The Southern Cross - 100908 by The Southern Cross

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Top rabbi visits SA Catholics

Priests: Train new leaders

Second ‘Council of Trent’

Moerdyk slams censorship

September 8 to September 14, 2010 Reg No. 1920/002058/06

No 4692

www.scross.co.za

SOUTHERN AFRICA’S NATIONAL CATHOLIC WEEKLY SINCE 1920

Inside

Bishops: Drop anti-media Bill, tribunal idea

Alternatives to abortion As part of our four-part series on how to address the crisis of abortion, we are looking at alternatives to abortion.—Page 7

Priest look back and ahead Priests will meet in Bloemfontein to celebrate the 25th anniversary of an anti-apartheid march by seminarians. —Page 3

BY STAFF REPORTER

Agent Orange alert A group of religious figures who visited Vietnam have said that Agent Orange is still affecting many people to this day—35 years after the war.—Page 5

Turning a child away In her monthly column Toni Rowland is upset that a child may not be allowed to make his First Communion.—Page 9

Newman’s comeback The penultimate part of Fr Austin’s series on John Henry Newman looks at the cardinal’s rehabilitation.—Page 9

What do you think? In their Letters to the Editor this week, readers discuss donations to the Church, discussing the faith, Jesus’ teachings, lack of leaders, and suffering—Page 6

This week’s editorial: Pope in Britain

Surf’s up! Nuns ride the waves

R5,50 (incl VAT RSA)

CONGREGATION of American nuns host an annual Nun’s Beach Surf Invitational in New Jersey to raise funds for the maintenance of their mother house. Sr James Dolores, 73, from the Sister Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, said: “I’m really getting the hang of this. No one ever thought they’d see me on a board.” Pictured in the New York Post posing on a surfboard on the beach, the nun has a special relationship with local surfers. It was forged more than 60 years ago when local surfers approached the nuns’ beach-front retreat, the Villa Maria by the Sea, asking if they could ride its waves. The nuns warmly greeted the beach bums, and the swath of surf was soon dubbed “Nun’s Beach”. The sisters often sit on the beach and even draw spiritual inspiration watching the wave-riders. “It’s very peaceful,” said Sr James, the retreat’s property manager. “You see how the water holds them up and balances them and if you ride with the water, it will get you where you want to go. That’s how it is with the grace of God.” In 1996, a small group of surfers decided it was time to give back to the nuns—by running a contest to help fund the 150-bedroom retreat’s upkeep. About 100 surfers pay $35 (R255) to participate, but hundreds more come to look on. It is $15 (R110) Tshirts that make the biggest profit. Redesigned every year, they feature images of nuns praying on boards and surfing over an American flag. All the images are based on Sr James, who does not really surf. “The surf contest is the single most important event for raising awareness of our presence here and who and what we are about,” Sr James said. “My heart is not big enough to express all the gratitude for all of this help.”—cathnews.com

Blessed Sacrament parish in Virginia-Umhlanga, Durban, has installed a large crucifix statue mounted on its exterior wall, facing a traffic circle. The statue is lit up at night and can be seen from a distance. It was made by local artist and sculptor Clint Williamson. The mould for the body was taken from a 1,93m tall man and that of the face from another man. The cross was moulded from railway sleepers. The mould for the statue can be hired by other churches from Blessed Sacrament parish office. For details call 031-564 7587.

Do unions run SA? BY CLAIRE MATHIESON

HE protracted public workers’ strike may have been a struggle for power within the African National Congress-led alliance as much as it was about salaries, and showed that trade unions are too powerful, according a Church-based political analyst. Fr Anthony Egan SJ of the Jesuit Institute South Africa in Johannesburg said that “it is possible the prolonged strike has been an attempt by [unions within the Congress of South African Trade Unions] to call Jacob Zuma to line”, pointing out that President Zuma came to power partly through the support of the trade unions and the South African Communist Party. He said that those with the ability to shut down the country, control the country: “One might say whoever wins in strike negotiations truly has power.” Fr Egan referred to England in the 1980s under Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. “With sheer will and determination, the police stopped the [year-long] coal miners’ strike. That showed the state had power.” Mrs Thatcher’s government did what the previous government could not do and that resulted in long-standing power. “The South African government hasn’t done much to prevent the strikers from striking, being disorderly and being violent. Does the state realise this shows a loss of power?” Fr Egan asked. “The strikers think they are financially motivated, but the deadlock runs far deeper. The unions want the money, but this is about power.” The government has been criticised by the unions for spending on unnecessary items including luxury cars and football World Cup tickets. Fr Egan said government has “sent the message that they can afford to pay for some things, but not this”. This was the catalyst for action by the unions to show their influence. “Healthcare should be considered essential, but these services are not paid well. Members of Parliament, however, earn big sums of money and many of these services can easily be described as ‘non-essential’.”

Fr Egan suggested the state’s lack of control could be seen in the illegal actions of the union members. He said the unions had been instigating disorderly action among their members but had not been called to answer for the death and destruction caused as result of these actions. “During the 1980s the ‘Doctrine of Common Purpose’ was a law that allowed for the prosecution of people involved in this kind violence. Leadership of these unions should be charged under a similar law,” the priest said. “Government has become blasé about the ‘collateral damage’ seen through these strikes, but the only response is a financial debate not control, which is needed.” Fr Egan said laws and proactive undertakings would indicate the state was trying to regain control. Instead, Fr Egan said, there is no sense of control but a “sense in the general public that people can get away with murder if there is enough support”, for example from a union. In a statement issued during the strike, the Southern Africa Catholic Bishops’ Conference (SACBC) said it was “horrified at the incidences of violence and intimidation perpetrated by participants in the public servants strike”. The statement, signed by Cardinal Wilfrid Napier of Durban and SACBC spokesperson, supported the right to strike, but called for those involved to “recognise the rights of others to choose freely what they want to do”. Fr Peter-John Pearson, director of the Catholic Parliamentary Liason Office, said: “Many people say striking is too common, but it does have its place in our democracy.” He said the Catholic Church approves of strikes as a necessary form of achieving justice, however, “consideration for others is needed”. Fr Egan said that the failure of managements and government to protect the rights of non-strikers suggested the unions were more influential. Continued on page 3

HE Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference (SACBC) has strongly protested against the proposed Protection of Information Bill as well as the moored Media Appeals Tribunal. In a statement, the bishops question the “wisdom and the constitutionality” of the Bill, saying that it threatens “some of our most fundamental rights”. These include the rights to receive and impart information; to a free press and media; of access to information held by the state; and to administrative justice. “Furthermore, we believe that the Bill violates the spirit of openness and accountability that is so necessary to underpin the Constitution’s provisions on good governance, essential for a healthy democracy,” the bishops said in a statement signed by Cardinal Wilfrid Napier, archbishop of Durban and spokesman for the SACBC. The bishops said they are concerned Cardinal Wilfrid Napier that, according to the Bill, “virtually any information is liable to be classified as secret by officials who are themselves not accountable to the public”. Moreover, they said, “the definition of national interest and national security are so broad that they could be used to keep secret matters that ought by right to be accessible to the public” and “there is practically no right of appeal, as any appeal would be processed by the very people who made the original ruling”. The bishops warned that the Bill could echo the restrictions on the media in the apartheid era. “We certainly do not want government to take us back to the oppressive practices of yesteryear, against which our common struggle was launched.” The bishops acknowledged that “some degree of restriction of information is both legitimate and necessary”, but that this must not come at the cost of public transparency and accountability. The Bill, they said, “risks fostering or even entrenching a culture of non-accountability and non-transparency among state officials at all levels”. The bishops called on the government to “withdraw the Bill for complete redrafting to ensure that the openness and transparency required by the Constitution and demanded by a clear majority of informed civil society organisation and legal experts are adequately built in”. The bishops said that a statutory Media Appeals Tribunal, appointed by and answerable to parliament, is unnecessary, saying that there already is “an efficient media ombudsman”. Proponents of the Media Appeals Tribunal have said that the ombud’s office is biased, because it is financed by the media and has no power to enforce its decisions. The bishops said the media should be able to regulate itself, backing proposals to beef up the ombud’s role. “We believe that the proposed measure will give this instrument sufficient muscle to satisfy complainants,” the bishops said.

LOCAL

The Southern Cross, September 8 to September 14, 2010

Mother of two priests dies at the age of 67 BY STAFF REPORTER

STAFF REPORTER

HE mother of two Catholic priests has died at the age of 67. Catherine Smuts, from Lavistown in Cape Town, mother to Fr Rohan Smuts and Fr Ricardo Smuts, both priests in the archdiocese of Cape Town, died suddenly on July 18. Mrs Smuts would have been 68 on September 1. Mrs Smuts, affectionately known as Cathy, attended St Martin de Porres parish in Lavistown, where she was a catechist for 38 years, a Eucharistic minister, parish florist and choir member. She has been described by close friend and fellow parishioner Josephine Stevens as a “parish stalwart”. Speaking to The Southern Cross, a very emotional Mrs Stevens said Mrs Smuts was “a very lovable, humble, charismatic person”. “I knew her before when she was a young person. When I think about my friend I just want to cry,” said Mrs Stevenson. “She was a dedicated woman. She was dedicated to her family, community and church. And she was a good cook. Out of nothing she could make something. “I miss everything about her— her charisma, humility, friendship, humour. We would call each other every day and have a good laugh about things.” Mrs Stevens remembered the last conversation she had with her friend. “The Friday before she died I phoned her and told her that I wanted to retire as a catechist. After Cathy’s death I decided to

Catherine Smuts, mother of two priests, has been described as a “stalwart of the Church”. She died aged 67. retire,” she said. “One thing about her that I will always remember is that she never spoke badly about people. I will miss her dearly.” Mrs Stevens leaves behind her husband Dan, sons Frs Rohan and Ricardo Smuts, daughters Michelle and Danielle, and grandsons Cameron and Jayden.

Are unions running SA? Continued from page 1 “This is a huge problem because the unions are not the state!” Fr Egan said this brought about questions of who is actually running the country. “Strikes are seen as a way to close the social gap between the

 J.M.J

Priests: ‘Train new Church leaders’

rich and poor. They are a way to force negotiations to move forward. “Strikes have their place in our country. However, this strike was prolonged because there is discontent with the country’s leadership,” the Jesuit said.

