The Record Newspaper 24 August 2006

after posting $600,000 loss

WA’s largest charity says rising costs and ethnic food needs, among other factors, forced it to make a reluctant choice.

■ By Sylvia Defendi

The St Vincent De Paul Society has officially announced the closure all six Low Cost Food Centres across Perth and the Food Distribution Centre located in Belmont, by the end of the year.

The Society said in a statement issued last week that the verdict was reached on August 10 at a State Council meeting, and was the result of various reviews that had been conducted on the centres.

The statement revealed a loss of over $600,000 to the Society over the 2005/6 financial year as a result of running the centres; difficulties in obtaining sufficient volunteers to man them; increasing

Continued - Page 2

Luciani cause closes

Priest says study of John Paul I to be at Vatican soon

■ By Cindy

Wooden

VATICAN CITY (CNS)- As the 28th anniversary of Pope John Paul I’s brief pontificate approached, one of the priests working on his sainthood cause said the paperwork would be sent to the Vatican by the end of the year. Cardinal Albino Luciani of Venice, Italy, was elected on August 26, 1978, to succeed Pope Paul VI. As Pope John

Students and parishioners get together to say Mary’s Rosary

■ By Sherilee Kingston

Pope John Paul I

Paul I, he served just over a month, dying on September 28. The diocesan phase of his cause for sainthood formally opened in 2003 in his home Diocese of Belluno and Feltre, Italy.

Continued - Page 2

On Tuesday August 15, the Parish of St Joseph and St Joseph’s Primary school in Queens Park came together to begin a Living Rosary. They began the Living Rosary in conjunction with celebrating the Feast of the Assumption of Mary.

The Living Rosary is to pray the Rosary each day and to help make it come alive in the local community.

The school children par-

ticipated by setting up candles in the form of Rosary beads. Ten blue candles were used to represent each Hail Mary and then a white candle was used to symbolise the Our Father.

Continued - Page 2

Dismayed: These volunteers at St Vincent De Paul’s Granary House Low-Cost Food Centre in Bibra Lake were shocked by the sudden announcement of the closure of all six centres in WA.

PHOTO: SYLVIA DEFENDI

Continued from page

The Parish. The Nation. The World.

Sylvia

Paul

Bronwen

Mgr. Giorgio Lise, vice postulator of the cause, said on August 17 that 170 witnesses already had been interviewed about the late pope’s life and ministry, and the last remaining interviews would be conducted by early November.

A formal biography and the witnesses’ testimony will be sent to the Congregation for Saints’ Causes by the end of the year, he said.

The postulators already had forwarded to the Vatican information about a southern Italian man who believes he was cured of cancer through the intervention of Pope John Paul, Mgr. Lise said.

The monsignor said the congregation found the material about the alleged miracle “interesting” and asked for more information, which was sent.

“We are awaiting their response, but we are optimistic,” Mgr. Lise said.

Vatican Radio said that on average the congregation takes 10 years to complete its historical and theological examinations of the submitted material, but approval of Pope John Paul I’s beatification, a major step toward sainthood, could come more quickly if the miracle is recognised.

Luciani cause advances Students pray

Continued from page 1

Children read the Joyful Mystery and then led the group in the Hail Mary. As each Hail Mary began a candle was lit. After the completion of the Rosary the participating parishioners were invited to take one of the blue candles home to continue their personal journey with the Living Rosary. St Joseph’s primary school are intending to keep the Living Rosary an important part in continuing to pray a decade a day to keep the prayers alive.

Continued from page 1 competition from major supermarket chains and increasing difficulties in complying with Department of Health regulations. According to the Society’s website, more than 104,130 customers with welfare cards, who regularly use the Low Cost Food Centres, will no longer be able to use the service.

However the sudden announcement of the news to volunteers on Friday caused dismay among them and customers.

Single mother of two and parttime quarantine official, Alison Kingsbury, said she would not be able to provide her children with the security of their own home if it were not for the Granary House Low Cost Centre, located in Bibra Lake.

“I would not be able to pay my mortgage if it were not for this place. $50 to $100 is a lot of money to a struggling family – every bit counts,” she said.

Volunteers at the Bibra Lake Centre said they were devastated by the decision.

One female volunteer told The Record several fellow volunteers had broken down in tears when the news was announced to them at a meeting in the centre on Friday morning.

However, St Vincent De Paul Society spokesman, Brian Bull told The Record that while it was a difficult decision to make, there was no way the Society could keep the centres open without compromising their work in other areas, such as with the mentally ill.

The six Low Cost Food Centres are unique to the WA branch of the Society and are located in Armadale, Beechboro, Bibra Lake, Belmont, Mandurah, Manjimup and Merriwa. Some volunteers questioned whether the $600,000 debt was the direct result of recent technological upgrades, coupled with the reported “unnecessary” renovation of some centres.

Considering that the service had been running for over 15 years, Mr Bull said that the upgrades were necessary to meet health and safety standards.

The Society also reported increasing competition from supermarkets such as IGA, which provide many similar discounts.

“Our reviews indicated that the average spending per person at our stores was approximately $17,

which meant that people were not doing all their week’s shopping at the Low Cost Food Centres. As a charity we are struggling to sustain crucial benefits to the homeless and mentally ill,” Mr Bull said. Volunteers have replied to comments based on income and expenditure, stating that the stores provide a lot more than merely low cost food items.

“Not everyone comes here just to shop. Some come for the company and just to chat,” Ray Vernon, who has been a volunteer at the Granary House Low Cost Food Centre for the past seven years said.

“A good portion of the volunteers are old, and coming here is like a social event for them. It keeps them going and gives their life purpose and meaning,” added another volunteer from Granary House who asked to be known only as Mini.

Acknowledging that volunteers are increasingly becoming a thing of the past, Mr Bull said that the Society sincerely thanked volunteers who worked at the low cost outlets for their service.

“We are hoping that volunteers will continue their commitment to aiding the poor by helping out in our 43 retail shops, where the Society is in dire need of volunteers,” he said.

As for customers who relied on the low cost food service, Mr Bull assures that the Society will continue to assist those in need in a variety of ways.

“Those who are in need can come to us for help and they will get it free of charge. We are presently negotiating with Coles supermarkets, on a national level, in order to implement Coles food vouchers, which work just like a gift voucher would,” said Mr Bull, while noting that the Society was also more than willing to assist with matters beyond budget food.

Regarding the imminent closure of the Low Cost Food Centres, Mr Bull reminded the public that the decision was necessary to the survival of other works within the Society.

“We didn’t want to, but we’ve had to. At the end of the day, the Society is accountable for using the generous donations of the public wisely, and this was a decision based on wisdom,” concluded Mr Bull.

Vinnies close shops Society seeks volunteers

■ By Sylvia Defendi

Various locations around Perth city are likely to be inundated with volunteers collecting spare change for St Vincent De Paul’s annual street appeal on September 15.

However, as society spokesman Brian Bull stated “We can’t raise money during the street appeal without volunteers on the streets doing their part for disadvantaged members of our community.” Being the only day of the year when the Society is allowed to take to the streets, support for the fundraising event, by way of volunteers, is urgently needed to meet the demand for donation.

Volunteers, who are 18 years of age or over, would only need to

assist for as long as time permits between 8.30am and 5pm, by encouraging passers-by to donate loose change.

Mr Bull said the St Vincent De Paul Society functions exclusively on the kindness of Western Australian businesses and individuals from the public during this time, and reaffirmed that the Society relies solely on the community volunteering their time to help the worthy cause.

“The public has shown they will give in the past, but we need more collectors to adequately cover as many areas as we can,” he said. 100% of all donations collected will go towards the Society’s good works. Interested volunteers can contact the Society on: (08) 9475 5400 to register.

New Canberra prelate sees the potential

Australia is like Abraham: rich but unhappy, says new Canberra archbishop

■ By Paul Gray

The new leader of the Catholic Church in Canberra, Archbishop Mark Coleridge, likened Australia to the Old Testament figure of Abraham during his installation Mass, calling the nation rich and successful but faced with a “lingering unhappiness.”

Abraham “was a rich and successful businessman, yet something gnawed away at him deep down,” Archbishop Coleridge said in his first homily at Canberra’s St Christopher’s Cathedral.

“So too Australia is in many ways rich and successful, and there is much of which we can be rightly proud, as Abraham was no doubt. Yet there is also something missing deeper down: we sense it in public life and we feel it in the privacy of our heart,” Archbishop Coleridge said.

“We have a bit of fun but not much joy; we get on well enough with others but struggle to find love; we know little conflict but do not find peace; we have endless options but do not feel free; we move but we do not advance.”

Refraining from direct criticism of Australia as a greedy nation which rejects outsiders - comments frequently made by members of the churches’ social welfare lobby - the new archbishop instead said that like Abraham, Australia today feels a “wound deep within.”

Because of this wound, “we just get on with business, proving how rich and successful we can be in a world where fear and greed loom large.”

As he did for Abraham, God speaks a “word of hope” for Australia today, Archbishop Coleridge said.

This word from God opens new horizons of hope for the nation. “This word is the wisdom of the Cross, and it’s the only wisdom to which the Church can lay claim,” Archbishop Coleridge said. The new prelate, previously an auxiliary bishop of Melbourne and a chaplain to Pope John Paul II, underlined the message of the nation’s spiritual emptiness in a somewhat provocative ending to his homily, in which he called Australia “terra nullius.”

“In saying yes to Christ, I say yes to Australia – home of the Dreaming, Terra Nullius, South Land of the Holy Spirit, lit by the Southern Cross,” Archbishop Coleridge said.

The term terra nullius - literally “no-one’s land,” referring to pre-European settlement - lay at the centre of the High Court of Australia’s celebrated judgment in the Mabo case, which established the controversial concept of native title in Australian law.

Archbishop Coleridge, however, appeared to select the term to convey a comment on the character of post-European Australia.

The new archbishop said the

“

To my eye, the Catholic Church in Australia is like the ageing Elizabeth of whom we have heard in the Gospel just proclaimed. She is pregnant against all the odds. ”

Church in Australia is plainly experiencing “a time of diminishment” in some sense. While some people think this as a “terminal decline,” he disagreed.

Referring to the Gospel reading at his Mass of installation, Archbishop Coleridge said: “To my eye, the Catholic Church in Australia is like the ageing Elizabeth of whom we have heard in the Gospel just proclaimed. She is pregnant against all the odds.”

“There is something stirring in the old, seemingly barren womb of Mother Church in this land, and it’s all God’s work.”

Consequently, it is not time for Catholics in Australia to “circle the wagons in some self-protective manoeuvre that might delay the end a little. Instead, he argued, the challenge facing the Church is to think innovatively about doing a better job in the future. He said it is not the role of bishops to do all of this thinking on their own, but to listen to others when they come forward with ideas.

“As a leader, I have always done best in situations where others bombard me with all kinds of ideas and suggestions,” he said. “It can’t be left to the leader to have all the

Martyrs of September

1792

feast – September 2

These 191 martyrs of the French Revolution died in four locations in Paris Sept. 2 and 3, 1792. Most were members of the clergy. A 1790 document of the Constituent Assembly declared French clerics to be public servants and required them to swear an oath of allegiance. Those who took the oath were called “assermentes”; those who would not were “refractaires” or “insermentes.” Pressure steadily increased for people to take the oath; it finally erupted in the carnage of September 1792, when 1,400 in all were killed by gangs and thugs.

bright ideas and to make all the best suggestions.

“I will have some ideas and suggestions certainly; but my task as Bishop is also to make discernments and decisions about what others propose. It’s up to us all to imagine and to think how the Gospel might be proclaimed in new ways.”

Prayer is essential for this task, Archbishop Coleridge added. The missionary energy that is needed today can only come from a Church that is becoming more mystical.

“To renew structures in the Church can be important, but still more important is the renewal of heart made possible by the encounter with Christ in prayer,” he said. “Therefore, our communities – families and parishes and educational institutions above all – must become genuine schools of prayer, for the way of deep renewal in the Church at this time is the way of contemplation – contemplation of the face of Christ crucified and risen, the face of suffering and the face of glory, the face both human and divine.”

In his first sermon Archbishop Coleridge quoted twice from the Australian poet James McAuley including a famous passage on prayer from the poem Letter to John Dryden: “Incarnate Word, cast flame upon the earth; raise up contemplatives among us, who walk within the fire of ceaseless prayer, impetuous desire. Set pools of silence in this thirsty land.”

Archbishop Coleridge said this should be the prayer of the Church today, to be led by God to “a new depth of contemplation for a new

mission.” The archbishop also quoted his former mentor, Pope John Paul II, who advocated a “new evangelisation” for the Church today. This would be new “in ardour, in method, in expression,” the Pope said.

Archbishop Coleridge translated the Pope’s words as meaning “new fire in the belly, new strategies, new words and images and gestures.”

If this is what the Holy Spirit

is saying to the Church today, the archbishop said, “then far from being a time to circle the wagons, this is a time to roll the wagons in new ways through territory we do not know.”

“Now is the time,” he said, “for a new kind of apostolic imagination, a kind of lateral thinking in the drive to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus in fresh and powerful ways that go to the heart of Australia.”

JOHN

JohnHughes

I’m John Hughes, WA’s most trusted car dealer

Do I guarantee that when people come to do business with me, they will be treated with courtesy, sincerity, professionalism and ef ciency? I say “I want your business and I m prepared to pay for it” and “I stand behind every car I sell”. Is that really true?

Is it true that I have over 40 technicians who are dedicated to getting my used cars in rst class condition before sale?

Is it true that every year for the last 17 consecutive years I ve been Australia s top selling Hyundai dealer?

Is it true that if somebody buys a used car from me, I will pay for a pre-purchase RAC or similar inspection?

I have a warehouse selling cars under $10,000. Is it true that I offer a full money back guarantee within one week?

New challenge: Archbishop Mark Coleridge sees the Church in Australia as similar to the ageing Elizabeth in the Gospel: carrying the promise of a child against all the odds.

The ever-new eternal city

The Record’s own Michelle Jones, currently studying in Rome, took time out to explore and make some discoveries in her little corner of the eternal city.

Even though I have lived in the same part of Rome for almost two years now, I still often feel like a tourist, an explorer, a pilgrim in my own neighbourhood. It’s not that I pore over a map at each street corner or walk with a camera dangling around my neck, but rather I am constantly making discoveries.

In fact, sometimes I wonder if my neighbours rearrange the buildings while I am asleep; regularly, I walk out of my front door and find fascinating churches, edifices and shrines appearing before my eyes for what seems like the first time.

My latest discovery “popped up” along Via di Sant’ Ambrogio, or St Ambrose Street, the street that I take to buy the occasional muffin (at a Jewish bakery that was another one of my discoveries). It is nothing less than the family home of St Ambrose, the 4th century bishop of Milan and Doctor of the Church! Moreover, thanks to Ambrose’s elder sister, St Marcellina, the house is the most ancient house of Religious in Rome. On Christmas Day in the year 353 Marcellina made a vow before Pope Liberius to live as a consecrated virgin and, with some companions, she transformed the family home into a monastery, which has lasted to this day; after almost 1500 years of nuns living on Via di Sant’ Ambrogio and praying for the world, Benedictine monks from Subiaco live in the monastery today. The church next to the monastery is so well-concealed by the buildings which surround it that it is almost impossible for the passer-by to spot and is therefore categorised as one of Rome’s “Hidden Churches.”

Today, like so many places in Rome, the monastery and church are a composition of many historical layers. Within the monastery, the monks walk upon the foundations of Ambrose’s house, foundations which were themselves laid alongside ancient pagan Roman ruins; features from the epoch of the nuns, such as grilles and a peep-hole the nuns used for security, remain woven into the architecture of the monastery, a silent witness to well over a thousand years of a fervent Christian presence. In the church, the accumulated history is even more striking: the relics of the second century martyr St Polycarp lie under the altar, there hangs a painting of the Madonna and Child which is medieval from Mary’s eyes up while the rest is a recent restoration and nowadays from the church every Sunday, the joyful singing and drumming of the Nigerian Catholic community of Rome which gathers there to worship rings out.

So what is the true significance of my latest discovery? Is it just that if I had lived here 1600 years earlier I would have had some really great neighbours? More, it is the impact of realising anew that the saints, like Ambrose and Marcellina, were real people who lived real lives in real neighbourhoods. Their “yes” to Jesus resonates beyond time and space, jolting me out of my mediocrity and inspiring me to holiness. I guess that in the Eternal City, even going to buy a muffin can have eternal consequences.

Classic: A 19th century painting depicting St Marcellina with her two brothers, saints Satyrus, the elder and Ambrose, the younger. The painting shows Marcellina teaching Ambrose, later Bishop of Milan and Doctor of the Church, how to read and hangs in the church next to the monastery founded by St Marcellina in her family home.

Today, the Nigerian community of Rome gathers in the church for its Sunday worship.

