The Record Newspaper 26 October 2011

Old, poor, uncared for Crisis in aged health care

Page 17

Voyage

Year of grace for Australia

ACKNOWLEDGING the pastoral burden of Australian bishops had been made heavier by past sins and mistakes of others, including some clergy and religious, Pope Benedict XVI called the nation’s prelates to continue to repair the past errors with openness and humility to build a better future for all.

In his address to the bishops, in Rome to report on the state of their dioceses, on 20 October,

the Pope acknowledged three key issues, highlighting two positive recent experiences for the Catholic Church in Australia.

He praised the experience produced by the Archdiocese of Sydney for World Youth Day in 2008.

“Together with you, I saw how the Holy Spirit moved the young people gathered on your home soil from all over the world,” he said.

The canonisation of Australia’s first saint, Mary MacKillop, had been another great event. “Her vig-

orous faith, translated into dedicated and patient action, was her gift to Australia; her life of holiness is a wonderful gift of your country to the Church and to the world,” he said.

The Pope urged the bishops to help all welcome and appreciate the achievement of the newly translated prayers of the Roman Rite.”

In a speech to the Holy Father on behalf of the bishops, Archbishop Philip Wilson of Adelaide touched on some of the fault lines in the Church in Australia.

“Different voices are heard among us, voices that interpret the past differently – especially the Second Vatican Council – and voices therefore that understand differently how we should move into the future,” he said, adding that unity was not always easy but the bishops were recommitting themselves to it.

Archbishop Wilson announced a special Year of Grace for Australia to begin on Pentecost 2012.

While Pope Benedict’s removal of Bishop William Morris of

Toowoomba in May was the subject of several meetings with top Vatican officials, a statement issued by the bishops expressed unanimity backing the Pope’s action.

Ad limina (“to the threshold of the Apostles”) visits are meant to take place every five years. The last visit for Australian bishops was in 2004. Pope John Paul II’s death and Benedict XVI’s election in 2005 meant the normal ad limina program was rescheduled.

Full wrap-up – pages 13-15

Agony of Coptic Christians inspires local appeal

By Sarah Motherwell

KIDNAPPING of Christian girls

for Islamisation and the killing of Christian students are some of the horrendous crimes committed in Egypt against Coptic Christians over the past eight months, according to an Egyptian Orthodox priest ministering in Perth.

Father Abram Abdelmalek of the St Mary and Archangel Michael Coptic Orthodox Church in East Victoria Park has led his parish in three days of fasting and prayer in response to recent sectarian violence in Egypt. He said the community was deeply concerned and

upset at the persecution of their fellow Copts in Egypt.

Large numbers of Coptic Christians have fled Egypt to escape the escalating persecution. An Eygptian human rights organisation estimates that since March about 93,000 Christians have left the country – 14,000 of them seeking sanctuary in Australia.

In Cairo a Christian teenage boy was killed by his fellow students at school and a Christian’s ear was cut off under Sharia law, the religious law of Islam, Fr Abdelmalek told The Record

“What’s happening is a national crime led by the Egyptian army

against the peaceful protesters,” Fr Abdelmalek said.

The crimes should be dealt with by the International Court of Justice, he said, because of the violence coming from within the Egyptian army: “The independent armed forces are not independent.”

“There needs to be a national committee that investigate what’s happening against the Coptic Christians,” Fr Abdelmalek said.

The parish is raising funds to help those affected by the violence.

The Anba Abraam Charity was founded through the congregation and welcomes funds from anyone willing to donate.

9 October

when troops broke up a protest against attacks on

Christians.

By Peter roSengren

Elegant new translation by Advent

While some dioceses are already using the new translation,

it

will be universal by 30 October

MY Dear People, at this time in all Englishspeaking countries of the world, the new translation of the Mass is being introduced.

Some countries have already introduced the new texts, including some Australian dioceses.

After some consideration, the Western Australian Bishops decided to wait until the new Altar Missal is available before introducing the changes to the priests’ part of the Mass.

It is expected the missals will arrive in parishes by the first week of Advent, 27 November 2011.

As a way of preparing for the new Missal, the peoples’ responses will be introduced in all parishes on the 31st Sunday of the Year, 30 October 2011.

From that date the people at all celebrations of the Mass will be using the new responses; this will include all Catholic school celebrations.

Pastoral Archbishop’s

Archbishop Barry J Hickey

The parish or school will provide either the written responses or overheads to assist the congregation to respond.

This will allow congregations

to penetrate deeper into the mysteries we celebrate.

It is hoped the new translation will serve the Church for many years to come.

“It is hoped the new translation will serve the Church for many years to come.”

to become familiar with the new responses.

The preparation of the New Translation has taken many years. Time was needed to make sure the new texts were not only accurate translations of the Latin but also elegant and prayerful, helping us

It is important for me to stress that the old translation of the Mass that has served us well for over thirty years will become obsolete after the First Sunday of Advent this year.

From that date on, only the new translation can be used.

Bishops must help all appreciate prayers

The new translation of the missal will be a blessing for the Church in Australia, Pope Benedict XVI tells Australia’s bishops in Rome.

Finally, as Bishops, you are conscious of your special duty to care for the celebration of the liturgy. The new translation of the Roman Missal, which is the fruit of a remarkable cooperation of the Holy See, the bishops and experts from all over the world, is intended to enrich and deepen the sacrifice of praise offered to God

by his people. Help your clergy to welcome and to appreciate what has been achieved, so that they in turn may assist the faithful as everyone adjusts to the new translation.

As we know, the sacred liturgy and its forms are written deeply in the heart of every Catholic. Make every effort to help catechists and musicians in their respec-

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tive preparations to render the celebration of the Roman Rite in your dioceses a moment of greater grace and beauty, worthy of the Lord and spiritually enriching for everyone.

In this way, as in all your pastoral efforts, you will lead the Church in Australia towards her heavenly home under the sign of the Southern Cross.

The introduction of the new Missal is an opportunity for extensive catechesis on the nature of worship, the theology of the Eucharist and the purpose of its liturgical celebration.

Over the past year the Archdiocese has offered catechesis on the new texts, “train-the-trainer” sessions for parish and school leaders, instruction on the use of the DVD Become One Body, One Spirit in Christ, information sessions for our priests, and has also provided parish bulletin inserts.

Most parishes have offered some catechesis on the Eucharist.

I encourage all parishes to continue this catechetical exposition of these central truths of the Faith so that the new Missal will correspond with a deeper knowledge and love of the Blessed Eucharist.

This is a moment of grace.

Let us welcome this new translation of the Roman Missal and use this opportunity to deepen our love for the Mass.

Conservatives respond to the introduction of the New Translation

1967

UNDA Health clocks up ten years of building

Alumni and staff of the University of Notre Dame (UNDA) celebrated the School of Health Sciences’ 10th anniversary in October.

The school has grown from its first intake of 28 students 10 years ago to 678 students and offers five undergraduate and two postgraduate degrees.

Foundation graduate William Hegerty said the practical and professional experience students gained at UNDA helped job prospects after graduating.

Head of the School of Health and Physical Education Professor Helen Parker said: “It has been a privilege to be there from the beginning.”

A celebratory cocktail party was attended by special guests including the first dean of the College of Health, Dr Michael Quinlan.

We regret the error

In last week’s article “Propriety Limited” by Anna Krohn, the name of Dr Abigail Bray, co-editor with Melinda Tankard Reist of the book Big Porn Inc, was misspelt. This was a subediting error. We apologise to Dr Bray for the mistake.

Progressives respond to the introduction of the New Translation

2011

More palliative care needed for ageing Aussies

By Mark reidy

AS MANY as two out of three people who could have benefited from palliative care are currently missing out as hospitals cannot cater for the increased numbers accessing their services, says Martin Laverty, CEO of Catholic Health Australia.

He was responding to a report released by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) on 20 October that indicated a 56 per cent increase in hospital palliative

Increasing accessibility for disabled

THE Emmanuel Centre, a self-help centre for people with disabilities, is offering a series of workshops for parishes, organisations, schools and any Catholic group which wishes to learn how to make services accessible for people with disabilities.

“It is very encouraging to note so many people are willing to step out in faith and become actively involved in providing access,” said the Emmanuel Centre’s coordinator, Barbara Harris.

The workshops, known as ‘Beyond the Ramp’, are individually tailored to local needs.

Mrs Harris said while churches have taken on board the importance of physical access for the disabled, in the workshop they are challenged to widen their vision to other areas of access such as language use, access for the blind, vision impaired or deaf or hard of hearing.

Anyone interested in the workshop should contact Mrs Harris on 9328 8113 or via: emmanuelcentre@westnet.com.au.

care admissions over the past decade.

He said the report highlighted what providers had been advocating for many years - the need for expansion of palliative care services outside the public hospital system. “Governments have now received further evidence that it makes sense to provide new investment in endof-life care,” Mr Laverty said.

The report, funded by the Federal Government Department of Health and Ageing, also indicated that one

in four Australians would be over 65 by 2056, compared with one in eight in 2009, and that the number of annual deaths would double by this time.

In addition, the report recognised an increase in the proportion of people expected to suffer and eventually die from chronic progressive illnesses and therefore a need for not only more palliative care, but also a greater diversity of services required.

“Increasing funding for residen-

tial aged care facilities, where palliative care can be delivered more appropriately … should be a priority for all governments,” Mr Laverty stated.

“Some older people are going to hospitals to receive palliative care when they could be better cared for at home or in an aged care facility.”

Mr Laverty was pleased there was now official recognition for the need to expand and improve services to those people in the final stages of their lives. He said

addressing this issue would not only release pressure from public hospitals but also save taxpayer money as public hospital beds cost three to four times more than aged care beds.

The AIHW report confirmed the findings of the Federal Government’s Productivity Commission into Aged Care released in August this year that recognised a number of deficiencies in service provisions to older Australians.

Aged struggle for dignity - Page 17

Trinity fun fete produces outstanding faces

Catholics not engaging with ecological issues

By TiM Wallace

NEARLY a decade after Australian bishops established the Catholic Earthcare agency to promote “ecological conversion”, there remains a lack of serious engagement with the issue within the community, says the agency’s representative in WA.

Many Catholics were still unaware of statements made by Pope Benedict XVI and his predecessors regarding the need to respond to the ecological crisis, Jim Smith told a forum last week at the University of Notre Dame’s (UNDA) Fremantle campus. Others, even if aware, were unsure how to act on them or simply did not see them as a priority.

Catholic Earthcare’s green mission was still seen by some “as a bit out of the blue”, Mr Smith said. “The response I get from a lot of people I thought would be rushing to get engaged with it is: ‘Ah, no, we’re too busy with other stuff to worry about that.’”

While there were some “amazing, wonderful” examples of schools putting environmental sustainabiliity into practice, such as Dawesville Catholic Primary in Mandurah, at other schools and educational quarters the response was often a case of being “too busy chopping the wood to stop and sharpen the axe”.

An example of the lack of engagement in the Catholic community was perhaps the very forum

at which Mr Smith made his comments. Organised by UNDA’s campus ministry, the forum’s advertised topic was: “The Morality of Climate Change – Who Cares?”

Pope John Paul II defined the ecological crisis as a moral problem more than 20 years ago, yet it appeared the organisers had difficulty assembling three suitably qualified speakers.

They were Mr Smith, who almost singlehandedly flies the flag for Catholic Earthcare in WA; marine geoscientist Michael O’Leary, who started his presentation with a concession he had “very little background expertise in ethics or morality”, and Baptistcare chief executive Lucy Morris, whose approach to the issue, while eloquent and thoughtprovoking, might have been mistaken for “a socialist critique of capitalism”, as one attendee, philosophy and ethics lecturer Laura D’Olimpio, put it.

Catholic Earthcare was established in 2002 by the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference as a response to calls by Pope John Paul II to “stimulate and sustain the ecological conversion”.

In 2001 he said humanity had “disappointed the divine expectation” through uncontrolled forms of industrialisation, “humiliating –to use an image of Dante Alighieri – the earth, that flower-bed that is our dwelling”.

Night to Remember at Whitford parish

Our Lady of the Missions parish in Whitford has appealed to parishioners to lock their cars after individuals have been seen inspecting parked cars during services, raising concerns thieves may be preparing the ground to strike later.

The parish newsletter reminded Mass-goers and others who drop in

to the parish to lock cars and not leave valuables in view on car seats. APart form dealing with potential problems such as this, the parish is holding a special Night to Remember dance on 11 November to raise funds for overseas missions.

The event will be held in the Whitford school’s new hall with

tables of 10 available to those who would like to attend.

This weekend the parish is also holding a special blessing for grandparents. Children were requested to bring their grandparents along to parish Masses this weekend, where the oldies would also be presented with a surprise gift from the parish.

Lions and tigers jumped out of the Swan River in East Perth at the Trinity College Spring Fair A Day by the River on Sunday, 23 October. Face painting was just one of the attractions at more than 40 stalls at the fair, which included food rides, a giant auction, talent quest and MasterChef cook-off.

PHOTO: COURTESY TRINITY COLLEGE

Powerful message to students

By Mark reidy

WHEN Jonathan Doyle was presenting talks on relationships and sexuality to over 400 students at Mandurah Catholic College on 29 September, he would often take the stance of a boxer, said Richard Sellwood, the school’s Head of Religious Education.

“I wasn’t surprised, though”, he told The Record, “because he has such a powerful message to deliver”.

Doyle addressed the Year 10-12 students throughout the day on the positive and negative influences that can affect their sexual decision-making.

“He communicates his message in an entertaining and humorous way”, Sellwood shared, “but he is throwing punches all the way through. He uses logic and personal experience to engage students so they are able to make connections with their own lives.”

Sellwood said Doyle was able to present information on topics such as authentic love, chastity, respect for self and others, media influences, pornography and why sex should be saved for marriage, in such a way that students did not feel condemned but were able to understand the wisdom being shared.

“He is the best speaker our school has had”, Sellwood said. “His messages have the flavour of Pope John Paul II’s Theology of the Body, but he packages it in a way that is relevant to today’s young people.

“His inspiring example on the sacrificial choice of St Maximillian Kolbe who gave his life to save another, gave students a different

Jonathan Doyle’s message to Mandurah Catholic College students was inspiring and challenging. PHOTO: MANDURAH CC

perspective on what love is meant to be”.

Doyle challenged women not to let themselves be used and told them that men will rise to the standards they set. His message to young men was that their strength was not made for them but to serve others and warned them about the role models to which they exposed themselves.

St Mary’s Cathedral

MOZART

Allan

He said they needed to be very conscious of the negative attitudes that are absorbed from shows such as Two and a Half Men as well as the influence of pornography on the way they view women.

Sellwood said that student response to the visit had been extremely positive.

“It is very rare to have students requesting that a speaker returns

next year”, he said, “especially when the message is to save yourself sexually until you are married”. Doyle, who runs the Canberrabased Choicez Media, speaks to over 30,000 students and adults throughout Australia each year, seeking to empower and equip them with the knowledge, skills and motivation to assist young people in making healthy sexual choices.