HE Southern African Council of Priests (SACOP) has called on bishops to “continue to train and support emerging leaders among priests” in their dioceses in a bid to nurture leadership in the Church. The priests discussed concerns raised at their annual general meeting at the Mariannhill Monastery Retreat Centre in KwaZulu-Natal about the imbalances in the appointment of black bishops, and of new bishops being moved to dioceses “where they have little or no knowledge of the language and culture”, a SACOP communiqué said. The priests’ council thanked the apostolic nuncio, Archbishop James P Green, for “facilitating the election of many new bishops”, but resolved to ask him “that the process of electing a bishop might be communicated”. The training of emerging priest leaders should include clergy “being sent for further studies and priests being entrusted with leadership in dioceses”, SACOP said. “This will provide experienced

leadership for the future.” Delegates at the AGM participated in a Spirituality of Leadership workshop facilitated by the Jesuit Institute of South Africa. The meeting noted that more than 20 priests are currently furthering their studies. “The vitality of the priestly life in Southern Africa depends on working towards a renewed vision of mission and solidarity,” the council said. The priests expressed concern at “the pressure of an increasing workload as pastors and community animators” with some “feeling close to burn out”. The meeting noted “the many efforts” in the Southern African region to celebrate the Year for Priests, which ran from June 2009 to June 2010. “This has been a wonderful opportunity for priests to feel the support of the many communities who organised celebrations and prayers.” The council thanked “all involved in making this an affirming experience”. The meeting addressed other problem areas,

Defence lessons for Catholics BY CLAIRE MATHIESON

ROUBLED by what he perceives to be a lack of understanding of Catholic teachings, a Johannesburg Catholic has created What the Catholic Church Teaches, available as a book or on a set of four audio CDs. The book covers 23 topics, including the sacraments, marriage, divorce and annulment, apparitions and the rosary. Author John Lee, of Catholics for Truth, said: “Having taught catechism to those preparing for confirmation, I can tell you that the knowledge of the faith of many young Catholics is appalling.” The Yeoville resident said the

initiative aims to improve the knowledge of the scriptures and to equip Catholics with answers to attacks on their faith. “Many of our fellow Catholics are unable to defend the truths of our faith,” he said. His initiative covers topics in a South African context and answers a call for evangelisation in the Church, Mr Lee said. “We Catholics are notoriously poor evangelisers.” Mr Lee suggested that many young Catholics leave the Church because they are not sure how to deal with questions and criticism. He said there is a need to educate Catholics in a way that they feel confident in their faith. He

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suggested that this is not only something that should be done during confirmation classes, but throughout one’s Catholic life. Mr Lee, who also presents a show on Radio Veritas, said he hoped What the Catholic Church Teaches would help people re-energise their beliefs and aid people in defending the faith against antiCatholic attacks. The book has been checked for theological correctness by Fr Michael Austin SJ of the Johannesburg Archdiocesan Theological Institute and is sold with the permission of the archdiocese’s Department of Evangelisation.  For more information Mr Lee 011 643 4313.

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including the difficulty faced by priests in rural dioceses. “Rapid migration to cities has left many rural dioceses with diminishing resources. Economic migration can’t be blamed for all challenges, but is a major factor in rural depopulation”, the meeting noted. “Land rights and the communal viability of small scale agriculture remain a critical point of discussion for the future of Southern Africa. The collapse of labourintensive agriculture is a problem we believe is being under-reported. The agriculture sector needs serious investigation and discussion,” the meeting noted. The AGM elected a new SACOP executive for 2010-2013, with Fr Christopher Slater of Port Elizabeth as chairman, Fr Cosmos Mzizi of Mariannhill as vice-chairman, Fr Jean Chrysostome Kiyala of Tzaneen as secretary, and Fr Hugh O’Connor of Cape Town as treasurer. Other executive members are Frs Bheki Motloung of Durban, Vusumuzi ka Magagula of eMalahleni, and Albert Post of De Aar.

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LOCAL

The Southern Cross, September 8 to September 14, 2010

Rabbi visits Jesuits for inter-religious dialogue BY CHRIS CHATTERIS SJ

EFERRING to his time as chief rabbi of Ireland and the post’s special status in the Irish constitution, Rabbi David Rosen quipped: “It’s the only way a Jewish boy can become an archbishop.” English-born Rabbi Rosen, accompanied by his wife Sharon and Alana Baranov of the Jewish board of Deputies, visited the Jesuit Institute’s Braamfontein headquarters in Johannesburg while on a South African visit, which also included a meeting with Cardinal Wilfrid Napier in Durban. Rabbi Rosen’s untiring work for religious reconciliation has been recognised by both Church and state. In 2005 he was awarded a papal knighthood and in 2010 he received the CBE (Commander of the British Empire) from Queen Elizabeth. In Braamfontein, the rabbi spoke of his familiarity with South Africa. He served the Jewish community in Sea Point, Cape Town,

where he was the founder and chairman of the Cape Inter-Faith Forum. The Jewish community makes the connection between the Shoah (Holocaust) and the experience of apartheid, which makes a difference for Jewish-Christian and Jewish-Muslim relations in this country, he said. On Jewish-Catholic relations, Rabbi Rosen said his hero is Pope John Paul II, whose most memorable symbolic gesture was his prayer at the Western Wall in Jerusalem in March 2000. However, the Church had already gone beyond symbols and gestures. In the Vatican II document Nostra Aetate, the Church completely redefined the theological relationship between the two faiths. Cardinal Walter Kasper, until recently the Church’s head of interfaith dialogue, described it as “an astonishing transformation”. Rabbi Rosen illustrated this by quoting Pope John Paul who declared at Assisi in 1993 that the Jewish people “are the beloved elder brother of the Church of the

Rabbi David Rosen, flanked by Jesuit Fathers Anthony Egan (left) and Chris Chatteris, during his visit to the Jesuit Institute SA in Braamfontein, Johannesburg. original Covenant never broken and never to be broken”. However, no relationship is without its ups and downs. Rabbi Rosen spoke frankly but with understanding about the recent difficulties, with, for example, the Bishop Williamson affair and the canonisation process of Pius XII. Despite some difficulties, Rabbi

Rosen said, the transformation of the relationship between Judaism and Christianity has been so profound that it is an example for the rest of humanity. If such extraordinary healing is possible, what other relationship cannot also be healed, the Rabbi asked. The gathering discussed the problem of how to be assertive and even passionate while choosing a

middle path of dialogue. Rabbi Rosen said that “the passionate tend to be exclusionary rather than inclusive” and “moderation suggests a weaker version of the tradition”. Hence, what he called “intense pluralism” is hard to live out. But the results achieved in Christian-Jewish relations provide proof of the possibility of effective moderation. One of the rabbi’s passionate appeals was for Christians to take the Jewishness of Jesus seriously. Much was still to be done, he said, referring to a humorous graffiti message which asked: “If Jesus was Jewish, how come he had a Spanish name?” The implication was that if Christians can take Jesus’ Jewishness seriously, then anti-Semitism becomes simply absurd. “A universalism that doesn’t come out of a strong sense of identity is likely to be shallow,” said Rabbi Rosen. “Tea and sympathy are not enough.” But, he added, “particularities can enrich universalities.”

Marching priests to look back and ahead BY STAFF REPORTER

GROUP of 15-20 priests will be meeting in Bloemfontein this month to celebrate the 25th anniversary of an antiapartheid march to the Union Buildings by members of the Catholic Seminarians Movement (CASM) at St John Vianney’s in Pretoria. The meeting will discuss the challenges facing the Church in South Africa today and “what has been identified as the absence of the prophetic leadership of our priests today”, according to Fr Victor Phalana of Pretoria. “While many priests in South Africa are faithful to the life and duties of the priest, we are failing when it comes to the prophetic mission of the Church, which is mainly evangelisation and working for peace and justice,” Fr Phalana said. “What is the source of this kind

of passivity, that inferiority complex, that intellectual slavery, lack of inner freedom and initiative?” He added: “Looking back at 1985 and the energy, the creative genius and the imaginative force of the seminarians of the time, one has to ask: What happened to us? Are we ready to allow God to use us as masters of our destiny and shapers of the Church of tomorrow? How do we free ourselves from the effects of colonial Christianity and its devastating effects in our consciousness?” The reflections from the Bloemfontein meeting—which will be supported by Fr Mokesh Morar and the Sekwele Centre for Social Reflection—will be forwarded to the South African Council of Priests and the bishops’ Office of Ongoing Formation of Priests. Apart from Fr Phalana, former CASM members include Bishop Xolelo Khumalo of Eshowe; Bish-

op Sithembele Sipuka of Mthatha; Fr Mluleki Mnyaka of Port Elizabeth; Fr Michael Van Heerden, now rector of St Augustine College; Fr Peter-John Pearson, director of the Catholic Parliamentary Liaison Office; Fr Enrico Parry, rector of St John Vianney Seminary; and Fr Philemon Thobela of Tzaneen. Fr Phalana recalled the events leading up to the 1985 march. “The rector at the time, Fr William Slattery [now bishop of Kokstad], was very sympathetic to the struggle for Justice and Peace, but felt that he could not give a simple go-ahead for a march. He knew that all bishops and our parents were going to demand us from him should anything happen. “He prayed, he discerned, he consulted and eventually told us: ‘These people are going to mow you down! I can’t allow you to go

ahead with this kind of a march!’ After negotiations we reached a compromise: the rector was willing to allow the march to go ahead on condition that there were to be no placards and that the march would have to start at the foot of the Union Buildings,” Fr Phalana said. The seminarians had intended to start the march from Church Square, through the streets of Pretoria, to the Union Building. “We were preparing to march with placards and hymns, denouncing the State of Emergency and calling for the release of detainees and the end to the apartheid policy.” Some students pulled out of the march over the shortened route and ban on placards. Meanwhile, Frs Phalana and Pearson informed the staff at the presidency. “On the day of the March, our rector went into deep prayer and solitude,” Fr Phalana recalled. “He

knew the risk we were taking on that day. We arrived at the foot of the Union Building, in Church Street. We started to pray the rosary and sing hymns and liberation songs. We could see the commotion as the security personnel were somewhat confused about this group of young men, clerically dressed and marching up to the Union Building. “On our arrival we knelt at the stairs of the Union Building, we prayed and sang the natio0nal anthem, ‘Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrika’. As we were singing, minister Pik Botha passed by, with a foreign dignitary, and a contingency of journalists and media personnel. These journalists abandoned Pik Botha and became more interested in us and our story. Fortunately, we had enough copies of our statement or memorandum. We duly handed them over and read out our statement,” Fr Phalana said.

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Before confirming 35 young people in Umhlanga, Aliwal North diocese, Bishop Michael Wüstenberg listened to the plight of the area’s people. The public sector strike has badly affected the schooling of disadvantaged children in the area, he said. The parish pastoral council was upset that people earning thousands of rands prevented the poor from receiving proper healthcare. Fr William Ketso said he saw a wide field opening up for the young Christians who were confirmed to commit themselves boldly to a solidarity that is all-inclusive and powered by the Holy Spirit.

