions of Our Blessed Mother in Medjugorje. Free DVDs on conversions at Medjugorje available on night. Newsflash: pilgrimage to Rome, Padua, Assisi, Venice and Medjugorje. $4,474. See pilgrimage section. Contact for all above: Eileen 9402 2480 mob 0407 471 256 email medjugorje1947@gmail. com. FRIDAY, MARCH 21 TO SUNDAY, MARCH 23 Inner Healing Retreat (Live-In) 7.30am at Epiphany Retreat Centre, 50 Fifth Ave, Rossmoyne. Led by Vincentian Fathers. Come and experience his merciful love and forgiveness through his Word and Sacraments. Be healed, anointed, renewed and transformed. Enq and registration: Lin 0419 041 188, 9286 1238 or vincentiansperth@yahoo.com, vpcp.org.au. God’s Farm Retreat 7pm at God’s Farm, 94 Woodlands Rd, Wilyabrup. Led by Fr Tony Chiera VG speaking on the call of Pope Francis to Mercy, Healing and Simplicity. Postal Address: PO Box 24, Cowaramup 6284. Enq: Phone/fax Betty 9755 6212. Private bus - seats limited: Yvonne 9343 1897 (evenings). SUNDAY, MARCH 23 Legion of Mary - Acies Ceremony 2pm at Our Lady of Lourdes Church, Swinstone St, Rockingham. Immaculate Conception Curia, Fremantle. Followed by afternoon tea. Enq: Mary 3586 4134. TUESDAY, MARCH 25 Lenten Sessions 2014 7-8pm at St Benedict’s Church, cnr Canning Hwy and 115 Ardross St, Applecross. Every Tuesday evening in Lent: March 4 to April 15. Spirituality and the Sunday Gospels. The Lent Gospel readings can deepen our faith and increase our peace. Norma Woodcock presenter. Cost: collection. Enq: 9487 1772, norma@normawoodcock.com or www.normawoodcock.com.
TUESDAY, MARCH 25, APRIL 1 AND 8 Seeking The God of our Lenten Story Talks with Sr Margaret Scharf OP 7.30-9pm at MacKillop Room (multi-purpose room), John XXIII College, Mooro Dr, Mt Claremont. Sr Scharf is WA Vicaress of the Dominican Sisters. How is the salvation story mirrored in our own personal stories? $10 donation (unwaged). Register: Murray Graham 9383 0444, graham. murray@johnxxiii.edu.au. WEDNESDAY, MARCH 26 Mental Health and Relationships: Free Event 7-9pm at Sts John and Paul parish centre, Cnr Pinetree Gully Rd and Wainwright St, Willetton. Guido Vogels, Director, Access Counselling Service, will help us to maintain good mental health where there is conflict. Please bring a small plate to share. Tea and coffee provided. Sign language interpreter available, please confirm you’re coming. RSVP Barbara on 9328 8113, SMS 0401 016 399 or emmanuelcentre@westnet.com.au. SATURDAY, MARCH 29 One Day Eucharistic Healing Retreat in Preparation for Holy Week 9am-1.30pm at St Jerome’s Church, 38 Troode St, Munster. Led by Fr Varghese Parackal VC. Praise and worship, preaching, Reconciliation, Mass, Adoration, healing prayers. Free morning tea and lunch. Please register for catering purposes. Enq: Edita 9418 3728, Susan 9434 3969, Aileen 0423 578 059. THURSDAY, APRIL 3 Healing Mass and Adoration 7-9pm at Holy Trinity Church, 8 Burnett St, Embleton. Led by Fr Varghese Parackal VC and the Vincentian Fathers. Enq: Fr Joseph Rathnaraj 9271 5528 Ron and Rita 0422 917 054; www. vpcp.org.au. SATURDAY, APRIL 5 Day with Mary 9am at Our Lady Queen of Poland Church, 35 Eighth Ave, Maylands. Day of prayer and instruction based on the Fatima message. Video; 10.10am Holy Mass, Reconciliation, Procession of the Blessed Sacrament, Eucharistic Adoration, two talks, Rosary, Divine Mercy Chaplet and Stations of the Cross. Finish approx 5pm. BYO