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Fifteen of 22 priests who gradua ed
§ from St Patrlck's College, Manly, in
� 957 ha e b en holding their 30th � annivers ry reunio at t e Redernp§ oris Retreat House. Pictured i the front row are � § Western Australia rnem ers Father § Pat Ahern, a whose new G reenwoo ass � ch ch t e for ma I ce ebraf on � was celebra e , Mons cCrann, � F her John C auncey, an Father § i Fla gan, formerly of WA and § ow a Wa kerville, So h Australia, § The la e Fa er Torn Tomich was a e class w ich � Jo n S § § o (pie � F ffillll
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Deprived are also a donor D To mark e 20th an iversary of ope Pa I Vi's e cycical le er Po u o m P o ressio, Aus ralian Ca holic ere invited e a ladesh direcor of C ri as, Jef rey PE E RA, o visit Au ra ia.
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F THE Jerry's life seemed to have lost its sparkle. His 45-year-old waist had begun to sa�. He was restless with hi� routine life and job. A few drinks Jerry had with a woman he met at a bar made him feel more "with it." It wasn't long before he and Kim were involved. For a while he thought he had the be,t of two worlds. But he quu I� awoke to reality when his wife lrarned Kirn and gave him an ultim-
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Jerry knew he could not give up he wife and son, and all he once h Id important
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Kim, however, drtfted on. Her life had never n easy The ears had coated hrr W: h bttt rnc t malh lcohol nt h r to ho p1tnl There a l rnpathut c doctor l,m h d ru\\ hrr out of her d pair and helped her to brin out the best in he If
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ccss of change ;14 fornard for a paitl long time. Faced with tht mendous loss cji fa mil), Jer') coul,i de erve himsel(u longer Ile soughlt gn n . Kim's su I hf Ille a "' grabbing . for the pie ure, hid a IOI
for something couldn't name.
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For each, conversion meant that a clear strong ,vind had arisen to blow away a bewildering moral fog. Conversion involve a mature commitment whatever the ctrcumstances in v. hi< h con .. versson is born. it mean beconung honest wtth God. with on If and with others. If converslon o turn toward honesty, 11 1 o
turn away from deceit. In its basic and perhaps most insidious form, deceit means playing games with oneself and with God. Of course, deceit also can reflect a sluggish conscience and a certain indifference toward life. Rut conversion shifts the focus When it comes. conversion is the work of God tran forming and freeing people. In conversion, the focus mo" from one-
self to God and his plans. When we enter into the process of conversion, we begin a love affair with God.a covenant of faithfulness not just for a specific time or under selected circumstances, but for always.
\\'hen human love is not nurtured, the , italit)' of a relationship ebbs It is similar in the conversion to which all Christians always are called \laking the nece sary �hiO of focuc,
persistent requires effort. Without such effort, we can get the distorted idea that God is the one holding back when it is really human selfishness breaking the trust. In conversion people see their limitations but learn that the yawning gap.!J in their li\'e:, don't stretch beyond the capacity to change with God's help. Unfortunatel), there may be lapse,. By com·
parison with divine faithfulness, human faithfulness is fragile. In conversion human faithfulness must reflect, at least to some degree, the generous faithfulness of God. But even as we lurch a,..·ay from him. he follows with profound understanding and love to welcome us back. In human relation· ships. people often clo"' the doors betwet'n them But the divine door alYia)-S remain� open.
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in,;,; Pett< u,111 ...... t HUGS•.,...,, ,u; NH ,rresfff or hunt JeMs w,s l11f1l1 to N torlwe<I 1ni k•lfH. Th c0<k'1 uo• l<MflW � ,,ter's oftN ,.,.m,tmfff t1 follow Cinst. t, U*e Oft •is m,u,H ,IHI r•«• out t, otlters wifi i••i ••••, lt11lin1, tor1I,eoeu '"" ut,,u.. It w,s, cMtmrtmfff to io U,11 o,oo lfhO U,,. t nH o, ,,.,,_..,_ """ ............ ..; UIH ........... hi pab/1<'1 .,,.,.; /tis rtl1u-iti, Clwlst •t 1H mom...t ,..,. Cllrill •1rnuH "" ,tr,t,ac IH hdl uteal of /tis .... c-'tmoot to olJlen.