Historical: Benedictine monks from Subiaco now live in the monastery founded by St Marcellina in her family home. In a section of the monastery, the foundations of this home, which actually lay alongside ancient pagan Roman ruins, can be seen.

From

Optional

Departing

Rome (3) Medjugorje (7)

PATHWAYS OF ST PAUL

Athens

WALKING THE PILGRIMS ROAD

Journey a 9-day walk along the greatest stretch of the ancient Camino, leading to the Shrine

PRINCIPALSHIP

ST JOSEPH’S SCHOOL,PEMBERTON

St Joseph’s is a small rural Catholic primary school located in the beautiful forest region of Pemberton, approximately 335 kilometres south of Perth.

The school was founded in 1952 by the Sisters of St Joseph and currently caters for 61 students from Kindergarten to Year Seven. St Joseph’s offers a curriculum based on the integration of faith and life that promotes the religious, social, cultural and physical development of each student.

The School Board and the Parents and Friends’ Association have worked closely together in the rebuilding and refurbishing of the school facilities. The school is well resourced with an excellent library and networked computer system.

The successful applicant will be expected to take up the position on 1 January 2007.

Applicants need to be practising Catholics and experienced educators committed to the objectives and ethos of Catholic education. They will have the requisite theological, educational, pastoral and administrative competencies, together with an appropriate four-year minimum tertiary qualification, and will have completed Accreditation for Leadership of the Religious Education Area and Accreditation to Teach Religious Education or its equivalent.

The official application form, referee assessment forms and instructions can be accessed on the Catholic Education Office website www.ceo.wa.edu.au

Enquiries regarding the position should be directed to Helen Brennan, Consultant, Leadership Team on (08) 9212 9268 or email sch.personnel@ceo.wa.edu.au

All applications, on the official form, should reach The Director, Catholic Education Office of Western Australia, PO Box 198, Leederville 6903 no later than 1 September 2006.

Hidden treasure: The church attached to what used to be St Ambrose’s family home is so difficult for the passer-by to detect that it is dubbed one of Rome’s “Hidden Churches.”

Jesuit warns on cloning

Nation now at the Rubicon on embryo research: Fr Frank Brennan SJ

■ By Paul Gray

Prominent Jesuit writer Fr Frank Brennan says Australia faces “a second Rubicon” as public calls mount for the Commonwealth Parliament to allow human cloning, which could lead to the creation of human embryos for destructive purposes.

A federal government advisory committee, the Lockhart committee, recommended late last year that the existing parliamentary ban on all forms of human cloning be overturned to allow experimentation and destruction of embryos.

Under pressure from lobbyists within the medical science community, the Howard Government has now moved to embrace the Lockhart position, allowing a further conscience vote on the issue to take place soon.

Opposing the Governent’s move at a Sydney meeting this week, Fr Brennan said that a first Rubicon was crossed by the Australian com-

munity four years ago, when there was a lack of strong public reaction to the parliament’s decision to allow experimentation on “excess embryos” which had been created for IVF purposes.

Fr Brennan warned that if the ban put in place by the Federal Parliament in 2002 is overturned in accordance with the wishes of the Lockhart committee, Australia would be crossing a second Rubicon.

This would be a dangerous step, he warned.

“Beyond this is a city where the scientist is justified in creating human life only so that he might experiment on it and destroy it without the need for any respect of the dignity of that human life,” he said.

Parliament unanimously stopped short of crossing the second Rubicon in 2003, Fr Brennan said. “To date, we have drawn a moral distinction between creating an embryo which has a chance at life and creating an embryo which has no chance at life,” he said.

“The second is created only so that it might be experimented on and destroyed.”

The Rubicon was the name of

the river beyond which the senate ordered Julius not to take his army on his return home. Caesar crossed it in 49 BC, initiating war with Pompey.

Fr Brennan said that in the four years since the last major vote on embryo research by federal parliament, there has not been sufficient change in the state of scientific knowledge nor community attitudes to warrant revisiting the issue as the Government now proposes to do.

Meanwhile Dr John Fleming, Adjunct Professor of Bioethics at the Southern Cross Bioethics Institute, has written to Federal MPs challenging claims that most Australians support cloning human embryos.

New research conducted by Sexton Marketing and supervised by Dr Fleming found that 51 per cent of Australians oppose cloning human embryos.

This contradicts earlier Morgan opinion polling that found 80 per cent support for human cloning.

Dr Fleming said the Sexton research was more sophisticated than the Morgan poll. The Sexton finding was based on a national survey of 1200 people conducted in

Social justice bishop calls for Hicks to be tried or returned

■ By Paul Gray

The Australian Catholic Social Justice Council has weighed into the debate on terrorism suspect David Hicks, calling for him to be immediately tried or brought back to Australia. The Council’s President, Bishop Christopher Saunders, said reports of recent statements by the Australian Government that it would seek to bring Mr Hicks home if new charges were not laid by November were encouraging.

“While these are welcome developments, we deplore any further detention of Mr Hicks,” Bishop Saunders said.

“If Mr Hicks has a case to answer he should be tried without further delay by a competent and independent tribunal with all of the protections of the rule of law that Australian citizens would expect, compliant with the Geneva Conventions,” Bishop Saunders said.

“Otherwise his continued indefinite detention can no longer be justified.”

Expressing concern for Hicks’s physical and mental state,

Bishop Saunders accused the US Government of setting up a detention system that is contrary to the Geneva Conventions.

Federal Attorney-General Philip Ruddock recently defended the lengthy delay, lasting nearly five years, between Mr Hicks’ detention and eventual trial. Similar delays have occurred in some Australian criminal cases, Mr Ruddock argued.

Member of new congregation to lecture on Bible

Fr. Dan Benedetti from the Missionaries of God’s Love (MGL) will be a visiting lecturer at the Disciples of Jesus Bible College in the first week of September. His lectures will focus on the close interrelationship of word and sacrament in the celebration of the Eucharist. Fr Dan is one of 13 new MGL priests, most of whom have been ordained within the last 10 years. He currently spends half his time helping with the formation of pre-novices and novices in Canberra. The other half of his time is spent promoting vocations.

The Missionaries of God’s Love is a budding new congregation founded in Canberra within the Disciples of Jesus community by Fr Ken Barker in 1986. The priests and brothers of the MGL are committed to preaching the Good News of Jesus under the grace of the new Pentecost for the sake of personal conversion.

They have a daily commitment to at least one hour of Eucharistic adoration, which is the spiritual font for their works of evangelization. They have a special charism

for the young, and join with the Disciples of Jesus community in conducting four Summer Schools around Australia each January and organising a biennial pilgrimage event at Easter called Light to the Nations held at the Redemptorist Monastery in Galong NSW, which usually attracts close to 1,000 young

people. Fr Chris Ryan, an MGL priest, with the help of a team of young people, will be responsible for taking the World Youth Day Cross and Icon of Our Lady to every Diocese in Australia during the 12 months preceding the big event in Sydney in July 2008.

While some congregations are concerned about what to do with their buildings, the MGL have the opposite problem. They are being blessed with so many vocations they are struggling to have enough room to accommodate the influx of new recruits. Next year they will have 20 seminarians living in two houses in Melbourne and attending Catholic Theological College.

They will also have another 20 in the early stages of formation in Canberra. The vocations are not only coming from Australia, but also from New Zealand, Indonesia, Philippines, PNG, and India. Current extensions in Canberra, and the gift of a new house in Melbourne, will still not be sufficient to cope with the demand for accommodation of new candidates.

The MGL are developing a

Josephite initiative aims to alert

Indigenous Australians focus of package, which uses words of John Paul II

■ By Sylvia Defendi

Based on the words of Pope John Paul II, Mary MacKillop’s Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart have released a package of material entitled The Hour has Come – Working Towards a Justly Reconciled Australia, in a bid to alert local communities to the ongoing plight of Australia’s Indigenous people.

The informative package, which was released nationally on August 15, reflects on the words of Pope John Paul II to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Alice Springs on November 29, 1986. Sr

Clare Ahern, Provincial Leader of the Western Australian Josephites, said that the coming 20th anniversary of the address provided people with a unique and timely opportunity to focus on the words of the Pope and to reconsider them in the light of recent concerns about conditions in remote Indigenous communities and the disadvantaged state of Indigenous people’s lives generally.

“The package uses the words of the Pope to focus on issues such as culture, the relationship between the Church and Indigenous people, and the on-going needs of Indigenous people into the future.

The thoughts and comments of prominent Australians are used to echo the Pope’s sentiments, and participants in the group discussions are encouraged to develop a local action plan that will help them take whatever action is possible for them to address the needs they have identified,” Sr Clare said.

Sr Clare said that the overall aim of the strategy was to see indigenous issues returned to the national agenda in a way that would incite the introduction of policies that would bring about lasting progress. Copies are available for $8 through the Josephite Leaders’ Social Action Office, P.O. Box 326, Curtin. A.C.T. 2605.

unique way of evangelisation in the Australian Church. They conduct a parish and Eucharistic Centre in Canberra which provides round the clock Eucharistic adoration, evangelising outreaches to young people, spiritual retreats, and the formation of cell groups, which provide not only support for people in their faith , but also a vital way of drawing others into the life of the faith community. This combination of parish and Centre for mission is now being duplicated by MGL priests in the parish of Burwood in Melbourne and also a newly formed parish in the Novaliches Diocese in

Manila, Philippines. The MGL also have responsibility for the St Martin de Porres urban aboriginal community in Darwin.

Fr. Dan Benedetti is well equipped for his topic at the bible college. The life of the MGL is thoroughly evangelical and Eucharistic. Speaking out of his experience of this way of life, and with a dynamic teaching style, he will open up the scriptural foundations of the Eucharistic celebration, provide a clear rationale for the importance of Eucharistic adoration, and show the relevance of the Church’s liturgical practice today.

To lecture: Fr Dan Benedetti

Make a decision: Bishop Chrisotpher Saunders has action on David Hicks.

In Africa, faith is all around you: Oblate Priest who served in Lesmurdie reflects on African sojourn

If the Franciscans had handed Fr Sholto Douglas a hammer when he came to them as a young man more than 20 years ago his life may have taken a completely different direction.

As a 19-year-old in Brisbane, Sholto had decided to become a priest.

The question he grappled with was which order he would join.

It came down to the Franciscans or the Oblates - the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate.

This was the choice he faced after much soul searching and close consideration of which religious order best suited him.

“I looked around about 20 different religious orders,” he said.

“I remember a Carmelite priest said to me, ‘I think you should pray to the Holy Spirit for closer discernment’.

“I picked five - the Jesuits, the MSCs (Missionaries of the Sacred Heart), the Franciscans, the Passionists and the Oblates.”

From there he narrowed it down to the last two.

“What I liked about the Oblates when I got to Melbourne (for a visit to help with his discernment), they had me working in a Vietnamese coffee shop, pulling up floor boards,” Fr Douglas said.

“I wasn’t just there to find out about the Oblate charism and Oblate community and prayer - I was there to do something practical.

“I’m a person of action. Action means more than what words are spoken, so,from there, I became an Oblate.”

That decision has seen Fr Douglas involved in parish work in Fremantle, Western Australia, and Tea Tree Gully in South Australia, become a teacher at the Oblaterun Iona College in Brisbane, and work as a chaplain to Rosies street mission.

And almost 20 years on, his commitment to the Oblates has taken him from the leafy suburb of Ascot in Brisbane to his latest ministry among the poor villagers of the

highlands of Kenya.

Having served there for five and a half years, Fr Douglas is enjoying a break with his parents in Brisbane, taking the opportunity to talk in parishes and schools about his life and work in Kenya.

Fr Douglas, 48, is part of an Oblate mission in the parish of Kionyo, north east of the capital Nairobi.

As a priest for almost 18 years, he has taught at Iona from 1992-97 and for two of those years he was a part-time teacher and part-time Rosies chaplain in Brisbane and on the Gold Coast, working with the outreach’s street van.

That included visiting people in prison and being a chaplain at Southport courthouse.

“I enjoyed the balance very much between traditional teaching and working ‘on the edge’, or on the streets with Rosies,” Fr Douglas said. He said when he used to play

Migrant Mass celebrations

■ By Sherrilee Kingston

The Parish of Ss John and Paul in Willeton celebrated a Migrant and Refugee Mass on August 20. The Parish consists of people from 91 countries.

A banner at the altar held the theme for the Mass, God’s instruction to Abraham: Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation (Genesis12:1-2).

The church was adorned with national flags from across the globe and parishioners wore their national costumes which depicted the diverse ethnic groups.

Unique symbols were brought in procession expressing the richness of the respective countries before the Eucharist began.

The Mass included readings and prayers of the faithful in different languages, with translations in English on the overheads. Children from the Orana School performed a few lithurgical movements to

and coach rugby that was his passion.

“As I get older my passion is to live with the poorest of the poor.

“For me the poorest of the poor were the people I met through Rosies and the people in prison.

“Now, the poorest of the poor are the people in Kenya.

“That’s what I enjoy about being an Oblate - life is interesting and challenging.”

Fr Douglas said those he regarded as the “poorest of the poor” are the people with HIV/AIDS and a group of orphans the mission supports.

The mission helps a group of HIV/AIDS patients with bus transport to receive treatment, and helps them in obtaining antiretroviral drugs and through a support group.

Fr Douglas said the Kenyan government provided food and assistance for the patients and the

welcome the Gospel. A highlight for the congregation was a refugee family from Liberia. The children sang a few thought provoking lines about God’s command to us His children to obey our parents, bringing tears to many who watched.

Following the Mass was an international banquet of shared finger food displaying food from different countries and giving parishioners the opportunity to catchup and experience the different ethnic food.

orphans, and the Oblate mission was involved in distributing the food. The mission cares for about 100 orphans ranging in age from a few months to 16, and Fr Douglas said although they were provided for materially, he regarded them among the poorest of the poor “because they don’t have parents”.

Kionyo Catholic Mission has 11 churches, and is sponsored by the Oblates and receives support from Canada as well as from Australia, Poland and the Congo.

Money received from overseas helps support the work of the Church in faith education and in the formation of “Kenyan Oblate priests and brothers of the future”.

Fr Douglas said the Oblates had 16 Kenyans in various stages of formation to become priests or brothers.

He said he intended to remain at the mission until there were four Kenyan Oblate priests and two brothers to carry on the work there.

“Then I believe my job will be done and I can return to Australia,” he said.

He expects that to happen in about eight years.

That will complete a “mission” that Fr Douglas first pondered when he was a novice.

He was joined in the novitiate by three other young men and two of them were from Africa, giving rise to the idea that he might one day go there to work.

One of his companions was Liborious Nashenda from Namibia, who is now the Archbishop of Windhoek in Namibia.

When Archbishop Nashenda spoke with Fr Douglas a few years ago, he reminded him about his earlier desire to come to Africa.

“I had a desire to go to another country, maybe South Africa - to swap with someone to go for maybe six to nine months,” Fr Douglas said.

“Then something happened in 1997 - I went on a De Mazenod Experience (renewal time) in Aixen-Provence in southern France ... for three months.

“I met Oblate priests and brothers from all over the world and I

heard about (a call) to get Oblates to volunteer to go to Kenya.

“I was inspired by that and made application immediately to my superior in Australia and the Superior General of the Oblates in Rome.”

He joined the Kenyan mission in January 2001. As well as helping the Kenyans to become self-sufficient as a Church, the Oblates are also leading them in becoming self-sufficient as a community through the development of infrastructure.

The Oblates have helped through a water project, and establishing churches, schools and community halls.

During his time in Kenya, Fr Douglas said he has been most moved by the orphans, and by the death of some of their parents.

“(Like) the woman who left her one-year-old baby with us and walked off and died,” he said.

“It’s very sad, but I’m happy she left her child with us.”

Fr Douglas said he had come to admire the Kenyans for for at least three attributes - their welcoming attitude, “acuna matata” (tendency not to worry) and their deep faith.

“They inspire me with their welcoming (attitude) - one of the best in the world.

“They’re generous in sharing what they have.

“(They inspire me) for their “acuna matata”. They don’t get worried about big things, though they have enormous problems - much bigger than ours.

“Most seem to be struggling against enormous odds, (but) they keep going.

“I admire the people’s faith. It’s much easier to keep the faith (in Kenya) than it is in Australia.

“It happens automatically. Faith is all around you.”

Fr Sholto was assistant priest to Fr Donal Madigan OMI in Lesmurdie in 1998 - 1999. During this time he was chaplain at St Brigid’s College, Lesmudie. While there he began the soup run with the Yr 12 girls and their teachers as part of the Red Cross Soup patrol, a patrol which still continues and is called the Sholto Soup Patrol.

- The Catholic Leader, Brisbane

Giving One’s All - the call to discipleship

■ By Sherrilee Kingston

Last weekend 10 young people joined 11 priests, nuns and brothers to reflect on the call to Discipleship during a silent retreat held at St Joseph’s in Safety Bay.