lunch. Enq – Franciscan Friars of the Immaculate 9437 2792. One day Inner Healing Retreat 9am-1.30pm at Holy Family Parish, 34 Alcock St, Maddington. Program includes Praise and Worship, preaching of the Word of God, Confession, holy Mass, Eucharistic Adoration and healing prayers. Experience the eternal love and healing touch of our Lord. Morning tea and lunch provided. Enq: 08 9493 1703 or vincentiansperth@ yahoo.com. www.vpcp.org.au. SUNDAY, APRIL 6 Preparing For Easter 9.30am at St Francis Xavier Church, 23 Windsor St, Perth. Mass, followed by morning tea and discussion group at Emmanuel Centre. Learn why the priest lowers the paschal candle three times into the baptismal water and many other interesting things. Interpreter, audio induction loops and PowerPoint services available. Light lunch. Enq: Fr Paul 9328 8113 or SMS 0401 016 399. THURSDAY, APRIL 10 Healing Mass in Honour of St Peregrine 7pm at Sts John and Paul Church, Pinetree Gully Rd, Willetton. Patron of cancer sufferers and helper of all in need. There will be veneration of the relic of St Peregrine and anointing of the sick. Enq: Jim on 9457 1539. THURSDAY, APRIL 10 AND MAY 1 Passion and Resurrection stories in the Synoptic Gospels 7.30pm at Christian Brothers’ Support Centre, 53 Redmond St, Salter Point. Two Powerpoint presentations on the Passion and Resurrection stories in the Synoptic Gospels. Part 1 Passion and Part 2 Resurrection. One-hour long sessions. No RSVP, no cost. Parking, tea and coffee available. Enq: Br Joe Murphy 9450 1061. SATURDAY, APRIL 12 St Padre Pio Prayer Day 8.30am at St Mary’s Church, 21 James St, Guildford. 8.30am - St Padre Pio DVD in parish centre. 10am - Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, Rosary, Divine Mercy, Silent Adoration and Benediction. 11am - holy Mass, St Padre Pio Liturgy. Confessions available. 12pm- BYO for shared lunch, tea and coffee supplied. Enq: Des 6278 1540.
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March 19, 2014
story. Both live-in and live-out possibilities. Finishes 4pm Saturday, April 26. Enq flyer and registration: Sr Shelley Barlow 0428 772 784; smbarlowrndm@gmail.com.
Lesmurdie St, Lesmurdie (hall behind church). Begins with songs of praise and worship, silent time, lectio divina, small group sharing and cuppa. Enq: Lynne 9293 3848 or 0435 252 941.
SUNDAY, APRIL 27
EVERY TUESDAY Novena to Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal 6pm at Pater Noster Church, Marmion and Evershed Sts, Myaree. Mass at 5.30pm followed by Benediction. Enq: John 0408 952 194. Novena to God the Father 7.30pm at St Joachim’s parish hall, Vic Park. Novena followed by reflection and discussions on forthcoming Sunday Gospel. Enq: Jan 9284 1662.
6th Annual Celebration of the Feast of Divine Mercy 2-3pm Confession at Holy Family Parish, 34 Alcock St, Maddington. 3-5pm procession with Divine Mercy icon followed by Eucharistic Adoration, Divine Mercy Chaplet and healing prayers. 5pm Solemn Feast Mass. Enq: 9493 1703 or vincentiansperth@yahoo.com; www.vpcp.org.au. SUNDAY, MAY 4 Busselton May Rosary Celebration Honouring of Our Lady 12.30pm at Queen of the Holy Rosary Shrine, Bove’s Farm, Roy Rd (off Bussell Hwy), Jindong, Busselton. 12.30pm: hymns. 1pm: concelebrated Mass led by Fr Tony Chiera. Rosary procession and Benediction following Mass. Afternoon tea provided. Bus from Perth ph: Francis 0404 893 877 or 9459 3873.