Holy Land. Jordan. Cairo. 26 April – 5 May 2011 Led by: Fr Emmanuel Casillas MCCJ ================

Immaculate Conception Pilgrimage Holy Land. Jordan. Cairo. 3 – 14 May 2011 Led by: Fr Sonny Gadai OFM Cap ================

Radio Veritas Pilgrimage

YOU & The Souther n Cross Has The Southern Cross played an important part in your life? Have you written for The Southen Cross? Do you have a great anecdote involving The Southern Cross? If so, we would love to hear from you for our SPECIAL 90TH ANNIVERSARY ISSUE in October. Please contact Claire Mathieson at 021 465 5007 or c.mathieson@scross.co.za before September 3 To advertise in that special edition, please contact Elizabeth Hutton at 021 465 5007 or advertising@scross.co.za

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INTERNATIONAL

The Southern Cross, September 8 to September 14, 2010

Catholics, Muslims must overcome violence BY CAROL GLATZ

S Muslims around the world prepare to celebrate Eid-ulFitr, Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran encouraged Catholics and Muslims to work together in overcoming violence among followers of different religions. Cardinal Tauran, president of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, said it was important that teachers and religious leaders work together to promote peace and harmony in their communities. The message was issued in 31 different languages and was addressed to Muslims around the world. Cardinal Tauran noted that many believers of other religions, especially Christians, had been “spiritually close” to their Muslim neighbours during Ramadan and had engaged in “friendly meetings which often lead to exchanges of a religious nature”.

Unfortunately, violence among people belonging to different religious communities is an urgent concern in some parts of the world, the cardinal wrote. Civil and religious authorities, he said, need to help remedy the root causes of this violence “for the sake of the common good of all society”. Some problems that contribute to fomenting violence against believers include “the manipulation of religion for political or other ends; discrimination based on ethnicity or religious identity; and divisions and social tensions” as well as ignorance, poverty and underdevelopment, Cardinal Tauran wrote. Governments must safeguard and guarantee “the primacy of the law by ensuring true justice to put a stop to the authors and promoters of violence”, he said. The cardinal said that representatives of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue and al-Azhar

University in Cairo recommended that Catholics and Muslims work to promote “mutual forgiveness and reconciliation for a peaceful and fruitful coexistence; to recognise what we have in common and to respect difference as a basis for a culture of dialogue; and to recognise and respect the dignity and rights of each human being without any bias related to ethnicity or religious affiliation”. He said they also recommended that countries enact just laws that guarantee the fundamental equality of all people and a philosophy of education in homes, schools, churches and mosques that promotes respect, dialogue and fraternity. Education, including textbooks, has “a decisive impact” on the worldview and formation of younger generations, the cardinal wrote.—CNS

Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, president of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, listens as Ayatollah Ahmad Iravani, president of the Centre for the Study of Islam and the Middle East, addresses a press conference in Washington. As Muslims around the world are about to celebrate Eid-ul-Fitr, Cardinal Tauran encourages Catholics and Muslims to work together in overcoming violence among followers of different religions. PHOTO: NANCY WIECHEC/CNS

Belgian cardinal: I was naive BY JONATHAN LUXMOORE

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SPOKESMAN for Belgian Cardinal Godfried Danneels said the transcript of an April meeting with a victim of clergy sex abuse has been interpreted out of context. “There was no intention of any cover-up,” said Toon Osaer, spokesman for the cardinal, who retired in January as archbishop of Mechelen-Brussels. “Seen from today’s perspective, the cardinal realises he was rather naive to think he could help the family in question reach a reconciliation,” he said. “At that moment, however, the family didn’t want to make public something they’d kept secret for 24 years.” Belgium’s Flemish-language De Standaard and Het Nieuwsblad dailies published an alleged transcript of the cardinal’s April meeting with relatives of the nephew of Bishop Roger Vangheluwe of Brugge. The unnamed nephew was abused by his uncle before and after the bishop’s 1985 consecration. “This was a totally confiden-

tial meeting, and the family intended to keep it all within the family,” the spokesman said. “This is why the cardinal tried to see if a reconciliation was possible. He asked the victim if Vangheluwe should resign immediately, pointing out that we would then have to provide an explanation for his departure. He said if the resignation could be left for another year, it would not be necessary to bring the family’s internal affairs into the open.” Mr Osaer said that Cardinal Danneels had offered his advice because the family “disagreed sharply” over the best course of action. Bishop Vangheluwe resigned this year after admitting abusing his nephew for 13 years. According to the text, Cardinal Danneels drew a distinction between “public and private punishment” of the bishop and suggested “forgiveness and forgiving” to the unnamed victim, who said he would leave the decision about going public to the cardinal. In a statement to Belgian newspapers, Mr Osaer said Cardi-

nal Danneels “condemned and profoundly regretted” the abuse by Bishop Vangheluwe but also regretted the April meeting had been recorded without the knowledge of those present. In a pastoral letter to Catholics, the bishops of Belgium asked forgiveness of victims of priestly sexual abuse and promised wide-ranging steps to curb the problem in the future. In late June, while the bishops were meeting in Brussels, police seized 475 files compiled by a Church commission on clergy sexual abuse. Police detained the bishops for nine hours and took away their cell phones, and a laptop belonging to Cardinal Danneels. Belgian justice minister Stefaan De Clerck has called for a new Church commission on clergy abuse and urged the Catholic Church to “continue assuming its responsibilities”. Mr Osaer said the bishops’ conference had already decided to set up a new commission and would announce details in the near future.—CNS

Catholic newspaper is Poland’s top seller

NATIONAL Catholic newspaper has become Poland’s top-selling weekly, outstripping its secular competitors. Gosc Niedzielny (Sunday Guest), a 92-page tabloid owned by the archdiocese of Katowice, was confirmed as the country’s highest-circulation weekly with more than 144 000 copies. Fr Tomasz Jaklewicz, deputy editor, said the paper had benefited from a vigorous chief editor, Fr Marek Gancarczyk, and a youthful editorial team, as well as support by Catholic parishes nationwide. He said the staff had made sure the paper is “contemporary and up-to-date in form and content and addresses the issues most preoccupying people here

in an open, approachable way”. ZKDP, the association that controls Poland’s press distribution, said Gosc Niedzielny, which runs local editions in half of the country’s 34 Catholic dioceses, had boosted sales by 5,5% in the past year, overtaking its nearest secular rival, Polityka, whose circulation fell by 2% to 142 000. Fr Jaklewicz said Gosc Niedzielny offered a positive sign to counter media claims that the Polish Catholic Church faced decline with falling priestly vocations and Mass attendance. “Although the Church has its problems and weaknesses, there are many good, hopeful things happening as well,” he said. —CNS

Various covers of Gosc Niedzielny, Poland’s best selling weekly publication. The magazine is owned by the archdiocese of Katowice, and edited by Fr Marek Gancarczyk.

Pope: Peace in Somalia

OPE Benedict made an urgent plea for peace and an end to disrespect for life and law in Somalia. Addressing a weekly general audience, the pope said his thoughts were with the people of the Somali capital of Mogadishu, which continues to be hit by “brutal violence and was the scene of a fresh massacre yesterday”. The pope said he was pray-

ing for the victims’ families and all those who “are suffering because of the hatred and instability” in Somalia. He said he hoped that with the help of the international community, no effort would be spared “to re-establish a respect for life and human rights”. Armed militants disguised as Somali government forces raided a hotel in the Somali capital,

killing at least 32 people, including six members of parliament. At least two attackers went floor to floor spraying gunfire, and at least one of them blew himself up inside the hotel, according to media reports. Somalia’s al-Shabab militant group claimed responsibility for the attack, which occurred during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.—CNS

INTERNATIONAL

The Southern Cross, September 8 to September 14, 2010

Sex abuse: German bishops set new guidelines for claims G BY JONATHAN LUXMOORE

ERMANY’s Catholic bishops have approved new guidelines for handling claims of sex abuse by Church personnel to facilitate cooperation with law enforcement bodies. The guidelines, in preparation since February, were approved by the bishops’ permanent council at a meeting in Würzburg. The new guidelines will replace the 2002 guidelines and are expected to be expanded to include all Church personnel, not just clergy. Ludwig Ring-Eifel, editor-inchief of the German Catholic news agency KNA, said the likely extension of the guidelines to teachers at Catholic schools and other lay Church employees would help “bring greater security” to children in Church institutions. “They may well help the emergence of a more positive image of the Church,” he said. “But it will take at least five years

to repair the damage done by recent scandals, during which time the media could dig up new abuse cases.” Since January, when abuse claims were made against staff at a Jesuit-run college in Berlin, many German dioceses and religious orders have faced accusations of abuse by priests. In February, the bishops’ conference opened a hotline offering advice, therapy and contacts for victims. In May, Pope Benedict accepted the resignation of Bishop Walter Mixa of Augsburg after claims he beat children at a Church-run orphanage before he was a bishop. In June, a German prosecutor said he was investigating accusations against the president of the German bishops’ conference, Archbishop Robert Zollitsch of Freiburg. The accuser said the prelate had been an accessory to the abuse of children in the 1960s and had allowed an abusive priest to return to his diocese in 1987. The archdiocese rejected the allegations, accusing

the media of sensationalism. “Public interest in this issue has fallen sharply, so the Church will get fewer headlines about the new guidelines than it did for past abuse cases,” said Mr Ring-Eifel. The number of Catholics leaving the German Church by giving up paying the traditional Church tax doubled in the first six months of 2010, according to Church data, with the highest departures reported in the western and southern parts of the country. “But there are signs Church membership is not dropping as sharply as it did a few months ago, and that Mass attendance has even increased in some areas, with many Catholics wanting to know what their priests and bishops think about the situation,” said Mr RingEifel. “As more abuse cases come to light outside the Church, furthermore, people seem to be forming a more balanced judgment and not just seeing this as a Church problem.” —CNS

Pope interviewed by journalist J

UST as he did twice before being elected to the papacy, Pope Benedict sat down for a series of conversations, spread over a week, with German journalist Peter Seewald. The results of the first conversations were the book-length interviews Salt of the Earth, published in 1996, and God and the World, published in 2002. The books covered a wide variety of subjects, including Pope Benedict’s youth, his teaching career in Germany and his work as prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine

of the Faith. Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, Vatican spokesman, said Mr Seewald and the pope held a series of conversations at the papal summer villa in Castel Gandolfo, south of Rome. The pope responded to “questions on a variety of arguments” just as he did for Seewald’s earlier books, Father Lombardi said. The conversations were conducted in German, the spokesman said, and publication of the new book in German and in Italian is expected before the end of