By TiM Wallace

THE Adelaide Archdiocese had gone “over and above” requirements of the Catholic Church’s national Towards Healing guidelines in response to sexual abuse allegations by Traditional Anglican primate John Hepworth, Adelaide’s Archbishop Philip Wilson has said.

“We have followed the protocols of Towards Healing,” Archbishop Wilson told Adelaide’s Catholic newspaper, The Southern Cross, but because of Archbishop Hepworth’s wishes, “we have gone over and above the requirements of that process by appointing solicitors very early on, in November 2009, to ensure even further independence of the process.”

More recently, the archdiocese “added another layer of impartiality by appointing Michael Abbott QC to be involved in that process”.

Oddly, though, the new statements seem to add weight to one aspect of Archbishop Hepworth’s complaint about the archdiocese’s handling of the matter; that it had been “an absolute struggle even finding out what the process is”.

Questions from The Record over the past month seeking clarification as to what degree the investigation has followed Towards Healing protocols have elicited just one answer: “Given these questions raise issues directly related to the investigation, the archdiocese has been advised that it cannot respond while the investigation remains on foot.”

Recognition and thanks

ORGANISERS are hopeful Prime Minister Julia Gillard will attend an invitation-only service of appreciation of major donors and all involved in St Mary’s Cathedral restoration and completion on 6 December to be hosted by Archbishop Hickey.

Federal opposition leader Tony Abbott has already confirmed he will be present.

Deputy chair of the Cathedral appeal, Maureen Colgan, told The Record WA Governor Malcolm McCusker, former Senator Chris Ellison, deputy opposition leader Julie Bishop and former Perth Mayor Peter Natrass would also attend.

It is not known if Premier Colin Barnett and WA opposition leader Eric Ripper will attend.

Mr Abbott told The Record he was unable to say whether his brief to investigate the Hepworth allegations accorded with Towards Healing. “It may or may not be,” he said. That question had to be answered by instructing solicitor Dominic Agresta of Iles Selley Lawyers. Attempts to contact Mr Agresta were unsuccessful.

Under Towards Healing, those chosen to assess a complaint “must be, and be seen to be, independent of the Church authority, the complainant and the accused”. Given the archdiocese is a client of Iles Selley, this aspect of the protocols does not appear to apply.

WASO CHAMBER SERIES

Hepworth process is still unclear

Excellent VET results for Catholic colleges

By Natasha QuiNN

STUDENTS from three Western Australian Catholic colleges have won 13 of a possible 24 medals, including four gold, in the state leg of the Schools WorldSkills Competition for vocational training.

The students from Kolbe Catholic College, La Salle College and Sacred Heart College were among 95 students from schools across the state competing in the contest which challenges young people to achieve outstanding results in their chosen trade. It promotes excellence in learning and encourages young people to compete against peers and fast track their vocational skill development.

This year’s competition tested skills in eight categories: commercial cookery; metals and engineering; business skills; information technology; construction; food and beverage service; automotive services; and tourism.

Kolbe Catholic College students

won the gold and silver medals for information technology and commercial cookery, as well as a silver medal in business.

Gold medals were awarded to Sacred Heart College in the automotive category and to La Salle College in the tourism section. LaSalle also won bronze medals in the metals and engineering and business categories.

The competition, open to all students studying a Vocational Education and Training (VET) course, required completion of a series of tasks that challenged their knowledge and skills.

In the commercial cookery contest, students had to prepare, cook and plate a three course meal for staff, members of the public and a panel of judges.

In the food and beverage service section, students were judged on their ability to greet and seat guests, deliver meals to tables, serve drinks, clear tables and serve hot beverages.

Those competing in the informa-

Exquisite and divine craftmanship on show

By Peter roseNgreN

FROM vestments to tabernacles, from redesign to design, an exhibition of exquisite taste in all things liturgical will be brought to Perth by renowned liturgical arts company Granda in early November.

A display of products, inspired by a centuries-old tradition of meticulous craftsmanship and artisanship from Granda Liturgical Arts will be held at The Record office on Wednesday, 2 November and Thursday, 3 November from 10am to 4pm.

Items including albs, altar linen, chasubles and metalware will be available to buy or order.

Granda was founded in Spain more than 100 years ago by Father Felix Granda, a priest with a love for the artistic skills of the Middle Ages, to create the best in all liturgical requirements for everything

from the humblest chapel to the grandest cathedral.

In its workshops, in Fr Granda’s original home in Madrid, seamstresses still hand embroider vestments, sculptors carve statuary from wood or stone, and artisans create tabernacles, crucifixes, pectoral crosses and monstrances out of precious metals.

The main difference between Granda and much contemporary liturgical artistic design is Granda’s commitment to beauty in the service of drawing closer to sense the divine.

Granda’s representative in Australia, Mary Roth, said she welcomed any enquiries by parish representatives who might be interested in seeing the products she is bringing to Perth. Anyone seeking an appointment can contact her on 0419 222 158.

A catalogue is also available on request.

World Mission Day Appeal

tion technology competition were given a State Emergency Service scenario and asked to develop and deliver an emergency evacuation procedure.

Business skills contestants competed as ‘employees’ of the Squishy Grape company and were set tasks including financial, general administrative and design skills.

The carpentry competition challenged students to make a drawing board from a design they had not seen before.

Mrs Maryanne Hughes, head of vocational studies at Kolbe Catholic College and a member of the VETIS WorldSkills advisory committee, said gaining 13 medals was “an outstanding result”, with four of them being gold “the icing on the cake”.

The gold medallists will travel to Sydney next year to compete in the final round of the competition.

All of the students who entered the competitions are to be commended on their outstanding efforts.

One happy face mirroring the excellent results achieved in the Schools WorldSkills Competition. PHOTO: COURTESY CEOWA

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT:

Stunning gold tabernacle created by Granda; Enamel being applied to a ciborium by an artisan; Beautifully completed chalice and ciborium; A Granda artist carving a component for a statue of Christ on the Cross.

PHOTO: WWW.USAGRANDA.COM.

moments past, passing and to come

Send your milestones to editor@therecord.com.au

Mary’s Mount 90 years old

By Peter rosengren

ALL PAST and current students, teachers, religious and clergy, and their families of Mary’s Mount Primary School are invited to the school’s 90th anniversary celebration day on Sunday, 6 November from 10.30am to 2.30pm at the school in Davies Crescent, Gooseberry Hill.

The school began life as a boys’ boarding school with five boarders and 12 day pupils.

It swelled to a co-educational school for around 460 pupils in the late 70s and has now settled into a single-stream school for 265 pupils from kindergarten for three year olds to Year 6.

Heath Ledger was a past student.

A welcome ceremony will take place at 10.30am and the school and grounds will be open for visitors to see and enjoy until 2.30pm.

As well as food, drinks, coffee and cake for sale, there will be 90th anniversary mementos to be

FOUNDATION PRINCIPALSHIP

BALDIVIS CATHOLIC PRIMARY SCHOOL

Baldivis Catholic Primary School will be situated in Baldivis, approximately 46 kms south of the central business centre of Perth. An interim School Board has been appointed to coordinate the school’s establishment. The school will commence operation at the beginning of the 2013 academic year with enrolments from K-2 and when fully developed will be a two-stream school with approximately 500 students. A commitment to establishing a close working relationship with the newly appointed Parish Priest of Baldivis and helping to integrate future parish buildings on the site, as well as the ability to work with a growing community, is essential.

This position calls for an experienced and energetic leader who is committed to the ideals of Catholic Education and has a proven record of excellent communication skills and building a Catholic school community. This person will have the ability to adjust to changing circumstances and will seize opportunities as they present in order to assist the new community. Experience in contemporary curriculum practice and the integration of technology, as well as a special interest in capital planning and the use of technology in both school design and student learning, would be highly regarded. The successful applicant would be expected to take up this position at the commencement of Term 4, 2012.

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 or its equivalent. A current WACOT and Working With Children registration number must also be included. 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, Workforce Relations & Development Team on 6380 5237 or email wrd@ceo.wa.edu.au. All applications, on the official form, should reach The Director of Catholic Education, Catholic Office of WA, PO Box 198, Leederville 6903 no later than Tuesday 15 November 2011.

purchased, historical photos and memorabilia from the school’s 90 year history on display, music performed by the children, local choirs and musicians, and the children’s annual art show.

Among displays will be one classroom set up with desks as it would have looked when the school began. Entertainment for children will include bouncy castles, face painting, lucky dips, fairy floss and more. Enquiries can be made via the school office on 9293 2800.

When you’re on to a good thing ...

IN 1972, three years after migrating from Burma, Ernie and Lucille Samuels found a home in Kelmscott. They haven’t moved since.

While next year will be their 40th year as Kelmscott parishioners, this year is their 50th as husband and wife. They married in the Church of St Joseph the Worker in Rangoon on 3 June 1961. They had five children (three boys and two girls) and now have five granddaughters.

For their anniversary the couple received a blessing from Pope Benedict XVI, as well as certificates and letters of congratulations from the prime minister, the federal governor-general, the WA premier and friends all over the world.

Mr Samuels, who will be 80 next March, still plays a hot set of drums in a rock band at parish feasts and social events.

Scenes from Mary’s Mount’s history offer a glimpse of generations past and traditions built from the ground up, beginning in the early years of the twentieth century.

PHOTO: COURTESY MARY’S MOUNT CATHOLIC PRIMARY SCHOOL

Ernie and Lucille on their wedding day, 3 June 1961.

PHOTO: COURTESY ERNIE

World

Pope announces special Year of Faith

By Cindy Wooden

VATICAN CITY - The Pope has announced a special Year of Faith to help Catholics strengthen their commitment to sharing their faith with others.

Pope Benedict XVI said the Year of Faith would give “renewed energy to the mission of the whole Church to lead men and women out of the desert they often are in and toward the place of life: friendship with Christ who gives us fullness of life.”

He said the observance would

HONG KONG

Hunger strike protests education reform

Chinese Cardinal Joseph Zen Zekiun launched a three day hunger strike to protest a court decision on educational reform that threatens the management of Catholic schools. Cardinal Zen, retired bishop of Hong Kong, said he would consume only water and communion between 19 and 22 October. In 2004, the Chinese government implemented the “Amended Education Ordinance” which requires government-aided schools to form management committees. The Hong Kong Catholic diocese appealed the ordinance, asking that Catholic schools be excluded from the committees, fearing they could lead to increased government control and jeopardise the mission and autonomy of Catholic schools. The court delivered its final ruling last week, rejecting the appeal.

VATICAN

Prelate urges Hindu/ Christian cooperation

A top Vatican official called on Christians and Hindus to work together to promote religious freedom. The issue was “taking centre stage in many places, calling our attention to those members of our human family exposed to bias, prejudice, hate propaganda, discrimination and persecution on the basis of religious affiliation,” wrote Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, president of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue. Freedom to “profess, practise and propagate” one’s religious belief was the answer to religiously motivated conflicts in many parts of the world,” he said in an annual message to mark the Hindu celebration of Diwali, a three day religious festival that was to begin 26 October in most parts of the world.

SOUTH AFRICA

Churches criticise political interference

South Africa’s churches told government representatives who came, uninvited, to a Church leaders’ meeting to back off and accused them of trying to manipulate Church structures. “This is an unwarranted intrusion on our discussions and compromises our freedom of association and of religion,” the National Church Leaders’ Consultation, which represents more than 20 Churches, including the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference, said in a statement. A spokesman for the bishops said Church leaders believe “there is growing political interference in religious and interfaith groups” in South Africa. AGENCIES

begin 11 October 2012, 50th anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council and conclude 24 November 2013, feast of Christ the King.

“It will be a moment of grace and commitment to an ever fuller conversion to God, reinforce our faith in him and proclaim him with joy to the people of our time,” the Pope said.

Pope Benedict explained his intention more fully in Porta Fidei (The Door of Faith), an apostolic letter released 17 October to formally announce the special year.

“Faith grows when it is lived as an experience of love received and when it is communicated as an experience of grace and joy,” the Pope wrote.

He said the Catechism of the Catholic Church, first published in 1992, should serve as the handbook for helping Catholics rediscover the truths of faith and deepen their understanding of Church teaching.

The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, he said, will publish a “note” to help people live the year “in the most effective and appropriate ways at the service of

belief and evangelisation.” The document tone will be pastoral, rather than doctrinal, giving bishops and faithful ideas for implementing the Pope’s call to deeper faith and greater missionary commitment.

In his letter, the Pope said the year’s focus will be on Jesus Christ because “in him, all the anguish and all the longing of the human heart finds fulfilment.”

Pope Benedict said in addition to studying the catechism and gaining a greater understanding of the creed, the Year of Faith also must be accompanied with more acts of

charity. Faith helps people recognise the face of Christ in those who are suffering, and “it is his love that impels us to assist him whenever he becomes our neighbour along the journey of life,” the Pope wrote.

Pope Benedict said Catholics cannot “grow lazy in the faith.”

“What the world is in particular need of today is the credible witness of people enlightened in mind and heart by the word of the Lord, and capable of opening the hearts and minds of many to the desire for God and for true life, life without end,” he wrote. CNS

Pilgrimage the real focus of Assisi

By Cindy Wooden

VATICAN CITY – More than 300 delegates from dozens of Christian Churches, the world’s major religions and nonbelievers are joining Pope Benedict XVI in Assisi for a peace gathering focused more on common pilgrimage than on prayer, a Vatican official said.

A Buddhist delegation from China and four nonbelievers are among those who have accepted a papal invitation to attend.

The delegates, invited to Assisi

by Pope Benedict XVI to mark the 25th anniversary of Blessed John Paul II’s interreligious gathering for peace, come from more than 50 countries, said Vatican officials. Each participant would be given a room to rest, reflect and pray, said Cardinal Peter Turkson, president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace.

“During the pilgrimage, the walk, in silence,” the participants also are likely to pray, but “the real prayer” would be at a vigil at St Peter’s in Rome on 26 October

“when the Holy Father is with the Catholic faithful”.

Instead of holding his weekly general audience, the Pope will lead a special prayer service in preparation for the Assisi event.

Unlike Blessed John Paul’s first Assisi meeting in 1986, there is no moment planned in Assisi when participants will pray in each other’s presence. “The emphasis is on pilgrimage rather than on praying together,” Cardinal Turkson said.

He said the change was not meant as a judgement on Blessed

John Paul’s Assisi meetings but an attempt to be clear that members of different religions are not praying together and to ensure the specific identity and differences of each religion are being respected.

The Chief Rabbinate of Israel and Jewish leaders from Italy will be among the delegates. Other delegates will represent traditional religions of Native Americans, Africans and Asians; Hindu, Sikh, Zoroastrian, Bahai, Confucian, Taoist, Shinto delegations also will participate. CNS

UK hospitals neglect aged, vulnerable

LONDON – A report exposing the widespread neglect of the elderly in Britain’s state-run hospitals reveals “something deeply wrong” with the country’s health service, say the bishops of England and Wales.