REGULAR EVENTS EVERY SUNDAY Gate of Heaven Catholic Radio Join the Franciscans of the Immaculate from 7.309pm on Radio Fremantle 107.9FM for Catholic radio broadcast of EWTN and our own live shows. Enq: radio@ausmaria.com. Cathedral Cafe Cathedral Cafe open every Sunday 9.30am-1pm at St Mary’s Cathedral, downstairs after Mass. Coffee, tea, cakes, sweets, friendship with Cathedral parishioners. Further info: Tammy on smcperthwyd@yahoo.com.au or 0415 370 357. Pilgrim Mass - Shrine of the Virgin of the Revelation 2pm at Shrine, 36 Chittering Rd, Bullsbrook. Starts with Rosary, then Benediction. Reconciliation available before every celebration. Anointing of the sick administered at Mass every second Sunday of month. Pilgrimage in honour of the Virgin of the Revelation last Sunday of the month. Side entrance to Church and shrine open daily between 9am-5pm. Enq Sacri 9447 3292. Praise and Worship 5.30pm at St Denis Parish, cnr Osborne St and Roberts Rd, Joondanna. Followed by 6pm Mass. Enq: Admin on admin@stdenis.com.au. Mass with Sign Language Interpreter and PowerPoint 9.30am at St Francis Xavier Church, 23 Windsor St, East Perth. Enq: Voice 9328 8113, TTY 9328 9571, 0401 016 399 or www.emmanuelcentre.com.au. Latin Mass 8.30am at the Good Shepherd Church, 42 Streich Ave, Kelmscott. Enq: John 9390 6646. EVERY FIRST SUNDAY Singles Prayer and Social Group 6.30pm at All Saints Chapel, Allendale Sq, 77 St Georges Tce, Perth. Begins with holy hour followed by dinner at local restaurant. Meet new people, pray and socialise with others. Enq: Veronica 0403 841 202. EVERY SECOND SUNDAY Healing Hour 7-8pm at St Lawrence, Balcatta. Songs of praise and worship, Exposition of Blessed Sacrament and prayers for sick. Enq: Fr Irek Czech SDS or office Tue-Thu, 9am-2.30pm on 9344 7066. EVERY THIRD SUNDAY Oblates of St Benedict’s 2pm at St Joseph’s Convent, York St, South Perth. We welcome all interested in studying the Rule of St Benedict and its relevance to the everyday life of today for laypeople. Vespers and afternoon tea conclude our meetings. Enq: Secretary 9457 5758. Holy Hour with Exposition 3pm at All Saints Parish, 7 Liwara Pl, Greenwood. Mercy Novena and Rosary during Holy Hour. Enq: Charles 9447 1989. Divine Mercy Hour 3pm at St Pius X Church, 23 Paterson St, Manning. Exposition of the Most Blessed Sacrament, Divine Mercy prayers, Rosary and Benediction. Please join us in prayer. Enq: Mrs K Henderson 9450 4195.
SATURDAY, APRIL 19 TO SATURDAY, APRIL 26
EVERY FOURTH SUNDAY Shrine Time for Young Adults 18-35 Years 7.30-8.30pm at Schoenstatt Shrine, 9 Talus Dr, Mt Richon; holy Hour with prayer, reflection, meditation, praise and worship; followed by a social gathering. Come and pray at a place of grace. Enq: shrinetimemtrichon@gmail.com. Holy Hour for Vocations to the Priesthood, Religious Life 2-3pm at Infant Jesus Parish, Wellington St, Morley. Includes Exposition of Blessed Sacrament, silent prayer, scripture, prayers of intercession. Come and pray that those discerning vocations can hear clearly God’s call.
Divine Mercy Chaplet and Novena 2.30-3pm at Holy Family Parish, 34 Alcock St, Maddington. Confession followed at 3pm by Divine Mercy Chaplet and Novena with preaching and healing prayers. Enq: 9493 1703.
EVERY LAST SUNDAY Filipino Mass 3pm at Notre Dame Church, cnr Daley and Wright Sts, Cloverdale. Bring a plate to share after Mass. Enq: Fr Nelson 0410 843 412, Elsa 0404 038 483.
MONDAY, APRIL 21 TO SATURDAY, APRIL 26 Easter Retreat 11am at St Catherine’s House of Hospitality, Tuart Hill. Our Faith in light of God’s Sacred Universe
LAST MONDAY Be Still in His Presence – Ecumenical Christian Program 7.30-8.45pm at St Swithun Anglican Church, 195
FRIDAY, APRIL 18 Divine Mercy Chaplet and Novena 3pm at Holy Family Parish, 34 Alcock St, Maddington. Followed by Good Friday service. Enq: 9493 1703 or vincentiansperth@yahoo.com; www.vpcp.org.au.