■ By Peter Bugden, of The Catholic Leader in Brisbane

Passion: “As I get older my passion is to live with the poorest of the poor,” says Fr Sholto Douglas. PHOTO  THE CATHOLIC LEADER

Themes of sex and violence are increasingly taking their toll on the innocence of children. Concerned parents are beginning to think more seriously about how to control the whispering stranger sitting in the corner of the average family television viewing room.

Recent studies confirm longstanding concerns about how the media influences children and adolescents. The August 2 issue of the journal Pediatrics, published by the Illinois-based American Academy of Pediatrics, contained two articles on the topic.

One of them, entitled “Exposure to Degrading Versus Nondegrading Music Lyrics and Sexual Behaviour Among Youth,” was based on telephone interviews with 1,461 teens aged 12 to 17. The group was interviewed three times: in 2001, 2002 and 2004.

The average youth, according to the article, listens to music 1.5 to 2.5 hours per day, not counting music videos.

Sexual themes are common in much of this music and range from romantic and playful to degrading and hostile.

The authors started by observing that there is strong theoretical justification for the notion that listening to sexual lyrics may influence adolescents’ sexual behaviour.

Their study confirmed the theory, finding that “Teens who spent more time listening to music were more likely than those who spent less to initiate intercourse.”

The article did point out that the correlation between the two factors is not definitive proof of a causal relationship.

Nevertheless, the results showed that the more teens listened to degrading sexual music content, the more likely they were to subsequently initiate intercourse.

By contrast, exposure to nondegrading sexual music did not lead to changes in sexual behaviour.

“Reducing the amount of degrading sexual content in popular music or reducing young people’s exposure to music with this type of content could help delay the onset of sexual behaviour,” concluded the article.

A second study, “The Relationship Between Watching Professional Wrestling on Television and Engaging in Date Fighting Among High School Students,” examined the question of violence.

The study, based on a random sample of 2,485 students from North Carolina, found that there were significant correlations between frequency of watching wrestling on television during the previous two weeks and engaging in date fighting, fighting in general, and weapon carrying for both males and females.

The relationship between viewing wrestling and violent behaviour was stronger among females than among males.

The authors commented that there are many factors associated with the use of violence among adolescents.

Yet they added that “numerous studies have revealed a consistent association between adolescents’ exposure to violence and victimisation and their risk of carrying weapons, having attitudes accepting the use of violence or aggressive behaviours to resolve conflict or achieve goals, and actually using violence.”

The article concluded by recommending: “Reducing children’s and adolescents’ exposure to violence from media sources should be an important component of any violence-prevention strategy.”

Links with aggression

Violence and the media was the subject of an almost 500-page collection of articles published last December. One of the chapters in the Handbook of Children, Culture, and Violence (Sage Publications) looked at violent music and youth.

The authors, Barbara Wilson and Nicole Martins, noted that genres such as gangsta rap contain high levels of violence, and that a significant number of music videos also feature frequent acts of violence.

They observe that several studies found a relationship between preference for violent music and aggressive behaviour.

In relation to the question of causality, controlled studies on collegeage students show that listening to violent music encourages violent thoughts.

The number of studies is limited, however, and Wilson and Martins conclude that “a modest amount of evidence links exposure to violent

music with aggression.” In addition, some studies point to negative effects related to depression, risk taking and racial stereotyping. Another chapter in the book deals with TV violence.

There, Dale Kunkel and Lara Zwarun state: “It is well established by a compelling body of scientific evidence that television violence is harmful to children.”

The harmful effects include: the learning of aggressive behaviours; desensitisation toward victims of violence; and increased fear of being victimised by violence.

The article notes that literally hundreds of studies support the conclusion that viewing televised violence leads to increases in subsequent aggression.

The chances of encountering violent content on TV are high. One three-year study found that 60 per cent of all shows sampled contained some form of violence.

Moreover, much of the violence appears “sanitised” and fails to show realistic harm to victims. In addition, often the violence is committed by attractive characters who suffer no remorse or criticism for their behaviour. Sanitised or glamorous violence, note Kunkel and Zwarun, increases the risks of harmful effects on children.

Quantity concerns

Worries over these negative effects are compounded by data showing how much time children spend exposed to media.

On May 24 the Kaiser Family Foundation released a study showing that many busy parents encourage television use among their children.

The report, Media Family: Electronic Media in the Lives of Infants, Toddlers, Preschoolers, and Their Parents, was based on a national survey of 1,051 parents with children aged 6 months to 6 years old and a series of focus groups across the United States.

According to the study, in a typical day 83 per cent of children under the age of 6 use screen media (TV, videos, computer), averaging almost two hours a day.

In many homes the TV is a nearly constant presence, from the living room to the dining room and the bedroom. One-third of the children surveyed have a TV in their bedrooms.

The report did point out that well-designed educational programs can be beneficial for children.

As well, many parents reported being satisfied with the television programs their children watch.

At the same time many parents expressed guilt about their children’s media use, believing that they should be spending more time with their kids.

Some expressed concerns that they may have set in motion something they soon won’t be able to control: that today’s educational shows will give way to violent video games. The study also found that many children are exposed to television when their parents are watching adult shows.

In fact, a third of children live in homes where parents simply leave the TV on most of the day - period.

Constant exposure to the media is a fact of life in other countries too. Recent data in Britain showed that a third of children aged 8 to 11 said that they mainly watched television on their own, the Guardian newspaper reported on May 3.

The information came from a study conducted by the Office of Communications, a governmental regulatory body.

In addition, more than seven in 10 parents in households with cable or satellite TV admitted they had not set any controls to limit the channels their children can watch.

Four in 10 parents of 12- to 15year-olds said there were no house rules about watching television.

Meanwhile, in Spain the national newspaper El País reported on May 24 that around 800,000 children watch television after 10pm, which is when controls over content designed to protect them cease.

The article observed that children aged 4 to 12 average 864 hours a year in front of the TV screen, compared with 960 going to school.

The potential for good, but also the need for vigilance, regarding media usage was dealt with by Benedict XVI in his message for the 40th World Communications Day.

In the text the Pope called upon the media to be a protagonist of truth and promoter of peace, and to avoid the distortions that occur when “the media industry becomes self-serving or solely profit-driven, losing the sense of accountability to the common good” (No. 3).

Benedict XVI also noted the importance of forming people to help them use the media intelligently and appropriately. Secular research seems to indicate that that task is more necessary than ever.

- Zenit

The problem: What is essentially an adult medium, usually aiming at the lowest common denominator in entertainment, is uncontrolled by parents.

Perspectives

letters to the editor

Is reason recognised in our sociey?

At a recent book launch, Fr Joe Parkinson, Director of the L.J.Goody Bioethics Centre, mounted a strong case that Catholics must learn to argue against euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide (and other ethical issues) on the basis of reason, not faith. This was not an abandonment of faith, but a recognition that if you want an atheist or an agnostic MP to vote for or against a particular piece of legislation there is no point in telling him, “God said so”, even if He did. The case has to be put on rational grounds that the other person is capable of understanding and accepting as a basis for behaviour.

That is not a serious problem for Catholics, because all Catholic morality is rational, and there is a mountain of knowledge and disciplined intellectual endeavour to back it up. However, it can be a difficulty for Catholic and other MPs who have to translate the selfevident into rational examples for others.

The problem our society faces is that there is confusion about whether reason matters, and whether we have any obligation to behave reasonably when confronted with a rational truth.

For years, media and other commentators have been telling the world there is no place for personal morals while legislating in Parliament. This is absurd because morality is the study of what is right and wrong, and law is society’s definition of what is right and wrong. All our laws on murder and the various forms of assault, and all our laws on theft and the various forms of deception by which theft is achieved, are based on the rational principle that murder and theft are wrong.

PO Box 75, Leederville, WA 6902 Tel: (08) 9227 7080, Fax: (08) 9227 7087 cathrec@iinet.net.au

In reality, there is no room in legislation for personal opinion: Murder is wrong, but if I think there is some advantage to be gained from murder, then it is okay for me to commit murder. That’s a very personal opinion and it has no place in law.

However, these days, it is not very far removed from law. For example, no reasonable person would tell IVF patients that he had a right to kill the embryo waiting to be implanted in the mother’s womb because the embryo might grow up to deprive him of a large inheritance. But advocates of destructive research on living human embryos say that thousands of these embryos can be destroyed on the off-chance that they or someone else might get a benefit from it.

Senator Kay Patterson, who is proposing a private member’s bill to that effect in Federal Parliament, said in 2002 when she was Minister for Health that she believed strongly in the sanctity of human life – but if she thought she or any member of her family could get a benefit from destroying embryos she couldn’t say no. Senator Natasha Stott-Despoja, who has a great talent for making irrational statements with a straight face, recently declared that it would be unethical not to engage in wholesale production and destruction of embryos in the hope that we could get something out of it.

There is nothing rational about these approaches, but both MPs will do their utmost to bring their opinions into law – and you can be absolutely certain that no editorials will be written in the secular media to tell them that they should not impose their personal morality in Parliament.

An example of rationality and personal integrity in the face of rational truth was given by former MLA Philip Pendal during the book launch mentioned above. During the 2003 debate in State Parliament an MP, surprised to hear him referring to the destruction of living human embryos, checked with him that that was what he meant. Assured that it was, the MP (not a Catholic) gathered up all the information on the subject, accepted the rational principle of the primacy of life, and voted against all moves to destroy living embryos.

Even people who argue at barbecues ought to have that fundamental integrity, and there is no excuse for MPs who legislate for the community who refuse to measure up to this basic responsibility.

The danger of irrationality spreading to other areas of law is real. The State Government, for example, tells us that smoking marijuana is illegal, but we are allowed by the same law to grow two plants to produce the stuff!

Only recently, a young man appeared in court in Perth charged with drug dealing – with drugs and $18,000 cash included in the evidence. His excuse was that he wanted to buy a house for his family and pay off the mortgage quickly. We don’t know what the judge thought exactly, but the man was not jailed. It certainly appears that drug dealing is wrong – unless, of course, you can get a benefit from it.

Reason is one of the great defining characteristics of humanity. It is a great gift that offers us freedom in many ways. Most of all it can lead us to a full and proper understanding of who we are and how we work. But we will only gain the benefits of this gift if we develop the character to face up to the responsibilities it places on us.

A stain difficult to remove

The Immigration Amendment Bill has been withdrawn to avoid the dishonour and discredit further debate would have heaped on it.

It is well to note clearly how history records acts of brutality towards downtrodden people.

All who voted for its introduction have for ever joined the ranks of the unillustrious.

Those who stuck out their necks can bathe in the warm sunshine and tranquility of peace and humanitarian respect.

Should any of those who showed the true Australian spirit lose their positions in their parties at preselection, this will only go to prove the extent of the rot that is entrenched in our present Government.

This is meant to be addressed to every Coalition member of the Government and Senate and especially to the main players Mr Howard, Ms Vanstone, Mr Ruddock and every other outspoken supporter of the bill.

I have no pleasure writing so, because you are only human like the rest of us but you have done badly and deserve to be told.

Perhaps one day you could apologise to every person whose lives you have contributed towards the destruction of - those you were influential in having forcibly repatriated and who have since been murdered (and there have been many).

Perhaps then, and only then, will Australia repair the stain you have caused it to bear.

Norm Bernard Brigadoon

Report was correct

Peter Beeson (The Record August 17) accuses me and other correspondents of not having ‘read and studied’ Father Frank Brennan’s paper ‘in depth’ before ‘roundly condemning’ him, relying instead on Paul Gray’s report which was ‘over-selective and doesn’t do justice to the nuanced position behind the paper’.

Mr Beeson’s complaint is unfounded. Mr Gray’s report, though indeed shorter than the 18 pages of Father Brennan’s talk that we can get from Google, and making no mention of Senator Kerry, President Bush, or the American election of 2004, is in no way ‘overselective’, or in any other way misleading.

What Father Brennan says about the American election is entirely consistent with what he says in the part of his paper that Mr Gray reports, and in some ways even more disturbing; for instance,

Record’s reporting was arrant nonsense

The Record recently carried the censorious and misleading front page headline “Brennan sets his criteria for how to reject Church” (August 3). Some of your readers were perturbed by what they read.

According to Brian Peachey (letters, August 10), I claim that “abortion is not a moral issue”. I make no such claim.

According to Hal Colebatch, my position is that “Catholic politicians should compromise with evil.” That is not my position. I agree with Cardinal Ratzinger, as he then was, when he said:

“Catholic theology has since the later Middle Ages, with the acceptance of Aristotle and his idea of natural law, found its way to a positive concept of the profane non-Messianic state. But it then frequently loaded the idea of natural law with so much Christian ballast that the necessary readiness to compromise got lost and the state could not be accepted within the limits essential to its profane nature. Too much was fought for and as a result the way to what was possible and necessary was blocked.”

Ted Watt thinks politicians like John Kerry should be denied communion. I don’t think they should be.

I applaud the Apostolic nuncio who gave communion to John Kerry at the installation of the new Archbishop of Washington DC. Why? Because I don’t think we should politicise the Eucharist.

I agree with my fellow Jesuit, Cardinal Avery Dulles, who says, “The Church’s prime responsibility is to teach and to persuade. She tries to convince citizens to engage in the political process with a wellinformed conscience.”

He cautions against penalties, including a public banning of communion:

“In the first place, the bishop may be accused, however unfairly, of trying to coerce the politician’s conscience. Second, people can easily accuse the Church of trying to meddle in the political process, which in this country depends on the free consent of the governed. And finally, the Church incurs the danger of alienating judges, legislators, and public administrators whose good will is needed for other good programs such as the support of Catholic education and the care of the poor. For all these reasons, the Church is reluctant to discipline politicians in a public way, even when it is clear that their positions are morally indefensible.”

Consistent with church teaching, I think abortion, and the creation and destruction of human embryos simply for research are morally wrong.

Like many Catholics in Australia, I wrestle with questions about the appropriate law and public policy on these questions in a pluralist democracy.

I distinguish between law and public policy on one hand and morality on the other.

Your readers can be assured my continuing commitment to engaging in the public forum of our pluralist democracy, seeking the greater good, consistent with the Church’s constant teaching on faith and morals.

As a Jesuit, I have absolutely no interest in setting criteria for how to reject the Church. The mission of any thinking priest is rendered more difficult when Church publications like The Record peddle such arrant nonsense.

Fr Frank Brennan SJ St Mary’s, North Sydney

after telling us of the unedifying manoeuvres of some of the American bishops to avoid confronting Catholic politicians who campaign for Catholic votes while denying the protection of the law to babies before birth, Father Brennan says:

“Then, thank God, a week later ... Archbishop Pietro Sambi, apostolic nuncio to the US gave communion to John Kerry at the installation Mass for the new Archbishop of Washington DC who had shaken hands with Kerry and Senator Edward Kennedy as he entered the cathedral.”

Why should we thank God for that?

By providing the two senators with this valuable photo opportunity just before the election, the apostolic nuncio and the archbishop conveyed to hundreds of politicians and millions of voters the message: Killing unborn people, and legalising that killing, is no big deal.

The task of leading Americans to confront their most appalling violation of defenceless people was made even more difficult.

In 2004 the-then Cardinal

Ratzinger advised that Catholic politicians supporting legalised abortion should not be allowed to receive Holy Communion.

Father Brennan makes it clear that he disagrees. But now that Cardinal Ratzinger has been elected Pope, Father Brennan is attempting to convince us that the man has changed his mind, and now wants us to ‘respect the basic rights and freedoms of others’ and the ‘zone of privacy of others’ (what, respect their right to kill their children legally?), and to refrain from imposing ‘on those who do not share the faith ... modes of conduct proper to faith’ (so giving legal protection to children is no more than a ‘mode of conduct proper to faith’ and of no interest to conscientious unbelievers?)

He also tells us that Church teaching on these matters is not infallible anyway, so we can ignore it if we please, and please ourselves.

This kind of thing, which critics in former times would have called jesuitry, is not ‘nuanced’ - it is sophistical.

Vista

TO TOUCH HIS FACE

God created man in the image of himself, In the image of God he created him, Male and female he created them.

- Genesis 1:27

Yahweh God fashioned man of dust from the soil.

- Genesis 2:7

■

By

Barry Morgan

Bogged down in the earth by our origins, shackled by gravity, is it any wonder that the idea of flight has always excited men’s imagination? Through the aeons, from the Greek mythology of Icarus, dying when he flew too close to the sun, to the reality of today, the freedom of flight has always inspired us.

It seems that somewhere in the psyche of many of us, flying, being above it all, is far more than a mode of transport; of just being a way of getting quickly from A to B. Perhaps whether we know it or not, it is part of that primitive subconscious yearning to be closer to God, free from our earthbound existence.

