Yay!
Perth radio station Sonshine FM marks a quarter of a century maintaining a Christian voice on air - Page 4
The growing of our ageing
Southern Cross Care WA’s Sheila Cummins on an increasingly urgent issuePage 17
THE DECISION by Bishop
Anthony Fisher OP of Parramatta in New South Wales (pictured at right) to introduce a daily prayer to Mary in all schools of his diocese was enthusiastically endorsed by a leading Catholic educator in that state.
“It’s great to see what happens when you get ... some great RE leadership ... We just spent about 40 years trying to make everything ‘groovy’ and ‘relevant’ and waved bye-bye to a generation of young people,” said Catholic educator
Jonathon Doyle who founded the nationally popular Choicez program for educating youth in the Christian understanding of vocation, marriage and sexuality.
Over 43,000 students and 4,500 staff in Catholic schools as well as Parramatta Catholic Education Office and Chancery staff in the Diocese of Parramatta will pray the Angelus at noon each day as a sign of ‘unity, reverence and dignity’.
“While the Angelus will only take a few minutes to pray each day, it is an important reminder that
there is more to life, much more, than the toil of everyday routines,” Bishop Fisher said while launching the initiative at Parramatta CEO’s leadership day.
The Angelus recalls the Incarnation and dates back to the 12th century with St Anthony of Padua encouraging the practice of reciting the Hail Mary three times a day. It was in the 16th century that the prayer’s form known today, marked by the ringing of church bells, was fixed. Bishop Fisher also launched new social outreach and
fundraising guidelines for schools titled, ‘Love one another, as I have loved you’ and announced a 2013 review of Religious Education in Catholic schools in the diocese.
Executive director of schools, Greg Whitby, said the three initiatives were critical to the future.
“Religious Education, prayer and social justice are pillars of evangelisation and formation in schools,” he said. “We need to ensure our Catholic schools provide authentic formation experiences for the young people in their care.”
A GROUP of almost 30 teenagers attended the Bunbury diocese’s youth retreat held at Eaton Scout Camp from January 14 to 16.
The second annual summer camp run by the diocese was called ‘Big Life!’, a name linked to the retreat’s theme: “I have come so that they may have life, and have it to the full” (John 10:10).
Youth ministry coordinator for the Bunbury diocese, Father Wayne Bendotti, said he was pleased with the enthusiasm of all the participants.
“We had quite a diverse group, from some who were quite actively involved in their faith to some who were less involved,” he said.
“I was impressed by the way the team was able to adapt to quite a bit of diversity.”
Fr Bendotti said the retreat was targeted at all levels of faith.
“In some ways it’s more of an outreach for people who are not as engaged in their faith,” he said.
“It’s about that primary Gospel message of the possibility of a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.”
The group consisted of youth from various parts of the state, with one attendant travelling from Albany – four hours south-east of Bunbury.
It’s about the possibility of a personal encounter.
Over two and a half days there were numerous talks and activities, including a multi-station team game which the group called “The Amazin’ Grace” in reference to the similarly named television show.
“We had a terrific games team that organised all these games
and activities before each talk,” Fr Bendotti said.
“They had a lot of fun and in doing so they built up friendships with one another.”
The talks, given by a range of priests and lay people, addressed topics such as the challenges of living in today’s world, God’s plan for our lives, and how to live out that plan.
Fr Bendotti said the feedback he received from the participants was positive.
“The feedback was … that they enjoyed the talks and found the small groups engaging,” he said.
The diocese plans to hold similar summer camps for youth regularly in the future.
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TO BELIEVE in God means allowing his commandments to guide the concrete choices one makes every day, even when the values reflected in the choices are countercultural, Pope Benedict XVI said. “To believe in God makes us bearers of values that often do not coincide” with those of popular culture and which give believers criteria for judgement that nonbelievers may not share, the Pope said on January 23 at his weekly general audience. “A Christian must not be afraid to go against the current in order to live his faith, resisting the temptation of conformity,” he said. Beginning a series of Year of Faith audience talks about the creed, Pope Benedict said that “believing in God implies adhering to him, accepting his word and joyfully obeying” his commandments. Believers today, like Abraham in the Old Testament, must show trust in the God they profess to believe, even when God’s ways appear mysterious, he said. - CNS
INDIA
THE SICK, their caregivers and any Catholic who prays for or lovingly assists someone who is ill can gain an indulgence with prayers and service on or around the feast of Our Lady of Lourdes, which the Catholic Church marks as World Day of the Sick. A special Mass and services marking the February 11 day of prayer will be celebrated at the shrine of Our Lady of Altotting in Germany. Catholic faithful can receive one indulgence each day from February
7-11 by joining observances at any church or shrine designated by their local bishop, according to the Vatican decree announcing the indulgence. Catholic health care professionals, volunteers and family members of the sick who cannot attend a service “can obtain the same gift of a plenary indulgence if, during those days, they generously offer at least a few hours of loving assistance (to the sick) as if they were offering it to Christ the Lord himself,” the decree said. - CNS
IN THE WAKE of the national outcry over the gang rape and death of a paramedical student, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India has called for “comprehensive laws and effective measures to ensure the security and safety of women”. The bishops said in a January 23 statement: “This is not an isolated incident. Hundreds of rape cases are being reported every day across the nation ... This is indeed a very alarming situation.” “This (increasing sexual violence) shows that (the) essence of humanity has eroded badly in our country,” Bishop Albert D’Souza of Agra, secretary-general of the bishops’ conference, said. - CNS
Sunday 3rd - Green 4TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
1st Reading: Jer 1:4-5.17-19 I consecrated you
Responsorial Ps 70:1-6.15.17
Psalm: My hope and trust
2nd Reading: 1 Cor 12:31-13:13
Faith, hope and love
Gospel Reading: Lk 4:21-30 Do the same here
Monday 4th - White
1st Reading: Heb 11:32-40 Heroes of faith
Responsorial Ps 30:20-24
Psalm: Take comfort Gospel Reading: Mk 5:1-20
An unclean spirit
Tuesday 5th - Red ST AGATHA, VIRGIN, MARTYR (M)
1st Reading: Heb 12:1-4 You will not give up
Responsorial Ps 21:26-28.30-32
Psalm: God’s faithfulness
Gospel Reading: Mk 5:21-43 Save her life
Wednesday 6th - Red ST PAUL MIKI AND COMPANIONS, MARTYRS (M)
1st Reading: Heb 12:4-7,11-15 Seek holiness
Responsorial Ps 102:1-2,13-14,17-18
Psalm: Bless God’s name
Gospel Reading: Mk 6:1-6
Lack of faith
Thursday 7th - Green
1st Reading: Heb 12:18-19, 21-24
Heavenly Jerusalem
Responsorial Ps 47:2-4.9-11
Psalms: City of God Gospel Reading: Mk 6:7-13
Apostles sent out
Friday 8th - Green
ST JEROME EMILIANI, ST JOSEPHINE
BAKHITA (O)
1st Reading: Heb 13:1-8
Yesterday, today, forever
Responsorial Ps 26:1-3,5,8-9
Psalm: My light and my help
Gospel Reading: Mk 6:14-29
John Beheaded
Saturday 9th - Green
1st Reading: Heb 13:15-17, 20-21
Sacrifice of praise
Responsorial Ps 22
Psalm: The Shepherd
Gospel Reading: Mk 6:30-34
Shepherdless sheep
PROJECT Compassion will be launched this year by someone who knows precisely what the generous donations of thousands of Catholic Australians can do.
Provaty Rozario, the Project Coordinator of the Safe Motherhood Project in Bangladesh, will be the keynote speaker at the February 14 launch of this year’s campaign at St Vincent’s Primary school hall in Kwinana.
Dubbed Open Doors into the
TONY AND Pamela Quinlan have gifted a precious piece of history, at one time belonging to one of this archdiocese’ most illustrious sons, to the Archdiocese of Perth.
The uniform and regalia of Knight of the Order of St Sylvester belonged to Mr Quinlan’s grandfather, the parliamentarian, property developer and philanthropist, Timothy Quinlan.
The one-time Speaker of the Western Australian parliament had a long and successful career representing the people of West Perth, and then Toodyay, and was well known for donating his money and time to many charitable causes.
Bishop Matthew Gibney presented Timothy Quinlan with the papal honour at a special ceremony on Sunday, April 23, 1899 at St Mary’s Cathedral, before a large congregation which included Bishop Rosendo Salvado OSB.
Quinlan was the first Western Australian to be appointed to the ceremonial order, founded in 1841 in remembrance of the “Golden Militia” which helped to hold back Islamic incursions into Western Europe during the Middle Ages.
The items were left to Quinlan’s surviving son, Dr Dan Quinlan, and were passed on to his son, Tony, upon his death in 1960.
Mr and Mrs Quinlan approached
Future, the campaign will encourage members of parishes and schools throughout the country to donate money for the sake of many worthy Caritas-supported projects throughout the world.
Local Caritas Director Daniel Chan said the Safe Motherhood Project was an example of the great strides that could be made in helping local people to care for the most vulnerable.
Caritas Australia has helped Ms
Rozario’s organisation to train midwives so that impoverished young mothers no longer have to face the harrowing prospect of giving birth without trained, medical support.
“Provaty came and told us the problems they had with infant and maternal mortality and that they didn’t have access to doctors and nurses,” Mr Chan said.
“Caritas support has gone towards making them sustainable and they can now expand
their activities to help many more women.”
Mr Chan said that most of the projects featured in this year’s campaign were about the well-being of children and the communities that support them. He said he encouraged people to find out where their money is going.
“Find out where the money is going to find out what Caritas stands for,” he told The Record ear-
Cathedral Dean Monsignor Michael Keating when they had decided to donate the piece to the archdiocese for display.
“We thought, it’s better to be on show than stuck in a cupboard,”
Mrs Quinlan told The Record
Before parting with the uniform, Tony and Pamela’s son, Dr Daniel Quinlan tried it on, giving the family a visceral sense of what their forebear might have looked like on the day of its presentation.
The piece may eventually be part of a much larger display of archdioesean history and memorabilia but, for now, archdiocesan conservation
specialists will assess a suitable place in St Mary’s Cathedral to display the item in conjunction with Mgr Keating.
“It will be nice for the grandchildren if it is on display, to be able to come and see it,” Mrs Quinlan said.
Perth Archbishop Patrick Joseph Clune CSsR was effusive in praising Timothy Quinlan during the homily he gave at his funeral Mass at St Mary’s Cathedral, July 10, 1927:
“I venture to say that never before has the cold thrill and touch of death so deeply stirred the hearts of the Catholic community of Perth.”
Born in Tipperary, Ireland, in 1861, Timothy Francis Quinlan arrived in the fledgling colony of Western Australia with his parents in 1863, aged two years old. He was orphaned around two years later, his mother having died giving birth to his twin siblings, while his father, around the same time, died attempting to escape local Indigenous hostility at the Camden Harbour Settlement, in the Kimberley. He was supported in his early life by Record founder J T O’Reilly who funded his schooling.
An early and ongoing career in property development eventually took a back seat to Quinlan’s
lier this week. “See the stories that reach into our hearts and see the good Caritas has been doing now for almost 50 years.”
Ms Provaty has worked in maternal health since 1991, beginning the Safe Motherhood Project in 1999 with the support of Caritas Bangladesh.
The launch is from 10.30am to noon. For more information or for attendance, contact Caritas at 9422 7925 or perth@caritas.org.au.
political aspirations.
He was elected to represent West Perth in the State’s first parliament in 1890, later becoming a minister, and, eventually, Speaker from 1905 till 1911. He married Teresa Connor in 1883, daughter of a then-famous publican and property owner, Daniel Connor. The couple went on to have nine children. In his funeral homily, Archbishop Clune noted Timothy Quinlan’s “constant” and “edifying” devotion to the Sacred Heart. Quinlan donated a statue of the Sacred Heart to St Mary’s Cathedral which attracted much devotion and has, in recent years, been restored for future use.