EVERY FIRST TUESDAY Short MMP Cenacle for Priests 2pm at Edel Quinn Centre, 36 Windsor St, East Perth. Enq: Fr Watt 9376 1734. EVERY WEDNESDAY Holy Spirit of Freedom Community 7.30pm at Church of Christ, 111 Stirling St, Perth. We welcome everyone to attend our praise meeting. Enq: 0423 907 869 or hsofperth@gmail.com. Holy Hour - Catholic Youth Ministry 5.30pm at Catholic Pastoral Centre, 40A Mary St, Highgate. Mass followed at 6.30pm with Holy Hour. Supper $5 and fellowship later. Enq: 9422 7912 or admin@cym.com.au. Subiaco Ladies Prayer Meeting 10am in the upper room at St Joseph’s Parish, 3 Salvado Rd, Subiaco. We welcome you to join us for prayer, praise, and fellowship. Phone Win 9387 2808, Colleen 9245 3277 or Noreen 9298 9938. EVERY FIRST WEDNESDAY Novena to St Mary of the Cross MacKillop 7-7.45pm at Blessed Mary MacKillop Parish, cnr Cassowary Dr and Pelican Pde, Ballajura. Begins with Mass, Novena prayers and Benediction. Followed by healing prayers and anointing of the sick. Enq: Madi 9249 9093 or Gerry 0417 187 240. EVERY SECOND WEDNESDAY Chaplets of Divine Mercy 7.30pm at St Thomas More Parish, Dean Rd, Bateman. Accompanied by Exposition, then Benediction. Enq: George 9310 9493 or 6242 0702 (w). Miracle Prayers 7.30pm at 67 Howe St, Osborne Park. An opportunity to receive prayers for healing of mind, body and soul. Enq: miracleprayers@disciplesofjesus. org or Michelle 0404 028 298. EVERY THURSDAY Divine Mercy 11am at Sts John and Paul Church, Pinetree Gully Rd, Willetton. Pray the Rosary and Chaplet of Divine Mercy and for consecrated life, especially in our parish. Concludes with veneration of the first class relic of St Faustina. Enq: John 9457 7771. St Mary’s Cathedral Praise Meeting 7.45pm at the Legion of Mary’s Edel Quinn Centre, 36 Windsor St, East Perth. Includes praise, song and healing ministry. Enq: Kay 9382 3668 or fmi@ flameministries.org. Group Fifty - Charismatic Renewal Group 7.30pm at Redemptorist Monastery, 150 Vincent St, North Perth. Includes prayer, praise and Mass. Enq: Elaine 9440 3661. EVERY FIRST THURSDAY Holy Hour Prayer for Priests 7-8pm at Holy Spirit Parish, 2 Keaney Pl, City Beach. All welcome. Enq: Linda 9341 3079. Prayer in Style of Taizé 7.30-8.30pm at Our Lady of Grace Parish, 3 Kitchener St, North Beach. Includes prayer, song and silence in candlelight – symbol of Christ the light of the world. Taizé info: www.taize.fr. Enq: secretary 9448 4888 or 9448 4457. FIRST AND THIRD THURSDAY Social Dinner (Young Adults aged up to 35) and Rosary Cenacle 6.30pm at St Bernadette’s Church, 49 Jugan St, Mt Hawthorn. Begins at 6.30pm with dinner at a local restaurant, followed at 8pm by a Rosary Cenacle, short talk and refreshments at the church. Great way to meet new people, pray and socialise! Enq: 9444 6131 or st.bernadettesyouth@gmail.com. EVERY FRIDAY Eucharistic Adoration at Schoenstatt Shrine 10am at Schoenstatt Shrine, 9 Talus Dr, Mt Richon. Includes holy Mass, Exposition of Blessed Sacrament, silent adoration till 8.15pm. Join us in prayer at a place of grace. Enq: Sisters of Schoenstatt 9399 2349. Healing Mass 6pm at Holy Family Parish, Lot 375, Alcock St, Maddington. Begins with Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, Rosary, Stations of the Cross, Healing Mass followed by Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. Enq: admin 9493 1703 or www.vpcp. org.au. Eucharistic Adoration - Voice of the Voiceless Ministry 7.30-9pm at St Brigid’s Parish, 211 Aberdeen St, Northbridge. Eucharistic Adoration, beginning with praise and worship and reflection on the scriptures. All welcome. Enq: adrianluke1999@ yahoo.com.abibleu. EVERY FIRST FRIDAY Mass and Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament 11am-4pm at Little Sisters of the Poor Chapel, 2 Rawlins St, Glendalough. Exposition of Blessed