Certainly there have been a number of flyers who have in one way or another said so, but possibly none more eloquently or poignantly than two World War II airman poets, John Gillespie Magee Jr and Cuthbert Hicks.

Not much is known of Cuthbert Hicks. But from the tenor of his poems and their titles it would appear he was one of the thousands of men damaged by that apocalypse.

One of his poems titled, The Airman Demobbed begins with the heady excitement of flight:

I rode the storm and lightning

And raced the gay clouds as I flew but then ends sadly,

Now my feet are leaden and earthbound

And I know why the caged bird dies, For my soul looks out to the blue ways, When I look up at the skies.

Another, hinting at the sadness of the previous lines, shows also not only the stoicism of the human spirit but the ultimate source of that stoicism. It is titled The Blind Man Flies:

I am blind: I have never seen

Sun gold nor silver moon,

Nor the radiant noon.

They speak of the dawn and the dusk, And the smile of a child,

Of the deep red heart of a rose,

As of God, undefiled.

But I learnt from the air today

(On a bird’s wings I flew)

That the earth could never contain

All of the God I knew. I felt the blue mantle of space, And kissed the clouds white hem, I heard the star’s majestic choir, And sang my praise with them. Now the joy is mine through my long night,

I do not feel the rod,

For I have danced the streets of heaven, And touched the face of God.

Better known is Magee and his poem High Flight, written in 1941. There are similarities between his and Cuthbert’s, particularly the last line, but it is Magee’s that has become the better known.

Before America joined the war, Magee, an American, enlisted at 18 years of age in the Royal Canadian Airforce. After graduation he was posted to No 412 Fighter Squadron, RCAF, in England flying Spitfires against the Luftwaffe.

On the 3rd of September he flew a high altitude test flight at 30,000 feet in a new model Spitfire V. It is hard to imagine him deciding then to plagiarise Cuthbert and far more likely that the words that came to him, ‘To touch the face of God’ were the subliminal inspiration for his own poem.

Back on the ground he wrote a letter to his parents. In it he wrote “I am enclosing a verse I wrote the other day. It started at 30,000 feet, and was finished soon after I landed.”

He wrote the poem on the back of the letter which is now kept in the Manuscript Division of the Library of Congress.

Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of earth

And danced the skies on laughter - silvered wings; Sunward I’ve climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth

Of sun-split clouds, - and done a hundred things

You have not dreamed of – wheeled and soared and swung

High in the sunlit silence. Hov’ring there,

I’ve chased the shouting wind along, and flung

My eager craft through footless halls of air…

Up, up the long, delirious blue

I’ve topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace

Where never lark, or ever eagle flew –

And, while with silent, lifting mind I’ve trod

The high untrespassed sanctity of space,

Put out my hand, and touched the face of God.

Only three months later on the 11th December 1941 while descending through cloud he was killed when his SpitfireV collided at 400 feet with an Oxford trainer flown by one Ernest Aubrey.

Since then High Flight has become a classic amongst the flying community and frequently features on American radio and TV. After the tragedy of the loss of Challenger and its crew, President Regan included the words, “and slipped the surly bonds of earth to touch the face of God” in his address to NASA.

The poems were written at a time of dreadful stress and tragedy as the demons of war threatened the whole world. It was a world that although far from perfect (it never will be), was still close to its Christian heritage.

The Allied leaders could still talk of a struggle between good and evil and use Christian rhetoric to inspire their citizens in defence of that heritage. Magee and Cuthbert weren’t the only poets whose prose spoke of God and heaven; many others did too.

Nobody but God knows the future, but once again there are now soldiers in the field, and their numbers are growing. One wonders what sort of poems will come out of the ‘war on terror’ when they eventually come home?

Will their airmen also be able to say they, ‘kissed the clouds’ white hem’?

Will they like Cuthbert as he ‘danced the streets of heaven,’ or Magee in the ‘untrespassed sanctity of space,’ think to ‘Put out my hand and touch the face of God’?

“When the pre-seminary is effective, the boys get more of a taste of what the priesthood would be like.”

Where school is the Where school the Vatican ... and lessons include how to serve Mass

■ By Cindy Wooden

Silently processing out of the sacristy of St Peter’s Basilica at 7am each day, the altar servers look like angels, but the women who cook and clean for them say they are normal boys.

Well, maybe not totally normal. After all, these 11- to 18-year-olds live at the Vatican during the school year.

During the 2005-06 academic year, 21 of them ate, slept, studied and occasionally created chaos at the St Pius X Pre-seminary inside the Vatican walls.

Father Enrico Radice, rector of the preseminary, said four students graduated from high school in June, and three of them are entering diocesan seminaries in September.

This year’s percentage of students going on to a full-fledged seminary is high, even by Vatican standards, he said. About 10 per cent of the 700 boys who have lived at the preseminary in the past 50 years have become priests.

Some of the boys return home before finishing high school, and one or two, suffering severe cases of homesickness, leave before their first Christmas at the Vatican, according to the women who not only cook and clean, but also confess to mothering the boys on occasion.

The pre-seminary opened its doors in 1956 at the urging of Father Giovanni Folci, a priest of the Diocese of Como, Italy, who founded an association of priests committed to promoting vocations to the priesthood. The association, still made up mostly of Como priests

like Father Radice, runs the pre-seminary. During the academic year, the students attend a Catholic middle school or high school near the Vatican. Their altar-serving lessons, prayer life and recreation are in the hands of the rector, another priest and a layman.

Two women run the kitchen and two others take care of the cleaning and laundry. But they also watch over the boys, listen to them, and cry when they leave. Because St Peter’s Basilica needs altar servers year-round, the pre-seminary never closes its doors.

In the summer, it turns into something resembling an altar boy camp. Taking 20-day shifts, altar boys from all over Italy come to the Vatican to serve from late June to early August. Service for the remainder of August and early September is in the hands of a group of altar boys from Malta.

“We spend the first day teaching them everything they need to know” to serve Mass in St Peter’s, including where to enter the basilica, what vestments they need to wear and where the various altars are located, Father Radice said.

“Obviously, they speak Italian and know only the little bit of English or French they study at school, so unless the Mass is in Italian, they cannot respond. Although some of them know some of the responses in Latin,” he said.

Usually, after having written to reserve a chapel or an altar, bishops and priests from around the world arrive at St Peter’s between 7 and 8am to celebrate Mass in the world’s largest church.

The altar boys from the pre-seminary lead

the bishops and priests from the sacristy to their assigned altar and serve their Masses, unless another priest, deacon or altar server is with the visitor. Father Radice said the pre-seminary purposely does not call itself a minor seminary; its primary function is not to prepare young men to enter a seminary.

“Our first aim is to provide a decorous liturgical service in St Peter’s Basilica. We try to create a spiritual atmosphere appropriate for that service,” he said.

When the pre-seminary is effective, he said, the boys get more of a taste of what the

priesthood would be like than they would as altar servers in their home parish.

While serving daily Mass is their primary responsibility, Father Radice said, “at least two or three times a year” each of the boys enrolled in the pre-seminary gets a chance to serve a papal Mass.

Unfortunately, he said, the same does not apply to the summer substitutes because the Pope is away for most of the season, although the group that comes each year from Malta usually poses for a photograph with the Pope when he comes to the Vatican for his weekly general audience. - CNS

A remote Kimberley Catholic-run school is helping students to get physical The Gym that Balgo built

An initiative based on unity, cooperation, health, motivation and spirit is starting to materialise in the Kimberley community of Balgo as the Luurnpa Catholic School Gym starts to take shape. Stimulated by an acquisition of four exercise machines and a punching bag, the Luurnpa Gym project has generated a lot of interest in the community, particularly from the students who are making very good use of the equipment in their makeshift gym-shed. So enthusiastic was the initial response, it soon became apparent that more equipment and a greater space to work out were essential for the ongoing success of the project that will be made accessible to the entire community.

As a result, a larger gym space is under construction and a number of second hand machines are being sourced from Halls Creek. The new facility will provide a safe, purposedesigned area for a larger cohort of students and community members to undertake gym work on a regular basis.

Project objectives

The establishment of the gym is expected to encourage the students to:

• Attend school on an increasingly regular basis.

• Elevate their cardiovascular fitness.

• Improve their strength and coordination.

• Identify and apply the links that the gym

has to learning areas such as health and physical education. It is anticipated the students may also use their cooking and health classes to develop a nutrition program to accommodate their fitness goals.

Similarly, the school expects to benefit through:

• Interaction with members of the community such as senior football players and coaches who could contribute to the development and facilitation of gym sessions.

• Cooperation between teachers, Aboriginal Teaching Assistants, Garnduwa Sports Representatives and Community Youth Workers who will all help ensure the continual progression, efficiency and operation of the gym.

• Motivation for all students, teachers, community members and other contributors to foster the successful initiative.

Once completed, the school hopes to fit out the gym with a range of equipment suitable for cardiovascular and strength related activities, and that’s where the broader Catholic education community is invited to participate.

With students (aged five to 16 years), teachers and community members all expected to utilise the gym, the donation of any such equipment that is sturdy and still in working order would be gratefully received.

Further information can be obtained from teacher, Michael Brown, on 9168 8506 or brown.michael@cathednet.wa.edu.au

not be justified for his bishop to deny him Holy Communion?

Ted Watt Claremont

Well done, Ron

CContinued from page 8

if a Catholic politician voted to deny the protection of the law to some other category of people - let’s say Aboriginal people, or Timorese people, or lawyers, or Jesuits?

Would Mr Beeson still assert that this politician’s ‘mature reflection’ must be respected, and that it would

ongratulations to Ron Dullard, the Director of the Catholic Education Office on the introduction of its overhauled Religious Education curriculum to start soon (West Australian, August 17).

All parents, both Catholic and non-Catholic would welcome this initiative having consciously chosen a Catholic school with the hope of religious knowledge in the education of their children.

Its about time the religious edu-

cation component is on a par and assessed just like any other subject with some students having the option to take it at a level for tertiary entrance.

Our children need to know the truth and the roots of Christianity not the fuzzy humanist teaching often termed as religious education. If we fail to carry the batton of our Christian heritage, soon enough minority fundamentalists will rule the day, at our peril.

Deirdre Lyra Maida Vale

False peace

With reference to your front page article in The Record of August

10, concerning the so-called split between “fundamentalists and Catholics” over the recent vilification laws in Victoria, I should like to inform your readers that many Catholics are against the laws. Those Catholics who are for the laws, seem to be into indifferentism and false irenicism.

I would ask them “what do you think evangelisation means”?

Furthermore, I would also like to quote from the documents of Vatican II regarding Ecumenism: “...It is, of course, essential that the doctrine be clearly presented in its entirety.

“Nothing is so foreign to the spirit of ecumenism as a false irenicism which harms the purity of Catholic doctrine and obscures its genuine and certain meaning.”

The hard fact is that Islam

denies the Trinity and many other Christian doctrines (including the fact that Christ is both God and man).

Is stating this fact to be considered vilification of Islam? There are many other examples. Let’s not water down our True Faith to suit those who do not share it.

Jerome Gonzalez Willetton

In procession: Vatican altar boys and a priest walk from a sacristry to celebrate the first morning Mass in St Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican.

PHOTO CNS

Eager to serve: Vatican altar boys assist before the celebration of Mass in St Peter’s Basilica

PHOTO CNS

Fit & fun: Balgo students enjoy their community gym.

A community effort: Students use the equiptment which has been donated. Keeping fit: Balgo students highlight the importance of fitness at the new gym.

Opinion

COMMENTARY, OPINION, REFLECTION, ISSUES, AGAINST THE TIDE

“So often we seem to live a ‘tamed Christianity.’ The work of murdered Sr Dorothy Stang and Australian martyr Irene McCormack took them on a difficult path,” writes Fr Kearney.

Christianity does not require us to ‘play it safe’

JUST A THOUGHT

■ With Fr Paschal Kearney Cssp

The murder of Sr Dorothy Stang in Brazil in February 2005 invoked memories of an Australian martyr: Irene McCormack. Here we have the lives and deaths of two women, two among many who surely summon us to a more robust Christianity - the kind that Jesus calls all of us to

– a Christianity far removed from the one mostly concerned with minutiae and loose gossip.

The witness of Irene and Dorothy challenges us to avoid and overcome the cultural and religious influences that work to put the brakes on most of us: the desire for security and comfort; the conviction that we are helpless against great forces; the yearning for respectability and power. So often we seem to live a ‘tamed Christianity’. The work of Dorothy and Irene in South America took them on a difficult

Extra terrestrial lifeforms - unlikely

Record columnist, Guy Crouchback explores the possiblity that there is life far beyond the planet Earth.

We live surrounded by paradoxes. We know that there are hundreds of billions of stars, some much older than our own sun. Our galaxy is several billion years old. As astronomy progresses we are finding more and more stars with planets. Some star systems are relatively close - there a number of stars not very unlike our own within 12 light-years. So why have we never found any unambiguous trace of extra-terrestial life? It has had plenty of time and plenty of places in which to evolve.

Though we have no standard of comparison, our own progress in flight seems to have been quite quick. British astronomer Patrick Moore pointed out that in his one lifetime he had met the first man to fly, the first man in space and the first man on the moon. In the time the galaxy has been in existence, life should have spread throughout it.

Yet we appear to be alone in a galaxy which, logically, should be filled with other clever beings whose presence and signals we ought to be able to detect. Even if living creatures with finite lifetimes cannot cross the vast distances of space, self-maintaining or self-replicating Von Neumann machines should be able to. According to one set of calculations, such machines, powered by Bussard Ramjets (which fuel themselves by extracting hydrogen atoms from space), have had time to fill the Galaxy 250 times over.

A number of theories have been put forward to explain the Great Silence, including ideas that aliens exist but are not interested in communicating with us (though in that case why have we not at least overheard their communications to each other?), that they communicate by some means too advanced for us to overhear or comprehend, as Stone-Age tribesmen could not overhear or comprehend radio signals, or are keeping us deliberately isolated, perhaps for our own good so that exposure to an enormously superior culture does not destroy us with a sense of our own inferiority, or to observe like zoo animals.

Perhaps having picked up our television programs they have good reason to give us a wide berth. There are also other explanations, but all have various objections to them. Or perhaps they do not exist. We are the first, life is new to the Galaxy. Planets with the right conditions to give rise to life, and intelligent life, are rare.

Certainly, it seems true that the demands life makes to get started are enormously complex - I mentioned some of them when writing on Bill Bryson’s A Short History of Nearly Everything a few weeks ago. This indicates the vast - literally unthinkable - odds against life as we know it evolving anywhere. But there are a very large number of stars.

Earlier Christian, and indeed some pre-Christian, thinkers have wondered about it ever since astronomy developed far enough to give us some idea of the structure of the universe.

Scripture tells us the Incarnation was for all time and for all worlds. Some of the church fathers and other Christian thinkers who considered the problem of possible life on other worlds came to the conclusion that there was no point in worrying about it until we have more information.

path – one that led them to an expression of faith as broad and complex as the world itself – a faith in touch with what is ultimately real and essential.

Irene and Dorothy’s lives were tied to the marginalised, those without connection and leverage. Their lives challenged the respected elites and the powerful, those who literally live at the expense of others. Their lives were prophetic.

Dorothy Stang’s ministry challenged the systems and organisations, land barons and powerful

economic interests that are today destroying the Amazon jungle and the lives of its indigenous inhabitants - a ministry of concern for all creation.

Her ministry was also to raise the awareness of these injustices among her own people in the US – to solicit funding which allowed her to help indigenous people cultivate farms, create co-operations and establish a centre for Scripture studies. That kind of ministry inevitably drew threats – how predictable! And in the end, she paid the price. Hers

was indeed a prophetic witness.

Irene McCormack, Dorothy Stang – names we may soon forget.

But those lives, and the lives of many others, remind us of the basics in life, and challenge our ‘tame Christianity.’

Posted recently on a Catholic news website was the information that a Sr Dorothy Stang, an American nun killed for her advocacy of the rights of Amazonian rural workers and peasants, is to be honoured as a ‘Freedom Hero’ in her home state of Ohio.

God alone alone can satisfy the human heart

Mary knew that God alone can satisfy the individual’s thirst for truth and happiness, says Benedict XVI. The Holy Father said this on August 16 during his general audience, here in the courtyard of the papal summer residence of Castel Gandolfo. He spoke to the several thousand people on hand about the solemnity of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, observed a day earlier.

The Pope said this feast “has always been greatly cherished by the Christian people since the first centuries of Christianity.” It celebrates “the glorification, including corporal, of that creature whom God chose as his mother and that Jesus on the cross gave as mother to the whole of humanity.”

Quoting the Second Vatican Council, the Pontiff said that “the Assumption evokes a mystery” that affects all believers: “Mary ‘precedes

with her light the people of God as a sign of hope and consolation.’”