By Matthew Biddle
ON AUSTRALIA Day, Christian radio station 98five Sonshine FM celebrated 25 years on the airwaves of Perth.
Thousands attended the station’s celebrations at the Town of Bassendean’s Family Fireworks event, where the station broadcast live throughout the evening.
Sonshine FM general manager Bevan Jones said the station hopes to expand its broadcasts throughout the entire state, as well as developing a diverse range of multiple online stations.
“We are at an important place in our journey, celebrating the past and looking to the exciting new future,” he said.
“It’s been a generation of hope over the last 25 years and we are asking everyone to help us create a new generation of hope for the next 25 years.”
The station, which now broadcasts to over 285,000 listeners each week through its FM band and website, was nothing more
than a dream of a few enthusiasts in the 1970s. Mr Jones said he was humbled and inspired by the commitment and dedication shown by those who established the radio station.
“It took 15 years of applications, prayer, hard work and commitment from many people in Perth before Sonshine FM got to do its first test
broadcast in 1982,” he said.
Six years later the station began broadcasting with just three employees and countless volunteers.
Mr Jones said the first station manager, Keith Morgan, was a pioneer of what is called “mixed format” radio.
“No one had ever mixed mainstream music and Christian artists
in regular airplay before,” he said.
“His example now sees 98five’s broadcast reach daily into the homes and cars of people who might never go near a church.
“Sonshine FM has always been about ‘reaching out to the lost’ and engaging them with the positive message of hope in Jesus Christ.”
As a station that relies on the generosity of listeners and sponsors, Sonshine FM has built strong relationships with the Perth community.
“We regularly partner with over 21 major groups and 350 churches and community groups,” Mr Jones said.
“A highlight for me is my file with hundreds of letters and emails from listeners who tell us that through Sonshine FM they found hope of a better life, and a relationship with God.
“We are humbled when we receive feedback from these people whose lives are changed for the better through listening to us”.
The station plans to hold a major celebration of its 25-year anniversary in September.
By RoBeRt hiini
JOHN Paul Care is stepping out into the deep, advertising its grief support group to the wider community, Catholic and nonCatholic, for the first time.
It will run Journey to Peace, a six week program to help people come to terms with grief, beginning February 13.
Co-ordinator Betty Thompson says the group’s main purpose is to help people understand their grief in a supportive environment.
“Some people come in the first few months of their partner passing away, [needing] support right from the start and feeling isolated in their own homes.”
All of the group’s facilitators have experienced their own loss, Ms Thompson said, and attendees seem to find the empathy and support of peers invaluable.
“Some people don’t actually stop and work through their grief, they just try and get over it. Sometimes it’s the second or third death when it catches up with them,” Ms Thompson said.
It is the first time the group has offered a more intensive, weekly program. John Paul Care has been offering monthly group meetings since 2004.
The group was begun as a nondenominational outreach but gradually incorporated prayer at the beginning and end of its meetings as most its attendees were Christians.
Journey to Peace will not incorporate prayer or religiosity of any kind unless it becomes obvious that attendees would appreciate it, Ms Thompson said.
There is no cost for the program but the John Paul Care Group are asking people to book and make a commitment to come.
For more information on Journey to Peace, contact Betty on 9457 4991 or 0438 858 212, or Geraldine on 9456 2985.
ARCHBISHOP Emeritus Barry
Hickey will commence his first official duties as chaplain of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal (CCR) on February 5.
In his first public role since becoming chaplain of the CCR late last year, Archbishop Hickey will celebrate the Renewal’s opening year Mass at Holy Family Church in Como.
The former Archbishop of Perth takes over from Fr Bob Carden OFM who filled the role for more than 10 years before heading to Melbourne at the request of his superiors at the end of 2011.
After spending most of 2012 without a chaplain, chairman of the CCR in Perth, Dan Hewitt, said he was delighted to now have
Archbishop Hickey on board. “He’ll help the ministry by encouraging Catholics who see the renewal as a fringe group,” he said.
“He brings great depth of knowledge concerning the scriptures, and of course wisdom and experience as a bishop”.
Mr Hewitt said he met with the Archbishop on numerous occasions to discuss the role.
“He interviewed the coordinators of the renewal quite intently, finding out what our Christian ethos, beliefs and practices were before accepting our invitation.”
Mr Hewitt said the main chaplaincy duties would be to provide guidance to the CCR.
He said as a chaplain, the Archbishop would coordinate the body of the renewal and spiritual oversight of the leadership.
SAINT MARY of the Cross MacKillop has been named as Australia’s second patron after the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference (ACBC) received a formal decree approving her appointment.
The process to appoint St MacKillop as the second patron of the country was initiated by the Australian Bishops, who expressed the wish to further officially recognise Australia’s first canonised saint.
President of ACBC, Archbishop Denis Hart, said he was delighted that the process
had led to the confirmation of St MacKillop’s great example.
“In many ways, the process of officially naming her as a second patron was simply confirming what Australian Catholics already see,” he said.
The decree was issued on January 15, 2013 on the 171st anniversary of St MacKillop’s birth. Australia’s first patron is the Blessed Virgin Mary under the title of Our Lady Help of Christians. Her patronage was instituted in 1844.
MEDICAL staff at East Timor’s national hospital, Dili, said goodbye to onerous transcribing recently with the introduction of a new automated laboratory information system in partnership with St John of God (SJOG) Health Care.
Six SJOG pathology staff from Western Australia and Victoria spent up to six weeks training and assisting scientists at the Hospital Nacional Guido Valadares (HNGV) which helped ensure the seamless introduction of the new LabTRAK system in November 2012.
Dili-based scientist Nick Hayes said the initiative had achieved a ‘monumental goal’ in the provision of pathology services.
“The LabTRAK system was a foreign idea to [Timorese lab staff], having previously relied on pen and paper for recording diagnostic results,” Mr Hayes said.
“They have adapted to the new system very quickly and we are now able to develop its use as an education tool in the future.”
LabTRAK will help improve the quality of results due to the reduction in manual programming and transcription.
Timorese pathology workers have also responded with greater enthusiasm for laboratory processing tasks.
“The next step is to assist our Timorese colleagues, progressing from producing quality results to also understanding what the results mean and the direct effect the laboratory can have on improving patient outcomes by providing an efficient, effective and safe service,” Mr Hayes said.
SJOG provided its training and assistance as part of its Pathology Development Program in East Timor, which has been ongoing since 2004.
A PERTH-BASED priest has been awarded for his outstanding scholarship in doctoral studies, graduating with highest honours from Edith Cowan University.
Fr Erasmus Norviewu-Mortty, a Ghanaian priest from the Diocese of Yendi, completed his doctorate in educational leadership late last year after almost four years of study.
Dr Norviewu-Mortty was awarded the Lawrence McGrath prize for outstanding scholarship at an ECU
graduation ceremony on January 19 at the Perth Convention Centre.
The priest’s thesis investigated what principles and strategies set successful schools apart, studying schools in disadvantaged rural areas in Ghana. He selected four disadvantaged schools catering for students in years 7-9 in the same area; the two best performing and the two worst performing schools.
“I wanted to see what [the best performing schools] were doing
and what the [lesser performing] schools were doing, without blaming their failure on their lack of resources,” Dr Norviewu-Mortty told The Record last week.
The four government schools featured in his thesis each received the same amount of state funding.
The findings of his study will be summarised at length in a future edition of The Record. Dr Norviewu-Mortty was sent to the Archdiocese of Perth specifically to
further the efforts of the Yendi diocese to sustain teachers in its area. In addition to serving university students in his capacity as ECU Joondalup’s Catholic Chaplain, Fr Norviewu-Mortty has also been fundraising for a teachers training college. Generous donations from Perth Catholics and others have enabled the diocese to build a three-class room structure up to roof level. Father will stay in Perth for two more years to fundraise.
THE SOUNDS of a local jazz band, The Limelights, and the aroma of a delicious spit roast complemented by beer generously donated by Fremantle’s Gage Roads set the scene for a fun community barbeque on January 18, 2013.
Hosted by The University of Notre Dame Australia’s Fremantle Campus as part of the University’s Four Days in Summer event series, the free barbeque was held in the university’s beautiful Malloy Courtyard on High Street, Fremantle.
Attracting both young and old, guests included the State Member for Fremantle, Adele Carles; members of the Fremantle Inner City Residents Association; President of the Fremantle Society, Roel Loopers, and Platoon C from Fremantle Fire Brigade.
Chief Executive Officer of the Fremantle Chamber of Commerce, Tim Milsom, commended the evening’s success.
“There was an amazing ambience in the Malloy Courtyard and true community spirit amongst the crowd,” said Mr Milsom.
Pro-Vice Chancellor, Fremantle, Associate Professor Mark Tannock, said the university was delighted with the response to the event.
“It was a wonderful opportunity for our staff and students to share some hospitality with our neighbours and members of the broader Fremantle community,” he said.
SOME OF WA’s most gifted Year 12 students gathered at The University of Notre Dame Australia’s Fremantle Campus in January for its annual Cultural DeCoding program.
Over four days, students explored the disciplines of archaeology, iconography, philosophy, theology, theatre, forensic law, Middle East politics and Australian cinema. A highlight was a panel discussion focusing on issues arising from differences and similarities between faiths.
Dr Angela McCarthy, program coordinator, said the panel session was an important addition to the Cultural DeCoding program.
“Contentious religious issues are
often discussed through a veil of ignorance. Having representatives comment from their religion’s perspective provided a valuable insight for students,” she explained.
“Our panelists included Rabbi Dovid Freilich (Judaism), Ajhan Bramali (Buddhism), Sheik Muhammad Agherdein (Islam) and Dr Michelle Jones (Christianity).
“A central theme that emerged from discussion was that education and communication about different faiths should be encouraged at a high school level which panelists believed would help promote a better understanding of different religions.”
Sheik Agherdein said the pro-
gram provided an ideal opportunity to address youth, the leaders of tomorrow.
“It is important they have an understanding of cultural diversities, particularly as they go from high school into university. I believe this will help them to deal with challenges through their life,” he said.
“For more information about the program, please contact Dr McCarthy on angela.mccarthy@ nd.edu.au.
Leaders in education meet leaders of faith at UNDA Cultural DeCoding program’s interfaith panel discussion.
IN AN ADMINISTRATIVE move reaffirming his efforts to promote a Catholic revival in the West and greater adherence to traditional Church teaching, Pope Benedict XVI has reassigned responsibility among Vatican offices for the religious education of laypeople and future priests.
According to two papal decrees released by the Vatican on January 25, responsibility for seminaries has shifted from the Congregation for Catholic Education to the Congregation for Clergy, and responsibility for catechesis has
moved from the latter office to the Pontifical Council for Promoting New Evangelisation.
Under the new regime, Pope Benedict wrote, the Congregation for Clergy is now in charge of the “promotion and governance of all that pertains to the formation, life and ministry of priests and deacons”.
The Congregation for Catholic Education, having ceded responsibility for seminaries, will continue to supervise Catholic schools and universities around the world.
However, authority over religious instruction of lay Catholics,
including catechisms published by national bishops’ conferences and textbooks for religious education used in Catholic schools, now lies with the Pontifical Council for Promoting New Evangelisation.
The Vatican spokesman, Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, noted that the council, which was established only in 2010, will now exercise a significant “jurisdictional power” in addition to its former advisory role.
In his decree, Pope Benedict stressed the importance of catechesis for the new evangelisa-
tion, a project aimed at reviving the faith in traditionally Catholic but increasingly secular societies.
“The particular historical moment we are living, marked among other things by a dramatic crisis of faith,” requires learning sufficient to provide believers with answers to new questions, the Pope wrote.