Sacrament after Mass until 4pm, finishing with Rosary. Enq: Sr Marie MS.Perth@lsp.org.au. Voice of the Voiceless Prayer Meeting during Lent 7.30-9.30pm (following parish Stations of the Cross at 6.30pm) at Holy Cross Church, 1 Dianne St, Hamilton Hill. Celebrant Fr Nicholas Nweke. Starts with Rosary prayers followed by Mass, concluding with Exposition of Blessed Sacrament. Enq: Frank 9296 7591. Healing and Anointing Mass 8.45am Pater Noster Church, Evershed St, Myaree. Begins with Reconciliation, then 9am Mass of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, anointing of the sick and prayers to St Peregrine. Enq: Joy 9337 7189. Pro-life Witness – Mass and Procession 9.30am at St Brigid’s Parish, cnr Great Northern Hwy and Morrison Rd, Midland. Begins with Mass followed by Rosary procession and prayer vigil at nearby abortion clinic, led by the Franciscan Friars of the Immaculate. Please join us to pray for an end to abortion and the conversion of hearts. Enq: Helen 9402 0349. Catholic Faith Renewal Evening 7.30pm at Sts John and Paul Parish, Pinetree Gully Rd, Willetton. Songs of praise, prayer, sharing by a priest, then thanksgiving Mass and light refreshments. Enq: Ivan 0428 898 833 or Ann 0412 166 164 or catholicfaithrenewal@gmail.com. Communion of Reparation All Night Vigils 7pm-1.30am at Corpus Christi Church, Loch St, Mosman Park or St Gerard Majella Church, cnr Ravenswood Dr/Majella Rd, Mirrabooka. Vigils are two Masses, Adoration, Benediction, prayers, Confession in reparation for outrages committed against the United Hearts of Jesus and Mary. Enq: Vicky 0400 282 357, Fr Giosue 9349 2315, John/ Joy 9344 2609. Holy Hour 7.30pm at St Bernadette’s Parish, cnr Jugan and Leeder Sts, Glendalough. Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, music and chants, silence, readings and meditative decades of the holy Rosary. Tea/ coffee and cake to follow. Enq: Sean Tobin of Bl Elisabeth of the Trinity Choir 0439 720 066. EVERY SECOND FRIDAY Discover Spirituality of St Francis of Assisi 12pm at St Brigid’s parish centre. The Secular Franciscans of Midland Fraternity have lunch, then 1-3pm meeting. Enq: Antoinette 9297 2314. EVERY SATURDAY Our Lady of Sorrows Rosary 9am at St Denis Parish Church, cnr Roberts Rd and Osborne St, Joondanna. A warm invitation to those interested in praying Our Lady of Sorrows Rosary with us. Enq: Parish office 9242 2812. EVERY FIRST SATURDAY Vigil for Life – Mass and Procession 8.30am at St Augustine Parish, Gladstone St, Rivervale. Begins with Mass celebrated by Fr Carey, followed by Rosary procession and prayer vigil at nearby abortion clinic. Please join us to pray for the conversion of hearts and an end to abortion. Enq: Helen 9402 0349. Mission Rosary Making at the Legion of Mary 9.30am-2pm at 36 Windsor St, East Perth. All materials are supplied. The Rosaries made are distributed to schools, missions and those who ask for a Rosary. Please join us and learn the art of Rosary making on rope and chain. Enq: 0478 598 860. EVERY SECOND SATURDAY Novena to Our Lady of Perpetual Help (Succour) and Divine Mercy Chaplet (Chant) 8.30am at Our Lady of the Mission Parish, Whitford, 270 Camberwarra Dr, Craigie. Holy Mass at 8.30am followed by Novena. Enq: Margaret 9307 2776. EVERY FOURTH SATURDAY Voice of the Voiceless Healing Mass 11.30am at St Brigid’s Parish, 211 Aberdeen St, Northbridge. Bring a plate to share after Mass. Enq: Frank 9296 7591 or 0408 183 325.