“We are so immersed in everyday struggles that at times we forget this consoling spiritual reality, which is an important truth of faith,” the Bishop of Rome said. “How is it possible to make this luminous sign of hope be increasingly perceived by present-day society?

“Today there are those who live as if they should never die or as if all ends with death. Some behave as if man is the sole author of his destiny, as if God did not exist, at times even denying that there is a place for him in our world.”

Key to happiness

The Holy Father continued: “The great successes of technology and science, which have notably improved humanity’s conditions of life, do not give solutions to the most profound questions of the human spirit.

“Only by openness to the mystery of God, who is love, can our hearts’

thirst for truth and happiness be satisfied; only the perspective of eternity can give authentic value to historical events and above all to the mystery of human frailty, suffering and death.”

Contemplation of Mary, Benedict XVI said, helps to “understand that the earth is not our definitive homeland and that, if we live constantly oriented to eternal goods, one day we will share in her same glory.”

He continued: “For this reason, despite the many daily difficulties, we must not lose serenity or peace. The luminous sign of the Assumption to heaven shines even more when it seems that sad shadows of grief and violence loom over the horizon.

“We are sure that, from on high, Mary follows our steps with gentle trepidation, gives us serenity in the hour of darkness and storm, gives us security with her maternal hand. Supported by this conviction, we continue with confidence on our way of Christian commitment where providence leads us.” - Zenit.org

Serenity: This image of Mary and her Son is to be found in the main entrance to the University of Notre Dame in Fremantle. Mary, says Pope Benedcit XVI, knew that God alone can satisfy the human person’s thirst for truth and happiness.

PHOTO: UNDA

The World FEATURE

Women the key to fighting AIDS

Caritas adviser notes importance of women, girls in AIDS prevention

■ By Regina Linskey

Caritas Internationalis’ special adviser on HIV and AIDS said he hoped the XVI International AIDS Conference would be remembered for focusing on women and girls.

For their part, faith-based organisations and Catholic leaders working on the prevention and treatment of AIDS are not only focusing on gender discrimination that restricts women from education and health care, but they are “engaging men in the struggle, too,” Father Robert Vitillo told Catholic News Service in an August 14 telephone interview from Toronto, where he participated in the main conference as well as earlier conferences for religious leaders.

Catholic organisations are promoting abstinence and lifelong fidelity in marital relationships so women are better protected from AIDS, he said.

Women are sometimes victimised by men, who contract HIV when they have sex outside of marriage, then infect their wives, he said.

“With all programs seeking financial support for HIV-related services, the Catholic AIDS Funding Network Group, which convenes major Catholic donor organisations engaged in the response to the pandemic, has articulated funding guidelines that insist on gender-sensitive perspectives and on

participation of people - especially women - living with HIV,” he said in a statement prepared for the main conference.

“The strong presence of religious sisters and of committed laywomen in such service programs often represents a key factor assuring that women and girls are not neglected or ignored when presenting their needs.”

“network everywhere” on the local level. Faith-based organisations have always been around and have “developed in other times of health crisis,” he said.

They have “already given health care in the local community, and the local community trusts us.”

And most times, he said, faithbased organisations are less likely than other institutions to discrimi-

Catholic organisations are promoting abstinence and lifelong fidelity in marital relationships so women are better protected from AIDS

About 500 members of faithbased organisations - including Caritas, an international network of Catholic aid agencies - examined their roles and accountability in the prevention and treatment of AIDS before the August 13-18 main conference.

They discussed stronger working relationships among faith-based organisations and between the organisations and governments.

Father Vitillo told CNS that AIDS health care workers, researchers and governments are starting to recognise faith-based organisations’ efforts in the prevention and treatment of AIDS.

Such groups are unique in their ability to educate and care for people living with HIV/AIDS on the grass-roots level, Father Vitillo said, and outside players are recognising that “churches are everywhere” and

nate against people living with HIV/AIDS, and they work “more efficiently and less expensively than government institutions do.”

Father Vitillo, a member of the Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance that is charged with the overall coordination of AIDS work among faith-based organisations, said participants at the pre-conference expressed hope for better cooperation among the organisations.

Barriers prohibiting better working relationships are not so much based on religious belief, he said. However, mistrust bars coordination, he said, and faith-based organisations are suspicious of others’ assumed political agendas.

Some faiths, including Christian churches, have a more “active history” in service than others, he told CNS.

Religious leaders also discussed

promoting funding to fill the gap between the $20 billion per year needed for AIDS prevention and treatment and the approximate $8 billion actually received by the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

The Geneva-based Global Fund, established in 2002, is a partnership among governments, civil society, the private sector and affected communities.

The $20 billion per year goal seems impossible, but “in the U., $52 billion (per year) is spent just in dealing with the effects of obesity,” said Father Vitillo.

Faith-based organisations are also trying to establish a better relationship with the Global Fund. Although faith-based organisations are responsible for up to 50 percent of health services in developing countries, faith-based organisations receive only about 6 percent of the fund.

The Pontifical Council for Health Care Ministry estimates that worldwide Catholic organisations deliver 26.7 percent of AIDS services, such as care, support and treatment for people living with HIV.

Faith-based organisations are challenged because they “don’t take the time to evaluate and report” on their efforts, so they are “not seen as professional as other organisations,” Father Vitillo said.

Meanwhile, during the main conference, the Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance hoped to address issues such as the greater participation of young people and those living with AIDS in the planning of organisations; care for millions of children with HIV/AIDS; and the pricing and patent protection of HIV/AIDS medication and universal access to treatment.

Compendium of Catechism now online

The Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church is now available on the Internet in English.

In addition to English, the Compendium is available online in Spanish, German, French, Italian, Portuguese and Romanian.

The Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, first published in 2005, is the second best-selling Catholic book this year, after the encyclical “Deus Caritas Est.”

The Compendium includes 589 questions and answers on the Catholic faith.

One of her children sits next to an ailing Lydia Kathebwe, 31, in the Zamba district of Malawi in this photo taken in late May.

PHOTO: CNS

The World

Hope to get derailed talks back on track

Experts hope to get derailed Catholic-Orthodox dialogue back on track

■ By John Thavis

Theological dialogue between the Catholic and Orthodox churches has been derailed for six years. In mid-September, 60 ecumenical experts will try to get it back on track.

The Catholic-Orthodox international dialogue commission is meeting in the Serbian capital of Belgrade Sptember 18-25, in what Pope Benedict XVI has optimistically described as a “new phase in dialogue.”

That the encounter is taking place at all has been described as a big step forward by Vatican officials. Representatives from 10 Orthodox churches, including the Russian Orthodox Church, will attend.

But church officials also recognise that it wouldn’t take much to send the whole enterprise off the rails again. For one thing, the two main topics of the meeting are papal primacy and the role of Eastern Catholic churches - two of the sorest points in CatholicOrthodox relations.

In fact, it was the re-emergence of Eastern Catholic churches in post-communist Eastern Europe that so troubled the mixed commission’s meetings throughout the 1990s. After an acrimonious meet-

ing in Emmitsburg, Maryland, US, in 2000, the dialogue was suspended.

Orthodox leaders who met with Vatican officials in a planning session late last year wanted these two issues high on the agenda, according to Vatican sources. The Orthodox still feel threatened by the resurgence of Eastern Catholic churches and continue to have doubts about how papal authority would work in a reunified Church.

The hope on the Vatican side is

that these topics will be examined in a new theological framework, that of the Church as “koinonia” or communion, and not on the emotional level that has characterised past discussions.

“No one should think this dialogue is going to be easy or will solve these two questions, or other questions, in the short term,” said one Vatican official.

But although they are downplaying immediate expectations, Vatican sources pointed to several reasons

for cautious optimism.

For one thing, there is a new Pope - a fact that, at least in a psychological sense, represents a new page for dialogue.

While Pope John Paul II spoke often and movingly about the need to reunite the Western and Eastern churches, his insistence on visiting traditionally Orthodox countries, with or without an invitation from the Orthodox, sometimes provoked misgivings.

Vatican insiders say Pope

Benedict is unlikely to make those kinds of trips. Nor is the Pope pressing for a visit to Moscow, as his predecessor did. These sources also said Pope Benedict has taken a more detailed interest in the content of dialogue than his predecessor, who was weakened by illness in his later years.

Another plus is that many of the Orthodox dialogue experts know Pope Benedict, have read his works and trust him as a theologian. For Orthodox leaders who, for historical reasons, viewed Pope John Paul’s Polish background as an obstacle, the German Pope carries no such handicap.

Vatican officials say there’s another reason the Belgrade meeting could go well: Participants will not have to start from scratch. They already have a draft text that addresses papal primacy and Eastern Catholic churches; it was worked out by experts from both sides in 1990, but never discussed by the full commission.

Finally, some experts on the Catholic side believe that Orthodox thinking on papal primacy may be changing slowly.

Cardinal Walter Kasper, the Vatican’s chief ecumenist and the head of its delegation to Belgrade, hosted an important CatholicOrthodox symposium in 2003 on the role of the Pope. Cardinal Kasper told participants that the climate of discussion on this topic had changed considerably, with greater openness to a papal “ministry of unity” in today’s fragmented world.

War stopping aid getting to needy Kidnapped priest appeal

Pope appeals for release of priest kidnapped in Baghdad

■ By Cindy Wooden

Pope Benedict XVI appealed for the release of a Chaldean Catholic priest who was kidnapped in Baghdad, Iraq, just after celebrating Mass on August 15 for the feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

“His Holiness makes a heartfelt appeal to the abductors to release the young priest at once so that he can return to the service of God, the Christian community and his countrymen,” said a message sent by Cardinal Angelo Sodano, Vatican secretary of state, to Chaldean Patriarch Emmanuel-Karim Delly of Baghdad.

Masked kidnappers forced Father Saad Sirop Hanna, 34, to stop his car, then they took him away, Vatican Radio reported on August 18. Father Hanna works at St Jacob Parish in Dora, one of Baghdad’s most dangerous neighbourhoods.

Father Philip Najim, the Romebased representative of the Chaldean Catholic Patriarchate of Baghdad, confirmed the report.

As of August 21, there still was no news about Father Hanna, Father Najim said.

In the August 19 message to Patriarch Delly, Cardinal Sodano said Pope Benedict’s thoughts “also go to all the victims of abduction in your country, and he prays that this dreadful scourge, as well as the terrible daily bloodshed which delays the dawn of reconciliation and rebuilding, will finally come to an end.”

Father Najim said the kidnapping of Father Hanna “is truly a very sad situation because he is a young priest who was continuing his studies. In fact, he was supposed to come here to Rome to study. He is a young priest who has dedicated his life to serving both the nation and all the Christian faithful he encounters.”

“Given the situation” of violence and confusion in Baghdad, especially in Dora where various militias have been fighting each other for months, “it is difficult to identify who took him,” Father Najim said.

The priest said Patriarch Delly met with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki after the kidnapping and was assured that “everyone is trying to resolve this situation as soon as possible and to secure the release of our priest.”

The Iraqi Islamic Party, a Sunni political organisation, immediately condemned the kidnapping, Vatican Radio said.

Aid worker says Sri Lankan conflict blocks tsunami reconstruction

■ By Anto Akkara

The increasingly tense civil conflict between Sri Lankan government forces and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam has blocked tsunami reconstruction work, said a church aid worker.

“We are forced to suspend all tsunami relief work. ... Our staff is now scared of going to areas like Muttur,” said Father Francis Dias, head of the Church’s social services in Trincomalee.

“Though we have plenty of money to help the people, we cannot do much in situations like this. The tragedy is that the suffering of the people is becoming worse,” Father Dias told Catholic News Service in an early August telephone interview.

Seventeen Tamils working with the Paris-based Action Against Hunger were massacred in early August in their Muttur office during the so-called “water war” between government forces and Tamil rebels. More than 300 people - soldiers, rebels and civilians - have been killed in the water war as government forces tried to open the water supply closed by

the rebels. Because of the blocked system, water was denied to the majority ethnic Sinhalese villages. A young boy died in his mother’s lap when a shell landed on the courtyard of St Antony Catholic Church in Muttur, where hundreds had taken shelter. The intense fighting forced most of the 1,000 Catholics in Muttur to flee with thousands of others to Trincomalee.

Meanwhile, more than a year and a half after the tsunami, hundreds of fishermen and their families on the northeastern coastline are still living in temporary shelters built by the Church. However, church workers are unable to continue with tsunami reconstruction efforts.

“We are really helpless, though there is no shortage of funds,” said Father Christopher Jeyakumar, director of Caritas in Jaffna.

Pointing to the Caritas-made temporary shelters in Point Pedro, the northernmost point of Sri Lanka, Father Jeyakumar told CNS, “As the (security) situation is deteriorating, we are forced to revise our targets downward.”

Caritas has reduced its 2006 budget for tsunami work from 900 million rupees (US$8.7 million) to 400 million rupees (US$3.8 million). Caritas had planned to build 2,000 permanent houses for the Jaffna peninsula. Agency officials wanted to finish at least 1,000

houses in 2006, but only 300 were finished by July.

“We should have handed over these (permanent) houses last year. But even now, they are not complete,” said Father Jeyakumar, pointing to two dozen permanent houses nearing completion.

“When contractors and their staff are leaving the work scared of the situation, what can we do?” asked Father Jeyakumar. “More than 200 civilians have been killed in here (Jaffna peninsula). We don’t know who is behind it. The people are really scared.”

Approximately 80,000 people have been killed and more than 1 million have been displaced since 1983 when Tamil rebels demanded autonomy for areas in northern and eastern Sri Lanka. Ethnic Tamils account for 17 percent of Sri Lanka’s 19 million people, while ethnic Sinhalese account for 70 percent of the population.

The cease-fire agreement brokered by Norway and signed in February 2002 is on the brink of collapse. In recent months, political killings and accusations of cease-fire violations have mounted. Violent incidents have become a daily occurrence.

A construction supervisor, who refused to give his name, told CNS that the reconstruction work had been delayed because of a “shortage of building material, and the prices have shot up.” CNS

Orthodox and Catholic leaders pray together at the Basilica of the National Shrine of St Elizabeth Ann Seton in Emmitsburg, Md., in July 2000, during the last meeting of the Catholic-Orthodox international commission for theological dialogue. PHOTO:

The World

Concern Lebanon attacks preplanned

WCC reps say many suspect Israeli actions in Lebanon were preplanned

■ By Cindy Wooden

Israel’s massive bombardment of southern Lebanon left many people in the region with the suspicion that Israel’s military operation had been planned well in advance of the July provocation by the Hezbollah militia, said a delegation from the World Council of Churches.

“We heard this from many, many people during our trip, especially in Lebanon, but also in Israel,” said Archbishop Bernard-Nicolas Aubertin of Tours, France, a member of the delegation.

“I do not know if it is true, but that is what we heard,” the archbishop said during an August 17 telephone interview.

Archbishop Aubertin visited the Middle East on August 10-15 with the Reverend Jean-Arnold de Clermont, president of the European Council of Churches, and with Marilia Alves-Schuller of the World Council of Churches.

In an August 16 statement, members of the delegation said the Lebanese they met all said they believed that Israel’s massive attacks on neighbourhoods, homes, bridges and roads were “both deliberate and planned.”

During an August 16 press conference at the WCC headquarters in Geneva, Reverend de Clermont said: “We came back from Lebanon

sharing the impression that this destruction was planned. And if the action by the Hezbollah was the trigger, this was a planned operation all ready to go.”

Israel has said its military action was retaliation against the Hezbollah militia for kidnapping two Israeli soldiers and killing several others. Israeli government officials did not meet with delegation members, despite their requests, but the Church leaders did meet

with Chief Ashkenazi Rabbi Yona Metzger.

Archbishop Aubertin told CNS the delegation went to Lebanon, Israel and the Palestinian territories as a sign of solidarity and to listen to the people.

The leaders visited Beirut, Lebanon; Jerusalem; and Ramallah, West Bank.

“I am not a politician,” the archbishop said. “I cannot analyse the situation completely. I can only say

what we heard, and this is what we heard over and over again.”

The scale of Israel’s retaliation makes it “obvious this wasn’t just a military operation,” the archbishop said. Destruction on that scale had to have political support, he said.

“We had difficulty understanding Israel’s reaction, which was not proportionate,” Archbishop Aubertin said. “The violence cannot be justified on either side, but it seemed to be an overreaction.” CNS

Don’t work too hard

In the middle of his summer break, Pope Benedict XVI said working too hard was never a good thing - not even for a Pope. Speaking at a noon blessing at his summer residence outside Rome on August 20, the Pope reflected on the 12th-century writings of St Bernard of Clairvaux, who warned against “the dangers of excessive activity, whatever the condition or office held, because many occupations lead to a ‘hardening of the heart’ and suffering of the spirit.”

“This warning is valid for every kind of occupation, even those involving the governance of the Church,” the Pope said.