Archbishop Rino Fisichella, the council’s president, wrote in the Vatican newspaper that the challenges for catechesis today include the pervasiveness of “scientific and technological culture” and
widespread “religious illiteracy”. In his decree, the Pope wrote that catechesis in the years since the Second Vatican Council has been marked by “grave errors in method and content, which have provoked deep reflection and thus led to the elaboration of some post-conciliar documents that represent new richness in the field of catechesis”.
Pope Benedict has often stressed the importance of interpreting the teachings of Vatican II in continuity with the Church’s millennial traditions, and not as a radical break with the past. - CNS
SOCIAL media need to promote more logic, kindness and Christian witness than bluster, star status and division, Pope Benedict XVI said.
Given that the online world exposes people to a wider range of opinions and beliefs, people need to accept the existence of these other cultures, “be enriched by it” and offer others what “they possess that is good, true and beautiful”, the Pope said.
Christians are called to bring truth and values to the whole world – online and off – remembering that it’s ultimately the power of God’s word that touches hearts, not sheer human effort, he said in his message for World Communications Day.
The theme of the 2013 celebration – marked in most dioceses the Sunday before Pentecost, this year May 12 – is Social Networks: Portals of Truth and Faith; New Spaces for Evangelisation . The papal message was released on the feast of St Francis de Sales, patron of journalists, January 24.
Social media “need the commitment of all who are conscious of the value of dialogue, reasoned debate and logical argumentation”, the Pope said. Social forums need to be used wisely and well, which means fostering balanced and respectful dialogue and debate, he said, and paying special attention to “privacy, responsibility and truthfulness”.
- CNS
THE VATICAN launched a new “Pope App” on the eve of the release of the Pope’s World Communications Day message, which is dedicated to social networks as important spaces for evangelisation.
The new app provides live streaming of papal events and video feeds from the Vatican’s six webcams. It sends out alerts and links to top stories coming out of the Vatican’s many news outlets, and carries words and images of Pope Benedict XVI.
The “Pope App” went live on January 23 for iPhone and iPad, while an Android version is expected to be ready at the end of February. It’s currently available in English, Spanish, French, Portuguese and Italian.
The Vatican has been stepping up its digital presence in recent years –the latest example being the papal Twitter feed @Pontifex, which has attracted more than two million followers in nine languages since its debut on December 12. - CNS
A LACK of faith in God can damage marriage, even to the point of affecting its validity, Pope Benedict XVI said.
“Faith in God, sustained by divine grace, is therefore a very important element for living in mutual dedication and conjugal fidelity,” he said.
The Pope said he was not suggesting there was a simple, automatic link “between the lack of faith and the invalidity of marriage”.
Rather, he hoped “to draw attention to how such a lack may, although not necessarily, also hurt the goods of marriage” given that referring to God’s plan “is inherent in the covenant of marriage”.
The Pope made his comments on January 26 during a meeting with members of the Roman Rota, a Vatican-based tribunal that deals mainly with marriage cases.
The current crisis of faith has brought with it a state of crisis for the Christian vision of marriage as an indissoluble bond between a man and a woman, the Pope said. “The indissoluble covenant between man and woman does not require, for the purpose of sacramentality, the personal faith of those to be married,” he said. “What is required, as the minimum condition, is the intention of doing what
the Church does” when it declares a marriage is a sacrament.
While the question of intent should not be confused with the question of the individual’s personal faith, “it is not always possible to completely separate them”, he said.
The Pope quoted Blessed John Paul II’s speech to the Vatican court in 2003 in which he said, “an attitude on the part of those getting married that does not take into account the supernatural dimension of marriage can render it null and void only if it undermines its validity on the natural level on which the sacramental sign itself takes place”.
“The Catholic Church has always recognised marriages between the non-baptised that become a Christian sacrament through the baptism of the spouses,” and it does not doubt “the validity of the marriage of a Catholic with a nonbaptised person if it is celebrated with the necessary dispensation”, the late Pope had said.
Pope Benedict said such considerations need further reflection, especially in a secularised culture that puts little faith in a person’s ability to make a lifelong commitment and fosters an incorrect understanding of freedom and fulfilment.
Humanity is incapable of achieving what is truly good without God, the Pope said, and refusing God’s invitation “leads to a deep imbalance in all human relationships”, including marriage.
While faith in God is “a very important” part of a marriage lived with commitment and loyalty, it does not mean that “loyalty and other (conjugal) properties are not possible in natural marriage between non-baptised” spouses, who still receive the graces that
come from God. “However, closing oneself off from God or refusing the sacred dimension of the conjugal union and its value in the order of grace certainly makes it more difficult to realise concretely the highest model of marriage as envisioned by the Church according to God’s plan, possibly going so far as to undermine the actual validity of the covenant” if the tribunal determines it amounts to a refusal of fidelity, procreativity, exclusivity and permanence.
Faith, therefore, “is important in the realisation of the authentic conjugal good, which consists simply in always wanting the good for the other, no matter what”, together with a true and indissoluble partnership for life, he said.
It’s not the first time Pope Benedict has called for a closer reflection on the impact of an absence of faith in determining marriage annulments.
During an unscripted questionand-answer session with priests in northern Italy in 2005, the Pope noted the problem of people who married in the Church not because they were believers but because they wanted a traditional ceremony.
He said that when he was prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, he asked several bishops’ conferences and experts to study the problem, which in effect was “a sacrament celebrated without faith”.
He said he had thought that the Church marriage could be considered invalid because the faith of the couple celebrating the sacrament was lacking. “But from the discussions we had, I understood that the problem was very difficult” and that further study was necessary, he said.
- CNS
Addressing attendees at the US Catholic Campus Ministry Association’s national convention on January 10, 2013, Philadelphian Archbishop Charles Chaput OFM highlighted the need to evangelise youth who often lack moral vocabulary and literacy.
OVER the past five decades, we’ve moved from a culture permeated by religious faith to a culture that seems increasingly indifferent or cynical toward religion in general and Christianity in particular.
Over the past year, America’s bishops have talked a lot about religious freedom. The reason is simple. The current White House, and many others in our nation’s leadership, have a very different understanding of religious liberty from that which our country’s founders intended. And that has implications for the future.
As a result, I’ve thought a great deal about St Thomas More. As a poet, scholar, statesman, lawyer, husband and father, Thomas More was respected throughout England and across Europe. He was a friend of Erasmus. He was a trusted adviser to Henry VIII. In the end, though, he was also a martyr for his Catholic convictions. He died for refusing to accept the legitimacy of Henry’s marriage to Anne Boleyn and for rejecting the king’s claim of supremacy over the Church in
England. Robert Bolt captured More’s courage in his wonderful play, A Man for All Seasons. More was a real saint, and so — like us — he was made of human clay. In his prison cell, More often struggled with fear and doubt. The person who sustained him in his distress, more than anyone else, was his daughter, Meg. As with all his children, More had played a personal role in Meg’s education. They were very close, a natural complement of minds. In their last meeting before his execution, More embraced her and said, “You alone have long known the secrets of my heart”. As a father and tutor, More had raised Meg to be an articulate, confident, supremely gifted Christian woman; a published female author at a time when that distinction was extremely rare. In one sense, her life was More’s greatest achievement. We revere the witness of Thomas More because we know his story. But the reason we know his story is the courage of his daughter, Meg. It was Meg who refused to be bullied by the men who judicially murdered her father. It was Meg who secretly collected his letters and
other writings. And it was Meg who made sure that his materials were published and her father’s story would not be forgotten — all this from a woman in her 20s when her father died.
Of course, that was 500 years ago. Times are different now; though
most vital missions in the Church. Your situations are obviously very diverse. Each campus is unique: secular or Catholic, urban or rural, commuter or non-commuter. Some of you serve at huge state schools, others at small private colleges. But all of you share one common pastoral problem: popular culture.
ation. And, as Notre Dame’s distinguished social research scholar Christian Smith has shown, vast numbers of American young adults are, in effect, morally illiterate.
“We’ve held onto methods that cannot and do not work in a postChristian mission culture.
maybe not as different as we’d like to think. Nonetheless, the importance of forming intelligent, committed young adults, as Thomas More inspired and formed his daughter, is the same today as it was then. Because most of you here today work with young people at a decisive time in shaping the direction of their lives, you have one of the
The shape of today’s mass culture is different from anything the Church has faced in past decades. And for better or worse, it influences all of our campus outreach.
You know today’s environment as well as I do. Sunday Mass attendance has declined along with other sacramental indicators. Vocations to the priesthood and religious life have dropped. Marriage and family life suffer from crippling divorce rates; fewer people are actually getting married; and even marriage itself is being redefined.
Over the past five decades, we’ve moved from a culture permeated by religious faith to a culture that seems increasingly indifferent or cynical toward religion in general and Christianity in particular.
Many Americans no longer claim any formal religious affili-
They’re not “bad” people — far from it. But they often lack the moral vocabulary and roots in a living religious tradition that would enable them to reason independently through complex ethical problems. They believe in God, but in a generic, feel-good deism sense, with God’s main job reduced to giving them what they want when they want it. At a minimum, this implies a massive failure of catechesis and young adult ministry, not to mention personal witness, on the part of my own generation.
And I don’t think many of the men and women my age in the Church are really willing to admit that yet. But the results aren’t good. The results don’t lie, and now we need to deal with the consequences.
Christian Smith names six main factors that shape today’s landscape for emerging adults. The first factor is a dramatic growth in higher education, driven in part by the need
Continued from Page 9
to compete for adequately paying, higher skilled jobs. This has extended schooling for many young adults and delayed their engagement in work-world duties.
Many new graduates also carry a heavy student debt load at a very early stage of adulthood.
The second factor is delayed marriage.
On average, young people marry about six years later than half a century ago — if they marry at all. This has implications for personal maturity and social stability. The third factor involves shifts in the economy that have made traditional, long-term careers more difficult. The fourth factor is related to the third: in light of today’s financial insecurity, parents often extend support to their adult children well into their 20s and 30s. The fifth factor is birth control, widely used by married and unmarried people alike.
This has obvious and very serious implications for young adult sexual behaviour, mental and physical health, abortion rates and even sexual identity issues.
Smith’s sixth factor is the trickle-down effect of academic theories like postmodernism on mainstream American culture; theories that celebrate uncertainty, fluid identities and ambiguity, and thereby undermine classic moral norms and a stable understanding of the human person and society.
I’d also add a seventh factor to Smith’s list of things shaping today’s young adult landscape: radical advances in communication technology that alter the way young people think, relax and relate.
All these factors complicate our task of sharing the faith. Yet too often in the Church we’ve held on to the same institutional patterns of organisation, the same methods of preaching and teaching that worked in a religion-friendly past, but can’t and don’t work in a “postChristian” mission culture.
We’re left with a terrain dotted by weakened Catholic forms that not only fail in their mission but also stand —
without intending it — as a counterwitness to the faith. Young people in search of meaning won’t choose Jesus Christ if they constantly encounter a faith life of worn-out structures in various stages of decline.
Renewing Catholic life is crucial to convincing young people to open their hearts to the Christian faith. Young adults themselves need to help carry out this renewal. The work of bringing new life to the Church and the work of reaching out to young adults can’t be understood separately. Emerging adults are not merely one constituency among many in the Church. They’re the future of Catholic life in flesh and blood, the key to triggering a chain reaction of conversion and new zeal.
I want to turn for a moment to three examples from Scripture that might help us better understand our current situation and the scope of our task in the years ahead: the daughter of Jairus, the Rich Young Man, and the boy in the Gospel of John’s account of the multiplication of loaves and fishes.
The first example, the story of Jairus’ daughter, is found in Matthew, Mark and Luke. The daughter was young; Luke places her age at around 12. But in the culture of her time, she was already approaching womanhood. In the first century AD, marriage was common for girls in their early teens, followed very quickly by childbearing and the burdens of managing a household. So she wasn’t at all distant from some of the adult realities that begin to press in upon today’s college-age students.