a on o go Ing growt h proc For some eonvers on L'i an 8\\dlrnang that from point of of
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Privileged moment It was a privileged moment, one that would change hlstory's course: On his own loving initiative God had stepped in to free his people from bondage In Egypt Now, at Mount Sinai, God was in the process of making them his own people. But at that precise moment the Israelites turned their backs on God. Moses had left the people so he could talk with the Lord and he was taking too long tmpa tlent, the people per suaded Aaron to fashion an Idol for them. He collected their jewellery, melted It down and created a &olden bull. Aaron also built an altar on which
burnt offerings were sacrificed ' Then they sat down to eat and drink and rose up to revert" (Exodus 32.61. Revel? Thi wa a wild orgy That i why the Lord said to Mo es. Go down at once to your people. • for they have become depraved Let me alone. that my wrath may blaze up against them" (32 7,10) But Moses pleaded with the Lord not to forget all his past kind· ness. • So the Lord relented In the punish· ment he had thre atenec (32.141. Subsequently, the cevenant between the Lord and the Jew,sh nation was renev ?d the God Identified himself In these term The Lord.
8 The Record, October 8, 1987
by Father John Caste lot
the Lord a merciful and gracious God. slow to anger and rich In kind· ness and fidelity" (34 6). That sums up the kind of Cod revealed In Scrip· ture from the first pages to the last. He does not condone sin: but even this Is a mark of lo•ing concern for people, since sin would destroy their happiness. Cod does not want that. In a striking pa ,age, the prophet Hosea boldly portrays Cod a one who wresle with conflicting emotion The Israelites have been wantonly unfaithful and
Cod Is torn. HI first reaction - the reaction one would expect If Cod were a sorely Insulted human being - Is to wipe them out But his final decision Is to spare them. Why? ' For I am God and not man ( Hosea 11. 9 ). He Is God and not man That simple statement Is one of the most pro· found bits of divine self· revelation In the Bible. It Is this merciful, lovIng God whom Jesus revealed by word and deed Jesus basic proclamation wa that the reign of Cods saving rove was here.
So true Is this that the Gospel of Luke has been called the Gospel of Pardon • Who doe not know Luke's writing about the
eager mercy of the Prod lgal Son· father?
o Recall also the tears with which the treetwalker bathed Jesu feet In Luke 7 - tear of relief and gratitude for mercy received • And Je us words from the cros . Father, forgive them. they don t know what they are doing." were so hock· Ing to some early copy lsts of the Co pel that they omitted them from some manu crlpts What Jesus revealed about the Father was not lost on St Paul, who had overwhelming per· sonal uperience of God's mercy It Is precisely In this that Cod proves his love for us That while we were still sinners Chri t d I d for us" (Romans 5 8).
The New T t s many st Sir> nd forg Some are to J us I, e the the Prodigal tori; v1ng fat�er Ii s older brntnert.o couldn t forg,ve Some New Ttli'Tlent stcr-es alt about Jesus. I le t r, a sinner Cli� hn, wl'le he� dnn r an
EDUCATION BRIEF "The Second Vatl• can CounclL •• recog· ni ed that the church must strive above all to brine all people to full reconc liatlon. In Intimate connection with Christ's mission, one can therefore sum up the church's minion, rich and complex as It ls, as belnc her central task of reconcllln& people: with God, with themselves, with nelchbor, with the whole of creation; and this In a perman·
ent manner since, as
I said on another occa Ion, 'the church Is also by her nature always reconclllnc,"' (Pope John Paul II In his 1984 apostolic exhortation on reconclllatlon and penance). The re Its of n are shatterlnc In more ways than one. Slmllar1y, the Impact of
p nance, convers14 Is multidimensional On result otsln Isl loss of personal id tlty, Pope John Paull believes. That Is wh the pope uses th word "sulcld1I" t characterise sin, For sin means th God, the one who s• t ins a person's Ii\ Is beln& rejected, I says. This destrof
one's "internal b" ance." And this he� to clarify the mea•i \ of conversion Christian llf•· means the redis<ff ery of "one's trill Identity." In the pope's�
sin Involves "lo" fulne s and indilf: ence" tow•rd G Sin mean11ivln1"� God were of no rn' vance" In the hU sph re. To sin It ,; live as If (God) did exist.