He recalled that St Bernard had criticised the reigning pontiff of his time, Pope Eugenius III, for “losing himself” in his many activities and forgetting the primacy of prayer and contemplation. The saint’s provocative comments are well worth remembering today, the Pope said.

The Pope also highlighted an underlying theme in St Bernard’s writings: divine love as the greatest source of spiritual strength. It’s a theme the Pope has focused on throughout his young papacy.

The Pope was spending most of the summer months at the papal villa in Castel Gandolfo, where aides said he was spending much of his time writing, praying and meditating.

Jesuit newly appointed to Vatican Observatory

Pope appoints Argentine Jesuit to head Vatican Observatory

Pope Benedict XVI has appointed Argentine Jesuit Father Jose Funes, 43, to be the new director of the Vatican Observatory. The astronomer, an expert on disk galaxies, has served as a staff astronomer at the Vatican Observatory since 2000.

Father Funes succeeds US Jesuit Father George V. Coyne, 73, who

the world in brief

Guadalupe outrage

had served as director since 1978. The observatory staff divides its time between facilities at the papal summer villa in Castel Gandolfo, south of Rome, and the University of Arizona in Tucson.

The observatory traces its origins back to the observational tower erected at the Vatican by Pope Gregory XIII in 1578 in preparation for reforming the Western calendar. The tower began being used for astronomy in 1800. Pope Leo XIII formally established the Vatican Observatory in 1891, and

Supporters of leftist presidential candidate Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador generated criticism from church officials when they used images of Our Lady of Guadalupe on political banners.

Lopez Obrador supporters, who are calling for a recount of July 2 presidential election results, also created a disturbance during an August 20 Mass at Mexico City’s downtown cathedral.

A group of about 600 pilgrims marched north from the centre of the city to the

it has been entrusted to the Jesuits since 1934. Father Funes, the new director, was born in Cordoba, Argentina, in 1963 and earned a master’s degree in astronomy from the National University of Cordoba in 1985. He entered the Society of Jesus the same year, earning a degree in philosophy in Argentina before being sent to Rome for theological studies. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1995.

According to the Vatican Observatory Web site, he specialises in “extragalatic astronomy.”

Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe on August 19, carrying a banner of Our Lady of Guadalupe on which was written “voto x voto” (vote for vote). The Mexican newspaper La Reforma also reported marchers were carrying posters with the slogan, “Dios non es panista” (God is not a member of the PAN), referring to the ruling National Action Party. Hugo Valdemar, spokesman for the Archdiocese of Mexico City, said Our Lady of Guadalupe “is the patron of all, and you don’t have the right to include her in a political act.” He said the Catholic Church “feels offended in such a severe way that it results in a sacrilege.” Lopez Obrador, the presidential candidate for the Democratic Revolution Party, lost the July 2 presidential election by 0.58 percent of the 41 million

Father Coyne was on vacation and could not be reached for comment. However, Father James Bowes, superior of the Jesuit community in Tucson, said Father Coyne would remain on the observatory staff.

In a memo on the Tucson diocesan Web site on August 21, Bishop Gerald F. Kicanas said that Father Coyne was beginning a year’s sabbatical.

“With his active mind and great drive and focus, we can’t envision him as ever being retired,” the bishop said. During 1979 and

ballots cast. He and his supporters have demanded a recount, claiming fraud.

Papal homecoming

In a homecoming visit to the German state of Bavaria, Pope Benedict XVI plans to stop in the town where he was born, lecture at the university where he once taught and celebrate Mass in the city where he was a bishop.

The Pope also will meet with political leaders, speak with priests and religious, and hold an ecumenical prayer service with representatives of other churches.

The official schedule of the Pope’s September 9-14 visit to Bavaria calls for him

1980, Father Coyne served as acting director and head of the University of Arizona Steward Observatory and the Astronomy Department. He oversaw the establishment of the Vatican Observatory Research Group at the Steward Observatory in 1981. He was instrumental in the establishment of the Alice P. Lennon Telescope with its Thomas J. Bannan Astrophysics Facility, known together as the Vatican Advanced Technology Telescope, at the Mount Graham International Observatory in Arizona. CNS

to celebrate Mass the day after his arrival in Munich, where he was bishop 1977-82.

He will celebrate Mass and lead a procession at a Marian sanctuary in Altotting and stop briefly at the parish church in the town where he was born, Marktl am Inn.

The Pope is scheduled to address representatives of the scientific community at the University of Regensburg, where he was a professor of theology for many years.

In what the Vatican described as a “private” day on September 13, the Pope will call on his brother, Mgr. Georg Ratzinger, in Regensburg; visit the cemetery where his parents and sister are buried; and dine at a home the pontiff still owns in the Regensburg suburb of Pentling.

A Lebanese woman and her children, holding Hezbollah flags, walk past the rubble of houses damaged during the recent conflict between Israel and Hezbollah guerillas in Saddikine village, southern Lebanon, PHTO: CNS

THE POSITIVE OPTION

Here is the first part of an interview Benedict XVI gave to a panel of four German journalists on August 5 in the papal summer residence of Castel Gandolfo. The Pope is due to visit his native Bavaria from September 9-14.

Q: Holy Father, your next trip will be to Bavaria. During preparations for the trip your collaborators said you are nostalgic for your homeland. What are the issues you’ll be speaking about during the visit and is the concept of “homeland” one of the values you intend touching on, in particular?

Of course. The purpose of the visit is precisely because I want to see again the places where I grew up, the people who touched and shaped my life. I want to thank these people.

Naturally I also want to express a message that goes beyond my country, just as my ministry calls me to do. I simply let the liturgical recurrences suggest the themes to me. The basic theme is that we have to rediscover God, not just any God, but the God that has a human face, because when we see Jesus Christ we see God.

Starting from this point we must find the way to meet each other in the family, among generations, and then among cultures and peoples as well. We must find the way to reconciliation and to peaceful coexistence in this world, the ways that lead to the future.

We won’t find these ways leading to the future if we don’t receive light from above. So I didn’t choose very specific themes, but rather, it is the liturgy that leads me to express the

basic message of faith which naturally finds its place in everyday reality where we want to search, above all, for cooperation among peoples and possible ways that can lead us to reconciliation and peace.

Q: As Pope you are responsible for the Church throughout the world. But, clearly, your visit focuses attention on the situation of Catholics in Germany as well. All observers say there’s a positive atmosphere, partly thanks to your election as Pope. But, obviously, the old problems are still around.

Just to quote a few examples: fewer churchgoers, fewer baptisms, and especially less Church influence on the life of society. How do you see the present situation of the Catholic Church in Germany?

I’d say, first of all, that Germany is part of the West, obviously with its own characteristics, and that in the Western world today we are experiencing a wave of new and drastic enlightenment or secularisation, whatever you like to call it.

It’s become more difficult to believe because the world in which we find ourselves is completely made up of ourselves, and God, so to speak, doesn’t appear directly anymore. We don’t drink from the source anymore, but from the vessel which is offered to us already full, and so on.

Humanity has rebuilt the world by itself and finding God inside this world has become more difficult. This is not specific to Germany: It’s something that’s valid throughout the world, especially in the West.

Then again, today the West is being strongly influenced by other cultures in which the original religious element is very powerful. These cultures are horrified when they experience the West’s coldness toward God. This “presence of the

sacred” in other cultures, even if often veiled, touches the Western world again, it touches us at the crossroads of so many cultures. The quest for “something bigger” wells up again from the depths of Western people and in Germany.

We see how in young people there’s the search for something “more,” we see how the religious phenomenon is returning, as they say. Even if it’s a search that’s rather indefinite.

But with all this the Church is present once more, and faith is offered as the answer. I think that this visit, like the visit to Cologne, is an opportunity because we can see that believing is beautiful, that the joy of a huge universal community possesses a transcendental strength, that behind this belief lies something important and that together with the new searching movements there are also new outlets for the faith that lead us from one to the other and that are also positive for society as a whole.

Q: Holy Father, you were in Cologne with the young people exactly a year ago. You experienced how amazingly willing youth are to welcome others, and you personally were very warmly welcomed. Will you be bringing a special message for young people on this next trip?

First of all, I’d say that I am very happy there are young people who want to be together, who want to be together in faith and who want to do something good.

The tendency to do good is very strong in young people - just think of the many kinds of volunteer work they do. The commitment of offering your own personal contribution to help the needy of this world is a great thing.

One idea might be to encourage them in this sphere: Go ahead!

Look for opportunities to do good!

The world needs this desire to do good, it needs this commitment!

Then another message might be this: Have the courage to make definitive decisions! Young people are very generous but when they face the risk of a lifelong commitment, be it marriage or a priestly vocation, they are afraid.

The world is moving dramatically: Nowadays I can continually do whatever I want with my life with all its unpredictable future events.

By making a definitive decision am I myself not tying up my personal freedom and depriving myself of freedom of movement?

Reawaken the courage to make definitive decisions: They are really the only ones that allow us to grow, to move ahead and to reach something great in life. They are the only decisions that do not destroy our freedom but offer to point us in the right direction. Risk making this leap, so to speak, toward the definitive and so embrace life fully: This is something I’d be happy to communicate to them.

Q: Holy Father, a question about the situation regarding foreign politics. Hopes for peace in the Middle East have been dwindling over the past weeks: What do you see as the Holy See’s role in relationship to the present situation? What positive influences can you have on the situation, on developments in the Middle East?

Of course we have no political influence and we don’t want any political power. But we do want to appeal to all Christians, and to all those who feel touched by the words of the Holy See, to help mobilise all the forces that recognise how war is the worst solution for all sides. It brings no good to anyone, not even to the apparent

victors. We understand this very well in Europe, after the two world wars. Everyone needs peace.

There’s a strong Christian community in Lebanon, there are Christians among the Arabs, there are Christians in Israel. Christians throughout the world are committed to helping these countries that are dear to all of us. There are moral forces at work that are ready to help people understand how the only solution is for all of us to live together.

These are the forces we want to mobilise: It’s up to politicians to find a way to let this happen as soon as possible and, especially, to make it last.

Q: As Bishop of Rome you are the successor of St Peter. How can the ministry of Peter manifest itself fittingly in today’s world? And how do you see the tensions and equilibrium between the primacy of the Pope, on one hand, and the collegiality of the bishops, on the other?

Of course there is a relationship of tension and equilibrium and, we say, that’s the way it has to be. Multiplicity and unity must always find their reciprocal rapport and this relationship must insert itself in ever new ways into the changing situations in the world. We have a new polyphony of cultures nowadays in which Europe is no longer the determining factor.

Christians on the various continents are starting to have their own importance, their own characteristics. We must keep learning about this fusion of the different components. We’ve developed various instruments to help us: the so-called “ad limina” visits of the bishops, which have always taken place. Now they are used much more in order to speak sincerely with all the offices of the Holy See

Words of wisdom: “The tendency to do good is very stong in young people. Let us help them to make lifelong commitments” - Pope Benedict XVI.

and with me. I speak personally to each bishop. I’ve already spoken to nearly all the bishops of Africa and with many of the bishops from Asia. Now it’s the turn of Central Europe, Germany, Switzerland. In these encounters in which the centre and the periphery come together in an open exchange of views, I think that the correct reciprocal exchange in this balanced tension grows. We also have other instruments like the synod, the consistory, which I shall be holding regularly and which I would like to develop.

Without having a long agenda we can discuss current problems together and look for solutions. Everyone knows that the Pope is not an absolute monarch but that he has to personify, you might say, the totality that comes together to listen to Christ.

There’s a strong awareness that we need a unifying figure that can guarantee independence from political powers and that Christians don’t identify too much with nationalism. There’s an awareness of the need for a higher and broader figure that can create unity in the dynamic integration of all parties and that can embrace and promote multiplicity.

So I believe there’s a close bond between the Petrine ministry which is expressed in the desire to develop it further so that it responds both to the Lord’s will and to the needs of the times.

Q: As the land of the Reformation, Germany is especially marked by the relationships between the different religious confessions. Ecumenical relations is a sensitive area that constantly encounters new problems. What chances do you see of improving relations with the Evangelical Church or what difficulties do you foresee in this relationship?

Maybe it’s important to say, first of all, that there are marked differences within the Evangelical Church. If I’m not mistaken, in Germany we have three

important communities: Lutherans, Reformed, and Prussian Union.

There are also several free churches [Freikirchen] and within the traditional Churches there are movements like the “confessional Church,” and so on. It’s a collection of many voices, therefore, with which we have to enter in dialogue searching for unity while respecting the multiplicity of the voices with which we want to collaborate.

I believe that the first thing we need to do is to concern ourselves with clarifying, establishing and putting into practice important ethical directives in society, thus guaranteeing a social ethical consistency without which society cannot fulfill its political ends, namely, justice for all, living together in a positive way, and peace.

In this sense, I think a lot is already achieved, that we already agree on the common Christian basics before the great moral challenges.

Of course, then we have to witness to God in a world that has problems finding him, as we said, and to make God visible in the human face of Jesus Christ, to offer people access to the source without which our morale becomes sterile and loses its point of reference, to give joy as well because we are not alone in this world.

Only in this way joy is born before the greatness of humanity: Humanity is not an evolutionary product that turned out badly. We are the image of God. We have to move on these two levels, so to speak: The level of important ethical points of reference and the level that manifests the presence of God, a concrete God, starting from within and working toward them.

If we do this and, especially, if in all our single communities we try not to live the faith in a specific fashion but always start from its deepest basics, then maybe we still won’t reach external manifestations of unity quickly, but we will mature toward an interior unity that, God willing, one day will bring with it an

exterior form of unity too.

Q: The issue of the family. A month ago you were in Valencia for the World Meeting of Families. Anyone who was listening carefully, as we tried to do at Vatican Radio, noticed how you never mentioned the words “homosexual marriage,” you never spoke about abortion, or about contraception. Careful observers thought that was very interesting. Clearly your idea is to go around the world preaching the faith rather than as an “apostle of morality.” What are your comments?

Obviously, yes. Actually I should say I had only two opportunities to speak for 20 minutes. And when you have so little time you can’t say everything you want to say about “no.”

Firstly you have to know what we really want, right? Christianity, Catholicism, isn’t a collection of prohibitions: It’s a positive option. It’s very important that we look at it again because this idea has almost completely disappeared today.

We’ve heard so much about what is not allowed that now it’s time to say: We have a positive idea to offer, that man and woman are made for each other, that the scale of sexuality, eros, agape, indicates the level of love and it’s in this way that marriage develops, first of all, as a joyful and blessing-filled encounter between a man and a woman, and then the family, that guarantees continuity among generations and through which generations are reconciled to each other and even cultures can meet. So first, it’s important to stress what we want.

Second, we can also see why we don’t want something. I believe we need to see and reflect on the fact that it’s not a Catholic invention that man and woman are made for each other, so that humanity can go on living: All cultures know this.

As far as abortion is concerned, it’s part of the Fifth, not the Sixth,

Commandment: “You shall not kill!” We have to presume this is obvious and always stress that the human person begins in the mother’s womb and remains a human person until his or her last breath. The human person must always be respected as a human person. But all this is clearer if you say it first in a positive way.

Q: Holy Father, my question is linked to that of Father Von Gemmingen. Throughout the world, believers are waiting for the Catholic Church to answer the most urgent global problems, like AIDS and overpopulation. Why does the Catholic Church pay so much attention to moral issues rather than suggesting concrete solutions to these problems that are so crucial to humanity, in Africa, for example?

So that’s the problem: Do we really pay so much attention to moral issues? I think - and I am more and more convinced after my conversations with the African bishops - that the basic question, if we want to move ahead in this field, is about education, formation. Progress becomes true progress only if it serves the human person and if the human person grows: not only in terms of his or her technical power, but also in his or her moral awareness.

I believe that the real problem of our historical moment lies in the imbalance between the incredibly fast growth of our technical power and that of our moral capacity, which has not grown in proportion. That’s why the formation of the human person is the true recipe, the key to it all, I would say, and this is what the Church proposes.

Briefly speaking, this formation has a dual dimension: Of course we have to learn, acquire knowledge, ability, know-how, as they say. In this sense Europe, and in the last decades America, have done a lot, and that’s important.

But if we only teach know-how, if we only teach how to build and to use machines, and how to use contraceptives, then we shouldn’t be surprised when we find ourselves facing wars and AIDS epidemics. Because we need two dimensions: Simultaneously we need the formation of the heart, if I can express myself in this way, with which the human person acquires points of reference and learns how to use the techniques correctly. And that’s what we try to do.

Throughout Africa and in many countries of Asia, we have a vast network of every level of school where people can learn, form a true conscience and acquire professional ability which gives them autonomy and freedom. But in these schools we try to communicate more than know-how, rather to form human beings capable of reconciliation, who know that we must build and not destroy and who have the necessary references to be able to live together. In much of Africa, relations between Christians and Muslims are exemplary.