Jairus says, “My little daughter is at the point of death” (Mk. 5:23), and he could be speaking to us right here, right now, today. Millions of Catholic parents whisper some version of that line in their hearts every Sunday as they watch their children drift away from the Church. So many of our young adults are absent from our parishes. Many may seem happy, and many enjoy great physical health —
but they’re wasting away in their souls because they’re disconnected from the only community that guarantees life — community with Jesus Christ. The words of Jairus are the same words we offer on behalf of our young people. To Jesus we say, “Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well and live”. Come, Lord, and give that abundant life that reaches through the centuries in the concreteness of the Church. Come and awaken young people by your healing touch. This is the central
“Too often in the Church we expect young adults to simply fill the empty slots of existing structures and ministries, even when some of the programs are obviously dead shells.
challenge of our time: to give life to a new generation of young adults; to offer the Church to them with new and compelling passion, not merely as an institution or a collection of moral rules, but as the living presence of Jesus Christ — a source of joy and life.
One of the main goals of the Second Vatican Council was to advance the Church as the sacrament of Christ in the world. A sacrament is, as we all remember, an outward sign, instituted by Jesus, to give grace. A vibrant Church, a vigorous and mission-oriented Church, radiates the presence of Jesus to others and gives us a share of Christ’s life and love. That leads to my second example from Scripture: the story of the Rich Young
“We don’t need and can’t afford maintainers of the status quo ... We need visionaries; missionaries; leaders who will burn up every atom of themselves in the furnace of God’s service.
Man. Vatican II optimistically assumed that the visible Church would serve as a lamp, drawing the modern world out of darkness into God’s light. But the story of the Rich Young Man seems to refute that optimism. The Gospel’s Young Man is a person of obvious good intentions. He encounters the Son of God, not through signs or stories or hearsay, but in person, face to face — and yet he still chooses to walk away from the light. Why? How is that possible?
The answer to that question, then and now, is exactly the same. Each of us has free will. We all have different opportunities and carry different burdens, but in the end, rich or poor, we each freely choose the kind of person we become. Selfishness is powerful. Darkness has its own strong appeal. And the world is filled with distractions and addictions.
The Rich Young Man is not evil. On the contrary, he wants the good; he yearns for perfection. That’s what makes his story so moving. But he lacks the courage to give up those final comforts that tie him to the world and keep him from real holiness — and if the Rich Young Man rejects Jesus Christ face to face, how can we flawed disciples ever hope to do better with young people submerged in a modern culture of noise and addiction?
Young adulthood is a pivotal time in every human life. Young people are idealistic. Young people want to make a difference. And therein lies our reason to hope. Regardless of distractions and obstacles, detours and traps, young people in every age do resonate with a longing for greatness, which means they can be reached.
The idealism, striving and seeking in the hearts of so many young adults instinctively order them toward God. No matter how black the darkness is, no matter how deep the cultural confusion, no matter how ignorant persons are of the Creator who made them, young adults at their core long to give themselves to Someone higher than themselves.
Augustine was right 1,600 years ago, and
he’s still right today: our hearts are restless until they rest in God.
To put it in very practical terms: Campus ministers have plenty of reasons to re-examine, critique and challenge their methods, but they have no reason at all to lose hope. The work you do matters eternally because each human soul you touch is immortal. For every Rich Young Man who turns away from Christ, there’s another young woman or man who longs for something more than this world can give — something deeper, richer and lasting. A single fruitful encounter with Jesus Christ can engage the deepest aspirations and change the entire course of a young adult’s life. And a single, transformed life can set dozens of others on fire with the same love of God.
Campus ministry needs to lead young adults not just to good religious activities that keep them busy, but also to the beauty of interior silence that enables a person to hear the will of God and entrust his or her life to Jesus Christ.
That’s the great power of reflective prayer, and especially Eucharistic Adoration. When it’s done well, as a central pillar in the life of a campus ministry, Eucharistic Adoration leads people into the living presence of God’s love. One of our Newman Centre chaplains in Philadelphia told me of a student who had just finished her time before the Blessed Sacrament. She said to him, “Father, I don’t know if I’m guilty of some sort of heresy, but when I’m before the Blessed Sacrament, I really imagine Jesus loving me more than me loving him”. That young woman wasn’t wrong. She was given a gift. She felt the tangible power of God’s love and was moved by it.
Of course, where the grace of God abounds, the devil is usually active as well. Christian ministries and communities that become tepid or routine can be breeding grounds for immaturity. People in general, and young adults in particular, can easily begin to use their faith as a comfortable clubhouse or shelter from
the world. We only fool ourselves if we think that a mere gathering of young people is a sign of good ministry. Religious groups, like any other group, can be cliquish, self-indulgent, lazy and fruitless, heavy on talk and light on real conversion and mission. Healthy Catholic life demands excellence, self-denial, love for the Church and her teachings, a disciplined focus on the needs of others, and an ongoing hunger for knowing and doing God’s will. Our Newman Centres and campus ministries need to be, in effect, boot camps for this kind of vigorous Christianity.
There’s another problem we need to mention too, with its roots not in the young adults who take part in our campus ministries but in those of us who are leaders in Church life. We can see it most clearly through the lens of a third and final example from Scripture.
In the Gospel of John, Jesus wants to feed an enormous crowd that’s followed him. Philip is sceptical. He answers, “Two hundred days’ wages worth of food would not be enough for each of them to have a little bit” (6:7). Andrew adds that “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish” but as soon as he says this, he dismisses it. “What good are these for so many?” (6:9).
Philip and Andrew sound sensible. They probably spoke for most of the Apostles. The boy’s loaves and fish seem wildly out of proportion to the need. And, of course, they are. But Jesus accepts the boy’s small offering and immediately transforms it to meet the need at hand. “Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks and distributed them” (6:11). The Lord honoured and multiplied the boy’s gift of food, no matter how meagre, because it showed the kind of selflessness that God could use for great deeds.
Of course, Jesus had the power to work miracles. We need to rely on our wits and practical resources. But God can use us exactly as he used those loaves
and fish; the same way he used Francis of Assisi, Teresa of Avila, Ignatius Loyola and Edith Stein — in unimaginable and abundant ways. God will multiply every gift we bring unselfishly to his service, no matter how meagre our abilities. But we need to let God do his miracle by letting go of ourselves, our vanities, our plans and our assumptions.
disciples. Then we’re surprised that nothing seems to change. We’re often too quick to dismiss new initiatives and ideas because “It’s not the way we do things here.” It’s “too liberal” or it’s “too conservative.” In my own experience as a bishop, I’ve been astonished at the number of campus ministers over the years who’ve rejected the obvi-
Einstein once said that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Too often in the Church we expect young adults to simply fill the empty slots of existing structures and ministries, even when some of the programs are obviously dead shells. Old methods of pastoral outreach predetermine the ways in which we employ new
ously fruitful and very effective work of FOCUS — the Fellowship of Catholic University Students — for ideological reasons.
“Isaiah’s prophecy is fulfilled in them, which says: ‘You shall indeed hear but not understand you shall indeed look but never see. Gross is the heart of this people, they will hardly hear with their ears, they have closed their eyes, lest they see
with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their heart and be converted, and I heal them'" (Mt. 13:1415). I’m always a little uneasy in giving remarks like these today, because I wish I could offer some magic blueprint that would revivify campus ministry across the country and turn around our Church and culture in the next five years. I can’t. I’m just not that smart. I wonder if anyone is. But I do know that we don’t need and can’t afford maintainers of the status quo. I do know that we need visionaries; missionaries; leaders who will burn up every atom of themselves in the furnace of God’s service, so that nothing remains but the light and warmth of Jesus Christ blazing out to touch the lives of others. We Catholics — you, me, all of us — need to be and to make a fire on the earth that consumes human hearts with God’s love. We can’t “teach” that. It doesn’t come from books or programs. We need to embody it, witness it, live it.
I’ve come back again and again in recent weeks to those last words of Thomas More to his daughter, Meg: “You alone have long known the secrets of my heart”. That kind of intimate knowledge comes only from love; a love that transforms the people who share it; a love that creates courage and hope; a love that shines down through the centuries into a room like this one today.
How can we not love a God who loves each one of us as a son or daughter with that kind of intimate love?
How can we not love a God who is the source and the meaning of love itself?
Our job is to live what we preach, and to preach — by our words and by our actions — the good news of Jesus Christ to the young adults we serve. God loves us with the tenderness and zeal of a father. We need to reflect that same love to others.
No one is immune to the power of being loved, least of all the young; and young adults deserve nothing less.
Four decades since Roe v Wade and the US continues to lose its morals and its soul writes Catholic News Service reporter Francis X Rocca .
FORTY years of legalised abortion have profoundly demoralised American society, not only weakening respect for human life but undermining marriage, parenthood and individuals’ sense of duty to others, said US Cardinal J Francis Stafford.
The cardinal, a former archbishop of Denver and former head of two Vatican offices, said that the legalisation of abortion was itself a result of flawed ideas about freedom deeply rooted in American history.
Cardinal Stafford, 80, spoke with Catholic News Service shortly before the January 25 March for Life marking the 40th anniversary of Roe v Wade, the 1973 US Supreme Court decision that lifted most legal restrictions on abortion. He said that Roe was one of a series of cultural, social, political and legal upheavals during the 1960s and early 1970s that left him
deeply disillusioned with his native land and alienated from a country that he said once offered unparalleled openness to the proclamation of the Gospel.
“I don’t really feel as at home now in the United States as I did prior to
enshrined in the Declaration of Independence and implicit in other founding documents.
“I weep for the United States ... I don’t feel as at home as I did prior to the 60s.
the 60s,” he said. Yet those upheavals, the cardinal said, trace their origins to certain “viruses” present in American political culture from the very beginning of US history, particularly the understanding of liberty
The 18th century Enlightenment taught that liberty was essentially a matter of “choice between various options ... whatever the individual in his or her autonomy makes a decision for,” the cardinal said, drawing a contrast with the traditional Christian teaching that freedom is realised only in pursuit of virtue. The cardinal suggested that a flawed understanding of liberty helps explain why the US government once denied the freedom and dignity of black people and American Indians, treating them as less than fully human, and now fails to defend the right to life of the unborn.
The legalisation of abortion originally appealed to many as a means of women’s liberation, Cardinal Stafford said.
“There was considerable unrest among women about the fidelity
The number of abortions performed annually in the U.S. hit a high point in 1988 and has been on a decline since.
In America’s “consumer-oriented society”, the cardinal said, children have accordingly come to be seen as “commercialised items” who may be artificially conceived to parents’ genetic specifications. At the same time, he said, a prevalent “technological mindset” that sees others as a means to one’s own pleasure or self-fulfilment increasingly perceives children as “objects of fear because they are preventing us from being what we want to be”.
Such an attitude is an example of “instrumentalisation”, a way of thinking powerfully reinforced by abortion, the cardinal said.
“To perceive a child as an enemy, as a menace, is a fundamental aberration of the human person, for a doctor, for a mother, for a father” and distorts our understanding of those persons’ proper roles, he said.
of men in marriage ... and also the control of men,” he said. “Women felt the power of men was being used unfairly ... in the fact that they were so dependent on them financially, and could not trust them ... to give of themselves without a dominating demand, without coercion.”
The cardinal said that decades of abortion and contraception have only encouraged male irresponsibility, with the result that ever fewer
American men are willing to give totally of themselves to their wives and children as marriage requires.
Both men and women in the US, he said, increasingly view marriage as a “contractual relationship, almost like it’s an economic relationship that expects a quid pro quo, rather than a relationship that is rooted in a covenant, that is, a total giving of freedom in total trust of the freedom of the other”.