GENERAL Divine Mercy Church, Lower Chittering Come join the “$500 club” by donating that amount towards completion of the Divine Mercy Church in Lower Chittering. Your name will be included in a plaque and you will share in Masses offered for benefactors. Donate online: www. ginginchitteringparish.org.au or send cheque to DM Church Building Fund, PO Box 8, Bullsbrook WA 6084. May God bless you! Free Divine Mercy Image for Parishes High quality oil painting and glossy print – Divine Mercy Promotions. Images of very high quality. For any parish willing to accept and place inside the church. Oil paintings: 160 x 90cm; glossy print - 100 x 60cm. Enq: Irene 9417 3267 (w). Sacred Heart Pioneers Would anyone like to know about the Sacred Heart pioneers? If so, please contact Spiritual Director Fr Doug Harris 9444 6131 or John 9457 7771. St Philomena’s Chapel 3/24 Juna Dr, Malaga. Mass of the day: Mon 6.45am. Vigil Masses: Mon-Fri 4.45pm. Enq: Fr David 9376 1734. Mary MacKillop Merchandise Available for sale from Mary MacKillop Centre. Enq: Sr Maree 0414 683 926 or 08 9334 0933. Financially Disadvantaged People Requiring Low Care Aged Care Placement
CLASSIFIEDS
therecord.com.au March 19, 2014
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CLASSIFIEDS Deadline: 11am Monday DESIGN
WANTED
MEDIATRIX DESIGN. graphic design. branding. logos. print. illustration and more. take your image to the next level. unlimited design revisions. will beat any genuine quote by 10%. obligation free consult: 0402 652 563.
WANTED FOR MURDOCH UNI CHAPLAINCY: Two large candelabra (1.5–2.5m) and religious banners to create a prayerful environment at Murdoch University. Contact Fr Cyprian 0450 464 678 Chaplain.
BEAUTY
FURNITURE REMOVAL
RURI STUDIO FOR HAIR Vincent and Miki welcome you to their newly opened, international, award-winning salon. Shop 2, 401 Oxford St, Leederville. 9444 3113. Ruri-studio-for-hair@ hotmail.com.
ALL AREAS. Competitive rates. Mike Murphy Ph 0416 226 434.
RELIGIOUS PRODUCTS RICH HARVEST - YOUR CHRISTIAN SHOP Looking for Bibles, CDs, books, cards, gifts, statues, Baptism and Wedding candles, etc. Visit us at 39 Hulme Ct (off McCoy St), Myaree. Ph 9329 9889 (after 10.30am Mon to Sat). We are here to serve. KINLAR VESTMENTS www.kinlarvestments.com.au Quality vestments, Australianmade, embroidered, appliqued. Ph: 9402 1318, 0409 114 093.
TAX SERVICE QUALITY TAX RETURNS PREPARED by registered tax agent with over 35 years’ experience. Call Tony Marchei 0412 055 184 for appt. AXXO Accounting & Management, Unit 20/222 Walter Rd, Morley.
SERVICES BRENDAN HANDYMAN SERVICES Home, building maintenance, repairs and renovations. NOR. Ph 0427 539 588. PAINTERS IN PERTH since 1933. AJ Cochrane & Sons 08 9248 8211. BOB’S PAINTING Registered and insured. Free quotes 0422 485 433 www.bobthepainter.com. au. PERROTT PAINTING PTY LTD For all commercial and strata property requirements. Ph 9444 1200. BRICK RE-POINTING Ph Nigel 9242 2952.
TO LEASE MINING LEASE 95612415.
FOR SALE RETIREMENT VILLAGE OPPORTUNITIES in Albany. 3 New, 2 Bedroom Independent Living Units. Centrally located within the city and close to all City amenities. From $245,000 and $295,000. T:(08) 98474303.