The report by the Care Quality Commission, the regulator of all health and adult social care in England, discovered a range of abuses of elderly patients, including failure to ensure patients were fed properly or their privacy was respected. The report was based on random inspections in 100 National Health Service hospitals between March and June.

“How we value the people we care for, and how we treat them, holds up a mirror to who we truly are as a society and as individuals,” said Archbishop Smith, chairman of the bishops’ Department for Christian Responsibility and Citizenship.

“It is essential to foster a culture of care which cherishes life from its beginning to its natural end, which recognises the God-given dignity of the older person and sees it as the greatest honour to respect their dignity through the best care possible.”

Catholic groups would be willing to work with the government to remedy the problem, he said.

Just 45 of the 100 hospitals inspected were found to be “fully compliant” with their obligations toward elderly patients.

In a speech to the Society of St Vincent de Paul, Bishop Mark Davies of Shrewsbury said such findings could be a symptom of the “emerging culture of death” predicted by Pope John Paul II in the 1995 encyclical Evangelium Vitae

“Could it be that we have begun to dismiss the cries of the weakest in the place where they expected to receive the greatest care because their impaired lives no longer seem to have any great value?” he asked.

A member of the Catholic Medical Association who has worked in major London hospitals, Dr Michael Jarmulowicz, said he believed the problem stemmed from a “gradual eroding of the culture of vocation” of medical professionals.

“The culture of death, I think, is part of it,” he said. “People aren’t seen with the dignity they have and are sometimes being called ‘clients.’

“But we are changing the culture from caring to competition,” Dr Jarmulowicz told CNS. “Everything is breaking down from a proper caring profession to a business and that is what you get.” CNS

Evidence of devotion, a barefooted pilgrim crawls on his hands and knees to the Basilica of St Francis in Assisi, site of the Pope’s peace gathering PHOTO: CNS

Vatican urges Libyans to avoid revenge

By John Thavis

VATCAN CITY – The death of Libyan strongman Moammar Gadhafi marks the end of a “harsh and oppressive regime” based on power instead of human dignity, the Vatican has said in a statement. It expressed hope bloodshed would end in the country and the new government would be based on “a spirit of inclusion” and social justice.

The statement was issued by the Vatican press office several hours after Gadhafi was reported killed in his coastal hometown of Sirte where he had been barricaded with loyalist troops. His death came after months of bloody civil strife and NATO airstrikes in support of Libyan rebels.

The Vatican said the conflict had been “too long and tragic” and should prompt reflection on the “cost of immense human suffering” that accompanies the collapse of systems not founded on respect for human rights.

It encouraged the new government to try to prevent further violence caused by a spirit of revenge and to begin a programme of paci-

fication. The international community, it said, should provide generous aid toward reconstruction.

For its part, the minority Catholic community in Libya will continue to offer “its witness and unselfish service, especially in the areas of charity and health care,” it said. The Vatican said it would work in favour of the Libyan people in the international diplomatic arena.

The statement said the Vatican considers the transitional government as the legitimate representative of the Libyan people. The Vatican, it said, has already had various contacts with new authorities in Libya, through the Libyan Embassy to the Vatican, at the United Nations and in Libya.

It said the apostolic nuncio to Libya had gone to Libya for talks in early October with provisional prime minister Mahmoud Jibril and other officials.

“In these diverse encounters, both sides underlined the importance of diplomatic relations between the Holy See and Libya. The Holy See had the opportunity to renew its support for the Libyan people and its support for the transition,” the Vatican said. CNS

Anti-crime priest shot eight times

ARAKAN – An Italian priest doing mission work in a remote area of the southern Philippines has been shot dead in a parish compound.

Father Fausto Tentorio, 59, of the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions, was shot by a lone gunman on 17 October as he was about to board his pickup truck at around 7.30am, said town councillor Leonardo Reovoca. An autopsy report said he was shot eight times.

Mr Reovoca said Fr Tentorio had been an active law and order campaigner in Arakan and recently was appointed as head of a civilian anti-crime task force in the town.

“I am a witness to Fr Tentorio’s strong stance against mining and other projects which are not sustainable and would harm and affect the indigenous peoples in particular,” he said.

The murder was immediately condemned by the Diocese of

Rome ‘wounded’ by smashing of icons

ROME – Violence at Occupy Wall Street-inspired protests in Rome, during which a large crucifix and statue of Our Lady of Lourdes were destroyed, was “unacceptable and unjustifiable,” Vatican media spokesman Fr Frederico Lombardi said. “We condemn all violence, as well as violence against religious symbols.”

Organisers planned to march from a square near Rome’s central train station, past the Coliseum to the Basilica of St John Lateran. Shortly into the protest, groups of

young people began looting stores, setting cars on fire and clashing with police.

The protests were meant to coincide with demonstrations in Barcelona, New York and Sydney in solidarity with the indignado movement in Spain and the Occupy Wall Street protests in the US.

L’Osservatore Romano published a statement by the president of the Italian bishops’ conference, Cardinal Angelo Bagnasco. “We cannot help but express our total rejection of the violence organised

by criminals who disturbed the many who attempted to peacefully express their concerns,” he said.

The Pope’s vicar for the diocese of Rome, Cardinal Agostino Vallini, said the city “that each day welcomes thousands of pilgrims and tourists, has now been wounded”.

At the Cathedral of Milan, Cardinal Angelo Scola said the destructions of the statue of Mary and the profanation of the crucifix “fills us with great sorrow because it is an expression of grave violence to commonsense.”  CNA

Kidapawan, church groups and environmental organisations. “This is really heinous. We’re so sad and shocked that this killing happened in broad daylight,” said Kidapawan’s Bishop Romulo de la Cruz.

The suspect, wearing a crash helmet, made his escape by walking casually from the scene to a nearby motorcycle, Mr Reovoca said.

PIME’s Philippines regional superior, Fr Giovanni Re, said Fr Tentorio had escaped attempts on his life by paramilitary groups in the past, “but this is a bit of a surprise for us because the situation here has been quiet for some time.”

The Moro Islamic Liberation Front also condemned the killing, calling it a sign of degeneration of morality and spirituality in the country. “This is brutality and savagery that no civilised men or groups could possibly do,” said the front’s chairman. CNS & CNA

A statue of Our Lady of Lourdes destroyed in Rome by rampaging youth disrupting a peaceful protest.

PHOTO: CNS/MAX ROSSI

Fr Diony Cabillas and a portrait of slain Italian Fr Fausto Tentorio at a protest at the Department of Justice in Manila.

PHOTO: ROMEO RANOCO

a bridge over

TROUBLED WATERS

For more than ten years, the plight of asylum seekers has been making the news in Australia. Former Vietnamese boat person Bishop Vincent Long van Nguyen OFM Conv, the Auxiliary Bishop of Melbourne, has a special interest in refugees and migrants.

He tells his story and pleads their case in the 2011 Rerum Novarum oration.

It is often said history repeats itself. I find the stories of many asylum seekers who seek refuge in Australia today similar to ours, Vietnamese refugees who escaped the yoke and terror of communism during the 1970s and 80s.

In sharing my story with you, I wish to give voice to theirs; because from where I stand, I consider it a privilege and a moral obligation to reach out to fellow refugees who are in search of freedom and fundamental human values.

Let me just take you back down memory lane a little, at least for those old enough to remember.

The Vietnam War: who can forget the horrible images of that war which were relayed on our television screens every day?

Who can forget the demonstrations on the streets of our cities and the campuses of our universities?

It was a war we could not come to terms with, even years after it had been waged, fought, finally abandoned and then tragically lost.

Pity our Australian soldiers who bore physical and psychological scars both during and after the war.

But truth has a habit of revealing itself in hindsight.

When, at the end of the war, 30 April 1975, millions of Vietnamese refugees took to the sea in order to escape the communist regime, people began to understand why it had to be fought and resisted.

The Vietnamese are a very proud people; proud of our heritage which has more than 4,000 years of accumulated history; proud of our land and sea which are among the most spectacular in Asia.

Our lives and destinies are deeply rooted in our own soil.

We were never known to be nomadic or migrant people.

Never in our long and chequered history had there been such a mass exodus of people from our own land.

Never, not even when the Chinese invaded and subjected us to servitude for a thousand years.

Not even when the French exploited us for a hundred years or the Japanese caused thousands to die of starvation during the Second World War.

The communist regime outdid them all by their reign of terror.

I am not here to revisit all the

evils of communism. It suffices to say the exodus was the testament to the indomitable desire to live in freedom and dignity in every human being.

We Vietnamese refugees and survivors of that tragic event are the living witnesses to freedom and fundamental human values denied to us in our own country.

That is why we risked being shot at by communist guards, being hungry and thirsty for days, robbed and raped by pirates, and ultimately being taken by the sea as hundreds of thousands were.

We want to tell the world freedom is worth fighting for.

We want to expose the naivety and falsity about a communist utopia which might exist in theory or in a make believe world but was a living hell for us in the real world.

We want to acknowledge the sacrifice and valour of our soldiers.

Wars are always controversial and divisive but as far as we are concerned, there was nothing more

“In sharing my story ... I wish to give voice to theirs ... I consider it a privilege and a moral obligation to reach out to fellow refugees ...”

honourable than the fight for the people of Vietnam, for their future without the curse of tyranny, for justice and freedom.

Personally, I am a second generation refugee. By that I mean my parents themselves were refugees before me.

In 1954, following the Geneva Convention that divided Vietnam into two ideologically opposing sides, they – a young couple in their 20s with a toddler, my then two year old eldest sister - uprooted from their home near Hanoi and ventured to the south.

They escaped by a small boat and went to a part of the country they knew nothing about.

Why did they, and over a million Vietnamese from the north like them, undertake such a perilous journey to the unknown

The drama and, often, terror involved in risks that refugees are compelled to undertake to reach any form of safety are dramatically illustrated in this photo of South China Sea crewmen assisting refugees.

south? The answer is simple: they had seen the atrocities committed by the newly inducted regime in such catastrophic events as the so-called land reform, forced collectivisation of individual peasant farms, systematic oppression of Christianity, public trial and summary execution of thousands.

They had lived in fear and terror. In such an atmosphere, they were ready to exchange everything for a chance to live in freedom.

It was by a twist of fate I would later follow in their footsteps, only this time it was a further and riskier journey.

We were a family of seven children. It was common practice for parents to secure safe passage for adult sons in view of forced conscription into the Vietnamese Communist Army which was engaged in two simultaneous border wars: Chinese to the north and Khmer Rouge to the south.

My two older brothers escaped first and settled in Holland.

I escaped by boat in 1980 with my sister-in-law and her two young children, an 18 month old boy and a baby girl, barely six months old.

I held her for the most part of the journey, the most distressing experience I ever encountered.

I am not talking about the lack of food, water, and exposure to the elements.

It’s watching a young child suffer and being totally helpless to do anything about it.

But my experience was mild in comparison with so many other boat people whose cry could have pierced the heavens.

They were those shot and killed by communist coast guards; lost at

episcopal coat of arms the image of a journey into freedom.

It symbolises both the spiritual exodus that I as a Christian am called to make, and the real painful quest for liberty that I and countless other “boat-people” made.

My motto, Duc in Altum which means “go further into the deep”, is in part meant to honour the memory of my people who suffered and died in pursuing that dream for freedom and dignity.

We Catholics often say “God works in mysterious ways” and this is certainly true in the case of the Vietnamese boat people.

sea without a trace; robbed, raped, mutilated or killed by pirates.

ror stories but thousands upon thousands of others did not.

One study estimates that up to 500,000 of two million Vietnamese

Without a doubt, this was the darkest episode in the history of the Vietnamese people.

It is something we will never forget. For this, I have adopted as my

Thirty years or so ago, we arrived here with little more than a few documents we were provided with by the The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in camps scattered across the far flung corners of the South East Asian countries. We were demoralised, lost and uncertain about our prospects in a new country.

In the eyes of many Australians, we were a burden, an intrusion, a disgrace and even a threat to the Australia they wanted to maintain.

I hasten to counterbalance this attitude with the goodwill, generosity, hospitality and sense of a fair go we experienced from the majority of Australians.

Speaking of the changes brought about by multiculturalism and, specifically, the arrival of Vietnamese and South East Asian refugees, you can verify this for yourselves when you visit suburbs like Footscray and Springvale in Melbourne and Cabramatta in Sydney.

When I arrived in Springvale 30 years ago, it was a pretty dreary

and dull place. The shopping centre, limited to the area around Springvale Road, was quite ordinary to say the least.

Now it is one of the most dynamic suburbs in Melbourne, so much so that non-Asian Australians now go there for a good bargain and especially for good food.

The City of Greater Dandenong even mooted the possibility of a tourist bus for the area with its unique flavour and perhaps the largest collection of Buddhist temples of any suburb in Australia.

In Sydney, similar initiatives for Cabramatta are being considered by the state government.

These suburbs and other Vietnamese centres around the

Archbishop Denis Hart with Bishop Vincent Long at his ordination on 23 June 2011.

PHOTO: CATHOLIC ARCHDIOCESE OF MELBOURNE

Top left: Refugees stand outside their tents in a refugee camp in Baghdad, Iraq, after being evacuated by the Red Crescent after their houses were torched by insurgents.

Bottom left: Ethnic Hmong refugees sit inside a police truck, being deported like thousands of ethnic Hmong asylum seekers to Laos from the Ban Huay Nam Khao camp in Thailand. Above: Habiba Ibrahim Ali, 20, a Somali woman at the Dadaab refugee camp in northeastern Kenya, walks with other women and their children to a new extension of the world’s largest refugee settlement.

PHOTOS: CNS

that we are the “New Irish” and I think that is true in a lot of ways.

For a long time, Ireland had a surplus of priests and many came to fill the gap in Australia.

Now it’s the Vietnamese who help ease the clerical shortage and change the face of the Catholic Church here.

The numbers speak for themselves.

There are up to 150 Vietnamese priests in Australia – a highly disproportionate figure given the much smaller percentage of Vietnamese Catholics. Similarly, seminaries and religious institutes across the country often experience the same phenomenon.

Ordinary Vietnamese Catholics, too, are making their presence felt.

Not only are they active in centres scattered all over the country, they are involved in all sorts of ways for the good of the Church.

Wherever they are, there is much participation and vitality.

And, ultimately like them, we have a sense of mission in relation to our place in a new society and the local church.

That mission consists in our witness to freedom, faith and core human values.

The words of the psalm take on an added meaning for us: “The stone which has been rejected by the builders, has become the corner stone”.

Ours is a journey from despair to hope, from captivity to freedom, from a state of rootlessness to a new sense of belonging, from marginalisation to integration.

tors and builders of this nation. The experience of Vietnamese refugees is clear evidence even the most traumatised and impoverished group can be integrated and make a positive contribution.

Today, Asian Australians have joined the mainstream in every aspect of our society. Even the sceptics of multiculturalism would concede that Australia has evolved to become a much more dynamic, diverse and interesting place.