“I weep for the United States,” Cardinal Stafford said. “I don’t know what to do, because I see (abortion) as so mortally damaging to us as a people and the beauty of what our potential is. So I think we need to mourn and to weep over what has happened and what is happening, as Jesus wept for Jerusalem.”
The cardinal also called for a “profound personal conversion” on the part of those who oppose abortion. “We need to love our brothers and sisters who are conationals with us, and we need to understand the meaning of forgiveness within this national context,” he said. “We need, above all, to pray for them and to pray for ourselves, that we do not become arrogant in our response, because we, too, are sinners.”
Cardinal Stafford concluded on a note of optimism, referring to opinion polls that he said show growing openness to the pro-life cause.
“We have a sufficiently convincing argument that, with time, reasonable men and women will be with us,” he said. “It’s going to take time and lots of changes and lots of tears, but I think it will change.”
FEBRUARY
•
Across
1. And in the prophet Elisha’s time there were many suffering from virulent skin-diseases in Israel, but none of these was ____ - only Naaman the Syrian.’
4. And he went on, ‘In truth I tell you, no ____ is ever accepted in his own country.’
6. They said, ‘This is Joseph’s son, surely?’ But he replied, ‘No doubt you will quote me the saying, “Physician, heal yourself”, and tell me, “We have heard all that hap-
GOSPEL READING
Then he began to speak to them, ‘This text is being fulfilled today even while you are listening.’ And he won the approval of all, and they were astonished by the gracious words that came from his lips. They said, ‘This is Joseph’s son, surely?’ But he replied, ‘No doubt you will quote me the saying, “Physician, heal yourself”, and tell me, “We have heard all that happened in Capernaum, do the same here in your own country”. ‘And he went on, ‘In truth I tell you, no prophet is ever accepted in his own country. There were many widows in Israel, I can assure you, in Elijah’s day, when heaven remained shut for three years and six months and a great famine raged throughout the land, but Elijah was not sent to any one of these: he was sent to a widow at Zarephath, a town in Sidonia. And in the prophet Elisha’s time there were many suffering from virulent skindiseases in Israel, but none of these was cured - only Naaman the Syrian.’ When they heard this everyone in the synagogue was enraged. They sprang to their feet and hustled him out of the town; and they took him up to the brow of the hill their town was built on, intending to throw him off the cliff, but he passed straight through the crowd and walked away.
pened in Capernaum, do the ____ here in your own country.”
Down
2. When they heard this everyone in the synagogue was ____.
3. And Jesus won the ____ of all, and they were amazed by the gracious words that came from his lips.
When they heard this everyone in the synagogue was enraged. They sprang to their feet and took him up to the brow of the hill, intending to throw him off the cliff.
- Luke 4: 21-30
Left: More than 25,000 people gather for a pro-life vigil outside the Irish parliament in Dublin on January 19, the massive turnout appearing to take politicians and the mainstream media by surprise. Below: A young girl peers over the congregation during a Mass for the unborn at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in Los Angeles in the lead up to the 40th anniversary of the US Supreme Court’s decision legalising abortion.
One could say that in promoting and defending the traditional family as good for society and the world, the Catholic Church sees it as the first roadblock against the “dictatorship of individualism,” and this would be true. But it is not the whole truth or, to put it another way, this would be a negative reason. There are very important reasons – we could say fundamental reasons – why marriage and the usual family made up of biological parents and their children, if any, is so highly venerated by the Church. The most important of these is the good of each and every person, what we might call the fulfilment of each and every human life, in a plan that originates with the Creator of the universe which is itself an expression of divine love. It is no accident that the family is constantly referred to by Catholic and Christian writers and thinkers down through the centuries as the school of love.
Catholic teaching about marriage and family life is based on the biblical vision of all creation and on human beings’ place in creation. As Archbishop Vincenzo Paglia, president of the Pontifical Council for the Family, said in late December, “an individualistic civilisation leads to each person putting him - or herself before all else. The family is the first roadblock because it is the first ‘we.’” When the Book of Genesis says, ‘It’s not good for the man to be alone,’ it’s not a superficial or simply cultural affirmation. It’s speaking about the very essence of the human person and the need for a family that is written in the heart of every person, he noted. The truth of the statement is seen in the fact that in every person of every culture people are afraid of being alone.
The Church’s religious teaching about marriage as a sacrament between one man and one woman committed to each other for life and open to having children coincides with the truth taught by human nature itself, the archbishop said.
Today we emphasise the individual in an exaggerated way. That’s a problem for all.
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In every culture, Archbishop Paglia said, the family is the first and most important place for educating good citizens because it is the place people learn “to live collectively, to care for one another, love others, generate and produce life, create relationships between those who are different, forgive others, help others and dream about the future.” “Unfortunately, today, this is being strangled,” he said. The overwhelming majority of young people still dream of having a husband or wife and living in love forever, “but modern culture tells them that is impossible.”
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When asked if it isn’t possible that two men or two women could love each other, want to be true to each other for the rest of the lives and build a family together, the archbishop said, “the family is one thing, other kinds of relationships are another.” The definition of “family” must include the possibility of generating children together and building a small community bound by both love and blood ties, he said.
“I don’t deny that there can be affection” between people of the same sex, Archbishop Paglia said, “just as I don’t deny there is affection between a father and daughter, but I do deny that a father and daughter can marry.”
“Today’s culture is emphasizing the individual in an exaggerated way; the individual is becoming the measuring stick for everything, with the risk of putting oneself even in God’s place,” he said.
Obviously, there are religious reasons for opposing an individualistic vision of life, but there also are social reasons, including concern for the poor and for world peace, said the archbishop, who continues his decades-long role as the spiritual adviser to the Community of Sant’Egidio, a Rome-based lay group active in social service, social justice, dialogue and peacemaking.
“The dictatorship of individualism is dramatic,” he said.
Archbishop Paglia said the defense of the family is the first battle to be waged in a fight against the tyranny of the individual and attempts to make one’s self-interests prevail over the interests of others. If love triumphs over individualism, he said, “then everyone wins, beginning with the weakest.”
Archbishop Paglia pointed to a recent study of Italian married couples with children, couples without children, single parents and single adults, which showed that those with children “live longer, produce more economically, have fewer psychological problems and have a much wider and more solid social network.”
One thing was particularly nice in Archbishop Pagli’as remarks. It would be truly wonderful to keep it in mind for the future here in Perth. The Archbishop, who was Parish Priest of Rome’s Basilica of Santa Maria in Trastevere before becoming a bishop, said that the importance of the family is felt particularly keenly at Christmas. Thirty years ago, he and members of Sant’Egidio asked themselves where poor people and those without a family go on Christmas.
That question, he said, was the root of the decision for the past 30 years to take all the pews out of the basilica after the last Mass Christmas morning, fill the church with tables and chairs and plates and glasses, and feed the poor and the homeless.
When Jesus was born, he said, “the poor gave him a stable. Now the poor come to Rome and Jesus gives them a basilica.”
‘Care bears’ spirituality hasn’t helped at all
I AM A “senior”, born just as Redmond Prendiville began his reign as Archbishop of Perth, so that makes me fairly ancient. But I’m learning so much each week as I take up The Record. Your young columnists have a lot of wisdom to impart to us all. I refer in particular to Mark Reidy, Bernard Toutounji, and Mariette Ulrich.
This latter’s opinion piece in the January 23 edition is spot on. I too consider that the climate of “Care Bears” in which we currently live has not contributed in any positive way to our spiritual life.
On the contrary, the fuzzy, selfcentred, self-analytical ways which
certain gurus promote as “meaningful and helpfjul” are not truly helpful at all. And what do these people do when they are no longer able to hold “workshops etc”? I have come across more than one who has no real joy in their life; little friendliness, little love for others. It is as though they have nothing to fall back on.
New Age beliefs have proved to be empty and delusional. What we seek in life surely is help to deepen our relationship with the Lord, not to waste time figuring out what our personality type is, and even less important, what is the type of one’s friend or neighbour.
Now I am going to sit back and wait for the deluge of indignation and horror which will follow this letter.
Oh, and I chuckled at Greg Craven’s recent serve of satire. Brilliant.
Keep up the good work. May The Record go from strength to strength.
Rosemary Chandler SHELLEY, WASomething to say?
Put it in a letter to the Editor office@therecord.com.au
The work of Caritas Australia across the globe can only happen because of those who generously donate to Project Compassion, writes
“We work towards a brighter and more humane world so as to open doors into the future.”
Papal message taken from Pope Benedict XVI’s 2007 encyclical Spe Salvi, 35
These wise words from Pope Benedict XVI highlight how it is through a hope held firmly through love that Christians find courage to take action and bring hope to others.
Now in its 48th year, Project Compassion began in1966. Every year, Caritas Australia asks for your support and every year we witness faith in action when we receive your generous response.
In 2012, you helped us break records. We aimed for $10 million, but together we raised more than $10.7 million!
This was unprecedented and we were humbled to see this demonstration of almsgiving throughout the sacred Lenten period. We wholeheartedly thank the Australian community for its generosity.
One of this country’s largest humanitarian fundraisers, Project Compassion brings together thousands of Australians in solidarity with the world’s poor. In 2013, our message of hope remains as powerful as ever. Through opening the doors of opportunity, the lives of young people, their families and communities are transformed.
This year, Project Compassion’s theme is based on the opening quote by the Holy Father, “Open doors into the future”.
As in previous years, this Lent, Caritas Australia will engage with the Catholic community through Project Compassion. In 2013, we share and celebrate six powerful stories of children and young adults whose lives have been transformed through our integral human development work.
These stories demonstrate how your support enables marginalised and vulnerable people across the globe to live in dignity, grow in solidarity, experience justice, steer their own development, and contribute to changing the context of their community so the doors of opportunity continue to open.
Every day, Caritas Australia staff and volunteers work to open doors all over the world. This leads to better health, better education, better nutrition and safer environments to live in, and these open doors lay the path to achieving our vision: A just and fair world. A world in balance. A world at peace and free of poverty. A world which the Church in Australia helps build. A world where all human beings can live in dignity and where communities
are architects of their own development.
It is the hearts, minds, actions and generosity of the Australian community, who hold a key to our vision; the key to help end poverty, promote justice and uphold dignity.
It is humbling, that even in times of personal hardship, such as we have just witnessed with the bushfires that ripped across the country, Australians are always prepared to open the doors to their hearts and express their faith through acts of charity.
Last year’s record-breaking Project Compassion total is a poignant and resonant example of your selflessness. We as Australians know that just as we are gripped by natural disasters such as bushfires and floods, our brothers and sisters overseas suffer too. It’s hard to give a precise answer as to why disasters at home often make us even more willing to give support to the international community.
Personal hardship not only encourages resilience, it also brings with it the opportunity to experi-
Jack de Groot.
ence God’s grace, a moment to pause and reflect on the gift of life and the face of Christ. Through personal reflection, we find renewed empathy and compassion for those whose troubles we have come closer to understanding.
Project Compassion is the lifeblood of Caritas Australia. Quite simply, without it, we could not do the work that we do. Operating in over 30 countries, where millions of people face extreme hardship daily, our work is the ultimate expression of God’s love, only made possible with your love, compassion and generosity.
Your support for Project Compassion makes a difference. It educates and enables people to learn and have livelihoods, run businesses, grow healthy crops, attend school and build homes.
Your support opens doors, doors that are framed with hope and love, doors that lead to justice and human dignity.
To donate, support or fundraise for Project Compassion 2013 please visit our website at www.caritas.org. au/projectcompassion
In life we have a choice: to allow the culture around us to shape our thoughts and values, or the truth God offers us each day.
ON NOVEMBER 24 , 2004, the Ukrainian state-run television station delivered a live news broadcast announcing the winner of the presidential elections. In a small corner of the screen, sign language interpreter, Natalie Dmytruk, was supposed to be passing on the message to deaf viewers across the nation.