GROUP of ten interreligious figures who visited Vietnam have said the toxic, corrosive effects of Agent Orange still jeopardise the Vietnamese people 35 years after the war’s end. Travelling as the Agent Orange in Vietnam Information Initiative, the group said money is still needed to clean up “hot spots” in Vietnam where dioxin, the key ingredient in Agent Orange, persists in concentrations hundreds of times what is thought to be the safe maxi-

mum. In Da Nang, site of a United States airbase during the war, “the stench [from Agent Orange] was burning to our nostrils”, said the Rev Carroll Baltimore, president of the Progressive National Baptist Convention. “We had to purchase throw-away shoes to protect us from being contaminated,” he added, calling the situation “overwhelming”. Loretto Sister Maureen Fiedler recalled having seen dozens of children whose disabilities were thought to be caused by Agent Orange, as dioxin is believed to affect the genes of those who

Pope: Protect the earth’s resources

EOPLE today have a duty to leave the earth in a state in which future generations “can live in dignity and safeguard it further”, said Pope Benedict . Expressing his support for the Day for Safeguarding Creation, the pope told people gathered in the courtyard of his summer residence at Castel Gandolfo: “There can be no peace in the world without respecting the environment.” The Day for Safeguarding Creation is celebrated by the Catholic Church in Italy and the Greek Orthodox Church, which also makes the occasion “important on an ecumenical level”, the pope said. In a message marking the day, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople said all men and women must take part in “this titanic and just fight” to address the environmental crisis and prevent its impact on the earth from worsening.—CNS

PHOTO: PASCAL PARRA/CNS/REUTERS

COMBONI MISSIONARIES Founded by Saint Daniel Comboni

We are committed as Priests or Brothers to EVANGELIZATION and DEVELOPMENT in Africa, Europe, America and Asia the year. The copyright will be held by the Vatican Publishing House.—CNS

Agent Orange still destroys lives By MARK PATTISON

A relative of one of the miners trapped underground lights a candle outside a deep underground copper and gold mine near Copiapo, Chile. A top official at NASA says the US space agency will send a team of experts to Chile to help advise how to keep 33 miners trapped deep underground physically and mentally fit until they are rescued.

have ingested it. “Dozens and dozens of them [children with disabilities]. They were severely disabled. While no one can specifically connect Agent Orange with a specific disability, there is a correlation,” said Sr Fiedler. Agent Orange was used by United States forces in Vietnam between 1965 and 1970. A chemical defoliant, it was sprayed from planes to eliminate ground cover for North Vietnamese soldiers and to reduce reliance on subsistence crops. —CNS

CENTENARY CELEBRATION Holy Cross Convent High School, St John’s Primary School and St. John’s Parish in Maitland celebrate 100 years of service to the community. Holy Mass will be celebrated on Tuesday 14 September by His Grace, Archbishop Stephen Brislin at 19h00, in the Holy Cross Convent High School Hall. We invite all who have been part of our schools and parish to join us for this joyous occasion

JOIN US IN BRINGING THE GOOD NEWS TO THE WORLD Contact Father Vincent Mkhabela 076 975 6846 or write to Vocation Co-ordinator Comboni Study Centre, P.O. Box 73514 0040 Lynnwood Ridge, Pretoria

COMMUNITY

The Southern Cross, September 8 to September 14, 2010

Schoenstatt Sister Eleonora Dittrich (centre), superior at Maryland Adult Education Centre in Hanover Park, Cape Town, celebrated her 80th birthday at the Schoenstatt chapel situated on the centre’s premises. Sr Dittrich celebrated her birthday with her fellow nuns and Archbishop emeritus Lawrence Henry. SUBMITTED BY JOHN SAVAGE

IN FOCUS

Edited by Nadine Christians

Send photographs, with sender’s name and address on the back, and a SASE to: The Southern Cross, Community Pics, Box 2372, Cape Town, 8000 or email them to: pics@scross.co.za

The Catholic Chinese Welfare Association in Johannesburg held its 45th Annual Debutantes Ball at the Maronite Community Centre in Woodmead. Miss Debutante 2010 is Su-Nam Chen (seated), with fellow debutantes (from left) Tiffany Chao, Amy Tang, Adelaide Lee and Michelle Lee, Miss Debutante 2009. Pictured with the debutantes are their partners. SUBMITTED BY LILY LOO

Acknowledgement: The photo of the centenary celebration of Sacred Heart parish and the Salesian Institute, submitted by Fr Francois Dufour in the issue of August 25-31, was taken by Karen Rai.

Young parishioner Richard Mundell from Holy Redeemer in East London, received his first Holy Communion from parish priest Fr Robert Kamangu. Pictured with Fr Kamangu and Richard are his parents Karen and Allan. SUBMITTED BY MERVYN GATCKE

CONGREGATION OF MARIANNHILL MISSIONARIES

Ora et Labora The Congregation of the Missionaries of Mariannhill, CMM, sprung from the Trappist Monastery of Mariannhill founded by Abbot Francis Pfanner in South Africa in 1882. We believe that: “Our missionary field is the Kingdom of God and that has not boundaries!” Faithful to the example of Abbot Francis Pfanner, the Mariannhill Brothers and Priests try to be of service to the local church through pastoral, social and development works. We make our contribution to the call for renewing, uplifting, developing and sustaining the human spirit, as our response to the signs and needs of the time. In our missionary life of Prayer and Work (Ora et Labora), we try to effectively proclaim the Good News to all people, especially to the poor and needy, so that there are “Better Fields, Better Houses, Better Hearts!” To know more about us contact: Director of Vocations PO Box 11363, Mariannhill, 3601 or PO Box 85, Umtata, 5099

At the closing celebration of the Year for Priests in the diocese of Aliwal, Bishop Michael Wüstenberg (right), with Fr Constantine Nku, expressed his gratitude for their ministry by presenting Fr Nku with the spiritual reading Jesus Today by Fr Albert Nolan. While giving thanks to the many priests who came from other countries to build and serve the diocese, the bishop said it was time that, despite the shortage of priests, they should share its gift of priesthood with other local Churches. “We cannot always breathe in; we have also to breathe out,” said Bishop Wüstenberg.

LIFE

The Southern Cross, September 8 to September 14, 2010

Abortion: There are alternatives For many women, abortion seems to be the only way out of a crises pregnancy, but there are organisations that offer an alternative. NADINE CHRISTIANS spoke to three of them.

OST South Africans believe abortion is wrong, yet more than half a million abortions were legally performed in the first eight years of the the Choice of Termination of Pregnancy Act of 1997. Pro-life activists are promoting adoption as one alternative to abortion. According to the most recent available statistics on adoptions in South Africa, 1 913 adoptions took place in 2007/08. Of those, 1 682 were national adoptions and 231 were inter-country adoptions. That figure was down from 2005/2006, with 2 323 adoptions. The abortion rate in South Africa far outweighs that of adoption. The Human Science Research Council in a report published in March 2008—the most recent— said that between 1997 and 2005, 526 123 abortions were performed in South Africa. That report stated that the higher the level of education among South Africans, the more likely they would oppose abortion. About 75% of South Africans say that abortion is wrong even if the baby has a defect, while nine out of ten believe abortion is wrong if the family has a low income. The number one reason people say they decide to abort is because they cannot afford to look after the child. There are, however, pro-life organisations that encourage pregnant women to look at the alternatives to abortion. Sally Hall is the executive committee chairwoman of the Cape Town branch of the Right to Live Campaign. The campaign, founded in KwaZulu-Natal, has ten homes across the country, known as Mater Homes, offering care for women in crisis pregnancies or who are suffering abuse. According to Ms Hall, many of the women who make use of their service either give up their babies for adoption or end up keeping them. She said the women are firstly encouraged to keep their babies. “We wanted to provide a place where women in any stage of pregnancy could come, women that wanted to keep and raise their babies or make an adoption plan. We also wanted to accommodate women with existing children, which other shelters often exclude. “Lastly, we wanted to make sure that the Catholic Church was

seen to be offering more than lip service to the teaching on the sanctity of human life,” said Ms Hall. Ms Hall said that official figures of abortion do not provide an accurate picture. Under-reporting of statistics is a “very serious issue that has not been addressed, as the abortion law has rules about how and when abortion figures should be reported”, she said. Ms Hall said that legalised abortion has led to the disempowerment of women. Cape Town’s Mater Domini home operates at a 90% capacity, with women of an average age of 20 making use of the facility, Ms Hall said. “Since September 2007, 145 women and children have been accommodated by us. Sometimes we are so full that we cannot fulfil demand for our services.”

HE Catholic Women’s League (CWL) is another organisation that facilitates adoptions. Connie Jood, a senior social worker in the CWL’s Adoption Society, said there has been a decrease in the number of children available for adoption, especially white, coloured and Indian babies. She emphasised that there are positive alternatives to abortion including “keeping the child by getting the support of a relative and the birthfather; foster care, where the child is placed in alternative care until the parent is able to take care of him or her, and adoption, which is a permanent form of alternative parenting”. Birthright is a national, nondenominational organisation that provides counselling services to pregnant women. Sabrina Porritt, a volunteer at Birthright, told The Southern Cross that it is was important to unlock the courage within the pregnant women. “We are there to show her to consider [adoption] and work with her to think thereon and trust in a higher power to help her through this pregnancy journey. “Many just need to know about the R250 government [grant],” said Mrs Porritt. She said that the alternative to abortion is “hard work for these women/girls” because it means making a commitment to the baby. “For example,” said Mrs Porritt, “you were planning on an abortion, but with encouragement you have decided to have an adoption. “First, you have to face people when they see that you are pregnant—and people will ridicule you. Second, you will have to carry to term and go through the heavy stages of the pregnancy and the labours of birth. Third, you will have to make sure an adoption agency will be with you during that time and take the baby from you at birth,” Mrs Porritt explained.

While many women may resort to a “quick-fix” abortion, some decide to give their babies up for adoption. Many pregnant women have, however, decided to keep the unborn baby. PHOTOS: RIGHT TO LIVE CAMPAIGN

Three South African organisations—Birthright, the Catholic Women’s League and Mater Domini Homes—help pregnant women in crises agree that there are alternatives to abortion. “These are all hard factors that she has to face. Abortion makes one believe it is the easy way out.” Mrs Porritt said that girls as young as 12-years-old make use of their service. All three organisations—Mater Homes, CWL and Birthright—said that situations where a pregnancy ensued after rape must be dealt with particularly sensitively. “The issue is sensitive, but [the mother] has the gift of life growing in her belly, and even though she has been abused, she can get over that,” for example by further-

ing her education through courses. “She must realise that her own life hasn’t been destroyed and she has the opportunity to bring new life into the world,” said Mrs Porritt. The CWL’s Ms Jood added: “Birthmothers who are raped are often referred by hospital social workers or family members. We would counsel them, still focusing on her options.” Though the organisations base their work on Catholic principles, their services are open to all women. “Our services are open to

women of all ages, races, nationalities and religions. We have in fact had very few Catholic women making use of our services,” said Ms Hall. The former minister of social development, Dr Zola Skweyiya, has encouraged adoption. In a statement, Dr Skweyiya said that adoption is “a traditional method of care in the field of child welfare and has for many years been regarded as the most effective means of providing a permanent and stable family life for children in distress”.