The arrival of Vietnamese refugees or Asian migrants is just part of the richly textured tapestry of our nation.

They were the ground troops of the economy, often working on massive infrastructure projects that provided the foundation for a prosperous Australia.

The same spirit of determination and hard work characterised earlier generations of migrants.

They were, and continue to be, contributors to our economy and society.

I contend we will have failed to live up to our tradition and impoverish ourselves when we adopt harsh and unprincipled policies towards asylum seekers.

As a former boat person, I cringe every time I hear the mantra of “Stop the boats!”

country have certainly come a long way.

There was a time people dreaded these places because of the drugrelated problems but such stigma is now but a distant memory and they have been largely transformed into vibrant, safe and colourful centres and outstanding examples of multicultural Australia.

God works even more mysteriously as far as the role of Vietnamese Catholics in the Australian Church is concerned.

It is clearly evident Vietnamese Catholics are one of the most vibrant groups the Church in this country has ever seen.

At my episcopal ordination, I made a tongue-in-cheek remark

I guess you could say the same about Filipinos, Mauritians, East Timorese and other groups known for their piety.

What is unique about Vietnamese Catholics is the experience of being forced to leave their own country in a very traumatic fashion.

With due respect to the Jewish people, I make bold to draw an analogy between their experience in exile and our own refugee experience.

Like them, we experienced the horror and shame of rootlessness.

Like them, we yearn for liberation and restoration of our nation.

Like them, we are determined to rebuild our lives and our sense of identity.

Vulnerable people wanting to have a better life for themselves and their children should not be seen simply as a burden and a liability to our society. They can become great contributors and builders of this nation. The experience of Vietnamese refugees is clear evidence even the most traumatised and impoverished group can be integrated and make a positive contribution.

Up until now I have not said anything specifically about the issue of asylum seekers which is the main topic of our discussion this evening.

I have framed my argument purposely in this way.

What I have demonstrated thus far is vulnerable people wanting to have a better life for themselves and their children should not be seen simply as a burden and a liability to our society.

They can become great contribu-

They were by no means the only group that had to struggle hard for acceptance and integration.

Each successive generation of migrants had to overcome enormous odds in adapting to their new life in Australia.

The post-war refugees and migrants from Europe – particularly those of non-English speaking background - suffered no less hardship, adversity and even discrimination.

It is as if we are going to be swamped by these undesirable elements who are going to take our jobs, threaten our security and put our future at risk.

We Vietnamese refugees have heard it all before and have proven to all that such a mantra is simply fear-mongering.

Do you know some of us landed in Darwin following the Fall of Saigon?

An asylum seeker called Hieu Van Le was on one of those first boats.

After a successful financial career, including a stint as investigator and manager with ASIC (the Australian Securities and Investments Commission), Mr Le went on to become the Lieutenant Governor of South Australia and Chairman of the SA Multicultural and Ethnic Affairs Commission.

He is not the only former boat person who has risen to prominence against tremendous odds.

Australia has produced countless

Bishop Long’s episcopal coat of arms incorporates elements of his native country.

GRAPHIC: CATHOLIC ARCHDIOCESE OF MELBOURNE

Top right: An internally displaced boy, who fled a military offensive in the Swat Valley region, stands in line with men while awaiting his ration of tea at a UN camp in Swabi district, located about 120km northwest of Pakistan’s capital, Islamabad. Bottom right: Ethnic Uzbek refugees, fleeing from civil unrest in southern Kyrgyzstan, cry as they gather at the border with Uzbekistan near Osh.

PHOTOS: CNS

of these individuals with their unlikely success stories, known or unknown, sung or unsung, from almost every generation, every ethnic group and every field of endeavour.

How can it be, after all modern Australia was established as a penal colony? Our Aboriginal brothers and sisters knew it better and yet Australia was regarded as only fit for convicts. They arrived by the ship loads and against all odds transformed this country. Few nations can boast such unlikely beginnings.

Ever since the convict era and perhaps ever since the Dreamtime of the Aborigines, the history of this country has been about the victory of the downtrodden, the triumph of the human spirit.

I am convinced Australia is what it is today because our nation dares to welcome the unwelcomed; we dare to afford the privilege of opportunity to the underprivileged and a “fair go to the underdog”.

We have made this saying true for many like Mr Le who came to our shore: “Yesterday’s underdog is today’s champion”.

Apart from the political slogans which I have critiqued above, I am not sure that both the tone and the contents of the present asylum seekers debate measure up to the spirit of our great nation.

Many arguments are put forward in order to deny asylum seekers the opportunity for protection which they are entitled to under the United Nations Refugee Convention, of which Australia is a signatory.

The recent High Court decision concerning the so-called refugee

swap deal with Malaysia not only reveals the weakness in government policy but also constitutes a summons to us as a nation to honour our legal and moral obligations.

The 2007 Australian Catholic Bishops’ Conference Social Justice Sunday Statement called on the government to abandon the ‘Pacific solution’. More recently, it reiterated a call for on-shore processing to afford asylum seekers an opportunity to live a dignified life while their refugee status was being determined.

It is not my intention to comment on these arguments here. Suffice to say, the asylum seeker and refugee issue is long term and complicated and there is no easy solution in the context of our contemporary society and indeed our role in the world today.

What I would like to appeal to you, though, is we need to approach the issue from a positive narrative and not from a narrow and negative mentality which demeans all Australians.

We all remember the Tampa incident and how it damaged our reputation internationally – even if it might have been politicised domestically.

Sadly, in the post-September 11th world, when border protection and national security acquire prominence politically and socially, the rights of asylum seekers become secondary and even expendable.

The Tampa and subsequent “children overboard” incidents are instances and indeed the epitome of the negative narrative and base politics that have tainted the debate. Regardless of where we stand on the issue, it demeans us when fellow

human beings are projected as less than human and dangerous.

Surely, a civilised migrant nation such as ours can conduct itself better even in respect to a very complicated issue.

Surely, people who risk their lives for nothing more than a better future for themselves and their children deserve better treatment. Surely, a civilised migrant nation such as ours can conduct itself better even in respect of a very complicated issue.

To my mind, we cannot approach

the issue of asylum seekers without reference to the broader context of justice and solidarity.

Australia is and will continue to be a magnet for asylum seekers as long as there is an extreme chasm between where we are and where they are on the political and socioeconomic spectrum.

A positive narrative consists in addressing the issue as primarily a humanitarian and justice issue, rather than merely a political one.

In the last analysis, asylum seekers challenge us to consider their plight and the global inequality on the one hand and, on the other, our privilege of enjoying some of the best living conditions on the planet.

Can we go on protecting our way of life with little interest in or regard for our less fortunate brothers and sisters? Can we continue to secure our privilege as our “exclusive right” without confronting the injustice that impinges itself upon us? Can we adopt measures that amount to unjust and inhumane practices against our fellow human beings in order to justify our attitudes?

It seems to me we cannot avoid these and other vexing moral questions that lurk behind the issue of asylum seekers.

In conclusion, I would say this to all fellow Australians: we can do a whole lot better than allowing the politics of fear and negativity to highjack our discourse and dictate our response; we can stop the demeaning of our beautiful country by reclaiming its Christian principle of preferential option for the poor, its fair-go-for-all tradition and legendary support for the underdog.

Australia rose to the challenge in the past with its generous embrace

of asylum seekers, migrants and refugees.

It proved itself especially courageous during the Indo-Chinese exodus and accepted an unprecedented number of Asian refugees for the first time in its history.

The world did not come to an end as some might have feared.

On the contrary, Australia changed for the better as it always has with each successive wave of new arrivals.

Australia is what it is today because of its love of freedom and fundamental human values.

Australia is what it is today because of its determination and drive for a better future.

We honour the legacy of this great nation not by excessive protectionism, isolation and defence of our privilege at all costs.

Rather, we make it greater by our concern and care for asylum seekers in the spirit of compassion and solidarity that has marked the history of our country from its beginning.

I conclude with the Australian Catholic Bishops’ message on refugees and asylum seekers from May 2004:

“Australia has the chance to restore its reputation as an exemplary humanitarian country where refugees can rebuild their shattered lives and where, as a nation, we can sing without shame that ‘for those who come across the sea, we have boundless plains to share’.”

Bishop Vincent Long van Nguyen OFMConv, Auxiliary Bishop, Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne The full text of this speech can be found at www.cam.org.au.

Top left: A Bhutanese refugee looks from a bamboo hut in the Ti Mai camp in eastern Nepal. Bottom left: A damaged statue of the Virgin Mary in a destroyed Catholic church, which was crowded with refugees from nearby towns, in Bojaya, Colombia, after a bomb attack by Marxist guerrillas. Top right: A truck evacuating refugees in earthquake-hit Beichuan County, in China’s Sichuan province. Centre right: Southern Sudanese refugees wait in a UN truck in the northern Ugandan city of Moyo. Bottom right: Refugees flee fighting near Myanmar’s border with China.

PHOTOS: CNS

AD LIMINA

Rome visit a new beginning

FROM THE Antipodes, from Terra Australis de Spiritu Sancto, we come as pilgrims ad limina apostolorum, to the tombs of the apostles. The old map on the third loggia of this Apostolic Palace has Australia marked simply as “Terra Incognita”. But our land is no longer unknown to you, and its “joys and hopes, griefs and anxieties” (Lumen Gentium, 1) are intimately known to us as pastors.

All of these we bring to you now. The land may be distant, but we know the people are close to your heart.

We look back across the years since our last Ad Limina visit

One-on-one time with Pope now a luxury

By John Thavis

IN A quiet modification of a traditional format, the Vatican has dropped most of the individual private meetings between the Pope and bishops on their “ad limina” visits to Rome.

The unannounced change was instituted earlier this year, apparently in an effort to reduce the scheduling burden on the 84-yearold pope and to help cut through the backlog of “ad limina” visits, supposed to be made every five years by heads of dioceses.

In place of one-on-one meetings, the pope now usually holds more freewheeling sessions with groups of seven to 10 bishops at a time, lasting about an hour.

Australians bishops were pleased with the format, saying it meant the pope did not have to cover the same ground with each bishop.

“The response of the bishops has been universally positive. As a matter of fact, they’ve come back from those meetings really excited by the nature of it and by what’s happened. They think it’s a terrific initiative,” said Adelaide’s Archbishop Philip Wilson. As president of the Australian bishops’ conference, he did get a one-on-one encounter

Traditionally, the bishop’s private meeting with the pope has been a key moment of the “ad limina” visit. The Vatican’s directory for the pastoral ministry of bishops emphasises that while bishops come to Rome as a group, it is “always the individual bishop” who makes the visit on behalf of his diocese.

Blessed John Paul II intensified interaction with the bishops during the “ad limina” visits. In addition to the group meeting and individual audiences lasting about 15 minutes each, the late pope celebrated Mass with the bishops in his private chapel and hosted them for lunch, a dozen at a time.

Pope Benedict did not continue the practice of working lunches and private Masses but during the first five years of his pontificate he met personally with individual bishops.

Meanwhile, the backlog of “ad limina” appointments kept growing. One reason is the number of bishops has doubled over the past 50 years; the pope would have to meet about 600 bishops each year to put “ad limina” visits back on a five-year track, and officials have said that’s not going to happen.

This is an edited version of Archbishop Philip Wilson’s address to the Pope on 20 October.

in 2004. Those years have been marked by two great graces given by God to the Church in Australia. The first of these was World Youth Day in Sydney in 2008, when it was our joy to welcome you to our shores. The second was the canonisation last year of the first Australian to be recognised as a saint, St Mary of the Cross MacKillop.

Now we ask: How are we to build upon these two great graces to build the future of the Church

in Australia at a complex and challenging time? Different voices are heard among us, voices that interpret the past differently –especially the Second Vatican Council – and voices therefore that understand differently how we should move into the future.

In such a situation, the ministry of unity which is ours as bishops – and supremely yours as Pope – is not always easy. Often it is the way of the Cross. In coming to Rome, we recommit ourselves

to this way, the way of Peter and Paul, the way of Easter. We also express our gratitude to you for your faithfulness to the ministry of communion which belongs to Peter. By your self-sacrificing service, you have strengthened us, your brothers, and for this we give thanks to God.

In the attempt to “start afresh from Christ”, in the communion which is in Jesus, we have decided to call the whole Church in Australia to celebrate A Year of Grace from Pentecost 2012 to Pentecost 2013. Through this time we will seek to contemplate the face of Jesus and to listen to his

voice at a new depth, in the belief only he can lead us into the future. We will implore a new sending of the Holy Spirit, who alone can breathe new life into the Church. Holy Father, we entrust the “Year of Grace” to your prayer and we seek your apostolic blessing upon the Church in Australia, that we may be able to build upon the graces of recent times and work together to build the future with the words of the Psalmist in our hearts: “If the Lord does not build the house, in vain do the builders labour” (Psalm 127:1). The full text of this statement can be found at: www.catholic.org.au

New domus strengthens Roman link

By Cindy Wooden

BLESSING Australian Catholics’ new pilgrim centre in Rome, Pope Benedict XVI said all Catholics should feel at home in the Eternal City and should return home renewed in their faith.

The pope formally inaugurated the Domus Australia – a complex featuring 80 guest rooms and a restored chapel for daily mass. During his visit on 19 October, he spent a few minutes in prayer before the Blessed Sacrament.

The inauguration of the facility coincided with the first anniversary of the canonisation of St Mary MacKillop. Her relics were among those placed in the chapel’s new altar, dedicated on 16 October.

Pope Benedict said he hoped the saint would continue to inspire Australians to live lives of holiness, serving God and their neighbours.

The Pope said the church, like parents, gives people “both roots and wings: the faith of the Apostles, handed down from generation to generation, and the grace of the Holy Spirit, conveyed above all through the sacraments of the Church.”

He prayed that pilgrims who visited Domus Australia would return home with “firmer faith, more joyful hope and more ardent love for the Lord, ready to commit themselves with fresh zeal to the task of bearing witness to Christ in the world in which they live and work”.

Cardinal George Pell of Sydney, the driving force behind the centre’s establishment, said Domus Australia was established to encourage more of the 60,000 Australians who come as tourists to Rome each year to become pilgrims.

Unity in faith the issue in Morris case

IN MAY we said that, during the Ad Limina visit, we would have discussions concerning the events which led to the departure of Bishop William Morris from the pastoral care of the Diocese of Toowoomba. That has been done.

We had individual meetings with Cardinal Marc Ouellet, of the Congregation for Bishops, and Cardinal William Levada, of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Subsequently we had a joint meeting with Cardinal Ouellet and Cardinal Levada. Our discussions were substantial, serious and candid.