Instead of following the official announcements, Dmytruk, knowing the election results were fraudulent, bravely signed the following: “Do not trust the results of the central election committee. They are all lies.” Her act of defiance was one of the catalysts triggering a peaceful revolution that led to an overturning of the original results. “Without telling anyone, I just went in and did what my conscience told me to do”, Dmytruk would later explain.
US Christian author, Philip Yancey, provides an insightful perspective on this public act of truth-telling, describing it as symbolic of what all Christians should be striving toward in our world today. Western society, he states,
I Say, I Say
has embraced the lies of the big screen that are shoved in our faces every day via media outlets – that wealth, prestige, power, looks and the pursuit of self-satisfaction are the keys to happiness. Christians, he believes, are called to be the small presence in the corner of this screen committed to revealing the true message of God.
Yancey is right; however, if we desire to be truly effective ambassadors of truth, we must firstly become consciously aware of the screens we project within our own minds. I received an epiphany recently of my own inadequacy in this area.
Following a particularly brutal event I had became inadvertently involved in, I found myself overcome with a sense of fear. The big screen in my mind started to play
graphic scenarios relating to my well-being or otherwise - and I began to believe the thoughts that were, in reality, merely a creation of my own imagination. I chose to feed the lies by continually replaying them, creating an inner turmoil that permeated all aspects of my life.
At first I chose to ignore the small voice in the corner of the screen - the Holy Spirit - that was
off St Paul’s request to “pray without ceasing” as a call to saints such as him and those chosen for lives of consecration. It couldn’t possibly be for others living in the 21st century who had such busy lives and carried so many responsibilities. What I realise now, however, is the need to take Paul’s wisdom in context with all his teachings. He also told us to “take every thought captive in Christ Jesus” and to “renew the
Paul was well aware of the mental battlefield experienced by those to whom he was writing ...
telling me not to be afraid because God was my refuge and protector and I needed to trust in Him. Eventually I realised the futility of my self-inflicted storm and chose to surrender the situation to a power far more competent than me. Not long after the situation was peacefully resolved, but what did remain, fortunately, was an awareness of my lack of faith and an understanding of how to overcome it.
In the past, I had always written
spirit of your mind”. He was convinced that Christians could only live out the fullness of life when they allowed their minds to be transformed to the mind of Christ. Paul was well aware of the mental battlefield experienced by those to whom he was writing. He knew people were combatting constant self-talk and visualisations, much of which was not originating from God, and was convinced the only way for people to counter any lies
was to replace them with the truth God had revealed to him.
In the context of the mental screen that Yancey describes, it simply boils down to conscious choice. Do we allow our minds - and subsequently our lives - to be moulded by the incessant dialogue generated by the world around us, the brokenness within us or spiritual influences not from God - or do we choose to transform our minds with the truth revealed to us through Christ?
It is a revolution that each of us must participate in.
We need to ask ourselves, with each thought, what screen we are choosing to engage in our minds. If we are allowing influences other than God to dictate our thinking then the screen playing the lies of this world will become larger and will dwarf the voice that cries out His truth. If, on the other hand, we choose to equip ourselves with the Word of God and allow this to play and replay in our minds, then the screen unveiling God’s plan for our lives will become more obvious and the lies will diminish into the darkness from which they came.
Our society and workforce are ageing, but as a community we have not adequately prepared for it, writes
There is little doubt that, with an ageing population and the ever increasing pressures on the aged care sector, there is an increased demand and competition for both paid and unpaid carers as we try to navigate through this emerging crisis.
In 2006, over 2.7 million people (13.3 per cent) were aged 65 years and over, of which 330,000 people (1.6 per cent) were aged 85 years and over. As Australia’s population ages, the proportion of people aged 65 years and over is projected, by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), to almost double to 26 per cent of the population in 2051 (or more than 7 million people).
The number of Australians aged 85 years and over in 2051 is expected to increase to more than 5 per cent of the population (or over 1.6 million people).
Many older Australians require special care or assistance. Of people aged 60 years and over in 2003, 41 per cent reported needing assistance because of disability, or due to frail age, to help manage health conditions or cope with everyday activities.
People aged 85 years and over reported a much higher need for assistance than those aged 60-69 years (84 per cent compared with 26 per cent).
It was widely acknowledged that older Australians want a skilled, well-qualified, respectful workforce which is able to spend time with them and deliver quality care in a complex environment.
As the demand for services increases and the supply of carers decreases, the pressure on aged care providers such as Southern Cross Care (WA) Inc will continue to grow. The current recruitment and retention issues we face, which are not dissimilar to other aged care providers, illustrate a 22 per
cent staff turnover with an average length of tenure of three years. Some of the challenges we face are either unique to the aged care sector or unique to WA, such as the ability to pay our workers a
competitive, commensurate wage for the work they perform. Many staff leave our industry to work in the service sector and earn a similar wage in an environment that is more predictable and ‘controlled’.
The
our
works in can present challenges related to their health and safety. Working in the community and being exposed to extreme weather conditions, driving on busy roads
Sheila Cummins.and working in homes that were not built to hospital-level care specifications are just some of the issues faced by aged care providers every day. Then there are the Gen X and Gen Y complexities. Generation X is cashed up with high demands and even higher expectations. As this generation enters the market to receive services, they find themselves struggling to understand the needs of Gen Y.
Generation Y want a job now, paying top dollar and want to be in a management role tomorrow and only stay one to two years.
You would think these issues make the recruitment and retention market difficult enough but add the mining boom in Western Australia and things become even more interesting. How do you prevent staff from leaving and heading north to a mine site to double their annual salary?
You would think these issues make recruiting difficult enough. Factor in the mining boom and things become even more interesting.
Southern Cross Care, like many organisations, is working very hard on employee engagement strategies, employee value propositions and offering a range of employee benefits such as subsidised club memberships, discount travel and entertainment vouchers.
In my opinion, the workforce crisis is the Global Financial Crisis of the aged care sector. We know it’s coming but have not adequately prepared for its arrival.
Organisations such as Southern Cross Care (WA) Inc need to continue to invest in their people, acknowledge their contribution, reward for excellence and build a strong, positive reputation of a career in aged care.
Sheila Cummins is General Manager, Operations, for Southern Cross Care WA
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 2
Day with Mary 9am-5pm at St Bernadette Parish, 49 Jugan St, Glendalough. 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 and Our Lady, Rosary, Divine Mercy Chaplet and Stations of the Cross. BYO lunch. Finish approx 5pm. Enq: Franciscan Sisters of the Immaculate 9250 8286.
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 3
Divine Mercy, an Afternoon with Jesus and Mary
1.30pm at St Francis Xavier Church, 25 Windsor St, East Perth. Main celebrant Fr Johnson Malayil CRS. Homily will be on St Jerome Emiliani. Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament followed by the holy Rosary and Chaplet of Divine Mercy. Refreshments afterwards. Enq: John 9457 7771.
St Brigid’s Day Celebration – to Honour Ireland’s Female Patron Saint 3pm at Irish Club Theatre, 61 Townshend Rd, Subiaco. The Australian Irish Heritage Association presents a discourse on Caroline Chisholm (18081877) looking at her life and legacy as a visionary of the 19th century. Illustrated narrative with music and dance, scripted by Anne McAnearney. Cost $10 at the door, includes Irish afternoon tea. For bookings, phone Cecilia on 9367 6026.
First Mass in Honour of Santo Nino, organised by Filipino Community 11.30am at St Jerome’s Church, 36 Troode St, Munster. Everyone welcome. Please bring Santo Nino (Infant Jesus) statues for a blessing. Lunch will follow at hall, please bring a plate to share. Enq: Edita 9418 3728 or Susan 9434 3969.
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 5
Catholic Charismatic Renewal Opening Year Mass
7.30pm at Holy Family Church, 45 Thelma St, Como. Evening includes Prayer and Praise, Mass and Prayer Team Ministry. Main celebrant is Archbishop Emeritus Barry Hickey preaching on theme of Lay Empowerment. Evening concludes with light supper; a plate to share would be most welcome. So come along and help us to start the year with enthusiasm and zeal. Enq: Dan 9398 4973.
MMP Cenacle
10.30am at St Paul’s, 106 Rookwood St, Mt Lawley. Begins with Rosary Cenacle, followed by Holy Mass. Celebrant is Rev Fr Timothy Deeter. Bring lunch to share. Tea/coffee supplied. Enq: 9341 8082.
Spirituality and The Sunday Gospels
7-8pm at St Benedict’s School Hall, Alness St, Applecross. Everyone welcome. Cost collection. Accreditation recognition by the CEO. Enq: 9487 1772 or www.normawoodcock.com.
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 8
Annual Torchlight Rosary Procession for Our Lady of Lourdes around Lake Monger 7pm departing from Dodd St carpark, Wembley. There will be an altar area set up for those unable to walk. Enq: 0421 580 783.
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 9
Divine Mercy – Healing Mass
2.30pm at St Francis Xavier Church, Windsor St, East Perth. Main celebrant will be Fr Marcellinus Meilak OFM. Reconciliation in English and Italian will be offered. Divine Mercy prayers followed by veneration of first class relic of St Faustina Kowalska. Refreshments afterwards. Enq: John 9457 7771.
St Padre Pio Prayer Day
8.30am at Our Lady of Mt Carmel, 82 Collick St, Hilton. DVD in parish centre followed by Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, Rosary, Divine Mercy, Adoration and Benediction. Holy Mass, St Padre Pio Litugy, Reconciliation available. Bring a plate for a shared lunch. Tea and coffee supplied. Enq: Des 6278 1540.
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 10
Our Lady of Lourdes 70th Anniversary Mass with Archbishop Costelloe
9.30am at Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, 207 Lesmurdie Rd, Lesmurdie. Enq: Fr Kenneth 9291 6282 or 9291 8952 or 0434 934 286.
St Louis Parish, Boyanup – Mass Celebrating 100th Year Anniversary 10am at St Louis Parish, cnr Bridge and Thomas Sts, Boyanup. Begins with Mass followed by lunch at Hugh Kilpatrick Hall. RSVP for catering purposes. RSVP and Enq: Frances 9731 5058.
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 10 AND SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 24
Latin Masses
2pm at Good Shepherd Church, Streich Ave, Kelmscott. Enq: John 9390 6646.
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 10 TO MARCH 24
Life in the Spirit Seminar
3–5pm at 67 Howe St, Osborne Park. Every Sunday for 8 weeks. Designed to set hearts aflame for God in an environment of faith and acceptance. You’ll be guided in your spiritual journey as you form a stronger, deeper relationship with Christ. Enq: Reg 0429 777 007 or reg@disciplesofjesus.org.
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 11
Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes
12 noon at St Catherine Catholic Church, Gingin. BYO lunch. 1pm holy Rosary, Exposition, Hymns, Benediction and Blessing of the Sick; 1.30pm Marian Procession; 2.30pm holy Mass at the Grotto; 3.30pm afternoon tea provided. For bus transport phone Lawrie 0448 833 472 or for more details Sheila 9575 4023.
ASH WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 13
Latin Masses - Day of Fast and Abstinence
10.15am at St Anne’s Church, 11 Hehir St, Belmont. Low Mass, (preceded by Holy Hour from 9am-10am). 6.30pm Sung Mass (preceded by Stations of the Cross at 5.45pm). Ashes will be distributed at all Masses. Stations of the Cross on Fridays in Lent at 5.45pm followed by Holy Mass beginning February 15, 2013.
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 18
Early History of the Palmyra Parish Talk 7pm at Palmyra Parish hall, 8 Foss St, Palmyra. PowerPoint presentation From Petra St to Canning Bridge by Fr Ted Miller. Free entry. Supper will be served. All welcome. Enq: 9339 1298 or 9433 1183.