The Southern Cross, September 8 to September 14, 2010

LEADER PAGE The Editor reserves the right to shorten or edit published letters. Letters below 300 words receive preference. Pseudonyms are acceptable only under special circumstances and at the Editor’s discretion. Name and address of the writer must be supplied. No anonymous letter will be considered.

Editor: Günther Simmermacher

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Contributing to the Church: A drop in the ocean

The pope in Britain I

HE Catholic Church in Britain may well feel under pressure as preparations for Pope Benedict’s visit to the island this month has been accompanied by a din of hyperbolic criticism of the pontiff. Much of this has come from the expected quarter. Madcap proposals such as having Pope Benedict arrested for supposedly presiding over the cover-up of sexual abuse worldwide could be safely ignored as excitable publicity stunts if they did not reflect a general mood that is being stirred up by a variety of commentators. Even state officials, who drew up and disseminated a satirical and offensive anti-papal memorandum, got in on the act. There is nothing unjust about engaging in robust debate on matters concerning the Catholic Church and its supreme pontiff. Indeed, provided it is grounded in respect, such a dialogue is welcome and necessary. Alas, much of the criticism of the pope and the Church lacks not only in respect, but also in a close relationship with the truth. In that way, Pope Benedict has been held principally responsible for the scandal of the cover-up of sexual abuse of minors in the Church. The image, based mainly on a misunderstood document issued by the thenCardinal Joseph Ratzinger, has been held up as “evidence” so many times that it has taken on a life of its own. It is not unreasonable to examine the pope’s position in the scandal, but such scrutiny must reflect the full story. In the commentaries in Britain’s secular media, it does not always do so. Indeed, there is a palpable whiff of anti-Catholicism about much of the British media. Whatever the causes of antipathy towards the Catholic Church, there is something troubling about the nature in which that opposition sometimes is expressed, in a country where Catholics once were persecuted and not accorded full rights for many centuries.

That history of persecution should not be invoked as a shield from valid and fair criticism, of course. Nonetheless, sometimes public statements regarding the Catholic faith exceed the bounds of fair comment, and should be tempered, because they do rouse sensitivities about the antiCatholicism of old. More than likely, the pope’s visit will draw impressive and enthusiastic crowds. It will help to energise the Church in Britain, and it will communicate to those who maintain a hostile attitude towards the Church that Catholicism in the country is not about to vanish. Likewise, big crowds will also reassure Catholics that the pope is not travelling to an altogether hostile country. The papal visit will most certainly encourage the Church in Britain. It will not solve, however, the ambivalent attitudes of many British Catholics towards the Church’s teachings on artificial contraception, abortion, divorce and homosexuality. There are those who hope that Pope Benedict will emphasise these issues during his visit, believing that Britain has become “the geopolitical epicentre of the culture of death”, as Edmund Adamus, director of pastoral affairs in the archdiocese of Westminster, has suggested. The pope doubtless will address these issues. When he does so, to reach those not persuaded by the Church’s teachings, he will need to measure his words very carefully. More than that, an overemphasis on issues of sexuality and reproduction would shape the media coverage at the expense of other important messages Pope Benedict will bring to Britain, such as the Church’s social teaching and, of course, the Good News of salvation. Many opinion shapers will be watching the pope very closely, ready to feed and exploit any potential controversy. May Pope Benedict walk on the fragile British soil at once with energy and delicacy.

AM so shocked at the attitude of our fellow Catholics. They are always complaining about the financial and fund raising requests to help the Church. One could find that these are the people who expect our priests to visit the sick and dying yet they will not help towards contributing towards the financial side of petrol costs, and so on. Do they expect our priests to walk from point A to point B? Now they complain about the

building of Johannesburg’s new chancery, asking “why must we give?”. Yet the basic contribution, a small amount of R25, is a drop in the ocean. We spend so much money on junk and R25 is a mere pittance. If other Catholics would love to freely donate their R1 000, let them. We expect priests to be there for us to visit the sick, bless our homes, yet we are so selfish that we don’t even want to contribute towards the

Church. The Church still has to feed the poor, educate people and be maintained. And we are the Church. It Makes me wonder what kind of Catholics we are. We make false claims about the abuse of funds and gossip about the cars priests use. Please let those of us who want to donate and give to the Church be; if you don’t want to donate, that’s your problem. Stephanie Callea, Johannesburg

The Church is no democracy

Crucial issues need discussion

being, but only like God. God does not want us to judge, no matter what; judgment is for him alone. About marriage, Jesus said: “What I join together no one can separate.” God will always provide for the family. Even families who have one child sometimes still struggle financially, as a big family does. Priestly celibacy is a question of vocation. The one who becomes a priest devotes himself totally to God; it is a vocation, not a profession. This makes a difference. Mr Pollitt is right that there are a lot of changes around society. Unfortunately for modern people daily life is frantic, their thoughts focused on the materialistic things in life as if they will last forever. When we die, we will not take with us anything of this world except our soul. When we want the Vatican to change according to the needs of this corrupt society, do we realise that we are asking Jesus to change his teaching? Loretta Apostoli, Cape Town

VERY week I continue to read with dismay both letters sent and then published, as well as articles in what is supposed to be a Catholic publication. I fully agree that we all deserve to have our opinion heard and that issues should be debated. That being said, people who call themselves Catholic seem to forget a few fundamental things. Holy Mother Church is first of all not a democracy. Never has been and never will be. If it was it would not have lasted 50 years, never mind nearly 2 000. God was not democratically elected and nor was Jesus. Church doctrine is as it is for a very good reason and it has come to what it is now after hundreds of years of accumulated wisdom. Changing Church doctrine to suit the people of the time would be an incredibly foolish thing to do. With the teaching of the Church you know where you stand, you know where the line is, and that is that. A prime example of the danger of shifting the line is the mess that the worldwide Anglican Communion finds itself in at the moment. When the Holy Father, or his representatives, our local ordinaries, give an instruction, it is our duty to follow their decision given under the authority of their ordination as bishops (apostolic succession). Yes, it is good and right to ask questions to fully understand why things are as they are, and our bishops should as the head of their flocks be accountable for any decision that they make. Our Holy Mother Church was not given to us by Christ simply to make us happy! She is exactly like a Mother; she puts us in line when we need her to. If you are unhappy with the teachings of the Church you really need to ask yourself what it means to be Catholic and why is it that you still consider yourself to be one. David Sprong, Durban

ANY thoughtful, faithful Catholics—lay people, priests and religious—are unhappy about the way the Church is being run by the Vatican. The men in Rome are too tightly conservative, and their views are never subjected to proper and reasonable discussion. They are not wholly in touch with the thoughts and intuitions of many of the faithful. What we need, I believe, is a resurgence of the spirit and the ideas of Pope John XXIII. He believed in sincere discussion of crucial issues, and for that reason summoned the great Second Vatican Council. We need a full and proper theological consideration of a number of issues, many of which the current Vatican has declared to be closed: the handling of paedophile priests, the collegiality of bishops, the role and status of the laity, the new Latinised English missal, artificial birth control, married priests, women priests, homosexuality. We should not be afraid to discuss these issues and get at the true mind of the Catholic Church. The Holy Spirit will guide us to the best conclusions. Colin Gardner, Pietermaritzburg

Humanae Vitae a mistake

HE letter from Mervyn Pollitt (August 18) hits the nail on the head. Our beloved Archbishop Denis Hurley would indeed be shocked at the way our increasingly centralised Church is moving. For instance, what has happened to the implementation of Lumen Gentium the collegiate of Vatican II? Humanae Vitae is now widely ignored and judged by many to be a mistake, and priestly celibacy could and should be made a choice. These are not divine rules, they are damaging to the Church and to the people and can be changed by the stroke of a papal pen. The Church needs to be more progressive in many ways. Fr Douglas Hutton, Hermanus

Change Jesus’ teachings?

ERVYN Pollitt in his “Church Crisis” mentioned the sex abuse scandal. It was horiffic, but we should also remember the massive amount of good done by priests and missionaries around the world, many of whom have been persecuted. They are a blessing grace and they keep our Church intact, not the minority of priests who tried to disintegrate and break our belief. The pope (and we should do likewise), can’t think as a human Opinions expressed in The Southern Cross, especially in Letters to the Editor, do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editor or staff of the newspaper, or of the Catholic hierarchy. The letters page in particular is a forum in which readers may exchange opinions on matters of debate. Letters must not be understood to necessarily reflect the teachings, disciplines or policies of the Church accurately.

Too few to lead

EN years ago we entered the 21st century with the anticipation of the world becoming a better place. It is doubtful whether this has indeed happened. We’re experiencing a hugly depressed economy worldwide, the Amazon basin is being depleted of its life-giving forests, diminishing ice floes are the cause of the number of drowned polar bears, pornography is increasing on the internet, and so on. The Church has always been a moral leader in the world, but yet, since the turn of the century, the Church has been in the news for mostly the wrong reasons. In addition, there is a dire shortage of priests. Surely the writing is on the wall indicating a growing lack of enthusiasm in young men to join the priesthood. Perhaps now is the time to follow in the shoes of the Maronite priests in encouraging married men to become priests. This need not be a major train smash as celibate priests and married men (or women) could work side by side for the benefit of all. After all, it was a man-made ruling that took the Church in a new direction after men with wives and children, for the initial 300 years, laid the foundation for the church. Pat Dacey, Johannesburg

Nature of suffering

HY am I suffering by choice? Salvation, safety, ministry, marriage, relationships, health, homes, vehicles and finance problems? The glory tide is rising and revelation is coming like never before unto the cross of Jesus. The cross of revelation, healing, peace and glory. But Jesus himself said unto his diciples: “If any man will come after me let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me” Matthew 16:24-28. This is the key to breaking free from the low of sin and death, releasing God’s love in you. Thank you for the Education for Life Programme. Daniel Phiri, Roodepoort