These meetings have given us a more adequate understanding of what was done by the Holy See in an attempt to resolve the difficulties with Bishop Morris, which concerned not only matters of Church discipline but also of Church doctrine definitively taught, such as on the ministerial priesthood. What the Holy See did was fraternal and pastoral rather than juridical in character. Although efforts con-

tinued over many years, a critical point came when Bishop Morris failed to clarify his position to the satisfaction of the Holy See and then found himself unable to resign as Bishop of the Diocese when the Holy Father made the request. What was at stake was the Church’s unity in faith and the ecclesial communion between the Pope and the other Bishops. Bishop Morris was unable to agree to what

this communion requires and at that point the Pope acted as the Successor of Peter, who has the task of deciding what constitutes unity and communion in the Church.

We express our acceptance of the Holy Father’s exercise of his Petrine ministry, and we reaffirm our communion with and under Peter. We return to Australia to do whatever we can to heal any wounds of division, to extend our fraternal care to Bishop Morris, and to strengthen the bonds of charity in the Church. The full text of this statement can be found at: www.catholic.org.au

Pope Benedict XVI arrives to dedicate the Domus Australia chapel on19 October. PHOTO: CNS/ROBERT DUNCAN

AustrAliA’s bishops report to rome

Here is the edited statement of the Australian Bishops regarding Bishop William Morris.

AD LIMINA

Down under no longer terra icognita

By Peter rosengren

THE ad limina visit of the Autralian bishops to Rome from 13-21 October was being watched with more than usual interest in Australia and abroad for one main reason: what would transpire over the removal by Pope Benedict XVI of Bishop William Morris of Toowoomba in May this year.

But the visit was about more than Bishop Morris. Australia’s bishops were in Rome to report on their dioceses and, collectively, the general state of the Church and the challenges it faces in this country.

Nevertheless the interest in the removal of Bishop Morris was not misplaced. The Australian bishops, who collectively backed the dismissal when it occurred, were clearly uneasy within their own ranks about the issue. Opinion was known to vary about its appropriateness within the bishops’ conference, reflecting a wider polarisation in the Church in Australia. Shortly after it occurred one Australian bishop said simply “The bishops want it to disappear. We just want the whole thing to go away.”

Australia’s bishops met in groups, and then as one group, with two of the Church’s most senior officials after the Pope – Cardinal Marc Ouellet, prefect of the Congregation for Bishops, and Cardinal William Levada, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the Church’s top doctrinal assessor.

The meetings seem to have been helpful to any of the bishops uncertain about the appropriateness of Pope Benedict’s intervention.

Archbishop Mark Coleridge of Canberra-Goulburn, who is occasionally talked about as a possible future archbishop of a major metropolitan see in Australia, told the Catholic News Agency the curial talks were not just very positive but “surpassed” expectations.

“Some of the older hands among the bishops said they were the most substantial, serious and candid discussions they can remember in all their years of coming to ad limina visits,” he said.

The statement issued by the bishops after those discussions underscored just how fundamental, in Rome’s eyes, the issues at stake in Bishop Morris’s dismissal were.

In a 24 October statement the bishops said the meetings had given them “a more adequate understanding” of what Rome had attempted over more than a decade to try and resolve the issues. The Holy See’s actions, they said, were fraternal and pastoral rather than juridical.

In the eyes of the Church its unity in faith is a guarantee of its integrity as well. Preserving that unity was what was up for grabs in the Morris issue.

That issue had the potential to turn this ad limina visit into an acrimonious war of words behind closed doors, It seems not to have turned out that way.

This ad limina looks different –and more positive - than its predecessors. The visit of 1999 resulted in a Statement of Conclusions from Pope John Paul II considered widely to be a blunt rebuke of decades of drift of the Australian Church in areas such as liturgy and the responsibilities of bishops to act decisively and teach clearly It was described by some including Brisbane Archbishop John Bathersby as a sharp criticism of the general situation.

Helping this ad limina were positives such as World Youth Day 2008, still regarded as a textbook example of how to run the event, and the canonisation of Mary MacKillop

Bishops in Australia were previously often diocesan, appointed on the basis of seniority, but the indications are that business as usual no longer applies. New bishops in recent years have included Bishop Greg O’Kelly of Port Pirie, a Jesuit, Auxiliary Bishop Tim Costelloe of Melbourne, a Salesian, and Auxiliary Bishop Vincent Long of Melbourne, a former Vietnamese boat person refugee and a Franciscan.

It is clear, from the ad limina, recent appointments and Bishop Morris affair, that Australia is no longer Terra Incognita for Rome.

Special moments of grace, but a pastoral burden

This is the full text of the address of Pope Benedict XVI to the bishops of Australia in the Vatican’s Consistory Hall on 20 October.

Dear Brother Bishops, I am pleased to offer you a warm welcome on the occasion of your visit ad Limina Apostolorum. This pilgrimage to the tombs of Saints Peter and Paul provides you with an important occasion to strengthen the bonds of communion in the one Church of Christ. This moment is therefore a privileged opportunity to reaffirm our unity and the fraternal affection which must always characterise relations in the College of Bishops, with and under the Successor of Peter. I wish to thank Archbishop Wilson for his kind words on your behalf. My cordial greetings go to the priests, the men and women religious, and lay faithful of Australia, and I ask you to assure them of my prayers for their peace, prosperity and spiritual well-being.

As His Grace pointed out in his address, the church in Australia has been marked by two special moments of grace in recent years. Firstly, World Youth Day was blessed with great success and, together with you, I saw how the Holy Spirit moved the young people gathered on your home soil from all over the world. I have

we all belong and the perennial relevance of the Good News which must be proclaimed afresh to every generation. I understand that one of the outstanding consequences of the event is still to be seen in the numbers of young people who are discerning vocations to the priesthood and the religious life. The Holy Spirit

I saw how the Holy Spirit moved young people gathered on your soil from all around the world.

also learned from your reports of the continued impact of that celebration. Not just Sydney but dioceses throughout the country welcomed the world’s young Catholics as they came to deepen their faith in Jesus Christ along with their Australian sisters and brothers. Your clergy and faithful saw and experienced the youthful vitality of the Church to which

never ceases to awaken in young hearts the desire for holiness and apostolic zeal. You should therefore continue to foster that radical attachment to the person of Jesus Christ, whose attraction inspires them to give their lives completely to him and to the service of the Gospel in the Church. By assisting them, you will help other young people to reflect seriously

upon the possibility of a life in the priesthood or the religious life. In so doing, you will strengthen a similar love and single-minded fidelity among those men and women who have already embraced the Lord’s call.

The canonisation last year of Saint Mary of the Cross MacKillop is another great event in the life of the Church in Australia. Indeed, she is an example of holiness and dedication to Australians and to the Church throughout the world, especially to women religious and to all involved in the education of young people. In circumstances that were often very trying, Saint Mary remained steadfast, a loving spiritual mother to the women and children in her care, an innovative teacher of the young and an energetic role model for all concerned with excellence in education. She is rightly considered by her fellow Australians to

Clockwise from top left: Pope Benedict XVI prays at the dedication of the St Peter Chanel Chapel at Domus Australia on 19 October; Cardinal George Pell dedicates the chapel’s altar at a ceremony on 16 October; a group of bishops including Perth’s Auxillary Bishop Donald Sproxton and Archbishop Barry Hickey meet with the Pope at the Vaticn’s Apostolic Palace on 20 October; all the Australian bishops with the Pope at the palace the same day.

PHOTOS: PAUL HARING; L’OSSERVATORE ROMANO

John the Baptist’s lesson: confronting evil is necessary

IN THE history of salvation God called extraordinary people to proclaim his revelation to the world. Patriarchs and prophets prepared the Chosen People, the Israelites, to grasp the reality of the one true God and to shape their lives according to his Will.

On the Feast of St John the Baptist we see in him the fulfilment of the centuries of preparation and the validation of all that had gone before. We hear in him the voices of all the prophets as he cried out “Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight His paths”.

He was the one chosen to announce the time had come for all the prophecies to be fulfilled. He was the one of all the prophets chosen to say: “Behold the Lamb of God, behold Him who takes away the sins of the world.”

The world was to know from John the Baptist that the Messiah was among us. John also announced the way to recognise the Lamb of God was through a personal conversion, away from sin and open to God. His baptism of water was a clear sign of this.

Having announced the coming of the Messiah, his work was done. Soon he would fall victim to those who would not change their lives and who demanded his. His public life was brief, but it shone like a beacon of blazing light, calling us to turn back to God, to do penance for our sins and receive the one God had sent, Jesus the Christ, the straps of whose sandals he was not worthy to loose.

Jesus called him the greatest to have been born of woman. Such praise for the man whose life was lived in obscurity and ascetic preparation for his noble task!

What do we make of St John the Baptist’s call today?

Firstly, it is a call to us to examine the way we are living to see if we have truly accepted Jesus the Lamb of God by a deep and ongoing conversion of heart.

Even though we may have been Christian all our lives since our baptism, the ways of the world can so easily and so unobtrusively dull our enthusiasm to follow the Lord, or cloud our vision of

Archbishop Barry Hickey’s homily at the Basilica of St John Lateran on the Feast of John the Baptist on 20 October.

a life offered to God, or slow our attempts to truly follow Him. This Feast of St John the Baptist offers us the opportunity of an honest self-examination and a new start.

This personal renewal at depth is for everyone who seeks to follow Christ. One could say it is even more important for those chosen to offer leadership to others as bishops, to be not only teachers of the truth but clear examples and witnesses of that truth. Our people deserve at least that. Furthermore the world needs that clear proclamation from us of the person of Jesus Christ and his message of salvation.

This is a message that John the Baptist offers us. His call is not only for our personal conversion but to take up that same call and proclaim it to the world. We are to be as courageous. No one can take up the call except those whom the Lord has chosen for the task.

Therefore all leaders of the Church anointed to preach must challenge the world to abandon its evil ways and turn back to God. We must not allow to go unchallenged the violence that has gripped the world, the destruction of lives through the drug trade, the exploitation of children and women in pornography and prostitution, the callous disregard for human life in abortion, and every other practice that is an offence against God. This will often require the fearlessness of John the Baptist who lost his life because he condemned the immorality of powerful figures.

Much time has been spent in this visit in trying to understand the missionary call of the Church to today’s world. John the Baptist has reminded us that evil must be confronted as part of the spreading of the Gospel. Let us heed his words today.

made heavier by sins and mistakes of the past

be an example of personal goodness worthy of imitation. Saint Mary is now held up within the Church for her openness to the promptings of the Holy Spirit and for her zeal for the good of souls which drew many others to follow in her footsteps. Her vigorous faith, translated into dedicated and patient action, was her gift to Australia; her life of holiness is a wonderful gift of your country to the Church and to the world. May her example and prayers inspire the actions of parents, religious, teachers and others concerned with the good of children, with their protection from harm and with their sound education for a happy and prosperous future.

St Mary MacKillop’s courageous response to the difficulties she faced throughout her life can also inspire today’s Catholics as they confront the new evangelisation and serious challenges to the

spread of the Gospel in society as a whole. All the members of the Church need to be formed in their faith, from a sound catechesis for children, and religious education imparted in your Catholic schools, to much-needed catechetical programmes for adults. Clergy and religious must also be assisted and encouraged by an ongoing forma-

will be convincing and attractive. People of good will, seeing your witness, will respond naturally to the truth, the goodness and the hope that you embody.

It is true that yours is a pastoral burden which has been made heavier by the past sins and mistakes of others, most regrettably including some clergy and

consciences of the flock entrusted to you (cf. Mt 5:41), seeking to preserve them in holiness, to teach them humbly and to lead them irreproachably in the ways of the Catholic faith.

Finally, as bishops, you are conscious of your special duty to care for the celebration of the liturgy. The new translation of the

The task now falls on you to continue to repair the errors of the past with honesty and openness, to build with humility and resolve a better future.

tion of their own, with a deepened spiritual life in the rapidly secularising world around them. It is urgent to ensure that all those entrusted to your care understand, embrace and propose their Catholic faith intelligently and willingly to others. In this way, you, your clergy and your people will give such an account of your faith by word and example that it

religious; but the task now falls to you to continue to repair the errors of the past with honesty and openness, in order to build, with humility and resolve, a better future for all concerned. I therefore encourage you to continue to be pastors of souls who, along with your clergy, are always prepared to go one step further in love and truth for the sake of the

Roman Missal, which is the fruit of a remarkable cooperation of the Holy See, the bishops and experts from all over the world, is intended to enrich and deepen the sacrifice of praise offered to God by his people. Help your clergy to welcome and to appreciate what has been achieved, so that they in turn may assist the faithful as everyone adjusts to the new translation. As

we know, the sacred liturgy and its forms are written deeply in the heart of every Catholic. Make every effort to help catechists and musicians in their respective preparations to render the celebration of the Roman Rite in your dioceses a moment of greater grace and beauty, worthy of the Lord and spiritually enriching for everyone. In this way, as in all your pastoral efforts, you will lead the Church in Australia towards her heavenly home under the sign of the Southern Cross.

With these thoughts, dear brother bishops, I renew to you my sentiments of affection and esteem, and I commend all of you to the intercession of St Mary MacKillop. Assuring you of my prayers for you and for those entrusted to your care, I am pleased to impart my Apostolic Blessing as a pledge of grace and peace in the Lord. Thank you.

Holy days enable us to touch the other existence

ON 1 NOVEMBER we commemorate the saints who have died and gone before us into the new world that is our true homeland, that far-off country that forever in this life seems so distant and yet which is as close as our own breath and thoughts. We already have friends, children, parents, relatives there before us, beckoning to us not to be afraid and to one day join them.

On the night before All Saints children in many places will celebrate Halloween, (All Hallows Eve), unaware it is one of the most profoundly Christian dates of the year. There is nothing wrong with trick or treat but it would be nice if there were a wider awareness of how beautiful Halloween really is. It is, after all, the Night of the Saints.

Think of Basilides and Potamiana, the centurion and beautiful young woman both martyred at Alexandria in the 2nd century whose testimony in blood and love was uncovered by Eusebius’ researchers.

Money and kneelers

IF MONEY is the root of all evil, is it not strange that we handle it at the Offertory, just before we receive the Sacred Host on our palms, and then again afterwards at the second collection, where Jesus lay just a short time before?

Since this has only recently come to mind, I choose only to receive Our Saviour on the tongue, and from this time, until the day I die. Truly (sacred) food for thought for all of us?

And speaking of sacred, it would be appreciated by many people I know, if parish priests would consider making kneelers available for those who would prefer the option of kneeling when receiving the Sacred Host.

Sheila Shannon WOODVALE, WA

Letters to the editor

If overpopulation was the problem then a place like Singapore with a population density of more than 7,000 per square kilometre would be an example of squalid misery.

Those peddling the overpopulation agenda are misinformed or, like the Greens, ideologically selfishly anti-natalist hypocrites.

Barry Morgan ALBANY, WA

“We already have friends, children, parents, relatives there before us, beckoning to us not to be afraid and to one day join them.”