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 20
Alan Ames: Healing Service
7pm at Our Lady of the Mission, 270 Camberwarra Dr, Craigie. Holy Mass followed by talk and healing service. Enq: Loretta 0400 809 833.
SUNDAY, MARCH 17
St Joseph’s School Waroona70th Anniversary Celebration Mass
10am-3pm at St Joseph’s School, Millar St, Waroona is inviting all past students, staff and families to help celebrate its 70th anniversary at the school. Begins with Mass celebrated by Fr Chiera, Vicar General of Bunbury Diocese, and will be followed by a day of fun, food and festivities. Please pass on this information to anyone you know from the school in the last 70 years. Enq: Admin 9782 6500 or www.stjoeswaroona.wa.edu.
au.
FRIDAY APRIL 5 - SUNDAY APRIL 7
Catholic Charismatic Conference
Jesus For All
7.30-9.30pm at 67 Howe St, Osborne Park organised by CCR Perth. Enq: daniel.hewitt5@ bigpond.com or stephen.subramaniam@gmail. com.
EVERY SUNDAY
Gate of Heaven Catholic Radio
Join the Franciscans of the Immaculate from 7.309pm on Radio Fremantle 107.9FM for Catholic radio broadcast of EWTN and our own live shows. Enq: radio@ausmaria.com.
Cathedral Cafe
Cathedral Cafe is now open every Sunday 9.30am1pm at St Mary’s Cathedral Parish Centre, downstairs after Mass. Coffee, tea, cakes, sweets, friendship with Cathedral parishioners. Further info: Tammy on smcperthwyd@yahoo.com.au or 0415 370 357.
Pilgrim Mass - Shrine of the Virgin of the Revelation 2pm at Shrine, 36 Chittering Rd, Bullsbrook. Commencing with Rosary followed by Benediction. Reconciliation 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.
Praise and Worship
5.30pm at St Denis Parish, cnr Osborne St and Roberts Rd, Joondanna. Followed by 6pm Mass. Enq: Admin admin@stdenis.com.au.
EVERY FIRST SUNDAY
Singles Prayer and Social Group 7pm at All Saints Chapel, Allendale Sq, 77 St Georges Tce, Perth. Begins with Holy Hour (Eucharistic Adoration, Rosary and teaching) followed by dinner at local restaurant. Meet new people, pray and socialise with other single men and women. Enq: Veronica 0403 841 202.
EVERY SECOND SUNDAY
Healing Hour 7-8pm at St Lawrence Parish, Balcatta. Songs of praise and worship, exposition of Blessed Sacrament and prayers for sick. Enq: Fr Irek Czech SDS or office Tue-Thu, 9am-2.30pm 9344 7066.
EVERY FOURTH SUNDAY
Shrine Time for Young Adults 18-35 Years
7.30-8.30pm in Schoenstatt Shrine, 9 Talus Dr, Mt Richon; Holy Hour with prayer, reflection, meditation, praise and worship; followed by a social gathering. Come and pray at a place of grace. Enq: Schoenstatt Sisters 9399 2349.
Holy Hour for Vocations to the Priesthood, Religious Life
2-3pm at Infant Jesus Parish, Wellington St, Morley. Includes exposition of Blessed Eucharist, silent prayer, Scripture, prayers of intercession. Come and pray those discerning vocations can hear clearly God’s call.
EVERY LAST SUNDAY OF THE MONTH
Filipino Mass 3pm at Notre Dame Church, cnr Daley and Wright Sts, Cloverdale. Please bring a plate to share for socialisation after Mass. Enq: Fr Nelson Po 0410 843 412, Elsa 0404 038 483.
LAST MONDAY OF THE MONTH
Be Still in His Presence –Ecumenical Christian Program
7.30-8.45pm at St Swithun Anglican Church, 195 Lesmurdie St, Lesmurdie (hall behind church). Begins with songs of praise and worship, silent time, lectio divina, small group sharing and cuppa. Enq: Lynne 9293 3848 or 0435 252 941.
EVERY TUESDAY
Novena to Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal
6pm at Pater Noster Church, Marmion and Evershed Sts, Myaree. Mass at 5.30pm followed by Benediction. Enq: John 0408 952 194.
Novena to God the Father
7.30pm at St Joachim’s parish hall, Vic Park. Novena followed by reflection and discussions on forthcoming Sunday Gospel. Enq: Jan 9284 1662.
EVERY FIRST TUESDAY
Short MMP Cenacle for Priests
2pm at Edel Quinn Centre, 36 Windsor St, East Perth. Enq: Fr Watt 9376 1734.
EVERY WEDNESDAY
Holy Spirit of Freedom Community
7.30pm at Church of Christ, 111 Stirling St, Perth. We welcome everyone to attend our praise meeting. Enq: 0423 907 869 or hsofperth@gmail.com.
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 Marie. Meeting room beneath Cathedral. Enq: 9223 1372.
Holy Hour - Catholic Youth Ministry Mass at 5.30pm and Holy Hour (Adoration) at 6.30pm at Catholic Pastoral Centre, 40A Mary St, Highgate. Enq: www.cym.com or 9422 7912.
EVERY FIRST WEDNESDAY
Novena to St Mary of the Cross MacKillop
7-7.45pm at Blessed Mary MacKillop Parish, cnr Cassowary Dr and Pelican Pde, Ballajura. Begins with Mass, novena prayers and Benediction. Followed by healing prayers and anointing of the sick. Enq: Madi 9249 9093 or Gerry 0417 187 240.
EVERY SECOND WEDNESDAY
Chaplets of Divine Mercy
7.30pm St Thomas More Parish, Dean Rd, Bateman. Accompanied by Exposition, then Benediction. Enq: George 9310 9493 or 6242 0702 (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 consecrated life, especially in our parish. Concludes with veneration of the first class relic of St Faustina. Enq: John 9457 7771.
St Mary’s Cathedral Praise Meeting
7.45pm 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.
Group Fifty - Charismatic Renewal Group
7.30pm at Redemptorist Monastery, 150 Vincent St, North Perth. Includes prayer, praise and Mass. Enq: Elaine 9440 3661.
EVERY FIRST THURSDAY OF THE MONTH
Prayer in Style of Taizé
7.30-8.30pm at Our Lady of Grace Parish, 3 Kitchener St, North Beach. Includes prayer, song and silence in candlelight – symbol of Christ the light of the world. Taizé info: www.taize.fr. Enq: secretary 9448 4888 or 9448 4457.
Holy Hour Prayer for Priests
7-8pm at Holy Spirit Parish, 2 Keaney Pl, City Beach. All welcome. Enq: Linda 9341 3079.
FIRST AND THIRD THURSDAY
Young Adults (18-35) Dinner and Rosary Cenacle
6.30pm St Bernadette Parish, 49 Jugan St, Mt Hawthorn. Begins with dinner at a local restaurant. 8pm - Rosary Cenacle, short talk and refreshments at the parish. Enq: st.bernadettesyouth@gmail. com or 9444 6131.
EVERY THIRD THURSDAY
Auslan Café – Sign Language Workshop
12.30pm at St Francis Xavier Emmanuel Centre, 25 Windsor St, Perth. Its Australian Sign Language - Auslan Café is a social setting for anybody who would like to learn or practise Auslan in a relaxing and fun atmosphere. Light lunch provided. Enq: Emma emmanuelcentre@westnet.com.au.
EVERY FRIDAY
Eucharistic Adoration at Schoenstatt Shrine
10am at Schoenstatt Shrine, 9 Talus Dr, Mt Richon. Includes holy Mass, exposition of Blessed Sacrament, silent adoration till 8.15pm. In this Year of Grace, join us in prayer at a place of grace.
Enq: Sisters of Schoenstatt 9399 2349.
Healing Mass 6pm at Holy Family Parish, Lot 375, Alcock St, Maddington. Begins with Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, Rosary, Stations of the Cross, Healing Mass followed by Adoration of the Blessed
Sacrament. Enq: admin 9493 1703 or www.vpcp. org.au.
EVERY FIRST FRIDAY
Mass and Exposition of the Blessed
Sacrament
11am-4pm at Little Sisters of the Poor Chapel, 2 Rawlins St, Glendalough. Exposition of Blessed Sacrament after Mass until 4pm, finishing with Rosary. Enq: Sr Marie MS.Perth@lsp.org.au.
Healing and Anointing Mass
8.45am Pater Noster Church, Evershed St, Myaree. Begins with Reconciliation, then 9am Mass of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, anointing of the sick and prayers to St Peregrine. Enq: Joy 9337 7189.
Catholic Faith Renewal Evening
7.30pm at Sts John and Paul Parish, Pinetree Gully Rd, Willetton. Songs of Praise and Prayer, sharing by a priest, then thanksgiving Mass and light refreshments. Enq: Kathy 9295 0913 or Ann 0412 166 164 or catholicfaithrenewal@gmail.com.
Communion of Reparation All Night Vigils
7pm-1.30am at Corpus Christi Church, Lochee St, Mosman Park or St Gerard Majella Church, cnr Ravenswood Dr/Majella Rd, Westminster (Mirrabooka). Vigils are two Masses, Adoration, Benediction, prayers, Confession in reparation for outrages committed against the United Hearts of Jesus and Mary. Enq: Vicky 0400 282 357; Fr Giosue 9349 2315; John/Joy 9344 2609.
Pro-life Witness – Mass and Procession
9.30am at St Brigid’s Parish, cnr Great Northern Hwy and Morrison Rd, Midland. Begins with Mass followed by Rosary procession and prayer vigil at nearby abortion clinic, led by the Franciscan Friars of the Immaculate. Please join us to pray for an end to abortion and the conversion of hearts. Enq: Helen 9402 0349.
EVERY SECOND FRIDAY OF THE MONTH
Discover Spirituality of St Francis of Assisi
12pm at St Brigid’s parish centre. The Secular Franciscans of Midland Fraternity have lunch, then 1-3pm meeting. Enq: Antoinette 9297 2314.
EVERY 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.
Vigil for Life – Mass and Procession
8.30am at St Augustine Parish, Gladstone St, Rivervale. Begins with Mass celebrated by Fr Carey, followed by Rosary procession and prayer vigil at nearby abortion clinic. Please join us to pray for the conversion of hearts and an end to abortion. Enq. Helen 9402 0349.
EVERY FOURTH SATURDAY OF THE MONTH
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 0408 183 325.
EVERY LAST SATURDAY
Novena Devotions – Our Lady Vailankanni of Good Health
5pm at Holy Trinity Parish, 8 Burnett St, Embleton. Followed by Mass at 6pm. Enq: George 9272 1379.
Free Divine Mercy Image for Parishes
High quality oil painting and glossy print – Divine Mercy Promotions. Images of very high quality. For any parish willing to accept and place inside the church. Oil paintings: 160 x 90cm; glossy print - 100 x 60cm. Enq: Irene 9417 3267 (w).
Sacred Heart Pioneers
Would anyone like to know about the Sacred Heart pioneers? If so, please contact Spiritual Director Fr Doug Harris 9444 6131 or John 9457 7771.
St Philomena’s Chapel
3/24 Juna Dr, Malaga. Mass of the day: Mon 6.45am. Vigil Masses: Mon-Fri 4.45pm. Enq: Fr David 9376 1734.
Mary MacKillop Merchandise
Available for sale from Mary MacKillop Centre. Enq: Sr Maree 041 4683 926 or 08 9334 0933.
Financially Disadvantaged People Requiring
Low Care Aged Care Placement
The Little Sisters of the Poor community is set in beautiful gardens in the suburb of Glendalough. “Making the elderly happy, that is everything!” St Jeanne Jugan (foundress). Registration and enq: Sr Marie 9443 3155.
Is your son or daughter unsure of what to do this year?
Suggest a Cert IV course to discern God’s purpose. They will also learn more about the Catholic faith and develop skills in communication and leadership. Acts 2 College of Mission and Evangelisation (National Code 51452).Enq: Jane 9202 6859.