FUNDRAISING RESTORE IS A “DOMESTIC BLITZ” TYPE HOUSING PROJECT sponsored by Mission Partners Morley est.1988. Renovations have been carried out for several years in India. BEFORE and AFTER PHOTOS AVAILABLE. Perth fundraisers needed for in-house BRING A PLATE AND DONATE morning/ afternoon tea, luncheon, evening dinner or barbecue. A one off or monthly event. President Maggie Box attends to encourage and inform. Funds mend leaking roofs, concrete dirt floors, weather proof walls and add a window, room or toilet to one roomed dwellings. Projects overseen by a Catholic Pastoral Care Organisation in India called MIDS extending now to Myanmar with annual visits by Perth committee members. “Let each of us bring joy to our neighbour, helping him to grow up in goodness” Romans 15:2. Maggie: 9272 8263, 0438946621.
PILGRIMAGES PILGRIMAGE TO ROME/ PADUA/ASSISI/VENICE AND MEDJUGORJE Departing Perth Mon, June 9. $4,474 for 16 days. Price includes all flights, quality accommodation with ensuite facilities, bed/breakfast/evening meals, rest period in airport hotel for six hrs with bedroom/ ensuite, enabling you to arrive refreshed. English speaking
guide 24/7, transfers in luxury coach. Taxes/tipping included. Spiritual Director Rev Fr Ronan Murphy. Enq: Eileen 9402 2480, mob 0407 471 256 medjugorje1947@gmail.com. HOLY LAND AND MEDJUGORJE: September 15-30. 16 day pilgrimage of a lifetime to Tel Aviv, Caesarea, Nazareth, Cana, Tiberias, Sea of Galilee, Jordan River, Mt Tabor, Jerusalem, Gethsemane, Ein Karem, Bethlehem, Qumran, Jericho, Dead Sea, Mt of Olives, Mt Zion, Holy Sepulchre and Medjugorje (price $4,800). Departing September 15 and returning September 30, 2014. Fr Nicholas Nweke (Spiritual Director), 9448 4888. 19 DAYS: COST FROM $7,080 Poland, Italy, Lourdes & (Paris - Optional) Departs Perth on Monday 22 September 2014 Spiritual Director: Fr. Tadeusz Seremet SDS 19 DAYS: COST FROM $4,900 Jordan, Israel, and Egypt, Petra, Amman, Dead Sea, Sea of Galilee, Cana, Bethlehem, Taba, Mt. Sinai, St. Catherine’s, St. Anthony’s, and St. Paul’s Monastery, Sharm El-Sheikh, Pyramids of Giza and Cairo. Departs Perth on Sunday 9 November 2014. Spiritual Director: Fr. Phong Thanh Nguyen. For Itinerary and more information please contact: Francis Williams (Travel Coordinator) / T: 9459 3873 / M: 0404 893 877 (all-day) E: perthfamily888@ gmail.com 10 DAYS HOLY LAND WITH POPE FRANCIS: Cost from $2,580:00 (Land Only). Caesarea, Muhraka, Nazareth, Cana, Tiberias, Mt of Beatitudes, Capernaum, Boat Ride, Jordan River (Yardenit), Mt. Tabor, Jericho, Qumran, Dead Sea, Jerusalem. Departs Perth on Tuesday 20 May 2014. Francis Williams (Travel Coordinator) T: 9459 3873, M: 0404 893 877 (allday). E: perthfamily888@gmail. com
Classifieds:
Short, Sharp and Cheap VICES
C R O S S W O R D ACROSS 1 Number for the last Leo 4 Eden fruit? 7 California diocese named for Saint Joseph (with “San”) 9 Commander of the army who was made king over Israel (1 Kings 16:16) 10 Animal of sacrifice in the Old Testament 12 ___ pro nobis 13 OT historical book 14 One of Paul’s epistles 17 “...your ___ and your staff comfort me.” (Ps 23:4) 18 Nazareth, to Jesus 21 Commandment word 23 Laying on of ___ 24 “___ Angelicus” 26 Breaks the eighth commandment 29 The feast of St. Polycarp is in this month (abbr.) 30 ___ Union 33 Father of Joseph (Lk 3:23) 35 OT prophetic book 37 French holy woman (abbr.) 38 Donation to the poor 40 ___ of David 41 “___ Dolorosa” 42 Holy ___ DOWN 2 “___ the vine...” (Jn 15:5) 3 Patron saint of farmers 5 Purloined fruit in Augustine’s Confessions 6 “Take and ___; this is my body.” (Mt 26:26)” 7 Religion of Jesus 8 Son of Adam 9 Symbol of Confirmation 10 Large crucifix