For 510 to make Chr,s priest s house When a cock csows. Peter breaks tian sense today, t must by Father Eugene be V1Cwed ,n the context down and beg ns to cry LaVerrllere. SSS Why did Peter cry? It of a personal relal!Onsh1p was not beeause Jesus to God and Chnst Look had been arrested or ot family life for example see's home To eve· bceause Jesus was I kely ryone s ll'azement, to be tenured and killed Jesus pr.:>0ounced her Tho cocks crow There ,s a type of faz, sms lorg ven as he brc ght back Peter s ness or sloth that I es a drew attention to her oft n r ted conm,t toil or lam,ly relation great love mert to follow Chr to ships ore does not g ve In the Bible SI ns t e on his m,sslOO and these relat nsh ps the br a ng a eo<rm tm('nt re out to others with care they need T� re s to God promlSed to good news heat ng for also a type of gre d stand fa thlully by us In g ness end lv:mon It 1hroug whlCI• one takes et r a edusto ve mtment todo fro ot er lam, y ,y his this even wher threa members but does not As God s people wo tened r persec ted g ve to th ,..., the tune or !reak ur comml'" nt to Yet now J us whom altent,on they need God by act ng contrary to P ter knew and loved for These aro actions that his Commandmerts so long was being pro can lead to bre kclowns nounced guilty and sent m family rela1,onsh1ps erced to death And Such actions are But ,n the w Testa Peter was denying all in by people engaged ment sin also cor.s1sts ,n aSSOCJat,on with h,m Jesus loves and they deny,ng our commitment Peter broke down and to follow Chnst Today cned because he had strike ot people Jesus loves These people. as this personal componen publicly severed his ,eta Jesus told us, r.ust love the commitment we tionsh p with Chnst at each other Otherwise make to God ond Jesus th moment when Christ Chnst, often IS absent htmsett was demonstrat • they deny the lovir,g rela they liave to fron, t e not,on of 51n ,ng the full extent of h,s t1onsh1p him, os Peter did in the S,n tends to be Viewed own comm,tment to courtyard of tho high apan from any personal others Peter s,nned ,n this and priest relat1011Sh1p to Goel nd Viewed epan from their by gomg so far as to deny Chr'St to Christ. relat,onsh,p even that he knew Jesus In the New Testam nt not v,ew might people In cry,ng. Peter edmow1 · story where Peter dem these act,ons w,1hm the edged his sm and the Jesus, everything as s,ns but only as family sorrow he felt for focuses on the apostles deep unfortunate matters to demed Jesus hav,ng relat100sh p to him It ,s be suffered and. perhaps, There ,s no doubt that an excellent exampl of Peter was forgiven Later to be healed sin in the ew Testa With Jesus as pan of ment A good way to when women V1S1ted the the family however approach ,t ,s through tomb of Jesus Peter was Chns11ans may 51ngled out personally to Marl< s Gospel (14 66 remember Peter and his receive the news of good 72) relauonsh1p to loving Jesus resurrect,on and Curs,ng and sweanng Christ and I ke Peter, was 1nvtted once aga,n to that he does not know Jesus, Peter IS v,ng lollow the now risen they may break clown and begin to cry the courtyard of the high Lord
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Dolores LKl<•1 "'"'" lo hlr from � tNir ,rofouiMs ,,.; <MHft IS IN ,,.,.,.; for th s,ooi ., liuo,s .. th ------tioll ,,.; 01,ssiM ., 1,;q. ,-,., towfioi to IH ••�- ., crKI ,._... s,ii, "He ... ttor .... t -·, ;-, H _,,_ ,t is - """ Ion M4 ure .. u to 1f " aeotHr to.,., uH-<espoct. it hi to lwil4 ....--IN l. of Gei. •
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The Record, October 8, 1987
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Father Robert cGregor, 0 I, has been pr"son ch p ain for the whole of We tern Aust alia, s ce July ast year. Int is cap city he fro incl si e, offering chaplamcv hite
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z SAO PAOLO, Brazil: A high-ranking Brazi ian church delegation met "th church and go rnment off cials during a September visit to t e Soviet Union. The delegation s o e "th Ort od lead rs in oscow and Catholic bis ops in Lrth ania, and s recei ed by a to Soviet religious affairs minister Th roup sa d the 1s· s a "fraternal" one an
hich members ere able to e the life of the church from close range. The group as led b Bish Alme da, preside nt of the Brazilian bishops' conference. Former co ference president Archbishop Lorsche ter also mad th The trip arranged Russian Chu re
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