Potamiana came from a Christian family at Alexandria which lived at the time of the persecution against Christianity under Emperor Severus who reigned from 193-211AD. Basilides was a centurion of the Roman army. He was probably a strong man, chosen for the sorts of qualities armies look for in men who have to keep an army disciplined. Potamiana’s beauty was well known. Called before the local court to worship a statue of the Emperor as divine, she refused, displaying a fiery courage unexpected in such a young woman. The judge of the tribunal threatened to hand her over to the legionaries to be raped and sexually abused if she did not worship the Emperor. Spectators in the court jeered at her but, undaunted, she remained strong in her fidelity to Christ. As Basilides led her away to prison he seems to have been touched by her beauty and courage, protecting her from the insults of the crowd. She responded, telling him at one point that when she was gone she would ask the Lord to make him hers. Soon after, she was martyred by having boiling pitch slowly poured over her from head to toe. Some nights later, Basilides awoke in the middle of the night to find the dead Potamiana standing at the foot of his bed. She gently told him the Lord had granted her request, that he was to be hers. As the persecution continued, the Legionaries were also required to submit and worship the Emperor but, to his comrades’ astonishment, Basilides announced he was a Christian. He persisted and, like the other Christians, was led away to jail. There, the Christians didn’t trust him but he told them his experience. They baptised him and the following day he was beheaded and joined his beloved Potamiana in heaven.

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These are the remarkable, official saints, holy men and women standing in God’s holy fire whose thoughts and prayers surround us like a great cloud of witnesses. They give us courage, joy, hope. At All Hallows, we can join our intentions to theirs and ask them to help us and to help the world, drawing in an instant upon the power of heaven itself.

Like All Saints, All Souls is also a beautiful occasion with just as practical an object, to assist those who have died but exist in that mysterious state we call Purgatory. Purgatory, we think, is a place of suffering but we hear less often that it is simultaneously a place of joy. Those in Purgatory want to be there and their joy is the knowledge that heaven is guaranteed. They need our help because it seems they cannot pray for themselves. Our prayers for their intentions push them through to God. They, for their part, return the favour and pull us through from the other side. Here is what the communion of the saints is all about. We are connected. The lesson of these days is that sainthood is normality, the search for which brings us joy; it is meant to be for all of us and is nothing less than our destiny itself.

A place to lay Aussie heads

THE opening of Domus Australia in Rome (see story Page 13) is a good thing and Cardinal George Pell, Archbishop Barry Hickey, Archbishop Denis Hart and Bishop Geoffrey Jarrett, the bishops who have paid for it, are to be congratulated for bringing it to fruition. Domus Australia is not only a practical good in the comfort and familiarity it will offer Australians in Rome. Like the canonisation of St Mary MacKillop, it reaffirms that Australia and Australians are a constituent part of the universal Church. It is a statement of confidence, and optimism. However, some questions could be asked. While its rates are undoubtedly competitive, at mid-season rates of €189 (A$252) a night per couple and low-season rates of €90 (A$127) a night for single use of a double room, one wonders who can afford to stay there other than Australian diocesan officials on business paid for by their dioceses or the wealthy. Many Aussie pilgrims are probably more likely to continue to stay in the convent B&Bs scattered all over the eternal city.

The dense population

THE population density of Europe is 170 people per square kilometre and, as one commentator pointed out, we haven’t heard too many people allege it is overpopulated.

The area of Australia is 7.6 million square kilometres.

Multiply the population density of Europe by the area of Australia and you get 13 billion. Correct me if I’m wrong but this means twice the world population could be housed in Australia at the population density of Europe. If this happened there would not be another human anywhere on the planet. Every continent, country, island and piece of land would be vacant.

The earth is not overpopulated. Wherever we are confronted with heartwrenching scenes of human suffering to justify the overpopulation argument a closer analysis will show the real cause is something far different. It may be war, and frequently is; it may be lack of foresight due to political instability or any number of reasons but it is not overpopulation.

Emails undermine the evidence

I REFER to the article “Faith, climate debates suffer from laziness” by Fr Sean Fernandez (The Record 21 September 2011) in which Fr Fernandez lauds the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) third assessment report as an “informed” opinion supporting anthropogenic global warning and derides “uninformed” opinions.

It is surprising he makes no mention of the fact that the integrity of the IPCC report was severely criticised as a result of leaked emails which became known as “Climate gate”. It is a tragedy for this nation that the Gillard government has relied heavily on this discredited report to frame its tax on carbon dioxide (CO2) which will severely damage Australia’s economy, businesses, industries, farmers and households without any discernible benefit to the environment.

CO2 is not a pollutant. It is a colourless, odourless, incombus-

tible, ecologically beneficial trace gas that forms the base of almost the entire planetary food chain; it currently exists in the atmosphere at near starvation levels by comparison with levels up to ten times higher during the preceding 600 million years of multicellular life on earth. The percentage of CO2 in the atmosphere is 0.038 per cent.

Anthropogenic global warming has not been proved. In fact, the study of solar cycles suggests the earth is entering a cooling phase.

Tidal measurements, some over 100 years but all of 20 years or more in the Indian Ocean and Pacific Ocean show that there is no basis for the Australian Climate Commission’s prediction of alarming sea level rises.

Yes! As Fr Fernandez says, we “have a moral responsibility for the planet … for the poor … for future generations - children, grandchildren, great grandchildren, nephews and nieces.” That responsibility will be discharged best by relying on facts, not on fanciful modelling or wild guesses.

Denis Whitely Director, Council for the National Interest BELMONT, WA

Yankee crosswords

I AM a regular reader of your paper and have been pleased to see the crossword on the last page and always try to get it out (I am a crossword fanatic). But it is frustrating, as a few of the clues are American and we have no idea of the parishes or people mentioned. Could we have Australian clues?

It would also be helpful to give a reference to the number of the words in the answer, if more than one, as normal crossword clues do with theirs eg (2.5).

Another thing that hasn’t happened in recent years is the inclusion in December issues of the city and country parish Mass timetables. It was very handy and I used to carry it in my map book. Anyway, carry on with the good work.

Mary Delane KOORDA, WA

‘Third way’ not so different Distributism is really another face of capitalism, writes Guy Crouchback

WE OFTEN hear talk of a “third way” between capitalism and communism or socialism. Sometimes this is put forward with an air of surprise that so simple a solution has not yet been put into place.

Capitalism is a means of production. It might be compared with a car: good at getting people to destinations but which can be misused. It has no conscience, morality or religion and cannot be expected to have them.

Whether it is used for good or ill depends on conscience, morality and religion of the driver.

Communism, on the other hand, does make claims to morality and conscience. It claims to be a total system: good is anything that aids it, evil anything that hinders it.

The doctrine of “distributism” put forward by some Catholic thinkers such as GK Chesterton should not be called a “third way.”

It is, I suggest, rather a variety of capitalism.

When distributism is put into practice, it is often not recognised as such. One of the most important practical distributists was British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher who made it possible for tenants of council houses to buy their houses.

Distributism seems tied up with the idea of an independent, healthy and sturdy peasantry.

This is not an ignoble idea.

One of the reasons JRR Tolkien’s The Lord of The Rings has been so popular is that, in addition to exciting battles and creepy monsters, it has the safe, good background of the Hobbits’ Shire with its small farms and trades.

This seems to resonate with something deep in our culture: a charming picture, but one which

The trouble with distributism is that it doesn’t work or, rather, only in special circumstances.

it would be very difficult to actually make work today. Always remember a big, soulless modern farm, with batteryhens, tax accountants and so forth, means cheaper food for the world.

The trouble with distributism is it doesn’t work or, rather, works only in special circumstances. In Israel, the kibbutz, a sort of distributist arrangement, worked because inhabitants were unusually determined to make it succeed

and also received a lot of government support.

I have recently been researching the early history of South Australia. There, land was originally given out in 80 acre lots in accordance with the distributist ideal of small farms and small property owners.

However, they proved too small to be economical: poorer farmers sold out to richer, who ended up with larger, economically viable units. Adam Smith, father of modern economics, had many insights which are still relevant after more than 200 years.

One is the necessity of economies of scale, mass-production is cheaper; another, with which a distributist would probably agree, is people require challenge and variety of work to be fully human.

Just after writing this, I read a column by Professor Carroll in The Australian.

“The development of the welfare state is one of the achievements of the modern West. But the welfare state has brought a mentality of dependency, which in Greece will only be remedied by necessity: national bankruptcy leading to a much lower standard of living, with sections of the population forced to return to small farming. Britain, and with it much of southern Europe, may face much the same necessity.”

Father found purpose on a bicycle built for two Christopher Blunt explores how to combine a love for sport with childrearing and finds the result more than beneficial.

IF IT’S TRUE an addict is the last to recognise an addiction, that may be especially so when the compulsion is ostensibly healthy. But rock bottom is rock bottom, and mine came on 20 November 1999 on one of the country’s most isolated roads.

I crouched against my bicycle, overwhelmed by stomach cramps and exhaustion. Traversing Jubilee Pass and the remaining 113km of the Death Valley Double Century ride seemed impossible.

A tandem bicycle approached and the couple asked if I was all right. Despite my own doubts, I assured them I was. They continued on but the woman’s voice carried back: You know, she said, he really isn’t a very good cyclist.

Her words stung and my first instinct was to defend myself. I’d been an avid cyclist since my teens and, attending graduate school in southern California, with its spectacular canyon roads and consistently good weather, my love for the sport reached its zenith. An annual series of “double century” (200 mile or 320km) rides proved

especially addicting and, by the mid-90s, I was travelling all over the state to participate in ultramarathon events.

But now, I had to admit the woman was right. I wasn’t a very good cyclist. Not anymore. What was I even doing here, pretending I still was? I’d sent in my registration, and paid a hotel deposit when I’d thought I could still get in shape but with a toddler and infant at home, my training had

Los Angeles and hung up my bike. Years passed. We moved, the kids grew, another arrived. My bicycle disappeared under dust. Then, some time in 2007, my wife and I were discussing options for sports that didn’t involve hours of shuttling children to practices and games. I offered to get my bicycle out of mothballs, buy nice bikes for the kids and take them riding. She liked the general idea but was concerned about traffic. Curious

ded it was worth a try. I found an old tandem in good condition, set the back seat up to fit them, and we were all hooked from the first ride. I loved being back in a saddle again and the children enjoyed being able to ride fast on a real road machine. They didn’t have to worry about falling behind or swerving into traffic and they were always close enough to carry on a conversation. We were soon spending long

I knew I had to choose: going forward, I could either be a good cyclist or a good father. With kids this young, I couldn’t be both.

dwindled to near-zero. Even so, I hadn’t been able to admit I should sit this event out. I couldn’t pass up Death Valley.

Somehow, I climbed back in the saddle and, by sheer force of will, managed to finish. But the many miles of lonely pavement had given me hours to reflect, and I knew I had to choose: going forward, I could either be a good cyclist or a good father. With kids this young, I couldn’t be both.

The next day, I drove home to

as to whether a child’s bike could be physically attached to my own, I did a quick Google search. The results changed everything. I learned there was a far better way to take children cycling: as the stoker in the back seat of a tandem captained by the parent. The stoker was a full participant, fully involved in cranking the drivetrain but the captain could work harder to compensate if necessary.

Intrigued, my kids and I deci-

hours exploring rural roads and getting waved at by every passing vehicle. I scoured eBay for child-sized cycling clothing, and soon had my “team” fully outfitted. Their only disappointment was just one of them could ride at a time.

Weeks turned into months, and I discovered something remarkable: I was feeling good, getting into shape and doing it with my kids, not at the expense of spending time with them. Training was

no longer a separation like it had been in California; it was now a connection. I lost track of the number of the conversations I had with the kids as we spent long miles together on the open road.

We began attending regional tandem rallies where we could connect with hundreds of families over the course of a weekend of riding. And this summer, in what would prove an unforgettable adventure for our family, the three oldest kids took turns stoking our tandem the 328km from Seattle to Portland in a single day.

Somewhere along the way, it struck me things had come full circle since that November day in 1999. A couple on a tandem had helped me stop pretending I could be both a good cyclist and a good father. At the time, I hadn’t thought it was possible to be both. And perhaps I might have continued thinking so forever. But now a tandem of my own had shown the way to bring everything and everyone together.

Christopher Blunt writes from Michigan - www.mercatornet.com

The struggle to age with dignity

Aged care funding and the next great health crisis - dementia - need to be addressed now, writes

Martin Laverty

WHEN observing the contentious back and forth that takes place within the halls of power in federal parliament, one could be forgiven for thinking the government and the opposition don’t agree on any issue. One area in which bipartisan support is emerging, however, is the need to improve access to aged care for older Australians living in poverty.

Around Australia, we have just marked Anti-Poverty Week, an important chance to focus on some of the people who are most in need in our society. People often have an image of what poverty “looks like” and the people who are affected by poverty. I suspect that image is rarely of people in retirement, but there are tens of thousands of older Australians who are struggling financially.

Catholic Health Australia (CHA) represents the nation’s largest network of residential and community aged care providers and our Catholic ethos underscores the notion that a society’s commitment to justice and compassion should be judged by how it treats the most vulnerable citizens. When it comes to aged care, that group is those older Australians who don’t have the means to pay for care or accommodation in their later years of life.

As part of efforts to reform the aged care sector, the Productivity Commission has made recommendations that will deliver better access and choice in aged care to those not able to meet costs of care. We enthusiastically endorse those recommendations and it appears both the Government and Opposition are working steadily towards implementing elements of these recommendations, which in the years ahead will greatly improve the lives of financially disadvantaged older Australians.

Among the recommendations made by the Commission are plans to make consumer contributions better reflect people’s capacity to pay, and for aged care service providers to make a proportion of

their accommodation available to residents who are deemed to be financially disadvantaged.

An aligned recommendation is an increase in the subsidy for the approved basic standard of

vices to older people with special needs, such as the homeless, to be identified and appropriately funded. It has also recognised that its proposed reforms for consumer choice may have limited applica-

is another step towards making people more financially secure in their retirement.

CHA has previously expressed its support for the Productivity Commission’s recommendations

“It may just be, despite the hung parliament, that a rare moment of political unity delivers aged care reform on budget night next May.”

residential care accommodation to reflect the average cost of providing such accommodation within a region, so that providers of aged care can deliver services on a financially sustainable footing.

The Commission has proposed arrangements for any additional costs of providing aged care ser-

bility for certain disadvantaged groups, and has instead proposed special funding arrangements such as block funding.

A proposed reform to give seniors greater flexibility in how to use the savings locked up in their principal residence without being forced to sell that property

which we are confident will greatly benefit older Australians and the country as a whole. We have been working alongside other aged care consumer and provider groups with the Government to develop programmes that we hope to see announced in the 2012/13 federal

budget next May. We’ve also been working with the opposition who have shown great support for the needs of older people.

It may just be, despite the hung parliament, that a rare moment of political unity delivers aged care reform on budget night next May.

Older Australians deserve to feel secure about their care over the final years of their life. So far, consumers, providers, government and opposition are all working towards this outcome.