The bishops have formed common commissions together with the Muslims to try to create peace in situations of conflict. This schools network, dedicated to human learning and formation, is very important. It’s completed by a network of hospitals and assistance centres that reach even the most remote villages.

In many areas, following the destruction of war, the Church is the only structure that remains intact. This is a fact! We offer treatment, treatment to AIDS victims too, and we offer education, helping to establish good relationships with others.

So I think we should correct that image that sees the Church as spreading severe “no’s.” We work a lot in Africa so that the various dimensions of formation can be integrated and so that it becomes possible to overcome violence and epidemics that include malaria and tuberculosis as well. - ZENIT.org

Pope’s view: Technical progress will bring more destruction unless we build the goodness that lives in the human heart.

The biography we didn’t really need

The Narnian: The Life and Imagination of C. S. Lewis

- by Alan Jacobs (HarperCollins 2005)

■ By Hal Colebatch

Anew book on C. S. Lewis, and by the Professor of English at Wheaton College, Illinois, the best and most highly-regarded of the Evangelical Christian Universities in the US, a university whose collection of original C. S. Lewis material is probably unrivalled! Wow! I opened the book hoping for an intellectual and literary feast. It is, however, a considerable disappointment.

It was said of some book that it was “good and original, but the good parts are not original, and the original parts are not good.”

This book told me almost nothing of Lewis I didn’t know before (even the photographs in it have been published in previous books), and it is written in that clunking, clumsy, inept prose which never fails to infuriate when produced by someone allegedly teaching the higher aspects of English language and literature (Look at Lewis’s own work, or Professor Tom Shippey’s studies of J. R. R. Tolkien for examples of modern academic writing in this area that is lucid, elegant and delightful to read as well as scholarly, mentally stimulating and informative).

There is, however, for the admirer of Lewis another fundamental objection to this book: it is exactly the kind of book Lewis would have hated, and which he specifically denounced more than once.

Rather than illuminating or explaining his work except at a fairly basic level, it dwells on speculations about his private life and psyche.

In particular, it emphasises prurient concerns about whether or not he had a sexual relationship with Mrs Janie Moore, the mother of a friend killed in the First World War.

Lewis and his friend had made a pact that if either were killed the

Sunday August 27

survivor would care for the dead one’s family.

Lewis honoured this scrupulously for many years, looking after Mrs Moore despite the fact she seems to have been demanding, unintelligent, insensitive and unattractive.

She was, likely enough, for Lewis a substitute for his own mother, whose death when he was nine years old had devastated him.

However, there is no real evidence of a sexual relationship between them.

In one letter written soon after he met Mrs Moore, which the author seizes on as evidence, the young Lewis did say: “I love someone.”

This may have had nothing to do with sexual love, which is not the only kind of love there is, and for that matter may have had nothing to do with Mrs Moore.

The young man, newly returned from the trenches, may have experienced a passing infatuation with a bar-maid, for all we know.

Basically, as Professor Kirke says in The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe: “We might all try minding our own business.”

Among stylistic ineptitudes we are told the young Lewis “read many fairy tales and became particularly enamoured of dwarfs.”

I hope this means Lewis particularly enjoyed stories about dwarfs rather than that he went cruising the woods hoping to make pickups.

Lewis’s small autobiography, Surprised by Joy, is said to be full of “unexplained and arcane literary references - it is as though in telling his own story he momentarily forgets that almost none of his readers are as learned as he ... the invocation of the ‘Blue Flower’ will be one of the most arcane ones.”

Well, I don’t know how things are in Illinois, but anyone with even a smattering of literary and intellectual education knows the “blue flower” is the symbol adopted by some 18th and 19th Century German poets (not just the poet “Novalis” as Jacobs apparently would have it) as the symbol of romantic longing and for the mystery and wonder of Joy.

For that matter, most of us also know who Rousseau and Schopenhauer were too, without

it having to be spelt out. A scatological attack on Tolkien’s (and by implication Lewis’s) type of Christian-anchored fantasy writing by one China Mieville is quoted, including that “his belief in absolute morality blurs moral and political complexity.”

Not mentioned here is that China Mieville is a leading light in the extremist far-left gropupsicles The Socialist Workers’ Party and the Socialist alliance (in 2001 he stood for the British Parliament, gaining just over one per cent of the vote in his working-class constituency).

This is highly relevant in making any judgement about the origin and worth of his (her?) opinions.

We are told that J. R. R. Tolkien “despised” the Narnia books, “as we shall see.”

But the only “evidence” to this effect offered later is another unsupported statement that the Narnia stories “appalled” him.

“Despised” and “appalled” are pretty strong words.

Actually, it seems, Tolkien disliked the mixture of mythologies in the Narnia stories - a much milder form of disagreement.

Similarly, it seems a wild exaggeration to say Lewis’s early dislike of T. S. Eliot verged on the pathological (the two became amicable later).

Jacobs does effectively dispose of the absurd charge made by Philip Pullman, writer of atheist, republican polemics for children, that Lewis condemns the character Susan in the Narnia stories to Hell for becoming interested in sexuality.

In fact Susan ceased to be “a friend of Narnia”, that is lost interest in the imaginative, valiant, splendid and wondrous, because she wanted to be adult, smart and fashionable.

Lewis himself, when questioned about this, specifically said: “The books don’t tell us what happened to Susan. She is left alive in this world having turned into a rather silly, conceited young woman. But there is plenty of time for her to mend, and perhaps she will get to Aslan’s country in the end - in her own way.” (Lyle W. Dorset & Margorie Lamp Mead, Eds., C. S. Lewis, Letters to Children (Macmillan, New York, 1985), p. 67).

Jacobs seems, however, unable to leave an assertion, even a clear and simple one like this, alone without qualifying and re-qualifying it, frequently with not particularly appropriate or necessary metaphors, and goes on:

“But I am not sure this bit of information, however inconvenient it may be for the boldness of Pullman’s assertion, would get Lewis

off the hook that Pullman wants to impale him on. “For whether Susan makes it in the end to Aslan’s country is only a ‘perhaps’: in Lewis’s understanding of the cosmos, people do indeed manage to get themselves damned - though he always insists that each of us goes where we choose to go, where we prefer to be ...”

Jacobs ties himself up in similar knots over whether or not it is politically incorrect for Lewis to have made the chief military enemies of Narnia the Calormenes, a darker-skinned, desert-dwelling people who live far to the south of Narnia, wear long robes, beards and turbans, have, evidently, multiple wives (“I have eighteen other sons” says their ruler, the Tisroc, which at least strongly suggests more than one wife), and whose Prime Minister is known as a “Vizier.”

He states: “Lewis and Tolkien had a ready-made source of “oriental” imagery on which to draw” (but the Calormenes are not “Orientals”the “Orient” is China and Japan) “to enrich their fictional worlds, and in a time less sensitive to cultural differences than our own, they saw no reason not to draw upon it. Perhaps this should count against them, but it rarely does.” (Jacob’s claim that Tolkien makes his rather similar southern enemies, the Haradrim “undifferentiated servants of evil” is specifically repudiated by a scene in both the book of The Lord of The Rings and in the Peter Jackson film.)

These are not all my objections but I will limit myself here to one final complaint: while the book is footnoted, the method of footnoting is the most awkward and timewasting for the reader that I have ever encountered.

My preference is for footnotes to be numbered and either at the foot of the relevant page or at the end of each chapter.

C. S. Lewis was a great writer, a great man and a great Christian. The best way to honour him, and the best way to benefit from his work, is the way he himself recommended other great writers be studied: rather than, or at least before, reading books about them, read books by them.

PANORAMA a roundup of events in the archdiocese

TAMMIN HOLY FAMILY CHURCH ANNIVERSARY

Holy Family Church will celebrate the 50th anniversary of its opening. We extend an invitation to all past parishioners to join us on this happy occasion. A thanksgiving Mass will be held at 11am followed by a light luncheon.

Sunday August 27

HOLY HOUR FOR VOCATIONS

There is a Holy Hour for Vocations on the 4th

Sunday of every month at Infant Jesus Church Morley from 2-3pm. The next Holy Hour will be 27th August. Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament - an opportunity to reflect and pray for Vocations to the Priesthood and Religious Life. All Welcome. Enquiries 9276 8500.

Sunday August 27

DONATIONS WANTED

10-11am: Divided Kingdom / Scott Hahn & Jeff Cavins [Our Father’s Plan; 8]. 1 -2 pm: Spiritual journey of Raymond Arroyo, lifelong Catholic / with Marcus Grodi [Journey Home]. Your support is needed to keep these wonderful programs on air at Access 31. Please send To: The Rosary Christian Tutorial Association, PO Box 1270, Booragoon WA 6954

Tuesday August 29

MARIAN MOVEMENT OF PRIESTS MMP

5th Tuesday. CENACLE. All Saints Church, 7 Liwara

Place, Greenwood at 10.30am. Rosary and Holy Mass. Celebrant Fr Timothy Deeter. Enquiries; 9341 8082.

August 31 to September 5

CATHOLIC BIBLE COLLEGE

Diarise the following short courses: August 31, Sept 1, 4, 5 – Fr Daniel Benedetti, MGL: The Bible and the Mass. All courses commence with Mass at 9am and finish by 1pm. These courses may be taken towards a Certificate IV in Christian Ministry (National Code 51446). Enquiries and Registration to Jane Borg, 0401 692 690.

August 30 to September 8

NOVENA TO OUR LADY OF GOOD HEALTH, VAILANKANNI

7pm Holy Mass. Holy Trinity Church, 8 Burnett Street, Embleton. Hoisting of Our Lady’s Banner followed by celebration at the Hall. Please bring a plate. Friday 8 September at 7pm Holy Mass, candle light procession and celebration of Our Lady’s birthday. Enq: 9271 5528 / 9272 1379 / 9342 1053.

Friday September 1

PROLIFE PROCESSION

The First Friday Mass, procession and rosary vigil will commence at 9.30am with Mass celebrated at St Brigid’s Church, Midland. The Franciscan Friars of the Immaculate will lead us. All are invited to witness for the sanctitiy of life and pray for the conversion of hearts. Enquiries: Helen 9402 0349.

Friday September 1 LIGHTS! CAMERA! ACTION!

Presented by Fr. Richard Leonard, SJ. Director Australian Catholic Film Office & Catholic Church Television Australia. How much do we know about the media culture that forms us? What can Catholic parishioners and families do about it?” Infant Jesus Parish, 7pm, 47 Wellington Road, Morley. All welcome. Phone Darren 9276 8500.

Friday September 1

CATHOLIC FAITH RENEWAL  PRAISE & WORSHIP

St John and Paul’s Church, Pinetree Gully Road, Willetton, at 7.30pm. There will be Praise and Worship evening followed by a talk given by Fr Paul Baczynski titled “Coming to the Quiet” and thanksgiving Mass. All welcome. Enquiries: Rita 9272 1765, Rose 0403 300 720, Gertrude 9455 6576.

Friday September 1 ALLIANCE AND TRIUMPH OF THE TWO HEARTS

1st Friday/Saturday all night vigil in reparation to the two hearts. Holy Mass 9pm Friday evening at St Bernadette’s Church, 49 Jugan Street, Glendalough followed by all night Eucharistic Adoration. All welcome to join us for any length of time to make reparation to the hearts of Jesus and Mary. Saturday Parish Mass at 7.30am (Reconciliation 7am). Fr Doug Harris 9444 6131 or Dorothy 9342 5845.

Saturday September 2

WITNESS FOR LIFE PROCESSION

The next first Saturday Mass, procession and rosary

vigil will commence with Mass at 8.30am at St Anne’s Church, Hehir Street, Belmont. We proceed prayerfully to the Rivervale abortion centre and conclude with rosary, led by Fr Paul Carey SSC. Please join us to pray peacefully for the conversion of hearts. Enquiries: Helen 9402 0349.

Friday September 1 - Saturday September 2

TWO HEARTS DEVOTIONS

All Saints Chapel, Allendale Square, St Georges Terrace, Perth. Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus begins Friday with Mass at 9pm followed by exposition of the Blessed Sacrament with Rosary, hymns and prayers throughout the night, concluding with Mass at 7am Saturday to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Please join us even for only 1 hour. Enquiries: 9409 4543.

Saturday September 2

DAY WITH MARY

Our Lady’s Assumption, 4 Stevenson Street, Mandurah, 9am to 5pm. A day of prayer and instruction based upon the messages of Fatima. Includes Reconciliation, Holy Mass, Eucharistic Adoration, Sermons, Rosaries, Procession of the Blessed Sacrament and Stations of the Cross. Please BYO lunch. Enquiries: 9250 8286. Bus services: 9367 1366.

September 2 and 3

MEET CATHERINE OF SIENA

Sr Nancy Murray, Dominican Nun and sister of actor Bill Murray. Sr Nancy portrays Catherine’s strong,

BUILDING TRADES

■ BRICK REPOINTING

Phone Nigel 9242 2952.

■ PERROTT PAINTING PTY LTD

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

■ PICASSO PAINTING

Top service. Phone 0419 915 836, fax 9345 0505.

FURNITURE REMOVAL

■ ALL AREAS

Mike Murphy 0416 226 434.

AUGUST

Classifieds

Classified ads: $3.30 per line incl. GST Enquiries: 9227 7778 Deadline: 12pm Tuesday

HOLIDAY ACCOMMODATION

■ DENMARK

Holiday House 3bdr x 2bath, sleeps up to 8. BOOK NOW.

Ph: Maria 0412 083 377.

RELIGIOUS PRODUCTS

■ CATHOLICS CORNER

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

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RELIGIOUS PRODUCTS

■ REPAIR YOUR LITURGICAL BOOKS Repairs to all sorts of books and leather bindings; reliable, reasonable rates. Ph. (08) 9293 3092

FOR SALE

■ 2 BEDROOM UNIT

Immaculately presented and secure, walk to shops, transport and Our Lady of Fatima Church, Palmyra. $360,000. Enquiries: Alan Legge, Property Solutions First National Real Estate, 9337 9909 or 0412 908 399

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Lowry Parade model M375. Dual keyboard with numerous base chords and other features. Stool included, some sheet music. $50. Ph: 9296 6186.

EVENTS

■ NEW NORCIA PILGRIMAGE

St Pio of Pietrelcina Feast DaySaturday 23 September- New Norcia Pilgrimage. Departure 7:30am from St Joseph’s Church. 20 Hamilton Street, Bassendean, WA. Return 5:00pm. Cost: $12. BYO Lunch. Invoke God’s bless-

ings on WA honouring a great saint of our times. Reservations/Information: 62781540 and 93782684

IN MEMORIAM

■ KIRKWOOD ARTHUR

In loving memory of my dear father, who died on August 11, 1991. At this sad time and always you are in my thoughts and prayers, O my Pappa! May God be ever with you, and with darling wonderful Mother too. Treasured memories bring comfort until we are all again together. May they rest in peace.

PANORAMA a roundup of events in the archdiocese

enthusiastic personality. Saturday 2 September 2006 2 - 5pm Dramatisation of Catherine’s life.

Sunday 3 September 2006 12 - 4pm Reflection of Catherine’s Life. Sunday BYO lunch. Our Lady of the Rosary, Angelico Street, Woodlands. Information: (08) 9446 7689 or domsiswa@globaldial.com.

Sunday September 3

DIVINE MERCY

An afternoon with Jesus and Mary will be held at St Joachim’s Church, Corner Shepperton Road and Harper Street, Victoria Park at 1.30pm. Program: Holy Rosary and Reconciliation, Sermon with Fr Doug Harris on St Gregory the Great, followed by Divine Mercy prayers and Benediction. Enquiries: John 9457 7771 or Linda 9275 6608.

Sunday September 3 - 7

PARISH MISSION

Our Lady of Lourdes, Rockingham. World renowned Franciscan Father Justin Belitz will lead the Parish Mission with the theme Success: Full Living. Sessions will be 7pm Sunday to Thursday and 9.30am Monday to Thursday. All welcome. Further Details see article in The Record or contact 9527 1605.

Tuesday September 5 - 7

ROSARY BOUQUET

To be part of the 48 hour Perpetual Rosary Bouquet for Our Lady’s Birthday or for further information please contact Margaret: 9341 8082, Fax: 9341 8083, email: bowen@iinet.net.au, Jan: 9255 1382, Fax: 9254 182 or post to 1/44A Scalby Street, Doubleview 6018. This is WA’s gift to Our Lady for Her Birthday, free of intentions.

Thursday September 7

MASS OF THE ASSOCIATION OF CATHOLIC POLICE

OFFICERS OF WA INC

Held at Our Lady Help of Christians Parish, 43 Camberwell Street, East Victoria Park. Commences 7pm. Light supper and refreshments following the Mass. For catering purposes RSVP by 1 September to either Peter Browne (9321 2155), Inspector Paul Newman (9222 1474) or Des Noonan (9291 8641).