PERSPECTIVES Toni Rowland

Family Friendly

Turning a child away

WAS upset recently to hear that a child might not be allowed to make his First Communion because he has missed Mass on more than the permitted number of occasions. What is that saying to us? There is no doubt that there is a problem with Mass attendance, but is the way to address the problem to blackmail a family into taking a child to Mass? At just the same time I came across a piece in The Southern Cross in which Cardinal Llovera, of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments, said that children should be allowed to receive Communion earlier because they are maturing earlier. He went on to say that seeing First Communion as a reward is erroneous. It is the beginning of a journey with Jesus, food for the journey of life. I strongly believe that our faith is about nurturing a relationship with Jesus, something very precious and important for young children that can too easily be damaged by legalistic approaches. This relationship should of course be nurtured first of all at home in the family, by parents or grandparents or whoever. The family is the child’s primary educator. Having been a catechist, I do understand the dilemma of priests and catechists in these times of a much more relaxed attitude about Sunday Mass and the practise of one’s faith, but are we turning people away from the Church or from Jesus rather than welcoming them if we refuse to marry them, bury them, baptise their children, restrict them from the Eucharist or confirmation? There is no easy answer. My response would be a greater family focus, helping families to make their faith a part of their life at home. Also important is a growing sensitivity towards the parish as a community of families and the fact that families are dealing with many issues in their lives and that they need Jesus to be present in their own homes and relationships. That is not only the task of catechists, but of the whole community. Pope John Paul II in his letter Familiaris Consortio, in which he calls a family an intimate community of life and love, has also noted as the first task of a family “to build the intimate community”. Families don’t only have needs such as marriage preparation or parenting skills, they also have a spirituality of their own that has to be taught in order to help them to build their intimate community of life and love. Otherwise they could just be a group of good, even holy, people living side by side in the same house. A family-friendly parish actively promotes this spirituality which finds God present in marriage, sex, parenting, relationships with youth and older members, death, divorce. A familyfriendly parish has a constant vision of the Church of the home, with the parish as a gathering of these little churches for communal worship on a Sunday. It may be a pipe-dream, but I continue to promote the vision. Take just a few practical examples that could enrich both parish and family life. When children are prepared for the sacraments are there some meaningful events that include the parents/family? Are they encouraged to celebrate a time of reconciliation at home and a family prayer meal that can help to deepen their understanding of the sacraments? Could Confirmation meaningfully be linked to other “coming-of-age” or initiation rites where young people are taught to take responsibility for themselves? How can a family reflect on this together? Is the sacrament of marriage—not the wedding—celebrated in the parish with couples being recognised and valued? Are couples giving testimonies of the good and not good times? During the bidding prayers at Mass do we pray specifically enough for relevant family issues? Is there merit in celebrating Grandparents’ Day on the feast of Ss Joachim and Anne, or Women’s Month around the Assumption, or Heritage Month as an opportunity to celebrate our diversity and combat xenophobia in the Church? Did anyone note the week of prayer for prisoners and their families? In November will we walk alongside those who have lost a loved one as well as pray for the repose of their souls? Will that happen at home? A family-friendly parish sees everything through family eyes, which does include everyone. It need not be difficult to adopt such a mindset and plenty of resources are available. (There is a workshop on parish family ministry coming up soon. Contact me for more information.) And please try by all means possible not to refuse children their First Communion. Would Jesus want to turn a child away from his table?

The Southern Cross, September 8 to September 14, 2010

Newman’s comeback Last week in the fifth part of Fr Austin’s series on the life of Cardinal John Henry Newman, who will be beatified by Pope Benedict in September, we saw how Cardinal Newman attracted suspicion from the Holy Office at a time when Vatican I adopted the dogma of papal infallibility.

OME years before the controversy over the definition of papal infallibility, Fr Newman had been embroiled in another controversy that was to result in the publication of an autobiography of a special sort. What Pope John XXIII was to call the Journal of a Soul in plain direct language, Fr Newman, publishing his a hundred years before, called by a long Latin title that is rather offputting and inaccessible to us today: Apologia Pro Vita Sua, or The Vindication of his Life. The occasion for Newman to publish his spiritual experiences and inner thoughts—which must have gone against the grain for him—was an attack by an Anglican historian at Cambridge, the Reverend Charles Kingsley, of Water Babies fame. Although never having met Newman, he made a personal attack on him in a book review: “Truth for its own sake has never been a virtue with the Roman clergy. Fr Newman informs us that it need not, and on the whole, ought not to be.” Newman wrote to Macmillan’s Magazine, in which the review had been published, demanding an immediate retraction. Kingsley replied in the next issue with what sounded like an apology, but still implied that Newman was a liar. Further letters were exchanged, but not to Newman’s satisfaction, so he began to compose a long defence of his life and his religious ideals. Sometimes he wrote as many as 16 hours a day; once he was at his desk for 24 hours straight. When he finally laid down his pen two months later, the result was a classic of autobiographical writing. As he remarked: “Truth is better demonstrated through narrating a life than through ‘paper logic’.” The book was an instant success. Public opinion, which had either ignored or remained hostile to Newman since his conversion to Catholicism some 20 years before, now began to change in his favour. Congratulations poured in from all sides. Catholics at last began to sense his genius and the great personal cost of his conversion. Many of his old Anglican friendships were renewed. It became another turning-point in his life. It restored to him the respect of many which had been lacking for so long. Muriel Spark, herself a convert and an English

Michael Austin SJ

The Newman Chronicles novelist, has described the Apologia as “the saddest love story in the world”. Thus restored, early the following year, 1865, he felt compelled to write again. The subject was very different. The Dream of Gerontius tells of the death of man of faith who has lived life to the full. He is a good man but not a saint. He has been saved; he will get to heaven; but first he must be purified. The poem movingly describes Gerontius on his death-bed and his personal judgment. Within the poem are two hymns familiar to us: “Firmly I Believe” and “Praise to the Holiest”. In 1899 the musician Edward Elgar had received a copy of the poem as a wedding present. He set the text to music and it was first performed in Birmingham in 1900. It is a firm favourite among the oratorios of Handel and Mendelssohn.

y the late 1870s Newman’s long life seemed to be drawing to a close. Many years earlier, soon after his conversion, he had written to a friend: “We are called into God’s Church for some thing; not for nothing surely. Let us wait and be cheerful, and be sure that good is destined for us, and that we are, too, made useful.” In the last pages of his private journal, Newman reveals his feelings of failure and wonderment over the misunderstandings and injustices he had suffered from certain individuals within the Church. The final chapter of his long life was written in a way he never expected. As principal of the University of Dublin, he had been informed that he was to be made a bishop. His opponents had blocked the appointment and had caused him embarrassment. Now the suspicions and misunderstandings that had dogged him for over 30 years suddenly dissolved. A brief entry in his journal explains why: “Since writing the above, I have been made a cardinal.” A new pope in Rome and a gradual realisation within the Catholic community of his enormous gifts and great love and devotion to the Church had caused Newman to be named a cardinal by Pope Leo XIII in 1879. He accepted the honour, not because it was high ecclesiastical office, but for what it represented. “The cloud is lifted from me for ever”, he told his community at the Birmingham Oratory. The journey that had commenced some 60 years before while still a teenager at school was now nearing its completion.  See next week for the final article in Fr Austin’s series on Cardinal Newman’s life.

Clifford M Yeary

Hearing the Good News

Citizens in the kingdom of God

N true prophetic tradition, Jesus taught and revealed through actions as well as through words. Even where and how he taught was in itself an important sign of his authority and purpose. The Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) tells us much about Jesus even before we hear the first beatitude. “When he saw the crowds, he went up the mountain, and after he had sat down, his disciples came to him. He began to teach them…” (5:1-2a). Mountains, in biblical tradition, are the places for encounters with God, and in the Old Testament, the most important one of all is Sinai, where Moses receives the Ten Commandments. It is from Sinai, then, and through Moses, that Israel receives its foundational understanding of their covenant with God. Those in religious authority in Jesus’ time taught from a seated position (see Matthew 23:12). That Jesus goes up the mountain and sits to teach is a clear indication from Matthew that Jesus’ teaching is at least as authoritative for Israel as Moses’ teaching. Not far into the Sermon on the Mount, we learn that Jesus is a teacher even greater than Moses. In Matthew 5:21-22 we read: “You have heard that it was said to your ancestors, ‘You shall not kill; and whoever kills will be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you, whoever is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment.” The commandment against killing is one of the Ten Commandments Moses delivered to Israel. Jesus’ teaching assumes the authority to add to or even change the Law of Moses. Traditionally, the accounts of Jesus’ miracles have been regarded as demonstrations of Jesus’ divinity, but they also make a very loud and certain statement about the mysterious nature of what Jesus called “the kingdom of God” (usually referred to as the kingdom of heaven in Matthew). Many of us have grown accustomed to thinking of “heaven” as the kingdom of God, but biblically speaking, that kingdom is meant to be understood as a heavenly reality that seeks to make its home on earth. In Mark’s gospel we are introduced to Jesus’ ministry by way of the message Jesus proclaimed: “This is the time of fulfilment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the Gospel” (1:15). The Gospel, the Good News that Jesus preached, was that the reality of God’s reign over human affairs was at hand—it was so close you could almost touch it. There were different expectations of what that meant in Jesus’ time. Many probably scoffed at the whole idea. Others would have been intensely awaiting a Messiah who would liberate Israel from its Roman oppressors. For those who associated the coming of the kingdom of God with “the day of the Lord”, it would have been regarded as a message of doom and gloom. The prophet Amos’s warning is clear in that regard (5:18): “Woe to those who yearn for the day of the Lord! What will this day of the Lord mean for you? Darkness and not light!” John the Baptist was preparing Israel for what he called “the coming wrath” (Luke 3:7). What kind of message did Jesus send concerning the kingdom of God? It was a mixed message. Those who ignored his message were warned that its coming was indeed a judgment against them. “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty deeds done in your midst had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would long ago have repented in sackcloth and ashes” (Matthew 11:21). It is the deeds done in their midst that is the message they should have understood. The key to Jesus’ message, however, is in the people’s experience of Jesus as the one who introduces them to the nearness (the reality in his person) of the kingdom of God. The kingdom of God comes to them in the experience of being healed and being forgiven. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus teaches that we must forgive those who offend us, we must love our enemies, we must be reconciled with each other. When we behave in that way, God’s will is being done on earth as it is in heaven. The kingdom of God is near. In Jesus’ miracles, however, the sick, the hungry, the needy and the neglected of human society experience the society of God—citizenship in the kingdom of God. They are healed, forgiven, fed and welcomed back into fellowship with God’s people.  Clifford M Yeary is an associate director of Little Rock Scripture Study in Arkansas. This article was originally published in the Arkansas Catholic, newspaper of the diocese of Little Rock. It is the fifth in a series of 13 articles which explore the four gospels.

FOCUS

The Southern Cross, September 8 to September 14, 2010

‘Second council’ of Trent’ a vision for the future ANTHONY EGAN SJ attended the “Second Council of Trent” recently and came home with hope and disappointment.