We are hopeful this unity of purpose will also extend to the fight against what is shaping up to be the country’s next great health crisis: dementia. Representatives from the CHA network joined a march on parliament earlier this month, organised by Alzheimer’s Australia, to urge politicians to have a greater focus on prevention of dementia, research into its causes and treatment.

A new report from Deloitte Access Economics released in October suggests the number of Australians with dementia, including Alzheimer’s, will increase from about 270,000 at the moment to one million by 2050 unless there is a significant medical breakthrough in the intervening years.

And while we know dementia won’t discriminate along political lines, so all major parties should see the need for better funding to battle the condition, we can also be certain dementia won’t discriminate by wealth.

Once again, it will be poorer Australians who will be most vulnerable as dementia affects more and more people.

So we come back to the underlying question that should be asked: What are you going to do for the least fortunate in society? It is crucial our key political decision-makers continue to recognise the need to provide adequate care to financially disadvantaged Australians as part of their answer.

Martin Laverty is CEO of CHA, the largest grouping of non-government health, aged and community care services in the country

Older Australians deserve to feel secure about their care, writes Martin Laverty.

PHOTO: M DE SOUSA

SATURDAY

SATURDAY, 29 OCTOBER

Mercedes College Perth - Graduating Class of 1990 Reunion

7.30pm Rosie O’Grady’s, Northbridge, cnr James and Milligan Sts. Enq: kathleen.bryce@yahoo. com.au.

Disciples of Jesus Celebration Ball

7.30pm at Rendezvous, Scarborough. Annual ball - beautiful food, live music. Cost: $70. Enq: Janny 042 0635 919 or Margaret 040 8689 873.

Calling all Mothers to come and Pray in Solidarity for their Children and for all Children throughout the World

9.30am at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish, 100 Fern Rd, Wilson. Special Mass for all mothers and children. Please bring along your family and friends. Enq: Mary-Ann 9354 1699.

NEXT WEEK

SUNDAY, 30 OCTOBER

Farewell to Fr Michael Brown

“A time to remember”

10am at Edel Quin Centre, 36 Windsor St, East Perth. A day to reflect with gratitude on the ministry of Fr Michael to the Secular Franciscan Order in WA. Begins with morning tea followed by morning prayer at 10.30am. Mass at 2.30pm. Bring a plate to share for lunch. Enq: Angela 9275 5658.

Sisters of St Joseph of the Apparition –Meeting

2.30pm at Christ the King Parish, cnr Lefroy and Moran Sts, Beaconsfield. Discuss progress of Klong Lan project. Bring plate to share. Enq: Germaine 042 1306 006 or 9335 1639.

Food Fare and Fun Day

10am-1pm at Holy Family Parish, Lot 375 Alcock St, Maddington. Enq: Francis 040 4893 877.

WEDNESDAY, 2 NOVEMBER

Charismatic Renewal Prayer Night

7.30pm-9.30pm at Holy Family Parish, cnr Canning Hwy and Thelma St, Como. Includes Mass for All Souls, prayer and praise and teaching from CCR Sydney’s Anne-Marie Gatenby. Followed by Prayer Team Ministry. Light supper provided. Enq: to Dan Hewitt, 9398 4973 or dhewitt@aapt.net.au.

THURSDAY, 3 NOVEMBER

Prayer in style of Taize

7.30pm at Our Lady of Grace Parish, 3 Kitchener St, North Beach. Prayer, song and silence – in candle-light. Taize info: www.taize.fr. Enq: Joan 9448 4888 or 9448 4457.

FRIDAY, 4 NOVEMBER

Vigil for Life with Archbishop Hickey

9.30am at St Brigid’s Parish, cnr Great Northern Hwy and Morrison Rd, Midland. Begins with Mass followed by a rosary procession to nearby abortion clinic. Peaceful and prayerful vigil witnessing to the dignity of human life. Enq: Helen 9328 2926. Healing Mass and Farewell

to Fr Hugh Thomas

7pm at St Peter’s Parish, Wood St, Inglewood. Includes Mass, benediction, anointing of the sick and farewell in the hall. Reconciliation available at 6.40pm. Bring a plate to share. Refreshments available. Enq: Gertrude 041 1262 221 or Mary Ann 040 9672 304.

75th Anniversary of St Columba’s School

9.30am at St Columba’s School, 30 York St, South Perth. Includes classroom and memorabilia displays, food and a disco. Begins with Mass at St Columba’s Parish, followed by a Mercy morning tea. Enq: Alison 9271 71 81 or martin.ali@cathednet.wa.edu.au.

FRIDAY, 4 TO SUNDAY, 6 NOVEMBER

Prayerful Weekend Retreat for Women 7pm at Little Sisters of the Poor, 2 Rawlins St, Glendalough. Includes prayer, rosary, Mass, reflections and time to experience a life of service. Women aged 18-40 yrs old. Free. Enq: Sr Marie 9443 3155 or admin.perth@lsp.org.au.

SATURDAY, 5 NOVEMBER

Day with Mary

9am-5pm at St Thomas More Parish, cnr Dean and Marsengo Rds, Bateman. Day of prayer and instruction based on the Fatima message. 9am video; 10.10am holy Mass; Reconciliation, procession of the Blessed Sacrament, Eucharistic adoration, sermons on Eucharist by Bishop Sproxton and on Our Lady, rosaries and stations of the Cross. BYO lunch. Enq: Franciscan Sisters of the Immaculate 9250 8286.

Vigil for Life - Pro-Life witness 8.30am at St Augustine’s, Gladstone St, Rivervale. Begins with Mass, followed by rosary procession and vigil at nearby abortion clinic, led by Fr

PANORAMA

What’s on around the Archdiocese of Perth, where and when

Paul. Weekly prayer vigils Monday, Thursday and Saturday, 8am to 10am at Rivervale. Enq: Helen 9402 0349.

The Legion of Mary Perth Comitum – Annual Mass 1pm at St Joachim Parish, Shepperton Rd, Victoria Park. Begins with rosary and Mass 1.30pm. Main celebrant Archbishop Hickey. Followed by light refreshment. Enq: 9328 2728 or 042 1580 783.

UPCOMING

SUNDAY, 6 NOVEMBER

All Souls’ Day Memorial Service

2.30pm at Pinnaroo Valley Memorial Park Crematorium Chapel. Please note, the memorial service will not include Mass. Enq: Whitford parish office 9307 2776.

Divine Mercy

1.30pm at St Francis Xavier Parish, 25 Windsor St, Perth. Main celebrant Fr Anthony Van Dyke. “All Saints and Holy Souls” Homily. Refreshments afterwards. Enq: John 9457 7771.

Mary’s Mount Primary School –90th Anniversary Celebration Day

10.30am-2.30pm at the school, Davies Cr, Gooseberry Hill. Begins with a welcome ceremony. Grounds will be open for visitors to enjoy until 2.30pm: historical photos and memorabilia from the school’s 90 year history on display, music performed by the children, local choirs and musicians, and the children’s annual art show. Also bouncy castle, face painting, lucky dips, fairy floss and more. 90th anniversary memorabilia available for purchase. Enq: school office 9293 2800.

WEDNESDAY, 9 NOVEMBER

Council of Christians and JewsCommemoration Kristallnacht

4.30pm at Sylvia and Harry Hoffman Hall, Carmel Primary School, Woodrow Ave, Yokine. ‘Night of Broken Glass’ - guest speaker Professor Kenneth Chern, former US Consul General to Perth. Light refreshments. Enq: Marie ccjwa@aol.com.

SATURDAY, 12 NOVEMBER

St Padre Pio day of Prayer

8.30am at St Anthony Parish, Dundebar Rd, Wanneroo. Begins with DVD. 10am – exposition of Blessed Sacrament, rosary, divine mercy, adoration and benediction. 11am – Mass with confession available. 12pm – bring a plate to share for lunch. Enq: Des 6278 1540.

Divine Mercy – Healing Mass

2.30pm at St Francis Xavier Parish, 25 Windsor St, Perth. Main celebrant Fr Marcellinus. Chaplet of divine Mercy followed by benediction and veneration of first class relic of St Faustina Kowalska. Reconciliation available in English and Italian. Refreshments afterwards. Enq: John 9457 7771.

St Columba’s School – Dinner Dance 7pm at St Columba’s School, 30 York St, South Perth. Tickets $100 including dinner, drinks and entertainment. Enq: Alison 9271 71 81 or Martin ali@cathednet.wa.edu.au.

SUNDAY, 13 NOVEMBER

Balcatta Parish 50th Anniversary Mass and Dinner

4pm at St Lawrence Parish, 392 Albert St, Balcatta. Begins with Mass followed by dinner at 5.30pm at the Sicilian Club, Fortune St, Balcatta. Cost: $70pp. Enq: Office 9344 7066 or office@stlawrence.org. au.

FRIDAY, 18 TO SUNDAY, 20 NOVEMBER

“Creation - The Web of Life”

Reflective Weekend 6pm at St John of God Retreat Centre, 47 Gloucester Cr, Shoalwater. This reflective weekend will provide you with an ethic of environmental sensitivity as you further develop the model of stewardship in God’s creation. Finishes 1.30pm Sunday. Enq: Sr Ann 9310 8248 or 040 9602 927 or Sr Kathy 041 8926 590.

SUNDAY, 20 NOVEMBER

Solemnity of Christ the King 2pm at the Shrine of Virgin of the Revelation, 36 Chittering Rd, Bullsbrook. Includes Eucharistic procession, Mass and consecration - confessions available before Mass. Main celebrant Archbishop Hickey. Enjoy a family picnic on the lawns afterwards. Enq. Michael at SACRI 9341 6139.

Panorama Editorial Policy

The Record reserves the right to decline or edit any items submitted for publication in Panorama.

Deadline: 5pm every Friday.

NEXT YEAR

MONDAY, 9 JANUARY TO MONDAY, 16 JANUARY 2012

Summer School

The Royal School of Church Music in Australia (RSCM) will be hosting a summer school for all denominations next year. The programme will include workshops for church musicians and singers to help them to inspire their congregations towards a more enjoyable and meaningful participation in Church liturgy. Enrolments are now open and interested parties can find out more by going to www. rscmaustralia.org.au. Enq: Deirdre on 9457 4010.

SATURDAY, 25 FEBRUARY 2012

A Reunion for Holy Cross Primary School, Kensington

Any ex-students or family members, please contact Julie Bowles (nee O’Hara) on 9397 0638 or email jules7@iinet.net.au.

REGULAR EVENTS

EVERY SUNDAY

Gate of Heaven Catholic Radio

Join the Franciscans of the Immaculate from 7.309pm on Radio Fremantle 107.9FM for Catholic radio broadcast of EWTN and our own live shows. Enq: radio@ausmaria.com.

Pilgrim Mass - Shrine of the Virgin of the Revelation

2pm at Shrine, 36 Chittering Rd, Bullsbrook. Commencing with rosary followed by benediction. Reconciliation is available before every celebration. Anointing of the sick administered during Mass every second Sunday of the month. Pilgrimage in honour of the Virgin of the Revelation, last Sunday of the month. Side entrance to church and shrine open daily between 9am-5pm. Enq Sacri 9447 3292.

EVERY FIRST SUNDAY

Divine Mercy Chaplet and Healing Prayer

3pm at Santa Clara Church, 72 Palmerston St, Bentley. Includes adoration and individual prayer for healing. Spiritual leader Fr Francisco. All welcome. Enq: Fr Francisco 9458 2944.

St Mary’s Cathedral Youth Group –Fellowship with Pizza 5pm at Mary’s Cathedral, 17 Victoria Sq, Perth. Begins with youth Mass followed by fellowship downstairs in parish centre. Bring a plate to share. Enq: Bradley on youthfromsmc@gmail.com.

EVERY SECOND SUNDAY

Healing Hour for the Sick 6pm at St Lawrence Parish, 392 Albert St, Balcatta. Begins with Mass, exposition of the Blessed Sacrament and prayers. Enq: Fr Irek 9344 7066 or ww.stlawrence.org.au.

EVERY THIRD SUNDAY

Oblates of St Benedict Meeting 2pm at St Joseph’s Convent, York St, South Perth. For all interested in studying the rule of St Benedict and its relevance to everyday life. Afternoon tea. Enq: Secretary 9457 5758.

EVERY FOURTH SUNDAY

Holy Hour for Vocations to the Priesthood, Religious Life 2-3pm at Infant Jesus Parish, Wellington St, Morley. The hour includes exposition of the Blessed Eucharist, silent prayer, scripture and prayers of intercession. Come and pray that those discerning vocations can hear clearly God’s call.

FIRST AND THIRD SUNDAYS

Latin Mass 2pm at The Good Shepherd Parish, Streich Ave, Kelmscott. Enq: John 9390 6646.

EVERY MONDAY

Evening Adoration and Mass 7pm at St Thomas Parish, Claremont, cnr Melville St and College Rd. Eucharistic adoration, Reconciliation, evening prayer and benediction, followed by Mass and night prayer at 8pm. Enq: Kim on 9384 0598 or by email to claremont@ perthcatholic.org.au.

The Life and Mission of St Mary MacKillop

9.30-11.30am at Infant Jesus Parish Centre, cnr Wellington Rd and Smith St, Morley. Cost: $15. Enq: Shelley 9276 8500.

LAST MONDAY OF THE MONTH

Be Still in His Presence –Ecumenical Christian Programme 7.30-8.45pm at Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, cnr Lesmurdie and Glyde Rds, Lesmurdie. Begins with songs of praise and worship, silent time, lectio

divina, small group sharing and a cuppa at the end. Enq: Lynne 9293 3848 or 0435 252 941.

EVERY TUESDAY

Bible teaching with a difference

7.30pm at St Joachim’s parish hall, Victoria Park. Exciting revelations with meaningful applications that will change your life. Bring Bible, a notebook and a friend. Enq: Jan 9284 1662.

Novena to Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal 6pm at the Pater Noster Church, Marmion and Evershed Sts, Myaree. Mass at 5.30pm followed by benediction. Enq: John 040 8952 194.

Norma Woodcock’s Teaching Session

7-8pm at St Benedict’s school hall, Alness St, Applecross. Be empowered by the Gospel message each week in a personal way. How can we live meaningful and hope-filled lives? AccreditedCEO: Faith Formation for ongoing renewal. Catholic Education staff: $10 for accreditation. Cost: donation. Enq: 9487 1772 or www.normawoodcock. com.

EVERY WEDNESDAY

Holy Spirit of Freedom Community

7.30pm at The Church of Christ, 111 Stirling St, Perth. We are delighted to welcome everyone to attend our Holy Spirit of Freedom praise meeting. Enq: 042 3907 869 or hsofperth@gmail.com.

Bible Study at Cathedral

6.15pm at St Mary’s Cathedral, 17 Victoria Sq, Perth. Deepen your faith through reading and reflecting on holy scripture by Fr Jean-Noel. Meeting room beneath Cathedral. Enq: Marie 9223 1372.