Thursday September 7

TAIZE AT OUR LADY OF GRACE

3 Kitchener Street, North Beach at 7.30pm and every 1st Thursday in the month. Song, Silence, Sacred Scripture.

September 7-10

FEAST OF OUR LADY MARIA SS DEL TINDARI

Basilica of Saint Patrick, Adelaide Street, Fremantle. Beginning with a Triduum which will be celebrated by Fr Christian Fini O.M.I. from Melbourne on Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 7.30pm. The Mass will be Sunday, 9.45am. The procession will commence from the Basilica at 2pm. Enq: Joe Franchina 9335 1185 or 0404 801 138.

Friday September 8 and Sunday September 10

EPISCOPAL VISITAT AND 80TH ANNIVERSARY MERREDIN

St Mary’s Parish invites past and present parishioners to the celebrations of the 80th Anniversary of the Parish. There will be a historical presentation and social gathering in the Parish Hall at 7.30pm and Special Anniversary Mass on Sunday 10th September 8.30 am.

Friday September 8

BLESSED MARY MACKILLOP MASS

Monthly at 6pm in honour of Blessed Mary MacKillop. Come and join in the eucharist and place your petitions at Blessed Mary MacKillop’s shrine in the beautiful chapel. Sisters of St Joseph’s Chapel, 16 York Street, South Perth. Enquiries: 9457 3371.

September 10 - 17

FEAST OF OUR LADY MARIA SS ADDOLORATA

Our Lady’s Assumption Church, Grand Promenade, Dianella. Commencing with a “Settenario” which will be celebrated by Fr Antonio Paganoni CS, September 10-16 at 7.30pm. The procession will commence from the Church, Sunday September 17, 2.30pm, followed by sung Mass with celebrants Bishop Peter Quinn & Fr Antonio Paganoni. Enquiries: Lina Giancola 9455 5619.

Sunday September 10

ST ISIDOR E’S PARISH OF JENNACUBBINE ANNUAL PICNIC

Mass and picnic to be held on the banks of the Mortlock River, Jennacubbine. 11am Mass followed by BYO picnic & chair or rug. BBQs available – lots of extras provided. Everyone is welcome. Contact Cathie Bowen 9623 2264 or Fr Geoff Aldous at Northam 9622 5411.

Thursday September 14

MOTHERS’ PRAYERS MASS

10am at Our Lady Queen of Apostles, Tribute Street East, Riverton. For all mothers and grandmothers coming together to pray for their children. Fathers, grandfathers welcome. A wonderful and necessary opportunity for God to hear and act upon the hearts and minds of mothers. Fellowship to follow Mass. Enquiries: Veronica Peake on 9447 0671.

September 15 - 17

A WEEKEND WITH ST FRANCIS

All welcome. All those interested in learning more of St Francis and the spirituality of his followers are welcome to attend. The retreat will be held at the Redemptorist Retreat House. The retreat will be given by Fr Michael Brown OFM. For information and bookings please contact Mary on 9377 7925 by 31st August.

Saturday September 16

FEAST OF THE STIGMATA OF ST FRANCIS OF ASSISI

The Secular Franciscan Order in WA will be celebrating the Feast with the readings of the Stigmata of St Francis. All welcome. The celebrations will be held at the chapel of the Redemptorist Retreat House, North Perth at 3pm and will conclude with afternoon tea. Enquiries contact Mary on 9377 7925.

Sunday September 17

KOORDA CHURCH 50TH ANNIVERSARY

Our Lady of the Assumption Church Koorda’s Golden Anniversary this year. Past Priests and parishioners are invited to join celebrations. Those with photos to include in a display are welcome to send them to Kath Gosper, PO Box 68, Koorda 6475. Send copies or we’ll copy then return. Commences with Mass, 10.30am, and lunch at Recreation hall.

September 22 to 24

DANCING THE PSALMS

Weekend Retreat, Josephine Retreat Centre, Penola, Safety Bay. For more information, contact Sr Shelley Barlow 9271 3873

Sunday September 24 to 30

FIVE DAY DIRECTED RETREAT

At the Redemptorist Monastery Retreat House, 190 Vincent Street North Perth. Director: Fr Joe Carroll CSSR. For more information contact Jan Broderick.

October 6 to 8

BROTHER ANDREW’S SIXTH

A thanksgiving retreat to celebrate Brother Andrew’s 6th Anniversary of going to God on the Feast of Saint Francis of Assisi. Fr Douglas Rowe FDP will give his own retreat “Awakening”. A deeper experience of the Trinity and Baptismal relationship awaits us all. All welcome. Venue: God’s Farm, 40kms South

Sunday October 15

HEALING MASS

“Oh taste and see the Lord is good. He will satisfy the soul.” Catholic Charismatic Renewal invites you to experience the healing love of God. The celebration will be held at St Joseph’s Church, 1 Salvado Road, Subiaco, commencing with Prayer and Praise at 5.30pm, Mass at 6pm followed by praying over and supper. All are welcome to join us. Enq. Celine 9446 2147.

Sunday October 29

WORLD CENTENARY OF CATHOLIC WOMEN’S LEAGUE

Catholic Women’s League of WA will be celebrating the Women’s League Centenary, founded in England by Margaret Fletcher in 1906. Mass celebrated at the Redemptorist Monastery, 190 Vincent Street, North Perth at 10.30am followed by a lunch at the Royal Park Hall at noon. Members, ex-members and families are most welcome. For more information contact Margaret Ph: 9328 8978 or Fay Ph: 9284 3084.

AL ANON FAMILY GROUPS

If a loved one’s drinking is worrying you – please call Al Anon Family Groups for confidential information meetings etc… Phone Number on 9325 7528 – 24 hrs.

ATTENTION COUPLES

Have you or your spouse been diagnosed with a mental illness? Depression? Anxiety/Panic Attacks? etc. Could you do with some help understanding your/their illness? Do you know how to get help when you need it? We can help you to help each other through the Unconditional Love Program. For more information contact Amanda Olsen: 0407 192 641, or email: mandyfolsen@bigpond. com.au.

TUESDAY NIGHT PRAYER MEETINGS

St Mary’s Cathedral Parish Centre, 450 Hay Street, Perth, 7pm. Come join us! Overcome the burdens in life, making prayer your lifeline with Jesus. Personal healing in prayer, Rosary, meditation, Scripture, praise in song, friendship, refreshments. Be united with Our Lord and Our Lady in prayer with others. Appreciate the heritage of the Faith.

EVERY SUNDAY

Bullsbrook Shrine Sunday Pilgrimage Program. Shrine of Virgin of the Revelation, 36 Chittering Rd Bullsbrook. 2pm Holy Mass, exposition of the Blessed Sacrament with Holy Rosary. Reconciliation is available before every celebration. Enquiries: 9447 3292.

FIRST SUNDAY OF THE MONTH

Santa Clara Parish Community welcomes anyone from surrounding parishes and beyond to the Santa Clara Church, corner of Coolgardie and Pollock Sts, Bentley on the 1st Sunday of each month for devotions in honour of the Divine Mercy. The afternoon commences with the 3 o’clock prayer, followed by the Divine Mercy Chaplet, Reflection and concludes with Benediction.

YOUNG CATHOLIC WOMEN’S INTERFAITH FELLOWSHIP

The Council for Australian Catholic Women seeks to promote participation of women in the Australian Catholic Church. CACW is pleased to announce the 2007 application package for the Young Catholic Women’s Interfaith Fellowship is now available. It may be downloaded from: www.cacw.catholic.org. au. Enquiries: Michelle Wood, michelleww@iinet. net.au or 9345 2555.

ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS

Is alcohol costing you more than just money? Alcoholics Anonymous can help. Ring 9325 3566. BLESSED SACRAMENT ADORATION

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

Wednesdays SIGN LANGUAGE COURSE

Australian Sign Language (Auslan) Classes are offered free of charge at Emmanuel Centre on Wednesdays at 1pm. If this does not suit you, other arrangements can be made. Please contact Fr Paul or Barbara at Emmanuel Centre, 25 Windsor St Perth 9328 8113.

QUEEN OF APOSTLES SCHOOL

Those with information on Queen of Apostles School, Riverton, please tell the extension group – Call 9354 1360 and ask to speak to Veronique or email your information to veronequeregnard@gmail.com. au or janellekoh@yahoo.com.au or you can put your information into the box in the office at Queen of Apostles School. Thanking you in anticipation.

LINDA’S HOUSE OF HOPE APPEAL

To enable us to provide and offer support for girls wishing to leave the sex trade we need help. We built new offfices which are at the rear of the shelter and functioning. Send donations to Linda’s House of Hope PO Box Z5640, Perth, St George’s Tce 6831. Ph: 0439 401 009. All donations over $2 are tax deductible.

Panorama entries must be in by 5pm Monday. Contributions may be faxed to 9227 7087. emailied to administration@therecord.com.au or mailed to PO box 75, Leederville, WA 6902. Submissions over 55 words will be excluded. Inclusion is limited to 4 weeks. Events charging over $10 constitute a classified event, and will be charged acordingly. The Record reserves the right to decline or modify any advertisment.

25 Silver Jubilee Mass of Fr Greg Donovan, Willetton - Bishop Sproxton

27 Dedication and blessing of St Andrew’s Church, Clarkson - Bishop Sproxton

28 - 1 Clergy Retreat - Bishop Sproxton

3 Installation of Attadale Parish Priest, Fr Sean Fernandez - Bishop Sproxton

Dear Brothers and Sisters: We dedicate today’s meeting to recall another very important member of the apostolic college: John, son of Zebedee, and brother of James. His name, typically Hebrew, means “the Lord has given his grace.”

He was mending the nets on the shores of the Sea of Galilee, when Jesus called him together with his brother (Matthew 4:21; Mark 1:19).

John is always part of the restricted group that Jesus took with him on certain occasions.

He is beside Peter and James when Jesus, in Capernaum, enters Peter’s house to cure his mother-in-law (Mark 1:29); with the other two he follows the Master into the house of the chief of the synagogue, Jairus, whose daughter would be called back to life (Mark 5:37); he follows him when he goes up to the mountain to be transfigured (Mark 9:2); he is by his side on the Mount of Olives when, before the imposing Temple of Jerusalem, he delivers the discourse on the end of the city and of the world (Mark 13:3); and, finally, he is close to him when in the Garden of Gethsemane he withdraws to pray to the Father before the Passion (Mark 14:33).

Shortly before Passover, when Jesus chose two disciples to prepare the room for the Supper, he entrusts this task to him and to Peter (Luke 22:8).

This prominent position in the group of the Twelve makes comprehensible, in a certain sense, the initiative that his mother took one day: she approached Jesus to request that her two sons, John and James, might sit one at his right hand and one at his left in the Kingdom (Matthew 20:20-21).

As we know, Jesus replied posing a question in turn: he asked if they were prepared to drink the chalice that he himself was about to drink (Matthew 20:28).

With these words, he wanted to open the eyes of the two disciples, introduce them to knowledge of the mystery of his person, sketch the future call to be his witnesses to the supreme test of blood.

Shortly after, in fact, Jesus clarified that he had not come to be served but to serve and to

The Last Word

The Beloved

give his life as a ransom for many (Matthew 20:28).

In the days following the Resurrection, we find the sons of Zebedee fishing together with Peter and others on a night without results.

After the Risen One’s intervention, came the miraculous catch: “the disciple whom Jesus loved” would be the first to recognise the Lord and to point him out to Peter (John 21:1-13).

Within the Church of Jerusalem, John occupied an important place in the leadership of the first group of Christians.

Paul, in fact, places him among those he called the “columns” of that community (Galatians 2:9).

According to tradition, John is “the beloved disciple,” who places his head on the Master’s breast during the Last Supper, is found at the foot of the cross close to the Mother of Jesus and is witness both of the empty tomb as well as the presence of the Risen One.

Luke, in the Acts of the Apostles, presents him next to Peter while they go to the Temple to pray (Acts 3:1-4,11) or when they appear before the Sanhedrin to witness their faith in Jesus Christ (Acts 4:13,19).

Together with Peter he receives the invitation of the Church of Jerusalem to confirm those who accepted the Gospel in Samaria, praying over them so that they would receive the Holy Spirit (Acts 8:14-15).

In particular, we must recall what he said, together with Peter, before the Sanhedrin, during the trial: “we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard” (Acts 4:20).

This frankness in confessing their own faith remains as an example and a warning for all of us so that we will be ready to declare with determination our unbreakable adherence to Christ, putting our faith before any human calculation or interest.

According to tradition, John is “the beloved disciple,” who in the fourth Gospel places his head on the Master’s breast during the Last

New Rainbows: a series on society and church Catholic, not elitist minority

There is an inherent risk in accepting a minority status, particularly when the sense of belonging reaches certain “heights,” resulting in elitist behaviour. Accusations and labelling of this nature have been heard, both inside and outside the Church. This group is running the risk of becoming locked in and accountable only to itself.

A community decidedly proclaiming and attempting to live the Gospel of Christ cannot avoid being branded as elitist.

A community, parish or diocese is required to proclaim the Gospel to all peoples, in a manner that is relevant and inductive. In pastoral terms this will mean avoiding “double standards,” or preferential dealings with the initiated and second-rate dealings for those uninitiated, be they completely absent from the parish scene, occasionally participating or simply looking for a “chat with the minister.”

With the current shortage of priests and the multiple demands made upon them increasing, realities resulting in the pastoral arena will demand further reflection and analysis. The satisfaction of merely sacramental activi-

ties leaves little time and energy for anything else. As a result meagre attention is being given to formation programs. Even if this is not the case, there are those who are so involved in spiritual formation that they are unable to fulfil the demands of parishioners. This is most clearly the result of conflicting Church views and expectations within our complex world.

I believe, most pastoral agents are decisively steering towards a Church that resembles a “little flock” rather than a Church for all people. The French and, to a lesser extent, the Italian bishops have indicated that they favour an approach aimed at forming committed disciples. If it is true that God wants everybody to be saved and His love is directed to all people, then it is also true that the sacraments are meant for those who are disciples of Jesus.

As a final thought, those who are considered as “in” the Church may not succumb to feelings of resentment or rejection towards those considered as “out.” These latter ones are in fact a great resource for the Church.

Tony Paganoni Scalabrinian

Supper (John 13:21), is found at the foot of the cross close to the Mother of Jesus (John 19:25) and, finally, is witness both of the empty tomb as well as the presence of the Risen One (John 20:2, 21:7).

We know that this identification today is disputed by experts, as some of them see in him the prototype of the disciple of Jesus.

Leaving the exegetes to clarify the situation, we content ourselves with drawing an important lesson for our lives: the Lord wishes to make of each one of us a disciple who lives in personal friendship with him.

To do this, it is not enough to follow and listen to him exteriorly; it is also necessary to live with him and as him.

This is only possible in the context of a relationship of great familiarity, penetrated by the warmth of total trust.

It is what happens between friends: this is why Jesus said one day: “Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends … No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you” (John 15:13,15).

In the apocryphal “Acts of John” the apostle is not presented as founder of Churches, not even as guide of a constituted community, but as a constant itinerant, a communicator of the faith in the encounter with “souls capable of hoping and of being saved” (18:10, 23:8).

He is impelled by the paradoxical desire to make the invisible seen.

In fact, the Eastern Church calls him simply “the Theologian,” that is, the one who is able to speak in terms accessible to divine things, revealing an arcane access to God through adherence to Jesus.

Devotion to John the Apostle was affirmed first in the city of Ephesus where, according to an ancient tradition, he lived for a long time, dying at an extraordinarily advanced age, under the emperor Trajan.

In Ephesus, Emperor Justinian, in the 6th century, built a great basilica in his honour, of which there still remain impressive ruins. Precisely in the East he enjoyed and enjoys great veneration.

In the Byzantine icons he is represented as very old and in intense contemplation, with

In the last moments: St John, also referred to as ‘The Beloved,’ is portrayed in this mosaic with Mary at the foot of the Cross.

the attitude of one who invites to silence. In fact, without proper recollection, it is not possible to approach the supreme mystery of God and his revelation.

This explains why, years ago, the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, Athenagoras, whom Pope Paul VI embraced at a memorable meeting, affirmed: “John is at the origin of our loftiest spirituality. Like him, the ‘silent ones’ know that mysterious exchange of hearts, invoke the presence of John and their hearts are inflamed” (O. Clement, “Dialoghi con Atenagora,” Turin, 1972, p. 159).

May the Lord help us to place ourselves in the school of John to learn the great lesson of love so that we feel loved by Christ “to the end” (John 13:1) and spend our lives for him. TRANSLATION BY

Join Pope Benedict XVI in prayer August

General intention: That orphans may not lack the care necessary for their human and christian formation.

Mission intention: That the christian faithful may be aware of their own missionary vocation in every place and circumstance.