AA Alcoholics Anonymous Is alcohol costing you more than just money? Enq:
AA 9523 3566.
Saints and Sacred Relics Apostolate Invite
SSRA Perth invites interested parties, parish priests, leaders of religious communities, lay associations to organise relic visitations to parishes, communities, etc. We have available authenticated relics, mostly first-class, of Catholic saints and blesseds including Sts Mary MacKillop, Padre Pio, Anthony of Padua, Therese of Lisieux, Maximilian
Kolbe, Simon Stock and Blessed Pope John Paul II. Free of charge and all welcome. Enq: Giovanny 0478 201 092 or ssra-perth@catholic.org.
Enrolments, Year 7, 2014
La Salle College now accepting enrolments for Year 7, 2014. For prospectus and enrolment please contact college reception 9274 6266 or email lasalle@lasalle.wa.edu.au.
Acts 2 College, Perth’s Catholic Bible College Is now pleased to be able to offer tax deductibility for donations to the college. If you are looking for an opportunity to help grow the faith of young people and evangelise the next generation of apostles, please contact Jane Borg, Principal at Acts 2 College on 0401 692 690 or principal@ acts2come.wa.edu.au
Divine Mercy Church Pews
Would you like to assist, at the same time becoming part of the history of the new Divine Mercy Church in Lower Chittering, by donating a beautifully handcrafted jarrah pew currently under construction, costing only $1,000 each. A beautiful brass plaque with your inscription will be placed at the end of the pew. Please make cheques payable to Divine Mercy Church Building fund and send with inscription to PO Box 8, Bullsbrook WA 6084. Enq: Fr Paul 0427 085 093.
Abortion Grief Association Inc
A not-for-profit association is looking for premises to establish a Trauma Recovery Centre (pref SOR) in response to increasing demand for our services (ref.www.abortiongrief.asn.au). Enq: Julie (08) 9313 1784.
RESOURCE CENTRE FOR PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT - 2013 COURSES
Resource Centre for Personal Development
Holistic Health Seminar The Instinct to Heal Tue 3-4.30pm; RCPD2 Internalise Principles of Successful Relationships and Use Emotional Intelligence and Communication Skills Tue 4.30-6.30pm, 197 High St, Fremantle - Tuesdays 3-4.30pm. Enq: Eva 0409 405 585. Bookings essential.
1) RCPD6 ‘The Cost of Discipleship’ This course combines theology with relationship education and personal/spiritual awareness by teaching self-analysis.
2) ‘The Wounded Heart’
Healing for emotional and sexual abuse promotes healing and understanding for the victim and the offender. Holistic counselling available - http:// members.dodo.com.au/~evalenz/.
Religious item donations for Thailand Church
Fr Ferdinando Ronconi is the parish priest at the Church of Our Lady of the Assumption in Phuket, Thailand. He is in need of religious items such as rosaries and holy medals for his local congregation and visitors. If you are able to help, please post items to: PO Box 35, Phuket 83000, Thailand or, if you are on holiday in Phuket, bring your donated items with you to church and stay for Mass! Fr Ferdinando can be contacted on tel: 076 212 266 or 089 912 899 or ronconi.css@gmail.com.
Good Shepherd Parish History I am compiling the history of the Good Shepherd Parish and everyone who has been a part of building the Good Shepherd community is invited to write their story and include photos. An editor has been engaged and the deadline to receive your story is January 30, 2013. Please forward on email: goodshepherdparishhistory@gmail.com. Any enquiries ring Nick De Luca on 9378 2684 or 0419 938 481.
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
www.kinlarvestments.com.au
Quality handmade and decorated vestments: albs, stoles, chasubles, altar linen, banners. Ph Vickii on 9402 1318, 0409 114 093 or kinlar.vestments@ gmail.com.
MEMENTO CANDLES
Personalised candles for Baptism, Wedding, Year 12 Graduations and Absence. Photo and design embedded into candle, creating a great keepsake!
Please call Anna: 0402 961 901 or anna77luca@hotmail.com to order a candle or Facebook: Memento Candles.
HOLIDAY ACCOMMODATION
Esperance holiday accommodation, 3-bedroom house, fully furnished. Phone 08 9076 5083.
QUALITY TAX RETURNS PRE-
PARED by registered tax agent with over 35 years’ experience. Call Tony Marchei 0412 055 184 for appt. AXXO Accounting & Management, Unit 20/222 Walter Rd, Morley. Trade services.
LOSE WEIGHT SAFELY with good nutrition Free samples. Call or SMS Michael 0412 518 318.
CROHNS DISEASE. I have had major surgery to remove parts of my small and large intestines as I have Crohns Disease. Since using Herbalife’s Nutritional Program, my symptoms have gone and I lead a normal life. If you wish to try these wonderful products, please call Mark Norman 0448 443 348 or email wfhbusiness@bigpond.com.
Deadline: 11am Monday
Home-based business. Wellness industry. Call 02 8230 0290 or www.dreamlife1.com.
RESTORATION BOOKBINDING and Conservation; General Book Repairs, Bibles, Brevaries and Liturgical. Tel: 0401 941 577. Now servicing the South-West @ Myalup.
ALL AREAS. Competitive rates. Mike Murphy Ph 0416 226 434.
EXODUS PILGRIMAGE TO THE HOLY LAND November 5-20, 2013. Are you interested in being part of our 16 DAYS OF EXODUS PILGRIMAGE (following the footstep of Moses) to the HOLY LAND (Egypt, Jordan and Holy Land) for just $4,100 from November 5-20, 2013. If so, please contact for early reservation/booking and other enquiries: Fr Emmanuel (Spiritual Director) on: 0417 999 553, fremmanueltv@hotmail. com. Trinidad on: 0420 643 949, dax_gatchi@yahoo.com. Nancy on: 0430 025 774, rncarfrost@ hotmail.com.
PILGRIMAGE OF MERCY - Departs May 11, 2013. Fatima/Poland/Czestochowa/ Auschwitz/Divine Mercy/Vilnius Lithuania/Rome/Gennazzano
Fra Elia (Stigmatist) Civitavecchia (miraculous Madonna shrine) Subiaco/Medju-gorje five countries. Exceptional value all inclusive $6,890. Fr Bogoni (Spiritual Director) Yolanda 0413 707 707/Harvest toll free 1800 819 156 23 days.
KIRKWOOD (MAUREEN) In loving memory of my wonderful Mother, who died on February 3, 1985. So good, honourable and lovable, kind and generous to us and all people. Thank you so much, Mother Darling, for a lifetime of loving care. May God be with you always, and with dear Pappa also. You remain lovingly in my thoughts and prayers. Moira. May perpetual light shine upon them. May they rest in peace.
ARE YOU BUYING OR SELLING real estate or a business? Why not ask Excel Settlements for a quote for your settlement. We offer reasonable fees, excellent service, no hidden costs. Ring 9481 4499 for a quote. Check our website on www. excelsettlements.com.au.
19 DAYS - Petra, Amman, Holy Land, Dubai, Fatima and Medjugorje. Cost: A$6,000.
Monday, May 13, 2013. Spiritual Director: Fr Francis Huy Thanh Nguyen. Tel: 9296 7088. 24 days - Italy, Fatima, Lourdes, Paris and Poland. Cost: A$6,300. Sunday, September 1, 2013. Spiritual Directors: Fr Dariusz Basiaga SDS and Fr Sabu (Sebastian) Kalapurackal VC. Tel: 9398 2331 or 9381 5383. 22 days - Petra, Amman, Holy Land, Poland and Dubai. Cost: A$6,000. Monday, October 7, 2013. Spiritual Director: Fr Ireneusz Czech SDS. Tel: 9344 7066.
RURI STUDIO FOR HAIR
Vincent and Miki welcome you to their newly opened, international, award-winning salon. Shop 2, 401 Oxford St, Leederville. 9444 3113. Ruri-studio-for-hair@ hotmail.com.
BRENDAN HANDYMAN
SERVICES
Home, building maintenance, repairs and renovations. NOR.
Ph 0427 539 588.
WRR LAWN MOWING AND WEED SPRAYING Garden clean ups and rubbish removal. Get rid of bindii, jojo and other unsightly weeds. Based in Tuart Hill. Enq: 6161 3264 or 0402 326 637.
BRICK RE-POINTING
Ph Nigel 9242 2952.
PERROTT PAINTING Pty Ltd
For all your residential, commercial painting requirements. Ph Tom Perrott 9444 1200.
BRICKLAYING From letterboxes to houses. Ph Paddy 040 929 6598.
ACROSS
3 Joseph’s prison mate (Gen 40:2–
3)
9 Focal place of the Mass
10 Prophet of the exile
11 Genesis plot
12 With 26A, Catholic dancer and movie star Kelly
13 Chief apostle
15 “___ not, that you be not…” (Mt 7:1)
16 St Mark is patron of this city
17 Assist at Mass
20 Nuns wear
22 Jesus compared a rich man to this animal in Mk 10:25
23 A Doctor of the Church is from this Italian town
25 The Lord’s
26 See 12A
29 Brother of Rebekah
31 Papal
32 Altar linen
35 Language of Palestine during the life of Christ
36 One of two names in a Catholic book publishing company
37 16th century Council
DOWN
1 “In the sweat of your you shall eat bread” (Gen 3:19)
2 Be present at Mass
3 Male members of religious orders (abbreviation)
4 It is sometimes on the back of a pew
5 Take communion
6 “Our soul waits for the LORD; he
is our and shield” (Ps 33:20)
7 Communion at the end
8 Friend of St Francis of Assisi
14 “___ in peace”
15 Fourth Evangelist
18 The Dolorosa
19 Feet in the image beheld by Nebuchadnezzar
21 The crowd wanted him rather than Jesus
22 Food for Elijah (1 Kings 19:6)
23 Cardinal in charge of a congregation in the Curia
24 Catholic entertainer called “The Schnozoola”
27 Miracle of the and fishes
28 “If anyone wants to go to law with you over your tunic, hand him your as well” (Mt 5:40)
30 He took the animals two by two
33 Our of Sorrows
34 Winter hours in the Diocese of Cheyenne
LAST WEEK’S SOLUTION
Only $48.00
In the summer of 1974, 17-year-old Anita Keagy discovered that she was pregnant by her boyfriend. Having grown up in a loving but strict Christian home, Anita feared disgracing her family and considered abortion. Instead, with much prayer and courage, she gave her child up for adoption. Years later, married and raising four children, Anita felt compelled to communicate with her unknown daughter through a file of letters. This is a program for anyone who is suffering through painful circumstances and struggling to see God’s purpose in their lives.
Explore the mysterious circumstances of Christ’s birth in this captivating look at the first Christmas. Joseph and Mary travelled to Bethlehem by order of the Emperor, Augustus Caesar. This census has long confounded historians seeking to reconcile the Bible with recorded history. The evidence to address that is both intriguing and insightful. The mysteries continue when a star appears to announce the birth of the King of the Jews. What was the star? What did it look like? When did it appear? Explore the star like the Magi, to better know Christmas.
Only $30.00
When Hannah collapses during a college play, she’s rushed to the hospital, where medical tests reveal the underlying cause - trauma suffered at birth. Soon afterward, she discovers another shocking fact: she was adopted after a failed abortion attempt. Bewildered and angry, Hannah goes in search of her birth mother. Will the truth set her free?
Only $46.00
A powerful and inspirational story about family, friends, faith and the challenges we face navigating this complicated world. Martin Sheen plays Tom, an American doctor who comes to France to collect the remains of his adult son (Emilio Estevez), killed in a storm in the Pyrenees while walking the famous Camino de Santiago, “The Way of St James”. Tom decides to embark on the historical pilgrimage to honour his son’s desire to finish the journey, unprepared for the profound impact the journey will have on him. This is a film and story that stays with you.