Holy Hour - Catholic Youth Ministry

5.30pm at Catholic Pastoral Centre, 40A Mary St, Highgate. Begins with Mass, 6.30pm holy hour of adoration, followed by $5 supper and fellowship. Enq: cym.com.au or 9422 7912.

EVERY FIRST WEDNESDAY OF THE MONTH

Holy Hour Prayer for Priests

7.30-8.30pm at Holy Spirit Parish, 2 Keaney Pl, City Beach. All welcome. Enq: Linda 9341 3079. Novena to St Mary of the Cross MacKillop 7-7.45pm at Blessed Mary MacKillop Parish, cnr Cassowary Dr and Pelican Pde, Ballajura. Begins with Mass, novena prayers and benediction. Followed by healing prayers and anointing of the sick. Next one 2 November. Enq: Madi 9249 9093 or Gerry 041 7187 240.

EVERY SECOND WEDNESDAY

Chaplets of Divine Mercy

7.30pm at St Thomas More Catholic Parish, Dean Rd, Bateman. A beautiful, prayerful, sung devotion accompanied by exposition and followed by benediction. Enq: George 9310 9493 or 9325 2010 (w).

EVERY THURSDAY

Divine Mercy

11am at Sts John and Paul Church, Pinetree Gully Rd, Willetton. Pray the rosary and chaplet of divine mercy and for the consecrated life, especially here in John Paul Parish. Concludes with veneration of the first class relic of St Faustina. Please do come and join us in prayer. Enq: John 9457 7771.

St Mary’s Cathedral Praise Meeting

7.45pm every Thursday at the Legion of Mary’s Edel Quinn Centre, 36 Windsor St, East Perth. Includes praise, song and healing ministry. Enq: Kay 9382 3668 or fmi@flameministries.org.

EVERY FIRST THURSDAY OF THE MONTH

Prayer in Style of Taize

7.30-8.30pm at Our Lady of Grace Parish, 3 Kitchener St, North Beach. Includes prayer, song and silence in candlelight – symbol of Christ the light of the world. Taize info: www.taize.fr Enq: secretary 9448 4888 or 9448 4457.

Group Fifty – Charismatic Renewal Group 7.30pm at The Redemptorist Monastery, 150 Vincent St, North Perth. Includes prayer, praise and Mass. Enq: Elaine 9440 3661.

EVERY FIRST FRIDAY

Communion Reparation All-Night Vigil 7pm-1.30am at two different locations: Corpus Christi Parish, Lochee St, Mosman Park and St Gerard Majella Parish, cnr Ravenswood Dr and Majella Rd, Westminster (Mirrabooka). In reparation for outrages committed against the United Hearts of Jesus and Mary. Enq (Mosman Park) Vicky 040 0282 357 and Fr Giosue 9349 2315 or John 9344 2609.

Healing Mass

7pm at St Peter’s Parish, Inglewood. Praise and worship, exposition and Eucharistic adoration, benediction and anointing of the sick, followed by holy Mass and fellowship. Celebrants Fr Dat and invited priests. 6.45pm Reconciliation. Enq: Mary Ann 0409 672 304, Prescilla 043 3457 352 and Catherine 043 3923 083.

Holy Hour for Vocations to the Priesthood and Religious Life 7pm at Little Sisters of the Poor Chapel, 2 Rawlins St, Glendalough. Mass followed by adoration with Fr Doug Harris. All welcome. Refreshments provided.

Catholic Faith Renewal Evening

7.30pm at Sts John and Paul Parish, Pinetree Gully Rd, Willetton. Songs of praise, sharing by a priest followed by thanksgiving Mass and light refreshments afterwards. All welcome to attend and bring your family and friends. Enq: Kathy 9295 0913, Ann 041 2166 164 or catholicfaithrenewal@gmail.com.

Healing and Anointing Mass

8.45am Pater Noster Church, Evershed St, Myaree. Begins with Reconciliation followed by 9am Mass of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, anointing of the sick and prayers to St Peregrine. Enq: Joy 9337 7189.

EVERY FIRST SATURDAY OF THE MONTH

Healing Mass

12.35pm at St Thomas Parish, cnr Melville St and College Rd, Claremont. Spiritual leader Fr Waddell. Enq: Kim 9384 0598, claremont@perthcatholic.org. au.

EVERY FOURTH SATURDAY

Voice of the Voiceless Healing Mass

12pm at St Brigid Parish, 211 Aberdeen St, Northbridge. Bring a plate to share after Mass. Enq: Frank 9296 7591 or 040 8183 325.

GENERAL

Free Divine Mercy image for parishes

High Quality Oil Painting and Glossy Print – Divine Mercy Promotions. Images are of very high quality. For any parish willing to accept and place inside the church. Oil paintings - 160 x 90cm and glossy print -100 x 60cm. Enq: Irene 922 1247 or 9417 3267 (w).

Sacred Heart Pioneers

Is there anyone out there who would like to know more about the Sacred Heart pioneers? If so, please contact Spiritual Director Fr Doug Harris 9444 6131 or John 9457 7771.

St Philomena’s Chapel 3/24 Juna Drive, Malaga. Mass of the day: Monday 6.45am. Vigil Masses: Mon-Fri 4.45pm. Enq: Fr David 9376 1734.

Mary Mackillop 2012 Calendars and Merchandise

2012 Josephite Calendars with quotes from St Mary of the Cross and Mary MacKillop merchandise. Available for sale from the Mary MacKillop Centre. Enq: Sr Maree 041 4683 926 or 08 9334 0933.

SSRA’s Parish Missions

All Masses. Sunday, 30 October: St Bernadette’s Parish, 49 Jugan St, Glendalough. 9am Mass.

SSRA’s City Missions

Tuesday, 1 to Wednesday, 2 November: All Saints Chapel, Allendale Sq, 77 St George’s Tce, Perth. 12.10pm and 1.10pm Masses.

SSRA and the Community of the Archdiocese of Perth’s Traditional Latin Mass Centre

Saturday, 5 November, St Anne’s Parish, 11 Hehir St, Belmont. 9am Mass with veneration and blessing with relics. Cost: free. Enq: Giovanny 0478 201 092 or ssra-perth@catholic.org.

Saints and Sacred Relics Apostolate Parish Missions - October change of dates

Saturday, 29 to Sunday, 30 October - St Brigid’s Parish, 69 Fitzgerald St, Northbridge, all Masses; Saturday, 5 to Sunday, 6 November - St Bernadette’s Parish, 49 Jugan St, Glendalough - all Masses. Enq: Giovanny 047 8201 092 or ssraperth@catholic.org.

Saints and Sacred Relics Apostolate – Latin Feast of all Holy Relics

SSRA Perth invites interested parties: parish priests, faithful association leaders, etc, to make contact to organise relic visitations to their own parishes, communities, etc. We have available authenticated relics, mostly first-class, of over 200 Catholic Saints and Blesseds, including Sts Mary Mackillop, Padre Pio, Anthony of Padua, Therese of Lisieux, Maximilian Kolbe and Simon Stock. Free. Enq: Giovanny 047 8201 092 or ssra-perth@ catholic.org.

St Denis 60th Anniversary St Denis Catholic Parish in Joondanna will celebrate its 60th Anniversary on 16 December 2011. We are collecting photos, memorabilia and stories for display during the celebration. Enq and arrangements: Barbara on 040 1016 399 or emmanuelcentre@westnet.com.au or 9328 8113 (w).

Panorama Deadline: Fridays 5pm

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 Rd, Canning Vale. Open Mon-Sat.

RICH HARVEST YOUR

CHRISTIAN SHOP Looking for Bibles, CDs, books, cards, gifts, statues, Baptism/Communion apparel, religious vestments, etc? Visit us at 39 Hulme Ct (off McCoy St), Myaree. Ph 9329 9889 (after 10.30am Mon to Sat). We are here to serve.

KINLAR VESTMENTS

Quality handmade and decorated vestments: albs, stoles, chasubles, altar linen, banners, etc. 12 Favenc Way, Padbury. By appointment only. Ph Vickii on 9402 1318, 0409 114 093 or kinlar.vestments@gmail.com.

TAX SERVICE

Quality tax returns prepared by registered tax agent with over 35 years’ experience. Call Tony Marchei on 0412 055 184 for appt. AXXO Accounting & Management, Unit 20/222 Walter Rd, Morley.

ACCOMMODATION

HOLIDAY ACCOMMODATION

ESPERANCE 3 bedroom house f/furnished Ph 08 9076 5083.

MATURE AGE GENTLEMAN looking for a room, single, nonsmoker, and works fulltime at Royal Perth Hospital. Has been a house friend for two elderly people over the past 20 years, carrying out light house-duties and gardening when required. Greg O’Brien: mob 0413 701 489.

SETTLEMENTS

ARE YOU BUYING OR SELL-

ING real estate or a business?

Why not ask Excel Settlements for a quote for your settlement. We offer reasonable fees, excellent service and no hidden costs. Ring Excel on 9481 4499 for a quote. Check our web site on www.excelsettlements.com.au.

CLASSIFIEDS

Deadline: 11am Monday

BOOK BINDING

NEW BOOK BINDING, General Book Repairs; Rebinding; New Ribbons; Old Leather Bindings Restored.Tydewi Bindery 0422 968 572.

FOR SALE

CHEAP, VARIOUS CATHOLIC/ PROTESTANT Books New/secondhand DVDs/CDs 9440 4358.

WANTED

ONE TO THREE STATUES.

1-2m high of our Lady, Jesus and Saints. Crucifix available (same height) Contact: Brother JohnCarmelite - professed hermit (08) 9853 3112 or johnw9765@optusnet.com.

SERVITE VILLA

THIS WELCOMING FACILITY has several lounge areas, a communal dining room, a lovely community room and small chapel. Surrounded by attractive grounds with barbeque facilities, residents and families can always enjoy a private visit.

At Servite Villa all our food is cooked fresh on site. Every room at Servite Villa has built-in robes, individual access to outdoor patios, a shared toilet between two rooms and a communal bathroom. A podiatrist and hairdresser visit on a regular basis.

Servite Villa organises bus trips each week as part of our active social programme. Catholic Mass is celebrated on Sunday mornings, with a Communion Service on Thursday mornings. The Rosary is said daily in the chapel. Anglican services are held fortnightly. Individual pastoral care support is available to all residents.

Servite Villa Hostel currently has two vacancies, for a male and female resident. Please contact Joanne Douglas Ph: 9444 0867 or email Joanne.douglas@ catholichomes.com.

FURNITURE REMOVAL

ALL AREAS. Competitive rates. Mike Murphy Ph 0416 226 434.

COUNCELLING

THE ASSOCIATION OF EDUCATIONAL COUNSELLING AND RELATIONSHIP EDUCATION

“Healing the Hurts We Don’t Deserve”. The Psychology and Spirituality of Forgiveness. Resolve past hurt and find peace.

Thu, 3 Nov–8 Dec, 10am12pm, 6 wks, $12/hr, The Faith Centre, 450 Hay St Perth. Particularly for non-Christians/ friends. For info call Paul 040 2222 578. www.educationalcounselling.asn.au.

THE ASSOCIATION OF EDUCATIONAL COUNSELLORS & RELATIONSHIP EDUCATORS OF WA INC working in partnership with the RESOURCE CENTRE FOR PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT, both charitable, not-for-profit organisations promoting mental and spiritual health and ethical relationships, are offering counselling by donation at Faith Centre, 450 Hay St for 4 weeks, 10 Nov-1 Dec. Also require volunteers in drop-in centre and op shop in Fremantle.

Enq: Eva 0409 405 585

TRADE SERVICES

Home,

ACROSS

3 Brother

6 Author of Ecclesiastes (with “The”) (Eccl 1:1)

8 How many times each day the soldiers of Joshua marched around Jericho (Josh 6:3)

9 “Can any of you by worrying ___ a single moment to your life?” (Mt 6:27)

11 Jacob’s dream (Gen 28:12)

13 Village to which Jesus travelled

15 Favourite food of Isaac (Gen 25:28)

17 Joseph was told in one to flee to Egypt

20 NT epistle

21 Jesus’ description of the Pharisees (Mt 23:27)

23 Patron saint of lawyers

24 False gods

26 Hebrew month

27 A sacramental

30 “…is now, and ___ shall be…”

32 The Lord’s

34 Divine ___

37 Samuel’s mentor

38 Bishop saint whose feast day is 20 October

39 Holy Spirit

40 “He is ___!”

DOWN

1 Catholic columnist Bombeck

2 “He is seated at the right ___ of the Father”

3 St Joan of Arc is a patron of this country

4 The Upper ___

5 Galilee, and others

7 Evil king of the New Testament

10 “Te ___”

11 “You are the ___ of the world.” (Mt 5:14)

12 Benedictine title

14 An archangel

16 Church days

18 “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will ___ it up” (Jn 2:19)

19 Diocese of Honolulu greeting

20 ___ Pio

22 Group of religious

25 Assist at Mass

27 St Thomas’ surname

28 Partner of Cosmas

29 Pope before Benedict III

31 Number of sacraments, in Roman numerals

32 Say the rosary

33 Liturgical ___

35 “In the sweat of your ___ you shall eat bread” (Gen 3:19)

36 Refer to a biblical passage

LAST WEEK’S SOLUTION

The Way of Life

RRP $38 - in English

The Way of Life is a short feature film that brings to light the true meaning behind “The Camino of Santiago” pilgrimage. It focuses on inner feelings, strength of faith and finally the acceptance of one’s vocation. The film follows the story of a group of young people who go on a journey to search for the intangible. Along the way, step by step, the film explores how the journey changes them.

Aids, Condoms and the Catholic Church

RRP $34

Shot in Kenya, Mozambique, Mexico and Thailand, this documentary takes a look at what the Catholic Church is doing to fight AIDS. Told through the personal stories of those struck by the disease, it reveals the issues, controversies and prejudices they face daily.

Christmas in Rome

A Celebration of the Nativity

RRP $30 - in English

Celebrate the birth of Jesus right from the heart of the Catholic Church. Relive the story of that fateful night when Christ was born … and hear about the centuriesold tradition of the reproduction of the Nativity scene. See the celebrations around Rome, the moving ceremonies presided over by Pope Benedict XVI and end with the unveiling of the Nativity scene in St Peter’s Square.

Pius XII and the Holocaust

The Secret History of the Great Rescue

RRP $34 - in English

A revealing inside look at Pope Pius XII’s crucial role in helping hundreds of thousands of Jews escape Nazi persecution. See detailed documents and hear first-hand accounts of the clandestine efforts ordered by Pius. Plus, a Holocaust survivor tells his story of how nuns hid him in a convent in Rome and kept him and many others safe during the deportation of Jews.

Apparitions - Message - Spirituality

RRP $49 - in English

DVD contains versions in French - ItalianSpanish - English - Maltese - GermanNorwegian - Polish - Portuguese - Croatian - Russian

Every year, more than six million pilgrims come to Lourdes. What are they looking for? This DVD helps the viewer unveil the mistery of Lourdes.