Panorama deadline:
5pm, Fridays. Must be submitted on the week prior to publication. The Little Sisters of the Poor community is set in beautiful gardens in Glendalough. “Making the elderly happy, that is everything!” St Jeanne Jugan (foundress). Reg and enq: Sr Marie 9443 3155. AA Alcoholics Anonymous Is alcohol costing you more than just money? Enq: AA 9325 3566. Is your son or daughter unsure of what to do this year? Suggest a Cert IV course to discern God’s purpose. They will also learn more about the Catholic faith and develop skills in communication and leadership. Acts 2 College of Mission and Evangelisation (National Code 51452). Enq: Jane 9202 6859. Acts 2 College, Perth’s Catholic Bible College Is now pleased to be bble to offer tax deductibility for donations. If you are looking for an opportunity to help grow the faith of young people and evangelise the next generation of apostles, please contact Jane Borg, Principal at Acts 2 College on 0401 692 690 or principal@acts2come. wa.edu.au. Abortion Grief Association Inc A not-for-profit association is looking for
premises to establish a Trauma Recovery Centre (pref SOR) in response to increasing demand for services (ref www.abortiongrief.asn.au). Enq: Julie (08) 9313 1784. Free Rosaries For The Missions If you or anybody you know are going to the missions and would like to send or take Rosaries to spread the faith locally or overseas or for school or First Holy Communion, please contact Felicia 0429 173 541 or Hiep 0409 128 638. Saints and Sacred Relics Apostolate Invite SSRA Perth invites interested parties, parish priests, leaders of religious communities, lay associations to organise relic visitations to parishes, communities, etc. We have available authenticated relics, mostly first-class, of Catholic saints and blesseds including Sts Mary MacKillop, Padre Pio, Anthony of Padua, Therese of Lisieux, Maximilian Kolbe, Simon Stock and Blessed Pope John Paul II. Free of charge and all welcome. Enq: Giovanny 0478 201 092 or ssra-perth@catholic.org. PERPETUAL ADORATION Would You Not Watch One Hour with Me? Adoration - St Jerome’s,
Spearwood Adorers are needed. Please contact the office on 9418 1229. Holy Hour Slots at St Bernadette’s, Glendalough “Every Holy Hour we make so pleases the Heart of Jesus that it will be recorded in heaven and retold for all eternity” ~ Blessed Mother Teresa. Adorers needed for: Monday 2-3am; Tuesday 10-11am; Wednesday midnight-2am; Friday 2-4am; and Saturday 1-2pm. If you would like one of these hours or more information, please call the parish office. Enquiries: 9444 6131. Resource Centre For Personal Development 2014 Courses 197 High St, Fremantle. RCPD2 ‘Successful Relationships, Emotional Intelligence/ Communication Skills’; RCPD3 Part1 ‘Health – Mental, Physical and Spiritual’ ‘Understanding and Healing the Consequences of Emotional and Sexual Abuse’ Lecture and Discussion; RCPD11 ‘Therapeutic Workshop’; RCPD7 Part1 ‘Psychology and Christian Spirituality’; RCPD7 Part2 ‘Exorcists and Psychiatrists’. Volunteers required for Op/Shop Drop-In Centre. Enq: 9418 1439, 0409 405 585 www.rcpd.net.au.
W O R D S L E U T H
11 Liturgy 15 Nephew of Abraham 16 Commandment carrier, and others 19 Second son of Judah 20 Son of Seth 21 Monk’s hood 22 Bad habit 23 Biblical instrument 24 Abbr. for two NT epistles 25 Wife of King David 27 Land in which the tower of Babel was built 28 Doctrines 29 Moses’ was radiant (Ex 34:35) 31 Donate a portion of money to church 32 Samson killed a thousand men with this animal’s jawbone (Judg 15:16) 34 Direction from Bethlehem to the Jordan 36 Abbreviation for the Mother of God 39 Son of ___
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