OR those who participated in it, the recent international conference on Catholic theological ethics held in Trento, Italy, was a landmark event. Some local Trentinos must have imagined that history was repeating itself in their lovely city. Large groups of people from every race and nation walking around their town, eating in their restaurants, worshipping in the cathedral (in about five languages) and drinking in their pubs. And all of them, so those Trentinos who listened in told the others, were talking theology! The last time that happened

here, there was a Reformation going on. Was it happening again? Well, not really, though I suspect many of us who were there would have liked it to be so. The second conference of Catholic Theological Ethics in a World Church had no official status. We were over 600 in number, from 70 countries—in other words, more than doubling that recent series of football matches that excited so many people. Between a third and a half of those present were lay people, including many women. Bishops numbered eight in all, including our own Kevin Dowling of Rustenburg. Our ages ranged from mid20s graduate students to theologians who had begun their careers before Vatican II (but well after the other Trent). There were about eight of us from South Africa, including Bishop Dowling (who presented a very

Moral theologians mingle in Trent. Fr Anthony Egan SJ writes that a recent conference in Trento, site of the Council of Trent, gave cause for hope but also some disappointment.

well-received talk on HIV/Aids), Sr Alison Munro of the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference’s Aids Desk, Fr Peter-John Pearson of the Catholic Parliamentary Liaison Office, Fr Peter Knox SJ, and myself. I was also privileged to be able to present a paper, on just war theory during the anti-apartheid struggle. The Council of Trent held over 25 sessions between 1545 and 1563. It represented an official Catholic response (for good and ill) to the Protestant Reformation. Although originally planned as a dialogue between Catholic and Protestant, it became an in-house exercise in Catholic self-reform and an opportunity to condemn (real or imagined) Protestant heresies. It was also an all-clergy affair: bishops and their theological advisors (all priests) attended.

o what was our Trent about? Its title “In the Currents of History: From Trent to the Future” offers a clue. Catholic theological ethicists (moral and systematic theologians, historians, sociologists and philosophers) engaged with a range of issues (medicine and health, conflict, economic and social inequality, sexuality and family, etc) and approached them from a number of angles (scripture, tradition, reason and experience). Within each of these areas and others that comprised about 240 scholarly presentations (all limited to 15 minutes talking time, no matter the scholar’s professional or ecclesial status) debate was fierce yet friendly. Quite often these disagreements pointed to moral tensions in the Church itself. One common theme transcended the discussions: the need for dialogue. From the opening speech of the conference organiser Fr James Keenan SJ of Boston College, USA, who said that “moral

The cathedral of San Vigilio in Trento, built in the 12th and 13th centuries. PHOTO: ITALIANVISITS.COM

theology is the most pragmatic form of theology”, through the eighty-odd concurrent sessions, the need for dialogue—and the terrible effects when dialogue is blocked —was emphasised. Moral theology needs to dialogue with hard sciences (physics, medicine, technology and so on) and soft sciences (sociology, anthropology, politics) as much as with philosophy. If it is to be relevant to real life itself, it must engage too with history, race, class, and gender. And it must be in dialogue with the Church. The latter highlighted an underlying tension at the conference. With a few notable exceptions (including Kevin Dowling), many theologians felt that the Catholic hierarchy simply did not bother to listen to them. In contrast to the first Trent and before—especially in the Middle Ages when bishops and popes readily sought the advice of theological scholars at great universities like Paris and Bologna—the

hierarchy tend to listen only to Rome and to “court theologians” who merely repeat the official “line”. Any questioning is treated as disloyalty or simply ignored. Unhealthy and, from the history mentioned above, quite un-traditional, this is a dangerous polarisation in the Church and, at worst, denial of the need for constant reform acknowledged by both the Council of Trent and Vatican II. I came away from our Trent partly saddened by the latter, but also hopeful: that theologians dedicated to the Church and faith can come together and dialogue over the great issues of our time. With its mixture of bishops, priests, religious, laypeople, men and women I even had a dream of what Vatican III could look like.  Fr Anthony Egan SJ works at the Jesuit Institute South Africa in Johannesburg. He also lectures part-time in moral theology and applied ethics at St Augustine College of South Africa.

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The Southern Cross, September 8 to September 14, 2010

Sean O’Riordan

EAN O’Riordan (also known as John O’Riordan), who served as a priest in South Africa, died in Youghal, Ireland, on August 15 at the age of 80. He served as an Irish Mercy priest in Lady Frere and authored a number of books, including a well-known text on how to learn Xhosa. As a priest he advocated that the Church have a bigger role in community development. For him, being a priest meant being as close to the community as possible. He is remembered as always lending a hand and working to communicate with anybody he

met as an equal. Fr O’Riordan left the priesthood at the age of 44, married Erica Duzzy and had three children, Alexander, Brendan and Matthew. He returned to Ireland when he was 73. To the end he remained passionate about his work in South Africa; he was always enthusiastic when talking about the communities in South Africa where he was able to work on farming technologies and contribute to better community relations. Mr O’Riordan had an intense love of languages, believing that better communication was key to resolving conflict. He will be greatly missed as both a loving

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IN MEMORIAM

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Br Mike Maher CFC

HRISTIAN Brother Ernest Anthony “Mike” Maher died on August 11 at Sunward Park hospital in Boksburg, just short of his 74th birthday. Born August 29, 1936, he went to school at St Dominic’s Convent and Christian Brothers College (CBC). He joined the Christian Brothers teaching order in 1952. He taught at many of the Brothers’ schools throughout South Africa: at St Columba’s in Athlone, Cape Town and in Kimberley, Bloemfontein, Springs (where he was principal for six years) and Boksburg, where he was deputy principal for 15 years. He spent his last years in the Christian Brothers community in Boksburg. Mike, as he was known to everybody, was a very dedicated educator, and he was particularly appreciated as a mathematics teacher. He had a very good singing voice and was never happier than when listening to classical music, and of course there was his deep interest in the pipe band. He looked after the pipe band in Cape Town and Kimberley, and actually

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resurrected it in Boksburg when he was transferred there in 1986. He was also a very good sportsman and coach—while in Kimberley he played both league cricket and tennis. He did not really recover after falling and fracturing his back in May this year. His funeral was at St Dominic’s in Boksburg and was attended by a large crowd of Brothers, family, friends and admirers. Archbishop Buti Tlhagale was in attendance, as was Bishop Graham Rose of Dundee who was a pupil of Br Mike’s in CBC Kimberley. Three of his family played the pipes at his graveside. He is survived by his elder brother, Paddy, and his younger sister, Sister Jordana, a Newcastle Dominican Sister. Jerome McCarthy CFC

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BARTUS—Edward. Passed away September 10, 2009. The year passed away so quickly, we miss you so much. Rest in peace Dad, till we meet again. Lovingly remembered by your wife Doreen, sons, daughters, sons-in-law, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. BARTUS—Edward. September 10, 2009. You will always be close to our hearts, Dad. May your soul rest in peace. From Sharlotte and Brian. BARTUS – Edward. In loving memory of our father and grandpa who passed away September 10, 2009. Forever in our hearts and thoughts, never to be forgotten. From Vivienne, Neil, Roger, Theresa, Thelia, Edwina, Joseph, Darren and Megan. BARTUS—Edward. In loving memory of our father, grandpa and great-grandpa, who passed away September 10, 2009. Remembering you in all we do and say and knowing someday we will meet with you again. Forever in our hearts, from Charmaine, Robert, Melissa, Gavin, Clinton, Brandon and Kristen. BARTUS—Edward. In loving memory of our dearest Dad, grandpa and greatgrandpa, who passed away September 10, 2009. With every smile and word of cheer you’re both a legacy in these hearts that mourn you here. With lots of love, missing you always. From Brenda, Benedict, Jillian, Fagain, Carmelita, Keenah and Cloe.

PERSONAL

Thoughts for the Week on the Family FAMILY CALENDAR 2010 FAMILY THEME: “Families Play the Game.” SEPTEMBER : A SPORTING TRADITION 12th 24th Sunday. Christ who welcomes sinners. The parable of the Forgiving Father or the Prodigal Son is well known. At times we fit into both of those roles. In sports and other activities do we ever cheat? Do we every need to grant or ask forgiveness in our families too? The story can be acted out or applied in our own families as an opportunity for reconciliation. 15th Our Lady of Sorrows. This is one of many feastdays of Mary but one that many families can relate to as we all experience the pain of hurt and disappointment in simple and big ways, even just in losing a game.

Mass readings for the week Sundays year C, weekdays cycle 2

Sun September 12, 24th Sunday of the year: Ex 32: 7-11,13-14; Ps 51:3-4,12-13, 17,19; 1 Tm 1:1217; Lk15:1-32 Mon September 13, St John Chrysotom: 1 Cor 11:17-26,33; Ps 40:7-10,17; Lk 7:1-10 Tue September 14, Triumph of the Holy Cross: Nm 21:4-9 or Phil 2:6-11; Ps 78:1-2,3,4-38; Jn 3:13-17 Wed September 15, Our Lady of Sorrows: Heb 5:7-9; Ps 31:2-6,16-16,20; Jn 19:25-27 or Lk2:33354 Thur September 16, Ss Cornelius and Cyprian: 1 Cor 15:1-11; Ps 118:1-2,16-17,28; Lk 7:36-50 Fri September 17, St Robert Bellarmine: 1 Cor 15:12-20; Ps 17:1, 6-8,15; Lk 8:1-3 Sat September 18, feria: 1 Cor 15:35-37,42-49; Ps 56:10-14; Lk 8:4-15 Sun September 19, 25th Sunday of the year: Am 6: 1,4-7; Ps 146:7-10; 1 Tm 6:11-16; Lk16:19-31

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PRAYERS

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Jesus Christ, faithful intercessor of all who invoke you, special patron in time of need. To you I have recourse from the depth of my heart and humbly beg you to come to my assistance. Help me now in my urgent need and grant my petitions. In return I promise to make your name known and publish this prayer. Amen. EM.

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November, December and January, the students’ rooms are available for holiday guests. We offer selfcatering accommodation, parking in secure premises. Short walks to shops, transport etc. Contact Jock 021 685 7370, fax 021 686 2342 or 082 308 0080 or kolbe.house@telkomsa.net MARIANELLA Guest House, Simon’s Town: “Come experience the peace and beauty of God with us.” Fully equipped with amazing sea views. Secure parking, ideal for rest and relaxation. Special rates for pensioners and clergy. Tel: Malcolm Salida 082 784 5675 or mjsalida@mweb.co.za SEA POINT: Double room, own bathroom in heart of this prestigious suburb, near all amenities. Tel: 072 236 2996. SOUTH COAST: 3 bedroom house, Marine Drive, Uvongo Tel: Donald 031 465 5651, 073 989 1074. STELLENBOSCH: Five simple private suites (2 beds, fridge, microwave). Countryside vineyard/forest/moun tain walks; beach 20 minute drive. Affordable. Christian Brothers Tel: 021 880 0242 / cbc—stel@mweb.co.za STRAND: Beachfront flat to let. Stunning views. Fully furnished and equipped. Garage, one bedroom, sleeper couch in lounge. R375 per night for two people.  Brenda 082 822 0607. UMHLANGA ROCKS: Fully equipped self-catering 3 bedroom, 2 bath room house, sleeps 6, sea view, 200 metres from beach, DStv. Tel: Holiday Division, 031 561 5838, holidays@lighthouse.co.za

UPHOLSTERER More than 50 years of experience guarantees you satisfaction.

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Accounts: Desirée Chanquin (accounts@scross.co.za) Published independently by the Catholic Newspaper & Publishing Company Ltd, Cape Town Opinions expressed in this newspaper do not necessarily reflect those of the editor, staff or directors of The Southern Cross. The Southern Cross is a member of the Audit Bureau of Circulations of South Africa. Printed by Paarl Post, 8 Jan van Riebeeck Drive, Paarl. Published by the proprietors, The Catholic Newspaper & Publishing Co Ltd, at the company’s registered office, 10 Tuin Plein, Cape Town, 8001.

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25th Sunday – Year C (September 19th) Readings: Amos 8:4-7, Psalm 113:1-2, 4-8 1 Timothy 2:1-8, Luke 16:1-13

E tend complacently to assume that if we have a bit of wealth, that is a sign that God is very pleased with us; sadly, it may only be a sign that we are very pleased with ourselves, and that God is offering a challenge to us. The challenge is loud and clear in next Sunday’s readings. Consider first the ranting of Amos, a southerner laying into the northerners for their injustice, for the economic prosperity that came at the expense of God’s poor. He does not hold back: “Listen to this, you who trample on the poor...”; and as we listen we should notice the categories whom God’s prophet defends “the poor”, “the oppressed of the land”, “the lowly”. The northern kingdom was a great success in the middle of the 8th century BC, but they had to be told that the price of their success was not worth it, especially as they gave it a religious veneer. They had been looking impatiently at their watches, to see if they could finish the Sabbath (and start trading); but the prophet says, to their horror, no doubt: “The Lord has sworn an oath, by the pride of Jacob, ‘I’ll never forget all their deeds’.”

Money and God’s challenge to us Fr Nicholas King SJ

Scriptural Reflections The psalm is part of the Great Hallel, which Jesus and his disciples will have sung on the night of the Last Supper. It is a song of praise to the most high God, “Praise, O servants of the Lord, praise the name of the Lord”. But this God is not so elevated that he is above all human needs, as the psalm acknowledges: “He raises the poor from the dust, and the needy from the ash heap, to make them sit down with princes, with the princes of the people.” At first sight the second reading for next Sunday might seem to be playing a rather different tune, for in it the author instructs his hearers to make various kinds of prayers for “kings and all those who are in authority”, but we have to remember that they are being

asked to pray for the Roman powers, who were not at this stage especially well-disposed towards the Christian group. And the purpose of the prayer is not the well-being of the upper classes, but “that we might live a tranquil and peaceful life, in all piety and devotion”. The real reason has nothing to do with the human plight, but with the fact that there is “one God, and also one mediator between God and human beings, the human being Jesus Christ”. And within that, the author proudly proclaims that “I have been appointed a herald and apostle for this...a teacher of the nations in faith and truth”. So everyone is to pray, “lifting up holy hands, with no rage or argumentation”. There is a challenge here. The challenge is even clearer in the gospel for next Sunday. Jesus starts off by telling a thoroughly subversive parable, about a wealthy man (and in Luke’s gospel these tend to be up to no good), who sacks his steward because “he was slandered” (so the charge is not true) as having “squandered his possessions”. There is no proper trial; he just gets the push, and we are allowed to eavesdrop on, and to admire, the resourceful steward’s

thoughts, as he makes friends among his master’s creditors by allowing them to rewrite their bills (“take your documents, and write fifty”). Then comes an interesting moment, when we hear that “the Lord praised the steward for his iniquity”. Now who is this “Lord”? Is it Jesus, or is it the steward’s boss? Either way, it is a thoroughly subversive tale. Then our confusion is increased as Luke adds on a series of sayings about money: “The sons of this age,” presumably people like the steward, are praised for their superior intelligence. Then we are encouraged to make friends among the Mammon of Iniquity: “So that when it fails they may receive you into the eternal tents.” We scratch our heads in puzzlement, but he continues with further reflections on money: about being faithful in small matters as well as in large matters, about being reliable with other people’s money. Perhaps the light dawns when we get to the final sentence: “No one can be the servant of two Lords.” So, this week, the challenging choice lies before us: are we to be slaves of God or of Mammon? What is your answer going to be?

On our doorstep: Banned T

HERE currently is considerable debate and anxiety with regard to the African National Congress’ proposed Media Appeals Tribunal and the Protection of Information Bill. Naturally the media have been vociferously opposed to this legislation, as have freedom of expression, human rights and pro-democracy organisations both at home and abroad. Even South Africa’s most powerful voice of labour, Cosatu, has voiced its strong opposition. The perception has been created worldwide that this is all about muzzling the press. Of course, our news media are hardly blameless. They do get things wrong more often than they should, quite frankly. But freedom of the press is like pregnancy. Either you are pregnant or you are not. There are no degrees of pregnancy. Similarly, from the point of view of pure perception (which after all is far more powerful than reality), there are no degrees of press freedom—either it is free or it is not. History has shown that it is far better to have a fallible free press than no free press at all. However much the ANC might argue that the Media Appeals Tribunal is not intended to muzzle the media, the problem is that once the thin edge of the wedge is in the door, it becomes very tempting to push it in a bit further. And then a bit more. For anybody in authority, censorship is an extremely easy trap to fall into, almost without realising that it is happening.

CONRAD “FATHER DOESN’T SEE IT AS A CARBON EMISSION, RATHER AS THE ODOUR OF SANCTITY!”

Chris Moerdyk

The Last Word For example, in our own Catholic community in South Africa, we have among the vast majority of priests who support this newspaper, a tiny minority who have taken it upon themselves to censor The Southern Cross. Believe it or not, there are parish priests who actively prevent their congregations from getting hold of The Southern Cross in the very much mistaken belief that they have the right to do so. Imagine if one of them told his congregation from the pulpit not to buy and read the Sunday Times or The Cape Argus because he disapproved of their editorial policies? His parishioners would be incensed. Yet, he is happy to ban our paper, even without the support of his parish council, by simply not putting it out as usual or cancelling the regular weekly order. And his parishioners wonder why they have no access to their Catholic newspaper—or even blame us for ignoring them! The response to this censorship is contained in a copy of a letter that was recently sent on by the circulations coordinator of The Southern Cross to one such parish priest: “Although you feel that The Southern

Cross manifestly contains much that is of great spiritual value, it is giving space to opinions which you, Father, feel are harmful to readers, is a consideration which outweighs any good matter provided. It is our view that, especially in times such as the present, when so many troubles beset the Church, it is imperative that the faithful have an opportunity to have their say. Their opinions are important and they need to be expressed and brought out into the open. Yes, sometimes extreme or objectionable views will surface, but we must be mature enough to take these in our stride and deal with them charitably. “It is good that we should know that these views exist, otherwise our knowledge of the community to which we belong would be incomplete. We often feel that had there been a Catholic press—and, of course, a literate population—in the 15th and 16th centuries willing and able, complete with strident letter pages, to expose the heated debates and the grave abuses then rampant in the Church, we might well have been spared the Reformation and the resultant situation of a fractured Christianity, plus all the horrors which it brought about. “In support of this view may we quote two eminent persons? Thomas Merton in Life and Holiness writes: ‘Though there are real abuses always present in any institution, even in the Church, they must be faced with honesty, humility and love…[Christians] must face the truth of these imperfections in order to see that the Church does not merely exist to do everything for them, to sanctify them passively. On the contrary, it is now time for them to give to their community from their own heart’s blood and to participate actively and generously in all its struggles.’ “Cardinal John Foley, the recently retired President of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications, speaking to a gathering of Catholic journalists: ‘Your first responsibility is not to offer our own opinions, not to filter events through the prism of our own preconceptions or even our own convictions, but to provide an objective, dispassionate and complete account of the news’.” The Southern Cross’ editorial independence has the backing of the bishops, and its editorial policy to provide a forum for widely divergent opinion follows Vatican social communication guidelines. Banning it is not a priestly right. It is censorship.

Southern Crossword #409

ACROSS 1. Joseph’s was colourful (4) 3. Learners in charge (8) 9. Kind of line for hanging up (7) 10. Her song for Christmas? (5) 11. Sacrament that makes certain? (12) 13. He could be of Mary Immaculate (6) 15. Abandon wilderness (6) 17. Cathedral city of gold? (11) 20. Not asleep (5) 21. Shake (7) 22. Simplified (4,4) 23. Our burden (4)

DOWN 1.Dawn of Peter’s denial (8) 2. Decorate (5) 4. Begin again the summary (6) 5. What you may do the day Lent begins (4,3,5) 6. What rust will do to ore cord (7) 7. You are the… of the earth (Mat 5) (4) 8. Night before Nativity (9,3) 12. Stars egg and walks shakily (8) 14. Lend oar for saint (7) 16. Joins in marriage (6) 18. Pope of the city? (5) 19. All is…, all is bright (4)

SOLUTIONS TO #408. ACROSS: 3 Colosseum, 8 Eras, 9 Alleviate, 10 Totals, 11 Unity, 14 Caste, 15 Sari, 16 Rides, 18 Slav, 20 Tidal, 21 Leave, 24 Garter, 25 Yesterday, 26 Acre, 27 Holy Night. DOWN: 1 Pentecost, 2 Baptismal, 4 Oils, 5 Ocean, 6 Saints, 7 Unto, 9 Alter, 11 Undue, 12 Yardstick, 13 Killarney, 17 Stray, 19 Vestry, 22 Verdi, 23 Hero, 24 GATT.

CHURCH CHUCKLE

little girl, in Church for the first time, watched as ushers passed the collection plates through the pews. When they neared the pew where she sat,the youngster piped up so that everyone could hear: “Don’t pay for me Daddy, I’m under five.”

Send us your favourite Catholic joke, preferably clean and brief, to The Southern Cross, Church Chuckle, PO Box 2372, Cape Town, 8000.